Ask Mission: Gunpowder Hourglass

[Natalie Hope]

(OOC: Mission Text)

Ah Bandomeer. Natalie had no fucking clue what it was or the significance of such a planet, but here she was on a shuttle down to the surface. It was a tale as old as time really. One side wanted better wages and living conditions while they mined resources. The corporate sector disagreed, tried putting the unions back down in the friendzone. Now it was up to two Jedi Knights and a Padawan to come rescue the planet from a civil war.

If you asked Natalie, just let the two sides duke it out like the gentlemen they clearly wanted to be and then do business with the winner. She frowned, already seeing Mr. Jawline giving her a scolding about it not being the Jedi way to let innocents suffer. A peaceful solution was always better than a conflict. Wonder if he’d span- NATALIE! Right right, wrong time.

In classic Natalie fashion, she was wearing an outfit completely becoming of a diplomat of the Jedi Order. Her lightsaber hilt was tucked away behind her and hidden underneath the leather jacket, and her EZPods were in her eyes blasting a whole vibe so she wouldn’t have to hear the other two Jedi snoring, or squabbling, or whatever the hell they were doing. What were they doing anyway?

Didn’t matter; the vending machine was stocked and Natalie slid a coin in the slot, letting it fall just far enough to count as a coin paid before stopping it in place with the Force. A bag of sticky-butter wafers was her prize, and when the bag fell into grabbing area, Natalie used the Force to yank the coin back out and pocket it.

She walked into the main area of the shuttle, opening her new bag of snacks and popping a few in her mouth. They would be landing soon. Sleeping beauty #1 and #2 had better come out of the closets labelled “quarters” or she was gonna leave them on the shuttle and handle this whole Bandomeer thing Ord Mantell style; meaning she was going to drink a lot and probably end up in a fight.

@Die Shize @Woven

 

[Vayla Mirana]

Spoiler: Music OOC

Ah, yes. Bandomeer. A tragic story, really. A planet once so alive and rife with rolling plains, until the fateful day came when corporations rolled over those plains to pave the way for profit and exploitation.

Slaves, some would say of the world’s imported labor, even if its definition was limited to slaving away for a corporate crown and creed, whether the worker was in literal bonds or metaphorical bondage.

Nonsense. Thought Vayla Mirana. Don’t get distracted. She breathed in. Focus. Out. Light was dim. No noise so loud. Silence permeated her chamber. Her quarters, such as they were, aboard this shuttle shared with others.

Would the Padawan prove to be trouble? Would the other Knight prove to be violent?

Those were uncertain concerns that the Shadow purged from her mind that moment. What was she doing? Not sleeping. Meditating. Clearing her being with the essence of serenity, breathing in the scent of tea and incense.

A typical and traditional Jedi practice, maybe, but Vayla had enough experience in this galaxy to wonder whether a number in her order were drifting into behavior and patterns that were less Jedi-like and more like childish Sith.

Ignorance, yet knowledge. Then again any idiot could quote the Jedi Code. Sighing into the mist, Vayla rose. Time to go. Garbed in white robes streaked in blue, hood lowered, the Pantoran entered another chamber beside the Padawan.

“Can I have one?” She gestured toward the wafers. Meditating made her hungry. “Two, maybe?”

She sipped her tea. Hopefully she wasn’t reaching, gazing at the younger woman with her prosthetic blue eyes, but an otherwise ladylike face, anyway.

@TheDudeMike @Woven

 

[Marcus Voss]

Marcus lay fast asleep in his quarters as his mind wandered, dreams appearing just as soon as they were vanishing, his restlessness was no uncommon occurence. Finally, his dream rested on a single vision, a white tree standing alone in a field, and suddenly it burst into flames as he jolted up from his sleep, banging his head on the roof above his bed. Can't I get some damn sleep. Clearly not, as he rubbed his eyes from the dreariness and stood up, stretching his shoulders and arms in an attempt to look somewhat rested.

The alderaani didn't even want to think about what his dream might mean for the mission he had lying ahead, for all he knew it meant nothing. As he stood up, he reached for a datapad lying on one of the cabinets, and after a moments pause, he found the mission parameters. Bandomeer certainly wasn't a planet he was familiar with, though he somewhat knew what the whole ordeal would be regarding. A planet, exploited at every turn by greedy corporations and rising empires, was bound to come at odds at some point. If he was going to be honest, it was right by the miners to stand up for themselves, but that wasn't his job here.

Due to his experience with political and diplomatic settings, he had been selected for the mission, alongside another fellow knight and a padawan. While Marcus had his reservations, he was simply glad to take a break from helping instruct at the academy. Marcus would try his best to alleviate tensions between the two parties, but if things came to blow, he wasn't quite sure who the jedi would be forced to side with.

Regardless, none of that would happen unless his partners were somewhat easy to work with, and that was yet to be seen. Marcus wasn't generally a difficult person to cooperate with, though that didn't mean there werent exceptions.

As he placed down his datapad and clipped his lightsabers to his waist, he donned his standard armour, prefering to prepare for the worst, and also appreciating the comfort it brought. Exiting his quarters and catching his two companions already there and waiting, he nodded at them in greeting. "I don't suppose you'd have any more tea?" Gesturing to what he at least assumed to be tea.

@TheDudeMike @Die Shize

 

[Natalie Hope]

Natalie watched both Jedi Knights exit their quarters. The first, a pantoran, wanted a couple wafers. Natalie could spare them; she tossed a couple of wafers to the knight, popping even more into her own mouth. What was the deal with Jedi Knights and asking for snacks from her? Oh that's right, Mr. Jawline never actually paid for vending machines or good cooks for the cafeterias. It was no wonder Blueberry (@Die Shize) was hungry enough to need some snacks. Where was Keck to find a plate of food when you needed him?

Sleeping beauty number two(@Woven ) arrived shortly after, asking for tea. Natalie popped a couple more wafers in her mouth before pointing at the kettle in the shuttle's kitchnete. That's it! Sleeping beauty number two would be LostAndFound. Perfect. Blueberry and LostAndFound, the two Knights assigned to put up with her bantha shit. Oh these two Jedi were completely unprepared for her.

"Do you guys want the refresher course or are we doing it live?" Natalie asked after swallowing to free her mouth of sticky-butter goodness. As soon as she was done asking she popped some more into her mouth. Why were these things so damn good!? She should really get in touch with the company. Would she get sponsored!? Take that Mr. Jawline! You may have EZTech, but Natalie has... Galbisco? Yeah! Galbisco bucks. How do you like her now!?

 

[Vayla Mirana]

Spoiler: Music OOC

Vayla caught both wafers between her fingers. Peanut butter sandwich cookie promptly sandwiched between her teeth. That Pantoran had her snacks and rations in her backpack, granted, but that was back in her quarters, and she was on the floor standing before the Padawan with her bag in hand. Oh my. The wafers were delicious.

Just then, the moment came for the group's third companion to enter the scene, greeting them with a request for tea. Vayla was about to express a ‘sorry’ given that she sipped her tea from her thermos, but Natalie was quick on the pedal to indicate the kettle. Just as well.

Refresher course or live? Vayla blinked her ocular prosthetics into Natalie’s eyes. She assumed the younger lady meant a briefing, anyway, and moved into it. “Corporations. Miners. In dispute with one another over this, that and the other.”

She lifted her shoulders, her tea, stating the obvious really even outside being debriefed. This was an everyday scenario of the galaxy, unfortunately; yet Natalie surely prompted just as much for strategy.

“I am a Jedi Knight,” Vayla stated simply, not pompously. “I was trained in the ways of diplomacy. I say we set up a meeting between both parties, coordinate and facilitate the discussions, and leave peacefully.”

What the Knight had not revealed was her life as a Shadow. That was kept sealed. “Hopefully. Otherwise we do what is right with the light as our guide.” Hopefully not the lightsaber.

Her words were a bit trite even for a Jedi, maybe, however she meant them literally. A Shadow straddled the edge between light and darkness, and many times the Force was her only door.

@TheDudeMike @Woven

 

[Marcus Voss]

Without hesitation Marcus made his way to the kettle in the kitchenette which the padawan had directed him to, sorely in need of some steaming, refreshing tea. As he poured himself a cup and took a slow sip from it, attempting not to burn his tongue on the hot liquid. Hmmmmmmmm. Forgetting he was with others, he turned his attention back to the two jedi behind him.

Turning around and his back against the kitchen cabinet, he focused his attention on the padawan and knight. "I already read up on the mission, plus she pretty much summed it up." Pointing his attention to the other knight. Realising he didn't know their names, he thought it wise to at least familiarise himself with his companions. "What are y'alls names again?" Probably should've read the full mission file. He had already forgotten the names he had been provided with. "Apologies, Im not great with names."

He continued sipping his tea as he examined the pair. One a pantoran, whom he'd personally never met before, though that wasn't that surprising, and the other, a padawan not much younger then himself.

While Marcus agreed with the pantorans simple plan of action, he couldn't see it as so simple. He had little faith it would not come to blows, and should that happen, the jedi needed to pick a side, they couldn't simply stand in the middle. "I agree, though frankly, I wouldn't count on leaving peacefully."

By no means was Marcus hoping for a violent outcome, quite the opposite in fact, he just simply couldn't deny that peaceful resolutions were growing fewer and fewer as the years went by, and when it came to politics, you never knew what was going to happen. Whatever happened though, he had every intention of helping the poor and exploited people of Bandomeer.

@TheDudeMike @Die Shize

 

[Natalie Hope]

Theme​

“What!? You’re a Jedi Knight, Blueberry!? I am deeply offended by this,” Natalie quipped (@Die Shize ). There was no way to say ‘I am a Jedi Knight’ without sounding pompous. Oh yeah, both of the Knights would be pulling their hair out by the end of this with Natalie along. At least she wouldn’t’ have to brief them on the mission. From the sound of it she was the most optimistic one though. How the ever loving fuck did that happen? Maybe Natalie would be the one pulling her hair out.

Natalie turned her attention LostAndFound (@Woven ). “You can call me Natalie, Nat, Padawan Hope, Glorious Leader. Take your pick,” she said, shoving the rest of the bag of wafers in her leather jacket’s pocket. She would saving those delicious morsels for later. If there was a later. These two were talking like they were hoping for a fight.

She understood it. There was nothing better than jumping into a scrap with some dumb zabrak bitch that was running her mouth to your best friend, but this wasn’t that. This was a planet on the verge of a civil war, and as nonchalant as Natalie tried to be about the situation, it was still a serious matter. Those cold, steely eyes boring into her, counting on her to defend them, but keeping her in check and well within the Light (@Sreeya )

The shuttle was starting to land, and Natalie went to the stand by the ramp. Which was that she stepped two steps over and was at the ramp because the entire damn shuttle might as well have been the closet of a five year old. She pinched the bridge of her nose. Mr. Jawline give her strength to handle this without drugs.

“Both parties know we’re arriving, so the meeting is already happening. We’re going to sit down and facilitate talks. We’re looking for a compromise here, not a victory for one side or the other. Capitalism is gonna capitalism and unions are gonna union. You good with that?” she asked, shifting her hazel gaze between the two Knights.

 

[Vayla Mirana]

Spoiler: Music OOC (Recurring)

In hindsight, maybe Vayla should have dropped ‘Knight’ and decided on ‘Jedi diplomat’ to get across her skill set and experience rather than her rank which meant little and less in that instant.

Natalie’s reaction to it, however, proved to be amusing. She was a spirited young woman, and Padawan, but more than that was…Blueberry? Cute. Will have to add it to my sheet. In the Jedi member database anyway.

Eyes on the other Jedi (Knight), the Pantoran gave her name. “Vayla Mirana.” Alongside shorthand ‘Nat’ for Natalie. Yep. Going with that.

Both parties knew the Jedi were arriving, however Vayla had misread the part about the rival factions already setting up negotiations.
At least they wouldn’t need to be convinced of the foundation for diplomacy and they could skip that section to the meeting.

Yet, the problem with negotiations like these is they could sometimes turn violent even against the neutral party.

“No misunderstanding by any means,” Vayla calmly addressed Nat at the ramp. “I simply mean to be ready for anything. If talks fall apart, it will be up to us to help restore order one way or the other.” She sipped her tea. “Preferably by offering those wafers over rather than the lightsaber.”

Unless Padawan Hope or Knight Voss had more to add it was about time to lower the ramp. One of the shuttle’s pilots came over intercom.

[“We’re in the pipe. Five by five.”]
Nice.
[“Hold up. Looks like trouble.”]
“..?”
[“I said no sipping coffee near the console!”]
“...”
[“I’m cleaning it, I’m cleaning it! Don’t panic!”]
“...”
[“We still on intercom, dang it?”]
“Right...”

Below the ship, a surface of rocky plains stretched away to mountains in the distance, an ocean on the horizon, a desert further away and a settlement closer to the center that served as the summit.

@TheDudeMike @Woven

 

[Marcus Voss]

Marcus quickly hid his laugh at the comment 'Nat' left for Vayla. Blueberries certainly an accurate nickname. He had a feeling Nat's sense of humour would grow old pretty quickly, but nonetheless it certainly was entertaining. Who knows, maybe she wouldn't be as obnoxious as he assumed. At least the mission wouldn't be dull

"Well oh so Glorious Leader, Vayla, pleasure to meet the both of you." As he finished his tea and placed it on the counter, he stepped up from his position leaning against the countertop and approached the pair. He knew that tensions would be high going into this summit, he was still unsure should things come to blow, would he be able to stay neutral.

Moving towards the ramp, with the pair of Jedi, he pointed his attention, not so secretly, to Nat as he spoke, "no matter what, just try not to instigate any side, we don't want this to become any harder on us." All in all though, hopefully this matter will be resolved.

He let out a brief laugh as he heard the pilots over the intercom, but after he adjusted his armour and secured his two lightsabers at his waist, he took his place directly by the ramp, awaiting the shuttle to make its landing.

@TheDudeMike @Die Shize

 

[Natalie Hope]

"Great!" Natalie said, turning toward the ramp. The banter between the pilots was fantastic. The greatest, even! Not only did the Jedi Order skimp on good food in the cafeterias of temples, but they also skimped out on pilots. Natalie remembered the asshole that had given half of Starlight food poisoning with their cooking. She didn't see much of him around anymore. Maybe someone finally did him in. Even better, maybe that zabrak bitch did him in, and would give Natalie and Theia and excuse to kick her ass again.

The ramp fell, slowly revealing the landing pad at a mining facility. A delegation from the Corporations stood to the left, and a delegation from the miners to the right. Both had an entourage of clearly armed men and women behind them, dressed in I'm-totally-not-armed ways. Of course, Natalie couldn't talk since she was totally armed too, but the two Jedi Knights that followed her down the ramp didn't seem to want to hide the fact they were armed at all.

"Welcome to Bandomeer, master Jedi," the delegate from the miners said with a deep bow. Natalie gave them a smile and a slight nod. "I am representative Dave."

"Welcome to our planet," the delegate from the corporations said, following suit. Oh this was going to be fun, wasn't it? Sprinting toward a civil war at record speeds. "I am Buster, CEO of BandoMining Incorporated."

And just like that the Jedi were being led toward a single story building. Inside there was a conference table, where the delegations from either side took an end of the table. Natalie sat down in the middle, letting the two Knights decide where to sit on their own. "Okay," she started, clapping her hands as if to start the per-emtpive peace talks. "So, let's start with the basics and go through the miner's demands one by one."

"Better pay," the delegate for the miners said. "They work us to the bone, and don't give us the compensation we deserve for it." Natalie nodded and turned her gaze to the delegate for the corporations.

"They get paired a fair amount for the amount of tonnage they lose every time they mess up," they said calmly.

"We pay with our lives when we mess up, you scum! Some of the mines are unstable just from the volume of minerals we're pulling out of 'em!"

Off to a great start.

@Die Shize @Woven

 

[Vayla Mirana]

Spoiler: Music OOC

Armed entourages? That was not a good sign. As Vayla had explained, negotiations could go either way. For now, however, she kept her lightsaber beneath her cloak so she would appear as just another Jedi in robes.

Albeit with a bit of a glint in her eyes thanks to cybernetic prosthetics that she did not try to hide.

Inside the conference room, Vayla was first offered a beverage of which she selected tea. She had a feeling this would be no quick meeting, one that Nat promptly opened up—as a capable woman as much as a Padawan.

For her part, Knight Mirana had gone through enough of these things to know they don’t necessarily go so smoothly. Indeed, a debate was already leading into an argument. So it begins...

“If I may.”

Naturally, given that both sides had elected to invite the Jedi to mediate, Dave & Buster helped shush their respective factions. For the moment, at least.

“I am no mining expert but, generally speaking, safer and standardized operating procedures, equipment and environments tends to result in less accidents, which in turn results in less minerals, profit and, ultimately, lives being lost.”

An argument of intelligence that would benefit either side, right?

“Take your supply lines for—”

“AH!” A BM member slapped a hand on the table and spoke to her opponent. “Yes! Supply lines! Let’s talk about those! Like how our caravans are being detained by you rebellious scum—”

“How DARE you, MADAM!?” A miner rose, jabbing a finger.

“...”

Spoiler: Dice Roll Result

Conversation persuasion: 3/20

@TheDudeMike @Woven

 

[Marcus Voss]

As Marcus walked down the ramp, he glanced at the gathering laid out before them. Oh fun, the parties ready and waiting. As the entourage of Jedi was met by one of the delegates and welcomed by him, Marcus bowed his head, keeping his arms crossed as he eyed the armed escorts of both parties. An armed negotiation was certainly going to be enjoyable for the Jedi caught in the middle.

He made no effort to hide the lightsabers on his belt, if anything the two parties realising the neutral party was more then capable of deescalating the situation should quench all possible violent notions.

Marcus nodded in thanks as he was offered a cup of tea, which he promptly took a sip from and turned his attention back to the delegation. As the miners listed their demands, which frankly seemed reasonable enough, he kept his arms crossed in silence, simply focusing on analysing the situation for the time being.

He had to admit, the more Buster talked, the more he was starting to dislike him, but it wasn't his job to play favourites. They were there to establish a fair and just outcome, and it was not off to a great start.

As the conversation furthered, one of the miners suddenly rose jabbing a finger at the corporations delegate, raising his voice at the insult levied at them. These people were consumed by their own self interests they couldn't see that the best course of action, was to hear each other out. Whether one side was more so in the wrong or the other, they still needed to remain calm. Leaving his cup of tea on a table, he stepped up and gathered everyones attention.

"Everyone, please, try to remain calm. You have all invited the Jedi here to mediate these negotiations, and I'd advise against exacting insults against each other or instigating any arguments. The last thing both sides want is for this to turn to violence, so please, do what is best for your people, and remain calm and respectful."

Somewhat satisfied with his interjection, he stepped back again and picked up his tea, crossing his arms in hopes the delegation would heed his advice.

@TheDudeMike @Die Shize

 

[Natalie Hope]

Natalie pinched the bridge of her nose while the two sides argued. Blueberry's interjection seemed to make things worse, but LostAndFound's interjection held some merit. Whether the delegations would listen to it was another story. It needed more punch. More OOMF. It needed the right hook after the left jab. It was also oddly peaceful for a man who had ten minutes earlier been saying to prepare for lightsabers to be swinging. "Oh help me space-jesus," Natalie whispered.

"Okay." Her voice was suddenly full volume, hands out stretched to stop the two sides from arguing further on the same over-beaten point. She turned to the miners. "How many miners get hurt or killed while on the job?"

"Quite a few!" the delegate said.

"Okay, so what if, and hear me out here, the corporations gave the miners life and health insurance, paid for by the district, not the corporation overall. If the district doesn't want to pay, they'll either improve working conditions or leave and let someone else who actually wants to make money take their place," Natalie said. It made sense in her head. It seemed to make sense in the delegates' heads too as they actually shut up and began listening and nodding along. She turned to the miners. "In return, you all have to stop attacking their convoys. If they're taking care of your medical and funeral costs, then they get to have their profit margins."

"We would lose more money than we gained paying insurances like that!" the CEO delegate chimed.

"Not if we stop getting hurt and dying," the miner delegate said.

Now this was better. They were at least talking now. Natalie sighed silently. On Ord Mantell she would have just clocked both parties into submission and called it a day. Being a Jedi was hard.

@Die Shize @Woven

 

[Vayla Mirana]

Vayla had attempted to balance the equation by mentioning the value of safety for both parties. However, mentioning ‘supply lines’ was misinterpreted and indirectly drew unrelated resentment to ‘supplies’ and, well, semantics helped the fail like a bad roll of dice.

It wasn’t that Vayla was so fed up she had already given up. Rather, she took a sip of her tea the same moment her companion, Marcus, spoke up after the angered miner had gotten up.

Spoken like a mediator. It’s what they were. Jedi were not here to judge or jump into this discussion every moment. Babysitting would help nobody.

Finally, an outline to the original point about the value of health and safety for both parties was being put into place after Natalie spoke her own piece.

“And not if overall working conditions are improved,” Vayla chimed in. “Not just for the miners but for the corporation too. That is its own benefit. Isn’t it?” She gestured toward the corporate face of Sentient Resources.

“I won’t deny that a safer and healthier environment improves productivity and reduces expenses from work-related injuries and illnesses.” And will avoid a lot more paperwork once the district steps in.

SR (no department free of corruption by any means) gave a textbook definition like a true businessman but they understood the message. That’s what was important: everybody getting the message that all this benefited everybody, selfless or selfish.

“Which will offset those insurance payments,” spoke another miner.

“Right then! District-sponsored insurance. Safer working conditions.” Vayla sipped again. “What’s next?”

Either another topic or there was more to flesh out for the current one. At least no one had gotten shot yet.

Spoiler: Dice Roll Result

Conversation persuasion: 11/20]

@TheDudeMike @Woven