Sebbik nods his head in agreement, perhaps thinking of the hero in the books he used to read, blowing up some hidden base seconds after escaping in dramatic fashion. "Yeah, I'm sure I can! Here, let me take a quick look." Hopping down off the hoversled, the duros goes to inspect the explosive, making sure that his theoretical knowledge of this sort of mechanical engineering matches up with the practical side.
"Spectacular fireworks it is then," Callum finally agrees with a smile and a shrug after a bit of thought.
"Well, you seem to have perked up considerably, Sebbik," he quips as his smile almost turns into a teasing grin.
"Let's go complete our mission and get out of here."
"I agree. Let us proceed." concurs Galatea, beginning to move in the direction of the Imperial base.
Vazus smiles as you agree to destroy the base. "Thank you. Getting rid of that will help keep the Felucians safe as well. Let me show you how the charges work." Vazus will show Sebbik how to handle and operate the explosive, as well as telling him the best places to put it. Anyone else who is interested can learn as well.
As you go to leave, Vazus says, "Hold on, I need to introduce you to the chieftain first. He's just over this way."
Vazus leads you towards the center of the village.
You hear anguished cries coming from one of the mushroom huts.
As you move that way, and elderly Felucian comes walking towards you. Vazus says, "That's the chief now." You can tell this Felucian is extremely old - the tendrils around his head appear withered and shrunken. He has seen his share of battles as well - his body is covered in scars, and his one arm is withered and blackened, as though infected with some kind of shriveling disease.
He walks up and scrutinizes each of you, his gaze seeming to linger briefly on Callum and Galatea.
As his gaze scrutinizes you, you hear faint, guttural whispers in your mind.
After his brief examination of you, he turns to the group as a whole and begins to speak. Once he finishes, Vazus says, "He wants to know who you are, why you've come to Felucia, and what you intend to do about the Empire."
"What's going on in there?" says Winter as the group passes one of the huts.
Vazus grimaces. "Some of the children recently have become ill - they've put them in there for now. The village just doesn't have the medical supplies needed to treat the issue. They're doing the best they can, but it's touch and go."
Just as the Felucian chief's gaze lingers on him, so too does Callum study him, using more than his eyes as he does so, as he strains to "listen" to what can be st be described as whispers. His connection to the Force though is still tenuous, his being more than a little out of practice.
"As much as we can do probably," he replies regarding the Empire, "though there is only so much we can do ourselves, I think."
When Vazus speaks of children falling ill though, the Corellian's focus shifts, his pale blue eyes turning first towards the cabin and then towards the man.
"Ill? Do you know what the cause is?"
Sebbik is too busy watching the strangely-clad villagers to notice whatever Winter saw. But he nods in sympathy when Vazus tells them of the sick children. Unfortunately, the duros is unskilled in medicine, though he hopes perhaps one of his companions might be able to help somehow.
When the are introduced to the elder, he speaks up hesitantly, blurting out everything he knows. "I... uh... I'm Sebbik. We... umm.... we came here to uhh... to break into that Imperial prison and rescue a... uh... I guess you'd call him an informant? A um... an Imperial double agent?"
Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he focuses on his parents, his mother, and when he speaks again Sebbik is more confident. "The Empire is a plague on the galaxy, that is why I am here. I would see an end to all those that trample the rights of the individual seeking nothing more than a peaceful life. My mother was a jedi, and the Empire ruthlessly destroyed their order - though whether she escaped or not I do not know. But I will carry on her battle, and maybe one day I'll find her if she yet lives."
As if realizing that his speech is uncharacteristically focused and coherent, the duros smiles weakly and nods his head. "That... uh... that's why I'm here. That's why I fight against the Empire."
The Empire treacherously killed my father. But I am keeping that secret for now. are Galatea's thoughts, while what she says is "We all have our grudges against the Empire, which means we have a common cause with our Felucian friends."
Winter waits quietly for the rest of the group to make their say, then says "I hate to be a bother, but I'd like to get moving as soon as possible."
"OK you lot, Winter and I are heading for the Imperial base with anyone who wants to come." says Galatea impatiently as she starts to leave.
Is there any way we can help with the illness? Anything we might be able to bring back? Jek asked, not normally so selfless, the idea of sick children suddenly put him into a less-than-characteristic state of mind.
Jek crossed his arms over his chest, I'm ready to head on out if there's no way for us to prepare ourselves further. No more intel to recieve, He said, following along wih Galatea and Winter.
The chieftain seems to nod and says something in the guttural Felcuian tongue. He turns and begins to walk away. As he does, you all hear a faint whine coming from the outskirts of the village. Looking around, you see a scout trooper on a speeder bike zooming into the deep jungle. You only caught a quick glimpse of him, but one thing you're sure of - he definitely saw you.
Callum's eyes widen and he says, "That scout trooper will report the location of the village, and our presence here! If he does, stormtroopers will be quick to follow."
Vazus pales, and he says, "Not immediately - the chemicals in the mushrooms block most long-range comm signals. He'll have to get to his base, unless he's got a more powerful long-range transmitter nearby. You need to stop him - not only will it help keep this village safe, but if he reports your presence, they'll have security on the base tightened up before you get there, and your infiltration gets a lot harder. Come on, you can ride my kybucks - they're fast enough to keep up with that speeder bike in this terrain. Well? Will you help with this?"
"Certainly! There is no time to waste! Lead us to your kybucks Vazuz, and thanks for the loan." yells Galatea in reply, obviously pumping adrenaline, her eyes scouring the scout trooper and his speeder bike.
Without waiting for the others, Winter hops astride one of the creatures and gives chase.
"Well, this is not quite a starship, but what can you do, right?" And with that quip Callum climbs on one of the kybucks and urges it to give chase.
Sebbik guns the engines of the hoversled and grins at Vazus. "Lead on, I'll fly this."
Jek reluctantly approaches one of the kaadu and said, Well, first time for everything, and climbed atop of his.
You all successfully mount your kybucks and take off through the jungle. The kybucks move very quickly, and it takes you little time to realize you'll have no issue keeping up. Large mushrooms and other huge fungi streak by faster than the eye can see, and the ground whips by at an incredible pace. The kybucks provide a relatively smooth ride, and it is clear that the animals know the terrain far better than any of you might. Each kybuck leaps, turns, twists, and dodges between the massive growths of the fungal forest.
You take a -2 penalty on Ride checks throughout the next round.
Make a DC 10 Persuasion check as a free action to calm your kybuck for no ill effect. Failure means you take a –2 penalty on Ride checks made through the next round.
You are accepted by your kybuck.
You gain a +2 bonus on Ride checks for the remainder of the chase.
Galatea mounts her kybuck inexpertly. As the kybuck accelerates to full speed she holds on desperately, her face set in grim determination as she and her mount tear headlong though the strange terrain.
Winter had never really ridden a creature before, but this beast was much more like a speeder than a creature, and Winter quickly got the hang of it's controls.
Sebbik hits the throttle and sends the hoversled hurtling through the trees, trying to avoid the obstacles presented by the fungal jungle as he seeks out the reported Imperial scout...
Includes -2 penalty
Having more or less no experience with riding such exotics beasts -or quite frankly any beasts- it is no wonder Callum has a hard time controlling his kybuck.
Jek takes to his kybuck better than he had expected. With this added confidence, Jek quickly gets into character, leaning forward and lets out a Ya!, grinning manically.
All of the group heads off into the jungle, although Callum has some trouble getting used to his mount. Still everyone is in hot pursuit of the scout trooper, whose speed is limited from having to constantly maneuver around giant fungi.
The pursuit leads into more swampy terrain. Shallow pools of water scatter the landscape, and the kybucks throw up splashes of water as their hoofed feet pass through. Large, multi-colored fungi droop low over the landscape, and huge birds swoop down to snatch up prey. This fungal swamp is so thick, sight is limited, but you can still hear the speeder bike ahead. Indeed, at some points you feel like the fungal swamp is going to consume you, but your kybucks have no issue navigating the terrain.
As you pursue the speeder bike, you see two paths before you. One leads into thick foliage, and the other through a hollowed out trunk of a Felucian tree. The speeder bike is somewhere ahead of you - but which path?
You are lost in the fungal swamp and will have to get your bearings to continue the chase.
Make a DC 10 Perception Check. If you fail, you are lost in the fungal swamp and will have to get your bearings to continue the chase. If you succeed, you avoid getting lost and are able to continue the chase.
You successfully navigate your way out of the fungal swamp.
The speeder bike is definitely getting closer - you can tell!
Choosing to go through the hollowed out Felucian tree trunk, Callum still finds it difficult to control his steed. That is, until he finally reaches out to the Force to aid and guide him. And a strong ally it proves to be indeed.
Sebbik also chooses the hollowed-out tree, figuring it seems like a good place for their quarry to hide from view - and it might provide a shortcut through the thick terrain as well.
Includes -2 penalty
Winter takes the other path, bounding through the thick trees.
Galatea's knuckles are white with tension as she hold on to her kybuck for dear life. In a somewhat lame attempt to cover her fear she exclaims "Yeehah."as she speeds through the foliage with winter and his steed.
Galatea is disorientated by the way she is being flung about in the chase and loses her bearings.
However, she quickly gains sight of her comrades and the Imperial she is in pursuit of, resuming the chase after a small delay, complaining "This is profoundly uncivilised."
Jek takes the path of the hollowed-out tree trunk, feeling that he had somehow attained a natural talent for riding beasts.
You find that the route you have taken is quite treacherous, filled with sinkholes and trenches. This forces your Kybucks to leap over the chasms and gorges with bouncing grace. This causes you to dip and rise over the terrain, making it difficult to see very far ahead of you.
You take a -5 penalty to Initiative, lowering your position in Initiative.
You take a -2 penalty to Initiative, lowering your position for the next round.
You help direct your kybuck through the treacherous terrain without difficulty.
You gain a +5 bonus on Ride checks in the next round.
You find yourselves traveling through a series of hollow logs and underground tunnels. You and your mounts must lower your heads to avoid scraping them on the low ceiling. As the kybucks and speeder zip through the underground tunnels, chunks of moss and other fungi droop down from above, while occasional breaks in the ceiling allow rays of light to shine in.
You run into the hanging roots at full speed and are knocked off your mount. The kybuck stops and waits for you to mount up again but you are delayed advancing until the next round.
You ride too close to a grasping set of roots. Make a Grapple check (this will be opposed by the roots Grapple check). If you fail, you and your kybuck become entangled in the roots, and you must take a standard action next round to disengage, delaying your advancement.
You ride through the tunnels without incident, continuing the pursuit.
You've managed to move quickly enough through the tunnels that, when you come out the other side, you've closed the gap between you and the scout trooper. You are now at long range for blaster pistols (72 squares). If you were already there, you've closed the gap even further, and are now within 60 squares.
Feeling like he is -almost- getting the hang of riding, Callum continues his pursuit of the imperial trooper.
Galatea's eyes go wide with horror when she sees the terrain ahead. Her intense concentration seems to pay off as she negotiates the hazards without incident.
Sebbik flies with ease through the cramped confines of the hollowed out log - and though he sees no sign of the trooper until he breaks free of the natural tunnel, the duros notes that the Imperial isn't too awfully far ahead...
Includes -2 penalty
Jek rides through the tunnels without incident, roots whipping by his head.
Winter fires a blast from his carbine, hitting the fleeing scout bike. The armored speeder bike absorbs the damage quite cleanly.
The divergent paths meet back up, with the scout trooper still ahead, although some of you have closed the distance a bit. As your kybucks and hoversled move through the jungle, the ground in front of you suddenly erupts as, with a roar, the head and claws of a bull rancor emerge, swiping wildly at you!
The rancor strikes you with a powerful blow! Compare the below attack roll to your Reflex defense. If it beats your Reflex Defense, take the listed damage. Regardless, your current initiative will be reduced by 2.
The rancor strikes you, but only a glancing blow! Compare the below attack roll to your Reflex defense. If it beats your Reflex Defense, take the listed damage.
You are able to evade the rancor's claws.
You have successfully evaded the rancor's claws, and didn't even have to pause while doing so. Your current initiative will increase by 2.
Galatea can barely believe her eyes as the rancour appears in her path taking a swipe at her. As the rancour's claws graze her, Galatea exclaims "Sithspawn!" and starts to draw her blaster carbine to shoot back. She then thinks better of it and continues to follow the speeder bike, looking a little bedraggled and a lot annoyed.
Teeth! Claws! Jek yelped as he shook his head, trying to focus on riding, leaning forward and attempting to make himself as small a target to the beast as possible.
Jek, much more narrowly than he would have liked, avoids the rancor, but ends up staggered even so, red eyes wide, and heart beating against his chest.
Winter manages to extend out the stock on his blaster and fires, hoping to bring down the scout.
Sebbik fires at the imperial trooper and though the lasers seem to arc straight at his target, the duros is suddenly too busy to notice whether he scored a hit as a giant bull rancor rises up from the undergrowth, clawing wildly at everything and everyone within reach!
+1 BAB, +2 Vehicle INT, +2 Trained Pilot bonus
vs DC 10 = Success [more than 5]!
Includes -2 penalty
The quick reflexes and training possessed by the green-skinned pilot is enough to allow him to evade the creature's attack, and Sebbik turns his attention back to the distant hoverbike, looking to see if he scored a hit with that last shot.