View Full Version : Journal Who Inquisits the Inquisition? We do! (A Star Wars story)
Story time! I've been looking to jump from PF to a new system for a while, and managed to convince my group to try out Force and Destiny from FFG. I've read the majority of the EU, and watched the films waaaay too many times (I mean, for Episode II, that's twice, tops). Anyway. I picked up the book, read through the rules a few times, and got the group together. No one at the table had run this system before, so it was going to be a sort of trial run for us. We sat down for session zero, hashed out what we were after game-wise, established the setting, and then got cracking on characters (for anyone unfamiliar with the game, F&D assumes that all characters are Force sensitive).
I chose to start the game 5 years after the Battle of Endor. It gave a decent time skip for the new galactic government to set up and let us shuffle off the major players from the films. We'll be ignoring the new movies as well as the EU for the purposes of the game. The new movies so that we don't have to constantly pay attention/adjust as they come out, and the EU because there's just so much, and it all focuses around Han/Luke/Leia (well, mostly). We did establish that drawing on either source was a-okay, because there were a lot of good bits in there. We'll also be using this map (http://www.swgalaxymap.com/) to keep track of places and names.
As far as the political environment goes, the Empire is mostly in shambles. Bits and pieces of it still call themselves the Empire, but they're for the most part unimportant. The Republic, reborn from the Empire, has taken the Core and most of the Inner Rim. The Hapes Consortium has chosen to remain independent, Hutt Space is, well, Hutt Space, and Bothawuii is being staunchly isolationist. Most of the Outer Rim has broken into little bits, with the exception of Mon Calamari, which is pretty much the only Outer Rim holding the Republic has. The various Imperial factions have noisily been declaring war on their neighbors, and the portion we're in is no exception.
The game starts on Dantooine, still under Imperial control. This faction of the Empire refers to itself as the Remnant, and is centered on Yaga Minor, whose shipyards they hope to leverage into military supremacy. Of course, with Dantooine's history of Rebel insurgency, the Remnant maintains a strict hold on the planet, cracking down on the slightest infractions. It goes without saying that those caught using the Force are immediately...removed.
So, here's the cast:
Amosa Ryn: A young togruta born to a wealthy trading family, her powers have only recently begun to manifest. She has always taken a special interest in xenobiology, and is constantly trying to broaden her horizons. She was old enough when she began to manifest her powers that she was able to not only keep them hidden, but find a teacher to help her develop them in secret. Coming from a wealthy family has its perks, after all. She has also never been off-world before, which is something she means to rectify ASAP.
Edit: At the start of the game, neither the player nor I had seen TCW show. Astoundingly, Amosa is not a slight reskin of fan-favorite Ahsoka. This will become apparent a few chapters in.
Kar: A kel-dor old enough to remember the fall of the Republic. He's known about his powers for a long, long time, but has never really done anything to develop them. Instead, he's taken to a life of crime, serving as a ship's mechanic in a smuggling vessel. Immediately before the start of the game, he overheard his boss planning to off him, so he stole the Loyal Storm (a small freighter) and bolted. The best word for his personality is, perhaps, abrasive.
Grarrow: A cerean born right after the fall of the Republic, he's never known anything but Imperial rule. While he began developing his powers at a young age, he was fortunate enough to be recognized by someone other than the Empire first. He is proficient with a lightsaber, has a strong sense of right and wrong, and is direct and to the point. He's the group's moral compass and de facto leader, but he's hoping to push the leader part off to someone else in the near future.
Caselia (NPC): An elderly human woman. She was a librarian with the Jedi Order (although not a Jedi herself), and was fortunate enough to be visiting Dantooine when Order 66 was issued. She helped both Amosa and Grarrow develop and hide their powers from the Empire. Also has a Dark Pasttm.
A Long Time Ago, in a Galaxy Far, Far Away...
Caselia is troubled. The Jedi Order is rising again, which is good, but it does have its enemies. She's not keen on joining right back in (existing through Order 66 as part of the Jedi Order can make you a bit paranoid in that regard), but she does want to help them out. Of course, up until now, that's been easy - she's simply taken care of a few strays that the Empire would have taken, and kept her own head down. Today, though, is different. Today she found out that someone is trafficking vornskrs. For those of you not in the know, a vornskr is a large, apex predator with a venemous, whip-like tail that hunts by detecting prey through the Force. Some of its favorite prey would be Force-sensitives, which makes them fantastic at hunting down and killing Jedi. She doesn't really have a lot of options here. She's in no shape to go after them on her own (being 90 does that), the local government would kill her and appropriate the animals if she told them, she doesn't trust anyone enough to simply hire a bounty hunter, and it's simply impossible to get a hold of the new Order from where she's at. This leaves her with one option, which she is not happy about.
Grarrow, on the other hand, is absolutely fine with this. He gets to go somewhere and do things to bad people until they stop hurting other people. It's not the violence he enjoys; it's just the fact that he's making a difference in a manner he's good at. Of course, he does need a way off-world, which he brings up with Caselia. After some hunting, she finds a fantastic pilot with his very own ship that he also maintains on his own, who is eager to get going, and for a very reasonable price. Enter Kar.
Kar has been approached by an old woman who seems to be starting the path towards dementia, and is offered some money to leave now and go do something dangerous. He weighs his options, which does not take a lot of time. He doesn't have the money to refuel, so he's stuck on the planet without a job. His boss is undoubtedly looking for him, and will kill him if he's found. The option weighing gets a little trickier when he finds out he's transporting a Force-user that actively wields a lightsaber inside Imperial space to hunt down a bunch of people that are trying to kill Jedi. He eventually settles on maybe dying instead of definitely dying in the end, though.
Meanwhile, Amosa is Not Amused. She is 16 and an adult and really wants to go off-world on an adventure with her friend Grarrow, and it is completely unreasonable that Caselia won't let her go. It can't be that dangerous, can it? Despite Caselia's direct orders, she packs a bag and gets ready to go. Just. Not with anyone else's knowledge.
The next day rolls around, and Grarrow and Kar are getting ready to leave. They're clearing through the port security to launch, and are held up a little over some paperwork. A few stormtroopers walk by on a relaxed patrol. They pause and chat with the desk agent for a few seconds while Kar is fumbling through his "ownership" papers, and proceed on their way. A few meters down the hall, they pause, one of them pulls out a dataslate, and they both slowly side-eye Kar. This does not go unnoticed. After a few tense seconds, they yell for him to throw his hands up. Of course, he bolts, quickly followed by Grarrow. The stormtroopers are taking aim when Amosa bullrushes through them, her backpack bouncing up and down as she sprints for the Loyal Storm behind the two men. She makes the boarding ramp right as the troopers start firing, and the ship takes off hot and fast. As the ramp is closing, Grarrow spots a tall, dark, robed figure striding towards the ship, flanked by stormtroopers. He also spots the lightsaber at the figure's hip. This is...not mentioned to the other two later on.
The Loyal Storm manages to break orbit without being shot at too much, which is about as much as could be hoped for, given the situation.
Most of the occupants of the ship are very unhappy. Grarrow is unhappy because Amosa has placed herself in serious danger and he has just been shot at. Kar is unhappy because he was just shot at. Amosa, meanwhile, is apparently oblivious to the mortal danger she is now in, and points out that they can't exactly turn around to take her home, and also she'd be useful because she knew a lot about vornskrs. She'd just happened to finish reading a book on them. The other two argue, but in the face of her logic and bullheadedness, are forced to concede. Kar goes to the cockpit to start the jump to the system they were headed to; some backwater world called Lah-Mu. He runs his calculations, punches the jump in, and they're off.
Kar goofed on the calculations, and they spent about half a day re-plotting the jump before finally arriving in the system. Grarrow began to suspect that Kar was, perhaps, not the pilot he made himself out to be.
A Kel Dor's Guide to Quickly Dismantling Ships
The party, as a whole, came out unscathed. They'd escaped without tangling with the port's defenses and without pursuit, and were setting down on Lah Mu. Entry to the system was fairly laid back; this was about as backwater of a world as you could get. It was a rare day that there were more than a dozen ships on the planet. There was, as always, an Imperial presence, but nowhere near what Dantooine had, even adjusted for scale. The Loyal Storm touched down in port without incident, and they disembarked.
Well, two of them did. Kar elected to remain with the ship, citing "common sense," and "I don't want to be shot at again." So, Grarrow and Amosa proceeded on their merry way. Their first point of order was to stop in with the port master. He was an obvious starting point - all of the planet's ships (allegedly) had to go through him to land, and he had to know what they were carrying as part of his job. The two of them grabbed the nearest port authority worker, and asked for directions. They quickly arrived at the port master's office, and ended up in front of his secretary. At first, the man was unable to find them an appointment for the next four days, but after a brief exchange with Amosa (and her disarming smile), he found a slot for them later that afternoon. This was more than enough for the two of them, and they set out on the most sacred type of information gathering - bar hopping.
Meanwhile, fate was catching up with Kar. One of the numerous faceless Imperial bureaucrats tied to the port buzzed the ship's door, asking to speak with captain, as she had a few questions. Apparently, a ship with a matching description to this one was on a watch list, and she just wanted to clear this up before it became some unfortunate misunderstanding. When she rang, she had no real belief that this was actually that ship - why would anyone want to come here? It would be pretty easy for Kar to talk his way out of this. There was only one problem - Kar was a horrible liar. By the end of their conversation, he had managed to arouse her suspicions and give her his old captain's commlink code. After he gave her the code, he started warming the engines up while she had a brief (and very loud) chat with the ex-captain of the Loyal Storm. After that, she demanded to be let in, or she would fetch the port's resident slicer and a few stormtroopers to boot.
Kar internally ran through his options, and decided that making a break for it was the best option. Unfortunately, he'd provided the local Imperials with more than enough time to prep for an attempted escape by a wanted criminal. So, he lifted off, and the port's two anti-aircraft guns opened fire. This did not end well for Kar - the first shot rocked the ship and stripped a few chunks out of the hull. The second shot didn't so much damage the ship as simply remove the engines. Kar had maybe a half second to react between the first and second shots. Fortunately, his reflexes saved him, and he was able to turn the fatal nose-dive the ship was in into a more controlled crash about half a kilometer outside the city.
Grarrow and Amosa, meanwhile, had been taking their time wandering about town. They didn't want to startle the group they were in pursuit of, and no one was shooting at them. They engaged in a little people watching, and stopped for some street food. About halfway through something unidentifiable but delicious, they heard the port's turbolasers open up, watched in a mix of disbelief and horror as the Loyal Storm was torn apart, and then tracked its trajectory out the north end of the city. As a cherry on top, a pair of TIE fighters buzzed over where they assumed the wreckage was. Fortunately, they didn't open fire. Grarrow considered his suspicions about Kar's lack of piloting abilities confirmed.
They quickly commed him, and were astounded to find out that he was still alive. They told him to grab what he could from the wreckage, and meet them at a mid-scale bar called the XYZ Affair on the north end of town. Kar followed their suggestions, having no ideas of his own, and miraculously managed to get to the bar un-accosted (he did have to duck into a few alleyways to avoid patrols).
The Oddly Friendly Underworld
Grarrow, Kar, and Amosa are seated at the bar, working on a beer, something that comes through a sippy straw (rebreathers make life difficult sometimes), and a cranberry juice, respectively. None of them are particularly happy. Not only had they been chased off Dantooine, their ride here was a smoking crater. On top of that, Grarrow and Amosa had just learned that their pilot was a wanted criminal.
Despite this, they decided that the best course of action was to continue with the job. A ride off-planet could be sorted out later, hopefully after the heat had died out a little. As they're sitting there, it occurs to Grarrow that they had actually neglected to ask any of the bartenders if they knew, well, anything beyond the bare-bones details they'd been given. One brief and very fruitful conversation later, they have the name and location of a guy that probably knows the guy they're looking for - one Ittor Baset. He apparently runs what is definitely not a smuggler camp a few clicks south of town. The Imperials in the system officially don't know about it, but the local governor has been pretty happily lining his pockets based on that. The bartender even offers to comm Ittor to let him know a few people are coming, because she knows that they're going to leave a good tip (they do).
They make their way into the streets as night falls. There are a few patrols out and about, but given that they're looking for one pilot, not a group of three, they make it through town unaccosted, despite essentially walking down Main Street the entire way. The south side of town, however, is another matter. The city is fenced in because of some particularly nasty wildlife in the area, and a pair of stormtroopers are on guard duty at the southern gate. The party approaches, hoping to simply pass through on confidence alone. Unfortunately for them, the troopers have been given orders to stop anyone attempting to leave. They back up and discuss in muted voices how to go about this. Heading for another exit is floated, but dismissed under the assumption that all of the exits would be guarded (a good assumption). Trying to bluff their way past is also floated, but none of them feel confident in their ability to lie their way out of being arrested. They hem and haw a little more, with the troopers getting a little nervous about this trio just standing there and side-eyeing them.
Their nervousness is confirmed in fairly short order by Amosa, who decides she's going to go all-in on hoping her command of the Force has gotten better. She tests it by trying, and succeeding spectacularly, to yank their blasters out of their hands. Grarrow gapes for a second and then doubles down on the attack, drawing his lightsaber and demanding the troopers' surrender. With the judicious application of some rope and the removal of the troopers' weapons, the party is on their way.
The smugglers' camp is a fairly short walk. As they approach, they can make out the ramshackle village that's been assembled. It seems to be a few buildings surrounded by dozens of shipping containers stacked haphazardly, with the whole assembly lit by torches. A few of the smugglers are out and about. The party is greeted warily, but without any overt hostility. After they explain who they are and that they're expected, the mood warms up a bit. Apparently word has been passed around, and the camp as a whole is curious about the party. It's not often a group of unknowns comes asking around for the boss.
The party is shown to Ittor's house, which is in the center of camp, and ushered it. The inside of the house is tastefully decorated, but everything seems a little...bigger. The ceiling is a bit high, the furniture seems a bit larger, control panels are mounted a bit further up the wall than normal. The trio is guided to the dining room, as Ittor is apparently in the middle of dinner with guests. When they enter, the odd sizing of the house suddenly makes sense - Ittor is a besalisk (as a side note, I completely blanked on what they looked like, read the word "avian" in their description in the book, and decided he was essentially a giant bird with four arms covered in blue, orange, and white feathers. So picture that, instead of Dexter).
The dining room is host to what looks like a full-swing dinner party. The table is piled high with food, and the incredibly diverse occupants of the room are in the midst of lively conversations - which quiet down briefly as the party enters the room, with all heads swinging to look at them and a few hands drifting towards blasters.
Ittor puts everyone at ease almost immediately, greeting the party loudly and warmly, as though they were old friends. He invites them to join the party, as there just happen to be a few open seats at the end of the table. Conversation resumes, and the party digs in. Amosa goes for a bit of everything she can reach, Grarrow piles his plate high with two pounds of the one thing at the table he can identify, and Kar is stuck with getting whatever he can get through the sippy straw (which, after two appearances, is unanimously decided on as a fixture for the character).
After a lively dinner and some strange conversations, things begin wrapping up as the guests leave, one by one. The party gets the occasional side-eye as a guest leaves, but nothing is said and there doesn't seem to be any real concern. As the last guest leaves, Ittor turns to the party and starts to discuss what they're after. It turns out that he does, indeed, know the guy they're looking for. Known only as Orrack, he runs what Ittor refers to as an "off-the-books animal conservatory with a high turnover rate." Great, the party says. What can you do to hook us up?
Ittor hems and haws a little before coming out with it. Apparently his relationship with Orrack is a little frosty - he keeps trying to bring Orrack into the fold, and Orrack steadfastly refuses. Won't return any of his calls anymore, even. Ittor seems a bit put out by this. He brightens up a little as a thought "occurs" to him - he knows where Orrack's little base is at, and if the party would just deliver a message, he'd be happy to share that information. He'd even be happy to provide a landspeeder for the group, just to speed them on their way. He brushes past the part where he can't exactly guarantee their safety, and then shows them to the room he's set aside for them.
This chapter is rather abbreviated; the players spent a decent amount of time wandering the camp, making friends, and doing research here and there. Nothing particularly exciting came from those bits, so I've skimmed over them to get to the good stuff in the next post.
That's a Wrap!
The next day, the PCs are given the speeder and a small data slate before being sent off. They end up at Orrack's camp several hours later (during which Amosa asked "are we there yet" several times. It was unclear if she was doing it as a joke or not). On approach, it looks like nothing more than a small building and a few pieces of farm equipment. As they got closer to the sole building, though, several guards came out of small bunkers in the ground. The weapons weren't quite pointed at the players, but were definitely held in such a manner that they could get there, and fast. The one directly in front of the party stepped forward and asked, rather bluntly, what the hell they wanted. After fumbling through an introduction, they got around to mentioning that Ittor had asked them to come. This grabbed the guard's attention, and he led them into the small building.
The building turned out to have a large stairwell. At the bottom was what looked like the start of an extensive underground bunker. Grarrow, Kar, and Amosa, however, were directed into a small room immediately; apparently, a tour was not in order.
Over half an hour later, Orrack finally enters the room. An incredibly grouchy-looking Kel Dor, he demands to know why Ittor sent them - Orrack had made it crystal clear that he had no interest in dealing with the man. Wordlessly, Grarrow handed over the slate. Orrack flicked his gaze over it, looked back at Grarrow, and took it. A hologram of Ittor popped up immediately. Orrack kept the slate quiet, so the players couldn't quite make out what was being said. Orrack grimaced a few times during the message, and, when it was over, handed it back.
"Tell Ittor I'll take his offer. It's not like he's left me much of a choice here, the bastard. You can go; I'll come to him tomorrow to work out the specifics."
Just as brusquely as they were shown in, the PCs were shown out, and sent on their way; more than a little baffled. They'd expected some sort of back and forth, a little danger, but - nothing.
The next couple of days passed uneventfully. The rumor mill had it that Orrack was bringing something particularly large in, and Ittor was the only one with a ship big enough to get it on-planet in a timely manner. Meanwhile, the party went to work putting the pieces of what they'd been sent to find out together. Orrack was indeed capturing and taming vornskrs, but had been playing it pretty close to the chest. The best they could find out was that he was shipping them halfway across the galaxy, far into the Outer Rim. While not completely satisfied, they had finished what they were there to do, and were very ready to get off planet, Kar especially. They eventually decided that it would be best to sort out what to do next about this with Cas - after all, it was her plan. Out of gratitude for their help, Ittor was more than happy to provide them safe passage back to Dantooine. Kar made a special request on his way out - his old captain was certain to be coming this way in the near future, and he wanted to know if it would be possible for Ittor to perhaps slow the captain down a bit. Ittor chuckled, said he'd see what he could do, and sent them on their way.
Grarrow meditated, undisturbed, in the small room given to them for the journey. He reaches out in the Force, centering himself, and feels everything around him, practicing what little of the spiritual teachings of the Jedi he knows.
For the first time, the Force shows him something without prompting. The threads of fate that weave around the party wrap around him, and he sees...
...a dark presence, eclipsing his home...
...fire, burning buildings, and screams...
...and a deep, deep sense of loss.
Disturbed, he returns to the common area of the ship, without speaking of his vision. Their ride back was uneventful - unlike Kar, their pilot got the calculations right on the first go. After a several hour journey, the party dropped back into the Dantooine system - only to find two Star Destroyers with unfamiliar insignia in orbit around their home.
What the Hell Is Going On Here?
My Lady. Our intelligence is as unerring as ever. There is indeed one so bold as to wield a lightsaber under our rule. Further...he can use it, and well. He has returned to Dantooine.
Excellent.
....There is something else. The other passenger, that joined him. A young girl.
What of her?
She, too, is powerful in the Force. Moreso than he is. Possibly moreso than I am.
Then bring her, too. You have free reign.
The aura of fear in the ship was almost palpable. Dantooine was insignificant; it didn't warrant the presence of one Star Destroyer, let alone two. The unfamiliar insignia was cause for further panic - warring between the fragments of the Empire was a very real danger, and having home at ground zero was not an appealing option. The pilot nervously went forward, with no signs of hostility evident. Landing was uneventful, if nerve-wracking. There was no interference at all from the Destroyers, and the port control made no mention of them on the approach.
The players exited the ship, with the pilot taking off without setting foot on the planet. The party made their way out of the port, doing their best to keep away from the increased number of Imperials milling around. After clearing the area, they take a moment to breathe, and then comm Caselia, who...doesn't answer at first. After a few more tries, she picks up, speaking in a hushed tone.
"Grarrow, listen carefully, I can't stay on long. I've hidden in Amosa's basement; I couldn't get anywhere else. The Imperials are after me. I think they've tracked me here, but I didn't have anywhere else to run. You need to leave now."
Grarrow closes the call out, thinks for a moment, and then tells Amosa to get her parents out of Dodge, and Kar that he's not getting paid unless he helps out with a rescue op. Amosa quickly comms her parents to let them know that she's back on the planet, but she's on the other side of the city and just needs them to come get her. That done, the party makes for her family's home.
The three of them reach the small street Amosa lives on, and start to scope the place out. The local law enforcement is a little more present than normal. On top of that, there seem to be a few squads of stormtroopers wandering the area. On top of that, the party manages to pick out a group of plain-clothes enforcement loitering at either end of the street. Finally, Amosa picks out another watcher that seems a bit out of place. An incredibly stocky man in a hood is simply standing in the shadows, barely visible from the street. She only notices him when she catches a slight reflection from his face, as though metal is there. She ducks after him, barely catching up, and grabs him by the shoulder, dislodging the hood in the process.
The insectoid creature turns around; metal rebreather and goggles covering its face. Amosa recognizes it instantly - a Gand. Reclusive insectoids, they rarely leave their planet, and were heavily oppressed by the Empire. Those that leave are aptly known as Findsmen. Their tracking ability is almost supernatural; many believe them to be a race of Force sensitives. In reality, the harsh conditions of their homeworld serve to produce some of the best trackers in the galaxy.
The other two catch up, looking a little startled at the Gand's appearance. All three open their mouths to start angrily questioning him as he introduces himself. He, Nix, was looking for (rather, had been paid to find) Caselia. He had been told where to find her, and given a list of her known associates. Since two of them were here, he said, he was hoping for an introduction. She'd been a little hard to find, although he suspected her to be in Amosa's house.
After a hasty conferral, the party agrees to spill the beans, but only after he tells them who his employer is. Nix thinks it over, makes a quick comm call, and comes back. He is, he claims, sent from the Jedi Order. They were combing the galaxy for survivors of the Purge, and, although they could not directly contact her, hoped to bring her back into the Order. Grarrow and Amosa are over the moon, briefly. All that stands between them and the Order is getting Caselia off the planet...past the Imperials...and the Destroyers in orbit. A plan is quickly hashed out - all four of them will create a distraction, Grarrow and Kar at one end of the street; Amosa and Nix at the other, and then they'll bolt for the house, grab Cas, and get off planet as fast as possible. Timers are set, the party splits, and the chaos begins.
Kar tosses a grenade in a trashcan -
Grarrow cuts some fire escapes down with his saber to make a bit of noise-
Amosa Force-grabs a trooper and tosses him at another -
Nix opens up with full stun-bolt auto-fire into the plain-clothes soldiers -
And the screaming begins. Kar and Grarrow both have the same, horrifying realization that "subtle" might not have been emphasized enough, but it's too late. Amosa and Nix are tied up, so Kar and Grarrow barrel towards the house. Grarrow rounds into the back yard, yanks open the storm doors into the basement, grabs Caselia, and books it with Kar right behind.
Amosa, in the meantime, is in her first real fight, and panicking. Soldier after soldier have their guns ripped out of their hands, most of them dropped in a twitching mess immediately afterwards by Nix. One of the troopers lines up a shot on Nix, and Amosa grabs the gun as his finger is tightening. The bolt intended for Nix whizzes right past Amosa's head, as the last of their foes goes down in a heap. Kar and Grarrow, Caselia in tow, come sprinting their way, and the five of them run off into the night.
Home...Free?
An hour later, the five of them stop in an abandoned house in the bad part of town. Amosa fields a call from her father, who is, understandably, panicking - the city's emergency alarms are going off, and troops have flooded the streets. Amosa steels herself briefly and then lays it out for him. There's a pause "...Let me hand you to your mother." Amosa's hand shoots out to get the comm at arm's length with no time to spare - her mother's voice pushes the comm's speakers to their very limits, as Mrs. Ryn unleashes her full fury into her daughter. After a few minutes, it quiets out, and Amosa puts the comm back to her face.
"...Yes, Dad. We'll be safe. You and Mom should stay away from the house. I'll see you soon. I love you."
The five of them sit down to discuss their options. It's obvious that they have to get off planet, but the how of it is another matter entirely. Nix' ship is a two seater, and is in the main port of the city. Given that he was the one hired to find Caselia, he suggests that he be the one to ferry her off planet safely. The other three can make for one of the smaller ports on the outskirt, and rendezvous safely outside the system. Nix suggests Orinda - it's a border system to the New Republic, and easy to enter without question. From there, they can take their time with the rest of the trip. That said, the party gears up, and....
Grarrow doubles over in pain as a presence in the Force reaches out through the city, searching for something. After a few breathless seconds, he gathers himself and mentally pushes. The presence recoils, but not before the two of them see briefly through the other's eyes. Grarrow looks around at his concerned allies. "Guys...we need to run."
The party splits, taking panicked flight through the night. Stormtroopers are bowled over, and Grarrow can feel the dark presence hounding their steps almost to the edge of the city before they lose it. The three of them (Grarrow, Kar, and Amosa) sprint into one of the smaller ports as Caselia comms them - they've made it to Nix' ship, and are taking off. With some hasty negotiating and a massive stroke of luck, they find a ship that's leaving the planet despite the lockdown and is willing to take a few extra for an exorbitant price.
All five of the fugitives' nerves slowly calm - both ships break orbit and start prepping for hyperspace, well outside the range of any ship that can respond in time. As the pilot is plotting the jump, Amosa's comm buzzes - it's her parents. She steels herself for another round of talking-to before answering.
"...Dad? We're sa-"
"Amosa Ryn. I have your parents. I'd like to mee-"
The pilot punches it.
Old Friends
“Soruk, there’s no getting out. They’ll kill you and dismantle everything you have.”
“Heh. I doubt it. They can’t afford to risk it. It’s not like I’m out to hurt them. I just want to go my own way after thirty long years.”
“....fine. What are you going to do if you’re wrong and they find you?”
“They won’t. New name. Moving across the galaxy. Career change. I’m thinking I’ll go legitimate. Well, mostly. And it’s amazing what reconstructive surgery can do these days. I won’t even look like the same species.”
“Wait, why are you telling me this? We’ve been partners for years. They’ll question me, without a doubt, until I say something.”
"Wait. WAIT. NO!”
A blaster shot rings out.
“Consider it a mercy. Ohone’s first good deed.”
Panic was the name of the game now. Amosa’s parents had been captured by Imperials - worse, by an Inquisitor. The party had no resources and no allies. Turning back was immediately shot down by Grarrow and Kar. There was no guarantee that any of them, including Amosa’s parents would be safe if they surrendered. Their best bet, Grarrow argued, was to rendezvous at Orinda with Cas and Nix as planned and work from there.
A few hours later, the ship dropped out of hyperspace in the Orinda system and landed without incident. The party silently paid their pilot the last of their credits and wandered out into the city without a plan. As they stood at the edge of a large marketplace considering their options, Grarrow’s comm beeped - it was Caselia, probably calling to arrange a safe meeting place, or, at least, that’s what Grarrow assumed.
Instead, it was to inform the three of them that it might be a while. The hyperdrive on Nix’ ship had failed. It was unclear if it was sabotage or terrible luck, but the two were stranded in deep space for now. Caselia claimed that it would be a simple fix, and the life support was holding; it was just going to be a day or two before they could limp into the system. In short, they’d been up a creek before, and now they’d had the paddle taken away.
So, without a plan or hope, they set out - and immediately ran into an old employer of Grarrow’s, from almost ten years ago, by the name of Ohone. Grarrow had provided a little assistance as hired muscle for a medicine shipment, and apparently he’d rather stuck in the man’s memory, based on how enthusiastic the greeting was.
“Grarrow! How in the hell are you? It’s been far too long!” Ohone’s handshake was firm and enthusiastic; the shake of a consumate businessman.
After a round of introductions and a brief (and incomplete) explanation of the situation, Ohone’s expression had turned to one of pity.
“That’s terrible, gentlem-, I mean, friends! Listen, I’ve certainly been down on my luck before, and there’s nothing like a good meal to help settle things out. Look, I’ve got a reservation at an excellent little restaurant later this evening, Let’s get you cleaned up a little and get some food in you.
A few hours later, the party found themselves in some of the nicest clothes they ever worn, walking into what was certainly the nicest restaurant they’d ever been to, and treated to a truly wonderful evening. The terrible pall of their situation still hung, unspoken, but for now, a small amount of relaxation was their only option. Ohone was a wonderful host throughout, and, after dinner, invited them to his apartment - simply boarding them in a hotel was out of a question, according to him.
Once they got back, drinks were, of course, in order. As they settled in the living room with the nightcaps, Ohone took the chance to pry a little.
“You see, I’m terribly interested in the stories of interesting people, and, well, the curiosity is simply killing me. I have to know the details of just how you’ve arrived in this mess.”
Amosa was the first to spill the beans, finding it more than a little cathartic to share the terrible situation she’d been caught up in to a sympathetic ear. After a few more drinks, Grarrow, too, opened up a little. Kar, though, was...recalcitrant. Abrasive and blunt, he simply refused to contribute his portion of the story.
Something small snapped in Grarrow. Between the incredible stress of the last few days, the drinks throughout the evening, and his growing irritation with Kar as a person, he’d had enough. Ohone had been more than polite - he’d been understanding, sympathetic, and more giving than any of them had any right to expect.
Grarrow reached out through the Force and nudged Kar’s mind, tipping it just a little into fear and panic. It was more just removing the small dam holding them back. Kar’s eyes went wide, he started hyperventilating, and began darting around the room ,shutting blinds bolting the door, and sputtering warmings about “them” coming for him.
It lasted only a few moments, and then his eyes narrowed as the fear regressed. He knew this feeling, and he knew who’d done it. He turned on Grarrow, ready to do his best to beat the man senseless. How dare he do that to Kar. Only Ohone and Amosa moving to partially block him from Grarrow and talking him down stopped it. Instead, Kar left the apartment, slamming the door after him.
Grarrow sobered up in an instant and darted around the other two, bolting down the stairs after Kar, trying to apologize and keep him from leaving. He caught up at the bottom of the stairs, tackling Kar to the floor as though that would somehow help. Kar scrambled out from under him, and, as Grarrow watched, slowly faded from view, as though erased.
And that, finally, was how Kar let on that he, too, was Force sensitive.
Another Straw for the Camel’s Back
Amosa was exhausted, physically and mentally. While Grarrow and Kar were gone, Ohone pointed her at one of the guest rooms, where she collapsed on the bed almost immediately, falling quickly towards sleep - only to be jolted back awake by the beeping of her comm. The incoming code is from Caselia, and indicates a recording, not a live call. A staticky, distorted version of her voice comes out of the comm.
“Amo -- Cas, we’r - - - ck -------hy -- dr- fai ---eet on -- d Mantell. -ell Gr -------------------- orry -------------- ey’re --- ook ---- for yo ----- the Inqui ----- ung -- rce use --- ust ru -- ay.”
The message peters out into indecipherable static before cutting out completely. Amosa stares at the ceiling, face blank, a single tear rolling down her face before she slowly succumbs to sleep.
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