Luthar, sitting in the pilot seat, nods at the words of the XO, "Roger Sir! Adjusting heading.." His hands moving along the controls, pretty sure he was hitting what needed to be hit.



[Private to The Void: OOC:You rolled 12 using 2d6+2 ((6,4)).]

Aille sat back in her chair and examined all of the screens she could see.

[Private to GM: 19:58, Today: Maire Doiteain rolled 10 using 1d20+1. Cha roll.]

[Private to Maire Doiteain: You feel something in your mind, like the distant sound of static at the very edge of your consciousness. It is almost certainly telepathy of some kind.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:10, Tue 18 Dec 2012.

Not having a posting in the bridge, Dizzy had made her way up there all the same when the announcement that they were coming out of metaspace came over the intercom.  This, a system that had been in the thick of the Blood Wars, she wanted to be among the first of their empire to lay eyes upon.  Her eyes swept over the screen as the computers crunched distances, planetary orbits, and trajectories along the borders.

" . . . Wasn't this supposed to be a trinary system?" she mused, rubbing her chin.
[Private to GM: 23:08, Today: Dizzy Hargrieve rolled 10 using 2d6. Perception Check. ]

Down in Engineering, Anna worked to stabilise the engines and the ship's fields against the various astral phenomena that could affect them in the local area. Normally, this was easy - just switch to a preset out of the book - but in unknown space she was having to do the calculations manually based on sensor readings.

[private to DM:
11:07, Today: Annabel Grey rolled 9 using 2d6+1. PosTech Knack.
11:07, Today: Annabel Grey rolled 6 using 2d6+1. PosTech. ]

The captain flashes a look at the executive officer who shoots a glance over to the science officer, who furiously seems to be working over the sensors.

A few tense moments go by as Luthar guides the ship into a phased burn sequence, skillfully trimming the course and manuevering past the edge of the system and into the significant gravity well. Even without any knowledge of piloting the vessel you realize that his command of the ships navigation is expert level.

[Private to Luthar An'bhaird: OOC: You gain a bonus on plotting the jump-in system! We have to decide where we're going before we make the jump, but you've put yourself in excellent position to make it.]

[Private to Maire Doiteain: OOC: You might not be able to simply tell the direction of the telepathic signal, but getting closer to the star system seems to strengthen it ever so slightly.]

[Private to Dizzy Hargrieve: OOC: You notice that the captain has looked around the bridge several times since she got here, almost as if she's checking to make sure someone isn't here. Each time she seems relieved.]

[Private to Annabel Grey: OOC: you weren't certain at first, but after running through an engine check, you find it: A non-spec coupling adapter has been fitted to the auxiliary coupling right behind the main coupling on the primary spike sequencer. The power has been routed through the auxiliary coupling and was regulating the power draw from the capacity independently of the main control. In other words, part of the drive that controls the level of phase shift, the 'throttle' was being controlled not by navigation but by a microprocessor embedded in this coupling adapter. Sabotage. It won't be hard to remove it, but it's already done it's work.]

The science officer gives the captain a despairing look and Master Farhenra looks over his shoulder and presses some buttons, bringing the sensor logs up onto the main screen.

"We're void-jilted, ladies and gents. Off course. Missed the mark by more than ten light years."

The display of the planetary system comes up.



Star Type

M3 V Red Dwarf

Radius

3.02 x 105 km   (0.43 x sol)

Mass

7.63 x 1029 kg   (0.38 x sol)

Temperature

2900 K

Luminosity

1.57 x 1025 W   (0.04 x sol)

It lists off ten planets and one signifcantly sized asteroid belt.
The sensor suite display has near two dozen blinking dots respresenting points of interest throughout the system. Three of them are red, representing high interest locations. Two of them are the closest two planets to the binary system and the third one is a moon orbiting an ice planet, 6th from the stars.

The current orbits place the closest planets as relatively close and the 6th planet as far on the other side of the system.

The commander checks something on her display.
"Welcome to the Moril system."
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:42, Sat 19 Jan 2013.

"Taku..." Annie made an irritated sound, before keying the bridge.

"Captain. Engineering here. Seems we've got some unwelcome guests. Someone's put an extra regulator on the drive core that wasn't here when we left dock. 's'why we're off target. Do I have permission to remove the offending item?" Like the First Officer, Annabel's voice had that certain quality that showed she was suppressing an accent.

The channel remained open, as if the commander was considering her reply.
"Permission granted."

"Yes, ma'am." She replied with satisfaction, closing the communication window and kneeling to her task, fanning tools out of her sleeve in preparation with a smirk.

"Now... lesee what meks'ya tick, akuyuu." She muttered, and took the cover off the little device after making sure there were no explosive triggers or such on it.

[private to DM:
21:25, Today: Annabel Grey rolled 10 using 2d6+1. PosTech.

You remove it easily enough after rerouting power to the main coupling. It appears to have been designed to install easily so someone without much knowledge could handle it. Additionally though it could have been trapped in a number of ways, it appears there was no such interest in destroying the ship.]
This message was last edited by the player at 01:04, Wed 19 Dec 2012.

Luthar smiled to himself, though you wouldn't know it with the helmet he had on.  "Commander, do we have any katsu...erm..intel on this system?" He asked, his hands still moving amongst the controls as he continued piloting.  He was pleased with how well he could handle the ship at the moment.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:37, Tue 18 Dec 2012.

"Ah, Commander... uhhh..." Maire searched her memory for the commanders name quickly, "Valna! There is most certainly... telepathy of some kind in that system." She said as she sat up from her position quickly, jostling the book that was once again in her lap.

She reacts to each of you in turn, though your outbursts are nearly simultaneous.

"Pilot, unfortunately this falls outside our grid." She is maintaining a calm facade, no doubt from her upbringing as a noble on Haven. "We have minimal information as this system was assigned to another scout ship entirely. IHS-Magellan should already be on station." Valna addresses the science officer at the sensor station with that last remark.

"Telepathy? A message? Where is it coming from?"
This message was last edited by the player at 03:09, Wed 19 Dec 2012.

"It's... uhhh, not quite a message. More like... radio static? I really don't know how to explain it that well..." Maire struggled for words to describe what she sensed.

The science officer nodded to the Commander and put up three display images in the center of the bridge. Three high interest locations in the star system.

The furthest to the left on the display was a large world, maybe slightly more massive than Haven, nearest to the stars, right in the habitable zone. Radio signals, just unintelligible patterns that repeat every 47 standard minutes. Several weaker transmissions were coming through too, but it was impossible to tune out the primary broadcast. Iwas almost 7 hours old even at the speed of radio.

The second location of interest was a cold world on the far side of the star system. What was first believed to be a sensor glitch resolve itself as a massive energy signature that stood out even in the shadow of twin red dwarf stars.

The final point of interest was the second world around these stars, barely in the habitable zone as well. This one was notable because there is a transmission originating from it's location. It's in proto-Indari, or 'English' a computerized message. Comm Officer Donell reads it off. "Begin message. 'Zero Zero Zero Dash Seven Seven Nine Zero Dash Two Five Two Dash Zero Zero Zero Death Nine Nine Nine' Message repeats. I can't be certain it's an exact translation." He admits.

The whole bridge sits in silence as they ponder these options.

"Well? Advisor? What do you think? Engineering, what do you make of those readings?"

"Looks like the probability of a pre-spike civilisation on the terrestrial world off the port bow." Annabel replied, calling the data up on a screen and perusing it. "Background signals would tend to rule out the chances of an old distress beacon or pinger." [private to DM:
15:29, Today: Annabel Grey rolled 5 using 2d6+1. Culture/Spacer.
15:30, Today: Annabel Grey rolled 5 using 2d6+1. History.]
[Private to Annabel Grey: OOC: You think it might be some sort of garbled machine code or potentially even a distorted verbal transmission in a heavily accent dialect. Impossible to make out anything intelligible though.]

She pulled up the second scan, of the distant world. "The ice planet on the other side of the system... could be geothermals or some natural catasrophe, but for an energy signal this massive, it seems likely to be artificial or some kind of insane nuclear catastophe. Need to know more and study the data closer before I can give you anything concrete." As she spoke, the young engineer started putting the data into her computer programs for analysis. Energy wavelength, probably sources, frequencies and so forth. [private to DM:
15:30, Today: Annabel Grey rolled 10 using 2d6+1. Science!]
[Private to Annabel Grey: OOC: No doubt about it. X-ray and gamma radiation on a massive scale. The fluxations are consistent with a failing containment system. You estimate that the power output could supply Haven indefinitly.]

"As for the third transmission... Donell, can you send me the raw file? I'll run it through my own program, see if I can interpret that anomaly in the fifth section. Seems likely the rest is in cypher though." [private to DM:
15:33, Today: Annabel Grey rolled 5 using 2d6+1. History.
15:32, Today: Annabel Grey rolled 9 using 2d6+1. Language. ]
[Private to Annabel Grey: OOC: Donell and you put your heads together and his degree in pre-Bloodwar languages is put to use once you get him out of a more traditional route of thinking. The numbers are a digital code indicating a software warning. The word that was translated as "death" should be read as "kill process"]
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:14, Thu 20 Dec 2012.

Janus relaxed in his chair, gently sipping his tea as if oblivious to whatever was happening around him. During this time he meditated upon various facets of the future, looking forward. He saw the ship coming under attack by unknown forces and being blown apart. He also saw a possible safe landing and contact with intelligent life, definitely a more nightmarish possibility. While contemplating the past and the causal patterns that produced the present, his eyes stare off into the middle-distance at nothing in particular, snapping rapidly back into reality the moment events converged around him.

He continued to slowly stir his tea with a tiny spoon and gaze across the bridge at the panel displays showing him all kinds of information about what lay before them not in space, but in time. Janus did not really care about the things themselves that awaited them out there in the amoral and unfeeling entropy of the cosmos. He cared about the events that would describe them, and what other events those events were made of.

Within his mind, Janus contemplated change after change, as if it were possible to reduce reality to a perfect behavioral model by imagining it as an space/time economy of energy in which the basic capital of energy, is power. This was how the sons of Indaris schemed, and how an empire would be made, or broken. There were careful considerations to make. Some consequences might not manifest for several generations of nobility. Things were going to change no matter what, and change always means cost. The only question was, who would live long enough to inherit all the debt.

"At this point, the rational thing to do would be to call for backup or retreat. However, we have to consider things like pride and dignity, as well as other pointless social protocols, like "politics" for example. Therefore, I suggest we pick whatever looks like it'll yield the best immediate profit to our sponsors."

Janus speaks in what seems to be an almost intentionally mechanical way, like reading from a script. It's hard to tell if he's trying to be comical or possibly autistic. If he's joking, then it's surely in bad taste, his delivery being bitter and dry, and mockingly cynical, yet autism seems unlikely.

He certainly seems to enjoy his tea.

So deep were the Advisor's musings and considerations that by the time he was finished, Annabel had opened a new intercom window to the bridge.

"An'kin'd ken y'volis us ta ne sukcesi Mr. Meyrink." The engineer didn't bother to disguise her accent while addressing the man. He was obviously a few spoons short of a cutlery drawer as it was.

"Kaptiano, I'll start small. The Commo and I put our heads together and reckon the third reading is a cogitator of some kind on an error loop, requesting termination. The other radio signal... it's strange. Even putting it through fragment translation can't put it back together. There's too damn much interference. The repeating patterns, though... it could be a verbal transmission, but if so, the language has evolved in a totally different way to ours." She sighed, shaking her head. Finally, she quirked a little grin. "The third reading, though... It's probably what's scrambling the signals from the other worlds. There's a fusion reactor down there big enough to power Haven for the foreseeable future. The bad news is that it's in serious need of maintenance. The containment system is breaking down. I'm still working to try and figure out how long until it fails completely, but I might need to get data from the onsite computers themselves."

She seems to be sorting through some data on her personal device, importing files and read outs from the bridge system over the widecomm. Finally she highlights the distant ice world with a gesture of her right index finger and commands:

"Prepare phasing for the far side of the system. We're going to investigate that radiation anomaly."

[Private to Luthar An'bhaird: OOC: Make a navigation check to find the easiest way through the system to the other side, add +1 for expert piloting base travel time is 16 hours for a spike 3]
This message was last edited by the player at 00:14, Sat 22 Dec 2012.

"Aye, Kapitano." Annie replied from Engineering, hitting the switches. "Phasing prepared. Over to you, helm."

"Aye captain," Luth said as his hands gestured over the navigation controls. Pressing a sensor here, swiping one there, he was looking for a clear and direct path to their destination.

[Private to The Void: OOC: You rolled 11 using 2d6+3 ((4,4)).]

The Shackleton lurched into a low phase, moving now faster than light as it accelerated into the third phase tier, not drilling through metaspace but skirting along as near as it could be.

In a mere 10 short hours the ship would have navigated it's way around the twin stars and into local orbit around the ice planet. The frozen rock had one moon.

The sensor read out appeared on the main displays.



Type:

Ice Planet: Auto Designate: Moril IV

Orbital Radius:

7.17 x 108 km   (4.79 AU)

Period:

9.49 x 104 hours   (10.86 earth years)

Gravity:

10.88 m/s2   (1.11 x earth)

Physical:

Standard iron/silicate

Hydrosphere:

8 % water, 62 % ice

Atmosphere:

80% Nitrogen, 19% Oxygen, >1% Argon, Trace Gasses

Biosphere:

Microbes

Notes:

1 small moon, lethal radiation, artifical structures on planet surface

[Private to Annabel Grey: OOC: At this range it's easy enough to use the sensors on the ship to detect the massive radiation surge. It's coming from the moon.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:36, Sat 19 Jan 2013.

It echoed into his mind for a moment.

"... artificial structures on planet surface."

That meant a great deal of changes in the future. Already, Janus could see reality being defined within a set of probabilities. What he focused on was how me might influence fate. Knowing the statistics involved made it easier, but noise made indeterminacy a problem. He would have to meditate on it much further, later. For now, it was happening. But eventually, many people were going to need to die.

"There you are bridge officers..."

Janus grins, staring at the main display. Death always brings prosperity with it, and so the wise drink from death, becoming immortal.

"... profit, for our sponsors."

"That's all very nice, Mr. Meyrink, but we need to stabilise that reactor on the moon first." Annie interrupted the eccentric Advisor's proto-rant. "If you have to justify it, you need look no further than the phrase 'fusion reactor that could power a whole planet'."

"Orbital delta pattern five nine. Path locked tight-for. Corrections in ninteen passes." The impressive officer looked pleased at these numbers and cast an approving glance at the pilot's couch.

"Commander." He regards Cmdr Valna before hitting a few displays at his station. "Prepare for a landing. Hargrieve, Grey, Doitean and Donnel on the shuttle in fifteen. The Observer may go where he pleases." He says this a little darkly. "Pilot, we're going into auto for orbit. You'll take the shuttle down. Haste-time!"

"A field op?!" Annie squeaked, surprised, then grinned. "Aye-aye." She told the screen, then shut down her workstation for the moment, handing off ship's engineering to the chief as the older woman entered.

Heading to her quarters, she pulled on her red robe, then flipped open her lockbox to retrieve a gunbelt. She strapped it around her waist, making sure to slip a spare charge cell into the ammunition pouch and loading her Modessa Falcon, before flicking the safety back on and holstering it, clipping the flap over to ensure it didn't fall out. Finally, she changed the module set into her metatool for a general-purpose one, sliding the PosTech-specialised unit into its slot in her toolkit, which then took its place in her backpack alongside her slate.

She changed her ship-board safety shoes for boots, then headed down to the shuttle bay with minutes to spare.

Luthar nodded and removed his helmet, "Aye sir, you can count on me. I'll get them their safely." He stood from his position, saluted the commander as he passed, and headed off towards the shuttle, grabbing his gear along the way.  I shouldn't be surprised they are letting me pilot the shuttle solo.  I've been doing it for a few years now, so it's nothing new...this ship though, man can it fly... he was caught up in his thoughts as he made his way to the shuttle.

Janus doesn't announce what he's doing to anybody, he just does it. He doesn't snap to it either, he quietly moves gradually from his seat to a standing position, takes the time to adjust his ceremonial katana, collect his teacup and his glasses, and then gracefully walk off the bridge without so much as acknowledging anyone.

[Private to The Void: Janus goes straight to his quarters and sits down at his computer terminal. He brings up a schematic of the ship's decks, the interior layout of the ship's access-ways and engineering tunnels, portals, shafts, and air-ducts. He studies them for a bit before he calls up another schematic of the ship's security systems, showing camera placement, electronic locks, and all interior sensor fields. He overlays the schematics and begins constructing a tactical map that highlights the most advantageous positions for an ambush, and where to expect one ((tactics), and how to bypass or avoid the ship's security systems ((security)) so as to gain quick access to the ship's main reactor and sabotage the spike drive to create an uncontrollable chain reaction in the power grid that would destroy the ship ((tech/astronautics, which Janus doesn't know)).]
This message was last edited by the player at 19:32, Sat 05 Jan 2013.

Maire wasn't quite as happy as the Engineer had sounded about going on a field op, but she supposed she might as well get over her feelings. She slowly prepared herself, and left the bridge after the other man, heading directly for the shuttle.