HK - You're My Only Hope (FWC, Metal Lords)

[Faith Organa]

Many months earlier [member="Darben Skirae"] brought to her a chip. She had toyed with it and spoke with [member="Brad Solo"] about it. But so far no one had been able to really break down to her and tell her anymore more other than what they could see about the information. Sighing hard she decided to speak with [member="HK-36"] about it. Perhaps among his followers?

Perhaps they could find out more. Perhaps they could tell her something that no one else had. Perhaps they could find the people behind it and lay to rest all that had happen to Darben's companion Mute. It weighed heavy on her shoulders that she had not been able to determine more as she had promised.

Sometimes though you just don't have the right people at the table, this time she hoped she did. She had requested the Ambassador's presence. Count Teraan was busy completing the embassy here on the Corellia station. HK true to his words had assisted in all ways possible.

The station was elegant roomy and worthy to be called the Alderaan Embassy. The Count has quarters if he needed them, and staff hired from the Corellians. They knew their planet and what it needed. The Metal Lords and the Coalition were merely here to help where they were allowed. Corellians are a proud people that was what made this so difficult she couldn't imagine anyone using poor Mute like that.

She did not know who from the Coalition would come, it was not mandatory they attend but she hoped some would.

Aside from that she only knew she needed answers if not to provide to Darben that the Coalition had done something, or to calm her own misgivings.

Spoiler

Objectives: Find connections to the chip given to Faith by Darben
Fighting the crime presence on Corellia and any stations that support Corellia.
Repairs and support to any station or remaining planetary systems
Bring your own

[member="Alasdair Sitra"]
[member="Alessandro Waak'Tu"]
[member="Alexander Sannes"]
[member="Andulf Nicholas Teraan"]
[member="Bazette Royalblaze"]
[member="Brad Solo"]
[member="Cal Sedaire"]
[member="Camellia Swift"]
[member="Delila Castillon"]
[member="Draco Vereen"]
[member="Dresden Verbrennung"]
[member="Elpsis kerrigan-alori"]
[member="Fiore de Noir"]
[member="Gilamar Skirata"]
[member="Hadleigh Purkis"]
[member="HK-36"]
[member="Jada Raxis"]
[member="John Ash"]
[member="Joza Perl"]
[member="Kaida Taldir"]
[member="Kosu Goram"]
[member="Liliane"]
[member="Lucien Dolos"]
[member="Maria Natalja"]
[member="Matthew Calderon"]
[member="Myles Davorak"]
[member="Nima Tann"]
[member="Rashae"]
[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]
[member="Sirius Nova"]
@taryc ap'lrae
[member="Tek Sidereal"]
[member="Thalia Rist"]
[member="Vaena Askari"]
[member="Vanja Del'Vaan"]
[member="Von Kyux"]
[member="Allana Badeaux"]
[member="Relina Zhan"]
[member="Songbird"]
[member="Acaleus Thorn"]
[member="Cecile Miraxus"]
[member="Cato Fett"]
[member="Tahiri Veya"]
[member="Jyoti Nooran"]
[member="AceReplica"]
@chekita kaie
[member="Gabriel Sionoma"]
[member="RadioWhisper"]
[member="Cecily Demici"]
[member="Noah Corek"]
[member="Duke Heston"]
[member="Ty Ax'lah"]
[member="Minna"]
[member="Damian Starchaser"]
[member="Thom Betna"]

 

[Laira Darkhold]

The Outcast, under the name and registry Star-Runner, dropped out of Hyperspace on the outskirts of the Corellian System, moving slowly as its scanners active as it sought out the signs for the target craft.

About two days ago the Ranger Corps were able to make a connection between the Queen of the Core, the luxury liner that had been attacked by a biological agent resulting in horrifying losses and a massacre, and the attack on Serenade. A single cargo vessel had docked with the Queen before making its next stop to Serenade, afterwards the vessel went missing during its trip back through the galactic core. It had been located by long range scans adrift in the Corellian system, on the far reaches of the system's patrol range and had not responded to hails since its discovery.

The Ranger Corp had decided to dispatch one of its Rangers for a preliminary investigation, and reached out to Firemane to send an operative of their own aboard the Ranger Vessel, Star-Runner, to aid in the investigation and report its findings back to the leadership of the corporate empire. The Ranger Corp often found joint ventures to be far more reliable than either group taking on its own investigations as it reduced the need for resources and increased trust between the two organizations.

Laira swiveled in her chair, kicking her long legs up onto the dash. She was wearing simple clothing, a pair of snug fitting trousers, white shirt and a vest, and a pair of boots with a slight heel. Her left sleeve was buttoned up to the elbow on her missing arm, pinned closed to keep anyone from seeing the scarred flesh of her elbow.

"So, sensor sweeps along the corridor have begun. Its just a matter of scanning the system for a few hours until they ping off it." The redhead twisted around a little, taking her finger off the intercomm to look at her droid for a moment. "You think she'll enjoy a briefing?" The droid beeped a few times in a frustrated tone before turning away from the redhead. "No, not like that." Laira responded with a laugh.

"All hands report to the common area for briefing in like... a minute." All hands. There were only two people and a droid aboard the little ship. It was a polite way of saying 'Hey I want to get to know you for a second before we go into this possible death trap'. It was a bit more difficult to undo crash-webbing with only one arm, but it worked. Her Renegade Blaster Pistol hung off her hip and her spear was compressed and sheathed on her back, and a few pouches on her belt with tools and scanners.

She stood up and made her way out of the cockpit, unlocking the security seal as she left. It wasn't that she didn't trust her companion, though they had never met, it was more that her droid was over protective. Too much time with Dimeria.

[member="Shamira Karuto"]

 

[Shamira Karuto]

[SIZE=12pt]One would expect that if your first large scale battle that you fought in included zombies, a person losing an eye, firebombing, and people getting torn limb from limb, that you would not sleep especially well after that. In the days that followed Shamira’s encounter with the zombie hoard, she had experienced just that. Night terrors had kept her up most nights, and she had only a few days ago finally got some peaceful sleep with the help of some rather powerful drugs. Her training had suffered due to her lack of sleep which Tempest unfortunately had noticed. Her solution was to send Shamira off the Ashira’s light for a while, hoping that the apprentice would be able to ward off her dreams by focusing on a mission of sorts. And Laira was a trusted friend of firemane, so the situation worked out well enough for both sides. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]That was how Shamira found herself in the Star-Runner’s crew cabin, watching the latest episode of Captain Correllia. Tempest had gotten her invested in the silly show during their mission to Kashyyyk, and she found it a comforting way to spend some downtime, either between ship rides or training sessions. The voice over the intercom system broke her attention for the show long enough for her to place the holopad off to the side and begin to suit up for the pair’s incursion. Her dull red armor reflected the soft light of the cabin’s overhead lights as she slid off the bed to pull on her knee high boots, strapping them tightly against her calves. Reaching back onto the cot, she paused the holovideo, placed the holopad on the pillow and started out of the room, heading to the common area to meet her partner for the mission.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]After the encounter with the zombies, and realizing she couldn’t adequately kill everything she needed to with her lightsaber, Shamira had elected to begin to have at least a blaster pistol and a few backup power cartridges on her person for all future missions. The DL-44, for which she had acquired for that purpose, bounced slightly in her thigh holster as she walked into the common area. The grey skinned alien hopped onto the couch and kicked her feet up onto a table, eagerly awaiting Laira’s arrival. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]| [/SIZE][member="Laira Vereen"] |​

 

[Laira Darkhold]

Laira strode to the gallery of her little ship to find the grey skinned togruta waiting on the couch with her feet up on the circular table. The little ship was tight and required intimate living conditions with only a couple rooms and shared spaces. "Glad to see you made yourself comfortable sweetcheeks." Laira said with a grin, "I'll be your captain, Ranger Laira Darkhold and we will be doing," the redhead paused to look at the dossiere on their mission profile to see what their mission actually was. "Investigating the derelict cargo ship PL Ninety One. We'll do a preliminary sensor sweep and then dock with the ship long enough for you and I to disembark, then the Star-Runner will circle until we are ready for extraction. Goddess that sounds boring."

Laira brushed her hair backwards with her one remaining hand and looked her compatriot over. She wasn't familiar with the Togruta or her species, but she didn't mind taking in a long, quite obvious appreciation for her companion's figure with a smile. Shamira was training under Tempest, a white haired witch who specialized in lightning. Conversely Laira was a redheaded fire and earth shaper who preferred speed in combat. That said, Shamira probably had a better understanding of the Force than Laira did. "Alright, lets make it quick and limber up, get acquainted and then get this over with so we can hit the beaches and bars on Selonia."

Laira rolled her shoulders back a few times and then stuck her leg up on the table, leaning over to stretch out her muscles before the mission. Stretching was an important part of ensuring there wasn't an unnecessary injury during their mission. As she leaned over to wrap her arms around her leg still on the floor she let out a soft sigh, feathery red locks cascading over her face. "So, I'm Laira. I'm a ranger with the Free Worlds. I like exercising, dancing, and long walks on the beach at dusk." She grinned as she stood, swapping legs and continuing her routine. "Why don't you tell me about yourself."

[member="Shamira Karuto"]

 

[Shamira Karuto]

[SIZE=12pt]Shamira’s cheeks heated slightly at the sweetcheeks comment, the blush darkening her grey skin slightly. Laira’s grin couldn’t help but make her more comfortable, however, and the girl slid her boots off the middle table. The Togruta laid her forearms against her knees as she listened to the mission for the day, agreeing that the whole thing didn’t exactly seem the most exciting thing in the world. Nodding in agreement, a sly grin peaked at the edges of her lips as she answered. “It doesn’t sound incredibly fun..though this whole thing gets me out of training for a day or two. Or longer, if need be. Im not going to complain.”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Where the Togruta’s eyebrow would be raised slightly as she caught sight of the warrior looking her over, not sure if she was checking her physic out or sizing her up. In all honesty, neither would be something Shamira would disagree with. Even with little to no knowledge about Selonia, beaches and relaxation sounded quite wonderful. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]The redhead warrior’s sudden stretch by putting her leg up on the table slightly surprised the tense apprentice. Limbering up did sound nice however, so the Togruta pushed herself off the couch and started towards one of the walls of the ship, pushing her foot against it and leaning forward to create pressure and stretch it out. Looking back over her shoulder at the woman, Shamira smiled widely at her introduction. “And I’m Shamira. I quite enjoy reading, training, and walking around the Ashira’s Light.” Focusing back on her stretch, she switched feet and started the process over. “I’ve actually never been to a beach..”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]| [/SIZE][member="Laira Vereen"] |​

 

[Laira Darkhold]

"Never been to a beach!" Laira stood up sharply at the revelation, her expression one of mock shock. "I suppose we will have to go to Selonia after this then." It didn't change the princess's plans at all, it only made the trip a little more of a learning experience for Shamira. The white sand beaches tended by the ferret-like Selonians were almost always nice an warm, and with a little extra money from Firemane and her personal funds they could afford a few servants to see to their pampering.

Supposedly the grey togruta had froze on Serenade, but Laira hadn't seen it. Laira knew what it was like to be green, and she had spent quite a few missions without any real experience at first. She had the benefit of having been trained from before she could walk to fight, think tactically, and get herself out of trouble so somethings triggered her instincts in a way not everything did. "So, first rule of the Ranger Corp. Everyone that goes in, comes back, no matter what, no matter the state of their health." Smiling she held her left arm up, to show the stumped elbow to the alien. "We dragged my arm out of the Queen of the Core one time, so you can trust we will both get back."

Finally Laira leaned backwards, then to each side, and forward before considering her stretches complete. "Second rule, have fun. I'm tired of regulations and professionals on my ship." She winked, "Don't call me ma'am. Laira is fine, but I'll accept many other cute nicknames you can come up with." Her hands patted her pockets, weapons, and buttocks to check that everything was in its proper place and felt right. Content with how she looked and what she was carrying, the ranger was ready to but her boots to good use.

"Once Ee nine brings us to the derelict, we will get on that ship and scurry around." It shouldn't take long before they arrived at the cargo ship.

[member="Shamira Karuto"]

 

[HK-36]

[member="Faith Organa"], [member="Laira Vereen"], [member="Shamira Karuto"],


Free Planet Of Corellia,
Neutral Zone Between Droid And Coalition Space,


No thread that openly gave HK a position of power and praised him in title alone could be left too long without the ancient droid himself making an appearance.

The Rangers from FWC who accompanied Faith and other delegates would receive notification about multiple ships entering the system, and sure enough various resonating booms and flashes of light would be picked up by their station as numerous ships arrived at the edge of Corellia. It would be pretty obvious the vessels were sent in by Metal Lords, bearing their signs upon their hulls and sending out their IFF codes, not to mention having that particular architecture the machines enjoyed so much. The ships were mostly old echoes of past glory and derelicts, once abandoned or destroyed the machines pulled them into their embrace and repaired them, nourishing these ancient vessels until they were able to sail once more. Many of them looked as if they were fresh out of their initial shipyards, as if not a day passed since they were first deployed, Venators, Hammerheads, some Imperial vessels, although upon a closer inspection one could notice various discolorations and patches upon the ships, signs of their repair where recycled durasteel or other metals had to be used to seal the vessels. Some of them were of strange designs that has long since lost their initial appearance, now cobbled together from various parts of capital ships Metal Lords were able to scavenge throughout their journeys and battles and piece together into a jigsaw creation that could only be described as "ugly capital ships".


The ships were ordered to have their shields lowered and weapons disabled as they were sailing into friendly space, however ahead of them the Rangers would also receive news about a stealth corvette revealing itself and uncloaking before its approach to the station, sending out a request to dock with them. Once granted, assuming it would be granted, HK would disembark the corvette along with his Greycloak honor guards and other Metal Lord representatives, making his way through the FWC station hanging in the orbit above Corellia.

Soon enough the door to the room Faith was occupying would open and inside HK would step with other Metal Lord representatives and his Greycloaks,

"Hey Faith, how are you doing?"

The droid would greet his neighbor Queen casually, giving her a slight wave as he stepped up towards her, if the Rangers were there in the room with her they would be given nods in greeting as well, remembering Laira and Shamira although not commenting on that just yet.

"So what is the situation, the transmission I got summoning Metal Lords to this meeting spoke of something dire that only we could help with. Is your personal computer broken or something? Because you know, a lot of time you just have to turn it off and on again."

HK explained, making a motion as if pulling something out of an electric outlet and back in again.

 

[Shamira Karuto]

Laira’s over the top reactions, as different as Shamira was used to from hanging out around Tempest, definitely amused the Padawan, who laughed lightly as the redhead sprang up at her sharing she had never been to a beach. “Nope. Just never had the time or opportunity to.” Shamira surely hadn’t packed for such a trip, so she surely hoped that her partner had enough credits to help her find appropriate clothing. Mainly because Laira didn’t look…quite the younger woman’s side.

The Togruta turned around to sink to the floor, pushing her feet together in a butterfly stretch as she listened to the rule number one of the ranger corps. “That is certainly a story you can’t withhold from me. I was wonder how you..” The alien’s headtails bobbed slightly as she nodded at the ranger’s arm should have been, instead of missing at the forearm.

Rule number two definitely brightened the mood a bit on the ship. Shamira nodded quickly as she leapt up from her sat position, walking over to the taller woman. “Well, Laira, I certainly hope that we can finish this routine mission pretty quickly.” The grey skinned alien raised an eyebrow, grin turning to a sly smirk. “And you can show me what is so fun about these beaches.”

| [member="Laira Vereen"] |​

 

[Laira Darkhold]

Laira looked at the stump where her forearm would be for a moment. "I got bitten by one of the ghouls on the Queen while I was protecting an Eldorai. We had to amputate it and cauterize the wound to keep the infection from spreading. Even with Force Healing, a slight scratch was spreading before our eyes. Within a couple minutes it was festering, so, don't get bit." The story came with a lesson about responsibility and more importantly, how every act had consequences no matter how noble. But it wasn't so sad, Laira would be getting a new arm from the Royal Medical University that would match the old one perfectly soon enough.

"Well," Laira paused and looked the togruta over from floor to silver-blue eyes with a raised eyebrow and a slight smile. "We will see about fun," her chin stuck upwards and her voice place emphasis on the final word, spoken almost like a whisper, "Once you've earned it." She had a few swimsuits, but Laira was a bit shorter than the togruta, but otherwise Laira was bigger than her companion. Either way, it would make a decent reward for a job well done once they completed their mission.

A droid screamed something in binary from the cockpit. "Ee nine says thirty seven lifefroms, but sensors can't tell us what kind of lifeforms through the hull. He's gonna pull us around to the aft cargo bay to unload us. Fewest signatures there." That made the trip a little longer, but otherwise not much more difficult. Thirty seven ghouls was hardly anything to be afraid of in the grand scheme of things, and by dropping the pair at the rear of the ship they could make their way to the bridge while leaving an escape route back to the ship open.

The Rekali-class fighter swooped low, inverting itself in relation to the cargo vessel so that they were belly to belly when the boarding tube extended. The transition would upset their stomachs, but otherwise wouldn't cause any issue. Laira led the way, descending the boarding tube. As she neared the end the gravity swiftly transitioned so that she was forced to reorient her body perpendicular with the hull, then the next step it shifted yet again so that when she was standing on the cargo bay, she appeared upside down to those in the boarding tube.

"Easy sweetcheeks. Those last two steps are a doozy." The red head called, swaying slightly as she adjusted to the decreased gravity of the cargo container. Interesting indeed. The air was stale but breathable and cold. Very cold. She could see her breath with each exhalation. She plied her senses in the Force and she could feel primal hunger from a few of the closest presences, much like she had felt from the other ghouls and zombies on the Queen and Serenade, but different.

Starved.

[member="Shamira Karuto"]

 

[Shamira Karuto]

[SIZE=12pt]After hearing about how the readhead lost her arm was somewhat interesting for Shamira, even though she didn’t know much about the backstory to where it had all taken place. Perhaps at a better time, the younger woman would probe the ranger for some more information, if the ranger decided she was up for sharing about what was probably a traumatic experience. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Even though she had never once visited a beach or any sort of vacation resort, the thought of getting to go to one as a reward was certainly enticing enough for the Padawan to practically grin ear to ear. Shamira was close to Laira’s size, so she hoped that perhaps she could borrow something to wear. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]At no point during Laira’s explanation of where they would be entering the ship did she mention exactly how they would. When the docking tube connected to the Star-Runner she found out why. The two ships were now connected parallel to each other, which meant the pair would have to rotate their positions within the tube to accommodate their boarding. It was disorienting enough, so the grey skinned alien just tried her best to follow the other woman’s footsteps so that she could stay upright. And just like Laira said, the final two steps were a doozy, and the Togruta ended up falling to a knee once in the container, taking long, deep breaths to slow herself after the disorientating ride in the tube.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]After the few moments it took to get herself back in balance, Shamira stood slowly by Laira’s side, and immediately noticed a very unsettling thing. It was practically totally silent in the cargo area. No movement, no electronical humming, nothing. Just eerie, cold silence. The padawan’s gloved hand slowly reached down to her hip, pulling her lightsaber from her hip. “I really don’t like this, Laira..” It was dark, too. Practically all the light was coming from the tube their emerged from. Thirty-seven different lifeforms were on this craft, somewhere in the darkness. And even if she could not see them, Shamira knew one thing for certain.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]They were hungry.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]And they sensed food. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]| [/SIZE][member="Laira Vereen"] |​

 

[Laira Darkhold]

"Stay calm." Laira said, clicking on a glowrod affixed to her shoulder. It cast a long beam of illumination across the cargo to the walls. Claw marks and drag patterns of dried blood were the first things she saw against the far wall. Any doubt about what they would find aboard this vessel was swiftly cast aside by the signs of struggle and what appeared to be the remnants of the ghoul's meals. "There are only like forty of em, so guns ready. Take your time, make sure you aim cause center mass hits don't slow 'em." Laira's only hand was quickly filled with her large Renegade Blaster Pistol, one of the SoroSuub weapons noted for its stopping power and one of the Ranger's favorites. "And try to stay pretty for me, okay."

Her spear was still sheathed but readily available if it came to it, and of course they both had the Force. The Star-Runner detached behind them, moving into a holding pattern away from the drifting cargo ship where it would await their call.

Something was indeed off, but it had been sometime since the vessel had gone missing. If it had suffered a similar outbreak, then the ghoulish beings would be starving, emaciated. A perfect time to capture a living sample for the lab if they were careful enough. Stun bolts didn't work on them, and they were notoriously resistant to pain. Laira strode alongside her grey skinned companion, smiling like they were strolling down the promenade of Nar Shaddaa. "Relax," The redhead said quietly, swinging her hips to the side to bump against Shamira's playfully. "This'll be easy." She bumped her hips against Shamira again, moving in a rhythm as she attempted to ease the Witch's mind. Fear was dangerous in this sort of situation, and so it was best that the two of them tried to banish that sensation away while they could.

Then the screech began.

The same eerie sound of a Hunter having found prey, alerting all those nearby to the presence of fresh meat. Her light shone across the being, standing in the open doorway to the corridor running along the spine of the ship. Unlike their previous encounters, this being was nearly just bones and loose skin, its wounds hung open and its eyes were milk white from lack of blood. It shambled more than ran at the two women, stumbling as its desiccated muscles attempted to surge it forward, other similar beings rounding the corner behind it and noises from the catwalks above them denoting others.

"Stay with me, sweetie." Laira said as she began loosing bolts. Time slowed around her, the air hung still and quiet. Speed, that was her first gift. Given their range, her speed allowed her time to aim each bolt carefully at the center spot between their eyes, where as otherwise she would have had to shoot from the hip and hope.

[member="Shamira Karuto"]

 

[Faith Organa]

[member="HK-36"]

She remembered the day she stood looking at Corellia. A world broken but not the people. The dedicated Corellians had banded together their resources and re-made Corellia and then reclaimed it as their home. She couldn't help but admire them who didn't.

When the door opened to her left her gaze immediately went to the door to see who had entered, a smile slowly appeared on her face, "Hello Lord Protector good to see you again." She laughed and nodded as HK teased her.

"Well you know I had to have one of them come and show me the on off button, and how to copy paste." She was willing to play helpless damsel for a moment or two while they joked and found a bit of comfort in their circumstances.

"HK I have come into the possession of a chip. It was" She held it up, "removed from a young woman and has links back here to Corellia. Can you examine it and perhaps tell me something I don't know about about it" She offered it out. She had not mentioned Darben or Mute she wanted to protect their identities if she could. There really was no reason to tell how she got it, or from what young woman it was taken.

She smiled and waited to see if HK would be able to help.

 

[Shamira Karuto]

[SIZE=12pt]Honestly, Laira could have said something that made absolutely not sense whatsoever when she was trying to assure the Padawan that everything would be alright. It wasn’t that what she said didn’t give confidence to the younger woman. No, it was Laira’s tone that gave her confidence in being with her. The ranger oozed confidence and calmness that seemed to infect the much more nervous one. To the point where Shamira slowly slipped her lightsaber back onto her belt, flipped open her holster strap, and pulled out her DL-44 alongside Laira who had hers pulled out.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Shamira’s eyes had begun to adjust to the low lit room, aided by the glowlight attached to the ranger’s shoulder. The bay that they had landed in a rectangular shape, but it was more long than narrow. From laira’s light, she could see the claw marks and blood spatter that ran along the steel inner wall. The cargo bay also had a catwalk that ran around the entire area, with two ladders that allowed access from the bottom floor. One ladder was behind them, while the other was closely beside the only entrance into the cargo bay. There also seemed to have an exit right above the main entrance that the catwalk to access. A ventilation shaft, perhaps?[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Shamira’s examination of where they were was interrupted by the sudden hip bumping from the ranger, breaking the stoic look on the padawan’s face. Turning to face the redhead, Sha smirked lightly as she bumped their hips right back playfully. “What’s a few zombies to a witch and a ranger? You’re right.” Turning back to the entrance to the cargo bay, the Togruta might as well been a toka cat for how she jumped.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]A hunter. It’s flesh rotten and hanging from its bones as it stood there, staring at them. The Padawan’s blaster slowly raised, intending to kill the thing quickly so hopefully the pair would keep the element of surprise.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Then it screeched, and all frak broke lose.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Liara didn’t waste a moment firing beside her, which prompted an equal response from the Padawan. “Im not going anywhere.” Her blaster’s moderate kickback meant her shots were slightly wild, as Shamira had much less training with a blaster than her lightsaber. Still, at least one of her shots landed, hitting the zombie hunter backwards slightly. Above them, the sounds of shambling zombies could be heard as their footfalls hit the metal grating of the catwalk harshly. Whether or not they could get down at all, or if they were smart enough to use the ladder remained to be seen. For now, the Togruta focused on the task at hand, and finally loosed a shot that hit the hunter dead between the eyes, blowing away half it’s head. Still, more were coming, and they were practically surrounded with no place to go. “Plan, Laira?”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]| [/SIZE][member="Laira Vereen"] |​

 

[Laira Darkhold]

"Jump for the Cat-walk." Laira grunted between shots at the Zombies. In her experience the majority of the zombies were mindless and wouldn't pose much a threat if the two girls could get out of their reach. Additionally the catwalk was narrow and forced them to come at the girls only one at a time, which made it much easier to defend which would keep them from being swiftly overrun. For most Jedi or Force sensitives, enhancing a jump was a simple application of minor telekinesis that every padawan learned before they even got a lightsaber. For Laira it was a very different ordeal.

Her in ability to manifest even the basest forms of telekinesis forced her to have to compensate by surging the Force through her legs and enhancing her muscles to be able to generate the lift necessary for what was a world-record High-Jump and she would have to do it without a running start. She was able to, it was just much more draining than it would be for any normal Force User. With a slight 'umph' she lifted off the deck of the cargo bay and onto the cat-walk above them.

From the gloom Laira could make out more figures and gain a perspective of how many of the things had been near the cargo bay by the time they had been able to land. The ship wasn't massive, probably only ninety or so meters long but she had hoped they would be a little more spread out. It seemed there were about thirty of the things in the cargo bay, most of them on the floor and about eight or so on the cat-walk. Knowing that getting into a prolonged fight would drain them if they tried to rely on the Force, Laira was content to use it primarily as a means of escape to conserve their stamina. She dropped the closest zombie to Shamira with a high powered bolt to the cheek, hoping to provide the grey alien an opening to follow.

[member="Shamira Karuto"]

 

[HK-36]

[member="Faith Organa"],

"Yes, you as well."

HK nodded when Faith said it was good to see him, staying silent at her own joke about computers and being a damsel in distress as she moved on to business promptly and discussed the chip and how they found it. HK would reach out his hand to her to motion for her to give him the chip,

"No I doubt I would be able to tell much more from it than your slicers could."

The droid shook his head, looking at the chip as his vision zoomed in internally,

"But I know some other Metal Lords or our agents that could, slicing has never been my strong suite, I can do it if I have to, especially to other droids, but decrypting data from chips, there are others who could do it better and track the source of this chip and the information it carries."

With that HK would sent out a message to [member="Vigil"], [member="Archim Calixis"], and [member="Haon Hafey"], their message was pretty much the same, FWC has called upon Metal Lords to conduct decryption and investigation into connections the data on the chip could have to Corellia and they had the skills and abilities that could help the Metal Lords do just that.

"I have sent out a summon for individuals I am sure that could help out with your problem, knowing them they should be here shortly and we can start to work this mystery wide open."

The droid assured the Queen, offering the data chip back to her. Unbeknownst to her, the machine would sent out two other transmissions, calling upon members of Corellian League, [member="Julius Sedaire"] and [member="Sor-Jan Xantha"], the two of them being pretty much the only League members the machine knew, summoning them to meet in Corellia's orbit with him and the Queen of Alderaan if they had the time, knowing that they and their connections would be valuable, especially if investigation had to be conducted on the sovereign planet of Corellia.

 

[Sor-Jan Xantha]

THE CORELLIA DIGITAL BUILDING​

Mecha • Drall • Corellian System​

It never failed.

No sooner was the small Anzat finally home from work before the comm unit was buzzing with a transmission of some kind.

The tow headed boy had returned from the whole grand kerfuffle that had been Sector L-49 to his home on Drall not five minutes ago. Just enough time for his butt to get settled comfortable in his favorite beanbag chair, in front of a holo-vid re-broadcast of the old Gar-Jen Squib Jedi Adventure series cartoons, with a cold glass of sugar Kool-Aid... before the protocol droid came and ruined the moment.

"Master Xantha..."

Fifty-seven years and the deceptively young looking Republic veteran had learned that nothing good ever came from any conversation begun with the words "General Xantha," "Master Xantha" or especially "I'm from the Senate and I'm here to help."

The boy's head rolled back. From an upside-down perspective, peering at the droid from over the back of the chair, the child-like alien pouted as he demanded, "What is it this time?"

Mandalorian pirates?

Galactic Empire?

Zombie ropo apocalypse?

"You've received a transmission from the Metal Lords."

The tow-headed child just blinked. "Ugh." He'd rather have the zombie ropo apocalypse.

The Metal Lords were automatons programmed with a surplus of personality, possessed of a superiority complex, and then led by an HK unit who was a cantankerous rustbucket arsehole.

...and they just happened to control the Corellian Sector at the moment. So it was like being told that you had a voicemail from the landlord waiting for you.

"The illustrious [member="HK-36"] requests the pleasure of your company in the orbit of the Elder Brother."

Of course he does, the boy wanted to snap back. And nearly did so. Instead, releasing a cleansing breath, the child opined, "If it's about that communications satellite..."

"...Her Majesty, Faith of Alderaan, will also be party to the discussions."

The child just blinked a second time. "Faith of what?"

It was strange enough to receive a transmission from the Metal Lords. As a general principle, Corellia Digital and the Metal Lords managed to occupy the same space while practicing a sort of mutual habit of ignoring one another's existence. Corellia Digital conducted its business with the Galactic Alliance, the Commenor System's Alliance, the Silver Jedi, and the Kathol Outback all without regulatory oversight from the droids who owned the planet where his factories, workshops, and employees happened to reside.

That was arguably better than the CIS. They now controlled Druckenwell. The little known tax shelter of a gem where Corellia Digital had hidden it's private credit laundering firm in the form of the Corell Financial Bank. Now, in addition to waiting to see how the currency markets shook out in the aftermath of that cosmic land grab, the finance lawyers were waiting to see what sort of tax code a CIS-controlled Druckenwell would operate under.

In any case, this didn't seem like a meeting the boy could decline. Or send [member="Marque"] to in his stead.

Extending his legs out, the boxer-clad youngling looked at the droid as he asked, "Does this mean I hafta wear pants?"

That was an important thing to consider when planning the agenda for meeting with two heads of state.

​

[member="Laira Vereen"] | [member="Shamira Karuto"] | [member="Faith Organa"]​

 

[Vigil]

How fast was the holonet? Not on an individual scale, but on a grand, complete, galaxy wide scale? Near instantanious, perhaps. Perhaps not. Regardless, such was the perception of Vigil, who recieved [member="HK-36"]'s message almost the moment it was sent. The droid, unknowing of course that Vigil would receive such information so swiftly, requested his presence.

Amusing circumstances. Perhaps he would entertain himself with the head of state, miss Organa that was. So he did what all sentient, self aware AI could.. he invited himself to the fun. It was a subtle thing, what he needed to to. But it wasn't hard, he simply needed a point from the holonet in. Fortunately, he found one. And he moved his active instance in, infesting the circuitry quietly as he looked for a way through to them.

Eventually, a protocol droid startled some guards by wandering into the meeting room, despite not being called in. The protocol droid shouldn't be there! But before anyone could grab it, the droid spoke, words clearly not conceived by the droid itself.

"Greetings, holder of my library card, designation HK-36. I apologize for the disturbance, VG-01 has been dispatched to your position, but I simply could not wait to meet a queen. Now, Miss Organa, you may know me, or not, as Mr. Orwell. I have appropriated this droid that I may hear the story from your own mouth. Worry not, the droid will remain unharmed. Consider it a demonstration of my capabilities, considering the distance between us."


Vigil amused himself too much, sometimes.

[member="Faith Organa"]

 

[Shamira Karuto]

[SIZE=12pt]Shamira decided it best to give covering fire to Laira as she jumped high up onto the hanging catwalk. Continuing to squeeze off shots towards the doorway to the cargo hold, the padawan was able to make out two or three zombie-fied dropping to the floor, head’s smoking from blaster bolts. Yet the mod continued to move forward, starvation and decayed minds overpowering rational of walking straight into blaster fire. The sounds of boots hitting metal from above confirmed that Laira was able to make it up, which meant it was time for the Togruta to move.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Being much more in tune with the athletic powers of the force than Laira meant that Shamira’s leap onto the hanging catwalk was much more graceful and soft, as the padawan landed closely to the left of other forcer. Suddenly, a bolt fired past her head to bury into an awaiting zombie, dropping it to the floor. With a surprised and thankful look Shamira nodded to the redhead before trying to find them a way out of this situation. Even if they could take each zombie one on one on the catwalk, the Togruta would still much rather fight on her terms, not the zombie’s.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Her eyes fell on the only other way out of the cargo bay, the ventilation shaft door, to which she pointed it out to Laira. “That might be our way out of here!” Shamria lifted her hand to let off a few quick bursts of lightning, shocking the zombies in their way, trying to clear out a pathway for the pair. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]| [/SIZE][member="Laira Vereen"] |​

 

[Laira Darkhold]

Laira looked at the ventilation shaft and started to shake her head no. The redhead knew all too well that the much more intelligent hunters used such shafts to ambush cramped and disadvantaged prey where they were much quicker and much more maneuverable and the pair's weapons would be in the way as much as useful. "I don't know Sha." She started, part of her didn't want to leave the cargo bay. This was their way off the ship if they needed to escape quickly, but the try anything in her was willing to risk that they could out maneuver the zombies since they were all gathered into one place.

"You best go first. Keep an eye out for hunters." She warned, snapping off another bolt at a ghoul on the catwalk with them. Below the small mob was shuffling underneath them, piling atop one another trying to reach upwards and get a hold of the beams so they could climb onto the catwalk.

They need to perform a solid fighting retreat and thin out the numbers as best they could. Oh how Laira wished one of them had a solid Firemane Bolter weapon to start clearing out them in large numbers. Each bolter round dropped a ghoul no matter where it hit. Each Blast from her Renegade did something, but it had to be a well placed shot. Laira was good, but thirty or so straight headshots under pressure? Unlikely in the best of scenarios.

She popped off a few rounds into the crowd below her, downing another and injuring one that had gotten its claws onto the catwalk.

[member="Shamira Karuto"]

 

[Julius Sedaire]

He certainly would not have looked like anyone of importance. Rumpled spacers garb hidden by what appeared to be grey-black overcoat from an old military issue by the wear and scarring. The only things entirely remarkable about him were scattered as afterthoughts. A rather mean looking bryar pistol strapped to his left thigh, opposite a lightsaber on the right hip, and seated in the small of his back was a beautifully crafted DE-10 of dallorian alloy. And the trousers he wore bore the striping of a Corellian honor, the First Class Bloodstripes to be exact. Those who knew him knew the honor was to do with freeing Corellia. But the exact circumstances no one would talk about. Not even he himself. And a strange, exotic tracery of metallic silver vines covered parts of his exposed skin - though what they were and did, that was an oddity as well. Blue-grey eyes seemed to regard everything with a hint of snark and mirth, and his sandy hair was just beginning to thin and pale from his youth, but his physique was still that of a warrior just past prime, even as was his rolling gait.

How he had gotten here was particularly easy. Being who he was, and being in orbit over Corellia, he was passed along in a little non-descript freighter carrying repair supplies. The rather distinct lines of his Aing-Tii acquired ship had been left behind, where it wouldn't be noticed and attract as much attention. Now he was clambering through the bowels of some ship, and had made his way to the meeting room. It was quite funny as he stepped forward while HK and Faith were talking. a request had been sent, and he had come, to be sure. He was already in the area, above the planet actually, involved in a mission he wasn't sure of the legality. But then again, laws were a bit grey when you stood where he did.

"Summons? That might be a poor choice of words. The last time anyone summoned me, I responded by drunkenly driving a luxury speeder bike through a girlfriends luxury apartment. Now, I doubt a speeder bike would do well in space, but if you wanted me to try it out for old times sake, I suppose we can talk... But didn't you have something you needed help with?"

[member="HK-36"] | [member="Sor-Jan Xantha"] | [member="Faith Organa"]