Aerena Kolene

Aerena 'Relentless' Kolene

"Aerena is a human female from Corellia. She was born to a loving family and had a pleasant childhood. Jedi came to her town when she was small and she was tested to see if she was force sensitive – she was not. Strategy then struck in her early teen years when her father died in a mining accident. Aerena and her mother moved to the capital to live with an aunt. Her mother said her aunt worked for the government and to not ask her about her job – ever. Aerena figured she was a tax collector and didn’t worry about it while attending school and learning everything she could. Apparently, she was able to learn easily and had a retentive mind. As she came closer to graduation and the time to pick her career, her heart moved her to pick piloting. She loved flying and worked hard to get into space every chance she got. At this time in her life, her aunt played a pivotal role. It turns out that her aunt wasn’t a tax collector, but instead worked in the Corellian Intelligence Service. Her aunt made her a deal. Join the military and pass the pilot training they gave. Once she graduated, her aunt would give her a starship, an X-Wing. There was a string attached – Aerena became a spy. The end goal was for her to wind up as a pirate with the Medusas. Aerena’s aunt wanted someone on the inside to find out how they were organized, what their goals were, and hopefully to bring them down. Step one of her aunt’ plan was for Aerena to get a dishonorable discharge from the military and began drifting through the sector working whatever job came to hand. Since she had an X-wing and the skills to use it, there were few things she was unable to do. Slavery was one thing she would have no part of, however. Time passed and she began to make a name for herself as one who would do what she promised. Eventually she was approached by a Medusa and invited to join with them. Her aunt was thrilled – Aerena just considered it payment for her ship. She began collecting the intel her aunt wanted and then the civil war erupted around the galaxy. The pirates took jobs for both sides – depending on who was paying more that week. None of the pirates seem to care who wins the war, and that bothers Aerana. She is a Corellian and believes in the Alliance. As the war draws to an end, she quits the Medusa’s to take a more active role in the aftermath. Some of the pirates feel she is a traitor, but others agree with her choice and bear her no ill will. She will still occasionally help some of the Medusas complete missions, but only those she feels are good – or at least not bad. Since leaving the Medusas, she has reported all information that she learned to her aunt so payment for her ship has been rendered in full as she was able to convince her aunt that the Medusas weren’t evil and provided necessary services for the sectors. She continues to pick up odd jobs and always delivers on her promises. Personally, she continues to learn everything she can and is a voracious reader. She tends to avoid Jedi, not from fear, but simply because she would rather solve problems her way."

Physical Description

General Physical Condition

Active, on the small side (which allows easy access to piloting chairs)

Apparel & Accessories

Flight Suit Gear bag Combat jumpsuit (+1D to physical, +2 versus energy) Blast Vest (+1 versus energy, +1D to physical)

Specialized Equipment

Heavy blaster Pistol (4D+2) Scope +1D at medium or long range Vibroblade (STR+1D+1)

Mental characteristics

Failures & Embarrassments

Aerena's favorite stuffed animal was a needlegawp. She carried everywhere with her and even took it to school for the first two years. She would prefer that none of her current companions knew that and will flatly deny any hints otherwise. Death to any who doubt her steel. While she was infiltrating the Medusa's, Aerena was forced into a situation where she had to prove her abilities to herself more than them. She was still young, fresh from the academy, and eager to be seen as grown-up and capable. The one thing that she had not had a lot of time for while at the academy was men. The Medusa's put a lot of emphasis on womanly skills and Aerena was lacking. So, she hunted down and attempted to seduce men and got no takers. No one was interested in drinking with her, much less anything else. She gave up after being told no twenty times. This is NOT a period in her life she would be anxious to relive as constant rejection is not anyone's idea of a good time. She did eventually learn, but she isn't yet to the age where she can laugh about it.

Personality Characteristics

Likes & Dislikes

Hates Black Hats

Vices & Personality flaws

Adducted to flying - will use any excuse to jump into the pilot's seat. Does not have a high opinion of anyone else's ability to fly

Social

Contacts & Relations

Aunt is with Corellian Intelligence Service

Relationships

Spukamas

partner (Vital)

Towards Aerena Kolene

Honest

Aerena Kolene

best friend

Towards Spukamas

History

We have been together through a long and sometimes profitable career in the Medusas. We are "FrOTPs"! Woe to anyone who messes with either one of us!

Legal Status

Legally Spook is the property of Aerena Kolene. Technically speaking.

Wealth & Financial state

3D Attitude towards money is easy come - easy go. Never one to stint on the cost of anything related to her ship (though she and Spook have different ideas about what is necessary!)

View Character Profile

Currently Boarded Vehicle

Starrise Falcon

Date of Birth

5 Kelona 12704

Birthplace

Corellia

Spouses

Siblings

Children

Current Residence

Night Sparrow

Gender

Female

Quotes & Catchphrases

Damn Jedi!

Aligned Organization

Medusa

Related Plots

Related Reports

Can we kill him already?
12731, 10th of Telona

That maintenance worker is still talking to Davish about "information". I overhear So'Zen asking for help from Vance and there is a long conversation that begins to irritate me so I check in with Davish to see if there is anything he could do to help or if I should just go shoot the door and open it. Davish is attempting to talk with the maintenance worker who just turns and attempts to leave the hanger bay. He slams the door and they hold a brief conversation and then he allows the worker to leave. Davish asks me to take his burden and store it on the ship while he goes to help So'Zen. I meet him at the door and take the body and store it safely. I am keeping one ear on the conversation So'Zen is having and encouraging him to leave her alone. Vance suggests showing her an entire holocron of Jedi Quest. So'Zen brings her to the ship and Vance and the lady go away to view the holocron and she puts him into the library system. Vance comes back and I ask the ship whether I need to stay or if she can handle it. She asks for permission to use lethal force and I agree. She immediately opens all of her gun ports, two-thirds face the hanger bay and one third is focused on the hallway where the maintenance tech went. Davish reminds me that we have to take the body with us and I ask if she can leave it behind if she has to leave before we get back. Since all of the priests must go with us to the artifact, she and I agree that leaving Catysus with her who can move the body to a safe location is the best option. He doesn't necessarily agree. We go to So'Zen's door and Vance is able to put his hand on the keypad and it opens. He keeps his hand on the door while we pass him into an airlock type situation. When we are all inside, Vance opens the next door and then we are in a larger room where the head librarian is. He is busy working on a sheet of information and welcomes us. So"zen asks for the sheet that he is working on. He wants to finish researching it first. So'Zen, Vance, and the librarian discuss things for a while and I get bored. I notice on one of the screens a depiction of a creepy transforming droid thing we saw once in the Tapani sector. They were nice to me, but Vanya was not happy with them. The third time the picture pops up, I ask the librarian about them and he says they left this galaxy a long time ago and are somehow tied to the Jedi in this galaxy. The librarian begins to set up stations for us to start "helping and learning" this galaxy since he is positive that we are stuck here. I flatly refuse to sit down and encourage So'Zen to move on. We go out the airlock to the north which gets us closer to the location where the beacon was. Then when Vance puts his hand on the pad to open the next door, it asks a question - that we can't read and gives us a choice of answers - that we also can't read. I suggest popping out a priest to translate and am very firmly taken to task for even mentioning them as apparently, they are a state secret. Suddenly, I glitch. When I come out of it, one of the priests pops up. Apparently, someone prayed and she was sent in answer to the prayer. She translates the door which is asking if we have rebreathers. I say yes and she replicates one for each of us and then tells us to be aware that the next room has the potential for bad air, but not vacuum or high pressures - which would kill us anyway. She then insists that she goes back to Davish who must have been the one who prayed. Vance and she go back into the room and So'Zen does a Jedi thing at the door to keep the librarian uninterested. They walk over to Davish and talk. And now we have a map of this station on our comm pads. I attempt to discuss life with So'Zen, but if I do it much longer I will have to kill him Vance and Davish come in and we get ready to go into the next room. Eventually, Davish and the priest fix each other and she opens the door for me. The green glow of the rift comes through the door and Davish falls asleep quickly since he never put on a rebreather. Vance puts the extra one on him and he slowly wakes. I move on into the room and see the rift - which looks exactly like the rift that had been in the sky over Calcedon. There is also a translucent box that has a yellow goo and what appears to be a doll house. The priests are activated and they begin to look for the artifact. They don't know what they are looking for, but they say that if they recognize the item in the room, it is not the artifact. As they are looking around, suddenly there is a swarm of little bugs flying around and attacking. I activate my shield and move to protect the priests. One of the priests declares that he must save the beacon. So'Zen and Vance are swatting bugs and I grab the priest back. He is covered with bugs and I ask Davish to throw me the beacon. He does and I pass it back towards the priests when I find my hand and arm hugged within the rubbery folds of the priest covered with bugs. I start to feel little shocks as the bugs swarm from him onto my arm. Suddenly, the bugs die and I toss the priest around to remove the bug carcasses and toss him and the beacon back to his buddies and tell them to have a hug orgy with the beacon. Then the remaining bugs start to swarm my shield bracelet. The airlock door to the north opens and the maintenance person from the hanger bay comes in, moves out of So'Zen's way, and starts to clean the room. I ask for him to get them off of my shield which he does and then he notices the priests. In his shock, he tells us there is a mind flayer and then Davish stuns him. We leave the priests behind to search for the artifact while we rush ahead to save So'Zen. I see a hallway back into the hanger bay and run over to check on Muinmos. She has only one gun pointed at the hallway and all others at the hanger bay doors. There appears to be someone attempting repair from the other side. I contact the ship and convince her to pull in her guns and go dark and wait to see if the ships coming in are actually an enemy. I remind her that her goal is to complete her mission. She agrees and I go to meet the guys who are standing in front of double doors that have been blocked up and unblocked numerous times. I hear a voice that offers me the chance to fly everywhere. I ignore it and go meet the guys. I have a long conversation with what is probably the mind flayer and I again ignore its blandishments and promises though it is harder this time. It tells me that it is actually inside a hyperspace ship and I warn the guys just before they break through the door. We see what looks like a vorlonesqe ship with the capability to have writing on the side that changes. They guys discuss how to open it and Davish tosses a bit of the metal from the doors at it and it dings, but it is warped when it falls to the ground I speak up and say, "knock, knock" and the door spirals up. We discuss whether to go in or not and there is the head librarian behind us with a lightsaber that is attached to a power pack. He tells us that we should accept the invitation. So'Zen goes first, Davish and the librarian go next, I follow them, and Vance brings up the rear. When we get to the room where the mind flayer is, there is a sense of dread. He is wearing a pilot's suit with light blue skin. It starts talking and the guys keep talking back. I suggest more than once that we should just kill it. And finally Davish is down in major pain and seems to be experiencing a glitch without the visual aspect. I shoot straight at where he appears to be standing - shooting straight for his face. It is just an image, but I manage to take out a gun emplacement coming out of the wall. Vance scans for the actual mind flayer. Then So'Zen closes his eyes and turns around and is facing the head librarian. The head librarian is in a state of shock and while attempting to get out of the way, he falls on his face beside me. Another person enters the ship and So'Zen parries his blow. Then attacks him and knocks him back. Vance goes next with a straight shot which would have worked if he hadn't stolen the lightsaber from the head librarian. He blocks the shot. I shoot his feet and knock him down. Two reavers burst into the room and I shoot the first one coming in the door and irritate him enough to focus on me. I just tell him that he has fresh meat at his feet and to leave me alone. So'Zen takes a lightsaber to the second guy and cuts an arm off. Vance goes next and shoots the reaver and the flayer. Then Davish turns his powers on the flayer to keep him down and out. The two reavers attack Vance and So'Zen but do a very bad job of it. Then the flayer grabs the head librarian for a quick snack to get the energy for the fight. Vance kills the rever attacking him and then So'Zen takes out the one attacking him. So'Zen takes his lightsaber to the mind flayer's tentacles and manages to knock him unconscious. Davish does a quick search, removes his weapons, and ties him up. Vance checks on the head librarian who rushes out the door when he finds out about the reavers. So'Zen follows and then Vance heads back to check on the priests. I head forward to the cockpit to check out the ship. This appears to be some sort of luxury yacht. There are lots of pretties around and I can see out the viewports. There is sunlight coming through the crystal above, but the ship is stuck. Vance reports in that there were more reavers around, but they are dead. He is going to escort the priests back to their ship so they, the artifact, and the beacon home. Vance chimes back in with the information that the priests do not know what the artifact is, but will pray about it. No word comes from So'Zen. I go back to Davish and fill him in on what I discovered about the ship and most of what Vance had reported. Vance checks in again to say that the priests found out that the artifact is a combination life signs monitor and homing beacon. I check to see if Vance had heard or seen So'Zen, but he hadn't. Neither of us could contact him and Vance suggested that Davish looks for him through the force. Then So'Zen chimes in and tell us he has been in the vault. Apparently, he promised some scary women we would leave now. Vance isn't happy with that so he does down to talk to the scary woman. He reports back that we have permission to kill the flayer which I do immediately since Davish went to get the body of the Crimson Knight. Vance calls in and checks on whether I feel confident in using this ship to get us home. I respond that I can fly it and I know which controls should be used but have no idea how to use them. He tells me to meet in the rift room. We meet So'Zen and Vance carrying the glass box with the dollhouse in it. So'Zen says that is we take the yellow goo to the priests so they can get it home, then it will tell us how to get home. We get it on the ship with the priests and it tells us to dream hard about our home and then take a leap of faith. We go back to the rift room and Vance starts talking about the goddess that owes him a favor. So'Zen declares "I am one with the force and the force is one with me." and jumps into the rift. We discuss how to focus on the place where we want to go. Vance keeps trying to get us to use the ship instead, but I am ready to focus and jump. I concentrate and jump.

WTF, mate
12731 10 Telona

Suddenly, we are in a room and by we I mean only me and Davish Tam. He looks gray and worn out. Around us are maybe people of some kind that look like they are eating food. I check on Davish and he needs rest and food, not necessarily in that order. I contemplate putting my hands up and slowly side-stepping over to grab some food for him and me cause I could use a bite too. There are eight guard types coming at us and I manage to grab a bowl of something rice like and get it back to Davish. He eats it and the "gentleman" I took it from looks up at a guard and requests a refund. He is shoved aside in a no-nonsense matter by the guard. Davish does something and the guard give the guy some money. Davish thanks him for the food and they exchange a few words. The guards are confused as they apparently expected only one and there are two of us. I manage to convince the guards that Davish needs assistance and they send one to get a dish cart. They have never heard of hover carts. The dish cart is finally approaching when suddenly the radio of one goes off with a whole bunch of coded gibberish and we are grabbed and hustled towards a door with an iris opening. I tell Davish he should do some Jedi something or other, but we are being hustled along. Suddenly, he turns and manages to disarm the guy holding him and is shoving the dangerous end under the guy's chin. I attempt to roundhouse the guy holding me and instead end up on the floor. The guard leans over to help me up by pulling my hair! and sees what is happening with Davish. He pulls his "gun" to point it at Davish to threaten him and ignoring me. I stand up and in an attempt to disarm him manage to jam my shoulder under his chin which forces his head back and hopefully causes him pain. I grab the gun from the dazed and confused guy and jump across the aisle so that I am beside Davish. The guards fire towards us, but the shots go up into the air. I use the gun I confiscated and shot the ground in front of them to discourage them from coming back towards us. Davish asks the guy he is holding to point out the boss and the boss decides it is better to shoot the guy Davish is holding. Davish dances out of the way of the shot and they end up back in the exact same position. The guard between us and the front three. There are a couple of doors in the hallway and while I menace the guys in front and behind us, Davish convinces his buddy to open one of the doors. We are in the kitchen with a lot of unhappy people. Davish keeps his guy and puts his empty bowl in the sink as he passes. We choose to go through the wider doorway instead of back towards the courtyard where we started. We enter a room which is filled with blue lizard-like aliens that are Shriner's - honest to God Shriner's. We meet up with a short woman who commands Davish to put down his hostage and follow her. Suddenly we glitch. No other way to explain the next two seconds of plain weirdness. Afterward, we knock out the guard so he won't get fired and follow her. We are walking down a corridor in what appears to be a skyscraper. We eventually end up in a meeting room that appears to be totally customizable for multiple species. A droid enters the room and introduces itself as MP-8. It pulls up a map on the table and then the captain speaks up and asks for our healer. The droid pulls out a disk and pushes a button and suddenly a balloon inflates and talks. He claims to be a priest of Triune and asks for us to indicate our illnesses. He heals Davish and So'Zen and Davish is shocked by the use of the force. When he tries to find out why the balloon can use the force, we are accused of being barbarians and specieists. After consulting with MP-8 and Bey Max, it is determined that the best way to get out of this wherever we are is to take the ship they are offering and go to this beacon location which just happens to be the Library at the Nexus where So'Zen hs been before. He confirms that there will be a way to get back to our universe from there. MP-8 and the captain leave the room. We gather our gear and Davish attempts to contact Vanya with no luck. We get on a vehicle and drive through the city to get to the station. We see lots of different types of people and species as we traverse the streets. We get to the docking bay and see a very tall, slender alien who is most uncomfortable with the captain. She goes over a few rules and we enter the ship. I sit down in the pilot's chair and attempt to start it up. I try two more times and do NOT succeed. The alien takes over in order to get us out of the docking bay and out towards the beacon while I observe. We make the first leg of the journey and I chat a bit with the pilot. He apparently was caught just like we were and his only way to stay alive is to do this mission. The Bey Max pops up to check on all of his patients and recommends rest. So'Zen asks for a story and then the Bey Max goes back to his box and we go back into drift space for the next leg of the journey. This time we see various floating bits of flotsam and jetsam as well as a largish thing that looks like a building. I take over the controls for a bit and manage to fly us past the first section of debris. Ahead of us is a landing strip to the port side and that building thing to starboard. I ask the guys if they wish to investigate either one and they ask for a minute to check something. Then we fly past the building without stopping and make it to our next stopping place. Fifteen minutes and then we will be ready to go again. We enter back into the drift space and I take the conn as our alien pilot feels that I have better reflexes even though he knows the equipment better. We make it past the first section of a heavily populated debris field. I hear Davish wandering around, but don't hear anything from the others. Davish then enquires about my dietary likes and the upshot is that we have two giant space squids on the warpath. I send Davish to the tail guns and Danar to the belly guns while I concentrate on flying. They fire and manage to damage the first one a few times and then I try to dodge when it shoots actual lightning at us! I dodge that and the guys get in a few more shots. It doesn't appear to be slowing down so I try to dodge and somehow end up going back the way we were coming from. The squid appeared to lose our trail, but when it was shot at it turned around to follow us again. I flipped over it and then we hit the boost and managed to get clean away. I hear a sproing and tell the pilot to turn off the boost and then to go check the engine. He instead wakes up Bey Max and tells him that his heart is racing. He gets knocked out and Bey Max wakes up the other three droids. One helps So'Zen to repair the engine and then docks himself. One of the others discusses with me the necessity of re-programming our flight plan. After we discuss various strategies we change the programming to be a longer, safer route. So'Zen comes into the cockpit and talks about a course change. I can't do anything so he wakes up the droid to change course. After discussion with the guys in the galley, we decide to take So'Zen's course change and I have the droid change the flight path. Five hours later, I ask Bey Max to wake the pilot. Then I hear all sorts of commotion behind me and suddenly all the lights go dark. Eventually, the commotion dies down and I get the system lights back on. I check with Davish and we determine that turning off the engines and drifting in like the items that followed us out of the drift. We get close enough to our destination that I can see buildings and turn the engines back on and scan for signs of life. I have a message telling me to power down and wait for landing instructions. I comply just as the pilot returns to the cockpit. He keeps saying it is bad, but no details and then interceptors fly past us and towards the drifting debris. The pilot decides to hide from the librarians and the others grab the disks so we can smuggle the droids into the library. We wake up one of the droids and have it handle communication. It does tell us how to put up the drift bubble which works as a shield against scanners. While the gentlemen argue about whether to do it or not, I quietly turn on the bubble. The droid and the people on the planet argue for a while and then we are given specific instructions for landing. I follow those exactly and the pilot comes out of hiding and gives more details on his past and why the librarians want to kill him. We land and So'Zen heads out to talk to the ones waiting to meet him. After a while, one of the librarians approaches in order to refuel and refresh our supplies or so they claim. I approve the refueling, but then they insist on coming inside. I contact the pilot to verify that claim and they call bullshit so I tell the librarian no and they start climbing the hull. The ship volunteers to electrocute them and I agree. The librarian screams and falls off the hull. I inquire about his health and he gets up slowly and debates for a few minutes before going to the hanger bay doors and sealing the bay and powering the doors down. At the same time, Davish enters and begins to discuss the situation with him. I scan for life signs and discover around 4000 in a meditative state and then do a quick scan to find the beacon on our level just a few rooms away which should be beside the artifact we have to find.

Dream a little dream
Satunda, 13 Melona, 12731

Suddenly, I hear Vanya in my head. She starts talking about math and doing something about making three adjustments in each ship and then listen to the Mentat and do what he says. I am fairly sure that I am dreaming as Vanya has to be several light years away if not several galaxies. Then she says ignore your hand, but move it and turn on the seat warmer. How am I supposed to ignore my hand and do something with it at the same time? And how does she know there are seat warmers on this ship? I look at my hand - because you have to when someone tells you not to - and I suddenly see that I am turning blue from cold? Then the Mentat says that I can steal all of the ships. Okay, there are a lot of ships here, but this plan has me somehow popping into the cockpit of each and every ship, adjusting the power to allow each ship to double the hyperspace bubble, and then turn them on all of the hyperdrives at the same time. This means that I have to figure out the specs of each ship, put them into categories based upon the panel configurations, figure out how long it will take each hyperdrive to activate so I can start the slower ones first and finish with the fastest ones using a timer program. I have to focus on the end result - my reputation will increase and I will have a LOT of treasure. It is very sad that I can fly only one ship at a time as I would love to have different ships for different needs. But I will have the reputation of stealing a LOT and I do mean a LOT of ships from the Katana fleet as well as people from them. Then I overhear that we are flying to Chalcedon - that means that I will have to pay port taxes and they will take a portion of my loot. Vanya figures that either Spook or her boys can doctor the paperwork so I can keep everything. I close my eyes, take some very deep breaths, and agree to do this insane thing. I suddenly feel my body feeling warmth and life and I feel as if I can actually do this crazy, insane thing. I hop - mentally - into a simulator and begin setting up each and every ship so that they can perform as the Mentat required. I then find myself back in my body and watching the slow as molasses milliseconds as the hyperdrives engage and an enormous bubble the size of a super star destroyed is formed and slowly the ships wink out of sight one at a time with my ship being the last one.

First Holocron
Katunda, 07 Melona 12731

FLASHBACK: I have a feeling that this will not go well. The boarding teams that we watched appeared to be professionals and did not hesitate in doing the job. Knowing that I am on a strange ship and not sure of what is where. I determine how to quickly set up a force field that I can activate with one quick slap at the panel closest to the door I will be guarding. It is more of a challenge than normal due to the lack of power, but I find a medical protocol system that has some emergency power reserves and I link it to the panel. If we are in more danger that anticipated now, I can activate it and that will add a LOT of problems for the boarding party - and us, but what else is new. I decide that now is the time to activate the emergency medical protocols and force fields slam down all along the corridor. I see So'Zen pop open a hatch and climb in and then Lady Zaye contacts me to say that Hicks has done something to take out the boarding shuttle, but on his way back to our ship, he is caught by a grappling hook. She could cut the line and rescue Hicks, but all of the troopers around her have stood back up. They should not have been able to . I ask here if she has some type of area effect skill/power/action that would take them back down long enough to let her rescue Hicks. That seems to give her an idea and I hope it works. Lady Zaye pops back in to share that the boarding party is cybernetic and possibly not human. That is an interesting observation. I pull out my datapad and access the ship's library to see if there are any resources that I can access from my force field bubble. I find something interesting. The maintenance droids, there are bigger than mouse droids - cat sized, yellow with 10 across the ship. I run through their functions since there are more than anticipated. They have the ability to do an EM pulse that can deactivate other droids/electronics. Fortunately, three are three close to Lady Zaye. I send them to the back of three of the death troopers and have them shoot off an EM pulse. The feedback from the droids is that the death troopers are extremely complicated, but they are shut down based upon what I can see from the droid's imagery. I contact Lady Zaye to see if that helped and remind her about Hicks. I am still sitting and recovering from that whatever it was attack. I decide the best use of my time would be to check on the sphere in the cargo bay. Maybe it is what turned on the lights? When I check on it with the camera, I see that there are letters and worlds flitting over the surface of the spheres. I do not recognize them so I set them to record for 60 seconds and then I put a translation program to run and see if it can decipher anything. It is picking up a few words here and there and tells me that these are from a language so ancient that it predates all modern languages. It is able to pull a few words: spherion, codex, revenant, webway, cosmic turbine. None of this makes sense, but I do feel that it is trying to communicate something. I take another 60 second recording and have the language program Then the second recording gives more phrases: Spherion Codex, lost Cyngus, Webway gate, First Holocron, Cosmic Turbine, Revenant of Cygnus. Nothing about these phrases gives me a warm fuzzy feeling. From my understanding cygnus generally refers to swans. Revenants are undead creatures. I am distracted by a conversation from the engine room. So'Zen claims this ship is his!! Then he proceeds to try and talk the bad guy to death. Jedi! The other guy ignores him, shoots the hyperdrive, and dives into the maintenance tunnel that So'Zen left open. *sigh* I contact the maintenance droids and send the three closest to the engine room. I have two begin working on the necessary repairs and have the third one to check on the children. They are better off than So'Zen apparently so I have the third maintenance droid pop over to the console that So'Zen is using to tell him he needs emergency medical care. Its next instruction is to get the children to safety. I then start heading for the bridge leaving the force fields down. Remembering that there is still one intruder, I set two droids to trundle through the maintenance tunnels keeping an eye out - one fore, one aft. I get to the bridge in time to see two tie fighters swoop around for another run and I quickly get shields up - just in time for the next shot from the lead tie fighter to bounce off. Then I feel the lurch as a tractor beam attaches with an explosion immediately following. It looks like the boarding shuttle is not a problem. However, I lose sensor data of Lady Zaye and Hicks who are still outside the ship. Just as I am about to figure out what to do to help with that situation, another tractor beam latches on to the ship and begins trying to drag us toward the fleet. Then it gets hit by one of the tie fighters and half of the tug is gone, but the other half is careening towards the Falcon. I flit over to the controls for the starboard laser cannon and fire on the tug. It hits and the tug explodes. One danger down, but the sensors take another hit. I open the comm channel. "Lady Zaye? Hicks?" No response. Then sweet sounds enter my ears as Hicks reports he and Lady Zaye are on board and safe. I suggest that Hicks heads back to take care of the other death troopers while I inform Lady Zaye that her children are safe. She inquires as to where the mane who tried to murder them might be. I let her know of him hiding in the maintenance tunnels and that there are two droids looking for him. Then I am contacted by an unknown ship with coordinates of a safe flight path to get me to the wormhole I can see in the distance. Then Vondromas speaks to me and suggests that we have caused enough trouble and we should get out of here. While I agree, I have to tell him that we must take out the ring first because there are too many people in danger and the potential of galaxy wide destruction is too great. He agrees and we begin discussing the how since we are agreed on the why. Final plan has Hicks flying one shuttle while we set two others on auto pilot to distract the forces. Hick's shuttle will be escorted by Danar in the tie fighter until it is safely past the defenses of the SSD. Then Hicks will set the hyperdrive in motion and abandon ship catching a ride back on the tie fighter to the Starrise Falcon which will be hiding on an asteroid with all power turned off. I keep an eye on what is happening while So'Zen is off being So'Zen. The ring explodes and at the same moment, So'Zen rushes back on the bridge babbling about we have to go now. I see the ring of destruction coming and agree with him. I open a comm channel to the area and suggest that everyone heads for the wormhole. Then Vondromas contacts me to say that the tie fighter is not going to make it and he will try to rescue Danar and Hicks. We are making a beeline for the wormhole. Behind us ships are being caught in the wave and going ghostly. Then we reach the event horizon of the wormhole as the wave is about to catch

The Marshall is in
Katunda, 07 Melona 12731

And then We are yanked out of hyperspace by a huge blast of Cronau radiation and left with only life support, gravity, and minimal support systems. I see a squad of fighters come out and start scanning the multitude of ships stuck in this same mess. Some they escort back to the fleet - oh! I didn't mention the huge fleet that apparently created the radiation surge that pulled us out of hyperspace?? Well, it turns out that the mysterious Katana fleet is here and active. Found it! Wonder if there is a bounty or reward for that? Anyway, some ships they escort back - I am sure those are either the ones with power, people, or cargo - others they destroy. I am about to order Hicks to hide our power signature, but we might need that to give us a fighting chance. I then ask for suggestions on ways we can get out of this. Hicks looks closer at the ship and identifies that as a targeted hyperspace drive that could do major damage. He tells me that there are only two weaknesses that he is aware of: the struts that provide power and the bridge connectors that provide the targeting instructions. As we do not have a way to do anything about that problem yet, we move on to discuss the more immediate problems. Which is when So'Zen walks onto the bridge and is his usual idiotic self. He finally leaves to go check on the children and the crystal- mentioning on the way out that Vandromas is to the starboard. I have Hicks pull some of the energy from the gravity generator and put it into the sensors and start a full scan of the surrounding area. The sensor data downloads and I begin to scroll through the information. Life signs, species, ships, pirates (in heavily modified ships of course). I also do a sweep of the TIE's that are going through the ships pulled from hyperspace. They are unusual in that they have black panels and gray trim and their nose has an angled U design that would allow them to handle atmosphere better. They do have a meaner look about them and the cockpit is midnight black with silver trim. Standard twin lasers and SHEILDS! That is so unfair! I keep scanning to look for the Bloodsmith raider tech that Hicks says that Vondromas has in him. Then I discover a Medusa ship. I am about to look for the name and it is destroyed first. I need the black box and droid out of that debris! I then see one of the TIE fighters surround a ship and I watch as storm troopers leap out of the air lock and fall on the ship. I do not recognize their armor. It is bulky and black with white shoulder bells and I can kinda see an image on there. I enhance an image of the white shoulder bells to see if I can get a better view of the image - and I see Black Templar troopers. I leave that problem for future Aerena and continue scanning for the digital signatures that could be Bloodsmith tech. I find an area that says there is tech there, but there is nothing there - except a VOR belt. That means Danar is here too and on a cloaked ship. So another problem. Up to four I think and I feel like I really need a drink or maybe four. One for each problem. I quickly peruse the remainder of the derelict ships and it appears that the bulk freighters and transports that either have a lot of people or those that have replicators on board are the ones being boarded. I think that since we have the crystal there is a high probability we will be boarded. I send the image I grabbed over to Hicks and he is a bit stunned as well. He however feels that their bulk provides us an opportunity. We should be able to take them out one at a time and hopefully keep them from communicating to the rest of the fleet. I have Hicks begin work to cobble together a device and suggest he might be able to the ion barrel from one of his DC17s. I turn to leave and Lady Zay is suddenly just there. I share with her the situation and Hick's plan. She feels it is a good one as well. She agrees to help Hicks and that reminds me to turn on the maintenance droids and get them busy with ship repairs. As I am leaving, I hear Lady Zay saying not to use the hyperdrive right away since that is where children are stashed. Dratted Bishop - just like his master creating more problems. I get to the cargo bay and find the crystal (or artifact or whatever) emitting a soft blue light. It has a crystalline structure with a blue pillar supporting it, but it ends in mid-air so not really a support?? Anyway I see So'Zen asleep on the job so I ignore him and walk over to the crystal to see if it reacts to me now that it has been activated. It doesn't. Nor does it appear to react to So'Zen. I guess I need to get him functioning so he can help. I try a stun blast, but that doesn't work so I get up very close to his ear so he can hear me and yell loudly "So'Zen!! Master Yoda needs you!!" No reaction. Then Hicks calls me to say time is up. We determine a plan of action that puts Lady Zay on the bridge (with the coordinates to Danar's ship if she wants to call him) to confirm which airlock they pick with Hicks midway between them so he can head to the correct one with the device. I am closer to the aft hatch so we have one fighter in each third of the ship. Then over our comms we begin to hear the comm chatter from the assault shuttles and TIE fighters. There is also a commentary from Danar as he feeds us intel on where they ships are heading. Main force is going to hit our main hatch while someone Marshall is coming alone to the aft hatch. He is apparently a force user - yeah me. A figure walks in with a stealth suit with a military vest and a hood. There is a rebreather (ow he made it through space obviously) and I fire a quick shot at his knee and I manage to take him down. He immediately rolled away and I fired my second shot which just missed. He steps up and hurls a knife at me and I dodge behind the door. It takes a furrow out of my jacket and it hits the bulkhead discharging electricity. I grab the knife and Hicks calls me to say he is moving on to plan B to handle the rest of the troopers and tells me to let Vanya know it wasn't her fault. Then he shoots force lightning at me. It hits me. I am jolted by the electrical power and it knocks me back and I am down to one knee and I feel stunned. Lady Zay contacts me to tell me about the change in plans which include leaving the first group of troopers on the ship for Lady Zay to handle while he floats across to their shuttle to take the fight to them (and a plasma cannon) to blow up their shuttle and come back - at least he better come back. She inquires if I need help and I say yes - if she can. She heads my way after handling her situation. I look up, expecting Lady Zay, but it is So'Zen sliding into the doorway and finally does something. Which is to upset him more apparently. Then Lady Zay comes over the comms to say that Hicks is halfway between our ship and the departing shuttle and they are attempting to grab him with a grappling hook. I tell her to solve that situation now that So'Zen is awake and working.

The End?!??!
Datunda, 4 Melona, 12731

There are walls inside these caverns that look older and made of different material - maybe a capitol ship? There are stylized designs around the edges that might be A'Wakeen in design. I have a lot of maybes and supposes here. We have one more area in this base to clear, but we have this tunnel to the west. I volunteer to go check out the room to the south, while Hicks hangs out at the junction to keep an eye out for anything coming our way. We have not been all that quiet! I slip quietly down to the last chamber and it is either empty or someone is playing possum. I ease my way down and crouch down to look into the area. There are some crates at the entrance and I hear a slight scrap of rock to the north. If someone is hear, they are using the wall for cover. The crates in front of me are plasteel with faded lettering and stacked high enough to form a barrier. I look closer to see if I can determine what might be inside. Pressurized crates that are probably food - and I remember I have not seen any galley. I decide the best course of action would be to crouch down and look around the corner to see what can be seen. I peer to the north and don't see crates. Have they been cleared on purpose? I duck walk over to the crate wall so I can keep it as cover while I look into the next area of the room. There is a single glow rod providing emergency lighting and it glints off metal - claws?!!?? It moves. I decide the only thing I can do it to knock over the crates. I plop my butt on the floor and brace myself and push. The crates wobble, but don't fall. I slid down a bit more and bend at my knees to push again - harder. The crates fall loudly, I hear a yell, and dust billows. I hear a metallic crash as something is crushed and I see in front of me a pirate and TWO METAL WOLVES. I call for Hicks and fire one shot at each wolf as they are standing beside/in front of the pirate. I skim past the won of the right and it ricochets against the metal wall and comes back towards me and hits the wall in the tunnel behind me. I can see a blue cloud oozing out of the rock where the blaster bolt hit. The other shot hits the wolf and manages to cause some damage. The wolf I missed jumps at me and I, while I lay on my back, get my feet under it and push back hard. It rebounds and flies through the air to fly through that blue cloud. The cloud interacts and freezes part of the metal and I can see little bits of things floating inside the cloud. Note to self - avoid that!! The other wolf does something to its tail and turns into a scorpion like appendage and it strikes at me. I roll to the south so I can avoid Hicks coming in hot. My jacket is struck by the edge and gets a slight tear. Someone had better be buying me drinks later for that! The pirate in the back pulls out a little ball and clicks a button. It turns into a droid that flies and has tools!! and is now fixing the one wolf I had hurt. Damn drones and no way in hell am I keeping that to give to So'Zen! I roll into a crouch and fire two shots at the repairo drone. It dodges in a flurry of movement, but my shots hit the wolf again. One shot ricochets off the armor and hits that wall which results in another cascade of blue cloud matter. The second shot hits something inside and ionization rolls over the drone and dims one eye. It should be down to half power at least. Hicks finally comes around the corner and fires at the wolves while I yell at him to avoid the blue clouds. He fires at each wolf and it hits the partially frozen one and causes some damage, the other hit causes even more damage to the half powered one. The metal ice wolf shoots it's whip cord tail at me and I roll forward and it just misses me, though it does manage to grab some of the floor for a prize. The other wolf starts a staggering, limping run at me while the repairo drone holds on. It slams into me as I slam into it and it tries to bite me, but my shield is on so it can't get through and it is a really pretty ion show. I can see the drone start working to repair the wolf again and it looks like the shoulder joint is already better than it was. The pirate pulls a blaster and fires at Hicks who suddenly has a blue mist in front of him. The wolf gnawing on me raises one claw to swipe at me and I make a split-second decision to turn off my shield and roll under the body to get out of the way and slide underneath and then behind the combat drone. The paw hits a crate behind me and slices it open to have plasma drill bits, power cells, and cleaning oil tumbles out. Out of the corner of my eye, I see the frozen droid shoot the whip cord tail at Hicks who has to dodge both the cloud and the tail. It takes a chunk out of the armor, but doesn't hit Hicks himself. The repairo drone keeps fixing the damaged wolf while keeping all sensors on me. The pirate fires at me and I dodge to the north to hopefully give him an opportunity to hit the wolf. I pull my plasma blaster to fire at the wolf and repairo drone with the hopes of taking both of them out of this fight. Since I am point blank, I hit and I manage to melt open the armor of the wolf. The repairo drone jumps int eh air and somersaults in the air to land on the haunches of the wolf, and then runs back to continue doing repairs. Hicks fires at the joints and explodes the shoulder which starts to smoke. The wolf steps back and the nearest blue cloud flows into the wound. The cloud seems to glow and ooze through the wolf until is covered in ice and then the blue cloud oozes out and snakes away in the air - as if it has a mind and is alive. I am mesmerized by the flowing cloud but snap out of it when Hicks fires at the pirate who dives behind a crate. He is hit by one of the shots and is knocked down. I turn back to my fight and pull out my vibroblade to hack and slash at the innards until it finally goes down. The repairo drone is a bit upset and I contemplate hurling it into one of the blue clouds. Then I see the pirate take aim and fire at me. Stupid pirate! I throw up my shield to block and it does. Then I see one cloud head towards the pirate and one is coming for me. We have one more combatant in the room, so I pick up a crate and toss it at the pirate. It misses him and hits the wall releases another one of those blue clouds which surrounds the pirate and freezes him solid. I swear to Hicks I did not intend to do that and we need to RUN! We head out in a dead run and get back to the corridor to the west. While we are running, I am trying to devise a method to contain the blue ether and I suddenly think of a cryo tube. Perhaps we can corral the mist into one of those and it will hold and maybe even neutralize the mist to allow us to leave without fearing it coming after us. Hicks and I run to grab a cryo tube and race back to the corridor to the south. Hicks and I rotate the cryo tube and wait for the mist to approach - which does seem to be rushing faster as it gets closer. It makes a sneak attack to come over the top to get at us, but we manipulate the cryo tube and capture the mist. It starts rolling around like it is looking for an escape. We discuss whether turning on the tube would help us or the mist and decide to go for Wampa cold to see how it reacts. The mist gets slower and begins to solidify. It turns into a long piece of what looks like cloth and settles to the bottom of the tube. It is kind of glittery look to the wraith like form. That is a whole lot of NOPE! We slid the tube down the corridor and wait to see if another one comes towards us. As we stand in silence, all we can hear is the cracking of ice. I keep thinking and I know what we have to do, not that I like it. Hicks and I walk back down the corridor, pushing the cryo tube into the room, and see that the three we had left behind have combined into a giant swirling ball of gas that is bigger than it should have been. We fire at the fuel cells and turn and run!! The fire ball follows us down the corridor and we keep hauling ass down the corridor to the west until the heat dissipates. Everything is quiet until we hear a quiet clink as the droid sighs mechanically. We try to determine our next move. I still don't want to leave anything behind us, but I am not interested in shooting the last two pirates in cold blood. They went into hiding and have not come after us yet. Hicks suggests diplomacy - like So'Zen! Why in the world he expects me to talk like that lily livered son of a biscuit eater I have no idea. Sadly, I have no better idea. We get to the area and can hear them talking and it is not plotting to take us out. I suggest they swear to not harm us or our mission and I can set them up for a regular paycheck. They take some time to think about it and agree. We then discuss how to get them off this piece of rock. They share the information about where the Starrise Falcon is. They claim it is locked, but I know I already have the key so I get them to help with distraction in the cave where it is located. I promise if they help, I will get them off this rock and give them an introduction to someone who can provide a regular paycheck. They lead the way to the cave and tell us that the Ebon Veil guy is probably not human and I think he has a parasite. They get the techs distracted and we check out the cavern. It looks like it has a opening in the ceiling to let the ship out. The controls look ancient, but they also look like secondary bridge controls. Suddenly I wonder if this entire rock is actually a ship! The Ebon Veil guy is between me and the ship, but now that I am in the same room with the crystal key, I see some lights on the access panel light up - in anticipation? We try to figure out how to take out the big, bad first and Hicks suggests his reverse polarity grenades again. Then he sees the droid at our feet and comes up with a twist. He suggests we send the droid over to sabotage the welder trying to access the hatch and then toss the grenade to be able to take out the guy. He bends down to talk to the repairo droid and the driod apparently has issues. Hicks tells me that RD-9 (Roddy) wants an apology. I manage to do it - at least good enough to make him happy. He heads out while Hicks reprograms the grenade. The welder powers down and everyone looks over in shock. Hicks tosses the grenade at the same time and it explodes and then implodes. We run quickly and stun the big, bad guy and the two techs and then get onto the ship. I walk quickly and almost instinctively to the bridge. It has normal pilot and co-pilot stations and also has a dedicated sensor/science station, defense screen with full weapons control, engineering, and comms. I sit in the pilot's chair and it molds around me. I input the crystal and all of the stations light up around me and it begins to power up. Hicks asks how we are getting out of here and I send him over to the science station to see if he can hack the bridge controls outside and open the door above us. Hicks sits down and then points at the screen. It has an image of the ship's cargo hold and an enormouse sphere with 12 planes calling it a Spherion Codex. I tell him that we will deal with that later, but right now he needs to open the door so we can leave. Hicks tell me he can actually turn on the engines for the planetoid and we could fly it! I think about it, but decide we can do that later if we want to as we have the ship. He opens the door and I check out the controls. I manage to get it started and we fly out. I contact the gear grinder to tell him to follow us as we fly back to the top layer of this moon. As we get up closer to the patrol ships, I have one of our new buddies open a comm channel to get us past the blockade. I have the gear grinder pilot get the shuttle close to the Starrise Falcon and then Hicks activates the tractor beam and we go under the patrol while we tow the shuttle. Hicks then brings up the Ghost Ships. I suggest we contact the Freedworld Republic to let them know of the trap. Then we can suggest that they need to exercise caution in approaching any ships in distress to not set off the engine shutdown that will release the reavers. Hicks doesn't think an all call would work, but I think if we call Kantor direct everyone would pay attention and then we can also provide the tracking information on the ships. We head to the Gear Grinder docks to let the civilians free. I request a thorough search of the area in order to see if Jem Vandoss is still there. We hear back from the Navy that they will take care of the Ghost Ships. I remember asking Rico to help me in case we did run into the need to bring back passengers. When we arrive back at Fortuna Station, the clones are waiting and we share that we have video of Jem Vandoss being taken by Ravenguard. We all load up - after I give the pirates the name of So'Zen al Saba to share with the hutt to ensure that they get a job. Before we split up, we offer Roddy the chance to pick who he wants to hang with and he decided to stay with Hicks. The Gear Grinders are happy with the cessation of violence and say that I can call on them anytime I need help. Might be the start of a great relationship. We finally pick up and leave Spacer's Tears. But when we enter hyperspace there is a weird vibration. Then Hicks tells me that the sphere in the cargo hold has turned on. My console starts going crazy and then the nav computer starts spinning between several locations that repeat: Chalcedon, Yavin 4, and Byss. Looks like we are going to Byss - at least I hope we are.

Starrise Falcon
Datunda, 04 Melona, 12731 T

We got our equipment together and Hicks gets a shuttle - and Spook. I set Hicks to pilot while Spook and I begin scanning the area to map the area under the planet. We are tracking the continents as they drift around inside the gravity well of the planet. There is so much of the land that really shouldn't be visible like ore and crystals. As we get deeper I am beginning to see that the core of this moon is a natural ionic field that works as a tractor beam. The two most outermost land masses do appear to be part of the original moon, but the closer I get to the core I decide that Jedi are at fault. It appears that something broke the moon by maybe sending another moon into this one. It almost appears that this is a solar system in miniature and maybe that something is still in the core. The deeper we fly, the more evidence we find of older satellites and we are talking eons here. Spook finds something interesting. The deeper interior islands have different minerals and also that their orbital paths follow an actual pattern. The ion storms are particularly strong. Then she passes me telemetry of Blood Smith hawkbats and Tie interceptors flying a patrol route - TOGETHER! - on this third layer. They seem to be doing a search pattern focusing on the same asteroid we want to search. It is around 10 miles wide with valleys and a breathable atmosphere - in most places. I can see the Hawkbats coming from the right and the interceptors from the left and they will meet in front of us and looks like the are waiting to communicate only when they are switching from sensors to communication with each other. Hicks suggests we fly below the patrol and get to the asteroid safely. I ask Spook to check and determine where on the asteroid the ship disappeared. She pulls up the video and compares it to the telemetry data from the asteroid and finds the correct valley. Inside that valley is metal buildings and an old cargo freight. She also sees a field protecting a landing pad. The patrol passes behind us and I can tell from the data feeds that they are sharing information and chatter. We hold our breath until we are through and they continue on their patrol. We head to the valley. There is greenery and animals and it feels like it would be a warm environment. Sensors are picking up that the ground cover is a fungus or maybe a moss - not a traditional ground cover on Corellia! The valleys seem to harbor the majority of the life with the high points being barren as I expected. They have weird trees with furry leaves and orange glowing fruit? on the ends. We decide to land in a valley that intersects with our intended target. It will leave us with an hour's walk, but safer than landing either out in the open where the patrols might spot us or too far away and get caught in the ion storm. We land in what most would call an oasis - sapphire blue water and smooth terrain. Knowing things are often to be too good to be true, I scan the area starting with the air. It is breathable, but thinnish. However, it is not urban air - it is way more pure than I have ever seen. I do a quick sensor scan of the water to verify that it is drinkable. It has a high electrolyte count with minerals and a high ionized level so able to drink it, but won't enjoy it very much. Lastly, I scan the area for any beasties. There is a lot of plant life around. Small swimming hand-sized creatures in the water seem to be the biggest around here. Then I see a tree move!! It pulls up its roots and just walks to the other side of the pool and takes two of its buddies with it. We discuss it and decide they are neutral. I grab a couple of rebreathers and we all head out across the moss towards the valley where the metal buildings are. We pass more of those trees and they appear to ignore us. Small galactic sized yellow flowers sprout up in our footsteps. Then we arrive at a pirate base. A boxy bulk freighter, several buildings around the area, a blue force screen for the landing pad. The freight is locked down and shows signs of blaster scoring. We can see several people around in Bloodsmith pirate uniforms. Fuel cells, parts bins, pit droids, the usual base detritus. There is plenty of rocks to hide behind on this rise. I am looking for a door when my commlink buzzes - making Spook jump. "Aerena here, what do you want?" A scared, nervous voice starts telling me a story about being kidnapped and a plan to use them in a Ghost Ship maneuver. There are 15 - 20 that were captured about three days ago. They have already sent three freighters out already and he claims they have around 30 reavers in cryo freeze in the cargo holds. Plan is to get the navy to swoop in to do the rescue and get attacked. I mute him and discuss this with Hicks. We talk about the various strategies they might be using. They could be sending three out to pull the navy away from Chalcedon and then send this one to the planet in order to attack it with reavers while the navy is busy or maybe sending four to the different cardinal points in order to spread the navy out and send in another force to destroy Chalcedon. Another possibility is to create a media nightmare for the fledgling planet by having them fire on innocent victims as the reavers on board would be hidden from all outside viewers. We can see roughly five pirates outside. I ask Spook to do a sensor sweep of the building for life signs and project where they are inside the building. I have four in command center in D8 and the kidnap victims are in D5 - 20. High energy signs in D3 & D4 so possibly either reavers in cages or already in cryo. Areas to the north are more than likely barracks and galley and a tunnel to the west that is out of range, but something is back there. We make a plan to send Spook in as a distraction to head to the force field and keep it up - by whatever means necessary. Hicks takes left and I head right. We stay up high and find cover so we can shoot into the bowl. Spook waits for us to get into position and then heads straight down the trail to the force field keeping to the side of the fuel cells. We can see two of them doing the pre-flight check. The final two are heading towards the control pad, but they stop short while Spook trundles past and plugs in her dataport and starts what looks like a maintenance program. They ignore here and head back towards the freighter to discuss tactics to load the freight - maybe using the repulsor lift I can barely see on the other side of the force screen. Since they barely reacted to Spook, I ask Hicks to blow up a fuel cell. He is about to fire when one of the pirates walks over and requests a diagnostic of the fuel cell as he is about to shoot. He pulls the shot and we listen in as the pirate complains about the moss and its electoconductivity. We decide to go ahead and fire as we should be down three pirates even if the force shield does go down and the four join in. We both fire at the weak points and they hit. The fuel goes up in a mushroom cloud and three pirates are blown around while Spook takes cover behind a rock and is mostly protected. The two of the other side are protected by the freighter itself and there is a lovely hole in the side where the fuel was being loaded. The force screen holds for a brief moment and then collapses. Three pit droids are running for cover and we can see ammo crates and the usual docking bay material. The four from command are running out with blaster drawn. They are looking, but don't see us. I turn on my shield and fire at the one closest to me. I hit him dead center of his chest and he is knocked on the ground and has the wind knocked out of him, but is still conscious. Apparently, he has a good heavy blast vest. Hicks knocks one of the pirates in front of the freighter and knocks him into the freighter and he goes down. I instruct Spook to run in and start causing mayhem and I shoot at the next one in line. He tries to get to the freighter to use it as cover, but does not make it in time. My shot hits him in the side and knocks him down. I managed to hit him between the armor plates and he has a nasty burn. One of the pirates fires at me and the shot hits the rock. One fires at Hicks, but he manages to dodge behind his rock. Spook in the meantime, rolls inside and turns on the repulsor loader on full speed and it runs into the three pirates knocking them unconscious. One is still moving, but not quickly. I bring my blaster to bear on the one standing that does not have the E11. He dodges and I hit the freighter causing ion sparks and the remaining pirates have to dance around to avoid being hit. The tough guy dodges and the two shots from Hicks the freighter. Spook turns on the fire suppression system and now we have foam and ionic arcs decorating the area. I see the guy with the heavy blaster aim at me so I duck behind the rock again and more stone chips come flying at my shield. They seem to take heart at hitting something and Hicks manages to dodge in time. The other pirate tosses a concussion grenade at us and I step from behind my rock and use my shield to batter the grenade back to the pirates. I hit and it arcs back towards the pirates and explodes with a loud bang above the valley. Hicks runs over to my rock and fires at the E11 and hits him with the E11 which crashes to the ground. I can hear Spook playing with the controls and I can see another group heading towards us just as the door slams shut. I fire at Mr. Grenade dude and I miss as he turns and races for the docking area. Hicks and I race down the hill and arrive to the ionized area where we can see him almost to Spook. He is zigging and zagging, but I manage to hit him a glancing blow and slow him down. I turn to Hicks and offer him the chance to finish him off. He gets him with both shots and he hits the ground. I turn to Hicks to see if he has any ideas on how to stop the ionization. We run to the ramp and head inside where we can see damage from where the arcing electricity had run amok. We get to the area and see smoke and area. Hicks does a look around while I open the panel and disconnect the power. As it powers down Hicks starts yelling to get it back on!! I am afraid of why and get it back on quickly. I can hear the electricity start arcing outside and we discuss options. There are 20 reavers in cryo tubes and those tubes are connected to the ship power. We split up and search the engine room to see if we can find the exact area that is causing the problem outside. Hicks finds nothing, but I find the area impacted is the backup power - which is connected to the cryo power. I have to reroute the cryo tubes to the backup power from the repulsorlift. I turn to get the repulsorlift powered up and hit a security wall and I fail to hack the system and the console shuts down. I turn the situation over to Hicks and head out to be a lookout. I take the opportunity to check out the ship and there are definitely reavers in cryo tubes. The power cycles down and then back up and I can breathe again. We head to the cockpit and I attempt to access the autopilot to get the nav information. Again, I get that enter access code and I turn it over to Hicks. He prys open the panel and manages to get part of the nav data and we discover the plan was to get the navy to the four cardinal points and then force the navy to kill innocent victims. We quickly head back and deactivate the back up generator and head over to Spook. She is unhappy because someone has been trying to unlock the door that she has locked. I tell her to unlock the door and Hicks and I set up for battle. He takes the left and I take the right. We stand back so the pirates won't see us and I have Spook let them think they win. The door pops open and four pirates come barreling out, but they don't look before they run ahead. I use my heavy blasters and shoot the two on the right side. The one in front hits the ground and the one behind him gets hit in the back and his blaster vest takes the brunt of it. Hicks is able to take out the two on his side mostly and I use the distraction to jog around Spook and get inside the doorway. I send Spook to head inside to be a lookout to make sure no one comes up behind us. Hicks shoots at his last man standing and hits him again. The one on my side of the door starts shooting wildly trying to ricochet shots inside the hallway and hit us. I lay down and put out one arm to shot at him and manage to hit him as he tried to roll out of the way. The shot went under the collar of his blast vest and knocks him unconscious. We head down to the control room and can see where they have been monitoring the freighter, the reavers, and the kidnapped victims in the area in the center of this base. They are in small power cells with four or five per cell. Most of them are common, but one guy is wearing a gear grinder jacket. There are cameras showing pirates in D6 and D7 getting ready for a fight. The pirates in D1 seem to be set up to deal with whatever is the power source coming from the west. D2 is set up to guard the reavers - who are not in cryo tubes!! - in D3. In D4, there are no reavers, but some empty cryo tubes and then a black suited individual walks in from the hallway to the north. He is calm and walks over to the pirates in D2. They seem very animated and he listens to them and then moves on to check on the other areas without concern. He heads down the tunnel to the west and then we head to D5 to release the victims. They look tired when we arrive and like they have lost hope - except for the gear grinder. He has a mess of wires and components and he starts pointing wildly at us and a wave of hope flows through the room. We look around for how this place is wired and we find a master switch with three circuits. I send Hicks to keep an eye on the reaver cage and I ask Spook to trace the circuits to tell me which one to flip. She tells me to do the middle one. The north switch controls the reaver cage and the south switch does something with the controls in D4. I flip the middle switch as Spook told me. The crowd is unsure what to do, except the gear grinder. He runs over and asks where is our ship and when are we getting out of here. I explain that we have a few other problems to solve like reavers and pirates oh my! I ask Spook about weapons - none - and if she was able to discover what the area to the west was - Starship Grotto. I know we have to get these people out of here so we have to deal with the reavers first. I ask Spook to change the reaver cage to electrocute. Spook handles the rewiring quickly and gets the cage set up to electrocute the reavers instead of keeping them enclosed. One sees Hicks and heads to the fence to attack it to see if he can get out. As soon as he touches it, he is electrocuted and another one touches him and is also killed. Another two or three are electrocuted so we are down to half of them. I ask Spook to set up a doorway to let one out at a time. Door opens and one comes out, one trying to get out behind him and is electrocuted. Since we keep them down to one at a time, we can concentrate our fire and we manage to either kill or electrocute the remaining reavers. We tell the rescued to stay where they are and we head into the next room to take out the two pirate sentries. I sneak down to the entrance and look around the door. There are crates of food, some Mon Calamari crates, some marked as Exploration Corp. Those crates would make good cover so I grab Hicks and we sneak to cover and then stand and fire. We manage to knock both of them unconscious and then search the crates for food to help the rescued get some nourishment after captivity to keep up their strength for the rescue. I find food and portable power cells and mining equipment. Hicks finds journals and light saber parts - and a holocrystal with the captain's log. We turn it on and Hicks saves the one complete light saber to take to Vanya. The captain is Moriko Nash on the screen with dark circles under her eyes. She talks about a rock flying by itself and the Jedi insisting it had to be investigated. There was a story about a cosmic turbine that wiped out some people and shouldn't have been turned back on. They scattered the parts around the universe because it had made a force sensitive reaver. This holocrystal is the key to unlock the ship and there is a hollow sphere that I should know what to do with it. She gives her ship, the Starrise Falcon, to the one who finds this crystal.

Medusa Diplomacy
Datunda, 4 Melona, 12731

Take off from Chalcedon with Hicks following in an ARC170. We head towards Spacer's Tears on the gas giant Monorik with a short hyperspace jump. I know I have heard of this place from somewhere - or several different someone's, but I can't ever remember someone actually being here. As we go in for a landing, we can see the green ring around the planet, but I am distracted by the fact that I can see through the moon. It appears to be a consolidation of the larger land masses that were the moon circling an orange glowing core. There is still movement as the land masses circle the core and the moon orbits the planet and there is a very thin atmosphere. I have arrived at Spacer's Tears. After a scan, I can see there are a few choices to land at: Fortuna station is the largest and the most popular, but Magog Station, Pandrys Station, and Zod Station seem to be geared toward mining guild interests. Magog is under a continent pointing at the core. Pandrys is a skyhook and is the most artificial, and Zod is on what would be the North Pole and is nicknamed the Ice Station. Hicks and I have a quick discussion about where to land, but I decide to land at Fortuna. We are contacted by the Bureu of Ships and Services and while I hesitate for a moment. I give them my name and Hicks gives them his and we head in. We are given landing coordinates for docking bay 37 and head in. We can see some shielding, atmospheric generators, and growing things! There are more ships here than I expected, but no ties to anyone that we would expected from Chalcedon. We land and the pit droids get busy doing refueling and decontamination. We head towards the station and then deviate towards Spacer's Row to see what we can find out as official channels are not the most forthcoming. As we leave the docking area, we cross the freight area with a set of generators handy to assist with charging equipment. Northish of us is some blast door. To the NE and west are several smaller doors and alleys leading into the station. to the NW is the pedestrian pathway to spacer's row. We head NW and I see a familiar face, Jerrod Quantas the head of the Ragnar syndicate who waves. We walk over and open conversation. He puts a data stick casually in his vest pocket and suggests that I might be able to help with an unusual situation on Spacer's Tears. He begins to talk and then is hit by blaster fire from both sides and is knocked a meter away. Blaster fire continues from both sides and I look around wildly to see if there is any cover for Spook. I see some barrels to the east and I send her that way. I drop to the ground and begin a belly crawl to Jerrod to check his vitals, attempt to drag him back south out of the range of fire, and grab that data stick. He was way too casual about that so I want to make sure that it doesn't get lost. Hicks gets behind cover to the west and provides cover fire for my operation. I can't tell why this is happening: gang war, pirates, debt collection, or something specific to this moon's climate. The ones to the east look like a swoop gang with a hodgepodge of tech and maybe a gang patch - maybe a gear in a circle? The ones to the west are more lethal looking in outfits resembling blood smith raiders. The raiders begin to run for cover as Hicks puts down suppressing fire. The shot that hit Jerrod was too good to be part of this craziness. He is unconscious and badly hurt so I pull out my bacta spray and apply a medicinal patch and hope for the best. Suddenly a blaster shot hits the ground between me and Jerrod - way too close for comfort, but I can't tell for sure which direction it is coming from - maybe the raiders? I can see that one raider gets hit and is a bit stunned. To the north another pilot takes a shot at a swoop gang guy and takes him out of the fight before he gets through the blast doors. I can hear him shouting for security. I snap off two shots at one of the raiders, but he is able to dodge the first blast by moving entirely too fast. The second one manages to hit and stun him. Hicks behind me shoots at one shot at each gang as he is still trying to provide cover fire. I yell at Spook to hack into the station comms and see if she can get us any intel. She tells us that station security is on the way, but the blast doors have been locked. She will try to get them unlocked quickly. There are two more blaster shots that hit close to Jerrod and I. I am finally able to figure out who is playing sniper and while I am looking around to see what I can do about that, I see another one aim at me. I roll quickly to the left and the shot misses, but it ricochets and hits the generator behind me which explodes. Hicks and a couple of bystanders are knocked around a bit, but no serious damage that I can see. I make a quick decision to fire at the barrel first to hopefully distract or stun my target and then fire center mass at him. I see him fall to the ground as four fuel cells roll out of the barrel. Hicks fires at two raiders and makes the other sniper drop his blaster. Hicks is fired at, but between the cover and his armor all that shows is a small blaster mark on his armor. Then another blaster bolt comes at me! It does hit, but my armor absorbs it. I can see the different players on the field moving around to either hide or get into better positions to take aim. I want to distract the swoop guy, so I shoot the crate in front of him and out falls a shiny ore. The guy is shocked and backpedals and runs to the east after his compatriots. Hicks looks around and then fires at a spot on the ceiling. The entire area is then filled with a grayish mist that obscures the view, but I can see that a blast directly hits the two raiders in the corner. Spook then yells excitedly that the ore is talarite!! I run over and grab two handfuls in the confusion, and we hide it in her case for later retrieval and selling. Security enters and they grab the raiders and medics run over to the various wounded. A BSS security chief follows. I quickly find my manners and grab Spook and Hicks to be polite. He introduces himself as Kamor Ratil. He indicates the gang wars have gotten out of hand the last two weeks. He had reviewed the footage and it does look like it was an attempt on Jerrod's life. I share that he had just asked for my help and the Boss says that he is trying to get to the bottom of the sudden upswing in gang activity on the surface which escalated two weeks ago. There are two primary gangs: Gear Grinders and Bloodsmith Raiders - the each tend to keep a section down below as their territory and keep all of hte fighting down below - as Specer's Tears refer to the area underground. He then asks me to do some detective work to find out why things are getting more active and more widespread. I am hesitant as this is usually a way to get rid of unwanted pirates, but he agrees to give us a code that will get security to us on the double and provides us the names of the two cantinas on spacers row where each gang hangs out. I ask if there is a good place to get cleaned up and catch a bit of sleep as it has been a while and he recommends the Radiant Deadapult as a good place on spacers row. He also mentions more than once that our group is referred to as "The Explorers" and I am not sure why. I ask him why Jerrod was by himself as he usually has at least a few of his guys with him. Ratil says that he had been talking to minors, scanning ships and down below as he was following a lead about scans from Port Nevermore that had a sensor feed abnormality. He finishes by saying BSS keeps an eye on this moon and its core to make sure that it does not just fly apart. Port Magog with its drilling of that area might either hurt the stability of the moon or may be helping. After he leaves, Hicks and I agree that this investigation will provide the perfect cover for our search for Jem Vandoss. We head towards the glowing neon monstrosity. Inside is a lot of activity, but we do manage to get rooms and find that it is surprisingly quiet. We do back downstairs for food and to just listen. There is a lot of conversation about how the gang war has disrupted the distribution network. Since Fortuna is the hub of movement, the constant fighting has been making it challenging to live and work. They mention asking for help from Chalcedon or Sector Rangers as they don't want to tackle it themselves but do want it to stop. We enjoy the mean and then we go up and crash. I sleep the night away and wake up refreshed and ready to tackle our two investigations. We head down to get breakfast and discuss our plans for the day. I decide that going in as a Medusa might be helpful and want to get something flowy and revealing, but good enough to hide my two blaster bolts. We check with Spook to see if the BSS chief had sent the info. Bloodsmiths claim Level 21 and the old factory quarter in the Down-Below with the Ember Whelp cantina as their gathering spot. Gear Grinders claim Level 22 and the old mining shafts in the Down-Below with the Fusion Bolt cantina as their gathering spot. She also confirms she has received the security code. I get what I need and head to meet Hicks outside the Fusion Bolt cantina. Level 22 is lower underground than I was anticipating. It is a large cavern - big enough to hold a star ship!- with lighting and homes. I see the cantina and it has a light patina of rust which seems to be the decorating theme. I see Hicks and we walk towards the cantina without making it obvious that we know each other. He gets inside first and then I go through the double doors to see a human at a desk keeping a tally of who comes and goes - any might be weapon scanning. I go up a small flight of steps into the cantina proper. The south and east walls have booths with tables. The west wall has open tables made of barrels. The u-shaped bar comes out of the west wall with benches and around. There is a stage on the SW wall, but right now there is some swoop racing playing. Not very high class, but not a place that screams enter and die. There are some locals around and some of the Gear Grinders as well. Mostly human, but some Bothans as well. I don't see anyone looking to cause trouble, so I walk up to the bar and order a Corellian Sunset. I spot Hicks in one of the booths that gives him a good overall viewpoint. I take a sip and turn to see who is watching me. No one is paying that much attention, so I ask, "Anyone here heard of Jem Vandoss?" One of the locals asks why I want to know, but the swoop gang stands to attention. They deny knowledge so I push a bit and claim that Jem is the cause of tension between the Raiders and the Swoop gang. A pocket door opens and a Bothan pops out to suggest we take the conversation private. Siar Votoon is the leader of the group. I am in the middle of the action, but Hicks is closer to the action. I pass by and spill my drink on him to tell him to stay close and listen in if I need help. Hicks goes to the bar to get the drink I buy as an apology and positions himself close to the door. I follow the Bothan through a hallway into an office with a desk and table. I sit and we open discussion on the rumors on Jem. He indicates that the bounties are up to eight figures, but that is not the reason for the upswing in violence. He says that the raiders took something of the swoop gangs. They had found a derelict ship and the raiders hijacked it. When the swoop gang went to ask for it back, the raiders retaliated by trying to kill the messengers. He shares the specs of the ship they had found and his frustrations with the raiders. We make a deal for me to play negotiator between the swoop gang and the raiders. He can do one week of truce to give me time to get to the bottom of the issue. While I am doing that, he will look for Jem. I offer to get Spook involved to work with hie tech, Riada Butell, to find the leak in their gang that is working to keep the war active. As I walk out, I see Spook and Hicks in a heated discussion. I check to see that Spook has sold that ore and then ask what they were arguing about. Hicks says we need to go outside first. So we head out and the Spook pulls up a holovid with sound and we watch and listen to a conversation between some raiders and a guy in a black coat: "is the beacon working?" The guy in coat says it should work as expected and they won't see it coming. If the beacon idea works, then it will settle it all. The raider suggests that it has better and a bone knife with blue gemstones pops out of hiding to make sure that he is not threatening him. I can see red energy dripping off the blade and the raider says there are no threats, this just has to work. If beacon thing works, then Chalcedon will be permanently crippled. "Trust me, the bait is fool proof." Great, just great. Agent Ratil comms me and asks if I saw anything fall out of his pockets while I was dragging Jerrod to safety. I remember the data disc but admit nothing and he further informs me that the room that Jerrod had was ransacked overnight. I tell him I will think about it and try to remember and we close communications. I pull the data disk out and hand it over to Spook who runs it and shows a hologram of the same ship the swoop gang claimed as theirs flying in, landing on an asteroid close to the moon core, and then vanishing. Speculation is that the ship arrived from the outer rim. We run over plans and whether it would be better to head to level 21 and see what we can see or head to the asteroid. I suggest that we borrow a shuttle from BSS and head that way.

Bar Brawl
Datunda, 04 Melona, 12731 T

Suddenly I see Jem flying through the air with the greatest of ease - or in this case the force! Then the holographic dancers twist and spin and turn into Medusas with blasters. Great and here I am sporting my Medusa logo again. *SIGH* I turn to my companion and ask if he wants to help me fight the bandits. He asks if I mean the one on the stage or the one who caught Jem. This means he isn't interested in being on my side or used as a boy toy either. Well, darn. I stand up, pick up my drink, dump it on his head, and hit him with the glass. Apparently he sees it coming and dodges so I am not able to get a good solid hit and then he returns the favor. I don't manage to dodge though, but I do manage to tell Spook to hit him with a spanner. As I am falling back against the wall, I see her eject a spanner with force and aggression and it does hit him. Good girl! I am managing to stay conscious, but barely. I shake my head to clear my vision and reach to turn on my shield and ask Spook for a weapon. She hedges a bit and then pops an iron pipe out of her dome. I take it and find a button on the side. I point it at the other combatant at our table and click the button. It extends into a pike with energy visible around the dangerous end. I step forward and jab it at him. It stuns him and he slumps against a nearby table. I then notice Spook shoot an extendable claw that clamps onto his butt check and she begins dragging him around the room like a fish! My initial playmate picks up a chair and swings for my head. I start to use my shield to deflect it and duck under and then I see that it is a feint and I plant my shield against the floor as his foot comes around to kick my feet out from under me. I think I hear some bones break maybe and we exchange a few barbs. Out of the corner of my eye, I see the pirate that Spook is dragging around grab his pistol and aim for her. I yell for her to defend herself and she drops the line and attempts to use her jets to get above the shot. She doesn't have time and gets hit! There is a smell of burnt electronics and I can see a hole in her casing. Someone is going to be paying for repairs and an oil bath. Then he turns and shoots at me, but I manage to deflect the shot with my shield. Then Nale Ven picks up the paper umbrella and flicks it at me. I make a move to brush it aside and somehow, it lands on my shield power button and deactivates it while also locking it closed. He looks very smug. I distract him with inane chatter as I pull the toothpick out and stash it safely to await the chance to return it with interest. I point at his companion and when he turns his head, I jab him with the pike. He does a little dance and sinks to the floor. While I am distracted by taking him out, his companion fires at me and I am not able to dodge in time. It hits my left shoulder and I am wounded. I hit the ground, stunned. When I am finally able to move, I snarl at the one who shot me and then Spook and I tag team him with Spook rolling into his knees at speed and I use my shield to bash him. We manage to stun him at least. Then he looks up at me and shoots me pointblank. I get my shield up in time and block it. I am getting a bit annoyed. Then loverboy - I mean Nale grabs his shoulder and holds him in place. He proclaims that he has discovered what he wanted to know and then he fades in the background saying he will be in touch. I wonder why he has decided to leave now? I check the partner and see that he has been rendered unconscious with a silver dart of some kind. I glance around and see that the brawl is winding down and there is just once cell of resistance left so I head that way and manage to almost hit one of the pirates, but he blocks with an armored vest. Then something happens behind me and he takes off running for the door. I stop and look around and see that the fight is all over with. My shoulder really starts to hurt and I have to take of Spook as well. I walk over to check on Spook and while she has a hole in her side, she can still function. We start heading towards the entrance where I have heard that Doc is so he can do some basic first aid - or maybe even fix me up. I wonder which of the troopers can help me fix her?? Then I will have to get her into a good oil bath. Frankly right now, a bath and bed (with a warm Wookie in it) sounds like heaven. After a few days, we go over the intel we gathered from the casino and decide that we must divide and conquer. Vanya, Davish, and the two mentats will be going to Biss. So'Zen and Lady Zaye (with her kids) will be heading to Yavin IV, while I will be going to the Spacer's Tears, out by the gas giant Monorik here in the Chalcedon System -with Hicks tagging along in an Arc-170. I think I will find Nale Ven there too and we have unfinished business.

Jem: Dead or Alive
Datunda, 04 Melona, 12731 T

We have a short break after we finish the last mission. I use that time constructively to work on my blaster skills so I can find that Ianar Berav and get him to teach me the finer points of blaster use that he demonstrated. I know I need to be stronger in my skills so he can hone my skills and I do not want to embarrass myself. The Jedi volunteered to be my targets so I could work on shooting when I cannot guess what they will do next. The only downside was I had to use stun on So'Zen without even once being able to hit him with an actual blast - I promise I was going to use the lowest setting. We were invited to watch the proceedings on the holoscreen at Lady Zaye's house while Cordelia Vorkosigan hosts the conference between the Hutts and Chancellor Kantor who are trading insults instead of plans to make this planet truly free. Vanya is not impressed and I keep winning bets as to who was going to toss the next chair. Then the whole situation with Jem Vandross being missing is made apparent to be the key to these negotiations. We have the key to finding him in our midst - Almon 'd Joy. Upon questioning, he admits that the pirate clan Tilles wanted him and he delivered. I am 150% positive this means we will have to go rescue him. Ricco walks in and gives us the intel as to where he is and that we are leaving in 5. Vanya and I confer and I agree that going in my X-wing is the best course of action to give us more firepower at least. They board the Night Hawk and we head to Tunring Station and a casino that is our destination. There is a deadline as he moves quickly and often so we burn atmosphere. At the Etmar crater, I take a slight arc to the south so I can appear to be not with them in case that works for an advantage. I enter town from the south and I get the vibe that this is a company town which doesn't look like all bad news for the locals, but not good news either. I see a very nice marina on the coast side of the dust ocean. I remind Spook to keep her ears on the comm chatter to hear any news of our compatriots and we head into the casino proper - the Quantum Queen. I see two Clan Tilles pirates at the front desk and they seem to be impressed with the fact I am wearing Medusa gear. They insist on taking my two blasters, but I do make them work for it. I get my claim check and walk into the Casino proper - and see in a place of honor Jem Vandos who doesn't look like he is a prisoner at all. Nale Ven had been working in Tapani sector and got tired of that after a run in with Black Beard and signed on with Clan Tilles. There has been a lot of money and fighting during proxy wars with the Hutts and Black Sun. Turns out he is the bodyguard of Jem Vandos and is doing this from a distance as he is a marksman. He appears to be in his late 30's to early 40's, but talks as if he is older. He talks about sending money home to the family and Spook sends me some intel about him sending money to the Tapani sector and Chandrila. I take another sip and casually turn in my chair so I have a better view of the room. Nale does the same thing. I keep Jem in my peripheral vision and watch to see if he recognizes me or So'Zen. As I am watching from the corner of my eye, I see him look at me - or maybe past me - without recognition. I am not sure about that though and it is the same with So'Zen. Over the course of the next thirty minutes, the rest of the team arrives with Vanya being the last one in the door. She manages to get face time with Jem Vandos and we are listening in to their conversation and at the end we find out that it isn't JEM VANDOS at all. Now we have to rescue some poor sucker who is being forced to play the character and we still have to find Jem. Is this strike one?

Book o' doom
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

We ignore the advent of the Sargan and continue to head downstairs. As we get closer to the bottom, we can hear echoes of troopers talking to each other. My guess is six, so I tell Spook to keep sensors open and focused on the stairs to make sure that no one follows us - at least not without us knowing about it. I start carefully to the edge of the hallway we are in and head to the edge of the wall so I can carefully peer into the room. I walk very carefully in the shadows making sure to not step on or roll any loose debris. I get to the corner and check the next room. I see more stairs - and six, no, make that seven red troopers. Another one walks into the hallway from a side door. Being very quiet and speaking on exhale, I share that with the team. I hear Vanya making plans with Davish and Spook to do a major distraction. Then the general chimes in and suggests that Spook should hack the temple itself. I remind her to pull a fee from the General for services rendered and then my senses are overwhelmed by a full 3D technicolor commercial that causes the troopers to start calling for back up. Davish agrees this is our time to head south and leads us to the next set of stairs - or starts to lead us that way when Almon D'Joy starts ranting about all sorts of things and pushes a button on the console in front of him. Bolts come out and attack his two bodyguards and takes them out at the same time that the door to the vault opens. As he grabs his backpack and heads in, the tenocron is visible to Davish and he tells us all what he sees. I immediately run to the opposite stairway from Davish and Vanya and try to kneecap D'Joy before he disappears into the vault. He manages to dodge somehow. I curse and remember to turn on my shield as we still have troopers all around us and I am sure they won't ignore us. I was right!! One takes a shot at me and I sink down lower in the stairwell and let the blaster bolt go over my shoulder and hits the wall. Then another one flies past me. What the absolute hell? I get a message from Spook during this indicating that a lot of fighting is happening on the floor above us as well. At that moment, D'Joy pops through the door and Vanya requests me coral him. I aim at him again and this time he zigged when he should have zagged and he goes down. Sadly, the backpack slides off of him and goes further into the vault which puts it even further out of range of rescue. I growl in frustration and turn around in time to see the four troopers fire at me. I grab a stun grenade out of my go pouch and toss it gently to roll in between the four. It hits some debris and rolls to the side! I manage to get my shield up in time to counter the two blasts that come close to hitting me. I hear weird things behind me, but first things first! I take out another stun grenade and roll it to the middle of the troopers. This one makes it and I get my shield up quickly to protect me from the blast radius. I manage to get my shield up in time though my ears are ringing a bit. I turn around and see some weird thing climbing out of the backpack, but I concentrate my fire on the backpack itself and start it smoldering. I see Davish fire at the book and the creature flinches. Interesting. I take another shot at the book and hit it - and Vanya disappears at the same moment. I'm not sure why or what the Jedi is doing again, but I'm sure she has a plan. I hope she has a plan. I turn back to the book to see a mesh of fine lines cover the book - which then explodes like a thermal det. That was unexpected. It slams Vance against the wall, crushes the pit droid to bits, and throws the two troopers across the room. I check to see what the creature that was living in the book handled that - and he blew up too. WHEW!!! Game over

Sargan is coming
Datunda, 29 Helona, 12731

After the dust settles, the refugees come out of the cave. One is toting a globe that appears to have a representation of a solar system. Suddenly So'Zen is no longer himself - AGAIN. While we are trying to understand his enthusiastic response to the device as Dr. Zack the planetary communications system goes down. I can fly, but landing near a settlement might be an issue. I turn to Spook and ask her to see if she can find us a backdoor in the comm net. She says there is a smuggler band as well as an old Vor chat that might be usable. Spook finds that one smuggler band is flooded, but she thinks she can piggyback onto it if we need to. She does say that the Vor channel is just as flooded as the main channels which is weird as most don't remember that channel is there. I ask if she can tell who or what is flooding the channel and all she can tell is that it appears to be some sort of massive calculations. We will keep the backdoor in the smuggler channel to ourselves for now. Then from where Dr. Zack is, light explodes and then we can see a ruin from somewhere else with equipment that we can see and almost like we can touch it. As I look closer, I am confused about what the things actually are even though I can tell that it is a work room with tools. In the distance behind the workroom, we can see an ocean and waves and then lightning flashes across the sky - from the ground up! Once the lightning strike flies up, the sand falls away from an obelisk and we can see the entire clear crystalline structure though there is a touch of a milky glow as the blue white lightning goes off several times. Then inside the workroom we can see Almon D'Joy and he appears to be frantically looking for something in the workroom. He is using a sensor glove like Kit Kat has and we can see that it is registering as unknown tech. Then it all disappears back into the device. We are flummoxed and then Dr. Zack says that we need to go north as this is where he was trying to go the last time he was our guest. So'Zen steps in and pulls up a holomap to show us where he thinks we need to head. Dr. Zac agrees that is correct. We start heading that way when we have eight more of those droid creatures drop from the sky and head for Dr. Zack. He squeals and heads for the interior of the ship. Davish uses the Night Sparrow as a bludgeon and knocks some of the droids around and throws a cover of sand over the one in front of me. I take that opportunity to shoot my plasma blaster and encase him in glass. Since it is super-heated, the glass seeps into the interior of the droid. It is not deactivated yet, but I feel that there is a good potential for it to die still. I hear Spook get into the X-wing and begin to prep for flight. Then I hear a slight uptick in the engine noise and I turn to see the droid behind the X-wing get an ion blast and crackle until it shuts down. I turn back around to see the droid in front of me explode in a shower of glass, sparks, and components. I take this opportunity to jump into the x-wing and hover to shoot the droid closest to me and while it looks like the shield might hold, it collapses, and the droid explodes. I see the rest of the team get onto the Night Sparrow and then it flies to the southwest and everyone can see four figures covered in sand who were probably the spotters for the droids. I turn to shoot the next closest droid and manage to take down shields and explode it as well. I then move to be between the last two droids and the Night Sparrow and get ready to fire on the next one, when they suddenly fly off again. Spoiled brats who can't take losing the fight! I turn to follow the Night Sparrow as we head to the coordinates that Dr. Zack gave us. No drama on the way, but that means all the drama will be for when we arrive. We head west from the estate and as we are heading across the ocean, we see an island. This has to be the same one from the vision? hologram? whatever that device showed us earlier. We can even see the obelisk and an occasional flash of lightning from it. Davish contacts me via comms and suggests we go in low behind the mesas and land out of sight. We manage to fly in and land on the shore with the mesas between us and the ruin. We power down and lock the landing gear so it should be safe until we return. We carefully navigate to the temple and apparently So'Zen finds us a hidden way in. Vanya says he is hanging around and helping us - which is unusual. We enter the top of the temple and see that is was probably a landing platform in the past. We enter and start going down some stairs and come to a large room. There is signs of a major battle far in the past which caused the ceiling to fall down in various areas. There are also several troopers and pit droids in the room that are searching for something. Dr. Zack points out a symbol on the floor where we are standing which matches a symbol across the room as well as a device that makes up a third triangle point. Vance reports that there is a circuit that needs to be closed to power up everything so he modifies his cloaking device and heads over to the other crystal. I stand on this one to get ready for when something might happen. Suddenly the crystal feels warm and I can feel energy flowing and there are glowing lines. The energy zaps the pedestal and then there are crowds of holograms of hundreds of beings. As the various members of the party enter the room, holograms to match their race appear. I step off the crystal and Vanya and I head out to assist Dr. Zack as he is trying to find a hidden compartment. The holograms do not instantly disappear, but I get a strong sense of a timer at work and we need to hurry to get downstairs before we are noticed by the bad guys in red. We are about to head down the stairs when Dr. Zack starts babbling about he found it and no one else could and then we hear a voice from below. It is Almon D'Joy. I am torn between taking the loot and taking care of the problem once and for all. I vote we go up as we are not ready for a final battle. Then Vanya asks one of the holograms if there is anything down below that shouldn't fall into the hands of evil. He responds with only the 'mind's eye". I sigh in defeat. We have to go down. Dr. Zack is sent off with the loot and Bishop who can fly the ship for him. Before he leaves he hands Vanya a jedi communication device and tells us that Sargon is an eborrean title. I hear a shuttle landing and then the turbolift opens and a giant of a man walks out and tells his group to find Vance Kerplocken.

Dr. Zak?!?!?
Datunda, 29 Helona, 12731

We get back to our home base and have a little down time. I get Spook a good oil bath and get her all cleaned up (and out) and do a quick refresh on her paint job so she is looking her best. I find a few interesting things she has hidden, and I remind her that she gets a cut, but not everything from a job. I also take time to go over my X-wing to make sure she has been all freshened up. Our time on this planet has shown that it is particularly important to be prepared for the unexpected. While I am working on various piloting tasks, Salbur walks up and we chat some. He is feeling displaced and lonely. I am reminded about his hawkbat ship that I had captured, and I decide I have some time to take it for a test drive. When I get in, I discover that there is no control stick or any other steering mechanism that I recognize. I do see a helmet, so I put it on and discover that the ship is controlled by a neural net - that explains why it turned so quickly and smoothly during battle! - if which is the last thing I think until I wake up two days later with a blinding headache. So, I guess I have to give the hawkbat back to Salbur- which makes me very sad. But I can at least get him back into the air and encourage him to think about what he wants out of life and that we can help him. We saved him once and we can save him again by helping him to find a purpose for his life - whether he decides to make a stand on this planet or start a business moving goods around. He agrees to think about it and let me know if he needs help. Life is starting to settle down nicely and then there are a lot more refugees coming into town from the south with horror stories about buzzsaws and telling us that Port Nevermore has been entirely destroyed. We are tasked to go provide assistance against an overwhelming force. Yeah us! We fly in - me in the X-wing and Davish flying the Night Sparrow with the rest of the team. Spook and I get the kinks worked out of the X-wing and just in time. We pop over the horizon and can see a LOT of enemies. I ask Spook to find me a weak spot and she lets me know that they have shields!! I check with Davish to see what his preferred plan of attack is and he suggests we hit the middle and zoom over the downed ship to draw their attention from our allies on the ground. I fire a torpedo to hit the landscape in the middle of a group and I see them all fly around and even some sparks. Then one of the enemies lands on a wing and another lands on the back end and begins to pound the hull. The one on the wing puts a buzzsaw to the hull. I tell Spook to reverse the polarity of the shields and while there is a minor cut to the wing - do they have any idea how expensive space worthy repairs are??? - and then both are knocked off my ship. Their rocket packs kick in, but now I have targets! I fire lasers at the two and hit one of them. The other does a barrel roll and gets away from me, but I get the shields down on the one. I ask Spook how much time we have before they can get them back up and she calculates we have one more shot. I tell her to keep a tight target on that one as we prepare to fire again! Before I can fire at that one, four of them start firing at me and I do a rolling swoopy fly by and through them trying to knock them around if I can't knock them out of the sky. I manage to line up my lasers at the one with shields down and I pull the trigger and I am rewarded by seeing it hit the sand. Spook then mentions that she has an incoming message from Reece about a way to blind these buggers to reduce their shield capability. Just as Spook is in the process of putting that into action, the three remaining flying droids come in for a landing on my X-wing! I do a barrel roll to get away from them and hopefully disrupt their flight path. It works for two of them, but the last one manages to land near my engine compartment and pulls out a buzzsaw like it is going to harm my engine containment field!! I tell Spook to reverse polarity again, but to switch it back and forth in five second bursts because I am positive that these droids learn from previous experience. Spook warns me that there is a chance that the shields will go down for a second, but that is a minor problem compared to losing engine containment. IT WORKS! The droid falls off again, but is able to recover with the rocket pack again. I still have three flying to deal with and then Vanya chimes in over comms asking for help as a different three is about to take out those we have come here to save. I check the battle map display and make a quick decision to break off the battle with my current irritants and fly a long loop to come from the back of the downed ship and drop a torpedo on the top of the ship. I know that if anyone else is inside they would be safe as this is a spacefaring vessel, but there are some outside. I use my external speaker to broadcast about the incoming attack so they can get to cover. It does mean that the droids will also hear, but that is a risk I have to take in order to have an acceptable risk level for this maneuver. I drop my second torpedo on the droid in the middle of the pack on the top of the ship. It is a solid hit and that droid explodes and between the torpedoes explosion and the droid's explosion, I take out all three of them. I quickly check and all of the mercenaries are safe! Next! Suddenly I see three beams heading for me so I do a quick dodge and two of the beams miss me easily. Sadly I manage to fly into the third beam and it hits my shields. I have a lot of red lights and warning beeps going off and I scramble madly to cycle the shields and bleed off the energy without any permanent damage. Then I am flying out the other side of the blast in one piece. I see three more of the droids ahead of me and do a laser run and manage to take out one more and at least damage the other two. Then they all start flying away to the east. I do a sensor scan and see that there are some armored shuttles out there - probably the pirates. I can't tell from this distance if the droids are going that way or not. Maybe for repair? Maybe to fight? I share that with the team and then land beside the Night Sparrow. The mercenaries tell us about some box they have been carrying and they hand it to So'Zen who is suddenly NOT So'Zen anymore.

Fred and Thelma
Satunda, 18 Helona 12731

I continue walking towards my doom and I see Ivar before me. He hesitates slightly before he goes through the door and it looks like maybe his hand drifts towards his pistol - and then he heads through. I can see a LOT of bad guys in the room and they all start asking him for information about what is going on. He looks right at me before the door closes and then tells the men to just remember their training as they aim and squeeze the trigger. I take a moment to breath deeply and think about options. I can go back through the worm room and go back outside and pick a different door to come in, but I think the sand storm has now hit. That has to be the reason for at least some of the warning klaxons. I could just wander into the room and act all girly and see if I can disarm them (hehe), or I can see about having Spook playing with the environmental controls. I vote plan C and tell Spook to access the room controls from the door panel and drop the temp down to freezing. She beeps an agreement and rolls over and plays with the controls for a minute and then reports that the temperature is dropping rapidly. I check with Spook to verify that the temperature has dropped enough to have an effect and then we enter the range of the door sensor. As it opens, I can see the last of the pirates running north and pulling out their weapons while mentioning how cold it is. I glance to the south and see a very sad hydroponics lab and then I see a computer console. Spook and I go over and I ask her to determine the reason for the klaxons, if there is any information about how and why these groups are working together and what they are working on, and how to get out of here. She is able to figure out the klaxons quickly. There are several of them and they are going off due to an outside invation by Jedi Master Vance Kerploken, there is a droid uprising, and the sand storm has now hit. We both are shocked and yet not shocked by the Vance Kerplocken one. It turns out that Black Sun is backing this endeavor and is trying to assemble this group into an assault group with imperial dark troopers embedded into AT-ST. This group is called the hammer with another group called the anvil with Peter Sporval to kill the chancellor. With imperial dark troopers inside the AT-STs, that would make a hammer, but if the droid uprising is real.............I remind Spook that she gets her fair share of the loot and lots of oil baths and she grumbles a bit but does agree. Finally, she finds a way out which looks like a choice between the tunnel the pirates are running down and going back to the worm room and taking a maintenance route to the room where the majority of the group was last reported. We both agree that following the pirates is a bad idea so we run back down the hallway and into the worm room. They all pop up their heads when we enter and then race along with us - fun! We get to that tunnel and I get Spook over rock pile. Now, how do I get her into the maintenance tunnel??? She just beeps at me and uses her thrusters to start heading to where the rest of the party must be. I am following her, when I sense something behind me. I turn and I see the bright inquisitive eyes of one of the worms. Apparently, they also had no problem getting into the tunnel. I only wonder if it is just one or all of them. I have no way of knowing since the lights went out. All I can do is hope that the worms are not interested in causing me or mine any harm. I drop down a hatch that Spook indicates is the right one and she hovers down. As we drop down, we can see and hear pirate techs grumbling about getting the turbo lift working. Since I know there is at least one worm behind me, we move to the east to give it room to do what it wants to do. It takes that invitation as it oozes down and curls around the room and is facing the techs. One at least of them screams in a high E and they all manage to get inside the turbo lift and shut the door. I can hear the turbolift moving - albeit slowly. Now we are alone with the worm. It is too big to allow Spook to get out of the room so I manevuer my way around and open the door to the next room and attempt to coax the worm out so Spook can move. I suggest she play with the control panel while I get the worm out. Once I coax it out and it starts to slowly investigate the room, I ask Spook what she found. She tells me that she has found another generator to turn on - and another worm! Then So'zen pops into the room, looks around, and leaves! Damn Jedi. Then Vanya sends a message about fire and needing to move out of this area. Spook gets excited as she appears to understand what that is all about. I request some clarification and she explains that she has found the controls - or actually the back up controls - to the main generator of the actual ship this base is build around. I tell her that we shouldn't do that while the good Jedi is in the area and she should work with the pit droids on the pirate's generator. Then I see a door type that I recognize and walk over and manually open it. On the other side I see Reece and an injured person and I assist him in getting into the room where I introduce him to Fred and Thelma - the Tau Ceti worms from Nar Shaddar. And rescue arrives.

Ianar Berav
Satunda, 18 Helona 12731

I pet the creature and encourage it to head butt the pirate into the wall. The pirate appears confused, but the creature does head butt him - lightly. I groan, but then the creature turns to me and head butts me! This is more of a gentle interrogative butt asking for more petting so I try to encourage him again to knock the pirate into the wall. That doesn't look like it will work, so I decide to take advantage of the distraction presented by the creature's appearance instead and grab the pirate myself and knock him into the wall - and unconsciousness! I hear a faint tickle from my conscious that has the voice of So'Zen telling me that this is not the way to teach possibly dangerous creatures proper behavior, but I ignore that and check on the last pirate in the room. He has moved farther away so I have time to check on what is on the other side of these rocks. I push and pull and manage to make me a narrow place to slide through to the room I can see on the other side. I find a crawlspace with strung cables. It does appear to be a starship of some kind, but it is not known to me. I can crawl through and there are the expected support braces that look octagonal, and I can see where cables and wires have been added to make a stable power connections. I see a ladder going up to the east, the tunnel continues to the north. I climb up the ladder and go through a hatch to find myself outside and on the western side of the base. Obviously, I have gotten turned around while underground which never happens in space. I head back down and hesitate a moment while deciding if I should take the tunnel to the north (probably south and will put me in the center of the base outside!). I determine to wait to do that after I share my findings with the rest of the team. I quickly set the scene with my two pirate friends to look like they have gotten into an argument and knocked each other senseless and then head back to the door. I need to check on Spook! I am almost to the door when I hear the comm from the last pirate in the room go off and I can hear the alarms from across the room. He yells at me to stop and fires a quick blast at me. I drop to the floor and the blast goes just over my head. I attempt to return fire, but he rolls to the south and gets behind the big central column. I take that as my opportunity to dive through the door. I find Spook just outside with the pirate all wrapped up in cables, gagged, and stunned with Spook checking out his cred stick. I tell her to make sure she transfers my share, and she drops what she is holding and turns around in shock. She attempts to act innocent, but I do know better. I ask her for a status check on the rest of the crew and she starts leading the way. I get a text message from Reece: Pirate running up behind you. Many pirates and one Bounty Hunter ahead of you behind the door. I send an acknowledgement and turn back to get into an ambush position as I am sure he will check on his buddy there. He enters the hallway and just stops. We wait for our moment of action and then he draws, but so quickly that I can't tell how and then he shoots at a door frame. I have a split second to wonder why when it bounces straight at me. I step aside and it hits Spook's dome and shoots straight up and then back down to my shoulder and stuns me so that I fall to the floor. I can hear him walking into the hallway and he mutters to the pirate that he is ashamed of him for getting caught by a droid. Then he begins to talk to me about who I am and what I am doing in the universe. He sees my Medusa patch - after he had deduced I had been with some pirate clan and my Alliance military training. He also knew that I was a pilot. Then he offers to train me - as he is certain I will walk out of this current situation alive. He tells me that he is Ianar Berav and is part of a select group that is known for special skills with the pistol. Then he slides me a communication chip and tells me to contact him when I am ready and just walks off. Spook threatens to go after him and gut him, but I tell her that we need to bide our time and she comes back to help me stand up. We check the rooms to the south and the north and find nothing of significance, so I have to head west towards the room where I know that I am outnumbered.

It's ok - I'm cute.
Satunda, 18 Helona 12731

We get back to Port Etmarr with only minor distractions. I spent some time with Kunla to rest and relax in ways that Medusas are very partial to. I also managed to spend time with both Reece and another Mentat working on spatial relationships and basic mathematical concepts. After so many fights that I have been dragged into while outside of my X-wing, I am thinking that I need to increase my blaster skills and to be more versatile on planet. I know we are supposed to gather together again for a debriefing and to get our next mission, but I steal one last afternoon with Kunla and then head back to the group. I walk in to a video showing an AT WST with a light saber. Well, not actually a light saber, but a mega laser destroying an X-wing with one shot. That is not good. We are tasked with hunting down where a scout group encountered this and see if we can: 1. find the two lost scouts, 2. see if we can find a way to destroy this new weapon, and 3. find the spy in the midst and rescue him. They are willing to supply us with the necessary hardware which consists of a military grade land speeder outfitted with a heavy repeating blaster, some satchel charges, and a swoop bike. Reece wants to do disguises and Vanya suggests that we find some Sisters of Battle armor that I can throw on as a disguise - enough to look like trophies and will provide some protection from blaster fire - not that we will be attacked or anything. Spook gets us to the base where our intel led us. I won't claim that she flew there, but it was rather quick! We opt for the front entrance as we are either going to pretend that we want to join or that we are from a different part of the planet and have come up to join in on their fun - not sure which way the guys are going to play that. We decide to leave the three droids in the land speeder for back up. I am almost sure that is a good thing. Our first look at the base is not a happy one. There are five of the AT ST's, swoop bikes, X-wings, pit droids, shield emitters, communication arrays - all of the items we would want if we had a base. Reece takes the lead and finds out that the AT STs are filled with death troopers. The tech that checked us in seems happy with the story of attacking and having to burn supplies and reminds us to check in. Reece and Vance head towards the shield generators by way of the AT STs. I head towards the door straight ahead as if I am ready for a shower and to get inside as quickly as possible - and to check in for our group. As we head in different directions, I am suddenly reminded that we should have set up a code word about when to destroy things and regroup. Oh well - I am sure that the force will find a way to make it all work out. Oh great, now I am starting to sound like one of those Jedi. I enter the turbolift and go down a level. I come into an area that looks like a re-purposed ship cargo bay. Nothing really fancy, but some power conduits and doors to the next area. I continue to the east and find a room with backup generators. I check with the computer in the corner and find out that these are set up to support a huge generator in the next room to maintain a specific atmosphere for some reason. Spook and I agree that it is important to fix it so that those generators will NOT work when needed. We work together and turn off a few alarms to make the damage as simple and inconspicuous as possible. After we finish that, I head on north to get closer to the room that the main generator is in. I debate for a minute, but decide it is better to just get it over with and we walk in. Inside is three of the giant Tau Ceti worms so we finally know where that shipment ended up. They are 30 feet long and HUGE. There are also four pirate techs inside here who seem to be doing various tasks to ensure that the environment is beneficial for the worms. I walk over to the closest pirate and ask him a few questions about the worms, the room, the generator, etc. He keeps eyeing me in a way I am familiar with so I decide to take him out of the action. We head past the worms and one other tech - who reminds him to keep out of the lieutenant's view - and we head into the alcove on the east wall. He had told me that it was a path to a crashed ship and its power source that the pirates have tapped in to and move out the rocks anytime they need to repair the conduits, but let the rocks take over once the repair is done. I think that the rocks would make a very good method of keeping this pirate out of whatever happens next. We make it to the alcove and I grab him and knock him against the rocks. He just gets more excited and turns me against the rocks and puts a lip lock on me. I let the kiss go on for just a bit - have to distract him after all - and then I turn him around bash him against the wall again. This time he slumps to the ground and is knocked out - finally! I then turn to investigate the rock wall to see if there is any way to move them carefully to see what is behind. I manage to move one rock very carefully and I can see into the next chamber. There are stairs and glowing lights, but I can only see through a small hole. I MIGHT be able to move more rocks, but it is sure to make noise. Spook has gotten one of the pirates out of the room, which just leaves two. I know the one to the south is a little bit suspicious, but he is closer so I have to go to him first. It would cause him to ask questions otherwise. I muss my hair a bit and rush to him babbling about rocks falling and knocking out the other guy. He isn't happy, but he does head to the alcove. As he bends over the other guy, I pull out my blaster and pistol whip him. He must have a hard head as he turns to me with a WTF look and I just shrug and look cute. Just then, one of the worms sticks his head in. I take a very deep breath and carefully re-holster my pistol and reach out and pet it.

Flimsy of Doom
Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

I seem to be floating in fluffy green goo and there are wires all over me. It is not that I am uncomfortable, but I am unable to get out of here and I really want to hyperventilate, but GOO!!?!? I am really panicking, and then it tries to 'help' me and I know that is a bad thing so I keep stopping it. Then I hear Vanya talking to me and she has a plan to try. I am supposed to remember my training classes from heavy atmosphere and how to remove the suit by the secondary controls. I am also supposed to think about shoving the goo away from me. I start to hear a burbling sound and then I can feel air on my face. I must spit out some of the goo (aahhhaa, it was that hyper concentrated oxygen that is used on some of the heavy G worlds) and I try to get that lime taste out of my mouth. The burbling sounds gets louder and becomes a bit of a scream and then I hear the sound of an air lock popping open. I freeze. I hear another one and then several in quick succession and then I am sliding on the goo and out of the suit to plop on the floor. I am covered in this stuff. Who gets the cleaning bill?? Damn, it is so nice to have Vanya on my side. I can hear So'Zen talking to someone, but I am still trying to get my bearings back. Then I see some of the armor starting to move out of the corner of my eye and also an archway appears. Inside the archway I can see Vanya, yet I can also see her in the corner of the room and Davish is trying to safely lower her to the ground. I rush over since I am positive that I can move faster than the armor - and let's face it, using my blasters early did not solve the problem. I take Vanya from him and start to get her settled while Davish leans past me and shoots those moving armor pieces. I hear them hit the other wall so at least they are farther away. Davish mentions that those pieces are made of starship metal so really strong. Yeah? So'Zen re-enters the room and finally notices the archway with Vanya inside. Then a blue figure appears, speaks Corellian, and asks me what I want to learn today. I would prefer to leave that to the Jedi, but then he talks sense about using brute force to solve problems and that it is so much quicker than doing it the supposed 'right' way. He seems to want to start an argument between me and So'Zen or me and him or just me. I take as much of the talking as I can handle and then I tell him off and turn back to Vanya to check her vitals and see what Davish is thinking. Davish is also confused as to why he is being ignored until I mention that as a Crimson Knight he is the perfect balance of light and dark. This reminds him that he is gray in the force and invisible to some. I suggest he test that by getting behind Kraft and turning him off. Davish shrugs and heads that way while I do a vitals check on the two comatose. Danar is sweating, but otherwise the two of them are fine. Davish then talks to us from behind the blue guy and tells us that the page is a hologram, but that he can feel something under the stones. I wonder if we should get the page, but Davish feels that we need to get Reece out first. I am not sure that Reece wants out of the armor! Davish says that is probably true, but we have to rescue him from himself anyway. We devise a plan. Davish will pull off the plate and at the same time So'Zen will TK the stone over the page. I will then shoot the two gaskets on the armor, and it should release Reece immediately. Davish asks ready and we all three take our actions within moments. The armor opens and Reece is not there. Kraft is surprised that So'Zen was able to TK both the stone and the armor plating and then disappears. I can see the holocron page, but I refuse to go near it. Reece then stumbles out of the portal and is asking if I see those things in the portal. I agree that I do see them and give him the vital systems check on our two comatose party members. Reece begins medical scans - starting with me for some reason though I suggest that a brain scan on So'Zen would be smarter. Then Vanya wakes up and is herself and the portal quietly disappears. One of the Bo'mar monks enter the room and inquires if we need anything. So'Zen asks for a shielded box that seems to be for the tenochron flimsie. We start trying to figure out how to get it into the box and while we argue, Vanya picks it up, folds it, and puts it into the box. Vanya's buddies get us out and we head back to Port Etmarr. We are met by a princess who I recognize by name as being part of Corellian history, Lady Cordelia Naismigh Vorkosigan. A two-time medal of valor winner, but one who has upset my Aunt too. I need to do some research to determine the details of how and why she got those medals. Should also probably call my Aunt for the dirt. She gives Kit Kat - who I thought was Reece?? and Danar a mission to go find some guy named Ivan. We have some time to relex, shower, find some entertainment, and get all refreshed before we start the next stage of the journey. I wonder if I have time to go look up my Wookie friend??

JuggerNOT!
Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

The battle is raging inside the room, but I keep focusing on how to stop the evil before it stops us. I know that destroying the crystals in the previous rooms seemed to help and I can see the blue glow from here, so I know there are more of those crystal hive minds. I talk quickly to Davish and suggest we do a joint attack and take out the two columns closest to the door - he takes the one to the north and me to the south. I run through the door, dive past the mob there, and drop off the stairs to be just below the closest column. I take a quick breath and then squeeze off two shots from my heavy blaster. I have seen how the bad guys are able to play with plasma so back to the tried and true. As my first blaster bolt arrows towards the column, I see a hint of a shield, but it is not able enough to stop the bolts from causing the crystal column to shatter and powder down to the floor. I wait for the blue light to stream out, but nothing happens immediately. Then silence falls and then those bad guy monks rattle of something about I want, I want, I want. Then So'Zen does a really cool trick and picks up the droid on the steps and throws it at the droids ahead of it. It works! And then the biggest droid monsters pull out huge vibro axes. I mean, come on!! This battle was not a cakewalk already and he had to go and make it worse. I am not going to think about it right now and just focus on what I can do which is continue destroying those crystals. I might start working on those skulls next................ I do another double tap on the big crystal, but it only cracks. I am about to line up my next double shot when a shield goes into effect around the crystal. I do a quick check for any shield emitters, but I do not see anything obvious. I take another look at the skulls closest to me. Perhaps........ I am about to walk towards the closest set of skulls when I feel a presence above me. I am looking up to see a Bo'marr monk and then I hear a ding on my data pad. It seems that this monk is wanting to help me! I do the obvious thing and ask him to take down the shield. He agrees that the shield is noisy and disruptive to the sanctity of math - whatever that means. He turns around to the base of the blue crystal column and moves one of the bricks. I send a quick image of that to Davish. He pulls out a Vor shield belt emitter, but it has been modified and now it looks like it has the chance to blow up if anyone breathes on it the wrong way. I have a brief thought about asking him to give it to the juggernaut behind the trio of doom, but with that shield around them.............it has a higher chance of blowing us up. So, I ask him to safely dispose of it and he scurries up the stairs to take it to the forge techs in the room we just left. He claims that they did not make it as it was very shoddy. Good to know but does leave the question as to who did it. I leave it to Davish to decide how he wants to handle it on his side. I turn to see what Davish is thinking about doing to see a dark bolt of energy heading straight to Vanya and then So'Zen pushes her aside and steps in front of it. He appears to be a bit shaken, but still on his feet and then he says something stupid again. It must be genetic. I shrug and turn back to the crystal because the shield is down now!! I put two quick shots into the crystal and the second one shatters the crystal, but not to powder as has happened before. Instead, it cracks and one half of it falls like a tree trunk - straight towards me of course. I roll out of the way and see it hit the floor. It still doesn't shatter, and I can see electrical sparks popping between the different pieces. I check to see what Davish is doing, and he is using that force thing he has and removes the block, takes out the shield emitter, and turns it off. If it was possible to turn it off why didn't the monk do that instead?!?! I just shrug and turn back to the pieces of the crystal. I still see energy popping and fizzing and that is weird. If it was residual then it should have dissipated by now. I can understand that happening when electrical components are involved, but this is crystal. Where is the energy coming from?? Does this really help the situation? What is my next move?? I glance wildly around the room and suddenly realize what I am missing - Spook! I do a quick comm check: "Spook?? Are you close? Can you hear me?" Static is my only answer. I see one of the droids take a shot at me. I have this fancy armor so let's see how it works........................so it doesn't really work that well. I guess I should either dodge or use my shield first - ok, lesson learned. I start to shake it off and pay attention to what is going on in the room. I come to just in time to see another monk bringing me a present - one of the Concord. I think very seriously about putting a plasma shot straight into him and then figure that is overkill. He has no weapons except a datapad so I use my blaster as a club and reach over to bop him on the top of the head. He manages to roll enough to dodge it and I realize I am more stunned than I thought. I shake my head a bit and then grab my blaster to hit him again. Then his hand starts glowing with that black light. This is not good and then Vanya is there. I should have shot him earlier. He is distracted now so I step over and pistol whip him into unconsciousness. I take the unconscious guy and tie him up so that we can question him later - by whatever means will work best. Based upon conversations I am hearing from the other end of the room, perhaps So'Zen can get him to talk. So'Zen comes over and decides that it isn't worth waking up this guy as the other Concord member answered his questions. It is suggested that we put the three of them into a pile while we work on the next room and I strongly disagree. We continue to rest and recover and then Vance walks over with his lens and asks me to look through it. He has checked the powder and apparently it looks like water to him. I decide it would be so much better to look at one of the larger chunks to get a more complete sense of what this is and how the lens works. I do so and I see the universe in all of its starry wonder. I take the lens down almost sadly and then suggest we give it to Reece for his input. He first investigates the lens itself and tells us that the writing on it is from the High Republic era. He puts on the lens and when he takes it down, he talks about the wonder of the universe in all of its mathematical superiority. He and Vance discuss how important and good it would be to have both. I get a cold chill as I am not sure we should have control over that much power. We enter the next room carefully and I am not sure what to do. There are schematics of power armor floating inside a flimsy and a strange eye looking out of it. I am not sure if it should be shot or what so I turn and look around the room. I see three more of the blue crystal columns so I quickly shoot one of them as I have been doing to free whatever is stuck inside them. It turns into powder, but instead of the release I see them flowing into the flimsy/eye combo. That is not okay! Reece agrees with me and uses his loaner to shoot the flimsy/eye. It shatters to the ground and there is just the tinkle of crystals hitting the tile. SUDDENLY, Davish and So'Zen are pushed against walls and Reece and I are captured inside a beam and metal comes out of the wall and we are incased in the same armor as the juggernauts!! I am sealed inside a suit of armor and I don't see a way of getting out of here. HELP!!!!!!!!

Mentats are as crazy as Jedi
Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

We enter a walkway that has glowing blue crystals and there is the occasional view of a hand or an eyeball which must mean that these things should die. In the next room are columns that have been etched and carved and probably being used for evil. Then, in the next room and staring right at us, are four actual B'omarr monks and four droids that have actual brains controlling them. They Jedi and the monks begin a very long conversation about what is truth and all sorts of other stuff. They ask me some questions, but I know they are evil since they treat people like things and that means we need to take them out, cleanse the room, and move on. Then Vanya tells us that their will is being overwritten by something in the room behind them. That means all kinds of fun is about to happen - damn jedi and their quests. I see lots of movement and lightsabers and holoprojections and it is just too much. I can only handle one problem and so I take the closets and hopefully easiest and I turn to my right and shoot the blue glowy crystal. It shatters to dust and the whatever was stuck inside comes out and around and all over and I do hear a "thank you". I turn to the left and do the same thing and there is that weird holographic forms swirl around and through us and our weapons until Davish again makes the wind flow and push those whatever they are into the wall and away from us. I am about to head up the stairs and continue working on shattering those crystals as that seems to be a positive thing - at least it appears to be right now - when I see one of the monks in the third room take aim at me and prepare to fire. I know that as far away as he is - even if he can manage some moving the shot while it is in the air, that I can move to the side and it will pass by me. He aims, but then another one of the monks jumps in front of the shot and takes the hit!! I do think that this vindicates me after they called me a savage and yet they fired at me while I just focused on saving (freeing, releasing, helping??) whatever has been trapped in the crystals. Since I am no longer in danger, I move to the middle of the staircase into the next room and focus my next shots on the crystal on the right. It takes both shots and just has cracks spiderwebbing over the surface. Either one of my shots was weak or this crystal is a lot stronger than the others. The sounds of battle die away and the Jedi are busy doing healing and patching up the ones still alive on our side of the doors. I really want to continue freeing the whatever inside the crystals, but I want to make sure that I am not starting a new fight. I consider asking the monks that are alive and conscious - but they were so rude to me that I see no reason to bother. I then turn to the Jedi - and when did they become my voice of reason and approval? Vanya pulls out that marble thing that was wrapped all around me and asks it to jam the door! It changes shape and then it looks like a winged demon. Seriously?!?! That was what was all up in my business!??! Thank goodness I managed to make it go away. Once it does what Vanya asks it to, I shoot that column again and this time it shatters and the blue energy is freed again. They swoop and swirl and they bounce around, but I notice that some of them go inside my gear, Reece's datapad, Vanya's datapad, my datapad, and two of the droid monks! Now the question is - are they going to help us by removing that virus? Or are they attracted to the virus and are going to make new virus babies??? I shake off the question as I have no way to determine an answer right now and destroy the remaiing crystals and see the blue energy whatsits swoop and swirl and disappear. I take a moment to grab some water and a snack. I know I will need my energy to deal with whatever craziness the Jedi is getting us into next!? We enter the door and are told we can leave the vault keys with the droid. Everyone keeps asking for the vault keys - do we even have the vault keys?? Then Reece asks if we can leave them with the droid?!? And he opens fire! Once the dust settles, the concord says independent thought is bad and then a cloaking field drops and there are now THREE giant robots with heavy blasters.

Force is so not me!
Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

One half of my face is covered, and it should be sticky and gooey, but it is not. It is moving around on my body in a vaguely slime-like method. I can see the droids around Spook still aiming at our group. I stop and take a moment to stand still and determine what has happened to me. I can see that Davish, Vanya, and So' Zen are glowing. There is a glow around Reece that has a different texture - more like water. I concentrate on that glow and try to see if I can find more glowy things. There is nothing around the droids, but the Sister of Battle does have some kind of glow. It is almost like I am peeling back fog and can see her, but when I glance away, I can't see her anymore. Vance has a bit more of a candle glow versus the lanterns of the others. Then I glance back into the room where the marble was, and I see that guy from the hologram. He is looking directly at me and then says, "That was unexpected". He walks over to Bishop and then there is an itching in the back of my mind like I have forgotten something or like someone is watching me. I do a slow pivot to see if I can pin down the source while keeping one eye on the ghost? hologram? apparition? I hear So' Zen say something about a strong force and then he bows to that hologram guy. At least someone else does see him. Then So' Zen starts doing the talky talky thing. I swear he has more words than an ocean has water! They have a long conversation and then the guy disappears. So' Zen turns to me and says something about I need training. The only response possible is "the hell I do. Get this damn thing off me!". I know that we have to wait until action is slowed down before we can deal with my new................friend, helper, armor, scary ooze? Anyway, I check to see if Spook has managed to control the droids around him yet and that would be a no, but they are not firing at the moment and I do not want to set them off. I move south to Bishop and do a quick repair. He has a blown motivator in his lower half, but I am able to work around it and get him moving. He won't win any races, but he can at least keep up with us - whenever we move on. Combat slows and stops with Vanya cleaving a droid in half. I am about to request help with the ooze thing when it suddenly starts constricting around me and I get an image of some kind of cat creature - maybe a Catharr? There is also an overwhelming sense of fear and danger. I say out loud that whoever is doing whatever needs to stop. So' Zen said he was just trying to communicate. I told him to stop! Then I focused on trying to exude peace. I can hear Vanya telling me to think about flying and I get an image of flying around a beautiful wreck to salvage and no one that I have to share with - beside Spukamas of course. Then the ooze slides around and slides off me and back into a marble shape. I immediately grab and hand to Vanya! She isn't sure what to do and stuffs in into a pouch. I already tried that, but she is a Jedi. Then Reece and Vanya start discussing something and suddenly she is pointing out facts with her light saber and both So' Zen and Davish got to interfere. The data pad is dashed to the floor and Davish and Vanya have a quiet and intense conversation. Then both Spook and Bishop began screaming and I know that they are also under attach from whatever had gotten to Reece and Vanya. Next thing there is another batch of those droids and then the ones surrounding Spook turn and fire on me. I manage to get my shield up just in time, but it only is able to withstand MOST of the fire and a shot gets through to hit my right arm and I am having issues staying focused on the fight. Vanya runs up to me and is babbling about moving a shield wall? My eyes are still seeing double, but I can see well enough to unhook and grab the emitters. Then comes the serious question - is Spook on our side of the shield or their side? I am very seriously hoping I do not die regretting this decision, but we need to push her buddies out of our safety bubble while keeping Spook (and I will be slapping a restraining bolt on her!). I am not sure how we are going to manage this since her buddies are closer to us then she is, but then she slides past the group and we are able to slide the shield in between her and her buddies and have all of the current batch of enemies out of immediate reach. Then Bishop goes over to her, inserts a probe, and she goes dark. OH NO!!!!! Not my Spook, how will I survive without her? She kept me straight - not necessarily legal, but she did provide lightness and fun in my life and also enough profit that we could manage to keep flying. Something needs to die! I cannot handle that right now as I have to get this shield in place to keep the rest of the team in place. I do my best to focus and do a good job, but I am more worried about Spook and how to help her. I manage to get it braced and reconnected on my side. I glance over to Vanya to see how she is doing and she is connecting her side just fine and then the energy field is now filling that hallway with all of the bad guys on the other side. Let's hope they can't go back up into the ceiling and just come over to the other side of the shield. I glance again at Spook, just in time to see her eye go dark as she reaches out to me. NO!!!!!! I try to stay focused on the fight we are in, but it is very hard. I check through the shield and see that the small batch that had been defending Spook are shooting the big batch. They might be defending us or they might just be defending themselves. The big batch is rather obviously trying to take out the shield, but they are not making progress. I glance to my right and see that there are no problems down that hallway so I can stand looking through the shield and try to control my emotions and be ready if the fight comes to us. Then another problem erupts. A droid with a problem and So' Zen is all take charge and does things. The end result is that we split the party and some go to that library place and the rest of us head to our doom.

Black Marble!?!
Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

So/Zen of course steps into the chamber and is locked behind an energy shield. Suddenly blue light flashes from the eyes of the skulls and scans all of us. Then it stops and I can see Corellian writing on the crystal: From high to low, the key is confined within your mind, use the key to set what's aligned, be aware of what you spurn, for what you give shall be returned. I have no idea what it means, but I say knowledge - in Corellian - then I nervously check the corridor behind me. I see the two beasties that helped us to defeat the last bad guys, but nothing else - YET. So'Zen does something with the crystals and the skulls and I sense movement behind me. I whirl around and see SIX of those zombie driods that we took out - with help - in the other room. They have dropped out of the ceiling and fall to the floor, but do nothing else. I turn on my shield to get ready for the fight that I know is coming. They take a step closer. Nothing else, no menace, just a step closer. I hear from behind me that Davish is attempting to take the shield down and get to So'Zen and he finally manages to take it down just as the droids all put out data port connectors and head straight down the hallway towards me. They are moving slowly, but steadily. I do not sense any evil intent, but definitely purposeful. I take out my plasma pistol and shoot at the closest droid. It moves aside in such a way that it is evident it knows what the blast radius is but the droid behind him didn't pay attention and I am able to get a hit on the side. I check with Spook to see if she has any weapons on her. She does not, but she does indicate that she has managed to listen in on the chatter from the droid hive mind and they are referring to the Great Intelligence and that it is coming to see us - from about ten kilometers away. It seems to be UNDER the dust ocean now, but heading our way. I instruct Spook to send that information to everyone's data pad and to give them updates as they occur. Then I attempt to shoot that same droid. It dodges again, but it is now closer to the group of droids in the hallway. Perhaps I can line up a shot to take out several?? Then one of the blasted things shoot at me!! I hold up my shield and take the shot. Then I hear Spook squeal behind me. One of the droids shot at her!! She rushes under it and gets a bit dinged up, but she manages to deal some damage. I wonder if I can go to my knee and shoot upwards to take advantage of that??? I try it and score a hit and it disintegrates. Next! There are two beside me and I am about to rise and continue combat, when I notice a black marble on the tunnel floor in the middle of the crossroads between everyone. I reach out and grab it - it feels warm to the touch and is so smooth. I decide to put it into my belt pouch for now. I will decide what to do about it after combat. Maybe I will tell the others - maybe I won't. After all, I managed to keep that crystal a secret for a while - until it just had to start talking to me! I go ahead and stand up, but I must still be distracted as I am unable to slice them with my shield at all. I still have four to deal with on my end of the hallway and a quick check of the other hallways shows the same condition. I am about to take aim on another one when suddenly they dash past me to surround Spook. I am about to go in for the save when they turn around to guard her - and they start firing on US! Spook seems to be trying to get them to stop and keeps shouting she is their queen and they should obey her. I block the first shot at me from her honor guard, but the second one stings a bit. That is when the marble boils up out of my pouch and is all wrapped around me. I shouldn't be able to see since my face is mostly covered, but somehow I can tell exactly where everything and everyone is. How?!? Why?!?

Jedi - you take them!
Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

I glance around the cleared room and see that there are no more attackers. I decide it would be best to move to the doorway to the next room and see what we might have to deal with next. I move up next to the mentat and observe him shining his light into the hallway and making notes in his datapad. I glance down to see what he is making notes about and see a LOT of skulls lining the walls of the hallway. Some are humanoid and some are most certainly not. They are not glowing or having any reactions to the lights being shined on them, but I am not sure what to make of a hallway decorated in that fashion. So'Zen and Reese are both obviously looking for traps of some sort so I have Spook do a sensor scan and she discovers that there are power sources that seem to be tied to some plant like fibers in the wall behind the skulls. I figure it is some sort of sensors using the skulls to see if someone enters the hallway. We know that someone has been here before us and have obviously set traps, but the only way to get to them is to go through the traps. I say as much and that gets the mentat to enter the hallway and he shines his light down the hallway after he enters. We can all see some footprints, but they only go halfway down the hallway and then there are no more. So'Zen has a crazy idea about moving the party down the hallway. He jumps across first and then waits for Vanya and Davish to levitate each of us across. I volunteer to go first since I trust Vanya and not even So'Zen would be stupid enough to drop me - mostly because he is more worried about traps than my safety I am sure. For whatever reason, Reece chooses to not use the Jedi system of moving down the hallway and uses some method to swing from the ceiling. Cute maybe, but half way down force walls slam down on the north and south sides trapped the mentat within the hallway as the sides start to collapse in. To make matters more fun, the skulls start firing blasts. I check with Spook to see if she can find the origin of the power source now that we are closer to the end of the tunnel. She indicates that the power source is behind the wall and that there should be an access panel somewhere on the wall close to the end of the skulls. I shout that information to those on the other side about checking for access ports. I start searching on my side and I find one on the southern wall. I decide that I am NOT interested in crawling inside the narrow passage and reach carefully in to where the panel is and punch buttons. Something I do works because the force wall on the north side drops and Reece is able to dodge his way out. Then the other wall drops and, after a few last blasts, the hallway goes back to looking as it did when we walked in. Everyone finishes getting to the center of the hallways where So'Zen and I are and then we start to investigate the next section of the hallway. So'Zen says he is checking the south hallway. Next thing I know we have two shark-like creatures in the hallway and some more spiderbots drop from the ceiling. I drop prone to the floor and fire my plasma blaster at the spider bot to the north. It dodges. Davish thinks he can top my shot and fires at the same creature. It dodges him too! Finally the shark things - which seem to be on our side - take out the two spiderbots and I move up beside Spook to see what she has discovered. She tells me that she is getting a weird scan from the north side. I do a scan myself and I see what she means. It is intermittent like there is a broken wire or a missing connection. To the south, there is a solid power signature. To the east, it appears that the power is being absorbed. I communicate this with the others. Then more spiderbots drop in!! I see one directly in front of me, but I will have to shoot between Vance and Palatine. She is not phazed, but Vance does seem a bit rattled. I zing into the bot and I score a direct hit, but I do not manage to destroy it. Battered, but not broken seems to be the score. Then it goes flying down the hallway with Davish. Davish returns to the group and the force wall slams up (down?) behind him corralling the spiderbot. Since the situation seems to be in control, I go down to the north corner and get prone to peer around to see what there might be. I don't really see anything that looks dangerous, but I decide to do a sensor sweep first to make sure. I find three spiderbots, two combot droids of some kind, a bio-engineered mynock, and two web creatures. I share my sensor data with the team after getting Spook down the hallway to verify my scans. Reese take the opportunity to send a virus into the spiderbots, so they are taken out of the fight. Everyone else wants to head south first so I am happy to leave this corridor for last. As we go down, there is an alcove which just screams problem to me. I have almost convinced everyone to leave when So'Zen walks in. A force screen drops down and he is tasked with riddles. Riddles?!?!?

Dungeon Crawl level 1
Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

After a nice long restful and relaxing time with my new Wookie, I bid him a fond farewell and meet the others in Port Etmar. They are discussing a transmission from Lord Baize where he has uncovered some interesting things in the basement which we had left in the hands of the Sisters of Battle to clean out. Some remarkably interesting Jedi artifacts and he wants our two Jedi to have the first look. We load up our firefly and my X-wing and head back there. We are met by Lord Baize and he tells us about the broken Jedi holocrons which had not been there when he checked the room a few years ago and then closed it. We head down to the basement and the Jedi go into full investigation mode. I loiter in the background and keep a close eye behind us as I am expecting something to happen. Nothing happens so I move closer to the columns to do a scan of one of them as well as the supposed natural wall behind wall to my left. The wall is actually natural and there are no secret doors or mechanisms inside it. When I scan the column, I discover a layer of sandstone that appears to be incredibly old and is probably the same age as the monastery or just a bit younger. However, behind that layer and behind the bricks that are not natural to this room is a much older stone layer that might be concrete or at least not natural materials and certainly not from this planet. Vanya brings over some astrogation information and asks Spook and I to see if we can determine what or where the place is. She tells us that the map probably references a time period of 500 years in the past. Spook begins calculations and then she says it is probably more like five thousand years ago. Spook starts a new calculation and then tells me that is seems to refer to either Chalcedon itself or at least an area in the Chalcedon system, but she needs the rest of the equation to be sure. We determine it is time to move to the next room. I don't have a way to shoor fire on the B'omaar if we find any, so Vanya asks the priestess if she has a spare pistol for me. She easily hands over one of her spares and then we follow So'Zen down a hallway that has some very weird looking skeletons in it. We continue on and enter a chamber lit by some yellow glowing crytals. There is this something about this room. It feels chilly in unusual patches I can't explain. I think you hear a voice here and there, like from a busted comlink nearby, but I don't see one anywhere close in the room. So'Zen and Reese investigate a few of the medical beds and determine that there are bodies in some of them, but bodies without any brains. So'Zen decides that he needs to see them so we can figure out who they were and if we can help them in some way. Sadly, this sets off an alarm and suddenly there several of scuttling spider droids coming towards us. I turn and fire at one coming up behind us and my new little pistol shoots out a cone of blue flame which goes through the droid and seems to burn it from the inside out. It is still coming towards me, but there are flames coming from the joints and it is not moving easily. It finally collapses into a pile of mostly melted goo. I turn to see another of the little beasties in front of me to the left so I aim and fire. It was apparently in the process of rebooting and comes alive just in time to attempt to move out of my line of fire. I still manage to hit it in the middle of it's body and it melts into another puddle of goo. I think I might like this gun - wonder what a good name would be? Another one drops out of the ceiling and fires at me, but I step to the side and the bolt flies by harmlessly. I turn to fire back, but the new pistol has overheated. It glows white at the end of the barrel and then I hear a chime as it goes into cooldown mode. At least I still have my heavy blasters. The one who gave me the pistol fires and the spider melts into another puddle and with a smell of burned electronics filling the room, there is a momentary peace. What could possibly be next????

Pit Droid in two
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

A blaster bolt goes under my boots (mighty close there) as I fly through the air heading towards the building across the street and closer to the armor wearer. There is a small ledge around the roof, so I belly crawl over to the edge and site on the power pack on his belt closest to me. I take careful aim, but he appears to sense the shot and steps to the side and my shots hit the ground. He is looking around, but it doesn't appear to be me he is looking for. I have to wonder if the Jedi are pinging his senses. He ignores me and starts walking towards Vanya so I rush over to the ledge above him and attempt to hit the power pack closest to me again. He has a personal shield now??? Then one of the pirates takes aim at me. I am about to fire back when Vance tells me over comms that he is going to use that shot to maintain cover while trying to also shoot at power armor dude. He misses me - lucky for him. I take aim again at that blasted power pack and miss again, but I do hit something on his belt and sparks fly. I send a message out on comms to let the others know that I made an opening and the others need to press that advantage. There is a chance that wasn't an advantage. Several weird things happened with droids, and there was some really deep thrums in the earth. I see one of the droids capering around with red eyes so I take a shot center mass. I hit him and manage to knock him to the ground. There seems to be red electricity sparking between the loose wires and I swear he turns and glares at me. This I expected since I was not able to take him out of the action. My only concern now is if there are either stairs he can climb to get to this roof or if he has propellers to fly up to me. I take another two shots at him center mass. He does some sort of sumersault in the air and lands perfectly for my second shot to hit and disburse the various pieces parts of him. I feel satisfied until a glowing red cloud appears over the body and two eyes look at me. Out of a cloud. This is Jedi shit. "Vanya!! You gots to come and deal with this! I have a glowing red cloud with eyes!" She says she is busy, but I am positive this is way more important. Suddenly, Vanya is there and grabs the crystal that the glow cloud seems intent on acquiring. She dumps it into a flowerpot and covers it with some quickcrete and the cloud just disappates. Well, that was a bit anticlimatic. Vanya then asks me to go find her some more beans to use as a solution for a new problem. I think going back to the inn is the best idea. The next morning I remember that I was supposed to find something for Vanya.

On the cliff's edge
Natunda, 30th Nelona, 12731

They actually shot at me - a Medusa. Well, former, but still a Medusa. I take aim at the one who fired at me with the arm bracer I had gotten as loot from our last encounter. It flies straight through the window and the one I am aiming at somehow manages to step aside at the last moment - maybe he has that force thingy. The shot ricochets a few times and then hits a different pirate and ionizes him until he collapses. I then see Bishop grab and start dragging him out the door. Next thing is to see a literal swarm of spider bots coming down from the roof of the building where all the action is taking place. I check to see if Spook can get into their network and re-direct them. She claims it is not a problem and next thing I see them reversing course and heading back to the roof. Whew! I really don't like spiders - way too many legs and that is saying something from all I have seen in the universe.....speaking of which, I wonder what Kunla is up to right now.......nope, focus girl. Work now - play later! Mr. Sharpshooter is on the ground so I see if I can take him out of the action - permanently. I take careful aim and fire and now I can see the steel plates that he has as armor sewn into his vest. I then see him move super quick and I can see the barrel of some gun. Before I can take aim to stop him, Vanya does a twirl and grabs that gun hand and does an elbow into that same arm. He drops and appears to be actually unconscious this time. Since everything on this end of the street seems to be under control, I hop across roofs and get to the top of the inn so that I can see down that street. I see So' Zen walking down the street towards a cafe with a trandoshan in full hunting gear. Diplomats! Spook then sends me some telemetry data for the town and I can see where the pirates are. Those that appear to be on guard on the dock are staying on guard - even with all the noise we have been making. What is even more interesting is that one of them has heavy weapons and has been in the perfect position to shoot So'Zen - and didn't!! That is a mistake he will probably live to regret. I have Spook share that information with the others so that we can maybe come up with a plan to handle the problems. Though I am beginning to believe that plan is just another four letter word with this group! I glance back to see what Vanya is up to and I see that Hicks has shot the same guy, but he is still going. He may look human, but I don't think he is! I take careful aim and try to hit him in the same spot and I do hit him, but it just seems to make him madder. I see the chance to fire again as he is so focused on Vanya. It hits him I am almost positive. I turn to check on the other street and see the armored guy walking slowly and menacingly down the street. I can hear Spook in the background cursing about something or other, but I keep focusing on that guy to see if I can find a weakness. I see two -maybe. There is a red crystal in the center of his chest, but I have been around the Jedi long enough to know that red is not a good color to play with. I also see what MIGHT be two power pack on his belt. I glance back towards Vanya and Hicks to see if they need help, but it looks like it is mostly under control. I sight on one of the power packs and shoot. It sparks and it is obvious that I managed to take it out, but instead of diving for cover he moves to the center of the street and throws up a shield. I have a feeling this is not going to be pretty. Spook makes happy noises - apparently she managed whatever she was trying to do. I am just hoping that she hasn't stolen the town's money. The guy in the street then points his sword at me and shoots a ball of lightning at me!! I gather my strength and jump across the street and

Delicious
30PLen Nelona, 12731

We land outside of sensor range of anyone or anything in Chausid Station. I have a very long talk with Spook to make sure she understands that I get first pick of her loot thus far - and 15% off the top once she sells the rest: 1 small container of converters for moisture farming ( 12 ), 1 small container of Astromech power regulators, 1 small container of crystal-bladed knives ( 5 total ), 1 satchel of stimpacks that seem to be missing their serial numbers? Obviously I keep the stimpacks and one of the knives. I tell her to not sell the converters yet until we are sure we won't need them. Half of the group plays scout and heads up towards the gate to see what they can find out while the rest of us walk casually to town. Since we are not coming from the dockside I am not sure how believable it will be. The scouts do some shenanigans with the cameras on the gate which tells us we need to be careful. When we get close enough, I have Spook hack the camera and that gives us three minutes to get into town. Vanya picks up Bishop as his servo motors are not in fighting shape after all of the adventures. We get past the gate and head to the inn. Reese and Bishop head off to check on the jamming signal while the rest of us head into the inn to see if we can find the resistance and get this town back to normal. Then behind us we see the unthinkable and I turn to rush inside with Spook so close behind me we almost get tripped up. The rest of the team follow as quickly and we can hear lots of gunfire, then a huge explosion followed by silence. The Wookie pulls a gun on us - as expected. I flatter him - he is a very nice specimen after all - and then ask for a drink. We banter a bit and then get down to the important gossip about the town. There is a nice homey feel to the bar which is a very eclectic mix of old and modern. There is a pleasant smell of cooking food - savory and sweet- in the air. There is also a lovely pair of swords over the bar which look like they would have to belong to our innkeeper. We banter some more and I get the key to his room for later investigation. I also find out that there are wounded warriors on the second floor of this inn and some of the Freedworld Rangers have been captured and are being kept on a derelict freighter on the dust ocean. Not a good place to swim, but metal still floats. He also tells me that following the south wall in the early morning while it is shaded should get me all the way to the dock area. I just have to figure out how to get a metal boat to float over to the ship so we can rescue our allies. I put on my thinking cap and maintain my hold on the Wookie - don't want to let a good one get away. I take a moment to check on Spook. Plans are in progress for something that will float though not all of the ideas are currently practical. Not saying they are bad at all - just not the right time for them. I get back to the business at hand - getting information of course - when I am interrupted by Spook forwarding me a message from Bishop. Seems they have gotten into trouble and I have to go help. *SIGH* So hard being a team player. I am about to head out when I remember that I had seen So 'Zen head up to the second floor with food for the wounded. I ask Kunla to pop up and let him know that we had to leave and suggest that he ask the Jedi to help the team. After all, they are usually helpful in battle. I run down the sidewalk and notice that all of the fight seems to be inside one particular building so I get on the roof of the opposite building. I aim for the weapon arm of one of the bad guys and squeeze off a shot. Sadly, he seems to sense it and gets his energy shield up just in time. Then he turns to glare at me which probably means he will return fire. Fortunately I have a lovely roof edge to protect me. A shot comes towards me, but I step back and the shot takes a chunk out of the window frame. Who's next?

High Low
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

I stand up and fire at the guy closest to Vanya since the other two bad guys are beside thermal det containers. I hit him and he bounces back against the door, but something weird happens with his vest. It is like the shot melts on the vest and then falls off. I tell Spook that vest is mine - if we manage to live and walk out with any loot. Then I see a droid walk over to So' Zen on the floor - and use at least two hypodermics on him. He pops up ready to go and then the droid opens, and Bishop comes out. So' Zen appears happy, but then he gets back to work and suddenly a blaster is sliding across the floor to me. Bishop trundles over to me and his head lifts and out comes - Omatron in battle mode! Seems that Bishop and Omicron has been making modifications. I put my attention back on the fight and see that same sharpshooter that has been causing me so much anguish over beside a crate. I step over a few steps and snap two quick shots off. He manages to dodge the first one, but the second one is going to hit - until he jumps on top of the crate in a single jump. He has a LOT of toys that need a transfer of ownership! Then over my head goes Omatron with Reese on his back and they head for the same sharpshooter. They collide with him and Omatron is "giving him a hug". They land on top of water barrels and the water is going everywhere. Then So' Zen and Vanya start talking.................................so everyone is now at least neutral if not actively on our side. I get an offer of a minion, but he refuses. He wants to stay with the Jedi - jokes on him as there will not be any 'fun' with her. Then the evil computer voice announces that we have less than two minutes before the base explodes. I check my shield quickly, but it is fried, and I will need parts. I am sure that Spook will have what I need. Then Reese does something with a computer and we have thirty seconds.............he tries again quickly, and it is paused. Paused. I suggest that we actually turn it off but get no response. Time to actually do what we came here to do - rescue the farmers. The Jedi take a moment to do their fight prep and I go over to help that sharpshooter out of his toys. His wrist brace that shoots mini missiles is now mine and I also discover a barabel mircobe armor vest incorporated with his jacket. Based upon what I remember, this is not good in extremely freezing weather, but I still have my trusty old blast vest for that. This will need to become my regular wear. The bracer has two buttons, and I am not positive about what button does what. I will wait until I am outside in the clear to make sure that I don't break anything important - ceilings, Jedi, droids, me, etc. With that done, I get Spook to follow as we all head south to where the farmers are. We enter the room and there is a Devaronian who is waiting for us. He dances with the Jedi and when the bounty hunter and I take shots (high and low at same time), he pulls a broom out and knocks the shots aside. The Jedi start applauding and asking for lessons! Then they start talking like they always do and the battle is over and the farmers are working on the plan. I go to the south of the room and check the door on the west. No action and then it is time for the farmers to head home. They all follow So' Zen to a ship that Davish liberated, and they head out. Vanya heads me a few new weapons from the unconscious guard and we all head to the hanger bay and determine who is riding where and who flies what. Spook mentions that she has been monitoring the various boxes of explosives and weapons. It turns out that the damaged weapons were to be sent to the Chancellor. I request her to 'switch' the transponder codes so that the modified weapons went to the Tilles clan and their allies. In exchange, she is going to get a nice long soak in some fragrant hot oil. We make it back to Port Etmar safely and are met by Vanya's troopers and lots of news - most of it bad. Vanya asks if we are willing to do a rescue mission with lots of violence with little chance of reward. JEDI! We agree and head out for hot baths, hot food, and to see if I can find some entertainment to relax before we meet in 45 minutes.

Dark Troopers
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

As we go slowly through the fog, I see misty shapes in the air that look like animals I normally expect to see in an ocean. We have sensor readings that show two entrances - one for water/air intake and one for .................well, let's just say waste release. After some discussion, we fly down to the base of the canyon and land near the sewer entrance. There are blue stones and invisible eels. WOW!! That eel just shot a bolt and took out a 'fish' then swam over to eat it. HHHHMMMM, that blue stone looks like it emitted snow after that blast hit it............weird. I have to fight these fog currents some and my stick is sluggish and has episodes of not responding great, but I manage to get to where I need to be. The front landing gear sinks a bit - into snow?? There does seem to be some dust mixed in with it, but it is mostly snow. I get my rebreather, check my blaster pistols, have Spook shut down and lock the ship so she can come with me. I have her to connect with the shuttle so that both can be retrieved if we need them at another location in a hurry. I pop out of the X-wing and head over to join the others. We head over to the "hidden" entrance and slide past it where there is a maintenance hatch. We pop that and head in and up. After ten minutes or so we reach another hatch - which is actually locked. Vanya manages to get us through that hatch and then go up the ladder while Spook rolls over, turns off the alarm and rides the lift up. We enter what looks like a control room for the waste area. After checking a few monitors, we decide - more like the Jedi says, "I am going this way, suit yourself." - to head through the east double doors. Not one, but TWO dark troopers! I fling myself to the ground and fire two shots at the one straight ahead of me. It does a weird twisting movement to dodge the first shot and moves at an angle and almost dodges the second shot. Sadly, there is no damage except to the wall as my blaster shot ricochets off the dark trooper's armor. Spook meanwhile wheels over to a console and shuts - and locks - the other three doors into the console area. I watch Davish appear in front of the one I have been aiming at and he takes off a hand holding a blaster and then steps out of my way. I fire two shots at him. The first one bounces off again, so I aim more carefully the second time and manage to sink a shot into the area above his waist. Maybe I managed to peel off some armor? At least now I have a target! Suddenly two fire suppression drones pop out of the ceiling and target each dark trooper and start to buzz around their heads and provide some distraction and blocking their vision once they try to fire as we all know they will. Spook is doing an incredibly good job! The door to the south opens and three more dark troopers file in. Vanya suggests that I fire at one of the weapon's crates near their entrance point to bottleneck them in place. I do so, but it appears that the crate is armored, and my shot bounces off, hits the ceiling and sets the fire suppression system off. Now the room is filled with a foggy atmosphere. I hear Spook behind me clicking and whirring and then the room is even foggier. Not sure what she intended to do, but we have lots of cover. I see a blaster shot coming from a corner close to me and then the air clears. There are what looks like dozens of enemy combatants in the area now that used the fog to sneak in. I ask Spook to do something and she manages to close the doors on the west side of the unsecured area and blocks two from entering. Davish appears to have been injured, but he is still fighting. I take aim at the closest pirate and fire off two shots in quick succession. He ducks down on top of the barrel and manages to dodge the first shot, but that lines him up perfectly for the second shot. I think I might have managed to take one more out of the fight. Shot after shot comes at me, but my lovely shield manages to hold. It might need some maintenance after this fight. I see the next pirate in line and he is attempting to hide behind a crate. I fire two shots at him, but the crate takes the hits instead. Grenades. That can't be a good thing. Another shot comes my way and my shield sputters and dies. I get a bit of knock back from that last shot and feel a headache coming on. There is something happening behind me, but I have so much action going on in front of me. Decisions, decisions, decisions. I decide to make sure that the dark trooper that Davish got deactivated is taken care of so I fire off two quick shots. The first shot does not really seem to have an effect, but the second one makes it explode. OOOOPPSIE!

Fun Flight
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

We are all sitting around trying to determine the next best course of action. Vanya is adamant that we need to rescue some farmers, but I am afraid that if we do not take care of the monk infestation that it will be worse later. I am overruled. Apparently, the battle we fought was a distraction to keep Baize from helping the local farmers from being robbed and taken into slavery. She thinks if we hustle, we can catch them before they are hurt. I am not sure about that as it will depend on when the second group left the base and how the storm impacted their plan. Spook texts me that the X-Wing is all safe and ready to go. I suggest that we head out and finish planning on the way as we are under a bit of a time crunch. We load up and head out. When we arrive at the location it is easy to see that we are too late. I am about to ask which way we should go; known base, possible slave location, or somewhere else, when Davish comms in to say that the So'Zen is taking the lead and has a direction for us. He also recommends that I get the weapons set up and ready to fire. I grumble - out loud of course - and he chimes in with some crazy talk about cookies? Anyway, I have Spook get things fired up and ready and we follow the shuttle. Then in front of us we see a troop carrier with one escort ship. I call the escort and head out - ready to take out some frustration. I swoop in behind the escort and target his engines. I fire the lasers, but he manages to dodge - with some fairly decent flying I can admit. I get a call from So'Zen telling me that he has managed to lower the shields. Then the troop carrier fires - on ME?!?!? I dodge and do my best to get in line to take a shot at the Arc, but it looks like they managed to get the shields back up - at least half power. I fire my lasers and it is a hit. There is an impact and I manage to get through the first layer of hull. What the?!?!?! Looks like they have a double hull! That explains why they have such a good reputation from the clone war era. Since he seems to be a decent pilot with a good machine, I am going to have to figure out some way to get a benefit in this battle. I am a bit off-center to the Arc, so I decide to fly over him, spin to face him, and then fire. Sadly, he is able to mirror me, and we are flying cockpit to cockpit. His turn to fly fancy and he attempts to slide and spin to get behind me. Which means it is my turn to mirror him! While we are sliding past each other, I get a glimpse inside his cockpit, and he is mashing buttons - maybe shields? I send a message to Spook to see if we can hinder that in some way. Spook tells me that "Yes. The R5 is already out of commission. Someone else from the shuttle is keeping that 170s shields turned off. But if the aft left engine's power fluctuates ... it will permanently disable the shields until it has been repaired on the ground." Sounds like I have an objective. I think about doing a feint towards the troop ship, but that would leave my flank exposed so I determine to do a loop behind him with a barrel roll mid-flight. He attempts to mirror me but can't quite manage it. I am sure it is because of the aft port engine fluctuations. I aim my lasers at that engine and manage to take it out. He is still flying of course, but I have managed to take down his maneuverability some. The next step will be to either ground him or get him to break off and head for base - might be able to follow him???? Maybe. Then the troop ship fires on me again, but the shields hold - this time. The other pilot takes my momentary distraction to spin around and fire along my centerline. I see this out of the corner of my eye and drop below his line of fire. Spook has a few things to say about shots going right over her head, but I tune that out. I do a quick loop to get behind him. It is not exactly in line, so I fire a torpedo with the thought that even if I don't hit anything vital, it should do enough damage to cause him some hardship in piloting. I must have managed to get a lucky hit as the ship disintegrates in front of me and I fly through a fireball. So much for following him back to his home base. He was a good pilot, and the universe does not have enough of those, but in a battle involving me, I want to win. Davish does some nice flying and forces the troop ship to land. I follow making sure that no other ships are incoming. I do a quick check with Spook if there were any communications, but she tells me that the mentat foiled the attempt. Speaking of the mentat, he tells us that the droid So'Zen captured has the coordinates for the meet - as well as self-destruct instructions if anyone captured it. Good thing our group is smarter and faster. We begin to chat about what our next mission objective should be. I keep insisting that we clear out the tunnels. I don't like the thought of leaving an enemy behind me. There is a lot of talk and So'Zen repeats (several times) that the catacombs is not an immediate threat so our priority should be saving the other farmers. Vanya put Baize in contact with someone that can probably help clear out the tunnels until we can either assist or applaud a job well done. Next up was a conversation with the chancellor and then more talk about what to do and how to do it. We finally head out to track the second set of kidnapped victims. On the way, I do three different search scans to track the pirates. I can ascertain that the pirates are further ahead of us than anticipated. They appear to have captured their victims first and headed back to base (or the alternate base). We go past Port Etmar and continue south but do notice that there is a lot of traffic around the temple and heading up to the rift. We continue to find that there is a race happening now in the needle forest - as well as a patrol. Within the canyon itself - there is fog. There is a faint sensor reading. Someone is using a shield to camouflage a cavern opening.

Spook has fun!
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

So' Zen and I head down the stairs. There is NO WAY that I want to be stuck inside a turbolift with him for any length of time! He is walking behind me and is humming in a highly irritating fashion. I quietly step to the side and let him pass while picking up a bowl to toss at his head. Suddenly, the bowl stops in mid-air and then floats towards the floor - or at least it was heading that way when it was shunted to the table and several stones are set inside it. So 'Zen looks as shocked as I feel, and I ask him if he feels any Jedi woo woo going on. He says he can feel Vanya, Davish, and the obelisk and then he tells me that I will have to handle the interrogation on my own because he must go. A girl might start to feel abandoned if he wasn't a Jedi and not worth my time. I check before he leaves to make sure that I can take whatever steps are necessary while I am 'talking' to the prisoners. I have a free hand, so I go downstairs to the hanger bay. I see two guards with weapons standing outside heavy blast doors that are keypad locked. One of the guards is tall and willing to be intimidating so I ask him to step inside with me and prop up the door. One is sizing me up and one ignores me to check out Spook and the guard. I decide to ignore him as well and sit on the table in front of the one who was checking me out. I then proceed to be all girly and silly and try to get him to tell any secret I can find. I send Spook a message to scan then and she finds no weapons on them. She does say that she would really like to shoot one. I tell her to keep that in reserve and keep talking. He is starting to drop little hints and minor secrets and then his buddy tells him to shut up because I am a Medusa. I have GOT to remember to leave my jacket outside when I am going to play innocent!! I tell Spook "Fire" and several darts fly across the room and pin Mr. Smarty Pants to the wall - and shocks him just a little bit. Then once he is firmly held by the net created by those darts, she fires some stun blast. He is just hanging against the wall - not nearly as smart as he thought he was. The one I have been talking to gets very talkative, but he doesn't have any truthful information. I am about to turn him over to Spook when the guard asks if he can ask a question. I let him and he does something with his eyes that gets the guy worried and wishing he had truth to tell. Turns out that the pirates have been using the water caravans to pass weapons out. The clan hits the caravan and takes the water - and a load of weapons. They are mad because our host has taken two of their shipments and has some crazy plan to give the weapons to the local farmers to form a militia and fight off the pirates which he considers to be crazy. Seems our resident Vor is trying to protect this corner of the planet while the baby government gets up and running. What he might do after that is anyone's guess, but right now he appears to be one of the good guys. I walk out of the room afterwards just as Davish and Vance are arriving. Vance starts talking some drivel about setting up explosives around the fort and allowing the next attack to 'win' so that we can get rid of them and the fort. Then he spies a beetle on me and swats it to the floor and steps on it. Afterwards he tells me that it is a listening device and he (and Davish) think it is proof that some monks are still here and are working in the shadows to work on their own agenda. I think it might be some other force using the underground to spy on the people living here. Davish picks up the pieces of the bug and we can see mini droid parts and what looks like a glass ball with what might be a brain. I shrug that off as perhaps they are using tools left laying around. I introduce the guard who was helping me earlier, Shoan Ardan, and I tell Davish that he has a neat trick to teach. We move into the room and Davish primes them by spouting a lot of nonsense. They seem a bit flabbergasted, so I move in and start talking 90 miles a minute. The first one I talk to is not very bright at all, cute, but nothing to take home. He gives me a lot of basic information though. They have been looting Separatist bases and Imperial supply dumps to get battle droids, speeder bikes, mono wheels, AT-STs, and a big vehicle with lots of legs. When I ask about where they have taken the spoils or what kind of weapons the fort for their clan has, he has no clue. I finally give up on him and turn to the other one. This one has an attitude. He seems to think that he is in control and gets to set the terms of what he will share and what he expects to be paid for it. I know that we can't give him what he wants because he is under a death sentence, but he claims to know where both the slaves and the weapons are being kept - and neither is at the fort! I ask him to give me some information to prove that he can keep his end of the bargain. Apparently, the weapons are not being kept by the clan. They are being sold to Piotr Sparaval - who is attempting to overthrow this government. We try to devise a good plan to find the captives without letting him go free - as he would be running to his death. Davish suggests that we shackle (pretend sadly) Vance and I pose as a buyer for slaves offering him as collateral to get me in the door. Vance tries to find everyway in the world to not do it, but we are finally able to convince him that it is the safest and quickest option. We then go to meet the others so we can coordinate plans so that we do not stumble over each other. The Jedi were able to enter the obelisk and find where the third one is. They were also able to bring out more information on the history of the area. Further discussion leads the group to suggest that Spook hacks the nav computers on the vehicles we kept as trophies. Davish gets excited about the drop ship that is still outside and suggests that we walk over and knock on the door. Vanya heads downstairs to see if she can talk sense to the pirate with So 'Zen while the rest of us make plans to take the drop ship

Hitchhikers are bad news
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

I head downstairs where they claim they have some sort of flight capable vehicle with weapons. I get down to the underground hanger and there is a assault shuttle. Not bad, not bad. I check it over quickly and determine that there are two laser cannons, a harpoon, and ONE concussion missile. One, either they have a lot of battles or none. Anyway, I complete my flight checks quickly. This would be easier (and more fun!) if Spook was here, but I do know how to verify that the shuttle is ready to fly. I scoot out and discover that I am below the level of the mesa. I swing to the east and head for the north side of the mesa where there were enemies flying in. As soon as I get to a curve where I have clear sight of the bandits, I fire lasers at the closest one to the mesa. Two were flying in low to come up to the mesa (and probably attempt a surprise attack) and I can see two others beyond so there are at least four flying in. My lasers connect and I see that one go spiraling off in a blaze of glory. Then a comm starts broadcasting some message that seems to be aimed at making the attackers second guess their strategy. I take advantage of that and fire again at the closest fly boy. He manages to do a barrel roll around the lasers and ends up closer to me. I decide to take advantage of him being in the middle of a maneuver and gun it towards him, but of course missing him by at least three inches. I keep heading forwards, but I can't see him after my close fly by. I send Spook a message to do a sensor check to see if he is on my tail since I can't tell. She says she will check in a minute, so I keep flying to find a better position to fight. Spook then tells me: Cap'n! He's RIDING YOUR SHUTTLE!!!! I immediately turn upside down and try to dislodge him. that doesn't work as he has a vibro blade or something that is attempting to cut a hole through my cockpit. I turn and head straight for the obelisk while doing barrel rolls. Just as I get to the edge of the mesa, I turn and do a tight spinning turn between the castle and the obelisk, and I see him go spinning off. Sadly, his jet pack is undamaged, and he is able to recover. Drat Then I have someone firing at me so I do a swerve and turn to dodge the shot. I see one that seems to be determined to ventilate my borrowed shuttle, so I target him and send him spiraling down to the floor below. Glancing around for more enemies and notice two of the others seem to be focused on flying back to the drop ship that deployed the vehicles. That would seem to be the best thing for them, so I put the hammer down and head for the underground hanger bay. Hopefully, Spook will join me so that my (our?) X-Wing is not damaged by the storm. That storm appears to have major lightning and sand being thrown that hard can either clean my ship VERY well or take all the paint off. No way to know, so better to be safe. It was genuinely nice of Vanya to commandeer a vehicle to assist Spook with getting the netting off. We both arrive in the hanger bay at the same time and then we do our shutdown sequences and make sure they are secure in their berths. We glance around to see if there is anything that should be re-appropriated, but nothing worth taking will fit in the X-Wing. Oh well. We head upstairs to meet up with the others and enter while they are talking about Vor politics. Finally, Vanya suggests that So'Zen and I should go 'discuss' things with the prisoner he captured. Yeah!! I get to be bad trooper!!

Ambush?
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

I wake up again (always a good sign) to Spook beeping a reminder that I need to get to the meeting place as it is time to go back to work - for me at least. She hasn't stopped working. I get dressed - this is a good place to stay between events. Cozy-like. I am sure that Lady Zaye will feed us again, so I head to our meeting place and get there just before they bring in So' Zen in restraints - it is a good luck for him. Conversation is on-going and it reminds me that So' Zen is not himself but has been taken over by a Doctor Stavin. Seems he made a break for it and was captured until he could be returned to our custody. Always having to babysit a Jedi. Conversation flows with nothing much being said. Then Lady Zake asks if anyone ordered a food droid. Why would we do that when we knew she would be cooking? Then I wake up and remind everyone about the assassination attempts and that we should be careful. The mentat, Reece checks it with his medical glove and finds nothing explosive - just food in a heating unit. Some of the foods are toxic to humans but are okay for most other races. Maybe it is a bribe? Vanya disappears into the hallway, and I hear her mumbling. She comes back just as Reece returns with a cup of caf. Apparently, the food droid was just on a normal vending run to see how much it could sell in the neighborhood. Then I am surprised to get a communication from Spook wanting to know if I can used slightly used shock gloves and repulsor boots. We engage in some spirited discussion and then I hear Reece ask if anyone thought to check the torpedoed ship debris. I confessed that Spook and I did and inquired if he knew a B'terf Inger? He did and said that the three of them were classmates. Hoping that I do not regret this, I turn over the commlink I found for him to see if he can decrypt it. He attempts first to scan for DNA, but I don't think he had the glove on. Anyway, he checked the commlink and didn't find anything on it, but he does think that it was in the process of sending a message to a ship in orbit at the moment that I fired my final solution. Conversation continues and then Vanya suggests that Lady Zaye and her children should get into the basement. Vanya asks for volunteers to do a distraction and I jump up because I am tired of all the talking. We head to the front door, and I see Reece heading to the back door. So' Zen (I mean Doc S.!) heads toward the refresher closet with the real Doc behind him. We step outside and see a figure walking up the road. As it gets closer, we can see it is the Chancelor - ALONE. Then from behind the house we hear a girly scream and words that let us know that the Doc has made another escape attempt. What is he so determined to find? Vanya asks me to stun him, so I go around the side of the house and fire off a stun blast. He is apparently learning how to use So 'Zen reflexes as he dodges. I grit my teeth and take my second shot and he goes down like an ox. Vanya texts to check in and I respond with the facts. The troopers come and grab the Doc and carry him back inside. I follow and it turns into a conference with the Chancelor. She asks for our help in getting a local warlord to be on the side of right - seems like a lost cause, but it will give us something to do that isn't sitting around talking. The Doc perks up when he hears we will be going north. He is ready to go now without even worrying about supplies. Something strange about that. I get another message from Spook. She has liberated some shock shurikens and these don't need to be sterilized. I think I should start to worry about what Spook is doing while I am not around, but at the same time I don't really have to worry about my bank account and we always have the necessary supplies. Decisions, decisions, decisions. We get ready to head out to the warlord's abode. I am in my X-wing while Davish handles the shuttle. Once we get there, I will leave Spook in the ship to protect it and bring it to me if necessary. I can see that the shore is more of a cliff face and the sea? That is sand or maybe a slurry? We land and have a quick discussion about how to enter and if we should take any precautions. I keep to the back and off to the side to have the greater flexibility as we walk up to the front door and knock. No kidding, we actually knock on the door. We are welcomed in, and the formal introductions start. I keep an eye to see what might be in the background sneaking up on us. They appear to be as worried about an ambush as we are. That strikes me as odd. I keep count of entrances and exits, how many men are visible, and an open commlink to Spook so she can arrive with guns blazing if necessary. As we enter the main hall, I am just keeping my eyes open, and my mind engaged with worry about what they might be hiding. I find a nice corner and keep my eyes open while the diplomats talk. I eat politely, but drink nothing. Spook checks in every so often and she tells me that there is a sandstorm brewing off in the distance, but it doesn't seem to be moving any closer. I ask her to do a scan of the obelisk. She discovers the there is a hollow at the top of the obelisk that has have three crystals that seem to form windows maybe? It also seems that there is a room underneath the obelisk just like the other one. The only difference seems to be that hollow with the crystals on the top. Then Vanya and Reece come over to my corner and start talking Vor politics. Suddenly Spook sends me a priority message about an incoming attack from winged jet packers. I tell Spook to bring the X-wing to me as I run for the door. I get outside to see grav nets deployed on MY X-WING!! How dare they? I go back inside to see what this warlord has to offer and he has a modified air car with weapons!! An escort takes me to the shuttle to get me in the shuttle and get familiar with the weapons.

Another one bites the dust - literally
Atunda, 26 Nelona, 12731

There is a flying insect in front of me and I fire lasers at it. It does a barrel roll and dodges all of the blasts, but now it seems to be intent on getting to me and not ignoring me. I am sure that rates as a positive on some world! It spits some type of purple yuck at me and I reverse thrust to give me some space which lifts the nose and I punch the accelerator and I buzz the creature as I scream past and flip to settle directly behind it - target lock! The first few blasts off the outer slime coating and then a very lucky blast get through and the thing explodes! Ahead of me I see one heading toward town, so I keep thrusters firing and go to take care of it. Somehow it senses it and dodges, but at least it is not heading straight back to town. It seems to have taken that personally and spits that icky yuck at me like the last one did. I do a quick barrel roll of avoidance and see the attack land on the dessert and turns it into a sludgy mess. I don't know what that is, but I want to make sure it does not hit us. That reminds me I heard some music come over the comms and so I ask Spook what that was all about. She responds with the fact that the music resonates bionic parts in the bugs. Crystals or something. It's hurting them. So I tell her to start broadcasting the signal while I respond to a text from the mentat "Attention Captain Kolene: This vehicle is over the city and fleeing the battle toward the east, carrying the assassin who tried to kill Chancellor Kanter." I see the vehicle and fire thrusters to get there before it can escape. I get close and fire lasers as Vanya is screaming something about "we need answers not more bodies!". I target the engines so that I can help it to land gracefully. Somehow the pilot anticipates the shot and manages to do a smooth reverse thrust and slide past me - nodding on the way past. There is a real possibility that my head might implode. Who does this joker think he is? The creature I blew past on my way to handle the other issue comes behind me and spits some more of that whatever. I am not in the mood. I fire reverse thrusters on my starboard side and forward thrusters on the port side and do a quick spin and head straight towards the mystery ship while the bug flies behind me. I am flying nose to tail with the mystery ship, so I do another quick spin and fire my lasers at almost point-blank range. I see his shields sputter and die, and I also think his shield emitter (or one of them anyway) fly off. The rest of my shots hit the hull, but don't manage to get through them - YET! His ship drops like a rock, and I fly over him. Then Spook informs me that he is coming up at angle and there are solid projectiles heading our way. I do a quick barrel roll to starboard and just as I think I am safe, my X-wing is grabbed by a tractor beam! He flies in a wide arc and is dragging me sideways. SPOOK! Fix it! She shuts down the shields which disrupts the tractor beam, but she must do more work before she can put my shields up. I immediately go on the offensive so I can shoot before getting shot! I turn slightly and line up my sights on his engines. I decide that I am done playing and fire torpedoes. They slide out of the chutes and directly into his exhaust ports. Then there is a massive explosion and bits and pieces of the ship begin raining down onto the dessert. Spook gets the shields back up and suggests that we might go later after the battle is over to see if we can find the panel that had the ship name on it of "Swordfish" and put it up on our personal target range. I do a quick fly around to make sure there are no other threats coming to this area. I then land, give Spook specific instructions, and then enter the hatch. I enter a full-on weird Jedi kind of space. I slowly walk down the stairs and casually walk over to a glowing crystal in the southwest corner. I pull out a data pad and do a quick scan. These crystals do have use the same frequency as the creatures above, but they are communicating with each other somehow. They do not appear to be blocking anything from entering or leaving, but there is something happening with them. There are also huge statues that appear to be getting ready to fire on Vanya and four others. I take out my blaster and get ready to act. Nothing seems to happen immediately and then Vanya heads away from the stairs. I keep my blaster out but start heading towards the crystal in the northwest corner staying close to the west wall.

Flying monsters
Atunda, 26 Nelona, 12731

I make the decision to stay with Vanya based on the theory that if I stick with her, bad things won't be as bad and might not even happen. Worth a shot anyway. The mentat is hanging back a bit, but still going the same way. We turn a corner and see the Lady Mandalore. She smiles and Vanya begins the quick verbal dance and hands over the sack. She opens it actually appears surprised at what she sees. They continue the verbal sparring and then she discusses the holocron and is appreciative of receiving it. Then she questions why else she was 'summoned'. Then she turns to me and hers eyes show recognition, but they pass me and settle on the mentat. She doesn't recognize his race and thinks he is Mandalorian, but Vanya corrects that assumption. The Jedi claims a prior errand and they make arrangements to meet later and introduce the Mandalorian. Then we all hear an explosion. Reese says it is a shock grenade and then the Jedi goes into a trance - probably trying to get information from that Force. I can run there more quickly and see what is going on! The Jedi starts spouting information about this and that. She wants me to get into my ship and come in hot. I reach out to Spook and tell her to get the X-wing ready to go as I start running towards the spaceport. As I am running, I hear a distress call coming over the general radio waves from the rough necks - then it abruptly cuts off. I ignore that for now and contact Spook on our private channel. I tell her that we get to fly and fight on the planet, and she wants to know if we can keep it. I have to stop and think for a minute about my answer, because it can be bad to give her permission to do that as she might chose to fire on some things that we should not. I tell her that we will decide that later and that we are looking for snipers and anyone else that we don't like. She seems to be humming a happy little tune and we take off and circle around the city - shaking the dust off and getting ready for action. We fly to where the action is shaping up. There is some republic troopers and their speeder bikes, a huge obelisk and stone bridge. A quick passive scan shows a network of tunnels underneath which are probably natural and made by those ginormous sand worms we ran across the last time we were here. I then head towards the stone bridge and do a focused scan of the obelisk as I am passing and discover that there are three different languages on it - a different language on each side with one side blank - the side facing the bridge. I ask the team here if they have any language ability and it is suggested I send photos of the obelisk to the team. I have Spook send out to everyone we have been traveling with as there is not telling who might be able to help. Then I have a vision of stars and lines connecting stars with some stars vibrating and then it seems to focus in on Chalcedon. Then I am moving across the terrain and go over the precipice of a cliff and I am looking at a sea of sand. Across this sea is four towers surrounding a dome of crystal. Spook beeps insistently at me to PAY attention and I pull up before I hit the stone bridge. I roll the X-wing and start winging my way back towards the south and circle the scene again. I do not see any enemies to fire on yet so I continue to circle so I can provide firepower and advance warning of anything arriving. Vanya asks about any carvings on the stone bridge. I admit that I had not seen any, so I fly by again looking for carvings and send them to the whole team again. There are only two languages here, but they are two of the same as on the obelisk. They are obviously not saying the same thing, but it is a longer sentence. I ask for input. While I was waiting to hear if anyone knew anything, some truly hideous creatures jumped out of the sand from the tunnels beneath. I barrel rolled to port and fired at the lasers. My first shot seems to take the slimy coating off which might have been a shield and then my second shot does damage, and it runs away to the north. I see one of the tentacled beasts in front of me and fire torpedoes. They all hit, but the fire just seems to give it a bit of a steam bath and it shakes it off with minimal damage. Lasers appear to be the best way to handle these beasts. I see another creature to my starboard and I head that way ready to fire. As I am watching the creature dissolving as Lady Mandalor takes it out, Spook tells me to dodge, and I roll to the port and two bony missiles fly past my cockpit. Another lunges for me with its tentacles, but just misses. Perhaps it was after my shadow and I am moving too fast?

Frigate Baiting
26 Nelona, 12731

I get the single to drop out of hyperspace right beside the Kylo star and into the middle of a HUGE starship fight. There are so many ships firing in so many different directions, that it is just a mess. Who is on which side? What are we supposed to do first? Spook is cussing up a droid streak and I tell her to hush and get the shields up while we figure out what and who to take out first. With our appearance in the scene, things start to become organized. There is one ship with the Blood Smith Raiders that does not look normal but is obviously part of the bad guys. Might be the leader?? Spook tells me there was a sensor flash for that ship, but she can't identify it for me. Tells me the friend/foe readout flipped but does show as foe now. Based upon her appraisal of the battle, she thinks that ship is trying to hide and float away without being noticed. Currently the ship has four others around it and is heading for two more. Spook thinks that if I take out one of the ones ahead of it, then maybe the others will veer off. I head that way and while it is not my best piloting ever - it HAS been a long day - I get us lined up with the one to the right and fire lasers. Shields go down and I see some components fly off as the pilot veers right. His wingman veers left, and I see the two on the right of the ship veer up. They might be planning to get behind me or maybe just get away. The weird ship takes a dive for the planet so maybe they are not bad guys and that won't cause more issues. Maybe I should have shot them, but I will hope I haven't made a mistake by letting them get away. I then ask Spook to track where they land and then find us our next target. Then on my display there is a communication - the surface of Chalcedon which is showing attack craft approaching Port Etmar. Spook says that two that veered up are lining up to attack that ship before it can get down to the planet. I must make a quick choice about whether to continue to assist them or not. I get behind the enemy ships and fire torpedoes. It is a beautiful shot and will hit them straight just as a fuel carrier pops in from hyperspace - right in front of the torpedoes. I really want to cure, but I don't have time to and tell Spook to hack the torpedoes and either send them off from the fuel carrier or deactivate them, so they don't explode - her choice. She does it with milliseconds to spare and the torpedoes are sent flying harmlessly off into the greater battle. I then manage to spiral around the fuel carrier without hitting it and get in line with the two ships before they can attack the ship, I seem to be protecting them - I really hope this is not a bad idea. The ships I had to avoid have managed to get behind me and they actually shoot torpedoes at me - ME! I dodge them, do a barrel roll to the left and spiral behind them and fire my own torpedoes at the one on the left. They manage to dodge one, but that puts them right in the path of the second one and they are hit by the second torpedo which goes through their shields, and they spiral out of control. I am about to swoop around and go towards their wingman, when I am contacted by So'Zen who tells me that he has voluntold me to provide a distraction in space so that more forces - the Kylo Star specifically - can land and assist with the land defenses. I tell Spook to set me a reminder to do something horrible to him later and then to find the biggest enemy ship. There is one frigate on my starboard. Spook finds a weakness. Seems that the hull around the engines is weak - if I can get the shields moved or at least minimized in that area. I do a flyby of the bridge - so close that I can see the people on the bridge diving for cover! I skim over the top and then swoop around and fir two torpedoes into the engine. They strike through the hull and things start exploding. I peel out of there and yell over comms: " Distraction initiated - GO, GO, GO!!" Then I hover over the battle to see what is happening to decide if I should continue or follow the Kylo Star down. Everything seems to be in order with our allies moving in for the kill of the frigate, so I turn to follow my compatriots down - with many plans of murder. I get a private comm from Vanya who tells me about what happened to take the Kylo Star's power out. Apparently there is something on my ship too and we both hope that my ship won't explode. Landing is smooth with no problems getting clearance. I disembark and the maintenance crew gets busy which includes getting Spook out of her compartment and onto ground. I glance over at the other ship, and it is listing badly. I walk over that way with Spook to catch up on what has happened. I walk around to see why it is listing to the side and discover that the landing struts have given out - probably because of the extra weight from the fighter I captured. OOPS! I arrange to get it down and put into a landing bay close to mine. Then I check to see if there is someone at the port who can investigate to discover all about its mechanics and whether there are any hidden compartments or other surprises. I get a safe holonet address from Davish to share so they can send the information to me as they get it and I plan to stop by in a couple of days. This I check to see where I can take Spook to get her a not oil bath. As we are heading that way, blaster fire erupts. The Jedi bounds away and gets to the dead body, and I am positive I see him take something from the body. Then a woman walks up to Danar and claims to have stopped an assassination attempt. They exchange pleasantries, but no kiss - aren't you supposed to kiss your wife when you return after a long trip? I go to drop off Spook and return to see So'Zen talking with Vanya, Davish, and the ruler of this planet. We lay out our plans to handle the situation which includes ten impossible things before breakfast. And apparently we have a mentat with us?? Some guy named Reese? Or is he a guy? Do mentat's have gender? Anyway, Vanya asks for help in determining what is going on and shares a lot of information - I mean A LOT of information. I raise a flag, but she considers it to be safe for some reason. Probably more of that Jedi mumbo jumbo, but she claims she will fill me in on her reasoning later. HE asks some very odd questions and I do my very best to keep my mouth shut. Vanya offers an opportunity to go shoot things and I am ready! As we are walking along: me, Vanya, and Reese, she begins to fill me in on Orange Catholics, mentats, and her history of working with one. We get outside of town and there are a lot of machinery and men setting up for battle. We decide to focus on one of the troop transports by taking out the legs on the front. I shoot one of the knee joints and manage to slow it down and then the mortar hits and starts pounding the knee joint which gets the entire convoy looking towards us. They open fire and Vanya is in front of us doing her Jedi voodoo. I turn on my shield and relax into her rhythm so I can shoot past her. I take aim at one of the people shooting at Vanya and I knock one back - maybe out of action. I take aim again and try to hit the next one, but somehow, I hit the device so that it is no longer attacking the knee joint but is instead attacking the ground. I then decide to take out the next troop transport - at least it's knees. I get a clean shot at the front knee, and it sparks. Down for the count. I then focus on the back leg, but it is a clean miss. Instead, I hit the ground beyond it and the ground begins to shake. It looks like the call for a worm is working. A shot comes at me and I block the shot with my shield - barely. Then a monstrosity comes up out of the ground and Vanya sees it and turns off her lightsabers and tries to talk calmly to everyone around. She tries to convince the worm that we are not the enemy and I work with Satine to rescue the people in the sinkhole. Then there is a long conversation about who started this and what they were thinking and the Jedi response to that.

Not all aliens are nice guys!
Natunda, 15 Nelona (month 5), 12731

We drop off the Jawas and their stuff, we get our ship back. Then he starts dropping bad news bombs - and I mean that literally as apparently every single opening on the ship is set to explode if there is any movement or disruption of the charges, but no droids are on board. Just as we begin to take in that information, an attack formation drops in. "Shields up Spook!" I bark the command. Then I take some time to look at the incoming and notice some sensor beacons left by the Jawas. I ask Spook if she could hijack the beacon and use it to pretend another fleet is coming in behind us. Spook can't make that happen. Then So'Zen starts chatting up the dudes. While they are distracted Spook and I move away from the Kylo Star a bit and get behind the nearest beacon. So'Zen pulls his Jedi mind tricks and the hostiles leave, but now we are left with the bomb problem on the Kylo Star. Then Spook starts beeping a bit and I check on her. She thinks she detected a ship to ship communication signal and I tell her to focus on the Kylo Star since it must be involved. We decide to fly out that way and see if we can find out what that communication signal was all about. We do a quick five-minute flight towards the sun since there is nothing else really out here that might be involved in a signal. When we stop and scan again, then we catch a burst and are able to determine that it is coming from the last planet. I warn Vanya that we are off to investigate and we hyperjump to that planet. When we arrive I get a mostly complete mayday that indicates the Kintan Pilgram was attacked by unknown ships, has a damaged comm system, and is leaking atmosphere. I immediately scan to determine where and what damage there is and if there are any ships around. There are three unusual ships that appear to be organic in nature with a cockpit that is on a ball hinge so the entire ship can change and shift direction with instant turning. Also looks like each one has six pairs of turbo lasers. Now what? I contact So'Zen to talk to them and he refuses! They are headed towards the shuttle and Kylo Star though so it is going to be a problem sooner rather than later. Then the ships resume firing on the Pilgrim. One shot hits the aft engines - which had already been damaged - and there is some purplish ichor that starts eating away the ship. I open a hail to try and distract them and attempt to fly an intercept course. "Hey, Asshole! Stop firing and talk to me!" A really weird looking dude with tentacles on the bottom half of his face. He is not respectful at all so I fire a photon torpedo and that stupid ship just flows out of the way. He is not impressed. I suggest he bring his friends over and try to show me a good time. I ask Spook to set up a hyperjump to the other side of Kiskua where the others are. I suggest they catch me if they can and jump. Only two of the ships follow me. We enter normal space and they are both on top of me and fire missiles directly at me. I manage to dodge them and taunt him about buying me dinner first and then the missiles turn around and one almost hits me, but an ore hauler jumps into the system and I fire my electronic countermeasures. The ore hauler complains about getting fired on and I suggest they haul out of the system. Sadly, one of the ships turns from attacking me and goes after the ore hauler. Their engines are hit by that same purplish ichor is eating their engine. I break off from the boss guy and contact the ore hauler to see what help they need to get out of system. I suggest they fire back and they do and manage to hit the enemy. I notice that the shields flicker for a second so I coordinate with the ore hauler for them to fire again and then I will follow up as the shields flicker. We manage to do that, but even though I hit his ship, I can't tell if I did any damage. Then the ore hauler suggests that they drop a crate of the ore they are carrying - mexilite- for me to fire on to get it to explode and maybe take out one or both of the ships. We put their plan into action and it does take out the one ship that had been attacking the ore hauler. It also takes down my shields for a bit, but I manage to fly around the blast radius. The ore hauler gets their hyperdrive online and they jump out then I am dodging fire from the boss again and again and again. He manages to take down my shields and my photon firing ability. This guy is not funny and who would want to hunt and eat other intelligent people. We exchange comments and blaster fire for a few rounds and then I manage to take down his shields and get a photon into his hull. He starts leaking energy of some kind and he sends out a distress call. I try the same trick again and again my turbolasers miss, but the photon hits - and he explodes! That is two down, one to go so I hyperspace jump to the Pilgrim to attempt to finish this. I jump in to where the Pilgrim is and it has caught up with the Kylo Star. I get a message from Vanya as we enter normal space and she says: :static: tell Spook :static: hacking :static: steal credits :static: low gravity I pass the message to Spook and he thinks he can hack their ship systems to accumulate some credits while he plays with their artificial gravity. He tries, but there is a lock on that system. I take a couple of shots and miss with the first one, but I hit the second time and make the shields flicker. Just then the Kylo Star fires and it hits as well which manages to create an energy leak. I take another shot and he dodges and then heads towards the Kylo Star. I swoop over the top of him and get ready to fire, but he gets in a shot first and I manage to dodge. Then I get in a shot and at least hit him. Then missiles slam into my X-wing and error messages flow for every system. The purplish ichor is on one of my engines and I grab some fire impression gear to see if it will stop the spread and save Spook. I pop the canopy and start spraying for dear life while I shout for help from my pals. Then I see the other ship is out of control and heading directly for me. I rush back to the pilot seat and use the solitary maneuvering jet I have left and manage to turn my poor ship to use the repulsor lifts to push it away - and me directly towards the moon. Then the Kylo Star grabs and begins pulling the ship away from me just as Spook begins to yell as the ichor enters her compartment. I haul ass back to her area and keep spraying the fire suppression foam and manage to freeze it. Then I use a crowbar to pry it off the hull. Spook is a bit upset until I give her permission to accumulate their credits. I manage to limp back to the Kylo Star.

Carbon freezing is NOT an option
Datunda, 14 Nelona, 12731

I lock weapons on the freighter and its shields go up and weapons are appearing all over their hull. I hear So'Zen over the comms requesting me to take off the sensor lock. He even says please. I have Spook remove the sensor locks and they put the weapons away. I listen in on the chat. After So'Zen finishes with the Jawas he translates what they have said and then Vanya suggests that there might be something not right with the station. I check myself with ship's sensors and I see the outpost is built into a shallow ravine. Most of the outpost is in the bottom of the canyon, but there are four towers that rise up. I see landing pads that would hold my X-Wing and the shuttle, but there are minerals in the soil that are confusing my sensors. If we land, it will be with no help from the ship. Vanya asks if I want any food brought my way when they land and I say I'll take anything they find. We discover there is a landing pad with a beacon that will allow the shuttle to land more safely if I ace pilot in and turn it on. I start to fly in, but I see dim lights turn on in the towers and the lights on the landing pads briefly flicker. It doesn't feel right so I veer off and make another approach. This time there are no lights and I smoothly land next to the beacon. I put on my rebreather and disembark telling Spook to hang on and keep the engines ready. I notice the extreme age of the installation as I wander over to the beacon and I can see that it has been hotwired recently. I go ahead and open it up and turn it on and tell the others to come on down. Once they land, I ask Davish to come over and check out the beacon. He is just as confused as I am. Everyone else is wondering where the Jawa ship is. I am curious, but this place is kinda creepy. So'Zen asks for a rare earth magnet because that is a way to disable the warehouse lock doors. I say Spook will probably have one and toss that question her way. Of course she does. In fact, she has four of all different colors. So'Zen takes the green one, wraps a cloth around it and applies it to the door lock. It moans and groans and eventually opens and there is a shuttle with holes in it. Not from weapon fire though. Inside the huge warehouse, there is only one Jawa shuttle and some crates of parts. Lots of empty spaces everywhere. There are two tunnels heading away with one bigger than the other one. Vanya asks me which one the Jawas would have taken and I immediately respond with the smaller one because there would be more expensive items at the end of the tunnel. My intuition is proven correct as we see Jawa footprints heading towards the hazard lock - which is broken. So'Zen suggests we head toward the CNC. Both of the Jedi seem to be in a fog and are heading towards the hazard lock so I follow them while Hicks keeps an eye on Danar who heads to CNC. He tells me he has a lot of stories to share about the shenanigans of Jedi. I can't wait to have more ammunition to use against the So'Zen. We move closer to the end of the hallway as the other team enters the first door. We walk past broken droids and damaged hallways. We see different languages written on the walls. So'Zen tells us that it is probably Sith and then Vanya goes into the center of the room and bows. Than holograms appear over the various doors. The Jedi determine that the Jawas are straight ahead and we move forward. We get to a dead end and there are tunnels to the left and right. It looks like the Jawas split up and there are drag marks to the right which appears to be a med bay type area. Both Jedi agree to follow the injured Jawas to the right. I keep following behind. We reach a medical bay with empty cloning chambers. There is a lot of dust, but suddenly So'Zen starts looking around wildly. He finds the Jawas in stasis tubes and they detach and start to haul them off. So'Zen also piles a bunch of the crates to carry back to the open area for later retrieval. We head back to the large room to leave the gurneys. We head down the other corridor and get the two Jawas out of their hidey-hole. We start heading back to the central unit and I glance into the room they were hiding in. It seems to be a circular room that appears to have been heavily searched and I see a hologram with a distinguished gentleman who has two pistol grip lightsabers. I holler at Vanya and tell hour about it. She agrees to keep watch while I go back into the room and get the data chip and hear the name of Qui Jon before I drop it in my belt pouch. I hear a tap, tap, scrap from somewhere and ask Vanya if I should investigate. She says no and we head back to join the others where the gurneys are. I hear a metallic hum and turn to see a blood-red glow coming from a ventilation shaft and I slide the door closed. The glow diminishes even though the door does not shut completely. We meet up with the others and there is discussion about battle droids on patrol. Then Danar apparently needs to go see the cloning tubes so I take them on a run back to the med bay. I listen to the comm chatter from So'Zen and Davish about the chip. We enter the med bay and Danar and Hicks investigate the cloning chambers. They finish and we start to head back but then we hear the footsteps of battle droids on patrol. We re-enter the med bay and I slide the door closed, but we see all six droids with lightsabers. We discuss whether they had seen us or not, but I go ahead and call for help from the Jedi. Hicks tells me to hide behind the crates and I turn on my shield. Ready for battle! All six droids enter the med bay and stand in two rows of three. Hicks and I coordinate and shot the back two corner droids with two shots and they splash harmlessly against a crystal shield. I ask Hicks for suggestions since I am fairly sure he has fought something like this before and he tells me to shoot at their feet. I am dubious but do as he suggests and shoot at the feet of the same droid. The shield does go up, but the droid seems to stumble a bit. I don't know what happens with the second shot. Hicks fires at the same time and manages to knock back one droid into the door panel and it is trapped in the door. The one I had shot at continues advances towards me and puts away his lightsaber and pulls out a blaster pistol and does a quick three-shot burst. I huddle down behind the crates and my shield and they all miss. Then there is an explosion and I am pushed against the wall - with a battle droid right in front of me. I shoot him at point-blank range twice in the foot area. The first shot hits the shield and is absorbed, but the second shot is in the exact same spot and bursts the shield and takes out the knee joint. He falls backward. I am about to take another shot when I feel the floor underneath me drop. I fall a few feet into a chamber that I recognize - it is a carbon freezing chamber. Next thing I know that droid falls down in front of me. I smash my shield into his face, grab his lightsaber arm and push it into him, then use the droid as a launching pad to impel me up and out of the pit. I hear the carbon nozzles activate behind me and can smell the fumes of carbon as I lay on the floor above and beside the pit. Danar comes over and helps me up and then I fire at the last battle droid hitting him and taking out the last one. Danar calls me over to pick up one of the battle droids lightsabers and I attempt to explain why that is a bad idea. He doesn't seem to get it but I refuse to touch it myself. So'Zen comes around and cuts them all in half and then we take the Mandalore guy back to the Queen and continue searching for trouble. We end up in the library and I find the security equipment and do a search. I find a video with Almon D'Joy from a year ago. In it, he plots against the Crimson Knights, Vanya, Danar, and So'Zen. I am apparently either not considered a threat or is the secret weapon in the group.

Corellian Whiskey
Month 4, day 14, year 12731

High above, in between the horizon and the heavens, Aerena and Spook slice through the void avoiding the last of the buzzbot swarm. Swooping in from either side, the Bureau of Ships and Services sleek silvered interceptors tear into the destructive droids as Spook notes that the buzzbots acted more like a hive mind than a typical buzzbot. However, that topic is interrupted by a terse call from the BoSS flight leader instructing Aerena to land immediately and return the 'borrowed' fighter craft as agreed... I have Spook to track our team and she informs me that they are scattered all over. So'Zen is actually unharmed and attending to Carl. Sabine is slightly hurt, but okay and close to So'Zen. Davish is unconscious and Vanya is in critical condition. Danar is holding on to the edge of a building with one arm. The fighter has been captured by bounty hunters. Spook shares that R2 and the ship have been taken off-planet and there is no way to contact him. I put that issue on the back burner and focus on the next highest priority - Danar. I order Spook to compute a course to his location and will either land beside him to rescue him or hover beneath him to allow him to drop onto the ship. I contact him and let him know we are on the way to rescue him. He lands on the craft and we maneuver to a landing bay close to Old Town with a friendly escort. A message comes in offering assistance in "landing". I ask Spook to contact So'Zen to inform him of Vanya's condition. We land in Old Town just as the Reavers begin to wake up. We get out of the shuttle and watch as a drop team drops in from space and work on taking out the Reavers. So'Zen walks over and tells me that the Bureau has our ship the Kylo Star and is about to board it, but then I have Spook give them the security codes and in return, we get the coordinates to the ship's location. The Bureau guys finally lose interest in me and wander off to other tasks and so I ask Spook where my ship is. She reminds me of the weapons on board that we need to deliver without the Bureau guys finding out. She also informs me that she has a ride for us since she gave a land speeder to a guy. She makes the call and we take a fun ride through the sewers to get to the X-Wing. We fire it up and then Spook suggests that we go ahead and make the run to Calcedon to drop off the weapons. I am tempted. At the end of the day, we are better when we stay with the team so we head back to see if we can borrow a shuttle from Grakkor to retrieve the Kylo Star. I am contacted by Danar who thinks I have a contact with the BSS and I should get some info about the capture of the Games Master and his Champion. I call Captain Rath Ores and we chit chat for a while. He invites me to a bar for Corellian whiskey, but I ask for a shuttle to the ship instead. He agrees - if I go to the bar later. We both agree and I head to round up the team for the shuttle ride. When I get there, they are discussing the best way to split the team to accomplish more goals. Davish and I try to dissuade them from this and So'Zen suggest we use the Captain to commander/requisition the world ship. I ask Davish to fly my shuttle so we will have backup outside of the current group - though close by. Also, So'Zen contacts the Blue Spider sisters and they agree to be our backup on the world ship. We follow Vanya to Londo's office and she sets me up to fly to the end of the system and see what can be found. In exchange, Molari agrees to get me access to the shp auction so I can buy a nice, fancy new ship. We head out with the team in the shuttle which is set to auto-pilot return once they board the Kilo Star and me in my X-Wing. We arrive to find a second ship approaching and Vanya opens a comm channel and we hear Jawas.

SHINY?!?!??!
Katunda, 14 Nelona (month 5), 12731

We fly out of the area and as we get into the atmosphere, there is a message from that Almon D'Joy character. He is trying to create a distraction to keep us from getting a message through to Chalcedon. I ask Spook if she spots a ship that we can use to 'play'. She finds a brand new Starfighter shaped like a silver needle equipped with double layer shields, proton missile launchers, and twin blasters. I ask Davish to drop me and Spook off at a landing field outside of Old Corellia. He makes a slight detour, does a hard landing, and Spook and I rush off the landing ramp while he takes off again. There are three mag locks holding my new baby down so I get Spook to begin unlocking them while I pull them out and away. Spook uses her jump jets to load herself and as she begins to turn on the ship, a ramp unfolds and I get up and into the cockpit. I settle down and get comfortable as the logo of the Bureau of Ships & Services flashes on the screen. Spook suggests we keep the ship and I have to agree. It is so SHINY! I then have an idea that Spook and I go up above the atmosphere and send the message to Chalcedon while the rest of the team concentrates on saving the people. I suggest this alternative to the team and they agree. So'Zen sends the Hutt's special code which Spook receives and we are off. A comm burst comes in and I say "Aerena here." The bureau asks us to land. I ignore the request. They repeat their request more forcefully and launch ships. I ask Spook to get the transmission ready for Simon Tam on the Hutt frequency. They demand my immediate landing with the threat of losing my pilot's license. I respond by flying higher and faster. Then we spot three escape pods heading our way. I do a quick focused scan and there are no life signs, but the sensors did detect a small explosive charge on each one. Just enough to destroy the pod, but nothing else. I decide to out-maneuver anyway and behind me I see the three pods blow up. Out of the debris comes a cloud of buzz bots. Spook confirms there are 25. The other ships that had been launched disappear from my screens so I am down to just the buzz bots. I ask Spook to reverse the shields to be weapons so that they will fry the little buggers when they land. Suddenly, we are in maintenance mode and I have no ability to fly anything cool - just straight. The buzz bots send out ionic pulses and I see the shields giving off little trails as the energy rolls across it. The ship announces we are under attack and it will initiate Alpha 12. I cheer and then it says all ports are closed. I don't know that this will help. I fire the blasters and I manage to hit a five which causes the buzz bots to separate into two clouds on either side of me. I can handle this as the twin blasters have a 180-degree rotation. Then Spook says she has the shields figured out and suddenly I lose power. We are a flying brick. Then we tilt towards the planet and I can see the light cruiser gaining on us. I call on Vanya for help! Then we have a lovely conversation about ideas to help me. So'Zen is about to try something crazy when Hicks suggests I bypass life support to jump engines. Since I have nothing to lose, I try that and it works! The engines come alive and the maintenance mode is OFF. I tell Spook to turn on shields - nothing fancy which she does. Then I shoot two tri-photon torpedos towards the clouds of buzz bots and manage to hit both clouds and take out another 12. Eight to go! I check with Spook to verify that we have a clear communications channel. She wants to taunt the light cruiser and I tell her maybe later. First, we have to contact Simon Tam with a data burst containing all the information we have on the Tau Ceti creatures and its destination. Also to let him know that we are on our way - as soon as we can anyway! She agrees and then I tell her I need to talk to my lovely aunt afterward. Then I have incoming fire from several ships and I dodge and roll and spin dodging everything. This ship does have good manueverability - not quite as good as my X-Wing, but close. I call my aunt next and we come to an agreement where I give back the ship and I get to keep my piloting license. She asks for an update on the whole situation she sent me in to investigate - which is the Tau Ceti creatures. I have Spook send her a highlight reel and apparently Spook sends a bit too much or the wrong things or something. She wants more details when I land. I sign off and buzz the buzz bots to taunt them into following me and lead them straight to the cruiser which opens fire on the bots.

Target Practice
Katunda, 12 Nelona (month 5), 12731

Sabine is concentrating on keeping Kal alive and answers Dizzy about the cause of the collapse of the BloodSmith pirates. We search the area to see if we can find something to keep Kal alive even when Sabine disconnects from him. While Vanya gives me the history of Almon'D Joy's interaction with the group. I find a couple of large ship batteries and bring them over to the group for Vanya to use. Sabine helps her to hook it up so that no one dies. Once they turn it on, the ionic energy bleeds off and then he collapses. Sabine assures us that he is alive and will be okay once he has some rest. Vanya has concerns about what he might automatically upload to his network, and Sabine concurs that there is a risk. She has transferred his communication network over to her sub-system for the time being. Vanya has an idea and walks across the warehouse to the BoneJackers. She pulls me in to attempt to translate and we MAYBE manage to get them to disable the upload/download capability. Sabine checks and says it is good. Then the warehouse shakes and we hear explosions. I suddenly remember that So'Zen isn't with us. Vanya and I look at it other and shake our heads. Our quick plan is to find transportation and a communication device to talk to Grakkas the Hutt and see if we can use his private network to do a data burst to Simon Tam. I walk to the BloodSmith pirates ship with the Bone Jackers to see if there are any swoops or something else to get his out of here. When we open one of the bays, I find five brand new armored swoops - just enough for us! I wheel them down the ramp to the warehouse floor and am super excited, but Vanya wants to know which government truck they fell off of. I ask Spook to check them and she responds with Custom made for Adeptas Sororitas Commandos, Commandos called the Dark Brigade, Sisters of the Dark Rose. Vanya is not happy about that but thinks we can totally use these but doesn't recommend getting attached. I start strapping Spook onto my ride for the next adventure when we get a text from Danar about what So'Zen is up to. We start gearing up to go to the rescue while Vanya tells them how to avoid the Battle Sisters. I make a quick plan to hit the warehouse from the side, back, top, and front at the same time with shields up. Vanya sets up her Jedi things and can communicate with So'Zen to have him drop as we enter the warehouse. I enter the warehouse from the front and take a shot at an egg crate. The shots go wild since there is shielding. Then Vanya is hollering that we need to save the eggs and the creatures and take out the pirates. Oh! and not to shoot So'Zen. Turns out I was the only one to enter the warehouse so I am the center of attention of everyone so I turn in a tight circle and fire several times. I hope I manage to create enough of a distraction to allow the others to drop in and ambush these guys. Two of the guys fire back at me and I hightail it behind a crate - which just happens to have a biohazard seal on it. I ask Spook to scan the crate and she discovers that it is holding a specialized ionized gas that will neutralize blaster fire. I hope that the pirates know this and won't fire at me and I attempt to hit the last power suit standing. I miss and the shot ricochets. Then they fire at me and attempt to spin a web of ionization to hurt Spook. I ask her what she wants to do and she pops out her arc welder. I say okay and prepare to do a quick swoop by so she can have her revenge. She falls off the bike onto the raider and attacks him with her arc welder and he retaliates by hitting her with his gun. I have to save the situation - or at least Spook. Then I hear Vanya in the background saying "Shoot him! Shot him now!" I take a shot, but it doesn't hit the intended target. So I turn back and fire at the one attacking So'Zen and knock him out. The fight is over and we load up everything: ship, bikes, critters, eggs, gas, and people.

One warehouse down - one to go
Katunda, 12 Nelona (month 5), 12731

The fire burns and it lights up the surrounding area. The forest stretches for miles and I can see the factories, the Bonejackers having fun, and the giant creatures flying around enjoying the fire. Vanya accosts the group and attempts to convince them to help us take out the Blood Smith Raiders. They decide it might be worth doing, but will take a vote first to make sure that the entire group is willing to take on another task with us. It is a democratic vote so the majority rules and they decide to go forward with us. As we haggle the details I suggest that we take a 15% cut (mostly so that they don't think we are leading them into a trap). Once we get the details all worked out, So'Zen, Danar, Davish, and myself check it over and then I sign it. We start working on the plan and then So'Zen stands up and starts walking. We follow. We go through the mushroom forest which is brighter because of the fire. An hour later we get close to a warehouse and there are lights. Then our flying creatures turn around and leave with me hoping that is not ominous. I ask Spook to do a quick passive scan to see if there is anything unfriendly in the warehouses and she sends out the five drones. Suddenly, I think I hear the whine of a light freighter coming from behind us and ask Spook to check it out quickly. There is a mushroom cloud behind us and we decide getting inside some shelter is a better option. The drones report back and let me know that there are 14 pirates in each warehouse. The first warehouse is loading large crates, while the second one is loading small crates and technical gear. We decide to enter the back wall of the second warehouse which should enable us to take down the first warehouse quickly. So'Zen suggests that the strike ninjas from the Bonejackers join him and hijack the ship(s) that are approaching. They like the idea and join him on the top of a mushroom to await the ships. We meanwhile decide how best to head towards the back of the second warehouse. I look up to see Vanya already heading towards the warehouse and we drop the conversation to follow at a distance and be ready to swoop in and join in. The Bonejackers are amazingly silent as we approach. Then Vanya begins to slice open a hole. She immediately starts taking fire so I run up behind her, turning on my shield as I go, and crouch down and take a shot at the pirate in front of us when there is a break in Vanya's lightsaber routine. I fire at the next two pirates and stun the first one which knocks him down, but not out. The second shot glances off a shoulder as he steps behind a mysterious device. Around me is lots of chaos and action and all sorts of shenanigans. A shot comes towards me and I manage to get my shield up in time. I run forward to the corner and shoot twice at the second guy and stun him, but he loses control of his plasma rifle and it is powering up to shoot the cloning chamber. I holler at Davish to do something about it before it goes off - which Davish does in his usual showy fashion. Suddenly, the tower is falling and Vanya stops it with some of the Jedi stuff. Then Danar does a crazy pinbally thing. I see that the cloning machine has turned on and I rush forward to attempt to turn it off. It is beyond me, but I find the shutdown protocol. I ask Spook to help me, but it is very complicated so I request one of the drones to fly in and help me. All five pop in and manage to shut down the cloning machine and I send them back out to guard the perimeter. Davish manages to finish the battle by activating a giant magnet and grabbing them. I pull Spook in now that the battle is over and have her scan everything to see if there is something that will help us with the other warehouse or at least help us to control the critters. Then the old, lizard guy that fed us earlier is behind me and wants to talk to Princess Sapin. I ask her if she is willing and she says she can if it is safe. I pull her out and hold her in a secure way to block her presence from the majority of the warehouse. Danar asks her about the Eborrians. They were created in another galaxy and were defeated when they attempted to come here thousands of years ago. Then some of the Bonejackers wander by and offer to create a new body for her. They ask her what kind of locomotion she prefers and she thanks them kindly for the help, but requests to just be placed on the pile of parts. There is a bright flash of color and the parts start moving and then she stands before us - after grabbing something to cover herself with. An attempt is made to plan for our next step, but nothing concrete is decided.

How to be threatening - in a totally non-threatening way.
Satunda, 13 Nelona (month 5), 12731

We gather together the next morning and start hashing out what has been going on and discuss Davish's new theory based upon his all-nighter with Gravok and team. They feel that Almon D'Joy is up to his old tricks and is trying to get the Kwi map from Chalcedon. My aunt also keeps popping up in the conversation so I step aside to contact her to see what she has to say: Areena: Aunty? There is a delay in talking as Hutt Space is in the Outer Rim and Corellia is in Core Worlds. Aunty: "Yes dear, how goes the mission?" Areena: What makes you think I am working on your mission??? I don't recall signing up for anything? Aunty: Well, I did ask if you happened to come across anything about a young Nautolan boy or a Mandolorian Clone while on your travels. I just thought since you were on detached duty with those Jedi .. I only assumed that it must be some exciting new venture! Areena: Yeah - I got your people. Now dish or I lose them - permanently. Aunty: I can't believe you'd talk to your favorite aunt that way! Areena: You are my ONLY aunt. Favorite is a default status Aunty: sigh but... there isn't much I can tell you, dear. You aren't working this as an operative. Areena: I am surprised you want to pay me money. Of course, Spook does have her eyes on several modifications to the X-wing you so VERY graciously gave me after my last assignment ended. Aunty: Well, dear, if you are interested in the work .. I have the funds to cover an operative. If you think you might be interested. Areena: My rate has gone up. After all, I do have mad skillz now Aunty: So I've heard! Aunty: Would that be a 'yes' dear? Areena: First - what kind of time frame are we working with? How secretive do I have to be with my party? Can you get me the tools/supplies I need in time to do any good? What kind of extraction plan is in place? Does that plan include my entire party? What did you do with our ship?? Aunty: Well, the mission is already underway. Mostly you would be our eyes and ears on Nar Shaddaa, as well as our liaison there on world. There might be an extraction needed but you would have to transport two people alive ... and dear... your X-Wing doesn't have a 'sidecar'. ... and I've done nothing with your ship. Why would I? Areena: Being deliberately obtuse Aunty? Aunty: Well, you've not accepted the job, dear. Areena: You are going to insist - aren't you. Aunty: Why no. If you're not interested, I completely understand. The time frame is within this week, I'm afraid. I have resources on Nar Shaddaa that can help some. It depends on what you need, they are limited on their own. Aunty: And as I said, it's just finding out some information. Aunty: if you're interested. I understand if it's not what you're interested in these days. Areena: So - back to my original questions - A short-term contract, I can tell my friends about my mission, there will be some help with tools/supplies, no extraction. Awesome - sign me up Aunty: Excellent. It's a contract then Areena: When can I expect the $150,000 credits? Aunty: Just transferred Aunty: Now we need to know what Pek and the clone know about the pirate hijacking Aunty: What they know about the cargo from the world of Tau Ceti Aunty: We would be very interested in those samples and what happened to them Aunty: If you need help in securing the boy and the Mandalorian clone, I can arrange for some assistance if you like? Areena: No help needed. Just trying to get you the information you want. It is JUST information - correct? Aunty: You will need to keep this as quiet as possible. We know that there is one Hutt clan looking for the two and another Hutt clan has begun asking questions. This has caused some rumors passing about between the Hutt Clans. Areena: That I already knew Aunty: It wouldn't be advantageous to the mission if the Hutts became more interested. They need to be dissuaded if possible. Aunty: I'll settle for information. Talking with them directly would be wonderful, dear but I don't want to complicate your other work. Areena: Got any favors you can call in from the Timpani sector? Aunty: Hm ... I'll see what I can do. Vorpadaran, Vorhejeron, or Vorstepanov ... might be some favors there. Aunty: I'll be on touch once I've sent some comms Areena: House Vormecetti - HIGH LORD COUNT (RANK) BODÉ LEOBUND VORMECETTI (A.K.A. COUNT VORMECETTI; COUNT VORLEOBUND; BODÉ LEOBUND XI) - he can get you all the information on the original experiment Aunty: Vormecetti? Hm, interesting. Vorhejeron is a sept of House Vormecetti. And Vorpadaran tends to be at odds with Vormecetti. Hm .. yes. Thank you, honey! That would work nicely! Areena: Awesome - glad I could be of service. I tell the group about what my aunt is up to and after giving out the information, we head to the local drunk tank to talk to someone who might have answers. I take a threatening posture in the most non-threatening way possible against the wall behind Vanya and await developments. She talks with the guy awhile and then we head back to the desk sergeant to check on the bounty he was working on. We thought it was to capture/kill us, but it was actually to get Pek, the boy, and the clone trooper. Someone named Fen Jalus is willing to pay $300,000 for the pleasure of their company. We meet up with So'Zen and he shares the information he gained and since it all leads back to the boy and the trooper, we head back to Grakor's compound. Behind us, I hear an aircar and turn around to see Piotr is driving with Madalitso as a passenger! I yell at everyone to stop the car and then there are weapons dancing in the air and the aircar is held still in the air. Then there is a blaster shot and Piotr is shot through the chest by - PIOTR! I attempt to return fire and hit the sniper, but he is too well shielded by the building. I take another shot and almost hit him and then he pops back up and I am positive I am going to get him this time when a shield is suddenly in front of him. A familiar shield and I hear a familiar Wookie roar from behind me. I turn to see the Wookie charging me. Then So'Zen is suddenly hitting the Wookie from above. I know that Wookie and I turn to look for their leader. I see her down the street so I turn on my shield, start running directly for her, and when she starts to fire I hit the ground on my shield and slide on it directly to her. I fire at her twice point-blank, but she has a shield gauntlet and knocks my first shot aside. The second one hits her in the side. I comment that she should just get over it already, but since she is getting paid for taking me down she is extremely happy to take me down. She turns her bow into an energy staff which she slices towards me, but I get my shield in place fast enough to block it. I then fire under my shield, but she manages to jump up and kick my blaster aside. Vanya yells "Medusa!" and we both turn and look at her. She just says, "fuzz" and the Twilek groans and turns to run back down the street. "Next time Relentless!" We get back to Grakor's compound and find both Pek and the clone trooper here. We get some rest and then Grakor requests us to join him in the med bay. There we find out that the Piotr are multiple and don't like each other - in fact, they are killing each other. Then Grakor tells us about the Hutt fight between Tigu - the one who has a live bounty on Pek and the clone - and another Hutt. He has managed to get a video of our first encounter with the group - OverWatch. While we are watching the video, we can see in the background someone being kidnapped. At Vanya's request, I contact Spook and request him to find me a dozen droids that can handle inhospitable environments to search out the areas below ground. I also give Spook $25,000 to spend on the ship, but no weapons.

Blue Spider down
Katunda, 12 Nelona (month 5), 12731

We arrive at a palace with medical care and I get fixed up so that I can handle the next battle since we apparently have to go back into the arena. The doctor was Cantol Stom and he managed to get me all patched up and better. I take a lovely shower and get into my pilot's suit to better handle what comes next. Vanya introduces us to a young man, Ranger Juric who is a sector ranger. He tells us about his attempts to protect the young boy because he has seen something horrific and he needs to get him to a safe space in order to testify about what happened that killed his entire family. Also has something to do with Blood Smith pirates. Then I attempt to discover why Vanya feels like she has to keep doing matches in the arena. Tne ranger was injured when Vanya "found" him and she is taking the heat in the arena until he can make a run for it in better health. She is also staying her to assist one of her troopers who volunteered to work for a Hutt. He is also the one who initially rescued the boy who saw what the Blood Smith pirates were transporting - slides, samples, bodies, etc. I get a message from Spook who informs me that the Kilo Star is missing. It is not in the docking bay and he can't find it, nor can he contact R2 or Omatron. I suggest he hightail it to my coordinates so we can talk privately and share information with the team. I check with Grakkor to see if he knows anything about the missing ship. He doesn't but thinks he can find the footage from the docking bay. When we see it, we discover that the Crimson Nova took it. The same group that now has a 250,000 credit bounty on me. When Spook arrives in the X-wing, he has a hitchhiker - Danar. Vanya and I go check on the ship and Danar. The power dies! Vanya orders us into the building since shields are down. I follow Spook and ask her for light. She attempts to turn on the lights, but nothing happens. I call her silly and remind her that she has a light source and to please turn it on since it is dark and there is no power. She grumbles a bit but pulls out a spotlight and we find So'Zen. He turns around and heads towards med bay. We follow and find the med bay destroyed and a mask on the floor. A mask of the doctor's face. Next to it is a vent cover. I ask Spook to shine her light around the room, I see a smudge on the floor that looks like boot heels. The path leads to a storage closet. Spook and I coordinate opening the closet and find the body of Cantol Stom. This means that the doctor has been replaced recently and I remember the doctor being very interested in the story Vanya's stormtrooper was telling. Suddenly, Vanya races off. I tell Spook to keep track of Vanya while I check the doctor. He is alive so I pull him out of the closet and set him on a bed. Spook is at the door chirping in her quiet voice. I go over to her and we start out to find Vanya but see yet another Doctor Stom. We follow and I holler out for the doctor's attention. I explain about a wounded person in the med bay. The doctor heads that way and when he gets to the bed and remarks on the oddness of the situation, I hit him in the back of the head. I hit a helmet. Suddenly there is a woman that is in full armor standing in front of me. I turn my shield on and fire at her center mass while yelling at Spook to find help. She has some gloves that enable her to re-direct my blaster fire away. She then vaults behind the bed and pitches a canister of smoke that renders blaster fire ineffective. I take the opportunity of the smoke to turn tail and run for it. I follow Spook and suddenly I hear So'Zen shout at me to hit the floor. I fall flat just as a directed blaster shot goes over me. I see So'Zen and hear laughter as the name Blue Spider floats on the air. I need weapons. I ask Spook to check for the closest weapons stash and she takes me to a picture in the hallway. I am sure it is a hidden door so I search and find the seam. I remember the guy out on the tarmac telling us how to open the door and go over three panels and down two and find the manual switch. The door pops open and I swivel it. I grab a belt of grenades and a canister gun that turns out to be a flame rifle. CR24. I ask Spook to lead me to Vanya. Spook lets me know she has a tracking device on Vanya and we head towards the kitchen. Find Vanya and after some deep thought, we decide to search the kitchen. I check the freezer, but no issues. I hear Vanya yell for me and I head out to the loading bay. There is a repulsor vehicle that is running. I have Spook to check for explosives, but she doesn't find any. Then Vanya tells her the vehicle is hers. Bribery!! I get Spook to leave the vehicle, but Vanya has her park it at the door to block it and re-key it to her ignition sequence. We go into the pantry and grab a watermelon to stuff in the vent to keep it blocked. Behind us, we hear a door close. We hear nothing, but Vanya asks me to trust her and holds out her hand. We clasp hands and I can hear her inside my head and can get a sense of what Davish is thinking, feeling, and seeing. We also link in and check on Danar and So'Zen. Then we start moving towards So'zen to help him, but Vanya gets into a battle with one of the Blue Spiders. They fight to a stalemate and I shoot the Blue Spider. She spins and falls to the ground, then gets up and starts limping very quickly away. Vanya starts talking to her and trying to convert her, help her, threaten her, whatever and then we find out that she and her twin sister are wanted by The Corellian Intelligence Agency. What in the universe is my aunt up to now?

There is a stun setting??
Katunda, 12 Nelona (month 5), 12731

I only remember jumping through the portal and wake up on the ship and meet up with the group on Chalcedon. Now we need to find Vanya who had been taken by Bobba Fett. Then Bobba Fett returns with a visitor who not only has her datapad, but also details on where she is and what she was doing when he left. This information is confirmed by my Aunt (from Corellian Secret Service) who wants me to find some information for her about some biomedical research being done. There were two supposed survivors, a Mandalorian clone and a Nautolan. She also tells me that Vanya can be found in Old Town, which is run by a Hutt named Grakor. Somehow my Aunt knows too much about what my group is involved in which cannot be good for me. The real question is how much I should share with the group. I turn back to the group, still undecided, and So'Zen volunteers the information about Vanya working with Grakor the Hutt. Now, if he knows about Old Town, I don't have to share anything and can wait and see how much I should tell them. I overhear a puffy looking droid talking about how I don't trust him and I have to agree. What has Spook been saying? I meander towards the group and listen while they discuss what happened to Bobba Fett while he had Vanya in his care. We make the group decision to go rescue Vanya and I check with Spook to see what modifications she made while I was away. Other than fixing the capacitors to take a bit of extra juice for short bursts and finding some smuggler runs to make to have some cash and I am sure some excitement. I ask her if she has 'overheard' anything interesting. She tells me about a group of smugglers that made a run from Nar Shadarr and one is still here on Chalcedon - at the newest local bar: The Wet Wookie. I grab So'Zen and we head over. We enter the bar and I go up to the bar and ask the Wookie behind the bar about the name and then ask him for a special drink. He gives me a Chalcedon Hyperthruster - a fun drink that has oodles of components and swirls around and then sparkles. You feel like you are entering hyperspace just looking at it. I grab the drink and then ask him about the smuggler. He points him out, I grab So'Zen, and we head over to his table. I ask the smuggler about sitting down and then take a sip of the drink. So'Zen asks him if he wants to share his meal and then to tell us about Nar Shadarr. He begins to tell us about the fights, the Hutts, and Vanya's fighting skills. I get the information on his bookie to place some bets on Vanya and have Spook to set up an account after checking the security and rules/regulatations. She has instructions to place a standard bet on each of Vanya's fights and to keep track of the information so we can see what shape she is in. We appear to have a fairly decent exchange of information and he tells me who to contact in order to get a shipment to take into Nar Shadarr to make some money. We load up and head out following So'Zen's flight path. It was interesting, but we manage to get to our destination in only a week. Our plan is apparently to let Danar and Davish go into the arena and try to contact Vanya there. Danar will be in disguise as a sports reporter. The rest of us will be in different attire than what we normally wear so hopefully we won't be checked to see if we have a bounty on us. We land and begin walking around. I left Spook on the X-wing to deliver the cargo, cash in our bets, and check to see if there is any mention of the Mandalorian or Nautolan. It is just like home - Corellia. I pop into one of the shops and grab a couple of slinky dresses, a vest with trick buttons, and a few other pieces to create a mix-n-match wardrobe for however long we are here. Spook sends in a message saying there is a fighter called the Mandalorian that is favored to win the match today. She also informs me that the Nautolan boy has been spotted with Grakor. I leave the shop all dressed up and begin heading towards the arena and looking for an aircar. I suddenly hear a scream of "TRAITOR!!!" from behind my right shoulder. I pretend I don't hear it and dodge between Davish and So'Zen at the noodle cart. Next thing I know, there is a bolo taking out So'Zen's noodle bowl Behind us an aircar roars up and a wookie, a droid, and a human wearing a backpack pile out of the car. The wookie races at me and tries to hit me with a club. I dodge and feel the air flow past me. I hear another scream of 'traitor' and look up to see Inip Velo, a Medusa that believes I betrayed the clan. The wookie takes another swing at me and manages to hit my right arm and I feel my body going numb. Then there is an arrow flying through the air towards me from Inip. I whirl to take the shot on my deadened side since I can tell it is a taser arrow. It hits me in the arm and I feel the impact and I shout up to Inip and order her to come down and fight like a woman. She doesn't move so I call her a coward, swing my gimpy arm up to distract the wookie that is now charging me and stick my vibro blade into his thigh. Now he has a hole in his leg and is NOT happy. Then the human from behind the aircar fires at the wookie, hits him and it energizes him. A stim gun! Need that. The wookie swings at me again and I take the hit on my right side which will be nothing but a huge bruise tomorrow, and then try to stab him in the other leg. Which does not happen since I am in a stupid dress and don't have my normal mobility. The wookie swings at me again and I take a giant step backward and put up my shield. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Inip leave the rooftop and head towards me. Then the wookie and his companions stage a strategic retreat. So'Zen grabs their vehicle, picks us up, and Davish takes the wheel. So'Zen stabs me with something and then he passes out. I see a billboard as we are zooming by and Vanya (Blue) is the main event, but the fight before her is the Mandalorian. I tell Davish that my aunt wants to talk to him before he dies and he groans as we pick up Danar and head towards the arena. While we are flying and the fight is being broadcast, I get into my flight suit and strap on my blasters. We get to the arena and So'Zen gets us into the free-for-all happening right now. Davish heads for Vanya, I head towards the ARC trooper, and So'Zen goes for the Hutt as I turn on my shield and run onto the field. I scan the combat and ask the Mandalorian about who is on our side. He points out us versus them and I take a shot at the Nimorian. I manage to hit him, but his armor absorbs the shot and he dives back into the sand. I take a sight through the scope on one of the four-armed aliens across the arena and manage a center mass shot that does major damage and should probably take him out of the fight. Then I switch my gun over to stun and shoot the Simian in the face. He falls to the sand. The only opponents we have left on the field are the Night Sister and her duplicates. So'Zen is facing one, and Davish has the third one on the dance floor. Since there is only one not blocked I shoot her and hit, but it was only a glancing blow and she turns to look at me. Then Vanya uses the distraction and kills her. The backlash of her death knocks me to the ground, but it is over. We begin to load up and leave the arena and Vanya asks met to relieve So'Zen of his comm. As we leave Vanya starts to tell me of a sector ranger that is recovering from injuries that I will like.

Entry for WorldEmber 2018

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Aerena Kolene

Aerena 'Relentless' Kolene

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Vices & Personality flaws

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Spukamas

Aerena Kolene

History

Legal Status

Wealth & Financial state

Can we kill him already? 12731, 10th of Telona

WTF, mate 12731 10 Telona

Dream a little dream Satunda, 13 Melona, 12731

First Holocron Katunda, 07 Melona 12731

The Marshall is in Katunda, 07 Melona 12731

The End?!??! Datunda, 4 Melona, 12731

Starrise Falcon Datunda, 04 Melona, 12731 T

Medusa Diplomacy Datunda, 4 Melona, 12731

Bar Brawl Datunda, 04 Melona, 12731 T

Jem: Dead or Alive Datunda, 04 Melona, 12731 T

Book o' doom Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

Sargan is coming Datunda, 29 Helona, 12731

Dr. Zak?!?!? Datunda, 29 Helona, 12731

Fred and Thelma Satunda, 18 Helona 12731

Ianar Berav Satunda, 18 Helona 12731

It's ok - I'm cute. Satunda, 18 Helona 12731

Flimsy of Doom Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

JuggerNOT! Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

Mentats are as crazy as Jedi Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

Force is so not me! Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

Black Marble!?! Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

Jedi - you take them! Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

Dungeon Crawl level 1 Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

Pit Droid in two Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

On the cliff's edge Natunda, 30th Nelona, 12731

Delicious 30PLen Nelona, 12731

High Low Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

Dark Troopers Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

Fun Flight Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

Spook has fun! Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

Hitchhikers are bad news Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

Ambush? Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

Another one bites the dust - literally Atunda, 26 Nelona, 12731

Flying monsters Atunda, 26 Nelona, 12731

Frigate Baiting 26 Nelona, 12731

Not all aliens are nice guys! Natunda, 15 Nelona (month 5), 12731

Carbon freezing is NOT an option Datunda, 14 Nelona, 12731

Corellian Whiskey Month 4, day 14, year 12731

SHINY?!?!??! Katunda, 14 Nelona (month 5), 12731

Target Practice Katunda, 12 Nelona (month 5), 12731

One warehouse down - one to go Katunda, 12 Nelona (month 5), 12731

How to be threatening - in a totally non-threatening way. Satunda, 13 Nelona (month 5), 12731

Blue Spider down Katunda, 12 Nelona (month 5), 12731

There is a stun setting?? Katunda, 12 Nelona (month 5), 12731

Entry for WorldEmber 2018

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Can we kill him already?
12731, 10th of Telona

WTF, mate
12731 10 Telona

Dream a little dream
Satunda, 13 Melona, 12731

First Holocron
Katunda, 07 Melona 12731

The Marshall is in
Katunda, 07 Melona 12731

The End?!??!
Datunda, 4 Melona, 12731

Starrise Falcon
Datunda, 04 Melona, 12731 T

Medusa Diplomacy
Datunda, 4 Melona, 12731

Bar Brawl
Datunda, 04 Melona, 12731 T

Jem: Dead or Alive
Datunda, 04 Melona, 12731 T

Book o' doom
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

Sargan is coming
Datunda, 29 Helona, 12731

Dr. Zak?!?!?
Datunda, 29 Helona, 12731

Fred and Thelma
Satunda, 18 Helona 12731

Ianar Berav
Satunda, 18 Helona 12731

It's ok - I'm cute.
Satunda, 18 Helona 12731

Flimsy of Doom
Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

JuggerNOT!
Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

Mentats are as crazy as Jedi
Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

Force is so not me!
Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

Black Marble!?!
Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

Jedi - you take them!
Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

Dungeon Crawl level 1
Atunda, 6 Helona, 12731

Pit Droid in two
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

On the cliff's edge
Natunda, 30th Nelona, 12731

Delicious
30PLen Nelona, 12731

High Low
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

Dark Troopers
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

Fun Flight
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

Spook has fun!
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

Hitchhikers are bad news
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

Ambush?
Datunda, 29 Nelona, 12731

Another one bites the dust - literally
Atunda, 26 Nelona, 12731

Flying monsters
Atunda, 26 Nelona, 12731

Frigate Baiting
26 Nelona, 12731

Not all aliens are nice guys!
Natunda, 15 Nelona (month 5), 12731

Carbon freezing is NOT an option
Datunda, 14 Nelona, 12731

Corellian Whiskey
Month 4, day 14, year 12731

SHINY?!?!??!
Katunda, 14 Nelona (month 5), 12731

Target Practice
Katunda, 12 Nelona (month 5), 12731

One warehouse down - one to go
Katunda, 12 Nelona (month 5), 12731

How to be threatening - in a totally non-threatening way.
Satunda, 13 Nelona (month 5), 12731

Blue Spider down
Katunda, 12 Nelona (month 5), 12731

There is a stun setting??
Katunda, 12 Nelona (month 5), 12731