Dominion He's a Time Bomb | Darkwire Dominion of Belazura

[Enigma Iuda]

Location: Gunship above the skies of Belazura
Post: THREE
TAGS: Hacks Binary Ria Misrani Cassus Akovin Daiya Sinder Cassus Akovin Tarre Priest Soloman Priest


The cockpit echoed with the sound of slurping as Enigma drained what was probably his twelth caff-stimm for the day, his feet kicked up onto the various display screens around, multiple sensors changing, blipping, doing general sensor things. While his physical body looked relaxed and reposed, slowly draining chilled stimulants through a straw, his mind was entirely elsewhere.

Utilizing the implant at the base of his skull, he was connected directly now to the ships systems and through the ship, the Holonet itself. In a realm consisting of entirely digital information rendered into a simulation of physical experience, Enigma now stood in a dark, spherical room, a variety of projected screens and windows surrounding him.

Through one, he watched through Hacks’s visual feed, her own chord wired to the ship and he sent a confirmation pule through to his fellow runner, laughing aloud as she smashed open the door and barged through. The hardline connection to the building systems was almost in place and from there he would own the system flow of data within. Locking doors, shutting down comms, overflowing water coolers, this would all be possible once he had sysadmin log ins to access the processes of the building. It was only a matter of time.

Another window opened, this time it was of a datapad screen, the small file label indicating it was from the receptionist datapad he had slaved to his own and it wasn’t long before the false documents he had sent to Sinder popped up. Right on cue.

With a thought, classical music began to filer throughout the room, another window above his head opening as the streaming program began to play. In this artificial reality he as able to open and close programs with mere thoughts, the system itself obeying his mental requests. Standing, if a digital projection of your own self can actually stand, Enigma began to wave his hands in a poor man’s imitation of a conductor, various data feeds, pic-recordings and command windows opening and closing rapidly in response.

Soloman firing two pistols, his cigarette slowly spinning away- A pool, children laughing and splashing, familiar faces amongst them- One of his own code encryptions slicing into the local authorities- A flash of orange fur within an office- The data came through at such obscene speeds, in the physical realm he would have burnt out his augmetics attempting to process them but here, in this reality, he was able to decipher it all with ease. Raising a metallic hand, he opened his palm rapidly as another window popped open as he linked directly to Hacks.

“What’s the ETA on that hardline link Big boss lady?”

 

[Sinder]

Location: Security HQ
Post: Two
Tags: Enigma Iuda Cassus Akovin Binary Tarre Priest Soloman Priest Hacks Ria Misrani

Moving toward the Zabrak who called his name, a monumental amount of adrenaline rushed over him. He wasn’t even actually interviewing for the job, but he was at the same time.‌ This was honestly the longest time he had gone in enemy territory without killing at least seven people. Restraint was hard for his species. Sinder had traded in his usual heavy armor for his cover identity, and was practically stuffed into the beige suit he was wearing. However dapper it made him look or how big it made his muscles appear, it had just enough room to hide the blade of his lightsaber while the business bag he had at his side was carrying his blaster. Thankfully he had some heavy armor stashed away in a locker Enigma had set him up with.

Even with knowing his objective was as clear as day his voice shook a little when he finally reached the Zabrak. His demeanor was far different from anyone else’s in the room.‌‌ This man was obviously the head recruiter, and likely Sinder’s best chance to get close to his target. Ready or not he would have to nail his interview. “Vigoth‌ Bluth.”‌ His voice was calm, but his face couldn’t help but grimace at the atrocious name Enigma gave him. Sinder would never be able to understand Human’s sense of humor, but he assumed the name translated to some expletives from an alien race.

“Please, Vigoth, follow me.” The recruiter extended his arm toward the office behind him. Begrudgingly, Sinder lead the way and fully opened the door, ducking to get in. He was greeted by the two seats in front of him, neither one of them were designed to fit a Trianii, let alone one who was built like a brick shithouse. Great he thought to himself, just another example of racism in the workforce. Before giving into the man completely, the mercenary looked around the room for cameras or potential escape routes. All in all the office was quite ordinary. There were medals lining the durasteel walls, a picture of the Zabrak and his nice family, and a huge portrait of the Zabrak haunted by poor lighting making him look more sinister than he probably meant.

“My name is Diego Venx, and I will be conducting your last interview.” Diego gave a nod of his head as he sat down in his lush, comfortable, body fitting chair. Left without a choice, Sinder took his eye away from the drab surroundings and back into the next obstacle: the chair. He would have to sit down eventually. It was just like every other time he had to sit in a small chair, however this time it would be unprofessional to laugh at him. Unlike in the cantinas on Ryloth. He shifted his body down into the cramped chair. He was very obviously agitated, however he was unable to flick his tail in protest seeing as he had to sit on it.

“My other interviews, yes.” His heavy accent accompanied by the corset of a suit he was wearing were enough to muffle his voice. “I am honored to make it this far.”‌ He was one cough away from hitting Diego in the eye with a button, and one stupid question away from just opening fire just to get out of the chair. He shifted uncomfortably. trying to figure out how he was going to do this interview.

 

[Daiya]

Location: At the BelWay Resort & Stay
Objective: Discover the secrets of her newest friend
Allies Nearby: Cassus Akovin

---

Outside the Governor's suite, Daiya waited with Zenie and Bookworm, whose namesake novel was tucked away somewhere and now carried a small blaster in her hand instead, while Napper cleared the room ahead of them. Judging from the way Zenie took it in casually as the girls chattered, it was routine enough that it didn't bother her.

Finally, Bookworm cleared her throat, and motioned at the doors where Napper stood with a satisfied look on his face. Daiya stepped behind Zenie as they were ushered into the room, passing by the bodyguards with ease. Little did they know that the greatest security threat was right under their noses.

Or at least at nose-level, Daiya wasn't that short!

"Uh-uh, not you, Big Boy."

Daiya turned to see Tawrro standing in front of Bookworm, her free hand held up in a universal sign for stop. Napper had taken up a position outside the doors, clearly his station for the immediate term, but Bookworm was position just inside the doors now. The girl could see the issue at once, and she didn't blame Bookworm. Well, much.

"It's just for a while, Tawrro," she said, stepping back to take the Wookiee's arm, idly smoothing his frizzy coat back into something that looked less intimidating. She lowered her voice, "Plus, I need you out here in case someone tries to interfere. I'm close."

"You know me too well, Tawrro. Of course, I'll stay out of trouble!" Daiya replied, in a normal voice again, to his growled response. Her face grew serious once more as he gave her a knowing look, and she returned one of her own. They knew their roles, it was just a matter of playing them through now. "I just need my bag and then I'm good."

The bag that had her dry clothes, her holojournal, and more importantly, her blaster.

If things went sideways, she had assurances. Tawrro outside the room, her blaster inside, and if push came to absolute shove, Zenie as collateral. Daiya's heart ached at the thought of it, and she tried to push it out of her mind, but it stuck there like a thorn. This is just a job, the girl reminded herself, but she remained unconvinced.

All of that was forgotten for a moment as she made her way into Zenie's hotel suite, and Daiya's eyes bugged out at the sheer palace she'd just entered. "This is yours?!"

"Well, it's my dad's suite here, but yeah. It's where I stay when he's on business, I guess he feels better with me here and not at home?" Zenie shrugged and dropped her towel on the edge of a couch. She turned around to lean her back against the armrest, then tipped back until she dropped onto the couch, giggling as she bounced against the cushions. "I know it's not that great..."

"Not great?" Daiya was incredulous. How could anyone not consider this not great? Never had she seen such grandeur, such opulance before. In all honest, Daiya had never stayed in a hotel before, either, so she didn't really know what to expect. All she knew is that she didn't expect this. The room and its decor were beautiful, making the girl afraid to even touch it, much less sit on it like Zenie had. In the still-wet pink-and-blue swimsuit she wore, no less!

"Yeah, it's pretty small, and everything's so ugly here. I heard the rooms at the Hot L are way bigger, and the whole place is a sim voyage!" The other girl went on, but Daiya barely heard Zenie's complaints, she was still overcome with the majesty of the room. Not even Commenor had been so decked out. She didn't get how anyone living in the lap of luxury could be upset about anything!

"You can sit, Daiya, you're not going to break anything!" Zenie announced, shaking Daiya out of her awestruck daze. She glanced over at her younger friend, who was idly twirling her hair around a finger. A grin lit her face at Zenie's generosity, and Daiya sat down on the couch next to the other girl. No passing up good fortune, after all.

Now that it was a little drier, Zenie's water-darkened hair had turned lighter and more auburn. Her black one-piece swimsuit, speckled with tiny blue shapes and trimmed in the same shade and still damp from the pool, clung tightly to Zenie's long body, but her height was her only real defining shape so far. Up close to her, Daiya couldn't see any more glamour in Zenie's persona than she'd spied in the pool, despite the auspicious surroundings and the watchful eyes of her bodyguard in the corner. Zenie was really just a plain, young girl in an extraordinary situation.

Daiya relaxed a little, glad that her newfound friend wasn't actually a pretty, rich brat.

It came on so suddenly to her, as they chattered idly as young girls do. It began as a small sense of unease, easily attributed to adolescent fears over saying the wrong thing and dismissed when a response proved them unfounded. But as the unease persisted, a small pressure grew behind her eyes, a discomfort that only became greater as the girl wished it to go away. Soon it was clear to her that the inevitable was going to happen, and a chill ran up her spine.

Daiya found a spot in their conversation to ask, her voice a little thin and urgent, "Where's your bathroom?"

Zenie started abruptly before responded, then recovered with a casual nod as she pointed to one of the doors leading from the room, "Right over there."

The girl caught Zenie's eyes widen as Daiya stood forcefully and started towards the door, only to change course suddenly and reverse the few steps to her bag of belongings. She grabbed it and ran for the door the younger girl had indicated. As soon as it was shut behind her, Daiya collapsed onto the floor and leaned up against the cupboards, her chest heaving as she tried to control her breathing.

She pressed her hands to her temples, shutting her eyes to force out the world around her. Just come, she willed it, just happen! Knowing what was on its way, what threatened to overwhelm her and waylay her, was agony on its own. The worst torture was just waiting for it, unable to do anything else, the darkness behind her eyelids pressing in around her, suffocating her.

And then her world exploded into vivid color.

It had been so simple to access, just a reinforced cabinet-sized door behind a work of wall art. Its contents laid out simply, plainly; a reflection on the mind of its owner. Hands reached in, small and trembling. A girlish voice asked, "Is that all you want? Just the will?" Her answer came in the affirmative, her hands finding the item desired. A folder, with a single page of flimsiplast. So simple, so plain; a reflection on the mind of its creator. Delivered into the hands of the young man with pool-stiffened hair.

Daiya was drawn back into reality when she heard the voice of Zenie through the door, "Are you okay in there?" A moment's pause, and then, "You know what, I'm going to order us some room service. And then I'll probably change, too."

She barely registered the retreating footfalls from beyond the door, very little registered to Daiya beyond the already-fading memory of her vision. It was all she could do to pull out her holojournal and start drawing before it left her completely.

It was a better than dwelling on her newest realization.

That the boy from the pool was coming back.

And he was going to steal her prize!

 

[The Bounteous Hunt]

My visit is mostly critical for everyone who stands on this planet and you too Governor. With the bounty placed on you i suspect that Diviak Manfloon the head of the Mining Union is perhaps seeking to take over the Governorship by having you killed and worst of all he might haves eyes on this planet in which is bad as he has a reputation of strip mining planets and laying waste to entire ecosystems all for his Mining Union. Under my protection can you prevent that and with the help of my allies within the Directorate this planet could be safe from Manfloon’s Greedy Ambitions. So what do you think Governor do you want to save your planet from the hands of Manfloon or die at his hands and achieve nothing. The choice is yours and there isn’t much time left.

Governor Kjell Chuma held a grave smirk as President Ewan Mansvolk spoke of the governorship being stolen from him.

"Your assessment of the situation does indeed seem grave," The governor turned away from the other man, walking towards a window. "Even if Manfloor were to be so bold, he would have difficulty doing so legally, even if I should be assassinated by 'third party agents'." The governor said with a knowing dark humor. "Oh, and ceding the sovereignty of Belazura to a foreign power would be technically treason and punishable by death. It seems no matter what I do I shall perish, and my beloved Zenie will be alone to pick up the pieces of this former paradise." The Governor had moved to a cabinet as he spoke, grabbing two cigaras and two glass. "Smoke or drink?" The governor asked, the creases of worry seeming to vanish slightly in the dim light as the cigara was placed into his mouth. Placing the glasses on the counter he pulled out a bottle of genuine Corellin Whiskey from before the Netherworld Crisis that all but destroyed the planet.

"Nonetheless, I am not worried. My security detail will be sufficient, and if not, by the laws of Belazura the next legal Governor will be appointed through my will. A document left unseen by any but my lawyer and immediate family, only to be opened on my death." The governor paused.

"Tell me, how do you think they are going to fail?" Kjell smiled, pouring his glass, and the president's too if he accepted.

 

[Binary]

"Well, that's certainly one way to open the door boss."

Binary's silver eyes flicked back up the staircase they'd just descended guiltily. She'd heard of people with upgrades, droids who were able to see through walls and floors to spot what was waiting for them on the other side. Sadly, Binary lacked those specific upgrades herself, she was unable to peer through the ceiling, but she didn't need to to see the bodies that they'd left sprawled down the staircase. The benefits of a droid's photographic memory.

"You know...we're really not very good at this whole stealthy approach are we?"

The woman shifted, one hand bracing herself against the wall as the floor shifted beneath them and she nodded at Hacks.

"Although, stealing half a building really isn't all that stealthy either is it?"

A wry smile touched her lips as she glanced down at her blasters before bringing them up, still plenty of charge left. Taking a deep breath, she nodded, moving past hacks, pistols flashing around the empty room. It was too much to hope for that the rest of the mission would go so easily, that there would be no other problem. There were always other problems, other complications. She'd been around enough to know that no plan ever went so simply.

"Security will know that something went wrong with the team they sent to intercept us on the roof, I give them 2, 3 minutes tops before we've got company. you go do what you need to do boss. I'll hold them here till the droids are done."

Small entrance, plenty of cover? This would do as a perfect killzone.

Hacks | Cassus Akovin | Sam Rodarch | Sinder | Wrenarias | Ewan Mansvolk | Ria Misrani | Ozzie Ozzello

 

[Hacks]

"I liked stealth games," Hacks said Binary, looking back at the door with the hole punched through it, "I was just never good at them." The floor was eerily silent, there were no guards in the open space. She tuned a dial on the side of her glasses. She could hear the wind outside, the gentle drip of a water droplet in the sink. The distant hum of droids cutting away at the building. She began to pick up a faint discussion coming from a closed door on the other side of the floor. It was the governor and someone else.

Then Binary spoke while Hacks had heightened her senses, "Although, stealing half a building really isn't all that stealthy either is it?" Hacks almost shouted in pain, she stifled herself and swore a dozen times from behind a palm over her mouth, quickly turning down the dial. "Farking hell," she harshly whispered, "Almost destroyed my hearing." She hunched over for a moment, her ears ringing, then straightened herself and tossed her head either side to shake herself from the distorted sensation. She held one hand over an ear, while tossing a thumb over her shoulder with her other, "Governors in there."

Hacks dropped her hands and grabbed the cord from her waist that would provide Enigma the physical link he needed, walked it over to a wall and began to pry for a nearby scomp link socket. Her eyes looked over her shoulder and spotted a large sealed vault. Belazura's wealth would be inside, as well as the databanks containing the governors will. They needed to crack it open, alter the will and update it. The credits in the vault would be theirs for the taking as well as the payment from the Corporate Authorities.

Hacks found the socket, shoved the scomp link in and stood, "Big Sister reporting," Hacks said over the encrypted commlink, "Enigma, you've got access to the tower."

 

[Dyre Redwave]

With all the immediate threats dealt with Dyre quickly pointed to the vault door, ordering “Melt that thing” to one of his men as he began to peer around the room. Three troopers rushed to the vault door and began to generously apply plasticine thermite gel to the sealed heavy metal door.

With his men set to their task, Dyre took a moment to survey his surroundings. Charming potted plants, polished wooden floors, paintings of the world’s numerous vacation destinations. This was, he thought, likely a tax haven bank, many like it existed, funneling profits off world to avoid taxation on some of the heavily taxed core worlds. No doubt the deposit boxes would be worthwhile as well if this was the case.

“Sir” one of his men said approaching him, following two women he held at gunpoint. “These two were hiding in the manager’s office.”

This pulled Dyre from his thoughts and he turned to look the two over. Before him stood two arkanians. He had always found their kind alluring. After quickly looking them over he turned to the soldier “Get ‘em collared”. With two quick blue flashes they fell to the floor and the trooper quickly ran collars about their necks.

Dyre's attention was then grabbed by a flash coming from the vault. The demolition crew had surrounded the door with the gel and ignited it. Black smoke rose from the gel as it burned and and molten metal dripped down the door. The sudden surge of heat finally ended moments later and with a creaking sound resembling the bending of metal, the vault door collapsed forward, the heat scorching the floor and causing it to smoulder.

He moved to the vault, hoping to see the contents. He stepped carefully over the molten door and soon the contents were revealed. No less than one hundred of credit chips lay before him. Dyre spoke into his com “Dispatching coordinates, get me a ship” immediately, he was given an affirmative response. Then turned to his men and began to issue orders. “Anyone with a fusion cutter get these deposit boxes open, the rest of you help me with these crates. Sooner we get out of here the better." ‘Soon’ he thought, ‘whatever passed as law enforcement here would be gunning for them and he could see first hand how 'pleasure world' guards compared to the most frightening soldiers the galaxy had ever seen.

 

[Max Arach]

Location: Taking myself a ship
Objective: Get the ship to the offices soon
Tags: Dyre Redwave​

Max was sitting down at a bar chatting away to a friend of his on planet. He was the pilot on this run for Darkwire. Full time mercenary with the group now. More job security, plus the people were interesting after he had met Dyre, Hacks and Enigma Iuda at Darth Doom Destroyer's wedding. That was certainly one of the more fun times during his life. After all he had done stints with a version of the Eternal Empire that was no longer around as well as several just doing easy run jobs. It was more fun to do high risk high reward stuff especially since Darkwire was doing this to free the people from the cooperation at some point or that's what he had been told.

He spotted his mark not long after getting a drink with his friend. He was watching the captain and pilot of a slaver ship that he had heard landed on world recently under the ground they were selling exotic goods. He knew the lingo enough and had enough sources to know what "exotic goods" could include. He thanked his friend for the drink and got up going over to the pair who were the only ones of the crew that he had been given by his contacts anyways. He had little doubts they had hired some kind of security detail to watch over the ship. He stumbled into the captain pretending to be drunk. "I'm so sorry brother, I am sorry, I should know how to hold my drinks normally but the bartender gave me something extra I think." As he slowly rose himself up making them focus on him as he pinched the ship's access and docking codes. He then stumbled back into the pilot after this.

"I am so sorry buddy but tell you what I will get you both a round on me. To make up for all this mess." He said as he used this distraction to hide the datapad in his coat so they wouldn't notice he took it. Both sneered at him before agreeing to the drink clearly appreciating a free drink in spite of what this man had done bumping into them. As max went up and paid for their drinks he gave the bartender the credit chit from the captain that he had pilfered when he grabbed the codes. "Here you go sir let them drink as much as they want off this."

He walked out of the bar slowly still stumbling as he did so in case the pilot or captain were still watching him. Once he finally left he righted himself properly and began walking towards the docking bay. It didn't take him long to arrive handing the docking codes over so he could gain control of the ship. He very quickly saw it was an older Zygerrian slave ship. It looked blackened and battered he shook his head. It would be a miracle if this thing would even make it as fair as they needed to get. But clearly it had gotten here fine so maybe the old girl had more in her than he gave credit for.

It was about when he was walking up to the ship when his comm device went off Dyre was already looking for a ship. It either meant the plan was moving faster than they had originally thought or things had gone FUBAR. Either way he had to get that ship and fast. "It's on it's way, no worries. I will be there." he answered gritting his teeth. He managed to get aboard finding that the 'exotic goods' weren't slaves but instead were a ton of animals. "Great so now I have to deal with all of these animals or I can deport them here and let the port authorities deal with my friends. I don't have the time to get them home myself nor deal with these people looks like the port will have to do."

He pulled the release switch to open the main cargo doors allowing the animals to stampede out as he looked over the console doing the start up preparations. He quickly shut the doors when the last of the animals were out locking them for the time being so he could finish the prep without 'friends' trying to join him. He also shot out a quick message to the port authorities alerting them to who had ownership of the ship and thus the illegal animals as well as his crew. That should keep them busy enough until he could leave. He finished off the preparations satisfied that this old girl would keep together long enough to get them off planet. As he lifted off heading towards the destination.

 

[Cassus Akovin]

The taste of disappointment filled his mouth as he was met with flat rejection, followed by adults pretending not to be a security detail.

"Oh, that's... fine." Cassus said, more or less to himself. This was dumb, why did I even consider this route? He thought to himself. "Have fun?" He said aloud, this time completely to himself. Like many of the plans he had been apart of, it always seemed to go smoother in his mind. In practice... things usually became harder and more violent.

Looks like they chose violence... but maybe a different form of violence was in order.

Cassus walked briefly back to the reclining chair pool-goers often use to dry off and keep their stuff by. Grabbing his towel and satchel, Cassus returned quickly back to where Napper and Bookworm were tailing Zenie and her 'friend'. He approached them, intending to bother Napper first.

"Hey, I'm a courier and need access to her suite," Cassus said, not exactly convincing in his attire... but very convincing with his hand inside his satchel pulsing A.I. directed neural signals into his target's mind, briefly hacking alpha waves to simulate the ever famous 'Mind Trick' through technology. Or at least, that's how it was advertised. Cassus felt a little silly repeating an old scheme from Geonosis, given how successful that endeavor ended up...

"Hah, courier, eh? Let me guess, 'Do you like me, yes or no?' amateurish, honestly." Napper was about to turn around to leave when Cassus grabbed his arm with his free hand and fired the Neural Shuffler again. He just needs more exposure.

"No sir, really. A private message from the governor to his daughter's ears only. Didn't want it intercepted by the normal courier service, which explains well... me." Cassus said, watching Napper's eyes lilt to one side uncontrollably before shooting upward and then finally resting on Cassus. When he spoke next it as if waking for the first time, living up to his cover. Side effects of the A.I. mind playing with brain waves with brute force.

"yea k" Napper said, disturbing Cassus slightly, wondering if he accidentally did any damage up there without knowing it. Oh well, collateral damage was bound to happen with things like these, but at least his collateral was subtle... unlike other less professional Bounty Hunters. Regardless, Cassus had achieved his result, and Napper was leading him towards the same path that Bookworm and the pair of girls were going, but far enough behind where the boy could reasonably hide behind Napper without being seen by them at this distance. With this cover, Cassus pulled out a communicator.

"Mr. Follow, eyes on the target?"

"AFFIRMATIVE," The TA5 Lightsaber Droid said monotonously while looking down a verpine sniper rifle with his mother's patented Argus Clusterkark Scope and Remote System, trained on the heat signature of the Governor from a different cloudcutter, observing the imminent remodeling.

"Good, keep it that way, feed video to my datapad and await kill order." Cassus said before putting away his communicator. It was time to initiate a bit of leverage on a tween. After having Napper, who thankfully recovered from his... well, state, talk with Bookworm Cassus achieved what he set out to get: access. He waited though, out of sight, allowing the two on detail to continue their jobs to secure Zenie until the female arrived in her suite. Didn't want to arouse suspicion just yet, and they were informed of his "mission".

Then Cassus saw the wookie, a variable he hadn't accounted for, and then the other female calmed it down, allowing the pair to enter. That wookie might be an issue, Cassus thought to himself. The Neural Shuffler was a handy tool, but it was a blunt instrument that required the consistent sacrifice of many test subjects. His particular weapon had a data set that included many humans and near-humans, but nothing like a wookie. To use it on him now would be just as likely to throw him into a complete blood rage as it would be to put him asleep or kill outright. That's when he saw a cart being pushed by a room service droid. That's when Cassus had an idea.

------------------------------------------------
​

Zenie would eventually get her room service, the polite knock of the service droid announcing its arrival in record time. Assuming she opened the door and let the service droid in as per usual, the droid would go about its usual tasks to service its guest before the door would close behind it. When it did, that was when Cassus crawled out from the concealment of the service cart.

"Don't be startled!" Cassus said, probably ineffectually. "I have a message to deliver, Zenie Chuma's ears only." Hopefully, he sounded convincing...

Daiya

 

[Sinder]

Tags: Enigma Iuda Daiya Binary Cassus Akovin Dyre Redwave Hacks

After the first few awkward moments of the interview, Sinder was finally able to find a position in the chair that was a little more comfortable without making him look unprofessional. This was certainly an interesting first time doing undercover work. It was very hard for him to resist just killing everyone around him. However, if he wanted the credits he had to wait for his chance to strike.

“So, first off, Mr. Bluth,” The Zabrak’s voice sounded different now, like he was much more focused. “What do you think you have that the other’s don’t.” He had his arms crossed over his large chest. He leaned back in his chair a bit, awaiting Sinder’s reply.

“I think I can protect the governor better than the rest.” His voice would still be thick with his accent, however he was trying his hardest to sound more professional. The Trainii had a hard time with Galactic Basic, in his native language they didn’t really have adjectives or adverbs. “They aren’t as strong as me.” He kept his eyes level with Diego’s. He had the confidence to sell the cover, he just needed to apply some logic.

“You have a much better grasp of Basic than it said in your file.”‌ He paused, giving the Trianii an up and down look. “It says here that you don’t have an education past the second year.”‌ Sinder gave a nervous chuckle. Damn it, Enigma. You’re gonna get it for that. The mercenary quickly shook his thought and looked back at Diego.

“My education was short, but my service to the Republic taught me many th-.” Before he was able to finish,‌ Diego paused him with his finger while holding his other hand to his ear. He was obviously being told something by someone higher up than he. The Zabrak shook his head a couple times and repeated ‘yes, sir’ a few times as well. He didn’t break eye contact with Sinder the whole time, leading the still visibly uncomfortable mercenary to be worried that his cover had been blown.

“Well, Vigoth, it looks like you’re about to be put to the test.” He stood up from his desk, extending an arm toward the interviewee. Sinder followed suit and stood up, stretching his legs subtly as he did it. It felt like he had been trapped there forever. The Trianii extended his paw toward Diego, engulfing most of his palm in his own.

“There has been a security issue, a team hasn’t reported in. You and two other recruits are going to check it out. If it is nothing, then we will resume your interview, if it is a security threat then you are to report back. You three will be escorted by an actual member of the governor’s security force.” With that, Vigoth opened his desk drawer and pulled out a blaster pistol, handing it over to Sinder. The pistol was much lower quality than his own, likely being a back-up in-case the Zabrak were ever caught in a trap in his office.

“Good luck, the other three will be waiting by the elevator.”

 

[Enigma Iuda]

Location: Ghost in the Machine
Post: FOUR
TAGS: Hacks Binary Ria Misrani Cassus Akovin Daiya Sinder Cassus Akovin Tarre Priest Soloman Priest

Sitting within his own virtual playroom, Enigma was performing multiple tasks at once, the experience almost impossible to describe using conventional ideas that only applied to a purely physical realm. The hardware implants that had been attacked and implanted within the grey-matter of his brain allowed him to experience the flow of data at such extreme speeds that to have written down individually what tasks were currently being completed would have overloaded a datapad almost instantly.

One part of him was currently working to keep all the various operatives working with synchronization, uploading various blueprints, maps and schematics to multiple HUDs and devices for the Darkwire’s members, constantly bouncing their communication signals as well, shifting and splicing the connections to ensure that no one signal was being utilised for too long, lest it attract attention.

Another was watching through the visual feeds and cameras, from hardline connected security cameras within the buildings to the shaky cams and static laced droid feeds the various ground-team utilised. One part of his consciousness was watching Sinder’s interview and laughing uproariously at the recruiters comments to the Trianii, falling of a chair that didn’t really exist, disappearing as that small piece of his consciousness closed as it merged with another to begin work on another one of the endless tasks that he was currently performing.

In the real world, the slicers body spasmed, his back and skin pulled tight as the hardline connection from Hacks sent the entire Belazuran security network’s data flow directly into his mind, his cerebellum rebelling briefly at the data overload, the cogitators and buffers in his brain running overtime to ensure his mind didn’t simply burn out from the amount of information flowing through his system.

Forget Jedi, seeing pretty auras and Sith flicking around their sabers like boomerangs, this is what it feels like to be a god.

His physical eyes dilated hugely behind his mask as his awareness flooded into the network, like blood flowing through veins, he was now within every part of the building. With a mental snap, the lights shutdown, another brought various doors into lockdown, shutting off as many of the security as he could but leaving Sinder a clear path through, also allowing Hacks and Binary a clear path to their destinations.

“Operator, getting your lift now, thank you for using Enigma-eats.” He chuckled, patching through the message both to Dyre Redwave and passing it across to Max Arach , one of their newest contractors who was their driver for the job.

With a final mental heave, he scrambled the comm signals of the security team inside, blasting some with static, linking others to various childrens infomercials and entertainment signals.

Closing time, Time for you to go back to the places you will be from. Closing time, This room won't be open 'til your brothers or you sisters com,. So gather up your jackets, and move it to the exits He began to sing across to the comms, hoping that at least some of the operatives found it as hilarious as he did.

 

[Tarre Priest]

LOCATION: Support Craft Gunship
OBJECTIVE: Make sure others don't show up, Provide Backup to Soloman Priest and Enigma Iuda
TAGS: Binary Hacks Cassus Akovin Sam Rodarch Sinder Wrenarias Ewan Mansvolk Ria Misrani Ozzie Ozzello

On go the alarms. Blaster fire and security teams blazing up with shots fired up on the floor of the Governor's suite. Binary and Hacks would have to deal with the security that was currently there and headed their way. Which hopefully shouldn't be took difficult for them. I mean, you just don't go stealing a building without people who can handle themselves.

Shaking my head, I sat up in my seat. Flipping some switches to turn on the various weapons I had on board. Specifically, the Ion cannons. They were great at taking out shields, and most if not any kind of Local policing force vehicle would not have energy shielding. Thus, a smack from one of the Four dual ion cannon turrets I had, would knock them from the sky, or stop them from moving along the street.

Police radios were going off to come to our location. First response was from a guy who mentioned he was only a couple blocks over to the east of our location.

"Alright ladies and gents. We got peeps inbound. First responder is about a minute away, and more just outside of two minutes. Keep your head on a swivel."

 

[Ria Misrani]

Forswythe, Durs Ranch and if the blistering winds hadn't been enough to remind Ria of where she was the smell of dung would. "Ugh, smells worse than that time we tried raiding a luchrehulk in the Outer Rim." A city kid at heart, Ria pulled her shirt over her nose and headed inside the ranch. From there she'd flash a fake ID and say she was late for a shift. Make her way to the back and begin to change into her uniform before slipping past security toward the vault. A few hacks to datapads and a slice swipe through keycard locations Ria would establish Darkwire's loggers and bots into the system. ​

​

It was one way of marking the planet as theirs.​

​

Unfortunately getting in was the easy part, the moment she stepped out however the gig was up. "Oh hey, time to go." Blaster fire way and Ria was on foot heading for the nearest exit as she tossed the uniform and ditched into the laundry room. From there she'd wait a moment before tip-toeing down the hall and toward the nearest garbage chute.​

​

Feet on the ground she headed back to her yacqt which once more took off like a veractyl out of the Netherworld with Ria clinging to dear life.​

 

[Binary]

There was something about actually working with a good slicer that made any mission so much better, so much easier. It was like while a normal team might be a knife slicing though butter, adding a slicer made them the equivalent of a hot knife. It was just so much easier. Binary heard Enigma’s voice in her hear, head nodding as she glanced back at Hacks, a small smile tugging at her lips as she heard the singing coming over the radio.

“Well, people do say that it’s not over till the fat lady sings, but I think we can probably call it with that don’t you think?”

The HRD’s lips curled up into a smile as she let her blue eyed gaze flick over towards the door to the governors room as she holstered one of her pistols. Soft footsteps took her over to the door, peering cautiously at Hacks.

“Do you think you two can get the vault open? I’ll take care of the governor umm when you do.”

An apologetic wry smile and nod, Binary knew her limits and opening up a vault like this without explosives was not something that was really in her wheelhouse. Blow it up with explosives, that she could handle but this was supposed to be ‘stealthy’. Besides, the mission so far had been one of the smoothest she’d been on. The two team leaders had been capable so far, so she should at least give them the benefit of the doubt and not question them.

One delicate hand reached down, just resting over the door switch, just holding there, waiting. She didn’t know what she’d find on the other side, but whatever it was, nothing would stop her from accomplishing the mission.

 

[Daiya]

Location: At the BelWay Resort & Stay
Objective: Finish the job before interference arrives
Allies Nearby: Cassus Akovin

---

By the time she opened the door to the rest of the suite again, Daiya was charged with purpose. The girl wore a renewed expression on her freshly-washed face, cleaned of the tears that too often threatened to waylay her after a vision. She'd also taken the time to restore her hair to a tidy bunch behind her head, the dampened locks brushed out to keep them free of knots. She wasn't very well going to face down her fears —turned whether turned to vivid reality by her brain or some enigmatic Force— with tangled or unkempt hair.

Or dressed in a wet swimsuit, either! Daiya now wore a light grey t-shirt, emblazoned with the bright Robo-Cat logo across the front, with a pair of bright pink jeans that hugged her hips, threaded with a light blue belt. It was more made up than she would have picked for the altered circumstances, the girl had expected she'd just be wooing Zenie all day, but the reassuring feeling of the combat boots around her feet gave her a little more confidence.

If she needed any more, the blaster in the bag she set next to the couch was easily within her reach.

Taking a seat back on the couch, Daiya tried to look composed. In reality, she wanted to jump out of her skin, to claw at the walls or scream until she was hoarse. It was nerve-wracking to just sit there, waiting for the boy to come in, knowing what would happen. She didn't know how they would get the the point she saw in her vision. She never knew how events would unfold in reality. Just that it would happen.

Or not. Sometimes she got it wrong. Sometimes the vision never came to pass, and sometimes it was because she stopped it in its tracks.

Seeing the future was tricky like that. Or her curse was, she wasn't sure what the visions came from.

Jairdain had called it the Force, but Daiya still wasn't sure what to make of that. It didn't feel like magic or some mystical energy that she could talk to. It just felt like an imposition, a burden, a cross to bear.

None of which helped her nerves settle.

It took until Zenie smiled at her, the sweetest smile on the planet, before Daiya's heart stopped thumping loudly in her chest, and her breathing calmed to an even pace again. Things would be okay, so long as she was with Zenie now, some part of her knew.

The job was still important, but maybe Daiya could still be friends with Zenie.

She would like that.

"So, what kind of fun stuff do you have in here?"

Like a youngling in a candy store, Zenie's expression brightened at the invitation to show off. "Oh, I'll show you, come on!"

The younger girl pounced on Daiya's arm, kidnapping it and dragging Daiya behind her as she led the older girl to another room.

Candy store wasn't too far off, in fact. The brightly decorated bedroom felt a world away from the professionalized charm of the living room. The shelves were filled with trinkets and toys, from stuffed toy creatures to a model of a gorgeous palace of some world —Naboo? Alderaan? Hapes? Daiya couldn't place it— and the walls had a smattering of holographically projected posters. Zenie delighted in showing off her things and even if some of them were worth more than her entire existence, Daiya was invited to handle and play with them as if they were completely expendable.

Daiya loved being welcomed into this girl's confidence.

But every moment of it was wracked with the guilt over how she planned to shatter it.

"My dad brought this one back from Corellia," Zenie said about one of her belongings, holding up a curious blaster to Daiya. "He said it used to belong to some old general, like in ancient times when rebellions could bring down a whole empire, Han Smuggler or something."

"Whoa, this is so astral!" Daiya said softly. She took the blaster gingerly, examining it this way or that. She wasn't familiar with the history Zenie talked about, but a relic such as this one was a real prize. The weapon was hefty, definitely built for someone stronger than she was to wield it one-handed as it was designed, and despite her historical ignorance on the blaster she felt honored to be holding it. She held it out in front of her, her arm swaying a little until she found the balance, and aimed it at the wall, "Imagine using this on your enemy, like General Smuggler would. Just aim it at their chest and...

She squeezed the trigger experimentally, not really surprised that nothing came out of it, but willing to add the emphasis herself, "PSHEW!"

Daiya turned back to Zenie, a little worried that she might have put the younger girl off with the violent imagery, but the governor's daughter seemed enamored by the pretend scenario. Maybe, the girl thought, Zenie was a little too overprotected by her father. Give her some training and a gun, and she might not need so many guards for her own safekeeping.

"Why doesn't your father keep this locked up, or something? Isn't it super important?" Daiya asked, cradling the weapon again as she handed it back to the younger girl, passing it off gently.

Zenie shook her head, "He doesn't really care about history or culture that much. He only keeps datachits and flimsis in his safe here." The auburn-headed girl wrinkled her nose at the thought of it. She laughed gaily at her own reaction, "That's why I need to learn so much about it, because my dad never got the chance!"

So, there was a safe in the suite after all. Daiya's heart sank a little, knowing that one aspect of her vision was true.

It focused her goal, however. Now she just needed to get inside before...

A noise from outside the bedroom signalled the arrival of their room service. The smells that invaded the place drew the girls forth like a lure, Zenie eagerly bounding out the door with Daiya right behind her. The service droid was carefully arranging covered dishes on the table while Bookworm watched in her suspiciously detatched manner. Daiya had expected the process to be more like delivered takeout, food brought no farther than the door, leaving it up to them to sort it and eat. The droid's preparations made it look more like a fancy restaurant instead, it first dressed the table with a cloth before beginning to arrange the covered dishes on top.

Daiya was so entranced by the droid's performance that she never considered the danger involved in a strange droid entering the room.

"Don't be startled!" Came the voice of the teenaged boy from the pool. The girl wasn't worried about being startled as her body tensed, it was the timing of his appearance. Silently, she cursed herself for dawdling too long, letting herself be lulled in by Zenie's accommodating friendship. "I have a message to deliver, Zenie Chuma's ears only."

That caught her off-guard. She thought Pool Boy had come to steal, not deliver a message. Still wearing his swimming attire and just carrying a small satchel, he at least looked harmless enough, Daiya supposed. A quick glance at Bookworm, who still stood poised at the door with her hand reaching behind her back but now wore an outward expression of concern on her face, told her otherwise. The girl nearly did a double-take at Bookworm, the bodyguard's expression nearly mirrored that of Tawrro's when he feared for her safety.

Apparently, Zenie's bodyguards cared just as much about her.

Suddenly, Daiya had a chilling thought of all that could happen to Zenie if she were alone with someone like Pool Boy. The girl reached for her blaster, only to find herself empty handed. She gaped in horror at her bag, sitting across the room by the couch, while Pool Boy stood in between them. Silently, the girl cursed herself again, and opened her mouth to speak.

"Not another move, kid!" came the voice of Bookworm instead, and now she wielded a blaster in her hands, aimed squarely at Pool Boy. She'd taken one step toward Daiya and Zenie, as if trying to get in front of them. "Keep your hands where I can see them, and get on your knees."

Daiya took the initiative to move in front of Zenie herself, posing as a human shield with her arms akimbo. She had a job to finish, that was it, right? The girl wasn't completely sure, herself. She could easily see Zenie being a real friend, Daiya liked the genial girl enough, but would Zenie even want to be around her after being used?

In either case, Daiya wasn't going to find out if Pool Boy squandered her chance.

To her surprise, it was Zenie who made the first move, stepping out from around Daiya's protective shield. She watched the younger girl stand boldly, only hesitating to tuck a lock of stray hair behind her ear, before saying, "What's the message?"

"Zenie, get back!" Bookworm cried, taking another few steps toward the girls, but Zenie held up a hand to her bodyguard.

"No, Arlunia, I want to hear it," Zenie said firmly, turning back to Pool Boy to Daiya's shock and Bookworm's —Arlunia's— horror. Her voice grew more quiet as she asked, "Is it about my father? Is he okay?"

Seemingly unaware of the posturing taking place around it, the serving droid finished artfully arranging the table just as soon as Zenie finished with her plea. It beamed as only a droid could, and then announced cheerily, "Your table is ready, Mistresses!" It looked around, a bit surprised by the stand-off that surrounded it, and its head jittered this way and that. "Oh, I'm sorry. And Master."

 

[Hacks]

The distorted chatter and some singing came through the comms as Enigma took total control over the building. “Well, people do say that it’s not over till the fat lady sings, but I think we can probably call it with that don’t you think?” Binary chirped, Hacks said, "Beautiful, ain't it." She moved towards the vault and gave Binary a silent thumbs up to let her know it was go-time. "Big sister reporting to the birds in the sky, we're good to fly," Hacks said over the encrypted comlink. As quickly as she signed off the entire building began to rumble with a great vibration. A swarm of construction droids flew past the windows, upwards and away, their laser cutters red hot from hard work.

The building jerked up, a poor feeling in Hacks stomach told her the floor they were on had just detached from the rest of the tower. Then the entire room tilted to a 40° angle. Furniture slid from one side of the floor to the other, slamming into the wall and some crashing through the window to fall far down to the streets below. Glass rained down. Hacks began to slide away from the vault, falling to her stomach as she lost all control. She desperately slammed a mechanical fist into the tiles, crunching through tile and duracrete. She was able to grab a hold, and with her mechanical hands she began to climb towards the vault, feet dangling now.

"Damn! damn! damn!" Hacks shouted harshly, her free arms reached for the vault access panel, peeling it away and revealing the retina scanner. She reached into her pocket and slapped a hard-hologram of a replica retina of the Governors; gifted by Diviak who had overseen the Governors retina scanning for Corporate Authority government building access. The vault beeped and the pad went green. The great vault door swung open and immediately tens of thousands of credits began to pour out from the door in a great wave, falling down the tilted floor and out the broken window, cascading down into the streets below.

Hacks climbed, faster, piles of credits slapping against her face and shoulders, seemingly endless credits continuing to flood past her. It was almost like swimming against a raging river, albeit one of inexplicable wealth. She could see a flashing blue database in the center of the vault, the governors will was housed within the terminal. Hacks only needed to place the virus into the terminal, immediately altering the will and uploading it to the governors legal team. She climbed, faster, greater than any normal hands could have done. She grabbed the terminal with all four hands and turned her head to peer down, most of the credits pooled around the windows or had fallen out now. There was still millions alone inside, although countless millions lost through the window.

It seemed to be a great fall if she were to let go and she reminded herself to not listen to that tiny voice in everyone's mind that told them to do something incredibly stupid. Looking back she slid a hand across her glasses and thumbed a small button, ejecting a hair-thin disc drive. She slapped it into the terminal and there was silence. There was no red flashing light. No mission success. It was silent but she knew her side of the job was done. "Binary now!" Hacks screamed, "Kill the governor!"

 

[Dyre Redwave]

As he and his men had set about removing the contents of the vault, Dyre began to hear the sound of gunfire outside. This was unsurprising, no doubt local policing forces had been contacted with teams being dispatched in response to a request for help from the bank itself. What he was banking on however, was that they weren’t expecting the military grade hardware he had stationed outside.

“Where’s that shuttle” Dyre asked into the com. “I want to get out of here before they send in military forces”

“Landing now” a pilot responded. “Will set down in about 15 seconds.”

“Set this place to blow” Dyre ordered to the men in the bank “and on my order start hauling".

With his rifle raised, he exited the bank to get a look at the ongoing fighting. His AT-STs were putting up an admirable fight. The small arms of the local guard forces proving to be little match for his equipment. He looked up to and saw that the pilots were true to their word. As the descent completed, he heard the hiss of the ships hydraulics as it landed and the ramp began to open.

A crowd of onlookers, tourists mostly, had begun to gather around the sight, some seeming to believe that this was some type of ‘show’ and clapping as a police speeder erupted into flame. Dyre paid them no mind though appreciated their roles as adequate meat shields for his own men. “Shuttles here boys, get hauling” he ordered, and the men inside began to run out with their ‘profits’ from the heist. The onlookers began to cheer and clap as his men ran out, indicating that they were clearly oblivious to just how real the events were. In under a minute the contents of the vault and deposit boxes were loaded into the shuttle. With the thorough thrashing of what police forces were present, the AT-ST operators had time enough to set charges in their vehicles and disembark, with they themselves running to the shuttle as well.

Dyre went to the helm of ship placing a hand on the shoulder of the pilot and looking outward. The ship began to slowly lift from the ground indicating that their getaway would soon be complete. “Detonate all charges” he yelled to his men in the rear of the shuttle. “Lets give our adoring fans a pyrotechnics display.”

As he looked out he saw one of the AT-STs bluge outward with flames emerging from the viewing ports. It wobbled slightly on its legs before falling to the ground, completely destroyed. No doubt the other had suffered the same fate. The door of the bank bulged outward and a flash emerged from between the cracks. Even inside of the craft the roar and applause from the onlookers could be heard. He had no idea what was wrong with these people.

“Other ship secure?” Dyre asked the pilot

“Left the ship yard as we were inbound” the pilot responded. “We are the last assets planetside.”

“Good” Dyre responding, looking at the streets below and seeing that indeed far heavier equipment had been on the way. “Looks like the authorities were really wanting to spend some time with us, sending everything they could.”

“A man could get away with anything they wanted down there right now, good time to get away with murder” the pilot said with a laugh.

“Indeed it would” Dyre agreed… “Indeed it would”

 

[Sinder]

As Sinder exited the office, he was met by two other people in civilian clothing. The first recruit to notice Sinder was a Rodian man who was dressed in a suit similar to Sinder, but he appeared far more comfortable in it. He stood roughly six feet tall which was large for his species. He had muscles, but his figure was more lean which meant he likely was a ground soldier or a hand to hand specialist. The other of the recruits was a Human woman. She was swathed in a business suit and around it a hooded tunic which cut off at the waist. Her frame was powerful, but shorter. She was clearly strong, and likely a heavy weapons specialist or a combat medic.

It was apparent, however, that they would all three need armor before they took off. While Sinder was still undercover, he still needed to reach his personal locker Enigma Iuda had set up, that’s where his real weapons and heavy armor would be. He still had two blasters now with the one Diego had given him, and his lightsaber tucked away under his tunic but he felt naked without his repeating blaster.

The third stranger had started to approach the group. He was clearly the security officer Diego had spoken of. He was a very large Human male with a zigzag scar running down the side of his cheek. He was already made up in trooper armor, and in his hands were three access chits.

“Recruits, this is not a normal occurrence, but given the nature of the Governor’s bounty, we are needing the extra help.” He spoke with an accent, but Sinder couldn’t place the origin. “My name is Major Barnas and I‌ have arranged for you to have armor waiting for you in the next room. It should fit if your information was correct on your applications and medical exams.” He saluted to the three of them before placing his arm back at his side. “We will meet back here in three minutes. There will be a blaster in the locker as well, it is not to leave stun unless we are met with resistance.”

With that, Sinder took to the locker room. As Barnas had said, inside was a set of medium armor that looked like it would fit his feline features. Alongside it was a standard blaster rifle. It looked like Republic forces blasters, meaning the Governor either had Repubic backing or enough money to buy their weapons. Taking his armor in his hand, he happily ripped off the suit from his body.‌ He didn’t even bother un-buttoning it, he simply used one of his large claws to tear it off. He threw it in the trash behind him while he left to a secluded section to don the armor provided. He would have spit on the suit if he could have, but the Rodian already thought he was weird.

He made his way to a corner of the locker room more secluded so that he wouldn’t be seen with the lightsaber on his side. Sinder hid his weapons easily before, but with the armor it was going to be much harder. Luckily the armor was a little loose on his thighs and he was able to secure it there. He figured he didn’t need Diego’s blaster or the one that he had smuggled in, however, and left them behind in the locker. He knew the jig was up soon anyways, so it didn’t matter if they discovered them later. He likely would be parsecs away by that time. He quickly gathered his composure and left shortly after the Rodian.

He was met with the Human woman being the first one out, her blaster rifle strapped to her back. It was slightly different than Sinders. It had a scope on it, and the barrel was skinnier. The Rodian was outfitted with a blaster very similar to Sinder’s. The three of them stood at attention when the Major came back. “Alright, we are ready to head out. I’ll take point, Margot, you take rear, Vigoth and Yuden, you stick behind me.” He quit talking and started down a corridor. A short elevator ride later and they were on the floor the call came from. A small, un-noticable beeping noise started in Sinder’s ear. Enigma you genius, this was the floor the locker was on.

“Remember, your blasters are to stay on stun.‌ We are just investigating.” Barnas started off toward the end of the hallway. There were about eight hundred feet between them and the next room. While Sinder didn’t know what had happened to get security called, he knew his real mission here was to kill the governor of the planet, not to help stop them. After getting roughly half way toward the door, the Trianii knew he had to act soon. He stopped his motion, knowing that Margot was at his back. Just as he was about to reach for his blaster, the lights went out in the hallway. The darkness made a perfect cover for Sinder.

Being a large Trianii had its advantages when it came to hunting in darkness. His species had been granted low-light vision, meaning Sinder and the Rodian could make out what was happening while Humans could not. The chaos of the situation would offer the best cover however. While the major turned around, trying to call out for the recruits. The Trianii took this moment to take on Margot. His large body lunged toward hers, tearing into her armor and body on impact. She let out a scream before hitting the ground. The thud of her armor drawing the attention of the Rodian. Yuen turned on his heel, grabbing his blaster and letting off two shots at Sinder. One of them hit his armor in the shoulder, singing some of his fur. Something he could have avoided if he just had his own armor.

The second victim would fall as easily as the first, with his neck being snapped. Another thud was all the warning the Major had before Sinder was right behind him. “Vigoth? Margot? Yu-” Barnas’s calls were interrupted by the lights turning back on, revealing a blood covered Sinder breathing down his neck. The Trianii’s mouth was in a bloodthirsty snarl, his eyes like amber slits caught in a death stare.

“Never Vigoth.” He spit out with contempt. “I am Sinder. I‌ will be the one to kill your Governor.” He wasted no time before tearing into the Major’s neck with his fangs, killing him instantly and covering the hunter in even more blood. He didn’t want to waste anymore time though and Sinder promptly made his way toward the locker, listening to the beeping of the device Enigma had given him for his comm link.

He would go and change into his armor before he faced the bounty head on, as there were likely going to be many more troopers to mow through. He just needed to know where they were. “Enigma, I am going for the bounty.” He paused, hoping Enigma was listening, which he usually was. “Lead the way.” As he said that, the doors fluttered before him, some opening, some closing, but they all appeared locked like he was keeping the security forces out of his way.

After he was fully dressed, including having his lightsaber hanging at his hip and not cutting circulation off against it, and his large repeater on his back he gave a thumbs up to the closest security camera as thanks to the omnipotent being that Enigma seemed to be.

Now it was time to collect a bounty.

 

[Binary]

There was something about watching millions and millions of credits just pouring out of the window that just hurt Binary on a spiritual level she hadn't been sure she still possessed. The woman was no Robin Hood, she didn't steal from the rich to give to the poor, if they wanted something then they should take it. Reach out with their own two hands and get what they wanted through work, or grift or just pure strength. Certainly, no-one had offered her a helping hand when she'd needed it. When she'd been cast out onto the street only the harsh reality of life waited for her, people used you, or you used them.

While every fibre of her being urged her to reach out and grab as many of the credits as she could, who couldn't use a few million credits extra after all, there was a mission at hand. Immediate gratification for the offer of increased reputation and fees in the future.

A heavy sigh shook her frame as Binary clung to the doorway with one hand, her gun slipping into her holster as she just hung in the air for a moment. While she'd expected some...turbulence, she hadn't predicted the room would tilt quite so much, but that was just part of the adventure wasn't it? Tensed muscles started her swinging, waving back and forth in the air as a hand swung, slapping desperately at the door control.

A miss, a miss and a hit.

A swing that would have done any gymnast proud left the woman resting on the wall of the room, silvery eyes meeting the terrified gaze of a man clinging desperately to the furniture, relief shining in his dark eyes.

"Oh, thank the force, you..."

That was as far as he got, a single knife casually tossed slipping through his throat as his knees buckled, the man pitching forward onto the wall, confusion and terror filling his eyes before the light slowly faded as his body slumped forward. The HRD barely gave him a second chance as she dropped through the door, landing cat-like on another wall.

"What say we get out of here?"

 

[Cassus Akovin]

The bodyguard in the room was first to react, which wasn't surprising. What was surprising, was the lithe body thrown between him and the Governor's daughter. A hero in the making, He thought to himself begrudgingly. With a hand in his satchel, it was no effort at all to squeeze its trigger and say a quiet word in the bodyguard's direction. He had disarmed them with hesitance, and now he capitalized on their mistake.

"Sleep." Would be the response Zenie got, as a neurological wave coalesced around Bookworm's mind, a storm surge of electrical signals guided by a malevolent A.I. whose only programming was brute force. Like a switch in her brain, the bodyguard's consciousness failed, all too humanoid and a mind even as robust as hers was still a fragile organ before the iron grip of technology. If the pistol apparatus could speak, it would laugh in pleasure, for despite the limitations of its body, it reveled in the joy of living out its purpose; to make putty of the minds of its "betters". Cassus eased his grip on the Shuffler, while his free hand pulled out his other "weapon", a datapad with Mr. Follow's thermal imaging of the Governor.

"I'm afraid not," He answered the girl on the state of her father, as he revealed the datapad. "This is the heat signature of your father right now, in the sights of an assassin droid. I have the ability to stop it, but not for much longer. The only thing I want, and I recommend you give to me, is the Governor's handwritten will. Anything less, and I will allow it to kill him, right in front of you." Cassus then tightened his grip on the Shuffler and raised it to be level with them.

"Then I will make you give it to me anyway," A hard look came over the youth's face and voice, and it wasn't the look or sound of a killer necessarily, but it was the look and words of someone serious and fully capable of dolling out the threats he made. Cassus's gaze wandered to Daiya 's, as if he were making a challenge to her to get in his way, to see the consequences of her bravery.

It felt all too natural for Cassus, to have gone from awkward pool-boy innocence to full-blown, armed blackmail...