Out of the Frying Pan... (d20 Star Wars)

[shadowbloodmoon]

DRK-1X:
[sblock]
Dofina looks at you quizzically for a while before deciding on what she wanted to know. It was difficult for her to hide her smile at your praise. "Before we do anything X, I'd like to get out of here. Then we can discuss what to do next. I don't suppose we can go back the way we came?"
[/sblock]

The three of you head outside at the Sullustan's direction. Kellon is nowhere to be seen, presumably having already gone below to whatever errand. Your 'guard' points to a building in the distance. "Kellon will probably decide to have you killed anyhow. To avoid that fate, I suggest you go there. It's a long walk, but you should make it. With all the confusion, no one will be looking specifically for you. You can find transport off this rock there. I sent Kellon on a wild gundark chase, but it won't be long before he figures it out."

With that, the Sullustan slowly melts and stretches into a human woman, the same woman you saw when you first arrived. "Now go."

 

[Bobitron]

Tal stares wide-eyed from behind the armored face of his helmet as the creature morphs from form to form in front of his eyes. He nods in appreciation at the thug's words and turns toward the path they need to take, looking it over to give Felia a tactical report on the ground between them and thier destination.

 

[Ambrus]

Shadow:[sblock]DRK-1X was about to stop recording Tal's comlink transmission when it unexpectedly identifies Four's familiar voice. With its curiosity piqued it continues recording while to Dofina it says: "Report: I have not detected anyone in the hallway outside the door since we entered. However, intercepted comlink transmissions indicate that the occupying Imperial forces are currently conducting a second sweep of the complex in an attempt to locate the Twi'lek. It would seem possible that we may be detected if we were to retrace our steps."

Tracing a quick arc through the air, the diminutive probe droid comes to hover directly above the hatchway in the floor. "I have however found a concealed hatch in the floor which seems to lead to the complex's power and utilities sub-level. Although unexplored, it is possible that we may find a safe and expedient means of egress through it. It is also possible however that the imperial forces have likewise discovered the sub-level and are searching it for the Twi'lek."[/sblock]*Static*

 

[Toric_Arthendain]

Femi breathes a tentative sigh of relief when the Sullustan mentions transport offworld. When he transforms, Femi's eyes widen in amazement and surprise. He nods to the woman and simply says, "Thank you." He then prepares to head in the direction of the building as soon as Felia and Tal are ready to move.

 

[Kemrain]

Felia watches the sullustan transform before their eyes and does her best to keep her reaction hidden. She nods to the woman's words, smiling at her in appreciation of the inside joke. Before she turns to leave she echoes Femi, saying "Thank you," adding her own twist by calling the woman 'friend' in her native tongue, just in case...

She waits milliseconds for a response before turning and walking away with the boys, slowly enough to blend in but quickly enough to cover the ground before Kellon returns after her influence wears off. Paranoia and worry are not far off, though, and under her clothing she takes her holdout blaster into hand once more.

 

[shadowbloodmoon]

DRK-1X:
[sblock]
'Did I ever tell you I hate hatches, X? You're right though, if we go back the other way those troops will find us. I'm curious though. We have the Twi'Lek they want, I don't see what they would want with us. Maybe we should go find them. Or maybe I'm delusional." She pauses for a moment, deciding what to do next. "I'm going to have you go ahead of me down that passage way and I'll follow behind you. You can tell me if you see anything down there before I arrive."

With that, she makes her way over to the hatch, making the Nemoidian equivalent of a spitting gesture at Asajj's body. Kicking the corpse further out of the way and seeming to enjoy it, she peers down the hatch before looking up at you. "It's dark."
[/sblock]

The woman simply smiles at Felia with an 'if you only knew' look. She then turns and goes back into the office as the three of you head back across into the other room and down the stairs into a now deserted cantina. As you leave, you take notice of how eerily silent the streets are, a strong opposite to what you witnessed when you first arrived. One of the Imperial shuttles is still parked atop Torrba's place next door and you can see some troopers guarding the entrance. Deciding it best not to stick around to find out what they are up to, you quickly make your way to the path Four had pointed you to.

She was right, it was definately a long walk. On it, you've found out that you were much higher above the actual surface than you first realized. One part of your journey took you to an enclosed walkway that allowed you to see at least a mile of city below you. Once you crossed, civilization started to appear again, with various humanoids going about their business as if nothing was going on that could affect their world. No one pays you any attention as you come out onto the main street. It is packed with people haggling, arguing or both. Holographic advertisements assault the senses along with a smell that is in a word, unidentifiable. Your relief comes when you find you are now much closer to the place Four directed you to.

From the looks of the building, it appears to be an old starport terminal that has been turned into a gambling den. Either that or the barely dressed Twi'lek females actually enjoyed the company of drunken rich alien men throwing money on tables. The patrons don't seem to notice or care as you walk in, but a small alien barely half the size of Femi makes its way towards you. Those of you familiar with the race know it as a Toydarian. A very scruffy looking one at that. "Wat I can do fer ya? Git ya sumthin? Maybe play ata table or tree? You also notice that along with him come two of the aforementioned 'girls', one of whom has taken a liking to Tal's blaster rifle.

 

[Ambrus]

Shadow:[sblock]OOC: This is somewhat of a tricky situation. Since you mentioned previously that 1X couldn't see the bottom of the shaft then it must be over 30 meters deep (the limit of its infravision). Since its repulsorlift engine has a flight ceiling of 10 meters it means that 1X can't float down the hole normally. I don't know whether it's possible for a free-falling object to slow and stop its fall once it's within 10 meters of the ground without crashing. It's your call. Assuming it's possible 1X will do that. Otherwise it'll either have to try slowly climbing its way down the rungs with its tiny arms or, if it can't reach the rungs, have Dofina carry it. I'll assume the former and change my post if you decide otherwise.

DRK-1X silently stops recording the refugees once they leave Four's presence. It immediately begins editing its recording to save space in its holo-memory; cutting irrelevant parts and empty pauses out of their conversation with Kellon. Meanwhile, it continues scanning various civilian and military comlink channels in an attempt to learn what the imperial agents are doing and perhaps what has become of Torrba the Hutt.

In response to its Mistress' musings DRK-1X offers its own opinion; "Dissuading statement: Although currently focused on recovering the Twi'lek you surely remember Mistress that these imperial forces were recently at war against the Separatists. Although Emperor Palpatine has declared victory for the Empire and an end to the war it stands to reason that they may attempt to arrest you on suspicion of being an enemy of the state. If they managed to positively identify you as a member of the Trade Federation, a founding member of the Separatist movement, you may face criminal prosecution as a war criminal."

As Dofina resigns herself to climbing down the shaft DRK-1X deploys its two tiny arms from within its chassis with a soft whir and click. Sinking down to the floor, the diminutive probe droid keys the hatch release switch and moves aside to gather up the small bundle it had prepared earlier. In response to its Mistress' instruction the small spherical droid responds; "Affirmative Statement: Order understood. Once I have determined that it is safe for you to descend I will signal you by flashing my holo-projector lens up at you twice." To Dofina's final observation it simply responds; "Yes Mistress."

Without further prompting the small Dark Eye droid floats up to the edge of the hatch and rotates forward 90º to focus its primary sensor array down the shaft, to measure its width and depth before leveling out again. It then floats off the edge and free-falls down into the darkness below. Without any ground beneath it, its repulsorlift engine becomes useless as DRK-1X hurtles down the shaft out of control. Nearing the bottom however, the diminutive probe droid sends a surge of power through its engine to arrest its decent, regains control and slows to a stop a few meters above the floor. It then executes a slow 360º horizontal spin to scan the dark room around it with its state-of-the-art infrared and auditory sensors (Listen +9, Spot +14 / 30 meter infrared vision, taking 20). Assuming it detects no one and no danger to its Mistress, DRK-1X rotates 90º vertically, focuses its external holoprojector pod up the shaft and sends two bursts of blue photons up to Dofina.[/sblock]*Static*

OOC: For reference, here's a Toydarian

 

[Kemrain]

Felia smiles at the small alien before her, dispite any misgivings about its appearance. "Actually," she begins, "A friend told us about this place. We're looking for somewhere where we can relax a bit and maybe plan a trip. We were told this was the place to come."

 

[shadowbloodmoon]

As mentioned in the OOC thread, I'm going to attempt to resurrect this thread so that we can continue with our story. To sum up, Soldier Tal and Jedi Ka-Femi-Odo have come to Tatooine to deliver the small Rodian child Greedo to the notorious crimelord Jabba the Hutt. They met with the Twi'Lek Bib Fortuna who then proceeded to take the child away and then wanted to discuss the cargo they were carrying...

"So, what is it you have brought us, besides this child?" The translator continues to speak for the Twi'Lek. "My people tell me you have brought food, though this planet has plenty of its own. Tell me, why is this so?"

 

[Bobitron]

Tal speaks up, his voice edged with impatience and frustration. "Look, pal. We are here to drop off the kid. It's done. We caught a ride on that heap for the transportation, not as cargo handlers. You have questions about the cargo, ask the captain."