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Zemfira was relieved to be bringing real evidence to light as a result of their gangland adventures. The dark underbelly of the station was turning out to be very dark indeed. She wondered with some discomfort how much worse it would get before their investigation was done. She followed suit with Sparks, dressing nicely in her fancy duds. "Right behind you."
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.
Zem retrieves a pistol from one of the fallen and prepares to fire on the first combatant or projectile her eye falls upon.
Fully attuned, Zemfira steps beside Sparks again and releases her charge on the enemy remaining in the room.
Having held the door, Zemfira moves in beside Sparks and aligns her shield toward the target he attacked.
Apologies, I thought I posted to all my games that my laptop crashed, but I apparently forgot this one! My HD is kaput and I have ordered a replacement but may still take some more time to get up and running. Do we have a discord?
"Whatever you recommend." Zem replies with her order.
Zem tucks the club away beneath her jacket, dismisses her shield and enters beside Dirk, staying close to the Dirindi in case they have trouble again. She does her best to seem cool and unbothered.
Zem raises her shield and bludgeons the bouncer.
Doesn't a shield bash negate your shield bonus, though?
Eyes bright and swirling with cyan motes, Zem grins back. "You can say that again!" Her mouth drops open as Dirk drops the bouncer with his casual zap. "Wow..." She mouths as she realigns her shield against the remaining bouncer and resumes her protective stance. Idly, she wonders to herself, 'Wait, did he just call me kool-aid?'
Zemfira raises her arm and deploys her solar shield, casting a blue glow as she attunes and takes up a defensive posture to protect Dirk as well as herself.
Zemfira approaches the entrance and makes a u-turn to help out her favorite Dirindi. "Silly Dirk, you mean Aunts, not ants. Such a nice guy to take the Aunties to Hyrdo-Aerobics class. Next you'll be telling me to take you drunk, you're home!" She says, her laugh like the chiming of happy bells.
Zem settles in to her new room easily, honestly feeling more at home in the modest setting that more closely resembled the academy dorms. Knocking on Zeph's door, she thanks him again and reminds him. "We're supposed to be reimbursed for expenses, so don't forget to submit to the Society." She spends some time before they return to the club to get a read on anyone among the Kings who might be disgruntled with the new management.
I'm a bit at a loss for how to gather evidence at a club. It's not conducive to overhearing conversation or really even having one. So I'm just attempting to have Zem seem fun and approachable.
Zem sends happy, thankful emojis in reply to Zephyr's message and makes sure her bags are packed and ready for checkout before they head to the Fusion Queen. "Seems like the Kings pass leadership according to whomever took down the last boss. If we could catch wind of someone looking to move up the ladder, someone unhappy with Nadaz recent moves, we might be able to support their play and turn the ends against the middle. That would make for less against us and possibly put the new leadership in our debt." She suggests, "Though that is probably easier said than done." Inside, the club pulses with the rhythmic beat and her feet seem to move of their own accord as she folds into the dancing throng of patrons effortlessly. Music was her true native language and she swayed and snapped, thumped and thrashed with enthusiasm along with the crowd. When she finally took a break to catch her breath she kept her drinks on the more hydrating spectrum and drained them quickly without setting them down. But she did make an effort to admire some of the more artistic tags of the Kings around the place.
Zemfira communicates Director Chiskisk's message to the others and follows Sparks lead.
As I understood it, we are officially Starfinders. We just aren't carrying out the investigation on behalf of the Starfinder Society, because they don't really have the authority to do that and/or they want plausible deniability in case we go all murder-hobo in our pursuit of the truth, lol. So yes, we are Starfinders, but currently acting independently on the personal request "for a friend".
Zemfira makes sure to send a message to the Director before heading into danger. Circumstantial evidence suggests Downside Kings may have been employed to assassinate Kreel. Possibly due to his involvement with the dispute over the Acreon's cargo. Next steps to investigate the Kings and leader Nadaz directly. Input welcomed.
Zem had 50 credits left over from character creation. Can someone make a suggestion as to what would be a good upgrade?
I have not been keeping track of the funds awarded. This is the only post that ever mentioned funding, to my recollection.
Zem wants to check in with the Director, at least to let them know we suspect the Kings and might be going into combat.
Zemfira considers, "Should we upgrade? We haven't spent any of our discretionary funds yet... Maybe it's time to check in with Director Chiskisk as well."
"Yes, thank you for taking the time to speak with us. Any advice on how to approach the Fusion Queen?"
Zemfira dutifully takes notes on her com device. "Turnover, you say? Has this Nadaz only recently taken the King's top spot? What happened to their last leader? What group does AE designate?" To her fellows, she arches a multicolored eyebrow, "You mean the Acreon? The "gone silent, strictly quarantined, cargo ship. That is definitely not in the purview of our inquiry..." She objects.
Zem is quite refreshed and sporting a positive outlook as they set out to follow up with the 21's.
"It was a lovely party. Your people are... not what I had expected. Thank you for making time to speak with us."
Zemfira indulges herself in the sumptuous sensory experiences of delicious food and luxurious bath before trying out the CapsuleDive™ system. She played out the fantasy of flying under her own power through the gorgeous nebula, finding a moment of complete and utter peace that resonated deep in her soul.
Given the long day and the late hour, Zem returns to the Hotel to try and enjoy the luxurious quarters since their remaining stay would be up soon.
Gotten a bit bogged down lately. Should have asked sooner, but what was the significance of our "motes" and whether we have them "visible" or not?
Upon hearing mention of the Hardscrabble Collective having some involvement here, Zem suspects a connection to the underlying mystery and makes the effort to help with the namedropping process Sparks is attempting. "Yeah, it's really such a shame about Kreel. He would have been instrumental in the dispute. And now with the fate of the Acreon uncertain... so many people are going to be left in the lurch..." She shakes her head sadly.
With her generally genial and gregarious nature, Zemfira endeavored to be diplomatic as they dove deeper into Level 21.
Zemfira nods her agreement, "Also a little less brutal than the Kings. Or so we can hope." She said as she used her comm unit to map a path to Level 21.
"Honestly, I think that sounds like good news that they won't be clearing the quarantine soon. Let's make a point to stay informed though." Zemfira said as she pulled up her comm device and set up notifications for all Acreon updates. "So... how do we seek out a gang of hardened criminals?" She asks, looking to the others for guidance. Having come from a wealthy upbringing with a stern father with high expectations, she really didn't know where to begin.
The idea that a ship has fallen silent since arriving pinged Zemfira's weirdness detector. "How much longer until the quarantine is lifted?" She asked and followed up with "Thank you for taking the time to talk with us, sir." Once the call was concluded she said, "I don't know about influenced. Probably just worried about more parties vying for the Acreon's cargo. We already saw that news blip that said the Starfinder Society is involved. Something is definitely fishy here though... Doesn't it sound weird to you that the ship is uncommunicative even though it returned to dock? Sounds to me like there must be something dangerous on that ship. But I agree, we should stay informed on it while we follow up with the gangs. Downside Kings and the Level 21 Crew..."
Sensing that the call was winding down, Zemfira made the effort to get to the point. "Acreon seems to be the subject of Kreel's most recent project of note. We have gleaned only that there was a dispute. Can you tell us more details about the incident and Kreel's role in the arbitration? How removing him from the equation alters the situation moving forward? It would help us to understand if this is a viable motive, sir."
Zemfira cut her eyes at Dirk, rolled them and then resumed her serious demeanor after meeting Sparks' gaze. "Apologies, sir. Dirk employs humor as a coping mechanism. Director Chiskisk engaged us to investigate, but not as official Starfinder business. My concern was if Kreel was specifically targeted, you might be in danger yourself, sir."
My understanding was that Zephyr's take is what we were proposed initially: They pause here, considering each of you and straightening. "Given your direct involvement as witnesses to this incident along with what the reports say, I would ask that you investigate it further on behalf of the Society. Then Zemfira asked for Society authority and support and got this: There is a moment of consideration as Chiskisk receives the delivery that Zemfira put forth, and there is a bobble of his antenna that precedes his response that denotes chagrin. "Apologies Zemfira. Durevor was inclined to try to recruit you into the Society. Given your reception, it was my fault to presume that not all of you would have been inclined to assist. Would two hundred credits to each of you for necessities, and my comm code so that you can contact me directly if needed suffice? Finally, Chiskisk clarified that we are not acting as Starfinder agents for this investigation: "Let me clarify, please: Your looking into this is a request of a friend, not as agents of the Starfinder Society. While investigations are often handled by agents, this instance would see station security taking action too long after the fact to yield negligible results. As I stated previously, all of you are not incapable, and demonstrated that you can handle yourselves. Looking into his death may result in nothing, but it is at least something that I can do for a close friend."
"Understood, sir." Zemfira says deferentially as she recounts the battle. "A fire fight broke out suddenly in the docking bay after we diembarked from the Excelsior. Kreel was waiting to meet us and while I cannot be certain, it looked to me like he fell to the very first volley of fire, sir. We reached him quickly, but there was nothing we could do." She says sadly, with a shake of her head. "Station security seems to believe he was caught in gang war crossfire but it felt intentional to me. No proof of that yet, but when we found your message exchange... well, I thought it important that you were apprised of the situation, sir."
Zemfira takes a deep breath when she sees who the video chat is from. "That was fast... ready? Here we go!" She announces before reaching over Dirk's shoulder to accept the communication.
"Hello. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, and so abruptly like that but given what we've been piecing together here in the aftermath... I thought you should know. Hopefully I haven't violated some sort of protocol in reaching out to you like this..."
I suppose I'm used to a more concrete structure to a gaming universe. Your answer seems to imply we could not only perform an action to gain information, but also decide what that information we glean from the action is? So are we meant to just narrate ourselves looking up the location and traveling to the offices of the Hardscrabble Collective, and procuring a meeting with who we wish, etc? Shouldn't it be the GM who communicates if the location is accessible and by what means, if we will be able to meet with someone and when, etc? I just need to know what format to use to make an inquiry about our game world and how I can receive an answer. So far things seem to be very subjective and vague and leaving me confused about how to proceed. I'm not trying to be critical, just trying to understand.
Sorry, didn't mean to slow things down. I'll try and be more clear and ask my questions more directly using ooc or here on discussion. I really like the ambiance of the descriptions we are given but sometimes it would be helpful to know what our options are for progressing the plot. Like when we wanted to go straight to the Starfinders and we found out we had to make an appointment instead and bide our time. Does the Hardscrabble Collective have offices on Absalom station? Will we need to make an appointment? The same questions regarding the Lashunta, Hesara Bhas?
Zem quickly typed up a communication to send to Kreel's HCBoss contact. Kreel killed in gang battle crossfire. Ruled an accident. Possible retaliation. Investigation ongoing. Will make contact under the name Zemfira. She let the others review it for input before hitting send.
"Ok, I'm ready to go now."
Well, I did ask if we can contact the HCBoss through the datapad and also if Kreel's death is public knowledge yet. I suppose it might seem like I was asking the others but it was more directed to the GM. Also Zem is not really the computer sort so she wouldn't know.
Zemfira checks the InfoSphere for office locations of the Hardscrabble Collective. "Could we contact them through Kreel's Datapad?"
I am having fun playing Dirk. I appreciate everyone's indulgence...lol. I for one, enjoy Dirk's antics. Zem enjoys a good laugh, as do I. I had to show the "twister" post to my teenager when I burst out laughing and had to cover my mouth just like I described Zem doing. It was about 6am and most of the house was asleep. XD I'm enjoying the story too, even if a lot of the campaign related techie jargon goes over my head. Wasn't expecting it to be so Mysterious Murder Plot to begin!
Zem claps a gloved hand over her mouth to stifle her laughter at Dirk's antics. Still shaking with giggles, she gives Pertinax a thumbs up approval for the cover music. "Congratulations!" She tells Zephyr, glad that two of their membership had received such rewarding offers. "Dirk, is there anything published in the Infosphere about Kreel's demise yet? If not, I feel like we should send a warning to his contact. Let them know that he's gone."
A wave of paranoia washes over Zemfira and she suddenly feels inhibited about speaking any further suspicions out loud here. Remembering speaking with the Director earlier and something Zephyr had said before, she taps the elf's shoulder and then her temple, pantomiming that she wants to speak to him telepathically. Do you think it's possible the corporation planted a bug in this apartment? Maybe we should be careful what we say here... if we don't want to be next on their hit list.
Zem nods her assent to the suggestion of food. "Dirk, can you tell if this communication thread to HCBoss was intercepted? Also, can we send a secure communication to them? I can't help but think that Kreel was assassinated and that it might just be the beginning of this anticipated retaliation." Computer use was not her strong point, so she does her best to aid in the researching on the subject of Acreon and OsmosTech.
Zemfira scans through the stories. "Looks like Kreel was especially concerned with the welfare of the miners. I wonder if he consulted on any of these suits and inquiries. That could have made him a target for a corporate hit. Is there a Miner's Union?" She asks aloud as she considers the question herself.
Zem nods and starts looking around for clues. She peeks into drawers and scans shelves and such, even looking into kitchen storage, if there is any.
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