[SAGA] Star Wars - Resurgence of Darkness

[Beretta]

A series of massive explosions jolt the group from their activities.

Immediately, alarm klaxons begin to blare throughout the base and Commander Drayson’s voice crackles over the intercom speakers:

“Attention all personnel, this is a condition red alert. We are under attack from Imperial forces. Evacuate the base immediately and proceed to the rendezvous points. I repeat, this is a condition red emergency. All personnel are to evacuate the base…”

The intercom is cut off with a burst of static as another explosion rocks the facility. The corridor outside their rooms is rapidly filling with New Republic personnel running in all directions. The ground shakes with every explosion, sending cascades of duracrete dust down from the ceiling. The illumination panels flicker erratically. There is no telling how long it will take the Imperials to reduce Canfre Base to nothing more than a smoking crater in the ground…

Aboard the Bellerophon, Khail is thrown into a bulkhead as the ship lurches sideways. Sparks cascade overhead as pipes and cables are knocked loose from their moorings.

Shaking his head, the smuggler groggily gets to his feet and staggers to the ships cockpit where every display panel is lit with blazing red alerts. Beyond the viewport is a scene of chaos. Slabs of rock have been knocked loose from the hangar roof overhead, and several ships lay crushed beneath the debris - his own included, according to the damage readouts. As he watches, another turbolaser barrage thunders into the base, and more massive boulders cascade from the ceiling.

“Dammit, my ship!” he screams in frustration. “Argh! Come on, L7, we’ve got to get moving before we’re crushed in here.”

He races down the access ramp and heads for the base interior, hoping that it is better protected from the orbital bombardment than the hangar. The astromech droid zips along at his heels, bleeping in alarm as a several fleeing technicians in front of them are buried beneath an avalanche of falling rocks.
Khail keys his comlink and is greeted with a hiss of static - the Imperials must be jamming communications. Things are going from bad to worse…

Cyan, Fenri and Thalo make their way up the corridors, struggling against a stream of base personnel fleeing the other way. Intermittent explosions echo throughout as the bombardment continues.

Suddenly, the walls and floor nearby crack and buckle under the force of a nearby turbolaser hit. The ground lurches beneath their feet as chunks of duracrete rain down around them. Thalo stumbles and falls to the floor. The soldier grabs an arm and hauls the Jedi to his feet. “Come on!” he snarls as they continue down the corridor.

Chaos and fear rules the Command Center, where base officers are still at their posts. Some are trying to reach others on intercom channels, some are repairing damaged computer consoles, and others are attempting to put out small fires.

They pass one communications officer calling into an intercom: “Shield control bunker, please respond! Lieutenant Kai, report your status!” The officer turns to Commander Drayson. “Sir! We’ve lost Lieutenant Kai in the shield control bunker.”

Commander Drayson looks grave. “The Star Destroyer hit the Ion Cannon too. We don’t have much of a chance against a concentrated attack like this. Send the evacuation code signal again. Get everyone out of the base immediately!”

“Where’s the data?” Fenri yells. “Did you complete the transfer?”

The commander shakes his head. “No, but what we’ve got is over there.” He gestures towards a small stack of holodisks. Fenri scoops them up as Khail runs into the command center.

“The hangar bay collapsed,” he gasps. “There’s no getting out of here that way.”

The ground shakes again as the base takes another direct hit. Control panels spark, sensor screens explode, and the lights flicker out. The red emergency backup lights switch on as Drayson begins shouting for everyone to get out before the main generator blows.

Khail grabs the commander. “Which way?”

“Follow the damned signs!” he snarls, shaking the smuggler off.

The group runs for it. As they make their way through the base, it becomes clear that the Star Destroyer’s orbital bombardment has already taken a severe toll, with many rooms and corridors having collapsed.

Unlike before, they no longer see any base personnel fleeing – some of them must have escaped, but many have clearly been trapped and killed in sections of the base by the Imperial orbital bombardment. They run faster, hoping to avoid becoming another casualty of the Empire.

Rounding a bend in the corridor, they find a pile of rubble and debris blocking their way. A turbolaser blast appears to have caved in the ceiling.
However, near the top of the cave-in they detect a glimmer of light - the passageway must be close to the surface. If they can just clear enough debris away, they could squeeze through and out to freedom.

Fenri and Khail climb to the top of the rock pile and begin shifting away the rubble. In short order they have cleared enough space to crawl through.
The group quickly climb up from the collapsed corridor and emerge onto the edge of an immense crater.

Surveying their surroundings, they see that the base is all but destroyed; turbolaser blast craters are now the dominant feature of the landscape. Strewn amongst the twisted wreckage of patrol landspeeders and speeder bikes are the charred and smoking corpses of several would-be escapees. The dense forest nearby appears to be beyond the area of the bombardment zone, and seems to be a much safer area to be standing in than their present location.

They dash off to the treeline of the dense forest, wary of the white sliver of the Star Destoyer above them in high orbit. Several points on it flash argent green; turbolaser bolts which rain down on the wreckage of the base, blasting the ruins with every hit.

“Halt right there!” a voice shouts from off to one side of them. Glancing over in that direction, they see four white-armoured Imperial scout troopers picking their way through the dense undergrowth.

“Stop those Rebels!” the officer shouts. The troopers level their blaster rifles and opened fire.

Khail dives to the ground as Fenri takes cover. Igniting his lightsaber, Thalo advances quickly on the scout troopers whilst Cyan makes a more cautious approach.

Wary of the oncoming Jedi, the scout troopers focus their fire on the imminent threat. Thalo desperately dodges and deflects the incoming blaster fire but is badly scorched by several near-misses. A shot from Fenri takes down one of the troopers, and then Thalo is among the remaining three, lightsaber swinging.

The troopers back away from the blazing emerald blade and unleash a torrent of fire at the Jedi, who is hard pressed to deflect their attacks. His robes smoulder in places where the troopers’ blasters have almost found their mark. With Cyan’s arrival into the melee, the scout troopers begin to split their fire – a costly mistake. Another falls to a well-aimed blaster shot from the soldier, and the two Jedi dispatch their remaining opponents.

Thalo slumped to the ground exhausted, while Fenri attends to his burns with a medpack. Khail wrenches the helmet from one of the slain scout troopers and examines the integrated comlink. “Hmm,” he muses. “This could come in handy...”

Defeated!

The group gazes through the fading mist of their own breath into the Canfreyan night. It is cold; cold and eerily silent within the deep forest. The pristine atmosphere of Ord Canfre – unmolested by industrial pollution – allows the stars shine in perfectly clarity.

It has been four days since the Imperial siege of Canfre Base. Once the main generator collapsed under a power overload, the Empire easily decimated the fragile outpost from high orbit. The base’s ion cannon barely managed a single shot before being silenced by the Star Destroyer’s turbolasers. Meanwhile, the New Republic fighters were the first to fall from the sky – if they weren’t first buried in the collapse of the hangar bay. Any shuttles or transports that managed to lift off either crashed into unyielding rock or else were shot down. It was a desperate hour for the New Republic’s efforts in the Outer Rim.

The companions managed to escape from the doomed base and flee into the surrounding wilderness in a retreat that was chaotic at best. They have no idea if any of the evacuation teams have survived. For the past few days they have put as much distance between them as they can from the destroyed base, knowing that the Empire would establish a tight net of guard posts, speeder patrols, and fighter reconnaissance flyovers in an attempt to catch escaping New Republic forces. So far, they still have their freedom; however, without starships, speeder bikes, or major weapons, their freedom is about the only advantage they have.

The sky slowly changes hues, lightening from a midnight black to a deep blue. The dawn is coming – and with it another day of survival on a lonely world.

They recall Commander Drayson mentioning rendezvous points scattered around the planet. Perhaps other escaped personnel are hiding out at them. They only saw the orbital map of Ord Canfre a few times, and it is impossible to recall any intricate details. However, they do remember that the planet is divided into two main continents, separated by a large expanse of ocean. Canfre Base is on the northern continent, which is roughly oval in shape.

There are two major colony efforts on this continent. One – Fortuna City – is on the far eastern shore. The other is in the southwest corner of the planet. The other land mass is wrapped around the first continent, along its southern and eastern edges.

Canfre Base is nuzzled in the northern rolling hills, making the colony on the eastern shore closer by at least 1,000 kilometers.

The faintest crest of the sun rises over the eastern mountain range, and the chirping of a hundred Canfreyan birds begins to replace the nocturnal silence.
The group decide to continue their trek east when they become aware of gleaming eyes staring at them from out of the undergrowth. The creatures’ white and black stripes blend into the morning twilight.

With a roar the monstrous snowcats pounce, rending with tooth and claw. The small clearing is then ablaze with the glow of lightsabers and the flashes of blaster fire.

Fenri pumps several shots into one cat and it falls, but not before it has rent his armour and left deep gouges in his flesh. Khail backpedals away from another, firing wildly as it bounds after him. Thalo manages one swing of his lightsaber before he disappears beneath the bulk of a third snowcat, its claws and teeth ripping and tearing at him. The Jedi’s green-bladed lightsaber snaps off as the hilt rolls away from his limp hand.

Fenri whirls and fires on the snowcat that mauled Thalo, while Cyan slashes her blade through another hungry carnivore. As it collapses to the ground with a smoking gouge carved into its flank, she leaps over its body and raced after Khail, who is barely managing to fend off his attacker. Unfortunately, the only testament to his blaster pistol’s lethality are the scorched tree trunks and smouldering bushes he has left in the wake of his hasty withdrawal.

Fenri fires another blast into the snowcat, the force of the shot sending it rolling back to lie in a smoking heap. Cyan slashes her blade down on the last creature chasing Khail, cutting through its spine and nearly severing the beast in two.

They return to the clearing in time to see Thalo regaining consciousness, thanks to Fenri’s skilled application of a medpac. While certainly looking the worse for wear, at least the young Jedi is alive.

“Can you walk?” Fenri asks him.

Thalo nods. “Yeah, I just need to get my breath back. Thanks for patching me up.”

“Not a problem. Grab your lightsaber and let’s get moving – we’ve got a long walk ahead of us.”

 

[Beretta]

A Base in the Wilderness

Fenri holds up his arm with fist clenched, and the group crouches down as they hear the familiar sound of a repulsorlift engine. From the sound of the device, it appears to be from some form of transport.

The engine noise dims, as though it has stopped moving and is holding position. Then they faintly hear several booted feet moving up and down on a metal ramp, along with the sounds of equipment being offloaded. They try to get a glimpse of the source, but the lush green underbrush prevents any kind of view. Whoever they are, they’re not far off.

Fenri slinks quietly off into the undergrowth. After a few meters, he peers around a tree and into a small natural clearing in the forest, where some unusual activity is taking place.

Four scout troopers are standing by a repulsorlift carrier, unloading field equipment. It appears as though they have already established a forward operating base. He sees two drab tents, which he estimates could hold anywhere between two and six men. Nearby, the troopers have set up a mobile communications array. Behind the array are three speeder bikes, which are being guarded by scout troopers.

One trooper backs an Imperial patrol landspeeder (complete with hood-mounted repeating blaster) out of the repulsorlift carrier. After he’s finished, the speeder truck powers up its engines and disappears into the forest. It looks like they have just finished with their delivery. In the corner of the camp, Fenri watches the three troopers, adorned in standard Imperial scout armour, mount their speeder bikes and race off into the forest.

With the speeder bikes and transport gone, the soldier can count four Imperials: two scout troopers by the landspeeder, one by the comm array, and an officer standing near the southern tent. However, there could be more inside the tents.

It would take weeks to cross the continent on foot, but with that landspeeder, they could do it in days…

Fenri continues to watch the camp for further activity. Besides, he wants those speeder bikes long gone before he even begins to entertain the idea of an ambush. The further away those speeder bikes are, the longer it will take for them to return as reinforcements.

His patience is rewarded when one scout trooper walks out of the larger of two tents. Another Imperial officer emerges from the smaller tent to talks briefly with the first officer before returning inside.

Fenri keys his comlink. “It’s an Imperial outpost, no doubt part of the security cordon that they’re setting up around the New Republic base,” he whispers. “We’ve got four scout troopers and two officers. Khail, get up here with me. Cyan and Thalo, wait for the signal.”

“What signal?” Cyan whispers back as Khail disappears in the direction that Fenri had gone.

The soldier unclips a frag grenade from his utility belt - courtesy of the first scout troopers they encountered - and smiles unpleasantly. “You’ll know,” he replies, handing the grenade to the smuggler who is now crouched down beside him. He unclips a last grenade, points to it, and then at the scout troopers clustered around the comm. array. Khail nods and pointed at the officer standing by the smaller tent. Fenri counts down from three, and then they lob the grenades at their respective targets.

Fenri’s grenade clangs loudly off the comm. station, causing the scout troopers to whirl around. They flinch as they see the grenade roll to a stop at their feet, where it makes a fizzing noise and sputters once.

Khail’s grenade bounces into the tent, which balloons out in shredded tatters of fabric from the force of the blast. The smuggler watches the first officer stagger to his feet, blood trickling from the lacerations that scored his body, and draws his blaster.

Fenri switches his blaster rifle (again, procured from the fallen scout troopers) to full auto and rears up. A hail of blaster fire rips across the clearing, punching smouldering holes through the larger tent and the comm. array. Sparks fly everywhere as fried electronics sizzle and pop loudly, and two scout troopers stagger back as several bolts from the angry fusillade slam into them. Fortunately for them, however, their armour absorbs the brunt of the damage and they rush to take cover.

The remaining troopers have spread out, and the other injured officer crawls out of the remains of the tent with blaster in hand. Cyan and Thalo arrive on the scene, and, after a moment’s pause to assess the situation, charge the officers. Khail maneuvers back into the undergrowth and makes his way around the edge of the clearing, towards the backs of the scout troopers who are firing wildly at their attackers. Blaster bolts sizzle back and forth across the clearing in a furious exchange of fire.

A trooper and an officer are down when Khail emerges from the forest behind the scout troopers. He raises his blaster and shoots one of them in the back, but again the trooper’s armour saves his life. He whirls around as Khail ducks back behind a tree trunk. The scent of burning wood fills the air as the trooper’s return fire hammers into his cover.

Taking advantage of the situation, Fenri sends another scout trooper flying backward to land in a lifeless heap, a blackened hole burnt high in the chestplate. Cyan hits the ground and rolls, coming up beside the last Imperial officer who is desperately trying to track her with his pistol. Her azure blade lashes out, and he collapses to the ground with a scream of agony. Thalo charges across the clearing towards the remaining two scout troopers, and with a slash of his lightsaber cuts one trooper down. The last scout starts to back away, blaster trained on the Jedi. Thalo deflects the incoming bolts with ease, and a final shot from Fenri’s rifle ends the threat permanently.

The soldier moves up and prods the corpse with his boot. “They’ve probably called for reinforcements on their comlinks,” he advises. “Grab what you can from their tents, and let’s get going. We can use that landspeeder there.”

There is very little to salvage, apart from an Imperial uniform, a datapad, and a footlocker with a half-dozen frag grenades. They grab the supplies from the scout trooper’s utility belts and start up the landspeeder.

 

[Beretta]

GM’s Commentary

I wasn’t too thrilled at having to railroad the plot a bit by wrecking the Bellerophon. Khail is in hoc 25,000 credits to a Twi’lek crime lord and his player had put a fair bit of work into detailing the ship, which he perhaps feels he wasted. Unfortunately he didn’t take advantage of the accommodations on base and that forced my hand. I think his feelings might be mollified a little in the near future (I hope!).

Healing, as we discovered in the first session, is still turning out to be a major hassle though. At low levels characters have a lot of hit points (close to 50 for the Jedi and soldier) but their healing is based off their level (3rd). So a medpack has been healing about 7 points of damage, and they heal 3 with a night’s rest. The Jedi are a little better off as they can use Force Trance. Luckily the encounters are a little spaced out, but I feared the worst when they continued on after the snowcat attack and into the Imperial outpost (which is a harder battle). Things really looked bad when Fenri’s player rolled a ‘1’ on his grenade attack. The scout troopers are nothing like the ones in the movies and have been scoring hits often, even with all the uses of cover, deflect, and negate energy.

I also tried using the soundtrack this session. It worked nicely when I played “Imperial Attack” from SW IV: ANH during the cut scene aboard the Havoc’s bridge, but elsewhere I find it distracting even though the volume is such that it isn’t very audible. I’ll have another go at it next session; the players said it was good and perhaps it’s just something I need to get used to.

Lastly, again I didn’t use the battlemap and I think that contributed to me getting a bit overwhelmed during some of the combats. There are far more NPC’s to deal with this time and between trying to keep track of them, describe their actions, and remember where the PCs are, it got a bit much.

Anyway, I didn’t feel as good at the end of this session as I did with the first, so we’ll see if things improve next time. During the course of the game session, each character gained enough xp to reach 3rd level.

 

[Beretta]

Forest Chase


The dull blue landspeeder has been redesigned for planetary patrol. It is well-armoured, and three repulsorlift engines are tucked within the protective chassis. A heavy repeating blaster rests upon a mount on the forward hood, and there are rudimentary targeting controls in the front passenger seat. The entire vehicle is in good condition, including the prominent Imperial insignia on both sides of the vehicle.

Fenri grabs a few of the grenades and moves purposefully around the camp. “There’ll be a few more surprises in store for that speederbike patrol when they get back…”

With the booby traps in place, the group climbs aboard the landspeeder and head off east into the forest. Khail has jumped behind the piloting controls of the vehicle, while Fenri is in the passenger seat with the targeting controls for the heavy repeating blaster. L7 is squeezed in between the two Jedi in the back seat.

The lush Canfreyan trees blur past the landspeeder at a comfortable pace. Thalo happens to glance behind them as Khail also flicks a glance at the side-view mirror, and both are surprised to see two white dots following them through the forest. Looking closer, they realise that they are being pursued by Imperial scout troopers riding speeder bikes, and they are closing in fast!

“We’ve got company!” Thalo yells, moments before red laser cannon blasts started flying around them. Khail desperately swerves the landspeeder in an attempt to evade the incoming fire, but to no avail. It shudders from the impact of several hits, the damage causing smoke and sparks to trail from the rear of the repulsorcraft.

“We can’t outrun them in this thing!” Khail shouts as he wrenches the vehicle around 180 degrees. Fenri drops the targeting reticule onto one of the speederbikes and squeezes the trigger. A stream of blaster bolts erupts from the heavy repeater’s muzzle, but the scout trooper rider jinks his bike sideways and out of their deadly path.

Cyan allows her consciousness to briefly merge with the Force, focusing its energy on the other scout trooper rider. A wave of concussive power hammers into his mind, and the now-unconscious trooper slumps forward onto the speederbike’s controls. The vehicle spears into the ground and explodes in a blaze of fire and metal, sending the rider’s limp body flying through the air to disappear in the undergrowth.

Thalo reaches out with the power of the Force and wrenches a fallen tree trunk free from the forest floor, and with a gesture sends it hurtling toward the remaining speederbike. The log glanced off the vehicle, knocking it sideways and leaving a large dent in its hull. Righting the vehicle, the trooper fires the laser cannons again but this time Khail anticipates correctly and the shots go wide. Fenri returns fire but again the scout trooper uses the speederbike’s excellent maneuverability to evade the lethal salvo. Blaster fire continues to flash harmlessly passed the trooper as the soldier doggedly attempts to track his swiftly-moving target.

Again Cyan concentrates the Force on the remaining scout trooper’s mind, but slightly drained by the prior attack this one lacks the same punch. Nonetheless the trooper reels, his vision blurring and his reflexes dulled by the mental assault.

The landspeeder’s repulsorlift engines whine as Khail jams the throttle forward and swings it into line with the speederbike. Both Jedi ignite their lightsabers as the two vehicles race towards each other, blaster and laser cannon fire hissing through the air between them. At the last moment the scout trooper jerks the handlebars of his speederbike, and there is a screech of durasteel on durasteel as the vehicles scrape past each other. As they pass, there is a flash of emerald light and the upper body of the scout trooper falls to the ground below. His lower body and the bike continue directly into the trunk of a tree and explode in a brilliant fireball.

Khail brings the landspeeder to a halt as the battle adrenalin fades away. “I think we should call it a day and try to get everything and everyone patched up,” he advises.

Everyone agrees and in short order they locate a suitable campsite. Thalo uses the Force to treat several injuries, while Fenri patches up the remainder with medpacs. L7 twitters to itself as it sets about repairing the damage to the landspeeder (in addition to scorching the Imperial insignias off the hull).

By morning, the landspeeder is repaired sufficiently and the group is feeling well rested after their recent exertions. Once again they hop aboard the landspeeder and continue their journey east.

 

[Beretta]

Salvation on Silver-Tipped Wings



In the late afternoon, they emerge from the forest onto the northern outskirts of a small town which, according to an old sign, is called Southview.

Southview is located on the top of a small cliff which drops off sharply towards the south end of town. The main and only significant street is a dusty, L-shaped open area that turns to the east. The buildings are worn with age, and some of them are further scarred by blaster marks. Most of their decorations – such as shutters, fences, gutters, and guard rails – have recently fallen off. Some buildings appear to be occupied, including a very large two-story hall on the southern edge of the town, and three smaller homes across the east-west portion of the street.

The companions see one or two humans within the village confines. They move swiftly from one building to another, and disappear. Just beyond the town, in the fading twilight, is another testimony of this planet’s recent history: a large and very fresh crater indents the surface of the earth. The rim of the crater is speckled with the debris of at least three separate structures.

“That looks like a turbolaser blast to me,” muses Fenri as they slowly drive down the street, before coming to a stop before the building.

It is largest structure in town. The entire eastern side of the it is charred black, no doubt from the orbital turbolaser volley that exploded nearby.

Leaving the landspeeder, they knock on the front door but to no reply.

“Hey,” calls Khail, catching up to a bedraggled citizen. He has the look of a farmer, albeit one that has recently fallen on hard times. “We’re looking for a place to get supplies.”

The villager mumbles something incomprehensible and shuffles on his way towards a building with a sign saying “The KO Bar”.

“Ok then...” the smuggler mutters, before turning to the rest of the group. “Thalo and I will go check the place out, if you two don’t mind looking after the landspeeder?”

Fenri and Cyan shrug indifferently as the smuggler and Jedi headed into the bar.



The KO Bar is the type of cantina typical of a rimward colony world. Most of the distillery equipment is ancient. Some tables are scattered about, with a primitive open flame burning in a vial on the top of each. The bar is roughly half full with various farmhands bent over their drinks. The room smells heavily of smoke and spilled beer, with slurred conversation providing the only background noise.

The conversation ceases and all heads turn to stare at the newcomers as they enter the cantina. They make their way over to the counter, and the barkeep looks up sullenly. “What’ll be?”

“We’re looking for some rooms and a meal,” says Khail.

The barkeep snorts in amusement. “Waddaya think this is, a hotel? We’ve got beer, beer, and more beer.”

Any reply Khail was preparing to make is interrupted by the sounds of chair-legs scraping against the floor behind them. They both turn to see a half-dozen drunken farmhands stand up from their table, each with fists clenched and a belligerent look in their eyes.

Khail reaches down to his comlink surreptitiously and thumbs the transceiver three times. Outside, Fenri looks at his own comlink and the coded signal, then to Cyan. “Looks like they’ve got trouble,” he growls, grabbing his blaster rifle from the landspeeder. “Let’s go.”

Within the cantina, the farmhands are unsteadily weaving their way through the tables and chairs in the direction of the bar. One of them points an accusing finger at the pair of newcomers standing there. “Well, well,” he drawls. “First them Imperials, now youse guys. I figgers that youse are all connected. S’time somebody tol’ you not to stick your noses where they’s not wanted.” His five friends nod and smile nastily.

Thalo draws on the Force and makes a slight gesture with his hand, saying, “You don’t want to fight us.”

The drunk stops dead in his tracks. “Aww, I musta mistook you fella’s for someone else,” he slurs. “I dun wanna fight - I love youse guys!”

His friends turn to stare at him incredulously. “Mate, what the hell is wrong with you?” snarls one. He looks back at Khail and Thalo. “Come on lads, let’s smash these clowns!”

He and the remaining four farmhands charge forward, only to be brought up short as a blazing green blade hisses into life before them.

“I meant it when I said that you don’t want to fight us,” the Jedi warns. “Take your friend and go cause trouble somewhere else.”

The new lead farmhand sneers. “I guess you feel pretty tough hiding behind that laser sword of yours, Jedi. Well, you and the rest of your kind can go and stick it where the sun don’t shine. Neither you or those damn Imperials are welcome here.” He turns to his friends. “Come on boys, these clowns’ll get what’s coming to them, sooner or later.” With that, they grab their now-bewildered friend and march out of the bar, shouldering past Cyan and Fenri who are just making their way in.

A woman from the corner of the room begins to applaud softly. She is dressed in a jumpsuit often worn by scouts performing land-based reconnaissance. Her long hair is tied back in a pony tail, which highlights her sharp, angular features.

“I thought I could pick out good work when I saw it,” she smiles, getting up from her chair and approaching the group. “Don’t worry about those bums. They haven’t taken the Imperial occupation very well. Of course, many of us haven’t either, but we’re behaving a little differently.” She offers a gloved hand to Thalo. “My name’s Dantaree.”

“Thalo,” the Jedi smiles back. “These are my friends Cyan, Fenri, and Khail.”

“Pleasure to meet you all,” Dantaree replies. “Your arrival here is quite fortuitous – I sure can use the help of people with your obvious skills.”

“With what?” Fenri asks bluntly.

Danteree casts a meaningful look about the cantina. “I’d rather not discuss it here,” she says in a lower tone of voice. “Look, I couldn’t help but overhear you ask the barman for rooms and food. Why don’t you come back to my place – I would be happy to put you up for the night if you’ll hear me out.”

Fenri shrugs. “Sure, lead the way.”



Dantaree leads the group out of the KO-Bar and into one of the deserted, two-story buildings. The doors close behind them, and six farmhands emerge from the shadows of the room.

“This is the help you bring us, Dantaree?” hisses one of the armed men. He looks the group up and down. “They couldn’t fight their way out of a bedroll.”

Dantaree shoots an icy glare back at her inquisitor. “They’ve had a rough couple of days. And right now, Jarin, you need all the help you can get.”

Jarin’s associates nod their heads in agreement.

Khail scowls at Jarin. “Damn, did that turbolaser blast take out all the friendly people in this town?” The freedom fighter clenches his fists in anger, but Dantaree steps between them.

“Whoever has been abducting the farmers has so far managed to do so without leaving any witnesses,” she says. ”That means that they are either invisible, or are very well armed. Either way, we need extra eyes and trigger-fingers. Besides,” she smiles, looking at Thalo, “I like their style.”

Khail starts in surprise. “Abductions? I think you’d better tell us exactly what’s going on here.”

Dantaree sighs. “A good percentage of the farming settlement’s members have disappeared, and it’s making me and a few friends very concerned.” She moves to a holodisc player and switches it on, displaying a map of the local area. “The majority of the village’s population is organized into roughly 10 farming ‘circles’. Each member farmhouse rests on the outside of the circle, and all land and crops the circle shares are in between the 10 farmsteads. Two full circle’s worth of farmers and their families have disappeared. Our plan is to stake out the outward farming circles, and attempt to witness the disappearances first-hand. We’ll act if we have to, but I would prefer to gather as much intelligence as possible first.

“We don’t have many resources, and those that we do,” Dantaree pauses for a moment, “are not easily mobilised. Can you help us?”

The group looks at each other, and Cyan nods at the young woman. “Of course.”

“Great, thank you!” Dantaree exclaims gratefully before turning to the farmers-turned-resistance-fighters. “Jarin, get the speeders. We’ll meet you out front.”