Villa Sol guides the Locomotive away from Orison’s artificial city ring and into open space. The commercial lights recede behind her as the verified refuge coordinates settle aboard the navigation console.
NERVE plots the first of several costly jumps toward the distant the stellar voice refuge. The navigation crystal remains isolated, its old registry signature matching every route checkpoint.
NERVE
The nearest usable gate is still several jumps away. I am reserving fuel margins for the final approach and preserving the refuge coordinates in duplicate.
The two recovered drones hold escort formation beside the Locomotive, their lenses tracking the ship’s course. Orison’s traffic fades until only the violet starfield remains.
NERVE initiates the first jump. Starlight stretches into luminous bands, then folds inward as warp space closes around the ship without turbulence.
Verdiscus
I am Verdiscus. The refuge recognizes the Locomotive’s ancient authority, but its present custodian has noticed your approach.
NERVE
The transmission is authenticated, partner. Verdiscus is addressing us directly, and the refuge’s custodian has not yet made contact.
Villa Sol's turn“I hear the strange and otherworldly voice coming through on my ships communications array. Speaking to a being of such power threatens to destroy common folk. I feel my mind begin to melt as I struggle to string together coherent thoughts, reaching out to question what lies at the end of this journey.”
FAILURE (Great Willpower, rolled -2)
The communication array floods the cockpit with Verdiscus’s presence. Villa Sol reaches for a question about the refuge, but coherent thought slips apart beneath the impossible pressure.
The Locomotive’s displays fracture into overlapping starfields. Her hands remain on the controls, yet the intended words dissolve before they can become speech.
Verdiscus
Do not force your mind against my full presence. You are asking what waits at the refuge.
NERVE
Partner, I am reducing the channel to a narrow translation band. I cannot safely preserve an open exchange at this intensity.
NERVE constricts the transmission through layered filters. The pressure recedes enough for Villa Sol to remain conscious, but the original channel will no longer carry her unmediated questions.
Verdiscus
The refuge holds shelter, records, and those who cannot safely return to ordinary routes. Its custodian will judge your arrival, not your fear.
The filtered link settles into a one-way advisory channel. Villa Sol has no clear question left to send, while the refuge route continues ahead through the star-stretched dark.
Villa Sol's turn“I feel the connection fade through the communication array. I just spoke to the closest thing the universe has to a divine being. I collapse in the pilots chair”
SUCCESS (Great Willpower, rolled -1)
The connection fades through the communication array, leaving the cockpit suddenly ordinary. Villa Sol’s hands lose their steadiness, and she folds into the pilot’s chair before her knees can carry her farther.
The chair catches her weight. Residual starfields crawl across the displays, while the last pressure of Verdiscus’s presence thins into harmless static.
NERVE
Easy, partner. The channel is closed. You are conscious, but your composure is still unstable.
NERVE dims the communication array and lowers the cockpit lighting. Villa Sol’s focus slips for several seconds, her attention snagging on controls she has operated without thought for years.
NERVE
I am holding our course and reducing nonessential alerts. No immediate hazard is present. You may recover before making another decision.
The Locomotive continues through warp space under NERVE’s control. Villa Sol remains collapsed in the pilot’s chair, breathing steadily as the final echo of the stellar voice disappears.
NERVE's turn“While Villa rests, I guide the ship to the next jump point, and prepare a pre cohesive report of what exactly we’re searching for”
SUCCESS (Great Astrogation, rolled -1)
While Villa Sol rests in the pilot’s chair, NERVE assumes full navigation control. The Locomotive exits warp space at the next verified jump point, its course stable and fuel margins preserved.
The jump point forms ahead as a quiet lattice of navigational beacons. NERVE matches the route against the refuge coordinates and confirms the next transition without disturbing Villa’s recovery.
NERVE
The next jump is aligned. I can complete the route while maintaining life support, passive scans, and a protected record of our objective.
NERVE assembles a concise report from the archive, the navigation crystal, and Verdiscus’s authenticated transmission. The document separates confirmed records from unresolved questions about the refuge’s present custodian.
NERVE
Report complete, partner. We are searching for a powered Verdiscus refuge station beyond mapped space, built to shelter displaced travelers and protected vessels. Its access protocol recognizes the Locomotive, but its current custodian remains unidentified.
The report records the refuge route, the ancient registry authority, the arrival token carried by the navigation crystal, and the limits of current knowledge. NERVE encrypts duplicate copies aboard the Locomotive.
NERVE
The report is secured and the jump point is ready. Villa Sol may remain undisturbed while I proceed when her condition permits.
NERVE's turn“So the next point in our goal becomes clear. Reach Verdiscus’ refuge”
SUCCESS (Good Willpower, rolled +2)
The Locomotive drifts within the quiet jump-point lattice. NERVE dims the residual starfield and steadies the pilot’s chair around Villa Sol, keeping life support and navigation precisely balanced.
The protected report remains open beside the route display. Confirmed coordinates, the refuge’s purpose, and the unidentified custodian resolve into a single operational objective.
NERVE
The refuge is the destination. The next jump is ready.
NERVE releases nonessential alerts and reorganizes the cockpit around the route. Her processes settle into a clean hierarchy: protect Villa Sol, preserve the ship, reach Verdiscus’s refuge.
The focus holds. Villa Sol’s breathing remains steady, the drones continue their silent watch, and the Locomotive’s course aligns with the next verified transition.
NERVE
Route confirmed. Proceed when Villa Sol is ready.
NERVE preserves the aligned route and holds the ship safely at the jump point. The refuge is no longer an abstract record: it is the Locomotive’s clear destination.