The Star Wars Iconic Characters and the Lords of the Expanse: Hunting Grounds (cont.)

[Pbartender]

THE STAR WARS ICONIC CHARACTERS
AND THE LORDS OF THE EXPANSE

When last we left the STAR WARS ICONIC CHARACTERS, they had narrowly escaped the invasion of NABOO by TRADE FEDERATION forces. After a harrowing encounter with space pirates on a jungle planet, they found their way to TAPANI SECTOR. There they rejoined their friend, DEEL SUROOL, and came under the protection and employ of LADY AGATHA of HOUSE CADRIAAN, the great aunt of ARANI KORDEN.

Our heroes have been sent to the VOR-CAL, the annual ceremonial feast and hunt, to uncover a suspected plot by the TRADE FEDERATION to disrupt shipping along the SHAPANI BYPASS.

~~~~

A few days and several hyperspace jumps later...

The Redline eases its way out of hyperspace above the typically mottled green planet of Vycinyth. However, unlike most planets of such desirable environment, a sensor scan quickly reveals that the planet is almost entirely uninhabited. A handful of luxury space yachts are detected entering or leaving orbit, and only a single space station, an enormous skyhook, "Vycinyth on High", hangs above the pristine planet.

As the skyhook's traffic controllers direct Rorworr and Kelko to their designated docking bay, Arani takes a moment to look over the items Deel had entrusted her with.

The datapad contains information and dossiers on all the participants of this year's Vor-Cal. They can be summed up as follows...

The Attendees of This Year's Vor-Cal:

• Lord Giorgio Apollinari of House Melantha - This year's host of Vor-Cal, and House Melantha's Representative for the 11th straight year. Lord Apollinari sits on Melantha's privy council, and is a reputed sport hunter. He is tall, muscular, with a short brown ponytail and long sideburns all adding up to rogueish good looks.
  
• Lady Olivya Vizcara of House Mecetti - A minor noble from House Mecetti, it is her first year at the Vor-Cal. Ruthless and ambitious in politics, rumor has it that she recently over-stepped her authority with Lady Sidorov of Mecetti. Her holo-photo reveals her to be a fairly young and delicate-looking woman, but a cold, hard look about her face.
  
• Lord Gianni Tassotto of House Calipsa - Representative of House Calipsa, he is apprently quite proud to be attending the hunt. Lord Tassotto has spent an inordinate amount of time and money training for the hunt. He has even hired an animal trainer to domesticate and train a wild vornskr as a hunting hound. Sources say that he is also in the process of negotiating a trade agreement with House Melantha through Lord Apollinari. With a fresh, naive look about him, Lord Tassotto looks the epitome of an insecure, spoiled young noble.
  
• Baron Pter Baggley of House Reena - He has been House Reena's representative at the hunt for the last seven years, but has yet to make a kill. He ostensibly attends the Vor-Cal solely for the feast, the fresh air, and chance to socialize. He is an elderly gentleman with a pleasant smile, and grey, thinning hair.
  
• Sir Taj Junak of House Pelagia - Ever since he gained full status as a Jedi Knight, Sir Junak has represented House Pelagia at the Vor-Cal. He is currently aspiring to gain enough experience to return to the Temple at Coruscant and become a Jedi Instructor. In the meantime, he diveides his time between the duties of his home planet Pelagia, and the warrants of the Jedi Council. Dressed in traditional Jedi robes, he is a handsome fellow, with a unruly mop of close-cropped blonde hair and a short goatee.
  
• Saeed Assadi of House Barnaba - Apparently, there aren't many noble in House Barnaba who enjoy roming around in the undergrowth, getting filthy while hunting a bangerous beast capable of ripping one's limbs off, and this year they're all busy elsewhere. In an attempt to save face, House Barnaba has hired a profession hunter. Little else is known about him. His has short dark hair, a pencil-thin mustache, and wears dark clothing tailored in the military style.
  
• Olge Prokofiev of the Tapani Starship Cooperative - The TSC's representative at the Vor-Cal, Miss Prokofiev is a high-level corporate manager at the shipyard's headquarters on Tallaan. She is known to have aspirations of landing a position on TSC's board of directors some day. Though she hasn't gained the position yet, she does have enough pull to have gotten herself invited to the Vor-Cal this year. An attractive woman in her mid-thirties, she is tall and slim with long brown hair.
  
• Feliks Yoffe of the Trade Federation - A powerful faction in the sector, the Trade Federation sends a representative every year. Yoffe is Trade Federation's Regional Inspector-Auditor for Tapani Sector. Despite the impressive title, however, his duties are simply to travel to around to the local member shipping companies, and ensure that they are paying their dues. He is a middle aged Neimoidian, with all the bulbous glazed eyes and gaunt leathery skin that it implies.
  
• Dr. Byon Ae-Sook of Mrlsst Academy - A surprising addition to the hunt's roster, the Academy doesn't usually send an representative. The Deans of the Academy have the given the excuse of establishing closer relations to the Noble Houses. Though it is suspected that the professor is simply trying to obtain research grants from wealthy nobles. Dr. Ae-Sook is an aging over-weight Cerean with a full, bushy grey beard.

In addition, each attendee can be expected to have a entourage of assistant hunters and courtiers.

A small case contains two devices for uncovering the Trade Federation spy and their sinister plot... A Culcanis Microninstruments Tagger, a small unassuming device about the size and shape of a stylus that fire up to three small tracking darts and recieve their tracking signals, and a Neuro-Saav Telesonic Audio Pickup, a gadget about the size and shape of a small holdout blaster that can detect noises at long ranges and store them on a datacard.

The skyhook station looms outside the viewports as the Redline makes its final approach.


OOC: Back to work, guys. Details on the tracking device and the listening device can be found in the Arms and Equipment Guide.

 

[Rorworr]

Still nursing several bruises and a slightly sprained ankle from Sia's idea of dance practice, Rorworr thanks the skyhook's traffic control for their speedy directions, and sets about helping Kelko dock the ship.

Risking a glance back over his shoulder in a free moment, he whistles appreciatively at the surveillance equipment Arani's holding.

"Your aunt's not one to skip on the gear, that's for sure. I like her already." He grins at the prospect of new toys to play with. The urgent beeping of a proximity alert cuts off any further comment as the Wookie quickly redirects his attention to the nearing skyhook, and the cursing of the pilot of a small maintenance ship the Redline has only just narrowly avoided.

 

[Kelko]

Kelko snipped a mug of caf and gazed out the viewscreen, nonplussed, as he watched the wookiee maneuver the Redline away from a near miss. Carefully setting down his mug in a waiting receptacle, he laced his long fingers together and cracked his knuckles dramatically, before returning to examining the displays. He was sure it was only his impatience at having to wait to do some hunting, but felt as if the trip had taken forever to end. Not that he didn't enjoy the company of his friends. Sometimes. But the endless days of dancing had become tiring.

He still marveled at the smooth controls of their new ship, even though they had been on it for several days now. Their responsiveness made the Mystic Burn look positively sluggish by coparison.

"Man, I am going to hate leaving this seat," he sighs, not for the first time. His large, pitch black eyes flit over the equipment in Arani's possession. "I could've used a tracking device like that one back on Ortho III..."

 

[Vor'en Kurn]

Vor'en's contribution to the ongoing conversation is a single noncommittal grunt. His mask stares outward towards the planet below them, thinking surly thoughts. Dammit Deel, I'm a soldier, not a ballet dancer. He mentally shudders. And if Sia is anywhere near the dance floor, I'd like better armor first. He is cradling his blaster rifle in his lap, flipping the safety meditatively on and off. Not exactly sure what I'm supposed to achieve, anyway. Hunting stuff- yeah, get me in range and I can shoot it. But rooting out a spy? There's only one way I know of extracting information, and somehow I doubt Ariani will let me and Roworr take any of these dandies out to a back ally. He smiles slightly behind the mask at the image. He'd be good cop, I'd be bad cop. Throw in Kelko and you've got fatalistic cop. Throw in Sia and you've got annoying cop.... He shakes his head. His back may have healed, but the painkillers must not have quite worn off yet. He'd break after 5 minutes of her, though, he was sure.

 

[Sen Udo-Mal]

Sen rouses himself out of his meditations and sits up. Looking out at the planet he smiles and takes in the view... reflecting on the power and beauty of life and the Force the binds it and all things together. He looks to Rorworr and ask “When shall we be docking? It will be good to stretch my legs again...”

 

[Pbartender]

The Redline slides easily through the mag-shield that contains the atmosphere the small docking bay. Executing a neat pirouette, Rorworr lowers the landing gear and sets the ship gently down on the deck. With a toot and whistle from the back of the cockpit, Bait begins putting the ship's systems in standby mode.

 

[Pbartender]

The ship settles into its berth, and powers down. A bevy of maintenance droids emerge from a nearby blast door to begin servicing the ship.

 

[Pbartender]

A silvery protocol droid waits patiently near the docking bay exit for you to disembark.

 

[Kelko]

Gathering his duffel pack and slinging it over his shoulders, the Rodian strides off the Redline stretching his legs as he went. Though the artificial gravity on starships was supposed to be the same as standard, Kelko always could feel a difference in the way his joints felt. Of course, the gravity on this station still wasn't fully standard, of course, but it was large enough for him to hardly notice. He walked down the extended ramp and up to the protocol droid, waiting to see how it would respond. As he waited for the others to join him, he surveyed the station with large, sweeping glances.

 

[Sen Udo-Mal]

Sen is also glad to stretch his legs but he would much prefer to be on a living breathing planet then a cold station but he reminds himself about living in the now and not day dreaming about what he would prefer. Sen grabs his minor belongs along with the new Jedi robe that he is to wear to this dance sigh, I certainly hope that I am not required to dance... you would think that Jedi Knights don't have to dance... it just doesn't seem... dignified or something... ah well I am not a knight yet, I will just have to live with it for now.