MISSION 2: FUHODO STATION
After SCAMPS gives the order, the REKT crew leave their chairs and start towards the armory to collect their gear. When they arrive, they find that Hoffman has already laid it all out for them. It's just a matter of equipping everything, which takes about five minutes. Again, there is no privacy, but the inmates are starting to get used to that. When they're all ready to go, they head down back past the conference hall to the main bridge's elevators.Talvieno wrote: ↑Sun May 19, 2019 9:07 amSounds like everyone's about done - and just in time, too. You have roughly enough time to stop by the armory, pick up your gear, and head to the elevators before the shuttles are scheduled to arrive. Given your track record, that means you'll be late, so get your asses moving! See you when you get back, and try not to do anything stupid. SCAMPS, out.
Waiting for them outside the elevator is Terrin Zetch, the ship's Chief Supply Officer. He's a rather weathered man with snow-white hair, a wild (if short) beard, and a fairly grim attitude. "SCAMPS said to give you 200 plat each, minimum," he says in a troubled tone, pulling stacks of the chips out of a box on a cheap table. The hallway is empty except for their little group and Zetch's assistant. "If any of you kids want extra, you'll have to tell me now. We don't have an extensive supply of these, so I can't just go throwing them around willy-nilly. If you manage to collect any more while you're away, bring them back and I'll exchange them for creds. One-to-one exchange rate, on the books." The only person that doesn't have more creds to exchange is Gene, and everybody wants a bit extra. After all, 200 plat might not actually be worth that much. It's better to be safe.
When everyone is satisfied, Zetch's assistant clears out the table and the weighty box of chips, and Zetch himself activates the makeshift airlock: essentially a bubble of plastic around the elevator door. It billows outwards loosely, providing enough room for all ten REKT inmates to squeeze inside. Everyone checks their suits and helmets, and after they give an all-clear, Zetch seals the bubble. On cue - perhaps it's SCAMPS's doing - the door to the elevator opens, sucking out all the air from the "airlock"; the plastic conforms closely around the inmates. After a moment's pause, they enter the dark, empty shaft, lit intermittently by maintenance lights embedded in the walls.
But there's no elevator. It really is just an empty shaft. A few are puzzled by this momentarily, until someone notices the ladder carved into the outer wall. And so, one by one, the crew begin climbing upwards, traversing the span of several decks in the process. The top of the shaft was destroyed in the battle of Nanyej: ahead of them, the ladder appears charred and melted, and the wall to their left has been blown clean away. Caleb, after a word to his teammates, leaps across and lands on the surface of the Nemesis's vast hull.
It isn't long before all ten inmates stand atop the surface, in the shadow of the battered, ruined wreck of the bridge. The carpet of stars above them boasts an altogether unfamiliar arrangement, and the glare from Fuhodo itself nearly outshines them anyway. But these are only sideshows to the main attractions, which are already parked a few meters away: their imminent method of transportation.
The shuttles aren't anything spectacular. They seat six people each, there are no windows, and the seats are only benches. In lieu of seat belts or harnesses, the interior is equipped with straps that one could feasibly hang onto in case of erratic flight. The only exterior adornment of any kind, save the peeling paint stripes that have long been muddied by grime and scratches, are screens mounted on the hull. What they normally say is up for debate, but right now, each of the two shuttles displays a unique variant of "Hurry up and board", written in Galactic Standard. Dutifully, the REKT squad members climb through the hatch and the airshield into their seats - Saoirse, Bob, Frank, and Caleb fill one shuttle by themselves, and in the other: Buck, Brom, Gene, Ishmael, Sukava, and Vynkor. The hatch closes behind them.
But the shuttle doesn't lift off. "Payment first," the pilot explains, his voice thick with an obscure accent. "I was promised an awful lot for this trip - 600 plat. I'll go as low as 300 if that's a problem," he adds in a meaningful tone. "I'm sure there are plenty of people in Fuhodo that would pay the difference for a bit of knowledge. And I still haven't been told where I'm supposed to take you."
A payment slot on the front wall opens up, like a mouth ready to gobble up whatever quantity of plat the inmates are willing to toss into it.
((Just to make sure things are absolutely clear: All characters have 200 plat free, and all their creds have been converted to plat as well at a 1:1 rate. I'm updating the character pages on the wiki to match now.
Finally, keep in mind: this mission will be VERY HIGHLY different from the previous missions. I'm only starting this turn with "turn 0" because it's the only way to make Taiya announce it in IRC.
Enjoy, and welcome to Fuhodo Station!))