Star Wars OPEN Star Wars: Black Sheep (Always Accepting New Players)

OOC: DRL is a pain
IC: Baniss Vermillion

Baniss was looking through data on those stations. Parts looked familiar...and that was a problem. He waited for a gap in the conversation before clearing his throat.

“I think this could be a trap.” He looked around at everyone, “I think this could be a trap, not in a way of worrying about a mole, but in the way places like this are set up.” He started counting with his fingers, “First, it would be easy to create a dummy location where you can use a variety of traps to eliminate intrusion teams.” Baniss looked directly at Flagg and Taab, “There’s been evidence that Bothan teams are running into similar locations and being decimated. Honestly, I’d like to gather some way method to gather information safely from, say reprogrammed probe droids. Then when we’re certain where the main command bunker is, we go.”

He nodded towards the diagram of the base, “Places like that are designed so information goes one way, towards them and we could lose a lot of people, and I don’t want to lose more friends if I can help it.”

TAG: @Bardan_Jusik, Any former Imps would be welcome, or anyone who's dealt with Imperial Intelligence.

 

~IC~ Captain Cassell ‘Skipper’ Wystari
Location: Squadron Ready Room - Under the ‘Cone Of Silence’

Finnefrael’s added confidence in him and his piloting abilities was making Cassell warm up to the idea even more. Just have to convince the others.

“We can debate about it until the kaduu come home to roost but at the end of the day, the plan is the same: Get to the surface. Recover the goods and get out.” Cassell stated. “The sooner we get there, the sooner we get back.”

“There’s the old adage about keeping things simple. With too many pieces and moving parts then the greater chances of breakdowns and falling apart. As much as I dislike the idea of overriding the safeties of the hyperdrive and risk slamming into the moon... Harley’s suggestion eliminates all the other unknown variables that plague the other suggestions. Simple and clean. We’ll get there one way... or another.” He allowed a light hearted chuckle.

“While I understand all your trepidation of being a passenger for such a ride, I, too, would rather be at the helm than to do so waiting in a hold. I assure you, no one knows my ship like me, and with Kayn’s assistance, we will survive arriving surface side.” Cassell looked to Baniss. “If it is a trap, then we have a wildcard up our sleeve. Right, Harley?”

“Got ya back, Mistah W!” Harley winked.

Cassell then turned to Commander Flagg. “With your permission, Commander, I’d like to get a start on the preparations.”

TAG: @Adalia-Durron @adaml83 @Anedon @Bardan_Jusik @darthbernael @galactic-vagabond422 @Mistress_Renata @Mitth_Fisto @Rebecca_Daniels @Sarge @Sinrebirth @TheAdmiral @The Real Kyp Durron @Vehn

 

OOC: *mischievous grin*
IC: Baniss Vermillion

Baniss nodded, "There's a book on places like these..." he started copying information from his datapad to other empty datapads before either handing or tossing them to various people in the room. Starting with the crew known to be on Valkyria, Cassell, Mac, and the volunteer gunner, Amber. He copied another one for Harley, and then a final one for the Marines.

"Could someone get these to the Marines going on the ground part of the mission?" he looked around, noticed Traer looking around, kind of hungover, "Lin, catch!" and tossed the datapad in his general direction.

TAG: @Bardan_Jusik, @Sinrebirth (maybe literally), everyone else in the room.

 

IC: Louise Vehn/Lawrence Clark
Briefing

"Pilot meetings usually take this long because I gotta use the head," Lawrence Clark said as he leaned over to Lou who had fought the urge to fall asleep.

"Not usually," Lou replied, "unless you're throwing pilots at a sensor array staffed with ISB agents and all their goodies. And by goodies I mean the weaponry that could knock this cruiser right outta the sky."

"Did you even listen to the briefing? This mission is about infiltration. We get in and we get out. Harley's idea has promise," Lawrence replied, "if its a little crazy."

"She's crazy," Lou reminded Lawrence, "which is why this plan is going to work."

"Look the Marines can breach any facility in the galaxy. Just get out of our way. Let us have a crack at this ISB facility," Lawrence said puffing up his chest a bet.

"Oh I think you're going to get yourself plenty of chances to have that dream fulfilled. Besides, you're not really a Marine anymore," Lou replied, "you're stuck as my rear gunner in a wishbone I don't have."

"Still a Marine, Lou. That never leaves. Look I've got a joke for you," Lawrence said.

"Hardly the time," Lou replied.

"You've got nothing but time," Lawrence said, "nothing is happening around here anyways."

"Fine," Lou replied rolling her eyes, "fire away."

"My uncle told me this so bear with me," Lawrence said as he cleared his throat, "he was stationed planetside during some miserable deployment on a backwater world with limited Imperial resources. Resources his group of Marines was tasked with destroying. Who knows why he was there."

"What's the punch line, Lawrence?" Lou asked.

"So the Alliance media is there. Propo piece or something. Some young reporter with some agenda comes up and asks my uncle, "Where do you stand on stormtroopers?"

"My uncle replied, "Well, the windpipe usually does the trick."

Lou laughed it was pretty good. She tried to keep it down as the others looked in their direction. It'd been awhile since she'd heard a really decent joke. Too long. She'd missed the banter in the cockpit. The feeling of camraderie that developed between pilot and gunner. As much as she loved her husband, Airen, he was definitely not meant to be the gunner aboard a Y-Wing. Not one bit.

Tag: @Bardan_Jusik

 

Maxime "Max" Pallas
Black Sheep Briefing, Intrepid

Lou seemed to think it was funny, she laughed like a lulubird. Max shook her head and looked at Baniss in disbelief. "As I said earlier, a scalpel, not a sledgeslammer, is what we need here. The longer we can stay there, the more info we can get. The Marines are excellent at what they do, but stealth isn't really their strong point. INFILTRATION is what is called for. If you can get me to the door, I can get in and get what we need. I...I have a key.

"And we can stay there as long as we like IF...they aren't on alert. The Marines will definitely call them to battle stations, and a full alert means there will be a data security protocol that locks down EVERYTHING, even to people who should have access. Sheep, not Rams."

She hesitated, but decided not to elaborate. She and her father had contracts as security consultants to the Empire, they'd built back doors into every system they'd worked on, and she had the ISB internal override codes to slice any Imperial computer...but she didn't want to use them, if she could avoid it. If the Imps realized they'd been breached like that, all the codes would change and it would be game over. The thing about Intel was that you needed to be selective about how you used it, so that the enemy wouldn't realize where the leaks were.


TAG: @Corellian_Outrider @adaml83 @Anedon @Bardan_Jusik @darthbernael @galactic-vagabond422 @Mistres @Mitth_Fisto @Rebecca_Daniels @Sarge @Sinrebirth @TheAdmiral @The Real Kyp Durron @Vehn
​

 

IC: Jocelyn "Joy" Sunwalker, Tala “Merc” Ashe
Location: on-board the Intrepid

The squadron mostly ignored the walking tank of a woman and from what Jocelyn could see from her seat it did not bother her. She checked her datapad, that must be Merc, the newest addition to the squadron.

The woman gave a lopsided grin and just sat back to listen to what Feral, Skipper and Hollymander had come up with. Not a bad plan, seemed doable, though the whole mission seemed a bit sketchy. The whole cloak and dagger thing had her on edge.

Especially knowing that it was not a sanctioned mission and they could not expect any support.

Also what would stop Wellings to throw them under the proverbial ground bus? If something goes wrong she could wash her hands off them…

Amber offered herself as a gunner. That made Joy give a sour face. It was a reminder that she would have to have a word with her. If she had other intentions towards Feral, they would need to clear them first.

Hopefully it would go peacefully, but she would not mind some good old fisticuff exercise…

She could see Merc trying to rise to add something when Flagg cut in. Hopefully he would weigh in on who does what. Then Harley decided it was a good time for her to speak. Joy stiffened as the unhinged Zeltron could be like a Kowakian monkey lizard with a hydrospanner.

And of course she did…

Harley just signed their death certificates with this.

“That’s my kind of plan!” Merc laughed out loud “Atta girl!” she raised a fist as a salute to Harley.

The room was abuzz with conversations and bouncing of ideas. Hopefully this was going to work or this mission would be a very brief one.

Joy saw Feral leave but could not say anything to him as she decided to move towards Baniss Vermillion. “I used to be an Imperial Pilot slash Commando.” she said to him “So if you need me...” her voice trailed “Also my astromech still carries Imperial data, though it is a bit outdated, but if it is of any help.” she shrugged.

TAG: @Bardan_Jusik @Sarge @Corellian_Outrider @darthbernael @Mitth_Fisto @Adalia-Durron @Mistress_Renata @galactic-vagabond422 @Anedon @The Real Kyp Durron @adaml83 @Vehn @Rebecca_Daniels @Sinrebirth

 

GM Update
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IC: Major Beskaryc Taab/Commander Flagg (NPC)/Flight Officer Quin (NPC)
Surveying the wreck of the Valkyria, Serenity moon,

Holding his right hand to his head Commander Flagg first looked out at the forest surrounding them and then back to where the Valkyria sat, slightly tilted on her damaged landing struts. It was a miracle any of them had survived, and yet they all had, and with nothing more than a few bruises to show for it. They had come in just as Harley had planned, dropping out of hyperspace with such precision that as soon as the sirl of hyperspace had dissipated around them they could see trees, not a green colored surface, or a moon surrounded by star scape, but trees, individual trees. "Too close!" Flagg had shouted knowing, just knowing that they were about to be splattered all over the ground, but Wystari had kept his cool and had somehow accomplished a controlled crash, the Valkyria had managed a skidding stop rather than an adroit VTOL style landing. The skid had managed to bend a few of the freighter's landing struts, though nothing too bad. Her sides too had torn through the trees around them and were now stained green but that was merely cosmetic. After ensuring everyone was OK, Flagg had sent out Taab and half the squadron to secure the perimeter around the ship while the others checked the Valkyria for damage.

"Last time you make the plans Wild Card," Flagg now said to Harley as she bounced up next to him. "Oh c'mon Boss, we're down in one piece, no one got hurt," she said defensively. "Hyperdrive checks out just fine." She added now with a pouty look on her face. "That's good," Flagg said absent mindedly as he patted the rounded head of his astromech ROBO with his left hand. He had brought the droid along in case they had needed the storage space for downloaded data from the facility, it certainly wasn't because the droid was adept at slicing into Imperial files. Hs was a combat droid, but for some reason he was glad he had brought it along now. "There is one eeesny teensy problem though boss."

That caused Flagg's head to snap back as he looked at her with irritation. "Problem?" He asked as she thrust her head forward and gritted her teeth. "Fuel line ruptured during the landing..." She shrugged impishly now. "How bad is the leak?" Flagg asked fearing the worst, he wasn't disappointed. "We're uh...we're out of gas." Flagg immediately facepalmed, they had managed to get the ship down in mostly one piece, but there would be no way to get her (or them) off the moon unless they not only repaired the fuel lines, but found another source of fuel to feed the engines. "Show me," he said finally as he bade his droid follow along behind him.

---

Looking out into the forest Taab scanned the area with his T-Visor's built in thermal imaging equipment. Nothing but small animals out there he was glad to see. So far it seemed like Harley's crazy plan had actually payed off, even if his nerves had been rattled by the close approach and near crash of the landing. Still, they were down and hadn't tripped any Imperial sensors, not even their near crash had been noticed, though by Taab's calculations that was because they had come down outside their defensive perimeter. The landing pad was 16 kilometers to the north, while the bunker they were set to infiltrate was 15 klicks to the northeast. They'ed come in on the opposite side of the moon from the facility but their hair raising tree top level flight after exiting hyperspace had brought them this far as Wystari had tried dumping as much speed as he could before setting them down. It had been a near thing, but they had managed. He scanned out in front of him again, still pleased there was no sign of Imperials anywhere.

A sharp noise behind him, a snapping branch, followed by rustling leaves caught his attention. "You're not very good at that." Taab said as he deactivated his thermal scan and turned his head to see his commanding officer, Flagg, approaching him gingerly. "Look before you step, and avoid..." Taab continued it was second nature to him now how to move silently through the woods but he stopped when he saw the look on Flagg's face. "Leave Clark and Ashe out here on perimeter duty, we have a problem." Flagg said to Taab quietly. "Everyone else back to the ship..." Taab relayed the appropriate orders before falling back to the Valkyria. Whatever it was Flagg was waiting to break the news until he had most everyone together, and that meant it had to be a doozy.

"All right, we're all here now", Flagg said in the shadow of the Valkyria as it sat behind him in the early morning sun. "We're down in one piece, and haven't triggered any Imperial alert so there is that." At least the first part of their mission then, arrival had gone off nearly without a hitch. "We do have one problem though, we ruptured a fuel line during the...landing," he refused to call it a crash out of respect for Wystari. He had after all gotten them all moonside without killing anyone. "That leak will need to be patched." Taab shrugged his shoulders, that wasn't so bad. They had several astromechs as well as Matey who could handle a simple patch job. So long as the leak hadn't caused them to lose too much fuel they should be in fine...

"It was a pretty bad leak, several places along the line so shut off valves didn't contain it." Yeah, that was bad. Potentially very bad. "Valkyria's fuel tanks are bone dry." Harley seemed to be trying to make herself as small as possible so no one could see her. "I've talked to Wystari and the repairs should be easy enough, Matey will supervise those as we go on mission." Taab nodded, as he thought the droids did have some uses despite his general distrust of them.

"The fuel situation though is a problem, one we need to address if we are going to get off this rock before the Star Raiders arrive to blow this place to the seven hells." Again Taab nodded. Where to find fuel though he thought to himself before Flagg answered his question. "We're going to divide into teams, squads however you ground pounders say it," he looked to Taab. "Wystari, you Mcear, Lurell. and Quin are going to infiltrate the landing pad and get us some fuel. I don't care how you do it, but try not to trip any alarms and get the rest of us caught." The Mandalorian didn't envy them their task, though on the face of things it was the obvious move. The landing pad would surely have a fuel depot to refuel the supply shuttles that came in. It wouldn't have to be a lot of fuel, just enough to get them off the moon and back to the Intrepid. "You four take the bikes." They had managed to scrounge up three operational undicur class speeder bikes and bring them along. there had been a fourth on board the Intrepid, but it's repulsorlift engine was down and they lacked the spare parts to fix it. Still the three bikes would do to move the four people to the landing pad and back with a small amount of fuel if two of them doubled up.

"The rest of us," he looked to the others that had come along. "We'll be moving on towards the bunker." He looked again to the Mandalorian. "Taab you've got Clark and Ashe out on point, you'll be our quick reaction force once we get to the bunker." Taab nodded he would have to call them in from the perimeter but that wouldn't be an issue. It did sound like they weren't going to be leaving a guard force behind for the Valkyria though, and that did bother Taab somewhat. "Vermillion, Ordwgal and Sunwalker, you're with me as squad Aurek." Taab inwardly groaned. Squads were supposed to be numbered not lettered, though he knew the clone army had also done it wrong as well. "Hollymander, you're in charge of squad Besh with Balzroth, Yaren and Malek " Taab grimaced slightly at that, Kayn for all his foibles should have been leading a squad though he would at the very least be able to assist the Major there. "Gray, you've got squad Dorn," Taab was pleased at least that Flagg had managed to skip Cresh. it sounded too much like Besh over the wireless circuit and could cause confusion so it was oft times skipped by more experienced commanders. "Along with Pallas, Tehanis and Lin." Taab nodded. That put an intelligence "expert" with each group (aside from his), which made sense. Taab looked around, that was all of them, wondering now if it had been a good idea to leave Droma along with Masterson back on the Intrepid under the are of Thrace for the purposes of additional training. They could have been of greater use guarding the Valkyria.

"QRF out front, followed in line by each squad, I want at least 25 meters between squads, so if we do get caught in an ambush, they don't get us all." Taab shrugged, if he Clark and Ashe did their jobs right, there would be no ambush. Still, with the way the squad were set up, any one squad should be able to handle the data retrieval by itself if need be. "We'll survey the bunker when we arrive and makes plans from there on how to best get inside. While we do that Wystari's team will be getting the fuel we need. We all meet back here when we have the data, you have the fuel." He looked to Wystari, "and by that time the repairs should be finished on the Valkyria." He looked to Matey who gave a nod of its own. "ROBO will stay behind here with you to assist with those," he added. Several others had also brought along astromechs, though which would stay behind for repairs and which would continue on Flagg would leave to them. He looked them all over, now was normally the time he asked for questions, but frankly they didn't have the time. They were on a tight schedule, the Star Raiders could arrive at any time. "OK, let's move out"

TAG: @Rebecca_Daniels @Sarge @Anedon @Mistress_Renata @Adalia-Durron @galactic-vagabond422 @Mitth_Fisto @Corellian_Outrider @The Real Kyp Durron @adaml83 @Vehn @TheAdmiral @darthbernael @Sinrebirth

OOC: Figured I would drop us right onto the moon to save us the "long trip", especially after waiting so long to get things under way. This way you all can "fill in the blanks" via flashback sequences for yourselves. Let me know either in your posts, via PM or in the X-Wing Fanclub which characters brought their astromechs along to the moon, and if they are staying behind to help with repairs or coming along to help infiltrate whichever facility your character is tasked with. It will be important later on. The moon and facilities themselves are obviously heavily based on Endor just to everyone has a quick touchstone with a setting we should all be familiar with. Naturally there are some differences (no ewoks for example) which will be made more apparent later on.

Just a quick rundown here.

• Wystari, Mcear, Lurell and Quin will be off on their own headed to the landing pad to steal us some replacement fuel. They have the three speeder bikes

• The rest of us have been assigned to our squads and should be interacting with those as we march off towards the bunker. Once we arrive there (discounting any issues that may arise) we will congregate there for a bit before infiltration and separating once again.

If anyone has any questions please don't hesitate to ask either via PM or in the fanclub.

 

IC: Kayn "Oops" Balzroth
Down and Out in Serenity Woods

"Last time you make the plans, Wild Card." Kayn winced as Harley caught flak from Flagg for the fix they were all in. It was time to man up.

"Sir, it wasn't Harley's fault, it was a good plan. It was our execution that was off. I'm the one who calculated our exit point. We didn't have exact numbers on the weird electromagnetic fields here, or the way they'd affect hyperspace, so I extrapolated from similar astrophysical phenomena, and added a safety margin. But my estimate was low, and my safety margin wasn't big enough. Skipper flew the course I plotted bang on, so it wasn't his fault either. This one is totally on me." He looked over toward Cassel. "Sorry, Skipper."

Harley was looking at Kayn with big, sad eyes. "Oh, look at the way you're sticking up for me! You are so sweet, and you'll make some lucky woman very happy someday, but not me, and not today. I keep telling you, there's no future for us, dear sweet Kaynie-waynie." She kissed his cheek and walked away, with a little more sway in her hips than was strictly necessary.

"I don't... That's not... I wasn't... " He looked around, hoping frantically that Zara hadn't seen that, and feeling sure that she had. It was the way of things, the way of life, the galaxy, and everything. He sighed. Focus on the mission.


TAG: @Corellian_Outrider @Rebecca_Daniels and everyone else who likes to laugh at Kayn when he shoots off his mouth.

 

IC: Louise "Lou" Vehn
The Landing to End All Landings

"Holy Frak!" Lou cursed as she was thrown hard against her safety restraints.

The sudden and gut wrenching movement of the Valkyria ripping to a barely controlled stop on the forest moon ceased. It took a moment for Lou to get her bearings as she realized the craft had finally stopped moving through hyperspace and whatever lay beyond. It was one of the most frightening experiences she'd ever had as a passenger. As a pilot, well, she could endure a lot. Not being in control of the craft, however, was hard for her and she knew she had to trust Wystari to do what he did best: pilot.

Lou unbuckled herself from her restraints and disembarked the Valkyria. She squinted against the light of day as she got a better idea of their location and the terrain. The sweet scent of forest hit her hard in the nose. She couldn't remember the last time she was on a properly forested planet. One with thick, luscious, unforgiving old growth. A logger's dream. An environmentalists nightmare.

There was chatter between Flagg and the others. Lou stood near the Mandalorian, Taab, and waited for instructions. She knew better than to wander off and it came as no surprise to her when the orders started coming down hard and fast. She listened as she was given charge of team Dorn and assigned to her were Pallas, Tehanis, and Lin.

Maker above I am so frakked Lou thought as she made eye contact with the others.

Tag: @Bardan_Jusik; @Sinrebirth; @Adalia-Durron; @Mistress_Renata

 

Ic MacKenzie Hollymander
Cockpit Valkyria


The hyperspace jump had been an experience for all on board but seeing it from the cockpit point of view took his breath away.

Literally.

MacKenzie hadn't realised he'd been holding his breath till the ship stopped moving and he let it out in relief as the Valkyria ceased its movement. They'd landed and they were alive. He looked down to Cassell. "Really nice landing Skipper. I mean that." He said with genuine gratitude toward the man's skills knowing if it'd been him they'd all be dead. Unstrapping his crash webbing he looked up to see the stain of green on the outer shell of the cockpit where trees and other foliage had slammed into them. More gratitude as he understood how any one of those branches could have torn through and made a mess of both him and Cassell. The internal comm opened.

“I’m good Skipper. Shaken but fine.”

A wave of relief washed over him as her voice told Cassell she was fine. Perched up on the top of the Valkyria the chances to be wiped off were reasonably high. His chance to talk to her after the briefing had slipped away as she'd left early. Then they were preparing for the mission and there were too many people around. He had to find a way to talk to her before this all unfolded as he felt he may not get another chance. Stepping down he turned to Cassell. "I'm going to check our cargo got here in one piece." Referring to the team on board.

Once in the belly of the ship he discovered that aside from some abrasions and bruises the Black Sheep had made it in one piece. He saw her descend the ladder and hook her arm into it to stand but there were still too many people around. So he made his way off the Valkyria checking his hips for both the blasters he'd been assigned. He was armed but how dangerous he was remained to be seen.



Tag: @Bardan_Jusik @Sarge @Corellian_Outrider @darthbernael @Mitth_Fisto @TheAdmiral @Mistress_Renata @galactic-vagabond422 @Anedon @Adalia-Durron @adaml83 @Vehn @Rebecca_Daniels @Sinrebirth

 

IC: Zara Yaren
A ship crash to go with a car crash...

It was easy enough to keep her head down while they packed for the mission; it wasn't like Zara was exactly a friendly presence, and they weren't supposed to talk about what they were doing anyway. Head down and eyes up, keeping a constant watch to see who was looking. Focus on the next step. Don't think about the consequences.

She had been right, after all. A few names listed under possible aliases, most unfamiliar except one: Terren Aves. If-- if-- it was true. It was entirely possible this was a different person, it was a big galaxy after all, and tThere were so many questions still unanswered: would they be able to even land on the planet? Would she be able to slip away? Would someone try and stop her? Could she even go through with it?

Some parts, at least, were easier than others, as she grimly cleaned her rifle. The death trooper rifle had quickly become a favourite, and it was one way to ensure the message got through. One way or another, there was no coming back from this-- maybe literally.

Garnering a reputation as someone who followed orders-- well, relatively-- rather than a planner worked in her favour this time, too distracted to absorb more than the basics of their plan. Data gathering. Shoot some imps. Whatever. All too soon she was climbing the Valkyria's ramp, not nearly ready enough for what was ahead.

What was ahead? A rough landing in greenery, checking everyone over for injuries and coming up relatively unharmed, following as the group gathered for final assignments. Zara avoided anyone's eyes, staring off into the trees as Flagg spoke. Green planets like these were not exactly her preference, but she'd have to make do, look for an opportunity to break off. And go where exactly? Not like the imps would have a sign up conveniently pointing at her target.

At least it was more comfortable than their last ground mission. A vest filled with supplies-- blaster packs, small grenades, a flashlight, whatever she could get ahold of on short notice-- in place of a dress. The right kind of sneaking around, one with heavy weapons instead of walking into a viper's nest. And her own ulterior motives to contend with.

Well, if she was going to pull one over on these three she was going to have her work cut out. Zara thought she had the measure of Kayn and Hollymander but Malek was still a relative unknown to her. Dangerous. She slung her rifle over her shoulder and waited for the call to move out.

TAG: @Sarge @Anedon @The Real Kyp Durron

 

IC: Akiva Lurrell 'Wolf'
Any Landing you Walk Away From. . .

Having braced for an impact prior to their exit from hyperspace, as Akiva did not like this plan from the first time the idea had been mentioned, she was glad when they finally came to a stop. Listening to the others curse or make stress induced remarks she rubbed a free hand in soothing motions down her neck, and another patting her chest, whilst her remaining two arms clutched her stomach. Part of her wanted to say 'I told you so!', but in the end, or rather for the moment, she just wanted to keep that pre-mission bacon smoothie down.

Listening as others exclaimed and dealt with the harsh reality of a harsh landing, she decided to keep quiet. Soon there was a brief 'make sure we aren't all gonna die' break, and when everyone was brought together again the debrief came down.

Her part in the mission was the non-mission. The mission parameters that no one had planned on, because the rough landing had turned out to be a planting instead if they couldn't get fuel to replace what was lost, and so long as the fuel lines could be repaired.

Angling over to Wystari she nodded to the Captain of this death tub. "So, what do we have to work with, and how do you want to approach this?" she asked with a heavy sigh afterwards. This was so messed up.

TAG: @Corellian_Outrider , et all.

 

Ic: Holly, Kayn, Zara, Ethan
Besh Squad - This can only end badly - simply making everyone aware of the potential outcome - Gratitude to @Sarge @Anedon & @Rebecca_Daniels


As soon as Flagg finished assigning the squads, Kayn moved toward Hollymander as he raised his arm and waved it in a circle. "Besh Squad, rally round the major!" He looked around for Zara and Ethan. "Besh for the Best Squad, right, Zara?" She wouldn't make eye contact, probably still ticked at him for kissing her hand in the spotlight at the wedding. He'd have to find a private moment with her to clear the air. "Major, if you like, I can organize our squad, leave you free to focus on mission objectives, big picture stuff." Kayn suspected Hollymander's experience didn't include a lot of woodland small unit tactics.

Ethan raised an eyebrow at this but decided to say nothing. Ground warfare was not his specialty though he had gotten more than just a general training in it while in the ORSF and as a mercenary his skills had only improved. "I suggest we move quickly, get into a better cover. You can never know who is watching at any given moment."

"The faster and quieter we do this, the better." Zara kept her eyes on the treeline; Malek was right, even if it wasn't the Imps themselves they were likely to have droid recon. "It's a matter of when the Imps catch onto us, not if." But Kayn was already trying to take charge, and she wasn't sure it was a good idea: loud and flashy wouldn't do, not here, not when they were trapped until the other team found fuel.

Bemused. That was how MacKenzie felt. The Empire had not given him much in the way of ground tactics training nor was he accustomed to it. When Kayn began to rally the team, he felt a sense of relief for a brief moment. When the Devorian offered to organize the team but that might be a step too far. "Truth is each one of you have more experience in a situation like this." He said quietly to the group. "But I do believe I can lead." Listening to Zara and Ethan he gave a sage nod. "Agreed. This is not a time for big displays or explosions. We need to approach this as quietly as we possibly can and under the best camouflage we can find." He wondered if they had much in that way. He turned to Ethan. "What is your experience in this situation?" He knew the man was older and quite possibly a lot wiser than all of them.

Ethan inclined his head to MacKenzie. "If you can live with it the easiest way to camouflage us in this terrain would be to use the dirt that’s already present here.” He gestured to their surroundings. It wasn’t a desirable way to blend in with the environment but it did work well enough.

Kayn nodded in agreement and scooped up a handful of soil. Valkyria's wild skidding landing had kicked up plenty of loose dirt. He rubbed it into random spots on his olive drab flight suit and dark brown leather jacket, and finally his face and scalp. Hopefully that would be adequate to break up his visual outline.

"How about we inventory what we have to work with? I have a good throwing arm and a bunch of grenades, plus my pistol." He patted the holster holding his long-barreled Relby K-23 Stinger. "It's got a multi-function scope linked to my neural implants, so if I seem to be waving it around a lot it's because I'm looking at stuff without looking. If Zara wants to snipe, I'll be her spotter. Oh, and of course my best weapon..." He waved a hand which was suddenly holding a wickedly curved blade, then he gestured again and the knife disappeared. "Lots of back alley knife fights and gangland turf wars as a stupid kid, a lot of them were in the city park, so I'm all right moving around trees. As for my implanted sensors, I'm getting lots of interference in passive mode, and I'm not switching to active, not while we're trying to sneak up on an electronic listening post. So, what did everybody else bring?"

If you can live with it. Hmph, not likely, and unlikely to make much of a difference in Zara's case, though she kept the thought to herself. The greenery was already starting to make her itch, and the inside of an Imperial base was already sounding a lot better than whatever might be out here. Luckily that ought to be exactly where she needed to be, one way or another. "Grenades. And these." She tapped the blasters she'd brought along, slung across her back and hip. Those were the real damage anyway.

Carefully Ethan pulled his close quarters weapon from his backpack. The ceremonial officer sword of the ORSF, handed to him many years ago hadn't seen any real combat for ages but maybe today was the day. "A little bit more than your butter knife," he told Kayn as he made a few routine swings with the blade to get used to the weight of it again. "Got a regular old blaster in addition to this, so I will mostly focus on close combat. My eyes aren't that of a marksman anymore..."

Looking down at his hips MacKenzie suddenly felt under armed. "Um I only have these two." He tapped the blasters with the heels of his hands. "I can use them and I'm not a bad shot. Better than a stormtrooper at least." He confessed. "Clearly you all came well prepared. I have no access to any more weapons." He hated having completely nothing. The clothes on his back and the pendant his mother left him were all he owned now. The blasters he now wore were gifts from Cassell whom without he'd have been completely unarmed. What Ethan had said made sense and he bent to find some of the dirt to rub on his face. His hair was golden blonde and covering that would be more difficult. He put his hand on his head. "Any suggestions to cover this?"

"I bet Zephyr has a dark rag you could use for a bandana. Either that, or smear on some dirty grease from the landing gear struts." Kayn looked over at Zara; her skin was a lost cause for camouflage. Her face and headtails seemed an even more vibrant purple than usual. "Are you looking forward to shooting some Imps today, Z? I've never seen you so bright-eyed."

"Or you could shave them down," Ethan said with a grin. "I'm sure would be delighted to lend his knife for such a purpose." The battle was finally upon them and as always, the doubts and worries faded into the background and his senses became focused on what was ahead. Following the old technique to relax himself through joking around.

MacKenzie glanced back at the ship. "I'll ask Zephyr as I'm not keen on being bald." A slight smile. He noted Kayn's comment on Zara's colouring. "Maybe a bit of mud or grease could tone you down Zara? Just a suggestion." It confused him that he was concerned about his hair standing out but she wasn't about her skin. Confidence maybe? He let out his breath as he thought for a moment. "Give me a minute to talk to Zephyr and then we will be moving out. I want Kayn on point. I'll take the left and Ethan on the right. Zara bring up the rear and be ready with that thing." He pointed to the riffle she held. "Let's keep each other in sight and most of all eyes on Kayn's signals. Let's keep this as silent if we can. Kayn's the one we know can get us in. Let's trust him." He gave the Devaronian a confident nod.

Kayn nodded confidently at the major. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, sir, I'll keep us on the straight and narrow. And if you change your mind about shaving your head, Ethan is your man. Did you know he can perform a tracheotomy with a butter knife? True story. He needs to be our designated medic."

Zara ignored Kayn's question; it wasn't a matter of looking forward to, it was a matter of what had to be done, and if she thought about it too much her heart would start pounding and she couldn't risk something giving her away. "Unless you can turn the forest purple it's not going to make a difference," she replied instead to Hollymander's comment, a bite in her voice. If any of the outpost's sensors relied on heat or any other method than visual it was irrelevant anyway. At least if she was at the back, she would be harder to spot. And easier to slip away.

He listened to Zara and rolled his eyes at Kayn. "That's why you're at the back Zara." His voice firm as he turned to Ethan. "You can keep your knife sheathed and if what Kayn says is true you can be back up medical. I'm hoping we won't need it." He turned to The Valkyria and tried to visually find Zephyr. "Give me one minute then we can move out." In less than a minute he'd found Zephyr inside and retrieved the necessary covering. Approaching them again as he tied the dark coloured bandana around his hair, he gave a curt nod. "Let's go."

Kayn moved to the front of their formation, looking ahead to Flagg's squad, which was following Taab's. All he had to do was lag 25 meters behind them. And detect anything that the others missed. "Remember we're all comm silent; there's a listening post hoping to tap into any transmission we make. Let's make sure we're all on the same page for hand signals." He held one hand straight up. "This means stop. Freeze. Remember that motion attracts attention, so don't move." He turned his hand palm down and lowered it slowly. "Take cover." Two fingers pointed toward his eyes, then off in a random direction. "Look that way." He waved from side to side. "Scatter." A beckoning motion. "Gather round. Anybody got any more?"

Clear enough for me. Eyes on Kayn." MacKenzie ordered. "Everyone else clear?"

"I'm ready to go," Ethan said sheathing his blade. "Let's see what awaits us."


Tag @Bardan_Jusik and all other Black Sheep.

 

IC: Jocelyn "Joy" Sunwalker, Tala “Merc” Ashe
Location: By the wreck of the Valkyria, Serenity moon

It was a miracle they survived at all. Any landing you can walk off is a good one. Or so they said. She was sure that it was of little consolation for Skipper, given the damage to the Valkyria.

The usual arguments about who was at fault started. While these things were useful after the mission was over now it only served as a distraction. Even without such a thing the mission was difficult as it was.

The higher ups surely wanted them all dead. To them the Black Sheep were some sort of a suicide squad. That gave her a mental shiver. For all their claims of being different from the Empire the Rebellion would utilize some of its more… callous methods.

She tried not to look too pleased when she was teamed up with Feral. At least Amber was not in her group as accidents do happen in the wild… ’What th...’ Joy’s mind screamed and she realized that she had been drifting towards a dark place.

Though it seems to be a normal thing. She had heard people say that their minds were telling them to do horrible stuff to other people and psychiatrists would say that these things happen and as long as you don’t act on these thoughts it is fine.

Also not to dwell on them…

‘Jocelyn, you need help...’ she “murmured” to herself and decided to focus on the mission. She had been deprived of affection for so long that now that she had found someone she almost clung to him, but that did not mean she could act unhinged.

Joy checked her equipment and blaster, everything was fine. Then Feral approached her. “I am fine, just shaken a bit.” she managed a small smile and nodded to him in agreement to his plan.

Tala on the other hand was itching to get straight into the thick of the action. She was assigned with the heavy-hitters, just the place she wanted to be! Stealth was far from her forte, so when the time was up for her to blow poodoo up she would be jumping right into the fight.

Merc approached the Mandalorian “Is that beskar?” she asked really curious, “Haven’t seen one in a while.” Tala grinned “Fought another Mando dude on Nar Shaddaa, tough guy, one of my best fights.”

TAG: @Bardan_Jusik @darthbernael @Adalia-Durron @Corellian_Outrider @Sinrebirth @Mistress_Renata @The Real Kyp Durron @adaml83 @Vehn @galactic-vagabond422 @Mitth_Fisto @Rebecca_Daniels @Sarge

 

IC: Amber Tehanis, Louise Vehn, Maxime Pallas, and Traer Lin
Dorn Squad

He struggled to keep up, but he did.

Traer scratched the back of his head and waved at the others as they collected.

"I'm Traer Lin, the Seppie."

He hadn't actually been introduced to them, after all. It was all a bit of a blur, even without the alcohol!

Amber looked to the man, the word 'Seppie' caused her to frown as she thought 'that war is long over', she wondered if the man knew that or not. "Amber." She said simply. The cut on her head had dried over already but a nice bruise was forming around it. "Think I saw you at the wedding." Why did she say that? Of course she did if he was a Black Sheep now!

"Louise Vehn, Charlie Flight squadron leader, go by Lou most of the time," Lou replied, "and I know already that some of you have quite a bit of experience with this kind of mission. I'm going to need your best selves to help us get through this."

Lou looked over at Max. She tried to hide the strain in her voice as she could almost hear the Corellian woman's blistering reply.

Max said nothing at first. "If you're that uncomfortable, you can give command to someone else," she said finally. She looked around. "Weren't we supposed to have access to some speeder bikes?"

Amber shifted her weight, she and Max had had their issues already, and she knew the stuff about Lou, but didn't believe it. Staying quiet was the best option here.

“Happy to dedicate all to the cause, Flight Leader,” Traer said, sketching an informal salute.

Deep breath. You got this. Someone, somewhere, thinks you can do this job. That person starts with you Lou reminded herself as she inhaled and exhaled for a moment.

"I believe the speeder bikes were allocated to a different group," Lou said, "and besides this assignment is on foot. Those speeder bikes would be a dead giveaway as to our intentions. Right, assignments."

"Diamond formation as we advance. Make sure you spread apart. Max you're on point," Lou said, "with Amber and Traer on the sides and I'll bring up the rear of the formation."

"Now what do we have in the way of inventory? Weapons, gear, what did you bring?"

Amber looked to her hip. "I have a blaster, and my vibroblade." She shrugged, " but I'm a fighter pilot, not a ground pounder." She confessed, she bit her lip, dare she say it? "Get me angry enough, or upset, well, you know what happens." Amber looked down awkwardly, it wasn't something she was proud of, but if it was needed and helped, she'd probably be able to muster enough strength to use her abilities, Ethan's guidance had helped her somewhat.

“Starboard or port side?” Traer looked to Amber, asking about the diamond formation. “I’m a good shot either way.” He flexed his wrist. “Ambidextrous, so it’s up to you.”

"Starboard." She knew she was right handed and was grateful for the offer. "Thank you." It occurred to her that Traer didn't know what she could do, maybe better that way.

Max tried not to roll her eyes. The ex-Imp and the sell-out with no ground experience and no understanding of covert ops is the one Flagg put in charge. Is she sleeping with him or something? Of course she didn't say that out loud.

"I've got a unitool and a blaster," she said. "The point of this is to go in quietly, not blasting everything and letting them know we're here. Once we get in, I should be able to slice the system without too much trouble."

She looked at the others. As always, she was the only one who had made an effort at disguise. Her hair was a dark blonde with lighter streaks, pulled back from her head in an tight bun that met Imperial standards while she'd temporarily changed her eyes to blue with the coloring drops. The 'new' Black Sheep flight suits that Kayn had boasted of were, as she suspected, old Imp technicians uniforms. She had the necessary Imp insignia and identifications for a security contractor, so she was questioned she might --possibly-- pass muster. "Do we have a specific destination in mind or are we just headed towards the array command center?"

"Flagg mentioned a bunker, I'm assuming its the array command center, so that's our target. You probably heard but another group is splitting off and going toward the landing platform. They're taking those speeder bikes you mentioned, Max. We're to space out from the other squads in front of us to make sure we're not all wiped out by an ambush. I see we're a bit short on firepower. I only have my service pistol. Clark brought all the good weaponry and seems to be using it as he's part of the QRF," Lou explained.

"It's been awhile since I've done any ground pounding if at all. Max you have any tips to share with the rest of us? You have the most experience here. Although perhaps Traer has some as well?" Lou asked.

She wasn't sure about Amber. Maybe there was more to her than met the eye.

Max shrugged. "Stay low, one eye on the ground for traps, one eye on the sky and the trees for cams. Hand signals to communicate." She looked at Traer. "You?"

Traer pulled a face. "I mean, we're going in direct, the other Flights are distractions in a way."

"We should have at least one or two surprises with us, in-case we're picked up. A straight-up approach is a guarantee of a problem." He scratched the back of his head, pushing through his hangover. "One of my favorite tricks during the war was to wire up Mouse Droids to sneak ahead as both spies but also equipped with flashbangs or ECM jammers. It's easy to get Mouse Droids, they're everywhere, doing little maintenance and carrying messages and data updates. So we won't need to exactly requisition them."

"I'm just worried that a pretty formation isn't going to make much difference if something goes wrong with the rest of the Sheep, and we're noticed. We need to be able to independently solve our own problems. If we go in standard-like, we're relying upon evac or someone else and that gets people killed."

He hesitated. "After the big droid switch off we couldn't just send an army of B1s to overwhelm a target."

Max shrugged, took a few steps, and scanned the sky. She nodded to Digger, who was at the top of the ramp. She was going to try to relay as much info to him as she could, especially if she could bounce it off the solar array. There would be so much traffic coming and going, it was unlikely they'd catch this.

Lou took one look at the forest and shook her head. This all seemed so surreal. The entire mission.

“Let’s move out,” Lou said, “watch one another and may the Force be with us.”

Traer schooled his expression to neutrality. "Yes, lets."

'Watch one another' is going to get us all killed.

He was mentally prepared to take command if he needed to.

He checked his pistol over, did a mental check of what he had to hand, and followed along.

Watching.

Amber listened to the older man, he seemed to be making plans they had no provision for. They had little to nothing, and the best she could offer was her 'abilities' and at best they were sketchy. She subconsciously reached down and touched the longer pouch down the side of her blaster, it was almost un noticed, but she had the lightsaber. The few training sessions she'd had with Ethan had given her a little confidence, but she hoped she'd not have to use it.

Lou said they were moving out and she looked to Traer, as he would be her opposing point when his sarcasm hit her. She felt it like a bucket of water had been poured on her, he didn't trust them.

He was sure they were going to fail.

Their team at least.

Turning away she gave a nod to Lou. "Ready." She stated, wanting to prove 'the new guy', wrong.

With Max on point, they moved into the trees.

Tag: @Bardan_Jusik; @Adalia-Durron; @Sinrebirth; @Mistress_Renata; @Corellian_Outrider; @Mitth_Fisto; @The Real Kyp Durron; @adaml83; @galactic-vagabond422; @TheAdmiral; @Sarge; @Rebecca_Daniels

 

~IC~ Captain Cassell ‘Skipper’ Wystari
Location: Valkyria ‘Landing Zone’ - “SERENITY NOW!”

A duck once said, ‘Any landing you can walk away from is a successful landing.’

Well, something along those lines. As much as it pained him, Cassell knew they were very fortunate. Reverting back to realspace too early and they would have been spotted and cannon fodder. Too late and they would be subatomic particles.

The ruptured fuel lines certainly put a damper on their parade. Again, he told himself that It could be worse. If the coolant lines had ruptured, that would have flooded the ship and would have some ill effects on the passengers of the Valkyria.

Upon completing his inspection, Cassell joined the small assembly. Arms folded in front of his chest, he stood back with the others while Flagg broke them down into teams. The flak that was directed at Harley was unfairly fired for their current predicament. Kayn spoke up in her defence and Cassell nodded In agreement. He couldn’t help but chuckle at Harley’s response then clapped a hand on both Harley and Kayn’s shoulder.

“The ship can be patched up easily. The fact we are having this discussion at all is an indication that the plan to get here is successful.”

Cassell stepped back as he felt a tug on his elbow and looked down to find Zephyr beside him.

“My name didn’t get called out. Which party am I to be the life of?”

“Look like you are staying behind.” Cassell answered.

“Eh.” Zephyr shrugged. “Someone has to ensure these droids stay on target.”

Cassell smirked. “Better you than I.”

“Just give me access to the armoury and you’ll see how efficient I can get these droids operating.”

Cassell gave her a double take then shook his head.

As they were dismissed, Akiva joined his side and asked ‘what do they have to work with, how they were to tackle this?’

With a hand, Cassell waved Harley and Ianna over to join them as well. “We’ll get the bikes down and then go over what we have to work with. I’m sure I’ve got some canisters and cables for use to use.”

Cassell ducked and moved under the freighter. Reaching up, he popped a panel and pushed a button. A whine of machinery and hydraulics as the lift platform for the cargo hold started lowering. There was enough clearance for it to fully extend down, bringing the jumpspeeders, in their collapsed configuration, along with it.

Stepping onto the platform, Cassell pulled himself up through the opening and sat on the edge. He felt Harley bump into him as she did the same thing as he glanced about the cargo hold.

“Got several empty pressurised canisters... several metres of cables and hosing in that storage locker along with an assortment of spare parts. Three of these speeders are functioning and I suppose the fourth can be used for parts if need be... we have to rig up something. I don’t want to risk our lives unnecessarily. We collect only what we need. We don’t have to worry too much about hyperspace, it’s the sublights that guzzle the fuel. We need enough for us to clear the atmosphere and make the jump. Anything extra is a bonus but I don’t want to push our luck. I can take us to one of those trading stations to top up on fuel if we need it and take the long way back to our command ship.”

TAG: @Adalia-Durron @adaml83 @Anedon @Bardan_Jusik @darthbernael @galactic-vagabond422 @Mistress_Renata @Mitth_Fisto @Rebecca_Daniels @Sarge @Sinrebirth @TheAdmiral @The Real Kyp Durron @Vehn

 

~OOC~ Special thanks to @Mitth_Fisto and @galactic-vagabond422 for this joint post between us.

~IC~ Captain Cassell ‘Skipper’ Wystari, Flight Officer Harley ‘Wildcard’ Quinn + Flight Officer Akiva ‘Wolf’ Lurell + Flight Officer Ianna Kid’ Mcear.
Location: Cargo Hold - Valkyria - SERENITY NOW!!!

Harley looked about while twirling a lock of hair about her finger.

“There’s an awful lot of stuff to set up in the short time we have. Why don’t we rock up and take one of their repulsorlift sleds?“

“Ahh, that might attract attention and under mine the success of the other teams.” Cassell answered. “We don’t know how they store them and the conditions-“

“All their bases are the same. And we go in ‘stealth mode’.” Harley empathised with her fingers . “It’s simple and you said you rather simplicity because of how messy complex plans can go. If the site is not going to be there much longer. Why don’t we just speed it along? Live free or die hard?”

Cassell nodded. “Will kept that under advisement. Anyone else?”

Akiva 'Wolf' looked at Harley with the blank, 'You must be kidding me' expression. Realizing she wasn't and that this was actually a possibility she shook her head. "I've been against this mission from the start, so why not my last minute part of it. Whatever you want Captain, we either need to double time the loading here in safety, or have to search and then double time inside the enemy base."

Ianna was still sitting down closing her eyes tight. Her head was ringing, her eyesight just a little fuzzy. The nausea wasn't so bad anymore. A quick look over by someone with some kind of medical training told her she had a concussion. That made sense. In the rough landing she was tossed about a little bit, slamming her head into the bulkhead. Luckily she had a helmet that kept it from being worse. Letting out a breath she nodded her head to the plan.

"I can keep watch from here." She held up her rifle. "I got a scope from one of the marines back on the 'Trepid. I can be...Over...Over...Overwatch...I think they called it."

Cassell regarded each of them with a thoughtful look and gave a nod.

“I agree Akiva... with the timing and information at hand...” he shook his head. “Alas, we are here now and we just have to make the most of what we have. Plan A... I feel we should at least rig up one of the speeders as a tanker. Weld some rods to the rear end to make a cage to support the container and distribute weight. We can put together a kit to go with it. A spare pump and hose. Hook it up to one of the fuel silos transfer over. Ianna?”

Cassell regarded the young lady with concern. Since her injury in the landing, he didn’t want to push her. Would it be best for her to remain behind to recover? She knows how her body and head feels best, give her the option.

“If you do feel well enough, we follow your suggestion and have you up on a ridge as overwatch. Spot targets, keep an eye on our progress and provide cover... if not, and you’d rather recover, that is fine too. However you feel. Ah, remind me I best get us a few headsets so we can communicate with each other on a closed channel.”

Cassell then looked over to Harley. “If any of this starts to fall apart-“

“Plan B?” Harley interrupted wide-eyed enthusiastically.

“Plan B. We find that sled of yours. Take what we can and make like the wind-“

“-Or steal a ship.” Harley added.

Cassell raised a brow. “Steal a ship?”

“Or not.” She waved her hand to dismiss the idea and shrugged. “Whatever.”

There was something there with that option... if they secure a ship and get it clear of the defences. Cassell tried to work out what use that could be. To siphon the fuel from it or...tow.

“Plan C.” He said. “I’m not dismissing it. Though the aim is to infiltrate without alerting them to our presence. The sled is less obvious a target than a ship but we’ll when we get there and assess the situation. Plan for the worse, hope for the best.” He looked to everyone. “How does that sound?”

Akiva rubbed her chin and sighed at all that had been talked about. Honestly stealing a ship and getting some distance between her and the ground sounded best to her, but that wasn't the mission. Actually that could be bad for the mission. "Sounds good. Although with backups. . . Do we need to look like pirates or down on our luck smugglers? Just in case we get seen, maybe throw them off the scent of the others?"

Ianna just shrugged her shoulders, her head still a little fuzzy. She didn't really have anything else to add, not that she was really clear headed enough to plan.

"I'll keep an eye on you guys, giving you updates, should make sneaking around easier."

Cassell smiled at Ianna’s response and then looked to Akiva.

“Pirates or mercs, maybe. Though they might just as well shoot us on the spot without any questions. It would be nice if we had some Imperial or Republic uniforms on hand. I don’t think my original gear would fit me. Oh... However...” He looked to the three of them and then chuckled. “...I suppose we could dress up as nobility...” he deepened his voice to be more bombastic. “... off on a picnic and doing a spot of safari. I heard the Nexu are feisty on Malastare this time of year.”

“A picnic and a safari?” Harley gave him an odd look. “Probably have them questioning our sanity, it might confuse them too. Heh! I am all for dress ups but I’m not wearing leather. Not in this heat.”

With a raised brow Akiva shrugged all four shoulders at the Captain, "I can't pass for Imperial, but whatever you think is best. Personally with any warning, I don't mind a firefight. So long as I'm not pushing a full fuel canister."

“Hopefully it doesn’t come to a fire fight.” Cassell chuckled. “If we do the safari guise, Akiva... forgive me, as I know this might come across as insensitive... but you can be our great hunter and guide. This is all on the chance we are caught and interrogated. Just a well-off uncle, taking his nieces on a safari with promise of tracking some rare prize... like... a kliknik or something. You won’t have to blend in. I’ve got the gear...” he arched his brow looking to everyone. “Yes? No? Make it up as we get there?”

“All this for a can of fuel?” Harley whispered and pulled a face. “Sure, gotcha back, Mistah W.” She said with enthusiasm. “Let’s role play! Once the blasting starts, it’s my turn.”

---

It took some time to prepare. While they diverted Matey away to help rig up one of the speeders, Cassell (with Zephyr’s help) set about fabricating a set of identities for the team. The key was to make them related in some way while Akiva to play one of the great Codru-Ji hunters to be their guide.

It might be all for naught but it’s best to be prepared, despite the lack of enthusiasm from everyone else.

Clothing wise they could get away with their fatigues but they needed something more. He gave Harley and Ianna some jewellery, left overs from the haul they recovered some time ago, every detail to have on them to give the impression that they were wealthy. A pouch of credits for Akiva to hint that her services was being paid for.

“I expect all of this back afterwards...“ Cassell said.

Harley inspected the gemstone on the pendant under the lighting. “If ya giving jewellery to a lady, it’s not polite to ask for it back.”

“True...” Cassell said. “However, unlike the snubfighters the Alliance looks after, the Valkyria’s maintenance and upkeep is mostly out of my own pocket-“ he stopped and shook his head. “Fine. Though next mission I’ll need to track down something of value to compensate, or do another mail run.”

Zephyr called out that the rig for the canisters was set and their gear are on the speeders.

“Aiight...” Cassell clapped his hands together. “I suppose it is time to depart on this ‘safari’. Let’s get underway!”

TAG: @Bardan_Jusik @galactic-vagabond422 @Mitth_Fisto