Garrett ushers the droid along, nodding his head respectfully to the Hutt as he leaves. He hops into the ship and moves towards his cabin, waiting for the rest of the crew to get on board. While waiting for the rest of the party to board, he takes a few looks around, searching for any kinds of listening devices the Hutt might have had someone plant while they were talking. He also investigates the droid for the same equipment, and attempts to disable it if he finds any. If not, he starts searching through the droid's memory core for the path the Hutt mentioned, looking to program it into the navigational aids himself rather than have the droid do it.
Kaldo heads to the cockpit of the ship. He looks around, getting a fell for the new ship. Not as good as the Emissary, but still good
Kaldo heads to the cockpit of the Emissary. He sits down and puts his hands on the controls, getting ready to take off
You take a protocol Droid which steps into the medical bay.
Garrett is able to retrieve the data that he needs to navigate the Tion Cluster, well at least through a single pathway.
Errin gives the ship a quick once over before heading on board and stowing her equipment, ready for hyperspace.
Rennah quickly goes over the ship as well, just to be on the safe side.
After that she heads to her cockpit, should Kaldo need assistance.
Kaldo quickly checks the cockpit, then moves on to the rest of the ship. After that, he heads back to the cockpit
The group does not locate any homing beacons or racking devices on the Emissary.
Kaldo begins typing away at the console, and nods to Rennah, grateful for the help
The group lifts off from the station and clears local traffic as Kaldo enters the coordinates into the navicomputer. The Emissary enters hyperspace finally en route on the mission.
In the mean time, perhaps our characters should indulge in a bit of RP'ing for what they'll be doing for the first 3 days of the trip.
Day 1:
Rennah started the first day in hyper space early, it was time for her training exercises, and by rising early, she figured she could have the cargo bay to herself, and not risk hurting anyone with the Lightsaber.
Having adjusted the settings for the Lightsaber to the lowest possible, where it was capable of doing no more damage than a mere jolt, Rennah centered herself and focused on her movements.
This was what she'd been taught. First the moves that covered the 1st ring of defense, then the moves that covered the 2nd ring and finally the 3rd and closest ring, where your opponent would be face to face.
And then it was time for the variations she'd introduced herself. Pushing her awareness out to the ends of the cargo hold, she started what she referred to as the 4th ring of defense, the ones beyond line of sight.
She was never sure if this was part of her Togruta heritage, or her abilities with the force, but she never felt that she'd been able to explain the 4th ring of defense to anyone else. Nonetheless, it worked and had on occasion enabled her to defend against threats beyond the normal range of her Lightsaber and physical senses.
- An hour later, Rennah was covered in sweat, making her jumpsuit stick to her body, and she looked down on herself with a slight expression of disgust at her trembling musclesand muttered to herself:
"One of these days, I'll remember to use the Force to keep myself rejuvenated. But, nothing like a bit of pain and exhaustion to remind you that you're alive. Time to hit the shower though."
Having grabbed a shower, Rennah called up the Encyclopedia Galatica on the ship's computer. Time to see if there was anything interesting in there, as well as on the Hutts themselves. Why would the Corporate Sector authority quarantine a planet? They would probably have virusbombed the thing from orbit, just because it made more economic sense...
Kaldo walks up beside Rennah, and seeing that she had pulled up the Ecyclopedia Galactica, asks What are you trying to find out?
Rennah looks up at Kaldo walks in,
"Hey Kaldo. Honestly, I don't know what I'm looking for exactly. I just figure that there's got to be a reason that the planet is under quarantine and that the Hutts are interested in it, at the same time.
I was hoping to either find something in the Encyclopedia, or maybe on the HoloNews, on what's going on, beyond what the Hutt gave us.
I don't know about you, but I doubt he's given us the full story, so I figured I might as well try, at least until we land, to see what I could find out."
She points at one of the other seats:
"You're welcome to join me if you want."
"You're looking for information, and you didn't bother inviting me? I'm hurt." Garrett's voice comes over the intercom, probably from the laser batteries. He chuckles for a moment, before his face pops up on a holo-projector next to Rennah's own research. "Why don't we take a look around the HoloNet, see what we can find," he mutters, as his face disappears and a number of different HoloNet pages jump into view in his place. "For what it's worth, I think the Hutt is playing us for fools, so we're in complete agreement on that. I'd venture a guess there's a lot more at play here than some missing cargo."
Kaldo sits down beside Rennah. Well, if there is going to be information about this... Popara, I suspect it isn't going to be on the sites the everyday person goes to. Try checking the shadier sites
"Kaldo, you... do remember why I'm here, right? The fact that I'm the only one who could talk his way out of a wet paper bag isn't the only reason I'm here on the Emissary." Garrett continues pulling up information, his face grinning in the bottom right corner as he searches. "I'm a contract killer. I don't exactly spend most of my time on your standard HoloNet pages."
"Can't say that I approve of contract killing. Mercenary work, sure. But to me, it's always felt like there was something inherently wrong in taking a contract for the termination of a sentient's life. Like it somehow diminishes both the target and the assassin.
I can certainly understand the tactical value of an assassination though. That's not my problem. But I suppose the desire to avoid these kinds of solutions is what separates us from the Sith. Or the fact that we know that it's sometimes the best way to go about it, that separates us from the Republic or the Jedi."
Rennah looks momentarily disturbed by what she's saying, but then her expression clamps up once more, almost like someone putting on a mask.
"Never mind. Garrett, you're more than welcome to join us in the search for information. As said though, I'm not sure we'll drag anything up, I just figured it would be a good way to spend the day."
Popara is nearly one thousand years old and has survived numerous attempts to subvert his power base over that time. He is described as being at ease at all times and interacts in a manner much less haughty than as been described in dealings with other Hutts. This has led to a reputation for being trustworthy and living p to his agreements, whether the same can be said of subordinates such as Vago is not clear.
Popara has been known to engage in occasional acts of altruism a rare trait indeed for a Hutt. Perhaps most interesting of all is the knowledge that he does not deal in slaves or drugs and poisons of any kind.
The planet is located within the Joxin system of the Tion Cluster which due to the difficulties of getting into and out of the cluster is a backward corner of the galaxy. What the native life forms of the planet once were is not clear as for centuries humans have been the dominant species on the planet.
The locals trade in animal products and geodes. The local government has ties to the Corporate Sector due to the geode trade. However, the local governor is rather weak and as a result the planet became a haven for smugglers and other scoundrels looking to escape one authority or another. The only major city is Tel Bollin with some scattered settlements around it.
The planet is arid, mostly consisting of brushy bottomlands, wide mesas, and prominent buttes of brilliant red sandstones and blue granite. Scientists theorize that the planet was once a swamp world, and the shallow oceans evaporated, leaving only the rocky outcroppings.
The holonet has very little information on this other than the fact that the CSA is blockading the planet due to a plague which is infecting it. This is likely because the Sith now control the holonet and likely care very little for this development which is in a cluster of stars outside of their control.
Errin glances at the data the others pull up, but words on a screen have never been able to hold her attention long. Prowling around the cockpit, she goes over battle plans in her head.
"That Hutt made it sounds like we'll have to blast our way through the quarantine, which means we'll have to find someplace secluded to stash the Emissary. We ought to have some sort of cover to use after that ... Corporate recovery team, maybe? Smugglers looking to get a good price on meds? Biotechs Without Borders? I don't know."
"At least we should be able to hide the ship easily enough once we get there. Once of those outcroppings might do the trick. But we'll want to set down relatively close to the crash site. And how do we want to run the blockade? I'd prefer stealthing it, because as good as the Emissary is, I doubt she'll be able to take on a whole CSA fleet.
So, the question is: con our way in, by claiming we're a plague relief team or something similar, or try to stealth land the ship? Once we're on the planet, we can probably lose the scanners from space, if we stash the Emissary somewhere, either underground or in a warehouse. And getting back out doesn't worry me too much. The Emissary can probably outrun the CSA fleet, and we can probably outfight any opposition that we're likely to run into.
Thoughts or ideas?"
With that Rennah leans back and listens attentively to any ideas that may come up.
Well, if we claim we are a plague relief team, they might want to board us. Then, they will realize we don't exactly have the gear medical professionals use. Unless, of course, Garrett can find a way to persuade them not to board us. If they actually try and board us, we can catch them unawares and fly straight toward the planet? Kaldo pauses, catching his breath
"That'd be a hard sell, but I could try and make it work. If they don't take the bait, we can always take a hostage." Garrett shrugs as we said it, more nonchalant than most of the others would probably like. "Take the highest ranking person we can hostage, tell them to leave the ship or we'll kill him, and all of them. We keep him aboard until we're past the blockade, then jettison him off the ship on one of the escape pods. By the time they find him, we'll have landed and stashed the Emissary somewhere safe." He blows a bit of hair out of his face, closing all the HoloNet pages he has open. He looks at Rennah, a bit of a grimace on his face. "I already know you won't like it, but it means we don't have to kill anyone to break past the blockade. Sure, we scare the sh*t out of some guy by making him think we're dragging him down to a plague-ridden planet, but unless he dies of a heart attack there's no real harm done. If we have to shoot our way out, it's a wash anyway; one hostage won't make or break that body count."
"Liking it or not doesn't come in to it. We have a job. However I don't think it'll work. This is the CSA, and they don't care about their employees. Especially if its ESPO forces doing the blockade. Can we fake up documents for a medical team? If we can, then I don't think they'd care enough to board us.
Wait... Perhaps I have a better idea. Why not claim that we have a plague victim on board and pretend that we were dumb enough to be sent here to "get help"? Not only would we be allowed to land. They would almost force us to do so."
That may work. The pilot turns to the rest of the group. What do you guys think? I mean, we'll need to dig up a ton of info about the plague, and one of us would have to look like they are actually suffering from the symptoms, which may look.... unpleasant
"I'm not suggesting they care about their employees; I'm saying they care about expensive assets. If someone important enough was with the boarding party, someone whose a considerable investments, they'll be less willing to shoot us down." Garrett pulls up the HoloNet again, looking for all the information he can find on the plague. "I'm not saying it ought to be our go-to option, but it gives us another back-up plan before we resort to running the blockade guns blazing. If I can find enough information about the plague, I can do my best to make one of us look sick and falsify some documents."
"Hostage-taking is no walk in the hab-garden," Errin says. "Playing plague victim seems like a better con if we can sell it. But grabbing a high value target is worth considering if we end up caught between a battery of turbolasers and an asteroid."
"If we can find the info on the plague I say we go for it. No one in their right mind is going to WANT to come aboard a plague ship after all. And if they do, well yeah, we can either grab the customs party or make a run for it. I say we try it, depending on what Garrett digs up on it."
Rennah looks around.
"Right, I don't know about the rest of you, but I always get hungry after a planning session. So if you'll excuse me...."
With that, she gets up and starts rummaging through cupboards looking for something edible. Anything that looks even remotely edible gets chucked into the auto-cooking facilities.. Probably best not to consider what it's going to smell or taste like at the end of it.
Kaldo stands up. Going to my bunk to change. I might take stock of what we can use to make one of us look like a plague victim He heads toward the direction of his bunk
Garrett is not able to discover much on the plague but enough to suit the purposes of the groups plan.
The plague appeared about one month ago and quickly swept the planet. Its origin is unknown at this time or at least no one has made such information public. It is believed to be airborne and those who suffer from it become physically weakened The symptoms include fever, dehydration (accompanied by a crusting about the mouth and eyes), general fatigue, and the thickening of the fingers and tongue.
Soon enough the ship alerts the crew to the fact that you will soon come out of Hyperspace and the final journey to the planet should take a further 4 to 6 hours as the way to Endregaard is blocked by obstructions that are not easily navigable while in light speed.
Perhaps a few minutes after your final path to the planet you hear the comm open up and the sensors blare, another ship has detected your presence before you detected it!
"Attention unknown vessel", crackles a voice in heavily accented Basic. "You are under attack by the illustrious Bomu clan of warriors! Prepare to be boarded!" A blast from an ion cannon narrowly misses your vessel.
Watching the shot fly past the ship, Garrett sighs and takes up the comms. "You're about to be some rather illustrious space debris, if you don't learn your place." He swivels the turbolasers towards the ship, before speaking again. "See these? You're outgunned, and I'm about five seconds away from letting you all feel what it's like to suffocate in a vacuum. Well, that or burn to death inside the scorched hull of your ship; take your pick." Garrett makes a show of charging the turbolasers, readying them to fire. "You're all going to back down, now, or I promise you won't live long enough to regret your decision."
Garrett cuts off his communication with the other ship, instead broadcasting within the Emissary. "Kaldo, get ready to gun the engines. If they don't back down, we can't be sitting ducks. On the off chance they're not horrifically incompetent, we might be in for a fight. Everyone ready?"
Rennah reaches over, flicks through the various sensor profiles, to see if there's anything unusual about the ship, beyond the picking us up so quickly. At the same time she fires up the selector shields.
"Bomu must mean 'brainless' in whatever language these gundarks grew up speaking," Errin says as she races to the gunwell to man the second turbolaser. Chuckling as Garrett issues his warning, she charges up the second turbolaser, ready to blast anything she sees.
Modified YKL-37R Nova Courier
Colossal space transport**
Init -5*; Senses Perception +0*
Defense Ref 20 (flat-footed 15), Fort 27; +15 armor; Vehicular Combat
hp 180; DR 15; SR 60; Threshold 77
Speed fly 15 squares (max. velocity 1,000 km/h), fly 4 squares (starship scale)
Ranged 2 turbolasers +3* (see below) and 3 medium concussion missiles +3* (see below)
Fighting Space 12x12 or 1 square (starship scale); Cover total
Base Atk +0*; Grp +37*
Atk Options
Abilities Str 44, Dex 20, Con —, Int 16
Skills Initiative -5*, Mechanics +5*, Perception +0*, Pilot -5*, Use Computer +0*
Crew 4 (normal); Passengers 4
Cargo 40 tons; Consumables 6 months; Carried Craft none
Hyperdrive x1 (backup x12), navicomputer
Availability Licensed; Cost 149,000 (used)
(2) Turbolasers (2 gunners)
Atk +3* (-2* autofire), Dmg 5d10x5
(3) Medium concussion missile launchers (copilot, 2 gunners)
Atk +3*, Dmg 8d10x2
Qualities and modifications: Used, starts with 5 unused EP (all used), easy to work on (+5 to Mechanics), combat thrusters, disguised transponder, speed boost via Tech Specialist feat, upgraded main hyperdrive (x1), maneuvering jets (+4 Dex), sensor array computer (+2 Int), replaced turret weaponry, removed 2 passenger capacity and 20 tons of cargo capacity for extra EP
Notes:
* Add the pilot or gunner’s relevant stat to the listed number
**Treated as a Gargantuan starfighter for purposes of being targeted by capital ships, dogfighting and using maneuvers
Finished changing, Kaldo runs back to the cockpit. First time in a long time Sitting down, he turns to Rennah. Circle around them while gunning them down to pieces?
"Sounds good to me. Let's blow these Sith-spawn to pieces."
Fate's Emissary acts first!
The crew member of the ship responds, "Ah well that is uh". You hear the sounds of static and a new voice on the comm. "You do not threaten us, we have the drop on you, prepare to be boarded!!!"
"I've had about enough of you." Garrett says, still projecting himself to the rest of the crew. "You had your chance to back down; you should have taken it." He sets his fingers on the trigger before looking into the holo-projector, not bothering to turn off communications with the other ship. "Errin," Garrett says, his face twisting into his trademark grin, "take them down." With that, he fires towards the ship's cockpit with his turbolaser battery.
"They've had their chance. Kill 'em.
Perfect. Lets go Kaldo attempts to pilot the Fates Emissiary just above the other ships wing.