Chapter 5 - Stiff Upper Lip, and All That
- Location
- USA
> Have Rollings continue work on the ship, while the rest of you disembark.
"As much as I respect the need to get this ship up and running," Rollings comments, "we're in the middle o' the largest goddamn foyer I ever seen. Cannae warp out of here until you figure out what jus' happened."
"I agree," you say, "but I would feel most comfortable with you keeping an eye on things. Whatever this is, it is interfering with our systems, and you're the best-equipped to solve that particular conundrum."
"Aye, aye, I'll stay with the ruddy ship."
The rest of you gear up in evac suits, grab some basic supplies, and disembark. Once the instruments confirm that the atmosphere in here is breathable, and there's no unusual radiation, you pare down the suits to their most fundamental level. The air is cool, but not unpleasantly cold, and there does not appear to be a draft. This is highly unusual for a space of this size. You instruct Lawrence and Rollings to establish a perimeter, while you and Arctos do some basic survey work. How you managed to warp into this bizarre room, and who constructed it, are questions you'd very much like answered. As an after-thought, you call back in for Rollings to try and get a hold of Persuader/AVN. That would confirm a couple of things about your current predicament.
"Why hello there!"
You nearly jump out of your suit, and pivot to face the unidentified speaker. Arctos and Urlana, who are nearest to you, draw their weapons. You note that Arctos does so much more deliberately and calmly, unlike the very startled Urlana.
"I so rarely get company. Hopefully, these accomodations are to your liking?"
The person speaking is a genial fellow who looks to be of early middle age, dressed in tweed with a pocketwatch on a golden chain. A monocle adorns his mustached, jowled face, which is currently occupied with a pleasant smile. He wears a deerstalker cap, and the buttons of his vest strain against an impressively large gut. He at least APPEARS human. You have doubts.
"Identify yourself, and explain how you trapped our ship here."
You put a hand on your own phaser, but your amiable host doesn't seem the slightest bit concerned that he has two -- soon to be three -- weapons trained on him. He hasn't even spared them a glance.
"I dare say 'trapped' is a strong choice of words, but who am I to argue semantics?" he answers with a chuckle.
"Yes," Urlana growls, "who ARE you?"
The portly gentleman dodges the question again. "My apologies, I would offer you some refreshments, but I'm afraid my stores are running rather low. Awful tricky business, attempting to secure trade through this cozy little corner of the galaxy."
"We have a replicator on the ship," you add, drily, "no need to concern yourself with that. What IS this place, exactly?"
"My little pocket dimension away from home. I hope you like it."
You all blink silently at that response. Urlana's grip tightens on her weapon. You haltingly answer back, "It's...quaint. When you say 'pocket dimension,' what do you..."
"Trivial matter, really. Little nips and folds in three-dimensional space exist all over the place. You just have to know what to look for! Of course, the vast majority are no larger than a pinhead, but..."
"I'm sorry, you expect us to believe that you can simply set up a...a place like this, in an isolate quantum-dissociated vortice, at whim?"
"I did say trivial," he answers, with more than a little pride beaming through. "But let's not get tangled up in particulars of spatio-temporal kerning. Please, make yourselves at home!"
He gestures behind you. When you look, the first thing you notice is the sudden arrival of a trio of comfy armchairs. The second is that the Bullhead is now a tiny dot, in a far-remote area of this truly immeasurable room. You hesitantly sit, and Arctos follows, but Urlana remains standing. And armed.
"Suit yourself," the host chuckles, paying her vigilance no further mind. "Now, you have many questions, I see. I can't promise satisfying answers to all of them, but I will endeavor to do my best. Lay them on me."
[] Again, who are you?
[] Tell us more about your space-warping abilities. We'd like to leave at some point, but don't know the first thing about how to do that.
[] Are you familiar with the Kha?
"As much as I respect the need to get this ship up and running," Rollings comments, "we're in the middle o' the largest goddamn foyer I ever seen. Cannae warp out of here until you figure out what jus' happened."
"I agree," you say, "but I would feel most comfortable with you keeping an eye on things. Whatever this is, it is interfering with our systems, and you're the best-equipped to solve that particular conundrum."
"Aye, aye, I'll stay with the ruddy ship."
The rest of you gear up in evac suits, grab some basic supplies, and disembark. Once the instruments confirm that the atmosphere in here is breathable, and there's no unusual radiation, you pare down the suits to their most fundamental level. The air is cool, but not unpleasantly cold, and there does not appear to be a draft. This is highly unusual for a space of this size. You instruct Lawrence and Rollings to establish a perimeter, while you and Arctos do some basic survey work. How you managed to warp into this bizarre room, and who constructed it, are questions you'd very much like answered. As an after-thought, you call back in for Rollings to try and get a hold of Persuader/AVN. That would confirm a couple of things about your current predicament.
"Why hello there!"
You nearly jump out of your suit, and pivot to face the unidentified speaker. Arctos and Urlana, who are nearest to you, draw their weapons. You note that Arctos does so much more deliberately and calmly, unlike the very startled Urlana.
"I so rarely get company. Hopefully, these accomodations are to your liking?"
The person speaking is a genial fellow who looks to be of early middle age, dressed in tweed with a pocketwatch on a golden chain. A monocle adorns his mustached, jowled face, which is currently occupied with a pleasant smile. He wears a deerstalker cap, and the buttons of his vest strain against an impressively large gut. He at least APPEARS human. You have doubts.
"Identify yourself, and explain how you trapped our ship here."
You put a hand on your own phaser, but your amiable host doesn't seem the slightest bit concerned that he has two -- soon to be three -- weapons trained on him. He hasn't even spared them a glance.
"I dare say 'trapped' is a strong choice of words, but who am I to argue semantics?" he answers with a chuckle.
"Yes," Urlana growls, "who ARE you?"
The portly gentleman dodges the question again. "My apologies, I would offer you some refreshments, but I'm afraid my stores are running rather low. Awful tricky business, attempting to secure trade through this cozy little corner of the galaxy."
"We have a replicator on the ship," you add, drily, "no need to concern yourself with that. What IS this place, exactly?"
"My little pocket dimension away from home. I hope you like it."
You all blink silently at that response. Urlana's grip tightens on her weapon. You haltingly answer back, "It's...quaint. When you say 'pocket dimension,' what do you..."
"Trivial matter, really. Little nips and folds in three-dimensional space exist all over the place. You just have to know what to look for! Of course, the vast majority are no larger than a pinhead, but..."
"I'm sorry, you expect us to believe that you can simply set up a...a place like this, in an isolate quantum-dissociated vortice, at whim?"
"I did say trivial," he answers, with more than a little pride beaming through. "But let's not get tangled up in particulars of spatio-temporal kerning. Please, make yourselves at home!"
He gestures behind you. When you look, the first thing you notice is the sudden arrival of a trio of comfy armchairs. The second is that the Bullhead is now a tiny dot, in a far-remote area of this truly immeasurable room. You hesitantly sit, and Arctos follows, but Urlana remains standing. And armed.
"Suit yourself," the host chuckles, paying her vigilance no further mind. "Now, you have many questions, I see. I can't promise satisfying answers to all of them, but I will endeavor to do my best. Lay them on me."
[] Again, who are you?
[] Tell us more about your space-warping abilities. We'd like to leave at some point, but don't know the first thing about how to do that.
[] Are you familiar with the Kha?
