You pilot the borrowed shuttle back to Xys without further excitement. Makao collects the body of the deceased agent with reverence and thanks you all for your efforts in returning his Brother to their world. He doesn’t press PCs for details about what they found on Vorlath, however, and you suspect that the knowing looks and lack of questions probably means they already know. Makao generously rewards the Society with a credit transfer and escorts them back to their own starship. From there, you enjoy a tranquil trip back to the Pact Worlds.
As you check the local infosphere news feeds after leaving the Drift, you notice a headline buried in a host of mundane weather and financial reports that catches the eye: “Robotics lab suffers massive data loss.” The report provides no additional information except that the facility affected is located somewhere in the Vast.
Back at the Lorespire Complex, Ehu debriefs the group after a few days of analysis and closed-door discussions with other Society leaders. He explains that the Lorespire Complex’s labs confirmed that the raw materials recovered from the laboratory and shipment are shimmerstone and kinwood sap, though the sap displays variations in appearance and molecular structure different from any other sap samples their technicians have encountered before. Ehu also elaborates on the nature of the shimmersheen serum and reassures you all that most of the shipment has already been destroyed, with a few samples kept in the Archives and sent to the Stewards. "The shimmersheen’s similarity to an experimental serum recovered on Zrulik-3 is too great to be a coincidence. I have plans to investigate further, beginning with a trip to Ghorus Prime, the only known source of kinwood sap. I ask for your patience while leadership prepares for the mission, I WILL be in touch"
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Rastar concluded that his training with his new weapons was far superior to his old multi-pistol tricks. Maybe some day he'd be able to switch back and forth, but for now he was a heavy weapons fan. He discussed the finer points of their combats with Chorizal as they packed up the weapons and drugs, along with the missing agent's body.
Back on Xys, Rastar did a better job of not antagonizing their hosts, made a bit easier by the fact that they were returning the body of a dead agent, rather than the live cargo they had hoped to pick up.
Back at the Lorespire complex, he let Bodo, Vyv, and yes, even J'Shun tell the story of what they had found, interjecting details here and there that he thought the others might have missed, or may have thought were inconsequential - like his total success at acting the leader of a bounty-hunting team. In fact, he decided that he was going to apply to the Guild for an official team license, and see if Ehu would provide supporting evidence to make it stick. If Rastar's team had official credentials, then they could do a lot more for the Starfinders in similar situations in the future.
He was broken out of his musings by Ehu's comments. "Yes, this does appear to be a wide-spread conspiracy to create and distrubute super-soldier drugs. It's been tried in the past, and it has never ended well. We'll be ready for your next call. I want these people stopped before another Galnax-5 incident occurs." Rastar referenced an event about 50 years ago where a group of mercenaries found a stasis capsule full of super-serum and killed over 5 million people with their rage-filled enhancements before the AIs stepped in.
You have been hastily ushered into modest sleeping quarters located on a small Near Space fuel and supply outpost freighter named Safety Flare.
First Seeker Ehu Hadif stands behind a black desk with a holographic projector in its center. He flicks a switch on the side of the projector, and it lights up, displaying a projection of a glass vial filled with yellow liquid. “Starfinders, I’m glad you’re finally here. Sorry to pull you away to such a remote location so suddenly. The Society has just made a breakthrough, and I wanted to get some of our agents on it as soon as possible.” He gestures to the projected image in front of him.
“After analyzing samples of the drug Shimmersheen, we discovered that the serum is made from a mixture of shimmerstone and kinwood sap. However, the sap we found in the serum differs from samples of the sap from Ghorus Prime, where kinwoods originate. The shimmersheen sap has been corrupted somehow, leading me to believe that something dangerous and nefarious is happening on the planet.” He quickly waves a hand across the holographic display, changing the image to a translucent hologram of a green, forested planet. “So, we’re sending you all to Ghorus Prime to investigate. Begin your investigation in the capitol city of Memory Willow. Find out what’s causing the corruption, and stop those involved from harvesting more corrupted sap. We suspect that High Despot Jularaz of Vesk-8 may be personally involved, based on his connections to raw shimmerstone and this serum. While you’re planet side, see if you can find any evidence that might prove his guilt.”
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"Typical Vesk. No offense, Chorizal, but any species that names their ruling class after terms that mean absolute authority seems a bit...overboard to me. Not to be too stereotypical, but if you had put a gun to my head and asked me who was responsible for trying to make the latest generation of super-soldier drugs, I would have said the Vesk without hesitation. Stereotypes exist for a reason, you know."
"All right, so we're to head to Ghorus Prime to look for the source of these corrupted kinwoods? Any idea if this is some unique cultivar or just being processed in a lab somewhere?"
At Vyviane's strange look, Rastar replied, "What? I can read a datapad, too. Is it so strange that I know words like cultivar?"
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"You have said nothing that would offend Captain Chorizal fifth son of Clan Summersword, House Yashida, line of Kazsta, storm spawned!" Chorizal replies.
"The vesk of the Veskarium are very likely suspects when it comes to making better soldiers. Just as I would suspect Kasathas if someone was trying to stop innovation and force obedience to tradition."
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J'Shun, comes up behind Chorizal and puts a hand on his shoulder
"Captain Chorizal fifth son of Clan Summersword, House Yashida, line of Kazsta, storm spawned! your participation in The Trials to gain membership into Clan Summersword were truly glorious. Remember now, you are oath sworn to not speak of the tests you faced during The Trials to non clan members. Although I had hoped you would have joined House Davion and added your battle history to the line of Atsu, the members of venerable House Yashida are formidable warriors. Your battle history will also continue to add to the heroic exploits of the line of Kazsta."
He then turns to First Seeker Hadif. "First Seeker Hadif, 15th squad, 101st Space Navy Special Operations Group, Kay's Kommandoes are prepared to execute whatever mission you assign us."
He gives the first seeker a crisp salute. Standing to J'Shun's side, Commander Mahpu, dressed in his Pabaq Self Defense Force uniform, also gives the first seeker a salute with a slimy pseudopod.
"Seems like I have the right team for the job - no doubt you'll prove as effective on this task as you have on the last several"
"Good question Rastar. Hard to tell - what is a lab and what is a greenhouse - Ghorus Prime is the adopted home planet of the ghorans, a species of humanoid plants. The planet was supposedly a wasteland until the ghorans arrived and revived the sapient kinwoods, who were dormant deep beneath the planet’s surface. Today, the planet is almost entirely forested, with cities and communities built around and inside massive living kinwoods. I think you’ll be able to learn more about the world with boots on the ground rather than listening to me, but it could be trees within trees for all we know"
“Jularaz is the high despot of Vesk-8, a frozen planet far from its system’s sun. Rumor has it that he sees his posting to Vesk-8 as an insult, and much prefers the society and lifestyle of the Veskarium’s inner planets. Since Vesk-8’s penal colonies are the primary source
of shimmerstone, the Society suspects his involvement in the production of shimmersheen. As for motive, it’s possible he meant to use the serum to leverage for a better post or position. Keep watch for anything that might confirm his involvement. We certainly can’t say anything for sure without evidence.”
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"It is an honor to join Clan Summersword and I would have delighted in being your house and line, but as you know one's fate is not one's own when it comes to the trial of..." Chorizal stops himself and blinks.
"Well...YOU know..."
"Yeah, yeah...Jularuz. Remember? We met him when we went to that ice planet prison then teleported to that moon that had that..." Again, he stops himself and blinks.
"...uh...lovely snow...yeah. So much great snow and nothing else," he finishes, giving a broad wink to the rest of Chorizal's Chosen.
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"Corporal Mars, I will also need you to prepare an intelligence report on the city of Memory Willow. I want your tactical opinion on options for orbital bombardment or a dropship invasion should it come to that. We may be too late to save the city if the drugs have already been widely circulated. The possibility is high that every single Ghoran are already taking the drugs and we are about to fly right into a city full of shimmerstone snorting and kinwood sap injecting drug addicted zombies."
You board your ship and travel to Memory Willow on Ghorus Prime to begin the investigation.
Five days later you land your craft at the spaceport. The space dock opens into a crowded cityscape. Intertwining vines support and connect the streetlights on either side of the roads. Buildings are shaped irregularly to fit around branches and sections of trunk that extend upward—and occasionally also sideward—into the footpaths of the city. The spaceport itself is crowded with many different species from across the galaxy, but the plantlike humanoid ghorans vastly outnumber them all.
Upon departing from the spaceport docking area you begin exploring and keeping an ear out for local rumours.
Culture or Diplomacy
In passing conversation one of the locals points you in the direction of Vineside and gives you directions to the Xenowarden Headquarters, "It offers tours to curious off-worlders, come and learn about our beautiful planet"
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J'Shun, strides down the boarding ramp of the squad's starship followed by Commander Mahpu. In between missions the space admiral traveled to Kalo-Mahoi to train in underwater combat techniques with the famed kalo special forces SEAL teams. Impressed by their professionalism and discipline he acquired a kalo encounter suit. The bulky suit of armor suits his fighting style and its highly polished surface now reflects the sun as J'Shun inspects his surroundings. The heraldry of clan Summersword is displayed prominently on the knight's shield now resting on his back, a silver longsword inset upon a bright yellow sun with 14 rays of light emanating from it, arrayed upon a circle colored bright red.
"Acting Lieutenant Isafira, you will share leadership responsibilities with me during this mission as Captain Chorizal and I will continue to evaluate your potential for acceptance into officer candidate school."
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Five days can feel like a month under the right - wrong? - circumstances. Being cooped up in a small ship with J'Shun and his delusions felt like torture. Which, of course, is why Rastar mostly just avaoided the man and his entourage, preferring to spend his time with Vyviane and Chorizal. Hell, even Mahpu was an okay guys, once you got him away from He Who is Self-Absorbed and got a little synthahol into him. Rastar also spent a good deal of time making sure his weapons were ready. The switch to heavy weapons had been a good one, he was certain, and he felt much better about their last mission than he had about the previous ones.
As they approached the blue and green planet below, Rastar put all that aside and focused on the mission. It seemed that they were going in soft, and that was find with him. He'd let one of the others take the lead this time. Social niceties weren't his specialty, after all.
Once on the ground, he fingered the strap of his flamer. These people probably wouldn't be too happy if he burned down their city-trees. He'd have to be careful with his aim. Well, more careful than usual anyways.
"Xenowardens, eh? Ran into them a few times. They're good people. We stopping there first?"
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In addition to undergoing the trials, Chorizal did a little shopping. He's also wearing new armor, having upgraded to the next level of Hellknight and, in fact, his heraldry seems equally split, one side bedecked with the Order of the Pike symbol on shoulder and chest, the other decorated with the Summersword log in the same places.
He is, perhaps, the most comfortable person on the trip. He doesn't mind J'Shun's bombastic attitude and has even learned some of the reason for it. But he doesn't feel the other man's need to command and control, content to "consort with the underlings" as it were.
His weapons haven't changed though...still a big axe and a big, though less powerful laser.
He nods to Rastar's suggestion when they arrive. "As good a place to start as any."
The outskirts of Vineside District are lush with greenery and plant life. Smaller trees and flowering bushes sprout from the living wood that surrounds the entire city. The scenery changes as pathways wind deeper into the district. The wooden walls of shops and houses weep a gritty white sap that emits a foul odor. After turning down a more secluded footpath, the noise of the streets recedes into the background and is quickly replaced with a more industrial sound; the noise of metal scraping against metal emerges from deep underground, a loud scraping that seems to be coming from beneath your feet, and an intermittent vibration from below the streets, as though someone is drilling.
Twenty minutes later you arrive at the Xenowarden Headquarters, a small wooden building covered in flowering vines near the entrance to a hollowed tunnel leading from the city and into the surrounding forest.
Bright natural light fills this sparsely furnished front office. Around the room, windows without blinds or shutters let sunlight flood into every corner of the room. A young ghoran leans against the wall, standing just over three feet tall with numerous green vines curling upward from the top of his head. He lifts his face toward the sunlight and smiles before turning his attention to the doorway.
“Oh! Sorry, you caught me taking a bit of lunch break there. Wasn’t expecting any visitors today, especially not off-worlders. My name’s Mossgrove. I’m one of the Xenowardens stationed here in Memory Willow.” His cheerful tone changes to one of disappointment as he continues. “If you’re here for a tour, I’m sorry to tell you that we’ve put those on hold for the moment. I can get you some informational brochures if you’d like, but we can’t risk taking outsiders
into the forests right now. I’d be happy to tell you about the kinwoods, though.”
He appears very enthusiastic, but there is certainly the feeling that they are troubled about something.
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"I am Space Admiral J'Shun Kay, first son of Clan Summersword, House Davion, line of Atsu, born in fire! and this is my second in command Captain Chorizal, fifth son of Clan Summersword, House Yashida, line of Kazsta, storm spawned! We are here to rid this world of the stain of drug addiction. We know the drugs in question are made of a mixture of shimmerstone and kinwood sap, which is what lead us to you. Tell me now everything you know about the nefarious drug ring that at this very moment is poisoning and corrupting your entire planet."
Mossgrove looks completely shocked at what is so abruptly dumped on the table "Drug addictions? Drug rings? - I have no idea what you are talking about"
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Vyviane stays fairly silent throughout the briefing and subsequent trip down to the planet. She gives a small sigh as J'Shun gives her yet another set of orders but doesn't seem to actively fight them instead she counters, "I finally did some research on the Starfinder Army of yours. Found there is an organization, though not all Starfinders are automatically signed up, and it seems a lot less strict than you make it out to be, J'Shun. I was able to apply and complete two different credentials during the break. First, given my extensive experience in Corporate Management, I was able to apply and achieve credentials to be able to evaluate the performance of other members. Second, there was a short three week commando training as well." She gives a broad smile and pulls out the credentials for both. "I be fine to continue sharing leadership responsibilities."
As they land, Vyviane's form changes some, her hair taking a mossy green color and lengthening as they land. The thick spacesuit-grade clothes that make up her armor haven't changed, and her weapons have likely not changed either, though given her tendency to keep them hidden at all times, that'd be hard to verify. "Sounds like an extremely natural planet, I think some greenery in my form would work as well."
She tromps out into Memory-Willow with a sense of almost tourism in her eyes. "I never got to visit this place before. It's a treat to finally see it. I wonder what the local news scene is like..."
She sadly blunders a bad faux pas within the first ten minutes by taking a small sample of a tree branch and afterwards almost no one is willing to talk to her.
Slightly miffed at the sudden rebuffing, she trudges along behind J'Shun, Rastar and the others, and misses the opportunity to open the conversation. Giving another barely hidden sigh over the man's forthright and overly simplistic world-view she steps forward. "J'Shun, I doubt that drug rings are common knowledge here. There's no way that he'd know about it unless he was part of it and then he'd deny it. Stand back for a second and let me handle this."
She then turns to the Xenowarden, apologetic look on her face. "Please ignore his outburst for a moment. He's very well meaning but it does tend to lead him to rushing into something without thinking and then get his ass in trouble. We are Starfinders, and we cam because there's been a new, troubling performance 'enhancing' steroid-like drug on the market. It is a mixture, among many things, of shimmerstone and kinwood sap. We could use any and all information you have on kinwoods and assistance in tracking down where the dealers might be tapping their sap from."
"Kinwoods are sapient trees native to this planet. Their structures are what our cities are built upon, and we respect them as a part of our world’s society. You may not understand this as off-worlders, but the kinwood and their smaller children are like siblings to us. They are very much sentient and accepted citizens of this world, so when they hurt, it’s up to us Xenowardens to help them as best we can.”
"People could get the sap from just about anywhere really, it's leaking out of walls all over the place, I don't known anything about it being used in drugs"
“What you are saying is very confusing. I transferred here a year ago to work under the great Xenowarden Ainveln, but a lot has changed since then. At first, it was just oddities like saplings crying out in pain from time to time. Then I noticed sap leaking from them that was a very unusual color. This used to happen only sporadically, and whenever I saw it, I would go out and spend some time healing that area of the forest. But it’s happening more often now. Dangerous fey are attracted to the unusual sap, and they’ve infested parts of the forest. That’s why we decided to put tours on hold. The last thing we want is to put visitors in danger.”
"Maybe there's a connection?"
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Vyviane pauses for a second as she looks back at the group. "Wait wasn't there reports of a change in how shimmerstoje was working on the mission before I joined the team? Does the time line match up at all? Could they be intertwined? That's also under *couch*despot*cough* control as well isn't it? I wonder."
She turns back to Mossgrove. "We are quite capable and equipped to handle ourselves to a certain level, see my friend's equipment. Would it be possible for us to get a sample of that sap? We might be able to help either figure out what's causing it or a quicker remedy to prevent further damages."
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"Bad sap? Fey infestations? I would say this definitely qualifies as possible links. Perhaps we should go into that area and look about? We can certainly take care of ourselves under most circumstances...though I wouldn't put us in a diplomatic position. J'shun is about as subtle as a brick to the back of the head...and honestly, I'm not much better."
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Chorizal gives a salute as he is introduced, clapping his fist over the Summersword symbol on his breast and standing at attention for a moment. It's only a moment though before he goes back to his insouciant stance.
"Yeah, show us where this bad sap is. We can handle ourselves and might be able to solve your problems for you, too," he says to Mossgrove.
"We know that Jularaz was manipulating the Shimmerstone, although I don't know if we ever figured out if it was purposefully or a happy accident. Maybe he's doing the same to the sap or someone else is and they just happened to find each other."
"Does Kinwood sap have any psychotropic properties under normal circumstances?"
"Yes, bad sap in multiple areas, and fey infestations" he points to a number of areas on a confusing looking map - three dimensional due to the trees being horizontal AND vertical terrain.
“I’ve been trying to investigate and put a stop to it, but I haven’t been able to make much progress on my own. Between the sick saplings and the fey, I’m at a loss. The fey are notorious troublemakers. They pop into our world occasionally, and they seem drawn to the kinwoods’ sap. Lately, their numbers are increasing. It’s becoming a serious issue.” Mossgrove sighs. “If only we had more staff.”
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Vyviane purses her lips for a moment as she gazes at the 2 dimensional map representing 3 dimensional space and then looks up at Mossgrove again. "Tell you what. Why don't we make a deal. We'll try handling the fey and keep them distracted or away while you work on healing the trees. In exchange, you'll give us a sample of the sap and maybe access to one of the saplings before you heal it to examine it ourselves. Does that work?"
"I think it just might" Mossgrove then looks to J'Shun and speaks in a quieter tone "Space Admiral, I agree to take you on a patrol to investigate the trouble in the forest. I will require your group to store any weapons that will burn or blast the woods until the patrol is done, and ask you to refrain from using magic or grenades that might damage large areas of forest. I can in turn lend you some safer weapons."
"Deal?"
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"Deal, we will follow the terms negotiated by Acting Lieutenant Isafira. Don't worry, Kay's Kommandoes prefers to get up close and personal when it's time for a fight. We won't damage any areas of the forrest."
J'Shun, takes out his tactical pistol and changes out the magazine on it from explosive rounds to standard armor piercing.
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Vyviane fishes out a sword cane and her own static arc pistol and shows them to the xenowarden. "The sword I can see being a problem, but I ahve my own static pistol..."
She pauses for a moment contemplating keeping her newer and shinier weapon hidden but then fishes out her thunderstrike pistol as well. "Sonic weapons won't be too detrimental to the trees as well. It's very much single target and not likely to hurt much beyond flesh and blood."
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Ratsar put a hand protectively on his burner. "But I just got proficient in this thing. It helped a lot...two hundred hours of marksmanship... Rastar trailed off as he realized he wasn't going to win this argument. He had known from the moment he saw the giant trees that he wasn't going to win this argument.
"Fine." He unhooked the ifrit-class burner from its harness and handed it over, picking up the blindmark rifle and staring at it with loathing and dismay.
"Why don't we just tie our hands behind our backs and go fight these dangerous fey with our teeth?" he muttered, just loud enough to be heard by everyone.
"Good. Lastly, you may need these. The Kinwoods have spoken to me of Fey wielding venomous blades" Mossgrove fishes out six autoinjectors, the labels identify them as broad-spectrum antitoxins.
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Mossgrove leads you into the forest, static arc pistol in hand. You realise the sense in having him guide you as he makes traversing the greenery look so simple - when you can clearly see it would have been a bramble-filled and confusing trek through great unpleasantness over the next hour.
Eventually, he leads you to an area that is clearly different; this part of the forest is blighted, with trees covered in blackened bark and leaves that slough off when touched. An immense kinwood towers above this area, providing shade that only allows a dim light throughout this area.
As you come down one of the trails you happen upon an abandoned campsite. The remnants of a burnt out firepit are covered by dirt. Scattered around it are empty R2E containers with matching disposable cups and utensils. A half-open traveler’s backpack lays discarded a couple of feet away.
"People littering, really..." Mossgrove moves to start cleaning up the mess.
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"I suspect it is more than littering Mossgrove."
J'Shun, unsheathes his clan's ancient longsword and fills his three other hands with his taclash, tactical pistol, and knight's shield. Bright light springs forth from the light projector integrated into his shield and a 50' area surrounding him is clearly illuminated.
The idea that something is wrong with this situation had clearly not occurred to Mossgrove, but J'Shun can see the telltale signs that whoever was here left in a hurry, fleeing back towards civilisation.
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"Yeah, this is 'flee for your life' litter, not 'carelessly throwing your food wrappers away' litter. No one would leave some of this stuff behind unless what they were saving was more important - their lives. Still, grab that stuff. It may come in useful."
Rastar looked around for signs of what might have caused the exodus.
Mossgrove considers your perspective "This is a blighted area, perhaps the Fey came?"
"Perhaps we should investigate - see if they are still here?"
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"Skirmish line Starfinders, 20 meter spread. We'll sweep the forrest and flush out every single fey that is hiding in it. Private Rastar and Corporal Mars take the flanks. Captain Chorizal, you've got the point position. When we find the the fey the center of our formation will execute a full frontal assault and our flankers will attack in a pincher movement."
You don't see anything of note nearby, but was that a bit of noise to the South?