IC Thread: Behave and Beheld [5E]

[Seramus]

M'alax does his best to help haul the power cylinders, but hesitates when he notices the ice cold chest was missing. They had taken it. Of course they did; it was destined to be shipped off to the moon like everything else in the warehouse.

But the black strands... the feeling in his sphere, like the crystal had somehow touched and chilled his spirit. He could still feel it... but not in any meaningful way. Just a hazy coldness lingering in his hearts.

"Alright, we got what we came for." He utters with intentional loudness.

[TriciaOso]

No resistance remains inside the depot. Reinforcements are on the way, but you work quickly, and your cart is rolling away down the road and your new stolen cutter is setting into an Ownclub family chop shop before the police even reach the remote warehouse.

You have a rendezvous with W'zwzxi tonight at the paperwork repository. For now, you have the daylight hours to rest and take care of any personal business.

[clash]

After making it back to the depot and parting ways Rex is careful to setup an alarm system (alarm ritual) on his sleeping quarters before getting some rest. In the morning he summons his strange bird pet granted by the powers that be ass second set of eyes before heading up to stock up for the next mission.

[Thrasymedes]

B'Xli breathed much easier after stashing the vehicle with the Ownclubs. He spent a few minutes fiddling with it before departing (seeking to disconnect the wires from the ignition, so a mechanic will need to perform a two minute fix before it can be operated). He then proceeded back to the warehouse with Rex to see if Wzlwxi had anything else. Given the time, he only set aside an hour to try and forage for some herbs and supplies to ensure he had some healing potions for next time and then collapsed into bed.

He shook himself as he woke up and spent a few minutes deciding what specialties would best serve him today and then set out for the warehouse immediately following breakfast to ask for updates, see if there were any tool sets available and inquire about future remuneration.

Spoiler: Spells

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He is changing out Detect Poison and Disease for Locate Animals or Plants; Create or Destroy Water is replaced by Goodberry; and verifying other spells now. In the morning he is going to ritual cast Locate Animals or Plants to better locate Healing Potion ingredients.

[Seramus]

M'alax finishes cleaning up after the mission, and then winds his way through the narrow streets to his own home. He checks the door twice to see if someone else has broken in, then floats into his single room studio apartment. Little more than a dystopian cubicle really. Within minutes, he's toppled into the cushy blankets of his bed and passed out. Thankfully, he rarely snores.

The next day is full of hastily scribbled parchments telling about what he saw in the sky on that fateful day, and then hobo'ing around town to leave flyers and pamphlets wherever he can. On message poles, tenser's floating bus stops, and wherever else people gather. Perhaps even a university full of impressionable young beheld, though security probably knew his face by now. He was getting better at being slipping in and out of places, though, and he enjoys leaving flyers in the breakrooms of offices.

The next day, he arrives back at the warehouse eager to contribute to the cause.

[sandmote]

Ag'zear breaks in the back of the building while they're formally scrubbing the clipper of anything that could be used to trace it. Once he's up again he checks up on how much his coworkers asking how much the thing is worth and what can be done with it.

[Sirithhyando]

Spoiler: Brak'ma Xis

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Brak'ma Xis, splatter painter extraordinaire
Lawful Evil Beheld barbarian, path of the battlerager /
STR 17, DEX 15, CON 16, INT 8, WIS 8, CHA 8/
AC 15, HP 35/35, INI +2 | Senses (passive): Perception 11, Investigation 11, Insight 9
Save :STR +5, DEX +2, CON +5, INT -1, WIS -1, CHA -1/
Special : ADV on save vs spells and magical effect; ADV on dex vs effects that i can see (while not blind/deaf/incapacitated)
Rage : 3/3 (activation : Bonus action/ Reset on long rest)

---

Big day, big night, Brak'ma is tired. The next day, he tries selling his paintings. He goes close to a merchant district and settle down, painting the sky and the flying-feathered pig laying/dropping eggs over some Beheld. Some stopped looking, Brak'ma smiled
You want one for your self? I can even add you to it!
And as most customer, they left. Bunch of incult! N'xena's art is too good for you folks anyway! You wouldn't recognise a true masterpiece!
And he left, penniless for that day.

[TriciaOso]

You gather that evening at the paperwork repository, and once again are met by W'zwzxi.

"Come in, come in, guys! You did an amazing job! I never even dreamed we could get away with a cutter! But it's a perfect cover story! The chatter is that the cargo pilot panicked and took off without any of the stuff, so that's a ton of fuel wasted, too! If it passes inspection we'll get away completely clean, and over the next couple weeks, everything up on the lunar base will start falling apart!"

But you know the cargo ship didn't go up empty-handed. Not completely.

Spoiler: Ma'Lax

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You have a sudden vision of spectres moving through the hallways of the Lunar Base, escorting the frost-encrusted black iron box. As the guards and spies stationed there try to repel them, they are slain by the spectres, and join the horde of undead spreading through the base. The core group brings the iron box to the central scrying chamber and----

"And now that we have the cutter, it solves a big, big problem we've all been worrying about," W'zwzxi enthuses, oblivious to Ma'lax's vision.

Spoiler: Ag'Zear

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Ag'Zear, do they have a cutter? It's officially in the family's control now, and it's worth a lot of money. So is the makeover your guys already did. Are you comfortable with W'zwzxi treating it like the property of the revolution, or do you want to lodge a protest?

"And incidentally, lines up your next mission! Have you guys heard of Xl'Va?"

Some of you have; other haven't. He tells you the story. Xl'Va is a revolutionary from N'Xenia, a member of the Cult of the Box even before the world changed. He died and was resurrected in the apotheosis of the Three Palimpsests, which began on N'Xenia. Now a devout worshipper of Bahamut, he is the leader of the Dragon Knights on that planet.

"N'Xenia is getting too hot for him, and General M'Ta asked all cells to look for opportunities to smuggle him off-world, to M'Duq. Now we can send you five on the cutter to retrieve him."

[sandmote]

Ag'zear listens through the "I'm glad we've succeeded so well, but I'd like to discuss finances at some point. Retooling a cutter--to keep the panopticon's pupil elsewhere--is an expensive job. Reshaping the frame, checking for Eyespy systems, installing sidelights from a different producer, repainting, getting new plates..." Ag'zear squints his eyestalks as he spreads out his notes. "...transferring the cleats, and lowering the gunwale are some of the work that's needed to be done. These things aren't cheap, I'm afraid."

He passes some papers to the rebellion contact. "My Associates have compiled the following list of costs of making the cutter available for the rebellion's use. We hope that you are able to pass it up to your superiors to make sure we can continue to provide such services in the future." Trying to sound reassuring, he continues "The rebellion is great, and I'll be glad to aid the renowned Xl'Va, but these fellows need to put food on the table. I fully realize you didn't expect to have access to the cutter, so there might be an issue of covering these costs. If you could arrange a down payment through to the account listed," Ag'zear shuffles some papers to pull out the right one, "here, it should provide enough for my associates' continued backing." He does his best to look apologetic about having to ask this; "I know you said you hadn't even dreamed we'd have looted a cutter, but now we have, and I'm afraid they're not cheap."

Spoiler: OOC

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If my two minutes looking the parts of the boat online were accurate, lowing the gunwale would be part of reshaping the frame. My position is that Ag'zear is not sufficiently proficient enough with these vehicles to know that; anyone who is can go ahead and point that out.

Saying the cutter is for the rebellion's "use" is meant as an intentional dodge of the ownership question. The cutter's back where we left it. The plan is for the party to use the cutter. How much the rebellion owes on the cutter (if anything) can be decided at such a time as it is transferred away from the party and the Ownclubs.

Finally, I'm going to say Ag'zear has slipped his monthly dues (from the background) into the papers he's handed W'zwzxi. It's probably listed as a "contact setup fee" or something similar. Otherwise the only traceable information should be the account to transfer the money into, and I assume the Ownclubs have a method for making those secure.

[Thrasymedes]

B'Xli welcomed the chance to finally start to round out his tool kit as needed but began to twitch at their contact's exuberance and squirm.

Before he could respond, Ag'zear began to address all of the work needed and makes a mental note to see if at some point he can reach an agreement with the Ownclubs to assist with the work needed...for creative input and compensation of course. It seemed his companion had a good sense of when to properly instruct the customer on everything you were doing...even if you were going to do it anyway.

Once there was a brief break in the conversation he interjected himself:

"About this mission, I do have two concerns. The first is unless that frame expansion is far more generous than I expect" here he nods at Ag'zear's notes "that cutter won't hold all of us without some being suspended on the hull, which will NOT be pleasant and require some significant preparation."

Additionally, there was a complication at the warehouse. We found some form of device that radiated necromancy, raised everyone killed in the vicinity as ghostly combatants and nearly killed the first person who tried to mess with it. I need you to confirm if that ship actually went to the moon base as the item was not there on our return and so that is the most likely way it left. If it did, please find out everything you can about current operations or reports there as I don't want myself or my allies to be facing an unstoppable Dead Army.

He shrugged as he looked at his group:

"Also, as my friend mentioned, how are ongoing expenses, pocket money and remuneration for our time to be handled? We will be needing to do some significant expenditures and risks along with ongoing expenses that the Panopticon may notice if they are terminated."

[Seramus]

The slightly bulbous central eye of the pale little beholder rolls back into its own skull, and for a moment he hovers there twitching in momentary seizure. A few flecks of foam gather at the corners of his maw, and right before it starts to look like a serious medical emergency... it stops.

"By all that lies above and below, they just... just started killing everyone. I saw it. The phantoms from the landing site were gliding through the halls of the moon base, sweeping from one room to the next and overwhelming the guards there. It... it's a hostile take over. Someone is literally using the dead from that crystal to take over the freaking moon base!"

Yes, he does blurt that out in the middle of their briefing session for a completely different mission.

[TriciaOso]

Even before Ma'lax begins speaking, W'zwzxi looks a little alarmed and dismayed. "Gosh, fellas. I'm sorry but... we don't really have much income. I mean, I've got a day job myself. The revolution isn't exactly self-funding yet."

To Ag'zear he says, "I can hit up some of the bank roll folks and see what we can put together for your invoices... I see what you mean about outsiders needing to be paid for their work. But I can't offer you guys a salary. Everything we have is either donated or scavenged, like the cutter."

"As for transporting everyone on the cutter--there's actually a Professor who is a part of our network who says he has a solution to fit more people into the same space. It--"

Then Ma'lax starts screaming about the lunar base and W'zwzxi looks very alarmed and not a little dismayed.

[clash]

Rex waits uncharacteristically patient as the newest mission gets explained to them. Then he starts spent while the others bombard their contact with questions and outbursts. Finally he speaks up.

"You guys all worry too much. I don't know about you but this is exactly the kinda thing I signed up for. Seems pretty simple to me. Go in, get this guy, and get out and if we happen to get into a firefight along the way all the better. As to the cutter modifications... he addresses Axgear "For this mission at least wouldn't it be better if the cutter blends in? Better for smuggling him offworld. I even know someone who could get us some uniforms to really play the part"

[Thrasymedes]

B'Xli looks abashed and looks at both Rex and Wzlwxi as he speaks:

"You are both right and I apologize for my ingratitude. I am very interested in that technique you mentioned, is it possible for me to be present to see if I can learn anything or help with it? Speaking of which, do you have coordinates for where we are to meet? I do not have practice navigating and so need all the help I can get.

He looks torn as he glances at M'alax with a concerned look:

"At the base then? I hope to make that my top priority as soon as we finish this extraction."

[sandmote]

Ag'zear bobs at B'Xli. "As long as we aren't disguising ourselves as anyone who uses a particular model we should be able to get it cleaned up."

Turning back to W'zwzxi he continues, "I thank you for any initial payment the rebellion can manage. The worst case is that we sell the cutter for cash to fund other projects. Otherwise my associates can fall back on the family until we can pay off the work."

Spoiler: OOC

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Based on rolling a 4 earlier, I'm going to say Ag'zear's monthly dues aren't included in the total for the initial payment.

[Seramus]

M'alax takes a few deep breaths to recover and calm himself, still peering around with a few eyestalks like he might spot a phantom lurking around the corner. But eventually he settles down and listens, nodding along with the concerns of the others, but still obviously eager.

"So, what's his situation? Are the Dragon Knights currently in hiding? Is he protected by people who are going to cooperate with us, or resist us? Does he have a private residence, or does he live on some kind of big compound? That makes a big difference on how we want to extract him."

[TriciaOso]

B'Xli looks abashed and looks at both Rex and Wzlwxi as he speaks:

"You are both right and I apologize for my ingratitude. I am very interested in that technique you mentioned, is it possible for me to be present to see if I can learn anything or help with it? Speaking of which, do you have coordinates for where we are to meet? I do not have practice navigating and so need all the help I can get."

W'zwzxi waggles himself from side to side in a negation. "No need to apologize! I wish the Revolution could provide for you guys. We just aren't as well-funded as some of the other factions, I'm afraid... progress has been slow here in the capitol."

"You're headed for the city of T'lah... the spacebase there is held by the Satyr League, so you shouldn't have trouble getting out. It's just been an issue of arranging transport."

M'alax takes a few deep breaths to recover and calm himself, still peering around with a few eyestalks like he might spot a phantom lurking around the corner. But eventually he settles down and listens, nodding along with the concerns of the others, but still obviously eager.

"So, what's his situation? Are the Dragon Knights currently in hiding? Is he protected by people who are going to cooperate with us, or resist us? Does he have a private residence, or does he live on some kind of big compound? That makes a big difference on how we want to extract him."

"The problem is that the Dragon Knights and the Satyrs on N'Xena have had a falling out about politics. They aren't in open conflict, but they aren't cooperating very well right now. The police on N'Xena want Xl'fa badly, and his support network has gotten pretty thin. He'll be safe on M'Duq, where the Dragon Knights have control."

"General M'Ta's allegiances lean towards the Dragons, but even if they didn't, Xl'va is a hero of the Revolution and an inspiring figure to all of us... we can't let him be captured."

[clash]

"We ain't selling the cutter" Rex insists. "it's hella fun and provides is unique tactical flexibility" he states listing his reasons in order of obvious priority. "If we're strapped for cash I say we aquire funding from the militia payroll"

"Getting around shouldn't be too hard with the cutter and the uniforms It's sounds like our first problem is going to be getting us and the cutter offworld. W'zwzxi, do you have any contacts that can shuttle is over? Azgear did I here you mention you're involved in trade? Any cargo ships we can take discreetly?"

[Thrasymedes]

"Satyrs vs Dragon Knights? That makes...way too much sense. If we have the contacts, why don't I go get with your professor and take him to start trying to prep the cutter which I have also grown attached to. Is there anything I need to discuss with your associates Ag'zear?"

He turns alternately to face W'zwzxi and Ag'zear then prepares to head out. Honestly, he was having to work a little to hide both his current discomfort and his eagerness to work with someone on such a fascinating project.

[Seramus]

"Do we know where he is, exactly? A home location or specific building he normally works in? Or are we going to be improvising most of the way? I'm fine with the latter, I just want to know as much as we can before we start planetfall. And... do we have any rebellion bases on the planet? Places where we might hide and lay low if things get too hot for immediate evacuation?"

M'alax slowly drifts sideways until his eyestalks are at a 90 degree angle. The armless black trenchcoat hangs awkwardly.

[TriciaOso]

"We ain't selling the cutter" Rex insists. "it's hella fun and provides is unique tactical flexibility" he states listing his reasons in order of obvious priority. "If we're strapped for cash I say we aquire funding from the militia payroll"

W'zwzxi brightens at this. "Any steps you want to take to be self-funding would be... encouraged," he says. "And if it involves robbing the forces of fascism and repression, all the better!"

"Getting around shouldn't be too hard with the cutter and the uniforms It's sounds like our first problem is going to be getting us and the cutter offworld. W'zwzxi, do you have any contacts that can shuttle is over? Azgear did I here you mention you're involved in trade? Any cargo ships we can take discreetly?"

"I believe the cutter has interplanetary range, if limited... you should be able to get as far as N'Xena or M'Duq on your own power, but probably not much further than that."

"Satyrs vs Dragon Knights? That makes...way too much sense. If we have the contacts, why don't I go get with your professor and take him to start trying to prep the cutter which I have also grown attached to. Is there anything I need to discuss with your associates Ag'zear?"

He turns alternately to face W'zwzxi and Ag'zear then prepares to head out. Honestly, he was having to work a little to hide both his current discomfort and his eagerness to work with someone on such a fascinating project.

"Yes, of course. He has a workshop, which we keep quiet for operational security, but I'm sure he'd welcome your input."

"Do we know where he is, exactly? A home location or specific building he normally works in? Or are we going to be improvising most of the way? I'm fine with the latter, I just want to know as much as we can before we start planetfall. And... do we have any rebellion bases on the planet? Places where we might hide and lay low if things get too hot for immediate evacuation?"

M'alax slowly drifts sideways until his eyestalks are at a 90 degree angle. The armless black trenchcoat hangs awkwardly.

"I don't have his address, but I do have a contact point and password to touch base with his local support network."

"The city of T'Lah is nominally under the control of the Satyr League; you should be safe there, mostly. The Dragnet, the old guard cops, still make raids into the city and are hunting Xl'va pretty hard, since he's one of the big name resistance leaders, but you probably won't be on their radar. The Satyrs will treat you with respect while you're on their territory... they just aren't willing to expend their own resources to get Xl'va off-planet right now."

[Sirithhyando]

Spoiler: Brak'ma Xis

Show

Brak'ma Xis, splatter painter extraordinaire
Lawful Evil Beheld barbarian, path of the battlerager /
STR 18, DEX 15, CON 16, INT 8, WIS 8, CHA 8/
AC 16, HP 45/45, INI +2 | Senses (passive): Perception 11, Investigation 11, Insight 9
Save :STR +6, DEX +2, CON +5, INT -1, WIS -1, CHA -1/
Special : ADV on save vs spells and magical effect; ADV on dex vs effects that i can see (while not blind/deaf/incapacitated)
Rage : 3/3 (activation : Bonus action/ Reset on long rest)

---

Sleeping through the debriefing, Brak'ma eye spring back open, startled by M'alax, in a half-yawning shout Brak'ma very seriously answer Let's just destroy the moon, problem solve.
Its eye close again while the others bicker slightly.

---

Its eye open again and just to confuse its own thoughts, he answered to B'Xli My funds are low, seriously, lets just do the mission and then rob a bank or something.

---

Completely awake, Brak'ma continued If he's that important, why not start spreading rumours on every planet that he's there. The chaos might help us move around easier without being notice.

[TriciaOso]

You decide some ready cash is your most pressing priority. With Rex's insider knowledge of payroll dropoffs and a truly legendary effort of stealth by M'alax, you were able to undertake a successful payroll robbery despite Brak'ma's chaotic nature.

B'Xli inserted you into the base with pinpoint precision; Ag'zear spotted the hidden safe right away, and M'alax cracked it wide open. You almost got caught on the way out, but the military uniforms Rex scored gave you plausibility, and Brak'ma's impression of a short-tempered drill sergeant discouraged anyone from asking questions.

You walk away with $5500... of course, a lot of that will be going into the ship modifications!

---

B'Xli, you pay a visit to the Professor mentioned by W'zwzxi, a wide-eyed M'qan named Q'q. He has the pale skin and elegant features of a member of that subrace, but is quite old and a bit unkempt. If he weren't a part of the resistance, you might classify him as a kook.

He shows you a new spell he's developed that harnesses extradimensional spaces. "Now that the astral void capsule is gone and we don't have to worry about ambient anti-magic, extradimensional magic is going to take off! We're at the beginning of an arms race, hahaha! But for now, we're on the cutting edge, my boy!"

He telekinetically lifts a coil of rope. "Consider the old koan... how long is a piece of a string?"

Remarkably, the Professor has figured out how to use magic to turn an ordinary piece of rope into an extradimensional space that can hold as many as eight Beheld, for up to an hour. It will take up some of your engine capacity.

---

With Q'q's magic rope installed around the door to the small cabin, you are ready to leave for your mission. Fortunately, the overhaul by Ag'zear's boys provides the necessary extra engine power. You will need to stop once per hour to re-cast the spell, but that will only marginally slow you down.

W'zwzxi's contacts report an eerie quiet from the moonbase. People in the streets seem more relaxed, less paranoid of the constant scrutiny. Only you know the real, terrifying reason than Panoptica has gone blind.

It is perfect circumstances to set out on the 12 hour journey to N'Xena, though...

[Seramus]

M'alax spends a modest amount of time gliding back and forth across the threshold of the rope dimension.

"That's quite a trick! It's bigger on the inside. I always theorized string could do something like this, but I never got the science behind it."

But eventually he grows a little more somber and drifts near the front of the craft, stretching his eyestalks out to peer around in every direction. He searches the heavens for signs of cracks and ruptures, as if the solar system were a piece of glass that might slowly fracture until it finally shatters completely. At least, that's the dramatic scene he imagines a few times during their journey through the void.

"The scenery is beautiful. I wonder if Brak'ma has ever painted it?"

[Thrasymedes]

B'Xli knocked on the hatch before entering. He had run a little late with his last minute shopping for tools after finishing the work with the professor and now slung his second oversized pack under one of the seats in the cabin.

Upon seeing M'alax he began frantically rooting through a bag:

"So, I managed to whip a few things up. This can be used to get me back in the fight if I go down, and these can be used for emergency stabilization of anyone who goes down."

He hands M'alax a Healing Potion and two Goodberries and proceeds to sit two other Goodberries on each other passenger's seat (or hand them as they arrived).

He then began to admire the cabin and agreed with M'alax about the new roominess before asking:

"Do you know how far I should stay from the patrols or should I just...fly casual and hope for the best?"

[clash]

Rex steps inside investigating the ship modification. "Don't know how it works, but this will do nicely" he states with approval. The new space should fit them all.

"I've got the uniforms washed and ready in case we need them again" he comments redistributing them to those already on board. He collects the berries off his seat. "I cant wait to see how she does in space"

[sandmote]

Ag'zear spends a while talking with the guys who modified the ship, double checking what they've done and making sure they've received the payment the party has sent in.

Once on board he stows the goodberries into his pack and takes his seat. "Here's to a swift and calm journey there."

[Sirithhyando]

Spoiler: Brak'ma Xis

Show

Brak'ma Xis, splatter painter extraordinaire
Lawful Evil Beheld barbarian, path of the battlerager /
STR 18, DEX 15, CON 16, INT 8, WIS 8, CHA 8/
AC 16, HP 45/45, INI +2 | Senses (passive): Perception 11, Investigation 11, Insight 9
Save :STR +6, DEX +2, CON +5, INT -1, WIS -1, CHA -1/
Special : ADV on save vs spells and magical effect; ADV on dex vs effects that i can see (while not blind/deaf/incapacitated)
Rage : 3/3 (activation : Bonus action/ Reset on long rest)

---

Before exiting the robbery, Brak'ma took a moment to paint on the ground "N'bu is next!" then signed "your most adored Xl'va"

Brak'ma felt truly happy, grinning from one side of its face to the other We need to do this more often! Its fun! We get funds, they dont, we win twice as much!

---

Brak'ma stood close to M'alax during the journey I haven't been off world in a while so, no, haven't painted this scenery. Let me a little space to set up and i'll do it during the trip.

Brak'ma set up after to paint the scenery, adding a few suns around the main sun disguised as each of Brak'ma companions.

[Seramus]

He hands M'alax a Healing Potion and two Goodberries and proceeds to sit two other Goodberries on each other passenger's seat (or hand them as they arrived).

He then began to admire the cabin and agreed with M'alax about the new roominess before asking:

"Do you know how far I should stay from the patrols or should I just...fly casual and hope for the best?"

M'alax accepts the Healing Potion and two Goodberries graciously, then fastidiously tucks them away into his pack. He'll need to get more pockets sewn into his trenchcoat for carrying supplies if he goes on more of these missions.

"The big thing is having the right passage codes going from planet to planet. Like... getting through customs or border patrol. But the rebellion might have fake codes we can use. Old, but they might check out. Otherwise just get behind someone else, follow their lead, keep your distance, but don't look like you're trying to keep your distance."

[TriciaOso]

As you get up into orbit, however, you do not encounter any such patrols. A significant chunk of the space navy has followed General M'Ta into rebellion, and it's the Rebellion blockade around B'nxam that you have to pass. They are happy to see you once you give the countersign.

N'Xena is the nearest planet to B'nxam, and at this time of year your orbits are reasonably closely aligned. You fully extend the astral sails and direct a stream of magic from your engine into them, rather than relying on the ambient astral winds, and set off at a good clip.

The view along the way is indeed spectacular; the skies of B'Xenon used to be solid black, where the astral void capsule contained the universe, but now space is full of burning points of light you know are other realities. Strange astral fish and other multiversal creatures have begun to inhabit what was previously emptiness between planets. During one of your periodic stops to refresh Q'q's Rope Trick, you see a school of ten astral quippers swim by, glowing with their own light.



Between some time spent laboring the wrong direction (someone eventually notices the sun should be getting bigger, not smaller), and with hourly stops to refresh the cabin space and let your companions out of the cramped space, it takes you almost twice the expected twelve hours to make the journey. Your fuel is lower than you would've hoped; you will have to use your second cylinder just to get back to B'nxam and resupply, rather than go straight on to M'Duq.

N'Xena is surrounded by a thick magical haze that has always protected it from the sun's anti-magic, leading to a reputation as an unusual and iconoclastic place even in the height of imperial power. As you descend through the soupy yellow clouds toward the city of T'lah, you are hailed.

Unidentified Panoptican Cutter, this is T'lah Spacefield Tower.

Be advised that you are entering the airspace of the free city of T'lah and your authority will not be recognized here.

Do you copy?