04 - Reunion

As the Firedrake arrives at Asteroid 7, they are met by some small interceptor ships, one of which is piloted by Polly, one of Iceberg's lieutenants. He is surprised that Frank "Franky" Heather has arrived, and guides them in to dock. 

The hollowed out Asteroid serves as a base for a community of people, all working as shipwrights and repair crew, as well as a waystation for those traveling between Planet Indri and Planet Amerath. The inner asteroid ring is a little less habited than the outer ring closer to the two Jumpgates, so they enjoy a lot less competition and pressure from the Guild of Starsmiths.

The interior of the Asteroid is chaotic, with a main concourse filled with little shops selling wares to travelers and repair and refuel services. There are domiciles carved into the asteroid itself for the permanent inhabitants, and at the end of the concourse, built into the rock, is the Boss's place. This was the former headquarters of Mill, now taken over by Iceberg. 

The crew are led by Polly to the headquarters to meet Frank "Franky" Heather's wayward brother. 

Iceberg is initially hostile to Frank "Franky" Heather, angry that he had to reach out to contact him in order to see his brother. The meeting is tense, but ultimately Iceburg is happy to see him once again. They haven't spoken since Mill was executed. 

They read the will together and learn about the existence of Mill's daughter - Jenni. She was unknown to both Iceburg and Frank, and according to the will, she has possession of plans to create a weapon to fight the Hegemony.  

After some tears over the will's contents, Iceburg asks Frank to help Asteroid 7 with procuring some Ice from Planet Lithios. Their supplies of water are low and both Guild of Starsmiths taxation and Wreckers piracy made collecting the ice difficult. They would use dark hyperspace routes to collect the ice and ferry it back to Asteroid 7.

In addition, Way Creatures sometimes proliferated along the dark hyperspace routes, and might also be a danger. 

The Crew agrees to help Asteroid 7, and to escort the ice hauler to and from Lithios to bring water to the people. 

Using a faked transponder mimicking the Skink, the Firedrake Outcasts are able to completely escape the attention of the Wreckers. Frank also jury rigs a weapon to shoo away way creatures using the Aleph Keys.

The travel is uneventful until the arrival of a school of way creatures, which look like Jellyfish. About 50 of them swim around the ship, their electrical tentacles zapping the exterior, seeming curious. This investigation damages the ship's engines, the electrical overload playing havoc on their systems.

Mphoentle Begin the exits the ship in a suit to commune with these creatures, who's tentacle touches seem to inadvertently short out her suit, she is able to get them working before suffocating. She is able to communicate with them, and they are not hostile, but more interested in them.

Arriving as well were larger yellowish amoeba shaped creatures, with long pseudopods and a hideous black org within their jellified form. These creatures were menacing, trying to get to the craft with acidic grasps, clawing through the jellyfish which were moving to protect the ship. 

Frank utilizes the weapon and makes sure that it merely clears the way not harming any of the creatures. As the creatures leave, they flash images to the crew, that of the ancient Precursor Glyphs. They were able to communicate two: The jellyfish used Orth and the Amoeba used Peth. Mphoentle Begin the also tried to under stand the Tal glyph through communing with the Jellyfish.  She gains a deeper understanding of this symbols, and knows that none of the three are used for the Artifact. 

As an experiment the crew sends the glyph Dorn to the Jellyfish, who respond by damaging the shields of the Firedrake and restoring the engines. 

With the weapon fired, the way creatures return to their own place outside of space and time, and the crew return to Asteroid 7. There is rejoicing at the ample supply of water, and after repairs and refueling the Firedrake heads to the Iota - Rin gate. They will be heading to the Rin System next.