Absentis Persona: Eleni Benacor
General Summary
Danar Vorpadaran possibly has had three young ladies to take to a cotillion.
A weary galaxy shakes from the tides of war. Ships are clashing. Twi'lek farmers going bad. One makes a bad deal and is now missing a son AND owing Rogga the Hutt. He sent a message to some guy named Toth? And it got sent to Procopia.
It’s not addressed right. On the names there’s Captain Eleni Benacor, and Private Investigator Ysadora. So people who are not knowledgeable of recent events sent this. Or maybe just being cute. Khun’s name is mentioned, and not his Tsu name. It’s not spam. It is from the bounty hunter Jangir Toth, who has tried to shoot Khun many times. Reddish skin, dark hair, diamond-shaped pupils of gold. He says "Rogga is bleeding this guy dry. The farmer’s name is Marcello. Get out and stretch your legs some. From what I’ve heard, you three could use a vacation." The included message is from a Twi’lek farmer named Marcello. His son is missing and he is begging the Hutt for assistance, and will do whatever the Hutt wants in regards to the contract the Hutt is waving at him continuously.
Khun is bringing some bondswomen. The thought of bringing a Sororitas sister is tempting, but they tend to get really overzealous. Best in the name of privacy to leave them at the temple. Vanya is asking for a week off of her Jedi duties. Obi wan seems to know before we go that it involves Rogga. Again they don’t tell us everything (I don’t know this, though). I.. hm.. what am I going to say to the sisters… Ok, how about… "Someone is in trouble, and I have been asked to aid Vanya in helping this person. I will be back within the month. Please don’t shoot anyone while I’m gone. Reverend Mother will take care of your needs while I am away." Yeah. That sounds good. We will be taking Khun’s pleasure yacht. Oooh. It is named the Private Dancer.
I plotted a course to Calipsa Province for Khun, and he flew... poorly. We managed to research Setolio System during the first 3rd of the trip. It is a lush, forested world, which has Miracle Grow in the soil – plants grow very large. The people live in the trees, at least 15 stories tall (300 feet). They have speeders and such. Twi’lek and humans both live in harmony there. They’ve lived here since before Shey Tapani. Of the four exports from the planet: jogu fruit, barnish moss, koba bark, and tapin beer, Our pal Marcello farms Jogu fruit.
The beer has a chocolate flavor to it, and gives some kind of warmth. The Vor stay snobbily away from it. Koba bark is used in medicines, barnish moss is used in medicines, Jogu fruit is considered a delicacy but is also used in medicines. So he should be rather well-off, since the stuff is highly prized during Capital Season. Of course, if he owes a Hutt, he probably is not.
The government of Setolio – lots of lesser houses live there – 7 to be exact. Their gov’t is TECHNICALLY an elected one. Every 4 years, there is a contest to see who gets to manage the planet. Ruling house can’t compete – which is refreshingly different. Tradition. House Vorgamik is currently running things. The contest is to prove that each candidate can be the best steward of the planet. Danar’s family doesn’t own any part of this system. Setolio consider themselves Traditionalists, as do many others. Except Danar.
Khun’s yacht is smarmy, yet stylish. Comfy, cushy – it has fancy toilets, a bidet, and sensor jamming. Makes me nervous. It DOES have a backup hyperdrive. About a THIRD of the way along, suddenly, the engines make a very sad noise, ending with a hiss. The emergency lights blink on. We’re somewhere in the Gambler's Run, and lots of comets, asteroids, and almost-planets. Most likely in the outer orbit of a gas giant. As things fly by, the planet is reddish beige. I head to the bridge. The diagnostics computer is on the fritz, so we can’t find out the easy way what’s going on. Khun checks life support. There’s smoke in the engineering bay. Burned wires, and a plasma coupling seems to be baked, which is a new one for me. Life support is working, which is GREAT. Khun checks everything, so I’m just hanging around, taking note of what I might be able to start fixing.
External sensor connections are ok, but they are not talking to anyone. There is a suspicious looking scorch mark on the internal gravity system. Not sure if the internal dampeners are off or if the gravity might turn off at any moment. So, I need to figure out which, and FIX IT. Before the ship starts up again. Yep!
Vanya is looking for danger. She feels danger. She doesn’t see anything. The danger is "WHOMP" above. Not something solid just hit us. Energy is hitting the ship? Okayyy. The ship shakes again. Vanya lays hands on the ship. Ionized energy is coursing over the ship, and she is helping it to slip away and not linger. The energy is erratic and not regular, as it would be in some kind of weapon.
The inertial dampeners were offline, and the internal gravity was about to go, but it won’t now. I fixed!
Khun sees clusters of comet all around and quartz-like crystals and little bits of energy flinging at us because we’re good conductors. Lodestone deposits? Hmm. So is that how the crystal on a lightsaber works? There’s a sleek, dark form sliding out from behind a cluster of rocks. Needle-like, bountyhunter-ish. You know, the kind that might use the Gambler’s Run. Yeah. Barloz-class medium freighter modified with additional weaponry. Khun says we’re in the remnants of a comet that is focusing stellar energy into an ion field, and they are getting closer. I’ve heard stories of entire moons made of precious metals, crystallized like a diamond. There’s stories of a planet that’s like a geode, with farmers all around the inside. SO it might have occurred in nature. Odd, but possibly NOT a trap.
Khun tells me that the coupler is messed up that leads from the sensors to the hyperdrive. ANnnnd why did the hyperdrive burn out this…? OH WOW? There’s an explosive that did not go off when it should have. Two other bombs caused the backup and the main hyperdrives to FUSE TOGETHER. The other caused a blowout of the power systems. And then there’s this one. It’s a thermal well. Yep. Blinking. It is hooked to the main power system. One of the wires was not hooked up correctly. Has a failsafe and a timer. If not disconnected correctly, internal battery system will detonate anyway. Khun has a PLAN.
I attempted to help Khun with his Plan, but I didn’t do everything quite right. Bombs seem to still affect me more than they should. I probably need some more tutelage in staying steady under pressure. Khun says we need to shove it out an airlock in such a way as it does not come back at us. Khun gets some of Danar’s camera drones and duct tapes the drones to the bomb so we can direct them out of the airlock and far far away. I go back to fix the navigational systems and the sensors, and they all come on very quickly to tell us there’s a hostile something out there, as well as proximity problems. I turn them down a little. Natural ion phenomenon from a debris field we are IN. and we’re being actively scanned by a ship called "Sadeet" which in Trandoshan means "butchers his enemies slowly". I attempted to do a focused scan, but it interacted with the ionization energy around us, and Vanya glows instead of the other guy. A feedback loop starts. The sensors start to overload the system, but I shut it off. Little blue lightning bolts dancing over the console. The sensors recorded that the chunks of rock have the right conditions to form a natural chemical battery, so each one of the asteroids is a big power cell. Might be able to use that.
I head over to Vanya to see if there’s a way to ground her so she isn’t quite so sparking. I’ll go to the med bay and find something to bleed off the excess radiation. Before that, Vanya is using her tk to get us the heck out of the middle of the comet/battery things. She pushes an amorphous blobmass away, as all of it seems to stick together, kinda. Vanya is degaussed now.
The shields are undamaged, and there is power to the shields, cap’n! But now Khun (has rolled another one and) was looking for hidden explosives in the shields. He sees a loose board, and then there’s a Kapow! and a thump-bump. The lights go out again. "jettisoning hyperdrive in 2 minutes" says a voice. I book it to engineering. We manage to get the shields reconnected and shut down the emergency bail of the hyperdrive, so everything is O. KAY.
Vanya sets up a recording that breaks up in mid-sentence and says "they are almost in range, just make sure all comms stay in stealth mo-" so she’s doing the thing Danar normally does (this lying.. it can be quite eloquent), but it is very much needed. The Sadeet is turning and not targeting us as much anymore.
Khun and I start to repair the fused hyperdrives. We are repairing a lot on this trip. Nothing breaks, burns or explodes, and we reconnect the hyperdrive. Just the one. Yay. The hyperdrive resumes in 3 seconds and we are now hurtling back on our (hopefully) original course. Khun runs back up there. The course is mostly correct. We drop out in the Sheva System, stake our claim to the battery comet things, and finish the repairs. Then OFF we go again.
For a while, we seemed to be followed by the Sadeet, but nothing else seems to be happening on the trip. We arrive at the Setolio system. Lovely blue-green orb of giant jungle flora. Comm system sparks out and the repulsor-lift generators are offline. And I was spending all day in meditation, so I am unaware of what the heck is happening. Khun uses focus sensor at one of the relays for the planet as a morse code key. Vanya is trying to stop the ship. Khun turns the engines off as Vanya is in control of it, and lovely happy things are happening instead of the ugly firey death intended.
They want me to fix the ship. again. Yay.
I find the short in the repulsor lifts and bypass it. I replace the burnt out comm board. Easy peasy lemon squeasy. Ground control is heard now. Yay. We’re directed to the docking bay. Do we need a fireteam on standby? Vanya says no. Khun says no.
- cue music -
Setolio has bunches of trees. Immense trees. GREAT BIG TRACTS OF TREES. The dwellings are plasteel, not like on Kashyyyk. As the tree grows, the building doesn’t get crushed. There are landing platforms. Sadeet, that stinky bounty hunter ship, is there. Hm. The ship seems stable as we park. Vanya wants to make sure no one knows she was the one parking the ship. The capital city is Eron. We are to go to a small farming town just outside. It’s called Kalim.
Khun finds that the Sadeet has been involved in a few kidnappings, and he is to be detained. His name is Juuus (not sure). "Tastes of his foes". I wonder if he has a really long tongue. He’s taken a Vormecetti contract that’s really old. Khun is wanted dead or alive, preferably dead. The figure has been recently raised a bit (9 figures the day Khun publicly humiliated House Vormecetti on camera – remember the time we were all arrested?). Other bounty hunters are also on the list ( Boba Fett ). Khun wants to route the warrants for the Sadeet to the local police. Khun then orders a large fruit basket to be delivered to the Sadeet.
I made sure (using the Voice) that the mechanic would not place bombs or sabotage the ship and would keep others from doing the same. Vanya paid him a tip to make it look normal.
To Kalim! And buying souvenirs. For the sisters – a woodsy, local weapon that seems unique to the planet. A compact, easy to assemble atl-atl – telescoping. Decorative. I have them sent to the ship.
We head to the farming town of Kalim by speeder. Jogu fruit orchards are up in the canopy. Pod-shaped, hanging down from the canopy. Yellowish fruit, about the size of a man’s head, tear shaped. 1 or 2 story buildings in the town. For a farming community, there are an inordinate number of bounty hunters (one Rodian already). Vanya finds the address using her PDA. Vanya knocks on the door.
A young woman answers. She has a medical emblem on her jacket. She’s human. Has short cut brown hair, middle-aged. She gets some odd answers from Vanya and Khun, but I say "we’re here to help Marcello", and now she’s all confused. He’s still recovering from losing his son. It was a violent losing, followed by a speeder crash.
Khun speaks long and loudly about who he was – but it was the truth!- and blew our cover (especially Vanya’s), and bs’d the poor doctor. She now knows we are wanted by Hutts and that Khun just wants to piss the Hutt off.
From inside the house, a man’s voice says: Dr. Rukabi, let them in please. It’s all right.
Marcello is walking with a cane, and looks like he’s been beaten up really badly. He also looks like he’s been stabbed several times. We’re welcomed in, and his home is simple and nice – clean. Holo-portraits are around of his family – he and a human woman, a son (twi’lek). The Doctor leaves.
Vanya explains how we got involved, and how Rogga the Hutt doesn’t know about Marcello’s problem.
Son’s name is Lucente. Missing for about 2 weeks. Lots of stuff about growing the jogu fruit in the right place with the right light and moisture. Something hit the speeder when he and his son were en route. Crash wasn’t that bad, but he blacked out. When he awoke, he saw his son using his pistol and vibro-rapier fighting the night imps. Night imps? Marcello calls them "little things" they use spears, and out-numbered 10:1. He was then hit with a rock in the head. Repeatedly. He remembers a net around his son and then he went black. Local police have looked and searched, but no sign of Lucente. (Loo sent ay)
Local police ( Wardens ) have given up, pretty much. He made a deal with the Hutt. Marcello says that the Hutt was offering deals for crops. This deal was made and sealed. Marcello sells the Hutt some of his take, below market price, in return for bounty hunters to look for Lucente. Rogga’s contract is unending, so for every season hereafter, he gets a special discount. So, the bounty hunters are milling about the town, not looking for the boy, but really ensuring that the Hutt’s fruit (and contract) is protected. I hate that Hutt. More than other Hutts.
Khun and I find a pub called the Busty Herglic, where many people resembling bounty hunters are milling about. Khun is looking for the ladies. There’s some cheering going on in the back corner. One of Khun’s armswomen is arm-wrestling a Wookiee and might be about to win. Apparently buying a drink for the armswomen is not a good idea – if you aren’t Khun.
Looking around at the bounty hunters, I see that Boba Fett is not here, but other than that, I am hopelessly annoyingly ignorant. I do see three bounty hunters that look familiar, but I don’t remember them well. Rodian named Greelo Human named Tiran Mel. Helot Far is the third, a female Zabrak. No trophies of weird odd things on any of them, especially Greelo. Tiran Mel collects weapons, and he has a few crude knives, but not sure they mean anything. Helot Far apparently collects fingers. Not sure why, or if it’s true. I head over to a table to watch the area.
Ursula is wrestling, Kayla notices me, but moves on to Khun to talk. They agree to protect Marcello.
I send a text to Khun regarding who is watching him (Greelo). "greelo, tiran mel, and helot Far – all hunters I know of, here in this bar. Greelo watches you while tiran watches him. Let me know if you want to do something with them." See? It rhymes
We both agree to finish something if necessary.
Vanya gets a lot of info from Marcello, including that the night imps are more legend than anything else.
Greelo gets up orders a drink, and starts talking to Khun. Yeah, he looks familiar. Blue skin. Greelo says he’s ugly. Khun takes it well. Apparently Greelo has a trophy wall. Ah. Mentions 9 figures. Oh, the verbal taunting is thick here.
For a second, I thought Khun was mentioning me in a vague way, but it didn’t last long enough to prove it. Greelo talks about Vormecetti. Blue backsides, full moons, super moons (jennie). Greelo leaves the bar. Khun lodges a formal complaint that Greelo is breaking the bounty hunter strictures by going after Juuus’ nine figures. Little comlinks start going off in the bar. Khun’s ahead of me as I leave the bar. We go back to Marcello’s house. The neighbors are nice and now know Vanya. Ursula is going to make pasta for Marcello.
Vanya’s list :
Talk to the Wardens, investigate the attack site, find out more about the night imps, connection between imps and Hutts? Vanya has a lead on an exobiologist that’s an Inquisitor. Cops officially work for Kev Vorgamik.
In Vor society, the term Inquisitor has different definitions. In some it means exactly what I think it does, but in Calipsa, it means detective.
Khun is keeping track of when he needs to officially announce that he’s there to the ruling Vor.
We go to the police precinct, that looks like a normal place. I walk through the weapons scanner, but Khun is stopped. Vanya will probably be stopped. She has a LOT of weapons.
Check on telescoping staff that Vanya gave me. Not sure where it went. Probably in one of the holds in the Mismatch. I really need to get that boat organized.
We managed to alleviate the desk sergeant’s boredom. This guy Tarquin’s a pink twi’lek. He has a brown trim uniform. Inquisitor/detective. Self defense quickly can become a charge of aggressive assault. We are allowed to defend ourselves, but once neutralized, that’s it. Tarquin gets to look at Khun’s bounty of 9 figures, and thinks it is all suddenly about Tarquin, and he’s a bit of a whiner.
We follow the man back to his office. Understaffed precinct. Looks like a sheriff’s department. I told him how I got in the Hutt’s disfavor. Vanya told him, too. Khun just wants to piss the Hutt off. He doesn’t like bullies. Talks to us about Marcello. Vanya explains what he did with the Hutt. The bounty hunters were already in the area before that, though. Marcellos was honorably discharged with a head wound from the military. He gets excitable. Scar tissue in a bad spot. Tarquin says that he gets agitated beyond reason, but that seems a bit hollow, considering the attack and loss of his son, as well as the lack of closure given by the police force.
Night Imps :
Have always been around, have always been a bit of a problem. Something happens with them once every two years. No one can find their habitat. No one has been able to track them back. Possible communication. No one has ever talked to them at length. Stories. Various reasons – make sure to leave out enough food and it keeps them away. Has a sample of a night imp weapon – iron tipped spear. Very similar to Mandalorian iron. Small polished acorns have been strung around and tied to it, so looks like they want to make the spears individual (or at least identifiable as theirs).
Speeder bike is still at the crash site. Marcello has very little money to repair it, or do much else.
The wardens are at 30% strength right now because there’s no money, and men are taken to fight in the wars. Every two years, the imps always kidnap a person or steal a whole bunch of fruit or something. Last time, kidnapped a man and made off with a bunch of lab equipment. They’ve been kidnapping people for over a hundred years. No written language, using what they find in nature. The spears caused the crash, for some part of it. But something else also hit the speeder – exploded.
9/8/12
Okay, we were in the forest, and had just had a fight in a clearning. A giant eagle/bird swooped down and tried to eat us.
We are searching for the farmer's son, the alien. Marcello – farmer; son – Lucente.
Night Imps – no sign, really.
Hutts involved (Rogga). The bird was made of metal. I shot it down by aiming at the mouth.
Vanya shared dinner with the Night Imp and tried to communicate with it. His spears can penetrate the metal skin of the car. Made of Mandalorian iron. Before we could lure him closer, the bird landed nearby, and we were forced to kill it. Its metal feathering bits deflected blaster fire. We "shot up the bird". Wounded night Imp. We are helping him. Maybe he will be nice to us now.
Khun has gone back into town for more supplies. He still has blue skin.
So... Is it human. This is important. Black spheres tied to rope. Machined, unlike spear heads.
We talk to about aspirin – that didn't go well. Ball is for hunting. Vanya heals with the Force, while I try to figure out the ball. It's a bolo... with spikes – curled spikes. That's a wicked weapon.
Big room – that's where the balls came from. Vanya controls his pain. He has the taint of the Dark Side. No poisons in him, but skin conditioner oil – covers the exposed parts of his skin with herbal oil. Seems to be some sort of repellent. Insect possibly? Large bags. 2 hands full.
There is a section of the bolo balls that you push in and twist a little to make the curled spikes retract. Untar the Night Imp.
Vanya tells Untar that we are of the Jedi Tribe.
Discussion with Untar is amusing. Trying to figure out where Lucente is. Untar is of the Bantu tribe. Foreb tribe – stupid. They get hit on the head all the time and don't learn. Foreb do stupid things all the time. They take Bantu and use them for stupid things, then let them go. To carve on stone, wood.
Foreb have a main village near the main elder. Big rock place – carve all the time. Dark side Imps? They sit in a big black stone thing. If Foreb take you young, you grow up with Elder. Sounds like some kind of Sith temple in the making. Same customs for both tribes, but there is a Festival. Strange story – some kind of union/marriage at the festival with the elder. It ended poorly.
Greelo might try to become Foreb's chief of hunt. Oooh. Rogga the Hutt – he knows. He is bad news. Take Bantu for slaves. Argh. I hate that guy. Elder has crystals that glow and people come out of them. Kiras tribe is jedi while Foreb tribe is sith. Great.
Greelo perches during his watch.
Vanya and I meditate during sleep. Yay!
On my watch, I think I hear a blaster shot, and something moving in the dirt below like water. Heavy blaster, not getting closer. Someone was absorbed into the ground. Angry and scared, and then gone. Obscured by the dark side. Foreb beast is long – very long, says Untar.
(ooc – Eleni is Chuck Norris. Tsu Vorbocioni is most interesting man in the galaxy.)
Worm thing ( Foreb beast ) is 19 feet (possibly 90, not sure of translation). Long sticky tongue and fangs – chew lots. Has metal box on the back of its head – control box. Same metal as Untar's spear.
Out of the window of the little tree house we've been resting in, Vanya sees – darkside, people in trouble, people touched by the dark side. Very evil things fighting ignorant things.
I try Farseeing, and find an overwhelming sense of hunger and dread that washes over me – surprise! Emotion almost makes me react like the animal. Very alien. Non human. I feel very dirty. I need to bathe, but I'm very hungry. I grip the doorway, my brow wrinkled a little.
We all race after Vanya, who goes to help. We travel through the canopy first, to make it easier to get there. Vanya leads. We see platforms for jumping and landing among the branches.
Greelo has infrared.
There is a brief flash of blue lightning (possible force use or worm sign). We hear ground moving against ground. Trandoshan voice yelling. So the bounty hunters are attack by sith. Ok, it's worm sign. Two moons. Both moons are out.
(ooc – the Chuck Norris jokes begin)
Trandoshan slavers. Shape breaks out of the dirt and goes back down. Mole-like snout. Spits with lightning. Trandoshan lights up like a taser. Deep blue spice blue. Blaster bolts are scoring the creature but no blood. Three Night Imps fly down from the canopy with a cord attached to the leg. Using something like the bolo. Wrap it around the Trandoshan (not harmed). Night Imps are killing them, then zipping back up into the trees. Vanya stuns the Trandoshans, so they won't make things worse. Nine Night Imps surround the now stunned Trandoshans. Five more Night Imps in the canopy.
Vanya gets in the middle of the circle and tells the Night Imps "we need to talk." they are terrified, but using the negative emotions – dark side, remember? So, 9 surrounding Vanya on the ground, Worm underground, and 5 more in the trees.
Untar is between Greelo and me. Untar translates for Vanya, and he is happy to do so. He goes even higher and pulls something from his pack, then swandives off of the branch. He knocks into one of those 5 with atlatls in the trees. He lands near vanya and pitches the Imp he caught onto the ground. Untar whapped the guy on the head, and the others hesitate, looking less sure. I guess this is Imp Interpretation 101. The stick is interesting. He points up to the stars, and then points to Greelo and myself.
"Vanya eats brains" "I do not!" Hehe.
One of the 9 looks around. One of those on the canopy (4 now 3) descends on a vine. He has tattoos, bone carvings. He's the "big kahuna". Unpleasant talking. He does the "up yours" gesture. Untar points his stick at Vanya's blaster. Apparently, the Night Imps agree to go along with Untar. They back away. They don't like it, though. Vanya bows to the big kahuna. That surprised him. He bows back. Untar is insulted by something the guy says. The ones in the trees are not leaving. They climb higher in the trees, but I am not forgetting them.
Vanya talks smack with the Trandoshans. They know of her – and me. Apparently I have a reputation now (Chuck Norris jokes). Vanya is fighting the worm. Cuts off some tentacles, oozes with the darkside. Three rows of teeth, energy crackles.
I have stunned two in the trees. One is bouncing up and down on his vine, but is out. Greelo wants the worm very badly. The worm thing is not a worm – it has arms and an armored carapace. (weak spot under arms. I would aim for the mouth {shrug}). Greelo netted the worm! But it released a huge bolt of electricity at him, even way up in the trees!
(ooc - I got a mental picture of Hawkeye jumping as the tree he was on detonated like a bomb).
The worm is at least 19 Greelos long. Sith writing on the box attached to the creature. I take pictures of Vanya running up the worm, pulling out her two lightsabers, and slashing at the box. Yeah! She's badass! Highlight reel!
The worm shrieks in pain. Vanya jumps for her life as the box goes flying. Ichor oozes out of the worm. Untar whacked one of the Trandoshans for trying to jump Vanya in the middle of all of that. The worm is thrashing, angry, and rolling its eyes. The worm's eyes are HUGE.
I used the Voice on the Trandoshans, and told them to 1) Tell Rogga the Hutt that I, Captain Eleni Benacor, am looking for him now, and 2) to get a new job that doesn't involve slavery.
The worm came closer, between Vanya and myself. The box contained a purple tentacled cyberbio... thing. Greelo and I shot at it. A lot. And it exploded. Ew.
The worm is eating the bird I shot down. I guess all that thrashing gets a critter's appetite up. I tell the Trandoshans that as long as they are not in slavery, if they need help, they can ask me.
Passik comes to pick the Trandoshans up. We introduce Untar to the police, and Inquisitor Tarkin.
Then, we settle down for breakfast.
9/21/12
Imp kidnapping cycle seems to be right now. Several tribes of Night Imps. Foreb tribe – here we go. We need to save Lucente before he becomes UNITED. Greelo got a 500,000 credit bounty on the Trandoshans. He doesn't share, apparently. You're welcome.
Khun is still at the town, possibly carousing. Vanya wants breakfast. I want meditation. ½ hour meditation. Vanya meditates. Untar – of the Bantu tribe. He wants to hunt and get us proper food besides rations. That leaves me to clean up. Fine.
(Foreb beasts are about, but not controlled by anything. The one we fought is called a Talic, the ones untamed are Gordan? Not sure. Greelo is recovering from his recent fight with long eel -like creatures with razor teeth and electric discharge, not unlike ion generators. )
Okay, not eating eel, still. (it's red meat and supposedly tastes like beef). Town – skywater tribe. NW – Foreb tribe – dense trees.
Untar really likes counting coup. Black Rock – very dull. Untar says there are pictures on it. Very crudely traced symbols. Sithy symbols. Vanya is using her certain point of view reasoning again. If we get past the guards, no one will make us leave the festival. I think I can manage that.
Greelo says Vanya's bounty is 10 million credits (no pinky), while my bounty is 12 million now. Thanks, Rogga. Thanks so much.
Off we go – rope bridge made of living vines. Ooh. Nice. Camouflaged from the ground. No swinging on vines :(
A large structure overgrown with vines – this is the big black thing Untar kept mentioning. Very tall. Might be able to climb it, using the vines. The tower could be metal – it glints in sunlight. The curve to it makes it seem not naturally made.
Greelo thinks back about the sith. He remembers something about ME?
(ooc - I have my armor on! Everyone is rolling ones like crazy!)
We approach the sentries (Vanya and I). Creeping presence of the dark side. Creepy dread. A flavor of darkside? Ew. That reminds me. Haven't brushed my teeth in three days. Bitter smell seeped into the ground water. Soaked into trees. Dampened itself. Ew. Do we have to go in there? It seems curious as to why we are here. I'm Cap'n Benacor I'm here to END YOU.
Sentries have creatures near them. The things look like a rhesus monkey with iguana skin. One three feet from Vanya stares at her, and screeches a wave of the dark side. Low powered force screen. Vanya tries to say Howdy right back, but doesn't project calm. The sentries don't attack, anyway. That's good. One sentry heads off, after speaking a sign language with the others. They don't want Vanya to move. I try to sneak past them.
The other sentry comes back with better-equipped people. Oh great. Vanya bows. I have slipped past, and watch from afar. Following the new group, a guy with silvery hair, a staff, beads and bark for jewelry is approaching. A negative presence in the force. Dark memories, murderous. His presence stirs all of the thoughts of Bene Gesserits and what to guard against to the forefront. He wears the dark side – the guy likes it, and has chosen to be evil. Great.
(ooc -Greelo finds a ledge up on the tower. He has a good view of the town. The tower itself is cracked on the surface. Cold wind. Vines slip under him, he slides down in a racket and lands in another and lower landing. There is a grinding sound, and a door opens in the wall. A crunching sound like footsteps. No cover Ack. He tries to climb to the top using his grapple arrow (the Imperial March is playing in the background). Dark figure, 7 feet tall, cloaked in black with black hands. Cowl like a jedi, but black. Stiff movement. He stops at the edge of the landing, rubs two gloved fingers on the ledge. He sniffs, or feels something from where Greelo had been. He steps off the ledge and jumps down – jedi jump. No heat signature. Wave of cold.)
Vanya is in a patch of sunlight, so the old guy decided not to pay attention to me for at least a bit. The three warriors spread out, one stocky, one short, one thin/wiry. Vanya bows, the old guy knows she is a sky worlder, and asks why she is there. She says the father wishes his boy to come home. Old guy says he was chosen, and there is no place for a jedi here. She needs to leave. She argues a bit. "Queen give vision – see boy." Old guy thinks Vanya is bad and brings destruction. He really wants her to go away. Foreb tribe IS stupid. Old guy/shaman is Kamalda (?). he won't shake her hand. They decide to lead her away somewhere at spear point, and take her sabers. I watch, trying to catch her eye to see if she's got things under control. She doesn't seem worried.
I hear her voice, telling me that she doesn't know where she's being taken, but it will probably be the black rock. I agree to wander off, and let her handle things.
So, the monkiguanas see me. I really need to learn some good curse words. They don't do anything, though. They can't – because I already got past them and that's the rule. It's a stupid rule, but using their own stupidity against the stupid seems fitting.
Suddenly, I get an ice cream headache in my bones. I need to look up. Shadow? No. a cloak. Stepped off the ledge of the tower. Something in the back of my mind thinks the cloak is the source of this pain. My plan – to wander further away from the cloak, hopefully find the kid, and ignore the sentreis following me until I can't anymore.
Vanya – Before the spear tips were spear tips, they were Mandalorian Armor
I hear one of the sentries guarding Vanya begin to hum a part of the clone's battle song.
(Greelo's cloaked dude vanished into the forest canopy. Greelo finds out that an army of jedi were once here and fought. Many died. Hunter of Hunters? Released when jedi are around.)
I have an idea to teach the shaman (at least) a new skill to show him more of the light side. Vanya thinks about controlling another's pain. I am thinking about defensive and non-lethal fighting.
I mention to the old guy that I would like to teach him and some of his people defensive techniques. I kind of wonder about teaching creatures of the dark side, but in my religion, there's no dark side. Only abomination and evil. He doesn't seem interested.
I get some of the sentries to hum along with the clone battle song as I sing the words. They seem really excited about that, and relax a little around me. I head into the village. Darn it! Is it bad to befriend dark siders? Not sure. They seem to (for the most part) be normal sort of people.
( ooc -Ok, Greelo just threatened some very bad stuff to a poor sentry in order to force him into going into the tower for him. Threatened his soul. HIS SOUL. (via Vanya). The poor Imp fainted. He needs to be very glad I couldn't hear that.)
We are in the village. People are shocked and scared. Untar's tribespeople seem to understand Vanya's greetings. Some got what she said, and are talking about it. Pack of 3-4. Probably. Kiras tribe. She bowed. I am not in the habit of bowing. The shaman is hurrying away. He is heading for a bridge, which might lead to the tower.
We were about to get along with the locals when a loud scream is heard. We take off after the scream. One sentry is folded backwards and wrapped around a branch. One sentry is gibbering. Weird. Couldn't be Greelo. Cold chill – bonejarring. From the cloak. ah.
I am given the gibbering sentinel, and set him down, pointing out the way to run. I see a shadowy thing. It looks to enter near the Festival (towards the two night Imps that were wanting to talk to Vanya). She's got her sabers out, so she can handle it. I head toward the tower. As the gibberer and I are both running, we see the dark shape and the cloak, flowing like water.
(ooc -Vanya tries to yank back the cloak by TK. No face. It hisses. Vanya is now in tremendous danger, and I ran off. Great.)
10/6/12
I am sneaking through the village. The guards are all distracted. As I approach the tower/temple. Rickety bridge to a doorway – no door now. The arch/black cavernous maw of a doorway is maybe metal, maybe stone. The design reminds me of the sith temple. A little bit different. Not as angular. Not sharp.
From my vantage point, I see two guards in either side of the doorway, with three shamans to go into the temple.
Goth Castle Grayskull.
What was my plan? 1) go in with the shaman? I did make friends, kind of. 2)be sneakier? Possibly. I had not planned to climb the tower, though.
Vanya is "handling" the scary faceless guy with metallic clothing.
Before me is a crevasse – 200 m – vine is overgrown. Bridge – could climb under the bridge. Slipping under the Shamans 3. greelo does not see me. Untar is bugging Greelo about his "plan". The guards seem suspicious of Greelo's handiwork.
(ooc – if Shaman dies, they make a night scream and make rocks explode. Oooh)
I climb out where guards can't see me. Guard closest to me is... tied up? I can see ropes. Both are unconscious! Easy for me!
I head into the tower. I stealth my way in. I am jumpy. Heightened BG senses, I guess. Looks like the floors and walls are moving – moving with evil? Was that an insect? No, not yet. The building is anticipating … something. Pitch black darkness with light sources further ahead. No obstructions ahead, I think. ha.
(ooc – vanya made short work of the faceless one. Knew she would! No one knows him. They never talk. They call him a ghost. He is acting like everything is new. Childlike mind. He is mimicking her. When the thing regains his senses, he will try to kill Vanya again. Vanya says something about choices in childhood stories. Untar tells the light side imps why we are here. About the kids, etc. the Foreb are following the rules of Festival. Dude's default reaction is rage.)
Carvings – not human or Bene Gesserit language. Resembles sith markings, but are different. I'm still following the shaman entourage. Large pieces of machinery, or scupture – rounded, smooth, organic. Low humming sound. Makes me feel very bad. To the left are boxes in the dark. Hmm.
Heading to the right room, there's a glowing pillar. Sith markings. Devices with glowing red triangles – sith holocrons. I look at the boxes in the room to the left, really not wanting to be closer to the other room right now. Storage containers, all with different markings. Alliance, Galactic Empire, Tapani Imperium. Some are stained with blood, and scored with blaster marks. By the inspection stickers, some are 1 ½ months old. Some are 3-4 years older, and even 9 years old. Most are still sealed, but 2 are open.
Of the two open crates, the first is full of medical supplies – still sealed. One has metallic ore. Dark enough to be the mandalorian armor we've seen on the Imps. Greelo has also entered the temple. He will take the medpacks to Vanya, and tell her what's going on here. She says she has her hands full, so we are on our own.
Ok, going back in to see where this Elder woman is that wants to marry a child. Talk about May-December.
(ooc – the faceless guy is a clone, only 5 days old).
I am sneaking forward to check out the next room. Organically round machines. Unrefined. Looks grown – bumps and ridges. The machines look like giant seed pods, and are active. Warmth.. nothing about these things glow but the wires. Just a serious feeling of ick around here. The headache's not doing very well. I turn the light on my smuggepedia to bright. Inside one of the pods is what looks like a small spiceworm. Floating in clear fluid. There's a holographic readout in the sith language. I kind of figure out what might be a heart monitor, and what might be biometrics. In another is a person. Whoever is in charge of this temple, they are growing people. 10 people pods are in this room. The next one is in a lesser stage of development. The pods are not plastic or metal. They really feel like skin. My thoughts immediately jump to the Tleilaxu cloning tanks. It makes me feel like I am standing in a woman.
I used post-cog (rolled a 1 on the wild die, though).
I was quickly given some very old memories. The first of an old man – stately, humanoid. Dark hair. He was directing dissection and removal of organs of an alien species. He has caught 10 large space-faring creatures. They remind me of the flying whales from Kamino, and they are all female. He is harvesting their wombs for his Grand Plan. He knows a way to extend life. Master of life. Yeah. Whale wombs. Consciousness transference into the sith holocrons.
Another, newer memory – dusty place. Night Imps – not running around. No one around. Next, a memory of someone observing a "great event". Two night imps stumble out. No village. Mental me says "it begins".
The newest memory – Five humanoid people (not night Imps) walking through the hallways. One is dressed in a cultured way, very posh. Another is more like a smuggler, maybe a bounty hunter. The fifth is a woman. Rodian, human, human, human, Devaronian. The woman seems to be a Bene Gesserit with Tattoos on her face. Great. Merglin? She explains things, I guess. I can't hear what they are saying. The well-dressed group is excited. She is talking about her plans. Droids bring in the hover carts. Carbon frozen people are being moved to the back of this very room. Then, the woman says "having fun, Sister?" and it's Merglin. Yeah, she knows I'm here. Tleilaxu clones. All it needs is a force user to direct it.
I go to the back of the room to look for frozen people. There's a door, and empty blocks remain. One of the pods stir - #6, one of the ones that was full formed.
I text Vanya the important bits. I tell Greelo about it.
So, Vanya's new pal is a 5 day old sith lord from way back.
I just put out a bounty on Merglin for 3 million credits, which is backed by Procopian Impsec. She has declared herself Empress, but even royalty has to pay for the crap they pull. Live capture, preferably unconscious. Greelo is interested.
Vanya explains about Merglin to Greelo.
We are going to rescue as many clones as we can that are capable of surviving. Greelo will blow it up afterwards. We have one hour before the Night Imps storm the place to fight us off.
Vanya checks for Force and life. Hard to determine, because the chambers are a kind of primitive life.
I explain about the Tleilax war. Ok, I talk myself out of pushing the wrong button, and a dude is baked, but hopefully without his memory intact. It was a good idea, but I'm not a cloner. The guy is Zabrak. He has a hoarse voice to Vanya, "Did my parents send you?"
He (they?) dreamed that their parents would send someone to get them. He hopes they are warrior nobles.
The next one is a young girl. She believes she's a princess. One that helps people. She looks like her Imperial Highness, Danar's girlfriend. Next is a young man that looks like Captain Naismith ( Miles Vorkosigan ). The other one is d'Arcy.
Greelo poisons everyone else and lets the whole thing die for us. I expressed regret at not waiting for the others to become viable. Can't say born. That's not exactly normal birth. Ugh.
So we have Miles, Empress(Shindra) Kat, and Admiral d'Arcy (now named Jacen).
Need to contact Simon Illyan's replacement, that overworked, but very adept guy who had to arrest all of us a while back. All of these newly .. baked are force-sensitive to some degree. They are also half human, half alien. I don't think we are even close to understanding why someone – Merglin? Was doing this.
I really need to calm down, or I'm going to something brash and undisciplined.
The door near the carbonite mess pops open. Blaster fire comes from beyond. Some of it from E-11's.
10/20/12
We are on some dinky forested world, looking for a kidnapped boy who has been taken by Dark-sided Imp creatures, associated with a sith temple. Merglin is involved, having taken over some old cloning facilities inside the temple to clone members of the royal vor households, or so we think, including d'Arcy, Miles, and Imperial Princess Katianna Vortapani.
Greelo is hiding. Vanya and Eleni are being shot at by the imps who are entering the temple to protect it (they know not of what they do). Eleni has placed a bounty on "Empress" Merglin's head, funded by Caleb Jace (Illyan's successor).
We "think" says the GM, that we know who these clones are supposed to be. Now we're getting shot at near the back door. Full blaster fire. Three groups in various armor. Trandoshan named Gaz, and two humans. They are depositing a Khun form into carbon freeze. He's already blue. He doesn't need to be silver, too. They toss his weapons in a bag, and the chamber looks ready to go. Khun is waking up as the door seals. A Wookiee had just dropped Khun into the chamber. His name is Kalathar, and I know him. Tanen Barnes and Jared Galas are the humans involved.
I have to get to Khun before he becomes a popsicle. I dodge the blaster fire, sliding through the door on my left hip, and coming to a halt right between Khun and Kalathar. Khun tries to kick the canopy of the freezer up, but it slams back down and jams his knees into his chest. It has stopped the freezing process, but it won't open.
Greelo shot a grapple arrow to the doorframe, unfortunately revealing his position.
Kalathar is surprised to see me. He wants to pound me. I duck and side-step, bob and weave.
The Trandoshan shoots at Greelo. He deals with it nicely. Cause he is just THAT good.
Khun … is insulting Kalathar. Called his dad a Trandie and his mom a Mentat.
Vanya is hit in the arm – no damage.
Khun must have mooned the Trandoshan, because he shot at Khun, but missed and hit the control panel for the freezer, which started to freeze him. I tried to shoot Kalathar, but he dodged. I forgot how good he is. Now Khun is trying to shove the freezer at Kalathar. I dodged, jumping at Kalathar's back. My wookiee pal slammed into the carbon freeze chamber, so I was on top of a potential Wookieesicle. Need to jump off soon, I guess.
"Miss me, Sweetie?"
He didn't like that.
Everyone seems to be dealing with Vanya – she's badass and I guess the lightsabers make her a better target.
Kalathar is still half freezing. I managed to stay on his back. (Cyberwookiee with a grudge).
Greelo seems to have a reputation! He flips the guy stepping on his chest the bird, then shoots the guy in the balls with his blaster. Yeah, don't get Greelo mad at you.
Khun is freeing the wookiee so he won't be frozen. I don't think he means to do that, though.
I hop off of my furry ride, and head down the eastern tunnel. I set of a trip-wire on the way, of course. This place is giving me a massive headache, although that's no excuse. Yes, Reverend Mother, I know it's not an excuse. The charge throws me forward after a huge explosion. I tucked, rolled, and landed "somewhere interesting". Yay for not seeing!
It's the control room for an old lab. Someone has taken a sith holocron and has cracked into it. It glows in an uncomfy way. Drops of some red fluid are leaking out of it. That's got to be bad for the water table. Makes me queasy. A guy in a gadgeteer's vest and a Devaronian are talking. "I don't care if we need to go, gas the village. Rogga's orders. Kill everything." Human guy with the vest is armed. Near him are streaming readouts of the placement of some kind of explosives.
"Step away from the console and sit down like the two good boys that you are." (then a 1 on the wild die). Must have been the good boys comment. The tech guy looked scared, but neither of them actually obeyed. The Devaronian said "Really? Seriously?", and drew a weapon. He shot me in chest, but my armor (Thank you Yeager!) helped. Now, it's my turn. 30 feet from him. Big room.
Khun has a great idea. He shoots the leaking holocron. It glowed brightly, and a cloaked image appeared, floating. I feel so much worse than I did when I just had the headache. Finding bravado from somewhere, I say "my turn", and tried to give the Devaronian a nerve pinch. He faked being hurt for a split second, then smirked and said "REALLY?" again. And then he shot me. Again.
That one hurt. I staggered back, working at controlling my own pain.
The Sith in robes was still getting its bearings, and looked around at all of us with interest. Khun pointed at the guy that shot me, and said "HE did it!" That was the end of the "Really?"s Force Lightning hit him pretty hard, turning him into a crispy critter.
The Sith Lord has a test for us. What shall we do with the two "problem" people. Khun puts the shine on the Sith Lord.
Greelo gets to watch.
Th Sith's test for me was what to do with the other guy in the vest. The one that was terrified. I didn't lie. I said he needed to live because I have to ask questions about the choices he's made in his life. He seemed to be ok with that.
But the other...
And what about this Sith Lord guy? I didn't see him attempting to speak or know anything about what happened before his holocron cube was shot.
Khun has some kind of taint on him – because of this Sith Guy. Vanya appears and tries to talk sense into the Sith Lord. Between Khun and Vanya, the guy doesn't have a chance.
I turned off the gas bombs. The tech got in a smart remark about my missing his Devaronian potato chip, though. Smart mouth. But he did tell me some interesting things.
The Cloning is Rogga's idea. It's part of his big plan to put muscle in certain territories. He's never met Merglin – so I don't know why I saw her. Maybe she used it a while ago? They were cloning animals, to turn them loose on the planet. Something called the "mellar"?
Impersonating Sith Ancestors
Wedding business – that has to do with the tribe only. Rogga wants the marriage to go through for the fruit. He needs the fruit.
Vanya sees Lucente – slowly being resequenced into a Night Imp. Vanya, Greelo, and I find the chamber, the shifty pillars. Past that to the displaced chamber. One female Night Imp. Lucente in a chamber. Vanya deals with the queen and the boy while I head out to make sure the gas bombs never go off. Two shamans are paying attention to her now. Force Lightning, one of them has.
Khun is very believable as a Sith Lord.
Vanya and I talk to the Queen of the NightImps, and explain what is going on. 900 year old shaman has met 12 jedi in his life.
Fruit and stuff were shipped to Tanger System, Reena Province (as in House Vorreena ) by our pal Rogga the Hutt.
Genetic samples to odd crystals, old memory chips are involved. He and Merglin have a deal, I bet.
Greelo is going to go after Merglin.
Rewards Granted
4 character pts, 2 forcepoints.
Report Date
05 May 2014
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