Prologue: A Meeting on Lanthrym

The kel dor stepped forward to provide his code, looking somewhat uncomfortable - like he's wary of a set-up, No turning back now. Guess I'm officially involved. These Rebels at least appear to run a tight ship...

He mutters his name to the droid in a soft basso, it echoes through his rebreather sounding like a purling wind, as he taps the screen with clawed fingers, "Sugo Sin..." He's dressed rather like a mercenary, unsure of his next destination - riot armor beneath the spindled cloth wrappings of his desert people, sturdy backpack, utility belt, and a blaster pistol - all of it well used, but he seems to wear it uncomfortably.

What a strange crew Hira had gotten herself involved in this time. She was no stranger to working with aliens and near-humans these days - it had been harder to let go of her prejudices during the early days of her defection, but now, all she saw were potential allies... or enemies. She was not naive enough to believe for half a second that the present bounty hunter wouldn't turn her in the moment she slipped up and show her... different abilities.

When they finally all met and moved towards where they were supposed to get their transportation for this job, the young woman said nothing. The dark brown cloak she was wearing over obvious combat armor, the blaster and sword at her side - they spoke of a mercenary, but only on closer examination. Every movement was that of someone so used to wearing this gear that it had become a part of daily life, as horrible as it was. The hood of her cloak was up for their entire walk, not allowing for more than the lower half of her face to be visible.

Meeting the strange droid, though, was a surprise. Thankful to not have to fight an entire ship, though, Hira entered with the rest of the new crew to finally get the full assignment.

An Imperial that wished to defect? Definitely sounded familiar. Standing with arms crossed, she thought about the task at hand, but she was not exactly an infiltrator.

"We need... to be prepared for... anything, I suppose." speaking with a voice that sounded as if it didn't get much use at all, a clear coruscanti accent could still be picked up from the shrouded woman's voice - not unlike the one many an imperial officer had. Her father would kill her if he only knew about the treachery his daughter was now committing.

Lotus began studying his associates the moment they entered the docking bay. Umbra had made contact with him about a mission against the Empire, and he was eager to see who he would be teaming up with. As he had previously experienced, the success of a mission depended on the cohesiveness of the team. His trust in Umbra was a start in trusting his new allies.

He had introduced himself as Lotus, and tried to catch all the names of everyone else.

With his rifle slung on his back, he made his way into the crew compartments and listened to the mission briefing along with the others. After hearing the assignment, he watches the faces of the team, yet again.

Hira breaks the silence with a shaky, unsure, or nervous statement. "True, Hira. Especially since we are dealing with a defector. You can never be too carful with someone that's been a part of the imperial machine."

With his main focus on the mission, Lotus questions the group. "I'm assuming we'll need to sneak onto the outpost to find this defector? Do we have any guarantee who the defector is, and that he's legit?"

After listening to the spiel, Sugo scoffs internally. "The mission is simple.", sounds like something I'd tell a novice with the sand-seine, to conceal the fact that they'll likely just come home with some severe exhaustion and uncomfortable grit in their maw...

He takes in his comrades input, nodding, "I think we start slow. Get on Trexel, suss out the situation with the locals. Figure out what kind of Empire operation we're looking at. Proceed from there?"

'Interesting group,' Zusom thought to himself as he looked over the other people hired for the job. A short alien of a species that he didn't recognize, a kel dor, and two humans. The kel dor seemed uncomfortable in his armor, though the gear looked to have seen a fair amount of use. The human woman, on the other hand, seemed much more familiar with her loadout. Although who, outside of select hunters and mercenaries, carried a sword?

'This is going to be fun.'

After the droid finished talking, Zusom took a moment to consider what he'd been told. Simple enough in broad drifts, the difficulty would be in the snowflakes that made up the blizzard. Combine that with an extraction team that had no prior experience working together, and you had a potential mixture for disaster. The short alien made a comment about imps, defectors or otherwise, being untrustworthy, prompting Zusom to chime in.

"So long as I get paid, the defector could be a hutt wearing slave dancer garb for all I care. Call me Zusom, easier for you lot than my full name. That having been said, only the foolish or suicidal go into a hunt without taking the time to learn all they can about their mark."

After typing in his code and listening to the initial mission brief, Kel looks over the others and watches quietly as they prepare to get underway. He prided himself in puzzling people out before taking action and this group was no different. Though they are a much more interesting lot than the Rebellion usually sets me up with.

Shifting his longcoat to keep the tools of his trade hidden, Kel looks back at the droid and asks, "Is there any pay involved for this mission or provisioning before we leave? He smirks and continues, "Doesn't matter to me as long as I get first dibs on anything interesting the Rebellion doesn't need.

Casually turning to the group assembled and announces, "The name is Kelen Pell and I'll be your pilot for our upcoming festivities... or your scout, slicer, wetwork man, or whatever else you might need." Motioning at the ship, his asks, "Shall we?"

Lotus crosses his arms and responds to the group's comments. "I agree with Sugo and Zusom. Unless we have any more specific intel about the outpost or defector, getting more info about them should be a priority. Any info to help us disrupt that outpost will be most welcome. I wonder what juicy nuggets of knowledge that defector has to share with us about the happenings on Trexel?"

A wide smile stretches across the drabatan's face. It was clear that he was anxious learn about the imperials occupation on Trexel, and how he could use that knowledge against them.

Well that comment about Imperial defectors stung a little at least... Though there was some truth to it. Those that were well and truly part of the Empire rarely managed to defect. They all had every reason to be worried, though the others seemed sure in their skills and capabilities - the Echani just hoped to also measure up with her own skill. Idly putting a hand on the handle of her blade, the old, mono-molecular sharpened blade was somewhat comforting.

"I'm Hira Darksun." Finally introducing herself properly as well, Hira leaned back against the wall of the cabin - with her head slightly lowered, the hood only cast even longer shadows over her face, as if she wanted to just meld into the wall and disappear. But the people on Trexel might need help - and this defector, if he was on the level, would need her help as well.

Her hidden eyes went over the others again. At least Kelen seemed to be, for lack of a better term, 'honest' for an operative - she had far more trouble trying to gauge the rest of them. "I'm Echani. My specialty is... close-quarters combat. Armed or unarmed. ... Oh, and I'm capable of field repairs and... improvements, with minimal equipment and materials, if the need arises."

To call her introduction and description 'stilted' was probably kind, yet she remained hidden under her hood.

"Repairs! Ah, I'm fairly handy with repairs as well! Biological repairs, that is. In fact, if anyone here needs medical attention, feel free to let me know. Although..." He turns to Zusom. "I don't think I've ever patched up a chiss yet. I guess we'll see if there's a first during this mission, right Zusom?!"