Bugbot hummed as it processed D'jaah's request, instantly able to uplink to the N'suh Kevah.  Even the drone was impressed at the speed of data transfer it was now capable of; easily two hundred times more efficient than previously.

  "Supplication: Unfortunately some of the Ship's database has been severely damaged and are beyond this unit's ability to retrieve.
   Addendum: I can, however, communicate the following data in response to your inquiry: You are both scheduled to meet with the Executive Officer of the N'suh Kevah; acting Captain J'nor Rh'ach.  He is an experienced officer, noted for his superior leadership abilities and and decisive command style.  Apparently he also makes a 'mean bowl of Ku'lag, according to the Ship's logs."
This message was last edited by a game editor at 04:46, Sun 05 Aug 2012.

  The sled slides along the hallways of the ship quietly. around them swarms of bots, drones and occasionally a human work to repair damage and restore systems. the air seems fresher, and the ship hums with life once more.
  Icons flicker on walls and displays relay information in O'sahdii script at random points and floating in holograms around Kiosks that rise up out of the deck.

The Humans are tall, fit, with deep olive tone skin, dark hair worn in ringlets, and braids. Each one is dressed in a Flat mustard color Jumpsuit with Numbers and insignia on the shoulders and back. Several stop their work and wave or smile at the passing visitors or simply nod as they slide past.

   The little beetle drone watched as the N'suh Kevah, so long a dark and lifeless hulk, transformed into a furious hub of activity, a living vessel once again.  Droids and organics working in unison, like bees in a hive, to return the ancient ship to its former glory.  It was extraordinary to bug bot, how much more he understood about the ship and its systems.  No longer simply a workbot, he could now easily interpret the meaning behind each units efforts.  It was a true epiphany that brought a surge of unanticipated electricity, firing every single circuit in the tiny transformed bot.  It was bugbot's first actual emotion and he quickly found the word for it in his database:  ELA'II...JOY!

   "Observation: Due to your efforts, the N'SUH KEVAH is zoetic once more.  Assertion: Our gratitude is beyond any measure!"

 She watched the hustle and bustle of the ship waking up with great interest. The ship no longer seemed quiet or empty. There now seemed to be a waking sense of soul or being arising about the ship itself. A feeling one might get when walking up to a friends door and "feeling" that they were home before you even touched the door plate.

 "It sure seems to be humming along doesn't it N'mii? Who would have guessed? I almost miss the quiet. Almost. Well, it seems that life is about to become very interesting indeed."

  Shi D'rah says in the Artistry of the Quiet Mind, that interesting times require a sharp blade" N'mii spoke softly and a bit bashfully. to admit he had read such a volume would have gotten him scolded by his mother and laughed at by his sisters. Such warlike things were not for young men.
  " It's waking up, the spirit of the ship, of it's crew. You can feel it."
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 03:12, Sun 26 Aug 2012.

 She looked at N'mii, a bit startled that he'd read that material. But then again, he had a way of inspiring one to allow him freedoms others might not allow. Still, she was proud of her Boy.
 "Just don't be getting ideas above your station Little One. There are those who would take you from me and punish you most direly. Do not be showing others your extensive reading history. Just me."

" Of course D'mai, all I know is at your disposal of course." N'mii blushed furiously. He was certain she was not truly put off by his secret reading. but she was wise to remind him it was dangerous knowledge for a young man.

  As the sled came to a stop, a hatchway opens, revealing a group of men and women  dressed in yellow ochre colored uniforms and carrying sidearms; small compact weapons neither D'jaah or N'mii had ever seen before. Each man and woman stood over six feet tall, were very fit, had the same olive tone skin, and wore their hair in long ringlets that fell about their shoulders.
  One of the women, dressed in a long ankle length dress, smiled brightly as the pair arrived, motioning the guards to retire. She stepped forward, her clothing far less militant than the others. Her tight bodice like blouse seemed to amplify and display her cleavage, leaving her "womanly charms" largely exposed and on display.

"On behalf of the captain, allow me to thank you for your timely assistance.  I am Amata, third ...I'm sorry, first officer of the Far Shore. The woman spoke perfect Avandii, even with the same hint of accent D'jaah recognized as "Imperial". In fact, it was almost a perfect reflection of her own speech patterns and slight accent.

  "I hope you don't mind the guards, they are not for you. It seems some of our work teams encountered an unusual problem in the lower reaches of the ship. For now, please feel free to move about the functional regions of our home, as soon as we have concluded our discussions of course."
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:45, Sat 01 Sept 2012.

   No longer merely a reactive drone, bugbot's antennae spring up as he hears the lady officer's words.  After only a nanosecond of consideration, he enters the conversation when there seems an appropriate lull.

  "Salutations: Greetings Pa'ven Amata, it is this units greatest honour to introduce the new arrivals, whose timely assistance has made possible the revival of our Ship and crew.  Formality: This unit presents D'jaah Ar'Darmina and N'mii, a truly extraordinary duo of organics indeed."

   Having done his proper duty, bugbot then silences himself, to allow the organics to converse, since it has been his experience that this is what organics like to do best.  After only a few minutes, however, bugbot is compelled to ask:

   "Inquiry: Pa'ven Amata, you have indicated that you encountered some manner of difficulty in the lower sections of the N'suh Kevah.  What is the nature of this issue and can this unit be of any use in rectifying the situation?"

 "Hello Amata. I am D'jaah Ar'Damina, and this is My husband N'mii. We were glad to be of help."
 She looked around at all the activity going on around them, noticing how, even with so few, the spirit of the ship seemed to be quite a bit more active and noticeable, as if the ship herself needed the humans to wake her sentience up even more. The ship felt "alive" in a way she'd never seen with any other ship encountered before, even in AI ships.
 "What kind of troubles?"

" It seems that during our prolonged sleep, several levels have become isolated and suffered severe damage from the elements."
  "Unfortunately the suspension chambers on those levels opened prematurely and now the lower levels seem to be inhabited by some rather hostile sorts...crazed, feral,they attacked our repair teams without warning and seriously injured several of our technicians." The First officer motioned toward a group of armed en who stood uneasily by the doors and more who were operating the consoles along the far wall." we are doing our best to seal and contain the regions but without a proper security detail, it is becoming dangerous for anyone to travel without armed escort in regions below the main habitat area."

 "Oh My! How long do you think they have been trapped down there? Could they have had radiation damage? I am surprised that they have been able to live down there so long. It must have contained a hydroponics area or gardens or something to enable them to survive for any length of time. How sad for them!"
 "If we can save them, it's going to be quite a shock to them to come into the main part of the ship. You might consider keeping them contained there until you can slowly educate them and bring them up to a civilized level. You wouldn't want them to have culture shock."
 "Have you sent any bug bots down to spy on them? They might not see tiny ones, though they may think they are edible if they do see them. And what about food and water? Do you think leaving some where they might get to it would be a good idea? Oh, perhaps make it where if they learn something, like how to fix something, they'd get rewarded with food? And of course supplements to be sure their bodies are provided with necessary nutrients?"
 She pulled N'mii closer to her as if to protect him, though of course the danger wasn't here, or at least not at this time. Still, anything that might cause him harm was still something to worry about.
 "You are sure that they are secure down there? They can't get out? Can the ship see down there at all?"

  " Our nano bots have started a survey of the isolated areas. The damage is extensive on several levels and My people are having a hard enough time getting our vital systems back online." The captain Shook his head as he Joined the conversation. Young and looking a bit out of his depth the Officer offered a handshake to both D'jaah and N'mii." as far as Recruiting assistance from our neighbors down below. I am hoping you might be able to help."
  "I don't have any telepaths available, and the lower level natives are speaking a language we can't translate. I am sorry to drag you into our problems. But i'm afraid I may have to ask you for more assistance."

"Of course. What would you like us to do? Is there a leader down there, or is it a bunch of groups? I assume they don't have much technology or they would have gotten out before now. How many generations do you suppose have survived down there?"
 She listened and nodded as she was informed about what little was known. When the young man offered to shake her hand, she paused briefly then shook it. She wasn't really used to males offering to shake her hand, but she had to get used to it. She really ought to be conditioned beyond that by now in her line of work! She thought over what he had to say then asked if they had any pictures of those below they did have some contact with, if any.
 "What do they seem like? Do the nanites have a visual? If I contact them, I don't want to give them culture shock. I should try to dress like them if we can get some of their computers to work. Perhaps the nanites should concentrate on getting one of those working enough to transmit and receive a signal? That way perhaps they can feel like they aren't threatened by a real person right away."

" I believe they have access to several of the garden levels. The systems are self contained and automated so food, and water would be available. Other than a few who seem to understand the controls to the garden systems I don;t believe any of the groups have more than basic tools and primitive weapons." A third man spoke up his arm and chest covered with a thick layer of medic-gel sealant." although the group we ran into was proficient with those."

  " With your cyberpaths assistance I am sure the Your Nano-bot companion has been upgraded to restore function to communications terminals in the lower areas. If you can access them we can open some dialog with he more civilized appearing factions on the lowermost level of the affected area."
   "but first we must find some common ground and language, without a telepath I'm afraid our translation matrix can not find a suitable common language between ourselves and the residents of the lower levels."
  The Captain motioned to the wounded officer." Shiirin will help you with appropriate attire and make sure you have any material support you need."

"Thank you Captain. I will do my very best."
 She turned to the injured officer with a slight frown at the sight of the medigel. She hated to see him wounded like that. It was a shame that the man had to be exposed to such dangers!
 "Are you sure you are able to continue child? Shouldn't you be resting?"
 She looked back at the Captain briefly then picked up the bug bot and told it to access all the information they would need.
 "Bug bot, access all the vital information."
 "Captain, I would take My mate with me to help with the computer systems there. He seems to have some intuitive knowledge that may come in handy."

" I've had worse." The young man replied with a smile and a shrug , obviously not concerned for his own injuries."I'm no stranger to combat."

" Our surveillance systems have Your Husband tagged as a Cyberpath, He will definitely be of some use to you." The Captain replied as he motioned to a woman who came hauling a satchel containing supplies, and a selection of tools and equipment. She showed D'jah how to use the wrist mounted computer and comm unit. bringing up a holographic display that allowed her to access the ships systems within a few dozen meters of her once the local relays were repaired.


  " I also had Security modify a couple of our stun pistols for you, and your Husband. they will respond to you now." The woman handed over a rather sleek and compact looking bracer which was richly engraved with geometric patterns and wrapped snugly around her other arm. Point, focus o your target and trigger it. It will respond to your Psionic impulses. and it's powered by Psionic energies."

  N'mii stood silently as the Others talked, He looked about shocked to see men in uniform and wearing armor and weapons. They looked like something out of some lurid, exploitation movie. Men with scars, and wounds, Standing confidently wearing enough weaponry to make a Valkiir envious.

  "D'mai, Is it me or are there a lot of men here, I've counted fifty out of one hundred. They seem to be more like the Tae than Tau." He spoke to D'jahs mind softly, images of the tall regal looking women and strongly muscled men in his head. " If they are fifty thousand years old shouldn't they resemble Neanderthal or cro-magnon."

   "Reply: Rest assured this unit shall retrieve all available data.  Accessing:..."
Bugbot responded eagerly, instantly sending his query to the Far Horizon's vast data matrix and prepared to receive the information.  Its eyes flickered blue and its tiny antennae weaved gently back and forth.

  Bugbot's chassis hummed as he downloaded the data directly from the ship.  His matrix worked quickly, processing and evaluating the incredible amount of information in microseconds, before refocusing its attention on D'jaah.

   "Confirmation: Success, I have retrieved archived blueprints of the damaged hydroponics and bio-sphere sections of the N'suh Kevah.  This unit was been able to establish probable terminal locations with a 98.3241% chance of success.  Surveillance footage from several reconnaissance units has also been requested and received.

Supposition:  It is probable that an analysis of this data should allow this unit to approximate the languages of the survivors, although further information is necessary to confirm the accuracy of this linguistic extrapolation.

  Evaluation: Reviewing all available data has allowed me to ascertain the following:  There are apparently two distinct groupings of survivors. Group One has been utilizing the lower sections furthest from the functioning areas, hydroponics area 471-Rho and also the adjacent Garden Sphere.  All data appears to indicate that this group is attempting to establish order and behaving in an intelligent manner.  Group One's actions indicate that they are open to communication and should readily accept any sort of rescue from their current circumstances.
   Group Two has violently taken the upper levels and appear to attack anything that comes into their chosen territory with ruthless efficiency.  I have noted several instances of cannibalism within Group Two.  They apparently have established some primitive sort of rituals involving the holographic interface of one of the terminals within their control.  They seem to be supplicating the virtual reality interface with gifts in the misconception that it will provide food and other items in return for their adoration.  Group Two's actions indicate that they are unstable and extremely dangerous.  The most probable outcome of any attempts to contact them would be immediate attack."
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:25, Sat 05 Jan 2013.

 She listened to the bug bot's report, and looked at the report, considering what might be best to do. Both groups might suffer from culture shock once they were brought out of the nether regions of the damaged areas.

 "Can you access what exactly they are worshiping? Is there a visual? Perhaps we can exploit that if it's not too horrific. We will have to wean them away from canniblism, perhaps by implying that they have been misled by an evil entity. We must try to educate them. I fear that they may find themselves ostricized if they are returned to the ships main area. Could it be they may need to be stranded upon the planet surface itself to try to survive as best they can? Perhaps cast out of Eden as it were for being led astray? Unless they can be rehabilitated and made to forget, that may be the best we can hope for."

Pokes somebody, or everybody

  That's what we are hoping you can help us find, Ma'am." the captain replied politely." Our sensors and comms system in that area are gutted. We aren't even sure what caused the damage, we know the ship wasn't engaged in combat but something wrecked several dozen decks as if we had been hit by a full broadside off a Leviathan.

   Bug bot does his best to retrieve the data D'jaah requests.  After perhaps five standard minutes of clicking and whirring, his eyes blinking blue all the while,  he turns towards D'jaah once more, antennae swinging to and fro.

   Evaluation: It appears the holographic display is that of

TO BE CONTINUED LATER :P

POKES the bugbot...