The Last-Chancers Episode I: Reassigned to Space Antarctica IC

[MandibleBones]

http://i.imgur.com/WziDBak.jpg

On the Rimma trade route, just outside of Herglic space and between the Core Worlds and bacta-rich Thyferra, is a small sector called Tapani. Mostly useful to the Empire due to the hyperspace bypass running through it on the bacta run, the sector pledged loyalty to Palpatine early and has been allowed to keep mostly independent. Of course, the Imperial shipyards at Fondor and Tallaan probably helped.

That's where the ships you came on drop you off: the Tallaan system, at an orbital shipyard over the primary planet of Tallaan. On your approach, you notice four artificial structures large enough to catch your attention.

The first is the shipyard itself, a sprawling construct crafting and repairing Imperial and private vessels of all sizes. It must employ millions of sentient beings. The second is an aging but potent Imperial-class Star Destroyer, the Cheis, which orbits Tallaan itself. The third is a brand-new Imperial-class Star Destroyer Mark II, the Adamant, which is facing directly at your entry vector, hovering in space like a sentry.

The last is something none of you have seen before: an Imperial Torpedo Sphere. Even more rare, it's damaged: a whole quarter of the sphere appears to be gone, and the girders at the edges are blackened and twisted. By combat or sabotage, this mighty vessel of war was heavily damaged.

http://i.imgur.com/nCUF92J.jpg

When you report to the commander's support staff at the shipyards, you're directed to a small conference room. Most Imperial briefing rooms are massive things, meant to hold hundreds, if not thousands. This is intimate, like something that might be used to brief senior officers. It's a new experience for most of you, especially the lower ranks.

You barely have time to look over the other occupants of the room — eight commissioned officers, two warrant officers and one civilian, including yourself — before a man in a Naval officer's uniform opens a door separate from the one you came in and strides briskly into the room. His rank plaque and code cylinders indicate that he is a commodore, somewhere between a captain and an admiral.

“Be seated,” he says quickly, before anyone can fully stand. “I'm Ros Serafi, commander of these shipyards. I'm sure you all have some suspicions as to what earned you this assignment, but it's worse than you expect.” Serafi grimaces. He's in the prime of early middle age, dark red hair cut in military style, and rather handsome if you go for that sort of thing. He walks with a confident stride, just shy of a swagger, but somehow, it seems as though he carries a great weight on his back. His eyes are brown and tired.

At a click of a remote, a hologram of the damaged torpedo sphere appears at the table between you all.

“Until three months ago, this sector was entirely independent,” Serafi says. “Nobles from here are peppered throughout the Imperial Navy and the bureaucracy, and loyalty to the Emperor was never in question. That changed.” He clicks again, and the torpedo sphere reforms to its original, undamaged state.

“A group of terrorists, from the so-called Justice Action Network in this sector, infiltrated the sphere and attempted to destroy it. Thanks to the tireless work of our intelligence operatives, we managed to mitigate the damage and evacuate the crew, but nevertheless it was a blow to the Navy. One which my predecessor's career did not survive.” In the hologram, a portion of the torpedo sphere vents to space, shortly becoming the same damaged sphere you saw upon entering the system.”

“Two months ago, I was assigned here with the Adamant, in order to protect the shipyards here and at Fondor, and to root out the rebel threat from the JAN.” He pronounces it 'jay-eh-en.' “Instead, the sector Moff commandeered most of our force for himself to protect the capital, Procopia. Not only was my mission to find and destroy the JAN compromised, it would be harder to protect bacta convoys as well. I immediately asked for reinforcements and a countermand to the Moff's orders. Imperial Center assured me I would have them.”

He scowls. “Politics disgust me. The nobles of this sector don't want a takeover. The Navy wanted to send me a squadron of Star Destroyers and support ships, and instead, I was issued a customs corvette. I asked for promising officers, and they sent me people too politically embarrassing to be of any use to me.” At that, there is a slight smile.

“This is, of course, where they went wrong — because lack of political savvy does not translate into lack of military competence. And I run a shipyard, so you won't be issued a freighter, but a small capital ship.”

The image of what some recognize as an Imperial Patrol Vessel, Mark H, replaces the torpedo sphere.

http://i.imgur.com/knHugkO.jpg

“This is the Aegis, a serviceable small capital ship suitable for a crew your size. Sadly, it has just been retired from Imperial service. Captain Sunstrider, do you have a credit chit on you, by chance?”

When Xander flicks him the tiny coin, Serafi smiles.

“You have just purchased a surplus Imperial vessel for the high price of a single credit. What I plan to do to achieve my goal of security in this sector is... unconventional. But the people responsible for your assignments want you to fail. I want you to succeed, and the Empire needs you to succeed. So unconventional tactics are called for.”

He hands Xander a datapad.

“Your assignment is this: You are, all ten of you military folks, assigned as Imperial observers on the privateer vessel Aegis, owned by one Xander Sunstrider. Ms. Vita, you are likewise assigned as a civilian observer. Traditionally speaking, an Imperial privateer vessel has but one observer, and a private crew. Obviously, that is just not possible here, as I do not have a private crew. I have you all.”

He points at the datapad. “These are your Letters of Marque and Reprisal. You are authorized to prey on smugglers, arms dealers, pirates, rebels and terrorists. You are required to uphold Imperial law, but you may play fast and loose with Naval regulations. You own the vessel you're on, and can modify it as you see fit. In short, I want you to think like pirates, because to catch the JAN terrorists and their allies, you're going to need all the help you can get.”

Serafi sighs.

“There are several drawbacks to this arrangement. The first is that you'll have to pay for your own repairs. If you come here to Tallaan, I'll treat you like a military vessel and also charge you wholesale, but if you try to repair at Fondor or Procopia, I can't speak for the commanders there. The second is that, though your vessel has a hanger suitable for two TIE fighters, I have no surplus TIEs to include in the detail. You'll have to acquire your own fighters. But it's the best I can do right now.”

“With that, I'll leave you to get to know one another a little better. Captain Sunstrider, I'd like to talk to you privately in my wardroom; it will only take a minute. The rest of you are free to use this room to meet-and-greet — there's caff in the corner there — or head to your ship. Dismissed.”

With that, he strides out by the same door he came in, holding it open for Xander behind him.

[Toxic Mind]

"Go, Captain. I'll get them in line and on the ship." Angel is the first to speak and the first to stand and salute when their briefing finishes. He turns to address the rest of the crew.

"My name is Angel Tavish. I don't care why you're here, who you pissed off, or how much you deserve to be somewhere else. As far as I'm concerned, you all start fresh today. You will address me as Commander, or Commander Tavish, and nothing less. If you are given an order that you believe to be in error, you are free to voice your dissent in a respectful manner and it will be taken into consideration. If that order is repeated, you are expected to obey it. You will bring any grievances you have to me first, and if my resolution is not satisfactory, to the Captain. I expect you to treat each other with respect. If you cannot handle this, I will gladly reassign you to cleaning the engine room. I'm sure the maintenance droids would enjoy the company." All of this speech was accomplish with a stern no-nonsense look on his face, and a ramrod straight posture.

"Questions?" He says once finished, though his tone softens somewhat, his lecture now hopefully finished.

[Capt. Infinity]

"I leave them in your capable hands, Officer Tavish" Xander says with a quick smile as he follows Serafi out the door. While he hasn't heard much of the ageing XO, what he has heard of him seems to leave a rather nice impression, perhaps not to the average Imperial Navy Captain, but certainly to someone like Xander, who's certainly done his own fair share of dissent towards the Empire and their rather unforgiving attitudes to... Well everything, really.

He follows Commodore Serafi out the door and, as it closes, turns to speak to the ageing man of authority as they make their way to their destination.
"Making the best of a bad situation, huh Ros? I admire your ingenuity, you've certainly got the best values in mind" Xander says, flashing a large and genuine smile to Commodore Serafi "So, what is it you wanted to talk to me about?"

[NitariWindrider]

Trance was in a bad position, and she knew it. She knew back when she received the order that brought her to this shipyard exactly what was happening and why. As such, when Commodore Ros Serafi commented that no matter what their suspicions it was worse than they expected she internally commented that she very much doubted that. If her suspicions were correct, she'd be lucky to see the beating heart of anything better than a half century old garbage hauler ever again. While preferable to the...abrupt...end that some careers met in the Imperial Navy, part of her wishes that she'd been sent to a court martial instead of this. To make things even worse, two beautiful Star Destroyers were parked so tantalizingly close to where she now sat that she couldn't help but suspect that their presence was insult heaped upon injury, a reminder of what her actions had cost her.

The briefing detailed a sabotage that led the mysterious sphere to the state she saw it in when she arrived. Furthermore, the Commodore told them all that they were to be put on a customs corvette and referred to them as "people too politically embarrassing to be of any use." While probably accurate, she found the moniker disheartening. Had she not simply done what anyone would have in her situation? Would she even have managed the rank she had without something extra going for her? She would have dwelt upon this were it not for the smile that touched the officer's face after his statement. Apparently he was someone who chose to make the best of a poor situation. He showed them a small capital ship that was honestly much preferable to the posting she'd envisioned, and collected a single credit in exchange for it. He was making them privateers of a sort, authorizing them to go after the varied scalawags of this corner of space in an effort to flush out and deal with the JAN. Ambitious, but possible. She found herself relishing the challenge. The feeling she understood more was her anxiety to get at the engines of the Aegis and get acquainted, as it were. As the ship now belonged to their captain, a younger fellow named Xander Sunstrider, they could make any modifications they saw fit. Very interesting.

More interesting still was the man who stood after the briefing had ended and the captain had left, an older man by the name of Commander Angel Tavish. She took a degree of pride in her ability to discern who could be persuaded to look favorably her way, she knew at a glance that even trying with this person would need to be done carefully if at all. Her first clue was that he preferred Commander or Commander Tavish and nothing else.

Great, she thought to herself, A stick in the mud. Hopefully the captain is more reasonable...

On the up side, he would allow them to disagree with an order provided they did so with respect. A better deal than most stodgy Imperial officers would offer. He also asked to be the first point of contact for grievances and indirectly alluded to a lack of desire for matters to be put to the captain. That would complicate any relationship she might seek to foster with the owner of their new ship. Part of her hoped he wasn't joking about assigning people to clean the engine room. Droids were only so good at conversation and besides, engine rooms did get dirty so very often. He then asked for questions, his tone softening somewhat. She was tempted to ask what the very picture of Imperial discipline could possibly have done that made him politically embarrassing, but she reconsidered quickly. Hers was not a story she cared to have told, and the best way to avoid that would be to treat everyone else's story in like wise.

To review, she commented to herself as she waited to see if anyone else would speak before she decided to, We've been sent to a corner of space that the Navy decided requires essentially no military presence to chase pirates and scoundrels to keep us out of the way and maybe remove us permanently without dirtying anyone's hands. Thus far, we have a captain who looks conspicuously younger than our stodgy Commander, myself, and these others. Everyone's got a reason to be here, and no one wants to talk about it. Now the only question is will I regret not having just walked out an airlock?

She would let the silence stretch out a little to see if anyone had something reasonable to ask, and if no one came up with something she was intending to stand and salute.

"Commander Tavish?" she would begin, "Senior Lieutenant Trance Demona. In your honest opinion, sir, what are the chances that a bunch of misfits the Navy wants out of the way can fulfill orders like these?"

Hardly a good start to their relationship, but it was highly likely that everyone was thinking the same thing anyway. Besides, it didn't appear that scoring points with the Commander was at all likely anyway.

[shizukanashi]

Dixon's grin was ear to ear. Until four minutes ago he thought his career was over, back-water duty for a back-water washout. Never before had Dixon encountered a man like Ros Serafi. This was a man who spoke to Dixon's heart. A man who got the job done, damn the regulation. Serafi was a true believer he saw the enemy as it was, unlike most of the Officers in the Navy who cared only for the high class and the decadence that came with rank. The concept was simply astonishing. Privateers operating -well on the edge of the Empires regulations, it was a child's dream and for a brief moment Dixon was 10 again dreaming of the stars.

Then the old man spoke and ripped him from his day-dream. Dixon listened intently -a fresh start- He liked that. Like Serafi this was a man that would get things done. He was not concerned about a tattered Service record, and the Emperor knows Dixons was tattered. If not for the threat of punishment that always seemed to come with the introduction of a new Commanding Officer in Dixons career, this Tavish guys was alright. A bit of a stickler but someone He could work with.

He didn't have any questions and if he did, he had learned to shut up in when in a room full of persons who outrank him. He did his best to wipe the grin and then gave a solid salute, fingers perfectly perpendicular, elbow at 90 degrees, feet clacking together, the whole SAG cadet enthusiasm. Sticklers ate that drek up. "Sir, Yes, Sir...er Commander"

[BananaPhone]

Out of all the officers in the wake of Xanders departure and Angels introductory speech, only one seemed to not utter a word. She was a quiet individual, even if she did stand out like a sore bantha - but as the conversation started to rise and questions and answers were thrown back and forth, the near-human/human hybrid seemed to melt into the background. Indeed, within the sterile, steel grey environment of an Imperial base, her grey-toned skin and black uniform almost afforded her a degree of camouflage. She stayed there...at least for now. Her purple irises moved back and forth across the room to latch onto each person that felt the need to speak, while her eerily impassive expression betrayed not a thread of whatever thought processes might be working away between her pointy ears.

[Mutazoia]

Once the Commodore and his new C.O. departed, Shane stood and made his way to the corner and poured himself a cup of caff, pretending to let it cool while he reviewed the situation. Any way he looked at it, in his mind at least, this whole thing smelled like week old bantha poodoo and he wondered how long it would take the rest of his new ship-mates to figure it out: The Commodore, by selling the Agegis to the C.O. and issuing letters of mark, had quite neatly hung them out to dry.

As an official ship of the Imperial Navy, with an Imperial crew, they wouldn't need letters of mark to hunt pirates, smugglers and terrorists....that was all S.O.P. They would be able to stop and board anyone (other than other Imperial vessels) with out consequence...and at this end of the galaxy, nobody was 100% squeaky clean so they were sure to find some offence. If they got in trouble, they could call for back up, and they would always have access to repairs and equipment.

But as a privateer vessel....They would be alone with out support. The Commodore could (and most likely would) take credit for anything they accomplished, and cut all ties to the Aegis's crew if anything went wrong. After all how could an Imperial Naval officer expect to be involved more than superficially with privateers.

If we succeed, Shane thought to himself he gets the credit for rooting out the J.A.N. If we fail, he gets the credit for getting rid of us with out any ties to our various detractors.

He offered a mental sigh as he sipped the caff. Well...at least there's a couple of cute girls to look at before we get blasted into space dust.

[Toxic Mind]

"Commander Tavish?" she would begin, "Senior Lieutenant Trance Demona. In your honest opinion, sir, what are the chances that a bunch of misfits the Navy wants out of the way can fulfill orders like these?"

Angel looks to the first one to ask a question. Not the one he expected. The one over in the corner pouring himself week old caff that he thought no one noticed, now that one Angel had expected to stand up, yell, maybe angrily storm off. Still, it was refreshing to find a group that was willing to speak their mind. For all his bluster, Angel preferred his officers to be more vocal about their misgivings. At least then everyone was informed on where they stood.

"Each of you has potential, and together we can complete our orders. Is this an ideal scenario? Of course not, but that does not mean we will not make the best of it. I don't believe that any man or woman in this room believes that they deserved this fate. So we excel, even when they tell us we should not. We triumph when the odds are against us because we are better than this. Will it be easy? No. Will we succeed. I have no doubts."

[MandibleBones]

Ignoring the use of his first name, Serafi sits down heavily at his desk.

"I have some additional briefing items for you," he says. "The first is this: You are probably wondering why I made you all privateers, since you could hunt down pirates just fine as a Navy ship. For that, I have two reasons. The first is that there is a shadowport somewhere in this sector. I don't know where it is. Arms shipments headed to rebel and JAN forces move through there daily, and as such it must be shut down. An Imperial Navy vessel could never find this shadowport — but a pirate vessel might." He pours a shot of Corellian brandy for himself, and another for Xander.

"The second reason is this: the captain of the Fist of the Empire, the Star Destroyer orbiting Procopia, has ambitions of becoming an admiral. Were you an Imperial vessel, I have no doubt he'd commandeer you, with the backing of the sector Moff, to guard the capital. As privateers you answer directly to me, and that won't be possible. But my advice to you is stay away from the capital anyway. Captain Alastare is... difficult."

He downs his drink.

"Lastly. What I am about to show you is not common knowledge," he says. "But I believe you need to know it. We did not get our intelligence on the torpedo sphere from the ISB or Ubiqtorate. Their legendary rivalry is actually worse here, and they've been pretty useless. No, we received our intelligence from a woman — code name Abraxas — who claims to be part of the Rebel Alliance."

A small holo of a female figure, clothed in black, appears on the desk.

"While your abhorrent vessel represents a legitimate military target, I cannot in good conscience allow it to be destroyed while docked at the shipyards," she says. "The deaths of millions of civilians, even to destroy a target like this, is unconscionable to me. I offer this information as a good-faith endeavor. Surely, this is not going to be the last time the JAN takes the war too far. See that you don't do the same."

Serafi sighs. "We were able to evacuate the sphere and limit the damage, though as you could see, we weren't told about all of it. No matter. If I get any more information from this Abraxas, I'll forward it to you. The official Imperial line is that all Rebels are to be treated the same, but given your mission, it seemed like you should be aware that the JAN is apparently not affiliated with the larger Rebellion."

[roses]

Amber watched the various metallic forms manifest from the plush black chair before a desk in her cabin. Rooms were always nice for diplomats aboard Consular-class cruisers, but the en suite sonic shower didn't draw her eye now. The only thing she marvelled at was the blackened egg shell of some massive warship with a make so uncanny she couldn't immediately name it. “Good riddance,” she whispered to the reflection of her sky blue eyes and fresh, layered short cut she preferred. The Empire could use less weapons.

Miss Vita, the speaker system put out in Basic, the gravelly voice belonging to none other than the pilot himself. We're approaching the shipyards now. E.T.A five minutes.

***

Neat as her olive green shirt and darker green trousers and boots ever were, Amber entered the conference room with hands to her side, standing as straight and still as a steel beam until the Commodore declared they sit. Only when the officers changed over to Commander Tavish did she resume standing. As they hadn't even extended the courtesy earlier when it was more appropriate, she gauged it fair to forgo a salute in this instance to Tavish, but not her smile. He appeared far more open to dialogue in the last five minutes than some of her superiors had shown in five months.

“Commander Tavish,” Amber began with excellent pronunciation. “I'm your civilian observer, Amber Vita. I charmed whole continents into the Empire when I worked at the Empress Teta Embassy. I know that, if we're to meet all the Tapani species and cultures that abound tactically, it may require some of the insights I've gained over time. I can have a report detailing just that on your desk before midnight. Should I set to it, sir?”


I was looking at the star wars wiki to understand the whole galaxy and this is the stuff I referenced.

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Consular-class_cruiser

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Koros_Minor

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Sonic_bath

[Toxic Mind]

"Ms. Vita. If you have insights that will help us accomplish our mission, please do not remain silent. I will review your report and see that it is distributed to the crew as needed. We know that there is Rebellion presence in this sector, and any aid you can provide to bring these criminals to justice will be invaluable."

A civie. Angel wondered what had caused her to end up on this detail. Of course, he knew why he was here, and that made sense, and the files said enough between the lines to figure out most of the other crew, but without military clearance, he wondered why Amber Vita had ended up on the far side of the galaxy accompanying a military detail. Still, he hadn't lied. She would be useful, hopefully, and if she wasn't that, then he might at least minimize the damage she could cause. It was a good sign that she didn't question his authority out of the gate. Might make things a bit easier.

[Capt. Infinity]

"Hmm, a shadowport you say? Sounds quite interesting." Xander says, trying his best to fight his growing glee behind his shotglass. He takes a careful sip of the Brandy, savouring it. Had it been his bottle, and were he alone, he would have been finishing off his second shot by now. But this wasn't his bottle, and he was in civil company, and in his 8-or-so years of service, he'd found that members of the empire elite did not often take kindly to some of the more... Eccentric social ticks he'd picked up during his years of Captaining a crew of merry sky-pirate hunters. He listened carefully to Commodore Serafi's reasonings, very much enjoying what he heard, and being especially interested in their rebel informant, now there was something you didn't see everyday. He pipes up when he hears the Commodore speak of the JAN's seeming disjunction from the rest of the rebellion. "Ah, I suspected as much. Despite what the Empire would have us believe, especially since the Death Star incident, random acts of mass terrorism and massacres of innocents aren't exactly the Rebellion's MO." He finishes off his glass and sets it down roughly onto the table, making a satisfying clink when it hits. "I'm going to have to think up a decent sales pitch for this whole privateering business. Something tells me that certain choice members of my crew think you're just trying to get rid of us further, try dissociate yourself with us as much as possible in case the Bantha Fodder hits the fan" The newly minted Captain states, thinking back to his crew, in particular that young pilot who seemed to Xander to just ooze cockiness. He had the makings of a decent force for good, if Xander could convince him to work with him rather than against him. "I for one love the idea. I especially like the name itself, Privateer, a pirate in service of good. I don't think a phrase could better describe both me, and that ragtag bunch of misfits out there in that boardroom. Trust me Ro- Commodore Sefari-" Xander corrects himself, remembering the look the Commodore gave him when he had first used the man's first name when addressing him. The Empire does so its titles, doesn't it? "-You will not be disappointed" Xander promises, flashing a large smile and extending his hand out in an attempt to give a friendly handshake, hoping that Sefari wouldn't be too stuffy and refuse to take it.

[MandibleBones]

"'Sir' is just fine," Serafi says, clearly fighting a smile. He shakes Xander's hand firmly. "I'm not quite used to 'commodore' myself. Good hunting, captain."

[Capt. Infinity]

"And good luck to you, Sir" Xander said, giving a playful smile over his shoulder as he made his way back to the conference room. The Commodore was a good man, and if the two of them ever get shore leave, he would have to invite him out for some drinks at a local bar, but for now, there was work to be done. After reading over the primer info about his new crew on his datapad, Xander readied himself as he moved towards the door back to the conference room, a pleasant skip in his stride.

Captain Xander Sunstrider returns to the room with a flourish, his red, waist-length cape billowing behind him. He looks about the room, taking in the faces of what would now officially be his new crew.

He couldn't help but smile.

Hello everybody! My name is Xander Sunstrider, and as of now, I am your new commanding officer. You may refer to me as Captain, Captain Xander, and perhaps just Xander, or even Xan if I take enough of a liking towards you. But please refrain from calling me "Sir" or "Captain Sunstrider" if you can do so, I find those titles a bit too stuffy for my taste." The Captain explains warmly to his new crew. "Now, before we go on, I'd like to address a couple of concerns you may have as to the current state of affairs. Firstly, no doubt some of you are more than a little concerned in regards to my surprising amount of youth, especially compared to that of my XO." He nods to Angel. "But I would like to set these concerns to rest right now. I may be young, but I assure you I earned this position. I was not pushed up to this rank by the influence of my heritage, nor was I the victim of a string of undeserved field promotions in times of strife. I worked long and hard to get this badge." He says, gesturing towards the three double-rowed columns on his left lapel. "And I intend to live up to it." Xander states, unable to contain a small smile of pride at his own standing, especially given his stance towards most of the Empire's less-than-savoury ideals. Imagine if I hadn't pissed them off so much. He mused to himself before returning to the task at hand.

"Secondly, I'm sure some of you here think we've been made privateers as some form of further punishment, as a means to disconnect us from the Empire almost entirely. This is simply not the case." Xander says, eyeing Shane specifically, no doubt trying his damndest to convince people like him, especially if he wants this mission to go anywhere anytime soon. "We have been given this status not so that we cannot adequately do our jobs, but because it is the only way can adequately do our jobs. This sector is full of darkness and the people who dwell in it, and the only way to beat them is to play by their rules, by being just as sneaky, underhanded, and conniving as they are. We have to take the fight to them. We have to be able walk right up to their front doors, kick them straight off their hinges, and burn the building right to the ground. We can only do this as privateers, people who must uphold the values of the Empire, without being held back by its rules and regulations. By being made privateers, we haven't been chained down." The young Captain says, his face dead serious and his eyes intense points of green. We've been set free" Xander closes his eyes and takes a deep breath before continuing.

"Right then, now that that's settled, let's get introductions out of the way. I feel as though the best way of growing together as a group is getting to know each other on a personal level. And so, with that in mind, I'm going to each of you a question I know all of you can answer: Who are you? And what did you do to piss off the powers-that-be so much as to make them ship you off to be a part of this bunch of misfits in the ass-end of the Galaxy? As a show of good faith, I'll start. I've always had a bit of a disagreement with the Empire in regards to their opinions on moral ambiguity, and because of this I took it upon myself to be the nicest and most caring gosh-darned officer they'd ever seen. This didn't exactly go over well with the higher ups, and, even though my skill got me this far in the ranks, eventually they'd had enough of me off to this place, presumably to rot away into the annals of time, but, I'll be damned if I let that happen." He says, a generous smile on his face. "Now then, who'd like to go next?"

[Mutazoia]

Shane performed the mental equivalent of rolling his eyes. "Jr. Lieutenant Shane Dorian, your helmsman. I'm here because I knowingly and willfully disobeyed the direct orders of my previous commanding officer. Several times. The fact that I am alive and not spending the rest of my days in a hole mining spice is due to the fact that my actions saved my ship and her crew. My C.O.'s connections got him a promotion and me transferred here."

"I've been flying almost before I could walk, and I know just how well grandiose tactics work in a dog fight...which is about as well as a plastic bag works as a vac-helmet. I can't promise to follow every order when we're in combat when it comes to how I pilot my ship...if my gut and my experience tells me you are wrong...sir...then I'll do what I believe is right. And we won't have time to discuss it in committee.

Something about this whole set up smells like the inside of a Tanuntaun, but if the Commodore wants us to play pirate...fine. I'll make my recommendations after I've had a chance to inspect the Aegis."

Shane moved back to his original seat, offering a slight bow to Ms. Vita as he passed.

[Toxic Mind]

Well, Angel knew that look. It was an expression he was intimately familiar with from junior officers when they were convinced that nothing he was saying was worth the time. If he were honest with himself, he shared Shane's opinion on the rather... unorthodox nature of these introductions, but Angel was nothing if not a survivalist. He knew that this Captain would be different. He'd live.

"I'm sure you've read my file, Captain. As to what gets left out, well, it isn't much, but it speaks for itself. I enlisted a year before the end of the Clone Wars. First I fought Separatists, then dissenters, then the Rebellion. And then they brought my Captain before the courts, claiming that he held sympathy for the Rebellion, that he allowed them leniency. They called him a traitor." Angel's face is hard, but there is a deep and profound sorrow in his eyes.

"They told me that if I testified, I would never Captain a ship, and that if I shut my mouth, I'd be at the helm of a Star Destroyer within a cycle. I suppose we all can see how that went. My Captain, a man who fought and lived through the Clone Wars, the Jedi Uprising and two decades of Rebel attacks was executed on the order of some backroom paper pusher who felt that a man who remembered the years when we were the Army of the Republic was a threat." Angel looks around the room. "So the first time you think to question my resolve, remember that story, and think again. I will do what is needed, no matter the cost."

[shizukanashi]

This was still to good to be true for Dixon. Surely this friendly banter and casual diplomacy was a ploy to catch him being insubordinate...again. He was too dull to catch onto the conclusions that Shane had reached, but he was reluctant to play along with this farce of fraternization. He had called the others to attention when Captain Sunstrider entered the room, as was expected of the Master-at-Arms, the position it now appeared he was here to fill, but as the others gave there introductions he decided to test the waters.

Rather than saluting as he gave his name and rank to his new commanding officer, he helped himself to the refreshment cart Shane had just left. "Dixon Zabato" The hot liquid filled a synthetic fiber insulated cup. "I suppose I am your security officer." Officer. He grinned again at himself. It was hard for him to believe it was actually a promotion that got him assigned to this crew. Or at least a transfer from COMPNOR to navy ranks anyway. It was hard to believe he was finally making the shift from enlisted man to officer, and the word still felt good. He took a big gulp of his beverage to hide his glee. "I made enemies with some brass, one Captain in particular still has it out for me. Frell I wish he could see where the stuck me. Man would probably have rupture a blood vessel just by looking at this motly crew." He plopped down heavy in a chair, causing his freshly filled cup to splash. He resisted putting his feet on the table. Talking loose and fast with a band of misfit officers was one thing, outright disrespect was another. Test the waters before you jump in he reminded himself. "I assure you, despite what my record says I am not the clown and I DO take the uniform seriously" He shot a look at Shane "I assure you, I follow orders and I won't hesitate to lock up a scallywag." His ire cooled as he returned to addressing the room. "I just like to add my own flair to them."

[Grif]

Sandor Eli'tah simply opted to remain silent for most of the briefing. It wasn't that the silver-haired man was bored, or that he hated this new assignment. It was simply his nature to not speak unless addressed directly, due to his... condition. His dark uniform and lapel pin would indicate to most everyone that he was one of the many, many TIE pilots in the Empire.

While the Captain disappeared into the Commodore's room for what he suspected to be a private briefing, Sandor stood up and stretched his legs, walking around the room as others mingled with the newly minted XO. As he observed the proceedings, he pondered about this "promotion" of his. Sandor was now officially a wing commander of a TIE squadron. Too bad the brass neglected to actually assign him any TIE fighters to go with it, which made his command a mere formality. A depressing thought. Now he was a pilot without a ship.

Then Xander reappeared and it looked like formal introductions had begun. When it appeared to be his turn, he cleared his throat. "Excuse me if I can't speak loudly," he said in a soft, raspy voice, that most in the room might have trouble hearing if they weren't paying attention. "Sandor Eli'tah. Technically a wing commander." He gestured at himself. "Unfortunately, I only have myself to command." He didn't bother elaborating what got him sent here. The others would find out in their own time.

[roses]

Amber gave a crisp salute when one of the officers called attention – the security officer, it was revealed. Her chest squared and she resumed standing straight as she had beforehand, the shortest in the line of military personnel. But far from remaining impassive as she had with Commander Tavish, her eyes widened and eyebrows raised when the Captain declared himself comfortable with familiarity. She pursed lips covered in a light shade of pink lipstick as he went on to mention tactics, and beyond.

“Captain Xander, Amber Vita, poly-lingual, peace-keeper. I served six years in the Diplomatic Corp. My last mission was a complete success, so I know they sent me here for more of the same.” Amber paused. “With every respect, sir, I have a concern regarding what you're implying. We have to take the fight to them,” she repeated his words slowly, grudgingly, as though it were a foreign phrase newly discovered in a holovid, and she now had to grapple with the cultural implications. She frowned.

“Commander Ros said we're authorized to apprehend arms dealers, pirates, terrorists, the like. All to secure the sector. However, if we take to the tactics of these criminals wholeheartedly, it means we're emulating the problem, not eliminating it. A room full of darkness can't be brightened much by adding a blacklight. If we're meant to apprehend heavy-handed thugs and arsonists, meeting them with tactics they excel at will only work to their strengths. There are other options, sir.

“The Empire is a bastion of decency. We have time-honoured strengths like disciplined restraint and diplomacy, in addition to military arms. Arms a retired vessel like the Aegis may not excel at.” Or so Amber hoped. When people were given a large enough firearm, there was a temptation for target practice, to the exclusion of all else. “So we have to take the fight to them – I agree. Being timid will never help us secure the sector. But courage includes knowing when to speak. My concern, Captain, is that we'll rarely find that courage. Diplomacy is a strong tool. Will it be weighed fairly among the options?”

I think this is the closest I'm going to come to try making the point early, and it looks like one of the few times it's going to be appropriate to voice fears?

[Mutazoia]

For a diplomat, Shane thought, this Amber girl sure doesn't know the value of discretion.

"I'm sure there are more details to our mission briefing that the Captain will share with us once we get to the Aegis, Ms. Vita." Leaning closer to Amber, he whispered "I'm not sure questioning the Commodore's plan while he sits on the other side of the door is a good idea."

[Toxic Mind]

Angel merely raises an eyebrow. It would be a good opportunity to see how this new Captain would handle himself. Sure, Angel could step in, but giving Xander a free pass just wasn't in his nature.

[roses]

Amber leaned into the voice. She quickly considered the walls of the intimately small room built for close discussion, her mind settling briefly where the Commodore had once stood to trade a credit chip for a capital ship. Not five minutes before the helmsman had shown himself a freethinker, and the Captain unorthodox. It seemed obvious the mission was meant to be approached as a contortionist. She gave Shane a confused look before growing impassive before their Captain. It's the Captain's plan, Amber thought, certain.

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander pauses for a moment, slightly dumbfounded. Less so that someone questioned him, and more so that it was the short little civilian consul women that was the one to do it. After a short moment of reprieve, the Captain breaks out into a hearty chuckle, seemingly rather amused with the situation as a whole. "Haha! Keep singing that tune Miss Vita, and I might just have to start dancing along to it!" He says, a large grin on his face. "I'll be completely honest with you, what I just said was more or less my attempt at a sales pitch for the Commodore's plan. In actuality, my own opinion differs slightly." Xander admits.

"Don't get me wrong. I still wholeheartedly believe being made privateers was the best possible course of action, but for slightly different reasons than you'd probably suspect." Xander's smile gives off an almost physical warmth as he continues. "You see, I'm what most people would call an Egalitarian. I believe that every single sentient lifeform deserves a chance to prove itself before passing judgement, and our new position services that perfectly. While yes, not being direct members of the Imperial Navy does mean we can be much more cruel, sleazy and underhanded than we normally could..." He pauses for effect, looking about at his new crew before settling back on looking straight at Amber with his piercing, iridescent green eyes. "...It also means we don't have to take anything less than immediate surrender as a direct act of aggression worthy of immediate vaporization. We can be monsters, yes, but the true freedom comes in that we can afford to be something more." He walks across the room, around his crew, before turning back to face his crew, his back to the door they all came in through. "Now I know that introduction was enjoyed by literally none of you, but hey, nobody enjoys taking their medicine now do they? And, now that we're done being horrifically awkward with each other, now we can move on to being the best god damn privateers the Galaxy has ever known. Ladies and Gentlemen..." The unconventional Captain states, slamming his fist on the keypad behind him without turning around, the door whooshing open behind him. "...Let's go be Heroes." He states, looking up one last time at his crew, his face deadly serious but with the telltale beginnings of a grin forming at the corners of his mouth. "And that's an order." And, with a flourish of his cape, his spins 180 degrees on his heels and marches out the door, hoping the others would follow suit, lest he look quite silly.

[Toxic Mind]

Blast it all. Angel knew he was going to be like that, but he hoped, oh Emperor he had hoped that it was just a feeling, like eating too much food, that would go away if you just ignored it

There is no audible sigh, but it is written in his posture as he gets up to follow the captain. This was going to be a long assignment...

[roses]

Amber watched the man pontificate and swagger about the small room. It took a moment before she realized she was smiling, though it would have taken a bio-sensor to pinpoint when it had happened between his laugh, and the declaration that they could be something more. There's far worse traits than being confident and cordial. She tootled along behind as the senior officers exited, pleased to follow Captain Xander Sunstrider.

[ducttapebandit]

Jerivan, gathers up his datapad and hurriedly follows his captain.

At least I avoided having to explain why I'm here. And what was that lineage was the captain talking about? I'll have to check that out later. If he's well connected, maybe he can pull some strings for me further down the road.

(Quick note on appearance: if this were a movie, he would be played by Aldis Hodge (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0388038/))

[shizukanashi]

Dixon found the captains speech a bit odd and uninspiring, which was disturbing considering how inspired he was by this man when at first he entered the room and asked for introductions. Was he really talking about mercy to the rebels, this JAN and 'all sentient lifeforms?' Dixon liked him much better when he was talking about kicking in doors and burning down buildings.

It was as if this woman had cast some arcana on the captain, he had heard the Jedi once had a mind trick but had never seen it in action. Perhaps it was something more mundane, just her womanly guile. Dixon had to admit she was not unattractive, and she clearly knew how to manipulate a man. Perhaps she was well intentioned, perhaps just weak, but what really troubled Dixon was the thought that she fully knew how manipulative she was.Watch that one. he thought, She is trouble.

Looking around the room he saw he was not the only one perturbed by this 'new' captain. Tavish's posture spoke volumes. He tried discreetly to get the Commanders attention and gave him a look as if to say Whenever you are ready for me to take these two to the brig and assume command let me know. He got up however to follow the captain, as ordered. Doing so however, he could not resist stirring the pot. He made a point of gathering his weapons and looked Ms Amber Vita right in the eyes. "Know your place girl, out here: Diplomacy is dumb."

[MandibleBones]

The Aegis is parked in a hanger not far from the briefing room. In fact, some of you passed by it on your way here without giving the small capital ship a second glance. It's certainly unobtrusive, and has definitely seen better days, but everything appears to be working at first glance.

One benefit of being a small crew on large vessel is extra space: there are enough rooms for crew and passengers that each of you manage to find one of your own. Some clearing-out of excess bunks is necessary, and the rooms are even more spartan than the usual Imperial fare, but it's a nice change from most Naval vessels.

[Toxic Mind]

As Angel makes his way to the XO's quarters adjacent the bridge, he can see Xander's across from him. Good enough for him, he could keep an eye on the younger man and both were close enough to the bridge to deal with any emergency. He clears out the other bunk from his quarters himself, preferring to use the opportunity to get some exercise. His quarters now reduced to little more than a desk and a bed, he looks over his room, pleased. Angel would not hold everyone to his standards, of course, but he remembers the quarters of even clone commanders in the old days, and models his own living after theirs, to instill the same discipline.

[Dannir]

Well, this is going to either be fun, or 'fun'...

To say that the crew surrounding Jaspen was unusual was, likely, a major understatement. Of course, I guess that's exactely why we're all here, he pondered. Between the honestly rather young captain, a man who appeared to have watched too many holovids, the older commander, who seemed... Stern, but approachable, by imperial navy standards anyway, a substantial amount of women, and he had to admit, himself, it would be hard to believe they belonged on a military vessel. All to their favor, he supposed, considering the nature of their 'mission'.

The ex-customs inspector had been, figuratively speaking, keeping his head down. He wasn't sure what his job in this ship was going to be, but with some luck, he could avoid being assigned the more dangerous tasks. No use hastening the death his superiors were so obviously planning for when they, ah, 'offered' him the position.

Since they were now heading towards their quarters, he figured he would search for his own slowly, watching the others as they enter theirs. Knowing who he could find where could always be useful in the future, he figured.

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander looks about his new room with pride, happy with both its location, and its accommodations. No extra bunk is necessary to clean out, as this is very clearly the Captains Room, so he sets about setting up some of the luggage the dockworkers brought on board. He moves his bed to the front, parallel the door and along the wall adjacent, so as to allow him to quickly run out to help in case of an emergency. He sets up his desk facing the door, perfect for both dramatic greetings, and a perfect choke-point in case of a surprise boarding, especially since this particular desk, though bearing a wooden facade, was reinforced with leftover hull from a decommissioned Star Destroyer, making it the perfect piece of cover in case of a gunfight. He hangs up the rest of his belongings fairly evenly, making sure it wasn't too stuffy, but not too laid back either. He put his armour stand right at the foot of his bed, close enough that he could run over to change into it (not that he didn't seldom take it off outside of sleeping, and even then it wasn't always a certainty), but not so close to the door that someone could run off with it before he could react. He lays down on his bed, he'll give the crew about another hour or so before he gets the ship moving, gotta let them settle in, after all.

[ducttapebandit]

Jerivan takes the quarters closest to the captain's that has yet to be claimed. If he's got a connected family, I want to him to be certain he can count on me. If I'm close at hand, I'm more likely to be called to his assistance.

He doesn't bother to unpack. Jerivan simply deposits his bag on the bunk, and heads for the bridge to familiarize himself with his station.

[Mutazoia]

As Shane exited the briefing room behind the others, he paused just outside the door. Resting his hand on the flat-topped conical head of the R5 astromech droid that had been waiting for him, he muttered "We're doomed." under his breath before starting off in the direction of the Aegis.

"R5," he said to the droid as it rolled along behind him, "interface with the station's computer and retrieve the specs and schematics for the Sienar Fleet Systems Imperial Patrol Vessel in general, and the specs and maintenance records for the Aegis in particular. I'll meet you at the hangar."

Once at the Ageis, Shane didn't take a lot of time choosing a cabin. He found one close to the bridge, so he could get there in a hurry, and close enough to the escape pods so he could get THERE in a hurry. He didn't have a lot of confidence in their chances.

Leaving his gear to be unpacked later, he first made his way to the bridge and began inspecting the piloting controls, making careful note on a datapad as well as calling any deficiencies out to R5 , of any controls or displays that were not in perfect working condition. With R5 rolling along in his wake, Shane worked his way methodically around the bridge, inspecting each station, also taking note of any missing rivots, loose bolts or deck/bulkhead plates, cataloging everything he found. Other than making sure it was securely bolted to the deck, he left the captain's chair alone...The captain would have his own adjustments, no doubt.

Once finished with the bridge he made his way methodically thorough the rest of the ship, noting anything loose or damaged, and keeping a close eye for any structural deficiencies that would need to be addressed before leaving the shipyard. His last task was to exit the ship and walk the entire hull, again looking for anything that needed fixing or replacing.

He could have asked the hangar maintenance crew, but Shane wouldn't fly anything that he had not thoroughly inspected himself first. If he was going to fly this thing, he wanted to know exactly what it was, and was not, capable of.

When he had finished, several hours later, he forwarded the report to Chief Engineer Demona with his recommendations for repairs that were needed immediately and those that could be made underway. He also forwarded a copy to the C.O. and X.O. before returning to his cabin to unpack.

[Grif]

Sandor fell behind the group as they marched/walked towards the ship, content to take in his new surroundings. The new captain seemed inexperienced, but seemed otherwise a decent man. He could work with that. A fresh breath of air from previous commanders who treated TIE pilots nothing more than expendable cannon fodder.

At the Aegis, he selected himself whatever room that was left, which by this point seemed to be one of the cabins near the middle. He raised an eyebrow at the seemingly capricious amount of space that was allotted to each crew. He was used to cramped bunks and sharing the space with a dozen fellow pilots; it made for some fine camaraderie during his time on the Renaissance. Well, he wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. He set his bag down, and exited the room again, this time in to wander around the ship and to get to know the place better. Along the way, he'd probably stop by the empty hangar bay.

Perhaps he might bump into one of the other crewmembers?

[Capt. Infinity]

Sandor walks into the hangar bay to find Xander, perched on top of some form X-lift, likely meant to repair the tops of TIE fighters. He's sitting with his legs dangling over the edge in between the safety bars. He appears to be marvelling and something on his data pad.

"Well mister Dorian, you are nothing if not thorough... Oh! Hello there, I didn't think anyone else would come down here. You're the TIE pilot right? Come to see your future favourite room on the ship?" He says, getting up so that he's resting with his elbows on the guardrail, his chin in his hands as he smiles at the soft-spoken pilot.

[BananaPhone]

http://i1248.photobucket.com/albums/hh483/tempestII/s_zpsngkvuhio.jpg Senior Lieutenant Jaysia Turok


The captain certainly had a...childish flare for the dramatic, Jaysia surmised. How he had gotten this far without being rendered apart by the predatory minds floating within the higher echelons of Imperial command was either a testament to some hidden genius within or just dumb luck. This mission sounded like they needed both.

Dodging the requirement of divulging information about herself (because she had been so keen to air her dirty laundry for all new-comers to behold) and learning several things about her new compatriots, Jaysia filed out of the room with the others when the meeting was concluded by the captain.

Unfortunately the walk to their "ship" was not a particularly inspiring affair...standing at the yawning transperasteel viewports only to behold a rusted, creaking old ship that looked like it would rather break down than take so much as a stern look from a pirate, left much to be desired.

We're supposed to bring the imposing might of the Empire to the lawless regions and we arrive in this rickety **** heap? Jaysia pondered to herself bitterly, did they use kriffing glue to put it together or something? It looks like it would fall apart in a strong breeze, let alone against determined pirates.

But, as always, Jaysia's outward expression remained impassive. Internally...she allowed herself a weary sigh of exhaustion and dread. Why would she want to make millions of credits and build her own harem of gigilo's within the wings of her fathers mercantile business when she could be trapped in a rusted coffin that was obsolete during the time of the Old Republic? Grrr...


"Selecting" her cabin brought little reprieve for the near-human hybrid, as personal choice was not an allocation she was used to within the Imperial military. Having grown accustomed to being issued equipment rather than being permitted to make the allocation herself, Jaysia ended up with some box that was as far removed from the bridge as the entire ship was from excellence. Standing at the entrance to her cell, Jaysia at least took a small, reserved comfort in spotting several narrow pipe outcroppings from the roof that would permit her the vantage point necessary from which to draw a noose should she feel seized of the notion to hang herself.


"Sometimes, I live in the country..." Jaysia sung softly to herself as she unpacked her things.

"Sometimes, I live in town..." Jaysia inspected the serviceable kitchen, unimpressed.

"Sometimes, I get a great notion..." Jaysia turned the lightning down to zero to ensure a pitch black environment. Her eyes, however, saw just perfectly within the night.

Exhaling, satisfied with her "nestling" within her new surroundings, she paused at her door before departing and ventured one last look inside her new abode, "...to jump in the river and drown..." she finished her song.

Her business concluded, Jaysia left for the bridge.

[NitariWindrider]

Trance's question in the briefing room didn't go unnoticed, and Commander Tavish responded promptly, but not before noticing what else was going on around them. Very observant, this one. Good to know for future reference.


"Each of you has potential, and together we can complete our orders. Is this an ideal scenario? Of course not, but that does not mean we will not make the best of it. I don't believe that any man or woman in this room believes that they deserved this fate. So we excel, even when they tell us we should not. We triumph when the odds are against us because we are better than this. Will it be easy? No. Will we succeed. I have no doubts."

What she actually did was sit down and pay attention to what else was going on. What she wanted to do was raise two salient points. Firstly, the man used a lot of inspiring sounding language and it sounded rather like a dodge. Secondly, when he finally got around to addressing the question he stated his answer in such a way that his message was encouraging regardless of their actual chances. In military double-talk, that answer basically meant they were going to either die stupidly or succeed under highly unlikely but no less stupid circumstances. Glorious. The next person to speak was a civilian. Diplomat, apparently. She offered her services and Commander Tavish didn't belittle her or dismiss her potential contributions, which surprised Trance somewhat. Maybe he wouldn't be so bad to work under after all...

The next person to speak was the Captain himself, who went by the name Xander Sunstrider and preferred his crew to avoid "Sir" or "Captain Sunstrider" whenever possible. The rest of his speech was no less unorthodox. First he defended his rank, which was appropriate given that his Executive Officer was old enough to be his father. Next he defended the plan, reassuring the crew that they weren't being excommunicated but rather set loose upon the sector to do things that Imperial officers never could. An interesting prospect, to be honest.

I wonder if he'll do away with the uniforms, she thought idly.

He wasn't finished, however. He then initiated a round of introductions coupled with the obvious question of what they all did to earn themselves a place on this admittedly inauspicious mission. Apparently he was dedicated to being a nice guy. How cute. If she could get enough time with the man, maybe he'd be amenable to her charms. That would certainly be helpful later on down the line.

The next person to speak was the helmsman, Shane Dorian. A stodgy fellow who disobeyed direct orders on more than one occasion, every time to the benefit of ship and crew. Not only was he unapologetic, he promised to repeat the action whenever he felt his perspective was of greater merit than the Captains.

Fine trait in the person flying the ship, she commented bitterly in the halls of her mind.

Next up was Commander Angel Tavish, who referred the captain to his file which he assumed the man had already read. Apparently he was as old as he looked, and put his loyalty to his previous captain above personal advancement. Trance's estimation of the man rose a few more notches, although she still wished he'd work the piping out of his-

The person who spoke next was called Dixon Zabato, the ship's security officer. The man who'd gone for caff a little earlier, of which he now took a sip to cover whatever it was that he was feeling satisfied about. She couldn't tell and didn't care yet, but he did seem more at ease than some of the other people in the room. Apparently his captain didn't like him much. Fancy that.

After that oh-so-revealing expose, a quiet man named Sandor Eli'tah introduced himself. He conveniently forgot to mention his crime, but he did mention that he was a wing commander. He noticed just as much as they did that he didn't really have much of a job at the moment.

The diplomat from earlier was next to speak. Amber Vita was her name, as she'd previously mentioned to Commander Tavish. She went on a long winded bit about how she was excellent at her job and would really like it if they didn't shoot everything they came across. Seemed a reasonable perspective to Trance. Shane piped up at this point, questioning the wisdom of speaking of the potential deficiencies of a plan when its author was in the next room. Also a reasonable perspective. Commander Tavish, she expected, would jump in at that point to restore order, but he didn't. He raised a brow and let the captain handle it. Instead of living up to the XO's expectations, he instead spoke dramatically about being heroes and giving every sentient being the chance to prove itself before being judged. Bold words, and they met with mixed reviews. Following his speech the captain left, clearly expecting the crew to follow. Suited Trance just fine. She wasn't about to go into how she'd seduced nearly everyone she possibly could to make Navy life more bearable in front of relative strangers. Particularly some of these strangers.

They adjourned to the Aegis at that point, but not before Dixon made a parting shot at the diplomat, referring to her trade as useless. The ship itself was...unobtrusive. She wouldn't have given it a second glance before, but now she sized it up and started working in her head on what would need to be done before they set out.

You get what you pay for, she said to herself, feeling that one credit was less of a bargain than perhaps she'd thought.

Once on the ship, everyone started going their own ways, choosing rooms near whatever parts of the ship they preferred. For her own part, Trance took a room not far from the engine room as a practical maneuver. It wasn't as though she really intended to use it much anyway, so out of the way and relatively near where she'd be all the time worked just fine. From her go-bag she extracted a personal indulgence - A hammock woven from some material she never really learned the name of. The only important part to her was that it was comfortable. This she took directly to the engine room and stashed it in a small nook for later retrieval. Following that she unpacked the hairpiece that had been partially the cause of her troubles in the first place and donned it. Uniform violation it may be, but it was infinitely more handy than a tool box and she had a lot of work ahead of her. She had designed it to be mostly concealable under her long blond hair, which she now let down, with a number of flexible arms that held tools or lamps or such which she usually kept positioned down until they were needed. Besides, odd head wear of any kind was a wonderful conversation starter and left people off their guard, which was why she made it a hobby to wear the most ridiculous things she could find on her head. Shortly before leaving her quarters she doubled back and grabbed her computer. She'd noticed in passing that one of the crew had spoken to an astromech of some kind and asked it to retrieve schematics. She hadn't paid it any mind at the time but now it came to the fore, suggesting that perhaps whomever that had been was going to save her some trouble and make a survey of their new ship.

As it so happened, Shane Dorian entered her engine room while she was waist deep in the workings of the engine, making notes and talking to R5 as he called it and generally ignoring the slender legs protruding from the apparatus he surveyed. She wasn't sure how to take that, as most men at least commented on her legs or her behind or something. It was partly refreshing and partly mildly insulting, but she elected to leave it alone. If he was interested, he'd say something eventually. They all did. Not terribly long thereafter, she received a report containing his observations and recommendations for what should be prioritized. Some of it was obvious and some of it she completely ignored, but some of it was very useful and helped her mentally compile a list of what problems should be tended to in what order. Thus informed and armed with her array of tools, she set to work getting the Aegis as ready as she could manage in the allotted time, focusing on the work that could only be done before they left the station first.

[Grif]

Sandor walks into the hangar bay to find Xander, perched on top of some form X-lift, likely meant to repair the tops of TIE fighters. He's sitting with his legs dangling over the edge in between the safety bars. He appears to be marvelling and something on his data pad.

"Well mister Dorian, you are nothing if not thorough... Oh! Hello there, I didn't think anyone else would come down here. You're the TIE pilot right? Come to see your future favourite room on the ship?" He says, getting up so that he's resting with his elbows on the guardrail, his chin in his hands as he smiles at the soft-spoken pilot.

Sandor paused a little in his steps as he noticed the captain. The one person whom he didn't expect to meet here of all places. The higher ups seldom bothered with trying to visit starfighter hangars; they had bigger things to take care of. He quickly snapped a brief salute, though he didn't exactly return a smile. More of a hint of one, if that. His silvery eyes remained cryptic.

"Captain. Didn't expect seeing you here..." the pilot rasped, as he joined the captain on the walkway overlooking the hangar bay. "I wouldn't call this my favourite place myself. Much rather be flying out there." Sandor looked on wistfully, through the open void that lay beyond the invisible energy barrier that separated them from the vacuum of space.

[Capt. Infinity]

Sandor's wistful look is shared by the Captain, as he breathes a deep sigh. "Believe me, I know the feeling, being grounded. My home planet is a world made up of floating islands, so repulsorlift skycrafts were the name of the game. There was a time in my life where I spent more hours in the air than on the ground, and I know full well the kind of rush that sort of thing gives you... And the sort of dangers it presents. Over a half a decade and I still don't know what's worse, knowing that, if you fell and couldn't stop, the ground would rush up to meet you..." He pauses for a moment, pondering the endless vastness of space "...Or knowing that, if you did, nothing ever would." He looks down at the floor below him, a grim grin on his face. A slightly glum chuckle escapes from his lips. "I screwed up today, soldier. I tried so desperately to make a decent impression, to make someone, anyone like me, maybe even respect me. And, admittedly I did manage to at least get the silent adulation of a diplomatic liaison for my troubles. But also managed to accrue the disapproving eye of my XO, the scorn of my helmsman, the disappointment of my chief of security, and the deep confusion of just about everyone else. I guess I just got a little ahead of myself." Captain Xander... Is silent for a few moments, before once again his now-becoming trademark smile starts to emerge. "I don't know why I'm telling you this. After all, it's rather unbecoming of a Captain to show weakness to his staff and crew. I guess I just needed to get it off my chest, and you seem like someone I can trust to keep a secret." He grins, then begins performing a series of what appear to be gymnastics stretches, both shaking off the cobwebs, and his bad mood. "Welp! No use crying over it now. The past is the past, and right now, the best I can do is take my best foot forward in proving myself to the lot of you." He gives Sandor a trusting look. "Now, this ship requires two helmsmen in order to function at full capacity. Helmsman Dorian can handle the brunt of it, but I must know. Are you able to handle the task of being this ship's co-pilot, Squadron Leader Eli'tah?" Xander used Sandor's new official title, because even stoney-faced TIE pilots need a pick-me-up every now and again, right? Xander stands there, waiting for a response that hopefully wasn't yet more disdain.

[Dannir]

After observing some of the others as they choose their rooms, it was time for Jaspen to take one of his own. He settled on one relatively close to the middle, though a little closer to the bridge than most. Since he wasn't sure what he would be doing on the ship, exactely, he figured keeping a medium distance from everything would be a good idea. He took a moment to examine the sparse contents of the room.

After that, he worked on removing the extra bunks, leaving an even greater sense of emptiness. It was decided, if he lived for more than a few weeks, he would have to do something about this. Maybe furnish it a little. Nothing too spiffy, but he was, after all, going to live there for the foreseeable future. Nothing wrong with making himself a little more at home there. Ah, but that was for another day, if that day would come. In the meantime, it would be a good idea to learn more of the various other misfits he was going to be stuck with for maybe the rest of his life.

That meant, of course, that he would have to head for the bridge, as he would not be surprised if some of them were already there as he left the room.

[shizukanashi]

Dixon selected a room at the back. It seemed most were taking rooms near to the bridge, and Dixon wanted some privacy. Plus on this side of the ship he was as close as he could be to the security sector.

He spent little time in his room, just long enough to get the feel and dump his bag. At least each room had its own toilet and shower.

After getting settled into his cabin Dixon headed to the security sector to get aquainted with his new station. This was much more to his liking. There were 4 "rooms" here the first of which was a security station that over looked the other 3 rooms. Here there were a set of monitors labeled Bridge and Hanger Bay, and a series of red and green lights that showed the open or closed status on the various airlocks and docking clamps around the ship. He inserted his code cylinder and was able to open the doors to the other 3 rooms. Looks like the Commodore already uploaded our codes into the ship he thought. Likely Sunstrider and Tavish also had access to this station.

The second room as an armory, Dixon was disapointed to find the many racks empty. No TIEs in the Hanger and not even an energy pack in the armory. At least he found controls that would lock it from the inside and shut down security station. A single man could hold this room against boarders should it come to it. Stocking this room would be his goal for the foreseeable future. He left his Blaster Rifle, and 3 grenades here. Go forth and multiply.

The final two rooms were also accessable with controls on the security station as well. Holding cells, each room had two double bunks and a small latrine, room enough for 8 prisoners. He figured he could probably double that in a pinch who cares if rebels or pirates had to sleep on the cold steel floors.

[Grif]

Sandor's wistful look is shared by the Captain, as he breathes a deep sigh. "Believe me, I know the feeling, being grounded. My home planet is a world made up of floating islands, so repulsorlift skycrafts were the name of the game. There was a time in my life where I spent more hours in the air than on the ground, and I know full well the kind of rush that sort of thing gives you... And the sort of dangers it presents. Over a half a decade and I still don't know what's worse, knowing that, if you fell and couldn't stop, the ground would rush up to meet you..." He pauses for a moment, pondering the endless vastness of space "...Or knowing that, if you did, nothing ever would." He looks down at the floor below him, a grim grin on his face. A slightly glum chuckle escapes from his lips. "I screwed up today, soldier. I tried so desperately to make a decent impression, to make someone, anyone like me, maybe even respect me. And, admittedly I did manage to at least get the silent adulation of a diplomatic liaison for my troubles. But also managed to accrue the disapproving eye of my XO, the scorn of my helmsman, the disappointment of my chief of security, and the deep confusion of just about everyone else. I guess I just got a little ahead of myself." Captain Xander... Is silent for a few moments, before once again his now-becoming trademark smile starts to emerge. "I don't know why I'm telling you this. After all, it's rather unbecoming of a Captain to show weakness to his staff and crew. I guess I just needed to get it off my chest, and you seem like someone I can trust to keep a secret." He grins, then begins performing a series of what appear to be gymnastics stretches, both shaking off the cobwebs, and his bad mood. "Welp! No use crying over it now. The past is the past, and right now, the best I can do is take my best foot forward in proving myself to the lot of you." He gives Sandor a trusting look. "Now, this ship requires two helmsmen in order to function at full capacity. Helmsman Dorian can handle the brunt of it, but I must know. Are you able to handle the task of being this ship's co-pilot, Squadron Leader Eli'tah?" Xander used Sandor's new official title, because even stoney-faced TIE pilots need a pick-me-up every now and again, right? Xander stands there, waiting for a response that hopefully wasn't yet more disdain.

Sandor seemed to listen dispassionately, nodding slightly once or twice, but never interrupting. Though he did quirk an eyebrow when the youthful captain called him by his proper rank.

He straightens, and glances over at Xander. "Captain. Let's not mince words. I'm a squadron leader without a squad. A pilot without a ship. In every sense of the word, I'm disposable." Oops, Xander didn't quite hit the right note there. Or maybe he did. Regardless, that brief smile appeared again on the lanky man's face, his silver eyes studying the captain. "But that doesn't mean I won't do my duty. I'll serve as the co-pilot as required."

[Capt. Infinity]

Sandor seemed to listen dispassionately, nodding slightly once or twice, but never interrupting. Though he did quirk an eyebrow when the youthful captain called him by his proper rank.

He straightens, and glances over at Xander. "Captain. Let's not mince words. I'm a squadron leader without a squad. A pilot without a ship. In every sense of the word, I'm disposable." Oops, Xander didn't quite hit the right note there. Or maybe he did. Regardless, that brief smile appeared again on the lanky man's face, his silver eyes studying the captain. "But that doesn't mean I won't do my duty. I'll serve as the co-pilot as required."

"Excellent!" Xander decrees, clapping his hand on Sandor's shoulder in what he hopes is a non-awkward manner. He then moves past him and back down onto the floor of the hangar. He turns back to the TIE pilot and yells: "I expect big things from you, Officer Eli'tah, big things! Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a very fancy chair with my name on it..." He says the last part more or less to himself.

He leisurely makes his way down to the Bridge, and arrives from the door on the other side of the ship at the same time that Jaspen does. He doesn't speak at first, deciding to let someone else talk for a change, and instead surveys the room for his new favourite chair, and possibly anyone else currently occupying the room.

[MandibleBones]

The chair is actually rather comfortable — not extravagant, of course, but in good condition. It is, perhaps inevitably, Imperial Slate Grey. The bridge itself is large enough for several officers at once, with an ovoid dome of a reinforced transparisteel viewport overhead. Additional screens give views from the fore, aft, starboard and port of the ship, and another toggles between above and below.

"Good afternoon, Captain," says a pleasant, androgynous voice over a speaker. "I am WN5-70N, the Aegis' astronav droid consciousness. I prefer to be addressed as Winston. How can I assist you today?"

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander restrains himself from audibly squeeing at the fact that the ship just addressed him as "Captain". He addresses the voice in a respectful, cordial manner. "Hello Winston, pleasure to meet you. Any news on a new or specific order from Command? I'm all for R&R, but surely they have something for us in order to get our feet wet." He asks the AI, scooching deeper into the folds of his command chair, easing into the shape and form of his new station of command.

[roses]

On being halted from exiting the discussion room, Amber gave the security officer a measured look. “I look forward to debating you,” she replied coolly. Then with an easy side-step, she plucked up her olive green duffel bag from the back of the room, and all but skipped out alongside her new-found colleagues. Finding the introductions unorthodox but productive, she strolled along and stopped only in the steel doorway of the first empty cabin she came across. She scanned the spartan interior before the brunette shook her head.

“Not quite to high standards,” Amber admitted to the first room. She moved on. Twins, she saw of the second, before deciding to ignore the next three doors before peeking into the one after that, only to find the same.

“Well, points for consistency,” she said to the third.

They all appeared uniformly like four steel walls bearing nothing more than a bunk bed. Distinctly unlike all the amenities she had expected as standard aboard Consular-class cruisers, there was no refresher room in any she had seen, let alone the ambient lighting and wall-mounted holovids that featured near everything from documentaries to her guilty pleasure of gossipvids. She scratched her head and let the duffel bag rest on the floor. The suspicion squeaked in that the majority of the cabin rooms would echo the same quaintly simplified design, and that the architects hadn't considered a diplomat's quarters. A smile grew when she realized that her quarters weren't predetermined.

It was like living in university dorms, Amber realized, but with the added bonus of choosing her neighbours. She moved from the doorway of the nondescript room to stand to the side of the hallway, watching with open interest who went where. From the the tall yet strangely shy woman wearing an officer's uniform, to the helmsman that had whispered to her earlier, she considered them all before waltzing into the room only two doors down from Shane. I really should speak to him, Amber knew. It was of a matter significantly minor, but important enough to be said later. Better all they settle first.

Inside her new room, Amber threw down her duffel bag next to her bunk, and rummaged in it, past her spare uniforms and the white blast vest. The compartments on the bag's right and left side were found unsurprisingly empty. She dove back into the main body of the bag one more, and her eyes narrowed at a glint of silver tucked beside a brown wallet. “Ha! Can't hide from me,” Amber told the sneaky datapad. Losing it wouldn't have been so bad, she knew. She only had the Versafunction88 for just over a month, so her uploads were largely limited still to an encyclopedia about the various cultures and people in the galaxy. Throwing off her boots, she plopped herself on to the bottom bunk and clicked the classic book icon.

“Okay, Tapani sector. Nobles. Koodans. Givins. Great.”

Most of what she saw, Amber already knew, some of the information available more befitting a novice uninitiated into her field. I should obviously attempt to avoid any non-essentials. Pulling up the template she had stored for military reports and copying it to a blank notepad page, Amber's finger's flicked and danced across the touch screen.

Orange words flourished across the screen, first tackling the two-tiered system of nobility and commoner, and mentioned the three ranks of Lord, Baron and Knight, should they ever have to liaison with the kind when pursuing the J.A.N. The high price nobility paid for breaking oaths in their culture followed next, and at its heels, mention that murder was impossibly deemed more acceptable than theft or lying according to their code, among their own. The section ended with a feather's touch mention of inconsequential rumours that lightfoil and blaster duels occurred in spite of Imperial law.

The rest of the report targeted the four most common species beside Human. Starting with the scholarly Mrlssi that rarely left their home planet, but were known for their exceptional universities in the sector, it was put forward that ever sighting one claiming to be travelling without a specific purpose and location was actually culturally abhorrent to the flightless bird people, and should be considered suspect. The amphibian Herglics were mentioned after, being known for a near addiction to games of chance, but also for briefly if violently opposing the forced nationalization of their homeworld's manufacturing plants. Though not in their culture to be violent, this section of her report went, the motive was now there for some to join the J.A.N. Sullustans, economically savvy and skilful pilots that they were, came next for comment. The section largely started and ended on the note that they also tended to keep to their home planet. But it was the skeletal Givin that truly ended Amber's report. Living in a mathematocracy, a conclusion was drawn that the rebellion would likely never gain a foothold among them, given the number game simply wasn't in their favour.

Done with her report, Amber proofread, rose and stretched. She had no indication how long she had been tapping away, but she felt it had been for long enough. Strolling out of her cabin with her datapad in hand, she glanced around for an interface, spied one, and waited the seconds needed to have it uploaded and sent to Commander Tavish and Captain Xander. Glancing around, she tsked to drive the silence away. The area was too quiet for her liking. She headed down the hall, past where the captain and commander had taken residence opposite each other, and went upwards into the bridge. She came just in time to find the Captain asking the A.I about any specific orders from their nearby command. Never hurts to be thorough, Amber thought. She stood to the side with her datapad held at her waist in front of her, waiting patiently.








...first tackling the two-tiered system of nobility and commoner, and mentioned the three ranks of Lord, Baron and Knight, should they ever have to liaison with the kind when pursuing the J.A.N. The high price nobility paid for breaking oaths in their culture followed next, and at its heels, mention that murder was impossibly deemed more acceptable than theft or lying according to their code, among their own. The section ended with a feather's touch mention of inconsequential rumours that lightfoil and blaster duels occurred in spite of Imperial law.

The rest of the report targeted the four most common species beside Human. Starting with the scholarly Mrlssi that rarely left their home planet, but were known for their exceptional universities in the sector, it was put forward that ever sighting one claiming to be travelling without a specific purpose and location was actually culturally abhorrent to the flightless bird people, and should be considered suspect. The amphibian Herglics were mentioned after, being known for a near addiction to games of chance, but also for briefly if violently opposing the forced nationalization of their homeworld's manufacturing plants. Though not in their culture to be violent, this section of her report went, the motive was now there for some to join the J.A.N. Sullustans, economically savvy and skilful pilots that they were, came next for comment. The section largely started and ended on the note that they also tended to keep to their home planet. But it was the skeletal Givin that truly ended Amber's report. Living in a mathematocracy, a conclusion was drawn that the rebellion would likely never gain a foothold among them, given the number game simply wasn't in their favour.





But where are the en suite rooms? :smallfrown:

I should take a room close to Shane. :smallcool:

Writing reports sure do take a while. :smallsigh:

I wonder if anyone is at the bridge. :smallsmile:

[ducttapebandit]

Jerivan didn't notice the captain on the bridge until the ship. He jumps to his feet and salutes. "Welcome to the bridge, Captain. Ensign Jerivan Grundy ready for duty. Sensors and communications specialist. Sorry I didn't get a chance to introduce myself earlier."

A talking ship??? That's a first.

[Mutazoia]

After submitting his maintenance report, Shane returned to his cabin. He left the furnishings alone for the time being...a glimmer of an idea forming in his head. Instead he stripped off his Imperial uniform, and donned a pair of black leatherite pants with thigh pockets and a cobalt blue turtleneck shirt. He kept is flight boots...he wore those with pretty much everything. He briefly considered rigging some kind of piratical bandana, but decided against it...he didn't want to give the aging XO an aneurysm before they had even launched.

Once attired, he made his way to the bridge. Offering a slight bow to the the young diplomat as he passed, Shane plopped down unceremoniously into the pilot's chair, swiveling it around to face in toward the bridge as he did.

"How's the hot seat, Captain?" He asked cheerfully.

[Toxic Mind]

When Angel left his cabin, stepping onto the bridge, he likely garnered a few incredulous glances from the crew there. Like Shane, he had changed out of his uniform, stowing it in a secret compartment inside his desk. Naturally this change would catch some if not all the crew by surprise.

Angel walks onto the bridge behind the Captain's Chair. He favors black on black, his clothing faintly reminiscent of his uniform. The fabric however, was much more fitted to form, and showed off his muscular physique, despite his age. He gives a nod of approval to Shane, clearly the two shared a similar philosophy at least on the use of uniforms. Discipline, perhaps, they disagreed upon, but to Angel, the uniform was nothing more than a symbol of identification, and one they could ill afford given their current mission. Still, you would be hard pressed to find Angel is something different than his black getup, and it quickly became his new uniform.

"Is there anything you require, Captain? I was going to go find a room to begin retrofitting as a gymnasium, but if you require my services, I will delay that for now."

[Grif]

"Excellent!" Xander decrees, clapping his hand on Sandor's shoulder in what he hopes is a non-awkward manner. He then moves past him and back down onto the floor of the hangar. He turns back to the TIE pilot and yells: "I expect big things from you, Officer Eli'tah, big things! Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a very fancy chair with my name on it..." He says the last part more or less to himself.

He leisurely makes his way down to the Bridge, and arrives from the door on the other side of the ship at the same time that Jaspen does. He doesn't speak at first, deciding to let someone else talk for a change, and instead surveys the room for his new favourite chair, and possibly anyone else currently occupying the room.

Sandor snorted at the little exuberant gesture. The Captain really can be a little too showy at times. "We'll see, Captain. We'll see," he muttered. Still, he saluted the Captain as he walked off, then resumed his personal tour of the ship.

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander turns his head to the left and speaks to Jaspen first. "Oh yes Jaspen, good to meet you, we'll have to be properly introduced later." He knew why Jaspen was here, he knew why everyone was here. If it wasn't written on their files it was written between the lines. Still, having a history of being bribed to let a couple of infractions slide was hardly damning. He should at least give the man a chance to prove himself.

He takes note of Ms. Vita and gives her a smiling nod of recognition at her arrival. "Amber! Good to see you! I just got your report on the local cultures and I must say, you work fast my dear girl! The value of punctuality like that is not lost on me, I assure you." He states, smiling to the short haired young diplomat.

He turns to Shane next, smiling back at the young pilot, pleased someone was being personable for once. "Oh very much so! The colour isn't my first choice, that's for sure. But nonetheless it'll serve me well. How's your seat treating you?" He says, hoping this is the start of a decent rapport between the two.

He swivels his chair towards Angel last, addressing him in as professional a voice as he can muster. "Nothing right now Commander, though I appreciate the offer. I'm just waiting for Winston here to tell me what sort of orders we've been issued by Command." He explains, gesturing towards the computer screens in expectation.

[roses]

Amber peered incredulous at the casual wear of Commander Tavish, him being the last person on the bridge she had ever expected to be discovered in anything short of a steam-pressed, flawless, double-breasted tunic and trousers. She recovered just in time to note the quaint bow. It was her believe that it was better to have a touch too much propriety, than it was to fall far below. She waved subtly to the the seated helmsman in acknowledgement, before Sunstrider addressed her.

“Ah. Captain, thank you.”

Amber blushed lightly. Praise had always been a poorly stocked and heavily rationed commodity aboard any Imperial craft larger than a B-wing, the poor Commanders likely too stressed to recall their crew. All the same, the bloom faded quickly, and she straightened slightly under the senior officer's attention.

“Sir, barring any unforeseen alternations to mission parameters,” and she made a gentle gesture with her left hand to the nearest A.I audio point, “I'm certain we can all appreciate how ambitious this operation is. Even for a capital ship. Have you decided upon our first manoeuvre?” A holoprojector may as well have directly beamed across her forehead that she had a suggestion, for how hopeful her smile was.


Mandible, could you please tell me what the closest planet(s) or space-station to potentially pick up titbits about smuggler operations (or general criminality), and hopefully gain a feel of who's who?

Wild Dice: [roll0]
Knowledge 4D:
[roll1]




This is more of a 'if we know what's we're doing, great. If not, I'll throw a suggestion into the world, and see how it looks for better or worse.'

Hint About the Suggestion: Ponies.

[Mutazoia]

"Commander," Shane said. "If you are going to convert a cabin into a gym, might I suggest the trooper berthing, since...you know...we don't actually HAVE any troopers necessitating an entire berthing for them. Come to think of it we don't have any gym equipment either...."

He noticed the eager tone of Amber's voice as she addressed the Captain, and shot the diplomat a quick smile. Go on, Captain, he thought to himself, ask her before she pops.

"OH!" Shane said suddenly. "Before I start this baby up, some one might want to call down to the engine room. The last time I saw our engineer she was hip deep in one of the engines. I'd rather she not still be there when I flip the ignition....getting chunks of blond out the intake manifolds can be a bitch."

He smiled slightly as he realized he might have just accidentally given their engineer a new nickname, and then chuckled as he imagined the look on the shapely girl's face the first time some one called her "chunks".

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander gives Amber the same smile a teacher would give an overeager student. "*sigh* Yes Amber? What's your idea? " He turns to address Shane's suggestion. "Good idea, I'll hail her now." He presees a button on his data pad and speak into it. "Trance, please let us know if you've finished work on the ship yet. We plan to launch soon and I'd rather you weren't ripped to shreds before we've even left the docks." He says, pleasantly.

[NitariWindrider]

Xander gives Amber the same smile a teacher would give an overeager student. "*sigh* Yes Amber? What's your idea? " He turns to address Shane's suggestion. "Good idea, I'll hail her now." He presees a button on his data pad and speak into it. "Trance, please let us know if you've finished work on the ship yet. We plan to launch soon and I'd rather you weren't ripped to shreds before we've even left the docks." He says, pleasantly.

As it so happened, Trance was on the exterior of the ship finishing work near the engines.

Oh dear, she thought, I'm glad they didn't just fire them up like some people I've met. At least I'm not still in the engine room. Getting pieces of someone off of the intake manifolds is not my idea of a good time...

She reached up and moved the arm of her hairpiece that was holding her comlink. As she replied, she continued working. This exact sort of thing was precisely why she had designed the thing in the first place.

"I appreciate the thoughtfulness, Captain. Let me finish where I'm working now and we can be underway. Perhaps five minutes?"

Truthfully, it likely wouldn't take her that long. She had been nearly finished when the captain signaled her. It was good that they had taken their time settling in, because it had given her time to finish all the high priority things on the list she'd compiled. There were a few things she'd have liked to see to before they launched, but it would keep until later. At least now she could assure them that they wouldn't fall apart or explode for no reason.

That should make someone's day... she commented as she finished up her work.

[Capt. Infinity]

"Excellent! Then I want you down on the bridge in under 6. I want you to have a front row seat for when this puppy flies!" He says cheerfully, before pressing a couple of icons on his datapad, disconnecting his calk to Trance and opening up the ship's PA system, speaking happily, but authoritatively: "Attention all crew, please make your way down to the bridge for the ship's inaugural launch, this is a momebtous event and I want everyone in attendance!" He commans in a manner that makes you want to follow, both because he asked so nicely, and because you're mildly concerned as to what he'd do if you didn't.

Finally he returns to lean forward in his chair, addressing Winston in the form of the ship's view screens. "While I'm sure Ms. Vita has a no-doubt stupendous idea, are there any specific mission parameters we shoukd be made aware of?" He asks the AI, still more than a little amused at the novelty of such a utility as an onboard navigational consciousness.

[Dannir]

Jaspen was still doing his best to avoid getting noticed too much. So, it was to his surprise that the captain addressed him.
"Ah, good to meet you, captain, sir. I'll be around here somewhere, most likely." He responds, maintaining as relaxed a posture as he can manage.

As he, honestly, idled in the bridge, he chuckled to himself as Xander called everyone to it. Well, he wouldn't need to move. He then eyes the captain as he talks to the ship's AI. It might just be him, but maybe trusting the AI of a ship that they were more or less unofficially exiled to was a bad idea... He'd have to keep an eye on it. Or an ear, as the case may be. Not much he could do about it for now, though.

[Grif]

Sandor finally stepped into the bridge, pausing just fractionally as he heard the AI speak to the captain. Well that's a novelty. What other surprise does the commodore has for us? he wonders, as he looks around.

Since he apparently was de facto the co-pilot for the moment, he made his way to his appointed station and settles in, saluting the captain and the XO along the way, since they seem to be preoccupied. He gives Shane a polite nod, and starts familiarising himself with the controls. "Captain said I'm the co-pilot until they find a suitable replacement." he says in a whispery voice without preamble, trying to hide his unease with the fact that he's actually now responsible for a ship that's thousands of times bigger than his TIE.

[Mutazoia]

Shane swiveled around to face Sandor. "I can handle most of the work solo until we get into combat, then I'll definitely need the help. Hell, most of the time the auto-pilot will be flying this thing from point A to point B." Then he added with a cocky grin "I know it sucks flying second seat...we'll get you your own bird. Hell, we're pirates, pick one you like and we'll steal it!"

[roses]

Amber delayed speaking when their senior officer deferred her council to warn the engineer they would soon depart, and again when he made an announcement for all the crew to attend the bridge, and yet again when he asked the shy A.I about any additions they weren't yet aware of. She stifled her disappointment when some potentially pre-recorded message was given priority over herself.

“Captain,” she ventured, doubtful the A.I was advanced enough to have feelings hurt, “I was hoping we might make good of your earlier suggestion. You proposed we behalf as heroes – yet it's often stated that wisdom is the wingman of valour. Not to tun your ship into a consulate, sir, but my hope was that our first foray might be a fact-finding one. Reconnaissance. No one is yet aware of us. By all accounts, people in this sector will have seen the Empire withdraw. There's a boon to be grasped here, sir.”

Amber turned the datapad she had held at waist level around, and raised it to eye level. The screen displayed a large blue orb that boasted an asteroid belt more prominently than a production company did holostars. “Mrlsst. It makes an ideal place for trade and knowledge, and houses the sector's largest university. Alternatively,” the diplomat continued, with an casual finger flick across the screen. It immediately displayed a rotund if muscular form closely resembling an upright standing frog.

“Herglic spacers. They themselves make excellent points of information, and several planets in the sector do business with them. Though, with these options, I would suggest we forgo our uniforms. Either way, there's a fantastic opportunity to learn what elements are attempting to take advantage of our withdrawal, and we can decide how best to contend with them from there.”

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander carefully considers both options. "Hmm... Whilst I'm always up for meeting new faces, I feel as though presebting ourselves before information brokers is a great way to get put on an interstellar criminal hit list from day one should we mess up." The Captain explains. "I feel that it would be best to check the planet, it's easier to blend in and easier to mingle. Though I do like the idea of ditching the uniforms for the mission, as you said, right now we have the element of surprise on our hands, and we best use it wisely. What are your thoughts on this, Commander?" Xander asks, swiveling towards Angel in order to give him his full attention. "Oh, and Amber?" He adds over his shoulder. "Thank you for being so patient, it's a lot of work getting a crew up and running and I do appreciate you waiting for me to get everything in order." He flashes the diplomat a winning smile before turning back towards the Commander, patiently awaiting his opinion on the matter.

[Toxic Mind]

"Much as I would prefer to force our enemies surrender with the threat of Imperial Justice, the truth of the matter is that we are effectively not officially a part of the Navy any longer. The discipline of that organization we should keep to wholeheartedly, as it provides and effective means to run a ship. But uniforms are meaningless. Keep them in case we need to use them, but hidden. Our most effect will be if no one believes we have any connection to the Imperial Navy. That belief might even save everyone on this ship, sir." his reasoning was sound, he knew, if surprising to much of the crew. Perhaps now they would understand his logic was not driven by a lack of regulations, but rather a warrior's understanding that sometimes rules were better put aside than followed strictly.

[shizukanashi]

Dixon was still getting settled into his security station, he flicked on the monitors and observed the activity on the bridge. No sound but by the surprised looks on faces he figured something important or at least amusing was going on. He was just about ready to head up himself to see what all the fuss was about when the Ships Comms came to life and the Captain ordered everyone to the bridge.

Suddenly Dixon didn't want to go. It was a great idea, something he was looking forward to even, but as soon as it became an order his instincts told him to buck the system. None the less he got up anyway and made his way to the bridge.

When he arrived most of the crew was already there. "Armory is empty." He reported, as he plopped himself into an available chair, it looked like a gunnery position, but with no formal training it could have just as easily been a sensors station. "Unless there is a crate from the Commodore in that hanger, we will have to make due with whatever we brought ourselves." This time he did kick his feet up.

"So whats the big deal up here anyway? Maiden voyage and all, I get, but you all look like there might be something more."

[BananaPhone]

http://i1248.photobucket.com/albums/hh483/tempestII/s_zpsngkvuhio.jpg Senior Lieutenant Turok


Lt. Jaysia Turok had remained quiet and in the background while the buzz of the bridge unfolded around her. It felt strange to operate within the command module of an Imperial vessel whilst garbed in civilian clothing...but here she was.

"Yes, very good ensign," Jaysia replied as she handed a datapad back to an officer that had brought her a report. As always her voice was sonorous and soft as if it were laying in wait. Offering a terse, friendly smile, Jaysia watched as the younger officer turned and headed back to their bank of monitors before she herself turned and stood in her position while watching the rest of the crew.

The captain was spinning about in his chair while that nancy-girl ambassador encouraged him to sink to the level of Imperial Intelligence. Though, unfortunately, with the less-than-impressive vessel they were to be arriving within that seemed like a better course of action than warping in and beating their chests.

Blending into the surroundings and given away mostly by her eyes, Jaysia watched in silence as the captain and ambassador hashed out their initial maneuvers.

[MandibleBones]

Winston's voice comes back to finally answer the captain's question. "Though I am not programmed to be creative, I have been left with a suggestion from Commodore Serafi. Imperial Bacta shipping has been having some touble around Mrrlst, captain. You could arrange to escort a bacta freighter through the Shapani Bypass, which could lead to some... leads."

In fact, there is a small crate of blasters in the TIE hanger. They are not Imperial standard issue, and look as though the crate was transferred from customs. Still, they seem serviceable enough to arm the crew.

As the engines start — without so much as a hiccup, thankfully — the deck area around the small capital ship clears of technicians and bystanders.

"Cruiser Aegis, this is Tallaan Shipyard Control," comes a human voice over the comlink. "You are cleared for departure at your convenience."

[Capt. Infinity]

"Roger that, Shipyard Control." States Xander, easing up in his chair to look more commanding. "Amber, the planetary research will have to wait. I think what Winston said holds merit. And it's best to learn to crawl before you try to fly. Winston, give Shane the coordinates to the Bacta shipyards. Shane? Do what you do best." The Captain says, smiling a devilish smile at his chief pilot, eager to move forward.

[MandibleBones]

"Plotting course to Thyferra system, just outside Tapani Sector," Winston's voice comes back. "Please proceed outside the spacedock before final calculations can be completed. Will coordinate with Xuchphra and Zaltin control to arrange escort needs."

[Capt. Infinity]

As the Pilots gear up to leave, a thought occurs to Xander. "Wait, why are we wasting time escorting Bacta tanks through channels outside the Sector? Winston, aren't we trying to find a Shadowport for illicit goods in the Tapani sector itself?" The Captain asks, mildly confused. "Wait, was I not supposed to say that out loud? Ah well, it was gonna come up sooner or later, might as well be now." The Captain says, a bit bashful, but nonetheless upbeat.

[MandibleBones]

Winston answers quickly.

"The Shapani Bypass is the primary hyperspace route through Tapani Sector. While Thyferra, the origin point, is outside the sector, the bacta shipment troubles have all occurred within Tapani." As to the shadowport, "I apologize. I have not been briefed as to your mission parameters, only that I am to assist you."

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander finally seems to grasp the situation at hand in a sensible manner. And the manic tempo of his voice eases to a steady beat. "Well then. I guess that means we make our own decisions now doesn't it? It's settled then. Chart a course to the Bacta shipyards, if we're going to get this operation started, we should start it with full force behind it from moment one. Hyperdrives online. Ladies and Gentlemen, if there are no objections?" The Captain says, easing into his chair. "Let's make a splash."

[Mutazoia]

Shane's hands played over the controls of the Aegis and the starship popped out of the docking bay like a cork. Once they had, to Shane's mind, enough clearance, he rotated the ship on its axis and when the nose pointed away from both planet and shipyard alike, kicked in the sublight dive full throttle, sending the Aegis on it's way out of the planet's gravity well.

He wondered briefly about this shadow port the Captain had mentioned in such an off hand manner, but judging by the barely perceptible look of incomprehension on the XO's face, it wasn't important if HE didn't know about it either. Besides, they were heading off to escort a convoy, which meant they were headed toward combat, meaning Shane had other things to think about just then.

He did a brief power check on the ships shields and cycled power around between them, making sure they were fully functional and that they could transfer power as needed...better to find a glitch now than in the heat of combat.

"We'll be out of the gravity well in two minutes." He reported. "Ready for those hyperspace coordinates when you are, Winston."

[MandibleBones]

"On your screen now, helmsman," the AI says. Indeed, they appear there even now.

[Toxic Mind]

Shadowport... That was a first to Angel. Clearly someone was getting mission orders on the side that they weren't sharing with him. There weren't many things that Angel disliked, but a Captain who kept secrets from his men, let alone officers, was certainly one. He locked eyes with Shane for a moment, and saw the hint of comprehension on the man's face. So they were on the same page, Angel thought. Well, he didn't have to like the man's character to use him as an ally. One way or another, if they were getting orders from somewhere else, Angel was going to find out.

"Everything seems to be in order Captain. We should be arriving shortly."

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander looks between Shane and Angel, considering his options. On the one hand the info seemed confidential, on the other had, he wanted these people to like him... "...Oh what the heck. Secrets are never good." He says, turning to Angel. "There's some information I never got around to briefing you on. Once we finish the jump I'll give everyone the full story. If we're going into the belly of the beast, we might as well do it united as one." He states, attempting to diffuse what is obviously a volatile issue. "Don't forget Tavish. We are on the same side here. And I do, in fact, trust my crew."

[Toxic Mind]

"Of course, Captain"

[MandibleBones]

The course is laid in with little trouble, and the shipyards, planet Tallaan, and mighty Imperial warships disappear as the stars fade into lines.

"Eighteen hours to Thyferra, Captain," Winston informs you.

We can do a scene wipe and rejoin you all as you're coming out over Thyferra, but this might be an excellent opportunity for the captain to brief his crew.

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander leans back in his chair, satisfied. He looks at his assembled crew and, taking a deep breath, begins speaking. "Alright, here's the thing. We aren't just here to simply take out no-good rapscallions and fight for the Empire, we also have a specific goal in mind. Long story short, there's a terrorist cell out on the loose in Tapani sector, known as the JAN. They fight for similar reasons to the Rebellion, but are their own distinct sect and have decidedly more brutal, guerilla methods. As was evidenced by that utterly eviscerated Imperial Torpedo Sphere. Surprisingly, the damage dealt to the Sphere could have been a lot worse, had the Empire not been tipped off to the attack by a member of the Rebellion Alliance proper prior to the detonations. A woman going by the name Abraxus. Not much is known by me on that front though, Ro- er, The Commodore didn't go into details. Just that her information helped the Empire minimize casualties in the attack. It's also a reminder that the JAN and the Rebel Alliance have both conflicting interests and methods. And that the Alliance isn't entirely composed of soulless monsters who need to be put down, despite what some people may have come to believe." He gives a sidelong glance to Dixon, then continues. "The second important thing he told me was that both the JAN and Rebel Alliance weren't simply acting independent of any form of support, and are being supplied from a Shadowport somewhere in the sector. It's location is unknown, but the Commodore believes that, if anyone can find it for the Empire, it's a group of privateers in service to it. This, topped off with the fact that the current Captain of the big Star Destroyer orbiting Procopia, Captain Alastare, is a massive control freak who would commandeer us in service to him were we an official Imperial vessel, is why we have been given the pirate status we currently possess. Any Questions?" Captain Xander asks. Hoping to whoever might be listening that he's been clear and succinct in his explanation of the current state of affairs.

[Grif]

"None at all, Captain," Sandor replies without looking up. Maybe it was part of being a TIE pilot, but he wasn't in the habit of questioning orders. Now interpreting orders... that was always the tricky part, and why he was assigned to this ship to begin with.

[Mutazoia]

Shane swiveled the pilot's chair around as the Xander spoke.

"Captain," he began once the man had finished, "If we're supposed to infiltrate this shadow port, I don't think escorting Imperial shipments is the best course of action. After all no pirate port is going to send out an invite to the guys running around killing pirates." He paused for a moment before adding "And unless we got a discharge when I wasn't looking, we are still official Imperial Navy personnel, even if the Aegis is privately owned...and when has the Imperial Navy every shied away from commandeering a private vessel.

We may want to think about acting more...piratical. Attacking legitimate merchants and such, rather than trying to uphold law and order."

[roses]

“Ensuring medical supplies gets to the needy is one of the most laudable endeavours we could undertake,” Amber objected to the lieutenant, lightly. She wasn't certain how she ended up defending the A.I idea that had trumped her own, but there she stood, temporarily. “Furthermore, its already been arranged for us to escort them. Captain, I would offer that cancelling our arrangement is unprofessional, and certainly worse than proofing tardy.”

The diplomat paused then, and a twisted smile formed in the lul. She sounded uncomfortable when she spoke again. “Would it appear amiss then, sir, to keep to our appointment, but use them to bait out potential contacts? Pirates would never risk an armed response unless that medical supplies was crucial to someone. We could seemingly take a smaller split in exchange to slowly discovering wherever their kind congregate.” She shook her head. “I'm not fully fond of the idea, but we could still ensure the safety of the crew aboard the bacta transport, and gain our lead that way. As the lieutenant said, befriending people informed about the Shadowport is the swiftest way forward.”

[Toxic Mind]

"I would also bear mentioning that should we arrive before the pirates, we could take the cargo ourselves. In this fashion, we could ensure the lives of the crew remain safe, and as our prize, distribute the bacta as we saw fit, ensuring that it reaches its destination. I believe that is what we refer to as a win-win." Turning pirate made Angel uncomfortable, but if it was to be their fate, then he would go forward with all the skill and mastery that he had put into his former position in the Navy.

[roses]

“Commander, I'm advocating worse than that,” Amber admitted, grudgingly. “We keep to our arrangement to escort the bacta transport, so our arriving before the pirates shouldn't prove a problem. Nor should eventually finding an isolated spot. But worse, I was suggesting we might use them as bait for an actual pirate. Earns us our contact but with more risk. Essentially, we wouldn't just be robbing the transport, but betraying them.”

Amber's right arm reached up to grip the side of her left, uneasy. “Finding the Shadowport is what adds the difficulty, and that sounds critical to stopping the JAN. Appearing like scoundrels seems like a swifter way on a slow path.” She glanced over at the helmsman before looking back to the executive officer.

“That said, if the Captain is content with any of this, your way of attending to the theft before actual pirates appear would be safer, for their crew and ours. Speaking to the Herglic spacers after would be a good way to find out who needs the supply, and where to head to from there. So we have several options – some unspoken,” she finished, implying that there yet remained staying to the longer but civilized course of law-enforcement.

[shizukanashi]

It's also a reminder that the JAN and the Rebel Alliance have both conflicting interests and methods. And that the Alliance isn't entirely composed of soulless monsters who need to be put down, despite what some people may have come to believe."[/COLOR] He gives a sidelong glance to Dixon, then continues.

"Tell that to the families of those we lost on the Death Star. Rebels are rebels. Tell me where the Alliance got the intel? By association that's where. They are probably supplying the JAN and are just upset at the extra attention they are drawing." Surely the Captain was jesting, sympathy for the Rebels? So that's why he's out here.

He listened to the various plans, and begrudgingly found the one he agreed with. "Amber is right. We protect the shipment we get no closer to finding this shadow port, infact we get further from it. They will know us, know our ship, know we are Imperials. If we take the shipment, we are still no closer to finding the shadowport. We have the bacta and maybe a name as a new pirate group, but without the contacts to brag to, no connection to the underground. We just take bacta from innocents." He gave a sigh. "We have to let the bacta be taken, maybe even help the pirates do it. Earn their respect and trust. Demand a cut of the profit. This way we can see their opperation and get to know there friends. Its risky, but its the best course of action for the mission parameters."

[Capt. Infinity]

"Tell that to the families of those we lost on the Death Star. Rebels are rebels. Tell me where the Alliance got the intel? By association that's where. They are probably supplying the JAN and are just upset at the extra attention they are drawing."

Xander stares indignantly at Dixon. "Oh? And what would you say to the BILLIONS of innocents, hundreds of millions of which were OUR men, women and children, who died on Alderan for the sake of a demonstration? Do not think me soft, Ensign Zabato. I have taken out countless Rebel fleets in the name of the Empire. But you don't stare into the void as long as I have without beginning to differentiate the shades of grey therein. I have seen rebels rig an Imperial Corvette transporting wounded soldiers off world with detonite. but I've ALSO seen a squad of stormtroopers gun down a surrendered Rebel soldier clutching an infant to her chest. In BOTH of these instances, the perpetrators were disobeying direct orders. War is hell, Dixon. And don't you ever believe for one second that either side is 100% anything, moral, just, or cruel. We choose our side and fight for what we believe in. But any good warrior learns of his enemy's reasons before slaying them. If only to better learn where to stab them where they bleed." He turns to Amber, her words mildly upsetting him. "Have you all forgotten what we're posing as? We're not Pirates, we're PRIVATEERS. Pirates for hire. We take jobs irregardless of our buyer's faction allegiance. All that matters is if they can meet our price. Nobody understands moral ambiguity better than an enclave of smugglers and pirates, trust me. Also, you're all acting like we'll have a testimony of allegiance to the Empire handwritten in our own blood should we take this job. This may come as a surprise to some of the more jackbooted of the lot of you. But it actually takes less energy to not record a piece of data. All it takes is a few honeyed words and our presence in this transport job is utterly non-existent. We were never there, and they don't even remember our names. Also, how about this? Instead of being payed in credits, we ask to be paid in their surplus Bacta shipments. That way, after we complete the job, we can go to those Hurgrek spacers Amber mentioned, establish ourselves as a new group of guns-for-hire, and ask if anyone can help us fence off this illicit shipment of Bacta. They'll be putty in our hands." He smiles, getting enthusiastic as he continues to explain his rapidly formulating plan. "And, should we come across any pirates during our transport job, we can still come out on top. We simply offer to split the shipment between ourselves and the pirates 50/50, as a peace offering. And, when the pirates leave, offer back OUR 50% back to the shipment convoy, from both sides' perspectives, we come out looking good. It's a win-win!" He beams. "Just because we're skirting the knife-edge of the law now doesn't mean we need to be MONSTERS. But it does mean we need to be clever. And that means seeking out the best possible course of action, for all parties involved."

[roses]

Amber innocuously floated away from the gathered crew. She stopped at a rough equal distance between the newfound capital ship owner and newly demoted ensign, forming a rough triangle.

“Thousands of families have no doubt grieved for the lives lost at the Death Star,” the diplomat put forward gently. “A mirror to the thousands more that have known pain over Alderaan. I'm certain we have other crew among us who have equally lost loved ones to bloodshed. While I can't speak for anyone else, I've always felt there's nothing finer to be done for all that lose, than to build a more stable future. Ensuring this sector loses an extremist group is an excellent step towards civility, and a fair way to honour the lost.”

Datapad and arms both went behind her back as Amber turned to Xander. “Captain, the intricacies of our new title haven't fully dawned on me, no. But it's clear there are several viable paths. All with their own uniqueness.” She thought better of admitting she doubted a pilot would prove pleased should their escort rob them and hand back only half their supplies, and instead smiled pleasantly. “Give the order, and I'll attend to what's necessary.”

[Capt. Infinity]

Captain Xander sighs. "You know, I want to at least TRY to have a democratic system here. So I want opinions on my plan before I think to go through with it. Commander, your thoughts? And what about you, Ms. Turok? You've been oddly standoffish in these debates for someone acting as the ship's Tactics Officer. What say you?

[BananaPhone]

http://i1248.photobucket.com/albums/hh483/tempestII/s_zpsngkvuhio.jpg Senior Lt. Turok


Jaysia hovered on the peripherals of the group as a quiet statue that seemed to blend into the shadows of the bridge. Silent and observant, her purple eyes switched between each speaker and her elongated ears took in what each said.

Personally she was disappointed at what the captain had to say as it was something she'd expect from that nancy-girl ambassador that spoke too much. When he trampled upon the graves of those who died aboard the death star due to the some rebel-sympathising planet in a borderline treasonous rant it took a practiced degree of discipline not to lash out and strike him upon the temple in a sharp killing blow. Then he spoke of his command as if this were some recreation of the Old Republic...a democracy instead of a starship with a sole, decisive captain...again, only willpower halted Jaysia's face from screwing up in disgust.

When a lull emerged in the discussion of plans, Jaysia spoke out. She did not fancy the idea of having to play nice with some backwards pirates, and her idea reflected it.

"Lure the pirates in with bait, jam their communications and then board them," Jaysia's eerily smooth, steely voice emerged from behind the group, "interrogate the crew, particularly new recruits, and sift through the astrogation computers for coordinates the vessel has visited, which will include the shadowport and liaisons with other pirates."

[shizukanashi]

"Lure the pirates in with bait, jam their communications and then board them," Jaysia's eerily smooth, steely voice emerged from behind the group, "interrogate the crew, particularly new recruits, and sift through the astrogation computers for coordinates the vessel has visited, which will include the shadowport and liaisons with other pirates."

It truly surprized Dixon that the two women had better plans than the Captain. This plan also made a lot of sense. They could save the Bacta shipments, make a statement that a new player was on the scene and not kind to the competition and get possible astrogation charts for the shadowport. Not to mention the possibility of another ship, perhaps with some fighters in the hanger. Perhaps there was more to this tactical officer than a pretty face.

"Now that makes sense, sir. We could play it as an announcement of a new player. Sending the message that we care more about eliminating the competition than claiming the prize could give our new pirate gang a name in the sector pretty quickly. Its probably the fastest way to find the shadowport, and without the collateral damage. Now, with a crew this small we will need to optimize battle stations. Which one of these stations is a gun? Shooting things I can do anywhere."

[Mutazoia]

"No offence, but that won't work." Shane turned to face Jaysia as he spoke. "For one thing, we need to be able to dock at this shadow port any time we choose. We need to be able to get off this ship and walk around freely and ask innocent seeming questions, with out having to look over our shoulders every other step. The more enemies we make in this sector, the worse off we'll be. One ship may be part of a pirate flotilla, and we could have the rest of their friends gunning for us...not to mention any security the port it self may have.

Besides, if I were a pirate, I wouldn't keep the location of my secret base, or any other important locations, in my nav computer. If the Imperial Navy ever captured my ship the rest of my gang would be as good as dead. Which means we would have to try to take the entire crew alive, and then search every data pad, every droid, every little nook and cranny that might be modified to hold data. And in case you haven't checked, Lieutenant, we don't exactly have enough people to man this ship with out a ton of droids, let alone board and capture an entire pirate crew."

Shane turned, and noticed Amber's new position. Trying hard not to take sides...very diplomatic he laughed to himself. He looked at Amber briefly before sweeping his eyes around the bridge. "We also have to accept the possibility that the JAN already knows we're looking for them. I wouldn't put it past them to have people under cover all over the shipyard. If we give them ANY fuel to poison the underworld of this sector against us, they'll use it.

They way I see it, we can play sector hero and hope we get lucky with out hurting anybody but every body gets to sleep well at night. We can play pirate and earn the trust of this sector's underworld element, but we may have trouble looking at ourselves in the mirror in the mornings. Or I can point this ship toward Hutt space. We can sell off this rust bucket, split the cash and do our best to lay low for the next several years."

[Capt. Infinity]

"You both raise excellent points. And I'm now beginning to understand why most Captains never call for council amongst officers. Commander Tavish, the only one who hasn't said anything to any effect yet is you. What's your opinion on all this.?" Xander says, growing stoic. This argument was getting them nowhere fast. And, somehow, all it was doing was making him look bad once again.

[Toxic Mind]

"If we can preserve the lives of Imperial Citizens simply doing their jobs, that is the plan we should follow. Hoping the pirates that are not us will be merciful to the crew is a flight of fancy. It's not about taking the easy way. It's about doing what's right. If we find the Shadowport and defeat the JAN but in the process we become them, we have achieved no victory at all." Angel 's expression does not change, but his care about this matter is obvious.

"The final decision is yours, Captain."

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander nods to Angel's judgement. Though the ageing officer would never admit it, he and the Captain seemed to share a rather similar set of values. "Then it's settled. We meet with the shipment and perform our job as instructed. We ask to be payed in excess Bacta in order to sell off to fencers in order to establish ourselves in the criminal underground. We also ask to be erased from any records they may have, to maintain anonymity. Should we encounter any pirates, they will be dealt with swiftly and bled dry for any and all information on the Shadowport and any other goings-on amongst those of the Criminal Persuasion. Any further questions?" The Captain asks in a tone that suggests he's already made up his mind.

[Mutazoia]

"One final point, Captain, then I'll shut my pie hole." Shane said. "A freighter convoy, especially an Imperial one, will not have excess Bacta to pay us with. If they start their run with 100 tons of Bacta, they will have to finish with 100 tons of Bacta or their hairy behinds will be in the wringer. If we want to be paid in Bacta we should establish our protection racket at the source, rather than the middle man."

Shane stood up. "Other than that, we have 18 hours until we arrive. As this bucket will fly itself until then I, for one, am going to use that time to get settled in. With your permission, Captain..."

Shane strolled across the bridge as he spoke, offering another slight bow to Amber as he passed, and finished speaking just as he reached the doorway into the corridor. Not really waiting for permission to be granted or withheld, he crossed the threshold and made his way toward the crew cabins. Time to put an idea he had been mulling over into action.

The officers cabins they had selected ran along the center line of the Aegis, meaning that every cabin backed against another. Oddly, most of the crew had chosen cabins on the same side. Rounding up several maintenance droids, Shane sent two sets of droids into two separate cabins on the unoccupied side of the ship with identical orders....

Working with quick precision that only a team of droids could manage, they quickly converted the bunks that the others had removed from their cabins (as well as the ones already in the rooms they were working in) in to usable, if rather spartan looking furniture. Two bunks were welded together to form a full sized bed for each cabin, and piled with an extra set of mattresses. Another set, spliced folded and welded became a couch. Two more folded and pieces scrapped from other bunks became serviceable chairs. Cutting off the legs of a bunk and welding spare wall platting from a repair locker fashioned a simple coffee table.

Once the two sets of furniture had been assembled, Shane ordered the droids to cut through the connecting wall between the cabins on the other side, forming a doorway between the two. Droid precision and Imperial technology made the new hole look like it had been there all along. It would take more time than he had now to install an actual working door, so for the time being he ordered the droids to tack a makeshift curtain rod over the new doorway, and a couple of blankets served as curtains. The droids had to work fast, before the occupant of the second cabin returned, so Shane directed them personally. Shane was glad to see that no unpacking had been done.

Quickly the droids removed the bunks in that cabin and replaced them with a set of furniture (placing the unpacked bags on the new double bed in the other room), and filed out through the new back door in what was now a separate, adjoining bedroom. And all before the cabins occupant returned from the bridge, to Shane's relief. As he closed and locked the "back door" from the outside, his only regret was that he hadn't thought to have the droid in the ships laundry sew a couple of sets of bedding together to fit the new bed. He would take care of that for his own new bedroom. For now he directed the droids to preform the same operations connecting the other modified cabin to his own.

Too bad I won't see the look on Amber's face when she sees her new suite. Shane thought to himself.

Shane had the droids create, and furnish, two, two room suites, one for him and one for Amber. As droids are machines capable of working much faster and more accurately than humans, the whole process took only a matter of minutes, with only the modified bedding needing to be completed later.

[Capt. Infinity]

Captain Xander addresses Shane's question. "Noted. I'll be sure to pack my best smile in preparation." Xander wasn't all that concerned. Bacta or no Bacta, the plan would still stand. He responds to Shane's request to leave. He answers, deadpan and with a snarky smile. "Would it stop you if I said no?" The slam of the automated door as the pilot left was all the answer he needed. The Captain sighs internally Well he's going to be just a goddamn BARREL of fun to deal with, isn't he? He thinks to himself, knowing the answer.
A few moments later, a ping goes off on his data pad, alerting him to a series of orders put in to the ship's repair droids by the defiant pilot himself. They were... Interesting, to say the least. "What is he...? Oh. Oh my. Shane, you sly son of a Rancore." Xander murmurs to himself under his breath, amused at the pilot's sheer audacity. He doesn't stop him, doubting he could if he tried. He left only a digital message in Shane's personal inbox for him to find later: [Nice pad. Make me a chaise longue with the scraps or I'll have you courtmartialed for destruction of private property. Shall I bring over some champagne to celebrate?] He's sure that Shane will appreciate the witticism in the combination congratulation/threat. He eases into the folds of his command chair once again. More than happy to spend the remaining 18 hours napping in it and milling about the ship's interior.

[shizukanashi]

"Then it's settled. We meet with the shipment and perform our job as instructed. We ask to be payed in excess Bacta in order to sell off to fencers in order to establish ourselves in the criminal underground. We also ask to be erased from any records they may have, to maintain anonymity. Should we encounter any pirates, they will be dealt with swiftly and bled dry for any and all information on the Shadowport and any other goings-on amongst those of the Criminal Persuasion. Any further questions?" The Captain asks in a tone that suggests he's already made up his mind.

Dixon gave a small grin. It was not the best plan, but finally the Captain was speaking with authority. The peacenik, spineless, rebel sympathizer that wanted everyone's nancy opinion was gone, replaced, at least for the moment with a leader. "No sir." He replied with a salute, and went about familiarizing himself with the weapon controls on the bridge.

I want to shoot stuff! Assuming Shane will be busy flying and dedicating his dice to that, there is the captains chair, a sensors station, a shields station, room for two pilots, and I assume 4 gunnery stations (2 for the ion cannons and two for the Turbolasers) when it comes down to ship to ship this is the station I claim. I want a turbolaser.

[roses]

An amalgamation of ideas between every crewman that had volunteered a thought, Amber smiled a little wider when a decision had been reached. The helmsman offered one final titbit to ensure their undertakings would go smoothly before offering her another bow. Gallant, she saw. She mentally shrugged off the quirk that he kept forgetting the other lieutenants, and contented herself with what was outside the crew's quirks and strengths.

Amber watched the beige lines as they blurred by the bridge, contemplating that most streaks were a star system with their own unique cultures and people. Do I speak their language? she wondered. Soon, she was rubbing her eyes, for all the streaks she had seen. Glancing around, she noted the bearish security officer diligently acquainting himself with a control panel. Not wanting to interrupt an important task being attend to, she likewise didn't care to return to her empty cabin and resume reading just yet. This was going to be a long trip not to make friends. She approached the taller blonde lieutenant.

“I never imagined I'd go from diplomat to civilian observer to pirate for hire in one day,” Amber said, excited. “Do you think a Jill of All Trades could help you with anything? I can value most droids accurately, understand binary as if I invented it, and I'm mean enough at an easter egg hunt that I'm legend among misplaced tools.” She smiled. “Besides, it'd be nice to hear what you make of all this, as partners in crime.”

Any excuse to make a friend?

[MandibleBones]

"Programming dictates that I inform you that it is somewhat common for mercenaries to hire on as escorts for Bacta transport," Winston informs you. "Thyferran policy attempts to make it more lucrative to escort vessels than to pirate them, with limited success as this continues to drive up the price of bacta. But I have registered us as such mercenaries, and there have been instances where mercenaries were paid in bacta in the past. I could not speculate as to whether that would be appropriate here."

[Capt. Infinity]

"Thank you Winston. Always good to have an informed opinion on the matter" Captain Xander states, happy that he now has some vindication behind his ideas.

[MandibleBones]

An hour before the Aegis prepares to drop out of hyperspace in the Thyferra system, Winston transmits the details of the escort mission you've arranged. Three bacta freighters, Zaltin Dream, Xucphra Rose, and Zaltin Glory, are bound for the Core Worlds. You are to escort them to Tallaan, where they will transfer off to another escort for travel out of the sector. Upon safe delivery, the ship will be paid 15,000 credits (5,000 for each freighter delivered safely to the rendezvous point). Payment in bacta is an option.

[Capt. Infinity]

Captain Xander receives the payment info, storing it on his personal holocron in case he should ever require it as leverage, setting it under his personal storage drive. Fitted with a dead man's switch he installed in both himself and his data storage devices years ago. Should he ever perish, or should the data pad ever be stolen, a signal would transmit and reformat the storage matrix before you could say 'Bantha Fodder!'. It was likely an unnecessary precaution. But his many years as a Errol Flynn-esque sky sailor has taught him to always be wary of one's belongings and secrets. He also messages the sender of the info that he would a) Like the ship to be paid in Bacta shipments, and b) Would like to speak with the orchestrator of this shipping run if at all possible, in order to discuss some finer points about the transaction itself.

[BananaPhone]

Having said little since The Gathering, Lieutenant Turok busied herself with several systems that required monitoring - but of course, not too in depth. Finding the reliance on machinery and automated systems slightly uncomfortable for her limited technical expertise, Jaysia consoled herself with observing several star-charts and familiarising herself with the various planets that would be surrounding their realm of adventure.

[NitariWindrider]

Just read back over the thread and discovered exactly how far behind I am. My last post was two pages ago, and some things have happened since. Please bear with me as I catch Trance up to the present.

Trance found herself on the bridge of the Aegis shortly before clearance was given for the ship to launch. It was somewhat more harrowing than the other times she'd been aboard a ship leaving dock, but not by much. The previous owners of the ship had left it in good repair, or at least as good as they could possibly do with what they had to hand. Most of the work she'd done was for her own peace of mind, but it was in her work she trusted rather than in the prior status of the ship. It was for this reason that she found herself very slightly worried as they left the dock and made the jump to lightspeed. Once they were safely away, she let herself relax a little. She'd known they weren't going to explode and die, of course, but her nerves were more at ease aboard a pristine ship-of-the-line than a heap like this one.

It's our heap now, like it or not, she thought to herself with no small trace of reluctance.

No sooner had they gotten underway, however, than a surprisingly intense conversation erupted among the gathered crew. Apparently the captain was given additional information regarding a shadow port that was outfitting rebel and JAN ships in the region, and they meant to search it out. She wasn't entirely sure what the difference was supposed to be between pirates and privateers in this particular case, but she didn't see it mattering in particular. What she did make note of was the weapons officer, who was growing more unpleasant in her taste the more he spoke, and the executive officer, who seemed perfectly willing to dig out the iron bar holding his spine straight although now he seemed anxious to beat people with it.

Lovely, she remarked silently, It's looking more and more like my best shot is with the droids...

As though her thoughts had been broadcast, the diplomat approached, commenting on the admittedly dizzying life changes that had happened that day. It was probably more jarring for a civilian than for an imperial officer. Trance wasn't a fan of her exile, but at least the oh so venerable Imperial Navy continued to make the same amount of sense to her as it always had.


"I never imagined I'd go from diplomat to civilian observer to pirate for hire in one day,” Amber said, excited. “Do you think a Jill of All Trades could help you with anything? I can value most droids accurately, understand binary as if I invented it, and I'm mean enough at an easter egg hunt that I'm legend among misplaced tools.” She smiled. “Besides, it'd be nice to hear what you make of all this, as partners in crime.”

Trance thought a moment before responding. She hadn't been expecting anyone to offer assistance in her duties. She smiled back.

"I-" she began. She was interrupted by a notification on her data pad, informing her that someone was commandeering droids. She arched a brow briefly, and entertained possessive thoughts while she returned to the matter at hand.

"Your offer of help is much appreciated," she said, her smile returning after its brief absence, "I have everything well in hand for the moment. As far as our situation goes, it's definitely not what I was expecting when I woke up this morning. I suppose as far as turns of fortune go it's better than what could have happened to us, but it looks like we'll be making the best of things from here on out. I can promise this ship will hold together for as long as I can manage it, although it'll be up to our captain as to how difficult the job will be for me. You're welcome in my engine room as long as you don't mess with anything you don't completely understand."

She spoke every word happily, counting on the diplomat to at least be able to fathom why she would be protective of that space. There was something to be said for having someone on the ship that didn't wear the uniform, and Trance fully intended to take advantage of it. They weren't going to be braiding each other's hair or anything, but having a girl around to talk to would go a long way toward making this particular voyage less stressful. That said, a silly question was burning in her mind for release.

"This may sound silly, but I'm curious. What did you think of the quarters? Even officer's quarters must seem pretty cramped to...someone who's used to more formal surroundings."

The pause was brief, but still somewhat noticeable. She'd almost said "a civilian" and had decided at the last possible moment to be a little nicer. The bias was mostly inherited, and almost entirely unfair, but difficult to shake regardless.

[Grif]

In the meantime, Sandor was coming to grips with his new station as an co-pilot. It would be some time before the TIE pilot would pay attention to anyone else on the bridge, so absorbed he was with learning on how to fly the ship properly.

[shizukanashi]

The trek to Thyferra takes a total of 18 hours with stop offs at Tamber, Lamuir, Alisandor, and Mrlsst, approximately every 4 hours or so. Luckily Winston seems fully automated and takes care of most of the day-to-day operations of the ship himself. Even Shane is able to catch a few winks, as astrogation and hyperjumps are completed by the droid brain. You rendezvous with the 3 ships just outside of Thyferra prime and a holo-transmission comes directly.

"Vessel Aegis, good to see you. I am Luca Bron captain of the Zaltin Dream, I believe you are our escort to Tallaan. It says here you wish to be paid in Bacta? Is that correct?" The man scoffs a bit, as he checks a holopad. "Most mercs I deal with prefer creds, but that can be arranged. As no doubt you were briefed most trouble seems to occur around Mrlsst, which is our first stop. Please make whatever preparations you need to depart, and we are ready when you are."

[Capt. Infinity]

Captain Xander, as promised, puts on his best smile. "Captain Bron, it's a pleasure." The Captain says, trying to make a good impression, despite himself. "I am Xander Sunstrider, Captain of the Aegis. If I may ask, who would I need to speak to if I wished to suss out some of the... Finer details of this transaction?" The Captain asks, trying to wrap up all loose ends as quickly as possible.

[shizukanashi]

"Well..the broader strokes were arranged with corporate and a member or your crew ah Mr. Winston. No doubt you have the contract draft." He glances down at his holopad then drops it to his side. "Though for finer details, well I am the highest ranking official on this expedition. The other captains answer to me."

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander smiles. "Ah, excellent! That saves me the time of tracking down the person in charge." He gives the man a friendly grin. "Is it at all possible that, when you eventually report back to your employers at your destination, that you could omit any incriminating data as towards the identity of this craft? We're new in this sector and, if we're going to entertain the possibility of encountering and neutralizing pirate vessels, we'd rather leave as little of a paper trail as possible. If there's anything I've learned in my career, it's make as many friends, and as few enemies, as physically possible. I'm sure you understand." He entertains to the Captain of the shipping vessel, hoping to appeal to his mutual understanding of their less-than-cushy lifestyle.

I'm pretty sure I'm gonna need this. First die is the wild die.

Persuasion: [roll0]

[shizukanashi]

Luca grins. "Of course Captain, your secret is safe with me...Now if we can be on our way?"

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander smiles. "Lead the way, Captain Bron. Let's get this show on the road."

[Toxic Mind]

Angel listens to the exchange with interest, if only because it went so much better than expected, provided the other captain kept his word. Yet the greater part of the struggle ahead was now before them. Angel steeled himself.

[shizukanashi]

Preparations made the trio of freighters make the jump to lightspeed, you follow only a few seconds behind them. The leg to Mylsst is the longest of the trip as it takes you from sector to sector rather than travel between systems located in the same sector.

Sure enough trouble arises quickly. Twenty minutes before you are scheduled to drop out of hyperspace a proximity alarm sounds. The tell-tale starlines of hyperspace abruptly shift to pinpoints as your ship reverts to realspace, listing to the right violently. A few laser blasts stream across your bow, apparently only a warning.

Your attention shifts to a large space barge in the distance. Locked in its tractor beam is a giant asteroid that it has maneuvered into the hyperspace lane. Clearly the cause of your sudden drop from hyperspace. The three freighters appear to be fine but they are now joined by a trio of skipray blastboats and a smaller frieghter.

"Attention convoy. This is the JAN privateer captain Bomu Veng. Your cargo is bound for the core worlds and as such constitutes a valid military target in our fight against the invading forces of the Empire. Drop your cargo and you are free to go. Failure to comply will result in boarding and arrest."

[Capt. Infinity]

Before anyone can act, Xander slams his fist on the response hailing button. For a moment, all is silent, the Captains face a stoic expression. And then, he says this. "Arrest? Arrest?? BahahahahahahahahahahaHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!" Captain Xander laughs with an insane fervor, quite literally falling out of his chair whilst clutching his sides. "HAHAhahahahaaaa... Oh that's rich. See, child I think you might need a Basic lesson with this one. Winston!" He says, crawling back into his chair and calling out to the ship's AI. Immediately afterwards a hologram containing a long series of words appears from the arm of the Captain's chair, it appears to be a page from a standardized dictionary. "Arrest: To seize someone by legal authority and take into custody. Do you see the point of contention here? Last time I checked, insane terrorists hell bent on domination via obliteration didn't get to HAVE any sort of "authority" on anything!" The Captain declares,his smile only broken by the tiniest sliver of abject fury forming behind his eyes, and at the corners of his mouth.

"Also, I'm sorry, 'a valid military target'? These freighters are transporting medical supplies. You know, the thing that governments use to keep the citizens you purport to protect alive? But no, of course you didn't think of that. 'Because if it belongs to the Empire, it HAS to be evil! And must be confiscated. It's not like we're DAMNING THOUSANDS to die because of poor medical care, because we're the Good Guys! We can't do ANY WRONG!'." Xander pantomimes, pouring every ounce of vitriol he can muster into the purposefully bad "gung-ho soldier" impression he was making. The best way to describe the Captain's disposition at this current juncture would be "Perturbed, bordering on livid". And yet, he stood stock still. Still patient, still pleasant, and still with a winning smile.

"I think it's high time I gave my OWN ultimatum. If you honestly, truly, and sincerely with all of your heart believe that you are fighting a fight worth dying for, and working towards a better world for all, then you're going to let us pass with these medical supplies, instead of dooming innumerable civilians to oblivion. Because, right now, I know exactly one thing: My crew and I are being payed upon arrival with the freighters AND the Bacta they carry, therefore, should we fail to deliver it, we will not be payed. And the absolute LAST thing you want to do right now, is get between me, my crew, and our payment. Do you understand?" As this is going on, Captain Xander silently gives Shane and Sandor the standard pilot's handsign for "Spool Up the Weapons". A little skill he picked up on how to do in his many years of high-flying adventure and Captaining sky and spacecrafts.

Now I know this may SOUND like a threat but, at its heart, this is Xander's attempt to appeal to Captain Veng's sense of decency. So here's yet another roll of Persuasion. Fingers crossed! [roll0]

[Toxic Mind]

Angel pats the sidearm he requisitioned from the armory. He was a handy shot with ship batteries as well, but there was no need for his talents just yet. He could wait.

[Grif]

Sandor nods, and starts powering up the weapons. And these weapons were a damn pay grade higher than the laser cannons he was used to in his TIE.

[shizukanashi]

"I am sorry Captain. That answer is incorrect. ENGAGE!" at his order two blastboats break away and begin firing on your ship. The third stays with the freighters and fires on them.

[Capt. Infinity]

"Blast it!" Captain Xander shouts, furious at the enemy's disregard for sentient life. "Sandor! Shane! Get past those two blastboats and aim for the one attacking the freighters. Disregarding everything else we NEED those shipments alive! Jaysia! Angel! Give me options!" The Captain shouts, sinking firmly into both his chair, and the occupation it entails.

[Toxic Mind]

We can take a few hits Captain. Protect the freighters, then turn on the other two with our combined strength. With our limited crew we have little hope of boarding. We may be able to minimize damage by strafing the blastboat on the convoy before whipping around to take those on our tail.

[shizukanashi]

Blue electric light plays over all surfaces as the skiprays blasts hit your ship, Ion blasts. The low hum of the engines die and systems shut down. The cockpit goes dark as only auxiliary lights remain.

You comm systems crackle as Captain Veng speaks. This time all you have is a radio signal since your vid screen is down. "I admire your tenacity captain, and your concern for the citizens of the Empire, truly admirable. However, this shipment is ear-marked for bigger things. You did call my bluff though, well done. I don't have the time or the manpower to board you, so I shall let you go as soon as I have my Bacta. My advice, in the future is to make sure you are on the right side of this. This sector belongs to the people of Tapani NOT the Empire. Take care, captain."

The second skipray breaks off and returns to the freighters, but the first positions itself to fire again should your ship recover from ionization.

Shortly after another radio signal comes. It is Luca Brom. "They are threatening to destoy us and you unless I drop the cargo. Unless you have some grand plan that seems to me the best course of action. Please advise."

[Toxic Mind]

"Captain. With those Ion Cannons they can tear every ship in this convoy to shreds and take what they want. We cannot force them into a fight we cannot win. However, if Captain Brom places a tracker aboard the Bacta shipment, we can use ti to track the JAN back to their base, and engage them on our terms. The choice is yours, but the JAN have proven that they will slaughter every person here in their pursuit of misguided victory."

[Capt. Infinity]

"Blast it!" Were the only words that Captain Xander could utter in response to being utterly neutralized in a single move. The fight had been lost before it could start! As he lay his head in his hands, he scantly managed to hear Angel's response through his growing shame. The idea risked innocent lives, and he had already failed to be effective on that front... And yet...

"My God... That's it! Angel, you want them tracked? I can do you one better!" He exclaims, hitting the radio response button, the only point of light on his now blank control panel. "Captain Veng!" Xander shouted, his voice manic and ecstatic. "You're right, this sector does belong to the people of Tapani. And I do want to fight for the right side, I always have, and I always will. So why don't you let me?" He asked, leaning forward in his chair. "I want to know where you people call home. Lord knows I'd feel safer there than I EVER have in an Imperial city. Your conviction astounds me, and you've earned my respect. All I ask, is that you give me a chance for you to earn my loyalty as well"

He stops, letting his proposition hang in the air, hoping to all who would listen that the fish would take the bait.

FORCE POINT BABY! Persuasion X2: [roll0]

[shizukanashi]

Captain Veng seems overcome with a force of goodwill and he answers. "As it turns out, I could use some more men for a special mission. If you succeed, I might let you join my crew. Stay put and I will introduce you to my father when we are done here."

The skipray that was guarding your ship breaks off and eventually power returns to your ship. The freighters jettison the bacta and the large ship with the tractor beam begins to gather it up.

"You are free to go." Veng's voice again comes over the comms, this time on an open channel intended for the trio of freighters. "Captain of the escort, you can rendezvous with us at these coordinates where we can discuss your initiation."

A set of Nav coordinates accompany the message.

The frieghters make final prep to jump as the pirates gather up the remaining bacta tanks, and prepare for there own jump. Which vector you follow is up to you.

[Capt. Infinity]

"Thank you, Captain Veng. It would be my pleasure" Captain Xander says, before taking his hand off the response key and talking to everyone on the bridge. "Someone key up a private message to the freighter's Chief Captain. Quote: Dear Captain Luca Bron. The Empire thanks you for your sacrifice. For reimbursing, please contact Imperial Shipyard Commander Ros Sefari. Tell him The Aegis has made significant steps towards our goal, and we will contact him shortly. As I said before, keep it hush hush. For your safety and mine." He turns to Angel and Jaysia. "Unless either of you have any objections, I suggest we follow Captain Veng." He states, wondering how the crew at large will handle this sudden forward lurch in their plans.

[shizukanashi]

The jump to the coordinates Veng gave you takes a little over 3 hours. Winston informs you that they match up to the Planet Hellios in the Barnaba providence. Sure enough, when you arrive at the toe rendezvous A you are just outside the orbit of the green and blue planet. The smaller pirate vessel is here, but the large freighter and the trio of skiprays are not.

"You wanted to see my home. Here it is. Follow me, there is someone I want you to meet." The ship then heads for the planet.

Hellios does not look like an ideal spot for the shadowport or as an HQ for the JAN. It is a bustling planet with a number of large cities and records indicate it is loyal to the Empire. The ship flies over a large city and heads strait to the largest building, a massive palace complete with fountains, forever pools, and well kept hedges. It is a place as rich and lavish as Cloud City.

Vengs ship lands on a large pad next to an extravagant chrome plated space barge as big as the Aegis. It is a pristine Space Yacht that harkens back to the age of the Old Republic. In today's age such ships are nearly extinct. There is ample room for you to land as well.

[shizukanashi]

Upon landing Captain Veng greets you on the deck. He is a dashing young man with a youthful grin underneath a spun and curled mustache. With him is a shiny jade-green protocol droid as polished and pristine as the yacht. "This is my droid H-3PO."

"It is most assuredly a pleasure to meet your acquaintances. My master has been most forthright and has instructed me to treat you as patrons of the family, a most honorable position if I must say so myself. I am to see to your every need for your short stay here on Hellios. No request may be refused. I do hope this arrangement is to your liking."

Veng smiles at the cordial formalities of the droid then smiles enthusiastically "Come on now, you must meet my father! I have already reached him via Holonet. He is expecting you." He practically skip toward a set of double doors leading into the palace.

"After you my masters." H-3PO gestures.

[shizukanashi]

Veng leads you through the palace and eventually to another set of double doors, before he can open it from this side, it opens from the opposite side and a burly Herglic (http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Herglic) rushes through. He bumps shoulders with Xander and gives him a menacing stare down complete with a snarl, before carrying on his way.

You enter a large room draped with tapestries most bearing the insignia of House Barnaba (http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/House_Barnaba). The richly furnished room has a central audience space surrounded on three sides by deep alcoves. The first is directly in front of you, and one each to you left and right. Each has a wide raised dais, and a throne upon it. A large man perhaps in his 60's with deep eyes and a mop of dark brown hair that is slowly going gray occupies the alcove directly in front of you. A trio of identical blue feathered Mrlssi (http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Mrlssi) attend to him. A pair of House Guard (http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/House_Guard) flank this alcove.

The alcove to your right is occupied by a dark-haired man who is clearly the son of the man in front of you. Though this man is slimmer and more fit than his father, he clearly has his vices. His eyes are glazed over, and he has a hookah pipe in one hand and a tall glass of wine in the other. He shares his dais with a pair of Herglics who are laughing and joking with each other. The Heglic at the door quickly returns, with a cask of wine under each arm. The four of them immediately open them and refill their glasses. They laugh and joke in Herglese.

The alcove to the left is empty.

H-3PO announces you and makes introductions. "My master and the head of the ruling family on Hellios Lord Augustus Poporo." He indicates the man directly in front of you. "Masterful Lord Poporo, may I present to you the Captain of the Aegis and his crew. Captain Xander."

[Capt. Infinity]

"A pleasure to meet you, Lord Poporo." Captain Xander says, bending a knee in order to bow. If there was one thing he knew, it's don't piss off the nobles! "As was just stated, my name is Captain Xander Sunstrider, and this is my crew." He states, swaying back both hands to gesture behind him in a moderate display of pride. "I believe it would be best that they introduce themselves, what do you say friends?" Xander asks, turning to face the party whilst simultaneously loudly mouthing out DO NOT EMBARRASS US to his crew, out of the view of the lord and either of his sons.

[shizukanashi]

Lord Poporo waves his hand, "That is unnecessary Captain. I am not one for lengthy introductions, I wish to get right to the heart of the matter." He clears his throat preparing himself for negotiations. "The Planet Sefon is beset by a deadly disease and has been quarantined by the Empire. No one gets on or off the Planet without its permission. I have business interests on Sefon."

He pauses a moment for dramatic effect. "I want you to take the bacta my adopted son recently aquired to Sefon. The people there are suffering. I have already begun to alter it to serve as an antidote to the disease, a simple injection should cure the disease, or serve as a vaccine to prevent others from becoming sick. I understand Bomu has already promised you a reward for this task, but I am prepared to sweeten the deal. Are you and your crew willing to do this for me and the people of the Tapini sector?"

[NitariWindrider]

Oh yes, it had definitely been an interesting day. Trance had gone back to her post in the engine room after they'd set out to meet the transports they had been asked to escort, and was ordering droids about when the ship was disabled. Nearly everything in the area was useless, and the battle had only been going for a minute at most. All she could do was sit tight and wait for the system to kick back on. Once things became responsive again, the captain set a new course and fired up the engines. With everything now working properly, she left the droids to watch over the engines and headed forward to find out what was going on. Apparently they had left the transports behind and were following someone else. It didn't take much to suss out what had happened while she had been otherwise occupied, and on some level she admired the captain's ability to improvise.

When they'd landed, they were greeted rather warmly and escorted inside to see the father of the captain of the ship that had attacked them. A rather well placed person by the look of the place. The second they walked into the throne room she started evaluating whom among the gathered people could be useful and who could be manipulated into becoming so. Three people stood out to her, and each would require a different tactic to bend. The dark haired man to the right was exactly as he appeared: the drunken son of the lord. He was the type that a good seduction would work just fine on. She could have him around her finger before they got back to the ship. The lord himself was very different. He seemed to be a somewhat honest person by Trance's estimations, respecting forthright dealings in business and politics and anything that sounded like a good deal in either. Captain Veng, however, was the most interesting of the three. His looks didn't resemble his father's and the difference in name suggested perhaps he hadn't been a legitimate child. While he looked more responsible than his (half?) brother, Veng still seemed to be able to enjoy himself if the scenario was laid out properly. His clothing was stylish and fit with the nobility, but that and the way he carried himself suggested that flattery would yield excellent headway in the man's estimations. More interesting still was an item hanging from his hip. There, with no effort taken to conceal its presence, was a lightsaber! Not only were they hard to come by, but any self respecting Imperial officer would gleefully ruin a man's day for even seeming to possess one, much less carrying one openly. It so happened that the situation was working rather favorably for the brash captain, but his boldness further reinforced Trance's opinion of him.

Captain Xander was just about to let them introduce themselves when the lord waved them off and spoke of a quarantined planet beset by a terrible disease. The bacta they had stolen was being modified to serve as a treatment and vaccine for this illness, and they were being asked to deliver it to the people who needed it. Trance approached the captain as subtly as possible and spoke very quietly in his ear, keeping her words between them.

"Captain, Lord Poporo looks like he respects both honesty and a good deal in business and politics. Play it as straight as possible. His goodwill is going to be worth more to us than money or goods."

She couldn't call his attention to Veng's little treasure just yet, but she'd be sure to inform him of that and the rest of her estimations once the situation allowed for more in depth conversation.

[Capt. Infinity]

Captain Xander, silently acknowledging Trance's advice, puts on a generous face. "We would be honoured to help in such a noble cause my Lord. When can we start?"

[shizukanashi]

"Wonderful. Of course," Lord Poporo continues "Were it as simple as that I would have anyone of my house guard complete the task. There is another matter on Sefon I need to address. One that would surely draw suspicion were I to send a house member with the medicine. You see, I have three children Baron Zonnos Poporo here is my eldest." He indicates the man in the other alcove who gives a belch as a form of introduction, much to the delight of his Herglic entourage who hoot and holler. "My adopted son Sir Bomu Veng, whom you have already met, has long served my house as a trusted Knight." Veng gives a smile as he twirls his mustache.

"My youngest, Baroness Mika Poporo is on Sefon taking care of house business. Since the quarantine was imposed and the blockade put in place, there has been no word from her. The Empire has been less than forthcoming with information, and it is not interested in the troubles of a concerned parent. I want you to land on Sefon, deliver the bacta as planned, but from there your task will be to find Mika. She is young and...impulsive. I worry for her well-being. Can I trust you with this more delicate request?"

[Capt. Infinity]

Captain Xander's smile redoubles. "Now, this may come as a surprise to you, my Lord. But rescuing reckless damsels in distress is something I have a surprisingly great deal of experience in!" He explains, chuckling at old memories. "If there's anyone who can find your daughter, it's the crew of the Aegis. You can count on us, Lord Poporo. On my honour as a Captain, we'll rescue your daughter, or die trying."

The Captain is feeling exceedingly mixed feelings at the moment. On the one hand, these people were spitting in the face of Empire law by allying with the JAN. On the other hand... They were rescuing a dying planet. Yes, they had they're own reasons, but they were still curing a planet of a seemingly easily-curable plague where the Empire left them to die. Now, however, was not the time to ruminate on such borderline treasonous thoughts. For now, Xander bows towards the Lord. He had given his word, and he thoroughly planned to take his word to the grave, if need be.

[NitariWindrider]

The drunkard was introduced as Baron Zannos Poporo, and gave a belch by way of acknowledgement that delighted his entourage.

Charming... she thought sarcastically, carefully concealing the look of disgust she wanted to make.

"Ugh..." she said quietly, unaware that it had made it that far past her mind, "Definitely wouldn't take long, but I don't know if I'd ever feel clean again..."

Fortunately her unintentionally vocalized commentary was in a low voice, but if the next man to be introduced was paying close enough attention he might have faintly overheard her speaking. That would be bad. Blissfully ignorant, Trance's attention drifted towards Sir Bomu Veng, introduced as an adopted son and trusted knight. That would explain both the lack of family resemblance and the open carry. Oh, and that reminded her...

"Captain, his hip," she said nonchalantly for Captain Xander's ears only. By not sounding alarmed, she hoped he wouldn't be so startled as to look at the lightsaber openly and with startled demeanor. Belatedly, she realized that her comment was vague enough that he wouldn't necessarily think to be subtle about it. Too late to do something about it now. She'd just have to trust in her captain's control of himself.

Lord Poporo went on to discuss his youngest, Mika.

So his interests aren't so sterile after all...

Her captain's lightly arrogant response almost makes her laugh aloud. He had this swashbuckling demeanor that made him such a natural pirate, and she found it a little comical whenever he got chances like this to trot it out. Naval discipline won out in the end, of course, but she allowed herself a very small smile. She wasn't entirely pleased about the idea of crossing an Imperial quarantine, but this job was a pretty easy way to win their way into a position of greater esteem. Besides, if the baroness was at all amenable to friendly overtures, her opinions might carry some weight with dear old dad.

[shizukanashi]

Oh most excellent! I will have Bomu supply you with the last known coordinates of my daughter. Zonnos has already attempted to strike a deal for Mika release, but the Empire was unyielding. It is my hope that you may be able to negotiate your way onto the planet using the medicine as a bargaining tool, but it is doubtful. You will most likely have to run the blockade. The Star Destroyer Fist of the Empire is currently enforcing the quarantine, along with a full compliment of fighters and assault craft. Please try your best not to damage relations between the Empire and my house. The less ruffled feathers the better."

As for your payment. I understand you already have a ship, but I would be more than happy to give you one of my excess freighters as payment. If you wish to use said freighter for the trip to Sefon, I could even have my men go over the Aegis and see about upgrades while you are away. Of course if you would rather use your own ship, I completely understand. In that case, I can reward you handsomely if you keep my interests in mind, say 50,000 credits? That and of course my gratitude."

[Toxic Mind]

Angel listens carefully. He does not wish to give up the Aegis, for a multitude of reasons, the primary one being that there were still Imperial Uniforms hidden aboard the ship. Secondly, when it came to dismantling the JAN, having a ship that could wield the firepower the Aegis could would be important. Angel notes the two sons of the man before them, and the lightsaber. There was no way this man was a Jedi Knight. Angel had met his share of Jedi, and whatever his weapon claimed, he was none. Which meant that this lord long had taken it from a Jedi, a laudable goal given their betrayal of the Empire. Still, it make Angel suspicious.

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander, whilst flattered at the offer, kindly declines. Whilst that is ever-so kind of you, my Lord. The Aegis was a gift from a dear friend, and a recently given one. I'd rather my crew keep it as close to their hearts as possible. We will, however, gladly take you up on your offer of alternate payment by credits." He bows once more, taking the time to give a sidelong glance at Captain Veng to see what the fuss was all abou-OH DEAR LORD THAT'S A LIGHTSABER! Slowly rising from his bow, the Captain keeps his composure as steady as he can, asking the Captain in that sort of mild interest that goads forth bragging. "My, my, my! That's quite the piece of hardware you're carrying about Captain Veng. There's GOT to be a story behind that one!" He states, hoping this man was as proud of himself as he looked.

[shizukanashi]

Your business concluded with Lord Poporo, Captain Veng again takes over as your escort around the palace grounds. After thanking Lord Poporo he shuffles you out of the audience chamber. When you mention his weapon he smiles. "My light foil? Hahaha. I can see you are not from Tapini are you?" He pulls the weapon from his hip, and you can see it is not nearly as well made as a Jedi weapon. "Many many years ago my parents house, my true parents house was House Pelagia, the were well known to have a great number of Jedi among them. Young nobles like myself were fascinated by the elegant weapons, and a custom of dueling became a tradition among the nobles. With the Jedi purge and the arrival of the Empire any of the original ancient weapons are long gone. Techically lightfoils are illegal too, but not to the level where Vader will be coming to kill you. No likely anyone caught by the Empire with a working foil will face a fine, and perhaps prison if you can not pay it, but I have even heard of instances where Imperials allowed the Noble to keep the weapon after paying the fee. Anyway since the Jedi Purge and the crack down has been severe, it is still a tradition among young nobles in the Tapani sector. Most carry non-working replicas as a status symbol, and the Empire looks the otherway." He fiddles with a pendant around his neck and pulls a small yellow crystal from it. "Of course, resourceful clingers of tradition like myself, have secret ways to activate their non-functioning replicas." He places the crystal in a small secret nook and ignites the weapon. The blade is thin and narrow, like a long switch rather than a powerful Jedi weapon. The yellow blade flickers and cracks though the hum is louder and more intense. It is almost as if the weapon is struggling against itself to stay on or was activated underwater. This is a blade made in a factory, it lacks the precision and craftsmanship of a trained Jedi Knight's weapon. "I had proven myself to be a fine dueler in my youth anyway, now it is barely a hangover from my adolescence."

Veng shuts the lightfoil off and returns the hidden crystal to his pendant. "Anyway," He hands you a data pad "Information on Sefon, Mika, the disease, the blockade, etc. I took the liberty of putting it together for you, it may be useful to know what you are up against. We can start loading the bacta as soon as you are ready. You should be able to leave by mid afternoon." He walks as he talks and you realize he has led you to a warehouse where the bacta is being altered. A number a workers stand by ready to load the crates onto your ship. He picks up a small pouch on one of the crates. Out of it he pulls a device that looks half hypodermic needle, half starting pistol. "One last thing you will need your shots."

[Capt. Infinity]

Captain Xander instinctively puts his hand to his own pendant, where a remarkably similar crystal of a seemingly impossible purple-green hue rested, unsuspectingly. The sense of utter kinship with the moustacheod Captain was astonishing. "A light foil huh. What an... Interesting weapon. Perhaps you can teach me sometime? I have a propensity towards foilplay myself." He says, resting his right palm on the hilt of his Vibro-Saber. He gives a curious eyebrow lift towards the injection device. He puts his hand out nonetheless. The Captain must always set a good example, after all. "Not to cast any doubt on your medical staff, Captain Veng. But how do we know this stuff will work?" He asks, genuinely curious.

[shizukanashi]

"Its a highly developed vaccine, that has been proven effective against all manner of diseases. The plague on Seton is similar to one encounteredhere on Hellios a few years back. It proved effective then." He attaches a vial of medicine to the injector. Curiously the bacta has turned from light blue to a bright orange. He injects your arm and readies another dose as he speaks. "We mix a rare spice with it, thus the color. The protein should last for roughly 30 days only though. Still it should be able to cure the disease in an affected individual, and serve as a vaccine for those not yet exposed, such as yourself."

He goes about injecting everybody who wishes, and does not insist but only chuckles at anyone who refuses. "You will change your mind when you start bleeding from you eyes." He says.

Please let me know if you take the vaccine or not, either here or in the OOC thread.

Once he finishes he returns the injector to the bag along with ten vials and hand the whole thing to Xander. "Here are a few doses for your personal use. You might be able to use these to barter for information with the local population, people will be desperate. Just make sure you save TWO doses for Mila, my father wants to take no chances with her safety."

[Capt. Infinity]

"Can do. Leave two for the lovely missus, Gotcha. I assume you have a method of mass transfer in order to get it to all the people of the planet before the vaccine loses potency?" Captain Xander asks, making casual conversation as he rolls his sleeve back down, and takes the bag of spares.

[NitariWindrider]

Trance listens attentively to the conversation at hand, but contributes nothing. Not only does she not really have anything of great value to contribute, but even so she wouldn't want to undermine Xander's authority as captain. Not yet, at least. While she has reservations about allowing someone who was an enemy mere hours earlier, she accepts the vaccine. The trust has to start somewhere, even as short lived as it might yet prove to be.

I'm hoping you know what you're doing, Captain, she comments to herself.

[Toxic Mind]

Angel takes the antidote, but pockets it for later. He's not going to take it in front of their 'hosts', and certainly not before he's had a med droid examine it.

[Grif]

Sandor shrugs, and accepts the vaccine as well. Can't be worse than piloting a starfighter. :smalltongue:

[shizukanashi]

It takes most of the rest of the day to modify and load the Bacta onto the Aegis. When you are ready to leave you are surprised that it is Baron Zonnos Poporo rather than Captain Veng who meets you in on the landing pad to see you off. He appears to still be slightly drunk and perhaps a bit hung over, but most of his inebriation and lack of decorum from this morning has passed. He is joined by two of his Herglic companions, who also seem to be much better behaved. "I wanted to apologize for my behavior earlier, it was unbecoming of a noble." He looks genuinely embarrassed, and seems to be humbled with the idea of admitting his wrong doing. "I have also come to wish you luck. You will be going into a dangerous situation and I wanted you to know you have the support of my entire family." He hesitates again, but seems to gather himself and push through the conversation. "However, should you fail to find my sister, or heaven forbid, you find her too late to save her. As tragic as that would be for me and my family. I want you to know that you will still have an ally here." He gives a friendly wink with his words. "I trust I am being clear in this matter?"

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander's face is the coldest smile anyone could possibly conceive. "Crystal. Tell me, Zonnos, would you like to have a look at my sword?" Without prompting, the Captain unsheathes his Vibro-Sabre, holding it perpendicular to himself and the Baron, with the blades edge facing the Baron head on. "A fine piece of craftsmanship, don't you think? But its true merit does not come from its perfection, but from its scars. Take a look here, for instance." He gestures to a series of straight slash marks along the centre of the blade. "These marks are from when I duelled a slaver Captain for 2 hours straight in order to give my companions time to get every prisoner on board off and to safety. His blade took hundreds of slashes to break, but his neck came off much more easily. Or here, on the tip of the blade." He motions to an odd bit of discolouration on the end of the sabre. "That mark was one of the many scars I accrued taking down a series of dirty sky police Law Enforcement Officers back on my home planet. This scar in particular was acquired after I lanced the main power conduit for the propulsion system of a Senior Officer's light air skimmer. The sword, and I, thankfully survived the encounter. But the Officer, and his datapad full of blackmail on the good council members of the local mining city, weren't quite so lucky. But this one, this mark right here, has got to be my absolute FAVOURITE." The mark in question is a rather large piece of plasma scarring about two thirds of the way down the blade, it glistens authoritatively. "This mark was the only scar I have to remember a fight I had, in which I single-handedly took down a cyborg Wookie berserker." As Xander says this, he eyes the Hurglics, giving them a stare that could drop a Bantha dead. He maintains eye contact with the Baron as he continues, his eyes seemingly never blinking. "The Wookie was the chief enforcer for a sky pirate who'd stolen all the women and children from a frontier town for leverage to profit from their mining operations. He and I fought for what must have been an hour at least. He swung, I swung, he lashed out, I countered, on and on for what felt like eternity. He's well within the Baron's personal space at this point, his eyes a burning torrent of green. "I finally managed to best him, however, by cutting his robotic arm off and kicking him off the skyship, the just-barely deflected blast from one of his inbuilt plasma cannons on his arm leaving the scar you see here." Xander takes a step back, admiring the sword now with a sense of loving endearment.

"The stories are rather disparate and distinct, I know. But the lesson they teach I feel is rather the same." He sheaths his blade as loudly as he can. "I keep my promises. Baron Zonnos. And I do not suffer the selfish lightly. I gave my word that I would do EVERYTHING in my power to bring the Lord's daughter home safely, and intend to do exactly that. Whether or not she is beyond saving is up to the fates alone. So you better be counting your lucky stars, Zonnos Poporo, because your dreams of usurpation will see no help from me." Captain Xander Sunstrider turns on a dime, and, with one final swish of his crimson cape, walks up the gangplank onto his ship. "I trust you'll have a pleasant day. Son of Lord Poporo."

[shizukanashi]

Zonnos feigns innocence. "Of course you will keep your word, I had little doubt. I have only come to wish you luck with this mission, friend. I am most pleased to know you are the right man for the job, one simply can not put a price on family." He gives a smile then also turns to walk away with his lackeys in tow, but he stops short.

"Oh captain," He turns hoping to gather your attention. "It is truly a fine blade you possess. Perhaps some day we can have a friendly spar, and you can teach me some of your fine sword work." He lifts his robes to reveal that he too carries a lightfoil. Though his words are sweet and honeyed, you get the sense that he does not like to be threatened, and has issued a threat in response.

[Capt. Infinity]

Captain Xander pauses near the top of the gangway and turns halfway to Zonnos, giving him a sidelong smirk that's angled in a way as if to give the man fangs. "That sounds... Delicious." The Captain says, both calling the Baron's bluff and acknowledging his backbone and worth as a fighter. Before turning up to the ship to prop for launch.

[NitariWindrider]

Trance found the remainder of the day largely dull. She would have liked to find a new hat or lay some groundwork with the lord's son, but she found an opportunity for neither. She was about to give up on the day when Zonnos appeared to see them off. She was about to respond cordially to the man's words when her captain responded instead abs with a very different tone than she was about to take.

She stood and watched the confrontation, fully expecting Xander to skewer the drunkard outright, and was relieved when no violence ensued. The captain was walking up the ramp, implying that he expected everyone to follow suit. Before she followed Xander, she gave Zonnos an inviting smile and a conspiratorial wink. No reason to give up on him being potentially useful as yet, although she'd have to ask Xander what he'd seem in the drunkard that she hadn't. That done, she went up the ramp to begin her prelaunch checks.

[shizukanashi]

Zonnos returns the smile, and does his best to charm Trance in return in the short time they lock eyes.

The Tapani sector is difficult to navigate through. Shifting dust clouds and changing nebula make astrogation more difficult. One can not usually jump directly to a new destination, without great difficulty. Rather one must get a new set of data from local transponders on and around each system. These transponders have the latest data of the changes to the surrounding space. Using these buoys It is easy enough to make smaller Hyperspace jumps from system to system.

You make the first jump back the Mrlsst System, and arrive very near to where you first encountered Captain Veng and his pirates. Luckily the buoy here says the Shapani Bypass is especially clear today, and you are able to bypass the Alisandor System, and jump directly to Lamuir. The trip will take a few hours however.

The time is sufficient for Angel to visit the medical ward, where a 2-1B Medical Droid awaits his instructions. "Lieutenant Commander Tavish, welcome to the Medical Bay." He chirps.

It is only a matter of minutes for the droid to run tests on the vials Tavish brings him. The results are all the same. It appears to be as you were told. The vials all contain a vaccine engineered to combat a number of diseases and ailments. It is perfectly safe and effective for inoculation.

[Toxic Mind]

As the results come back, Angel inwardly sighs with relief. "Thank you, two-one be. Your assistance in this matter is most appreciated." Angel takes the vaccines with him as he leaves, injecting himself with one. He was glad that their 'hosts' had proven trustworthy enough to not give them tainted or altered vaccines. Angel made his way to the bridge.

"Captain, I had the medical droids run tests on the vaccines and cross-reference them with the one I was explicitly given. It seems we were told the truth, and things are as they appear to be, at least where the vaccines are concerned. I saw you speaking with the Baron Zonnos. Anything of consequence, or more drunken idiocy?" Angel had made his way to the med-bay immediately upon leaving the meeting hall to deliver the samples, returning only in time to catch sight of the last few words, not to hear them.

[shizukanashi]

The final jump takes you from Lamuir to your destination Sefon. The mottled orange orb floats in the black just beyond your vid screen. It does not look like the most hospitable place even without the plague. It is dry and dusty, and the orange color comes from sand and desert. The planet is not to different from Tatooine. You begin to make your approach when suddenly your transciever crackles with the signal of an incoming message.

"Attention IPV, this is Captain Alastare of the Imperial Star Destroyer Fist of the Empire. I do not recognize your transponder code. What is your business here? The planet Sefon is under quarantine. No landings by unathorized crafts are allowed. Divert your heading or my escort fighters will redirect you to the Fist of the Empire. Please respond."

[Capt. Infinity]

Captain Xander is currently busying himself by testing out the myriad bells and whistles on his Captain's Chair when Angel walks in. He listens intently to the XO's statement, and responds in turn. "Ah, good to hear! Not that I actually doubted their efficacy or their honesty. I couldn't tell you why I trust them, I guess I just sort of... had a feeling. You know?" His normally jovial brow furrows at the mention of Baron Zonnos and his offer. "Sadly no. It seems he had decided to trade in his drunken idiocy for sober villainy. Would you believe? The man tried to bribe me into seeing that his own sister didn't make it back home alive! He had the nerve to come right up to my face and ask, nay, EXPECT me to lay down my values and all that I stand for just on the grounds of the possibility of a "noble" favour somewhere down the line. The gall of some people!"

The Captain's fervent revere is swiftly cut short, however, when he hears the statement come in through the comm channels. And in an instant, he is back wearing the face of the dutiful Captain. A face he's spent years cultivating for just such an occasion. He opens the most secure channel he has access to. "There is no need for that, Captain. My name is Captain Xander Sunstrider of the Imperial Navy, identification code 7-7-7. I am here on covert business for the upper ranks of the Empire, and it is imperative that you allow us to pass unhindered. If you would be so kind as to allow us further entry without further questioning, that would be much appreciated. I'm sure there's a commendation in it for you if you let this go smoothly." Xander says, putting on a winning smile.

Now, I'm not quite sure exactly how many Character Points I have right now, but I'm going to use one on this roll. First two dice are Wild. Persuasion: [roll0]

[shizukanashi]

There is a slight pause in the conversation as Alastare runs your identity code. Finally the squawk box responds. "Do not dare to command me, Captain. I run this blockade and I answer directly to Moff Gustavu. You are flying an Imperial Navy vessel with a scrubbed transponder code, uninvited in restricted airspace. Your identity code checks out, or I would have already opened fire. Now change your course. In fact, dock with my Star Destroyer, I would like to speak with you personally."

With that the transmission ends and attempts to reach the Fist of the Empire go unanswered. A pair of TIE/LN's fall in to each side of your ship and forcibly attempt to steer you away from the planet and toward the Star Destroyer.

[Capt. Infinity]

".......................Darn." Is all the Captain can muster in response.
"Well Angel, any advice?" Xander asks, already formulating his story and how to phrase it in order to get out of this whilst pleasing everyone.

[Toxic Mind]

"We still have our uniforms. I think its about time we reminded them that we are Imperial Navy, whatever the transponder may say. I'll have the crew back into uniforms an at stations. We can't run from this, but we can certainly talk our way out and through." Angel says. He knew keeping the uniforms around would be handy. And now, it seemed, they might just save their lives. "We cannot delay too long, or the vaccine will lose effectiveness. Respect, but do not allow him to detain us for long. Our mission takes precedence over his. Whatever your play, I will back it."

[Capt. Infinity]

Captain Xander gives a warm, genuine grin. "Thank you Angel, that means a lot to me. Good idea on the uniforms as well, the man clearly loves his procedure. And don't worry too much about my 'play'. Trust me, by the end of our parlay, he'll be begging to help us." He says, rising from his chair and dusting himself off, before heading off to his quarters to find his rank emblem and code cylinders. He's not about to change out of his armour to please the Captain, besides, there was something to be said for a man ever-prepped in his battle fatigues. But the least he could do is wear the rank and cylinders to make him look at least slightly more "Official".

[shizukanashi]

Deciding to cooperate, at least for now you fall into formation with the TIE fighters and they escort you to the docking bay of the newer model Star Destroyer. The mark ii Imperial Vessel appears to be maintaining orbit over Tel Bollin, a massive city atop a large mesa and visible from space on the surface of the planet. It is the only settlement of any merit, and the ideal spot to begin your search. The rest of the planet is covered with rusty mountains and an orange-red dust.

You have little time to observe however as the TIE lead you to the underbelly of the Fist of the Empire where you enter the rectangular docking relay and find a bay large enough to accommodate the Aegis.

You are met by a grey uniformed man and two stormtroopers. He identifies himself and Lieutenant Orrell Lockerbee, and asks you to follow. He leads through a few passageways and up a turbo lift. Finally you arrive at a conference room, with a large plexisteel window. To your delight the window overlooks the docking bay you have just arrived from and the Aegis below. "Captain Alastare shall be with your shortly." He informs you and he leaves you in peace for a time, stationing the two stormtroopers outside.

[NitariWindrider]

It seemed that they wouldn't just be walking through the blockade after all. It had seemed so obvious that Trance had already changed into her uniform before Commander Tavish came to tell her to do so. Not that she had no faith in her captain, mind, but rather that they were only sort of Imperial Navy at the moment and she hadn't known ship captains to be all that flexible in their thinking in situations like this. So here they were, on board a Star Destroyer waiting for someone who probably wouldn't be too happy to see them. Great fun.

"What's your plan, captain?" she asked quietly, uncertain if they were being eavesdropped upon.

[shizukanashi]

Before Xander can answer his Engineers question the door to the conference room opens and shuts. In the brief opening of the iris Captain Alastare and another man in Officer clothing enter.

Alastare's eyes are fierce and his beak-like nose give him the look of a bird of prey. You realize that even the way he strode into the room was clockwork. He did not pause and wait for the door to open, but rather charged into the room, expecting the door to get out of his way. He is a man with purpose and a no-nonsense sense of duty.

"Please be seated." He waves his hands to the conference table as he walks around to the large backed chair at the end. The as of yet unidentified man remains standing in one corner of the room, silent. Alastare does not wait for you but begins speaking as soon as he is seated.

"Your record indicates you were recently assigned to Commodore Ros Serafi's command at the Shipyards in Tallaan. In fact, it still does. You are there right now, overseeing a repair detail on the damaged Torpedo Sphere. Yet, I find you here, light years away, attempting to bypass my blockade in an unregistered vessel that looks to me to be an older model IPV. I don't suppose that is the Aegis is it? Commodore Serafi's official report says it was dismantled and used for scrap metal on the Torpedo Sphere. So tell me Captain Sunstrider, what exactly are you doing here? What 'covert mission' has that old goat sent you on that requires falsifying official documents and necessitates you destroying the entire integrity of my finely crafted quarantine, possibly contaminating the Imperial Fleet and the entire Galaxy with a deadly and contagious disease, Hmm?"

[Capt. Infinity]

Captain Xander is not one to shy away from danger. He is a man who prides himself on his courage in the face of overwhelming odds, and his ability to think on his feet. And it is with the help of these values and abilities that he dares to answer Captain Alastare's question... With another question.
"Tell me, Captain Alastare. Do you hate the JAN?" Before the Captain could bluster out a pre-prepared response, Xander continued forward. "Because I'm willing to bet you do. I bet you go to sleep at night just dreaming of the myriad was you would ring the necks of the men and women who dare to stand against the glorious and powerful Galactic Empire. So, in light of this, Captain Alastare, I ask you. What if I told you I could have the heads of every high ranking JAN member on your desk in alphabetical order within one standard month?"

Captain Xander stands up from his seat and begins circling the room, gaining momentum. "Ron drafted us into this mission with one purpose in mind. To pose as a private mercenary vessel and gain the trust of the criminal underground, in the hopes that it would lead us into the very heart of the JAN, and of the Rebel forces in general. And hoooooo boy! Did we exceed al expectations. Within one day of being assigned this mission, my crew and I have not only managed to track down a major player in the JAN, but we've actually managed to gain his trust! Well, his interest, at least. Gaining his trust is what lead us to this quarantined planet. You see, this man has managed to transform standard issue Bacta into a makeshift cure-all that our own medical computers have deemed highly potent at combating infectious disease. The JAN official believes that this cure-all can remedy the plague currently... Er, plaguing the people of Tel Bollin. His one condition, along with the distribution of the vaccine/medicine, is that we take the time to locate and return his daughter, who happens to be stranded on that planet. If we do this, we will no doubt be in his good graces."
Captain Xander finally breathes and, having walked all the way around the table, is now staring down Alastare himself, easily an inch and a half taller than the otherwise imposing man, Xander leans in slightly so they see eye-to-eye. "Now, at this point, you have two options, Captain Alastare. either you stop us right here, right now, blow our cover, destroy any chance we have of infiltrating the JAN, and doom that planet below. OR, you let us go down to that planet, distribute the cure before it loses its potency, find the girl, and continue our mission towards the eventual destruction of the JAN, and, in the process, giving you one less planet-wide quarantine to worry about. So what do you say Sir?" The Captain asks, leaning in towards Alastare's face till they were nearly nose-to-nose "Do you want your name in the history books?"

Force point to save a planet! First die's the wild die. Persuasion: [roll0] x2

[shizukanashi]

I appreciate you being honest with me Captain. I think you will find I am very resourceful, and always one step ahead of Ros Serafi's muddling." He indicates the man in the corner. This is Brak Dunell, ISB. He has recently uncovered information that makes your mission obsolete. The JAN are no longer a threat to the Empire." The two share a knowing look. "We can take your medical supplies and distribute them via safe procedures that do not break the quarantine." He appears to squirm at this point struggling with the matter of how much information he wants to share with you. "The girl you are looking for is likely dead, I am not sure you realize exactly the state of anarchy down there. The plague has already killed 60% of the population. The planet is in open Rebellion. Open Rebellion, Captain. In the colonies. They have murdered the Governor and actually blame the plague on the Empire, can you imagine?" He seems to be satisfied with that. "I encourage you to return to Commodore Sefafi, tell him that once again I am one step ahead of him. I would advise you not to return to Lord Poporo at all, least you be branded a traitor. Leave the spying to the professionals." Alastare seems to have all the information, he knows who you are working for and why, but he appears to be hiding something. "The Empire thanks you for your service, as soon as we unload your medicine, you are free to go."

[Capt. Infinity]

Captain Xander sighs. "I'll be honest with you, Captain. You're a more personable fellow than I at first thought you to be. Those terms seem satisfactory. And I'm pleased the people will be allowed to continue working towards a better tomorrow." He turns and begins walking towards his chair, but pauses halfway there. "But... Something just doesn't add up" Xander says, turning to stare at Alastare with an impassioned expression. "How in the name of the high holy hyperdrives did you know who we were working for? And how can you say that the people who, not a half a dozen months ago, blew up an Imperial battle torpedo are no longer a threat? There's something you're not telling me, and frankly, I feel I at least deserve to know the whole story after all the trouble my crew and I have gone through." The Captain states, hoping Captain Alastare's urge for compromise holds out.

Persuasion: [roll0]

[shizukanashi]

Again Alastare and Dunell glance to each other before Alastare responds. "It is a simple matter of intelligence Captain. You're assigned to Ros Serafis command, I can only assume you are attempting to uncover the JAN on his behalf. As for Lord Poporo, the ISB has already determined he is the secret financial backer of the JAN and will soon act on that lead. You said you are searching for a girl in order to earn the trust of the JAN. Lord Popro has already attempted to negotiate for his daughter directly. When you said you are here looking for the daughter of a JAN official it was not a streach to posit that official is the same official we know to be a leader of the JAN who happens to have a missing daughter.". The smug look of self satisfaction betrays his narcissism. "The destruction of the Torpedo Sphere was unfortunate, but Poporo has been exposed, and if his daughter lives we can use her as leverage against him. The JAN has gotten out of control, but ultimately will crumble without its backer, besides it was one of Serafis loses not mine. With luck he will earn himself a commission to the Spice mines of Kessel for his failures."

[Capt. Infinity]

Captain Alastare was beginning to look more and more despicable as time went on, much to Xander's chagrin. If this man was his ally, then what the Sam Heck could he call an enemy. Xander was about to say something a bit too crass for the situation, when a sudden thought struck the young Captain, a thought that was most delightful. "Leverage, you say? Why, that's a brilliant idea! But of course, how can you leverage a dead woman? As you've just said, she's worth more to you alive than dead, right? So why not let us handle that? After all, we've all been immunized of the plague." The Captain says, gesturing to the arm upon which the injection was given. "That means that, currently, we are the only Imperial Officers and Soldiers under your command capable of retrieving the girl from the planet's surface. You mentioned that over 60% of the planet is dead, but I'm willing to wager a noble girl knows how to survive a catastrophe, wouldn't you? I'm not asking for much, just one week, or even less. Just long enough for us to find the girl and bring her back unharmed. I made a promise that I would find the girl, and if she's impossible to attain as a rescue, the least I can do is retrieve her as a prisoner. Come now, Alastare, someone of such a high stature as you surely wouldn't miss such a golden opportunity to gain an edge over the enemy, would you?" Captain Xander had finally pegged Alastare's type, and, by sheer stroke of luck, it was the type people like Xander could play like a fiddle.

Force Point (Which I think I earned back) to save the life of an innocent girl trapped on a planet of death and possibly defect from the Empire to save, go! Persuasion: [roll0] x2

[shizukanashi]

Alastare considers your proposal. "I have troops on the ground, but you may have a point. Thus far my men have been unable to find the girl...If I let you land you will be subject to the same quarantine as the planet regardless of your vaccine. That means you will be stuck there until the blockade is lifted. You will find the girl and deliver her to me. From there you will be held in detention until I deem the plague is no longer a threat."

[roses]

Amber had sat expectantly besides the commanding officer as the exchange begun between captain and captain. Xander swaggered and swayed around the table in armour, as was his way. She half expected they would be arrested when he came mere inches from the face of the other captain in what could easily have been misinterpreted as a threat. But Alastare sat and contemplated, a man of composure and consideration. The two couldn't be more different if one were born on peaceful Alderran and the other a warlike Mandalorian. Her brows furrowed at the exchange. She kept her voice low when she leaned over to the executive officer.

Amber asked Angel quietly if she could speak with him privately after this, and awaited the stately man's answer. Afterwards she composed herself respectfully at the table before speaking at a more conversational level.

“Captain Xander, Captain Alastare, I apologize for the interruption, but I would offer a small consideration for your discussion.”

The diplomat forwent introducing herself. The other captain clearly enjoyed an intimate relationship with the intelligence bureau. Alastare would be aware her sister worked for the spy network, and the other captain likely had an in-depth profile about each of them. It would be easily difficult for them to surprise him. All that remained was to navigate this asteroid field of a debate.

“You are economical men, and to deploy the entirety of the crew would proof inefficient. Yet locating our lost civilian is vital to attain stability in this sector. If it serves, what of deploying a smaller team of volunteers from among the crew? We could be shuttled down to the planet to accomplish everything necessary. Meanwhile, the rest of our crew can contend with loose ends, such as informing Commodore Serafi of these developments. Everything would be dealt with nicely. Does this sound acceptable?”


Please tell me if I need to roll Persuasion.

I admit I'm avoiding saying things like “we'll give her to you” because that's not true. I'm interested in investigating but I'm also not okay with being at Alastare's whim. Should I roll anything?


This is just to build on what's been said about whether to go down on the planet or not. There's 3 ways to do it.

A) Disagree fully, find another way. Side with another group. Something not this.

B) Agree, send the characters that are AFK and no longer care to investigate. It cleans it up for the storyteller.

C) Agree, send those of us still around to investigate the girl. But we have back up floating around in space to try and figure out a way to potentially get us out of trouble. Long shot, but possible.

I'm really out of it. I'm just trying to get back into things.

[Capt. Infinity]

"That's a brilliant idea, Amber. We wouldn't want Commodore Sefari out of the loop now, would we?" Captain Xander says with a smirk. "Your offer sounds pleasing, Alastare, and, unless my crew has any harsh reservations or comments, I think we'll gladly take it. I assume we'll be allowed radio contact whilst under quarantine? Otherwise we wouldn't exactly be able to notify you on our progress." There were ideas brewing in Xander's head, some demerit-worthy, others that would get him executed. But, whichever path he and his crew chose, one thing was for sure: It sure as hell won't involve following Captain Alastare for any longer than they absolutely had to.

[shizukanashi]

Alstare smiles at reaching a compromise or perhaps your inquiry about a radio. "Off world communications are relayed through the Fist of the Empire but you should have no trouble contacting me, I will give you my direct line. If only part of your crew is going, I can give you a shuttle. The rest of your crew can take the Aegis and remain in orbit. This way your ship avoids contamination.

I am assuming that the splitting up idea is intended to handle theCs that have left the game, PR were some of you notlanning on going down?

[Toxic Mind]

Angel stays silent. Negotiations are not his theatre. His theatre is war. He nods his assent to Amber, with a motion to wait until they were away from Alastare. To Xander's plan, he makes no comment of reservation.

[shizukanashi]

"Screw your shuttle! The Aegis is our home now! It goes or you can find the girl on your own!" Dixon's famous insubordination shows its face as he lurches across the table.

"Warrant Officer Zabato, such actions are barely tolerable from your Commanding Officer, what makes you think I allow them from you?" Alastare is barely phased by the outburst.

"You rat! Those people are dying, Imperial Citizens! I'll gu---" Dixon focused on Alastare is surprized when Brak Dunell the ISB operative slams him in the face, blood splatters on the conference table, just as quickly as he lands the blow, Dunell has him in a chokehold.

Alastare looks over the shocked faces in the room. "Very well. You want your ship, take it. Now, which of you would like to assist Dunell in escorting Dixon Zabato to the brig?"

Almost immediately Jaspien steps forward with a grin on his face. "I'll take him Sir! Frankly I never liked him, this was bound to happen eventually!"

Jerivan also agrees to help. "Yes sir! I agree, besides I don't have much faith in Captain Sunstrider's leadership." He looks dead in Xander's eyes as he says this with cold distain.

"Now, now Ensign. He may be a bit unothodox, but as long as he follows orders and brings Mika Poporo to me, he will remain a Captain in the Imperial Navy." Its not a request, its a threat. Do as you are told or else! "I have had enough talking for now. Take your ship, bring me the girl. This meeting is over." With that Alastare stands and exits.

Bran Dunell, Jaspen, and Jerivan are ready to follow with the insubordinate Dixon when Lira leaps to action. "Please, let me look at his face." She pleads. As she reaches in her Medical bag she turns back to Xander and quickly mouths "Call Serafi!" before returning to Dixon's care. "This is deep, he is going to need my attention." She follows along with the rest of the Escort crew as they exit.

The room goes silent, as you are left reeling from the sudden outburst and turn of events, it appears you are free to leave, but your crew has gotten smaller.

[Capt. Infinity]

"...Good talk." Captain Xander finally manages to say, after a rather pregnant pause. "That was... Several things happening at once, I'm not sure how I feel about what just occurred. But what I am sure of, is that we need to get back on that ship and down on that planet ASAP. Before people start chucking droids at each other, or something. The Captain states, walking over to the door, pausing to give Angel a look that is almost universally translated to we need to talk about literally everything that just happened. He then stands at the door's aperture, pausing and turning to face his now substantially more meagre crew. "Final thoughts?" He asks of the assembled party with an exasperated smile on his face, only slightly joking. At this point, he needs as many perspectives as he can get.

[Toxic Mind]

Angel waits until they are out of earshot or surveillance before speaking. "Captain. We need to accept the fact that we may not wish to return to Commander Alastare after this mission, and what that could mean. He may be a Commander, but he does not deserve our loyalty, nor do I believe he deserves it."

[Grif]

Sandor kept an impassive expression throughout the entire debacle. "Going against the Captain would be a bad idea," he notes with his raspy, soft voice.

[Capt. Infinity]

"You know Angel, the fact that we actually tend to agree on a lot of things is a fact that I'm not sure if I should find pleasing or terrifying." Captain Xander says with a deft smirk. "And, while you may be right Sandor, it still stands that we have a series of options on how we want to deal with this impasse. As long as they get us as far away from Alastare and his merry band of employee-of-the-month wannabes, the better." He pauses, considering his options as the all get back on the Aegis, a ship that was fast becoming home. "The best solution I can come up with is we do as we're told, up to a certain point, at least. We land on the planet and find the girl, as directed. But, at some point during our excursion, we find a safe channel by which to contact Serafi and orchestrate a daring escape. If we can make it to the port with all our limbs intact, Serafi's command of said port, combined with the Imperial clout we can acquire from the combination political prisoner/ source of intel, we'll be more or less untouchable by Alastare, for a while anyways. Remember, the man is technically only in charge of policing the Capital planet and stopping all immediate threats. With Mika in tow, we can safely say we did our job properly, and actually did his job for him. Oh! that reminds me." Xander quickly moves to an open crate of the Bacta cure, pocketing a sizeable cylinder of the stuff. "Insurance, for in case the good Captain attempts to call us harbingers of disease and play the fool when we mention the cure we brought along with us. He says, ever happy to keep all his basses covered

[roses]

Alarmed yet focused, Amber immediately rose to request calm when blood hit the table, but her voice was snipped short by Captain Alastare. Dixon was already being dragged to the brig and nothing was being said to save him. Half the crew had instead made a sudden exodus with the ensign. But between the ensign's outburst and the agent's uncompromising brutality, Alastare had taken it with the detachment of a director witnessing a rehearsed scene. Did he expect all that? Try to provoke it? She exited to the Aegis. The star destroyer captained by a man with strong ties to imperial intelligence that was keen to blackmail was not a place to conspire.

[shizukanashi]

Back on the Aegis you are I!mediately greeted by a familiar pitchy droid voice. "I am glad to see you all returned, I was beginning to worry.". Winston seems genuinely concerned. "I tried to contact Commodore Serafi, but it appears communications are being jammed."

Xanders cylinder of vaccine is taken from one of the last tanks loaded off the ship, apparently a crew of droids and stormtroers began the work as soon as A last are left the meeting. The cylinder is large enough that you figure you have almost two dozen doses, in addition to the ten Vent gave you when you were vaccinated.

Shane wastes little time getting the bird in the air, and as you break atmo the wide table of Sefon spreads out in a panorama of reds and browns. Cathedral like rock spires jut thousands of feet into the air and dark strings of dried up riverbeds meander through the bluffs and cliffs. Occasionally you spot the small dot of green vegetation that has adapted to this harsh climate, or the glint of a small outlaying settlement but aside from Tel Bollin the land is dull and barren. High clouds cover the sky, and occasionally you catch a glimpse of a TIE fighter patrol, though it pays you no mind.

[NitariWindrider]

Trance was very much interested in the answer to her question, but abandoned it entirely when the door opened a second later. The captain strode in accompanied by a man who neither spoke nor made any move to identify himself. The ensuing tableau distracted her even from her failure to get a particular read on either man. It did, however, provide ample indication that these two were definitely not prone to any of her usual tricks of persuasion. Fortunately, they were amenable to a different tactic. Amber intervened, Dixon was finally punched in the face (thus raising her opinion of the ISB agent very slightly), half the crew left expressing displeasure, and suddenly they were alone on their way back to the ship. Oh, and transmissions back to Commodore Serafi were being jammed. Lovely.

Once they were safely away from prying eyes and ears, some opinions were voiced. Hers, once she felt comfortable expressing it, surprised her somewhat.

"I agree with Commander Tavish," she said, "People like that man give the Empire a bad name. I'd rather avoid going AWOL, and I'd especially like to avoid antagonizing the ISB, but I don't want to even think of turning someone's daughter over to someone like that. The Empire I signed up to serve is better than that. If we could somehow get in touch with the Commodore without that person noticing, maybe there's something we can do."

To Trance, the Empire brought order to the galaxy. It wasn't perfect, and a lot of the people she encountered in the service didn't live up to the ideals espoused by the recruiters, but rebellion wasn't the answer. The Rebels, even if they had the galaxy's best interests at heart, were woefully misguided in their methods. The things the holonet said about what the Rebels had done...

Trance mentally shook herself out of that reverie. The Imperial Navy was where she belonged. She'd joined for a reason, and if she ever left it would be through the proper channels and only if she could be sure that she'd do more good elsewhere. Not like this. If the Captain wanted to lead them into dereliction or worse, he'd better have a truly compelling argument. Trance wasn't sure that the three who'd left the crew had been right to leave, but some of the noises that Xander was making were causing Trance to begin to wonder in the back of her mind if they'd been wholly wrong either.

[shizukanashi]

While you are discussing you plan of action, Shane is able to make arrangements to land at a docking bay on the outskirts of Tel Bollin. The massive city sets atop an equally massive mesa. Apparently only holonet transmissions are being blocked Shane states when he finishes his conversation with the docking attendant. It makes sense, jamming all communications on a planet could be extremely difficult, but disabling the local holonet would make it easy enough to stop transmissions from travel through hyperspace. Sefon was cut of with communications with other planets or ships outside of orbit.

Once you depart the Aegis, you can see that it is worse than Poporo or Alastair had prepared you for. A haze hangs over the city and there is a foul stench to the air. You realize with horror that the dull gray taste in you mouth is the lingering remainder of burning bodies and homesteads. Even the docking bay you landed in has a pile of blackened bones swept into one corner, and graffiti all over the mangled and dilapidated walls. Aside from the taste of the air, the smoke stings your eyes. This is apocolptic and the planet may never recover.

The docking bay attendant is a being wrapped in heavy robes and looking around you see that the few people that are on the streets are clad the same way. Identies, even species are hidden beneath cloth and bandage. When he notices your Imperial uniforms he seems disgusted, but he does offer free docking. "Perhaps we should try to blend in" Suggests Jaysia indicating the uniforms you put on for Alastair.

I have changed the spelling of the dear Captains name, since my tablet wants to autocorrect Alastare to A last are and I am tired of fixing it...I don't understand my autocorrect some times A last are does not even make grammatical sense let alone the word I want.

[shizukanashi]

While sitting on the docking bay tarmac you have a chance to further observe your surroundings. An old Chevin waddles through the street passing the docking bay enterance. His thick phlematic wheezing can be heard even at this distance. Behind him he pulls a repulsor sled stacked with bodies.

A combat landspeeder also speeds into veiw, The familiar emblem of the Empire blasened on one side. A grey uniformed officer in a gas mask pilots while a storm trooper speaks through a loud speaker announcing vaccines are available at emergency stations for people with red tags series 100 - 1100. It appears Alastair is honoring his promise to distribute your vaccine, though it is being slow rolled and carefully rationed.

The speeder forces the Chevin off the street, and he dumps a few bodies as he scurries to avoid being run over. The officer chastises him Out of the way, you beggar, can't you see we are on official business!". He glances up at you but seeing your uniforms pays you little mind.

"Or we could keep the uniforms, the auspicition of acting on official Imperial business seems to go a long way with the locals. What do you think Captain?. Jaysia asks. "Regardless, Poporo and the datapad we got from Veng suggest Mika arrived here on a Skydove freighter. We should start our search at their offices, or what remains of them."

Overhead patrol of 3 TIE fighters, streaks by. In the distance the mechanical cadence of an AT-AT can be heard. Alastairs claim of having men on the ground was certainly true, it looks like a full scale occupation of the city. Perhaps if Alastair has not found Mika already she will be tougher to track down than you thought. Though Alastair does not have the tip about Skydove.

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander hears both of Jaysia's recommendations, and comes to a quick comprise. Grabbing his command cylinders and rank emblem, and placing them inside a different hidden compartment from the vaccine and injector. "Done and done. I suggest you all do similar. Either wear civvies and carry your badge, or cover up your uniform. We want to blend in, but we don't have to forfeit our credentials. If the need arises, we can, quite literally, pull rank to get our way. Also-" He says, grabbing his helmet and placing it on his head. his face replaced by a hemisphere of blank-tinted reinforced glass. His voice on the other hand, although now with a distinct tint, is no less exuberant. "-Try and at least pretend you're trying to avoid contamination. We want to avoid undue attention as much as possible, and walking around like there isn't a life threatening pathogen in the air is probably going to hinder our attempts at inconspicuousness." He says, content to wait for his crew to change.

[Mutazoia]

Since Shane was in civvies anyway, he didn't have to make a choice. He slipped his ID into the front of his shirt and shifted a bit until it settled at the waist. With his shirt tucked in, it wasn't going anywhere. He wouldn't be able to get to it quickly, but neither would anybody be able to lift it from him with undressing him first. If that happened he would ether be having too much of a good time to care, or be dead or dying and not in much of a position to care.

He checked that his heavy blaster pistol wasn't too snug in it's holster at his waist, and looked around.

[Grif]

Since Sandor was still wearing his uniform, and not much in way to disguise himself, he opted to stow his command pips like the Captain, and puts on the helmet. Nothing much he could do, except hope.

[NitariWindrider]

Trance was all too eager to shed her uniform. Too many people wearing it lately had been thoroughly dislikable people, and wearing the same thing made her feel dirty by association. Once she'd changed into civilian attire and donned her hairpiece, she put on a helmet and filled her pockets with a small selection of tools and her rank insignia before returning to the Captain. She wasn't sure where this plan was going, but inconspicuousness was probably a good idea for the moment.

[roses]

Amber stepped off the Aegis in a rose pink blazer openly revealing a white shirt underneath, and ocean dark blue jeans that appeared so new she might have gone shopping minutes ago. It matched her fresh haircut she had sported since first meeting everyone. She realized she had taken the longest to change on seeing all the other crew present, but her chagrin died on sighting the pile of charred corpses, thrown in the corner like a child's rag doll. The dilapidated walls around them revealed the haze hanging over the city and civilians wrapped in robes. The diplomat appeared horrified, and grew farther away even as she dimly heard a landspeeder near.

They already blame all this on us. If we transfer the baroness to the Commodore, won't it just destabilize the sector even more? she thought. The JAN were backed by the nobility, and House Barnaba were among the largest. Unless Lord Poporo and his cohorts willingly surrendered due to the baroness being in Imperial custody, one of the most well-connected men in the Tapani sector would be antagonised. Yet the Empire were withdrawing from the sector. The stability of the sector was best served by returning the baroness to the nobles that kept this particular galaxy orderly. By apprehending her, we worsen the conflict. She sighed. A smidgen was heard about avoiding attention and life threatening pathogens in the air, the tail-end of a conversation.

“Captain Alastair has already dispatched his forces based on Imperial intelligence, and even they haven't pinpointed the baroness. It's probable she's hiding from us. Compound matters with the planet being in open rebellion, and I doubt anything short of my diplomat's uniform would guarantee safety. Incognito is the way to go. But it's evident some prefer to conceal their uniforms and others a more fashionable appearance,” she gestured to the captain and herself to give examples. “Staying together seems counter-productive. Especially given we have multiple locations to investigate. I propose we divide into two groups. Short of one needing reinforcements, we simply rendezvous either here, or at our missing person. It offers a nuanced answer to the different locations to be investigated.”

Amber made a face, and swallowed down the grey taste that had built in her mouth. She groaned at the vile taste, and felt a stab of sympathy for anyone that had to live on the devastated planet. What happened here? she wondered inwardly. The Empire would never intentionally poison and devastate an entire planet; while Alderran had been monstrous and a crime against life, it was still instant.

“We have three different points of reference: the locals, the guild, and Skydove headquarters. It's possible the civilian populace noticed someone so influential attending business. However, the local garb could just as easily have concealed her. They may not be our strongest option. But we also know the baroness came in a Skydove freighter, and Skydove is a business owned by Lord Poporo. Likewise, she had matters to attend to with the local miners guild. The guild and Skydove headquarters seem the best leads we have. Although, I find it uncanny House Barnaba has business on this planet at all. They're known to focus on fashion trends and vacation spots.” She glanced out the hanger at the desolation in disquiet before looking back to the group.

“Regardless, I feel it's optimal for those of us outside of Imperial attire to speak with Skydove. Anyone with ties to House Barnaba would have an incentive not to trust Imperials attempting to locate the baroness, given the officer overlooking the blockade. Especially in a climate that says the Empire caused the contagion. That's why, Captain, I request to be given the datapad referencing Mika.”

Amber gave a confident smile in her stylish clothes. Several details relating to the nobility had been included in the report written for the captain and executive officer to show she was savvy to the sector, but it was clear the report had never made it to their eyes. The light-foil wouldn't have come as a surprise otherwise. But the point was little worth speaking about in the face of a devastated planet.

“I look every bit someone associated with House Barnaba, speak their languages, and was aware of their titles and culture even prior to meeting Lord Poporo. With that datapad, it would seal credentials. Anyone alongside myself in civilian attire would blend in by proxy. We can follow leads from there. The second team is better deployed to the miners guild, and they can choose how appropriate it is to throw the weight of their Imperial credentials around. This way we would locate the baroness far more efficiently.”




Our major leads are the Guilds, skydove hq, and civilians. The locals seem like the weakest option.

I'm all for going into two teams. One in civilian attire for the Skydove HQ and the other in imperial garb for the miners guild.

Team Sky: I requested to be given the datapad provided by House Banaba. I'm hoping this team should be of people in civilian clothes, or simply those that prefer not to be associated with the Imperials right now. We can far more easily appear as friends of House Barnaba. Besides, an HQ is probably cleaner and sleeker than other places. I'm for that.

Team Gold: The rest that prefer to hold to the Imperial look, or just want to be around them more, head to the miners guild. Investigate there. You get to throw the full weight of imperial command there, if you need to. It was the last place Mika likely did business so that's obviously a strong lead.

Those are the story reasons. I prefer going into two OOC as well. Unless there's a story restriction in place.

[shizukanashi]

You make your way to the street before going your separate ways, and it is there you encounter another set of locals. You hear the throaty deep-pitched whine long before you see them. Turning toward the noise you count five swoop bikes. Not as sleak and clean as the Imperial repulsor bikes, these are little more than monstrous engines with a seat and handle bars attached. The riders are human, and all five have ornate tattoos in bright purple all over there chest, face, and arms. They laugh and weave as the barrel down the street. One of them drinks from a bottle as the pass by, then tosses it over his shoulder. The bottle smashes uncomfortably close to your feet, but the swoop gangers are gone before you can react, leaving only the dull fading roar of their engines.

Miners Guild

The miners guild hall is in the center of town near the city hall. Across the street a plague stricken family digs through the charred remains of what might have once been thier home. The doors to the miners guild are closed and locked tight. A knock summons a miner however. A tiny slot in the door opens and a set of human eyes crusted and blood shot appear on the other side. Go away! he demands with a raspy voice. The sound of a blaster powering up accompanies his words.

Skydove Transports

Skydove Transports is a nondescript building on the north side of town. The double doors, which bear the company logo, have been forced open. A large store front window has been broken. Entering the building, you can see it is completely ransacked. Aside from broken datapads, scattered office supplies and a cinder block, the apparent cause of the broken window, every thing of value has been carried off. The only signs of life are the word "Fallen Warrior" scribbled on one wall in red paint, and a pile of blankets in one corner that suddenly moves indicating someone awakening.

[Capt. Infinity]

"Oh, okay!" Cheers Xander at the angry gatekeeper in a voice that, despite being muffled by an electronic speaker, bleeds sarcasm through every syllable. "I'll just take my plentiful surplus of antidote to this rampant and horrifying disease literally anywhere else. So sorry to have bothered you." The Captain apologizes, giving his hammiest of bows, before beginning to turn and walk away.

[roses]

Amber arrived before the broken double doors of the Skydove headquarters. Not the sleek and clean reinforced steel of a multi-storied complex she had expected, she glanced about uneasily at the discarded datapads and scattered supplies on the floor. Why she still had hope for pockets of civilization after seeing that swoop gangs openly roamed the streets, she would never know. This is what I wanted, she reminded herself. Not this building, but to be out of the office, and helping bring a civilized calm to lawless regions. It had set her on a path that had taken her from comfortable embassies into cramped cabins and now to this planet. She steeled herself and stepped slowly through the threshold that was the forced doors, her boots crunching on broken glass. Her eyes found themselves on the graffiti and the stirring blanket bundle. She cleared her throat, but made no move to approach any further than she already had.

“Excuse me. Sir? Madam? The one under the blankets.” Amber paused awkwardly, and buttoned her blazer up self-consciously, as though to hide that even her shirt was still white. She had never met someone that had to sleep in a dilapidated building before. Nothing in the Imperial Diplomatic Corps mentioned correct protocol for interacting with vagrants, so she reminded herself of the goal.

“Please, we have important business to attend on behalf of House Barnaba. Would you be privvy to what happened here? Where the employees might have relocated? ”

[shizukanashi]

Miner's Guild

The mans tone changes, but the door stays shut. "What do you want?" The tip of the blaster pistol sticks out the small slot. "No tricks! let me see it."

Skydove Transports

The man's face is bearded and his eyes blood-shot and crusty. He ignores your questioning and instead substitutes his own. "Creds? Do you have any creds? I lost my tag, I need creds to buy the cure!"

[Capt. Infinity]

Xander deftly puts his hand behind his back and produces a single vile of the golden liquid."Here it is! And, as to whether or not its effective, well..." The Captain responds by pressing a couple of buttons on his armour's gauntlet, suddenly popping open the hemisphere of glass that makes up his vizor, and taking a long, deep drag of the local smog "I think you can take my lack of emaciated flesh and coughing fits as a sign of good faith. Don't you?" He puts his hand on the nose of the blaster, pointing it downwards and out of the way of his crew. Whilst waving the vial close enough for the guard to see, but far enough that he couldn't grab it. "And there's more where this came from if you bring me to the man in charge. After all, we'd like the goods distributed fairly, wouldn't we?" He gives a smile and a half, his gleaming teeth seeming even more bright and inviting than usual due to the stark contrast against the gray surroundings.

[roses]

“They're monetizing the vaccine?” Amber asked, bewildered. Her jaw dropped before she bristled. “How much are those cretins charging? Yes, I have credits, and have no worry for giving them to you. You will have that cure. But sir, we need as much information as you can offer in exchange. Does that sound fair?”


Painful as it is, I have 500 credits. I'm hoping they aren't charging more than that. Even if he doesn't have helpful information.

Persuasion: [roll0]
edit: I have 6D Persuasion, I forgot. Add Persuasion: (2d6)[4][6](10) (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=19283626&postcount=362) for a total of 17.

[shizukanashi]

Miner's Guild

"Wait here!" The slot slams shut and you hear running feet. A short time later the slot opens again and a different deeper voice is heard, apparently that of a Herglic. "Hello? I am Rollo Dood, the foreman here. Werner says you have the cure. What is it you want? Gems? Precious metals? Ore? How much cure you got? Paying customers only!"

Skydove Transports

Yes! Yes! 200 creds should do, and I will tell you anything I know." His speech is slurred and his tongue appears to be swollen. The man reaches a dirty hand toward you as he climbs from his pile of blankets. It too is swollen and bloated, and the skin pushed to its limits is beginning to dry and crack. He is dirty and like other sufferers his eyes are blood-shot and crusty. He appears to be a bit further along than those you have seen and is extremely dehydrated and anemic.

[roses]

Amber nodded sympathetically at the slurring man with bloodshot eyes but fear touched her own when he reached out a swollen hand. She reached into her inner pocket, and quickly felt for four squared chips. The black chips with a golden bar-code representing fifty each were gingerly dropped into his hand one at a time, so his hand would hold them easily. She was careful never to touch him, even though she had taken the vaccine when it was first offered.

“Sir, we're looking for Baroness Mika Poporo. She came to this planet in a Skydove freighter. Likely one of the few vessels to arrive here recently. Do you have any idea where she might have gone? Where the employees here might have relocated? Or at least any hints on where the vessel itself is?”

[NitariWindrider]

Trance decided that she hated swoop gangs. The bottle breaking near her feet wasn't endearing and their smell wasn't pleasant, but it was their bikes that pushed her over the edge. In the brief time in which they had crossed her awareness, Trance had identified a list of things that required adjustment that was lengthy elf to make her wonder how any of them were still alive. She'd take a ship engine over those things every time. There was an elegance to ship engines that sang to her and made her feel warm all over. Swoop bikes were basically an engine with a seat, and not a very well cats for engine at that. The experience was almost painful for her.

Trance had decided to go with the Skydove team, thinking that what abilities she possessed would be more useful chasing down beleaguered employees than in persuading reticent miners to speak up. Besides, the captain was heading out to talk to the miners. He'd have the situation well in hand. Besides, Trance didn't want to be an imperial officer just now. She still loved the service and was still grateful to the Imperial Navy for granting her biggest wish, but their encounter with Captain Alastare had given her a profound desire to wash both herself and her uniform before wearing it again. Even the rank insignia in her pocket felt sullied somehow by the association. So she'd gone to Skydove, where they needed to be freelancers searching for an errant VIP.

The building was somewhat unsurprising, given the state of the rest of the city. It was still a little demoralizing to see the place trashed, of course, but she felt they didn't have much of a right to be shocked. The words "Fallen Warrior" were scrawled on one wall in red paint, and in a corner was a bundle of rags recognizable as a person only by virtue of the movement. Amber responded immediately, asking if the person had seen anything. When the man responded that he needed credits for the cure, Trance's mind drifted immediately to the vials that the captain had given them to bargain with, but before she could comment or move to get one out, Amber gave the vagrant the money he'd asked for instead. Now Trance simply stood waiting to see what the mam knew. Once he wasn't within earshot, Trance would ask the diplomat what made her think to give the man money instead of the cure. That could wait. If the man knew something useful, then Amber's money would be well spent.

[shizukanashi]

Skydove Transports

The man is stunned that you would give him any money at all. He holds it in his hands for a while staring at it before he remembers you had questions for him. With a start he clenches it and it disappears into some hidden fold in his robes. "I don't know any Baroness. The government has crumbled, nobles are either dead or are taking there chances in the desert with the banshees. If you are looking for employees your best bet is over there." He walks to the broken window and points to a large dome shaped building a dozen or so blocks away, apparently a sports stadium. A large banner is unfurled on the side. The words "Relief Area" are written between two imperial logos. "'Of course, without a tag you're not going to get far there."

[Capt. Infinity]

"Ah, greetings mister Dood! Now, how many vials do I have? Well, that a very quantum question now, isn't it"? Captain Xander smiles, coyly. He's got him right where he wants him. "I currently have one vial on offer. But that number could very quickly become two vials if I like you enough. And, though that may not sound like much. I'm sure a man as business-savvy as you can make it last! I might even be willing to shell out a few credits for extras, but that's neither here nor there. No, you don't really care about semantics, do you?" He ***** an eyebrow. "No. What you're really interested in, is the price." He says, staring into the foreman's square, frog-like eyes. "Don't you worry though. I'm not interested in anything so tawdry as money or gems. No. What I'm here for is something far simpler. Information! Information that I have reason to believe you can give me. So, I'll ask once, and once only. Where is Mika Poporo?" Xander gets right up in the frog-man's face, but keeps the cure well in view.

This is kinda important so CHARACTER POINT! Persuasion: [roll0]

[shizukanashi]

Miner's Guild

"Poporo?" Rollo scoffs "I'll tell you the same thing I told that Rodian friend of hers. I haven't seen her since the plague started. She's probably dead. He seems rather upset. "Now what do you want for that cure?"

[Capt. Infinity]

"Wait woah woah wait. Rodian? What Rodian?" Xander asks, pulling the serum back. "I didn't come here to be jerked around like a puppet. If you've got a lead that could point me towards Mika, I want to know about it. Or the cure's as good as gone." Xander states, silently thankful that this wasn't a total wash.

[NitariWindrider]

Okay, so at least the credits weren't coming from her own pocket. The man had only said two things: that the nobles had fled into the desert or something, and that the best place to find employees was at the Imperial Relief Area. The Relief Area was a stronger lead, especially seeing as she could just flash either her imperial credentials or her winning smile and get the run of the place. The trouble with that was that anything they did or said there would find its way to those two. Not a good plan. She smiled to the ragged man and asked about the weaker of the two leads.

"If I wanted to chase down the nobles, what do I need to know about this desert you mentioned?"

As she spoke, she slipped a little charm into her words. Not enough to lead the unwashed man on, but enough to hopefully loosen his tongue a little. Amber had her diplomacy, and Trance had her feminine charms. Let all use the tools they were given.

[shizukanashi]

Miner's Guild

The herglic is stunned you are really just here about Mila and not looking to get the miner's treasures. "Er..She was here with a Rodian an advisor or something. They were working out of the offices at Skydove. Like I said I haven't seen here since the plague but that Rodian comes around. He just watches the place, creeping about. I told him to get lost the last time he was here, haven't seen him since. I don't trust those bug-eyed bastards."

Skydove Transports

The beggers eyes go big. Don't go out there! As bad as it is here, its not worth going out there. Monsters, giant spiders, scavengers, and the banshees. People who go to the deserts disappear.". The better begins to pick up his meager possessions and starts heading for the door. If you don't mind I would like to put this money to use.

[Capt. Infinity]

And there's our lead. Captain Xander thinks, smiling. "Much obliged, Foreman Dood. I don't suppose the Rodian has a name? There's an extra 200 credits in it for you if you could point us in the right direction as to where to find him as well." He says, holding the cure in one open palm with the sum of cash in a separate one. held closer to his chest.

[NitariWindrider]

Trance nods and waits for the man to leave, in case Amber has something to add. She, at least, had no further questions. Their leads included an incredibly dangerous desert, for which they'd need to collect the other group for some firepower, and a relief camp, for which they'd need to come up with a plan to avoid tipping a certain someone off as to their current line of inquiry. She was fairly confident that if that captain thought he had a way to get to Mika before they did they'd never get to the bottom of this JAN thing.

As she waited for the man to get out of earshot, she had occasion to be a little startled by the venom she felt for the captain of the Fist of the Empire. She'd met a lot of unpleasant characters in her time in the service and some of them weren't amenable to persuasion, but none of them had made her feel quite as disgusting as Alastare had. The man's naked ambition and ruthless use of his position to further his own ambitions was revolting. She had absolutely no doubts that if he saw profit in leaving them to rot on this planet he wouldn't even think about it. It was easy in a crisis situation like this one to throw around labels like "good" and "evil." She understood that, just like she understood that there were procedures to follow to distribute a cure in an orderly and controlled fashion. Within the bounds of those procedures, the wrong thing to do would be to fly off recklessly and throw the cure around in haphazard fashion. This was different, though. Charging money for the cure? Withholding it from people who needed it for no reason other than to feed one's own ambition? How could that possibly be the right thing to do?

She took a breath to steady herself. Thinking this way wasn't helping. They had a job to do, and moral quandaries contributed nothing. Even so, Trance found herself more confused about who the real good guys even were than she'd ever been, and she did not like the feeling at all.

[shizukanashi]

Miner's Guild

"I never spoke to the roach, but Mika called him Orga-somethin' I don't know anything else." A burly hand reaches out and attempts to snatch the cure from your hand. It fails. Dejected the Herglic slams the slot shut. "Get out of here then! Don't come back if you know what's good for you!"No amount of pleading can get Rollo to return to negotiations, but as you turn to leave the slot opens again and his eyes return. "If you find her, Mika, tell her the deal is still on. We got the gems if she has the creds."

I assume you are offering the vaccine, but if you want to make an opposed Dex roll to prevent him from snatching it away I will edit my post.

Skydove Transports

Satisfied with the transaction, the beggar heads outside, but instead of heading toward the relief center where you would expect him to buy the vaccine he heads the opposite way, perhaps he is buying on the black market, rather than the Imperial relief effort.

[Capt. Infinity]

"A pleasure doing business with you." Xander states, sarcastically. Dejected at there lack of adequate information gathering. He walks away in a huff. But, after hearing the Herglic's final request, sighs. He then suddenly hurls a couple of small objects at the door to the miner's guild. The iconic clinking makes them easily recognizable as credit chips, 200 credits in total. "Go buy yourself some of the stuff! You tried your best, so you at least deserve some payment." He shouts, before turning to move onward. Sometimes, he hated his sense of compassion, it so very often got in the way.

[roses]

“Wait, please,” Amber called. She put her hand into her pocket again, paused at touch of the hard imperial code cylinder. We can get him into the relief centre. It would be cleaner and more secure for the infected man, and he would be seen to by accredited doctors. But it wouldn't get them closer to Mika Poporo. She reluctantly withdrew her hand and instead made a small show of straightening her blazer.

“We haven't tags ourselves, let alone know how to acquire one. Not to hold you from somewhere so important, but do you know anywhere else that we can find information?”

[shizukanashi]

Skydove

The beggar stops and turns back to you with a shrug You could try City Hall. I don't know what is left of it though. They might have a record of noblility and their business. You can always try the underground too. You would be surprised to learn what a few credits can buy in a disaster economy. He holds up his fist full of creds with that last bit.

Miners guild

Rollo waits until you are a good distance from the door before he opens it to gather the scattered credits. Even then he has to fight off a bandit who also runs for the free money. The beggar only managesvto get one chip before the Herglic fights him off and gathers the rest.

[shizukanashi]

Your communication devices signal an incoming message. It is Winston. "Captain, there are scavengers here at the docking bay. I suggest you return to the ship to prevent lose of vital systems."

Xander answers via his own comlink for all to hear.Damn. Jaysia, you are with me. The rest of you continue the investigation. We are looking for a Rodian companion of Mikas that was working out of Skydove with her."

[shizukanashi]

Skydove
The beggar eager to spend the credits you gave him again turns and heads in the opposite direction of the stadium. At the behest of Trance and Amber you follow him. He seems little concerned about a tail and eventually he ducks into a run down dive bar without noticing you. The words "Fallen Warrior" are written in neon red over the door, though the light in the "w" and the first "l" has been burnt out and the "n" still lite hangs upside down beside the "e" and looks more like a "u". Outside are parked a half dozen familiar looking swoop bikes.

[Grif]

Your communication devices signal an incoming message. It is Winston. "Captain, there are scavengers here at the docking bay. I suggest you return to the ship to prevent lose of vital systems."

Xander answers via his own comlink for all to hear.Damn. Jaysia, you are with me. The rest of you continue the investigation. We are looking for a Rodian companion of Mikas that was working out of Skydove with her."

Presumably Sandor followed Xander back to the ship as well. Better to secure their ride than to be stranded on the god-forsaken planet.

[shizukanashi]

Docking Bay

Those of you that return to the ship at first find it as you left it, but then you notice some movement behind the thick landing struts. Two humans who look sickly and plague stricken step into the open, they are armed with vibroknives. Another figure is steps fromvthe shadows. This is a massive Gamorean with a vicious vibroax. His face is marked with strange tattoos. He grunts and squels and on of the humans translates. "So nice to see you, prepare to die!"

Fallen Warrior

Beyond the door to this run down tavern is a smoke filled common room. The air reaks of sweat, blood, and illegal spice. Among the cloacked humans one of whom is the beggarvyou followed here, are a few aliens. An ithorian sprawled and passed out in the corner, a pair of both and engaged in hush conversation, a couple small unrecognizable aliens playing a dice game at the bar. The bartender is a heavy set woman with grey hair. She grunts at you as you enter.

You see a Rodian at a bench along one wall. His eyes and mouth are crusted and white at the corners. He too is unconscious. A group of humans, the swoop gangers with the purple tattoos, are making a game of the passed out Rodian. Each pushes a half filled mug of ale down the table trying to get as close to the edge without dumping it in his lap.