freedomliveson

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

I know, right? She's a character that I was struggling with in terms of finding her a "happy ending", but based on what we've constructed, her "happy ending" is in the field, not at home. I've thought about trying to give her a spouse, but in the end it just didn't seem to fit, you know?

Sounds good! By the way, this arc might be the most dangerous for our characters yet...looking forward to seeing what trouble they get into!

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

Sorry if my last post felt a bit redundant, but I didn't want to decide on a course of action until you had a chance to put in your fair share. I can get us to Malachor if you want or you can.

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

Yerbol stayed silent while the others discussed a possible plan of action, the Champion knowing that Aria was right: both options were risky, but then again, when wasn't something risky on any operation they had taken on? They'd figure it out, especially since they had just started on their journey towards the infamous Malachor system. The Force users and Neta have had to come up with more death defying stunts on shorter time limits.

It was Kytra's request for meditation that broke Yerbol's spell of quiet.
"Good thinking, Kytra. Meditation is a tool that we've learned to trust over the years. I'd suggest the same for you, Ethan." A frown briefly creased the boy's features, but it was quickly replaced by the familiar mask of stoicism and a nod before he walked off with Kytra. Yerbol was ready to comment about their apprentice's respective approaches to preparation before Aria engaged in a conversation with Neta, the former bringing up a good point. Why had Neta REALLY join up with the Alliance again? He thought she had made it very clear that she was out of doing perilous jobs for the sake of galactic peace for the rest of her days...although a particular comment Neta made at their wedding almost a year ago suddenly came back to the forefront of his mind. Hadn't she said something about a comeback? Or was he remembering things incorrectly? In either case, he would hear the response from the source after Aria had trailed off in an attempt to goad their pilot into speaking.
"I ah..." Neta looked down at the pedestal, right hand waving over a green panel that turned off the holographic display.
"I guess I just couldn't stay away." She looked at the duo with a sad half-smile, the normal sparkle in her near aqua colored eyes noticeably gone.
"Being on Alderaan with Vivi and Iris was wonderful, almost like a fairy tale...too much like one at times. Even had a prince charming for a few months." She stepped backwards a couple of feet, leaning against the only wall that wasn't blocked by computer terminals or other random bits of technology and shoving her hands into her pockets as she continued at a slightly lower decibel:
"Then it all just ended. My 'prince' got caught in the crossfire of rival gangs fighting over what little turf they had left on Nal Hutta and died on the spot. I thought...I guess I thought that he was going to give me my last piece of normalcy, you know? Hadn't felt that way since Vivi senior was around and to see a second chance at having even a fraction of what I once had get gunned down in a back alley was..." She blew out a sigh, back of her right hand wiping away a sliver of a tear before she continued:
"When I got the news, I was pissed. Furious, even. But after doing some thinking, I realized I wasn't mad JUST because Laird had died, but to know that I couldn't have done anything to stop it, that I was so removed from getting rid of all the gunk in the galaxy, was almost just as maddening. Maybe it was self-righteousness, the Force, I don't know, but right then I KNEW that I couldn't stand by and let anyone else experience that hopeless feeling of any chance of a normal life being taken away from them. So I reached out to Onsu, who I served with back in the days when the Republic and Imperials were at each others throats in the shadows thanks to whatever latest peace treaty had been enacted, and asked if I could be reinstated. He was thrilled, wanted to see me back in action right away. I ah..." She cleared her throat, wiping away yet another tear.
"I couldn't give him an answer until I talked to my kids, told them how I was feeling as best as I could without confusing them with 'adult' feelings. They were mad, confused, horribly sad that I was leaving, but I think somewhere deep down they knew it was bound to happen sooner or later, that Mom would have to leave again." Her hands curled into tightly clenched fists for a brief moment before they released.
"Onsu was great. Had the kids set up at a boarding school reserved for Alliance ambassadors kids on Alderaan, which, I gotta say, seemed to actually excite the kids a bit. Iris cried when I left, but you know what Vivi said to me? He goes up to me, puts his hand on my hip and channels his best senior impression: 'I know you'll come home, Mom. Just don't leave us waiting for too long.' and then walks off!" A hearty laugh.
"I don't know if I should be proud of him or saddened by the fact that he's shaping up to be a military type just like the two of us were...are." She placed a hand on her forehead, massaging her temples as she continued:
"So that was, what, a few months ago? Five? I think? Anyway, I ran a few minor operations in the Core Worlds when Onsu told me that I was specifically requested by the Qyaari Council of Elders for an operation just a couple of days ago. He wouldn't tell me what the operation was, but he did tell me that I would be perfect for the job."
"Something tells me that the Council and Onsu have a good working relationship." Yerbol commented, looking to Aria with a smirk before telling her:
"I think the Council, for all of it's disdain of politics, made a very powerful ally. Either that or Onsu really doesn't like Vice Chancellor Won." Neta chuckled before responding:
"Sweetie, NO ONE likes Won. He's arrogant, entitled, smug and every other synonym that describes a politician; but that also means that he knows how to turn on the charm when he needs to, which would explain why Saresh has him in charge of not just economic operations within the Core worlds, but military operations in some parts of the Outer rim."
"Sounds like he's running half of the Alliance."
"Acts like it, too." She shook her head, motioning to the ship.
"Although I can't fault him for his insistence on privatizing our manufacturing. When Coreilla was razed, the Republic lost most of it's ability to manufacture government issue weaponry, ships and armor. Won shifted the focus to the private sector and the quality of our tech shot up. More expensive, but the share that the Hutts decided to give us of their casino profits almost made up for the windfall." A smile had grown slowly on her face before she added:
"Aaand you guys don't care about any of this, do you?"
"Actually, it's fascinating. I'd love to hear more when we're not plunging into a forbidden star system."
"That's fair. Speaking of, you two want to tell me how we're going get down there?" The Champion pursed his lips, asking for Neta to turn on the map once more before speaking:
"I don't think we'll be able to muster the kind of power we'll need to move debris around the ship. Last time we tried something like this, we had former Jedi Masters and Sith Lords with us to help while in a smaller vessel. Now, it's us and two apprentices in the equivalent of a space yacht. We'll need to use something else."
"We could..." Neta giggled for a brief second before catching herself.
"Sorry, sorry, the thought of..." She took a deep breath before she added:
"No one has EVER done something like this before, BUT we could attempt a suicide jump."
"A...a what?"
"A suicide jump. I put you four in the shuttle situated just beneath the cockpit and drop you out of the bay JUST as I'm exiting hyperspace. My exit point would be plotted right above the debris field, which is where you'd navigate through the debris and THEN you can attempt your Force navigation trick once you get closer to the stratosphere." Not wanting to ask why the maneuver was called a 'suicide jump', Yerbol inquired:
"Ok, so even IF, IF, we managed to complete a never before done 'suicide jump', how would we get back up to you?"
"Well...we'll figure that out when we get there, won't we?" Grumbling something incoherent, Yerbol thought for a few moments before looking between his wife and their daring pilot, saying:
"In theory, this could work...much better than charging in with our entire ship." He looked to Aria.
"How do you feel about this?"

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

Fun times! Enjoy :)

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

Wanted to give Ari a chance to voice her opinion. Feel free to get us alone with Neta and I can get us to Malachor V :)

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

"Ok, so that's where you're wrong: I'm not upset about having a younger guy who can eat more than me; it's the fact that I was excluded from getting steak. Bantha steak, mind you. If you remember from our days working on Taris, Bantha steak, when prepared properly, is probably one of the best cuts of meat in the known(and unknown galaxy)." When they found their lodgings, which consisted of a slightly larger room than what they had on their personal vessel with a double bed taking up most of their quarters. They did have a bathroom, although this wasn't located in their quarters but(to the Champion's annoyance) a few feet directly across from their room. Taking a shower and making his way back to their room without anyone seeing would be an interesting sub-plot for their latest adventure.
As he examined the air vents currently blowing sub-arctic temperatures, his wife brought up the stigma and subsequent fears about actually descending onto such an infamous planet.
“I’d agree with you there about Quensu. We at least were going into uncharted territory and had ignorance as an ally; because let me tell you, if I knew that we had to go through Sith trials that involved fighting a half-blind dragon looking thing, I might have decided to let the pint-sized Acolyte accompanying me to go through most of it.” He then quickly added:
“Of course, that was a long time ago and I OBVIOUSLY would go with you now. But, you remember how we were before…well, you know. Us.” He planted himself next to her on their presumed bed for the next few months, placing an arm around her shoulders and kissing her head.
“And ‘Us’ is how we’re going to get through this. We’re an unshakeable team, Ari. Even with kids following us around, I know we’ll do our very best to ensure that whatever peril, doom or apocalypse we encounter won’t threaten a soul…or at least, as few souls as possible.” He looked down at her with a small smile, placing a hand in hers.
“I love you. Always.”
Their initial discussions revolved around Ethan’s preoccupation with space, the apprentice revealing that from his youth spaceships fascinated him with a kind of “elegant rapture” that couldn’t be replicated by anything else he had seen in his life. It was nice to see the boy opening up, his shock of chestnut-reddish colored hair bobbing as he gestured with veracity about the “Killer Wing X” series of fighters and new developments in slipspace that were “galaxy busting”. There probably weren’t very many students at the academy who shared his passion, so venting them to authority figures who were sort of obligated to get to know them was the next best option. Not to say Yerbol wasn’t happy to see the exuberance; in fact, Yerbol asked him a few clarifying questions about ship hypercannons and differences in post-Republic warships. After all, the Champion had served with Republic forces during the last galactic war and picked up a few bits and pieces about military technology.
There was a slight pause in discussion as Ethan swallowed another helping of flashed-dried chicken breast, allowing Kytra to bring up the solemnity of their operation. Yerbol chuckled slightly as Aria explained that the Selonian would have get used to being in danger almost all the time.
“She’s right, you know. The rank of Champion seems to have a lot of grave implications attached to it, but it won’t feel as bad if you watch us as we work. Not to say that we’re the best warriors in the galaxy, but conquering three different and almost successive threats to the known universe has taught us a thing or two about how to deal with danger.” Ethan quickly responded with:
“We heard a lot about what you two did…have done. It’s kind of exciting to know that we might be able to do the same.” He nudged Kytra excitedly and accidentally with an elbow, the enthusiastic apprentice apologizing as his face flushed, looking back down at his chicken with fabricated focus.
“Hopefully you can be even better than us. That’s the whole point of this ‘training’ thing. We want you to exceed us. Our job wouldn’t be complete until that moment happens.”
“Alright, up to the CIC. Gotta tell you what we’re in for.” Yerbol gestured at the speaker above the diminutive mess hall with a smirk.
“Ari’s right. She was former special ops and apparently in that particular division, no one liked to wait for anyone else. Neta can get us through anything, though, so pay attention to what she tells you. Of course, that won’t be a problem for one of us.”
Another flushed face.
The combat information center, or CIC as it would be known for the rest of their journey, was found right before the cockpit, nestled in a square shaped room with a row of computer terminals opposite of the entrance and a pedestal in the center of the room that served as an interactive holographic display. Neta stood on the left hand side of the pedestal, chewing on her bottom lip as her eyes traced over the star map that was littered haphazardly with small white orbs that represented planets. When the force users entered, she pointed at an orb near the right hand edge of the map.
“That’s Malachor five. We’ve got to get through most of the system before we get in sight of the planet.”
“And why would that be a problem? I mean, other than us being forbidden to travel here?” Neta snorted a chuckle.
“Won might think that issuing a decree from above will suddenly change illicit activity, but we all know that people who want to scavenge, raid or use the system as a haven for smuggling cargo will do so despite a politician’s ‘order’.”
“So what you’re saying is that others call the Malachor system home? I thought the whole system was inhospitable.”
“Some planets are, but Alliance drones sent into the area have come back with snapshots of what appear to be ships and settlements on a handful of planets. Granted, they’re few and far between, but what better cover would there be than a ‘ghost’ system?”
“Think they’ll bother us?”
“I’m preparing for that. Once we get within a few clicks of dropping out of hyperspace, you all will man the turrets until we get to Malachor five. From there…” She sighed, pinching Malachor five on the map in order to zoom in on the pockmarked surface.
“See the floating bits here and here?” She pointed to randomly shaped objects that floated around the planet in random patterns.
“This is ALL debris. Chunks of moon, asteroid and ship all come together to form a clunky barrier. Combine these two debris belts with the extremely dense gravitational pull that’s exerted from the planet’s stratosphere-“
“We’d crash in lightseconds.” Ethan gulped out.
“Yup.” A smile crossed her face.
“But, I’ve got a way around that. The gravitational pull of most planets in the Malachor system go in patterns thanks to the wacky effect that the moons have on…well, I’ll save you the trouble of reciting all that stuff and tell you that there’s a short period of time where the pull will be reduced.”
“So we fly in when that period of time is active? Doesn’t sound too bad.”
“Sure. Except that no one has surface scans of the planet. We can assess gravitational pull based on the movement of the debris in the stratosphere, but that same debris blocks any ability for imagery from drones.”
“Going in blind.” Yerbol grimaced, placing a hand on the pedestal as he mused aloud:
“How much time do we have before we’re grounded?”
“Approximately seven minutes from the time we get within thirty five thousand feet…or at least that’s the best intel we have.” The Champion looked down to Ari and asked:
“Remember what we did on Quensu? Think we could pull that off again

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

Adulting has me sidelined until Monday. I really appreciate the patience :)

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

I really enjoy how skittish Kytra is. Makes sense, considering that not only is she a part of a relatively small(?) species, but now apprentice to two of the more well known Force users in the core worlds. Going to enjoy seeing her develop :)

Oh I'm sure Malachor V would be a legend passed on in hushed whispers, so yeah, I'd assume the same.

I'll try to include Neta's reasons for leaving the kids behind, but fair warning, it'll be sad xD

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

Haha, well, I think it'll be both ;)

Sounds good!

You never see it coming[Freedomliveson/The Elvenqueen]

Didn't want to turn my post into a text wall, so I can get us to Malachor in the next post or two. Neta has some information to share that I think our Champions will want to hear.