May The Invisible Hand Be With You - (Star Wars CK2-Style Quest)
- Thread starter Dr. Snark
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- star wars canon what canon tsundere dice ck2 quest actions have consequences all the credits all work and no play makes ciaran a dull girl best sister capitalism ho! despairing qm teetotaller society member gotta catch 'em all insanity looting off the rails sage dice approaching spicy sheev tsundere asajj
No boss and silencer update?
Was folded into the last one, with them running the distraction.
Dr. Snark
Exactly As Planned...Probably
- Location
- Right where I want to be
- Pronouns
- He/His/Him
I think it speaks volumes about Ciaran that even considering interchanging the two is happening right now.
As a Nanoha fan I have to clarify that Befrending does not operate on Stockholm Syndrome. It's more based off of masochism instead.
Valkur
The True Valkyria, Valkur!
- Location
- Fólkvangr
As a Nanoha fan I have to clarify that Befrending does not operate on Stockholm Syndrome. It's more based off of masochism instead.
I have to know. How did you enjoy that show? I tried watching it but it was boring..maybe i'm too old for it?
Meanwhile Elsewhere In The Galaxy...
- Location
- At the Edge of Insanity
Unknown 'Abyss Watchers' owned Location, Recruitment Office, Unknown Time
"I hope this wasn't a mistake. Remember what happend to our last employer a few years back?" For this rag-tag bunch of a dozen misfits it has indeed been several years since the base of their employer was invaded and destroyed, forcing them to flee and get by through taking on odd-jobs for a long time. 'Fortunately' for them they caught the attention of the Abyss Watcher's criminal arm which was heavily rumored to be surprisingly benevolent and generous. A perfect group to work for if you were a less than honest person.
"Don't worry Herrin. I have only heard the best about them and I know a few of them... I mean, what is the worst that could happen? That we run into that red freak again while working for them?" Of course, as luck would have it the moment Herrins Twi-Lek girlfriend uttered that sentence, Xruk ended up being the one entering the office and just proceeded to silently glare at them.
A few silent moments later:
"Uh, sir?" Before Herrin could even say anything else than that Xruk held up his hand and silently nodded. "Hired. All of you. My colleague has personaly vouched for your competence with all that it entails. You will get to skip the recruit phase, receive training from me personaly and start off with higher paygrade. I will see you on the training course in half a hour. Your guide waits outside. Now, leave!" That said the sadistic Gand shooed the bunch of mercenaries out with surprising ethusiasm... only for Herrins personal horror to be waiting outside as their guide. The 'psycho-bastard' who just a few years ago nearly blew him and everyone else in the group up with a rocket launcher.
The Silencer.
"Oh no..."
Dantooine, Abyss Watchers owned Resort, during Operation Skyfall
For two surveilance experts the last few days couldn't have been better after they relayed some VERY important information to Ciaran herself. They have abruptly been recalled from their post in Wild Space, been given a generous bonus and paid vacation with a free stay at the Dantooine Resort... where they are currently resting at one of the areas many only slightly crowded pools.
"So... did this really happen? Just because of dumb luck?", "Hey, luck is important. It was allready luck for us that we did sign up with such generous bosses.", "True. Man, luxury like this would've been unimaginable about a year back.", "You tell me. Nice rooms, great food and drinks, entertainment, pools and... some nice view. I'll be back in a bit..."
What at least one of them certainly did NOT expect was that trying to hit on one of the female visitors would backfire badly. Backfire as in being slapped by Sabé. Who just so happened to be on vacation right now. A free one of course, because Ciaran loves to send her friends gifts, discounts and favors just because she can.
Coruscant, Karada-Corporation Research Facility, Unknown Time
The sound of an explosion is todays summary of Var Zheens newest experiment. A summary that of course needs to be taken care off by the more 'compentent' people around... or at least the ones less likely to blow things up.
"So... how often has this happened this month? Been on the Oracle to help Tyro so I couldn't keep up with counting." Cheriss Sair as usually sounds way too cheerfull considering that she is right about now helping a certain B1 droid drag an unconcious Giving out of his smoke filled lab. "Third time. I had to start refusing to make him coffee and ensure he wouldn't smuggle anything into the lab with which he could keep himself awake. Too ethusiastic, too much voluntary overtime."
Of course at the mention of 'overtime' Cheriss raises a brow, which is actually weird considering what she is... but at least it means she did learn organic behaviour very well. "Overtime? Voluntary overtime? We don't have overtime. Unless you are deployed to somewhere, but that is something else."
"He locks himself into his lab and works... without sleep. I usually need at least half a day to slice my way in. Once even literaly when he destroyed the door lock. So, yes. Overtime."
"Ohhhhh..."
"I hope this wasn't a mistake. Remember what happend to our last employer a few years back?" For this rag-tag bunch of a dozen misfits it has indeed been several years since the base of their employer was invaded and destroyed, forcing them to flee and get by through taking on odd-jobs for a long time. 'Fortunately' for them they caught the attention of the Abyss Watcher's criminal arm which was heavily rumored to be surprisingly benevolent and generous. A perfect group to work for if you were a less than honest person.
"Don't worry Herrin. I have only heard the best about them and I know a few of them... I mean, what is the worst that could happen? That we run into that red freak again while working for them?" Of course, as luck would have it the moment Herrins Twi-Lek girlfriend uttered that sentence, Xruk ended up being the one entering the office and just proceeded to silently glare at them.
A few silent moments later:
"Uh, sir?" Before Herrin could even say anything else than that Xruk held up his hand and silently nodded. "Hired. All of you. My colleague has personaly vouched for your competence with all that it entails. You will get to skip the recruit phase, receive training from me personaly and start off with higher paygrade. I will see you on the training course in half a hour. Your guide waits outside. Now, leave!" That said the sadistic Gand shooed the bunch of mercenaries out with surprising ethusiasm... only for Herrins personal horror to be waiting outside as their guide. The 'psycho-bastard' who just a few years ago nearly blew him and everyone else in the group up with a rocket launcher.
The Silencer.
"Oh no..."
Dantooine, Abyss Watchers owned Resort, during Operation Skyfall
For two surveilance experts the last few days couldn't have been better after they relayed some VERY important information to Ciaran herself. They have abruptly been recalled from their post in Wild Space, been given a generous bonus and paid vacation with a free stay at the Dantooine Resort... where they are currently resting at one of the areas many only slightly crowded pools.
"So... did this really happen? Just because of dumb luck?", "Hey, luck is important. It was allready luck for us that we did sign up with such generous bosses.", "True. Man, luxury like this would've been unimaginable about a year back.", "You tell me. Nice rooms, great food and drinks, entertainment, pools and... some nice view. I'll be back in a bit..."
What at least one of them certainly did NOT expect was that trying to hit on one of the female visitors would backfire badly. Backfire as in being slapped by Sabé. Who just so happened to be on vacation right now. A free one of course, because Ciaran loves to send her friends gifts, discounts and favors just because she can.
Coruscant, Karada-Corporation Research Facility, Unknown Time
The sound of an explosion is todays summary of Var Zheens newest experiment. A summary that of course needs to be taken care off by the more 'compentent' people around... or at least the ones less likely to blow things up.
"So... how often has this happened this month? Been on the Oracle to help Tyro so I couldn't keep up with counting." Cheriss Sair as usually sounds way too cheerfull considering that she is right about now helping a certain B1 droid drag an unconcious Giving out of his smoke filled lab. "Third time. I had to start refusing to make him coffee and ensure he wouldn't smuggle anything into the lab with which he could keep himself awake. Too ethusiastic, too much voluntary overtime."
Of course at the mention of 'overtime' Cheriss raises a brow, which is actually weird considering what she is... but at least it means she did learn organic behaviour very well. "Overtime? Voluntary overtime? We don't have overtime. Unless you are deployed to somewhere, but that is something else."
"He locks himself into his lab and works... without sleep. I usually need at least half a day to slice my way in. Once even literaly when he destroyed the door lock. So, yes. Overtime."
"Ohhhhh..."
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Dr. Snark
Exactly As Planned...Probably
- Location
- Right where I want to be
- Pronouns
- He/His/Him
I'll let you in on a secret: the first few episodes of the show are in fact super boring and really don't match the tone of the rest of the series anyway. It only really gets good halfway into Season 1 if you're being generous and in Season 2 if you're not. So if you skip ahead to like...the last 5 minutes of Episode 4 you'd be good and no one would blame you for it. But, uh, this derail should probably end here-ish.
I'm not sure what to call this, but I appreciate it nonetheless.
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- Location
- At the Edge of Insanity
I'm sick, I'm tired, I can't sleep out of sheer pain, I read some old omakes and turns. Result: I wrote something.
Valkur
The True Valkyria, Valkur!
- Location
- Fólkvangr
Will do. Thus far i saw a bit of ep 5 and saw a horny squirrel and a little girl grab a grown womens 'chesty bumps'. Nanoha is weird but i'm hoping to see some life lessons somewhere within this mess of short skirts and big eyes.
EDIT: @Dr. Snark
Saw ep 4. Jeezus that one girl she fights is pretty cool looking. The animation was kinda meh though.
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I hope you get well soon.
- Location
- At the Edge of Insanity
To summarise: Herrin and his group are from an old omake on the old thread which was simply the Silencer tearing through everything while he was trying to escape from him. The two surveilance guys are the ones who sent Ciaran the news about the planned invasion of Kamino. Sabé hasn't shown up for half an eternity by now. Var Zheen and ZK... are Var Zheen and ZK. One has to wonder when the B1 droid has more common sense than the scientist.
Operation Skyfall - We Are Rescuing You, Do Not Resist
Dr. Snark
Exactly As Planned...Probably
- Location
- Right where I want to be
- Pronouns
- He/His/Him
Tipoca City, Kamino
While the Delta's and Ciaran's team were busy with their efforts, the majority of the Republic forces were in a brutal struggle against the Separatists, fending of what seemed to be wave after wave of droid troops and trying to prevent them from gaining ground.
Amidst the chaos, Anakin Skywalker was fighting off an advance that was headed towards one of the major cloning chambers of the city. He was almost a blur, weaving through the droids, constantly deflecting their fire and slicing through them relentlessly, but even with his talent he was starting to feel pressured from their sheer numbers. While he had some members of the 501st supporting him, there was only so much they could do-
And all of a sudden the sound of blasters that were distinctly not from his fellow soldiers' rifles rang out and bolts slammed into a quartet of the droids facing them. As Anakin continued to move he could now hear the sound of a jetpack getting louder as more droids were shot dead when a man in Mandalorian armor slammed down on the ground next to him.
"You're...?"
"Jango Fett. And you're Skywalker?"
"...Yeah. What are you doing here?"
"Protecting the planet and getting paid, in that order."
While the droids continued to fire on the two men, their conversation continued unabated even as they fought off the continuing advance as the clones supporting them looked on in awe.
As a reprieve in the advance game, Anakin turned to the bounty hunter. "So..." he smirked. "Think you can keep up with me?"
"Heh. I was about to ask you the same thing."
--------
Elsewhere, Obi-Wan was also holding the line against a similar advance, though he did not have the luxury of significant clone trooper support as many of the soldiers behind him had either been killed or weren't able to fight back. This meant that he had to fight tooth and nail just to stay alive, let alone hold off the approaching advance. Then-
"General Kenobi, we have some reinforcements coming!" Cody chimed in over the comms.
"How did they get here so quickly?"
"Apparently they were being deployed to another system nearby but were rerouted when we became aware of the Separatist attack. They should be there-"
As if on cue, a wave of rifle rounds came from behind Obi-Wan and began to blast away the droids in front of him. But what surprised him was the sound of a lightsaber activating as he saw-
"Siri!"
For her part, Siri didn't respond immediately, but instead helped him fall back to where the clone reinforcements were so he could breathe for a moment.
"Figured you'd prefer a breather to banter," Siri commented. "There's an Acclamator landing soon that will have the rest of the reinforcements."
Obi-Wan nodded affirmatively as more droids began to close in. "Good to hear. And...I'm glad you're here right now."
Siri smiled warmly. "It's nice to see you too, Obi-Wan. Shall we?"
And with that the two rushed out to join the battle once again.
-------
"Alright boys and girl, listen up," said Skirata over his private comm channel to the Deltas and Ciaran's team as they grouped back up from their various assignments. "Once we got a breakthrough on the Sep comm network I was able to track down Ventress; looks like she's headed towards a server room deeper in the city. If you want to catch up to her, you need to move now."
"Does she even know how to slice a computer?" Gulan asked Ciaran as the group began running in the direction of the server room in question.
"I don't know, but I'm not exactly confident she has the patience for it," she breathlessly replied.
"Maybe Tann gave her a device that will 'help her break in' of some kind," Fixer suggested.
"Whatever the case is, I doubt Tann would send her in there without a plan to get her killed. Be ready, Deltas," Boss commented.
As the group continued to move, Ordo contacted Skirata. "Buir, can you see video feeds in the city?"
"I can get access to some. What are you looking for, son?"
"Distortions, evidence of jamming, something along those lines."
"Right."
A moment passed as the group continued to run before Kal responded. "There are some jammed feeds in areas near the server room. You think-"
"Yes."
"Careful then, son."
"Listen up!" Ordo shouted as the team briefly ground to a halt. "It looks like we're going to be fighting off the same model of droid Grievous and I saw earlier. Be ready."
"Oh good," Scorch commented. "As if this couldn't get any more complicated."
"At least there's going to be more droids to kill," Sev replied.
-------
Asajj Ventress was not a happy woman in general, but she was even angrier than usual with having to put up with Sev'rance's leadership as per Dooku's orders. While she did admit that the Chiss was a gifted strategist she was incredibly arrogant in that regard, constantly lording her position as the main leader of the Separatist army over Asajj's head.
Still, her plan to have Ventress plant a device in a server room that would allow the Separatists to extract valuable data about the clone army was admittedly a smart idea; she just hated being here instead of out in the field fighting against Obi-Wan and Anakin.
"You should be closing in on the room momentarily. Are there any guards around?" Sev'rance's voice came in over the comms. Growling, Ventress hid behind a doorway and looked around to see...no one there. "It would appear that the Republic is more concerned with the enemies they can see."
"That will be their downfall then."
Ventress quickly moved into the computer room and looked around. "Where does the device go?"
"It doesn't matter, its placement on any device will be sufficient."
Ventress quickly set the small electronic device on the first server she could find space on. "Done."
"Excellent. Please wait a moment to confirm that the device is operational."
-------
"Haar'chak! It looks like the server room's security systems are being overridden from within and there's a data feed going out from it!" Skirata shouted over the comms.
"We're about three minutes out, buir," Ordo responded intensely. "We have to move, now!"
-------
After a few moments had passed, Sev'rance spoke to Ventress again. "The plant was successful."
Ventress grunted, then turned to leave. "I'll be going out onto the field th-"
She was cut off when she felt an attack coming and reflectively blocked a blaster round that came from an HS-1 on the wall outside the room.
"Oh that will hardly be necessary my dear Ventress. You will die here, after all."
With those words alarms began to blare and the doors around Ventress began to slam shut as she began to fend off more rounds coming from a quartet of HS-1s surrounding her. "You traitor-"
"On the contrary. Master Dooku has decided that you are too much of a threat to allow you to live."
Asajj's blood went cold. "You lie," she spat out.
"Believe that if you wish, perhaps it may make your death less painful. Farewell."
Asajj screamed in rage as she began to fight off the intensifying attacks of the HS-1s, as two of them began to close in for melee combat...
-------
"The room's been locked down and regular troopers are going to be on their way soon. You need to move fast," Kal chimed in as the group reached the door, though Gulan and Thrawn hung back, fully aware that they would be more liabilities if they tried to join in with the main group's assault.
"Slice or breach, Boss?" Scorch asked as the assault group piled up against the reinforced door.
"Slice, a breach could tip off others-" he began to respond as Ciaran ignited her lightfoil and began to cut through it.
"This is faster and can be blamed on Ventress," she explained, strain evident in her voice as she continued her cut.
"Right then. Everyone, ready."
Once Ciaran finished her slice she stood back and prepared to try and push it down with the Force only for Ordo to barrel into it and knock down the weakened door through sheer force. The group burst into the room and saw Ventress barely holding her own against the HS-1s. Two of them were constantly moving around the walls firing on Ventress when they could while the other two were relentlessly attacking her with their shocksticks.
"FIRE!" Boss shouted as everyone barring Ciaran opened fire on the droids. Ciaran for her part quickly moved in and sliced one of the HS-1s attacking Ventress in melee as the Nightsister looked at her stunned.
"What are you doing here!?" she yelled as the remaining HS-1 moved to try and fight the both of them off.
"Saving you, what does it look like!?" Ciaran yelled back. Meanwhile, the HS-1s on the walls had been brought down through sheer weight of fire from the rest of the group, and between Ciaran and Ventress' (reluctant) cooperation, the final HS-1 was quickly dispatched...and with that everyone leveled their blasters at Ventress while Ciaran looked on impassively.
Ventress chuckled bitterly. "So am I not supposed to resist during my own rescue?" she sarcastically commented, glaring at Ciaran all the while. For her part, Ciaran did not react to her jab. "I don't want to take chances," she calmly replied. "Now, are you going to try to kill your savior or are you going to listen to me when I say that Dooku has betrayed you?" she said as she produced a holoprojector that began to play the message between Dooku and Tann.
While Ventress and Ciaran were 'conversing,' Thrawn and Gulan had moved into the server room to find the source of the data stream. "Hang on," Gulan commented as he saw Tann's device. "A remote access jack," he said as he ripped it off and slammed it to the ground. "Simple, but clever."
"Indeed," Thrawn commented as he looked around. "Hmm..."
Gulan glanced at the Chiss and sighed. "I know what you're thinking and it's way too damn risky."
"The benefits would be extraordinary, however."
As the two began to debate, Ciaran began to speak to Ventress again. "We are short on time, so I will be blunt-I need to know what you know about the Sith. You can come with me and live, or die here as Sev'rance and Dooku planned."
Ventress glanced around, taking in everyone pointing their rifles at her before turning back to Ciaran. "Do you really think you can just leave this planet without bringing down their wrath?" she asked mockingly.
"Yes." Ciaran flatly responded. "Now, are you coming with me or not?"
Ventress stared at her for a moment, then closed her eyes and balled her fists before opening her eyes again. "...Very well."
Everyone holstered their weapons as Ciaran nodded. "Right. Now we need to figure out how to convince everyone you're dead."
"Lady Ciaran, if I may?" Thrawn asked as he moved back towards the group. "Gulan and I have identified a potential opportunity-"
Ordo turned to him and his glare was evident despite the helmet. "No."
"It is not what you are thinking," Thrawn calmly responded. "There was a clone regiment that did not have inhibitor chips installed correct? Knowing who and where they are might be useful."
Ordo's glare lessened as the Silencer turned towards Thrawn, who glanced at the mercenary before looking back at Ciaran again. "We may also be able to find more information on him as well."
Ciaran frowned as she went into thought. "How long would it take?"
Fixer stepped forward. "That would not be happening without me. But with that and the direct access...getting the Silencer's data would be easy enough if you have enough information on his samples-"
"We do," responded Ciaran.
"But finding that regiment will be a lot more difficult. Was the sabotage reported?"
"Of course not."
"Then I'd have to get the entire list of clones bred during your visit which will take some time to download. Probably a few minutes. The Silencer's data should only take a minute at most."
"Shouldn't we be leaving? Like right now?" Scorch said, clearly on edge. "We need to get her out of here and convince everyone she's dead," he said gesturing to the silent but still obviously sullen Ventress, who glared at the commando.
"He's got a point," Sev commented.
"Wow, really?"
"Don't get too full of yourself."
Ciaran frowned and thought to herself. The data on the clones and the Silencer could be quite valuable but it would take at least some time, not to mention that she needed a plan to fake Ventress' death. So much to do...
As for the data:
[] Get the data on the Silencer only. It will only take a minute or two and the results could be quite enlightening.
[] Get the data that will lead you to the chip-less clones only. That will take some time, but learning about where they are could be potentially useful in the future.
[] Get both, that will take the most time but both pieces of information are far too useful to ignore.
[] Ignore the data and leave, spending any more time here is too risky.
And how will everyone be convinced that Ventress is dead?
[] Explosives. Obliterating the room would justify a lack of evidence and leaving behind a scrap of clothing or something similar on the edge of the blast would be convincing enough.
[] Pretend to hijack a trident ship. Most of them have been emptied out at this point, and it would hardly be implausible for Ventress to try and escape on one of them before it would be destroyed. Of course, Ventress herself would bail out beforehand and be safe and sound elsewhere, but who would know?
[] Just extract Ventress without a cover-up. Attempting to fake her death is too risky and could get you caught. Besides, even if people know she's alive no one aside from the Abyss Watchers will know where exactly she is anyway.
[] Write-in.
AN: Decided to throw in some other bits detailing the actions ofthe only Jedi we really care about the best Jedi before going into the climax of things.
And before you as, yes, Sev'rance is the type of villain to gloat. She did it when she offed what's-his-face's Padawan in Galactic Battlegrounds and evidence suggests she is certainly that arrogant.
Anyway, you've got a lot of risks/rewards going on here. Choose wisely~
While the Delta's and Ciaran's team were busy with their efforts, the majority of the Republic forces were in a brutal struggle against the Separatists, fending of what seemed to be wave after wave of droid troops and trying to prevent them from gaining ground.
Amidst the chaos, Anakin Skywalker was fighting off an advance that was headed towards one of the major cloning chambers of the city. He was almost a blur, weaving through the droids, constantly deflecting their fire and slicing through them relentlessly, but even with his talent he was starting to feel pressured from their sheer numbers. While he had some members of the 501st supporting him, there was only so much they could do-
And all of a sudden the sound of blasters that were distinctly not from his fellow soldiers' rifles rang out and bolts slammed into a quartet of the droids facing them. As Anakin continued to move he could now hear the sound of a jetpack getting louder as more droids were shot dead when a man in Mandalorian armor slammed down on the ground next to him.
"You're...?"
"Jango Fett. And you're Skywalker?"
"...Yeah. What are you doing here?"
"Protecting the planet and getting paid, in that order."
While the droids continued to fire on the two men, their conversation continued unabated even as they fought off the continuing advance as the clones supporting them looked on in awe.
As a reprieve in the advance game, Anakin turned to the bounty hunter. "So..." he smirked. "Think you can keep up with me?"
"Heh. I was about to ask you the same thing."
--------
Elsewhere, Obi-Wan was also holding the line against a similar advance, though he did not have the luxury of significant clone trooper support as many of the soldiers behind him had either been killed or weren't able to fight back. This meant that he had to fight tooth and nail just to stay alive, let alone hold off the approaching advance. Then-
"General Kenobi, we have some reinforcements coming!" Cody chimed in over the comms.
"How did they get here so quickly?"
"Apparently they were being deployed to another system nearby but were rerouted when we became aware of the Separatist attack. They should be there-"
As if on cue, a wave of rifle rounds came from behind Obi-Wan and began to blast away the droids in front of him. But what surprised him was the sound of a lightsaber activating as he saw-
"Siri!"
For her part, Siri didn't respond immediately, but instead helped him fall back to where the clone reinforcements were so he could breathe for a moment.
"Figured you'd prefer a breather to banter," Siri commented. "There's an Acclamator landing soon that will have the rest of the reinforcements."
Obi-Wan nodded affirmatively as more droids began to close in. "Good to hear. And...I'm glad you're here right now."
Siri smiled warmly. "It's nice to see you too, Obi-Wan. Shall we?"
And with that the two rushed out to join the battle once again.
-------
"Alright boys and girl, listen up," said Skirata over his private comm channel to the Deltas and Ciaran's team as they grouped back up from their various assignments. "Once we got a breakthrough on the Sep comm network I was able to track down Ventress; looks like she's headed towards a server room deeper in the city. If you want to catch up to her, you need to move now."
"Does she even know how to slice a computer?" Gulan asked Ciaran as the group began running in the direction of the server room in question.
"I don't know, but I'm not exactly confident she has the patience for it," she breathlessly replied.
"Maybe Tann gave her a device that will 'help her break in' of some kind," Fixer suggested.
"Whatever the case is, I doubt Tann would send her in there without a plan to get her killed. Be ready, Deltas," Boss commented.
As the group continued to move, Ordo contacted Skirata. "Buir, can you see video feeds in the city?"
"I can get access to some. What are you looking for, son?"
"Distortions, evidence of jamming, something along those lines."
"Right."
A moment passed as the group continued to run before Kal responded. "There are some jammed feeds in areas near the server room. You think-"
"Yes."
"Careful then, son."
"Listen up!" Ordo shouted as the team briefly ground to a halt. "It looks like we're going to be fighting off the same model of droid Grievous and I saw earlier. Be ready."
"Oh good," Scorch commented. "As if this couldn't get any more complicated."
"At least there's going to be more droids to kill," Sev replied.
-------
Asajj Ventress was not a happy woman in general, but she was even angrier than usual with having to put up with Sev'rance's leadership as per Dooku's orders. While she did admit that the Chiss was a gifted strategist she was incredibly arrogant in that regard, constantly lording her position as the main leader of the Separatist army over Asajj's head.
Still, her plan to have Ventress plant a device in a server room that would allow the Separatists to extract valuable data about the clone army was admittedly a smart idea; she just hated being here instead of out in the field fighting against Obi-Wan and Anakin.
"You should be closing in on the room momentarily. Are there any guards around?" Sev'rance's voice came in over the comms. Growling, Ventress hid behind a doorway and looked around to see...no one there. "It would appear that the Republic is more concerned with the enemies they can see."
"That will be their downfall then."
Ventress quickly moved into the computer room and looked around. "Where does the device go?"
"It doesn't matter, its placement on any device will be sufficient."
Ventress quickly set the small electronic device on the first server she could find space on. "Done."
"Excellent. Please wait a moment to confirm that the device is operational."
-------
"Haar'chak! It looks like the server room's security systems are being overridden from within and there's a data feed going out from it!" Skirata shouted over the comms.
"We're about three minutes out, buir," Ordo responded intensely. "We have to move, now!"
-------
After a few moments had passed, Sev'rance spoke to Ventress again. "The plant was successful."
Ventress grunted, then turned to leave. "I'll be going out onto the field th-"
She was cut off when she felt an attack coming and reflectively blocked a blaster round that came from an HS-1 on the wall outside the room.
"Oh that will hardly be necessary my dear Ventress. You will die here, after all."
With those words alarms began to blare and the doors around Ventress began to slam shut as she began to fend off more rounds coming from a quartet of HS-1s surrounding her. "You traitor-"
"On the contrary. Master Dooku has decided that you are too much of a threat to allow you to live."
Asajj's blood went cold. "You lie," she spat out.
"Believe that if you wish, perhaps it may make your death less painful. Farewell."
Asajj screamed in rage as she began to fight off the intensifying attacks of the HS-1s, as two of them began to close in for melee combat...
-------
"The room's been locked down and regular troopers are going to be on their way soon. You need to move fast," Kal chimed in as the group reached the door, though Gulan and Thrawn hung back, fully aware that they would be more liabilities if they tried to join in with the main group's assault.
"Slice or breach, Boss?" Scorch asked as the assault group piled up against the reinforced door.
"Slice, a breach could tip off others-" he began to respond as Ciaran ignited her lightfoil and began to cut through it.
"This is faster and can be blamed on Ventress," she explained, strain evident in her voice as she continued her cut.
"Right then. Everyone, ready."
Once Ciaran finished her slice she stood back and prepared to try and push it down with the Force only for Ordo to barrel into it and knock down the weakened door through sheer force. The group burst into the room and saw Ventress barely holding her own against the HS-1s. Two of them were constantly moving around the walls firing on Ventress when they could while the other two were relentlessly attacking her with their shocksticks.
"FIRE!" Boss shouted as everyone barring Ciaran opened fire on the droids. Ciaran for her part quickly moved in and sliced one of the HS-1s attacking Ventress in melee as the Nightsister looked at her stunned.
"What are you doing here!?" she yelled as the remaining HS-1 moved to try and fight the both of them off.
"Saving you, what does it look like!?" Ciaran yelled back. Meanwhile, the HS-1s on the walls had been brought down through sheer weight of fire from the rest of the group, and between Ciaran and Ventress' (reluctant) cooperation, the final HS-1 was quickly dispatched...and with that everyone leveled their blasters at Ventress while Ciaran looked on impassively.
Ventress chuckled bitterly. "So am I not supposed to resist during my own rescue?" she sarcastically commented, glaring at Ciaran all the while. For her part, Ciaran did not react to her jab. "I don't want to take chances," she calmly replied. "Now, are you going to try to kill your savior or are you going to listen to me when I say that Dooku has betrayed you?" she said as she produced a holoprojector that began to play the message between Dooku and Tann.
While Ventress and Ciaran were 'conversing,' Thrawn and Gulan had moved into the server room to find the source of the data stream. "Hang on," Gulan commented as he saw Tann's device. "A remote access jack," he said as he ripped it off and slammed it to the ground. "Simple, but clever."
"Indeed," Thrawn commented as he looked around. "Hmm..."
Gulan glanced at the Chiss and sighed. "I know what you're thinking and it's way too damn risky."
"The benefits would be extraordinary, however."
As the two began to debate, Ciaran began to speak to Ventress again. "We are short on time, so I will be blunt-I need to know what you know about the Sith. You can come with me and live, or die here as Sev'rance and Dooku planned."
Ventress glanced around, taking in everyone pointing their rifles at her before turning back to Ciaran. "Do you really think you can just leave this planet without bringing down their wrath?" she asked mockingly.
"Yes." Ciaran flatly responded. "Now, are you coming with me or not?"
Ventress stared at her for a moment, then closed her eyes and balled her fists before opening her eyes again. "...Very well."
Everyone holstered their weapons as Ciaran nodded. "Right. Now we need to figure out how to convince everyone you're dead."
"Lady Ciaran, if I may?" Thrawn asked as he moved back towards the group. "Gulan and I have identified a potential opportunity-"
Ordo turned to him and his glare was evident despite the helmet. "No."
"It is not what you are thinking," Thrawn calmly responded. "There was a clone regiment that did not have inhibitor chips installed correct? Knowing who and where they are might be useful."
Ordo's glare lessened as the Silencer turned towards Thrawn, who glanced at the mercenary before looking back at Ciaran again. "We may also be able to find more information on him as well."
Ciaran frowned as she went into thought. "How long would it take?"
Fixer stepped forward. "That would not be happening without me. But with that and the direct access...getting the Silencer's data would be easy enough if you have enough information on his samples-"
"We do," responded Ciaran.
"But finding that regiment will be a lot more difficult. Was the sabotage reported?"
"Of course not."
"Then I'd have to get the entire list of clones bred during your visit which will take some time to download. Probably a few minutes. The Silencer's data should only take a minute at most."
"Shouldn't we be leaving? Like right now?" Scorch said, clearly on edge. "We need to get her out of here and convince everyone she's dead," he said gesturing to the silent but still obviously sullen Ventress, who glared at the commando.
"He's got a point," Sev commented.
"Wow, really?"
"Don't get too full of yourself."
Ciaran frowned and thought to herself. The data on the clones and the Silencer could be quite valuable but it would take at least some time, not to mention that she needed a plan to fake Ventress' death. So much to do...
As for the data:
[] Get the data on the Silencer only. It will only take a minute or two and the results could be quite enlightening.
[] Get the data that will lead you to the chip-less clones only. That will take some time, but learning about where they are could be potentially useful in the future.
[] Get both, that will take the most time but both pieces of information are far too useful to ignore.
[] Ignore the data and leave, spending any more time here is too risky.
And how will everyone be convinced that Ventress is dead?
[] Explosives. Obliterating the room would justify a lack of evidence and leaving behind a scrap of clothing or something similar on the edge of the blast would be convincing enough.
[] Pretend to hijack a trident ship. Most of them have been emptied out at this point, and it would hardly be implausible for Ventress to try and escape on one of them before it would be destroyed. Of course, Ventress herself would bail out beforehand and be safe and sound elsewhere, but who would know?
[] Just extract Ventress without a cover-up. Attempting to fake her death is too risky and could get you caught. Besides, even if people know she's alive no one aside from the Abyss Watchers will know where exactly she is anyway.
[] Write-in.
AN: Decided to throw in some other bits detailing the actions of
And before you as, yes, Sev'rance is the type of villain to gloat. She did it when she offed what's-his-face's Padawan in Galactic Battlegrounds and evidence suggests she is certainly that arrogant.
Anyway, you've got a lot of risks/rewards going on here. Choose wisely~
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I feel so torn. I hate/love that feeling.
For the data:
So, I'm willing to be persuaded, but here are my votes:
[X] Get the data on the Silencer only. It will only take a minute or two and the results could be quite enlightening.
[X] Pretend to hijack a trident ship. Most of them have been emptied out at this point, and it would hardly be implausible for Ventress to try and escape on one of them before it would be destroyed. Of course, Ventress herself would bail out beforehand and be safe and sound elsewhere, but who would know?
-[X] Ask Ventress make contact with Tann to 'swear vengeance', piggybacking a signal off a trident ship so Tann would know to target & destroy it, thus ensuring that Tann personally vouches for Ventress's death
For the data:
- I'm hadn't seen previous discussion over why we'd want/need The Silencer's info, so I'm just spitballing, but... are we worried that he might have an Inhibitor Chip as well/might be compromised or compromisable? Plus learning his background (clone template) might be quite enlightening as well.
- As for the chip-less clones... wouldn't the fact that they're chipless mean that they'd receive an Order 66 and not act on it? Why would we need that information ahead of time? Would we establish an initial chip-less corps of clone troopers that can't be swayed by Sidious, or seek to warn the Jedi? I'm not sure the utility of this specific information...
- I don't think explosives would work. We know Tann's plan was to have the CIS droids surround & kill Ventress in the room -- not blow it up. Blowing up the room would cause Tann (et al) to ask "why?" If the droids succeeded, no Ventress, no need for a backup plan. If the droids failed, why would Ventress blow up the room?
- Per Wookiepedia, it looks like Ventress faked her death (well, "faked" = "nearly died") in a way most similar to the second option ("pretend to hijack a trident ship", then make it go boom). Given both Dooku & Sidious' lack of oversight (they accepted a droid's report that no survivors were found), that seems to be a pretty decent method of ensuring Ventress escapes without their notice. If we could somehow leak it to the CIS that Ventress survived the server room and was piloting a trident ship, we might even make sure the Sith puts the finishing touches on the cover-up, by having their own ships blow up 'Ventress' to more convincingly fake her death.
- My second-choice would be to not bother faking her death at all. Sure, if we don't then Dooku & Palpatine will know she's around, but they wouldn't have the foggiest idea of how to begin looking for her (the Abyss Watchers and CNS aren't even on their radar for this operation). All they would know is that Tann failed, Ventress survived, and now she knows that she was betrayed... (on the other hand, that might make them more cautious & careful about their plans, or any that Ventress knows about).
So, I'm willing to be persuaded, but here are my votes:
[X] Get the data on the Silencer only. It will only take a minute or two and the results could be quite enlightening.
[X] Pretend to hijack a trident ship. Most of them have been emptied out at this point, and it would hardly be implausible for Ventress to try and escape on one of them before it would be destroyed. Of course, Ventress herself would bail out beforehand and be safe and sound elsewhere, but who would know?
-[X] Ask Ventress make contact with Tann to 'swear vengeance', piggybacking a signal off a trident ship so Tann would know to target & destroy it, thus ensuring that Tann personally vouches for Ventress's death
- Location
- Latvia, Riga
[X] Get the data on the Silencer only. It will only take a minute or two and the results could be quite enlightening.
[X] Pretend to hijack a trident ship. Most of them have been emptied out at this point, and it would hardly be implausible for Ventress to try and escape on one of them before it would be destroyed. Of course, Ventress herself would bail out beforehand and be safe and sound elsewhere, but who would know?
-[X] Ask Ventress make contact with Tann to 'swear vengeance', piggybacking a signal off a trident ship so Tann would know to target & destroy it, thus ensuring that Tann personally vouches for Ventress's death
Brain doesn't work right, so I'll go with your plan, though Knowing where Chip-Less clones are it's possible for us to ... encourage/affect specific areas thus minimising O66 effect (ie, station CL!clones near Jedi Monastery to minimise youngling casualties ; Station some on High-Risk/Vitale areas or systems, thus cutting off Palps influence and resources , etc.)
[X] Pretend to hijack a trident ship. Most of them have been emptied out at this point, and it would hardly be implausible for Ventress to try and escape on one of them before it would be destroyed. Of course, Ventress herself would bail out beforehand and be safe and sound elsewhere, but who would know?
-[X] Ask Ventress make contact with Tann to 'swear vengeance', piggybacking a signal off a trident ship so Tann would know to target & destroy it, thus ensuring that Tann personally vouches for Ventress's death
Brain doesn't work right, so I'll go with your plan, though Knowing where Chip-Less clones are it's possible for us to ... encourage/affect specific areas thus minimising O66 effect (ie, station CL!clones near Jedi Monastery to minimise youngling casualties ; Station some on High-Risk/Vitale areas or systems, thus cutting off Palps influence and resources , etc.)
- Location
- Germany
[X] Get the data on the Silencer only. It will only take a minute or two and the results could be quite enlightening.
[X] Just extract Ventress without a cover-up. Attempting to fake her death is too risky and could get you caught. Besides, even if people know she's alive no one aside from the Abyss Watchers will know where exactly she is anyway.
What's the point of being better than your enemies if you can't show it of? And Ventress will most likely want some vengance so she'll reappear on the galactic stage soon enough. This time her near-death didn't leave her wounded after all.
[X] Just extract Ventress without a cover-up. Attempting to fake her death is too risky and could get you caught. Besides, even if people know she's alive no one aside from the Abyss Watchers will know where exactly she is anyway.
What's the point of being better than your enemies if you can't show it of? And Ventress will most likely want some vengance so she'll reappear on the galactic stage soon enough. This time her near-death didn't leave her wounded after all.
[X] Get the data on the Silencer only. It will only take a minute or two and the results could be quite enlightening.
[X] Pretend to hijack a trident ship. Most of them have been emptied out at this point, and it would hardly be implausible for Ventress to try and escape on one of them before it would be destroyed. Of course, Ventress herself would bail out beforehand and be safe and sound elsewhere, but who would know?
-[X] Ask Ventress make contact with Tann to 'swear vengeance', piggybacking a signal off a trident ship so Tann would know to target & destroy it, thus ensuring that Tann personally vouches for Ventress's death
[X] Pretend to hijack a trident ship. Most of them have been emptied out at this point, and it would hardly be implausible for Ventress to try and escape on one of them before it would be destroyed. Of course, Ventress herself would bail out beforehand and be safe and sound elsewhere, but who would know?
-[X] Ask Ventress make contact with Tann to 'swear vengeance', piggybacking a signal off a trident ship so Tann would know to target & destroy it, thus ensuring that Tann personally vouches for Ventress's death
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Khepri14
Thus kindly I scatter...
- Location
- Following the wind
[X] Get both, that will take the most time but both pieces of information are far too useful to ignore.
[X] Just extract Ventress without a cover-up. Attempting to fake her death is too risky and could get you caught. Besides, even if people know she's alive no one aside from the Abyss Watchers will know where exactly she is anyway.
[X] Just extract Ventress without a cover-up. Attempting to fake her death is too risky and could get you caught. Besides, even if people know she's alive no one aside from the Abyss Watchers will know where exactly she is anyway.
- Location
- Asia
[X] Get both, that will take the most time but both pieces of information are far too useful to ignore.
[X] Explosives. Obliterating the room would justify a lack of evidence and leaving behind a scrap of clothing or something similar on the edge of the blast would be convincing enough.
[X] Explosives. Obliterating the room would justify a lack of evidence and leaving behind a scrap of clothing or something similar on the edge of the blast would be convincing enough.