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[AzyWng]

OOC

The TV dropped the team into a rather small room with a large black table at its center. Against the walls were shelves of boxes and crates with labels like "HANDLE WITH CAUTION", "EXPIRY DATE 8-23-4523", and "FRAGILE". A few dusty-looking lockers sat in a corner. It looked like the kind of place almost no-one went to. A single ceiling light illuminated the table. Stood at it were Lyra and Annie, both clad in their armor and with blades sheathed in scabbards on their backs. A small tablet, projecting an image of a map of the galaxy, rested just in front of Annie and Lyra. As the crew approached the two, Annie gave a friendly wave.

"Hey, you're here! Glad to finally get this done. To bring you up to speed - we already have a good idea of where the Trespasser is located." Annie points a gloved finger at a small collection of asteroids marked near the edge of The Drift. "The real problem is actually getting there safely and then reaching the Trespasser, not to mention being able to pinpoint the Trespasser's location so we don't waste time. But let's start with the most important things first." Annie waved at a few dozen red triangles and chevrons that were clustered around the asteroids. "Sovereign's got their crews guarding this thing fiercely. I'm not sure whether they've already been possessed, or if they just think they can still turn the situation to their advantage, but the point is, they're in the way.

Thankfully, Lyra and I have done a little prep work, so we've already got a few ideas on how to get past these guys. We could do one... or more... or maybe all of them!" Annie cracked a wicked grin at the prospect.

Lyra nodded, but she wasn't smiling. "But don't forget that this is just the first step. We've still got the actual base infiltration to worry about, not to mention killing the Trespasser itself. Plus, as disorganized as Sovereign's become, they've still got plenty of eyes in plenty of places. I'm worried that if we take too many of these opportunities, Sovereign will notice, and be ready to intercept us when the time comes to attack. Might be better to prepare our gear and tactics. Prepare ourselves best we can before we start sticking our heads out.

Which brings us to the next point - discretion is going to be our primary advantage. We can't just force ourselves into the facility and bombard it with missiles until it explodes, as much fun as that would be." Annie's smile faded and she rolled her eyes.

"Anyway, if you need one of us to fill you folks in, get a lay of the land, that sort of thing, just ask. We'll lay out our options in a little bit."

[GodofGamingRWBY]

Mira

For Mira, she simply stood by, arms folded as the briefing began. Truthfully, she didn't care much about the tactics of this; Even if this Sovereign took notice of them, it would be simple to just punch through. But she was the weapon, not the wielder. If they wanted to go 'quietly', then fine. She would simply wait until her methods were needed. But a strategy talk barely required her own input.

At the very least, Annie seemed to be of the same mind as her. Simply blowing the place up would be the simplest solution. Hardly the most fun, however.

[Chevaleresse]

Tsubasa

The Slayer quietly took in the information. Sneaking about wasn't her forte, exactly, but she wouldn't have to deal with the guards sniffing out her blood.

Probably.

"What do I need to do to blend in here?" She shrugs, vaguely indicating her style of dress. It was a bit archaic even in her home; she doubted that this place full of futuristic mercenaries saw a lot of people dressed like nineteenth century Japanese soldiers.

[DragonRage]

"Oh dear, that does look tricky," Joan frets, looking over the display, "I would very much prefer the quiet approach if we can manage it.  We wouldn't want to attract more enemies."  She brushes down her uniform with a frown, "Perhaps a change in wardrobe?  Little sis swears by knit beanies, dark turtlenecks, and jeans," She continues.  She produces such a beanie and tries to put it on, but her hair proves entirely too springy to let it sit right on her head.

[Sora]

Ea

"Normally I'd volunteer to put us all into an illusion that'd make us blend right in, but I fear that given the state of this world that I'd run out of Magical energy as we reach the middle of the enemy base. Disguising you three doesn't seem too hard, you could fit right in with different clothes. Myself on the other hand..."

Ea looked down on her own clothes and form. Even if she was hiding her more draconic features, she was still very visibly a fey. Hard to explain that away with poor make-up choices and a more eccentric personality.

[AzyWng]

Annie and Lyra nod as they dig through some of the shelves to pull out some weathered-looking mercenary gear - load bearing vests, dark gray shirts, tactical pants, and yes, indeed, a few turtlenecks. "Just don't show off your powers too much and we should be okay."

"I'm sure any oddities can be explained away as a result of... glitching, or something, anyhow. Not that we'll need much of a disguise once we get to the fun part - we'd just rather not reveal our true abilities until we're fully prepared, you know?"

"Speaking of preparations..." Lyra pulls out a list of things, then uses the device on the table to magnify it for everyone in the room to see.

Each character chooses one of the options below

Spoiler: Stage 1 - Pinpointing The Facility (click to show/hide)

Raid Sovereign Vessel- "It's the most straightforward path. We know a few ships in the area that belong to Sovereign - and all it should take is hitting one of them so we can get some of the data."
"Of course, that'll definitely raise some eyebrows, but hey, it's not like Sovereign isn't being regularly hit anyway."
Normal fight. Gain 3 Favor. Sovereign might not realize what you're planning.

Work With Drift Resistance - "Looks like their time has come yet again."
"Mmh. I doubt we'll be able to gain their full trust straight away, but they should know something about Sovereign's comings and goings that'll help us pinpoint the location. They will ask us to do something in return, though - and no doubt Sovereign will notice we're working with their enemies."
Normal fight. Gain 6 Favor. Gaining a connection with the Drift Resistance might be useful. Sovereign will definitely notice who you're associating with, and will shore up their defenses.

Offer Assistance to Sovereign "No fucking way."
"If we want to infiltrate them, we could try to earn their-"
"We have other ways of getting rid of this Trespasser. Ones that don't involve getting in bed with the people who willingly created something like me."

"Oh, I nearly forgot," Annie says. "Our supplies have gotten more than a little limited with all the fighting going on, and getting what we want... it might not always be possible. If we want to prepare... we may need to take the time to get more people on side, first. Depends on what we want to do, exactly."

Current Favor: 5

Each character can choose one action below to prepare before this mission.

Spoiler: Mission Prep (click to show/hide)

Acquire Stealth Pods - "Now, Sovereign are the ones who designed the Coldfire, but these should still give us an edge on our approach - both now and in future. I do know a guy, but... well, it's a big ask to try to get one during a time like this."
Attract less attention from Sovereign. Quality pods may provide other benefits. Costs up to 5 Favor, depending on quality and other factors.

Bring in Cathartes - "We got separated not long before I was brought onboard, but if I know Cathartes - she's still around the Drift somewhere. I'm sure she'd be more than happy to help us. She's damn good with a rifle."
Gain the ability to snipe one enemy at the start of combat, inflicting extreme damage and possibly killing the target outright. Costs no favor.

Acquire Explosives - "I'm not talking sparklers here. I mean breaching explosives. If there's anything in The Drift that can hurt a Trespasser, it'll be those."
"You just want to blow things up, don't you?"
"I mean, Sovereign will probably brand us as terrorists for what we're going to do anyway. Might as well lean into it, right?"
Gain the ability to harm and inflict Fragile to all enemies before combat starts, as well as other uses. Uses will be limited. Using this before the final mission may make things more difficult. Costs up to 3 Favor, depending on quality, quantity, and other factors.

Hire Help - "One good thing about this whole mess is that we're not short of people with guts and guns."
"..."
"Yeah, you're getting nostalgic already, aren't you? Anyway, whoever they are, well... they probably won't be nearly as tough as we are, but they should at least be some help. Strength in numbers and all.
An additional character joins the party during combat, though they won't be as strong as a PC. Costs up to 5 favor, depending on quality. Can only hire once per prep phase.

Coordinate Tactics - "If we learn to work together, our odds of success increase dramatically."
"It's better than tripping over each other, anyway."
Each character who does this activity can choose one skill and increase its level by 1 for the rest of the plot.

Gain Favor - "Don't worry, we won't be asking you to do anything dangerous. Well, not more dangerous than normal."
Gain 4 Favor for each character who does this activity.

[Chevaleresse]

Tsubasa

Tsubasa took off her haori and folded it carefully, before perusing the proffered clothing and picking out some clothes she could put over her uniform without too much fuss.

"Let's just raid them." No need to overcomplicate things. If they needed any help, she could help them gain favor as needed without drawing so much attention.

[DragonRage]

"I agree with Tsubasa," Joan decides, "The more moving parts a plan has, the more likely it is to fall to pieces the moment it hits some turbulence.  And resistance movements tend to involve a lot of moving parts, and a lot of turbulence.  Let's raid a Sovereign ship.  I'm sure that between us we'll be able to find a way to come out on top."

Joan will acquire stealth pods, spending the maximum of 5 favor unless anyone has something else they really need it for.  "My sisters always complained about fighting Romulan ships with their cloaking devices, so not being seen before you strike must be a pretty serious advantage.  The Treaty of Algeron meant I never got to have one, of course, but I always wondered what it would be like.  And if it's not a Federation cloaking device, it's outside the treaty limits.   ...As long as we don't run into any Romulans.  You don't have Romulans here, do you?"

[Sora]

Ea

"If I know one thing it's that you can never have enough friends. Then again these guys from sovereign look like they'd be a pain to deal with down the line. So let's try to raid this sovereign Ship and hope nobody misses them. I'd bring in Cathares, the less people we have to deal with the better our chances of going unnoticed"

Then Ea looked over the selection of disguises she got here at her disposal. There was no helping it, she'd have to cram herself into one of these things.

"Let's hope our mission goes smoothly. The sooner we can get out of these things the better."

[GodofGamingRWBY]

Mira

The Dark Knight simply stares at the uniforms being handed out for a few moments, then sighs, begrudgingly taking them, "Let's just get to work. Raiding their ship will be a good staging point" she said simply. And even though she herself is not an expert at diplomacy, she figured she could help Tsubasa gain favor. The more supplies they can get, the better.

[AzyWng]

Mission Prep:

Annie's supplier is a nervous-looking fellow with a prosthetic right arm. He and Joan meet in a quiet-looking lockup, and after passing along a message from Annie, he just nods, and shows Joan to some of his pods. It's obvious just from looking that these black breacher pods are high-quality, and Annie's more than eager to take them out for a spin once they're brought to the hideout.

"Hey! Hey, Lyra! You still know tech shit, right?"

"A little bit-"

"You. These pods. Work your magic!"

"... I'll see what I can do, I suppose, but I'll need supplies of my own if you want me to take things a step further..."

"I... well, all right. Start thinking of ways to do that and get a shopping list ready by the time this first mission's done."

Stealth pods acquired: Reinforcements are delayed by two turns (now four). Missions attract less attention from Sovereign (and sometimes, none at all).

Quality bonus I: One ally of the party's choosing starts battle with 2 turns of Smoke!

Quality bonus II: Non-boss enemies can only use basic actions on the first turn of battle!

5 Favor spent (new total 0).

Meanwhile, Tsubasa and Mira are put in contact with people in need of help - some of them are people Lyra has known about, others are people who Annie has contacted. The work is fairly simple - everything from package deliveries to guard duty. Sometimes the jobs take less than five minutes - but the tension in the air around Coldrock Haven makes it obvious that their help is needed.

Plenty of people seem keen to take advantage of the chaos this whole mess has caused, and it often takes people like Tsubasa and Mira to remind them why that's a dumb idea.

8 favor gained.

It takes a bit of time for the meeting with Cathartes to be set up. When Ea is finally sent off, she's pointed towards a night market, bustling with activity. Whatever traces of Sovereign there were are gone now, at least for the time being, but people still move around uneasily. Whatever conversations are being held seem far more urgent, and it's clear that Ea stands out, even with the aid of the disguise she's been given.

Cathartes, clad in an oddly familiar yellow-and-black armor, slips out from the crowd and pulls Ea away. She acknowledges that yes, she's the person Ea's been sent to retrieve, and begins to follow Ea to the hideout. She doesn't say much of anything to Ea or Lyra or even Annie. But Annie doesn't seem bothered by the silence at all.

"Don't worry. I can recognize the people I work with, and that's definitely her."

"... Is she always this quiet?"

"Pretty much. But she can make other people quiet in pretty short order, and that's the more important thing."

"All right. Just... be careful, okay? She gives me a weird feeling..."

"Not sure you can trust her? That's rich, coming from you."

"That isn't... Never mind."

Cathartes acquired: Once, at the start of combat, Cathartes can snipe one enemy of the party's choosing. This enemy will take extreme damage and may be killed outright.

It's not long before Annie and Lyra have gathered the group before them once more, this time having highlighted a few routes that Sovereign has been using to 'acquire' and move supplies. Three ships in particular are highlighted.

"We've picked out a few targets of opportunity - and while they're largely carrying the same information, the different security on each ship suggests that there's more valuable intel on some, particularly this one," Lyra gestures towards the largest vessel that's been highlighted.

"Naturally, I think we should hit it."

"It could be carrying something especially valuable - intel, valuable equipment, or something else. But it'll definitely get noticed by Sovereign - not to mention other actors in the Drift. Ultimately it's your choice whether to hit it or not. We've got notes on the security inside to help you make your decision."

Choose which target to attack. Only one may be chosen.

Spoiler: The three targets: (click to show/hide)

Target A: "The SIV Pristine. Manifest says it's mostly got food and spare parts. But if we figure out what facility is meant to receive those parts, we can get an idea of which facility's got the most activity - and thus where the Trespasser is."
"You think they're smart enough to try to use decoys?"
"I'm not sure they have enough resources for diversionary tactics like that... At least, I hope not..."
Security: 4 Sovereign Guards, 1 Sovereign Pilot, 1 Sovereign Drone Op.
Reinforcements: N/A
Importance: Little-to-none (Gain 0 Heat from hitting this target [Reduced from 2 by Stealth pods])
Favor bonus: 2

Target B: "The SIV Mercury's Rival. This one's got lots of fuel and energy cells - industrial quantities of it. Getting the exact info of how much of it's going where will definitely let us know what places are most active."
"I wonder which Mercury they mean. I assume the very first?"
"Very first?"
"Roman god of being fast. A planet in the Solar system was named after him. It was in one of those books in the library, that's how bored I was waiting for this."
Security: 2 Sovereign Guards, 4 Sovereign Elite Guards, 1 Sovereign Captain, 2 Sovereign Light Security Robots.
Reinforcements: Light (arrives in 4 turns)
Importance: Moderate (Gain up to 2 Heat from hitting this target [Reduced from 4 by Stealth pods])
Favor bonus: 6

Target C: "They tried to be clever with this one. It's just codenamed ‘Phlogiston’. I assume fire is involved in some fashion, but that could just be some fat cat looking for a cool name. Anyway, I'm usually not one for buying mystery crates when I can just steal them instead, and it looks like that's what we've got here."
"Sorry we couldn't get more info on what's defending it."
"Hey, now. These people aren't like you, so they'll be fine, I'm sure."
"... Anyway, if you don't think hitting this is a good idea, then you don't have to."
"Hey, do I need to repeat myself?"
Security: ? ? ? Sovereign Elite Guards, 1 Sovereign Commander, ? ? ? Sovereign Drone Op, ? ? ? Sovereign Medium Combat Robots.
Reinforcements: Heavy (arrives in 4 turns)
Importance: High (Gain up to 6 Heat from hitting this target [Reduced from 8 by Stealth pods]).
Favor bonus: ? ? ?

Spoiler: Preparations (click to show/hide)

Stealth pods: Reinforcements now take 4 turns to arrive (was normally 2).
Missions attract less Sovereign attention (and may attract no attention).
One ally starts with 2 turns of Smoke at the start of battle.
Non-boss enemies can only use basic actions on the first turn of battle.
Cathartes: Can snipe one enemy at the start of battle, dealing extreme damage and possibly instantly killing them.

Current favor: 8
Current heat: 1

[GodofGamingRWBY]

Mira

"Whatever their defenses, it won't be enough to hold out against me. This 'Phlogistion' should be a suitable target. Deal with that, and their defenses will still have a significant hole" Mira stated bluntly, eyes focused entirely on the display, and on the target. She could certainly use a warmup soon.

[AzyWng]

With ‘Phlogiston’ chosen as the target, Lyra and Annie give the team the green light to get moving towards the ship.

As the breacher pods leave for the target, the team gets a chance to see the outside of Coldrock Haven.

And... it doesn’t look good. The wreckage of various structures litter the landscape, and the pilots (Cathartes, and Annie and Lyra who are controlling the pods remotely) have to slow down to move the pod around more than a few pieces every so often. Thankfully, they manage to clear the debris field without so much as a scratch, and from then on, it’s less than an hour’s wait before their target comes into view. The pods enter into stealth mode and slowly make their way to a series of docking ports in the side. From there, the pods attach to the ship with a quiet click before the airlocks cycle and the team can board the Phlogiston.

Of course, Sovereign’s crew isn’t going to just let them grab the data they’re after...

Choose one target for Cathartes to snipe.

Choose one ally to gain Smoke for 2 turns.

Enemies are taken by surprise and can only perform basic actions for the first turn!

Reinforcements will arrive in 4 turns.

Positioning:
1: Mira, Tsubasa, Joan, Ea, Solemn
2: Empty
3: Sovereign Elite Guards A, B
4: Sovereign Elite Guards C, D, E, F, Sovereign Commander, Sovereign Drone Op A
5: Sovereign Elite Guards G, H, Sovereign Medium Combat Robots A, B, Sovereign Drone Ops B, C

INIT:

5: Sovereign Commander
4: Sovereign Drone Ops
2: Tsubasa
1: Sovereign Elite Guards
0: Sovereign Medium Combat Robots
-3: Mira, Joan Dark
-4: Ea
-5: Solemn

Status:
Sovereign:
Commander: Undamaged
Drone Ops A, B, C: Undamaged
Elite Guards A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H: Undamaged, Under Command
Sovereign Medium Combat Robots A, B: Undamaged, Under Command

(Unnamed group):
Tsubasa: 36/36 HP
Mira: 45/45 HP, 3 Magra
Joan: 24/24 HP
Ea: 36/36 HP, 0 Eternal Bloom, 0 Mana
Solemn: 24/24 HP, 1 Aetherflow

[AzyWng]

The Sovereign Commander guards.

The Sovereign Drone Ops B and C advance to Zone 3 and guard.

Positioning:
1: Mira, Tsubasa, Joan, Ea, Solemn
2: Empty
3: Sovereign Elite Guards A, B, Sovereign Drone Ops A, B, C
4: Sovereign Elite Guards C, D, E, F, Sovereign Commander,
5: Sovereign Elite Guards G, H, Sovereign Medium Combat Robots A, B

INIT:

5: Sovereign Commander
4: Sovereign Drone Ops
2: Tsubasa
1: Sovereign Elite Guards
0: Sovereign Medium Combat Robots
-3: Mira, Joan Dark
-4: Ea
-5: Solemn

Status:
Sovereign:
Commander: Undamaged
Drone Ops A, B, C: Undamaged
Elite Guards A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H: Undamaged, Under Command
Sovereign Medium Combat Robots A, B: Undamaged, Under Command

(Unnamed group):
Tsubasa: 36/36 HP
Mira: 45/45 HP, 3 Magra
Joan: 24/24 HP
Ea: 36/36 HP, 0 Eternal Bloom, 0 Mana
Solemn: 24/24 HP, 1 Aetherflow

[Chevaleresse]

Tsubasa Provokes the Sovereign Commander (or Medium Combat Robot A, if he's dead) and Concentrates, gaining 10 SHD and 1 Concentration.