The camera pans down from the fading yellow text to reveal a bright red Imperial Star Destroyer. It appears to be orbiting a large, uninhabited asteroid or moon. Buzzing around it like a swarm of insects are snub fighters, light freighters, and corvettes of practically every make and model.
A beat up freighter zips past the camera on its way toward the Destroyer. Wipe to the freighter making a smooth landing in a force-field protected landing bay. The cargo lift lowers three humans, a duros, and an astromech droid to the bay floor.
The next wipe brings us to what may have once been a cargo bay, but is now a vast bazaar filled with humans, aliens, and droids of all shapes and sizes. There are sounds of sizzling accompanied by steam and smoke coming from some vendors; sales pitches in bocce, basic, and Huttese are hollered from others. Weapons are openly carried – and sold – and the garishly bright flashing lights are offset by the number of heavily shadowed areas.
As the sounds of the bazaar fade slightly, the camera is drawn to one of these shadowy areas, and there’s new music in the background. Seated on opposite sides of a durasteel cargo crate are the duros from the hangar and a fat, green harch – an anthropomorphic spider the size of a human. Beside the spider is a protocol droid in gunmetal gray, and behind him are two heavily armed gamorreans. Around the duros are the other travelers from the freighter.
The protocol droid removes a card from a slot in its chest, then declares in a crisp monotone, “This credchip has expired. The funds are in default.”
The harch takes the chip with one hand, then slams another on the crate. “What do you take me for, Gosek? *click* *pop* A fool!? I just can’t give you a catalyzer, you know. It’s bad for business. *tik-tik-tik* *click*” His twelve eyes blink twice as he glares down the duros.
Feel free to describe your characters at this point. Anyone can act as they feel appropriate. I’ll be making an out-of-character post as soon as I can, to keep OOC chatter out of the main posts. Oh, and don’t spam the soundtrack – this is kind of an experiment to see if I need more bandwidth or not.
Shalo is dressed in the regulation Jedi tunic and robes. Besides slightly rolling my eyes at the predictable credits problem, I take no overt actions yet, choosing to watch with my hands clasped in front of me.
The black and grey astromech droid (in mint condition…BTW) zips into the crowd of the bazaar the minute the lift stops…without a hint of acknowledgement to the others on the lift. BB does not make a sound, but makes his way through the crowds, internal audio recorder on and looking for a good bargain or other event of note…whats this, someone cannot pay his debts?…Interest level…7…monitor but do not involvement oneself.
OOC: Gather info +7, Perception +7. Knowledges
OOC: damnit, hit enter by accident…wanted to add: Knowledges (bureaucracy/galatic lore) +10…do I know this harch?
[BB]
The sleek astromech glides through the crowd, learning what he can. (“he”, right?) There’s evidently a great deal on shawarma at a Bith-staffed booth – BB files that away for his biological traveling companions. Also, as he processes the audio streams in realtime, he filters out a snippet that throws a flag: “…docking the Sybil’s Silence…”
BB is aware that Ravokk the Merchant Prince is the guy to go to on the Errant Venture if you need something obscure fast. The two have never met, and BB’s network of connections does not reach deeply into Ravokk’s.
[Tech]
Gather Info (13)
Perception (24)
Knowledge (Bureaucracy) (13)
Knowledge (Galactic Lore) (14)
Hiden Gosek stands tall, though is obviously shaking. He’s wearing cargo pants and a Hawaiian shirt two sizes too large in order to cover up his overly skinny frame. Today’s headpiece of choice is a cowboy hat.
“Well… uh… you see…” Hiden stutters, desperately trying to make eye contact with the Harch, but unable to. “That… uh… Trandoshan must have… uh… given me a bad… uh… credchip. If you… uh… let us have… uh… the catalyzer… uh… I’ll pay you… uh… double for it in… uh… less than a… uh… month.”
OOC: you probably want relevant skills. That would be Deception +8, Persuasion +8, with any penalties for being terrified of spiders.
[Hiden Gosek]
The harch… smiles. This is, by the way, terrifying. As he speaks, a pair of his “hands” rises from behind the crate and plays with a cat’s cradle made of silk.
“Hiden, Hiden. Ha! I like the way you haggle!” His laughing makes a slight scraping noise as his chitinous body parts bounce. “X3, please make sure this information *click* makes it to the… appropriate parties. An M706 catalyzer must be delivered to docking bay 18. *tik-tik-tik* Also, set in motion our debt recovery measures. Gosek will be paying us seven thousand credits in one month.”
All twelve eyes have a bit of a glimmer in them as he surveys the rest of the assembled group. “Now. *click-a* Is there any other business to discuss?”
[Tech]
Holy crap, dude.
Deception (23)
Persuasion (26)
Erska had nearly leapt off the cargo lift in joy, the openness of the landing-bay-turned-marketplace a relief compared to the relatively cramped quarters of the freighter. Now she stands next to Shalo, trying to be as calm and discreet as possible. Her pistols secure at her sides on her jeans and the muzzle of her rifle sticking out of the top of the backpack that tightly clung to the back of her jacket.
“Is this where I get to draw a weapon and threaten him to give it to us?” she whispers, leaning in to Shalo so only he hears, doing her best to not show her excitement at the thought. Of course it was a dumb and reckless idea, but all the best vids had it happen at some point.
“No, not yet. You must bait the spider before you spring the trap.”
[Shalo listens to the “deal” Hiden just received.]
“Perhaps you must also bait the trap before you run like hell. No, I believe we should keep a lower profile for the moment.”
Shalo’s hands are still clasped in front of him, but the world knows how fast a Jedi can draw a lightsaber anyway, right? Good. Just so they keep that in mind.
OOC: Would it get old if I frequently speak in fake “koans” like that guy from Mystery Men? Remember, I am reformed and straight-edge yet of only average intelligence: I may very well think this crap is deep.
Erska raised an eyebrow, giving Shalo a quick glance before turning back to Hiden and the…hark? What was it called again?
Eh, if he gave them something to do to earn the thingie Hiden needed, then the sooner they finished it, the sooner she could get back to her own quest.
With nothing else to provide at the moment, her eyes scan over the nearby crowd, her orange eyes moving around almost mechanically, making sure no unwanted attention was coming their way.
Tech
Perception +8
OOC: I would say often is alright…
[Erska Treyker]
Nobody seems to be paying any undue attention to Ravokk and his clientele – just another day on Blue Level.
She does notice BB and Siet a little bit aways. Neither one even glances at Ravokk’s alcove before scooting off down the bazaar. It takes Erska a moment before remembering that neither of them have to glance to see things.
[Tech]
Perception (17)
And… we’ve split the party. ;-P
PbP should handle this pretty well. I’ll let a little more Hiden/Erska/Shalo conference go on before writing up new post(s).
Siet Marr
Stepping out of the Ship, the Miraluka stretches, and adjusts the goggles around his eyes. The blindfold was more comfortable, but the standard goggles pilots used to keep starlight out of their eyes drew less attention.
Siet takes a moment to examine his few meager belongings. “Ok, first things first. Find a job, get money, get my ship back. No problem…” Taking a moment to observe his surroundings, the humanoid frowned. “Hmm. Too crowded. Hard to get a good fix on anything in here-” Siet’s internal monologue cut off as one creature stood out like a beacon among the rest of the creatures. “Ah, a jedi. There’s a promising lead. Trouble and credits always pop up when a lightsaber comes into play.”
Trying to blend in casually with the crowd, Siet sets off following the Jedi, keeping one hand on the rifle slung across his shoulder. You can never be too careful…
[tech]
Non-chalantly follow the Jedi. I guess that would be deception or stealth? +3 modifier either way.
[Siet Marr]
Amazingly, Siet almost loses the group. Despite how conspicuous the armed redhead, the Jedi, and the casual-Friday duros are, the crowd is pretty thick. As a result, when he does get them back in earshot and sensory range, Siet is fairly certain nobody’s going to associate him with them.
[Tech]
Perception (11)
Stealth (16)
Conflicted by relief, revulsion, fear, and the need to get money to pay off his debts, Hiden Gosek stumbles to choose his words. “Well… uh… no, we’re… uh… good. If there’s any… uh… thing that I… uh… I mean we can help you… uh… find… uh… we’d be willing to help… uh… for a… uh… price.”
[Hiden Gosek]
Ravokk laughs even harder this time. As he chitters up and down, the cat’s cradle springs apart.
“I could barely understand you through all that *pop-pop* stuttering. It sounded like you’re asking me for a job!” He looks back at X3 briefly, then returns his gaze to Hiden and the others. “Gosek, I’ll tell you what. *click* There’s someone on Black-16 who I owe a favor to. *tik-a* Tell Quida the rodian that Ravokk sent you. And bring friends; I don’t think it’s a small task.”
Ravokk looks over Hiden’s shoulder at a pair of nervous-looking zabrak standing next to Shalo and Erska. The pointed look seems to indicate that the meeting is over.
OOC: Ya know, it must have been totally subconscious, because I chose the harch with absolutely no current memory of Hiden’s “hates”.
Hiden Gosek bows his head and takes one step back before realizing he hasn’t set a price. “Of course as this settles your… uh… debt, I can only… uh… assume that this will… uh… settle mine.”
OOC: Persuasion +8
[Hiden Gosek]
“First, you must succeed, my skinny friend.” Ravokk’s chelicerae part as he, again, grins widely. It certainly seems that he is enjoying the interplay with Hiden.
[Tech]
Persuasion (14) – evidently enough to make him jovial, but not quite to get a definite “yes”.
BB makes a round about the crowded market, then attempts to find the others again. When he does, he rolls up next to Siet and says “The market’s computer has informed me the ship is here…you may not have another chance to reclaim it in the near future, I suggest action, immediately”
Siet Marr
The Miraluka stops as the Droid rolls up to him. “Here? Now? Show me.” Siet takes off after the droid. “If I get this thing back, I’ll make sure that you’ll get compensated for helping me.”
BB, acting as the eyes and ears of Siet, will try to find the arrivals/departures board and then casually guide Siet in that direction. BB is interested in how Siet will get it back right now, but is interested in meeting the latest owners…
OOC: Hoping my GI check helps me locate the ships dock….question is, how do we get it back, just a man and a droid?
OOC: Just a man and a droid, but the man has a very large gun.
After being well out of earshot of the Harch, Hiden says, “Mace H. Windu! I need to take a shower; I feel like I’ve got spiders crawling all over me. Well at least we have the catalyzer so the Centennial Sparrow can limp along. Well at least until it’s repossessed.”
Hiden’s sullen mood lifts and his jovial self reemerges. “Well lady, gentlemen, other, ready to try to get some interesting work. We could see if we can hear anything else and then see what Quida has to offer. BB, do you think you could find Quida while I take a moment to get spiders off my mind? BB? Where did that droid go? Hey, where’s Siet? Either of you see them wander off?”
OOC: Jesus H. Christ just seemed so out of genre.
“Yeah, uh, I saw both of them wandering off in…that direction just a short while ago.” Erska points out where she last spotted the duo. “They seemed to be heading somewhere with a purpose.” She gives a quick shrug of her shoulders, not having anything else to add.
And… Circle wipe from the center!
New scene will be up once the composite’s done.
OOC: So I think I’m gonna stop with the replies, at least for GM responses. Just normal comments from now on. It gets confusing. Like a big bowl. *waves hands around* wibbly… wobbly…
…timey wimey…
Heh, it occurs to me that you folks might be following this thread and not the blog itself – so in the tradition of the fine PbB GMs who inspired me,
Our adventure continues here!