Haarmon nodded and smiled. "Yeah, no point in faffing about looking for every secret on every level when you got the cheat code right here, yeah?" He gestured to the baby.

Whatcha thinking, little one? Can you sense where your Once and Future Teacher is hiding?

A pause.

And what do you think about a name? We can't just be running about calling you Child. Sounds like we're about to remonstrate you for using the wrong desert fork or something.

His heart dropped a little as he asked. He was starting to realize that he wasn't going to get to hold on to the little one much longer. For the best, really, all around.

But all the same, he'd gotten used to having her nearby.

Somewhere nearby, in his cabin, Juragga finished off his third mug of jet-juice.

The alien child looks at Haarmon, and makes a sound like a cross between a belch and a giggle, before smiling at him.

A man's voice, very calm and clear, comes from a nearby wall console, "Captain Hannak, please report to the briefing room.  Captain Hannak to the briefing room."

The infant laughs and clumsily claps her hands...

Juragga, meanwhile, is finding his alone time somewhat unsatisfactory.  They just don't seem to make jet-juice the way they used to.  After three mugs of the stuff, he still doesn't feel like all his hair is falling out.  Or maybe they do make it like they used to, and he has just built up a resistance to it.  After all, it's not like he's sixty years old any more...

The intercom chirps... seems like the Wookiee has a call...

Grumbling, Juragga stood and shuffled over to the communicator.

"Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrgh," he complained.  Whaddaya want?

Rhijans left the ship, looking around at first and then asking for the Deck Officer.  Once located, he proceeded with his typical brusque fashion.  "Any idea if Tfalta Dawl is on the base?  We have a delivery for her..."

"Hello?  Is that... where was it, ah!  There... Juragga?"  A pause, while Juragga answers, then, "Oh, you don't speak Basic?  Right, right.  Well... Reldan Jalt gave me your name.  Said you're pretty strong, and I need somebody  who can help me out.  I'm looking for somebody with a bit of muscle who also knows one end of a thrust chamber from the other."

"If you're interested, I'm in the north hangar.  Look for the Drunken Gundark.  I'm her captain, Halec Rett." 

The Deck Officer looks at Rhijans for a moment, nodding, then glances around the hangar.  He points at a fighter, an older model, still in good shape and painted in orange and black.  "I believe that's her ship.  If that's here, then there's a fairly good chance she's about somewhere.  If you need to find her, there's a public address terminal just over there, near the blast door... you can put a call out for her."
This message was last edited by the GM at 07:30, Thu 19 Dec 2019.

Rhijans nodded a curt acknowledgment.  It can't be that easy, can it? he asked himself, and then shrugged inwardly.  They were certainly due for SOMETHING to happen the easy way.

He walked over to the PA and picked up the mic.  "Tfalta Dawl, please report to your ship.  Repeat, Tfalta Dawl, you are needed at your ship in the hangar."  His voice was crisp, the tones clipped...very business-like, even in comparison to his normal no-nonsense fashion.

He put down the mic and stepped away.  This was supposed to be friendly territory, but old habits died hard...he would wait and watch for her arrival, but he didn't want it immediately apparent that he was the one that had paged her.

It seems Haarmon is getting somewhere with the child.  The question becomes, will the child have an answer?

The PA, however, rolls out another announcement, this time in Rhijans' voice.  Shard sighs.  "Leave it to Rhijans to find a more efficient method."  It's the best possible choice for finding Dawl.

"How'd he know she has a ship?" she murmurs.

In reply to The Force (msg # 9):

Juragga shook his head to clear it, frowning in his Wookiee way.  Once he parsed what was being said, he woofed an affirmative, albeit a reluctant one.

He looked forlornly at the potential FOURTH mug of grog he could drink... and then shouldered his toolkit and shuffled off to the north hanger, looking for Captain Rett and the Drunken Gundark.

Minutes pass.  Rhijans watches as Juragga shuffles across the hangar, seemingly distracted.  On the far side of the large room, a figure in a grey hooded robe enters and walks, head lowered, across to Tfalta Dawl's fighter.  Whoever it is, they stop a short distance away from the craft and start examining the landing gear on a parked Z-95...

Aboard the Bantha, the infant suddenly stops making happy noises and waving her limbs about.  Instead see stretches out one arm and points to the wall.  The wall she points at is, perhaps coincidentally, a section of the ship's hull...

Rhijans began maneuvering an indirect route...not to the fighter, but to the gray figure.  As he moved, he kept his attention split between watching for anyone else approaching the fighter--or Dawl's sudden appearance--and watching the gray-hooded figure for any sign of threat or danger.

He was relatively certain the figure was Dawl, taking precautions after being inexplicably summoned in a decidedly unusual way...but there was always chance that it was someone else looking for Dawl, trying to take advantage of the summons.  Either way, getting closer to the figure served his purposes...
This message was last edited by the player at 04:54, Tue 24 Dec 2019.

Haarmon stared at the kid, his brow furrowed and his eyes narrowed. Why'd she get so excited when the intercom started squawking? Why didn't she give him a name to use?

Well, whatever was going on in there, a point was a point was a point.

He looked over at Shard. "You up for a little follow-the-leader?"

He turned in a circle with the baby, to see if her little ravioli-fist would stay pointing in roughly the right direction.

Juragga finds the north hangar easily enough.  AS he enters he notices the smell, which brings him a sudden flood of memories of home.  The outer door is open, giving a clear view of sky, and the jungle canopy moving in the breeze.

The Drunken Gundark turns out to be a YT-1300, parked near the outer door.  Halec Rett, her captain, is sitting on a folding chair at the foot of the ramp, but he gets to his feet as Juragga approaches.  A movement that brings a gasp from the Human, and leaves him standing with his back bent.  "Jalt says you know a little bit about ships.  See, I have this problem... one of the directional flow coils in the port thruster array is misaligned and needs straightening up.  Trouble is, the drives are an older model, and the coils are heavier than on newer designs.  So it takes a lot of strength, and a bit of tech know-how to realign one, and it's bit cramped in there for a crew of techs, but you could probably lay in the access crawlway and reach up to work on the coil, and you'd be strong enough to shift it alone,"

"Want to help me out?  I can make it worth your while."

Rhijans gets closer to the hooded figure, and a voice he hasn't heard in a little while suddenly comes from it...

"It's been a while Rhijans.  Do your friends still want me dead?"

As Haarmon turns, the infant continues to point at the same spot on the wall, near enough.  She also starts laughing again.  A couple of steps to one side, and it becomes apparent that she definitely isn't pointing at a spot on the wall, but to something beyond it... outside the ship...

"Unless you've mysteriously shifted allegiance to the Empire, then, no...you're safe with us."  He eased forward, eyes still scanning the hangar.  Some might consider his behavior paranoid...but Rhijans regarded is as merely being prudent.  They'd already had to deal with one episode of base security being compromised, he wasn't about to take it for granted that there was no chance someone else here had dubious loyalties.

"No, I'm good with the Alliance, thanks.  So I think it's safe to assume that you called me here, and that you had a good reason for doing it."  Tfalta Dawl turns to study Rhijan's face, her expression one of barely repressed amusement, "Do you want to tell me, or should I just start guessing?"

"You seem jumpy.  Expecting a visit from Nimadda?"

"Not particularly.  Just a case of knowing enough to never be really comfortable anywhere there are people I don't know."  He nodded in the direction of the Bantha.

"We actually have a delivery for you.  Pretty sure it's something you're going to want to see, and I'm positive it's something you're better equipped to deal with than we are."  He gave a humorless grin and added, "It's something that is utterly outside of my realm of expertise."  He started in the direction of the ship.

"I'm game," Shard replies to Haarmon. "Better than standing around here...how much do you want to bet we find Dawl, only she's heading in our direction with Rhijans?" 

That said, she makes an elaborate 'after you' movement; after all, it's the child that's pointing the way.

Juragga regarded Captain Rett for a moment, glancing to the Gundark.  Small wheels turned in his brain pan, despite the three flagons of ale he'd already consumed... Wookiee constitution was no joke.

Then, he woofed an affirmative.  But, he warbled in explanation, what he wanted in return... was information.  He still sought out his family, but activities in the Rebellion had kept him from making any headway of late...

Rett nods, straightening up slowly, "No problem.  Tell me what you're after, and I'll see if any of my contacts can come up with it while you work on the Gundark.  I have good contacts."

Tfalta Dawl frowns.  "A delivery for me?  I'm not expecting anything.  I don't think anybody outside this base knows I'm here."  A shrug, and then, "But fine.  Lead on."

She follows after Rhijans, grinning when she sees their destination.  "Ah... the Dancing Bantha.  It's still flying then?"

Haarmon leads the way through the ship, heading for the exit.  With every turn of a corner, the infants arm swings to continue pointing in the same direction, like some sort of inertial compass...

Rhijans gave a dry snort that could perhaps have passed for a laugh.  "Well, we weren't told to bring it to you HERE, specifically...just asked to bring it to you.  We got into port, asked around, and found out you were here.  First damn thing about this whole last operation that's actually been simple."

He gave the ship an appraising look.  "She's still flying, although we almost managed to kill her this last time out.  But I think the ship is as stubborn as her captain...when she finally gives in to fate, it's not going to be on a scrap pile.  And she not only brought us back this time...we retrieved the Colonel off Nimadda's Star Destroyer.  I'm pretty sure the Empire is training a few new officers after that one..."

They arrived at the base of the ramp, and Rhijans called up, into the ship, "Shard!  Haarmon!  Coming in with a friend..."  He didn't figure they'd be too jumpy...but the kid had them both behaving a little oddly and it was best to not take chances.

Rett listens to Juragga, and nods.  "I can most likely find that out for you.  Probably not here though.  I'll need to ask around, which means getting my ship operational again.  Once that happens, I'll visit some acquaintances I have on other planets, and see what I can find out for you."

And with that said, he leads Juragga aboard the Drunken Gundark, and through to Engineering.  He points to a low crawlway with an open access panel just big enough for a Wookiee to push his way in, if he is laying down.  "You'll need to lay on your back and slide in.  About two metres in is a vertical shaft, and the flow coil assembly is at the top.  With those long arms, you should be able to reach it."

Tfalta Dawl stops at the bottom of the ramp, "Something odd here.  Something that I haven't felt before."  A moment's thought, and then, "Or have I?"

Shaking her head in amusement, Shard follows Haarmon through the ship.  "Don't actually need us, do they?  Aside from transport?"

Really, they're just along for the ride, here.  It's a worthwhile ride, mind; reuniting a mother and child is never a bad thing.

Ahead is the ramp, and Rhijans' words echo up into the ship.  Shard immediately rolls her eyes. "Called it," she murmurs, then raises her own voice to respond.  "We're coming.  Haarmon's ferrying our guest; I'm just the rag-tag follower."

Juragga nodded, crouching to peer into the shaft.  Then, lying down, he got on his back and slid in, head-first, to asses the situation.

Thje component is easy to spot, at least Juragga has seen one before, and can see that it is misaligned.  Whoever designed this ship needs his head examining.  While the access space is about the right size for Juragga to reach up and do the work, for a Human it would be just too far if the Human were laying down.  Sitting would be awkward, and standing completely out of the question. 

At the Dancing Bantha, there is a reunion of sorts, even if some of the individuals have never met before, and some are less than enthusiastic to see each other.

Tfalta Dawl cocks her head to one side, eyeing the bundle clutched by Haarmon.  "An infant from one of the... oh... I see.  Nuq Clade."

Haarmon kept his distance from Dawl as she entered. But he didn't look like he was keeping his distance. He was... baby-toting casual.

He kept his mind open for any sense of anything that the little one might be getting from Dawl. He for sure wasn't super excited about her initial reaction. "Yeah, she's from the Clade. Why did you say that like you got a mouthful of bantha poodoo?"