Into the Deep Wealds

[Gir Quee]

Stormfire-class Assault Frigate Watchkeeper, outskirts of the Fidlos System

"Doesn't look too friendly to me," mused Welche, "I wouldn't risk docking the ship there...not like this."

Gir nodded in agreement. The two men stood in front of a holo-tank, watching a rotating planet covered in swathes of gray, green, and blue. The world itself seemed pleasant enough from the distance, but the constant flow of ships to and from the world were another matter. Few of them approached the size or capability of the Watchkeeper, but the sheer number of smuggler tramp freighters and pirate starships would be problematic. Moreover, even if he did bring in reinforcements to smash the criminal elements in an outright battle, there was a good chance that their quarry would be able to flee the world. Gir shrugged.

"And that's why we're bringing in outside help."

"Have you met him in person yet?"

"I'm about to in the ship's lounge," replied Gir, "would you care to join me?"

Captain Welche swept his hand across the ship's CIC, "I'll keep watch of all this while you talk to him. Never know if someone will accidentally happen across us."

Gir nodded, "Give me a call if anything comes up. You have my comlink channel."

"Will do."

Gir excused himself from the bridge to make his way through the ship's odd trapezoidal hallways. When he had first started working in the corporate fleet, it seemed unsettling to him to run into so few people in the ship's halls. On the Audacious and the Stormfires in Republic service, there always seemed to be a flood of crew and marines always inside the ship. But he had begun to appreciate the relative calm and stillness of the corporate warship. He inserted his code cylinder to unlock the lounge's door to see [member="Arlan Zy'rosh"] already present.

"Mister Zy'rosh, welcome aboard the Watchkeeper."

Gir gestured at the counter set in front of a long rectangular viewport, "there are some drinks and refreshments underneath the counter there, if you're interested..."

 

[Arlan Zy'rosh]

For the longest while Arlan sat in stillness. Everything about where he was just seemed wrong, out of place. Arlan had no adverse feelings to space-flight, nor was he uncomfortable on ships as large as the Watchkeeper, but a foreboding feeling gripped him all the same. There was no smell of sweat and cheap liquor filling the corridors, no haphazardly painted rust stains on the finishing, no disgruntled men arguing over a game of cards. That was what Arlan was used to, what he had grown up with, things on this ship were just so 'clean'. Then again Arlan had expected as much, considering who had hired him and the companies they represented. As astonishing as the atmosphere of the Watchkeeper was, Arlan's surprise when he received the request was doubly so. Now though, Arlan simply waited for his employer in the ship's lounge cursing Feeran for refusing to accompany him so he could stay with the men. Arlan wasn't a diplomat, and he only hoped Gir Quee did not expect too much politicking out of him.

Arlan snapped back to reality as the door to the lounge opened and a man walked in. Arlan knew him without introductions, most did on some level. Once you reach the rank of Grand Admiral for any government spacers learn your name and face, that's the only reason Arlan knew who Gir Quee was upon first glance. Thankfully the man wasn't an admiral anymore, if he was Arlan certainly wouldn't be sitting where he was right not, and the two could conduct business like men. "Much obliged. She's a nice boat." Arlan spoke as watched Gir's entry. "Nicest I've been on anyway." Already Arlan had a feeling about this man, one that told him to tread carefully. "Thanks again, but I'll pass. In my line of work you make it a habit to not drink things that are offered to you. Besides, I'd hate to start this off by drinking on the job." Arlan chuckled and pushed his data-pad into his jacket and devoted his full attention to Gir Quee.

So far the indomitable admiral Arlan had thought his employer would be seemed pretty laid back, though that was just a first impression. He did carry a severity in the air around him, that much Arlan noticed as soon as he entered, but what it meant he could not say. For now Arlan's best bet would be just to play it cordial. Arlan had worked for hard-asses before and hated it, so he would much rather get off to a good start with the former admiral right now rather than suffer through the hell that would come from pissing him off. At least, that was what Arlan hoped.

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

Gir's eyes lingered on [member="Arlan Zy'rosh"] for a moment before he walked back to the counter himself. Certainly a different breed than most of the mercenaries I've found so far...and a better one at that. He had seen far too many interested in a quick drink or a shiny credit chip rather than the job itself, which helped solidify Gir's initial assessment of the man's operations and the company's history. The Carrion Company might be small for the moment, but they were nothing if not professional. It wouldn't surprise Gir to see that company grow to become one of the preeminent mercenary companies in time. He reached beneath the counter to pick up a can of Calamarin C-tea. While perhaps not the most enjoyable drink, it had plenty of caffeine in it to keep him running past his normal watch. He cracked open the can; the carbonation began to fizzle up to the top.

Gir turned his attention back to the Corellian.

"The boat's nice enough because she hasn't been in any bad scraps yet...but there are plenty of opportunities for that to happen if we don't play our cards right," mused the blond man.

Gir took a sip of his chilled tea, letting the bitter pale liquid wash down his throat.

"Our long-range sensor scans suggest that there's a band of pirates taking port call at Megio right now," informed Gir, "the Sun Krayt Dragons. It's a group we can probably handle on our own if it gets down to it, but I'd rather not rile them up and scare away our prey. Have you decided on your method of entry into the city yet?"

 

[Arlan Zy'rosh]

Arlan watched his employer drink down his chilled tea, still wearing his natural air of confidence as he did so. Working for this man wouldn't be near as taxing on Arlan's sanity as he had planned for, no. Gir Quee was a professional, and he hired a professional for that reason. Arlan leaned forward in his seat, crossing his fingers as he thought over this operation. Small details were usually the key, but often overlooked. Getting into the city without being detected would be key, and getting into position after which would be more-so. Therein lay the dilemma, just how exactly could Arlan get a detachment of men within range of the target without alerting the Sun Krayt Dragons or anyone else that may how their eyes searching for trouble? For a moment Arlan remained silent, staring towards the ground for a small length of time, and then it came to him.

"When all the factors are unknown I've always found it best not to overthink things." Arlan spoke roughly as he looked toward Gir. "These are pirates and there's a pretty good bet they'll all be thinking like pirates that have come to port. We try to do something elaborate, say for example drop in a remote area and work our way inwards, chances are we'll be discovered. Don't ask me how, pirates just seem to have luck when it comes to that sort of thing." Arlan raised a hand at that last part as if dismissing nonexistent protesters. "No, best to do this simple. We take the freighter that brought me here, it still has it's civilian transport transponder code, and ditch our military issue gear." Arlan nodded as he continued. "We just go in slow, sat down right there in the docks. A civilian ship, with men dressed like civilians, won't raise too many eyes. Even if we're carrying weapons they are more than likely to think we are just taking precaution because of the city's reputation." Arlan closed his eyes and crossed his arms, nodding one final time. "Then me an my best men break away, find the bastard we're after, and take him. Simple as it can be."

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

Gir nodded at [member="Arlan Zy'rosh"]'s assessments. In his experience, elaborate plans were best reserved for high-risk, high reward missions, but such plans needed exceptional intelligence and more time to prepare. Neither of these were available, and Gir didn't want to risk waiting and have the arms dealer slip away while they planned. He took a sip of his C-tea.

"From what I understand, it probably wouldn't be too uncommon to see soldiers of fortune on the streets there either," mused Gir, "while your people move in for the kill, I'll likely be arranging a way for my people to form a security cordon on ground and in space to ensure that they have any avenues of escape. Do you have any need of anything that I can provide, or have any questions before we get started?"

 

[Arlan Zy'rosh]

Arlan listened to Gir, all the while wondering how to proceed once they touched-down. Getting in seemed to be easy enough, Arlan honestly didn't think anyone would bat an eye on his group making their way through the city, but once they opened fire things would change quickly. The sort that lived in city's like the one they were bound to were fickle, loyalties wavering on a day to day basis, but if Teerik paid his men well and was half decent to the folks around him the locals may not take to kindly to the company taking down one of their own. A handful of men Arlan could handle no problem, but fighting his way out of a hostile city was something few men could do with ease. Arlan nodded towards Gir as he spoke, snapping back to reality and addressing the question at hand. At this point all he knew for sure was this; stirring things up was the last thing he wanted to do in that city.

"No, we brought our own gear. If Teerik knows you're after him, and someone recognizes your company's products in bulk that cause problems as well." Arlan spoke plainly. "The one thing I'm in the dark about is the degree in which his men are loyal. If we take a few down will they scatter, or are they likely to give pursuit even after we've left the planet?" Arlan asked as he stood and looked to Gir with a stoic expression on his face. Not that he was being hostile, just that Arlan knew the most dangerous factor in any fight was the randomness of sentient behavior.

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

Gir nodded at [member="Arlan Zy'rosh"]'s question. While Gir was no Grand Admiral Thrawn, he knew that any strategist worth his salt would want to know as much as they could about their opposition's mindset and personality. While his previous attempt to catch on the Celerity hadn't succeeded, the ship's logs had produced a little more firsthand information on Teerik.

"Hard to say for certain," said Gir, gently tumbling his can of C-tea, "he's been very good at slipping away from any direct fighting and using decoys aliases, and the like to send us off on false trails onto now. About a month ago, he lured this ship and several allied ships into a trap by using one of his own largest cargo ships as bait. We ended up capturing the ship, but we only really succeeded because of a last minute change-up. I think we're dealing with someone who is very calculating; one who doesn't like to risk odds if at possible. Given that he's survived long enough in this business on this particular edge of the galaxy, I think that he must at least be a decent fighter...or employ bodyguards or droids of some sort capable of doing the fighting for him."

 

[Arlan Zy'rosh]

Arlan listened to Gir speak of Teerik, gathering a better sense of why the former admiral wanted him so bad. To elude and organized effort to capture him for so long Teerik was certainly a cut above the average criminal, and that worried Arlan. A man like him, living on the edge of the law and knowingly being pursued, was bound to have contingencies set in place in lieu of his discovery. If he got one whiff of suspicion he was likely to pick up and be gone before Arlan and Gir even got close to him. All the more reason to go in quite and careful, making sure there is no where for Teerik to run before striking. The plan was simple and Arlan had faith in it, but simplicity doesn't always translate to ease. This would be a hard fought victory, and Arlan was certain more than one good man would die tonight.

"Whatever he does, whoever he has around him, we can't take the chance of him getting off-world." Arlan nodded towards Gir. "You leave the ground work to me and mine, I'm fairly confident we can locate and secure him before he gets wind of anything." Arlan continued, looking towards the door and then wiping his face with a free hand. "But a man like this is bound to be prepared for anything. If he gives us the slip can you ensure he doesn't leave this planet's orbit?"

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

Gir nodded at [member="Arlan Zy'rosh"]'s comment before he finished his C-tea.

"That is the plan," said the Directorate officer, "but I should add a caveat. I can respect a man who's willing to take on enemy and count it as his own responsibility, but ultimately, the mission is more important than that. If you need help or you think he might be getting away, let me know. We're not exactly good at being subtle, but if it gets to that point, it's not likely to matter much anyways."

He glanced at his wrist chrono briefly.

"Give how we're not in the most friendly of space," said Gir, "I'm afraid I'm going to have to excuse myself to begin coordinating some ship movements. The ships of the cordon will be hanging a little ways from the world, but we shouldn't be more than a one or two minute micro-jump away from entering orbit of the world if you need us. Do you have any questions or concerns that we need to progress before we get started?"

 

[Arlan Zy'rosh]

Arlan nodded towards Gir as he readied to leave, wishing for a moment he would have taken that offered drink. In no time he would one again be neck deep in blaster fire, despite any plans that were put into motion to prevent it. Things just always seemed to turn out that way for Arlan, so with an apparent sigh he walked towards the door. His men were ready, they had been for a while now. Part of being a mercenary of any sort was being on edge when in unfamiliar surroundings. Arlan doubted any of the people he had brought with him would have the presence of mind to relax even if he had ordered it, so he didn't. They simply waiting in the hangar, senses on edge as they waited to be stabbed in the back by a nonexistent traitor. Arlan couldn't help but chuckle at the irony in that seeing as to how Gir was probably the most reputable employer he had ever worked for. His over concern for the preparedness of The Carrion Company for this little venture spoke loads to Arlan, even if it was just to ensure his investments didn't get themselves killed. Yeah, Arlan believe he could get used to working in this sort of environment.

"We're ready when you are." Arlan retorted. "Any more talk is just killing time at this point. When we touchdown our comms will go silent, can't risk someone listening in. Either we fail or succeed, but you'll hear from me either way. Do not try to contact us unless it is important alright?" Arlan more told than asked. "Whelp, if that's all I'll head down. Radio our freighter when you're ready for us to depart."

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

Gir nodded in acknowledgement at [member="Arlan Zy'rosh"]'s comment. Gir had little experience in fighting ground wars and no experience with ground-based covert operations. He would defer to Arlan's judgement in all of those matters. It seemed odd to him to no longer be consulting GRIM or any of the myriad of Republic ground units he had worked with in the past. It was liberating in a way to be able to entrust someone else with all of the details and not be bogged down with all of the logistics of such an operation. Yet in doing so, he knew that he was relinquishing some control of that area as well. But it's no good for me to have a hand in something where I don't really know what I'm doing...especially as an employer...That psychological revelation made him stop and wonder if he was regarding Zy'rosh and the Carrion Company as if they were part of his old Republic military. Well, we all have our own habits, behaviours, and ethos of some sort ingrained in us...it's who we are...

He excused himself from the Corellian's presence to make his way to the Watchkeeper's CIC. Captain Welche met him by one of the room's two holotank. Gir watched as a pair of organic-looking Circinus-class Bulk Corvettes silently cut through space near their target world.

"Any problems with the ships so far?"

"The corvettes have been fine," said Welche, "a couple of the starfighters have needed a bit of tune-up work which wasn't wholly unexpected."

"The bombers?"

Welche nodded in silent acknowledgement.

"Once the design has had more time in service, we should get through those teething issues with the engines," said Gir, "but that's why we brought extra ships into the mix..."

 

[Arlan Zy'rosh]

Arlan stalked through the corridors leading the the hangar alone, his thoughts muddled by the humming of air-purifiers in the overhead vents. Not since The Carrion Company's reformation had Arlan undergone an operation of this sort. Of course when he was still serving with his father such things were fairly routine, but Arlan's fledgling organization made it's daily bread primarily with escort missions. He had brought along his best men, those that stood above the normal rank and file that mercenary troupes courted. but there was a fear resting within Arlan that even they would have a hard time dealing with the task ahead. There were no apparent enemies, no distinguishable threats coming their way, he and his men would have to take to the ground and make judgement calls based on their surroundings. The thought of one of his men panicking and bringing an entire pirate horde down upon them sent chills down his spine, a thought made all the more viable as he realized how often men are panicked by the unknown. Arlan would shake his head as he opened the bulkhead door, and stepped into the hangar.

His men were ready, they had been this whole time. There were quite a few, most Arlan had worked with before, but a couple of unfamiliar faces dotted the crowd. Behind them lingered the beaten up freighter The Carrion Company had been using for it's more covert operations since it's redounding, a vessel that had long since saw it's prime and was ready to be put down. "Alright boys." Arlan broke the silence as he looked at the ship and made his way over. "You all know the details and what's expected of us. We'll be going in as mercenaries looking to resupply before jumping to our target location." Arlan continued. "No matter what happens that is our story, don't break it. The target is Teerik, a Rodian gun runner and all around scumbag. Once spotted his location is to be referred back to me, after which I will relay our information back to our friend Gir." Arlan turned and crossed his arms, leaning back against the freighter. "When the time comes we go in hot, all hostiles are expendable save for Teerik. He is to be taken alive." A brief silence filled the hangar. "Any questions? If not saddle up, it's gonna be a long night."

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

Hangar, Circinus-class Bulk Corvette Endeavor, near Fidlos

The Endeavor's hangar, as massive as it was for a ship it's size, seemed crowded to Zurel. Too many people...The pilot weaved in and out of clusters of ground crew talking to flight crew, and repair droids finishing up last maintenance check-ups on the elongated Cyclone-class bombers that called the Endeavor home. He ducked under one of their lateral stabilizers and nearly walked in a repulsorcart filled with ordinance. He eyed one of the cased concussion missiles warily. I'd probably wouldn't set it off just by walking into it...but still...A high-pitched voice called out to him, and the raven-haired man found himself looking at a light-skinned woman wearing a baggy gray flight suit.

"Zurel, they moved us over here," said Rella, leaning up against their ship.

Oh course they did...for...for reasons...

Zurel's eyes darted across their newly repainted craft. He almost didn't recognize it. Less than a day ago, Echo Five had a pristine white hull with their squadron's characteristic crimson starbust marking. Now the entire craft was covered in irregular blobs of grays, blues, and blacks to better visually conceal the craft for their new mission. Ugly as sin itself...actually something this ugly can't be sinful, can it? His mind began to wander to the intricacies of linguistics, only to be drawn back to the outside world as Rella cleared her throat.

"Did you get the updates?"

"There weren't any," said the man, running a hand across Echo Five's fuselage.

"So the mission is still on," mused the woman, "I'm surprised they didn't call it off."

"They say it's low-risk on the threat assessment scale," said the man, "and far enough away from Fidlos that we shouldn't spook anyone at port...too boring for your likely?"

"Well, that, and it's too tedious for me," said the woman, clambering up into the bomber's second seat, "There's not a whole lot of skill in pulling the trigger to release a space mine that just sits out there and floats around."

"Maybe," mused Zurel, climbing up into the bomber's first seat, "but it still keeps us employed."

[member="Arlan Zy'rosh"]

 

[Arlan Zy'rosh]

Arlan was still in transit at the moment, descending slowly to one of Fidlos' docks. So far everything had been fairly peaceful, or at least compared to what Arlan and the other members of his troupe were used to. Radio silence had already been engaged with Gir and his men so things were pretty much up in the air until the ground team sighted Teerik. Whether or not they would be able to do so without incident had yet to be decided, but Arlan was confident in his men's abilities. As they as nothing revealed their cover it would be fairly easy to move about the city undeterred, a fact that this whole operation seemed to be hinging on at this particular moment in time. Republic officers weren't a lot to leave too many factors undiscovered before moving, even if they were only that in a former capacity. Gir seemed of sound mind, and that alone was more than Arlan could say for most of the people he had agreed to work with in the past.

"Commander Zy'rosh?" A young voice cut through the silence filling the group of soldiers. "How do you think things will play out down there?" A young boy asked, no more than twenty years of age.

"Don't worry. I doubt things will heat up to bad as long as we all stick to the plan." Arlan nodded to the boy. "I have faith in all the people I brought along on this mission. Just do your job and trust that the rest of us will do ours."

"Right sir, sorry sir." The boy responded, leaning back into his seat.

Feeran was supposed to send only the most experienced of men on this operation with him, he had handpicked most of them himself. How this fresh-faced boy had gotten mixed in with the men he deemed most capable. Deciding it too late to pick apart the decision Arlan simply shrugged and following suit leaned back in his seat as well. It wouldn't be long now, once they hit the surface the real mission would begin.

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

Cyclone-class Bomber Echo Five, somewhere in the Fidlos System

Echo Five jetted out of the Endeavor's hangar bay along with the rest of Echo Squadron's 2nd Flight. Zurel's eyes swept around the void of space, noting the distant blue and green orb of their target's world and the myriad of stars around them. The raven-haired man glanced at his navigation computer. He toggled his headset comlink to the internal frequency he shared with Rella.

"How we looking?"

"Personally, we're all set. I double checked the basic astrogation," mused the woman, "it's typically of Lead's work...a lot of room for omptimization...but functional."

"We're not trying to make the Kessel run here in record time, you know."

"Yeah, I know, and he's probably put in a lot of room for safety margins too."

"Well, I'm going to call it then," said the lieutenant, flipping the frequency channel to the one shared by all of 2nd Flight.

"Everyone ready to make the jump? Give me your alibis if not..."

"Six here, we're good to go."

"Seven is greener than Alderaan's grass."

"Eight is great...who do we appreciate-"

"Eight, any more singing, rhymes, or bad puns, and I'm going to kill you in your bunk-"

Zurel slowly shook his head. Bloody Tobler...I can see him grinning even as I said that...Zurel triple-checked his own craft's status. And we're set too...though it's weird not to see any transponder signal icon...

"Let's make the jump then. Everyone make sure that you switch to personal comlinks from here on out. On my mark...five, four, three, two, one..."

The pinpricks of distant starlight elongated into the flowing lines of hyperspace. But almost no sooner did they start then did the stop as the starbombers completed their micro-jump. Echo Five surged into realspace. Zurel's gaze swept across the nearby space for the presence of any ships as Rella checked the passive sensor readouts for any evidence of nearby ships outside of the visual range of their eyeballs.

"Looks clean," muttered Rella.

"Let's get to work then, shall we?"

The flight of Cyclones dispersed, with each of them flying a short distance before releasing a Defender ion mine before flying another kilometer to release another one. Zurel glanced at one appear on his sensor screen before it disappeared as its cloaking revvers activated. And soon we'll have this waypoint all mined to the point where we should be able to snag any personal transport that tries to flee this way...Rella cleared her throat.

"We've got company, about fifty klicks out at our 10 o'clock."

Zurrel almost thought about breaking radio silence, but a cursory glance showed that the other ships of his flight were already going to silent running. Relying on powered down systems and their momentum wasn't always a sure way to avoid detection, but it worked well enough for the average smuggler and vagabond to evade many customs patrols. And no-one should be looking for us out here...He turned his eyes to the area noted by his weapon's officer, but he could only see a faint speck of tan.

[member="Arlan Zy'rosh"]

 

[Arlan Zy'rosh]

Bringing the freighter down was was no problem, on planets like this docking was rarely and issue of note. No one batted an eye and some humdrum freighter made port carrying a few mercenaries for whatever reason, and Arlan was grateful for that. At least getting into the city would offer no real problem as things stood, though looking for Teerik may well present an entirety of new problem for The Carrion Company to overcome on one of it's first true contracts since it's reformation. So now Arlan stood near the ramp of the freighter as his men shuffled about in disorganized fashions to throw any suspicion of order off their trail. Arlan nodded to one of his men, whom in turn nodded back, signaling them to begin dispersing throughout the city in hopes of picking up Teerik's scent somewhere in the cesspit he had come to call home. Though Arlan doubted anything would turn up so soon, it was best to get to it as soon as possible. All it would take is someone spotting Gir's ship lingering out there and Teerik getting word of the fact. While improbable, it was not impossible, and that meant time was not necessarily on The Carrion Company's side.

Nearby a few men, whom Arlan assumed to be pirates, mulled about near a few cargo containers. Their eyes were shifty, casting glances in his direction ever so often as his men that remained conversed with one another. Nothing about Arlan's group stood out, it was meant to be that way, but perhaps just being a stranger was putting the pirates on edge. Arlan closed his eyes, placing his thumb and forefinger on ether one and sighing softly. So much trouble to catch one shifty little rodent, hardly worth it Arlan thought. Gir must have wanted him pretty badly to spring for this little venture, and though it was not Arlan's place to question why he couldn't help but be curious on the matter. Whatever the reason, Arlan hoped that the Rodian's tenacity would not persist on this particular day and his men would get a lead sooner rather than later. Though it was unlikely, Arlan could only hope he would be so lucky.

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

The speck of tan began to grow as it slowly morphed into a cylindrical bow of a starship. At first, Zurel thought they were looking at a corellian corvette, but the bridge viewport was so far off center that he knew that couldn't be it. So what is it? He picked up a beat-up datapad and scrolled through the ship identification charts before he found the entry for a Mobquet medium transport, which seemed to mostly match the incoming ship's physical profile. As the cargo ship neared them, Zurel tilted his control yoke to the starboard, causing the front etheric rudders to alter Echo Five's drift. The starbomber crawled in stunted loop to give its crew a better view. The transport's running lights briefly blinded him as it approached, but he soon could see the details on its hull.

He saw a strip of green underneath the ship's bridge, but it disappeared as the ship continued forward. His eyes lingered over the passing hull, noting dozens of burn marks on the hull plating and a massive gaping hole alongside its starboard side. Zurel could see a trickle of particles continue to blow out of the hull. Whether or not that was the ship's atmosphere or the remains of some its cargo, he didn't know. The pilot knew he could easily figure that out by using his ship's sensors, but that would give their presence away. The transport continued on its course towards the planet, oblivious to their presence. He could hear Rella let out a sigh of relief as it turned into a tiny tan speck once more.

"A little close for my comfort," muttered the brunette.

"We weren't really in any danger," said the man, powering up their starbomber once more.

"That's not the issue," said Rella, "didn't you catch the markings on the ship?"

Zurel frowned, "A lot of battle damage."

"Well yeah, there's that. But it had the same color scheme that Teerik's ships have been using."

"Better report that back to the Watchkeeper," said the man, before flipping his headset mike to the channel used by the rest of his flight, "All right group, let's finish this up and head back to base."

[member="Arlan Zy'rosh"]

 

[Arlan Zy'rosh]

Some hours had passed, more than Arlan cared to keep track of, but thankfully thus far there had been no problem with the locals and arousing their suspicion. A few of Arlan's men had even taken the initiative to engage a few wayward pirates in conversation, a clever tactic if not a bit risky. Still though, so far everything had worked out fine. Their infiltration of the city's innards had gone off without a hitch and now combing the city sector by sector individual Carrion Company agents where searching high and low for Teerik and his men. If he was here, if he had ever even been here, they would find it no problem. Arlan's confidence in his people may well have been a little overplayed, but he had learned to trust those he worked with long ago. Constantly doubting a subordinates actions, micromanaging every little detail, that sort of thing often led to dissension in the ranks and was much more likely to happen than someone actually messing up. The Carrion Company trained it's men well, and the least Arlan could do was have faith in the people he had chosen to accompany him on this mission. If he couldn't do that it would be a slight against the very organization he founded. However; as time slowly ticked away he couldn't help but begin to feel a tad worried by the lack of evidence of Teerik's whereabouts discovered thus far. It was when his worry was at it's peak, that Arlan's com-link hissed to life.

"Commander....." A broken voice came through the device. "We think we got him."

Arlan stood and motioned for his men lingering about to gather up. Most where out in the city still, but a small contingent had stayed behind for this exact moment. "Where?" Was all Arlan would say as he began prepping himself for a trek into the slums.

"A warehouse, far side of town." The voice replied. "Lots of guards, lots of crated weapons."

"Hold your position until I arrive. Everyone else, converge on the warehouse." Arlan barked.

At this particular moment in time many things had began to run through Arlan's mind as he readied himself to depart. The first and foremost was if Teerik was even still in the warehouse, and if so how long would he be there. The man liked to move around a lot, he like to leave little trace of his presence, if not Gir would have caught him long ago with ease. No, if he was still here there was a reason for it and Arlan doubted getting to him would be an easy task in the slightest. Deciding to pride the mission over his doubts, Arlan and the others set off from the docks in hopes of reaching the warehouse in time. Whether or not they would be in time to catch Teerik was yet to be seen.

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

Stormfire-class Assault Frigate Watchkeeper[/url], outskirts of the Fidlos System

"It does look like one of his ships," noted Welche dryly.

Gir nodded as he froze a section of the footage streamed from Echo Five. He fiddled with the control knobs before zooming in on a thin line of fuzzy Aurebesh symbols stenciled across the freighter's bow. They slowly resolved to turn to become the name Stellar Witch. Gir closed his eyes and made a pinching motion over his eyelids as he tried to recall the name. That's the name of the ship that one of Azira's people saw at the meeting of Teerik and General Diamone three weeks ago...but they didn't say that it looked this bad...He tapped a button on the holo-projector's console, letting the footage play once more. This damage looks pretty recent...especially with whatever that leak is...I can't imagine any skipper leaving port with that type of damage unless it's under exceptional circumstances...He turned his gaze to Welche.

"Any word from Azira's associate on the ground?"

"None so far. I'm not sure if that's good or bad."

"Boring might be better..." mused Gir.

But it won't be boring for Teerik if his ship comes back that battered. A tendril of a thought snagged his focus as he began to explore the possibilities. While it was impossible to predict what Teerik would do with any certainty once he discovered the Witch's damage, Gir knew that the rodian would likely have to respond to it one way or the other. The conventional thought process from an intelligence gatherer would use the opportunity to try and get an insight on Teerik's personality. Perhaps the rodian would go and personally inspect the ship and interview the captain about the incident. Perhaps he would ignore it or have a subordinate of some sort repair the ship and start dealing with whoever attacked it. well, if we don't get Teerik this time...maybe we'll get more insight on him if we keep track of what happens to the Witch. His mon calamari communication's officer cleared his throat.

"Sir, more ships entering the minefield."

That wasn't entirely unexpected. Gir would be surprised if they didn't encounter at least one ship using the same nav point to get to Fidlos. With the mines deactivated for the moment, it didn't seem likely that there would any interaction between his forces present and whoever was going to Fidlos. But a slim chance remained that if the ship was either exceptionally large or strayed from the path that it would hit one of the nearby mines.

"What have we got?"

Welche tapped some buttons on his side of the holo-tank to bring up the live feed from the Defender Ion mines. His eyes immediately fell upon a corellian buccaneer. I know that ship...it's the one we engaged near the other ship of Teerik's whose wreck we captured....His eyes wandered to the three Mynock-class Assault Boats that lazily flew around the corvette.

"Their weapons are hot," noted Welche.

Gir glanced at his chrono, "And they're coming in less then ten minutes after the Witch has passed. I wonder..."

"You wonder what?"

"We wondered what happened to the crew of the Celerity...but the Cartel's people that captured there didn't claim to know everything, just that they took the ship's crew off and the ship's cargo beforehand."

Welche nodded, "Which seemed odd given that the Celerity itself seemed fine."

"The ship logs didn't suggest that it was part of the plan either. But there was a fair amount of carbon scouring on the inside of the Celerity," said Gir, "so I just got to thinking...what if the Celerity's crew and cargo weren't evacuated...what if they were forcibly taken?"

"You think they had a falling out?"

Gir gestured at the holo footage.

"I think we're looking at the Witch's pursuers right now. If they were friendly, wouldn't they have waited to escort the Witch into port if it was damaged? It doesn't look any of them are damaged either, unlike the Witch..."

A thought flickered across Gir's brain, "Activate the minefield, and scramble all ships to intercept the Cartel's ships."

Hopefully we won't mess up things on the ground for [member="Arlan Zy'rosh"] and his men...but if the Cartel has turned on Teerik, and we let them get there...it'll be a whole lot messier..

 

[Arlan Zy'rosh]

A loud ringing echoed out through Arlan's ears as he scrambled to a nearby crate and slammed himself down behind it. Everything had gone to Hell, and all around him blasters cried as steaks of red flashed by him on all sides. They had executed their plans flawlessly, surrounding the warehouse where Teerik was suspected to be hiding and then infiltrating from all sides. Most of the men there had ventured down to the basement levels beforehand, but something caused things to go tits up in the blink of an eye. Arlan and his men had been sure to scan for sensors or alarms before entry yet each and every scumbag in the place all seemed to reemerge at once as if something had stirred them up. It had only been a matter of time before one of the Carrions were spotted, hence the current state of things in the run down building. Arlan signaled to his men on the other side of the room to continue returning fire, which they did with no hesitation. Most of the men firing his way were thugs, no real threat to him or his men, but Arlan wanted to play this as safe as possible. Grabbing onto his com-link Arlan radioed in to Gir to deliver the news.

"This is Arlan Zy'rosh from the ground team." He said trying to maintain his composure. "Encountering heavy resistance. Something seems to have happened to rile these people up. We've confirmed that this is the target's storehouse." Arlan stopped. "I repeat we have confirmation the target has recently been in the building, if he isn't still here." One of the thugs managed to run through the shots going his way and round the crate where Arlan was crouched down. A mistake he soon regretted as Arlan drew his slugthrower and leveled him. "Ground team will press our advance and enter lower levels. Next report will come in one hour."

[member="Gir Quee"]