EPILOGUE: Aftermath

[tomcat]

It was like hearing his child scream, thought Caden. The Aegis' shields could only do so much against the missile attack and even as he and Kaida approached the landing ramp, the Loronar again was knocked sideways and away from the power of the attack. What was worse, the weakened Bantha skiff on which they rode was also knocked asunder by the missile explosion's pressure wave. Kaida saw the control panel blink and then start to go out. The craft was dying. They needed to move fast!

In the cave it was now silent of battle, only the terrible sound of the Aegis being damaged could be heard. Fett brought his weapon up to his shoulder and looked down at Farok who stood over the fallen body of Shade. A moment of thought passed through the young bounty hunter's mind of going for Kaida and getting his money, but it was for only a moment. He was a businessman and no matter how ruthless he would be called, it would never be said that he did not honor his word. Still, he was done with them all and so he began to move towards the ledge of the building to drop down and disappear completely back into the tunnel. He would take the long walk back to his ship and leave these misfits to their own. Fett's job and his word was done.

Farok felt weak of a sudden. The strain of combat over, his body released all of the adrenaline and it almost made the man swoon. He shook his head, gathered his thoughts and then began to run towards the skiff landing pad. In the darkness outside, he saw something large, in the shape of the skiff, plummett from the sky and fear took hold.

On the ledge within the gorge, BIT watched the night sky flash with the missile explosion and then turned towards the Dug deathstick facility. He could not go with these people whom had helped him and he in turn had aided. BIT had a mission of his own to finish.



Feel free to give me some dialogue, narrative, and ideas as to how you want to get Farok on board the ship - as well as save it from anymore missile attacks.

I also need a DC 12 Jump roll from Kaida and Caden to get to the Aegis' landing ramp.

[tomcat]

On the flight deck, Kara held on tight. The Aegis was hammered by the attack, especially with her shields reduced in strength. The flight console began to flash in different areas with amber and red warnings of systems that had taken critical damage. Still she held together.

Sam abandoned his position and the mech droid ran down the ship's length to begin damage control.

[Telcontar]

Farok saw participated in the death of the Dark Jedi. He knew that he was the better warrior and it wasn't by skill alone that the one armed man had triumphed. He respected the fallen form before him, for in his mind the dark and light were but two sides of the same coin in a cosmic struggle for balance. His light saber went out and hung from the thong on his wrist. He reached down to grab the fallen Jedi's lightsaber, the iconic image of his spirit and his being.

"The desert sand blows
Swirling across the timeless waste
Sun banishes shadow"

The one armed man bowed his head to the fallen opponent in another scene of the cosmic opera between the light and the dark side. Farok felt the force growing stronger in him; this duel was an event in his own history pregnant with meaning. Had the order still existed Farok believed that he now crossed the threshold from padawan to Jedi, but had done it on his own terms and not those of the council. None now lived however to confirm his thoughts so his actions instead of labels would have to define the one armed man.

Sensing the surface to air battery firing another salvo at the ship he turned his attention to the Aegis and its precious cargo. Leaving the dead Dark Jedi he moved to the rim to see the skiff loose power and start to fail. He keyed his comlink, "Get on board and get out of here. I'm taking Brim through the tunnel, meet me on the other side away from the batteries."

Reaching out once more he attempted to grab a hold of the skiff with the force. He was exhausted but attempted this one last feat. Perhaps he could by his friends enough time to get aboard and then move the skiff between the ship and the battery to allow it time to escape.

Move Object
DC 20 Large, DC25 Huge

Rolled 1d20+10 : 1 + 10, total 11

FP if required

Rolled 1d6 : 2, total 2

[Telcontar]

  The Force thinks Farok should go back to carousing and drinking and stop wasting its time with his foolishness.

[sdrotar]

I also need a DC 12 Jump roll from Kaida and Caden to get to the Aegis' landing ramp.

Jump (DC12)

Rolled 1d20+4 : 15 + 4, total 19

[sdrotar]

Sensing the surface to air battery firing another salvo at the ship he turned his attention to the Aegis and its precious cargo. Leaving the dead Dark Jedi he moved to the rim to see the skiff loose power and start to fail. He keyed his comlink, "Get on board and get out of here. I'm taking Brim through the tunnel, meet me on the other side away from the batteries."

"Works for me," Caden replied. So Farok had made it and their quarry was no more. Once Kaida was aboard, he allowed a smile to finally cross his face before calling up to the cockpit, "Kara, get us out of here - I'll be up in a minute and show you where we're headed."

[tomcat]

Going to post Kaida's jump roll so I can add more narrative...

Kaida Jumps to the Aegis' ramp
DC 12 Jump +3

Rolled 1d20+3 : 19 + 3, total 22

[tomcat]

Caden and Kaida were shaken and with rocky feet on a swaying deck, they helped each other up the ramp and into the safety of the Aegis. The Bestinian looked around at the cargo hold which was tightly loaded with two speeder bikes, a dismantled E-web blaster cannon, and the false smuggler bay that had been constructed. Red lights flashed and steam filled the chamber from lines that had burst due to the impact. He saw that nothng was too vital, or deadly to them, and so they hurried up the ladder to the main deck.

Kara was watching everything that the command console was telling her, but key was the light that signalled the landing ramp was still down. It started to flash, which told her that her people were on board and one of them just hit the closer. With that knowledge, she brought the engines up to power and the Aegis accelerated rapidly away from the side of the mountain and the Dug facility. She aimed the ship straight up for now, but would loop back down soon to find Farok. She looked to Ardana, "Go! See if they need help!"

----------

BIT watched the Loronar cruiser streak up into the cloudy night. A missile also flared across the night sky, but passed through the now empty air that the ship had once occuppied. It struck the mountainside and erupted in a shower of light and stone. The face of the mountain was none too strong, especially with the large cavern fissure within it, and the explosion caused it to break. An avalanche began to tumble down and slide over the cave entrance, covering it.

Inside the cave, Farok saw the missile, too, and watched it as it smashed the mountain face above him. He heard a great rumbling and raced to where Brim lay. The former Jedi tried to haul the dead Rodian with his one arm, but the dead weight was too much. He was tired. He reached into himself to find strength in the Force, but instead he felt an urgent need to run. He stood, looking at his dead friend as above large chunks of rock began to fall. They crashed down around him.

Farok ran. He gave only one quick glance back as he did, seeing Brim's body crushed under the weight of the avalanche. A cloud of dust and small stones chased him all the way to the small tunnel that had led into the cavern. He activated his lightsaber to give him light, pausing for only another moment to think of his companion and then moved on. As he walked, Boba Fett came into his mind... what had happened to him?

----------

Ardana came to Caden as he clambored up the ladder, Kaida close behind. Her nose crinkled when she saw them - the two were covered in mud, sweat and blood from small wounds. "Come," said the Twi'lek. "You need aid." Years of taking care of her master had taught her well how to handle injuries.

[Telcontar]

Farok made his way into the cave a ways and stopped believing that for the first time in what seemed like forever he was safe. He let the weariness wash over him and breathed deeply. The fatigue, both mental and physical, upon him had been intense. Long years of drinking and smoking on Tatoonie had not been the best conditioner for armed combat against a dark jedi.

Reaching into the folds of his cloak he took out his flask and took a long slow drink. The Aegis would make it out of the cavern or it wouldn't. There was no rush to make it to the other side of the canyon just yet. Whipping his lips on his shoulder he took out one of the cigars he had taken with him from the ship. He had smoked through the couple that he had brought and now found that he only had one remaining and it had been bent in half.

The crushed cigar made the one armed man laugh at his misfortune and bad luck. He laughed loud and long. When his mirth subsided he used the lightsaber to sheer off the cigar where it had broken and smoked what useable portion remained. As the smoke curled up into the darkness the desert man enjoyed the feel of the cold stone upon his back.

His cigar complete he made his way through the tunnel to reunite with his companions and to see what the force had in store for him next, besides his flask was empty. 

[sdrotar]

Ardana came to Caden as he clambored up the ladder, Kaida close behind. Her nose crinkled when she saw them - the two were covered in mud, sweat and blood from small wounds. "Come," said the Twi'lek. "You need aid." Years of taking care of her master had taught her well how to handle injuries.

"I'm alright," he replied. "I'll come back and get these scrapes patched up after we get Farok back on board." He hoped that would reassure her.

He looked to Kaida and then back to Ardana. "Please take care of the general here," he teased, giving her a playful salute as he strode towards the cockpit. He turned as he reached the exit and looked at Kaida once more.
"You did great out there."

As he headed to the cockpit, he thought of Brim, another friend lost to this madness. But at least Brim was "one with the Force" now, or at least he hoped so. He didn't much understand the nature of it, but after what they'd been through, he no longer had any doubt of its existence.

Now they needed to get Farok before he got to join it, too. He doubled his pace.

[GandalfOfBorg]

   Sorry guys, work got the best of me when I tried to be 2 people for 2 weeks and Wed was my bday (still 29 and counting  ).   Congrats on the kill!


BIT relaxed briefly to catch his breath over what just happened.  He sat listening to the chatter on the comlinks and he saw what happened to the mountainside.  Deciding his best bet to finish the job and get off this rock was to continue on with these undisciplined do-gooders.  When he thinks the coast is clear, he lights off his jetpack and heads in the direction where the tunnel Farok entered would emerge.

[Jingo]

"Get on board and get out of here. I'm taking Brim through the tunnel, meet me on the other side away from the batteries."

"Roger that," Kaida responded through the comlink as she rushed up the ramp and onto the ship, extremely please to hear his voice. He was alive! Some of them had made it out, and they had accomplished their mission--along with Fett's help she admitted grudgingly.

"Kara, get us out of here quick!" she was anxious to avoid another direct hit from another missile. But she was thankful Farok and BIT were both alive. They had suffered greatly this battle. First Britton and them Brim.

Once the ramp had raised, and the Aegis had shot up into the relative safety of higher altitude, she wearily pulled off her helmet and out a long sigh of relief.

He looked to Kaida and then back to Ardana. "Please take care of the general here," he teased, giving her a playful salute as he strode towards the cockpit. He turned as he reached the exit and looked at Kaida once more.
"You did great out there."

General? Hardly a general... she had nearly gotten them all killed. But some were still alive. Some. And the Dark Jedi was dead. The galaxy was certainly a better place because of that but was it worth it. Was the cost of defeating evil always so high? A time to weep and a time to rejoice. Both feelings mingled in her slow nod and matching smile that grew on her lips. "You too Caden." Her eyes remained on the doorway where he had been, after she heard his footsteps recede. She saluted after the man and whispered, "You too."

Then she sat and let Ardanna attend to her.

[tomcat]

Kaida took the Aegis into orbit. It would be a good hour or so before Farok would make it to the other side of the mountain and she figured there would be no safer place. Once the orbit was attained and enough momentum had been built up for them to allow physics to take over, she lowered the engines to an idle and then pushed herself back from the console. Caden was now the only one sitting with her on the bridge and she turned to him, "I hope it was worth it all." The Bestinian gave a wan smile. They would only know if their names were cleared... but how did they learn that? Caden wondered if he needed to contact Antturus.

For now, they had other things to challenge them - primarily the damage done to the starship. Kara stood, "I am going to go and find Sam. Maybe the two of us can spend the next hour getting this crate back together." She checked the ship's diagnostic again and made a mental note of priorities. She left the flight deck to Caden and disappeared into the heart of the Aegis. The merchant sat and looked out the canopy at the blue-green world below. It was peaceful to behold. Beautiful. Unfortunately it had claimed two of his crew and a third was still lost down there.

The Aegis would hang in orbit around the planet until word came from Farok via his comlink. They would then re-enter Malastare's atmosphere, get the former Jedi, and then leave it all behind. Caden was ready to do that and once more he hoped that it was not in vain.

----------

The trek around the mountain was almost as difficult as the one through it. BIT had only so much fuel left in his jetpack and so did quick hops from one flat-run of the mountain-side to the next. Inside, Farok dealt with the seemingly endless dark and straight corridor. It had seemed to go faster when they had come the other direction, but that was because he had the others to talk to and pass the time. Now he was alone with his thoughts. His wounds and weariness did not help matters, but he pushed himself along.

There was no sight or sound of Boba Fett, but Farok felt another living being before him in the Force. He figured it was the bounty hunter, but did not regret the loss of his company. Fett had not been the most personable of people.

At long last, BIT saw the river valley below with the huge waterfall. The mists rose white in the starlight and the soldier used it as a waypoint to finish his circumnavigation of the mountain. He saw the cleft where the two bunkers sat and the long rope bridge extended across. There too was the cliff that jutted out over all. It would make a good pick up point. BIT pushed his jetpack one last time and rocketed over to the roof of the building. He landed with a whoosh and then made himself still and quiet. He waited there to listen and watch for any potential threats.

It was twenty minutes later that sounds began to eminate from below - Farok had made the passage. The one-armed man exited the building via the roof hatch and was surprised to see BIT.

[tomcat]

Great posts guys! I really am diggin' this story!

Welcome back, Matt!

I will have Kara drop the ship out of orbit once you guys send her the call. Keep up any inter-character dialogue and narrative that you want. I have to figure out some mechanics on repairing the ship, and then begin to piece together our new episode.

There may be some down time here while I get a new story arc going, but that doesn't mean you guys can't chat in character. Everyone can sit around the breakfast table and laugh it up over the success of the mission... and then... uh... oh... gurg! Farok stands up, grabs his abdomen and begins to thrash on the table. Plates and food clatter to the floor as his stomach bursts open!

...

Wait a minute... that's not our story! 

[GandalfOfBorg]

"Well you made out alive, that's good," BIT said nonchalantly as the crippled Jedi approached.  "There is still a job to do in getting the plant decommisioned.  Are you up for it?"