first one to make that doctor who joke loses

[birdsbirdsbirds]

Who: Everyone! All of you!
Broadcast: Maybe!
Action: Definitely!
When: Anytime during the toxic moon event!

---

[boy oh boy, isn't everyone just so excited to explore this... charming... place...?

this is a game-wide mingle and the timeframe isn't super-important, so throw in with whatever you want! play war games, go shopping for gas masks, get lost in the wilderness, hide up in the Iskaulit and refuse to set foot on the moon, anything goes.

here's the main event info post for reference! have fun!]

Comments

[diplomacme]

[ She suspects that the Atroma had directed the Fleet here so they could lay low after their extremely shady business transaction. But the people here need help, so Padmé plans to do something useful while she's here. Which is why she's looking into this terraforming catastrophe. Damage like this can't be reversed quickly, but if she can only give these people some hope, it'll be worth being dragged to this polluted hellscape.

She looks over her shoulder at Obi-Wan. ]

If we're going to help these people, we need to find out what went wrong. [ Dryly: ] You can turn back whenever you want.

[ She knows he won't. ]

[beardstrokes]

[ Mutters. ]

I think I'll take my chances.

[ He has a bad feeling. About all of this. But he can't tell if that's the planet itself, rebelling against the pollution or something more insidious and dangerous. Be mindful of the Living Force. It's a little too late for that. ]

I take it we're breaking the law and sneaking in.

[diplomacme]

[ She pulls a lockpick out of her boot. ]

Why do you ask questions to which you already know the answer?

[ It takes her about ten seconds to get the rusty lock to cooperate. She returns the lockpick to her boot and pulls a flashlight out of her bag. Padmé glances at Obi-Wan. ]

Don't worry. I left some bail money with Anakin.

[ Is she joking? Maybe. Maybe not.

She crosses the threshold into the factory. ]

[beardstrokes]

I commend your confidence in Anakin's monetary skills.

[ Because it's highly likely he spent it on scrap and machinery. ]

And I ask because I live in constant hope that we might reconsider.

[ A faint faint hope when it comes to Skywalkers. ]

[diplomacme]

[ Thanks for calling her bluff, Obi-Wan.

She gives him a quick glance over her shoulder. ]

Your optimism is refreshing.

[ She sweeps the beam of her flashlight across the room, checking for any signs of life or any immediate danger. The large drill in the center of the room is obviously the main attraction, so she makes her way over, her shoes crunching in the dirt on the floor. ]

What could they have been drilling for?

[beardstrokes]

[ Obi-Wan quickly scans the area. He doesn't sense anyone nearby, but that might not mean much when the Force here feels sickly and constantly uneasy. Briefly he wished he had made that call to Anakin and suffered Padme's wrath anyway. Anakin would have been able to tell what this equipment is for.

He briefly takes out his communicator. Can't this thing take pictures? ]

It doesn't seem like typical terraforming equipment.

[diplomacme]

[ She walks around the drill, brows furrowed in concentration. ]

Do you think they're lying? Or perhaps being lied to?

[beardstrokes]

It could be either.

[ It's hard to say at this point. ]

[diplomacme]

Purposefully corrupting the moon means that the citizens have to import everything.

[ Her mind goes immediately to the complexities of trade and political power. The war still has its grip on her, affecting her perception. That she's had personal experience with a planet held hostage only adds to it. ]

[beardstrokes]

[ He can't help making a brief disgusted face. How he loathes politics. ]

So the question remains. Is it the ruling party or the corporations?

[diplomacme]

It could be both, or neither. [ She sweeps her flashlight over the drill, looking for any familiar mechanics or identification of any kind. ]

I just have a feeling that this wasn't an accident.

[beardstrokes]

I'm inclined to agree.

[ He wonders if it's worth wrecking the place - a very Anakin move. Probably not though. ]

[diplomacme]

[ She (very briefly) has the same thought. But this is evidence they might need later. ]

Let's look around some more. Maybe they slipped up and left something behind.

[beardstrokes]

There's probably an office on the top level.

[ He really shouldn't be encouraging this, but since he's here . . . might as well go all the way. ]

[diplomacme]

Good thinking.

[ She looks around for a set of stairs. There are some just a few meters away. They're a little rickety-- obviously this place hasn't been maintained-- and she nearly trips as one step completely gives way, destroyed by rust. ]

It doesn't seem that the locals bother with upkeep in these warehouses.

[beardstrokes]

[ He instinctively reaches out to grab her, though his touch is gentle. Once he's sure she's fine, Obi-Wan lets go. ]

They had other things on their mind.

[diplomacme]

[ She acknowledges his help with a glance, but it's clearly meant to be a 'thank you.'

Instead, she pauses for a moment at the first landing, giving Obi-Wan a brief moment to catch up. ]

It's almost like they've given up investigating.

[beardstrokes]

Considering how badly things have gone . . . I imagine there was a breaking point.

[diplomacme]

[ She scans for anything resembling an office.

Quietly: ]

They're desperate enough to trust strangers with the fate of their planet.

[beardstrokes]

[ Obi-Wan doesn't say anything. He and Padme have been to enough planets, enough systems to know how it works.

Outside forces come in, they help and they often tear the planet apart. ]

[diplomacme]

[ Padmé is silent until the reach a likely-looking door. She carefully picks the lock and the door swings open with a loud creak. ]

It looks like nobody has been in here in years.

[beardstrokes]

Wouldn't that mean the equipment in use . . . has been left running?

[ Is it possible that no one bothered to stop it? ]

[diplomacme]

[ She makes a sweep of the room with her flashlight. ]

Maybe. But it doesn't look like they left in a hurry.

[ Everything is dusty, true, but not disheveled. ]

[beardstrokes]

See anything unusual?

[ He moves closer to the desk, surveying it critically. ]

[diplomacme]

[ While Obi-Wan studies the desk, Padmé tries to turn on the antiquated computer system. Predictably, it doesn't boot. And, predictably, the harddrive can't be removed. ]

No luck.