"... maybe if it goes off inside of the shields?"
Phineas frowns, "That puts us awfully close to that ship as it takes that hit Sir.
This may be... something that some of you may not be keen upon, but what if, what if we put out a bounty on them? Direct some of the criminal element towards them. It's also risky as we would have to pull off a rescue with aggressive criminals present. Would be one hell of a distraction though".
Having listened to everyone Prox interjects, "I feel the bounty on them idea would take perhaps longer than we have time to implement. I get the impression we need to rescue whomever fairly quickly before they end up in a place that is nigh unrescuable from. As it is, they are currently in a nearly unrescuable state. I wish I had some clever insights, on how to do this but I am afraid I do not. I mostly fix things that are broken or enhance things such as the idea Kol presented. However, I cannot say if Kol's plan would be the most viable plan as there are too many unknowns, one of which Phineas has already pointed out but I am sure there are more. I see no matter what we try to do, we are going to be facing rather steep odds against us of completing it and even higher odds of completing it without losses."
Kol paced restlessly, clearly without any idea as to how to proceed.
Then...
He bolted upright from a deep sleep.
He went to the conference room and started drawing out a plan.Later he stepped back and looked on the sketchboard.
He turned to the others.
"What if..." He asked feverously, "We adapted a torpedo warhead into an Ion warhead. We either charge in and hit them point blank, or maybe fake a surrender and surprise them.
"Wham!" He barked, slamming his fist into the table.
"We disable their ship, we board them, rescue the kid, and we're out of there. Maybe, if we're lucky, we'll get more info on this major-domo, or whoever it is who kidnapped the kid in the first place."
He stepped back.
"OK, what do you think?"
I kind of like that idea. But I would go a step further and grab the majordomo as well.
However, this does present a very real element of risk. Can we check in and update our contact and see what he has to say
Looking around Dreams asks Piston to come to the cockpit.
Can you get a message through on this frequency
Once he gets through, Dreams will update our Benifactor, and ask if there is assistance that can be provided.
Before your message can be sent, the indictor light shows that you have a message
Phineas will activate the messenger to hear the message.
Kol continues to argue in the background that if they don't have an Ion Torpedo, he can make one.
Prox concurs with Kol that it is quite possible, provided they have the necessary parts to do so. Then starts discussing what they will need to create the torpedo and determining if they have the materials they need aboard the ship.
The voice that you heard from the other ship can be heard coming from the message. It is sinister in a way that might even make the Inquistor shiver.
Poor, poor frightened poppets. Too afraid to even engage in a conversation with someone who has someone who thought they were his friends. Was it you Kol Dythand, snivelling little coward who gave the order to flee? Or was it Ardwin Kwinn, who in his pomposity thinks that his money can buy him out of anything. I know it cannot be the Jedi want to bes, they are too afraid of their own shadows to be of use to anyone. So many more worthy Jedi and padawans died during Order 66, yet Dreamchaser and Waylon Stanmore survived. More's the pity, they of all people should know how fragile the legacy of the Jedi is, but more on that later, as I prepare to claim something of that legacy and will sell it, or keep it.
But in the end, you all played your part...Look he says as the hologram comes into focus.
Donavaan is chained and looks like he has been beaten into an inch of his life, if not more.
Through blooded lips and a right eye swollen shut, in the fetal position
They left...They left me. he murmurs.
The image disappears
Let that image haunt you. You could have stopped that but in your propensity for stupidity and your cowardice, CHOSE not to do anything.
The message ends.
Ardan notes, "Interesting. They have nothing better to do than to gloat."
He shrugs. "Well, throwing ourselves heedlessly at a superior force will just get us all killed, so I hope someone has come up with an actionable plan."
Let them gloat, Now that we know what we are up against, we can plan for it.
Piston, open this channel, so I can request assistance
Dreams passes the datapad with the contact frequency that we were given so that he can update our benefactor.
Phineas nods, "Aye Sir" and opens the comm for communication with the Rebels benefactor.
The channel is open...
"Interesting play by this individual, hopefully your friend is not so addled that he chooses to believe the potential propaganda being fed to him. I mean anything they could have shown him about this encounter could have easily been faked and the same conclusion be drawn from such fake information."
"So, really they gained nothing and were simply trying to bait us into what they feel would be a losing situation for us. A purely basic Dejarik move that only the foolish would fall for, and definitely something that would be utterly useless in Tri-Dejarik."
"As such, I am sure if we look at this in a non-linearly manner there would be a quality countermove to this impendent move by this individual. Still non-linear thinking is not easy for us linear beings, but if we focus on the concept perhaps we can pull a quality move out of our collective hats."
Dreams turns to the pickup.
Sir, we have found the majordomo. He is in league with the individuals that kidnapped a member of our crew.
We had followed them to the planet of Almas where we found out that they are in a Diamond class cruiser.
I am formally requesting support to assist us in disabling the cruiser, so we can get our crewmember and the majordomo
Dreams then nods at Piston and asks that the transmission be ended.
I hope that helps, but if anything, it stops the arguing.
We have to try and figure out how to get that damned ship
The response is Has the majordomo been confirmed to be on the other ship?
Responding to the incoming
Highly suspected, but not confirmed.
The incoming message replies
Banshee, you are asking us to use precious resources, including credits on something which is not confirmed
Well if you want us to confirm him there, we are going to need support. if you want him and he is there, then we do need support.
Ardan leans over Dreamchaser's shoulder and says, "If we have an actionable asset in the area that'll move for 20kcr, I'll make the payment myself."
Ardan leans over Dreamchaser's shoulder and says, "If we have an actionable asset in the area that'll move for 20kcr, I'll make the payment myself."
Kol sat and reviewed sensor data of when they were in system.
"I wonder if they were bluffing?" He muttered, sitting back in his seat in front of the monitor.
"I mean, they must have been days in orbit, maybe weeks now. Why would they go all that way to orbit around that backwater planet to torture that boy, when they could have sat on their asses in a high class casino?" He wondered aloud.
He tapped his chin, thinking.
"And, what's down on that rock anyway?" He thought aloud. He turned to the computer and started running through the databank looking for records of that world and why their enemies might be there.
Your computer use is not enough to find out anything about the planet.
You receive another transmission, this time from Master Denis
“Your help to our cause in the last few months has been invaluable
and your dedication exemplary. During my recovery, I had time to
reflect on our goal—to discover the purpose of the Sarlacc Project.
“While studying at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, I learned
about holocrons—recording devices into which Jedi stored their
wisdom to pass on to future generations. Some holocrons, such as
the prized Tedryn Holocron of Jedi Master Ashka Boda, were tailored
toward helping Jedi Masters penetrate the secrets of the Force. Even
beings already trained in the Jedi ways, like myself, greatly benefit
from such a source of learning.
“I summoned you because the Force has pulled together threads
of knowledge to reveal the location of a holocron similar to the
Tedryn. Some time before I traveled to Cato Neimoidia, Master
Ashka Boda contacted me with news that he had joined the former
Almas Academy student Halagad Ventor in trying to form a network
between the scattered Jedi survivors of the destruction of the
academy. During the Clone Wars, an orbital bombardment
decimated the academy in the Cularin system, and if any artifacts
have survived, common sense suggests that they have since been
stolen. But the Force tells me that the holocron we require is there.
"I’ve never been to the planet Almas in person, but I knew the
headmaster there, a serene Jedi Master named Lanius Qel-Bertuk. I
have no current information on the planet, but I can provide you
with coordinates and a path through the treacherous comet cloud
that surrounds the Cularin system. These were obtained at great
expense thanks to Senator Organa’s vast connections.
“I feel this is crucial to our cause, because I have sensed a link
between the Sarlacc Project and the slaves that you rescued above
Bespin. But I have probed the Force tirelessly and at last reached my
limits. With this Jedi holocron, however, I might expand my ability
to see through the Force and find the answers we seek. Furthermore,
I will be able to pass on the lessons it contains to a future
generation of Jedi, thus coming one step closer to restoring peace
and justice to the galaxy."
After hearing the message, Master Rex looks at Waylon and Dreamchaser and asks Are the pieces to this puzzle beginning to come together?
"Sirs, no matter our plans, I think we will need to find a way to approach the planet with a greater degree of stealth".
Phineas turns back around and punches up the computer for Almas to see if he can find something useful where Kol did not.
Master Rex, I think so. The empire is hunting the holocrons so they can locate the force sensitive, and do whatever to them
Dreams then gets into a meditative trance while waiting
Waylon asks the Jedi Master, "They mentioned a Jedi Master named Lanius Qel-Bertuk. Are you familiar with Master Lanius? Do you think they might have survived the bombardment and taken the holocron?"
He responds, Who better to get access to a Jedi Temple, than one who trained as a jedi?
Did the message that the Jedi Master sent answer any of your questions.
Waylon asks the Jedi Master, "They mentioned a Jedi Master named Lanius Qel-Bertuk. Are you familiar with Master Lanius? Do you think they might have survived the bombardment and taken the holocron?"
I am not familiar with this particular Master of the Order. It might behoove the padawans to explore this jedi temple
Did the message that the Jedi Master sent answer any of your questions.
Phineas shakes his head in understanding, "I see, they may have beat us there, but because of the comet clouds, they did not risk landing and searching the planet for the "legacy" of the Jedi. That would seem to be this, what is it, holocron.
We need to go back but can we do so without weapon upgrades? Plus, we are still damaged.
While we may be able to get to the planet, we still have to find a way to rescue the prisoner from a ship that is superior to this one".
"I think we should take the time to upgrade the ship, and we should try and just get safely to the planet. They opted to sit in space and wait for us. I think it is likely that they want us for whatever they plan to do on the planet. If we land on the planet, they will almost certainly leave their ship and follow us to the planet. Taking a few days to control the scenario seems prudent." Waylon says.
Prox simply waits to hear what the leader of this group had to say about what they would be doing next. She hoped it would be something intelligently oriented and weighed all the various pros and cons. However, she had signed and been accepted without an interview so it was mutually pot luck situation. One gets what they got and they needed to deal with the best that they could.
"Right. We fix the ship then." Kol said, pulling out a plasma torch.
A repair facility would be better equipped to upgrade and repair the ship.
As much as I don't want to leave him in the hands of those imperial sympathizers, I think looking into that holocron is also an idea.
If that means we need to repair and refit before getting there, so be it
"Can any of you Jedi send a mental communication to this friend of yours assuring them they have not been abandoned?"
It would be really difficult for any of us, plus it is a skill that I have not yet mastered