Elto was busy trying to fix the aether storage device. He hadn't helped design it, since that was before his creation, but he felt confident in his abilities to get it to working condition. Either way, the ship would need a severe overhaul, regardless as to how well he and his friends could fix the ship, from his position.

"Hey, Elto." Elto notes she sounds happy and excited. She must have the hull finished. That was quicker than I calculated. Turning to face her, she continues, "I actually got that hole fixed though some of the interior wall covering that doesn't matter is ripped out to make it happen. How goes the repair here?"

He knew he could rely on Buama. "It's slow work. I am slightly ahead of my own calculations, however. That said, I still estimate a week's time of repairing to make sure we can supply it with enough aether. The issue is the proportions of aether storage and storage infrastructure. The more aether stored in a device, the stronger the infrastructure needs be to remove the risk of leaks and contaminates entering the device and causing an explosion." He shakes his head. "These are things you already know. Captain says I always over-explain needless things. Anyway, my calculations put me at approximately another 40 hours of work to get it in proper condition. I heard a commotion outside. Has Master Lero and the Renegades returned with Six?"

Duncan was so happy and surprised by the amount of people that stopped by and had tea. The tea wasn't that great, but maybe it was the fact that it was a nice respite from hellion cats and falling out aetherships. As the group left he closed up the box, placed the now dry cloak on and turned out the campfire. 

Just as before Duncan took in the situation with silent resolve. He could stay with the ship, maybe create a barrier to help with defenses. However making his way to a village would help maybe gain new allies against the Consulate.  Hmm such a desicion was best left to those in charge, so he crossed his arms and waited in silent meditation for orders to be given.

Following Flux back down to the captain's quarters, Lero spots the three bodies. He knew that two of the dark site members were killed in the crash, so that means one of the bodies must be that of Dahlun. He sighs audibly and makes a mental note to ask the captain about them - proper arrangements should be made and Peema was as good a place as any to return the bodies to the aether.

"They have come back and so did a thopter from a nearby elf village that appears to be friendly. I only heard a bit of the conversation with the thopter due to where I was hanging on the side of the ship. I have yet to talk to anyone to see what is up and figured if they needed to tell me they could follow the hammering." She chuckles some. 

"Anyway, I was going to try to sum up what was going on with ship repair with the captain unless you wanted to. I even think our cook has some things working though there is still enough banging around and muttering I haven't done more than peek in now and then. I'm not sure how much longer I'll get to hang out fixing things, but if we could fix that", she points at the aether storage device, "and get enough aether we could manage a flight back if easy going."

She moves over to look at it and nods liking what she sees. "Let me spend a few minutes here. I can cast some mending on these spots that might be more of a pain by hand." 

She pulls out her lodestones and places them over the first spot she mentioned. The area looked more like rips out from a puncture wound and Elto had done some good reshaping of the area, but mending would finish the job the best. After a few minutes she steps back from her handy work on that spot and another somewhat like it. She gives Elto a big grin.

"Redo your calculations based on that and then we can go see what the full story is."

As Flux listens to the tale Lero tells of what happened on the hunt, they occupy their hands with the thopter and dagger that Lero had found.When the tale is told, Flux stops their work for a moment, then speaks, returning to their work with the thopter.

"Big cats who had fiery powers? Hmm... I've  not heard of such a beast, at least that I can recall anyway. The way you described their deathss - it is like that of us Aetherborn, but red aether? I've never heard of such a thing. That I know for certain.
This dagger is the sort a Dhund operative would often carry. You can pump 2 doses of aether in to cause it to take on the traits of a dagger coated in poison. Basically, two doses of aether equals poisoned dagger.
Now this thopter. This thopter is normal for the most part, but I just noticed that it has an unusual programming quirk in it. If it reaches a certain location, which it hasn't yet, and I don't know where it is, it will fly off to Ghirapur, likely to inform her superiors that we've arrived somewhere. And Dhund associates itself with the Consulate, I'm sure you recall. Let me get rid of that function... Here you go, good as new."

Asthey mention the Consulate, they destroy that function of the thopter, before quickly reassembling it.

Elto watches Buama in amazement. "There must be a way I can learn to bend the Aether in such a fashion!" Going motionless, he frowns after several seconds, "I don't calculate any possibilities, however." She gave Elto a big grin, stepping back from her work. Elto loved to see people smile, something he couldn't quite accomplish, due to how his face was constructed. "Redo your calculations based on that and then we can go see what the full story is." He goes motionless for several seconds, coming out of it, trying to muster the most realistic smile he can. "You've saved me approximately 12 hours of work, and in just a few minutes! Spectacular. A shame the rest of the aether storage device seems too destroyed for even your spells to fix. Regardless, you've saved me 12 hours of work, which means I get 12 more hours to relax by the lake! Isn't that how it works?" He jumps up and down in excitement. "This is the only way I can express excitement and not scare people." Moving to exit the door, he nods. Let's go see what the full story is. He goes up the ladder, through the hatch, onto the deck, and walks into Arial's chambers without knocking.

"... noticed that it has an unusual programming quirk in it. If it reaches a certain location, which it hasn't yet, and I don't know where it is, it will fly off to Ghirapur, likely to inform her superiors that we've arrived somewhere. And Dhund associates itself with the Consulate, I'm sure you recall. Let me get rid of that function... Here you go, good as new." Elto froze when he heard the voice. He apologized Elto. He doesn't want to actually dismantle you to see how you work. You're more than a machine to him; he told you so! Moving into the room, he catches the last bit of the conversation. "Dhund? What are the Dhund, and what do they have to do with us?"

Sitting down next to Flux, Lero grins at the approach of Elto and Buama. "Good afternoon master engineers. I hope that Elto hasn't flirted with you too much Buama, he does get worked up when talking screws and servos." Lero winks as he says this, placing the thopter back on the wrist-holster. 

"What better way to infiltrate the renegades than with a group of licensed criminals, Elto? Remember when the consulate tried to get the Rising Aether back a few years ago? They started with negotiation, 'If you work for us, we'll allow you to keep the ship and throw in this handy lifecraft we've named Elto.'" Lero mocks the consulate words in a deep voice and rustic accent. "We took you, the ship, and blew a hole in the consulate ship's hull. Never heard from them again." Lero laughs.

"I'm assuming it's the same thing with this group. They get to keep doing what they're doing, but won't get in trouble for it. And it seems this one was an assassin meant to stop us from reaching the dark site." Lero shrugs, "That's my theory anyway."

He turns back to Flux, "Thank you for your help Master Flux."

He then looks back to the captain, "So are we staying here or do you want me to round up the crew and the dark-site blokes and get them geared up for travel?  The ship isn't going anywhere, so there's no chance it'll be stolen in the next few days."

"Any loose item on the other hand might unless the nearby elves running that thopter earlier will make sure it remains untouched. It's like things get legs when nobody's watching. And the hole in the side is fixed for flying if we don't go over about," she quickly does a calculation with her fingers moving, "sixty percent speed. At least sails aren't needed to fly it though they help. I even shaved some time off of Elto's repair of the aether storage device, but the only thing that will stop us from flying home at this point is if the ship is not properly protected though we know it isn't going anywhere and getting the aether."

She shifts over a step realizing her height is not conducive to ships at all and realizes something hanging was too close to her head. 

"I can be ready to head out however this mission is to continue in about fifteen minutes of being told. Oh, and I think the cook is making up something for dinner somehow. Other than that I have nothing to add to my thoughts or facts about this."

She chuckles as a shift of her weight from one foot to the other has her head come close to the bottom of one of the support beams running over head, but at least not by that hanging thing that had been lightly bumping into her head.

Confident that she had convinced, or at the very least, bludgeoned into submission, Azi, Namura made her way to the captain's quarters. Lero had told her that it would be difficult to convince a captain to abandon her ship, but she was a very determined elf. The ranger had to convince Arial to bring the rest of the crew with them to Fhestrynn, or else their deaths would weigh on her conscience. 

Namura slammed open the door to the Captain's Chambers, her mouth set into a line of grim determination. "Arial, you cannot stay with this ship," she announced her presence, getting straight to business. "Staying here would be a death sentence to you and your crew. I insist you travel with us to Fhestrynn, instead of staying on this broken target. We must assume the Consulate knows exactly where we are." Her voice trailed off as she realized that the captain was not alone. Lero, Flux, Buama, and the mechanical thing were all speaking with Arial. Or at least, they had been, before the ranger had interrupted them.

Lero stifles a laugh after Namura's tactless arrival and turns a grin to Arial, "She is right. There's no guarantee that the Consulate isn't aware of our position. Give me the word and I'll have everyone get ready for travel." He gestures towards Namura, "She's a bit of a fire-cracker, but she knows her stuff. If she says we can trust the elves, we might as well try." Lero then nods in what he thinks is the direction of the road, "We should meet the elves on the road, have four of us split off and take positions in case of ambush, and await their arrival on our own terms." 

"I'm sorry, what?" the look of confusion was visible on the ranger's face. She had never been good at policing her emotions, she had been raised in a pack that always conveyed their thoughts and feelings immediately. The unexpected vote of confidence from Lero had caused Namura to lose her footing in this situation. "Did you just say I was right?"

This time Lero allows himself to laugh, "Of course Namura. The Rising Aether will be here when we need her." It looks like he is about to pat her on the back, but instead makes an awkward motion with his arm and puts it back at his side, "Peema is completely unknown to us. Our lives are basically in your hands." He looks back to the captain, "How many nights have you spent in the middle of an untamed forest, Arial?" He raises an eyebrow and awaits her orders.  

"So are we staying here or do you want me to round up the crew and the dark-site blokes and get them geared up for travel?  The ship isn't going anywhere, so there's no chance it'll be stolen in the next few days." Arial massages the ridge of her nose with her thumb and index finger. It was a hard decision, since she felt like she was abandoning her own ship. She thought for a good long while in silence. An idea came to her, and she took a sigh of relief. "We're going to leave the ship. I'm keeping one of my thopters here so I can keep an eye on things. Seeing that we'll only be a few kilometers away, it'll be easy to return if something wicked comes the ship's way."

She stands and begin's reaching for her gear. It's been awhile since I've had to use some of these. Unfastening the lock of a large box, she pulls out a javelin, cackling with energy, and fastens it to her back. Namura burst through the door, unannounced. She always knows how to rifle me up, and it's only been four days. "Arial, you cannot stay with this ship," she announced her presence, getting straight to business. "Staying here would be a death sentence to you and your crew. I insist you travel with us to Fhestrynn, instead of staying on this broken target. We must assume the Consulate knows exactly where we are."

"That's the plan, wild one. I'm gearing up and getting ready to leave." She straps her two trusted daggers to her hips, with tiny aether tubes connecting them to a filled ASD fastened to the lower part of her back. "Lero, gather the darksite crew and the ship's crew. Tell them to pack what they can, and be ready to move out in an hour. The elves should be here by then, with some food. We eat, and then depart."

"Oh," Namura stood there in shock. She had come in expecting a fight, not for everyone to agree with. Trust to her was something hard-earned, and in her mind, she was not at a place of mutual trust with the crew yet. To hear they thought otherwise was shocking to say the least; to hear they were entrusting her with their lives with downright daunting. 

"I'm just going... I'm going to forage for some food," the ranger announced awkwardly, trying to find something to do. She needed to have something to occupy her mind with, something to allow herself to escape from a foreign and changing dynamic. She would be useless onboard the ship, only getting in everyone else's way. Namura backed out of the door slowly, although as soon as she left Arial's quarters she took off at a run toward the lake. Perhaps some good old-fashioned hunting would help clear her head.

Upon reaching the beach, the huntress began to prepare herself for a swim. No longer in a huge rush, she decided it would be best to remove her armor, as leather and water were generally not the best combination. In just over a minute, she found herself standing at the water's edge in her under garments, a simple spear in her hand.

Namura was elated to be back in the water. Fishing evoked memories of a simpler time, a time when she could hunt and play with the other cubs. She had always been one of the best at fishing, and her current foray proved that she still had those skills. The ranger appreciated the beauty of the lake, but didn't let that distract her. Her spear found the fish with accuracy that impressed even her.

Every two or three fish, Namura would swim back to shore. She deposited the brightly colored fish in an ever-growing pile on the beach before diving straight back into the crystalline water. Within the hour, she had amassed a rather large stash of 24 overgrown fish. (Natural 20 on Survival.)

At Arial's command, Lero heads out to let everyone know that they will be departing within the hour.  He tells them that anything not taken will be considered lost to Peema, as it could easily be looted by the time they return to the ship. He makes sure to tell Lennir that no one will be assisting him in carrying all of his kitchenware - A simple cookset and mess kit will do along with whatever herbs and spices he feels he needs.

He then enlists some help in preparing the Dark Site bodies for the fire ritual and Dahlun's body for burial on the nearby island. He's determined to ensure that they all return to the aether in a proper fashion. He spends quite a while making the pyre and assisting in digging, and before laying them to rest he makes it a point to say a few words.

"Dahlun hated the water," he announces to all who have assembled, "He preferred the ocean of skies and the streams of aether and the taste of his awful tea." Lero smirks as he says this, "Dahlun basically gave Elto life..." he gestures to Elto, "at least he showed us how to turn him on." He laughs a bit and continues, "Those here who are crew, family, knew Dahlun more than any others in his life have. We've laughed with him, ate with him, had tea with him, and mourned with him. His family was lost to the consulate mines at a young age and he would often tell me about them on quiet nights. He's joining them in the earth, in death, as his aether - his soul - joins with theirs." He bows his head slightly, "I only hope the earth will provide him with better tea than he's provided us with in the past." As he nods, Elto slowly lowers Dahlun into his earthen grave.

There's a moment of silence before Lero breaks it, "Asonea and Ahtwon," he says as he gestures to the pyre, "They gave their lives for a cause much greater than them. When a ship falls from the sky, it is rare to see a survivor. And though we survived a plummet to the earth, they did not." He looks to those that are watching, "I take full responsibility for their deaths, as it was my hands that controlled the ship. The aether in the sky, in all its beauty, can be quite cruel. We travel with the souls of the departed around us, and sometimes they take a toll to allow the rest of us to live. I thank Asonea and Ahtwon for their sacrifice, and hope to travel with them again as we sail the skies." He nods to Lennir to start the fire.

"Thank you for assembling for this.  It is important we remember those we've made contact with in our lives." He gestures to the food that Lennir had prepared, "Now eat." 

Namura smiled happily at her pile of fish as she lay in the lake's sandy beach. Hunting was a constant in her life, a rock she could hold on to in these turbulent times of change. While she was unsure of a great many things, she was still positive that she was huntress in all of Peema.

The voice of Lennir broke the elf's moment of respite. She readily agreed to his request, and allowed the chef to prepare the fruits of her labor in whatever manner he saw fit. She wouldn't argue with him about the best way to cook meat, especially since after decades of living in civilization she had come to realize that meat was better cooked than raw. Of course, if her Ma ever heard her admit that, the tiger would have probably batted her favorite "cub" upside the head.

The ranger did the intelligent thing and stayed out of the chef's way as he prepared a veritable feast. She also stayed far away from Lero and his funeral pyres, again out of respect. By the time the food was ready, Namura was back into her armor and prepared to face whatever the elves would throw at them. The elf found her place at the very end of the table, filling up her plate with as much fish curry as she possibly could. She dug into the food silently, her eyes on the horizon.

Buama helps with building the pyre for the two dark site crew members. She knew them no better than the rest of the crew and for that matter, Elto was probably best known at this point due what they had done together on fixing the ship and his sword. She wondered if he would pull it out and bring it with him. If he didn't, it could disappear. She had to wonder if her work this day would prove useful in the future, but if nothing else, it kept her mind off of the bad stuff. The stuff that led to this eulogy by Lero weighed heavily, but there was nothing she could do about it. May the lost return to the aether. It was highly unlikely any of them suffered much.

She eats quietly before acquiring her gear. In the process she notes the refining of the aether out of the water wasn't much past half done. It looked like two doses would be acquired. Better than nothing! Hopefully someone could carry the units together because she had all her tool kits and a thunder cannon to lug besides the usual 'you are going to be in the middle of nowhere' job. Once she has everything arranged at the point instructed the others might wonder how her skinny frame can hold it all. The answer is just barely.

Duncan sat by the fire enjoying the fish! Not much in regards to food could upset Duncan. Except vegetables, which he only ate as a last resort and not before then. Why would the Angels force people to eat food their food ate. It made no sense to him. Yet with the new mission ahead Duncan felt excited by the prospect of meeting a group of elves with no ties to either the Consulate or the Renegades. Seeing that he had his fill, he thanked Namura for the wonderful meal and went to collect few items. Once done he returned to the campfire to enjoy the company of his friends.

Flux was right in the middle of the gathering for the funeral - even the sadness of others was something that should be shared and experienced in their opinion. The meal was a much different affair however, with emotions back on the rise. If they had a mouth, they would have smiled for the emotional recovery - it seemed that the cook had prepared a good meal for those with mouths, and as a result, a pleasant experience for those without.

Since Flux kept all their possessions in their satchel and backpack, they have no reason to leave the area. After a minute or two of conversations, Flux pulls out their book once again, and continues reading. After a minute or two, Flux remembers that Namura was about to ask them something that morning, and closes their book and walks over.

"I see you are enjoying the meal. Just before the incident with the gremlins this morning, you were about to ask for my aid with something. Is that still something you need help with?"

"I see you are enjoying the meal. Just before the incident with the gremlins this morning, you were about to ask for my aid with something. Is that still something you need help with?" Flux approached her. That moment felt like ages ago to the ranger, so much had happened since. She slurped up the last little bit of fish that was in her mouth and washed it down with a gulp of water.

"Right! In all of the chaos, I forgot about that," Namura laughed as she wiped a bit of stray sauce off of her cheek. "I fell off one of the sails yesterday, and I was curious if you could make something that would help me fly, or at the very least not fall quite as fast." The ranger pointed at the ring that now adorned her thumb, realizing for the first time that she had managed to achieve her wish. "But, I got this off of Azsixi's corpse, so I think I'm mostly set. Looks like I can still touch things!"