A small shuttle was already on the landing platform with its side wings up.  LT Alez was already there as well, standing at the edge of the platform looking out over the turbulent ocean during a rare rain-free moment.  He seemed to hear the blast doors open, and turned as Kera arrived.

     He glanced her over, his eyes lingering only a moment on her hip.  He then moved to the rear hatch of the shuttle and headed inside.

     At the top of the ramp, he was opening a locker.  "I expect my troopers to be armed at all times," he said smugly, pulling out a Q-2S5 scout blaster and a black holster.

http://vignette4.wikia.nocooki...es/3/3e/Scoutgun.jpg

     Handing her the equipment, he continued to the cockpit and sat in the pilot seat.  "Close the hatch.  Let's go," he ordered as he warmed up the engines.

     As she put on the holster and checked the weapon, she noticed it was missing an Imperial serial identification number.  In fact, the weapon looked like it had been purchased second-hand from a Toydarian junk merchant.

"Sir," Kera stated as she took the weapon and the holster. She put on the holster, but then took a look at the blaster.

Ah. This did not bode well for her. Without saying a word, she began checking the blaster to ensure it would work. She needed to know the tools were working in case she needed to use them.

At the Lieutenant's look, she explained.

"Just my standard procedure, sir. In case its going to be needed."

     The weapon was in good working condition and the damage appeared to be only cosmetic.

     "Yes, good.  I hope not, but better safe than sorry," Alez said dismissively as the shuttle lifted off the platform.

     "Toprawa Control, this is Shuttle GW-044.  Departing refinery 689 primary at 1148 en route to TC-31.  Access code VR-Green Delta niner," the Lieutenant said as Kera took her seat.

     "Code and flight plan confirmed, GW-044.  Be warned of high winds on your departure vector." the controller responded.

     "Acknowledged, Toprawa Control," he responded, lifting them up and into the storm clouds.

[Private to Kera Skirata: Perception check.  Use D6 Classic game system]

Kera heard the admonition about high winds and strapped herself into the shuttle's seat. There wasn't much she could do about the winds as a passenger other than to minimize the risk of her injury by too much turbulence.

"Sir, if I might ask about this task: what is my duty in this matter?"

[Private to GM: 14:49, Today: Kera Skirata rolled 12 using 3 dice with the WEG Classic system.

If its not a problem, it might be faster if you rolled anything like perception- I really don't mind GMs rolling for me.]

[Private to Kera Skirata: Very well.  I will roll some things for you.]

     Alez ignored her as they slipped into the dark clouds.  There was a little turbulence, but nothing too serious.  Then she saw Alez reduce power to the stabilizers slightly while trying to hide that he was reducing power.  The ride immediately got rougher, and Alez jerked the controls to violently toss the shuttle off course.

     "Toprawa ... We've been hit!  Shuttle GW-044 reporting a thruster malfunction, possibly lightning.  We can clear orbit, but I'm going to have to set down somewhere close.  Requesting permission to land at Orbital Four," Alez said into the comlink with some urgency.

     Kera could tell he was faking the 'accident.'  She also knew that Orbital Four, a small refueling platform, was closed while it's infrastructure was being updated.

     "Very well, GW-044.  Are you declaring an emergency?" the operator asked.

     "No.  We're fine here, now.  I'll land and make on site repairs before continuing on to you," Alez said hastily.  "Shuttle out."

     Settling back into his seat as they broke orbit.  He glanced her way as they approached Orbital Four.  "Nothing to worry about.  I'm sure I can fix it," he said.

     The platform was designed to refuel spacecraft without needing to land, but there were still eight circular platforms with magnetic shields where ships could touchdown and disembark.  There was a freighter on another pad, but the lack of activity made the platform seem like a ghost town.  Alez brought the shuttle down to a pad, raised the wings and landed.

     "Come help me check the thrusters," Alez instructed.  Once outside, he directed her to check the right side while he checked the left.  As she expected, she didn't see any damage.

     The hiss of a blast door caught her attention, and she saw a human woman, a Zabrak, and a Rodian entering the landing pad.  They all wore rough shod spacer gear, and the Rodian carried a rifle in both hands while the others had blasters drawn.

Kera was suspicious, of course. All this suggested a clandestine meeting of some sort- and she didn't want to get involved in the politics of the officers. Bad things happened to grunts who got involved in...politics.

Still, she had a job to do. And, when the door opened and many potential hostiles appeared- particularly hostiles not dressed in Imperial uniforms, she smoothly took out her blaster and took cover.

"Lieutenant! Get to cover!"

She had already taken note of the potential hostiles- this was not a good position to be in. The cover provided by the random crates of where she landed and the shuttle itself was not ideal and could be flanked.

"Stop and identify yourselves!" she said in as authoritative tone as she could. With these numbers...a firefight wasn't something she wanted.

     The newcomers instantly raised their weapons in response to her shouting.

     "Stand down, trooper," Lt. Alez said calmly and patiently as he came around the other side of the shuttle with his hands steepled in front of his waist.  He approached the others and raised his head slightly.

     The woman spotted him and lowered her blaster, while the Zabrak and the Rodian kept their weapons trained on Kera.  "Who's the twitchy one?" the woman asked.

     "My assistant," Lt. Alez said.

     The woman glanced at Kera, curious to see how she would react.  Kera could tell that there were parts of her clothes that looked like old Republic military items.

Kera hesitated as she considered her options. Disobey a superior officer and get into a firefight where she was outnumbered and in a worse position?

Or, obey and watch. She didn't have enough information to disobey her officer- she didn't know enough about his plan.

This took but a moment, an eyeblink.

She lowered her blaster.

"Standing down, sir."

     The Rodian and the Zabrak lowered their weapons as well, stepping up closer behind the woman.

     "Good girl," she said with a sneer.

     "Where is it?" Alez insisted.  The woman's attention returned to him.

     "You first.  You know our deal," she said, holding out her hand.

     After a pause, Alez pulled a data chip out of his pocket and held it up for her to see.  He raised his eyebrows, but didn't say anything.

     The woman eyed the chip, then signaled to the Zabrack, who came up next to her and turned around.  She pulled a red and gold vase the size of a mouse droid from a backpack.  Alez's eyes widened and locked on the vase.  She turned it in her hands, revealing the diagrams all around it's sides.

     "You really found it," Alez whispered, exchanging the chip for the vase and holding it with reverence.

     "Sure did," the woman said.  "Now these movement schedules had better be worth it."

     She slipped the chip into a reader and started scanning the contents.  Alez turned away slightly, still admiring the vase.

     "When are you going to give up this hell-hole, Dithy?  Join our team for good?" the woman asked, clearly satisfied with the data on the chip.

     "Soon enough," Alez whispered.

     Movement schedules?  Her team?  Was she a rebel?  Was Alez a traitor?

Kera's kept her breathing under control as she felt her heart beat faster. Her first instinct was to pull out her blaster and shoot the three people who simply screamed "rebels".

But, things could be different. Surely, the Lieutenant would not have brought her here if this were a rebel meeting- it made no sense. Unless he needed a scapegoat.

Perhaps?

She looked at everyone, their clothes and their interactions, to try and find out a clue as to what was going on.

Whether she should start shooting or not.

[Private to GM: 20:57, Today: Kera Skirata rolled 13 using 4 dice with the WEG Classic system (({Wild}3,5,1,4)).

For her investigation roll.]

     The woman was older but carried herself very well.  Graying red hair peeked out from under a leather skull cap and goggles.  She continued to look through the information on the reader, oblivious of Kera and seemingly disinterested in Alez.

     The Rodian and Zabrak had drifted closer together and were whispering in hushed tones as they glanced at Alez and Kera.  The Rodian seemed to be wearing specialized armor of some sort, but she couldn't tell what it might be able to do from this distance.  The Zabrak had gold skin and gray tattoos, with a braided topknot that fell to his shoulders.  His body armor looked almost brand new.  His free hand was clutching one of the grenades hung on his belt.

     "Well don't take too long, Dithy.  You know what Lapata said.  Plenty of credits to be made in his organization," the woman said, stepping back from Alez toward her associates.  She gave Kera another curious glance.

     "Stick with this one, Dearie!  You'll be sure to go far!" she said with a chuckle.

     Alez was moving slowly back toward the ramp while still admiring the vase.

Kera put the name "Lapta" in the back of her mind. A criminal organization? Something she'd have to research. She considered the possibility of shooting the criminals. But, the probabilities weren't in her favor.

And, she was giving the Lieutenant the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps there was some reason for the vase and this deal. If not...then she would have a problem that would have to be dealt with.

Either way, she slowly backed away as she followed Alez towards the ramp. Best not to show her back to these people.

     Alez silently secured the vase in a storage locker and returned to the cockpit.  Noticing that Kera was inside, he closed the ramp and began to power up the engines.

     "Toprawa Control, this is Shuttle GW-044 preparing to depart Orbital Four to return to Refinery 689.  Thruster repairs nominal," he said into the radio.  There was a pause while he awaited a response.  He glanced sideways at Kera, then back to the controls.

"Lieutenant. Is there any information you would like to tell me? I assume there is, as you requested my skills in this matter."

Non-commital, but something had to be said. Before she decided what to do.

     Alez adjusted a control and didn't look at her.  "You fulfilled your purpose, Trooper.  I needed backup in case things got out of hand, but luckily they didn't.  What did you discern about our ... Guests?" he asked patiently.

Kera paused a moment as she considered how much to show.

"Either members of a dissident group or members of a criminal organization. Probably the latter.

They didn't raise their weapons before I did. Suggests they are more used to using intimidation than solid tactics and procedures. Also, the fact that they work for a "Lapta" in a profit-run organization. Not corporate, though- corporate security would never be found in out-dated, hodge-podge gear.

The woman is the leader- she's had dealings with you in the past. From what she said, I'd assume it is usually imperial movement schedules for artifacts. You've dealt with her and her organization multiple times- enough so that she refers to you by a nick name.

All this is obvious. And would normally require that I arrest you for suspicion of betraying your duties to the Empire. The reason I am not is because you obviously knew I'd notice this and specifically asked me to come.

Why, sir.?

     Alez smirked at her accusation.  "How very astute of you, Trooper.  But I think 'betraying the Empire' is a little bit much," he said as they proceeded back toward the planet.

    "Yes, I've dealt with Dora before, and on the whole she cannot be trusted.  The information I provided her is of no vital strategic importance to the Empire, if you must know.  If they ever get twitchy in the future, I assume you'd be able to recognize it.  You did well, kept your cool.  So I'd like to make your position as my assistant more permanent.  If that is alright with you?" he suggested.

Kera considered a moment. Its not like she could say "no" now- the Lieutenant showed her enough that if she declined, she'd be a threat.

"I understand. And accept the new position. However, I'd like to know what you received for providing information to Dora."

She could investigate and deal with any betrayals after she got more information.

     The Lieutenant nodded.  "A family heirloom.  My family home was all but destroyed during the Clone Wars, and my mother and I barely escaped with our lives.  Once I grew up and joined the empire, I heard rumors of artifacts from home being sold on the black market.  I very much wanted some of those items back.  So, learning what I could about their location, I passed the information on to Dora, and she has steadily been returning them too me," he explained.

    "Nothing wrong with using the influence of the Empire to right a few personal wrongs, right?" he said rhetorically.

There was, obviously.

Particularly if it involved leaking impetial secrets to criminals. But, Kera was smart enough not to say that to her superior officer. And she enough about Imperial military politics to know that turning in a superior officer would not  end well for her. So, she kept a silent.

"What are my new position's duties, sir?"

[Private to GM: I'm still here. just lost track of things this month. Sorry about the delay. ]

     The Lieutenant smiled as he guided the shuttle back onto the landing platform at Refinery 689.

     "I expect you to do whatever I ask of you, Trooper.  There will be an increase in pay, more management responsibilities, and more tactical requirements if need be.  I could even promote you to Ensign, if it suits me," he explained as he stood and retrieved the vase from it's locker.

     "I'll arrange for new quarters on the officer's level, closer to my office ... Your office.  Please move your belongings as soon as possible and report to my office no later than 0800 tomorrow morning," he said, heading for the shuttle ramp.

Ah. A general problem solver?

The better pay was a real bonus, of course. As was the possibility of being promoted to an officer's position. But, being involved with a Lieutenant that she was suspicious of wasn't ideal.

Not that she had any choice. Kera saluted and left to follow her orders. Like a trooper should.

     Returning to the barracks, she found Muray and Tollin there, just changing out of their armor after their shift.  Muray whistled at her.

     "Well, well, well!  What's with the dress uniform?  Did the L-T take you out to dinner?" she said.

     Tollin smirked.  "Yeah, what was that all about?  We saw his personal shuttle leave and come back within half an hour.  Where did you guys go?" he asked.

Kera rolled her eyes at Muray's teasing and Tollin's questioning. Typical banter, really. But, she couldn't say the truth- not all of it.

"I'd tell you where we went, but then I'd have to kill you," she said with a smile.

"The L-T just needed to have a guard that wouldn't draw too much attention and wanted some analysis on a few things. Nothing really interesting.

Apparently he liked the analysis because I'm being transferred to be an aide."

She shrugged and started to pack her belongings. Not much, given that she lived a fairly spartan life.

"New quarters and all that. I'll tell you more about it when I know more about what being an aid means."

     "Transferred?  Well, you must have really 'impressed' him," Tollin said with a wink.  Muray smacked him over the head.

     "Sounds great, Kera!  Best of luck.  Don't forget about us now that you have a passkey to the executive cafeteria," she said.

     Leaving her closest friends, Kera reported to the quarters Alez has set aside for her.  It wasn't far from his office, and was a private room with a single bed, fold-away desk, and personal lavatory.

     As she was settling in, the door chirped and a display snapped on.  It showed the chest of a very tall creature standing outside her door.  They were wearing working coveralls and held a tool chest in right hand.  She couldn't see its face, only a very thin neck.