NationStates Jolt Archive

Two old men and a young woman were sitting around a fire on their ship in the dead of space, telling stories.

"How much of this is true, and how much is story, No one knows.

Captain Novae was a feared Pirate that came from the dark reaches of space where no one dared to go. His weapons were said to be strong enough to destroy entire fleeets of ships without effort. His shields were said to be strong enough to repel even the greatest assault.


What is known, is that he held ransom, the safety and existence of many worlds, and took from them, many treasures. He hid them all on a world known only as Om.

Even with his treasure he continued to attack fleets and spread fear.

Until one day, the very same worlds he controlled through fear, conspired to join their greatest minds, to find a way to destroy him.

Years they researched, and eventually, they built a weapon known only as The Quantum Bomb, a weapon it was said, was so strong as to be able to destroy an entire Star System.

The worlds gathered the reminants of their army, and sent them after the captain and his fleet of ships.

A great battle ensued, of which, no record remains, only one thing is known, Captain Novae was destroyed, and a single ship limped back home.

The Quantum Bomb was never used, and it seems, it was lost.

Many tried searching for the treasure, but no one ever found the world of Om. So, the worlds, and the story of Captain Novae, faded to legend, though from time to time, Reports occasionally filter in of "ghost sightings", a battered and transparent Fleet of Pirate ships, all bearing the mark of Captain Novae. Seen one second, gone the next." Said one old man.

Of course all three of them knew the story, but they still enjoyed telling it.

They were deep in space, by the horsehead Nebula.

Then, the nebula spread, and grew.

"What?" was all they managed to get out, until, to their horror, a fleet of ships emerged from the nebula.

"Where did they come from? that nebual was empty, a few seconds ago?" asked one ald man, genuinely confused.

Then one ship emerged completly. It was black, and had great gaping holes in it. It looked like it had come out of the losing end of a great battle. It was a wonder it could still move, and on the hull towards the front, there was the symbol of a Skull and cross bones, over a Nova.

"No!" Said one of the two old men.

"By the Gods it can't be!" said the other.

"Captain Novae!" said the woman.

The lights flickered off, and a voice boomed out of nowhere. It was course, and seemed to have a ghostly moan behind it.

"Arr mateys! Captain Novae holds the dark Reaches of space, and I be wanting my sailing Tax."

The shields went up, and the Photon Cannons fired, but remarkable, went right through the ghost ship, as though it wasn't there.

The Ghost fleet fired, and true to legend, they hit remarkably, unnaturally hard. the shields lost 80% effeciency in one hit.

the Nebula around the ships crackled with energy, and bolts fired at the ships.

The engines were stopped dead.

all around the two old men and young woman, Ghosts of dead pirates from the days of yore appeared, some weilding older lightsabres, some weilding regular steel lightsabres.

they all wore black suits, with red seams, all wearing Captain Novae's symbol.

The crew of the remarkably large Ri-an trading fleet fought the ghosts, but everytime they swung, the ghosts disappeared, leaving a pile of bones, and another one simply appeared.

Still The Cannons fired from the Ghost fleet.

Five ships were destroyed.

The cannons fired again, 20 ships this time.

The Ri-an fleet struggled, and finally managed to shoot down one ghost ship, it simply disappeared.

The Cannons fired again, and all the rest were destroyed, leaving, one ship mostly disabled, and dead in space.

The ghosts came upon the Two old men, and the young woman.

they wrestled her away from the two old men, and like that, everyone disappeared, leaving behind, the two old men, all alone, in the depths of space.

They sent out a single distress call, that was all they could manage.

"Beware, Captain Novae the dreaded Pirate captain from legend has returned." was all the message bore. followed by the coordinates of where they were.

Rob. The voice speaking over the microphone was very beautiful, ethereal even.

The figure on the bed stirred, and then grumbled.

Rob, wake up. You have to see this.

Another grumble; the figure put a pillow over his head.

ROB!

The bed suddenly went vertical, throwing both man and pillow out the bedroom door and onto the cold metal of the outside hallway. Rob Pulson groaned and rubbed his head.

"Was that really necessary, Eve?" He said as he slipped on his jacket and put on a pair of pants. He took a moment to check his gun, and then slipped it into his holster. The disembodied voice spoke back to him.

It damn well was. Get in the command chair and take a look at this.

Feeling somewhat annoyed, Rob made his way through his large ship to the bridge, taking a seat in the captain’s chair; he took a moment to swivel around in it. God, how he loved these chairs.

Stop acting like an idiot. I have a very important report for you to see.

Rob sighed; Eve was getting annoyed. Well, what did she want from him? He was in sole possession of one of the most advanced ships in the galaxy, and he had the smartest A.I. system of all time to boot. Sometimes, however, that was a thing to regret. Eve-the A.I.-was a machine, but she acted quite human. Chillingly human, sometimes. Rob was about to complain some more when he finally took the effort to glance at the report Eve had brought up. He quickly scanned through the account, frowning.

“Captain Novae? That old childhood story? I always sort of liked his idea, but I’m not a big fan of fairytales, Eve. Why did you show this to me?”

Eve sighed before answering him.

Because, Rob, a Ri-an trading fleet was just annihilated at those precise coordinates.

Rob frowned, surprised at this news.

“I always thought the Ri-an were careful to protect their trading ships. Remember Fre’na Salatra, our deceased pirate friend? Didn’t he meet his end while raiding some Ri-an fleet out by Terra?”

Evidently this Captain Novae-or whoever’s pretending to be him-isn’t any ordinary pirate. Remember the old stories, Rob? About the Treasure of Om?

“The treasure planet? I always thought it was a myth. There’s no reason to believe in it.”

There’s no reason to believe that an entire Ri-an trading fleet disappeared for no reason either. If Novae is showing up again, then there might be some truth to the Om legend after all.

“All right, all right. Let’s check it out. We’ll need to make a stop first, though…I don’t want go after something this big alone.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Two hours later-Cyrus VII

Eve shot down through the atmosphere of the planet at a rapid speed; Rob shielded his eyes as they broke through the clouds. The sun reflected off the vast Cyrus ocean, making the entire planet glisten spectacularly.

“Here. He should be right below us. Ah, yes, there it is.”

A tiny boat-Barely the size of a dinghy-floated far down on the water below. A single shining figure could be seen looking up to the sky. Eve floated down to it, hovering over the ocean. Rob opened up a side hatch.

The figure in the boat was massive, almost seven feet tall. At first glance, it seemed to be a huge suit of armor; Rob knew better. This was one of the most fearsome assassins this side of Sol. The “suit” was, in fact, an extremely advanced exoskeleton that increased Nexlon’s physical capabilities tenfold. He never came out of it; no one had ever even seen his true face.

“Rob,” said the figure, inclining its head a bit. Its voice was hard and metallic.

“Nexlon,” Rob replied. “Why did you want to meet here, of all places? I thought your headquarters were on Rigel.”

Nexlon shook his head. “Something cropped up that made me leave. I killed one of the more influential nobles of the land, and they tracked me down. I’ve decided to retire for a time until things cool down. Cyrus is much safer; I’ve taken it upon myself to begin building an underwater fortress. Would you like to see?”

Rob shook his head. “I don’t have the time. I wanted to meet you because of this.” He took out a recorder chip and threw it to Nexlon, who promptly put it in a transponder on his suit. After a few moments, he took out the chip and threw it back to Rob.

“Captain Novae is not real, Rob. At least not anymore. You made me come all this way for this?”

“A Ri-an trading fleet bit the dust at those coordinates. I don’t think that Novae did it either, but whoever is impersonating him will fetch a good bounty. And if it is Novae, there’s always that legend of the Treasure of Om.”

“I’m a legend, Rob. Om is a myth. There’s a difference.”

“You owe me, Nexlon, and you know it. Remember when I got you out of Ceres alive? You had an arm off! Besides, I don’t want to do this alone. Consider it a repayment of an old favor.”

Nexlon considered the matter for a minute, then shook his head and climbed on board, holding a long object covered in silk in his hands. Rob groaned.

“Don’t tell me…” He was too late. Nexlon pulled back the covering to reveal a long, flourishing katana. He drew it slowly, watching the sun reflect off the blade.

“You’re still carrying that thing around? I’m telling you, you’re living in the past.”

Nexlon sheathed the sword and shrugged. “I prefer it over anything else. You can keep your guns. Besides, this is a Moli-Sword. It’s sharp enough to cut anything I put it through.”

Rob shook his head in disgust. “Tell that to your dead body when you get a bullet put in your head. That armor can’t be that thick.”

“You’d be surprised.”

“I don’t want to hear it. Eve, punch in those coordinates. We’re going to find out what happened to that trading fleet, and by now every bounty hunter and treasure seeker in the galaxy will have already gotten the message. I want to be the first one there.”

Of course, Rob.

The ship blasted away from Cyrus VII, and entered lightspeed as soon as it left the atmosphere, hurtling towards the Ri-an…and Captain Novae.

The Guildcraft Starsailor

Each Guildcraft ship was a work of art, this paticular ship was made of an amber colored alloy with a bright red diamond. It's golden solar sails hailed from the days of sea faring sailing ships. This paticular craft belonged to Captain Ace Redcraft.

Redcraft's crew had just captured some cargo off a hapless trader and was now going through it. It was not just hard goods the Lucky Seven had raided, it was data off the trader's computer too.

"Sir, these commo logs picked up something interesting"

"What is it First Officer Jak?"

"Apparently a whole fleet of ships was wiped out by some ghost ship. It's a pretty popular myth in the Ri-an neighborhood"

"So, why should we care."

"Ever heard of the Legend of Om? It's though this 'Captain Novae' had a claim to it"

"Worth anything?"

"Enough to make you a Guild Lord"

Captain Redcraft thought about it for a moment, then ordered the proper course change.

Both ships found the reminants of a Ri-an Octopus ship. It had three arms left, held together by a weak flimsy forcefield. Both fleets could literally see the two old men huddled together, convinced they were going to die.

Other than that, the wreckage of the other ships floated everywhere in trillions of small tiny pieces, as well as 3,000 dead bodies.

A dismembered hand randomly slapped Eve, while a dismembered head collided with The Guildcraft Starsailor.

Well, this certianly looks pleasent. Eve sounded somewhat uncomfortable as body parts started bumping against her hull. There's another ship in the area, Rob.

"Damn. Looks like we wern't fast enough. I had hoped we would be the first ones. The other ship probably knows we're here already, but activate the cloak anyways, Eve. If he wants a fight, I don't want him knowing where we are when he starts firing missiles everywhere."

Eve obliged, shimmering for a moment before blending in with the debris and empty space around them.

"See if you can send a tranmission to those two old timers, Eve. It's going to complicate matters if we need to physiclly bring them aboard, and I don't care too much for passengers."

Of course, Rob.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Private Transmission from Eve to Old Ri-an Guys
Hey down there! Can you hear me? This is Captain Rob Pulson of the Lightwave Frigate Eve. We heard your distress signal. What happened here?
End Transmission

Well, this certianly looks pleasent. Eve sounded somewhat uncomfortable as body parts started bumping against her hull. There's another ship in the area, Rob.

"Damn. Looks like we wern't fast enough. I had hoped we would be the first ones. The other ship probably knows we're here already, but activate the cloak anyways, Eve. If he wants a fight, I don't want him knowing where we are when he starts firing missiles everywhere."

Eve obliged, shimmering for a moment before blending in with the debris and empty space around them.

"See if you can send a tranmission to those two old timers, Eve. It's going to complicate matters if we need to physiclly bring them aboard, and I don't care too much for passengers."

Of course, Rob.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Private Transmission from Eve to Old Ri-an Guys
Hey down there! Can you hear me? This is Captain Rob Pulson of the Lightwave Frigate Eve. We heard your distress signal. What happened here?
End Transmission

While they didn't get the message, the Tenticles started flashing on and off.

It was very old fashioned Morris code.

"LOST ALL COMMUNICATIONS STOP VERY LITTLE POWER FOR LIFE SUPPORT STOP NEARLY DEAD STOP PLEASE BEAM ABOARD STOP"

A pyramid like structure appeared out of nowhere, leaving the dreamworld and returning to the material plane. Inside the pyramid ghoulish hymns and chants could be heard, seemingly violating the laws of space. They were all dressed in ancient robes, and prayed to a truly eldritch god. Thier forms were like that of ghosts, for in thier vessel they could reveal thier true forms. They sang, or rather shrieked, as one like souls before the reaper.

They simply sat in space, unknowing of the carnage so nearby.

While they didn't get the message, the Tenticles started flashing on and off.

It was very old fashioned Morris code.

"LOST ALL COMMUNICATIONS STOP VERY LITTLE POWER FOR LIFE SUPPORT STOP NEARLY DEAD STOP PLEASE BEAM ABOARD STOP"

Morse code, Rob. Eve quickly translated the message. They don't have enough power to send back a reply.

Rob sighed. He did not want passengers, but he did want information. At least they could be used as a bartering chip with the other ships. He looked at Nexlon, who nodded.

"Very well. Beam them aboard."

The two men shimmered for a moment, then appeared on Eve's bridge. Rob took a moment to note the appearance of another ship-a large pyramid. Things were going from bad to worse.

"Well, let's meet our guests, then." Nexlon and Rob quickly hurried out of the cockpit and to the bridge.

A pyramid like structure appeared out of nowhere, leaving the dreamworld and returning to the material plane. Inside the pyramid ghoulish hymns and chants could be heard, seemingly violating the laws of space. They were all dressed in ancient robes, and prayed to a truly eldritch god. Thier forms were like that of ghosts, for in thier vessel they could reveal thier true forms. They sang, or rather shrieked, as one like souls before the reaper.

They simply sat in space, unknowing of the carnage so nearby.

They too were close enough to get the transmission, and should they go over to its source, they too would see the Morse code.

Morse code, Rob. Eve quickly translated the message. They don't have enough power to send back a reply.

Rob sighed. He did not want passengers, but he did want information. At least they could be used as a bartering chip with the other ships. He looked at Nexlon, who nodded.

"Very well. Beam them aboard."

The two men shimmered for a moment, then appeared on Eve's bridge. Rob took a moment to note the appearance of another ship-a large pyramid. Things were going from bad to worse.

"Well, let's meet our guests, then." Nexlon and Rob quickly hurried out of the cockpit and to the bridge.

The two old men looked around in confusion.

Then they realised what happened.

"Thank you sir. I am Captain Sorgei, and this is Captain Thames. You saved our lives, we thought Novae had killed us for sure."

"Yes, yes, that's great. You can pay me back later. I just want to know what happened here." He motioned outside towards the terrible carnage. "What did this to your people? Moreover, how did you two survive?"

Nexlon's metal face stared at the two.

"You are both aware that Captain Novae does not exist anymore, correct? We assumed that this was done by a copycat, or an impersonator."

"Yes, yes, that's great. You can pay me back later. I just want to know what happened here." He motioned outside towards the terrible carnage. "What did this to your people? Moreover, how did you two survive?"

Nexlon's metal face stared at the two.

"You are both aware that Captain Novae does not exist anymore, correct? We assumed that this was done by a copycat, or an impersonator."

"Strange unexplainible things happen all the time. Our fleet was destroyed by a Ghost fleet, his Ghost fleet. They looked like they came directly from the legendary battle. We heard his voice, we saw his dead crew simply rise up and slaughter ours. How we survived, we don't know, fate, luck, and the brilliant engineering of The Aquamarinians. There is no trace, sure, but it was him all the same. He took our granddaughter. Believe us, Novae has returned from the dead, with his Ghost fleet."

OOC: And as absolute irrefutable proof, the Ghost fleet's about to return.

A spacial anomaly ripped open, and a great nebulos cloud spilled forth. Time seemed to stop and space seemed to have no meaning. Energy cracked forth from the Nebula, and a great field stopped all spacial movement, except that of the cloud. It spread all around the ships.

Then, The Ghost Fleet reappeared out of the storm just as battered as they were a few minuets ago.

"Reinforcements is it? No one can defeat Captain Novae, not even Death itself. To Davy Jones's Locker with the Lot of ye."

The cannons of the fleet took aim, and prepared to fire.

"Well, whatever you say, Nexlon won't buy it. He's a skeptic of anything supernatural. I, however, have seen some pretty strange things in this galaxy, so I'm willing to at least consider your story, mostly under the pretense that Novae supposedly had some massive treasure at Om." Rob frowed. "I've fought undead before, but nothing like ghosts."

Nexlon looked hard at Rob.

"That was a virus, Rob. Completely scientific. What happened on Adamaria that time could be explained. This is just insanity. Last time I checked, Ghost Fleets didn't appear out of nowhere under the command of long-dead pirates."

Rob shrugged. "There's probably a resonable explaination. I don't really care about it too much right now."

He looked at the two old men.

"Do you have any idea where this fleet went off to?"

"Well, whatever you say, Nexlon won't buy it. He's a skeptic of anything supernatural. I, however, have seen some pretty strange things in this galaxy, so I'm willing to at least consider your story, mostly under the pretense that Novae supposedly had some massive treasure at Om." Rob frowed. "I've fought undead before, but nothing like ghosts."

Nexlon looked hard at Rob.

"That was a virus, Rob. Completely scientific. What happened on Adamaria that time could be explained. This is just insanity. Last time I checked, Ghost Fleets didn't appear out of nowhere under the command of long-dead pirates."

Rob shrugged. "There's probably a resonable explaination. I don't really care about it too much right now."

He looked at the two old men.

"Do you have any idea where this fleet went off to?"

OOC: I point you at the post just above yours that I'm quoting here.

OOC: I point you at the post just above yours that I'm quoting here.

OCC:I just noticed. I posted just a moment too late.

Rob, there's a rather large fleet of ships approaching this sector. Eve's voice sounded a little urgent. And they don't look very happy to see us.

Rob looked at Nexlon.

"Well, happy now? Here's some solid proof."

"No, I'm not happy. I'd like to know exactly what we're dealing with."

"We don't have time for that."

The enemy fleet is powering their weapons.

"Great," said Rob. "Everybody, strap in. Eve, evasive manuvers. Get ready to dodge whatever they throw at us. Even if they are dead, that doesn't mean we can't kill them a second time."

Eve stood in space, her thrusters pulsing gently, ready to dodge anything and everything that would be fired at her.

OCC:I just noticed. I posted just a moment too late.

Rob, there's a rather large fleet of ships approaching this sector. Eve's voice sounded a little urgent. And they don't look very happy to see us.

Rob looked at Nexlon.

"Well, happy now? Here's some solid proof."

"No, I'm not happy. I'd like to know exactly what we're dealing with."

"We don't have time for that."

The enemy fleet is powering their weapons.

"Great," said Rob. "Everybody, strap in. Eve, evasive manuvers. Get ready to dodge whatever they throw at us. Even if they are dead, that doesn't mean we can't kill them a second time."

Eve stood in space, her thrusters pulsing gently, ready to dodge anything and everything that would be fired at her.

Eve would find that no matter how much she fired her thrusters, she couldn't move, it was as though the Nebula was physicly restraining her.

The weapons fired at her engines.

Meanwhile, on the bridge, 30 Ghosts materialised, as much as a ghost could materialise.

They got out their Light sabres and regular sabres.

15 went for captain Rob, 15 went for Nexlon.

Energy crackled throughout the Nebula.

If anyone cared to scan the anomaly, they would find signs of it being a Temporal Anomaly, but that wasn't all it was, but it was part of the reason why Novae was back.

ROB, I CAN'T MOVE!

There was a shudder as Eve's engines were wreaked with a gut-wrenching sound. She could regenerate them, of course, but it would take quite a while to do such a thing.

"Shit. We're about to be boarded." Rob pointed to the thirty shimmering forms before them, then pointed to the Ri-ans. "You two, go find somewhere to hide. We'll take care of these."

Rob drew his large pistol from his holster as well as his custom plasma-machete, then snapped his fingers.

"Eve, auto-defenses. Now!"

Wall panels opened up to reveal gun turrets and automated blaster rifles. Nexlon drew his long Katana and faced over a dozen pirates, attacking first. He stayed low to the ground and moved blindingly fast-much faster than any normal human. His sword struck in every direction possible as he turned into a maelstrom of silvery fury.

Rob fired his pistol at several pirates and they charged forward; He barely kept the ghouls off him, even with the automated defenses. Rob barely avoided a saber blow, cutting off the arm of the offending pirate. Eve's guns blazed molten lead and plasma, mowing through pirates like a scythe in a wheat field.

OCC:What effect will my weapons have on the pirates?

ROB, I CAN'T MOVE!

There was a shudder as Eve's engines were wreaked with a gut-wrenching sound. She could regenerate them, of course, but it would take quite a while to do such a thing.

"Shit. We're about to be boarded." Rob pointed to the thirty shimmering forms before them, then pointed to the Ri-ans. "You two, go find somewhere to hide. We'll take care of these."

Rob drew his large pistol from his holster as well as his custom plasma-machete, then snapped his fingers.

"Eve, auto-defenses. Now!"

Wall panels opened up to reveal gun turrets and automated blaster rifles. Nexlon drew his long Katana and faced over a dozen pirates, attacking first. He stayed low to the ground and moved blindingly fast-much faster than any normal human. His sword struck in every direction possible as he turned into a maelstrom of silvery fury.

Rob fired his pistol at several pirates and they charged forward; He barely kept the ghouls off him, even with the automated defenses. Rob barely avoided a saber blow, cutting off the arm of the offending pirate. Eve's guns blazed molten lead and plasma, mowing through pirates like a scythe in a wheat field.

OCC:What effect will my weapons have on the pirates?

OOC: Being that as I said the Pirates themselves are near infinite and easily defeatable, the following effect occurs.

IC: Every time a weapon hit, the Ghost became solid, and collapsed into a rotting pile of bone.

First all 30 collapsed, then a group of eight came, then two, who appeared next to Sorgei and Thames, Each of who drew a gun with a magazine made of crystal, and shot the ghosts dead.

"Well, that's the third time in our lives we fought Novae." they said.

Meanwhile, Novae's salty voice could be heard.

"Mateys return to the ship, its time we pointed our bowsprite back to Om. These trouble makers can't follow us to the treasure."

The ghosts of the dead pirates rose out of the bones, and disappeared.

"Thames, you still have that thing?" Sorgei asked.

Thames took a gold pendant out of his clothes.

"You don't think we could find it do you?" he asked.

"Not that, we have plenty of riches, but we need to get our Granddaughter back." Sorgei said.

Rob went running through the ship, inspecting the damage. Everything seemed all right-except for the engines. They would take some time to repair. Eve shut down every non-vital system on the ship and began channeling power towards the engines, slowly rebuilding them. He then went to the pair of Ri-an.

"So, what now?" He said. "It'll take time to get the engines online again. I guess we just have to wait here for a while." Rob gave them a hard stare. "Those are some fancy guns. It appears there's more to you two than to be expected."

Nexlon came into the conversation, sheathing his blade.

"Hardly a challenge. Those things had slower reactions tha even a dead person should have. How much time until we get moving?"

"An hour at least. For now..." Rob looked at Sorgei and Thames. "I feel like our passengers aren't telling us everything they know. And I'd like to know everything they know. Got any more information for us? Just how are we supposed to follow those things?"

OCC: Is the Lucky Seven in combat range? I was not sure if both of our ships were in the same battle space. Using fluid-time, I'll RP the events of what happened when we first came into contact.


The Lucky Seven slipped out of slipstream and raised it's solar sails. The engines fell silent as the Seven drifted among the wreckage. The pilot making slight adjustments as to avoid most of the shattered peices.

The atmosphere had turned errie and cold. Like most Guildcraft ships, the Seven could operate under almost no power, and so it appeared like space junk to the untrained sensor operator. They sailed quietly, which only added to the strange and unholy sight.

A head bumped against the amber hull.

Several crew members had taken out thier St. Christopher crosses and began praying for the dead. The non-religious sailors nearly cursed and made ready their weapons.

First Officer Jak whispered to Captain Redcraft, Sir, I don't think whatever got ahold of these ships was a myth. Something tore these craft apart. This is a war we're walking into. It's forbidden by the Guild to get involved.

Redcraft looked out upon the stars, Yes, but we're not getting involved, we're only looking. Start scanning for precious items and get the damn cannon crews on their stations. We don't want any trouble.

Rob went running through the ship, inspecting the damage. Everything seemed all right-except for the engines. They would take some time to repair. Eve shut down every non-vital system on the ship and began channeling power towards the engines, slowly rebuilding them. He then went to the pair of Ri-an.

"So, what now?" He said. "It'll take time to get the engines online again. I guess we just have to wait here for a while." Rob gave them a hard stare. "Those are some fancy guns. It appears there's more to you two than to be expected."

Nexlon came into the conversation, sheathing his blade.

"Hardly a challenge. Those things had slower reactions tha even a dead person should have. How much time until we get moving?"

"An hour at least. For now..." Rob looked at Sorgei and Thames. "I feel like our passengers aren't telling us everything they know. And I'd like to know everything they know. Got any more information for us? Just how are we supposed to follow those things?"

"Well, truth be told, we were the ones that originally told the Legend of Novae, nearly 200 years ago. Its mostly true, at least as far as we can remember. We were there, in the battle at point 8, where Novae was destroyed.

If you don't ask about our pasts, we won't have to lie to you. But, if you help us rescue our granddaughter, we will give you the treasure of Om. There is enough treasure there, to let both of you live a very comfortable life, for longer than you could possibly live. However, be warned, it won't be a walk in the park, and it could very well be the very last adventure you ever go on." Sorgei said.

He walked to a [place where he could see outside.

Thames joined him.

They took out a pair of gold pendants with a red ruby at the center. Usng the magazine crystal, they fused the two together. An odd red glow suffused space. The body parts, ship parts, and random specks of space dust came together, to make a map.

"We know how to decipher that map out there, and if you give us no trouble and cooperate in rescuing our granddaughter, we will decipher it for you. What say you, are you brave enough to travel the road to Om?" Thames said.

OCC: Is the Lucky Seven in combat range? I was not sure if both of our ships were in the same battle space. Using fluid-time, I'll RP the events of what happened when we first came into contact.


The Lucky Seven slipped out of slipstream and raised it's solar sails. The engines fell silent as the Seven drifted among the wreckage. The pilot making slight adjustments as to avoid most of the shattered peices.

The atmosphere had turned errie and cold. Like most Guildcraft ships, the Seven could operate under almost no power, and so it appeared like space junk to the untrained sensor operator. They sailed quietly, which only added to the strange and unholy sight.

A head bumped against the amber hull.

Several crew members had taken out thier St. Christopher crosses and began praying for the dead. The non-religious sailors nearly cursed and made ready their weapons.

First Officer Jak whispered to Captain Redcraft, Sir, I don't think whatever got ahold of these ships was a myth. Something tore these craft apart. This is a war we're walking into. It's forbidden by the Guild to get involved.

Redcraft looked out upon the stars, Yes, but we're not getting involved, we're only looking. Start scanning for precious items and get the damn cannon crews on their stations. We don't want any trouble.

They too, saw the map form out of hull fragments and body parts.

A pulse was felt, a call made, and 30 creatures of the temple phased out of reality.

They phased into the ship known as Eve, taking the form of some strange squid-like creatures with a thick green goo dripping from thier tentacles. They growled and all at once tried to kill the humans possessing the map. For some reason the map must be had, and they reached for the devices that made the map.

The creatures could only remain here for so long, and this knowledge drove them to great fervour.

(Just trying to spice it up)

As if by magic, the map appreared amist the rubble.

Redcraft statered at it intently. Cheif Dogstar was taking video of the map for future reference. When the enemy fleet had arrived, they had gone full silent. The battle ensued with the ghost fleet not detecting them.

Redcraft began to pace the bridge, "Pilot, prepare to follow them quietly."

"I'm not even going to ask you why you are that old-not that I'd want to know anyways. I don't give a flying vorginaut about your granddaughter, but if it gets me to Om, then I'm all for it."

Rob glanced at Nexlon, who nodded.

"All right then. It'll be a while before the engines are able to start. We should start to-" Rob was cut off as a large group of slimy squid-like aliens suddenly boarded the ship. "Hmm. I didn't know that Eve was so easy to board. I'll have to see if I can do something about that."

He stepped forward to face the aliens.

"Erm....Cthulhu Ftang?"

The aliens growled loudnly and rushed at Thames and Sorgei.

"Guess not," he muttered, drawing his pistol. "Nexlon, these things are actually alive, so lets try and take a few prisoners."

It turned out to be a hard fight. Eve was still almost completely shut down, flowing all available energy into repairing the engines. Thus, there were not automated defenses to help out. Nexlon drew his sword and cut a pair of the creppy squid-things in half, then started to engage the entire group as Rob started taking potshots from outside the meele, hacking down any alien that strayed too far. He hoped that Thames and Sorgei would try and defend themselves, or at least help out.

The Malasrionese arrived in Ri-an terroritory, living up to their fashionably-late reputation.

The farewell had been epic. The entire Commonwealth had stopped to watch the thousands of blue sub-space drive streaks dissappear into the starry night, the anthem Oh, Ministry joining the nation at last.

The lattice of shuttles lead by the carriers had no difficulty locating the enormous electromagnetic disruptions Novae had boasted, and The Commander was met with quite a sight before him.

"We're late," the bridge viewport displaying the complete anarchy before him. "Open all hailing frequencies - It'd be preferable to know absolutely everything before attempting to reach diplomatic negotiations.

That's if they're willing to share."

The map that had formed from the fragments of the Ri-an wreckage was duely noted by the Malasrionese - however sketchy the details were.

Damn! More visitors!, cursed Captain Redcraft.

The Commo Officer was busy interecting traffic, while another crewman was preparing a report to the Pirate Guild. If this many ships were looking for the Om then it must be important. Important enough for profit sharing to come in.

The Lucky Seven stayed silent...drifting in open space.

Thames and sorgei had other matters on their mind.

"Eve. Take a picture of that map, and print it out for us to refrence in the future. There are five landmarks that mark the way to the ancient world of Om. First, you must go to andromeda, if you follow the north star in Milky way, proportionally aligned by the Location of Ri-an, you will find before you reach Ri-an, the Lair of The Guardian Wurm Laeviathane, there shall we find the next direction." Sorgei said.

Thames turned to the rest.

"I suggust you work together with the other ships. Om has much treasure, but Death follows our footsteps. Not everyone will make it alive." he said.

Eve responded with a weak Yes and took the picture. Rob, on the other hand, was a little annoyed at the moment.

"For some reason, I think our green friends here have other ideas," he said, hacking off another slimy tentacle. He looked in the direction of the aliens, who were being quite distraced by Nexlon's sword. "Of course, if you all would like to take his advice and get off my ship, it's all the same to me."

Rob, the main engines are online. In twenty minutes they will be at 70% capacity, and we can make a jump to Andromeda. Eve's voice was barely audible over the sounds of the ensuing battle.

Rob and Nexlon stepped back to the bridge, weapons pointed at the aliens.

"You lot! If you leave, we'll give you a copy of that map free of charge. Might as well turn this into a race."

"Give us...ZE MAAAAP!!!"

The creatures howled as they changed forms, becoming huge werewolf like creatures. The drooled and barked now, pointing towards the map. 4 more like them phased in, in the same form.

An officer approached The Commander: "Reports on the Ri-an survivors indicate the lightwave frigate they boarded has just regained sub-space jump capabilities."

"Its advisable to contact them if you may," he replied. "We may have to follow them."

The Humblest Apologies.
I represent the Commonwealth of Malasrion and its interests. Forgive our presence, but we've no alternative but to request permission to discuss the current affair on our own vessel.

"We might have to give a little to take a little," The Commander confided in the officer.

"Give us...ZE MAAAAP!!!"

The creatures howled as they changed forms, becoming huge werewolf like creatures. The drooled and barked now, pointing towards the map. 4 more like them phased in, in the same form.

Sorgei rolled up a copy, sealed it, and tossed it at them.

"But remember, Space is full of odd and unexplained things. Beware the dangers of the unkown." thames said.

Gizmo!

Gizmo was the star navigator on board the Seven. He was currently pouring over the map, trying to figure out heads from tailY. He made a few noises.

Captain Ace Redcraft was growing impatient.

"GIZMO! Where does it say to go!?"

Gizmo swirled back around, "Patience my Captain! I must check it twice......yes...YES! To Andromeda the path leads!"

Redcraft called up to the Bridge, "Pilot! Set course for Andromeda. Full Slip!

The amber hull crackled with energy and the bow lit up, casting a bright light on the wreckage. Engines came online as the beam shot out across space opening up a way to slipstream.

And with that, the star sailor was gone.

The Malasrionese command practically did a somersault.

...COORDINATES X,Y,Z RELATIVE TO OWN, SUB-SPACE ION DISRUPTION DETECTED...

"SIR ONE'S HEADING DEAD-SET FOR ANDROMEDA"

"I wish those damn Ri-an and that Rouge would reply!" He seethed.

The Malasrionese command practically did a somersault.

...COORDINATES X,Y,Z RELATIVE TO OWN, SUB-SPACE ION DISRUPTION DETECTED...

"SIR ONE'S HEADING DEAD-SET FOR ANDROMEDA"

"I wish those damn Ri-an and that Rouge would reply!" He seethed.

OOC: Don't be so angry, if there isn't one of Ri-an blood onboard, Laeviathane will attack, along with the entire Stargon rooke.

IC:

Thames noticed a beeping in his pocket.

"Why, its my pocket comunicator. I thought it got destroyed." he said.

"Ehh, hello?" he asked, picking up the signal from the Malasrion ship.

OOC: Don't be so angry, if there isn't one of Ri-an blood onboard, Laeviathane will attack, along with the entire Stargon rooke.
OOC// ^^ Sorry >.<

IC//

"Sorry to bother," The Commander apologised. "I was seeking an interpretation of your map which a Star Sailor seems to have followed. Moreover we wish to express our intent to co-operate with the return of your kidnapped - our whole purpose of wishing to be involved is to secure resources for our crippled economy."

OOC// ^^ Sorry >.<

IC//

"Sorry to bother," The Commander apologised. "I was seeking an interpretation of your map which a Star Sailor seems to have followed. Moreover we wish to express our intent to co-operate with the return of your kidnapped - our whole purpose of wishing to be involved is to secure resources for our crippled economy."

"Align The North Star with Ri-an. Follow that path, until you reach the Lair of The great Guardian Wurm, Laeviathane. There, the next path will be revealed."

Rob and Nexlon put their weapons away as Ri-ans held the wierd werewolf things at bay with a copy of the map. Rob started to run out of the bridge and to the mantainece chambers.

"Nexlon, help me with this. I've got a few spare generators that will speed up Eve's rehabilitation." Nexlon nodded, hauling a large pulse generator and plugging it into a wall socket. Eve hummed loudly as the nexus of extra energy flowed into her. Rob did the same with another generator.

Ah...Thank you, Rob. I needed that. All right, then. With this extra energy, the engines will be almost fully repaired in about five minutes. I'll need about an hour to deal with the aura shield-that got damaged in the blast as well. We can make the jump as soon as the engines are regenerated.

"Good." Rob turned to the two Ri-an as he walked on to the bridge. "Looks like you two will be staying on board after all. You seem to know everything about this, and we're lost without you anyways."

He sat down in the captain's chair and started making the nessesary preperations for the jump.

"Right then. I don't really want to know what the Great Guardian Whatever-The-Fuck-His-Name-Is is, but, luckily, someone left before us, so he'll have to deal with it first. Ready, Eve?

Ready.

"Let's go, then!"

Eve stood motionless for a moment, then vanished into space, hurtling after the rouge star sailor that was ahead of her.

Rob and Nexlon put their weapons away as Ri-ans held the wierd werewolf things at bay with a copy of the map. Rob started to run out of the bridge and to the mantainece chambers.

"Nexlon, help me with this. I've got a few spare generators that will speed up Eve's rehabilitation." Nexlon nodded, hauling a large pulse generator and plugging it into a wall socket. Eve hummed loudly as the nexus of extra energy flowed into her. Rob did the same with another generator.

Ah...Thank you, Rob. I needed that. All right, then. With this extra energy, the engines will be almost fully repaired in about five minutes. I'll need about an hour to deal with the aura shield-that got damaged in the blast as well. We can make the jump as soon as the engines are regenerated.

"Good." Rob turned to the two Ri-an as he walked on to the bridge. "Looks like you two will be staying on board after all. You seem to know everything about this, and we're lost without you anyways."

He sat down in the captain's chair and started making the nessesary preperations for the jump.

"Right then. I don't really want to know what the Great Guardian Whatever-The-Fuck-His-Name-Is is, but, luckily, someone left before us, so he'll have to deal with it first. Ready, Eve?

Ready.

"Let's go, then!"

Eve stood motionless for a moment, then vanished into space, hurtling after the rouge star sailor that was ahead of her.

"Well, you've heard of dragons, right? The Guardian is a species of Dragon that dwells in space, having control over energy, being that they feed of of other things that live in space, minerals in asteroids, and the backround radiation of space, as well as Solar Radiation. But he won't attack you because we're on board." Sorgei said.

OOC: First come, first serve, now to awaken my pet dragon, pardon, Stargon.

Gizmo!

Gizmo was the star navigator on board the Seven. He was currently pouring over the map, trying to figure out heads from tailY. He made a few noises.

Captain Ace Redcraft was growing impatient.

"GIZMO! Where does it say to go!?"

Gizmo swirled back around, "Patience my Captain! I must check it twice......yes...YES! To Andromeda the path leads!"

Redcraft called up to the Bridge, "Pilot! Set course for Andromeda. Full Slip!

The amber hull crackled with energy and the bow lit up, casting a bright light on the wreckage. Engines came online as the beam shot out across space opening up a way to slipstream.

And with that, the star sailor was gone.

The map lead them to gigantic asteroid that nearly qualified as a small world.
The asteroid rotated around to show that it was 90% hollow, and a big cave larger than most ships sat infront of it.

If anyone had known of the Dragons in myth and legend, they would see a head poking out, that looked like a dragon. It looked mostly eastren, but did have some Westren and european influences.

It was dark grey, and would be hard to see, if it werent for the fact its teeth, claws, and wings were all glowing yellow.

It yawned, stretched its wings, and looked curiously at the newcomers.

Then it spread them wide.

A Roar filled all communication frequencies.

Then, The Creature spoke to them over a higher range frequency.

"You have entered The Sacred Empire of Ri-an. If you do not leave within five minutes, I will destroy you." It growled.

Yet, the map lead directly to the creature's cave.

Captain Ace decided to take another gamble.

"Great Dragon, You have my word that we shall depart from this place in four minutes."

Jak was motioning the pilot to plot a course inside the astroid and to calculate a jump from inside the cave. This would have to be faily quick.

They waited for the Dragon to respond before executing the plan.

Captain Ace decided to take another gamble.

"Great Dragon, You have my word that we shall depart from this place in four minutes."

Jak was motioning the pilot to plot a course inside the astroid and to calculate a jump from inside the cave. This would have to be faily quick.

They waited for the Dragon to respond before executing the plan.

"So you would dare to invade my home?"

It seemed the Dragon wasn't buying it. Oh well.

"No, we wouldn't dare. We will be leaving now.

From the bow of the Lucky Seven two drones shot out. The drones shaped like saucers with twin ion cannons mounted on top. The drones took off in different directions, meanwhile thee Lucky Seven made a quarter turn away from the astroid and it's guard. The drones began to race in two different directions, one away from the [i]Seven and another towards the cave.

It seemed the Dragon wasn't buying it. Oh well.

"No, we wouldn't dare. We will be leaving now.

From the bow of the Lucky Seven two drones shot out. The drones shaped like saucers with twin ion cannons mounted on top. The drones took off in different directions, meanwhile thee Lucky Seven made a quarter turn away from the astroid and it's guard. The drones began to race in two different directions, one away from the [i]Seven and another towards the cave.

"Attack" Was all the eldest Stargon said.

from the otherside of the asteroid, came a horde of 100 other Stargons, only younger, and a little weaker, but still, very deadly.


50 departed for one drone, 50 departed for the other.

"You had your chance. Your trickery will not work against me." The creature said.

Its energy levels began to rise.

Meanwhile, a masive school of Space Mambo obscured the view.

A space Mambo, of course, was a breed of fish that lived in space, and was one of the Stargon's favorite food sources.

Laeviathane's Claws raked against the weapons of the ship, each claw being 30 times the hardness of diamonds.

The Lucky Seven made a terrible noise as the claws dug into the vessel. It's Ion Cannons were going to be in need of some serious repair, but the Seven's slipstream drive was still starting up nevertheless. Blue-White engery once again surged through the bow of the ship and fired into the the depths of space. A wormhole began to appear in which the Seven would escape out of.

The drones were firing both of thier turrets and spinning furiously in an attempt to get away. At the same time, the drones would attempt to fly into the cave.

The Pilot punched the 'panic' button. It would order the Lucky Seven into slipstream to a pre-determined safe zone in a matter of seconds.

The question is...did they have seconds to spare?

About this time Eve came upon the scene.

All the stargons just stopped.

"A Ri-anese." Was all Laeviathane said.

The Stargons settled down on various asteroids.

Sorgei called out on the higher range communication frequencies.

"Wait, don't attack."

Then to the lucky seven.

"serves you right for sneaking up on a dragon. I doubt you would know how to find the clue anyways." Sorgei said.

"That," said Rob, staring at the Stargon, "Is very, very...big."

"How observant of you," commented Nexlon dryly. He looked at the Ri-ans. "We're lucky we have you two. I'm not even sure Eve could take something of this size and power."

In my present condition, you're absolutely right, replied Eve. Perhaps if I had some nuclear warheads in my missile tubes I'd stand a chance, but we'd be goners if I had to battle this creature now.

Rob turned back to the Ri-ans.

"Well, now that we don't have to go up against old fire-breath here, what next? Do we have to get some information or something?" He eyed the massive Stargon suspiciously. "You're sure that....thing won't try anything, right?"

"That," said Rob, staring at the Stargon, "Is very, very...big."

"How observant of you," commented Nexlon dryly. He looked at the Ri-ans. "We're lucky we have you two. I'm not even sure Eve could take something of this size and power."

In my present condition, you're absolutely right, replied Eve. Perhaps if I had some nuclear warheads in my missile tubes I'd stand a chance, but we'd be goners if I had to battle this creature now.

Rob turned back to the Ri-ans.

"Well, now that we don't have to go up against old fire-breath here, what next? Do we have to get some information or something?" He eyed the massive Stargon suspiciously. "You're sure that....thing won't try anything, right?"

Thames and sorgei took out the amulets again.

"This is where it begins to get tricky." thames said.

The amulets began to glow, and the Asteroid Laeviathane was in glowed back in response.

It rotated until the opening faced The constellation Arachnea, so called because on Ri-an, it really did look like a spider.

"But, its not as simple as that." Thames and sorgei said.

the poured over the previous map, and had eve access the Ri-an directory of Star charts, and print several of them out.

The Pendants could unfold to a variety of shapes, and they poured over the maps, sometimes making a line here, a dash there.

They also had Eve take diffrent scans of the meteor for a variety of reasons. Each scan revealed something diffrent, but they still had no clue.

Finally, they wrote down a puzzle.

"12 - 52. Though greater in size, its length is equal in time. add the first two, multiplied by the third, and take the result, added together, Take a third and go there, starting from the bottom right going clockwise."

"Now, if we can figure this out, we know where to go."Sorgei said.

Thames and sorgei paced back and forth trying to figure out the answer.

OOC: I already know the answer, but do you?

OCC: Have I escaped or did the attack stop moments before hit the exit button?

OCC: Have I escaped or did the attack stop moments before hit the exit button?

OOC: It stopped before you escaped.

OCC:I've been trying to figure out your riddle for some time now, Ri-an, but what I came up with doesn't make any sense. Care to give me a hint?

OCC:I've been trying to figure out your riddle for some time now, Ri-an, but what I came up with doesn't make any sense. Care to give me a hint?

OOC: What did you come up with?

Time had passed.

"AHA!" Thames and sorgei shouted at once.

"I figured it out!" Thames shouted.

"So did I!" Sorgei exclaimed.

"Take this... do that... do this... there we go." the said together.

"I present, the solution to Novae's first riddle."

"12 - 52. Though greater in size, its length is equal in time. add the first two, multiplied by the third, and take the result, added together, Take a third and go there, starting from the bottom right going clockwise.

That was the riddle.

This is what it means.

356, 48, 12, 4. The cave was pointing at Arachnae. Starting from the bottom right leg, going clockwise, you end up with this leg. There are three stars in that leg, but surely it will be at one of the stars." Thames said feeling particularly intelligent.

Sorgei was giving Laeviathane instructions.

The Lucky Seven had stopped.

He would have to report the encounter to the Guild Lord. Space dragons were not very common and having a run in with them certainly seemed to make this 'om' a pretty valuble commodidity.

He would send his report...and just sit there...silent and still.

The Lucky Seven had stopped.

He would have to report the encounter to the Guild Lord. Space dragons were not very common and having a run in with them certainly seemed to make this 'om' a pretty valuble commodidity.

He would send his report...and just sit there...silent and still.

The Stargons began circling the Lucky seven, collecting the debris.

wonder of wonders, they began to fix the ship.

Bump.