World Tree MUSH

    QTM... A relatively newly discovered world. Up until now it had been on none of the Galactic Federation's star charts, maps, or records.
    The planet itself is lush and verdant, blue and green, dotted with forests and plant life and multiple large oceans and seas on several continents full of vibrant flora and fauna. The only issue is its distance apart from the rest of the Federation's known planets, sitting on the outer edges of Federation territories, but that shouldn't be too much of a problem.
    Though the Federation has several teams on the ground on various parts of the planet already, there was an anomaly on their scanners. Apparently, ruins dot the surface of one of the smaller continents, and it would be remiss to not investigate such a thing. With an offer put out to offworlders to come an aid their investigations, things are already underway as several teams of Federation troopers and scientists have set up a landing pad and meeting zone for arrivals, whether they come via ship or the convenient Vine that has apparently opened up recently nearby.

    Rather than be worried by foreign atmospheres, the Dragon Juicer opts to simply rely on his tried and true physiology. Foreign micro-organisms be damned, Valerian is here to possibly harvest some gooey alien parts off of dead monsters in a set of underground ruins. 

    "Okay, so first rule of alien cave-diving: If you see an egg that looks really gooey, keep your face away from it. But do let me know. Those eggs are worth a shit-ton to the right buyer."

     Joining other ships in orbit, the bulbous form of the CEFS Sanctuary slips into a parking orbit, and teleports down a single Doll Frame.

    This frame is stocky, reinforced and about a foot shorter than other frames used by the half-elf before... seems to be a specially made spelunking model with sharp climbing irons built into the feet and forearms. It goes through a short boot-up sequence, then pale green optics flicker on and the elf's voice filters through the speakers. "Lets see how this model handles field trials... Minerva, begin recording.

    When voyaging into the unknown, it isn't a bad idea to have a healer on hand - especially one as powerful as Matsu Shuzenji. Of course, she does not do something so base as 'mercenary work', but with the utterly transparent dodge of 'helping out a friendly government which has made a friendly donation to Arashi-no-moto's emperor', the small white-haired girl can be found here with a single attendant, stepping off a Federation transport. Though the attendant is clad in (relatively) rugged outdoorsy clothing, Matsu herself wears an ornate, ostentatious shrine maiden-esque outfit that stands out like a sore thumb.

    And oh hey, there's someone she recognizes. After half a heartbeat's delay, the girl steps over in Valerian's direction, canting her head. "A... 'gooey' egg? Do I want to know?" she asks, frowning a touch.

    The Paragon's Legacy makes its way to QTM. Not the most imaginative planet name Talia's heard, but she wasn't going to judge. Here, and wearing a hermetic suit to protect herself, she plays the part of a spacer pretty well as she shrugs at the miko. "Probably parasitic lifeforms. Someone out there wants them." She says, hoping to the Stars she's got facehugger proof gear on.

  The Federation also hired a few pilots here and there to assist with any official and unofficial survey efforts. Someone has to bring all of the materials, researchers, explorers, and more to this unoccupied backwater of space. Enter one Juno Eclipse, Rebel General, and... glorified space taxi.

  Ah, that's a little like the old days...

  Right now Juno Eclipse is here on one of the landing pads outside her ship, yelling and gesticulating angrily with a crowd of Federation scientists, because one of the young rookies has driven a freight cart directly into the landing strut of the Rogue Shadow. In fact, if you look at it closely, it's listing a little to one side.

  As she's furiously explaining why the rookie is at fault, the Rogue Shadow abruptly lurches a little more to one side, with a sickening metallic sound of Very Expensive Damage. It sends Juno into new heights of towering, apoplectic rage. By this point she can barely speak she's so angry.

  ...Juno is incredibly furious and may not notice new arrivals right away. She probably could have ferried a few of them in on her ship, although right now she's... well. Busy.

Bryllu's form today is a variant on a form she's used before. A four foot tall flying insect with a giant drill where her stinger would be, though unlike last time where this was a variant on a bee, this time she has gotten a little bit more creative and gone for a mixture of wasp and butterfly. She reaches out to exchange sensor data with anyone else.

    With the investigation team gathered and properly preparing for parasitic face-hugging egg-monsters, a representative of the Federation approaches, clearing her throat softly for attention. An older woman, just past middle age, dressed in a lightly armored environmental suit that denotes her as a scientist rather than a trooper, her warm smiling face visible through the glass pane of her suit. She looks like she's tingling with excitement though.
    "Thank you all for coming. I'm Doctor Gina Banner. I'm leading this expedition." She introduces herself. "As it s happens, there are two sets of ruins not far from this location, my team will be heading to the south while you all head to larger structure we spotted to the north. It shouldn't be too dangerous but keep your guard up," she says as a small squad of Federation Troopers can be seen prepping nearby, "and please report any findings you make, and you'll be rewarded generously for your efforts."
    With that introduction out of the way the party is handed a digital map and told just where to go.
    It's about an hour and a half to a two hour hike through the jungle with no discernible path excep 'keep going north', which means a lot of cutting down foliage and trailblazing, but it's stil; bright and sunny by the the time the team makes it to the ruins.
    The atmosphere here is... Different though.
    While the camp had been brimming with excitement... As soon as the party cuts through the last of the trees and exits the treeline into an overgrown courtyard, everything is so much more somber.
    The stone here is finely hewn, though worn with age and weather, and a series of crumbling statues, also weather worn, line a worn path to the entrance of a large temple-like structure made up of arches and buttresses- many of which have decayed and fallen into disrepair.
    The statues are not human. Notably, they are very... Avian in feature.

    When they meet the doctor, Talia nods and offers a smile as she depolarizes the visor on her helmet. "Talia Kyras, spacer and Jedi Knight. It's a pleasure to meet you as well, I figured I could help offer my services in protection or exploring the ruins." She says politely.

    The trip through the jungle is spent with Talia scouting ahead, leaping and climbing across lush greenery as she keeps an eye out for predators. Not much of that in the way of hostile wildlife.

    The ruins are far more somber in nature. Talia keeps an eye out, holding onto her lightsaber hilt while she nears the temple. "How old do you think this is?" She wonders aloud, approaching the temple entrance and walking right in. Didn't curiosity kill the Loth-cat? Sounds like Talia didn't catch that memo.

    "Matsu! I haven't seen you since you stopped looking like the pan-side of a steak! How ya been holding up, girl?" Valerian gives her a grin and a wave to the Phoenix Maiden, seeming cheerful despite the slightly off color joke as the girl approaches him, "Gooey eggs. They usually have parasites in em, like the lady said. Sell for a ton in the right markets, like I said." 

    He rubs his gloved hands together and then looks towards Bryllu, "Oh right, Bri." Apparently a shortening of her name into something like a nickname, "I forgot to mention. For our lesson tomorrow, try to show up in as approximate to a humanoid body as you can currently manage. I'm only really good at teaching other people of the same bodytype as myself." 

    And then onto business, "Valerian Railton. Trader, Import-Export Specialist, and Mercenary. Let's get this thing rollin'."

    Matsu and her attendant both give Talia a distinctly concerned look, then glance at each other with the same, silent worry in their eyes.

    Then the Rogue Shadow lurches and the tiny girl just about jumps out of her skin. "Uwha-?!" It's only now that she really seems to notice Juno, having let the yelling drop into the background mentally until this particular moment. But the positively infernal levels of fury from the woman are both understandable... and very frightening.

    To Talia's senses, Matsu is... interesting. She radiates 'life' and 'warmth', a reassuring beacon in the Force entirely at odds with the vaguely disgruntled look on the younger girl's face almost constantly. Her expression lightens a little on interacting with Valerian, at least, though his choice of words prompts a surge of exasperated annoyance. "I've been fine. The court's politics are basically in shambles, and everyone is figuring out how they feel about me all over again." A glance at Talia, then the girl adds, "Matsu Shuzenji. This is my attendant, Tsubame." The woman bows politely.

    Despite her pampered appearance, Matsu doesn't seem to mind a long hike through the wilderness. The attendant looks perhaps a bit worse for the wear by the time they arrive, though; she gives the thirtysomething woman a faint frown, and then waves a hand at her feet - unleashing a plume of warm, healing flames. Then she instructs, "Sit, rest. I'll be fine inside. It's going to be a long hike back. You can come in after us if there's any danger."

    As they step into the ancient ruins, though, her eyes are wide. "I don't... think I've seen anything like this. Did... did these tengu build this?"

"Sure I can replicate the body proportions of a primitive human. How tall?" Bryllu answers Valerian She tosses a little cube with a button on it to Tsubame, "If you press this button, I will know it. Please do not press the button except in emergencies." Then, the flying synthetic human enters.

  It takes a few more seconds of angry back-and-forth to resolve the issue, but apparently the blonde pilot resolves the issue to her satisfaction. Or not. Her expression is somewhat thunderous by the time she rejoins the others, checking her equipment in obvious bad temper and taking a few moments to scowl over the digital map. Everything looks in order, though, so she tags along after the group, quietly bringing up the rear.

  She's still trailing rage like a bright torch to the Force-sensitive and others, though.

  When they arrive at the ruins, she looks up in wonder at the ancient façade. Her eyes wander next to the statues themselves, curious. They're obviously not human; but there aren't any species she knows of that they quite match, either. Not quite. The features are always just a little bit off. Juno whistles, low, but she keeps her attention on their surroundings. "Fascinating."

    Justina helps carve a path through the foliage, large blades forming on her arms in glows of blue-white light. Her stocky frame pushes thicker foliage aside, while the blades chop through vines and other lighter stuff fairly easily.

    Then, the whole world seems to suck all the excitement out of the air, and the half-elf astral projection dismisses her arm-blades with a soft, pensive "Hmm..." She approaches the open door, switching on a light projector built into her frames' faceplate to look around inside, before taking a step or two in.

    As the party progresses into the temple, it is already illuminated by natural sunlight pouring in from several large holes in the ceiling. Bright beams of sun splashing over two things of note.
    To the west the entirety of the temple wall has crumbled away, revealing a natural cave formation tht leads deep into the ground.
    And to the north, light dapples over a grand mural. Set in front of the mural is raised pedestal, but the wall itself is decorated in a mix of an almost arcane lettering system composed of a variously triangular shaped alphabet, and hieroglyphic imagery...
    The hieroglyphs depict a race of bird-man like creatures in elaborate robes, coming from various planets to meet... Upon this one. Several of the planets are lit up, while others are dark and ominously stone-hued, which means this must be a powered facility of some kind. But back to the hieroglyphs; the imagery shows the bird race gathering on QTM and engaging in some kind of celebration, while in other images depict a figure in yellow and red stylized armor in battle.
    It is as people approach that a light flickers upon the raised pedestal. And the holographic image of a seven foot tall bird-man appears. The hologram looks from one person to the next before its beak pulls into the approximation of a warm smile. ... And then says something in a language that does not translate.

    Talia makes note of Juno's emotional state, but doesn't make any noise about it beyond a brief 'Are you okay?' before they carried on. Matsu's 'aura' is...comforting, which is weird considering the priestess's dour attitude. She'll have to ask, later. She turns on a flashlight as they enter the dark temple, running them across hieroglyphics.

    "I'm...I'm sorry?" She says, when the holographic bird alien begins to speak a language unknown to her. "I don't quite understand you. Can you speak Basic?"

    "Translation matrix is having trouble locking down the language... unable to compensate." announces Minerva before Justina can ask.

    The half-elf looks at the mural, then over to the exposed cave. "This frame is meant to cave diving, so... I will begin my descent, we should split up, someone staying up here to figure out this mural, while others press on deeper into the exposed cave network." she suggests, before turning to head off into the caves.

    Tsubame catches the signal device with a faintly confused look, but nods in affirmative to Bryllu. She can handle 'press this one button, only in emergencies' at least.

    Inside, Matsu is quietly awestruck at the ruins. "Is this... is all of this magic? Or machines? Or..." She's not sure what else it might even be. Of course, then the pedestal begins projecting an image, and once more the tiny shrine maiden is caught off-guard... or perhaps 'entirely too on-guard'. When the bird being appears, she rapidly whips out a paper talisman, dropping back into a defensive stance and holding still; only when it speaks, does she relax, and then only slightly. "...a tengu... ghost? I can't understand it." The others seem unperturbed by it, so she slowly starts to relax. Slowly.

"It's a hologram, thing of it as a technological illusion or mirage, if you're familiar with those concepts. Seems to be a message, couldn't tell you what it's trying to convey." Bryllu answers Matsu's questions about what they're seeing. She heads to follow Justina, "I'm equipped for exploring, so let's go."

    It is as Justina and Bryllu begin heading toward the cave system that a voice speaks up from the entrance to the temple.
    "He says he is an AI based off of Platinum Chest; an Elder of the Thoha tribe. And he's asking if he may be of service."
    Soon enough the voice is followed by bootsteps as the Hunter draws near, stepping out of the shadow of the doorway. Though she's wearing her power armor, her helmet is held cradled in the crook of her arm-cannon arm.
    Samus Aran pauses, glancing up from the group to stare solemnly at the mural.
    "This is Lli Ferun Nalima. The Altar Planet. A place where the Chozo would come and celebrate their accomplishments and keep tally of the tribes." Noted as she points to the three 'dead' planets on the temple wall. "Those planets are Zebes. SR-388, and ZDR. Chozo worlds that no longer exist."
    Justina and Bryllu may continue into the caves after thise or they may stay, it's up to them, but the caves descend at a steep rate, scrunching impossibly small at points, but there's a clear 'path' that heads downward. The question is... Is that breathing that can be heard from deeper within?

    Talia blinks as a voice interjects, and a power armored bounty hunter enters the temple. "I-I'm sorry, have we met?" She asks in confusion, before the hunter just explains things. "You know a lot about this." She muses, glancing at the armored figure depicted on the walls before she makes the connection. "Are those hieroglyphics meant to be your armor?"

    Matsu blinks. Once, twice. "A technological... mirage?" She turns the concept over in her head once or twice. "...they store information that way, out here?" There's actually a hint of interest in her voice... and yet, it speaks a language she can't understand, so there's not much point in mulling it over-

    "-hya!"

    She's easily startled, isn't she?

    "...o-oh. Aran." Smoothing her robes out, Matsu regards the approaching Hunter. She's not silently huffing in indignation. She's totally not. "The 'Chozo'... they kind of remind me of yokai from my world. Tengu. I don't think they're this, ah..." She pauses, then gestures around. "I don't think they'd build something this ornate."

    Then Talia points out something, and Matsu looks between the wall, and Samus. "...the color is different, though."

"Captain Samus Aran." Bryllu greets the hunter, "This is Talia Kyras, she violates physics as a matter of course." This somehow sounds accusatory. She goes back to the group. "These Chozo are the avian entities who built the place? They kind of remind of depictions of primitive Andromedans. What can you tell us about them?"

    Justina pauses at the familiar voice of Samus. She turns, and ponders the Hunters words. "It sounds like you know these people, intimately." she remarks, turning away from the caves to speak more with the others, before heading down. Besides, there are some weird sounds down there, and that far underground, she won't be able to recover the frame if it gets stuck.

    Captain?
    Though she does have a ship, the woman shakes her head. "I'm not with the Federation anymore. I'm just a bounty hunter now." Samus says matter of factly, dipping her head in greeting to those she knows: Bryllu, Justina, and Matsu. For Talia's sake she introduces herself.
    "Samus Aran. Also of the Thoha tribe."
    Saying this seems to prompt the hologram of Platinum Chest to speak again, before it dips into a formal bow.
    Indeed, she does know them intimately, a fact that brings the Hunter a moment of silence as she approaches the mural and runs her gauntlet-clad fingers over the chipping paint almost reverently.
    "The Thoha were a pacifist tribe of Chozo. And they were among the greatest artists, thinkers, and scientists this universe had ever seen. They built this temple and many like it on planets across the galaxy. Their last act was to help create the Galactic Federation before they vanished from the universe entirely."
    She purses her lips as she brushes fingers under a line of text.
    "My fathers, Old Bird and Gray Voice brought me here once, when I was much, much, younger. Platinum Chest was alive back then." She explains, taking to a knee at the corner of the mural, where it looks like someone very, very, young scrawled in some 'hieroglyphs' of their own.
    A small human holding hands with much larger Chozo on both sides of her.

    Talia listens as Samus explains. A pang of sorrow is felt at their disappearance. "The galaxy is poorer for losing them. I am sorry, Samus." She says softly, resting a hand on the bounty hunter's shoulderpad. "They must've truly loved you." The sympathy from the Jedi is palpable, as she examines the scribbling, a faint smile creeping on Talia's lips underneath her visor.

    It is kriffing adorable.

    'It sounds like you know these people, intimately.'

    Matsu looks at Justina, and then at Samus.

    "...you're a tengu?"

    But Samus has explanations to offer, so Matsu sets aside any snark she might want to offer, and listens earnestly. It's when the armored woman kneels next to a small corner of the mural, that the much shorter girl finally walks over, leaning in to take a closer look. The tiny little etching there draws her eye quickly; once she's close enough to see it, she stares at it for a moment, her expression... complicated.

    She looks up at Samus. There's no words, but for a second or two, she shows a quiet, understanding sympathy in her eyes.

Unlike the others, Bryllu doesn't get it. She notices what the others are doing, and she just awkwardly floats backwards, to give space. She quietly sends a message to Minerva > What's going on? <

    Justina is silent as The Hunter explains things. She looks at the engraving as it's pointed out, then shakes her mechanical head and starts heading into the cave. >Don't dwell on it, focus on something else.<

    Bryllu's request is answered. > "Samus is deeply tied to these 'Chozo' people, and has, from bodylanguage and vocal fluctuation cues, lost her adoptive 'parent' units either recently, or in a way that was traumatic enough to leave a lasting psychological scar." < The AI offers... though she does leave the answer open enough to account for lacking information.

    "I'm human." Samus answers Matsu, lips quirking up into a slight smirk. It lasts for only a beat before it wipes off her face. "Mostly, at least. They took me to live with them on Zebes when my real mother and father ,and our whole colony, were killed by Space Pirates. I was the only survivor."
    To the hand on her shoulder, the Hunter gently shakes her head. "It's fine." She says at first. "Old Bird knew his time was drawing to an end. Though Gray Voice died so that I could live on, old age was the true killer of the majority of the Thoha tribe, and most of them made the best of what they could before accepting their fate." She says, standing herself up and examining another portion of the mural. This part depicting a great three-eyed beast roaming the caves beneath the temple.
    "If you're going down there, don't go too far. There's something down there according to this." She asides to Justina.
    The caves are cramped, but there is something of a path formed in the cracked earth descending at a steep angle.
    If she goes far enough she might start to notice the claw marks on the walls.

    'Killed by space pirates.'

    It's not quite the same situation, but it's close enough to Matsu's own circumstances that she can't help but wince a little. She takes a few steps back, using the excuse of 'looking down the tunnel' to hide her momentary melancholy, but then says, "...I can only heal the two of you who aren't using puppet bodies. My fire doesn't do anything for machines." Sure, a healer like her works great as a force multiplier... but only when the force is people she can actually heal. "Maybe we should come back."

"So long as my core is returned to my ship, I am fine, but this body is optimized for exploration not combat so it would be better to return with more firepower." Bryllu agrees with Matsu, a bit quiet as she sends another query to Minerva > Adoptive parent units? <

    Talia gave Samus's shoulder pad another pat. "I'm sorry." is all she can offer. "I barely knew my parents. My master was the closest i had to a father myself. His other students were my brothers and sisters. And we...well...it's just me, now." she offers. "I think...we'd be better suited regrouping before we go further." The Jedi nods softly, trying to change subjects.

    Justina looks over at Samus, then Matsu, before deciding to put off spelunking until another time. "You are correct... my audio sensors can pick up a rhythmic sounds that my HUD is parsing as 'Distant Breathing'..." she replies, then nods to Matsu. "My Dolls can self repair, to a limited degree. It takes a lot to completely disable one to the point I must force eject."

    The decision is made to come back later and invesitigate the cave system and the creature roaming beneath the temple. This is all well can good for now as Samus nods to the group.
    "When you get back to the Federation science team just tell them it's a Chozo world, and they should treat these ruins with the proper respect. Especially if it's Doctor Banner leading them." She says before turning for the exit.
    "I'll be back to deal with what's under the temple later." Said as she snaps her helmet into place with a soft hiss as she starts walking right out, raising her hand in a wave behind her as she does.