Ask Funds and Bodies

[Terra Lanris]

Terra was still relatively new to Crimson Dawn, but she was trying to keep that information more on the quiet side. Since coming to the syndicate, she had thrown herself fully into the business. Recruitment and money making were the biggest parts of the job at this point, and that wasn't a "quick" process.

She was here to meet a blue-skinned bounty hunter. Pantoran? Maybe? Terra didn't know, but she did know that the other woman had a reputation as being good at her job. It was one of the reasons that Terra had hired her and asked to meet at a club on the edge of Imperial space.

She glanced down once more at the information on her datapad that detailed their target. One part piracy, one part bounty hunting. It was just the kind of job that was perfect for the two of them and Terra's crew.

Item: Czerka Corporation Cargo Ship
Reward: 75,000 credits
Contractor: Anonymous

• Target is a corporate freighter delivering Czerka products to Sith space
• Target last departed Corporate Sector
• Target is heading into Sith territory via the Shaltin Tunnels

She sat in a booth at one corner of the room, downing another drink as she waited for her contact to arrive so they could get down to hunting their target. Just another day at the office raising funds and trying not to get killed. So much for legitimate business, Terra.

 

[Davani Gaizott]

.

Davani had recently been contacted by another person of the criminal underworld. She had found relative success in the Syndicates and this would hopefully be no different. This was a group she hadn't worked for yet, however, known as Crimson Dawn. The person she was to meet was named Terra supposedly and they'd be doing some piracy in claiming a Czerka Cargo Ship for the Crimson Dawn.

She arrived at the bar, her duraplast helmet covering her face at this point, yet her Chiss accent would be noticeable the moment she'd speak. Eventually, she'd find Terra, seeing if she should order a drink herself. "Piracy? Good choice.." she whispered, making sure nobody else in the bar would hear that they'd be actively pursuing this bounty. She hoped she'd have the gear necessary for this kind of job, given it wasn't necessary people-hunting.

@Phoenix

 

[Terra Lanris]

Terra's eyes flicked up to someone fully armored, and that probably meant they were none other than the bounty hunter she was waiting for.

Ah, you must be Davani, she said. She looked ready to go, and Terra certainly was.

You ready? Crew and ship's on standby, she said, throwing back the remainder of her drink in a smooth go before putting the glass back down and pushing herself to a stand. Her tail flicked slightly in anticipation, ready for this to get underway and score another win for her growing business.

Unless Devani objected, she'd make her way to the ship, walking quickly and knowing it was parked nearby.

She made her way inside and Davani would be able to see that there were others on the job as well. Members of the Eclipse mercenary group that Terra and Astria had recruited sat ready, and Terra headed for the cockpit, motioning to one of the passenger seats.

Hitting a Czerka shipment. Ever done any piracy before? she asked, glancing back at the woman.

10K for the hit? she said. A contracted job that paid quite well. In contrast to many bounty hunting jobs, this was a simple execute. She'd show up, she'd help support the theft, and she'd walk away with 10k for a day's work. Not a bad pull. The others would be paid out as well and most would go into investing in the company.

The ship took off and leapt to hyperspace moments later. She turned to look at their newest recruit.

Truth is, I'm interested in recruiting you, she said bluntly. She didn't care about dancing around issues anymore. Piracy, transport, and selling stolen goods. Eventually transitioning into intelligence gathering as well. In addition to the people we've already recruited, I could use someone of your skill, she said. She didn't expect a commitment out of the gate, but she wanted to plant the idea now.

@ByakuyaXVMarkov

 

[Davani Gaizott]

.

Once Terra acknowledged her, she nodded back with respect as the tiefling would lead her to the crew that would be involved in the hit. She expected just as much for the acquisition of an entire cargo ship. Given the planet they were also on, there was no way this would be as easy as it would be on paper. "A good pay for something like this." she responded, getting herself comfortable as they'd enter Hyperspace for the known location of the bounty.

Terra would continue to speak, proposing recruiting into Crimson Dawn. A long term partnership, yes. This would be very useful as long as it would pay well and she could increase her criminal influence. She seemed to be hitting the right beats in terms of her skills. "I try to think myself as skilled in intelligence and strategic acquisitions, as well as cold and quick kills... Perhaps I can think on it. My own path depends on who pays the best and gets me the most connections and leverage.." she explained, half smiling. She was recently playing with the idea with working with the Hutts, as they always paid well and always catered to her vanity. The mere idea of a criminal game of chess made her giggle to herself. The Chiss loved manipulation and having a reason to be an ego, especially after years of only having her blue skin cover her ego in the Chiss Ascendancy.

@Phoenix

 

[Terra Lanris]

Terra smiled and nodded as she said it fit with what she was already good at. I thought it might, she said. Of course, she wasn't willing to commit within a minute, and Terra expected no less. She'd have been more suspicious if she did accept that quickly.

Yeah, I expect you'll need some time to think on it. Just don't take too long. The offer will expire eventually, she said. Perhaps there needed to be more... explanation of the job.

You'd be put on retainer with the company and paid bonuses according to jobs done. In exchange for your retainer fee, Crimson Dawn contracts would take priority and you'd be restricted from contracts against Crimson Dawn's interests, she said. It would still allow some level of freelance work and bounty hunting, but would still put her solidly in the camp of the Crimson Dawn.

Plus a chance to move up into a more fixed position. Think about it, she said. Skilled labor wasn't easy to come by. Your common low level thug work could be carried out by anyone, but artists and infiltrators weren't every day charge.

She turned back to the controls of the ship.

You fly? she asked. Or have practice with ship clearing? That was what this would turn into, after all. A room-by-room clearing of the ship's holds.

@ByakuyaXVMarkov

 

[Davani Gaizott]

.

The Chiss would listen to Terra's explanation of the Crimson Dawn Syndicate, trying to persuade her the benefits of it over joining other ones or being more neutral. Terra did have a point. It'd likely be eventually too boring to remain a low level bounty hunter compared to having more influence. She'd still like some flexibility of course, and hopefully Davani would be able to continue that with Crimson Dawn. Perhaps she could eventually work her way up and become a Crime Lord herself, and have her wildest dreams take hold..

"That would be nice. I enjoy my flexibility but perhaps eventually I'll want to settle down without having to do the dirty work. Let shittier scum do it for me." she grinned.

She'd recall her experience in flying and shipping. Given her bounty experience as well as being a Chiss, a race of heavy use of starcrafts, she'd have plenty of knowledge. "I can definitely use my Chiss to my advantage. I always have to fly or my jobs involve with clearing ships."

@Phoenix

 

[Terra Lanris]

Terra chuckled slightly as she mentioned settling down to not do the dirty work.

Don't we all, she said. Actually, that wasn't true, some people liked doing their own dirty work, but not Terra. She'd killed before and she took no pleasure in it. She didn't want to be a soldier. The pirating she did was enough for her... more than enough.

Good, you'll need it, she said. We're approaching the target, she said, turning back again to Davani. How're you on a turret? she asked, motioning out of the cockpit. The Dynamic's guns could both be fired from the cockpit, but it was better to have a gunner on the topside turret. The job was Davani's if she took it.

The cargo's our target. We'll have to disable the ship, she said, spinning back to the cockpit viewport. They were going to be dropping out of hyperspace within minutes, and then the shooting would start.

She took a deep breath, letting the heat of the moment wash over her in preparation for the battle to come. A fight for your life, but one she was more comfortable with than the boarding that would come after.

@ByakuyaXVMarkov

 

[Davani Gaizott]

.

Davani agreed more. While she liked killing, she knew she'd eventually want to move to more glorious and fun ways to kill, not just by her own hands and blood but by using other people as well. The Chiss loved the danger but she loved materialism even more.

Once Terra mentioned a turret, she grinned, knowing what'd be perfect for the opening attack. A surprise bombardment would always be effective in this situation. "As long as its aim system isn't a travesty, anything works for me!" she responded, proceeding towards the topside turret as instructed, getting herself comfortable and adjusted to the systems before she'd begin the carnage.

She awaited as her adrenaline and excitement pumped through her, waiting for the exit into Hyperspace. She was confident Terra and her crew would manage navigation as well as maintaining as she'd help push forward the attack with her own punch. The Chiss was ready for a bloodbath and an acquisition like none other.

@Phoenix

 

[Terra Lanris]

Terra flexed her neck from side to side, letting the muscles stretch as she took a deep breath. The lights on her navicomputer began to flash and she knew it was time.

Dropping into realspace in 3... 2... 1... she counted down over the comm and reached up to push forward the stick in front of her. The streaks of stars turned back into realspace and her eyes - and scanners - swept over the blackness of space in front of them.

There was no sign of the ship at first and seh cranked the engine up, gunning it and scanning for their target. Than she saw it. The faintest flash on her scopes, and she reached out to angle the deflector shield.

I've got it on scopes at 1 o'clock, elevation 45 degrees. I'm going to swing us under her to give you a shot on the engines. We'll only have one shot before she knows something's up, she said. Odds were they wouldn't actually cripple the ship in one shot, but if they could soften it up, that was all the better.

Standby and get ready to fire in range, she said. She pushed the ship to its limits, upping the speed until they were zooming toward the freighter.

She spotted the light hailing them and reached up to hit a button, jamming outgoing comms.

Hit it! she said, seeing they had their best shot only seconds before the shields would come online. She squeezed her own controls, red cannon fire ripping out of the port guns under her control and hopefully striking in tandem with the turret to badly damage the freighter.

@ByakuyaXVMarkov

 

[Davani Gaizott]

.

Their vessel would jump back into realspace right as Davani got comfortable with how the turret worked. Once she could see the darkness of space she began to take observation in her surroundings. Once Terra began moving their ship towards it, she knew the time has come to begin their attack.

The angle Terra gave the Chiss Gunner was perfect, as the moment said to fire she did with as much enthusiasm as reciprocated. She’d strike at the engines, trying to distribute the damage as much as possible and being one of quality over quantity. Hopefully this would throw the Corporation Ship off balance and setback on a potential retaliation.

Either way, Davani smiled, ready to take on these corporate idiots any day. “I can’t wait to see their dumbfounded faces when they realize they’ve been ambushed.” she grinned as she continued firing at will, making sure that Terra’s desires were put into play. This was alot of fun; and way more fun than she’d expect.

@Phoenix

 

[Terra Lanris]

Terra could see that the cannon rounds had largely found their mark. They slapped against the shields of the cargo hauler, but as the freighter closed in more several got in under the shields. Rounds detonated against the engines causing smoke and fire to trail from one of the engines and halfing the ship's speed.

Yessss!! she said, more to herself than anyone else. Good hits! I'm going to try to set you up for another run! she said.

They were never ready for what hit them! she responded to Davani. She could see more cannon fire slapping against the shields as her gunner continued firing.

Flashes of return fire lashed out back at the Dynamic and slammed against the shields before she threw the ship downward. They had better maneuverability than the enemy ship and evaded the follow up shots.

Get ready! Hit the other engine!

@ByakuyaXVMarkov

 

[Davani Gaizott]

.

Their target was most certainly taking a harsh beating from these attacks. The dents and destruction on this bounty most certainly excited her as Terra prepared her for the opposing Engine.

Just like clockwork, she turned and began aggressively firing on the engine, making sure every part of it would leave the ship unable to escape their grasp. They kept evading the Czerka ship, tiring them out and being way more fast than them especially with their downed engines. She laughed more at their pathetic attempts at counterattack. Any move that Terra made the Chiss was able to move her aim quickly and coldly back to the new target.

@Phoenix

 

[Terra Lanris]

Terra saw more flames spring from the other engine as the ship started to drift through space, barely able to direct its own movements anymore, she knew the hard part would begin now.

Preparing to dock. Boarding crew prepare for landing, she said. With any luck, most of the crew wouldn't be interested in fighting. Most people weren't willing to fight and die for someone else's money, and Terra had no intention of murdering people if she didn't need to.

Davani, you should join them. I'll meet you after I dock. Taking control of the turret again, she said, reaching over to flip a switch that returned the gun to her control in the cockpit.

She shifted the freighter over so that one of the docking tubes latched onto the door of the opposing ship. Mag seals fell in place and the Eclipse mercs immediately started taking a plasma torch to the other ship's door.

When Terra was confident the ship was secured, she slipped her helmet on and pulled her pistol from her holster, heading for the docking ring.

@ByakuyaXVMarkov

 

[Davani Gaizott]

.

She fired relentlessly until the ship lost any form of propulsion. It was now time for her to move onto phase two: the even more fun part.

The Dymanic would proceed to dock as Davani left her turret station, her work there being done. She'd return to her equipment and suit up for her boarding party. Along with the other crew members, she would stand idly with her A180 in Rifle Mode, ready to let the carnage begin if anyone got in her way. Either way, this would be lots of fun to accomplish and there would be much to do to either coerce or entirely take the ship by force.

"Positions ready, Terra. Your pals are about to breach." she called from her communications.

@Phoenix

 

[Terra Lanris]

Good, I'm on my way, she said. Her heart was pounding as she made her way over to the docking bay. The door was cut through and the pieces of hot metal fell away.

Mercenaries piled through the new opening and Terra followed after them. Several of them fanned out in different directions, and Terra stuck with the Chiss, letting her lead the way.

Several crew members could be seen crouching in the corners, hiding behind boxes and trying to avoid being seen. As yet, no one had fired on them, but she didn't know how long that would last.

We'll have to clear every room and cargo hold, she said. It wasn't a small ship and even with the mercs, that was still quite a job.

@ByakuyaXVMarkov

 

[Davani Gaizott]

.

The door would be breached by the crew as they would enter first, and then she would enter as Terra arrived. WIth her A180 in Rifle Mode, she would be ready to fire upon anyone who would oppose her or the crew.

Entering the Cargo Ship, she would make sure the crew members would begin subduing the enemy crew and make sure the cargo wasn't in danger. She would continue forward, going directly for the Cockpit of the cargo hold to meet the Czerka leader. Of anyone who needed to be eliminated, this would be the one.

@Phoenix

 

[Terra Lanris]

Indeed Davani's evaluation was correct. The vast majority of the crew surrendered without a shot being fired, but the bridge of the ship where the Captain resided was a different story.

Terra and the Chiss reached the door leading into the cockpit a few minutes later and received report from one of the leading men.

The Captain and two of his crew have locked themselves in the cockpit. Killed Raffard and hit Benji in the leg. We nicked one of the crew men, but they've still got control of the ship from there, he said.

Terra looked to the door then back through the rear of the ship then to the blood that splattered the otherwise white walls of the large ship.

How're you with hotwiring doors? she asked Davani.

@ByakuyaXVMarkov

 

[Davani Gaizott]

.

The pair would arrive at the cockpit rather quickly, almost being blissful of the surrenders behind her. The door was shut and they'd receive that these crewmen were actually threats. They need to regain control of the ship to finish this operation smoothly, otherwise these two could pull some interesting shenanigans soon.

"Good thing I have a Computer Spike if I need to hack something like this" she grinned, beginning to remove a panel within her armor that had a Computer Spike housed in it. She would bend down, motioning for Terra to cover as she began to rewire the door to override access to see how simple it was. How simple and defective could it be if its just for a simple cargo ship compared to a full vault?

She'd open the wiring as she would scramble the wires as well as the data protecting the door, with the intent to force the door to remove any clearances it would previously had, essentially making a clean slate and open to anyone trying to open.

@Phoenix

 

[Terra Lanris]

Terra was no stranger to bypassing doors herself, but this was something she wanted to see how the other woman handled. And she seemed to handle it well. Terra picked a position along one of the walls while several of the Eclipse mercs did the same for another wall.

After several moments, she heard the hiss of the door unsealing and it told her that Davani was successful.

The door would open a moment later and out poured blaster fire from the Captain and one of the crewmen. It appeared the other was either too wounded or too dead to fight back.

Terra sent blasterfire returning into the cockpit, ducking down low as her heart pounded. She forced herself to keep moving and firing, not thinking about the danger she was in. Stay in the moment, she told herself, and focused on trying to take down one or both of the crew inside.

She popped back up and fired, hoping to keep their heads down so that perhaps the Chiss could go low under the fire and get a shot on at least one of them.

@ByakuyaXVMarkov

 

[Davani Gaizott]

.

Davani would watch as the door would open, and foolishly fire would immediately be brought upon the group, mainly aiming at Terra and the rest of the mercs. Using her lack of prescience, she would keep low to the ground as she would signal Terra to go for the secondary attacker as she went to attack the captain.

Once she saw the distracted Captain, she shot straight for his head with the intent to make it instantaneous and countering any resistance. He'd never know what hit him. If the other crewmember would be still alive, she would also take the shot at his head with deadly accuracy, making sure the cockpit was clear of any opposition.

@Phoenix