Veering Off Course

Part I

With some time to kill on Ord Mantell before the ship repairs would be complete, the group started off with some personal business by fencing their loot and resupplying themselves. Afterwards Jet and Nexu went to Doja's Cantina while Cerberus worked on the ship. Jet gets in a conversation with two infochants at the bar who knew Cai Delmont, the smugglers who the group killed and returned his ship to Doja. Unfortunately for Jet, it seems these two infochants not only knew Cai, but were his friends, which put the smooth talking Jet at a disadvantage throughout the conversation. Worse yet, it seems the especially well informed brokers knew of Jet's past dealings with Drox The Hutt, a cousin of Doja's. Though he discovers that Doja is always looking for more pirates to occupy the region, he decides to end the conversation before it turns south.

Nexu meanwhile, takes the blunt approach to searching for her long lost lover, Boskone, and approaches pirate crews at random to demand information. Surprisingly, it works and one such crew tells Nexu that they did mutual work with Boskone for a man named Quin Reed near Rodia approximately 3 years ago. He hasn't seen Boskone since, but Quin runs his business off of an Imperial planet, Denon.

Though Jet attempts to get work from Raena, she does not appear to trust the crew yet and puts off any offer of work. In the meantime, Nexu is pushing the group to go to Denon, though it is far outside of their assigned territory, claiming that she has a contact on an Imperial planet that may be of help. Though Jet and Cerberus suspect she has other motives, Jet is eager to get off world, and Cerberus would sooner explore an Imperial planet than take work for a Hutt.

The group departs for Denon, once the ship is repaired, and makes the week long trip in uneventful and good time. They have little trouble gaining public access to the bustling planet, a planet covering metropolis that draws comparisons to Coruscant. The group docks in the busy government district and sets off to find Quin Reed, with no other information besides his name. They find Denon to be an inhospitable place for aliens, and quickly make for the outskirts of the city-planet hoping to have more luck.

Once in the slums of Denon, they split up in search of leads on Quin Reed. Jet has minimal luck talking to a Rodian smuggler in a nightclub, while Nexu finds an unhelpful Gand whom she decides to kill for his lack of manners. The bar fight nearly gets her shot by the bartender, and she doesn't leave the knife fight unscathed, but she kills the Gand and leaves the bar with no new information and covered in both of their blood. Cerberus reports that he found a spaceport nearby and suggests checking it out.

The three go to the cantina attached to the spaceport, where Jet is able to strike up a conversation with a pirate crew who appears to know Quin Reed, though they are reluctant, almost afraid, to give up much info. Nexu eavesdrops on their conversation, before deciding to sneak behind the bar and into the docking bays, but is caught by the bartender. Deciding there must be a backdoor, Nexu goes through an ally and breaks into the docking bay's garage door. Inside, she finds several ships as well as mechanics, guards, and other docking bay staff. She immediately begins questioning the staff on the whereabouts of Quin Reed, but the ruckus the causes only serves to get her thrown out by the guards. Once the bartender sees Nexu again trying to get into the docking bay, it takes Jet stepping in to keep Nexu from being turned over to an Imperial Garrison. Cerberus meanwhile hasn't been seen, but may also have successfully entered the docking bay unnoticed.

Experience Awarded: 20

Part II

After being kicked out of the bar, for a second time in Nexu's case, Jet and Nexu decided to go around back and climb the building to gain access to the smuggler's ship. Though they were seen scaling the building, they successfully made it on top of the docking bay without being stopped. They were able to lock the docking bay doors, before ascending down into the catwalk through an access port on the roof. Though tensions are high between Jet and Nexu and the smuggler's they're attempting to get information out of, Nexu strikes a deal to pay the smugglers for Quin Reed's location, the deal though was for more money than the group had. Luckily for Nexu, Jet stepped in to finish the negotiations, and through clever use of The Force was able to convince the captain of the smuggler crew, Skaara Daneb a Rodian, to accept a deal of 1000 credits now, and 1500 credits in 2 days time. Of course Jet never intended to pay that debt.

With their new info they had to head back into The Imperial District, to meet Quin Reed at a diner that he was known to conduct business out of. They rented an air speeder for Cerberus to hide out in while the meeting took place, and serve as backup if needed. Nexu and Jet eat a meal in the diner while trying to convince the staff to grant their unannounced meeting with Quin, when Nexu tells them to inform Quin it concerns Boskone, their request is granted. Though Quin operates out of the backroom of the diner, surrounded by muscle, the arms dealer is surprising relaxed and forthright. He tells Nexu that Boskone came to him 9 months ago, in need of a ship, and that he sent him to another one of his contacts to get it. He hasn't seen him since, and is hardly willing to give them the same info. He eventually agrees that if they do him a favor, he'll do them one.

The group is tasked with picking up a package that is to be dropped off an Imperial Supply Convoy on the planet, once they make that pickup they will be given a location to deliver it to. Once they make the drop, Quin will give them the contact he gave to Boskone.

The group rents another air speeder, this time a larger more luxurious one, to take into an industrial district of the planet where the buildings are more spaced out and where the drop will be made. They drop Cerberus on the roof as a sniper and scout, while they hide down on the road level. Cerberus gives the group the go ahead to pick up the package and they swoop in, with Nexu driving. Jet struggles to lift the package, but does get it loaded in the air speeder, but not before several scouts in The Imperial Convoy notice them. A chase ensues as the group loops back to pickup Cerberus from the roof, exchanging gunfire with the pursuing speeder bikes. The first two pursuers were killed as Cerberus jumped aboard the air speeder, however another chase broke out as two more speeders and an armored transport followed behind. There was a protracted gunfight and chase, fortunately their head start was enough for them to reach the ship before armored transport could overtake them. They made an exchange of the box while in the air, jumping from their speeder to the ship while being fired at by the Imperial transport, once loaded on the ship they started their escape but were still in the atmosphere when more pursuit started...

Obligation: +5 Shared Between Nexu and Jet to Skaara Daneb and his smuggler crew.

Experience Awarded: 20

Part III

As they load the cargo onto their ship and make their exit through the atmosphere of Denon, the Dirge is pursued by Imperial TIE Fighters. A chase and shootout follows, all the while the crew keeps an eye on the Imperial Fleet, including an interdictor cruiser, in high orbit around the planet. Thanks to both the gunners and pilot the crew escapes the planet, but not without suffering significant damage to their ship first. Once off world, Quin tells the group to head to Mygeeto and to drop the crate to a man named Rosh, a male Twi'lek. During the 1.5 week trip to Mygeeto, Jet contemplates his recent encounters with The Force, including the realization that Nexu is force-sensitive.

When the group arrives a Mygeeto, an Imperial Ice-Planet with an enslaved population, as well as home to the Intergalactic Banking Clan they discover a need for a passcode to land in the capital, Jygat. Without a code, the ship breaks off and is once again pursued by TIE Fighters, once again the ship takes damage but destroys those in pursuit. (Confirm with Brian: 8 Hull Damage and 3 Criticals?) They lose the Imperials, and find a hiding place in the ice, where they contact Rosh. They are unable to convince Rosh to retrieve the crate outside the city, but are given a spaceport they can purchase access to. They agree to the Banking Clan's steep price and land at the spaceport.

Nexu makes a hurried drop to Rosh at the loading dock, a tense exchange that features Rosh telling Quin to never send this crew again; but Nexu gets the info she is after. Quin tells her to find Janos Holgor on the planet Sernpidal, to continue her search for Boskone. Meanwhile, Jet is forced to pay a reduced sum for a short stay at the spaceport, that still turns out to be a trap as Imperial Stormtroopers soon make their move on the ship. Though Jet at first wants to leave Nexu, Cerberus holds off the Imperials long enough for Nexu to make it back to the ship just as Jet blows a hole through the spaceport door for them to make their escape. They exit the spaceport, but are still in the atmosphere of the Imperial world...

Experience Awarded: 20