Are there any tags on this one, not sure what character to use yet.
Agents and visitors crowd the halls of the Lorespire Complex. A male lashunta gestures a group of agents into his office. “Go on in,” he says to them. “I’ll be right there.” But then he turns to the group waiting outside, steps a bit closer, and lowers his voice.
“Thanks for coming. I have a quick task for you, and from the outside, it doesn’t look like much. You just need to go to Bluerise Tower, where AbadarCorp’s financial review department is located, and speak with the director there, a man named Ebaki. He’s going to give you a datastick. Bring it back here. That’s it. That’s the mission, looks like you get off easy today."
“I admit that I don’t know what’s on that datastick. It’s important, but I don’t know why. And that’s why I asked for a team of skilled agents to handle a simple pick-up and delivery job.”
He lingers a bit, knowing that agents often have questions, though in this case you suspect he doesn't know much.
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Waiting outside the Venture Captain's office is a young Ryphorian woman standing around 5' 6" with short pale fur and small pointed ears. Vibrant blue hair is styled into dreadlocks and held in a loose pony tail at the nape of her neck to keep them from her sapphire blue eyes. She wears dark green fatigue pants over a black armoured bodyglove, the several pockets stuffed full of half finished sketches, wrenches and hand held spark torches. A dark green jacket, with spots of smudged machine oil accompanies the trousers with silver rimmed goggles with blue-lenses complete the ensemble, resting on the top of her head. Tomida gives a lazy salute to the venture captain and keeps her voice hushed conspiratorially.
"So Cap'n - Who is this Ebaki fella and how do we know him?" she asks, a deep Triaxian accent evident in her Common speech.
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Standing to Tomida's shoulder - and towering over her at 7' tall and near half that wide is what appears to be a Silver Dragonkin at first glance. Though it is soon apparent that the overlapping scales are in fact true metal in construction rather than the normal metallic hued Dragonscales common to the race. Magnetised to the creature's back is a large Two-headed hammer forged to look like twin Draconian heads facing away from one another. The hammer has a power pack built into the middle of the twin heads and cables run from them to the back of the Dragon's skulls.
The Robot Drone shows signs of recent repair as some of the scales are clearly newer than others, not having time to accrue the usual Grime and nicks that space travel and Combat usually bring.
"I wish I could tell you more Tomida. Ebaki is a human and a bigwig supervisor. It's really I know. I'm hoping that when you come back, you'll be able to tell me more. If your next question is about the stick, I can't help you there either, so I guess we’ll find out together. This assignment came from a higher-up in the Society who wants to remain anonymous."
Arvin looks you over, seemingly genuinely frustrated that he can't help you more. "Keep your visual receptors peeled and come back in one piece. Assuming everything goes well, take the rest of the day off from any other Society activities you were scheduled for."
Bluerise Tower is composed of many levels, but you're not here to see it all. You step on an elevator and quickly arrive at your location. The process to get in was formal and thorough, but quick.
As the elevator door opens, a brenneri in a loose, brightly-colored short-sleeved shirt and shorts stands there speaking into a comm. She has leather tie around her neck connected to a smooth, polished stone. As you exit the elevator, the brenneri hastily stops paying attention to her personal comm unit, stores it, and welcomes you with a broad smile.
“Greetings! You must be Arvin’s people from the Society. I’m Bordle. I work here, and the director asked me to meet you and walk you to his office. We have a lot of security, but just stick with me, and we’ll have you in and out in no time.”
“First, you’ll have to leave your weapons with security before you can enter the main floor. So follow me. It’s just down this hall. Oh, hey! I can show you the Smoker while we’re here.” As she speaks, Bordle presses her hand to a biometric scanner adjacent to the door on the southeast wall. Instantly, it opens. Beyond is an an octagonal room 30 feet across with a second door at the far end.
“That’s the Smoker. As far as security systems go, it’s pretty fancy. There are vents in the floor that fill the whole thing with poison gas! Or, at least, that’s what I’ve been told. Never seen it in action, of course. No one would dare to break into this place!”
You notice the vents along the floor that Bordle mentioned, but also a series of holes in the ceiling which look suspiciously like spray nozzles of some kind.
You don't really get any specific read on Bordle.... yet.
Before: "You're not even leaving Absalom Station. It's a 30 minute taxi ride. The secrecy is bothersome though, so if there's a catch, that's it."
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Now:
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Mich Igan is a small bluish furry creature with six arms, numerous scars on him and several cybernetic augmentations. Despite his condition, a wide smile can be seen across his face.
Two hands are occupied using a datapad to code something.
With a high pitch voice they says Hi! I'm Mich. I'm here to help!
Happy to see someone as cute and small as themself, Mich says Happy to meet you Bordle! I'm Mich and a Pathfinder for a long time, even if most of it was under this damned shield.
Mich, who has put they big armor looks for any weapon they could have and with two of his arms and a big smile says Sorry, no weapon for me!
Following the brenneri they take a look at the room Seems as cool as the word you use!
Do you know Ebaki? Is he a good guy? Is he your boss?
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Stepping out of the Elevator Tomida gives an appreciative whistle at the finery and ordered mentality of the Office before tugging at their oil-stained fatigues a little self-consciously. Too easy and suspicious all this - but man do I feel under dressed they muse as they follow their tour guide.
”Sure is a swell place you got here.” she says brightly, to Bordle. ”I get the measures - i’ll leave Draconir here with you, he is kinda a walking weapon...”
Complying with the request, Tomida places her two pistols and baton with the Security, making sure they get the proper receipt. She also mentally commands her Drone companion to stand behind the desk and keep their Hammer de-powered.
Bordle thinks about the sap, "I suppose that's no more dangerous than a stapler. We can allow this, though I strongly recommend not taking it out under any circumstances." She smiles at Tomida, "Why thank you!" The smile is obviously genuine.
With a smile, the tour continues. Bordle presses her hand to a biometric scanner next to the eastern door, which opens for her. “The doors are all keyed to employees,” she says. “And of course some areas require special clearance. But I can get us to security.” Cubicles alternate on the north and south walls, and inside most of the cubicles a single individual is working, their screens filled with spreadsheets and analytical tools. The carpet is a geometric pattern incorporating the key symbol of Abadar, and a suit of golden armor on a display stand bears Abadar’s symbol prominently on its chest. As she walks, Bordle gestures to the 12' ceiling, where small hemispherical devices can occasionally be seen, on the northern or southern walls. “Motion sensors,” she says. “All tied into Argent, our security AI. Hey Argent!” Bordle waves to the nearest motion sensor. There is no response, but Bordle doesn’t seem to have expected one, and she weaves around the cubicles until she reaches a door at the far end of the hall.
You recall that this model of motion sensor has a range of 15 feet. The sensors automatically detect anything moving within that distance, unless it is behind stationary cover. The sensors can be set to detect targets of a specific size range, but it is impossible to tell what sizes a sensor is set to detect without closely examining it.
"Ah, those are Abadarmors. They're just another line of security if need be. I'm afraid I don't know much about them."
She turns to Maxamas with a smile.
You pass through the cubicle farm....
You note the motion sensors on the ceiling, as elsewhere in the building.
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Strolling casually through the Office, Tomida glances around to see if there is anything obvious displayed on the screens around them, should the mysterious ‘higher up’ quiz them on the work being done here. If not, it might be interesting anyway. Hands in pockets, Tomida smiles up at the sensors.
”Ooh, an AI controlled security system! Fascinating!” here eyes widen in genuine enjoyment, the mission forgotten entirely as they ponder the possibilities. ”I wonder if i could expand Draconir’s programming to run the security systems, maybe on a Battleship...” Tomida’s Exo-Cortex circuitry flashes slightly as they run calculations.
"Indeed! Everything is state of the art and top of the line! I know they seem dangerous. But we have to protect our financial records. The security AI can’t activate them when an employee is present, so don’t worry. Everyone is very safe."
The tour continues. Bordle leads the way south, passing another suit of golden armor resting on an ornate stand. “Hey Becky,” she says, waving to the armor as if it were alive. “I named all the Abadarmors.” As Bordle speaks, she gestures to each wall of the work area, where more suits of armor are on display. Each one is decorated with Abadar stylings, including a golden crossbolter weapon attached to the arm. “This one’s Becky,” she says, “and the others, they’re Almond, Carnation, and Denty.” Bordle leans in confidentially, her voice lowering to a mutter. “I named him that because he has a dent in his head. He’s a little sensitive, so try not to stare. But I tell him it doesn’t matter.”
“But let’s go. The director is probably wondering if you all died in the Smoker or something.” About fifty feet to the southwest is a door, and Bordle approaches it before pushing a button on the biometric lock.
A voice comes from the lock. “Yes?”
“It’s Bordle, mister director, sir. I have our guests from the Starfinder Society.”
The door unlocks and opens, and a voice from inside the room says, “Please come in.”
“Take care!” Bordle says, waving as she wanders west. “I’m gonna check in on the secret lab.” As she says the words secret lab, she draws quotation marks in the air. “Those people could probably use a break.”
Director Ebaki’s office is spacious and well-furnished, including a broad and handsome wooden desk and comfortable chair, a table in one corner surrounded by a few chairs for more casual conversation, and even a fully-stocked bar along the northern wall. A side door also leads north and a large handwoven carpet in bold geometric pattern fills the center of the room. A transparent aluminum bulkhead gives an impressive view of the Armada outside Absalom Station and the countless stars beyond. The man seated behind the desk looks up and says, “Yes good, you are the specific people Arvin sent. I’m the person who sent for you.”
“This needs to go to the Lorespire Complex, Arvin will know what to do with it.” His gaze returns to the computer screen and he begins to type, resuming his work. He doesn't seem to offer up an additional conversation.
Without warning, the lights in the office go out, and Ebaki’s computer dies filling the room in complete darkness, save for starlight beyond the external window. The sound of several small explosions can be heard from the main work area, through the sealed door. Screams of pain and terror follow, only to be cut short. The distant noise of something large and heavy grinding to a halt, like a closing blast door, resounds from beyond the office.
Ebaki panics behind his desk. “What was that? What’s happening? Oh no… it’s the information on that datastick! They’ve come for it! They’re going to kill us all!”
The man seems like he's one thought away from being hysterical. You think the right words might calm him down, but for the moment... he's useless.
Mich calms Ebaki immediately. The director's voice is pleading, “Please just get me out of here. I’ll tell you everything I know, if that matters to you. But I don’t want to die.”
The main work area on this floor is pitch dark and mostly—but not entirely—silent. The carpeting that was visible on the way in, with its gold key pattern reminiscent of Abadar’s holy symbol, is impossible to see without light, as are the dozens of cubicles that stretch across the floor towards the elevator. Two things are easy to detect: the smell of charred flesh and a few soft, mechanical hums that seem to be coming from different locations near the outer walls of the chamber and slowly moving around the rest of the office space.
There's an active Motion Detector right outside the office...