Ask Whatever Happens

[Elias Ryn]

The X-wing flew smoothly through the black expanse of space as the agricultural planet of Taanab approached in view. It radiated a pretty cyan color that caught Elias' eye but he wasn't there for the planet. Barely out of the orbit was a station, a massive hunk of metal that floated undisturbed. Emergency lights littered the outside of it and would rhythmically blink as the only sign of life. The station was usually abandoned for beliefs that it was beyond repair but there had been reports of energy readings spiking throughout all of it. The spikes could have resulted from backup generators and that meant there was a chance that the station could still possibly be operational.

The asset of a medical station could be massive to the Jedi Order and what they were trying to achieve and Elias saw the importance of it. Casualties were reported every day and they needed suitable means to care for those they swore they would protect and for their own Jedi. As his starfighter approached the station, he flicked a few controls as the S-foils locked together and he eased his speed. "Lights are still on. Wulf, send out a ping to see if we get a response." The grey astromech beeped in response and then gave another after it had been done. There was no reply from the station and Elias glanced at the droid and then at the station once more, "Let's go knock then." He pulled his ship to the nearest hanger bay and landed.

The readings on his ship claimed that oxygen levels were suitable to breathe and it was a surprise to the Jedi but a welcome one. He chalked it up to the spikes activating the emergency systems. The cockpit glass slid back and both he and Wulf jumped out from the ship. Elias was dressed in regular civilian clothing with a jacket, pants, and boots as it was becoming his normal attire. The anti-force sediment that was taking place throughout the galaxy made him ditch the typical robes as a neon sign of what he was and affiliated to wasn't something that interested him. He slipped two fingers in his mouth and let out a soft whistle as he began to walk, Wulf quickly wheeled to him and rode along his heel. "Let's go find out what is causing those spikes and get this place up and running."

They found themselves in a long hallway with a door at the end but was a junction and split off as well to lead to other areas of the station. Elias walked casually with Wulf to the door as he didn't have any schematic of the place. He gave a nod towards the door controls for the droid to open and it slid by him to reach it. It only took a moment for Wulf to slice through and as they could hear the hiss of hydraulics, Elias was about to give comment, "Alright, let's..." The door fully opened and revealed a sort of mess haul. There was a cluster of tables in the center of the room, a group of about eight or ten seated in different spots as they fingered different types of machinery on the tables. Each one of the group's heads popped up and turned to stare at him at the sound of the door, a couple of them dropping their tools as they just stared at each other. "Well..." Immediately all of them pulled out a blaster and aimed it directly at his chest, resulting in Elias slowly raising his hands.

"Step inside." One of them ordered and Elias casted a quick glance to Wulf still tucked in the corner before complying and stepping into the room. The door closed and the astromech wheeled out of there instantly and back to the X-wing, attempting to send a message out to any Jedi or Rangers nearby.

 

[Skade Wulfsbane]

“And? Do I look like someone interested in boarding a space station? There has to be another Jedi,” Skade grumbled. She was in the middle of enjoying a glass of fresh squeezed bantha milk when there were urgent reports of a space station in orbit above the planet. Evidently a Jedi was onboard and experiencing a crisis.

Skade chugged the rest of the milk, wiped her mouth and rose to stand, thoroughly unhappy about the situation, “I’ll do it, but if I can’t solve it with my axe, whoever is up there will be very disappointed,” Hopefully nothing like slicing was involved.

Putting her personal feelings on the matter aside, she boarded her loaned ship piloted by a droid and made her way up. The landing bay was still abandoned, which she guessed was to lure others in. They likely hadn’t banked on the Jedi having found a way to get a distress signal out. Skade walked out of her ship, barely taking a step into the bay before an astromech zoomed over to her. It beeped frantically at her and was met with a blank gaze.

“I do not understand your silly noises,” Skade declared, “Lead me to your helpless master,” She said as she rested her axe casually on her shoulder.

 

[Elias Ryn]

Elias slowly stepped forward, his eyes flicking to each hand that held a blaster pointed at him. It wasn't his first time being aimed at but it didn't mean he was still comfortable with it. A few of the pirates backed up as he came forward and the lead one flicked his gun a few times to the chair for him to sit down. The one who told him to sit sat across from him and kept his hand on the table with his blaster still aimed at his chest. His face was covered but his entire outfit was also covered in dirt and grime, probably an indicator of the work of what they were tearing apart on the table. "So, who the kark are you?"

The Jedi stared back at the pirate for a moment before shrugging his shoulders, "I'm a techie, came to see about the station. Contacted actually to see about it." It was the first thing that made sense to him and if need be, he could draw on his somewhat limited knowledge of engines if there were questions. The pirate gave him a once-over, "Where's your equipment, your suit?" Elias jutted his thumb behind him toward the direction of his ship. "It's on my ship. Came to see the damage before I got all suited up." All he needed to do was stall enough for Wulf or for an opening to present itself amongst the blasters.

Wulf nearly collided right into Skade's leg before slamming on the breaks as it took in the sight of her. The droid realized she must have gotten the signal. Not wasting time to speak after her declaration, Wulf spun around and went back down the hallway he came from, obviously wanting her to follow. The droid would lead Skade to the door, voices able to be heard on the other side as they were clearly discussing with each other.

The droid then rolled toward the side where the controls were and stuck its data-stick into the controls, ready to open the door on her signal.

 

[Skade Wulfsbane]

Skade could hear the talking on the other side. Normally this was the part where she barged in and made enemies have a bad day. However, she had to remember there was a Jedi in there and she had no idea whether or not they were bound or under a gun. The Deucalian glanced over at the droid and thought quickly.

“Can you mess with the oxygen filtration system just enough to set off the alarms?”

She knew that would be enough to make anyone nervous and clear the room in an attempt to get to oxygen masks. She could only hope it would distract them enough to get to the Jedi and find what kind of shape they were in. Skade stepped back from this particular hallway to keep herself hidden, bidding the droid to follow to find another terminal to plug into.

“Stay hidden and don’t be seen. They’ll destroy you if they spot you,”She turned to glare at the droid when it gave out a series of concerned and panicked beeps.

 

[Elias Ryn]

The droid glanced at the door and then back to Skade, clearly wondering if he should listen but there wasn't much of a choice. The droid let out a lone beep, his answer which she would just have to assume was a yes. Wulf followed her after to the terminal, accepting the fact that he may be destroyed and how he desperately missed being locked in place on the X-wing.

A couple of the guards inside the room, easing their guns down as they fully surrounded the Jedi. It still left a handful of guns pointed out at him. The man who was doing the interrogation laughed, "You're a techie with an X-wing? Think I'm stupid?" Elias just offered a shrug, "You think I'm stupid? X-wings are one of the most reliable star-fighter ships. I know who it is usually assigned too but I'm not letting that beauty slip from my grasp." The man arched his eyebrow at him before pulling out a cigarra and igniting it, "Alright, talk to me about your X-wing." A puff of smoke escaping from his lips as he spoke. Time to spew words for Wulf to work his magic.

Elias glanced at the man and then at the guns around him before speaking, "Well, there are four 4L4 fusial thrust engines attached to each wing and developed by Incom. The ship itself is powered by a Novaldex 04-Z cryogenic power generator in the heart of it. The cryogenic capacitors in the wings help store and shift power throughout the different systems." The Jedi leaned forward and stuck his hand out, the man offering him a cigarra eventually as Elias ignited it and took a drag as well before clearing his throat. "The hyperdrive consists of four, GBk-585 hyperdrive motivators." He cleared his throat afterward, "If you wish, I can start at the front of the ship and list each bolt used." Where the hell was Wulf? His knowledge of ships was only getting him so far and the need for a distraction was growing. He'd keep the pirates entertained with details as long as he could.

When the pair reached the new terminal, Wulf rolled to it quickly as his data stick slid out from one of his compartments and he started to slice into the system. There would be silence for a few moments before the droid turned his head to look at Skade with his single optic, letting out another beep. He was ready and just needed the signal.

 

[Skade Wulfsbane]

“Why are you staring at me, you infernal trash can?!” Skade hissed, “Set off the alarms!”

Thankfully, the droid didn’t need to be told twice as it rapidly plugged into the terminal. It didn’t take long for it to come across the life support system data. Skade looked around nervously while the droid worked, and within moments icons showed up to show oxygen levels. It took longer because the droid had to actually manually get into the alert system and recalibrate the thresholds. Within moments, the alert recognized normal O2 levels as toxic and the alarms began to blare.

“It appears you have some uses after all,” Skade said with a grin as she heard a door hiss open and footsteps echo. The downside to this plan was that the Jedi would also likely believe that oxygen levels were low and likely make a break for it.

The Deucalian turned to the droid, “Quick! Control the doors to make sure they’re locked in another compartment!” As much as Skade loved using her axes, the Jedi’s first option was always to contain and mitigate instead of going directly to violence.

If these things occurred successfully, Skade would make her way back towards the other room to look for the Jedi. She could only hope that the Jedi had ideas other than to just follow his captors.

 

[Elias Ryn]

The knowledge about his X-wing was working, at least for the moment. It was made clear he knew his tech but there was still quite a bit of suspicion aimed at him. The pirate lowered his blaster slightly but still aimed it in the Jedi's general direction while his gaze didn't leave. "You know your ship but you reek nothing of a techie." Elias flicked his gaze to the blaster and then back to the pirate, the feeling of the hilt in his lightsaber pressing into his skin becoming more prominent for him. There was a hope that Wulf would pull something but each second ticked by harmlessly.

The other pirates in the room stood up, their grips around their weapons tightening. "Well..." The Jedi started off but an ear-piercing alarm cut him off as he covered his ear for a moment. The pirates all whipped their heads to the alarm, recognizing the orange color and what it meant. "Get the masks!" They all forgot about Elias and bolted to the nearest door to find a supply of oxygen. Elias' eyes followed the pirates, "Shit." He quickly muttered to himself before pushing himself out of the table and rushing to the door as well. If that's where the masks were, he would need one as well for whatever was happening.

He made it out of the door and could see the pirates slightly ahead of him as he sprinted after. But as he went down the hallway and to the next door, it slammed down in front of him. It made him have a skidding halt as he pressed his hands against the door to fully stop himself. Elias slammed a fist against the door and turned around to find another way. A lightsaber would take too long to cut through and time was of the essence.

As he was about to turn the other corner, he could sense another presence in the force approaching him around the corner, being too worried to find oxygen to feel her signature. When he reached it, his lightsaber was pulled from his waist as he had it ready by his ribs but deactivated. As Skade came into his view, he stopped fully and just stared at her for a moment, surprised that it wasn't another pirate and that they were nearly looking eye to eye. Elias blinked before finally saying something, "Hello?" Before she could speak, Wulf would wheel around her leg and smack heartily into his leg. "Ow! Wulf?" She must have been the help that his droid managed to find. Elias' gaze quickly snapped to her's when he remembered the alarms, "We need masks, now."