|
Dressed in the ceremonial robes of a priest of Pharasma, and with his face obscured by an impassive mask, Speaker for the Dead presents a solemn persona as he undulates around the gala. But his words are far from dour as he approaches Miiyu. "Greetings! This one is pleased to meet that one. This one may have visited that one's homeworld recently."
Gulkyn, Kyra, and SFTD are working on the VIPs, getting a very good feel for their attitudes.
***
Murgatroyd gets to the Security room and is momentarily stopped at the door by a couple of guards who check his ID, they then wave Murgatroyd through into the security room beyond.
***
Kavadroz
"...So there I was, camped out on a beautiful beach on Vesk 2, just admiring the sunrise. Very calming. Anyhow, I can recommend some great hikes around there - there are a couple of very scenic islands. Much nicer than Vesk 8 and all that frozen waste, which is great when I want a challenge, but I don't recommend it for leisure"
"I suppose theer might be some benefit in using drones to check the ice, take readings, or scan wildlife - feels a bit like cheating though, but I'm open to the debate" he offers with a bit of wariness.
Another person tries changing the subject, he seems a bit disinterested in their idle chatter and fairly brusquely changes it back to hiking.
***
Miyuu
"...It was so great performing alongside Strawberry Machine Cake on their recent single “Magical Ribbon.” It was like being part of my large family back home. Travelling with the extended family on Pulonis was so magical, the trees, the stars, I learnt so many instruments by the fire side, trading songs and stories. It was such a spiritual experience!"
"Travelling the universe on tour is a bit the same, I get to meet people from so many cultures - and I get to learn all about them and explore their cultures, particularly their music - it is super important to me"
She then listens very intently as others speak.
***
Teret
"...it was looking pretty grim for a while, no one anticipated that many Stridermanders rolling into our position and we were firing in all directions, would have been hard for most people to hold their nerve and not just try and flee or go every man for themselves, but these Skittermanders I was with stood rock solid kept saying they were 'helping no matter what' - when they went All-Six it was great to behold, they dug deep, stood solid, and we shot our way out. They were hard as nails. Earned my respect. And is there anything more important than that? Anyone that can reload a gun whilst firing another and also perform a handstand at the same time has my vote. Vesk 6 and Vesk 3, that is where the action is at"
***
Buffet Line
In the center of the room is the massive buffet line, staffed exclusively by pahtra waiters except for one very tall, bald human man. Samples of various delicacies from across Near Space occupy the line, and you are free to enjoy the refreshments and mingle with the crowd.
People around you have clearly been drinking rather heavily. Something does seem odd, though you can't quite place it.
***
Security Office
A small door leads into the security office. The guards stop you for a moment, but then listen to their earpieces and wave you through.
As you enter the security room a smiling pathra rises to meet you Jex, I'm your primary security liaison. Starfinders huh? Welcome to the 'Mezzanine, great ship, friendly crew, good passengers. Strange questions. 'What time is the midnight buffet?', we got called to a passengers room because their microwave was faulty, they were trying to warm a snack in the cabin safe"
Looking around the room there isn't a lot of note, but there is a bank of screens with live feeds from all around the ship.
***
Round one complete.
You have learnt a lot about the VIPs by listening in to the conversations and being politley involved, but have not begun attempting to influence them.
Murg & Benny - There is a Sense Motive to be made for the Buffet line, and a Computers or Perception check to be made in the Security office. These are part of R1, you may wish to make these BEFORE making your R2 actions.
Everyone else can make R2 actions.
"Heard the same story, haven't seen anything untoward so far though - glad Tessada roped in you Starfinders, some extra eyes and ears, and muscle, in case anything does go down. Right now the only thing going down is the bar stocks, the guests are certainly getting in the spirit as it were."
Murg doesn't notice anything unusual.
Murgatroyd heads to the back room.
Benacu watches the crowd for a while, and determines that attendees who drink the green punch are acting unusual. With that noted, hunting around the around the buffet line turns up empty packages of mild sedatives.
|
Kyra was about to say something to Teret when she heard Kavadroz mention Vesk-2. She makes a mental note to talk to him later. After introducing herself ...
I have been to both Vesk-3 and Vesk-6 she says to Teret And I agree that it can be rather .... exciting. She then regales him with the tale of the combats against the worms on Vesk-3 and the undead on Vesk-6.
((T-shirt re-roll))
|
|
Speaker for the Dead feels an instant connection with Miyuu--he too travels the cosmos to connect with people from distant cultures! "This one has learned in his travels the power of names. Names are representations of how we see reality. 'Pulonis' means something very different than 'Vesk-6' does it not, even if ostensibly they both refer to the same planet?"
Kavadroz
"I suppose sea skimmers aren't too bad, never really got into them myself"
Gulkyn doesn't think he has made any progress with the High Despot yet.
***
Miyuu
"YES! So true, and I can see you are a person who understands the differences - the power and resonances in the words. Change the words and you take away the magic. We haven't met - who are you?"
SFTD feels that Miyuu is warming.
***
Teret
"Worms and undead? Probably ok hunting, but terrible eating. Ever hunted a Stridermander? Ever wrestled one?"
Teret seems to be warming.
***
Auditorium
To the south, behind Miiyu’s entourage, are the propped-open doors to the auditorium. You are able to move around checking the seating, the stage, and all of the lighting/sound equipment.
***
Back room
A small door leads to the staff areas of the Grand Mezzanine. Normally these rooms are off-limits, but thanks to Tassada’s influence you are allowed to wander freely without alarming the staff.
Several waitstaff are taking their breaks, chatting idly to pass the time before they have to get back to work.
***
|
|
Erm .... no .,.. Kyra replies That's Vesk 4 isn't it? Haven't been there yet
And I'm not sure I want to she thinks to herself. The planet is probably swarming with 'helpful' skittermanders.
So ..... what about Vesk 2? she enquires Have you found any adventure there?. We had to chase and retrieve a runaway defrex there
|
|
Bowing to Miyuu, Speaker replies "This one is called Speaker for the Dead. This one collects stories of those who will one day pass beyond the mortal realm and repeats those stories, bringing immortality to all who have not been forgotten. This one is intrigued by that one's story, and would be grateful to learn more."
Miyuu
SFTD feels the ebb and flow of the situation, and in this case Miyuu didn't really bond.
Gulkyn on the other hand, seemed to continue to cement the relationship.
***
Teret
"Sounds like you need to get hunting some time, Vesk 3 indeed - Skittermander friends, and Stridermander foes!"
Teret seems to be warming because of Kyra.
***
Auditorium
Benny notices unusual wiring attached to the lights and speakers. Unfortunately, not enough time to explore in detail, but something is unusual.
***
Back room
Murgatroyd gets some polite chat from the occupants, and some idle chatter, but nothing of note.
***
Kavadroz 0/3.
Miyuu 2/3.
Teret 2/3.
|
Murgatroyd finishes his investigation, sure that no foul play is at hand in the other areas.
He moves back to the party and decides to talk to the high despot Kavadroz, who seems to be the toughest dude around. He ends up talking about the time he fell off a vehicle during a chase in a recent mission, and how he was sure it was a message from Iomedae...
|
|
Benacu finally traipses back into the party proper. Hearing the tail end of a conversation about hunting, he converts a similar story on the fly. "I'm sure the more senior members of the Manta Corps could tell you about tangling with a stridermander. Not that we as a group are...well, around anymore. But we've got no shortage of stories! Here's one I was a part of, recently, when we were hot on the tail of a diaspora wyrm..."
All good mate :)
Benny manages to get some really engaging tall stories going, Teret seems very happy with the whole wild story.
***
You can see that people are starting to make their way to the auditorum, but the VIPs are still around.
***
Kyra moves over to talk to Kavadroz.
Everyone else can take their actions
Kavadroz 0/3.
Miyuu 2/3.
Teret 3/3.
Miyuu
"What an amazing group you Starfinders are! If only the whole universe was as deep and spiritual we'd have far more harmony and better worlds" She seems really into you all!
***
Backroom
Assuming a friendly and 'just one of the staff' demeanor encourages the waitstaff to relax and spill gossip about the VIPs, "That Miyuu, she’s truly kind and gracious, what a star! She stubbornly refuses to stop calling Vesk-6 Pulonis, she even stopped Kavadroz during a conversation and openly corrected him on it!".
You spot a discarded keycard that looks different from the other staff badges.
Gulkyn
You confirm that it’s a hastily made copy of the master keycard, meaning someone with this card could access any door on the ship.
***
About ten minutes after the show begins and you have been left to your own devices your comms light up “Hey, Starfinder team? This is Jex from security. Tassada forwarded me through to you. Listen, I don’t have much time to talk, but we need your team down in the starboard staff area as soon as possible. The ship’s crawling with wolves, of all blasted things. My team is busy keeping the guests calm and evacuating staff from the area, so we could really use your help. Ping me when it’s all clear. Good luck!”
SFTD hangs back to keep an eye on the place as the rest of the party moves through the ship.
The staff area is starkly different in appearance from the main part of the ship, with the soft carpeting and draped walls replaced by polished metal flooring and holographic reminders about food safety. The hallway past the automatic double doors is well lit and wide enough to allow for large carts and groups of staff to efficiently move around.
An overturned cart blocks the center of the hall, the sumptuous meat and cheese boards it once held strewn over the floor. A pack of some sort of spiked wolves are fighting over cuts of meat. As the door opens and you are revealed, they raise their hackles and respond aggressively!
Benacu
Murgatroyd
Gulkyn
Kyra-IO
ENEMY
R1
Benny
Murg
Gulk
Kyra
ENEMY
Murg strides in and thumps the spined wolf.
Gulkyn also lands a blow, and is hit by a number of reactive spines.
Kyra tries mind-thrusting...
Will
The wolf shrugs some of it.
R1
Benny
Murgn - acted
Gulk - acted
Kyra - acted
ENEMY
B
G 33
Benny knows they are Threshwolves, but they look fairly undernourished.
Hailing from an unknown world of fierce natural selection (presumably in the Vast), threshwolves are vicious mammalian predators. Though also gifted with teeth and claws, these hunters’ most identifiable feature is a mane of glass-like fibers they use to gore prey and shred undergrowth.
They are immune to all known poisons but are vulnerable to sonic attacks. You've seen the quills, but they can also attach themselves to a creature and shake quills into the foe as well.
Benny then zaps it...
Will
***
The wolves turn on Murg, one backs off from the press of Starfinders and the other starts circling.
Attack vs KAC
Damage
Attack vs KAC
Damage
R2
Benny
Murgn
Gulk
Kyra
ENEMY
B
G 40