The Azure Expanse

[Jedi Skyler]

Excellent... More goodies! 8)

[pwn-3d]

Beep beep... (flicker flicker)... tick tick pit pit pit pit...

Sub-channel frequency error...
Sub-channel frequency error...
Attempting to find a secondary device, please wait...
Sub-channel frequency error...
Found - Digicon 3X9832 - configuring...
Sub-channel frequency error...
done.

Transmitting...
_________________
Beep... tick tick tick (whirrrrrrl)... beep beep...

ISB - SecureBIOS v1528.21a, A Death Star Ally
Copyright (C) 15423-15425, ISB Technologies
ISB Extium(tm) at 133PHz
Mem Test: 250PB OK

Detecting Primary Lifeforms ...

[Edj]

So - and I don't want to sound anxious here by any means; I'm not, as you are all quite aware, the most mechanically inclined of our little posse - so I might be mistaken in my concern, but... and again, I hate to sound a little "on (ahem) edge"; however, I was just in the crew quarters folding one of the cap's whites on the new coffee table, and, well... it beeped. The coffee table that is.

Very quietly though.

Normally if a component of our timorous little "can-do" clay pidgeon makes an odd noise, I give it little thought. It's trying enough simply expecting our precious macrocosm steamer to shuffle from shady cargo bay A to unquestionably iniquitous deep space drop point B without expelling us to the vacuum. To ask it to do so without a few creaks, pops, and well-timed zings would simply be unwarranted.

But given the cold malevolence and nefarious insidiousness of the material from which we sculpted our discrete beverage plane, I must admit to some distress at even this tiny whisper of a "blip".

I recognize that this particular table is posessed of some highly unique qualities, and have until very recently been a vocal proponent of finding the means to extract and duplicate a great many of these. There are however, just these few other less unique qualities that are causing me some anxiety.

Of course I would never impune the astounding skills of our chitinous circuit-surgeon, who has assurred us that our glass-capped ottoman is impotent in it's abilities to project beyond the hull of our ship, but...

Anyhow, I was thinking that while we're docked, maybe we consider something in a nice walnut instead. Maybe cherrywood as the captain seems so fond? Nice finish, sturdy construction. Maybe some brass knobbly bits on the corners and a couple matching coasters?

What do you say? There's a guy with an auto-lathe a couple corridors down. Great stuff in the windows.

[Jedi Skyler]

[pwn-3d]

Subspace transciever error... no route to host
Acquiring channel 16288
Subspace transciever error... no route to host
Acquiring channel 16289
Subspace transciever error... no route to host
Acquiring channel 16290
Subspace transciever error... no route to host
Acquiring channel 16291
_________________
Beep... tick tick tick (whirrrrrrl)... beep beep...

ISB - SecureBIOS v1528.21a, A Death Star Ally
Copyright (C) 15423-15425, ISB Technologies
ISB Extium(tm) at 133PHz
Mem Test: 250PB OK

Detecting Primary Lifeforms ...

[Jedi Skyler]

Did someone inadvertantly leave a cup of hot caf on this table? Is that the problem?

[entropy]

Even stranger...

I happened to poke my head in earlier and noticed an unusual boot message on that Droid programming kit we have hooked up. It read:

[Jedi Skyler]

They were obiously looking for a good coffee table book to put out, but settled on a good coffee table instead...

This is really good stuff, guys! The kind of fun role playing SHOULD be!

Keep up the good work.

[K_Feldspar]

Officer Stygian sits silently at a large table in a rented apartment outside some quotidian metropolis studying several data pads. It is night outside, but a small bright lamp casts shadows across his grey workroom. A lissome blonde female human appears from one of the shadows. She speaks with a sweet voice and says to Stygian, “Sir, you will be ever so pleased to learn the shipment of weapons and the gang members have all gone missing.”

“What? Already?” Stygian looks concerned, but somewhat pleased at this development. “What resources did they lose? What happened to ‘cell leader’ Shrpa?”

Looking somewhat innocent, “Quite frankly Daneel we don’t know. Everything is gone. We found the location of a battle, but all we found were a few bits and pieces of the Y-wings.” She wanders over behind Stygian’s chair, and while rubbing his neck tries to look over his shoulder at a data pad.

“My dear, that feels quite nice. You know, though, that if you keep prying into business that isn’t your concern you will be liquidated.” Stygian clears his data pads, and looks around the room. The woman has blended back into the shadows. He calls after her, “You know the Green Droid Gang will be looking for you. They’ll want blood for losing all that.”

Her whisper emanating from no particular place in the room articulates certain recklessness, “I know. I’m looking forward to it. Not only will we be able to track those weapons back, but I can liquidate each cell as they hunt me down. I even left them hints!” Somehow you can hear her grin slyly in the shadows. There’s an exasperated sigh from Stygian, and then silence blankets his workroom again.

[entropy]

Star Wars: The Azure Expanse
Episode VII – Financing the Rebellion

After some discussion of the terms, the party talks it over, and decides to join up with this rebellion. Edj likes their bankroll, Drax is still more than a little upset that the Empire put him out of a job, Rika likes the opportunity to blow things up, and Rayne likes the idea of having his own fleet someday. After some more discussion, the party decides not to tell the rebellion about the coffee table (which Edj suggests we nickname “Starbuck”). Various officers are introduced, and the party is shown around the ship.

The captain, Helmut von Steuben, discusses the imperial supply run in the Sluis-van sector, and the party thinks that it would be a good target. Dern Nova, leader of the 203rd Thunder Marauders, introduces his crew, including an obsessive Sullustan sergeant named Juuto Soro. He also tells the party about a couple alternative jobs, picking up or dropping off some of his people for missions. In the docking bay they meet Orin Skyhammer, commander of Bolt Squadron, who shows off his fleet: four X-wings, two Y-wings, and a shuttle that have seen a lot of combat.

Before the tour can resume, an alarm sounds and an announcement says that a pirate fleet has just dropped out of hyperspace nearby. Pilots scramble to their ships, and Orin asks if the Gathering Storm wants to participate. Rayne says yes, and the party rushes back to their ship.

As Rayne takes off, Rika and Edj run to their turrets and Drax does a sensor scan. He reports 12 Y-wings and a modified light freighter at a distance of 55. Focusing the scanners on the freighter, he is unable to identify it, but recognizes the signatures of three laser cannons and a torpedo launcher. The ships are closing at a relative speed of 10. Rika growls a complaint about having to wait so long to shoot.

Edj and Drax manage to ionize the freighter before it gets into laser range. They then go to work on the Y-wings, which prove difficult to hit at long range. The Gathering Storm takes a few hits, but nothing gets through the hull. When Bolt squadron catches up, the battle turns quickly. At closer range, Rika slags a Y-wing every few seconds, while Edj and Drax manage to ionize a few. Bolt loses a Y-wing, but the pilot gets out fine and the rest of the pirates are destroyed or disabled. The whole battle is over in less than a minute.

The Thunder Marauders board and quickly subdue the crew of the freighter. The captain is knocked unconscious, and the rest of the crewmen are locked in their own brig. One pirate manages to get into an escape pod, but he is quickly scooped up as well. Once the ship is clear, the party docks and takes a look around. The pirates aren’t talking, so they search the ship. The cargo hold is full of Stormtrooper-One blaster rifles and gambling machines, quite the haul. Looking further, Edj finds a hidden compartment containing a credstick with 100,000 credits on it. As the rest of the crew is standing behind him, he reluctantly informs them.

Everyone heads back to the Nebulon-B, where the ships are repaired and the pirates are taken off for interrogation. Drax makes pictures of them all before they’re taken away. The goods are identified and appraised, and the party’s share is 300,000 credits, two astromechs, and two of the Y-wings. Drax also convinces one of the rebel techs to put the torpedo launcher onto the top turret on The Gathering Storm. Everyone prepares for the jump to intercept the Imperial convoy in the Sluis-von sector.

While traveling there, Drax fires up the probe droid yet again, and it immediately begins questioning him about the ship they are docked with. Drax inadvertently confirms that it is a Nebulon-B before he realizes what is going on, and turns the questioning around. He manages to get some information on all of the pirates they captured, including their leader, Shrpa Gihad, who has a 10,000-credit bounty. He also discovers that the droid knows its owners want it destroyed. Trying to play the good cop, Drax attempts to get information about the imperials and their capital ships in the sector. The droid asks for a number of things, most of which Drax says no to, but a for a few of the technical requests, he says he will talk to Zeek. He shuts the droid down before they arrive in the Sluis-van sector.

The Quote of the night has to go to a player rather than a character this time. Pete, playing Rayne, said "Oh, I get it, Starbuck... like the coffee" about 45 minutes after Edj made the comment about renaming the coffee table.

[entropy]

Well Edj, we made a good bit of money on this one. With some luck, we'll even survive the next battle so we can spend it. I'm looking at a nice used Mobquet Medium Cargo Hauler we could get. It's got plenty of room, plenty of hull, and with some modifications, it will have plenty of speed and firepower too. We can even turn one of the cargo holds into a docking bay for those two Y-wings. It might be a little snug, but I think our pilots can pull it off.

Speaking of firepower, you're getting to be pretty good with that ion cannon. After that incident with the autochef on the first night, I figured you couldn't be taught to use anything mechanical. But you came right around. Pretty soon you'll be telling the Wookie you're a better shot than her.

-Drax

[Jedi Skyler]

This is still a great read, guys! Keep it up!!!


(I'll take a double-tall mochaccino latte with a double shot of Bailey's, whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles to go!)

[Edj]

I assure you any appearance of skill in matters of particulate parlance is soley at the credit of the fine authors behind my rumpled copy of Starship Gunnery, the immeasurable talents of our temerarious sky captain, and of course the heavy ordnance artistry of both yourself and our brobdingnagian beauty.

That being said, it was some damn fine shooting wasn't it?

I must confess to feeling alittle skittish about the new can however. The Storm, for all it's many peculiarities has a certain... commesuate dissembly about it. The barge scratched in on the top of our shopping list seems a bit less anonymous.

If buy we must however (and in light of the possibilities, I expect we must), I know a guy on Dvorak that knows a guy whose brother-in-law can get us a great deal on enough Darth Boy Flat Black Deep Exterior Latex to make the Eye of the Hurricane a bit more macroscopically oblique.

I'd send the PO from the Storm, but Starbuck is still in there - looming... and I know it can hear us.

[Jedi Skyler]

I'd be interested in hooking up with your Darth Boy dealer...

[K_Feldspar]

Oh, dear players of The Azure Expanse behold I offer you a gift. Post your characters backstory, and I will award you between 2 and 7 character points for your it! The awarding of points is totally my decision, and it will require some creativity to get 6 or 7 points.

I will award more points still if I incorporate your backstories into the current story.