Campaign Where Night is Blind - [Open to GA and Allies Mentioned Below]

[Liedran Kathause]

Where Night is Blind​

[Csillan System]
[3rd Expeditionary Carrier Line]

The observation deck shimmered with the distant glow of pulsars, the stars’ pale light leaping from the void, glancing off the viewport surfaces, off the room’s darkened walls, off Liedran’s bittersweet expression. Dark, contemplating pupils caught the brunt of the shimmering light, hazel irises flashing tones of cold blue as she stared. As she waited. Waited for the claws of an unseen enemy to finally unfurl and lunge for the throat of the commodore’s line. Out of instinct, Liedran tightened wrapped fists, wincing as the tips of her nails dug into her skin.

[“Commodore, we’re in scanning range of the listening post. E.T.A 10 minutes now.”] The dry, collected voice ringing over the intercom appeared to release the pressure in Liedran’s system; her eyes quickly softened, her fists relaxed then tucked safely behind her. The commodore drew a deep breath, then took a step toward the glowing interface on the wall.

“Copy. I’ll be on the bridge shortly.” Following an uneasy sigh, Liedran began for the doors…

---

In the soft embrace of the void, Cs-748-L80 appeared peaceful; the light of stars rebounding from its viewports made the listening post appear busy. But both initial feelings were little more than falsehoods. Active sensor pings from the Cadence located none of the twenty officers who were said to crew the station. Her mind continued to dwell on the listening post’s belated distress call, on the dreadful cacophony of screams and wails that had been relayed from Fleet Command three days past the date of the message’s timestamp.

Within minutes of receiving the post’s final transmission, the 3rd Expeditionary had been rerouted to its position, leaving behind a quiet segment of the Alliance-Brotherhood border and rushing past the ashes of Csilla to meet the derelict station.

Within an hour, they’d arrived.

“Load the transports. I want us boarding within half an hour.” Liedran’s arms crossed in contemplation, stinging slightly as the tips of her fingers nervously clawed at her sleeves. “Frigates, take point around the station- Overture to port, Sonata starboard, Ranger ahead. Launch fighters- Cadence Wings, mount perimeter sweeps. Hold back the other fleet birds for now. And let’s get the Ferrets in the air. Begin long-range sweeps.”

She turned toward her CAG, putting on a grim frown. “Colonel Foster, take a team aboard. Start clearing the post’s caches… I don’t want the Brotherhood getting their hands on anything when... if they find this place.” It was with a heavy grimace that the commodore continued, “Figuring out what happened will be a bonus… But not a priority.”

“Radio silence won’t be necessary.” Liedran paused briefly, resolving herself to utter her next words. “Good luck.”

---

Kathryn Foster
Ara Sheridan
Sol'yan
Voldran Molf
Miria Tanau

OOC Note: Figured I’d do something fun and potentially traumatizing. While I state that this thread is open to Galactic Alliance folks, if you weren’t pinged above, I recommend DMing me before joining, just to clear out any details ahead of time and to limit the possibility of a massive derailment in the story.

And let's try to avoid a big conflict. So, remember your trigger disciplines, folks.

Cs-748-L80’s a sizeable station with plenty of mysteries to uncover and plenty of corridors to explore. I’ll try to slowly reveal as much as I can through NPC posts. But for the sake of keeping any other developments consistent with the plan: these guys are involved. Feel free to find strange alien residue or unnatural corpses around the listening post.

And most importantly, have fun!

 

[Ara Sheridan]

Once again she was on the magnificent star destroyer that belonged to the Third Expeditionary, the Cadence. Despite having seen it and similar ships before, it still felt bigger for her than all the rest... simply because it was the first time she saw something like it. A ship the size of a city... if only the onboard security would leave her alone to go explore it to her heart's content.

"Oh come on! I ain't some karing Maw spy or some crap like that, I'm a karking Jedi! Just lemme check out the reactor!" Ara glared up at the guard by the entrance to the reactor room, who was very clearly annoyed with her prodding despite the helmet that concealed his features. Ara finally relented and threw her arms in the air as she turned to leave. "Fine then! Can't have any fun around here..." She grumbled as she marched off to go find the hangar... the only place on the ship where she felt like she could actually explore.

Except when the mechanics were paying attention. They were also professional kill-joys. But it seemed that it was her lucky day to flip them all off, because she soon heard the announcement that the boarding party needed to report to the landing ships. She wasted no time to link up with the rest of the people by the landing ships, despite not having a clue where they were going. "Hell yeah, where are we going?" she spoke up as she reached one of the groups with a bright smile on her lips.

Kathryn Foster Sol'yan Voldran Molf Liedran Kathause Miria Tanau

 

[Sol'yan]

TAG: Ara Sheridan Liedran Kathause

"To the hangar bay." A familiar, low-toned voice spoke from behind Ara as she fell in behind the group comprising the away team. Sol'yan strode a few yards behind them, wearing his signature brown robes and simple tunic. He walked with a casual stride, clearly not in any particular sense or urgency. It had been some time since he had been paired with his apprentice, and while she had come a decent way since then - she still had a long way to go before she could truly call herself a Jedi.

And yes, he heard her little outburst as he approached. But he decided not to chide her for the remark. All things in due time. For now, they had to be focused on the station they were approaching. The Jedi Master could sense a heightened air of... was it anxiety? Yes, anxiety amongst the crewmen. It felt stronger in the relative location of Commodore Kathouse, despite the external confidence she carried herself with. While it was far too early to begin crafting theories as to what may await them aboard the station, Sol'yan suspected not all was well.

To reflect this, Sol'yan fell in step with his apprentice as they followed the group to the hangar bay, then glanced over to her as he said: "Prepare your mind for the unpredictable, Ara. Something tells me we are walking into a situation that is more than it may appear." Over their time as master and apprentice, he had come to view Ara as something of a daughter to him. It was strange of course, that a half-Zabraki young woman could be the daughter of a century and a half old Feeorin, but the bond was real, and it was there.

It wasn't as though they had never trained before, but she was not yet well enough trained for Sol'yan to not worry about her. It was that thought which gave birth to yet another, namely that he doubted he'd ever not worry about her. But that was a normal feeling, to an extent. He kept telling himself that it wasn't a reflection of the kind of person she was; namely, mischievous and irreverent. He hoped by the force that she would grow out of that, but something told him he would be disappointed to that end. Maybe an unpleasant surprise on this station would help her on that end.

It would almost be worth the unceasing melodrama that would accompany it once they got out of the situation.

 

[Kathryn Foster]

Spoiler

Kathryn stood behind an officer at a sensor console aboard their home away from home; the ANV Cadence. Head turned and combat helmet under her arm, she observed the monitor and listened to the pings that the officer sent out. Nothing. Not a response. Not a sound. Not a single trace of life from the listening post which distress call they were dispatched to respond to. Kath's eyes zoned out on the monitor for a moment while her face remained close-bitten. She were snapped back to reality by a voice belonging to a person she trusted deeply - trusted with her life even; Liedran.

''You got it, Li-'' she stopped herself, feeling a bit off balance by the eery silence on the scans, adding to it commodore Kathause's sudden appearance. ''I mean; Yes, ma'am.'' she corrected herself, and adjusted the harness of her combat armor in green camoflage. It had been a while since Kathryn had led a ground team or boarding party, yet she had the education and competence to do so. Further more, the sound of silence had given her somewhat of a bad feeling which she tried to cope with professionally. Kathryn hoped that her worries wouldn't be taken the wrong way by Liedran. She were excited to be in the front lines again!

''Just a bonus, not a priority.'' she repeated after the commodore, before she adjusted the blonde braid and put the helmet on, securing it. ''I got the best ones with me. We'll stay in touch over the comms.'' she made clear, and cracked a slight nervous smile towards her commander and friend.

After a short glance around the bridge, colonel Foster left with the BAW-88 Blaster Carbine in hand and around her neck. Foster walked down the corridors at a fast pace leading to the hangar bay. The orders had already gone out to the rapid reaction boarding force, and by the time she would arrive at the hangar bay, they would have all been assembled and ready to depart. She rounded a corner and conveniently joined the two jedi's they had aboard.
''Master Sol'yan. Padawan Sheridan.'' she greeted them with a courteous nod as they neared the hangar. ''Welcome aboard the boarding party. I'm glad to have you with us. This will be an in-and-out mission, clearing the caches and securing whatever data and recordings we could find.'' she explained at the two, before they entered the hangar where the transports awaited them. Soldiers were loading up and hangar staff finishing the fueling process.

Liedran Kathause , Sol'yan , Ara Sheridan ​

 

[Liedran Kathause]

[Flight Lieutenant Magdriene Zyliks - Pillbox Squadron]

Mag's first feeling was a puff of turbulence from the HAAT's repulsors, tugging the dropship upward from the surface of the hanger deck. Next was a wobble, a shudder felt throughout the canopy and loading bay when pistons pressed the doors shut.

She flicked a glowing switch on the port-most panel, chirping over the squadron-wide communications net, "Pillbox 3 with Boarding Team 1. Taking off." The lieutenant hit the switch again, then darted her finger to the intercom unit, "All hands, this is your pilot speaking. Please turn on all your blaster safeties, buckle your crash belts, and sit back and relax. Our top-notch flight attendants will be with you... never -- Enjoy." The Togruta grinned wildly as she clicked off the line. Messing with passengers never ceased to amuse her...

... And distract her from other concerns.

The 3rd Expeditionary's little pocket of space could become a warzone at any moment, especially with how close Brotherhood Space lay.

The HAAT's impulse engines fired, pressing Magdriene into her seat until the inertial dampeners could be bothered to kick in. Afterward, the journey to Cs-748-L80 was smooth sailing; the thrust of the impulse drives settled in to a familiar pattern, a rhythm, a feeling. Like a cool breeze wafting across the hills of Shili, the gentle hum of the ion stream reverberated through every inch of the hull's metal.

Before she knew it, a piercing hiss settled in the cockpit and loading bay. Touching down in the listening post's pitiful main hangar, landing gear expanded from the hull of the HAAT and let the craft settle above the deck.

Anxious, Mag peered out the canopy, at the desolate hangar bay. It was dark, too dark for any sliver of comfort. And empty, bereft of any form of life. It looked... haunted, almost. Of course the crew would have been stretched thin throughout the post, likely anywhere but inside the hangar-- but where were the support droids?

She straightened her back, scanning the room a little more adamantly now.

As the spotlights of two other dropships swept across the cavernous space, they illuminated strings of entangled wire, knots of metal blood leaking from the lifeless husks of two unlucky protocol droids. Toward aft, the web of mechanical corpses thickened: a disemboweled GNK model, a flattened mouse droid, and a clumsily drawn line of decapitated Treadwells.

"We're here, folks... Stay safe..." Magdriene finally remembered her passengers: the CAG and a pair of jedi among the group. The commodore would have her hide if she kept the team waiting, if she kept the Cadence waiting.

And so, a chain of gears spun and tugged the loading doors apart, letting the dropship's ramp fall and hit the deck. A thunderous clash rang out across the hangar, then disappeared into the deathly silence of the listening post.

Mag clambered down the rungs leading to the cockpit, diving into the HAAT's body before she could be tempted to run all the way back to Cadence.

---

Sol'yan , Ara Sheridan , Kathryn Foster

 

[Ara Sheridan]

Ara blinked and turned when her master's unmistakable voice erupted behind her, her smile unwavering as she waited for him to come closer. "Oh don't worry, master, this is gonna be a breeze! I mean, look at these dudes. I'd be surprised if we even have to do anything on this mission." She answered casually. She didn't get much time to say anything else when someone else joined the group. Ara had to admit that it felt good to hear such an official title coming from what seemed to be a rather important officer. "Hey what's up... who are you again?" She asked as professionally as she could.

Not that it meant much.

They were soon underway in the gunship, with their pilot talking smack over the intercom as the vessel rumbled towards their destination. She was still somewhat blank on the details, but the woman's rundown was easy enough to get. Though as she looked at the armed troopers around them, something started to turn in her head. "Wait... if it's just a simple 'go in and get the stuff' mission then why are we takin' an entire strike team with us?" She asked the woman with a sceptical frown. "Did something happen on the station that you ain't tellin' us about?" She asked her with a more serious tone as she turned as much as her harness allowed to face the woman. "Don't get me wrong, I don't mind workin' with the pigs, but I like having all cards on the table." She glanced up at her Master, knowing what was coming for her now after that slip-up of a name... but she didn't care in that moment.

Not that her rather poor attitude meant anything, they were on the gunship and said gunship soon touched down in the hangar of the outpost. Ara freed herself from her straps and stood up to look outside once the blast doors slid open. "Ey yo it's dark as shit out here." She remarked as she reached for her lightsaber.

Liedran Kathause Kathryn Foster Sol'yan

 

[Sol'yan]

TAG: Ara Sheridan Liedran Kathause Kathryn Foster

Although he wasn’t known for revealing his emotions overmuch, Sol’yan couldn’t help but smirk slightly at the bravado of his apprentice. He did strive to stifle it however as he responded: ”It is the Jedi way to place ourselves in harm’s way so that others do not have to, Ara. And with the abilities of our companions aside, overconfidence is almost as deadly as the end of a blaster. After the years pass between your time learning alongside me, to when you become a Jedi Knight yourself - remember that at least. It may well save your life.” As usual, his tone was calm and carried a degree of warmth which washed upon both his apprentice and those around him in the same deeply-hued tenor of his voice.

They had come a long way together as master and apprentice. She had recently acquired a lightsaber from an exploratory party involving the New Jedi Order, and despite Sol’yan’s better judgement, he relented in allowing her to keep it. Of course, that had involved a greater discussion regarding the power a Jedi wields, and how it is both tangible and intangible. In truth, Sol’yan was unsure how much of it soaked in, but he took things a step further in showing her some basic techniques in the opening forms of lightsaber combat. ’If you are going to carry a Jedi weapon, you should at least handle it like a Jedi’ he had said on that day. At first, her technique was as clumsy as one might have expected, but she had come a long way over the following months as they practiced.

Naturally, slashing people with a laser sword was something she appeared to excel at. Internally, he hoped she was absorbing his teachings about self restraint, and the responsibility that comes with the power and knowledge he was imparting to her. In truth, this excursion meant more to him than simply aiding Commodore Kathouse’s expeditionary fleet. It would show him how much Ara was truly grasping of what he was teaching her. He wasn’t expecting too much, at least in his view. They had come to know each other well over their time together. For the most part, he was looking to see if she at least exhibited a measure of concern over the power she now held over others, or at least the attempt to bridle her emotions.

Despite the importance he had assigned within himself of this excursion, he gave her a warm smile and a fatherly nod nonetheless when their gazes met as they walked down the corridor. Before going too far, Colonel Foster joined their procession and fell in lockstep, greeting them both with a friendly tone. Ara had beaten him to the punch in responding in her usual way. He had gotten used to the irreverent nature of her greetings, and in truth had seen promise in the way she at least tried to couch her words in a respectful manner. ”We are happy to be of service, Colonel.” He greeted Kathryn with a respectful half-bow, then returned to his towering posture.

He waited for Ara and the insertion team to enter the ship before he paused, and extended a hand for Kathryn to wait as well. When he was sure enough that the rest had escaped earshot, the Jedi gave Kathryn a serious expression before saying in a surprisingly quiet tone: ”It may well be nothing, Colonel, but I would be remiss if I did not tell you that something... feels off about this. I cannot place my hand upon it, but I feel as though more than meets the eye awaits us aboard that station.”

He did not delay long for fear of raising suspicion as to his absence aboard the dropship. The brief journey from the Cadence’s hangar bay to the comparatively barren one of the station. When the loading ramp descended to the durasteel below, Sol’yan was among the first to stand near the opening. He reached out with the force as he attempted to gain some insight into what awaited them deeper into the station, and rather fluidly pulled out his lightsaber - the elongated purple blade snap-hissing into place. He glanced down at his apprentice: ”Be on your guard, Ara.” His tone was not precisely forbidding or demanding, but rather bespoke a level of seriousness that she had only heard a few times before. He held up the blade, allowing its dim illumination to wash over the area on the hopes of aiding their initial survey of their surroundings.

 

[Kathryn Foster]

The zabrak jedi's easy-going and carefree attitude was a breath of fresh air, alright. Kathryn appreciated her honesty. The young zabrak didn't recognise her, and thus had all the right to ask who she were again. Sheridan's energy and light steps acted as a relief to the otherwise serious mission, pretty much shrouded in mystery. Colonel Foster repeated her name, rank and position to the young jedi, but kept it informal and friendly while flashing her a friendly and trustworthy smile. Kathryn answered master Sol'yan's bow and before long, they were boarding the same HAAT transport.

''You're not the only one having a bad feeling about this, master jedi. That recording left us more questions than answers, but...'' Kathryn explained in a hushed tone and bit her lower lip. ''Either way, we've got a job to do, and we'll succeed. We'll be back aboard Cadence in no time.'' she reassured both herself and master Sol'yan.

The marines accompanying them made way for the colonel and the two jedi and Kathryn exchanged small greetings and comments with the guys and girls that she knew, glad to see a lot of familiar faces were on duty on this shifts rapid reaction force. They buckled in and Kathryn placed the carbine between her knees, grippling its muzzle, before they saw the interior lights of the hangar leaving them and they entered space for a relatively short trip to the listening post.

Suddenly, Ara spoke up as if she had thought and pondered about something for a moment.

Damn.

''Wait. Uh... Huh... Have you not been briefed?'' Kathryn asked noticeably surprised and bewildered, first giving the young woman a sideways glance then turning to face her in the same way as she did towards Kathryn. This was the last thing she wanted right now; a member of her team not having all the available intel of their mission. Although, it had to be available and the intel on this mission was indeed very sparse. Not even the commodore could give them the information which colonel Foster deemed enough, but they had a job to do and Kathryn trusted Liedrans judgement and assessment of the situation. Kathryn felt inadequate for not having all the answers to give the young woman.

''We don't know... Ara, was it?'' Kathy said, wanting to speak on a personal level rather than between colonel and jedi. ''You have been briefed of the recording, right? As far as we know, the station is abandoned, and have been for quite some time. Scans show no signs of lifeforms. It's just routine that we bring-''

She were interupted by their rather excentric pilot announcing their arrival at the station, just before they hit ground and the engine were shut down, leaving them in an eery silence. Foster quickly unbuckled and joined master Sol'yan at the exit, switching on her weapon lamp sheding some light on the dark floor beyond the boarding ramp below them.

''Okay... Stay sharp, people!'' Foster called and turned her head sideways facing the marines awaiting their orders. ''First squad? I want you to set up a defensive perimiter around the transport. Second squad? You'll go with us to the command center. I want scanners in all directions at all times. With the help of our jedi friends, we won't have any surprises. Got it?''

Liedran Kathause , Sol'yan , Ara Sheridan ​

 

[Liedran Kathause]

[Corporal Maliva Celdrul - Alliance Marine]

The marine's blaster swept across the hangar, thorough in the the way he maneuvered the forward illuminator, leaving no inch of the space untouched by a bright beam of light.

The carnage present in the mutilated droids appeared to merely be the beginning of an engagement . On the walls, there were thick trails of scorch lines, dotted at points where cannons had torn through the walls' metal. Further toward the exit, Maliva found tiny silhouettes, discarded blasters from what he assumed to be the listening post's crewmen. No blood, though. It looked like they'd made it into the corridors with their skins intact.

The corporal quickly formed up with the rest of Colonel Foster's second squad, veering cautiously toward the group's left, illuminator still combing over the surrounding bulkheads. He was close enough to the vanguard to make out some of what the Colonel was saying to the two jedi. Although, a good portion was a blur of sound, muffled as the Alliance troopers' boots clacked against the hangar floor.

Judging by what he could overheard, the jedi seemed confused. But he supposed everyone was, really. Command hadn't given the boarding parties much to work with-- an audio playback of a particularly gruesome-sounding distress call, a briefing on the post's strategic importance, and a friendly reminder to be careful.

Maliva shook his head, the beam of light streaming from his blaster bouncing around a little as a result. Apparently the commodore had felt it necessary to deploy armed marines to Cs-748-L80. No matter what she expected them to encounter... "being careful" would mean getting the hell away from the system.

The corporal rounded a corner, for the moment taking point of the squad. Almost as soon as he first peered down the hallway, he saw... it.

The pale, flabby, worm-like head peeked out from a foot-tall gap between a blast door and the floor. At the point of the metal's impact, blue-ish stains of blood ran across the creature's skin, pooling onto the floor around the lifeless corpse. Maliva shivered, wincing under his helmet as he heard the footsteps of the others approaching behind.

Come on. Deep breaths, Mal. Deep breaths.

"Colonel... You're going to want to take a look at this..."

---

Sol'yan , Ara Sheridan , Kathryn Foster

 

[Ara Sheridan]

The lady, Katheryn, seemed as surprised as she was about the lack of intel, though her question about being briefed caused the Zabrak to look away for a moment as she pursed her lips. Maybe sneaking to the refresher for a cigarette wasn't the smartest idea after all. "Of course I did." She managed to answer, though it was painfully obvious that she wasn't exactly being honest. But none of that mattered now. They arrived at the outpost, and the groups departed from their gunships to investigate the dark hangar.

"No need to tell me twice, Master." She spoke up beside him as he ignited his lightsaber. "Not like this was the kind of place I grew up in..." She grumbled to herself as she held her hilt at the ready. She didn't ignite it just yet, preferring to keep the weapon safe until it was needed. Despite how she had been acting and freaking out about her new weapon, the responsibility and respect she had for it was clear as she held the weapon tightly and close to her body, the emitter pointed away from her and anyone that might be in the way if things got messy.

They didn't get very deep into the facility before things got weird. A few blasters scattered around the corridor, but no bodies or signs of trouble apart from the obvious scorch marks and destroyed droids. But then the Togruta Marine spoke up by a blast door, shining a light on a rather grotesque beast crushed beneath a blast door.

She wished that it was the weirdest she had seen in her life.

"Probably ain't the only one on the station." She spoke up, stepping closer to examine the creature. "Reminds me of the junk worm stuff on Coruscant and Raxus Prime. But this ain't anything I've seen before." She continued, looking up at the Colonel and her Master. With nothing else to do, she turned and took a few steps back to stand with the rear guard of the squad. Usually everything went south in the rear of a group with situations like these.

Kathryn Foster Sol'yan Liedran Kathause