Odette turned from where she'd been observing the Forlorn Hope. Fitting, given it was where the last chance of the dynasty rested. Without it she and her inner circle still had power, but could no longer claim the mantle of Rogue Traders.

Hands clasped behind her back she listened as Aurelius and Jak spoke, nodding to them both. "We cannot know for certain what threat we're facing, be it something natural, Xenos, heresy or something even worse. Our military resources are capable and I very much agree with having a number of small fight craft. Regarding targets as well, I had more than one reason to try to gain rights to the colony. Now that we have those rights anything part of the colony will be ours entirely which offers the potential chance for expansion in the future.

I'm minded to agree Explorator, with the note that we may need to adjust our wider strategy once we arrive in the system and have real time data to hand. As for information you are both correct and I asked some questions.

This is far from entirely reliable, but I did have a conversation with a Captain who's carried out runs to that system. She had numerous issues with her cargo and said the labour force in the colony was unreliable and several things went wrong. There's also the fact that several in her crew experienced strange dreams."

She looked towards Morton with a nod. "Is this something you might have experience with? If the Warp is involved somehow, we need to be even more wary."

Listening to the Lady-Captain's insights, Aurelius nodded, the prayers upon his robes causing that slight motion to be accompanied by a susurration of rustling. He was perturbed, unreliability oft a precursor to discontent and turning one's face from the Emperor's Light, but he remained silent until their Navigator had an opportunity to speak. His lips moved, however, sub-vocalizing a prayer from the lessons of Saint Sabbat, "Lay a fire within your soul and another between your hands, and let both be your weapons.
For one is faith and the other is victory and neither may ever be put out..."

When they had walked out onto the platform Morton had seemed lost in the view, his blank grey eyes studying space with a slight smile on his handsome features.

It took a moment for him to realise Odette had spoken.

He cleared his throat before replying, turning those same featureless eyes towards her.

" Unfortunately until I am there I cannot say if the warp is effecting the situation but once there I should know for sure. The dreams are a worry I will research this, there are stories of the warp effecting the mind from long exposure, invading dreams and altering perception. I will look into it before we arrive at our destination."

He nodded before continuing" My lady Faye where do you wish to arrive first? so I can make my calculations and set a path through the blackness for our voyage"

 "While it is possible to utilise alternative Mandeville Points to arrive in-system, there are considerations in doing so." Explorator Tesla states dispassionately, looking between the Navigator and the Trader, expressing nothing that they do not know but doing so in order to put them at the front of their minds for the decision-making process in fairly typical Mechanicus fashion - they do so love their ordained checklists -"All such safe entry points are at least two weeks cruising speed from the inner solar system even when approaching dwarf stars, therefore stealth and speed are not one amongst them. The two most prominent are that the most commonly used point - the one frequented by the bulk haulers - will have the most thorough charting and be the safest from the point of view of entering and exiting the Immaterium. Counter to this, is that this point will represent the greatest risk of ambush if hostile void forces are in theatre."

As Vorn read the Tarot, the first card was not a good omen.

God-Emperor, Inverted: A grim omen, one that suggests the taint of the Warp is in play, or death from the great void beyond the light of the Astronomicon.

And below that were three that formed a concerning pattern.

The Dishonoured Scion, Inverted: Either suggests opportunities to be had by breaking with tradition....or an old shame.

The Harlequin: Illusion, trickery and the unseen adversary.

The Sword, Inverted: An imminent battle, inverted to suggest civil strife or internal dissent.

Morton looked at the card that was turned, interesting.

"My lady Faye Dreams are a sign of the warps influence but even the best shielded ship will allow seepage this does not mean it has an active roll in what is or has happened but it is something  that must be considered as we progress."

He looked at his fellow ship mates " at the first sign that any of the crew start experiencing dreams I need to be informed, that includes all of you"

Odette nodded at Jak and Morton as Aurelius consulted the tarot. "I am certainly minded for caution on this venture, so I would prefer we exit at a point less likely to be interdicted However, it is yourself who must chart us this course Master Navigator. Do you consider exiting at a less well travelled point a viable option?"

She drew her lips into a thin line. "The warning of dreams is understood. We will be watchful then. Aurelius." She waited until his reading was complete to avoid interruption. "What would be needed to further ward the ship from the predations of the Warp with the protections of the God Emperor?"

“Confessors and choirs, my Lady-Captain”, suggested Aurelius, his brow furrowed as he considered the cards before him, “We must fortify the hold crew if they are to face the apostate and the heretic.”

He paused for a moment, thoughtful and somewhat concerned, “Perhaps a relic master, who might bless the munitions. “

His thoughts remained on the cards, trying to eke more meaning from them: the warning to seek wisdom away from tradition gnawed at him, but there was little to hint at which direction such insight might be sought, and so it became a pressure, needing to be tapped in the moment
This message was last edited by the player at 10:21, Tue 28 Dec 2021.

Morton thought for a moment "travelling the warp is a fickle thing at the best..... Exiting at a less travelled point adds to the difficulty but not impossible."

A slight smile crossed his lips "nothing ventured nothing gained my lady"

Odette's lips twitched in a faint grin as she nodded back. "The course is set them. We'll exit at a less used point and take the chance to learn all we can in our approach. Given the unknowns, caution certainly appeals to me.

Whatever you need is yours, Aurelius. Including a relic master if a capable one can be found on ship or elsewhere."

She turned back to the view. "Nothing ventured, nothing gained." She mused, echoing Morton's words. "Our dynasty raises or falls with what's to come. Do any of you wish to add more before we begin final preparations?"

When the preparations are concluded, the officers stand ready in the bridge of the Forlorn Hope. Reports say that the sanctifications overseen by Vorn and Jack have been conlcuded, every possible seal reinforced, and the Gellar Field blessed with only the very finest of sacred unguents. It is hard to imagine being more ready than they are right now...of course, that need not be the same thing as "ready enough".

The umbillicals are severed, some of them giving up their connection with a last shower of sparks or powdery ice crystals floating off into the void. The maneuvering jets fire, slowly pushing the intimidating vessel away from the Port Wander docks, before turning to face the intimidating wall of tormented space that marks the edge of the Great Warp Storms.

In the engine room, the plasma reactor groans and snarls like a chained beast as the power of a sun is harnessed. The warp engines are prepared, and given one last round of exorcisms. The crew gather in prayer services to beg for the protection of Saint Asceline. Within the barracks, the household troops perform countless superstitions--but one they all have in common is to break out a strictly rationed cup of mulled wine, and make a toast to the inevitable supremacy of the Faye dynasty.

Finally, sirens ring through the ship, and prayers are redoubled. It is that time that sends a chill down the spine of even the most veteran voidfarer--time to enter warp. But for Morton, it is almost a second home....


OOC: This will be a Dramatic Task for Morton Crow with Warpcraft, though other crew members can Support it with a Repair or Piloting check (one support per roll).

Distance is Medium (4 successes / raises needed in total)
Difficulty is Uncertain (4 attempts allowed)

Make your first check! And then roll 1d10 for Warp Encounters.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:00, Thu 30 Dec 2021.

Wrapped in his seat with his controls all round Morton let his mind connect with the warp. The feeling took his breath away as it always did but seconds later he remembered to take a breath and then he was there.

The coldness enveloped him as his mind traced multiple jump and exit points until he had located the ones he needed.




22:19, Today: Morton Crow rolled 6,2 using d10,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 6,2.  warpcrafting

 It should of course go without saying that through the course of the early stages of the journey it is rarely necessary for Jak to take up a tool to his own hand - rather, he spends his time communing with the unfathomable vastness of the ancient machine-spirit of the Forlorn Hope, guiding its eldritch processes and observing the myriad of ways in which the fickle host of lesser spirits and subsidiary mechanisms that go to make up the greater whole operate together with varying degrees of friction.

 Any normal mind would go mad from the ceaseless cascade of inhuman stimuli but the augmented consciousness of the Explorator, long warped out of anything resembling a normal mind by rote, faith and surgical augmentation handles the stream with diligence and skill, directing work orders for brute repair crews and diagnostic choirs alike to send them scurrying through the enormous vessel to where their efforts are needed.

 ---

 01:05, Today: Jak Tesla rolled 11,6 using 1d10+2,1d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 9,4.  Supportive maintenance.

 That'd be a success with a raise, which halves the time needed to perform repair tasks. Which is nice. ^_^

11:54, Today: Morton Crow rolled 10 using 1d10.  Warp encounter

Passing through the great warp storms strains even a veteran Navigator, being akin to walking between two hurricanes without being sucked into either. Morale begins to fray at the great half-felt oppression of the storms' proximity. Discontent rumbles in the lower decks, sleep is restless and disturbed with half-remembered dreams, and fights break out as old quarrels and vendettas ignite for no apparent reason. A crewman has to be brigged after trying to open an airlock to "let the lovely voices in".

OOC: Two successes with the Assist.

Warp Event: Whispers From beyond. Lose 1 Morale, all player characters must make a Spirit check or suffer one level of Fatigue until the warp travel is over.

(Remember you can negate one encounter per warp journey.)

Successes: 2/4
Turns Remaining: 3/4

14:46, Today: Morton Crow rolled 6,3 using D10,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 6,3.  Spirit roll

“Do not falter, brave men of the Imperium”, called out Aurelius as he saw the crew begin to falter, “Look to the bright beacon of hope that is the Emperor!”

With that he instructed his confessors and priests to circulate among the hold crew, leading them in song and burning blessed incense

17:46, Today: Aurelius Vorn rolled 16,11 using D10,D6, rerolling max.  Spirit

 As the vessel plunges deeper into the Warp, through the great, continent-sized swells of raw emotion and unfettered energy, Explorator Tesla moves from guiding teams of personnel from place to place, shoring up systems that are in need of psalms and unguents to more proactive countermeasures, ensuring that each day sees void-locks and environmental systems sealed and tested, that sees corpse wafers and ships biscuit alike tested by the hour and the day to ensure no fungal infestation that might open a mind to faithlessness has slipped past their watch.

 Week after week, as they travel he communes with the great machine in his every waking moment, a sentinel against the perils of insufficiently sanctified technology.

 ---

16:17, Today: Jak Tesla rolled 4,7 using 1d10+2,1d6+2.  Preventative maintenance.
16:13, Today: Jak Tesla rolled 5,5 using 1d8,1d6, rerolling max with rolls of 5,5.

 Looks good so far!

Morton pushed the voices out of his mind, in some way they were like well known friend but he knew they would lead him astray if he listened. Instead he focused on the task at hand and navigated the ship through the warp



09:48, Today: Morton Crow rolled 9,7 using D10,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 9,(6+1)7.  Warpcrafting

09:51, Today: Morton Crow rolled 6 using 1d10 with rolls of 6.  Warp encounter

Despite all the preparations, morale is suffering. Whispers that the voyage is cursed are circulating among the crew, and many claim to have heard or seen strange omens--messages written in blood upon bulkheads, disturbing dreams of two indistinct and beckoning figures making half-heard offers and vile promises, the details of which are lost on awakening.

But thankfully, Morton's skills from the navigation spire are bringing the ship closer to to exit point. All that remains is to successfully exit warp space--a welcome step, but the hazards are not yet done....


Grim Omens encounter. One PC must make a Persuasion check, or the ship loses 1 Morale. Remember you can negate one encounter.

Then one PC needs to make a Piloting roll (or use the crew rating of 1d6) to exit Warp. If the check fails, roll 1d8.

Odette was used to being in control, to being able to weigh factors and find desirable conclusions.

The Warp laughed mockingly at such things and she was well aware what she could do onboard the ship during transit was limited. The Emperor protected and other members of her crew could do far more to get them to safe harbour than she could. But that didn't mean she couldn't play her part and refuse to bow to fear and dread.

And so she spoke out, voice ringing throughout the ship to aid efforts in keeping the crew resolved in their duty and conviction. They would reach their goal and they would prosper and all the horrors of the Warp would fail to turn them from success.

16:51, Today: Odette Faye rolled 10,12 using 1d10+1,1d6+1, rerolling max.  Persuasion check.

With a tortured psychic moan, the ship emerges, returning to a universe with speed limits. Morton is finally free to relax his vigil, and around the ship prayers of thanks are uttered and hymnals of praise offered to the machine spirits of the warp drives.

However, you have appeared in deep space! Or so it seems for a moment, before it is confirmed that the ship has emerged near the star, but further out than was intended. The white dwarf is a small cinder, and the sensors can only see a small ball of blue spinning around it. Nothing else is in the system except dust, echoes and an abnormally high number of asteroids. Rubble left over from the disaster that slew this system. Behind it, the disturbing colours of the Void Dancer's Roil impinge upon real space.

You may be in system, but it feels, at best, like you are treading in a graveyard. At worse, like you are on the edge of the abyss.


OOC: Persuasion succeeds, no additional Morale loss. Using the crew rating of the ship as a Piloting roll....failure. Warp exit mishap is....it will take you another two weeks to reach your destination.

Music:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IoOsnVFOgpM
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:26, Thu 06 Jan 2022.

 The place of the Explorator during a warp emergence is in the deeply buried halls of the Gellar Shrine near the sun-bright heart of the great vessel, but once the transition back into the materium has been completed, the adept of the Cult Mechanicus boards a transit shuttle up to the command deck, where - less than twenty minutes after emergence - he can stride in to report in person "The Warp Engines are sealed and recharging once more and the Plasma Drive is coming up to speed. I am given to understand that we are some distance from our expected point of emergence, but I do not anticipate that this will deeply impact our supplies and should primarily serve to give us extended observation time of the inner system."

Morton let the warp slide from his mind and came back to reality. He took a moment to gather his thoughts then pulled himself out of his station.

Standing he pulled his long coat straight and ran a hand through his hair then picking up his cane made his way to the command centre.

Entering he walked up to Lady Faye and bowed. " my apologies for dropping us short of our exit point but the ride, shall I say, was taxing for all and though I could have kept going I felt the whispers were starting to become a little too insistent for some of the crew."

"There is no need to apologise." Odette ran a hand through her hair, her own composure battered from the journey. "Your judgement is trusted Navigator, and better we be take longer than risk crew and ship."

She offered a wry smile to Jak. "And as you noted, it benefits us in other ways. On that note." A nod to the tech priest. "How effectively can we scan under silent running? I feel the unknown calls for a cautious approach."