[center][img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/211123/cfda5219ff7368ea7fd427c7152b4947.png[/img][/center] [center][img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/211123/3ab84e866411c4cdd5ac15d44806633d.png[/img][/center] The Explorator was ready. Months of checks and rechecks, followed by even further checks to ensure things go smoothly for this bout of Exploration has been conducted, and the Captain, confident in the ship and her crew's abilities to ensure nothing goes wrong, is preparing her ship for launch. This is their fifth exploration ever since Almira was assigned the Thucydides as her Explorator. A ship that she has grown quite attached, and very familiar towards. Resting comfortably in the ship's bridge. She greeted all the crew and without missing a beat. Brought out a tablet and started doing final checks. [color=1A9D60]"Artificial Gravity?"[/color] "Check" [color=1A9D60]"Engines?"[/color] "Check" [color=1A9D60]"Supplies?"[/color] "Botanicals Check, Fridge Check." [color=1A9D60]"FTL?"[/color] "...Check" She noticed the sudden hesitation from the crew-member, not a person that would shrug off even the smallest of details. She looked at the person, and opened her mouth once more. [color=1A9D60]"Can you check with the FTL Engineer that the FTL is working?"[/color] "Yes ma'am." It took a solid 10 minutes, but the crew finally managed to confirm that the FTL is indeed working. Sighing, and finally able to rest easy. The rest of the checklist process took off without a hitch. Just a veritable series of utterances and checks from herself and the various crew-members in the Ship's bridge. [color=1A9D60]"Alright then, helmsman, prepare to take this ship off of dock and let's get to it!"[/color] The Explorator, a veritable space elephant compared to the small outer colony space dock, de-clamps it's docking gears and started moving out of the Space dock. It's maneuvering thrusters working in full capacity to ensure that the ship didn't collide with any of the traders that are busy docking and undocking in the port. This is perhaps the last known port of call for the Thucydides, anything after this is veritable wild space, uncharted territory for the Commonwealth of Humanity. And her crew is ready, she has been extensively briefing them for months at this point. Just like any expedition, nothing is being left to chance as far as Almira's concerned. It is a taxing job, but the 2 years of vacation time after every expedition is more than worth it for her, and anyone's concerned at this point. [color=1A9D60]"Alright then, set course to the solar system and punch when ready."[/color] She ordered the Helmsman, and within a few seconds. The blank darkness filled with circles of light evolved into a flurry of moving lights, all of them whizzing past the Thucydides. Almira decided that since the journey to the star system would take a couple of days, that she would take some time off for now and monitor the rest of the ship, do some normal captain duties for a while during the ship's travels. She visited the mess hall, sleeping bunks, the botanical gardens, and several other rooms where the ship's various weaponry were being stored. She was busy walking back to the bridge when [i]it[/i] happened. She heard a loud boom, very unnatural and very much bad news for an experienced Captain such as her, hurrying back to the ship. She saw veritable chaos as the ship's speed slowly returned back to it's normal, pre-FTL velocity and the crew-members were scrambling to get things back in order. [color=1A9D60]"What happened?"[/color] Almira asked. Her tone calm and collected, but not hiding her concern. "Subsystems are down ma'am. The ship's unstable, we are going to impact that planet in roughly 10 minutes!" [color=1A9D60]"Use those maneuvering thrusters NOW!!! MOVE!!"[/color] She screamed, immediately jamming her finger into a big red button on her Captain's chair, signaling an immediate emergency and for all crew to get into their quarters immediately. Unfortunately, it was of no use. The ship's already set on a course to hit the planet, and all she can do is to make sure the ship lands in a relatively secure area. Much to her discomfort, the area where they are landing seems to be somewhere around a mountain range, adding even more complexity into an already complex situation. She did manage to find a plateau, and the ship was then able to land, impacting the snow covered dirt in a very violent crash. It took a couple of minutes for everything to settle down, the fires to be put out, and the ship put into some functional order. But as the reports from the various sections of the ships fill in. Almira's face soured. Maneuvering thrusters shot through hell, FTL drive damaged and need extensive repairs, botanical gardens trashed but still recoverable, 30 crew-people were injured and being treated, life support systems shot and needing extensive repairs as well, and the exterior of the ship badly beaten up, with a high probability of unstable atmospheric flight characteristics should she try and fly the Thucydides once again. The two good things in the report was that no-one was dead, some form of miracle if she were to see one, and the weapon systems of the ship are still fully functional, missile launchers, lasers, and railguns alike. [color=1A9D60]"Crap. You there!"[/color] She mentioned a crew member. [color=1A9D60]"Contact the head of ship security, I need a perimeter set around the ship and with guards posted 24/7, I don't care how long it'll take to repair this ship, but we will guard this damn thing until we can send a distress signal and a Commonwealth task force is sent."[/color] She is fortunate that the atmospheric reports from the ship's many, many sensors indicate a breathable atmosphere, but she has no idea where in the world her ship landed, and what sorts of dangers this planet may possess. Her crew didn't even have enough time to conduct a full scale survey of the planet. So she didn't even know what the topography and world map of this planet looks like. In short, a situation where everything did go wrong, did. No matter, her first priority is to ensure the safety of her crew, create a safe zone around the Thucydides, and then... [color=1A9D60][i]One at a time Almira, one at a time.[/i][/color] [hr] [i][b][center]Hear ye Hear ye! Adventurers needed, brave, strong, of noble quality, and capable of speaking Draconic. Come to the Royal Palace in the Capital City should you possess these qualities. His/ Her Majesty requires the services of Brave Adventurers of the land. Are you brave enough to go on a long, arduous adventure? Go to the Royal palace and prove your worth! Money, Gold, Property, all sorts of rewards await those who succeed!! [/center][/b][/i] Posters with similar meaning were posted in all major cities in Friestan the moment that meteor was sighted, a shock for most mages and sages since nobody expected a sudden meteor strike to occur, but once the chaos subsided, the various kings and queens of the realms of Friestan knew what had to be done. Considering that this is the Dragonspine Mountains, people who spoke Draconic was also needed, a necessity considering the sheer amount of Dragons that inhabit the mountain range. But, as with all things involving the lesser species, sufficient determination and effort does yield results eventually, and a group of adventurers, hailing from different parts of the world. Was summoned and will depart from the city of Cendana in Pataliputra. Who these adventurers are, and whether or not they will travel as a group or separately, we will see as a certain Ksatria Naga waits in this inland city. A hub for the Tropical Wood Trade and the largest inland city in Pataliputra.