This large storeroom is filled with supplies for the bar outside, including bottles of hard alcohol, kegs of beer, and boxes of food and recreational stimulants. One corner holds amplifiers, musical instruments, and costumes for the club’s entertainers. A single door stands in the north wall. Three members of the Downside Kings sit around a table, chips and cards on its surface as each of them have a hand.
The first one to notice your entry turns to look at all of you with an expression of curiosity that turns into a frown, "Kings and Crew only, this area is off-limits." Expecting that to have been enough to turn you away, they turned back to the game they had going.
Sparks strides into the room unabashed by their words. He lets his energy attunement reach its maximum. His mote sparks ominously. "We might respect your rules if you hadn't murdered Duravor Kreel at the space docks. We insist on having words with your leader." He reveals the club and laser pistol he had been keeping behind his back, to emphasize his seriousness.
Sparks strides into the room unabashed by their words. He lets his energy attunement reach its maximum. His mote sparks ominously. "We might respect your rules if you hadn't murdered Duravor Kreel at the space docks. We insist on having words with your leader." He reveals the club and laser pistol he had been keeping behind his back, to emphasize his seriousness.
[dice=Intimidate]1d20 + 4
Zeph absolutely follows Sparks; activating his solar flare so that his right hand is wreathed in darkness.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
There is a moment of hesitation at the reveal of weapons, before everything becomes chaotic and the fight ensues. The gang members scramble for weapons that they did not have ready as the one of the far end looks to flip the table up, not taking into account that the weapons the others were scrambling for were set on the table. They clearly were not as prepared for this as all of you were.
one of them shouts, the sound carrying in the quieter environment of this storeroom.
________________________________
Dirk Gentry's three Blue eyes open wide in excitement when they land on all the wonderful array of costumes!
Oh my! These are just fabulous!
Innocently smiling at the poor uninformed gangsters, the Dirindi begins randomly picking out a variety of fashion forward outfits!
At the violent turning of the table(s), Dirk sadly shakes his head.
This could have been handled in a bit more sophisticated manner, but ...
The Electrical attuned Solarian begins to show signs of electricity sparking about his person!
The Espionage Specialist then forms his Lunar weapon, as he Strides in the direction of any egress to block any potential escape.
Sparks steps five feet closer to the nearest ganger and sends a jolt of electricity arcing his way.
Target: 1 creature within 30 ft.; DC 14 Fortitude save for half damage
"Yes, call your boss," Sparks says calmly.
The member nearest the door starts to rise and go for the door that the group did not enter by, only to get hit by a jolt of electricity sent his way by Sparks and seize in his chair for a moment. While they did try to stand again, those seconds were enough time for some direct door denial by Dirk, a decent deterrent now standing in the way.
The scrambling from the others that had been around the table resumes after that unexpected display that froze all of them for a second, not having expected the immediate show of power. The cards on the table are thrown into disarray as the chips that had been somewhat neatly stacked are now scattered by the upturned table. Still, for the immediate show of force, they do not hesitate beyond that first moment, resuming their initial actions of preparing for hostility as they take what cover they can, with weapons drawn.
_________________________________
Sparks starts a new attunement cycle as he advances, club and pistol in hand toward the one at the south side of the room.
He swings the club and makes a solid hit on something.
Dirk Gently patiently awaits the tell-tall sign of The Boss opening the door, while he simply smiles (tapping his foot to the music outside the room) at the Gangster that Sparks just clubbed.
You look a bit shocked.
The Solarian continues to spark electricity as he points at him
He then locks the door.
The sudden shock from the door-blocking detective sees the speaker sprawl before a single stride can be taken, subtracting them from the storeroom shenanigans.
Meanwhile Sparks is not deterred, stepping up to the side of the table where the gang member standing there has not had enough time to react, the club eliciting a yelp with the impact as they were unable to dodge out of the way enough to avoid the hit.
Not expecting to get immediately attacked, the Downsider that Sparks hit has to pull his club, having been holding his gun, before taking a rushed swing at him that misses.
The other Downsider that had not taken cover behind the table yet, turns to fire at Dirk, blocking the doorway, the shot just missing and impacting the frame.
___________________________________
Dirk Gently's three Blue eyes follow the trajectory of the speeding bullet passing by his stylish hat with a bit of....
Was that only a fart?
.... unfortunate bowel movement possibilities flushing about his cranium.
Tipping said stylish hat at the perpetrator of those misgivings, the Espionage Specialist opens the door (politely tipping his hat to anyone else on the other side, Steps towards his perpetrator, activating his
Source Tech Revolution pg. 30
When you’re fully resistance-attuned, as a standard action, you can cause all creatures within 10 feet of you to become fatigued for 1 minute, and any creature that’s already fatigued becomes nauseated for 1 round (Fortitude negates). Creatures affected by this ability must expend twice as many charges as normal when operating items powered by batteries. After you use this revelation, you immediately become unattuned. Energy sink functions as a zenith revelation for the purposes of abilities that reference them.
My good chap! You look positively Fatigued.
Having held the door, Zemfira moves in beside Sparks and aligns her shield toward the target he attacked.
"We come in peace and really just want to talk. Stand down please."
Then he swings his new club again and the same ganger.
The door-blocking detective ducks through his doorway and notices a harsh woman and large Vesk, surprised at the sudden entrance, and unprepared for the sudden drain that hits them, even the monitor and lights dimming in that moment before the intruder is gone in a matter of seconds.
Zemfira steps up beside Sparks, the light of her shield coming to bear against the ganger as the Brenneri lands another hit with the appropriated club.
A shot impacts the table from Zephyr, unable to land a good hit thanks to the improvised cover.
From behind Dirk, the door is flung open, the sight of the large Vesk framed in the doorway and seeming almost startled to see someone immediately there. That surprise turns to a grin as their hand reaches towards an assault hammer that is held on their person.
Faced with two individuals, the gang member at the edge of the table thinks better of their life decisions as they abandon all pretense of fight and flee past their compatriot. Nimble enough to thread a path between everyone without coming near, they breach the double doors to the storerrom and do not look back.
The other takes cover at the opposite end of the table, missing yet another shot at Dirk as they glance in the direction the other went.
__________________________________
, C
Sparks ignores the fleeing goons and advances around the table, letting his state of attunement reach maximum levels in his Energy mode. His mote again sparks ominously and he smacks his club on his hand for emphasis.
"What's it gonna be mate?" he asks the remaining gang member hiding behind the upturned table and again does not wait for a reply and swings his club.
Dirk Gently simply smiles, shrugs and says to the mean looking muscles vesk and Fatigued looking Boss, as the door swings back open.
Sorry. We are at our capacity. Reservations are taken online only.
The Espionage Specialist then shuts the door and Jams it locked.
His Energy Attunement begins crackling electricity once more!
The Solarian turns his blue eyes to look at the lone, misfiring miscreant behind the overturned table.
Let me guess. This is your first day.
Fully attuned, Zemfira steps beside Sparks again and releases her charge on the enemy remaining in the room.
Zeph, worried about the Blue-Eyed Holistic Detective, races to position himself behind Dirk before the fight continues!
As the last Downsider in the room falls under a discharge of electricity from Zemfira, Zephyr moves to back up Dirk, who had just shut and done something to the lock that kept the door from opening. A brief thump from the other side came with a shout of frustration before there were seconds of silence.
The lock on the door clicked, the door slid open, and the Vesk that Dirk had shut the door on was already in the middle of a wild swing, connecting directly with the door-guarding detective!
___________________________________
, B
"Are you the boss of this outfit?" Sparks asked. Then he lets the vesk know why he came to be called sparks.
Target: 1 creature within 30 ft.; DC 14 Fortitude save for half damage
Dirk Gently's three Blue eyes watch as the previously jammed door is opened from the other side. His three Blue eyes widen as that bothersome Vesk readied to assault his person!
The Espionage Specialist turns those shocked three Blue eyes to the obviously elected leader of the pair.
Absolutely deplorable behavior being promoted by your faculty! I would like to lodge a formal complaint with your HR department.
Dirk then attempts to reciprocate the Vesk's ettique!
He then closes the door as he retreats across the room to the original egress.
The Espionage Specialist looks out into the main building to see if anyone else will be joining them ...
His Energy Attunement begins crackling electricity once more!
When you enter energy mode, you gain 1 energy attunement point and become energy-attuned; you’re treated as being photon-attuned for the purpose of determining your stellar revelations’ effects. While energy-attuned, your speeds all increase by 5 feet. This bonus increases by 5 feet for every 3 solarian levels you have.
Zephyr, never one to shrink from a fight, steps out from behind the trifecta in blue to get a clear shot; "I may not know what HR means, but cracklin' rose here is like a store bought woman, and you've lit him up like a guitar hummin'"
In this unbelievable exchange of door controls, Sparks, Dirk, and Zephyr land a shock, thrust, and shot respectively before the door-holding-detective sees it shut again, which elicits a muffled scream of frustration from the other end from the Vesk as he steps away.
The door is triggered once more, and this time, the Vesk is holding a matte oblong orb about the size of his palm, a lazy underhanded toss triggering a little red blinking light on the object that starts to blink rapidly!
Similarly, just at the feet of Spaks and Zephyr, a smaller orb bounces neatly, a spark of electricity the only warning before its impending discharge!
Chuckling, the Vesk triggers the door to close before a pair of explosions rock the small room!
________________________________
P, 15ft
E, 10ft.
Vesk (7)
Sparks calls out "INCOMING!!!" and leaps high in the air, drawing himself into a ball that reaches its smallest surface area about the time the two explosions rock the room.
Then he nimbly lands back on his feet, only slightly bruised/shocked.
Dirk Gently's three Blue eyes watch with detached interest as the fragmentation grenade happily bounces amongst him and his.
Coughing a bit from the newly placed dust and debris busily bullying his attire, the frowning Holistic Detective Strides to the door, opens it and.... electricity sparking about him directs itself greedily at the Vesk!
The Solarian simply waves at the Boss lady.
We have a plethora of questions about certain things pertaining to mining....
"You people are ba$tard people; I hate your a$$ ... face. My grandparents said I didn't have to be merciful to non-elves because of the whole Gap thing, well, this time, I'm going to do it their way!"
Zeph looks around for a medpac
Zem retrieves a pistol from one of the fallen and prepares to fire on the first combatant or projectile her eye falls upon.
Dinged and disgruntled, the slightly damaged detective slides the door open with a flare of destructive discharge, the doorway denying Vesk goes rigid under the electric assault.
Just as Dirk ducks, a singular shot strikes true, Zemfira punctuating the opportunity with a well-placed shot, the red-armored target going from rigid to limp as they topple backwards with a groan, their limit reached.
Injured, and undoubtedly not the only one in that situation, Zephyr casts about for any medical supplies, as injuries are mounting little by little. There is a basic medkit on the wall of the storeroom by the double-doors, though whether or not it is stocked or just a holdover that has not been refilled remains to be seen.
The door remains open.
_________________________________
Vesk (22)
Sparks adds more attunement to his energy mode and tries to tumble past the last gang member standing, hoping it's the leader.
"Save yourself further injury and surrender, so we can talk."
Sparks attempt to enter the room is hampered by the body of the Vesk in the doorway, stymied from moving further. That does not stop the lean and scarred woman just to the side of the doorway from landing an attack on Sparks just as she is hit, a snarl on her face.
"You first."
__________________________________
, B
Sparks takes the punch in stride as his mote sparks ominously at its maximum attunement. He edges into the room and his mote sends an arc of electricity at the woman. He worries it might kill her, but since she does not seem to have a survival instint, he lets it fly.
"Taste the sun's holy energy."
Target: 1 creature within 30 ft.; DC 14 Fortitude save for half damage
Frowning at the women's refusal to cooperate properly, the Holistic Detective begins attuning his Energy, as electricity again begins to bounce about his body.
Entering the personal space of the foolish gangsta, the Solarian simply waves.
Defiance and desperation inevitably fail as a bright arc of electricity flashes from Sparks, scorching her armor and sending her down, the smell of ozone in the air as the club and pistol clattering on the floor from her hands as she briefly stiffens, and goes down.
With no other hostiles present— to say less about the crowd, the music having ended at some point following the pair of explosions– the club is empty and the results of what may later be termed as an "aggressive inquiry" is quite evident.
________________________________
Shaking his head sadly as he returns to the front entrances, Dirk busily secures the doors from any further egress.
Not as satisfying an effort as his time spent learning the tango, the Espionage Specialist returns to see what the group has done in his slight absence....
Sparks kneels by the fallen woman to see if she is dying or dead or just unconscious.
He has no way to revive her but he hopes perhaps someone else can, so she can be interrogated. He will search her possessions and then move to other places in the room where files might be stored or where a computer might contain information they seek.
Doors secured and the place empty, it is a reasonable conclusion that there may be some time between now and the arrival of the law. A realistic estimate was closer to "twenty minutes to never" or "sometime tomorrow, maybe" than any sort of immediate response that would otherwise be concerning. With no staff, and no occupants, and presumably no owner, everyone has free reign over any and all within the walls of this establishment.
Sparks, checking up on the fallen, is not able to find any surviving individuals, electricity and bullets leading to conclusive endings for those that had not fled. The human woman fits the description of the current— now former– boss of the Downside Kings, and aside from the pistol, club, and armor she wore, there is a datapad, a key card, and a credstick that comprised her possessions.
The computer on the desk seems to exclusively handle information and records for the club, with no mention of anything illicit. The other door in this room is a secure storage closet that opens with a wave of the key card found on Nadaz, all of the items practically still commercially packaged or at least in excellent repair.
_________________________________
Holoskin
Autotarget Rifle
- (5)Magazines of (10)rounds per
(2) Incindiary grenades I
(2) Mk. 1 serum of healing
Armor Upgrade: Quick-release sheath
(500) UPBs
(12) Credsticks, (100) credits on each
Arriving as Sparks gives his assessment of the Boss Lady's state of health, the Holistic Detective nods knowingly. Flirting about the now mysteriously vacant establishment (one wonders how they keep the lights on), Dirk's busy fingers find fugitive funds forever forgotten.
Blue eyes light up at the founding of the data pad on the former Boss Lady's person. The Espionage Specialist begins typing....
After his fourteenth fail at Pong (look it up and be ready to chuckle), the frowning Holistic Detective sighs.
Could never get pass that level.
"It would seem that we can all afford to keep our lights on for a moment. Anything on that Dirk?"
Zem looks around at the carnage. "Uh oh... this won't reflect well on us." She says sadly. Unable to help with the datapad, she sets to gathering up everything of value they can carry away. May as well make the best of a bad situation.
Sparks shakes his head at the sight of the dead gang members and leader. "We gave them every opportunity to survive. Live fast -- Die young, I guess was their motto."
He helps collect gear that goes to the victor. "I'd wager that data pad has evidence of gang activities. If we can't crack the password, let's see if someone at the Starfinders can help. Or perhaps when we get somewhere secure, Dirk can apply the old blunt force trauma effort at cracking it."
Dirk looks up at Spark's comments with hope! The Holistic Detective bangs the frustrating data pad against his head!
With a little bit of time, Dirk manages to figure out how to unlock the datapad, finding everything that was not on the computer at the desk. Amid the usual files and applications, there are others confirming much of the Downside Kings criminal actions. In the messages, there are several communications between Astral Extractions and the Downside Kings.
**\[comm.log://312.07.22.18:44 | secure-lite handshake: astx.fnq]**
**ASTEX**:
you still run contract work?
got a splash job—loud.
target: duravor kreel.
hardscrabble face. tied too close to the ‘finder scum.
make it public. burn the message in.
**\[comm.log://312.07.22.19:10 | sig.verify: fnq.valid]**
**FN-Q**:
message received, payload unclear.
we talkin' corpse-on-cam or alley whisper?
**\[comm.log://312.07.22.19:12 | encrypt.burst - token: ☼halfdrop☼]**
**ASTEX**:
body on the tarmac.
starfinders watching.
10k. half upfront. rest on confirmation.
**\[comm.log://312.07.23.02:41 | meshquery: locping?]**
**FN-Q**:
what's the dropzone?
**\[comm.log://312.07.23.02:42 | node.lock: astx→fnq]**
**ASTEX**:
docking bay 94, absalom station.
arrival: 312.07.25 midday.
he’ll be standing out front.
**\[comm.log://312.07.24.08:03 | thread-link: vanta.team.ready]**
**FN-Q**:
bay 94's scoped.
crew’s clocked in, tuned for splash-n-buzz.
you want extra smoke or just the one-way ticket?
**\[comm.log://312.07.24.08:04 | astx.sigil.confirmed]**
**ASTEX**:
kreel first.
collateral irrelevant.
**\[comm.log://312.07.25.13:57 | packet.sig: fnq//vanta.null]**
**FN-Q**:
package opened.
contents disposed.
you’re now 5k lighter.
Sparks reads the messages and grins. "That should help the Starfinders pursue justice although we should also inform them that the Downside Kings leadership has suffered some unfortunate casualties of a recent incident in their territory. Let's get cleaned up and deliver these files first thing tomorrow."
Dirk Gently looks panicked!
We need to warn those sorry sapsuckers of the mess that they are about to step in!
The excited Holistic Detective begins searching his pockets.
Anyone got cash for a black market time machine? Asking for a friend.
Inspired by a dream, the Holistic Detective begins searching about for the building deed, business license and anything else proving ownership.
"Friends, I want it all. All of this. I think we should reach out to the L21 team and tell them we want them to run our new club. I also think that we can get their help fencing all of these things; who knows, maybe they will even offer us a better price on some of it. Now that we have the beginning of this mess sorted out, I also think we should speak to Chiksek in the morning. Who knows, maybe we will become Starfinders after all!"
With all of you vacating the now empty Fusion Queen, and a message sent to L21 , your return to your lodgings is uneventful. Whether wired or worn-out, some food, maybe getting cleaned up, and sleep until you decide to wake up is something that will not be denied to you. When you do wake, there is a return message waiting. Other than returning the proof to Chiskisk sometime on the next day, everyone has earned a couple days downtime.
Third degree, no A/C--. Papers, please?
Couple days, C.O.D.
No worries.
~Ace
Elbow deep inside the Club's Record Office, our extremely excitable Dirindi hollars out to Zephyr.
Once everything is locked up and secured against random vandals, pretending to be Starfinder agents, the Holistic Detective begins to head to their rental apartments to decompress and develop an armous relationship with his new data pad.
Upon the morning, the Espionage Specialist meets and greets his fellow Graduates for breakfast. The smart dressed Dirindi is seen wearing brand new Traveler's Skin suit complete with all the metaphoric bells and whistles. Dirk does wear his customary brown suede jacket and hat.
Good morning everyone. What's on the menu for today?
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Sparks is grateful for a good night's sleep, knowing the fledgling group has worked well together and accomplished something important not only for the group but for the larger actors of the station.
At breakfast, he breaks the news that he has been offered and has accepted an opportunity to become a product representative for Solar Dawn Foundries.