The Missing of Constine [Open]

[Gerwald Lechner]

Location: Constantine City - Fenris​

Wearing: xxx​

w. [member="Gianna Aegis"] | [member="John Locke"] | [member="Maani"]​

Tags: [member="Cali Ziiva"] | [member="Voph"] | @Tallara | [member="Ciri Jade"] | [member="Ardasz Verd"]​

The room was full of people, comments, opinions, things which Gerwald knew was needed, but in such an abundant supply there would be no consensus. Gerwald was a warrior through and through, and he would rather rush into action than sit around a table and talk about what needed to be done. Too much time was being wasted talking about who could do what, how things needed to happen, and needless questions which [member="John Locke"] had already answered. Even though it seemed he deemed them important enough to answer, at least in part. What they needed was decisive action, not the childish antics of a Miraluka who wanted to make bets about how much Gerwald had read of the file or not.

Gerwald sighed, it was heavy, though he remained quiet. Something deeper was bothering him, moreso nagging at the back of his mind.

Ice blue eyes locked onto the redhead [member="Gianna Aegis"]. There was something about her that was off. She was dressed like an attache, but she was more than that. Something was eminanting from her, what Gerwald knew to be the force. Whether she was strong or powerful was unknown, all Gerwald could tell was she was force sensitive. Gerwald was curious about her. Had he known what she was thinking about him. he would agree. The giant man wolf had always found his life to be more focused when had someone to live for, someone to protect, someone. His life was one lived for people and causes, and the man knew he had nothing right now. Perhaps his work following John was something for him to do, but how long could that last.

The knight scanned the room. John was correct. Gerwald and [member="Voph"] were too dangerous looking to be bait. The Zeltron was too zeltron, and the blue skinned girl was too serious. [member="Ciri Jade"] was not a good option either, mostly because Gerwald didn't know what to think about her either. They needed bait that could take care of themselves. His mind rummaged through the files, and his eyes fell to everyone else. There were two which made the most sense, and the quiet wolf, who had said more already than he usually did, spoke up once more.

"Gianna and Maani make the most sense."

Gerwald did not explain why he thought, but hoped everyone would understand his thinking. After a short second Gerwald thought better of making a simple statement.

"Maani herself said she is a seductress. There is more to the art of seduction than simply convincing someone to go to bed with you. Gianna, she is in the age rage, and I have a feeling she has a few tricks up her sleeve if needed."

His eyes went to the bounty hunter after falling away from the redhead he was trying to figure out. She was pretty, but Gerwald had his fair share of women problems in the past. Knowing she was a self proclaimed seductress made Gerwald a bit wary of working with her, but as long as she was not trying to seduce him things would be fine. Too many bad decisions had been made when it revolved around the opposite gender, and Gerwald did not want to make the same mistakes. The fact he was still alive after his encounter with the Mountain was a miracle, the only kind Gerwald believed in. With the new lease on his life, he was going to be different.

"You would be willing to be bait wouldn't you?"

 

[Maani]

Location: Constine City, Fenris​

Immediate Vicinity: [member="Gianna Aegis"] [member="John Locke"] [member=Tallara] [member=Voph] [member="Cali Ziiva"] [member="Ciri Jade"] [member="Gerwald Lechner"]​

Other Tags: [member="Ardasz Verd"]​

Equipment: A-180 Blaster Pistol (Retrofitted), Vibroblade (Dagger-sized), Grappling Hook​

---

As soon as she chimed in, a bunch of other people said their piece. There sure were a bunch of different personalities, all right. This did create a bit of an issue with cohesion; a lot of differing opinions and views would make for less effective teamwork. Maani, however, noted with no small amount of relief that the people here were far more civilised than others she had worked with. She’d had situations where people got into fights over what was the right tactic. That was never pleasant.

Still, they did need consensus before they could operate. The blue-skinned lady seemed quite averse to the admittedly risky tactic that Gianna suggested, putting forth the idea of contacting the older gangs, people who didn’t want the trouble of dealing with such kidnappings and would be more than happy to see rival gangs eliminated. They killed two birds with one stone, essentially. That, however, had its own issues. The corporate guy pointed those out, and she had to say she agreed with him. Such a tactic would take too much time and have more of a risk of being discovered by the people doing the kidnappings. Simply put, it was impractical.

Maani herself was about to volunteer, but tall, dark and handsome beat her to the punch, putting forth herself and the pretty red-haired lady known as Gianna. Her gaze flickered to him, taking note of the fact that he was trying to get a read on her, briefly sticking her tongue out at him with. At a glance, she had the posture of a devious, but somewhat simple girl with a fair bit of energy to her. Not the type who would do anything particularly nefarious.

But she did see an opportunity to be silly. She held a little smirk as she played with the little protrusions of her hair, not too dissimilar to cat ears, “I’m glad you recognised my astounding looks.” She began with a teasing tone, “But yeah, I’m willing and able. Half my job success consists of standing around and looking pretty, after all. This shouldn’t be an issue for me, and I’m sure Gianna can manage as well. Good thing we both dressed for the job.” Maani pointed out their outfits, them being the only two ladies who dressed as average citizens rather than being decked out in full armour.

She briefly turned back to John Locke, “As for locations… sorry, but I’m not sure I’d be a good person to turn to. I don’t even know the ins and outs of a corporate world, let alone this specific planet. Maybe someone else here would be more helpful.” She was a bounty hunter who stayed mostly to the Outer Rim. She didn’t quite know how places such as Fenris worked, but she highly doubted she could go about it the same way she did in Tatooine.

 

[Gianna Aegis]

Location: Fenris [Constine City] – Space Port​

Standing With: [member="John Locke"] | [member="Maani"] | [member="Gerwald Lechner"] | [member="Tallara"] | [member="Voph"] | [member="Cali Ziiva"] | [member="Ciri Jade"] | [member="Ardasz Verd"] | [All Are Welcome]​

​

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The Jedi Knight turned attaché in disguise fell silent while her words swept over the rest of the assembled group. She knew from experience that not every suggestion or idea would be taken with full support, however, she would be remiss not to speak up. Gia did her best not to stare at any one person in particular and merely made small notes on the datapad before her. Some might assume she was keeping the minutes. That would be incorrect.

From twelve to twenty-five human to near-human years. No distinctions between race, gender, or social status. The abduction pool was limited as the demographics for Fenris were not all that diversified. Pharakis stood out to her, if only, because they were so very unique. Their numbers were low. If an organization were kidnapping beings for sale—Why not choose more of those that were rare?

Surely, they would fetch the best price on the Black Market or the Dark Net.

Ms. Zynesh [[member="Ciri Jade"]] seemed to be studying the projections from the holo-table and Gia listened while she made her observations. Yes. It was true. The descriptions of the missing people eliminated some of the people in the room. [member="Voph"], for instance, would likely be a poor choice. Though blind there was something about him that bespoke confidence. He both felt and looked capable. Strong.

Would the criminals go after him if he looked like he might fight back too much?

That also crossed [member="Gerwald Lechner"] off the list.

The way [member="Cali Ziiva"] reacted to things made Gia wish she hadn’t seen some of the terrors that the galaxy had to offer. She could remember being that excitable, but, the pink-haired woman quickly settled and got down to business. The Jedi Knight didn’t miss the quick blush that stole over her features when she glanced at [member="John Locke"]. As an empath—It was impossible to miss. Oh, boy. “I would never suggest deliberately placing civilians in harm’s way. Professionals—Running an OP.”

She was gladdened when [member="Voph"] also cast aside the need for doubt among them. The enemy needed to be outside these walls. There would always be suspicion. Doubt. But they all needed to remain focused on the problem at hand. Time, unfortunately, was not on their side. When he mentioned a Jedi among them, she did her best not to react at all. As much as she knew it would come out eventually? Now was not the time.

The female clad in Obsidian Strike Armor [[member="Tallara"]] made a few more observations. [member="John Locke"] fielded most of it and Gianna could only follow his lead. Technically, when working with the Confederacy, he was her superior. She had always acted in the role of a consultant. “I don’t think anyone is skipping anything. The local authorities were very thorough in their investigation. We have daily routines of the missing, their habits, last known locations…Everything is plotted.”

“I’m also not against launching a two-pronged effort. We have the manpower. One team can review the case data and inspect the angle of gang related violence while another can orchestrate a ruse to lure the perpetrators in.”

[member="Gerwald Lechner"] was the first to be blunt about whom should volunteer to be bait. She could feel John staring at her despite the fact that she hadn’t turned her head. He would not want her to take an unnecessary step into danger, though, he wouldn’t stop her. Technically, he couldn’t. The Jedi Knight could be a force of nature when she wanted to be. Slowly, she nodded. “I would not ask anyone to do anything that I would be unwilling to. You are both correct. I can handle my own.”

[member="Maani"] took it in stride. Gianna offered the tanned young woman a comforting smile, though, it was wholly unnecessary. She knew where her skills lay. The Nabooian woman leaned back in her chair and listened once more. Many moons ago she had learned to read a room by listening twice as much as she spoke. They all had skills that could contribute, but, they truly seemed most suited to being decoys. “For the location…”

“Might I suggest running all of the areas where someone has supposedly disappeared into a simulator? If we can find overlap we can choose the spot according to tactical advantage and the most traffic of the enemy.”

It would simplify things. Right ages. Right locations. She had also noted that among the victims? Not a single sick or elderly person among them. All were fairly good-looking. “We should think about falsifying records for a brief cover for both of us. We do have slicers among us and we don’t know how the perpetrators are choosing their targets. They may have access to personnel data files. We could choose which company to use based on which one has the highest percentage of victims.”

Gia fell silent after that. She wanted to hear more from the others—Though in her mind she was committed. She couldn’t imagine how many people were alone. Scared.

Hopeless.

 

[Ardasz Verd]

A Rangefinder was a powerful tool.

Jedi liked to use their magical senses to find things, and while it seemed to work for them, Ardasz trusted his own two eyes far more. Technology was the birthright of the Mandalorian culture, and Ardasz was a savant when it came to tools.

Particularly, the aging Verd had an affinity for integrated weapons systems and damage output. The lethality on the sniper rifle in his hands at that moment was efficient, but the sights? The scope? It was easy enough to tinker with a zoom mechanism and magnify five, even ten times.

The gun got no more deadly, but his chances of missing declined dramatically.

Ardasz could see down to the pores of each person he swept the crosshairs over if he wanted. Fortunately, he only wanted to get an accurate assessment of features and the ability to run a facial analysis- and with the HUD uplink, his buy'ce would process all the data from his rifle remotely as he spotted.

The laundry list of names and faces should have born fruit within minutes. It had already been near an hour. "No good, eh?" he muttered as he turned to sweep in the opposite direction. There was a high likelihood that they were holed up in warehouses, or under ground- somewhere nearby to the scene of the crime, but unassuming enough to not warrant the attention of the authorities.

Thankfully, Ardasz was a seasoned bounty hunter- and he had a few prices on his own head.

He knew how to think like a criminal.

[member="John Locke"] | [member="Gianna Aegis"] | [member="Maani"] | [member="Gerwald Lechner"] | [member="Tallara"] | [member="Voph"] | [member="Cali Ziiva"] | [member="Ciri Jade"]

 

[Cali Ziiva]

Location: Constine City - Fenris​

Outfit: Type A​

Nearby: [member="Voph"] | [member="Maani"] | [member="Gerwald Lechner"] | [member="Tallara"] | [member="John Locke"] | [member="Gianna Aegis"] | [member="Ciri Jade"]​

Additional tags: [member="Ardasz Verd"] | [Open]​

"Saleswoman?" Cali blinked and looked over at [member="Voph"] with wide eyes and a slight tilt to her fluffy head. He continued to speak so there wasn't much room to correct them, but she was far more than justa saleswoman. Like if they only thought she knew how to add numbers on a data pad, or prance about in a holo-ad they were in for a surprise -- or not if they completely ignored her.

The pink one was inclined to then disagree with pretty in blue [member="Tallara"]. While the Zeltron did not look it now, she could totally get her hands dirty. However, she didn't interject then either because, well, Cali was pink. Kind of difficult to say 'you just had not noticed her before' given her skin color. Everyone would have noticed her. Miraluka noticed her.

And then rough and shaggy [member="Gerwald Lechner"] promoted [member="Maani"] over her for seduction. Like, low blow, guy. Hello, Zeltron in the house. Oh, but Maani was a, um, Bounty Hunter? Mercenary? Something. Anyway, Manni was that and while Cali was no pushover -- despite being a 'saleswoman' -- she probably wasn't adept at... Wait, did Maani kill people? Yes, no, Cali did not like doing things like that. Wasn't a very Pink-woman thing to do. Okay, okay, maybe she was the better fit.

It wasn't all 'but I can totally contribute!' wishing. [member="John Locke"] responded to her. To her! Oh, it was something trivial, sure, but he totally wasn't discounting her out of hand just for being a Zeltron. There was hope! What for? Uh, anything. Like, she would totally love to talk mechanics with him. Building things. Repairing things. Designing new things. Physicality? Well, you know, if he offered. Cali swallowed hard at the thought. But he seemed so... so... so much like a monolith. A moving embodiment of Force. Really unlikely he'd sudden get smitten with a pretty face. So, so business then. That was fine. Because it was Locke.

Then the woman that obviously knew how to handle herself accompanying Locke, [member="Gianna Aegis"], confirmed they'd use professionals and not civilians. That was cool. No complaints. Never knew if volunteers were waiting to help. After all, whoever was responsible probably had a list of candidates, so if they picked the right people already on the lists it'd be that much easier versus trying to convince them to take a target of opportunity.

Location, location, location. An important topic brought to that table, which Cali listened to thoughts put forward on the matter. "No objections. But," the Zeltron spoke with a warm, yet calm voice, "wherever we pick it can't obviously provide law enforcement or bounty hunters the advantage. They don't have to know we're coming to anticipate that someone will eventually." What did a merchant know of such things? "After all, I think of these things all the time when meeting with clients. Some people do some crazy things."

"Kind of curious if they abduct people in a crowd, or wait until they're alone. Biometric data on those abducted might be handy too. Tall. Short. Muscular. Thin. Species. Sex. Skillset's good for why, but physical detail is good for how. Not so easy convincing a mountain surrounded by people to go with you quietly." With that Cali resumed settling back comfortably in her seat with a smile. Hey, moving merchandise (in this case, people) involved logistics. Had to transport people to wherever they were being held somehow.

 

[John Locke]

Location: Constine City - Fenris
Wearing: Suit
Nearby: @Gianna Aegis | @Voph | @Maani | @Gerwald Lechner | @Tallara | @Ciri Jade | [Open to all CIS who want to join]

He’s known this was coming, from the moment the idea had been floated John could see where it was leading. Perhaps this was what it was like to have the force, to be able to see what was coming but not be able to do anything about it. It made sense, that was the worst thing about it, Gianna acting as bait for their targets made absolute sense, and if it had been anyone else he’d have had no misgivings about it. He just…couldn’t quite settle himself, couldn’t quite get rid of those icy claws that had settled themselves around his heart. He worried about her, but if it was something she thought that needed to be done, for the best all he could do was make sure the plan was as airtight as possible.

One hand reached up, running through his hair as a soft sigh escaped from John’s lips as his dark-eyed gaze flicked over to glance at Maani too. “So, we have our bait now,” the minister nodded his head at the two women, the bounty hunter and his ‘attache’, “all we need to do is figure out where we need to put them.”

Metallic fingers tapped slowly against the table surface as he considered the problem before them, waving a hand at Cali, “You’re right, they must anticipate that at some point the security companies, the police are going to try to come after them, but that’s actually where we have an advantage.” A hand came up, sweeping over the group gathered together around the table. “Looking at us here, no-one would think we were police, or worked for any company. We’re just a random group of people, it’d be hard for them to predict we were working together.”

The dark-haired cyborg fell silent for a moment in thought before nodding slowly, “If they were going to pick somewhere, it’d be were workers went to blow off steam after work, a crowded space but with the opportunity to get someone alone and plenty of people helping their friends home.” He glanced slowly around at the assembled group, “am I crazy, or does that seem like a club. I can run a search on the missing people, see if there are any activity hotspots as far as the kidnapping goes. We can zero down on a specific location when we get there.”

John fell silent, sitting back in his chair for a moment as his eyes began to glow, data streaming across his vision as he nodded slowly. “It won’t be too hard to insert you into the personnel files, I can ever work up a history for you with the company but you guys are going to have to sell it.” There were some advantages to being as connected to technology as he was, the company’s files were right there at his fingertips.

“I guess the rest of the team can be other workers, some reason to just be in the same area, if not too close.” It made sense to have some members of the team in the area to act as needed, not to mentions John’s ace in the whole. He’d been a little nervous about Ardaz Verd when they first met, but the man was more than proving his worth. “I’ll make up some more profiles for you, so you don’t stand out.” As he spoke John’s eyes flicked up, staring at Voph, he’d heard the force allowed you to read people’s thoughts, he hoped his friend was able to sense the single phrase he was trying to push at him, maybe he should have listened more when Allyson was talking about the force.

Keep her safe, please.

John’s gaze rested on his friend for a long moment before he pushed his chair back, rising to his feet. “Just remember, whoever these guys are, they’re smart and organized. No-one has gotten close to them before, and I’d prefer we didn’t get caught out by them and add to their list of casualties.” It was too easy to make a simple mistake, even the most experienced operatives fell into that trap, and this time I was John’s friends and loved ones on the front line.

 

[Tallara]

Tag: | [member="Gianna Aegis"] | [member="Voph"] | [member="John Locke"] | [member="Maani"] | [member="Cali Ziiva"] | [member="Gerwald Lechner"] | [member="Ardasz Verd"] | [member="Ciri Jade"] |​

Location: Locke and Key headquarters, Constine City, Fenris; 45th floor, meeting room​

Equipment: Obsidian-type Strike Armor, modified DL-44, .48-caliber Enforcer slugthrower pistol, Knight Obsidian Sword (specific image), vibroblade​

​

I don't get it.​

​

Locke's speech left Tallara torn, and awfully so. She admired the ideal, the idea that pure determination and drive was enough to save everyone. She could feel the emotion that pushed the man, and she knew how powerful emotion could be, how motivating. She could feel what he was describing, of reaching the goal only to have it slip through one's fingers. His past experiences, his memories, every time in the past where he'd seen the forces of good a second too late to stop an act of evil.

As much as she agreed with Locke's sentiment, his methodology was out of whack. The most efficient course of action would surely be to quickly track down the criminals and give no option for escape for their enemies or explicit danger to their allies. Tallara mentally went through all her points again, but by the time she'd gathered her thoughts it seemed that everything had already been decided. So often when she fell quiet she was unable to find her voice again. She needed to stay true to herself, do what she deemed right. She did not deem this right.

"I will not be part of this," she said simply, moving out of her corner of the briefing room and heading towards the exit. She didn't stop listening, though, and of course she saw the look that Locke gave to Voph. She shook her head. "If you are not confident in the skills of those you send into the field, you should not send them into the field."

"Good luck to you all." And she was gone.

 

[Kyyrk]

OBJECTIVE: Assist John Locke in locating missing persons​

EQUIPMENT: In Description​

IMMEDIATE VICINITY: ​

[member="Gianna Aegis"] | [member="Maani"] | [member="Gerwald Lechner"] | [member="Cali Ziiva"] | [member="Ciri Jade"] | [member="John Locke"]​

Voph listened quietly to the discussion, his head turning this way and that, following the current speaker. It was a habit he'd never really shaken, having spent so much time among humans trying to blend in. His gaze lingered on Locke for a moment, unmoving and unresponsive. It wasn't until John gave his final word of caution that Voph responded, but his meaning was clear. The slow, solemn nod was not just acknowledging the request to be careful. It was also in acknowledgement of John's silent request. Voph wouldn't even need to hear the man's thoughts to understand his plea.

Voph turned, however, to watch Tallara retreat from the room, stating that she didn't trust the gathered individuals to accomplish the task at hand. He sighed quietly, shaking his head in disapproval. "With just a modicum of faith, one can move entire systems." Voph sounded as though he was quoting something. Though it wasn't clear if it was someone he knew, or just a holonet snippet of wisdom. He stood, looking to the group around him. "I will elect to remain close to our volunteers. As some of you are already aware, I am well versed in remaining undetected." This was followed by a pointed look to Gerwald. "What the file might not have said was just how well versed. Suffice it to say, I will be nought but a phantom to their minds, only seen if I allow it. Once I have acquired our target, they will be nigh impossible to lose. My prey has never evaded me before, not forever. And I will not allow such a change to pass today. To preserve the secrecy of our gathering, I shall depart. Contact me with the location when it is decided upon, and I will be there."

Voph paused to look at Locke for a moment. No words nor thoughts were conveyed. But the meaning was clear enough. A second affirmation of his charge.

My life for hers.

Voph strode past, clapping John on the shoulder as he moved towards the door. "It has been too long since my last man hunt. The nobility of this venture shall allow me to enjoy it all the more."