Cosmo looks up at Os, then nods slowly. "Sure man," he replies while folding up his Gatorade pack and placing it back into his mini-fridge. He then goes about doing his pre-flight setup which basically consists of strapping his feet to the board and jacking in to a safety cord. But for him, that can take a while.

When Os asks about the star constellations, the dwarf doesn't miss a beat as he continues. "Yeah, I was totally planning on that once night falls. I snagged a hoard of star charts and stuff from those Gates folks so I could try and, yanno, figure out where we were relative to home. Then from that, maybe try to figure out a few constellations to cross-reference with it and see if I could find a pattern between that, the symbols, or own constellations, and the address here. Assumin' we need to bother with all that. Who knows, we might get lucky and, uh, find that Rosetta Stone thingie I keep talkin' 'bout. The guys back home seem t'think, or at least hope, we're gonna find a bunch of addresses here."

By the time he gets all of that out, Cosmo is already fully rigged up and hovering about ten feet off the ground. "All right, man, I'm outta here. I'll prolly lose radio contact after a few minutes if I get out of range or the terrain starts fudgin' with me. So, uh, yeah. Don't worry about it unless I don't get back in touch in half an hour or sumfin'. See you guys soon."

With that, he hunkers down on his board as it starts to rise even higher, then takes off with a sudden burst of speed...

After Cosmo has taken off on his 'board, there's a strange staticy burst of white noise on the radio, completely jamming the frequency. It fades as quickly as it came, only to be replaced with the following.

"If you've just tuned in, this is the Mad Hatter and you're listening to the sultry sounds of WCSMO, the Voice of Cosmo." In the background, the familiar melodies of classic romantic oldies accompany a smooth and silky voice that's a macabre combination of Wolfman Jack, Kasey Kasum, and Groucho Marx. "We're coming at you live and direct from the desolate wastelands of a sandcrab reservation located a million lightyears from Earth, and wouldn't you know it? We've already managed to snag a dedication request..."

There's a beat as he alters his radio voice a bit. Even though the voice is clearly the same as Cosmo's, there's something not quite right about it. It's almost like he's pretending to be someone pretending to be him.

"Hey dude, like, yanno, wassup and stuff? Muh name's Cosmo, and I'm a long time listener, first time caller. I was just chillin' to your show while taking a break from eating all my stupid burritos and staring blankly at God only knows what. Yeah, and yanno, I wanted to request a song for our groovilicious team leader, James, a real philanthropist who never thinks of himself, only the morale of his menz. Anyway, I was wonderin' if you could play something for him to show him how much we care. That'd be so totally tubular or some other equally lame and outdated colloquialism I'm always using, man. Shyeah. Thanks!"

The Mad Hatter's electronic voice returns to its previous silkiness. "How touching. I have just the song." Another beat. "James, this dedication is for you..."

With that, the voice fades into the inky blackness from wence it came, only to be replaced by the opening rift of one of Darwin's Bastards biggest hits from the early 50's; a cover of I Hate Everything About You. As soon as the song begins, the active jamming comes to an end but the song continues to play nonetheless.

Ghost Dragon says over the radio, "Yes, Torque, you are correct. Such a thing is secondary though."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ghost Dragon drops his spell and summons a small watcher. When it appears, he tells it, "There is a pyramid in that direction," indicating the direction of the pyramid.

"Go and look for anything alive or magical, and then come back to me. Tell me what you find."

As Cosmo's voice fades from the radio Chase just shakes his head and chuckles, "..." And then chuckles again.

@ Ghost Dragon,

The watcher appears as a small lizard. With a flick of it's tongue it turns and races off across the desert at incredible speeds.

@ Cosmo,

It doesn't take long for Cosmo to realize the incredible ocean of fire that the team has landed in the middle of. There is nothing as far as his sensors can see but more dunes, and dunes behind those dunes. Scattered palm trees seem to dot the landscape occasional, but beyond that it is one big desert.

Before heading back to basecamp, Cosmo skyrockets as high as he safely can to get as large an overview of the terrain as possible.

He takes his board up as high as it will go, and still fails to see anything but more sand. Clearly any civilization in the area has long since vanished.

Satisifed that there's nothing of interest to see, Cosmo's body leans to the side slight as his mind kills the power to the board and enjoys the rush of the freefall as he plummets from the heavens. At the last moment, he regains control and kicks the engines back on at full throttle in time to do a quick flyby of the pyramid before rushing back to the basecamp.

The board powers down next to his make-shift shanty. The dwarf's eyes flutter a bit as he fully jumps back into his body, and dismounts as lazily as he usually moves in the flesh.

"Dude, there's like nothing out there, man. Nadda trace of nuffin'. If we're gonna find something useful, it's gonna be at that ziggaraut o'er there."

"Got it," Chase says to the hippie. Well there's a shocker.

He turns the mic on, "James. Chase. Cosmo just did a recon of the immediate area. He reports that the only structure is the pyramid. Please advise."

While chilling next to his hut, Cosmo decides to take another gander at the chips he retrieved for the drone. After a few minutes, he seems to have yet another epiphany.

"Uhm..." he begins, unsure of what to really say "...dudes. Uhh, if these time stamps are right, uh, like, well... these drones never saw nightfall for their entire stay here, which was almost twenty-four hours on the dot."

As Cosmo's anouncement comes over the radio, Ghost Dragons watcher returns to the recon group. "I cannot enter the temple master, a ward prevents it."

James's transducer supplies the musical components of the Radio song, then continues on with an excellent Captain Kirk impression when the Mad Hatter stops broadcasting.

"This is the voyage of the Starship Werescrewederprise, and our neverending mission to explore new worlds, seek out new civilizations, and populate the universe with alien/human hybrids..."

The radio is dead for a moment.

"This is James to base camp. I'm coming back your way. Anyone have any ideas as to what we can do other than charge head first into an ancient pyramid on a deserted alien planet?"

"My vote's to, like, charge head first into an ancient pyramid on a deserted alien planet. But, yanno, without the charging or the head first parts. More like just approach it cautiously and see what we can find.

"If we just wanna sit around on our butts and hope the key falls in our lap, we're prolly not gonna get far. 'Specially if night doesn't fall any time soon, man, 'cause if it don't, uh, then I won't be able to even try to triangulate our position."

Torque: "Well, I'm not certain that just because the days are more than 24 hours that there's never a night. I seem to recall hearing that on Saturn the nights are 30 years long or something like that. Then again it seems clear that the pyramid is our only choice for accomplishing anything. As the team medic, it's my suggestion that we all regroup and rest in the tents before going into it though. And everybody remember to drink plenty of water."

After James does the Kirk impression:

Chase turns off the mic and smiles at Os, Cosmo, and Torque. "Heh, Maybe the old man has a sense of humor after all, neh?"

He turns the mic back on after Torque's statement, "James. Chase. Did you get Torque's advisement?"

Cosmo just stares with an oblivious look, having no idea what Chase is talking about but unwilling to admit to it at the moment. He doesn't do much more beyond that than yawn and disappear into his hut.

"That is a definite 10-4 Chase. I'm headed in. Anyone else bring one of the security helmets? I'd like to start using the BattleTac system if possible once we enter that thing, in case we need to split up."

Ghost Dragon listens to the radio. After the talking stops, he speaks on the radio, "We are already more than halfway to the pyramid. Waiting for nightfall would be a waste of time and water if we do not know how long it will take. Furthermore, we do not have a supply of water at hand. We should find one. We cannot rely on the gate for all of our needs.

"Cosmo, did you see any water when you scouted? Also, can you try to figure out the length of the day/night cycle on this planet? Another thing, I was thinking that if we could somehow establish a correlation between the runes on this side and the ones on Earth, it would be easier to dial home. If we go with the assumption that they have the same meaning, all we would have to do is to translate them.

"If it is going to be a long time until nightfall, I think we should continue to the pyramid. I want to get a look at that ward. Perhaps I can break through."

Ghost Dragon regards the watcher spirit admirably. He bends down and says, "Was there anything you could see at all? Were you able to tell what type of ward it was that halted your progress? Were there any gaps?"

"Ghost Dragon makes a good point. We will hold position until you arrive. Any chance someone could bring at least one of the large water bags?"

"James. Chase. Rodger that." He turns off the mic.

"You heard him, people. Torque, whats your best estimate on water consumption? Load whatever you think we need on Cosmo's board."

He turns to Cosmo, "That cool with you? Either way, Cos, I'd like you to take up an outrider posis-" Chase sees the blank stare in the dwar's eyes, "Uhh, I mean...like, I want you hop on your board, grab some sky, and give us a shout out if ya see anything. So ka?"

"Any other suggestions, people?"

Chase turns the mic on: "James. Chase. We perparing to break camp. I'll have to check on the BattleTac, Sir."

"Shhhyeah, no problem, dude. Dunno if I can carry everything in one trip, though."

With that, the dwarf goes about packing all his stuff up again, mumbling something to himself about not being cut out for menial labor. It's not until he's half-way done that Chase politely taps him on the shoulder to correct his erroneous assumption.

"D'oh."

Ran grins at James' Kirk impression, and silently crouches down into a resting position as they wait for the rest of the team.

Chase smiles and shakes his head good naturedly as the little hippie scurries around.

@ Ghost Dragon,

"It is an astral barrier and very strong. I say no way through it. The temple seems to have only the one entrance though, the main door that is inset a little from the rest of the temple. It is covered in a language I could not read.

@ Everyone,

It doesn't take long for the team to pack up what the need and head out. Cosmo fly's up and ahead of everyone. From his vantage point he see's more of the same. After twenty minutes of walking the whole group meets up about one and a half klicks from the temple.

A quick check of the sky reveals the sun has shifted slightly, and the shadows are now in front of you.

While waiting for the others to arrive, Cosmo casually compares the sun's position from where it was when they arrived to where it is now, compares it to the time for both, and tries to estimate how much longer until evening falls.

Having finally met up with the rest of the group Torque explains his considerations on water so far. He then transmits the data on his radio to the others.
Torque: "An average human needs 5 litres of water a day. You might not think we drink that much, but we ingest most of that in our food and only drink a relatively small percentage. Unfortunately Ration Bars don't exactly have a high percentage of water in them.
We each brought 2 canteens with a litre each. We also each carried a load-bearing backpack with 4 additional litres. That leaves us in the position of having enough water for a little over a day. We can stretch this considerably, it's not good for the body but running out will be worse. We could survive, with tight rationing and everybody staying in the tents and out of the sun all the time, perhaps 4 days."

Ran wipes her brow and stands, looking out across the sand towards the temple.

"Well, then maybe we should all shut up and get to work," she says mildly.
She looks at James for the go ahead.

Ghost Dragon says, "I brought 12 liters. If we start to run out, I think that those who are scouting and moving around in the sun should be given priority. I appreciate any backup you all could give me as I examine the ward.

If you would all prefer, I can stand guard outside of the temple, and those of you who are not awakened and do not possess magical items can enter. I will be unable to enter unless I can punch a hole through the ward blocking the temple."

"I brought 16 liters, but that is neither here nor there. Ghost Dragon, what do you need to scout the ward, and is there any way we can help you if we go inside without you to determine whether it is safe to bring the ward down?"

Ran crouches back down onto her heels, looking as relaxed as she ever does, and takes advantage of the shade cast by the people behind her. Evidently, she's going to be waiting here awhile.

For a langorous moment, she allows herself a bit of envy at Cosmo and the cooling benefits of speed and higher altitude. Then, she clears her mind and slips into a semi-meditative state, still alert, but resting in the best way she knows how.

Ghost Dragon says on his radio, "I have already sent a spirit to check the ward. To learn more, I must get closer. If I try to force my way through the ward, whomever put it up will know right away. If you want my support after you enter, the ward will have to be beaten into submission. Attacking it will draw the attention of someone."

What about that crystal? Could it be related to the ward?

Looking at his watcher, Ghost Dragon says, "I need you to look at the temple again. Look at the crystal on top and see if you can tell its function and how it may be related to the ward you told me about."

Torque: "Alright then. Hmm, Ghost Dragon are you sure there's no way inside? I've heard that Watcher Spirits can be kinda dumb and miss things. Well, either way, it seems to me it'd be better not to alert anything that might be inside. And safety in numbers and all, maybe we should send in several people at once. Who's got halfway decent skills and stealth and sneaking-type activities?"

Chase looks at Ghost Dragon, "Take your shot. I got your six."

The little lizard spirit hops in the air in response and fly's across the desert to the ward.

Ghost Dragon says, "Yes, I know, Torque. Watchers are more intelligent about magical things though. I hope to gain as much information as I can before I move closer. If the crystal has anything to do with the ward, then taking it down would probably be better.

"There is no telling how long it will take for anyone who is linked to the ward to return. If the crystal is linked, perhaps as an anchoring focus, then the.. being who set the ward, perhaps as a spell, would only need to turn it off and then on again to reset the ward. If this is what the crystal is for, then destroying it would, of course, make that course of action impossible.

"There may be another way into the temple. At the top of it, the supports for the crystal may have gaps that are not covered by the ward, for example. The watcher might have missed that. We shall have to see once we reach the temple, and as I said before, any of you who are not actively using magic and are not carrying magical gear should be able to enter. I will not."

Ghost Dragon gazes toward the temple, waiting for his watcher to return again.

"I'll volunteer for sneaking in, if that's the plan."

"Echo that," Chase says with a smile to Os.

Ghost Dragon says, "Once the watcher reports back, we will go. It's life should be running out soon."

The watcher returns within a few minutes. Those minutes however feel like an hour in the sweltering heat. Sweat beeds then evaporates long before it does any good.

"THe crystal anchors the ward, and it is very powerful."

@ Cosmo

After starring at the sun for a few mnutes and doing the massively complex calculations in your head, you figure the sun has about another 12 hours before it will set.

While whirling around overhead and enjoying the warm breeze, Cosmo's mellow voice echoes through the comm channels. "Uhm, like, unless something creepy happens, I'm guessin' the sun'll set in about a dozen hours or sumfin'. It just doesn't seem kosher, though... those spiders were here for a solid twenty-four hours and they never saw night. Hmm... But, yeah, whatever man... if you guys are goin' in, count me in, too. I'm so not gonna sit out here while you guys have all the fun inside."

While waiting for the others, he begins doing some additional calculations while cross-referencing with the drones' timestamps while trying to compare the time of the spiders' arrival with his own.

Torque: "I've got a bit of sneaking experience, although never inside temples before. Although in this heat, unless we set up the cooling shelters outside pretty much everybody is going to need to be indoors soon, if just to conserve water."

Ghost Dragon says, "It is only a few kilometers back to the shelters at the gate or onward to the temple. We should try not to move during the heat of the day in this desert. It will cause extra exertion. Perhaps, it would be wise to make camp and assault the temple when the sun begins to set. The crystal controls the ward that blocks entry into the temple. Without scouting myself, I do not know if the ward is physical as well as astral. We may need to destroy the crystal in order to gain entry. Doing that will be easier when it is not so hot. Does everyone agree?"

He looks around at everyone for a reaction.

Cosmo nearly falls over his own voice as he scrambles to get on the commlink. "Whoa... dude, that... uh... that.. that's not a good idea, man. There's no tellin' what that crystal does. For all we know, it could be the fuel cell for this hunk o' stone, and might even be tied into the gate thingamajig. Dusting it without knowing for sure is... yeah man, it's just not a... a, uh... a good idea and stuff.

"'sides," he continues after a moment's thought, "I don't ever remember seein' nuffin' like one of those on any building with one of those ward things before. So there's gotta be more to it and stuff... right, man?"

James turns to Ghost Dragon. "I suggest we find out now whether the rest of us can enter the temple. Maybe set up base camp in the ziggurat's shadow."

James turns to Cosmo. "Any chance we can use that flying surfboard to grab some gear if we need it?"

"Sure, man."

Torque: "Shadows are always good. I haven't been in heat like this in a long time."
The medic mops his brow and wrings some sweat out of his sleeves.
Torque: "I agree with Cosmo, destroying things we don't know about is asking for trouble. Although I frankly can't imagine why a hunk of stone would need a fuel cell, or how a crystal could act as one."

"Or, like, how a big metal hoop could throw a bunch of folks across the galaxy?"

"I don't like setting up camp next that. If the inhabitants are unfriendlies..." Chase let the thought hang in the hot air.

"they will not be unfriendlies for long, they will be renamed casualties." James finishes where Chase leaves off.

**rolls eyes**Riiight, of course they will

"We wern't charged with a clearing operation. All I'm saying is if they are unfriendly I don't wanna bed down-literaly-in thier backyard. So ka? They probably don't know we're here yet. Hell, we don't even know they're here yet. So we should at least try to be covert. Get me...sir?