Ask Mission: Iron Rising - Where We're Going We Don't Need Roads

[Endyr Ratheon]

Spoiler: Music IC

It was easy to glimpse the galaxy, see all those stars glittering so far away, and wonder how many a man may take, how many a Mandalorian might conquer. From the cockpit of his ship, the notion was less in this Mandalorian’s imagination; less of an if, more a question of when.

The Kom’rk-class fighter/transport hovered in the Vulpter system by the planet of the same name which was a far cry from Mandalore there in the Deep Core. Yet, that’s why the Mandalorian was here: to chart a hyperspace route from that pile of purple shit to Mandalorian space so that, ultimately, the Mandalorians could do more than stargaze.

The captain of the Raza’nante would not be undertaking this journey alone by any means. That was a good thing. He was a warrior. Explorer? Pilot? Navigator? Sure. More the former.

His partner, Rath Jell (forename something to appreciate), well, he didn’t yet know who the hell he was, but hopefully he knew more about charting courses and hyperspace lanes than Endyr Ratheon did. The two were off to a good start already given that Rath was a vod and not a dog.

Somehow they would figure this business out. For now, Endyr sat back in his cockpit, garbed in his armor, black gold beskar’gam, helmet off for the moment, and listened to his music that blasted in the ship. Mandalorian folk metal. Strumming guitars. Thumping drums. As hard as when the hammer fell.

Gazing at the stars, wondering when, not if. Sooner or later, Mando’ade... They would claim their day and take all that space. The stars will be ours…

The Mandalorians, like the wolves of this song, would carve their names in conquest, in fire and blood and song. At least, that was one Man’s dream. If anyone gets in the way of that dream? Just another dead dog…

@Javier esschoolbus

 

[Hokaan Veren]

The duplex wing design of Hokaan's Z-wing was to the side of the kom'rk class transport. The two starfighters were certainly different in size and purpose but today they would work in concert to chart a new hyperspace route to mandalorian space. This would ultimately allow mandalorians to once again have access to some of the highest end technology the modern galaxy had to offer which would be in turn incorporated into the armor of warriors.

The mandalorian slicer sat at the controls of his starship, checking the readings on radiation and traffic in the system as he waited for his companions to signal they were ready. Hokaan was eager to be able to work with armor and its components if this mission was successful. The Veren clan member was an aspiring armorer but first needed to prove his worth as an individual.

Along the hull of Hokaan's Z-wing were numerous kill markings from the battle of Kashyyyk. The silouhettes of multiple starfighters were daubed hinting at the pilot's skill behind the controls of the ship. He did not expect to come across a major threat but Hokaan knew to keep on his toes regardless.

@Die Shize @Javier esschoolbus

 

[Rath Jell]

Rath had heard of a plan to chart new hyperspace lanes. Ever since his foray into the unknown regions he had been intrigued by how they were created. His two allies were fellow Mandalorians. Hopefully they weren’t new to flying, he didn't feel like babysitting on a mission like this. Yet he was always excited to work with his people it allowed him to reconnect with his past on the planet.

His Justifier Gunship came out of hyperspace just far enough away to not risk hitting the other vessels. He was slightly uneasy for this mission a slight miscalculation would lead to the death of all of them. Yet he loved the idea of being one of the first to blaze a new trail. It was what made him sign up for the Pathfinder mission and what drew him here. He sent a signal to check the status of the others but wasn’t in a hurry to get started his nerves were still a bit wired.

@Darasuum @Die Shize

 

[Hokaan Veren]

<"Serene, begin charting a course to Mandalore using safest direct path."> He asked the A.I. integrated with the Z-wing. The droid made some soft beep and boop noises in agreement as they went about their work. They were traveling in a group which meant they would be traveling at the pace of their slowest ship which was the justifier gunship. Its class 2 hyperdrive was still pretty good but it would add some time onto their journey.

Vulpter was technically in a separate quadrant and the inner rim was hard to navigate. It was probably for the best they were leaving the center of the galaxy rather than trying to fly towards it. The S3 droid would help with calculating a new route through the stars but they were specifically avoiding major trade routes and opting for an expedient and direct option. <"I hope you all brought snacks and entertainment. This could take at least ten days before we're back in Mandalorian space."> He almost hoped for a bit of excitement along the way. Then again, adventures could delay their mission by a few hours or days depending on the complication.

@Die Shize @Javier esschoolbus posting again cuz I felt like it.

 

[Endyr Ratheon]

Spoiler: Music OOC

“Three,” the captain of the Raza’nante beckoned his ship’s companion. “Do your thing.” So the astromech guided the pilot with two other Mandalorians in a group of three. If one of them wanted to take the lead then Endyr would be happy to oblige. He was a pilot, a warrior, but wasn’t much of a navigator or explorer.

Each captain of their own ship was given coordinates to fly with, and could link up easily and quickly enough in case something happened between one location and their destination. Even with a shortcut, this Mandalorian knew anything could happen, and sometimes because of it.

“Ten days, huh?” Endyr flipped a cockpit switch, typed on keys. “I once spent twenty days on a rock surrounded by an ocean of sharks and other predators. No armor. Only karkin' stones to throw for entertainment.” Space was an ocean all on its own.

“Now I have Cry of Honor just in case.” His favorite first person shooter. “And a whole lotta uj cake.” Not that he’d share any even if he could. “What about you, Rath? Got snacks?”

Whatever his answer, an asteroid field would soon appear at their flank. Bad place to navigate through and they didn’t need to. But a good place for a pirate or two to hide in. This Mandalorian knew from experience.

@Darasuum @Javier esschoolbus

 

[Rath Jell]

Rath was punching in his hyperspace coordinates and route himself linking it with the other two. Unlike some pilots he didn't have an astromech or AI to help him, he had to do it the old fashion way. Taking the info from the other ships data being shared he began crossing it with his plotted course and making adjustments to match.

The others began quipping back and forth over snacks and entertainment. One directly asked him about his food situation, <"I have a stocked kitchen area. I'll just cook when I get hungry. As for entertainment, I have an egg to take care off and weapons to clean and inspect."> He was looking back into his cargo area and the egg wrapped in a large blanket with his repeater next to it.

As the asteroid field came into view Rath turned his sensors on max range. Sadly they only were able to catch the edge of the asteroids, but it would prevent any surprise attacks. <"I think we should get further away from the asteroids so they don't interfere with the calculations."> Though they would he rather not have to start the journey off in a dogfight.

@Die Shize @Darasuum

 

[Hokaan Veren]

Hokaan's brow furrowed as he judged the strangeness of Endyr's tale. But it was none-the-less entertaining. He wondered if he should ask more about the story and decided to anyways. They had the time to kill. Maybe later.

"Ooo" He practically purred at the sound of Uj cake. But he knew it was inconvenient for them to share, not that Endyr would nor would Hokaan expect him to. In his position the tasty cake would be gone in the first day. With his mouth watering he began to make a field ration that only required water to cook through chemical reaction. It was still pretty tasty and had plenty of calories. The tasty snacks would be saved for when he had a real hankering or needed a treat to pick himself up. Uj cake however, was not something he could resist.

<"An egg?"> The Veren asked Rath quizzically. The word stood out since it sounded more like something that should have been mentioned as breakfast rather than a hobby or interest. <"What kind?"> He asked the only follow up question he could think of in the moment. He was a little caught off guard. Was it Rath's child? Nah he would have called it a foundling then, right?

When they neared the asteroid field Hokaan would answer over the ship commlink <"Agreed. Let's find a safe spot we can come and go."> The three vessels along with their hybrid droid and organic crew would be capable of making good progress together. It would be roughly an hour or so but the trio would find a near perfect spot.

No pirates were visible yet. But that did not mean they would not encountered somewhere along the way. <"Scans show this is a good spot to jump from. Let's make our calculations and take the first step shall we?"> Their hyperdrives and navicomputers shared the information to make a precise jump. Hokaan's Z wing deployed one of its hyperspace beacons, tuned to the mandalorians channels. This way it would be easier for other mandalorians to traverse these expanses of nothingness. The Veren pilot intended to use them at each stop along the way to make the process much more easy in the long run.

@Die Shize @Javier esschoolbus

Spoiler: Dice

Rolled with advantage
85/100 rousing success

 

[Endyr Ratheon]

Spoiler: Music OOC (Recurring)

Endyr just blinked at his cockpit upon Rath’s mention of his egg being his entertainment. Wait a minute… Cleansing and inspecting weapons made sense. But shouldn’t the egg be in the same sentence with the kitchen to begin with?

Fortunately he wasn’t alone in his curiosity. Hokaan asked about that egg then came the asteroids before the boys. The egg remained a mystery as all three agreed to leave the rocks behind.

Good thing too since it took a pirate to know where a pirate might hide.

“We shall indeed,” Endyr confirmed to Hokaan. “One small step for man. One giant leap for Man…dalorian.” He blinked. “Or…somethin’...” Speeches were never really his thing. He tended to just shoot things and let the shooting do the speaking.

“Naked space…” Endyr sighed, leaning into his seat, as the hyperspace beacon was deployed. “The expanse. All those stars, charted or not, waiting to be mapped and grasped by hands like ours.”

He curled his fingers into a fist, silent in his cockpit, but he had two vods as witness. “Mandalorians.” He was one. Two were too. “Mando'ad draar digu.” He remembers. Forever.

Well, it was smooth sailing as time went by. The team encountered absolutely no resistance and would manage to strike gold with their hyperspace routes from Point A to Point Z.

"Done? Done. I'm heading to The Fat Bantha for some shots if ya'll wanna come along. If not, then, eh, good luck with the egg, so long and all the best, my friends."

At that, Endyr Ratheon took his ship and sailed off into the distance, jamming to his music.

[EXIT ATTEMPT]

Spoiler: Dice Roll Result

Encountering pirates: 20/20
Higher means less chance of encounter

@Darasuum @Javier esschoolbus

 

[Hokaan Veren]

Hokaan could tell this trip was going to be fun. The mandalorians joining him seemed to have a good sense of humor. More than ever he was glad to be a mandalorian and have such a wonderful community. It felt like it meant something to establish this trade route more than just a simple warrior on the front lines. He was making a difference for their people.

Much to the Verene's pleasure, the trio of mandalorians and their respective ships would have little issue traversing the stars. Hyperwave beacons were placed periodically and established a consistent path for the future mandalorians to use.

From Vulpter to Caamas, then Carida, next was Filordis, then Aquaris or Thustra with their final destination being Mandalore. It was a amazingly few jumps and surprisingly efficient. With this new charted path the mandalorians would have a direct route into and out of the core overall.

<"Consider me there!>" He replied excitedly. <"We can brainstorm hyperlane names. What sounds good? The Triple threat detour, Rath Route, the Rising Road? I'm open to suggestions."> technically Hokaan was the one who had put forth the idea for this particular mission but it was Hauron who would have veto rights on any name. As long as they had a tasteful and cool name they would be able to get away with it.

The new hyperlane would only be available to an exclusive number of mandalorians to begin with as Rancor Squadron and others secured their path into the core over time. While they did not encounter pirates or other obstacles this time there was always next time.

Exit Thread​

@Die Shize @Javier esschoolbus