Springing a Leak

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

"Have you finally broken?" The sweet voice rang around around the small cell. She dropped onto her haunches as his head slumped forwards. He gave a small nod. How very droll. She had barely been working for an hour.

The wickedly hooked knife was placed down on the ground beside her. His remaining eye followed it.

"Who was it? Who got to you?" Siedra asked again. Siedra was nervous. That someone in such a pivotal position had been compromised was a great concern.

"Pale skin. So...Very pale..."

"Ah of course." Siedra was about to enquire further when the dark cell was flooded with light. She turned towards the door in annoyance. This had better be important.

"My Lord, the archives...They've taken them all..."

There was a glint of a blade. The prisoner suddenly fell limp with a rattle of chains.

"We will have to move against them now. We don't have much time."

 

[Neesa]

Six Hours Ago


Neesa moved slowly, he brown cloaks blending into the the stone surroundings. This was a seemingly empty patch of rock, the presence of the assassin seemed out of place. But that was not the only thing.

She found what she had been looking for. A small vent, well hidden in the terrain. This was the last one. She placed the small glop charge at the base and slipped away.

At a nearby cliff Vrak was waiting with their strike force in the stealth shuttle.

"It's done."

They had to move quickly now. Months of preparation and they'd finally found something they could use. They had to act. Ever since one of her informants had turned up in a ditch it had become clear that Siedra was slowly trying to dismantle her network.

With a series of pops all the glop grenades went off, sealing the vents. Deep below the surface was Siedra's impenetrable archive. The secondary site was ten kilometres away and far more vulnerable. The problem was that the archives were left there encrypted. Until of course the main archive started to overheat and the secondary archives were activated. Their window was small, the secondary archives were still well guarded, but this was their moment.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

Vrak looked down for a moment. "Go."

There was only a small opening. Though Siedra's Archives paled in comparison of what he and Lord Sitas held, they were still valuable. The information kept within could be anything, past histories of Athiss, the tales of Lords like Naga Sadow, dozens of financial records. There was no telling what Siedra had kept and gathered over the years, not to mention her father extensive family holdings as well. Vrak rushed forward, the guards quickly following after him.

There was no real stealth to this mission, at least not really.

Siedra would know that someone had raided her archives, she would know that her guards had been killed, but she would never find out who.

No one would survive to tell the tale.

Vrak ignited his lightsaber as soon as he bounded over the lip of the cliff, both blades springing into life with a duo snap-hiss that seemed to ring out within the first valley. It took only half a heartbeat before his blade met with the first Guard, slicing through the man in an instant.

 

[Neesa]

"Feth!" Neesa swore loudly as a shimmering field popped into existence before her. Her contacts had suggested there were no such systems in the secondary archives. That was one of the reasons why they had blocked the air condition to shut down the primary ones.

The guard who had flicked the switch watched her and the two massassi at her back in fear. He turned to run and raise the alarm. Fortunately the field did nothing to stop the Force. Reaching out she grasped him by the back of the neck and pulled him back until his head smacked into the field.

That was easy. The fine manipulation to turn the key and flick the switch took nearly ten seconds of concentration. Time they could not afford. As the field shut down she flipped a sword into a reverse grip and plunged it down with such force it cut into two inches of rock after going through the guard's chest.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

Vrak's blade sliced through another mans stomach, severing the mans legs from his torso. The flopped to the ground with a loud gurgling thud, the Pureblood stepping over him almost as soon as he had fallen to the ground. Disinterest pulled across his face and slowly Vrak stepped forward towards the entrance of the archives. He glanced briefly towards Neesa and the others, though he paid them no real attention. Up ahead he watched one of the guards prepare a blaster.

His lips thinned.

It wasn't usual for guards on Athiss to use such weapons. They were undoubtedly effective, but most of his people preferred to stick to the ancient ways. It seemed that Siedra realized that such things were no longer prudent, and thus had switched to more modern means. "Faster."

He ordered his soldiers forward.

Their window was brief enough, and he would not have anyone dawdling behind.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

They had to move quickly before they sealed the vaults. The archives were apparently heavily segregated with lots of locks and controls. The data disks were encrypted but now this site had become live they were all unlocked. They needed to reach a core network device in the third chamber and plug in a device that would take control of the archives before they shut them down or performed an emergency wipe.

Neesa darted down the sides and past the mounted blaster that was being set up. She made a hand signal to send her massassi at it. They were gunned down in the charge, but she was ignored and Vrak was given an opening. She slipped into the next chamber and smashed the locks with the pommel of her sword.

This room was very different. Metal underfoot, cold dry artificial air. Databanks down either side of the walls. Clearly too much information. For traditional storage in all her financial transactions. A guard was running for the far door, he was armed with a blaster.

Neesa leapt for the databanks on the left. They were arranged in rows of racks six feet high and she darted across them lightly. The guard was still looking over his shoulder as she landed before him and ran him through with her sword.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

Vrak moved to follow Neesa, two of the Massassi remaining outside to kill the remaining guards.

The databanks were contained in tight rows, each one neatly organized. At the end of the room sat a large storage vault, his lips thinning slightly as he sliced through the last of the guards. His lips thinned slightly and he glanced towards Neesa. "Do we know whats in there?"

Likely artifacts of some sort.

Siedra didn't strike him as the sort that would keep physical copies of her records, she was too clever for that. He frowned slightly as he approached the heavy door, not really paying attention to the databanks. Vrak had no skill at slicing or even basics. There was no way he would be getting any information from them.

He would leave that to the others, the servants.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

Theft of information was just as dangerous as theft of goods, that's what Sitas had taught her back on Livien Magnus.

Neesa gave a shake of her head. She sheathed her blades. There had been on blood on them at all. Every ounce that touched those blades was soaked up as the blood rune glowed.

One of the servants approached it and started working on it with tools. Neesa shouted at several others to hurry. She was more interested in what she did know was in the databanks. Financial records. Hopefully some that could undermine her position.

There was a cry and the servant fell away from the container, his face frozen in a mask of pain. Neesa cocked her head, feeling the faint tremors of a magical trap.

"But now I'm interested," she murmured. "Something valuable."

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

For a second Vrak simply stared at the Vault door. Siedra was far more proficient with the force than he ever could hope to be. She had studied within the darkness for several decades now, weaving her spells and casting her magics. It was something he had always been envious of, something he'd wished he'd had the capability for. There was no doubt that Sorcery was the purest expression of the darkness, something that reigned above all others.

It seemed that she had trapped this door with one of those spells. "Neesa."

He knew that the girl had a propensity for magics, or something close to it if the marks upon her sword were anything to go by. Vrak had limited knowledge of the ancient arts, having never really studied them beyond the basics.

"See what you can do with this door." Perhaps he'd get her killed, perhaps she'd learn something.

Either way.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

Neesa have a nod but turned to the others working on the databanks first. "How long?" She asked. A pair of massassi were carrying a large black case into the room. They set it down next to the engineers.

"We've got access. Ten minutes to make a copy."

Neesa turned to Vrak. "Your men needs to keep the perimeter secure. Send someone to the surveillance room."

She turned towards the door. Her fingers moved quickly, and she spoke just one word in the language of the Sith. A basic spell that probed the door. She could almost see the connections someone had engraved between the Force and the physical world. Where the bolt had struck the slicer there appeared to be cracks to Neesa.

If Siedra herself had done this Neesa doubted she would be able to do much to break tbrough. Yet it didn't feel as if there was much powerful sith magic around the door.

"Three possibilities," she mumbled. "Most of the strength imbued in the spell just got used, there was only a minor ward to start with, or it's a layered trap and I'm about to be in trouble..."

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

"Well." Vrak made a motion with his hand as he slowly began to back away.

He could sense the magics still in place. Neesa said that it was a minor spell left over, but he wasn't about to take any chances, not when things were so precarious. His own life was held up high above everyone else in this room, and they well knew that.

"Better get on with it." He motioned again. "never know what we might find."

A part of him was intensely curious about all of this. Sith Magic was still something foreign to him. He understood its concepts, knew how it worked, but he couldn't perform it for the life of him. Even the most minor of spells were out of his reach. It was embarrassing in some ways, but not entirely his fault. Sorcery game in genetics in some way. His skills lay elsewhere in the force, and those helped him do what he needed to do just fine in the end.

"You there." He pointed to one of the other technicians.

"Collect everything else." The data was not to be forgotten.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

Neesa paused in her advance towards the door. The pattern woven into the fabric of the Force was complex. Her fingers danced their own intricate pattern and she uttered three more words. The magic which had drained the technician dry of his life force was dissapated back into the Force.

She felt a surge of power, did her best to shield herself from it. There was a loud pop in her ears and a wave of pain ran right through her. An instant later and she was looking up at the ceiling. She groaned as she rolled back over. The slaves still collecting the data were all covering their ears.

Vrak was looking down at her. Checking to see if she was still alive with a detached indifference.

"Still alive," she grunted. "There was another trap, but it didn't have much kick left." The door to the secure container swung open.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

"Excellent." Vrak said as he turned back to inspect the work of the technicians. They were dutifully taking apart the databanks and taking them back up to the surface, the information upon them being secured quickly and efficiently. The Pureblood allowed himself a small smile. They hadn't won just yet, but at the very least this was a small sign of progress. Siedra had for so long stood in his way that he couldn't help but be pleased.

After a moment more he turned back to the Vault.

Inside was just about what he had expected. Two small holocron that were obviously Sith, some jewels that appeared more than rare, and a large chest inscribed with deep dark runes. He frowned for a few moments and picked up one of the holocron, stepping past Neesa to inspect the device. "This was crafted during the Old Empire."

He said plainly.

"Around the time of Vitiate." Holocrons from that Era were common enough, the Sith having taken an upswing during that time. Even the lowest of Darth's had been able to create them during that time, knowledge being rife.

Still, he wondered why Siedra had hidden this one here instead of in her primary archives.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

Once her faculties were returned Neesa continued a brief inspection of the door as the goods were taken away. That last spell had been some form of sonic blast and she wanted to understand how it had been formed. Her study time was cut short by the engineers declaring they had ripped off as much data as they could get. At least she had faced another challenge, survived and learned from the act.

"That old?" she asked Vrak rhetorically as they headed back out into the wide chamber. That was interesting. Older holocrons got added to over time, accruing more and more information. This world was old and traditional, but Neesa felt that it weakened them to avoid outside knowledge.

Something so old could well be worth a great deal to Siedra. A nice little bonus. But the assault could still become the move that tipped their hand without bringing any real gains.

"We need to get back to safe ground and start going through her archives. Find something we can use or attack."

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

Vrak frowned for a moment as he inspected the Holocron. There was unfortunately no way of knowing who had created it until he opened it, something they currently didn't have time for. "We will return to the outpost."

The Pureblood said as she stashed the holocron within his robes.

"Take the other one." It was wise to split up the 'loot' so to speak, if one of them got caught out then they would still be able to make out with at least one of the devices. "Protect it over the rest of the data."

Holocrons, even unidentified ones, were worth far more than financial data. Even if these two were only the missives of unimportant peons in the Empire they could still hold some secret or piece of knowledge that Siedra didn't want found out. The Empire had once ruled half of the entire galaxy. They had left ancient ruins, warships, dozens of design schematics that even today could be considered incredibly powerful. Holocrons from that era were beyond valuable.

It made sense that Siedra hadn't allowed knowledge of them to spread. "Let's go."

He motioned to Neesa and the technicians, his other hand tightening on the hilt of his lightsaber.

 

[Neesa]

---

Neesa paced around the hall where this conspiracy had first started, months ago. Down in the lower levels they were running through the data. For a proponent of isolationism Siedra had a lot of off world dealings.

The slaves erred focussing on those now. There was a Hope they could find something in those transactions that would shock the other Lords who sided with her. To start to erode at her support.

Neesa had been told that it could take days. Sitas had come to congratulate them on the heist and then retired back to his home back near the city upon finding out the timescales.

So why do I pace? She asked herself. Her contacts near Siedra had gone silent, but that had happened before. There was an overwhelmingly sense that something was coming. She hadn't even calmed herself enough to investigate the stolen holocrons.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

"My Lord. We've had reports of Massassi coming towards us."

Vrak raised an eyebrow, lounging in the chair of the small council chamber as one of the humans that had served as a Technician during the heist wandered up to him. For a second the Sith seemed to just frown, glancing towards the other servant for a brief few seconds. By the tone of his voice Vrak had already guessed that these Massassi were not loyal to him, likely belonging to Siedra or another one of his rivals that had heard of the heist.

"Bring Neesa to me." He told the man.

This day was about to get a whole lot more annoying.

"Alert the guards." There weren't many here, but they had those that had accompanied them on the raid. "Ensure that the databanks are secured."

Vrak rubbed his forehead. This was the last thing that he needed. Open confrontation would surely draw the ire of the council, but it seemed that they had taken something from Siedra that she dearly wanted back. What that was he couldn't say, but he was sure they would find out by the end of the night.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

"Vrak wants you...Couldn't...Find you..." The human huffed as he found Neesa. She was leaning against rough hewn rock that formed something of a balcony. When she had first climbed this tower she had wondered if this had lost its shape to age or never been completed the the owners.

"Yes, I'd best head down," she murmured. Her eyes were on the shapes in the sky. The sun was low now, the sky a gradient from murky ochre to deep browns. Those weren't birds. They were gunships. The roar of their engines was just reaching her ears.

Down below red shapes darted from cover the cover. Scouts, she presumed, but massassi all the same. She said something quite rude beneath her breath.

She took the stairs two at a time as she bounded down to Vrak.

 

[Vrak Nashar]

[member="Neesa"]

"She is striking us out in the open." Vrak said as he leaned back in the throne like chair that had once been occupied by Sitas. "Unexpected."

Neesa stepped into the room to find Vrak playing with what appeared to be an ornate knife, the blade stabbed into the table in front of him as he slowly spun the handle around and around. There was a thoughtful look upon his face, as if he were considering the implications of what was about to happen.

"I didn't think she would be so bold." Massassi, gunships, she was almost ready to start a war.

He'd always known that she had these sorts of resources of course, she worked directly for the Ministry of War, yet she had always made sure to keep her profile low and use her power only for 'the good of Athiss'. It was one of the reasons why she was so dangerous. She had never really thought to use her position as a method to gain power for herself, and that meant when she did use it in such a manner less people questioned her intent.

Troubling really.

"She will come with the last of them. Likely to kill me personally." He shrugged. Such a thing was inevitable.

 

[Neesa]

[member="Vrak Nashar"]

"I did not think she would move so fast," Neesa said. "If you survive this, it's the end of her. She can't afford anything less than killing everyone here and leaving no trace."

They didn't have all that many soldiers of their own here. The walls would have made up for the numbers, except of course for the gunships.

"On the plus side we took something that could break her. This proves it. Do we draw her out and end this or go for the catacombs?"