Ask Nar Shaddaa Whispers in the Dark: Marshal Point

[Darmus Onn]

Marshal Point​

"The posse will need a secure place from where to slice into the Eclipse base and prepare for the eventual raid. Rangers Onn (@Eccles), Emblai (@Kestrel) and Hackett (@The Good Doctor) will be responsible to establish this safehouse. Rumors say there's a network access point somewhere in the lower levels, close to where those zombies had ravaged the area. Maybe that'd work?"

___________________________________________________________________________________

The elevator down to the utter lower levels of Nar Shaddaa was rusty, rickety and smelled like feces. Not to mention there was graffiti on every wall warning you to go back or get bit by zombies. The criminal splendor of the upper levels and its debauchery did not travel down and the lower levels weren't the residential complexes for the poor like on Coruscant. No, here on Nar Shaddaa the poor slept on the streets, alleys and abandoned warehouses of the levels slightly higher than the ones the rangers were descending to. It had a positive, ofcourse, because no one would bother them while the planned for their raid on the Eclipse base.. the downside was that their cries for help would never be heard and their bodies never found.

Heh. Let's focus on the positives. "According to these old blueprints," Darmus turned his Personav around to show his fellow rangers the blueprint and the small access point in the bottom left corner. "That access points still handles network traffic going to the upper levels." which meant that given time he could slice his way not only into the Eclipse base, but most likely also in every shady network on those levels as well... Too bad Nar Shaddaa's networks were protected by the likes of Gori Xaa Hafven and his Crymorah Syndicate. Gori was a peerless slicer who used his skills on the HoloNet to rise in the criminal underworld and to become a crimelord. A much more valuable skill than being able to quickly draw a blaster, or so Darmus thought. With Gori around trying to slice into Five Syndicate networks on the upper levels was a pipe dream.

The rickety lift came to a halt and the doors creaked open. Darmus suddenly felt his age, close to fifty, and looked at his younger companions. They had a live that was still worth living and here he was, leading them into their deaths. "Have each other's backs," he warned as he took his blaster pistol from its holster and tried to determine in which direction the personav told them to go.

 

[Alton Hackett]

After what happened with the Sector Ranger HQ bombing on Courscant, Alton was happy to help however he can bring the architect and perpetrator behind this to justice, even if it means going into the foul and dangerous places in the galaxy to do so, which happens to be heart of Hutt space for this. Of course they won't be confronting the Eclipse today, but still this is able setting the Rangers up for success.

Alton had his usual equipment, minus his badge, which would be a detriment to bring anywhere on this moon.

The young Ranger brought up his blaster too when Darmus did, following the older Ranger's lead. "Will do. I'll watch our six" He said to the rest of the group. Alton would be vigilant to make sure that no one or nothing sneaks up on them from the rear. No telling what they will find down here. Who knows, they might somehow find some stragglers of that zombie attack, this access point was close to the Nar Shaddaa attack wasn't it? Either way, Alton made sure his gear is checked and powerpacks were fresh and everything

@Kestrel

 

[Bast Emblai]

The descending lift ground slowly against its duracrete shaft, the ugly sound grating at its occupent’s ears and patience. A mural of graffiti and gang insignias covered every vertical surface, and one of the corners in the lift had a puddle of... well, Bast was not about to look any closer to find out. Clearly, the place had not been inspected in ages and no doubt violated the majority of Galactic Health and Safety Regulations. The woman sighed and tucked back a stray hair that had rebelliously come loose from her tight, neat bun. Try as she might to calm herself through pointless observation and a snarky internal commentary, she was out of her element. The detective had spent years pouring through case files, investigating crime of all sorts, organ sting ops. Her first brush with real action, though, had been with the Rangers. Young and eager to prove herself, she had dived in headfirst.

No amount of discipline could make a person unbreakable. Glancing briefly at Darmus, she wondered how much the man remembered Of their first meeting. It would not have taken a psychologist to look into her eyes and see she’d been close to wishing he and Corran had left her for dead. People tended not recover from things like that. The clearance process to get back to work and be authorized to use a blaster moved at a Nabooian snail’s pace, but as with any challenge, she had fought te uphill battle. Bast needed to pay back her debt to Darmus and show her colleagues she deserved the title lieutenant.

The other man in the lift was one she had never met before. He looked young, fresh, and clean shaven, with large blue eyes that surely had yet to see the horrors of the galaxy. Offering a small smile of encouragement, the woman drew her own weapon and kept it at waist height. Ranger Hackett’s enthusiasm and readiness were growing on her. If anyone died on her watch this time, she’s be damned if she didn’t go down with them. If she was going back alive, it would be with her partners. Tucking a polished badge into the waistband of a pair of practical cargo pants, she cleared her throat.

“Where to sir?”


@Eccles

 

[Darmus Onn]

Darmus moved the personav from his left slowly towards his right until he was confident about where to go. "The blueprints are old," he explained. Compared to Coruscant, the Personav-maps for Nar Shaddaa were only updated sporadically and even then the Hutts only cared about the entertainment districts. That's where the tourists needed to go.. not down here.. down here no one traveled willingly. As such, the only map the rangers could find was about two decades old before the last habitable pockets had been abandoned. "I think it's this way."

Darmus lead the team down the path the little flashlight attached to his tunic illuminated. No suns or the reflection of light from Nal Hutta could reach them here as they walked passed old moss-covered structures that had once been residential areas and restaurants, bars and exchanges. These levels were throwbacks to the time when the Hutts first colonized the moon and it didn't matter how many times it was refurbished and remodeled in the millennia since, to Darmus it seemed strangely reminiscent of home. A different Outer Rim backwater world.

It took them about thirty minutes before the Personav first messed up, showing a path where there was only rubble. "Kriff," Darmus sighed, "Let's spread out, carefully-" the latter word added in to make sure they kept each other in sight, "-and find a way through."

@The Good Doctor @Kestrel

 

[Alton Hackett]

They made some progress, Alton was vigilantly keeping watch while keeping up with his comrades. Nothing out of the ordinary, or threats for now, when it was getting dark, he would get out a flashlight to assist, he still had a blaster pistol in his main hand. Although before too long, he heard Darmus swearing and then sighing, Alton turned his head as he ordered for them to spread out, carefully and to find a way through. That datapad must have reached the extent of it's usefulness here. probably was inevitable, oh well. So they have find their way to their objective through this decrepit maze of abandoned buildings.

"Got it" Alton affirmed when the more experienced ranger ordered the.

Alton would take brief glances around, looking for a path to proceed, he would shine his flashlight beam around, and the light would reveal a ruined road to the left. "We could go this way, perhaps", he still had his lightflight shining that way, revealing a potential path he offered a suggestion. Maybe someone else might have a better idea, but as he can tell they have to rely on wit with a fair helping of luck to get where they need to go. There were a bit alleyways, but they don't seem safe and probably sticking to the main roads would be relatively safer

@Kestrel @Eccles

 

[Bast Emblai]

They had been at work for at least three-quarters of an hour. Or perhaps not... there was no sun to tell the time of day with. The woman huffed quietly, the first noise besides light footfalls she had made since they had exited the lift. She did her work best in the quiet, and it was only fair for her to give Darmus that silence as well.

Significantly less concrete of a reason, something made her uneasy. Perhaps it was simply the dark or the damp stink or the unwelcome thought that sprung up all too easily in the detective’s mind. Any bodies left in this environment would begin rapid decomposition. Open casket funerals would not be an option. Not that they were for most Ranger deaths, to begin with. Although the observation had been purely analytical, some deep part of her pushed it away. It was not that Bast was afraid of death precisely... she was simply not ready to die yet. No one knew about the will that lay neatly locked away in the third drawer down in the silver case, written shortly after her discharge from the hospital. It simply had not occurred to her to tell anyone.

Bast strode carefully behind Darmus. He watched the datapad as if it was their lifeline- and perhaps it was. Ranger Hackett dutifully checked their surroundings, torch in hand. She had placed herself between them to take advantage of the light and save herself a sprained ankle or finding herself knee deep in rotting sludge. The older man seemed so deep in thought, she did her best to remain unobtrusive, feeling rather useless. Slowing to a stop with her team, the lieutenant glanced up. It seemed as if the path they had plodded along had dissolved into a mess of rubble. Miniature alleyways wove randomly through the dilapidated buildings. Rusted wire and jagged duracrete formed a treacherous expanse, broken glass glinting in the artificial light. They had run into a dead end.

Just as she was about to begin strategizing a path, Alton spoke up, the beam from his torch illuminating a partially concealed pathway. Looking to Darmus for direction, she followed the rookie, blaster slightly raised. Perhaps it had been her imagination, but there had been a quiet rustling following them for a good time now.

@The Good Doctor
@Eccles

 

[Darmus Onn]

Darmus was glad that Alton found a new path rather quickly and as he started following he was glad to see that small red dot on his personav kept getting closer. "Good find, this path should work just-" he stopped and his head jerked to his right as he lifted his blaster pistol in that direction. "Did you hear that?" he asked, forgetting that if he had also turned his torso he'd be shining some light into that direction from the clip-on flashlight on his tunic.

Before the Zombie plague was unleashed on these levels, this particular district was home to utterly down-on-their-luck sentients and rusty discarded droids with long overdue memory-wipes. It was exactly the kind of unpredictability in the area of operations that made Darmus never go on scouting missions and yet he needed to see that access point first hand. Now it seemed like they weren't alone... he heard something, or someone shuffle about. "Identify yourself," the older ranger muttered as he waved his personav about to signal Alton and Bast to shine their lights and aim their blasters in the direction of where he had definitely heard a sound.

"We're looking for," Darmus started and then hesitated. Telling the darkness they were Sector Rangers looking for bring down the Sith Order probably wasn't the smart move here, "my," kriff, he was too old to be looking for his own mother down here, "my sister. See her?" No reply, nothing. Hopefully the added light of the two other rangers could reveal if someone was just being rude, infirm or the sound was all just a figment of Darmus' anxious imagination.


@Kestrel @The Good Doctor

 

[Alton Hackett]

So, looks like what Alton find might be a viable path forward. Alton was listenning to Darmus, but he cut himself off. He didn't hear what Darmus heard, so Alton would try to listen harder as to what it might be. After everything was silent, he then heard something as well. Anything that's with them can be a threat. On Darmus' signal, Alton would then move his light in the general direction. He had his blaster pointing that way too, ready for any sign of hostilities.

Darmus was bluffing whomever-it-might be with they are looking for her sister. Totally believable. There was more movement, sounds like something moving through trash or other clutter on the ground. Alton assumed that this was a humanoid figure, but then down below a small critter popped into view. Alton would lower his flashlight, and then a rat hopped forward. "Oh, it's just a rat" then the rat hurried on it's way after having it's eyes flashed by the lights.

"Looks like we fine to move on." Alton said, looked like the coast was clear.

And then very shortly after there was more noise forward, heavier. It was more than just a rat this time. Alton was on his guard and he looked to find whatever it might be with his flash light.

@Kestrel @Eccles

 

[Bast Emblai]

The rustling continued. So it had not just been her hypervigilant mind playing some sort of strange trick. While the proof of her sanity was a relief, Bast only shifted into higher alert. There was no room for mistakes. If it had been paranoia, she would delay the team and prove herself skittish. If it was more and she ignored the warning, they could be ambushed. Though whoever or whatever it was was being none too quiet.

Unsurprisingly, no sinister hooded figure stepped into view at Darmus’s command like in the holofilms. Even the weathered detective had a hint of uncertainty in his voice. She had seen him in action before, and his demeanor had been unshakable, but the claustrophobic, damp atmosphere, and the knowledge of the expansive infrastructure above the cracked foundations was enough to cause even her heart to beat slightly harder. The tense silence was finally broken when a small creature scurried into the penetrating beam. A rat. The woman fired a bolt to take it down. The thing would die of starvation soon, anyway. It was as much out of pity as to make sure there would be no more false alarms.

A chuckle of relief hissed quietly through the lieutenant’s teeth. Without comment, she continued towards the clearing to press forward. Then something clunked. Something heavy and no longer trying to take shelter in the shadows. She froze as Alton’s torch danced wildly around, seeking the source of the unexpected and unwelcome follower.

The bright light reflected back off of three wide photosensors. The droid was tall and lanky, assembled with mismatched parts. Some of the parts, like the sharpened buzzsaw and blaster extension, were less worn, clearly replaced more often. A fighting ring droid? Forgotten? Certainly not legal. But neither weapon was raised. A broken hum emanated from the cranial unit, but there was no vocabulary. At a complete loss, Bast looked to the others

 

[Darmus Onn]

Darmus finally turned and shed his own light on the rat and his shoulders dropped while he let out a big sigh of relief, "I don't know what has me so-" he was interrupted by Bast blasting the rat and no doubt freeing it from its misery down here. Whatever people in the Core said of the nastiness of the Smuggler's Moon and how much those on the higher levels warned people not to come down here, it was.. just a little bit worse than he had imagined it'd be. The fear of running into zombies or Sith had eclipsed the ever-present threat of the Five Syndicates and yet these levels were no doubt a sanctuary for the worst kind of outcasts and...

A sudden clunk snapped him out of his musings and soon the droid was in full view. Now, it wasn't a zombie or a Sith but Darmus noticed the newer extensions just like Bast had and he didn't like it one bit. "If its done here," he started but then stopped himself. The others would know, too, that a malfunctioning droid with recent weapon-extensions was probably running on corrupted software like those Droid Gotra things on Coruscant's lower levels. Add in the solitude of a post-zombie outbreak level, in proximity of a Sith base and... well, kriff.

Darmus raised his blaster and pulled the trigger, sending a bright red bolt right at the droid's chest. To his own surprise it tanked it and let out another broken hum, but more piercing this time as if it was in distress. Darmus didn't quite want to know what it'd do if it was distressed and he didn't really care for the sentience of droids anyway, so he fired again, and again. With each shot the droid staggered backwards, but its durasteel frame seemed to hold as the hum became more and more shrill. Finally it raised the arm with the blaster-extension, seemingly towards Darmus but it was neither fast nor resolute. The old ranger, however, wasn't keen on finding out if he really was being targeted, "blast it!"

@The Good Doctor @Kestrel

 

[Alton Hackett]

A blaster bolt for the rat seemed like a waste of a perfectly good shot, but Alton mentally shrugged and sighed. But then there was more, a droid that sure didn't look like any factory-made droid if he ever saw one. Mismatched parts, probably a scavenger's pet project or something made for gladiator droid fights. It could be under someone's ownership or it could be a rogue droid. Alton saw the extensions and the buzzsaw, this is a potential threat.

Darmus fired the first shots and the droid somehow withstood quite a few of them. When the droid was raising it's weapons, Alton would already have his blaster ready to fire shots of it's own. He didn't need Darmus' input to know this is the time to start shooting. Alton would fire three shots the blaster extension, intending to disable it before it could fire a shot off, or at least throw off it's aim to where if it did fire, it wouldn't hit anyone.

Fortunately, the extension wouldn't be as durable as the droid's plating, rendering it destroyed. The droid has taken a beating already, it would desperately begin moving forward while revving up it's buzzsaw. It's a no brainer what the droid is going to do with that...

 

[Bast Emblai]

Something in the toneless hum of the droid immediately communicated to Bast it meant no harm. It could have shot them dead without getting so close. It could have opened Hackett up with that saw before they knew it was there. But it had not. It had come to them. Why? Perhaps it was from the Grotta, but the Grotta wasn’t now for sending out ambassadors to welcome guests, or kidnapping, as far as she knew.

The collision of the red bolt fired by Darmus took her by surprise. The screech it emitted made the hair on the back of her neck rise. It was clearly mechanical, but it sounded almost like the screams of men in the field. A vivid memory of a ranger resurfaced, one leg gone, shirt burned off by the flame of the explosion that had engulfed him, skin an angry red where it still clung to muscle. Biting her tongue to rid herself of the image she glanced wide-eyed at the older man, but he had made his choice. Shot after shot sparked off the poor creature’s frame. It raised its blaster, only for the weapon to be shot off. Finally, in a last stand, the buzz saw activated and the droid began the steady hobble toward its attackers. She felt almost bad for the poor thing. Perhaps it was the familiarity of the scream that made her hesitate, or the struggle to find a just reason for provoking the droid. They had opened fire first.

Suddenly the great thing was upon her, giving her just enough time to jump away, then line up a clean shot from behind. The bolt fried the circuitry and the droid slumped. For a reason the woman could not place a finger on, she felt guilty. Sighing, she suddenly needed to fill the silence.

“Are we getting close?”

@Eccles
@The Good Doctor

 

[Darmus Onn]

The droid went down and Darmus couldn't shake the feeling that he had just committed cold blooded murder and he.. didn't really care. He looked at Bast, sensing she felt different, her reluctance to shoot told Darmus enough about her struggles. Maybe he should talk to her? Or maybe she was due the same advice he gave Corran once: quit. "Yeah, it should be pretty much a straight line now," the older ranger replied as he tried to make sense of the Personav again.

It was a relatively long walk, still, all things considered, and the darkness never gave way for any other source of light than their own chest-mounted flashlights. No more signs of illegally modified droids, though, so that was fortunate and allowed their heart rate to settle back to normal as they stepped through the rubble of a post-collapse shaddaa underlevel. Eventually Darmus stopped at a sturdy looking durasteel door and wiped a thick layer of dust from its control panel, "Pretty sure this is it," he smiled and plugged in his datapad to work his magic, slicing through the outdated software with his custom-built dataplagues. "Just one more second and-" suddenly the door creaked open wide enough for them to enter. Behind layers of dust some old generator even sprang to life, illuminating the room in soft light. "-welcome to marshal point."

It would take them some hours to tinker with the generator, remove the dust from everywhere and for Darmus to set up something of a control center that was tapped into the network access point. In the end they had a safehouse from where they could mount patrol and scouting trips that would enable Darmus to properly map out the area surrounding the Eclipse's suspected base of operations. The entire posse would meet them here, with the equipment, including bedrolls, ration foodstuffs and the results of the first scouting mission by Captain Rook and Lieutenant Velt. There were close now, so close, so finally getting their shot at bringing the perpetrators of the Coruscant massacre to justice.

/endthread
@The Good Doctor @Kestrel