To the Outpost

Hail to the Chief (repeated with player answers)

    The team stands; some of you shift awkwardly at the exhange of words between the Enforcers from Streel and the Dralasite BudReeeep. The Kurabanda guards watch carefully as the conversation comes to an end and the escort gestures again to follow them. Chief Auramada is ready to receive them.
    Some of the guards grab the prisoners and heave them up on their poles. They precede your group. A second group of Kurabanda grab the other two pirates.    You follow the Kurabanda fifty meters to the other side of the massive tree and to a very large wooden platform extending 50 meters from the base of the trunk. Large branches protrude from the platform at varying intervals, giving the impression that this platform is built between several different trees. A raised platform before you houses a wooden throne. A fierce looking Kurabanda sits here, sword in hand, and waits for the party to advance.
    Kurabanda surround you on both sides as you walk up to the platform. Applause and shrieks break from the Kurabanda as they see the 4 prisoners, hanging upside down, lead the parade. The Kurabanda guards painfully dump the prisoners in two piles at the base of the platform: Amar and Crat in one, the Kurabanda's prisoners in the second. The escort presents you as the team that fought the "Demons from sky" and move to the side of the platform, granting the chief full view of the team.
    Chief Auramada looks you over quietly for several long moments. Once or twice his nostrils play with the air, as if trying to get the party's scent. He looks at the group of prisoners before him, then back to the team. He speaks, again in Pan-Gal.
    "Hed....ou...hed uour teem. Leedr speek."
    The team stands motionless for a few seconds until you deduce the chief is asking for the leader of the group to speak. Brenon takes a few steps in front of the group.
    The chief's jaw grinds back and forth as he looks over the Human. He then pounds on his chest, causing the wooden breastplate over his body to rattle. He then gestures all around. "Me.....Cheef Auramada. Cheef Kurabanda vilgage." He looks back to Brenon and throws his hand to him. "Whou....Ou?"

The chief waits the answer. He then continues.... "Ouu....hu--man....lak Commder Lous Jamson. Ouu Commder?"
Brenon eyes perked up. The chief had his attention before, but now he 'really' had it. "I am human. Yes, I am Commder like Lous Jamson. You have had contact with this person? Have you had contact with his crew? If so, where are they now?"

"Ou....fat demun fom skie. Yuo fat demon fom skie?"
"I am Brenon Murchadh Moroue, son of Marturin Moroue"

"Ou Commder.....Commder look for Commder Lous Jamson?"
"Because the demons seek to destroy life, therefore they must be destroyed.
They are our enemy."

"Yuo....heer...wat fore?"
"We were sent to bring Commder Lous Jamson and his crew home."

"Ou....hep Kurabanda.......Yuo hep Kurabanda. Ou hep fat? Ou no no Kurabanda."
"I know we don't know you or your people, but it looked like you could use
a hand. We'd gladly join a fight against the demons."

"Ou com fum...ou liv were?"
"We come from a planet called Pale, very far from here."

"Wat ou want Kurabanda? Ou hep fro wat?"
"We were just in the right place at the right time. We'd heard reports that
a Drasalite had been seen in these woods, we came here in hopes of finding
some of Jameson's group."
"We ask for nothing in return for our help. We gave it freely. We are only
sorry that one of them got away. He is probably telling his village of what
happened here. It is likely they will summon the warriors of another larger
village to the north. They will most likely come back, and this time in
larger numbers. I would like to propose that we band our warriors together
and destroy this village before more warriors arrive. In doing this, we can
free the slaves that are there, Commander Louis Jameson may be among them.
Right now, their warriors are small in number because of today's battle.
Tomorrow, they may be back with many warriors. But if we strike, it must be
soon; like tonight!"

The chief takes the answers and looks to the rest of the group. His eyes drop on Zhirrzh and he gestures to the Yazirian.
"Ou.....no Kurabanda. Luk lak Kurabanda. Whu ou?"
"I am Zhirrzh Gilag, son of Thrr Gilag."

"Whi ou go wit hu-man Brenun Maroo? Hu-man better fat than Zhirrzh?"
"I go with Brenon because we are on the same mission, to find Jameson and the beings with him. No, humans do not fight better than Zhirrzh. I am feared as a powerful warrior."

"Ou com wit hu-man? Ou lak Commder Lous Jamson?"
"Yes. We are all here to find Jameson."

"Ou lak demon fum skie?"
Zhirrzh's brow narrows in anger. "I despise the demons. I want nothing more than to dig out their hearts and feast on them."

"Whi ou in goop? Whi ou wid hu-man Brenun Maroo?"
"I am in the group to find Jameson. I am with Brenon because he is my friend."

Auramada looks to the two vrusks and seems to snarl. He sniffs the air again and gestures them forward.
"Ou...beeg bug?"
Kahliss looks at the chief.
"Yes, my species ancestors are of the insect variety. This by it's nature
does place me as an insect."

"Ou....tak?"
"Yes, I am fluent in Pan-Galatic and the verbal modum of communication
necessary to use that knowledge."

"Whou ou?"
"I am know in Pan-Galatic as Kah'liss.

"Ou....were ou liv? Ou live in wood?"
"I also come from Pale, and No, I do not live in the woods, at least not
normally."

"Whi ou fat demun fom skie?"
"I'm sorry, this allusion to fat and demon does seem to have me a little
confused. However, I have nothing to do with demons except in the manner of
starship travel. I am here on a mission of rescue and exploration, not
destruction."
He then realizes the question, "Oh ... fight. Yes, we fight them. They are
slavers and pirates, hurting people for the pleasure or profit. This is
wrong."

"Ou eat leef fum tree?"
"Yes, I do eat vegetation. That is the primary source of food for my people
on many worlds."

"Whi ou go wit hu-man Brenun Maroo? Vrusk no fat good?"
"Brenon is the leader of our expedition. Without his leadership, there are
several points where I do not think we would have made it this far, this
well. I travel with him for the safety he provides, and because I feel I
owe him my life. Also, if we still plan to finish our expedition
successfully, it seems prudent to do so. As for Vrusk, we can fight just as
well as any other race, sometimes, better with our unique agility. However,
/I/ do not fight as well since I am a doctor, not a warrior. I heal."

The Chief looks to Telgar, motions to him.
"Whou....ou....hu-man?"
Telgar takes a small, respectful bow. "My name is Telgar Voronwe. I am a warrior among my tribe."

"Ou fat....hep Kurabanda. Whi hep?"
"We were in the woods and heard fighting. We saw the Kurabanda were being slaughtered by the same people who tried to kill us, so we wanted to help protect the Kurabanda. That's why we fight and help."

"Ou cum fom sam hoam....sam dat hu-man Brenun Maroo cum fom?"
Telgar nods, "Yes, we all have just come from the planet called Pale."

"Wha ou dutie? Wha ou do?"
"As I said earlier, I am a warrior in my tribe. I help protect people," Telgar lets out a small grin, "and help others get what they need."

Auramada gestures to Raleigh.
"hu-man......whou ou?"
Still a little amused at the broken Pan Gal, Raleigh points to himself and says, "I am Raleigh Thoms."

"Wha ou do in goop?"
"Wha ouo?....Oh, I fix the truck and Im the backup healer."

"Ou....fix truk? Fast barrel? Ou no fat.... Ou fat Demun fom skie. Whi ou fat? Fat cous hu-man Brenun Maroo say fat?"
"Fat? Did he just say I was fat? Yeah, sure, Im with him." pointing to Brennon.

After Raleigh's response, the chief looks at him a long moment and he raises in his chair, jutting his chest out in a gesture of power. A slight snarl creeps upon his lips and he moves on to the next member of the team.
    As Raliegh and Zhirrzh answered their questions in turn, Brenon couldn't help but think that these two could use a course in "Abassadorial Training 101"...he made a mental note, then continued to listen on. It wasn't until the cheif said, "Ou.....no Kurabanda. Luk lak Kurabanda. Whu ou?" to Zhirrzh, that Brenon noticed the incredible resemblance between the two races. 'Hmmmm', Brenon thought to himself....
    The chief beckons again to Brenon and gestures to the prisoners on the floor before him. "Ou, brav....tak demun. Wha ou do wit demun?"
    "The demons are here to take minerals from the ground, to do this, they need slaves. When I questioned the prisoners(Brenon motions to the two they captured), they said they shoot Kurabanda for the sport of it. Also, you
may not know this but you captured their Commander(Brenon points to the pirate leader)." He offers Crat as a gift to the Kurabanda.
    The chief grins and snarls at the prisoners. "Demun evil. Kill Kurabanda....demun di....Kurabanda hapie."

OOC
After he questions you. You may ask....it will eventually lead to mention of Louis Jameson (the commander of the original expedition). Auramada will say the following.

IC
   "Yeh.....Hu-man Louis Jameson....an dralsite Grodd....sta heer....crash woood....sta heer. teech Kurabanda speek of big Frunteeer. Big Frunteer com heer....hu-man louis jameson say....speek frunteer good....speek to many creetres." He gestures to the diversity of the party. He grins and gestures to the Vrusks. "hu-man louis jameson true....Kurabanda speek to big bug vrusk wit speek of frunteeer!" Many of the Kurabanda laugh and chirp excitedly in their own tongue.
    Auramada nods. "Hu-man louis jamson tru....good hu-man....bad hu-man too. demun." He gestures to the prisoners with an evil glare. "DEMUN FRUM SKIE.....EVIL....DEMUN MUS DIE!" The chief crashes his sword down before him, in an execution style. The Kurabanda around you scream in delight. Drums go off. This applause goes on for nearly a minute before calming back down.
    "One day.....demun frum skie cum....kill Kurabanda.....tak hu-man louis jamson....tak dralsite grod...Demun keep come...Kurabanda fat off...kill demun....but hu-man lous jamson an dralsite grog no com bak....demun keep com....ou show in biggest demun fat. how ou no....demun com big now?"
...

    When the questioning is completed, Chief Auramada answers Brenon's request for an armed party of Kurabanda. He ponders briefly, then taps his sword on the platform to speak.
    "...Kurabanda tank hu-man Brenon Maroo....demuns tak cort....will tak punish weeth Kurabanda law." He snarls for effect at the heap of prisoners. "...Ou one demun gift very strong....Kurabanda tank..."
    "Demun fum skie....far away....can no fat this mooon...long day to moov in wood...fhree day moov in wood...thin get demun hous...too sooon fat now."
    "10 warrors Kurabanda go...fat demun wit hu-man brenon maroo. leev tomorr...fhree day to demun..."
    "Dralsite Budreepeepeeep tank for ceremun fallen Kurabanda.
    "Dralasite budreeepeeepppee Kurabanda well."
    Brenon begins to think quickly....... if they gut the explorer they can probably rig something up so that others can ride on top......
    "Chief, I believe we can cut that time considerably... we, like the demons, have a fast vessel for traveling; just outside the trees. What would take 3 days travel can be done in hours.... would your brave warriors be willing to ride with us?"
    Brenon quickly looks to the crew for advice....
    "Well men, what do you think? Make a 3 day trek to a base that is probably going to be reenforced with fresh pirates; this would also give you more time to heal? Or should we strike ate tonight or earlier in the morning, it's about an hours drive... I think we can strip down the explorer, ask the good chief here to have some of his boys watch our gear, this would allow us to accomodate extra passengers on the roof. My thinking is that if we get there tonight or early tomorrow morning we can take them when they are fewer in number; before reenforcements arrive.... what do you guys think?"
    Raleigh takes a step back as the Chief beats his chest and raises from his chair. Making a mental note to ask Brennon what he had said wrong, Raleigh listens to the rest of the conversation leading up to the plan of action.
    Nodding in agreement, he begins to think of ways to modify the explorer. "Im with Brennon on this one, if anything we get there and get some Intel on what is going on there. Personally, I bet they will be reinforced already via jetcopters but we cant sit idle and let them build up either."
    Taking Brennon aside when the moment presents itself, "What the hell did I say that set the chief off like that?"
    BudReeep ponders. Well, if we decide to empty out the Explorer, Bud will gladly help, and request to go in hopes of finding alive other members of his IRFT team. He will also tactfully suggest to the party (outside of the hearing of the
tribe) that a plan is formulated to keep any equipment from the explorer secure from not only pirates, but also from curious Kurabanda.
    Raleigh listens yo the plan and nods in agreement. If we can all cram into the explorer or on top I think
that would be best, quickness is definately at a premium right now.
    "Oh," Raleigh declares, grabbing everyone's attention, "and by the way, Im driving!" Raleigh grins mischievously. Those Kurubundai stunk, at least if he drove he could roll down the window and stick his head out!

Brenon will bring the following:
    2 Crete Sprayers
    1 Radio Detonator
    2 Pressure Detonators
    All the TD-19.
    Beltpack and Laser Rifle.
    Sonic Disruptor

   Brenon will assign the following....
    Zhirrzh - Sleep Needler and misc equip of Choice
    Raliegh - Sleep Needler and Med Supplies
    Lstayric - Beam Weapon and Crete Sprayer
    Telgar - Weapons and Equip of choice
    BudReep - Albedo Suit(if it fits, otherwise Brenon hands it to Raliegh)
    Kah'liss - Beam Weapon and Med Supplies of Choice

Kahliss grabs all his personal supplies and straps them on. In addition, he adds an Energy Belt, a Beam Rifle, and a Beam Pistol. He plugs the Rifle in for the time, figuring he can switch later. He then lugs his Medical supplies with him and prepares to play background medic. Now would be a good time to pray....
    While helping the team unload the explorer, BudRREEPboopboopboop will look for a polyvox. If he finds one, he will put it on (unless someone objects). Bud will also seek to arm himself with an electrostunner, if one exists in
the cargo, and a handful of clips to power it.
    Zhirrzh will take the following in addition to my normal gear (holo screen, powerbelt, knife, etc.)
        1 assigned sleep needler w/ 3 clips
        1 gyrojet pistol w/ 3 clips
        1 auto-pistol w/ 3 clips
        1 Infrared goggles
        1 grappling gun w/ rope

    BudRREEPboopboopboop says, "Thabank youbou" to Brenon as he takes the Albedo
screen from him and fastens it to a belt around his midsection. He loads an
electrostunner and places it in a holster that he also fastens to the belt.
    Bud then straps a poly-vox to the stretch of membrane above his limbs and below his optical vein clusters and says, "BRROOPgut, BRROOPgut." The device promptly translates his native Dralasite tongue into Standard Pan-Gal, with a
proper corporate accent, "Testing, testing." A pleasant aroma wafts from Bud's pores, which subsequently emit a sigh of relief. Bud comments, "GgggggtDEET," which the poly-vox translates with the appropriate affectation, "Ah, that is much better."
    The Explorer unloaded of gear and reloaded with Kurabanda warriors, takes off through the woods. Raleigh pulls out into the desert border to allow for safe, obstacle-free driving, and heads eastward to the Pirate base.
A contigent of Kurabanda guards were left to guard the team's gear. Being a mile outside of the tribe, chief Auramada agreed to leave guard there until your return, which is expected to be about 3-4 hours.
    As we headed through the desert I reflected back on what Kah'liss had said; giving me credit for saving his life a time or two and something like 'he didn't think they'd of made it this far without me'. Although this makes me feel good about myself and my ability to command....deep down it bothers me. I wasn't sure, be I have a bad feeling about this mission. I have a feeling that there won't be so many faces on the return trip. I sat there, staring at Kah'liss.....'how is it that this bug turned out o.k.? Perhaps there is hope for their species? No, one decent bug doesn't define their race.... (The bug looked up) It was at this point Brenon realized he hadn't been staring at Kay'liss, he was staring at LStayric....'Damn, they all look alike.." Brenon thought to himself.
   'I hope I'm doing the right thing. It's more adventageous to attack now.....though what if we could have trained those Kurabanda in the use of the spare beam weapons....? No, this is the best course of action... strike now and rescue the prisoners while the pirates numbers were still hopefully low....."
    Zhirrzh sat quietly in his seat, his eyes pointed out towards the landscape, yet his vision focused inward. He couldn't believe he had allowed the last pirate to escape. Zhirrzh knew he was faster in the forest than any of the cutthroats he had been fighting, yet tracking the pirate had been time consuming. Now, the team was forced to make a sudden strike, without any time for detailed planning. If the pirate base was prepared for them, Zhirrzh would only be able to blame himself.

Taking a moment to focus on the outside world, Zhirrzh allowed himself to look over his teammates. His eyes focus briefly on Raleigh. The resourceful Techie was much more than Zhirrzh had expected. His rather wry sense of humor, handiness with a gun, and quick study of medicine impressed Zhirrzh more than he would admit. The fact that Raleigh was also wounded, yet still striding boldly into battle, gave Zhirrzh a newfound respect for the courage of this human. With conviction, Zhirrzh vowed not to stray far from Raleigh in the upcoming battle.

As his eyes moved on, they passed over LStyaric, Kah'liss, Telgar, and BudReep. With LStyaric, Zhirrzh felt only hatred and loathing. The death of that bug would elicit a dance of joy before a song of grief. Kah'liss and Telgar elicited only respectful distrust. Zhirrzh owed Kah'liss his life, and though it pained him, he felt a respect he never thought he'd apply to a Vrusk. Telgar, fierce in battle and possessing a courage that would do a Yazirian proud, could possibly have become a friend in another life. Yet, because he associated with a Vrusk, Zhirrzh knew he could never fully trust the human. For BudReep, Zhirrzh felt contempt. The Dralasite was a coward in Zhirrzh's eyes. Incapable of doing what it took to get the job done. The Dralasite's inability to kill an enemy who would kill him, made the Yazirian's hackles stand on end in anger. BudReep was a liability, and Zhirrzh would feel no loss at its death.

Finally, Zhirrzh rested on Brenon, his friend and companion since childhood. They had kept each other alive through harsh battles, shared grief over fallen comrades, and felt the same hatred for the Vrusks that had turned their lives upside down. If Brenon died in this battle, then Zhirrzh knew he would not rest until every Devil was dead. The mere thought brought enough grief and rage to bear that Zhirrzh felt like slitting Amar's throat at that moment. Imagining holding the pirate's hair in his fist as he pulled his head back and scooped up the flow of blood and stuffed it back into the dying man's mouth gave Zhirrzh a moment of satisfaction, enough for him to bring his rage under control.

        "Yes," Zhirrzh thought. "If anything happens to my friend, he will know what pain is before I kill him."
        Zhirrzh looked back out the window at the desolate landscape. As they drew closer to their destination, he felt the guilt of this hurried battle again.
Raleigh cursed the designers of the 550 model Explorer he now navigated across the Volturnas terrain. It had always been a major drawback of the 500 series that the damn drivers seat always broke it's center spring, causing the drivers comfort to decrease significantly. Already he could feel his butt developing callouses and his back ached from the constant bouncing. Add to that the constant screeching and chirping of those damn Kurabundai and he had become in a fowl mood indeed.
    Spying a chance, Raleigh looked back into the cab of the explorer at the others. It appeared that everyone was currently pre-occupied with other thoughts as aside from the Kurubundai, everyone was silent. These people had become family to him over the last few weeks, granted it was an odd group of beings, but familt nonetheless.
    Brennon, the groups elected leader. A good man and competent leader, although he had accepted the position reluctantly. His hatred of Vrusk was no secret to the group and had been an issue before, but lately it had seemed he had warmed up a bit, at least towards Kahliss. There was Zhirrzh; quiet, methodical and deadly. On more than one occassion it was Zhirrzh's actions that seemed to win the day for the group. Then there was Kahliss, his logical and compassionate Vrusk mentor. Several times the poor guy had nearly got himself killed, especially on the rocks at the hands of the pirates, Raleigh was glad though that he had made it. Telgar was the last of the original party, a close friend and ally in the beginning, they had risked their lives together on the ship and had become closer as a result. Lately, the enforcer had become quiet and withdrawn, it had probably just been the stress of nearly losing his good friend Kahliss. The other two Raleigh didnt have an opinion on yet. Lystaric never seemed to talk and the incident back in the trees over the torture had turned him off toward Bud. Irregardless of that, however, Raleigh still considered them allies and would not hesitate if one of their lives where on the line.
    Turning his attention back to the path, he smiled quietly to himself. It was strange to think how far they had come in the last three weeks. The deaths of Rolgar and Lyrium, the constant badgering attacks of the pirates, new team members found, and through it all they had flourished as a group. Raleigh knew that many years from now he would look back at these times with fond memories, but right now all he wanted to do was throttle the guy who designed his seat!!!