Starring
Lucithana as Hana Song
Kitty as Nora
Nathan Ravenwood as Rakain
Jason as Sam
Cyrano Johnson as Xata
*
Previously, on Starfinder: Hana, Nora, Rakain and Sam - childhood friends and currently unemployed 19 and 20 year olds -- decided to set out together on an adventure with their shared friend, Amieko Woodwise (a local orphan.) However, while exploring the nearby ship graveyard, they found that one of the crashed ships might have something to do with Ami's mysterious past...and so, the friends and adventurers set forth to explore the ship that might hold all the answers they seek...
It was a scene from a nightmare - the only light came from the comunits held by Ami, Sam, Hana, Rakain and Nora. This created a bizarre kaleidoscope of light and shadow, reflecting off rusted steel and ancient ceramics. But enough lines of metal were focused forward to overlap the immense, furred spider that had emerged from the bowls of the ancient crashed ship that had been the source of the skeleton attacks on the goblin village.
The spider was big enough to bowl someone over - and proved it as its furred weight bore Ami over, knocking the young woman onto her back. She grunted as dust that collected on the shipswamp's uneven ground filled the air, screaming at the top of her lungs.
Which, to be fair, literally anyone would do when tackled by a huge, furred spider, whose red eyes glowed along its black carapace. Its fur brislted outwards, and green venom dripped from its opened maw!
"I'm already real freakin' tired of getting jumped out here!" Rakain yelled as he drew his pistol.
"You're telling me!" Ami squeaked, pushing at the spider - but then the creature leaned forward and chomped down on her shoulder with a loud crunch. Ami screamed again, then kicked the monster in the center of its chest. It reared backwards and Ami clapped her hand to her neck, blood seeping between her fingers -- her face pale with pain.
Hana put her fingertips to her head, focusing hard, making her eyes glow blue as another blue glow surrounded the creature's head. The spider screeched - blood pouring from each of its eight eyes as the glow intensified, then cracked away with a faint
whomp
sound. It remained standing as it bobbed in agony, limbs twitching and writhing. The rest of the party tried to find a way to get at the spider without hitting Ami. But as they moved, a shape in the darkness to the east of the melee moved. A glow surrounded it and a song rang out -- high and beautiful, almost angelic.
From the figure in the darkness, a beam of bright white frost flew outwards, illuminating the figure for a single moment -- they were female. The beam shot between Hana and Rakain - then slammed into the spider's chest, sending it rocking backwards on its hind legs. As it staggered backwards, Ami rolled away from the spider and scrambled to his feet. It landed and hissed - starting to advance forward, clearly still alive...and pissed.
At the sound of the song Sam's head snapped to the unknown person approaching from the shadows, until that bolt of light slammed into the giant spider. Friend for now, figure that out later. She took a short dash to put herself between the spider and her companions, covering Ami's retreat and attempted to slam her armored fist into the beast. The spider lurched to the side - and Sam's fist smashed into the ground, bending the metal with a crunch, but leaving the spider unharmed.
Rakian felt his blood boil at the sight of Ami's bleeding shoulder. His arm snapped up and pressed to the symbol of Desna on the choker on his neck. His other arm thrust out, palm open. Fire flared at his fingertips. "Eat this, you freak!" he roared. A jet of flame burst from his hand like a geyser, making the temperature around him dip drastically. It smashed into the spider and lit up like a torch. Flames burned along its furred hide and it screed, then toppled to the side. It curled up, legs twitching and tugging together as it shrank under the heat of the flames.
As the flames died down, Ami cheered weakly. "Woo, we got him. Team work..." She wobbled, then fell to one knee, before falling to her side - hair fanning around her head like a black halo.
"Ami!" Rakain yelled, moving to her side. He knelt down -- his tail lashing from side to side, hard enough and fast enough to cause the air to
crack
. "Shit, I knew I should've learned some healing spells."
Emerging from the darkness came the mysterious figure who had assisted in the fight. She was a small, slight android girl with golden brown skin. She was clad in a small black tunic dress, jacket and boots, with little sigils mobile on the skin beneath. Circuit patterns glow and fade beneath her skin. Her skin lightened as she looked with relief at the spider's smoking corpse, then up at the strangers. She moved toward the bitten one with concern but also some hesitation.
Hana, ignoring the stranger for the moment, moved over to check on Ami nervously, trying to see just how bad her wounds were. "Don't worry, R-man. You've got me to take care of that biz." She said, trying to sound upbeat and chipper. As Rakain and Hana knelt beside Ami, the young girl groaned, her eyes fluttering open. Her face looked pale and her arm lifted weakly as she batted at Hana's face with the strength of a sleepy kitten.
"Mm' fine...just...tired..." Ami groaned as the strange android stepped into the light cast by their com units and the still flickering spider.
The android bit her lip, then asked: "Is your friend alright? I am sorry I did not act more swiftly."
Rakain's head swung towards the newcomer, scaled hand hovering around his laser pistol. "Who are you?" he snapped. Sam, meanwhile, was alarmed to put it mildly. She wanted to rush over to help Ami but was all too aware how little she could help in the moment. So she put herself between the approaching figure and the group and forced herself to take a more relaxed posture.
"Chill," Nora urged while moving to stand partially in front of Rakain.
The android held her hands up in a placating gesture. "I..." She hesitated for a moment and then said: "I think I am called Xata."
"Did you do that cool magic beam thing?" Rakain asked.
Ami mumbled. "Thought it was sexy who did that..." She said, her voice faint and dizzy sounding. As she spoke, Hana's hand gently petted her head, smoothing her hair back.
"It just... came." Xata frowned slightly. "These things happen when I sing. I am glad it was helpful this time."
"What's up, fellow beep boop?" Hana said, quite cheerful and emotional for an android, but her blue skin, red eyes, and glowing veins of neon red on her body made it hard to believe she was anything else. "Good news is that Ami should be up and moving soon. It's just a paralytic poison." She sighed.
Rakain relaxed visibly, nodding at the newcomer. "Cool. You okay yourself?"
Sam let out a sigh of relief at the news.
Xata's eyes flickered as she referenced the phrase 'beep boop.' Her programming flagged as 'socially inappropriate' but she laughed anyway, a little too loud. The other android filled her with a desire to...please her. And the others. Xata wasn't entirely sure why, though.
"So you did fire that shot," Nora said. She peered through messy, short cut black hair with clothes a repairwoman might wear. She had an artificial left arm with a little bot styled like a long-bodied mammal clinging for support. The ferret drone cocked its head, recording the new android with its camera eyes.
"Oh, I'm Hana by the way." Hana said to the other android, smiling as she pulled back a bit from Ami, not wanting to crowd her. Resk stood and rolled his shoulders as he nodded, his purple eyes flicking back and forth between the newcomer and Ami.
"Rakain," he said.
Xata said: "Yes. I suppose I did." She smiled wanly, approaching the group and holding her arm out at a ninety degree angle in Appropriate Greeting, patting her curly hair self-consciously into place as she did so. "I'm thankful for our encounter. My name is Xata... Estin." She thrust her hand out -- letting it hold in the air.
"I'm Sam," Said, bowing her head as she took the offered hand. Xata shook her hand with a quick, jerky motion.
"So, whatcha doing out here?" Hana asked curiously, her eyes flashing to Ami as she took Xata's hand. Xata shook her hand -- then kept holding on. Hana blushed, then slowly took her hand away from Xata after a moment, gently, but firmly. Breaking into the awkward silence was Ami, who sat bolt upright with a gasp. She almost smashed her forehead into the back of Rakin's butt, her arms flailing around as she shuddered and wriggled.
"Ack! Ugh! Eugh!" Ami squirmed, then scrambled to her feet - only to then fall forward with a yelp again, as if her legs didn't quite remember how to work. "Wow, okay..." Ami gasped - her braces glinting in the light of the comunits as she looked around. "Note to self: Spiders...are way worse when they're as big as a house..." She rubbed her shoulder with a wince and then her eyes fell on Xata.
"...did Hana turn red while I wasn't looking?" Ami asked, looking a
bit
out of it as she wobbled back and forth.
Xata cocked her head in confusion. "Your companion's pigmentation is unchanged."
"..RACIST!" Hana said, thrusting her finger at Ami accusingly. Her finger almost bumped Ami's nose, sending the other girl stepping backwards. She blinked - then looked from Xata to Hana. She turned bright red. "I-I knew you were two different...I..." She blushed harder. "T-The...poison did it?" she stammered.
"I don't think we could get Hana to blush at all, let alone that much." Sam teased.
"Zero shame," Rakain deadpanned, winking at Xata. His tail was no longer lashing the air with agitation -- instead, it merely twitched.
"You could try." Hana said, pouting slightly, then sighing, "I will forgive you, Ami. And all you need to do is give me your soul." She said cheerfully, her hands going to her hips, thrusting out her smallish chest proudly.
