Covered in grease and fighting with machinery, Rae barks over the comms "Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we're low on fuel. Really low. We're..." She takes a deep breath. "We're going to have to stop at Ryloth."
Tok grunts as he tries to dive down quickly in the ship, but it doesn't work. Fortunately it does put the TIE fighters in an easier place for Valkyr to hit.
"Are we sure I'm the best pilot we have? It's ...been a while!"
Rae struggles to keep her feet as the ship moves under her. Both from Tok's 'expert' piloting, and also as the hull shudders under the hammering the deflectors are taking from the TIE fighters. Suddenly, the transmitter locks into place. Banks of red lights go green, and the computer flashes a green icon:
The hyperspace drive is online.
Unless you can install the device in engineering then yes, you most certainly are. I could try but then I am sure we would all die...
"5" listens carefully to Rae and hums lowly for a second, That is not an ideal location for us, we will need to be extra careful there.
As the computer chimes that the drive is online the droid looks over to Tok, We can go now.
"Rae, I owe you a drink or ten! Buckle in!" Tok says, punching it!
Hearing the news over the comms, Valkyr rakes a broad swathe of space behind the ship with a barrage of fire designed not to hit anything, but to make the pursuing ships think twice about closing in. After all no sense in singling them out to actually destroy them, and more importantly, there was no gain in doing so.
Val waited for the ship to lurch and the stars to turn into a sea of white light.
The KRAYT FANG lurches forward. The stars turn from points of distant light to streaks of white, then all the canopy is filled with the altered reality of hyperspace.
You are free.
The ship settles in, the rattles and shakes subsiding somewhat. The smell still permeates the ship, the 'beacon' issue is active, and the fuel low warnings still blink. Then there is the matter of someone, or something being held in one of the cargo bays.
"5" flips on the intercom,
Now that we are out of there perhaps we should make a thorough scouring of the ship before we attempt to land on planet? If we find something to sell onboard that might get us fuel and away from here quickly, I know Rae will not be interested in staying any longer than we need to.
Valkyr sticks her head back through the cockpit doorway
Nice going on getting us out of there.
she thanks Tok and 5.
I found a bunch of Wookie skins in a hidden compartment, I'm going to go check the cargo bay now if anyone wants to tag along.
Holding her weapon in the patrol position, pointing at the floor but ready to be brought up in a heartbeat, Valkyr heads down to the cargobay and scours the area for anything of interest.
"Looks like Trex had some captives ...which may or may not make them people I'd like to know. Anybody know if Wookies have burial rituals for ...skins? I don't want them here but I don't wanna disrespect them either."
"Can't speak to their burial customs." Rae began, appearing in the doorway, "But I'd be willing to bet we can find some people to buy them. Can do a lot with Wookie fur."
"We're on course to Ryloth," she continues, flatly. "Ship needs a lot of repairs - and our star charts are too out of date to get much further than that safely. Last thing we need is to come out of Hyperspace into a planet. We can grab a few things there, but I'll remind you that we're on the run and ought not linger." She looks at 5 and drops her voice, "Perhaps when we arrive, I can give you a list of supplies, and stay on the ship myself?"
She nods to Valkyr. "Sure, I'll hit the cargo bay with you. With any luck I can find some spare parts layin' around."
"I'm not selling anyone's skin."
"5" merely nods at the Twilek as he pokes and prods the computer to see if the Fang can tell him anything else about what is going on inside the vessel...
As Tok makes his comment the droid continues going over the console, Can I ask why? Certainly the owners of it can't use it anymore, and if it can be used or sold why not? You would sell droid parts if you needed money wouldn't you? The droid gives no indication of humor or any emotion really as the lights of the terminal play out on his face.
"I wouldn't sell yours. And, I know, I'm an a+#!%+!. But I've got my limits. That f%~!er Trex either murdered or stole the skins of folks that lived. No good profit from that. We can make money. Easy. Not like that."
Valkyr and Rae work their way back to the main cargo bay, and find it set up for holding prisoners. There are six sets of restraints attached to the bay walls, as well as six holding pens. Three of the pens are empty, one holds what looks like bits of chitinous plates, and the last two cells are occupied.
One prisoner is an elderly Twi'lek male, sitting forlornly with his back against his pen. One of his lekku has been burned off, the stump cauterized near the skull.
The other prisoner is a male Drall, who seems to be intently contemplating the Selonian assassin.
The Twi'lek looks up at the two of you as you stand in the bay. "You are not Trex," he says wearily, "where is he? Dead, I hope. But then, I am not so lucky, I fear." He drops his head again, but you can see he is watching you out of the corner of his eye.
Valkyr responds to the Twilek
Apparently fortune does in fact favor you today, the Transdoshan's remains are somewhere near the landing ramp. we'll get around to jettisoning the refuse at some point in the near future when the ship isn't shaking itself apart around us, until then mind your step in the corridor...
She contemplates the Drall
Do you have a story to tell us as well?
She addresses them both
We're not slavers so if you can prove you're not prisoners or bounties then we can strike a deal. If you *are* bounties then speak up, we may still be able to make a deal if you have things to trade, such as your skills...
The drall stands up to his full, not very impressive height and puts his hands on his hips. "-If- I was a bounty..." He trails off and looks around at those collected. "Which I am -not-! Another long look. "I would be quite the fine one. My skills are beyond reproach."
He snuffles, losing a bit of his pomp as he focuses on Valkyr, talking rapidly. "The Duchess sent you to spring me, yeah? She's got to realize that this isn't my fault. Try sending me to the very rim without a ship, I mean, well with a ship, but that one was faulty from the very start. -Purely- mechanical and their 'ace' didn't know what he was doing what-so-ever. If it wasn't for me I don't think we would have made ground at all. But you know me, I'm not going to let some rough landing and poor equipment stop me from getting out there, doing the Duchess' work, seeing the universe." His brows raise conspiratorially "Maybe getting an invite back home to report, hm? Apparently though, in these parts, you can't even trust a trandoshan offering a cheap ride. Who knew right? So, when do we leave?"
Valkyr eyes the Drall suspiciously, before venturing
It seems you have indeed fallen in with bad company...
she waits glances around the cargo bay, deliberately staring at the Twi'Lek and raising a questioning eyebrow to the Drall.
When my team and I heard about Trex and his ship, we simply had to come along and do something about him...
she cocks her head and studies the Drall closely, still making absolutely no move towards the release controls.
So...this work for the Duchess of which you speak...just to make sure we're on the right level and you are who you say you are...what was it exactly?..
"This is Hargar." The Twi'lek says, before the Drall can speak again. "And I am Bu'ran Bur'an, of Ryloth. And while I am in your debt - I believe, if what you say is true - I really have one pressing issue..."
"Can I use the refresher? Please?"
The Drall's words fall on deaf ears, as Rae has a hard time removing her eyes from the Twi'lek. She keeps intermittently glancing back at him to find that he's still speaking, but she hasn't registered any what he actually said. She remains silent until the Twi'lek introduces himself. "Fine by me." She says with a shrug, before adding. "We're heading to Ryloth now, you'll be free to disembark once we arrive."
Nodding at Valkyr, Rae moves away to investigate the rest of the cargo bay, though she still glances back at the Twi'lek intermittently, and not without a hint of suspicion.
The Twi'lek, surprisingly, is also watching Rae.
"You are Rae'dalla?" He says tentatively as he stands up, stretching. "I have heard of you."
There is nothing else of interest in this bay.
Rae stiffens and looks up from rummaging through a box. Without turning to look at him, she voices a reply. "I'm sure they used the word 'treason' in the same breath." She looks back into the box. "As though sayin' a thing over'n over makes it true."
She sighs, and puts her arms on the edge of the box. Taking a deep breath, she forces herself to look over at him, and offers something of a tense smile, though not without suspicion. "Anyway. Ancient history. What's a great servant of the people like you doing in a cell on this boat?"
Valkyr holds off on releasing the Drall, patiently waiting for his reply to her questions
"5" pours over the computer looking for information in particular he wanted to be sure that the ship's docking and registration data seems up to date and none of the ships landing protocols are damaged. It occurred to the droid his new pilot wouldn't want to have to manually land an illegal ship without warning...
Tok buzzes the ship intercom from the pilot seat. "So what have we got?"
Valkyr keeps her gaze on the cages and hand on her blaster, leaning over and depressing the intercom to respond to Tok
Whilst I'd love to say we found a plascrete container full of credits, all we've come up with so far is more mouths to feed. Aside from those Wookie skins, no cargo to sell, no spare parts and no fuel or weapons. Worst. Shipjacking. Ever...
She pauses then adds
What's our ETA to Ryloth?
"5" pours over the computer looking for information in particular he wanted to be sure that the ship's docking and registration data seems up to date and none of the ships landing protocols are damaged. It occurred to the droid his new pilot wouldn't want to have to manually land an illegal ship without warning...
Everything is in order. Except...
On Tatooine.
In Mos Shuuta.
You are being tracked.
AND
B'ura B'an looks up sadly at Rae's ascerbic comment.
'I'll try to keep my long story short," he begins, "For some time now the rulers of Ryloth have been, in my opinion, remiss about who they allow in on the planet's Ryll mining industry, which you must understand is only barely legitimate in these days of Imperial dominance. For some time, bands of Aqualish thugs terrorized mining communities, forcing Twi'leks to work for scant reward and extorting all sorts of favors and resources from mines that might otherwise have prospered. I banded together with some associates in order to protect New Meen, our most profitable mine, from the thugs. For a while we held them off.
Then they simply disappeared. We were relieved at first, but soon learned that they had been killed in the process of some underworld takeover. Shortly after that, bands of outsiders began to purchase land near the mines. They claimed they were developing it, though we could tell that they were there merely to spy on us and make life difficult. A short while later, during a journey to Nabal, I was attacked by a band of rogues, including the Transdoshan who maimed and branded me before sealing me up in that cell."
"More mouths to feed, or more skills? Any crack pilots? Medics? I hurt like hell."
As B'ura tells his story, Rae's eyes are drawn to his burned lekku, an expression of sorrow on her face. Still, something about his story doesn't feel right to her, even though she can't find any specific holes in it. Her eyes run along the Twi'lek, searching his expression. "We've got a ways to Ryloth." Rae replies, quietly. "I reckon it'll pass more comfortably outside of that cell. But I ain't like to let you out, long as I'm suspicious. So." she says simply. "What aren't you telling me, B'ura B'an?"
Now a medic would be a nice find I agree, I can still smell my own scorched fur. I'll let you know what we find out about these two.
She returns her attention to the Drall, half listening to Rae's conversation with the maimed Twi'lek just in case she needs any help.
So Drall, state your name, titles and skills, we still have yet to verify who you are and at present our patience is rather thin...
"I wouldn't mind a good brewer or distiller, hell a Wookie-Weed grower. My sudden friends, freedom tastes pretty great."
5 clicks on the terminal and then hums to himself, Mr. Tok, it would appear we are carrying a fugitive a "B'ura B'an"? They want him on Mos Shutta and we are being tracked...I will try to see if I can terminate that signal.
1S 5A (perhaps if I can't turn it off I might at least find out how to or what is tracking us?)
The Drall seems to deflate when it becomes obvious that the crew isn't here on some dashing rescue mission for him, his ears flattening against his head.
He does perk up though, when he is questioned about who he had spoken to. "Not -this- duchess. Not -a- duchess. The duchess! Its not a title they just toss around, you know. She's my kin, back home. There were some hard times back among the family and it was, um, decided that they needed my skills to advance the reach of the clan beyond the Corellia system. Well beyond sometimes. But I would have been wasted just rummaging around the vast libraries, or beautiful gardens... No I am much more useful combing sand out of my fur, or where are we going? Ryloth?" His nose wrinkles but he flicks his gaze between the twi'leks both in and out of the cell. "Or studying local color."
When Tok asks his question, he perks up again and nods his head. "I'm quite medically inclined and have a working knowledge of more lifeforms than you can think of. Well, working knowledge of more things than you can think of in general." He tries to offer a charming smile. "I'd be happy to take a look and patch you up, I even have some supplies that couldn't have made it too far. But I can't do it through the prison field."
OK fine, your medical skill has earned your release from the cage
She punches the relevant release button on the console.
Go find your gear and see Tok first, he's in the cockpit, then come back and we'll chat some more whilst you patch me up
She cocks her head
For what it's worth, earn your keep and you'll have a place with us for as long as you want it. Not entirely sure what exactly we're doing next but at least it's an option for you
Valkyr finds a flat surface and begins disassembling her blaster, stripping it down to component parts to clean it, having had more use these last few hours than the total of the last few months combined.
Hargar's gear is available in Trex's quarters, which smells of lizard and rotting meat.
"5" hits the comm button, We are being tracked by Teemo. There is a transponder unit on the outside of the ship. I am going to try to change the interval of its broadcast but either someone if going out into space or we need to get onto the planet to attempt to remove the device.
3S+2SA = 5S A
5 fiddles for a few moments and then offers a tinny "sigh", That should buy us some time.
Thanks for the update 5, do you know if there's a lift on this crate so R5 can get outside to try and find the transponder?
There is indeed an airlock to reach outside.
"There is nothing more that I would say, Rae'dalla of Ryloth. Nothing that I would say to one holds the keys to my imprisonment. You may trust me, or you may not. I can help you, indeed, we can help each other. You need to get fuel and repairs on Ryloth, do you not? I know people there, I can make that happen."
The old Twi'lek looks sternly at her.
"Of course, I am aware that you may be just as willing to turn me in for the bounty I am certain is out for me. The choice is yours." He comes to the very edge of his cell.
"I have told you my sad story, Rae'dalla. Now, tell me yours. What brings you all here to this ship, at this time, with these...acquaintances?"
Smiling at the Selonian as he is let out of his cell, Hargar fishes around until he finds his kits, putting his blaster back on his hip like he doesn't actually consider that those who just let him out of prison might have concerns he is armed, his stimpacs slung across a bandoleer.
Finding his way up to the cockpit, he offers Tok a toothy grin, setting to inspect his wounds and chatting amicably as if making small talk. "Seems easier than I would have imagined to get our of a holding cell. Say you are a doctor and boom, home free. You'd think the imperial cellblocks would be empty with so many unscrupulous characters, unlike myself, willing to fib to get free. I mean, apparently you don't even get tested if you know what you are doing." He pauses, looking back into the ship towards the others, remembering he was instructed to come work on Tok first and then her. "Nevermind, guess I am getting a test."
4S+2A-2T = 4S