Public Dead Men Tell No Tales

[Sebastian van Ruud]

It's been a while since Sebastian got a new assignment. After the incident with the superminer Osaga, the Mining Guild took some security measures to ensure the thing that happened there wouldn't repeat. Not only was it costly, human lives were wasted for almost nothing. Reputation risks were out of the question since profits were the only thing the guild cared about, or Sebastian thought. However, preserving workers' lives was an equal priority for the Guild, and this is where Sebastian was sent with a simple task - to figure out why nobody had returned from there for a long time. Considering Sebastian's experience with the previous incident he was chosen for the task, not like he had a choice anyway.

The Mining Guild had a simple naming convention for miner hubs, the problematic one was simply named "Hub #8" located above Obredaan. After many years of heavy mining, it still had plenty of cortosis to get, but a swampy surface requires double efforts regarding the safety of miners' work. Other than that the planet didn't have any natural threats. When Van Ruud was approaching the station he didn't expect to find wrecks or debris, it looked like there was some battle while it shouldn't as the place hadn't anything to fight for. He wasn't sure if it was a part of the Hub or something else. The Hub itself looked fine on the surface, but contacting the station traffic control - this is where things started to get strange. As he got closer to the station he realized that using dry-dock was impossible - it was full of ships but with lights off, as nobody was onboard.

"This is Van Ruud from the security team. Requesting permission to dock, how do you copy?", was sent over comm channels to the Hub's ATC.
"Van Ruud... (static)... Don't approach... (static)... Hub number eight... serious situation... (static)...", was the only response Sebastian received, all other attempts to open a comlink channel resulted in static noise mixed with some garbling.

Issues with communications were always a thing you never get rid of entirely, but van Ruud started to suspect that things on the Hub don't go smoothly. It seems like it actually needs to be inspected, but first, he needs to get inside. He didn't know how since the dry-dock was taken, so he was hoping there could be another one, otherwise he would need to make an entrance by himself. But before doing anything that would lead to tension between the station personnel and him, Sebastian decided to fly around the Hub to find anything where he could dock. But he already started to think it wouldn't be that easy.

 

[Katarine Ryiah]

Words like violence​

Location: Hub # 8
Objective: Start Investigation
Tags: Sebastian van Ruud

"We are lucky we were able to find this open area. Otherwise this mission would have been over."

"The Force provides."

"Oh don't tell me you believe in this hokey religions eh?" The Weequay male laughed and spit on the ground. Katarine spared him a look but otherwise didn't comment. The truth was she didn't know what she believed anymore. All she knew was that people here were in trouble and she intended to help.

Her deep green eyes were drawn upwards as a ship was flying overhead. She wondered if that was the official investigation unit that had been called in. They were probably looking for a place to land the ship just like her pilot had. The Weequay male was hard to stomach but Katarine was not a pilot herself so she'd hired the mercenary to help get her here. She only hoped they would accept her offer of help.

 

[Sebastian van Ruud]

Cruising slowly around the Hub didn't reveal any other ways to get inside, so most likely Sebastian has to make a new one. It was tricky because he didn't see any other options and using his ship's armament would lead to excessive damage which Sebastian would like to avoid. It might decompress a part of the Hub with people still there and send them into a space vacuum. However, doing the last run he spotted an airlock gate. Before departing to the Hub he briefly examined the station layout and as he recalls, those can be opened from outside by using some button. But if he was about to leave his ship, it implied a risk of being stolen or even destroyed. Sebastian didn't like to lose his ship on his first assignment as a Sector Ranger (it was a wonder that he got a job that sent him to his previous employer).

As he was about to set the NavComputor to fly around in autopilot mode, an unknown vessel appeared. The Hub wasn't only a place where miners lived, it was also a spaceport where casual people could stop by and restock for basic supplies. But since the station traffic control doesn't respond it would be a pretty stupid idea to attempt to dock, or so Sebastion thought. So why would someone want to stay here when permission to dock is not granted? Sebastian sensed it as something fishy and decided to hail the vessel.

"This is captain Van Ruud, Sector Rangers unit. Please state your business here or leave, the area isn't safe for custom visitors.". Sebastian said once comlinks with another ship were established. He wasn't an official Ranger (not yet), so he didn't have permission to claim that. If someone from Rangers could scan his identity it would reveal Seb's false claim. The only justification was his visit was sanctioned by the group and his arrival was expected. But he has also been told that sometimes Rangers should take desperate measures and today could be just the case.

 

[Katarine Ryiah]

Break the silence​

Location: Hub # 8
Objective: Investigate
Tags: Sebastian van Ruud

"This is captain Van Ruud, Sector Rangers unit. Please state your business here or leave, the area isn't safe for custom visitors.".

“This is Captain Vrad Kor for the merchant vessel Red Dawn. I’m transporting a Jedi. Says she’s here to help the people below.”

He looked over at Kat and gave her an ugly look. He wasn’t liking having to deal with sector rangers already but she had already given him half the credits and he had no reason to suspect she wasn’t good for the other half.

 

[Sebastian van Ruud]

Sebastian wasn't sure how to act, he didn't have much experience with Force users aside from the event on Osaga. They surely could help, but at the same time he didn't want to be a burden, nor did he want anyone to interfere with his job. He didn't know what to expect inside the Hub after all. However, considering his experience on Osaga having a Jedi on his side might provide some benefits and help to deal with whatever kind of threat there, especially if it's unknown. Even a brief flashback regarding events on the superminer twisted Sebastian's guts hard, so he decided to give a try his cooperation with the Jedi. But first things first.

"I appreciate the assistance, but there is nowhere to dock or land. The hub has only internal docks which are sealed, and the dry-dock is occupied by other ships. If she's willing to help, we need to open an airlock by hand. Does she have an EVA suit? If so, can you stay outside the Hub while we're inside? We would need someone from outside to fly away from the place fast in case of the worst turn of events.".

There were other things Sebastian wanted to tell, but there were too many items to be settled first. People aboard the Hub are a good example - surely they need to be evacuated and treated, but what if some have an unknown infection? Or some of them are criminals? Perhaps a Jedi can easily figure it out, but in that case, she needs to be on board a vessel during a trip. And that's only one of many problems start to arise.

 

[Katarine Ryiah]

Come crashing in
​

Tags: Sebastian van Ruud

Captain Vrad looked for a moment like he had a plan of ditching them once they left the ship. But then again the Jedi had only paid him half of the money. This way he would get the other half without having to do a damn thing. Easy pay he supposed.

“She will meet you out there and follow your lead. I’ll stay behind.”

He turned and saw the Jedi was already starting to get ready for the decent. Hopefully Vrad would stick around long enough to be here when they got back.

 

[Sebastian van Ruud]

"Just to be clear - I don't know how long the investigation will take, so if you still want to help I assume you'll stay as long as needed. At least I hope so. Now please ask her to wear an EVA suit and once I open the airlock gate - get inside right away. Van Ruud out, and please watch for my ship as well, I will pay for your service once we're done here.".

With that said Sebastian turned off his ship engines and headed to the exit. He was still afraid of his ship's loss since floating debris might collide with it, but at least someone was outside and hopefully could shoot them off and repel any looters, should any appear. Sebastion doesn't earn enough to afford another ship, but that's not why he joined Sector Rangers. After events on Osaga money was no longer his main concern.

Once he entered the space vacuum, the ranger started to approach the gate slowly. His armor wasn't intended to be used as an EVA suit replacement, but it can be used for a short time. It wasn't a button, but a lever that Van Ruud pulled down with all his strength. As it opened, decompression started to vent out making the process of getting inside a bit harder, however, being strong Sebastian didn't have any issue with that. He would wait till the Jedi also gets inside (or rather fly in) and only then shut the airlock.

"May I know your name, miss? I believe you know mine already.". He asked once the woman was inside. Once she could stand steadily, he would proceed. "In addition, I'd like to know how did you know about the Hub? Obredaan is not a well-known place if you're not a miner."

 

[Katarine Ryiah]

Into my little world​

Tags: Sebastian van Ruud

Katarine was not sorry to see the back of her Weequay pilot. She only hopped he would stick around long enough to see the mission through. Criminals weren't the most reliable of sorts but right now it was the only option. She made the decent into the other ship and when things were pressurized and they were ready to talk she took off the helmet of the eva unit.

"My name is Katarine Ryiah. I was actually in the next system chasing a criminal when I heard the stories about this place. Sombreness said they hadn't been in contact with a loved one in quit some time and was getting worried. I figured I should check it out."

 

[Sebastian van Ruud]

Tag: Katarine Ryiah

"Well met, miss Ryiah. Now be on guard, and as I said I don't know what's going on here, so keep your Jedi senses up. Let's move and watch your step."
After that Sebastian deactivated his armor's EVA to save some oxygen in case another travel into space might be needed. Then he fished out his blaster and did a quick observation of a place where they got in. Luckily no one was inside. However, Sebastian didn't consider it a good sign since it wasn't typical for a station of this size. It seems they got in a service airlock since it only had lockers with the personnel EVA suits and some tools. Then he advanced into the next room which was a small hall where it divided into several other rooms. However, passages to other rooms were heavily barricaded with heavy stuff so Sebastian decided not to waste their precious time on that and headed into the only corridor that wasn't blocked.

But as the couple advanced further into the station, it started to tremble while illumination began to flicker. Looks like the Hub has some power issues. The tremble wasn't too hard, but still forced Sebastian to lean against the nearest wall as he used to do in a similar situation. Whatever it was, it becomes clear the Hub not doing well at all. At that point, Sebastian decided to reach the upper levels of the Hub, get the data from terminals regarding what led to the current state of the spaceport, and get out of this place as soon as possible. It's the Mining Guild that needs to decide its fate once Sebastian finishes his job here. But he didn't know by then he wouldn't have that luxury.

"You're good? If you sense anything it would be good to know right now. This place is in very bad shape.". He said briefly looking back to make sure Katarine was behind us since the passage was quite narrow. No one was in the next room too, but now Sebastian wasn't surprised by this. Whoever is on the station they are nowhere on service decks. At least this is what Van Ruud would do if he had the luck to be a local worker.

 

[Katarine Ryiah]

Painful to me​

Tags: Sebastian van Ruud

Katarine followed him down the way, watching as the lights flickered and there was a slight movement under their feet. Something felt off aboard the ship, not to mention she didn’t feel as many life forms as she should have.

“Something… is wrong…”

Way to state the obvious girl. She paused and closed her deep green eyes and tried to focus on the Force.

“There is something aboard that shouldn’t be… and … the crew…. I don’t feel them like I should.”

She opened her eyes and frowned. She had a bad feeling about this.

 

[Sebastian van Ruud]

Tag: Katarine Ryiah
At some point, Sebastian was satisfied with Katarine's statement, it could mean no Sith was on board or any Dark presence. And none of them will appear, otherwise, it will greatly complicate his job. On the other hand, it didn't add any clarity regarding their potential threat, so assuming it's not a sentient creature they might get into a fight. The problem here was how to be ready for it and if they were able to handle it.

Their next obstacle would be a collapsed floor with a pillar of burning gas between the floor plates. Since Sebastian's armor had thermal regulators he almost didn't feel how hot the area was, however, the leak needed to be sealed or rerouted somehow. There also was a vent shaft, but Van Ruud wanted to avoid getting inside as it might be too tight there. It also was unknown where it could lead, so perhaps his Jedi partner could do a trick and seal the leak. Van Ruud didn't know the Force's limits since he wasn't that profound, but he had some image of what it could do. Hopefully, it can come in handy right now.

"Can you help here? I see a valve right under the pillar, from where the flame comes out, but my armor might not handle the heat. It starts to get hot here already.". Partly it was true as Sebastian felt like the gas burning started to intensify, baking the area. They need to act fast if they don't want to suffocate from too hot air, but the ranger didn't discard the idea of using the shaft. It would be a bad option, but only if they have no other choice. Or will they?

 

[Katarine Ryiah]

Tags: Sebastian van Ruud

As they walked into the heat Katarine could smell the gas coming. It didn’t bother her as much as whatever she was feeling in the Force did. It wasn’t the darkside, but it was powerful in its own way. She came up behind the Ranger and waved her hand, adjusting the valve on the gas to hopefully shut it off.

“Did you scan to see if there were any life forms aboard this vessel? We could be too late to help the crew.”

 

[Sebastian van Ruud]

Tag: Katarine Ryiah

"I think so. I've contacted the station traffic control and they responded with my name. It means there are still people on board. I'm not a Force-sensitive, as you may notice, so I don't have the ability to scan. Nor my ship can do it.". He hated to admit it, but the message he received from the STC service could be a recorded one, he had no proof or something that could deny it. However, Sebastian would argue because his visit was approved only a day before, which could mean they might not have had time for that, and the dispatcher was a real person. But even if no one was onboard the station, it still was the Ranger's job to find out what happened and deliver this information to the Sector Rangers HQ, with the hope it would be shared with the Alliance. After all, he was doing it exactly in the face of an unknown threat.

Unfortunately, Katarine's attempt to fix the little problem here didn't succeed. But it wasn't her fault, most likely it was a wrong valve (there were many of them), or the correct one was out of their reach. Sebastian couldn't know that as he didn't have schematics of how gas flows here. So he decided to use the last resort option - to use the vent shaft he wanted to avoid. He clicked a button mounted next to the shaft entrance to see what was inside and it was like he expected - cramped and tight, no way two people could fit at once.

"Keep your comlink up, I'll see where this shaft goes. I will reach you on another end, and if you still want to help - you would need to make your way through it too. Hopefully, you won't mind to get a little dusty. Or you can try other valves, but I wouldn't waste time, this resource is pretty limited for us.". Upon that, he got inside the vent and slowly began to crawl, trying to avoid any dead ends. While he was there the station was shaken once more, as if there was some fierce fight somewhere, but for Sebastian, it was a little concern. He was paid to get the truth.

Reaching another end of the shaft didn't reveal anything or anyone, but it was safe there, so he sent a signal to his partner that she was good to proceed, afterward they could advance further. If she was still dedicated to the case.

 

[Katarine Ryiah]

Tags: Sebastian van Ruud

Katarine nodded as he explained that he had heard someone over station traffic control. She could not deny that there were Force signatures here, there was just something... off about a few of them. They didn't feel like any sentient she had ever experienced. She was lost in that thought when his words about the vents broke through her concentration.

She watched him hoist himself up into the vent and sighed. "This day just keeps getting better and better." Sarcasm and wit, her two favorite shields when she was uncomfortable, like at having to crawl through a tight tunnel they could be easily attacked in. Well no time like the present.

She made it up to the vent easily and crawled on her hands and knees. At only 5foot 2 inches (1.57 meters) she fit easy enough, it just wasn't exactly comfortable.

 

[Sebastian van Ruud]

Tags: Katarine Ryiah

They eventually made their way to what seemed a security checkpoint with the station's periodical trembling and lights going off and on. It featured a big booth in the middle of a room and some offline terminals placed all over the area. No one was here as well. It was odd as the lights were still on as if the power supply on the station had different channels and routes. However, the walls were painted with inscriptions, there were many but 'RYSLATHA WATCHES YOU' was the most frequent and the biggest. He wasn't sure if it was bad illumination or paint, but those were written in red and Sebastian hoped it wasn't blood. Inside the booth, Sebastian found a button to turn on a generator and a terminal. After several strong pulls, it emitted a thud sound, and the terminal display was lit. This is where their first discovery about the station, even if it didn't make them any closer to the truth.

The station was in a state of decommissioning but there was nothing that would explain why. From the same terminal, it turned out that Ryslatha was the name of the station droid control unit that modern droids don't use anymore, so the walls' writings could mean something went wrong with it. Is this what led the station to its current state, the malfunctioning droids? Local personnel could deal with them easily without external support, so Van Ruud didn't think it was the issue (but can be added to his report when the mission is over). So he gestured to Katarine to move forward as there was nothing else to see.

But when they were about to depart to the next room, a door at another end of the hall opened and a few people appeared running shouting in some alien language, Sebastian only understood 'Let us get out of here' part. Alas, they were too fast and disappeared into another room, but now Sebastian and Katarine knew they weren't alone on the Hub. But even so, contacting them would be dangerous as they could be criminals or carrying an infection. It would jeopardize the mission, so Van Ruud decided to move on.

Their other discovery, a grim one, was in the next room. It was a flight terminal but full of medical beds and black bags on the floor. Sebastian knew what could be inside them and had no desire to even touch it. But it was solid proof that lethal accidents did happen here and en masse, med beds had sense in their presence here. But the couple's advance was stopped again as the door separating from another section of the station was locked with a bracer - it needed a maintenance jack to open it. A blaster could help, but also might damage the lifting mechanism or sensors, plus it would be loud attracting undesired attention. But perhaps the Jedi can help. The door was made from durasteel, so shouldn't be an issue for a lightsaber.

"Can you make a hole here or remove the lock? The jack can be anywhere and it would take forever to find it. Your lightsaber might be faster.".

 

[Katarine Ryiah]

Tags: Sebastian van Ruud


What in the Force was going on here? That thought kept traveling through Kat's mind as she followed the sector ranger. She hadn't seen this type of damage since her visit to a Coruscant prison where a droid and a giant green monster had staged a break out. They entered the room with the body bags, confirming there had been a mass loss of life.

She stepped forward and took one of her weapons. With a snapphiss the white blade sprang to life and she pushed it through the door, carving a hole big enough for them both to enter through. She stood back to let him lead, since she knew this was officially his mission and she was just here to play support.