Tatooine's Open Orbit

*The Dunamai blasted out of atmo far faster then a stock Gozanti cruiser should. It paused briefly and then blinked into hyperspace with a thunderous boom that had no place happening in the vacuum of space*

Several hours after having arrived and proceeded down towards the surface, the Geheim Masjien makes its way back into orbit, where it adjusts its course and then accelerates before winking from view, having entered hyperspace and begun its journey for the Thanium Worlds located west of the Tion Cluster.

In Orbit of the Planet Tatooine...


::Ladies and gentlemen of the galactic republic, today we have all made history. That is WE, not I. I have done nothing. I made a promise to end the corruption that has filled the Republic for generations. ::

A brief burst of static broke up the broadcast momentarily before re-stabilizing. The Supreme Chancellor, Standash Thul could be seen standing at a podium, addressing the screens and fellow members of the Republic. The entire crew was listening to the transmission being broadcast from Coruscant, some watching on monitor screens, others listening over the ship's intercom system. A few crew members could be heard making lewd remarks while gesturing at one of the display monitors, it couldn't be denied, the Chancellor was certainly young, if not the youngest in Republic history and she did sport a rather attractive figure. The snickering and gesturing took a backseat as the transmission signal came through clearly again.

::You shared my vision! One where the people of the republic can trust their leaders! Where they are united in that idea! *she takes the tiara off her head* As such, I am no longer just the Princess of Alderaan, so this doesn’t fit me anymore. You have given me leadership. This is a roll I accept! ::

The crew was riveted. The press had speculated all week about what the contents of the address would be. Some speculated that they were just giving a status update on the state of the Republic. Others suggested that there was a scandal between the Supreme Chancellor and some of the members of the Senate. One tabloid even went as far as to say that the Supreme Chancellor was going to announce the conception of her alien lovechild. None of these were really to be believed, but it had people watching and tuning in. Now that the address was being given, everyone was all ears.

::Corruption has taken over this body and it ends today! Genocide! By a member of this very body! And NOTHING happened to him. Lawlessness has become the tyrant of this republic, a tyrant in a war with justice.. A galaxy ruled by this tyrant is not something I can stand for any longer. Leaders run away and hide, vanish, are kidnapped! This has become the galaxy we live in! ::

Their ship was a modified CR-90, boasting a full array of long range communications equipment and detailed scanners. It was primarily a scout ship and had been assigned to the Corellian Run, a frequently traveled trade route. It had been travelling along the route for about 2 weeks now, currently though they were resting, drifting in orbit of Tatooine so that they could receive a clear signal for the address.


::But I have also seen something else… I have seen planets and people take up the slack of a headless state. I have seen men and women survive even though the ones that are supposed to lead them are ruled by injustice… I see a people ruling themselves and in the end surviving! The strength of the Republic is not in its history. It is not in its fleets. It is not in its structures. And the strength is not in Democracy… *She lets that heavy word sit in the silent hall* It is in its people. Those of you outside this building. It is for you that I do thing things I do. Because you deserve the best. ::


A few more lewd remarks could be heard from the two crewman in the room.


"Could you guys can it over there? We all get it." An annoyed voice broke the relative silence.


The voice came from a younger man, his brown medium length hair pressed down by the headset resting on his head. He sat at a console, buttons flashing and displays fluctuating. Piercing green eyes glared at the pair before returning to his console readings. He was half listening to the transmission now, rechecking the outputs before him. Everything looked good, no erratic energy signatures or fluctuations in the signal. As far as he was concerned, he had done a pretty good job getting the transmission this far away from Republic space. Bren Teryn had been with the Republic Navy for a few years now, serving as a communications officer; He had been recently transferred to the 'Occam' from another ship.

::In that light, I will be making a few orders tonight with the emergency powers voted to me. My predecessor was kidnapped and murdered. I hereby humbly request that the Jedi Order take over this investigation and getting justice, I officially turn it over in its entirety to you. Jedi Master Kel Al Raganella, is someone I trust, I would hope he would take it. The next order is much more important… *She pauses to recapture her thoughts* the problems of the Republic, as I have said, are dire. This is no news to me, this is not news to you. Drastic measures must be taken. We are all in agreement. I was elected, and I ran on one fact that we agreed on. I am the one with the courage to make things happen that need to happen. The one willing to make the hard choices. I have viewed the options on ending the injustice. There is only one. Tonight… The Republic dies. With the power you have granted me, I hereby dissolve the central government and collection of planets known as the Republic. What does this mean? All military forces, you are ordered home. If you wish to serve still, please I beg that you do, for your home planets.::

Standash Thul appeared to continue speaking on the view screen, her mouth was moving but Bren couldn't hear anything. Had he just heard that correctly? It sounded like the Supreme Chancellor had just... dissolved the Republic. As if to confirm what he had just heard, the two crewman gasped. As Bren watched the view screen he saw the Supreme Chancellor begin to leave the podium. If anything had been said after, he'd missed it. How could someone dissolve the Republic? Was that even possible? What did this mean? Interrupting his thoughts, he felt a firm hand on his shoulder. Looking up from his console he recognized the Captain, Vram Stolker. Vram was an older man, his gray hair could be seen beneath his cap. A weathered face and piercing blue eyes greeted Bren, a raspy but powerful voice following.

"Quick lad, Internal Channel to the ship, I need to brief the crew. Immediately!"

"Aye Aye Sir." Bren replied. He quickly made the appropriate adjustments to the control panels before him.

"You're live Sir." he stated.

"Occam, this is your Captain speaking. Our immediate orders are to return to our patrol base immediately." His hands trembled slightly as he paused. "You may have questions and concerns. Now is not the time to give in to fear, all of your questions will be addressed when we return to the patrol base. Prepare for Hyperspace travel in 5 minutes. This is the Captain."

An automated voice sounded throughout the ship. :: Prepare for Light speed travel. ETA 5 Minutes. ::

With that command, the old man hit the chair with his hand and headed back towards his seat in the cockpit. Bren's hands went back to the controls, flipping switches, initiating automatic countdowns. The calmness of the ship several minutes ago was now a hotbed of activity. Crewman rushed through the corridors. Alarms and sirens could be heard across the ship as in the hangar bay, ships were locked down and crew prepared the ship for light speed travel. The engines hummed to life as they went from idling to preflight burn. As the engines began their warmup sequence another automated voice sounded throughout the ship.

::Light speed travel initiating in 2 Minutes.::

A small screech could be heard from deeper within the ship. Bren turned his head slightly, listening. What was that noise? He'd heard something... but he couldn't place it. As he wracked his brain trying to recall where he'd heard that strange sound before, his thoughts were rudely interrupted by a loud high pitched whine as a bolt of cackling energy went soaring past his head into the bulkhead. A wounded shout could be heard further down the corridor. A blaster bolt? But... why would someone be firing inside the ship? Bren didn't have to wait for long to find out.

As the Captain reached to draw his blaster from where it was holstered on his hip, four men burst into the room, blasters leveled at the Captain and the crew.

"Ah, I wouldn't do that if you want to live old man." The man speaking was tall, his greasy and worn uniform identified him as a maintenance worker. The name tape on his coveralls read 'Krask'. He held a DH-17 in his hand, a smirk on his face. His dark hair fell across his face obscuring his right eye, with his left he stared at the Captain, daring him to make a move.

An automated voice broke the silence.

::Light speed travel initiating in 1 minute.::

One of the other men pointed his blaster at one of the pilots as the first man spoke again.

"If you would be so kind as to cancel the Captain's last order. I'll be taking charge now."

The pilot slowly moved his hands across the controls. Several chimes and alarms silenced and an audible drop in engine intensity could be heard inside the ship. The automated voice interrupted once more.

::Light speed Travel sequence disengaged.::

"You, open a channel to the ship. The rest of you, away from your consoles, over there, now."

The henchman closest to the Captain quickly reached in and disarmed him, tossing the blaster pistol to their leader. 'Krask' smiled as the Captain was led away with the pilots. Two of Krask’s henchmen remained.

"Hurry it up there, Teyrn is it?" He pointed the blaster at Bren.

Bren nodded as his hands moved across the control panel. He couldn’t' let this happen. He wasn't in a position to do much at the moment... but that could change. He pressed a couple of other buttons on the console. His eyes strayed to the black spot on the bulkhead. An idea struck him. Rapidly, he pressed a few more buttons on the console, hoping that the man with a blaster pointed at him hadn't suspected anything.

"Channel is open..."

Krask had a smug look on his face as he reached for the microphone.

"Hello, this is your new Captain, Denner Krask. There have been some recent developments and I will now be in control of this ship. As you have heard, the Republic has been dissolved. I give you two options, either you stay on board and serve me, or I jettison you into space in the escape pods, the choice is yours. If you stay, I can guarantee you work, if you go... who knows. Those of you who wish to stay, report to your stations. Those of you who do not, assemble in the hangar bay."

A high pitched whine could be heard building up somewhere on the ship.

"Do not attempt to overpower us, we are in control of the armory. Anyone attempting to resist will be killed and jettisoned into space...”

A large explosion rocked the ship. The floor plating shifted slightly and several audible alarms began going off. Lights on the console started blinking erratically.

"What the hell was that?!" yelled Krask as he pointed the blaster at Bren instinctively.

"I don't know... let me look..."

Bren's eyes scanned along the console, searching for what the cause of the explosion was. He already knew, but he couldn't let on.

"It looks like there was an electrical overload in a transformer in the aft section of the ship. The readout is pointing towards the Direct Access near the main reactor. I will have to manually bypass that circuit so that it doesn't cause another buildup, especially that close to the main reactor..."

He paused. He had tried to sell it... now to see if Krask took the bait.

Krask was noticeably agitated. He barked into the radio on his belt, demanding a status update from what Bren could only assume were more of his henchmen scattered about the ship. Several tense moments passed before Krask looked back at Bren. His eyes narrowed and his grip on the blaster tightened.

"Are you with us, or are you with them?" He asked, his eyes narrowing.

"I'm with you." replied Bren.

"Good, then hurry up and get that circuit bypassed. We don't have time to waste!"

Bren nodded and rose from his chair. As he headed out of the cockpit he heard a noise behind him. Looking back he saw Krask's other two henchmen following him. Apparently Krask hadn't /completely/ bought his pitch. No matter, Bren was fairly confident he could do what he needed to in order to delay their departure. Who knew where Krask was intent on taking them after he had full control of the ship.

The three arrived at the rear section of the ship, the reactor entry corridor before them. Bren paused a moment to examine the console outside of the doors. Just as he had intended, it had short circuited. Looking around he noticed a toolbox nearby. He retrieved it and began unmounting the panel beside the console, appearing to work. The guards Krask had sent with him weren't particularly paying attention. Bren went to work, bypassing the circuit. While doing so, he made sure to disable a few of the control circuits leading to the bridge. That would buy them some more time. As he continued, the henchmen’s radios squawked.

::They're loaded into the two escape pods, we'll still have 2 left. Ready to launch when you are Cap’ n.::

There was a pause after the transmission. Bren made sure he looked busy. It started to look like they were actually going to hold up their end of the demands, releasing those who wished to have no part in this. Krask's voice came over the radio.

::Very well, you know what to do. And override the alarm.::

It sounded like they were launching now. The good thing is that there would be extra pods left, perhaps he could make an escape at a later point.

His thoughts were interrupted as he felt a slight shudder in the ship as two of the pods were released. He let loose a small sigh of relief. Bren wondered how many of the crew stayed, who had taken part in the original mutiny? He knew there was a lot of fear and uncertainty due to the dissolution of the Republic but he didn't think anything this drastic would happen. His thoughts were once more interrupted as he heard two large blasts followed by a voice on the radio.

::It's done, those who no longer wished to be aboard have been... released.:: A small chuckle could be heard on the radio before it was silent again.

A chill went down Bren's spine. If what he'd heard... and felt were true, the mutiny had just resolved. All those people. It also meant that he was now the only loyal one left on board. On top of that, the men who had just killed those innocent people were now in command of a ship, a very powerful ship too. He couldn't live with that...

"Are you almost done then? We've got things to do." said one of the henchmen.

Bren had been lost in thought for a moment but now was his chance. He knew what he had to do, and it scared the hell out of him but he knew there was no other option, at least not one with a high chance of success. He had to do it now.

"Yeah, I'm almost done... Can you give me a hand here? I need you to hold this in place while I splice the cables here." Bren pointed at a coupling inside the bulkhead.

The closer of the two henchmen grunted and made his way over to the exposed cabling, one hand gripping the blaster. The other guard stepped closer, watching the two.

"Right there, if you can hold this coupling...”

The guard reached in with his left hand, grabbing the small bundle of cables. It was then that Bren made his move.

As the henchman's finger began to wrap around the power coupling electricity began coursing up his arm and into his body. His muscles convulsed, the already held tightly in his right hand discharging directly into the exposed bulkhead. The sound seemed to frighten all three of the men as sparks and flame jetted from the exposed cabling.

Bren let loose a shout as he backed away slightly from the man, on his knees. A look of shock and surprise was painted on his face. The second guard moved in, watching in shock as the first henchman's body jerked wildly, his hand still gripping the power coupling and holding down on the blaster's trigger causing blaster bolts to randomly go off into the ceiling, walls, and floor panels. The guard lowered his blaster and appeared to be getting ready to knock the henchman free. It was then that Bren propelled himself forward and upwards, aiming his shoulder at the man's stomach.


Bren had caught the man completely by surprise, the wind was expelled from his lungs as he slammed the guard into the wall. Bren struggled for the blaster, now fighting for control of the grip. His left hand had closed around the other man's tight grip, attempting to loosen it. A shot was fired from the blaster, this one setting loose another spray of sparks and flame as it hit the console next to the exposed bulkhead where the henchman's body had begun to stiffen on the floor. Smoke began to fill the small space, the smell of burning metal and circuitry beginning to form a toxic cloud.

The element of surprise was wearing off and the somewhat bulkier man was beginning to gain a stronger grip on the blaster, attempting to point it at Bren's midsection. In a desperate attempt, Bren pulled backwards, the blaster's barrel swinging around towards the man. As the two began to fall he squeezed as hard as he could, the blaster discharging one more time. This time, the bolt hit flesh, a sickeningly sweet smell immediately filling the small space atop the toxic cloud. The barrel had swung back towards the man and had discharged into his chest at point blank range.

A startled gasp escaped the man's lungs and his body slowly went limp as Bren was caught beneath him on the floor. There were alarms and chimes going off as the automatic ventilation system kicked on, attempting to purge the area of toxins. He needed to escape... and now. There was no time to process what had just happened, he just had to run.

Bren pushed the man's now limp body to the side, trying to hold his breath as he rose and went back to the now sparking and flaming exposed cable. He clumsily held the blaster, firing 3 quick bursts into the coupling. That should disable the engines... if not cause a larger failure. If his estimation was correct, he would have about 3 minutes before the reactor would be affected and the fail safes overloaded. If he could get to an escape pod, he may have a chance. Thankfully they weren't in deep space.

Bren coughed twice, forcing himself forward out of the small corridor. He made a run for it, passing through the cargo bay and into the main deck corridor. He passed the Deck Chief's office without even looking. It was a straight shot, all he would have to do is drop into one of the pods and pull the emergency launch control lever inside. As he approached the first pod on his left, he was noticed by a group of men at the end of the corridor. It didn't take them long to put together what was happening, Bren's disheveled appearance and bloodstained uniform confirmed their suspicions and began opening fire down the corridor at him.

The first few shots were wide, glancing off the walls of the corridor. Bren dove feet first into the entry way leading to the escape pod. As he landed in the pod, he reached up, immediately sealing the blast doors and initiating the short launch procedure. Above he heard pounding and what sounded like blasters. They were still trying to get to him. As the automated display counted down to launch, he began to realize just how bad his hands were hurting. He looked down to them, the burnt flesh melted and blood smeared on his palms and arms. His vision began to blur slightly as the pain crept upwards into his arms, his body fighting to stay conscious.

You need to strap yourself in... 

His hands numbly tried to grasp the straps but it was too late. The pod ejected from the ship, the engines vibrating as it broke free of the CR-90's hull. As the pod cleared its hold, a large explosion seemed to rock the entirety of space. Bren saw out of the viewport that the Occam's engines had been obliterated. The force of the blast rattled the escape pod, debris hitting the hull. A large jarring caused Bren to slam into the side of the pod, his head hitting the hard metal of the hull. The sight of the Occam, flaming and beginning to fall out of orbit were the last sight he had before the darkness consumed him.





To -> Dune Sea