Mission 1: Right Under Our Nose

[Insalius]

​

ISD Hyperion - Briefing Room


Kurtis looked over the assembled businessmen, crew, and their security as they filled the largest briefing room on his Star Destroyer. The supply convoy he had stopped wasn’t large, just a couple of supply ships and transports, but their contents were priceless to his plans. The company that had developed them was small and fiercely independent, refusing to share their technology with any of the three sides currently at war with each other. Even now the lead Director of the bunch was staring the Commander down, face beat red at the sudden seizure of the crew. “Get your superior on the line now, I’ll have your commission for this you mangey-“


A knee to his ribs from his calmer-headed assistant shut the man up even as Kurtis’ gaze turned colder than ice as he stared at the man. He wasn’t unaccustomed to being branded a beast due to his wolf-like features, yet the fact that this speck of a human was trying to get a rise out of an Imperial Commander was the most insulting part of the whole show. Still, he was the better man and would prove so by turning back to address everyone assembled. They were about to know fear, as most didn’t even know his name or the weight that came with it.


“Welcome aboard the Hyperion. My name is Commander Kurtis DuValle.” A shocked gasp rang out among the assembled crew. It appeared that he was indeed as notorious as he thought he was. Again, completely surprised he hadn’t been given a bounty on his head yet. “I see some of you know me. Yes, I’m the one that slew the Jedi Grandmaster in battle. And the one who bombarded the surface of Coruscant to slay even more Jedi. It’s nice to meet you all.” The lack of sarcasm in his voice made the statement even more unnerving.


“This area of Imperial Space is under my jurisdiction and I aim to take that job very seriously. To that end, I’m conducting a full inspection of both ship and crew to make sure that there’s nothing illicit happening in my sector of space.” He held up a hand to stop complaints, eyes flashing again. “Now, I like to think I’m a pretty easy guy to get along with, so as long as we go by the procedure, I’ll have you out in no time. If someone wants to raise a fuss, though, then I’ll be MORE than happy to act the part of the hardass Imperial. Seems to me you guys are the ones with the choice now.” The crew looked back and forth towards each other, uncertain about their fates. At the very least it would seem they would be here for quite some time. This would create a perfect diversion for some unscrupulous person to make off with any goods in the caravan, provided they could get past his ship’s sensors.

@Nor'baal

 

[Nor'baal]

Ners had been set his assignment just hours prior to now, and had set a course for the far side of the nearby planet almost as soon as the plan was agreed upon with his client - Commander Kurtis DuValle of the Imperial Navy. The Commander would serve as his distraction, enabling Ners to board the target vessels and secure the cargo as requested. Before he had departed the ISD Hyperion however, the Bounty Hunter, with the assistance of his Astromech and Piloting Droids had stripped the Icarus-Class Ship down of its registration numbers, and removed any tracking devices on the vessel - far easier to remain inconspicuous that way.

Now, some four hours later, Ners was sat with a rebreather clamped around his face, his gear on, the MD-12 propped against his chair. The Icarus was floating behind the convoy, engines and all systems off - all but immune to scanners. It was mag-locked to the back end of some debris, to better allow them to get close to their target. He rose from his chair, and went to the side door of the ship, placing a metal cord about his waist. ”Total silence, when i give the signal, meet me at the RV.’’ he informed his droids, and jumped out of the airlock toward the convoy.

He was in space for less than two minutes, dragged toward the target ship before colliding smoothly with its side, and making his way to the airlock. He sliced it with his datapad and entered the ship, removing his rebreather once the all clear was shown on his HUD. Checking his MD-12 for ammunition, he confirmed it was fully loaded and made his way toward the ship's main storage bay.

Ners did not make contact with his Client, for he was aware that would be against their plans - as well as insanely stupid. His client was paying good money for plausible deniability should Ners be caught, and breaking radio silence would someone jeopardise that approach. Keeping alert, he made his way down the corridor of the convoy ship, arriving at the door to the cargo bay...

OOC - Gear as shown in this post in Hyperion - Hunter and Master.

 

[Insalius]

"...And why did you have to bring ALL of our security on board as well? Our products are just sitting there waiting for some Imperial goon to steal them now!" The Director's face had become flushed again, obviously annoyed with how long the process was taking. Kurtis stood his ground, keeping his face neutral while envisioning what would happen if he strapped the man to the barrel of his Heavy Turbolaser battery and decided to try another orbital bombardment. With how fat the man was, he might last two to three shots before burning a stain into the metal. Though, as he kept thinking he lamented the work that his custodial crew would have to do to clear the mess up afterwards. Ah, if only he didn't care as much as he did he would have so much more fun with this job. Though it already had it's perks, like outwitting people who thought they had a decent grasp on tactics. He realized he had zoned out while the man had kept talking, the number of fucks he gave this person having been lost in the last great galactic war before he was even born.

"Usually, when people are brought aboard the Star Destroyer of a notorious Commander such as myself, they feel...unsafe. Almost like if I wanted to, I could lock you all in here after I leave then just, oh, I don't know, vent all the atmosphere into space then wait about 10 minutes before sending in someone to clean up the mess. I brought your security here so you would feel safer." What he didn't mention was that in such a scenario, the security would be just as dead. "Also, the reason I had your alarms and sensors turned off on your ships was also for your peace of mind. We're going to scan your ships from bow to aft all without ever going inside. The sensors we're using are very delicate, though, so unneeded systems like an alarm could hamper the readings. This way, you don't have to worry about an 'Imperial Goon'" He made quotes in the air with his fingers as he said this, "Taking your product. Besides, I don't think they have pockets or the upper body strength to move metal pieces that large."

"And how long will THAT process take!? We have deadllines to reach, schedules to keep! We already didn't have time to take for an unnecessary stop like this, and now you're saying it will even take LONGER!?" It seemed the angrier this man got, the braver he tried to be. Oh, what a dangerous combination of traits for a fellow to have. Especially in current company. Seemingly bored, Kurtis took the lightsaber from his belt and began to twirl it in his hand, a simple exercise in manual dexterity as he paid more attention to it instead of the human. He hadn't turned it on, meaning that it only looked like a metal cylinder at the moment. "Not really sure. First time doing it, to be honest. I'll get a buzz when it's done. I DID ask for a meal to be prepared for everyone, though, just in case. Are you guys hungry?" He pointed at the director, the man's face turning an interesting shade of purple. "You look like you're hungry. Anybody like pancakes?"

@Nor'baal

 

[Nor'baal]

Jamming his datapad and a slice into the lock of the Cargo Bay Door, it took a matter of seconds for the program to get to work - slicing through the security system in moments, the door opening soon after. Ners slipped in, leaving the door unlocked but allowing it to slide shut behind him, using his foot to slow it down to prevent it slamming. Bringing up the cargo manifest from the internal system on his pad, he ran through the contents of the room until he found the ID number of the crate he was looking for and headed for its section of the bay.

One left turn and two right turns later, and he could see it - guarded by two Sentinel- Series Guard Droids. Lightly armed with blaster rifles, and even lighter armoured, he figured they wouldn't be too much of a problem to take out. He propped his MD-12 against one of the shelves and drew his twin Sunspear pistols, raised them and went to pull the triggers, only to stop himself at the last minute.

Firing now would give away my position, he thought, acutely aware that there could be more droids in the bay. He stowed his weapons and picked up his shotgun, moving around behind the crate and Droids, and drawing his twin blades. He struck fast, a quick slash on each of the Droids weak neck stalks dropping them to the ground. He placed his body between theirs and the floor, slowly lowering them to the ground to prevent alerting other units in the area.

’’Easy does it.’’ he mumbled under his breath, before checking the serial number on the crate, which was easily as long as him and half as tall. ’’Now to get you out of here, without being seen or starting a small war.’’ he chuckled to himself, looking around for some sort of item to make moving the crate easier.

 

[Insalius]

"...And that's when they made me their Commander." Kurtis finished the story by taking the last bite of his delicious pancakes, having moved to sit on one of the steps leading up to the briefing podium. The rest of the assembled crew, besides a few who were still upset like the Director, had elected to sit in the various chairs as the Shistavanen regaled them with stories of how he had come to be where he was. Their meal had arrived partway through and had surprised some of them, in that he'd made sure any of their allergies or tastes were taken into account. For seeming like such a hardass earlier, he really did seem to care at least a small amount about the situation and the problems it was causing for them.

"This is absurd, I demand that we leave right this instant-" The Director started up again, his plate of food untouched. He got jammed in the ribs again as Kurtis turned his attention back to the man. "If you're not going to eat that, it'll go cold. While not a capitol offense in Imperial Space, it damn well should be." Some of the other crew chuckled at this, having calmed down and gotten used to Kurtis' brand of humor. The Human's eyes bulged again but he said nothing. "Oh well, if that's the case, then by the powers invested in me by the Emperor himself, I requisition your pancakes. Yoink!" With a comedic over-exaggerated movement, he expertly speared the man's food and put it on his plate without a crumb hitting the floor. Sitting back down, he took a bite before pointing at a woman in the crew who had raised her hand. "Yes, young lady?"

"Umm...Could you tell us about Ziost? Everyone thought the Grand Master of the Jedi would continue his string of victories there..." She looked flushed as she looked down, worried she had said something wrong. Kurtis waved a hand, dismissing any thought of being upset. "It's a fine question. I get it a lot, actually. I was only in command there by chance. My mentor, Admiral Sevchenko had gone off to lead an assault on a different planet and I was chosen to defend the world at the time." He pondered his words, chewing on a syrupy piece of pancake as he did. "In retrospect, it was a good thing I had everyone stay on high alert with constant training. It was those tactics that won us the fight. The Grandmaster jumped in behind us just as we were about to start a mock battle, so he had the advantage of position. We turned to spread out around him, my capitol ships in the back with corvettes and fighters spreading out like wings around him. As our shields were pointed towards him in full, we left some fighters back to protect our flanks."

The Commander took a drink of milk to clear his throat. "We started by targeting his flagship's weapon. It was a diversion for a later tactic. As he led his ships into the middle of my formation, he sent an unmanned corvette crashing into my Star Destroyer." He waved around the room, the metal looking pristine as if nothing had happened. "It was a good move, but as his ship began to move, that's when I initiated the killing blow. His flagship's shields were about to fall, so I had all my forces concentrate fire on his bridge. In a few seconds, Valen Pelora and his command crew were gone. The point had been to foster confusion in his fleet so that they could be picked off one by one, but the extent of the demoralization was...quite a bit more than expected. In the end, every Jedi ship was destroyed with none of mine joining them. Close, but not enough."

Kurtis pondered again, moving on with his own thoughts from the fight. "There were a few things he could have done to prevent his loss there. He could have kept his flagship back and sent the rest of his forces forward, especially for the ramming maneuver. Or, he could have targeted one of the two wings I used to surround him. Either of those could have turned the fight in his favor, yet it seemed like he was trying to fight...bravely? Or perhaps for glory, to be another symbol of Jedi might over 'Imperial Tyrrany'" More air-quotes,"But it didn't end up that way. He died and I became a known name in the Galaxy. The funny thing about it is, I didn't even know I was fighting the Grandmaster until AFTER the fight was over. I was just doing my job, and I was just in the right place at the right time." Another person raised their hand, moving the subject on. The more time spent here, the more time Kurtis' bounty hunter had for his job. "Yes, next question?"

@Nor'baal

 

[Nor'baal]

Trolly, Ners walked down one of the aisles. I need a Trolly, he continued, finally coming across a small Cargo Maglift. ”Bingo!’’ he muttered to himself, moving it back to his Cargo and attaching the maglocks to its underside, enabling him to pick it up with ease and push it along in front of him. Keeping his blaster up, and stowing the second in its holster, he made his way back to the corridor.

”All clear.’’ he noted to himself, as he moved down toward the airlock again. ”Heading to the RV.” he commed to the Icarus, breaking radio silence and most likely informing some of the remaining onboard security to his presence on board. He moved as rapidly as he could, keeping the crate in front of him as he did so - moving with little more than the soft hum of the maglocks to accompany him.

Spotting one of the remaining on board security coming around the Corridor, Ners fired a single shot into the man's leg, and then ran forward, abandoning the crate to kick away the man's gun, and deliver a sharp punch to the man's head, knocking him out. Probably best to avoid killing Imperial Lackies, he thought to himself.

 

[Insalius]

“A Jawa!”

“No, it’s an Ewok!”

“Guys, it is CLEARLY a speeder wearing a poncho.”


Kurtis had to try hard not to burst out laughing at that last one, watching the crew entertain themselves by playing a game using the holoprojector in the briefing room. The concept was simple, the person drawing a picture couldn’t speak and their teammates had to guess what he was drawing as quickly as possible. Some of these men and women were very good artists, the Commander guessing that they were perhaps the designers within the corporation. Some of the others were…not so good. In fact, they would probably confuse even the master of abstract art. These were things Kurtis would never be able to unsee, and he was pretty sure that he’d take these images to the grave with him.


“Umm, Mr. Commander, do you want to give it a try?” A surprise request, one that Kurtis actually found himself being grateful for. He’d never played this game and, despite having drawn up tactical maps and plans, he had never considered himself an artist. Nodding, he moved up to the bowl of folded paper that the drawers had to pull a word from, then draw that word to the best of their ability. His eyebrow raised at what luck had given him and was glad that the assembled crew couldn’t see the blush on his face. Clearing his throat, he took up the digital pen and started to draw.


To be honest, he zoned out all the other voices trying to guess his word as he continued to draw, more because he wanted to show what he thought of the requested word. It was something that meant something to him, at first painful but thankfully now the wounds were disappearing. The room fell silent as he got close to finishing, his feelings able to flow from the drawing to all those who looked. Even the Director seemed to calm down a bit, the red from his face fading as he gave a disgruntled look at the holoprojector. The image was of Kurtis holding another form, the look on his face peaceful and happy as the other person hugged into the man’s chest.


“Man, that’s Love.” A voice from the crowd said, the face lost amongst the throng. The Commander nodded, grateful that he had been able to convey what he wanted through the image. It was decent, not a work of art, but it had emotion. Apparently not everyone had expected such a thing from an Imperial, especially not as one as notorious as he was. As Kurtis sat back down the game continued, though the tension in the air had rapidly decreased suddenly. Funny how that worked.

 

[Nor'baal]

Ners was nearly at the RV, one of the larger airlocks further down the ship. Nearly.

He was moving quickly now, the end of his mission in sight as he rounded the corner and did a double take in shock. Standing in front of him stood a solid line of ten Sentinel Series Droids. ’’Shi….” he was cut off as he barrelled into cover behind the crate, pistols flying into his hands and blaster bolts careening past him.

”Bugger off!” he shouted down the corridor, causing the gunfire to patter out. ”Negative!” came the metallic reply from one of the Droids. O….K then, he laughed to himself, wondering what complete idiot had programmed these droids.

Gently he rolled a thermal detonator around the corner, waiting for the detonation and came out of cover to finish off what was left. ”Fire! Fire!” one of the remaining droids bellowed, shortly before it was fried by his Sunspear and then destroyed by his second.

He doubled back into cover, checking quickly that the Droids had been destroyed as the alarms went off about the ship. ”Time to go.’’ he reminded himself, slapping on his rebreather, opening the Airlock and jumping out behind the crate.

 

[Insalius]

“Sir, the inspection appears to be complete. They can return to their ships now.” The voice that rang out from Kurtis’ commlink was met with mild cheers, though also a few groans from those that had apparently been having a good time getting to rub elbows with a famous Imperial. “Commander Kurtis, could we get a picture before we leave? I know my kid would love it if you could sign it, too…” The one request soon blossomed into a bevy of them, making the Shistavanen smile at it all. He took the time to take singles and group pictures with all who asked, morale suddenly flying through the rough among the assembled crew.


Even the Director reached out a hand to shake, asking for a picture. “I’m sorry I got so upset, this is just a big deal for us and I know you’re only doing your job. I also appreciate the lengths you went through to make sure we wouldn’t feel violated.” Kurtis nodded, smiling as he shook the man’s hand. “Of course, Mr. Director. In fact, if you would like, I can supply data and footage to show our whole process was completely hands-off.” The human nodded, his face now a completely normal color. “I’d appreciate that, it should calm down our shareholders and insurance alike.” How interesting that at the end of all this waiting that the two of them would get along, even a little.


It was about another hour before everyone was shuttled back to their ships, though his own Star Destroyer and fleet had left them alone once they had all departed. Kurtis would eventually hear from the Director again about the minor destruction and stolen parts, though having won the man’s trust he wouldn’t accuse the Imperials of wrong doing but ask for help in tracking down the perpetrators. It felt bad to lie to the man, but the Commander did start the investigation in a way that would never implicate either himself or his hired Bounty Hunter. Though, he DID offer to testify to the company’s insurance provider, so at least they would be reimbursed with little ill effect. All in all, it would turn out well. For the moment, though, Kurtis waited for Ners to meet back up with him with the parts they needed. Then he would show the man what they would be for.

 

[Nor'baal]

’’Mother of,” Ners bellowed as he collided with the closed door on the side of the Icarus one hand extending to steady the crate ”The door you stupid bloody droid!’’ he screamed down the commlink.

”Well, there’s just no need for that language.”

’’It won’t be language you need to worry about…’’

‘’Oh Dear. Sorry, wrong door sir.’’

”...useless bucket of bolts….’’

‘’Now now, just give me a moment.’’

”...back to the scrapheap with….’’

‘’Well, that’s just rude.’’

”...load of total rubbish, should have melted you down….’’

‘’And, opening in 3, 2….’’

”...years ago, YEARS AGO. Oh thanks.’’

Ners groaned as the door opened and he practically fell into the ship, the crate narrowly missing him, thanks to his astromech pushing it away before it landed. ’’Stow this somewhere safe yeah, and….’’ he patched back to his pilot droid ’’Loop around the planet and back to the Hyperion, now.’’ he instructed his Droid, before sliding down the wall and removing his rebreather.

”Stupid droid.’’ he muttered.

 

[Insalius]

The technicians carefully took the parts from Ners’ ship to inspect them, eventually giving a sign that nothing had been damaged in the process of their changing hands. Kurtis nodded approvingly, satisfied with his own part of the plan before giving a smile to his hired man. “Very good work, Mr. Ordo. I daresay that couldn’t have gone any better. In fact, you may have just secured another contract for the Empire. I believe that a finder’s fee bonus of 100,000 Credits should suffice as a reward for such good work, don’t you?” With a few taps of his datapad the money was sent. He rewarded exemplary work, just as he punished for poor quality from those who worked for him.


“Now, this was the final piece we needed for construction to begin. However, just using any old shipyard will not do. We must keep this secret, and as much as I prefer either Sienar or Kuat, they’re a bit too visible for what we need. No, I believe this might be a time for your contacts to become a bit more useful.” He looked the human in the eye, trust mixed with excitement in his lupine gaze. “If possible, I’d like you to locate a shipyard in a neutral or hidden part of space. Doesn’t have to be currently active, but not easy to find. I know I ask for a lot, but if it exists and you can set up a meeting with whomever currently resides there, then I’m sure another bonus would be in the works. Shall we get to work, good sir?”

/End thread