Scruffy Lookin’ Nerfherder
OOC: this is a plotline for Seth Shorn. Other characters are welcome, but please pm me first.
Part One: Embarkation
The conference room was simple, lacking any prestige or elegance. The designer of the room had been purposeful in its simplicity. Its black walls edged with blue were supposed to convey calm. Blue after all was supposed to be a calming color. Black chairs with chrome arms lined the long, black table that sat at the center of the conference room. The crest of the Republic Intelligence Agency was emblazoned on the wall just above the chair at the head of the table. Sitting in that chair was a Bothan. Of course it was a Bothan. Who else would lead an intelligence agency? His fur rippled as he surveyed those gathered around him. One among them was of particular interest this meeting.
Seth Shorn, Naval Lieutenant, Pilot, and Spy sat toward the opposite end of the long table. He wore his dark hair combed neatly off to the side. A slight frown creased his brow. It seemed perpetual. The young man was a very serious individual. So far, he had proved himself a capable asset. But there were doubts. His manner of return was... surprising and there were not a few red flags. His brother had turned on the Republic. His father.... well, that was an entirely different story. Long, frustrating, and filled with espionage. Casperli Shorn was a thorn in his side.
The Bothan looked on quietly. Irys Eshka'sil was one of the foremost minds in intelligence. Small wonder that he had been promoted to lead the Republic's agency. The Bothan Spynetwork, though never fully rebuilt after the Gulag Plague, was still considered to be the standard among Intelligence. Irys had close ties with Bothawui, but rather than be alarmed by this, the Republic encouraged it. Strong ties with the Bothans meant intelligence sharing. Together, they would be able to create governments, or tear them down with relative ease. Espionage on a formidable scale. In truth, it was part of the reason for Irys' incredible achievements thus far. But now a new threat assailed them.
Apparently, the South Systems Syndicate had funded the events on Hapes. Irys could not let this go unpunished. Retaliation was in order. Though a free thinker, Irys had no reason to cripple the Syndicate entirely. He could. But the Republic was not at war with them. He didn't need a full scale intelligence war - despite it being one that he would win. He needed to send a message. Hence, this meeting.
Irys smiled as the last member of the conference seated herself. The grin was toothy, filled with canines, and rather alarming.
"Gentlebeings, as you know we have a new threat on our hands. For whatever reason, the Syndicate has taken to prodding the Republic. We cannot let this prodding go unreturned." He steepled his paws, resting his elbows on the edge of the table and staring intensely at the gathering. "I won't authorize any direct action against the Syndicate. However, there is still action to be taken nontheless. Vesk, if you would...." A hologram leaped to life in the center of the table. It was a claw symbol, with inscription in Huttese beneath it. "This is the patch of a notorious group of pirates. The Kestarlak Refugees." He snorted. "They are Feeorins."
The announcement sent an already hushed room into absolute silence. The dropping of a pin would be like bashing a bronze gong several times over, such was the reverie. Feeorins were indeed refugees. But there were few of them left in the galaxy. They were a selfish species, concerned only with their own well being. Many of them turned to piracy or mercenary work. But to see a group of pirates composed entirely of Feeorins.... that was something formidable. They were long lived, and grew only stronger with age. Exterminating them would be difficult indeed.
Irys nodded to himself and continued on. "I am sure you all understand what this entails. It will be a large scale effort. Feeorins aren't to be taken lightly. They're old... and even though they can be damn selfish bastards, they're smart too. The Kestarlak Refugees have been known to have close ties to the Syndicate, acting like a privateer group. By eliminating the Refugees we will be dealing a tough blow to the Syndicate. They can't enforce their threats without arms to back it up and the Refugees are one of those arms. A big one too." Irys turned to Vesk who changed the display again. The hologram showed a section of space near Denon. "The Refugees are known to prey around this area. The governor of Denon has offered her support in eliminating these pirates. She'll be providing a frigate and two patrol vessels. Our own forces will consist of the Preservation-class Star Defender Blind Justice and two Freedom-class Assault Frigates, the Judgement and the Belligerent. The combined forces should be more than enough to eliminate the pirate threat."
A few taps on Irys' armchair brought up the organizational division of the task force. "This force will be under Republic Intelligence supervision, of course, but it will be a joint operation with the Navy. Special Agent Dent will be in charge of intelligence operations. Special Agent Savio will be heading up the supervision of the entire task force. Lieutenant Shorn will have control of a fighter wing at his discretion. Commander Tors will be in charge of the Naval operations and captain of the Blind Justice. You will have more details in the briefing, but this is just a general overview. Is everything satisfactory?"
There were a chorus of assents from the faces gathered around the table. "Very well, you leave in two days at 0500. Read up, gentlebeings. Don't underestimate these Feeorins. They're a wily species." He smiled. Much as Bothans were wily species. Wily indeed.
~ ~ ~
Pushing back his dark locks behind his ear, Seth Shorn finished putting on his flight suit. He would be in charge of an entire fighter wing. Not something to scoff at. It was a serious responsibility. He had been in and out of the training simulator constantly, but it bothered him that he hadn't seen actual starfighter combat in so long. No doubt he would still be rusty, even with the practice.
He began buckling and checking the straps of various accoutrements on his flight suit. Something was nagging at him. This mission bothered him, but he couldn't quite place his finger on why. Oh well, they would see soon enough. The Task Force was already well on its way to Denon, having left the day before. The Star Defender and its two escorts cruised smoothly through hyperspace. Seth was simply preparing for the inevitable embarkation of the fighter craft. He didn't want to be caught unaware. Even with the Star Defender, the capital ships wouldn't be deciding the fate of this mission. Starfighters would.
Pirates wielded gun boats and all various manner of assault craft, including a variety of starfighter. They counted on surprise and agility. A Star Defender might not be able to counter those, but starfighters could. With several squadrons under his command, Seth could meet the Pirates long enough for the Star Defender to eliminate any carriers with the pirates, leaving them stranded. It would then be easy pickings.
At least, that was how it played out in his mind. Real combat would be something else entirely. The alarm chimed above Seth's head and the blue light turned green. They were coming out of hyperspace.
Part One: Embarkation
The conference room was simple, lacking any prestige or elegance. The designer of the room had been purposeful in its simplicity. Its black walls edged with blue were supposed to convey calm. Blue after all was supposed to be a calming color. Black chairs with chrome arms lined the long, black table that sat at the center of the conference room. The crest of the Republic Intelligence Agency was emblazoned on the wall just above the chair at the head of the table. Sitting in that chair was a Bothan. Of course it was a Bothan. Who else would lead an intelligence agency? His fur rippled as he surveyed those gathered around him. One among them was of particular interest this meeting.
Seth Shorn, Naval Lieutenant, Pilot, and Spy sat toward the opposite end of the long table. He wore his dark hair combed neatly off to the side. A slight frown creased his brow. It seemed perpetual. The young man was a very serious individual. So far, he had proved himself a capable asset. But there were doubts. His manner of return was... surprising and there were not a few red flags. His brother had turned on the Republic. His father.... well, that was an entirely different story. Long, frustrating, and filled with espionage. Casperli Shorn was a thorn in his side.
The Bothan looked on quietly. Irys Eshka'sil was one of the foremost minds in intelligence. Small wonder that he had been promoted to lead the Republic's agency. The Bothan Spynetwork, though never fully rebuilt after the Gulag Plague, was still considered to be the standard among Intelligence. Irys had close ties with Bothawui, but rather than be alarmed by this, the Republic encouraged it. Strong ties with the Bothans meant intelligence sharing. Together, they would be able to create governments, or tear them down with relative ease. Espionage on a formidable scale. In truth, it was part of the reason for Irys' incredible achievements thus far. But now a new threat assailed them.
Apparently, the South Systems Syndicate had funded the events on Hapes. Irys could not let this go unpunished. Retaliation was in order. Though a free thinker, Irys had no reason to cripple the Syndicate entirely. He could. But the Republic was not at war with them. He didn't need a full scale intelligence war - despite it being one that he would win. He needed to send a message. Hence, this meeting.
Irys smiled as the last member of the conference seated herself. The grin was toothy, filled with canines, and rather alarming.
"Gentlebeings, as you know we have a new threat on our hands. For whatever reason, the Syndicate has taken to prodding the Republic. We cannot let this prodding go unreturned." He steepled his paws, resting his elbows on the edge of the table and staring intensely at the gathering. "I won't authorize any direct action against the Syndicate. However, there is still action to be taken nontheless. Vesk, if you would...." A hologram leaped to life in the center of the table. It was a claw symbol, with inscription in Huttese beneath it. "This is the patch of a notorious group of pirates. The Kestarlak Refugees." He snorted. "They are Feeorins."
The announcement sent an already hushed room into absolute silence. The dropping of a pin would be like bashing a bronze gong several times over, such was the reverie. Feeorins were indeed refugees. But there were few of them left in the galaxy. They were a selfish species, concerned only with their own well being. Many of them turned to piracy or mercenary work. But to see a group of pirates composed entirely of Feeorins.... that was something formidable. They were long lived, and grew only stronger with age. Exterminating them would be difficult indeed.
Irys nodded to himself and continued on. "I am sure you all understand what this entails. It will be a large scale effort. Feeorins aren't to be taken lightly. They're old... and even though they can be damn selfish bastards, they're smart too. The Kestarlak Refugees have been known to have close ties to the Syndicate, acting like a privateer group. By eliminating the Refugees we will be dealing a tough blow to the Syndicate. They can't enforce their threats without arms to back it up and the Refugees are one of those arms. A big one too." Irys turned to Vesk who changed the display again. The hologram showed a section of space near Denon. "The Refugees are known to prey around this area. The governor of Denon has offered her support in eliminating these pirates. She'll be providing a frigate and two patrol vessels. Our own forces will consist of the Preservation-class Star Defender Blind Justice and two Freedom-class Assault Frigates, the Judgement and the Belligerent. The combined forces should be more than enough to eliminate the pirate threat."
A few taps on Irys' armchair brought up the organizational division of the task force. "This force will be under Republic Intelligence supervision, of course, but it will be a joint operation with the Navy. Special Agent Dent will be in charge of intelligence operations. Special Agent Savio will be heading up the supervision of the entire task force. Lieutenant Shorn will have control of a fighter wing at his discretion. Commander Tors will be in charge of the Naval operations and captain of the Blind Justice. You will have more details in the briefing, but this is just a general overview. Is everything satisfactory?"
There were a chorus of assents from the faces gathered around the table. "Very well, you leave in two days at 0500. Read up, gentlebeings. Don't underestimate these Feeorins. They're a wily species." He smiled. Much as Bothans were wily species. Wily indeed.
~ ~ ~
Pushing back his dark locks behind his ear, Seth Shorn finished putting on his flight suit. He would be in charge of an entire fighter wing. Not something to scoff at. It was a serious responsibility. He had been in and out of the training simulator constantly, but it bothered him that he hadn't seen actual starfighter combat in so long. No doubt he would still be rusty, even with the practice.
He began buckling and checking the straps of various accoutrements on his flight suit. Something was nagging at him. This mission bothered him, but he couldn't quite place his finger on why. Oh well, they would see soon enough. The Task Force was already well on its way to Denon, having left the day before. The Star Defender and its two escorts cruised smoothly through hyperspace. Seth was simply preparing for the inevitable embarkation of the fighter craft. He didn't want to be caught unaware. Even with the Star Defender, the capital ships wouldn't be deciding the fate of this mission. Starfighters would.
Pirates wielded gun boats and all various manner of assault craft, including a variety of starfighter. They counted on surprise and agility. A Star Defender might not be able to counter those, but starfighters could. With several squadrons under his command, Seth could meet the Pirates long enough for the Star Defender to eliminate any carriers with the pirates, leaving them stranded. It would then be easy pickings.
At least, that was how it played out in his mind. Real combat would be something else entirely. The alarm chimed above Seth's head and the blue light turned green. They were coming out of hyperspace.