The Admiral continues to explain about how space on the other side of this gate works. It’s….different. Space is clusters of systems that are no enclosed in spheres and there is no phlo between them. Travel takes longer and the space between is a vacuum. That’s why they gave us the gadabouts. If we leave the ship, Lenata will have to provide us with a life bubble. We also have to be careful with magic here. And apparently the area is infested with pirates. The gate will take us straight to the system – it’s a two way gate so we will have a way back at least. The Admiral tells us that the EIN will help stock our ship for the journey.

As the Admiral is explaining what we will find – Kenari is sliding sausages (not so subtly) into her bag. One of the dinner guests hands Kenari a plate – “You missed this one.” The Admiral goes on: “We don’t usually allow outsiders in the system but you come highly recommended from a variety of sources.” Also, they have a small request – they want us to go to the green planet and retrieve a bunch of plants. An assistant gives Lenata a list and a map to the right area. That seems like it should be easy enough. The Admiral goes on to tell us about Castrovel – the green planet. Apparently it’s inhabited and we should try to avoid contact.

About Akiton – Supposedly on Akiton is a part of Rempha. The Admiral gives a long explanation regarding the system and it’s inhabitants which I only partly pay attention to – there’s some rather large four-armed green people. Rat-folk, humans and the contemplatives…who sound…odd. Dinner ends politely enough and quickly – for elves.

We spend the next day stocking the ship (ugh! Limbus bread.) The Captain and Lenata receive a special shipment of wine from the Admiral. We also get catapult bolts – magical and flaming burst. So that’s fun. This must be a great place. I end up following Fynn around who has now – after all these years – decided he wants armor? Predictably, the elves don’t have any armor for him. Equally predictably, they are rude about it.

As we are getting ready to go – some completely random hard-ass Elf comes over to tell us if we show back up at the gate with enemies in tow, we’ll get blown up. So that’s reassuring.

Lenata pilots as the gate is opened by elven mages on the warbird next to us. There’s turbulence as we go through the gates – enough that Melchior and I both fall and get whipped out at the end of our ropes like the tale of a kite. We get pulled back in by the other crew members who are chuckling. I have to admit – it probably looked pretty funny. We’re in an asteroid field and weird blue lines connect some of the larger asteroids. Kenari stays in the lookout – we avoid another ship due to her early warning. The first four days are quiet as we head towards Castrovel- mostly – Lenata was required to punch it hard at one point when we were surrounded by a school of flying sharks. I prefer them in the water personally.

We had into the green planet – Castrovel- which is dominated by elves, lashunta and formorians. Our map directs us to an uninahabited part of the planet – Souryian according to the map we were given. According to the EIN the planet is thick with portals and the ecosystem is mostly subtropical. Using the map, we find a spot to land the ship in teh mouth of a river and then Lenata pilots the ship up the river towards the plants we need. The river bubbles and rises and we find ourselves surrounded by four giant crocodilians – 2 on each side of the ship. Fynn shoots one – from the other side of the ship – a croc snaps up Finn. Kenari blinks out of sight and a rather surprised Fynn appears in her spot. Ef Utan falls off the ship – Melchior jumps on the ballista to start shooting. I leap up and land on one of the crocs head – attempting to stab him with my sai, but that doesn’t go well as I end up stabbing myself instead. Lenata swings the ship into the croc I am standing on and I end up falling and getting swallowed. I reach out to slow my fall and as I do, Kenari grabs me. I abundant step out of the croc’s throat and back onto the deck of the ship. Fynn tries to shoot at one, but ends up dropping his gun. A croc snaps at Melchior, but ends up getting the mast stuck in it’s maw. Ef Utan is now clinging to the snout of a croc who is angrily shaking his head trying to flip the bodyguard into the air. Ef Utan eventually gets shaken off and sinks quickly into the river. Melchior pulls out the Gun With No Name and starts shooting at the crocs. The Captain armors up and uses her psionic ability that almost kills a croc. Kenari manages to dimension door out of the croc she’s in, but she can’t see where she’s going very well, so she drops on top of the Captain. Is someone missing? As I’m thinking this – one of the crocs lights up from the inside as Melchior shoots it three times and it collapses to it’s death. I jump over to another one and hit it four times. Fynn grabs his gun and hides behind some barrels. The Captain shoots an energy ray at one and almost at the same moment is swallowed. Today sucks. Kenari jumps over to the croc I’m fighting and starts slashing with her claws. Ef Utan is stabbing his way out of the croc – a hole opens and as it does – the Captain is suddenly launched out. Melchior kills a croc with his gun (it really is a nice gun) and at last all of these rotten creatures are dead. Everyone is disgusting and covered in croc bile. My hair is trashed. I’m going to burn this gi.

I notice a giant sundew on the side of the bank. This planet is terrible. Maybe I’m a city person. The Captain gets strangely obsessive about the heads of the crocs – she wants one apparently and seems a little put out that no one wants to help her cut one off. She decides to go for some teeth and the rest of the crew joins in too. The Captain asks Lenata if we know where we’re going and Lenata reminds her about the map. Kenari offers to make me a bow – I really do need a ranged weapon. This getting swallowed thing is ridiculous. From the river we see large feather-y, scale-y, large toothed creatures staring hungrily at us. We get to the spot on the map and are able to pull all the plants the Admiral asked for without any trouble. As the last plants are being loaded, we are surrounded by a group of those lizard creatures – we all get on board and Lenata takes off – straight up and towards Akiton. I will not be missing this planet.

We give Golarion a wide berth and which tacks on an extra week. Kenari just barely makes out an ultradark warbird in the distance but it doesn’t pursue us. The fourth planet looms in the distance and we decide to drop in low and stay in orbit since we know where to go to find the contemplatives.