Rbz13: The Shrine

General Summary

At long last, the crew nursed the battered remains of the fire engine back to the Habitat. A crowd gathers to greet them with a mixture of dread and cheer. It was clear that they barely survived their ordeal, but at the same time, evidenced by the shell pieces that adorned the vehicle, it was clear they emerged triumphant over the monstrous creature. Any shred of doubt evaporated after one look at Saskia's new patchwork armor, now sewn with pieces of the resilient red shell to give her a menacingly primal look.
Wynne met them in the market square, whereupon Benesh regales the gathering crowd of their (mostly his -- and quite embellished) antics. As impromptu celebrations begin, Echo announces a temporary departure. The Rubezahl's sponsor, Galactic Publishing Corp, would like a report, and Echo had been drafting a juicy account of their recent expedition that should turn many eyes.
As Echo takes off, Wynne pulls the rest of the crew aside into the sheriff's office. She gives them their due payment, but also reveals that something else had happened while they were away. Cassidy Khosla was gone. A very professional team had infiltrated the Habitat during the night cycle and exfiltrated her, using top notch military hardware. Not a soul saw what happened. Even if the Parasect Peril was over, there was much left to be done.
She wanted the crew to track down Cassidy Khosla and report back on her location. It seemed an inoculous (if importunate) task, but she offered good pay. More than that, she also produced a Pigeon messenger drone for the crew to use to contact her. This caught their attention. Pigeons were expensive pre-Exodus devices and not casually handed out. Wynne was obviously more important -- and perhaps more dangerous -- than she lets on... as was their quarry.
With some hesitation (and eye of the prize), the crew agree to look into the task and depart for the jungle metropolis of Elysium. Quinn suggests that the seedy locale would be an ideal place to get a lead on Khosla; that, and he had some religious business there anyways.

---

The crew arrive on Elysium to a hazy purple sky. Compared to the austere Precursor-fabricated interior of Cerberus, Elysium teemed with life. Strange birds squaked noisily as they few toward the orange sunset. Quinn proved to be quite familiar with the locale, quickly procuring a herd of dunkeys -- bioengineered riding animals resembling ostriches (with donkey DNA, if the name is of any indication). Then they set out into the mountains along a series of increasingly obscure forest paths.
As the sun sank below the horizon, the purple hues of the sky gradually darkened into night. However, much of the path remain illuminated for some time by the carefully spaced bioluminescent fronds. The world was such a stark contrast to the crowded artiface of Cerberus (not to mention the cramped quarters of the Rubezahl), and the crew welcomed the change.
The journey took quite some time, taking them away from the illuminated trails and stretching well into the night. However, curiosity and duty kept energies high. Quinn stopped the caravan at a grove some time after midnight. To the others, it looked little different from any other patch of the forest, but Quinn dismissed their questioning glances and set the Seedbaler relic down at a very particular patch of grass. Then he simply sat down and began to meditate.

Seer Prophecy:

Charge / Vow

Reinhard looked at him and wanted to ask a question but quickly thought better of it. Instead, he circled around the grove, standing guard over his entranced friend. The others took the opportunity to look around the grove.
Benesh took an interest in the bioengineered dunkeys. While they look nothing like the noble equestrian animals from his homeworld, their behavior was oddly similar. He sorted through his trail rations and selected a few to feed the animals, establishing a sort of rapport.
Saskia found herself a rocky ridge that rose above the treeline. Now growing bored of all this nature, she tapped into the planet's GPS network and hacked a real time feed -- just in case they needed quick updates. However, something pinged her hand terminal, and she realized with a growing sense of dread that it must be The Legion.
As Quinn finished up with his medidtation, Saskia bursted into the clearing. "They know where we are. They've been tracking my location!" she exclaims, brandishing a smoking pistol before holstering it, "I think it's The Legion. But don't worry. I've taken care of it. But we need to get moving."
"We can't just leave." He turned and gestured to where he set the eggshell relic down, which has quickly been overgrown and entangled by roots. "This place is sacred. And we can't move the egg now."
The crew paused for a moment before hatching a plan. Sakia went to retrieve the damaged hand terminal and Reinhard begrudgingly volunteered to swap the identity module into his phone. Once the "tracking" is reestablished, the crew would quickly lead the signal away from the site.
What could possibly go wrong?

Report Date

04 Dec 2021

Primary Location

Elysium

Secondary Location

Cerberus

Related Plots

• Chasing Khosla
• S1. Seedbaler Relic
• S1. Tracked by the Legion

Related Characters

• Wynne