Mari shakes her head, saying, "No, this ship came straight out of the Sun, not through the Far Portal." Watching Ordyt test the lower gravity, she grins. "I hope it's on purpose, I quite like this setting."
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The pressurization completes with a pop, but nothing changes otherwise in the airlock chamber until Flint reaches out and touches the inner door leading map-east. At even the slightest touch, it irises open to reveal a much larger room.
This large chamber is clad with burnished brass. Thick eye rings and braided metal chains are integrated into the walls. While the storage containers for this room are missing, its fairly clear that its function was intended to be a cargo bay. As you enter, you hear a metallic thumping resonating from the walls - it seems to be coming from somewhere deeper within the ship.
In the map-southeast corner of the room sits a large cargo lifting exoskeleton, its frame made of more ordinary metals in comparison to the brass covering the ship. The cargo lifter seems to be locked into a charging station of some kind.
A double-wide iris door sits to map-north.
"You may be right at that, Belmarniss. The writing in Ignan and the decor suggest beings from the plane of fire. What do you think, Sammad?"
While he is waiting for an answer, Flint looks around for an exit from this small chamber (it is difficult to tell on the map where a door might be), and moves to open it unless someone else wants to check it out first.
[dice=Perception on the door]1d20+0
Sammad takes a look around, then nods at Flint. "I'd wager you're right, Captain. The decor certainly evokes the Plane of Fire, though it's a touch more fanciful than the Al-Fayir vessels I've seen. And no other plane's residents would leave Ignan without another language alongside it."
He sidles up to the inscription, taking a moment to read it in his head. "Very curious. I think Belmarniss may be right in her theory...a ship such as this one should be prominently marked. The identifier being removed is...concerning." He reaches under his coat and checks the holster on his pistol. "I'm hoping to be diplomatic, but I suggest we be wary."
Looking at the cargo room, Flint muses, ”This room looks like it has never been used for cargo—no scratches on the walls. Could this ship be straight out of the shipyard? That might explain the unfilled blank on the nameplate.”
”A wise precaution, Sammad,” responds Flint, as he checks the quick-release sheath hidden by his right thigh. Flint nods to the others and strides into the room, looking around for potential threats.
Oblivious to Conners's remark and its implications, Mari spots and immediately homes in on the exoskeleton. Always wanted to work with one of these! Nobody here to tell me I'm not certified! Just gotta get it off the charger.
*Krrrthnk*
The cargo lifter is released from it's charging station. Though the ports and controls are a little unfamiliar, Marisol concludes that piloting this power armor shouldn't be too different from any other.
Flint doesn't spot anything lurking about. The room's illumination is unconventional, what with the flames hanging from the ceiling, but it's also plentiful. There's not much in the way of shadows to hide in.
As the others filter into the room, Flint checks on the other door on the ‘north’ or port wall. He listens to determine if the metallic thumping is coming from behind the door, or what might be making the sound.
When the others are ready (and perhaps Sammad or Ordyt comes up next to him) Flint will open the door.
"OOooohh," Ordyt's tone is clearly admiring as the cargo-lifter powers up. "Captain Connors, may we keep it?"
The oread has a delighted grin on his face as he takes in the ship, following on Flint's heels when the latter heads through the door to the next chamber.
"OOooohh," Ordyt's tone is clearly admiring as the cargo-lifter powers up. "Captain Connors, may we keep it?"
”As I understand it, Ordyt, everything here belongs to its crew, unless it is unmanned,” he says, turning to the formidable warrior and smiling, ”and if that is the case, I’d say we have at least a partial claim to the whole ship!”
Sammad listens to Ordyt and Flint's discussion and chuckles softly. "Don't worry, I'll talk to to Dr. Taeress and stake out the legality of such a claim. I certainly wouldn't mind having this thing," he gestures broadly at the cargo-lifter, "on our side!"
Mari cackles as she climbs into the cargo lifter and examines the controls. While she's not quite ready to take on the world in this thing yet, she mentally files it away for the future. Climbing back out, she stands next to it, whispering "I'll be back," before heading off to join Conners. Once there, she checks her sidearm and then looks back at him, still giddy with the excitement of her find.
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Looking at the cargo room, Flint muses, ”This room looks like it has never been used for cargo—no scratches on the walls. Could this ship be straight out of the shipyard? That might explain the unfilled blank on the nameplate.”
"That's EXACTLY what I'm thinking, Captain Conners," Belmarniss replies. "I don't think the identifier was 'removed' so much as 'not added yet.' A newly-made vessel, her maiden voyage a desperate, doomed chase."
She raises an eyebrow at Marisol's glee at discovering and activating the cargo lifter. She didn't like powered armor herself...as a caster, she needed flexibility to perform the gestures necessary to summon forth the mystical energies. Even heavy armor allowed that, but powered armor? Your hands were too focused on driving. Marisol, however, focused more on the physical aspects of tech.
"We could use more people with your enthusiasm for arms and armor in the Knights of Golarion, Ms. Welkin," she comments. Then she listens and one of her pointy ears twitches a bit.
"Anyone else hear that thumping? There may be survivors after all!"
Mari smiles up at the drow, saying, "Aww, thanks, Bel. Usually I just get told I'm 'undisciplined' and 'lack focus,' but we're the ones standing on a mysterious alien starship, not them!"
At Belmarniss's comment about the thumping, the sylph tilts her head and tries to figure out what could be making it. "Not sure what that is. Definitely worth checking out!"
Mari shakes her head. "Always been good with machines, but talent only gets you so far. I study and practice, same as anyone else, but I guess I just do it differently than most expect me to."
"If this was a maiden voyage, was the Inferno Whale a deliberate interception, or just bad luck on this beauty's part?" Ordyt raps the wall with a knuckle, then frowns at Bel's question. "I don't hear any thumping."
"Well, the best way to find out is to keep searching," says Flint as he opens the next doorway.
With the dull metal thumping simply resonating through the walls, Flint has a hard time working out which direction it might be coming from. Marisol fares little better as she tries listening in. It seems as though the sound might be coming from something irregularly striking the walls, or the floor, or the ceiling - anything really.
Uncertain, but with his allies at his back, Flint touches the iris door to the map-north end of the chamber and is swooshes open. The symmetrical room you see beyond looks strikingly out of place in comparison to the cargo hold. Walls of intricately carved dark basalt are lit by bright flames from floating brass sconces distributed about the room. The floor is an elaborate mosaic of a red sunburst against yellow tile, and the ceiling is a tall stone cupola with a similar pattern in veins of coppery metal.
In the center of the room, brass vines that are bedecked with leaves made of flame 'grow' artistically around an empty basalt plinth.
A vaguely humanoid creature floats above the plinth, idly flapping its crystalline wings. About 2 feet tall, it has long spidery arms and legs and a trio of bright blue eyes on its forehead. Its head and neck sport a mane of what seems to be blue fire, while its broad mouth is seemingly locked into a smile.
It looks at you for a moment, then speaks in ignan. While it speaks, you realize that its mouth is like a lamprey's, a circular opening lined with rows and rows of teeth.
Sammad makes his way forward, arms open with a jovial smile on his face. Recognizing Ignan, he speaks in kind.
Flint tries to think if he has ever heard of such a creature, especially one that might have its own 'temple'.
with DC reduction 5 if Religion related
The captain replies in the same snapping, popping, and hissing language that this creature used, looking towards Sammad and gesturing as he speaks.
"I wish merely to know your name, that I may introduce to you our Emissary, Ambassador Sammad Al-Fayir."
Rather than jeopardizing first contact by jamming her own foot into her mouth, Mari quietly translates the conversation for Ordyt and Belmarniss.
"It's pretty, kind of, Ordyt whispers back to Marisol. He keeps his hands visible and any movements slow and deliberate to avoid seeming threatening.
The floating creature twitches as Sammad approaches. Its eyes pulse with different brightnesses before it responds with more crackly words in ignan.
It cocks its head to the side as if listening to something, then continues.
Flint searches his previous experiences for anything similar to this creature. Not only does he have no idea what it is, but all the religious trappings to this "temple" are also alien to him. Whatever deity it's supposed to glorify is not at all obvious.
, DC 5 lower if Religion related
One of Sammad's eyebrows raises almost imperceptibly, but he keeps his friendly smile as he continues to communicate with the creature.
"What sort of wish, Lorix? A mere request, or magic in the manner of genies?"
Mari narrows her eyes at the creature's second statement, but makes no comment. She scans the room, wondering if they're in danger.
Flint ends up very sure that the iconography in display here doesn't correspond to any deity common to the Pact Worlds. While there are similarities to Sarenrae's sun icons or Iomedae's stylized sunbursts, this is a wilder, more primal depiction of the sun. Whatever deity this is glorifying is likely not worshiped within the Pact Worlds, or if they are, this is a significantly splintered offshoot of that religion.
Neither Belmarniss nor Flint are sure exactly what kind of creature this is. But they both get a sense from the creature's general appearance and behavior that it might be a type of fey being.
Lorix's eyes pulse synchronously as Sammad speaks and its mouth opens and closes in jerky motions. The moment he asks about genies, its eyes pulse in a cascade. It continues in ignan.
It snickers and gestures with its long spindly arms indiscriminately, pointing at all sides of the room.
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Flint is somewhat confused by the direction this conversation is going—is this creature offering wishes or destruction—it seems a bit mad. He carefully observed its interaction with Sammad to try and understand what is going on.
Flint gets the sense that this creature is being overly theatrical and that its almost definitely overstating its own powers. His intuition tells him that the creature is playing with the group, though he doesn't get a sense of why.
It doesn't seem like the creature is a danger to the group, or at the very least, it doesn't appear to be preparing to attack you.
A look of concern flashes across Sammad's face as the creature mentions destruction, but he recomposes himself quickly.
"We do not want destruction, Lorix. We wish only for information, about this ship and yourself, if it pleases you."
The creature's antics and speech are...worryingly inconsistent. Sammad decides to see if he can discern its true motivations.
Flint whispers to the others on the internal armor comms, saying, "Sammad, it seems to be toying with us somehow, for reasons I cannot fathom. I think it is lying about being able to grant wishes, but it does not seem poised to attack us immediately."
Unable to follow the conversation beyond Marisol's whispered interpretation, Ordyt starts looking at the other exits from the room. "Is it stalling us for some reason?" the oread whispers back to Marisol.
Deciding to press the situation a bit, Ordyt offers the creature a deep bow and then begins to slowly walk a circuit of the room, taking in the mosaic, the decorations of the walls, and checking the doors besides the one they entered through to see if they are locked.
The creature's wings glimmer in sudden and seemingly arbitrary patterns, and its posture changes to be a little more upright. Flint and Ordyt get the sense that Sammad's answer annoyed it. Sammad himself isn't able to make heads or tails of its behavior.
It crackles out in ignan, seemingly in a huff.
"You are such bad worshipers that I'm thinking you don't want a wish at all. You'll end up so sad. Sad like all the other ones. The pink ones, and the green ones. And yes, the red and black ones too. Regretting that Norix didn't give them their desire."
"Kehehe"
Whispering to Ordyt, Mari says, "Don't know. There's plenty of weird creatures on Bretheda, but this is...something different. I think it might be a few charges short of a full battery."
This isn't a negotiation...it's a performance.
A smile returns to Sammad's face, and he activates his comms to whisper to the others.
"I know this creature's annoying, but I'm going to try...flattery. Follow my lead, but be ready."
He begins by giving Lorix a deep bow.
"My apologies, Lorix. My friends and I are merely unused to dealing with one so radiant as you."
And then he dropped to one knee, arms spread wide with a wide smile on his face.
"Tell us, wish granter, how we can best serve you?"
”Maybe get it to brag about the sickness it has unleashed, how it plans to make the world die,” suggests Flint.
Flint will kneel as well.
Oryt places a hand on the opening mechanism just as Sammad's instruction comes over the comms. Turning around he sees the ifrit and Captain Connors ostentatious kneeling.
"Oh. Um," Not wanting to ruin whatever gambit they have going on, the oread prostrates himself before the shimmering entity. Hands flat on the ground, knees and forehead touching the ground, Ordyt hopes the gesture is sufficient.
Marisol looks around, confused, but decides to follow their example.
The creature flexes its shimmering wings with a degree of smugness that transcends the species and language barrier. It flaps up a couple of feet so that it can even more clearly lord over you all.
"Aha! If you want to serve me, go bother the annoying one! Break them if its fun. Break them until they stop working. Meanwhile Borix will continue bringing ruin! Kehehe!"
It pauses for a moment before adding "Ah, the annoying one is that way."
Well thank Feronia that that worked...
Sammad smiles at the creature, then rises from his knees.
"It would be our pleasure, radiant one, to remove that which annoys you."
He activates comms to whisper to the others. "It's letting us move ahead, but it mentioned an 'annoying one', whatever that means. We should be prepared for combat, friends."
Flint nods at Sammad, swaggering up to the door while popping out a crystal from a hidden compartment into his right hand. A shimmering blade of mirror polished steel extends from from within his grasp, the dueling sword sparking with live electricity along its length.
Arriving at the door with a swirl of his dark leather duster, Flint merely says, ”Let’s go,” and opens the door.
Reaching over her shoulder, Mari grabs the stock of her rifle and swings it up and forward across her body as she stands, following after Conners. Taking up a position next to the door, she nods at him and prepared to follow him in.