Galactic Dawn: Running Story of the Starcraft&Metroid Campaign, 2006.

Just then, the team received a call on a private channel to their ship. Only a team member could have such information.

Guay (comm): The call came in just this minute. It's an Eticoon who calls himself Dr. West. He says he has Jargenduv.
Moltar: I guess I'm the ranking one, put him through...Hello Dr. West.
West (comm): Hello. I would enjoy a lengthy chat but my posture forbids it. I have been empowered by the elders to invite you back to our village. I'm sure you can find the way. Bring your good minds.
Moltar: When?
West (comm): I am prepared to receive you at any time, however, for the sake of your crewman I would suggest ample haste.
Moltar: Understood. Out.
T'Aiur: The address, as it were, has called to us. This is most serendipitous.
Moltar: Overly much. The last time we spoke to West it was through Jargenduv himself. He's manipulative and dark. And now out of the blue he's caring for our wounded who vanished before our eyes?
Elric: Oh, lighten up. It's about time we got a break. What do we have to lose?

Moltar and T'Aiur exchanged glances before even needing to exchange whispers.

T'Aiur: At my estimate, we have three more things to lose.

The journey back to the secret village south of Branson was brief and rough, now with Elric at the helm instead of their usual and more experienced pilot in Tam. The team met the gate guardians, who escorted them through the village and down a long lift shaft to the sub basement of Dr. West's laboratory. Walking to the end of the dimly lit passageway, the team felt a sense of uneasy wonder at the doors. Until now, West had been a shadowy figure, explaining nothing and raising many questions. Until now, neither had West been outright malign in action or intent, and even seemed to be trying to help. It was for this reason alone that they had given him the benefit of the doubt. It was for the reason that he claimed to know how to reunite the team that they had not hesitated. They entered the office at the end of the hall, where Dr. West sat waiting.

West: Greetings once again. There is no time to waste. One of your team members came to me last night. From my review of the recordings, he simply appeared on the edge of town for reasons I cannot describe.
Elric: Where is he? Where are you keeping him?
Moltar: (aside) Yuki, stay calm. (to West) May we see him.
West: I am not keeping him against his will, but then, I'm not sure he has a will left. Follow me.

The team followed the mysterious doctor down the hallway and through some connectors to a room that Jargenduv had once before been in, a large and mostly vacant sterile-white room with a single bed and some BLS equipment. The team's sense of uneasy wonder left in place of minor horror at seeing Jargenduv. Though apparently uninjured, his form continuously flickered and phased, making parts of his armor and body appear insubstantial of a moment and then solid once again. White-blue streaks would preface each flicker, and the accompanying hum set a tone of restless and haunting music, completed by the grim stillness of Jargenduv's lifeless and tortured form.

Elric: What...what's happening to him?
West: I cannot describe. However, I have heard of this phenomenon through some friends. At my best estimate, he is experiencing temporodimensional aphasia: his body has been connected to another plane, only not completely. This led me to suspect that your other team members have experienced something similar, only I would have to ask some questions.
Moltar: Of course, go right ahead.
West: As for the circumstances: what had happened when the others vanished?
T'Aiur: We thought a trap sprung. There was a portal of blinding light, and then they were simply gone.
West: I see. Had they been at all injured before this trap happened?
Yuki: No. Not at all, but with Jargenduv...
Moltar: He had taken a hit. We thought he wouldn't survive.
West: Was this in the some section of the disruptor facility, or the connecting Chozo apse?

At this, the team exchanged a few quick uneasy glances and then answered honestly.

Moltar: The Chozo area, what you call an "apse."
West: That is lucky, I think. I know of another place, one of concordant energies that Chozo philosophers seem to have a knack at finding out. It is on the first moon of this planet, another apse similar to the one you found. You should travel there. I suspect you will be able to find your friends.
Elric: What about Jargenduv here. What's going to happen to him?
West: I simply don't know. His condition seems...stable, it is at least unchanging, but there are other planes that do not offer simple escape or reprieve. There are some that offer challenges to the psyche in the same way that our plane offers empty space and matter. It is possible that he is right now in the mental fight of his life.
Moltar: There was some hint of another place connected to the one we explored. It is worth investigating at any rate.

And true to his word, Moltar directed the team back to the ship, and instructed Yuki at the helm to plot escape vectors and entry coordinates for Korhal's first moon. In the days of the Kel-Morian combine and the old Confederacy, this moon had been a staging point for a coordinated strike, the evil eye in the sky telling the missiles exactly where to go. In a few hours, the team had entered lunar orbit and landed on the surface, vacant of atmosphere. The team had set down near a mysterious opening in the ground, encircled by the same brown worked stone characteristic of the previous Chozo architecture. They entered and found the floor plan to be much smaller than the Korhalian counterpart. The first room had a left and right exit into other rooms. In the rightward room, they found a dry fountain and some illegible runes. The leftward room looked similar, bearing a podium in the center that presented apparently nothing. Each of these led to a final room in the rear of the apse, half the depth of the others and twice the height. Against the back wall was an ornate altar, and chromatic light shone from above upon it.

Moltar: My sensors are detecting atmosphere in this place. Let me try...yes, it is breathable.
Yuki: I'll keep my seal on, thanks. What are we supposed to do now?
T'Aiur: This altar is vaguely familiar to me. I am sure I have seen something like it before.
Moltar: Before we left, West gave me something to place on the altar when we found it.
T'Auir: Is that a khalis crystal?
Moltar: I don't know. To me it has no name, you can give it a sense if you like.
(Here, Moltar refers to the sense that Protoss and Byunei have of electro-magnetic fields. Having no noses and no sense of smell, the races use this to identify latent electromagnetic fields. It can be used to identify people and substances, as well as aid the manufacture of microelectronics.)
T'Aiur: Yes, that smells like khalis well enough. And at that, I know what this altar reminds me of. I have seen it in some of the older basilicas on Aiur. The High Templar use similar altars for their rituals. At least they used to.

Moltar placed the khalis crystal shard on the altar, and the team stepped back and waited. In a few seconds, a great swirling mist appeared with a heart of chromatic light. It grew into a frothing bubble of light, within it the blue outline of Protoss features including eyes that even through the rest of the light shone and writhed with intelligence and power. An Archon had arrived.

Archon: You who have known the lost, speak the names of fallen friends. Speak your names as well.
Elric: I am Yuki Elric.
Moltar: My name is Cofforth Moltar.
T'Aiur: They call me B'Arun T'Aiur.
Archon: You who would claim to be of Aiur are of nowhere. None are of Aiur. Speak your name.
T'Aiur: Then I am simply B'Arun.
Archon: Now speak the names of your friends, the names of the lost and the fallen, those who have slept as guests.
T'Aiur: Chac Laharl.
Elric: Alexander Tam.

The Archon postured for a moment, standing a full twenty feet tall above the team. The team in response could feel the tingle of great power roll over them. Its tone had sharpened when addressing T'Aiur, and they had been ready for a fight that they did not think to win. Presently the Archon shrank and vanished, replaced by two smaller similar looking radiant spheres. Tam and Laharl materialized in front of them. Reunited, the team made their way back to the ship, explaining what had happened and about Jargenduv's condition.

Before they could escape, however, another Archon materialized to block the exit, this one pulsing red with a difficult to perceive black outline of inner form. It lashed out at them with whip-like red strands, attacking three and four of them at once. T'Aiur flamed, Yuki fired rockets, Tam kept the team standing, Moltar hid and sniped, and Laharl charged and slashed. In a moment, Laharl was flung ceilingward and unleashed as he flew back a delicious blow from the Orb of Tornabi, a weapon similar to the attack of the high archons themselves. The blast shattered the Minor Dark Archon's tethers, and its figure evaporated, the tortured black outline of a Byunei.

The team, now reinforced, traveled back to the surface of the planet and met once more with Dr. West. He congratulated their successful mission, and eased their minds about their missing credit for foiling the cerebrate. About Jargenduv, West indicated that he could do no more for any of them, and that the team should return to their lives in the meantime, with the understanding that he would notify them of any changes to Jargenduv's condition.

The team decided to refuel and resupply and shop before leaving for Moria. Perhaps, they thought, they could delay for long enough for Jargenduv to come back around. After taking care of some simple ship's upkeep, Yuki went alone to look for a suit modification she had heard about in advertisements: a hudlink modification called a battle-scanner. Frustrated with the initial results, particularly the inability for most of the local tinkerers to even countenance Chozo technology, she sought instead to pass some time in a bottle.
Many pubs dotted the cityscape of Branson, but none, upon her inquiry, offered reasonable exchange of capital for booze. Apparently being a Terran minor from another planet with no ID made this negotiation a challenge. There was one character who offered a mug of stout, and Yuki addressed him.

Cloaked figure: You say you're looking for beer? I know what you mean.
Elric: You do? Great, I've been looking for hours.
Cloaked figure: Yeah, follow this road to the end, take a left at the tee intersection and walk three blocks. Take another left in between two buildings, one of which will have a blue cloth in the portal.
Elric: Uh...you mean you don't have it here?
Cloaked figure: It would be imprudent to exchange beer in this setting.
Elric: Oh, I get it. You don't have a license, Fine by me. Most of these prudes won't serve me because I'm too young.

Thinking nothing at all of the Terran's candor and deportment, Yuki followed his instructions and walked in-between the buildings, one of which indeed had a blue flag stuck in the portal. The alleyway shrank and became dark, the sun having set about an hour hence. Shortly thereafter the rest of the team lost communications contact with Yuki.

Tam: Alright, lets get ready to go. I don't like nightfall around here. I would even prefer space. Everyone ready?
Moltar: Yes. Guay and Maddocks hardly left the ship. Laharl and T'Aiur boarded a moment ago. I presume Elric finished her maintenance duty some hours ago.
Tam: Ah good. Where is she now?
Moltar: I thought she was with you.
Tam: Well I thought...hold on.
Tam (comm): Elric, where did you go? We're about to leave. Elric. Elric?
Laharl (comm): The ship shows a malfunction with her communicator. We can't get a signal through.
Tam: Looks like we'll have to track her down ourselves. Laharl, come with me. Moltar, be ready to leave as soon as we get back. We'll keep comm active so you'll be able to follow us if something happens.

Tam and Laharl left, first finding the various equipment shops, still open, where Elric had been. A little detective work and a lot of chatting with the locals led the pair of them finally to a pub of minor renown. Tam's mood darkened.

Tam: I've heard of this one.
Laharl: In what way?
Tam: The story goes that shady types hang out here. A lot of under-the-table deals and bribed authority figures. What have you gotten into, Elric?
Laharl: Give me the word if you need anything.
Tam: Stay frosty until then. I'll bet none of these scum is expecting to need detection.

A short inquiry led Tam to a cloaked figure, arranged in a booth behind a break in the pub where the dining took on a more private atmosphere.

Tam: So you've seen her?
Cloaked figure: Of course, she seemed interested in my wares. I directed her to a more suitable point of purchase.
Tam: And where is that?
Cloaked figure: I'm afraid that professional discretion forbids me from revealing the myriad dealings of my clientele. However, I sell information as well, and if what you want is your friend back, I suppose I can sell that for a few hundred thousand Mengsks.
Tam: Laharl, now.

Laharl concentrated, and made his figure visible to the cloaked-wearing Terran.

Cloaked figure: Shit! Holy shit!
Tam: Only if you're a saint. Tell us where she is, or we'll see what you're insides look like after gracing a warp blade.

The man instructed them where to go, a kind of safe house for his common activities, and spilled that Yuki had been kidnapped and held after pulling a weapon on one of them, and their continuing plans to ransom her. When he was finished, Laharl knocked him out, and Tam dragged his corpse out of the bar, explaining that his friend had had one too many tall stouts. They followed directions to the house wherein Elric was being held for ransom.

Tam: Well, there it is. Do you think I should try talking to them like with the last one?
Laharl: No. I think my expertise is called for this time. Give me a minute.

Laharl approached the building, and disappeared to Tam entirely.

Fifteen minutes later, Laharl emerged carrying Elric on his shoulders.

Tam: What happened in there?
Laharl: Best not to mention it.

The team left for another city on Korhal, to a rally point to the south of Arcturusgrad specified a few days previously by Dubrensk as he described the third and last mission he had for them. After meeting with Dubrensk, the team decided to decline the job, not wanting to become involved in anything too dangerous with one team member in need of attention at a moment's notice.
The team left Korhal at last, headed to Moria and their impromptu home in the rented garage. The Optimus was guided in and landed safely in their bay.

Once awake, Elric learned what had happened and apologized. She also discovered a small phial of some blue liquid that had been identified to her as "beer." She hadn't remembered it being so strange looking or kept in phials, and so decided instead to add it to a glass of water just to see. The effects were rapid.

Asleep, images and sounds reverberated in Elric's head, the message "Seek Patria" replaying again and again in her unconscious mind. The perceptions induced by narcotic coma. The team discovered her corpse again, and a doubly frustrated Tam decided that he couldn't treat her here and took her to the local hospital. In a few hours she had been revived, and the doctors took Tam aside for questioning while a sweet, lilting nurse spoke to a finally conscious Yuki.

Dr. Mavious: So, mister Tam. How exactly did you find her?
Tam: I already said, I found her unconscious on the floor of her room. She was drooling and babbling.
Dr. Mavious: Well, her bloodwork revealed small doses of a known narcotic agent, it could only have gotten there if ingested as a drug. I have already reported this to the Morian authorities and they will want to talk to you.
Tam: I see. Then you should know that we've come from Korhal. I can tell you about the people who most likely gave her this.

After a few minutes of question and answer, Tam left the officer-doctor with sufficient information to prevent further inquiry, as the levels of the toxin themselves were not prosecutable.

Elric: Ugh, my head...Patria.
Nurse: Hello there, dear. I'm sorry about your head.
Elric: Nothing I haven't been through in a fight. Who are you?
Nurse: You're in a hospital, dear, you've recovered from being very sick. I want to ask you about where you have been for the last day.
Elric: Uh...I'm not sure what you mean.
Nurse: Where did you get the blue juice?
Elric: I...that is...huh?
Nurse: You could be in some trouble and that would be very bad, yes it would. Tell me where you found the phial.
Elric: I...feel sick.

Tam entered escorted by Dr. Mavious, who gave Elric a clean bill of health and released her. Relieved, Elric joined Tam and left after paying the hospital fees, which included a substantial bribe, itemized on the bill as "consulting fees."

Tam: Don't...do...that...ever...again.
Elric: I'm really sorry, I had no idea that...
Tam: No words! Since you came aboard you've been the single most destructive force to the team's survival. My first impression of you as a callow, trigger-happy harpy remains unblemished, especially in the face of this last stunt. If I were sensible I would have kicked you into the street, or put you back in that chamber that you came out of on the ship. Anything but...
Elric: ...but you took me to the hospital...Thanks. That means a lot to me.
Tam: (sighs) You are part of the team. Are we done with all this wild nonsense?
Elric: Yes, sir. There were some things I saw while I was out that I wanted to bring up...I have to tell someone.
Tam: The delusions of a depraved and damaged mind are of little...
Elric: But this was real. I saw my dad, and I kept hearing that I should seek Patria. Is that a planet? I have to go to that planet. I have to go to Patria.
Tam: You're coming down. You're still delusional.
Elric: No, no this was different than that. Whether drug-induced or not, I felt what I felt. And right now I know I have to find my dad.
Tam: Orson was important to me too. He never left a man behind. Maybe I'll tell you about some of the battles that our mvsf found itself in some time, but I'm pretty sure he's gone.
Elric: He isn't, I know he isn't, and I know that Septoth knows how to find him.
Tam: How do you know that name? I didn't know we ever briefed you...who told you?
Elric: I know where Septoth is, where the Kellar are hiding. Tallon V. He knows how to find Patria.

Once again at home, Elric described her story to the entire team, who decided that travel to Tallon V in search of Orson Elric, there to discover the mysteries left behind by the shattered remains of the laboratories on the cutting edge of technology research ravaged by war.

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