Private In Search of Coaxium and Zombies?!

[Sorr Kortu]

Location: Zodasia

Smuggler Outfit

The Tiaza's Purr landed on a swamp area particularly a place where there wasn't any fog. Sorr had some problems with the communications as soon as he came out of hyperspace and it got worse the closer he got to the planet's orbit. Was someone jamming the ship's communications? It was unlikely, there wasn't anyone on this planet since it was uncharted according to the starmap that Sorr and the crew were provided by their client: Karpel Excaan . Karpel was one of many CEOs of the Pyke Syndicate an organization who dealt with Coaxium essentially the lifeblood for hyperdrives. Coaxium provided the fuel necessary to jump to lightspeed and the substance was rare and expensive.

Sorr's Dad's words echoed in his mind whenever he dealt with the Syndicate: "Those who control the Coaxium control the Galaxy," every deal involving starships always involved the Pyke Syndicate. It was strange though having Karpel on board, Pykes usually let the mercenaries and Smugglers handle the dirty work but Karpel insisted on coming. Sorr suspected it was because Karpel wanted to make sure that Sorr and the crew wouldn't make out with the Coaxium for themselves establishing a trade route for the other Smugglers to use at their leisure. Brinna Dara on the other hand mentioned that Karpel looked like a person who was eager to explore the galaxy based on her first impression of him. Sounds improbable since Sorr had met many Pyke in his life while traveling with Dad.

"And here we are," Sorr said getting up from the pilot's chair. "All we need to do is to find the Coaxium veins, mark them, and we're done!" He quickly at the ship's readings, frowning at how much unknown flora there was on the planet. The atmosphere was breathable at least. "Just don't go sightseeing guys," Sorr said. "We don't know much about this planet, we've spent hours scanning but there's some sort of interference coming from the planet's surface."

He stared at Karpel. "You sure this planet wasn't inhabited?" Sorr asked. "It's possible that the planet emitted electromagnetic pulses, but I wanted to make sure."

Neli , Sag'etare Baracco , Alaric Marrãll

 

[Karpel Excaan]

Spoiler: Prologue

“Trust me, sir. It will only be two weeks. After that, it will be like I was never gone in the first place.” Karpel Excaan said in an assuring tone. “I am sure you can understand that even I need a vacation every now and then.”

The holographic projection of Excaan’s boss, Jej Ulchtar, stared at him wordlessly for a moment, and then said “Very well then. But I expect you and your company to be at optimal performance once you return.” After a moment, he added “I certainly hope you have a satisfactory time on Niamos, Excaan.”. While his words were polite, his tone implied that an “or else” was attached.

“Yes, yes, of course, sir. I will.” Excaan laughed nervously.

The holographic projection of Ulchtar maintained its serious decorum. “Now, I am afraid I cannot continue this conversation any longer. Unlike yourself, I am a busy Pyke with… many things to attend to.” it concluded, before dissolving back into the holoprojector mounted on Excaan’s desk with a wavy electronic chime.

At this, Karpel Excaan sank back into his velvet-backed swiveling chair, and let out a sigh of relief. Karpel was normally no coward, but something about talking to Jej Ulchtar put the fear of Hell into his bones. But this time, it seemed Ulchtar had bought his lie. Or at least, he didn’t suspect enough to bother stopping him. And that would be enough. This mission he would be going on was well-worth the risk of lying to Ulchtar, in his opinion. If it paid off, there was even the possibility of escaping his grip entirely.

The mission in question was an expedition to find veins of Coaxium under the surface of the planet Zodasia. When Karpel first heard about the possibility of raw Coaxium on the planet, he could not resist the opportunity to personally look into it. During his younger years, he had been a part of one of the early surveying teams assigned to map the planet, and the chance to return was not one he would be passing up. And not one that he would be telling his overlords in the Syndicate either. This venture would be strictly off the holobooks, and to facilitate it, he would be enlisting the services of private contractors. While he did not know these smugglers personally, he had heard of them by reputation, and was confident that they could get the job done successfully and secretly. Just to be safe though, he would be bringing a pair of loyal Standard Coaxium Guards on the mission with him. He was not predisposed to believe that the crew would betray him, but he wanted to be ready for that possibility. And even if they did not, Zodasia was a dangerous planet.

One way or another though, Karpel had a distinct feeling that this would an adventure to remember.

Location: Zodasia

Objective: Find Coaxium Veins

Tags: Sorr Kortu , Brinna Dara , Alaric Marrãll , Neli , Sag'etare Baracco

Karpel Excaan was sitting in one of the passenger seats in the cockpit of the Tiaza’s Purr, as the ship’s captain, Sorr Kortu, skillfully landed it on a swampy patch of ground on Zodasia’s surface. Karpel was not quite sure what to think of the Captain as of yet. He certainly seemed young, but not immature or incapable. It also seemed like Karpel and the two guards he had brought with him were not the first Pykes he had met. This made a certain amount of sense. The Pyke Syndicate’s power was on the rise, and Pykes were becoming more and more common sights around the Galaxy.

Once they had landed, Karpel listened in as Sorr Kortu briefed the crew about their mission. When he asked him about whether or not the planet was inhabited, Karpel said “This part of the planet? No, not anymore at least. This whole planet used to be inhabited. But that species went extinct tens of thousands of years ago. Some of their machines were very advanced for a one-planet civilization, so it could definitely be one of them muddying your scanners.” Karpel finished, and waited to hear the crew’s opinions on the possibility.

 

[Sag'etare Baracco]

Another happy landing. The captain was a kid in comparison but the smuggler knew what he was doing and had already proven it. Were it not for a soft swamp for a landing pad, however, and the coin might just have fallen from the pirate’s knuckles. Instead, he flipped it, caught it, and did not guess whether it landed on tails or heads in his palm.

He closed his fingers, formed a fist, sitting in another passenger seat in the cockpit of the Tiaza’s Purr. And, oh my, how she purred. Her engines were humming, not yet shutting down with her inhabitants, while the outside world hurled insults at her as if to say her passengers had no business in this humid environment.

It felt as welcoming as the Pykes, and Karpel Excaan was another mystery for that matter. Then again, his kind did like to get active more than their rivals, the Hutts. They had that much going for them. This guy’s guards, however, would most likely prove to be fodder for whatever creatures might like to pounce upon them.

“Trust me,” Sage interjected into the conversation. “The last thing I want to be is a meal for some mutated eel, so no sightseeing for me.” He covertly lied. If something golden caught his eye? Might just be time to see where it leads—but that remained to be seen.

“Blue and red,” the pirate reminded anyone who needed it as he stood in the cockpit. “You see those colors, don’t go running to them like some green virgin in a red light district.” He shrugged. “Forgive the confusion. Put it simply, coaxium is a highly volatile explosive substance so, eheh, try to be shy, guys.” He smiled at the Pyke’s guards who might yet be idiots. That remained to be seen.

Sorr Kortu Neli Alaric Marrãll Karpel Excaan

 

[Neli]

Neli spun around in a chair on the landing smiling as she watched the others, a pistol on either hip and her lightsaber on her back. The rebreather mask hanging around her neck at the moment. She hummed "No sightseeing, you just have to take the fun out of everything." she joked cheerfully as she continued to rotate, raising a brow at the pyke. "So no one's gonna complain if we end up bringing one with us is what you're saying?"

Then there was Sag'etare Baracco another she was new to. "Just tryna get the whole rainbow into your analogy there aren't you?" she grinned humming again to herself and making the chair spin faster, "Besides red light district isn't that dangerous. All those threats are real obvious."

The girl looked over at the pyke and stopped spinning leaning her elbows on her knees, "Your boys here any good? Think they'd be up for a little sparring when we're done? Hm, guess we'd have to do that after we left though. You're probably not gonna want to wait for that are you." she glanced at the zabrak, "What about you....uh.." she narrowed her eyes unsure if she had been told his name, "...fella. Feel like sparring when we're done?"

Sorr Kortu Alaric Marrãll Karpel Excaan Sag'etare Baracco

Spoiler: Tools:

nelis-lightsaber.
sib-14-stun-ion-pistol
Metal Rebreather mask
Holocomm
Satchel.
Flute
Ancient Hutt Fusion Pistol

 

[Brinna Dara]

Location: Zodasia
Objective: Mark Coaxium veins for the Pykes
Tags: Sorr Kortu | Neli | Alaric Marrãll | Sag'etare Baracco | Karpel Excaan

Brinna kicked back in the co-pilot’s seat and allowed Sorr to do all the flying. That was how it usually went. Brinna wasn’t a bad pilot, but Sorr was better. She was ready to jump in and help out, but when it came to a difficult landing she would most likely just get in the way. She wondered how the Coaxium Standard CEO got their contacts, and was honestly a bit suspicious of why the Pykes couldn’t find someone who was more specialized in the work they were contracting. It was strange to be in the position Sorr usually was of doubting their employer’s motivations. Not that she lost any of her “We’re badasses and we’ll get the job done whatever happens” attitude, just was a bit more aware that something devious was going on.

The Pyke assured Sorr that the planet was not inhabited, by sentient population at least, and gave some excuses as to what could have been causing issues with the sensors. Brinna wondered what the reason was for sure. She silently keyed a request to M.O.M. to investigate what could be found. With that it appeared it was time to make their way out into the swaps and do their jobs.

Sage, a new addition to the crew who Brinna had not worked with before, responded to Sorr’s warning with an affirmative. Brinna was unsure whether he was being truthful or not, but the hair on the back of her neck rose when he mentioned a mutated eel. Brinna giggled with his warning about colors and the explosiveness of coaxium. Mostly because of the connection he put to the crew and a virgin in a red light district. “Ever been a virgin in a red light district Sage?” Brinna asked with a smirk.

Neli got another giggle out of Brinna. She always was on the lookout for something to pawn. An easy score. Brinna didn’t blame her, it was probably smarter than the jobs the crew actually took on. And seeing how most jobs went, salvage and quick smash and grabs might even end up being more profitable. Neli also saw humor in the Zabrak’s statement. “He missed orange and violet, but I’m sure there’s time in the mission to find a spot for them,” Brinna gave both Sage and Neli a wink. As Neli further looked for a fight (or spar) Brinna turned to Sorr and patted his shoulder. “Think we should get the show on the road before someone gets bored.”