Begin a Session(29)Influential character or faction is introduced or given new detail
Just under a year ago
"You, know, I feel bad for leaving Bri behind like that. She'll die slow. It would have been a kindness just to shoot her in the back."
"We saw an opportunity and we took it. You'll forget all about it when we sell this thing."
"Is it really an AI core? What if it's not even working? It's so small. "
"That's the point, dummy. It's gotta be some kind of advanced prototype. It'll be worth a lot to the right people. Maybe we can even get out of this life for good."
"Just as long as you don't abandon me so you can take my cut."
"I've done some things I'm not proud of to get here, sure, but I'm not going to backstab my own twin brother."
"Hey, the controls have stopped responding."
"Same here. It's like something's taken over the ship."
"Life support has been switched off. What the hell is going on?"
"Oh god, the cabins are being vented; all the air is being sucked out of the ship. What do we do?"
Neither man notices the small blinking light on the experimental AI core in their final, desperate moments.
Set a Course(Supply)—10 vs 8|9
Jett and Bri arrive at Audun and dock at Port Koshiba. "I've never been on a planet before" says Bri. "So that's what a sky looks like." She pauses for a moment, taking in the sight. "It's huge. I can't get over how much air there is here. Do they need massive air cycling plants to keep it all breathable?"
"Actually the air on Audun is rather thin, I'd recommend getting inside the city as soon as you can. And yeah, the city itself has air recyclers but the planet refreshes the outside air naturally - plants keep the air breathable." says Jett.
"Plants? That's so weird. It's so hot here - don't they have air conditioning?"
"That's called 'nature', Bri. No air conditioning, I'm afraid. The weather just does what it wants. On Audun, it's always hot. Too hot for anything to grow here, that's why the people have to live in a bubble. Come on, let's get to the city, I've never ridden on a train before."
"We're going to ride on a train? I've seen those before on holo-shows."
They ride the train into town. Bri is amazed by the size of the aquifiers they speed past, as a spacer she's used to water being worth more than gold so seeing so much of it just lying there unguarded is like something out of a dream. Eventually, they reach the outskirts of the city and disembark.
"So...you're going to find a ship and join the crew as an engineer?" asks Jett.
"Yeah, I guess I don't have any other choice." replies Bri.
"You could always come with me, you know. I can't pay you or anything, but- ""
Make a Connection(Heart)—5 vs 9|6
Bri cuts him off. "Sorry, Jett. I appreciate you helping me out back on the scav ship, and I appreciate the ride, but I have my own plans. I want a ship of my own again, and I'm not going to get one just bumming around the galaxy."
"Okay, sure. Well, I guess this is goodbye then. Good luck out there, Bri."
"You too. I owe you one if we ever cross paths again. I hope you find your destiny."
Spirit:3 → 2
Jett asks around for directions, and eventually makes his way to the Cartographer's Guild. He enters their offices and at the reception desk he sees...
Given Name(63)Lucas Family Name(84)Dykstra First Look(46)Haggard Initial Disposition(6)Helpful
...a man who appears to be half-asleep, looking at a datapad. The man sees Jett and puts the datapad away, and stands up straight.
"Hello there sir, I'm Lucas. How can I help you today?" says the man.
"I'm looking to trade navigational data. I'm looking for a certain planet, I have data from across Devil's Chain."
"Let me just check our files. What was the name of the planet?"
"Pyla."
"Ok, let me see here..." The man types away on a keyboard for a few seconds. "Yes, Pyla, here it is. What exactly do you have to trade?"
Compel(Heart)—3 vs 2|4
Jett shows him his nav data.
"Ah, I see. Well for that, I can give you the coordinates for Pyla but not the course information."
"What would I have to do to get the course information?"
"Bring in more nav data to trade. Between you and me, by the time you've gathered enough data you could probably find Pyla by yourself with the coordinates."
"Okay then, I'll take the coordinates." says Jett.
"Excellent" says Lucas. "I'll make the transfer now."
07a - Get to Pyla +1 (4/10)
Jett feels exhausted after his recent adventures, and the expedition to Pyla is going to be fraught with peril. He decides to spend a few days in Port Koshiba relaxing and trying to resupply the ship.
Sojourn(Heart)—5 vs 6|3 Spirit:2 → 4
Jett heads to the market, but is unable to get the supplies he needs for his ship - apparently there are two House Serrato ships docked in town and rates are sky high as the merchants adjust their prices for their presumably wealthy guests.
Jett goes to a bar and gets talking to the locals. Everybody is talking about the House Serrato ships. They are looking for information on the Ascendancy of the Awakened Worlds. Jett sees Tybalt-Yhen's proclamation, as well as the footage of the parking lot brawl. He toys with the idea of going to the Serratos with what he knows about the Ascendancy, but in the end decides against it - his connections to the Void Cobras are bound to get him in trouble if he does, and there's no mention of a reward - only a pledge to return what was stolen. The only thing that Jett lost to the Ascendancy was Failsafe, and not even the Serratos can bring him back. He spends the evening drinking with the locals, swapping stories and sharing gossip and rumors. He leaves the bar feeling refreshed and ready for the road ahead.
Awaking in the morning, Jett decides to start looking for Pyla right away. He preps The Irony, and takes off. He doesn't notice Eris discreetly sending a message to the Serrato ships.
Undertake an Expedition(Wits)—9 vs 7|10 07b - Expedition to Pyla +1 (2/10)
Spaceborne Peril(96)Unsettling sounds or disturbances
Expanse(6)Stellar Object
Stellar Object(66)White dwarf shining with spectral light
The Irony comes out of warp in the light of a white dwarf, a bad omen among spacers.
"Jett, I'm picking up sounds from outside the ship" says Eris.
"That's not possible, we're in a vacuum. You mean a signal?" replies Jett.
"No, sounds. I'll patch it through to the speakers."
A strange sounds starts coming through the speakers - it sounds almost like singing; an ethereal, wispy melody. Jett sits listening to the sound for a few minutes, transfixed, before Eris interrupts him. "Jett? Are you ok?"
"Shut it off" says Jett. Eris cuts the sound coming out of the speakers. "That sound - it wanted me to follow it."
"So what do we do?" asks Eris.
"It doesn't seem to be affecting you, so let's just keep the speakers off and jump away as soon as we can. I don't like the idea of sticking around here any longer than we have to."
A few hours later, the e-drive has recharged and The Irony is on its way.
Undertake an Expedition(Wits)—5 vs 4|9 07b - Expedition to Pyla +1 (4/10)
Spaceborne Peril(68)Power fails
As they come out of warp, the ship shudders and shakes. "What's happening?" asks Jett.
"Something's wrong with the e-drive. All the power just leaked out of it in an instant. It's not recharging. We're stranded."
"That's not good. I'll go and take a look." Jett heads back to the ship's innards and examines the e-drive.
Gather Information(Wits)—7 vs 1|9
Jett soon spots the problem - an energy leech has made its way aboard the ship and is feeding on the e-drive. He gives it a couple of whacks with a wrench and it detaches, before scuttling away into the innards of the ship.
"You're too squeamish for your own good." says Eris. "You should have killed it."
"I tried! I didn't want to damage the e-drive is all."
"Well, now it's loose on the ship, who knows what it's going to feed on next. Or when. Let's just hope it doesn't lay eggs."
"I'll get an exterminator in at the next port." says Jett.
"We're not heading for a port, we're heading for an uninhabited desert. Go and find it."
Jett takes his flashlight and tries to follow the trail left by the leech.
Gather Information(Wits)—8 vs 6|10
Jett crawls through the maintenance tunnel the leech escaped into. He doesn't find the leech, but the tunnel only leads to non-essential systems like backup lights and the coffee machine, so Jett heads back to the cockpit.
"It's gone. I'll never find it in there." he says. "Let me know if we drop power anywhere and I'll take care of it. How's the e-drive?"
"Recharging normally. You really should have killed it, Jett." says Eris.
"I know, I know. I'm going to take a nap, wake me up when we can jump again."
The ship makes its next jump a few hours later.
Undertake an Expedition(Wits)—7 vs 6|10 07b - Expedition to Pyla +1 (6/10)
Spaceborne Peril(5)Automated defenses or mines protect this area
Expanse(7)Stellar Object Stellar Object(49)Blazing blue star
Expanse(58)Debris field: Mineral asteroids
They come out of warp in a dense asteroid field, bathed in the blue glow of the system's sun.
"Jett, I'm detecting that this area is mined."
"There are probably valuable minerals here if people are mining this far out. Do you see any mining vessels?"
"Not that kind of mine, the explosive kind."
"Oh. Can our shields take a hit from one of them?"
"Again, we don't have shields. And to answer your next question, no, our hull most certainly cannot take a hit from one of them."
"So what do we do?"
"Stay very still and blast any that are floating towards us from as far away as possible?"
"Sounds like a plan."
Do any mines come within range of the ship? 50/50(53)No
After a tense few hours glued to the scanners, the e-drive is recharged and Jett is able to make the next jump.
Undertake an Expedition(Wits)—9 vs 7|10 07b - Expedition to Pyla +1 (8/10)
Spaceborne Peril(45)Meteoroid storm fills the sky
Expanse(55)Abundant, System
The first thing that comes to mind with 'abundant system' is a star system with a vital world, so I guess I'll roll one up
Sample Names(10)Hope
Atmosphere(59)Ideal
Observed From Space(3)Complex ring system
Expanse(63)None
"Scanners indicate we have an incoming meteoroid storm." says Eris, as soon as they drop out of warp.
Can they avoid it easily? 50/50(69)No
"We're right in the middle of it." Eris continues.
"I see it, I'll try and avoid taking any hits." says Jett.
Face Danger(Edge)—7 vs 8|4
Jett deftly maneuvers the ship through the storm, but has to divert extra power to the engines which means the e-drive can't start recharging until they make it to safety. Momentum:10 → 9
Once they're clear, Jett takes a look at the scans of the system. He makes note of Hope, an uninhabited Vital World. It has three rings, all rotating at different speeds and at different angles giving the planet an exotic, alien look. "Eris, we've discovered a brand new Vital World. We're going to be rich once we sell this location data. I'm tempted to fly down myself to gather more information."
"You've given up on the Ascendency, then? That's a relief."
"Well, I mean...no, you're right, we're on a mission. I shouldn't get distracted. I'll come back once all this is over for a proper survey. Onwards to Pyla - we must be getting close."
Undertake an Expedition(Wits)—9 vs 7|9 07b - Expedition to Pyla +1 (10/10)
Using my Navigator ability to make this a Strong Hit.
They come out of warp in deep space - the completely featureless void stretches on infinitely in all directions. They wait for the e-drive to recharge, and then make their final jump.
Finish an Expedition(track)—7 vs 10|5 07b - Expedition to Pylacompleted discoveries +1 (0/10) 07a - Get to Pyla +1 (6/10) Find and fulfil my destiny +1 (1/10)
"Well." says Eris when they drop out of warp at Pyla. "That's not good."