Fwurg

[Nathan Miodrass Asillion]

"Undoubtedly." Nathan replied to the captain. "So that leaves me with just two questions, before I can offer our assistance."

"The first is simple. How much is your employer paying you to develop this program? The second is one you are probably not going to like. I need to know which superpower your employer belongs to. I need to know because I can't very well aid a known enemy of the Union. I'm certain you can understand that."

Nathan looked the captain in the eye.

"That being said, I'm fairly sure we can arrange something. Regardless of your answer to the second question. Depending what your willing to do."

He quickly glanced to Ral, before looking back to the captain. Believing the male twi'lek wasn't a part of the captain's crew, Nathan hoped the captain would be able to catch on to his hint he could offer protection from their former employer should the captain be willing to defect.

[Storyteller (Brend)]

The captain looked at Nathan for a moment. "First. We weren't getting paid per se, we are building the program to calibrate our sensors. We are a group of nomads, looking to push the frontier of discovery and exploration. We dedicate our time to projects we deem useful for our journey. Since we are building it for our own uses, we do not have an employer.

However, if it turns out to be a marketable program, to whom and for what price we sell it is our business. What we make and discover should be used for good, not for oppression or violence."

He looked at both Jedi.

"With our program the Union could easily recalibrate its sensor network and catch these smugglers. I am willing to give the Union a copy of the program, under these three conditions:

One. The program is used for defensive purposes only on sensor networks and scanning vessels, it is not to be used for offensive purposes.

Two. You grant us permission to use the Bozzy Spine and travel through Union territories unhindered. We will of course abide by the laws of local Union worlds when we travel through their territories.

And three. The Union sends aid in the form of 500 and 500 to the United Moons of Tunuarana in 14 -8. They have hit upon hard times after an earthquake hit one of the moons and are in need of support."

((OOC: Getting the program for the Union means I will put time and effort into designing a sensor related non-offensive technology in collaboration with the two active players in this thread.))

[Ariana Danacia]

"I believe the Praetorian Empire and probably multiple other factions within the Union will be interested in this technology. The Sundarian Federation probably also want an upgrade on their monitoring stations...

I think using this program only for defensive purposes only is an acceptable condition.

I don't see any problem with granting your group access to the Bozzy Spine, the Union probably wants to know what vessels we are talking about, they might want to register the individual vessels and give the access individually. I don't think this should provide any problems.

Before I can convince the Union to send such a large amount of resources to the United Moons of Tunuarana we should visit the location. It is much easier for us to convince our people if we have seen the damage with our own eyes."

[Nathan Miodrass Asillion]

Nathan thought about the proposed deal. Unfortunately this was not is area of expertise, Dana had always been the economic one.

"I can agree to the first two conditions, but I don't have the authority to promise those amounts of goods. I can, however, relay your offer to the Union Senate. They can consider your offer and inform you of their decision. A deal with them would be a lot more solid then anything we could offer you anyway. If that's okay with you at least."

He had decided to just bump this deal up the chain of command.

[Storyteller (Brend)]

The captain looked the two over.

"That sounds reasonable.", he replies to both Ariana and Nathan.

"Once we see the first of the aid goods arrive we will trust your word as Jedi that the rest will also be delivered. We will travel to the United Moons ourselves in the coming month, so you will find us there. You will be able to contact us on this holomail address should you want to contact us before then.

Is there anything else you would like to discuss with us?"

((OOC: If there's nothing else I would like to fast-travel you to whereever you want to go next. (Please indicate destination in your next post if you're ready to travel on)))

[Nathan Miodrass Asillion]

"We would like our lightsabers back when we leave."

Taking the holomail address, Nathan added:

"I will contact you when the Senate has decided, but that could take a while. You know how politicians are.

That being said, captain. The people on this ship are lucky to have you to protect them. But should you ever need a safe haven, feel free to name-drop me with the Astrian Colonial Authority."

Nathan planned to take the proposal of the captain straight to the Senate, which was why he wanted to head to Unity ASAP.

((OOC: I'm ready to go.))

[Ariana Danacia]

"We will return to Unity as soon as possible. We will confirm the situation on the United Moons of Tunuarana using the news that is available and send observers to oversee the situation.

I hope to find time to personally travel to the United Moons myself and meet you there under less hostile circumstances."

Ariana greeted the captain and left the room. Before she boarded their little ship she waited for her lightsabers.

After receiving their weapons they started their journey back to Unity.

During the trip Ariana tried to find public news channels that reported about the earth quakes on the United Moons of Tunuarana.

((Check: 16 = 8 Force Level + 6 Reason + 2 Programming -- Looking for all the news she could find about the earthquakes on the United Moons of Tunuarana.))

[Storyteller (Brend)]

((OOC: Normally, I would not simply displace a ship with a Jedi in it. In this case I think Nebesnogo's inactivity justifies ignoring him.))

After the meeting the two Jedi were escorted back to their little ship, which was now situated in a hangar instead of attached to the maintenance airplock outside a hydroponics bay. As they arrive there, the small droids are already skittering in the ground near the ship's entrance. The are gently placing the Jedi's weapons a neat row on the ground, sorted on color.

After retrieving their weapons and boarding their vessel the Jedi were cleared for launch and quickly set on a course for home.

The moment they are back in contact with the civilian Union Holonet grid Ariana searches for news on the earthquakes. A few small articles mention the earthquakes. But with the United moons being a minor world outside of the Union, the news coverage was at the same time small and mostly based on rumours and hearsay.

Through her holonet connection to one of the nearby Jedi temples she finds some information on the moons themselves, seemingly from the journal of an exploring, and apparently slightly skeptical, ithorian Jedi:

The five inhabited moons of this system all orbit the gas giant Tunuarana. Tales from ancient times tell of lush grasslands and seas on the surfaces of the moons. But right now, the moons are unforgiving wastelands, dotted with small domed cities. The majority of the population of the moons is employed in metalworking, smithing and other primitive industries.

The United Moon Council, the governmental body of the United Moons of Tunuarana, consists of three representatives per moon, and is led by a democratically elected duke. Next to the government, the moons are home to a large number of religions, with new religions spawning every so often while old ones get forgotten. Most religions are nothing but scams, but once in a while, someone returns from the deep desert with wise words on their lips, and visions of the future.

A note with the short description told her that the minor world has repeatedly rejected offers to join the Union, citing religious reasons as the reason.

The larger part of their trip was uneventful with a short interruption due to a faulty coolant pump. Soon they found themselves landing on one of the pads of the Jedi Temple on Unity. Their course of action from here was up to the Jedi!

((OOC: This effectively suspends this thread for now. You can come back here at a later time to continue by travelling to the moons of Tunuarana, or to talk to a Jedi Master. If you do, please start your post with a [title] tag to indicate that it is a new part of the story.

I am not handing out rewards at this moment, since you only barely succeeded at a single objective. Rewards will be handed out after interaction with the senate and such.))

[Ariana Danacia]

After contacting Ardios Eldrilith and Lady Peinaili de Montrève Ariana looked for Nathan. She expected him to still be around the Jedi temple somewhere. It was only a day after they returned from their trip. Ariana contacted him through the holonet.

Nathan I have contacted the senators of the Praetorian Empire and the Sundarian Federation, they have both responded and are willing to support us in this matter. They believe the program could be an improvement for their monitoring stations. Have you contacted your faction to ask for their support? With these three factions we should have a good position in the senate to gain support for the plan.

The senators believe that granting the use of the Bozzy Spine requires support from the senate.

Will you meet me in the gardens of the Jedi Temple to discuss the matter?

Ariana left for the gardens of the Jedi Temple. In the gardens she sat down on a large rock where she started to meditate.

[Nathan Miodrass Asillion]

Nathan was in his quarters, a small room. To say it was furnished scarcely would be an understatement. A single locker stood at the end of the room in the far corner from the door. A small wooden box was on top of the locker. A futon and a small mat where rolled up in the other corner.

He had just finished stowing away his gear into the locker. He had gone over the mission in his mind. He closed the locker.

A wave of anger shot through him. As quickly as it had appeared it was gone again. But the damage was already done. The door of the locker was bent from the impact of his fist against it and it hung loose from it's hinges.

That was when he got Ariana's message.

"I'll be there in a few moments, ma'am."

He grabbed the box on top of the locker and the small mat, then put them back. He realised he would probably have more important things to do after the discussion then meditate and pray. Astrians usually valued pragmatism over sentiment, their military men where practical to the point of the neurotic. Nathan was no exception to that.

Arriving at the gardens, Nathan quickly found Ariana. As she was meditating he waited for her to start speaking, not wanting to disturb her.

[Ariana Danacia]

Noticing that Nathan had arrived Ariana gently opened her eyes. Seeing that Nathan was standing next to her she started to speak in a soft voice.

"Thanks for coming Nathan. As I said in my message the Sundarian Federation and Praetorian Empire are positive about the plan. I intend to head towards United Moons of Tunuarana in less than a week. The Sundarian senator said she wanted to meet the Nomads, however I don't think she intends to head to 14 -8. Maybe she can arrange for a small delegation of her people to represent her instead. I should be able to arrange a small delegation for the Praetorian Empire. Hopefully we can directly bring a small part of the goods with us, this would give us a strong position when we meet the Nomads again. What is the position of the Astrian Colonial Authority? "

[Nathan Miodrass Asillion]

"I haven't had the chance to contact them about it. But I can get the Astrian Travellers to help in the relief effort in any case.

I think the ACA will agree to support the access to the Bozzy Spine, but they will probably want a few conditions. Most likely that they need to have an escort and have filed a flightplan, as a precaution."

[Ariana Danacia]

"It is better to have the official opinion of the Astrian Colonial Authority. Can you confirm your expectations with them?

Will you join us on our journey to the United Moons of Tunuarana?"

[Ariana Danacia]

((OOC: I plan to continue this mission by sending the relief goods to the moons (provided by the Praetorian Empire and Sundarian Federation. The goods are joined by a small delegation of each of these factions.) Ariana Danacia and Darones Rei are joining the fleet on a Praetorian Cruiser.

1) I am assuming that Nebesnogo is not coming with us anymore?

2) Does Nathan want to join in this effort and follow to the mission to its end? I am fine with him coming with us.

3) Gerben wants to join in this mission with Darones Rei to replace Nebesnogo.))

[Storyteller (Brend)]

((OOC: To answer questions 1+2: Nebesnogo has participated the first part of the mission and will receive a reduced reward. Nathan has participated in the whole mission, and will get full for it.

Instead of doing player switches, I suggest that I open a follow-up mission for the visit to the Moons. Players that want to join in on the follow-up (with either a Jedi or Representative) can do so through the normal methods.

Agreed?))

[Ariana Danacia]

((OOC: I have no problem with finishing this mission and continuing in a new mission.))

[Storyteller (Brend)]

((OOC: Ok! In that case, the story page for this mission can be written. If this is done fast enough, Nathan's player can still look it over before the low activity period...

I'll open the relief effort mission next week.))

[Nathan Miodrass Asillion]

"I won't be joining you on the relief mission, ma'am. I have a few things I must consider before I go on my next mission."

Nathan replied to Ariana.

"But I will check with the ACA if they are willing to support allowing access to the Bozzy Spine.

Now if you'll excuse me, ma'am."

Nathan bowed to the jedi knight, before turning around and leaving.

[Storyteller (Brend)]

((OOC: With this clear signal from Nathan, I will open the follow-up mission today!

3-month period for reward claiming for this mission starts now (do not forget to link 'Related stories').))

[Ariana Danacia]

((OOC: I have written the story because obviously nobody else is going to do it.

Here is the Report. Please check and correct.))

Ariana reported to the Jedi Master and gave him their report of the mission so far.

"Here is our report."

[Storyteller (Brend)]

((OOC: I have tweaked the headers to generate a TOC. After Nathan checks and corrects or posts approval I'll hand out the rewards ASAHP.))

[Nathan Miodrass Asillion]

((OOC: Specified the mercenaries in the bar where actually the bar's staff. Otherwise it looks ok.))

[Storyteller (Brend)]

((OOC: Rewards handed out! +3 for Nathan and Ariana, +1 for Nebesnogo.))