Brave Galaxy is set in a world loosely based on Hiro Mashima’s Fairy Tail and Eden’s Zero. It is a PG-13 or so rated space fantasy RP, and uses a combination of character statistics, which can be acquired via roleplaying and events, and creative freedom to help direct players’ characters. While there is a main storyline, which can be found in the events section, characters are free to interact with others and their environment however they see fit.
Explore the galaxy. Overcome the obstacles in your path. Shape the future of humanity.
The break of day began and throngs of men and women alike scurried to and fro from high-rise to high-rise, as red lights and wailing sirens pierced the routine hustle and bustle of the important and the affluent. Rows of upon rows of ornately designed streetlamps dimmed as rays of light shone from above, and the sun continued upon its slow and ponderous pace.
And with the onset of the dawn, so too came the onset of the first responders.
One patrol craft, and then another, sped across the junction, followed by a single unmarked hover-car. Granted, this was nothing new in the capital of Chorus; where murder could be bought for the price of a few credits, where the muck and grime of a wretched city lay hidden under gilded spires and corporate lobbying. A dead person mattered little if any, to the people of Elyakim; it was as much a fact of reality as the sun rising in the morning, the rain falling when clouds are overcast.
Unless of course, that dead person was a member of Chorusean high society.
A scruffy figure alighted from his vehicle and crossed a threshold of burnished herringbone tile, weaving through uniforms of black and silver, ISC personnel and corporate rent-a-cops alike. And no sooner had he gone under the yellow tape was he stopped with all the brusqueness of a club bouncer. It was funny almost, but understandable; in a world where affluence talked, it was only fitting that the murder of a Chorusean socialite would come with an uncharacteristically swift police response. Especially if that socialite's coffers were responsible for their payrolls.
"ID," the guard said simply.
"Lieutenant Hollis, ISC."
He flashed his seal of embossed brass and leather, and with a salute was he on his way. Past the cordon did he walk, and through double-set doors did he enter an expansive foyer, rendezvousing with a broadly built individual clad in the duty jacket and beret of an ISC officer.
"Morning, Daniel. Starting to think you weren't gonna show."
"Looks like you were wrong, Arys." The lieutenant smiled congenially. A telltale smile flashed for the briefest of moments upon the man's visage, and then did he walk forward, gesturing for his colleague to follow. And thus did he comply.
"So, what happened here?"
"We had a call around eight from security. The victim's spouse heard screaming and loud noises coming from the study. So they went and tried to check up on them, and the rest is...well, it is what it is."
"And that's when they found the body, eh?"
Arys grimaced slightly, a slight nod in acknowledgement to Hollis's inference.
"I guess you can say that. Word is, we've got a consultant coming in to help out with the case."
"Well, I'll be."
The two continued up a flight of glass stairs, before arriving at a set of heavy oak doors.
"Oh god, that smell."
As the two entered the study, they were immediately greeted with the acrid stench of decay and death. Yellow numbered tabs lay upon various articles within the room ahead, while the hoods and latex gloves of crime scene investigators could be seen documenting further in. And in the midst of it all stood a single individual, human, but also not quite human, splayed on the ground. More machine than creature, almost. Curious.
"Daniel, meet Arnault Shoujiki, Chairman of the Shoujiki-Jeongjeol Corporation. Former chairman, that is."
Idly searching through different frequencies and ethernet channels, some of which she really had no business being in, Laelynn found herself restless, not only for a lack of entertainment, but a soon to be lack of funds...again. Eventually, she did stumble onto something interesting however, neither an official job posted by the IMG, nor a target for her usually petty, childish heists. No, it was an official request by the ISC, requesting an independent contractor as a consultant in regards to technology. "Intereesstiiing..." A small smile grew across her face, musing the idea. She never worked "with" the law before, but new experiences were the spice of life after all. Though a tad concerning for some that the details were a bit...lacking, that only increased her interest on why such a large organized force would request outside help. All that really mattered to her was the pay and novelty either way. Either by lack of others finding the request, luck, or the extensive skill list and experience she had when it came to technology, she got the job shortly after applying.~ "P.A.L, set course for the Elyakim, we got some work to do.~" "Affirmative." And like that, Laelynn's ship took off into the deep depths of the galaxy, ecstatic and ready for her next adventure.
-Sometime after...-
Docking in the closest ship port, and dealing with all the bureaucratic nonsense that came with it, Laelynn finally made her way to the location of the crime, energy drink in hand, her eyes opened wide realizing the deep scale of the investigation with so many officers around, truthfully making her uncomfortable. Habitual state of mind as an ex career thief and all. Approaching the scene, she was initally stopped her in her tracks by a very large man, shaking their head and gesturing for them to leave, causing a scowl from Laelynn. "I'm the consultant, they're expecting me." Pulling out a half hazardly crumpled paper from her pocket, she offered it to the bouncer, with the mark of the ISC permitting her authorization to take part in the investigation, and though given a queer look, Laelynn was allowed to pass with a nod, returning her paper to her.
After that, it wasn't long before she entered the quite fancy abode, being directed up the stairs to the scene of the crime, presumably to meet with the one leading the investigation. Soon enough, she found herself at the entrance of the study, noting two individuals. A dark haired, slightly lanky and tall man, and another dark haired man with a more muscular build. Though, before she could speak, the next thing that hit her senses was the horrid smell of rot, immediately covering her mouth with her arm and gagging in reflex, coughing loudly. She'd smelt burned wires and been in the sewers of Elseima but this was on a whole other level. Yet and still, she recollected herself, shaking her head before waving and addressing the two.
"Sorry, that was probably unprofessional of me.~ Name's Laelynn, the consultant the ISC hired.~ I'm guessin' you two are the ones I'll be working with?~" Though the question was more rhetoric in nature, it was mostly to get introductions out of the way, giving a cheeky, even smug smile, emerald eyes gleaming as she tilted her head to the side and tucked her arms behind her back. From how the muscle outside greeted her, she was all too aware they probably didn't expect their consultant to be a teenage girl just barely standing at five feet.
A kid. Seriously. Was a kid all that 9000 credits had to offer? With the amount of money that could have paid for a year's worth of noodles at Fat Wang's noodle stand in the underbelly of Chorus, that could have paid for two months worth of rent at the Promenade in Elyakim? Disbelief was written all over the lieutenant's face as he saw the consultant whom Arys had spoken of. An incredulous belief did he turn toward his peer, who seemed just as shocked as he was.
"D-did you know that the consultant was a..?"
"Oh gosh, Dan, I didn't know either. Did CP hire her on Gregslist?" the man replied, a rosy blush on his cheeks. A great harrumph did he make, and so did the lieutenant look toward the consultant once more, before shaking her hand with a firm grasp. True, perhaps she was a kid, but age mattered not when it came to ability. There were children younger than her being trained in the art of espionage by the Union's enigmatic intelligence agencies, children who were given weapons and forced to march to war in a far off frontier. And as despicable as that might have been, it mattered little as long as they were good at what they did. This person was no exception.
"Lieutenant Hollis, but you can just call me Dan. The guy over here is Lieutenant Bitar."
"Yo."
And without another moment's hesitation did the man pivot on his heels across blood-spattered hardwood floor, donning a pair of simple latex gloves.
"Arys, case the people present here for information. Let me know if you find anything."
"Aye, sir." Arys flashed an impish smile and exited the room, going downstairs where crime scene investigators and other members of the household were doubtless gathered. A quick motion of the wrist did the lieutenant take, and with it did he beckon the consultant follow, scrutinizing every bit of Arnault's corpse all the while.
Though calling him a corpse was a misnomer. The first thing that he had noticed, apart from that infernal stench, was the fact that scarcely anything about Arnault seemed more than the sum of his parts. Yes, a puddle of blood had pooled from his body, but there was scarcely any change in pallor at all, a distinct lack of stiffness in the muscles and joints as latex gloved digits prodded and poked. An extensive spinal implant protruded all the way to the nape of the man's neck, striations and lines where patches of skin were cleverly sewn together.
"Interesting..."
Danylo turned toward the consultant, and spoke plainly.
"I've never seen a spinal implant model like this....do you anything about this specific make?"
A few paces did he take toward the edge of the room, before opening an alloy-framed case. Ensconced within was a reconnaissance drone about the size of a small dog, which sprang to life as the case opened. With a low thrum did it hover over the body, scanning with its array of imaging technology that Danylo could not get into.
"And also, how hard would it be to check the implant's system subroutine?"
At Dan's first remark, Laelynn's eyes glistened, her childish smile wide as ever, if anything attempting to take amusement in their surprise. Yet, that whimsical entertainment immediately flattened at Arys' comment, her face contorting into a pout, raising an eyebrow in contempt. Looking down on her or being surprised of her age? Sure, she could excuse that, but to lump her in with the scammers and the usually incompetent free lance workers of Gregslist was just plain insulting. She was a damn professional after all, and one who's talents surely were worth more than what the ISC offered, even if a hefty sum already. Though, the daggers stared at Arys fell and her expression lightened at Dan offering her a hand shake, acknowledging his acceptance to work with her.
Accepting the offer with grace, she reciprocated with a handshake as firm as she could muster, taking a shallow breath and directing a nod towards Dan. "Nice ta' meetcha' Lieutenant Dan, hope I won't fail to impress here.~" Apparently failing to understand his preference to be casually addressed as Dan, Laelynn then went on as the man introduced his larger partner, giving them a light nod. "You too, Lieutenant Bitar.~"
As Dan applied his gloves and addressed Arys to gather more information from the residents, Laelynn tilted her head slightly, not that it was an odd practice, just the fact that she's never observed a crime scene inspection directly, usually having been long gone on her previous heists before anyone arrived. Though, as the Lieutenant remaining gestured her to follow, she complied, cringing as the stench got thicker and more unbearable. "I seriously can't work like this, ugh..." She protested, wrinkling her nose in a disgusted fashion. At her limit, she snapped her fingers, and in a flash of cyan light, her signature C.A.T. armor was donned, the face plate emoji flickering to life, first showing a cat like imagine sticking it's tongue out with closed eyes, and after a few seconds, switching to a childishly designed, smiling cat emoji, Laelynn taking a deep, long breath of fresh air through the ventilator. "Muuuch better, now I can focus.~"
As Dan began his inspection of the body, Laelynn carefully observed, attempting to take in every minute detail, from the lack of rigor mortis and lack of paleness, though, what caught her attention the most was the rather sizable implant in the spine, and from the looks of the stitches, an implant that had recently occured. Crouching down, he traced two fingers gently over the implant, feeling up it's firmness and structure.
"I'll say.~ For the make, hard to tell without software access but I can deduce a few things from the appearance alone." As Dan stated their interest before inquiring her for details, she stepped back, staring at the drone in a robotic fashion, gaze locked as she saw it float over the hodge podge of a corpse. "Ooooh, cool drone, Boscan tech?~ ...Shit, sorry. Ahem..." Clearing her throat with a light cough after the brief distraction, she continued with her initial train of thought. "Due to the size of the implant and stitch patterns, I would assume the person who did this has an extensive background, possibly black market. Not many doctors are trained well enough for intrusive implants like this, and even then some are picky due to complications that can occur. Secondly, it's reasonable this isn't an implant for combat purposes, most implants like that tend to be smaller and less intrusive unless for very specific purposes. My first guess would be an integrated life support system, but considering the....circumstances, we can safely take that off the table." Noting the hum of the drone, reasoning it was doing a scan of sorts, Laelynn took a deep breath, focusing her attention to the Lieutenant's second question.
"Since I'm here, it's less of a question of how hard and more of how long. Most implants like this have hidden ports to connect to other systems, for the purpose of maintenance and upkeep incase any malfunctions arise. A lot safer than ripping it out and putting it back in after all, so hopefully we can find one. Barring that, if there isn't a direct port to connect to, we'd have to try and connect wirelessly, which is less reliable and more time consuming." Though yet to be proven, and masked in a childishly cat themed power armor, at the very least it was slightly clearer by now Laelynn wasn't lying of her experience to the ISC.
last edited Apr 12, 2020 5:03:29 GMT by SilverRush