Flashing lights through the shuttle's cockpit and noise that sounds suspisciously like non-stun blaster fire over the comm draw Jorm's attention away from the sensors for a moment. "Boarding party, what's your status? Repeat. What's your status?"
The shuttle gives up its secrets to Calsera - that is to say, it's clear, carrying only the four- er, three Imperials and what looks like the officer's luggage.
The unconscious shuttle crew are ferried aboard the Dagger, where Dutch keeps an eye on them as he attempts some self-first aid. The duct tape doesn't do the trick, although some bacta and "real" medical kits staunch the bleeding.
Aurelia takes one look at the shuttle's bridge and wants to scream. What was a simple matter of repairing the ionization and replacing some wiring is now 30-60 minutes of work before the shuttle is up and running.
Maybe not the way I would have handled it, but that's ol' Dutch for you...
Ganet sets about getting the ship ready for vamoosing. If the old dog got sliced up a bit, it's not Ganet's problem. Besides, Dutch gets antsy when people care about him.
Aurelia stares at the control panel is disbelief. Dutch...it's *always* Dutch. a *proper* pirate would have been clever enough to make sure the ship was taken intact...especially when the crew had already surrendured.
She moves her commlink up to her mouth, her voice even and very serious.
"We need to move her, now. That little escapade has fried most of the controls to this bird, and it's gonna take a long time to fix. Get us tractored somewhere...not here."
She vaugely waves to the rest of the boarding party. "In my room...box of parts...bring me *everything*". Not checking to see if they have the good since to obey the order, she starts prying out fried and dead circuitry.
Calsera returns from her self-guided tour of the ship in time to hear Aurelia respond to Jorm's second question. With nothing better to do, she might as well help Aurelia out.
"I'll get them," she says, heading for the mechanic's quarters. Hopefully, Jorm is on his way to assist their ace mechanic, as her own skills don't lean that way.
"Ganet, get back here as soon as you can. The ship is as stable as I can make her. Aurelia, I'm coming over to assist as soon as Ganet makes his way back here."
Time to hurry up and wait. Thinks Jorm as he keeps his eyes on the sensors and waits for Ganet.
Ganet transfers back to the Y-Wing, swapping with Jorm, who comes aboard as quickly as possible. He lets out a low whistle upon seeing the shuttle's bridge.
A gentle lurch signals that the Dagger has begun towing the Lambda out of the asteroid field and off the original Imperial flight path.
As for the three Imperials, Dutch sees that they are securely bound, kept in separate cargo compartments to limit communication, and free of any weapons - during the search, he found four maintenence tools that could become shivs as well as a holdout blaster. The officer gives off a funny vibe, however, even unconscious. Dutch gives the cargo crates a more detailed examination and finds that there are only two uniforms that match "Naval Lieutenant", and the stunned Imperial is wearing one of them. The rest of them appear to be clothing and insignia denoting an Imperial Moff - a huge catch, if it's true. And a catch that would have frequent status checks...
Twenty minutes... the shuttle isn't running yet. Twenty minutes turn into thirty and Aurelia manages to manually activate the power couplings, lighting up the Lambda's interior. Jorm's still working on the panels that were destroyed when he hotwires the communication circuits into working order and jumps back in shock, because there's an incoming message:
*... nearly an hour. Tau Leader, please respond. We are sending rescue parties to your location, ETA 5 minutes. Please transmit status if you are all right.*
Dutch hears one of the prisoners coming around in cargo container 2. There's a lot of muffled yelling and rumbling around.
Aurelia nearly trips over herself on her way up to the navicomputer. In five minutes, she can have it feeding data to the hyperdrive but there's no way to input coordinates - someone will have to plot the jump from the Dagger, put the coordinates on a datapad, run to the shuttle, and wire it right into the navicomp - and if there's any mistakes, who knows where the Lamda's going to end up...
Jorm removes his helmet as the airlock flashes green. He takes a deep breath, turns around and gets his first look at the shuttle..
"You did this...with hand weapons?"
*********************************
Jorm calls over the comm to Dutch, "Sir, we have uninvited guests on their way. ETA 5 minutes. With your permission I'd like to try and fake a status report to them."
(Edited by Aihal the Silent at 3:26 pm on Dec. 2, 2005)
"Guys, I know I usually bug you when I'm bored, but if I read this right, we've got a whole lot of Imps coming in and I kinda don't wanna shake hands with them, you dig?"
Quote: from admiralducksauce on 3:12 pm on Dec. 2, 2005
Dutch hears one of the prisoners coming around in cargo container 2. There's a lot of muffled yelling and rumbling around.
"All you're going to do is give yourself a bunch of bruises and sore hands. Knock it off, or I'm going to give you something to yell about." yells Dutch, slamming the outside of the container with a hydrospanner.
While the shuttle is being repaired, Calsera is making the space-walk back to the B-wing. Fortunately, Eritram is there already, so he can adjust if she misses.
Thus, she's safely strapped in her seat when the comm barks news of visitors. Looks like there's going to be another fight. Fortunately, this is the sort of thing Cat looks foward to.
"Well, Eritram, looks like we're in business again."
Keying the comm, Calsera purrs, "Dutch? You want the rest of us to go greet our new visitors?"
Aurelia gets up and runs out of the Lambda, making for the Dagger's bridge at full speed. When she passes Dutch, he hears her mumbling something about "trading him for a droid..." before she's turned a corner and gone, plowing into the copilots seat and trying to get a decent plot to somewhere safe.
"Surprise. That's an idea I can work with." Calsers nustles in close to an asteroid back in the direction where they first encountered to Lambda and it's escort.
Just in case, she'll plot in a course back to base, just in case Aurelia comes up with a(nother) miracle.
4 minutes, Jorm thinks, looking at his chronometer. Aurelia leaps to the astrogation computer and starts plotting a course. Her fingers move at blinding speed, keying shortcuts she'd added since her dangerous days running cargo for Gulgo the Hutt.
*Situation normal my swivel-chair-pampered buttocks! Tau Leader, where are your escorts? Why aren't they responding? And WHY are you broadcasting on an open channel?! Trasmit auth-codes and respond, over!*
The rumbling and banging continues despite Dutch's clattering hydrospanner. He can make out what the man's yelling since he's closer: "You bastards locked something in here with me! There's something in here! Get me out! Get me out! Help!!!"
3 minutes - Aurelia yanks the datapad free of the navicomp and starts her obstacle course back to the shuttle.
