Fwurg

[Mercury]

((OOC: Continued from Regime Change.))

Ariana and Ajava soon found themselves en-route to Ziost, plan yet to be discussed. They had the coordinates of the Mandalorian base there, but not much else in terms of intel. They should probably figure out how to get near the base without being detected. Simply landing next to it was bound to raise suspicion. From there, they'd probably be able to figure things out.

[Ariana Danacia]

"I fear that getting credentials to be able to land near or in the base will be just as hard as sneaking in. I believe the best option we have is a stealthy approach where we land near a small settlement or something and head for the base on foot.

We probably have to do some old school reconnaissance from there. We probably should have brought two pair of binoculars. Since we will pass by the Hiocan homeworld we can still buy some there when we resupply."

((OOC: Unless Shebi Ajava has a completely different plan I will buy 1 or 2 pairs of binoculars on our resupply stop on the Hiocan homeworld. (I am assuming that we travel through there sector, since we are heading towards mandalorian space.))

[Shebi Ajava]

"I agree. Though I fear that we won't find a lot of settlements where it would be logical for a spaceship to set down. I agree that we might need some binoculars, but make sure you buy two pair of generics and not something that is only sold in Union space."

"While you're doing that, I'll try to find out more information on Ziost from the Holonet. I would really love to know where the planet is... Or what it's climate is like."

((Check: 12 = 9 Force Level + 3 Reason -- Find information on Ziost on the Holonet (if possible through Jedi temple network)))

[Mercury]

Ariana easily managed to purchase good binoculars. The tourist shop at the space port sold them even, so she did not even have to set foot on land.

Ajava meanwhile learned that Ziost, a planet in Sector 5 -7, was rumoured to potentially be the home-world of the Sith, though reports disagreed, others suggesting other worlds as the original Sith homeworld. Regardless it was a world with a strong link to the Dark Side of the force. This was to their advantage, as they would likely be much harder to detect by other Jedi.

The world itself was arid, with many high, frozen mountains and temperatures as low as -50 C during the dark parts of the night. The atmosphere was breathable however. Taun-tauns might be a good mode of transportation at these low temperatures, and were available for purchase at the space port, as luck would have it. Their ship had room for two such creatures.

Alternatively, speeder bikes might be better suited for long distance travel as they were an order of magnitude faster, if more dependent on flatter terrain (meaning they'd need to spend more time planning routes and they might not be able to cross certain barriers, having to go around instead).

[Shebi Ajava]

((OOC: Your posts reads as if we are suddenly already landed on the planet in a space port... I'm kinda confused by this. As it doesn't really help your stealth if you just set down next to the tourist office.

So, some clarfication requests:

1. You refer to "the space port" a few times. This a space port in Hiocan space, right? (I ask because Ariana clearly stated that that is where she plans on getting the binoculars; and suddenly they offer Taun-Tauns for sale in a random Hiocan space port...)
2. I only now hear that the world is really very cold... I already checked that in my equipment post, where I stated "Ajava went back to the Jedi Temple to look up any information they had on Ziost. If the planet's environment requires special equipment to survive, [Ajava] makes sure to get that from quartermaster Nishra." I did not get any information there. Since I did not see any mention of additional gear in the reply, I assumed that everything was fine. Can I assume that Ajava's normal outfit is capable of withstanding the cold?

))

[Mercury]

((OOC: You guys specifically stated wanting to land at a space port in the Hiocan Society to buy binoculars, so I felt safe placing you there. Its not exactly a problem location... You may presume you have cold weather clothing - the area on the planet you're going is not as cold as the absolute minimum, but it is cold, expect temperatures around freezing. Thus, a warm coat and no miniskirts. Its not Hoth, but it is cold and there may be a little bit of snow.))

[Shebi Ajava]

"I would prefer the taun-tauns", Ajava stated to Ariana as she returned. "They'll offer us more flexibility and will most likely show up on less scanners due to being normal livign creatures instead of artificial machinery."

[Ariana Danacia]

"I agree, we could also leave those behind if it is absolutely necessary. I will buy the animals and meet you back here."

Ariana made sure they had 2 healthy taun-tauns in their cargo bay with enough food for two weeks and she bought an additional white cloak for herself.

((OOC: I believe we are ready to travel to our destination.))

[Shebi Ajava]

"Very well. I'll contact the Union intelligence, they might have some kind of map or other information on Ziost."

She then contacted the Jedi temple and asked them to route her connection to the Union Military intelligence office, so they knew that the call was legitimate: "This is Jedi knight Shebi Ajava, I am currently en-route to Ziost in 5 -7. Please relay any information you have on the planet."

Ajava copied whatever information, if it was only the knowledge that they had no information, to a datapad to read and share with Ariana while they were in-flight.

((OOC: Agreed! Ready to go and fly in steathiy to select the landing site.))

[Mercury]

After making their final purchases and a long flight through space, Ajava and Ariana arrived at their destination. The planet Zoist displayed on the main view screen as they stealthily approached the planet.

Based on the maps they had acquired and their ships scans of the planet, there was a large structure being actively operated exactly where intelligence had indicated: at the top of a large mountain. The area offered three obvious landing spots:

The easiest way was to land directly on the landing platform close by the building. This was guaranteed to get them detected, but it would mean they would need to do very little in the way of walking.

Further down the mountain was a small valley between two peaks - the area was treacherous, but it could be approached from behind the other mountain, ensuring their ship was unlikely to be discovered. The taun-taun's could muster the terrain and get them to the compound in 20 minutes, but it would be a dangerous climb, and if they had to flee, the way back down would be even more dangerous in flight.

Finally they could land at the foot of the mountain range, where they were sure not to be noticed, but they would need to travel quite far to reach their destination. The trip would be safe, it'd just take a long time, easily a day or two on the slower taun-tauns, presuming they took the short-cuts that these mounts made available.

Whatever route they took, their maps would ensure nobody would get lost.

[Shebi Ajava]

"I propose we take the long route. Our ship might be discovered by a patrol if we set it down in the valley. It'll take us a little longer to get there, but they won't be expecting two riders to get near them, while they might check for ships with a broad scan every once in a while..."

"What do you think?"

[Ariana Danacia]

"We can not afford to rush this and be detected before we completed our mission. We need to take some time to scout the base as well. Removing the Mandalor is not something that can be handled in a matter of hours anyway...

The long route it is."

Ariana landed the ship at the foot of the mountain range. After that she started packing rations and survival gear on the taun tauns.

[Shebi Ajava]

Ajava helped packing the gear on the taun-tauns and got ready to set out. During the trek, she uses the map to predict where guardposts and patrols would be, and made sure that they followed a route that would evade most of these predicted positions.

She plans on bringing them to within a two hours walk of the facility so they can set up a base camp of sorts. This will allow them to done one or two scouting trips before deciding on an approach.

((Check: 14 = 9 Force Level + 3 Reason + 1 Military Command + 1 Wilderness Survival -- Plotting route using knowledge of military and survival))

[Mercury]

Ariana and Ajava made their way through the terrain, the taun-taun's being most helpful in this. Ajava's route planning seemed successful as they did not encounter any patrols or guard posts. The track was uncomfortable, but not much happened beyond the occasional chattering teeth - if their species did such things to stay warm, especially when getting out of a tent in the morning. The taun-tauns by contrast seemed to enjoy the cold and did not have much difficulty.

Finally, after crossing a ridge, they caught sight of the base. It was a big castle-like construct of dark concrete and steel, standing out against the white background. Finding a quiet area between two ridges, the team set up camp. From here, they would be able to go on a patrol and scout out the area for alternative routes to the facility, or they could go in directly, either by the front gate which would require some stealth, or by climbing from the north side, which would require climbing skills - flying was possible too but limited due to the high winds.

Other possibilities were watching the road and air for traffic into and out of the castle, setting traps or digging tunnels, though really that last one would probably take forever and a little.

((OOC: You can do the above options or make up your own. Please do not post a list of "I do this, then this, then this, then this" for the sake of my sanity. Instead, choose to either do one thing together (provides a bonus), or split up and each do one thing. I will post results and then you can do more things if you wish (or perhaps there is a problem you need to deal with).))

[Shebi Ajava]

"Good. Let's split up and do some scouting. We'll spend this day on intelligence gathering, tomorrow we enter the base. We'll meet up back here tonight. I'll scout for other entrances and exits. Maybe they have an underground complex, and that would need ventilation. And possible fuel storage. If you can try and see if they have any exposed network circuitry or communications channels we might exploit them for jamming or misinformation.

We'll also connect through the telepathic ritual, that'll make it impossible for them to pick up our radio chatter, since we have none."

Ajava made sure her Taun-taun is settled in at their impromptu base camp before going through the telepathic ritual.

After the ritual is completed, she sets out on foot. Falling back on her special operatives training for a systematic sweep of the base's surroundings to look for hidden entrances and other weak points. She makes sure to take her time and spends a few hours trying spot patrol routes.

((Check: 17 = 9 Force Level + 4 Fitness + 3 Stealth + 1 Life Energy Manipulation -- Remaining unnoticed; supressing own life signs))
((Check: 15 = 9 Force Level + 4 Vision + 1 Wilderness Survival + 1 Tracking and Navigation -- Finding entrances, exits, other weakpoints and patrol routes))

[Ariana Danacia]

"I see what I can do about their communications. However I don't really think I can find a access-point to plug in on the outside of the walls. I will have to make due with wireless signals and observing their traffic."

Ariana joined Shebi Ajava in the ritual and after that she unpacked her datapad. She started to scan for communication channels. Furthermore she kept an eye on the road and sky for traffic from and to the base. She expected a base of this size to require supplies on a regular basis. The supplies had to come from somewhere... Furthermore after monitoring the communication channels for several hours Ariana looked for communication sources outside the castle that were more than just guards checking in.

((Check: 15 = 7 Force Level + 6 Reason + 2 Slicing -- Scanning for communication and cracking the security algorithms when necessary.))

[Mercury]

Ajava explored the surrounding countryside, looking for hidden entrances and other weak points.

At the back of the castle, she spotted a balcony that could be accessed by climbing the rock face. It'd not be easy, but from there they were basically smack damn in the middle of the enemy base, with easy access to everything. The front door also looked a bit more inviting when Ajava discovered a side path, leading to a sewage shaft. It'd be easier - if filthier - to get in that way and Ajava was reasonably sure the only watch there was a single security camera. The guards seemed to avoid going into the sewage pipe for inspections.

Finally, there was an air duct, which was only accessible by air, but which would offer a mostly unguarded entrance. It might be trapped though, and it'd require some cutting to open the grate. The flying part was the problematic bit, as they might be spotted during the flight.

Ariana meanwhile analysed the communications. She determined there were several guard patrols in the general area communicating with the base regularly, though the channel was encrypted, so she was unsure what was being said.

However, chatter -between- patrols seemed to be done on an unencrypted channel! It was mostly useless socializing. The guards were hunting local wildlife and were bragging about their catches, their dinner preparation skills and the size of their genitalia, to one another.

Beyond these patrols though, there did not seem to be much in the way of communications.

During her search, two ships contacted and landed, and one left. They were all small one or two-man vessels going in and coming out. None of them seemed like supply ships, though they could possibly be carrying a small amount of supplies each, like a bachelor going to the grocery store daily instead of getting everything on the weekend.

The night was cold and uneventful, but the next day would offer new opportunities to attempt searches and scans.

((OOC: Your plans take the better part of the day. After resting and eating, you may now take additional actions once more.))

[Shebi Ajava]

Back in the camp, Ajava first told Ariana about what she found. While the praetorian slept, Ajava meditated for an hour and spent the rest of the time going over the information they had gathered so far.

The next day she had a plan ready.

After once more going through the motions of the telepathic connection ritual, she proposed her plan.

"I think that it would be best of we try to scale the rock face to reach the balcony. I have some experience with natural rock climbing, and you have a natural advantage with heights. That route will give us the best access to the base, and is probably badly patrolled. The other option would be going in through the sewage pipe. I'd rather not."

[Ariana Danacia]

Ariana shared her information with Shebi Ajava. The guards were boring and the vessels that had dropped by seemed small and unimportant. Ariana joined Shebi Ajava in the telepathic ritual.

"It would be my pleasure to enter the base from such a height. However we would have to do it during the night and still have the possibility of being seen. We can not leave any survivors if they see us... How do you plan to proceed when we are inside? Do we kill all the guards on sight using our non-lightsaber weapons?"

[Shebi Ajava]

"I would prefer not getting spotted at all, at least until we know where and how to strike."

"If we do get spotted, a silent non-saber kill would be the best.. I brought my bow.. We can easily dispatch of the body and continue for a while. Based on what you say they don't really have a discipline of regular check-ins."

"Let's keep an eye on their radio chatter and do some light observation, and rest up today. We'll infiltrate tonight."

((Check: 13 = 9 Force Level + 4 Vision -- light observation using binocs))

((OOC: I was going to have Ajava suggest that Ariana stay outside while she takes a look inside. But in the interest of not splitting our already small party I've not done that -- It's not very Star Wars like to have the hacker in a van outside of the building while you're infiltrating and such.))

[Ariana Danacia]

"Roger that I will monitor the communication during the day and prepare for tonight."

Ariana monitored the communication and linked the communication channel to the earpiece of her communication device. This way she would be able to hear the chatter while they were infiltrating without having to actively use her datapad at that time.

((Check: 15 = 7 Force Level + 6 Reason + 2 Slicing -- Monitoring the communication of the soldiers and preparing a link to her communication device to be able to monitor them while they go in.))

[Shebi Ajava]

Before they went to do their thing, Ajava realized what they needed to do after they got in.

"Once we're inside, our first priority is getting you situated with access to their processing somewhere they won't find you. That way you can keep tabs on them while you feed me information on where we need a closer look. And you might be able to work the system to unlock doors and elevators while I move around."

[Ariana Danacia]

"When I have access to their systems I should be able to guide you through their base undetected. I think we have a plan. Let's do this."

[Mercury]

With the new ritual of telepathy set up, Ariana prepared the coms to get the information on patrols during their operations patched to her earpiece, easily managing to succeed in this. So far all news on patrols seemed quiet and uninteresting, indicating they had not yet been noticed.

Ajava meanwhile observed the proposed entryway, finding it to be quiet and allowing her to plan a route for the climb, something Ariana would not have to worry about.

Soon, night fell over the planet and Ajava and Ariana moved out, making their way to the cliff-side, Ajava starting her climb with Ariana remaining out of sight and in flight.

((OOC: I am pretty confident you want to make a climb check using Athletics, so I did this check on your behalf and you succeeded!))

Finally, Ajava managed to make her way onto the balcony, Ariana landing besides her.

Before them lay a large pair of doors, which they could easily open using the button placed there for this specific purpose.

Inside, they would need to be careful of patrols as well as visitors in the area, but they could not hear any such folks through the doors.

((OOC: I am pretty sure you will open the door, but so as not to force you to do so, while also not holding things up while you post "I open the door", I will provide information on the inside of the building here, which you will acquire upon entry))

The inside of the building was as castle-like as its exterior, and they did not seem to believe in central heating, making the castle almost as cold inside as it was outside.

The stones were sparsely decorated with markings in various places and statues devoted to either long dead gods or long dead hero's could be found in prominent locations. Though each door had a local system to open and close it, these weren't hooked up to a central system, and instead of elevators, there were staircases going up and down.

The air was filled with a droning chant, echoing through the halls, occasionally interrupted by screams of someone in pain.

From here they could try to find the source of the chanting, the source of the screaming, look for computer panels (unlike statues, these seemed to be sparse), enter some random rooms or look for a specific part of the building they might have in mind.

[Ariana Danacia]

Ariana waited for Shebi Ajava to make her move. She was ready to follow her but did not want to go first.

"This does not look like a high tech facility to me... You should scout ahead and keep an eye out for a computer console. I guess I will follow you and stay a short distance behind you. I am wondering what that chanting is."