Malediction

"Perhaps it matters not what his intentions are, but the fact that we will receive the ship. If the ship exists, and we find it, we can just forcefully hijack it if he is revealed to have malicious intentions."

"If we're doing this, I'd rather we do it now or as soon as possible," Camlann grumbles, "Get it over with so we can be on the move again."

[What is happening guys]

[We're trying to arrange a meeting with Friend so that I can feel less suspicious about this whole thing. And free food from dinner maybe?]

Although many of the council members are uneasy about this decision they do their work to arrange a meeting. Messengers are sent out and Vendigroth is set to the task of gathering information on friend.

The messengers return and tell the council they could not get any response from this 'friend' much less from the well armed servitors standing at those enormous gates. Vendigroth looked into 'friend' as carefully as he could (lest his snooping around be perceived in a negative fashion) but does not succeed. It might be possible to coerce a fellow to reveal information about 'friend', that is, if they know any factual information about him.

Darrius looks exhausted from his snooping like a cartoon character or the like [take your pick]

"Sir dont you think we should just go to the ship?"

"It does seem to be our only option at this point. Lord Glademore, I would have you inspect the star map most carefully. See if there is some way we might approach our destination that would ensure we have cover and concealment. Lord Rivaille, we will be approaching under stealth. I don't want anything that might be on that ship to see us coming. Lord Vendigroth, thank you for your efforts. You have worked most diligently on the behalf of the Solstice. Once you have finished selling the xanthrin, we shall leave Footfall.

"The funds have been transfered and everything is set sir. Before setting out it would be best to think about who will crew the ship once we have reclaimed it as we will need a pilot and possibly a navigator for the new ship. Also we will likely be committing all of our mercenary forces to this venture so it may be worth equipping them for close quarters combat and prepare ways of getting through sealed doors. We don't want to get caught in the situation we ran into last time on the Space Hulk after all."

Darrius think s for a moment longer then comes to a realization

"We should also look to see about getting some spare parts for the ship to have in the storage bay in the event the engines are dead or we need to make a quick fix in the event it can't be moved safely otherwise"

"Are our resources sufficiently recovered from our recent acquisitions to gather such valuable assets? I would not wish to strain our profits."

"Assuming Glademore is up to the task of guiding two ships through the warp then all we'd need to do is find a pilot. Shouldn't be too hard to find one on footfall and Rivaille undoubtedly has some men on board who could be possible candidates. We could likely get away with using the men at our disposal right now to get it under way since it is only a raider class ship but hiring some extra wouldn't hurt"

"Well Lord Glademore? Do you think you are able to perform this task? As for pilots, I would prefer to stay with men currently on board. We should try to avoid adding foreign nationals to the Solstice, especially in such tense times as these. My question about finances was aimed more towards your wish to gather spare parts. In fact, perhaps we should ask Lord Mekarn about that." Jarrion turns his attention to Mekarn, "Do you think our stores are sufficient for a long and dangerous voyage?"

Mekarn answers "In its current state the Solstice could sustain a voyage of half a terran years length."

"Well Lord Glademore? Will this journey last a mere 6 months?"

Glademore spends the next few hours studying the map. He informs you that not accounting for time spent at the supposed ship the journey to and from Footfall would take three and a half months.

"It may be worth acquiring some supplies in the event that things go awry. Only six months of supplies may not be enough"

"We should not waste time. Three and a half months leaves us plenty of time. I trust Glademore and Rivaille enough to bring us through quickly and safely."

The decision is made and the Solstice gears up for travel. Are there any last minute (1 to 3 hour long) errands any of the council members would like to attend to before they leave?

Just to make sure we get everyone on board before heading out and to look over the reports of the mercs search of the ship

Just to grab some quick antibiotics for the space syphilis. If there isn't time for this, we can leave anyway.

Gogo gadget.

The ship sets off immediately after Glademore devises a course for Rivaille to follow. The run goes forty five days and without a hitch, the resident navigator perceived the warp storms raging in the psychic distance one after another and directed the ship and it's crew to safety. The Solstice resurfaces from the warp into a debris field. Rivaille successfully maneuvers his way about the floating wreckage of other ships heading for the co-ordinates listed in the datavault. Finally the Solstice nears the purported location of an abandoned ship. One of the officers on the bridge notifies the council once a relatively whole ship is detected about 2 VU away.

At the undoubtedly soon to follow meeting between council members Darrius asks the general assembly of the lords gathered

"Do scans of the ship reveal anything out of the ordinary or is at least by appearance a normal abandoned ship?"

Lord Commander Xanatov asks Lord Mekarn to run some scans of the abandoned ship, looking for strange power fluctuations and anything else out of the ordinary. He also tell Camlann to set up a party of mercenaries for an investigation of the ship.

Mekarn replies "The spirit of the Solstice has not informed me of any unusual activity aboard that unknown vessel."

"Sir should we not send the entirety of the mercenary company to help secure the ship? Since there is a lot of area to cover it would be best to deploy everything we can"

"That is a brilliant plan, Lord Vendigroth. Once they establish a beachhead and secure the ship we can transfer ourselves over to that safe location."

"Sir it may be best if one or two of the lords go along with them. Lord Lankath would be an invaluable asset in such close quarters"

"It would certainly improve the men's morale if their commanders went with them." Jarrion turns to Rivaille and says, "Pull the Solstice up next to the abandoned hull. Camlann, are the mercenaries ready yet? Let us go to the hangar bay. Any who wish to enter the ship with me and Lankath are welcome."

Darrius volunteers for the venture

"Excellent! Would anyone else like to come with us on this journey? Riches await!"

Camlann sets up the mercenary group as requested. "I will go wherever you go, Lord Xanatov. Let us claim this ship as our own!"

The Solstice is moored to the abandoned vessel which at this distance is clearly a raider, although the precise make is hard to discern because of small debris chunks stuck to the ship. Xanatov, Camlann, Lankath and Vendigroth don their respective suits of armor and ensure their armaments are ready for any hostile situations. The four gather on one shuttle that transports them to a docking station near the bridge of ominous hull. Floodlights have been brought with the other mercenary squads to illuminate the pitch-black corridors.

(Actions and directives?)

"First thing is first we should make for the engine room and try and get the engines on line to bring power up. This ship's not going anywhere without power"

Camlann raises a power glove and addresses the group. "What I think we should do is split into two groups, each making its way to a key location. The first will head for the bridge, see if we can get this craft operational. The second goes for the cargo holds to grab any valuables they can find, should we need to make a hasty retreat for whatever reason."

"I fail to see what use going to the bridge will be if there is no power to operate any of the terminals there"

"I agree with Lord Vendigroth. If our experience on board the space hulk has taught us anything, it is that splitting our forces only leads to death. We should remain together, at the very least until we have restored power to the ship. I do not relish walking these unlit halls alone."

"These are valid points, to be sure, but most of us aren't mechanically inclined. I'd rather not sit around waiting but if Lord Xanatov agrees with you then so be it." Camlann instructs a small group to stay behind to ensure the shuttle does not get compromised.

"We should split the mercenaries into groups of thirty and start having then do sweeps of the ship. It's not too large a vessel so staying within vox range if each other shouldn't be difficult."

"Lord Vendigroth, do you change your mind so quickly? I thought you were of a like mind in preventing us wandering throughout this ship in small, easily-attacked groups? We will find the engines, restore power to the ship, and then, once the halls and rooms are well-illuminated and our enemies visible, we will divide and conquer. Should the engines be too damaged, we can create another plan once we learn of this fact."

"I do not think it'd be effective to have over four hundred men walking the same path. Not to mention how easily wed be attacked and difficult it'd be to be productive with our time. I do agree that the four of us, especially The Lord Captain, should stick together"

"If I may offer my advice, the looting party should consist of no more than one hundred men. Everyone else should make for the engine room to render it operational."

"Or at least have two hundred start sweeping the ship. Since it is believed to be cursed we should try and find out right away the validity of it as soon as possible"

"Very well. If you all believe that we should head on board with less men, I suppose we will. Are you sure you wish our men to separate into small groups where they can easily be picked off? Remember the fate of group 3 on board the space hulk. Safety in numbers."

"What I am proposing is that 180 men split into 6 30 man groups and start sweeping the ship, 100 come with us to the engine room, 100 men go to the bridge, and twenty stay here to guard the exit. Group 3 aboard the hulk went outside of vox range and was left behind never heard from again for their decision. This ship is much smaller and such an outcome is unlikely"

Xanatov, Lankath, Camlann and Vendigroth venture out with a 100 man group to the engine complex. 100 head to bridge, 20 remain to guard the shuttles and the remaining 180 break into 30 man groups to scout out the ship.

The four council members on board observe large scratches and las-bolt scorch marks on the walls and floors. It is apparent that there had been a battle in these halls at some point in the past.

Is anyone doing anything special or particular en-route to the engine complex?

Darrius is going to trace the path into a map so they don't get lost

Jarrion is going to make witty wisecracks and speak encouragingly to the mercenaries, making sure they stay calm and enthused in the cursed ship.

Darrius makes a map

Lankath turns on his augur arrays to a constant "on" mode, and walks around like that looking for anything abnormal.

Camlann makes note of potential fallback positions and sources of cover, preysense and auto-senses active.