Getting Goff

The travellers arrived in the The World system near a gas giant, on the scanners was the huge space station that they had been told the legendary engineer Goff could be found on.

The station was enormous, about 50 kilometres in diameter and 10 km high. On opposite sides of the station were cubic protuberances about 3km on a side. This thing was huge, and the robotic voice that answered them when they hailed the station directed them to one of the side cubes. "Follow green" they were told.

Getting closer the party could see tiny dots darting around which the sensors identified as fighters. Closer still the opening that they were being directed to came into view. It was a full half a kilometre across and seemed to pass through to the other side of the cube. Green lights were visible.

Entering the enormous docking bay the travellers saw dozens of docking stations, four of which were already occupied (by a refuelling barge, a large savager, a system defense boat of some kind, and a far trader). Three green lights highlighted the docking ports that the Harriers could connect to. These were in a line, and when the party emerged from the ships they could see that they were along a single corridor. A person was waiting for them, grimy overall and an air of someone who works hard..

He introduced himself as Teppic, and asked them what they were doing at the station. Lady Nitrane told him that they were from Drinax and were flying the flag so to speak. They were also interested in talking to someone called Goff who they had been told was interested in old Sindalian ships. Teppic was vaguely interested,  but kept walking as he took them to the common lounge area.

Emerging into a large common area the party could see tables and booths, a bar and various games machines. Through an open hatch a food preparation area could be seen. The five or six people already there were interested in the arrival, but in a half-hearted way, as if they were used to strangers arriving.

Teppic offered the party a drink, but really only had beer so that's what the party ordered. The rest of the crew of the Harriers were filing in now too, and Sparrow was tasked with keeping them in order.

The party were approached by another person, this time an older man with white beard, but with similarly greasy and worn overalls. He introduced himself as Bran. He said he'd heard that they wanted to talk to Goff. He wasn't expected back for a few days, he said, but it might be possible to take the party to him if it were urgent. Upon deciding that they might take him up on the offer he said his brother would be awake in about an hour and that he would take them.

Eventually Bran's brother Garn woke up and groggily came to see the party. He offered to take them to Goff, which meant putting on overalls with black pants and red shirt so that the robots that patrolled the engineering levels did not catch them and take them to the holding cells.

The trip involved taking a flat transportation pod, a bit like a mining cart, through the depths of the station to the dark levels. For the first hour Garn was quiet and didn't say much, but as he woke up he got more talkative.

Eventually reaching their destination, Garn and the travellers disembarked and put on torch headbands to light the way. Garn explained that the dark levels were so named because the lighting rigs had been salvaged centuries before.

After some time Lady Nitrane saw a light ahead which turned out to be Goff himself.

Goff was poking about under a large cylinder which had a panel removed. He grunted when the party got near but did not look up. "You!" he pointed at Lady Nitrane. "Hold this!". To Unter he said, "Get that wrench. No! Not that one, the heavy one! Now hit this as hard as you can just here." Luckily Unter hit true, and Lady Nitrane's arms only tingle for a bit.

He checked that the panel was on correctly and started packing up. When Lady Nitrane started talking he cut her off. "Plenty of time for that when we get there.". With that he led the party (telling Garn to make his own way back) to a small vehicle, into which he dumped his gear.

When everyone was aboard he adjusted some instruments and laid back. The vehicle started driving and Goff had a nap. Some time later they arrived at an elevator shaft and Goff got everyone out and into the lift, then pushed the up button. The lift arose for quite some time before stopping and opening up into a large dark room. Goff exited the lift and started waving his hands around until sensors detected him and turned on the lights.

(ignore what's on these screens)

The room had a wall of screens which seemed to be showing countryside. He hopped up on a chair, still staring at the screens and sighed. "Lovely isn't it" he said.

TO BE CONTINUED