His brain screeched for one instant, he saw blue parallelepipeds oscillating like piano keys over a foamy cliff, like a cubist painting, his cybernetic data port for just a few milliseconds flooded with data, then stabilized. The connection was set.
In the world outside, a gargantuan reddish wound opened in the black sky, swallowing the Vaduz whole.
Now, the black adamantinely structured firmament was fast disappearing in a downsizing opening. They were leaving the Materium behind and, all around them, a maddening mesmeric red mass was trying to engulf the placid and empty space inside their Gellar Field. The red mass looked like the swirling womb of an hentai comic, was grotesque yet alluring, calling yet repulsive.
Hans felt an urge to communicate a destination, the parallelepipeds blinked.
He gazed for a second the mechanicus, whose mechandrites were deep into the wires around the crystalline spheroid on which Hans' hands were resting, the Logic Core of the Multiversal Warp Drive.
Hans hoped the mechanicus didn't realized what was going on, because the Logic Core seemed to be way more intelligent than the simple computer programs and narrow ai neural networks the Imperium used in their Machine Spirits.
The encryption protocol is strong. A sphere within a sphere with no entry way, only mirrors reflecting data like a polished metal reflects wavelengths.
Shit, that's AI.
Destination.
Hans gave a quick gaze outside, where he thought to glance for a the space of a breath a screaming mouth, rapidly dissolved in the mesmeric clouds, and glanced back inwards.
He closed his eyes and let the sensations driven by the conversation with Caldan flow, his vision of the rusty Manufacturum of Hive Volcano, the great battlefields, the meaty orange flower of the jungles. Tried also to support his imagination with a few pictures he saw depicting the First Armageddon War.
The Parallelepipeds buzzed and staid still.
Hans was staring to worry that it was not going to work, then the parallelepipeds started to vibrate like drumrolls.
Awe exclamations in the bridge deck let him open his eyes: the Immaterium clouds were swirling like a hurricane and red-blooded violent nebulae were starting to wash away the more indolent violet-red ones.
Drop out of Immaterium immediately.
"Drop out of Immaterium immediately!" Hans screamed.
Another window opened in the fabric of reality, the blackness of the still sky beyond, and the Vaduz was spitted in the Materium, running at full speed in the empty space, while the Warp window was closing like a malevolent anus.
The space around them was full of stars and one was far more bright of the others. He star looked more reddish than Earth's Sol and definitely more reddish than Necromundan's white sun.
"Running astrothelemetry. Searching for known neutron pulsar star and triangulating our position." Said the void master.
After two minutes of dense silence:
"Mylord, this is the Armageddon's system. And we are 12% inner than the Mandeville limits usually allows"
They made it.
They crossed almost the entirety of the Segmentum Solar in less then 5 minutes.
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For this turn Will follow 2 event votes and we can do up 5 actions from the list. The second event can be done at any point in the turn.
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Traveling from where we are to Armageddon IV takes 29 standard days (but can take more depending on the first event results).
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Two hours after entering into the Armageddon system we receive the following distress call:
**+++ Incoming Distress Signal +++**
**Ship: Carrack-Class Merchant Vessel "Orca"**
**Cargo: 50,000 Kilotons of Machine Lubricants, 10,000 Chimeras**
**Route: Armageddon IV to Mandeville Point, Edge of System**
**Time Since Boarding: 3 Hours**
**Location: Approximately 30 Hours from Mandeville Point**
"This is **Captain Vornik** of the merchant ship *Orca*, sending an emergency distress signal across all frequencies. Ork pirates have breached our vessel. Repeat, Ork pirates have boarded the ship using **Xenos sorcery**, bypassing our void shields as if they weren't there. Our hangar bay has been overtaken.
We attempted to repel them with our ship troopers—1,000 men strong—but we've suffered catastrophic losses. 500 dead. The rest are retreating. The Orks now control the hangar bay and are advancing toward the command bridge. Their numbers are overwhelming, estimated at **5,000-6,000**, heavily armed and brutal.
We have another 500 soldiers remaining, but they are stretched thin. Despite the ship carrying over **60,000 menials**, they are unarmed, and I fear arming them may lead to a mutiny. We only have **2,000 lasguns** on board—woefully inadequate. The situation is critical.
We are reversing propulsion in an attempt to escape, but we are still **30 hours from the Mandeville Point**. If the Orks seize control of the propulsion bay or the command bridge, they could send us into the Warp, and we would be lost—along with our cargo and crew.
Any Imperial Navy vessels, Adeptus Astartes, or nearby forces, we urgently request assistance! We cannot hold for much longer. The greenskins are relentless, and we are running out of time. Emperor preserve us.
*Captain Vornik of the Orca, signing off.*"
**+++ Message Ends +++**
We are the closest ship, they are 15 hours away from us if we invert propulsion and burn at all speed towards them.
(Maneuver alone will cost us 300/600 Kilotons of Prometheum).
The second closest ship is a Navy Emperor Class Cruiser, "His Rightful Wrath". They are transporting over 1 million Guards and they have 6 attack crafts. However, they are over 2 days far from the current position of the Orca. If the Orks are capable of reversing the propulsion direction of the Orca within 20 hours, the Orca will reach the Mandeville point before the His Rightful Wrath can catch them.
Options:
[X] Ignore the distress call.
As Rogue Traders we are not mandated to get it. And helping them is very risky and is going to cost us resources.
[X] Do a show-off.
Get towards the Orca at half speed, so that we get there just 1h before the His Rightful Wrath arrives. We won't be really helpful, but we would look better in the eyes the local navy. This option costs us 300 Kilotons of Prometheum.
{I will roll if the Orca is still reachable or already in the warp, if reachable we can coordinate with the captain of the Emperor Class Cruise and board the ship a few minutes before his man}
[X] At full-speed.
Invert the direction and burn at full speed: in 15-17h (depending if the Orks can revert the propulsion before we arrive, {rollin}) we will be there. If the Orks got control of the Propulsion bridge we have 20h to free it, after that, Orks can attempt to jump in the Warp with our troops on board. If Orks don't control Propulsion, in ≈25-32h the Emperor Class Cruise will be able to assist us.
This option costs us 600 Kilotons of Prometheum and potentially any asset we are deploying. If we pick this option specify if.
A. We leave battle plan to Caldan Fara (I will write it).
B. Write battle plan.
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Actions
[X] Private dinner with your void-master, get to know him personally, chance to develop a friendship, chance of jealousy from other top officers;
[X] Workshop with your void-master about ship systems, get to know better how he works, chance to improve your teamwork;
[X] Another Private dinner with your arch-militant, reinforce your bond with her, chance to develop a friendship, or even a romantic interest, chance of jealousy from other top officers;
[X] Training session with your arch-militant, get to know better how it works, chance to improve your teamwork;
[X] Private dinner with your ship chaplain, get to know him personally, chance to develop a friendship, chance of jealousy from other top officers;
[X] Theology lessons with your ship chaplain, get to know better how he works, chance to improve your teamwork;
[X] Private dinner with your astropath, get to know her personally, chance to develop a friendship, or even a romantic interest, chance of jealousy from other top officers; (Caraa or her replacement, depending on how the special situation was was handled)
[X] Discuss the warp with your astropath, get to know better how she works, chance to improve your teamwork;
[X] Private dinner with your seneschal, get to know her personally, chance to develop a friendship, or even a romantic interest, chance of jealousy from other top officers;
[X] Discuss accounting and trade strategy with your seneschal, get to know better how she works, chance to improve your teamwork;
[X] Private dinner with your engineseer, get to know him personally, chance to develop a friendship, chance of jealousy from other top officers;
[X] Workshop with your engineseer about ship systems, get to know better how he works, chance to improve your teamwork;
[X] Get a second rejuvenat treatment for yourself, effect, your biological age goes from 40 to 30, you consume one rejuvenate treatment, 98 remaining (takes 14 days);
[X] Visit the joygirls, have fun, consequences;
[X] Visit the joygirls, have fun, take {1 to 6, specify number}, as your personal slaves, consequences;
[X] Visit the joygirls, have fun, set {1 to 6, specify number} free, consequences;
[X] Visit the modified joygirls, have fun, consequences;
[X] Visit the modified joygirls, have fun, take {1 to 6, specify number}, as your personal slaves, consequences;
[X] Visit the modified joygirls, have fun, set {1 to 6, specify number} free, consequences;
[X] As an aeronautic engineer, you want to know more, study the argon-based propulsion of the Aquila-Lander, consequences;
[X] As an aeronautic engineer, you want to know more, study the basis of artificial gravity (1/6, requires multiple actions), consequences;
[X] As an aeronautic engineer, you want to know more, study the jet propulsion of the Arvus Lander, consequences;
[X] As an aeronautic engineer, you want to know more, study the fuselage and propulsion of the Necromunda Heavy Lifter, consequences;
[X] Study Imperial culture and history, basic knowledge of Imperial history;
[X] Study Imperial culture and history, basic knowledge of Imperial history;
[X] Deep study of Armageddon, history, resources and terrain;
[X] Learn to use the Imperial Tarot;
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Second Event:
While you were sleeping in the last days of travel out of the Necromunda system, two menial women (named Asha and Vira) stabbed each other. Both your void master and your archmilitant asks you what do you wanna do.
You think about it:
[X] We have no use for trouble-makers, just space them out both.
[X] Let's set a stark example,
deliver them to the local mechanicus enclave once in Necromunda, and turn them into servitors, place them in a very visited part of the ship. People will think twice about breaking the peace again. {This option costs 1 ATC.}
[X] There is no judgment without justice,
have a hearing, as Lord Captain of the Ship you are also the supreme judge of everyone on board. Understand what happened before taking a decision.
{if you take this option I will describe what you can gather in your judicial court and then we'll have an open vote}
[X] It's a crew-management matter,
Defer the judgment to your voidmaster.
[X] It's a security matter,
Defer the judgment to your archmilitant.
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At the end of the turn (unless we screw up things with the Orks) we are in orbit around Armageddon IV.
