"Yes... before that I would like to make certain that the ship is still in good condition, it would also give us an opportunity to discuss anything we have in common." Briar said trying her best to ignore the request that had just been made.

“Let us walk, then. I think you will find we have more in common, than not.” The Pantoran woman waves off one of her escort, and beckons the other to follow: “Logan, with me.”

Turning to Briar, she glances at the remaining stormtrooper. “He may accompany you, or remain, as you wish- so long as he knows how to behave.”

Leading the way toward the stairwell, Venlana continues making conversation. “It’s true. I see myself in you. I, too, crave order. It is why I helped design the end of Tyber Zann, a vicious man, impulsive and temperamental. He allowed those weaknesses in his character to influence his business decisions. I have worked too hard for the Consortium to let it flounder under such leadership. I expect a handsome return on my hard-won investments- and so should you. You deserve better than just what the Empire is paying you, Agent Ostell.”

Hale swings his Z-6 into a more comfortable position and follows Briar and the crazy lady. If she's taking her guards, he sure ain't gonna just let the Agent go by herself.

"Just a few more ticks and we can call it a day. This is going great. Nothing could possibly go wrong now."

The steps went silent and following a brief pause the door to the aft bay opens. A stormtrooper and a Zeltron suddenly find themselves in the focal point of stormtroopers standing in a loose half-circle, 2 of them pointing riot guns at them. Evon stands next to the squad leader with blaster drawn at the newcomers. He smiles at the Zeltron, but his voice is unmistakable. He is dead serious. ,,Sir, It's really kind of you to escort our friend here." Then he waves his blaster to the side. ,,Now, if you would step in..." - he nods his head to the trooper stationed at the door - ,,...we could solve this matter peacefully!"

His curiosity was indeed peaked, he most assuredly assumed something more than this exchange was now afoot, and this trooper was no doubt more than meets the eye. What he wasn't exactly prepared for though, was to be surrounded by troopers, a human agent or officer of some kind, and a bearded Zabrak, likely the most imposing figure in the room, holding a weapon he recognized almost immediately. Val's first thought was to attempt to save face, hit the door control and backpedal quickly and alert the guards.

Did he have time? Unlikely. His second thought was more a passing fantasy, but as his hand twitched on the Pommel of his Cutlass he thought about going at it against them all. Sword flashes out, whip immediately after, two steps forward, leap, slide. Crack! Whip singing through the air. Turn. Back handspring into butterfly twist. Slash-

Stop it. Stupid.

He chuckled. Lifted his hands up in front of himself in a submissive way. "The Empires reach certainly is... Ubiquitous.. no?" He said as he gave the most charming smile he could muster.

Evon is suprised only for a moment, but he quickly regains his wits. ,,Sergeant Luks, please escort this mendacious Zeltron into the hangar bay, so we are not disturbed by other personnel!"

The Inquisitor quickly goes back to the door and closes it behind the Zeltron and Luks. “Stormtrooper.” He says addressing Luks, “Have you identified the engines on this vessel?”

With the bay door closed, the imperials are left to establish their bona fides and plan their next move.

Outside, a short distance away, the two Weequay sentries part to allow Venlana and Briar to enter the stairwell with their guards. “I have a proposition for you. You will report it, of course, but accept it anyway. Your Bureau will want you to. This is a conversation for another time, however. In private.”

The landing on the main deck opens into the lounge, where a motley assortment of pirates indeed appears to be lounging about, though their weapons are close to hand. Weequay, Nikto, Barabel... to name a few of the species represented in the Sorority’s occupation crew. A quick count of heads reveals nine, with three more in the medbay abaft, en route to engineering. “Puiir, report.”

The lone Ugnaught in engineering straightens in response to Venlana’s approach. “All systems operating within acceptable parameters, Baroness! This ship is fully operational. I have spoken.”

Lieutenant Ral Somar sits quietly off the stern of the Intrepid and Renegades’ Blood; for surely the light cruiser parked beneath the destroyer is the Pirate Queen’s own? The Phantom is equipped with state-of-the-art sensors, unprecedented in the TIE series, but scanning the ship would disrupt the stealth tech- and he suspects the transponder would show as something innocuous, in any case...

These thoughts are interrupted by a brief flash from the cruiser, but the unsettling sensation of something climbing up his leg prevents him from following up on his observation. And there are others, pinching at his flightsuit, scuttling toward his helmet. A bright red photoreceptor flashes on... no, three... four, at least!!

“Well there you have it, Briar- I may call you Briar? He has spoken.” Agent Ostell is not at all certain the Ugnaught’s words should be regarded differently than those of any other pirate, regardless of the finality with which they are spoken. Still, though she is no engineer, there does not seem to be anything obviously amiss here.

”Call me Venlana, if it pleases you to do so. We need not stand on ceremony. Should you desire to continue the tour, onward and upward, to the bridge?”

As the tour passes back through the lounge, a Klatooinian shoves the haft of his vibroaxe at Hale’s ankles, an obvious provocation intended to trip the trooper. “Watch yer step, Imp. Move along, an’ keep yer bucket shut.”

Hale deliberately steps neatly on the ax haft, pressing down hard and nearly shoving it out of the guards hands, walking nonchalantly forward as if nothing had happened, but wincing slightly because he twisted his ankle ever so slightly.

Lieutenant Somar reacts quickly. The same reflexes that serve him so well in the cockpit, help him to roll out of it with equal grace. Tumbling back into the space usually occupied by the Inquisitor, he thinks he may have scraped off a couple, but the ones still on him are scrabbling desperately for purchase. Sparks fly as they try to subdue the pilot, but their shock prods have little effect. More concerning is their pincers, which Ral fears may have compromised the integrity of his flight suit!

Back in the Intrepid’s lounge, the pirates seem to accept the stormtrooper’s stoic refusal to take the bait as a victory, but nothing further comes of it. The professional soldier follows his charge up the stairwell, knowing he has made the right call, regardless of what he may have wished to do.

Briar suppressed a slight tinged of self-consciousness at hearing her first name, it had been so long since she had heard it used in a professional setting responding to Ostell or Agent had become second nature. "You may call me Briar, if you wish, Venlana." she replied "I must say the ship is in far better condition than I was expecting for having been taken over by pirates." No signs of a fight, and the ship is actually in good condition. Very impressive to take this ship so quickly and easily then hearing the Klatooinian speak Briar looked back in time to see Hale stepping over the vibroax's haft, she let out a slight sigh of relief at Hale's lack of response to the provocation, That could have gone badly. "Yes," Briar said in response to Venlana's question "let us continue to the bridge. If it is in as good condition as the lounge we should have no problems completing our deal."

After the aft bay door closes, Evon waves the soldiers to stand down. He not so subtly prods the Zeltron: ,,Nice to meet you, Agent..? I won't bother you asking what are you doing here, it's probably classified anyway. Just make sure you don't interfere with our business. We can't let the pirates get away with the hostage girl or the Intrepid.

Now, if you have any intel on the pirates, it would be a great time to present it.

"GGAAAHH!" Somar screams as the red sensors meet his gaze. As the scurrying droids press their attack, he gracelessly falls out of the crash seat and into a tucked away corner. He draws his vibroblade in a desperate attempt to beat them off. His strike misses, but the panicked flailing provides enough momentum to make things more difficult for the droids. How did these things get in here?!

The little seeker droids scramble back onto the pilot, as quickly as he shakes them off. This time one manages to slip a prod into a breach in his flight suit, delivering a startling jolt for an attacker of such modest proportions.

"Ah, the pleasure is mine, friend." He said with his signature smile, grabbing the mans face and kissing his cheek dramatically. "It's Kaan." he released and stepped past the man, looking around ponderously, taking in the surroundings and making note of the personnel.

"Val Kaan." he finished, turning back to the human, his hands smoothing down his silken attire. "I'm looking to bed a Queen, of course." he said with a laugh. "The Baroness is my way in. Which is why I would advise appeasing her to an extent, she might be the only reliable way to that end. But if your friend here is what I assume he is then... that may be his uh... what do you humans call it... prerogative, no?"

"The ship itself now crawls with good for nothing pirates, more than a dozen, plus her own guards. A few down here, more up there." He says pointing up. "Outside this bay there is a stairwell. I can lead the way, perhaps give you the element of surprise if your still intent on taking the ship by force. if so, I will support you and let my own objective evolve however it must. But decide quickly."

Val looked at each of them expectantly. He knew a taskforce had been operating in the area, but hadn't expected to get tangled up with them so soon. Still, he would do what he did best, roll with it, wherever the dice may land.

Den would chuckle as he shakes himself free of the zeltron's grip. Rummaging through the front of his armour he eventually is able to dislodge his knife, surprisingly without cutting himself open. Twirling it through his fingers he moves to grab Val by the arm and begin to lead him away. "Sure thing boss, but can we wind back the long words a bit from you two?"

Turning to face the inquisitor he straightens up a little, half to attention. "Not yet bo-, sir, but I will do. It won't take long, these ships all follow a similar design plan. From there I can do whatever damage needs doing".

As it is revealed that Val is one of them, Den lets go quickly and takes a step back. Just how many agents were there now? At Val's suggestion Den pipes up, "it could help to have one of them get us to the engines, maybe even the gun batteries".

As the situation gets more and more complicated Evon turns to Drogos. ,,Sir, what do you think would be the best course of action now?"

Drogos thinks but knowing he does not have the full set of information he doesn't answer Evon but instead looks to the Stormtrooper who just joined them, asks Luks, "Stormtrooper, is the Shuttle with half the crew still placed within the effective range of this ship's arsenal?"

Val listens for a moment, stroking his jawline in thought. His brow furrowed slightly, surprised by the indecision.

"Agent... Ostell? Is currently negotiating with the Baroness, as I'm sure you're aware. However, if this exchange should fail, if it does not go through as expected..."

He paused thoughtfully.

"I have reason to believe the Pirate Queen's reaction will be immediate and forceful."

The droids continue to advance. Desperately, Somar reaches for something, anything, to stop them. His hand make purchase on a low hanging wire under the navicomputer panel. With a quick yank, he pulls it free and jams it into the side of the nearest target. The electric arc is strong enough to disable two of the attackers, however, being in contact with them causes the surge to hit him. Luckily his flight suit spares him most of the brunt.. He's taken stun bolts before, but this is a new kind of pain...

2 hours ago, CloudyLemonade92 said:

Val listens for a moment, stroking his jawline in thought. His brow furrowed slightly, surprised by the indecision.

"Agent... Ostell? Is currently negotiating with the Baroness, as I'm sure you're aware. However, if this exchange should fail, if it does not go through as expected..."

He paused thoughtfully.

"I have reason to believe the Pirate Queen's reaction will be immediate and forceful."

"Is the Shuttle out of harms way? We are not appraised to the situation like the Agent." Drogos looks directly at Val

“Bzzzzzzt!!” One of the three remaining seeker droids zaps the unlucky pilot again, sending a jolt through him. All TIE pilots know they may well meet their end in the cockpit one day, but Ral fervently hopes his end is not so ignominious as this!