Today, a cargo shuttle dispatches from Absalom Station and is slated to arrive at the newest Starfinder lodge, located on the planet Akiton.
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A mountain of a human with dark skin and short hair stands in a corner of the shuttle. He has two large weapons on his back. One is a slightly unextended glaive and the other a heavy gun that hums. His body is tightly covered in woven ultralight fiber armor that accentuates his very muscly build. Despite his sizable frame, he is soft spoken.
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A tall slender Lashunta in microcord armor, that looks more style than substance, boards the shuttle. They are carrying a couple of large guns and a talon.
"Well, looks like we are off to Akiton. This is my first gig with the Society, and my first trip to the red planet. Name is Khass."
They extend a hand to the large human.
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Another tall, slim Lashunta enters the shuttle, a male in second skin armor, mostly covered by comfortable looking robes. He has a rifle on his back, a pistol in a holster on his hip, all the weapons looking shiny and new.
His smile beams as he enters.
"Greetings all! My name is Nimar. Very nice to meet you. Akiton, eh? Never been there. Should be exciting!"
As he speaks you notice a symbol hanging high up on his chest, under his chin. What looks like a comet circling in on itself.
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"Hey Starfinder fans, it's Mimzy! Just meeting with my team as we get ready for the big mission!"
A skittermander in shotalashu armor backs into the room, smiling into the camera on her comm. She has purple fur and stands on four legs, using only four limbs as arms.
"Don't worry," she adds to the Starfinders behind her, "It's not a livestream. If you don't wanna be in this I can just edit you out." After a moment, she turns off the camera and turns around. "Hi! I'm Mimzalee, but they call me Mimzy."
The three-day flight from Absalom Station to Akiton has given the party a chance to get to know one another.
After this interplanetary voyage, the shuttle lands in the Sloughscar Hills of southern Akiton, a region of rocky hills that hold numerous ifts, crags, caves, and cliffs. As the party disembarks, it is evident that Akiton is a world of low gravity. You enter a maze of temporary prefabricated buildings amid a flurry of activity and construction. Passing through, you receive a brief wave from the izalguun First Seeker Sarmak, who is briefing a more experienced team of agents on a detailed operation, and then are greeted in a more personable fashion by a Zizenzi. The enthusiastic host shirren is the administrator and hopeful venture-captain of the newest Starfinder lodge here on Akiton.
Zizenzi wastes no time on preamble and begins briefing your party of Starfinder agents immediately. “Welcome to Akiton, Starfinders!” Zizenzi begins. “Things are busy here as we get this new lodge up and running, so I’m going to need you to get to work right away! Just leave your non-essential gear here and I’ll see its stowed in your assigned housing unit.”
Zizenzi leads the way deeper into the chaos and away from the shuttle, gesturing wildly as they speak. “Right now, we’re preparing to explore a massive, crashed starship dubbed the ‘Wreck of the Returned’ that First Seeker Sarmak believes is connected to the return of the First Ones. The First Ones are ancient and powerful beings who could be a threat to the Pact Worlds! No one’s seen the First Ones in a long time, but we have explored First Ones sites in the past and I promise you, they were not a benevolent people! We believe that exploring this starship wreck will give us much needed insight into the First Ones and their plans.”
The shirren looks off into the distance for a moment before refocusing on the matter at hand. “But first things first! We have a Starfinder lodge to establish and that means you get to roll up your sleeves and lend an appendage, as the humans say! Are you ready to get started?"
"I am sure between the lot of you that will be able to handle what is needed." Zizenzi concludes.
As the shirren leads you away from the shuttle landing zone, they explain that they are assigning you with two mundane, but important, tasks that will help get the new lodge’s construction on-track before missions related to larger goals can begin. "These tasks include finishing the installation of the automated boundary markers surrounding the lodge and scouting an initial path to the Wreck of the Returned."
"For one, the Starfinder lodge is surrounded by a network of boundary markers that form an automated alarm system. Each boundary marker releases a signal that deters wildlife from approaching and automatically scans and identifies anyone--or anything--passing by." Zizenzi explains. "Whenever something unauthorized passes by the boundary markers, it triggers an alarm. This alarm system is an important defense against the robots and other creatures released by the Wreck of the Returned into the surrounding Sloughscar Hills."
"I need you to complete installation of the last few boundary markers and boot up the network," Zizenzi requests.
"Also, there are several potential routes the Starfinders could take to the Wreck of the Returned." The shirren notes, then requests, "I need you all to walk one of these routes and record any dangers along the route."
"You will likely be on your own for each of these two tasks." Zizenzi warns. "Due to interference from the Wreck of the Returned, mid-range communications are unreliable at present. You should be careful and watch out for one another!"
"I must be getting back to the lodge. But, before I depart, I want you to have this." Zizenzi hands over a backpack containing one commercial medkit, three commercial medpatches, and three commercial hypopens. "Just in case."
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"Wee! Bouncy! This is fun. Yes, always ready to lend a hand or four." Though currently Mimzy is using two of those hands to take pictures.
She's not sure why, given that her pack is even easier than normal to carry here, but she dutifully leaves her camping and hygiene kits to be stowed.
"Yes, yes I agree!" she nods enthusiastically at Khass's suggestion. "I'm... only okay with computers, though."
Your comm units chime with a data packet sent by Zizenzi, containing a link to the product's service manual with instructions on installation and boot up requirements.
Round One - Installation
First, the remaining boundary markers must be installed using materials prepared for you in the field.
The Starfinders begin their work quickly and efficiently. Installation is nearly complete.
Power-3's eye go distant for a second as they process the service manual. They then start to assemble their first Boundary Point.
Round Two - Network
With installation complete, the party can go ahead and calibrate the boundary markers and establish the network.
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Mimzalee puts her comm unit away to heft a boundary marker with all four arms. "Let's go go, get it done! It's easy since everything feels so light here."
Oooh. Now precision isn't so much her greatest strength. Strength is her strength.
...but she stays focused and gets it done all the same. "Woo! Easy! What's next?"
The Starfinders continue working quickly and efficiently. The networking is nearly complete.
Having finished the network in plenty of time, the party has time to perform a tech check to ensure optimal operation of the network.
Round Three - Tech Check
Having completed both installation and networking with two hours, the party presses on.
The Starfinders have just a little over an hour remaining to complete the tech check.
The fourth hour comes and goes before the party is able to ensure optimal operation of the network. While the party continues performing their tech check, a dust cloud is spotted on the horizon. It is rapidly approaching the party.
Its source is an enercycle, piloted by a female ysoki. She wears a backpack bearing the Starfinder insignia. The enercycle stops near the party and the ysoki hops off.
"Zizenzi asked me to stop by and deliver this to you." The ysoki declares, removing the backpack and offering it to the party. Her tone is friendly and upbeat. "They wanted you to know that they were pleased with your progress. They said they started picking up signals from the boundary markers about two hours ago. They said that the armor upgrade contained in the backpack might be helpful for your next task."
"I can help you install it if you'd like." The ysoki continues. "My name is Kiha, by the way. I am a new recruit to the Starfinder Society. It is a pleasure to meet you."
"I can only stay a few minutes, though, as I am on my way to Pilferer's Paradise." Kiha explains. "Because the Wreck of the Returned interferes with mid-and long-range communications, First Seeker Sarmak felt the message should be delivered in person. You know, the old fashioned way."
"Say, you are all rookie agents too. Aren't you?" Kiha inquires. "Is this your first assignment? What do you think of Starfinder membership so far?"
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"Nice to meet you Kiha."
Khass looks in the backpack.
"I think this upgrade should be installed for someone that likes to get up close and personal, which certainly isn't me.
This is my first assignment. I feel like we are doing rather well. Things were going very smoothly up until this last bit. I think some of us got a bit over confident with how well it went at first.
It looks like we are scouting out one of the routes to the Wreck of the Returned next. So may we all have safe travels!"