Volcano Day: Escape From New Advora

[Eralam]

New Advora was a modern marvel, the ultimate sneer in the face of mother nature. The original city was wiped out in a minor eruption from the nearby Mount Dervo. The supervolcano had lain sleeping for untold thousands of years. The eruption that wiped Advora City off the map had been little more than a sneeze, barely a fraction of a percent of the true power that bubbled beneath the crust.

With the help of the First Order, the Advozsec were able to rebuild their city on the ashes of the old. More than that, they improved on it in every possible way. Though it retained its classical style and beauty, it boasted modern amenities that would have been the pride of any Core planet, and was highly regarded as both a center of learning, thanks to the Advorian Institute of Technology, and as a tourist hotspot, thanks to the breathtaking scenery that surrounded it.

The Advozsec would have never consented to rebuild in the same location if not for assurances that they'd never have to worry about ash and fire raining from the sky again. Those were assurances the First Order was all too happy to provide. Mankind had tamed nature time and time again. Surely something as insignificant as a volcano could be tamed, right?

It would seem so. The citizens of New Advora learned not to fear the wrath of Mount Dervo. Technology limited the frequent groundshakes to little more than an inconvenience. Advanced sensors proved that the volcano would lie dormant for hundreds more years, giving them plenty of time to prepare in the event of an eruption, and maybe even a chance to prevent it altogether.

In their arrogance, they even tapped the dormant volcano for power. It proved an abundant source of energy, far more than their ash blanketed sky ever had. Rapid advancements in geothermal power became a calling card of the Advorian Institute of Technology. It seemed like something new and exciting was announced on a near weekly basis as scientists the galaxy over came to test their theories.

Before long, New Advora boasted one of the most advanced geothermal power stations in the galaxy: the Ersatz Geothermal Power Plant. Not only did it produce energy with previously unimaginable efficiency, it provided enough energy to power massive battery banks for use in emergencies. Among researchers of green energy, it was considered the crown jewel in the science of limiting society's impact on the environment.

Unfortunately, as was often the case, war prevented the galaxy from being able to fully reap the benefits of the advancements made at the EGPP. It was common practice for warring powers to withhold technological advancements from one another, and the First Order was no stranger to it. Secure though they might have been in their military prowess, there were a number of hostile powers that might have benefited from the new discoveries.

Or at least that was the case until now.

The Advoran Institute of Technology had made a discovery so vast, so world changing, that not even the tides of war could prevent it from escaping. For the first time in recorded history, geothermal power could be made more cheap and efficient than solar, a boon for colonies and installations on planets where sunlight wasn't readily available, and it had the potential to be orders of magnitude safer than fusion or fission nuclear plants. It went without saying that the environmental footprint was far smaller than that of fossil fuel burning plants. Clean energy was about to undergo the sort of paradigm shift that came once in a thousand generations.

Rather than sealing it off behind the aegis of secrecy, the First Order decided to allow the discovery to be shared, provided they were given their share of credit and profit. It was a calculated risk from a military standpoint, but an unprecedented opportunity from a public relations standpoint.

And so they agreed to grant passage to representatives to all governments, friend and foe alike, to witness the unveiling of the new technology. As a token of their goodwill, they dramatically reduced their military presence on the planet, relying on local security forces to enforce order. Meanwhile, the FOSB ramped up their covert presence in the city, unwilling to pass on the intelligence collection opportunity of a lifetime.

It was the sort of opportunity that only came once in a lifetime. The chance to acquire the revolutionary new geothermal tech would be a tempting one indeed for just about every government. Such a momentous event was also a rich opportunity for vendors and businessmen looking to forge new connections and earn contracts. For the enterprising thief, there was another sort of fortune to be made. As for the spies- just imagine the wealth of information that could be collected!

Today would be a day for the history books, an event that would be written about for centuries.

No one could have predicted that the history would be written in blood and ash.

In twelve hours, Mount Dervo will awaken from its slumber, and it will cleanse New Advora of life down to the cellular level.

Though its doom has been decided, its final hours are not yet.

There are stories to be told, stories of heroism and bravery, stories of cowardice and cruelty. The best and the worst of civilization will be on display.

What role will you play?

 

[Cedric Grayson]

The lights of five million souls lingered upon the edge of the knight's senses. Each was a bright candle all its own; flickering with its own complexities and traits that set it apart from the rest. There was excitement in the air today, though it had been tempered with pride. If the findings that the Advozsec had found proved to be true, then they had ever right to express that pride.

A heavy sigh fell from his lips as he peered out at the columns of vendors that had arrayed themselves throughout the city. It seemed the locals had wasted no time in taking full advantage of the flood of offworld visitors. The thought made Darius smile, though it was a hollow one. He hadn't come here to celebrate.

Curiosity and a need to remain in the know had brought the exile to this corner of the galaxy. The Black Library might have been destroyed, but its information network remained - this discovery was something that needed to be recorded before it could possibly be lost. Being one of the only souls left in his order to do the job, Darius had taken it upon himself personally to attend. Arriving on a First Order world without any sort of support had not sat well with the Jedi at first, but allowing his dears to stay his hand was counter productive.

He'd left the Galactic Alliance's service before the war with the First Order had begun anyway; they were not his enemy.

"I'll take a roasted nerf," a credit chip was slipped across the counter of a food speeder. The cook grumbled something unintelligible as he turned to make the order.

"You see anybody important yet?" Silence followed. Darius coughed into his fist loudly.

"Couple officials, nobody famous. No war heroes if that's what you're askin'," the cook finally grumbled, annoyance clear in his tone. Taking the hint, Darius turned the moment is food was handed to him, and made his way down the central street.

Let's see what we can find.

[member="Eralam"]

 

[Dresden Verbrennung]

https://youtu.be/3MjFYHilo6Y

The technical term was "security contractor." That's what it said on Dresden's visa, at any rate.

This conference was supposed to be a Big Deal, the sort that any government with a vested interest in providing clean, efficient energy to their people would be interested in. Government officials, scientists, engineers, and reporters from all across the galaxy were flocking to New Advora to get the pitch, and for obvious reasons, security was expected to be tight.

The First Order had opted to reduce its military presence for the duration, in order to avoid scaring off potential attendees. On paper, the local security forces were handling the brunt of the law enforcement duties, but they simply weren't equipped to respond to such a massive event. And so, their ranks were bolstered by scores of contractors from all across the galaxy.

Most of the contractors were just that. There were countless security firms throughout the galaxy, of varying levels of reliability and willingness to work in FO space. Five had scored highly lucrative contracts to work in New Advora for the event, and for the most part, they were interfacing well with the local gendarmerie. There were a few gaps they couldn't fill, however, and that's why people like Dresden had been called in.

His visa might have said security contractor, but his actual job was closer to counterintelligence operative.

It wasn't an arrangement he was thrilled about.

The former FOSB agent had retired as cleanly as anyone could hope. After the debacle on Naboo, the FOSB hadn't really argued when he filed his retirement package. Killing him would have taken far more effort than anyone thought he was worth, and he'd earned enough favors to transition out, with a few conditions.

Most of the conditions were simple. Don't work for foreign powers, don't sell state secrets, that sort of thing. But there was also a clause that said he had to make himself available for contract work if the need arose.

Dresden knew, sooner or later, that they would make good on that, but what could he do? Those were the conditions of his parole, and he could either accept them and go off to play with his distillery or stay shackled to a desk at the FOSB.

And so he found himself in a swanky hotel room, surrounded by sophisticated electronic surveillance equipment that he didn't even pretend to understand, with a half dozen other burly men with big guns and bigger egos. They were on standby at the moment, waiting the the pencil-necked EW tech to pick up any signs of trouble in the electromagnetic spectrum. Depending on the nature of the trouble, they might go as a team, or as individuals.

Dresden hoped for the latter. These guys were all professionals, but they were kids. The oldest of them, aside from himself was barely 25. They had next to nothing in common. They saw him as a washed up old man. Oh, sure, they might pick his brain about a particular scenario, but no one took the lanky mercenary seriously as a fighter. They left him alone to fiddle with his rifle and his frankly disturbing stash of plastic explosives, while they talked about bodybuilding supplements and workout routines.

With any luck, no calls would come, and three days from now, they could go their separate ways, never to see each other again.

 

[Alyson Halle]

While Alyson had no personal interest in geothermal power, many of her engineers and builders did. They saw it as a way to generate electricity, hopefully being able to electrify more and more of the population. This is one of the long term goals Alyson set before she went into meditation, so this was a good way to move forward with those plans. Some areas of Merides have a huge potential for geothermal power, yet sadly these regions are among the least electrified, it was the hope that this technology could change that.

Her archaic looking armor seemed to often grab attention, she was not trying to blend in today, there was no need. This was a public event so a bit of attention was not too much of an issue. People seemed to have a way of moving aside when they came across somebody who looked and acted important, regardless of their actual importance in regards to the events at hand. She lacked a guard for this excursion however, instead she had come with a few engineers and planners, they were more critical for this sort of event. They were given free reign over the entire city, and they were having a field day, taking notes on just about everything, from the architecture, to the faucets.

Alyson meanwhile was making her way towards the city center, using her rather refined force senses to try and find any interesting individuals. People of note tended to give off a certain aura in the force, the tendrils of the force played on their fates like little harp-strings, however they were even harder to predict than normal people, it was odd, it was as if the more the force intervened, the harder events were to predict. The forces grand game still eluded her knowing, and it probably would for a long time.

A familiar presence seemed near by, but it had been a long time, she could not recognize it clearly. Unbeknownst to her this was the signiature of [member="Darius Sedaire"], the man who had opened her eyes to the force, but she did not recognize it at the time. Whether their paths would cross again would be left to fate at this point. For now she would browse the various shops and bushiness around the city center, minding her own business.

 

[Progflaw99]

When you're in the dark and you want to see,​

You need uh... Electricity, Electricity​

Flip that switch and what do you get?​

You get uh... Electricity, Electricity​

Every room can now be lit​

With just uh... Electricity, Electricity​

​

~ Schoolhouse Rock, Electricity​

​

-- -- --​

​

It wasn't every day Lysander made it off his home planet of... well, he didn't exactly have a home. That was the game wasn't it. Nowhere and everywhere were home simultaneously. If home was wear the heart was, well, then technically he was home all the time. Lys wasn't one for sentimentality, at least not when it came to where he rest his head at night, or day, or really any time at all. In any case, this had been the opportunity of a lifetime. The First Order had unwittingly, or at least it seemed so, opened themselves up to what could be chalked up to as possibly the largest data mining opportunity in recent history. *They have to know, they just have to.* thought the man.

Seated in a large passenger shuttle, Lysander had been late to arrive. Due to the sudden influx of travel to the First Order world of Riflor, customs checks entering and exiting the sector had been delayed. "I thought there was supposed to be less restrictions during this summit." he muttered under his breath. Even so, they were scheduled to arrive soon. Nervously he adjusted in his seat. He'd never really liked flying. Still didn't like flying.

 

[Luther Lewis]

He was running at speeds he'd never reached before. The raw power coming from his legs made him giddy. He upped his speed and let out a wordless yell. He was a Fathier sprinting in a wide, open Savannah. He opened his arms wide, laughing.

"Enough" the metallic voice uttered from the speaker. The treadmill slowed and eventually came to a stop. The euphoria wore off quickly and his stomach churned as he returned to reality. He felt like a he was in an another's body, or like he a child that was walking in his father’s clothes. Too big and clumsy. 'I did this to myself' he thought. 'I agreed to the surgery'. And it had seemed like a good idea. So, why oh why, did he feel like such a freak.

He was barely puffed from such a long and steady run. He should feel exulted, but he couldn't help but feel it was aberrant. He stepped off the treadmill and turned to the one-way mirror. The loudspeaker crackled to life again. "We've got all the data required for today. You're dismissed Corporal". He saluted clumsily and left the room.

- - - - -​

His gait was strange, the stride of a smaller man in a bigger body. Despite such maladroitness, he was enjoying his time off. New Advora was a beautiful city, not just in surroundings but in its ideals too. It was proof that the First Order could still bring, well Order, without blood and fire. As a man who still woke up from nightmares of blood and mud, Luther could appreciate a city like this.

The guard at the University checkpoint was friendly, at least when Luther showed him his FO military ID and explained that he was attending the University. "You boys seem a little on edge lately" Luther remarked, thinking about the last couple of stiff responses he'd received. "Is there something going on?"

The MP looked surprised. "You haven't heard? There is a delegation of all types arrived to the city. Some sort of big presentation for the geo-plant." It was news to Luther. "Everyone's here, allies and enemies, under peace of course. Hasn't been any trouble yet but there will be. I'm sure." Luther nodded and moved to head off. He got a warning about stirring trouble before a sincere goodbye from the man.

- - - - -​

He parked his speeder bike and was soon sitting at a restaurant, just outside what classified as the Capitol Rotunda. He sipped a cup of caf, marveling at how senstive his tastebuds were. Improved senses were the only benefits from going under the knife that Luther had no reservations about. His eyes and ears were marginally better, but his nose now inhaled a plethora of smells. Life seemed richer now, especially out in the sun.

He shivered as a Jedi walked past, instinctively closing off his mind. The man gave him a mixed look. Disgust, maybe mixed with tinge of fear and curiosity. Luther recalled that he now had a 'strong force presence' whatever that meant. Apparently, he was some kind of freak through the force. He didn't mind so much. He hated Jedi.

He messaged [member="Kyli DT-6767"], knowing she was on planet, and invited her to join him. He was about to call Rexus and Twigg but hesitated not sure if they were actually nearby. He put the device away and settled back in his chair, enjoying the sun.

 

[Kier Grey]

Kyli DT-6767
Riflor, New Advora, Capitol Rotunda

Kyli's hazel eyes stare down at her blueish denym trouser sheathed legs as they take each step towards the pre-determined destination struggling to believe just how long her limbs had become, raising eyes in their almond shaped sockets Kyli's eyes narrow as a pain burrows through her skull the sounds and cacophony of city is discomforting and she is yet careful not to trip over her own beige ankle boots. It had been the first time she'd truly walked since the operation, the augmentations had hit her body hard significantly changed both in appearance and underlying physiology where there was once scars now sits the unmarred smooth skin typical of a young woman. Kyli's fingers trail over the cheek with a fleeting smirk rising in the corners of mouth; to feel once again and with such fidelity was truly a delight that the child Stormtrooper struggled to contain, it was the greatest gift the First Order Military had ever given her the opportunity to become what she now is though the adhesive patch straddling right forearm concealed beneath a white blouse and beige leather jacket that there is a thin barrier between madness and reality. Gaze darts around studying the myriad of Aliens within the capitol's heart and couldn't help but level a silent contempt towards them; aliens truly are foreign to Kyli having been raised and trained exclusively by and with Humans she did not favour the hideous sight of non-humans.

Pulling closer to the restaurant Kyli's eyes inspect the sign, written in High Galactic which struck the woman as odd. The scent of freshly prepared food and caf wafts up through her narrow nostrils and she heaves out a thoroughly enticed sigh quickly spotting Ando's distinct haircut at a circle-shaped table with four seats, Kyli's gaze sharpens so much that she can distinguish between the innumerable hairs sitting upon Ando's head inching closer she greets him warmly. "I'm disappointed, you didn't order us a GA fighter with a side of death as an appetiser." Kyli makes the dark joke at her own expense, rounding the table and placing a firm grip on a vacant chair's Durasteel frame and pulls it back harshly only to find the force necessitating a step back from her own effort which gives her pause; noting to take greater care with exertion. Kyli settles down in the chair opposite Luther, leaving a vacant seat on her right and Luther's left folding her arms on the table leaning inwards slightly with right leg perching over left Kyli sits contently with the unsolicited contents of distant customer conversations filtering through into her ears. Cringing as if in discomfort; he'd know it had something to do with the procedure it wasn't long ago Kyli wasn't able to walk at all. "You're lucky you weren't the one stuck in a repulsor chair. How are you this morning Luther? Thanks for the invitation, I just hope Twigg can sit in one of these chairs without breaking it." Kyli's short fingernails drum at the table's surface with an obnoxious speed and volume; smashing against it with an unintended ferociousness as a result of her extensive augmentations which in her case had dramatically increased physical strength where once she had the body of a nimble bird she now possessed one of a robust athlete which did Kyli's true physical power no justice for it drastically surpassed that in truth.

[member="Rexus Wenck"] [member="Luther Ando"] [member="Alyson Halle"] [member="Dresden Verbrennung"] [member="Darius Sedaire"] [member="Eralam"]

 

[Eralam]

Twelve hours to eruption

"Begin the sequence."

The Ersatz Geothermal Power Plant lived up to its name. It wasn't a true geothermal plant, one that relied solely on the heat of the planet to produce energy. Its biggest breakthrough, the one that had gotten the attention of the galaxy, was that it was able to artificially replicate the results of a geothermal plant. Its location near Mount Dervo was protective camouflage, designed to keep the locals and the wandering eyes of outsiders from looking too closely at it. Geothermal plant on a volcano didn't exactly draw much interest.

From an engineering standpoint, it made sense that it wouldn't directly tap into the awesome power of the supervolcano. The magma chamber was so far beneath the surface that it simply wasn't practical to bore close to it. Once you got past a certain depth, you started to run into the law of diminishing returns.

What they had done, then, was create an artificial magma chamber. The process was so simple, it was a wonder no one else had thought of it. A high intensity mining laser bored a shaft down into the bedrock, well below the water table but still several kilometers above the magma chamber. it was important that they were well clear of the water table, because this next part was tricky.

Radioactive waste, the sort generated by the ton in this day and age, was carefully lowered into the bottom of the shaft, and left to its own devices. Its residual heat was enough to create a miniature magma chamber, one that was nearly self sustaining. That far beneath the surface, the radiation was of no real hazard to anyone, and being as far below the water table as it was, there was no danger of contamination. Sure, you had to seal the walls of the shaft as you bored to prevent leakage, but that was a small price to pay.

The result?

Dangerously radioactive nuclear waste could be harmlessly disposed of, and you could start a geothermal power plant just about anywhere, even on asteroids and planetoids without their own hot cores. All you needed to do to keep it going was drop some more fuel rods in from time to time. They would be consumed by the magma, and there heat would keep it going. As a bonus, you had access to steam heating in even the most frigid locations, so long as you could bore a shaft into the bedrock.

That was the theory, and it had worked spectacularly ever since the EGPP's construction.

For the demonstration today, the Advoran Institute of Technology would bore a new shaft, the fifth for the EGPP. It would be the largest, and the deepest. Go big or go home, as they say. For a little extra insurance, they were trying to get as close to the magma chamber as was safe. That technically counted as fudging the numbers, but the principle had been thoroughly tested elsewhere, and that data would be presented. It was important for the AIT, and the First Order who backed them, to get this one right. They were, after all, showing off in front of an awfully large audience.

The mining laser fired up, scything through the earth like a lightsaber through butter. Even with its massive power, it would still take over an hour to reach the proscribed depth.

[member="Darius Sedaire"] | [member="Kyli DT-6767"] | [member="Luther Ando"] | [member="ch1m3r4"] | [member="Alyson Halle"]

 

[Dresden Verbrennung]

"I need a drink," Dresden muttered to no one in particular. The dudebros were currently arguing about preworkout supplements, whether creatine actually did anything, and whether or not the two should be mixed.

It wouldn't have been harder to give a crap if someone were to remove the last three feet of colon and glue his nerf herder shut.

They meant well, they really did. The former FOSB agent couldn't fault them for that. By their age, he had been a seasoned veteran, as jaded as they came. His sole concern had been surviving for long enough to cash the next paycheck. They still believed they were making the galaxy a better place. Sure they had more ripples in their abs than brain cells, but Dresden couldn't bring himself to pop holes in their idealism.

He groaned and extricated himself from his chair, to a cacophany of creaks and cracks as his joints protested the sudden movement.

"What's up, pops?" asked Dylan, their designated leader. He was nearly as tall as Dresden, but had easily twice his mass, and not a gram of it was excess fat. It irked the agent to no end to be called "pops", but he let it slide. It was a sign of respect as much as anything, even if he didn't particularly appreciate being reminded of his age.

"Nothing, just need some fresh air," Dresden replied. "Going to go up to the roof to check the equipment."

You couldn't exactly say that Dylan was in charge of the elder merc, but he wasn't a bad leader. He liked to know where an asset was, in case something happened.

"Ah, cool. You want someone to come with?"

"Nah, I'm good. Gonna increase my chances of lung cancer while I'm up there."

Dylan winced. He hated smoking, but knew better than to challenge Dresden on his habit. This new batch of mercs was about as health conscious as they came.

Dresden strapped on his tac vest and picked up his rifle. He wasn't comfortable going unarmed, and the weight of the thick ceramic strike plates in the vest as nearly as reassuring as the pull of the heavy rifle.

The eastern sky was just starting to brighten up. You couldn't really see the sun through the thick clouds, both water vapor and ash, that were a hallmark of the planet, but the refracted light was making its appearance. The former agent propped himself against an aircon unit and lit up a cigarette. Just a couple more days and he could get back to his quiet life at the distillery. Hopefully things would stay quiet until then.

[member="Darius Sedaire"] | [member="Kyli DT-6767"] | [member="Luther Ando"] | [member="ch1m3r4"] | [member="Alyson Halle"]