  
WELCOME TO THE TEST DRIVE and thank you for your interest! Though the game hasn't started yet, we've put together a mini-mission with a few different goals for your characters to pursue. In the interest of flexibility and allowing players to experiment with the game mechanics, we invite you to pick your own broodmates, experiment with abilities and specializations, talk to each other and maybe make up some pre-established cr, and generally play around however you like. This test drive will not be game canon, so take this chance to go nuts!
For the full experience, we strongly encourage players to write up a short blurb about what their fellow characters might know about them either through shared time on the Station or through the Nest mental link. Handy links can be found at the bottom of this entry if you have any questions or want to place a reserve.
HELINOS TOZ
...is the smallest galactic empire located in the second disk of the Silver Halo Galaxy. For thousands of years, the neighboring CONFEDERATE OF BAL and INIVIAL COR(P) have eaten away at Helinos Toz's territory and now have reduced the once-great empire to a single moon ruled by the Last Empress. Though she is a child who owns little in the way of property on the galactic stage, the Last Empress still holds a precious seat in the shrinking Galactic House of Chairs. From this seat she and her allies have managed to keep a stranglehold on the throats of Bal and Inivial’s expansion efforts into the fourth and fifth disks of the Halo. She has accomplished this task by viciously excising loopholes in galactic regulation. Paradoxical though it may sound, the outer rings view the Last Empress as one of the few remaining heroes for the common man against the absorption of either the Bal or Inivial, a symbol of the dangers the two great empires present and a name and a heritage that even today commands respect. While Bal and Inivial may have radically different galactic goals and famously spend their time hounding one another in the house of chairs, they can agree on one thing: the Last Empress and her tiny moon kingdom are a thorn in their side. In an effort to pluck it, Bal and Inivial have joined forces to do away with the Empress and her moon forever.
While a direct attack on the ground empire moon would be an undeniable act of war, and would result in heavy sanctions which would only serve to set their goals back further, there are ways to destabilize the moon without actually putting boots on the ground. Inivial has decided to sacrifice one of their own assets to achieve this: the planet which the moon orbits. Helinos Prime is a cold, dead rock, without it's own atmosphere, as well as the site of a significant Inivial mining operation. It's this very operation that Invivial intends to utilize. By mining directly to the planet’s core, they will harvest a massive amount of heavy elements, cutting heavily into the planet's mass and degrading it's orbit in space-- making it a risk to surrounding inhabited worlds. Galactic regulation demands such a threat be absolutely absolved- by total destruction. Further, it states that these dangers must be dealt with in no more than eight hours, regardless of any other sanctions or treaties. The act itself is quite sterile: a beam weapon located in the first ring which is capable of destroying most planets in a single shot as long as alignment is correct. And once the planet goes, so too does the empire moon.
But even getting rid of the empire’s last land holdings wouldn’t do away with the Empress herself, which is why the Confederate of Bal’s massive armada has opted to choose today for a sprawling training exercise in their space above the empire moon. As is their right under the Secrets and Sanctions treaty, they have refused the operation of any other space traffic in that sector until their exercise has been completed. The paperwork is filed, notarized, and finalized. Under the guise of the Bal and Inivial’s mutual animosity, the two super powers mean to trap the Last Empress with the very rules and regulations she’s spent her young life manipulating to keep them both muzzled.
In summary: the Last Empress and what remains of her small royal envoy are stuck quite literally between a dissolving rock and the hard place of the Confederate of Bal’s guns with no diplomatic wiggle room. Should the empire of Helinos Toz fall, the majority of the house of chairs will turn in favor of expansion and it won’t be long before the Halo’s outer rings become the stage for a vicious war between Bal and Inivial. Those citizens of the outer rings will find their lives drastically changed as those two powers dash to make opportune land (and space) grabs. If the Last Empress can be saved, she might be able to successfully reveal this act of aggression for what it is, and use it as a way to rally the rest of the house of chairs, around her and the interests of the outer rings she stands for, against Bal and Inivial.
YOUR MISSION is to help the Last Empress escape the empire moon before it can be vaporized by Inivial, and to slide her and as many of her retinue as possible through the lines of Bal’s armada undetected.
PROMPTS
ONE • DEBRIEF: NOT AS SEXY AS IT SOUNDS
You've been given your mission file (see above) and outfitted with the appropriate gear to see it through. Today that means thermal suits designed to withstand face melting temperatures and a small cadre of ships that seem awfully familiar... if you're not mistaken they're the same ships currently in formation above Helinos Toz. You can ask Prince where he got them or Cathaway for some flying advice, but you probably won't get answers that makes any sense. Hopefully some of you know how to fly. Hug your friends, say your prayers, and wave Station 72 goodbye because it's time to...
TWO • HITTING ROCK BOTTOM
...sabotage a giant plasma drill! Down on Helinos Prime, Inivial's massive mining operation is a veritable labyrinth of tunnels and substations. Luckily you've been provided with schematics (if you feel like using them), and with some trial and error you should be able to navigate your way to key points in the mining operation. It won't be possible to completely stop the machine from coring the planet, but you just need to buy a little time. Suggested targets are the drill's targeting interface, its coolant systems, and its auxiliary stabilizer vents. How do you do that? Time to use your imagination. On the plus side, no one's around to stop you. Inivial already evacuated their on-site personnel which, come to think of it, might be a bad sign.
THREE • HURRY UP AND WAIT
With Inivial's drill momentarily on pause, it's time to rescue an Empress. Does she even know you're coming for her? Well, she'll find out eventually. There's room for six extra people on the ships provided, meaning you have exactly enough room to smuggle her and her closest advisers off of the empire moon. You've got six hours before you can (and really SHOULD) leave. Right now it looks like there's time to kill. Get to know the locals, the moon's bustling trade port, or its local population of cute dragonbirds. You have a collapsing planet below you and a veritable wasps nest of ships above you. Enjoy it while it lasts-- or bypass it all and wait for your window of opportunity with the Empress and her envoy.
FOUR • INTO THE WILD BLACK YONDER
The stealth ships can travel invisibly while in atmosphere, but there's no tricking the sensors of the Bal's ships. Luckily you fit right in-- almost. Pretending to be Bal ships might make the most sense, but what if someone notices you're out of drill formation? Even worse, what if someone detects you leaving the empire moon? No Bal ship is supposed to be down there. You could always try finding another ship to take into space, something with a little bit of stealth or maybe a harmless trading vessel. Then again, no one's supposed to be coming off the moon and into this space at all. Think fast, talk faster, or hope your pilot is really good.
FIVE • WILDCARD
Honestly? This is your show. Go surfing on some subterranean lava flows while stalling Inivial's mining efforts, try to take all the Empress's gold leaf dining room chairs with you when you evacuate the empire moon, or maybe you're done with this whole mission alltogether and want to try hijacking a ship from the Bal's armada and flying it out into space until this whole thing blows over. There's a whole galaxy out there; what else could be waiting for you?
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emptynesters2016-02-03 09:43 pm
new account!!
You do have a plan for getting us past the armada up there, right? This thing doesn't exactly blend in or pass for cargo.
[ It's small and probably fast, but flashy and stand-out, like that motorcycle Mink nearly ran him over with that one time. They'll need a solid plan. Parker wouldn't have started going through with this if he didn't have one, right? ]
disappointed you didn't go with my suggestions tbh
One hand on the U-shaped steering wheel, the other flicking open a hologram-like panel, he presses a couple of buttons trying to find a language that he can somewhat understand and not a jumble of alien symbols. The closest he gets is a mixture of French and Spanish. Thankfully, he knows French. Not as good in Spanish. It'll do. ]
Yeah. [ He says, finally finding the right command. The tiny ship shakes and bobbles, high pitched noise as it does and then the hood of the ship comes down to lock in. The oxygen levels stabilize. Parker looks at Aoba with a raised eyebrow. ] It's called floor it.
[ If he has any objection, it might be a little too late as Parker grabs the steering wheel with both hands, presses on the accelerator and starts heading towards the hanger exit. ]
listen... maybe yaoislutangel69 can be his network name
Queque screaming. A lot of screaming. ]
WHAT THE HELL PARKER?! THAT'S A TERRIBLE PLAN!! THAT'S NOT A PLAN AT ALL!
[ He grips one of the many-armed alien armrests with one hand and his forehead in the other, trying not to watch how fast the hanger is going by below them. For once the headache he's suddenly fighting off isn't being caused by the other presence in his mind. Congratulations Parker, you've accomplished what Sly Blue tries to do all day in a matter of seconds; make Aoba super uncomfortable. ]
Why didn't you think this through?! This is such a hassle!!
[ A hassle he's already trying to solve through the rapidly building haze of anxiety. There's the beginnings of an idea already, but it's one he doesn't want to resort to. ]
it better be
The sudden audition for Scream Queens startles Parker, making him lose his control over the ship - temporarily, that is. It bobs dangerously, scraping the side of the wing into the floor, throwing it off balance, but he quickly grips the steering wheel and twists, putting them back into a straight (ish) trajectory. When he does, he throws a murdering glare in Aoba's direction. ]
Stop screaming! If you don't like it, there's your eject button!
[ But there are bigger problems, as the gates are starting to close; given as they only open for people with proper authorization, it's now or never. He mumbles something rude, hissing through his teeth as he only speeds up more. There isn't a lot of fuel left in the deposit and he's burning through it faster than he should, but it's either that or risk staying locked in. Or worse, crushed between the gates. ]
Should throw you out myself. [ He chews out the words. He wants to punch him in the face. But he needs both hands to command the ship.
The gates are huge, and heavy, so they take a while to close. It gives barely enough time to speed towards them, like a closing mouth full of death. At this speed, it's hard to navigate through the narrow hanger, but there they are. Navigating haphazardly through it, not unlike a confused bee knocking repeatedly against glass.
It's going to be a narrow gap. ]
Shit.
[ It's not his driving but the size of the ship is what saves them.
They are out one breath before the doors clang closed with the force of iron giants. The gravitational pull of the planet rattles through the small vehicle. He slows down gently, an effort to hide their presence and save the precious low fuel. A moment for a breath of relief from the audience. Or something.
And then Parker punches his arm. ]