Star Wars OPEN Star Wars: Kain's Heroes (Always Accepting New Players)

Connor Neil
Kasey Valley, northern Skarn

Everything moved in a blur for the young man, at one point he was making his way across a spar the next he was setting a bomb, then removing that bomb and now he was facing down 10 stormtroopers. Well less now thanks to his comrades. He dove for cover since that was what his body told him to do as blaster bolts started flying in. Poking his head out he saw the white armor of the stormtroopers and his blood began to boil. His hands tighten around his sword and blaster. Drawing them both he looked up fire burning in his eyes.

It was the flames of his family's homestead, the place he was born, his father was born his grandfather and so on. The Empire took that from him, and he did nothing. It was time for him to do something. To stand up and make the Empire pay. Taking a breath and waiting for a break in the fire he found his drive, the flame that energized him, that pushed him forward when others fell back.

Hearing the fire stop or at the very least turn away from him he stepped out from behind the stone he'd taken cover behind and rushed the lines of the stormtroopers. His blaster chirped sending bolt after bolt down range burying the troopers in fire. He was his own suppressive fire, keeping the stormies' heads down as he rushed forward. One stepped out and he quickly turned the steaming barrel of his blaster toward him catching him in the chest with 3, 5, maybe 6 bolts, hard to count when you just hold down the trigger and point it in the general direction of your foe. Another white clad soldier rushed toward the madman. Connor turned lashing out with his blade and letting it bite into the neck of his aggressor. It was a short chop not enough to remove the head from the cradle of the shoulders but good enough to kill.

Pulling the blade out he let the lifeless body fall to the ground. The other troopers regaining their senses raised their weapons again and Connor charged them, he leveled his pistol again, and pulled the trigger.

A weak sputter was all it gave...he was out of shots...time to improvise, or hope for some divine intervention. Bringing his blade up he brought it down in a fast overhead chop that the nearest stormtrooper caught by turning their blaster sideways to stop the edge's deadly course. Connor was strong but so was the trooper helped along by the fight or flight instinct now flooding his mind. It was a stalemate but a beneficial one. With the trooper in front of him, his allies were at the very least taking a second to consider if they wished to kill their comrade in arms. They would no doubt come to their senses and blast their brother-in-arms in the back and finish off Connor but for now...their blasters were silent...though not for long.

TAG: @Sarge @Bodhran777 @Mistress_Renata @TheAdmiral @Vehn @Anedon @Bardan_Jusik

 

Reva Cambrion
Kasey Valley, Skarn

Reva smiled gratefully at Ronan. She opened her mouth to thank him, but he'd already turned back to the job at hand. Of course. There was really no time for introductions in a firefight. She would thank him later, and introduce herself. Carefully she took the gun in both hands. It was probably her imagination, but it was almost humming, vibrating in her palm. She moved back to the rock, and peered around it cautiously, staying low.

Aim small, miss small. She looked at the trooper closest to her and raised the weapon. Steady your breathing. She took a deep breath, and exhaled, then fired. Her hand was shaking, and her first shot went wide. Her second shot hit his arm, but the third sent him sprawling backwards. Reva froze. Did I kill him?

She swallowed hard. She was a healer. She'd have to think of the implications later. She poked her head out again, but the young man who had climbed up the pylon with her was moving, charging the Stormtroopers. She watched in astonishment as he emptied his weapon, then drew a knife and stabbed one at the joint of the helmet and the armor. What was he doing? The other troopers were turning to him, but she didn't dare take a shot. She'd probably hit him.

TAG: Anyone

 

IC: Jori Atreus
Kasey Valley, Northern Skarn

Things were moving very fast. She had managed to find some cover. She was no good in a fight so she drew her cam and decided to shoot some footage. Jori found a good place where it could capture the scene more or less properly. The battle seemed savage and she was not sure how she could help them.

Jori put the camera and managed to secure it. So far the Stormtroopers had not noticed her yet. When she was sure that the camera was stable and shooting the footage Jori went prone and started crawling. She needed to find a good position where she could open fire.

It did not take long. The position did not seem perfect but that would do. She reached back and grabbed her blaster. Jori tried to take aim. There were a couple of troopers shooting at the others. She turned off the safety and pressed the trigger. A stream of crimson blasts flew towards the enemy. She somehow managed to miss her targets.

That drew the attention of the Stormtroopers. They opened fire, they were not expert marksman as well. Plumes of dirt flew around. Small pebbles fell on her further throwing off her aim. She had beat herself into a corner, there was no running away now. “Little help here!” Jori screamed at her teammates. Then something miraculously happened as she somehow managed to make a headshot, sending molten pieces of helmet and blood. That made his comrade shoot at her even harder. “Help!” she screamed once again.

TAG: @Bardan_Jusik @Vehn @Bodhran777 @galactic-vagabond422 @Mistress_Renata @Anedon @Sarge

 

GM Update
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IC: Elim Kain/Jaimie Pathfinder (NPC)/Professor Heisn (NPC)
Kasey Valley, northern highlands, Skarn

Taking cover behind a conspicuously large boulder, Kain's position was peppered by Imperial blaster fire that began to slacken off as the other members of his squad picked off the Stromtroopers ones by one. The drop off in incoming fire allowed for the rebel leader to peek his own head around the improvised cover in time to see one well placed shot from Ronaan down one of the gunships which had been lining up it's own attack run. The other gunship soon came under fire from Pathfinder's rotary blaster, and though the shots all seemed to miss the gunship, the effect of the rapid fire followed so soon after it's wingman's demise led to the gunship peeling off from it's own attack run before it really got started. Pointing it's nose to the sky, the remaining gunship instead clawed for altitude and began to orbit the battlefield from high above, out of range of the Hero's own blasters but also unable to fire back down on them with any measurable accuracy. Kain smiled even as he refocused his attention on the remaining stormtroopers. The gunship was out of the fight. That left just the few remaining surviving whiteshells to take care of.

Poking his head once again out from behind cover Kain unleashed a series of well aimed shots, taking down first one and then another stormtrooper. He was about to take out a third when Connor rushed at the wavering line of troopers, obscuring Kain's line of sight on his target. By the time things calmed down after the sudden attack, the last stormtrooper had been killed. Looking skyward Kain half expected the last gunship to come down towards them to rain fire upon them, but instead it retired form the area, speeding off towards it's base. It seemed the Imperial pilots had seen enough.

"OK, gather what you can from the bodies. Radios, blasters, ammo, med kits...whatever you can." Kain told his squad. "You have five minutes." The last of the roaring behind them echoed off into the distance now as the civilian train sped along past. The Heroes had given them quite the show Kain thought, but now was the time to get gather what they could and get out of here. "Pathfinder, keep an eye out for more Imps..."

---

​

A week later, a pub in the Central Highlands

"...so we managed to sabotage their bikes while they were out looking for Windsong," Pathfinder was saying to the half dozen or so patrons at the bar who were totally infatuated with this story, even though it was his third time telling it to them. At their table in a corner of the bar Kain meanwhile finished off his ale before motioning for another from the comely waitress. It had taken a week for them to get here, back to safe territory, from their abortive attack on the railway line. The first three days had been spent being hounded by patrolling stormtroopers and roving lances of scout troopers, all hot on the heels of the "terrorists" that had "attacked" the civilian train.

Imperial reports of course had focused on the damage to the train itself, the carbon scored pockmarks caused by the blaster bolts that had impacted against the metal sides. Naturally those blasts had been blamed on rebel fire, fire that had been aimed at killing civilians. It was only through the bravery of an Imperial squad that had given their lives in the defense of the people that the rebels had been driven off before even a single civilian had been wounded or killed. The resistance knew better of course, it was all fake news. The Imperials were the ones who had fired on the train indiscriminately in their efforts to subdue the rebel fighters. Those on the train, the ones who had witnessed the attack knew better too, and slowly, through word of mouth, that truth was spreading among the planet's population. Most knew better than to trust Imperial propaganda by now anyway.

The waitress brought Kain drink, and as he brought it to his lips he surveyed the small pub once again. There were maybe a dozen or so patrons, six of whom were crowded around Pathfinder as he began his tale for the fourth time, here aside from the heroes. Mostly human, they were all sympathizers to the cause. Over near the doorway the rebel band had stacked their long arms, which were under the watchful eye of Professor Heisn, while each member still of course carried a sidearm on his or her belt. Their heavier equipment, comms gear and the like along with Pathfinder's Z-6 were still outside, packed with the animals and under Windsong's care. The Sephi hadn't done much in terms of combating the Imperials, but had now taken on a familiar role of keeping with the animals while the rest of the Heroes took the fight to the Empire. Now even in a safe haven she stuck to her role, one that kept her away from the rest of the troops, but that seemed to suit her just fine. She seemed more comfortable with the animals anyway.

Putting his mug down he looked to the other members of his squad. Some sat at the table with him, their backs to the wall in order to keep an eye on the door, while others mingled about the room. It was good they could sit here and relax after an arduous week in the field. They all needed to come to terms with what they had done, and with what they hand't. "Hey Pathfinder!" Heisn called out from his place near the door. "Did you actually hit anything while we were out there?" The Professor sounded exasperated at hearing the exploits again, especially since Pathfinder always emphasized how Heisn had dropped his pack of explosives. Pathfinder stopped in the midst of his story as Kain pursed his lips. It was a good question,, he couldn't remember Pathfinder actually hitting anyone or anything though he had sprayed copious amounts of blaster fire from his rotary blaster.

"I drove off the second gunship remember?" Pathfinder said, eyeing the patrons near him who were looking at him with wavering adoration now. "Without actually hitting it though right?" Heisn persisted. "I mean how could miss a target that big?" He started to move away from his position near the door, but Kain stood up and waved him back down even as Pathfinder replied. "I didn't see you even pick up a blaster 'mister. I dropped the bomb.'" He shook his head as the patrons at the bar laughed. That too was true, Heisn often claimed his disdain for blasters, his fear of them even, though he had no issue with putting together his explosive devices.
"Enough you two," Kain got up and moved in between the bar and the door. "Save it for the Empire." the pair of civilians turned soldiers looked at him and then again at each other before begrudgingly nodding their agreement. It was then that the bartender chimed in, looking for a way to cut through the tension. "Too bad you didn't turn back that troop train though, I heard there were a couple of big walkers on it." Kain snapped his head over to look at him, a frown forming on his face. "Heard the Empire used 'em to start a massive push towards the factory sector of the city." Kain's frown deepened as he looked to his rag tag fugitive band. maybe this wasn't the time for celebration after all.

TAG: @galactic-vagabond422 @Bodhran777 @Mistress_Renata @TheAdmiral @Vehn @Sarge @Anedon @The Jedi in the Pumas @RIP.CommanderPonds

OOC: OK, we'll use the next few posts here in the pub to recruit our new members (assume you characters are there in the pub too JediPuma and Ponds) as well as a bit of character building time as our characters come to terms with the battle they just fought. Feel free to fill in the blanks (and i left plenty of them) regarding the days spent evading Imperial patrols on the way to the safe territory. From there I'll get us started on our next mission. Also, from here on out we'll use @Adalia-Durron's Windsong character to hold onto the animals during our firefights.

 

IC: Chrondarr
Troubled Spirits

Chrondarr slept. But he did not rest. He raised his crossbow, squeezed the trigger, and the arrow flew unerringly to the stormtrooper and ripped open the man's throat. Blood poured down the white armor, and all over Chrondarr's hands and arms and body and soul.

He sat up rapidly, blinking away sleep. The campfire burned low, and the people around him breathed deeply, or snored softly. The one on sentry duty looked his way, waved casually to indicate all was well, and turned away to guard against the darkness of the night.

Chrondarr looked at the fire, still absorbed in the dreams that had been troubling him. Flames. Coynite legends spoke of the purifying power of fire. Could fire cleanse the blood from his hands? He reached out to the crackling embers, felt the heat on his skin. The pain finally brought him back from the dream world completely and he jerked back before he did himself any damage.

Trying to quiet his spirit, he breathed deeply as he sat quietly. The faint breeze shifted, blowing smoke in his face. He managed to stifle his coughing, not waking any of the others.

He sat staring into the fire as the smoke blew in his burning eyes and tears leaked down his cheeks. Flames slowly spread across the broken logs. Clean wood, pure and strong, blackened and crumbled as he watched.


TAG: Honored Spirits of the Ancestors

 

Jal Wuu
-The Pub

Jal was a massively thick human. And it would take a lot to get him drunk. But Jal knew that and always accepted the challenge on the times when it presented itself. If one were to ask him in his current state of drunken stupor, he would be unable to tell them that he had just spent the last few days dismantling an imperial droid, selling it for parts, and evading the imperial troops once the serial numbers from the droid parts were traced back to him.

He was on the run, but to Jal that didn't seem to register. He had just continued doing what he had planned. He was not foolish. Jal was not of the opinion that he was some criminal mastermind or advanced freedom fighter that could evade the imperials or take on a patrol by himself. But he had wanted to get a drink, or several, before beginning the trek back home to Pa, and dammit, he was determined to get his drink. The thoughts of being captured were a problem for future Jal, but present Jal was preoccupied. There were some people in the pub and they were saying words that, had he been sober, Jal would've understood. But he wasn't and so he misunderstood, but had joined in the chorus of laughter that several other patrons had started.

They were passing around free drink after all.

He heard someone mention the Empire and from there Jal's liquid courage started to rise.

"I've...*burp* had me ole ruins wit de Emperor... ugh...Empiire."

Jal slammed both fists down on the bar and laughed. "Boys'll be catchin up to me too late. I'd gripp'd the last patrol's prot-col droid!"

Tag: Heroes!

 

Connor Neil
Pub

"Right," Connor said, putting down his ale after taking a huge gulp. "There I was, my pistol was out of power and I was staring down three stormtroopers. I rush the closest one bringing my sword down, he defends by blocking with his blaster. I have him locked down but his comrades already have their weapons raised ready to perforate me, and kill their squadmate in the process." The young man paused looking to his 'audience' a few young men and women his age, a child or two listening with rapt attention. "Seeing this I spun the trooper around and scratched the detonator from his belt. Arming it, I gave my dance partner a boot to his backside and tossed the armed detonator at the last two troopers, sending them diving for cover. But, not before they gave me a parting gift." He pulled away the collar of his shirt revealing a still healing wound near his shoulder. "A few more centimeters to the right and I'd be a goner." He caught the shocked expressions from the ladies gathered. "As they hid, I collected a blaster from one of their fallen brethren and ended all three of them." The men smiled and smirked. Was he embellishing, yes most certainly, but it would be up to the others in Kain's outfit to correct the record.

"After that I kept the blaster I had taken, borrowing a few more detonators and one of their fancy belts." he pulled away his coat to reveal the now suitably darkened and roughed up utility belt around his waist. "Let me tell you it came in handy while the we were avoiding the troopers looking to take my hide." He smiled leaning in. "They were hot on my heels and I was running through the mountains. Coming to a small valley I saw my chance a tree growing out of the rock face. Hastily I pulled out a length of wire and attached it to the grappling hook. As my feet reached the edge I threw the hook and it just wrapped around a strong enough branch to hold my weight. With a final leap I swung out into the sky and across the valley. The stormies couldn't follow me, just fire their blasters fruitlessly at my retreating back." He finished off his drink smiling again ready to launch into another story...at least he was having fun.

TAG: The Other Heroes in the Pub.

 

Combo with @Adalia-Durron


IC: Chrondarr, Tauriel
Stable

Chrondarr had eaten enough, and drank enough, and heard more than enough inside the pub. Much more than enough. Some of his new companions were making themselves foolish with firewater. Their celebrations at killing each other were too much for him. He quietly stepped outside, looked up at the night sky, and tried to offer rest to the spirit of the man he'd killed. Again, his prayers were but words with no spirit of truth, no comfort to the slain, no forgiveness for the slayer.

He turned to the stables; even if he couldn't do anything for the dead, he still needed to care for the living, including his mount. The tris stood in a stall and eyed him resentfully. Chrondarr knew it would be perfectly safe and secure (and more content) if it were loose to wander as tris did in Coynite villages, but The Beast tended to intimidate many of the other peoples of Skarn. Better for them if Chu'la stayed out of sight.

A faint scrape caught his ear. The one with skin like a summer flower was seated behind him, sharpening arrows.

She'd seen him come in, checking she was doing the right thing of course. It was her job after all to feed the beasts and be quiet and utterly useless to them. "He's fine." She muttered as she slipped her arrows away along with the sharpening stone. "You can go back to your party." She sounded bitter, she was.

"Not my party." His voice was low and flat. "There is nothing here that is cause for celebrations." He patted Chu'la's neck, the rubbing motion that communicated all was well, and The Beast accepted the signal, though it sensed that Chrondarr's spirit was as troubled as it had been since the battle.

Tauriel snorted. "Nothing in war is celebratory. It's never pretty and it's always painful." She stood up and sniffed slightly. "It's the cause that keeps us fighting. Without that it's pointless....." She shrugged. "Lives are lost, we sacrifice our morals and scruples. Well you do." She gave her head a shake. "I feed the beasts." Bending she scooped up her bow arrows.

Chrondarr frowned. "Cause? What is your cause?"

She turned to him. "You don't have a reason to be here? Freedom, from the Empire." Her world had not seen much as yet, but as she was out in the larger galaxy, she was able to see the bigger picture. She slipped her bow over her shoulder. "I'm here because I want to resist."

"What good will that do? As I understand it, they rule thousands of worlds and if we resist, they can bury us with their soldiers." He took a currying brush from a saddle bag on the floor and worked at the tris' left haunch, where an old scar occasionally troubled The Beast. Chu'la whuffed out a contented sigh. "Or simply destroy our world."

"And that sits well with you?" She asked. "So why are you here?" She asked as she put her quiver around her waist. "What makes your blood hot?"

"I am too old for hot blood. Kain was crossing my hunting territory, so I chose to help him cross it more quickly, only wanting everyone to go and leave the highlands quiet. But there is less quiet to find every season."

She understood that and looked to the ground, pushing a bit of straw with her booted toe. "That's not going to happen." She looked up. "I'm sorry my friend. The Empire is here and in time your home will be taken from you." she added quietly. "You will have two choices."

Chrondarr continued to work the brush. After a long moment he said quietly, "Kill or be killed?"

She folded her arms and shrugged. "It's coming to that, not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon. I have family at home, I want to fight to stop them having to." She glanced out toward the tavern. "Not that anyone believes I'm capable of it."

Hearing the bitterness in her voice, Chrondarr turned and for the first time looked at her closely. "Are you?"

She leveled her gaze before in a swift single movement, she spun her bow, nocking an arrow, drawing and aiming. Split seconds later embedding the arrow in the wooden strut beside his head. Lowering her weapon slowly she asked. "What do you think?"

"Very fast. Very accurate." He drew a small knife, pushed the blade into the wood next to the arrowhead, and pried it out of the beam, being careful not to damage the arrow. "Have you shot a person?" He took a moment to admire the craftsmanship of her arrow before handing it down to her.

"Yes." she answered coolly. "Not my favorite target, but the need arose." she responded taking the shaft back and checking it.

"Your cause matters so much to you that you would do it again?"

She steeled herself, "Yes."

"Would you like me to hold the mounts so you can serve your cause when next we battle?"

She tilted her head. "Would you prefer that? I sense you don't wish to fight, maybe that would suit you better?" she suggested.

"It would. Shall we call this settled?" He offered his hand.

She looked at his hand for a brief moment, he seemed genuine so she took it. "Agreed."

As they shook, Chrondarr prayed for the woman. Let her spirit be healed of the bitterness in her heart. Let her soul be free of the stains of killing. For the first time since the battle, the dread in his own spirit faded. A little.


TAG: @Adalia-Durron

 

IC: Reva Nova
Pub

Reva pushed her plate away with a satisfied sigh. The game pie had been savory with a flaky, buttery crust and a lot of lovely, rich gravy. Just the thing on a damp spring evening. She sipped at the mug of syder, and leaned back in her chair. Across the room, she could hear Connor and the others boasting about the battle. It struck her as being a foolish thing to do. Although most of the people in the place seemed sympathetic, there were plenty who were listening with blank faces. No telling who they'd go running to when they left. She had some two of the utility belts taken from the troopers, and she wanted to see if there was anything useful in them, so she put her pack over her shoulder and wandered out back to the stable, bringing her mug with her.

She could see Chrondarr talking to Tauriel, and although they glanced at her, they were wrapped up in their own discussion. She would not disturb them. She wandered down the row of stalls to the one where her own mount, the nameless Thumper. It turned its head toward her, and grunted in greeting. She rubbed the side of its head, and then sat in the straw, spreading the saddle blanket out before opening her pack.

She pulled out the belts, her medical kit, and various other pouches and bundles, then carefully refolded her few garments and put them back in. Then she went through the belt of the storm trooper. Binders, some type of ID chits, some data cylinders... a small laser cutter, that could be used for surgeries. A few bacta patches, now those were valuable. Rope, grapple hook, small hand torch, extra power packs for their blasters...a few things that she couldn't identify.

She opened her medical roll, adding the laser cutters and the bacta patches. She stowed the other things, and then looked at the belts. The bright white metal would be very visible in the field.

Uncertainly, she went to her comrades. "Um, hey," she said. "Have you seen any paint around here? Only if we could repaint these, we could use them. Like camouflage. Because if we walk around them wearing them as they are, it's sort of a tip-off that we robbed the troopers."

TAG: @Adalia-Durron, @Sarge, Anyone

 

IC: Kell Lian
To the pub!

The past week had been a drag, Kell thought. As if fighting off the bucket heads had been bad enough at the rail, the patrols had kept them strung out and on high alert for days until they reached safe harbor. If it hadn’t been for their mounts, Kell was sure they’d all be dead on their feet from the long miles and weight of gear on their shoulders.

On the plus side, the fight at the tracks had produced a fair amount of new gear for them all, namely in weaponry. Beside his twin blasters, Kell had a new (to him) E-11, a full thermal detonator tube, and a few pieces of armor that he had been able to salvage, repurpose, and paint. The detonator tube had been a risky job, considering the Imps kept passcodes on the dispensers to discourage theft, but once cracked, the codes were handed out and any dispensers were handed out to the others too.

Once at the pub, Kell had finally managed to relax, helping play music while casually listening to others’ versions of the mission. Some of them were a bit embellished, but the other listeners didn’t know it. Don’t let the truth get in the way of a good story, his dad had said once. Others seemed to prefer being outside with the animals. Kell could see the large human name Chrondarr out taking care of his mount, though he couldn’t see who he was talking to. The man had fought with them, but Kell could sense he was not fond of it. He couldn’t blame him. Kell wasn’t a fan of the fighting either but did it out of a need to be rid of the Empire. He hoped one day, if he survived, to reopen his station back home to continue broadcasting.

After a bit of relaxing at the bar, Kell got up and went to find his radio equipment. After retrieving the comms gear, he set up at a small corner booth and began tuning into the airwaves, trying to catch any news, local or otherwise, that may give them some information. Most of the recent news had been the Imps’ spin on the train raid, which was utter garbage, but occasionally new bits would come through. With any luck, maybe they could get something worthwhile now that time had passed since the train job.

(OOC: Up to Bardan if he hears anything leading to a new mission)

TAG:
@Bardan_Jusik, Anyone else

 

IC: Jori Atreus
Pub

They had been on the run for some time since that disastrous mission. It was a stressful time and Jori did not have much time to examine the datapad that she managed to get from an officer’s body. But now, they were in a safe place. This pub reminded her of some of the places that she used to frequent to get some juicy scoop or try to find a potential source.

This time it was different. She was sitting in one of the corners, alone. Usually she would partake in the festivities, but she could not miss the opportunity. Her notepad was lying next to the datapad. It was ironic, these two items were both so similar yet so different. She sipped from her mug and frowned. The beer was a bit too bitter for her taste, also she could taste some herbs or whatever. Jori was after all a “big city girl”.

She pushed a strand of hair hanging in front of her face as she was jotting on her notebook. The datapad was left unlocked, or at least part of it. She managed to take the man’s code cylinder and had to do something that even now made her nauseous. Jori had to cut the thumb and wrap it in a piece of cloth. The information was mostly useless, but there were some names and ID numbers. She needed to check if any of them matched her list.

The problem was that the officer, Lieutenant Pat Jan, IO-1452, native from Corulag, was not high ranking and that limited the information that he could access. There were some personal files, Jori scoffed, the idiot had stored personal information on a service datapad. There were some information about the push at the factory sector. She wrote that down, she needed to talk with Kain about it. There should be a way to access that area, maybe there would be more clues as to what was going on on Skarn.

There seemed to be some sort of an argument, Jori rolled her eyes, so she looked around. She saw Kell sitting there in the opposite corner. He seemed to be good with tech, maybe he could slice in the datapad, to squeeze some more info from it. But first she needed to talk to Kain, she did not want to go behind his back and they had agreed that if she finds anything she should talk to him first. Besides she needed his approval to bring Kell in to this.

TAG: @Bardan_Jusik , Anyone

 

IC: Thomas Ronaan
One Week Later
Pub

Thomas had gotten separated from the others in their retreat from the fight for the train. It was a terrible mistake. The kind that rookies made. The kind that got people killed. He'd found himself across a river while his party moved on evading Imperial patrols eager to put an end to the never ending war that had erupted on Skarn. He'd hid in the bush, quietly, and slinked his way on the tail end of Kain's movements as he navigated his way toward the gathering point.

Imperial Scout Troopers roamed the forests and valleys on their speeder bikes. His ears had grown used to, and his mind haunted, by the tell tale whine of speeder engines racing through the trees and draws of the land. There had been times in the last few days where he'd nearly been apprehended. Saved only by his camouflage sniper suit. He'd slowly adapted the suit to fit in with each new surrounding everyday. A log here, a pile of sticks, even the charred earth where previous battles had been fought had served as useful hiding places. The war torn streets of Grad had taught him well about using every possible surrounding to his advantage.

He didn't mind roughing it a bit. He'd allowed himself to be pushed and to grow since leaving his teaching post. Not like he'd left that job willingly. The war had ripped him away from his passion. So he'd decided at that point to rip away the lives of those who oppressed Skarn, He'd long since eclipsed the known body count of students that had perished in the bombing of his school. At that point, however, he'd also stopped counting. He was no longer the same man. He was a dangerous tool in the hands of Kain's Heroes. The shot against the gunship had proven as much to the others. Not that he needed to prove anything.

He'd arrived at the pub. Finally. Wet and soaked but alive.

Thomas slipped his long rifle to where the others had stacked their arms and quickly grasped an ale. He downed it quickly as Pathfinder mouthed off about driving off the second gunship.

"Driving off and actually hitting it are two separate things," Thomas groused through his second ale, "and had I not taken out the first one you may have very well died, Pathfinder. Keep that in mind while you inflate your stats and talk about things you didn't do. Maybe when you're done you can put yourself to use. Clean my rifle. Wipe the mud off my boots."

Thomas returned to his drink. The dark thoughts had returned. Thoughts of home, of his students, and the war that had taken everything from him.

Even his soul.

Tag: @Bardan_Jusik; @Sarge; @galactic-vagabond422; @Mistress_Renata; @TheAdmiral; @Adalia-Durron ; @Anedon

 

GM Update
​

IC: Elim Kain/Jaimie Pathfinder (NPC)
A pub in the Central Highlands, Skarn

The frown still on his face at what he had been told by the barkeep, Kain went back to Lian's table as he mulled things over for a bit. Their mission had been a failure, the train had made it's way to Grad and even now the troops and equipment that has been aboard were doing the Empire's work. He swirled the ale in his mug as he wondered just what he should do about that when he heard a large man exclaim drunkenly, "I've...*burp* had me ole ruins wit de Emperor... ugh...Empiire." That piqued Kain's interest, as did what he said next. "Boys'll be catchin up to me too late. I'd gripp'd the last patrol's prot-col droid!"

Kain wasn't sure what the drunken human meant by that, but it was clear he'd done something to an imperial protocol droid, something the Imps wouldn't be too pleased about. Kain brought his mug to his lips and swallowed another mouthful of ale. The man seemed the sort they could use. Not very bright, but he looked like he could lift heavy things. He exchanged glances with Neil and Pathfinder, that one was a potential recruit.

Meanwhile static and garbled messages were wafting through the Ardennian's comm gear. Most of it was stuff Kain couldn't make out, either as a result of static or drink, though he was sure Lian understood at least some of it.

"...as elements of the Imperial Army's 14th Armored unit pushed the insurgents from Grad's factory district..."

That came in loud and clear to Kain whose frown grew even deeper at the news. The 14th Armored was the unit that had been on that train. Their failure then had directly caused the deaths of other rebels. That's if they could believe the propaganda. Kain set his mug down on the table as another voice called to him.

"Believe it," Kain looked up and saw the form of Connor Lobos, the leader of the Immortals, flanked by one of his men, Mack Cloudwalker whose outstretched arms enveloped Kain in a massive bear hug.

​

"Good to see you alive," the younger man said to Kain and Lian. "We heard about your escapade with the train." He jerked a thumb over to Pathfinder and Neil whose stories had been circulating now through the pub. Kain followed the gesture and saw Mack's cousin Dunc Cloudwalker there at the bar ordering his own drink. He flashed an arrogant smile at Kain.

​

"You know, sometimes I wish there was just one of you." Kain quipped to Mack as he was released. "They get that a lot." Lobos answered for him before pointing to the Lian's comm gear. "We were among the insurgents kicked out of the factory district." That piqued Kain's interest. "Lot's of fighting going on there now, too hot for even us so we pulled out." Kain looked around the bar. He knew of at least two others that had been a part of the Immortals. He caught a glimpse of one with Dunc, but not the other.

"Kurkan?" Kain asked, barely concealing the hope in his voice. Lobos laughed in reply. "You're not that lucky, he's out in the stables with the mounts." Kain considered that briefly for a moment before downing the rest of his ale. "Too bad..."

---

IC: Professor Heisn (NPC)
Stables

Tired of the infighting, and properly put in his place by Kain and the others, Heisn had retreated from the pub and gone outside. For him the frivolity and drinking was at an end, it was time to get back to work, and in the saddlebags of his mount, the eopie named Jessie in the stables, he had the makings for several more improvised explosives. Assembling those would help put his nerves at ease.

He wasn't the first to leave though, Reva and Skarnsson and preceded him in leaving the pub and had also gone to the stables where Windsong and Chrondarr had also set up shop. Heisn did his best to ignore them all as he went straight to Jesse and opened up the saddlebag.

"What do you have there worm?" the loud gravelly voice from behind him startled Heisn, and he was almost afraid to turn around. Steeling himself he did so only to be greeted with the fearsome sight of a rather tall and intimidating human.

​

"Who...are you?" Heisn blurted out, hoping his fellow rebels would hear him and interject themselves into the situation. The man he faced was clearly a warrior, a soldier in another cell perhaps, or even a loner a mercenary. In any case he was far too much for the former chemistry professor to handle. The man had a large vibroblade in his hand, and a clone trooper's blaster rifle slung over his back. Behind him a group of five horses had recently been bedded down. "I'm Kurkan, of the Immortals, and I asked you a question." He smiled an ugly smile. "Worm."

TAG: @Adalia-Durron @Sarge @Anedon @Mistress_Renata

OOC: I do hope some of you have seen Highglander.

---

IC: Elim Kain/Jaimie Pathfinder (NPC)
A pub in the Central Highlands, Skarn

"Driving off and actually hitting it are two separate things," Thomas groused to Pathfinder through his second ale, "and had I not taken out the first one you may have very well died, Pathfinder. Keep that in mind while you inflate your stats and talk about things you didn't do. Maybe when you're done you can put yourself to use. Clean my rifle. Wipe the mud off my boots." Anger flashed in the dark skinned man's eyes at the lack of respect from the former teacher, though a look and gesture from Kain told him to drop the matter and instead to check in on one of the others at the pub, a large human who had just said something about peeving off the Empire. Waving Neil over to help the two Hero's approached the large man, who had clearly had several drinks too many and offered to buy him another. "So, we hear you've no love for the Empire," Pathfinder began...

Kain smiled inwardly as he saw Pathfinder and Neil make first contact with the potential recruit before he returned his attention to the Immortals who had slid in the booth he shared with Lian. "That's right, that attack they're talking about on the wave, we were in the thick of it." He called over for a mug of ale from the waitress. "We were scouting the factory district for an attack, but the Imps have it locked down tight." He shook his head as the waitress brought him hs ale and he took a long swing. "And that was before the walkers showed up, huge monstrous things. They pushed out from the factory district into the rest of the city. There's major battles going on there now, between various cells and the Empire, but we bugged out while we could." Kain considered that for a moment. The Immortals didn't have a reputation for cowardice

"You ran?" he asked accusingly. "We relocated," Connor replied defensively. "We're going back, but not to the factory district, not until we find a way to deal with those walkers." Lobos explained more calmly. "First we wanted to spread the word to other cells here in the highlands that a major battle is going on there. The more chaos we can cause the better." Kain nodded at that as he looked down at the bottom of his empty mug. "Chaos huh?" Lobos put a reassuring hand on Kain's shoulder. "Chaos." At that Kain looked up and saw Atreus looking at them, she had said something earlier to him about the factory district in Grad, he waved her over as he looked back to Lobos. "I think we can handle chaos."

TAG: @galactic-vagabond422 @Bodhran777 @TheAdmiral @Vehn @The Jedi in the Pumas @RIP.CommanderPonds

OOC: Still in the recruitment phase here, but y'all can probably see where our next mission will end up taking us. Let's get the new recruits signed up so we can move along to grad here shortly. Any questions from anyone, ask me via PM or in the OOC thread.

 

IC: Geralt (After much delay, I'm sorry)

It had been a long day.

A young man had frantically stopped Geralt on the road, begging him to help his family. He was out of breath, the crushed grass behind him suggested he had run at a breakneck speed. The boy was very thin, his rag-like clothing and fur coat seeming several sizes too big. He was bleeding profusely from a leg wound- a gash from a claw. A very large animal- a bear?- had attacked him. Geralt knew all too well how common of a problem that was, especially in the mountainous regions of the Continent. The kid collapsed, delirious. Geralt tended to the boy’s wounds, and rode off to the boy’s homestead.

As they rode, the lad began to come to, and launched into an explanation. He, his father, mother, sister, and older brother lived in a cabin tucked far back into the mountains. During the trapping season, the entire family packed up and made a daylong trek to the cabin from their usual home in the village Geralt had just left. Hunters had warned the family of a new predator in the area- but the family had no other choice but to make the journey anyways. The income from the furs fed them throughout the rest of the year.

They arrived at the homestead around mid-morning. It looked like a war zone. The windows of the house had been destroyed, the door ripped right off the hinges. The barn was a similar mess, the set of large wooden double doors blown right open, the wooden bracer split clean in half. A mauled horse carcass lay in the middle of the clearing, half-eaten. Geralt caught a whiff of blood. Maybe the animal was still here. Geralt had drawn his sword, entering the cabin. The broken glass from the window was scattered across the wooden floor. The beast had jumped in through the window.

Why then, would it’ve ripped off the door? Claw marks covered the walls of the cabin and the destroyed surface of an overturned table. Multiple sets of claws. It wasn’t a bear. A wolf pack- led by a massive Alpha. The Alpha went through the door, and the pack members must have gone through the windows. The boy, who Geralt had frankly forgotten about, came in on his heels. A misplaced step made the floorboards creak. Geralt turned to the boy with a sharp glare.

As he did, a wolf appeared from behind a half-wall leading into a back hallway. It pounced at Geralt, who, brandishing his sword, rolled under the leaping wolf, slicing open the underbelly of the creature. A quick inspection told him one of the wolf’s legs had been injured in a fight, seemingly by a pitchfork.

There was no sign of the pitchfork wielder- but a trail of blood led off from the clearing deeper into the woods. Geralt issued curt instructions to the boy -who looked to be in shock- to stay hidden in the house. Geralt would go after the wolves.

The sun had reached its Zenith, and Geralt had proceeded to follow the blood and crushed grass deeper into the pine forest. It was not long before he came across a body in the woods, picked clean. The father. Geralt heard a low growl from the trees. Geralt once more drew his sword. Out from the bushes emerged a completely white wolf, about 8 feet long. Bear size. The abomination had a long, shallow scar across his flank, undoubtedly from a mostly one-sided fight with the trapper.

The pack had dispersed; no doubt the Alpha called dibs on a fresh meal. Geralt had not known Wolves to have a taste for human flesh, but Geralt had also never seen a wolf this big before either. Nonetheless, it had to be put down.

The wolf opened with a left paw lead, a jab of sorts, which Geralt batted away with the flat of his sword. It then dawned on him the wolf was testing him. Smart bugger. No wonder he got so big. Geralt then decided it was time for him to take initiative. He dashed forward, swiping blade in a horizontal slash aimed across the wolf’s snout. The alpha sprung backward, out of reach, and then sprang forward at Geralt.

The wolf was quicker and smarter than most, but not enough. Geralt had seen those powerful back legs lean back, and knew immediately what was coming. He allowed the momentum of his attack to carry him to the left of the wolf, and its outstretched paws breezed by his back. A well timed spin and downward strike separated the beast’s head from its body. It was over.

He returned to the homestead just past midnight, to see a speck of light from the barn. The family had hidden in the loft of the barn. The father had not gotten there quickly enough, and instead opted for a bold last stand. The family had no money with which to pay him- so instead offered him furs instead. Geralt declined. They needed them more than he did.

Witchers usually didn’t work for free, but these were strange times. By nightfall the next day, he reached an isolated settlement with a pub in the center square. What he needed was a bath and a good drink.

***

Geralt entered the pub to see a small crowd gathered around a man telling a story- about how he had single handedly driven off imperial gunships during a convoy raid. Airheads. Raiding Imperial convoys was not something to brag about on an Imperially occupied planet. He found a seat in the quiet back corner of the bar, content to watch.

The storyteller and another man got into a bit of a scrap- which was quickly broken up by another. It immediately stopped. Curious. Who was he? The leader of the little band here, no doubt. Geralt hated Imperials, it was true- but he did business with them, and coin was a little tight these days. Speaking of coin, he had only enough to pay for one drink.

He had only stayed for an hour, and it was already time to go. As he brushed past the table the group of men sat at, he caught a snippet of their conversation. “-Factory district, not until we find a way to deal with those walkers.” It took a second to register with Geralt. Were they going to Grad? Geralt did not enjoy company, but the road there was dangerous. Maybe companions would be worth having in a fight. He turned around, and made his way over to their table.

Tag: Pub Patrons

 

IC: Kell Lian
Scanning the airwaves

Kell looked up from his comms unit as Kain walked over to join in on the radio scanning, nodding to him before taking a long pull from his glass of drink. While the others appeared to have a healthy taste for alcohol, Kell had taken a lighter option to keep his head clear. He’d never really had much of a liking of alcohol in the first place, so it suited him just fine. As the signals cleared up and the line about the 14th Armored Unit came through, Kell let out a sigh, knowing that had been their target and they missed it.

Considering how their original intel had been off on the train, Kell figured the Imps had switched up dispatch schedules to throw off any potential attacks. It certainly seemed to fit their strategies, send a civilian line through the fire instead of risking military units so the Empire didn’t lose resources for a major push.

At the mention of Grad, Kell produced a map of the area around the city, noting where the factory district was in relation to the rest of the city. No doubt there would be civilians all over, going to and from work in the factories, and they would have be caught in crossfire or mistaken for combatants. Kell also had a sneaky suspicion that Grad might be their next destination. He had a feeling Kain, and admittedly Kell himself, wasn’t the kind to let a job go unfinished, and that armored division was calling for a few explosives in the gears. If that was the case, Kell knew that walkers and tanks were very much hampered by the close quarters of cities, and sneaking around would be much easier than being out in the open at the tracks. Already, the Ardennian had some ideas swirling around in his head on how to pull off some hits on armored elements.

Before he could voice any, however, Kell saw that Kain had become distracted by a new group of people he didn’t recognize. Perhaps they were there to lend a hand?

TAG:
@Bardan_Jusik @galactic-vagabond422 @TheAdmiral @Vehn @The Jedi in the Pumas @RIP.CommanderPonds

 

IC Tauriel Windsong, Corrin Skarnsson (combo with @Adalia-Durron)
Stables


Tauriel had started to make her way back to the stables, her new acquaintance Corrin in tow . She'd already made up her sleep swag in there for the night, it was shelter and it was free after all. She turned to Corrin, "Where did you plan to bed down for the night?"

"Probably in the stable, next to my horse. These things the civilized people call beds? Far to soft if you ask me, can´t sleep in those at all." Having grown up sleeping in simple tends of beneath the stars in the wilderness Corrin felt a certain discomfort at staying in closed rooms, especially during the night. He preferred to be ready to fight as soon as possible.

She glanced at him, "I have already made camp there. The mounts need protection, I imagine there are those around here who'd take advantage if they were not watched." She confessed. "Although tis not my responsibility anymore." she added.

"Probably, though I would say it should be everyone's responsibility to look after their mounts," Corrin said quietly. "Will say its a pretty big risk that the others are just drinking and laughing in there, when the Empire finds us there is no hope for them to survive."

Tauriel smiled slightly as they entered when she heard someones raised voice. "Who...are you?" She stopped, and listened as someone else spoke. I'm Kurkan, of the Immortals, and I asked you a question....Worm." She turned to Corrin and hissed. "I don't like this!" as she pulled out her blade and began to move forward.

"Me neither," Corrin answered as he took one of the spears from his back. The Immortals? Was that another tribe? At least he didn't remembered the name as one of the tribes that had been friendly to his, but this was a large world. Yet the voice, was commanding, arrogant, hostile. "Doesn't seem to be friends."

Tauriel nodded and moved forward and using her strongest voice "Is everything ok in here?" her hand trembled slightly as she turned the blade in her hand to find comfort.

Corrin stood next to Tauriel his spear raised so he was ready to defend himself immediately.

Tag: @Sarge, @Mistress_Renata

 

IC: Jori Atreus
Pub

Jori observed Kain sit with Kell. That was good, at least in that way she would be able to talk with both of them at the same time. This will save some time and explanations. As she was about to stand up they were joined by other people, with whom Kain seemed to be familiar. That made Jori sit back in her seat. She was tapping her foot nervously. Her lips pursed she kept observing them as they seemed to be discussing what was going on in Grad. They looked somewhat familiar, probably another Rebel cell?

Kain waved to her to join them. Jori stood up again, straightening her shirt. As she made her way towards the group another stranger seemed to appear. Jori noticed that some of the new-comers observed her. She noted that at least one of them showed more interest, checking her out. She was aware of her looks and that she attracted men and she used it to her advantage, wherever it was needed.

Jori reached the table and stood behind their leader and touched his shoulder gently “Kain, can we speak...” she gestured with her head towards her table “... in private?”

TAG: @Bardan_Jusik @Bodhran777 @RIP.CommanderPonds @Vehn @The Jedi in the Pumas

 

GM Update
​

IC: Professor Heisn (NPC)
Stables

Professor Heisn's hands shook somewhat as the giant of a man again addressed him. "I'm Kurkan, of the Immortals, and I asked you a question....Worm." He didn't like this man, didn't like the way he called him worm, and he really didn't like how his own hands were shaking right, especially as they held various bomb making components in them. They shouldn't go boom just from dropping them, but you never knew. Fortunately Windsong stepped forward, Skarnsson at her side. "Is everything ok in here?" her question at least took the attention of Kurkan off of Heisn, though at the expense of placing it squarely on the Sephi.

"Well, what have we here?" Kurkan asked rhetorically, at least Heisn thought it was rhetorical. "A little lady and her boyfriend ready to defend her honor," he casually dismissed Skarnsson as a threat to himself. He gave one long lingering look at Windsong, making it clear where his own thoughts were wandering before he turned his attention back to Heisn. "I asked the worm here what he was holding..."

Heisn began to tremble again, dropping one of the small packages, a parcel wrapped in twine. It bounced on the ground before landing at Kurkan's feet. "Oh a gift, how thoughtful," the bully let out, a sarcastic tone in his gravely voice. He bent to pick it up even as Heisn took a step back, cowering behind Windsong and Skarnnson now. "It's a stable explosive," he hissed out to them, hoping the Immortal wouldn't hear him. "Well, mostly stable," he conceded as the man began to unwrap the twine wrapping...

TAG: @Adalia-Durron @Sarge @Mistress_Renata @Anedon

---

IC: Elim Kain/Jaimie Pathfinder (NPC)
A pub in the Central Highlands, Skarn

As the conversation flowed regarding Grad, a map of the factory district there was produced and set on the table. Looking at it Kain's mind swirled as he thought of how to infiltrate the area, where Imperial patrols might be and where the armored units he wanted destroyed might be located. A large shadow blotted out the dimply lit map and Kain looked up to see a behemoth of a man standing over them. "Kurka..." he started thinking it was the nasty man that ran with the Immortals. It was not however, indeed it was someone Kain had never seen before. He looked over to Pathfinder who was still busy recruiting. The dark skinned man caught his eye and just shrugged as Kain indicated the mountain man towering over them. Meanwhile Lobos just smiled and said loudly. "I think you have another new recruit." He laughed as he bade the man sit down with them. Kain began to move over before Atreus reached out and touched his shoulder. “Kain, can we speak...” she gestured with her head towards her table “... in private?” Kain regarded her for a moment, there were plenty of men that would no doubt enjoy sitting at a private table with her, but to Kain she was just another soldier.

"All right," he got up and indicated to the newcomer to take his seat. "Lian, see what you can do for our new friend here." He said as he vacated his position. It would be to the Ardennian to recruit the mountain man now. Kain followed after Lian, sitting across from her at her own table. "So...what's up?"

TAG: @galactic-vagabond422 @Bodhran777 @TheAdmiral @Vehn @The Jedi in the Pumas @RIP.CommanderPonds

OOC: Still in the recruitment phase here. You all may feel free to move that along as needed in your posts. Any questions from anyone, ask me via PM or in the OOC thread.

 

IC Tauriel Windsong, Corrin Skarnsson. (combo with @Adalia-Durron)
Stables.

She looked over her shoulder at the young man she'd only just met. "He is not my boyfriend and as for my honour, that is mine to defend if you care to try." She wondered who this creature was that he had the right to ask the question or even be there. She watched as the man dropped something and the Immortal, Kurkan referred to it as a gift. The man began cowering behind her and Corrin before he whispered something.

"It's a stable explosive."

She frowned as he spoke again.

"Well, mostly stable,"

That changed things. "Mostly?!?" She whispered harshly back as she watched the Immortal pick it up.

Corrin felt how the large man didnt pay him much attention and was surprised that it upset him being considered no threat. How had he called himself? An Immortal? There was something to that name in the back of his head. Another tribe, known as bullies and collaborators when he remembered correctly but he wasn't sure.

"You are handling explosives like that?" he hissed at the man cowering behind them. Was the guy insane that he risked blowing them all up.

"I am no ones boyfriend," nor would she need me to defend her honor. Corrin clarified while for a short moment his toughts returned to his tribe and to...

"State you intentions," he said louder to the man standing in front of them, suppresing the thought that had come to his mind. "Cause if you are just here to try and impress us with your appearance I can tell you I've seen much more imposing ones."

Tag: @Bardan_Jusik, @Mistress_Renata, @Sarge

 

IC: Thomas Ronaan
Central Highlands
Pub

Thomas pushed up from his seat tired of letting the alcohol sweep over him. He made his way over to Kain. His sharp eyes detecting that a map had been unrolled and as he edged closer a chill slipped down his spine: Grad. The very name turned his blood to ice. The city was unrecognizable now. Just a hollow shell of its former self. Bombed out, debris ridden, streets. Murderous sniper nests. Rival factions fighting one another and all the painful memories of a life Thomas had left behind waiting for him upon his return.

"I know Grad well. I taught at Grad Central for years. I fought in those streets even longer. I know the sewers, I know the safe zones, I know how to hide from those who want me dead. If you need a way into the city I'm your man," Thomas stated to those at the table.

He sighed.

Grad, why did it have to be Grad? he thought.

Tag: Anyone at the table! Open to a joint post!

 

OOC: This is a combo between me and @Bardan_Jusik . Thank you!

IC: Jori Atreus
Pub

Jori checked out whether there were people who could overhear them then leaned a bit "After the battle was over, I managed to recover something..." she pulled out the datapad "I took it from a dead officer. I managed to open some non-essential files using his code cylinder. Then I had to use this..." she unwrapped the blood-soaked cloth revealing the thumb "Had to put it on ice, and managed to unlock some more. I can give you a rundown of them, but I think it can access more, but I need Lian..." she indicated with her head to where the alien was sitting "...take a look, maybe he can manage to unlock some more? I wanted to discuss it first with you as not to go behind your back."

Kain leaned in closer, a wry grin forming on his face as he saw the lengths Atreus had gone through to to make something out of the disaster that was their last action against the Empire. "Yeah, yeah of course," he looked back to Lian who was dealing with recruiting under the watchful, and mirthful eye of Lobos.. "Find out whatever you two can."

He leaned back in his chair, still smiling. "Appreciate you coming to me first, now what have you already found?"
She took her notepad "I have jotted down some of what I was able to find out." Jori paused "It was mostly involving things related to what is going on in Grad. Then there was this thing..." she paused again trying to find her notes "...Ah, there it is..." she turned the notepad to Kain "It mentions some sort of program and keeping it on schedule."

That piqued Kain's interest. "Nothing more than that?" He asked, the tension easy to pick out in his voice. He sighed in frustration as she shook her head. "OK, well keep me informed if you two find anything else." He frowned to himself, if there was some special program there in Grad, he wanted to know about it, and to make sure it never got back on schedule.

Jori reached over the table and touched his hand "Could you please talk to Lian?" she pleaded "I know it is not much, but I can feel it in my guts that there is more to all this. You know about my research and somehow I feel it is all connected. Call it a journalist intuition." she managed to smile.

Kain casually looked over to where Lian was, still sandwiched between Lobos and the potential recruit. It looked like he had his four hands full. "Yeah, I'll let him in on what you've got going on." He started to stand up. "But be ready to move, we'll be on our way to Grad here soon."

TAG: @Bardan_Jusik @Bodhran777 Anyone

End of Episode 1.01​

 

GM Update

Episode 1.02: The Factory​

​

---

IC: Elim Kain
On the road to Grad.

The setting sun was at the group's backs as the small band of freedom fighters crested the last ridge overlooking their destination. Not much had changed since they had left the central highlands several days before. Their recruiting efforts there had led to the addition of two new fighters, Jal Wuu and Geralt Ponds, and they had somehow kept the infighting at a minimum despite the efforts of Kurkan of the Immortals. Not much had been said about that, but from what Kain could gather the giant had backed down after initially confronting the heroes in the stable and finding them not so easily bulled as he had thought. Their days since had been spent on the journey here which they also used to get to know one another better as they steeled themselves for their mission. Nothing though could prepare them for what they saw as they crested the last ridge and looked down into the city...

​

"It's...gone." Kain mumbled under his breath in astonishment, and his feelings weren't far from the truth. Fires seemed to rage throughout various parts of a city dotted with burnt out buildings and rubble strewn streets. "How can anyone be alive down there?" Pathfinder added, equally as amazed. An explosion lit the dusky sky as a pair of TIE Strikers strafed a wrecked storefront over a kilometer away. Red blaster fire reached up after them from a nearby street corner, though it failed to bring down either craft.

"There's not only folks alive there, they're still fighting over it." Kain managed, though he too was still amazed by the scene. "Not much left to fight over..." Pathfinder grumbled, more to himself than in answer to Kain. "All right, we can use this to our advantage," Kain finally began to get himself under control, "with all that chaos down there we should be able to sneak into the city without too much trouble." Just another armed band in a city full of them he hoped, and a small enough one not garner too much Imperial attention he thought as another pair of TIE Strikers streaked overhead towards an unknown objective.

"We all know what we're here to do, check out the factory district." He paused as he took a moment to look at the small flimsi map in his hands, identifying the factory which he pointed to before continuing on. "Scout it to determine the Imperial objective there and disrupt their plans as best we're able." He took in a deep breath as the small resistance force looked out where he had pointed. The district wasn't on fire like much of the city was, but thick smoke seemed to blanket the area and the sound of intense blaster fire could be heard echoing from it. It wasn't going to get any easier the longer they waited. "Let's get moving."

With a heavy sigh Pathfinder hefted his Z-6 rotary cannon. "So how we going to do this?" He asked. Kain pondered it for a moment. They couldn't risk bringing their animals any farther forward, from her eon they would have to go by foot, but someone would have to stay back with the mounts. Kain had already determined who that would be. "Xard, Professor," he looked to the large grey skinned man and their explosives expert, Heisn. Neither would be much use here, the former because he was still learning how to use a blaster properly, and the latter because he was more a bomb maker than a warrior. "You two stay back with the animals, maintain wave silence, but be ready in case we call for you." He watched as Heisn fiddled with his comm link. "We may need a quick exit." Xard looked none too pleased with the idea of being left behind but didn't argue the point. "Skarnsson, you're on point." He tasked the tough young scout to take his customary position out front. "Chrondarr, take up the rear of the column." The other scout in the group, their guide through the wilderness, would be of less use here in the city. But he would be able to cover their rear well enough. The other's he pointed and gestured into position as they moved down the ridge and towards the city, forming a single file line. Lobos had told him a while back it was a way to hide a group's numbers.

Taking his space in the middle of the column, he watched as those out in front of him made their way down the ridge, Skarnsson of course out in front followed by Neil, Pathfinder and then Windsong. They were spaced out at least five meters apart as they traversed the rocky terrain. Behind them was their group's sniper Ronaan who was directly out in front of Kain. Risking a quick glance behind him he could see everyone following in line. Lian, the Ardennian communications expert was closest to Kain, followed by Cambrion and Atreus. Wuu and Ponds, the newest members of the Heroes were at the tail end of the group, followed of course by Chrondarr. If there were any problems the Coynite was trusted to not only keep them in line but watch their six as well.

​

Passing down off the ridge and into the outskirts of the city the column moved through abandoned city streets. Debris and rubble was everywhere, wrecked buildings and destroyed equipment littered the streets as they made their way slowly though them. Some debris was old, charred but cold to the touch while other bits were still smoking and burning. That smoke hung low over the area, obscuring their sight lines, but also helping to conceal them even as the sun sunk lower at their backs. not that concealment seemed to be much of an issue. This area of the city seemed abandoned, and Kain hoped that there were no longer civillains present in those wrecked buildings. Then again, where else could they have gone? He found himself gripping his blaster rifle moire tightly at the thought.

Suddenly the column stopped it's forward progress and Skarnsson gave the hand signal to stop and freeze before waving Kain forward. The leader of the band moved up to the head of the column, bringing Lian with him as everyone else stood their ground and took a knee, looking outward to protect their exposed flanks.

"Whaddya got?" Kain hissed to the scout who simply pointed out forward of them without saying a word. Following the scout's finger Kain could see that several blocks away was the factory district. a series of ruined buildings, their roofs long since blown away, that were somehow still standing. They towered over the ruined landscape of housing units that surrounded the gargantuan buildings. These had probably once been homes to the workers that had at one time been the lifeblood of the factories beating hearts. Now those that remained looked to be abandoned. They were close, but that wasn't what had stopped Skarnsson, nor was it what he pointed at. "Oh". Kain whispered as he looked lower, away from the factories that towered over them a few blocks away and more at the ground out between them and those factories. The terrain seemed to move in the dim light of dusk and it took a moment before he realized it was swarming with droids. Old B-1 battle droids left over from the Clone Wars and the Seppie occupation of Skarn. They had run smack dab into the tail end of a Remnant camp, and it looked like they were preparing for their own assault on the factory. Kain motioned the remainder of the squad forward so they could all see what was happening.

"One out of two gets a rifle," the voice of one droid could be heard over the din of the droid encampment. "The one with the rifle shoots," the monotonous voice continued on never varying in pitch or tone. "When the one with the rifle is destroyed, the one who is following picks up the rifle and shoots." Looking out into the growing darkness Kain could just make out the form of the speaker, a T series tactical droid giving orders to the battle droid troops even as blaster rifles were being handed out to half of them by other B1 droids. The armed droids were quickly forming into a their standard box assault formation.

​

"Looks like they don't have enough blaster rifles for all of them." Kain whispered to the group. "Hell of a way to run a war," Pathfinder quipped back. "All right, let's get serious, looks like these droids are preparing a major offensive on our objective." he breathed a heavy sigh. "So...do we try to sneak through after them, or try to go around?"


TAG: @Adalia-Durron @Sarge @Mistress_Renata @Anedon @galactic-vagabond422 @Bodhran777 @TheAdmiral @Vehn @The Jedi in the Pumas @RIP.CommanderPonds

OOC: The droid scene and the battle in general inspired by the movie Enemy at the Gates. Any questions feel free to PM me or ask in the OOC thread.

 

IC: Corrin Skarnsson, Tauriel Windsong (combo with @Adalia-Durron)

"I say we find a way around, through these ruins," Corrin said to the rest of the group and pointed in the indicated a direction with his spear. The smoke of the burning city hit his eyes and he tried his best to keep a straight face and block out the memories, the memories of his tribe burning in the fire of the Imperials.

Tauriel was thrilled to be part of the team now and had her bow in hand and strung, an arrow was loaded so all she'd need to do was draw it if needed. When they stopped she instinctively crouched down and scanned the area as she listened. She wanted to cough, her lungs filled with the smoke and the acrid smell of what could only be burnt flesh.

Corrin continued, "I suggest we scout the way ahead first, we do not know what awaits us out there and going blindly would be suicide. I also suggest two of us take the way to the left, two the one on the right through the ruins." He outlined it with his spear. Here in the city ruins he was less in his element than in the wilderness but he still knew he could rely on his instincts.

Corrin´s eyes found Tauriels among the others. "Windsong, do you want to come along? Could use a sharpshooter up there, maybe able to cause some damage."

Tauriel raised an eyebrow in question. She was hardly what one would consider a sharpshooter, yes she was accurate, but she imagined a title like that served a blaster user more so. "I can try." She confessed honestly.

Tag: Anyone or Anytwo wanting to form the second team