George is relentless, and bring down his full arcane might on the thug, who collapses when the last missile hits.
Greiki is about to call out the purple thug, but when he hears the slumping to the ground, concludes a different target is in order. ()
---
Tarrakk
Tetra
Zarzucket
Greiki
George
---
Omen (stabilized)
Thug - Purple (DOWN)
Thug - Orange
Thug - Red
---
Tarrakk shows how easily the thug can be outsmarted, time his shot right and his the thug right in the face. One more volley of magical missiles, and one more shot by tetra, and the the bad guys are eliminated.
---
With the battle over, Ehu and Radaszam rejoin you. Ehu assures you, "All the guests survived. Emergency services have arrived and are taking care of any injuries, but by all accounts, the quick intervention of our Starfinders prevented any serious damage from occurring to any of the gala attendees and staff."
The museum itself is a different story. The assault and resulting combat caused significant damage to the structure of the museum, meaning it will need to close its doors while they repair the building and assess any damage done to the collections.
"What motive did they have?!" Ehu expresses suspicion of the motive behind the attack, noting that the robbers damaged more than they stole.
"Yes," Radaszam agrees, "the robbers were highly trained and experienced. Any damage done was intended—almost like they were trying to cause as much chaos as possible."
The defeated android regains a semblance of consciousness after a short while. When she sees the starfinder group, she just sniggers, and with a broken, weak voice says "Don't you see? We won..."
"She won?" Ehu's face falls at this remark as he mutters, “A distraction?! For what?” With a heavy sigh, he says, "Starfinders. Accompany me, please. We need to do a final sweep of the museum."
The trip through the museum galleries reveals that many of the rooms that contained notably valuable artifacts have been untouched. Ehu is almost ready to call the search off until he comes across Odesse's display of belongings from the Tabori Cluster. “This looks different,” he remarks.
Radaszam replies, “I'll find Odesse.”
Tetra has a look at the display case, and notices that the objects have been carefully rearranged, so as to suggest nothing in missing.
Tarrakk point out the expert way in which the glass of the case has been cut and resealed, and discovers a strand of bright purple hair stuck on the case. Inside the case, all the belongings associated with the Ulumbian civilization are missing.
Meanwhile, Radaszam and Odesse arrive. Odesse looks frazzled and in shock.
When Valas mentions the missing Ulumbian artefacts, Odesse shrugs in a mix of confusion and defeat. “I don’t understand. Even in the Tabori Cluster, the Ulumbians are overlooked—ignored even! They didn’t leave behind any impressive architecture or sites, and no one’s ever discovered anything of notable financial value. They’re important to a select group of local academics, of course, but to robbers? Worthless. These items were everyday tools made from dull gray-green stone. A thief could fetch a better price foranything else in this museum. Why bother?”
“Why bother, indeed,” Ehu ruminates. “Thank you Odesse. Perhaps we should go look at the Security footage?”
Radaszam pauses, looking at the group. "I noticed you talking to Odesse earlier. Did you notice anything strange about her exhibit?"
Zarzucket notices that the display case, which used to induce nasty headaches, no longer seems to have that effect. The group has been standing near it for a while now, and there have been no symptoms.
Ehu leads the party towards the security room. With the help of Amyikesh, he pulls up the surveillance footage of Odesse’s display, scanning it for any hints as to what happened. The security terminal hums to life as Ehu scans through the footage from the last day. He sifts through footage of Odesse and the conservation staff setting up the display, noting a strange pained expression on their faces as they do so, along with footage of the drunken professor and the Starfinders’ subsequent intervention.
Everything seems to be in order until only a few minutes ago, when everyone was called into the lobby, and the mercenaries burst through the front door. A new figure enters the room, an elven janitor with bright purple hair. She waits in the room for a while and, as the sounds of chaos erupt over the security feed, carves her way into the display case with a laser-edged glass cutter. She rapidly pockets the Ulumbian belongings, shoving them into a seemingly bottomless garbage bag. She looks up to the camera and smirks, teleporting away.
“We were played,” Radaszam grunts. “It was all a distraction.”
Ehu clenches his fists. “It’s the Organization.”
You recognize the janitor as Evethriel—the sister of Iroiveth (an enemy killed by Starfinders years ago), a founder of the Organization (a dangerous criminal syndicate whose true name and purpose the Starfinders have yet to discern), and the same person who instigated a prison break and freed the ysoki mastermind Datch from the Adamantine Bastille last year.
"The so-called janitor's name is Evethriel. The Society killed her sister who was allied with Datch," Radaszam sighs. "Since then, she organized a prison break from the Adamantine Bastille, and has been working with a criminal group known to us only as the Organization. They've been a thorn in our side for a while."
Ehu paces. “The Organization must feel proud right now, smirking in whatever den they've hidden themselves. They must think they've won. That they've pulled off another successful mission against the Starfinder Society. They, my fellow Starfinders, have become overconfident.”
“Think of their actions tonight. A full cadre of soldiers and assassins sallied out against a museum. A place that houses knowledge not just for us, but for entire cultures. A place where the children of the future will come to learn about their ancestors and, hopefully, one day learn about us. They found a place with a noble purpose and tried to sully it with their own corruption. And who was it, my friends, that these soldiers marched out against? Academics. And yet they still lost. All the might of their money and their guns couldn't hold out against you, people who came here only to set up a display and bask in history. What hope could they have against a dedicated foe? How would they fare against a Society united against them?"
Ehu frowns. “Under my watch, and those before me, the Organization has festered. They've run rampant across the galaxy, harming civilians, executing unarmed prisoners, destroying priceless cultural heritage. They, my Starfinders, have killed our friends. No more." Ehu clenches his fist again.
“My time as First Seeker will soon come to an end. It would be easy to pass off this duty to my successor. To let them inherit this problem while I wipe my hands of it. But what kind of leader would I be if I did that? What kind of person would I be if I shrugged this burden off my own shoulders and onto someone else's? Certainly not someone who would be worth remembering in a place like this.”
Ehu straightens. “In this place of history, on the memories of those who have been irreparably damaged, I declare our future. No more shall the Organization run free, no more shall they harm our families and our peoples. To you, to our friends, and to our Society I make a vow: my last act as First Seeker will be the dismantling of this festering evil.”
“This year, the Organization—whoever they truly are—falls.”
With his vow made, Ehu steps out of the security room and into the destroyed lobby. Waiting there are Zovi, Odesse, and all the other exhibitors you impressed over the course of the evening. They all carry sorrowful expressions and lament the outcome of the gala but are thankful for your efforts and those of the Starfinder Society as whole.
Zovi shows regret that the gala ended with the temporary closure of the museum and the destruction of so much history. "But I promises that the renovations can only make the museum even better when it reopens, especially with the addition of our new permanent exhibit: 'Belongings of the Scoured Stars, organized and displayed by the expert hands of the Starfinder Society."
Over the next few days, Ehu and Radaszam help out at the museum and liaison with local authorities, giving you all a few days to unwind in Qabarat, free of charge and in the lap of luxury.