Editing The Crossroads

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===The Crossroads===

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!colspan="2" style="background-color:#bbdaff; font-weight:bold; text-align: center; padding-bottom: 2px"|Chapter 4: "The Crossroads"
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|style="width: 50%; font-weight: bold" | Major players || style="width: 50%" | Universal Council<br>Nicolás Kestrel<br>Kestrel Expedition Team<br>Varse Expedition Team
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|style="width: 50%; font-weight: bold" | Vote outcome || style="width: 50%" | Reinforcements sent to Varse expedition team
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|style="width: 50%; font-weight: bold" | Major events || style="width: 50%; text-align: auto" | Members of Varse expedition team located by Kestrel expedition team
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!colspan="2" style="background-color:#bbdaff; font-weight:bold; text-align: center; padding-bottom: 2px"|Timeline Chronology
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|style="width: 50%; padding-top: 5px; font-style: italic; text-align: center" | Previous Chapter || style="width: 50%; padding-top: 5px; font-style: italic; text-align: center" | Next Chapter
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|style="width: 50%; text-align: center" | "[[The Shard]]" ||style="width: 50%; text-align: center" | "[[On the Brink]]"
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'''Summary'''

Amidst the ongoing evacuation of Kepler-7 and preliminary investigations into Union mercenary ship ''Pinnacle'' - the cause of the Quantum fallout that precipitated the incident - the Universal Council received word from the ''Panopea'' that reinforcements led by Federation member Vice-Captain Nicolás Kestrel had touched down on the surface of Mímir. The expedition team, having located Commander Varse’s locator beacon, discovered that the shard was being damaged by the frenzied Qyllits, and was close to being destroyed completely. 

In his report, Vice-Captain Kestrel cautioned the Council that any attempt to either rescue Commander Varse’s team or retrieve the shard should be committed to in its entirety, and should the Council opt to retrieve the shard, reinforcements would be unable to reach Commander Varse’s team for a significant period of time due to the volatile weather conditions on the planet. Under Kestrel’s advice, the Council took these considerations to a vote to decide the expedition’s further instructions, with the seated Councilmembers briefing their respective factions.

With all three factions coming to a unanimous agreement to send the expedition team deeper into the cave network to locate Commander Varse and her crew, instructions were relayed to Vice-Captain Kestrel, who then reported that his team had managed to lock onto Varse’s locator beacon.


'''Transcript'''

<blockquote>
Report from the 20th conference of the Universal Council: time of ζ Sagittarii 3.32<br>
Held on board station Ignis, in the neutral center of the Core Systems.

Councilmembers for the Empire: Ji Young-Joo, Julius Lycanis, Thulani Ade’k<br>
Councilmembers for the Federation: Áurea Adonis, Victor Huxley, Elijah Burke<br>
Councilmembers for the Union: Aish Fenix, Haley Nguyen, Mandla Bankole

The following is a transcript of the briefing on the relevant vote for those involved in the Explorer program:

The Quantum waves from the ''Pinnacle'' – the Union mercenary ship currently orbiting Kepler-7 – have slowed to the point where the Council can safely send in salvage, research, and evacuation crews. The Council is pleased to note that the first of these operations have already been completed, and that several of the members of the Twin Suns have been recovered from the wreckage, albeit in concerning conditions: they are wracked with spasms, and long exposure to Quantum seems to have fused it into their body somehow.

The initial investigations into the ''Pinnacle''’s Quantum Drive have also concluded, yielding some perplexing results. As far as our Quantum specialists can tell, there are no signs of the Drive malfunctioning, or of any outside interference; there is absolutely no immediate cause for whatever happened to the ''Pinnacle''’s Quantum Drive. Further research is being performed as we speak, which will hopefully provide clarification.

That ends the briefing on the Universal Council’s ongoing efforts in the Kepler system. Moving on, the Council will now address the matter of Sera Varse’s expedition beyond the Core Systems. We’ve received word from the ''Panopea'' that their squad of reinforcements, who previously could not descend due to the harsh silicate storm that travels across Mímir, have reached the planet’s surface. This expedition is being led by Nicolás Kestrel, vice-captain of the ''Panopea'' and a Federation citizen. So far, the expedition has found a signal from Sera Varse’s locator beacon at a cave entrance several miles beyond the shard’s location. The signal, however, is somewhat unclear: the vice-captain’s report mentions that the beacon’s signal is interspersed with slight whispering.

At the same time, observation of the abandoned research site found that these “Qyllit” creatures are now clawing at the shard, creating cracks in its surface, and digging up the ground around it. It’s likely they will destroy the shard if they are not stopped. Vice-captain Kestrel has advised that any attempt to engage the Qyllits should be made in full force, and has reminded the Council that even if the shard is retrieved, the volatile environment of Mímir would not allow reinforcements to be sent to Sera Varse for a considerable length of time. Thus, the vote placed before the Council is as follows:

Should the squad from the ''Panopea'' move toward Sera Varse, and provide reinforcements for the crew below Mímir, or should they attempt to retrieve the shard, and return it to the fleet before it’s destroyed?

Your faction contact will issue a statement shortly in your respective vote channels before the commencement of the vote. Additionally, due to recent discussions regarding the Explorer program, the Universal Council has decided that the voting will be opened a full twelve hours after you receive your faction contact’s transmission.
</blockquote>


'''Faction Storylines'''

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<div style="font-weight:normal;line-height:1.6;">Federation Storyline</div>
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'''Transmission from Victor Huxley, COO of VasTech'''

Good sol, Explorers! I hope my sudden contact hasn’t arrested you; San’a has been dispatched to Vargas to provide her services as a Valkyrie, and work toward structural reinforcement of their new communication system. While I don’t have her penchant for militaristic candor, I’m hoping to add a little VasTech flair to your transmissions.

That was an excellent decision on the last vote; I would have done the same in your position. Such a shame that Ms. Varse decided to bring alien lifeforms into an important experiment environment- you’d think a scientist would know better. All the same, it looks like following her locator beacon down will lead us further to discovering the real origin of the signal causing such damage to our mining planets. Though I have to add that SpyreCorp’s reaction to that situation has been quite slow- or so I’ve heard. People are saying they wish President Lee put her trust in more experienced corporations, and I’m inclined to agree. We should always make sure our systems are secure enough to withstand these catastrophes. At least, that’s what we at VasTech believe.

Regardless, it would of course be a great relief to our miners and the stability of our economy if we rid them of that signal. All the same, the Union really should be held responsible for the mistakes made by one of their own, don’t you think? Such are the consequences of eschewing oversight and reliable structure – you breed anarchy. That’s all well and good when it’s on your own planets, but now it affects all of us, and might well cause more casualties in the process. Thankfully, I’ve known vice-captain Kestrel for a while – he and I studied together at the military academy – and I’m confident he’s more than capable of bringing that shard home.

With everything that’s going on, I feel I can rely on your wisdom, Explorers. From the next conference, my assistant Ana will be taking over transmissions, as I’ll be putting my full focus into filling San’a’s shoes on the Council. Good luck with the vote, and keep on pushing forward.

Victor
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<div style="font-weight:normal;line-height:1.6;">Empire Storyline</div>
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'''A directive from Ji Young-Joo, emissary of the Emperor'''

It is yet another splendid day to be sheltered under the wings of our Emperor – may he outlive the stars! Your efforts in the previous vote are once again commended by Imperator Solas; the other factions see the outcome as a mishap- a bump in the road. But within the bounds of the Empire, it is not so! For now we have learned that there is more to this “shard”, along with some of its properties: his Eminence has deigned to convey to me his certainty that the behavior of these alien creatures is influenced in some fashion by the qualities of the shard.

If it were possible to recover this shard and learn even more about its properties, perhaps this power could be harnessed, and fashioned to suit the Emperor’s will. Furthermore, these creatures seem to think the shard belongs to them; it would only be right to show them otherwise, and wipe their blight off humanity’s – nay, the Empire’s – discovery.

Of course, in this case we would perhaps be abandoning a chance at finally learning the true origins of this signal. Though I’m sure you, along with the rest of the Empire, would much rather the Union scum rot, these whispers from below do intrigue. After all, does not our Emperor guide us in much the same way, interpreting the soft songs of the Oracle for his subjects? Perhaps we should delve below, and uncover the mysteries of Mímir.

The Council has decided to give you twelve hours to vote in this case, Explorers, though for what I do not know. As citizens of the Empire, you are decisive, not divided, and your thoughts are guided by the all-seeing eyes of Imperator Solas! Take these twelve hours, and show them you need only one.

Sic itur ad astra.
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<div style="font-weight:normal;line-height:1.6;">Union Storyline</div>
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'''Comm from Haley Nguyen, Union member and Vox representative'''

Hello, Comrades- I hope your days are treating you well. Personally, I’m certainly glad that Sera and her crew weren’t more damaged by that attack. I’ve been hearing accusations of incompetence bandied about by the other faction’s councilmembers, and it’s making me sick to my stomach. I had to stop myself from punching Áurea’s face in at least twice.

It’s good that we’ve finally got our mercs back, too. The Twin Suns aren’t the cleanest clan under the Union’s banner, but they do good inter-faction work, and recovering the crew has curbed the wrath of some of their more trigger-happy members. As for their condition, well… the Vox representatives on the Council went to check on the bodies as they were being rolled in, and I can confirm that, among others, Casper Varse is alive. It’s not a pretty sight though, that’s for sure. No one’s ever been exposed to Quantum that long, so all we can do is hope that they’ll recover somewhat.

Putting aside the ethics of this whole situation, it’s definitely unfortunate that the Qyllits reacted the way they did. At the same time, if the location required the crew to operate from the caves, there wasn’t much chance of them keeping their distance anyway. With the vote being the way it is right now, I don’t think there’s clear right answer here. I want to see Sera’s crew safe as much as the rest of you, but we have no idea what might happen when that shard is destroyed; could blow the whole planet sky-high for all we know. Whatever happens, we just have to trust that Sera’s crew will make it, with or without our help.

Voting’s been changed since the last conference apparently- you get twelve hours now. Make sure you use that time well. The Vox is with you, Explorers.

Here’s to a brighter tomorrow.<br>
Haley
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'''Voting Results'''
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<div style="background-color: #f4f4f4 ; padding: 10px; border: 1px solid black; width:39%">
''The Universal Council has consolidated the votes of each of the factions: Send Reinforcements 3 (Empire,Federation,Union) , Retrieve the shard 0 ()''

The final vote is in favor of sending Vice-captain Kestrel into the cave network of Mímir to search for Commander Varse’s expedition. We have received word from the vice-captain that the operation is underway, and they have locked onto the commander’s locator beacon.
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===The Arrival===

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'''Summary'''

As the expedition team made their way deeper into the cave system, two members of Commander Varse’s team were found - Selin and an unnamed unconscious crew member. Selin explained to Kestrel’s team that, once Varse’s team had exhausted their supply of locator beacons, they had made the decision to have members of the crew act as substitute waypoints instead. Selin had also been passed a copy of Varse’s logs, the contents of which were relayed to the Universal Council. In it, Varse again mentioned hearing the whispers that were first picked up in the static the miners on Vargas heard, and also that Kestrel’s own team had reported hearing near the various locator beacons Varse had left behind.

With two team members staying behind to support Selin and the unconscious crewmate, Vice-Captain Kestrel continued the mission to locate and rescue Commander Varse and her team. The transmission ends with the report of worsening weather conditions, and Kestrel’s uncertainty of being able to reach the ''Panopea''.


'''Transcript'''

<blockquote>
Transmission from Nicolás Kestrel, vice-captain of the ''Panopea''

Origin: Mímir, cave network<br>
Dating: 3rd report – time of ζ Sagittarii 3.32<br>
Designation: reconnaissance report

This is Vice-captain Kestrel, reporting from inside the cave network of Mímir. We have passed below two miles at this point, and the caves show no signs of stopping. At this depth, thin veins of Quantum run across every wall. I say veins because that’s what they are- they pulse, and stick out along the surface of the rock.

We have seen no Qyllits for the last few miles of travel. The few we encountered on our initial descent were either easily dispatched or showed no aggressive intentions, heading upwards and paying us no heed. Our crew figured it best not to anger them further, so we left them be.

Two miles ago we passed the final locator beacon left by Sera. The… whispers I mentioned in my previous report were most prominent close to that beacon, but have since faded away. Normally I would not mention this, but in light of recent findings I will outline now, the information seems quite relevant.

Our team is currently resting at a clearing, an intersection of multiple caves. Here, we found two members of Sera’s initial expedition, one whose name is Selin, and one whose name I do not know- he is currently being resuscitated. Selin does not speak much, but from what she has told us, once the locator beacons were exhausted, it was decided that members of the expedition would hang back to act as a waypoint for reinforcements.

Selin was also given a copy of Captain- no, Commander Varse’s voice logs, which she made to keep track of the crew’s journey through the caves. I will now play a segment from the 45th of these logs, which I encourage the Council to listen to attentively.

“…makes me think of home, and a slow sun setting over the blue-tinged sky. Looks like I was right. The signal’s getting stronger, we must be close now. I’ve started to hear it as well- I think it was Kate who noticed it first, but there’s these whispers all around us. They’re soft, and almost welcoming.
(static)
-I hear them even when we cut off the signal. Their words are hard to make out, but- well, I need time, but I’m almost certain I recognize one of them. In a few days we head down further; what little sustenance we found in this clearing is rapidly running out.”

I don’t know what to make of this. As I stated before, neither me nor any of my squad have heard whispers since leaving the last locator beacon behind. I have asked Selin whether she hears them, but she just looks at me, eyes full of fear, and I can’t bring myself to press her on the subject. Two of my crew are staying behind to provide food and warmth for the survivors, while the rest of us press on. It is getting harder and harder to reach the ''Panopea''- the few crewmembers that remain on board tell me this storm is getting more intense every hour. It will likely be some time before I can transmit another report. God willing, we’ll have Sera and her crew with us by then.
</blockquote>