Mission Hide and Seek | ISB [ DE ]

[Kyric]

After a moment of silence Damian readied himself to leave, “-I can lead us to the bunker holding the Imperial, thanks to the chip you found we’ll have an easier time gaining access.”​

"Love that," Kyric said in turn. He followed Damian to the ladder, pretending to spot something interesting when the senator looked back at the pyre, then he scaled after him rung-by-rung. His thoughts remained on the task at hand as he shimmied out from the hatch, careful not to peek out from behind the abandoned speeder.

Kyric took the offered datapad from Damian and did a quick scan of its contents. Once he visualized the safehouse address and a photo of the imperial operative, he held it back out to the senator. "While I appreciate your kindness," he tapped his head while speaking, "I have an eidetic memory." As if to prove it, the kiffar quietly recited the address.

“Once we’re there we’ll alert them about the compromised safe-house and get the Imperial transferred elsewhere until we’re ready to get them off the planet.” Damian quickly added. "I have faith in us." ​

Kyric excitedly gave Damian a thumbs-up. "Absolutely. It might be worth transportin' some of the higher-ups in this resistance somewhere safe, too. I wouldn't think to ask any of you to abandon your fight here, but I have a feelin' the Alliance will have their hands full defending Coruscant. If we can create a more organized effort without ISB breathin' down our necks, I think we'll have a much better shot at freein' your people, Damian."

Chancing a glance past their cover, Kyric spotted a large speeder blocking the mouth of the alley and felt a rising panic. When stormtroopers didn't burst into the alley and open fire, he allowed himself a deep breath and dropped back to look at Damian.

"We're gonna have to go up," Kyric grumbled. "Speeder is blockin' the only way out. These buildings on either side of us are residential apartments. They should have a rooftop access we can take to get back down to the street. Anytime spent that high up at this time of day ain't doin' us any favors." Kyric braced his shoulder up against the alley wall, bent his knees, and linked his hands together beneath a sleek durasteel fire escape. "You first. I can do the space magic stuff, so an eight-foot jump ain't nothin' to me."

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Damian Du Couteau | Ellayina L'lerim | Kazian Blackwood

Page Claim ! ! ! ​

 

[Ellayina L'lerim]

Torture and Interrogation Officer and Agent

Information

Objective: Capture and rescue
Location: Near to the city park, Cinnegar, Empress Teta
Equipment: 2x Sunfury Pistol | Light Armour | Viper Mk. I Skinsuit | 2x Vibrodagger || Cloaking Device | 5x ASBF Probe Droid || Empyrean gland || OPBC-01m
Tag: Kazian Blackwood | Kyric | Damian Du Couteau | Open

"Galactic Common" | <"High Nelvaanian"> | ["Essonian"] | ~ telepathic communication ~ | << comm. channel >> ​

When we got down to the right level and Kaz offered to open the vent, I climbed down a bit to get out of his way and did as he asked. I was probably more worried about my hair catching on fire from the scorching bits landing than I was about getting it in my eyes. The easiest thing to do was to hold myself on the wire with my feet, holding on with one hand and raising the other above my head to protect both my head and face from the falling smouldering pieces. Fortunately, the whole process didn't take too long.

When the metal grille was no longer on the vent, I climbed over to another cable so I could get on the same level as Kaz and see how narrow the tunnel was. A quick and brief grimace appeared on my lips, because unfortunately Kaz wasn't wrong about the dimensions of the tunnel. I could have sent droids forward to survey the place, but I didn't expect the height and width to change. It wouldn't have been logical; especially since many places build them so that average-sized people can use them for escape. To fix it, the droids are tiny, so they didn't matter. After a few moments I spoke, quietly so that my voice would echo as little as possible in the elevator ride.

"Yes, I agree that you go first. If you get stuck, it's easier to pull you out by your legs than somehow find room to turn around and push you back by your head or shoulders." I told him; although the whole situation, if one imagined what I was saying, sounded rather comical, there was no trace of amusement in my tone.

I meant what I said, not as a joke. I was shorter than him and much skinnier, but even so, I would have had a hard time getting around. I was flexible and acrobatic, but not that flexible. Let's face it, I didn't want to crawl backwards if I was going forwards.

"Go ahead, I'll be right behind you." I encouraged him, and if he started, I would wait for him to get a few metres inside, then I would climb into the vent and follow him.

 

[Damian Du Couteau]

Damian raised an eyebrow at Kyric’s memory, a tinge of jealousy but he nodded in approval all the same and Damian stashed his data-pad back into his bag. The situation at hand was quite the tenuous one, Cinnegar was quite a large city, it was perhaps the most Coruscanti-like part of the planet. But with martial law and the Empire putting down a heavy military presence Damian was well aware of the need to be quick and discrete.

“Getting good intel will go a long way to plan an effective liberation campaign.” Damian agreed, they needed to transport this Imperial and perhaps even the General Daro Lago back to Alliance space. “-Defending against invasions is one thing, but Teta don’t suffer occupation for long.” He added with a sense of Tetan wounded pride.

“I’ll climb fast,” Damian responded as he began to climb up the fire escape ladders. Kyric was correct about staying out in the open on the roof, speedercraft and drones were a dime in a dozen. His hands and feet quickly moved up the ladder efficiently, a rhythmic thump and slap of each rung sang as he continued to climb up until finally Damian pulled himself up and onto the roof. My sister would have offered to hold me as she attempted to jump up a building. . . I think I prefer the shortness of breath of climbing.

He took a moment to breathe and his eyes ventured back towards the alley from where they came from, for a split moment memories flooded back to him of darkened skies and hordes of undead clambering up the building. Damian shook his head and refocused back to the present as he turned to look for the roof access door. He steeled himself from ever looking up, not wanting to give an off chance possibility of a drone or spy-craft identifying his face. Let's get inside and quickly head down to the streets below Damian.​

|| Ellayina L'lerim | Kazian Blackwood | Kyric ||​

 

[Kyric]

Once Damian ascended the ladder and onto the fire escape proper, Kyric kicked off the wall and grabbed the bottom rung. He used his momentum to swing out to the side to extend his reach, and continued the process, scaling the ladder one bar at a time until his boots found purchase on the lowest rung. The remainder of the climb couldn't have been easier. Within seconds, he peeked his head up and followed Damian up after confirming no hidden ambushers awaited them.

"Do you know this part of town at all?" Kyric asked as he stepped up beside Damien at the door. When it didn't open for either of them from proximity, Kyric waved a hand over the terminal and even tried a verbal command.

"Damn," he sighed. "I got this one." He detached a slicewire from his belt and quickly sheared away the external locking mechanism. Trading out the slicewire for a handheld datapad, the Jedi ran a tiny cord between the two. "Kill command for most civilian tech," he explained. "Only runs for one-stage processes like doors or lights. Anythin' else confuses the software."

A tiny bloop signaled the end of the upload. The door slid open, revealing a thin staircase down into the apartment.

Kyric stepped in first and motioned for Damian to fall in behind him. "Don't answer any questions from someone who looks like a civilian. It might be hard, but any contact with your people will put them in danger. We're ghosts here, Damian. Specters."

The Jedi's metaphor may have been a tad overdramatic, but looking at the son of Seto Du Couteau, Kyric felt that way. Two sons. Two fathers. Two martyrs. Two orphans. For all the kiffar knew, they were all that remained between the Dark Empire and the collapse of the Tetan Rebellion. There could be no mistakes.

"Did you hear...?"

Voices just beyond the base of the staircase set Kyric's nerves on end. He quickly ducked low behind a decorative vase and held his breath. Thankfully, the conversation continued down a side hall.

Releasing his breath, the Jedi grinned back at Damian. "Sorry, sorry. False alarm." Kyric rose from behind cover and pictured their next destination in his mind's eye. "Where to next?"

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Damian Du Couteau | Ellayina L'lerim | Kazian Blackwood ​

 

[Kazian Blackwood]

Ellayina L'lerim | Kyric | Damian Du Couteau

The vent proved no issue at all. Certainly a tight squeeze, but being built as they were for HVAC droids, the ventilation system in the hideout held my weight just fine. Ella's AI system had plotted us a perfect route, because after a few grueling minutes army crawling through the ducts, I was right above the security room. A few more feet forward and I was able to kick out the vent, backsliding down and landing in a crouch, hand diving into my coat for my sidearm as I stood.

And there I was, blaster pointing to threaten the security guards: a motley lineup of droids. A bipedal one, something adjacent to a protocol droid, put its hands in the air. A small box-shaped operations droid by its feet whirred. Above it, a small many armed probe no larger than the protocol droid's head was still tinkering on the wall behind them.

"Automated security room." I lowered my blaster.

"You, protocol droid, bring up all cameras in occupied rooms."

"I'm afraid I cannot do that sir. I am programmed only to take orders from my chief lead operator."

I rolled my eyes. It was hard to threaten droids with a good ol' wave of the blaster.

"And where can I find them?"

I heard the door to the security room behind me open up and I whirled around to point my blaster at the arrival. The moment I saw an Alliance uniform I pulled the trigger, and the man tripped backwards into the hallway and sunk to the floor against the wall.

"That is chief lead operator of the security room, Officer Zsingo." the droid chimed in politely as though I hadn't just murdered its boss.

I ignored it and took a step closer. A dead Rodian, for sure.

"Do you have the ability to lock down this hallway?" I turned back to the droid, waving the gun again.

"Well I am unauthoriz-"

"Can you do it?!"

"Violence is not tolerated."

I was fuming, and out of desperation I released a blaster bolt straight into the small box-shaped droid, which yelped a high pitch squeal that faded out as its circuits stopped running.

In that moment I realized the mistake I'd made as silently the protocol droid turned to the console next to it and began fiddling. I stepped up behind it just as its hand reached for a large red button, and plugged a blast bolt right into its head.

"Ella, I think we'll need your computer skills for this one. Fast."

 

[Ellayina L'lerim]

Torture and Interrogation Officer and Agent

Information

Objective: Capture and rescue
Location: Near to the city park, Cinnegar, Empress Teta
Equipment: 2x Sunfury Pistol | Light Armour | Viper Mk. I Skinsuit | 2x Vibrodagger || Cloaking Device | 5x ASBF Probe Droid || Empyrean gland || OPBC-01m
Tag: Kazian Blackwood | Kyric | Damian Du Couteau | Open

"Galactic Common" | <"High Nelvaanian"> | ["Essonian"] | ~ telepathic communication ~ | << comm. channel >> ​

One of the best things about having Kaz out was that I didn't have to worry about getting stuck somewhere. If he could go through the different places, it was not an obstacle for me. Although the members of my bloodline are typically very tall, the ladies always have an ethereal physique, which has become an advantage for me. To be safe, I moved a few metres behind the man so that our weight would never be on the same metal plate. They could handle us individually, but I didn't want to risk that if there were two of us on the same one, one would break or get dented under us. If that happened, we would immediately lose our cover and probably never get out of here.

That's why I arrived at the security room a little late, although I could hear what Kaz and the droid were talking about very quietly. The vent seemed to be somewhat soundproofed; if that was the way they wanted to make sure the droids didn't disturb the people downstairs when they were wandering around or exploring. By the time I got to the removed vent cover and jumped down into the room, I saw dead droids and a dead Galactic Alliance officer. What I also saw immediately was that the room was not designed to be run by humans, but rather by droids.

Me and my computer skills... of course, being an agent, I was taught how to hack into different networks, computers. But it was easy for the man's daughter to have an HPI biochip with an artificial intelligence in her head a few minutes after she was born, and she could do that. If the system here was not able to connect to it with a wireless solution, then I had an AI, but I had to manage on my own, because the AI cannot connect to the system. True, even then it knew the codes and what I had to write and do to project them onto my retina.

"I'm going to go and hope that there's a wireless solution and I don't have to do everything manually." I said to the man quickly.

When it became clear that I would have to take over manually, I cursed a long swear in High Nelvaanian while typing on the keyboard. Luckily, MANIAC was there to help me with that too, especially since he had recently encountered a Galactic Alliance network that originated from a prison; so similar to this. So I pretty much had to write the right things I saw on my retina. It's not so easy because the program was different, so I had to rely on my own talent. I could spend about five or six minutes doing this, completely shut out from the outside world and hoping my partner had my back. Finally, when he was done, I sighed a little wearily.

"We're in control." I told him.

 

[Kazian Blackwood]

Ellayina L'lerim | Kyric | Damian Du Couteau

Pacing back and forth for five minutes as she worked felt like hours. I clutched my gun tight, envisioning a squad of soldiers wheeling around the corner to overwhelm us, but they never did.

"We're in control." I told him.

I breathed an exasperated sigh of relief as I plopped down on the sole chair in the room, where the Rodian would have been sitting before he went to take a piss and came back dead.

"Since the dead Alliance engineer over there hasn't received any back up, I'm guessing this place is operating on a skeleton crew. Can you by chance see our captive general from this security system? And what was that funny language you were speaking to the console?"

 

[Damian Du Couteau]

“I’ve recently become more acquainted with this part of the city,” Damian answered, it was an awkward truth for this Tetan.

He watched Kyric unlock the door, he remained quiet and listened to the young Jedi provide a brief explanation of his tools. Effective, well suited for a civilian environment. Damian quickly followed behind him and briskly climbed down the stairs that led them to the streets below.

“Silence indeed,” Damian agreed to Kyric’s order to remain as inconspicuous as possible.

Though when the word ‘ghost’ was brought up a thought emerged in Damian’s head, the concept of Force Ghosts. With a few blinks of his tired eyes, the young Du Couteau stored the thought for later discussion. Perhaps after a night of restful, uninterrupted sleep. Damian prided himself in being someone who needed very little sleep, but presently he had wondered if he was close to a limit.

Damian frooze when he saw Kyric freeze and moved likewise to hide behind one of the other vases and waited for him to give the all clear. The young Jedi’s grin relaxed Damian, his body’s tension was released and Damian nodded along.

“I’ve learned to trust Force User’s instincts over my own,” Damian spoke in a hushed voice. “-no need to apologize.”

With a gesture Damian led the two of them to the bottom of the stairs, careful to hear for any other footsteps and voices of tenants that could be walking about. He stopped once he saw the glass doors that showed the streets outside, he looked around quickly as he reached for the back of his head and untied his hair as well as removed his singular hair dressing that kept his bangs from his eyes.

“There is a semi-ruined market street I’ll take us through, slower but safer.” Damian explained quietly. He removed his cape and quickly folded it into a wide belt that covered the majority of his midsection. “I was always the one who needed to show my sister how to walk and dress, quite fortunate I’ve lost the weight that I did and how my parents enjoyed ordering matching outfits.” Damian explained, giving a hint at how he remained hidden, though in truth he found this disguise quite difficult. All I do is remember fond memories, happier times on a Teta that hadn’t yet seen invasion from the Maw.

With his own preparation completed he gestured at Kyric to follow and headed towards the doors and out into the streets. The duo walked at a brisk pace and while Damian kept his head bowed with limited field of vision, the devastation of the invasion had left deep scars all across Cinnegar. Damian knew better than to help every lost soul during his travels, Imperial Operatives were masters of Counter-Intelligence, but Kyric wasn’t lying about the difficulty to not simply help or even provide a word of encouragement. The young Du Couteau heir hoped he could one day repay his debt of failing to defend his people.

Damian continued to lead them through the streets, some sections of the sidewalk easier to navigate than others, debris in need of being cleaned up and large sections of the roads in need of repair. The path was indeed a slower one, carefully maneuvering away from larger crowds and Imperial patrols, but soon a clearing was eventually found. Damian stepped closer to the edge of the start of the gardens and grass, a strange sight to see after a battle, a park.

“One of the first things rebuilt at the Royal Palace after first liberation were the gardens and its expansion.” Damian spoke softly, a rather bemused smile finally threatened to crack his expressionless face. “It was suggested to make parks and gardens the entrances to underground bunkers and safe-houses, poetic beauty, how flowers hid their thorns beneath their petals and leaves.”

With a small weary sigh Damian continued on to the location of the entrance he had found on the data-chip. The area around the entrance had a lot of debris of broken buildings and the remains of the previous park, while the keypad was hidden beneath a false cover of granite. Damian noted how well situated the trees and park structure kept them relatively hidden, a chance to disappear through a nearby quiet construction zone should they need to throw off any tails.

Damian quickly moved through the large chunks of debris and discovered the hidden keypad and connected his data-pad. He nodded approvingly that access was granted and a meter in front of Damian, an opening in the ground revealed the entrance underground.

“Finally,” He said, his hands went into his bag for his hairpin and hair-tie. How do people stand long bangs? Though for a moment Damian felt warmth on his cheeks, a slight embarrassment for even voicing his complaint. “-An alert was made, once we descend there should be a security personal meeting us once we get closer to the main bunker entrance below.” Damian explained and volunteered to climb down first. Damian found himself below to what he could only describe as a subway under construction. He waited near the bottom of the ladder for Kyric before continuing ahead and hopefully finding that friendly Alliance security agent.

"-Why are you here Kyric? Instead of Tython I mean." Damian asked a bit abruptly, his curiosity finally breaking through into the forefront of Damian's mind and to what Damian believed they had a moment to breathe. "Not to sound ungrateful or to cause offense, I just assumed Tython would be the first stop for Alliance liberation." He added quickly. Damian knew the importance of logistics and careful planning, there was a reason when the Alliance pushed back the Maw out of the Core it started after Tython through Teta until finally they had reclaimed all that had been stripped by the Maw.
​

|| Ellayina L'lerim | Kazian Blackwood | Kyric ||​

 

[Kyric]

Kyric followed Damian through the market with an easy swagger. Maybe the Jedi was hamming up his confidence, but his imperial disguise afforded him that added layer of deception. Recruit 7654-11V was supposed to be there after all. Appearing like anything other than a proud imperial candidate would look suspicious to the trained eye, and the last thing the two rebels needed was to bring attention to the likes of the wanted Senator or a Jedi Knight.

"I think it's pretty nice you remember so many good things among all this crap." Kyric kicked some of the rubble aside as they rounded a corner to see the park. "Maybe I'm gettin' a bad read on you, but I can almost feel... what? Shame?" He scanned the street. Fearful eyes stared out at him from within their homes, silently pleading to be left alone. No one cried out for help, but much like in Damian, he felt conflict. All of them stood helpless in this horrid occupation.

And it weighed so heavily on the young man beside Kyric.

"You're out here doing the best you can. I wouldn't fault yourself for rememberin' why you fight." Kyric fell silent after that and kept his head on a swivel while Damian sought their point of entry. He slipped down through the door behind the senator once it revealed itself and they disappeared out of sight.

"-Why are you here Kyric? Instead of Tython I mean." Damian asked a bit abruptly, his curiosity finally breaking through into the forefront of Damian's mind and to what Damian believed they had a moment to breathe. "Not to sound ungrateful or to cause offense, I just assumed Tython would be the first stop for Alliance liberation."

"I'm somethin' of a wild card right now. The Chancellor has me in play to avoid influence from the Senate or the New Jedi Order. We're not sure who to trust, and, frankly, the New Jedi Order is already preppin' for Tython. Someone needs to be here, on the inside, helpin' your people, too." Kyric paused briefly to consider his explanation and then continued. "I specialize in information gatherin' deep behind enemy lines. This ain't the sort of place you send just anyone. But I'm sure you knew that."

The kiffar expected to see the denizens of the safehouse by the time he reached the bottom, so a lack of a greeting put the boy on guard. "Say, did that datapad include any information on how many folks were watchin' the imp? I stopped readin' once I saw the locale."

Damian Du Couteau | Ellayina L'lerim | Kazian Blackwood | Auteme​

 

[Ellayina L'lerim]

Torture and Interrogation Officer and Agent

Information

Objective: Capture and rescue
Location: Near to the city park, Cinnegar, Empress Teta
Equipment: 2x Sunfury Pistol | Light Armour | Viper Mk. I Skinsuit | 2x Vibrodagger || Cloaking Device | 5x ASBF Probe Droid || Empyrean gland || OPBC-01m
Tag: Kazian Blackwood | Kyric | Damian Du Couteau | Open

"Galactic Common" | <"High Nelvaanian"> | ["Essonian"] | ~ telepathic communication ~ | << comm. channel >> ​

I almost told Kaz to stop walking because he was annoying me, but then we finally reached our goal. If I had to spend one more minute hacking the system, I'd probably yell at him to stop. But that wasn't necessary. I sighed a little wearily; and some people dare to say that intellectual work is not tiring. Of course it is; those who say it is not have never done such work. Needless to say, it is not physically tiring, but in other ways. I smirked for a moment at the question about the language.

"High Nelvaanian, the ancient language of my family for centuries and the official language of the Eternal Empire and Terraris." I explained to him.

For the next question, I had to do a bit of searching between cameras and commands. I had to "juggle" through all the rooms until I found the prison block. When I found it, I called Kaz.

"Yes, I found it. It looks like that place is guarded, and the whole area. According to the footage, there are weapons, armour and all the military stuff there, that is, near it. The accommodation, community spaces and everything else is a little further away. The officers' quarters are closer to the military quarters than the civilians'." I summed it up quickly.

Here I looked at my partner, then back at the holographic images and monitors.

"We can close off different sections of the corridor from here, even the whole corridor, or even the rooms. The base self-destruct is in the room next to the prison block, where there are live personnel now, not a droid. An officer. Later, when we leave here, I can wirelessly open only the doors we want to use and lock them behind us. But if I lock everything down, they'll notice almost immediately that something is wrong." I told him the options.

 

[Kazian Blackwood]

Ellayina L'lerim | Kyric | Damian Du Couteau

"Of course. Not to mention we'd be closing ourselves off to a set route if we initiate a lockdown. I'd like to avoid a full on firefight, at least until we reach the General. As for a base-wide self-destruct, let's avoid that. On our end and theirs. A crater in the middle of a public park isn't the kind of PR the Empire needs right now. It'll look... I don't know... sloppy, unprofessional."

Not that the trail of bodies that was beginning with the Rodian engineer and his droid was going to be clean, but at least it was still covert. This whole thing would be easy to sweep under the rug so long as the Alliance guerrillas remained inside the base, and the base remained secret. Blowing the thing up wouldn't help, and I could foresee it as a possibility if the enemy got desperate enough, maybe just so they could make a point or martyr themselves.

"Let's go with the door-by-door option. We ought to at least lock down this room when we leave." I began to head back for the door.

Out in the hallway I took one last look at the dead engineer. Poor bastard. It was hard to imagine what kind of fear these soldiers must have been feeling, to be some of the last holdouts on an occupied world, destined for death. The heel had already crushed them, they were just waiting for it to grind them into the ground.

 

[Alars Keto]

​

The loudspeakers, mounted on towering structures throughout the ecumenopolis, crackle to life with a harsh, mechanical buzz. Their metallic voices echo across the sprawling cityscape, bouncing off the monolithic skyscrapers and reverberating through the narrow alleyways. The message, delivered in a stern and authoritative tone, cuts through the usual hum of the capital's daily life.


"Attention Citizens of the Empire,

Effective immediately, curfew will be reinstituted as outlined by Imperial Governor Alars Keto . Martial Law will be extended to ensure the safety of all Imperial Citizens from Alliance terrorist cells and anti-imperial activity.

These restrictions are in accordance with Imperial Code 54429801.1. For further information, please see your local sector representative. As always, if you see something report something. Inform! Service guarantees citizenship!

Thank you for your cooperation."


The proclamation sends a ripple of unease through the populace. Pedestrians pause in their tracks, exchanging worried glances. Market vendors hurriedly begin packing up their stalls, aware that lingering too long could attract unwanted attention from Storm patrols. Parents usher their children inside, casting anxious looks toward the sky where TIE fighters occasionally streak by, enforcing the new order. A stark reminder of the Empire's reach over the Tetan capital.

 

[Damian Du Couteau]

Damian held back a snort when Kyric explained how the Chancellor wished to weave between the delicate situation of the Senate. It felt near an entirety for the young Du Couteau that he last found himself sitting in his Senate Pod. The Great Game, father would always tell me to never play. The corners of his lips stretched into a small smile as Damian looked at Kyric with a thankful expression.

“There should be a sizable force, the files and notes didn’t mention an exact amount, only that security had been increased.” Damian answered, his eyes returning to his data-slate and his fingers quickly swiping through the information.

He turned his head back up and looked down the service hall, it was eerily empty with no sounds of approaching footsteps. Damian narrowed his eyes and walked ahead and approached a nearby maintenance room a few meters away from the ladder.

“Strange,” Damian muttered as he found an emergency comm-jack and connected it to his own data-slate. The room itself wasn’t at all abnormal, tools for underground maintenance and a small medi-station for workers.

Damian scrolled through his contact codes on his data-slate and with a few more swipes he finally began to make a connection. Pressing his Commlink against his ear he listened to a burst of static and with a quick pull back Damian placed the commlink on his data-slate.

“Clearance accepted for. . . S–Sena-”

“Where’s the patrol dispatched to my location?” Damian cut the Resistance member off, he needed to keep his name in a few communication lines as possible. Even secure lines such as this can one day become insecure.

“Y-yes, a moment.”

“The Security Team’s location is straight ahead and projected to reach your location in less than two minutes.”

“Thank you,” Damian was about to cut off his commlink but paused for a moment, “-and good job.”

“S-Sir!”

With a quick glance towards Kyric, “-A security patrol group dispatched to us is just up ahead.” Damian spoke, he began to walk and wondered to himself a bit if the General was going to ask for his presence again. Damian held nothing against the General, in fact he admired the man for his work within the Resistance and fight against the Imperials. He just doesn’t agree with my risk assessment.

“My Father’s greatest regret was his inability to remove the scourge of nobles that dreamed of Imperial Krath ambitions and debased themselves with Sith Blood Magic and rituals.” Damian’s smile had vanished, “-You mentioned shame earlier and well I ignored the festering rot that had plagued my home for so long. No doubt it gave the Imperials an easier time when they conducted their invasion. . . and now there is a lot of work ahead of me.” Damian sighed, he felt the bitterness drip from his mouth. I am Senator, Scion, Noble. . . a scared and tired boy that wants to go to the gardens.

The Security patrol had finally approached them a minute later, their outfits seemed more akin to a janitorial staff but their weapons certainly made it clear that was not the case. The lead Security Guard held up his right hand and the group halted. Damian waved and approached the group slowly.

“Apologies Senator, but we must dispense with the pleasantries. The General was just alerted that the Imperials are tightening planetary security. He intends to move all important targets before it becomes impossible.” The Guard explained quickly, the breathless tone made Damian straighten and his eyes widen.

Damian turned to Kyric, “I could use your help that Imperial Hostage off planet.” He hoped he could hide the desperation in his voice, it was rather undignified for a Noble to sound so. I'll apologize sincerely afterwards. The Security team had already began to make their way back, but a pair had broken off and intended to guard their rear. Clearly whatever had was happening above had set them off and were ready for a full on Imperial Assault to commence anytime.
​

|| Kyric | Kazian Blackwood | Ellayina L'lerim | Alars Keto ||​

 

[Kyric]

“My Father’s greatest regret was his inability to remove the scourge of nobles that dreamed of Imperial Krath ambitions and debased themselves with Sith Blood Magic and rituals.” Damian’s smile had vanished, “-You mentioned shame earlier and well I ignored the festering rot that had plagued my home for so long. No doubt it gave the Imperials an easier time when they conducted their invasion. . . and now there is a lot of work ahead of me.”

Kyric sensed something familiar within the human noble. Though the kiffar knew nothing more than the general public about the Couteau lineage, he could recognize the crushing weight of legacy pressing down on his co-conspirator's shoulders.

"My father felt similarly," Kyric admitted. "After Fossk framed him for murder and turned the Alliance against him, well... my old man continued the fight where he could, but I know it always bothered him he was so limited in the years leading up to his death." The arrival of the security team cut off any further conversation. Kyric surmised that was for the better. Neither he nor Damian could risk losing focus in the final hour of this operation, even if it eased those old wounds.

When Damian turned to Kyric and pleaded for his aid, the Jedi planted his gloved hand on the senator's shoulder and offered a thumbs-up with the other. "I wasn't foolin' around when I offered to help you, Damian. I give you my word. I'll see this through with ye for however long you'll have me." He nodded at that and followed after the security team. It didn't take long for him to find himself at the front, striding toward the Imperial's location without so much as a word of direction from the resistance fighters.

Though Kyric wore the same easy smile, he couldn't shake the image of Solipsis' crooked fingers closing around Empress Teta.

Damian Du Couteau Darth Solipsis | Ellayina L'lerim | Kazian Blackwood ​

 

[Ellayina L'lerim]

Torture and Interrogation Officer and Agent

Information

Objective: Capture and rescue
Location: Near to the city park, Cinnegar, Empress Teta
Equipment: 2x Sunfury Pistol | Light Armour | Viper Mk. I Skinsuit | 2x Vibrodagger || Cloaking Device | 5x ASBF Probe Droid || Empyrean gland || OPBC-01m
Tag: Kazian Blackwood | Kyric | Damian Du Couteau | Alars Keto | Open

"Galactic Common" | <"High Nelvaanian"> | ["Essonian"] | ~ telepathic communication ~ | << comm. channel >> ​

I listened carefully to what Kaz was saying and nodded. I would have chosen a similar plan to his. I was pleased to see that he was like-minded and able to make decisions quite quickly. I would have liked to have been in control, of course, but it was still a test and an exam for my agent, so I had to ask him about it. Especially since we had time to do something like that, because we were in pretty good shape and they didn't know we were on base yet. What was already certain was that Kaz's assessment was going in a very good direction.

"Good and great choice!" I nodded again as I spoke in appreciation; there was a note of recognition in my voice now that he knew he had made the right choices for the exam. "My AI is trying to disable the self-destruct by setting new passwords to replace the old ones."

I said to him as I motioned for us to go. This was something we could probably have done, but it would have taken hours. It took a lot less time for an AI or a droid. And if we had the technology, why not use it? At least the Empire's PR won't be damaged. As discussed, we went door to door and I locked the security room. As there weren't too many people in the corridors, we were able to move along quite well. I only stopped when Alars Keto 's message was relayed to me by MANIAC and at the same time I was successful.

"The self-destruct has been disabled and the governor has imposed a curfew in the city because of Alliance terrorists." I told Kaz.

Meanwhile, I have instructed MANIAC to open a channel to the Governor's office.

<< This is Shadow-26 to the Governor's Office, pass the message to Governor Alars Keto that we have entered the Alliance base, the self-destruct has been disabled, we will soon reach the General and free him. Shadow-26, out. >> I sent the message.

Soon we came to the part where the corridor branched off in two directions. This was the last part and section where there were no enemies. From here, whichever direction we went, the next section was waiting for us with Galactic Alliance soldiers... or terrorists. To the right was the officer's quarters and the place where the Alliance general who would have been good to capture was, and to the left was the Imperial general who needed to be rescued.

"Which one would you like to start with? Hostage rescue or hostage-taking?" I asked Kaz in a serious tone, as this was part of his exam.

 

[Kazian Blackwood]

Ellayina L'lerim | Kyric | Damian Du Couteau

"The governor's lockdown couldn't have come at a better time. If the Alliance is going to leave with their force intact they'd have to do it now."

As we came to the crossroads in the corridor, I weighed the options Ella laid out. Either could be the wrong one, and we didn't have long until the Alliance's evac plans, whatever they were, would be put into motion. I was certainly glad to know, however, that blowing the whole place to hell was off the table for good.

"We don't know for sure still if our guy is even alive. We could get to that detention block and find ourselves empty handed with the rebels slipping through our fingers, right? I...we need insurance. I want to know that we aren't leaving here with nothing to show for it." Like the last time, I thought. Our failed coup attempt here before the invasion had largely been swept under the rug, but I was still hung up on the cost I'd paid personally in screwing it up. If this op could go flawlessly, I'd be grateful, but even such a victory as depriving the Alliance of their own general in return for ours was a better result to take back to the Bureau, a better result for my reputation.

"I think we need to secure General Lago first. If Primen's alive, and they get him out of the Deep Core, it's at one for one. It's not ideal, but you see what I'm thinking, right?"

 

[Damian Du Couteau]

Confidence slowly began to increase, the supporting hand on his shoulder made Damian almost forget just how dire the situation was becoming. The young Du Couteau heir followed along, the situation had changed and time was of the essence. The fight to keep the boot off of Teta completely was ever increasingly difficult and the futility to march on grew as a looming storm approached overhead.

Damian pulled out his data-slate, flanked by a guard on either side, he felt secure enough to split his attention. Moving important assets were dangerous missions to conduct and now with the Imperials tightening their grip their plan would need to be immaculate. For us to squeeze through a tight corridor is one thing, we’ll also need to do so without knowing what’s on the other end.

The underground bunker wasn’t exactly a true military bunker, but as they got closer to the room holding the captured Imperial the sense of urgency from other agents around them was palpable. The two guards next to Damian saluted and quickly went off to complete their other tasks to get the transfer process started.

“Secure the prisoner and let’s head out,” Damian gestured for the guards watching over the Imperial Prisoner. The man had his Imperial Uniform in less than clean regulation standard but otherwise he didn’t appear that worse for wear according to Damian. Honestly I feel like I had it worse these last few days.

Removing the blindfold and allowing the prisoner to walk under his own strength, Damian directed two more resistance agents to help with escorting the prisoner. They were ready to abandon and lock down the bunker for the time being, so at least they could lean on some extra support. We’ll probably need enough people to scout the exits ahead and give us an opening if needed.

“We’ll meet with the General at the exit,” Damian told Kyric, “-Once we can secure a safe passage to a ship where we can smuggle the prisoner off planet I think I’ll be able to breathe easier. . . slightly.” He put his data-slate back into his pockets as he attempted to wipe away the weariness from his expression.

I hate marching to the tune of an Imperial drum, but we got no choice today.
​

|| Kyric | Kazian Blackwood | Ellayina L'lerim ||​

 

[Kyric]

Tension wound the resistance fighters tight.

Kyric could see it in how they nervously fingered the trigger of their blasters. Every step increased the weight of duty upon their tired forms. How long had they guarded these halls? The kiffar eyed the soldiers on either side of him. Most of them looked green, but a fair few carried themselves with the mettle of a battle-hardened soldier. Would it be enough when the first blaster bolt shattered this strained calm?

"Secure the prisoner and let's head out."

The kiffar sized up the Imperial, committing his face to memory, then moved to linger a bit closer to Damian. Kyric kept his eyes trained on the back of the prisoner's head.

"We'll meet with the General at the exit. Once we can secure a safe passage to a ship where we can smuggle the prisoner off planet I think I'll be able to breathe easier. . . slightly."

"Sounds good to me, boss," Kyric said, his chipper attitude in check. Offering Damian a proper once over, the kiffar noticed for the first time how bedraggled the boy beside him appeared. This couldn't be the same senator who lost his father and watched his planet fall to the Dark Empire. The wariness in his eyes spoke of firsthand experience.

"Where to next?" Kyric asked. "I couldn't imagine this is the last of your excursions."

No amount of credits would convince Damian to abandon his planet, that much was clear. And if the rest of his family had half the young man's courage, Kyric imagined they wouldn't, either. Which meant more danger. The type of danger that saw an ill-prepared rebel squashed by an experienced adversary.

Damian Du Couteau | Ellayina L'lerim | Kazian Blackwood ​

 

[Ellayina L'lerim]

Torture and Interrogation Officer and Agent

Information

Objective: Capture and rescue
Location: Near to the city park, Cinnegar, Empress Teta
Equipment: 2x Sunfury Pistol | Light Armour | Viper Mk. I Skinsuit | 2x Vibrodagger || Cloaking Device | 5x ASBF Probe Droid || Empyrean gland || OPBC-01m
Tag: Kazian Blackwood | Kyric | Damian Du Couteau | Alars Keto | Open

"Galactic Common" | <"High Nelvaanian"> | ["Essonian"] | ~ telepathic communication ~ | << comm. channel >> ​

"Yes, but the question is how much they want to do it. If they want to do possible suicide missions now, it's perfect for that too, because only the Imperials will be on the streets." I told Kaz my own thoughts.

While we waited in the last section, where there were no Alliance soldiers yet, I explained the options to Kaz, what he could choose from. After that, I waited to see what he would come up with. When he told me what he was planning, I spoke up.

"The doors are locked, as are the vents, so the rebels cannot escape. In fact, they can commit suicide if they want, but there is no fear of escape. But since that's part of your exam, we'll go for the future hostage first." I told him.

In the meantime, I quickly retrieved the necessary data from MANIAC to see what my biochip was detecting, but at the moment I was more curious about what was waiting for us before we got to the Alliance General, what we could expect. I won't know the armour or weapons data, just how many locations we are from the general. A few moments later, I received the data to my retina.

"We are four corridors apart from the general and there are nine opponents in these areas. There are two in the next section, four after that, three in the third, and no one in the section before the general's quarters. The general is in his quarters at the moment. All the corridors are exactly fifteen metres long and the same width as the one we just came down. From what we saw in the room's monitors, there's no cover, but neither for us." I quickly summarised for him what was in store for us as we made our way to the enemy general.

I took the two pistols in my hands and I got down on one knee, so that the enemy would have a smaller area to hit me if I opened the door.

"Gentlemen first! Let me know when you're ready and I'll open the door." I told him once more.

From then on, since he was now leading us, I followed Kaz and always opened the next place when he told me to. I was confident that we could reach our would-be prisoner's quarters without injury.

 

[Kazian Blackwood]

Ellayina L'lerim | Damian Du Couteau | Kyric

​

I didn't exactly like to be reminded that this was an examination, but she had a point. I'd been so caught up in the variables it had hardly occurred to me that it was we who were the coiling vipers, and not the other way around despite how outnumbered we were.

As we crouched by the door and drew our blaster pistols, I gave her the signal to open the door. The first two dropped easily, but I was certain the rest would have heard the blasts from further on, so as soon we killed the first two I signalled for the next door. It was a matter of speed more than anything. With three weapons between us, and a both pretty good shots, we ran as fast as we could and gunned them all down before they could truly react. Even the shots they were able to get off were scattered to a hasty wayside as I imagined fear was overtaking them.

The trail of bodies led us right to the general's quarters. As I moved to position myself up against the door, and just before I signalled Ella to open it, a voice yelled out from behind.

"Open this door and I'll blast you straight to hell! Imperial scum!" the general's muffled voice was still loud enough, since he must have been practically screaming at us, but yet his tone suggested a confidence of a man that was indeed holding a large gun and was waiting for us to call his bluff.

"Alright, you got a stun setting on those things?" I turned to ask Ella. "It's just one good shot on anybody's part here and its over. What do you say? Should we charge him?"