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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Star Wars OPEN Elite League Limmie

Discussion in 'Role Playing Forum' started by Trieste, May 31, 2010.

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  1. Jedi Gunny

    Jedi Gunny Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    May 20, 2008
    IC: Pamila Korthe
    Mandalore

    Pam took off her headset, the item in question covered in sweat. It had been a rough and tumble game out there between her Coruscant Senators and the Mercs of Mandalore. These kinds of games were always rough, and the Senators had come up just short, 19-17, here on the road. It was tough to open up the season with a loss, even though it was the first game of a nine-game season on the road that also happened to be a nonconference matchup. There would be other chances to win games, but for now the Senators would lick their wounds on the way home to face off against the Smugglers in the Rim War.

    The team had done a good job all around today, and Pam couldn’t really nitpick. OK, maybe the defense was a little leaky, giving up 19 points, but she had seen a lot worse. This defensive unit was still trying to gel and find chemistry, and obviously that hadn’t been enough for this one. Doon’sun, the Weequay full back, had been the star of this one, as he made sure to keep the Merc forwards off balance all game long. But the half backs looked suspect, and Pam had made sure to rotate them until something stuck. Salata had struggled particularly off the bench, so she had sat out most of the second half as the other half backs kept going at it. Tank Bratter had been a pleasant surprise, so the next week he might get a few more minutes. Jayla Leed in goal had done what she could, but it just hadn’t been enough to walk out of here with the win.

    In the middle of the field, the Mercs had won. Not by a lot, but enough to keep the Senators on their toes. Alysha Romax, the new Senator team captain, had struggled in her first game as captain, forcing Gayla Renhorn to do most of the work. Gayla had been matched up against the Wookiee Ogilthorp, or whatever his name was, because Pam didn’t quite remember, and was thus gassed by the end of the game. Izzi Polakaya had been somewhat effective, and Demetra Silkins, the “rover” midfielder, hadn’t done much defensively.

    On offense, the team had done well. Silkins scored two goals to pace the team, using her freedom as the rover in Allie Orchetrada’s new offensive system to make plays on the field. Riff Persnor had added a goal, but on the overall the team just never looked comfortable out there. It was a new system, and they didn’t have Polis Vayne, Moen Heatly, and Lokesh Fil’ish to rely on anymore. Dauza Chary had been average at best in her first ELL game, and definitely didn’t look like the now-retired Bothan field general out there running the offensive attack. A few bar points were scored, but all in all, it still wasn’t enough.

    The rookies had been a mixed bag. Chary had been average, and Reid Livingstone, the 272 third-round pick corner back, had been terrible. Pasla Tesh had played heavy minutes off the bench in this one to make up for Reid’s failures on the field. Cord McKerty hadn’t done anything in his minutes, and had thus been benched in favor of the starters. It wasn’t a Senator system, using the starters for heavy minutes, but Pam knew she had little choice. Hopefully the rookies and younger players would get it in gear next week, or else the season would really start to wear on them. The last rookie, Brancko Nagriski, had also struggled, so there was a lot of work to be done.


    The Senators unloaded the Bloody Bucket trophy and got the hell out of town. It sucked to have to give up the helmet, since it was a rivalry trophy, but at least it wouldn’t weird the team out anymore. How anyone could find such an item appealing was beyond belief for many of the players, and they didn’t really mind to see it go. They had a Rim War game to prepare for, so this loss had to be placed on the back burner and forgotten about. A win next week would atone for this, but a loss would compound the problem. They needed a win badly.

    TAG: Bardan_Jusik, Vehn
     
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  2. Trieste

    Trieste Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Apr 10, 2010
    IC: Falene Trieste
    Six Boroughs Stadium, Nar Shaddaa

    “Arkan you son of a—!” Falene yelled, but didn’t finish the thought as the Twi’lek slipped through her arms and she hit the turf.

    It had not been the kind of Elite League premiere that Falene had wanted for herself. The Miner defense was looking little better than last season and that was a problem—not just for Falene but for everyone. Sure, they were standing up the Smugglers here and there, but for the most part Nar Shaddaa was trampling the Miners left and right. It was going just as badly for T.K., Wizmark, Grap, Zire, and Waters. The young Smugglers offense had clearly absorbed Micjaa’s system (something that hadn’t happened when they’d played Marksmen) and they were picking and rolling and screening and doing everything they cared to do against the Miners.

    Falene wasn’t making it easy, but Matsoto was winning out more often than not.

    The good news was that the defense didn’t have to win the game. Aron Rodders was showing why he was quite possibly the best Full Forward in the game right now. He was dominating the temperamental Ike Tullo down low and was putting up another career day. Valerii was also running something new. In addition to her patented cycle method that utilized her highly skilled half backs, she was also using a high frequency rotation of Andersen and Detra. The moment that the veteran Luy’kin would settle into a groove against Andersen, Valerii would pull the Hapan and in would go Detra. The ensuing adjustment would give Detra plenty of room to operate and put points on the boards. By the time Detra started getting shut down, Andersen would be back in and the points would start flowing again. It had to be driving Micjaa up the wall.

    Though Anton Jorpik was looking as shaky as ever, Roz Cartel’s first outing in the starting gig was even worse. Cartel was just being out-and-our torched, especially by Rodders who had Cartel tying himself in knots and not getting any better.

    By the end of it all, it was a classic Miners victory: sheer offensive dominance. With four straight wins in 274, the Miners seemed to be cruising. Falene knew she shouldn’t be overconfident, but she also knew that she should enjoy this moment. The Miners retained the Old Whiskey Trophy. The postgame handshakes and congratulations were numerous. Valerii shook hands with Micjaa and slapped him on the back. Given her pregame speech, Falene bet that Gaeriel was really going to enjoy this win. Glencross shook hands with the new goalkeeper’s coach and mother Meredith Vayne-Chambers (or was it Chambers-Vayne? Falene couldn’t remember) and shared a laugh. It was easy for Alana to laugh since she’d get to lift the Old Whiskey Trophy for the third straight year.

    Falene clasped hands with Matsoto. “Arkan, played an awesome game,” Falene said, “You do that to every other team in the League and we should be seeing each other again later this year. I’d look forward to it.”

    As the disappointed Crew filtered out of Six Boroughs, Falene looked up, not all the way into the lights, but halfway up the stadium. She scanned the row of boxes until she found a familiar one—the visiting owner’s box. Falene gave a quick wave and a smile and was rewarded with one from her brother and mother. She knew that they had to be proud of her in her Elite League debut.

    This was an omen of good things to come.



    “Okay, get in here everyone.”

    “Don’t spill!”

    “I’m not spilling! You’re spilling!”

    “Stop pushing me like that and I won’t spill!”

    “Hey quiet down!” Alana finally shouted in the locker room, “Let’s do this right.”

    Everyone raised their shot glasses up as close as they could get them to each other, the glasses clinking against each other. One the count of three they recited together:

    “But since it fell into my lot
    That I should rise and you should not
    I’ll gently rise and softly call
    Good night and joy be to you all.”

    The Miners hollered together and then downed the well earned whiskey that they’d brought with them from Bakura. The decanter would sit in the Miners’ offices for another year next to the Bloom Bowl and the Beskar Axe. They had gotten through the harrowing gauntlet of three straight rivalry games and lived to tell the tale—overwhelmingly, narrowly, and not quite as comfortably as they would have liked, but they’d done it all the same and that was what mattered.

    “Okay everyone, great work,” Valerii said from the front of the locker room, “Gutsy win today. We played our game and that’s how we win games. Now let’s blow this popsicle stand and get back to Bakura. Euceron’s not going to roll over for us like these Vertical City kids.”

    As Falene took her seat in her stall to get undressed she got her hair mussed up by T.K. “You just lost your Elite Leaginity girl!”

    “Yeah, but we nearly blew the game on the defensive end. If it wasn’t for the offense—”

    “Blah blah blah, yadda yadda yadda,” T.K. interrupted, “You need to lighten up miss serious face. Sometimes you play bad and you win. Sometimes you play great and you lose. I’ve done both. Let me tell you—I prefer winning. There is no me in team.”

    “Actually…there is,” Falene pointed out.

    “Well, if you’re going to get all technical on me, then yeah. But there isn’t,” T.K. continued, “Anyways, shake it off. We’ll get better for Euceron.”

    Falene just nodded. She’d have to get better. Playing around and giving up 29 points was a death sentence against a lot of teams in the Elite League. She knew that Euceron was one of them.

    TAG: jcgoble3 Vehn
     
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  3. Tim Battershell

    Tim Battershell Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    Sep 3, 2012
    IC: Tim Dodd - visiting Esther Gondorf, Elite League offices, Coruscant

    "Good Morning, Mr. Dodd"; Esther Gondorf said, rising from her desk to shake Tim's hand, "Apologies that it was a rough welcome to the Elite League. What brings you all the way into Coruscant?" She was betting this was not a social call since the Packers were playing the Starkillers, not the Senators, in their second week matchup.

    "Unhappily, this does, Ma'am" ; Tim replied, standing a small sample-vial on her desk; "I'm actually here on behalf of Director Oleg Sturm of the Agamar Security Force. It seems likely that the scoreline in our game last night may have been affected by what's in that vial. If you have the contents analysed, it should test positive for a colourless and odourless substance called Narcolepine. I'm told that Narcolepine was developed around five years ago for use in hostage or correctional-centre disorder situations; and that anyone who ingests even small amounts of it becomes slow, clumsy and unable to concentrate. At higher doses, the consumer is rendered unconscious. However it was found to be very difficult to get the dosage right in field trials; but for prompt and expert medical attention two or three of their volunteer test subjects could have died! Very nasty stuff!

    As you have probably heard or seen, we have recently signed some ASF Officers into the Packers. One of them had been previously exposed to Narcolepine, and remembered what the effects felt like. He alerted his former ASF superior and Criminalists were sent to confirm it had been used and search out how the exposure happened. Early results indicate that it was administered to my team in their Energy drinks.

    I have been asked to liaise with the League regarding this incident, which is now the subject of a full ASF investigation. ASF were apparently already rather concerned about the team's poor performance during last Season's playoff game against the C-Bucs; not, we want you to understand, that they are reading anything into that, other than there having been a prior unexplained loss of team form. However, footage of that game is being scrutinised in case it generates any leads; unfortunately any hard evidence from that long ago will almost certainly be impossible to locate now.

    Director Sturm wanted the League to be informed, due to the health and safety ramifications regarding other teams' players; and you may, at your discretion, inform other Team Owners under a pledge of confidentiality, so that they are also aware and can take appropriate precautions."


    While Tim was speaking, Esther felt a cold void form in her stomach. "Mr. Dodd, this is a very serious incident. Thank you for bringing it to the League's attention," she said carefully, "Obviously the League will appreciate the fact that you have made some of the suspected drink available for third party verification. I will personally see to it at once." Esther paused. "The League has never had a situation like this before, at least not in my time anyways. This incident begs the question of why this was done." She decided to let the unasked question sit in silence between them. As General Counsel of the League she was not going to throw accusations around.

    "My understanding, Ma'am, is that the ASF's working hypothesis is that the poisoning is part of a match-fixing scam; with the proviso that the hypothesis may change as ASF follow the evidence! As you may be aware, some sentients will wager on anything, even two water droplets sliding down a wall; and a tiny minority seek to remove any risk that they will lose their Credits or fail to acquire someone else's! On my birthworld, their sport of TenGate has almost the status of a religion, but even there some people have been known to try to influence results, or place bets with the unknowing on incidents which have been pre-arranged with corrupt players. It's very risky to do, because the guilty have been known to be put to death by stoning when they get caught; but scams occasionally do still happen!

    ASF felt that the information should be closely held at present, which is the reason that I'm here in person, as it was felt that a Team Owner visiting the League offices would not cause a great deal of comment; and another form of communication might not be as secure. Encryption algorithms can be, and quite often are, broken, so I'm told! The perpetrator could be almost anyone.... anyone who could obtain access, on some pretext, to the ready-use drinks supply. I trust my people fully, but I'm not even permitted to bring Asyr Kre'fey, my Head Coach, into the loop! I expect she's dreading a right chewing-out from me, later today!

    I have to tell you, Ma'am, that ASF are taking this one personally, Director Sturm's nephew is an established player on the team, and they really want to find the culprit or culprits before greater harm is done! I hasten to add that the Director's nephew isn't on the 'can-be-told' list either!"
    .

    When Tim had finished, Esther said, "This is a concern of the gravest matter to the League. Tampering with games has our full attention. I am very thankful that you have decided to handle this tactfully and discreetly." Oh yes, most importantly discreetly. If the press ever found out.... "I will inform the Commissioner of this once we have finished. I have no doubt she will personally oversee this investigation given its significance for the League as a whole. I expect she will alert the Board of Governors as well. I assure you that we will make sure that the Buccaneers understand that no allegations have been made in their direction," Esther said sympathetically, "We will begin conducting our own investigation and will cooperate fully with the ASF." Esther stopped and thought. "However, there may be another issue. While the Consortium and Agamar lie in unaffiliated space, the League itself is incorporated under Republican law. If memory serves correctly, game-fixing in this instance would be an interstellar crime. That means that the Republican Department of Justice and Attorney General Helena Tandy will likely become involved." Esther wondered if Tandy's reputation had reached Agamar. Tandy was a real voxyn of a prosecutor. She took on all comers and given the fact that she had broken up organized crime in the Corellian system, she would likely go after match-fixing with equal vigor, if such a thing existed. "Given that this happened outside of Republican space, it is highly likely that Republican Intelligence will as well. Given the connection to Limmie, I would not be surprised if Chancellor Trieste took a personal interest in the matter. Mr. Dodd.... let me put it this way. You may be unable to avoid Republican entanglements in this matter. It's something you should be prepared for."

    "I think Director Sturm is resigned to that, Ma'am, and if our local crop of ne'er-do-wells don't turn up a viable suspect list then the involvement of Agencies that can lawfully go beyond ASF's jurisdiction would be a real benefit. I know that at least one of our Judges has been up all night signing Examination Warrants authorising ASF Slicers to take a quiet look at potential suspects' finances, and Search and Seizure Warrants are very likely to follow; so from ASF's point of view, they've hit the ground running and got ahead of the wave. However, Oleg.... Director Sturm.... did let slip that the risk of something leaking increases proportionally to the square of the number of beings 'in the know'!

    Anyway, that's my assignment completed; time for me to leave you in 'peace' and get myself back to Agamar! Thank you for seeing me at such short notice; it's been very nice meeting you - I do wish our first meeting could have been under more pleasant circumstances, though!"
    . With a bow and a final handshake, he turned and left the office.

    TAG: Anyone interested!

    OOC/OOG: Many thanks to Trieste for getting Esther's responses IC!
     
  4. Jedi Gunny

    Jedi Gunny Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    May 20, 2008
    IC: Gark S’rily
    Bursya Field at Andromeda Steel Corp. Stadium

    Here it was, the home opener of the 274 Elite League season on Coruscant. The galactic capital, the jewel of the galaxy (or the scourge, depending on who you talked to or where you came from), the home of the Senators. And it was game day, so the orange and black were out in force today for the game against the Nar Shaddaa Smugglers in the Rim War rivalry game. Both teams were coming in off losses in a rivalry game to start the season and wanted a win here to get back to .500. The loser would drop in a 0-2 hole; not insurmountable given the new nine-game seasons, but still a climb nonetheless.

    Gark, from the luxury box above the field, looked down into the stands as the fans filed in to their seats, beer, snacks, and other items in their hands as they found their seating arrangements. On one end of the field, behind the visitor’s goal for the first half was the proclaimed “Orange Crush” fan section, where most, if not all of the fans there, wore orange like there was no tomorrow. There were even rumors of a man who had bought the same season seat for the last decade and wore all orange to every game, even an orange hat if the weather demanded it.

    [​IMG]

    And on the other side of the field, to the visitor’s backs in the second half, normally, was the “Black Hole”, where the even crazier fans (or rabid, as they liked to describe themselves) sat. They typically showed up in black, and many of those nearest the field wore costumes to really intimidate opposing players (it really never affected anyone, but they thought it did, and they kept buying tickets, so obviously the section itself was working out just fine).

    [​IMG]

    When there was about ten minutes left before the game, Gark left the luxury box and headed down to the field. He had forgotten all about what was going to happen next, and almost missed it. He was able to get there fast enough, but it was too close on his watch. The fans were in their seats, and now it was time to have the banner ceremony. The Senators hadn’t won the title, but they had still reserved this for the season opener all the same.

    First, the 273 Solo Conference Championship banner was raised. It didn’t get to reside next to the Galactic Cup title banners, though, so it definitely stuck out like a sore thumb without an accompanying title.

    “Ladies and gentlebeings, could you please direct your attention to midfield, for the unveiling of the new retired numbers of the Coruscant Senator Ring of Fame.” All attention went down to the field, and Gark spoke into the microphone.

    “Today, I, and the rest of the Senator organization, would like to thank the following four players for their service to the team and to this community. As such, they will have their numbers unveiled in the Ring of Honor here at the stadium. I start with the full back, Shev Fil’yer.” Shev stepped forward, and the crowd cheered loudly. They then looked up to see Shev’s name and number 6 appear on the Ring of Honor as the sheet covering it fell away.

    “At number 12, former team captain, Dirxx Horstse,” Gark continued. The sheet fell away, revealing the #12 that Dirxx had worn as a player. Dirxx knew exactly what the significance of this was; his name, and his number, had been inspired by his father. Dain had worn #11 in his playing days, and when that had been retired, Dirxx had decided to wear #12 so that he could be close to it. Now the Ring of Honor read as thus: 11 Dain Horste, 12 Dirxx Horstse. The Besalisk was emotional at this; here was one last tribute to his late father’s memory, and now his son, the beloved former captain of the Senators, was now enshrined in the Ring of Fame next to him, their numbers only separated by 1.

    “Thirdly, the half forward, Polis Vayne,” Gark said. The sheet fell away from the number 15 and name on the Ring.

    “Lastly, the corner back, and last third of ‘The Wall’, Shayt Contar.” The sheet for that fell away, and Shayt’s name and number 42 were there on the Ring for all to see. “Thank you for your attention, and enjoy the game,” Gark finished. The crowd roared again as the four former players and Gark left the field.

    “Feels good to see your number up there, doesn’t it?” Gark asked Dirxx.

    “Yeah, I think my dad would’ve liked to see me up there with him,” the Besalisk replied.

    Gark returned to the box in time for the Smugglers to hit the pitch. This was their first chance during the season to use their new road kits, which Gark had to admit were better than the old road uniforms. They seemed more updated this way, and more sleek.

    Then the lights went down. “Ladies and gentlebeings, are you ready to meet your Coruscant Senators?!” came the announcer’s voice. More roaring from the crowd met this question. The music began to blast out of the stadium soundspeakers, a little something new for a new season.



    The regular Senator anthem, “Back in Black”, was being reserved for the next home game.

    “And starting with the reserves!” came the announcer’s voice. A single spotlight shone down near the Senator team tunnel. “A 5-11 half back from the Coruscant Polytechnic Institute! She is injured now, but will come back and help lead the team to victory! Reena Wyley!” Reena, still on crutches as she continued to rehab, came out to the applause of the fans. It was a slow move for her across the field to the sideline, but she was able to make it.

    “A 6-0 corner back from UC Bella Vistal! Griff Hakuna!” Out came Reena’s injury replacement, the Twi’lek Hakuna. He was back in the Elite League after a bad season with the Mercs a few years earlier had cost him any further ELL job offers until now. Had Reena not gone down, he would have been working with the Thyferra Force, the Senators’ LFL affiliate.

    “A 6-1 goalkeeper from the University of Dantooine! Kapp Pyston!” Out came Kapp, the backup goalie.

    “A 6-6 half back from the University of Kashyyyk! Salata!”

    “A 6-1 corner back from the Republic School of Engineering! Pasla Tesh!”

    “A 5-11 half back, from Verpine Technical College. Evis Kunat!”

    “A 6-2 forward, from Wevern-Tylock College of Coruscant! Kev Flysto!”

    “A 5-11 full back from the Coruscant Polytechnic Institute! Brancko Nagriski!” The Barabel was making his Elite League home debut here.

    “A 5-8 forward from the University of Coruscant! Cord McKerty!” Another rookie in his first pro home game.

    “A 6-6 half back from the Coruscant Polytechnic Institute! Tank Bratter!”

    “A 5-10 midfielder from the University of Denon at Eastlake! Demetra Silkins!”

    “A 6-0 forward from Por’mand State University! Maff Biskis!”

    “A 5-10 forward from the University of Thyferra, Mychele Lysar!”

    “A 5-11 forward from Vertical City University! Helena Forsythe!” Helena was on her second tour of duty with the Senators here.

    “A 5-10 forward from Gilles College! Rayel Edare!”

    As the Pantoran ran out of the tunnel, all of the lights went out. Gark wanted to slap a hand to his face, since Rayel wasn’t done running. But oh well, such was life in the Elite League.

    “And now for the starters!” came the announcer. The two pyrotechnic machines on both sides of the team tunnel began to spark, casting off light around the tunnel.

    “A 6-2 goalkeeper, from UC Bella Vistal. Jayla Leed!”

    “A 6-7 full back from the University of Tatooine at Anchorhead! Doon’sun!”

    “A 5-9 forward, from the University of Mon Calamari. Bel Erein!”

    “A 5-1 forward from Lanz-Terkin College! Zadd!”

    “A 6-2 half back from the University of Zeltros! Myles Tormera!”

    “A 5-11 half back, from Ryloth A&T, Ortho Dyhon!”

    “A 6-4 forward from Chandrila A&M University! Maximus Qorbus!” There were some scattered boos from the crowd, given that Qorbus had come from CAMU, which was not well-liked here on Coruscant likely due to the Revolutionary War rivalry game the Senators had with the Chandrila Patriots.

    “A 6-0 corner back, making his Elite League home debut, from the Brentaal College of Commerce! Reid Livingstone!”

    “A 5-9 half forward, making her Elite League home debut, from Grand Vulpter System University! Dauza Chary!” The two rookie starters were back-to-back in the introductions here; how fitting.

    “A 6-5 wing back, from UC Bella Vistal! Zummarrorroo!”

    “A 6-1 forward from Cathar Tech. Wylega Persnor!”

    “A 5-10 midfielder from the Coruscant Polytechnic Institute! Gayla Renhorn!” Gayla was obviously pumped to be here in front of her home fans, and was eating up the experience.

    “And now the captains!” the announcer boomed.

    “A 5-10 midfielder from Tavolva University! Izzi Polakaya!”

    “A 6-3 forward from the University of Denon! Riff Persnor!”

    “A 6-0 corner back from the Derrling College of Technology! Jerek Deter!”

    “Lastly, your captain for the 274 Coruscant Senators. Standing 5-11, a midfielder from the Royal College of Hapes. Alysha Romax!” All of the fireworks went off as Alysha left the tunnel, being saved for last for the best effect. Dirxx had been in this spot during his career, and now someone else got to come out of the tunnel like that. The coaching staff was then introduced, and the lights went back on. On the giant screens in the stadium was one word: “Elevate”. It meant to keep the ball in motion, and to deflate the ball when the other team was on offense. Also, the Senators knew that they had to “fly high” here, because they needed to get out of the 0-1 hole they were in.

    Gark settled back into his seat in the luxury box, ready to take in the action as it went down on the field. Then a thought came to his mind; during the previous season, in the home opener and second game of the year, he had missed a real defensive struggle because Me’lin was in labor at the hospital. Hm, had that been a year already? That meant . . . where had the last year gone? Gark just groaned; he had lost track of time completely with all of the crap he had dealt with in the offseason.

    “You all right?” Londy Whiste asked.

    “Yeah, I’m fine,” Gark said. “Just forgot that it’s Galin’s birthday in a few days, and I’ve lost track of time.”

    “Happens to the best of us,” Londy quipped. “Now, let’s see if the team can pick up a win here. We need to get back on track.”

    “No doubt the Smugglers are as well,” Gark replied. “They’re a different team, and so are we. Thus, we need to come out quickly and knock them out. If they can draw this out, our chances go down. Gotta have this game.”


    TAG: Vehn



    NOTE: A new song for a new season. And yes, it's a fun one to play along with. :D
     
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  5. Trieste

    Trieste Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Apr 10, 2010
    GM Post

    What We Learned: Week 1
    From HSN Sports

    Periodically throughout the course of the season, we’ll be giving updates on all 12 ELL teams with all the snark we can muster.

    Agamar Packers: So apparently plucking police officers off the streets and putting them straight on the pitch doesn’t exactly work well. The Packers looked out of their element in their first Elite League game. If they don’t get their feet under them soon, this is not going to be pretty.

    Bakura Miners: So given the way that he destroyed Roz Cartel, I’m pretty sure that Aron Rodders was not happy about losing the Salbukk last year. And when Aron is not happy, Aron smash.

    Chandrila Patriots: After a disappointing return to the Elite League once 273 was in the books the Patriots looked like the old Patriots. Then again, Reina Kether’s team started hot and fizzled in conference play in 273 too—and it doesn’t look like things are going to get any easier in the new Solo Conference.

    Corellia Rebels: The Rebels could sure use a little more help up front? If they hadn’t been punted up and down the field by the Patriots, a non-draft team, I’d say that this shows that this shows the ELL Draft is really siphoning talent into the big money teams that can afford to pay draftees.

    Coruscant Senators: The post-Horstse/Vayne/Heatly/Fil’yer/Contar/et al. era has begun in earnest and it didn’t exactly go the way that Gark S’rily would have drawn it up. The Senators have been a team that’s made microadjustments every season and stayed competitive. Are we seeing the beginning of the first true rebuilding year on Coruscant since S’rily took over?

    Euceron Storm: Asyel Yan’ii is entering his fourth year—what would be the Senior year of a lot of other limmie players of his caliber. This could be his breakout where he hits the next level with his game and that may be what Euceron needs to put together a complete season. He certainly looked like he’s capable of giving it in a tight game with no margin for error in the win against Rydonni Prime.

    Hapes Consortium Buccaneers: Moira Mallory has nerves of steel. Her Premiership champions charged into Agamar and grabbed the Elite League krayt dragon by the horns by playing her starters for 60 straight minutes. Do they even know what reserves are in the Consortium? I’d call the C-Bucs the early team to beat, but their game this week is against Corellia. Even if they beat the Rebels it won’t be until Week 3 at Mandalore that we see if the C-Bucs are for real.

    Mando’ade Mercs: Sure, these weren’t the same Senators that beat the Mercs last year in the playoffs, but Mij Katan looked pretty solid, keeping the Senators to only 17 points. If I had to lay odds, I’d say that Andres Fortune is the next captain of the Mercs, especially if the Nulls don’t sign new contracts.

    Nar Shaddaa Smugglers: Good news Vertical City! Tover Micjaa’s still got it! 29 points! Woo hoo! If you cheer loudly enough, you’ll never hear the bad news that the defense had holes in it that a Hutt could slither through.

    Ralltiir Starkillers: What a game from Abe Cynour, taking down the defending champions on the road. Rookie Alyda Hovechar and Ye’ves’toung are looking like the next top flight midfield duo. Week 7 at Bakura when they take on Glencross & North cannot get here soon enough.

    Rydonni Prime Monarchs: What a heartbreaker for the Monarchs. The brewing goalie controversy in benching Singus will probably cause everyone to forget about the fantastic work that Lynd did up front. Rhemes’ biggest challenge will be keeping his team focused because he should know that if his team plays this way the next eight weeks they should be playoff bound.

    Ylesia Lightning: Kasin Urdaaza can’t do everything for you, Ylesia. She’s going to have to get more help at the other end of the field if the Lightning are going to have any chance of repeating.

    TAG: Bardan_Jusik CPL_Macja jcgoble3 Jedi Gunny Rebecca_Daniels Runjedirun Tim Battershell Vehn
     
    jcgoble3, Vehn, Runjedirun and 2 others like this.
  6. Trieste

    Trieste Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Apr 10, 2010
    IC: Falene Trieste
    Salis D’aar, Bakura

    During the Reconstruction of Bakura, Fionn Dunross Trieste had seen to it that he had purchased a sizable plot of land for the seven story residence that was known as “the Plaza.” Outside the Noble House it was often called Trieste Plaza. It was located in what had been planned as, and remained 50 years later, one of the upscale residential neighborhoods in southeast Salis D’aar, which also contained Bakura Gardens (though naturally at a respectful distance so that game day traffic did not congest the rarefied streets of the well-heeled three or four times a year). Architecturally each of the families who had bought into the district had brought a style that spoke softly to the wealth that was behind each of them. Some of those families had come and gone as those credits had dwindled, but on the whole the street remained affluent. In the right places on Bakura, wealth was the constant.

    Falene had moved into the Plaza at the end of training camp. The Miners recommended their rookie players live with another family to keep them grounded in their first season. Falene, eager to never be outside the norm as the owner’s daughter, had readily agreed. It was decided that it was most expedient given the security considerations of housing the Supreme Chancellor’s daughter that her Aunt Regan and Uncle Eldred, who had taken a floor of the Plaza with their family, be Falene’s host family.

    Falene had a room to herself and was expected at the family dinners that Atticus insisted on. When Regan was late at the Supreme Court he always chastised his wife and she apologized by kissing him on the forehead. It was a point of pride for him that his family eat together regularly and never in front of the holoprojector. “I will permit myself the selfishness to want a half hour or so of my family’s undivided attention every day,” Atticus said with a smile, “and they have the right to expect the same of me.”

    It was once one such dinner had just finished that they were all surprised to hear the holoprojector pinging with an incoming call. “Are we expecting someone, dear?” Atticus asked his wife. Though he had his own legal practice, more often than not she was the one who received late night calls given her position on the Supreme Court.

    “No,” Regan said, rising, “but I’ll see to it.” That signaled the end of the meal and Falene joined Trixie and Quentin in clearing the table. They hadn’t even gotten all of the plates off of the table when Falene picked up a distinctive whine coming from the living room.

    “Oh Force no,” Trixie groaned.

    “I’ll go take a look,” Falene said. She had a feeling that Trixie’s least favorite cousin had just called. She was right.

    Falene didn’t know why Trixie disliked Ginny Lynd so much, but she did. Right now she and her mother Siona were in the Eldred living room in holographic form. Siona was looking less than pleased and Ginny was looking more than a little upset.

    “We have to do something!” Ginny insisted.

    “Ginnifer, I am failing to recognize why you’ve called us,” Regan said, taking a seat on the couch. Atticus had just come into the room behind Falene.

    “Because Mom won’t see reason!” Ginny said, turning to face her mother, who appeared to be connected from another location, “She doesn’t think this is a big deal! Are you going to just let your daughter walk away from us like this!”

    “My my, who’s committed treason against the Noble House?” Atticus said with mock gravity as he came into the holoprojector’s range to join the conversation. Regan shot him a piercing look. Falene guessed she didn’t find such things funny given her own temporary exile from the House. Atticus was probably the only person who could get away with a comment like that.

    “I’m very sorry that Ginny saw fit to drag the two of you into this,” Siona said, “It’s nothing more than one sister objecting to the choice of another.”

    “A choice? A choice!” Ginny shrieked, “She’s taken up with the K’ntarrs!” Ginny furiously punched something off screen to bring up a recent BBC extranet story. “Look at this! Vesper’s getting written up in the tabloids!”

    “I didn’t realize that the BBC had suddenly dropped about four levels of journalism,” Falene said wryly, stepping into the holoprojector’s field to join Atticus and Regan. She figured she probably should make her presence known rather than kibitzing on the discussion.

    “How can you make jokes like that Falene?” Ginny said indignantly, “She’s dragging the family name through the mud! Secret assignations with Arden K’ntarr! It’s disgraceful!”

    “Who is Arden K’ntarr?” Atticus asked.

    “They’re from Rydonni Prime or somewhere in the Core,” Falene said, “They own the Monarchs.” That much she knew, but more than that she didn’t.

    “This is an insult to the Noble House! It was bad enough signing with the Monarchs—”

    “She was drafted by them,” Falene pointed out, “And the Miners passed on her for two rounds that year.”

    “That’s not the point!” Ginny said, getting even madder, “She should have never put herself in that position! She’s now just doing this to spite us. She’s sleeping with the enemy!”

    “So would I,” Trixie said, poking her head in from the kitchen, “He’s hot.”

    “What was that?” Ginny demanded, just barely picking up the audio.

    “Don’t mind that,” Regan said, “Since when is it our business who my nieces shack up with. I don’t seem to recall anyone expressing an opinion on your numerous boyfriends at UBGC. How is Harlen these days? Or have we moved onto someone else?”

    “That’s not the point,” Ginny repeated, her face going crimson, “They were from good Bakuran families, not Core world royalty. We’re supposed to be leaders of the Outer Rim. How does it look for us to be shacking up with these entitled lords?”

    “Actually, dear, he’s just a baronet,” Siona remarked idly.

    “My point exactly! Baronet is a stupid title!” Ginny said.

    “My dear, I thought you liked all the titles when we lived on Naboo,” Siona continued.

    “They’re different! That’s Naboo!”

    “Yes, it’s quite different. The K’ntarrs are considerably better invested in heavy industry and technology in the Core. Their portfolio is quite impressive,” Siona said.

    Mother! You don’t actually approve of this, do you?” Ginnifer said, aghast.

    “Vesper could do worse for herself, it seems,” Regan remarked.

    “I—I—oh!” Ginnifer disconnected in a huff.

    “Apologies for the intrusion in your evening. Ginnifer rarely remembers the time difference between Gesco City and Salis D’aar,” Siona said.

    “I’ll call her when we wake up in the morning to return the favor. That should wake her up in the middle of the night,” Regan said.

    “If she even goes to sleep! She’ll probably be carrying on with some man!” Trixie yelled from the kitchen.

    “Young lady!” Atticus warned.

    “Trixie causing trouble as usual,” Regan explained to her sister.

    “This does create some awkwardness with the Miners, you know. Connections to the Monarchs and all,” Falene said.

    “Oh please. Oisin married into the ownership of the Smugglers and no one blinked an eye. The League will survive. I don’t even think Arden K’ntarr has any say over the operation of the Monarchs,” Siona said, “It’s a peripheral connection at best. Ginny is just mad because her sister has made a better catch than she has.”

    “Arden…I don’t suppose there’s a connection to Deredith Arden, is there?” Regan said, referencing the founder of the first Bakuran colony.

    “Now wouldn’t that be interesting?” Siona said, “Good night.”

    “Good night, Siona,” Regan said and the holoprojector turned off, “Ginny gets so wound up.”

    “So this isn’t going to cause complications down the line for the Noble House?” Atticus asked.

    “Not that I see. However, we can’t have your cousin outdoing you Falene. You’d better start snogging with Aron Rodders to keep the family honor alive,” Regan recommended.

    Falene laughed. “That would be a terrible idea.”

    “Indeed. You two get energetic and you could throw his arm out of whack and right now this team can’t afford to have that happen, can we?” Regan said, patting Falene on the shoulder.

    TAG: CPL_Macja
     
  7. Jedi Gunny

    Jedi Gunny Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    May 20, 2008
    IC: Polis Vayne
    Home, Coruscant, Prior to the Game

    Polis stared at the chrono on the wall. 0930, its display read. In the background, Buck was making a fuss; either he needed a diaper changed, or needed to be fed, or was just trying to harass his father as much as possible. Polis hated having to deal with the twins alone; it was a double trouble threat that he had a hand in making possible. There had been a few times, not many, but a few, when he had wondered if this whole parent adventure was going to be worth it. Buck had already taken a dump on the carpet multiple times, and Polis had spent several hours, even with the help of a cleaning droid, to get it out and make the carpet look as good as new each time. Was he that bad when he was their age?

    Then he could hear the sound of a speeder pull up into the driveway, and the sound of a key in the lock. About time, Polis thought. Meredith Chambers-Vayne, decked out in her Nar Shaddaa Smugglers team-issued gear, came in through the door and locked it behind her.

    “I thought you’d never make it,” Polis said.

    “You know me,” Meredith said, placing her keys back in her pocket. “Always have to see the sights when you’re in town. Also because I like rubbing the misery of you living with the twins in your face a little bit.”

    “You’re a cruel operator,” Polis said.

    “I have intuition,” the sure-fire Hall-of-Famer replied, a smirk on her face. She then sat down in a neatby chair, and Polis took a seat as well. “So, you do anything interesting while I’ve been away?”

    “Not much,” Polis said. “Went out to Mandalore . . .”

    “Fun,” Meredith commented. “And you lost.”

    “It was a close game,” Polis replied, offended. “A few more points, and we would have won that one. Better than you did in your game.”

    “It was Cartel’s first game,” Meredith said, her smirk turning into a frown. “Against the Miners, no less, so I hardly expected him to win the game by himself. Give it time, though. He’ll get it turned around. Kid’s got good form.”

    “You still lost,” Polis commented.

    “So did you, so we’re even,” Meredith replied. “At least we scored 29 points. You didn’t.”

    “We didn’t give up 30-some points,” Polis said quickly. They were at a standstill with the trash talk.

    “Fine,” Meredith said, calming down a little. “We’re still even, then.”

    “What’ve you been up to?” Polis asked. Since Meredith was living on her own on Nar Shaddaa during the Limmie season, he had no idea what kinds of hijinks she was participating in out there.

    “Coaching the players, watching film . . . nah, boring stuff sometimes. What I really do is go out and party. You should see how wicked I can get when I get a little bit of ale in the system.” Polis wanted to choke; he hadn’t seen that coming. “Nice scene down in the lower depths of the city. Endless parties to go to, and lots of booze. You know, just get completely sloshed because I don’t have to worry about my regular life for a few months of the year, and just live it up a little.”

    Polis gave her an odd expression. Hm, perhaps this hadn’t been such a good idea after all . . .

    “Look, I’m just messing with you,” Meredith said, trying to laugh off her jokes. “I’ve been out to some bars, met some people, watched some Limmie here and there when I have time. But being a coach is a lot of work, and I’m putting in as much time as I can for the good of the team. It’s so different from playing, because you’re not just looking out for yourself, but thinking about what things you need to do to help the players you coach. I have watched what might be every one of Cartel’s games from his last college season, trying to figure out his strengths and weaknesses against major competition. And it’s difficult to get that much, especially when you don’t always know what they bring to the table.

    But most of all, I miss being here. It’s only been a month or so, but it’s hard being stuck on the other side of the galaxy from you three. It’s why I’m not so hot on the nine-game seasons, because it’s just two more weeks away from home. And this is coming from someone who used to call Nar Shaddaa home, so that’s quite a change, I must say.”

    “Quite,” Polis said.

    “So I stopped by to see how things were going. How are the twins?” Meredith asked.

    “As rambunctious as can be for Buck,” Polis replied. “Anya . . . not so much. I don’t think she’s taking after you very well, because she seems quiet.”

    “That’s definitely not me,” Meredith replied.

    “It would help if they would stop trying to get my attention all the time,” Polis said. “I could use a day off once in a while, because like you said, there’s lots of footage to go through, players to look at, schemes to come up with . . . it’s hard being a positional coach. And I only have to keep track of 6 players; try having to deal with an entire side or team and do all of that. It must be crazy.”

    “Maybe you’re just not cut out for it.”

    “Maybe I’m not,” Polis echoed. “But I’m giving it a shot anyways, to try my luck and see where it takes me. I lost some time on it for obvious reasons, so I’m still getting into the groove.”

    “Try me,” Meredith commented. “A week or so after giving birth, I was back trying to deal with the team as they prepped for the season.”

    “All right, fine. You win,” Polis said, placing his hands up to admit defeat in the discussion. “So, you need to be anywhere today?”

    “Team meeting in five or so hours. Walkthrough,” Meredith replied. “Maybe we could go out and get some breakfast, perhaps?”

    “Let’s do that,” Polis replied. In a few minutes, the Vaynes got into their speeder and were off to Dex’s Diner, Polis’ favorite restaurant in this section of the city and a local hotspot of activity. Dex’s was a long-time sponsor of the Senators, and the players were well-received by the staff.

    “So, how’s the team looking this year?” Polis asked as he drove.

    “We’re young,” Meredith admitted. “That’s not easy to deal with at this level. We’re going to have some bumpy patches, but I think we can pull through. Especially this week, since we’re going to beat the pants off of you guys once and for all.”

    “Fat chance,” Polis replied. “We’ve got more going for us than you do.”

    “I’ve heard that you’re rebuilding,” Meredith said.

    “Rebuilding? Nah, it’s more of a reloading effort,” Polis said. “The rookies we have aside, all of our players have some Elite League experience. We’re obviously missing the long-time veteran presence, but we’ve got a lot of existing service time to call upon up and down the ranks. Our problem is just trying to get everyone on the same page, since some of them haven’t started in a few years.”

    “So you’re basically rebuilding,” Meredith pushed in.

    “Rebuilding means scrapping the whole identity of the team and replacing it,” Polis quipped. “We aren’t doing that. There’s a lot of veteran talent there. We just need to put it all together.”

    “So you’re trying to build something new. Rebuild,” Meredith added.

    “You’re adamant about calling this a rebuild, aren’t you?” Polis asked.

    “Considering that you never went through a real rebuild, I don’t think you know what it’s like.”

    “I’m sure I do,” Polis replied. “Been through some tough patches.”

    “Says the man who almost never missed the playoffs,” Meredith shot back.

    “Look, those were team efforts,” Polis said. “I was just a cog in the machine.”

    “You don’t know rebuilding until you’re the one having to carry the team on your shoulders and get them through the slop,” Meredith said. “It’s not fun.”

    “I never said it was . . .”

    “Anyways, we’re going to beat you this week.”

    “What makes you think that?

    “I have a hunch, and when I have a hunch, it typically means that I’m right. Besides, you’ve won too many in a row over us. It’s our turn to have a victory in the series.”

    “Not if I can help it,” Polis said. “I may be married to you, but I’m going to make sure Cartel, and by extension you, feel the heat this week. I’m not going to take it easy on him one bit.”

    “I’ve already filled him in on all of the schemes you are going to use,” Meredith said.

    “We’ve changed up our offensive attack this year,” Polis commented. “It’s nothing like last years’.”

    “Your offenses have always been the same. I’m sure he can adapt.”

    “Yeah, he can adapt by being pulled at halftime because he’s being shredded,” Polis said.

    “No, that’s going to be your players after he’s done stuffing their shots. They’re going to be looking for a clue.”

    “Are we going to go through this every time we face off against each other?” Polis finally asked.

    “Pretty sure,” Meredith said. “Next week, we’ll be great pals again. Trust me.”

    Polis certainly hoped she was right, because this trash talk was getting serious. The next few hours seemed to go by in a flash, and Meredith had to leave for team activities. So after a kiss goodbye, she left the driveway in her speeder, knowing full well that she would tangle with Polis out on the pitch soon enough. Just this time, they wouldn’t be playing.

    TAG: Vehn
     
  8. Tim Battershell

    Tim Battershell Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    Sep 3, 2012
    IC: Tim Dodd - New Team Shuttle, en route to Agamar from Coruscant.

    The flight back gave Tim some much-needed time to think. At least the Team's brand-new Shuttle (a stretched, fully updated, version of the venerable Lambda Class) had been ready for collection, so there would now be no need for the pilot to make an extra trip. He had to admit that the ship looked striking in its Away-style colour scheme of Space-Black, broad silver-grey stripe down the fuselage and wings (picked out, as with the Away strip, with yellow and green double-bordering) and the Packers' logo proudly displayed on both sides of each wingtip.

    It was a far faster and more comfortable ship than the old one too, even though most of the Packers' opponents were relatively local; Ylesia, Nar Shaddaa and Bakura being the most distant. The Bakura Miners team deserved a little sympathy, Tim thought; they had to skirt the Core for every Away game, and a trip from Bakura to Ylesia or Nar Shaddaa meant pretty much crossing the full width of the settled Galaxy! Worth remembering; if he ever had to make a transfer offer to a player that the Miners were also interested in! Perhaps, if the Packers made a mark on the League this Season, one or two of the Miners might even put out feelers about jumping-ship to get rid of a great deal of travelling. Tim was yet to meet anyone (even professional pilots) who really relished all those long hours in hyperspace!

    Hopefully, by the time he landed, ASF would have made enough progress with their investigations so the team could, at least, be permitted to know that they'd been drugged into a making such a disastrous start to the Season, otherwise Tim didn't know what could be done to re-motivate them before the Ralltiir Starkillers match, only a few days away now and looming closer with every passing second. He was studiously avoiding checking his mail, for fear of reading letters offering resignation; certainly from Asyr, and probably from others too; it had been that disheartening, especially at the end. Still, everyone had been whisked away to the ASF Academy Infirmary (he had subsequently been told) as soon as the final whistle had gone, for treatment and overnight observation - probably for some interviews too, gentle ones, unless the financials' check had brought to light anything that cried out for more intensive scrutiny.

    Perversely, last night's game had started superbly - right out of Asyr's play-book - with two full goals in the first ten minutes, and the C-Bucs denied any sort of possession for more than a few seconds at a time. Goal number one had been a classic Corner-Forward's play, with Stont sending over a perfect head-height (for her) cross that Jiva Taskelor almost nonchalantly nodded home. Goal number two (three minutes later) had seen Jiva receive a long ball from Narsk Ven'nari (on the fringe of the Right-Midfield area), which she dropped down for Georg Sturm to rocket low past the C-Bucs' Keeper.

    The next passage of play was intended both to showcase the Midfielders' skills and run the opposition into the ground with precision passing and nimble evasions by the agile Noghri. Although not really noticeable at first, this was where things began to unravel. Cachbarukh and Kahr'maim started off well enough, certainly, but the knowledgeable soon began to notice that the passes were just a little more ragged than normal and the C-Bucs' players were getting rather too close for comfort during what should have been easy evasions. A proportion of the crowd probably thought that the Noghri were just showing off or deliberately taunting the opposition.

    Then a successful interception allowed the C-Bucs to have their first real taste of possessional play, which (try as they might) neither Cachbarukh and Kahr'maim, nor anyone else, could interrupt. Even then the C-Bucs seemed rather hesitant about mounting any play that would seriously pit them against the Packers' Defense. Perhaps the reason was the newly installed signage in the Visitors' Tunnel. If not, it could have been Asyr's instruction to all the Starters to smile (mouth-closed, but ensuring their dental assets were plainly visible) at their opposite numbers as soon as they took their on-field positions - despite being descended from herbivores, the size of a Thakwaash's teeth were plenty intimidating; those of Barabels, Yuzzem, Wookies, Bothans and Noghri decidedly more so!

    Largely due to the C-Bucs' Offense's reluctance to get really stuck in, the score was still 0-6 at half-time but it was obvious that the Packers' Noghri Midfield pairing were a spent force as far as the remainder of this game was concerned. Despite having planned on this one being no more than atmosphere-exposure for the rookie team members, Asyr was forced to substitute not only the Noghri (their places being taken by Nova Aimes and Frank 'Flash' Mann) but two of the Forward group, as well, Fynn Hume (for Spreedo) and 'Scooter' Laine (for Georg Sturm); since they were also seen (inexplicably - considering how little actual play they'd done) to be flagging. Tim watched from the Owner's Box as the rookies went through their pre-pitch-time preparations; stripping off their outerwear and chugging one (sometimes two) bottles of electrolyte-rich drink - exactly as all the Starters had done earlier.

    It didn't help much after the restart, if at all. For whatever reason (it looked like inexperience at the time) the C-Bucs' Midfielders were in complete control of their area, and their Offense was, at last, engaging with the Packers' Defenders. Ten minutes in, three quick full goals and no penetration up-front (with some of the Packers looking as if they were rooted in place) caused Asyr to call a 'time-out' for additional substitutions. On came Miles Abrams (replacing a noticeably drooping Jiva Taskelor) and Tad Laite (for Stont). At the back, Glenn Lott and Alice Hrakness were replaced with Ziggy Fost and Keira Aimes. Again, the replacements went through the established pre-pitch-time routine.

    For about five minutes there was an improvement, Miles Abrams fired hard against an upright, then intercepted the rebound for another attempt; a snap-shot, since the Keeper was charging out. It hit dead-centre of the crossbar and, adding insult to injury, plopped straight into the Keeper's arms. Three more full goals later, Asyr called her second 'time-out' of the match and fed in the last of her reserves; Roon replaced the (also visibly wilting) Hohass Vesh, while Kerry Riven and Gordy Last replaced the Barabels. Gordy Last was seen to pass close by Nova Aimes on his way out and take a very hard look at her, then divert (much to the Referee's and Asyr's evident displeasure, judging by the looks he was given) to speak animatedly to one of the ASF Officers supplementing the Stadium's own stewards.

    There were no more full goals in the remainder of the match, thank the Force for small mercies, just a couple of high, long-range, shots that passed a good distance over the crossbar. To put them in context, even Vesh wouldn't have been able to save them - someone with a Jetpack, maybe - they were that high!

    Just as the full-time whistle sounded, there was a perfunctory knock at the door and it was opened to reveal an unfamiliar ASF Captain, who demanded that Tim accompany him to ASF HQ. Once there, after a ride in a Patrol Airspeeder, he was left to cool his heels for half an hour in an interview room before the Captain returned and started pace-hurling quick-fire questions at him. When had he visited the Stadium over the last several weeks; what had his movements been for the last few days; could anyone confirm that?

    Tim was no stranger to the art of 'Malleting', so kept his cool. He'd only visited the Stadium twice before tonight; once (in company with the Lead Attorneys for each side) when the deal was being set up and then for the Media Conference. He reeled off a long list of meetings with the various bodies he'd had to make arrangements with regarding the new Stadium and tonight's match; then couldn't resist a jab of his own with "Oleg.... ASF Director Sturm was at a fair few of those too!". That shut the Captain up! He evidently hadn't heard about the multi-generational relationship between the Dodds and the Sturms, with each new generation taught to regard both houses as their family homes and the two families as being one large family. Tim alone, having been born off-world and having returned as an adult, broke that chain; even so, he'd been told to regard the Sturm household as his home too.

    A somewhat chastened Captain conducted Tim to Director Sturm's Office for a much more pleasant interview, during the course of which he learned what had happened and was tasked to travel to Coruscant.

    The trouble was, targeting the Packers didn't appear to make much sense. The odds-givers had Agamar firmly in the underdog position from the very first; and (although he could be wrong, never having seen the point of gambling) he rather doubted that betting on the Packers to loose (or the C-Bucs to win) would make anyone all that much money, Arranging that 'the underdog' won, might, but it hadn't happened that way.

    A ploy to convince him to sell-up, perhaps? A non-starter as he owned the Packers in their entirety and had no intention of selling! He could also out-stubborn a scion of the oldest family on Agamar if he had to, no matter if they dated back to the Rakatan occupation!

    As far as he knew there was no bad blood between the Packers and the C-Bucs. Although their last clash had been a loss to the Buccaneers, it had been a good-natured, if close, tussle. It had also been an Away fixture, and ASF was pretty good at keeping the rowdier element of Agamarian society well away from where they could cause off-world trouble.

    A power-play in the Hapan Court? Possible. Such things happened, were sometimes messy and occasionally involved outsiders. But again, drugging the Packers didn't seem to make sense for that scenario.

    A power-play in the League? Considering the recent rumbles about the reorganisational Board meeting, that might be a runner. Esther Gondorf had also seemed quite relieved about ASF's wish to keep things quiet for now. With them, it was for crime-fighting reasons, but - ah well, nobody really loved the Media trying to find out where all the bodies were buried, did they? Apart from a Jedi or two (and a few wild-card Force abilities) across the generations, Tim had nothing to hide - but he wouldn't want the press tracking through the family history. Deserved or not, the Media had a reputation for twisting things and manufacturing 'news' when it couldn't find any of the real kind.

    Time would tell, no doubt, it quite often did!

    TAG: No One
     
    Trieste likes this.
  9. Runjedirun

    Runjedirun Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Sep 3, 2012
    IC: Lucy Vigo

    Lucy sat anxiously on the shuttle ride home from Ylesia. She wanted to be back on Ralltiir in time for her brother’s court date, but she knew the overtime win was going to give her only a small opportunity to make it on time. Limmie enthusiasts may enjoy these low scoring tight matches, but she for one had had enough of them in her short tenure with the Starkillers. It wasn’t easy to lead cheers during 20 minutes of play without a score by either team. Of course the win was a major victory for the Starkillers. To go on the road and beat the defending champs by any number of points was a great way to start the season, but it would also put a target on their backs.

    Abe Cynour had done well to prove himself in the starting goal position. However his post-game interview had been more than a little over the top, he took full credit for the win. His final words to reporters as he left the stadium were proclaiming that he was “Galaxy Protector Unanimous”. Lucie was now stuck on a shuttle watching HSN and the interview was being played after almost every highlight. Sportscasters were really enjoying the proclamation and in turn challenging the youngster to prove himself the rest of the season. Lucie sighed as if the addition of two games wasn’t enough to drag out a season, now this.
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The shuttle landed with just enough time for Lucie to rush home grab a shower and catch an air taxi to the courthouse. She was in such a hurry she didn’t even realize how tired she was. Lucie made her way into the meeting room where her father, Bat and his lawyer were seated at a table. Her brother, Richard sat by himself at the side, Lucie took a seat next to him just moments before two officers escorted a judge into the room. That was when Lucie got really nervous for her brother. If the presence of the officers and the judge were making her nervous she could only imagine how Bat felt. She could only hope being her for here brother was the right thing to do.

    The proceedings didn’t take long. Bat pleaded no contest to the charges, he received a lengthy community service sentence along with an equally lengthy tongue lashing from the judge and then they were all free to go. As soon as they made their way into the hallway Bat thanked Lucie for coming.

    “I wanted to be here” she said. She studied her little brother for a moment. He looked so young and obviously uncomfortable probably due in part to the situation, but also in part due to the suit he was wearing. Lucie thought he looked very handsome, but she could never remember seeing him dressed up before.

    There wasn’t time for small talk though; her father quickly explained that he and Bat needed to make arrangements for all the community service he was going to be doing. Then he apologized to Richard, but said he’d probably need to take an air taxi home.

    Once her father and Bat were gone Lucie asked Richard if he wanted to come back to her place for a while. She didn’t really know what they would do when they go there, but she and the dance team had the day off to rest, so it was a good time to spend time with family, now that she had one again. Richard shrugged and agreed.


    On the taxi ride back to her apartment Lucie asked her brother what he had put on hold to be there for Bat today.

    “Just classes” he replied.

    “Isn’t this your senior year?” Lucie asked. “Hope you didn’t miss anything important.”

    “I cleared the day off,” he explained.

    Lucie nodded, and then her mind wondered back to her day at the house a week ago. The main thing that had been bothering Lucie since her trip home was Justyne’s behavior. She was torn between whether it was normal teenage girl behavior or if something may be wrong. The last thing she wanted was for her little sister to end up in a situation similar to her own. “Do you think Justyne is okay?” she suddenly asked.

    “I don’t know” Richard said far too casually.

    “Well, aren’t you concerned?” Lucie shot back.

    Richard sat up a little straighter. “If Justyne is having a problem she could come to me, but so far she hasn’t. She seems totally fine at school, she’s very popular and this thing with Bat has not affected her social status there. I don’t blame her for not talking to mom or dad. They have been really hard to deal with ever since you left. Dad takes the side of us kids and Mom complains that he’s not enforcing rules he should be. They don’t even sleep in the same room anymore. It’s really awkward.”

    They were nearing Lucie’s building. She reached into her pocket book and grabbed a cred card to pay the driver. “I didn’t mean to accuse you of anything” she said. “Do you think Justyne would talk to me if I reached out?”

    As they got out of the taxi and walked into the building Richard shrugged. Lucie decided she would try, it seemed like the least she could do. As soon as they entered her apartment Richard began opening cabinets in Lucie’s kitchen. “Don’t you have any real food?” he complained.

    “There’s plenty of food” Lucie replied.

    “How do you live on this stuff?” Richard asked holding up a box of nutrition bars.

    “We can always order out.” Lucie surrendered. There were two things Lucie really hated about being a dancer people who assumed she was just skinny because she was born that way and people who chastised the way she ate in order to look as good as she did. She wasn’t about to have one of those conversations with her brother.

    “Great idea” her brother stated pulling out his data pad. “What’s good around here?” he asked as he began to scroll through a list of eating places.


    Lucie pointed out a few places she had had success with in the past. Luckily her brother picked a place that fixed salads she had been pleased with in the past and also had the fair he was interested in. Once the order was placed Richard planted himself on her sofa and tuned into HSN. “Make yourself at home” Lucie mumbled under her breath.

    “It’s an update on the Packers game” her brother called out. “They are blaming their poor performance on a possible drugging of the team. Can you believe that? Why not just admit you don’t belong in the ELL?”

    “The Starkillers play the Packers next week” Lucie stated.

    “Everyone knows that” Richard said rolling his eyes.

    Lucie brushed off her brother’s smart remark. “What I meant was how’s this going to affect the game.”

    “Shhhh”, her brother said shooting her a look. Ira Clarke was about to speak on that very subject.

    “The Starkillers want the Agamar Packers to know that all substances in our stadium and all those that are brought into the facility this week before the upcoming game will be tested. This includes all liquids and substances the Packers organization brings into the facilities, for the safety of the Agamar Packers and our own Ralltiir Starkillers. If Agamar would like to oversee these procedures we invite them to send a representative. Also to all those attending this week’s game we ask that no outside liquids of any type be brought into the stadium. Extensive bag checks will take place so please arrive early.”

    Their food order arrived just as Mr. Clarke finished addressing the measures the Starkillers would be taking.

    Lucie and Richard enjoyed their lunch and some conversation as well. Richard was planning to do one final season of track in the spring and maybe even pursue running at University. They discussed the schools he was applying to and Lucie held on tight to the jealousy she felt for her younger brother's opportunities. Just then another story involving the Starkillers broke on HSN. Richard immediately turned up the volume.


    “This just in” a beautiful young Twi’lek said from behind her desk. “It seems Starkiller Abe Cynour has filed paperwork with the government of Ralltiir to legally change his name from Abe Cynour to Galaxy Protector Unanimous. We have a reporter on the scene at Bankers Stadium with a statement from Abe himself.

    Lucie looked over at her brother who was on the edge of his seat with his eyes glued to the screen. She wondered why anyone put up with following these crazy athletes outfitted with larger than life egos. She wished she could change the channel; she didn’t want to hear Abe’s comments.

    “By changing my name I am challenging myself to live up to my title”. Self-proclaimed title, Lucie thought. “By the end of this season I will have earned the recognition as the best goal keeper in the ELL.” Lucie couldn’t take anymore she headed into the kitchen to store her left overs. When he finally finished his speech even her brother was laughing.

    “I hope he’s half as good as he claims he’s going to be” Richard said with a large grin on his face. “The Starkillers need to make the play offs this season. While I’m still on planet to see the games, especially since my sister can get me tickets.”

    “I never said I could get tickets to play-off games” Lucie corrected. His face turned. “When and if the time comes I’ll see what I can do, but don’t count on it” she added.

    Shortly after the news broke about Abe Cynour, Richard said he should probably get home and work on some stuff for school. Lucie thanked him for hanging out and they decided they would stay in touch. On his way out the door he made one last comment. “I think you should try and talk to Justyne.”

    TAG: Tim Battershell
     
  10. Tim Battershell

    Tim Battershell Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    Sep 3, 2012
    IC: Tim Dodd - Packers Team Shuttle, on final approach to Calna Muun Spaceport

    Tim had been right about the Shuttle, it was very comfortable - perhaps a little too much so, particularly with his seat reclined into the 'pseudo bed' configuration! He'd reclined it and dropped right off in the middle of his reverie, and had only just been roused by the change in ambient noise levels as the ship came down through the atmosphere.

    Not altogether to his surprise, he saw they were heading, not for the Public landing pads, but for the ASF-only section of the Spaceport. It made sense. The Public areas weren't terribly well guarded, especially at night - not that anyone had managed to make off with an entire spacecraft for years - but that didn't apply to the ASF's own facility. Round the chrono patrols, supplemented by random activity by teams of ASF Cadets learning the very basic (and almost disregarded, these days) skill of 'walking the beat', saw to that. All of them armed, too, and good enough with their issue sidearms (otherwise they wouldn't have been allowed to participate in this form of training) to give an intruder a very interesting time! Outsiders sometimes grumped about Agamar being a 'Security Force State'; but the residents usually responded (if not of the criminal persuasion) "Well, maybe.... but they are our Security Force!". Despite the farmers having led a rather hardscrabble existence in rather earlier times (somewhat less so now after a wave of immigrants, their own worlds wrecked by the 'Scarheads', had decided to settle) the general feeling obtained that Agamar was, and should remain, 'a good, safe, place to raise children'.

    On disembarking, Tim was directed to a tinted-windowed landspeeder waiting nearby. To his surprise, he found that its only occupant was Oleg Sturm, normally only seen in one of his official vehicles - the type that came complete with a driver! Oleg drove around more-or-less aimlessly for a while (he was as competent behind the wheel as he was at everything else, Tim noticed, that was to say, very) while he brought Tim up to speed with the investigation. All the team (except three of the former ASF rookies had tested positive for Narcolepine); even Roon, although his mass had meant that he hadn't felt the effects until later. The exceptions had offered the explanation that they (one because of an allergy to an ingredient, the others because of a preference for certain obscure flavours) did not touch 'Gundarkade' but drank the far less-popular alternative of 'Rancorade' instead. Keira Aimes (the 'Gundarkade' intolerant - confirmed from her Medical History file - team member), Kerry Riven and Gordy Last had allegedly formed the habit of bringing in 'Rancorade' (purchases made to order by Kerry Riven) in a separate cool-box for ASF training sessions; a habit that had carried over (with Asyr's knowledge) after they signed for the Packers. Thinking about the final portion of the game, Tim was grateful that they had. Those three and Roon, while not being able to carry out any Offensive plays, had at least stopped the scoreline from looking even more dismal; utilising well-executed tackles followed either by long passes upfield to any Packers player who still looked marginally alert, or by sending the ball out-of-bounds to use up a few precious extra seconds.

    None of the team or Coaching Staff had anything suspicious about their financial records, and all seemed to be living (with a degree of variation according to their marital status) within their means. Not that that automatically meant that anyone was cleared of suspicion, but it was an encouraging sign. Players and Staff could now be told, Oleg said, something of what had happened; enough to salve an innocent being's wounded pride but not anything turned up by the investigation. Tim took that to mean that the team and Staff would be under surveillance (visual, and comlink) for a while yet to see if anyone met or communicated with a known villain or go-between.

    Tim's news about possible future involvement of the League Officials, the Board of Governors, Republic Intelligence, the Republic Department of Justice and their Attorney General Helena Tandy, perhaps even Chancellor Trieste himself, had Oleg's jaw dropping. He thought for a moment and remarked "Actually, I'm surprised that they didn't mention bringing in the entire Jedi Order, just to round everything off! Never paid all that much attention to Limmie, other than to attend a few games; it seems it's a good deal more important than I'd ever thought - except when Georg came flat out with his intent to be a Professional Limmie player - his mother nearly fainted from the shock, as I recall! Not displeased if Tandy gets involved though, by repute she's a hard-nosed, hard-bitten (and very hard-biting) Prosecutor. As it happens, I've got something for her to get her teeth into straight away - caught a Slicer a few weeks ago and offered him the usual package"; [Tim knew that this involved full disclosure and working for the ASF, under supervision, for the almost all the rest of his life, in exchange for the charges never going before a Court]; "and learned from him that there's a back-door in 'H-bay' that links to a black-market version! Most of the adverts are probably scams in one form or another (we've put up one or two of our own, for that matter) but our captive heard from his partner that there are ways of sorting out the genuine ones; not that we can ask the partner how, he went and got himself killed off-world! Anyhow, there are ads on there for everything from blasters to planet-busters; and getting the site shut down would make a good many Security Force Chiefs sleep a lot easier, me included; the servers are, we think, on Coruscant and there actually are ads for Narcolepine posted, so we've got the perfect excuse!"

    "Might not be a bad idea if a Jedi or two were involved, Director"; Tim said half jesting, half very serious; using the older man's title as this was a Security Force, not a family matter; "Do you remember the fun I'm told was made of my several greats Uncle, my namesake? The 'crazy old swordsman' who became the family joke? Well, a being came to see me in hospital after I'd done my knee in and gave me this Walking Cane; long blonde hair, prominent pointed ears, wearing Jedi-type robes and from the way he spoke of my namesake (as if he'd known him well) of a long-lived species I've never seen before or since. He said that my namesake had found the Jedi he was looking for, became a Knight, saw some action, trained some apprentices and died a happy man.

    My 'Jedi' knew quite a bit of the family's history, stuff we'd never talked about to, or in front of, outsiders; so I have to accept him as genuine. And if a Jedi could walk right up to me on that isolated and remote world, which Mother and Father always said they'd blind-jumped to, then what else might Jedi be capable of?" Tim did not mention that the Jedi had told him that the Cane was made of 'phrik', that hideously-expensive, highly-exotic and lightsaber-resistant metal; nor that it came with the remark that "He made this for you. It was foreseen that you would have some need of it in your lifetime; and I am not only speaking about your present circumstances!". As the Jedi showed him what the 'Walking Cane' actually was, Tim was flabbergasted!

    "As for Georg, he scored the Packers' second goal in the Elite League and put it away with panache! Hopefully, that should please his mother!

    Regarding the League, their General Counsel seemed quite relieved that you wanted as little information released as possible for the time being. It feels like the executive are running slightly scared of the Media, possibly due to pressure from the Board of Governors aimed at unseating the Commissioner in the wake of the League-restructuring meeting - particularly if certain arms were twisted!

    Probably none of the other incidents are related to ours or each other, except that all three worlds host upper-level Limmie teams, but I can't put the Naboo kidnapping and the bombing on Mandalore wholly out of my mind."

    Just then, both their comlinks went off. Tim's call was from a very unhappy Esther Gondorf; informing him that Ralltiir had just broken the story to the Media and were apparently trying to set conditions relating to the forthcoming fixture.

    Tim told her that he'd returned to Agamar less than an hour ago and was still in process of briefing, and being briefed by, Director Sturm. He had not yet had an opportunity to even speak to his team. Citing a dislike of Media Diplomacy, he asked Ms Gondorf to issue a response to Ralltiir's statement along the lines that their Media's actions may have interfered with an ongoing Criminal Investigation, possibly preventing the detection and proper prosecution of a notional perpetrator - something that should perhaps be brought to the attention of Helena Tandy.

    Regarding the conditions, they were unacceptable as they stood - particularly as Ralltiir had not disclosed that they even knew what to look for. Tim asked Ms Gonforth if she could find out if they did, in fact, know; and how. He also stated that he was prepared to meet face-to-face with a representative from Ralltiir to try to find a middle-ground position. For instance random sampling of the team's stock of sealed individual bottles, with the remaining contents of the sampled bottles being discarded after testing.

    TAG: Trieste, Runjedirun
     
  11. Bardan_Jusik

    Bardan_Jusik Former Manager star 10 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Dec 14, 2009
    IC: Aay'han Vhett
    Meshla Vhetin, Manda'yaim. Senators at Mercs, two minutes remaining on the clock. 17-19

    Meshla Vhetin, the 8th wonder of the Galaxy, was rocking and shaking as the game clock wound down to two minutes. Yes the game was still a close one, within a goal as regulation drew near, but to the millions of fans in attendance it was all but over. The Senators were tired, you could see it. The Mercs on the other hand were fresh, strong play by the reserve players, especially at midfield, had allowed for the starters to play fewer minutes. Now towards the end of the game it was paying off.

    Mor'kesh went up high as the Senators tried to move the ball up from midfield. Time was running out for them to finally take a lead, but once again they were denied. Mor'kesh managed to tip the ball to himself, but rather than attack he played it safe. A Mercs turnover here could lead to a Senators win. Instead he and Ro'val, the Mercs other starting midfielder started playing keep away, running out the clock. Loud music and the shouts and cheers of the fans echoed down to them on the field as the clock continued to wind down.

    In the owners suite Vhett watched on impassively. While the final score indicated a close game, the play on the field had been another story. The Mercs had grabbed an early lead, just a simple above the bar point from Fortune, and had built upon it. The game was never out of reach for the Senators, but they never overtook the Mercs either. If the Mandalorian squad could hold out for another, Vhett checked the clock as Ro'val passed the ball back to Mor'kesh, minute and a half, they would have a wire to wire victory over the hated Senators to start out the season. While that was something to be celebrated (and the fans certainly seemed to be doing that), there was much improvement that could be done.

    On both offense and defense the Senators had nearly matched the Mercs throughout the match. But the Mercs were an experienced team, a team that was returning all it's starters from a playoff squad of a year ago. The Senators though were undergoing a bit of a makeover. The fact that they had nearly played the Mercs to a standstill did not go unnoticed by Vhett, nor by Vizsla she was sure. At least at midfield the Mercs had held a sizable advantage, even the backups had their way with their Coruscanti counterparts. Mor'kesh was quickly turning into one of the stars of the league, and a leader on the Mercs.

    He had even managed to score a goal late in the first half on a break away play. Rather than pass it up field or go for an easy one pointer he had put the ball into the back of the net for three. At the time it had put the Mercs up by five, and now it was proving to be the margin of victory. On defense he was a stopper, blowing up play after play at midfield with his speed and quickness. His size and power were nothing to laugh at either, he was a man made for meshgeroya. Now as the clock reached zero and play came to and end, he still had the ball in his hands. He wasn't just an offensive and defensive threat, he closed out games and with a vengeance. With the rosterpocalypse pending, he was quite possibly the future face of the franchise.

    He had his competition for that role though. Jeem Daryc had come back from his season ending injury last year to score two points of his own, and Andres Fortune had also finished with three (all one pointers). They had all done their parts, but for now the team still belonged to the Nulls.

    [​IMG]

    While the ground seemed to shake beneath them, Cabur went to midfield and took possession of the "bloody bucket" from the Senator's representative. Holding it high over his head he tried to shout out that the battered old helmet was back where it belonged, but no one could hear him over the roaring of the crowd. Realizing this, all he could do was smile and give a fist pump as he led the team off the field and into the locker room.

    Vhett smiled now too. It was an important win, one that started the season off right and got the Mercs into the win column. Looking at the scores from around the league on her HUD, she could see that was not something a majority of the Skywalker conference had done this week. Shaking her head her smile disappeared at the thought of the Skywalker Conference and the team's forced move from the more profitable Solo conference. If she could go back, she would have used her flame projector on the smug little Bothan and her toadies in the league office. But now wasn't the time to dwell on the past. It was time to look forward, to the future of the Mercs, and for this week at least, that future looked good.




    IC: Beskaryc Taab
    Owner's suite, Meshla Vhetin, Manda'yaim

    While his wife had sat stoically next to him throughout the match, the mand'alor had gotten emotionally invested in the game from the get go. To him this game was worth much more than a mark in the win column. This game was a statement, especially after the debacle that was the friendly against the Miners. This game got the fanbase excited again, and it took back the "bloody bucket" from the Senators in the process. In that way it was a double win, but it still meant so much more to Taab.

    Things were beginning to unravel a bit with the clan leaders who were beginning to demand action. He had tried to placate them in the previous weeks, indicating that the investigation was looking at an aruetii source for the attack, but it did little to calm them down. Their unhappiness with the situation had begun to filter down through the population slowly, but this win would help to calm things down once more. It was a national victory for the team to win back the bloody bucket, and it helped to make the people proud to be Mandalorians again. It was a feeling that Taab hoped would give him and his investigators more time to discover the true culprits in Ordo's assassination. At least for now though, manda'yaim seemed united.

    As the team congratulated themselves and left the field, Vhett excused herself to head down to the locker room. Moments after she had left Taab's buy'ce beeped at him and a message came through from Ryi and Kote on Coruscant. As he read the text of the message his smile faded. If the investigation continued on in this direction manda'yaim would certainly remain united, but he feared they would also soon be at war, with the largest power in the Galaxy.




    IC: Ryi Kor'le/ Kote Taab
    Headquarters and headquarters Company, 3rd Battalion/87th Infantry Regiment, Coruscant. Under cover of darkness.

    The pair of Mandalorians moved silently through the building, determined not to be caught. They both understood that in their line of work there were times for brute strength and there were times where a bit more finesse was required. This most certainly fit into the latter category. They were infiltrating the base after learning through their contacts that this unit had been resisting required computer upgrades and were taking their sweet time in installing the newer logistical software. Such "resistance" wasn't all that unusual, there was always a learning curve for new programs and features and some units would put that off for as long as possible in order to maintain current efficiency. Ryi and Kote weren't worried about the battalion's efficiency though, instead they were here to install a few upgrades of their own..

    So far they had managed to get past the surprisingly lax security rather easily. Sensor echoes had been established, there would be no record of their "visit" unless they ran into either droid or organic security patrols. In that instance Ryi was carrying an ion blaster, while Kote's own blaster carbine was set to stun. They were here to gather some minor information, not to harm anyone. Fortunately they ran into no patrols as they penetrated deeper into the facility, finally making their way into the logistics officer's office. From here Kote set to work at the Captain's terminal while Ryi watched the door.

    It wasn't well known to those throughout the galaxy, but the Nulls were all accomplished slicers as well as superior warriors. Their near eidetic memories also helped them to perform any manner of intelligence gathering task. As Kote set to work this ran through Ryi's mind as it struck her once again just how misplaced they were playing a game when they could be doing something closer to what they had been born for. She looked to the closed doorway to the office they were in. They had yet to encounter any personnel since getting past the base perimeter, apparently they had placed all their emphasis there. Ryi smirked as she remembered back to a few minutes ago, and how easily the Mandalorian had gotten past the perimeter patrols. If that was going to be their single point of emphasis they should have put more resources into it. Still she supposed she shouldn't complain, it had allowed them to get this far.

    Relaxing slightly she looked to Kote. He was sitting behind the terminal uploading a program of his own making. A worm that would pull the logitsical data for the entire Republic armed forces and copy the desired information to his data card. "Oya" he whispered quietly to her. "It's in, but this may take a few minutes." Ryi nodded in reply, trying not to fidget as they waited. The Mandalorians had selected this unit in particular because their hesitancy to upgrade their software would help Kote's worm to search faster. Speed was of the essence if they were going to get away with this, and they they were looking for a very specific set of data regarding the shipment, delivery and disposal of E-4 explosives throughout the Republic Military, in a very large data stream.

    Ryi's attention went back to the door but a few moments later she heard a soft gasp from Kote. "We have it." Ryi moved over to the display screen as her husband pointed out the relevant line of data. She looked at it hard for a moment before seeing what it was they were looking for. A small batch of the explosive was missing from the latest audit of a Republic depot on Bakura. "Kandosii!" (well done!) she exclaimed, glad that their hunt had yielded results.

    Kote ensured that the information had been copied to his data card before erasing the worm program from the central computer. It wouldn't do to leave even that small amount of evidence behind, besides they weren't here to spy on the Republic. He nodded to her when his work was done, and they slipped back out into the compound unseen and unnoticed.

    Less than an hour later they were back abord the Rogue, Kote sitting at the passenger terminal giving the mand'alor an update while Ryi warmed up the navigational computer. Their mission thus far had been a success. They had gotten on and off the base with no one the wiser and finally tracked down some relevant data to the case at hand. The old ship broke atmosphere and received clearance from orbital control to make their way to hyperspace.

    "So..Bakura?" Kote asked Ryi with a smile.

    "Yeah, Bakura." Ryi replied with a sigh as she input the co-ordinates and pulled the lever that sent the Rogue into hyperspace towards the next waypoint in their investigation.


    TAG: No one.

    [​IMG]
     
    jcgoble3 likes this.
  12. Tim Battershell

    Tim Battershell Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    Sep 3, 2012
    IC: Tim Dodd

    Now that the felinx was well and truly out of the sack (Oleg's call had also been about Ralltiir's actions), it had become vital for Tim to see his team. Oleg drove him to where they had been assembled - one of the lecture halls (currently dressed up as a courtroom), where mock trials were conducted to show Cadets how the Judiciary and Attorneys actually functioned.

    Tim entered and could only hope that none of the anger so profusely and obviously on show was directed at him.

    "So, you now all know that we were the subjects of a cowardly and vicious attack last night! An attack that the Ralltiir Media may have now prevented from being tied back to an individual or group, so that the perpetrator or perpetrators could be brought to Justice. I call that highly irresponsible behaviour on the part of whoever leaked the story - behaviour that, considering the power and status of the individuals and organisations the League was intending to invite to contribute to the investigation, may land the leaker or leakers in some very, very serious legal trouble themselves.

    That's where I've been; at the League Offices on Coruscant, briefing Ms Esther Gondorf on the situation. I'm pleased to say that she considered it an extremely serious matter, as I and Director Sturm do. She is also as angry as Director Sturm and I are about the fact that someone, presumably on Ralltiir, just couldn't keep their mouth or mouths shut!

    If, despite what's just happened, the Law ever does catch up with those responsible, I will be pushing hard, with whatever degree of influence I have, for charges of Attempted Murder to be included in the indictment. Twenty-five counts of Attempted Murder! Your attempted murders!

    I say 'Attempted Murder' because the substance that was introduced into the 'Gundarkade' bottles has been determined to be a fairly exotic, and completely experimental, drug. A drug that was so unpredictable and dangerous that its planned series of field tests was abandoned well before being completed. If you'll forgive me, I won't mention its name, that may be the only part of ASF's fledgling case that hasn't been compromised.

    As to who, that we don't know... yet! We don't even know if we were the intended target or just received those contaminated bottles because some glitbiter of a minion got his or her instructions mixed up!

    As I said, you now all know what happened last night. It wasn't poor preparation, poor playing or poor tactics; it was kriffing chemicals! So any 'do the decent thing' offers of resignation won't be accepted; in fact, I want the author or authors of any that may have been sent to delete them before I check my mail this evening!

    If we were indeed the target, it means just one thing - someone does not want us in the Elite League! Why? The most logical explanation is that the someone is karking scared of us, that's why!

    Now, I may have a reserved seat in the boardroom these days, but my heart and soul remains in the changing room - you call it the locker room! I've taken something of a back seat up to now because I know that more than one being's hands on the wheel, or more than one being shouting out orders, harms the ship! However, just this once, I'm going to issue an instruction direct to all of you.... when we play Ralltiir, play within the rules, but play so hard that you leave the so-called Starkillers stomped into their own turf! We've got players here that can do a lot of stomping, so get out onto that pitch and show the entire League, and the Media, why they should karking fear us!

    That is all!"

    Tim got up and left the lecture hall before anyone could say a word!

    TAG: No One
     
  13. Trieste

    Trieste Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Apr 10, 2010
    GM Post
    Elite League offices, Coruscant

    "Yes...yes...I understand...thank you," Esther said into her comm, after which she promptly hung up. Why oh why did Kayl'hen insist on only supervising this investigation instead of taking it over personally? She knew she'd still have to do all of the leg work, but at least Kayl'hen would have been the one facing the media. With a sigh Esther pressed the buzzer on her desk comm.

    "Get the reporters," was all she said.



    "As you are all aware, earlier today the Ralltiir Starkillers organization made statements regarding an investigation that the Elite League is currently party to," Gondorf said in the press briefing room, "These statements are, to the best of the League's knowledge true."

    The room clamored for the opportunity to speak. Gondorf put up her hands to ask them to allow her to continue.

    "The League is currently cooperating with a number of ongoing investigations into this matter, including the one being pursued by the Agamar Security Force. Additionally, after discussion with Mr. Tim Dodd, owner of the Packers, we have made what facts we have available to the Department of Justice here on Coruscant. While this alleged crime was committed outside of the Republic, because it occurred in a League-sponsored match and the League is incorporated in the Republic, we felt that there may be legal grounds for a Republican investigation. I spoke personally earlier today with Attorney General Tandy, who informed me that she has already assembled a task force of agents to look into this matter and it is being treated as such.

    "For its part, the League has already taken vigorous action to prevent further tampering with matches. At this time we are not going to release those details for security reasons, but the Commissioner, who has delegated control of this investigation and ensuring that the rules of the League are followed, asked me to assure you all that there will be no further interference in Elite League Limmie games. Period.

    "Finally, the Elite League had indeed briefed the Board of Governors so teams could assist in taking a pro-active stance against further tampering. However, we had instructed them to keep the situation to ourselves until the authorities felt it was an appropriate time to release it to the public. As the Ralltiir Starkillers made this public, the Commissioner has leveled a 100,000 credit fine on the Starkillers organization. The full amount will go to the Elite League Disabled Players Fund.

    "I'll take a few questions."

    "Esther--any suspects?"

    "The League's investigation was only into methods so we could prevent further incidents in the future. We are allowing the civil authorities to investigate the perpetrator."

    "Esther, with Attorney General Tandy involved, do you know if Chancellor Trieste is overseeing any part of this investigation?"

    "I do not. You'll have to ask the Chancellor's office."

    "Esther--when did the Elite League know about it and why weren't fans informed?"

    "We knew as soon as Mr. Dodd brought us the allegations after Week 1. As I stated earlier, we kept silent to comply with the ongoing investigation."

    "Has Hapes been implicated at all?"

    "As I said, we are not investigating the culprit since civil authorities are doing so. However, the C-Bucs have given us assurances that they were in no way involved. In the Republic, and in much of the galaxy, you are innocent until proven guilty and the League has taken the Buccaneers at their word. Thank you, that's all."

    TAG: Runjedirun Tim Battershell
     
  14. CPL_Macja

    CPL_Macja Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Nov 29, 2008
    IC: Vesper Lynd
    Euceron Stadium, Eusebus, Euceron

    “YES!”

    Vesper could not believe it, she was having the game of her life. She had posted 4 goals with 2 additional points all coming on assists, equally split, from her Corner Backs, Aptos and Teska, who also shared in 4 points. She had 6 assists herself, lending a hand to Zostin, Ocean, and Divine each with 2 points apiece.

    The last over the bar point was scored by the rookie Vicki Divine and it put the Monarchs up by two. Vesper wished that meant the game was in the bag, but they needed a defensive stop, stops that had not been happening on either side of the pitch. As the entire team celebrated with the rookie, Vesper could overhear her talking to her older cousin, Half Back Lexi Anna, “Come on cuz, let’s finish this thing and go home!”

    Home - that was an interesting concept for Vesper. Unlike most of her teammates, she did not consider Rydonni Prime to be her home. Of course she did not consider her birthplanet of Bakura home either. Growing up, Vesper felt like the forgotten child – born one year too late, to the daughter who was born one year too late. She was such a black bantha in her family that even the limmie organization that they owned did not even consider her draft worthy. She had intentionally left her name off the draft listings because she expected that she would be getting a call from the Miners. But when Remus Olappo and Dia T’ramis showed up from the Monarchs, she could not think of a better way to stick it to her family. Well, until she caught the eye of Arden K’ntarr.

    But she put that out of her mind for now, she needed to focus on the final moments of the match. Even though she was a Full Forward, and not usually involved in playing defense, the Monarch forwards needed to be ready to receive fast break passes. So as she stood back, waiting for an opportunity to put their first match of 274 away, she watched it slip through their fingers.

    Actually it slipped through Clair Oswin’s fingers. The rookie goalkeeper, 18th overall draft pick and relative nobody like Vesper was two years earlier, stretched out to stop a white hot shot from Asyel Yan’ii, the Storm’s forwards. Unfortunately she did not stretch out far enough, and instead of catching the ball it glanced off her fingertips and careened into the net as time expired.

    25-24 Euceron Storm.

    ----- ----- ----- ----- -----
    IC: Setarcos Rhemes
    Euceron

    “Rhemys hates me!”

    The Monarchs’ GM and Head Coach’s reference to one of the Twelve Rythanians, the principle deities of the Rydonnians, was not a rare occurrence during the match. Although it felt odd cursing the one whom his family was named after. Then again it was not as odd as him saying a prayer to Olappos for a warm sunny day. “I guess Olappos doesn’t visit Euceron”, was Setarcos’ comment at the start of the match.

    Of course, his comments were mild compared to that of one of his players as Clair Oswin exited the field. “Way to go Hutt hands!” Eve Wupiupi said as her shoulder ‘accidentally’ bumped into Clair’s. Oswin stood her ground and stared down the taller Zelosian. Before anything escalated, the team Captain, Mara Singus, hobbled over to Clair and put her arm around her shoulder. It was obvious that the cold weather was affecting her banged up knees. As Setarcos crossed to join the group he overheard Mara giving the rookie Keeper words of encouragement and advice, while leading her away from the confrontation.

    As he reached Wupiupi he said in a low voice, “From where I was standing, you didn’t do the team any favors by getting yourself benched this week for mouthing off at the end of training camp. Obviously you still haven’t learned your lesson so next week you won’t be dressing. As a matter of fact don’t even come to the Grande Villa. Consider yourself suspended, without pay for the next week.” The Zelosian looked at him in wide-eyed amazement. He thought that she was going to say something, but seemed to have thought better of it, “Take that week to fix your attitude or you’ll find yourself on the Loronar Colonials so fast your hair will…” he looked at her tight curls and adjusted his phrase, “…straighten. Now get out of here.”

    ----- ----- ----- ----- -----
    Republic Senate Building, Coruscant

    It was not an uncommon sight that whiles the Senate was not in session to see Senators and Representatives to speak with one another in the corridors that encircled the Grand Convocation Chamber. So when the young female Senator from Rydonni Prime was talking to the male Representative from Sacorria in the shadows of a bronze statue of Garm Bil Iblis no one batted an eye.

    “So Rembalt, is this meeting business or pleasure?” asked Senator Ne.

    “Potentially both Galia, but primarily business,” Representative Hojn replied, “There are rumblings that House K’ntarr is in the midst of planning a new massive weapons program, one that would span from personal arms all the way up to fleet ships. How true is this?”

    Galia just gave him a slight smile, “Come now, do you honestly believe that I am privy to any business plans of the Royal house. I am simply the Queen’s voice in the Republic Senate.”

    “Well, Queen’s voice, if they are, let her majesty know that the Lord Protector stands ready to aid her. Let her also know that Sacorria is also ready to join Byblos and Loronar in their independence from Corellia.” The irony of this was not lost on either politician as they stood next to the famous Corellian freedom fighter.

    “In that case I shall pass your words along once she has returned from Byblos. She is meeting with Rex Santhe of Loronar Corporation. I hope for your Lord’s sake that she doesn’t come back with a husband along with a business partner.”

    TAG: jcgoble3
     
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  15. Tim Battershell

    Tim Battershell Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    Sep 3, 2012
    IC: Tim Dodd - Packers Team Shuttle, en-route to Ralltiir.​
    Notwithstanding its effect on the Criminal Investigation, which seemed to be fast running out of viable lines of inquiry, Ralltiir's intervention had had a positive side. The Limmie-following population of Agamar had come together in a collective outpouring of outrage, closely followed by a surge of sympathy for the team and its members, which had not noticeably diminished after Tim had, with the blessing of Oleg Sturm, granted Vima Moondancer an exclusive interview for 'Agamar Sports Roundup' (repeated, as a full text transcription, in the Sports section of 'Agamar Today') and made it known that everyone affected had been given a clean bill of health and were training hard for the next match.​
    He also took the opportunity to praise Roon and the three ex-ASF rookies (Keira Aimes, Kerry Riven and Gordy Last) who, without support from their virtually incapacitated team members, had so doggedly held the C-Bucs at bay during the final period of play. In a jab at HSN Sport's 'What We Learned' column, he said "Not too bad for 'police officers plucked off the streets and put straight onto the pitch', eh? Just the two points scored, by fifteen fit players against four!". He also identified, and additionally praised, Gordy Last as the player who had recognised what was wrong and made sure that ASF were immediately alerted; thereby allowing almost all the evidence to be preserved in-situ, and bringing prompt medical aid for the rest of the team. Roon, he announced, was not to be just reserve goalkeeper in future, but also a Utility Defender; probably meaning more pitch-time for him.​
    Asked if the inspection and testing of all consumables brought into a Stadium, including any brought in by the Packers, would cause a problem, he replied; "No, it's a sensible precaution, although we'd hardly be likely to want to debilitate our own players, would we? Particularly with a substance that the experts tell me is highly dangerous! I've discussed this with the entire team and Staff and, if necessary, we are prepared to do without Energy Drinks during the match; in fact, not bring any food or drink into the Stadium at all. Early results from current research into these 'Sports Drinks' seem to indicate that they are mainly only of psychological benefit as regards a standard Limmie match, anyway. Training sessions that last most of the day seem to be a different matter!
    "I understand that you reported the drugging incident to the Elite League; how satisfied are you with their response?"
    "Very satisfied! The League could hardly have been more helpful, and I'm sure Director Sturm would say the same thing."
    Tim had been expecting Ms Moondancer's final question of the interview, so had a response ready;"Do you suspect any involvement by Hapes or the C-Bucs?"
    "No, I don’t. As far as I am aware, there is no issue between Agamar and any of the Consortium Worlds that is, or has, caused any sort of strained relations. Likewise, last Season's matches against the C-Bucs were, indeed, competitive but were also conducted in a very sportsmanlike manner; in the full spirit of the game. Even when we lost to them in the play-offs, the recordings clearly show that both teams parted as friends after the match; with handshakes and/or backslaps all round." Slapping a Barabel on the back, especially unexpectedly, being somewhat hazardous; they had merely had their hands shaken - after they had given permission for that to happen!​
    "Thank you, Mr Dodd!". That (being addressed as 'Mr Dodd') now felt a bit strange in a Limmie context; since the team 'pep-talk' in the lecture hall, players and Staff had all started calling him, simply, 'Boss'!​
    ****************************************************************************************************************************************​
    Landing in Cambrielle, Tim and the team took a speeder-bus through the city to the Stadium. What little of the planet he could see, he didn't like. Far too much like the duracrete and transparisteel canyons of Coruscant for his taste. How, in the name of the Force, could the inhabitants go about their daily lives virtually completely excluding the colour green - as in trees, bushes, grass and suchlike? Crazy!​
    Still all the Agamarians (including the three, heavily armed, TAU members guarding the shuttle) would be away from here in three to four hours, maximum; then it would be back to comfortably rural Agamar.​

    Just a small matter of playing a Limmie match, first!

    TAG: Runjedirun
     
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  16. Trieste

    Trieste Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Apr 10, 2010
    IC: Falene Trieste
    Miners’ locker room, Bakura Gardens, Salis D’aar, Bakura

    Falene was not the first into the locker room for her inaugural Elite League game at the Gardens, but she had beaten most of the team. Though this would be her fifth pro game and second at Bakura Gardens, her stomach was still in a knot. She’d yet to shake her nerves. She didn’t know what it was going to take for that. A good defensive showing in an Elite League game might be a good start.

    Valerii had been preaching all week about the Storm offense. They’d lit up Rydonni Prime rather impressively last week. They were going to give the Miners’ defense a run for their money. Concerns about the quality of defense had not been quieted after giving up 29 points to the Smugglers last week.

    Falene was about to pull her shirt off when she noticed a square envelope in her stall addressed to her, care of the Miners. If Falene got fanmail, she didn’t know about it. This would be the first instance. She picked it up with curiosity, opening it with one finger. Inside was a holographic postcard of Cloud City. Falene turned it over to discover a handwritten message.

    Don’t let the Wookiee win.

    Niskat

    Falene couldn’t help but laugh out loud at that, getting the attention of Nanchecka Stormborn.

    “What’s that?” the Echani asked.

    “Encouragement from Niskat,” Falene said, holding the postcard up, “She remembered that I’m going to be against Chalporrin today.”

    “How’s she doing with the Captains?” Nanchecka asked.

    “She doesn’t say. I’ll have to write her when we’re on our way to Ylesia,” Falene said.

    “You two were quite a pair. You know what we all called you?” Stormborn asked.

    “You called us something?” Falene said in surprise.

    “The Bearanger,” Nanchecka said, “You two are nothing alike, don’t even play in the same half of the field, but there’s no denying you two had something out there together.”

    “I miss her,” Falene said.

    “It’s a lonely game sometimes,” Nanchecka said as she put her jersey on, “but we get to play it. Isn’t that great?”

    “Yeah,” Falene said as she put the postcard on the top shelf of her stall.



    “All right gentlebeings, let’s go over this one last time,” Valerii said. The team was dressed and the chrono on the wall was counting down to when they were expected on the field. Everyone was turned to face the head coach in the front of the locker room.

    “Offense—we’ve gone over this all week. Chenkabukk is one of their best players. You cannot attack him head on. He’s got good fundamentals and excellent reach. The key is moving him side to side. I want to see lots of passes to get him moving. That’s going to open up space. Once we’ve established that, fakes followed up by quick shots are going to freeze him up. He can take brute force, so we’ve got to play smarter, is that understood?”

    A chorus of agreement from the offense.

    “Defense—we worked on a lot this week to raise our level. Their attack begins and ends at Yan’ii. That kid is coming into his own now and he is a legitimate scoring threat. Bengi—you cannot let him out of your sight for a second. You’ve got to make sure that you have him marked at all time. If you’re two steps away from him, you are too far. Trieste—you have got to be reading the situation. Selected double teaming in the middle may be the key to disrupting their attack, but do not let Chalporrin stay alone all game. The Wookiee’s a literal beast out there and he’d got a foot and a half on you at least. Keep your game low. Ground game today around the Wook. The rest of their defense is human so we play our game with them and we’ll be fine.

    “Northcross—” Valerii’s sometimes used term to get the attention of both of her midfielders, “—Euceron traded for these new midfielders out of the Monarchs’ organization. They’ve been playing together for a couple of years. Last week Rhemes had a deep book on them and they didn’t have much impact from what we saw in the vids, but this week I think we’re going to see what they can do. You’ve got to keep your heads on a swivel.

    “Other than that, you know what to do and this is our house. Let’s go get another one,” Valerii said.

    The chrono had ticked to below a minute and everyone knew what that meant. Alana Glencross was on her feet and first out as usual. The team fell into line and Falene took up her position at the end of the line as usual.

    “Hey get up there,” Morgan Alesh said from one spot ahead of Falene, “You’re always at the end.”

    “I like it back here,” Falene said, “It’s my thing.”

    “You are as superstitious as a Ryn with a cold,” Alesh said with a smile, “but suit yourself.”

    “Okay! Here we go!” Glencross shouted at the front of the line.

    The locker room doors slid open and the team cross the dark blue carpet rolled across the concourse to the entrance on the field. Falene took a few deep breaths as she crossed the carpet. The moment her cleats hit grass she was off and running.

    Her first game against a player who vastly outweighed her, beat her in size, and was almost undoubtedly stronger. Falene had never played a Wookiee before. She didn’t know what was going to happen today. She was going to give it everything, but she knew there was a huge chance she was just going to get her butt handed to her today. You could beat a Wookiee as a human, but you had to play a darn fine game to do so.

    Time to find out what you’re made of today, Falene.

    TAG: jcgoble3
     
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  17. Vehn

    Vehn Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Sep 14, 2009
    IC: Kaitlyn Vehn
    Andromeda Steel Corp. Field, Coruscant

    You could say what you wanted to about the Coruscant Senators as a franchise. That they’d been perennial losers while Kaitlyn Vehn had been growing up on Druckenwell or that they’d somehow struck gold by becoming one of the most stable and successful franchises of the Elite League since 246 ABY.

    Success like the Senators experienced did not materialize out of nowhere. It was smart execution by the front office and putting a good product on the field to sell to the fans. Everyone knew that the only way to help a franchise sell seats was to win games. Fortunately, although the Smugglers had struggled in the last few years, people kept coming. Maybe it was the tradition of the burgundy and black, maybe it was because the ticket prices weren’t as high as Bakura or Coruscant, or maybe it was simply that for one day a week people on the Vertical City could put forget their troubles and simply be entertained. Whatever the reason, despite losing by nearly ten points to the Miners, people still felt that the Smugglers could stay competitive against their old Solo Conference foes in this brutal three week stretch.

    Kaitlyn watched the Smuggler’s pre-game stretching from the sidelines of the Senators home field and felt confident in the product that she had sold to the fans this year. Amongst front office circles, everyone recognized 274 as a rebuilding year. If the Smugglers struggled, well, that could be explained away by all the new parts that were coming together as a team and if they exceeded expectations and made it to the playoffs this year even better. No matter the outcome of this season, Vehn had to put a positive spin on the results. Personally, she thought the team would finish middle of the pack. Her coaches were in place, her players were in place, now they just needed a few lucky bounces to go their way and the rest would fall right where it was supposed to.

    Except anyone who ever followed the game of Limmie knew that the gods could be fickle at times.

    After all, life was just a roll of the dice.

    Tag: No One.
     
  18. Trieste

    Trieste Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Apr 10, 2010
    GM Post

    Now is where we start to see what kind of season this is going to be. Who's going to be off to hot starts? Who's going to be in a hole to start? And how large is the middle of the pack going to be.

    Bonus rolls to Agamar, Bakura, Coruscant, Mando'ade, Ralltiir, Nar Shaddaa, and Rydonni Prime.

    Week 2 Results

    Nar Shaddaa Smugglers at Coruscant Senators (25-29)
    Corellia Rebels at Hapes Consortium Buccaneers (10-35)
    Agamar Packers at Ralltiir Starkillers (24-27)
    Euceron Storm at Bakura Miners (35-28)
    Ylesia Lightning at Rydonni Prime Monarchs (33-11)
    Mando’ade Mercs at Chandrila Patriots (14-20)

    TAG: Bardan_Jusik CPL_Macja jcgoble3 Jedi Gunny Rebecca_Daniels Runjedirun Tim Battershell Vehn
     
  19. jcgoble3

    jcgoble3 Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Nov 7, 2010
    Sub-GM Post

    Bonus rolls this week to (points in parentheses): Druckenwell (30), Tatooine (28), Commenor (28), Thyferra (32), Byblos (30), Concordia (30).

    Limmie Futures League
    Week 1
    Druckenwell Marksmen at Tatooine Sandskimmers (18–16)
    Commenor Gundarks at Kashyyyk Rangers (19–4)
    Thyferra Force at Byblos Red Wings (3–27)
    Concordia Crusaders at Kamino Waves (29–8)

    TAG: Bardan_Jusik Vehn Runjedirun Rebecca_Daniels Jedi Gunny CPL_Macja
     
  20. Trieste

    Trieste Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Apr 10, 2010
    IC: Falene Trieste
    Bakura Gardens, Salis D’aar, Bakura

    “You stupid carpet!” Falene yelled as she jumped up and down.

    The Miners defender was trying her hardest to get at the bolo-ball, but the Wookiee was comically holding it above his head. She estimated that it was roughly seven and a half feet in the air, at least—which meant it was a good eighteen inches out of her hands. Chalporrin had received a nice high aerial pass that Falene had absolutely no chance of catching and he was taking his time finding what he wanted to do with it.

    To the credit of the rest of the Miners’ defense, they had remained in a nice being-to-being coverage scheme to cut down on Chalporrin’s options. But that meant that there was absolutely no help for Falene against the Wookiee.

    Falene threw herself into the midsection of the Wookiee in an attempt to tackle him to the turf. It was in vain. Her head collided with the middle of the white Euceron jersey that Chalporrin wore and she didn’t even shake him.

    “Get down you stupid—” Falene said through grit teeth as she tugged and tugged on her being.

    Chalporrin just took one paw and brushed Falene off him like she was a gnat. She felt like she flew all the way across the field, but in reality it was only about six inches. Completely unencumbered, Chalporrin set his feet and fired a long, straight pass to his teammate up the center. Bengi Zire got faked out left in covering his player, the very-talented Aysel Yan’ii who had put in another stellar day. He’d broken left and then pivoted right to get the bolo-ball. Except her didn’t get it—he headered the “pass” back to the left to beat an utterly frozen Anton Jorpik that had no chance at the bolo-ball.

    Falene punched the ground in anger when she saw the result of this. The Storm defense had beat up on the Miner defense all day long. Everything they’d tried had worked. Falene hadn’t played a game this bad since her first year at PCNS.

    “Frak! Frak! Frak!” she yelled as she hammered the ground.

    The Storm were up by ten points now, late in the second half. That was a four score game and Falene knew there was no coming back from that. The Miner offense had performed admirably today (indeed, they had been the more impressive end of the field by far), but there physically wasn’t enough time for the Miners to overcome a double digit deficit. Not even if Chenkabukk suddenly lost his head and put a couple balls into the back of his own net could the Miners salvage this one.

    Falene was going to experience her first professional loss ever and she knew there was no one to blame but herself. That stupid Wookiee had beaten her all day long. The offense had done its job. When your team scored 28 points and you lost, you had your defense to blame for it. The Smugglers had learned that last week against the Miners and now the Miners were learning it themselves.

    What little offensive effort the Miners could muster against an otherwise poor Storm defense still left the Bakuran side 7 points shy when all was said and done. When the horn had sounded the Storm were 2-0 in another fast start and the Miners had fallen back of the pack in the Solo Conference. In fact, they would learn when all was said and done that day that they were worse back than they would have thought as three of their fellow conference members stood at 2-0 and the Miners were not only tied with Coruscant in record, but in point differential too.

    Many of the veteran Miners shook hands with some old friends and familiar faces. Daven Morray and Leroy Brown had formerly held positions in the Miner backfield. Though the Miners had done good things since Morray and Brown had been moved, they were still missed by their old teammates. Falene didn’t know them personally (though she remembered when they had played for the Miners) and as a result she trudged to the locker room. She did not look up to the boxes to find her family. She knew that she had frakked this one up and she didn’t want to have to see their faces now. She didn’t want to know if it was disappointment, embarrassment, or disgust. Or worse, perhaps they wouldn’t even be there and she’d know that they couldn’t be more disappointed in her.

    Falene didn’t look up from the blue carpet as she crossed the concourse to go back to the locker room. She didn’t look at the fans who clamored for autographs and held out their hands just to get a high five. She was not worthy of them today. She trudged back to her stall and she wanted to punch something over and over again because she was furious at herself.

    Eventually the rest of the team came in. Falene put a towel on her head and she waited for diatribe from Valerii. She was going to get “the hairdryer treatment” she was sure. All of the defense deserved one she knew. The team was talking amongst themselves and she heard plenty of chatter about the game, about mistakes, about what went right, about what went wrong, about what they had to work on. But she didn’t hear the head coach.

    The brunette lifted an edge of the towel to survey the room with one eye. No Valerii. She pulled the towel off of her head. It was Max who asked the question she was thinking.

    “Hey guys?” the Devaronian said, “Where’s Coach?”

    “She doesn’t come in after a loss,” Alana said.

    “She doesn’t?” Detra asked.

    “Kid, she’s a former player,” Aron Rodders said, laying a hand on his fellow front three forward’s shoulder, “She knows there’s nothing she can say to us that we don’t already know after a loss. Think about that.” He patted Detra on the shoulder. “Good work today, kid.”

    Falene put the towel back over her head. No one was going to tell her she’d done well today. And she wouldn’t have believed them if they had. She’d sucked today. She had frakking sucked and there was no way around it.

    All of a sudden someone tapped on her forehead beneath the towel. Falene dutifully pulled it off, knowing she had a look on her face that said she didn’t want to be bothered right now. It was T.K.

    “Okay there mighty mouse, game’s over,” T.K. said.

    “That’s not funny,” Falene said. Mighty mouse…as if she needed any reminder of how short she was right now after what Chalporrin had done to her.

    “Nothing’s funny about giving up 35 points,” T.K. said, “but if you’re going to go anywhere in this league you’ve got to learn how to handle a loss because nobody, not even Tan Strensky himself, went .1000 when it came to wins and losses. How you respond to losing is one of the biggest parts of your game.”

    “How do you respond to losing?” Falene asked.

    “I go bang a couple of supermodels,” T.K. said.

    “Yeah, I’ll just do that,” Falene said humorlessly, putting the towel back on her head.

    “Just because you lost today doesn’t mean you have to like it,” T.K. said as he went back to his locker.

    “Trust me, there’s no danger of that,” Falene called after him.

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  21. Jedi Gunny

    Jedi Gunny Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    May 20, 2008
    IC: Gark S’rily
    Bursya Field at Andromeda Steel Corp. Stadium

    Gark watched as the Rim War rivalry game between the Coruscant Senators and their long-time nemesis the Nar Shaddaa Smugglers began. The Rim War was a brutal rivalry, right on par, if not more rough-and-tumble than the Black and Blue Battle or the Blood Bowl. The Smugglers certainly knew how to project the bad boy image, and the Senators were all too willing to oblige. It was games like this that made the fans go crazy, because every score or nice pass was later counterbalanced by a bone-jarring hit. These were games that made Limmie fans drool.

    The hard hits began almost immediately. The Smugglers were on offense, passing the ball around as the Senator defense set up. Ortho Dyhon, the Twi’lek half back, called in his plays at the top of the zone, and Jerek Deter, the defensive captain, made sure that everyone was on the same page. This was the first home game for Reid Livingstone, Jerek’s new running mate, and Brancko Nagriski, a Barabel full back from CorTech who hit like a tank but was slow, so Jerek had to work extra hard to make sure that they were set. Around the ball went, going from Broussard to Beck Thornton. The former Force midfielder/forward, having been traded in the offseason, made his move against Ortho, his former teammate on Thyferra. Immediately Myles Tormera came up to pop him, and the ball hit the turf as Myles brought Thornton down to the ground in a heap. The ball skittered to Jerek, who tossed it up the field to clear it.

    Alysha Romax, the team captain, caught the ball and chucked it off to running mate Gayla Renhorn. Gayla had dodged Xander Darkrider and made her move, catching the ball while on full stride. However, what she didn’t notice was Wilhulf Nexrus, the rookie half back, coming in on her. The two collided hard, and Gayla ate dirt as she hit the field in a heap. But she didn’t get back up, and play eventually had to be stopped to get her off the field in one piece. It sent a collective shiver through the stadium; Gayla was new, but the fans knew what she could bring to the team, and now the midfield corps for the Senators was down to three players.

    On the sidelines, Pam Korthe made sure to send Izzi Polakaya, Gayla’s old coach at CorTech, out to replace her, keeping Demetra Silkins in as the “rover” midfielder in her sets. Izzi was a good defender, but she couldn’t score to save her life. She and Alysha had good chemistry, Gark remembered as he watched, as they had teamed up for the winning play in the 268 Semifinal win over Bakura at the Gardens on their way to the Galactic Cup title, but Izzi hadn’t played heavy minutes like this in a long time. No doubt she could put in a solid thirty, but what about the fifty-seven she now faced? It looked like the “rover” idea would have to be abandoned for this game, at least for spells, so that Izzi could rest, and that Demetra would still get her minutes. Gayla was taken back to the locker room, which never spelled anything good. Hopefully she hadn’t just shared in the same fate as former roommate Reena Wyley, who was still on the shelf with injuries and would miss a few more weeks of action.

    When play resumed, the Smugglers made a strong push up the field. Vic McTodd, the Amaran, beat Reid for a good shot on goal, and the ball smacked into the back of the net for three against Jayla Leed. The four-year pro from UC Bella Vistal just spat on the ground as she went to retrieve the ball, and Gark groaned. It seemed like Leed could never get it going to start the season. When she was the opening day starter, she had started 0-2 two years earlier. When she hadn’t started right away, she usually got it going quickly, so she was still a mixed bag. When the game resumed, the Senators launched their counterattack. Dauza Chary, the rookie Nemoidian, had the ball in her hand as she called out the play. She still didn’t quite seem comfortable not going for points, but Gark had to hand it to Jed Ortmeyer and the staff down on Thyferra for at least getting her in better shape for this offensive scheme. Dauza passed it over to Max Qorbus. The Nautolan backed down Sasha Luy’kin in the post before then hitting a wide-open Demetra. The rover then easily beat Roz Cartel for her third goal of the season, tying up the score at 3.

    The two teams traded points back and forth, amongst the storm of hits, deflected passes, and even more hits. Gark knew he wouldn’t be surprised if several players on both ends were going to end up on the disabled list after this one, given the hard-hitting action that seemingly never stopped. Somehow, against all odds, both offenses were teeing off on the opposing defense, but at least the defenders were getting their money’s worth on these hits. There was a lot of pride in playing defense, and when things didn’t go your way, you at least wanted to make someone wearing the other jersey feel the pain a little bit.

    At halftime, the game was tied at 14. The Senators had gotten some good offensive production from Demetra and her two goals, along with rookie Cord McKerty’s first-ever ELL goal, a nice shot that got past Cartel with relative ease given the goalie’s position on the play. The defense looked tired, but at least they were holding better than they had the week before against the Mercs. They hadn’t given up the points then, but they had been lucky too many times. Now they would need some luck to get back into the game.

    “Rough game,” Londy Whiste commented as the halftime entertainment went out onto the field.

    “Yeah,” Gark replied. “Whoever wins this one has the most guts. Or the most luck. I guess it all depends on your point of view.”




    IC: Pamila Korthe

    Pam looked at her players in the locker room. They seemed battered, and there were still 30 minutes left to be played. Jerek was wiping his face off with a towel, Reid was re-taping his hands, and Evis Kunat was trying to make sure the horns on his head were still attached. It had been that kind of game out there, and Pam knew that it would only get worse.

    “We’ve got a rough game out there,” she commented. “The Smugglers always make sure to bring it, so we need to keep up the intensity out there to make sure that they don’t break through. I know they’re in the other conference now, but that doesn’t mean we won’t try to break them down. A win is a win, and right now a victory would get us into the pack and out of an early hole. Defense, I want you to keep swarming your matchup. I’m going to run more substitutions this half to keep you all fresh. Last week the reserves weren’t up to snuff; this week I can’t run the starters the whole time. We run this team on having the freshest legs out there, so I want to make sure that we’re good to go an extra period in case it comes to that. Offense, keep up what you’re doing. Make sure to keep passing around and finding open spots. Demetra, keep them guessing and running after you. Got it? Let’s go out there and take this one home.”

    As the team field out of the locker room, Pam stopped to talk to Dr. Trenos, the Iktochi head trainer. “What’s the situation?” the Zeltron asked.

    “I don’t think we should let her go in the second half,” Trenos said in regards to Gayla’s injury. “She’s pretty banged-up, and I think waiting it out until next week would be the safe play here.”

    “Understood,” Pam replied. “I just hope we don’t have a burnout in the middle of the field, and then have to add another injury.”

    When the second half started, the Smugglers looked strong. A goal by McTodd pushed the lead to three, followed by a few more points that pushed the Senators into a quick hole coming out of the break. Pam switched up her defense, benching Ortho and putting in Tank Bratter, yet another CorTech product, for a fresher body to take more punishment. Being a Herglic, he could dish out more than he took, and right now Pam wanted to bash the Smugglers around a little bit to see if that would loosen up their offensive sets and make them look for lower-percentage shots near the perimeter of the offensive zone. Then the Senators could switch defenses and shut them down completely.

    The next time up the field, Max got the ball. He maneuvered around Asha Martel, but wasn’t able to do anything as he ran into a double team from Nexrus and reserve Bree Tarth, formerly of the Miners. The Nautolan tried to dish the ball out, but it was intercepted by Ken Zetter, the first-overall pick in this years’ draft and the new Smuggler captain, and sent back up the field. Pam just groaned; her team was getting lethargic. On the other end, Broussard pushed through a goal past Leed to make the score 22-14. Pam wanted to yank Leed out of goal and put in Kapp Pyston, her long-time goalie on Thyferra. However, Kapp was cold at this point, and would need some time to warm up. Given the rate the Smugglers were gaining here, she had no choice.

    “Kapp! Start warming up!” she yelled, and Kapp got off the bench to begin his workout routine. Goalies in this league always had a routine in case they were needed off the bench, but in many cases a backup netminder wasn’t even going to enter a game, so this was an unusual occurrence in many cases. Of course, with Leed and her wildness out there, Pam knew that this could happen at any given time.

    Pam, disgusted, called a timeout. The Smugglers were jovial as they ran over to their sidelines, the small portion of “The Crew” that had made it out this far cheering as hard as they could as the rest of the stadium was stone silent. It felt like someone had taken a vacuum and had sucked all of the air out of the Senator fans. Even the “Black Hole”, where the most rabid fans sat, was remarkably quiet. The Senator players came over.

    “What the hell is this?” Pam asked them. “I told you to keep attacking, and this is how you come out? Do I need to bench the lot of you to get my point across? There are holes everywhere that you can exploit! Zetter and Nexrus are rookies, and are giving you space out there! Take it!”

    “If I wasn’t retired, I’d get out there and score some points,” Polis Vayne said. His name was on the high score list in Senator history, about ninth or tenth on the list as far as he could recall. He had been a good one, but now he wasn’t able to come back from retirement and help out the team.

    “It’s too bad,” Pam echoed. She had coached Polis for one year, and wished that he was still in uniform. She could use his leadership on an offensive unit that right now looked so lethargic about tripping over their own feet that they were incapable of doing anything.

    Then Dr. Trenos came over to speak to her. Pam had no idea why, but when she was told the news, she looked grim. But it had to be done. “I do not like this,” the Iktochi said when Pam had made her reply.

    “We have no choice,” Pam replied. She gave the sign for a substitution to the ref, which was a tap on the arm. The ref nodded, letting the Senators make a change. “Get me Renhorn.”



    Yep, language warning, even though it has nothing to do with the song. :p

    “Renhorn?” Ravil We’kyr, the midfield coach, asked incredulously. “You saw what happened to her . . .”

    “She’s had her troubles, but I have a hunch on this one,” Pam said. “And if I’m wrong . . . well, let’s hope I’m not.”

    The stadium camera shot over to the Senator team tunnel in time to see Gayla semi-run, semi-hobble out onto the field. Then the most peculiar thing happened. As she left the tunnel, a song that had never before been attributed to her before began to play. It was an older song, but it fit her fiery personality. The fans, seconds before having the life sucked out of them, began to feel it. The stadium erupted as Gayla made her way out onto the field, her body aching but her passion for the game still intact.

    “You look terrible,” long-time friend Tank said to her as she approached.

    “I feel terrible,” Gayla said. “But it’s time to shut them down once and for all.”

    The fans were now bouncing up and down in their seats, trying to use Gayla’s appearance as a wake-up call for the team at large. “You hear that?” Pam asked her troops. “That’s the sound of almost a million fans wanting us to get back out there and finish this game off the right way. We may be down 8, but we will come back, and we will win this game! Get out there and stonewall ‘em!”

    When the Senators returned to the field, the fans could tell that they had new life. Gayla winced as she hit her spot, but then the adrenaline filled the pains in and made sure that she had more energy. The ball started off as a toss-in, and Alysha had the ball.

    “Go left! Go left!” Pam shouted to her players. “Exploit! Exploit!”

    Alysha passed off to Gayla, who then hit Dauza. The Nemoidian then hit Riff Persnor with a pass. The Cathar faked to his right before finding Gayla wide-open in the center of the Smuggler defensive scheme. She caught the ball and beat Cartel with a nice arcing shot over the bar for a point, because going for three would have required her to thread the needle between Zetter and Ike Tullo. 22-15 Smugglers, with plenty of time to go in this one.

    On the next possession, Gayla found herself alone. Demetra had attracted an extra defender as she crossed the formation, and Gayla was open. Dauza found her, and Gayla caught the ball. A jolt of pain shot through her leg, and she winced, but charged forwards nonetheless. This game was like that one she had played in at CorTech all those years ago against Chandrila A&M, when she had been so bruised and battered that her body wanted to quit early in the second half. But she had kept the team on her back, singlehandedly fueling a comeback attempt. The team had still lost by six that day to Max Qorbus and his Rovers, but Gayla had caught the attention of the galaxy with her gutsy performance. That had turned into a Helmsman nomination, high draft pick status, and now a long career. This was her chance to make up for that failed comeback; this was her chance to show the galaxy that Gayla Renhorn was the real deal. She dug her cleat into the turf and tried a fadeaway shot as Tullo tried to get up into her face. But the former nemesis from the College of Fondordelphia that Gayla despised so much missed his attempt, trucking Gayla and driving her to the ground in the process, and the ball somehow slipped in between Cartel’s fingers and the goal post. Three points for Gayla, new life for the Senators.

    Slowly the Senators began to chip away, the Smugglers scoring three more points but the Senators matching them on bar points of their own by reserve Kev Flysto and Demetra. With six minutes left, the score was Smugglers 25, Senators 23. Pam called a timeout to get her offense in order, which they did. Riff burst away from his coverage and buried a shot into the goal past a weary-looking Cartel. That sent the crowd into a frenzy; the Senators had finally come back and took the lead. Now they had to keep it, since a goal could put the Smugglers back into the driver’s seat.

    On the next Smuggler possession, McTodd had the ball and looked for options. But Tank lowered the boom on the small forward, and the ball was jarred loose.

    “I got it! I got it!” Reid yelled as he scooped up the ball. Immediately the Smugglers were in his face, so he rolled the ball back to Jayla. She barely got a kick off before a diving Beck could stop it, and the ball sailed through the air towards the middle of the field. Gayla, watching the ball and knowing where Darkrider was on the ground, made sure to push him off the ball with her hand and then jumped into the air. She grabbed the ball and then came down into the rough embrace that Darkrider was giving her. The Smuggler midfielder tried to rip the ball away from her, as did his teammate, but Gayla cleared out space by swinging her elbows a bit, opening up enough space to burst through. Her bones told her to quit, to ask Coach for a substitution. But she wanted this game more than rest; her first win as a Senator would be a glorious one, especially over the Smugglers here at Andromeda. She hit the hole and came through, making sure that time was bleeding off the clock. Then she saw Riff get position on Nexrus; Gayla passed him the ball. Riff went to work on the rookie, keeping his arm out to prevent Nexrus from making a play. He then made a sweet cut to his left that froze Nexrus in his cleats and then blasted around the other end.

    As Riff came through, Gayla watched. Cord McKerty, her one-time most hated teammate, saw this play and went over to Ken Zetter, who was angling in to make the play. But Cord set a perfect screen that busted Zetter’s attempt and sent both men down to the turf. Riff came through unscathed, and getting another clear-out screen from his wife, Wylega Persnor, on Ike Tullo, was now alone with Cartel. Everyone knew that this wouldn’t end well. Plays like this rarely ever did for new keepers against All-Star-caliber forwards. Riff pump-faked to get Cartel off-balance, and then rocketed a ball into the back of the net. 29-25 Senators late, two-possession lead.

    Pam then sent in her “Prevent” defense, which mixed in all four midfielders for the “hands team”, plus with two minutes left Kapp even came out to help Jayla in goal. He wasn’t allowed to be in the goal box, but he had a good eye as a goalie, and knew where to help Jayla out. The Smugglers tried to bust back into the zone, overloading the side with forwards and their larger defensive backs to try and clear space. So Pam obliged and sent out her larger defenders to help out. Out came Tank, Brancko, Doon’sun and Salata, who added a ton of size to the otherwise-small hands team. Every time the Smugglers went out and tried to find a weak spot in the Senator defense, the hole would close. It was picture-perfect defense, mixing size and hands together to make a potent combo.

    McTodd came around to make a play, but from behind came a flying Gayla. She sent the Amaran down to the turf, and precious seconds bled off the clock. McTodd tried to pass, but the ball went straight to Evis. The Zabrak chucked it up the field towards the Smuggler goal, which was now empty because of the alignment. He had terrible aim, as the ball was nowhere near the goal, but at least it took fifteen seconds for the Smugglers to retrieve it down at the other end, and by this time it was too late. The horn blared thirty seconds later, and the game was over.

    Pam knew that she could relax now with the game in hand. It had been another heart-stopper, that was for sure, but at least her team had pulled it out this time. After the teams had done to postgame pleasantries, Pam went to midfield to receive the first ‘Rim Jersey’, which had been installed this season as the Rim War trophy. It was half of a new burgundy and black Smuggler home jersey sewn together with a black and orange Senator home jersey to form one complete jersey. Pam lifted it high above her head as the fans cheered, and then handed it off to her team captains to take holos. She didn’t want to rub it in the face of the Smugglers, because one never knew how they would react. She had hated to see the Mercs do that to her team last week, so she didn’t want to do it this time in case the Smugglers got mad and had extra incentive to win the next Rim War game.

    The game had been rough, all of the hallmarks of a traditional Rim War tilt. But this win pushed the Senators back into the pack in the Solo Conference, which was now a necessity given the three 2-0 teams that now resided at the top of the conference. There were still seven games to go, Pam knew, but at least her team had finally gotten their first win, and would be looking for another one next week when they travelled to Euceron. The last time this team had been there they had lost a heartbreaker in the 273 Finals. Now they would have a chance to at least dispel those thoughts somewhat with a win over the Storm to go 2-1 on the season.


    TAG: Vehn, jcgoble3

    OOC: Yes, I was semi-dared into using that sequence. :p
     
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  22. Jedi Gunny

    Jedi Gunny Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    May 20, 2008
    And here are your Power Rankings for Week 3:

    TAGS: Trieste, jcgoble3, Bardan_Jusik, CPL_Macja, Rebecca_Daniels, Tim Battershell, Vehn, Runjedirun

    1. Hapes Consortium Buccaneers – Two blowout wins to open the season has the C-Bucs residing not just on top of the ultra-competitive Solo Conference, but also on the top of these rankings. They blasted fellow newcomers Agamar in Week One, despite looming allegations of cheating to keep the Packers down in that one, and then simply ran over longtime nemesis Corellia this past week. Say what you will about the C-Bucs and their choice of players; they have it together so far, and if they keep this up, they will make noise come the home stretch of the season. [​IMG] 7

    2. Chandrila Patriots – The Patriots are probably the best team that no one is paying attention to at the moment. Their opening week win against Corellia was overshadowed by the performances of other teams in rivalry games, and this week’s win over a strong Mercs squad pushes them to 2-0, just behind the C-Bucs in the Solo. Reina Keither seems to have instilled life in this squad after a forgettable 273 campaign, and Avano Koobis has so far been the leader the Patriots need. The big question is if they can keep humble and hungry for more, because if they get big heads over these season-opening wins, they will be in for trouble come conference play when they have big-time rivals to contend with. [​IMG] 2

    3. Bakura Miners – A loss this week against Euceron definitely dings up the Miners’ confidence coming off four straight wins to start the year (three friendlies and the season opener). However, scoring 28 points in a loss is a problem many teams wish they could have, so the Miners once again show that their offense is capable of pouring on the points. Their main concern, still, is defense. Euceron was allowed to have too many open spots on the field, and they wreaked havoc with the Miners all game long. If the Miners can somehow find ways to deal with their defensive woes, this ranking will improve, but if their offense stalls, then it’s off to the scrap yard for this squad. [​IMG] 2

    4. Euceron Storm – Any doubts about this team have been put to rest so far, at least on offense. A one-point nail biter win in Week One over a poor Rydonni Prime squad has been pushed aside after a strong performance against the Bakura Miners. Many teams have had issues with the Miners over the past two seasons, but the Storm took it head on and won. However, like Bakura, their defense is suspect. Expect them to tune up their defensive schemes with Coruscant coming to town next week, as the Senators love to spread out their attack and make things happen in the middle of the field. [​IMG] 1

    5. Mando’ade Mercs – The Mercs posted a solid game this week, despite losing. If they can fix the few leaks on offense, they have the potential to make real noise in the Skywalker Conference. The defense is there, as they are currently ranked fifth in the league in points allowed. However, a negative point differential is likely to sting later on, so they need more from their offense if they want to reach that next level. [​IMG] 2

    6.Ralltiir Starkillers – This scrappy bunch has put together two solid wins to open the season, beating a hustling Agamar squad this week after outlasting Ylesia last week in overtime. However, their games are too close for comfort right now; small leads can easily be blown at this level, so the Starkillers are walking a fine line right now. If they can keep their leads when they have them, they will win a lot this season. But if they can’t come up big in the clutch defensively, then they’re in big trouble. Oh, and this author thinks Mr. Galaxy Protector needs to shut up and focus on his game. Just FYI. [​IMG] 3

    7. Ylesia Lightning – The defending Galactic Cup champions have been a mixed bag to open the season, but one thing is for sure. They can play defense. They are currently ranked second in the league in points allowed, and if this continues, their middle-of-the-pack offense will get them back to the postseason. However, it’s a long season, and the pressure of trying to defend a title is rough. We will see if the young Lightning can continue to make noise this year, or if they will fold under the pressure as the season wears on. [​IMG] 5

    8. Coruscant Senators – It’s hard to drop a team that has been playing solid ball in these rankings, but sometimes you just have to oblige and do it. The Senators barely lost to the Mercs last week before outlasting the Nar Shaddaa Smugglers this past week in the Rim War. However, their defense has been logging major minutes to keep their team in the game, and there are still some inconsistencies on offense, as shown this last week before a major comeback led them to their first win of 274. A win against hot-starting Euceron would do the Senators a great deal of good this next week, especially if they can get their middling offense into the groove like it was in previous years. [​IMG] 2

    9. Nar Shaddaa Smugglers – The Smugglers, for all of their youth and inexperience, especially having a rookie as their team captain, they have done pretty well for themselves. They have started 0-2, but both were rivalry games, and they stayed in both games for all sixty minutes, or at least in the Bakura game for about forty-five before the Miners pulled away. This squad is primed to do some damage in the Solo, but they need to learn how to close out tight games first, because no one is going to hand them wins on a platter. [​IMG] 1

    10. Agamar Packers – The Packers showed us what they can bring to the field every game when they are in the groove. Despite losing, they have talent that can be utilized. The question is, can they bring that intensity every game, or will this squad of police officers and reserves find themselves on the wrong side of the power teams in both conferences? [​IMG] 2

    11. Rydonni Prime Monarchs – Although the Monarchs had a rough game this week against Ylesia, they showed signs of life the week before, losing by one point to Euceron. The Monarchs have a young squad, as their drafting habits seem to suggest, and they have talent, but is the constant cycle of rebuilding helping or just hindering this franchise? There is still plenty of time to turn things around, but if they don’t, will the Monarchs sell at the trading deadline and accumulate even more draft picks, or will they try to keep this core together and do something with it in a year or two? No change


    12. Corellia Rebels – Not exactly what the Rebels were hoping for to start their return to the Elite League. Two blowout losses have the Rebels smarting, and that is never a good thing for a power franchise to deal with. Look for the Rebels to come out swinging this next week to try and get back on track, because a loss could be crippling not just to their team, but also to the fanbase, which expects success coming off a Finals appearance last season in the Premier League. [​IMG] 3
     
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  23. Tim Battershell

    Tim Battershell Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    Sep 3, 2012
    IC: Tim Dodd

    Tim stood, hand over heart, in the Visiting Owner's box while the anthems, Star of Agamar

    and the Ralltiir Starkillers' anthem were played.

    As the music finally died away, he suddenly remembered something that Vima Moondancer had mentioned
    in passing just before the interview; "Your predecessor never did interviews or
    Media Conferences you know, always left them to the General Manager; didn't seem too keen on being
    clearly seen, either - never attended Away games and always stood or sat right in the back of the box
    at Home. Asyr's very relieved that you've taken that job on, she told me she was always terrified of
    making a major gaffe in front of the cameras!" Might be worth mentioning to Oleg, a very
    quiet mention, Tim thought, particularly with the Elite League promotion happening only a few hours
    after he sold the team. He'd been in and out of Memorial Stadium a few times too, to collect
    belongings and memorabilia. The very longest of longshots, definitely, but with the investigation in
    the state it was, lengthier straws were being actively considered.

    During the players' introductions, Tim noticed that the Starkillers had put on some back-of-
    boundary-line entertainment in the form of a dedicated dance-troupe. Looked to be good performers,
    too, not that he knew an awful lot about any type of dancing. Smiling at the thought of how doing
    something similar on Agamar, especially with Twi'leks or Zeltrons, would make the farmers' eyes start
    to pop out of their sockets, and their wives foam at the mouth, he (somewhat reluctantly) put the
    idea aside!

    Asyr's match plan this time, Tim knew, was to play the Starters straight through to normal Full-time,
    if at all possible. This was in case the Starkillers produced their seemingly habitual trick of
    taking the game into Extra-time (or even Double-extra-time); so there would be completely fresh
    players available, if required.

    To improve the team's stamina still further, everyone had been put through the peculiar form of
    torture called 'Circuit Training', introduced (as if there could be any doubt; all Physical Training
    Instructors having the reputation of being complete sadists) by Miles Abrams. The 'circuit' starting
    with a pell-mell sprint down one of the long sides of the pitch to the corner, a minimum of twenty
    push-ups, another sprint to the next corner to perform five minutes of vigorous jumping-jacks, down
    the other long side for a minimum of twenty squat-thrusts and a final sprint to the starting point
    for the worst (and most detested) part of all; the arm circles. Starting with wide swings, the
    victim was instructed to make them progressively slightly tighter until only the fingers were moving.
    Even then it wasn't over, as the sufferer (Tim had encountered this in his TenGate days, and it was
    absolutely excruciating until one got used to it) then had to circle the arms back the other way!
    Needless to say, Miles Abrams, leading every session, showed not a sign of tiredness or discomfort!
    No one had dared tell the team yet, but as soon as they were comfortable doing one 'Circuit', another
    would be added on!

    Asyr had also relaxed the play-book constraints to allow Jiva and the Centre Half Forward to exchange
    positions and roles at will. Asyr had, like Tim, noticed just how well Jiva could be picked-out, due
    to her height, from anywhere on the pitch. Additionally, both thought that her height would give her
    an advantage when it came to feeding passes to not-too-closely marked Forwards. Jiva would take the
    Centre Half Forward position for long balls, but would go Full Forward for the ball passed up either
    wing or the criss-cross play from wing to wing.

    At least Tim could be sure that there would be no chemical impediment to the team's performance this
    week. Looking down, next to the team's Physio and Asyr, he could see the grey-haired, pony-tailed
    head of Doctor Roa Zenn (a qualified physician as well as ASF's top chemical analyst) taking his
    seat; a cased, ASF-issue field analyser behind his heels. He would discreetly test any locally
    procured drinks, if any of the team were desperate for liquids.

    It's often quoted that Limmie is 'a game of two halves'. This one turned into a game of two
    ends and a goalfest into the bargain!

    It all started with a move down the Starkillers' left. Professional, experienced, passing getting
    the ball all the way up to their Forward line before they were stopped. Stopped by a Barabel named
    Saba who charged full-tilt at the Starkillers' Left Corner Forward and deftly relieved him of the
    ball without even touching him, an action that happened in full view of the Referee, so was
    indisputably a fair tackle. The problem was that while Saba was trying to veer off and pass the
    ball, for some reason the Starkillers' Forward kept going at full-tilt himself towards the Packers'
    goal! Result: he somehow ran right into Saba, bounced off (as Humans tend to do when in collision
    with a fast-moving Barabel), rolled over several times and came to rest half-on, half-off the pitch;
    totally winded and only semi-conscious! The Home fans and the Starkillers' Bench didn't like that
    (or the Referee) at all, and a cacophony of boos, jeers, catcalls and shouts (uncomplimentarily
    referencing the Referee's ancestry and his parents' probable marital status), rocked the Stadium.
    Not really language or behaviour one would have expected from Bankers and Financial workers, Tim
    thought!

    By this time the Packers had moved the ball up to their Forward line (a pass by Georg Sturm to Stont,
    who centred it, at ground level, exactly at the optimum distance for Jiva's right cleat. The Keeper,
    who had been mocked during the flight for his pretentious name change, tried - he really did - to
    block or smother Jiva's shot; but that time his defences weren't up to coping with its speed and
    power. A slo-mo replay later revealed that the ball had slightly deflected off one of his forearms
    and smacked him very hard on the forehead before bouncing fifteen metres virtually straight up, while
    the luckless Keeper dropped two metres virtually straight down; seeing the proverbial stars! Both
    Jiva and the Starkillers' Full Back (a Whiphid) went for the ball as it started to drop, the Full
    Back electing to jump and try to punch the ball clear. He hadn't factored in, though, that a
    Thakwaash's arms, when above her head, gave her a reach advantage over even a Whiphid. Jiva's own
    arm came around, in a perfectly timed overhead smash which sent the ball into the net courtesy of the
    base of her fist! That left the Whiphid Full Back, still in mid-jump and with little or no means of
    influencing his trajectory. His fist, closed in preparation for punching the ball, connected with
    Jiva's head - and the Referee spotted it! He immediately closed in on the Whiphid blowing his
    whistle and reaching into a pocket for his official notebook! However Jiva intercepted him before he
    got it out and said, as she later related; "Fair challenge, Ref, accidental contact
    - no harm done!"

    Even though the Referee then broke off to watch members of the Starkillers helping to revive the
    dazed Keeper, the crowd thought that he'd made a notebook entry. Nor did the crowd notice that the
    Whiphid gave Jiva an appreciative semi-bow and a tap on the arm by way of thanks.

    Instead, the noise grew again, and anyone who thought that the previous effort was the maximum now
    realised that the Stadium had merely been clearing its collective throat previously. A deafening
    wall of sound surged over the pitch!

    Someone in the Stadium Management was obviously a problem-solver! The deafening wall of sound from
    the crowd was replaced and outmatched by a Stadium-wide Announcement System in a massive feedback
    loop; in other words, an ear-splitting screech! That shocked the crowd into a long enough silence
    for them to be told, in no uncertain terms, what would be happening if the noise continued.
    Reluctantly the crowd quieted.

    All of this had enabled the recovery (and replacement from the Bench) of the Left Corner Forward to
    the treatment room and for the Keeper to be roused sufficiently to carry on playing and have a quick
    check for signs of concussion. It had also given time for the Starkillers to have had new
    instructions from their Coach and General Manager, which went into effect as soon as the game
    restarted with the score 3-0 in favour of the Packers.

    As soon as the ball went into the Packers' half, so did a tide of Starkillers - everyone except the
    Keeper and the Corner Backs. With such a local superiority, the score was tied again after a few
    minutes - not by a one-two but a one-two-three-four. (3-3).

    The same tide followed the ball on this restart, too, and with the same result. (3-6).

    Here Aysr called a timeout for some rapid re-planning. The Front Three and Centre Half Forward would
    station themselves at the halfway-line (to beat Offside Traps) while everyone else would assist the
    Defense and, if possible, gain enough posession to mount a breakaway play. "Their
    Keeper has to be a bit nervous where Jiva is concerned, in case she shoots right at him again. We
    can use that nervousness and find ploys that allow us to score - but watch the Offside situation!
    Right! Go for it!"

    The Noghri were the key, disappearing into the press of players to 'steal' the ball and get it to the
    Forwards. Once there, Jiva (and others, depending on the Offside situation) took the ball goalward.
    The best scoring method proved to be lobbing the ball (with a 'Soloing' type of action) over the
    Keeper's head and into the net, with precise high-power shots into the top corners of the net a close
    second. The score was (6-12) by the time these methods had been worked out, but thereafter began
    move in (more-or-less) the right direction. The raids on the Starkillers' goal also forcing them to
    send players back to support their defenders. (9-12), (12-12), (12-15)!

    Eventually, with the Full-time whistle almost due, and the scores again level at (24-24), The
    Starkillers mounted a last-gasp effort, once again swamping Vesh for a final goal!

    (24-27)!

    Tim wasn't too displeased; a loss to be sure, but they'd taken on an established Elite League side,
    scored first-blood and kept nearly on a par with them in a free scoring game.

    One thing should be for sure now, The other League sides had better not underestimate the Packers!

    TAG: Runjedirun, Trieste
     
  24. jcgoble3

    jcgoble3 Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Nov 7, 2010
    IC: Zay Antilles
    Location: Jedi Temple, Ossus
    Time: Day of Storm–Miners game in Week 2

    "Of course the Council wants us to meet with them right in the middle of the game," said Zay.

    "Indeed. They're probably trying to break you of your addiction," Palla reminded him. "You know they'll only delay your Trials so long."

    "And then what?"

    Zay watched as his Master pondered that question. The two were standing outside the Council Chambers, having been summoned immediately upon their return to the Temple from a mission to Kegan. Zay knew it was unusual of the Council to summon a returning team so quickly; usually they allowed a few hours at the bare minimum for a team to catch their breath, collect their thoughts, and prepare their report. In this case the mission had been simple and had gone very smoothly, so they didn't exactly need a lot of extra time, but it still would have been nice.

    As the doors finally slid open, Palla finally admitted, "I'm... not sure."

    The two walked in and faced the lone man in the Chamber. A descendant of Luke Skywalker through his son Ben and great-grandson Cade, Kash Skywalker was the current Grand Master of the Jedi Order, and a friend of the Antilles family. Zay had met Kash before becoming a Jedi, but he was a small boy at the time and retained very few memories of it. Since becoming a Jedi, very rarely had he met Kash and spoken with him friend-to-friend, as Zay's parents had been adamant to Kash upon handing him over that they desired no special treatment simply because the two families were friends. As such, the vast majority of interactions between them had been that of student and Grand Master, with appropriate honorifics and deference.

    When Kash turned around and began speaking, Zay knew that this meeting would be no different. "Greetings. I trust that your mission on Kegan went well?"

    Palla spoke for both of them. "Yes, it did. We—"

    "No need for the mission report right now. We'll get that later when the full Council is in session. I called you in here now to give you a piece of information that the Euceron Bureau of Investigation asked me to pass along. I felt that this should not be delayed. Do you two remember Rondy Bassell?"

    Palla and Zay thought for a moment and looked at each other. "No," said Palla. "Who is he?"

    "Wait," said Zay. "Isn't that the bomber we captured back at the parade the night before the Galactic Cup Final last year?"

    "Exactly," said Kash. "It seems that he has powerful friends. While you were gone, a criminal organization launched a massive attack on the Eusebus Penitentiary. Half the building was destroyed, and in the chaos, twenty-seven prisoners escaped. Bassell was among the escapees."

    "So Bassell just saw an opportunity and took it. Do we know a motive for the attack yet?"

    "The motive appears to have been to spring Bassell. Of the twenty-seven escapees, only Bassell left with the attackers."

    Palla whistled. "So we have a convicted bomber on the loose—"

    "Alleged, not convicted. His trial was set to begin tomorrow."

    "Well, that explains the timing. Anyway, we have a madman on the loose, apparently with the backing of a large and powerful criminal organization. This cannot end well."

    "My thoughts exactly. I have asked the EBI to keep us apprised of the investigation. They're in the best position to begin tracking these guys down right now. They have told me that they will request Jedi assistance if they find that any of them have left the planet, but in the meantime, we're going to let them handle the investigation and the manhunts for now. I just wanted you two to be aware of the developments ASAP."

    "Thank you for letting us know," said Palla.

    "No problem. Be back here in..." Kash checked his wrist chrono. "...six hours for your mission report."



    Location: Cafeteria, Jedi Temple, Ossus
    Time: Two hours later

    Zay munched on his turnover as he watched limmie highlights on his datapad. When HSN showed the clip of Chalporrin holding the ball over his head out of Falene Trieste's reach, he laughed so hard he nearly threw up. Palla, sitting across the table, glared at him, but Zay couldn't stop laughing.

    "Alright, what's so funny?" his Master asked.

    Unable to speak, Zay backed up the HSN broadcast to just before the clip and turned his datapad around to face Palla. Palla watched the clip with a straight face, then shook her head.

    "Fine way for the Chancellor's daughter to make the galactic broadcast," she said in a sarcastic tone.

    Zay continued watching as Chalporrin threw the pass to Yan'ii, who sent into the net. What an awesome play, he thought. Unsurprisingly to Zay, HSN named that play their Elite League Play of the Week.

    As HSN moved on to other games, he thought back to previous games. The Storm had squeaked by the Monarchs last week while they were on Kegan, winning by a point. A friendly match two weeks before the season had seen them beat the team that everyone loved to hate, the Jets. The running theme through all of these games was high scores—on both sides of the ball. The offense was in fine shape, with Yan'ii leading the way in what would have been her senior year of college. But Zay knew that the defense would never survive the season in this condition. The Storm might be undefeated this year through two weeks, but as the saying went, championships were won by defense, not offense, and the Storm had no defense to speak of.

    Zay realized that HSN had moved on to highlights of the first week of Futures League action, and it wasn't long before they came upon the Storm's development team, the Commenor Gundarks, who were playing Kashyyyk to open the season. Unlike the big club, the Gundarks seemed to have a working defense, as they held the Rangers to just four points. Perhaps the Storm need to call up some Gundarks backs, he thought.

    Zay finally realized what time it was, and hurriedly put his datapad away and left the cafeteria. He only had three hours left before meeting the Council, and Palla had assigned the mission report to him. Even when a mission went smoothly—and they rarely did—getting a report together could take some time. So Zay had work to do.

    TAG: Trieste
     
    Vehn and Trieste like this.
  25. Tim Battershell

    Tim Battershell Jedi Master star 5

    Registered:
    Sep 3, 2012
    IC: Tim Dodd

    Origintor(s):
    Tim Dodd, Owner - Agamar Packers, Agamar

    Recepient(s):
    Variise K'ntarr, Chairbeing - K'ntarr Sports Entertainment Group
    Setarcos Rhemes, General Manager and Head Coach - Rydonni Prime Monarchs

    Dear Gentlebeings,

    You will have heard by now of the incident that seriously affected Agamar Packers on Opening Night.

    I can assure you that (with the exception of examples retained by Agamar Security Force for evidence and comparison purposes), all remaining stocks of the contaminated Energy Drinks have been destroyed. They were packed into sealed containers by senior ASF personnel - under the direct supervision of the ASF Director and his Assistant Directors - loaded onto an old starship and droid-piloted into our sun.

    However, the culprit or culprits remain at large, as at time of writing.

    I therefore suggest that you bring your own supply of Energy Drinks with you when the Monarchs visit Agamar for the Week 3 fixture. ASF have no objection to the containers being escorted by armed Officers from your own Planetary or Corporate Security Forces. If you could forward names and ID data for any such Guards, ASF will make sure that they are properly, and officially, 'Badged' for the duration of the Monarchs visit.

    Food might be another item the Monarchs and their fans would like to bring with them. Mugruebe Stew and its derivatives, although an Agamarian staple, are found to be very much an acquired taste by beings unaccustomed to them. That does not apply to Binka Fruit, which I hope all our visitors will try. Non-Agamarian food is available at many of our eateries, but (due to having been imported) can be somewhat expensive.

    ASF and the Agamarian Council will be repeating the arrangements for visiting supporters which worked so well for the Week 1 Match. As far as I know, no visiting fan missed the match through getting lost en-route, or indeed, for any other reason.

    Until Match Day!

    Tim Dodd

    TAG: CPL_Macja
     
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