In the Bowels of Bespin

[Darlyn Excron]

Darlyn was painfully aware of when he was more or less dropped onto the floor. Kay, it seemed, had opted to drag him back onto the ship and waste valuable time, time he wasn't even sure they had. Still, some part of him was grateful not to be dead yet, and using what little he could the hunter managed to push himself back up against a wall, so he was seated on the floor and able to look at Kay. He had his mirrored mask on under the helmet, so when he pulled it free she would only see her own face staring back at her. "We need... to move." His slightly muffled voice spoke to her past the mask.

"I set all the reactors on maximum output. The coolant systems are non functioning, the station should light up rather beautifully. But we can't stay too close." He coughed and laid back against the wall, closing his eyes. It was taking everything he had to sit up and talk, he had to be careful expending as much force energy as he did. It wrecked havoc on his concentration.

[member="Hyori Tal"] [member="Lady Kay"] [member="Caid Centurion"] [member="Ghorua the Shark"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay looked up as [member="Darlyn Excron"] spoke, her eyes widening as she was startled at seeing her face where his should be. It wasn't exactly what she was expecting. His words brought her out of those thoughts and into their current situation. The ship shook and she could hear both Terrac and Agent [member="Hyori Tal"] as they tried to protect their ship.

She got to her feet, being sure not to get up too fast, and then moved to the cockpit. "Terrac! The platform is going to blow up soon. Can you get closer to it?"

The Rusty Bucket shook as it took another direct hit, causing the lights to flicker. "Get closer?! Are you crazy?! We're going to end up--"

"Just trust me! Get as close as you can and drop down below! If you get around to the other side, they won't see us when it explodes! If we're lucky, the debris field will hide our escape!"

"That's if we don't get blown up as well, doll!"

"You said that you were a good pilot, so show me your skills! Prove it!"

The old man grumbled and gripped tightly to the controls. "Everybody hang on! Agent! Throw everything we've got at them! I don't care if it does damage or not! We need to make it look like suicide!!" That was pretty much what he thought this was.

Kay buckled herself into a seat and she hoped that the others did the same. She closed her eyes as Terrac piloted the Bucket, turning the ship around and then bringing her into a dive, sticking close to the platform. She tapped into the Force. Her training taught her to create a shield around herself, yet this time she extended it outward like an additional forcefield around the ship. If anything she wanted to protect them from the heat of the explosion that was sure to happen after they reached the other side.

[member="Ghorua the Shark"] [member="Caid Centurion"]

 

[Ghorua the Shark]

Dimly, Ghorua heard everyone's voices in his commset. The Herglic was very much out of it, but his system was starting to recover from the shock. He slowly felt his muscles begin to strengthen again, and his mind clear slightly. The aftereffects of the Frenzy were beginning to fade.

Ghorua stood up from his seat slowly, and gingerly stepped out of the medbay, having to kneel and turn to get out of the door. He walked along the confines of the cargo hold, walking off his sluggishness. Suddenly, he heard Terrac's voice over the comms.

"Everybody hang on!"

The Shark looked around for something, anything to hang on to, but to no avail. He had just enough time to curse before the pilot brought them into a sharp dive. The Herglic was suspended in the air for but a moment, and a feeling of weightlessness overtook the half-ton behemoth. Then, the floor dropped out from under him, and Ghorua fell, sliding into the wall that had tipped under him. He crashed into it hard, but kinetic force was what his armor was meant to take. The impact left the Shark jarred, and his shoulder ached, but he was relatively unharmed. The wall where he had slid to, however, now had a very large dent. "Ow! Kark! A little more warning next time!" Despite his pain, he smiled widely. He was finally back in control of his body.

- [member="Lady Kay"] - [member="Darlyn Excron"] - [member="Hyori Tal"] - [member="Caid Centurion"] -

 

[Valae Heavenshield]

For the moment, it seemed that the Rusty Bucket was holding together well enough. With Kay and Darlyn on board now, their motley crew was assembled once more. Though they had all made it off the platform, there was still a high probability that they would die here – that would be quite a pity.

Hyori’s gaze shifted slightly as she sensed motion, and she saw the Kay’s form moving into the cockpit. Again, there was bickering between the former senator and the pilot. When faced with danger, it was natural to feel the need to flee. However, the enemy ship would likely pursue them and Agent Tal had the Rusty Bucket’s armaments did not equal that of the alien craft.

She buckled herself in quickly, and continued to fire the triple blasters at the ship. Even Agent Tal’s steady hand struggled to aim when their ship rocked to and fro, taking hits of its own. But in the last moments before their ship drove, she thought she saw the alien ship’s shields go down. Well, that would be lucky – and if luck truly was on their side, the aliens would go down with the platform.

Elsewhere in the ship, she could hear the rumbling of Ghorua being tossed about and his voice came over their comm. It sounded like he was back to his normal self. And for now, it seemed that they were all in one piece...

[member="Lady Kay"], [member="Ghorua the Shark"], [member="Darlyn Excron"], [member="Caid Centurion"]

 

[Darlyn Excron]

Darlyn managed to keep himself from smashing his head against anything, but that was about the full extent of his control in that moment. Groaning as he lay down, using his hands to protect his head from blunt force as he watched through a viewport at the station outside. The whole time, behind his mask, he smiled lightly. Such a view, it was going to be quite a show. Humming happily, the comms could just barely pick up his voice singing under his breath. "Tick.. tick.. tick... tick... tick... tick..." In the mirror of his mask was a flash of light, as the first generator began to overload. Then more lights. across the station, timed in elegance to help create as balanced and massive a fireball as humanly possible. Yet still, not explosion, not yet... the reactors and generators were merely overloading to the point of pouring energy out. It would be several seconds more until...

"Boom." The station could not contain this much energy flowing freely, and it began ripping itself apart in the most glorious of blazes. The heat and force of the explosion was maximized, enough to hopefully take out that ship hunting theirs. Anything without a shield, after all, would be melted from the sheer heat of being near this thing. Then again a cold fearing species might not have much problems with the heat, considering where their ship would have to be built.

In either case, beneath reflections of the carnage, Darlyn smiled gleefully.

[member="Hyori Tal"] [member="Ghorua the Shark"] [member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

The shields of the alien craft did go down, though not through the efforts of [member="Hyori Tal"] and her triple blasters. If one looked closely, they could see the alien creatures that had on suits and managed to escape the platform, seemed to almost be flying towards the alien craft. However they weren't flying, they were falling, and using their suits and limbs to manipulate the air currents, much like a winged animal would.

As the Rusty Bucket dove and straightened out underneath, making a b-line heading northwest with the platform as cover, the explosion came. It was loud and impressive to those that liked that sort of thing. The high heat shockwave that followed tore into the enemy ship and pushed it away. Mini explosions from the intense heat that breached the hull began, fires started to flair up, but these creatures were smart. They put their ship into a steep dive to put out the flames while sealing off the damaged areas.

They lost what they came for, as well as [member="Ghorua the Shark"] . He certainly piqued their interest in a way that had not happened for them for centuries. They will find him again. But for now they needed to recover from this loss and repair their ship. It was time to go back to hiding within the fog.

The Rusty Bucket was caught up in the shockwave as well, though Terrac managed to use the push as a boost, instead of fighting it. He tightened his grip on the controls as he did his best to keep the Bucket from going into a spin. Though the shields held up, the ship still shook violently. Those not buckled in would be tossed around like rag dolls, only to then be shaken as though they were being jackhammered.

Minutes later everything calmed down. Terrac loosened his grip and sat back in his chair, bringing the ship to a slow stop. The sensors indicated that they were not being followed. Kay opened her eyes and relinquished her hold on the Force. The two of them looked at eachother and said nothing. There was no need to.

Silence took hold over the Rusty Bucket as they all had a breather. The mining platform was gone. Although their mission was a failure, at least some of them managed to survive.

[member="Darlyn Excron"]

 

[Ghorua the Shark]

Ghorua the Shark stood up shakily from crashing against wall, massaging a bruised shoulder. He blew a puff of air from his blowhole, and shook his head. The Herglic was indeed mostly back to normal, shaking off the last of the fatigue. He was about to say something along the lines of 'so, where's this explosion?' when he heard it. The concussive blast from outside was heard before it was felt. Ghorua frowned, realizing what the sound meant."Oh chit."

As the shockwave struck the Bucket, the Shark's entire world went topsy-turvy. He flew across the cargo bay hilariously, tumbling to the ground, jarring the same shoulder. He writhed on the ground a moment, caught up in a stinging pain from his arm. The Rusty Bucket shook violently, tossing Ghorua around a little before it eventually settled. When the sailing became smooth again, the Herglic tentatively stood up. "Yeah, thanks for the warning, guys. Really thoughtful," he grumbled, dusting off his armor.

Ghorua maneuvered back into the medbay, and sat down again, making the bed squeak with the strain. He took the time to remove his helmet, sighing as he did. This job was too close. Going into it, he figured the mission would be simple, but he hadn't expected something like this. The beasts unnerved him. Something told him this wasn't the last he'd seen of the Mist-Walkers.

Ghorua peeled off his shoulder plate, revealing a bit of swelling in his right shoulder from the ship ride of death. He massaged the area, waiting for someone with more medical knowledge to treat it. The wound wasn't major, but without treatment, would most likely be a thorn in his side for days.

- [member="Lady Kay"] - [member="Darlyn Excron"] -[member="Hyori Tal"] -

 

[Valae Heavenshield]

The sound of the Darlyn's explosion tore through, and the shockwave came next, shaking the Rusty Bucket violently. Agent Tal was thankful for the buckled restraints of her chair, but the jostling only aggravated her injured arm. However, the agent kept her expression fairly neutral, save for an occasional twitching of the corner of her eye. Once the rumbling and shaking had ceased, she turned her attention towards the scanners. There was no sign of the enemy ship now. One would immediately think that it had been destroyed in the explosion, along with the mining platform, but there was still the slight likelihood of retreat. At any rate, it was no longer an immediate threat.

Hyori sat in the silence within the cockpit for a moment or two, before unbuckling from the seat and moving back towards the medbay. She arrived to find Ghorua’s hulking form already waiting there, the med table nearly buckling under his weight. As she slipped past him, her sharp eyes had seen that this shoulder was quite swollen. The agent was not a medical expert, she could treat simple wounds, but knew little about the Herglic’s physiology and how it differed from that of a human. However, she did know that ice packs generally helped such issues.

She rummaged through the med supplies until she found one; Hyori pounded her fist into its middle to activate the cold. Without a word, she tossed it over her shoulder at Ghorua. It was a bit small for the large area of his shoulder, but it was the best available for the time being. It would certainly do until Kay could come see to him. It was time to evaluate her own injuries. She made sure that she had the necessary supplies to clean and dress a wound, before using a small pair of scissors to cut the sleeve free of her shirt. Once the excess fabric had gently been pulled away, it revealed a few cuts into the skin, each of them angry and red.

Now that they were away from danger, she took the time to attempt moving her arm. The arm and shoulder both functioned, but the slight movements came with pain. There was likely muscle damage that would need time to heal. For now, she just needed something to carry her over until she could visit a First Order medical facility.

[member="Lady Kay"], [member="Ghorua the Shark"], [member="Darlyn Excron"]

 

[Darlyn Excron]

Every second that passed gave time for Darlyn to regain strength. Strength to walk, talk, and keep himself from being crushed as the ship shook under the force of the explosions. It was true that in his weakened state, he lacked his usual abilities and was unable to buckle himself in time. However, it was also true he was rather well known (at least by Ghorua, if not understood) to be rather connected with the force, even in his weakened state. Thus, he had both regained enough power and was already conscious of where his body was in relation to the ship itself. Though he was thrown into the ceiling, floor, and walls several times, each time he could turn himself so he could try to land on his feet, or at least only ever hit his back against the hard surface. Even with his somewhat limited armor, it did little more than further hurt the hunter, until finally he found himself laying on the floor. A bit bloodied, yes, but intact.

And Darlyn laughed, his voice surprisingly loud as he lay there on the ground. Taking both hands, he pushed himself up, and braced himself against a wall, taking every opportunity he didn't laugh to breathe, only to resume in his own merriment. He managed to rise to his feet, but still leaned on the wall of the ship. His laughter was far from deranged, or sadistic, or any other tone one would usually find in a sith, or ex sith, laughing at death and destruction.

He was simply, happy. And that was all you could hear.

[member="Hyori Tal"] [member="Ghorua the Shark"] [member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

The silence was broken, both by [member="Ghorua the Shark"] 's comments and the laughter of [member="Darlyn Excron"] . Kay looked to Terrac as she unbuckled her seat belt. "Take us back to Cloud City, and give us time to decompress, please. I'll see to our team."

Terrac merely nodded. He needed a drink, and badly. But it wouldn't be too long before they reached their destination.


Kay made her way to the medbay, spotting both Ghorua and [member="Hyori Tal"] . The former had a small ice pack on his obviously swollen shoulder, while latter had some unhappy looking cuts. She chewed the inside of her cheek, not wanting to reveal her Force use, but wanting to help as well. She searched through the med supplies until she found what would work for now; some bacta gel. Kay brought it over to Hyori, opening up the container for her. "Here. This will help until we get to Cloud City. I'm sorry that things didn't go so well."

More than likely the Agent would want to dress her own wound. She seemed the sort to do that. So Kay then headed over to Ghorua, picking up another ice pack and hitting it in the centre to activate it. She kept her back to the Agent as she approached the Herglic, placing the ice pack on his shoulder next to the other one. "You okay?" She didn't quite mean so much physically as she did mentally. Kay looked to his shoulder and focused on the Force, placing her hand on it. She did what she had done to others before, including herself, guiding the Force's healing energy to repair the damage and ease the swelling. It would take a few minutes and she had hoped that the conversation would distract the Agent from what she was doing.

 

[Samka Derith]

Standing at the far end of the landing platform, Samka Derith sighed reviewing her notes for the fourth time. A former Republic senator had arrived on Bespin with an assortment of mercenaries to go on some sort of rescue mission to a mining station run by Oionos Mining. Naturally such people could not be allowed to run amok unmonitored around such sensitive equipment so agent [member="Hyori Tal"] was assigned with a small squadron of stormtroopers to aid in the outing. Unfortunately radio contact had been lost upon entry to the facility and just when the military was discussing the possibility of sending a second force in the entire mining platform exploded and while scans suggested their ship had escaped the explosion it had disappeared off the radar immediately after. The mad scramble that followed had led to Sam's unexpected drafting into the crisis, despite her age, low rank and untested position she was still a Knight of Ren and with that came certain respect and authority. Those who might sneer at her inexperience before now ran about clueless in the face of a crisis and begged themselves for her leadership, her direction, her control.

Sighing once more, Derith placed the holo report back inside her cloak pocket next to her lightsaber. She took a moment to observe the city she had called home as a child. Letting the familiar breeze drift her cloak sideways and sprawl her hair across her face with the soundtrack of roaring ships delivering their gas deposits to base. That sound was fainter than usual as this skylane had been shut down to prevent excessive traffic further confusing this crisis. Sam stared out at the clouds knowing somewhere out there that ship was drifting. As if on cue twin TIE Fighters roared into view from behind her flying full speed directly where the young Ren was looking.

"This is Delta 2," the voice of one of the TIE pilots crackled in her ear. "Ship has reappeared on our scanners just a couple of clicks from the incident site. Myself and Delta-7 moving to intercept."

"Copy that Delta 2," Sam replied, "Do not engage unless fired upon or target attempts to flee. Repeat, do not engage. Hail and lead them back here, if they do not respond you are clear to use necessary force."

Military jargon was a manner of speech she was not yet used to using but it felt certainly empowering. Sam cracked a half smile as the TIEs disappeared among the clouds. If Agent Tal and the others were alive, Sam would defer to their judgement of the situation. If they were dead it would confirm the Acolytes' suspicion that this 'rescue mission' was a farce by their enemies who had sought to destroy The First Order's supply of precious tibanna gas murdered their brave men and women to do it. So Samka waited for the ship to appear before her, holding her arms behind her back as she did so.


[member="Lady Kay"] [member="Darlyn Excron"] [member="Ghorua the Shark"]

(( OOC: Just read this from the start, great read everyone! ))

 

[Ghorua the Shark]

It seemed as if Darlyn's plan, and Terrac's flying, had gotten them all out of a difficult situation. Ghorua relaxed slightly, and smiled as [member="Hyori Tal"] threw him an ice pack, which he promptly caught in one hand, and applied it to his wounded shoulder. Perhaps that was how the agent displayed her thanks; in action. The Shark knew the cold would do little, given his thick skin and layer of blubber, but the thought behind it was what really mattered.

The Herglic wasn't unsettled by [member="Darlyn Excron"]'s laugh at all, echoing through the ship. The sound only brought a small grin to his face as he sat in silence. It didn't sound like the crazy laugh of a madman, but the merriment of one simply being alive. It was refreshing.

Ghorua knew for sure they were in the clear when he saw [member="Lady Kay"] walk into the medbay. She wouldn't be back here if they were still in trouble, or if the aliens were in pursuit. He watched her attend to Agent Tal first, the subtle smell of bacta permeating the air, then move to him, positioning herself in such a way that her actions would be mostly unseen. The Shark picked up on what she was attempting, and gave her silent affirmation as she approached.

The large Hunter dropped his head slightly, as to be more eye-level with the Ex-Senator. "Just the shoulder, Madam. I thought that was obvious." Ghorua let his answer hang, gauging her reaction. Finally, he sighed deeply through his blowhole, knowing the answer she wanted. "Those things jumped me, pried off my helmet. One thing led to another, and..." The Shark visibly shuddered. "...And then you were there."

'...and then I failed.'

Despite the relief of escaping danger, Ghorua grew guarded. Whatever had happened upstairs, whatever anger Kay had sensed, was obviously a touchy subject. He frowned, keeping his thoughts to himself, and quickly shifting the subject. "Can I assume the same thing happened to you two?"

It wasn't until this moment he noticed something else going on in his shoulder. Resisting the urge to flinch or abruptly look down, Ghorua felt something rushing through his bruised muscles. Ghorua had never experienced Force Healing before, but he decided he liked it. The Force flew freely across his shoulder, a warm stream of revivification returning to him. He felt another smile tugging at his lips, which quickly vanished as he heard the approaching sounds of ion engines.

- [member="Samka Derith"] -

 

[Valae Heavenshield]

The sound of Darlyn laughing came over the commlink, perhaps he was happy to be alive, or perhaps it was madness. She could not tell, for such things like laughter were still a mystery to her. Agent Tal felt the shoulder wound stinging as she began to clean it, her eye twitched a few times as she did so. Her head turned as she realized that Kay was at her side, and setting out some bacta gel.

“Thank you.” She said simply, ignoring Kay’s apology.

That was the thing about going out on missions like this – sometimes they failed. Of course, had they been able to go back and do it all again, armed with the knowledge they had now... things would have been different. But Agent Tal was not one to linger on what had already come to pass; it was not a good use of time. After a generous application of bacta and a fresh bandage, Agent Tal cleaned the area she had been using very thoroughly. She was aware of Kay and Ghorua speaking behind her, but she was not focused on them.

It was time to contact the First Order; her superiors would need to know the details of their time on the mining platform. Large explosions would not fly under the radar; she knew that there were likely forces on their way to meet them. Agent Tal left the medbay without a word, and as she passed into the cockpit to use their communications systems... she noticed First Order vessels on the scanner. A moment later they were being hailed, instructions followed for them to allow the TIES to escort them back.

“Do as they have instructed.” She said, looking to Terrac.

[member="Lady Kay"], [member="Ghorua the Shark"], [member="Darlyn Excron"], [member="Samka Derith"]

 

[Darlyn Excron]

Eventually the laughter began to die, going from loud and echoing to a quiet chuckle every so often as the giddy joy began receding from his body. The Hunter was delighted to be alive, and in awe of his explosive artistry, to the point of almost ignoring that he himself had nearly died from the combat on the station. He sat there, eventually changing from the suit to his usual attire of armour and cloak, the black, silken fabric resting comfortably over his head and shoulders. Lightsaber clipped to his belt, and no longer hidden, and his blaster strapped to his side, he was feeling vastly improved from before. Though he doubted he could conjure even a light force push, he had recovered enough to move about normally, and would be right as rain by the time they arrived at the landing pad proper.

He moved back a bit, his mirrored mask showing the reflection of Hyori as she passed, and called out to the first order agent as she went to the cockpit. "Oi Agent, think I could borrow one of your ships one of these times? I can't think of any other way off the top of my head to outdo myself on this last explosion." A happy little giggle would be the only indication of his joking mood, as he managed to find a nice spot to stand within view of the med bay.

"So what, Sharky? Think you can still keep up with me?" Humour, and his usual cocky attitude. Adrenaline did you good, in such near death experiences.

[member="Hyori Tal"] [member="Ghorua the Shark"] [member="Samka Derith"] [member="Lady Kay"]

((OOC: Sorry for the delay, drama elsewhere sort of drained writing of any fun for a while. ^^"))

 

[Kay-Larr]

((OOC: You're all good and welcome back! Hope the drama is over soon))

Her Force Healing was working and she knew it. She could feel it. Though [member="Ghorua the Shark"] was the first Herglic that she had ever healed, she had a feeling that this wouldn't be the only time that she would help him. Kay removed her hand and opened her eyes when she was finished, not yet noticing that Agent [member="Hyori Tal"] had left for the cockpit. "We were attacked too, ambushed. Some of the Troopers lost their lives. I heard your struggle and just had to come up and help you. I was shocked to see you knocked out from their gas, though you were so still, I had feared that I was too late." She placed her hand on his forearm. "I'm glad that I got there in time."

Kay heard the sounds of the TIE Fighters as they flew on either side just as Ghorua did. She looked over to the doorway just as Terrac's voice came over the PA system, "Looks like we're getting a hero's welcome, doll. You better get up here." Terrac of course complied with the First Order's wishes. After what they had gone through, he wasn't about to throw away their survival. Besides, they didn't do anything wrong.

She gave Ghorua an apologetic smile before heading out of the med bay, just as [member="Darlyn Excron"] was walking in. At least he seemed well. Kay soon found herself in the cockpit. "Try to keep a steady course. We don't need to see if these pilots have itchy trigger fingers." Terrac patched through their compliance to the TIE pilots.

As they flew closer to Cloud City and the dock that they were coming to land on, Kay raised a brow as she saw [member="Samka Derith"] standing there. Who was she? Her stance showed that even though she was young, she knew her worth. Kay looked over to Agent Tal. "We're all going to be brought in for questioning, aren't we?"

 

[Samka Derith]

The ship had landed in front of Sam and now four stormtroopers had emerged behind her. She hadn't asked for their assistance but neither would she turn them away.
"Eyes on the front ramp. Any sudden movements, you open fire," she ordered the troops.
"Yes Ma'am," the leader replied and gestured for the others to fall into formation, two of them on each side of her as they marched towards the ship.

A hiss of gas accompanied the lowering of the ship's ramp and opening door. Sam paused and her stormtroopers did the same but it wasn't any of the spacers that appeared but another stormtrooper.

"Friendlies, we're all friendlies," the stormtrooper was saying and removed his helmet for good measure. Several security breaches in the past meant it was now procedure to remove helmets for facial recognition. He was indeed one of the privates listed on the mission in her datapad. "There were some kinda aliens in the platform, like nothing I've ever seen. Not all of us made it out..." the man began to babble, speaking very quickly. It was now Sam noticed he was holding his arm in a twisted position and a blood stain was seeping down his otherwise white armour.

She turned to one of her entourage "Let the paramedics in. It seems as though they'll be safe, this platform isn't looking like a killing floor today." Sam glanced back at the bloodied trooper and spoke in a more hushed voice, "Also be sure they're prepared for psychological trauma." The stormtrooper at her side nodded and voiced the all clear on his radio.

"Private?" She called out to the trooper from the ship.

"Y-yeah?"

Sam curled her lips in displeasure but she'd let such informality slide just this once due to the man's state. "Bring the others out here and make certain they have good reasoning for me not to tear their minds apart to uncover the truth of this."

The private nodded. He dropped his helmet on the floor, letting it roll down the ramp as he turned back inside the ship. Sam watched it come to a halt at the bottom. Someone's head was certainly going to roll for this.

[member="Lady Kay"] [member="Darlyn Excron"] [member="Hyori Tal"] [member="Ghorua the Shark"]

 

[Caid Centurion]

A nondescript looking old VCX-100 seemingly materialized from around the platform occupied by a number of First Order forces and the individuals that had just escaped the intentional destruction elsewhere on the planet. In short order, the vessel had nestled on to the duracrete surface, landing struts compressing to support the vessel's weight amidst the release of several low-power steam actuators. In a matter of moments, a loading ramp had cycled down from the belly of the beast and a large, cloaked figure emerged.

The featureless black mask adorning Ciardha Ren's features blended in with the black and silver of his flowing cloak. As the Knight of Ren took long, purposeful strides towards the gradually assembling individuals, his cloak parted just enough to give view to a simple black cotton and mesh uniform. The large figure wore no obvious weapons and his attire bore no indication of rank or service. He could sense the force at work among those assembled, but he invested little time, for the moment, in specifically identifying alignment or strength. Ciardha merely recognized the unnatural flow of the Force around those blessed with the capability to influence its power.

Having arrived with no troops of his own, Ciardha allowed his gaze to fall on the individual that, supposedly, was in charge of this particular endeavor. Drawing to a halt perhaps five to six paces behind [member="Samka Derith"], Ciardha clasped his hands behind his back. When he spoke, his normally deep voice carried a slightly metallic edge. "Imperial. Is Agent Tal among the current company of this vessel?" He gave no commands and made no demands. The Ren merely asked questions. He did, however, expect answers. In the back of his mind, he knew that [member="Hyori Tal"] would undoubtedly be responsible for the vast majority of those answers this day.

The mercenaries would be questioned too, of course, just not as a matter of necessary priority.

[member="Lady Kay"] | [member="Darlyn Excron"] | [member="Ghorua the Shark"]

 

[Ghorua the Shark]

Ghorua shivered slightly as the Force mended his shoulder. There was no way to describe the texture of the healing, especially for one who had only felt the Force's effects negatively before. Pushes, Lighting, pain he understood. Taking away such a pain with only a thought was new territory.

The Herglic listened to Kay intently, searching her face as she spoke. She seemed genuinely worried for him, something else the Shark wasn't used to. This entire adventure they had been on was way out of Ghorua's comfort zone. Once she had finished speaking, Ghorua looked down at her with a wry smile. "I had the situation well under control. The great Ghorua the Shark won't be defeated so easily by men with too much gas!" Ghorua guffawed deeply, then sobered up from his mirth. "But thank you." He was startlingly sincere, perhaps the most truthful Ghorua had ever been with the Lady. He laid his massive hand over hers as she touched his forearm, a symbol of newfound respect, and perhaps a budding friendship.

Once Kay left, the Herglic looked up at the newly-approached Darlyn, and stood up, a large grin on his face. "Don't get ahead of yourself, my Darlyn. Next time, it'll be me that has to save your tiny behind." Ghorua shambled over to the much smaller being, and punched his shoulder, perhaps a little too hard. "Good job, Excron. Perhaps you have a future ahead of you yet." The Herglic laughed again, happy to banish his darker thoughts for the time being.

Ghorua stumbled slightly as the Rusty Bucket touched down, quickly deducting they had made it back to civilization. Smile still gracing his features, the Shark chuckled. "Perhaps we should let the others deal with the authorities before us. I have a bad habit of making terrible first impressions."

- [member="Hyori Tal"] - [member="Darlyn Excron"] - [member="Lady Kay"] - [member="Samka Derith"] - [member="Caid Centurion"] -

 

[Valae Heavenshield]

Hyori had ignored Darlyn’s request to borrow a First Order ship. However, based on his laughter, the agent ventured to guess that he had not been serious. Her dark eyes flickered in Terrac’s direction, as he called for Kay to join them in the cockpit. The docking way was coming into view, and Hyori’s sharp gaze immediately found the form of [member="Samka Derith"]. However, the seemingly young Ren was not alone for long, as the larger figure of [member="Caid Centurion"] appeared behind her.

Agent Tal had little experience with the Knights of Ren – she knew that they answered to the Supreme Leader, and that their ways were often mysterious. It was all a bit too mystic for Agent Tal, for she was someone that valued the tangible, not the sort that worshiped some strange, unseen ‘force’.

“Yes,” She answered Kay, “And all of you would do well to comply.”

Hyori’s eyes tracked with Kays as she began to walk towards the exit, a glint in her eyes that suggested caution.

The few troopers that remained with Lieutenant Vulen exited the Rusty Bucket first, glad to be alive and away from the mining platform. Just as her boot found the top of the ramp, she heard the mask-muffled voice of the male Ren inquiring about her presence. Hyori moved down swiftly, her expression quite blank, her dark eyes flickering between the two Knights.

“I am Agent Tal,” She answered, her clear voice carried towards them. “On board you will find [member="Lady Kay"], her pilot Terrac, and two mercenaries – [member="Ghorua the Shark"] and [member="Darlyn Excron"]. I will cooperate with your... investigation, and I expect that Lady Kay’s party will do the same.”

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay was not used to seeing [member="Hyori Tal"] showing signs of emotion. Even while she was hurt, there was nothing to be seen. But now, now was different. 'Be careful' her eyes said. She had every intention of complying, but now she needed to be on her guard as well.

As the Agent left, Kay shrunk down her Force signature to that of a small tree nut once again. Outside of the Troopers, her biggest worries were what could be a couple of Knights of Ren. They were known for being very 'persuasive' and she needed to keep an ace up her sleeve. Her eyes fell on Terrac. "You're going to need to come out with the rest of us."

"I know, doll, I know." He was already unbuckling himself and getting to his feet, wishing that one of the mercs that was supposed to be their pilot, hadn't chickened out. He wouldn't of been in this mess otherwise. But it is what it is. He headed over to the medbay to let [member="Ghorua the Shark"] and [member="Darlyn Excron"] know that they were needed outside. "..And try to be on your best behaviour. Of course if you end up dead, that'll mean that you won't be getting paid. But then again, you already knew that..."

Kay grabbed her satchel and slipped it over her shoulder before stepping down the ramp, passing by the Trooper that was helping his comrades to exit the ship. She clenched her jaw, seeing Agent Tal speaking with the masked figure, [member="Caid Centurion"] while the smaller and probably younger [member="Samka Derith"] stood there almost patiently waiting. Kay approached them at an easy pace and stopped just far enough away that she was out of reach. "I am Lady Kay. Our mission here was perfectly legal. If you would be so kind as to let us rest for the night in our company's residences before we are questioned, I'd greatly appreciated it. You can have guards posted nearby if you want to, but really, we could all use a good sleep and a good meal to help us recover." No harm in asking. She could have been snarky with them, but that wouldn't of done them any good. She had to remind herself of the Agent's warning.