=ACS Endeavour, Science Exploration Corvette= =In Orbit, Dwarf Planet Xylos=
You find yourselves in the docking bay of the ACS Endeavour, a ship operated by the Wayfinder Society of the Aurora Collegium of Sciences for undertaking anthropological and archaeological expeditions to uninhabited, dangerous, or otherwise somehow inhospitable sites. The trip to Xylos, deep into the Unknown Regions, was unremarkable at best. There had been a brief but heated division amongst the crew over a difference of opinion over the significance of an ancient Dathomiri ritual - some argued that it was purely ceremonial and only performed to show their devotion to their arts while another faction claimed that the ritual itself was the art and had definable results. This row lasted a whole two days before the expedition leader, Dr. Ewaru Ekibi, offered to ship out anyone who truly felt that strongly about that matter on a slow shuttle to Dathomir so they could find out - a trip likely to take quite a long time and end inside a rancor’s belly.
Dr. Ekibi is here now, inspecting a device nearly twice the size of his rather compact Chadra-Fan frame. The device was comprised of three cylinders bundled together with a large antenna protruding upward from the end of each cylinder, with a readout on the side of the bundle providing a variety of graphs and data the likes of which you can’t quite make out from where you’re standing. Inspecting the display while adjusting the small pair of spectacles perched upon his nose, he mumbled some numbers to himself under his breath, nodded, and motioned to a pair of service droids to bring the repulsorcart the device was resting on aboard the GX1 Short Hauler Shuttle behind him. He turned to face you before clearing his throat. .
“Ah, yes, uhm…” He shuffled a bit as he began to speak, clearly in some degree of discomfort. “Thank you all, again, for agreeing to assist with this expedition. It is uhm very exciting that we may discover evidence of an unknown civilization down there on Xylos, but first we must be able to reach uhm it safely, as it were. That is where your team will come in.”
He turned and waved one hand toward the shuttle, the sleeve of his white coat sliding a bit and covering his hand as he did so before he hurriedly pushed it back up to his wrist.
“We have modified the shields of this shuttle so they should be resistant to the frequencies of the ion storm surrounding Xylos. Uhm as long as it doesn’t sustain too long or too concentrated a burst, that is. We have identified an area where the storm currently appears to be thinner, which should allow for the ship to pass through. I will admit there is some danger to this, as we are not entirely certain just how thick the storm is or what may be on the other side for that matter. We uhm do know that the planet has a breathable atmosphere and the climate is within tolerable ranges if a bit hot, but have virtually no information regarding what the surface may be like. If nothing else comes from this trip, you will at least be the first ones we know of to set eyes on this planet, so that has to count for something?”
Now that he had begun to speak, it seemed as if sheer momentum barrelled through the nervousness he felt earlier and his worlds came more smoothly and rapidly. .
“Our scans indicated there may be crafted structures down there - high concentrations of specific materials found clustered together, and nowhere else on the surface. Unfortunately due to the interference of the ion storm, we are uncertain where exactly this cluster is. The fact we got any results at all is frankly a miracle; it is the first time in over a decade of scanning this sector we’ve gotten anything from Xylos, so we count ourselves lucky with what we have.” A smile clearly formed as he spoke these words, his excitement leading him to speak even faster. “The shuttle has been outfitted with the tools necessary for survival in a variety of possible wilderness settings, as well as supplies which should last upwards of two weeks should such a long excursion prove necessary. You are, of course, free to supplement with any tools or supplies you have brought yourself. And most importantly,” he seemed to almost interrupt himself, as if he had suddenly remembered something, “the Interference Generator! The Ionic Destabilization Interference Generator, once set up at hopefully the site of whatever structure or ruins you may find - though in an emergency you can certainly use it to set up an extraction point - should weaken or possibly even completely dissipate the ion storm where it is set up, allowing both for communications and for us to land our excavation and inspection setup shuttle at the site. Unfortunately, because of the delicate nature of the generator, it can really only be set up in place one time - if you have to break it down it would be unusable until it can be brought back here for repair and reset.”
He blinked rapidly twice, let out a small, embarrassed cough, and fidgeted a bit again as he looked back up.
“But I believe I’ve rambled on for long enough. Did you have any questions, or are you as eager to be on your way as I am to see you succeed?”
A pair of oil-streaked feet wiggled from underneath a service droid, followed by a loud clang and a muffled, irritated trill.
“Yub nub! Ee chee wa maa!”
Nibik slid out from under the chassis, holding a loose motivator cable like a trophy. His fur—black by nature and darker still from grease—was matted in spots, and his smile was far too pleased with himself. He shoved the cable into the confused droid’s photoreceptor before giving its side a firm thunk. It beeped in what sounded like protest.
“K’vark! Fixy fix. Nibik smart! Nibik best!”
Trailing close behind was a tall, ominous figure: Nibik’s HK-model Gladiator Droid. Draped in patchy strips of cloth and festooned with bones of various sizes, the droid cut a bizarre silhouette—like a gravekeeper dressed by an artistically deranged Jawa. It carried Nibik’s oversized toolkit in both hands, held delicately like a sacred offering.
“Observation: Master, I have noted an increase in oil viscosity in your left boot tread. Shall I recalibrate your gait path for optimal performance?”
Nibik blinked, glanced at his foot, then waved dismissively.
“Pffft! Boot fine! Bring snack bar instead. Wait—no, bring spanner first. Snack after boom machine.”
The droid obediently clanked off toward the supply pile.
Nibik, meanwhile, spun toward Dr. Ekibi and skittered closer, sniffing the air theatrically before giving the generator a light tap with the back of his paw.
“Tee-bock… mmm… shiny zappazappa, eh?”
He gave a low whistle, clearly impressed. Then he tilted his head, ears perked.
“Big boom once, no boom again?” He nodded sagely. “Like Uncle Grum’s soup pot… boom once. Then new kitchen.”
With a squeak of excitement, he scampered aboard the shuttle, vanishing inside with a crash, a squee of delight, and a burst of Ewokese:
“Nuvvu peetee nah-nah! Yub Nibik get fly-fly chair! Ooh, snacks?”
There was a clattering sound. A drawer opened. Something sparked.
“Heh heh… oopsie!”
The HK droid ascended the ramp silently after him, ducking its horned head under the threshold. Bones rattled with every step.
“Statement: I have prepared a list of thirty-eight probable dangers based on atmospheric unknowns and local wildlife estimations. Suggestion: Please avoid licking anything organic this time.”
Nibik’s head popped back out of the hatch, grinning from ear to ear.
“Doc! If ghost people got ship—Nibik fly, yah? Nibik do loop-de-loops!”
He made a spiraling motion with both arms, then mimed crashing into the floor.
“Boom! Heh… joke joke.”
The droid looked down at him in silence, then quietly began unfolding a clean towel to dust off the pilot’s seat. Again.
“So we are hunting a pile of rubble instead of a person?” Siorc asked from behind his helmet. His voice giving out a slight metallic ring as it came through. The realization and question was more rhetorical than anything as he began to think about the bounty he had accepted. Guess he should have checked the details more closely. “I am guessing the credits will be deposited upon the research team landing?”
He didn’t know the rest of the team but he sure wasn’t gonna do this job out the goodness of his heart. If people wanted to dig up the bones of dead folks that wasn’t his concern. He preferred credits to skeletons, he had thought everyone did until now.
“So, the job is basically go learn things.” Blackhawk summed up. “Sounds easy enough.”
Exploring an unknown planet sounded exciting. Seeing who he was working with made him reconsider the simplicity. A somewhat frail looking Jedi, a giant, a much shorter, much younger member of the giant’s species who looked experienced in running (toward a problem or away from it remained to be seen), an Ewok of… questionable sanity judging by his droid’s remarks… and by the droid itself, and himself. This would be an interesting group to say the least. The Clawdite cast his apprehensions aside. He has a job to do, and he’d be damned if he let a group of strangers get in his way. If nothing else, this would be a good opportunity to find a place for personal project he was hoping he might be able to undertake.
Maeva remained quiet as she let others get their questions in first. Usually her peers would had the more confident to ask questions that she didn’t think of.
Droids, luckily, went to work to cleaning the shuttle so Maeva didn’t have to worry about the consequences of having the substances on them when they were entering into an unknown planet.
Gas masks. Suits. She reminded herself, hoping her teammates would not argue with her about suiting up for survival. At least most of them came prepared.
She would like for all of them to arrive safely and come back home the exact same way they arrived.
One thing she did not expect in this shuttle, however, was to meet another Evereni.
Yet, her eyes went to the ewok.
By the Dravdea, how was she suppose to get the ewok to wear a gas mask!?
Ewaru took a deep breath, centering himself for a moment as he did so. He had long come to accept the sort of eccentric types he would always have to deal with being part of the Aurora Collegium, and it mostly didn’t get to him any more but sometimes he really had to wonder about his life path.
“Preferably, the Generator should not make any ‘big boom’ at all. More of a kzzt or sizzle. But yes, the basic gist of it is once it’s used it can’t be used again in any practical timeframe.” His lips split in a smile as he continued. “And yes, the primary purpose is discovering - we hope, at least - a site of historical and cultural relevance. That being said, we admittedly know very little about what is down there. There may be some sort of extant, isolated population down there,” his eyes sparkled even more than usual as he considered the possibility, “but that is for you to discover. And yes, your payment will be transferred through regular channels once either you transmit discovery of the structure or structures, or if you determine that the scan results were coincidental and there is nothing to be found.”
The diminutive scientist pulled back the sleeve of his long coat to take a look at the chrono on his wrist before quickly ushering the last remaining loader droids away from the shuttle.
“If there is nothing else of grave importance, I’m afraid I must insist you set off! We’re not sure how long the storm will remain thinned out at your proposed entry point. I understand our Ewok friend here is somehow a more-than-competent pilot and you are welcome to take that position on the shuttle. One of our pilot droids will assist with co-pilot duties unless one of you would prefer to do so. Either way, I wish you all the best of luck and eagerly await reports of whatever you may discover on Xylos!”
Eleceos quietly walked up to the group. He had received the message about the exploratory assignment, investigating an ancient civilization on a planet never explored before. Why he was most well known for his counseling abilities on the Voidbreaker, Eleceos had always held a deep love of Archeology.
Listening to Dr. Ekebi’s instructions, thr Miraluka remained quiet, keeping all the information filed away in his head. The Jedi kept his excitement for this assignment contained, realizing quickly that the others on this mission may not be as intrigued as he was about what they might find on the planet.
With a controlled voice, after waiting for the doctor to finish answering questions, Ele finally let his presence be known.
“We will be sure to document our findings as best as we are able.”
From next to to him, a BD unit droid stood apt and ready to go as well.
“Let’s get on the shuttle, BD-43. We don’t want to hold anyone up.” As they walked towardsthw shuttle, Ele spoke softer and with a smile to his droid friend “Should be fun, dont you think?”
The droid returned its sentiments.
“Oh, don’t be like that. We’ll be safe. What’s the worst that could happen?”
Maeva lingered for a bit, her eyes studying Dr. Ewaru. It seems like he was rather excited, part of her wanted to ask why he couldn’t come with them, that may have made things easier. Or he could still be hiding something. Regardless, she got up and started to follow the others to the shuttle.
‘…what’s the worst that could happen?’
Maeva blinked behind the Jedi’s back.
Did he just jinx them all?
Ele looked over to Maeva, feeling her questioning nature at that moment. Giving her a friendly smile, he answered.
“If you expect the worst, and invite it, it can’t take you off guard.”
From somewhere deep in the shuttle’s bowels came the unmistakable whir of a power core cycling up - followed immediately by a clatter, two shrill beeps, and a proud shout in Ewokese:
“Oooohhh keezaa SHINY! Engine purr-purr now, yah!”
Inside the cockpit, Nibik was perched cross-legged atop the pilot’s seat, paws dancing over controls like a gremlin possessed. His grease-slick apron was tucked under one arm like a cape, and his face was lit by flickering amber displays.
Behind him, the HK-model Gladiator Droid stood ramrod still, one hand bracing the ceiling as the other - clad in rags and jangling with bone jewelry
“Yes! Yes! Yub-yub!”
He slammed both paws onto the control panel. The shuttle groaned in response, repulsors flaring low like the purr of a hungry feline.
Outside the ramp, Nibik’s face popped briefly out of the hatch, goggles lowered over his soot-streaked face as he shouted to the group:
“Ready ready! Chair warm! Lights blink! Buttons glow! Nibik good fly, yes! Loop-de-loop on not optional! Heh heh…”
He glanced at Maeva and gave a thumbs-up gesture that somehow still left a blackened handprint on the hull beside him.
Then his ears twitched.
“Wait—gas mask?”
A pause.
A second later, the HK droid emerged behind him holding a child-sized breather mask, already retrofitted with an adjustable strap made from scrap wiring and a spoon.
“Statement: I anticipated this moment. Application may require mild sedative. For your protection, of course.”
Nibik stared at the mask, considered it, then let out a begrudging:
“M’okay.”
He took it and scampered back into the pilot’s chair.
The engines gave a confident thrum, and a few displays blinked green.
“Shippy-shippy go time, yah? Nibik do launchy-launch! Buckle butts! Nibik fly now!”
The HK droid turned to the others and added calmly:
“Advisory: You may wish to secure yourselves and identify the nearest safety harness. My master’s definition of ‘altitude’ is sometimes aspirational.”
The shuttle began to hum louder as the lift-off sequence primed.
“There’s expecting the worse and there’s tempting the Fates… I believe you may have done the latter.” Maeva muttered to the Miraluka as she went inside the shuttle.
The Ewok gave her thumbs up as she blinked. Uh.
Maeva gave a very awkward smile as if she doesn’t often smile and gave a weak thumb up? Followed by side eyeing her teammates.
Buckle butts?
She blinked at that comment. How does one buckle a butt? Now mused with the idea, she grabbed her backpack, took it off, and put it back on her chest so she can make sure to be fully secured in her seat by not having a gap between her back and the chair.
Her arms slipped underneath the harness as she started to buckle and strap up.
And made sure it was secured. Three times. Yet, her stomach was preparing itself to be lurched around like a pinball in a game.
Making his way to a free seat Siorc strapped himself in. How this Ewok got chosen to pilot was beyond him but hopefully the pilot droid could at least keep them alive. He trusted the Ewok about as far as he could kick him. Actually much less than that. One last tug at the restraints to make sure they were secure and he nodded to the droid letting him know he was good to go.
“Anyone else suddenly concerned about if we will be leaving this planet in one piece?” Blackhawk asked, only somewhat jokingly. In spite of his concer, and maybe against his better judgement, he boarded the shuttle anyway. Hopefully, the restraints would hold against whatever antics the Ewok was going to attempt. If they didn’t… he subconsciously checked to make sure his weapons were secure.
Ele and his Droid entered the ship, and took a seat. Taking a deep breath he settled his mind, opening himself.up to the possibilities in the Force.
The hum of the engines reverberated through the shuttle as the Ewok pilot guided it out of the docking bay of the Endeavour and toward the planet. Whether through skill or sheer luck - who could tell at this point - the craft drifted smoothly through the intervening spaces it approached the crackling shroud that obscured the planet beneath from view. Meanwhile in his seat, Eleceos felt a different, familiar energy as if something were calling to him from out there. Focusing on it, a vision came to him as clear as if it were the cushions and restraints of the seat he also still felt himself in.
A dense jungle stretched as far as one could perceive in all directions, with a gentle but insistent wind rustling the low-level foliage. Colossal trees - taller than one could ever hope to conceive of - dotted the landscape, spread about with the kind of chaotic precision one could only expect from the trial-and-failure of natural growth. A crackling glow clung to these titanic plants, slowly growing in intensity as they moved toward the treetops far above.
Rustling further out in the underbrush indicated movement of some kind, perhaps a medium- to large-sized creature of some sort travelling through the ground level bushes and ferns that surrounded the clearing they were in. It was unclear if the motion was away or toward them. Off in the distance, just at the very edge of the horizon, there was a shadow. Whether a building of some kind or just a mountain was impossible to tell at this distance, but clearly it was a landmark of some interest- .
And like that, the vision left him as his senses returned to the shuttle around him. The craft was just now piercing the ion storm, blue-white sparks crackling off the shield and cascading around it in a fantastic light show. So far the shield was holding as it had been said it would, but there was still an air of tension as it was never clear how much farther they had to go to weather the storm. Endless seconds stretched into eternity as the sounds of lightning splintering against the shield filled the shuttle. Finally, after what could have been no more than a minute but could just as well have been a lifetime, the viewport of the cockpit was filled with a powerful blue-white light replacing the deep purple-flecked-with-blue of the clustered storm.
The surface of the planet was visible perhaps fifty kilometers below. A lush jungle covered every visible inch, with impossibly tall purple-blue trees extending out well above the canopy seemingly at random. The light they could see was coming from these trees, all of which were glowing intensely with a crackling, blue-white energy. Just as things had seemed to be settled, the crackling intensified at the top of one of the trees nearly directly below them…
Lightning danced across the shuttle’s hull in a furious display, blue-white arcs crackling like angry spirits clawing at the edges of the shield. The cockpit rumbled with every near miss, and the sharp ozone scent of overworked circuitry filled the air.
“Yub yub! Zappy storm very angry today!”
Nibik clung to the controls, fur frizzed from static, paws moving in a blur as he adjusted for turbulence. The viewport flashed white as another bolt sliced close - too close. A blinding KRAK burst across the starboard side. The shuttle jolted violently.
Panels sparked. The main console flickered… then went dark.
“K’VARK! Ship say nap time?! NO NAP!”
He slammed the dashboard with both paws. The engines sputtered in protest, emergency lights stuttering to life in a sickly red glow. Somewhere deep in the ship, something hissed ominously.
The HK - model droid, perfectly balanced despite the rocking deck, tilted its head.
“Statement: Shields at minimal function. Power grid cycling. Conclusion: We are flying blind and downhill.”
Nibik growled low in his throat, yanked on the emergency override lever with his whole body weight, and kicked a reset panel with his heel.
Nothing.
Then - whirr. The repulsors stuttered back online. Weak, shaky, but alive.
He squinted out the cockpit, and there it was - a shimmer of green through the storm. A break in the canopy. A clearing.
“HAH! Nibik sees dirt hole! Perfect boom spot!”
The storm screamed louder, fighting them every meter. The clearing was still a long way off, and the ship was barely responding. Altitude warnings began to blare.
“Okay okay, new plan! Hold floaty, then crashy - but controlled crashy!”
The droid calmly placed a firm hand on the back of Nibik’s seat.
“Advisory: Please prepare for impact. Or at least mild despair.”
“Tch! Nibik never despair!”
Another jolt shook the cabin. Outside, the storm roared. The jungle below waited, glowing eerily with blue-white lightning crawling over its tallest trees.
Nibik growled again and pulled the yoke tighter, ears flattened in focus.
“Ship still fly. Just… angry. Nibik fix.”
The descent had begun. It wasn’t over yet - but gravity and chaos were clearly winning the argument.
It didn’t take much to understand what Nibik was chattering on about. The ship was being pummeled. The shields were not doing as well as they had hoped to protect them from the weather.
“Perfect boom spot!”
Blackhawk hoped that the Ewok meant landing area. He really didn’t want to go boom on some unknown planet. He decided he was leaving as little to chance as he could.
Undoing his restraints, the Clawdite felt gravity try to pin him to his seat. He figured that would happen. He activated his repulsor belt, grabbed the back of the seat in front of him, and flung himself towards the nearest viewport. Even the HK droid seemed somewhat concerned.
“Statement: Please return to your seat, and brace for impact.”
Blackhawk ignored the droid. His feet hit the viewport, allowing him to catch a glimpse of the rapidly approaching ground. Blackhawk closed his eyes momentarily, opening them to find himself hovering outside the viewport, though the forces around the ship seemed to be rapidly attempting to tear him away from it. Reaching out with the Force, he grabbed the shuttle clinging to it as if his life depended on it, which it did.
He was able to slow himself down enough just as the wind and inertia had drug him near the top side of the ship. There, he ignited one of his lightsabers into the hull, using it as a handhold to stay attached to the rapidly descending craft. Now somewhat more confident that he wouldn’t find himself flying away from the shuttle, he concentrated, enveloping the ship with the Force and pulling upward as hard as he could.
Blackhawk couldn’t be entirely certain from the outside of the ship, the ground still seemed to be rapidly approaching, but Blackhawk was as sure as he could be that his efforts were doing… something. Hopefully, something helpful. This landing was probably still going to hurt, though.
Ele held hard to his seat as the ship rocked in the turbulence of the somewhat controlled crash landing that was coming up. He moved his head toward Maeva and tried to speak aloud even as his body jolyed around.
“I told…you…always expect…the worst! Can’t say I’m surprised… right now!”
<@216702440140046336>
Her eyes were closed as her hands were right at the edge of her seat, clinging onto for dear life. Her grey knuckles were turning into a lighter hue from the grip. Her harness were on, securely, but even then she had doubts.
Maeva actually hated ships. She spent the first two decades of her life not having been in one and now…
They may crash. Boom spot?
No no no no no no..
The Clawdite whose named she learned to be Blackhawk had decided to take off his straps and went away.
Well, if he wanted to be stupid and kill himself that’s on him. Maeva had no intention of stopping him.
Then he disappeared.
“What the-”
Her head snapped to Ele and glared at him before she remembered that the man was blind, in a way.
“We… Different… definition of… the… worst!” Maeva said through gritted teeth.
Well, if this was the worst of it all… she can sort of accept it. Better than more than one of them ending up on her slab. Unlike Ele, she didn’t dare to say that.
She was not going to tempt Dravdea and the Fates.
She’ll worry about finding Blackhawk later, and hopefully, not his body.
-# <@204034522033946625> <@206692046424113152> <@280930981983289345>
Maeva’s anxieties were basically flowing off of her in waves. While Ele was centering himself, her fear was a near overwhelming presence for the Miraluka. With a small smile he knelt his head down and began to push gently of the Force, channeling it to surround Maeva.
The edges of Ele’s mind meet with hers and he offered her relief. Like being enveloped in a warm hug, his positive mind caressed her own and offered a momentary peace from the cortisol levels rushing though her veins.
He wouldn’t force her to accept his offered peace, but he hoped she would.
It was as if her Deceased Lady had answered her call.
She felt the embrace. Maeva relaxed as she closed her eyes again and waited for the impact.
Meanwhile, she silently recite the prayer in her mind.
O judgement Lady of the Dead and Scales…
“Did he say Boom?” Siorc thought to himself. Well at least he wouldn’t be bored. Siorc pressed his back firmly into his chair and tightened the restraints again. It was too late to jump out and use his jetpack or he would do just that. Panicking now would just make the situation worse. The only thing left to do was brace for impact.
The shuttle hurtled toward the ground, the screens and controls in the cockpit still flickering in and out of function. Thanks to the extreme efforts of Nibik and Blackhawk the descent was not nearly as catastrophic or uncontrolled as it could have been, but the ground of the clearing was still approaching at an alarming rate. Wind screamed past the outside of the ship, Blackhawk having to strain both to keep his grip on his lightsaber-turned-anchor and keep his focus on pulling the ship upward telekinetically to slow its fall. Inside the cockpit, the sight of the clearing grew larger and larger as the ship careened toward it, the viewport being filled with a field of short amber grass being blown strongly in a rolling wind. Beyond those grasses were low trees in a variety of blues, indigos, and dark purples. Every blade of grass and leaf of a tree stood starkly out, small bits of electricity crackling along their surface. .
The peaceful day of these gently sparking plants was violently interrupted as the GX1 slammed into the earth, digging a deep furrow as it skidded along for nearly 50 meters before managing to come to a halt. Inside, the passengers were thrown hard against their seat restraints, though thankfully they all held. In the cargo bay, some unsecured tools flung themselves every which way across the open area, clattering against walls and denting a few supply crates as they impacted. Even as the ship slowly stopped, creaks and groans from the hull reverberated through the inside as structure that had been forced to twist and bend in unexpected ways from the rough landing settled back into their normal positions. Outside, there was a cacophony of chirps and rumbles as unseen animal life scrambled away from whatever had just occurred here. From his position on the hull, Blackhawk could make out some shapes in the distance which must have been some sort of bird or similar avian taking flight in the middle canopy between the low trees which surrounded the clearing and the colossal lightning-launching trees which towered high above. Inside the cockpit, with a pop and a little bit of an electrical whine, the controls and displays of the ship slowly came back to light. A brief pause as every system checked in with the main controls and then a red light on the main console flicked on, next to an indicator panel which read “Brace for Impact.”
Emergency lighting flickered as Siorc took in the sight around him. Debris from inside shuttle was thrown around the shuttle. Gear and equipment littered the floor and several panels had broken apart with wiring hanging out.
He reached down and removed his restraints. Other than some soreness from the webbing around his shoulders he was somehow in one piece. His rifle had flown somewhere in the crash and would need to be found. They didn’t know what was on the planet and there was no way that crash would have gone unnoticed.
“Anyone injured?” He inquired.
Maeva winced as she immediately took off the seat harness.
that’ll leave bruises but I’m alive-
She glanced to others and was going to ask if anyone was hurt but Siorc had beaten her to the punch.
So much for my job… Ready to get out of the ship, she pushed the button to open the doors and her breath was taken away.
At least not literally.
It…was different and beautiful. The barks on the tree..
For a moment, she had forgotten that she was going to try to find Blackhawk.
Will this be the planet I find information on my Lady Dravdea?
Right.
“Blackhawk?” She called out as she glanced back into the interior of the ship, still spooked by the ability he pulled.
As the final groan of stressed durasteel echoed through the hull, Nibik dangled from his harness upside down, swinging gently like a soot-covered fruit. He blinked twice. Then beamed.
“Yub Nibik fly real good!”
With a grunt, he unbuckled and thumped to the floor in a heap. Sparks fizzed somewhere behind him.
He popped up a moment later, covered in more grease than before, and gave the cracked control panel a gentle pat.
“Ship mad… but not dead. Good shippy.”
The HK droid clanked over, its cloak of bones somehow still in place.
“Statement: Minor hull breaches. Crushed port repulsor. Stabilizer fried. Diagnostics… not optimistic.”
Nibik nodded solemnly, then grinned wider.
“Mmm! Nibik fixy-fix! Me stay, make ship go happy again.”
He scurried to a wall panel, yanked it off with both paws, and started pulling wires out with joyful chirps.
“You go find spark-ghosts or tree-whispers. Nibik make house outta shuttle!”
He glanced toward the others and gave a thumbs-up with a spanner.
“If you no come back, I keep ship! Make stewpot!”
Then he called back to the HK droid.
“Go get tool-kit and glowy-spanner. Bring snacks too. No fixing on empty tummy.”
“Acknowledgment: Retrieving essential repair and nutrition supplies. Clarification: You mean engine grease and dried fish flakes again, don’t you?”
Nibik just cackled and dove deeper into the guts of the console, tail flicking side to side.
Eleceos vacated his seat with a sigh. Another mission, another turn to the worst. At least they were all still alive and their ship wasn’t completely unusable. After these last few years the Miraluka realized almost every mission he’s been a part of has gone wrong, and he had to wonder if he was in some way to blame. In some way the jinxed element.
His rationality swept those thoughts away. Trusting the Force to guide him in his blindness, he walked off of the ship, BD-43 following behind him. As the Jedi made contact with the planets ground his senses extended outwards, scouring the surrounding vicinity with a pulse of Force Energy. Fauna was abundant. The smallest of insects skitttering on the ground. Frightened creatures leaving the area of the ship, medium sized beasts in the trees picking off the scurrying prey, but nothing sapient. Nothing that screamed of danger. Just nature being nature. Just life in all its circle.
“We should be safe here, for the moment at least. We have no enemies nearby at this time.”
Some time had passed now, the new trench bored in the clearing still fresh but now no longer steaming with heat. Eleceos sensed most of the jungle life had settled back down after the commotion. As Nibik continued poking and prying at various bits around the ship to try to sort out just how much damage had been done and just how complicated it would be to get the shuttle in the air again, outside in the clearing there were signs of a subtle shift taking place.
The air began to grow slightly cooler, not at a particularly rapid pace but definitely in a noticeable way. The constant and steady wind which had rolled through the area, keeping the grass and bushes rustling had started to slow. The large trees which has been providing a bright, ambient glow up until this point slowly began to fade - up toward the top, they still held a great deal of charge, but in the lower levels around the clearing it got a bit darker as what residual charge remained travelled upward along the massive trunk toward the sky.
Night - or at least what passed for it beneath the raging electrical storm in the skies of Xylos - was beginning to fall.
Blackhawk groaned, still more than a bit sore and exhausted from his efforts to lessen the impact of the crashed, but was otherwise fine as far as he could tell.
Then she heard a groan coming from outside.
Maeva blinked.
The groan was not from the interior of the ship. The cautious Evereni stepped out of the ship in case it wasn’t a member of the team making the noise and glanced to the area where she heard the sound was coming from and found Blackhawk.
“I…” Her brows furrowed in confusion as she looked inside the ship. Outside. Inside. Outside.
Wait, she’s here as a medic. She can ask questions later.
Eleceos reassured the team that they were safe for the time being. ALthough she wasn’t certain how long that can last. The crash was loud but the storm may have hidden their location.
“Okay.” Maeva made her way to the young Ewok first. She then noticed the cuts and burns on him.
“As Siorc said, is anyone actually hurt? I can check you, Blackhawk, after I check Nibik. Um-” She glanced at Nibik.
“Nibik? Come here. Let me.. tend to your wounds.” She held up the first aid kit.
-# <@204034522033946625> <@206692046424113152> <@583854106599489557>
Nibik didn’t look up when Maeva approached. The stubby fingers of his soot-smeared paws were elbow-deep in a fused junction box just under the port-side stabiliser, his tools spread out around him like a mechanic’s shrine. He let out a satisfied grunt as one last spark crackled, and a tiny arc of blue flickered across the connector. “Better,” he muttered in Ewokese, then gave the hull a firm thump.
He turned at the sound of approaching footsteps, one ear flicking toward the voice, the other still half-focused on the coolant pipe whining somewhere behind the bulkhead.
“Blackhawk,” Nibik said with a brief nod, his pitch low and gruff as usual. “You fly well. Better than most. Owe you a drink.” His sharp green eyes, ringed with ash and burn marks, shifted to Maeva and the medkit in her hands.
“No,” he said flatly, already waving one paw dismissively before she even finished the offer. “Not damage. Not really. Burned fur, little blood—bah.”
He tugged at a strip of fabric that had once been part of his jumpsuit and now clung charred and frayed against his side. “Story,” he added with a toothy grin, the kind that only made the grime look more permanent on his face. “Part of the ship now. Part of me.”
He gave a small shrug, then returned to the panel with the same intensity he always had for machines, as though the rest of the world had politely excused itself from his concern.
“Fixing her matters more,” he muttered. “You can patch Blackhawk if he’s leaking.”
<@216702440140046336> <@280930981983289345>
Maeva stared at Nibik. First, was the wording. She glanced over to Blackhawk for a moment, worried that he was urinating himself or something with the usage of ‘leaking’ but found no fluids on the floor.
Then her eyes went back to the Ewok. Yes, the Ewok’s wounds were small but she had seen firsthand how quickly they can become infected. They were on a new planet of unknown regions and who knows what kind of bacteria lurks.
It was obvious that the Evereni was battling internal thoughts of wrestling with the Ewok or let it go and take care of it if it does become infected.
Then her shoulders relaxed. She had decided to let it go for now. Yet, there was a nagging concern at the back of her mind.
I tried, my Lady. Maeva prayed.
-# <@204034522033946625> <@280930981983289345>
Aside from some scrapes and bruises, Blackhawk was unable to find any signs of injury upon himself. “I’m fine,” he grunted as he practically fell into a seat “just a bit sore from, you know, hanging onto the outside of a crashing ship!”
Maeva stared at Blackhawk for a moment. She almost had a half mind to quip back that maybe he should not made the decision to get out of the ship.
Which-
HOW!?
But that was another matter for another time. She glanced over to Eleceos and Siroc.
“And you two?” Though judging by how they were standing and moving, just likely to be a bit sore like the rest of them but nothing serious.
-# <@206692046424113152> <@583854106599489557>
“Good to go.” Siorc replied. Not that he would admit to being injured even if he was. He didn’t know any of these people. He trusted them less and the admittance that he had something they could potentially exploit was not going to happen.
Eleceos smiled in Maeva’s direction. He was well cared in healing as well, so he understood her concerns.
“I am well, thank you.”
Maeva glanced around, as beautiful as this planet was, it was getting darker and she was concerned for many reasons. Nighttime never bodes well.
“We.. I think we should get a camp away from the ship. I’m worried about creatures and enemies finding this due to the noise and… well.” She gestures to the surrounding area.
“We don’t know where we are.”
-# <@280930981983289345> <@204034522033946625> <@583854106599489557> <@206692046424113152>
“Unless we want to get to actual expiration now, there’s no good reason to camp away from the ship yet.” Blackhawk countered. “And if something does show up, I’d rather not have to worry about what direction it comes from if we can avoid it.”
Nibik popped his head out from under the shuttle, a smudge of grease streaked across his fur, one ear half-singed and still twitching. He blinked up at Maeva, blinking rapidly at her words like she was speaking in static.
“Move?” he squeaked, his voice rising an octave. “Away from my shuttle?”
He scrambled up, a tangle of limbs and scattered tools, clutching a sparking coil in one paw and what looked like half a hydrospanner in the other. “But-but-but she’s still hummin’! Still breathin’! Little sparks, that’s good! That’s life!”
He turned a frantic circle, eyes wide as he took in the growing shadows. His nose wrinkled.
“…Okay, okay,” he muttered quickly, clearly convincing himself more than anyone else. “Big stompy beasties come at night. Or grabby ones. Grab the small ones. That’s me. I’m the small one.”
He zipped over to his scattered tools and shoved them into a side pouch with rapid, practiced efficiency. Then he gave the hull a fast double-pat. “You stay. No dying while I’m gone. I fix you soon. Promise.”
Trotting back over toward Maeva, he nodded up at her, breathing quick and light.
“Okay! Okay. I follow. You smart one, you lead. Nibik not good at hidey-walky stuff. Too loud. Too shiny.”
He paused, glanced around.
“…Also. Not sure which way not-death is.”
He grinned.
“Let’s go!”
“It’s not much, but in a pinch this ship will be the most defensible position we know of.” the bounty hunter said gruffly. “Abandoning it wood be foolish until we have more intel.”
Even with it’s small size they have nothing stronger or bigger right now for shelter or protection. They should stick close to it until they have something better to use or it becomes time to head out in search of the structures.
Maeva’s arms went up as she crossed them across her chest while she listened to her teammates.
At least, Nibik was on her side but she felt bad that he was concerned of being grabbed first cause he was the smallest one out of the group.
Usually predators go after the ones they can grab or the biggest one. Depending.
Not wanting to get into an argument or upset her other teammates. Maybe it’s best to stay at the ship for one night, for them to recover from the soreness and bruises.
“Yea.” Maeva whispered before she cleared her throat and spoke more clearly.
“We should stay for one night. Then we can go in the morning?”
-# <@280930981983289345> <@204034522033946625> <@583854106599489557> <@206692046424113152>
It seemed that became the agreement though Maeva was a bit nervous. Maybe having the first scout would help.
She was not going to take the first watch anyways. Not on a new planet. It seems that Nibik was going to cook and Maeva had massive doubts. Can this Ewok even cook? Will they lose their rations?
“Oh.. okay.” She gave Nibik a smile that seemed to be supportive when right behind it, she was internally screaming.
“I’m going to scout.. give myself a peace of mind, is anyone coming with me?” She started to grab her gear and medic kit.
“Not a bad idea. I’ll go.” Blackhawk stood, stretching his sore limbs. “How far out do we want to look?” “Figure it out as we go?” Maeva asked. “Sounds good to me.” the Clawdite replied. “Whenever you’re ready, let’s go ”
As the scouts approached the edge of the clearing, the light around them continued to slowly dim. The plant life, while obviously unfamiliar, seemed to exhibit enough common characteristics that some of their knowledge and skill in wilderness travel was able to be utilized. Making note of aspects like growth pattern direction and the flow of the wind - though it had slowed down quite a bit, it was still blowing through the underbrush enough to be noticeable - they made their way into the forest. Several animal runs of various sizes became evident as they travelled a bit away from the clearing’s edge, most for smaller animals which all evidence would suggest subsisted on the leaves and fruits of the lower-lying vegetation. A few larger trails, it was unclear if they belonged to predator or prey - they seemed to travel around the smaller paths, but never quite intersect. .
As they went, each of them looked out for trouble or things of significance in their own way. Blackhawk stretched out to the Force, and found much the same as Eleceos had before. There was an absolute plethora of wildlife about of various shapes and sizes, predator and prey alike. The animals themselves seemed to be calmer than earlier, the fright of the crash in the clearing having begun to settle down. Some of the larger animals even seemed to have some amount of curiosity about the place now, though still for some reason which he could not quite identify or understand they exhibited a hesitance to approach the place. Whether it was lingering caution from the violent disturbance earlier, a natural instinct to follow the paths and habits of usual, or something else entirely he just could not say.
Maeva, meanwhile, used the more standard array of senses in an attempt to determine any risks or just gather relevant information about their environs. Glimpses of fur or feathers here and there between thick foliage - all of it in bright colors which stood out amidst the dim blue-white glow which now suffused the jungle - let her know that beasts were present all around them in some form or function. As she followed this activity, it occurred to her that all of the animal trails they were seeing seemed to gently veer away from the clearing they had landed in, never quite making it all the way there. The creatures themselves seemed content to scramble about the brush and clamber up the gently-sparking trees but never quite make it to the line where the growth became less dense. In the distance, in a north-northeasterly direction, she was able to identify the sound of a creek or perhaps small river of some sort. Whether it was water or a fluid of some other sort was uncertain just based on sound, but it clearly was flowing and was some sort of focal point for the animals around the area, weaving toward and away from it in turn. .
Back at camp, Nibik had managed to put together a halfway-serviceable field kitchen with the equipment available on the shuttle, and had been pleasantly surprised to find that there were some dried ingredients alongside the standard ships rations. While it certainly wasn’t enough to put together a high quality meal, it would definitely improve the flavor of the rations and make them much more pleasant if the team had to rely on them for any significant length of time.
Xylos was absoutely beautiful. She wanted to learn more of it but at the same time, she was very cautious. It was usually the gorgeous and brightly colored things that was the most dangerous or poisonous.
“I think I hear a water source…” Maeva glanced over to Blackhawk, “Do you think we should go investigate? I mean, it would be good to put it on the map in case we need it.”
-# <@280930981983289345>
Ele walked around the campsite. Scouting was never his forte, but he kept his senses open in case of danger. What he really wanted was to explore any ancient locations on the planet. He was their resident archeologist, and planned on doing that job well.
Nibik dangled halfway into a panel under the shuttle’s belly, legs kicking slightly in the air, fur matted with soot and dust. Sparks crackled and hissed as he fused two mismatched wires together with a gleeful pop.
“Ha! Good sizzle,” he chirped, tail flicking. “Means the juice is movin’!”
Behind him, the skeletal frame of an HK-model droid stood stiffly, arms crossed. Its red photoreceptors dimmed in visible judgment.
“Observation: That was not a recommended repair method. That was barely a survival method.”
Nibik rolled out from under the panel, goggles hanging off one ear, grinning wide despite a scorch mark across his cheek. “She’s talking again, HK! See? Just needed a little dance of lightning!”
He tossed the sparking tool to the side - HK snatched it out of the air before it could hit the ground and tucked it back into the kit with slow, exaggerated care.
“Clarification: You mean she is groaning again. That is not the same as functioning.”
“Details!” Nibik chirped. He scrambled up the side of the hull, scanning the flickering lights on the busted navcore with a satisfied hum. “We got main power! Stabilizers are halfway there. Nav might take a cuddle and a good smack, but she’ll wake up. I know it!”
The shuttle groaned faintly in response, like it disagreed.
Nibik leaned in and patted the scorched console lovingly. “Shh. You’re doing great.”
HK turned its head slowly toward the forest line, where the others had started moving to set up camp.
“Tactical assessment: We are in a high-risk environment. Your organic companions are establishing a fallback position. Perhaps you should consider not dying over a bundle of exposed power couplings.”
“Two days,” Nibik muttered, eyes still scanning the mess of relays and melted wire. “That’s all she needs. Maybe just one day if I skip checks…”
HK’s photoreceptors brightened.
“Warning: Skipping diagnostics has a 74.2% chance of immediate in-flight system failure. Additional note: I do not enjoy falling.”
Nibik twitched his nose. “You don’t enjoy anything.”
“Correction: I enjoy proven results. And explosions I cause - not ones I experience.”
He ignored the droid with practiced ease, dragging a thick cable out of a scorched housing and threading in a salvaged bypass from a life support system. “Bah, life support’s overrated anyway. We’ll all just breathe very shallow.”
With a burst of manic energy, he jabbed a connection into place - and somewhere inside the shuttle, a faint whirrr-click sounded as the engine startup routine flickered once, then died again.
“Progress!” Nibik announced triumphantly, wiping a greasy paw across his face. “Little more juice, little more love, and she’ll be skyborn!”
He paused, glanced over at HK. “…You’ll back me up on the checklist later, right?”
“Statement: I will recite it aloud while we plummet.”
“Perfect,” Nibik said brightly.
He bolted back inside the access panel, muttering in a mix of Basic and Ewokese as he vanished into the guts of the ship.
“Just a day… just a day… Nibik fix, Nibik fly, Nibik don’t die!”
HK stood watch at the shuttle’s edge, blaster rifle slung and sensors scanning the treeline.
“Addendum: I would prefer not to be recycled into a toaster.”
With two of his companions out scouting the immediate area Siorc decided to stretch his legs and exited the shuttle. The planets atmosphere was still glowing as the perpetual ion storm danced overhead. The trees glow had lessened and he hoped that was a good sign. If nothing else he would already be outside if something drastic happened. That included the Ewok blowing himself or the ship up trying to make repair.
He didn’t trust the Ewok, but then again Siorc didn’t really trust anyone. Perhaps that HK unit could at least keep the furball from getting the rest of them killed. Siorc finally found a crate that had been offloaded to take a seat on and began scanning the edge of the woods waiting on the pair of scouts to report back in.
“Might as well,” Blackhawk said with a shrug. “Seems the wildlife calmed down. Don’t think we’ll get much trouble from them.”
As expected, they encountered no issues from wildlife whilst heading towards the source. It took them a bit, only being able to search by sound, but soon, they found their way into a small clearing, bisected by a river.
A short ways from where they had been, down the path of one of the more well-beaten animal trails, Maeva and Blackhawk found themselves at a point where the trees and vegetation thinned out a little bit as a wide, slow river stretched off in either direction as far as the eye could see. At first glance it appeared to be water, but after just a brief time casually observing it, it seemed perhaps a little thicker than would be expected of normal water, with a slight reddish hue to it that could possibly be due to silt or soil but without in-depth analysis it was difficult to tell.
Though slow and ponderous, it became clear that the river was flowing away from their landing clearing and deeper into the jungle. Further along the bank, there was a collection of small, fluffy creatures leaning over the edge of the bank and drinking. Taloned feet planted into the dirt anchored them as they lowered a beaked head into the flow, the thickness of the fluid clearly exerting some pressure against them as they slowly tilted with it while drinking. As a collective, it appeared that two or three of the creatures kept watch while the others drank, swapping out once one had had its fill.
Meanwhile, back at camp, Siorc saw a quite rotund lizard-like animal make its way out of the vegetation. It was about half a meter long, and nearly as much across as it waddled on stubby legs past the edge of the clearing. It looked about, head in the air and nostrils flaring slightly as it twisted from side to side clearly trying to follow a scent. Before there was time to react, its eyes widened and it darted back into the jungle much more swiftly than would be expected from how it had been moving before. There was no clear indication of what had caused it to flee so rapidly, but something had obviously greatly startled it.
Maeva watched the animals drink the water. The red hue was concerning as she glanced towards the upstream to see if there was a dead animal or something. If they can drink it, usually it meant that it was safe to drink.
Maybe it’s just soil?
Here’s a problem.
The animals live here and her team does not. But she needed to know. With that in mind, she took her backpack off of her as she squatted down and placed it on the ground. She dug around for a few seconds and got out a vial with a stopper in it.
A bit more digging, she got out medical gloves. Once she snapped them on, she stood and went to the bank of the waters to get the sample into the vial. After putting a vial into a biohazard bag, she removed the gloves and properly dispose them in the small disposal bag she had in her backpack. She looked up to Blackhawk and nodded to indicate she was done here.
“Okay, let’s go back to the ship.”
As the scouts headed back toward the campsite, now that they were aware of it they could clearly hear the river paralleling their path, all the way back to the clearing. The clearing itself had shown no signs of the river, however, so either it ran very near to the clearing just past the tree line or perhaps even more bizarrely went underground somewhere around the site of the crash. As the familiar landmarks they had noted earlier told them they were near the camp, an almost-perfectly round meter-long lizard shot like a dart down one of the animal trails they had seen, travelling quickly away from the clearing. There was no sign of any larger beast pursuing it, or anything that typically would have caused such an escape, so it was only left as yet another oddity of this strange dwarf planet.
Back in the clearing, Eleceos had been wandering the grounds for a bit, thinking of the possible archaeological wonders that awaited on this planet. As his feet had carried him about the large clearing, there had been a thought tickling at the back of his mind. As he curved away from the tree line once again, a combination of the awareness of the path he had been trodding as well as a premonition granted by the Force led to a single, undeniable conclusion. The shape of this clearing made it entirely obvious that it was not naturally occurring, and through some way or means had been designed for an as-yet-undiscovered purpose.
<@206692046424113152> <@216702440140046336> <@280930981983289345>
Maeva quickly went right behind Blackhawk at the sudden appearance of the lizard. Thankfully, it did not attack but instead scampered away.
Thank Dravdea.
Maybe it got spooked by someone from the camp?
After she waited long enough, she side-eyed Blackhawk before they were back to the camp. She was pleased to see others still at the camp and sniffed the air.
Wait, was that food? Did.. the Ewok actually make good food? She hoped so cause she doesn’t think she had anything to help the entire team if they all got food poisoning.
“We… found a source of liquid, maybe water, but since it’s not our water, I’ll run an analysis to see if it’s safe for us to drink.”
The engine sputtered once more, whimpered, and died.
Nibik slumped against the shuttle’s hull with a greasy sigh. “Fine. Shuttle wants food before it flies. Drama queen.”
His stomach growled in sympathy.
HK turned his head slightly, sensors still scanning.
** “Observation: Hunger does not enhance mechanical performance.”**
“Neither does nagging,” Nibik muttered, already vanishing behind a stack of crates. A moment later, he reappeared hauling scrap - a scorched tray, a cracked caf heater, and something suspiciously grill-shaped.
With a manic grin, he slapped it all together into a makeshift stove and smacked a faded sticker on the front: “Nibik’s Hot Stuff.”
“Yub yub,” he declared proudly. “Chef mode engaged!”
He tore open ration packs like a whirlwind — protein bricks, stew tubes, and finally, jackpot: “Bantha Stew – Smokey Spice Variant 2.6.”
“Oooooooh,” he cooed, holding the tin aloft. “T’baga bantha stew! G’lopa fucha!”
The can hissed open, steam curling with rich, meaty scent and just a hint of mystery spice. Nibik dumped three more tins into the tray, stirred it all with a hydrospanner, and sprinkled in a pinch of crushed T’kaa pepper.
He arranged four makeshift plates - flattened ration lids, artfully dented - and garnished each with a rehydrated root sliver and exactly one polite leaf.
“One for me,” he said, sliding a plate under his chin. “One for buckethead…”
“Reminder: I do not consume organic matter.”
Nibik winked. “Doesn’t mean you can’t appreciate the presentation.”
He tapped his dish “Hey camp crew — hot grub’s up! Get it before it melts the tray or walks away!”
Nibik took a seat beside the shuttle and raised his first spoonful like a toast. “Nibik fix, Nibik fly, Nibik feed. No die today, maybe die tomorrow!”
Steam drifted into the jungle. A warm meal. A brief moment of normal.
HK stood watch, rifle steady.
“Addendum: I would still prefer not to be recycled into a toaster.”
Nibik slurped and grinned. “Then eat up, pal. This stew’s got anti-toast properties.”
Between the suspicious proximity of the river to the site and Eleceos’ discovery of the non-natural design of the clearing, it seemed like an obvious decision to set up the Interference Generator and make contact with the Endeavour. While it was by no means stunning or dramatic - not a great smoking gun of obvious civilization - the truth was that often the greatest discoveries started from simple beginnings like this. What this basic clearing could lead to finding was anyone’s guess.
The device whirred to life, sending a brilliant blue beam skyward which struck against the ion storm above the clearing. Slowly but noticeably, the crackling electricity in the air high above began to settle and dissipate until finally though the breach one could see the stars, a sight not witnessed on the surface of this planet for who knows how long. The exploration crew sat down to a well-prepared meal while they awaited contact from Dr. Ekibi, now that the ion storm should no longer be interfering with communications. It took a little while, but eventually the comms on the shuttle audibly crackled to life.
“Hello? Hello, exploration team, we have seen that segment of the storm has been uhm cleared by the Interference Generator. With this thinning we’ve been able to detect both the shuttle in that area as well as…something, seemingly underground. We’re not uhm quite sure what it is yet, but we will be sending down the excavation team to begin discovery. You are welcome to remain and work with that team, or return to the Endeavour at your earliest convenience to receive your pay and transport back on your way. Thank you so much for your uhm efforts! The possibilities of what we may discover here are unimaginable, but it is all thanks to you that we may have a chance!” Before the team could even respond, the comms signal ended, clearly with the excited Chadra-Fan heading off at a million miles a second to get things ready for the next grand step in this venture…