Staar lands a series of blows around the edge of the door that bloody and stun the blond thug. She staggers, barely on her feet. Even as she turns to run Kneepuncher hits her with a thigh-shattering blow that leaves her unmoving on the floor.
Shokil hurries to the side door and opens it. He finds himself at the end of a straight hall that stretches the length of the building. The sounds of the battle echo off the walls.
The man turns pale and drops his pistol.
EDIT: Nevermind, I found it. It's an armor upgrade. I was looking under skills or feats.
Round 2:
Bele
Thug1 (shaken -2 on his damage rolls )
Thug2
Saeron
Bargai
Round 3.
Staar (-3 SP)
Kneepuncher
Shokil
Oda (-6 SP)
Intimidate, Demoralize
As a standard action, you can use Intimidate to cause a creature within 30 feet of you to become shaken for a number of rounds. This is a sense-dependent ability. The DC of this check is equal to either 10 + your opponent’s total Intimidate skill bonus, or 15 + 1-1/2 × the opponent’s CR, whichever is greater. If you succeed, the target is shaken for 1 round. The duration increases by 1 round for every 5 by which the result of your check exceeds the DC.
[SFS Legal] Grim Trophies (Magic)
Source Starfinder #2: Temple of the Twelve pg. 53
Item Level 1; Price 125
Slots 1; Armor Type Any; Bulk —
Devourer cultists often adorn their armor with magically enhanced trophies representing their most meaningful kills, such as skulls or other bits of bone or exoskeleton taken from slain foes, defiled holy symbols, broken bits of weapons, or bloodied and tattered badges or seals of authority.
While wearing armor with grim trophies, if you successfully cause a foe to be shaken, the foe applies the –2 penalty from that condition to weapon damage rolls in addition to the other rolls it normally applies to.
Bele either doesn't hear, or ignores, Saeron's advice. She runs forward, wide of the wall to get a better firing angle, then levels her pistol at the man in the doorway.
The laser beam is wasted in heating the door.
The man isn't out of the fight yet. Instead of retrieving his pistol he rams his battleglove down onto Kneepuncher's head with brutal effect.
...
... B
Round 2:
Saeron
Bargai
Round 3.
Staar (-3 SP)
Kneepuncher (-15 SP)
Shokil
Oda (-6 SP)
Bele
Thug1 (shaken -2 on his damage rolls )
Shokil and Saeron advance along the corridor. They pa%# h~~@s in the wall large enough for a creature to easily pass through. Inside the rooms the paint peels from the walls and debris litters the floors. The corridor at least, has been swept clean. The walls have been sanded, revealing a strata of previous paint colors.
Bargai continues to support the dark-haired man. She tries to blast Oda with another set of microwaves. This time it feels like Oda's flesh is cooking.
... (F)
Round 3.
Staar (-3 SP)
Kneepuncher (-15 SP)
Shokil
Oda (-14 SP)
Bele
Thug1 (shaken -2 on his damage rolls )
Saeron
Bargai
Shokil slides into the lobby in time to see Kneepuncher deliver a vicious blow to the man's solar plexus. He doubles over in pain and into Staar's uppercut. This blow tumbles him back into the vlaka and then onto the floor.
Round 3.
Oda (-14 SP)
Bele
Saeron
Bargai
Round 4.
Staar (-3 SP)
Kneepuncher (-15 SP)
Shokil
Bele's shot nicks the vlaka's ear, drawing a yelp of pain.
Round 3.Bold may go
Oda (-14 SP)
Saeron
Bargai (-1)
Round 4.
Staar (-3 SP)
Kneepuncher (-15 SP)
Shokil
Bele
Bargai slips Oda's punch by twisting her head to the side and batting the fist away with her gun. In so doing she gets a glimpse of Shokil and Saeron.
Surrounded and harried, Bargai dashes away through a pair of doors that slide open for her. The wisp trails her into the tiled room, and the doors close behind.
The doors open automatically for you also, revealing a tiled communal lavatory featuring an open washing area and several waste collection receptacles for varying species. Though the lavatory does show a few signs of recent maintenance, it is largely in disrepair and in need of significant cleaning. There is a large set of showers at the far end of the room. A puddle of murky water has settled in a low spot in the floor between the shower's drain and the door. Bargai's gun is exposed around the corner of a partial wall, pointed at the door. Above it you can see one of her eyes, an ear, and a sliver of her cheek and face.
Round 4.
Staar (-3 SP)
Kneepuncher (-15 SP)
Shokil
Bele
Oda (-14 SP)
Saeron
Bargai (-1)
Round 4.
"Kont-teer. Boanhed" Bargai waggles the gun at Staar, but there's fear behind the bravado.
With Saeron translating, a deflated Bargai asks, "What do you want to know?"
(The doors remain open because people are gathered in front of them.)
The half-orc swings wide, striking only air, But she is quick to pursue the fleeing vlaka.
Again with Saeron translating, a deflated Bargai asks, "What do you want to know?"
Good. Good. I'm glad you- Curious about Bargai's comment, Saeron shifts her thoughts to ask, What do I smell like?
...
The cultured lashunta. It's a vlaka expression. Maybe it doesn't translate well. It's about the first impression you make.
The vlaka looks around at the party, her gun idly pointed somewhere near your knees. Nobody get too excited, and I'll tell. A couple days ago a big shobhad, name of Hurondo, came nosing around, like you. He's OK. He's absolutely OK. One thing led to another and there was a little tussle. We've got him in the room in the corner. We were trying to figure out how to get him back to you. And make a little profit. He smells good.
The reply comes through Saeron, He was going to make trouble, cost us some business. We needed to ice him until we could straighten that out. We've been advertising for the Open Collective -- the memory therapy gig, like you say. The money was too good to be true for legit work, but it all seemed legit. We put everyone on it. Now we're tapped out. We need the cash.
A couch is in the cneter of this spacious room. A bed is pushed against the walls immediately to the right of the door. The walls themselves are broken open in several places and thin sheets of plastic cover the two windows to the north and east.
A minotaur-like nuar sits on the couch. The big four-armed shobhad Hurondo sits on the bed beside an empty pair of manacles. Interrupted mid-sentence, the shobhad looks up. "Are you my rescue?"
We'd been looking for an opportunity for a while. We just heard someone needed some street-advertising done. We got there first. I think they would have hired anyone. They didn't seem to care about money at first, and were happy with whoever we could send them. Then they cut the rates, and wanted more up-scale clients. We've had some trouble there. It was harder for us to move in those circles. They haven't paid us for a couple weeks. We need those credits to set up here.
I don't know much else, just their address. Hungry people, don't analyze carrion.
The vlaka's gun gradually drifts lower while she talks.
The nuar stands up and, head lowered, looks at Staar. The lashunta can just see his eyes below thick supraorbital ridges. Even with his head bent down, he's well over two meters tall and 150 kilos of solid muscle topped with wide wickedly pointed horns.
Hurondo also stands. "There's no need for any violence or threats here. Orghuun's going to join the Society. We've just been talking about it."
The nuar nods.
After a few moments Staar returns with Hurondo and a nuar in tow. The first words from the show had are, "No guns. No more fighting."
Hurondo looks at Kneepuncher and nods with sorrowful approval. Then he turns to Saeron and the vlaka. "Madame lashunta, will you translate please? Bargai, holster your gun. There is no need for more fighting. I will not take vengeance. We will make no charges against you or the Uniters. You've paid in blood already."
He gestures toward the lobby.
Bargai holsters her pistol.
|
The cultured lashunta. It's a vlaka expression. Maybe it doesn't translate well. It's about the first impression you make.
Expecting something more profound, Saeron is initially disappointed by the response but soon shares in the amusement. No, no, it's a fine expression. I'd just thought... well, you know. She pauses in consideration. We've recently encountered some individuals with a citrus odour about them. Have you heard of anything like that that before?
Sighing in relief, Saeron smiles as Staar leads Hurondo into the room. "I'm glad you are okay. Yes, of course," she replies to the shohbad's request.
The shobhad replies, "There's not much to tell. I came to Downlow looking for some missing Starfinders. I had a hunch a new clinic called the Open Collective was some kind of scam that was luring our people in. Their office looked legitimate enough, but there's something a little off about the people there. I decided to talk to people who knew them already; the only ones I knew about were the Uniters. Since you traced me here, you must know they've been advertising for the clinic."
He gestures toward the mintotaur-like nuar, who bows slightly. "Anyway Orghuun here tells me that the Collective isn't paying like they used to. The Uniters are desperate for credits. Then I wander in and threaten the whole relationship.
They got the drop on me. Orghuun says I was drugged for a couple days, and they were hoping to ransom me back to the Society."
He looks a little more stern. His lower jaw moves in and out, which highlights just how large his lower canine teeth are.
"I know I can't order you to do anything, but I'd like you to get a good look inside the Collective and find out what's going on there. "
The address is 3200 East Central, Level 3 Section 1978. It's in a similarly rundown neighborhood only a 30 minute walk from the Uniters' headquarters.
"I never got inside so I can't say much," replies Hurondo. "There's a reception area in the center of the building and two wings. I think patients go to the left wing."
Through Saeron, Bargai adds that all her meetings with the Open Collective were held at Uniter's headquarters or neutral sites. She knows nothing aside from the advertising pitch, the pay, or lack thereof, and that her contact was an android named Leaf-998. She has no prior knowledge of the OC.
"I leave that to your discretion. If I can be taken by pups like these, I am not fit to make tactical decisions."