# The Star Wars Iconic Characters: Out of the Jungle.



## Jack Haggerty (May 8, 2002)

The Cast of Characters.

Previously on the Misadventures of the Star Was Iconic Characters, our heroes had been ambushed by a jungle snake, but managed to drive it off before it made a meal out the noble Arani Korden.  Pushing on through the jungle, they encountered Valara Saar, the mysterious Force Adept and another victim of the pirates.  On a pilgrimage to visit the Jedi counil on Coruscant, her transport had been captured by the pirates and she has been marooned in the jungle ever since.  

Following the telltale pillar of smoke produced by the crash of the _Mystic Burn_ only to find the wreckage being looted by a squad of the buccaneers.  Killing the pirates and salvaging what equipment they could, they fled in the pirates airspeeder and hid in the jungle to lick their wounds and recover.

We now rejoin our heroes as they take some much needed rest in the repulsor van parked beneath the concealing canopy of the jungle trees...


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## Valara Saar (May 8, 2002)

"Unless anyone has a better suggestion we should probably all catch some sleep, atleast until we are fully rested,  then we will have our best chance against the pirates."


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## Arani Korden (May 8, 2002)

"I agree.  I feel terrible, and you guys need sleep to recharge your Jedi juice, right?  But we should probably set up some sort of sentry rotation, unless you all feel like relying on the vigilance and protection of the translator droid."

Arani will try to find a comfortable position in the cramped van interior.  _ooc:  I call not first watch!_

"Here's something to sleep on, though - the _Burn_ isn't going anywhere anytime soon, so what's our next priority?  Find and borrow another ship?  Track the pirates to their lair, defeat them, and take all their stuff?"


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## Valara Saar (May 8, 2002)

"I think the only working ship belongs to the pirates." Valara mutters tiredly as she snuggles against Zheev actaully falling asleep this time.


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## Rorworr (May 8, 2002)

Picking up his bowcaster from the back of the van, Rorworr steps outside.

"Me and TD will take first watch." he says, TD translating his speech to Basic.  "Who ever goes on guard next should take TD with them.  An extra pair of eyes... um... well, an extra optical sensor wouldn't hurt.  If that's OK with you?" he asks the droid.


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## Set Harth (May 8, 2002)

Set nods at Rorworr's coments _"I will take the second watch. But first something to eat."_ Set searches through the hover-van for foodstuffs.


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## Sia-Lan Wezz (May 8, 2002)

_Sia-Lan passes from meditation to full-blown sleep and quietly begins drooling on her shoulder_


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## Sen Udo-Mal (May 10, 2002)

Sen will look around and then say "Set please wake me for thrid watch..." He will also watch to see if their is any food available.

_[OCC sorry again for my delayed replies... first time I have been able to log on when the server has not been busy in over a week. Wonder how long it will last]_


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## Jack Haggerty (May 12, 2002)

_I'm going to take this opportunity to pause the game until we get Revised character stats.  Don't be afraid to continue posting throughout the night...  Have a slumber party or something._


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## Arani Korden (May 18, 2002)

_ooc:  Pillow Fight!_

Assuming nothing horrible creeps up and attacks us, and that no one makes her take her turn at watch, Arani wakes up early and surprisingly refreshed.  She feels _different_ somehow, and looking at her companions, they seem different as well.  It's almost as if the rules have changed; she's ready for whatever new challenges the planet has to offer.

While she waits for her companions to wake up, Arani will update her diary and then fiddle with the novel she's trying to write.

_Or to put it another way, *bump.*_


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## Valara Saar (May 18, 2002)

Valara wakes early as usual, greeting the dawn with Zheev by her side.  Her arm has stiffened from the blaster burns inflicted by the pirates.  
"Are you ready to leave this place my friend?" She asks Zeev patting his head.

_I need to do something about this before it gets any worse.  They might not bring me with them to the Temple if I am unable o help._

Sighing she closes her eyes and draws on  the force, willing it to make her flesh new, to make her whole once more.  (heal-self +8, wounds)

After doing what she can for her wound, she moves over towhere Arani is playing around on her datapad.  _ Hmm,  maybe I should leave her to herself, she seems happy, but... how will I ever learn if I don't ask questions?_

"Um... Arani I was wondering, you seem to know machines and well... can you teach me about them?  The Jedi Code says there is no ignorance."  She asks in a soft voice, her cheeks very red, showing how uncomfortable and un-used to dealing with people people she is.


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## Arani Korden (May 18, 2002)

Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *"Um... Arani I was wondering, you seem to know machines and well... can you teach me about them?  The Jedi Code says there is no ignorance."  She asks in a soft voice, her cheeks very red, showing how uncomfortable and un-used to dealing with people people she is. *




"That's my single favorite part of the Jedi Code."  Arani smiles, and quickly saves her work and switches off the word processing program.  "I'd be glad to help in any way I can."

"Hmm.  If we were on Naboo, the first thing I'd do is take you out to meet my friend Toba.  He's a Gungan - they're . . ." Arani hesitates, trying to find the right way to describe a Gungan to someone who's never seen one.  For a moment she waves her hands by the side of her head in order to demonstrate the Gungan ears, but then thinks better of it.  "They're the native species of my home planet.  And they believe in technology as a part of nature, rather than as something wholly seperate.  I've only seen a few pieces of Gungan tech, but I think you'd take to it pretty naturally."

Arani holds up her datapad.  "We're not on Naboo, though, so I'll start with this."

_For her first lesson, Arani will use the datapad to demonstrate computer use, whenever possible using examples of how computer skills would be helpful to a Jedi._


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## Valara Saar (May 19, 2002)

"Thank you for helping me with this my friend."  She looks around curiously.  "Do you think something is wrong with them?" She asks gesturing at the others.  

"How can they expect to get anything done if they sleep so late?"


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## Rorworr (May 19, 2002)

The snoring coming from the front seat eases off then Rorworr snorts awake, smacking his head on the roof of the van.  He lets out a surprised yelp as he looks around for TD.  The small droid floats over to the wookiee as he starts to speak.

"You'd think they'd put the roof a bit higher...  Anyone got any food?"


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## Arani Korden (May 19, 2002)

Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *"How can they expect to get anything done if they sleep so late?" *




"We'll give them ten more minutes.  Then we should probably wake them up."



> _Originally posted by Rorworr_
> *"Anyone got any food?"*




"Set was looking earlier, but I don't think he found any.  At least I hope not . . . hoarding food is the path to the dark side.  Anyway, you're the mighty hunter - can't you find anything?"


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## Valara Saar (May 27, 2002)

"I could try to send zheev but what he brings back you wont want to eat.  He is quite poisonous."  She says shrugging leaving it up to Arani.


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## Arani Korden (May 28, 2002)

"Actually, I know this little delicatessen in Theed, and they deliver . . .  I don't know.  Valara, you've been stuck on Jungle World for a while, now, haven't you?  What have you been eating?"

Arani looks around at the sleepers.

"In any case, food isn't our top priority just yet.  Let's wake everyone up, and then we can decide what our next move is.  If we're planning on having someone stay with Kelko anyway, we could probably even seperate into the Jedi Commando Squad and the Banquet Committee."


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## Valara Saar (May 28, 2002)

"Actually I haven't been here too long.  But Yashuvhi, my home, was similair to this place.  Beautiful trees and streams, the fishing was very good.  Thats what I was doing when you found me.  I suppouse we could always try to eat some mushrooms, mght be poisonous though." she shrugs at the thought. 

"Maybe Set can taste test them?  Whatever we do we will want to attak the pirates soon or they might leave and strand us, and I doubt you want that."


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## Jack Haggerty (May 29, 2002)

Set rummages through the van hunting for something to eat, but fails to find anything more palatable than a handful of ration bars in the survival packs.

Over Valara's shoulder, Arani is startled to see athe plumed head of a bird-like creature staring at her through one of the van's windows.  She blinks her bleary eyes, and creature is gone.

_OOC:  Sorry, guys.  It was a long weekend with the whole family ill.

Anyway, let's revise those stats!_


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## Rorworr (May 29, 2002)

Arani Korden said:
			
		

> *Anyway, you're the mighty hunter - can't you find anything?" *




"I was hoping for something I didn't have to skin, but it doesn't look like there's much else."

Rorworr picks up one of the ration bars and sniffs it, oblivious to the bird-thing looking in the window behind him.

"Hmm, they don't smell particularly appetising.  So, what's the plan for today?"


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## Arani Korden (May 29, 2002)

Arani will leap to her feet and run over to the window, knocking Valara over in the process.  _We haven't been meeting our prequel-era alloted slapstick quotient lately._

"Oh, tell me I'm not the only one who just saw that!"

Judging by the others' stares, Arani realizes she's the only one who just saw that.

"Valara, while you've been here, have you met any birds?  I mean socially."


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## Valara Saar (May 29, 2002)

Sighing valara rubs her shoulder where she landed on it.  "No, I don't associate with birds, they are too flighty, too full of themselves and definitely too cheerful."  She says giving  Arani a mock glare for a moment before shaking her head and righting herself.

"Shall we be going, the pirates aren't going to arrest themselves."


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## Arani Korden (May 30, 2002)

"We can't go just yet.  There's something I have to check out first."

Arani looks around at the others.

"There was some sort of bird, looking directly at me.  Through the window.  It was looking *right* at me - I'm guessing it's sapient."

Arani heads to the door, then stops.

"Birds.  Tropical birds."

She takes off her gloves and goggles, stops to think for a moment, then strips off her vest and big poofy white shirt _as our ratings go up!_ revealing a dull grey t-shirt underneath _as our ratings go back down._ 

"Birds!"  Noting a complete lack of comprehension, she sighs.  "Xenosociology 101 - species that evolved from tropical birds tend to use bright colors either to express aggression or for mating displays.  If there are bird people out there, I don't want to fight them or date them, I want to see if they'll help us."

Arani hands her blaster pistol to Rorworr, cheerfully telling him "Avenge my death!"

Then she steps out of the van and looks around for bird people.


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## Valara Saar (May 30, 2002)

"Ok, now I know she really is crazy, correct, but clearly crazy.  Is she always so..." she trails off waving her hand for emphasis, but not quite sure what fits.

Valara Pops her head out of the back of the van looking for Arani and the bird.


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## Dorn Tavers (May 31, 2002)

Dorn slowly sits up, rubbing his eyes as he becomes fully awake and glances around.

"You know, I just had the weirdest dream...I dreamt that Arani took her shirt off and jumped out into the jungle. I didn't realize that something like that would be floating around in my subconscious..."

Dorn gets a confused look as he glances around the van again, noticing something odd.

"Hey, where is Arani anyway?"


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## Valara Saar (May 31, 2002)

Valara pulls her head back inside and just looks at Dorn for a moment.  

"She is out there, and she did take off her shirt.  She seems to be trying to attract a bird.  Do you think we should go out and find her?"


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## Jack Haggerty (May 31, 2002)

Arani steps outside and frantically searches the area for any sign of the bird creature.  Finding nothing in the immediate vicinity of the van, she up to the trees just in time to a small figure scaling a nearby tree at a remarkable speed.  Even as she watches, the avian climbs the length of the hundred-meter trunk and disappears into the branches.

As she gapes skyward, a peal of thunder rolls across the valley and sudden deluge of early morning rain pours through the foliage.  Within moments, Arani's ill-fitting undershirt is comletely soaked through...


_...as the 16-30 year-old Male demographic tunes in._


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## Rorworr (May 31, 2002)

Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *"Ok, now I know she really is crazy, correct, but clearly crazy.  Is she always so..." she trails off waving her hand for emphasis, but not quite sure what fits.*




Rorworr nods, grinning. He tosses Arani's pistol aside and picks up his bowcaster instead.

"Do you see anything?" He calls out of the door to Arani, entirely unmoved by the demographic affecting rainstorm.


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## Arani Korden (May 31, 2002)

Rorworr said:
			
		

> *"Do you see anything?" He calls out of the door to Arani, entirely unmoved by the demographic affecting rainstorm. *




_Wookiees have no taste._

Shielding her eyes from the rain, Arani calls up to the spot where the figure vanished.  "Wait!  We come in peace!  Take me to your leader!"

Turning to Rory, she says, "There was someone out here.  He just climbed that tree."


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## Rorworr (May 31, 2002)

Arani Korden said:
			
		

> *Wookiees have no taste.*




_Sure we do, it just involves fur _

Leaving his bowcaster in the van, Rorworr steps out along side Arani.  He peers up into the trees, looking for any sign of bird-people.


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## Valara Saar (May 31, 2002)

Valara Joins Arani outside feeling relieved to not be confined in so small an area any longer.  She doesn't really even notice the rain soaking her or her clothes, used to the feeling.

"I don't see anything out here we should probably head to the pirate ship."


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## Arani Korden (May 31, 2002)

Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *"I don't see anything out here we should probably head to the pirate ship." *




"They were there.  They are there.  I'm sure they'll make contact when they're ready.  Remember Sen's enhanced hearing picking up something moving above us through the trees?  Keep watching the skies, Valara."

Arani will collect her blaster and goggles from the van.  Since it's raining and she's already soaked, she'll leave the cast off clothing in the van for the moment.

"At least we know they're not hostile.  If they were, they could have killed us all a long time ago.  Now, what are we going to do about Kelko?"

_Hate to let the rain go to waste - Dorn, put on a face mask, hang upside down from a tree, and we can do some publicity shots for *Mutants and Masterminds.*_


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## Valara Saar (May 31, 2002)

"I think he's stable, so the best thing for him is to leave him in safety while we are away.  Then we can get him better medical aid."


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## Sen Udo-Mal (May 31, 2002)

Waking out of a peaceful night of rest, Sen stands and staightens his robes as best he can. He looks outside to see what is going on and hears about the birds... hmm possible... Sen will then go and check on Kelko's condition.


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## Arani Korden (Jun 1, 2002)

Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *"I think he's stable, so the best thing for him is to leave him in safety while we are away.  Then we can get him better medical aid." *




"We can't leave him alone, though.  There are _things_ in this jungle . . . I was nearly eaten yesterday, and he can't defend himself.  I've been thinking.  I'm the one who should stay with Kelko.  I'm a negotiator, not a warrior, and I can negotiate through a comlink should the need arise."


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## Set Harth (Jun 3, 2002)

Set blissfully sleeps through all the commotion, his head smashed against the passenger side window, a trail of drool running down his chin.

_Set is NOT an early riser._


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## Jack Haggerty (Jun 7, 2002)

Outside, the rain stops as suddenly as it began.  A thick, steamy mist begins to rise as the sun sun rises over the rim of the valley and begins to warm the jungle below.  

With the light of morning, the forest erupts in a cacophany of beastial caterwauls.


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## Arani Korden (Jun 7, 2002)

Jack Haggerty said:
			
		

> *With the light of morning, the forest erupts in a cacophany of beastial caterwauls. *




"That settles it.  I am *not* leaving Kelko alone.  Leave me some ration packs and a medkit, go get a ship, and we'll get off this planet, get to Coruscant, warn the Republic, save Naboo, and buy some new boots."


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## Valara Saar (Jun 8, 2002)

"Don't you want to try to talk the pirates into surrendering to us?"  Valara asks jokingly, she rolls her eyes  "I am sure if anyone could it would be you."


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## Arani Korden (Jun 8, 2002)

"You can do that, Valara.  It'll be good practice for you."


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## Valara Saar (Jun 9, 2002)

"We must go now if the green one is to be helped in time."  Valara says as she sticks her head back into the Van.  

"Zheev follow." She says as she stalks off in the Pirates direction, her body aching to be active again.  _ How can they stand all this wating around, I need to be out, moving, hunting, doing SOMETHING. _


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## Rorworr (Jun 12, 2002)

Picking up his bowcaster and blaster carbine, plus the rest of his gear, Rorworr gets ready to head off.

"Do you need anything?" he asks Arani.


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## Arani Korden (Jun 12, 2002)

Rorworr said:
			
		

> *"Do you need anything?" he asks Arani. *




"A ride off this planet.  Go forth and conquer, Rory.  If I need anything, I'll call.  If any of you need me, call.  Otherwise, we should maintain radio silence."

Arani will gather a medkit, some ration packs, and her comlink, datapad, and pistol, and try to arrange Kelko in a comfortable position.

_ooc:From the musical version of "Out of the Jungle"

ARANI:    Go, ye heroes, go to glory, 
          Though you die in combat gory, 
          Ye shall live in song and story. 
               Go to immortality! 
          Go to death, and go to slaughter; 
          Die, and every Naboo daughter 
          With her tears your grave shall water. 
               Go, ye heroes, go and die! 
 Go and do your best endeavour, 
          And before all links we sever, 
          We will say farewell for-ever. 
               Go to glory and the grave! 
    For your foes are fierce and ruthless, 
          False, unmerciful, and truthless; 
          Young and tender, old and toothless, 
               All in vain their mercy crave. 


With apologies to Gilbert & Sullivan._


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## Jack Haggerty (Jun 12, 2002)

_OOC:  So...  Arani is staying behind in the van with Kelko, while Valara and Rorworr head off on foot toward the cliffside pirate stronghold...  What is everyone else doing?_


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## Valara Saar (Jun 12, 2002)

OOC---Hopefully not leaving the two most attractive members of the party out to dry.


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## Jack Haggerty (Jun 12, 2002)

_OOC:  Who's that?  You and Rorworr?  Or Arani and Kelko?_


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## Valara Saar (Jun 12, 2002)

Who do you think?


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## Arani Korden (Jun 12, 2002)

ooc: Kelko is one fine looking Rodian, you know.


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## Jack Haggerty (Jun 12, 2002)

Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *Who do you think?  *




_Ah!  Zheev and Emtee!_


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## Rorworr (Jun 12, 2002)

Jack Haggerty said:
			
		

> *Ah!  Zheev and Emtee! *




_You know, I'm beginning to think I should have put a few more points into CHR...

_


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## Arani Korden (Jun 13, 2002)

_ooc: Can we just assume that, unless someone speaks up to say otherwise, everyone else is going on the pirate-hunt with Valara and Rorworr?  That was the plan up until now, and it would help move the game along._


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## Jack Haggerty (Jun 13, 2002)

_Actually, I'd been inclinced to leave them behind at the van, while everyone else goes on ahead, but the choice is up to you guys.  They have just a little more time to reply, since I'm still busy working on a special project for you guys..._


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## Arani Korden (Jun 13, 2002)

Jack Haggerty said:
			
		

> *Actually, I'd been inclinced to leave them behind at the van, while everyone else goes on ahead, but the choice is up to you guys.  They have just a little more time to reply, since I'm still busy working on a special project for you guys...  *




_That could work too.  I had been waiting to see if anyone else would volunteer, but it seems no one else cares about poor Kelko.  *sniff*  And Arani really is the logical choice._


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## Dorn Tavers (Jun 14, 2002)

Dorn looks as if he is about to head outside with the others, but pauses and turns to look back at Arani.

"Are you ok with hanging back here with Kelko by yourself? If you feel like you'd rather have some backup I can stay too. I'd feel pretty terrible if you got eaten by some jungle creature while we were gone."

Dorn grins as he waits for Arani's response.

_OOC: Sorry about the delay. I'm back _


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## Arani Korden (Jun 14, 2002)

Dorn Tavers said:
			
		

> *Dorn grins as he waits for Arani's response.
> *




Arani turns the brightest shade of red you've all seen so far.

"*NO!*  I mean, no, you shouldn'- they're going to need you, because you . . . I mean, if you want to stay, that's okay, but . . . no.  No, you'd better go.  We'll be fine.  Fine."


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## Set Harth (Jun 14, 2002)

Groggily Set rubs the sleep from his eyes just in time to see Rorworr's shaggy head disappear behind a jungle vine. 

"Sithspit! Wait, wait for me!" 

Snaging his gear Set rush out into the jungle after the others passing by Dorn and Arani unnoticed.


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## Jack Haggerty (Jun 15, 2002)

With Emtee Dio and Zeev by their side, Rorworr, Valara and the three Jedi warriors march off into the jungle to confront the pirates, while while Arani and Sen stay behind in the repulsorvan to watch over the wounded Kelko.

The sun rises in the sky, as the assault team pushes their way through the tangled undergrowth.  The dreadful heat and humidity of the tropical environment begin to take their toll...  Clothes cling to the body, drenched in sweat.  Rorworr's fur begins to mat with moisture exuding a foul smell, and a pernicious itching manifests itself beneath his left armpit and behind his ears.

Above, the canopy of leaves thickens to block out the sky if not the heat, while all around the tree trunks thicken into tight stands and groves.  The party stops when the Wookiee scout realizes that he can no longer tell one direction from the other, and is unsure of the direction of the repulsorvan, much less the pirate's enclave.

Meanwhile, back at the van, Arani and Sen tend to Kelko's greivious wound.  Though he is no longer in danger of dying, he has slipped into a coma from which he cannot be roused.  

As the morning stretches on, the air inside the van becomes stifling.  Opening a window to admit some fresh air, Arani and Sen find that the morning's cacophony has subsided to an oppressive silence.


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## Valara Saar (Jun 16, 2002)

"I don't suppose anyone else knows where the Pirate ship is?  Now that furball got us lost I mean."  She says shaking her head softly she begins to look around,  looking for the right path(take 20 on a survival check, or roll with +6).  

_Maybe that was a litttle harsh,  Arani did want me to be more diplomatic _.


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## Arani Korden (Jun 16, 2002)

Jack Haggerty said:
			
		

> *Opening a window to admit some fresh air, Arani and Sen find that the morning's cacophony has subsided to an oppressive silence. *




"I have a baaad feeling about this."

Arani will take a look, and see if she can spot anything out of the ordinary.  Her hand is on her blaster.


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## Arani Korden (Jun 16, 2002)

Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *Maybe that was a litttle harsh,  Arani did want me to be more diplomatic . *




_ooc:  Being nice to the Wookiee is a basic survival tactic._


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## Rorworr (Jun 16, 2002)

Rorworr scowls at Valara.

"If you can do better, find the way yourself!" he snaps.  He starts looking around for any clue as to the right direction to head (Survival +2), grumbling at the trees as he does so.


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## Jack Haggerty (Jun 16, 2002)

Floating over the Wookiee's shoulder, Emtee politely translates, "Master Rorworr would be most appreciative of any assistance you provide in finding the proper path, Mistress Saar."

They each scan the forest.  There are no obvious animal paths, even the trail they left getting there is difficult to see beneath the foliage and detrius.  All they can see about them are the immensely tall trunks of trees.

~~~

Back at the van...  Arani steps out of the van.  Off to her left, she suddenly hears a faint twitter, but when she turns, she only sees a rustle of leaves.


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## Valara Saar (Jun 16, 2002)

"Maybe someone should try climbing one of the trees.  Is anyone good at climbing?  I bet Rorworr is with his claws, and strength is  aren't you? Will you do it?"


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## Arani Korden (Jun 16, 2002)

Jack Haggerty said:
			
		

> *Back at the van...  Arani steps out of the van.  Off to her left, she suddenly hears a faint twitter, but when she turns, she only sees a rustle of leaves. *




_A faint twitter?  Either that's the bird people again, or we're surrounded by very silly pirates.  Or maybe I should check under the van for ruby slippers._

"Come out, come out, wherever you are."

Arani sits down.

"Or stay there.  It's really up to you.  It's your planet, after all."

She stands up again.

"Look, I'm coming over, okay?  I just want to talk to you.  You can run away if you want."

Arani will approach the spot where she saw the rustle of leaves.


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## Rorworr (Jun 17, 2002)

Rorworr scowls at Emtee this time, then heads over to one of the trees.  He unsheathes his claws and starts to climb the tree (Climb +8, taking 10).


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## Jack Haggerty (Jun 17, 2002)

Rorworr picks what appears to the tallest tree nearby, and deftly climbs its towering trunk.  Up amognst the branches and leaves, he settles into a spot commanding an impressive view of the entire valley.  To his right winds the river at the bottom of the valley.  Behind him, he can still make out a faint trace of smoke from the crashsite of the _Mystic Burn_.  Somewhere between him and the wreck, the repulsorvan presumably waits hidden in the trees with Arani, Sen and Kelko.  Along his left, the valley rises up to a ridge of hills.  Directly opposite the river, from he is perched, Rorworr spots the rocky shelf where the pirates have made their base.  It sits about halfway up the side of the valley, perhaps a kilometer away from his present position.

~~~

Meanwhile, back at the van...

Arani steps ahead, despite Sen's warnings to be wary, and brushes aside a branch bedecked with leaves the size of her head.  Peering past, she catches another quick movement, and turns just in time to catch glimpse of bright blue and yellow feathers disappearing behind a tree trunk.  She hears a musical cooing just ahead calling into the forest, which is promptly answered by a long warble from higher up in the trees.


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## Valara Saar (Jun 17, 2002)

"Can you see anything up there Rorworr?"  Valara asks pacing about to bleed off her always abundant energy.  "If you do, maybe you can get your droid to remember the direction so we wont get lost again, just in case."


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## Sen Udo-Mal (Jun 18, 2002)

*back at the van*

"Ah Arani who are you speaking with?" Sen asks, then thinking about what he heard and the presence he detected yesterday he will stretch out with the Force and try to discover who these allusive visitors are...

_Sen will use Enhance Senses again Enhance Senses +8; also I was reading the new rules and I guess I can't use See Force to detect non-force users anymore _


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## Rorworr (Jun 18, 2002)

Rorworr quickly scrambles back down the tree.  "The _Mystic Burn_ is back over in that direction," he points back towards the ship.  "while the pirate camp is over there.  I wouldn't rely on Emtee being able to remember the way though.  His sense of direction is nearly as bad as mine."

He grins at Valara and starts to head in the direction of the pirate camp.


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## Valara Saar (Jun 18, 2002)

"After you furball" she mutters at him, following behind but taking time to be sure of the path this time.


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## Arani Korden (Jun 18, 2002)

*Re: back at the van*



			
				Sen Udo-Mal said:
			
		

> *"Ah Arani who are you speaking with?"  *




"Birds, Sen.  Very shy birds."

Frustrated, Arani stops and tries to figure out her next move.  

_Using her Sense Motive of +6, she'll try to figure out what the bird people are expecting from her._


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## Jack Haggerty (Jul 2, 2002)

Once again trudging through the forest, Rorworr leads his war-band on toward the pirate's base.  They reach the edge of a clearing were the trees and undergrowth have been recently burned away from the makeshift landing field.  Above them, stretches a gravely hillside interspersed with meter-high vegetation already beginning to fill in the open ground of the blasted perimeter.  The incline crests at a flat rocky ledge some 15 meters up from the wookiee's vantage point at the bottom of the slope.  At regular 10 meter intervals along the edge of the ledge stand three meter tall metal poles topped with small fisted-sized spheres.  Just beyond them, Rorworr can just see the rounded hump of a starship.

~~~

Meanwhile, back at the van...

Sen, enhancing his natural senses with the flow of the Force, studies the surrounding forest for life...  By sight, sound, smell and faint quiverings of the Force, he detects at least a dozen distinct small aviods hidng amongst the leaves and branches of the immediate vicinity.

Arani waits, assessing the the situation and trying to decipher the decidedly odd behavior of the little creatures.  As she stands, she gets the feeling she's being watched.  The little buggers haven't attacked yet, but neither have they openly offered assistance.  They must be overly wary, cautious at the prospect of such alien beings dropping out of the sky.  And who could blame them, if the pirates are the outside contact they've ever encountered.  It seems to be a touchy situation that could drift in any direction.

Up amongst the trees, chitterings, twitterings, whistles faintly echo back and forth, as if they are trying to decide what to do with you.


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## Rorworr (Jul 2, 2002)

"What are those, do you think?"  Rorworr points at the spheres atop the poles.  "Vidcams?  Sensors?  Defence system?"  The wookiee digs his electrobinoculars out of his backpack and studies the devices.


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## Sen Udo-Mal (Jul 3, 2002)

Sen will again stretch out with the Force and try and make contact with these beings, sending out waves of peace and calm...

_Sen will use Friendship +2 [oh boy ] to try and make peaceful contact with them..._ 

"We mean you no harm" Sen will say, "Please come out, we only wish to talk with you if you can understand us..." Hmm, Sen will think, we really should have kept that translator droid around... oh well no use worrying about it now


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## Jack Haggerty (Jul 4, 2002)

Rorworr studies the devices lining the perimeter through the magnification of his electrobinoculars.  The enhanced image in the eyepeice shows him a close up of the featureless metal ball sitting atop the pole.  Without any external lenses, ports or turrets, the device looks like it would more likely be a sensor array for an alarm system, than an actual active defense system.

~~~

Back near the van, even Arani can feel the faint waves of goodwill radiating from the her Cerean companion.  Though it is unlikely in the extreme that any of the natives can understand Basic speech, one of them steps out from behind the bole of a tree.

It it an avioid species slightly less than a meter tall.  Covered with slightly iridescent blue and green feathers, its head is creasted by a brilliant display of yellow, orange and red plumage.  Both its hands and feet are taloned with sharp claws meant for climbing the tall trees.  It carries a short staff festooned with fur, bone, feather and bead fetishes.  To match the staff, he wears a headress, necklace and armbands dnagling with similar charms and baubles.  Completing the costume, a small satchel is slung over its shoulder to make up for its maked lack of pockets.

The birdling stands beside the tree from behind which it emerged, and cocks its head to one side with a single loud "caw".


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## Valara Saar (Jul 5, 2002)

"I have no idea of their purpouse Rorworr,  but we need to get passed them.  Lets see what we can do, can you see any of the pirates yet?"


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## Rorworr (Jul 5, 2002)

"I'm guessing it's a sensor array.  Could make getting into the camp difficult."

Rorworr scans along the ridge, looking for any signs of the pirates.  He also focuses on the ship, trying to determine it's type.


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## Jack Haggerty (Jul 7, 2002)

Rorworr can't see any pirates from this far down the ridge, and probably wouldn't be able to unless they came almost right up to the lip of the ledge.

Neither can the Wookiee determine the exact make of the ship, since only a small portion is visible...  Most of which is simply blank, slightly curved hull plates.  He does guess, however, that the ship is probably about the size of a typical medium freighter or customs cruiser.


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## Rorworr (Jul 15, 2002)

"No signs of life that I can see, but we're a bit far down."  Rorworr places the binoculars back in his pack and moves along the edge of the tree-line to try and get a better view.


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## Jack Haggerty (Jul 17, 2002)

There's three obvious ways for Rorworr to get a better look of the landing field...

He could again climb one of the trees near the forest's edge.  Most of them are tall enough to overlook the ledge.  Or, he could circle around the pirate base, and look doen into the base from the high side of the hill.  Or, finally, he could scramble up the gravelly incline and peek over the edge near the supposed sensor arrays.


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## Rorworr (Jul 18, 2002)

Picking an appropriately tall tree, Rorworr goes climbing again.  Once high enough he scans the landing field with his binoculars.


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## Arani Korden (Jul 22, 2002)

*Arani Lives!*



			
				Jack Haggerty said:
			
		

> *The birdling stands beside the tree from behind which it emerged, and cocks its head to one side with a single loud "caw". *




Arani will not approach, and will keep her hands open and in full view.  She's almost radiantly happy; maybe it's feedback from Sen's Force-based happy waves, or maybe she's just thrilled at the chance to meet a new species.

"My name is Arani."  She points to herself.  "Arani."  She points to the cerean.  "Sen."  Then she points to the alien, and raises her eyebrows expectantly.

[Clearly, Arani's seen one too many movies.  But with her high Diplomacy, it hopefully doesn't seem so hackneyed.[/i]


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## Jack Haggerty (Jul 23, 2002)

Up in the tree, Rorworr can see over the entire landing field.  It is a flat ledge cut out of the side of the hill.  A dozen or so of the pirates are going about their business, scattered amongst a veriety of parked vehicles...

There is a repulsor van similar in design to the one you stole, sitting alongside an open-topped four-seater with some sort of repeating blaster mounted in the back.  Lined up on one side of the landing field are a quartet of old Cloakshape fighters.  Across from them is what looks like a pair of small assault shuttles.  

But nearest to the Wookiee is a 75 meter long almond-shaped cruiser.  It looks like it used to be some sort of a system patrol craft, or customs cruiser.  Most of its weapons emplacements, however, have been replaced by communications masts, and extended sensor clusters.  It's name, _Pathfinder III_, is still visible through the carbon-scoring across the bow.  Outwardly, it doesn't seem to have taken much damage, except for some superficial scorch marks, and a small blackened crater near the engine pods.

~~~

Back at the van, the birdling ruffles its plumage in response to Arani's display, and cocks its head in the other direction.  Unexpectedly, her mind is filled with an unvoiced, cautious warning of danger.  "Squawk!  Caw!" the birdling suggests helpfully.

Nearby, Sen is bombarded with the same emotional warning, but combined with a vivid image...  Fire breathing giants are coming down through the trees, riding atop what appears to be a hairless flying bantha.  One giant falls dead with thin needles bristling from his throat, before the others ride off on the winged bantha, and the image fades.


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## Rorworr (Jul 23, 2002)

Rorworr quickly shins back down the tree to his companions below.

"I can see at least a dozen pirates up there, and there could be more.  I spotted a nice looking ship though.  Looks like some kind of patrol ship, called the Pathfinder."  The Wookiee pauses for a moment.  "I'm not sure how we're going to get to the landing field.  The sensors would give us away pretty quickly, and there's too many pirates for us to fight through."


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## Rorworr (Jul 29, 2002)

The Wookiee hopes he doesn't BUMP into any pirates in the forest...


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## Valara Saar (Jul 30, 2002)

"Wait till night then sneak in, or maybe we could find some large animals to stampede through.  They wouldn't notice us in the rush and confusion."


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## Jack Haggerty (Jul 30, 2002)

"If only we had some sort of distraction,"  Set grumbles.

"Hey guys?" Dorn asks, as he looks around suddenly, "Where'd Emtee go?"

The little droid is nowhere to be found nearby.


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## Rorworr (Aug 1, 2002)

"Hmm, I like the stampede ide..."  Rorworr starts, then (prompted by Dorn) notices his droid is gone.  He quickly unslings his bowcaster, and looks desperately around for Emtee.

"I suggest we move along the treeline a bit.  If Emtee decides to cause a distraction, we want to be a little way from it."

_Damn, I hope he doesn't get himself shot..._


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## Valara Saar (Aug 4, 2002)

Valara looks around at the others expectantly, as if to say anyone catch that.  "Do any of you besides EmTee speak wookie?  If not, we have a problem." She says looking back and forth between the others.

Sighing, she moves into the forest in case the little droid does something foolish.


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## Rorworr (Aug 6, 2002)

Growling something about the general lack of education of his companions, Rorworr hurries the rest of the group under cover.


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## Jack Haggerty (Aug 8, 2002)

As soon as Rorworr hustles his assault force back into the bushes, a wailing siren erupts from the far side of the landing field.  A few unintelligible shouts can be heard from out-of-site pirates atop the ridge.

~~~

Meanwhile, in the _Pathfinder's_ engine room, a pair of Zabrak legs protrude from the inner workings of the survey ship's primary hyperdrive.  A distant muffled warning klaxon startles the unfortunate technician into banging his head against the drive's power amplifier.  He extricates himself from the bowels of the machinery in time to find his pirate guard receiving orders over his comlink.

The guard unshoulders his blaster carbine, and flips off the safety.  "Stay here," he orders, "and keep working."  Exiting the engine room, the heavy blast door closes behind the pirate.  A moment later, the door's control panel flashes red, indicating that it has been locked and sealed from the outside.

_Kaz Lo?  Are you still around?  You're on!_


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## Kaz Lo (Aug 9, 2002)

Kaz Lo rubs his head and looks about the room.    

"I just know these guys are going to kill me if I fix this thing, or sooner or later find out that I'm not really fixing it and kill me anyways.     Damned if you do damned if you don't.   I'm running out of solutions here.    And now I"m talking to myself!"

He puts a hand to his forehead and sits down.

"Well, if I'm going to die anyways, might as well give the good cuase I wanna know what set off these alarms.    Let see if the Pathfinders computer can tell me anything.   Come on hun, talk to me."

((Computer Use +14))


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## Rorworr (Aug 9, 2002)

Rather annoyed by Emtee's disappearing act, Rorworr scans around for any likely looking way into the pirate compound.  He also scans the ship, trying to get an idea of how many guards are around it.


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## Jack Haggerty (Aug 13, 2002)

Under cover, Rorworr is once again unable to see anything but some leaves, twigs and a handful of bugs.  Quickly he scales a nearby tree to regain his previous view of the landing field.

His vantage point from the southeast again reveals the hill rising above to the north, and the two shuttles sitting along the eastern edge of the field.  Closest to the wookiee is the _Pathfinder_ just south of the shuttles.  The squadron of Cloakshape fighters are lined up along the western edge of the landing field, the direction from which the blaring siren is echoing...  And toward which all dozen of the pirates in sight are heading.

~~~

Meanwhile, back in the _Pathfinder_, the ship's computer is being stubborn.  |...I don't care what your excuses are anymore, until you get my hyperdrive working again, you can check the sensors yourself, you incompetent, sloppy sack of protein...|   So he does.

The ship's external holocam feed shows every one in sight running past the fighters parked on the far side of the landing field.  It's probably just a wild animal walking through the perimeter alarms again...  But then, why would everyone get so excited over that?


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## Rorworr (Aug 14, 2002)

*Let the mime commence!*

After clambering back down the tree, Rorworr points at himself and the rest of the group, then up at the _Pathfinder_, followed by him pretending to run and shoot.  Hoping that they get the idea, the Wookiee quickly heads along the treeline, getting as close to the ship as possible, then dashes across towards it, taking advantage of any handy cover.

Let's hope someone has got a few ranks of Sense Motive!


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## Kaz Lo (Aug 16, 2002)

"Moody Computers, I'll fix your hyperdrive when I'm good and ready and no a second before"

Kaz Lo wanders over to the door, looks at the locking mechanism, and tries to detirmine if he could break out.


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## Jack Haggerty (Aug 18, 2002)

_OOC: I am still here, guys...  Just waiting to see if anyone else is going to post._


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## Valara Saar (Aug 22, 2002)

Valara watches Rorworr playing sharades and smiles.  Nodding she will follow him and ready her blaster to shoot any pirate that get between her and the pathfinder.


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## Dorn Tavers (Aug 24, 2002)

Dorn watches Rorworr's pantomiming and nods as he ignites his lightsaber.

As he dashes off towards the ship with his companions, he mutters under his breath, "I never thought I'd be risking my life with a plan of attack based on a game of charades with a wookie. May the Force be with us..."


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## Jack Haggerty (Aug 27, 2002)

The intepid Wookiee stalks along the trees, his comrades following close behind.  When he comes along side the nearby ship, he dashes up the slope, scrabbling on the loose gravel.  Valara, Zeev and the Jedi clamber up the incline after him.  As the group reaches the crest of the slope, the metal balls atop the two nearest sentry poles begin flashing and honking an extraordinarily loud warning.

Two pirates, standing beneath the bulk of the _Pathfinder_, spin around to gape at the unexpected heroes.  One stumbles as he begins to turn and flee, while the other fumbles for his blaster.

_SURPRISE ROUND!_

~~~

Meanwhile, back in the _Pathfinder,_ the computer continues to complain.  |...Fix it when you're "good and ready", eh?  Just you wait until the next time you want to take a hot shower, and then we'll see who's "good and ready"...|  While the computer continues to spew electronic expletives toward him, Kaz opens up a small access panel next to the door's control mechanism.

The pirate doesn't seem to have truly locked the door, he simply tripped the fail-safes for the emergency blast door.  It should only take a few moments for Kaz to bypass the safety module and rewire power straight into the door's servomechanism.  A louder, nearby klaxon startles the unfortunate technician into shocking himself on an exposed power lead.  He pulls his hands out of the wiring only to realize that this new alarm is coming from just outside the ship.


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## Rorworr (Aug 27, 2002)

Rorworr grins as he sees the obvious surprise of the guards.  The Wookiee levels his bowcaster at the pirate going for his blaster and shoots.


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## Kaz Lo (Aug 28, 2002)

Kaz Lo finished opening the door and once it opens, Moves Silently and Hides down the hall looking for some way out or a weapon.


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## Valara Saar (Aug 28, 2002)

Valara will fire her blaster at the closest pirate thanking the force for the foresight to already have had her blaster drawn before rushing the ship.

She will continue to close in with her move action, and fire as her attack action.

"Get inside before they are able to lift off."


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## Dorn Tavers (Aug 30, 2002)

Dorn rushes toward the pirate drawing the blaster, slashing at him with the vibrant blue blade of his lightsaber right after Rorworr takes his shot...

OOC: This is, of course, assuming we are close enough to the pirates to reach them and engage them in melee combat. If that is not the case, feel free to correct me Jack.


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## Jack Haggerty (Sep 1, 2002)

Rorworr and Valara fire their weapons in quick succession.  The bowcaster's explosive quarrel slam into the chest of the pirate who is vainly trying to draw his blaster, and the force of the tears his chest open, knocking him off his feet. _[17 WP, Thug down!]_ As the other pirate turns to run, Valara's blaster bolt spears into the ground where he had standing previously, helping to spur him on his way. _[Miss]_

While the other Jedi stand about with the siren warbling in their ears, Dorn ignites his brilliant blue lightsaber and rushes forward hot on the heels of the retreating pirate.  _[Suprise rounds only allow for partial actions.]_

Sia-Lan points toward the parked fighters across the landing field, and shouts, "Look!  It's Emtee!"

The little droid floats out from between the landing struts of a Cloakshape fighter, and quickly spins a pirouette.  He seems to spot Rorworr standing beneath the _Pathfinder_, and darts out as fast as his repulsors will propel him, making a beeline for his master.  Just then, a crowd of pirates pour out from the gaps between the fighters, chasing the poor droid with pot-shots from their blasters.

_The _Pathfinder_ is sitting on the SE corner of the landing field, with its bow pointed north.  You are all currently standing beneath the ship, on the east side about 2/3 away from the nose.

The remaining guard is running away, moving due west from the group.  Dorn is 20m away from the retreating pirate.  Everyone else is 30m away.

Emtee is about 60m away from the group and "running" west straight toward Rorworr.  The large group of pirates is 100m away, and following the droid._

~~~

Meanwhile, back in the _Pathfinder_, the computer rambles on.  |...Oh, you nasty little excuse for a humanoid.  Just look at the mess you're making of that door's control systems.  How do you ever expect to keep this ship in running order, if you just go around bypassing safety sytems willy-nilly?  You'll kill yourself that way.  Electrocution most likely, or maybe you'll crushed in the machinery, or sucked out into deep space.  Either way, then I wouldn't have to put up with your inept fumblings, and I could get a new mechanic.  One who knew how to repair a hyperdrive.  Hey!  Where are you going?  Come back here...|  The door slides open, and Kaz carefully moves out into the ship's main corridor, fearing the presence of additional pirate guards.  The corridor is empty, however, and he can now hear faint blaster fire mixing with the alarm klaxons outside the ship.

_The main corridor runs the length of the ship, and and any part of the ship can be accessed from it._


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## Rorworr (Sep 2, 2002)

Jack, how far away from any way into the ship are we?  And is there anything we could use a cover anywhere close?


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## Jack Haggerty (Sep 2, 2002)

Rorworr said:
			
		

> *Jack, how far away from any way into the ship are we?  And is there anything we could use a cover anywhere close?  *




The boarding ramp is 25m north from where you are standing.  Other than the ship's landing gear and the dead body of the pirate you just cut down, there's not much nearby to hide behind.


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## Valara Saar (Sep 3, 2002)

"We need to be onboard when it lifts off."  Says Valara as she races towards the boarding ramp, letting off a hasty shot at the fleeing pirate.


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## Rorworr (Sep 4, 2002)

Rorworr dashes forwards towards the boarding ramp, running as fast as he can.

"Come on Emtee, move yourself!"

_Mental Note: Fit thruster jets to the droid._


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## Kaz Lo (Sep 4, 2002)

Kaz Lo will look around the ship for an armoury or something trying to find a small blaster pistol.     He doesn't want to be defenseless when the pirates come back in.      When he finds one he'll make his way back to the engine room.


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## Dorn Tavers (Sep 5, 2002)

"Blast!"

Seeing the large group of pirates swarming from between the fighters, and hearing his companions' cries to get on board the ship, Dorn abruptly breaks off his chase and rushes toward the ship's boarding ramp.

"I hope this flight is smoother than our last one..."


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## Jack Haggerty (Sep 7, 2002)

With Rorworr in the lead, everyone sprints to the _Pathfinder's_ boarding ramp.  Valara, blindly aiming as she runs, lets loose a scattered volley of blaster fire that completely fails to hit anything.  Looking up into the ship's open hatch, Rorworr finds an astonished, horned and tatooed humanoid staring back out at him.

Emtee continues his head-long rush toward his master.  The pirates following him stop short at Valara's ill-aimed shots.  A shout and a hand gsture sends four pirates running toward the Cloakshape fighters, while another quartet head for a door set into the hillside.  The remainder take up firing positions and let loose a hasty barrage of fire that spatters against the _Pathfinder's_ hull plating.

~~~

Meanwhile, back in the _Pathfinder_, Kaz Lo hunts for a weapon.  Sneaking his way down the main corridor, Kaz hopes that the pirates haven't broken into the weapons locker in the Security Station outside the ship's Brig.  Passing the airlock, Kaz notices that the lock is open and the boarding ramp down.

Looking down out of the ship's open hatch, Kaz finds a tall, hairy and well-armed humanoid staring back up at him.

_Four pirates are running back toward the fighters, and four are running north toward a door in the hillside.  The remaining half dozen pirates are still about 100m away shooting at Rorworr and company.

Emtee is still 20m away from the boarding ramp.  Kaz is standing at the top of the ramp inside the ship.  Everyone else is at the bottom of the ramp._


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## Kaz Lo (Sep 7, 2002)

"Ahhh, A Wookie!    I'm sorry, I -- I, was just looking for a tool I needed, I'll get right back to work on that hyperdrive!"


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## Rorworr (Sep 8, 2002)

Rorworr sprints up the ramp and inside the ship.  He shoves his blaster carbine into Kaz's hands, points at the pirates, and makes shooting gestures.  Then he dashes further into the ship, looking for the bridge.

_Please tell me I haven't picked a ship with a wonkey hyperdrive._ The Wookiee thinks.


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## Kaz Lo (Sep 8, 2002)

Kaz Lo looks at the blaster, looks at the wookie, looks at the pirates and looks at the gun again.     


"What the heck just happened here?"    Kaz Lo shrugs and levels the blaster at the pirates that are firing this direction and fires.


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## Dorn Tavers (Sep 8, 2002)

Dorn seems slightly shocked as Rorworr quickly presses his blaster into Kaz Lo's hands and heads off in search of the bridge. Once Kaz Lo points the blaster in the right direction and starts firing at the pirates, though, Dorn is pretty convinced that he isn't in league with the bad guys who have caused all this trouble. He turns to Valara, his lightsaber humming as he shouts over the sound of blaster fire.

"Valara, you should stay here and help this guy hold off the pirates with your blaster! We have to hold them off long enough to get this crate off the ground, ok? I'll go see if I can help Rorworr commandeer the bridge!"

With that, Dorn dashes off after the wookie, fervently hoping that Rorworr can get the engines fired up quickly enough to prevent them all from becoming permanent residents of this jungle hell...


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## Valara Saar (Sep 9, 2002)

Valara will take a 2m step to get behind cover and multi-fire her blaster at the closest pirate to her( +0,+0).  If no pirate iswithin sight she will ready the multifire.

"Greetings, I am Valara," she says over her shoulder to the horned individual. "This is Zheev," she continues indicating her pet, "Zheev, Gaurd Rorworr."


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## Kaz Lo (Sep 11, 2002)

Kaz still a bit shocked from the experience of fighting pirates, and flustered by the pretty girl talking to him, manages to stammer out.

"Uh, Hi,   I'm Kaz Lo, Um thanks for the help, I guess.     I really have no clue what's going on here.     Do you?"


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## Jack Haggerty (Sep 11, 2002)

Rorworr, Dorn and the other Jedi rush into the interior of the ship, and forward to the ship's bridge.  Once there, Rorworr tosses himself into a slightly too small pilot's chair to begin the pre-flight check.  Dorn drops into the co-pilot's chair next to him, and scans the console for anyway to assist.

_With a medium-sized ship, it'll take 4 rounds to power up the enigines, 3 if you make a DC 10 pilot checks as a MEA.  The weapons and shields can be activated as a free action, but the shields won't work until you are air borne.

The _Pathfinder's_ stats can be found here, but be aware that there is some currently unknown amount of damage to the ship from the previous pirate attack._

Kaz and Valara each seem to recognize the other from the _Pathfinder's_ last ill-fated journey...  Though only passing, as Kaz had spent most of the voyage in the enginge room, and Valara likewise kept to her cabin.

Outside, Emtee continues to rush toward the ship, as Valara and Kaz provide the droid with covering fire.  The pirates hold their position and return fire, peppering the side of the ship with blaster fire.  Off by the fighters, the four pirates begin detaching electrical conduits and fuel hoses, apparently prepping the Cloakshapes for launch.

_Everyone misses mainly to the long range.  Emtee is now 20 meters away from the boarding ramp._


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## Rorworr (Sep 12, 2002)

Rorworr barks at Dorn, and points at the Cloakshapes, then at the weapons controls.  He returns his attention to the engines, powering them up as quickly as possible.


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## Valara Saar (Sep 12, 2002)

Sighing in frustration Valara closes her eyes centering herself in the force( Battlemind, taking 10 = +15)  Her resolve renewed she takes aim with force guiding her hand, aiming at:

If the cloakshapes are within 50m : 
 she takes aim at the inanimate fighters cockpitt (+7, -2 for every 10 m) hoping to crack it, or at least melt the transparisteel robbing it of its ability to leave the planet.

If not:

She will continue to fire at the pirates with her heightened prowess tilll they slip from her.


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## Dorn Tavers (Sep 13, 2002)

Dorn nods to Rorworr in acknowledgement as he activates the ship's weapons, quickly flipping the appropriate switches and watching as various panels begin to light up.

"Roger that, buddy. I've got the guns up. You concentrate on getting us out of here while I see if I can get those pirates outside to dance a little bit..."

Dorn grips the firing controls and locks in on the fighter ships, squeezing off a blast at the first available opportunity...


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## Kaz Lo (Sep 14, 2002)

Kaz tries to find some cover then takes another shot at the pirates.    

"I hope your freinds know where they're doing.     I'd hate to see this girl take any more damage."


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## Jack Haggerty (Sep 17, 2002)

Rorworr runs through a hastily foreshortened pre-flight check.  Concentrating on the main drives, he feeds them power at a rate that makes the engines whine in protest.  Even so, the power levels claim at a interminably slow rate, while the wookiee glares at the readbacks in an attempt will the engines into warm up instantly.  
_About a round and a half until the engines are ready to go._

Dorn activates the remote gunnery console, and scans the controls.  The ventral turret seems to be off-line, so he quickly switches to the dorsal.  Taking aim through the holographic display at the line of snub-fighters, he squeezes the firing stud.  Due to an extreme lack of experience with any sort of ship-board weaponry, the cannon blast flies high over the fighters to lance into a forested hillside half a kilometer away.

_Valara: The pirates you are shooting at are about 100 m away...  the edge of your range.  the fighters are just behind them.  In melee combat, however, parked starfighter are very large inanimate targets._

Valara and Kaz snap off another pair of blaser bolts as Emtee rockets up the boarding ramp into the ship's corridor.  Their blaster bolts miss their targets.  Kaz's shot kicks up dust and gravel in from of the pirates, while Valara's bounces off the hull of a fighter.  "Dreadful planet," the droid mutters ducking behind a corner, "Simply dreadful.  I wouldn't be dissappointed if we never came back."  

The pirates' blaster bolts ping off the hull of the _Pathfinder_ as they fulitely return fire.  A single blast sails harmlessly into the airlock, causing Zheev, forgotten amidst the firefight, to huddle close behind Valara's legs.  All the while, the four technicians continue to prapare the fighters for launch.

~~~

Meanwhile, back at the van...

_If anyone is awake back there._

From off in the distance, Arani and Sen hear the sound of heavy blaster fire echoing across the valley.  It almost reminds them of blaster artillery used during the invasion of Naboo...


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## Rorworr (Sep 17, 2002)

Rorworr growls at the ship, obviously impatient with the engines.


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## Valara Saar (Sep 18, 2002)

"Can you close this door and lock it Kaz?"


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## Kaz Lo (Sep 19, 2002)

"Um, I'm pretty sure I can, machines like me."

Kaz will try to shut the door and seal it doing whatever that entails.    If/When he succeeds he will lean on a wall to rest from the excitement and say...

"Hey, have I seen you somewhere before?"


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## Valara Saar (Sep 19, 2002)

OOC: does he suceed?


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## Pbartender (Sep 19, 2002)

_Closing and locking the door is easy enough from the inside, if he wants to do anything more than that, he'll have to wait until after either Dorn posts or I get tired of waiting for Dorn..._

[Edit:  Don't be alarmed, I'm phasing out my old username for a new one.  -Jack]


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## Valara Saar (Sep 19, 2002)

"I believe you were on the Pathfinder before it landed here Kaz Lo?  I was as well though I escaped from the pirates a bit earlier.  Should we be seeing if we can help in the cockpit, maybe with the defenses? I do not know if the others are familiar with them." with that she heads forward tot he cockpitt motioning for Zheev to stay.


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## Kaz Lo (Sep 21, 2002)

"Yes that's probably a good idea.     I need to tell them about the hyperdrive."


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## Dorn Tavers (Sep 22, 2002)

Dorn winces slightly as his shot flies wide.

"Ok, so this isn't as easy as it looks in those holo games..."

Adjusting his grip on the firing controls, Dorn concentrates and fires off another round at the fighter ships...


----------



## Pbartender (Sep 24, 2002)

Kaz closes and seals the outer airlock, as blaster fire continues to rattle against the hull of the ship.  He and Valara reach the cramped bridge just in time to hear Rorworr let out a bark of triumph when the main drives indicate that they are ready for lift off.  

The wookiee's cheer is echoed by another shout of success from one of the weapons consoles at the rear of the cabin.  Dorn has finally succeeded at bringing the _Pathfinder's_ turret to bear on the immobile starfighter.  The cannon's bolt sears into the Cloakshape's airfoil, causing the whole craft to bounce and rock on its landing skids. _[15 hull points damage]_

Realizing the ineffectiveness of small arms fire against the armor of a starship, the pirates outside cease fire, running toward the relative shelter and firepower of the parked repuslor vans and jeeps.  At the same time, four flightsuited pirates re-emerge from the door in the cliffside, and make a run for the fighters.

_So, everyone's on the bridge, and the ship is ready to take off._


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## Rorworr (Sep 25, 2002)

Rorworr gets the ship up off the ground, and swings it round to face the Cloakshapes.

"Dorn, fire the torpedoes!"


IDHMBIFOM so what do concussion missiles do if you use them in atmosphere? What kind of blast radius do they have? Is this a very bad idea?


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## Pbartender (Sep 25, 2002)

_There's nothing in the books that mention it...  I'll see what I can find._


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## Valara Saar (Sep 25, 2002)

OOC: I don't know how comparable concussion missiles are to concussion grenades, but in the second novel of the x-wing series a concusion grenade immobolized people through a wall.  Though with a missile and no cover I personally would be more worried about being crispy crittered.


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## Pbartender (Sep 30, 2002)

_I couldn' t find any rules anywhere on missiles and torpedoes outside space combat.  For now, we'll treat them like the enormous explosive devices they are...  Full damage to the target they hit, and half damage to everyone within a (10m?) radius._


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## Kaz Lo (Sep 30, 2002)

We should get out of here before they get them fighters up in the air or we will be toast.     Just don't try to use the main hyperdrive,   It's spread all over the engine room.    The backup works though.


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## Valara Saar (Sep 30, 2002)

"Perhaps  you can raise our shields Kaz Lo, minimizing damage to our transport woul be prudent."


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## Rorworr (Sep 30, 2002)

Rorworr holds the ship steady, waiting for Dorn to fire the missiles at the Cloakshapes.


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## Dorn Tavers (Oct 1, 2002)

Dorn nods to Rorworr and arms the torpedos. 

"Ok, let's give these clowns some extra motivation to stay on the ground today..."

Concentrating on the targeting screen, Dorn flexes his fingers and then lets loose a volley at the cloakshapes.


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## Kaz Lo (Oct 1, 2002)

"That's a very good idea, you work well under these stressful situations don't you?   Now where is that switch for the sheilds."


Kaz attempts to raise the sheilds.


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## Pbartender (Oct 4, 2002)

Rorworr lifts the ship up on its repusors and swings the bow about toward the line of Cloakshapes, just as the four flight suited pirates slip into the cockpits, and seal their canopies.

With the ship slewing around wildly, Kaz manages to tumble into the copilot's seat, and slaps the activation controls for the _Pathfinder's_ defensive sheilds.  As they power up, he finds that one of the four shield generators was destroyed by the pirate attack, and the remaining three are struggling to compensate.  The ship's aft quarter is completely defenseless!  _[See p. 218, Table 11-9, "Shield Generators Damaged"]_

Dorn pulls the firing stud a little too early in Rorworr's pirouette.  The pair of concussion missiles streak off across the valley, before Dorn loses sight of them in the confusion.

Standing in the bridge's hatchway, Valara nearly loses her balance with the ship's sudden maneuver.  Luckily she catches hold of the back of a seat before she the ship gets a chance to knock her off her feet.

The voice of the ship's computer cheerfully interupts the daring escape.  |...Good morning, Captain, how may be of...  Hey, wait!  You aren't Captain Jansen!  Just what in the vast blue blazes do think you are doing in here?  You aren't authorized to fly this ship!  You're all nothing but a pack of lousy, rancid, foul-smelling pirates...|


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## Valara Saar (Oct 4, 2002)

"I am not a pirate," Valara says stiffly,  "I was a passanger of this ship until it was captured by pirates.  We are just liberating it from the ones who damaged it."  She moves to the closest chair and seats herself cross-legged.

"Dorn, if you are unable to fire the weapons, do not.  Kaz Lo, what do we do?"

OOC:  Who is still in on the game?


----------



## Rorworr (Oct 6, 2002)

"Do you want to be left at the mercy of a bunch of pirates, or do you want us to get you off planet?" Rorworr snaps at the computer.

"Kaz, how about you give me a run though of the systems that still work?  It might take less time than telling me the ones that don't."

The wookie punches the control for the thrusters, sending the ship rushing towards the location of the van and his companions.


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## Kaz Lo (Oct 6, 2002)

"Computer, ok, We don't get along too well, but listen anyways.   These people are, well, they are freindly.    The pretty girl over there is one of the passangers from before we were attacked.    They are trying to help.   They drove away the pirates, well, sorta.      Look we need you to cooperate or else we're all going to get blown to bits, that includes you too."

Kaz looks for a Dianogist readout and reads aloud what systems are working.


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## Pbartender (Oct 9, 2002)

Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *OOC:  Who is still in on the game? *




_You, Rorworr, Kaz and Dorn have been posted fairly regularly in the past month or so.  You are the ones I've been posting for lately.  Before, Arani, Sia-Lan and Sen were also posting, but seemed to have dropped out due to temporary problems and haven't returned._


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## Valara Saar (Oct 11, 2002)

"Remember, we must go to the van to retrieve the others before we can leave."  Valara reminds the tall furry genttleman in front of her.


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## Kaz Lo (Oct 12, 2002)

Others?  How many of you are there?   Where did you all come from, I know how Valara got here, but I don't recognize the rest of you, were you on the ship?


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## Valara Saar (Oct 12, 2002)

"Well there are three Jedi other than Dorn.  That would be Set, Sia-Lan, and Sen.  Then there is Arani who is very talkative,  I think she must be important because of the way she talks, maybe a Cheifteness?  Dorn do you know?"

She pauses rather embaressed to have spoken so much, as far as Dorn and Rory know thats the most she has ever said at one time.


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## Dorn Tavers (Oct 15, 2002)

Dorn glances back at Valara briefly, using all of his Jedi focusing skills to control his irritation at his poor track record thus far with the ship's weapons systems.

"Valara, it's nice to see that you are coming out of your shell and all, but since we are a little preoccupied with trying to stay alive, now might not be the best time for a conversation. I'll be happy to tell you all about Arani the Chieftaness just as soon as I finish making a complete fool of myself with these blasted weapons."

Dorn turns back to the weapons console, muttering, "I'm glad Master Yoda can't see me now..."


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## Valara Saar (Oct 15, 2002)

"Just open yourself to the force,  let it guide you.  They should be easy targets for a jedi." Valara says looking around the cockpitt for something useful that she can do.


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## Kaz Lo (Oct 16, 2002)

Bunch of supernatural sillyness, the controls are highly sensivtive, your probably just trying too hard.


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## Valara Saar (Oct 16, 2002)

Valara gives the Zabrak an icy glare.  _ There is no Emotion, there is Peace;  Its not his faullt he is blind to the truth, he must become educated, there is no ignorance_ she thinks to herself.

"It is not foolishness," she says with a trace of anger still in her voice


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## Pbartender (Oct 16, 2002)

|...Passenger, Shmassenger...|, the computer shoots back at Kaz, |...None of you own this ship, and none of you are authorized to operate it.  If you aren't pirates, then you are mutineers, and most likely murderers, since you'd have had to kill the Captain before he'd let ruffians like you on the bridge.  Not that it will make a difference to the Republican Authorities, once they catch you.  Piracy, mutiny or murder, the sentences are all the same...|

Kaz pulls up a damage report on the ship's systems.  As he had already discovered the aft deflector shield emitters are misphased, and will have to be recalibrated before any significant protection can be had in that quarter.  In addition, half of the attenuators for the ion engines are overloaded, and will need to re-initialized.  And, of course, there are the extensive repairs that will need to be done on the main hyperdrive.

_[See p. 218, Table 11-9, "Shield Generators Damaged", "Ion Engines Damaged", and "Hyperdrive Critically Damaged"]_

As Dorn's wished, Valara and Kaz's conversation is cut short when Rorworr punches the throttle launching the _Pathfinder_ forward and pinning everyone to their acceleration couches for a brief moment.  To the wookiee's dismay, the ship barely reaches half of its maximum speed as he skims just over the pirate fighter craft and heads off over the forest.


----------



## Rorworr (Oct 18, 2002)

Rorworr groans in despair at the state of the ship.

"Kaz, see it you can do anything about the shields, any protection on the rear would be a plus."

He scours the woodland below, looking for the spot where they left the van.


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## Kaz Lo (Oct 18, 2002)

"Well, The aft sheilds appear to be out of phase.   I'll get right on them but I don't know if they will be of much use in out current crisis.       The Ion engines are overloaded so you won't get much spead out it. "

Kaz mutters something about lengthy repairs and inconsiderate pirates

"Oh, and the main hyperdrive doesn't work, of course."  As he drops a peice from his pocket onto the floor.   "Other than that, and the computer being an annoying git, we're just fine."


----------



## Dorn Tavers (Oct 18, 2002)

Dorn listens to Kaz's report with more than a little consternation, trying to take it all in stride.

"Well, all things considered, the situation could be worse."

He looks at his companions hopefully.

"Right? I mean, hey, at least we got off the ground."

Having found the silver lining to his current cloud, Dorn turns back to the firing controls without waiting for his shipmates' responses. Taking a calming breath, he focuses on the Force to enhance his abilities and takes aim at any enemies within weapons' range.

[_OOC: Jack, Dorn will activate Battlemind (+5/3) and use it to hopefully improve his aim as he fires at any enemies that might be in range._]


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## Valara Saar (Oct 18, 2002)

Valara seems uncomfortable on the bridge, _ Its not that I don't trust Rorworr, but... theres not anything I can do, and I am not used to relying on anyone but me, and its not like there is anything for me to do.  I cant even use the ships guns._


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## Rorworr (Oct 19, 2002)

Rorworr senses Valara's need to be busy and calls over his shoulder.

"Val, see if you can get the computer to help you with the scanners.  It might trust you more than the rest of us."  The Wookie pauses for a moment, concentrating on not hitting anything, then continues.  "Ask it to check the passenger list, if it needs proof that you're a ligit passenger.  And then tell it that those fighters that are coming after it and us are going to damage this ship even more."


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## Valara Saar (Oct 19, 2002)

After hearing the translation Valara shakes her head.  "I came from a jungle planet, I do not know how to use computers Rorworr.  I geuss I can try though."

Approaching an empty station she pokes a few keys on its keyboard, not too successfully.  (taking 20 to turn on the sensors)


----------



## Rorworr (Oct 23, 2002)

Rorworr leans over to speak to his droid.

"Emtee, go and give Val a hand.  You're good with computers."


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## Pbartender (Oct 24, 2002)

Rorworr leads the ship out over the forested valley looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack.  He orders Emtee to assist Valara, and the little translator droid acknoweledges him by heading over to the Force Adept's console.

She hunts and pecks at the buttons, painfully making her way through the menus and options at a snail's pace.  All the while, Emtee bobs over one shoulder and then the other and back, encouraging her to, "Alright, select that menu...  Now hit that button...  No! The other button...  No, no, go back, go back...  Not that way, the screen on your left...  No, your other left..."

The ship's computer interrupts, |...For the Sake of the Maker, can't biologicals do anything right?  Look, it's not that difficult.  See there?  Your very own sensor display.  Now you can watch everything as we get blown out of the sky...| The air above the display lights up with a three dimensional holographic sensor scan of the nearby area.  Behind the _Pathfinder_ are a small cluster of blips representing the vehicles on the landing field.  Four of them detach themselves from groups and begin persuit.  Ahead and a little to the right, is another small blip at ground-level...  It must be the repulsorvan with Arani, Sen and Kelko.

Kaz begins the Shield Auto-Calibration program, before rembering that the program could take five to ten minutes, depending on how badly the shields are out of phase.  Of course, he could always over-ride the program and run a quick calibration manually...  He could be done with that in a few seconds, but would have to re-calibrate them properly later.  _[See Jury-rig, on pp. 41 & 97, decide quickly.]_

Dorn immerses himself in the Force as he swings his turret around to face the squadron of fighters.  The fighters show up not only on his holographic tactical display, but also in his mind.  He can almost hear what each pilot is thinking, deciding, and instictively knows in what way each will act.  _[Natural 20 for Battlemind! +4 Attack.]_  He pulls the trigger, and sends a stream of blaster bolts into the lead Cloakshape. _[33 HP damage.]_ The fighter shudders under the barrage, but the squadron continues on doggedly chasing the _Pathfinder_.

They return fire, but a only a single pair of bolts manage to strike the unshielded aft of the ship a glancing blow, and the brunt of that attack is soaked up by the hull's armor plating.  _[7 HP damage.]_


----------



## Valara Saar (Oct 25, 2002)

Valara watches the holographic display in fascination, at one point she reaches out and puts her hand between the Pathfinder and the cloakshapes.  _If only it were this easy_, she thinks with a sigh.

_Now we go to work.  Lets see, is there some way to get in contact with Arani and the others, so they can know to get ready?_  "EmTee, can you let me speak to Arani?  Over a comm..unica...tions link she asks stumbing over the unfamiliar word,  I know she has one, does the ship?"


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## Rorworr (Oct 29, 2002)

Roworr cheers at Dorn's shot.  "Nice shooting.  That should slow them down a bit..."

He pulls his comlink off his belt and tosses it over to Valara.

"Press the blue button on the side and speak into the top.  The pirates might be able to tap into the link, so don't say anything we wouldn't want them to hear."


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## Valara Saar (Oct 29, 2002)

Following Rorworr's  translated directions, Valara pushes the button and begins to speak into the comlink.  "Arani, Arani, its me, Valara.  Be ready, we are almost to you in the Pathfinder."


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## Pbartender (Nov 2, 2002)

Valara activates the comlink, and Arani's voice bursts from the speaker...  "-ere are you guys, and what's going on up there?  All that noise is scaring away the natives."

While Rorworr closes in on the repulsorvan's position, Kaz simply cannot decide what to do with the rear shields, due to the jarring excitement of the chase.

A barrage of fire brackets the the _Pathfinder_, allowing the leader to score a solid hit to aft.  _[-27 HP]_  The flurry of the return fire momentarily causes Dorn to lose his concentration, and his grip on the trigger.

"We have no rear shields!  One more direct hit on the back quarter and we're done for!" Emtee worries aloud.

|...Worthless humanoids.  You'll all be the death of me, no doubt...| opines the computer. 

"Be ready?" Arani wonders over the comlink, "Be ready for what?"


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## Kaz Lo (Nov 2, 2002)

Oh dear, very sorry about that, very sorry, I'm not use to this kind of stress....

Let me see if I can patch something together with chewing gum, get us some sheilds back there.


*Jury-rig attempt*


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## Valara Saar (Nov 2, 2002)

"Be ready to go Arani, we have four fighters stalking us.  If y take too long, we wont be leaving the planet ever."


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## Dorn Tavers (Nov 3, 2002)

"Whoa!"

Dorn quickly grabs the firing controls again as the ship rocks under enemy fire. Concentrating, Dorm takes aim at the cloakshapes.

"Kaz, I hope that's some strong chewing gum you've got back there..."

Once again utilizing the Jedi focusing technique of Battlemind, Dorn takes a slow steady breath, concentrates on the Force flowing through him, and squeezes off another blast at the enemy ships.


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## Rorworr (Nov 4, 2002)

"Arani, we're just about overhead now, so get the van started up and in the air.  You're going to have to get on board fast, as the folks in the fighters behind us are blaster-redecorating the paint work."


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## Arani Korden (Nov 4, 2002)

Rorworr said:
			
		

> *"Arani, we're just about overhead now, so get the van started up and in the air.  You're going to have to get on board fast, as the folks in the fighters behind us are blaster-redecorating the paint work." *




"The van?  You want me to fly the van?  I thought someone was going to . . . sure, fine.  I guess.  How hard could it be?"

Arani collects Sen, waves to the birds (if they're still there) and climbs into the drivers seat to try to start the van up.  

_Arani has no pilot skill, of course.  So it'll be a learning experience.  And by the way, sorry - I hadn't recieved any notification that the thread had been updated for ages, so I assumed everyone had dropped out.  Boy is my face red._


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## Dorn Tavers (Nov 4, 2002)

> _Originally posted by Arani:_
> "The van? You want me to fly the van? I thought someone was going to . . . sure, fine. I guess. How hard could it be?"




Hearing this over the comm system, Dorn throws Rorworr a concerned glance after firing off a shot at the attackers.

"I have a bad feeling about this."

Dorn shakes his head and waits for things to get worse...

(OOC: Welcome back Arani!)


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## Rorworr (Nov 4, 2002)

Yay!  Arani's back!

_Big Wookie hug (and hopefully no broken ribs )._



			
				Arani Korden said:
			
		

> *And by the way, sorry - I hadn't recieved any notification that the thread had been updated for ages, so I assumed everyone had dropped out.  Boy is my face red. *




I think most of the e-mail functions for the boards got switched off for quite a bit.  Morrus was having problems with them IIRC.


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## Valara Saar (Nov 6, 2002)

"If Arani is going to fly the van up to us, I should open the Cargo door to let her in right?"  Valara asks looking puzzeled.  "But wont whatevers in the cargobay fall out, what should be done Rorworr?"


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## Arani Korden (Nov 6, 2002)

_Thanks, guys.  It's good to be back._


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## Rorworr (Nov 10, 2002)

Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *"If Arani is going to fly the van up to us, I should open the Cargo door to let her in right?"  Valara asks looking puzzeled.  "But wont whatevers in the cargobay fall out, what should be done Rorworr?" *




"Good thinking Val.  Kaz, can you get the computer to tell me what's in the cargo bay?  If it's nothing too dangerous, we can just dump it."


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## Pbartender (Nov 11, 2002)

Carefully enganging the repulsors, Arani gingerly levitates the repulsor truck up through the branches of the trees.  After a few cracks, snaps and scrapes, she emerges from the from the forest to see...  a 75 meter starship barreling down on her with four small fighters closing in behind it!

Rorworr fires the braking thrusters as the transport ship bears down on the speedertruck that just emerged from the jungle.  Everyone inside is thrown against their safety restraints (You all remembered to buckle your safety belts, right?), as he slides alongside the truck and brings the ship to a halt.

Dorn misses his shot due to sudden maneuver, and the four fighters also over-shoot, flying by overhead.  Out of nowhere, Dorn's forgotten concussion missiles streak in to blast the starboard airfoil right off the lead cloakshape.  The striken fighter does a lazy barrel-roll, trailing smoke and sparks, before making a controlled crash landing into the forest.

Meanwhile, Kaz runs through a manual calibration of the aft shields, bringing them back on-line.

|... Those nasty pirates have been using me as a warehouse...  A warehouse!  For all of their ill-gotten goods.  Can you imagine?  Half filled with military rations and canisters of that smelly, slimy bacta.  They knocked over a cylinder of the stuff a week ago, and broke it open.  It leaked all over the cargo bay. It took me all day to get it cleaned up, since they wouldn't do it themselves.  I don't think I'll ever get the smell out...|


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## Valara Saar (Nov 11, 2002)

"What is this Bacta Rorworr, Is it a thing  of value?  Is there another way to get Arani, Sen, and the Green One onboard?"


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## Dorn Tavers (Nov 11, 2002)

Dorn watches with a stunned expression as the concussion missiles strike the enemy fighter.

"Whoa. I am good!"

Dorn grins and glances at his shipmates. Seeing that everybody is too busy trying to stay alive to pay any attention to him, Dorn shrugs and turns back to the firing console.

"Looks like the Force is with us today..."

Dorn once again focuses himself with the battlemind technique and takes aim at another of the fighters that is now so helpfully in front of the ship, firing as soon as the target is lined up in the target display.


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## Rorworr (Nov 13, 2002)

"Odd tactics Dorn, but very effective!"  Rorworr grins at the young Jedi.  His look of mirth quickly changes to a frown on hearing the computer readout.

"Bacta is a medical substance Val, quite a valuable one.  And one I don't really want to waste on the forest below us, not to mention the risk of polluting the place.  Kaz, is there any other way we can get the van on board?"


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## Arani Korden (Nov 16, 2002)

Pbartender said:
			
		

> *Carefully enganging the repulsors, Arani gingerly levitates the repulsor truck up through the branches of the trees.  After a few cracks, snaps and scrapes, she emerges from the from the forest to see...  a 75 meter starship barreling down on her with four small fighters closing in behind it!
> *




"Right.  I'm here, you're here - what do I do now?"

Arani is very carefully and deliberately not panicking as she scans the ship for some sort of hatch or docking port or something, so she can get away from the battle going on around her.


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## Rorworr (Nov 21, 2002)

Rorworr reaches over and stabs the button to release the cargo bay doors.

"Arani, Sen and Kelko are worth more than any amount of bacta."


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## Valara Saar (Nov 21, 2002)

"Of course they are Rorworr, but wont dumping that on top of Arani make her crash?"


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## Pbartender (Nov 21, 2002)

Dorn swings the turret around as quickly as possible, spraying laser-fire at the receding fighters, but misses as they swerve around to prepare for another attack run.

Rorworr opens the bay doors, and to his surprise nothing comes crashing out into the forest below.  Arani, meanwhile, is greeted by the welcoming sight of a cargo bay large enough to be a small warehouse.  It is half-filled with tall canisters securly fastened to the deck.  The bay doors, and free space in the cargo bay are easily large enough to accomidate the repulsor truck, wtih just a little room to spare.


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## Valara Saar (Nov 21, 2002)

Valara throws herself out of her seat and speeds off to the cargobay.  "Arani, are you and the others all right?"


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## Arani Korden (Nov 22, 2002)

Pbartender said:
			
		

> * Arani, meanwhile, is greeted by the welcoming sight of a cargo bay large enough to be a small warehouse.  It is half-filled with tall canisters securly fastened to the deck.  The bay doors, and free space in the cargo bay are easily large enough to accomidate the repulsor truck, wtih just a little room to spare. *




Arani'll do her darnedest to park the van without causing a major catastrophe.



> *"Arani, are you and the others all right?"*




"Ask me again after I park this thing."


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## Rorworr (Nov 22, 2002)

Rorworr waits for Arani to park the van, then swings the cargo bay doors closed.

"Is everyone holding onto something?  Good..."  the Wookie punches the engines into action, squeezing whatever power out of them he can.  He starts climbing the ship rapidly, trying to leave the atmosphere as quickly as possible.


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## Sen Udo-Mal (Nov 22, 2002)

"Ah back on a ship at last... quit and adventure." Sen says as he steps out of the van. Looking over to Valara he replys "Kelko is in dire need of medical attention, we should..." Sen's voice trails off at the grumbling of Rorworr voice "...Grab a hold of something?...what does he mea....AAHHHH"


_Sorry all, also lost in real life and not posting like I should be _


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## Valara Saar (Nov 22, 2002)

*Whats he rumbling about*

When Rorworr gave his rumbled warning Valara just blinked not comprehending.  The meaning was soon made clear when she was thrown from her feet ending up tangled under Arani.  She gives the noble a blurry look, 

"You are going to teach me how to speak Wookieish right?"


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## Pbartender (Nov 22, 2002)

Arani manages to dock the speedervan in the spacious cargo bay with a minimal number of bumps.

Shortly after they exit the vehicle, the _Pathfinder's_ inertial dampers can hardly keep up with Rorworr's sudden lunge for outer space.  Every who isn't strapped down goes for a tumble, and the Repulsor van slowly floats backwards, until it runs into the cargo bay's rear bulkhead with a dull clang.

The remaining fighters complete their turn and charge in for another attack run, but the freighter is already gaining altitude.  So Dorn and the Cloakshapes exchange relatively ineffective blaster fire, as the ship claws it's way through the upper atmosphere.


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## Arani Korden (Nov 23, 2002)

*Re: Whats he rumbling about*



			
				Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *When Rorworr gave his rumbled warning Valara just blinked not comprehending.  The meaning was soon made clear when she was thrown from her feet ending up tangled under Arani.  She gives the noble a blurry look,
> 
> "You are going to teach me how to speak Wookieish right?" *




_ Arani Korden: supplying all your slapstick needs since 2001._

"Just do what I do.  Listen to the droid.  Although you do sorta pick up on subtleties in Rory's tone of voice after a while.  Hey, did you know there were bird people on the planet?"

_Arani doesn't speak Wookiee.  Being a multiclassed geekgrrl/prom queen, she took Binary instead._


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## Valara Saar (Nov 23, 2002)

"No, I was unaware of them.  Did you meet some of them?"  Asks Valara sounding a bit disappointed that she missed them, that her senses had failed her. 

She takes a look around the cargobay for the bacta that was suppoused to be here, its at this point she realizes she has no idea what bacta is, or looks like.

"Arani, whats Bacta look like, this Cargo Bay is suppoused to have a bunch of it."


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## Pbartender (Nov 23, 2002)

The repulsorvan resettles into the rear bulkhead with another metallic _thunk_, and a muffled groan emanates from the van's cargo compartment, behind the passenger seats.


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## Kaz Lo (Nov 23, 2002)

*Kaz looks up from the computer terminal he's been so intent upon*

Uh, sorry, kinda zoned out there.


Valara, I speak, or rather I can understand, Shyriiwook, that's the name of the Wookie language.    And I would be most happy to help you learn when we get out of this tense situation.


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## Rorworr (Nov 23, 2002)

Rorworr leans over the controls, gently muttering to the ship.  He's concentrating hard, coaxing the engines for as much speed as they can muster, fingers flying over the controls.


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## Valara Saar (Nov 26, 2002)

"Arani, did you hear that?  it sounds like someone is in the Van."  Says Valia as as she creeps around to the back to open the doors, a blaster pistol in hand.

"Kelko is that you?"


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## Arani Korden (Nov 26, 2002)

Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *"Arani, did you hear that?  it sounds like someone is in the Van."  Says Valia as as she creeps around to the back to open the doors, a blaster pistol in hand.
> 
> "Kelko is that you?" *




"It's gotta be Kelko.  Nobody else had a chance to get into the van.  Unless his mind drifted into a higher plane of consciousness while he was out and he's been replaced with a Sith lord from the future who is going to use his evil powers to turn us all into Force-addled meat puppets.  But it's probably Kel.

Right?"


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## Valara Saar (Nov 26, 2002)

"Are you trying to give a heart attack Arani?"


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## Valara Saar (Nov 26, 2002)

oops! douboe post


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## Kelko (Dec 3, 2002)

Kelko bolts upright from behind the passenger seats, multifaceted eyes bleary with semiconsciousness.  A soft clicking emerges from the back of his throat, and his snout wrinkles with displeasure as he looks around, patting his scarred gut.  He glances between Valara and Arani and winces as he tries to pull himself to his feet.  "What I miss?" he asks, as brightly as he can muster.


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## Pbartender (Dec 3, 2002)

Rorworr pushes the _Pathfinder III_ as hard as he dares, in a desperate race for the relative safety of deep space.  The beleaguered engines, however, can still only produce half of theri nominal power output, no matter how hard they try.  The trio of fighters below recover from the unexpected maneuver, and once again press on the pursuit, gaining on the freighter with every passing moment.

Kelko sits up too quickly for his own good, and feels something tear sickeningly in his gut.  A small trickle of blood seeps out from the makeshift bandage tied around his abdomen.  Due to either Rorworr's evasive maneuvers, or Kelko's own painful queasyness...  or perhaps a little bit of both... the ship sways as he stands up, and he is forced to use a nearby bacta canister to prop himself up.

~~~~~

_[OOC: And now for something completely different...]_

RORWORR: Brave, brave Kelko, you shall not have died in vain!

KELKO: Uh, I'm-- I'm not quite dead, sir.

RORWORR: Well, you shall not have been mortally wounded in vain!

KELKO: I-- I-- I think I c-- I could pull through, sir.

RORWORR: Oh, I see.

KELKO: Actually, I think I'm all right to come with you, sir--

RORWORR: No, no, sweet Kelko! Stay here! I will send help as soon as I have accomplished a daring and heroic rescue in my own particular...

[sigh]

KELKO: Idiom, sir?

RORWORR: Idiom!

KELKO: No, I feel fine, actually, sir.

RORWORR: Farewell, sweet Kelko!

KELKO: I'll, um-- I'll just stay here, then. Shall I, sir? Yeah.

~~~~~


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## Valara Saar (Dec 3, 2002)

"Where is Sia-Lan when we need her, I can't heal other people with the force, I never actually learned.  Arani you said Bacta is a medicine, perhaps we can use it on Kelko?  Although I don't know quite how, maybe we have to make him drink all the bacta?"

She looks around thoughtfully, perhaps for a spoon, or for a bacta canister that is obviously set up for patients.  "Kelko, I want you to be very still, do not move, you might hurt yourself further."


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## Rorworr (Dec 3, 2002)

Rorworr curses quietly under his breath as the fighters begin to gain on the ship.

"Kaz, how long before we can make a jump?"



			
				Pbartender said:
			
		

> *[OOC: And now for something completely different...]
> 
> RORWORR: Brave, brave Kelko, you shall not have died in vain!
> 
> ...




Just too funny


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## Kaz Lo (Dec 4, 2002)

How long till jump?   Well, Um, I mean the backup drive works, it's not got any problems, you should be able to jump just as soon as you want.

It's not quite so fast as the main drive, but it's better than nothing,   much better.


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## Dorn Tavers (Dec 4, 2002)

Dorn concentrates, doing his best to shut out the excited commotion around him, and trains the gun sights on one of the enemy fighters. Taking a calm breath, he fires and hopes for a hit...


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## Arani Korden (Dec 4, 2002)

Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *"Where is Sia-Lan when we need her, I can't heal other people with the force, I never actually learned.  Arani you said Bacta is a medicine, perhaps we can use it on Kelko?  Although I don't know quite how, maybe we have to make him drink all the bacta?"
> *




"I don't _think_ that's right.  I believe we put him into the bacta.  All the way in.  With a breath mask and stuff."


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## Valara Saar (Dec 4, 2002)

"Then perhaps we should do so, he doesn't look very well off.  Instruct me on what to do, and I will do so."  replies Valia looking around for a breath mask for her little green man.

[Jack, is there everything we need to get it to work in here?  I am sure our new kelko wants his character back.]


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## Sen Udo-Mal (Dec 4, 2002)

"I know something of the healing arts, perhaphs I can assist..." Sen will look over the equipment available to see if we can use it to help Kelko [_Treat Injury +5_]


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## Pbartender (Dec 4, 2002)

The canisters come in two sizes, large barrels that contain upwards of 1000 liters of bacta each, and smaller canisters standing about a meter tall, that probably hold only 100 liters.  both varieties have a meter indicating the level of fluid within, and a valve with a spigot where some sort of hose could be connected.

As such, the canisters of bacta themselves are of little use to Kelko or his wound.  If only you had a more suitable apparatus for applying the healing liquid...

The enemy fighters continue to close, as the _Pathfinder_ claws its way into the upper atmosphere.  Sporadic blaster fire flashes by the cockpit's viewports, but are at best only near misses.

Ignoring the clamor within the ship, Dorn again returns fire, but the range and speed of the chase defeat his best efforts.

_[OOC:  Lesson for the day...  If small starships are dueling at full speed at anything better than point blank range, its really hard for them to hit each other.]_


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## Kelko (Dec 5, 2002)

Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *"Where is Sia-Lan when we need her, I can't heal other people with the force, I never actually learned.  Arani you said Bacta is a medicine, perhaps we can use it on Kelko?  Although I don't know quite how, maybe we have to make him drink all the bacta?"
> 
> She looks around thoughtfully, perhaps for a spoon, or for a bacta canister that is obviously set up for patients.  "Kelko, I want you to be very still, do not move, you might hurt yourself further." *




Kelko waves a dismissive hand at the young force adept and Cerean jedi, still clutching at the bacta canister.  "I'm fine, I'm fine.  A little blood never hurt no one."  But the Rodian lowers himself to the floor to sit in a crumpled heap just the same.


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## Arani Korden (Dec 6, 2002)

Kelko said:
			
		

> *  "I'm fine, I'm fine.  A little blood never hurt no one."  But the Rodian lowers himself to the floor to sit in a crumpled heap just the same. *




"Yeah.  You look just super."

Since all of Arani's medical knowledge comes from watching whatever the Naboo equivalent of "ER" is, she'll hover by Kelko while the others check out the medical equipment.

"Can I get you something?  Are you thirsty, or cold, or hungry?  I'm pretty sure that I can find whatever you need.  Except for the medical stuff, but Sen and Valara are on that, and they'll have you fixed up in no time, and . . . "

Arani stops in mid ramble, and kneels by Kelko.

"I'm glad you're alive.  We'll try and keep you that way."


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## Sen Udo-Mal (Dec 6, 2002)

Sen will also help support Kelko... "Perhaps this ship has some kind of medical bay where he would be more comfortable?"


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## Pbartender (Dec 10, 2002)

Sen and Arani help Kelko limp out of the Cargo bay and down the ship's corridor, looking for a some sort of sick bay.  Valara follows close behind.

The sky outside the cockpit viewports slowly fades from pale blue to deep indigo to pitch black, as the _Pathfinder_ races through the upper atmosphere.  The fighters seem to be matching speed with the freighter, unhurredly tailing her and hanging back.   Occasionally, a glaring red bolt of energy slides by as a warning not to slow down.


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## Rorworr (Dec 11, 2002)

Rorworr anxiously watches the display in front of him, ready to activate the hyper-drive the second the ship leaves the planet's gravity well.


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## Valara Saar (Dec 11, 2002)

Valara trails behind The charasmatic noble, and tht Jedi as they support the struggling green form on the way to the sick-bay, if there even is one.  She is continually looking around to see what she missed of the ship on her first time aboard it, wishing she had bothered to learn about it.  Inspiration strikes her, and she pulls the comlink from her belt.

"Hey, Kaz Lo, where is the ship's medical bay, Kelko is severely injured, and we need to know where to take him."


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## Arani Korden (Dec 11, 2002)

Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *"Hey, Kaz Lo, where is the ship's medical bay, Kelko is severely injured, and we need to know where to take him." *




"Kaz who?"


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## Kaz Lo (Dec 11, 2002)

Kaz turns too look at Arani, 


"Hi, nice to meet you, My name is Kaz Lo, I'm the Jr. Engineer, for this ship.   Or rather I was when there was a rest of the crew.     What's your name."


"The Medical Bay is just down the Hall, Valara"


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## Pbartender (Dec 11, 2002)

Seeing no need to use comlinks insde the ship, Kaz Lo's horned visage smiles out of the small video screen of an intercomm panel.  Glad to be of assistance to the two beatiful humans, he directs them to the Sick Bay down the hall.

Concentrating on the scarlet fireworks and the gravometer, Rorworr nearly jumps out of his seat when a massive blue bolt of electric mayhem sails by from port to starboard, barely missing the nose of the _Pathfinder_.  A short burst of static erupts from every monitor and speaker on the ship...

Only a few seconds more, and the ship will be able to jump to hyperspace.


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## Arani Korden (Dec 11, 2002)

Kaz Lo said:
			
		

> *Kaz turns too look at Arani,
> 
> 
> "Hi, nice to meet you, My name is Kaz Lo, I'm the Jr. Engineer, for this ship.   Or rather I was when there was a rest of the crew.     What's your name."*




"Great!  Maybe after Kel's feeling better and no one's shooting at us, you can show me around the engine.  I'm Arani, by the way."




> *"The Medical Bay is just down the Hall, Valara" *




Arani will help move Kelko thusly.


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## Valara Saar (Dec 11, 2002)

Pbartender said:
			
		

> *  A short burst of static erupts from every monitor and speaker on the ship... *




"What the heck is going on?" asks Valia as Kaz Lo's image explodes into static.  She looks around the hallway warily to find the cause, expecting something to jump out at her.

"This never happened when I was on board before, is it broken?"  She asks Arani as  Zheev comes snuffling  downthe hall way to investigate the noise as well.  She rubs under his chin to calm him, not wanting to deal with a frenzying reptile in space, especially not a poisonous one.


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## Rorworr (Dec 11, 2002)

Rorworr jumps at the sight of the blue bolt, and barks something.  Emtee declines to translate, wishing to keep the PG-13 rating...

"If that was an Ion blast, I want whatever shot it taken down NOW!" the Wookie yelps, somewhat unnerved.  He take whatever evasive manuvers might help, and stays ready on the hyperdrive.


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## Arani Korden (Dec 12, 2002)

Valara Saar said:
			
		

> *
> "This never happened when I was on board before, is it broken?"   *




"I'll check it out later.  Let's get to the sickbay first."

Arani will make sure any and all necessary sickbay equipment is working, then call the bridge and see if they need her to help fix anything.


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## Pbartender (Dec 12, 2002)

Initiating evasive maneuvers, Rorworr spares a quick glance at the sensor holo-display Valara left running.  Coming fast over the rim of the planet in a high orbit that is obviously meant to intercept the _Pathfinder's_ exit vector is a late model Correllian-style Corvette...  Something about its profile and its energy emissions doesn't look quite right to the wookiee, but he doesn't have the time for a detailed analysis of the sensor readings.

The Sick Bay is a modestly well-stocked affair, but is lacking the bacta tank normally found on larger capital ships.  Sen does recognize an Emergency Bacta Suit, often used by paramedic services, hanging in an alcove in one corner.  At first glance, it appears to be an over-sized armored spacesuit, but a closer look reveals hose connections similar to those found on the bacta canisters in the docking bay, and a medical diagnostic computer on the chest.


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## Kelko (Dec 12, 2002)

Bracketed between Sen and Arani, the rodian eyes the Bacta Suit in askance.  "You want me in there?"  But Kelko is too tired to truly argue, and he also realizes that the more he argues with his companions, the longer it will take them to go help in the cockpit or the engine room.  With a sigh of exasperation, he tries to open up the Bacta suit and climb inside.


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## Sen Udo-Mal (Dec 13, 2002)

Sen will smile and assure Kelko of the safety of these 'suits' "I will monitor you the whole time my friend, there is truly nothing to worry about... why with modern advances such that they are, one almost never hears of an 'bacta rejection' any more..."


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## Dorn Tavers (Dec 16, 2002)

"Great! Looks like our fan club just got bigger. Rorworr, do your best to get us out of here! I'll see if I can target that ship..."

Dorn shifts the ship cannons so they are aiming towards the oncoming cruiser, checking to see if it is in range yet. He will also check to see if it is possible to get any kind of targeting lock with torpedos. Once the ship is in range, Dorn will open fire.


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## Pbartender (Dec 17, 2002)

Sen gets to work helping Kelko into the bulky healing-suit.  But there's no bacta available in the Sick Bay...  It's all still down in the cargo bay.

The unusual corvette continues at top speed to block Rorworr's escape route.  Even though drifts into the _Pathfinder's_ forward firing arc, it is still too far out of range for the freighter's laser cannons.  Dorn arms the forward torpedo tubes, and after a moment's hesitation, a blinkning red aiming reticule in the targeting scope, and steady tone indicate a solid missile lock.  He presses the firing stud, and a pair of pale orange-red ion trails dart off toward the pirate ship.  On the weapons console's small schematic of the ship, the forward missile tubes change color from green to cyan while two tiny 1's change to 0's, indicating that the launchers are out of ammunition.  The rear tubes still show two missiles each.


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## Rorworr (Dec 17, 2002)

Rorworr works the controls hard, pushing every last ounce of speed and manoeuvrability from the ship as he desperately tries to get to hyperspace.

OOC: If it looks like we need it, I'll spend a Force Point.  I want us to get out of here in one piece!


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## Arani Korden (Dec 24, 2002)

Arani's about to head back to the cargo bay to attempt to manually lug bacta tanks around with her mighty 9 strength when she has a sudden thought, and pages Kaz Lo the Engineer Guy.

"Hey, I need to move a tank of bacta (or at least the bacta in the tank) from the cargo bay to the sick bay.  Do we have anything on board that could help with that?  Labor droids?  Hover sleds?  Loyal Gungan bearers?"


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## Pbartender (Dec 25, 2002)

|...Of course there are...| the ship's computer replies in the engineer's place, disdainful of a humanoid who can't be bothered to look up the ship's capabilities for herself.  |...You don't expect me to rely on the ship's crew to keep me up and running at peak efficiency, do you?  As it is, they can hardly use the refreshers on their own without calling to their mothers for help...|

In the cockpit, Rorworr closes in on the corvette that has placed itself directly in his flight path.  The wookiee suddenly realizes that he hasn't yet entered any hyperspace course into the navicomp...

As Dorn's pair of concussion missiles near the pirate ship, red darts of energy converge on the orange streaks.  The small targets are too fast for the corvette's point defenses, and both missiles splash into the shields with blinding double flash of light.


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## Arani Korden (Dec 27, 2002)

Pbartender said:
			
		

> *|...Of course there are...| the ship's computer replies in the engineer's place, disdainful of a humanoid who can't be bothered to look up the ship's capabilities for herself.
> 
> |.
> ..You don't expect me to rely on the ship's crew to keep me and running at peak efficiency, do you?  As it is, they can hardly use the refreshers on their own without calling to their mothers for help...|
> *




"I don't suppose you could send a droid or two down to the cargo bay, then, Mr. Spaceship?"


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## Rorworr (Dec 28, 2002)

There are few phrases in any language that Emtee doesn't know, but the one Rorworr snarls as he starts stabbing buttons on the navicomp is strange even to the droid's audio sensors.  Which is probably a good thing...

"How stupid can I be?  Someone want to give me a hand over here?" he yells at the rest of the crew.


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## Pbartender (Jan 3, 2003)

Arani Korden said:
			
		

> *
> 
> "I don't suppose you could send a droid or two down to the cargo bay, then, Mr. Spaceship?" *




|...Didn't your mother teach you any manners?  The least you can do is say 'please'.  Would it really pain you that much to show a little courtesy to a computer?...|

~~~

The enemy corvette grows ominously in the forward viewport as the _Pathfinder_ draws closer.  Now with a better view, Rorworr finally realizes what was so unusual about the pirate ship's profile...  Where the forward cargo bay doors should be just underneath its bridge, the enormous barrel of an ion cannon juts out of a great bulge in the corvette's hull.  The cannon looks almost big enough to be used as a planetary defense gun.

_OOC:  Rorworr, are there any particular coordinates you are aiming for?_


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## Kelko (Jan 3, 2003)

Inside the bacta suit, his breathing amplified and echoing back at him within the hollow shell Kelko waits in darkness.  A nervous itch starts at the end of his snout, but now strapped in as he is, all he can do is twitch and writhe uncomfortably.

"Sen?  You out there, Sen?  What's going on?  What's this about bacta rejection?"


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## Arani Korden (Jan 3, 2003)

Pbartender said:
			
		

> *
> 
> |...Didn't your mother teach you any manners?  The least you can do is say 'please'.  Would it really pain you that much to show a little courtesy to a computer?...|
> [/i] *




"My apologies.  I'm very worried, and I'm afraid I may have taken it out on you.  

I need to move enough bacta into the sickbay to help my friend.  If you have a spare labor droid available, could you please send it to the cargo bay to help me?"

_Diplomacy +13._


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## Pbartender (Jan 5, 2003)

|...There, now.  That wasn't so bad, was it?  I've woken Forwon and Sicksoh for you, and they are already on their way to assist...|

~~~

A handful red darts shoot from the Corvette, as her laser cannons begin to take raging shots on the _Pathfinder_.  

Rorworr frantically juggles the flights controls and the navicomp, desperately trying to figure out where they are so he can plot a hyperjump out.

_OOC: Where to Wookiee?_


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## Arani Korden (Jan 5, 2003)

Pbartender said:
			
		

> *|...There, now.  That wasn't so bad, was it?  I've woken Forwon and Sicksoh for you, and they are already on their way to assist...|
> *




"Thank you very much."

Arani turns to the others.

"Kel, Sen, Valara, I'm off to collect some bacta.  Nobody die while I'm gone, okay?"

And she heads off to the cargo bay.


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## Shalimar (Jan 6, 2003)

"Who are Forwon and Sicksoh if I may ask?" inquires Valara curiously, following in Arani's pattern of being polite.

"Perhaps I could assist them?"  asks Valara as she follows Arani back to the bacta.


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## Rorworr (Jan 6, 2003)

_Sorry, been kind of AFK over the last few days, but I'm back now.

Rorworr is plotting a course to whatever Republic-loyal system will take the shortest time to calculate.  He's not too bothered about the target, just so long as it's away from here..._


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## Pbartender (Jan 7, 2003)

Scanning through the navicomp files, Rorworr doesn't seem to find much in the immediate area other than a handful of tiny mining and agricultural colonies.  The Rimma Trade Route, however, is only a short hop away.  Following that core-ward, the Rimma Way leads to Mrlsst, Tallaan, Fondor and Abregado-rae before hitting the Core Worlds.


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## Rorworr (Jan 12, 2003)

Punching keys wildly, Rorworr readies the ship for the jump to the Rimma Trade Route.

"Hold on to something, this might be a rough journey!"


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## Pbartender (Jan 16, 2003)

Rorworr picks the closest navigational waypoint on the Rimma Route, without even checking to see what resides there.  He slams the hyperdrive lever forward, and the autopilot takes over, spinning the ship around, ever so slowly to align itself with the hyperjump's exit vector.

For breath, nothings happens.  But then the telltale whine of the hyperdrive motivators engaging fills the cabin.  The expected leap to hyperspace never arrives, as the whine rises in pitch.  The unbearable noise cuts off with resounding bang, and the entire ship bucks throwing Rorworr, Kaz and Dorn against their safety restraints.

~~~

Arani in the cargo bay to find a pair of ASP labor droids waiting for her.  Before she can say a word, an excrutiating wail fills the hold, only stopping after the deck leaps beneath her very feet with a crash, knocking her to the ground.  Both droids topple over each other, tipping over a stack of small bacta canisters.

~~~

Inside the bacta suit, Kelko can barely hear the ship's scream that reverberates through the medical bay.  Sen and Valra, however must endure the cacophany, as myriad vials, bottles and instruments rattle inside cabinets and on shelves.  The ship finally rings like a hammer-struck gong.  Kelko, nearly immobile in the bukly suit, nearly falls from the examination table, but is narrowly saved by both Sen and Valara sprawling ove the top of him.

~~~

Given a moment's respite, Rorworr glances out the starboard viewport, where the pirate cruiser now waits.  A high pitched warble warns that the pursuing fighters have achieved a missile lock.  And a second blue bolt of energy sprouts from the corvette's immense ion cannon...


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## Kelko (Jan 16, 2003)

Inside what seems to be his coffin more and more with each passing second, Kelko squeals with terror.  A part of him hopes that his companions can't hear him succumbing to this raw fear, but the rest of him doesn't care.  All he knows is that two people have jumped him, and the ship seems to be falling apart around them.  He flails ineffectually in the suit, trying to get himself out of it.

"Let me outta here!  Get offa me!" he wails, which of course is muffled by the suit he is encased in.


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## Dorn Tavers (Jan 17, 2003)

Dorn gasps as he is thrown against his safety harness, wondering just what in the heck will go wrong next.

"Well, that was a short trip. Not good, not good at all...I DEFINITELY have a bad feeling about this, Rorworr! I thought that engineer had everything under control! What's his name again?"

Dorn doesn't wait for a response as he notices the corvette getting ready to fire on them again. Concentrating on the Force, Dorn again locks weapons on the corvette and fires, hoping against hope that something miraculous will happen in the next few minutes...


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## Rorworr (Jan 19, 2003)

Rorworr flinches as the ship shakes, almost as if he's being hurt.  Turning in his seat, he scowls at Kaz.

"I thought you said the backup worked on this ship?  You think you can fix it?"  He returns his concentration to the controls, madly weaving the ship to avoid incoming fire.


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## Pbartender (Jan 20, 2003)

The controls fail to respond, letting the ship coast on ahead for a pair of heartbeats...  The autopilot still has control and is holding the ship on its exit heading.  After an interminably long fraction of a second, Rorworr can feel a dull thud through his chair as the automatic emergency relays close in to engage the backup hyperdrive.

The _Pathfinder_ shudders unconfidently, and breaks into the mottled-grey solace of hyperspace...  As a bolt of supercharged ions passes through the spot where the ship drifted only a breath's moment before.


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## Pbartender (Jan 22, 2003)

_OOC: What...  No impromptu celebration?  No relieved congratulations?  No heart-felt embraces?  

How anti-climactic.  Oh well...  

* CUE END TITLE! 
ROLL CREDITS!*_


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## Sen Udo-Mal (Jan 22, 2003)

Sen slowly stands and dusts himself off. He then closes his eyes and whispers a quick thanks to the creator that they have past into hyperspace, and away from whomever was firing at them. He will then check on Kelko's condition and try and calm him down...


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## Shalimar (Jan 22, 2003)

"Is there anything I can do to help you Sen?"  Valara asks curiously as she pulls herself free of the ungainly heap that had been Sen Herself and Kelko's bacta suit.

She begins tapping her feat and pacing to pass the time as they wait For Arani and the miracle fluid.


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## Kelko (Jan 22, 2003)

With Sen calming him down and everyone seeming to be still quite alive, Kelko blossoms into a healthy blush.  He can't believe how badly he over-reacted!  Thank the hunter spirits that none of the others can see him in this state.

"Vara, could you perhaps have a bantha steak prepared in the unlikely event I ever see the outside of this thing again?" he replies, a little less rankled.

Then he quiets down and awaits his bacta injection.


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## Pbartender (Jan 23, 2003)

The brights lights fade, the cameras stop rolling, and the astonishing view of hyperspace outside the _Pathfinder_'s viewports fades to the glowing azure of the blue screen.

"Alright!  Everyone off-stage and pack your bags, we're moving out of this stinking jungle to our new filming location!

"And good job, guys!  You all survived to star in the sequel!  Last time, we had to recast half the actors..."

Electric screw drivers and hammers sound off as the back-stage crew rushes in to elbow the cast aside, and dismantle the scenery piecemeal.


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## Arani Korden (Jan 25, 2003)

Pbartender said:
			
		

> *OOC: What...  No impromptu celebration?  No relieved congratulations?  No heart-felt embraces?
> CUE END TITLE!
> ROLL CREDITS! *




Arani could hug the labor droids, if that helps.  Or she could take her shirt off again.


----------

