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As you begin your descent down the ridge, the vines beneath your feet give way slightly. It's a manageable climb, but the walls of the compound are just ahead. You see that a few pirates have begun to lazily patrol the area. You'll need to stay low.
It had been a while since he had been out in the field like this. His nerves were practically on fire as he silently slipped his way down the unstable ridge, taking note of such instability for a return trip, to the wall of the compound. He placed his axe into the firm grip of his jaw and began to scale up the side in silence, certain that his grasp was located where the vines were at their strongest.
The sound of shuffling caught his ear. Movement on the ridge.
Leonis turned back for a split second, making eye contact with Aiden Porte
and Balun Dashiell
. He'd gesture to his ears then point down: Keep your ears low.
And with that he hoisted himself over the wall and vanished into the grounds of the compound proper, slinking into folliage on the less-occupied side of the structure.
From their vantage point atop the cliffs, the Pirate Stronghold lay exposed beneath them, every detail clear in the crisp air. The team prepared for the descent, cautious of each step on the unstable gravel and loose stones, careful not to send debris tumbling down and betray their approach. Balun Dashiell's gaze remained fixed on the objective, the tension rising with every second. Alongside Iona Starchaser and the rest of their crew, they prepared to move as one, knowing that any misstep could cost the lives of the hostages below. The price of failure weighed heavy—one wrong move and the captives might not live to see rescue.
Balun's lightsaber hilt felt solid in his right hand, while his left clutched his K-16 Bryar Pistol, set to stun. The decision to stun was deliberate, chosen for stealth and the hope of capturing their enemies alive for interrogation. Each step he took echoed a silent promise: today, there would be no unnecessary deaths.
It was his first mission alongside Iona Starchaser
, and though he was curious to witness her skill in battle, his concern for her safety took precedence. He stayed close, his eyes constantly tracking her movements. The others in the team were battle-hardened, their bravery proven in the defense of lives on Lothal and the whispered tales from Mon Cala. He trusted them implicitly. Iona, though new to this team, held his confidence too, but Balun's personal feelings clouded his focus. He couldn't allow himself to stray too far from her, his instincts urging him to be ready at a moment's notice.
The battles on Coruscant and Lothal had sharpened Balun's focus. Here, far from the quiet moments they shared at The Nest, the weight of the mission consumed him. His mind was clear, and his nerves steeled for the fight ahead. The hostages' fate rested on their shoulders, and he refused to let personal feelings jeopardize the mission.
With a sharp hand signal, Balun directed the team to spread out, circling the stronghold like a tightening noose. Each member moved into position with practiced precision, weapons at the ready. The pirates, unaware of the storm about to hit, were now in the crosshairs. The plan was set: quick, silent, and lethal. Every movement was a calculated step toward reclaiming the hostages, ensuring that no enemy had the chance to sound the alarm. The strike was imminent.
Patience was a skill that she'd honed over the years as a Ranger. It often became a necessity, sitting in place and watching an enemy location for hours on end to learn information about them that could be used to fight them. So it wasn't hard for her to sit quietly in the shadows and watch the pirates as some of them started to mill about again, going back to the duties they should have been doing in the first place. The card game seemed to continue, but some of the others weren't sitting around in a drunken stupor any longer. Would have been better if they were.
As she surveyed them, she spotted something she hadn't initially noticed: an automated turret. That was a problem. The moment that thing detected something out of the ordinary it was going to light them up. She was too far from it to be able to sneak over undetected, even using the Force. The only option was the pistol on her hip. She drew it and held it up near her mouth.
"Stun," she whispered, just loud enough for the guns vocal recognition system to hear her.
The weapon immediately switched to a stun around, as indicated on the side. She lowered the weapon again and looked around the compound as the other members of the strike team dropped inside of the walls. Hopefully they were ready to make their moves, because she couldn't wait forever to take that turret down. The moment she did, all hell would break loose if they didn't act swiftly. She leveled the pistol out in front of her and aimed directly at the turret. With no one bearing down on her, and no incoming fire, she could take a moment to just breathe and make sure the shot was lined up perfectly.
Then, she pulled the trigger, sending the stun round on its way to the target.
Rather abruptly Diodoros’s ear twitched slightly. His heightened hearing instinctively picked up on the sound of a shot. Even through the haze of his intoxication his familiarity to the noise allowed him to clearly hear it. The golden brute let out a tired sigh before it turned into a low growl.
He wasn’t sure if others heard it or not. Diodoros stood up straighter and fixed his relaxed posture. “Somebody is up to no good…” He said loud enough for others to hear. In his mind the Firrerreo thought that it could be one of two things. Either some captive is making an escape, or there was foul play going on with some of the pirates here. Diodoros was inclined to believe the later, so many drunken thugs around there was bound to be some sort of discord.
He didn’t think that it could be an outside threat. In his mind the neighboring TAC and EOTL were far too busy with each other to worry about pirate misfortunes here on Doan. So he feared some infighting amongst the pirates was most likely. He was gonna be upset if someone of his own crew was causing problems, or fell victim to another. He would take it upon himself to remind everyone, even those not under his command, why he was the top dog.
Diodoros’s eyes pierced through the dark, smoggy air. Seeing through the ultraviolet spectrum it wouldn’t be very for anyone to escape his vision. As he turned a corner to where he heard the noise of the stun round. But only found that their automatic turret seemed to be not working anymore. He wondered for a moment if it had shot any, but it wasn’t set to stun. Then he thought that someone else might have disabled it. Leading the brute to look around rather quickly to see where it could’ve come from. Almost making himself dizzy as he did so.
But his blue eyes fell onto someone. Someone he didn’t recognize which threw him off. Since he was expecting another pirate that had been up to no good. But this woman looked rather sneaky. She probably would’ve gotten past him if he saw through a more common spectrum of light. He actually likely would’ve missed her if his vision was just a bit more blurred and hazy. “Huh? Who the hell are you?” Diodoros asked, his large hands clenching some as he did so. Although from his speech, the woman could likely tell that he was intoxicated.
"That's our cue!" Balun exclaimed, swiftly unhooking his comlink from his belt and bringing it to his lips. "Davaab, this is Balun Dashiell. We copy you. Be aware—we have unknown captives inside the compound. Proceed with caution and neutralize the hostiles quietly," he instructed, casting an apologetic look toward Iona Starchaser. Like him, she was trained to minimize violence whenever possible, and their shared instinct was to avoid unnecessary bloodshed. "Incapacitate them if you can," he added into the comlink, speaking to Saram KoteSaram Kote
's team. "Official arrests will reflect well on the Coalition when this gets out."
Official arrests? Incapacitate? Shab, they were rammikade not law enforcement. She wasn't even carrying manacles or anything else. Anila and Janar were both carrying tape, but that was mostly for helping adhering explosives to surfaces. She took a breath and slowly let it out. "No promises, ad'ika. Make your way inside, we'll make handle things top side." She was about to start marking targets for Rusana and Viraen when she saw something that caught her attention. Her eyes were still getting used to the new HUD, but years of experience and training had drilled a very visceral reaction into her on seeing a glint in the distance.
Her armor's retrofitted sensor suite reacted only microseconds slower than her augmented natural reflexes, placing a marker where the hostile sniper was suspected to be. "Lenedat," she whispered into her comms as she settled her sights on the other marksman, her armor's detection suite catching up and highlighting him in red as she slowly centered her crosshairs on his head. At this distance, her smart scope didn't need to make any adjustments, the massive depleted-baradium armor-piercing round loaded into her verpine anti-material rifle would be propelled with essentially no drop. "Ram'ser," she clarified, transmitting the target data of the sniper to her squad.
Acknowledgement signals flickered into view in the corner of her HUD. Her focus honed to a razor's edge, her breathing steady, her finger squeezed the trigger. There were no more life signs showing from the direction of the pirate sniper. "Jate nynir," chimed Viraen over the squad comms. "But should we expect anything else,alor? You've spoilt us." Saram doubled checked, increasing the optic's magnification all the way. Satisfied, only then did she audibly sigh at Viraen before she returned her attention to the pirates fixated on their game by the comm array.
She quickly marked targets for Viraen, Rusana and Janar. Janar knew the drill, he was to fire only in case one of them missed. None of them were likely to, but it was always good to have a fallback plan, ret'lini. Acknowledgement signals flickered on once more, lines appeared on her HUD showing the predicted targeting solutions. Saram waited for a heartbeat as she considered her options if this went wrong. "Tra'cyar," she whispered over the squad comms, and almost immediately weapons were discharged.
Steady breathing, two shots between breaths, two unfortunate pirates met their ends via depleted baradium armor-piercing 20x82mm rounds. Two more went down, put down by Viraen via the same method. Rusana however took advantage of her far faster cycling rifle and put down four in the same time. Against most infantry targets, the AMR-4M that she and Viraen were using was overkill by several margins. Rusana's BR-6B was made for engaging infantry targets at this range, however. The almost polite hum of their weapons was barely audible.
"Jate nynire, but I should expect that, shouldn't I, Vir'ika?" she asked, unnecessarily turning her head in his direction. She heard Ran laugh as she switched to TAC frequencies, "This is Davaab lead to all TAC callsigns, hostile sniper and pirates manning the comms array neutralized." She then quickly raised Rav, just to make sure CAS and jamming were an option if they needed them, "Galaar 1-1, this is Davaab lead, just making sure CAS and jamming are an option."
"Judging by the lack of explosions, you don't need it yet, it's still here when you need it, Davaab," chimed in Rav, deadpan, over the comms. Rav's response elicited an amused chuckle from her.
"You're the best, Galaar 1-1," she responded as she took one more look around to make sure that no one had noticed the bodies of the pirates they'd just ventilated. Satisfied that no one was missing them just yet, she quickly switched back to TAC frequencies, "Davaab lead to TAC callsigns, be advised, close air support and jamming is available if you need it." She terminated the connection and sighed to herself, "Though I hope you don't."
As Serra sat huddled among the servants, her pulse quickened with each passing moment. The pirates, still unaware of the treasure hidden in plain sight, barked orders at the group, too distracted by their victory to scrutinize every face. The air in the room felt thick, heavy with fear and the low murmurs of captives whispering amongst themselves.
From where she sat, Serra could hear one pirate muttering, "Soon as we clear this place out, we'll have all we need. The Princess? She's long gone, probably off-world by now." The others laughed, their confidence in her supposed absence filling the room.
For now, she remained safe, unnoticed... but that could change in an instant.
As Kaaba and Mi pressed themselves into their sand-like form, the smooth, transparent walls of their vial-style cell remained impenetrable. The cold, unbreakable transparisteel encased them, designed specifically to contain beings like them—there were no cracks, no seams, no openings that their bodies could exploit to escape.
The guard's footsteps echoed down the corridor as he approached, his bored grumbling muffled by the thick barrier. He paused briefly in front of the cell, peering in."Still sleeping, huh?" he muttered with a shrug, tapping the side of the vial lightly. "Guess you're no trouble, then." The faint sound reverberated through the cell, but he didn't linger, his footsteps fading once more into the distance.
For now, their disguise had held—but the escape route was still an unsolved puzzle.
As Leonis scaled the wall, his veteran instincts guiding each movement, the faint sounds of shifting rocks from the ridge confirmed the presence of his companions above. Aiden and Balun saw him disappear over the wall, the silent gesture to keep quiet lingering in their minds as they prepared to follow.
Inside the compound, Leonis landed silently in a patch of overgrown foliage. The courtyard lay ahead, faint torchlight illuminating the few pirates still obliviously engaged in their dice game. Nearby, he could hear two pirates exchanging drunken words, "You see something move? Or just me losing it after all this booze?"His companion laughed,"Probably the wind. Relax, no one's gonna find us way out here."
Leonis remained hidden, as he assessed the next move.
The cold night air brushed against their skin as they descended the unstable cliffs. Every step was measured, each movement careful not to disturb the loose stones beneath them. As Balun signaled for the team to spread out, the pirates below remained blissfully unaware of the danger closing in.
The faint chatter of the pirates could be heard, their voices echoing through the crisp air."I'm telling you, we hit the jackpot this time. Ain't no one coming this far out to stop us," one pirate laughed, his confidence a sign of just how relaxed they had become.
The plan was clear—quick, silent, and efficient.
The pirates, unaware of the impending strike, continued their idle chatter, unaware that the storm was about to break.
As Ever Dawnracer exhaled and pulled the trigger, the soft hum of her blaster cut through the stillness. The stun round sailed through the air, hitting its mark. The automated turret shuddered briefly, its systems flickering as it deactivated, the quiet of the compound returning. For a split second, nothing happened—then, some of the pirates near the card game began to shift uneasily, perhaps sensing something was off but unsure of what.
One pirate, oblivious to the now-neutralized turret, slurred, "What's the holdup? You losing your nerve over a card game?"The others chuckled, but their laughter was uneasy, the relaxed atmosphere from earlier slowly dissipating.
As Diodoros rounded the corner, his senses heightened despite the lingering effects of intoxication, he picked up on subtle movement from a shadowy spot near the disabled turret. The hazy courtyard still buzzed with pirate activity, most of the crew unaware of anything amiss, but Diodoros' keen eyes caught something out of place—a shift in the shadows that didn't belong.
The rest of the pirates remained engrossed in their revelry for the moment, oblivious to the growing tension. Diodoros' sharp gaze scanned the area, sensing something was off as he went to investigate.
As Saram Kote and her squad methodically neutralized the pirates, the faint hum of their weapons barely registered over the ambient noise of the compound. The sniper that had once posed a threat was now gone, and the pirates near the communications array fell in quick succession, their fates sealed before they even knew what hit them. The tactical precision of her team was unmatched, their actions silent and swift, leaving no room for error.
With the immediate threats handled, Saram's voice came through on the TAC frequency, clear and steady, keeping everyone updated as her squad continued to secure the area.
For now, the operation remained covert, but time was ticking, and the pirates' window to realize they were being hunted was closing fast.
Perception Check Results:
Perimeter/Barracks (Standard Pirates):
Roll: 14 vs Target Difficulty: 13
Result:Success - The standard pirates near the barracks notice faint sounds of movement, possibly indicating that something is amiss. They start to pay more attention to their surroundings.
Supply Depot/Main Entrances (Heavy Enforcers):
Roll: 5 vs Target Difficulty: 15
Result:Failure - The heavy enforcers remain unaware of any disturbances, their guard is down as some of them are resting.
Vantage Points (Snipers):
Roll: 5 vs Target Difficulty: 10
Result:Failure - The snipers are too focused on their immediate surroundings and do not detect any subtle movement or disturbances.
Comms Array (Tech Specialists):
Roll: 17 vs Target Difficulty: 12
Result:Success - The active tech specialists notice a minor disturbance in the comms systems and begin investigating the cause, suspecting a possible infiltration.
Choke Points/Hidden Areas (Saboteurs):
Roll: 6 vs Target Difficulty: 14
Result:Failure - The saboteurs remain unaware of any infiltration, continuing their patrols and monitoring the traps.
Prison Cells (Wardens):
Roll: 7 vs Target Difficulty: 13
Result:Failure - The wardens are too focused on their captives and fail to notice anything unusual happening nearby.
Strategic Points (Captains):
Roll: 9 vs Target Difficulty: 16
Result:Failure - The captains are too involved in their command tasks to notice anything suspicious in the compound.
As the night air remains thick with tension, the pirates stationed around the compound maintain their positions—some more alert than others.
In the Perimeter/Barracks, a couple of pirates halt their idle chatter as one of them raises a hand. "Hold on... you hear that?" The faint sound of shifting gravel catches their ears. Slowly, they grip their blasters and scan the darkness more cautiously now, unsure of what might be lurking beyond the barracks. Meanwhile, the remaining pirates in the barracks are sound asleep, unaware of the subtle movement outside.
The comms array has been neutralized, and the two surviving tech specialists are fast asleep in the barracks, their shift over. With no one actively monitoring the comms system, the pirates are left blind to any interference.
Elsewhere, the heavy enforcers near the supply depot are too relaxed, taking shifts to rest, with no inclination that danger is approaching. The snipers stationed on the vantage points, though strategically positioned, are distracted by the usual sights, failing to detect any movement from the infiltrators.
In the prison cells, the wardens continue their duty with tired eyes, unaware of any disturbances near the captives. Even the elite captains, engrossed in tactical discussions and unaware of the shifting situation around them, remain oblivious to the silent threat creeping closer.
For now, most of the compound remains unaware of the looming danger... but small cracks in their defenses begin to show as the infiltrators close in.
"You see something move? Or just me losing it after all this booze?"His companion laughed,"Probably the wind. Relax, no one's gonna find us way out here."
Leonis waited for the torch on his position to be turned away, readying himself for what lie ahead. He could see the back door now, just ahead of where he sat in the foliage. He moved forward, axe in hand, silently stepping into the shadow of the building and creeping up to the door. Of course, he couldn't just open it. There was no way that he wouldn't be heard should the door decide to creek as he pulled on the knob. So, thinking quickly, the old man grabbed a nearby stone the size of his hand, hurling it over the heads of the pirates and into the bushes behind them. Hopefully he could take advantage of their drunkenness to draw their attention to that rather than him.
Whenever the rock hit the first bush Leonis slowly opened the door, timing the two to overlap. Should all go well he'd slip inside.
She was a bit surprised when someone seemed to notice something was out of the ordinary. Perhaps she needed to work on finding a way to silence those rounds as well as the FMJ. Granted, she hadn't been the one that created the pistol, so she'd probably have to find a specialist to accomplish that task. Didn't sound like something that would be easy to do, and to be honest, she was wasting time thinking about it.
The man drew closer and she was hoping he wouldn't notice her, but somehow Diodoros
got lucky enough to spot her in the shadows. Well, she wasn't exactly a Shadow. Concealing herself in the Force from people's vision was a skill she didn't have. She was a fighter. Hiding in the shadows was something she was good at, but sometimes you just got spotted no matter what you did. And my was he a rather big guy. She wasn't even sure if a stun round would knock him out.
Dropping her weapons, she held her hands up in surrender. He was slightly inebriated, she could tell, so Ever was counting on him not noticing that she'd tensed the muscled in her legs and was pushing the Force into them. Matukai had some pretty crazy abilities, some of which included insane speed and strength, both of which she was counting on in that moment, as she suddenly sprang towards him, intending on tackling him off into the darkness with such speed that nobody would even notice and, hopefully, he wouldn't even be able to cry out in surprise!
Jackie stood frozen in place, his wide eyes darting from shadow to shadow as the tension in the courtyard began to thicken. The usual rowdy laughter of pirates seemed to fade into the background, replaced by the sharp crackle of danger lingering in the air. His hands trembled, clutching the edge of his shirt as if it might offer some protection. The sudden shift in mood—the whispers of suspicion, the low growls from some of the pirates—set his heart racing.
"Something's... something's wrong," he whispered to himself, barely audible, his voice shaking like a frightened rabbit. He didn't belong here. He wasn't a fighter, wasn't like the rest of the crew. The others might brush it off, but Jackie could feel it in his bones—something was coming.
Desperate for a sense of safety, Jackie's gaze darted toward Diodoros, the towering figure looming ahead. The Firrerreo, even in his golden drunken haze, seemed invincible, a solid pillar in a world that suddenly felt like it was crumbling. With quick, uncertain steps, Jackie began to move toward him, his breath catching in his throat.
"D-Diodoros, sir..." Jackie stammered, his voice barely above a whisper as he reached the imposing brute's side, clutching at the fabric of Diodoros' sleeve as if it were his last lifeline. "What... what's happening? I don't like this... I don't—"
He choked on his words, his body trembling as he pressed closer, desperate for protection from the chaos he sensed swirling around them. Diodoros' size and strength felt like the only thing standing between Jackie and whatever unseen terror lurked in the shadows.
The cold night air brushed against their skin as they descended the unstable cliffs. Every step was measured, each movement careful not to disturb the loose stones beneath them. As Balun signaled for the team to spread out, the pirates below remained blissfully unaware of the danger closing in.
The faint chatter of the pirates could be heard, their voices echoing through the crisp air."I'm telling you, we hit the jackpot this time. Ain't no one coming this far out to stop us," one pirate laughed, his confidence a sign of just how relaxed they had become.
The plan was clear—quick, silent, and efficient.
The pirates, unaware of the impending strike, continued their idle chatter, unaware that the storm was about to break.
Balun crouched behind the crumbling remains of the compound wall, the perimeter a jagged ruin, battered and broken from what appeared to be a past skirmish. The scattered debris provided just enough cover as he carefully peered over the mound of shattered bricks. Inside the compound, his eyes swept across the area, taking in the largest building at the center, clearly the main structure, flanked by a few smaller ones—perhaps storage sheds or workshops.
From his vantage point, he spotted two pirates patrolling the interior wall. Their postures were relaxed, bottles in hand, completely unaware of the danger creeping toward them. They chatted loudly, oblivious to the silent approach of Balun's team, who had already positioned themselves strategically around the compound. With a quick glance back at his comrades, Balun signaled his readiness, then without hesitation, vaulted over the broken wall and rushed toward the unsuspecting pair.
He reached them in an instant, giving them no time to react. As the first pirate began to raise his blaster rifle, Balun leapt, his right fist driving into the man's jaw with a powerful strike. The impact sent the pirate reeling, and without losing momentum, Balun turned on the second man. His left hand shot out in a swift, precise motion, the open palm slamming into the pirate's throat. The man crumpled, gasping for air, his hands clawing at his neck, unable to call for help.
With a fluid motion, Balun delivered a sharp sidekick to the man's head, sending him sprawling to the ground, unconscious. Pivoting back to the first pirate, who was staggering to his feet, Balun stepped forward with cold precision. His right foot shot up, the flat of his boot colliding with the man's forehead, dropping him into unconsciousness as well, leaving both pirates motionless on the cold ground.
As the twins watched the guard assume they were sleeping, slowly reforming as he left, though in a way that made it look like they were waking up.
"Any luck?"
"No. Solid transparisteel I think. No cracks or space either." He said, resting against the side of the vile. The pair began to think, then Mi got an idea. She made sure to hide what she was doing under the rest of her crystal mass, and start trying to move as quick as she could without melting herself, just trying to see if they could even scratch it and maybe get through before they were sold off somewhere.....
She didn’t seem to answer his question and Diodoros narrowed his eyes. Her sneakness and refusal to speak communicated to the brute that she was likely an enemy and needed to be dealt with. Raising his firsts up he brought them together to crack his knuckles.
"D-Diodoros, sir..." Jackie stammered, his voice barely above a whisper as he reached the imposing brute's side, clutching at the fabric of Diodoros' sleeve as if it were his last lifeline. "What... what's happening? I don't like this... I don't—"
He choked on his words, his body trembling as he pressed closer, desperate for protection from the chaos he sensed swirling around them. Diodoros' size and strength felt like the only thing standing between Jackie and whatever unseen terror lurked in the shadows.
However, he was suddenly distracted by the tugging he felt from the child that had followed him.“Errrg, keep that name out of your mouth boy.” He said with a growl as he glared down at the child. If they were any older he’d meet the back of his fist with their face. He didn’t like people calling him by his full name like that, and the two of them most definitely weren’t on a first name basis. His mouth crept into toothy snarling, flashing one of his large canines.
It was then that he felt the sudden force of the woman he saw colliding into him from the front. The large firrerreo was rather surprised and caught off guard from the sudden tackle. His inebriated state aiding her effort in knocking him back. His stance wasn't’ nearly as sturdy as it should’ve been and he was distracted. Needless to say Diodoros wasn’t operating at his best. But he’d also been confident that he didn’t need to.
Once he’d fallen back into the darkness with her, he didn’t really cry out for help. Just growled some more out of frustration. He wasn’t thinking clearly enough to respond properly to an invasion. Reaching up, some Diodoros would attempt to grab her firmly and toss her off of him like a ragdoll.
Diodoros
Jackie's breath hitched, his wide eyes darting frantically around the courtyard. Everything felt too loud, too close. His hands trembled as he backed away from Diodoros, his heart pounding in his chest. He was on the verge of tears, and it took all his willpower not to cry out in fear.
"I-I need to go," he whispered shakily, his voice barely audible.
Without another word, Jackie turned and fled. His legs felt weak, but he pushed himself to run, stumbling slightly as he bolted for the nearest cover. He squeezed through a narrow gap between crates, hiding himself away from the chaos. Curled up in the shadows, he pressed his trembling hands to his face, trying to stop the sobs that threatened to escape.
Old Man Leonis
As Leonis hurled the stone, it clattered noisily into the bushes, startling the two pirates standing guard. They exchanged confused looks before one of them, clearly more intoxicated than the other, waved his blaster toward the source of the noise.
"Oi, what was that?" he slurred.
The other pirate grumbled, shaking his head. "Probably some critter... go check it out."
Grumbling, the drunken pirate stumbled toward the bushes, his footsteps uneven as he muttered under his breath. The other guard turned away, his attention drawn to the disturbance as Leonis seized the moment, pulling the door open with silence. The creaking sound was barely audible over the rustling leaves and shifting gravel.
Inside, Leonis would find himself in a dimly lit corridor. The air was thick with the smell of damp stone and stale alcohol, and the faint sounds of muffled voices echoed from deeper within the compound. The pirates stationed here were either resting or too engaged in their own vices to notice him yet.
Options:
The corridor branches off in two directions, one leading toward what seems like a storage area, while the other seems to head toward the heart of the stronghold, where more pirates might be gathered.
A few low-ranking pirates could be heard laughing in a room just ahead, possibly distracted by a card game.
The storage room to the left might hold useful supplies or provide a more concealed route through the compound.
As Balun's swift and precise movements took down the two pirates with practiced ease, the sounds of their unconscious bodies hitting the ground barely echoed through the compound. The night air remained still, with the distant hum of drunk pirates continuing their revelry elsewhere.
From his vantage point, Balun could now clearly see the layout of the compound. The largest structure loomed ahead, the main building where the command center or critical operations might be held. To the side, a dim light flickered from one of the smaller sheds, suggesting activity within.
Options/Information for Balun:
The pirates patrolling the interior have been neutralized, and for now, their absence goes unnoticed.
The courtyard remains mostly empty, though faint voices can be heard from a group of pirates further within the compound.
The storage shed might offer supplies or additional intel.
The main building seems to hold the strategic heart of the pirate operation, but it is likely more heavily guarded deeper inside.
The next steps must be taken with caution—any further noise or confrontation risks alerting the compound.
For now, there seemed to be no immediate signs of success—scratching at the surface left only the faintest of marks, and the structure was designed specifically to contain beings like them. But as Mi's form scraped against the surface, the twins realized that persistence might pay off, or perhaps there was another way to exploit their unique abilities.
Options for the Twins:
Continue scraping: Though it seems nearly impossible, continued effort might eventually wear down a weak point in the transparisteel.
Look for external influences: Perhaps their escape could be aided by a distraction or disturbance from outside the cell. Listen carefully for any unusual activity nearby.
Examine the surroundings: While the walls are sealed tight, there might be overlooked details in the room—drains, small vents, or other features that could be manipulated with their unique forms.
Total Pirates Remaining: 42 Total Pirates Neutralized: 11
Mi grumbled to herself. "I scuffed it a little, but not much else...." The pair riled a bit in the container as they both looked around. They spotted a few others. There was a woman who seemed to be Force Sensitive there ( Serra Doan
), and plenty of other people there.
"Hey? Anyone think they could get a guard to bump this thing or something? Enough for me and my sister to get out try to unlock things?" He asked, looking at the others. He wasn't exactly sure anyone would listen to the one and a half piles of sand in a jar, but it was worth a shot right.... Right?
The older man snorted in disbelief, his weathered face twisted into a frown. "A pile of sand thinks it can outsmart these guards? You're dreaming, kid," he said, leaning back against the wall. "This ain't the time to get cute. Best you and your sister sit tight before you make things worse."
The Zabrak woman's sneer remained fixed. "If you think a little bump is all it takes, go ahead. But don't expect us to play along in your little escape plan," she scoffed. "I've seen too many folks try to get clever, only to end up getting the rest of us in more trouble."
A quiet figure nearby, a young Twi'lek, finally spoke up, her voice hesitant but hopeful. "Maybe… maybe it could work. But we'd have to be careful. If we get caught, there won't be a second chance." Her lekku twitched nervously as she eyed the guards, clearly torn between fear and a flicker of belief in their chances.
DM Player-Slayer
,
Aiden Porte
,
Balun Dashiell
, Ever Dawnracer,
Iona Starchaser
,
Saram Kote
,
Diodoros
,
Serra Doan
,
Kaaba and Mi
