Flash shrugged.  He still felt chasing the PHA was a waste of time and had said so repeatedly the last 3 days.  He turned to his navicomp.

"Telos is gonna take is. . .TWELVE DAYS!"  Flash cursed [Language unknown: "Lande adseil ol Ulou andthorat ck."] before reverting to common.  "You seriously need to put a better hyperdrive in this hunk of junk."

He reviewed their route.  "At current speed we should make Feriar Junction in about eight days.  We can plot a course to Telos from there or I can drop out of hyperspace and do it now.  Then you could let the others know were going to be gone for at least three weeks!"

OOC:  I thought Mika had already left to seek out some swoop gangs, but....

Mika gives Heigren a snort.  "I'm supposed to look the part of a swoop punk, not a vacuum vamp.  You can't believe everything you see in the vids...."

"Yes, Kyvarr."  Cor muses for a few moments.  "Your particular skills are not precisely required at the moment, are they?  Perhaps you should try on some tight synthleather and accompany Mika and Heigren, masquerading as a street tough?  If you have a recommendation yourself I am happy to hear it."

Kyvarr grinned slightly.  "I'm rarely considered imposing on first glance."  She stood to empahsise her point as the Cathar stood just under five feet.  "Of course if someone pushes the issue they usually change their mind quickly."  Her grins turns predatory in nature as she says this.

Devon couldnt help a slightly malicious grin.  Flash was a hothead and his reaction had been totally predicable.
"Yeah - hope you bought a deck of cards."

He considered the plot on the navcomp screen for a few moments.
"Yeah.. drop us back to realspace once we're well clear of Brentaal... we'll send a message back to Cor.  I'm thinking we actually get the others to chase after us - their faster drives mean they shouldnt arrive at Telos too long after us."

Devon set to work assembling the message he would send to Cor.

"Well, then!"  Cor sounds quite pleased.  "You all have something to do so we'd best get busy.  Meeting over, I believe."  She sits back slightly on the screen but doesn't turn it off, just in case someone needs to talk to her still, and taps away at her keyboard.

Fiarr stood and moved for the door.  She called over her shoulder, "Call me when you need me Sheila."  Then she was gone.

Sheila makes a mock salute.  Responds, 'sure' to fiarr and prepares to spend as long as necessary in front of the computer.   She starts with making a list of every attack on the imps or on those who might support them that she can find, along with who did it, and sort by time, perp, spacing and place.  She'll go back a couple months to Get the time spacing right, Then she works on who has disappears, most recent sightings of them, any ships sighted with them, trace the ships used, or stolen in attacks.  she will also include imp attacks against known insurgent groups, and try things from that angle.  Also, imp sightings at unusual places or places that don't make sense, like there really isn't anything there in the maps, but that's where tap fleet is.  Oh yeah. And all of this sneaky like.  she will also try to identify any place that they might possibly be able to sneak into to steal information thy she can't reach otherwise, if it comes to that.

Heigren stood.  "Well I guess Kyvarr and I will need some new threads.  Mika, lead the way.  I've made quite a few fashion contacts onplanet but I doubt any do 'swoop ganger' at least not the way it probably needs to be done."

Location: Nar Shaddaa - One day later

After receiving their instructions and setting out to find information, everyone was suprised when Cor instructed an urgent recall less than a day later.  Without much ado, Cor instructed everyone to board their respective ships and get into orbit, clarifying she would explain as they headed for a jump point.

It took different amounts of time to clear customs and get into orbit but less than an hour later, the Ghtroc, Wayfarer and L-4000 were in orbit, heading outbound from Nar Shaddaa.

OOC:  Leaving Cor to take up the conversation.  Everyone needs to decide what ship they're on, 3 to choose from.  CC9 and Cor are obviously on the L-4000.  I'm also giving you all some information on what you discovered.  Between limited time and mostly low rolls, your efforts were limited.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:04, Sat 31 Jan 2015.

SHeila will stay with cor and the file copies on the L-4000.

Mika shrugs at the order.  Getting on the comms, she shares with the rest of the team....  "I guess I'll fly the Drifter (Wayfarer) unless someone else wants it."  She'd feel a bit more at ease with the 'Shrike, but since it's in mothballs, not much point to tripping down that direction.

(Assuming she does end up piloting the Wayfarer...)  Mika get clearance, then launches the ship into space.  It's got the maneuverability of a beached whaladon, but better than most cap ships, so that was okay by her.

Cor obtains clearance and has her pilot launch.  She, of course, is in her cabin.  She has not left it, except for the essentials of the fresher, since she boarded.

"Are we all present and correct?" she says, linking her comms through to all ships present.  "Excellent.  No need to stand on ceremony, then.

"I have received word from the acting Commander that we are to proceed at once to Telos.  We shall regroup there.  He appears to have obtained some kind of a lead, though of course his communication was necessarily vague in case it was intercepted.  No doubt he will inform us more fully when we arrive; as our team's hyperdrives are superior to the Acting Commander's team's we will arrive there approximately at the same time as they will.

"He has provided us with a number of rumours that he has uncovered.  Some seem... unlikely at best.  I am providing a full and complete copy to each of you; please refer to your datapads."

Everyone receives a datapad communication (complete with spelling errors) containing the following:

• So some pirate band out near Telos pissed off the wrong guys - somebody took out their entire base!  No-ones claiming credit so far, but pirates dont just vanish.  I figure it must be some other merc band or something - if the Imps had knocked off a pirate base they'd be shouting about it on the news, right?
• Apparantly the Emperor is getting hitched to Emperess Ta'a Chume from Hapes - I thought those guys still had their borders closed?  Either way, Palpatine never struck me as the marrying type...
• Theres been some crazy weather on Felucia - Meteorological survey was spotting this weird localized lightning storm - kept flaring up in the same spot over and over.  Guy I spoke to reckons the Empire sent an occupation force in.  Why would they care about the weather though?
• Speaking of the Empire, another guy I spoke to said he'd heard that the Devastator saw some kinda action near Corellia.  You DO know whos ship that is, right?  (if not, which rock you been hiding under?)
• You've seen your history vids - you know how the Jedi were all evil wizards who tried to murder Palpatine back before they got wiped out?  Well, maybe one of them survived - heard rumours of some guy going on a murder spree - nothing could stop him.  Killed a whole bunch of innocent people all over the place.  Gonna keep my eyes open  - any weird cult guy tries to put a curse on me and I'll shoot first and not ask questions at all.

Fiarr sat in the pilot seat of the Ghtroc and folded her arms.  She'd plotted the hyperspace course for Telos and now left the flying to her co-pilot Kyvarr.  The Cathar was proving suprisingly adept at flight and seemed eager to learn.  The Bothan happily turned over what was simple formation flying.  Normally she would have just turned on the autopilot but Kyvarr wanted to practice.

She read over Cor's reports then responded on the comms.  "Well celebrity trash mags aside, I don't think an Imperial wedding is in order.  Reports I received state that the Emperor left Coruscant a few days ago for an undisclosed location.  The spynet is abuzz with rumours, one claiming his right hand man captured a large number of high-level traitors and Palpatine has gone to personally oversee their execution."

Kyvarr focused on her flying which was more than enough to keep her attentioned occupied.  It reminded her of her first days piloting a walker.  Still she'd picked that up quickly enough so she was confident she could master flying.  For now that was her focus, Mika or Heigren could comment on their discoveries.

Mika chimes in, once she ensures the comms are secure.  "Well, it's not like we had much time to figure anything out.  We did hear something about an orbital Imperial snub factory above Nar Shaddaa that took the big plunge from orbit to suffer from deceleration disruption.  Heard some nut bar story about a guy who took a swan dive off the thing before it took the plunge, only to get plucked by a ship, but I think the guy was gassed.

Got another story about a spat between Imps, mercs and some guys with laser swords out at Bespin.  Word is they took out a bar and a few nearby city blocks.  Seems like the local gangers and the mercs don't want any part of it and are staying clear."

So, we're headed to Telos and the boss passed on a rumor about a pirate base got took out over there.  Sounds a bit too coincidental to me to be a coincidence."  Only those in the control room of the Drifter with Mika could see the smirk on her lips as she finishes her comment.

If the Commander and Zyra were there, that didn't sound none too good, but she wasn't going to start pinning things based on rumors just yet.

Heigren looked over at Mika from the co-pilot station.  He'd stretched out comfortably, his legs propped up on an inactive console.  Between their chairs he'd sat an ice bucket with an array of drinks including various fizzy pop flavours the Zeltron had seen Mika enjoy.  In his own hand was a glass of Corellian whisky, the ice bucket purely used for the ice.

His decision to board the Wayfarer had been an easy one.  All his stuff was on it!  He wasn't going to be caught for days in hyperspace without his essentials.

As the conversation moved on he looked towards Mika.  He aimed his question at her but with the comms on, all Talons could hear it.

"I don't get it.  Why Telos?  I get that a pirate base disappeared and that's the kind of things the Talons would do but Mark isn't with the Talons.  Didn't he say he was meeting some high-level bigwigs to plan some joint operations against the Imps?  Do we think he took time out for some 'pirate blowing-up fun'?  Just doesn't seem right.  Resistance groups don't meet just to take out a single pirate band in some far out sector surely?"

Dohr joined Mika and Heigren in the Wayfarer's cockpit sat down and watched the young woman do the preflight checks, helped her check the ship's systems and enjoyed the short flight to the orbit. Soon enough all of the three ships were gathered together and leaving the Hutt moon behind.

Reading the rumours sent in by Devon via Cor, he could see the makings of a patter in them. Something was going on in the shadows of the Empire and seemed like it was something the Imperials would not be happy about. Rebel groups were on the move... It could be a good thing. It could be turning into something bigger that might even start irritating the Emperor enough to draw his attention. If that was where the Talon leaders had gone to, to meet up with other rebels, Dohr could only hope the imps hadn't gotten a whiff of it yet.

It hadn't really been said out clearly before, but when the Zeltron wondered out aloud, Dohr nodded to himself. So he'd figured it out right after all. And his contact had pretty much confirmed it too. The Doc cleared his throat and said as much: "I called in a favor yesterday. My contact, a member of an underground movement on a fairly unknown world did not know much, but he too had heard of someone trying to unite various rebel groups in a large strike. I too seriously doubt they would be going against a pirate base instead of our friends in white. Makes one wonder if the rumour is for real or perhaps Imperial propaganda. They would not like to admit something has happened to one of their outposts. Then again if they really were pirates, then perhaps they were working for the Emperor too. Who knows..."

'High-Level bigwigs'  Fiarr muttered to herself, though her comms were still on so anyone with sharp ears may have heard it.  'High-Level bigwigs'

Heigren's words, especially the use of those words had sparked an idea, a crazy idea.  His comment had been so similar to her's of 'High-level traitors' that it made her look at an angle she hadn't considered before.

"This will probably sound crazy.  But how well connected was your Commander?  Did he know any groups big enough to cause major trouble for the Empire?  Think about it.  Heigren just said your Commander went for high-level talks about joint operations with other groups against the Empire, important groups I'm assuming.  Now we have my report that Lord Vader himself has caught some high level traitors, traitors so important that the Emperor himself has left Coruscant to oversee their executions."

Fiarr scratched her chin fur.  "I'm getting grandiose I think.  The timing and profile fit but surely your group doesn't know anyone big enough to warrant the personal attention of both the Emperor and the Supreme Commander of Imperial Forces?  They're not that important surely?"

"Still," she mused, her voice more contemplative, "as my old mentor used to tell me, if it looks like a Krak'jya and growls like a Krak'jya then odds are it's a Krak'jya."



OOC: Probably WAY right-field here.  Still someone has to mix conspiracy theory with delusions of grandeur!

Mika shrugs at Heigren's question, Dohr's and Fiarr's input.  "Why Telos?  You'll have to ask the boss on that one.  My thought, if the Imps took out a bunch of folks all together in some out of the way place, looking to put a rebellion together...  Well, Imperial propaganda might label it as taking down a pirate base.  Or, I don't think the a commander and Zyra would take down a pirate base, I just hope they didn't get shot down in a pirate base."

Dohr Veen felt an icy cold shadow cross his heart when Fiarr mentioned the name of the manifestation of all evil, Lord Vader. He hadn’t yet shared that part of his history with his new companions, the part from 15 years ago, the part in which the said murderous hunter had played a significant, albeit unwanted role. It was a dark part of his past he didn’t want to dwell on or even remember. But the two words had been enough to make sad feelings rise to the surface and bring back Dohr’s worst memories. The day he had heard the name of Lord Vader for the first time had been the day he had become an orphan...

---

OOC: Bloody autocorrection...
This message was last edited by the player at 10:42, Wed 28 Jan 2015.

"A good point Mika, Imperials may want to keep such a raid to themselves.  Still, there is one other point that puzzles me.  According to Devon's list of rumours, the Devastator was seen in the Corellian system in some kind of action.  If Vader's flagship was there, he couldn't be on Telos which would take an Imperial fleet a week to reach."

"Still there are many possibilities.  Maybe Vader wasn't  on the Devastator, maybe the local Telos fleet did the attack and Vader is merely claiming the credit.  Admirals do it all the time."
This message was last edited by the player at 19:07, Fri 30 Jan 2015.

Vader.  The mention of him had made Heigren's skin crawl and he was uncharacteristically silent.  He'd seen the Emperor's right-hand once on Phindar Prime.  He wasn't sure why he was there and he hadn't bothered to find out.  He'd merely gone to look out of curiosity.

He hadn't looked much at a distance, just like a giant black stormtrooper.  He remembered thinking the cape was a poor fashion touch.  I mean black on black?  Was he serious?

Then Vader had looked at him.  At least he thought he did, the man had turned his head in his direction and it felt like that mask was staring right through him.  The glance was only a second, but that second had felt like an eternity to Heigren.  The Zeltron had felt fear course his body, fear like he'd never felt before.  The mask itself wasn't anything, in fact Heigren had thought it was in poor taste, but the fear he felt had rooted him to the spot, left him there long after the enterouge of Imperials had moved on.  How had that man inspired such fear in him with a quick glance from hundreds of metres away.

Whatever the Talons did, he hoped it had nothing to do with that man.  Or anything within 5 sectors of that man.

"I guess we should meet with Devon. We can discuss all this then."

Fiarr mumbled an assent though she couldn't help feeling they were going the wrong way.  Still, they needed to regroup and Devon wanted them to go to Telos.  She prepared the ship for hyperspace, awaiting instructions.

Reaching the edge of the planet's gravity well, R2-A9 sent jump co-ordinates to the three navicomputers so that their arrivals should be reasonably well co-ordinated.  Then according to a countdown the three jumped.  First the Ghtroc, then the Wayfarer, finally Cor's L-4000.


OOC:  End of thread.  Please post in the Telos sector thread.  Remember you will have spent 8 days on your ship with only the people on your ship.  So if you want to discuss anything, work on a craft then let me know.