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The 71st Reconnaissance Squadron was stationed aboard the Nebula, one of the last capital ships of the New Republic. Capable of fighting against the ships of the First Order and winning, it was both a symbol and strength that the Resistance still held, as well as a consistent target of those that wished to remove hope from the galaxy.

While the ship itself is well maintained and strengthened, it's Commanding Officer, Rear Admiral Jessup, is cautious with its deployment, especially after reports that a First Order had seemingly predicted the destination of an important Republic Vessel and gunned it down in uncharted space. With no reporting from that ship or any survivors, details were scant, which did not bode well for morale.

The mission, and the war, carried on, and the Reconnaissance Squadron was responsible for trying to find the weak points in the First Order. This strategy would not lead a singularly decisive battle like the destruction of a Death Star, but it would allow the war to continue on, in a war where was every day was a victory.

The Squadron's newest inductee, Kalidyn Sunrider, had just been brought on board via shuttle.

OOC: You are in the hangar of a ship, and I'll leave this relatively open ended for now. Someone within the squadron will be around to try and find you, but if you want to do some exposition or whatever in the mean time, now's your chance.

Kal was a bit nervous, though he might not admit it to anyone but himself. It was his first time on a capital ship. And, just like starting a new school growing up, or moving to a new city, it was always a bit nerve-wracking the first day. You wanted to make a good impression, maybe make some friends. Or at least not embarrass yourself and make yourself the butt of upcoming jokes.

He let out a sigh and took in a deep cleansing breath. No. Time to focus on the present, the here and now.

He gave a small nod to himself and began walking around and looking around the hangar, just seeing what was there to see, seeing if there was anyone to meet.

10:47, Today: Kalidyn Sunrider rolled 25 using 1d20+7.  Perception.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:39, Sun 14 Feb 2021.

The most obvious sign was that this place busy. Nobody was loitering around here. Members of the aircrew were all of the place, conducting maintenance, checking ordinance, as well as directing aircraft in and out. Wandering around was liable to get yourself hurt or in trouble.

Among all the noise, you hear a distinct shout

"Hey, if you're going to be busy shirking your responsibilities, would you mind doing it somewhere else?"
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Kal blinked as if broken out of a reverie and whipped his head around to look at the person speaking at him. He cleared his throat lightly, but met their gaze. "Hey. Uh, sorry. I'm not shirking..." He switched what he was going to say, "I'm not trying to be in the way, I'm just...I'm new and waiting to be met, so thought I'd look..."

He shook his head. "Never mind. Sorry. I'll get out of the way."

He quickly began walking to a wall or other spot he could be out of the way, sighing and thinking that this was not how good first impressions were made. He folded his arms across his chest in a slightly defensive posture.

"Oh don't mind her" You hear a strong voice call out from behind you"

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"She gets the job done, but she isn't what you would call friendly. I keep sending her to medical to get the stick out her ass, but they just can't seem to find it."

"Commander Marghan Dorne" She said as she extended her free hand for a shake, the hand needed for a proper salute "You must be our new addition."

Kal turned quickly at the voice. His face brightened slightly at the words, but then his eyes went wide at some of what she said. He got caught awkwardly raising his hand to salute when her hand was put out to shake. He hesitated halfway up and then instead shook the offered hand.

"Kalidyn Sunrider." He gave a nod after that. "Yes, ma'am." He gestured around. "First time on a ship this big." He restrained a frown as he kicked himself. Ugh! That was a dumb thing to say!

"Well, they don't make 'em much bigger than this. Except for the First Order perhaps. Must be compensating for something when they keep trying to make these huge space stations..."

She motioned for you to follow her through the hangar "The person assigned to be your sponsor is out on leave for now, so you get to deal with your crochety Wing Commander. I'll show you over to our ships."

She hollared as she walked to be heard from the noise, keeping her eyes in front as you walked behind. "I'm sure you've got questions, so don't be afraid to lay em on me."

Kal gave a nod at her words. He smiled a bit at her jab towards the First Order. He didn't know if it was true, but bigger wasn't always better he knew. Plenty of military history showed that.

He frowned a bit about his 'sponsor' being out on leave. That was...interesting. Possibly it didn't mean anything. On the other hand, the timing of it could be...important. He filed that away mentally for later.

He thought about saying something about old meaning experienced and a survivor, but he didn't want to seem like he was kissing up. So instead he just said, "I'm sure it works in my favor."

Then he asked, "If I may, do we have a current mission? And what are we....well, what will I be flying, ship-wise?"

"That's where we're headed. Hope you're ready to make a good first impression, as you're about to meet your first and only love..." She looked back and smiled as she spoke, not answering about the mission.



"Well, here she is"

Kal had a small spring in his step. He was excited. He didn't know what to expect but so long as it was a good ship, and preferably a bit fast, he would be fine with it. Honestly, as long as it wasn't some slow junk freighter, he'd probably be great.

He noted that she was being closemouthed about the mission as of yet, which made him a little nervous.

He stopped when he saw the ship, eyebrows shooting upwards. A smile tugged at his lips. "Yeah? Okay! I can definitely handle that!"

"I hope so. We don't have the luxury of trainers anymore, so you'll have to learn on the job. You have a good squadron around you, we'll do what we can to support one another. And, you already have a partner in crime..."

As she said it, around the corner of the ship, came a small, peculiar Astro-Droid

"This is DD-3, your co-pilot"

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This message was last edited by the player at 19:00, Sat 20 Feb 2021.

Kal nodded at the ship and then flashed a quick smile at Marghan, "No worries. I won't let you down. It's not my first time flying, so hopefully I'll be alright. And I try to learn fast normally." He nodded again. "Good. About the squadron. It will be nice to have support."

He turned and looked at the droid. Then he knelt down in front of it, smiling in a wide and friendly fashion. "Well, hello there, DD-3. I'm Kalidyn Sunrider, but you can call me Kal. It's nice to meet you!"

The droids ocular sensor twitched for a few seconds, looking you over, the droid remaining very still. DD-3 Than made a very loud series of beeps before scurring away

[Language unknown: "The!"]

"Sorry about that. It's not you, I promise. Little guy was very attached to its last pilot, got through a lot together. It's trying to work through it's grief, I think, but it doesn't even really understand what that is."

Kal blinked a few times in surprise at the droid's response. He certainly was a bit taken aback, not having expected rejection from a droid like that upon being introduced. He set back on his heels and slowly tore his eyes away from the retreating droid.

He stood once more and turned back to Marghan. "Uh. Okay. I can respect that. So, less a partner in crime, and more an unwilling accomplice." He pursed his lips. "Grief. Okay." He gave a nod. "Well. So long as they agree to work with me...otherwise...I'll have to do without if there's not another droid."

His eyes narrowed. "Ah. Wait. Was the previous pilot of THIS ship the one the droid lost?"

"He was." She nodded as she tapped the hull of the ship "Don't worry though, he didn't die in the ship or anything like that. The previous pilot went missing. He was on a mission to find something, and never came back. We had to go there with a spare pilot and bring this back. DD-3 insists that Mark, the previous pilot, is still out there. Maybe the little guy is right, but hope is a scant resource nowadays. We have to focus on the battles we can win."

"Don't you worry though, when the mission starts, there's no more dedicated droid than him."

Kal's eyebrows rose up as Marghan spoke of the previous pilot and what happened. Or, at least, what little they seemed to know. Unless they were holding back information, but why would they for him, some recruit?

He looked after the vanished droid thoughtfully. Part of him wanted to see about helping the droid, helping the missing pilot to be found...or at least, find out what happened to them. But how would he without disobeying orders? When they let him fly, it was unlikely they would let him fly off to find Mark.

"Was a search-and-recovery mission sent out after 'Mark'?

"Not as extensive as I would have liked, but yes, we looked. When the Admiral says we're leaving, that's the end of it. We're surviving and winning this fight by moving too fast for the enemy to react or predict. Hit them where they're weak and don't give them a chance to hit back. That's the strategy, for now. Until we can get some more ships like this out in the field, that's how we have to fight, and our Squadron is a big part of that. We're looking for those vulnerabilities to exploit, and maybe even create them if we get the chance."

Kal nodded slowly as he listened. He waited for her to finish, absorbing what she had to say. After a small, quiet moment, he spoke once more. "I see. you can only control what you have control over." He looked down. "It's never fun to lose someone, especially if you don't know what happened to them. I'm sorry."

He took in a deep breath and looked over at the ship once more. "Got it." He looked back at her. "So do we have a mission right now, or are we moving somewhere to get to a mission? Do I have time to get familiar with the ship before getting sent out?"
This message was lightly edited by the player at 17:51, Sat 03 Apr 2021.

"There's no time like the present." As she motioned towards the ladder up to the cockpit "Any time you spend knowing the ship before we get moving will pay dividends. They don't have the firepower of the X-wings, but you'll be able to dance around the First Order if you can pilot it right."

Kal gave a small smile and then nodded, clearly excited at the prospect of checking the ship out, but also of piloting again. He hesitated when she gestured, waiting for her to finish talking first. He replied, "Understood."

He then quickly headed to the ladder on the side of the ship and had to restrain himself, slowing his steps. They weren't in a combat situation or anything when there was need to go up quickly, and falling and hurting himself would be stupid. He climbed in to the cockpit and started looking over the controls to familiarize himself with the unfamiliar craft.

As you become familiar with the systems and the layouts, the ships engine starts on its own. Looking over everything, you see that DD-3 has entered into the ship through its port and has begun going off on its own plan.

That plan seems to involve plotting a Hyperspace Route...

Kal frowned lightly as things started happening, things he wasn't doing. He looked this way and then that way. Finally, he got it - it wasn't him at all. He called out to the droid, "Hey...DD-3...whatcha doin'?"

He asked that, but he had a pretty good idea what the droid was up to - wanting to look for his missing former pilot. Meanwhile, he began to try and shut down the hyperdrive and the ship itself, trying to override what the droid was doing.

He also tried to com anyone as well outside the ship, "Hey, can anyone hear me? I think DD-3 is trying to take me for a ride." He tried to keep his voice calm for the moment - and tried to STAY calm for the moment also.

Members of the ships crew came hustling over to the small fighter, although there was nothing that they could do about it.

A warning sound echoed through the hangar of the ship, followed by a voice through the 1MC.

"All hands, prepare for hyperspace. Repeat, All hands, prepare for hyperspace."

The engines and systems of the ship quickly powered down. You even hear a thud outside the ship as DD-3 departs the ship. He left a curious thing on your monitor before he left. Details over a planet, one whose name didn't immediately jump as being important or remarkable.

Tython.

Kal immediately felt a little bad for nearly panicking and for calling out the droid. But he didn't know DD-3, and wasn't sure if they had been about to jump to hyperspace on the droid's mission to find his old pilot. Or not.

He hesitated a moment and looked over the information on the planet that had been left behind, frowning slightly in thought. Tython. Was that where the previous pilot had gone missing? Or was it something else?

He finally climbed out of the ship and started looking around for the droid and asking around to see if anyone had seen where DD-3 had gone.

DD-3 had actually not gone far at all. No further than the aft of the ship he was trying to take off. The rest of the crew who had approached for a possible emergency dissipated as quickly as they had arrived; if they were going somewhere, there had to be a reason, and whatever mission they were about to go on required preparations.

Kal wasn't sure what he was supposed to be doing on the huge ship about to go to hyperspace. Usually he'd been on freighters, where he was the pilot and he was to be at his station, or he was on a single-crew ship like the one he'd just gotten out of - and they usually didn't have the capability to jump to hyperspace.

He turned when he saw DD-3, though, and walked slowly over there. He looked around to make sure no one was too close and then knelt down in front of the droid. He spoke in a very quiet voice, not quite leaning in towards the droid. "Hey. I saw the planet you put there." He glanced around again, but was trying to look a bit casual. "Is that where your pilot went missing? Near there? On there?"
This message was lightly edited by the player at 21:18, Sun 14 Mar 2021.

The droid looked around with it's ocular sense before answering the question.

[Language unknown: "Is. Ac rea ulwe un ntiateome u evtaal mo i. En uste toie la n ndetedame t p setlarthe k st und ardmanera. Iouovetinble ugh icaresmanour."]

Kal listened to the droid and frowned lightly. He looked down for a moment, his lips pursed as he thought about things. After a long moment he spoke quietly again. "But you don't know what he was looking for? Or why he wanted to go there other than...'searching for...something'?"

He let out a small sigh. "And you want to go there to try and...pick his mission?" He looked at the droid again. "Was this an official mission, or do you know where he got his information?"

"He said I wouldn't understand because I'm a droid. Something about an energy field. He said it could change the outcome of the war."

Kal muttered, mostly to himself, "that's kinda rude." His lips twisted in to a frown. "a droid might understand a lot."

He shook his head. He needed to focus on the present. He drew in a deep breath. "Alright. Anyway. So. I'm new here and doing what would amount to stealing a ship I've just been authorized to fly might not go well. I mean...this ship we're on has tractor beams, right?"

Why was he even thinking about this, talking about this? He waved a hand. "Never mind. Look. Let's take this slow. Maybe we can do some research about the planet, try to figure out what the...energy field?...he was talking about are. Don't want to go off half-cocked and disappear too, right?"

[Language unknown: "Ho arfo ll a t"] The droid began, as it started moving away and out of the hangar.

Kal hurried to stand up and follow after the droid as it began to leave the hangar. He listened and he began to nod but then surprise swept across his face. His eyebrows shot up, his eyes widened and he mouth opened a bit.

He stumbled a step but regained his balance quickly. "Wait...Jedi? Energy field?" He frowned, his mind working furiously. He'd heard the words "Jedi" and "the Force" before but he didn't know a whole lot about them. He hissed at the droid after looking around to make sure no one was close. "What do you know about Jedi?"

The droid's processor hums for a few seconds.

[Language unknown: "Ilutee arrom ngssar nimoic hoelmi areshetin'allessati orewasine. Onare ekises Iveee, Ch Areforstrtho. Is ntick u son thaanytho, trlile thiereoul ofnd ivndcaac. Laresswas osbewhwe, sato thi ntiavefor, thusoumima olncac. Fofi hileti ilnaai a at iththiera. Ionwilsanwitate arecss'trad, outastsonforsta dinprooverutoul me Voroutour a Ilhepo diniwhtr Fifireth tiil naevhaes. Trarpr alltinnceday iewhas wasugh-fortinove e Acat. Wasthoentill Atioveund. Ainencpre di Ou Manbutbuteen Waecur encblecon arst venbutkor usitsi fi undherinthou Ent Ncewhinte. Ch pahohi innghowa setratresessich t chasiswi hi Avedaythi. Ultenc e Weusbe ieiein, itieofhe eladmo."]

Kal hurried after the droid and listened carefully, even hunching a bit down towards the droid to listen better - though that may have made their conversation less unobtrusive than he would have liked had he given it much thought.

Even Kal had heard the name of Luke Skywalker before, though he didn't know a ton. He frowned slightly as he listened on, though. Another Jedi? Reinstituting the Order? There had been a Jedi Order, as in many Jedi??

This was a lot to take in. He looked around to make sure no one was around and then quietly asked, "Was...Mark...trying to be a Jedi? Or looking for one for some specific reason?"

There were a few internal clicks inside the droid as it worked through the question.

"No activity that was observed that would be indicative of being a Jedi. Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. Mark sought to be a 'Force Multiplier'; find allies to turn balance in favor of Resistance. Also sought The Witch Squadron, First Order defectors, sympathetic Hutts, among others."

Kal walked along with the droid, glancing at it when it seemed to be getting some data. He listened as the droid spoke on. He gave a nod of agreement to the statement about evidence or lack thereof. He muttered to himself, "Allies. Okay." That made sense.

His eyes widened a bit and his eyebrows slowly climbed up his forehead as the droid finished. "Okay. Defectors...I get, but can Hutts BE sympathetic??" It was only partially a joke. "Not sure I want to know what that would look like." He frowned. "But...wait...What's the Witch Squadron?"

"Intercepted communications between First Order Commanders make multiple references to a Witch Squadron. Strike team; incredibly successful. Stealth methodologies confound any common understanding, hence being called 'Witches'. Not part of Resistance, though First Order thinks different."

Kal absorbed that information and pondered it for a moment. "Hmm. Okay. Very interesting." After another moment he shook his head. "Thank you. But I don't think that's our focus right now, so we'll shelve that for the moment."

He frowned. "So he was kind of just looking for anything and everything to help the cause. Okay."

He suddenly paused and then looked at the droid. "Hey...do you know where we're going right now?"

"Ship destination, unknown. Our destination, Library."

The "library" really wasn't that. It was a common Morale, Welfare, and Readiness space, where multiple facets had been combined in one area. What was being called the Library was nothing more than a few holonet terminals.
The space was also being shared with, among other things, the only theater space on the ship. There was a rowdy crew in here, watching arguably their favorite action vid, talking out some of their favorite lines and cheering when the leading lady makes her first appearance.

Kal looked confused for a moment, "Library?" and then brightened, smiling slightly, "Oh, to go research?" He gave a nod. "Good thinking."

Then they arrived and the smile slid off his face slowly to be replaced by confusion once more. "Ah. Okay. Not...what I was expecting." He looked around and then to DD-3. "So...we sit here and relax, waiting for orders?" He glanced at the holonet terminals, "Or are we looking things up?"

Kal looked around for a moment, getting the lay of the land, but then walked over to one of the holonet terminals. He wanted to look up a few of things DD-3 had mentioned, things they had talked about. He hesitated, frowning lightly, and looked over at the droid.

He kept his voice low, "Would looking up any of the things we talked about...get me in trouble? I assume they monitor these."

OOC: His goal is to just see if he can do some light research in to a few of the topics, knowing he might not find anything, like Tython, Battle of Exagol, the Jedi, the Witch Squadron, and DD-3's former pilot.

"Machines are monitored, but unlikely to attract negative attention with given queries. Technical administrators would be shocked to find users doing academic research."

The droids optical sensor swerves sharply to the unaware crowd watching the vid.

Kalidyn Sunrider doesn't have Gather Information or Use Computer as skills, so what he pulls up in his research will be fairly basic.

What's coming most prominent in your search for the Battle of Exagol is talks of a parade in the capital of the New Republic. That the strike team, led by General Damaran and General Finn, combined with the aerial assault marshalled and led by General Calrissian was the largest upset in galactic military history, and has proved that the Republic can and will win this war against the First Order. The exact time and place, and whether to do it at all is hotly contested, as many see that while this is a great moment, it's a far step from victory.

Pages regarding the Witch Squadron look like what you would typically see associated with conspiracy theories. Individuals and small groups of individuals 'on the street' as it were, posting vids or still images taken of this mysterious group. There clearly is a group of fighters out there, wreaking havoc against the First Order, but how they're able to be so effective and why they're doing this runs the gamut of possible thought, with most of it in the far off world of the seemingly impossible; materials that have zero radar cross section, pilots communicating through telepathy so no communications to intercept, literal ghosts from the bygone wars, and more.

Looking for the Jedi, oddly, is where things begin to get strange. The screen goes black, as does most of the area around you, like there had been a power surge, with two glowing illuminating faces looking at you. One, a much younger woman, in attire very likely appropriate for the desert, and the other in old style of robes in strong Greens and golds.

The latter smiles at you, but remains silent.

Kal smiled slightly at the fact that his use of the terminals was abnormal. He then dove in to see what he could find. He muttered mostly to himself while he read. "Parades? Interesting but not what I'm after." While the information went on, the rest was also closer to congratulatory propaganda rather than about the battle itself. He frowned, felt a little disappointed, but kept going.

His eyebrows rose as he looked over the Witch Squadron information. "I mean, about what I'd expected from what you'd told me. A lot of theories and nothing much concrete, but...interesting. Some...disturbing." He chuckled softly.

He blinked in surprise when the screen went blank as he attempted his next search. "What the...?" He started to look around to see if the power had gone out for everyone, but then...

"Uhhhh...hello?" He whispered out of the side of his mouth towards DD-3. "You see them, DD-3?"

"Hello, my child" the image responds. Although you see the lips move you don't necessarily hear it in a traditional sense. It sounds...inward, as if it was your own mind, but through another's voice.

"Do not be alarmed, nobody but you can see, or hear me. I have been watching you for a long time now, and so thankful to see that you are finally starting to follow in your family's footsteps."

Kal froze in place for a few seconds. Had he just gone crazy? Had DD-3 spiked him with a hallucinogenic drug somehow? Nothing like this had ever happened to him before. Except that one time when he thought he heard a voice he didn't recognize.

And of course the hallucinations told him no one else could see or hear them! That's how crazy works!

He took in a breath, trying to calm himself. He kept his voice pitched very quiet. "Um. Sorry." Small pause. "Whoooo are you? And why are you...here?" He'd almost said 'in my head' instead of 'here'.

He frowned. "Family's footsteps?" He shook his head and made a small noise. "Gas mining? No thanks."

"Fairy godmother?" She asked with a smile "No? I thought not. You may simply think of me as your long relative. My name is Nomi, and your family has a far greater tradition than gas mining and living on starships."

Kal's frown deepened the more he listened. He'd heard before that if you had to wonder if you were crazy, that meant you weren't, but he wondered at the logic of that. In fact, he was wondering about a lot of things right then.

"...uh. Okay. Hi, Nomi. I guess." He drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Assuming I haven't gone crazy, which is a big ask 'if' right now, how...are you here? Why can no one else can hear or see you?" He then shrugged and half-nodded to himself. "And...I guess more importantly, what do you want? From me, I mean."

"The Force is everywhere, young one. In life, I was a Jedi Knight, defender of truth and justice in the Old Republic. My greatest triumph was at one of the order's lowest moments. I had become the Grand Master after war with the Sith nearly destroyed us, and helped rebuild us for a future that would last for another thousand generations."

"And now, once again, the Jedi Knights breath new life, and you, as my descendant, will become a part of this rebirth of the Jedi."

Kal listened and nodded along as the...spirit person spoke...up until the end. He stopped mid-nod and did a double-take. "Wait, WHAT?" He let out a small choking cough sound, looking pained slightly. "Jedi?? Me?!?!"

He shook his head and held his hands up defensively. "Nooooo. You clearly got the wrong guy. I'm no Jedi. I don't have any...." He waved one hand around in uneven circles as he stuttered and searched for the right word, "t-the, the, the, Connection to the Force or whatever. I'm just a pilot!"

"Some of the greatest Jedi in history were pilots" she replied with a friendly smile "The force can warn you of what is about to come, allowing you to react to something before it happens. I know it is scary, and seems impossible. My husband was a Jedi, and despite his constant reassurance, I did not believe him when he said that I could learn. It wasn't until he was murdered that I listened to him and sought out training. As someone who has very much been in your shoes, trust me."

That set Kal back a bit. He hadn't realized that, or maybe he hadn't known it.

"I'm sorry for your loss." That felt weird to say to a spirit.

And the more the spirit-hallucination talked about the Force, the more curious he was about it. It SOUNDED like it was something amazing to have access to but...

"What's the catch? I mean, you make it sound like it's amazing but...I feel a but coming...unless it's just that it requires training..."

"There is no additional risk that you're not already taking by being a member of the Resistance. Even in these darkened times, the word Jedi means hero to countless souls across the galaxy, which means you will also be instantly recognized as a threat to the Sith, the Hutts, and those who seek to prey on the weak and innocent."

There  is, or was, a moral code to adhere to, with being a Jedi, but I'd bet certain aspects would be up for discussion as the Order is rebuilt, especially when the order is being rebuilt by Jedi such as her."

The spirit of Nomi Sunrider nods her head to the side in the direction of the other image, one that has remained completely still this whole time.

Kal's eyes shifted to the image when the spirit nodded at it. He frowned slightly and rubbed the palm of one hand across his cheek for a moment as he thought things over. Finally, he spoke again. "So..." He let out a breath. "Potentially a bigger target on my back than from just being in the Resistance."

He looked down for a moment and then back up slowly. "Hypothetically...if I was interested...what would I have to do?"

"The Sith are in hiding, licking their wounds after the defeat at Exagol. Now is the best time for you to train. If that is what you wish, you must find Jedi Master Rey Skywalker. You will need her to train you, and I sense that she will need you before too long. I do not know where she is. I sense determination in her, but also remorse and great loss. I fear that she may yet fall to the Dark Side, and if she does, than all is lost."

Kal listened to what the spirit said, frowning lightly as he pondered the words. And their implications. It was...a lot to take in. Almost overwhelming. He was also starting to think he wasn't actually going insane, that this was all in fact happening. At least, he had started to hope it was. While he had never dreamed of being a Jedi or even anything remotely like that...it was...very interesting and also sounded dangerous. And danger wasn't something he was afraid of facing.

He let out a breath and nodded. "Very well. Do you know how....best to contact her? I should probably not just abandon the post I just got assigned to. Would it be...wise to let my superiors know about..." He waved a hand around to encompass himself and the spirit. "...well, maybe not that I have been talking to a...ghost? or what have you...Actually. Hmm. Saying I had a vision or dream about this just then sounds made up or like I'm looking for attention." He let out a sigh.

"That, you will need to figure out for yourself. A mind is a fickle thing to read. You do have allies here, even if neither you nor they know it yet. Your orders are to find people and things to help defeat the First Order. If you can locate The Last Jedi, you will have made great strides in that endeavor."

The Last Jedi. The words hung in the air, rang in his mind. Not a small thing. Not a quick mission. Finding them, convincing them to train him, convincing himself to train...that was not an easy or quick 'mission'. If he undertook this...it was life-changing. Mind-blowing. And who knew what else. It was a lot.

The 1MC started blaring through the ship, at which point the image of your long lost descandant faded away.

"The Nebula has been intercepted and is under attack by enemy forces. All hands to  battle stations. Repeat, all hands to battle stations."

There was a predictable flurry of motion. Cheers in anticipation of action were not found here. The people on the ship were all too familiar with the real cost of battle, especially battle in space. Instead, everyone moved briskly to their posts.

DD-3 was thankfully able to keep up with you through all the chaos, returning to the hangar.

Kal gave a start and looked up suddenly, so quickly he almost fell over. He hesitated for only a second as he tried to get his bearings after the strange...conversation. Then he shot to his feet and shook his head. "C'mon, DD-3!"

He then ran full tilt back towards the hangar deck he'd been on earlier. Apparently, he was going to see just how the new ship he had been given access to could move. He hurried across the deck to the ship and began to climb inside and get ready.

The Wing Commander was standing ready between the planes as the enlisted aircrews worked frantically do the last second checks

"Alright Pilots!" She shouted for everyone to hear her before getting to the planes "You all think you're pretty special in order to be here, and normally I'd say you're right. The Resistance wouldn't have put you on this ship, with a mission this important if they didn't think you pack it. Right now though, I don't care how hot you think you are! You are not going out there to show off or to become an Ace. Right now you have one mission, and one mission only. Protecting the Nebula. If I see any of you going after an easy kill or engaging in a dogfight when you should be making sure that the thousands of shipmates in here are going to survive to see the next day, than I'll get in my own ship and I will personally shoot you down myself!"

"Now get out there and make me proud!"

Kal listened intently to the speech. He shook his head. He was no hero. He wasn't going out there to prove himself. He knew he was pilot already. But...he had to work hard to clear his mind, get his head in the 'game'. So much had been said by the spirit, so much information imparted. It was difficult to find his center.

He went through pre-flight, the routine motions and ordered checklist helping calm him, push distractions out of his mind. He checked on DD-3, "Hey, DD-3? You plugged in and ready?"

The onboard translator imparted his words

"Ready and Able. We'll get through this together"

The aircrew held you back for just a moment to keep the flight path clear; a collision of any kind in the hangar would hinder the rest of the ships getting out and maybe even cost the battle, and the ship. Once you were finally given clearance, the small fighter took off like nothing you had ever felt before. This was nothing like flying freighters and transport ships. The rush and thrill of the speed and precise maneuvering was overshadowed by the threat and dread of the moment; more First Order TIE's were in motion than you had ever seen, having come from a remote outpost on the surface of the planet below.

Groups of three fighters would make strafing runs against the Nebula, trying to find any vulnerable areas they could and strike at it. The death of a thousand cuts. It could very easily work, especially if one of those cuts hit a vital component.

Kal grinned slightly at the translated words. "Glad to hear it. Let's see about responsibly saving some lives, shall we?" It was nice that the droid was open to working with him, and as he'd said he would, he would try to find the former pilot.

He waited for his turn in the 'queue' to be let go. His eyes were scanning the moment his ship entered space. It was a lot, honestly. Everything else fell away and his focus was entirely on flying and staying alive.

He took a deep breath and did as he was told. He wasn't going for the 'easy kill' as he'd just been warned off of, he was trying to drive the TIEs away from the Nebula, firing at them as they started to make their attack runs, hoping to disrupt their plans, make them fly defensively.

OOC: The Laser Cannons on your ship have a +7 attack, and deal 5d10x damage
You also have 12 Medium Concussion Missiles, each of which also is a +7 to attack, with a 7d10x2 damage, in a four-square splash
Lastly, you have a Jammer, which will cause adjacent ships to take a -5  to their attacks.

17:02, Today: Midichlorians, on behalf of Kalidyn Sunrider, rolled 10 using 1d20+7 ((3)).

Your flanking attack did cause the TIEs to break off their attack run, although they were too agile and trained in their craft to be hit. Nobody would expect you get a confirmed kill so soon into your first battle, but the urgency still makes it a priority to bring some of them down.

Your attack was able to draw them away, and in turn tried to bring you down, but you were too nimble for even their trained pilots to hit you.

17:20, Today: Midichlorians, for the NPC TIE Fighter, rolled 15 using 1d20+4.

17:20, Today: Midichlorians, for the NPC TIE Fighter, rolled 13 using 1d20+4.

17:20, Today: Midichlorians, for the NPC TIE Fighter, rolled 16 using 1d20+4.

Kal's small bit of cheer at stopping the enemy ships from attacking the Nebula was short-lived as they then turned their sights on him instead. "Ohhhh...well we have their attention now I'd say!"

As he saw the the TIEs start to split up a bit, he fired off a blast at one of them, then turned in to a roll. "DD-3! Can you activate the jammer, make us harder to hit?"

OOC: Shooting and moving this round. Will use vehicular combat if hit.

Does it take an action to turn on the jammer? And/or is it something that DD-3 can turn on?
Point Blank Shot wouldn't apply to these attacks right? Was there supposed to be a modifier after the 5d10? There's an 'x' but nothing after it.


22:21, Today: Kalidyn Sunrider rolled 21,25 using d20+7,5d10.  Laser Cannon vs TIE!

The Jammer would take a standard action, in place of an attack. Once activated, it will remain as such until deactivated, which would also be Standard. The flipside is that jammers are often indiscriminate, it will affect nearby friendly ships as well.

Point Blank Shot would not work with shipborn combat, no.
It's 5d10x2, if the 25 is your damage from the 5d10, than you delt 50 damage, which is almost enough to destroy, but drops it down enough to bypass it's Threshold, moving it -1 down on its condition track.

OOC: Ah, okay. Thank you for the clarification.

I assume it's their turn now? <sad face>

20:25, Today: Midichlorians, for the NPC TIE Fighter, rolled 17 using 1d20+4.
20:24, Today: Midichlorians, for the NPC TIE Fighter, rolled 6 using 1d20+4.
20:21, Today: Midichlorians, for the NPC TIE Fighter, rolled 17 using 1d20+3.

The ship that you fired on lingered behind, having been injured, but even the cutthroat First Order doesn't leave a fellow pilot behind.

They probably wish that they had, as reducing speed in order to stay in formation makes firing on the more nimble ship of yours more difficult, having missed completely.

Having slowed down the TIEs at least for the moment, Kal swung around and let loose another barrage at another of the enemy fighters. He could have tried to finish off the damaged one, but that wasn't his mission. No going for glory or easy kills, he'd been told. Instead he wanted to try to make them break off their attack by punishing them - hopefully while not getting blasted into debris himself!

"Keep your sensors alert, DD-3! Don't want anyone sneaking up on us out here."

OOC: Wow. That is...almost the same rolls, lol. A better to hit, but the same 50 damage.
08:51, Today: Kalidyn Sunrider rolled 24,25 using d20+7,5d10.  Laser Cannon vs TIE 2.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:53, Sat 22 May 2021.

With two ships injured, and only one good one in the formation, staying around here would be needless brave. It was do or die for you, but they could afford to fight another day. The three TIE's broke off and made their way back to the planet below.

Another ship from your squadron swooped in behind you to chase them, but broke off sharply the moment the Wing Commander was overheard on comms.

"What did I say about chasing strays Lieutenant?"

You start to see more friendlies coming out of the hangar. Modern X-wings, and even a sleek, newer platform of ship that you missed earlier.

https://i.pinimg.com/564x/08/e...4799f15ff0e16044.jpg" data-lightbox="images-msg-70">https://i.pinimg.com/564x/08/e...4799f15ff0e16044.jpg" alt=''>

First Order ships were still coming up as others were either being blow out of the sky or retreating. The numbers were on their side still, but this wouldn't be the first time that the First Order didn't know what to do with an advantage when they had it.

OOC: Make a use the Force check

Kal let out a small sigh of relief as the second TIE fighter was damaged, and the three broke off. One group down...countless more to go. He checked out his screens and space around him as he hunted for another target.

He smirked slightly at the whipcrack angry transmission from the commander. He was glad he'd stayed on task and on orders.

There was too much chaos and  confusion to be able to parse anything out here, at least for now. Thankfully, the Force wasn't the only source of a guiding voice. The ship that had gotten hollarred at made a very prompt reversing maneuver, flying overhead of you.

"Nice Shooting rookie. You're with me. We've got a few of these creeps going after the ships shields. I'll head in first, hopefully get them to follow. You cover me and pick them off..."

Kal perked up a little at the praise, even if it was saddled with 'rookie'. He knew it didn't matter to them, he was new to them and to the ship, even if he wasn't new to being a pilot. He took it and nodded.

He kept his reply short and sweet, wanting to sound at least a bit professional if he could, "I've got your back, Commander. Lead on."

"You know how they say it's better to be lucky than good?" The female voice calls out as she begins her attack run, "I don't really care if that's true or not, but you'd better be one or the other right now..."

The lead pilot had swooped in fast and hot, firing her torpedos at the TIE formation. Having not only connected but destroyed the formation leader with the attack, her diversion certainly worked, as they were now hotly in pursuit of her, forcing her to use all of the ships nimbleness and agility to avoid the barrage she was getting.

Kalidyn listened to what the Commander had to say. His lips twisted in to a half-frown, half-smirk. He didn't have his mic turned on when he chuckled softly. And for the moment, he didn't bother to respond.

He got in to position, and then waited, finger on the trigger, waiting for the Commander's plan, for her to draw enemy fighters after her. He waited to snipe at least one of them after asking DD to watch their back.

He saw her fire and break, muttering to himself, "Nice hit!"

OOC: Ready Action to fire if needed, 16 to hit, 56 damage.
13:00, Today: Kalidyn Sunrider rolled 14,28 using d20+7,5d10.  Readied Action: Laser Cannon vs TIE.
14:13, Today: Kalidyn Sunrider rolled 2 using 1d6.  Force Point.

OOC: Just to be clear, the person you're talking to now in the fight is not Wing Commander Dorne, who is still coordinating forces from inside the Nebula. This is not a person you've met before.
The Force Point was enough to get a hit

The  formation's desire for payback and a confirmed kill on the fast but fragile craft caused them to develop crippling tunnel vision. Chasing behind them, you're able to get one of the other TIE's in your crosshairs, and blow them out of the sky. The other fighter, now alone and aware of how vulnerability he is, quickly breaks off.

"Great work! Never saw it coming!"

"That was a great maneuver you two, but don't make a habit of it" In chimes the Wing Commander "That was exceptionally dangerous Lieutenant. You won't be any good to the Republic if you're dead."

Among all the voice was one more, one in your mind. The voice of the Jedi again.

"Exceptionally well done. You instinctively channeled the Force and used it to save and protect your comrade. Remember how that moment felt. It will be necessary later in your training..."

Through the barrage of voices, focus on the battle became a little more difficult. Despite the First Order's superiority in numbers, it was an even fight for now; a good push could move the balance either way.

OOC: If you continue to perform well, the battle will be won eventually. You can bring it to a close sooner, if you put yourself out there. The Raid Commander is still out there, with a characteristic red stripe alongside the side of his TIE Fury craft. A loss of a senior commander in the field would be severe, but also especially dangerous. If there's something that you can think of, you're welcome to try.

https://i.pinimg.com/564x/80/2...2725314ffa441500.jpg" data-lightbox="images-msg-78">https://i.pinimg.com/564x/80/2...2725314ffa441500.jpg" alt=''>

OOC: Ah, my apologies, I didn't realize that Commander was on comms, as I thought she was flying as well and reprimanded the Lt. from her ship. I'll try to pay better attention to the dialogue color.

He made a little "Nice!" sound in his cockpit but then heard a voice on comms once more. Praise in one hand, a light slap on the wrist in the other. The Commander sure knew how to make things good and bad at the same time. He gave a shrug. He wasn't in it for the glory or to kill anyone.

Then he..."heard"...another voice. He stiffened slightly in surprise. He "listened" to what they had to say. He blinked and then frowned lightly, then shrugged and nodded. "Thanks?"

Mindful of what kept being said and harped on a bit, he went hunting for more ships to drive off. He didn't want to be seen as trying to be a hotshot or ace or gloryhound. So he continued to try and disable and drive off enemy fighters. But he was distracted between his own thoughts, the comm chatter, and the Jedi presence. His next blaster barrage missed and he shook his head, trying to clear it.


13:25, Today: Kalidyn Sunrider rolled 11,24 using d20+7,5d10.  Laser Cannon vs TIE.

The enemies break off the Nebula, seemingly retreating from the battle. In the moment, one can see how the order previously given was adhered to; who stayed close to the Nebula, and who pursued the First Order in their retreat.

That was short lived. As the wings of enemy fighters converged together, they doubled back together. With a constant spray of weapon fire, the TIEs attacked as a swarm, trying to overwhelm the defenses.

"Brace yourself Resistance Pilots. Remember why we're out here, remember what we're fighting for. If we have to go, we'll take down as many of them as we can." In the overwhelming fire, even your luck runs out, as your struck on the left wing of your ship. It's nimbleness comes at a cost of its durability, and even a light grazing sends a number of warning signs through your HUD. You still have full functionality, but you get a fully intimate sense of the fragility of the moment you now find yourself in.

Midichlorians, on behalf of Kalidyn Sunrider, rolled 21 using 1d20+1.  Use The Force.

Through the seeming chaos, you see a crystal clear vision through the Force. A way in which, threading a needle in space, you could strike the Raid Commander, and make an immideate pivot in this battle.

Make a Pilot Check. If you succeed at a DC 15, you'll be able to attack the Raid Commander, but face a significant threat of being attacked yourself. If you succeed at DC20, you'll be able to make an attack against the Raid Commander, without having any of the other ships being able to attack you.

OOC: Quick question - could Vehicular Combat be used against the attack?

Kal tried to spin a bit and avoid the fire incoming at him. He pulled the controls to fly almost sideways. His eyes flew about the battlefield and he spotted what he thought was the enemy commander for the attack. His eyes narrowed. "Alright, DD-3, let's see if we can end this before anyone else gets hurt on our side."

He took in a deep breath, steeled his nerve and shot forward, angling to get a good and as-safe-as-could-be attack run.

OOC: Well...that's a nat 20.
18:47, Today: Kalidyn Sunrider rolled 29 using 1d20+9.  Pilot.

19:27, Today: Kalidyn Sunrider rolled 17,31 using d20+7,5d10.  Laser Cannon vs TIE commander.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:27, Mon 07 June 2021.

For a short, glorious moment, it didn't even feel like you were really flying. The inherent jarriness of the engines, of moving your body around in the cabin, all faded away, almost as if you were floating through space. You instinctual put your ship just where it needed to be in order to dodge nearly every shot from the ensuing fighters, while still keeping your eyes on the target.

The TIE Fury, the designated craft of the Raid Commander, led the charge. The fighters behind and alongside were in a tight formation, which while allowing for maximum firepower at a concentrated target, did not allow a great amount of maneuverability. They didn't expect a single, solitary fighter to make such a bold, almost stupid flanking maneuver alone, but all it took was a solitary precise shot.

The Laser Cannons found their mark, striking the bracing points for both starboard wings. The Commander nearly lost all control of their craft. The tight formation spread into immediate chaos and disorder, to avoid colliding with one another as a result. Many were not lucky in avoiding outright collisions; the TIE Fury had, but was still not in an operable position. It headed back to the planet below, with the rest of the fighters following behind.

As it went, you receive a communication in your cockpit, on one of the secure channels. A pilot, presumably the Commander you just shot.

"You were lucky, this time. I should like to see how you compare, pilot to pilot, alone. Enjoy your victory, while it lasts, it was well earned. Happy Hunting..."

The transmission cut as soon as it started, leaving no chance to respond.

Kalidyn was almost surprised as the enemy was, he assumed, that his ill-thought-out plan actually worked - and that he didn't die in the process! He was grinning like an idiot right up until the transmission came in. The smile slid off his face and turned in to a frown.

"Yeah, yeah." he said to himself.

"What do YOU think, DD-3? Better lucky than good? Or both?" He then shook his head. "Heck, what am I asking you for, you just met me."

He watched the enemy fighters to make sure they weren't re-engaging before turning back to the Nebula to see if there was any more to do. He expected he would get either a com or a 'dressing down' in person later for 'glory seeking', even though that wasn't his intent.

"Results are more important than process." The droid chirped on-screen "Lucky? Good? Who cares? We won, and that's all that really matters."

Getting everyone back in the hangar took longer than getting them out. A number of other ships took point, look outs for a possible second wave or counter attack. As your turn approached and you slowly manuevered through the hangar, you could see there was plenty of excitement and positive energy for having successfully fought back the First Order. There was a crowd gathered around the docking location for your ship, cheering and applauding your bravery.
There was someone waiting especially close to the ladder.

https://i.pinimg.com/564x/df/2...9e19f099ea16fb60.jpg" data-lightbox="images-msg-85">https://i.pinimg.com/564x/df/2...9e19f099ea16fb60.jpg" alt=''>

As soon as your feet found solid ground, she gave a pretty smile as she wrapped her hands around your neck and pulled you in for a kiss, living up to the reputations of Zeltron passions.

"I don't suppose you would mind flying some more sorties together?" She asked as she broke the kiss.

Before an answer could be given, you hear the voice of the Wing Commander.

"Well, Sunrider, I see you wasted no time in formally meeting your Sponsor, Tess."
This message was last edited by the player at 20:43, Fri 18 June 2021.

Kal smiled at DD-3's words. There was wisdom in it, he supposed. Getting hung up on the details and process wasn't always the best way to go.

He saw a crowd gathering and winced slightly. He wasn't looking for glory or cheers, he'd simply done what he thought would end things as quickly as possible - and he was sure the Commander would have some words for him.

He was not at all prepared for the Zeltron kiss that he received when he arrived. He blinked rapidly a few times. And then the Commander spoke and he was wondering what he'd gotten himself in to. "Uhhh...hi? Sure?"

He licked his lips and looked for the Commander. "Do the Sponsors always greet like that here, Commander?"

"I should  hope not, Junior Grade..." Dorne crossed her arms as she looked at her flirtatious subordinate.

"Negative Ma'am. I've kept my hands to myself with all the other people I've sponsored," Tess's official, professional behavior seemed to be in short bursts "Of course, none of the other sponsees were as handsome."

"Lieutenant!" Dorne shouted in a quick response

"Kidding!" Tess responded quickly and defensively "I promise, this will be the first and last time you catch me in a moment of possible fraternization."

"It had better." She pointed out of the hangar down the P-way you came in through. "The Captain would like to debrief you both, personally. You know the way, lead young mister Sunrider, and do not delay."

As the two of you start to make your way, you here a call from behind you "Tess! Sunrider!"

"...Good flying out there you two."

Kal did the best he could to school his features at the interplay between the two women, and tried not to blush at being called handsome. He DID, however, note that Tess specified it would be the first and last time that the Commander would catch her. Might have just been a word choice.

He gave a wary nod to the Commander, thinking it was unusual that the Captain would want to debrief him on his first...well...anything, really.

As they walked he couldn't help it. "Professional or not, it was a surprising but pleasant way to meet you, Lt."

He then got serious once more for the debrief.

"Oh please don't do that." She said in quiet disgust "I'm a person, not a title. Start calling me Ma'am, and I'm going to start looking for my great aunt. I'm going to call you Kal, so you may as  well just call me Tess. At least between us."

Kal almost missed a step, but recovered quickly, though blinking a few times at her. He smiled, "Well that's two 'first times' with you already. You're on a roll." He shook his head. "Never had a superior officer not want to have the rank used and respected all the time."

He gave a half-shrug and tentatively tried it out, though he had to force himself just a little. "Okay...Tess. Thanks."
This message was last edited by the player at 05:59, Wed 23 June 2021.

She waited until you both took the ladderwell to the deck below before she commented. "Imagine what other 'first times' you'll have if you stick around." She said coyly "I support the mission of the Resistance with all I've got, but I don't abide alot of the rules and structure that comes with it. One of the junior enlisted could have an idea that saves the fleet, but it has to go through a dozen steps before anyone with any power can hear it, and it'll get mangled to death along the way. But, if that's what it takes, than I'll play my part."

The P-way to the Captain's Quarters was rather obvious; the bulkheads along the way were decorated and there was a carpet out along the way. Tess approached the hatch, but waited for a moment.

"Remember we're not in trouble...probably. If this were Captain's Mast, they'd put us in our dress uniforms first. We'll be fine..."

With that, she gave a solid three knocks on the metal hatch and waited for a response before entering. Standing at the opposite end of a large meeting table was the Captain.

https://i.pinimg.com/564x/56/9...515099538e70e0df.jpg" data-lightbox="images-msg-91">https://i.pinimg.com/564x/56/9...515099538e70e0df.jpg" alt=''>

Kal's eyes widened at her and then he shook his head letting a breath out slowly. Oh she was a FLIRT alright. He'd never met a woman like her before. He was going to have to be careful as she seemed like a casual heartbreaker - maybe not even an intentional one.

"...heh." He then nodded slowly. "Okay. I feel the same I think. The mission matters but I'm not the biggest fan of bureaucracy." He smiled. "But...I love to fly."

He got serious once more as they approached their destination. He listened to what she had to say and gave a shallow nod. It was a little comforting. He had been wondering why a personal debrief from a Captain was needed after all.

He took in a deep breath and followed her inside, saluting the Captain once he was inside and saw her.

The Captain returned a prompt, picturesque salute before sitting down.

"Thank you both for coming so quickly. It's my policy to put a face to a name of everyone in my command once they come on board, especially my junior officers. Ideally, it would have happened before a battle. I'm glad that you, and your sponsor both survived the battle, and did even better than surviving. It would seem the two of you are well adapted to each other. What are your thoughts, Ensign?"

Kal hesitated for just a moment but then nodded, not even look over at Tess before replying. "Of course, Captain! I was just happy to help do what I could." Only then did he glance at, and nod to, Tess. "I welcome every opportunity to learn more, and the Lt. seems more than capable. It would be an honor to work with her, learn from her experience."

"Well, there's plenty of experience to go around in your Wing" She said briefly as she looked down at her notes "It's normal for squadrons to fly together in formation, get to know each other, and so on, but Commander Dorne takes a very different approach. I was skeptical of such a deviation from our normal doctrine, sending you all out on individual missions, trusting in your own recognizance, but it's worked, with one exception..."

The Captain leaned forward in her seat "The two of you seem to feed off your confidence and competence. What you did attacking that ship singlehanded was dangerous. I need to ask the two of you something, and I need the details of what I am to provide you not leave this room, and that you keep each other in check. Are we perfectly clear?"

Kal wasn't sure what was going on yet. He wasn't sure if he was being complimented, reprimanded, or what. It seemed he wasn't in trouble...or at least not really, but he wasn't sure if he was being given a bigger opportunity because of the risk he took, or because he'd pulled it off. Or punishment. Time would tell.

He didn't hesitate at the thought of keeping a secret, but he did barely glance at tess out of the corner of his eye, "Of course, Captain! Crystal clear!"

"The First Order has a spy inside the Rebellion." She said grimly "They've managed to break into our encrypted communications systems, maybe entirely. You receiving a message from one of their fighters on our network confirms that."

She looked down at the floor for second "And, we've lost a ship recently. A ship with some good friends, I'm afraid. We're still trying to find answers, but we haven't had contact with it in some time. The last known destination was a system devoid  of civilization, we used  it as part of a route to circumvent the blockades around the Hydian Way. If our ship went down there, it's because the First Order knew they were there, and set a trap. I'm sending you two to go fix this..."

Tess' eyes were eyed, and she squirmed uncomfortably in her seat, but was quiet.

Kal couldn't have kept the look of surprise off of his face if he wanted to at the news bomb dropped. He was shocked at the thought of someone spying for the First Order! He could scarcely believe it to be true - but then not everyone had a strong moral compass. Some people would do anything for money.

The news kept getting worse. A ship lost as well. "This is...terrible." He shook his head, looking down. He drew in a deep breath and looked back up at the Captain. "Of course, Captain. Whatever you need." He glanced at Tess, then back at the Captain. "May I ask what the plan is?"

"I need you to get out there and find a solution so that the Nebula can get out there and do what it needs to do." She said with direct crypticness "If they can intercept and read our message traffic, I can't put this ship anywhere that's going to be a significant risk. I also can't show my hand that we know we're being spied on."

"The two of you are too junior for their intelligence apparatus to pay any attention to you, which is to our benefit. I need you to approach this from two fronts; Software and hardware. We need a new encryption protocol, something they haven't broken yet. Upgraded communication arrays are also necessary. Too much of what the Rebellion uses for it's technology is adapted or improvements on Imperial technology."

"Lastly Ensign, what I'll tell you is what I've told everyone else in your Wing. What I most desperately need is another ship. The Nebula is great, but I cannot win this war as the last capital ship the Rebellion has. The ground game is getting better, we're approaching stalemate with the First Order, but that won't last. If we can't find something to push things to our advantage and soon, we will lose this war. Find me someone."

Kal couldn't help it, he looked a little surprised, maybe a bit overwhelemed. He tried to keep his voice calm as he spoke. "You want the two of us...to go investigate what happened to a lost ship, find a way to stop the First Order from tapping in to our coms and/or find a new encryption system for us, as well as find a new ship if we can??"

His voice had risen a bit near the end so he quickly cut off and cleared his throat lightly, looking down. "I just want to make sure I'm understanding all that is being asked of us, ma'am."

"Do not go searching for that ship." The Captain stressed. "With how long it's been quiet, it's gone, destroyed. Best we can do is look for distress signals. Even if you found them, your one man fighters wouldn't be able to help the situation." She paused a moment, taking a deep breath as she considered her words so as to not seem heartless "The Resistance has already committed what assets it can afford to risk in the search."

"What I am asking from you is considerable, but that's what it's going to take. Victory will come only through the acts of ordinary people daring to do extraordinary things, and after what I just saw, you two are up to that task. Should you succeed in any of the tasks I've set before you, medals and brevet promotions will certainly be in order. Why, if you can find us a new warship, I'll even let you command it" She said with a small laugh.

The Captain made a few clicks on a datapad near her arm, which was connected to a large display embedded in the bulkhead.

"What you move forward on is your choice. This is the information I can personally provide you..." The display first appeared with a planet with a strange purple atmosphere "This is where the Rebellions top cryptologic minds are, in a place known as Hypo Station. These people hide in plain sight, and despite their unquestioned loyalty, publicly deny any association with the Resistance or the Republic. We still don't know if the First Order implanted a spy or if they broke our encryption, so don't go making accusations you can't back up."

The screen shifted to another planet, one far more familiar "This is Correllia, undisputably the greatest shipbuilders in the galaxy, and has been under the control of the First Order since the beginning. One of their first moves was against the system, during The Blitz. If we could open up that avenue, that would change the entire theater of war, but it would take a force beyond measure to make that happen."

Shifting to another system, in a strange, murky brown color "In the meantime, we've been stuck with this. The Collective Manufacturing Confederacy, or CMC. They play both sides, building First Order and Resistance weapons of war alongside one another. These cretins built the Nebula as well as your ships. It's possible that someone took money under the table to secretly betray that nuetrality, or maybe someone was just sloppy. If they have technical schematics of our systems, they could develop bypasses that go completely around our encryption. We've tried to get them to break and work solely for us, but they believe that building weapons for the First Order is their best insurance policy. That if they stopped building weapons, that Kylo Ren or Snoke or whoever would simply disintegrate the planet with the Starkiller base. We tried to assure them that the threat was over, but after the threat of Exagol, negotiations have stalled, and I don't blame them."

"The mission is yours" She said as the display went dark and she stood up "You have the delegated authority to maneuver as you see prudent and appropriate, and the delegated responsibility commensurate with that authority."

Kal straightened up even a bit more at the Captain's directive about not going after the ship. He didn't lean away from her, however. That would have indicated fear, and been disrespectful. He listened as she went on at length.

He took note of the information, nodding occasionally. It was still a lot. And there were multiple potential facets. He didn't make a motion or shake his head or say anything, but he didn't care about medals or accolades. That wasn't why he was there, why he flew. Glory hunting led to mistakes and overconfidence.

"Understood, Captain. I can't speak for the Lt. but I'll do what I can." He glanced at Tess and then back at the Captain. "Dismissed to converse and strategize, Captain? Or do you want us to discuss and strategize our first objective here with you?"

He knew what his first choice was but would be interested to hear what Tess thought.

"Affirm, Ensign" She said, with an added warning. "Remember that you are being deployed as deniable assets. I  don't need to know, and I don't want to know. Take some time to relax, enjoy your well earned victory, get to know each other. Make sure that the two of you are fully prepared when you leave."

Kal listened to what was said and gave a slow nod. Then he gave another salute to the Captain, before turning to leave unless Tess had anything to say. He opened the door for her and then followed her out.

After he closed the door once more he said, "Well. That was...a lot." He let out a breath. "I...guess we should go talk?"

"It was." She said with a nod. "She knows how to say a lot within a short period of time, which seems like the inverse of most of the other officers." She motioned with her hand as she started walking away.

"Come on, I'll show you where the wardroom is. Should still be open for midrats, I think. We can talk there."

OOC: The Wardroom is where officers eat, separate from the enlisted. Midrats is slang for Midnight Rations, a fourth meal period on ships for people who have to work through the night or other weird periods, and is usually a little better to offset the lousy hours, and because they don't have to cook for as many.

Kal listened to Tess, looking at her intently as she spoke, and then giving a kind of nod and half-shrug. "Okay, sure. Sounds good to me." He wasn't sure if lightening the mood was the right call but his mouth kept talking before his brain could stop it. "I mean, we just met but we already skipped ahead and kissed, might as well go on a dinner date now."

He followed after her.

There was a slight giggle and a smile from Tess. "My, aren't you forward? I hate to say that it's a matter of principle to never mix work with pleasure." She made a quick pivot with her  head to check for anyone eavesdroppers.

"I like the idea though. Maybe when we aren't fighting for our lives or planning how we single handedly save the New Republic, I'll take you up on that offer..."

Kal looked at Tess in a bit of surprised shock. HIM forward?? Never mix work with pleasure?? But she had just walked up to him and kissed him out of the blue! He shook his head, very confused. "Uh, okay. We'll put that aside for now."

He stepped closer to her and lowered his voice. "So I don't think Correllia is a good starting place. Seems too big. I'd say Hypo Station. Or possible the CMC. What do you think?" He looked down. "Though I would like to take this opportunity to point out that I'm a pilot, not a spy."

"Neither am I, but we have our orders. We're too late now..." Tess said as she entered the Ward Room, taking her pick of the late night provisions. "Hypo Station is going to be the hardest to find, but probably the most likely to have success should we find them. I'm not an engineer either, but I doubt the CMC would be able to just spring together a new system out of the blue from the spare parts they have..."

Kal followed after her, and picked up a few things. He HAD just been in a battle, though it was starting to feel like a long time ago now with so much dumped on him. His brain was struggling to sort out everything and keep up.

He sat down across from her rather than next to her, deliberately. He thought about what she responded to with for a long moment, and then nodded. "So we're agreed we should try to find Hypo Station first." He rolled his head around on his shoulders for a moment. "I can see if DD can find anything so we have at least a lead to start with. I don't really have a lot of contacts that would be good for this sort of thing."

Actually, he didn't really have a lot of 'contacts'. At all.

"I think we'll have better luck on the ground, but research can't hurt. At least it'll let us know what to watch out for."

Kal gave a nod to Tess. "Good. I'll com DD and meet up to discuss things." He smiled. "After our dinner date is over." He let out a chuckle, clearly teasing her.


Afterwards, he commed DD and asked to meet back where they'd been researching previously, and then headed that way. Once together again, he didn't outline what the Captain had said - instead he just mentioned things that he'd like to see if they could look up together, saying it was important, and that might be going on a mission soon.

He asked about Hypo Station - general information to start with and then if there were any known Rebellion or Resistance contacts there. Then he asked about the Collective Manufacturing Confederacy as well. He then asked how long it would take to get from their current position to each location.

The faintest laugh escaped her lips.

"You're  persisent," She said between bites "If you're going to call this a date, I think it's only fair you tell me something  about yourself."

Kal gave her kind of a half-shrug and looked down for a moment, a smile playing on his lips. "Well, if nothing else, you're fun to tease and have a nice laugh. Nothing says we can't try to enjoy our time together at least, even while we are about serious work."

He looked back at her once more. "Well. Let's see. I was born on the Bespin mining colony. My parents are minors." He shook his head. "Not for me. I like to move fast and see new things, meet new people. Though...I suppose, there is a lot of gambling there too. People do know how to have fun some there, but they are usually very good at moderation and control."

He looked at her with curiosity. "How about you?"
This message was last edited by the player at 04:12, Tue 03 Aug 2021.

"Not really much to tell. Was just trying to live life, not wanting to get involved in the war. Than the war comes to you anyway,  and you have to make a decision. I made mine, and that's how I got here"

"You said you're from Bespin though? That's a pretty small point in the world. Did you ever meet General Calrissean? We owe him more than we can repay, what with he did at Exagol."

Kal made a face at her, being so vague, "Wow. Insightfully detailed." He leaned towards her, "Oh, come on! Can you at least tell me where you were born?"

And then she asked about the most famous person 'from' Bespin, even though as far as he knew Calrissian wasn't from Bespin, just came in to running the place. He grinned but rolled his eyes at her, "No, I don't know everyone on Bespin." Then just as it was like that was all he had to say, quite a letdown, he went on, "I did see him once. From a distance."

"I was born on Zeltros" She shrugged gently "We don't have a lot of colony worlds. Any, that I'm aware of. At any rate, my parents thought that it wasn't the right place to raise a kid, which I don't  know that I understand. Tried to get  closer to the Core worlds. Opportunities, education, all of that stuff that the rest of the galaxy thinks is respectable but that most  other Zeltrons want no part of."

Kal looked at Tess while she spoke, trying to figure out if she didn't like talking about her past, if she found it uninteresting, or something else. He gave a slow nod. "Huh. Okay."

He tilted his head to one side slightly. "How long you been a pilot? Have you always wanted to fly?" He smiled. "Because you're pretty good at it."

She looked off into the distance, past you rather than at you as she thought on the question "I remember being fascinated when my parents took me to  the Starfighter Museum on Corellia, but it wasn't like I saw it as being a life's calling or anything like that. It was a more simplistic reasoning that if I was going to join the Resistance, I wanted to be where the fighting was, and not shove me behind a desk. The fighting that's going to decide this war is going to be in the stars, not on the surface."

Kal looked at Tess and thought maybe he was prying too much, making her uncomfortable. So he decided to stop. He looked down and then back at her, giving her a nod. "Gotcha."

He waited a moment to make it less abrupt but not too long so as to make it awkward. Then he said, "Alright. Well I'm going to go get DD-3 started. Leave tomorrow?"

"As early as possible, yes. I'll have a word with our resident OPSEC and CI officer, sure they  have a few words of wisdom for us." She said as she quickly got out of her seat.

"Thanks for the company. Sure there'll be plenty of room to know each other soon."

He stopped and smiled at Tess. "I can barely wait." He nodded at her. "See you tomorrow."

He then went to find his droid companion. They had a lot to beep about.

You didn't have to look far. Further down in the P-way, DD-3 was alone, making small circular laps to occupy it's  time. Seeing you, it stopped halfway and came quickly towards you.

[Language unknown: "Ereioupro areersive artdaynte u wand Ortdi San."]

Kal smiled as he saw DD-3 making laps. He gave a small nod, and then replied, "That's unfortunate."

He raised an eyebrow, "I have some good news. Sort of. Well. I have news." He gave a shrug. "We need to go somewhere we can talk privately, and then we'll need to maybe do some research."

[Language unknown: "Erheel m p th iotrme se red t e eimaha." ]He booped and beeped, before speeding around you for a few seconds in anticipation.

[Language unknown: "An! Meto u ateratect ac ou ichwasess! I blendeate ouscomenc? Eau mo thuderich ortratica iengan, ev Ou oveconpre wi and"]

Kalidyn nodded at DD's first sentence, and then kept a deliberately innocent-looking poker face for only a moment before giving what could be a very shallow nod as the droid excitedly went on.

He pulled out his datapad and typed out two words, "Hypo Station" - showing the screen to the droid for just a moment before deleting the words.

The droid keeps strangely still for a second as the optical sensor shifts for a few seconds. It than spurs into action, speeding back and forth and a few times as it tries to decide the next action.

"Yes! Research!" He stops for a moment "That would be on the high side. You wouldn't have access to that yet. I can help!"

OOC: In secure environments, unclassified and classified systems and networks are kept separate, and referred to as the "low side" and "high side" respectively.

Kalidyn watched his new droid friend carefully as it was excited, then still, then excited again, moving this way and that....a small amused smile on his face. He nodded and then shook his head as he tried to follow the logical reasoning.

"Correct. I don't have access. And we are leaving in the morning so we don't have a lot of time. Though we'll be able to do some more hands-on things once we get there." He looked at DD-3. "Do you need anything from me?"

"Time!" It beeped away as it sped off to carry out it's tasking.

Kalidyn blinked in surprise at the hasty exit, but then let out a small chuckle of amusement. He straightened back up to his full height once more, shaking his head. He thought for a moment and then let out a breath. He supposed he would get in a little light exercise to make sure all the adrenaline was out of his system, then shower and get to sleep. He had a big day tomorrow.