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14:59, 28th March 2024 (GMT+0)

Part 8 - Frozen assets.

Posted by The ForceFor group 0
The Force
GM, 180 posts
These aren't the dice
rolls you're looking for.
Mon 29 Aug 2011
at 17:28
  • msg #165

Re: Part 8 - Frozen assets

The lead trooper takes Rhijan's ID and starts to examine it, then he stops, looking from Rhijans, to Haarmon, to Shard, and finally he looks up at Juragga.  His attention goes back to the ID, and stays there for perhaps a little too long.

Then one of the other troopers  moves closer and speaks to him, "Sir, that looks like the alien that was reported to be causing trouble."

The commander's glances back at Juragga, then looks where the other trooper seems to be looking... at the Ubese!

He shoves the ID back at Rhijans, and orders the troops, "Arrest that alien."  Their guns swing round to aim at the Ubese, which stands so quickly that its chair crashes over backwards.  It raises its hands in a gesture of surrender, except that one of them is holding a thermal detonator, a red light winking to indicate that the weapon is armed...
Rhijans Thanus
player, 266 posts
Just let me do my job and
nobody else gets hurt.
Tue 30 Aug 2011
at 07:19
  • msg #166

Re: Part 8 - Frozen assets

Rhijans glanced quickly around the room, noticing the location of the stormtroopers as they flowed past him and levelled weapons at the Ubese.  Things weren't quite right, yet...

Then the Ubese raised his hands...and the thermal detonator gleamed menacingly.  Now, that might work... Rhijans told himself.  He back-pedalled quickly toward the nearest doorway...where two more stormtroopers stood guard.  "Hey, thermal detonators were NOT anywhere on my shipping manifest!  Get me outta here!" he said, hoping that he was managing to put a convincing amount of alarm in his voice.  His gray skin accentuated how wide his eyes were as he looked back over his shoulder at the Ubese, as he attempted to force his way past the stormtroopers...
Shard
player, 294 posts
Most days, I'm tired.
...or drunk.
Tue 30 Aug 2011
at 11:14
  • msg #167

Re: Part 8 - Frozen assets

It becomes obvious the Ubese isn't going to be taken without a fight.  And likely a thermal detonator 'explosion', of the sort that simply atomizes everything within a certain radius.  Not a good thing for their mission, and a less-good thing for their health.  Simutaneously, Shard can't exactly sit and let the Imperials shoot him dead.

Hot void, but she could use a drink right now.

Abandoning the grip of her blaster, her hand shifts under her heavy coat, gripping smooth metal.  Struggling to control her breathing, she glances to where Rhijans heads for the door through the troopers - two outside, one of him, and she suspects the Stormtroopers are outnumbered.  The rest?  They're trapped in here with Haarmon, Jacobs, herself...and a Wookie.  She hopes Juragga limits himself to bashing and doesn't start pulling off limbs and beating Stormtroopers with the wet ends.  The last time Shard saw a Wookie do that she ended up drunk for a day.

Find the middle road.  Standing still as if frozen in place, Shard struggles to balance the roaring fear and tension against the empty peace.  In balance, she feels, there lies the truth.

Any moment, Rhijans will burst out the door to where the sentries await.

Any moment, Juragga might spring into action.

Any moment, Haarmon might do something rash (well, it's almost a given, isn't it?).

Any moment, Jacobs could open fire from his vantage point.

If they do, she will act.  If they do not...well, Shard knows she will still act.  The situation has officially gone South.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:20, Tue 22 Nov 2011.
Juragga
player, 70 posts
Wookiee Warrior
Bringing the Boom
Tue 30 Aug 2011
at 18:40
  • msg #168

Re: Part 8 - Frozen assets

With a savage howl that is part gleeful and part wrathful, the Wookiee can restrain himself no longer.  Lashing out with his massive paws, he reaches for two of the troopers that are focused on the Urbese and attempts to introduce them to each other.  With extreme force.  Starting with their heads.

(OOC: It's been a while so I forget if the GM makes die rolls or I do.  By all means, I am fine with the GM doing so!)
Mark Jacobs
player, 128 posts
Got a bad feeling
about this.
Wed 31 Aug 2011
at 15:12
  • msg #169

Re: Part 8 - Frozen assets

Mark Jacobs takes one look at the situation, and only one action springs to mind.

Throwing himself away from the table he rushes for the door and the two troopers that he knows are waiting outside.  As he passes between them he yells, "Ubese!  Thermal detonator!" and hopes that they picked up on what he was trying to tell them.
The Force
GM, 184 posts
These aren't the dice
rolls you're looking for.
Thu 1 Sep 2011
at 13:15
  • msg #170

The Sith hits the fan...

The two troopers outside the door swing round to stop Rhijans amd Mark from exiting.  Then the all the talk of thermal detonators sinks in... they continue turning, bringing their guns to bear on targets inside the break room, leaving Rhijans and Mark behind them.

Shard stands out of the line of fire, seemingly paralysed with fear.  Why else would she not be moving at all and, apparently, distracted by something? 

Inside the room, all the weapons are pointed at the Ubese.  Until two of the troopers are suddenly hit by Juragga.  One is sent sprawling on the floor, while the other simply staggers a few steps to one side and starts to bring his blaster round to point at the Wookiee...

For an instant, time seems to stand still...

... and then a blaster fires.  The shot goes wide, and the Ubese doesn't even try to dodge.  The second shot, from the trooper commander, hits though and the Ubese gives a strange, electronic scream as it dives for cover behind a nearby table.  Luckily it still keeps a grip on the thermal detonator...
Shard
player, 299 posts
Most days, I'm tired.
...or drunk.
Thu 1 Sep 2011
at 13:48
  • msg #171

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

Juragga erupts, a furred volcano tossing troopers like toys, dominating the room with his rage and might, leaving Shard and Haarmon untouched, unnoticed.  But though one trooper goes down, the armor of the other protects him from the vicious assault and his blaster drops into line with the furious giant.  More blasters fire, Shard hears the Ubese scream...a sound that might echo from Juragga's throat in an instant, if three or four troopers open fire on the demon in their midst.  From Haarmon's, if he goes for his pistol, his clothing no protection from blaster-fire at point-blank range.  And if the thermal detonator falls from the Ubese' lifeless fingers, the last thing any of them see will be a flash.

No!

It's a moment of absolute clarity for her, hanging in the balance between fury-fear and emptiness.

Denial fades as need grows.  Her hand slides away from the butt of her pistol as her other finds the catch on smooth metal.  Oh, she detests this thing and everything it stands for: the dispassionate judgement, the violence, the killing.  But right here, right now, it settles into her fingers like an old friend and for an instant - that one moment of perfect balance and clarity - all her skill returns.  For an instant, she wonders how she ever set it aside.

Beneath the fear, beneath the emptiness, lies the fulcrum for the balance itself.  And that fulcrum is named care.  Despised by one side, discarded by the other, it is everything to her.

Juragga.  Haarmon.

Protect.

Blue-white fire ignites in a silent scream between her hands as Shard moves, an arc of lightning whirling around her blurred form, balanced steps taking her through the troopers flanking Juragga, toward the Commander firing on the Ubese.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:06, Tue 03 Jan 2017.
Rhijans Thanus
player, 270 posts
Just let me do my job and
nobody else gets hurt.
Thu 1 Sep 2011
at 17:13
  • msg #172

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

As soon as Rhijans sensed he was past the troopers, his panic melted away into quiet certitude.  He stepped up behind one of the troopers, producing a vibroblade in one hand as he reached around, under the trooper's field of vision with the other, ready to grab the blaster, as he slid the vibroblade in, centered on the spine, right below the base of the helmet.

Just as the blade started its penetration, there was an unfamiliar snap-hiss, followed by an almost angry thrum, and the room was lit up by the blade in Shard's hands.
Juragga
player, 72 posts
Wookiee Warrior
Bringing the Boom
Thu 1 Sep 2011
at 17:43
  • msg #173

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

Jurragga howled in wrath as blaster fire erupted in the room.  One trooper he'd downed, but the other swung a blaster towards him.  He didn't pause.  Roaring with gusto, he lashed out with a mighty swing, trying to drive the man through the floor.  In addition to demolishing the troopers, he was trying to draw attention with his roars and menace... draw it away from the others.  Haarmon and Shard especially.

But as he swung, a snap-hiss and thrumm filled his ears.

He knew that sound.

Not that long ago as Wookiees measured time, he'd heard it before... far away from here, in the forests of Kashyyk...
This message was last edited by the player at 17:44, Thu 01 Sept 2011.
Mark Jacobs
player, 129 posts
Got a bad feeling
about this.
Sat 3 Sep 2011
at 07:52
  • msg #174

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

With the stormtroopers distracted, Mark draws his blaster and opens fire at the nearest one.  Shooting somebody in the back might not be a very heroic thing to do, but then they are stormtroopers, and there's plenty more where this one came from.

Which immediately reminds him that, yes, there are plenty more, and they might all be here at any moment.

"So much for trying to keep things quiet!" he calls to Rhijans, with a laugh.


Mark Jacobs rolled 18 using 6 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 1,5,4,2,3,{Wild}3. Blaster.
Mark Jacobs rolled 26 using 5 dice with the WEG Classic system with rolls of 1,5,{Wild}6(+6+1),2,5. Blaster damage.

The Force
GM, 185 posts
These aren't the dice
rolls you're looking for.
Sun 4 Sep 2011
at 20:35
  • msg #175

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

The break room explodes into violence.

Shard shows surprising agility, considering the general lack of fitness she has shown before, and the lightsaber cuts down three of the troopers before they even realise what's happening.  A fourth gets a split-second's warning, and manages to move far enough and fast enough that his armour protects him.

As he stumbles away he fires of a shot at Shard, but the lightsaber flicks out to deflect the bolt back at him, and he falls, wounded.

Outside the door, Rhijans attacks one of the posted guards, sliding a vibroblade into the back of his neck, where snowtrooper armour is somewhat weaker.  The guard goes down without a sound, apart from the clattering as he hits the floor.  The other guard falls to a blaster bolt in the back from Mark Jacobs.

There is one trooper left standing in the room.  As he realises what is happening around him, he drops his weapon and raises his hands.
Rhijans Thanus
player, 273 posts
Just let me do my job and
nobody else gets hurt.
Mon 5 Sep 2011
at 05:59
  • msg #176

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

"Get their helmets off!" Rhijans says in an urgent hiss, as he secures his grip on the blaster of the trooper he'd just downed.  The last thing they needed was a supposedly-surrendered enemy soldier calling for help while he had his hands in the air.

For a moment, he looked at Shard, remembering, at some point, that he'd told her they needed to have a talk, back when they were trying to extricate themselves from the last planet.  Now they REALLY needed to have a talk...except Rhijans had no idea what he'd say.  Fighting with a Jedi weapon--and obviously trained in how to use it--it was indicative of a deep involvement in a...he didn't even know what to call it.  A religion?  A philosophy?  Whatever it was, it was something that was only known to him in rumors, stories told with scorn at bars and around campfires on his home world.

There was no time for the discussion now, though.  Like it or not, the ball was in play.  He turned to the Ubese and said, "You gonna shut that toy down and help us?"  He figured someone...likely either Jacobs or Juragga...would enthusiastically relieve the remaining troopers of their headgear.
Shard
player, 306 posts
Most days, I'm tired.
...or drunk.
Mon 5 Sep 2011
at 11:44
  • msg #177

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

The moment the final trooper raises his hand, the lightsaber disappears, first becoming a metal cylinder in Shard's hands, then slipped under her cloak to be replaced by the simple ugliness of a blaster pistol.  It shakes every so slightly, the barrel trembling as she points it at the soldier.  "Wise," Shard nods, appreciatively.

The balance has shattered, falling apart around and within her, and she's a step from throwing up.  Grimly holding the bile back in her throat, she moves to divest the trooper of his helmet, keeping him under the gun at all times.  Three men dead because she couldn't find another way through this.  Her mind whirling, she goes back through the entire situation.  Was it her?  Had she done this by antagonizing the miners?  "Down," she mutters.  "I don't kill prisoners, so as long as you stay one, you and your injured friends will make it through this."

Hopefully someone is taking care of the one she 'shot' - had she done that?  Her memories say she did, but it's foggy and vague to her memories.  Reflexes are a terrible thing, a monster she kept buried for many, many years, now bubbling up to the surface again.

Did it to protect them, she reminds herself.  That hasd to count for something.
Juragga
player, 75 posts
Wookiee Warrior
Bringing the Boom
Mon 5 Sep 2011
at 17:48
  • msg #178

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

Juragga stares at Shard for a long moment, his teal eyes shining in the light as they grow moist.  He let out a soft "Uuuummmmff."  Memories, hopes and fears all surge within his mighty chest.  Before he can react, though, Rhijans shouts to remove the troopers' helmets.  That snaps him out of whatever he'd been feeling.  First things first.

Enthusiastically and none too gently, the Wookiee begins pulling off helmets.  Hopefully for the troopers' sake, none of them have their chin straps on too tightly...
UY-3PO
NPC, 18 posts
No, I don't like you
either.
Thu 8 Sep 2011
at 07:31
  • msg #179

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

"Oh dear.  How very obtuse.  Such a feebleminded idea to attack like this."

The droid shakes his head and lifts his arms dejectedly.

"That is, unless your idea was to alert all the troopers on the base, in which case it was brilliant."

He sighs heavily, or at least mimics the sound perfectly.

"They are all in communication here, you see and...  Oh, look, they do look positively feebleminded under the helmet.  I knew it."  He points to the remaining trooper.  "Yes, very feebleminded, mark my words."
The Force
GM, 186 posts
These aren't the dice
rolls you're looking for.
Thu 8 Sep 2011
at 12:43
  • msg #180

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

The Ubese slowly clambers to his feet, still holding the thermal detonator.  But he thumbs the safety on, and the warning light stops blinking.  At least for now.

The helmets are removed from all the troopers except one.  That one is the unit commander, and the reason his helmet is not removed is that doing so would involve dragging the helmet out from under the table where it came to rest, and shaking his head out of it.  Or using something to scoop it out.  But it's probably safe to say that, with a three metre separation between his helmet and the rest of his armour, he's probably not going to be calling for help.

Of the eight troopers who had come to investigate the reported tampering with company equipment, three are dead, and two are unconscious, probably as a result of shock.  Two of the remaining three are injured, but will probably pull through.

The Ubese's voice is just as unreadable as ever, a series of unintelligible mechanical and electronic sounds.  Luckily there is a protocol droid in the room...

"He apologises for his stupidity, which is in all likelihood the only sensible thing he has said this year, but he did not wish to be arrested."
Rhijans Thanus
player, 276 posts
Just let me do my job and
nobody else gets hurt.
Fri 9 Sep 2011
at 04:11
  • msg #181

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

Rhijans might have smiled at the commentary, under different circumstances, but he was busy trying to think how best to proceed from this point.  "I'd have to say that's a very logical sentiment," he said, more or less facing the Ubese while trying to direct his speech to the droid--just in case translation was needed.

"I don't suppose there's any chance he'd care to inform us what he was in danger of being arrested for, is there?"  There wasn't a lot of time, he was sure, and regardless of whether or not the rest of the garrison was alert to the situation here, some of these troopers would be missed, possibly within just a few minutes.  But the Ubese was a potential asset in the scenario, and if he wasn't an asset, he was probably a liability, and they needed to know which one it was.

Rhijans glanced around the room at the group.  Out of everyone here, Jacobs seemed the most likely to have some kind of military background.  "Jacobs...can you listen in on one of those helmets and see if they're on alert...and if so, just how much of an alert...?"
Haarmon Dak
player, 81 posts
Are you talking to me?
Fri 9 Sep 2011
at 17:43
  • msg #182

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

Haarmon claps his hands together and grins, looking from face to face around the room.  He reserves his most dazzling smile for Shard before saying, "Well, that all went better than I expected."

Then, to Rhijans he adds, "I can check that terminal too, see if I can find some way to learn something about troop movements."  Without waiting for an answer, he moves across and starts studying the terminal.

"Should be easy enough to override its security.  It's not exactly state of the art."
Mark Jacobs
player, 130 posts
Got a bad feeling
about this.
Fri 9 Sep 2011
at 18:29
  • msg #183

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

After checking the inside of one of the helmets, Mark shoves it onto his head and starts listening in on the comm channel in the hopes of hearing any orders that might be issued sending people this way.
Juragga
player, 76 posts
Wookiee Warrior
Bringing the Boom
Sat 10 Sep 2011
at 02:28
  • msg #184

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

Having torn the helmets from the fallen troopers, Juragga the Wookiee turned to Shard, looming at his full height as he looked down at the tired, shaky woman.

"GRrrrrrrrrraaaAAAAGH,"
he rumbled.

How?  How had she survived the Purge?
This message was last edited by the player at 03:09, Sat 10 Sept 2011.
Rhijans Thanus
player, 277 posts
Just let me do my job and
nobody else gets hurt.
Sat 10 Sep 2011
at 04:34
  • msg #185

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

Rhijans watched the kid walk over to the terminal and do his thing, and managed to avoid shaking his head.  Just when he was sure there was no hope for the guy, he came up with a really solid, intelligent thing to do.

He managed to avoid getting lost in his introspective moment, however, and looked back at the Ubese, an inquiring look on his face.
The Force
GM, 187 posts
These aren't the dice
rolls you're looking for.
Sat 10 Sep 2011
at 22:11
  • msg #186

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

The Ubese says something to the droid, who relays it to RhiJans, "It is most likely because of that argument that was going on in the office when you first arrived.  The administrator no doubt reported that this creature was walking about the place with an explosive device."

Mark Jacobs, meanwhile, listens in on the Imperial comms network, while Haarmon Dak tinkers with the terminal.  Even to an untrained observer, it is apparent that he is making progress of some kind.

The one stormtrooper who remains on his feet stands silently, with his hands still raised.
Shard
player, 308 posts
Most days, I'm tired.
...or drunk.
Sun 11 Sep 2011
at 01:43
  • msg #187

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

Rhijans, as always, seems to have the situation under control, professional that he is.  It gives the gratified Shard a moment to take a breather - her heart pounds wildly against her ribs, and she struggles to control her breath.  Out of shape.  It has been a long, long time since she has needed to move with such smooth control, and only the momentary, perfect balance allowed it.

Stress and exhaustion have taken that balance's place.

Haarmon's smile receives a blank stare in reply.  Better?  Shard can't quite parse the man's point.  Her eyes rove around the room, falling on decapitated head, on dead bodies burned through their armor, on the troopers' crumpled bodies in the hallway.  How is this better?

Juragga's rumble cuts through the meandering thoughts, and part of her reacts instinctively, providing an answer.  "I didn't," she mutters, still raking the room with her gaze.  "I didn't..."  Then her mind catches up with her tongue.  "...didn't quite get that, Juragga, sorry."  Fool! she curses herself.  For a long moment she stares at the Wookie like an animal in the headlight of an oncoming speeder; then Shard grabs the standing trooper's arm.

"Sit," she orders, pointing with her pistol.  "Quiet."

At least the Ubese is alive; injured, but alive.

Once the trooper is safely seated, she glances around the room again.  Rhijans is in converse with the Ubese; Jacobs has a helmet for scanning; Haarmon is at the terminal.  The droid is...complaining, nothing new there.  That left Juragga.  Lips thin, she studies the Wookie for a long moment.  "You...all right, Juragga?"  Her gaze roves over the fur.  "They didn't hit you, did they?"

An evasion, yes, but her concern is true; trust a Wookie to suffer several injuries without complaint.
Juragga
player, 77 posts
Wookiee Warrior
Bringing the Boom
Sun 11 Sep 2011
at 02:31
  • msg #188

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

Juragga brushed aside her concern with a low warble.  He was fine.  Thanks to her.

But despite his lack of ability to speak Basic, and towering, hirsute frame, the Wookiee wasn't dense.  Shard had the look of a small animal in her eyes, an animal caught out in the open with no cover.

He had words that came to his mind, things he wanted to say.  Seeing her look, he said none of them.  Instead, he let out a short "uUUUUUrrrrAAAUUUgggh," and put his hand on her shoulder.  Gently.  Loosely translated, the Wookiee had just thanked Shard and told her he had her back.  And that he owed her.

He knew something of what it was like to lose everything.
Rhijans Thanus
player, 278 posts
Just let me do my job and
nobody else gets hurt.
Sun 11 Sep 2011
at 04:36
  • msg #189

Re: The Sith hits the fan...

Rhijans pursed his lips for a second, a flickering gesture of irritation.  That answer wasn't particularly helpful.  They needed some sign of commitment, one way or the other.

At least he could prevent this from looking like it was a Rebel operation, with a story told here.  "I don't have time to dance around the subject, so I'll lay it out," he began.  "We were hired by a client who has a relative that ended up stuck in the mines here.  We're here to get him out...I need to know if you can help us, if you're going to stand back and stay out of the way, or if we're going to need to treat you as a threat."  The three options were laid out smoothly, no implied malice or inferred threat to the Ubese in his tone...provided the Ubese understood human inflection or that UY-3PO could convey it effectively.  He was still holding the blaster he'd seized from the snow trooper, but relaxed, casually, at his side, and his body language didn't indicate any real desire to raise it.

Honesty, for honesty.  That was the offer.  Of course, the fact that he was fudging the truth just a bit meant that he'd have to take anything the Ubese said in response with grain of healthy skepticism.
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