Jedi Council Forums - The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OCs, OT, complete 6/17 (extras 6/24)

Locked Topic | Read Only Topic | Previous Active Topic | Next Active Topic

Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 - Previous | Next | Reload

Author	Topic: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OCs, OT, complete 6/17 (extras 6/24)
Trika_Kenobi Registered: Nov '99	Date Posted: 4/24/08 1:38pm Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 4/22
	Excellent stuff. Interesting idea on Chase's part, except for the lack of money. I, too, can see this all coming down on his head in a flaming pile of mess. Yhunia Vient was a cool read. I enjoyed the dialog between the two enormously. Thanks for the update. I'm looking forward to more. -----signature----- My Uncle Sam sends me places... the "going OCONUS lol" is here! Current Location: Iraq Don't bother running. You won't get far enough. http://www.TalonIntelligenceSquadron.com
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
Thumper09 Registered: Dec '01	Date Posted: 4/28/08 7:27pm Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 4/28
	Arcalian: True, the money is going to be his big challenge now. His self-imposed deadline isn't going to help matters either. Chase at least knows that he's going against the rules and the law and that there would be consequences for it. Thanks for reading and replying! Trika: Chase has his work cut out for him, doesn't he? Especially while trying to juggle a job and a marriage at the same time. Lots of opportunities for flaming piles of mess. Vient was a lot of fun to write, especially in an otherwise serious story. Thanks for commenting and reading! ------- Here's a shorter update to even out the last one, and it's an early update because I'm traveling for work this week. Too bad the timing didn't work out to where I could post last week's chapter this week and synch up with Chase. I would have been amused by that. ------- Chapter Nine "Okay, you can open your eyes now," Chase told Lataise. She did so, and before her she saw the intricate glass bird Chase was holding on his open palm. The bird was folding its wings in such a way that it enveloped a small open area, and at the bottom of that open area was a small holoemitter. When a holo was being projected, it would look like the bird was holding the image in its wings. Lataise inhaled at the sight, carefully took the figurine to look at it more closely and said, "Chase, it's beautiful! Thank you!" She gave him a lingering kiss. When they separated, Chase smiled at her, soaking up the warm light in her eyes. "When the baby's born, we'll put a holo of him or her in it." Lataise happily inspected the glass figurine and let it sparkle in the early morning sunlight coming in through the window. "I still feel so embarrassed about everything, but I couldn't have asked for a better pick-me-up gift. It's perfect. Wait 'til I tell the girls about this. They'll be so jealous. They're always groaning about how lucky I am to have you." She leaned against Chase. "I love it when you prove them right." "I try." He checked his chrono and said, "Sorry, but I have to get going. Time for work." Lataise sighed and straightened up. "I suppose it's that time, isn't it. I need to get ready to leave soon too. That marketing firm wants the demographic report for the sporting events delivered this week. It's crazy at the office because of it." "I already offered to take you to a donri game so you could do your research in person." She rolled her eyes a bit at the notion. "And I already declined the offer." "Are you sure?" Chase asked, enjoying teasing her. "It'll be fun." "Quite sure. That's what Radek and your squadmates are for, remember? Come to think of it, you haven't gone to a game with them since you got back. Maybe you should." His teasing mood quickly disappeared, but Chase tried his hardest to not let it show. He did not want a repeat of the earlier discussion on his post-deployment behavior: he couldn't afford it right now. He couldn't afford a lot of things, it seemed. "I'll ask them about it," he lied. "Good." Lataise seemed pleased with his answer. "It'll be fun for you, and once the baby comes there won't be many opportunities for things like that. Now, you'd better get going. Have a good day." "You too," Chase answered. "I'll be back to take you to your checkup with the doctor this evening. I love you." "I love you too." Chase grabbed his jacket and the datacards he would need and headed out the door. In the week since getting back from Etti IV, he felt like he had accomplished a lot. He had taken the two thousand credit down payment out of their savings account and sent it to CodeBlue, who had promptly acknowledged receipt of the funds and promised to get to work right away. Chase had also sent him copies of the Rebel starfighter navigational computer specifications. He had needed to sign the originals out of the Intel reference library on base, and to do so they needed a personal identification code. There was no way that Chase was going to use his own code for that, but it had all worked out. Radek was pretty lax with keeping his own code secret when he was inputting it into something around Chase, and it had been a simple enough thing for Chase to memorize and use Radek's code with no one the wiser. Chase would have preferred someone else's code, but he figured Radek's should do well enough. If this all blew up in his face and things were traced back to their roots, at least this piece of evidence would point to Radek, not him. The wonderful part about it was that even if they determined Radek was set up, no one would suspect that his own wingman had done it. Investigators would go after the squadmates that openly had a problem with Radek's obnoxious ways, and there were a few of them. Yes, Chase thought that should work out just fine. The only big problem now was still the money. If asked, Chase might be able to blame the 2,000 credit savings withdrawal on something false like a speeder repair part or transport tickets for his parents to visit from Imperial Center, but hopefully he could get that amount paid back before Lataise even noticed the money was gone. And he had to similarly pay back the money he had used to buy his transport ticket to Etti IV, and he still needed 18,000 more credits on top of that. How? How how how? He was stumped. The finances constantly distracted him as he performed his duties that day. Chase wished he could set up a phony contract and make the Imperials pay for it or just siphon off some funds without them knowing, but he didn't know how to do that. A phony contract would be next to impossible because of all the bureaucracy and would take much longer than two months. The last thing on his agenda for the day was a standard system patrol with Radek. Chase was glad for it: flying usually helped to clear his mind, and he needed a lot of that right now. Radek babbled on while they flew like he normally did. Chase tuned him out. As they passed the inspection docking structure on one of their patrol laps, Chase was snapped out of his thoughts by Radek's voice saying, "Three! Hey, Three!" Chase blinked, startled. "What?" "Aren't you listening to me?" Chase sighed. "Sorry. What was that again?" "I said, it's been a long time since you promised I could start doing ship inspections. Can't we do that today? I'm tired of waiting. I want to have something good like that to show the commander." "Oh, sure, I suppose we can do that today," Chase said distractedly. "Let's see. Let's start with something nice and benign, and find some law-abiding clunky freighter in the navigational lane to do a random check on." "Great!" Radek sounded excited. "Okay, okay, let's see...oh, there's an Etti Lighter freighter coming up. How about that one?" "Sure." "Let me contact them, Three. I know what to say." "Okay, go ahead." A moment later, an open frequency carried Radek's voice. "Etti Lighter Star Flag, this is Lieutenant Deror, Fireburner Four, Imperial Navy." "This is Lighter Star Flag, go ahead," a female voice replied. "We will be boarding and inspecting your ship. Dock at the following coordinates. Out." The coordinates followed, and then Radek's voice changed over to his frequency with Chase. "How was that, Three?" "Good, Four. Now get all the info you can on the ship from dirtside, and keep an eye on the ship to make sure they're complying." Chase did the same so he could compare what he got with what Radek came up with, and he also transmitted their intentions back to the base. The freighter and the two TIEs docked at the structure without incident. Chase led Radek onto Star Flag, and he didn't expect to see a pink Twi'lek woman there waiting for them. Chase was suddenly glad Radek was there and would be dealing with her. She introduced herself as the captain of Star Flag, and Chase walked Radek through the inspection procedures while habitually remaining on Radek's left side so he could hear the best. Radek caught on quickly and even did a faster yet more thorough check of all the cargo than Chase normally would have done. While Radek did that, Chase glanced through the cargo manifest. There were some expensive items on this ship, and everything looked to be in order. The Twi'lek was the only one they had encountered aboard so far. What if...? Chase thought about a few things and casually looked around as Radek finished with the cargo and checked the navigation logs. When he was done, Chase smiled at him. "That was a really good job. Head on back to the fighters. I'll be there in a minute--I just want to double-check a cargo listing number." Radek beamed at Chase's compliment, then he thanked the Twi'lek for her cooperation and went through the cycling airlock. Chase waited until Radek was completely off the freighter before he stepped up to the Twi'lek. "I too would like to thank you for your cooperation with us," he said to her. "I'll let you be on your way as soon as your outstanding Goods Transit fee of 100 credits is paid in full." The Twi'lek studied him skeptically, and her lekku twitched. "Goods Transit fee? I've never heard of such a thing." "It's a new Imperial law, not a CSA one, so if you mainly do business in the CSA boundaries I'm not surprised you haven't heard much about it. But you hadn't paid it before entering and transiting this system with your cargo, which is why we stopped your ship." Chase casually leaned against a bulkhead and tried to look reasonable. The Twi'lek was still watching him warily, obviously trying to determine his level of honesty. Chase shrugged. "Really, when you stop to think about it, it's not that much money when you consider the kind of valuable goods you're hauling in this ship. It's a new type of customs fee here in this system." "But I already paid customs on everything here," the Twi'lek said. "It's all recorded in my flight logs and signed off by the CSA." "But see, that's where it looks like you keep getting stuck," Chase replied. "This isn't for the CSA. The Craci System is under Imperial rule, so everything within the system boundaries is subject to Imperial rule and doctrine." Chase decided to try to sweeten the deal. "It's only 100 credits, and I think I forgot to mention that it covers an entire year, so after you pay this you can forget about it. I can enter it into the database immediately so you're covered. But think about it, ma'am: your time is much too valuable to be sitting here going around in circles over this measly thing. How about we just get this over and done with so we both can be on our way?" The pink alien thought it over. "I won't have to worry about this anymore for a whole year?" Her tone of voice was flat; she obviously wasn't happy. Chase nodded. "That's right." She stared at him for a long moment before finally muttering, "Fine," then the Twi'lek walked into another room. Chase let his hand dangle near his holstered blaster just in case he'd pushed her too far and he would need it to defend himself, but she came out armed only with one hundred hard credits. "Here." She gave them to him. Chase gave a tight smile and pocketed the credits. For once he was grateful for the stupid, gullible aliens. "Thank you for your cooperation, ma'am. I'll mark your ship as cleared immediately." He donned his helmet, exited through the airlock, climbed into his TIE and undocked from the structure with Radek. Star Flag did the same and quickly pulled away. "That was great, Three! Thanks!" Radek exclaimed. For once, Chase bet that he was smiling as big as Radek was, and he shivered once in excitement. The two TIEs circled away from the docking structure, and Chase looked at the nearby navigational lane. All those ships... they all meant credits. Credits he desperately needed. As long as he was careful and played it smart. He could raise the fee or do fake inspection violation write-ups, but he'd need to space out the selected transports enough over the next two months to ensure he wasn't discovered. He'd also have to make sure Radek was always docked at the same time to give him some deniability. If Radek always made the initial comm contact, that would be even better. In-flight voice recorders made wonderful alibis. He loved it when flying cleared his head. "Sure thing, Four. You did well," Chase answered. "Want some more practice with it?" ------- -----signature----- "Like anything worth writing, it came inexplicably and without method." -Karen Eiffel, _Stranger Than Fiction_ "Adamantine"--Rebel OC vig http://boards.theforce.net/the_saga/b10476/30390799
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
Idrelle_Miocovani Registered: Feb '05	Date Posted: 4/28/08 7:36pm Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 4/28
	Gah! I thought I commented on the last chapter. I'm sorry, Thumper! I'll get there as soon as I can; I have an essay to deal with, if it doesn't kill me in the process. -----signature----- Nat is my new Muse. Yes, you may have one of those flowy Greek-robe things you say you can't spell. This Time Around: http://boards.theforce.net/the_saga/b10476/27062943/p1/?2 DarthIshtar's Padawan
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
Arcalian Registered: Mar '05	Date Posted: 4/28/08 8:52pm Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 4/28
	Wow, his downard spiral really knows no bottom, does it? But I suppose I'm kind of grateful; at first I thought he was going to find some sort of excuse to sabotage her ship. -----signature----- Arcalian If you don't take yourself seriously, who else will? http://arcalian.deviantart.com/ http://idlewilder.proboards54.com/index.cgi?
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
Trika_Kenobi Registered: Nov '99	Date Posted: 4/30/08 7:41am Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 4/28
	lol @ Chase... he's got this whole thing down pat, right? Sounds like nothing can go wrong! Super update! I enjoyed it. Thank you. -----signature----- My Uncle Sam sends me places... the "going OCONUS lol" is here! Current Location: Iraq Don't bother running. You won't get far enough. http://www.TalonIntelligenceSquadron.com
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
Idrelle_Miocovani Registered: Feb '05	Date Posted: 5/2/08 7:21pm Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 4/28
	He loved it when flying cleared his head. Hopefully he'll be able to sort out his various problems (financial and other) soon! He really has his work cut out for him... -----signature----- Nat is my new Muse. Yes, you may have one of those flowy Greek-robe things you say you can't spell. This Time Around: http://boards.theforce.net/the_saga/b10476/27062943/p1/?2 DarthIshtar's Padawan
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
Thumper09 Registered: Dec '01	Date Posted: 5/7/08 7:23pm Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 5/7 - Date Edited: 5/8/08 7:17pm (1 edits total) Edited By: Thumper09
	Idri: No worries. I hope you showed that essay who's boss before it could inflict any damage. Chase is hoping the same thing, I'm sure. But when have fanfic characters ever gotten off easy? Thanks for reading and replying! Arcalian: Nope, Chase hasn't hit the bottom of his spiral yet, but he's sure gaining speed. As for the rest... Thanks for replying and reading! Trika: Sure, he's got it all planned out perfectly. Nothing to worry about. Thanks for reading and commenting! ----- This is another split-in-two chapter due to its length. ----- Chapter Ten, Part One Looking back over the last month, Chase couldn't believe how amateurish and frankly dangerous his first fee collection with the Twi'lek had been. He'd been damned lucky she hadn't tried to research such an ambiguous-sounding fee afterwards and that he hadn't gotten caught. Things were much better now. He was more prepared and more selective in the ships they stopped, and he adjusted his methods for each individual captain. Most of the time he simply wrote up fake citations if he thought they wouldn't know any better. All he had to do was rattle off some Imperial documents and form numbers he was quoting the "rules" from to make it sound as official as possible, and if their eyes glazed over or looked like an animal caught in speeder headlights, Chase knew he had it made. Plus, he convinced those people that if they paid the fine immediately, the infraction wouldn't go onto their flight record. This was his favorite approach, as the people often felt he was doing them a favor and would be less likely to complain to others about it or look into it more closely afterward. Chase found he could get a good amount of money from the more gullible or more anxious transport pilots. He was starting to get a secret thrill out of seeing how intimidated some of the more nervous ones got at his authority. He had also made it a habit to enter the ship with his wingman, then stand back and let Radek do an inspection completely on his own. When Radek was done, Chase would have him stay by the airlock while Chase did a "follow-up inspection" alone to make sure Radek had done it properly. It was during that time when Chase found fake violations to write up. Everything was going great, and if things kept going at a comparable rate he could have a decent portion of the 20,000 credits by the time the computer program was ready. He didn't believe he could get the full amount by only using this method and staying suspicion-free, but in the meantime he was thinking hard of other ways to get the money. He was starting to get nervous though, as time was running out. "All done?" Chase asked from beside the airlock as Radek came out of the cockpit of a Barloz Medium Freighter called Speed of Dark with its captain following. "Yeah." Radek handed Chase a datapad on which he had typed the results of his inspection. Radek looked annoyed, but he politely thanked Captain Adilinik for his time and then parked himself next to the airlock to wait for Chase. Chase raised an eyebrow. He'd never seen Radek so anxious to be done with an inspection before. Adilinik looked coldly at Chase, obviously not happy that an Imperial was still onboard and interrupting his schedule. Ignoring the look, Chase glanced over the datapad. Radek had written up a few minor but legitimate infractions, and Chase was happy for it; that made things much easier when dealing with people as uncooperative as this man had proven himself to be so far. On the bottom of the list Radek had typed a note that said, "Three: this guy's being a damn pain. I wouldn't stick around longer than needed if I was you." Chase had already guessed that much, but Radek's note confirmed it. He couldn't push this guy too far, which meant he'd be getting very few extra credits out of him. Chase took his time transferring Radek's infraction list onto a different datapad--it was just too bad if the poor captain was inconvenienced--and in the middle of the list Chase added his own fake rule violation and attached a 35 credit fine to it, his lowest collection amount. He hated using 35's when he still had so much more to collect since it meant more credits from another ship which meant more risk, but he didn't have a choice in this case. He handed Radek's datapad back. The pilot did a brief walkthrough of the ship's cockpit and cargo hold and pretended to doublecheck things against his updated datapad while Adilinik stalked along behind. When Chase was done, he remained in the cargo hold so Radek wouldn't overhear anything from over by the airlock. Chase nodded and said, "Yes, this is accurate. We noticed a few things wrong here, Captain." He handed the datapad to Adilinik. "Here's a list of the write-ups and the fines. If you pay me in full for them now, either in hard credits or electronically to the collection account, they won't go on your flight record." Adilinik scowled as he read through the list, then his eyes stopped. "What the hell is this one? 35 credits for engine certification?" Chase silently cursed. Why did he have to single out the only fake one? "Your engine hasn't been certified as being calibrated to the proper efficiency rating in the last 18 months. If it has been, you're missing the proper documentation and cal seal. That's all." Adilinik sent a glare Chase's way that reminded him of his drill instructor in Basic. Even their close-cropped, greying blond hairstyles were the same. "That sounds awfully peculiar to me." At least Chase was prepared this time. "It's in Imperial document 104TH-109.IL, Revision J, entitled Certification and Documentation Requirements of Conventional Propulsion Systems for Small- and Medium-Sized Transports, Freighters and Shuttles, Civilian Class." He'd been proud of the title he'd managed to come up with. The captain motioned toward the forward part of the ship. "I have a Holonet connection here. Why don't you use it to pull up that document and show me this rule?" Unfortunately, Chase hadn't been prepared for that. He thought as fast as he could and said, "Captain, it would take a long time for me to search for that particular document and then look through it for the specific rule. It's only 35 credits. Your time is more valuable than that." "No, I don't mind waiting. I'd like to see the rule so I can be sure I don't violate it again. After all, I live in the Corporate Sector, not the Empire, and since obviously I'm being held to Imperial rules whenever I come through this system, I need to know exactly what I need to do. Right?" Chase was getting unnerved by the man's hard, challenging tone. "Captain, really, it's such a small amount--" "But I need to know the rules to avoid having to pay larger amounts in the future. Educate me on the rules." "I told you the rule already." Chase's only hope now was to go circular. "You need the cal seal and documentation." "You said it had to be the 'proper' rating. What's 'proper' for my ship? I need to see it in print so I can follow your wonderful rule." Chase hardened and flattened his voice. "Captain, your attitude is leaving much to be desired." Adilinik snorted. "What's wrong with my attitude? I'm trying to comply with what you're telling me, and you're not allowing me to. My request is very simple." Chase hesitated. This wasn't going well at all, and Adilinik wasn't buying the story. His constant confrontational demeanor was worrying Chase as well, and he was just asking for trouble by continuing this discussion. Backing down wouldn't be something that an Imperial officer should do if he was within his rights to demand compliance from someone, but maybe Adilinik would stop making a big deal out of this if he won. "All right, then, Captain, I really shouldn't do this, but I'll let that fee citation go. It's a minor thing that's not worth the time we're wasting on it." The gaze coming from Adilinik was steady and calculating as he processed Chase's capitulation. Finally the captain barked a short laugh. "An Imperial is letting a rule violation go? When all he has to do is just show me the rule to get me to pay? There's only one reason something like that could be happening. You can't do it, can you?" Adilinik bit out. "You can't show it to me because it doesn't exist. I'm so sick of being bled dry by greedy, power-hungry types like you, trying to take what's not yours. CSA, Imperial, it doesn't matter; you're all the same." Adilinik was really rubbing Chase the wrong way. "The Empire is not at all like the CSA," Chase countered. "The Empire is making the galaxy better for everyone, even you. If some people, like you, don't like the rules that enable peace and prosperity for everyone, then that's just too bad. The CSA is only interested in lining their own pockets. They don't give a damn about anyone." "And what organization do you represent again? Going from your own descriptions, I think you have the wrong uniform on." "You're forgetting your place here, Captain," Chase said sharply, feeling anger well up inside. "Besides, I just offered to waive the fee you owe. Explain to me how that makes me interested only in getting money." "On the contrary, I think you're the one forgetting your place," Adilinik retorted, his voice equally heated. "I've dealt with your kind way too much in the CSA, seen every trick in the book to get money that wasn't rightfully yours. Hell, you're not even very good at it--you're so transparent that I can see through you better than my viewport. That has to make me wonder how no one else has caught on yet. Or have they, and they're allowing it? Does your commander know you can't show me this wonderful rule of yours, or is he in on it too to where I have to go higher to report this little incident? Trust me, I'll go as high as I need to." Chase narrowed his eyes, all nervousness forgotten. "That's really not necessary," he warned in a low voice. "Oh, but I think it is," Adilinik said, not backing down. He pulled a small handheld comlink off of his belt. Chase's hand immediately gripped his holstered blaster. "I wouldn't turn that on." Adilinik entered the cold stare-down with Chase. With each strangled breath he took, the Imperial pilot was acutely aware of the danger Adilinik's comlink posed to himself and everything he'd been working so hard for. He kept his eyes focused on Adilinik and the captain's comlink. "Keep it turned off, and put that comlink away nice and slowly," Chase said, controlling each word as best as he could. "Let's discuss this like rational adults." Adilinik snorted, and then he spread his hands out casually to each side from the elbow. One held the comlink, one held the datapad he'd been given. "Rational adults? You're the one subtly threatening the use of a blaster against someone holding a comlink. There's nothing 'rational' about that. In fact, it sounds a lot like a cornered criminal. Is that what you are?" "I mean it," Chase said, dead serious. "Put it away." "I think it's time for you to get off my ship," Adilinik said, equally serious. Chase tried desperately to think things through, but no action, no words held promise of getting him out of this mess. The only thing he was positive about was that he had to find a way to guarantee Adilinik wouldn't report him. "I don't think so. I'm in charge here. I've got a galactic military and government backing me up," Chase said. "Do you?" "Your damn military and government are not on this ship. This is my ship. I don't answer to you. Now get off." "You want to make this messy?" Chase demanded. "We can make this messy. We can start by me arresting you, impounding your ship, all sorts of things." "You wouldn't dare," Adilinik shot back. "Not when it would just call attention to your own unscrupulous actions. My ship, my rules. If you're not going to leave, I'll show you the door." Adilinik pocketed his comlink and strode purposefully toward Chase, and the pilot reflexively backed up a step. Adilinik grabbed Chase and tried to give him a shove toward the airlock area, but Chase resisted. Off-balance, the pilot pulled the blaster out of the holster, and with that action Adilinik's strategy changed drastically. The captain lunged for the blaster and grabbed the barrel. He tried to simultaneously point it away from himself and pull the blaster out of Chase's hand, but Chase wrested it away. The next thing Chase knew, a datapad hit him hard in the side of the face. The collection of legitimate and fake infractions fell to the deck after having done their damage, and Chase staggered back a step from the blow. His thumb desperately sought and disengaged the blaster's safety. He fought to regain his balance against the challenges of his head throbbing from the hit and his bulky helmet latched to the left side of his belt and generally getting in the way, and he stumbled into a defensive posture. It unfortunately didn't help much when he realized where Adilinik was an instant later. The captain grabbed Chase from behind and tried to pin his arms to his sides. Chase struggled and was strong enough to prevent Adilinik from getting a good hold on him. The pilot kicked one foot backward, hitting Adilinik in the shin hard, and that allowed Chase to push Adilinik off with as much force as he could. Once his arms were free, Chase immediately spun around, raised his blaster and pulled the trigger. The shot hit Adilinik, who gave a short cry and then hit a bulkhead while he was still moving with the momentum from Chase's shove. He bounced off the bulkhead, fell to the deck and didn't move. The sight was enough to even cut clean through the waves of adrenaline. Chase stopped and stared with wide eyes at Adilinik as he lay crumpled on the deck. That was definitely not a stun bolt like it should have been. His frozen mind could only articulate two words: Oh, no. It was just as well, since no Basic word had yet been invented that described how utterly bad this situation was to Chase. His frozen mind began to thaw out with panic. "Chase?!" ------ to be continued -----signature----- "Like anything worth writing, it came inexplicably and without method." -Karen Eiffel, _Stranger Than Fiction_ "Adamantine"--Rebel OC vig http://boards.theforce.net/the_saga/b10476/30390799
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
Trika_Kenobi Registered: Nov '99	Date Posted: 5/7/08 9:10pm Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 5/7
	Yowzah! lol @ Chase, once again. I sorta figured something like this would eventually happen, but you had me nervous for Chase the whole time. Suspenseful and well-done. Thank you. I can't wait to see how Chase is going to explain this one away. -----signature----- My Uncle Sam sends me places... the "going OCONUS lol" is here! Current Location: Iraq Don't bother running. You won't get far enough. http://www.TalonIntelligenceSquadron.com
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
MsLanna Title: CR GSFF Central = Offizieller Burger Brater Registered: Jul '05	Date Posted: 5/8/08 4:03am Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 5/7
	Heh, of course I jump into the story right at the nastiest cliff-hanger. Go, me. Great story so far. Love how Chase is going down slowly, and trying to be the 'good guy', no less. Great work on that scugger! Oh, please, tell me whn you update. -----signature----- "You will kill yourself trying to live up to their expectations." "That's okay for me." Cuyir adate jate, bal droten ori'dush Proud Master and buir'ika of Commander_Ducky. My New Title: Lords and Ladies of the Empire
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
Arcalian Registered: Mar '05	Date Posted: 5/10/08 6:49pm Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 5/7
	You know what? I'm starting to think that when Chase finally does get caught, as he may have been just now, Palpatine or someone may get wind of it, approve of his actions, and make him some sort of agent, or something. -----signature----- Arcalian If you don't take yourself seriously, who else will? http://arcalian.deviantart.com/ http://idlewilder.proboards54.com/index.cgi?
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
Idrelle_Miocovani Registered: Feb '05	Date Posted: 5/11/08 8:28am Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 5/7
	YIKES! He's got a major problem now, doesn't he? When he gets caught... Or should I say, if he gets caught... Suspenseful. And a nasty cliff-hanger. More soon? -----signature----- Nat is my new Muse. Yes, you may have one of those flowy Greek-robe things you say you can't spell. This Time Around: http://boards.theforce.net/the_saga/b10476/27062943/p1/?2 DarthIshtar's Padawan
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
The_Face Title: Ex-Manager Registered: Feb '03	Date Posted: 5/13/08 9:37am Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 5/7
	Sorry I’m late, but I’m finally caught up again. Daetwyler from that PM… I don’t suppose any relation to the show “Day Break”? CodeBlue held one hand to his chest, and his voice changed to almost bashful intonations. "Why, Needed, we just met. Don't you think that's more of an activity for a second date? Or do you just get more forward with handsome blue-furred fellas like me? I shouldn't fault you for it. I am pretty irresistible." I like this guy. So now we see Chase’s plan. And a heck of a plan it is. Verrry clever. I like Radek’s unbridled enthusiasm for getting to do the random ship inspection. Ah, better living through hidden charges. Oh crap! Stellar tension in that whole confrontation with Adilink. And quite a cliffhanger to end it on. Fantastic updates, Thumper! -----signature----- "Writing is a socially acceptable form of schizophrenia." - E.L. Doctorow
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
Thumper09 Registered: Dec '01	Date Posted: 5/13/08 7:58pm Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 5/13 - Date Edited: 5/13/08 8:27pm (1 edits total) Edited By: Thumper09
	Trika: I think Chase is wondering how he's going to explain it away too. Yeah, problems were inevitable with something like this, but I'm glad to hear this provided some suspense. Thanks for replying and reading! MsLanna: I think that was the only cliffhanger I've had here so far. You must have Cliffhanger Detection as a Force Power. Thanks a bunch for the compliments, and I hope you continue to enjoy the story. I'll add you to the PM list. Thanks for reading and commenting! Arcalian: I bet getting summoned by Palpatine would be enough to freak out any "Joe Schmoe" Imperial, let alone one who knows he's not playing by the rules, huh? It's an interesting thing to think about: in the Empire, where does insubordination end and initiative begin? Where's that fine line? Thanks for reading and replying! Idri: Yup, this is Chase's greatest challenge and most major problem to date. And he thought things would be so easy. Thanks for the comments and for reading! Face: No, unfortunately: I got "Daetwyler" from a street I pass occasionally, and, well, it just looks like a cool name. I'm not familiar with Day Break. CodeBlue was a fun character, LOL, and a breath of fresh air for me to write in this story. I'm glad you like him. Ah, better living through hidden charges. I'd love to make an "Asterisk Hunter" joke here, but I don't know how widespread those commercials were or if they were only local. Thanks for the compliments and for reading and replying! ------- There will not be an update next week, as I'll be busy annoying people across the Pond by playing American Tourist™. I'll resume on the week of the 25th. And now, the rest of the chapter that was so rudely interrupted by my personal posting habits... ------- Chapter Ten, Part Two The sight was enough to even cut clean through the waves of adrenaline. Chase stopped and stared with wide eyes at Adilinik as he lay crumpled on the deck. That was definitely not a stun bolt like it should have been. His frozen mind could only articulate two words: Oh, no. It was just as well, since no Basic word had yet been invented that described how utterly bad this situation was to Chase. His frozen mind began to thaw out with panic. "Chase?!" Chase jumped at the unexpected voice, whirled around again and raised his blaster. Coming into his crosshairs this time was Radek, who was standing in the doorway to the cargo hold and gaping at his wingman. In one hand Radek held his own blaster at the ready but pointed up, and the other gripped his helmet, ready to activate its internal communications link. The surprise and concern on Radek's face quickly turned to shock when he saw Chase bringing a blaster to bear on him. Radek jumped backwards out of the doorway and flattened himself against the corridor wall. Chase caught himself just in time to prevent reflexively firing on Radek, but the sight of his wingman just panicked him even more. Even though he didn't shoot, he kept his blaster trained on what little he could see of Radek. "What are you doing here?!" Chase demanded, forcing thick, solid air into his lungs with difficulty. "What did you see?" "Chase, calm down!" A frightened voice from Radek was something Chase just couldn't get used to. "Put the blaster down. It's me! What are you doing?" "What did you see?!" Chase repeated. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead. Everything was collapsing all around him, and he had to fix it. He had to. Somehow. The familiar desperation demanded it. "I--I--I don't know what I saw! I just thought I heard a blaster shot and came to make sure you were all right! Damn it, Chase, put the blaster down already! Please! You're really freaking me out here!" Chase hesitated, unsure of what to do and scared of that uncertainty. He couldn't let Radek find out about any of this, but in the last five seconds Radek had learned too much and it couldn't be unlearned. A few unbidden options flashed through Chase's mind, wondering in an instant how much he could control Radek or if something more...drastic was his only way out. Finally Chase lowered his trembling blaster, engaged the safety and forced the blaster back in the holster. "Sorry," he managed to say without too much faltering. "I--you--damn it, you scared the hell out of me!" Radek warily peeked around the doorway, obviously still disturbed by his wingman's actions. Then he relaxed a fraction and slowly moved just inside the hold. Radek holstered his own blaster. "You okay?" he asked. Chase nodded. Radek's eyes flickered down to Adilinik on the deck and then swept the area immediately around the captain. "I'll call for a med team," he said softly. Radek lifted his helmet and reached for the comm trigger inside of it. "No." Chase's sharp command stopped Radek cold. Radek retreated a step and looked up at Chase anxiously, and Chase tried to get more air into his uncooperative lungs. "No," Chase repeated. "Just...wait. Hold on. Stay right there." Chase worked his jaw a bit and wiped off the blood he could taste on his split lip, then he cautiously moved toward Adilinik's body. When he got next to it he crouched down and rolled the captain onto his back. This was bad. This was beyond bad. Now two ships had had serious problems where the last common denominator had been Chase's boarding and inspection. That was too obvious for anyone to ignore. He was going to be investigated and arrested and sent to Kessel and-- To Chase's surprise, he found that his blaster bolt had only hit Adilinik in the shoulder. He had a gash and a bump on the back of his head that were probably from ramming into the bulkhead, and he looked to be breathing but unconscious. Chase quickly felt for a pulse and nearly drowned from relief when he found one. "He's fine," Chase announced when his head stopped swimming. The realization was like a breath of sweet, fresh air outdoors after drawing the last lungful of oxygen from a depleted life support system, and he cleared his throat to get rid of the pathetic waver his voice had just had. "Just got knocked out. He doesn't need a med team." "But...Chase..." Radek ventured, still well out of reach. "We're supposed to--" "I'll treat him now," Chase interrupted with finality, trying to reestablish himself as the senior officer. The glimmer of hope that accompanied the realization that he did not have a dead body on his hands made it much easier to think things through and try to formulate some sort of plan of action. His mind was beginning to absorb the situation and analyze different threats and options as if it was a dogfight. Chase welcomed the return of his training and instincts with open arms. Rule Number One was to avoid getting higher authorities involved at all costs. Chase stood and walked over to get the dropped datapad as casually as he could, then he surreptitiously erased the data on it. "If I can wake him up and talk to him, maybe we won't have to report this." "What? What in the galaxy would make you think we don't have to report this?" Chase silently cursed. "Radek, it was a fast, confusing moment. He attacked me first, and I acted in self-defense. It all stemmed from a misunderstanding that escalated more than it rightfully should have." "A misunderstanding?" Radek interrupted. "What kind of misunderstanding could possibly have caused this from Unflappable You?" "It was a pretty big one, okay? Don't you believe me?" Chase snapped. When Radek looked properly rebuked into silence, Chase fell back on his default strategy: lies that made it sound like another person was benefitting were the easiest to swallow. "Do you know what will happen to him if we report this? He'll be arrested for assaulting an Imperial officer, and he'll get thrown in prison and lose it all--his ship, his job, his family, his freedom, everything. That's not something I'd want." At least the last part was the truth. Just the mere prospect of that was making his palms sweaty and his chest tight. "Look around at this ship. It's obvious he doesn't have much. I don't want to take away what little he does have over a misunderstanding, do you?" Radek studied his wingman for a few moments with a strange look on his face. At last Radek said, "It's hard to have sympathy for someone who was acting like a jerk." Chase hoped Radek was talking about Adilinik and not him. He remained quiet. Radek continued, "If you patch him up and something happens on the way to his next destination, like the treatment wasn't good enough, we'll be responsible for it. We'll get blamed." "No, I'll be responsible for it, not you. I'm the officer in charge here. This is all on me." That had always been the big problem area in his plan to point some evidence toward Radek, but maybe here he could use it to his advantage. "And you don't care?" "I'll take the chance, and I'll make sure he's willing to as well. If he's not, we'll call a med team." Radek hesitated and was obviously thinking hard, and Chase was beginning to feel uncomfortable and impatient under his scrutiny too. "This doesn't seem right," Radek said at last. "It doesn't sound like the Mr. Follow-The-Rules-So-We-Can-Make-The-Galaxy-Better guy I know." That line of thought had to stop right then and there. "Listen, Four, he's bleeding here. Make up your mind. Are you going to let me do this for him or not?" Chase asked sharply enough to drive the words home through any interference. Radek shifted his weight before he finally shrugged. "All right, all right," he said. "I think you're crazy and are making this too hard, but it avoids a lot of paperwork at least. You want help?" Chase tried hard not to show how relieved he was. "Sure, go find me a first aid kit. Check the ship's 'fresher or get the one in the docking station." Radek hesitated again and looked like he wanted to say something, but when Chase raised his eyebrows in a silent, impatient gesture, he left without another word. As soon as Radek was gone, Chase unholstered his blaster and set it to stun like it normally was. He wondered if the struggle for the blaster had accidentally knocked the power settings higher. Chase also pocketed Adilinik's comlink, lightly slapped the captain's face a few times and then pinned him down on the floor. Adilinik began to stir. "Wake up," Chase commanded in a low voice. Adilinik blearily opened his eyes to the sight of Chase holding the blaster at his throat. "That was a really stupid stunt," Chase hissed in Adilinik's ear. "Let me tell you how things are going to work now. First, you're going to convince my colleague that you're physically fine and do not require professional medical attention. Then you and I will arrange things so you can land on Craci Four's surface." Chase already had an idea of how to do that with no unanswerable questions being asked. "If you breathe one word of all this or what happened to anyone, know two things: one, no more records exist of that 35 credit fee you didn't like, and two, I will press charges against you for assaulting an Imperial officer. The Imperial-favoring courts here will ensure you go to prison for a very long time. But if you're quiet, I forget all about it. Understand?" Adilinik was blinking hard and trying to focus his eyes properly, but he was coherent enough to swear at Chase. He also unsuccessfully tried to squirm away from where Chase was exerting pressure near his shoulder wound to keep him pinned down. "You're the one who shot me, you damn Imperial!" "In self-defense. And quit whining. You're fine. It's just a scratch." "Self-defense," Adilinik spat. "So criminals can use that excuse now?" Chase pressed the tip of his blaster hard into the captain's throat, only partly to get him to stop talking. "You brought this on yourself," Chase said. His glare was as cold as the inside of his stranded TIE. "Ask yourself this: is this stupid little defiant attitude of yours worth your life? I can quietly dispose of you in many, many different ways if you want to cause trouble. It was you who said I was cornered, and a cornered person is capable of a lot. Want to learn that first-hand?" Chase heard Radek's footsteps approaching, and he quickly holstered his blaster, released Adilinik and erased the hard expression from his face. Radek came in tentatively as though worried he might be greeted with another blaster, and he held the medpack out to Chase. "Thanks," Chase said. He opened it while he added, "As you can see, our patient's awake. I talked to him." "And?" Radek asked. "Does he want a med team to come?" Adilinik's response was a few long seconds in coming. "No, I'll be okay with a bandage and some bacta patches," he finally muttered. Chase pre-empted anything else Radek might have asked by saying, "The captain was on his way to get some of his flight controls checked out in the next system." He began to bandage Adilinik's injuries. "I told him of a place here that can do it, and it'll be safer than traveling too far with a problem of that nature, so he's going to land when we're done here. Plus he'll have ready access to medical facilities if he needs it." "Okay. That's good, I guess," Radek said. It only took a few minutes to finish the bandaging, and Chase pocketed the medkit. Then the three of them slowly made their way up to the cockpit while helping Adilinik with his balance. He still seemed a bit dazed from the blow to the head, and Chase was glad for it; otherwise this would have been a whole lot more difficult, if not impossible. When asked, Adilinik said that he wasn't scheduled to meet with anyone at his original destination for a few days, so he wouldn't have to contact them and tell them about his brief stopover. Chase contacted the Legis Bay Spaceport on Adilinik's behalf and arranged a course for the autopilot to fly there as well as a controlled landing with ground-based tractor beams so they wouldn't run into problems from the "faulty" flight controls. They even revised his filed flight plan. When everything was set, Chase secretly typed a message in reply and sent it to the spaceport controllers: Course received and acknowledged. I think I can fix this myself inside the ship--I just needed a safe place to power down for an extended period of time. Thanks for your help. Hopefully that would prevent anyone from wondering why no one would disembark from the ship after landing. "Okay, everything's ready," Chase told Adilinik and Radek. "You won't have to worry about flying with your head hurting, Captain. I apologize again for the earlier misunderstanding." He looked at Radek. "I'll take the captain back to his quarters for some rest, and I'll meet you at the airlock in a minute, Four. Program the airlock for a 30-second automated cycle so the two of us can leave on our own. I've programmed the autopilot to disengage from the docking station one minute after the airlock cycles shut behind us." The group split, and Chase walked with Adilinik back toward the ship's living area. They were well out of Radek's sight when Chase nudged Adilinik into the refresher. Off-balance, Adilinik opened his mouth to protest the action, but before he could say anything Chase drove his elbow hard into the side of the captain's head. Adilinik went down unconscious on the small floor of the refresher. Chase rubbed his elbow. A stun bolt would have been much easier, but he couldn't take the risk that Radek might hear it. He dragged Adilinik over toward a large exposed pipe on the wall, then he pulled the medpack out of his pocket. He used the medical bandaging tape to bind Adilinik's hands behind him around the pipe. Then he quickly removed everything from Adilinik's pockets as well as anything else that was within reach in the refresher. There was no point in tying him up if he could potentially use something to escape. "Sorry," Chase muttered, unrepentant, "but I just don't trust you." He locked the 'fresher door behind him and tossed all of the collected items, including the comlink he had turned off, into an adjacent room. The only thing the Imperial kept was the electronic entry key for Speed of Dark. Then Chase hurried to meet up with Radek so they could get off this blasted ship. ------- -----signature----- "Like anything worth writing, it came inexplicably and without method." -Karen Eiffel, _Stranger Than Fiction_ "Adamantine"--Rebel OC vig http://boards.theforce.net/the_saga/b10476/30390799
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
Arcalian Registered: Mar '05	Date Posted: 5/14/08 7:22pm Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 5/13
	Further and further he falls....wonder when he'll hit bottom. Is Chase gonna let the captain dehydrate to death, or whatever the equivalent is? Or is he gonna program the ship to fly into the sun? Have fun playing tourist! I enjoyed London, personally. -----signature----- Arcalian If you don't take yourself seriously, who else will? http://arcalian.deviantart.com/ http://idlewilder.proboards54.com/index.cgi?
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History
The_Face Title: Ex-Manager Registered: Feb '03	Date Posted: 5/15/08 7:32am Subject: RE: The Way -- Imperial TIE Pilots, OC Project, OT era, updated 5/13
	You should totally check out Day Break. It's a failed show from a couple seasons ago (only 6 episodes aired), but there's a DVD set out with the whole series on it. It's like a modern noir Groundhog Day with a twist-laden conspiracy. Rob Bowman (X-Files!), Taye Diggs, Adam Baldwin, Mitch Peleggi... Good stuff. It all stemmed from a misunderstanding that escalated more than it rightfully should have. Unfortunately not the wacky Three’s Company type. May I just say Speed of Dark is an enormously clever turn of phrase? Great post! Thanks for the PM. -----signature----- "Writing is a socially acceptable form of schizophrenia." - E.L. Doctorow
	Locked Topic \| Active Topic Notification \| Private Message \| Post History

Pages: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 - Previous | Next | Reload