The Raid of the Tython Pearl

[Sabetha Tag]

The Tython Pearl​

First Leg Outbound​

Tython to Coruscant​

Empty Space​

While the Galactic Alliance ruled the Core, travel was peaceful. They kept a firm hand on piracy and smuggling on the hyperlanes cutting across their territory. Civilian and passenger ships could move in relative safety, and when a menace did rear its head, it was cut off at the source- swift and merciless- for the safety of the whole.

But as time stretched past the fall of the political giant, things grew darker and more harried in the Core.

The Tython Pearl was a luxury liner. Not the newest. Not the shiniest. Not perhaps the richest jewel that could be taken in these skies. But it was exactly what Captain Aurelia had ordered. Not too big. Not too small. No military escort. Not the richest passengers but also not refugees fleeing the depredations of the encroaching Sith Empire. A short enough jump from their point of origin to their next port that there was little they could do to deviate.

Easy, as it happened, to lay a trap.

The Peal was snatched out of hyperspace, dragged into the darkness between systems. Shock nets peppered the hull, shorting out navigation, sensors, but most importantly communication. On board, alarm klaxons blared as back up power to essential systems kicked on.

The plan was simple. Get in. Grab whatever you could, be it individual wealth or cargo. Get out. Avoid mass murder, cause they aren't going to chase you for their chit, but they WILL put a bounty on your head for slaughtering civilians. Don't be STUPID. The pirates were cocky. The Pearl was an easy target, rich enough to be worth the time and effort, not important enough to warrant a serious response.

Of course, they weren't expecting what they found inside. Resistance.

A Warden. Golden Company. Jedi. And probably more sass than they could shake a stick at. The worst possible combination of factors brought together to make the Raid on the Tython Pearl far more of a ride than anyone intended.

*****

"Cake walk. We fire some shots into the air, they cower, we tell them to hand over their shinies, they comply, we go home."

Sabetha was accompanied by several other pirates. At large they had come in from several points of entry, spreading out through the liner. Her group was heading toward the main passenger level. Some of the less stable elements had been dispatched to the cargo hold, while others would be rounding up crew or clearing out different levels.

"Simple."

Sabetha grinned broadly and easily.



OOC Thread

 

[Amea Virou]

It wasn’t a pitfall, a spike trap, a great big boulder to run away from, or even a massive blade trying to trim a bit too much off the top of Amea’s head, but it was just as exciting all the same. Maybe not for the death threatening reasons mentioned before but as much as because it was just a generally good idea to go on vacation every now and then to keep the psyche clear and refreshed for whenever the death traps of ancient civilizations wanted her deader than dead again. Usually this would have meant something in the style of a hiking trip up the mountains of some uncharted planet or a good trip to visit family, but not today. Amea had money to spend and she figured that perhaps for once she would go on a cruise for the sake of entertainment rather than work.

The mud bath had been an unwelcome change, the massages thereafter however had not. At some point there had even been a vegetable slice or two covering her eyes, but childish tendency had Amea devouring them in a heartbeat much to the contempt of the woman that had, at the time, been loosening up the knots in her legs. And as such, as Amea — a Warden of the Sky who had gone on vacation — laid there thinking that perhaps this was a good idea, the galaxy — as peculiar in its humor as it was — seemed to have something else entirely in mind.

A loud clonk echoed through the ship and the masseuse stopped partway through a particularly stubborn knot to look up at the small yet cozy interior in which the two women had up until now enjoyed a rather laid-back and relaxed atmosphere. Funny how quick dread could spread through a ship with little more than a bang. Hands let go of Amea’s ankle and the Warden couldn’t help but let out a deeply frustrated groan and sigh. A silent countdown from three…

“Attention, this is the captain speaking,” A voice blathered through the intercoms right on cue and Amea tuned out mentally, sat up on her bed and put her feet on the ground with another frustrated groan. She already knew what he was about to say anyway. She made her way over to the locker in which her clothes had been stowed away and proceeded to get dressed.

“Look, just stay here. Out of sight.” Her head shook with another even more frustrated sigh. “Pirates. Easy money and a lack of teeth.”

With most of her clothes on Amea proceeded to tense her knuckles and back expecting to hear them pop, only to be faced with, well, nothing. The masseuse had been thorough in their work yet she couldn’t help but be a little disappointed. The pops felt good, they really did.

“We’ll try this again in like an hour or something.”

With that Amea stepped out of her room and right back into work.

“Goddamnit.”

 

[LT-137]

The Tython Pearl. When Khonsu first heard of it, the man imagined it was a beautiful vessel, rife with the sins of opulence and greed. However, such praises turned to ash in his mind as he bore witness to the truth. It wasn’t what he was expecting. Their contact, some Coruscanti Shipwright from the Republic Engineering Corporation, kept spouting lies about how breathtaking this luxury liner was; Of how it put all of the other pleasure cruises to shame.

As the Sun Guard later found out, the only reason why that Architect wished for them to slip under the radar, was because of an affair with someone in the ship’s crew that the man desperately wished to keep secret.

It wasn’t the job he was used too, nor one that he desired - but Khonsu figured it would be a good chance to get his kindred’s feet wet in the mercenary life. Sadly, and much to his chagrin, it wasn’t all about conquering entire star systems for another man’s cause in return for coin. There was some work that others would consider boring that had to be done. This escort mission was a perfect example of that.

Their numbers were few, in comparison to the deployment in the Chiss Ascendancy, but it would be more than enough to fight off any unsavoury cretins who sought to despoil the Pearl. Well, at least that’s what the Thyrsian believed.

Just when things were starting to go well, the unexpected happened.

The ship’s operational power began to drain, and their engines stilled; leaving them dead in the water. Warning klaxons erupted throughout the vessel, as the lights shifted to a pulsating carnelian. What few elements of shipboard security there was began rushing to their stations, beckoning people to return and stay within the confines of their cabins. It was all done in the name of safety, but Khonsu grimaced at the thought.

With everyone rushing towards their quarters, it would make protecting their client all the more difficult. They’d have to fight their way through the tidal press of flesh and fabric that swarmed the corridors, which made any engagements a possible bloodbath. While the Golden Company was no stranger to civilian casualties, their Client strictly expressed his desire not for that to happen. Bound by the terms of their accord, Khonsu and those that came with him would be obligated to comply.

Thus, with such thoughts flowing through his mind, he toggled his rifle’s settings over to non-lethal and felt the accruing lethality within the weapon subside. There would be a time for murder, but his mission came first. Remotely booting up the implanted tracker, the false-firelight of Khonsu’s visor began to shift; placing a distant waypoint marker above his furrowed brow.

“Alright,” He said, across their encrypted comms channel. “Let’s get our mark.”

| [member="Sabetha Tag"] | [member="Roslyn Thorn"] | [member="Amea Virou"] | [member="Khyros Tani"] |​

 

[H3xle]

The Tython Pearl
First Leg Outbound
Tython to Coruscant
Empty Space

Khyros stood a few meters behind their charge, watching as he made eyes at a Coxswains Mate across the large cafeteria. She was the reason for the whole trip, and she was sitting with other crew at the moment, making thinly veiled glances at the Architect. It would have been cute, had Khyros cared one whit. The Architect could be cuddling the hyperdrive, just so long as he paid well for their protection.

Khyros was in his full armor, but had left his rifles in his quarters so as not to scare the locals...too much. Instead, he had his pistols and daggers strapped to the thighs of his armor. His eyes scanned the crowd, back and forth. Others may have taken the time to go in minimal armor, but Khyros tended to be more comfortable in his iron skin than outside of it. Some psychologists would likely love to peel back the layers of issues that may have caused this state, though Khyros tended not to let them.

Klaxons and emergency lighting shifted the mood faster than a teenagers mother walking into the room, and people screamed before the Captain announced anything. The crew across the room all stood and moved with almost military swiftness out of the room, and the announcement to have everyone go to their quarters had the civilians moving like cattle for the main door out.

The Architect got up, and started to follow, until Khyros reached him. The Legionnaire didn't even break stride as he veritably lifted the Architect from his feet moving in the opposite direction.

“Alright,” He said, across their encrypted comms channel. “Let’s get our mark.”

"Architect is en route. Avoiding the main hallways." Khyros reported to [member="khonsu amon"] as he finally let the Architect walk. Khyros had his left hand on their charges shoulder, while the other brought up the solar ionization pistol from his right holster. He was ready to move the Architect where he needed the man to keep him safe.

 

[Roslyn Thorn]

Roslyn had gained freedom from the Citadel when the Sith Empire had arrived. Lola Sayu was not a planet she missed, and since then had been drifting all over the galaxy. First was Galactic Alliance space, directed to via the Sith's suggestion. Buy Roslyn had barely remained for a week before she was off somewhere else. Fortunately, it was long before the Galactic Alliance's fall, when everything had just become hell.

Then there was the short stint with the Mandalorians, specifically the Vizslas. It had been fun tagging along with a mission, but the 'rally' she had witnessed had made it plain as day she wanted nothing to do with them. She liked her fighting sure, but that, that had been messy.

Between then and now, Roslyn had bounced around doing odds and ends, whatever amused and interested her. But never remaining in one place for too long, which was the very reason she winded up in her current situation.

She had been gunning to steal some credits, mainly for the thrill and nothing more. Unfortunately, Roslyn happened to target the wrong person, an associate slash friend of [member="Sabetha Tag"]'s. A fight had ensued, and the shorter woman had gotten her arse kicked. Although it seemed she had impressed somewhere, as she hadn't been immediately killed, thrown out an airlock or discarded to the local authorities.

One of these days her luck was going to run out, but it wasn't going to be today.

"Nothing is ever that simple." Roslyn chimed in, walking just slightly behind them, spinning one of her Kyuzo Petar's around a finger. "But simple is boring, personally speaking."

 

[Farah]

Laid out on a chair by the pool, a Zeltron woman continued typing on her datapad. The warning klaxons registered in her mind but they’d taken a backseat to her work. At the urging of her superior—singular—she’d taken a week off for vacation and booked passage onto a vacation liner.

Something about her working too hard. Had she made a mistake on the job? No? Good. Was she snapping at the residents? Only the incompetent ones. Which meant yes. Always yes.

The first two days had been alright. Massages, hot tubs, sunning herself under the artificial lights. Reading studies, playing with the surgical simulators, compiling data from one of her recent trials. Ya know, vacation stuff. After that it all got dreadfully boring, though. The ship being suddenly pulled out of hyperspace was the first exciting thing to happen. If she was lucky, she’d get to deal with some slugthrower wounds!

“Attention, this is the captain speaking,”

Oh great, not this guy again. She slipped a pair of space earbuds on, effectively cutting off the captain’s voice.

[member="Sabetha Tag"] | [member="Amea Virou"] | [member="Khyros Tani"] | [member="Roslyn Thorn"] | [member="Khonsu Amon"]

 

[Mav Halo]

The Tython Pearl​

Lower Deck Bar​

​

[member="Sabetha Tag"] | [member="Amea Virou"] | [member="Khonsu Amon"] | [member="Khyros Tani"] | [member="Roslyn Thorn"] | [member="Farah"]​

​

The Tython Pearl might have lacked some of the luster its name would have otherwise suggested, but there was simply no faulting the lower deck bar and its expansive selection of whiskies, bourbons and other associated spirits. A modest sampling of which stood arrayed around the slumped, disheveled form of the Corellian mercenary as he attempted to sleep one off, the oddly angled hat resting on his brow his only true companion for the evening - the bar attendant had lost that privilege after the second time she’d confiscated one of his prized cigarras. The Twi’lek knew her trade sure enough, but that didn’t change the fact she was a pint-sized tyrant of the tumblers. A gorram nag that simply couldn’t let a man enjoy the finer things in life without some form of interference.

Case in point as she gave his shoulder a shove.

“Sir.”

Another shove, more urgent and unforgiving than the last.

Whiskey, cigarras and now his fethin’ nap. It was official, she was placed on this liner to torment good, honest folks.

“Sir, shouldn’t be doing something about that?”

A blearly eyelid cracked open, squinting at the electric neon glow radiating from behind the bar that greeted him. Gradually becoming aware of the sound of klaxons ringing in his ears and a tinny voice repeating something distantly on the tannoy. Ugh. Pirates. Hadn’t he had his fill of those working for Bao? Putting a few dozen to rest out an airlock should’ve bought him a reprieve. Clearly not, if the pointed expression the Twi’lek was bearing down on him was anything to go by, already gearing up for another karking shove.

A gorram nag indeed.

“Ugh, fine.” There was a disgruntled snapple-crack as he straightened himself up, pressing a hand down to secure his hat as he stretched and popped his neck and joints in to some sense of order. A battered lighter and a dog-earred cigarra making an appearance before the last click had faded from memory. Third time’s the charm. “But this is gonna count as your tip, y’hear?”

“Okay, but you really shouldn’t light that up in here. I wasn’t joking earlier.”

“Darlin’, you really think a lungful of second hand smoke is what you gotta concern yourself with right no----” His argument was overridden by a loud WHUFF! from above as stream of blue fire retardant foam cascading down from the ceiling into his general vicinity. Covering his features in a thick layer as it smothered the embers of his cigarra, leaving only errant parts of his beard visible beneath the luridly periwinkle hued mess.

“As I was saying, sir.” The attendant smugly continued without missing a beat, clearly taking his current gagging, choking and spluttering appearance as all the tip she'd need for the evening. “You really shouldn’t light that up in here because of the fire suppression units. In the event of an emergency like this, they are set on high alert.”

Fan-karking-tastic.

He knew should've traveled commercial.

 

[Nej Tane]

So there he was, two hands deep in a card game he was cheating in. The crew didn't get to gamble on the tables down below-

But boy did they put down big money! He looked at his cards, then everyone else's. Truth be told, he'd been a good, even great Pazaak player. But, he wanted to cheat for the time being, just to really make sure he was going to claim that pile of credits. He'd been traveling with the Tython Pearl to make it back to the inner core, but- when the door burst open to the crew quarters and a couple of unsavory types came in, speaking harshly this and that way, Nej knew that he was in for a bad time. The crew, hardened men and women from the crappier parts of space, got up and engaged in a fight with the pirates, wrestling them to the ground and bashing their faces in with bottles.

Nej used the chance to slip the pile of credits into his bag and make his break for the door. Only one of the crew members noticed as he bolted out the door. He did however, leave them his very nice (stolen) pazaak deck. He made it halfway the hallway when three more pirates stopped him, blasters raised. Blasters. They weren't that good, then. He put up his hands, holding a credit chit. His eyes dilated as adrenaline and cortisol rushed through his veins.

The first pirate made a move for the credit chit in his hand.

He hadn't shot off hand in a long time. But he made it work. The appendix carry was a good concealment, but hard to draw. But off hand, even more so. The two other pirates were not in a very advantageous security posture, directly in front of Nej. Nej used his dominant hand to trap the outreached arm of the third pirate, and withdrew his disruptor with his off hand. From the hip, and the distance he was at, it was an easy couple of shots. He ran a drill on the two in front of him, one shot to the chest for the both, and a follow up shot. He shot the nearest one in the leg, partially incinerating it, and then placed the pistol under her chin, blowing straight through the helmet she was wearing, and through the top of her skull.

By the time she was dead, the other two had just dropped. Say what you wanted about Nej, and yes, he wasn't the brightest. But in a pinch, in a gunfight, he was a hell of a man. But he was still a moron. He picked up the credit chit, and started to sprint to the main passenger area.

Why was Nej running for the main passenger area?

To see what else he could steal!

And the pirates would be blamed for it!

A win-win for one of the galaxy's more questionably moral people.

 

[Hira Mitsae]

[member="Sabetha Tag"] | [member="Amea Virou"] | [member="Khyros Tani"] | [member="Roslyn Thorn"] | [member="Khonsu Amon"] | [member="Farah"] | [member="Mav Vohaloveer"] | [member="Nej Tane"]

In her experience there were a couple of different brands of piracy.

You had the roving band of marauders, who butchered everything in their wake. Had the calculative types that overcomplicated everything. The ones that did a lot of shock and awe, but actually tried their best to keep the body count down. Things like that. Different shades and all that. Hira? Hira enjoyed a good kill. There was something satisfying about it. Sadly Sabetha was mostly of the latter brands. She was always rather disappointed when Hira went full... well... Hira.

"Blondie took the words outta my mouth, y'know." Hira said with something of excitement. After all, complication would shift into battle and that would be good. "Besides, haventcha ever heard of the jinxing curse, eh? You are literally inviting trouble right now."

Lazy grin there.

"Not that I am complaining."

They strode through the corridors.

The shortest stretch was empty. Sounds of klaxons running through, the panicked voice of the Captain bouncing against those sounds. He was urging caution and for everyone to stay in their room. "Yeah, great idea, Cap, neatly isolate everyone for us." Hira agreed jokingly with the voice of the Pearl's captain. Their approach was finally noticed. Civilians, rich pompous ones that had been planning on... escaping, she guessed? They immediately froze up at the appearance of the pirate band. Then backed away to the atrium. Hell, Hira couldn't help but whistle once they strode in there. "Gorram, dis looks nice." There were sweeping chandeliers, gold (probably gilded tho) on every surface.

It looked less like a meeting hall on a ship and more like a palace grounds.

Her heavy blaster was out of her holster in no time.

It was aimed up and she let out two blasts. "Ladies and gentlemen," Her voice suddenly magnified by specialized tech against her throat. "-it be your lucky day, I am not in charge here and so all of y'all will survive." A bemused expression flashing past. "If you get in a karking orderly line anyway. No sudden movements, no funny biz, we do this nice and easy or y'a-"

Her blaster suddenly rang out. Random security guard #4 dropped down with a hole in his head.

"-ya get karked. Questions, please!" A wink to Sabetha, her turn. She'd handle oversight while Sab and the others started collecting.

 

[Ronak]

Ronak could never have afforded travelling aboard the Tython Pearl as a passenger. Luckily for him, one of the lowly crew members hired for carrying stuff around, helping in any department they could without much skill expected had had an unlucky run-in with the Triads and he had gained the job giving him the chance to return to the inner systems without having to pay but getting paid instead. With every trip he learned more about ships and their organisation, mechanics and basic operation although he still was far away from being an expert or even adept.

When the Claxons started to howl, all lights went dark in the storage room where he was working with only a single dim light indicating the emergency exit. The Shistavanen's natural dark vision allowed him to still see under the circumstances, as he listened to the captain's voice warning of a pirate attack. What was wrong with him travelling in space? Pirates and slavers seemed to be more common in space than beasts of prey in his home world Uvena Prime. From what he had learned from his previous run-ins with slavers, he would not cower or hide, but rather put up a fight.

Cursing in his native tongue which would have sounded like a series of growls and snarls for anyone but a Shistavanen, he made his way to the exit hoping that none of the pirates had made their way to the storage halls on the lowest deck yet. The hallway was empty and after locking the storage hall, he made his way down the corridor to the kitchen. Aboard the ship, he was not allowed to be armed as a simple crewman, but the selection of knives there quickly made up for the fault. The crew had apparently abandoned the kitchen in a hurry to try and hide or fight as he did. A hot pan which had been left on the oven might actually work as a good blunt weapon, the hot oil inside being an added first attack bonus. While grabbing what he could carry easily, Ronak's ears pricked at the sound of heavy footsteps outside. Someone was coming and that someone was definitely not a member of the kitchen crew or service staff.

Positioning himself behind the kitchen door, he waited until he could hear the person outside to be in the perfect position for being hit in the face by the swfitly opening door. The pained cry indicated that his plan had worked out perfectly but the shouts and rustle of clothes, made it clear that this person had not been alone and now his cronies were out to get him. Diving behind a shelf, he readied his makeshift weapon, the hot oil pan, to hit it into the face of the first pirate approaching. The giant brute who became visible from behind the shelf looked almost a head taller than Ronak, scars marring his face where it was not covered by a helmet. A aimed quickly and put his trust in the force to guide his hand to spill the hot oil inside the helmet from below.

The pirate's howl sounded like that of a wounded beast, as dropped his weapon and clutched at his helmet trying to remove it. Trying to grab the fallen blaster the Shistavanen barely dodged a salve of blaster fire meant to kill him. The 4 feet distance between him and the much needed weapon seemed immense. But the shelf bore more than one useful untensil a ladle and some spices for example. Putting a kitchen towel over his snout and keeping his ladle at the ready, the wolfman threw a spice bottle into the air in the remaining pirate's direction which was hit the a blaster bolt immediately, shattering the bottle and spraying its content in the whole area. Loud coughing showed that the trick had worked out. While his opponent was distracted he could shove the weapon towards him with the help of the ladle without getting into the line of fire.

Now that he was armed, his self-assurance increased immensely. Pulling himself up from his crouching position to full height the Shistavanen growled in his attempted scariest voice: "Drop your weapon and surrender. Then you will not be harmed!" The coughing pirate took very little additional intimidation aside from his brutish companion's whimpering and the sight of a more than six foot tall wolfman whose species was not known for its reputed gentleness. Constraining their wrists and ankles with some synthetic thread used for whatever the noble cuisine required it he took one of the thug's weapons belt and now felt much better walking into this fight with two blasters and reserve energy cells.

the third thug he had initially assaulted with the door seemed to have fled by now. Either he would warn his cronies not to come here or lead them down here right away. In any case, Ronak did not intend to stay. Locking the kitchen door behind him, he crept towards the stairwell leading to the upper decks of the vessel.

Sabetha Tag | Amea Virou | Khyros Tani | Roslyn Thorn | Khonsu Amon | Farah | Mav Vohaloveer | Nej Tane | [member="Hira Mitsae"]

 

[Sabetha Tag]

"Don't get me wrong, I love a good adventure as much as anyone," Sabetha said with a grin tossed back at [member="Roslyn Thorn"]. "But sometimes, isn't it nice to just get PAID? Minimum fuss? Money and go? You can't tell me that isn't nice sometimes."

As the Golden Company- [member="Khonsu Amon"] [member="Khyros Tani"]- shifted through the side halls, this particular group was blissfully unaware of them.

"And come on, that's not how that works," she said, making a face at [member="Hira Mitsae"]. "Either there's trouble here or not. Before I said anything."

Sabetha didn't particularly know, or trust, Roslyn Thorn at her back. The only reason the woman was here was cause she picked the wrong fight. Hira on the other hand, Sabetha trusted with her life. Well. Mostly. She also knew, all too well, that Hira could get too engrossed. Go too far. There was always the chance that at the moment Sabetha needed her? She'd been too deep into the moment of grinding someone's face into paste to realize it. The red head took that into account, any time the two went out on a job together.

She had to. It wasn't personal.

The group strode into the atrium and Hira did what she did best. Scare the chit out of a room. Sabetha would have preferred to not have the dead security guard, but she'd noticed the itch of his hand toward his blaster. Whether Hira had consciously or subconsciously, or was just being Hira, was anyone's guess.

With a quick pair of strides, Sabetha stepped up onto a chair and then to a table top.

"We're not here for anything ya'all don't have insured and you know it," she drawled easily, her voice carrying. Beyond the Atrium, she could see that the space opened up. A bar just beyond ([member="Mav Vohaloveer"]) and the glimpse of water. Chit this place even had a pool, swank ([member="Farah"] ). Bet they had private kitchens and saunas and chit too ([member="Amea Virou"] [member="Ronak"] ). How the other half lived.

"Jewelry, credits, take 'em off, take 'em out and kindly deposit them into the sacks my associates are going around with. No one has to get hurt over something as simple as money, right? We ain't got no heroes here either..... heroes wind up getting folks killed, savvy? My friend over there with the loud, angry voice and the big gun has an itchy finger, and I really don't want to have to dock her pay for unintended body count when this is all over." She put a hand over her heart, an exaggerated sigh and frown on her face.

"Would just tear me up inside."

[member="Nej Tane"]

 

[Amea Virou]

[member="Sabetha Tag"]

There were a few words Amea would use to describe her current predicament but none of them were particularly polite. The words brewing within her nutshell of a mind was even worse off, and considering the bothered line of exhales and under-breath-whispers that already parted her lips that was saying something. All she had asked for was the one day. Just a single day of vacation and then she’d happily go back to, well, this. But alas, the galaxy was ever as unkind of a master as it always had been.

A hand swept inside her pocket to check her gun. Mara had taught her better than to use a gun in situations such as these, but ever since that one fight where not having a gun had been a huge downside, Amea had decided to omit that part of her friend’s tutoring. Reaching for a pocket on the opposite side she proceeded to withdraw a cartridge of small pellets that had a slight shine to them. One by one she stuffed the magazine of her gun with a set of gel-based rounds. Though she had three types of ammunition to choose from; explosive, fire, and stun rounds, she elected to only pick the last one regardless of how very tempting it was to go hard on the first one entirely.

With the loading done she stuffed the gun back in its holster, and with the chaos still raging on she continued to keep her calm amongst the crowds rushing in all directions. If that masseuse had been clever they’d have followed Amea’s advice. If they were dumb, well, they would have done the opposite. She could only have hoped it was the smart move. Good massages were hard to find after all. Or maybe it was just the first one Amea had in a while. Regardless, the point still stood. A senseless loss of life was a shame no matter who it was that lost it. Though a pirate’s life was inarguably just a little more okay. Or so she told herself.

Aaaand there they went. Cool.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. These pirates wanted to give that whole sales pitch about how ‘please give us everything you have insured because that totally saves us having to worry about any kind of sentimental value you have for it because we’re total-’ well the last few words were not print-friendly in the slightest.

And as much as Amea desired to pull out her gun and take the first shot then and there, there also was no way of telling just exactly how that would go down. The one with the gun who shot a man seemed to be the muscle which made the red one the brain. The rest of them were also too big of a question mark to risk anything just yet with.

And, as such, there was no point in struggling just yet either. After all, the dumbest thing that these thugs could possibly do was to get within arms’ reach. Not that they’d know that. Amea played along if only to bring one of them closer.

 

[Boluc Laar]

How did he managed to wind up on this "luxurious" cruise line? He looked like a simple, regular person when compared to the other passengers on board. He did not boast his person with magnificent jewels or filled his pockets with credits. Just a casual here. A man traveling the stars and suns for clues to a certain people he was looking for, and their lost home. The way he got on board sounded simple. Just snuck his way on board, taking rest wherever he could find on the ship. He did not demand too much unlike the others here. Something that happens to a man when living a hard life on Kro Var. He'd come out on deck to eat and mingle around only for information.

Aulkren did not care for the others here and so when the captain announced that they were being attacked the K'paur hybrid was ready to defend himself, but not the others. His twin broadswords were left in a vacant room he was temporarily using. He cursed himself, hoping that they were not stolen by these renegades.

Aulkren was about to leave the atrium until the pirates arrived and one fired two...err three shots. Two in the air and one in the head of a security guard. The people were left shaken in fear, yet stood still in their tracks as another pirate spoke directly to the audience. Simple, just give them credits and jewelry and all will be fine. The thing was the K'paur didn't own any of that. All he owned was the few clothes he had and his swords. Just the necessities a man needs.

Aulkren sat down near a vacant chair, observing his surroundings. Again, he would not defend these people but he would not hesitate in burning anyone that dared to annoy him with demanding his belongings or face the consequences if he didn't comply.

[member="Sabetha Tag"] | [member="Hira Mitsae"] | [member="Amea Virou"] | [member="Ronak"] | [member="Nej Tane"] | [member="Mav Vohaloveer"] | [member="Farah"] | [member="Roslyn Thorn"] | [member="Khyros Tani"] | [member="Khonsu Amon"]​

 

[Nej Tane]

Nej Tane, came to the entrance of the Atrium. He figured that was a good place to start to look for escape pods, or maybe whoever boarded the ship- their ship. Instead, on the small balcony overlooking the Atrium, Nej Tane was looking down at a smoking gun, and a woman giving a speech. Then, two of the pirates flanked Nej, blasters pointed right at him. He put up his hands, smiling to each of them. He clicked his heels together.

Go-go rocket boots. They lifted him up rapidly, back down the hall he came. He pressed the button behind his ear, his helmet folding over his face. It wasn't blaster, or anything other than scrape proof really. Plus it made him look all mean and scary. While flying through the air, two well placed shots to the chest of the pirates- in mid air, mind you, send them both sprawling. Disruptors had so much heat that it pretty much killed anyone on impact. Nej braced for the impact as he felt his body go down. Sweet jacket aside, he didn't have any protection.

He tumbled, losing his backup blaster in the process. He was down to the disruptor.

Just the disruptor. He rounded a corner, taking a few deep breaths, unfurling his helmet, it folding nicely behind his ear.

"Aw man this blows."

He peaked around the corner, aware that he just made a lot of very bad people, very angry.

 

[Roslyn Thorn]

"You're not wrong, that is nice now and then...but it is boring. Sometimes the thrill and excitement are worth it."

Roslyn remained quiet, playing little attention to the klaxons and sirens that were going off. It was just white noise to her as the group made their way onwards. She spared a glance over at Hira though, watching as the raven-haired outlaw conversed with Sabetha.

She liked Hira, even though the woman did pack one hell of a punch. There were very few impressions one gets from first meeting her. But to Roslyn, Hira came across as the type who didn't shy away from going all out in a fight.

Were you likely to get into a fight? Yes. Was it going to be bloody? Yes.

"All you gotta do is introduce a little anarchy."

Roslyn could hear the sound of hurried footsteps ahead. Folks were already panicking, which was both a good and bad thing. A feral grin slipped across her lips as they finally laid eyes on their targets. Another spared glance around at the surroundings, but Roslyn's focus was on what everyone else was doing.

Hira jumped ahead and made her introduction, ordering the cruiser's guests with a blaster in hand. Roslyn walked forwards, grabbing the sizable sack that was attached to her belt. The guests closest attempted to back up to little avail.

"Now now, please do listen to the ladies. Be good little children, and deposit your valuables into the bag." Her Kyuxo Petar was still in hand, although Roslyn had threaded her fingers through and held it firmly. "And don't even think about doing something stupid." One would probably think little of Roslyn due to her size, but anyone with some combat sense would be wary of just how quick she could be with a knife.

Roslyn went around the crowd one by one, making sure she had an eye on as many as possible. Ensuring no one was attempting to get to her blindspots. But a wrench was suddenly thrown into the works when a disruption erupted from high above. Roslyn glanced over and up to the balcony where Nej Tane had been. That glance turned to Sabetha and Hira.

It seemed someone had kickstarted the real fun.

[member="Sabetha Tag"] | [member="Amea Virou"] | [member="Khyros Tani"] | [member="Hira Mitsae"] | [member="Khonsu Amon"] | [member="Farah"] | [member="Mav Vohaloveer"] | [member="Nej Tane"] | [member="Ronak"] | [member="Aulkren Yoso"]​

 

[Kvelduf Ioscyn]

THE TYTHON PEARL; Pool


The Tython Pearl was a type of ship that Kvelduf would normally choose to avoid, his preferences clashing with the pompousness that seemed to permeate around most of the Pearl's passengers as they dreamt of living a life of luxury and extravagance that they could not afford to maintain. It was a luxury liner that whispered of alluring illusions that hid the fact that it wasn't the best, that it wasn't the shiniest liner around nor the jewel of the spacelanes that it purported itself to be. However, what it also was, was a place that did afford some lavishness at a cheaper price than other upper-class luxury liners and a place where people with credits weren't quite as guarded about said credits as they should have been.

As such, employed by a contract, Kvelduf had found himself standing above a cooling body a week prior, watching the corrupt businessman's life drain away, as he rifled around the apartment, picking up the accessories required to assume the man's identity beyond simply shifting his face to match the man's. In doing so, he had come across a ticket for the Tython Pearl, taking the opportunity for what it was, Kvelduf had chosen to take the corpses' spot on the liner, preparing for an opportunity to liberate some credits from fools too rich for their own good. Specifically, fools that had been in business with his target.

Just an hour prior, Kvelduf had been hunched over a console, authorising the transfer of a not-insignificant amount of credits - taking care not to totally bankrupt the fool, of course, he wasn't that cruel - through a few dummy corporations and accounts until it would arrive in one of the accounts Kvelduf managed under a false identity. Now, though, as the Captain's voice blared over the intercom systems and panic ran rampant through the crowds, the Gurlanin had wished he'd chosen to return to his quarters after the fact and not chosen to take advantage of the pool onboard the Pearl. If only to be away from the annoyance that was people running around like their worlds had been set aflame.

Pushing himself up onto his elbows, Kvelduf raised an eyebrow as, across from him, a Zelton seemed to express the same amount of respect for the Captain's requests and simply used her earbuds to block out the droning voice. Chuckling in amusement, Kvelduf simply shook his head slightly as he swung his legs to the side and reach down under his chair to remove the bag he had chucked there after claiming his spot by the pool, pausing only a moment to smirk at the Zeltron.

Ignoring the sound of blaster shots sounding out from behind him, from where he knew the Atrium, Kvelduf calmly began to remove his slugthrowers from where they were buried in his bag, under a mess of clothing as he was currently only clad in a loose undershirt and shorts. Still chuckling in amusement, his appearance began to shift and change as nimble fingers began to chamber slugs into the six shot revolvers. Green eyes bled into a steel grey as a stretched frame lost some of its height and gained a layer of wiry muscle. Pale white skin tanned slightly as tattoo-like markings in blues and browns began to spread. Small scars carved there way into his face as blond hair darkened into a mix of black and dark green, growing rapidly on most of his head whilst a strip of hair removed itself from the left side of his head.

In the end, as the last of the slugs were loaded, the face of Kvelduf Ioscyn, rather than that of Henry Iun, was set into an amused smirk.

Listening to the pirates making their way slowly through the Atrium and towards the pool, Kvelduf placed his slugthrowers in his lap, hidden from view by the towel he lazily draped over himself, as he once again reclined in the chair. Absentmindedly, his hand dropped into his bag to come back with a cigarette case, from which he removed a single cigarette which then hung, un-lit, from his lips as his eyes closed and he waited for the pirates to approach. The outlaw had no wish to play the hero, had no wish to end up with a blaster bolt searing its way through his skull as, from the looks of it, an unfortunate security guard in the other room had.

No, in the end, he was possessive about him and his and him and his alone. So long as these pirates left him alone, so long as they didn't try and steal from him, then Kvelduf had no qualms about letting the pirates go about their business. It was not like he hadn't been in their place before, making a quick steal from some gullible rich folks. Hell, he'd stolen from one of the pirates' victims earlier in the day, after all. He wouldn't interfere so long as he wasn't disturbed. Well, and as long as they didn't start killing randomly.

If they chose to overstep the guidelines that Kvelduf had decided upon within the privacy of his mind? Well, he'd let them behold the wolf and learn why, in the end, they were the prey and he the predator. Despite himself, he felt flames pulse within his veins and himself salviate as the thought of the hunt, the fight, danced across his mind's eye.

...Kark, what he wouldn't give for a drink and the bloody opportunity to light a gorram cigarette without having foam dumped on his head. Things were finally getting fun after all. Especially as, from the sounds of things, either the pirates had decided to squeeze off a few more shots to intimidate the sheep, or someone had taken umbrage to the pirates.

[member="Roslyn Thorn"] | [member="Sabetha Tag"] | [member="Amea Virou"] | [member="Khyros Tani"] | [member="Hira Mitsae"] | [member="Khonsu Amon"] | [member="Farah"] | [member="Mav Vohaloveer"] | [member="Nej Tane"] | [member="Ronak"] | [member="Aulkren Yoso"]​

 

[Mav Halo]

The Tython Pearl​

Lower Deck Bar​

​

[member="Sabetha Tag"] | [member="Amea Virou"] | [member="Khonsu Amon"] | [member="Khyros Tani"] | [member="Roslyn Thorn"] | [member="Farah"]
[member="Nej Tane"] | [member="Hira Mitsae"] | [member="Ronak"] | [member="Aulkren Yoso"] | [member="Kvelduf Ioscyn"]​

He shared a glance with the bar attendant as blaster fire erupted further in on the atrium floor, finding an apt mirror for his own disbelief in her features. Well, wasn't this just going to all kinds of merry little hell in a handbasket. If a face full of blue fire retardant foam hadn't done the trick, watching the element of surprise rocket boot its way out through the proverbial was definitely a sobering experience. Clearly someone had been binging the old Perish Difficultly holo franchise in their cabin. As Jahn MaKlayne impersonations went, it wasn't half bad. All that was missing was the trademark 'Yippie Ki Yay, Motherfether' to really pull it together.

"Well, uh, I guess he's got us covered?" Mav snorted, dropping back down at the bar once more. Hat joining him on the stool one over as he reached for the half-finished of whiskey he'd left behind. The Twi'lek wordlessly passing over a freshly wiped down tumbler while reaching for one for herself, hands shaking slightly as the reality of what was happening came crashing down around her, prompting the mercenary to reach out and steady them as he poured her a generous three-fingered measure of Corellian courage. ​"So you guys get robbed often, or am I just your one millionth customer?"

The humor predictably fell flat, but it did warrant a brief almost pity upturn of those lips before she tried to knock the whiskey back in one. Almost choking in the effort to chug it down. It didn't take a genius to work out what was coming next, nor did it require one to be strictly sober. After a reckless move like that, the pirates would need to exact a heavy reprisal in order to regain control. Cracking down on anyone so much as looking at them sideways.

If he was going to do something, he'd just have to wait for another moment.

His gaze flickered towards the mirror set behind the bar, catching a glimpse of a familiar looking figure in the upper most corner. The leader of the Pirates. The woman Bao had plucked from the firing line. What had the Admiral called her? It was something Tag... Sababa? Sebulba? Shebaloo? He shook his head, it didn't really matter none. Names were easily changed in this business. Still, if another moment was forth coming, she would be the one to watch. He just had to hope she was as reasonable as she sounded in the mean time.

"Guess its kinda oddly poetic," the mercenary mused, toying with his glass. "I waxed her old crew, now they're gonna try and do the same.... Although you'd think they'd give me extra dispensation for all the job openings I created. Clearly working out for them."

 

[LT-137]

​

A measure of ease spilled across his thoughts, as the words of Khyros were relayed over the encrypted channels of the Thyrsian BattleNet. Their client was in good hands and was being moved to a more secure location. Whatever this trouble was, it would be easier to deal with once that lecherous man was well-defended and out of sight. “Roger that,” Khonsu responded, as he pressed his armoured back against a fluted bulkhead. There was a moment of silence that followed, as the Twisuns Praetor scoured over the pulsating information playing across his helmet’s visor. The man reviewed the procured blueprints and cross-referenced them with the marked positions of his gilded kin; building a mental picture in his mind. It wasn’t perfect, as more time would be needed for that, but it gave him a rough idea of what could be done in the meantime.

“Khyros, rendezvous with elements of the Third Cohort in the Second Class Passengers Suites. They’ll take him off your hands and ensure that he’s well taken care of. Afterwards, link up with me. We’re going to clear the Pearl, deck by deck if we have too.”

Without waiting for a response, Khonsu pushed himself off the bulkhead and shouldered his rifle. With the charged weapon held tightly betwixt his gilded talons, the Sun Guard began the tedious operation; sweeping his weapon and searching every shadow. There were times that he encountered dozens of passengers, who rushed past him in hopes of escaping whatever terror now despoiled these peaceful halls. He tried to stop them when yet another group sought the succour of safety. However, the Thyrsian failed in that task as they either rushed passed him or tossed themselves down another hallway in the hope of escaping his notice. While comical, in hindsight, there was little room to revel in such petty amusement.

Instead, the Sun Guard swept passed the periodic masses. Whilst his eyes scoured his surroundings, the man’s ears filled with scattered reports of blasterfire; as well as several terminated life signs amongst the security staff. That wasn’t good, Khonsu thought. Within seconds of those reports spilling across his consciousness, the dots began to connect. They were left adrift by presently unknown means and were forcibly boarded by an unknown number of hostiles. As there was little to no reports of civilian casualties, the Thyrsian drew the conclusion that they were boarded by Pirates. He didn’t know who, or what band of Corsairs now stalked the halls of the Pearl, but there was little cause for him to care. They held the possibility of threatening his charge, and that was enough justification for him to get violent should they encounter one another.

Once the long corridor was cleared, Khonsu began his ascent up the metallic stairs. The carnelian-bathed companionway would lead the Sun Guard to another corridor that mirrored the one he just exited, but lead towards the atrium. It was where the scattered reports of blasterfire came from, and it was there that he was likely to encounter these poor, unfortunate souls. The man only hoped that they’d make things interesting and try to kill him -- so he could relish returning the favour in kind.

[member="Sabetha Tag"] | [member="Amea Virou"] | [member="Mav Vohaloveer"] | [member="Khyros Tani"] | [member="Roslyn Thorn"] | [member="Farah"]​

[member="Nej Tane"] | [member="Hira Mitsae"] | [member="Ronak"] | [member="Aulkren Yoso"] | [member="Kvelduf Ioscyn"]​

 

[H3xle]

The Tython Pearl

First Leg Outbound
Tython to Coruscant
Empty Space

“Roger that,”

Khyros nodded and continued to move his charge along the side passages. He passed crew who were running to their stations. A few looked like they were about to object to them being in the restricted passageways, but the gilded armor and weapons stopped them short. Khyros and the Architect moved past them without even a word.

“Khyros, rendezvous with elements of the Third Cohort in the Second Class Passengers Suites. They’ll take him off your hands and ensure that he’s well taken care of. Afterwards, link up with me. We’re going to clear the Pearl, deck by deck if we have too.”

Khyros stopped and queried his map detail on his visor. After a moment, he nodded.

"Confirmed, Praetor. I will rendezvous with you once I have the Architect secured with Third Cohort." Khyros confirmed over their secure battlenet. He then pushed his charge on. The man had not spoken since they started moving, and Khyros honestly preferred it that way. It allowed him to be more alert for threats when he didn't have to appease the check writer with details. They entered a stairwell, and Khyros kept the Architect moving down three levels to the Second Class Passenger suites.

"My suite is above the main deck." The Architect sounded dismayed to be going deeper into the ship. "Where are you taking me? Take me to my suite!"

"Your suite is in the more affluent section. More rooms, more windows, less secure. We are moving you to where our detachment is housed so we can keep you safe." Khyros resisted the urge to just leave it at 'No.', but only barely. The Architect fell silent once again, apparently just now realizing that they were in some type of danger. Khyros moved them out of the stairwell and into the waiting arms of the Third Cohort. It only took a short exchange for Khyros to be relieved of his charge, and freed to find Khonsu.

"Praetor, I have delivered the Architect to the Third Cohort. I am zeroing in on your position now." He reported in, slipping one of his pentag blades into his left hand as he maneuvered in the corridors. He was able to move faster without the worry of his unarmored charge getting shot. He moved up and forward, angling to cover the distance to his commander in short order. For the moment, it seemed like the danger was localized. The trip back up thus far hadn't seen anything more than the last bits of crew getting to cover and some passengers milling about. He ignored them all, and they did likewise to him.

It took only a few moments for Khyros to be on the same level as [member="Khonsu amon"], and only a couple of bulkheads behind him as he swept forward towards the rendezvous.

[member="Sabetha Tag"] | [member="Amea Virou"] | [member="Mav Vohaloveer"] | [member="Roslyn Thorn"] | [member="Farah"] | [member="Nej Tane"] | [member="Hira Mitsae"] | [member="Ronak"] | [member="Aulkren Yoso"] | [member="Kvelduf Ioscyn"]​

 

[Ronak]

While ascending on the stairways as silently and unssen as possible, Ronak heard some rummaging above him. Pressing to the wall immediately to not get seen, his sensitive ears picked up parts of a conversation taking place several levels above of his head. A man was complaining in a whining voice that he was brought to the wrong deck while another answered in a curt and militaristic way that this was for his safety. The wolfman could breathe out in relieve - those were not pirates or slavers, but there seemed to be real danger for the people aboard this ship.

In spite of not being a pirate himself, Ronak did not want to provoke the military man by stepping out of the shadows unexpectedly. Typically, people would put a Shistavanen immediately into the brute and pirate category rather than the civilized ship's crew category. Better to be safe than sorry. Two levels above him, the duo left the staircase and entered the passenger level there. When none of them returned for the next two minutes, Ronak decided to sneak past the level and get to the decks higher up, as that seemed to be the center of the fray. Why else would the military man have led his charge to the lower levels to keep him safe?

The sounds of shouts and screams from the passengers became louder the higher up he went, until on one deck they did not sound any more. This had to be the right deck where the pirates actually were. Why else would the people suddenly be silent, unless there was an immediate threat. Turning back to the last deck where he had heard shouting passengers, the Shistavanen first checked the door listening whether someone was behind it by putting his ear to it. Once he considred it safe enough, the scout silently crept into the ship's hallway looking for cover, as he made his way along the hallway.

Distant blaster fire and shouts on the level above him told him that he was closing in to the main fray.

Roslyn Thornhttp://starwarsrp.net/user/17505-roslyn-thorn/ | Sabetha Taghttp://starwarsrp.net/user/19258-sabetha-tag/ | Amea Virou | Khyros Tani | Hira Mitsaehttp://starwarsrp.net/user/5016-hira-mitsae/ | Khonsu Amonhttp://starwarsrp.net/user/16450-khonsu-amon/ | Farah | Mav Vohaloveer | Nej Tane | [member="Aulkren Yoso"] | [member="Kvelduf Ioscyn"]​