"Nah, got my tea" Blinky sips it through a straw built into his helmet.
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conrad cracks open not only a hip flask, but two, and mixes himself up a drink he calls a "Manhatten-from-a-six-demon-bag." "Anyone want one? It'll help for the inevitable s+%$show to come."
Usyl stares in Hellknight.
While the others rest, he stands guard, making sure he's ready for when they return to being on-mission. He casts Telepathic Message on the group, in case something interferes with our comms.
An ally can be affected by each specific victory cry (regardless of its source) only once until they take a 10-minute rest to regain Stamina Points.
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conrad cracks open not only a hip flask, but two, and mixes himself up a drink he calls a "Manhatten-from-a-six-demon-bag." "Anyone want one? It'll help for the inevitable s*%$show to come."
"Damn straight I do!'
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"It's okay Usyl, this water of life is the base of the pillar of my secret way, nothing weird."
Usyl ponders if this is a weirding way or not, but dealing with heretics is beyond the purview of his chapterhouse within the Hellknights...so he decides there is no-room for dissent on this mission and lets it go without comment.
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You take a few precious moments to rest and recover, some of which Ishkitik spends making use of the dangerous repair mechanism in the hallway to repair Ishkitok. Once everyone is ready to go, you continue upstairs, through the first room and forward into another.
At the center of this chamber, a holographic projection of the Cantlah system floats over a large, round, platform. Colorful markers represent the vessels of the two warring fleets outside. Every few seconds, the positions of these markers change to incorporate the latest intelligence. Three smaller displays on the port side of the room show projections of the local region of the Vast at various levels of enhancement. Exits lead forward, starboard, and aft (the one you just came in).
As you move into this room, your comms crackle to life again with another update from Ixthia: "The enemy is getting more aggressive, pushing a little further with each counterattack. Don't worry, though, we aren't out of ideas yet!"
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Initiative:
Blinky opens the door and you step through into the hallway beyond. Toward the front of the ship, you see what is surely the bridge. Warning lights, control panels, and displays cover every inch of the walls in this sprawling chamber, all the way up to the vaulted ceiling above. Robots, most of them anchored in place and hardwired to terminals, stand at battle stations in the sunken forward corners of the room, while others cling to the walls farther up. Rising from the center of the room is a wide platform with its own array of displays and controls. Standing atop this platform is a large robot, bigger than any encountered elsewhere on the ship, with eyes and limbs sprouting from its core in every direction. “Welcome, Starfinders!” it says, the mocking tone evident in its voice. “I expected you would show up sooner or later. After all, when has your precious Society ever backed down from a bad idea?”
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Lucius is less successful than he might hope at creating a distraction, as his shot goes wide. Meanwhile, several of the small robots climb up the walls into better positions to take shots at the invading Starfinders! Two take aim at Blinky, while the other two shoot at Pheobe.
Each of the targets is hit once.
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Blinky moves up and hacks at the robot before it can react. Conrad prepares to blow up the smaller ones, while Ishkitik takes careful aim with her pistol and fires. The burst of electricity hits the robot and does damage, but it doesn't seem to share the same vulnerability the smaller ones do. Meanwhile, Ishkitok rushes forward, but she hits a bump just as she arrives and her doshko goes wide.
The large robot laughs as Blinky attacks, and calls out to you before lashing out at the big koala. "You Starfinders couldn't even go one week after your crusade against the jinsuls without getting yourselves mired in a new crisis. You need someone to knock you out of your comfort zone."
In a flash, four of the big robots many metallic limbs slam into Blinky, bloodying him and several of the limbs wrapping around him!
You can’t use Stealth to hide from the creature grappling you, even if a special ability allows you to hide when you normally couldn’t. If you become invisible, through a spell or other ability, you gain a +2 circumstance bonus to your check to escape being grappled, but you receive no other benefit.
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Usyl narrows his eyes with determination and rushes into the fray. "We are the order, piercing forward."
Getting within reach of Blinky, he reaches out one hand to his ally's back and uses Empowered Healing Touch as a standard action.
Then as a swift action, he casts Phase Blade on Blinky's axe.
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Pheobe fools the big robot with some fancy moves then shoots the thing, and Lucius fools the thing then REALLY shoots the thing! Usyl, meanwhile, moves up and heals Blinky, then empowers Blinky's claws.
The deckhand up on the wall takes careful aim at Usyl and fires.
The other three, meanwhile, move up and touch the big robot. The runes on their bodies flare, and some of their components seem to flow into the admiral, healing the big robot and hurting them!
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The large robot, still off-balance from Pheobe and Lucius's tricky ways, loses its grip on Blinky just enough to allow the giant koala to slash it with an enhanced claw. Conrad, meanwhile, lobs a grenade back behind the large robot, showering it and its healing squad with shrapnel!
Ishkitik moves up and shoots at one of the deckhands. When she does, the runes on the admiral's body flare, and the deckhand seems to be momentarily shrouded in a magical haze!
It's not enough to protect the robot, though, and the electricity from her pistol crackling and frying the things circuits! Ishkitok, meanwhile, continues smiling as she swings her doshko at the big robot, connecting and leaving a gash!
The admiral, badly damaged, nevertheless continues its gleeful taunting as it once again lashes out, splitting its attacks between Blinky and Ishkitok! "I shudder to think where you'd be without Guidance. Just another pack of wandering bandits and thieves, no doubt. How is Guidance these days, anyway? Everything OK? Does it need a little maintenance, perhaps? Do you even know what it needs?"
It releases Blinky's unconscious body after two successful strikes, the grabs ahold of Ishkitok, though it's unable to hit with the followup attack.
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Usyl's armor absorbs most of the electricity he's shot with and he shrugs it off. He sighs a little bit internally, but stays on-task keeping everyone in the fight. He focuses his resolve (-1 RP) to use Empowered Healing Touch once more , intoning "On your feet, Starfinder." once his bullish companion opens his eyes.
He then glares at the admiral. "And you. Shut up."
Grim Trophies Armor Upgrade: 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.
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Pheobe's luck seems to have abandoned her as she fumbles her pistol before firing wide. Usyl heals Blinky once again, then tries to cow the robot. It seems effective, but doesn't last long, as Lucies burns a neat hole through the admiral's casing, dropping it before it can respond!
With the admiral down, the four remaining deckhands turn their attention to shooting you, two toward Usyl and two toward Ishkitok.
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Grimacing as he's shot multiple times, the hellknight's armor lights flare an even brighter hue of crimson as he glowers. With Blinky looking almost healthier than he is, Usyl decides to press the assault.
He strides forward, weaving one hand into half of a kuji-kiri symbol before reaching out to deliver an Eclipse Touch on Deckhand 1.
vs. EAC
(Force)
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Usyl tries to attack one of the remaining deckhands, but is unable to connect. Ishkitik, however, has no such issue as she shoots the robot center mass, completely frying its circuits! She then sends Ishkitok forward, in case the last remaining one comes down from the wall.
The final deckhand remains in their position up on the wall, taking aim at Usyl and firing twice!
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Pheobe prances up towards Deckhand #2, hoping to catch it off guard as they focus on Usyl.
Pheobe looks down at her gun as it shoots wide, slaps in against her leg, then blows into the barrel while muttering to the gun, "C'mon, you can do better than that!"
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With the admiral and the rest of the mobile robots defeated, it's quick work to dispatch the remaining hard-wired deckhands and take control of the bridge. After a few moments of frantic searching, you locate the controls for issuing commands to the rest of the fleet and send the stand-down order, disabling the other ships!
With your task completed, you have time to explore the rest of the ship while Ixthia dispatches a pair of shuttles to pick you and the freed prisoners up and return you to the Best of Intentions. Once you get back to the flagship, Ziggy and the rest of the former captives are quickly whisked to the medical bay to be checked out. Ixthia, meanwhile, debriefs you on the details of your mission. They congratulate you on a job well done, and assure you that while this may not be a fatal blow to the Society’s mysterious antagonist, it is nevertheless an important victory.
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The return trip to Absalom Station passes quickly. The majority of the fleet berths in the Armada, and you are shuttled to the Ring where you catch a train back to the Lorespire Complex. Zigvigix is the last to disembark from the train when you reach your destination. Weary and in obvious pain, the shirren nevertheless smiles as they gaze upon the familiar sight. Before they can speak, there’s an audible gasp as a figure in a black coat rushes forward. Celita, her hair a streak of vivid blue, envelops Zigvigix in a powerful hug, nearly knocking them over. Several minutes pass without either speaking aloud, any conversation between them kept private via the shirren’s telepathy. Finally, the android releases her embrace and turns to Zigvigix’s rescuers. “Thank you. I thought…I…” Zigvigix places a hand on her shoulder as she struggles for words, and it’s as if a mountain of worry, carefully concealed by the normally stoic android, sloughs away. She smiles and puts an arm around Zigvigix, supporting them as the pair walk, together, into the Lorespire Complex.
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"Well, glad we could arrange a reunion. If we can turn this into a party, I'm your man. If no one else has an idea, I think we should hit "the station" I own the place, so I can guarantee the private room."
Conrad checks his nails, polishes them on his keffiyeh and then checks them again. "I know I'm in!"
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Usyl will spend the trip back tending to the wounded Starfinders as best he can. He will also debrief those who are willing to share intel on the enemy forces, details of their capture, and so on.
Upon returning home, Usyl will continue assisting the repatriated Starfinders and others reach medical/relief berths and transports home.
However, even the hellknight is moved by the reunion of his faction leader and Celita, as he momentarily pauses his work to stand beside Lucius and the others to take the sight in.