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[Eschar]

It's also possible for them to suspect Basil himself isn't Navy, so we should avoid making them suspicious as to what he actually is. Depending on what less-than-forthcoming elements we put in our story, they could assume he is all sorts of unsavory elements from a pirate (the pirates we ran into, even) conscripting a skeleton Navy crew to a rival terraforming-corp agent doing the same to a really suspicious Noble. If we aren't Navy it's suspicious for us to be in charge of a bunch of Navy. So we should be careful about what we say about our journey or who we encountered.

[King Zultan]

It's also possible for them to suspect Basil himself isn't Navy, so we should avoid making them suspicious as to what he actually is. Depending on what less-than-forthcoming elements we put in our story, they could assume he is all sorts of unsavory elements from a pirate (the pirates we ran into, even) conscripting a skeleton Navy crew to a rival terraforming-corp agent doing the same to a really suspicious Noble. If we aren't Navy it's suspicious for us to be in charge of a bunch of Navy. So we should be careful about what we say about our journey or who we encountered.

+1 Need to watch what we say.

[S1lentWanderer]

It's also possible for them to suspect Basil himself isn't Navy, so we should avoid making them suspicious as to what he actually is. Depending on what less-than-forthcoming elements we put in our story, they could assume he is all sorts of unsavory elements from a pirate (the pirates we ran into, even) conscripting a skeleton Navy crew to a rival terraforming-corp agent doing the same to a really suspicious Noble. If we aren't Navy it's suspicious for us to be in charge of a bunch of Navy. So we should be careful about what we say about our journey or who we encountered.

+1. Very good point. We need to try to avoid making them suspicious of us.

[Eschar]

And we traveled to their territory for an honest reason, so we should focus on that.

This a matter for later, but our tablet encyclopedia is probably a useful thing to study. At some point we can see if it's got anything useful for us about Empyreal customs, cultures, history, etc. - even just humanity. We can also study it for information on tactics, astrowarfare, and weaponry.

[19_EgarAlnis]

“Knowledge.” Basi begins, his hesitation measuring in the pico-seconds. His frame slowing to normal human speeds as he lifts his manacled hands to gesture, explaining, “I came through your territory without knowing I was trespassing, and I apologize for the inadvertent sleight. I come with honest reasons.”

The older woman fixes Basil with a firm stare. He returns it without flinching. There's a hardness in her eyes, a depth that stares past Basil, as if he wasn't there. A speck on the chair. The younger woman shifts from foot to foot, uncomfortable with the taut tension. With a sniff, ‘mum’, ticks her head to Basil’s cuffed hands. “Get those off of him.”

With a sigh of relief, the younger woman obliges.

Rubbing at his wrists, Basil gives a small smile in appreciation and rests back in the chair. The two regard each other, and ‘mum’ speaks again, “My name is Victoria. That’s my daughter, Alexandria. You were in our scavenging and hunting grounds--”

“We thought you were from the Hegemon.” Alexandria volunteers, smiling wide. The older woman slumps in her chair and turns her glare to Victoria.

“Go feed his dog, Alexandria.” Victoria sighs, massaging her brow. “Thank you.”

“Follow her. Don’t bite anybody.” Basil commands Twitchy. The Barker Construct radiates annoyance, but does as bidden. Alexandria leads the Barker out, leaving Victoria and Basil in blissful silence.

“You seek knowledge, but, as the ancients say, there’s no free lunch. We’ll trade knowledge for knowledge.” Victoria explains when the door hisses shut. “Does that sound a fair deal?”

“It does.” Basil nods, resting his hands on his lap and steepling his thin fingers.

“I’ll start. Why did your ship land here?”

“The ship was damaged by pirates. We landed at an Empyreal Military Base for repairs and refueling.”

[30 vs.8]
Victoria fully believes Basil’s half-truth. Her eyes flick to his black pupiled stare, to his blankly inexpressive face, to his unmoving posture. Her head shifts down, an humanly imperceptible nod of belief.

“Can you tell me about your settlement?”

“We set up here about ten years ago.” She explains, “As a forward operating base for metal scavenging, the processing of resources, and as a local trading post for the Hegemon. I’m in charge of this operation, as the last two managers had great difficulties. Are you a member or officer of the Empyreal Navy?”

“Technically? No. However, I have command of the vessel."

“You are in control of one but you’re not part of a Navy Crew?”

“They rescued me and my…[mother, aunt, lit adult female guardian]. The former captain viewed me as most competent for his crew’s continued survival. That was two, by the way.” Basil sniffs.

“I’ll volunteer more on your next question.” Victoria retorts.

“What happened to this planet?”

“Once, it was a penal colony for the Empyre. The Hegemon led a coup, killed the local leaders and blew up the spaceport and elevator. There wasn’t enough of an agricultural base to keep everyone alive, and it all kind of…collapsed. Years of blood and war. Things settled down. Then that terraforming satellite went berserk. Then the Hegemon rose up.”

Victoria shrugs. “Are you here to cause me any more problems like that?”

“No. What is the Hegemon?”

“A fucking pyscho.” Victoria shakes her head, “He took his followers, modified their genes, loomed them and built a[Formica] nest out of them.”

“A [Formica] nest?”

“[Ants]. Controls them with brainwashing and life training. A lockstep army of mindless slaves. If he wasn’t so paranoid he’d probably have taken over the whole planet, but he doesn’t trust his drones, thank All Gods. So he stays in his bunkers and bases in the [Giga-Forest] to the south. We trade him the metal we find for food, since he can't range far enough for it.” After a pause, she waves a hand. “So now the important question is, how can we benefit from this meeting? We have no interest in that base -- we couldn't get in when we tried."

Spoiler: Status (click to show/hide)

Basil the Scholar of V̵̖̉õ̶̼͠i̷͇̖͒d̷̨̈́ͅ
Terran Time: 43470/04/26 21:01
Personal Time: 169 years

Active Dust: 5 × 10¹² corpuscles
Nexus (Heart) Stability: Flawless
Nexus (Mind) Stability: 95%
ENERGY RESERVES:100%
Active Processes:

• 30% The First Mask
• 10% Quantum Networking
• ̶͕͖̣̗̗͈̏∞̴̠̣̺͔̬̼̍̍̉̂̀̅̄̌̓͠͝% ERROR:DATA CORRUPTION

Willpower Level: 3(d10)

Traits:
Empathetic (3/10)
Haunted (1/10)

Perks:
Scholar
Void

Spoiler: Objectives (click to show/hide)

Survival

• You’ve freed yourself from the Blighted Glass, but now you have to survive on your own.

Knowledge

• The Behavior of the Third Children
• Seedships
• The Truth of the Ancient Twins, Earth and Mars

Strength

• Killing the Blighted Glass
• Mastering Your Skills
• Learn to Veil your Power.

Spoiler: Powers (click to show/hide)

Max Willpower Range: 10m

Ḙ̵̛̬̺̤͍̼̬̣̊̐̈̋́̏̔̊̑̃̊̚̚͜͠͠͠n̶̗͔̯͕̮͗̑ͅd̸̡̨̯̯̰̜͚͈̼͖͔͎͍̺͒͛̽̅͋̀̀̓͗̎̅̓͛͆͠͝l̴̟̺̳̍́͌͂̀͂̀́̎́̓͘͠e̸̦͈̋̔̃̂̒̃͝ş̸̗̯̘̣̻̪̠̗̤͑̎̓͛͗͝s̵̛̛͙̟͔͈͉̫̍̊̈̓͋̈̿̀̈́̍̚͠ ̷̳̣͉̯̗̣͓̼̠̠̆̃̑͌̚͝V̷̢̫̙͖̘̾́͗̿͒̾o̶͓̞̐͆̅̀̀̈́̿̿̚i̴̛̟͛̈͊͒̄̉͋̓̇̄͘͝͝͝d̵͕̜̬̜̠̝͇̈̂͂̂:Instinctive (NULL)
Brawling:Amateur(800/1000)
Ranged:Inept(50/100)
Meditation.:Instinctive (NULL)
Mimicry.:Instinctive (NULL)
-Arsenal of Agony.:Instinctive (NULL)
-The First Mask: Trained (2835/3000)
-The Second Mask: Dabbler (492/500)
-The Third Mask: Amateur (521/1000)
-The Fourth Mask: Novice (800/1000)
-The Fifth Mask: Dabbler (456/500)
-Healing Factor: Instinctive (NULL)
Control:Instinctive (NULL)
-Voice of the King: Dabbler (492/500)
Amalgamation:Dabbler (432/500)
Synthesis : Competent (4000/4000)[SELF-TAUGHT CAP]
Rot:Dabbler(456/500)
Instant Quantum Networking : Instinctive (NULL)
Divine Conscious: DabblerCompetent (4000/4000)[SELF-TAUGHT CAP]
Unified Field Manipulation : Dabbler (393/500)
- Gravity: Dabbler (393/500)
- Matter Manipulation: Dabbler (393/500)
- Fission: Dabbler (393/500)
- Fusion: Competent (4000/4000)[SELF-TAUGHT CAP]
- Energy Manipulation: Novice (847/1000)
Void Vessel Piloting: Neophyte (1500/2000)

Spoiler: Inventory (click to show/hide)

Head: A white plastic headset.
Body: Gray coveralls
Body: A black jacket
Belt: A black, leather belt.
Right Shoulder: A gray flashlight.
Back: A orange backpack.

In bag:
-Four day's worth of dried meat and a large loaf of grainbread

Spoiler: Bonds (click to show/hide)

The Devoured Sun

• A Plague Entity. Brought about the Galaxy's First Night.
• Hereditary grandparent of Basil
• Deceased(?)

The Blighted Glass

• A Plague Entity of immense power.
• Hereditary parent of Basil
• Contactable through Quantum Networking.

Sloan

• Homo Fundamentum Female
• Basil saved her life. (++Opinion)
• Contactable through Verbal Communication.
• The thought of harming Basil causes her immense fear and disgust.
• If she harms Basil, she will be infected by a Targeted Rot.
• Melee: Skilled
• Organization: Journeyman

The PerversionBob Twitchy.

• A Plague Drudge
• One of Basil's Lictors.
• Contactable through Quantum Networking.
• Dedicated to the protection of Basil.
• INTERNAL STORAGE

Spoiler: Concepts (click to show/hide)

[A las-pistol/rifle]
A cheap, hydrogen battery laser pistol/rifle.

• Small Hydrogen Battery
• Large Hydrogen Battery
• Laser Focusing System
• High-Accuracy Laser Focusing System
• Micro-Reactor
• Plastic Case

[A small hydrogen reactor]
A household hydrogen reactor, capable of outputting 35000 watts with only water as input.

• Large Hydrogen Battery
• Hydrogen Reactor (Small, Household))
• Fuses
• Plastic Case

[Cryo-pod]
A Cryo-Pod

• Cryo-Pod Insulation Fluid
• Cryo-Pod Internal Anti-Freeze System
• Microwave Stasis Field Generator
• Controller Board
• Outer Shell
• Dream Modulating Systems

[A Microreactor]
A tiny microreactor from a las-gun, using energy stored within Hydrogen Batteries to produce light.

• Hydrogen Reactor (Micro))
• Fuses
• Plastic Case

[A Small Ship's Reactor]
A reactor design, with optional material production designs.

• Hydrogen Reactor (Small Ship)
• Reactor Piping
• Reactor I/O
• Fuses
• Metal Case

[A cheap space suit]
A thin, cheap space suit.

• Oxygen Tank
• Emergency Sodium Chlorate Heater
• Carbon Scrubbers
• Micro-Medicine Array
• Small Tablet Screen
• Carbon Fiber Cloth
• Water Reclamation System

[A small engine]
A small thruster

• Liquid Hydrogen Tank
• Small Scale Reactor Piping
• Rocket Nozzles
• Engine Moderation Software

[A .35^c engine]
A larger thruster for small to medium-sized vessels

• Reactor Piping
• Electromagnetic Plasma Control Nozzles
• Engine Moderation Software

[Uni Ľubomíra]
A young man. Born on a dusty mining world. Became an Auxiliary Pirate Marine Lance Corporal. Died to Plague Infection on 43301/10/01.

• Brawling: Amateur
• Shooting: Inept
• Mining: Apprentice

[Plague Ivy]
A multipurpose vascular, manipulation and motile system.

Spoiler: Holdings (click to show/hide)

N/A
Capital: N/A
Population: 5^1
Military: Tiny Las-Rifle Equipped Militia
Commodities of Note: Rations [Food Stuffs](6mo(?))
Quality of life: Food, clean water, lighting, sanitation, lack of food production, lack of healthcare, isolation.
Population Morale: High
Government Legitimacy: Illegitimate
Economy: Non-existent, survival focus
Territories: Old Empyreal Navy Fortress (EXPLORED:45%)
Ethnic Groups of Note:
-Empyreal Naval Spacers: 3
-Empyreal Pirate Spacers: 1

[GROUNDED:OLD EMPYREAL BASE]
Main Reactor: [standby]
>[0% TOTAL OUTPUT LEVELS]
>[ERROR:REACTOR:MODIFIED]
>[6% FUEL LEVEL]
Hull: [standby]
>[COMP_REACTIVE_HULL:EN192121:SLAVE_AI] [standby]
[210:HULL_BREACHES_DETECTED!]
Shield: [standby]
>[COMP_HARDLIGHT_SHIELD:EN192121:SLAVE_AI] [standby]
Artificial Gravity: [standby]
Life Support: [standby:TEMP_ONLY]
Cryogenics Support: [online]
>[1/6 [CRYOPODS ACTIVE]]
Empyreal Communications Array:[online]
>[EMPYREAL_COMMS: ON_STANDBY][DISCONNECTED]
Main Thruster System:  [standby]
>[0% TOTAL OUTPUT LEVELS]
Living Spaces: [online]

<< <>

[King Zultan]

Not really sure what we can offer them since we don't really seem that much better off then them.

[S1lentWanderer]

I mean the most valuable thing we could probably offer is to put down the Hegemon, since we represent a respectable military power.

[Eschar]

True, but our military assets are a handful of Navy personnel of questionable morale at the moment, one (1) Pirate, a Navy skirmisher craft, and ourself.
These can be valuable assets, but we can't just use them directly against an entire entrenched... nation? army? I'm not really sure of the scale of the Hegemon.

That's not to say we can't take on the Hegemon, just that our military power isn't directly applicable right now.

[S1lentWanderer]

Agreed, and while we may be able to take down the Hegemon ourselves, that would probably not achieve our goal, instead making people terrified of us.

They mentioned the terraforming satellite going berserk,  we may be able to help with that. We've rebuilt AI systems before, and even built an AI from scratch for the ship repairs if I remember correctly. We may be able to leverage our technical skills to get the terraforming satellite un-berserked. That may win us some support.

[Eschar]

I don't think taking down the Hegemon would alienate Iridium necessarily (they won't be around to watch the battles, probably) but
Fixing the satellite is probably more feasible.

Actually it doesn't seem like the Hegemon is causing trouble for Iridium right now, and is providing a customer for their scrap. That is a reason for us not to attack them yet. If the Hegemon loosens up on his paranoia, he'll be a threat, but he isn't right now.

[ZBridges]

If we do want to fix the satellite, what should we ask for in return?

[King Zultan]

Repairing the satellite sounds like the best thing we can offer right now, not sure what to ask for because we really don't know what they have to offer right now besides scrap metal which we already have access to.

[S1lentWanderer]

They also likely have access to supplies of food, which we could greatly benefit from, especially since we'll be running out of food in no more than 6 months if we don't find more supplies.

[King Zultan]

Food sounds good, hopefully it has seeds we could use to start growing our own.

Also we should try to get a map or at least an idea of how the area is set up, even an old map of before the place was a ruin would be useful.

[19_EgarAlnis]

((What seems to be the consensus? A partnership for food for fixing the satellite?))