[Rogue Trader] Into the Void (IC)

[Dekana]

Overseer Leerus notices Ruth nudging at his coat pocket and is bewildered at first, but he then shrugs and gives the crumpled letter back to her without a word.

"To the dig site then."

Leerus turns his back to the party and then begins walking toward the main pit in the center of the camp. He also waves to a guard near the pit who then starts toward the group. Leerus keeps up the conversation while walking, only occasionally turning his head back to see Ruth.

"I've been in charge of this expedition since the start about a year ago, but I've been in the employ of the Kasballica Mission for much longer. This isn't my first xeno dig, you see. Quite the contrary, I've had many successes here in the Expanse. I suppose you could say I was picked to head up this particular expedition by reputation alone."

The guard Leerus waved at arrives in front of the group. He is a compact, muscular, and scar-covered man, equipped similarly to the other guards but with a fine looking hellpistol and a power sword. "Trouble, boss?"

Leerus answers, "Not at all, Captain. The Mission has just seen fit to send us some visitors is all. Lady-Captain, this is Captain Brent, the commander of my guards. Captain Brent, meet Lady-Captain Vess."

"M'am," Captain Brent says very simply.

Leerus continues. "Captain Brent, I will be showing the Lady-Captain' and her team around the camp. See to it the workers keep to their tasks and don't bother us."

[Cilvyn]

Ruth Vess

"Captain." Ruth greets. She doesn't spend too much time on him, although takes a good look so she will remember the face, although the heavily scarred man won't be hard to distinguish from others she figures.

[Donan]

Nodding back to Ruth, the Tau peels off rom the main group, leaving the four guards with them, but ensuring to stay in line of sight as he heads for the damaged Chimera nearer the entrance as the first port of call. He's quite keen to see whether the thrown tread is just from rough terrain or possible battle damage. He also watches for anyone nearby it, in case a conversation is called for. He's well aware that many here will be less then fond of his kind, but the fact they're digging pup Xenos artifacts might mute that somewhat.

[Yarn]

Alexandra pulled off a stiff salutation in Ruth’s direction as Sha split from the group “Ma’am” and followed half a pace behind the Tau, attempting to act natural. She very much doubted that whatever the overseer was going to show them was going to be what they were looking for. Her keen eyes scanned the surroundings as she started devising a plan.

[blacklight101]

Not much Diana could do in matters of diplomacy, so with a few others peeling from the group, she did the same. A quick detour back to the shuttle close to a hab or two wouldn't be too suspicious in her mind. Especially if she spotted something interesting.

Spoiler

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perception (1d100)[57]

Reaching the shuttle, Diana keys the back hatch open and busies herself fiddling with a few of the cabinets with emergency supplies in them, but keeping an eye out for anything suspicious. She makes sure her weapons stay in easy reach along with a few of the heavier ones from off the ship. She always had at least a pair of shotguns in any shuttle she flew. Best way to deal with unexpected guests.

[ArcturusV]

It was all pretty familiar to Alaric, the gun emplacements, workers keeping out of sight, the tour that wasn't really a tour. It was as if the last several decades never happened, and he was reliving some past event that had his implants working in overtime, and his body following along as Lady Vess's honor guard/aide de camp as the others split off to do their own things. His mind remembered the way things were, how they were to be overthrown, how, given time, he was sure he could flip this entire encampment. Particularly if they ended up stuck here for any extended period of time. Details were noted about the local commander, his second, the guards, the walls, the vehicles and habs, his implants ticking off the flood of information for later use.

His faux uniform and behavior suggested a desire for advancement, that his own admission of being a 'specialist' in such excavations seemed to bar him from. Ambition was always a useful tool, and if he perhaps dreamed some day of moving beyond mere campsites and excavations, to a position of power and respect, perhaps administering a minor colony or a mark of true authority on some holding of the dynasty's, that would be additional leverage to be used for later.

The concerns of the camp seemed to be on overseeing the workers, and quieting rebellions, very security minded. He doubted the Overseer here was in fact any sort of Xenos Scholar, nor did he think there were many around. The camp seemed to lack the sort of space required for it, only a smaller workspace stated for the Xenos Scholars, likely more about classification of relics, rather than actual study of them.

There did however seem to be one major factor that was missing from the camp. Discretely he turned his vox low to the equivalent of a whisper, and leaning in close to Lady Vess, stated, "There seems to be a distinct lack of storage facilities for off world shipments here." At least nothing that was marked out so far. Maybe it was kept in the dig sites, though that seemed unwise and prone to logistical nightmares. There should have been a warehouse or storehouse of some kind near the landing pad... if they were actually interested in shipping things off world.

[Dekana]

The main group heading to the dig site reaches the outer ring of the primary pit. It is roughly circular, some forty meters deep and twenty in diameter. Access to the bottom is by way of gantries lining its walls, which have grown from temporary walkways to something more substantial as the excavations have continued. The sight inside the pit is somewhat unsettling, but unfortunately common in this harsh Imperium: dozens of shabbily dressed workers are working the walls with picks or hauling large amounts of waste soil and heavy equipment around. They are clearly malnourished, and many have poor quality prosthetic limbs. The waste soil is transported out of the excavation by way of a crane, its bucket filled by the toil of the workers.

Deep at the bottom of the pit are about five of the xenoarchaeologists, distinguishable by their better attire, physical condition, and the datapads they carry. More guards are present as well, watching with grim faces over the workers.

Captain Brent splits off temporarily to organize some of the guards into a squad. They then clear aside the workers so as to keep them a respectful distance away from the Rogue Trader's group. The attitude between the workers and the guards seems tense, with some of the workers feigning deafness to the point that the guards shove them aside. Brent also issues orders to about five more guards; they leave the pit and head in different directions across the camp.

Overseer Leerus explains the operations of the pit as he stands at the outer rim - it's all rather boring and what you would expect from an excavation. The workers mine at the edges of the pit, growing it wider and deeper over time. Waste soil is removed via crane. Any artefacts are appraised by the xenoarchaelogists and transferred to a storage shed next to Leerus's own shelter. He makes no mention of the workers' poor condition or the apparent tension.

Spoiler: Sha'drag & Alexandra

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You walk toward the maze city entrance and the disabled chimera. The curtain wall of the maze city rises sharply into the sky, casting deep, sharp-edged shadows over the dig. A faint path leads from the dig to the only opening in the wall, a 50 meter tall gate with two massive doors that have frozen part-way open. There is no obvious means to open or shut the doors, and they do not even seem to have hinges.

The chimera is equipped with dozer blades and is stopped near a large pile of dirt. It looks as if the vehicle was being used like a bulldozer to move heavy loads of dirts.

There are no guards near the maze city - just being near it sends a chill down your spine (less so for Sha'draig). However, you do notice a guard behind you shadowing your movements and keeping an eye on you.

Spoiler: Ordinary (+10) Tech Use

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There doesn't appear to be any signs of battle damage on the chimera. It likely threw its track from going over rough terrain, or simply from being used to push a heavier load than it could handle.

Spoiler: Challenging (+0) Awareness

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As you walk past a heavy servitor carrying waste to a large heap of soil, rock, and rubbish, you spot something out of place in the pile. It appears to be some form of crudely constructed and battered augmetics.

[The item can be identified with either a Difficult (-10) Forbidden Lore (Xenos) or Very Hard (-30) Common Lore (Tech) test.]

Spoiler: Alexandra (perception results)

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The workers moving around the camp are poorly dressed in somewhat ragged clothes. They are not well fed, and they give the guards a disdainful look when they come too close. Servitors mindlessly carry out support work, moving heavy objects or dangerously sharp pieces of rock. Guards are ever-present in the site, and patrols in groups of two are common.

The guards do not have uniforms as such, but they are all rather well equipped with either hellguns or heavy stubbers, carapace chest pieces, and personal survival equipment. The guards also come in a wide range of skin tones and facial structure, making you suspect they come from different worlds, or at least vastly different locations from the same world. The vast majority of the guards are men, as are all of the workers.

Three guards stand before of the building with the chimeras parked in front. You also spot the red robes of a tech priest as he walks into the building. There are some people at the shelter habs to the north, a mix of guards, workers, and servitors.

Spoiler: Diana

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You make it to the shuttle unmolested. You don't spot anything particularly out of ordinary, but you take note that the landing pad has facilities for refueling and basic maintenance. There are no other shuttles present - it doesn't look like the camp even has any.

[Donan]

Spoiler: Dekana and Alexandra

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Sha'draig nods lightly to Alexandra after taking a closer look at the Chimera. It doesn't suggest anything more then potential carelessness given the thrown track and the use it's been put to. The gate is approached warily and he tries to pinpoint the exact cause of his unease without success. All the same, the Tau feels more comfortable not drawing any closer to it unless he ends up having to.

He also conceals a wince at the sight of the servitor. How can anyone learn from a crime if that's a punishment? Again, the Imperium's refusal to use AI baffles him, but he knows better then to bring it up.

[Dekana]

Spoiler: Donan

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You need to roll and succeed on the tech use or awareness tests to see what is inside those spoiler blocks.

[Cilvyn]

Ruth Vess

Ruth explicitly waits untill the workers are pushed aside before she comes any closer. Sure, their condition is piteous, but she is not really looking forward to get stabbed in the gut by some poor bastard who has nothing to loose and wants to abreact his anger by killing some prestigeous woman.

She listens interrested to whatthe overseer has to tell, it might be boring but even when someone or something does not interrest you, Ruth was taught how important it is to at least let them think you are interrested. A matter of etiquettes as it were.

"It seems like they are working hard and we got them under control. We got guards, and experts on the treasure we are digging up." She uses the word 'we' on purpose but without stressing it. "What do you think is it that causes the lack of progress, overseer Leerus? By the look of this, it looks like a ordinary digsite and I do not see any problems that stand out. But, you have been on the project for a year now, you have a better overview of the progress as a whole."

Ruth more of less functions like the person talking with Leerus and bonding a bit with him. It is also to keep him occupied with her as much as she can so you can do your own thing as you are doing now eithout Leerus actually keeping an eye on you (at least that's the idea...)

Spoiler: Rolls

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Perception - (1d100)[86] vs 30
[roll=Inquiry]id100[/roll] Messed up the roll. See the OOC

[Yarn]

Spoiler: Sha, Alexandra & Dekana

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This was it. Alexandra could feel the chills running down her spine as they closed in to the intimidating doors. Enmity, danger and infinite possibilities. Within reach and forever beyond comprehension. For a moment, she almost forgot their mission and could only walk closer to the immense monument, feeling perverse fascination as the cold hands of fear tightened their grip around her. Probably just nerves. She shuddered. Yeah. Something else would be crazy. A clear sign that she was mentally well that. The fact that she knew it would be crazy to feel something which wasn’t here, and to be fascinated by it. Which she wasn’t -wouldn’t- be, even if there was something to feel.

She walked up to Sha, consciously turning her back towards their not-so-subtle shadow. “‘Tis could be bad.” She whispered while gazing towards the great doors and pointing. “Have you ever seen anything like this? Wouldn’t want to be the poor sod to go in there first, eh? Wonder if they’ve sent em in yet?” She continued by making a show of examining the dirt-piles and surroundings, without really looking. “I’d bet you half a bottle that we’d get a good idea of what they’re doing or not doing -They should point their damn guns this way instead, gives me the creeps.- if we got a look inside that monster of a hab down west.” She paused and shook her head. “Crazy. Don know though, ‘s pretty open an’ unless there’s a baggy set of clothes around, I’m a bit over-equipped in order to blend in.“ She continued, not solely referring to her clothing and armor, while starting to walk around the Chimera, as if interested. “an’ we got a friend looking out for us, but that doesn’t have to be a problem.”

[Donan]

Spoiler: Alexandra and Dekana

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Ah, the advantages of an internal vox. He nods at Alexandra, turning his attention to the doors once more and taking a half step towards them. "Not a thing I've seen before, no, new experience for me as well." ++Need a distraction?++ "I can understand why everyone's digging up outside and not gong in the city itself." +Make it a full bottle. And of what?++

[Yarn]

Spoiler: Donan & Dekana

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“Bah, half-measures. They may as well dance with the demon if they had the guts to invite it in the first place. ‘Old captain’s respite’ 8 years. Goes well with the misery of this pile of rock.” She started circling the vehicle, barely keeping within line of sight of the guard following them. “A distraction would be a start. Why don’t you have a word with our accomplice, I’m sure he’s starved for a good conversation. I could have a look around meanwhile.”

[Donan]

Spoiler: Alexandra and dekana

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He nods to Alexandra and turns to head for their guard with a nod of greeting, gesturing to the Chimera. "Three of them, and all for digging? Do you know when this one might be running again, or are you in need of supplies or parts? I might be able to offer some help in that regard, if you've any tech priests to cater to it?" He lets his gaze move to the city. "..Anyone dared to have gone inside yet..?"

[Dekana]

"I suppose it's the location more than anything," Overseer Leerus answers. "The Mission has sent expeditions inside the city in the past - and they all ended in disaster. This time, they sent me to dig just outside the walls. And to be fair, we are turning up bits of xeno artefacts - just not the valuable type. You could ask one of the archaelogists down there, but all I know is the white shards we dig up won't sell for anything. I also set up the three secondary pits, just in case we've been digging in a bad spot, but no luck there either."

Spoiler: Cilvyn

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The inquiry roll will turn up some information, although it takes some time for it to work (the book says 1 hour). I'll get you the results in the next post or two while you're poking around at the dig site.

Spoiler: Alexandra

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You separate from Sha'draig while he approaches the guard who was tailing you. The guard walks away for a little awhile to keep his distance, but eventually he stops so he can try to keep an eye on both of you. Sha'draig has him tied down in conversation for the moment.

Spoiler: Sha'drag

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You part ways with Alexandra and start toward the guard that was tailing you. He walks away from you to keep his distance, but when it's clear you and Alexandra are separating, he stops where he is. He waits for you to approach, occasionally glancing toward your companion.

"The two tech priests are inside the garage, along with most of their lay-technicians, sir. The priests won't talk to you though; they don't talk to anyone."

He doesn't answer the other questions, apparently not much for small talk.

[Donan]

Spoiler: Dekana

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I have what Sha'draig would say once he reaches the guard, or would he stay quiet for that opening?

[Dekana]

Spoiler: Donan

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Yeah, he'll let you speak first.

[Donan]

Spoiler: Dekana

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"I'll bite my lip on asking them then, or it'll cause bad feelings in several areas."

Sha'draig gestures towards the gates, looking to the guard in an effort to get him to open up on it, though what he's really doing is trying to distract the man so he stops looking for Alexandra. "I have been wondering. Why is everyone digging outside here, and not in there? Has anyone entered that place before?" The Tau muses quietly, checking the guard's reaction as best he can. Human faces are still a bit of a mystery to him at times, however.

[Cilvyn]

Ruth Vess

"I see. Overseer Leerus, I's like to talk with one of the archaelogists and with one or two workers, in private. Can you arrange a place for us to do that? I won't be needing any protection, I have my own guards with me. I'd like tos peak with them without any authority present they know. Nothing personal, I'd lust like to get a clear idea without them feeling, pressured." Ruth smirks when making the jokes about pressured laborors. She expect Leerus to find it amusing and is not said in an offensive way. She knows as well that you have to keep workers in line or they will just start revolts or worse.

[Tigger]

Savonarole had kept quiet for quite some time, letting Lady Ruth assume her rightful place in the negotiations. Nevertheless, he felt that it was time for him to voice his own concerns about the dig.

"Overseer Leerus, I was wondering if any member of the Imperial Creed are present to assure the services for your workers. If not, I would appreciate your cooperation in providing me with a place to celebrate mass and giving time off for your workers so that they can come and pray. Also, if a private place could be provided for those who want to confess, I am sure they would appreciate the opportunity to lay down their burdens."

[Dekana]

Overseer Leerus frowns at Ruth's request to meet with the workers, but he eventually nods. "Of course; anything I can do to assist. I'll send some of the workers to meet you after you're done with the archaeologists. Go ahead into the pit, and I'll set up the meeting. Ma'am." He motions toward a gantry leading down into the bottom of the pit.

Savonarole had kept quiet for quite some time, letting Lady Ruth assume her rightful place in the negotiations. Nevertheless, he felt that it was time for him to voice his own concerns about the dig.

"Overseer Leerus, I was wondering if any member of the Imperial Creed are present to assure the services for your workers. If not, I would appreciate your cooperation in providing me with a place to celebrate mass and giving time off for your workers so that they can come and pray. Also, if a private place could be provided for those who want to confess, I am sure they would appreciate the opportunity to lay down their burdens."

"I'm afraid we do not, Father. I don't suppose any of my men have had the benefit of attending mass since they came to this blasted world. It can be easy to forget that the Emperor watches over us even so deep in the void..." Before continuing, the Overseer glowers at the closest worker and his ragged appearance. "No doubt many of them have sins to confess to. I'll be happy to give them a chance to repent. Let's see... I can arrange time for worship at the end of the second shift tonight, after the men have their dinner. The third shift workers can attend your sermon in the morning, if you're willing to give it twice. We don't have any empty hab shelters here, but I'll check around for an area you can use as a confessional."

Spoiler: Sha'draig

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The guard is obviously trying to look past you toward Alexandra, but he doesn't make the effort to actually move around for a better view. Your mention of the maze-city gets his attention.

"Yeah, a few previous expeditions went in there. You'll stay away from that accursed place if you've got any sense. Word around the camp is it's haunted."

The human's facial expression is hard to read, but you recognize a look of concern and / or fear.

[Donan]

Spoiler: Dekana

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Nodding seriously, he acknowledges that. "We're paid to fight and to pull our weight, but it's hard to spend coin if you're dead." Whether the man's a mercenary or former soldier, he believes the adage may be equally true.

Looking towards the city once more then back to his slightly reluctant talking partner, he asks the million throne question.

"How many came back out?"

[blacklight101]

With no equipment left to check in the shuttle after a little while, Diana climbs to the front and runs a quick diagnostic routine and checks a few of the few systems that don't require a full power run. Truth be told, she was just stalling for a bit before finding part of her group again.

Stepping out of the shuttle and locking it up, Diana sets off towards the excavation pit, for lack of a better direction to go. Surely one of them would want to take a look at the dig site from the top. She lights a lho stick on the way.

[Yarn]

Alexandra keeps an eye on Sha and the guard while attempting to appear busy with inspecting the great doors and the guard perimeter. After a while, she walks around the chimera (or another suitable obstacle), waits for a while and then attempts to put another obstacle between her and the guard. Her movements are not particularly hurried, she looks like she’s moving about with a set goal - she just happens to have things between herself and her former shadow. Unless stopped, she approaches the south-western hab and attempts to -without being too obvious about it- see if there’re any dedicated or makeshift entrances to the building save the main entrance with the guards.

Spoiler: Like a ninja

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She is attempting to move across camp without raising suspicion rather than avoiding every form of attention. So no crouching or splinter-cell stuff going on, unless you think it would be reasonable. I'm dedicating a "Sneak"/agility roll for this. She has both silent move and concealment trained, with a +10 to silent move (if you think the synskin helps in this situation) or a + 30 on concealment (if you think that the synskin and cameleoline cloak stacks and helps in this situation). These bonuses are not included in the target number below. I'm also rolling a fellowship to "act" in the proper way (if you think that is more reasonable that rolling for sneakiness). And I'm also rolling a perception roll, to have a look at the south-western hab and see if someone is tailing her or has noticed her.

Sneak/agility: (1d100)[70] TN 47
Fellowship: (1d100)[19] TN 47
Perception: (1d100)[16] TN 37

[Tigger]

He should not have been surprised. Things were always this way. People who led comfortable lives in civilized worlds could not walk five minutes without finding a shrine, even though they hardly need the support of the Emperor. And poor souls such as these, alone in the dark marches of the galaxy, were left alone without even a priest. It was hard to think, at moments like this, of any work that would be more important than this one.

"Thank you for your help, my son. I will gladly celebrate mass two times."

Savonarole turns to Berlat and tells him to find a way to organize the service as well as possible considering the fact that there is no place of worship around them. He then throws a glance towards the Lady Captain, and gives her a knowing smile, wondering if she has understood that the confessions will allow him to gather information about the dig and what is happening here.

[ArcturusV]

White Shards... white shards...

It was a vague thing to be certain. But worth examining. There was always an off chance that the Angels had been here as well, and perhaps left one of their creations. Maybe something would be familiar to me. At the very least observing and filing away such data for later on could prove fruitful. I doubted that anything the workers would say would be all that interesting. Certainly they would cull the workers for 'appropriate' candidates before the meeting, people with high loyalty who would tell whatever story that they wanted to relay to the Lady Vess. Fruitless and pointless. Even if they spilled something, it was likely to result in the execution of the worker, and likely a trap sprung.

Avoiding the city seemed... foolish. The danger was clear, indeed. But that was also where the successful hauls were likely to be. Likely some traps from the former occupants remained, or traps created by a lack of maintenance and the ravages of time. Perhaps even something lurked in there. Perhaps something to ask the witchbreed on the ship, if they sensed the echos of the supernatural influence from the city.

I observed, and I followed, my body and my servo skulls a shadow that trailed behind Lady Vess, remaining impassive and letting her lead as she wished.

[Dekana]

Spoiler: Sha'draig

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"If you believe the rumors, only a few, and they all came out madmen" the guard says, again giving only a short, direct answer.

Spoiler: Diana

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You arrive at the edge of the dig site, not quite rejoining the group yet; it looks like everyone else has moved a little deeper into the pit as the Overseer conducts his tour. The attention of the guards are all focused either on the Lady-Captain, or on keeping the workers away from her. You seem to have escaped notice for the moment. It only takes a moment.

Nearby, a group of three workers are using pickaxes to mine out the rock wall. They are dirty, sweating heavily, and dressed in ragged clothes - good, honest workers for the emperor, no doubt... One of them sets down his axe and looks at you. "Psst! Hey, Missus, you got a minute to talk? We need your help here..." He keeps his voice down as much as he can, careful not to attract the attention of the guards.

Spoiler: Alexandra

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You manage to elude the guard's observation as you pass behind the chimera and a few large piles of soil. You scout around the exterior of the large building, careful to stay out of the line of sight of the guards standing watch at its main entrance. Some luck is involved as well, as you have to count on the guards stationed on the wall to not suddenly turn toward your direction.

Unfortunately, there are no side entrances. You hear the the sound of metal clanking on metal from inside. The smaller hab shelters just north of the large one also have guards posted in front - more guards, actually.

OOC: With no disguise, and considering the situation of a camp of people stuck together for a year, I don't see how you could hide the fact that you're an outsider. You don't run into anyone though, so I won't use the Fellowship roll (either Deceive or Disguise, I'm not sure which it would be).

[Donan]

Spoiler: Donan

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"Do you trust rumours?" Sha'draig asks quietly. "Let me put it this way, my Captain is going to want as much as she can get from this site, and that means the city. If all she's given are rumours, she'll likely ignore them.

Which means there's a very good chance both you and I will end up in that city." He looks toward the large gates once more. "If there's more to it then just rumours however, she might consider other options then having it scouted."

[Cilvyn]

Ruth Vess

Knowing they would eventually have to look into the city, she first wanted to get more intell from those who knew best how work was progressing, those wo actually did the work. It might seem foolish to talk to such simple souls who did nothing else than dig the ground and live just an meaningless life. She ventures down the spiral into the pit, trusting her crew to make sure questions would be asked to the right persons.

While they walked and the overseer seemed not to keep a close eye on her, she opened the vox channel to all +"The city is certainly something we have to look into, but first let's see what we can find out here first. I'd like to have a private meeting with everyone later on so we can talk about our approach on this opperation."+

Spoiler: OOC

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I simply do not have time to write more today. Tomorrow is my test, so in the afternoon I got time to catch up and write a better reply. Just assume Ruth will go along with what you are doing for now. I'm fine with everything.

[blacklight101]

Spoiler: Dekana

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"Well, surely you don't want my help with heavy lifting, petite as I am. Can't say I'm inclined to believe you have any good intentions in mind for me, for that matter. Stay out of arm's reach and we might not have problems here. Out with it." Diana turns towards the miners and places a hand on her bolt pistol in clear warning to the miners not to try anything sneaky. She would hear them out, but only with due caution. Never know, might be a secret xenos artefact in it at the end.