It was a message on your personal comm unit that read Meet us for breakfast, Croizanarte. Z that brought you to this gourmet pastry shop in Drifter's End, not too far from the Lorespire complex. A large family of ysoki is teeming all over themselves as they wait to be seated by an extraordinarily patient uplifted bear. When it is the group's turn to be seated - it takes a while - the uplifted bear waiter (who somehow seems to want to avoid Chip's drone Checker - strange that) leads the group to a very private table. Welcome to Croizante, this is the chef's table. Enjoy your breakfast, the uplifted bear says, before hurrying off.
Effused with the smell of freshly baked pastries, this spacious table boasts room for occupants of all sizes. A shirren in a power chair sits on the far side from the entrance next to a large barathu collective swirling with color. “You’re just in time, Starfinders!” Zigvigix exclaims. “We ordered the sampler platter, and it should be here any minute!”
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Wearing an "ASNN" branded jumpsuit, a man stops right inthe middle of the establishment and starts speaking loudly to a hovering drone. "'And here in a rowdy spacer's bar in Drifter's End'-- Wait, Cambot. Cut that last bit and splice this in 'And here in a gourmet pastry shop in Drifter's End, your correspondent once again boldly joins the Starfinder Society on another mission. Will it end in utter disaster or a hard-fought victory? Only time--and me, Vitellius Korpopolis for the Absalom Station News Network--will tell!' Good, save that and pick up some background color while I see who these yahoos are."
The drone begins drifting around the room while the man comes over to the table. He sits down and nods in a friendly way. "A barathu, and a drow. Not a bad start, but our viewers really like to see the more exotic species. Hopefully we'll even get someone from the Vast in. Oh, I'm Vitellius Korpopolis, by the way, but I bet you already knew that. I've been embedded on this mission. Just be your normal selves, but more in a more interesting and exciting way."
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"Hm, I don't think I've ever been to this shop before."
An android woman wearing a bandolier of medical gear sits down at the table.
"I don't think I've met any of you before, although you seem slightly familiar George."
She looks a bit surprised by the drone that Vitellus brought.
"Am I being followed? Last mission I was also on camera for the whole mission."
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George 09-23 searches his near perfect memory banks but has no recollection of Delikie.
"Really? Well perhaps it is my brother you are thinking of? George 09-21. He has a strong pop following on the home world."
The android nods at Lennah and then turns to Vitellius Korpopolis. Cultural surveys indicate that most people respond better to shorter and more memorable names.
"Your name is quite a mouthful. Perhaps cutting it down to something more memorable and easy to say will yield better results. Vito perhaps?
Harmony of Many, the barathu next to Zigvigix, has numerous tendrils with which they reach to pull out chairs as their telepathic voice chimes in:
“And while you enjoy a hearty breakfast, we can detail a mission we would like you to undertake in an area of Absalom Station few have ever seen—the Ghost Levels. This region of the Spike is home to strange creatures, bizarre ecosystems, and possibly even undiscovered sapient residents. It is unknown what role these areas play in maintaining the delicate balance of Absalom Station’s equilibrium, but they are dangerous enough that almost all access points are cordoned off and travel there forbidden.”
Zigvigix picks up the briefing from their counterpart. “Ever since the Drift Crash, the station has been flooded with refugees. The Starfinder Society has been helping as many people as we can, but resources and space aren’t infinite. One of my fundraising contacts told me about some refugees who found their way into one of the uppermost Ghost Levels and set up their own volunteer-led community.” They give a pleasant nod to their barathu colleague. “We want you to travel to this new community in the Ghost Levels and meet the people in charge. See if there’s anything you can do to help them out! We’ll be sending you with some supplies to bring down there after breakfast.”
Harmony of Many continues. “Indeed. Our drone, Major Sixth, is monitoring the assembly of these supplies now, and will inform us when they are ready. Your mission is also to explore the region surrounding this refugee community. While doing so you should maintain good records, document your findings, map your progress, communicate peacefully with any sapient species you encounter, and comport yourselves as responsible explorers. We intend to prove to the Syndicsguild that the upper reaches of the Ghost Levels can be safely settled, so long as they are explored with care by responsible groups knowledgeable in engineering, magic, and archaeology—groups like the Starfinder Society. We will provide you with tools to help you flag any mysterious sites for further exploration and to collect any relics of value, so long as doing so won’t harm local ecosystems.”
Zigvigix concludes the briefing just as overflowing plates of food arrive. “And of course, you should deal with anything dangerous you find down there in whatever manner you think best. Just please make sure you come back in the same number of pieces you left in! So, who’s hungry?”
You can do that by going to your character page (by clicking on the name), selecting 'edit my profile' and then entering information in the Race/Classes/Level/Gender boxes (mind the leading space and change [-ooc] to a normal ooc tag by removing the dash):
[-ooc]Female Human Envoy 4[/ooc]
| Speed: land: 40 |
| SP 24/24 HP 28/28 | [-ooc] RP 7/7[/ooc] | EAC 13; KAC 14 | [-ooc]Fort +1; Ref +5; Will +4[/ooc] | Init: +1 | [-ooc]Perc: +4, SM: +4[/ooc]
The Ghost Levels are such an obscure part of Absalom station that knowledge checks do not yield much.
Zigvigix listens to Mizzrym's question, and responds We expect to find beings of all races and origins. The drift crisis did not discriminate between who got stuck, so you'll find a mix of pretty much everything.
Zigvigix wipes their mandibles with a napkin and adds, “There’s a small food bank operating near the Laughing Lady tavern in the Downlow neighborhood. My sources tell me that’s where you can find the right path to follow to the community”
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"Food bank it is!" says Vitellius, getting up from his chair. "Makes good b-roll footage around the holidays--we still dig up stuff from years ago, and no one notices! The key," he says with a wink, "is enough of it that the audience feels all warm and fuzzy, but not so much that they feel guilty that they're not actually doing anything. Journalism really is a balancing act!"
The chef of the Croizanarte, Kevocad, a shirren wearing a chef's hat, comes up to the table, accompanied by a telepathic message from Zigvigix He's the one paying for all this. , who then speaks Kevocad! It's time this group caught up with your reputation. Zigvigix talks to the group and says Kevocad here is a retired Starfinder. I'm sure you've read about the exploration he did on Castrovel, or the diplomatic missions to Vesk-5? Anyway, Kevocad has offered us this breakfast on the house, such a nice thing to do!
Thank you, Ziggy Kevocad, it's my pleasure. I come bearing gifts! He places a gilded box on the table these contain six of my special pastries. You can give them to whoever you think would benefit from eating one, or you can taste them for yourselves, of course.
Soon after, Major Sixth, Harmony of Many's drone with a mk 1 null-space chamber that is filled with supplies for the refugees. The drone also gives the group a Enhanced Camera Scanner and a pair of Cartographer Boots.
You can use these to map out and mark special locations Harmony of Many explains.
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Vitellius smiles broadly at George 09-23, his mouth full of perfect teeth that sparkle, no doubt due to some kind of sponsorship arrangement with a toothpaste manufacturer. "I'd call that flattery, but it's perfectly true! Why, I've learned how to strike up a rapport with pretty much anyone--starship mechanics, poachers, con artists, and more--it's amazing the types of people I've encountered since being embedded with the Starfinder Society. Oh, excuse me one moment, I've just thought of something."
Vitellius takes out a small pocket recorder and speaks into it: "Note to self: add free gourmet breakfast and magical pastries to research file for story on undisclosed and possibly corrupt perqs of SFS membership."
The Downlow neighbourhood is located, somewhat counter-intuitively, in the spike of Absalom station. It's a poor and crowded area of the station, and currently overflowing with refugees.
Groups of refugees are bunched together near ventilation vents for warmth, some are sleeping on the sidewalks, and there's the occasional busker singing a popular tune.
They opened an amusement park called 'Wasteland'
Whose main attraction was a pile of quicksand
The average review was one out of five
And that's only from those that came back alive
Orgoth and Uben
Don't know what they're doing
Orgoth and Uben
Are both a little out their minds
Don't give them a dime
They'll burn through your cash
Like they burned through mine...
The food bank Zigvigix mentioned, called 'Food for thought' is just up the alley. There's an elderly lashunta clerk overseeing a moderate stack of supplied. Hello there, she greets the group with a warm smile what can I do for you?
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As Cambot takes in a wide zoom, Vitellius waits for one of the Starfinders to say something. This footage is going to be terrible. Are they shy? Guess I better nudge things along . . .
He strides up to the elderly clerk. "Vitellius Korpopolis, ASNN. But you probably already know that! These here junior members of the Starfinder Society have supplies for refugees rumored to be settling the Ghost Levels. Care to comment on their utter desperation driven by trauma and fear? The refugees' desperation, that is, not the Starfinders."
Oh, and interview. That is good! It's good that people now of the awful circumstances in which these refugees have to hide. We're just a humble food bank, we're always looking for generous donors who can make sure the lives of our refugees are a bit easier! the elderly lashunta says.
As soon as Vitellus takes the camera off her, she adds You know, if you want to make an exciting field report, just head after that group of lahsuntas that just left for the lower level. It would be good if the station knew of what these people have to go through, why don't you follow them?
The direction in which the lashuntas were headed is clear, and lead through some forlorn streets into alley covered in the pale cast of a solitary holographic streetlight.
A troupe of lashuntas is beset by what is easily identifiable as a gang of bruisers, who look to have set their eyes on anything the lashuntas are carrying (which is, admittedly, not that much). Cough it up, weaklings the lead gang member accosts the lashuntas local tax, local rules. Maybe we'll let you run some errands for us so you can pay the rest of the tax for passing through. The other gang members snigger.
The bruisers take an armored drow with a laser quite seriously, and look to hesitate for a moment.
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"Ooh, this is gold!" says Vitellius to himself, getting into position so that the clashing Starfinders, thugs, and hapless victims are all in the shot behind him. He motions to Cambot to start recording and starts speaking into a microphone.
"Violence was in the air today as a group of bandits were about to rob some refugees when agents of the Starfinder Society arrived. Given how horribly outnumbered and outgunned the bandits are, this trained war correspondent expects severe casualties on their end! More at 11. Remember, when you want exciting local news, mostly live and in full color, Vitellius Korpopolis and the Absalom Station News Network have it all!"
The leader of the toughs glares back at Vitellus and grumbles Fine, fine. We'll waive the taxes for you. But next time you have to pay up!
The group of lashunta is looking rather rattled. What has this place come to! one complains, harassing us here like that. It's fortunate that good people still exist! Thanks you so much for helping us!
The lashuntas are quick to point out to some bystanders that their situation would have been dire if it hadn't been for the timely arrival of the starfinders.
Finally, of the of refugess asks You don't like people stuck in the drift crisis. What brings you down here?
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"These Starfinders have been tasked with learning all about the refugee community here in the Ghost Levels--what they need, how many of them there are, and what sorts of dangers are about. And I'm here to record every second of it! They seem to be a shy crew, so you might have to do most of the talking. Oh! You should shake their hands as they dole out the supplies they brought--that'd be perfect for me to narrate over later."
You bring supplies? In that case, you must be looking for Fullbridge, the community just up the road from here. Let us lead you there!
The trek to Fullbridge takes about twenty minutes under the Lashuntas' guidance. The group passes through access corridors and past bulkheas, with only the rythmic hum of machinery emerging from the surroundings. Finally, the group arrives in a large open space.
The ground is coated in dark green insulated rubber with numerous cutaways to the steel bulkheads underneath, which contain silver inlays arranged in obscure, elongated patterns. The area is populated with numerous towering metal cylinders arranged in orderly rows. Together, this chamber resembles a giant circuit board. In the center of this space stands a massive tower made of insulated electrical wire coils, rivaling a racetrack in size, each winding wire as thick around as a vesk’s torso.
At ground level, there are four breaks in these coils, big enough for a large creature to comfortably walk through. Bolts of lightning zap across two of the four openings at any given time.
There are, of course, some warnings signs that elaborate on the danger of electricity, and which provide the correct procedure for passing through: discharge all static electricity on one of the metal rods, then walk briskly through the opening 3 to 10 second after a discharge
The cut-off words “full bridge rec–” are scrawled in silver marker next to the opening.
These are spark gaps that help regulate the flow of energy across electrodes. The instructions on how to correctly pass seem accurate enough.