Militaristic Visitations

[Onrai]

Space had, for thousands of years, been the final frontier for the various races that called this galaxy home. The vast, enigmatic plains of the cosmos proving an agitating curiosity to whoever once stared at the stars and questioned what life was out there. Whenever a society evolved, its system of government seemed to remain the same. The only difference was a raise in tier. Provinces formed their governments into states, who merged together, becoming countries. These countries, once other worlds in their systems were colonized, turned into world governments. Systems, sectors, oversectors, galactic powers... and then the galaxy.

Which was why, at the moment, Bosch was stuck at an intersystem checkpoint. Evidently, a high quantity of radioactive elements from a city's reactor had been stolen, and starships were currently lined up, waiting to be inspected to determine which, if any, had traces of the stolen material. He was only here to speed the situation up.

"How many more ships do we have left?"

"Only a few dozen."

"Very well. Continue looking for that radioactive material."

@[member="Ivy Lasranae"]

 

[Hazel Scheler]

No matter what era one came from, there was always a little constant something. It never mattered if the galaxy was smouldering to ruin in the wake of an unstoppable plague or if it was just rising from the ashes, green and healthy in the morning dew. Wild space to inner core, if you traveled at all you were bound to run into it: traffic.

The thrumming of fingers echoed deftly in the cockpit of The Egris - a ship that sat in stark contrast to the many of which it was lined up in. It's hull glimmered cleanly and the paint gave off a proud shimmer. The hull, vastly unmarred in its infantile age amidst the turmoil of the galactic planes, not only garnered awe from those less fortunate, but a curious amount of attention from anyone who cared to look twice. What on earth was a ship like that doing in a place like this?

"How fickle my heart and how woozy my eyes," Ivy said to no one in particular, rubbing at the bridge of her nose. She'd been en route to Saleucami, following a questionable lead, and it had been a long trip.

"Identify yourself," the comm sounded from the control panel.

"Captain Ivy Lasranae of The Egris," Ivy replied, "how long will this take?"

"Prepare to be boarded."

"The ship's brand new and bare bones. You won't find anything on here but me."

And barely enough fuel for my journey if this takes much longer, she thought to herself with a scowl.

 

[Onrai]

"We have a new ship, sir. Preparing for inspection of it as of right now. She seems agitated... Shall we detain her?"

Bosch sighed. "Bring her aboard and bring some new ships in to take over. We'll be taking this woman to wherever it is she intends to get to. And faster than she'd get with her current ship."

A tractor beam would lock onto @[member="Ivy Lasranae"]'s vessel. "Miss, the Grand Admiral of the Imperial Navy wishes to bring you in for a discussion." Which was true, of course. He figured the least he could do was assist the woman and assist her for the fact that she'd been stuck in this line of ships for so long. Hence the override of his underling's signal.

"To unidentified vessel: This is the Imperial Star Destroyer Iceni, Grand Admiral Aken Bosch speaking. I wish to apologize to you personally for the delay. You obviously care about your vessel, as its meticulous condition shows. As such, I would like for you to land your ship in our hangar. We will personally take you and your ship to whatever destination you were heading for before being blocked by this search."

 

[Hazel Scheler]

A groan escaped her lips. Around her the ship shuddered under the pull of the tractor beams. The sparkling view of vast, spacey starlight was soon swept away as the Egris was swallowed hole into the belly of the metal titan. Darkness followed, Ivy's face illuminated only by the blue gleam of the console before her, pupils quickly narrowing to pinpricks as the flood lights of the hangar bay flashed through. With a sigh the woman took the controls again, wheeling the freighter around to an empty landing pad.

Within minutes she was striding down the entrance ramp, adjusting the lengths of her brown traveling cloak over her white armor. She chose to leave her weapons on board, safely stowed under lock and key.

"Captain Lasranae of the Egris?" a man in a sharp uniform approached.

"Aye," Ivy nodded.

"Follow me."

And follow she did. Along walkways and through hallways, up, up, up the access lift past the levels of little importance to the one where the only person on board this ship that truly mattered resided. The uniformed man lead in to the bridge and though it was full of many faces Ivy's experience told her exactly who to look for: the man who looked like he actually knew what he was doing; the man that everyone else looked to with curiosity at her presence.

"Admiral," she greeted him, unsmiling, "I'm afraid I must decline your offer."

 

[Onrai]

Bosch's face was, at the time, equally grim. "If I may inquire, why so?" After all, he was still attempting to be calm, cordial, and relaxed in regards to the situation. "It's rare I offer such a compliment, but you were different from the others. The only one whose ship appears truly like new out of the entire lot. You've done an excellent job maintaining it despite its age... Where have you gotten your parts for it?" He was admittedly curious. As a naval officer, he respected people who kept their ships in the highest possible condition.

In the meantime, scans were being conducted of her ship for the missing radioactive material. As of right now, there were no signs of such a thing, but it could still possibly have been there.

"So. Let me guess... Judging by the armor, you're most likely a higher-class mercenary. if I may ask, what is your current employer paying you?"

@[member="Ivy Lasranae"]

 

[Hazel Scheler]

If their scanners were sweeping for generalized out of the ordinary energy signatures, they just might pick up on the rather out of the ordinary weapon she had on board. Aing-Tii tech out in the galaxy beyond the presence of the Aing-Tii themselves was entirely unheard of. Rarer yet was a person who could recognize it for what it was.

"Thank you, but your compliments are wasted. I've only just acquired the ship a week ago," no sense in buttering a roll that wasn't there. She neglected to speak of where it was acquired - it was far away and of no consequence to Imperial space.

"I do not have a current employer, but the last one paid me with that ship so I'd appreciate it if your boys left it in one piece," the woman spoke, her tone tenacious, "I'll be blunt, Admiral. I've been flying for three days straight. I'm tired, I'm hungry, I have a schedule to keep and as flattering as a lift in this beast is, I'm afraid I need to travel with a bit more ... discretion."

 

[Onrai]

"Captain, we're detecting something on board the vessel. It's a strange signature... We can't exactly describe it."

"Hmm... An artifact from millennia gone by, no doubt. Something exotic like the Aing-Tii or the Ssi-Ruuvi, or something ancient like the Gree or Celestials. As far as we know, there are no reported thefts of such a relic anywhere. There's no reason to take it from her."

He turned back to @[member="Ivy Lasranae"]. "Well... I suppose I need to trust that you'll keep it clean and well-maintained. As for travel without detection... I have something I believe will serve your purposes better. Yes, your ship will of course come with you, but truth be told, I've been rather eager to test this out." Stepping from the bridge, he smiled, motioning for her to follow. There was a lot to discuss with this mercenary, after all. A lot indeed.

Particularly her lack of an employer.

 

[Hazel Scheler]

A look of cold displeasure seeped across Ivy's expression as the man babbled on - speaking as though to a subordinate. She supposed it was par for the norm with anyone that had the title of "Grand" in front of their station. Ivy said nothing of it and followed his advancement across the space of the bridge with a dark gaze.

She did not follow him out, however.

"Am I to understand that I am being detained, Admiral?" her voice rang sharply along the space between them. Several of his crew members fidgeted uncomfortably.

 

[Onrai]

"No."

He sighed, turning back to look at the woman who'd been brought aboard his vessel. "There is something in the hangar I believe will provide you with a far safer entrance into the system you intend to go to. And with you here, we have an excuse to actually take this out of its crate." Reaching over, he picked up a hologram device, searching through the ship's archives before finding exactly what he was looking for.

"This is a hologram of a special Imperial starfighter, made with stygium from the world of Aeten II. The TIE Spectre. Very rare fighter, almost never more than a single wing located on any Imperial starship. I can fit two people into one of these, which means a form of transport for you. The cloak will make your descent completely undetected."

Which was true, of course. Such a stygium cloak device was rare in the galaxy, and as where she was going likely had no crystal grav-field traps, it would get her there entirely undetected.

@Ivy Lasranae

 

[Hazel Scheler]

The woman scowled, peering at the presented hologram. The entire situation was highly suspect. What in the galactic laylines was the Empire doing that it's Grand Admiral had time to take a joy ride? She wondered briefly at the potential ramifications he might face, and not necessarily those of his superiors.

Ivy looked at him, unconvinced, "I don't understand your angle, Admiral. You don't even know where I'm going."

 

[Onrai]

"Where are you going, then? Besides, I need an excuse to take this ship out of its crate for a test flight. This is brand new technology, and I'm eager to see it at work. I've spent over thirty years in the Navy and have never seen an Imperial stealth fighter, let alone gotten an opportunity to take one for a spin." And once again, another truth. Stealth technology hadn't been introduced in the Empire since well before his finishing officer candidacy school.

"I assume you heard about Yaga Minor? The battle that took place there?" After all, that was a significant galactic event.

@[member="Ivy Lasranae"]

 

[Hazel Scheler]

"Fraid not," the woman replied bluntly.

Having spent the last five months in wild space and only just recently reconnecting with ...human kind of any significance, she was a bit behind the times. Exocron wasn't exactly a hub for media dissemination - it was a planet currently full of the religiously devout. Not that she'd spent enough time there anyway, she'd been busy helping the Moross Crusaders take Kinooine from the pirates.

 

[Onrai]

"The Mandalorians were oppressing the inhabitants of Yaga Minor. The Empire came and drove them off, rather spectacularly, if I might add. It was the successful test of several new technologies... Well, experimental technologies turned into mass-producible ones, that is." His smile slowly began to drop off his face, a sense of sadness and regret crossing over him.

"I did things there. Things I wish I didn't have to do, but which I did nonetheless, for the peace and safety of the Empire's inhabitants. I wish I didn't have to do it... but I had no choice."

@[member="Ivy Lasranae"]

 

[Hazel Scheler]

A certain feeling was taking over Ivy as she listened to the man speak and for a moment she couldn't quite place it. But then, there it was - uncomfortable. Who was this man and what on earth was he playing at? Had he plucked her out of the lineup specifically to spill his guts?

Hey, I just met you,

and this is crazy,

but here's my invaluable Imperial technology and all my lamentations of the past week for you to chew on in front of my entire crew.

Joyride maybe?

Her eyes narrowed ever more, pinpricks now as she debated the possible headcase she was dealing with.

She released a tense sigh, lifting a hand to itch at a fresh scar on her face, "Admiral, that's a truly sad story, but I'm a Merc, not a Shrink, and right now you're costing me time and money. I wish I could be more help but ... I can't."

 

[Onrai]

"And it all depends on the employer, doesn't it?" Bosch raised an eyebrow. "But very well. If that's what you want. Are the scans of her ship complete?"

"Indeed."

"Then feel free to go. Sorry for having wasted your time." Not said in a spiteful tone, but in the blankest, most emotionless tone anyone in the galaxy could possibly have summoned.

Bosch turned away, returning to his personal quarters and placing his head in his hands. There were no tears, of course not. Only a shard of agitation. Outside, however, Ivy would find herself being calmly brought back to her ship. The man in charge of her hangar spot would step over, giving a soft nod.

"Ship checks out. You're free to go."

@[member="Ivy Lasranae"]

 

[Hazel Scheler]

"Thank you gentlemen," Ivy replied, stepping to her ship and moving to make way up the ramp. She paused at the top, glancing back for a brief moment. Giving them a cursory glance she opted to bridle that lone curiosity and shortly disappeared into the freighter.

The Egris gave a great rumble, lifted into the air and smoothly made its exit of the Imperial flagship.

"Strange..." the woman remarked as she piloted the ship down through the space lanes, making to bypass the search lineup. As she waited for clearance Ivy briefly glanced down to the storage chamber where she'd stowed away her weapons. It was untouched, much to her relief, and so she passed her eyes further still. Too many run-ins with the bigwigs of the galaxy made her paranoid, and as she looked for signs of the search she found herself pondering the idea of getting a dog.

The Egris was entirely too empty.

It was while looking about that she happened to glance to the far right of her viewport. Below The Egris and just to the right one of the ships in the search lane seemed to be making a run for it. Ivy lofted a brow as it bulled through Imperial blockade forces and made a beeline for open space, heading towards a wide spacelane full of commercial and civilian transports.

She initiated an open link to the Admiral's ship, "Egris to Iceni - you have a targeted bogey heading for civilian space lanes, moving fast."

 

[Onrai]

"Exactly what we were looking for. Launch fighters!"

"Sir, our fighters won't reach that ship in time before it mingles with the civilians!"

Bosch sighed. "Miss, I need your help. We have a virus file we can transmit onto that ship, a prototype developed originally for the Invictus-class Star Destroyer. It'll knock out their engines and disrupt their systems long enough for us to come within range and tractor it. Lock onto the ship and feed us your targeting data. We'll bounce the file off your ship and disable them that way, since the transmission from the Iceni isn't strong enough to lock on at that range."

@[member="Ivy Lasranae"]

 

[Hazel Scheler]

There was a long silent pause on the other end. Ivy hadn't intended to get involved but the thought of civilians coming to harm at the hands of the reckless pilots would be just one more thorn in her mind to deal with at night. She wasn't getting enough sleep as it was.

"I'll do what I can."

Grabbing the controls she pressed The Egris carefully through the spacelanes. Upon clearing them Ivy punched the engines and sent the VCX-820 Freighter into pursuit. Though her ship was far more powerful and agile than that of the pirate's, it was also larger, which meant she would have a far more difficult time following them through the spacelanes. The woman knew this and upon watching them filter into the traffic narrowed her eyes.

Her hands gripped the controls with growing determination.

The Egris maintained a course overhead of the spacelanes, following the progress of her target through the bulk of smaller civilian shuttles. The Pirates were going fast, recklessly fast, and she growled as they clipped the side of a passenger ship, sending it reeling into another shuttle nearby.

"Egris to Iceni," she harkened the flagship again as she dipped down through an opening in the lanes, narrowly missing the wings of another craft, "I can't lock onto them in the traffic. They're too fast. I'll be forced to shoot them down before they kill anyone else."

The Pirate ship suddenly cut left hundreds of feet in front of her and she watched as they pulled into a rising arc, heading now for the freighter lane and disappearing behind the bulk of another massive cargo ship.

 

[Onrai]

"Then do it. That ship's too dangerous to be left to escape."

Bosch had little else to say on the matter. Allowing the vessel filled with nuclear materials to escape was a much bigger issue. "Bring us back a piece of the freighter and we'll give you a sufficient amount of credits for your "bounty" on it, so to say."

She deserved monetary compensation at least for assisting with the destruction of this vessel.

@[member="Ivy Lasranae"]

 

[Hazel Scheler]

"I'll bring you the whole damn thing," Ivy quipped back over the comm. The woman had no idea just what, exactly, the Admiral had been searching for, though she'd heard mention of the word 'nuclear' once or twice. It gave her pause to use more explosive methods, but she was under the assumption the Admiral wouldn't place undue innocents in harms way.

Either way she'd rather not waste the ammo, it was certainly worth more than a Pirate's life so far as she was concerned.

The Egris carved an arc through space, curving towards the freighter lane where it could more easily navigate. This did not necessarily make her job less challenging - fewer, larger ships gave her target more places to hide. She passed by one behemoth metal beast after another, scanners running full tilt until they suddenly caught on to the fleeting glimpse of the Pirate vessel as it slipped between a set of wings. Ivy engaged the thrusters of the Egris, sending it smoothly upwards and watched as the bulk of the freighters dropped past her viewport. Breaching the topline her ship's scanners flared as it located the Pirate vessel off to her left.

Ivy set off in hot pursuit, scowling as her target once more dipped down between crafts. With a growl she shot the Egris down through a narrow opening, intent to cut them off below. Again the trilling marked the approach of the pirates.

"Got them-" was all the Iceni received before the Egris collided with her prey in a shower of sparks, flame and mutilated metal.

Ivy felt the searing pain of her forehead split open and soon all she saw was stars.