Star Wars: Path of Redemption

Takes place immediately after the Battle of Yavin
Tales and stories set during the events of Episodes 4-6...

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Pryde
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Star Wars: Path of Redemption

Post by Pryde »

OOC: You'll find the OOC thread here.

IC: How long had she been waiting at this cantina? It seemed like hours now and still Kendryk had yet to show. Caitlyn was beginning to wonder if he was alright. When he contacted her he sounded very urgent about something, and he insisted on meeting at a nondescript out of the way cantina. Someone was after him, that much was certain, and normally Caitlyn DeVries wouldn’t care much about it but Kendryk had been a friend of her father’s since she was just a little girl. Coming here to see him was the least she could do, she owed him at least that much, she just hoped he hadn’t gotten himself into anything over his head.

Checking her chronometer for what seemed like the umpteenth time she frowned and glanced towards the door. Still no sign of him, where could he be? Sliding out of her chair she made her way to the bar and flagged down the bartender. The man set down the glass he was scrubbing and walked over to her.

“Have you seen a man by the name of Kendryk Lehnsherr?” she asked him. The bartender gave her a quizzical look and shook his head. Caitlyn’s frown deepened even more and she placed a few cred chits on the counter top. “Thank you for the drinks, and here’s a little extra for your time.”

The man nodded his thanks and fished up the cred chits before sliding them into his pocket. Caitlyn said nothing further and pushed her way to the front of the cantina, stepping out onto the street outside. It was near dusk and the sun was low in the sky over the city of Coronet. It had been years since she last set foot in this place. Her father often came here to meet with someone, though he was never able to tell her who. His work with Corsec was classified and it was here that he met Kendryk Lehnsherr. The two quickly became friends, being both scientists they shared a lot of things in common with each other. Lehnsherr was eventually drafted into the Imperial R&D division, the fact that he requested to meet here instead of Coruscant meant that someone from the Empire was searching for him.

The thought that he would seek her help pained her deeply. She had served the empire loyally for many years as an officer in the Imperial navy, and had she not met a man by the name of Daniel Redfield she’d probably still be serving today. Daniel… The mention of that name brought back many painful memories, ones she’d prefer to forget. She loved him deeply, but when she found out he was planning to defect to the Rebellion, well… She’d rather not think about what had happened next. Now she was branded as a traitor, and she took a big risk coming out of hiding to meet with Kendryk but she just couldn’t ignore the fear in the man’s eyes. Whatever it was that bothered him it was something big.

So what now, she thought to herself, where do I go from here? Turning the corner she caught sight of an information booth and an idea occurred to her. Kendryk must have had some place to stay around here. Coronet was a fairly big city, but if she could figure out what space port he arrived at she might be able to pinpoint where exactly he had been staying. The work was tedious, of course, she spent the better part of a day making inquiries at all the major space ports in the area until at last she found Kendryk’s name on the crew manifest of a non-descript luxury liner. From there she got a list of all the hotels nearby knowing full well Kendryk would try to hide himself by staying at the farthest hotel from the space port he came in from as possible. Several phone calls later and she had her mark, the Green Gallow Inn. It took some convincing but she managed to get Kendryk’s room number from the clerk at the front desk. What she found was not pretty. Someone had ransacked his room, tearing through his clothes and personal belongings leaving everything scattered about the floor. In the ‘fresher she found Kendryk’s corpse curled up on the floor, his wrists were slashed in an attempt to make it appear as a suicide.

“Oh, Kendryk,” Caitlyn whispered, turning away from the carnage. “What did you get yourself into?”

Heading back into the bedroom Caitlyn scanned the entire area searching for any sign of what Kendryk's muderer might have been looking for. She rummaged through his wardrobe, checked each article of scattered clothing, lifted the sheets from his bed, checked under the mattress, and in every nook and cranny she could find. There was nothing, no sign of anything even remotely suspicious.

She sighed and walked back into the 'fresher, kneeling down beside Kendryk she stared intently into his eyes searching for any kind of meaning. What were you trying to tell me, Kendryk? What was so important?

“Oh my god,” she heard someone say from behind, and turning to look she caught sight of the maid staring at her in shock. Caitlyn climbed to her feet and turned to face her. “Call the authorities,” she said in a firm voice, “This man has been murdered.”

The girl nodded in response and turned to leave the room. Caitlyn glanced back towards Kendryk’s corpse and noticed something odd under his right hand. Kneeling down beside him she gently nudged his arm aside uncovering the anomaly. There on the floor written in blood was a single word, Geneva

*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨

Nar Shaddaa, it felt strange coming to a lawless planet like this but she could think of no better place to hire a ragtag band of mercenaries to crew her ship. The ship itself was a rusted up old bucket of bolts she purchased from a nearby dealer. It was spade-like in shape, obviously custom built, with a jury-rigged hangar capable of holding a single snubfighter and room enough for six passengers. It was primarily meant to be a freighter vessel, which meant that its armament was light, but the snubfighter would more than make up for the lack of defense. The important thing, however, was its speed. The ship was built to be fast, which meant that they could outrun practically any type of pursuit they might encounter and Caitlyn had a feeling they were going to need all the advantages they could get.

She spent several weeks living on the planet advertising herself as an independent freighter captain looking for help. She received several applications but not a lot, and over the course of the next few days she personally interviewed each one. Finally, with her hand picked crew decided, she began prepping the newly christened Intrepid for take-off. All she had to do now was wait for the arrival of her crew...
"Ol' Doc doesn't hide, he hibernates." -- Doc, Star Wars: The Old Republic

"What do you call it when you kill someone and take all their stuff?"
"Adventuring!" -- Tallis and Hawke, Dragon Age 2.
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Post by Topgun220 »

Kerak knew this was the only way off this planet, to make his report to the rebel high command. He had completed his last mission of making a deal with several illegal organizations in the name of the rebellion. almost all of them were hurt by the Empire and gladly gave their support to the rebellion. For a price of course but the pros outweighed the cons. Now he just had to get back to rebel HQ to inform them about the deal. He became a crew member of a small freighter. Hopefully it would stop at an alliance friendly planet where he could meet one of his contacts to relay the information.

Caitlyn DeVries, the name of his new captain. In her interview Kerak noticed several things about her, she was attractive and she had something in her past she didn't like to show or talk about. Kerak was worried that these two things would compromise him and lead to the failure of his mission. This was unacceptable, he had to keep his distance from her and try his best to interact with her as little as possible. All the while he had to not look suspicous. It wasn't going to be easy, but who said working for the rebellion would be? If he had to he could take over the ship and take it to an alliance controlled planet. He had commando training in the imperial army before he left and joined the rebellion and then he recieved infiltrator training as well. What he didn't have was weapons, he only had one DH-17 blaster pistol in his carrying bag with no extra energy packs. Not to mention the fact that he himself didn't like the idea of killing the entire crew of the ship to save his own skin.

He hoped it wouldn't come to that, but if it did he would have to question both his loyalty to not only the rebellion but to himself. Here he stood now in front of the Intrepid, the boarding ramp was down. He walked inside the small freighter and set his bag down inside the doorway. He walked through the empty ship into the cockpit where Caitlyn was prepping the ship. Kerak cracked a friendly smile, he had changed his appearance greatly before the interview in an attempt to fit his back story he had told her. His hair was a dark brown and in no praticular style giving him a shaggy apearance. Kerak didn't alter his bright green eye color, just as he didn't shave for the past three weeks giving him a slight beard and goatee. Although he was handsome in most respects he was most definately not charming. His shabby shirt and pants complimented his fake personality, both were dull shades of gray. He fit the common view of a Corellian out of work mercenary well. Which is what he told her he was, ex-imperial army turned mercenary because he couldn't stand orders. His family were all dead either killed by rebels or died of natural causes. It was a good cover story and would discourage any inquires about his past for the most part.

"Hello there Caitlyn, Kerak Athen here as ordered captain." He purposely gave an extremely sloppy salute.
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Post by Pryde »

Caitlyn looked at him irritably, refusing to even acknowledge his sloppy salute. For a moment she almost regretted her decision in hiring the man, but there was something about him that intrigued her. He had the credentials she was looking for, commando training, marksmanship, he was a perfect candidate for ground combat. Problem was he was hiding something, she knew it from the moment she met him. Something about him just didn't feel right.

"Stow your gear, Mr. Athen," she said, giving him a stern look, "I took the liberty of assigning you a cabin, I'm sure you'll have no trouble finding it."

The man nodded and turned to leave, taking the hint from her tone that she was not in the mood for games. But just before he could exit the cockpit Caitlyn stopped him. "Oh, and one more thing," she said, causing him to freeze in place. "The next time I see you, Mr. Athen, your appearance had better improve."
"Ol' Doc doesn't hide, he hibernates." -- Doc, Star Wars: The Old Republic

"What do you call it when you kill someone and take all their stuff?"
"Adventuring!" -- Tallis and Hawke, Dragon Age 2.
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Post by Topgun220 »

Kerak smiled as he walked out of the cockpit. "Aye aye captain" He said sarcasticly. His smile faded as he left for his cabin and exited the cockpit. 'She knows I'm hiding something, but I know she's hiding something. Maybe that threat of exposure would force us to trust each other.' He found his cabin with little trouble and picked up his bag on his way to his cabin. While un packing his clothing he placed his blaster under the pillow on his bed. After unpacking his clothes he grabbed a towel and headed for the refresher. If Caitlyn wanted him to look nice and clean he better get to it right away.
Niko says:
were so lame
Kit_Fitsu says:
but awesome at the same time
Niko says:
its so contradictory
Magic Man says:
agreed on both acounts
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Post by Archangel »

"Every man has his own dragons, Cate," the Selonian purred gently, "even me." Only experienced xenobiologists would even be aware that he was a Selonian due to several distinctions from the rest of his race; first, male Selonians were rarely seen away from their septs; second, this particular Selonian had unusually dark fur covering his whole body and tail, turning a creature normally noble and light into a veritable shadow. If anything, this musteline beast was abnormal.

The young woman he spoke to was human, very pretty by most standards. She was tending the bar at a typical Nar Shaddaa dive, and her dark hair fell across her shoulders and hid her scantily clad chest. Most humanoids would be extremely attracted to her, while the Selonian seemed friendly, but aloof. She gave him a disarming smile and set down another drink. "You never really explained to me, Avath," she replied, "what your dragon was."

Avath chuckled, a dark, raspy sound that implied an old injury but did not invite an enquiry. "Sorry, Cate, but I’ve got a ship to catch. I finally managed to get a job on some Imperial witch's bird, and it might just be my ticket back to the Galaxy. I could use the credits, and it's not the best-paying job I've ever had, but it'll do just fine until something bigger comes along." He slapped a cred chit on the table, winked at the girl's dejected sigh, and left the cantina.

As he exited the darkness and entered the light of the afternoon; he squinted for a moment as his eyes adjusted and stretched every joint he was aware of, increasing the presence of his nearly two-meter-tall frame and eliciting a series of pops that drew attention from across the passage. Avath grinned, taking in the confusion and disgust of the various sentients who had nothing themselves of which to be proud. He had always drawn stares when he allowed himself to be seen, but it was something he did not particularly mind; it gave him an insight into the minds of others, letting him understand what they saw in him - and subsequently, what they thought of themselves. He had always used that to his advantage in his dealings with all kinds.

He drew stares, not only for his abnormal appearance and strange customs (like popping half the joints in his body), but also for his inventory. The only garments he wore consisted of a type of dark armor, covering his shoulder, thighs, and wrists; he also sported a belt and bandolier, sheathing a variety of knives and a long blade across his back, as well as holstering a blaster pistol at his right hip. Combined with his claws, feral smile, and muscular tail, he looked a danger to any who might cross him.

The only part of the creature that was not dark, by pigmentation or artificial coloration, was his eyes; a pale grey, they shone with an intensity and intelligence entirely unexpected from someone who looked more animal than sentient. As truculent as Avath appeared, though, his specialty was stealth, infiltration, and often, assassination. He was more than qualified for the job, coming from a past bereft of joy that he never really spoke of. If anyone could ever manage to get close to him, they would probably notice the pain behind his eyes - pain not only of loss, but of guilt.

The starport where this Imperial woman - DeVries, as Avath recalled - had said to meet was just ahead. He adopted a mercenary swagger as he entered the bay, approaching the junky excuse for a planet-hopper without the slightest trepidation; the years had acclimated him to space travel, especially in seedy, trashy, broken ships that looked to fall apart before they would fly. He bowed low to the commanding woman, his mock respect and winning smile exhibiting an aura accustomed to accepting orders. "Avath, at your service, Madam DeVries," he announced himself.
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Post by JadeKyle »

Code streamed in front of Craslem's eyes each meaning different things. He clicked several buttons on the keyboard in front of him and the code changed a white cursor blinking at the top. He began to type an obsene message about a local Imperial agent and a bantha. It appeared on the starport imformation holo and he heard some of the local populas laughing. Grinning to himself he shut down the equiptment and stepped out of the stall.

The small too normal to be remembered man stepped into the hanger bay. His brown hair covered his face that could be described as nothing else but normal was close cropped and his brown eyes were the same way. He had no real distiguishing features, none visible at least.

He laughed a bit when he saw the ship he would be transporting on and knew this was going to be a long trip. Sighing he walked up the entrance ramp. Not knowing exactly what to expect he continued and walked right into the back and a furred creature giving him a start.

"Sorry, sorry, my mistake just took my eyes off my feet for a second and look where it gets me." The man put on an average smile and waited behind the furry creature.
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Post by Pryde »

"Captain DeVries," Caitlyn said, not even bothering to turn around to face the man who had spoken. She knew from the voice who it was and he was already beginning to make her feel very uncomfortable. Truth be told, it wasn't a common sight to see aliens serving in the Imperial navy. Prejudices ran high among the Imperials, and she was trying very hard not to hate the man simply because of his race, but old habbits died hard. Out here, however, she knew she would be dealing with more and more alien species on a daily basis, Avath was only the first.

At last she turned around upon hearing the sound of someone else entering the cockpit. He mentioned something to the Selonian after nearly bumping into him, but Caitlyn didn't care enough to listen. "Find your cabins and stow your gear," she ordered them, "We'll be taking off shortly."
"Ol' Doc doesn't hide, he hibernates." -- Doc, Star Wars: The Old Republic

"What do you call it when you kill someone and take all their stuff?"
"Adventuring!" -- Tallis and Hawke, Dragon Age 2.
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Post by Balsa »

"As curt as always," a man said. He stepped from behind the furry alien and brown-haired man, and Caitlyn's eyes widened ever-so-slightly in recognition. "It's been a long time," he said as he threw a crisp salute.

Derak Sradac was a long time friend of Caitlyn, having met her years ago in the service to the Empire. A former stormtrooper, he had managed to work past the cold, hard exterior of his commanding officer, and the two had become friends. After her disappearance from the Empire, Derak had finished up his tour and then left, surviving on various security and marine jobs. This job, he had found quite by chance, and even now he was amazed at how Fate had tied the two together.

"I'm sorry for having not been entirely honest with you," Derak said as he placed himself at parade rest. He had applied with one of the fake names and histories he had accumulated because he wasn't sure if Caitlyn would have accepted him had she known who he really was. "But, I'm here, and it's good to see you again," he added with a smile.
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Post by Topgun220 »

Kerak walked out of the shower after a nice quick relaxing shower. He had nothing but a towel around his waist exposing his well built upper body, he was still soaking wet as he walked into the corridor. He walked by the group gathered by the cockpit and waved to them. "Hey there boys...and girl." He didn't seem to care that he wasn't fully dressed and he continued towards his room with a smirk on.
Niko says:
were so lame
Kit_Fitsu says:
but awesome at the same time
Niko says:
its so contradictory
Magic Man says:
agreed on both acounts
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Post by Archangel »

Avath turned to look at the two newcomers, as well as the third man that had already arrived. Things were getting crowded, it seemed, and he disliked things when they got crowded. He slipped past the two humans behind him without a smile or a word and slinked down the corridor to his room. It was sparsely furnished and not at all decorated, but he preferred it that way - no, wait, there was something... Ah, yes. He turned off the light and grinned. Now it was a good room.

He did not remove his belts or weaponry, preferring to stay ready for anything; he knew the woman--captain--was Imperial, and he knew their bias against aliens. When he had been hired, he was temporarily worried about this and pondered the prospects of getting shot in the back; it was not an entirely pleasing idea, but it was not an entirely unwelcome one, either.

The seeded feelings of hate and distrust were mutual, after all; he disliked the Empire as much as--probably more than--it disliked him. They killed and enslaved his people and others like him, and they were indiscriminant in their killing, happy to slaughter soldiers or women and children. Still, they were not to blame for--

No. Time to forget that, already. It was in the past, and there it would stay. Avath had ensured that.

He lay down on his bunk and sighed. Back to work, he supposed, but it was better than wasting away in one of Nar Shaddaa's hopeless dives. Almost anything was better than that fate.
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Post by Pryde »

OOC: A dual post from Balsa and I.

IC: Caitlyn shot Kerak a scathing look, it’s already turning into a frelling zoo in here. Then she turned her hot gaze over to the slicer. Thankfully, the Selonian had already slipped out unnoticed. “You, get ready for take off, and you,” she said, pointing to Derak, “my quarters, now.”

Without another word she stormed out of the cockpit with Derak right on her heels. As soon as they entered her quarters she beckoned him to sit down while she depressed the maglock on the door, locking it securely in place. “What the hell are you doing here,” she demanded of him, hands on her hips as she turned to look at him.

"Quite honestly," Derak replied ignoring the obvious furious look on her face, "I randomly got your call for able bodied spacers and I answered it." He glanced down at the floor before adding, "I didn't say who I really am on the app because, well, I didn't think you'd accept me if you knew who I was."

"You're damned right," Caitlyn shot back, "You shouldn't have got yourself involved in this!" Of all the people from her past Derak was one of the few she ever actually liked, and him being here now complicated things. She knew the moment she found Kendryk dead in his hotel room she was in too deep. There was no way out for her except figuring out the truth. The others, on the other hand, didn't matter much to her, but Derak... If Derak were hurt or killed she would feel entirely responsible.

Derak shrugged, having long since understood to just take Caitlyn's outbursts. "You're probably right, but like it or not, I'm here now." A pause and a sigh. "I don't know what this is all about, and after you disappeared after the incident, I'm not sure what you've gone through, but if I can help you, I will."

Caitlyn threw up her hands in exasperation. "That's just like you, isn't it? Always rushing in without thinking things through!"

“Yes, well," Derak winced as the mark hit home. "Okay, so I didn't think this through, and maybe you don't want me here. But, perhaps a 'hello' would have been nice before you started ripping into me." The former stormtrooper stood and stretched slightly. "Anyways, what is this all about, Caitlyn?"

“That’s just it, I don’t know,” Caitlyn replied, pacing back and forth absent-mindedly. She always did that when she was deep in thought, or when she was nervous about something, and nothing made her feel more uncomfortable than not knowing what she was up against. “A man has already died over this and I have a good feeling I’m next on the list.”

"What?" Derak took a step towards Caitlyn, but stopped. He wanted to reassure her in some way, but knew that that wasn't the way she worked. "What do you mean? Who died? What happened?"

Caitlyn sighed and lowered herself into a nearby chair. "A friend of my father's," she said softly, "Dr. Kendryk Lehnsherr, he was a reasearcher in the Imperial R&D division. You've met him once before, remember?"

Derak nodded and she continued. "I found his body at the hotel he was staying at in Coronet City. His room had been ransacked by someone, they were obviously looking for something but I don't think they found it. I searched everywhere and found no clues except for one. Underneath Kendryk's hand written in blood was a single word; Geneva. Poor Kendryk used the last of his strength to leave me this message hoping I'd find it. I don't suppose you've heard of it?"

The stormtrooper-portion of his mind took over, and Derak shook his head, accepting Dr. Lehnsherr's death in stride. "No, I don't believe I've heard of any 'Geneva.' At least, not in any real sense. What about you?"

Caitlyn shook her head. “Nothing,” she replied, “but if it’s somehow tied to the Imperials then we at least have a place to start.”

"Very true. But, do you have any idea where you're going with this? Like, where will we be going first?"

"Kessel," Caitlyn said simply.

Derak arched an eyebrow in question. "Kessel? Why?"

“I know someone in charge of overseeing the labor in the spice mines there. He was a former researcher like my father, if anything he might be able to point us in the right direction.” The look in Derak’s eyes at that moment mirrored the worry in her own. She was taking a big risk going to Kessel and walking right back into Imperial hands. Considering her status as a traitor to the Empire her friend could very easily turn her over. The idea of spending the rest of her life working the spice mines of Kessel didn’t appeal to her much, but she couldn’t see what other choice she had.

Derak decided to voice the question that was evident in both their minds. "Is that...prudent? I know there isn't really a bounty on your head, but I'm sure other Imps would be interested in turning you in."

"It's not the greatest of ideas," she admitted, "but I don't see what else I can do." She stood up from her chair then and walked over to the door. "Besides," she continued, "it's unlikely anyone there would recognize me besides my 'friend.' I doubt we'll run into any trouble."

With a quick flick of her wrist she unlocked the door and let it slide noiselessly open. "Now get ready for take off, Derak. There's a spare cabin I haven't assigned yet, stow your gear and meet me in the cockpit. We're running late."

Derak nodded and gave her a final salute. "No problem then." He stepped out of the door but quickly added, "Listen, if you need anyone to talk to or anything, I'm always here." With that, he headed down the hallway to search for the empty cabin.

Caitlyn watched him go for a moment. Part of her was glad he was here, another part wished he’d never shown up. She was torn between the two sides, she couldn’t possibly do this alone but she didn’t want to risk the life of her friend. Sighing heavily she turned and headed towards the cockpit…
"Ol' Doc doesn't hide, he hibernates." -- Doc, Star Wars: The Old Republic

"What do you call it when you kill someone and take all their stuff?"
"Adventuring!" -- Tallis and Hawke, Dragon Age 2.
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Post by JadeKyle »

"Nice to meet you too Captain." Craslem said to the captain that had just stormed out.

He walked down the hall and opened two doors, one was pitch dark except for the minimal light that the open door cast and that revealed the fur covered alien, "Sorry." He murmured as he quickly shut the door. The other was his and he went into the small cabin.

"Better then nothing eh?" he looked around. "Of course it is."

A small desk in the corner of the room was where he set his small data pad and the larger monitor. He took out a pair of goggles from his bag and slipped them on plugging a wire into the data pad. He looked around the cabin for a jack and found none,

"This is going to be a fun trip." He said softly to himself. Taking out a small tool set he moved his chair by the door console and popped it open. Grinning at how easy it was he cut a wire that communicated with the rest of the ship and spliced a jack into it. He was laughing out loud when he plugged the data pad in and code seemed to appear from no where. He hit several keys and suddenly he knew he was causing trouble. He found the emergency door controls for the ship and began to play around, he heard around the corridor doors opening and closing at his button pressing and a he laughed triumph. Then he heard the alarms go off and knew it was his doing.

"Shavit!" He began to look for a way to shut them off and found it, simple shut off code with a zero to one applicator, he switched the one to zero and immediately the alarms shut off. He ripped his wire out of the jack and set it back on the table quickly closing up the door console he took off his goggles and carefully put them on the desk and laid on the bed. Boy was he in trouble now.
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Post by Topgun220 »

Kerak heard the alarms blare as he was putting his best pair of fatigues on. 'Someone's already messing the ship up and we haven't even left yet. Wow I'm impressed.' He finsihed putting his clothing on and strapping his belt on, he paused for a seccond in thought. Then he lifted up his mattress and put the DH-17 blasted in his hip holster.

He made his way back to the cockpit and sat in the co-pilot's chair. "Might as well do something useful." He muttered to himself. He flipped several switches beginning the engine warm up sequence. He fooled around with the shields and what passed for weapondry on this boat. Personally he'd rather put on a spacesuit and shoot at incoming fighters with a blaster rifle.
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Post by Pryde »

By the time Caitlyn made it back to the cockpit someone else was already there. He took the liberty of making himself comfortable in the co-pilot's seat and for a moment Caitlyn almost wanted to shoot herself. Kerak wasn't her ideal candidate for a co-pilot, but there weren't a whole lot of options available to her. Still, the thought of flying around the galaxy sitting next to him seriously gave her the urge to throw up.

"Would you please refrain from playing around with my ship," she scolded him when he started fooling about with the shield array. "The Intrepid is not a toy."

Kerak jumped slightly at the sound of her voice, he obviously hadn't noticed her come in. Caitlyn plopped herself down in the pilot's seat and began warming up the reactor. Reaching over to her left she flipped a switch, keying the ship-wide intercom. "All hands, this is your Captain. We'll be taking off shortly, I suggest you strap yourselves down." Then she flipped off the intercom and set her hands on the sticks, easing the ship out of the docking bay.

Once they were in orbit she unbuckled herself from the pilot's chair and turned to Kerak. "If you can manage it plot a course to Kessel," she ordered him, "And please, try not to screw it up."

Without giving him time to respond she left the cockpit and headed towards her quarters. She needed some time alone right now and the antics of her crew weren't improving her mood much.
"Ol' Doc doesn't hide, he hibernates." -- Doc, Star Wars: The Old Republic

"What do you call it when you kill someone and take all their stuff?"
"Adventuring!" -- Tallis and Hawke, Dragon Age 2.
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Post by Topgun220 »

When she left Kerak was still blankly starring at the screen in front of him. "Kessel.....ARE YOU MAD WOMAN!" He stopped himself from getting up and asking her why she wanted to get them all killed or enslaved by imperials. Kerak could not allowed himself to be captured, they would use torture techniques so painful and persuading that he would go through many hells before they killed him. That was if they found out who he was, if not he miight just be shot on sight which would be preferred but unlikely. If they took an ID scan of hime they would have him dead to rights.

He was starting to dislike his new captain and muttered several curses in various languages as he punched in the lightspeed coordinates for Kessel.
Niko says:
were so lame
Kit_Fitsu says:
but awesome at the same time
Niko says:
its so contradictory
Magic Man says:
agreed on both acounts
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Post by Archangel »

Avath jumped slightly at the sound of the alarms, but passed them off as unimportant. If it was important, someone would be shouting something about enemies and taking care of problems. That was the way things went - without orders, without payment, he did nothing. He did hear the announcement for everyone to strap in, so he stood and left his cabin, strolling casually to the main area. There were plenty of seats there and he picked one arbitrarily, settling in for a bumpy ride.
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Post by Pryde »

As soon as the door slid shut behind her Caitlyn leaned against it with a sigh. Depressing the maglock she pushed off from the wall and crossed over to her desk on the other side of the room. Plopping down heavily into her chair she leaned back for a moment and stretched before reaching forward to grab a holograph sitting on her desk in front of her. The picture was of her, Derak, and a second man she dearly wished could be here right now with her. Running a finger along his cheek she briefly remembered his smiling face. Then she looked at herself. It seemed like so long ago, the smile on her face... Would she ever be that happy again?

She placed the holograph down on the desk top and slid open one of her drawers. The dim light glinted off of something metal and she lifted it from the drawer, cradling it in both her hands. She was a much different person back then, calm and collected, so sure of herself. Now she was afraid, she might not show it but the fear was there for any who cared to look. She was not afraid of death, or of the Empire, the Rebellion or anyone else who might seek to kill her. She was afraid of herself. She lost control once before and it cost her dearly, she dreaded the thought of losing control again only this time for good.

With a sigh she placed the object back in the drawer and slid it closed. That part of her was gone, she would never be that person again. However, now was not the time to dwell on her past. She needed to look towards her future. Was it right of her to involve complete strangers in her plight? She needed help, that much was certain, but should she have deceived them like that? Should she continue to deceive them? Regardless of the answers the question still remained. If she told them the truth would they still go along for the ride? No, it was too late, whether they liked it or not they were in this thing until the end now. The moment they answered her ad they were marked, it was as simple as that. Anyone and everyone who came into contact with her was in danger. She may have well condemned them all to death.

It was that last thought that struck her the hardest. Whether she wanted to admit it or not she was not a cold-hearted person. Her harsh exterior was little more than a facade. Ever since her parent's deaths she hid her emotions behind an impenetrable barrier. Only once in her life did she open up to someone and now that someone was dead because of it. She would never open up to anyone again. She may work with the others for now, but they would never become friends. It was as much for their benefit as it was her own. She couldn't afford to suffer the same loss she did before, this time around it would undo her.

I'm sorry, she thought quietly to herself as tears streamed down her cheeks, but I have no other choice...

*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨*+.,,.+*¨

Caitlyn suddenly awoke to a soft tap at her door, crawling out of her bed she quickly pulled a robe over herself. "Enter," she said curtly.

The door slid open and Kerak entered the room. "Sir, you requested to be informed the moment we entered orbit around Kessel," he said, albeit a bit disrespectfully. Caitlyn ignored that for the moment and nodded. "Thank you, Mr. Athen, you may return to your post."

As soon as he exited the room Caitlyn quickly dressed herself, putting on a simple jumpsuit and pulling her raven black hair up into a braid. After slipping on a pair of boots she stepped out of her quarters and headed towards the bridge. Derak and Athen were already waiting for her as soon as she arrived. It was at that moment she realized she hadn't seen much of either of them for almost the entire trip to Kessel, in fact she hadn't seen much of anyone to be exact. Partly because she was trying to avoid them, and partly because they were probably trying to avoid her.

She slipped into the pilot's seat just in time to hear the ship's COM link flicker to life. Having served in the Imperial navy for such a long time Caitlyn was not without a few tricks. For instance, she had the Intrepid's IFF transponder modified to transmit on an Imperial frequency, and her clearance codes should grant her permission to land. The other's aboard the ship gathered around listening intently as Caitlyn craftily negotiated her way onto a landing vector for the nearest space port.

Officially, they were here to pick up a shipment of spice. Caitlyn had arranged this business transaction even before they left orbit around Nar Shaddaa. The others had no doubt begun to wonder about the nature of their assignment given the talents each of them possessed. For example, why would a freight ship have need of a weapons expert? Caitlyn anticipated this and planned to pose as smugglers to kind of throw them off. Eventually, when she felt they could be trusted, she would inform them all of the truth about their mission. For now, she would speak to her friend alone while the others loaded the cargo.

As soon as the Intrepid touched down Caitlyn strolled down the boarding ramp onto the deck. While the others were preparing the equipment to load the cargo onto the ship she briefly spoke with the base's chief security officer. No one could quite figure out how she managed to convince the Imperials to forego their usual security checks, but Caitlyn wasn't about to divulge to them her secret. As the others climbed down the ramp a rather bored looking quartermaster approached them, marking off a few things on the data pad he carried he quickly addressed Caitlyn. "We have your cargo waiting for you in storage bay three," he informed her, "If you'll follow me I'll show you where that is."

"That won't be necessary," Caitlyn objected, "I have other business I need to attend to, but would you be so kind as to show my crew where that is?"

The man nodded. "Of course, Madam."

Caitlyn turned then to face Derak and the others. "Load the cargo onto the ship," she told them, "and be quick about it. We're running behind schedule."

That was a bit of an embellishment, of course, and a lie. Truth be told they were actually early, but she didn't want to spend any more time on Kessel than she had to. It was only a matter of time before things turned sour, and she'd rather get what she needed and be gone from this place.

She had contacted her friend before landing, discreetly in her quarters of course. Surprisingly, he seemed very eager to meet her, which had her wondering. Was he planning on turning her in? Or was there something else? Either way there was only one way she was going to find out...
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Post by Topgun220 »

Kerak followed the quartermaster to their 'cargo'. Once he showed them where it was Kerak grabbed as many boxes as quickly as possible and loaded them onto the ship. It was obvious he was in a rush but they imperials watching him would just think he was obeying orders for now. 'Caitlyn had better hurry up and finish he buisnesss before the shavvit hits the fan.'
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Post by Archangel »

Avath watched the wary and disgusted looks given him by the various Imperial personnel - both on the ship and off, as he loaded the spice crates. He had always wondered if he would end up on Kessel like so many others, but he had not quite expected arriving in his present capacity - that is, arriving with the intent and ability to leave again very soon. He loaded the cargo without speaking to anyone, but he silently formulated his various opinions of both his comrades and those he lifting spice from under. He categorized them simply, stereotypically, because he found that the best way - besides, his categories never found way to public ear, so they were for his personal benefit.

Kerak was rushing things. He was too conspicuous; he was obviously nervous about being around the Imperials - probably more so about being on Kessel. He had something to hide from the Empire, or he would not be acting so much like he did not; Avath suspected some Rebel involvement, but hardly blamed the man for it - the Selonian had considered Rebel prospects before certain events forced him to go solo. The commando would probably make a good conversationalist later on, when things had settled down slightly. Avath categorized him as the "Rebel".

Derak; there was a man with a lot on his mind. Avath could tell he had a history with their captian, DeVries - but how much of a history was a mystery to all but those two. Avath knew from his walk, his glare, his stance, that the man was once Imperial, and probably proud of it. The shadow wondered what had taken the man out of his service to the Emperor; he passed it off, deciding that a former Stormtrooper - or whatever he was - probably would never speak of personal opinions with an alien. He was a "Soldier", for sure.

Craslem was a nervous wreck - it might not be obvious to some, but it was there. It had nothing to do with the Empire, per se, and nothing to do with Kessel; it was just the way the slicer worked. Being a slicer, he was probably used to being in charge and getting his way - and ad-libbing when things went wrong. Not knowing all of the mission here, he might be nervous about the results of DeVries' plan - or he might just be putting up a facade to lull enemies into a false sense of security. Avath had not really seen enough of the "Prankster" to know which.

And there was he, the only alien on a ship of humans - half of those Imperial. Was he ostracized? Not yet, but it was bound to happen eventually. With the exception of the Rebel, bias was almost bound to override the comraderie of serving on a ship together. It would be a long trip indeed, but at least he would be paid when it was over, and he could move up in life. That was all he wanted at this point. Personal quests and vendettas were finished - they had to be. That was the only way to look at them.
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Post by Pryde »

"Long time no see," Elric Granth said as Caitlyn entered his office. "Though, the last time we met it was under much better circumstances." He waved her over to a nearby chair and Caitlyn graciously sat down. "So, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"

Caitlyn leaned back in her chair and watched him for a moment. He had a cocky smile on his face and his eyes were calculating, but beyond that she couldn't read much more from the man. "You remember Dr. Kendryk Lehnsherr, right?"

Elric nodded. "Yes, he was a good friend of mine."

"Well," Caitlyn continued, "it would grieve you to know that he is dead."

"Dead? How? When?" Elric said in shock, almost getting up out of his chair. The emotion he displayed seemed genuine, but she had a feeling he already knew about that.

"A few days ago," Caitlyn responded with a nonchalant wave of her hand, "I found his body not long after he passed away."

Elric leaned forward even more. "You were there after he died? Did you find anything? Any sign of who the killer might be?"

Caitlyn arched an eyebrow at him. She never said anything about Kendryk being murdered, only that he was dead. That confirmed it, he was in on the plot. "No, I found nothing, I was hoping you'd be able to tell me."

"Me?" Elric asked with a nervous laugh, "What would I know about this?"

"Have you ever heard of anything called Geneva?"

Elric looked at her for a moment, a puzzled expression on his face. At last he shook his head and said, "No, I don't recall ever hearing anything about it. Why do you ask?"

Caitlyn shrugged. "It was something the good doctor left behind when he died. I just assumed that whatever it is it was important enough to get my friend killed and I'm going to find out why."

"Well, I'm afraid I can't help you with that." Elric replied, leaning back in his chair. "I'm sorry, Caitlyn, I wish I could do more, for old time's sake."

"It's alright, Elric, it was good seeing you again." As Caitlyn stood Elric stood with her and extended his hand. Caitlyn took it hers and they shook. "Where will you go now?" he asked.

"The shipment we're carrying is bound for Mechis III," Caitlyn lied. Their next destination was actually Tatooine. Jabba the Hutt was willing to pay a pretty penny for the spice they were loading onto the Intrepid, but she wasn't about to tell him that. The idea was to look like honest traders.

"Well," Elric said, withdrawing his hand, "I wish you well. Safe journey, Caitlyn."

"To you as well," Caitlyn replied with a smile, then she turned and left the room. Elric waited for the door to slide shut before pulling a small COM link from his pocket and lifting it to his lips. "Inform the Admiral that we have a problem..."
"Ol' Doc doesn't hide, he hibernates." -- Doc, Star Wars: The Old Republic

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Post by JadeKyle »

Craslem looked around not a terminal or a jack any where nearby, there was nothing he could do but wait and load the spices.

He wrung his hands irritably in-between cases and made himself stop when he noticed the furry one looking at him. Sadly he had never caught the creatures name or his species.

"Silly me, It would be nice to know." He muttered to himself. Looking around again he noticed a complete lack of new technology, the majority of things here would take him but milliseconds to get into and screw with, his hands began to fidget and his mind burned for the chance to mess with not only the antique, but also the Imperial garrison on the base.

"Easy." He whispered with glee filling his voice. Starting to straighten from his last load he looked for an escape to access the computer systems. Looking at each of his crew mates he started to slink off when he caught the furry ones eyes. It made him stop dead in his tracks and walk back to the containers. He mumbled something not so pleasant about fur and tails while grabbing one of the last crates.
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Post by Topgun220 »

Kerak silently placed one of the last few crates in the ship's cargo hold. Instead of going back out again he went into the cockpit and started preparing the ship for takeoff. Suddenly he got a sinking feeling in his stomach, 'what about all those people in the mines? I know some of them, they were rebel soldiers, sympathizers, and just people who were in the wrong place at the wrong time. They don't deserve to be put through this. I'll have to come back when the emperor is overthrown and ensure the release of these people, they deserve to breath cool clean air once more.'

Thinking of the prisoners only increased his anger and hatred of the imperials. Rebel high command always said that a rebel soldier should fight for the freedom of others and stopping an evil regime. But Kerak couldn't carry those respectful motives, they took so much away from him he wanted revenge. Not to free others or to help the galaxy, he wanted to kill Tarkin and Vader and even the Emperor himself, they were all responsible. What after revenge though? He'd just have to cross that bridge when he came to it.

He finished the engine start up sequence and began to go through some of the other systems. He checked the security cameras watching Derak, Avath, and Craslem making sure they weren't in any kind of trouble. A couple of imperials were looking at Avath like well...an alien. If a large group of them tried to jump Avath Kerak had him covered by one of the Intrepid's blaster turrets. Kerak made a mental note to talk to Avath later on, on a ship inhabited by two ex-imperials and a slicer Kerak had no allies. Avath being a Selosian would be a good ally should the others find out Kerak was a rebel and decided to hand him over for the force knows what kind of prize.

The ship would be ready to leave the second everyone was on board...
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Post by Pryde »

"I hope you don't plan on firing that weapon," Caitlyn said in annoyance the moment she entered the cockpit and saw Kerak nervously fingering the controls for the Intrepid's point-defense system. "You alert the Imperials to our presence and none of us are getting off this planet alive."

Kerak glanced back at her, surprise in his eyes. He hadn't even noticed her enter the ship at all, and he's been eyeing the external cameras very closely. "Order the others to secure the cargo and head back on board. Our business here is finished."

She plopped herself down in the pilot's chair and noticed the Kerak had already run the pre-flight checks. Frelling idiot, she swore to herself, I'm surprised his behavior hasn't blown our cover. "Mr. Athen," she said suddenly, drawing the man's attention. Without even turning to look at him she continued to speak, and even though Kerak could not see the hardened look in her eyes he could tell from her tone that what she was about to say was very important. "If we are going to work together then you are going to have to trust me. If you can't handle following my orders just say the word and I'll have you confined to your quarters until we reach the nearest neutral port. From there you can go your own way."
"Ol' Doc doesn't hide, he hibernates." -- Doc, Star Wars: The Old Republic

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Post by Topgun220 »

The way Caitlyn looked at him reminded Kerak of another woman in his life, one he wished to forget about. The pain of her memory stopped him cold in his tracks, he forced back tears and turned away from Caitlyn. "I have trouble trusting, you're going to have to earn it sweetheart." His words were just about as pointless as shooting yourself in the foot. He said it to close the topic and move on before more painful memories surfaced. "I was just getting the ship ready incase something happened alright, nothing wrong with being prepared." Kerak's gaze was now fixed on the consoles in front of him though he wasn't actually paying any attention to them. Now he really hoped their next destination was an alliance friendly planet where he could get a ride back to the rebel fleet and rejoin the battlefront.
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Post by Archangel »

Avath dropped the last crate into the cargo hold and headed for the cockpit, checking that the Soldier and the Prankster were aboard the vessel as well. He leaned into the cockpit, announcing, "All present and accounted for, Captain. As soon as everybody's strapped in, we ought to be ready for dust-off." He addressed DeVries formally now; knowing her Imperial background and observing her reaction to his initial happy-go-lucky introduction, he decided it was better to obey her orders than assert his independence.

He glanced between the two humans in the cockpit; DeVries' rigid posture and the Rebel's defensive glare at the consoles. Something had gone on between them; he made a mental note to talk to Kerak about it later. Whatever had happened, the Rebel was Avath's only friend on a ship of arrogants and ex-Imperials; he did not intend to lose him to DeVries' steely composure.
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Post by Pryde »

Kerak seemed about to respond to her, but he suddenly stopped himself. Caitlyn didn't have to see the look in his eyes to feel the pain in his heart, the same kind of pain she felt in hers. "I have trouble trusting, you're going to have to earn it sweetheart." he said, a slight waiver in his voice.

Caitlyn turned to look at him then and gave him a cold hard stare. "That is where you're wrong, Mr. Athen. I have to do nothing of the sort. You are going to trust me because I am paying you to trust me, and that is the end of that."

Kerak's hands tightened on the controls even more and he bit his lip nervously. "I was just getting the ship ready incase something happened alright, nothing wrong with being prepared," he replied.

Caitlyn shook her head at him then turned back to face the controls. "My orders were explicit, Mr. Athen, I told you to load the cargo onto the ship, nothing more. Your actions could have blown our cover. Had the Imperials detected you powering up the ship they would have suspected something, and how do you think they'd react upon finding a Rebel aboard the Intrepid?"

That was it, that was the big secret he was hiding and Caitlyn required no tricks to figure it out. His behavior since landing on Kessel had made it so obvious and the look he gave her now only confirmed it. Kerak was a Rebel, but the problem was that only explained why he was so eager to get off of Kessel, that did not explain why he was here. He must have had some ulterior motive to seek employment aboard a freighter, but that mattered to her in the least. All she was concerned about was finding the truth behind Kendryk's death. She owed it to the memory of her father, and she owed it to herself.

Still, though, now that she knew Kerak's true identity, what did that mean to her? How would that affect them as a team? She never forgave the Rebellion for her parent's deaths, but she knew Kerak could not have possibly had anything to do with that. Still, the hate in her heart burned just as strongly as it did before, but she could not allow that to get in the way of her mission. As she told herself many many times before, she was a different person now. She couldn't afford to let her hate, her anger control her anymore.

Just then the radio in the cockpit burst to life interrupting Caitlyn's train of thought. "All present and accounted for, Captain. As soon as everybody's strapped in, we ought to be ready for dust-off," came Avath's static-filled voice through the COM line.

When it was finished Caitlyn turned her steely gaze to Kerak. "Look," she began in a patient tone, "I don't care where you come from, but as long as you are aboard my ship you will follow my orders to the letter, do you understand?"

Kerak nodded in response. "Good, now warm up the engine."

As Kerak did what he was told Caitlyn turned to face Avath, who was standing in the hatchway to the cockpit. "Mr. Avath," she said, "make sure the crew are strapped in and ready to go. We will be departing immediately, I feel our presence here is no longer welcomed..."
"Ol' Doc doesn't hide, he hibernates." -- Doc, Star Wars: The Old Republic

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"Adventuring!" -- Tallis and Hawke, Dragon Age 2.
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Post by Balsa »

Having loaded the cargo, Derak retired to his quarters. The trip to Kessel had been uneventful, with him staying mostly away from the other crew if not for the only reason that he was busy. During that time, he had gone through the Intrepid's various systems and equipment to determine the ship's readiness for combat. His report about the ship was sitting on his desk, ready to be given to Caitlyn.

Derak paced, going over in his head for the umpteenth time his conversation with Caitlyn. "Geneva" didn't mean anything to him, not in the past and not now. Sure, he had heard of the word used, and even some places named Geneva, but nothing used in the context by which Caitlyn was referring.

The stormtrooper sighed. He wanted to act as a friend, a person, to her, and that required him to think and figure out this mystery. However, he also knew that such detective work was completely out of his line of training. Then again, he realized, he could simply act in his role as a marine and stormtrooper to protect her in the best ways that he could so she would live long enough to solve the case of Kendryk's death. However, Derak realized, to adequately provide security, he would need to know what exactly she had planned, and that would require another talk with her.

And that, Derak decided, was really all he could do besides offering his support. His mind made up, the stormtrooper waited as the ship prepared to leave Kessel.

OOC:
Shitty post, but oh well.
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Post by JadeKyle »

Craslem watched as the storm trooper began to tap his helmet, at the moment he was hearing a lot of static, the ships exterior cameras only gave him a slight view but he knew he was in when a small command prompt appeared on his screen. Grinning he began his work.

Several minutes later he appeared from his cabin and grin splitting his face. A lot was about to go wrong and he held the trigger in his fingers. Making his way to the bridge thing he looked around at the faces. Something had gone on between the three standing there, Kerak was gripping one of the control knobs until his knuckles were white and the Captain was throwing glares around like it was her job.

"If I'm not interrupting I suggest we leave. Nowish." He looked around his eyes seeming to change from sure to unsure in an instant as soon as the Captain's gaze fell on him.

"I mean some shavit is going to hit the fan soon and we're going to be the prime targets, well basically because I did it, but that is if we don’t get out of here." It was so easy once he had been into the radio systems it was easy to move from system to system in this archaic joke of a net he had jumped into the droid program hub and had a ball why just now most droids would be finding a way to hurt anyone in storm trooper armor and the mainframe would go haywire any minute leaving several systems shut down and others being counterproductive and even hazardous. Then after all that was done he had shut down the radio systems changing admin passwords and encryptions so it would be almost impossible to get them back online with out a professional slicer. One of the Empires own.

"Just had to get back at them this one times Captain, it won't ever happens again." He said with a devilish grin on his face which was quickly replaced by a sheepish look, like a child who knew that did something wrong but won’t admit it. "I think I will go back to my quarters now." He said and made a step for the door.
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Post by Topgun220 »

"Grand, caitlyn well settle 'this' later. Right now we gotta fly before we get blown to atoms." He purposely cut caitlyn off, right now was a bad time to beat down on the crew when they needed to leave. Kerak was going to floor it out of the hangar when he felt Caitlyn's stare on him again. 'Man this woman is getting on my last nerve.' "Maybe you should ask for clearance."
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Post by Archangel »

Avath took the order with a nod, no smile on his face. "Yes, Captain," he responded, turning immediately to the retreating Craslem and ordered, "Strap in, slicer, and prep for take-off." He went back through the ship, tapping on the Soldier's door and advising - rather than ordering, in this case, "Captain says to strap in; we're about to take off."

Not waiting for an answer, he moved to the main "lounge" and strapped in. Kerak looked hurt from something DeVries had said; he wondered what, having just missed the conversation, but that would have to wait. Presently, his mind was worried about what the Prankster had done to the Imperial systems, and he knew the Rebel and DeVries would be busy in the cockpit - especially if Kessel scrambled some fighters to come after them.
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Post by JadeKyle »

Craslem strapped into a seat not quite facing the Avath but not quite facing away either it was a very strange design.

"I wish I could show you, before I came to warn the captain I caught a glimpse of a R2 unit zapping a stormy." Craslem laughed with childish glee. Then his face turned somber almost dark. "Serves them right. Scum." He said with utter distaste. Then his mood swung back and he was cheerful again. "The best part of it, his radio didn't work, his screaming was useless." He let go another grin that split his face from ear to ear. "They hate you, you know you and beings like you, I heard it over their radios after we boarded they were going to try to detain this ship and get you alone, I couldn't let that happen now could I." He looked at Avath trying to see some sort of a hint of a job well done.

"I think I got it so the radios are offline, they may not be able to launch fighters, or... no that’s too complex for this system." He raised his eyes to the Selonian, again looking for some sort of congratulations.
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Post by Archangel »

Avath could feel the Prankster's eyes on him, looking for congratulations - or at least approval. All the Selonian could offer was a quizzical glance before he replied skeptically, "If they had gotten me alone, which was unlikely, they would not have lasted very long. As for your 'accomplishments' regarding their security system, you may have put this whole vessel at risk. It seems to me that you should have controlled your own distaste for that 'scum' - which, I assure you, is dwarfed next to mine - long enough for us to finish our mission and get away." Avath craned his neck, popping it distinctly, before he returned to his thoughts; he twitched his tail unconsciously, a habit he had begun early in life whenever he found himself deep in thought.

Avath noted his own somberness as he responded to the human slicer; normally, he would have been more polite, maybe even enjoyed a joke at the Stormtroopers' expense, but his thoughts concerning the Rebel, DeVries, and their current situation - coupled with the fact that Craslem caused the current situation - made him that much more serious. Surrounded by Imperials with a flair for hate and punishment, now was certainly not the time to be making them angry; it was rather like cutting the vines of Yavin IV's viper wasps - and the cutter was allergic.
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Post by Pryde »

Caitlyn glanced at him then reached over to key the radio. "Tower control, this is the Intrepid, requesting clearance for departure."

"This is Tower Control, stand by Intrepid." Caitlyn arched an eyebrown at their response. She had suspected they might try to detain her. Elric must have had something to do with this. Either that or Craslem's antics broke their cover and put the entire ship at risk. Either way she wasn't sticking around to find out.

"Power up the main canon," she ordered Kerak, "Aim it at the blast doors and fire."

Kerak swivelled the Intrepid's blaster turret around and opened fire on the blast doors. A steady stream of laser blasts slowly burned a hole through the door until it was big enough for the freighter to slip through. Caitlyn eased the ship around then blasted out of the hangar. As soon as they hit atmosphere the base's defense turrets opened up on them. Caitlyn quickly adjusted the shield archs to provide more power to the ship's aft shields.

Within a matter of moments they hit the cold vastness of space, rocketing towards the closest jump point within reach. Suddenly the ship rocked under a devestating laser volley. "Star Destroyer on our port," Kerak announced calmly. Caitlyn checked the radar and frowned when she saw several smaller blips breaking away from the larger starship.

Reaching over to her left she keyed the ship's intercom. "All hands to action stations, we have company..."
"Ol' Doc doesn't hide, he hibernates." -- Doc, Star Wars: The Old Republic

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Post by Topgun220 »

Kerak was very uncomfortable now, an Impstar was after them. He watched as the fighters closed in. He swung the main cannon over to greet them and let loose a few shots. He didn't score any hits but he caused the squadron to break formation. He tracked one of the TIE fighters with the cannon firing off shots at it when he had a good one. When the TIE rolled up to get above the freighter Kerak anticipated his movements and fired a trio of shots that tore off one of the fighter's wings. It spiraled out of control and exploded a second later. "One down, the force knows how many more to go. Hope you can fly this thing."
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Post by JadeKyle »

Craslem knew very little of real combat, he was a slicer through and through and anything involving a trigger was far beyond him. However as he saw it he was the only choice, between this ship not designed for aliens and the basic ground trooper having no chance what so ever.

He unlatched himself and almost fell with the ships lurching. He took hold of one rung and worked his way down. Strapping he looked at the small console and grinned this was going to be easier then he thought. Flipping some switches and hoping he knew what he was doing a ready light came on and he squeezed the trigger experimentally, a sudden burst of light came from one end and glanced off a tie fighter sending it into a tumbling course.

"Lucky." Craslem murmured to himself. He looked at the targeting console and watched as the triangulations locked on and he led the tie a bit throwing several more bursts he saw a greater light as he got a direct hit.

"Odd, Captain this gun isn't calibrated right." He complained over the comm. He knew because a small light kept blinking and it seemed to correlate with targeting. Shrugging he tried again this time missing holding the trigger he panned over and missed again.

"Well if anyone is up top here's one for you."
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Post by Archangel »

Avath muttered obscenities as he made his way as quickly as possible to the upper gun turret: he was a warrior, not a gunner. He fought people on the ground, where everyone was level - not in the sky, where he depended entirely on his pilot and his ship for survival. Starships were a means of hindering your own battle prowess tremendously, and Avath hated it.

Nevertheless, someone had to work the turrets.

He climbed the ladder and settled uncomfortably into the seat, pulling the headset on. Nothing fit; the turret was made for a human - or at least someone lacking a tail and possessing of the small, flat faces humans adored in themselves. Still muttering curses, he started swiveling the weapon around, searching for prey.

He heard Craslem's announcement, sending his turret spinning around in the direction of the newfound foe; he opened fire and, after a few shots, struck home, destroying the TIE fighter with a fiery explosion. He grinned at the success; he could get the hang of this: it was rather like shooting a blaster, only with much more power, much less precision, and no agility whatsoever.

Another TIE fighter flew by, making a strafing run; the lasers struck the ship's shields, sending shudders through its hull as the smaller ship screamed past. Avath fired again, striking the joint between one of its solar panels and the small cockpit in its center; the two pieces flew apart, the latter - Avath noticed with pleasure - striking another enemy fighter as it made its own approach.

"There are a lot of these guys still pouring out of that Destroyer," he warned into the comm, "Someone had better get us out of here fast, or it won't matter how lucky me 'n' Craslem are in these things."
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Post by Pryde »

The Intrepid rocked again under the assault of laser fire from both the enemy TIE's and the Imperial Star Destroyer. The force of the jarring threw Caitlyn against the console and nearly knocked Kerak out of his chair. "There are a lot of these guys still pouring out of that Destroyer," Avath's voice came over the COM, "Someone had better get us out of here fast, or it won't matter how lucky me 'n' Craslem are in these things."

I'm working on it, Caitlyn thought, biting her lip in frustration. As the TIE's pursued her she tried her best to evade their attacks, but the smaller ships were much more nimble than the Intrepid.

"Shields are down," Kerak announced and Caitlyn noticed a slight edge to his voice. More laser fire rocked the ship, burning holes into the hull and causing warning klaxxons to start blaring loudly in the cockpit. Kerak's hands were a blur as he worked the console in front of him. "I've got several hull breaches along our starboard side and it looks like our engines took a hit in that last barrage. I don't think we'll survive another hit like that."

"We won't have to," Caitlyn replied and Kerak looked at her in confusion. Outside the ship the TIE's were breaking away and heading back towards the Destroyer.

"They're letting us escape?" Kerak asked in surprise.

Caitlyn nodded, keying in a course for the planet Tatooine into the navigational computer as she did so. "It would appear so."

Kerak just stared at her, still perplexed by this sudden turn of events. "But why?"

"We can figure that out later," Caitlyn snapped, "Now help me plot a course for Tatooine and let's get the frell out of here before they change their minds."

Kerak snapped his mouth shut then and did as she asked. As soon as the ship had entered hyperspace Caitlyn threw herself out of the chair and stormed out of the cockpit. "Where are you going?" Kerak called out after her.

"To handle some unfinished business," Caitlyn threw back over her shoulder. Curiously Kerak got up to follow her and caught up with her in the corridor outside the lounge. Derak and Avath were there as well and Caitlyn was shooting daggers at Craslem.

"What the frell were you thinking," she nearly screamed at him, "Did it even occur to you that the Imperials had an entire frelling fleet waiting in orbit? They could have thrown a lot more at us than just a single Star Destroyer, you idiot! Your antics could very well have gotten us all killed! From now on you do as I say and ONLY as I say! You will not so much as even breathe unless I give the order, got it?"
"Ol' Doc doesn't hide, he hibernates." -- Doc, Star Wars: The Old Republic

"What do you call it when you kill someone and take all their stuff?"
"Adventuring!" -- Tallis and Hawke, Dragon Age 2.
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Post by Topgun220 »

"Cool down Caitlyn, most of us have vendettas against the imps. He lost control and endangered our lives yes that was wrong. But if you just tear into everyone on the bloody ship you'll have no one onboard but yourself and your personal soldier over there!" Kerak was about to unleash every ounce of frustration and anger he had and break Caitlyn down but he stooped himself. He couldn't do that to her, she didn't deserve it. So instead he threw his hand in the air as if to push the words away. "Ill be in my bunk." And he walked down the corridor to his small yet comforting room.
Niko says:
were so lame
Kit_Fitsu says:
but awesome at the same time
Niko says:
its so contradictory
Magic Man says:
agreed on both acounts
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Post by Balsa »

"Your vendettas are nothing compared to the safety of the crew and the objective of the mission," Derak replied. He sighed. The brief battle had been short, but close. "You guys need to realize that you can't let your personal feelings endanger everyone. Is that clear?"
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Post by JadeKyle »

Craslam was looking at the floor sheepishly, he looked like a young child just scolded for throwing a toy at the wall.

"To track a ship you need a device, which certain modified tie's can launch, it latches on to the ship and trasmits a signal as soon as one leaves hyperspace." He murmured to himself.

"Ma'am I think if I am allowed I can make this stop transmitting, or force it to say we are somewhere else." He looked if he remembered correctly that was nearly impossible, but he used to be one of the Empire's best he should be able to do it with some work. "With your permission ma'am where would you like to it to say where we are?"
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