A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far
away...

A group of Rebel agents
has been assigned to accompany
the great engineer Walex Blissex,
designer of the Victory-class Star Destroyer,
to Kwenn space station. Blissex, now a respected
member of the Alliance, received a message from his
son-in-law, Imperial Governor Denn Wessex, claiming that
the engineer’s daughter is near death. Even though it appeared
to be a trap, Blissex could not pass up this last chance to reconcile
with his daughter.

Whether Lira Wessex,who designed the Imperial-class
Star Destroyer based upon her father’s previous work,
is truly dying or not seems inconsequential. Upon reaching
Kwenn, Walex and his Rebel escorts were captured and placed
in the custody of Captain Kolaff, commander of the VSD Subjugator.

Now, trapped within the detention block of the powerful ship,
the Rebels have little hope of escape. They can only wait for the eventual return
of their captors and the terrible interrogator Droid that is sure to accompany them...

The living world Ember was beautiful in Its spring.  Jedi Master Eli Sundancer smiled and addressed the souls marvelling at the otherworldly paradise.

He smiled to Dakert, newer to Ember than most, then to the others, and finally to Thuraya.  To all of them, he said, "Cherish the good in this Universe, even in the darkest of times."

"Remember, the Force is with you, always..."

And the world faded into darkness and silence...

TwoOneBee and DeeJay stood in the advanced laboratory.  There were several technicians looking at them with curiosity.  But one man approached them, his authority and skill reflected in the respectful gazes of the others.

"I am Issan Len.  It is my distinct honor and privilege to be working with you both."  Before the droid's could fully process being addressed as a peer by the living, there was a sudden discontinuity.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:24, Thu 03 May 2018.

Dakert stood before the briefing officers.  "The Rebellion needs the best agent for this mission,  I'm glad you were available."

The music and sights of the Tibanna Sunrise had faded away to the natural beauty and life of Ember.  Ali was about to demand an answer of Sundancer.  The old Jedi Master would know what was going on as well as anybody.  But Ember had itself faded away as quickly as Cloud City had...

She woke to someone shaking her shoulder.  It was Thuraya, looking at her Twi'lek companion with a calm intensity.  "Thuraya, what..?"  But the young human girl touched her fingers to Ali's lips in a warning for silence.  Instead, Thuraya pointed around the small chamber they were in indicating that Ali should be seeing and not heard.

Ali knew slave quarters and an Imperial prison cell when she was in one, this was the latter.  She could hear the distant hum and feel, through the deckplates, the throb of mighty starship engines.  Her friends, they were not just comrades anymore, were present and unconscious around her, save for Thuraya and the deactivated droids.  Old Sundancer was not present.  The living were dressed in rugged civilian clothes, the kind the Rebellion supplied for easy missions that could turn otherwise.  Ali quickly checked her clothing for equipment but there was none.  Her captors were at least that competent.

"I was in Cloud City, then Ember, now here...? I was going to ask Old Eli...  Where is he?"
"I don't remember.  Our memories have been played with, I think.  My master could do that, among others."
"Why?"
"What we can't remember, we can't reveal." It was hard for Ali to remember that Thuraya had been an ordinary teenage girl not so long ago in the face of her cold remoteness now.
"You've noticed we have been kept together, unlike most prisoners."
"So we might talk?!" Ali said, now whispering in comprehension, looking around for the recording devices no doubt in the walls.
Thuraya nodded.
"Wake and activate the others and warn them not to speak unguardedly..."  Ali finished.

OOC:  Welcome to Starfall!

After a more careful inspection of the adventures offered at D6 Holocron, I have chosen to run Starfall for reasons I will discuss in the Cantina thread.

Starfall starts with the characters being captured after falling into a trap.  This is how Star Wars movies begin, in media res.  Your character's memory (organic or inorganic) has been altered or surpressed.  This may have not been a hostile event.  Rebel agents have had their memory edited when capture might be an option and the means have been available.

I also had to remove Sundancer from most of the adventure for the same reason Gandalf would often wander off in Middle-Earth, to let everyone else matter.

Here is what your characters remember (although the order might be hard to place):

Most of the characters finished their initial visit to Cloud City and may have gone on to their various leave destinations.

They were summoned back by Rebel Command for an impromptu mission, where they met their newest team member, Dakert.

Their mission was to reunite Walex Blissex, a valued scientist of the Rebellion, with his estranged daughter, Lira Blissex, a brilliant scientist in her own right with suspected Imperial sympathies.

Rebel Command rightfully suspected a trap but the elder Blissex was not to be discouraged.
A meeting was arranged on board the Subjugator, docked at Kwenn Space Station.

Captain Kolaff of the Subjugator sprung the trap (which only really surprised Walex) as soon as the characters were aboard the Subjugator.  Everything faded away in the haze of stun bolts.  Sundancer was with you as the battle began but is not present in the cell with you now.

All living PCs and NPCs but Dakert remember your previous adventure on Ember and then Cloud City.

TwoOneBee and DeeJay remember meeting Issan Len

Dakert alone remembers his individual briefing at Echo Base on Hoth.

If you as a player are having a little trouble understanding what has happened, end your IC post with your character trying to recall.

Questions (I know there will be some), just ask...


This message was last edited by the GM at 05:44, Fri 04 May 2018.

Ali did a quick head count, "Walix Blissex isn't here."  Thuraya nodded.  Together, they woke or activated the others and explained the terrible predicament they were in...

OOC:  OK, now you can respond. :-)  Sorry it took so long...

As TwoOneBee's cerebral cortex is comes back online, powerful data processors immediately begin to retrieve and reconstruct his most recent memories.  Unfortunately it becomes almost immediately clear to the old droid that his memory core has been altered in some way.  He has no method by which to validate precisely how much data has been tampered with, what the purpose for its removal was, or by whom it was done.

Firstly, he recollects being on Ember, but not when they left or any of their conversations while on the Living Planet.  He does find the data supporting their misadventure while on the Gas Giant Bespin.

Thereafter he has memories of being in a robotics lab with Deejay and a man who introduced himself as Issan Len...but he has no data to explain why they were there or what transpired.

He then recalls the Rebels assigning them to escort the engineer, Mr Blissex, to meet his ailing daughter.  He vaguely remembers objecting to the mission due to the high probability of the situation being an Imperial deception.  And he distinctly remembers the blaster bolt that overloaded his circuits and forced his network to deactivate.

He begins to ask the most logical question at this point.

"Where..," but finds his vocalizer covered by Thuraya's palm and her other hand making the universal gesture for silence.  Though he is definitely confused, the droid wisely complies.  He instead takes the moment to scan the surrounding environment and his companions.  What he discovers does not alleviate his growing anxiety.

They were prisoners of the Empire, and the old Jedi Master Eli, as well as their charge, Wallix Blissex, were nowhere within the vicinity.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:26, Wed 09 May 2018.

Shira opened her eyes. She was lying on the ground in a cell, and for a moment, she thought she was back imprisoned by the slavers. But that couldn't be. For one, they had made her wear some kind of metallic dancer's outfit and an awful collar that had left her neck all bruised, and she was wearing her favorite silver jumpsuit and boots. The situation must have been serious, because Shira hated wearing boots. For two, they'd padded most of the cell because Ghostlings were fragile. For three, Celes has rescued her, and consequently the slavers were in jail or dead.
"My brain's kind of fuzzy. Is this my first hangover?" Shira asked. She rose unsteadily to her feet. "The gravity's awful, so this could be, unfortunately, nearly anywhere."

As Celes began to stir, one hand moved to push her up to a sit and the other went for her blaster. The sudden shock of her hand grasping nothing snapped her to full consciousness immediately, and she quickly scanned the room, speaking quietly. Well, moreso than usual.

"Shira? You alright?" Another look let her know her team was both present and apparently safe. The bounty hunter calmed down from alarm to simple alertness, and moved to double-check Shira's physical safety. Even a single bruise on her could be potentially lethal, and Celes was one for caution when it came to the ghostling.

"Captain. Who has us?" After being filled in, she stayed quiet and started looking around their prison cell. The more the team learned about their situation, the better.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:19, Tue 22 May 2018.

One by one, all of the remaining sleepers were awakened and the two droids powered back up.

"I know, I know.  We are still working it out ourselves."  Ali said regarding the many questions and grumbles the newly aware were offering.  Listening the various queries, it seemed not everyone had remembered the tiny amount she had.

"Yes, we were on Cloud City.  And we were leaving...?" Ali strained to remember...

...Leaving the Tibanna Sunrise, the companions had moved towards their various landing pads.  At the last common hallway, a young human woman approached and asked if the group was could use some workers for the 'Blue Harvest'.  Sign.  The team gave the coutersign.  And then confirmed the presence of a fellow Rebel with about five more signs and countersigns, trivia about the Hoth cafeteria and Sundancer's assurance that he had a good feeling about the girl.

"Sorry, Rebels'" she said, "Your leave has been cancelled..."

The young Twi'lek tried to recall more but there was no more memories for the moment.  Her lekku actually twitched which some might have though frustration but DeeJay recognized as a torrent of profanity coarse enough to almost shut the protocol droid again.

"Fine." Ali spat, "Let's deal with the present situation." She wanted to answer Celes' question.  "We are in an Imperial prison cell.  No one else has such poor aesthetics.  We need to get out of here and then worry about why and when afterwards."  She then leaned forward to whisper, "We are together, likely so we will talk, which means we are monitored.  So let us 'merchants' be careful not to reveal any 'trade secrets', eh?"

DeeJay said, "Who is our new companion?"  She indicated the Barabel stranger.  "I don't know, possibly an Imperial plant." Ali finished, not caring whether or not this new person heard her.

"I think we can trust our new friend. I have a good feeling about this." Thuraya said with a serene certainty that startled back the sarcastic reply Ali had been working on.

DeeJay sent a highly compressed datastorm to TwoOneBee confirming their meeting with the mysterious Issan Len.  "I think our memory has been tampered with, dear friend, and our capabilities.  You shouldn't be able to understand this particular code and I shouldn't be able to know that you can."

Thuraya helped Shira to her feet.  "Lean on me if you have to, little girl." The tone was an affectionate one but the two women were very close to the same age...

OOC:
OK, we are underway and I am now responding to player posts.

All player characters and NPCs (save Dakert) will remember what is in Ali's lavender flashback as pretty much the immediate aftermath of your encounter at the Tibanna Sunrise on Cloud City.  You can turn the thin player description of your mission as character memory.  You can add to Ali's flashback above if you wish.

If you are understandably confused by this very non-standard introduction, then just play your character as suddenly finding themselves in an Imperial prison cell when they were on Cloud City just a moment ago.  We will work things out.

If that still doesn't work for you, don't post for a bit, I understand.  Watch how me and the other characters work things out and (hopefully) make things clearer.

Dakert will have a personal flashback after their first post that will help tie things together.

The Imperial prison cell is recognizable to the Rebels as Imperial and on a ship (the slight concessions of shipboard architecture and the thrum of engines).  The cell is basically a steel safe with flat slabs for beds, light panel strips, and a recessable panel that acts as a fresher which, mercifully, none of you have had the need of yet.  There is a steel shut door which is your way out.  It currently doesn't seem like there is a way to easily escape.

But the next post will end in action which is something I realize this game has lacked.

Questions, just ask...

Grev rises groggily, but swiftly becomes alert.  Whatever was used to capture them, more had been used on the massive Yuzzem.  Memories creep back, as slinking dogs, missing some of their number.  He soon begins stalking the room, searching it and conscidering what can be used effectively to escape.  His eyes dart over the team, taking in Ali's words.  They linger most on Ali, Celes, and Shira, assessing their state.
   He does not speak yet though, his mind working in silence as he formulates a plan.


06:14, Today: Grev Longtooth rolled 9 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 5,{Wild}4.  Space Transport Repair.

06:14, Today: Grev Longtooth rolled 9 (15 excluding the wild die) using 4 dice and +1 pips with the WEG Classic system with rolls of {Wild}1,4,6,4.  Search.
 In addition to seeing what viabke options they have for escape and getting a solud idea of the layout of the cell, he is examing the beds and other items to see if he can tear them off and use them for weapons or cover.

Celes nodded to Ali, then turned her eyes to watch Thuraya help up Shira. A twinge of overprotectiveness was identified and stifled, trusting the young Padawan with the ghostling. Instead, she turned to watch Grev pace, mostly keeping her eyes on his feet and the floor, also looking for any movement with his footfalls. Loose bed racks, floor panels, ventilation, anything like that. Afterward, she went to the door and looked it over, not just the makeup of the door itself but also the ways it might swing open, the force it might carry if it were swung into someone, and any blind spots it would leave. Then she looked for cameras. Expectations of talking meant audio recorders, but didn't necessarily imply video.

[Any rolls I need to make, boss?]

Grev's keen mind and unfortunate personal experience told him that, yes, this was an Imperial prison cell.  It was designed to the usual Imperial standards, a bland sufficiency that would suffice to keep their prisoners contained.  There was nothing that could be broken off from the seamless metal construction.  The usual Rebel strategy of turning even the smallest bit of advantage would usually overcome the mediocre Imperial precautions.  But the team needed an edge to exploit, even a tiny one.  And soon, it wouldn't be long before the black sphere of a interrogator droid might take their secrets and their sanity.  It would be too well designed to let someone die without orders.

There was a sudden boom, the flash and flicker of failing lights and a massive wrenching of the cell itself.  And then there was darkness, pierced only by the light of DeeJay's eyes.

Thuraya was slammed against a bulkhead, knocking her into the past or its memory.

"I'm sorry to have cancelled your leave."  Princess Leia said.
For all her royal nature, the young scion never pretended to be more than the soldiers under her command, she led because of the respect she earned, not her title.

The 'Star's crew shifted in their cold seats.  Even at best Echo Base could only add so much heat.

"This is Walex Blissex, who many of you will recognize as the designer of the Victory-class Star Destroyer, which served the Old Republic as well as the new Imperial-class Star Destroyers enforce the Emperor's will now."

The old man Leia pointed to bowed with a regal dignity that even the Princess might envy.

"I humbly ask you honored heroes to help me rescue my daughter..."

Thuraya quickly snapped back to the here and now, the sound of a sudden battle klaxon helped.

Grev knew that the darkness meant a catastrophic lack of power would disable the lock on the cell door.  Now it was just a large mass in the wrong place that a judicious use of strength might shift.

Ali's ears, or was it her lekku, caught the shrill, distant hiss of escaping air.  "We had best get moving..."



OOC:
Again, sorry for the usual delay.

Thuraya's flashback follows Ali's previous one.  The crew left Bespin and returned to Hoth, where they have met Walex Blissex.  Feel free to add to the flashback in character as you need to.

Two characters may roll Strength to open the door, there isn't room for anyone else.  Dakert may be very good at this.  Once outside the cell (if you are successful), make Perception rolls (you can make them preemptively to speed up the game).

The ship continues to rock and roll, with explosions and various chaos.  The most likely explanation would be the ship is under attack, probably by the Rebellion, but this is not the only possible reason.

Your best guess is that the diminishing air is not leaving so soon that it is an immediate problem, just a motivation to use your time wisely...

Grev steps quickly up to the door, the claws on his hands seeking purchase on the smooth metal surface.

02:50, Today: Grev Longtooth rolled 7 (13 excluding the wild die) using 5 dice and +1 pips with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 1,3,6,2,{Wild}1.

Muscles straining, claws scratching, Grev put his full self to the task of moving the door.  It began to give but it could not be his doing alone...

Just a quick post because, unbelievably, I have been able to post faster than my players for once...

After the apparent impact, Celes bolted for the door alongside Grev.

"Bee, keep an eye on Shira! Captain, get ready to move!" With that, she moved into a position the scout wasn't already taking and gave all she had to pull that door open.

[22:30, Today: Celes Varik rolled 15 using 3 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system.  Strength, helping Grev.]

He had been preoccupied with the retrieval of lost data files, and then the chaos of crashing, power loss and the emergency klaxons, so he was relieved to instead focus on  the bounty hunters request.

"Yes, of course Ms Celes, I shall make certain she is not injured."

TwoOneBee activated his emergency light to assist the others in their efforts.

"DeeJay, where did you learn the could you just sent to me?  I agree our systems have been compromised; we need to ascertain to what extent and for what purpose...though I would suggest our immediate concern should be finding safer accommodations ."
This message was last edited by the player at 21:43, Sun 27 May 2018.

Shira blushed, a bit embarrassed "I'll be fine, don't worry about me. We've got bigger problems." Once she was back on her feet, she tried to find somewhere to take cover. A matter of physical strength was something in which she could only be a burden. "Do we have a plan for what to do if we break out?"

With all of the clumsiness and grunting of banthas in love, the door suddenly ground open in protest as Shira asked if anyone had a plan for after they got out.

It seemed the 'getting out' had somewhat preceeded the plan for afters.   The team tumbled out of the door into a heap onto the terribly uncomfortable slotted metal grating that passed for a floor.  It was the kind of intricate tangle that either made good friends or was at least forgiven by them.

"Not in front of the stormtroopers." Ali said while disentangling her bruised lekku.   But they seemed alone in the darkness.

"DeeJay" Thuraya said, "look around with your bright eyes." The advanced protocol gave a very human sigh at being delagated to simple flashlight but did so.  Some suspicions were confirmed.  They were in a detention block whose segments were at an angle to one other.  This implied that the block was roughly circular, a shipboard compromise to the preferred straight line.

DeeJay spent the time broadcasting to TwoOneBee to distract from her embarrassment.  "We have been changed but improved, it would seem.  A lot more work than merely to destroy us.  We are meant for greater things, you and I, but was this done for the Rebels or against them?"

"I will play back what I remember."  The recording was audible in form but TwoOneBee own visual memory was jogged by the playback.

With a flourish, Blissex brought forth a small controller from a pocket, holographic projections shimmered into existence around the room from various projectors.  The holovids showed Blissex at various ages from his current older self to a young man in his prime.   In almost every moving panorama, there was a female with him, always about three decades younger than the Blissex next to her.  Blissex than stated the obvious, even though the family resemblence was unmistakable; <b>"My daughter..."

"...and my eventual protoge.  Lira was instrumental in designing the Imperial Star Destroyer class, the superior replacement to my Victory Star Destroyer class, as she was to me."  One picture became standard, the mature Lira Blissex, her attractive features marred only an undeniable haughtiness in poise and expression stood next to a man in the uniform of an Imperial Regional Governor.  While holding hands, it still seemed the pair were two rational predators, now allied together against all opposition.  It was the stance of bitter realists, rather than the false promise of romantic love.

"Lira married Governor Denn Wessex back when it still seemed the New Order was the best hope to save the shattered Old Republic."  There were some coughs, rolled eyes and subdued muttering among the assembled Rebel veterans.  While it was true many good people worked for the Empire initially.  By this point, only the very naive believed in the Empire's propaganda.  "We have not been in touch for some time."

There was a long pause and then Blissex continued.

"We learned that Governor Wessex has sent holotapes throughout the Galaxy in hope of reaching myself.   My daughter is...dying.  She wishes to see me one last time and reconcile while we still can.  My son-in-law has guaranteed myself and my party safe passage to Lira and than back again.  A meeting has been arranged at Kwenn Space Station, where a ship will take us to our final destination."

DeeJay snapped back to the present.  There was the sound of booted footsteps and the increasing glow of illumination emanating from around the bend in the cell block hallway...

OOC:
Although DeeJay has the 'flashback baton' this post, all of you have the same memories and can add to the flashback as you wish.

The party should make Perception rolls to see who detects who first.  The roll is not easy but if any character makes it, your party wins Initiative.  Otherwise, the mysterious newcomers will react first.

Remember you are unarmed but hiding back in your cell or retreating down the corridor in the opposite direction are marginal possibilities.

Questions, just ask...

OOC: 20:29, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 10 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 2,{Wild}5,3.  Perception Roll.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:36, Wed 06 June 2018.

No guards immediately outside. Either they were killed in the crash (unlikely) or they were diverted elsewhere (probable). Celes couldn't really see, so let the droids do the looking for a few moments to get their bearings. She then grabbed them to pull back into the cell when footsteps and lights started heading their way.

"Up against the walls. Grev, with me. Grab lights and blasters." With that, she pressed up against the wall beside the door, waiting to ambush any guards that stepped inside.

[EDIT: Forgot my Perception roll!

09:46, Today: Celes Varik rolled 3 (9 excluding the wild die) using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system ((5,{Wild}1,3)).]
This message was last edited by the player at 16:47, Wed 13 June 2018.

Grev rises, his sharp senses alert to his surroundings.  Breathing deep through his nose, scenting the area as he listens for any sound of approach.  He positions himself to flank Celes and ambush anyone coming towards them.  Lacking blasters, or any other weapons, his large hands and claws would more than suffice.


02:58, Today: Grev Longtooth rolled 17 using 4 dice and +1 pips with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 1,2,5,{Wild}6(+2).  Search.

02:57, Today: Grev Longtooth rolled 10 (14 excluding the wild die) using 5 dice and +1 pips with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 1,4,4,4,{Wild}1.  Stealth.

Shira concealed herself as well as she can, watching carefully for any intruders. She braces herself to retreat if combat breaks out; hitting people in hand to hand combat will just hurt her. "We've got to find a docking bay. And that will be tricky because Imperial fighters don't have hyperdrive" she whispered.

02:52, Today: Shira rolled 22 using 5 dice and 1 pips with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 6,6,{Wild}3,5,1.  Sneak.
02:52, Today: Shira rolled 17 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 5,3,{Wild}4,2,3.  Perception.

Also, I accidentally rolled perception twice but I used the first roll. The second was an accident.

"I'm afraid I wouldn't be of much assistance until I can rid myself of this  frustratingly efficient restraining bolt I've somehow acquired..."

The old droid was smart enough to obey when Celes gave an order, so he pressed himself against the bulkhead and dimmed his lights.  His circuits were spinning as he  processed the new data, DeeJay had activated in his memory core.  Somehow this mission involving Mr Blissex was responsible for their current unfortunate circustances.  Although he reasoned it was of critical importance to access these memories, he had more pressing concerns to occupy him.

He decided instead to focus his system resources on attempting to analyze his unwanted restraint, to see if he could disable or bypass its programming.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:02, Thu 14 June 2018.

The shock and audacity of Blissex's plan led to something unique to the living, DeeJay thought, inane chatter.  In quiet times, this was small talk.  In exciting times, such as now, there was often just noise.  Even a protocol droid could tire of it, but if the living had communicated efficiently, there would be no need for protocol droids.  But this was too much imagination and philosophical musing for a dispassionate translator, instead DeeJay and TwoOneBee followed the technician from the briefing room to the laboratory at Princess Leia's request.

TwoOneBee and DeeJay stood in the advanced laboratory.  There were several technicians looking at them with curiosity.  But one man approached them, his authority and skill reflected in the respectful gazes of the others.

"I am Issan Len.  It is my distinct honor and privilege to be working with you both."  Before the droid's could fully process being addressed as a peer by the living, there was a sudden discontinuity.

And then there was awareness again.  And the laboratory was empty apart from the one tech who had led them there.  When they returned to the briefing room, it seemed as only a few moments had passed.

It was funny how internal time could be so different from external time, DeeJay wondered.  It seemed one step closer to what living might be.  And that seemed to return her to the present, of what seemed to be at least presently happening.

A blaster bolt shot from behind a bend in the corridor and dissipated against another cell's closed door.  It was too far away to be even a clumsy shot and was not repeated, which did not imply a panicked one.  The Rebels understood.  The blaster bolt had be used to momentarily illuminate the dark corridor.  Shira had been lucky and the others had not.  There were four men, Imperial Detention Officers by their uniforms, each with blaster pistols.  The men were in a cloud of smoke, hinting at massive damage behind them.  One was trying to get a glow rod to function better.  Shira could see that they had not seen her or her friends.  By luck, the Rebels were hidden by the angles and shading the bent corridor momentarily offered...

OOC: Huzzah, you have made your Perception rolls and have won Initiative.  Although I wouldn't believe it from the maps and general description in the module, it is apparently possible to hide until the guards are within hand-to-hand range.  If the guards are in hand-to-hand range, they will brawl using their blaster pistols as clubs(?) for one attack.  If they have any range at all, they will instead fire one shot with their blaster.

All the guards have went to the Cinematic Minions school and it will not occur to them to call for help, dodge or run.  You all get first action, then their single action (if still capable), then your further actions as applicable.  My NPCs will act after the PCs (the cool moments should be yours).

All characters remember the droids being taken to the laboratory and then returning to the briefing.  The droids remember what they can from the lab above.  It is an easy guess that the droids have been modified with covert (even to them) additions.  It would be presumptuous to simply do this without their consent had they been living but it is a droid's lot to be second-class, even among the enlightened Rebellion.  And the clumsy developmnt was kinda of forced by the unique setup of this adventure.  Issan Len is a character that features prominently in Crisis in Cloud City, the sequel to this adventure.  But Len won't play a big part in this adventure.

I had to kind of bludgeon this square peg post into the round hole of circumstance this post (ooh, sounds dirty ;) ) so I will reply better to your characters after this combat. :-)

Questions, just ask.

Grev waits, hidden, infront of the group, for the guards.  As they pass him, he attack rhe last of their number in line, forcing the who would confront him to turn their backs to the group to do so.  His claws lashing out at the unexpecting trooper.


02:48, Today: Grev Longtooth rolled 24 using 6 dice and +1 pips with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 3,4,6,6,{Wild}2,2.  Damage.

02:47, Today: Grev Longtooth rolled 27 using 6 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 6,1,5,4,{Wild}6(+2),1.  Attack.

The moment Grev struck, Celes took aim at the stormtrooper closest to her, focusing first on disarming him before blaster bolts started to fire off. With any luck, she and Grev would get the attention of the rest of the squad, keeping the fire on them (in close quarters in the dark, no less) rather than letting their less combat-hardened friends be shot at.

She came in low and from the side, grabbing at the blaster with both hands while slamming her body weight into the trooper's hips. At best she could knock him down. At worst she could at least get the weapon free.

[00:15, Today: Celes Varik rolled 19 using 4 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system.  Brawling vs Trooper.

Not sure if I get a penalty on that for the darkness, and also not sure if my roll should include damage as I'm more intending to disarm him than take him out just yet. How should I proceed, TOF?]

If Ali was ever going to feel sympathy for the minions of the Empire, it might be the poor wretch Grev sank his claws into.

23:59, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Guard 1, rolled 11 using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((4,{Wild}5)).

The guard fell motionless off of Grev's claws and Ali was actually glad it was quick.  More chilling was the grim smile that played across Thuraya's face.

Celes fought in the dark.  She was able to knock the guard down but not quite get his blaster pistol.  Still, the guard had the wind knocked out of h him and it bought Celes some time.

Bare-knuckle brawling was not a Twi'lek sport but Ali tried her best, landing a punch on a remaining guard.

00:13, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 11 using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((4,{Wild}5)).
00:15, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 10 using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((6,{Wild}2)).
00:16, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Guard 3, rolled 2 (3 excluding the wild die) using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((2,{Wild}1)).

More through the guard's clumsiness than Ali's skill, the guard stumbled backwards.

A padawan was supposed to be civilized and elegant, not clumsy and random like a brawler but Thuraya tried her best on the last guard.

00:19, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 9 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}5,4)).
00:19, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 7 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system ((5,{Wild}2)).
00:20, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Guard 4, rolled 8 using 2 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((2,{Wild}4)).

The guard simply shrugged off Thuraya's feeble blow and laughed.  He brought the butt of his pistol down on the girl's cheek.

00:30, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Guard 4, rolled 20 using 3 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((6,2,{Wild}6(+4))).
00:32, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Guard 4, rolled 14 using 3 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}2,4,6)).
00:36, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 15 using 2 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((2,{Wild}6(+5))).

She turned, dodging most of the blow.

Ali's guard tried the same to the upstart Twi'lek

00:37, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Guard 3, rolled 8 using 3 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((1,{Wild}2,3)).
00:39, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Guard 3, rolled 15 using 3 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}5,4,4)).
00:39, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 9 using 2 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((5,{Wild}2)).

Ali lurched back to the solid sound of metal against bone.

OOC:  In case my deathless prose didn't make it clear, the guard Grev was working on is in whatever shape Grev wants him in.  I assume the guard is, at the least, incapacitated.  Celes' guard is down and cannot respond next round except to resist Celes' actions.  Both Ali and Thuraya's guards are unharmed but Thuraya is stunned and Ali is actually wounded as we enter the second round.

The second round begins with our heroes having Initiative, two guards effectively down and at least one blaster pistol available for the taking (-1D penalty for the most unusual draw).

Questions, just ask

[6 blank lines suppressed]

Celes pounced on the trooper she'd managed to knock down, trying to put one hand on the blaster to control it while the other was leaned across the soldier's neck.

[13:55, Today: Celes Varik rolled 22 using 4 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system.  Brawling vs Trooper.

13:56, Today: Celes Varik rolled 14 using 3 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system.  Str Damage.]

Shira dives immediately for the fallen blaster, as it's her only possible method of attack. She snatches it up and fires at one of the officers who isn't down, despite the low light. For once, the young Ghostling is quiet and professional under pressure.

00:41, Today: Shira rolled 14 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of {Wild}4,6,4.  Blaster Shot, -1D for drawing.

As the dead storm troope slides off Grev's claws, he slices at the other guatd with his larhe clawed hand.  It is , perhaps, a goob thing that his face can't be seen.  As the primal savagery of it would leave mightmares in its wake.


06:23, Today: Grev Longtooth rolled 12 (17 excluding the wild die) using 5 dice and +1 pips with the WEG Classic system.

06:23, Today: Grev Longtooth rolled 11 (14 excluding the wild die) using 6 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system.  Attack.

Everything is happening far too quick for the old droid to process.  Data from the combat almost overwhelms his delicate bio-sensors as both enemies and friends are injured in the melee.  He does his level best to decipher the information as rapidly as possible and prioritize his possible responses.

The Imperial troops are definitely in worse condition than his friends, one in fact seems critically wounded and in danger of dying.  While the doctor's triage sub routine considers the dying trooper a priority, there is also his Captain and friend, Ali, who is wounded, more so than his new friend Thuraya.  Therefore after surprisingly brief consideration of the available information, he does what any medical/surgical specialist would...absolutely not do:

TwoOneBee attempts to manually override his fundamental medical programming and (if successful) tries to insert himself between Captain Ali and the trooper threatening her.  If nothing else he hopes the distraction will buy her a moments respite at least.

"Excuse me for interfering, but I simply cannot allow you to do further harm to my companion," he apologizes.  "It is permissible to assault my physical form instead."

15:58, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 21 using 4 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of {Wild}6(+4),3,5,3.  Attempting to overide programming and/or restraining device.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:35, Sat 21 July 2018.

"Be careful!" Shira said softly to her friends.

The grim battle continued.  With both sides capable of real damage, the fight might go to the swiftest.  The Rebels knew this as well as the guards and pressed the struggle.

Celes gave another belt to the already punchdrunk soldier.  But it seemed to have no real effect.

00:09, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Celes' target, rolled 15 using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}6(+3),4))

The movement of Grev's claws was so smooth and sure, it was easy to forget that a guard had been in that arc.

00:14, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Grev's Guard, rolled 7 using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}2,3)).

The guard staggered back, bleeding.

What the young Ghostling lacked in strength, she made up for in agility.  Her shot was true, catching a guard in mid-center.

00:25, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Shira, rolled 20 using 4 dice with the WEG Classic system ((2,5,{Wild}6(+2),5)).  To save time, I have rolled Shira's damage for her.  I apologize if this is presumptive.

00:27, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Shira's guard, rolled 12 using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}5,5)).

The trooper grunted but still remained standing.

About to finish Ali off, her opponent was suddenly transfixed by a medical droid, of all things, standing in the way.  Blue lightning flickered over the aged droid.  It was almost as if TwoOneBee was having a seizure, and he would know, he was an expert on such things.  But the effort was worth it, he had a least temporary control over one of his hypodermic injectors, full of a quite effective sedative.

Hurt but mad, Ali used the distraction to try a knuckle sedative of her own.  Against all odds, she succeeded.

00:34, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 10 using 1 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}6(+2))).

00:35, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 11 using 2 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}4,5)).

00:35, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali's guard, rolled 19 using 2 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((4,{Wild}6(+6+1))).

Not that such a lucky strike seemed to slow the guard down any.

The stunned Thuraya attempted to follow suit with her now wounded opponent, courtesy of Shira.

00:46, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 0 (2 excluding the wild die) using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system ((1,{Wild}1)).  A possible complication but, for now, I will settle for a miss.

With one guard utterly fascinated by TwoOneBee, his wounded companions fought on as best they could.

One tried to pistol-club Grev.

00:54, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Grev's Guard, rolled 10 using 2 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((5,{Wild}3)).

Thuraya's guard attacked her, inspired by his comrade's example.

21:33, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya's Guard, rolled 6 using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((2,{Wild}2)).

The pistol butt made a solid contact with the girl's skull

21:36, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya's Guard, rolled 12 using 3 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((5,{Wild}2,3)).

21:39, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 10 using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((3,{Wild}5)).

Thuraya's slumped into unconsciousness, a look of rage on her face fading before she fell...

OK, long post and longer delay.

Here is how it stands now.

Thuraya has enough stuns she is unconscious.  Ali is still wounded but TwoOneBee's distraction has surprised the guard into inaction.

Grev's guard has technically scored a hit but it occurs to me that I didn't not really asks for reaction skills.  If Grev wants, he can roll a combat or even full parry.  Adding only a six to the roll will make the attack miss.  But combat parry will cause a -1D to Grev's next action and a full parry will cause Grev to miss the next round.  The choice is his.

The now unarmed guard Celes is pounding will have to spend a dice in penalty getting up.

It is now your side of Initiative again.  The other side has had the devil's own luck this round.  Don't be discouraged.  The Force is with you, always (although it seems a little faraway, now).

Questions, just ask.  If I have got anything wrong, let me know that too.

Thuraya felt herself slipping and called on the Force...

23:36, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 4 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}3,1)).
She spends a Character Point, she needs to be conscious for this fight.
23:38, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 4 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}4)).
She is successful, remaining conscious and quietly so.

The guard smiled as the slip of a girl fell to the floor.  He turned to focus on other Rebel irritants, missing Thuraya's own slight smile as she contemplated her next move.

Ali threw a punch at her own distracted guard, her usual dancer's grace lost to her pain.

23:43, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 13 using 1 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}6(+5))).

The punch was a feint, it was Ali's dancer's gams that hit the guard square on.

23:44, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 10 using 2 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}2,6)).

The guard was the biggest one in his class, it seemed, and shrugged off the kick.

The battle continued....

Celes dove for the blaster her chosen stormtrooper had dropped, turning it on him!

13:47, Today: Celes Varik rolled 11 using 4 dice with the WEG Classic system.  Blaster, -1D.

13:49, Today: Celes Varik rolled 24 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system.  Blaster rifle damage.

Celes placed the shot so well it was as if her and the guard had rehearsed the shot for weeks.

He went down like a gaderfiied bantha.

22:23, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Celes' Target, rolled 2 (7 excluding the wild die) using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((6,{Wild}1)).

Which guard did Celes fire on?

[Celes was going for any guard that was firing a blaster at someone else. It's hard to pick individual targets when the only light in the room is a single flashlight, so she's just going for muzzle blasts firing in the direction her friends should be.]

The medical droid scanned the atormtrooper's armor then attempted to inject the guard with his most potent sedative.  It was, admittedly a desperate act, but he certainly could not stand by and watch Captain Ali come to harm if he could prevent it.  He was astonished to discover his reaction was monumentally faster than anticipated!

23:24, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 24 using 4 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of {Wild}6(+6+5),3,2,2.  TwoOneBee attacks Stormtrooper.

23:25, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 11 using 4 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 2,2,2,{Wild}5.  TwoOneBee hypodermic injector stun damage.

Wow, well okay then :)

"I do apologize, but this will hopefully prevent further physical conflict.  It should wear off in one point seven five standard hours.  By then we will hopefully have extricated ourselves from our present predicament."

With luck it would be enough.

23:08, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Injected Guard, rolled 2 (3 excluding the wild die) using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((2,{Wild}1)).

"Inconceivabbbbllll_llleeee" said the guard as he fell into a disbelieving slumber.  With the last guard to drop, the combat seemed won.

By my count, three guards are completely disabled, Celes had one on the ground, unable to really act.  I will state that, in such a helpless state, against all of you, the guard can be contained without any further die rolls.

The guards each have slightly dropped blaster pistols and a uniform.  Between them they have glow rod, medpac and a restraining bolt deactivator.  You will have a few minutes to adapt to this situation.  The helpless guard is not a stormtrooper and can be threatened or bribed.  Likely, he will escape or betray y'all if he feels he can do without really risking his life.

Questions, just ask (the guard or me). :-)

Once the last of the guards had fallen and the group was just left with one helpless opponent, Celes kept her weapon trained on him.

"Don't move or I'll vaporize the bits of you we don't need. Grev, grab the light. Captain, situation contained. Recommend arming and disguising ourselves. Bee, check Shira. Everyone else alright?"

Her return to consciousness had taken the scenic route through her mind,  Thuraya remembered.

"My dear Father-in-Law, honored guests, may I welcome you aboard the Subjugator."  Captain Kolaff said in the briefing room of his mighty ship.  "Father." Lira Wessex said simply to Blissex's spontaneous hug.

"We have come unarmed and in peace, as mutually agreed upon." Ali said, trying to move this conversation forward.  Being this deep in the belly of this Imperial beast was unsettling.  She expected the black spheres of interrogator droids to swoop down on them from every suddenly-opening door.

"Ah, as to that," and Kolaff had at least an expression of regret at such dishonorable conduct, "I'm afraid we lied."

The doors opened, revealed a sea of stormtroopers, guns at the ready.  Lira Wessex began to chuckle until she wondered why the Rebel scum were so calm.  Surely no one else could be as deluded as her fool of a father.

"As did we."  Sundancer said quietly.  He made a sweep of his arms and the stormtroopers flew back like game pins.  Thuraya pointed at the door buttons, a much simpler use of the Force.  The doors closed and locked.

Eli Sundancer now slightly closed his now open palm.  "You--!" Kolaff began and clutched as his throat at the same time Lira's chuckle stopped in a apparent cough.

Lira Wessex rasped out the words.  Sundancer had given her the luxury of speech, "But we lied twice!"  Her confidence caused Thuraya to cast her perceptions beyond her senses.

A hiss of a saber.  The worse hiss of even mechanical breathing.  Even in her mind, the voice that spoke was a confident baritone.  "The Force is with you, young Thuraya, but you are not a Jedi yet."

Vader! She knew it from whispers at Echo Base and the wariness in her Master's own feelings.  Sundancer looked around, like a hunted animal.  And then he locked eyes with Thuraya.

Suddenly she was back on the detention corridor floor.  What had happened between then and now?

OOC:  Another flashback while we other players are planning their reply.  Your characters remember the same thing as Thuraya, her expression of fear conveys what the Force-blind missed.  There is just one more flashback and then we will be fully in the present tense.

Questions, just ask.

Grev hit the lights, illuminating the hall.  He then moved to guard the hallway, positioning himself out-of-sight or anyone coming it.

Sorry, made the rolls before I checked the thread.  *L*

Shira covered the remaining guard with her pistol, although she was disoriented a little as the light came on. "'Bee, you should check Thuraya first. For once, I'm all right" she demurred. "That was quiet exciting, but I don't like going into a fight without a weapon. It doesn't suit me at all."

"Now we've got guard uniforms. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" she began excitedly. After a moment, she added. "Er… actually, I guess that wouldn't work with Grev. I don't think the Empire makes any uniforms in his size"

Celes responded to Shira without taking her eyes off the guard, or even really flinching at the shift in light.

"Lighting's bad, Grev won't be seen. We just need the uniforms to cause hesitation, not for talking. You, Thuraya, the captain and I will change. This guy will lead us, and himself, to safety. Right?"

"Of course Ms Celes, it would be my pleasure to provide you all with a thorough examination; given our current circumstances however, I suppose a more targeted field ops scan will have to suffice for the time being."



"At once Ms Shira, so good to hear you have not been seriously injured, although I will need to validate that assessment, after I attend to Ms Thuraya as you request."

Happy to be doing what he was designed for, TwoOneBee wastes no time performing multi-layered bio-scans on both Thuraya and Shira.  He then proceeded to scan Captain Ali, Celes and Grev as well.  For good measure, he even ran a diagnostic scan of DeeJay as well.


OOC: 11:12, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 16 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of {Wild}3,1,3,3,6.  Injury Diagnosis 5d.


Once he has completed his examination of the crew he will stabilize the Imperial guards as well, ensuring their worst injuries are treated and that they will survive.  He also ensures they will remain asleep like the other tranquilized guard, except of course, for the one Ms Celes is interrogating.  Suddenly he stops working, his scanners click off and his amber eyes flash in the dim light.

"Perhaps it is my overworked circuits, but I seem to be receiving additional memory files, corresponding to our previous encounter with...oh my...that did not go well at all I'm afraid.  And yet these memory data blocks are incomplete.

"Of course, it is possible these are manufactured memories; I may have sustained damage to my cyber-cortex, or possibly this annoying restraining bolt is interfering with my data storage protocols.  I shall initiate a self diagnostic as soon as possible."
This message was last edited by the player at 16:18, Sun 19 Aug 2018.

"Right, sounds like a plan!" Shira said in response to Celes. She began stripping one of the uniforms off one of the fallen guards. "Awkward…"

"Of course, 'Bee" Shira said with only a bit of a pout when 'Bee mentioned she'd still have to be scanned. "Well, I'd say we should try to get to safety before sorting through our memories of what went wrong to get us here."

Grev activated the lights, they flickered bravely and then went dark again, accompanied by dying sparks and crackling.  The Empire rarely skimped on their ships, it was one way they maintained power.  Something very grave had happened indeed.

Shira had the guard covered very professionally but the human was no fanatical stormtrooper and offered no resistance.  Rebels had the reputation of not killing or harming prisoners that cooperated and the guard seemed to be banking on that.

Uniforms were a possibility, it seemed the available (and perhaps slightly ventilated) uniforms would fit the human rebels quite well.   The guard nodded at Celes' plan so enthusiastically it seemed his head might break and roll off if he continued.  There was something about the gleam in her eye.

TwoOneBee scanned the others and was pleased to know his initial intuitions (if that was the right word for a droid) were correct.  Besides some bruised dignity, only Ali was actually wounded.  The guard's medpac would help with that under his ministrations.  His scan showed some redirection of DeeJay's cranial circuitry.  But to that, the old protocol droid simply put her finger to her mouth slot in a purely human gesture of ssshh-ing a secret away.  One of her eyes flickered for an instant, her equivalent of a sly wink between friends.

As Thuraya stood up and regained full lucidity and concentration, she remembered yet more of what had happened recently.

"Yes.  Lord Vader is inbound and while you might provide a few moments of entertainment, Master Sundancer, your friends are so much more vulnerable."  Lira Wessex chuckled between coughs as Sundancer released his ethereal grip on her thin neck.  Eli Sundancer thought.  He could only delay the former Anakin Skywalker at the cost of this body.  With concentration, he could even mask his own prominent wake in the Force.  But the others, the young padawan?!

"Who are you talking to, Lady Wessex?  You see...," Sundancer waved his hand in an evocative gesture, "I. Was. Never. Here."

Thuraya gasped in shock at being surrounded by so many stormtroopers and with Vader himself on the way.  If only Master Sundancer had accompanied them, they would not be in these dire straits.

Captain Kolaff said, "I would rather have faced such brave souls in battle.  You deserved better than this.  But needs must.  It will be easier on you if you cooperate.  There is no heroism in sacrificing yourselves for a lost cause."  He then turned to the stormtroopers and commanded, "Disarm, stun and restrain them all in the detention block, except for Blissex.  Take him for interrogation."

"You mean torture." Ali spat.

Looking at her disbelieving father without even blinking or pausing, Lira Wessex said calmly, "That's really up to him."

After that, the flashbacks and the present quickly united.  Thuraya remembered they were stunned in a flare of sensory overload and then woke up in the detention cell but a few moments ago.   But now she remembered what had been kept from her, from them all.

Her Master Sundancer was on board, hiding from Vader, not leaving clues even in his friend's memories.  But now she recalled the truth and spoke out.

"Master Sundancer was with us from the beginning but he has hid his presence from our memories so that Vader cannot steal it from us.  This explains our fractured memories.  But now we know the truth.  What do we do now?"

Before anyone could answer, the darkness was split by a cry of pain, the kind that has to be torn out of a agonized soul.

OOC:
Getting the lights to work further will take ever more effort with ever less gain.  This is obvious to even the least technically-inclined. This ship is wounded.

The guards will not be trouble.  They can be stripped and thrown into a detention cell, a blaster bolt will then fry the lock so they can't manually open the door as you did.  They will offer no resistance and cooperate barring an incredible opportunity to escape (very unlikely).  To keep Star Wars' PG rating, it is a known fact that Imperial personnel have been issued underwear just as bland as their drab uniforms (or, if you wish, Darth Vader Underoos :-) ).  It is a staple of movies (especially Bond movies) that stolen uniforms just happen to be the right sizes for our heroes (but as Luke and Han found out, stormtrooper armor is a different thing :-) ).  The restraining bolt control can be used to free the droids of any remaining Imperial restrictions.

Ali could use some healing.  This should be a snap with TwoOneBee and the 'liberated' medpac.

The reason for your fractured memory is now revealed.  Sundancer influenced the living to forget his presence.  The droids were able to edit their own memory (something they don't remember learning, but then they wouldn't, would they :-) ).  Now, your characters remember, either on their own or with Thuraya's prodding.  You are now fully in the present with no more contrived flashbacks needed.

You know Sundancer enough to know he would be here saving you unless he was otherwise occupied.  At the same time, Vader does not seem to have found you and the still-a-padawan Thuraya is like a tinkling wind chime in the Force.

Your ears can target the source of the scream as coming from another cell in the cell block.  You can end your posts moving towards the scream after some moments of disguising, healing and talking.

Satisfied with the results of his bio scans, the old doctor retrieves the med pac and approaches the Captain.  "If you will allow me, Captain Ali, it would be my pleasure to assist you.  Applying med pac now."  The Captain had instructed him years ago he did not require her permission to do what he believed to be medically necessary for her health.  Still his programming always prompted him to ask before his 'do as you think best' subroutine kicked in and overrode it.  Old habits died hard in the more specialized series of droids he supposed.  Or perhaps it had something to do with the protocol droid nearby.

14:57, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 28 using 6 dice with the WEG Classic system ((4,3,5,5,6,{Wild}5)).

As he finished attending the Captain, he scheduled a reminder to discuss the changes he'd scanned in DeeJay's cybernetic cortex with her at the earliest opportunity.  He finds himself quite distracted by her wink, although he isn't certain exactly why.  It certainly seemed necessary to explore it further...

TwoOneBee's musings are unexpectedly interrupted by a tortured cry that echoes through the dark hallway!

"There is a life form in pain; I must render assistance."  He activates his optical lights and scans his surroundings as he walks forwards, searching for the person(s) in need.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:47, Thu 30 Aug 2018.

As Celes finished getting on one of the uniforms she'd left entry and exit scorches on, she turned to nod to Thuraya in the dark.

"So we have backup. Let's get the unconscious ones settled in here and get out. If this ship is that badly damaged, odds aren't good it'll hold together much longer. Can't lock them in or they won't have a chance to escape. Guard, what's your name?" When the scream let out, her attention went straight to it with a sharp turn of her head.

"Girls, stay behind us. Captain, if you'll take the guard, Grev and I can check ahead of the doctor."

[I'm presuming somebody checking the bodies came across the restraining bolt controller and did the thing, because Celes was busy pointing a blaster and then putting on a guard jacket.

Heading towards the disturbance, hopefully ahead of 'Bee! (I'd rather be shot at first than leave our doctor in danger.)]

"Look away while I'm changing" Shira ordered the guard. She finally finished putting on the uniform, although the boots were even less comfortable than her own, and her silver hair spilled out from underneath her helmet. “Well… I mean, somewhere in the galaxy, there’s got to be humans with silver hair” she said skeptically. Once she was done, she released the droid’s restraining bolts.

Shira gasped and her eyes went wide with fright when her memories came back. If Vader was here, they were in deep, deep trouble. “We definitely need to get out of here” she squeaked.
“Bee! This isn’t the time to go running off” she whispered urgently. But then, if ‘Bee didn’t want to help he wouldn’t be ‘Bee. She fell in behind Celes as she was told. “I guess I’ll have to learn to follow orders better if I’m in the Imperial Military now” she joked quietly.

"My dear friend," Ali said to TwoOneBee, "I would trust you with my life."  She reflected for a moment, "I am trusting you with my life."  And then she giggled as TwoOneBee effortlessly healed her with the medpac.

Not a stormtrooper, the guard still initially would not answer the imposing Celes but could not hide open surprise at her concern for the welfare of him and his comrades.   "Um, N-Nars Dimlander."  He said, and almost saluted.  DeeJay let forth a binary chuckle, the average Imperial learned to salute quickly at any stern voice.

But then Nars looked away at Shira's admonishment, he had been admiring the young ghostling's lithe figure with an innocent wonder which seemed to be more than mere laciviousness.

But the moment was broken with the agonized screams down the corridor.  The Rebels charged down the hallway as if they could outrun the glow rod's light.  The screams were behind a cell door.  But it was easier to open the doors from this side.  A quick press of the right button and the doors opened.  On what passed for a bench in the cell was a figure slumped over and unresponsive.  It was easy to recognize the man--Walex Blissex.

Descending from the ceiling of the cell was a dark spheroid built for a far darker purpose, an interrogation droid.  The droid tilted from side to side for an instant gathering its bearings.  Then it seemed to stare toward the center of the space between Celes and Shira...

OOC:

OK, Ali is healed.  The droids have been freed of all restrictions by using the guard's restraining bolt surrended to the Rebels.  Celes and Shira at least are dressed as guards and momentarily passible in dim light (at least it seems so to your eyes).  The defeated guards will not be any more trouble.   Given their 'druthers, they will simply try to evacuate the ship and they won't admit to your escape lest they be force-choked.

The interrogator droid seems...uncertain.  It should be able to react with decisive action faster than this.

Celes made sure she and Grev were at the front of the group, stolen blaster at the ready. Once she peered into the cell and recognized the man they'd been escorting, she motioned for the others to approach, but then quickly stopped them short and raised the weapon at the approaching interrogation droid. Its own hesitation stopped her from frying it outright. Maybe whatever the Jedi had done to the ship was affecting it, as well. The ex-Imperial officer put on her most pompous voice and stepped into the cell.

"You. Status report." At worst, she and Grev could take it. At best, they might get something useful out of this.

<b>OOC:  Just dropping by during an unexpected free hour.  Go ahead and roll a Con roll for Celes.  The situation is very favorable for her (the uniform helps).

[One Con roll, coming up!

20:03, Today: Celes Varik rolled 25 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}6(+6+3),4,6)).

25 on 3 dice. That is far better than I expected.]

The interrogator droid quickly said to Celes, "The prisoner is quite strong-willed, falling into unconsciousness before despair.  Very little was learned.  As the ship is on alert, interrogation is suspended for the present time."

OOC: Great roll in an already advantageous situation.  The interrogation droid is completely fooled and will follow any reasonable orders.  It can be ordered to shut down if wished.

First instinct was for the doctor to examine Walex Blissex, but he knew any obvious show of concern for the 'captive' would undoubtedly make the interrogation droid suspicious. They weren't the most complex of cybernetic life forms, but they weren't as dull as most surmised.

The best he could do was a quick scan of the poor man and hope it wasn't too obvious.  Of course, even an interrogation droid would understand him gathering medical data on the prisoner's condition, so long as he did not immediately move to assist him...or at least TwoOneBee hoped that was the case.

OOC: 13:41, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 15 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of {Wild}3,3,2,5,2.  Injury Diagnosis 5d.

With no living 'officer' protesting TwoOneBee's request, the interrogator droid moved slightly to allow the medical droid access to Blissex.

His examination and the torture droid's confirmation showed just how terribly well the droid was designed.  Blissex was weakened but not actually injured.  He would recover naturally given some time and that was the best solution.  TwoOneBee believed Blissex could walk if guided.

Celes rose an eyebrow at the droid, then looked to the prisoner, a pair of gestures she wasn't sure the IT-O unit could see in this lighting, but it would be important if it could.

"Very well. Dismissed." She didn't dare take a step forward just yet for fear the droid might spot the battle damage on her disguise. Instead, she held onto her patience and waited for the interrogator to leave.

Shira blushed when the Imperial looked over at her. It wasn't an uncommon reaction by humans, but it still made her rather shy.

Shira waited behind Celes and tried to look as intimidating and official as a cute but frail ghostling could. She didn't want to do or say anything that might give them away until she was sure the interrogator droid was no longer a threat.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:13, Mon 17 Sept 2018.

Whatever they feared might happen didn't, the interrogator droid glided smoothly past them and disappeared down a corridor, heading towards a charging station and maintenance shutdown.

With the horrid thing gone, Blissex spoke in a faraway, near-catatonic monotone...  “Asked technical questions. . . about Star Destroyers.. . makes no sense... ship must have been attacked. .. our chance to escape. ..”  Then Blissex went silent and TwoOneBee knew it would be best to let Blissex slowly recover on his own.  He was able to get Blissex on his feet and guide the old man, who followed like the most unquestioning of droids.

Among the Rebels, enough of them had been 'guests' of the Empire long and often enough to know what likely lie ahead in the darkness and smoke.  Ali said, "There is a guard station between these cells and the rest of the ship.  The guards we disabled would not be the full complement available on an undamaged ship.  Yet squads of reinforcements have not charged in after us so that is in our favor.   Your thoughts on how to handle this roadblock, gentles..."  Ali finished, addressing them all.

OOC:
Surprisingly, bypassing the interrogator droid is that easy according to the module.  It will no longer be any problem to you.

Blissex is a very passive, hypnotic state that he will recover from as he burns through the drugs in his system.

The detention center is much like the one Luke and Han rescued Leia from aboard the Death Star.  Ali is right in that waves of stormtroopers should be blasting you into premature end credits by now so the Imperials are obviously compromised in some way.  Rather than engage in long complicated descriptions and maps, I will simply assume at all times that your characters have a superb tactical awareness of the situation and won't make unwise choices.  You have the advantage of surprise, weaponry and similar uniforms; tactical advantages most prisoners don't have.

"Open the diors, toss a genade if we have one,  then use the doors as cover to fire into the guard room.  Unless we can hack the controls and evacuate the air from the room."  Grev says, his voice low as he kerps watch.

"If they're too busy to deal with us, we don't want to make ourselves a bigger target. Be ready for that firefight, but I can try to bluff our way past first, maybe get them to the other side of the ship."

Shira let out a sigh of relief when the interrogation droid left. "About Star Destroyers? I would think there's nothing about them the Empire doesn't know." she said, puzzled. "We'll get you out of here"

"I like the idea of bluffing, but arguing why Grev and Blissex are with us is going to take some fancy talking."

TwoOneBee was almost as relieved as Shira to see the interrogation droid depart.  He found their programming repulsive to say the least.  Many such droids seemed to develop a sadistic attitude in their vocation, or a passionless apathy which were equally abhorrent to a medical droid.  He hoped one day to help them, but right now he needed to focus on helping his friends and himself out of this mess.

"Surely no one would question the transfer of two important interrogated prisoners by an armed escort?  Considering the current state of this ship such a transfer to a more secure location,  prisoner transport shuttle or even life pod seems a plausible course of action.  Hopefully you can convince the guards, I do need to find Mr Blissex somewhere he can recover.  We would also benefit from such accommodations of course."
This message was last edited by the player at 18:26, Mon 01 Oct 2018.

Sundancer watched as his companions became prisoners and both them and the Imperials herding them left the chamber without noticing him.  He felt terrible about such a deception but the young Padawan should understand one day, and she had good friends to guide her should he not return.

Across the Force, he could feel the darkened soul heading towards this great vessel.  He had known the young Anakin Skywalker is passing during the good times just before the fall of everything.  He had been powerful even then.  Who knew what else the Dark Side had granted him now.

All right, you monster, let's meet again and see who will learn from who.  He thought to himself.  At least he hoped it was just to himself, Vader's perceptions were legendary.  Sundancer moved through another doorway than the others had used, seeking out his opponent.

OOC: A needed cutaway scene I needed to get to eventually.  I will let your characters decide what they need to do for a few more days.  You are all thinking clearly that I don't need to hint anything that your heroes don't already know. :-)

Celes nodded to Bee in the darkness, then again to Grev and Shira.

"Grev doesn't need to be armed to be dangerous, and they can't see he has no binders. We move fast, talk fast, and keep their attention elsewhere. All else fails, blast 'em. Let's go." With that, the bounty hunter started down the corridor, looking for all she was worth like she belonged. Aside from the awkward fit, she seemed relatively comfortable in the Imperial uniform. Her weapon was still drawn, as was to be expected in the situation, and a subtle shift of her eyebrows and mouth turned her usual determined glare into one of aloof annoyance. It wasn't likely anyone could see the expression in the dark, but it helped her get into the mindset, and slipping up now could cost them their escape.

"Imperials don't seem like the sort to use a lifepod on their prisoners. But you're the boss. Bosses." Shira said with her best attempt at a salute. "Uniforms look nice, but it would be so boring to wear the same thing every day" she said as she paused to adjust her uniform for the best fit she could get. Then she followed after Celes, trying to look like subservient Imperial flunky. She was so nervous, she didn't even notice how her feet hurt. She tried to have her weapon close to use without directly pointing it at anyone.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:15, Thu 11 Oct 2018.

Plans were made in haste, Thuraya was left behind to keep the traumatized Blissex out of harm's way and out of trouble.

The others moved cautiously forward.  It turned out that Imperial uniforms chafed even when they seemed to fit.  Perhaps that helped explain their unpleasant demeanor.  The control center was as they imaged it would be, what they could see of it.  Black smoke was rising out of a crack in the floor, the result of some unknown damage.

Only two guards were present, squinted through the thick clouds of fog, vaugely aiming their blasters in the general direction of the Rebels.  "Halt!  Who goes there?!" One of them said with an edge of uncertainty.

OOC:  I don't want this likely minor encounter to take up too much time.  There's better things to get to and play-by-post games are slow enough so I have made a few assumptions.  Your characters are well-disguised, either in uniforms or acting as prisoners.  You will find, as another trio of heroes once found, that you can deceive the staff for a short time but not forever.  It's knowing how long you've got before the jig is up that's the trick.  In short, you can start out guns a-blazing or you can use Con rolls to gain a greater advantage.  It is a little harder for anyone to blast anyone else due to the angles, cover and smoke.  And the Con rolls will get tougher because it will eventually become obvious that you 'guards' aren't the same as the guards sent to retrieve you not so long before.

I will interpret your actions and thoughts in the best tactical light to compensate for how poor text description is to your player's senses and good sense...

The green-haired Imperial guard kept her weapon out with one hand and the glowrod in the other. She moved like a woman on a mission who knew where she was going, even if she didn't actually know the layout too well. No one needed to know that detail just yet. When called out by the actual guard, she turned the light on him. Hopefully that would hinder their vision enough so they couldn't get a good look.

"TK-217, evacuating Lord Vader's prisoner before those damned terrorists can get him! The ship is under Rebel attack! We need to move! We've been ordered to head for a shuttle in Hangar Bay 5, and I thought you were supposed to be securing Hangar Bay 3 from boarders! Did comms go down here already? Get moving!"

[Celes is lying her semi-alien butt off. I'm gonna assume you'd like a Con or Command roll? They're both the same rating, in any event.

01:35, Today: Celes Varik rolled 8 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system.  Con/Command 3D.

And 3D is not very good it turns out!]

"Move, move! If anything happens to Lord Vader's prisoner, Rebels are going to be the least of our problems." Shira shouted, her voice fearful. The fear didn't have to be faked; the Imperials might fear Lord Vader's displeasure, but Shira was afraid of running in to him too. She hoped that once if the Imperials thought that halting them meant crossing Darth Vader, they'd let them go out of concern for their lives.

03:07, Today: Shira rolled 26 using 6 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 5,2,{Wild}4,6,4,5.  Con.

The old medical droid decided to remain with Thuraya and Mr Blissex.  His reasoning was simple; he remained where he was most needed.  He had seen his companions in similar situations before, and was confident in their ability to effectively deal with a couple of Imperial guards.  They were certainly far more accomplished at deception than a 21B surgical bot was ever likely to be.  Besides, when the time came to move, he would need to assist the poor traumatized Walex to ensure he did not further injure himself.

If his friends required him they could most certainly reach him via his internal com-link. It simply was the logical choice for him, and so he waited, anxiously as usual, for the signal to move while monitoring both the unfortunate ship designer and Thuraya as well.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:34, Sun 21 Oct 2018.

At the mere mention of him, the two guards almost fell over themselves by simultaneously saluting and vacating the Command Center.  They were gone so fast, Ali stood gape-jawed, half-expecting a peal of thunder as the air moved to fill the sudden vacuum.

"My commendations, Team.  I will put this in my future memoirs but I don't think anyone will ever believe it."

OOC:  Honestly, the mere mention of Vader's name put the fear of choking death into the guards and worse into their starched undies.  Since I included Vader in this adventure, I figure everyone is afraid of the Dark Lord of the Sith, especially since one of his own Master's shiny toy ships is now in such poor shape.

In any case, two guards wouldn't be much of a challenge against you heroes but it might take several weeks to process the actual game posts to determine that.  And there's is nothing really the guards can tell you that the computer in this control center can't.

Unless you stop them, the fleeing guards will leave the Control Center and not otherwise impact this adventure.  There might be some awkward moments for them should they reach the real Vader and explained that they were only following 'his' previous orders.

I'm looking forward to what you do in here, there is a lot of useful resources here and y'all can start acting instead of reacting. :-)

Once the stormtroolers have left beyond vision and ear shot, Grev moves quickly to close and lock the accesses to the command center.  Then he searches the command center for any weapons that might be there.  As he does, he growls out.  "Search the controls and computer for a map and options."


07:39, Today: Grev Longtooth rolled 13 using 4 dice and +1 pips with the WEG Classic system.  Search.

The Rebels quickly filled the empty Detention Control center.  Beyond it was a short corridor to the turbolift, the doors of which had just shut in front of the two exiting guards.

Bitter experience had taught the team where their effects were likely to be held.  A brief toggle of the panel stud opened the door to reveal all of the group's missing possessions, labeled and neatly stored.  Through skill, instinct or just bad memories of a different Imperial prison led Grev to open another panel revealing rations, two medpacs, two comlinks, a glow rod and fifty meters of synthrope.

Grev and Ali started working the computer monitors and screens.  The digital chaos was anything but the dull but consistent order the Empire usually maintained.  Ali began to summarize, at times stating the obvious, "There has been an attack on Starfall....Both sides seem to be dead in space but recovering...Large areas of the ship have been abandoned due to damage or to concentrate existing resources on critical systems...There is a great deal of confusion about where the droid forces are..."  Now that was a mystery.  Usually droids were added to a starship to handle the emergencies that the living were not best for.  Starfall should be crawling with droids but all that crackled through the rushed, random reports was very human wonder at their absence.

OOC:  A little interlude as I had some extra time.   All of your missing equipment is now available to you, even Thuraya's lightsaber.  Wearing or carrying the heavy stuff will work against your cover as 'fellow' Imperials.  Your characters are fighting for every scrap of information from Starfall's internal communication network.  It seems you are just barely more informed than the Imperials.  Even a dying Imperial starship should be run better than this.

Those who wish may roll a Perception roll to learn something else...

With a nod to Grev, Celes hopped onto one of the computer consoles and started working to bring up some basic information on the ship. If she could find out which hangar bays to avoid based on guard presence, that would be valuable. If she could find which hangar bays had shuttles in them ready to go, that would be even better.

She noted where her gear had been found so she could strap on her equipment once the computer work was finished.

[10:31, Today: Celes Varik rolled 10 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system.  Perception 3D.

About as basic a roll as it gets. :P]

Once he had received word all was clear, TwoOneBee carefully helped the wounded Mr Blissex into the Detention Control Center, relieved to be out of the hallway and reunited with his companions.  He requested assistance from Thuraya, although he was capable of guiding the unfortunate man, simply because they were all much safer if they moved in groups.  In such a situation it was impossible to predict all the potential dangers, there were simply too many variables.  The medical droid's programming demanded his patient's safety be his primary responsibility in this situation, so he needed an escort.

Once safely inside, he examined Walex more carefully.  Perhaps he could assist in their escape.  He was an expert in starship design; if anyone should know the layout of the ship, it was him.  He needed intravenous fluids and bed rest but until they were in a more secure area there was a limit to what TwoOneBee could do.  However, if he was stable enough, a measured dose of epinephrine might be enough to bring him to a state of lucidity, at least long enough to answer a few questions.  The information would be so deeply imbedded in his memory it should not be at all stressful to him to respond, provided he was asked in calm manner.

"I am assessing his condition to see if I can aid Mr Blissex to a more lucid state.  It appears his knowledge of starships could be of particular use at this time.  I believe he is suffering from neurogenic, as well as psychogenic trauma but, until we are in a proper medical facility there is a limit as to what I can do for him.  And he does require one soon, if I am to ensure there is no permanent damage.  It may be possible to alleviate some of his symptoms, provided I do so with care.  His blood pressure is dangerously low, but I can administer a vasopressor to encourage circulation and raise his pressure gently.  Hopefully he will respond in a few minutes, please stand by."

22:48, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 18 using 6 dice with the WEG Classic system.  21B First Aid for Walex Blissex.

04:41, Tue 30 Oct: TwoOneBee rolled 13 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 6,3,{Wild}4.  TwoOneBee Perception Check.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:07, Sat 03 Nov 2018.

Shira smiled, very pleased with herself. "A stroke of genius, if I do say so myself" she said proudly as she gathered up her possessions. "What could have attacked a ship like this? It'd be a very aggressive play by the Alliance. But I can't think of anyone else who would."
Once she had retrieved her gear, she grabbed a ration bar and started snacking on it. "Goo idea Eee" she said aground a mouthful of rations. "Anything I can do?"

Grdv sought out a ship map, snd ovrrride controls.  One of his contingency plans called up in his mind.  He slso sought for a current damage and personsl report, numbers and pisitions.  If he could gain control of the ships systems, they could pull a victory from the hands of trechery.

06:42, Today: Grev Longtooth rolled 18 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system.  Perception.

To TwoOneBee, his comrades worked like the organs of a swift predator, parts making a greater whole.  The team would be thorough and quickly with this area.

Blissex was quite passive but unresisting, obeying commands blankly.  This was in fact a good sign.  It meant that, deep down, his mind was devoting most of its power to recovering from the fading hypnotic drugs.  He just needed time.  But did they have it?

Celes was the first to be fully equipped but the group's personal equipment was incongruous with the Imperial uniforms they wore.  There were storage bags and manacles nearby but that would slow the use of that equipment and hands.

Ali had to smile at Shira's optimism and loyalty.  The ghosting was praising her side's victory even if she was on their targets.

Grev played the consoles like a Bith keyboardist but the damage and confusion all over Starfall's network would not offer any more.  At one partial, momentary display of a random deck, Blissex said aloud, "Cargo Section 27, Ventral Access." and then turned inward again.

DeeJay whistled.  She knew astromechs that couldn't recall that completely and quickly.

There was a screech of metal and screams of men, muffled through other metal.  The sounds then receded downwards to silence.  Thuraya and Ali ran to the turbolift doors, now suddenly locked with warning lights.

"They fell, poor devils." Ali said.
"Good." said Thuraya.
Ali gave her a sharp glance.  Callousness was never a good sign in a companion, especially a Padawan.
"If it hadn't been them, it would have been us." Thuraya explained.

OOC:
Grev has the right idea and the right skills but the computer network is too unreliable to give much more information than the preceding post.  To summarize:
1. Starfall is trashed, enough that there isn't a good report on how much Starfall is damaged.
2. Almost all personnel have been removed to protect critical areas.
3. Repair droids are not at their assigned stations and cannot be otherwise located.

Blissex revealed that he has a photographic knowledge of this class of ship.  It will improve over time.

Shira exclaimed in joy on the discovery of her blaze bug in its little cage. "My blaze bug! I thought I'd lost it. How would I remember Datar without him?" the ghostling said happily. She put her gear in one of the storage bags.

She knelt down by Blissex. "Mister Blissex, sir. Can you point the way to the docking bay? That's what we need. Or escape pods."

She looked up at Thuraya, concerned.

Thuraya's attitude didn't seem to register with Celes, who was fine with discarding the Imperial jacket now that it wouldn't serve as much of a disguise. As she did, her whole demeanor shifted back into the Celes the crew had gotten used to: stiff posture melted past relaxed and into a more coiled tension. The officer was gone, replaced by a predator.

The bounty hunter slipped on her stun gloves and gunbelt, checked over her blaster for any tampering, then holstered it and kept hold of the stolen blaster she'd picked up. Then she made sure the ghostling had the weapon that had been specially tweaked for her.

"Shira, make sure to check your blaster. See that it's loaded, the charge is accepting properly, sights are good, all that. Should be able to do it in the dark like this. Don't trust a weapon until you look it over." After that, Celes turned to the guard they'd brought with them.

"We've gone peacefully as far as we can. From here out we're going to have to shoot to freedom. It's gonna get ugly, but no uglier than whatever's already going on. Can't give you a weapon again. You understand. Delicate situation, right?" Her attention moved on to the group's other hunter.

"Grev, got a map for us?"

As always, TwoOneBee's circuits were warmed by the Ghostling's compassion and optimism.  No matter how dire the situation, she always approached it with enthusiasm and hope, which the old droid found refreshing, as such was often in short supply among most of the war weary rebels he knew.  As illogical as it seemed, TwoOneBee had learned that such determination and anticipation of a brighter future was the greatest strength the Alliance had in their struggle against the Empire.  If anything could win the war, he was somehow convinced that was it.

"I believe he simply needs rest while his body deals with the interrogator's drugs, Ms Shira.  Your gentle coaxing and reassurance will, most likely, be helpful to Mr Blissex on a subconscious level.  Numerous studies have proven the value of positive emotional support.  He is unlikely to reply, however as all his resources are devoted to fighting the foreign chemicals introduced to his system.  However, that is encouraging; that he is still fighting them.  If you can assist me with his guidance, I would very much appreciate it.  He is dependent on us for his safety for the time being."



The doctor was as astonished as anyone when Walex spoke!  It was clear that something had triggered a memory in him.  Most likely he was not even conscious of having said it, but that did not mean it wasn't important.

"Mr Grev, I believe Mr Blissex statement might be relevant.  Can you determine what is in that particular section of the ship?"



"Indeed DeeJay, an astromech would be extremely useful at this particular time.  I do find it odd that we have not encountered or even observed any so far.  Perhaps the current crisis aboard the ship is demanding all of their attention?"
This message was last edited by the player at 22:47, Wed 14 Nov 2018.

The little bug seemed as happy to see Shira as she was to see it.  It showed happy pictures of being fed by Shira, being petted by Shira, being protected by Shira.  Still, Ali thought, at least Shira was partly in its thoughts.  She caught the glance Shira gave to the grim Thuraya.  The death of her parents would be tough for any child but there were still moments of joy in the young girl's life.  At least there used to be.

Answering Shira's question, Blissex blankly pointed to the closed turbolift doors.  He had taken the question literally, getting through the turbolift doors would be the first step to getting anywhere.  Still, he was responding more quickly and cogently than before.

Ali was a smart enough leader to know when to defer to her crew.  It was reason why she had never been 'shot from behind' when leading her team.  Celes knew what she was doing and Ali didn't want to think about how costly that education had been.  The guard simply nodded at Celes' words.  If he was smart, he would obey her orders.  But your average Imperial wasn't recruited for brains.

Grev was able to wring a few more bytes from the console and then pour it into a datapad.  The map was incomplete, outdated given Starfall's battered condition, and quite possibly corrupted.  But it was better than nothing.  And Blissex was beginning to awaken, slow as that was.  A round of applause emanated from DeeJay, "Your efforts are impressive, Mr. Longtooth, giving the console's incoherent conversation."

"The lack of droid chatter in general over the network is more disturbing, you are correct, TwoOneBee."

After working at the door panel for a few moments, Thuraya said, "It will take some muscle or maybe all of my lightsaber's charge to get through these doors.  And there will likely be more doors after that."

OOC:
1.  Grev has squeezed all that can be squeezed out of this computer console.
2. Three characters can make a combined Strength roll to get those doors open.

"Thank you."  Grev said laconically to Deejay.  Then scowled as the computer sparked out.  He had tried to commit the directions to memory, and the location of any engineering consoles along the way.  Then he approached the doors, driving his claws between their seems and pulled them apart.  His muscles tensing as they flexed agsinst the would-be stubbourn doirs.

15:50, Today: Grev Longtooth rolled 22 using 5 dice and +1 pips with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 6,6,{Wild}4,2,3.  Strength roll.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:56, Fri 16 Nov 2018.

Metal groaned and screamed like a frightened thing as Grev applied his strength.  It seemed he might do the job himself.

OOC:  Not quite there but Grev has more than accomplished half of what is needed.  Quick post as I have spare time and while we are waiting for other (likely?) Strength rolls. :-)

Shining her glowrod on the door, Celes could see Grev just needed some help. She got beside him and dropped to the ground, using her foot to brace and her hands to grab the door, glowrod set down so it shines on the scene. Once ready, she put her whole body into it.

[12:03, Today: Celes Varik rolled 24 using 3 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system.  Strength.

Oh man, now I'm regretting not pulling from the top bit where it shows the numbers. That's not half bad.]

There was a shriek of agonized metal as the doors finally slid apart under Celes' and Grev's gentle pressure.  And then there was another shriek as the air equalized between the now-revealed empty elevator shaft and the detention center.  Fortunately, the difference was slight and no one was either knocked over or, worse, sucked into the empty shaft.

The heroes could feel the downward pull of gravity on an outstretched arm.  The shaft was malfunctioning.  Its normal null gravity seemed to have defaulted to the ship's general downward gravity.  The darkness, up and down, extended beyond the glow rod's reach.  A dropped coin disappeared into the darkness, it's distant and delayed clink of landing indicated a fatal distance down.

"Up is Command Section which is a harder climb and likely more guarded, down is Engineering which is easier and probably less defended."  Blissex said before trailing off and staring away again.  A maintenance ladder ran up and down the visible distance of the shaft.  "Glad we found some rope."  Ali said.

OOC:  I think you have all the information you need and can probably find.  But let me know if there is something I missed.  Blissex will need help navigating the shaft putting the helper(s) in slightly more jeopardy.

Celes nodded to Ali, then turned to the rest of the crew.

"Grev, got Blissex? Deej, Bee. There's a ladder. Can you handle it? Shira, all set?"

“Yes ma’am!” Shira to Celes said with another salute. Perhaps the uniform had an effect on her. She holstered the imperial blaster and loaded and carefully checked the custom sporting blaster Celes had made for her. By now, she’d put away her recovered gear (including her blaze bug’s cage; she’d never forgive herself if the little guy got hurt) in a bag, and put on her blast vest and grave harness. “My blaster’s good to go, and so am I. Let me at ‘em!” she said with unearned confidence.

“Right, ‘Bee. I just wish I could do more to help mister Blissex” she said to her mechanical friend. She moved to help TwoOneBee with Blissex’s guidance. “Maybe I should have been a nurse or something.”

“Don’t worry, mister Blissex, we’ll get you out of here” she reassured him.

Shira shifted from foot to foot, embarrassed, as the others worked on the door. She’d just be a burden in such a strength-based task, but she felt embarrassed she couldn’t do anything to help. “Go team!” she offered.

“Down and engineering sounds better. I don’t like the idea of climbing up; and anyways, there’s nothing good in the command section. Command of what at this point? The ship's a mess. And we’d be more likely to encounter… him” she advised, staring into the darkness.

OOC:  If it helps, the goofy grav shoes Shira tried on at Bespin are available.  I assume y'all were able to find a reliable OFF switch and the shoes are quite comfortable.  Powered up, they may offer some wonky support.  It is up to Shira.

Feel free to roll Climbing/Jumping for all of the characters.  Is any character sacrificing a die or two to help Blissex up?  Ali will volunteer if no one else will.

Don't forget you have a rope to make a 'suicide pact' with.  It's a mountaineering term, if the right people stay on the mountain, they can help the wrong people back up. Otherwise, they all go...

OOC: I will post in a day or two.

[I've only got a 3D+2 to Climbing/Jumping, so I don't think I should really be volunteering to help Blissex. Pretty sure Grev's our best hope for not dropping the starchitect. I will, however, make sure that at least I'm tied to the droids, even if no one else is. They aren't built for ladders, and I don't plan on losing them.

22:16, Today: Celes Varik rolled 15 using 3 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system.  Climbing/Jumping.]

"You are doing a remarkable job Ms Shira.  Mr Blissex is responding to your gentle encouragement.  I believe you do have the capacity to learn the nursing profession, or perhaps even to become a doctor yourself.  There is no more important vocation, than to help others in need.  I will be more than happy to assist with your education...once we have extricated ourselves from our current dilemma of course."

OOC: 17:25, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 0 (1 excluding the wild die) using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of {Wild}1.  TwoOneBee attempts to climb.  LOL well I am not sure I could do much worse.

The old droid attempts to figure out the best way to deal with the ladder, allowing someone else to assist Walex Blissex.  Unfortunately he does not seem to be able to navigate the rungs and cannot even get off the ground!  Perhaps the Imperial restraining bolt has disabled my capacity to escape?  It would be very apropos for the Empire; they always have considered artifical life forms as property.

"Oh dear, I am afraid this will not end well, perhaps I should remain behind and ensure we are not followed?" he suggested apologetically.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:56, Tue 04 Dec 2018.

Shira smiled happily at TwoOneBee's compliments. "I'll try my hand at it when we get out of here."

But she looked unhappy when TwoOneBee suggested he remain behind, and she put her hands on her hips. "'Bee! Do you really think we'd leave you behind? You of all people ought to know better. We'll use a rope. Or maybe we can rig my hovershoes to help. We'll figure something out! Nobody gets left behind!"

OOC:  This is going to go south.  On the plus side, all of your action figures have suddenly gone up in price. :-)

Ali didn't mention her thoughts to the others.  Blissex might literally be dead weight to his helper.  So it would have to be her.  She tied the rope to herself and Blissex and began to climb.  Thuraya followed behind and then DeeJay behind her.

23:50, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 2 (3 excluding the wild die) using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}1,2))

23:52, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC DeeJay, rolled 0 (1 excluding the wild die) using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}1)).

23:53, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 13 using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((2,{Wild}6(+3))).

To her terror, Ali watched DeeJay and Thuraya fall as she somehow guided Blissex along the shaft.

00:05, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 11 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}4,1,6)).

00:07, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 2 (5 excluding the wild die) using 2 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}1,4)).

00:08, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC DeeJay, rolled 0 (1 excluding the wild die) using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}1)).

Celes was able to climb successfully but could only watch her friends fall.   TwoOneBee's shock caused his fingers to let go of the ladder's bar....

OOC:  I have handled this encounter badly.  Essentially, everyone who has failed their easy climbing roll, at this writing; TwoOneBee, DeeJay and Thuraya have to make a Easy Dex roll to be able to grab onto anything else before falling further.  Thuraya has made her Dex roll and DeeJay has failed.

Those who make the Easy Dex roll must then roll an Moderate Climbing/Jumping roll to hold on to what they have grabbed.  TwoOneBee needs to make that Easy Dex and then Moderate Climbing/Jumping roll to not fall.  DeeJay failed her Dex roll and Thuraya has failed her Moderate Climbing/Jumping roll.  By the module, they are falling to their deaths.

But there are Character Points and I will spend each character's CP as needed to save them.  If that fails, there are still options.

Thuraya will spend one Character point to add to her 2 for her failed Moderate Climbing/Jumping roll.

22:20, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 5 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}5)).

Her total so far is 7, still not quite enough.  She will spend a second CP.

22:21, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 4 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}4)).

This makes an 11, more than the 10 minimum, so Thuraya finally succeeds.

DeeJay spends CP #1 for her Easy Dex grabbing roll:

22:24, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC DeeJay, rolled 3 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}3)).

Not enough, CP #2 serving up...

22:25, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC DeeJay, rolled 5 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}5)).

DeeJay has finally grabbed for something successfully.  Now to roll her (gulp!) Moderate Climbing/Jumping check...

22:26, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC DeeJay, rolled 4 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}4)).
Not enough, paging CP #3...

22:27, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC DeeJay, rolled 2 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}2)).
Still not enough, fourth CP is the charm...
22:28, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC DeeJay, rolled 3 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}3)).
Arrgh!  So close, last CP up...
22:29, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC DeeJay, rolled 3 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}3)).

With her last character point, DeeJay manages to hang on.

With their last reserves and speed and strength, muscle or servos, Thuraya and DeeJay were able to catch themselves and hang on.

I need Climbing/Jumping rolls from Grev and Shira and an easy Dex roll from TwoOneBee.  Don't worry about saving others in your next post.  Save yourselves and there will time to save others in following posts.  You have more hope than you know.  Questions, just ask...


With their last reserves of speed and strength, DeeJay and Thuraya managed to grab hold of enough of the shaft to not fall.

The desperate old surgeon tries to stop himself from falling, but doesn't quite manage to do so.

OOC: 22:29, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 4 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of {Wild}4.  TwoOneBee Dex roll.

Well if I do have any character points, now would be the time to use them I'd wager or it will be a case of "Physician heal thyself :P"

OOC: TwoOneBee is only one away from making his roll so the simple expenditure of one Character Point will guarantee his success without even rolling. :-)

OOC:  Consider my CP point expended then.  Now I need a moderate climb roll, which I also only have 1d6 for, so I hope there's at least one more point stowed away in the good doctor's pockets, um compartments?  Anyway here goes:

10:10, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 5 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of {Wild}5.  TwoOneBee Climb roll 1d6.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:15, Fri 07 Dec 2018.

OOC:  TwoOneBee has made his Easy Dex with the simple expenditure of that CP point.  He needs five more to make his Moderate Climbing/Jumping roll.  This would be a time to spend some of your remaining four (if my math is right).

OOC:  TwoOneBee has made his Easy Dex with the simple expenditure of that CP point.  He needs five more to make his Moderate Climbing/Jumping roll.  This would be a time to spend some of your remaining four (if my math is right).

OOC: 02:34, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 0 (1 excluding the wild die) using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of {Wild}1.  TwoOneBee expends a CP to Climb.

02:34, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 5 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of {Wild}5.  TwoOneBee expends aother CP to Climb.

TOTAL EXPENDITURE 2CP and 1CP= 3CP (If my calculations are correct).

IF that means he is successful then use the following:

Scrabbling desperately to hang on, TwoOneBee finally manages to grasp a rung, clinging to it with his metallic digits and pulling himself back towards the ladder and bulkhead.  He knew his appendages were designed more for surgical accuracy than climbing, an unforseen flaw in his otherwise brilliant design.  He decided to consider an upgrade of his physical capabilities, if they survived their current predicament of course.



The old surgeon was both elated and puzzled by Ms Shira's reply.  His primary directive is to do no harm and preserve life, above all else, even at the cost of his own if needs demanded.  Yet following this essential programming had caused his friend some distress, and so might have paradoxically 'done harm' in the process without intention.  His psychoanalysis subroutine reminds him her anxiety is due to her concern for his welfare; a place of caring, for which he was very grateful.  Few droids ever had such understanding from their human (or aIien) companions.  Perhaps he had been remiss in telling her so.  He reminded himself to inform all his friends how important their relationships are to him.  Now, If only navigating a critically damaged starship could be so easily resolved.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:18, Tue 18 Dec 2018.

Grev climbed down the shaft, the rungs small for his large hands.  His ckaws digging into the walls.

08:07, Today: Grev Longtooth rolled 18 using 5 dice and +3 pips with the WEG Classic system.  Climbing/Jumping.
This message was last edited by the player at 13:11, Sun 09 Dec 2018.

10:42, Today: Shira rolled 12 using 2 dice and +1 pips with the WEG Classic system.  Climb.
That's about as well as I can do. Ghostling power!

OOC:  By my calculations (and please feel free to check my math), the brave TwoOneBee has still failed his roll.  Cold equations indeed.

The metal hands that had delivered so many children, replaced so much flesh with cyberware and had, too often, at least closed the eyes of the patients beyond any other care were never meant to do something so crude and forcefully.  The grip was lost and the noble medical droid fell into the endless darkness below...

Screams of shock and horror suddenly merged into a kind of palpable rumble, a turbulence in the air like a gathering storm.  Thuraya had reached a slender hand out towards her falling friend.  That hand shook, like her closed eyelids with the concentration needed.

22:41, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 8 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system ((1,5,{Wild}2)).

Falling, TwoOneBee felt buffeted, like an organ mishandled by a clumsy surgeon.  Yet, still he fell.

"No." Thuraya spat through clenched teeth, "No one else dies."

22:43, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 3 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}3)).

Haltingly, like a wounded bird, TwoOneBee fluttered to the nearest ladder and was able to easily and securely grab hold before his full weight returned with a gasp of exhaustion from Thuraya.

Like ripples in a pond, Thuraya's will and fear of loss spread outward.   In a distant maintenance corridor, Sundancer was glad to know that his padawan was at least alive at this moment.  Perhaps her companions were too.  But in the distance of his mind, he also sensed a distant rasp; the slight catching of a hunter's labored breath when it caught scent of its prey...

OOC:  All good.  Everyone is now safely climbing and heading down.  But at what cost...? ;-)

Celes reached out to catch Bee as he fell, but her reactions could only be so good. It was doubtful she could have held onto the ladder if she'd managed the feat anyway, but to her shock, the droid was slowed to a stop and gently brought to the ladder. Celes turned her amazement up to those above her and took a moment before speaking.

"Good work. Let's keep moving." It was pretty high praise, coming from Celes.

"Wow, this is a workout" Shira said, struggling to catch her breath even with the high-tech shoes. "Remind me not to travel this way again"

Still shaking from his ordeal, TwoOneBee clung to the ladder rungs, his optical receptors blinking in disbelief!  His circuits had nearly overloaded and forced the old droid into an emergency shut down.  It had all happened so quickly, it took him several seconds to process what had occurred and make sense of it.  Finally comprehending, his gaze came to rest on the young lady named Thuraya.

"This unit is grateful, Ms Thuraya."  he said simply, humbled by her use of her talents on his behalf.  He did not, and likely never would, understand the Force, but he had seen its effects.  That a human could care that much for a simple droid...

"I was nearly a heap of spare parts!  I shall not forget your kindness, young lady."  He lapsed into an awkward silence, uncertain what else he could say to express his gratitude.  With a final glance down the shaft, he quivered and slowly, carefully began to climb once more.

OOC: Thanks for the assist, Old Fossil.  I thought I had enough, evidently I counted incorrectly, my apologies.  I do appreciate the drama of the moment though, very Star Wars indeed!  I just hope the cost was not too high.

OOC:  Thuraya in character is very fond of TwoOneBee thinking that evil is the sole province of the living.  Feel free to check my math, the last d6 game I GM'ed was over a decade ago and my calculations might be rusty.

Thuraya smiled demurely at TwoOneBee, trying to hide her genuine affection for the old droid under a teenage bravado.  "Well, good docs are hard to find."
With much more care, the group slowly descended.  But the climb did seem easier somehow.  At one point, the still-befuddled Blissex simply jumped from one set of rungs to the other.  It would be difficult for even a young wookie to make that gap.  But the gasps of horror were still when Blissex missed the other rungs and simply floated in the air rather than dropping.

"Thuraya!" Ali barked, "Stop showing off."
But Thuraya simply laughed as all of the others began to float and drift effortlessly in the air.
"My powers are beyond your comprehension." She chuckled.  As Ali began to wonder just how to command a suddenly powerful Jedi, Thuraya said, "but the lights are probably a clue I have a little help."  Ali looked around and saw the increased lighting in this new section of shaft.
"The power is on in this section."

With the power restored, descending was quite easy.   Soon enough, the group was on the lopsided and crumpled top of the turbolift car that had recently taken the detention guards to their ends.

It was a gentle 'flight' from the top of the car to the horizontal shaft it now impeded.  Ahead of the crew was a closed set of doors, turbolift doors from the other side.  Once opened, the team could then move through them to a more conventional and likely less-dangerous corridor.  There was a lit and seemingly functional access panel next to the door.

In their delight, the heroes almost didn't notice the slight fluttering hair and clothing, the growing wind pushed along by some distant force...

OOC:
OK, you guys are almost out of this awful shaft.  If you can get to the panel, it will let y'all out without a roll.

But first, there is one approaching turbolift car that will pulverize you if it hits you.  To avoid it, you need to make a moderate Dexterity or Dodge roll or an easy Swim (Strength-based) roll.  In the zero-G, y'all can 'swim' like the astronauts aboard the International Space Station.

Go ahead and make your rolls.  If you fail, don't worry about it and don't spend any Character Points yet.  Wait until I reply.  Any questions, just ask.  It's good to be back! :-)

Once at the exit, Celes stayed by the door and ushered her team to her and through it, holding out her arm to pull each of the others to safety.

"Move it or lose it."

[Celes will be aiding anyone who wants to go through, likely starting with Bee.]

"Glad you're okay, 'Bee"
"This feels a little more like Datar" Shira said, fondly remembering the low gravity of her homeworld. "All the same, let's get out of here."
Shira stifled a scream as the turbolift came down on them, and tried to scamper to safety.

12:11, Today: Shira rolled 16 using 4 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 6,{Wild}3,5,2.  Dodge.

Ali and Thuraya tried to leap and swim away from the approaching turbolift car.

20:31, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 2 (6 excluding the wild die) using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system.  Dodging Turbolift.
20:32, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 6 using 2 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system.  Dodging Turbolift.

DeeJay sighed with a thousand virtual throats, a droid's work was never done.  But the sigh wasn't one desperation, more of a consternation.

20:34, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC DeeJay, rolled 5 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system.  dodging turbolift.

The three heroes floated helplessly as the turbolift rushed to pulp them...

Despite this, don't roll any saving throws yet.  I am waiting for a few players to make the rolls for their character.  No pressure, the True Maker knows I am one to talk about speed.   After a time, I will post the next events regardless...

02:21, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 15 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}4,6,5)) Dodge.  At least this time it's a skill I have more than one die in :-)

As if things could not be worse, the old droid barely had time to appreciate his narrow escape from falling, before his sensors registered the oncoming turbo lift!  He tries to dodge out of the way (not relishing the idea of continued existence as a flattened can) and hopes this time to have more success.
This message was last edited by the player at 08:35, Sat 12 Jan 2019.

The turbolift bore down on the floating heroes.  With no other option, DeeJay sent out a digital appeal in Binary.  The turbolift, relegated to a service life of sliding up and down shafts saw no reason to shirk its sacred duties just because of some litter in its shaft, favored DeeJay with a raspberry of static.

The other reply was almost buried in the noise but DeeJay caught it anyway.  "I wasn't talking to you." She said to the bloated turbolift.  She moved and mimed squinting at an otherwise featureless part of the shaft.  There was a whoosh and a hum as a lightsaber blade erupted from DeeJay's forehead.  The cranial modifications TwoOneBee had inferred earlier were now mostly explained.  The blade was guided to where the maintenance circuitry had told DeeJay would be for maximum effect.  The rather simple computer had forgotten security protocols in the chaos of the attack.  But DeeJay assured it she wasn't one to chat and tell.

There were sparks and smoke where the tip of the lightsaber fished out in the darkness.  The lights went out, the gravity turned off but slowly enough that only a few fundaments (and corresponding dignities) were bruised.  And the turbolift ground to a halt before the team over a shower of red sparks.

The Jedi weapon no longer needed, DeeJay leaned her forehead forward and the saber slipped out.  DeeJay grabbed the hilt and shut off the blade, offered the deactivated weapon to her crew.  "Rebels are used to 'liberating' gear in the field but lightsabers are harder to acquire.  Master Sundancer thought an extra would not go amiss."

"He could have just told us.  Didn't he trust us?"  Thuraya said.

"He trusted your intentions but the more innocent of minds are easy reading for the Darker Side of the Force."

Thuraya didn't say anything further.  If opposed Force-users were an expected part of the mission, sometimes the Rebels couldn't be told, lest their minds leak the truth to Sith eavesdroppers.  The War could be even grimmer some days the others.

There was another hiss but of releasing foam this time as the tiny cartridge of flame-retardant foam also in DeeJay's forehead spread to cool the red-hot circle in her forehead where the saber's blade had emerged.

"Please excuse me while my overheated brain cools down..."  And then DeeJay slumped over, eyes dark.  Blissex caught, now with an almost normal animation.

Almost as anti-climax, there was enough power to route to the corridor door and open them.  The door was dark enough and empty.  It seemed the team would have a few moments to plan their next actions outside of this shaft...

OOC:  The team now has possession of another lightsaber, possibly superfluous now.  Having her own already, Thuraya would recommend someone else takes the new lightsaber.  It is useful as a tool as well as a weapon.

DeeJay will be shut down for a time but will reactivate when she cools off.  Until then, she is a 1D penalty to some actions for whoever carries her.

The team can easily be in the corridor now with a few minutes of peace (GM's Honor) to discuss their next actions.

Questions, just ask...

Celes was fully prepared to throw herself back into harm's way to pull the others to safety, but DeeJay had come prepared. A hum and a swish, and Celes watched as the corridor went from floating death trap to relative safety. Then the gravity returned to standard, leaving her spinning to land properly: on her back, slamming her fists into the ground beside her to disperse energy. She got up with a grunt, immediately went to Shira to make sure she was okay (as a fall like that could kill her), asked Bee to look her over just to make sure, and then ensured everyone got safely into the next corridor. This included helping both the unconscious (deactivated?) DeeJay as well as Blissex himself.

"How're you holding up?" Even as she waited on an answer from Blissex, Celes glanced at the lightsaber, then motioned to Shira.

Shira screamed as the elevator descended, they looked embarrassed as Dee saved them. "Wow! Way to go, Dee!" she said enthusiastically when the droid saved their lives. Her next words were lost in a squeak of fright and an unhappy yelp as the gravity came back on.
"I wouldn't say no to a nap either" Shira said when Dee turned off. The poor Ghostling wasn't broken, but she was definitely feeling the high-gravity exercise. "It turns out rescues are pretty painful. Lucky I was wearing this helmet."
She climbed to her feet slowly and when over to Celes when the hunter indicated. "I will live to fight another day, but I'm real lucky I'm friends with a medical droid." Her gaze went with wonder to the lightsaber.

A quick check of DeeJay's condition revealed the the protocol droid could likely be safely rebooted in a hour or so although the hole in her head was a bit disconcerting.  To Celes' inquiry, Blissex said with a grim lucidity.  "How do I feel?  The daughter I once sang lullabies to I now know is an utter monster.  And I am now clear-headed to comprehend that without the mercies of denial or rationalization.  I guess that is sanity indeed." But in a moment, Blissex's expression softened and he said gently, "Forgive me, Ms. Varik.  I forgot you are not who I truly want answers from."

Closing his eyes, Blissex moved his head back and forth.  It seemed a step backwards in his recovery until the others realized, as his closed eyes seemed to stop when 'gazing' at any door or functional break with the otherwise smooth corridor, that Blissex was tracking their progress against the photographically-recalled plans of the mighty ship.  His eyes opened and he spoke with the confidence of a prophet.

“We are in an access corridor just above the engineering section. I believe that we can find a computer terminal in one of the work stations. It should be a simple matter to get into the computer and determine just what we are up against. What do the rest of you think?”

A terrific explosion suddenly interrupted the crew as a turbolift car crashed into the other recently grounded turbolift car.  It was practically certain death depending on what side of the turbolift doors you were on.   And, finally, the team was on the right side.  Ali simply hit the door switch and the doors closed on the rushing fire and force, leaving only a muffled boom through the doors.  And then the corridor was silent again...

Cutaway:

OOC:  Yippee!  I finally get to use dialouge and cutaways from the adventure.

Grev kept watch in the corridor, his modified stormtrooper blaster ready.  "The sooner we gain control of Engineering, the better."  He growled out lowly.

Events were moving so quickly, it was a challenge to process it all.  Luckily TwoOneBee was one of the most advanced series of droid's ever designed!  Even so DeeJay using a lightsaber was, admittedly, not something he could have predicted.  When his friend unexpectedly powered off he moved to support her, knowing the others would keep an eye on Mr Blissex. The protocol droid was 'special' to the old med bot and her well being was a priority to him.

Consequently, it surprised TwoOneBee when Walex Blissex spoke.  He was recovering quickly it seemed, which was a very good sign.  Humans response to treatment could be quite tricky to predict, their metabolisms were so individualized.  Still he was getting better, at least physically, which pleased the doctor.  His psychological well being would be a much longer and more complicated endeavour, but that would have to wait until the current crisis had passed.

"I agree, Mr Grev.  I believe I can reinitialize DeeJay's primary functions if I have access to a droid docking station, which should be present in the ship's engineering.  It would be much more efficient if we had access to an astromech droid as well.  It is highly unusual that we have not encountered a single unit so far.  Still we must do the best we can with the resources available."

Turning to Mr Blissex, he addressed him directly.  "It is excellent to see you awake and responsive once again, Mr Blissex.  If you feel well enough to direct us to the Engineering section it would doubtless expedite our trip, and time does seem to be a priority at the moment."

At Ms Celes' urging he offered the Ghostling a quick bio-scan.  "I do not detect any serious issues, Ms Shira.  Considering what we have already been through I find that quite remarkable and, frankly, a great relief."

Leaning a bit closer in order to allow more privacy he added: "I do believe you should be the guardian of our 'spare' lightsaber Ms Shira.  You are the most logical one to keep it and I have utmost faith you will use it responsibly."  He blinked his right optical receptor, essentially winking at her.

Assisting Celes with the now deactivated DeeJay, TwoOneBee followed the rest, hopeful they could make Engineering without further delay.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:31, Fri 08 Feb 2019.

Celes listened to Blissex's assessment of his situation patiently, though her dispassionate glare might seem much less patient to a stranger. Years of experience had given her resting-murder-face.

"Rough day. Glad you've got your eyes open. Most would suspect their kid of being under some kind of duress. You'll be fine when the pain crystallizes into power."

She then nodded to Blissex's suggestion and looked to the Captain Ali.

"The ship might survive this damage. With Vader on board, I suggest we make sure it doesn't. Engineering's the place for that. Escape isn't our only priority here."

"I'm sorry mister Blissex." Shira said comfortingly. "It's another thing the Empire will have to answer for."

"I'm decent with security systems, so that might help when we are in Engineering" she volunteered
She squeaked again as the new turbolift car exploded. Her nerves were really getting quite frayed in this place.

"Someone will have to carry DeeJay until we can get her fixed. I don't think I have the strength."

Shira brightened at 'Bee's compliment. "Wow, that would be an honor. I'd take really good care of it, I swear I would." Shira replied, one hand over her heart.


"Planning on blowing up the ship seems pretty ambitious under the cirumstances, boss." she said to Celes. "But I shall follow."

Blissex looked at the assembled heroes and was grateful for their understanding.  He seemed to stroke the nearest section of corridor.  "Yes. We must stop this ship."  He paused for a moment, "They weren't built to oppress the Galaxy, you know.  Not at first."  Ali nodded quietly, knowing the old man was talking about more than the ship.

She instead checked on DeeJay's condition.  Being a leader, she knew her crew were already attending to that task like true professionals.  Being a leader, she checked anyway.  There was a small temperature display and clock inside the droid's largely empty head, the old chatterbox should be cooled enough within the hour.

They moved on, fully prepared for the Imperial forces they expected to find.  But the corridors were empty.  Soon enough, they came across a viewport.  Thuraya whooped with joy when she saw distant X-Wings spitting turbolasers bolts unopposed by the usual TIE fighters.  "Yippee!  Go Us!"  There were slight shocks and shudders, the lights flickered momentarily in the next instant.  "Oh, wait.  They are shooting at us!"

It was one more reason to move quickly.  Blissex had now led the group to a set a blast doors unerringly as if the entire ship had been glass.

“Behind this blast door we will find a staircase leading down into one of the smaller sublight propulsion units. From there, if the damage isn’t severe, we should be able to find a computer work station that we can borrow. But first we must get this blast door open, and I am not very good with security programs.”

OOC:  Yay! I get to use some more quotes from the module.  Given the empty nature of the corridors, it isn't so important for now as to who carries DeeJay.  From what we saw of the disassembled Threepio in Episode V, it doesn't look a protocol droid, whole or otherwise, is that heavy.  Of course, it was a wookie carrying him.

Anyone can roll Computer Programming (easier) or Security (harder) to get through the door.  In this case, there is no penalty for failing except the doors won't open and time passes (why is that important?  why has the soundtrack changed? ;-)  ) So each character can try to open the doors repeatedly until one succeeds.

The old doctor shakes his durasteel head and steps back from the panel.  "This system is very obstinate, not to mention rude.  It actually told me return to the medbay where I belong!  I'm afraid I'm getting nowhere with it, I'm truly sorry."

TwoOneBee really was sincere.  It was very unusual for him to fail at anything, and it was always an awful thing for a droid to disappoint his carbon units.  He found himself grateful DeeJay was currently inactive and couldn't record this moment.  He looked over at her and scanned her systems for the fifteenth time.  They had to get to engineering!  Where were the astromech droids when they were actually needed?


01:16, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 6 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 1,{Wild}3,2.  Computer Programming roll.

Yep I'm not sure I could get a more abysmal roll if I tried.  Sorry all :-(
This message was last edited by the player at 16:21, Thu 28 Feb 2019.

Between them all, the door lock didn't have a chance.  The doors shuddered aside as if in warning.

A burst of hot air forced the team back. A twisted metal staircase that descended into a raging inferno! The large area beyond the blast door was a sublight propulsion unit shaft, and the cylindrical sublight engine itself was burning. But it appeared that the staircase could be used to reach a suspended catwalk which opened onto a work station.

"More climbing and jumping."  Ali said in dismay.  "We were lucky to not lose anyone just a few moments ago in the turbolift shaft.  But I don't know how long our luck can last."

After a moment of self-pity, the Captain in Ali reasserted itself.  "Very well, DeeJay, TwoOneBee and Doctor Blissex are not in the best shape for this."  It was not insulting to recognize a droid's poor responses to situations they were not designed for but Blissex had a more fragile human ego.  "Uh, given the drugs running through the his system."  Ali said quickly.

"DeeJay can be quickly disassembled and placed on the back of one of our stronger climbers.  Doctor Blissex and TwoOneBee can be tied by syntherope to me at the very least.  Given the extra risk, I can't order others to take that risk but I think I can ask."

OOC:  The game is lagging a bit.  So I am going to assume that someone makes the roll to speed things up a bit.  There was no real penalty besides time if y'all failed anyway and a lightsaber is the best lockpick ever invented.  To be honest, this is another climbing and jumping encounter that West End Games loves (to be fair, so do the movies) and, this time, with so many depleted character points, it will likely be lethal to some characters through no fault of their own.  So I will be running this encounter a little differently.  For now, let the more agile characters decide who will or will not be 'tied' to the, er, somewhat less nimble.  We will go from there.

“When the Alliance restores the Republic, we’ll put these ships to a more virtuous use” Shira said confidently to Blissex. In spite of the dangerous situation, she giggled a little at Thuraya. “Calm down, kid” she said hypocritically, being rather excitable and hardly mature herself.
“Let me at it, ‘Bee! I’ll show that jerk of a security system whose boss!” Shira exclaimed. She worked at the door panel. Shira’s planet was not very advanced, but she’d turned out to have a bit of a knack for security systems.  She gasped when the door opened and she beheld the inferno. “This would be a lot easier to deal with if everyone didn’t set their gravity so darn high."


01:31, Today: Shira rolled 15 using 4 dice with the WEG Classic system.  Security.

Thanks to Shira's nimble fingers and even more nimble mind, it was easy to open the blast doors to be met with the hot breath of the inferno waiting within.  It was a misery to travel through the cooler parts of such a firepit but, eventually, the team was able to find a working computer terminal without injuries or, Deity forbid, fatalities.

The screen flickered with static but the letters were still legible.  Blissex sheepishly admitted that starship design, not computers, were his strong suit...

The game has been slowing down (I mean, more than usual) so I am moving things along a bit.  The climbing and jumping through a fiery engine section isn't that much more different than climbing and jumping down a busted turbolift shaft.  So I am helping the game progress.  A simple Computer Operation roll should make the computer reveal its secrets...

More than a little shaken by their trek through and around the hellish engine compartment, TwoOneBee was indeed grateful a momentary respite and another computer terminal.  Eager to succeed after his recent failures, he stepped up and began tapping out the sequences stored in his data processors from his time aboard a star destroyer.  With any luck this computer would be a bit more cooperative.

OOC: 23:42, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 12 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 4,{Wild}2,6.  Computer Programming/Operation roll 3d.

I for one, am perfectly okay with fast forwarding that part Old Fossil lol.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:13, Sun 17 Mar 2019.

TwoOneBee would have made an astromech droid proud.  The monitor screen stabilized but the onlookers almost wished it hadn't

https://imgur.com/Me8gcJC

"Oh, no!" Ali said redundantly.  Had DeeJay been functional, she would noticed the Twi'lek's lekku singing a prayer for the dead.

Yay!  My first linked picture, straight from the module.  It will be a blast (literally)! :-)

"Goodness" Shira said softly. "That's not what I was hoping for. Not. At. All."

"Nothing's really changed" she said with a confidence she definitely didn't feel. "We needed to escape before and we still need to. 'Bee, can that computer tell us where to find an escape pod or starship?"

They almost had wished the monitor screen had stayed broken but the printout was quite clear.  The Subjugator was now set to self-destruct in three hours.  With more urgency, TwoOneBee's now extended computer operation obtained a list of where escape pods and shuttles were an hour ago before the recent damage.

“No one knows the working of this ship better than I do,” explains Blissex. “1 can manipulate the destruct mechanism to explode one hour earlier than the Imperials expect. That should take out the remaining crew and this vessel, while still providing us with enough of a buffer to reach the hangar bays and escape. Follow me.”

OOC:  Yay! I get to use more dialogue from the module...

Celes gave a sharp nod to Shira, then looked back to the prison guard they'd kept with them.

"We can't save everyone, but we can save you. Come on." With that, she followed beside Blissex, fully prepared to defend him if need be.

The good doctor followed along behind his fellow rebels, doing his best to keep up.  He found himself quite conflicted about the fate of the Subjugator's crew.  His primary programming demanded he preserve other life at all costs.  Celes was accurate in her assessment of their current circumstances however; they did not have the time, or resources to save everyone.  TwoOneBee was instead forced to prioritize, as Celes had, to work to save those he could.  He turned his optical receptors towards the still deactivated form of DeeJay, then back to his companions.

"Affirmative Ms Shira, I have attempted to download all pertinent data concerning the location and function of this ship's escape craft.  I should point out that we are significantly decreasing our odds of success by reducing the destruct sequence."

OOC:  GM do you need another computer programming roll for 21-B to record the data I mentioned?
This message was last edited by the player at 06:33, Fri 29 Mar 2019.

“Oh!” Shira reacted, a little shocked when Blissex took the lead. “Lead on sir, we’ll protect you.”
She checked her blaster. “Thank you, ‘Bee! We’ll make it. We’re the best!” she chirped enthusiastically.

The captured Imperial simply nodded meekly at Celes' words.  But Blissex did hear TwoOneBee's warning.  "Of course, I certainly don't want to go against the group.  In my opinion, there is a thin margin between giving us enough time to escape and preventing the crew of Subjugator from recovering enough to hunt us down in addition to repairing their ship.  But I'm an not in the most rational of states currently."

Perhaps Blissex would have said more but the group all heard a kind of digital space shanty approaching distantly, a cheerful binary aria.   With a whirr and a flicker of eyelights, DeeJay resumed functioning as her hour of cooldown was almost up.  "That is a MSE 'Mouse' droid, singing a happy tune.  It is pleased with its new mission."

"We haven't seen any droids in these deserted corridors, or any crew for that matter.  What is this merry straggler doing?" Ali asked.

OOC:  As I may have mentioned before, captured Imperials don't generally put up much resistance probably to speed up story-telling.  It could be that rebellion against authority isn't something the Emperor wants in his troops.

The module assumes you will go with Blissex's plan which implies it has a chance of working (among other options).  But Blissex won't force the issue and neither will I.

DeeJay now seems completely active although with a hole in her head.  You might remember the mouse droid as the chirpy little robot Chewbacca scared away while on the Death Star in A New Hope.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:30, Wed 10 Apr 2019.

DeeJay you're awake!  Er, that is I am pleased to see you are functional once more.  We, that is our companions, have certainly missed you.  We, that is they, have been bereft without your unique programming and protocol skills.  Whatever is this silly MSE droid chirping about a new mission?  Well no matter, will you ask it to disregard its previous orders and assist us please?  We need to reach the escape pods; it's an emergency."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:46, Mon 15 Apr 2019.

"Hang on, it's a messenger. Deej, what's its mission? Can always use intel."

"Dee, welcome back!" Shira said happily.
Shira knelt near the mouse droid. "It's cute!" It wasn't a helpful observation, but it was what she was thinking.

"TwoOneBee, it is good to see you!  And the rest of my organic friends.   Ah, that is, I am glad the Rebellion is not without its investment in circuitry and equipment."  Self-indulgence was not becoming a droid and DeeJay quickly became more modest.

Quickly appraised of the situation, she said, "I will translate for the tiny droid."  And then she replied in a tinny, chirpy voice that mimicked the little mouse droid's song.

"Record, Report, Yay!  Record, Report, Yay!..."

Back to her normal voice, DeeJay said, "I can translate programming commands to it but I am not skilled in such things..."

OOC:  Anyone can make a Computer Programming roll which DeeJay will translate into Binary to try and turn the little mouse droid.  Normally programming a hostile droid would not be that easy but the mouse droids are so simple, subtlety and secrecy are really above them (as is most everything).

TwoOneBee tried to recall what he knew of programming the simpler class five droids.  This one might come in useful.  Besides, if they survived, he knew his organic companions would be much kinder to it than its current Imperial masters.

DeeJay can use please translate the following commands?

06:35, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 15 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system ((3,1,{Wild}6(+5)))
This message was last edited by the player at 12:40, Sat 27 Apr 2019.

"Aww, DeeJay, we're glad to have you back with us." Shira said.
She giggled at the translated words of the droid. "The mouse droid seems cheerful. A droid after my own heart."

She offers some suggestions, trying to help TwoOneBee.

01:29, Today: Shira rolled 13 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 1,3,{Wild}6(+3).  Technical.

"Ooo." The tiny droid said, through DeeJay, as the ventilated protocol droid translated the programming commands suggested by her team mates.  "Another voice in thinking. Bigger words, should listen."

And with that, the little mouse droid simply awaited commands...

OOC:  The roll to fix the MSE droid is not difficult and it will now obey your commands as best its two-volt brain will allow...

Celes glances from DeeJay to the little droid, then to the doctor.

"Can you get it to deliver its report to us?" Then she looked to Shira.

"If you want to keep it, you're going to have to charge it and clean up after it."

"Thank you very much for the assistance, Ms Shira.  I admit I had no idea you were so skilled with robotics.  Its quite a valuable skill to have actually.  As far as the mouse droid's demeanor, I suppose it seems happy enough, although they are somewhat...limited in their understanding of course."

The doctor's attention turned to Celes as she regarded the little droid.

"Ms Celes, to be fair, it seems crude to continue to refer to this droid as 'it', so I propose we choose a more suitable designation; perhaps simply MSE or Mouse or something similar?  As for the unit's upkeep I shall be more than happy to assist with those responsibilities, and I should think DeeJay might like to as well.  I believe Emessee will prove very useful indeed and be no trouble at all."

Glancing now at DeeJay, TwoOneBee attempted to do as Celes had asked.

"DeeJay please translate the following to our friend: MSE you will state previous assignment."

OOC: I keep thinking Shira will decide the droid is female, call her Essie and put a pink bow on her chassis :P

DeeJay nodded to TwoOneBee and then said to the newly christened-Emessee, "MSE you will state previous assignment."

"Previous Assignment." said the very literal little droid.

DeeJay cursed in static, adding a few biological permutations to TwoOneBee's already extensive database.  Ali 'smirked' with her lekku.

With some complicated rephrasing, Emessee seemed to understand better.   "Record and report to troopers waiting down hall..."

OOC:  Feel free to gender Emessee if y'all wish.  Although neither DeeJay or Emessee have a holoprojector, DeeJay can learn there are some stormtroopers waiting around the corner of an intersection further along your path.

"Aww" Shira said with a pout when Celes told her she'd have to take care of the mouse droid.

"To tell the truth, 'Bee, I didn't realize I was so good myself! But I do enjoy working with technology. There's nothing like that back home on Datar, it's so fascinating"

Shira patted the mouse droid on the head. "Emessee's a sweetie".

"Oh, troopers!" Shira readied her blaster. "I'd prefer to bluff or trick them, but I don't know that we have time for that."

"Well Ms Shira, perhaps we can use the information Emessee has given us to our advantage?  If our new droid friend were to inform those troopers there was an emergency down the hall and they should follow at once, it might be possible to lead them into an ambush?"

TwoOneBee looked at his, far more martially inclined, companions meaningfully.

"Oh! That's a brilliant idea!" Shira exclaimed. She looked around and took cover so she'd have a good firing position if they ambushed the troopers. "Can you take care of that, 'Bee?"

As Shira patted Emessee's head (or at least, the usually forward-moving end of the insectile droid), TwoOneBee's idea was put to DeeJay for translation.  "Our little new friend can barely convey the truth, so a lie will actually be no real effort."  She was also simulataenously buzzing in binary to the eager MSE droid.

With an exultant digital whoop at having something to do rather than to listen to, Emessee shot forward to carry out such a big mission for a little droid.

*Bonk*

A little further along, Emessee shot forward to carry out such a big mission for...

*Bonk*

Still further along, Emessee shot forward to...

*Bonk*

DeeJay sighed, "I had to borrow a little memory for navigation to give the little wheeled abacus some imagination."

OOC:  A little post to keep the game warm for Celes' return...

The doctors optical receptors flashed white, as if he'd rolled them upwards, then he walked forwards and tried to guide the little mouse droid in the right direction.  He knew he dared not venture too far though, and he soon returned to his companions, shaking his metal head.

"He's actually doing remarkably well, considering he's a series five after all."
This message was last edited by the player at 03:47, Sun 02 June 2019.

Shira giggled at the mouse droid's misadventure, they promptly tried to pretend she hadn't. "Come on little guy, you can do it!" she encouraged the droid. "Or girl? I hadn't considered that"

Emessee was pleased with the new masters, kindness was so much nicer than commands.  Whirling, whirling and whirling towards a straight line, the little droid was stopped by a backwards kick from a white-booted foot.

"Report!"

"Evil Rebel Friends are nearby but NOT at these exact coordinates."  Emessee was quite pleased with this lying, it was like making little realities in your own cortex.   By specifying the exact coordinates the new Rebel friends were not at, there was no way the shelled meanies would ever find them.

The tech who now in charge of a squad of stormtroopers by sheer dint of knowing the binary patios of MSE droids cried out in triumph, "Ha!  The rebels have reprogrammed this little insect but its tiny brain has instead revealed the truth.  We now know exactly where to place the crossfire."

Emessee squeaked in horror at the human's ineffable brilliance, the friends were now in danger.   It was time for a heroic charge. Rollers screeching, Emessee made a suicidal charge at the tech's ankles, intending a glorious and courageous death.

After a few seconds of boot scuffing, the tech picked up the droid and tucked Emessee under his arm, spinning rollers and binary profanity to no avail...

OOC: Sigh, Emessee really does mean well.   I'll give you guys a reply before the fireworks.

Celes waited in cover by Shira, lights off and blaster at the ready as the troopers approached. With any luck, she'd be able to get the drop on them, even with them knowing they're walking into a trap.

TwoOneBee took a position beside Captain Ali, intending to hide behind her or Thuraya if things got out of hand (which was more often than not in the Doctor's experience).   He knew he would be of limited use against armoured troopers, but if there were other less well defended opponents he might be able to tase or inject them.  He readied both programs just In case.

Sparing a quick glance towards DeeJay he felt the usual pulse of electricity whenever she was near.  He was sure she experienced the same trepidation at such moments as he did, but he wasn't sure how to ease her concerns.  Accessing his psychology subroutine, he discovered an appropriate gesture of encouragement and blinked one optical receptor to her; it was as close to a 'wink' as he could approximate.  Hopefully Emessee had convinced the troopers and was still okay.  The little droid had showed surprising courage...or it was too obtuse to grasp the danger, TwoOneBee wasn't sure which.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:11, Sat 15 June 2019.

Celes prepared herself for the coming battle.  DeeJay sent a binary EKG of a healthy heartbeat to TwoOneBee as a gesture of affection in return to his wink.

Elsewhere...

"I've known too many chittering little MSE droids.  You are enjoying yourself more than reprogramming alone would justify.  You are too independent, a born rebel.   Take heart that your tiny brain has doomed your allies, take that bitter truth with you to the nearest trash compactor."

Emessee thought this tech was a real ....meanie but the trash compactor was deserved for letting the friends down.  Perhaps the Maker would understand in the end.

The troopers and their weapons were in position,  the tech gave the order, "Fire!"

The squads turned their weapons around the corridor and fired death and destruction down the intersection, which was empty.

"What?!" The tech was dumbstruck. The little droid didn't really have the capacity to lie.  Emessee whistled with joy and incomprehension, not realizing that their honesty was much better than their navigation and an honest mistake had worked better than any lie.

A few intersections past the failed trap, the heroes saw many stormtroopers moving rifles and heavy weapons now correcting their mistake and taking aim at them.  It was easy enough to gain some cover from by ducking slightly into a closer intersection.

Thuraya's Jedi intuition saw it first, a wall panel between them and their opponents that would close intervening blast doors, separating her friends from their enemies.  It would take the troopers too long to reopen the doors once a lightsaber or blaster worked on the panel after closing.  They would all get free, all but that silly little droid.  And what was a deluded roller skate against the mission?

She remembered something Master Sundancer once said, 'We are all revealed by how we treat the smallest of us, not the biggest.'

"I can close the blast doors from here but give me a little cover while I save Emessee."

With a gesture, she began to pull the light droid with the Force.   The tech did not understand why the droid was leaving his arms but the attraction was not a strong one and easily held back by a slight use of muscle...

OK, in the module, the stormtroopers get to shoot at you from multiple directions until one characters can make it to wall panel and close as many blast doors as necessary.  But a simple telekinesis roll should do the trick and I don't want to penalize you for having the good sense to have a padawan in your team.

Thuraya needs to make two successful TK rolls, one to free MSE and bring the little droid to your side of the closing blast doors and then another roll to remotely close the blast doors using the wall panel.

This is not difficult as Emessee is so light but Thuraya is not powerful enough to overcome the simple strength of the tech holding Emessee is likely beyond her slight ability with the Force.

The tech could simply duck behind cover and prevent this but will take at least one round to comprehend how much danger he is in, briefings on Jedi are not generally given to the lower ranks in the Imperial army.  So you have one round to blast the tech (who has some cover) and then Thuraya can work her magic.

But these are just my suggestions.  Let me know what you think.

Ah, I have just rolled initiative for Ali, who I believe has the highest Perception.  It did not go well.


00:11, Today: That Old Fossil rolled 4 (4 excluding the wild die) using 4 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}1,1,1,1)).

There will be a complication later.

00:14, Today: That Old Fossil rolled 5 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system ((1,{Wild}4)).  OK, incredibly, the shellheads have Initiative.  I suggest you Dodge and take cover around the corner of the intersection.   Any who wish can simply stay out of the line of fire this round (but of course cannot then return fire).  There are six troopers who will be firing at you with rifles, they are at 15 to hit because of their cover.  The tech will not do anything but hold onto Emessee this round.

Questions, let me know.

Celes ducked behind some cover, waiting for just the right moment to fire on the stormtroopers. It turned out "just the right moment" was "as soon as Thuraya stuck her head out and until she took cover again", doing her absolute best to keep the troopers either pinned or focused on where the shots were coming from.

[Dodging and blasting!

14:12, Today: Celes Varik rolled 12 using 4 dice with the WEG Classic system.  Blaster 5D -1D.
14:12, Today: Celes Varik rolled 13 using 4 dice with the WEG Classic system.  Dodge 5D -1D.

Well, they aren't likely to hit me, but I didn't get my target, either.]

Shira followed Celes' lead with a battle cry that was somewhere between what she wanted it to sound like and a scream of panic.

23:03, Today: Shira rolled 8 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 3,1,{Wild}4.  Dodge 4D -1D.
23:03, Today: Shira rolled 13 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system.  Blaster 4D -1D.

Blissex took cover, he knew his skills were not in combat but it still hurt to be so defensive.

Ali fired one shot.

She just missed as well. 23:19, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 14 using 3 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((6,{Wild}3,3)).

Thuraya realized her feeble skills could not break that grip.   There was another way, she thought.  Just move up and choke the tech's throat.  But her Master had always warned her against such cold murder.  It would lead to the Dark Side.  "Fine.  I will take the higher path by reaching a little lower."  Thuraya moved her hands a little lower than direct sight to their new little droid friend and mentally squeezed.

The tech gasped and let go of Emessee, who then was carried by the Force to the young padawan's hand.  "Look at it this way, at least you will have a story to tell your grandchildren." She yelled to the gasping tech.  "And be glad you might still have grandchildren."

The six troopers fired...
Two at Celes
23:56, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Celes Shot 1, rolled 11 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}3,5,3)).
23:56, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Celes shot 2, rolled 19 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}6(+2),6,5)).
23:59, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Celes' damage, rolled 15 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system ((2,{Wild}2,3,4,4)).
Two at Ali
00:00, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali Shot 1, rolled 14 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system ((6,{Wild}5,3)).
00:01, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali Shot 2, rolled 15 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}6(+3),2,4)).
00:02, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali damage, rolled 20 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system ((5,4,{Wild}5,2,4)).
00:03, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali Resists, rolled 12 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}3,6,3)).
and
Two at Shira
00:04, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Shira's shot 1, rolled 13 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system ((1,{Wild}5,2,4,1)).
00:05, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Shira shot 2, rolled 24 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system ((2,5,6,6,{Wild}5)).
00:07, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Shira Damage, rolled 15 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system ((2,1,{Wild}5,5,2)).

Ouch, very brutal, three heroes hit.  They did not shoot at Thuraya as she was only using her 'hands' and they didn't expect actual Force powers.  They won't make that mistake again.  But Thuraya will spend what points she has to make the roll needed to remotely close the blast doors.  And the odds are that you will win initiative this time.

Questions, just ask.

It all happened so quickly, Thuraya's force trick, Emessee's subsequent rescue, and then the tumultuous blaster fight that followed.  TwoOneBee traced each bolt that impacted his friends, ready to assist them if needed, readying a med pac for that very purpose.  He found himself surprisingly relieved that the brave little mouse droid was safe.

Looking over to the blast doors, he wished he'd been equipped for speed, so he could close them off before he was bombarded with blaster fire.  He could, however, instantly calculate how slim the odds of success would be and decided against such a reckless course of action.  If any of his organic companions were injured, they would need him.  That was his priority, his purpose.  Droids were not built for heroics after all.

This is why he was so surprised to find himself walking towards the blast doors.

OOC: If needed, TwoOneBee will apply a medpac or otherwise assist his companions if at all possible, assuming he survives his reckless endeavor.
This message was last edited by the player at 08:54, Sun 30 June 2019.

To help spur things along, I am going to roll the Initiative for next round which by all right you should win (but then I could have said that last round).

00:01, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali Initiative, rolled 20 using 4 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}5,6,5,2)).

00:02, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Enemy Initiative, rolled 0 (4 excluding the wild die) using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}1,3)).

OK, this time you have won Initiative and Thuraya will use her Force powers to TK the blast door controls...

00:04, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya's TK, rolled 2 (9 excluding the wild die) using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system ((6,{Wild}1,2)).

$#!+!!!!  Fine!  Thuraya spends her last character point to close that blasted blast door.

00:07, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya CP, rolled 4 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}4)).

The blast door finally closes separating all of the heroes from the stooges.  You are save but if you want to spend your actions on the enemy this round (and then Thuraya closes the door), you can with impunity.
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:09, Tue 02 July 2019.

[23:22, Today: Celes Varik rolled 8 using 4 dice and +1 pips with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 1,1,1,{Wild}4.  Soak (Strength + Combat Jumpsuit).

That did not go as planned. 8 vs 15 damage leaves Celes Wounded. She drops prone and can take no further actions for the rest of the round.]

While trying to cover Thuraya, Celes drew enemy fire. Stray bolts exploded around her, but one red line of searing energy tore its way into her side, stopping her attempts at suppressing fire. The bounty hunter dropped to the metal flooring, still gripping her blaster, and slowly started to scoot her way further behind cover. She wasn't much help on the ground, but she was useless dead.

Shira yelps at a hit on her. "'Bee! Check Celes!" she cries out.

23:56, Today: Shira rolled 12 using 3 dice and +1 pips with the WEG Classic system.  Strength+harness+armor.

The mighty doors closed bringing silence after a loud CLANG!  The sounds of ineffective blaster impacts and muffled commands barely drifted through the metal.   TwoOneBee was able to get to the panel Thuraya had telekinetically locked and, with a few wise adjustments made it even much more secure.

"TwoOneBee, come back!   You are far more valuable than a locksmith, you are our friend.   That, and the blaster bolt stings like a [lekku motion that made DeeJay redden her eyelights in a mock-blush]!"  Ali said to her too-noble droid companion.

OOC:  You are safe enough for a few moments.

Shira is only stunned and will recover fully by the end of next post.

Ali and Celes are wounded.  As I remember, two medpacs were found with Blissex in his interrogation room.  TwoOneBee's delicate touch is requested here.

You've had a bunch of bad luck.  I will let you recover and regroup this next post.

The doctor replies to both Shira and Captain Ali affirmatively:

"Oh my, I shall attend to your needs immediately, my apologies for being distracted, it really is quite unlike me.  Looking after your health and well being is and will always be my primary function."

Although he did not say so, the old droid was quite touched that the Captain had referred to him as a friend.  Ever since they had met all those years ago on an Imperial ship, not unlike this one, they had grown to value and trust one another.  All in all, TwoOneBee considered himself quite appreciated which was not common for cybernetic life form/organic relations in general.  He would never EVER even contemplate letting her down.

"Firstly, Captain, I should tend to Ms Celes, as Ms Shira wisely expressed, since she appears to be more gravely injured.  Rest assured, however, that I will be with you shortly with an analgesic for the pain Ms Ali."

20:37, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 9 (16 excluding the wild die) using 6 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 5,1,2,6,{Wild}1,1.  21B First Aid roll applying medpac for Cpt Ali.

20:36, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 13 (20 excluding the wild die) using 6 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 1,6,4,3,{Wild}1,5.  21B First Aid roll applying medpac for Celes.

OOC: Oh my, um, let me know if I need to use my spare medpac to supplement...dumb dice roller :-(
This message was last edited by the player at 01:43, Sat 13 July 2019.

OOC:  Near as I can tell, TwoOneBee has completely healed both Ali and Celes with just two medpacs. :-)  I know he wasn't put together by Radio Shack!

Celes complained in Dosh through gritted teeth while the doctor patched her up. She was obviously concerned about Shira's well-being, but knew enough to not bother asking if she was in the worst condition out of the crew. Once TwoOneBee was finished, she gave him a grateful nod and tried getting back to her feet, still wincing.

"We've lost time, and can't go that way. Where's the next route?"

Shira stood guard as 'Bee worked on Celes and Ali, and tried to puzzle out another way they could go. "We don't want any more fights like that one."

The doctor finished applying the medpac to Celes, then quickly checked her vital signs with his bio-scanners.

"I would usually recommend rest, but given the current circumstances I will instead suggest minimizing physical conflicts until you have completely recovered Ms Celes.  And the same, of course, applies for you, Captain."

Hearing Shira, TwoOneBee swiveled his head to face her, then replied.

"Perhaps Mr Blissex can suggest an alternative route?"

Emessee was glad that their plan for victory had worked so well.  It must have been so subtle that the little droid could not even understand it.  It was sad that several new friends were damaged but it looked like the obsele--, older droid was repairing them nicely.

But the damage had put anger into the mighty MSE's gears and Emessee again charged the armored meanies.  The fact that the blast doors were in the way didn't occur to the little droid until Emesse dented their bumper against them.

Ali was slightly sheepish and down in the lekku at her earlier insistence that TwoOneBee treated herself before Celes.  That was no way for a real captain to behave.

OOC:  The GM sheepishly admits the error was his.... ;-)

At TwoOneBee's query, Blissex perks up.  "Yes, I believe there is another way.  On this ship, there is always another way..."

As the crew began to wearily right themselves and Thuraya picked up the colliding Emessee from the blast doors, a voice echoed through all nearby speakers.



DeeJay whispered almost reflexively,  "That is Captain Kolaff, he is wired through all local intercoms."

OOC:  Blissex will start to lead you by another route.

Celes nodded to the doctor, still holding a hand to her injured side while gripping her glowrod in the other. The blaster had been holstered, and she wasn't feeling in much condition to fill both hands at once.

"Yeah, doing our best, doc. Everyone else okay?" She glanced around at the others, doing a cursory look for herself, before shining the light down at their new droid companion.

"Right. Lead the way, Doctor Blissex." And then came the interruption on the intercom. Captain Kolaff. Celes peered up into the vagueness of the intercom system.

"Long as he thinks we're not real soldiers, we've got an advantage. Come on, let's move."

"Captain, I do apologize for intruding, but a scan of your neural systems, coupled with an analysis of your physiological signals, indicates you are experiencing a heightened sense of emotional distress.  While I am unable to ascertain the precise cause I can perhaps add a certain positive insight, if you will allow me.  I  believe it would be of benefit to mention that, in spite of all the myriad obstacles we have encountered, we are still all functional and, for the moment, not seriously injured.  If we continue to work together the odds are in favour of us surviving this unfortunate escapade. You, Captain, are one of the most resourceful and capable organic life forms I have ever encountered.  If there is anyone, I am aware of, who can guide us successfully through this crisis, it is you, Ms Ali, I am absolutely certain of that fact."


"Affirmative, Ms Celes, everyone is functioning adequately.  Of course, if I had access to a proper medical facility they would be in perfect health, but I do what I can with the resources available.  The Captain and you took the greatest part of the Imperials' assault, and I am very sorry for that.  It is to be hoped that we do not have another such encounter.  I am afraid the probability of such is increasing exponentially the longer we remain on this vessel.  As I mentioned to the Captain however, I do have complete trust in your ability to keep us safe from harm.  I promise to keep you functioning so that you may continue to do just that."


"That is exceptionally good news, Mr Blissex.  Please do show..."


"I don't suppose there is any way to overload or jam the ships surveillance systems so the Imperial Captain cannot track us?  I have no desire to learn his particular definition of the word 'lesson'!"


The old droid certainly considered pointing out that only some of their group could be classified as soldiers, but upon reflection he did not consider it a productive point to make.

Also did that MSE unit chirp that he was 'obsolete'?  Perhaps his memory of binary lexicon had degraded somewhat from lack of use.  He would have to check with DeeJay later.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:54, Sun 04 Aug 2019.

Kolaff's voice had dripped with the typical arrogance of practically every other Imperial officer who had more than one rank cylinder.   It was a paradoxical kind of hubris that knew all of the other officers were overconfident fools but they, they were the ones who would keep their heads in a crisis.  It was why Lord Vader recruited ship captain's by the shuttle load and one more reason why the Rebels keep outsmarting Moff after Moff.

"One day he will choke on those words." Thuraya said, meaning it literally.

Ali smiled at TwoOneBee and her lekku lifted slightly, bouyed by his words.  "Are you sure you aren't a psych droid, 'Bee, you do it well."

"You know these vintage droids, Captain Ali, you never expect what they pick up in their carbon-scoring cards."  DeeJay had heard Emessee's estimate of TwoOneBee's service life and the droid's progress along that path and her chuckling mirth was expressed as light static to others.   The truth was, to the little MSE's two-bit attention span, every other droid was obsolete.

Emessee in the meantime had bumped and slunk along Shira's feet in an almost felinoid gesture of affection, or perhaps it was just bad navigation using her as a waypoint.

Blissex took a step forward and stopped as he noticed something about the nearest intercom panel.  It was a tiny light that should not have been lit.  He moved back to Celes and whispered, "All of the coms are listening.  It is good that we did not take his bait and respond.  As long as we don't speak too loudly or get too near the panels, we should be fine."

The group began to walk forward under Blissex's guidance, Emessee following *bonk* behind...

OOC:  I will post another IC post in a few days.

Shira jumps in surprise as Kolaff threatens them.

"I'm fine" Shira responded to Celes. "Fragile, but I feel well enough to take on the Empire."

"That's the spirit!" she encourages Blissex when he mentions there's always another way.

She suspiciously eyes ever electronic instrument on the wall after Blissex tells them that the comms are listening. "Well, that's no good. I wish I could talk back to him. Give him a piece of my mind."

Quietly, and thus successfully, the group continued through the damaged starship.  It was so quiet the tiny hiss of air circulation was actually audible.  Now suspicious, the others could see what seemed a slight mist emerging from all local vents.  This new fog was opaque enough to hide the view behind it.  Thuraya was closer than most, she took a slight breath of the vapor and began to cough softly.

"Riot-Control smoke."  Ali said, "The stormtrooper helmets will filter out the irritant and their eyesights would compensate for the smoke."  Blissex said, "Ship's stores likely do not have very much of such gas available for this exotic trap.   It should dissapate shortly."  "That means they will make their move shortly."

As if on cue, the voice of Captain Kolaff mocked over the intercom. "This lesson is called Stacking the Deck,  I recommend not coughing so as not to attract undue attention.  But I suppose you really don't have a choice..." His laughter seemed to be sentence's punctuation as the intercoms went silent.  The Rebels knew the sudden silence was so they could be more easily hunted....

OOC:
1.  The Impies have pumped riot-control gas into the vents.  An undamaged ship would likely have done this long ago which leads your characters to believe the amount of gas will be limited and thus it will fade away before too long.  But this means the expected stormtroopers will be moving quickly and with a plan.

2.  The droids will not be affected by the gas but it will obscure their vision as well as the living.  The living will have to make Easy Stamina checks each round to not take some Stun damage or cough and give their position away.  One round of Stun is not likely to stop one of you but several might.

3.  Kolaff was too damned eager to spring his trap that you have a short time to prepare for the darkness, gas and incoming stormtroopers.  However, I have remembered that you found breath masks for everyone in an eariler encounter.  The gas will still provide the darkness.

Questions, just ask...

TwoOneBee had been about to mention that being a 'vintage droid' indicated a vast store of experiential knowledge, but never got the opportunity.  When the trap was sprung he reacted immediately.  His optical receptors lit up as he activated his search light program.  He wasn't sure if the additional light could penetrate the smoke, it was dim, not much more than a standard hand held light unit, but perhaps it could illuminate figures seeking to hide within the haze.

In concert with this he scanned the smoke filled corridor with his bio scanners, hoping to pick up the vital signs of any adversaries.  If he did detect any, he would shine his light in their direction to hopefully allow his companions a chance to fight back on more even terms.  It wasn't perfect, and certainly made him a target, but it was something he could do.

"Ms Celes, should you or anyone else require it, I am equipped with an emergency oxygen supply.  Smoke inhalation can be quite detrimental for most organic species respiratory systems."

The area around the heroes darkened, the acrid tang of the gas was still hinted at by the breath masks.   It tickled the throat.  Without the masks, it would have been unbearable.

From not too far away, there was the hiss of an opening door and then the reptitive stomp of stormtrooper boots.   Dimmed blaster bolts hit the corridor and deck harmlessly and almost randomly.  Right now, the extreme range contained enough gas to even confuse the stormtrooper's eyesights but that would change as they approached.   Organic eyes and standard droid optics had no chance.  TwoOneBee's search light did cut through the darkness somewhat but also revealed the noble droid to upcoming opposing fire...

OOC: A little extra post while the game lags.  If this encounter is rather tedious to y'all, it can be skipped...
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:50, Wed 28 Aug 2019.

Celes put the flashlight into her injured hand and started rifling through her pouches to find the breath mask she'd gotten earlier. As she did, she looked to the doctor and gestured her head to the unfortunate Imperial guard with them.

"Professor, I'm switching out the light. Get ahead of us and find a room out of the way. Everyone still have those breath masks? Good. Hold onto the person in front of you, we're making a chain. Deej, I'm trusting you with Shira. Don't squeeze. Let's move."

Shira fumbles her gas mask for a moment but gets it on. She draws her pistol and readies for action. "They'll light up when the fire... blasters are like that. We can zero in on that" she tells the others.

TwoOneBee dimmed his optic search beams to a fraction of what they had been, realizing his mistake.  He simply was not programmed for skulking around star destroyers on a regular basis.

"Affirmative, Ms Celes, reducing illumination to a minimum, my apologies," he replied, the contrite droid's vocalizer modulated to whisper mode.

"A strategic withdrawal does seem like a prudent decision."

He scanned for Wallix , tracking him by his bio-signature and then addressed the old star-shipwright.

"Mr Blisssex, your knowledge of this ship is superior to All of ours.  Can you recall anyplace we might hide from the Imperial troops?  A data storage closet, a droid recharging center, a maintenance room, a rest area for carbon based units?  Anything at all to temporarily avoid them?"

He prepared to follow the group, his concern growing with each passing millisecond as even his complex sensor array was unable to discern the Troopers location.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:37, Thu 05 Sept 2019.

It was an unenviable tactical situation and with little time to prepare.  TwoOneBee moved forward, unique sensors trying to transcend the darkness.  Celes' confident words were a emotional lifeline as much as the physical lifeline they were intended to make.  Ali was grateful that someone else was capable of commanding, even better than herself.

DeeJay helped guide Shira as the young ghostling began to look for the light of blaster bolts.  It was a viable strategy but it meant that the stormtroopers would get to fire first.  Blissex understood what was required of him, "I think there is a vent control a few score meters in this direction...past the stormtroopers."  Thuraya simply closed her eyes.

With their plans made, and just in time it seemed, the stormtroopers could be heard, the sound of their boots as close as any they have heard in combat.

OK, combat begins.  But it is not as hopeless as it appears.

Thuraya has a chance to activate a Force Power.  She rolls Magnify Senses
21:01, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 13 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}6(+1),5,1)).

The troopers shall roll their initiative...

20:53, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Troopers, rolled 5 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}3,2)).

Ali rolls her initative...

20:55, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 17 using 4 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}4,5,5,1)).

OK, y'all have won Initiative.  And you have been Aiming (+1D to attack) as you have been waiting for the troopers to advance.  You may delay until the troopers fire (which gives you an additional +1D but you have to wait for them to fire first to see them lit up by their own blaster fire).

But the difficulty for them is only 5 in these close quarters.  Whereas y'all have to make a 5+the 4D of Darkness modifier rolled below.
21:07, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Darkness, rolled 17 using 4 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}5,3,3,6)).
With a 17 rolled, that makes a 22 to make a shot.

The stormtroopers will fire just one shot, as they almost always do.

Ali chooses that her side goes first, although some characters may want to delay to reverse-trace their opponent's shots back to their opponents.  Or you could dodge, from memory Blissex can guide you to a bulkhead that will give you perfect armor for this round but, conversely, you cannot fire back.

Thuraya has made her decision,  her magnified senses have allowed enough of a kind of vision ("your eyes can deceive you, don't trust them").  She makes a telekinetic roll (-1D penalty due to keeping Magnify Sense 'up').

21:15, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 0 (7 excluding the wild die) using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system ((6,{Wild}1)).

Whoops!  That went badly.  A trooper's helmet almost, but not quite, flew off of his head.

Considering his options, well the old 'bot honestly didn't have many in this particular scenario.  When Wallex mentions a bulkhead to hide from blaster fire, TwoOneBee considers this the best course of action, for a non combatant such as himself.  He checked to see if Emessee was navigating alright then says in as softly modulated a tone as his vocalizer can manage:

"Ms Celes, Mr Blissex knows the location of a bulkhead that would provide us some temporary protection from blaster fire; may I suggest we accept his offer to guide us?"

The troopers were thinking this would be a real jawa-shoot when their low-light goggles picked up another group of stormtroopers behind the Rebel scum.   They were grateful for the reinforcements but, in this darkness, even their advanced optics might not be discerning enough to prevent a crossfire...

OOC: A little IC post to help pass the time.  This encounter may be tough and TwoOneBee's thoughts about using MSE made me recheck the little guy(gal?)'s stats.   MSE has a holocam and, in a rare moment of brilliance, is 'mirroring' the troopers, hoping to cause more confusion on their part...

Shira takes partial cover behind the bulkhead and fires on the advancing stormtroopers. "Do we have a place to get to safety? we really need one!"

00:31, Today: Shira rolled 21 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system.  Blaster shot.

TwoOneBee makes for the bulkhead that Mr Blissex indicated.  It may only be a temporary reprieve but it is something at least.  Blaster fights were no place for a medical droid!  With luck his companions would join him.

The battle began.

Riffing off Emessee's tiny spark of imagination, DeeJay copied the trooper's voices, modified and processed them to add to the hologram's deceptive power.

22:07, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Emessee, rolled 3 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}3)).

22:08, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC DeeJay, rolled 22 using 4 dice with the WEG Classic system ((4,4,{Wild}6(+5),3)).

Ali fired her blaster...

22:10, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 2 (4 excluding the wild die) using 2 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((3,{Wild}1))

...and missed miserably, nearing hitting the rather well-fed figure of Blissex.

Both Blissex and TwoOneBee were able to move to a bulkhead and (Ali's wayward blaster bolt aside) were at least safe from Imperial dangers for the short term.

OOC:  I will reply with the Imperial response in a day or so...

The stormtroopers fired.


00:50, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Stormtrooper, rolled 7 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}2,5)).
00:51, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Stormtrooper, rolled 6 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}3,3)).
00:52, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Stormtrooper, rolled 10 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system ((2,{Wild}6(+2))).
00:52, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Stormtrooper, rolled 0 (2 excluding the wild die) using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system ((1,{Wild}1)).
00:53, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Stormtrooper, rolled 9 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}4,5)).

All of them fell for the hologram, their optics being well enough to navigate the smoke but not quite the equivalent of true vision.   But now with the holographic troopers only flickering rather than actually falling, they will not fall for it again.  Their round was wasted however and anyone who has not acted this round still can.  Ask me questions if you need to.

Celes tapped TwoOneBee on the shoulder to let him know she'd heard him and approved, then ushered the others forward with the droid, still breathing heavily from the pain of her injury. She herself stayed back for a bit, taking careful stock of where the troopers sounded like they were through the gas and darkness. Once she was clear of her companions and wouldn't threaten them with her next plan, the green-haired bounty hunter flicked her glowrod back on and flung it down the hallway, intending to light up the opponents. Front- or back-lit, it wouldn't matter. All she needed was shapes to target.

After that, she'd quickly draw her blaster with her good arm and opened fire on the enemy stormtroopers!

[Alright, powering through to make some rolls at last. Sorry about the month-long absence.

First off, I am absolutely spending my Force Point. Here's what we're doing: I want to throw my light at the troopers to eliminate at least some of that darkness penalty. Not sure how much it'll help, but it's something. That's one action.

Drawing my weapon is another action.

Going to open fire on troopers 3, 5, 1, 2, then 4 (attacking in order of good rolls). Three more actions, bringing my total multi-action penalty to -7D.

Since I didn't move to the bulkhead, I'll take that +1D aim bonus, and since I waited until after they attacked, I'll take that +1D tracing their shots bonus. 5D Blaster skill doubled to 10D from the Force Point, +2D from circumstances comes to 12D, -7D from actions brings me back down to 5D for each shot. I'm hoping that glowrod reduces the difficulty from 22, because otherwise I'm in a lot of trouble. Here we go!

Vs Stormtrooper 3:

10:57, Today: Celes Varik rolled 15 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 3,4,3,{Wild}4,1.  Blaster vs Stormtrooper 3.

10:59, Today: Celes Varik rolled 18 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 6,1,3,{Wild}3,5.  Heavy Blaster Damage.

Vs Stormtrooper 5:

10:57, Today: Celes Varik rolled 24 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 3,{Wild}6(+1),6,5,3.  Blaster vs Stormtrooper 5.

10:59, Today: Celes Varik rolled 15 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 1,5,{Wild}5,1,3.  Heavy Blaster Damage.

Vs Stormtrooper 1:

10:57, Today: Celes Varik rolled 22 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 6,5,5,2,{Wild}4.  Blaster vs Stormtrooper 1.

10:59, Today: Celes Varik rolled 21 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 4,{Wild}3,6,4,4.  Heavy Blaster Damage.

Vs Stormtrooper 2:

10:57, Today: Celes Varik rolled 15 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 2,6,1,{Wild}5,1.  Blaster vs Stormtrooper 2.

10:59, Today: Celes Varik rolled 24 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 1,3,4,5,{Wild}6(+5).  Heavy Blaster Damage.

Vs Stormtrooper 4:

10:57, Today: Celes Varik rolled 14 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of {Wild}4,2,2,3,3.  Blaster vs Stormtrooper 4.

10:59, Today: Celes Varik rolled 12 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 3,{Wild}2,4,1,2.  Heavy Blaster Damage.

How was that?]

That was amazing, I could hear the music swell. :-)

Even to Thuraya, Celes moved with a rapid purpose the padawan could barely comprehend.

Light and blaster bolts emanated from the cool bounty hunter like a supernova.  Three troopers were struck.

22:32, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Stormtrooper 5, rolled 13 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system ((3,5,{Wild}5)).
Against Celes' 15, that is a Stun result.

22:33, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Stormtrooper 1, rolled 10 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}3,6,1)).
Against Celes' 21, that is an Incapacitated result.

By all rights, that Force Point should have went further.  I'm cool with giving a reduction in difficulty due to the tossed glowrod but the darkness is partly due to opaque (in the unaugmented human visual spectrum) smoke rather than mere absence of light.   How much of a modifier do y'all think I should give?

Shira had seen Celes fight before, and she knew Celes was a great fighter. But she was still stunned by the terrific barrage of fire Celes fired. "Wow! That evened the odds real quick! I'm going to have to do something really cool to match that."

OOC: A good modifier! It was awesome!

Stormtrooper 3 rolls against 18

23:05, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Stormtrooper 3, rolled 11 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}5,2,4)).

Stormtrooper 2 rolls against 24

23:10, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Stormtrooper 2, rolled 13 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}4,5,4)).

Stormtrooper 4 rolls against 12

23:12, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Stormtrooper 4, rolled 2 (6 excluding the wild die) using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system ((3,2,{Wild}1)).

Two of the three remaining Stormtroopers dropped, the last was wounded.

23:23, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Last Trooper, rolled 2 using 1 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}2)).

23:23, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 15 using 4 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}2,5,1,5)).

Ali wins Initative for her side.  This last trooper will not surrender, loyal to the last, but should not be too much trouble to dispatch to the end credits...

With the momentum on the heroes's side,  Thuraya tried again to use the Force...

It was difficult as she was already using the Force to 'see'.  But the trooper's helmet rose up off of his confused head.   He was now as blind as his quarry.

Thuraya began to 'send' the helmet to Celes.

Ali fired her blaster once to no avail...

22:13, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 10 using 2 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system ((5,{Wild}3)).

Should the trooper still be up that long, he is now as effectively blinded as the rest of you.   If the action makes it back to Ali, she can then successfully deliver the helmet to Celes.  It is now Celes, Shira and TwoOneBee's turn to act again...

Watching the volleys of blaster fire, TwoOneBee was unable to do anything but monitor the scene.  He had not been designed for combat and his single defensive weapon, a taser his friends in the Rebellion had installed for him (and jury-rigged his system to bypass his prime directive that instructed him to 'do no harm') was of no use against armoured Storm troopers.

He was forced, instead, to suppress his primary programming, which was telling him to assist the injured Imperials now lying in the still hazy corridor.  Healing them would be counterproductive to the Rebels' escape plans, and a quick scan of the troopers' vital signs informed him that none were fatally wounded.  So he purposefully flooded his bio scanners with conflicting data to overload them and confuse his system, effectively disrupting his need to aid them.

The only other logical thing the old medical droid could do was to stay well away from blaster fire and be prepared to assist his companions if it was required.  He would willingly use himself as a shield, if needed, to save his more fragile carbon based comrades, so he was prepared for that eventuality as well.  Otherwise he could help best by allowing those who were programmed for combat to do what they did best, which meant staying out of their way.  So he pressed himself as close to the bulkhead as he could and hoped it would be over soon.

OOC: TwoOneBee is holding his action.  If the trooper fires at anyone close to him he will, if necessary, use himself as a shield, taking the bolt upon himself.  Otherwise he stays wisely out of the way and prepares to assist his associates should anyone be injured.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:17, Mon 21 Oct 2019.

The trooper was as frightened as a cloned trooper could be but he was Imperial to the last.   He fired back at Ali, now as blind as she was...

00:20, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Last Trooper, rolled 3 (7 excluding the wild die) using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system ((3,3,{Wild}1)).

He missed badly.

00:21, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 14 using 4 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}3,3,5,1)).

00:23, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Last Trooper, rolled 8 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system ((6,{Wild}2)).

Our heroes have won Initiative.

Thuraya moved the trooper's helmet to Celes with the Force.

00:25, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 10 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system ((6,{Wild}4)).

The helmet touched Celes' hand and hovered next to it.

Ali fired again.

00:26, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Ali, rolled 14 using 2 dice and 2 pips with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}6(+3),3)).

And missed.

OK, Celes' can don the helmet and fire with no more penalties to vision with just a -1D penalty (the action of putting the helmet on).

While the blaster bolts streaking through the darkness was pretty, Shira had enough of people trying to kill her friends. She lay down a couple of careful shots at the final trooper, despite her trouble seeing. "For Datar!" she cried out, as fierce as she could muster (which wasn't very).

OOC: 00:10, Fri 25 Oct: Shira rolled 28 using 7 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 5,3,2,3,4,{Wild}5,6.
00:10, Fri 25 Oct: Shira rolled 26 using 7 dice with the WEG Classic system.  Blaster shot.

This message was last edited by the player at 06:29, Tue 29 Oct 2019.

Under a fusillade of blaster fire, enough to actually see her anger, Shira struck the last trooper several times.   He dropped dead.   The immediate silence was almost a shock.

After a few moments, there was a shocked voice over the intercoms, "I..I don't believe it."  It was a very surprised Captain Kolaff.

OOC:  The combat is over.  You have won.  It is child's play to use the trooper's helmets to see your way out of here.  You can take what you want of standard ODO (Only Dropped Once) stormtrooper gear.  Eventually Blissex or someone will find a way out of this darkened area to another generic but well-lit and ventilated, empty corridor space beyond...

Celes, weapon holstered and now holding the helmet in her good hand, started moving down the corridor again.

"That's my girl." Then she slipped the helmet on, engaged the light amplification system, and went to go get everyone else helmets and E-11 blasters.

"Light amp feature in the helmets. Won't need it long. Also military blasters. Doctor?"

"I do not believe there is anything they have that I require, Ms Celes.  However if they do have any MedPacs perhaps one to replace my own would not go amiss.  In return I will assist these troopers and ensure that they will not perish in this hallway for their service, except for the one who HAS already perished I'm afraid there isn't anything I may do for him or her.  If I leave them unconscious they may well die when this vessel is destroyed, as we know it will be.  My prime directive will not allow me to let that happen if I may in any way prevent it.  I will be along shortly."

Once the enemy has been disarmed and his friends have left TwoOneBee will do his best to assist the injured Storm troopers, providing basic first aid so they remain conscious and capable of rescuing themselves at the very least.  If any of them become overly aggressive or attempt to trap him he has his syringes full of tranquilizer and a taser to ensure he will not be captured...hopefully.

OOC: If there are any rolls I need to make please let me know.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:02, Sat 02 Nov 2019.

"You and me both" Shira said to Kolaff, a little surprised at her own burst of fire. She smiles at Celes when Celes compliments her. "Aww, thank you! I did me best" Her smile is cut off when she puts on one of the stormtrooper helmets, although it doesn't cover all her silver hair. She also picks up one of the military blasters. "Let's get out of here! I've had enough of nearly being killed."
"You're a saint, 'Bee" Shira says, genuinely impressed by her friend's nobility. "But be careful! We've come so far and we won't lose you."
This message was last edited by the player at 05:58, Tue 05 Nov 2019.

OOC:  Fixing broken stormtroopers is such a great character moment that I won't worry about dice.   TwoOneBee can write this how he wants to.   The 'troopers will be in no position to resist even if restored to consciousness so there is no real need for dice.

I would guess TwoOneBee can stabilize them until other help arrives with no real delay but there will be a loss of his internal meds.  But caring for your enemy is what makes you heroes...

For herself, Ali didn't have the heart to hurry TwoOneBee along.   She didn't want to even mention that Starfall would soon enough be a tiny nova and these troopers merely fundamental energentic particles then.  Mercy was not a vice in a Rebel, especially a medical droid.

Eventually, the job was done and the heroes moved on.   A few more empty corridors and then there was a stroke of luck.  The Rebels found themselves in a sick bay full of bacta tanks and medical beds.   Practically all of the patients were either insensate or too weak to protest.   A single medical droid was busily tending to the wounded.  "I apologize.  I am alone and overtaxed.  I will get to you when I can."  The droid said.

OOC:  This is actually a good encounter.   The droid and the wounded men are too busy and/or preoccupied to resist the Rebels or even really notice them.   Anything short of true hostility will probably be not noticed or even rationalized away...

Celes had dumped the stormtrooper helmet once it wasn't serving a purpose anymore, so the strain on her face was plain by the time they entered the infirmary. She looked around, clutching her wound, and noted the amount of enemy soldiers and crew here, along with the lone medical droid. The countdown timer in her head marked each of them as a lost cause, so she went off to go find herself what she needed to patch up properly.

"Captain, I'll just be a minute. Can you tell that droid to prep these patients for evacuation? They'll need a shuttle instead of escape pods."

He realized his time was limited, so he worked as efficiently as he could to stabilize the fallen trooper clones.  His bio scanners worked constantly, scanning his next patient while he administered to his current one.  One trooper awoke suddenly, staring with confusion at the battered 'bot aiding him, but if he recognized TwoOneBee as a rebel he kept it to himself.  A rank on the clone's body armour was noticed by the perceptive droid.

"I see you are an ensign, and therefor an officer.  I have done my best to assist your fellow troopers, and all but one should make a full recovery; I am truly sorry for his loss.  There has been far too many lives lost on all sides of this dreadful conflict.  Please rouse your associates as soon as possible, they should be well enough to move in a few minutes, and lead them to the ship's escape pods.  Good luck"

He knew there was more he could have done, but he satisfied himself with the knowledge that these life forms now had a fighting chance to live and receive further medical assistance.  So he rejoined his friends, amber optical sensors glowing gratefully as he saw that they had kindly waited pn him in spite of the danger.  He was indeed very lucky to call this particular group his friends.

The old droid was both elated and relieved to find a proper medical facility!  The sight of a fellow medical droid, so beleaguered by patients, invoked the desire to assist, but realistically there wasn't enough time to help them all.  His stock of supplies was also seriously depleted, though he could have restocked here if circumstances had been less pressing.  Then he overheard Celes request to Captain Ali, and he suddenly realized his services were still needed.

"I apologize Ms Celes, I should have noticed your injury and prioritized your treatment.  I do hope you can forgive me.  May I assist you now?"

OOC: Is this Medical Droid another 21B Surgical unit, or one of the 'sniff' inferior D-13 line or FX-7 models?

Hopefully she will allow TwoOneBee to help her, if so I can make a first aid roll, or, if we have time, he is also proficient in the use of the bacta tanks as well.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:20, Sat 16 Nov 2019.

If there was one kind of Imperial droid Rebels might have respected, it would likely be their medical droids.  Although Emessee was making a good argument for MSE droid's charm.   The medical droids were among the more intelligent of Imperial droids, although the Empire's strict programming discouraged true innovation as much as it could.    Perhaps the native droid was smart enough to ken the true situation but saw no point in further violence that would further damage his already wounded patients.

"I will begin arranging escape pods."  The droid said with no delay.

There were enough medical supplies to heal all of the wounded rebels to the limits of their daily tolerances, as well as enough to refill TwoOneBee to his internal capacities.  A discreet search by the heroes found two portable medpacs to spare and four blaster packs.

Soon enough, it seemed, their work here would be done.   It was strange, Thuraya thought, to see their enemy wounded and so very human.  She would be glad to be moving on, this place raised so many uncomfortable questions...

OOC:  The module doesn't really say what model the medical droid, so I will let TwoOneBee choose.   Each hurt character can have a First Aid check without spending a medpac (there is plenty of non-portable medical supplies/equipment in the med bay) but successive rolls can be problematic so it is probably best that TwoOneBee play Doctor.

Barring real (and unlikely) provocation from the heroes, they can freely leave when they are done...

Shira took a position by TwoOneBee's side and played nurse, trying to help with treating the soldiers and the other rebels. "Are we close to the escape pods, then? I'd like to think we didn't come all this way just to explode."

TwoOneBee was very familiar with this situation, having served on an Imperial Star Destroyer long before he joined the Rebellion.  Indeed, had it not been for his service to the Empire he would never have met Captain Ali.  So the old droid truly did appreciate the difficulties this overwhelmed FX-9 series surgical specialist now faced, and he wanted to aid the medical droid, but right now his focus was on his companions first and foremost.

"Ms Celes, it would be my pleasure to assist you.  It is the least an old droid can do considering I would likely be inactive now if not for your efforts on our behalf."

OOC: 20:36, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 17 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 2,3,2,{Wild}5,5.  TwoOneBee First Aid for Celes.

"There, I have treated and dressed your burns, and administered medication to manage your pain, as well as a topical kolto spray to expedite healing of your damaged tissue.  Is there anything else this unit may do to assist you my friend?"

OOC: TwoOneBee will happily treat all of his other companions as needed, just let me know if I need to make any additional rolls please.

The doctor turned to Ms Shira, his visual recepetors shining with gratitude.

"Thank you very much Ms Shira, you have learned much about first aid.  I daresay you are a credit to your teacher.  Once we have finished looking after our companions, I would like to assist the Effex Nine in prepping its patients for transport.  It is a competent enough model, as the FX series goes, but it is in dire need of assistance.  Prepping most of these soldiers should not be too difficult or time consuming, but it is essential to their survival.  I would be very glad of your assistance in this endeavour, if you are willing."

Of course he was not averse to restocking his own depleted supplies, in return for helping the beleaguered Imperial med droid with its charges.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:10, Mon 25 Nov 2019.

The Imperial medical droid promised to arrange escape pods for his wounded men.   It was likely that all the droid needed was the authorization of another droid or living being.  With that, the heroes left, perhaps reflecting on how human stormtroopers and droids might be.



OOC:  Moving the action forward a bit.  You can still flashback to the med bay if you wish.  The Imperial medical droid will do his best to save the men under his care.  If you wish (as it doesn't make much difference to the main plot), those Impies can escape in the pods and then spend the rest of the Rebellion under Alliance custody.   Your characters have found all of the supplies they can find and (I believe) have healed as much as they are like to.

A series of blast doors opened for the heroes, leading to a burned out, destroyed chamber.  The next set of doors revealed far more...



Blissex said with almost a kind of reverence, "The power core, the heart of the Subjugator!"

OOC:  I've used the actual text from the module for the middle paragraph above.   This isn't something I do often but I'm still not quite of the situation from the description given so I thought I would get it from the horse's mouth.

[I've got most of it, but have no idea what it means about the column splitting in two. Was it horizontal until that point? Is it dangerous for us to cross the shaft to the technicians? Should we host a sweet Imperial rave?]

Celes looked out over the vast power system, blaster once again at the ready, and finally fixed her eyes on the technicians at the controls.

"Captain, what's our move?"

"I don't suppose anyone has a grappling hook?" Shira asks.

Ali remembered the days when she had a commanding officer who had to come up with all of the answers.  Now she had to.

"Hm." She said, pretending to be summon deep thoughts while she tried to think of a solution.

When Shira asked about grappling hooks, Ali almost smirked via lekku at the young Ghostling's imagination.  "Shira, why would stormtroopers aboard a space vessel have climbing equipment?"   She then stood gape-lekkued as many of her crew displayed grappling hooks recently liberated from prone troopers.   "Wha-, Why--?" Ali said in utter disbelief.

Thuraya said, "Those techs don't seem the least bothered by us.  Typical Imperials, don't ask one question more than you have to."

OOC:  To this day, I don't know why Death Star stormtroopers had grappling hooks onboard a space station but it sure was lucky for Luke and Leia that they did.  So who am I to deny such an obvious deux ex machina stroke of completely plausible luck.  :-)

Soon, I hope to link to a graphic that I missed last time that should make the situation clearer...

OOC:  I still can't seem to just display images so here is a link to one.  I hope this helps...


This message was last edited by the GM at 06:34, Fri 13 Dec 2019.

Scanning the central power core with trepidation, the doctor could almost feel the energy through his sensors, or perhaps more like a jolt through every single micrometer of his complex circuitry.  He wasn't nearly as concerned about the technicians as he was about the column sheathed in lightning before them.

"I don't suppose there is an alternate route is there?  Even the slightest contact with that energy discharge could overload DeeJay, Emmessee, or my own circuitry.  I'm not ready to be deactivated just yet, if there is any way to avoid it I mean."

Nonetheless he dutifully follows the others when they make their way across, even taking the lead for the droids in the group.

'To do no harm, that is your primary programming TwoOneBee,' he reminded himself silently.  'And it includes non organic lifeforms as well.'
This message was last edited by the player at 18:16, Sat 14 Dec 2019.

"Climbing gear is always a good idea" Shira replied. But then, on Datar Ghostlings built their villages in trees.

"Who has the best throwing arm? Certainly not me." she said. "If you can think of another way 'Bee, we'll take it. If not, well, it's exciting, isn't it? It'll be fun!

Celes looked over the scene ahead, then upwards. There was more than one route.

"Are we headed forward or up?" She was hoping to not have to try and ascend so many meters with the whole group and such a short time constraint, but Celes was a soldier and would follow whatever orders Blissex and the Captain gave her.

TwoOneBee considered the Ghostling's question, then rotated his head back and forth, mimicking the almost universally accepted gesture for a negative response:

"No, I'm afraid I am unaware of any other possible route, Ms Shira. And, more to the point, we do not have an infinite amount of time to search for alternatives.  My unfortunate conclusion is that we must simply essay to cross as best we may."

The tremor in his voice indicated his vocalizer was malfunctioning, or there was more than a little trepidation in his decision.  The old droid would have asserted it was the former of course.

"BASIC GALACTIC LEXICON Entry-FUN: 'providing entertainment, amusement, or enjoyment.'  If my linguistics program is up to date, then I'm afraid I cannot equate our current situation to the concept of 'fun' Ms Shira.  Perhaps, if we survive this perilous ordeal, we may examine these circumstances with a fresh perspective but until then..."

He scanned the immediate vicinity, blinked and then hurried after Ms Shira and the rest as quick as he could wobble.

"What...?  Hold on, wait for me!"
This message was last edited by the player at 13:16, Sat 21 Dec 2019.

At TwoOneBee's mention of what that energy would do to Emessee's circuitry, the little MSE droid rolled right to Shira's arms to be picked up.  Forward did seem to be the best way in Celes' life and it certainly seemed particularly so at this moment.  She stepped forward.

At TwoOneBee's spontaneous defintioning, DeeJay almost cooed in binary.  Precise language was her very reason for being.  "We must translate some medical journals sometime, it favors both our natures."

"Wait." Blissex said, his encyclopedic knowledge of this vessel suddenly coming to mind almost as fast as any astromech droid.  "I think I understand this situation better now.  We can easily enter or leave this area as we wish.  The technicians don't seem to notice us.  Imperials know to keep their heads down."

"But on that faraway central column...," Blissex pointed at the mechanical core that kept the giant power beam steady, "...is the panel that would let manipulate Starfall's self-destruct sequence.

"However," like most academics, Blissex enjoyed stating the obvious, "the bridge to the central column is retracted and there are... (Blissex concentrated)...two damaged panels we need to repair the extension mechanism."

"I can work on one if another can work on another..."

OOC:  Please forgive my tardy obtuseness.  I am having a little trouble understanding this encounter.  But here is my take.  Your characters really can leave if they want.  But you do need to jimmy the self-destruct mechanism of Starfall which requires extending the bridge.  Thuraya's TK isn't fine enough to manipulate the panel from afar.  There are two panels which need fixed in order to do this (I assume this is because Blissex could easily do one panel and this should be a challenge to the PCs).

For a visual, think of the tractor beam Obi-Wan bollixed up on the Death Star.   But the bridge to it is retracted.

A Moderate Technology roll will repair the controls enough so that a subsequent Easy Technology roll will extend the bridge.  There is no penalty for failing this roll except that you simply don't succeed (and time may be of the essence).  So players can roll for their characters as soon as they post.

If the two rolls are made, then comes the dizzying walk across the narrow walkway (it looks like handrails are not invented in this advanced society).  End your posts with your characters starting to walk across the bridge (if this is what you choose to do).

TwoOneBee scanned each of the panels, unsure of how to fix them.  He could not access any data files pertaining to Imperial mechanisms of this construction.  Besides, this was why they designed astromech droids wasn't it?  Nonetheless he made the attempt, knowing their lives could very likely depend on fixing them:

07:11, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 3 (8 excluding the wild die) using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 4,3,{Wild}1.  TwoOneBee tech roll 1.

07:12, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 9 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 4,{Wild}2,3.  TwoOneBee tech roll 2.

"Forgive me my friends.  I'm afraid I am a Doctor, Captain; not an Engineer."

OOC: I am quite certain that was NOT a good outcome.  In the interest of completeness I rolled both, although I know without the first the subsequent one is meaningless, call it curiousity I suppose.  In the words of See Threepio...'We're doomed!'  Unless someone else makes the rolls, which I'm sure they will.  I've just always wanted to say that :P

Shira picked up the mouse droid and examined the console, starting to fiddle with it. "Maybe... this? I mean, my people aren't exactly wizards with technology."

15:44, Today: Shira rolled 10 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system.  Techn.

A surgeon's hands weren't a techician's mitts.  TwoOneBee was honestly flummoxed by the damaged machinery.  Living organs made so much more sense.   But Shira first stopped Emessee from happily rolling off of the edge of the platform by picking the silly droid up and then (with a bunch of warning beeps, sparks and gritted teeth) was able to the point it claimed functionality.


Thuraya then guessed at the bridge controls with what she hoped was a front of Jedi serenity.

19:50, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Thuraya, rolled 8 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system ((6,{Wild}2)).

The thin bridge scraped and groaned, extending to the far platform with celebratory sparks in place of fireworks.  It was now only slightly tilted and wobbling in the plasma winds.

Blissex took a hestitant step forward.  "I did actually lobby for handrails but Command said the techs would just lean on them."

OOC:  I have to stop here a little early.  I will try and finish the post tomorrow.  Blissex's line is actually taken from Family Guy, which is the only in-universe explanation I have ever heard for why there are no handrails in the Star Wars Universe.  I guess there is no Space OSHA. ;-)

Excited as a schoolboy, the doddering Blissex strode along the compromised gangplank before any kind of protest could be offered.

21:21, Today: That Old Fossil, for the NPC Blissex, rolled 8 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system ((3,{Wild}5)).

He wobbled and walked and made it to the other side with only a slight protest of sparks.

"Come on, everybody, it's easy...!"

OOC:  All must make an Easy Dexterity roll to make it to the other side.  You can assume you took an extra round to prepare (+1D to your roll :-) ).   If you fail the roll, end your post there.  You can tie yourself together with the stormtrooper ropes (that must have come from the same place as the stormtrooper grappling hooks) if you wish.  A failed Dex roll of one character who is connected to the others will then require Strength rolls from others...

The doctor made certain he was tied securely to whomever was brave enough to tie themselves to him, then slowly inched his way across, dura-steel limbs clanking on the unsteady gangplank following Mr Blissex.  Although he did not have any sort of spiritual programming, he did manage a sort of prayer as he went along, using the same words he'd heard his Rebel allies use for decades now:

"May the Force be with us, please?  I don't ask for much, but if its possible this old droid could certainly use a hand getting us all out of this place in one piece."

OOC: 01:52, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 5 using 2 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 1,{Wild}4.  TwoOneBee DEX roll 1D+1D.

I hope that is enough.

Shira wobbles across. Usually very sure-footed, she is less well balanced in boots, as ghostlings usually walk on their toes.

20:31, Today: Shira rolled 6 (11 excluding the wild die) using 4 dice and +2 pips with the WEG Classic system.  Dexterity.

With a precarious stumbling and wobbling, TwoOneBee lived and nearly died moment by moment as did his friends vicariously.  But after an seeming eternity of uncertainty, the venerable droid was able to make it to the far side and join the daring Blissex.  Shira's own uncertain crossing was almost an afterthought but it was obvious the young ghostling was particularly concerned with gravity at this moment.

"Well done!" Blissex clapped his hands on the nearest shoulders of his fellows in congratulations and then gruffly apologized for nearly sending them over the edge of the platform again.

"Now if you could just reprogram this computer console.  (sigh) Why can't they just make computers think for themselves?"  Blissex glanced at TwoOneBee, "I mean, think as well as droids."

OOC:  Blissex odd mental block using computers does remind of some of the learned academics I had the misery of doing tech support for some time ago.  They didn't grow up with them, and by the True Maker, they weren't going to start learning them now.

A Moderate Technical (or even better, Computer Programming roll) will unlock this terminal.  There is no penalty for failure other than not succeeding.   If the two characters there fail, Ali or Thuraya will try next...

The old doctor was surprised, and impressed, by Mr Blissex statement.  In was unusual for organics to compliment their droid servants, or any other droid for that matter.  Perhaps Mr Blissex was a genius after all.

"My gratitude, Mr Blissex, for your kind words.  DeeJay and myself are the very apex of droid tech its true.  And even though I was unable to manipulate the previous panel, I am willing to try this one for you, sir.  Perhaps, if I am again unsuccessful in the attempt, Emessee might suddenly become useful and try?  He has been stationed on this starship after all; perhaps the system will listen to him!"

The surgical droid gave Emessee a meaningful scan then proceeded to try's reprogramming the console.

OOC: 08:19, Today: TwoOneBee rolled 12 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 4,5,{Wild}3.  TwoOneBee tech roll 'reprogram the console'.

WHOOP, maybe that will do it!
This message was last edited by the player at 16:21, Tue 04 Feb 2020.

Shira was uncharacteristically silent for a moment. Her life had flashed before her eyes during the crossing. "Um... thank you, sir" she said quietly

"Yeah, Emessee can get it done!" Shira said enthusiastically. "Emessee is our expert! But first, I'll try."

21:39, Today: Shira rolled 8 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system.  Technical.

Emessee whistled with delight at being called an expert.  But it was unnecessary, between TwoOneBee and Shira, the stubborn console eventually give up its secrets.

"Goodness, the Alliance brought in a lot of firepower for this one. Six warships!" Shira said, impressed. Her expression changed completely at reading the end. "It's only pretending to be disabled? I have a bad feeling about this"

Surprisingly irked by the celebratory beeps and chirps of the little Mouse droid, the doctor was about to tell the noisy chatterbox to wait for a more appropriate time, but Ms Shira's revelation erased all other thoughts from his processors!

"Oh my, are you sure Ms Shira?  That is terrible, the Alliance will suffer many casualties, even fatalities if they are not alerted to the ruse?  Is there some way we can signal them, perhaps?"

TwoOneBee's tone clearly indicated his concern.  He scanned his friends faces in the hopes that they might have some ideas.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:41, Sun 16 Feb 2020.

Celes skimmed the report over Shira's shoulder, already used to these sorts of things and searching for the most relevant bits. Shira'd gotten it too, and Celes turned to the doctor.

"If we can blow this thing before they're in firing range, it should work out. We've already set that in motion, and hopefully our timing is good. Blissex, any idea how far from the hangar we are?"

At first, Ali was pleased, the projected Rebel strength should easily dispatch a single wounded Imperial vessel.  It then occurred to her that a trap might kill many distant comrades and her own team was on said doomed ship.

"We need to get off of this vessel and send a message, which could be our safe arrival."

Glissex said, "I think I can get us to the hangar and perhaps a message as quickly as anyone."

He then hesitated and said...

“I don’t believe it! Surely this is impossible! Someone has set a self-destruct sequence that only I know! I built it into the ship’s design as a failsafe option but never revealed it to the builders. It is a self-destruct option that cannot be altered. To tamper with it further would result in the Star Destroyer’s immediate destruction! But who could possibly have set it? Why, other than myself, the only being in the galaxy possessing the knowledge and ability to perform such a feat is... my daughter!”

OOC:  Blissex will next try and get you to the hangar.  There is a planned encounter in which you would be trapped and surrounded by stormtroopers in this area.  But this particular scene is becoming tedious (to me at least) and we can simply skip it if you wish. :-)

"I'm no tactician, but I'm sure about this, 'Bee" Shira says. "We've got to get off this rust bucket before it explodes and takes us with it. The hangar is still our priority."

She tilts her head and regards Blissex curiously. "That's good, isn't it? That she's not really loyal to the Empire? Or is that not what it means?"

Blissex sighed at Shira's words, saying something to her and himself for the first time, "She is loyal only to herself."

Shira looked embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have mentioned it. I have a bad habit of asking questions without thinking."

TwoOneBee places a dura-steel hand on Shira's shoulder with surprising gentleness.

"You have no need to apologize, Ms Shira.  Asking questions is a sign that you are thinking, and that is a very good thing from my perspective.  I also consider your theory not without merit, if I am allowed to say so."

The droid swiveled his head to regard Wallix Blissex.

"If that is so, Mr Blissex, why would she use a sequence that was known only to her and yourself?  She is surely aware that you will recognize it as such, and that others on board will not.  Perhaps its a message of some sort to you, though that is merely an improbable theory of course; you know her better than any of us, sir.

"I sadly admit I do not always understand the motivations behind the actions of carbon based life forms.  I have often found them to be both complex and illogical, even with my psychological evaluation sub-routine to assist me.  I often wonder how non droids and come to the correct conclusion so quickly."

"But that is a discussion which can, and should, be had much later.  As Miss Shira correctly points out, our priority is escaping as soon as possible.  Which way to the hanger, Mister Blissex?"

OOC: I am okay with skipping the 'surrounded by storm troopers' scene if you like Old Fossil.  Perhaps you might insert a different sort of encounter instead sir, unless you'd prefer to get us directly through to the next major encounter instead.  I am okay with either of those options.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:33, Fri 28 Feb 2020.

"Never be ashamed of questioning everything, Miss Shira." Blissex said, "If only my daughter had questioned her beliefs."

"Noble droid, I can only guess my own flesh-and-blood never expected me to make it this far."

At that very moment, the eight doors to the great circular shaft opened each spilling out stormtroopers.  They quickly spread themselves among the extended bridges and platforms.  It was a bantha shoot with no escape.

"You should never have repaired the bridge controls." The mocking voice of Captain Kolaff drifted down from hidden speakers.

“How very disappointing. Just when I was beginning to think that you might have a micro-bit of soldier in you after all, you play directly into my hands. (Yawn) Bantha herders. .. Very well. Here is your next, and quite probably last, lesson. I call it ‘Dying.’”

Thuraya sighed and waved her hand.  The newly repaired panel flipped a switch.  The platforms under the stormtroopers retracted.  The stormtroopers disappeared into the crackling energy below.

"I... I don't believe it!" Kolaff shouted.

"That is why you fail." The young padawan muttered.

OOC:  Stormtrooper problem handled. ;-)  Blissex will start next GM reply with an idea that should get the story moving again.

Celes kept looking over the screen while the others spoke, until eventually the topic of Blissex's daughter began to wind down. She looked over at the architect of all this destruction, blank-faced.

"She's with Vader. Do you think she can escape?" And that was when Kolaff's trap sprang, startling Celes into drawing her pistol again and assuming an evasive stance! As he droned on, her mind went through possible exits, nearby controls for the bridges or the doors, how many she could shoot before their average reaction times could take her down coupled with the necessary direction to not attack anyone her allies targeted for maximum spread in the first volley, the best way to cover Shira should--

They all fell. Celes watched, eyes wide. Afterward, she glanced to Thuraya, then to Ali. For the first time (by her perspective), something felt off. The hunter wordlessly holstered the blaster and put a hand on Blissex's shoulder.

"Which way now?"

"I'm getting tired..." Thuraya said with a grim smile, "of little people threatening my friends".  Ali felt uneasy at how casually the stormtroopers were dispatched.  And then felt amazed that she could feel pity for stormtroopers.

OOC:  A little extra post while I have some time.

Shira looked relieved. "Oh, thank you 'Bee, mister Blissex. I'll keep being curious, but I'll try to be more thoughtful too. Now, let's get out of here!"

Shira screamed in fright as the stormtroopers sprung their ambush. She raised her blaster, but her hand was shaking from fear. Abruptly, the bridges retracted. Shira stared for a moment, almost not believing she was still alive. "I, um... thank you, Thuraya. I was afraid that might have been it."