Toiling On Tabaqui [Levantine Sanctum Dominion of Tabaqui]

[Delila Castillon]

[member="Kaida Taldir"] | [member="Valiens Nantaris"]


"Don't let it go to your head. You'll soon turn into another Siobhan. Wanting statues erected in this tiny settlement with the children leaving offerings to it night and day."

Delila was carrying her blaster more casually now. She was about to suggest taking a long walk around the perimeter of the settlement. Delila wanted to see the surroundings with her own eyes, check out the sights so to speak. A large part of her found the planet interesting. An enigma if you will. She did, after all, have hobbies beyond explosions.


Yet word came crackling over the comm that there was a prisoner of sorts looking to speak with herself and Kaida. Inclining her head towards the direction of the call, both women set down to see what exactly could be useful about their presence. A man was standing in tattered robes, waiting patiently.


"Greetings. I hear you want to speak to someone with a bit of rank?"

 

[Kaida Taldir]

[member="Delila Castillon"], [member="Valiens Nantaris"]


"Unlike her, I don't need hordes of women fawning over me and statues to boost my ego. It strikes me as a colossal waste of time," Kaida said scathingly. One thing had not changed and that was her terribly low opinion of Siobhan. Frankly she did not get what the fuss about her was. But then she could not stand most aristos in general, except for the Queen.


In any case they had other things to do and she holstered her bolt pistol. Another dropship had landed and rather than delivering troops it carried Eldorai medics, most of them healers who served the Goddess Ashira. They would help the Sanctum people with delivering humanitarian aid to this community.


Soon enough they received word that someone wanted to talk to them. Since she had nothing else to do Kaida followed Dells, soon coming across a rather scruffy fellow in tattered robes. If Siobhan had been here she might have felt a peculiar sense of deja vu and received a flash from one of her alts since in another universe they had known each other. However, Kaida was not Siobhan, which also meant that she did not receive weird, angsty visions and so there was no recognition. She did feel the Force emanating from him though.

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

[member="Kaida Taldir"], [member="Delila Castillon"]

The man nodded. “And you two ladies fit the bill nicely. Impressive cyromancy, by the way, Lady Eldorai. The name’s Nantaris, and I’m something of a protector for the people here. My glorious piloting skills crashed me here a year or so ago, and I’ve been living among the people, especially the Miralians. But now you’re here, coming in to help get some order going, I figured I’d come and offer my help.”

“As nice as this place is, I’d like to leave this rock, so I offer you my help in exchange for a lift off Tabaqui. What do you say? I don’t have much in the way of currency, but I know where there can be found some relics…Force relics. Not much use to me, maybe to you people though.”

He put his hands on his hips, revealing a lightsabre hanging from his belt. He looked sort of like a Jedi, if one which had been sandblasted for a few months and hadn’t found a tailor.

 

[Maya Carrick]

[member="Delila Castillon"] [member="Kaida Taldir"] [member="Valiens Nantaris"]

After waving her hands at a few more aid workers and where to put the varity of boxes. Just what would these boxes have in them will a good many things that these people would need. In the mean time as it was Maya own feet took her in the direction of the two ladies and one what looked to be some hermit that seem out of place. Feeling she got from him was he had the use of the force. What she didn't know was how much of the force he could use or how strong.

Smiling her friendly greeting that included her some what famous kisses on the cheek of each one. Strangers or not she still treated them all the same. It was just in her nature to be such a personal like that.

"Greeting my loves, I beleive these people have a bit more protection. I feel the something coming in the force but what I do not know yet.", as she look at each one of them first at Delila with out a doubt one that could stand her ground then some. It was this Kaida that some what still came as a puzzlement.

It was the very last one [SIZE=14.4444446563721px]Nantaris that had a mystery about him, knowing that he didn't come on one of the drop ships, but at the same time really didn't fully fight as one of the villagers. Even so she would wait to see what this mystery one had to say or his action. Then with her odd kind of dress she would feel like the one out of place also, if it wasn't for the very natural looking armor then for her hair, skin and her pinkish eyes which not many unless on her races home planet would be out of place. In more ways also the way she actions she took also as she wasn't raised among her own kind but in the heart of the jungle. Just maybe that why she could relate to these people so much that why she wanted to come to this planet to help the aid them to get them and to protect them like she once did for the tribe she grew up in the Heart of Jungle on Hurran Kal.[/SIZE]

 

[Vaena Askari]

[member="Judah Dashiell"]


Clearly this thread needs more space elves, so Tarissa shall get a cameo as well. She was, you might have guessed it by now, dear reader, if you have been following her posts, aboard the bridge of a warship, in this case an Illyria-class frigate. It was probably for the best because the Lady Cadalthor had some rather definite ideas of how to open up and develop third world planets. They generally ran along the lines of the methods used by Francisco Pizarro and Hernando Cortez.


Cow and subjugate the natives, convert them to the true faith of the Great Goddess and exploit their resources! Needless to say this was absolutely not the image the Levantine Sanctum wanted to create. Presumably such methods were deplorable even to people who were not space hippies, so it was for the best that she was not bossing the troops around.


That was for peons anyway. So she was aboard the ship and dealing with logistical issues. "Status report!" she demanded, you might have guessed that as well, imperiously from a bridge officer. Being an officer aboard a warship assumed that you possessed a certain level of competence, so she would actually pay some attention to what the minion was saying. Or not. It depended on her mood really. What was certain was that the cup of starcaf she was sipping was only lukewarm.


"Salacia is deploying its people and construction work on the spaceport will begin soon. A few natives attacked the village but were driven off by Captain Taldir's unit. Lady Kerrigan and Alzari are moving into the town. We've deployed a Gunship to provide overwatch, " the minion said, passing over the datapad.


"I see. Why Kerrigan insists on flying around like a grunt escapes me, but each to their own. Doubtless someone will complain about warmongering and colonialism for this or that reason. Hopefully they leave some of the town intact, even though the cleanup should generate job opportunities," Tarissa spoke haughtily.


"Very well, begin deployment. The healers can earn their keep by aiding the poor souls down there and engineers are to be sent to aid Salacia. As construction begins and the town is secured our Firemane friends will want to set up an outpost of their own. Perhaps they will recruit sepoys. Learn new skills, see the Galaxy, travel! See your friendly neighbourhood Company recruiter today. And I want a decent cup of starcaf. Properly brewed and hot enough."

 

[Danger Arceneau]

Well the buxom redhead was here, and she was here for one particular reason only.

A luxury resort investment.

Tabloids would hazard that [member="Judah Dashiell"] was setting up his new so called 'mistress' with beachfront property. The truth of the matter is that Danger was putting forth funding and investment into a new beach resort that would rival Spira and become the Jewel of the Tingel Arm.

Business was business and she was here to venture in the resort world.

 

[Judah Dashiell]

[member="Tarissa Cadalthor"] | [member="Danger Arceneau"]


"Are designs finalized for the resort Mr.Dashiell?"


A holoprojection hovered above the makeshift table under the tent. The topography map spun slowly, with colors overlaying different sections for their plans. Construction would take time. Prefabricated buildings would also be in use in some cases. Boring, cheap designs came to mind but the architects would be having crews lay facades on the exteriors and trim the insides out to something more than standard. The resort however would be built from the ground up in a traditional manner.


"No, we are waiting for Miss Arceneau to arrive. She is my partner in crime on this project after all."


"Reports say she will be landing shortly. Perhaps we can all tour the proposed area?"


"Great, it might give us a better idea on which plan to finalize."

 

[Eyrecae Alzari]

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"], [member="Judah Dashiell"]

Eyrecae snorted dismissively as Siobhan started the fly around like a paper kite. “Show off,” she grumbled.

And so the odd pair wandered down the street, one silver armoured warrior, and one flying black armoured master. It sounded like a bad punch-line.

As they moved into an area where the ruined buildings on either side had crumbled badly and trees had grown up inside them, they saw the first open signs of life. Growling creatures, possible former pets or feral native species emerged, slinking forward.
Eyrecae locked and loaded her bolter and took aim.
“It’s an ambush…might as well spring it. Plenty for us both. May the best elf win…” she called to Siobhan, and fired.

And then everything went to hell as the scavengers who had been shadowing them attacked….

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Eyrecae Alzari"], [member="Judah Dashiell"]


As far as this writer recalls, Siobhan's armour was actually coloured red.


Anyhow, a trap had been sprung and there were feral creatures. Beasts, beasts everywhere! Oh, and plenty of ruined buildings. Clearly this poor, dilpadited town on this benighted world had seen better days. Probably a few centuries ago before the whole Galaxy went to hell because a certain terrorist unleashed a virus on Csilla. One small act of terror and homicide had caused such colossal ripples. Somehow no one had been able to manufacture a cure for four hundred years.


Then suddenly people acquired an immunity to the Gulag Virus and it died down. Anyhow, such musings were irrelevant now. What mattered was that our morally ambiguous, terribly violent heroines were being swarmed by feral beasts. Our heroines happened to be a hammer-wielding lunatic with the strength to punch through walls and the ability to withstand a laser cannon. She was also wearing an armour made of phrik and one might recall that a container composed of phrik was so durable that it was able to withstand the Death Star's destruction of Alderaan.


Of course, apparently even the destruction of Alderaan had not been final since despite being blown into minuscule particles space magic had been able to bring the planet back, but that was besides point. Our other heroine was a telekinetic psycho-soldier with similar stability issues who was wearing beskar'gam and flying. Oh, and she blow up buildings with her mind. So, you probably guessed it dear reader, destruction ensued. Siobhan's boltgun leapt to life and she squeezed the trigger, with the powerful spitting out rounds.


Beasts charging on the ground were blown to pieces as the explosive bolts hit home. Harnessing the ridiculously brutal power of the Force she unleashed a massive blast of telekinetic energy. Omnidirectional in nature. Across the ruins debris was gathered along with beasts and thrown into all directions at a ridiculously fast speed and velocity, impacting upon the ruins with enough force for ferals to be crushed and the ruins to be splattered with blood.


Scavengers who had been hiding in the shadows bombarded her arrows shot forth from their arrows and thrust spears at her. She did not bother dodging the onslaught because she did not need to. Arrows simply shattered against her armour as she maintained a stationary position gliding in the air. A few had primitive slugthrowers that had probably been built centuries ago and were this Galaxy's equivalent to an M1 Garand or a Karabiner 98k, but their bullets could do little more than tickle beskar'gam. Stretching out with the Force she simply gripped the primitive spears, swords and guns the scavengers were carrying and crushed them, leaving them without weapons. You see, a common stormtrooper could be bombarded by common slugthrowers and not even wince. This writer sort of feels as if they're playing Age of Empires and used the cheat to spawn a stormtrooper with a laser cannon. Against opponents who have progessed no further than the Iron Age.

 

[Ordo]

Ordo was loaded into the back of the speeder truck with a small security crew as the others moved to pack in to the troop ship. Workers began pulling the camo webbing of the ship as the pilot fire began his flight checks. The sound of the repulsor truck trundling along the landscape drew attention from farmers and workers that spent their days ensuring the farmers had all they needed. The small star port he had watched them begin for shipping receiving had nothing but a small control tower and several permacrete slabs down but it was all they would need for now. the rest was still under construction even as he zoomed of to meet the raiders.

 

[Eyrecae Alzari]

[member="Ordo"], [member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]

This writer is not entirely sure where Ordo, former Dark Lord, was in relation to Eyrecae and Siobhan…so apologises in advance if they are ignored.

So instead, it was hammer time!

Eyrecae didn’t have the fancy Force skills of Siobhan, but what she had was an insane amount of bloodlust, a very heavy hammer, and a suit of almost unbreakable armour.
She charged. She always charged. Her hammer smashed a path through the scavengers. Siobhan would knock them down, Eyrecae would hammer them. That was how it went. Pretty soon, as arrow, spear and club bounced harmlessly off her, the scavengers started to scatter a bit, running and taking cover behind trees, in buildings.

Eyrecae was fine with this. She’d taken down four enemies so far, so she was just getting started.
“Gunnship! Calling down fire on building, co-ordinates 18-32-33,” she said. Arrows were coming from that building, and Eyrecae didn’t want to try and storm it herself.

It was then that one of those lucky chances happened. An arrow hit her in the eye, piercing the thinner protection there. With a cry she dropped her hammer and with terrible speed pulled the arrow out. The blood on the arrow turned to grey ash and blew away in the wind as she cast the arrow down.

Even the demi-goddess was not immortal though, and even though she could regenerate the lost eye…it would not happen instantly.

“Sio, I’m hit…I need to get back to camp!”
She didn’t like leaving a fight, but in this case she had no choice….

So once this skirmish was over she headed back to the landing area to recover. Siobhan might or might not follow her.

 

[Thurion Heavenshield]

Rashemen Village
Tabaqui, Tingel Arm

The Levantines were making a combined effort to aid the natives of Tabaqui; this jungle paradise of a planet adorned with crystal clear lakes and far-reaching mountains was now home to the Heavenshield household, having already built their home and gotten settled by one of the lakes. Not far from their location there existed a small village, and before deciding on where to build their home Thurion had met with the village elder to receive his blessing in doing so. The old man was happy to meet new people and even happier to call them 'neighbors', and did not need any further persuasion to grant the humble Jedi his request. Not all men would be so respectful as to ask for permission, after all.

The village, Thurion learned, was called Rashemen; a poor but happy people inhabited the wooden shacks and huts, living in peace alongside flora and fauna alike. Their ancestors came to this planet many generations ago, and what ships they'd brought had long since broken down and left them stranded there. Now they were as much part of this world as any tree, mountain and lake. They live off the land, hunting for food and growing crops. The world of Tabaqui, however, is far from otherwise uninhabited, and many of these inhabitants have chosen a life of crime over an honest living; rather than find their own fortune they prey upon those who have, using blunt force to take what they will from these peaceful people.

For this reason, the Heavenshield household would spend the day amongst the people of Rashemen Village to teach and learn from them equally, as well as fend off any raiders should they appear looking for trouble. Only an hour's walk from their home, Thurion, Coci, and even little Nina, all made their way to the small settlement bearing gifts in the form of off-world foods and other various supplies not found on Tabaqui. With her father carrying most of the supplies, Nina held Coci's hand as they made their way to the village, even as she herself carried a small basket of fruits. Once there, the village elder greeted them.

"Welcome, neighbors, to Rashemen Village!" he proudly announced their arrival to his peers. "Young Master Thurion - it is truly an honour to see you again! I trust your land has proven fruitful? And you must be the wife, yes?" he greeted Coci, bowing as he did. "As beautiful and mysterious as the farthest reaches of space..." Nina snuck up behind her father, clutching the fabrics of his trousers. "And who is this lovely bundle of joy? Don't you worry, little one; you'll find many friends here, I bet."

The elder had the look of a kind old man, with long, grey hair and an equally grey beard, both surprisingly well-groomed and neat. Supporting his fragile form on a simple walking stick and huffing on his trusty smoking pipe, he extended his hand towards them. "Well met, Obrion", Thurion returned the welcome, shaking the old man's hand. "This is my fiancée, Coci. And this..." he said as he plucked Nina off the ground. "...is Nina. Say 'hello' to the nice man, Nina." She offered a shy smile before burying her face in her father's chest.

[member="Coci Sinopi"]

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Eyrecae Alzari"], [member="Judah Dashiell"]


Eyrecae was not in command of the mission. The Gunship crew would take their orders from Siobhan. Admittedly she got very pompous about things like that, but there was still a chain of command to be followed. Too much of a risk to let the primeval supersoldier decide on the use of airpower. Of course Siobhan could not be considered terribly responsible either and she was undoubtedly an extremely brutal person, otherwise she would not be called the Butcher of Roche.



"Abort that order! Waste of ammunition. Hover over the area and cut off their escape." Siobhan barked into the comm.


"Acknowledged, ma'am," the pilot spoke into the comm and so the Gunship quickly surged into position. Given the fact that it possessed an array of missile launchers and laser cannons, it could probably cause untold devastation. The fact that it was a technology the natives would probably not know should also enhance the fear its presence engendered.


"Understood," she said in response to Eyrecae when she heard about her injury. Meanwhile the natives had now focused their fire on her and unleashed a hail of arrows. However, none of those reached for suddenly an invisible force gripped them, every single one, and stopped them in mid-air. Then every single arrow shattered and fell to the ground. Swiftly Siobhan flew through the air and swooped down as the natives stood there, seemingly gripped by fear as she touched down upon the ground. Now the natives were facing high tech supersoldiers with magical powers who were clearly immune to all their weapons, so it was perfectly understandable if they seemed paralysed with fear since they were not loony death cultists like the Bando Gora. Fighting to the death when there is no way of achieving anything is not brave just plain dumb.


However, one of the natives was made of different stuff and abruptly death charged her, swinging an old axe. "Kill the witch!" he cried out as loudly as he could. His axe smashed into her armour and...shattered against it. He gasped and fear was written upon his features as his weapon broke and Siobhan did not even flinch.


"You can't hurt me. No weapon you have can. I could easily kill every single one of you at the speed of thought. I don't want to. Put your weapons down and give yourself up, and you'll be treated well."


Probably not that persuasive at winning hearts and minds, but it's not like they had any other options. The axe-wielding fellow, who seemed to be the leader, looked around uncertain then gave his fellows a nod and they tossed their primitive weapons aside.


"Good," Siobhan said calmly, radioing the Gunship. "Get over here. We got prisoners."

 

[Delila Castillon]

[member="Kaida Taldir"] | [member="Valiens Nantaris"] | [member="Maya Whitelight"]


"Force relics are useless to myself as well Mister Nantaris. However, you have knowledge I do not. You know the people here, you have worked with them for close to a year. That is more valuable that some old wizards cane collecting dust in a cavern somewhere. We know little of the violent natives because frankly, we don't give them a chance to live. Those that do rarely speak."


Delila paused, mulling over a request in her head. The man seemed worldly, educated. Different than those she had encountered on this planet. She wasn't sure if he wanted to tangle with a group of soldiers anyways. Not exactly the best group to ask for a ride then mess with.


"Help us determine the best defenses for these locals and I will gladly take you to the nearest civilized starport once our assignment wraps up. You'll be helping Miss Whitelight the most."


Delila nodded to the pink-skinned woman leading the relief efforts.


"The locals are wary of us, and rightly so. Perhaps you can act as our go between. I am sure Miss Whitelight also needs to know the resources needed for folks to thrive."

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

Tabaqui, Tingel Arm
Rashemen Village
The arrival of the Space Hippies.


[member="Thurion Heavenshield"] & Co.

Coci was somewhat surprised as they finally broke from the dense jungle into the outskirts of the small village, the 'neighbours' more close to them then she had realised, which was good indeed if one needed quick supplies. She could not help but smile as the man called Obrion greeted them, he looked like something out of a adventure story and had a kindly face as well as the tone of his voice.

"It is a pleasure to meet you Obrion", she bowed in respect to an elder of the village. Coci turned to help Thurion removed the pack for his back, "We have brought some supplies and we hope to be able to enjoy some time with you and your people".

She grinned at her own words, it was not that long ago Coci would have been anywhere but here doing this, let alone being .. nice and open. How she had mellowed from the blunt cold creature of the shadows all because of the man standing next to her. But this aspect of her has not been removed entirely. On duty it returns with deadly and unwavering purpose.

 

[Kaida Taldir]

[member="Valiens Nantaris"], [member="Delila Castillon"]


Kaida had been silent when Nantaris made his proposal but after he had finished gave the Scotchman a nod. Wait, did Nantaris still have a Scottish accent? This one is claiming he still has because it's iconic.


"Sounds reasonable to me as well. What information you can offer on the raiders and this place will be useful. Name's Taldir. Not much for mystical things, but I'd be interested in taking a look at those Force relics you mentioned when we're done." After all, if she could not use them, they could still be useful for the Angelii or the Healers of Ashira. She would probably not be sharing with a certain 'Great Countess', for Kaida could not stand her.

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

[member="Delila Castillon"], [member="Kaida Taldir"], [member="Maya Whitelight"]

This one asserts that of course Nantaris still has a Scotch accent. It's vital!

First, the tough looking redhead spoke to him. She seemed the sort he tended to respect.
"Aye, I can do that. I've lived with these people for over a year now, earned their trust a bit, travelled all over to help out. I can give you the information you need. I know where the raiders strike from, but I'm just one man. I cannot fight an army alone...nay, not even I."

Next the Eldorai. Now he had a thing for pointed ears, but the Eldorai could be so damn precious. Twi'leks were easier.
"It's a deal then, Captain Taldir," he said, taking a guess at her rank. "I'll honour my part of the deal if you honour yours."

And finally the Zeltron. Ah...this would be interesting!
"Miss Whitelight...a pleasure to meet you. I would very much like to hear your assessment of the situation, and what I can do to help."

 

[Tiland Kortun]

Location 2 (Is that the village [member="Thurion Heavenshield"] & Co can be found near?)

Tiland staggered somewhat as the guards opened fire on the raiders, sending shockwaves both through the Force and his own telepathy as the raiders were cut to pieces. He caught himself on his staff before he fell, but nausea overwhelmed the usual piercing hunger and their deaths pounded at his brain. He took a deep breath and hauled himself upwards, focusing on each individual breath to let the Force calm his mind. Everything settled and he probed the minds of the raiders for some signs of life. He was unable to find any. Perhaps a more highly skilled Jedi could manage to find a few.

He limped his way over to a stack of crates and boxes and took a seat, holding himself upright with his staff, only paying partial attention as Valiens Nantaris arrived and spoke with everyone else. He barely even noticed the arrival for several minutes before he fully regained awareness. He gave a brief shake of his head to try and clear away the cobwebs. It helped, for the most part. He made his way slowly towards the gathering around the man. A Jedi, by the looks of him. It appeared he had been here for some time. He knew how that went. He had had his own time of exile on some forgotten world with no name, that he had been aware of, anyways. It was an interesting experience, but it did feel good to leave.

 

[Delila Castillon]

[member="Valiens Nantaris"] | [member="Maya Whitelight"] | [member="Kaida Taldir"]


"Army? I am sure Kaida will be pleased to hear she can ice more beings to death."


Delila shifted a little to look at the Zeltron then back to their newcomer. Such a situation was going to take time, energy and some effort. Although no doubt the people of the settlement should be protected first. Why they were getting hit particularly hard was the question. One that could probably use some figuring out. If you had to ask her, it was most likely do to their location near the city. It was close compared to other villages and settlements.


"Why don't you speak with humanitarian relief first? We can always speak more about stopping the raiders later."

 

[Judah Dashiell]

Business waited for no one. Since Miss Arceneau was taking her time in arriving, Judah carried on. The site was a small jaunt away via transport. The architects and engineers slotted for the resort project tagged along with him. The selected site was along the ocean, located in a quieter, cove- like area. Waves crashed along the beach as they stepped out to walk the site.


Ruins lay everywhere. It was clear that New Arrah at one time was for the rich and powerful. Judah had intentions to make it a luxury resort but nothing like the planet would have seen before. Nothing but top-notch. It would be a place where those in the Galaxy with the credits could come and play without the prying eyes of a more mainstream resort.


"First thing, clean up these ruins, get the site level. We'll come in and build from the ground up. Naturally the hotel and villas should face the sea. Other amenities should perhaps face outward. Security and guest services should be dead center in the middle and face away from the ocean."


The group nodded, bringing up designs to finalize and tweak now that they had seen the site.