"I think it has less to do with me and more to do with her. . . " She waves her hands vaguely at her head, indicating the long, pointed ears and the slanted, cat-like eyes.

"So anyway, got any big projects coming down the pipes? Or is it mostly more of the same until the next stop?"

Those accustomed to speaking with those of the elder race might notice that her speech and cadence is far more casual than is typical of her species, although whether that is a carryover from her own tongue or a result of learning Low Gothic on a ship is unclear.

In reply to Clevermird (msg # 13):

"Hmm big project" Progressius hums. "Not more than the usual. More of the same is a good way to describe it. So far I have made little progress with the holographic eye I wish to construct but one day the final clue will be revealed."

In reply to Ylyeecia (msg # 7):

The inquitorial agent lifts one corner oh his mouth to a wry smile. "From my previous exchanges with your kind the answer comes down to 'graceless' sooner or later." There is no sharpness in the man's voice, as he doesn't seem to mind the judgement. The wry smile stays. "But if you insist, xeno or not, wasn't raised to dissappoint a Lady." The wry smile becomes more lopsided. It wasn't true, on more han one level but the truth should never get in the way of a good response.
The underhive certainly didn't raise anyone to respect anything but strength and before the primarch had returned any xeno species would only have been seen as the enemy. Throne of terra, that hadn't changed entirely even now and the Inquisition certainly hadn't changed it's mind all that much, but he was here to work as part of a team and that would necessarily mean making nice.
So nice he made.

In reply to Kurt (msg # 15):

Alice's smile becomes a grin, though whether it's due to Kurt bringing up 'graceless' or his apparent agreement to being her subject or some other, unknowable reason is left for the human to figure out.

"The subject of walking aside, is there anything of interest lately? Anything particular exciting?" she asks, always looking for interesting stories and narratives.

In reply to Ylyeecia (msg # 16):

Kurt grabs a nearby chair and takes a seat on it. He takes a sip from his glass and looks at the Aeldari. "Well depends on what might interest you." The lopsided smile stays on his lips. He raises one eyebrow. "You are of the 'Harlequin'faction of your kind, correct?"

In reply to Kurt (msg # 17):

Alice, for the time being, remains on her feet. She does, however, take the lasgun out of her ass judging by the significantly more comfortable shift in her stance. It doesn't matter how devoted you are, one's arse can only take so much.

"Oh! Familiar with us?" she asks, pleasantly surprised. So few humans were. Then again, not many of her kin could tell the different human groups apart.

In reply to Ylyeecia (msg # 18):

The dark-haired brute of a man takes a sip from his glass while he observes her reaction. Aeldari where notoriously hard to read but she wasn't trying to hide her emotions so it was clear she was relaxing a bit. Good.
"A few stories on some of the outer colonies and regions about visiting troupes. I have come around a bit." he aknowledges with a small nod. That was, again, quite the understatement. "Also your usual attire was quite the hint, even though you went for something more subtle today." A low chuckle. He had been briefed on all the sub-factions of the Aeldari but he couldn't quite say that without out-right admitting that he worked for the Ordo.

In reply to Kurt (msg # 19):

Alice listens and bobs her head with an understanding nod. Her troupe had given such shows before, though her participation at the time had been minor. Still, she half-wondered if any of those stories had involved them. Unlikely. The galaxy was vast.

"I imagine me keeping my agaith at my hip helps as well," she notes with a flourishing motion to the deactivated mask at her hip. "But you have my interest. What stories do the humans tell of our performances? I would hope positive, but given our turbulent histories, I imagine there are many that veer the opposite."

She pauses for a moment before a grin spreads across her lip.

"Though even those can make for a riveting performance that both sides might enjoy."

"And is this eye to restore lost sight? Or to enhance what's already there?"

In reply to Ylyeecia (msg # 20):

"Ah." A nod twords the mask. "Also quite the give-away." A low chuckle. "More so than anything else, to be completely honest, but I wanted to brag at least a little." He keeps his focus on her while he takes another small sip. "Well the thing with us humans is, we agree on very little. So the stories told also don't agree on much." He places the glass on a nearby table and then leans against it while his augmetic hand brushes through his short, dark hair. "There are some stories about your kind spreading stories just as full of wisdom as they are of wit. Fables that tell of the dangers of corruption and the value of prudence and willpower over hedonism. Stories of the danger of what loss might come from seeking infinite gain.Stories that aren't so far of from what a preacher of the church might tell... well atleast when it comes to the morals, even if the theme is quite different" A somber nod while he keeps his attention firmly on her and any expression she might show. "Others say you are a bunch of bloody heretics that just want to lead people astray with your confusing tales." A low chuckle. "... with a few less than polite names added to that statement"

In reply to Clevermird (msg # 21):

Progressius pause for a moment, trying to decipher any potential subtext in the question. He could not find any, it must be a question born of ignorance to the creeds of the machinegod thus.

“My eyes are fine thank you, I do take my maintenance of them seriously. It would be a waste of the augury implants I have otherwise. Thank you for your concern though, but I regularly test the different filters built in my eyes. That's why I knew that the beer should be colder, because my thermal augury works well and allows me to see heatemission. No, the holographic eye is a project I work on where I want to implant a holographic projector into my eyes, so as to project holographic images of what I can pick out when I for example are connected to the ship's security network.”

The buzzing sound in the Cantina immediately died down as the doors to the room once more opened and an elderly, greying man with a generous amount of silver in his hair and beard stepped inside the cantina. A man impeccably dressed but in simple clothing, who still managed to exude authority and control. It was a man who everyone gathered knew quite well; Pertinax d’Arquebus, the seneschal of the ship and the right-hand man of the Rogue Trader merchant lord himself. Whilst most people only knew about the man through rumors and hearsay as a way to explain why such a simple man could demand such attention and gravitas by simply stepping into a room, Kurt knew the reason… or at least some of the reason behind his stature and respect inducing demeanor as he knew the man from his past. Pertinax was one of the blessed few who successfully retired from the most holy inquisition, more precisely from Ordo Xeno. Whilst he had never reached the lofty heights of an inquisitor, nor had he been really close to achieve it either, he was nevertheless worthy of respect due to his service as a Venenum agent of the officio assassinorum. Kurt had never served with him himself, but he knew the man by his name and appearance.

The man stepped up to the center of the room, making sure that he had the attention of everyone gathered as he looked down on his data-pad. “Well met everyone on this glorious of days” He started. “I am sorry for interrupting any of the festivities, I promise that my announcement will be brief.” His eyes proceeded to coldly and methodically scout the entire room and the people gathered. “First of all I need to inform you all that we have a scheduled warp jump in exactly 7 hours, I expect you all to keep this in mind to ensure that you are all locked and secure in your various rooms to minimize any potential problems and issues during our jump. Please make sure that you have all of your chores and duties for the day taken care of well ahead of the jump, but a minimum of 45 minutes prior.” He took a quick breath as he looked down on his data-pad. “Progenitus, I expect you to be in the machine room, running scans and tests on our engines and critical systems to make sure that everything remains stable.” His eyes met with Progenitus before he continued. “Hierophant Macvicar, I expect you to coordinate with Valshaenala as you perform your security patrols of our primary perimeters post jump as per usual, please coordinate with the men and women serving under you as you deem fit.”  His gaze moved from a woman in dark thin robes, sitting by herself in a robe and hood hiding all of her features before they moved onwards towards Shae. There was a brief sigh before he smiled. “With that taken care of, onto happier news. The scheduled warp jump will result in that we reach our next destination, the Lamius world in two days.” He paused for a moment, letting every man and woman gathered take in the news of once more being allowed to feel solid ground under their feet before he continued. “We have equipment and other forms of resources to deliver to the mining and agricultural facilities of this world as they continue to supply the expansion movement in the sector with the food and the energy they need, resources which we will pick up and proceed to redistribute throughout the system.”

His smile widens as he continues. “This is also the point where we have to bid a fond farewell to the 34th Warhawk battalion who has been our good friends and travelling companions thus far.” There was a general chorus of cheers and applauds in the room, which Pertinax allowed to die down naturally before he continued. “Well done warhawks, you have signed on to serve as the new commanders of the planet’s PDF force, good luck to you.” He smiled as he once more looked around the room before he continued. “There will as per usual be a list where you can volunteer to be a part of our ground presence during our stay, please sign up at your earliest convenience.” He looked down on his data-pad once more before he continued. “However, I am going to need Mr. Wagner to assemble the men under his command to make a guard force of 250 men strong to serve as bodyguards for the people of interest in our official detachment.” He states which would at the very least tickle Kurt’s interest as the Seneschal seldom asked for a personal bodyguard detachment, he would not be able but to wonder what was so special with this landfall in specific. “Furthermore” The seneschal continued. “I am going to need you Macvicar to assemble your firebrands and have them incorporated in Wagner’s defense force. I trust that the two of you will find a way to work together in this endeavor.” Whilst it was far from uncommon for Siouxsie Macvicar to be part of the ground crew whenever they made landfall as it was a natural part of her role as a missionary of the ministorum, it was nevertheless rare for her to be asked for in such an official manner, especially with the firebrand zealots serving under her watchful eye, even Shae would be able to react to this development.

“Progenitus” The seneschal continued. “I want you to gather whatever servitors and other resources that you may need to spearhead our research and exploration team once on the ground. Please see me with any requests that you have to make sure that our efforts are in tip top order.” Well, this is interesting for sure, at least for Progenitus, he usually had to ask to be a part of the ground team for a chance to uncover and categorize lost and or undocumented technology, yet here he was being directly asked to lead and manage such a task force… curious. “ Valshaenala, I need you and Miss Ylyeecia to lead the exploration element of our research presence on the planet, make sure that Progenitus remains safe and our resources secured. Please coordinate with Mr. Wagner as you deem fit.”

He closed the data-pad as he looked at everyone gathered. “Now, I expect all of you to remember that you serve onboard the ship of an official Rogue Trader of the Imperium, you are tasked with honoring and maintaining one of the Imperium’s oldest and proudest institutions and I count on you to act with the polite and respectful professionalism that such a prestigious position is due.” He paused before he continued. “Lamius is a crucial planet for this sector and the interest of the Imperium at large and I want none of their leaders to have anything but praise to share regarding our temporary stay in their borders.” He left the threat of what would happen if you failed to meet said expectations unsaid but very much hanging in the air as he wrapped it up by looking at the two eldar in the group. “I expect our more exotic members to remember to keep a low profile and do their very best to blend in with the rest of the crew and the local population.” He lapsed into silence once more before he sighed out. “That concludes the briefing for today, you will find me at my usual table for the upcoming hour if any of you have any questions. If not, I’ll simply wish you a pleasant evening and remember, the God-Emperor protects, now and forever.”
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:15, Sat 05 Aug 2023.

The Eldar's expression remains one of friendly amusement: lips quirked into a mischievous smile that reaches her eyes which are watching Kurt with an appraising gaze; head tilted slightly and ears occasionally twitching.

"Mmm, you'll have to tell me those less than polite names. Learning your swears and slurs would make for a more accurate performance," Alice notes before everything dies down and even her attention is drawn away from her present companion in favour of the seneschal. Her expression shifts to a more serious one, though still with a faint smile all the same.

Listening, she lets her gaze shift from person to person, though never quite letting the seneschal out of her attention entirely. Progenitus, Macivar, Valshaenala, Kurt.

"I suppose I'll need to do some research before we make landfall if I'm to keep a low profile. Unless this world is one whose inhabitants dress as we do," the harlequin said; amused yet one with familiarity with Eldar body language would notice the briefest hint of disappointment.

Shae, too, watches the meeting attentively, although her face twists in noticeable distaste as the seneschal tries and fails to pronounce her name correctly.

When the meeting is over, she steps first to the mon'keigh priestess to arrange a later meeting. If she spends the warp jump near her station, they will have plenty of time to coordinate their plans for after and she will be better served using the time to speak to the ground team, who will all be going their separate ways after the jump.

The chance to work with the servant of the Laughing God in particular is intriguing. To perhaps the surprise of many of the crew, she has had little opportunity to spend time with her own kin since their first meeting and she knows little of her. Were she being honest with herself, she would admit that she perhaps is a bit intimidated by the mysterious woman and reluctant to approach first.

Nonetheless, she appears as confidant and perhaps even cocky as every as she proceeds to gather with the rest of the group, just in time to catch Alice's statement. "Yes, that seems wise. And you too, Progenitus, you're not exactly something the average mon'keigh sees every day."

Progenitus nods his head in what he has picked up as the rhythm of agreement as the Seneschal talk. He could argue that the engines and critical systems perform optimal already and that anything else would be sacrilege to the machine spirits that inhabited them, but Progenitus would forgive the Seneschal his ignorance in the matters of the machines. After all, the ignorance of the populace was the will of Holy Mars.


Progenitus rapidly started to record the conversation and store it in one of the primary memory banks when Senechal mentioned that he would be a part of the ground team. How delightful, he would not even have to request to be a part of the ground force this time! How efficient, neither of them had to waste time. It was a good decision.

To ensure that his exploration team was in optimal condition, Progenitus set up a subroutine which would send out instructions to the available and suitable servitors so as to ensure that they were prepared, without him having to waste time performing his duties with the engines. He trusted that his four battle-servitors and grapplehawk could prepare on their own after the command was given.

And then Shae spoke. “Thank you companion. Meeting you would also be above the average expected life experience for the common imperial citizen” Progenitus answered what he thought must be a compliment. He felt protective of humanity for certain, but he had seen enough of it to know that the average imperial citizen were dumb and looked upon the adepts of mars with awe when their red robes graced their lives.

He then turned back to the Seneschal. “I will perform my duties and preparations then. Are there any requested subjects or sites to explore and research? If the answer proves to be yes, I would like to request information about this.”

The inquisitorial agents smiles wrily "Swear words fall under cultural exchange, I believe." he replies before he listens to the words of their benefactor. His face remains neutral while he orders the available information.
A bodyguard-detachment was indeed something rather out of the ordinary for the old man. Clearly hinting to the target zone being rather a rather dangerous place. The kind of dangerous place that doesn't just need highly trained and dangerous specialists, but also a sufficient amount of personel. Curious. Curious and interesting.
Kurt's dark eyes focus on the Seneschall, than he nods curtly. "I can offer my services during the jump." he says. "As you know, Sire, I have been trained in resisting the Influences of the Immaterium well enough in order to assist the men at arms to keep the corridors secure... should someone be overtaken by the insidious whispers."
His eyes glance to the side, both Aeldari are observed for a moment. The Eldar where especially vulnerable to the warp, their souls being of primary itnerest to one facette of the Arch-Enemy.
"I suspect we will get more attention from the Warp than would be otherwise normal." He shifts his focus back to the Seneschal. "Otherwise I could stand watch over both of our special guests." A slight smirk appears on his lips. "Since any such attention would certainly try to make their way as fast as possible towards the two of them anyway."

"I appreciate your concern, Kurt," Shae replies with just a slight edge to her voice. "And I'm sure that Ylyeecia and I will appreciate your assistance as we patrol the ship with the priests. Now, do you have a standard detachment to take offship? And if so, what is it?"

The seneschal offered Kurt a mild-mannered and patient smile as he replied. “I am sure that the Hierophant is quite capable of both resisting the insidious whispers of the Archenemy whilst offer support or if need be, the final solution to weaker minds who may succumb to them.” His tone was perfectly neutral and calm as he took a seat to tend to his cup of tea. “However, if your assistance is offered its certainly not going to be discouraged as I am sure that our exotic ally will appreciate a comrade with as keen an eye and steady hand as herself to bolster our armed response.” He offered Shae a knowing look before his attention moved onwards to Progenitus as they had all started to gather up around his table. “I am afraid that you are going to have to wait to be fully briefed until we have made landfall and we can discuss the matter at hand with the local authorities. The situation as we know it is that they are dealing with an ork incursion wielding unusually advanced weaponry for their kind. Which makes it a matter worthy of investigation.” 
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:15, Sat 05 Aug 2023.

Advanced weapons, second most beautiful phrase behind archeotech yet the addition of orcs could ruin it. No, Progressius though, the technology of the orcs should be fascinating but frankly that form of Xenotech was more effort than it was worth. It made fine spare parts once restored and blessed properly though.

“I will await the briefing in such a case. Are there any restrictions placed on the armory and outfitting of our group?”

The agent rises his hands slightly. "I mean no offense, Aeldari." he says in a calm tone. "Nor do I mean to imply that you need to be protected." A slight shake of the head accompanies the words. "But patrolling the corridors would be counter productive, I think, since the arch-enemy will have his focus on you, if we have to face them. No matter where on the ship an intrusion may happen I am quite certain the affected will make their way to the two of you." A slight shrug. "It is the nature of the enemy and it's connection to you, is it not? Your souls are seen as a price of great value. Having you move during the warp jump just means the routes the enemy might take become less clear." He smiles. "So while the Arch-daecon and his men patrol the ship it would be most useful to know precisely where you are at any moment so that any posessed individual might be interepted at a point of choosing for the security forces. Should they fail at that and said enemy will make it to you... well, in that case it has to be an enemy of a quite dangerous nature. Not too dangerous for you to face, I am certain and I would be offering what assistance I can provide, even if it is not needed."
The smile becomes slightly lop-sided. "But dangerous enough to ideally be fought away from potential accidental casulties." A curt nod. "Which is why I would suggest you two stay in an area suitable for such a fight."

"It is not a bad idea, lure any potential infiltrators to an ideal prize and meet them on our own terms," Ylyeecia agrees, seemingly taking no offense at Kurt's suggestion, she even favours the man with a warm smile. Sure, it may not fully reach her eyes, but it's a smile none the less. She cocks her hip and runs her fingers along the mask at her side. "But I should note that not all such tainted beings find my kin such delectable treats and placing too much focus on us as bait would leave others in danger. Regardless, I am happy to don my mask and perform as needed."

"The vivarium should do if that's the route you want to go. Better the beasts suffer than we do and maybe the neverborn will find it harder to manifest surrounded by genuine life."

The Seneschal offered Progenitus a brief nod. “The mission is bikini amber classified, the quartermaster has been informed about the specifics of the operation and will be ready to supply you within the framework of the operation.” His voice was brisk and clear as he turned towards Kurt. “His lordship has designated you as the EFC of the assignment, I trust you to coordinate with the people of interest as you deem necessary, you will also have the authority to give the retrograde call for vulnerable personnel should the situation change and require it.” He only casually listened to the conversation between Kurt and the two Eldar as he added. “I trust all of you to coordinate your efforts with the Hierophant to ensure maximum efficiency in the scanning of the ship and neutralize potential threats should it become necessary post our jump.”

"Shall we get to it, then?" Shae says to Kurt and Alice. No point in sitting around if there was work to be done.

"No time like the present is the human saying, yes?" Alice agrees.