Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[_DivideByZero_]

   Long ago, men believed the universe was much smaller. We have learned since then. But we, like them, are still human, and it is the driving force of curiosity that led us here.
   That was thousands of years ago, on a distant planet that we call Earth. You may not have heard of it or its history. That is because most of your kind left long ago when a fleet of massive, self-replicating machines visited Earth and started terraforming it. We succeeded in destroying most of the first few, but they kept coming, and for every three nukes we launched at one in space, three more were found landed on the surface. When we destroyed the first one on our surface, its destruction spread toxic contaminants across the region and forced half of the cities in south Asia to be evacuated. By the time we figured out how to shut them down, Earth's atmosphere was hardly breathable, and most of our population has been wiped out. So we did what we could--we abandoned Earth to the machines and evacuated to Mars.
   We waited out the terraformation process for decades, rebuilding our population and our society. Near the end, we noticed that Earth's atmosphere had changed again, this time similar to its original composition. Investigating, we were surprised to come back to find  most of Earth’s ecosystem still present and living in harmony with alien lifeforms brought by the machines. We were able to resettle, but at this point Earth was no better off than the exosolar colonies in their genesis. We had no choice but to keep silent and wait, lest the colonies return and take advantage of our weakness. One day, however, we will return and claim what is rightfully ours. We will not be forgotten.[/i]

(Foreshadowing!)

Spoiler: What is this? (click to show/hide)

This is a five player, semi-serious not-too-serious RtD based several thousand years into the future in some kind of spin-off of the "Deep Space" universe I started a while ago. It's got somewhat hard-scifi explanations as to why things work, but otherwise features ancient aliens that were responsible for most of the life in the universe (except humans), pseudo-magical/psionic abilities based on entropy manipulation, and several houses with varying degrees of isolationism, authority, and centralization.

Spoiler: More Background (click to show/hide)

The Five Houses

The Centauri settled on Alpha Centauri in 2305. The colony was set up using geothermal energy from the planet Centauri Prime's easily accessible geothermal energy. The planet's arid climate and poor soil prevented large-scale agriculture, encouraging the Centauri to research space travel and form an empire relatively early. By the time the Sirians and Ross launched their first interplanetary vessel in 2745 and 2872, respectively, the Centauri had already colonized their first star in 2648.

Today, the Centauri Empire runs on an absolute monarchy with a parliamentary system for lesser matters unfit for the king. The people are creative and intelligent, but the mineral-poor planet, dirty atmosphere, and malnutrition resulted in a race of little short people with meager physical stats.

The Sirius settled on Sirius in 2310. The then-swampy tropical planet Locyrmor provided hydrocarbons for a coal-based industry, eventually developing into a high-tech polymer industry. The planet caused a lot of radio interference due to its naturally occurring auroras and shifting magnetic field. The loss of contact between city states led to constant infighting until 2600, when Mikael Cyrus united the largest of the planet's continents under military rule and began to organize a militarist society with a state-funded research platform.

The Cyrus Legion, as it is traditionally called, currently controls the largest number of systems, and often associates with the border worlds and independent systems in stark contrast to the Centauri and Ross governments. Their traditionalist society values honor, ground warfare, and industrialization over peace and diplomacy, but they are by no means hostile to all newcomers as long as they know their place.

The Ross settled on Ross 154 in 2312. Their homeworld, Ebony, is a small rock dotted with fields of rich soil and purple vegetation. Its wildlife is incredibly hardy compared to other planets, and has been carried around to other worlds where they act as invasive species. Ross have a consumerist society led by a republic. They are often nationalistic, arrogant, and often racist, despite their own genetic diversity. To them, space is simply a place to go, and not to be feared. Common traffic areas are filled with yachts, shuttles, and personal stations owned by rich and poor alike.

The Aroth settled on Arcturus in 2340. The loss of the colony ship's data stores led to a research initiative to reverse-engineer most of the technology the colonists had brought, saving them from an otherwise inevitible demise without technology to live on their first colony—an icy world with hostile wildlife yet vast mineral resources. Having a Clan based society without a modern market system promoted an optimistic population that does the right thing... usually.

The Polaris settled on Polaris quite late in 2735. Having by far the largest population pool out of any of the colony ships, growth was quick and recovery from the long voyage was easy. Polarian society is extremely diverse, with a decentralized government lacking a military or a formal taxation system. Living in almost complete anarchy with an endless frontier, Polarian society grew, along with a massive crime rate and rampant piracy.

There is more than just the houses. The border worlds are stars lying on the edges of civilized space, populated by various nationalities stemming from the original five. Travelers are rare due to the difficulty of acquiring a warp crystal, and the further difficulty of finding a mage who can use one, but they exist. Oftentimes, they are the mage (more on this later).
The edge worlds are on the fringe of known space. Some have permanent populations, but the majority do not, and as such pretty much anything goes. Roaming here without a warship is either suicide or a "tax magnet" (not all pirates attack right away and take your things--some just demand money).

Polaris is linked to the central systems via a warp gate in Thuban. It is a structure that was supposedly built by the same race that built the terraformers. Warp crystals in its proximity can be charged by a mage in order to activate the gate.
The warp gate has a "twin" in Gamma Serpentis (or just called Serpentis, as the star is habitable unlike its associated stars) oriented toward Thuban.

Tech Base

Communication:
Quantum entanglement communication is still in the works. As such, the fastest way to get a message to someone is to send a ship using FTL travel to relay the message, and have in-system communications handle the rest. Corporations have a difficult time doing this, keeping them relatively small. Only a select few corporations span across multiple systems, and most of those are publically funded.

Travel:
Warp crystals, a kind of rare powerful artifact, are used to enable a "Travelmaster" to enforce causality when a ship travels through a wormhole. Wormholes are the primary form of travel, and allow instant travel between orbits in different star systems.

Psionics?
Not really technology, but important nonetheless. Humans, being sapient, have the ability to influence the area around them. Humans with enough willpower can literally reverse entropy, causing things to happen that normally wouldn't happen. The opposite can also occur--individuals can possess vast destructive capabilities, rotting soldiers from the inside out, rendering equipment useless in seconds, and causing explosions through sheer will.

Only a few individuals have actualized these sorts of powers. Technically, all humans are capable of it. However, a mind generally requires an awakening of sorts to use these powers. They must spontaneously use their powers--often unexpectedly and subconsciously to be able to use them consciously. It is a vicious cycle.

Ships:
Ships are capable of 1G acceleration for long periods of time, and can hop between many orbits before needing to refuel.

Spoiler: Abilities and Traits (click to show/hide)

You will notice two areas below the condition and above the inventory on your character sheets.

Abilities are either active or passive, and are generally related to psionic abilities that pertain to your character and not his items.
Traits simply improve or reduce your rolls. You can get creative with them if you'd wish.

Spoiler: Psionics and You (click to show/hide)

There are two main categories of psionics. You can spend skill points. Basically, you get skill points at certain points in the game (such as when the party visits a library), and each skill point can be spent on learning a new spell or upgrading an existing one. Remember that damage is contextual--spells don't deal simple fixed values of damage.

Entropic
-Pyrokinesis
-Aging/rotting (cause metal to rust instantly, etc)
-Some forms of telekinesis
-Messing with technology
-"Messing" with pretty much anything, minds included
-anything that causes disorder

A-Entropic
-Healing
-Telekinesis
-Cryokinesis
-Teleportation
-anything that conceivably creates more order in the world rather than disorder. Cryokinesis, for example, removes heat from an area.

Know what kind of character you are. You can still control both types of psionics, but if your character is a maniac who hates the world, for example, you might want to go for entropic magic to stay in-character.
 
Traits are modifiers to certain actions. For example, Strong would give you +1 to physically intensive actions.

I'd suggest using 2-3 traits unless you want to have negative traits, then 3-5 could work. You can specialize in computers, tinkering/repairs, engineering, weaponry, perception, stealth, geography/tracking, mobility, etc.

Character Sheets
These sheets will be a lot simpler than my previous RTD's. Just copy the code below:

Code: [Select]

Name:
Race: (can be from a house or can be border/edge worlds. If parents are different races then just list them as Mother's Race/Father's Race. You can come up with your own group of people, too.)
Bio: (this is important as it will determine what kind of character you are)
Abilities: (you can start with a few if you are a psionic, otherwise you should remove this line unless you have a way of integrating casted abilities linked to your character. Personally, I'd recommend that everyone is a psionic, or that you eventually develop them somehow later in the plot, or your choices for gameplay could get limited.)
Traits:
Inventory: (people generally carry their guns and ammo around for self-defense. Space is harsh. Start with 3-5 magazines or so. I would not recommend starting with power armor unless you are an expy of Tony Stark with a multi-stellar conglomerate.)

And, to give people a heads up as to where we will be starting, here it goes:

Player List:
-Caellath
-HighEndNoob
-SuperBlast
-Unholy_Pariah
-Tiruin

Waitlist:
-darkpaladin109 (?)

[Caellath]

Welp, perusing sheet.

Spoiler: Done, I guess (click to show/hide)

Name: Russano Neskratt
Race: Aldros II (Border world) - Militaristic world, feudal structures, coexistence between high technology with modified weapons and motiffs from the age of chivalry.
Bio: Russano was born, as most of the world's population, in one of the many massive burgs (cities) that dotted the world of Adros, showing off the extension of their ruling lords' power. As an able-bodied male, he was quickly drafted into the militia and after displaying an outstanding performance with the manifestation of psionic powers during combat tests, elevated to a knight aspirant within the Order of the Thorns.

As a soldier, he was trained and excelled in his field: as one of the few psionics held by the Order he was bestowed the title of "Warlock" and trained as one should, his abilities prized not only for their efficiency but also for the morale boost granted to his allies and the fear he caused upon weaker-willed enemies. His powers were carefully developed towards military uses and he was granted small privileges as were fitting of someone wielding such powers within an Order that held any psionic in high esteem.

On the other side, he was also educated further than most knights are, both through books and classes with charismatic and intelligent members of his Order, allowing Russano to develop his own natural persuasion skills that assured more versatility and opportunities out of battlefields. During his studies, he took a realistic view of life and death in the universe as an affair in which the concept of "luck" was deeply ingrained into, growing affectionate of both the idea of the extremes of high and low caused by luck and the existence of moderate middlegrounds proportioned by common standards.

Russano was one of the few young men sent off as part of exploratory missions from his world, and thanks to diplomatic efforts regarding relations with the Cyrus Legion and a personal request (along with the fact his Order is fully aware that giving him some time for himself is preferrable to having him go rogue), the "warlock" was granted a fairly generous leave from his post to pursue personal interests through travelling, trying to sate his curiosity about the universe he had lived in but knew so little about.
Appearance: Russano is a young man around his mid twenties, his face angular and his body athletic, befitting of his military life. His hair is light brown, cut at shoulder-length and his eyes are hazel. He always walks with an air of confidence and dignity, although his eyes are always quick to betray alertness.
Abilities:
Active:
 - Breeze of Life :: Restores the health of nearby allies.
 - Flash Portal :: A simple personal teleporting ability in which the distance of travel depends on the amount of energy spent, allowing for cost-efficient close-quarters teleporting.
 - Lightning Bolt :: Electricity is called upon at Russano's hand, crackling around his fingers momentarily before being immediately discharged at the target, producing a loud thunderclap as it strikes.
 - Twisted Transistor :: Establishes a forced link with a target and transfers their Psi to Russano as long as they are within a range of 30 meters. If the target has no Psi or it is exhausted, health is drained instead.
 - Universal Clock :: Allows for manipulation of time on a local level, making matter return to how it was during a certain point in time.
Passive/Toggle:
 - I Like These Odds :: Steadily consuming energy, this toggled ability trusts the most capricious mistress of all: Lady Luck.
(Consumes Psi per turn for a chance at double-casting any psionic power used during its duration)

Traits:
 - Diplomat :: Properly educated and somewhat scholarly, the young man is perfectly capable of talking, deceiving and persuading others.
(+1 Persuasion?)
 - Ironmind :: Having one's mind honed for warfare allows him to keep his focus and shrug off external influences.
(+1 Resistance to mind/senses-affecting effects/attacks?)
 - Warlock :: Russano not only wields psionic powers, he has practiced since his teen years for doing it with remarkable competence.
(No idea)
 - Psibound :: His constant practice with psionic powers and lack of training with regular ranged weapons reflects badly on his performance with them.
(-1 to use of any ranged weapon aside from psionics, inability to use heavy personal weaponry or any weapon that requires familiarity with guns)

Inventory:
 - "Torque" Chainsword :: A vaguely-sword shaped weapon of war, the Torque chainsword possesses a flat housing containing the chain loop, keeping only the forward curved section open. It is a melee weapon with vicious spinning chain teeth and it tears through armor but is simply brutal against unarmored foes. The armored backside and guard guarantee a great measure of protection to the operator; even if the chain snaps under extreme stress, the wielder won't be harmed, and an extra precaution exists in the form of a chain usually connecting both glove and weapon.
 - Ceremonial Battle Robe :: Prioritizing protection for torso, neck and head, this battle robe was made to be visually pleasant while still retaining protective qualities. The entire set is white with details, such as trims, detachable waistcoat, symbols and the helmet's crest itself colored lilac. A lightweight suit of armor due to its mostly ceremonial purpose, its vital areas have thicker armor, just in case the owner finds himself in a pinch or targetted by long-range attackers. The armor has distinctively ornate pauldrons and seems like a mix between armor and a nobleman's outfit, being remarkably different from the ceremonial gear of common soldiers of his Order.
 - Black Clothing :: A set of more traditional clothing, composed of black trenchcoat, shirt, pants, hat and boots, carried in his luggage.
 - Bandages :: Worn on abdomen, arms and part of legs, they serve little purpose aside from being a tradition of his unit and an easy way of keeping bandages with him.

[Wwolin]

I'll have a sheet up once I have a minute to type it.

Spoiler: Sheet (click to show/hide)

Name: Steven Cobalt
Race: Polaris
Bio: "So you want to know about what I do, huh? Well, I'll start with my job. I'm a professional artifact hunter. Now, I know what you're thinking. You're wondering how a man in his early twenties could possibly be professional in any way, shape, or form. The answer to this question is a simple one: he can't. Fortunately, I'm a lot older than twenty. Hell, there's a legitimate chance that I'm your goddamned grandpa, with all of the women I've had in my 500 and some odd years on the job. You see, I don't age a day unless I want to, thanks to these psionic powers I've got. And I can do a lot more with them than just having myself look like a movie star. Namely, I use cryokinetics and teleportation. Makes being an artifact hunter a hell of a lot easier. Because you see, there's nothing more satisfying than putting something into a state of perfect order... except for blowing it to bits afterwards!"

A-Entropic:
           Cryokinesis: Freezing objects, or at least cooling them down
           TeleWARp: Very fast teleportation, but can only teleport to living things, making it better for combat mobility than escape
           Rejuvenation: Like healing, but only applies to the user

Traits:
         Ladies' Man (+1 to social rolls with women, but -1 to social rolls with men)
         Professional Artifact Hunter (+1 to avoiding traps)
         DIY or Die (+1 to tinkering with things)
         I'm Older Than You, I Swear (-2 to any social interactions with the elderly)
         
Inventory:
              'Hot Lead' Revolvers (The heat absorbed from the environment through cryokinesis has to go somewhere, right? These revolvers are of a discontinued model that was supposed to stop cryokinetics from being able to use their power. However, all that they did was act as a heat sink and melt down as soon as they got within firing range of any powerful cryokinetic. Steven found two of them in an abandoned military base that he was looking through, and decided to modify them so that only the ammunition heated up. While softer than regular bullets, the heated rounds often cause organic matter to combust upon contact.
              40 Lead Revolver Rounds
              Kevlar Jacket (A lightweight vest that is made from Kevlar for protection)
              Scoggles (Short for scanner-equipped goggles. They both protect the wearer's eyes and highlight points of interest, while looking damned cool to boot)

[Maxinum McDreich]

This looks fun. I'll see about getting a sheet up sometime... tomorrow. 2:45 in the morning may not be the best of times to make a sheet.

Thinking of going for a telepath that's skilled in repairing and building both mechanical and electronic objects, incase anyone wants to make characters that work with.

[superBlast]

I wanna try too... reserve a spot for me too.

Edit:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Name: Ryan?
Race: Human?
Bio: Has amnesia... the thing he can remember is some name... Ryan... and thats all. Though he does have psionic abilities... he doesn't even know that they are called that or even what is going on. All he has is some ragged clothes he found in an alley.
Abilities: Pyrokinesis, Technopathic (control machines and computers), Healing.
Traits: Amnesia (-2 when talking to people)
Fast learner (His mind is mostly empty so he has a lot of space in it... makes it he gets skill points easier or something?)
Observer (+1 to noticing things)
Insane reflexes (+2 to dodging stuff)
Lack of common sense (when he rolls a 1, it's x10 worse then when other people get a 1)
Inventory: Some ragged clothes

Will this work? And no I didn't go with amnesia because I skipped the background spoiler.... ok maybe I did.

[HighEndNoob]

Spot reserved.

[HighEndNoob]

Name: Dominic Zoshan
Race: Ross, Polarian Father
Bio: Being of a mixed background, Dominic always stayed away from large groups. He preferred studying ancient technology of the old world. (Ancient as in medieval through Civil-war era) Early in his adulthood, he discovered that he had Psionic abilities, and after mastering them, he became an independent security guard. He was fired soon after due to his employers learning about his powers. Upset, he became an independent bounty-hunter, mainly to catch criminals the gentlemen's way.
Abilities: Geokinesis
Traits: Gentlemen
Duelist
Polite
Inventory:
-Gunberd
   -B-22A Gunberd Round (20)
-Armored Trench-Coat
-Repair Kit

[Unholy_Pariah]

Name: Kenjaro
Race: Cyrian
Bio: Kenjaro was raised on Sirius by his overly traditionalist family and was taught to revere hand to hand combat as the ultimate form of battle and that to hide behind a weapon with a range greater than 20 feet was an act of ultimate cowardice. Taking these lessons to heart Kenjaro grew up taking every opportunity to fight that he could find in an attempt to please his parents, even when any normal person would be lying in a bloody crumpled heap in the gutter Kenjaro would still be swinging his fists at his opponents mindless of the damage done to his body. After several years of meaningless violence he had developed an insatiable blood lust and when he came of age he joined the only organization that would enlist someone with such a thirst for violence, the Cyrus Legion. It was soon discovered that his remarkable ability to continue fighting despite the sheer amount of punishment dealt to him was not a result of his blood lust but rather from the unconscious production of a psionic field that causing rapid cellular regeneration that in effect healed him as he fought, after this discovery he was ordered to undergo mandatory psionic training and it was here that his instructor taught him that to truly find honor through battle he must fight for a cause, whether it was defending a trade ship from pirates or conquering a nation there needed to be a reason behind it that would benefit the many over the few.
Abilities: Healing
Traits:
Blood lust, +1 to close combat attacks
Martial focus, +1 to melee attacks and dodging
Rifles are for cowards, -2 to long range weapons
Inventory:
Layered nano-steel armor
Ultrasonic axe
ballistic shotgun - 3 clips

[Maxinum McDreich]

Name: Davis Theul
Race: Edgeworld by the name of Pathis. Father was of Cyrian heritage.
Bio: Davis grew up on a peaceful, rural agricultural planet, that valued diplomacy and life. Davis himself had a talent with both mechanics and electronics and went to university, eventually transferring to a better one in Cyrian territory, where the studies inevitably turned to military use. Davis had a knack for grasping everything anyone ever said and advanced quickly. He joined the Cyrus Legion for a time after his studies to apply what he had learnt. There, he found out his little knack was actually his psionic power, telepathy. However, before they could really work on those powers, Davis' parents were killed by pirates, leaving him with the inheritance. He used it to buy his equipment and employed himself as a mercenary, helping those that cannot defend themselves for the most part.
Abilities: Telepathy. Used for mental messages and mind skim-reading.
Traits:
Military Training: +1 to cover/dodge and shooting.
Tactician: +1 to shooting when situation and enemies are assessed. -1 to all rolls when caught off-guard.
Mechanic/Electrician: +2 to repairs, maintenance and building of devices, weapons, vehicles and robots.
Never bring a knife to a gunfight: -2 melee combat.
Inventory:
Carbon based webbing with ceramic plating for armour. Helmet includes shades that displays information, such as biological creature movement over inanimate object movement.
TR4 Ballistic Rifle (fires bullets with a plasma charge that discharges on contact.)
3 clips, 30 shots in each.
R341 - Light rocket launcher, the 2 rockets designed with practically no AOE to kill infantry, but good for piercing armour. Unguided.
Handyman's tools. Used to repair or build anything mechanical and electronic.

[Tiruin]

Ugh, full player list already :/

Waitlist in advance.

Spoiler: Sheet. (click to show/hide)

PM'd

[_DivideByZero_]

Nice character sheets, I'll have to look them over. Also waiting on Maxinum McDreich (edit: oh, I expected an edit.)

One thing though: Sirius was the colony ship name. The people of the colony ship are now united under the Cyrus legion, the traditional military started by Cyrus which continued onward after he died.

The correct term is Cyrians for civilians on the empire, and Sirians for anyone else descended from the Sirius but not associated with the Legion in any way.

[Caellath]

Fixed my background. Also, Maximum seems to have posted his sheet already.

[_DivideByZero_]

I like Caellath's style. I'll use that.

As a note, abilities like "cryokinesis" and so on may be used at will to provide whatever effect you want. However, there is a chance it will not work as intended. If you want to use a certain "spell" multiple times, I recommend putting a skill point into it so you can reliably cast it.

Spoiler: Caellath, AKA Russano Neskratt (click to show/hide)

Name: Russano Neskratt
Race: Aldros II, Unknown Origin
Abilities:
(Active)
 - Breeze of Life
 - Flash Portal
 - Lightning Bolt
 - Twisted Transistor
 - Universal Clock
(Toggle)
 - I Like These Odds
Traits:
 - Diplomat
 - Ironmind
 - Warlock
 - Psibound
Inventory:
 + "Torque" Chainsword
 + Ceremonial Battle Robe
 - Black Clothing
 + Bandages (clothing) (8/8)
 - Holo-President

Spoiler: Wwolin, AKA Steven Cobalt (click to show/hide)

Name: Steven Cobalt
Race: Polarian
Abilities:
 - Cryokinesis [0/3]
 - TeleWARp
 - Rejuvenation
Traits:
 - Ladies' Man
 - Professional Artifact Hunter
 - DIY or Die
 - I'm Older Than You, I Swear   
Inventory:
 + 'Hot Lead' Revolvers (6/6) (6/6)
 - 40x Lead Revolver Round
 + Kevlar Jacket
 + [abb=CHARISMA: 1. Short for scanner-equipped goggles. They both protect the wearer's eyes and highlight points of interest, while looking damned cool to boot.]Scoggles
 - Lesser Warp Crystal

Spoiler: Maxinum McDreich, AKA Davis Theul (click to show/hide)

Name: Davis Theul
Race: Edgeworlds, Sirian Father
Abilities:
 - Telepathy [0/3]
Traits:
 - Military Training
 - Tactician
 - Never Bring a Knife to a Gunfight
Inventory:
 + Marktan Combat Armor
 + TR4 Assault Rifle (30/30)
 - 3x 30 Round Plasma Round Magazine
 - R341 Rocket Gun (2/2)
 - Handyman's Tools

Spoiler: superBlast, AKA Ryan (click to show/hide)

Name: Ryan ...
Race: Unknown
Abilities:
 - Pyrokinesis [0/3]
 - Technopathic [0/3]
 - Healing
Traits:
 - Backtrack
 - Perception
 - Instant Reflexes
 - Lack of Common Sense
 - Amnesia
Inventory:
 - Ragged Clothes

Spoiler: HEN, AKA Dominic Zoshan (click to show/hide)

Name: Dominic Zoshan
Race: Ross/Polarian
Abilities:
 - Geokinesis [0/3]
Traits:
 - Gentleman
 - Duelist
 - Polite
Inventory:
 + Gunberd
 - 20x Gunberd Round
 - Armored Trenchcoat and Top Hat
 - Repair Kit

-----

It is yet another day on Lokhis, the legendary capital of the Kepler system. It leads a reputation above all others in crime, inhospitability, and complete lack of resources to make it worthwhile. Some have dared to ask why it is even colonized when there is nothing to be gained. However, as you are well aware, there is more than meets the eye. A position in the heart of the system allows it to serve as the outpost for the system's diamond belt miners. The lack of a better alternative planet leaves the inhabitants of the kepler system no other choice. And to leave the Kepler system uninhabited would forfeit the opportunity of having it serve as a communications gateway. You see, Kepler is the Ross gateway to the Pavonia cluster, which is densely populated and serves as a major source of imports for the Ross. The Ross ordered the Kepler system's colonization in the 3400's to function as a "pit stop" or sorts, but over time it's become a mostly independent colony attracting its own brand of freelancers and pirates. Though far from peaceful, the system is less of a nightmare than the core Ross systems and Pavonia cluster are in that respect, and it's far less isolated from the other houses if the Ross systems are used as a gateway.

You wake up in the local hotel and get ready to embark on your return trip--home, to Aldros II. After donning your armor and attaching your weapon, sheathed in its ornate case, you head out to the launch loop tram and show the gatekeeper your ticket, being sure to display the Ross insignia on it so that they know who you are. This was a diplomatic mission, where you were the representative of your homeworld, and the Ross governor had decided to meet here instead of finishing his return trip from Delta Pavonia. The meeting was fairly uninteresting, though you did get to pick up a souvenier holo-president on your way out. "Keep it," the governor had said, "it'll help with other politicians in the future. They love to see diplomats show some patriotism."
As you seat yourself in the tram, you receive a call. Your display reads the call as coming from your ship! Quickly checking the clock to make sure you have time to talk in case it's something important (The tram leaves in eight minutes. It'll be half an hour before the next one.), you respond to hear your ship's Travelmaster on the phone:
"Your Honor Mr. Neskratt, sir..." he began in a hurried tone.
"What is it Reynolds? Is there something wrong with the ship? The crew?"
"The warp crystal is missing! Someone infiltrated the ship, I don't know how. I left a psy-lock on it which could reveal their location when it goes off, but don't come up here, we're coming down to speak with the authorities."

Meanwhile, near the Lokhis Police Department Hall...

You scour the back of the building looking for a way in, cursing to yourself. You have the warp crystal with you, but as for your friend, you couldn't haul him to safety by the time the helicopters had arrived. Right now he is in the base, and the department is sure to execute him on the spot once they force a confession out of him. You stay close to the wall to avoid the spotlights, and come across two doors near each other, both locked. One of them is labeled "Authorized personnel only," the other lacks a handle.

You currently stand next to a pair of officers, one in Ross uniform, the other wearing a long trenchcoat and top hat. As for what a Cyrian ensign is doing here... who knows. You were tasked to familiarize yourself with life in the border worlds. The Ross didn't mind you visiting the Police Department on Lokhis to get a feel for what it was like outside of Cyrian space, especially since the Ross and Cyrians have fostered a healthy alliance since the end of the Third Galactic Wars, in which the Ross stayed neutral but secretly helped the Cyrians fight off the Centauri and Aroth. That was over a hundred years ago.

The others were heading to interrogate a recently arrested criminal. You were supposed to follow them, ask questions, and do whatever they told you to do, as long as it remained within Cyrian custom to do so.

The Cyrian with you and the officer annoyed you. Something about him suggested an adherence to foreign tradition, and a fear of change. Your senses never failed you up to this point, so you could almost sense a rivalry that was to ensue if the Cyrian had to follow you around as well. Nevertheless, your Gunberd probably intimidated him, so maybe you would get to order him around a bit.

The prisoner in question is just a few halls ahead. He was arrested for stealing something from the ships--you were not told what he had stolen. Your job is to get an answer out of him as to what his motives are, and who, if anyone, helped him. You are to use every method you can to get an honest answer out of him, even if it means deadly force, as long as you do not kill him. Yet.

The door opens, and you see the silhouettes of three armed personnel entering through the light. You don't know why you are sitting in this room, what you did to deserve it, or what is going to happen. All you know is that you have some kind of feeling that you, even in your amnesia, know you have never felt before in your life. You still know English, how to walk, talk, eat, even fire a... well you don't know what that is. But this feeling seems to give you a sense of power, of being able to do something here. Maybe it could get you out of this situation, somehow. Really, this is confusing.

The officers are dead silent. Perhaps they know your life may well end here, if you don't do something right away. The system around you seems to be geared that way, and you're caught in the middle of it.

[superBlast]

((Holy crap... I can feel the epicness this might become!))

Ok... 3 people armed with weapons... I don't know what they are except they are dangerous. The people don't seem friendly... but they are my chance to find out what is going on and maybe who I am. I am Ryan. I know that much. I think.

Look around the room and note stuff of interest. If the people try to talk to me, keep quiet for now and listen.

[HighEndNoob]

Dominic sighed. Another fool trying to snatch something he did nothing to acquire. He needed to put him in his place, but first he must be polite.
"Good evening, sir. It seems that you have taken something of value. What was it?