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A single Stjarn-class Hekayti freighter, bearing the sword and horn markings of the Grand Moot of Hekayt Prime, arcs in from over the swaying purple vegetation to the west. The vessel does not appear to be heavily armed, nor does it have Ledelkrig escort ships in tow. Landing struts slide out from compartments in the lower hull and retrojets hiss before the ship settles on Impiruil Baile’s soil.
Agata’s head snaps up as the ship flies over, and she tenses up quite a bit. “They’re here.” she says, softly, almost a little fearfully. “Could we not just…give them their pod back? Seems like that should be enough to me. Not like we stole it…”
Kethren nods to Aina “Evening. I see our guests are arriving…” and with a glance at Agata “They’re more than welcome to take it. The question is, will they listen to us?”
Aina nods to Kethren before watching the ship land, “We’ll offer to give it back. Tell them they can take it, so we can clean up our home. We don’t want any trouble. We didn’t steal it, after all.” She pauses near the group and straightens, hands clasping behind her back, “Just…Nobody get upset, alright? I want everyone to just stay calm.” She glances at the three before looking back to the ship.
Zu replies reasonably simply to Aina, “We’ll see how it goes.” A glance to Agata he notes, “Well that’s the plan, really. Just see what they think of it.” With that he simply waits.
A few sparks of electricity crackle between Agata’s right hand. “I’m ready for anything.” she says in a not so ready for anything voice. “Let them come. Hopefully nothing bad will happen…”
A ramp slides down from the airlock as the hatch opens. Moments later, the hooves of two Ledelkrig warriors clank down the metal ramp, followed by a Konterbeid caste Hekayti in a black robe, with a long purple scalplock dangling past his shoulders. He is carrying a PDA in one hand, with a glowing blue monacle HUD affixed over his right eye. The soldiers carry plasma rifles, but seem uninterested in firing them at the moment. Instead, the soldiers move to flank the ramp as the Konterbeid steps off onto the soil and approaches the waiting group. He has a deep frown on his face as he regards the denizens of Impiruil Baile as he says, “You know why I am here. We have come with minimal force in good faith to discuss this situation. If I am dissatisfied with what I learn, or if I am somehow harmed or even detained, your precious world will be rendered uninhabitable.”
Kethren stands up off the tiger and straightens up, trying to look dignified and official. “Indeed. Welcome to our world. I only wish that more pleasant circumstances had brought you here.”
Aina glances briefly at Agata, a frown forming, then she puts on a smile as she turns to face the visitors, “Welcome. You will not be harmed or detained while you are here. We simply wish to discuss what has happened, and find a solution.” She straightens a bit more, hands absently smoothing her vest.
Zu gives a curled lip momentarily, at the blatant threat from the Hekayti, but manages to withhold himself from comment on it replying to him, “I’m sure you’ll find it satisfactory.” With that little bit said, he’ll await the others to move to the scene of the relic.
“Yes,” the Hekayti agrees. His gaze shifts to each of Kethren’s companions before returning to the architect. “I am Slar Yund, historian for the Grand Moot of Hekayt Prime. First, I want to confirm the intact condition of the sacred tomb. Second, I will conduct my inquiry. When that is done, I will return to Hekayt Prime to present my report. Upon that, my superiors will make a decision about how next to proceed.”
“Agata Elez.” says Agata quietly, bowing at the waist, causing her ornate robes to get slightly ruffled. She smooths them out as she stands back up, though her eyes remain on the ground. “Archaeologist and Anthropologist.”
A nearby ship makes a powering up sound, and its engines glow blue for a moment. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, a small, rather punkishly dressed woman blinks into existence. “Hi everyone!” says the holigram, “What’s up?”
A group has gathered to meet a Konterbeid caste Hekayti who has emerged from a freighter with two Ledelkrig soldiers.
Kethren nods at the historian “And I am Kethren, of the Danu Chroi council, and architect of the city that we’re just outside. If you’d be so kind as to follow me, I and the other council members present would be more than happy to take you to your tomb.” He does blink a couple times at hte rather sudden appearance of A.M.I. and spares a moment to adress her “If you’re going to be here, could you at least dress more formally? Something rather important is occuring.”
Aina remains quiet as Kethren speaks, only saying something herself once he is done, “I’m Aina, also a member of the Danu Chroi council. Captain of the Cro na Mthar.” A frown forms at AMI’s sudden appearance, and with a sigh she nods at Kethren’s words, “Yes, please…We would appreciate it if you would be on your best behavior.” Shaking her head slightly she turns to look back to the visitors, the smile returning.
Slar Yund arches an eyebrow as he looks at the holographic female. He then glances at Kethren and Aina. “It is little more than a ghost. Why worry about its attire?” He holds up the PDA in his hand. “It would seem somewhat like me complaining about the stripes on the side of this device.”
Zu glances at Ami a moment before saying quietly to himself, “Oh no, not now.” A headshake follows and he simply perches upon Kethren’s shoulder now to let him lead the way to the relic, noting to the Historian, “Nobody notices the details you seem to find glaring flaws when you ready your home for visitors.” His tone is rather flat.
A dusty shuttle descends to the landing pad, and the distinct form of Alhambra disembarks, in no small amount of a hurry. With a long, loping stride she heads over to the group. “Evenin’ folks,” she drawls, waving a hand with freshly bandaged knuckles. “Glad nobody’s left yet. Good evenin’, good evenin’.” She tips her hat, one at a time, to all present.
Agata blinks a few times herself at the appearance of the girl, her hands crackling even more. “Ah…right…I will just follow you, Mister Kethren.” she says, doing her best to ignore the hologram. She coughs a little and keeps her eyes front, her aura blue and her hands crossed behind her back.
At that, A.M.I blinks a few times. “I’m no more a ghost than your ship is, and I’m a lot smarter.” she says, glowering, “And I will change my attire. I’ll be back in a sec.” She disappears for a moment, and a small, glowing cyan ball detaches from the bottom of the afformentioned ship, whirring as it hovers over and lands in the grass. In a flash of blue light, the woman appears again, though this time she’s dressed in a long, flowing robe and her hair is in a French braid. “Better?” she asks Kethren, her bright smile showing none of the prior annoyance.
Kethren nods at A.M.I. “Quite.” then at Al “Evening” before turning back to the others to lead the way into town. “Shall we?” With the walk into town about to start, Nuala slips around to Keth’s side to walk along.
Aina continues to stand near Kethren, gaze flicking around. Spotting Al she lifts a hand in a brief wave. When Kethren starts walking, she moves with him.
The Hekayti with the PDA leaves the two with the guns to mind the ship as he follows Kethren’s party toward town. “It must have been tempting,” Slar Yund observes, “to eliminate all evidence of the tomb.”
Agata nods over to Al, saying quietly, “Hi.” She follows Kethren closely, keeping her arms crossed behind her back and her eyes forward. She says nothing, though her discomfort is evident.
“The truth,” Alhambra drawls, as she moves to walk along with the rest of the group, “Is far greater’n temptation, y’see. More often than not that sh… ahem, stuff, comes out in the end. Evidence, as it were, rightly tends to point to the truth, don’t it?” She tips her hat to Agata. “Howdy, sweetie.”
Zu replies to the investigator, “Now why would you say that? It isn’t as if we were at fault for it’s arriving here. Disposing of the evidence would be stupid given our innocence. After all, you are a reasonable people, are you not?” Alhambra gets a nod of the head in greeting along with a, “Sheriff. Glad you could make it.”
“I suppose it could be argued that it is wiser to hide in plain sight,” the Hekayti inquisitor says, pondering. He looks toward the Tupai and says, “We are reasonable, but we have limits on our tolerance for sacrilege and theft.”
Kethren nods as he walks along further through town “I wouldn’t dream of damaging the tomb. Or of keeping you from retrieving it.”
The hologram grins and follows behind the rest. Her attire may be formal, but otherwise she’s the same as usual, looking around at her surroundings with unending interest. “So, what exactly happened?” she murmurs over to Aina, “I haven’t been paying attention to the news streams recently. Seems serious.”
Aina quietly follows along, glancing at the group now and then, but mostly she focuses on where they’re going. However, when AMI speaks she glances at her, “Hmm? Oh…That lost tomb somehow ended up in our still being built town. Not sure how, exactly. But we’re working on settling things, so we don’t get blown up…”
Alhambra tips her hat to Zu. “Glad I could make it, too,” she drawls to him, before turning back to the Hekayti with the PDA. “Security here has cordoned off the scene and ensured that no evidence has been disturbed, thereby allowing you to have full access to any and all clues. I will be perfectly honest with you, sir, I am really quite curious about whut actually tran-spired here myself. If I missed introductions, I do apologize. Sheriff Alhambra Meers of Eiru an’ duly appointed Shaman of the Impiruil Baile, at your service, sir.”
Agata nods to Al as she’s greeted, but otherwise continues walking straight. Anyone around her could probably feel a reasonable amount of heat exuding from her body, and her tenseness is almost palpable. She’s clearly not very good at concealing her nervousness.
Zu replies rather simply to the Hekayti, “It isn’t hiding in plain sight if we’ve nothing to hide. As for theft you’ll likely find, oh, somewhere around 100 witnesses I’d wager that saw it arrive via rift if you were to ask around. Our premiere engineer, Xanya, who could not make it today, being one of them.” Looking back to Alhambra he asks, trying to remain casual, apparently, “What happened to your hand?”
Closing on the town, Slar Yund manages a taut smile at Alhambra’s comment. He returns his attention to Zu. “I have no doubt that everyone who wants to see this community standing a week from now will very happily swear to whatever they must to ensure that it survives.”
A.M.I blinks at Aina and raises an eyebrow. “That doesn’t sound like a mistake to me. Who would’ve wanted that to happen? Maybe the colonists I read about in the news. They seem a likely suspect.” says the hologram. She starts to focus more on the topic at hand, then. “Well, anyway, I’m sure the people here are less concerned about their tree city and more concerned about the planet as a whole. They seem to be pretty green around here, in the literal and figurative sense!”
Kethren smiles as they pass into the residential area “Of course we want our planet to survive. Who wouldn’t? Doesn’t change the facts at hand. We’re more than willing to cooperate so that you can retrieve your tomb, and we can all carry on peacefully.”
Aina nods slightly to AMI, then her gaze flicks to Slar, a frown forming, “No one will lie about what happened. We did not steal your tomb. What purpose would we have for it? None. Do you think we want to cause trouble and get our planet destroyed? No. We like it very much the way it is, beautiful and peaceful. All we wish to do is have you examine it, and eventually take it back to where it belongs. We do not want it here, and we do not intend to do any damage to it what so ever. We have far more respect than that.”
Alhambra clears her throat. “If I may add, sir,” she offers, “If this is the tomb in question, it has been missing for a considerable amount of time, hasn’t it? Regardless of witnesses, if it had been where it landed this entire time I would not think it would have evaded notice. It is, as you will see, right in the center of a populated area. The people of this planet and this empire are treating the depositing of this relic here like the crime that it is, sir.”
“Not to mention,” says the holographic girl, “their organisation would have absolutely no use for it.” She nods and then smiles bright, adding, “I can personally vouch for the integrity of two of the people present, sir. I’m not a native here, but I’ve conversed extensively with much of the population!”
Slar Yund nods as they get closer to downtown. He switches the PDA from one hand to the other, then taps a sequence that brings up a holographic image of Impiruil Baile, with several small glowing orbs moving in concentric circles around it. “Our surveillance tends to corroborate what you have said. The tomb showed up yesterday. It had not been here previously. You seem to have been surprised by it. Some Lotorians started making a move to re-take the original resting place when word of the tomb arriving here made the news. Yes,” he looks toward Alhambra, “the Hekayti recognize that they have nothing to fear from this world.” His gaze shifts back to Zu. “Or its inhabitants.”
Zu nods at the points of Alhambra, Kethren, and Aina before he replies to the investigator himself. “All good points. Our lack of motive for the crime is something you may notice. After all, it was not Danu Chroi who lifted a finger in an attempt to help the Lotorians on the planet this pod had claimed. Hardly likely that we’d be the ones to try getting the Lotorians back on because it disappeared.” A moment of thought before he adds, “Also, what would you like done with the pod once you’ve examined it? Kethren’s initial look over told him it would be exceedingly difficult to move if my memory serves me.”
“I can help with that.” answers Agata in response to Zu’s question. “I am quite talented in the art of psionics. I may lift it myself, though assistance from another psionicist would not be unwelcome. I promise I would be most careful in this, and I assure you I am up for the task.” She speaks quietly but, for once, confidently, looking over to the historian with a serious expression on her face.
Kethren nods thoughtfully “It was a fairly cursory exam, I didn’t want to risk disturbing it. But, I am an architect, knowing if a structure is prone to falling over is rather important to my work. I don’t know that it would be exceedingly difficult, but the hull looked like it can’t take too much stress.”
Alhambra nods agreeably. “That is very excellent, sir. The truth is a many-splendored kinda thing, and it is rightly pleasant to not fear and be feared.” Now that the discussion has turned from ‘law enforcement’ to ‘logistics,’ she awaits responses from the officials.
Aina just follows along, gaze still flicking about, while a hand idly lifts to scratch at the base of a horn.
The Konterbeid looks toward Aina as he walks and asks, “Which caste are you?” No animosity in his tone. If anything, sounds curious.
Zu looks a touch irritated at being completely ignored as he replies to the investigator, “With respect, I don’t think it matters what caste she is. We’ve got some rather more important matters to deal with at the moment. For example, determining what it is you wish done with your artifact.” The irritation manages to get under control when he speaks, and eventually fades from his face as well.
“Well, I could transport it if need be. I’d have to make a few modifications, but nothing too major!” says the hologram, nodding thoughtfully.
Aina holds up a hand to Zu, “It’s alright. He’s just curious…” She pauses a moment, considering, before focusing on the other Hek, “As far a I am concerned, I don’t belong to one. I haven’t been home since I left. And my lifestyle would likely cause a fuss if I did go home. So, to answer your question, I do not belong to any caste. If you want a better answer, I do believe it would be better discussed after our business with the tomb is handled.” She flashes a quick smile before looking to where they’re going.
“And, here we are,” Alhambra says, perhaps a touch loudly. “Mister Zu if you would be so kind as to direct security for our visitor?”
“The lack of a caste is answer enough,” the Konterbeid replies. Slight chill in the tone at that. He finally looks toward Zu and says, “I do not care what you consider important to *my* investigation. As to what will be done with the tomb, well, that will depend.” He nods to Alhambra, then moves closer to study the relic. “No one has touched the contents?”
Kethren shakes his head “No, I’m fairly confident that the entire council would have been notified if anyone had tried to tamper with it.”
“You know, the Indians had a caste system.” A.M.I says, quite helpful sounding. “Then they were taken over by the Asian Socialist Republics. That was bloody business.” She nods sagely, as if what she said was completely relevant and compelling.
Aina rolls her eyes at the Hek’s reaction, but decides to keep quiet, letting the others do the talking, while she stands back a ways.
Zu shakes his head to the investigator, “No, we got close enough to examine it, nothing was touched.” The Tupai to any who know him would look like he’s burning to say something, but is very clearly holding his tongue. Seems he’s at least got some degree of willpower that can withold his temper.
“Yessir,” Alhambra drawls with a slight deepening of her tone, “The site was cordoned off and neither the contents nor the relic nor the surrounding area have been tampered with, leaving the scene intact for your investigation. Of note we did check the boot that was found partially under the relic to determine if there was an individual attached to it and determined that the boot was empty, and left it there.” She gestures at the boot in question. “For your investigation. Sir.”
Slar Yund looks the cylinder up and down. Waves the PDA in front of the tomb. Takes a moment to peer curiously at the boot. Grunts. Shrugs. Switches off the PDA. “That will be all for now. I will report my findings to the Grand Moot. Maintain a security perimeter around the tomb. Let no one touch it. I will contact you as soon as the government has a response for you.” With that, and nothing else, not even a final irritating glance toward Zu, the Hekayti starts walking back toward his waiting ship.
Aina watches the Hek leave, then shakes her head slighty before glancing at everyone, “Well, that went well. I think. At least he didn’t shoot me for not being in a caste…Gotta be a good sign. Now, let’s get security back in place. I don’t want this thing touched. I like our planet being inhabitable.”
Agata inclines her head to the historian as he makes his leave. “Thank the celestial energies.” sighs the riftwalker, “I didn’t want to kill anyone. Glad I didn’t have to.” She sighs again and straightens her robes out before removing them. Luckily, she has clothes underneath that are literally part of her body.