At the outset of the Drift Crisis, many ships were thought lost forever. Among them an enormous recreational vessel, the Revelry , with thousands aboard. As the Drift Crisis recently came to an end and the Drift stabilized, the ship fell out of the Drift, and briefly transmitted a garbled signal before suddenly falling silent. Now it floats among icy bodies beyond the fringes of the Pact Worlds system.
It was the Starfinders who first heard and reacted to the signal. The Vigilance , an Exo-Guardian vessel, went to investigate. Neither ship nor crew has reported back since their arrival on site, save for one incredibly garbled message. The PCs are tasked by Ixthia the Unbreakable with unraveling this mystery. They must journey to the now silent Vigilance and Revelry , where they will discover the latter's name is now a supreme irony, and—at the center of it all—a cold malevolence that seeks to spread its despair through the Pact Worlds and beyond.
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I've got a couple of options for this mission - the final choice depends on how the sub-tier shakes out.
1) Quorlu Vanguard 8
2) Pahtra Precog 5
The vanguard is in the final combat of another scenario, so if we need to start ASAP, I'd use the Precog.
Truth be told, I'd prefer to play the Precog, but if we end up in the high subtler, I'll swap to the Vanguard.
The office of Ixthia the Unbreakable is located in a raised loft area at the back of the Exo-Guardians warehouse. It’s a brightly lit, humid space packed with countless potted plants and plenty of windows overlooking the main warehouse space. A few uncomfortable stools and a spartan worktable are crammed in among the vegetation. The sole plant-free area is a wall-to-wall storage locker, filled with armor and weaponry of all kinds.
“You’re here. Very good. We have something important to tell you,” Ixthia says as they spread their arms wide and spin in a traditional copaxi greeting, then gesture for everyone to be seated. “For the past few months, one of my best agents, Lulora Remis, has been carrying out a research mission in the outer reaches of the Pact Worlds. Two weeks ago, her ship, the Vigilance, picked up a garbled signal sent from an unknown ship. Suspecting it may have been a distress signal, she and her crew of Starfinders went to investigate. They identified the unknown ship as the Revelry, a luxury vessel that vanished during the Drift Crash. Something out there is interfering with signals, and after the Vigilance arrived on site, the only message Lulora got through to us was this.”
Ixthia swipes their hand over a datapad on the worktable. A video message starts playing on a large screen on the wall. The transmission is mostly static, with the occasional snap to clarity showing the terrified face of a ysoki. She wipes fresh blood off her face, and winces as she speaks, “It’s far worse than I… only way… destroy it.” The transmission turns static, and Ixthia stops the playback with a swipe of their hand.
“We’re worried. We want you to investigate the two ships. Help Lulora and her crew evacuate, learn whatever you can about this unknown threat Lulora mentioned and, if possible, destroy it. Do you have any questions?”
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A dimunitive cuttlefish, clad in a suit of armor of Azlanti design, flies into the room on the back of a tiny eyeless raven.
Raising a questioning tentacle, they inquire telepathically:
I assume that Ysoki was Lulora, but what can you tell us of the rest of her crew? Just in case *bodies* are all we can identify...
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That is unfortunate A buzzing noise echoes as a form observes the recording intently. Turing its mass towards Ixthia its shape ripples slightly as you see 'it' is actually a writhing mass of tiny insects climbing and flying around each other. The creatures continue to the exo-guardian.
The damage from the Crisis is still rippling. A tragedy. We will go and rescue who we can, of course. But - they look their gaze towards Ixthia we need to know: this 'research' Lulora was conducting, was it standard? We feel poor to ask, but missions of Celita's and Fitch's have left us more wary than we once were.
That was Lulora, indeed Ixthia nods, “Lulora is a skilled mystic and experienced Starfinder who leads a crew of five.
Ixthia pulls out a record of the crew of the Vigilance ()
She is something of a free soul and her methods are sometimes unorthodox, but she and her team always pull through.
The Vigilance is a Starfinder research and recon vessel that Lulora has been captaining for the ast few years. It’s a small Pegasus class starship and shouldn’t take long to investigate.
Deep Blue can actually answer Atu's questions: Lulora has been studying different sites across the Pact Worlds and beyond for the past few years, looking for evidence of alien civilizations that may pose a threat to the Starfinder Society or their allies, as well as anomalies related to the Drift Crisis.
There were many stories about the Revelry in the news when the ship disappeared. The luxury cruise liner was known for its opulence and extravagance. Many high-profile individuals were rumored to be onboard at the time of its disappearance. The news about the disappearance was hailed as “divine justice” by some groups due to the hedonistic atmosphere and rumors of ties to criminal organizations.
Atu also know that Lulora Remis has a dark side and a fascination with the occult that has sometimes gone too far. Two years ago, her careless approach to a mystic ritual caused the death of a colleague, but there is no official record of it.
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Deep Blue wags a tentacle in understanding.
Well, there *is* the old chestnut that 'curiosity killed the ysoki'; that said, I can understand the allure of forbidden or esoteric knowledge.
Hopefully, we manage to bring this little hiccup to a satisfactory close, with as many sentients as possible alive, and sane.
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Another cuttlefish, this one reddish with sparkling skin, and in a humanoid body made of water and clad in armor of lashunta make, greets Deep Blue in their shared language before takign a seat. <Greeting to each of you,> a smooth telepathic voice says from the fish's direction. <I am Khubelu. I believe I was sent because of my skill at negotiations. It is a pleasure to make each of your acquaintances, and I am sure this will be a highly fruitful mission.>
She then turns to Ixthia. <I am sure Lulora and her crew will not cause us any problems. We are all Starfinders, of course. Can you tell us more about the Revelry and her occupants? And are there any known dangers from the area of space where the two ships are stranded?>
The Revelry was one of the most notorious pleasure cruises in the Pact Worlds. It was marketed as a great way to relax and enjoy all kinds of entertainment and recreation. The Revelry’s crew numbered in the hundreds, and it had thousands of passengers aboard. If you watched the news on the infosphere around the time of the Drift Crash, you may remember it was one of the more publicized losses to the crisis.
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Travel to the outer fringes of the Pact Worlds system, well beyond Apostae, takes days.
At the designated location, two vessels come into view, drifting idly in space. The larger is a massive cruise ship surrounded by an aura of unsettling green light that flickers and dances in a mesmerizing fashion. A docking umbilical from the smaller ship is connected to the larger vessel, piercing through the strange energy field that shrouds it.
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A brindle-furred pahtra has spent most of the trip alternately arguing with or yelling at their commlink. The conversation seems to drift thru a number of topics ranging from cooking shows to Zo! to nature docudramas, but mostly seems to focus on how all of them seem to impact the Drift Crash.
Arrival in the Revelry's vicinity brings a somewhat abrupt end to the long multi-participant call.
"Sorry - mission time. Gotta go. We'll all talk later. And yes, Nyx - I'll watch out for her - crazy or not, she's the focus. B'bye!!"
Turning their attention first to the floating ships, then back to the team, the pahtra shakes their head & offers.
"No, that's not strange. Not strange at all. I'm Nikko, by the way - 5th of 9. Sorry about the long call - family drama."
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Deep Blue goes through some excited color changes upon seeing Khubelu, and waves a tentacle in greeting.
Well met! This is the first time that I have encountered a fellow Stellifera since leaving Azlanti space. I hope we can show the vertebrates just what we are capable of!
Deep Blue looks for cup noodles .
Deep blue indeed finds some pot noodles, right in the pantry where they should be.
The pantry shakes a bit when Nikko bring in the ship to dock, gravitational anomalies making it hard to bring in the ship with precision. He does manage to dock cleanly without any bumping, allowing the team to get on board of the Vigilance.
The airlock hisses, and the group find themselves in the rear cargo holds. The lights are dim, but provide enough light to illuminate the rooms and corridors. Everything else seems to be off-line.
The ship seems to be in power-save mode, the low power mode than can be set manually, and which automatically kicks in when the main battery falls below a certain level (usually 10%).
The air in this cargo hold feels heavy, with specks of dust dancing in the light that streams in from the door. The space is filled with countless shelves and crates lining the walls, each one packed with supplies. The towering shelves cast long shadows that stretch across the creaking metal grates on the cold, damp floor. The distant hum of machinery echoes through the walls like a ghostly chorus.
The faint hum of the oxygen-carbon decompressor indicates the life support system is still online. It's bloody cold, though, about 35F, just above freezing point.
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Excellent approach Nikko Atu Veyo says as they float up from their seat and check their gear. Are there any signs of life aboard?
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As the group enters the hold, Atu looks around. None of its constituents care much for the lack of heat, but the thermal capacitor recently installed in their armor gives some respite.
As Xylt pings them, Atu passes on This vessel's running off of low power. It is possible the mode was set intentionally. Sadly more likely it is a sign of battery failure. Which is unfortunate.
The spathinae looks around to see if there is some sort of intercom in the hold.
Atu is having some trouble with the scanners: the space occupied by the Revelry doesn't give any reading at all, as if the space is empty. The scan of the Vigilance shows the shields are down, but no damage to the hull.
The air in this cargo hold feels heavy, with specks of dust dancing in the light that streams in from the door. The space is filled with countless shelves and crates lining the walls, each one packed with supplies. The towering shelves cast long shadows that stretch across the creaking metal grates on the cold, damp floor. The distant hum of machinery echoes through the walls like a ghostly chorus.
The faint hum of the oxygen-carbon decompressor indicates the life support system is still online. It's bloody cold, though, about 35F, just above freezing point.
The crates contains food and clothing, as well as some spare parts and tools for ship maintenance. There's also a squad NIL grenade launcher and four incendiary grenades II.
The comm system is down, one of the non-essential systems that was shut down due to the power outage.
(Side note: I snagged all the posted tokens & moved copies to the map. Still no token for Deep Blue)
Beyond the door is a small laboratory. The place is filled with the sharp smell of chemicals, and the lights in the ceiling flicker dimly. Among the lab equipment is a large centrifuge, two refrigerators, and a computer terminal perched atop a desk.
The refrigerators contain test tubes clearly labeled as samples of different plant and animal cells collected from various planets over the years. None of the dates are recent.
The centrifuge contains nearly two dozen vials, all filled with a black liquid.
Atu looks at the samples. It's a bit hard to recognise under the dim light, but the dark liquid is, in fact, blood. The subtle differences in color also tell him that these come from a variety of different humanoids.
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Beyond the laboratory (A2) is a narrow corridor (A3). The dimly lit corridor is lined with doors and illuminated by a solitary red emergency light that flashes slowly, conjuring illusions of shifting shadows. The ventilation system exhales brief gusts of air, producing a gasp-like sound that echoes through the corridor.
The doors have signs on them, indicate what each of them leads to: the one the group passed through has 'docking module' written on it, the door to the aft leads to 'engineering', the starboardside door says 'medical bay', while the forward door reads 'nexus passage'. The last door is locked.
It seems to power outage caused the door to lock. You can still try to open with a separate engineering check
Nikko makes their way to Engineering
The utilitarian room houses diagnostic systems, engineering consoles, and clearly labeled access hatches for the power core and engines. Wires hang from the ceiling, and the air smells of grease and steel. The low, groaning sounds of machinery resonate through the room.
There's a diagnostic console monitoring the ship's energy level.
From the logs, it is clear that power level have been dropping for no discernible reason, and from the look of it, the power core has a damaged capacitor array.
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Xylt, can you analyze? Atu softly asks their AI as they approach the logs.
The power core's capacitor array has suffered damage, they share with the rest of the group as thier helper manages to access the logs. But that does not explain the extent of the power loss. The levels were dropping with no clear cause...
The spathinae looks to the others, sizing them up to see if anyone else might be more 'gearhead'-aligned. Are any of us familiar with starship engines? I do not know enough myself to know if this ship may be running dead due to solely the power, or perhaps some further damage.
The next space is saturated with the smell of antiseptic. Bloodied bandages and opened medkits lie scattered across the floor, while a desk at one end of the room is haphazardly strewn with medical tools and devices. On the opposite wall stands an inactive medical robot, its mechanical arms equipped with scalpels, scanners, and other types of medical tools.
The aft space is another storage space, quite similar to the entry point of the vessel.
Careful! There's a crate of steel pipes that somehow thought was safe to stow at the top of an unstable pile of crates. Fortunately, Bodo and Nikko spot the peril on time, and nobody is hurt as if comes down.
Atu's hireling immediately recognises one of the items in the cargo as a spare capacitor array (it even says so on the box)
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[i]With our special CapRay capacitor array your power doesn't peak out! Our array come with industry-standard fittings and thanks to our patented quicklift system, replacing an array has never been easier! Just use the specially provided clips and the array snaps right into place! All AbadarCorp CapRays have a guaranteed lifetime of 1000 Gigajoules![/i
---AbadarCorp advertisement
True to the advertisements shown around the Pact Worlds, the CapRay is indeed easy to install. The manual does mention something about cutting power first, but it turns out that wasn't really an issue here.
As the power core starts producing less smoke and more energy, the non-essential systems start to boot up again, starting with heating and lights, and then the gradual boot-up of other system.
One such systwm is the medical robot in the medical bay. Hello there the robot speaks in a friendly though somewhat posh accent, What seems to be troubling you today?
There's also an audible click that signifies the door to the nexus () unlocking.
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Do not go ahead too far... Atu tries to warn the pair as they start dwn the open hallway. They try to flag them to pause as the collective moves towards the now-animate bot.
Greetings. We are also Starfinders they say presenting the Socety's symbol to the droid. Come to investigate. Lulora and this whole vessel was cut off from communication. Can you confirm the crew manifest? And do you know where they are now? What is the last log date recorded before your last power-down?