EliteCommander

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei was in agreement with Darahil. So as long as she had the additional magical power from other mages, she was confident that she could maintain her portal as long as would be necessary. "Very well. Once we are done here, I would like for you to take me to the mages who can assist me. I need to demonstrate exactly how they should contribute their magicka to the portal."

Ahnasha at least partially understood Sabine's explanation. Certainly, it did seem like there was a reason that shapeshifting was not terribly widespread. It was something of an esoteric form of magic. It was unfortunate that she could not utilize it for this mission, but she would be able to obscure herself perfectly well with invisibility, or even simple foliage. As for the matter of communicating, she had an answer, but was not completely certain if it would help. "Communicating at a distance? Well, yes, technically. Have you read The Doors of Oblivion? Its accounting of the concepts of conjuration are correct. One of the foundations of conjuration is to connect your mind to your thrall so that you can exert your will on it. For most conjurers, that connection is nothing too strong or complicated. It doesn't need to be. A master, though, can use telepathy much more directly. I just don't know if we can use that here, in this case. It might depend on how much conjuration knowledge you have gained over the years. I could probably send you my thoughts, but you would need more than just basic conjuration knowledge for me to get anything from you."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha gave a single nod to Sabine. "Then I agree. I guess you should have as many of these enchanted as you can, Darahil. We are probably going to want to carry out this plan as soon as we are able."

As much as she was dreading this mission, Meesei was in agreement. After a long breath, she also gave her approval. "We will need to make sure to make our move before our enemy re-locates. The rest of us will wait with Ri'vashi's warriors as close as we safely can without triggering their detection enchantments. With luck, there will not be any trouble, but if there is, the automatons will hopefully buy us enough time to reinforce you. My role shall be to create a portal for our escape. Darahil, I will require some assistance, either more mages or welkynd stones, for my portal. It will need to be larger, and sustained for longer than usual."

While Meesei was discussing the details with Darahil, Ahnasha did the same with Sabine. "Okay, so we have our plan. Your most important job will obviously be to call in the machines if there is trouble. But, we will need to make the best use of the resources we have. I know you have your shapeshifting magic, which will definitely be helpful. I also noticed that, unlike our transformations, you don't turn back naked. How does that...work exactly? Would you be able to carry that control rod with you freely, or would have to stay in your Human form the whole time? It would be very helpful for you to be able to watch over the camp from above and help guide me. Of course, that would also hinge on us finding some way to communicate discretely."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Unfortunately, it seemed that at least some of the indecision among the pack had not gone away, though it was quite understandable. But, now was the time for them to definitively make that decision. Ahnasha put her eyes on Sabine, looking quite serious, and perhaps somewhat worried. "My biggest thought is that, if we're doing this, I want it to work. I don't want to go through all of this risk for nothing. I am comfortable going in with the automatons, but only if you are too, Sabine. The automatons won't be quite as quick to react as the undead, so it will be on you to call them in at the right time. If you do it too early, or when I am in the wrong position, it could end badly. But, if you are confident in your judgment, they are the best option. Can you do it?"

Meesei was not going to make the decision for Ahnasha and Sabine, but she was going to make sure to try to ask the right questions to make sure they had all of the necessary information. "Darahil, aside from the enchantment's limitations, can you say with confidence that the enchantment is reliable at its function. Has it ever stopped working prematurely, or do you think it has been tested sufficiently to say that it is reliable within the limitations you have described?"

Star Wars - Lawless Galaxy

Sirka and Boqo collab

Circumtore

Orbit

Boqo looked back at his bodyguard. "Don't worry about it, as long as you keep me alive on the ground, I keep us alive when we aren't." He said, confidence shining through. He knew how to handle himself in space, he just needed Sirka for the times he wasn't.

He pressed a button on his dashboard, opening a channel with the planetoid. "This is the Rapier from the Golden Exchange. We have a gift for the great Timana." He learned from Koren that Hutts like to get stuff, especially when the people giving them are praising the slugs. There was some alien-languaged muttering on the other side before a very bad basic-speaking person on the other end told them they were cleared for landing.

Circumtore

Surface

The Rapier landed in the apprioprate bay, slow and steady. They didn't want to come over too hasty. It did land with it's face towards the exit, which was a small but useful thing about the Scout Courier: Their entrances were at the back of the ship, meaning they would faster be ready to fly out again. Boqo pressed a few buttons on his dashboard before a hatch opened and revealed his DH-17, which he picked up and put in his holster on his belt. He stood up from his pilot seat and looked back at Sirka. "Let's just forget what just happened and focus on the mission, okay?" He said, referring to the awkward moments from earlier.

Sirka gave a brief nod. "Don't worry, I'm a professional. Besides, I'm not keen on dying either." She replied as she stepped back on to the lift just behind the cockpit. Again, they had to go back down separately, unless Boqo wanted to be crushed into the wall.

Although she had not seen the package being loaded, Sirka did not have trouble following its scent to the cargo hold, nor was it a challenge for her to pick out exactly which of the containers in the hold contained the body. Now that she was closer, she could discern a bit more information about the package. It was a fairly fresh kill. At least, the obvious signs of rot had not yet set in. That meant that either their package's death had been planned well a head of time, or this delivery job itself had been planned this very day. That would, perhaps, explain why she had been hired to begin with, as Koren may not have had any of his usual security hires on hand for the job.

Regardless, Sirka went ahead and picked up the container holding their package as Boqo was coming down the lift. Unlike the droids, Sirka was able to hoist it up onto one shoulder seemingly without effort, using one arm to keep it stable and balanced. With her other arm, she grabbed her repeater off of her back and held it from the top, which she felt struck a balance between being ready for a fight, and not being overtly threatening towards any of the security staff. Ultimately, the best outcome would be if she could keep a fight from breaking out at all, even if it meant less hazard pay. "Okay, you lead the way, and I'll keep close next to you."

When Boqo came down and saw Sirka already carrying the package, he was pleasantly surprised Koren gave him such a physicly strong bodyguard. As they unloaded, the two of them made their ways through the slums to the establishment of Timana, which wasn't far from the landing pad. Security first wanted to stop the saurian, but after explaining they were needed to carry the gift to Timana, they let them both through. They did seem a bit on guard with the big bodyguard next to him, but most of them were thinking they were just for the heavy lifting anyway. Boqo actually felt a bit safer now. Once they passed all the security, which didn't dare to come close to the gift for the Hutt or the person carrying it, they finally reached Timana's room, where the big slug himself was sitting facing the doorway.

Although she did not make it outwardly obvious, Sirka was constantly on-guard for every step they took through the city. Every few seconds, she would flick out her nose-tongues and try to concentrate on the guards, or anyone else that looked armed and dangerous. They were walking through the slums, so most of what she smelled was not terribly pleasant, but being that she was raised in the slums of Nar Shaddaa, she could ignore it.

For the Hutt's guards themselves, Sirka could sense a bit of tension within them as she passed them by, but nothing too unusual. She did not imagine that it was a common occurence for someone to start a fight in the middle of a Hutt's territory, so most of them who had been on the job for a while would probably have settled into a routine of standing around and looking tough.

The large chamber in which they had been directed to present their "gift" to Timana seemed rather standard for a Hutt crimelord. Plenty of space for guards, decorations that most average people woudl find tasteless, and a place right in the middle where the Hutt could lay down his or her fat rolls and make themselves feel important. In any case, once they were face-to-face with the Hutt, Sirka carefully lowered the package down off of her shoulder and onto the ground for the Hutt's employees to take over. Sirka herself kept silent, since she assumed it was Boqo's job to do the talking.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha nodded. "Yes, but the automatons are expendable. More...expensive than undead, I suppose, but it's not like our clan will miss a few machines. I'm assuming that anything we bring to help us will not be returning. Once we've escaped, it won't matter if they find and destroy them. Perhaps we could make it seem like a failed ambush to distract from our actual goal?" She suggested.

"Perhaps. I would suspect that the chances of the reinforcements, machine or undead, being detected are fairly high, but if we have escaped by that point, it will not matter. But, it seems we have our answer. Performing this plan using automatons is possible, but comes with its own disadvantages. With automatons, you shall either have to plant the book quickly, or Sabine will have to make sure to command the automatons quickly. But, they are not as controversial of a choice, to either our enemy, or our own clan. Undead are a safer choice, but their use could reflect poorly upon us to the very people we are trying to persuade. Ahnasha, Sabine, you are going to be the ones in danger. What are your opinions? Now is the time for us to make this decision." Meesei asked.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha rubbed her chin. "Hmm...with two of us, it might not make too much of a difference. For instance, if I'm the one moving up to plant the book, then Sabine could be on a vantage point with the control rod. The enchantment would probably have worn off by the time we re-activate them, so if they are loudly springing to life and charging in, that would still serve the same purpose, even if it is just one slightly after another." She reasoned.

Ahnasha gave a look towards Sabine. "Though, that would mean you would have to be proactive in activating them. There would be much less of a margin for error. You have to be able to recognize quickly when I'm in danger and judge when to activate them. Otherwise, both of us might be overwhelmed."

Meesei decided to pose another question to Darahil. "I recall that automatons can also take commands more intuitively if they are bound to an individual during their creation. However, we could not bind the automaton to a different person once it was created. Were you ever able to discover if it is possible to change that binding, or is it still a limitation?" She asked.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha took a glance over to one of the active automatons in the room. She did believe them to be more deadly threats than some reanimated chaurus, but the actual extent of their fighting ability was not important to their role. Undead or automatons would be just as effective in that regard. "I agree that we should keep it as simple as possible. Too many parts in the plan means more places it could go wrong. My vote would easily go to undead if I just had to worry about calming Oswall's temper, but one of the main people we are trying to convince with this plan is also a Nord. And everything about him screams that he is just as much of a traditionalist. I do not want to sabotage the plan from the start."

Meesei's eyes too were on an automaton, but the one she focused on was inactive, something that placed an idea into her mind. "This enchantment, its purpose is to silence the automatons, yes? They can compact themselves into small spaces, so keeping them out of sight would not be difficult. The trouble comes only from the noise they make, as we could not get them close enough. For this plan to work, do the automatons necessarily need to remain active continuously?" Meesei asked.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"Two hundred fifty-seven seconds." Ahnasha repeated. "So just over four minutes then. I'm not going to lie, that's a really restrictive time frame for an infiltration. At least it could be."

Meesei appeared concerned. She did not doubt that Darahil and the others had done everything they possibly could to extend out the enchantment, and she doubted she could do anything to improve it herself in any reasonable time. So, for this task, that would be the time frame they would have to work with if they used automatons. “How restrictive exactly? How much time do you think the infiltration will take?”

“I could imagine getting in and out that fast. Or, I could imagine having to stop and wait for something, then the enchantment wearing off. There's just no way of knowing." Ahnasha answered.

There was a pause as Meesei thought. “What do you think, Sabine? Do you have any suggestions?’

Star Wars - Lawless Galaxy

Circumtore

Orbit

Sirka had seen the name of their destination within the information the droid had given her, but she did not truly connect it with the actual location until she saw it out of the window. Circumtore: an artificial, ring-shaped planetoid that was under the firm control of the Hutts, though they had certainly not built it. The Hutts lacked any such talents for creation to be able to actually make something so impressive themselves. Sirka had read about the place on the holonet before, but she had, until this point, been skeptical of it actually living up to its reputation.

Of course, the one thing that was actually impressive about the place related to the Hutts was the fleet in orbit around it. It was the largest Hutt fleet in the galaxy, and the largest collection of combat-ready vessels that Sirka had ever seen in person. While the Hutts were no Empire or Republic, it was still a large enough force to give pause to anyone looking to cause trouble near the planetoid.

Sirka stood back up to her feet and walked up behind Boqo. "Hmm...hope you know what you're getting us into. I'm tough, but I'm not a miracle worker." She commented. Of course, the Hutts were hardly a unified group, especially in recent times, so it was not like whatever Boqo intended to do would suddenly turn the entire ring-world against them. Still, there was not much Sirka herself could do against orbital defenses. Her protective capabilities were restricted to when they were on-foot.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

As planned, the pack allowed Darahil two days to perform his experiments on their automatons. Meesei and Sabine had been informed of the events of the meeting, and Meesei largely agreed with the approach Fendros had taken. Meesei herself did not have a problem using undead to their benefit, but she also recognized the more political types of issues that could arise from it. It was best to avoid anything that could cause a significant reduction in morale, but the safety of their infiltrators was paramount. For Meesei, that went even more so due to the fact that Sabine was being considered for that task.

Once he was ready, Darahil had a message sent to Meesei for her to meet him in the scholar's loft. As the subject pertained quite closely to all of them, Meesei also collected Sabine, Ahnasha, and Fendros to meet with him as well. Darahil had his own personal section of the loft in proximity to, but separate from the workspaces of most of the other scholars. Given his experience and many years of service to the clan, he was granted just about any tool or resource he requested for his investigations and experiments. With his range of skills and interests, there was quite a variety of trinkets and relics around the chamber, from active and inactive Dwemer machines, to samples of Aetherium, to Ayleid relics kept from their days in Bruma. As for Darahil himself, he certainly showed the dedication he had put into his most recent project. Even his stoic visage could not completely hide his fatigue.

"Greetings, Darahil. You sent for me, yes? I am assuming you have some results from your experiments?" Meesei said shortly after entering the chamber.