Galactic Society (Open/Lounge RP, but READ FIRST POST)

[Blaiiine]

When the baydoor dropped down, Blaine ordered the two troopers to take the body. They collected their gear and left without a trace. Blaine stepped off, carrying his rifle and helmet along with the rest of his armor. "Well, we can fret about it in a moment. But for now, let's at least find out what he knows," He nodded at the prisoner, "Could one of you help me ninja him out to a interrogation room?" Blaine asked as he handed off his wrecked armor to a grunt.

[Razuel]

*** Battered Barn, New Cerinia ***

Fawn folded up a board of tools on the wall into a compact suitcase before turning around to the others, "The item we need is called a soul bulb.  Fuel manufacturers use it in fuel to deter people from drinking the ship fuel... Ahem...  Anyway. The Soul Bulb is a flower, but never goes past the bulb stage, and it is normally surrounded by black poisonous roots that double if they're cut or damaged.", Fawn then inhaled and started outside, "Welp! Come on! There's a deadly plant awaiting us!", Fawn then started outside to the dropship with a hop in his walk


Fawn was smiling!  He does love to help people, but hasn't really been much anywhere lately besides on New Cerina

[Romulan_Furry]

*** UNSC Allegiance, Sedra Orbit ***

Zuko and Frosty both moved to help. "Let's pump this guy for all the intel he's got - see if we can get out of him what Nazar and our Yaut'ja friends were doing there, in addition to whatever else is pertinent to the mission," Frosty suggested.

"He may not know all of it, Andrew," Zuko commented.

"Let's be certain," Frosty said. "If they are involved in this, I want to know so we can plan accordingly."

*** New Cerinia ***

Mathayus boarded the drop ship first, powering it up as Maria boarded and sat down, waiting for Fawn to sit down and strap in before takeoff. Once they got underway, Mathayus said from the cockpit, "Doctor... you bear the insignia of a Marauder Corps Medic, but you say you left us. I know of no one who left the Corps, on principle or to help others, and certainly none who have been hiding in a barn on New Cerinia, practically on the Corps' doorstep. I had heard of a disgraced medic who went AWOL for unknown reasons, but never where he went. I suspect there is a similarity, but I would very much like to hear your explanation - preferably before we enter Indari Manor, to avoid any unpleasant confrontation with little brother. He takes desertion very seriously."

"Faasnu..." Maria growled sternly.

*** New Berlin ***

Benny threw his head back and laughed. "A man who plunders plunderers... how ironic!"

"That's a good one!" the Pilot said. "I like this guy already."

"Well, it'll be a bit before we hit base... anything you want to know?" Benny asked.

*** Coruscant ***

The sudden actions of the Faith did not go unnoticed, as two Venator-class Star Destroyers went shields up. "Starship Faith, please clarify your intentions." Such as it was, no such clarification was necessary; the anomaly behind her surged, shimmered, and revealed itself to be a D'Deridex-class Romulan Warbird.

"Imperial Alliance ships, this vessel, and her captain, have been targeted by the Tal Shiar. I was sent by Republic Fleet Command to get her to safety," signaled the warbird. It was then that a Mogai Warbird flanked by two Dehlan Warbirds dropped out of warp and immediately signaled, the voice distinctly female:

"Captain Anna, Commander Khev of the Romulan Republic: we were sent to get you safely to New Romulus... and it seems we have arrived just in time. Challenge ID 'Remus'."

*** Tomahawk ***

Dax responded immediately: "I, along with my Mirak and Lyran colleagues, here, was tracking a fleet that was headed this direction when it vanished; did you see this fleet?"

"Captain Dax, Rear Admiral Scott; this system was recently hit by the Romulan Empire - the Toma-guards can provide the specifics. We've been trying to ascertain where they struck from. Do you--" Scott started.

"It wasn't them; we got a Romulan distress call, and arrived to find what was left of a Romulan Task Force over an hour ago. No survivors. The ion trail we detected headed here, but it was something we had not encountered before. We did not think we could arrive ahead of this fleet, given how big a head start they had on us; are you certain no other ships have been through here?" Dax asked.

"Aside from a brief encounter with a Klingon fleet, no one else has been here - and I believe our Tomahawk friends have been talking with the Klingon High Command," Scott said. "Tomahawk, Admiral Scott... did your sensors detect any large fleets other than Klingons and the Romulan forces that came at you earlier?"

*** Katrina City, Tau Dewa ***

The tiger sat alone, slowly sipping his drink, rubbing his temple, and seemingly struggling to keep his eyes open.

[Razuel]

***New Cerinia**

Fawn seemed bothered by this, "I was told by a sergeant that I couldn't help some poor civilians... So that same night I left with all of my stuff, and taking the rest of that week's worth of rations and I went to New Cerinia, helped a family and I was then a non-profit medic... helping the homeless better than any hospital...   but if it's all the same, I'd prefer if you wouldn't question me about that again, alright... I didn't like that past anyway... and although nobody has died under my care, death does bother me deeply... even with a certain other situation..."

Fawn sat relatively quiet, "There should be a large black patch... find a clearing in it and hover over it... come with me if you'd like, but wear protection, or else you will start puking and have constant vertigo... and I think also occasional nosebleeds... it only takes 3 days for a single prick to pass through one's system."

[Blaiiine]

"Even if he holds out, we can always 'remove' the interface," Blaine said to Zuko, using his fingers for air quotes. He pulled the prisoner up and over his shoulder. He took a drag off his cigarette and pulled up the Allegiances' internal map through his own NI. "Alrighty then, let's get to work," Blaine said, making his way to the brig.

[Romulan_Furry]

*** New Cerinia, approaching Dragon'taan ***

"Indeed? Such a shame... I never heard of this incident, however. You are awfully bold to admit desertion. But this Sergeant... was he due for promotion? Sergeant Reece? He was the one who reported the desertion," Mathayus responded, as he piloted the ship toward Dragon'taan.

Maria looked at Fawn with a soft expression. "I know you don't want to speak of it... but dear husband can be a tad stubborn. And from the stories you both have said so far, it sounds suspiciously like you were goaded. Kyle and Anna both openly advocate Medical personnel helping any civilians they can."

"She's right," Mathayus agreed. "Which is why I am asking you about it as we head for Dragon'taan. Sergeant Reece... we have heard his name before, but never get anything useful. Please, answer the question - was he your commanding officer at the time?"

Maria stared Fawn down with a pleading expression. She wanted such a distasteful subject resolved, and fast.

*** Katrina City, Tau Dewa ***

The tiger repeatedly had to wake himself. More than once, his head hit the counter with a reverberant Thump! followed by laughter. He finally downed his drink, paid for it, rose from his stool, grabbed his rifle, and walked out of the tavern. He seemed a bit unsteady on his feet, and several times, he had to lean on something for support. People generally ignored him, seeming not to notice his plight.

It was as he cast a prolonged look at his mechanical arm that trouble erupted. His eyes were briefly flushed a shade of purple when the canine from the tavern, along with a few of his pals, approached him. "You!" the canine shouted, getting the attention of everyone in the immediate vicinity. The tiger looked up, and his eyes immediately flushed red. The canine and his friends were all armed. "Turn around and put your hands on your head."

"Am I being arrested?" the tiger weakly asked.

"You're being taken into custody," the canine responded. "The UNSC would very much like to speak with you."

The tiger stood up straight. "You have no grounds to take me anywhere... and the last time I looked, the UNSC didn't use ODSTs to arrest anyone. That's a job for the Marine Corps, a master-at-arms. Not you." His arms moved to the side, dropping his rifle and his hands hovering over his lightsabers.

"You're smart, traveler - I'll give you that," the ODST said. "But I don't take **** from anyone, not even a dragon-shifter. So let's settle our differences, you and me, right here, right now."

"More like me, you, and your little entourage," the tiger hissed. "Is that why you brought them? So you could feel good about your odds?"

"They're just here to make sure this is a friendly, cordial encounter," the ODST chuckled smugly.

"The hell they are!" the tiger snarled with that draconic thrum. He gestured, lifting the ODST off his feet, then subsequently slamming him against one wall, then the opposing wall, before throwing him through the air and into the floor with a loud SLAM! that sounded like it cracked the floor. He glared at the canine's friends, hissing with that vicious draconic thrum, "Take your wounded comrade and leave! If you ever again accost me, I will show you there are things far more terrifying than the Covenant or the Flood!" The canine's friends hesitated, their faces portraying fear, but hesitantly took their dazed friend and dragged him away. The tiger stood there for a few moments after they left, but eventually heaved a trembling breath, clutched his chest, doubled over, and fell to the floor. The people around him murmured and mumbled in concern, but no one made any move toward the tiger's unmoving body.

"Is he dead?" someone asked.

(In case you didn't notice, Raz, I sent you a Steam Invite. It'd make communicating ideas and stories a lot easier.)

*** UNSC Allegiance, Sedra Orbit ***

Zuko and Frosty followed the ONI spook - for now, trying to think of how they would interrogate this man. Neither of them had ever had to before.

[Blaiiine]

"I assume you two have never done this before," Blaine said, making their way down stairs and halls. "This is one of my specialties, there's always someone with something ONI wants to know." He finished as they arrived at the brig, mostly empty excluding the lone Marine sitting at a watch station. "I can also bake a mean bundt cake," Blaine jokingly said as he used his free hand to open one of the interrogation cells. He dropped the prisoner in the only chair, which sat in the middle of the dark room.

[Romulan_Furry]

"You aren't mistaken," Frosty said. "We're... combat personnel. We've done clandestine ops before, but none that required... taking prisoners. We'll follow your lead on this one."

"Agreed," Zuko said. "Make it seem you're the big shot here. As far as he knows, Andrew and I are... well, you get it."

[Blaiiine]

"Oh guarantee you two will scare the hell out of him," Blaine said, laughing. He cuffed the prisoner's wrists and ankles to the chair, then walked across the room and opened a drawer. He retrieved a bag and unrolled it across the table adjacent to the chair. It contained different tools, from saws to pliers. "Don't worry, I'm not going to maim him. Way too messy for me. I prefer this," He said as he equipped brass knuckles. He then put the bag up and set his pistol on the table. "Zuko, there's a syringe of adrenaline in that drawer. Inject him with it, it'll wake him right up."

[Romulan_Furry]

Zuko did as requested, injecting the prisoner with adrenaline, and standing back with crossed arms.

[Blaiiine]

The lupine sprung back to consciousness, coughing and looking around quickly. "Wake up, sunshine! We got some questions for you," Blaine yelled, banging on the back of the chair. The lupine looked at back at Blaine in disgust, before turning to see the Spartan and Sangheili. He froze and let out a groan, "What in the hell did I do in a past life to get this much crap," The prisoner said, "A Spartan and a freaking Elite. What do you even want?" Blaine laughed and leaning against the table. "What I want is what you know. Covenant weaponry, how'd you get it? And maybe why the hell a Sith lord and a Predator crashed our party?" He snapped, moving from the table to a few inches from the prisoner's face. "You think I'd know why one of those psycho beasts showed up? Or that'd I be dumb enough to tell you about the Covenant and the Sith? You spooks must be stupider than you look," The prisoner snapped back before spitting in Blaine's face. Blaine stepped back, growled and struck the wolf in the jaw twice.

[Romulan_Furry]

"I'd avoid calling my battlefield brother, here, an Elite," Frosty warned. "They have a name, jack***. Use it."

"And in case you didn't know, the Predators are very nasty," Zuko hissed after shooting Blaine a "let me help" look. "They hunt humans for sport. And that Sith... he's even worse. Anyone who gets in his way gets killed in the worst of ways. In fact, I heard the last person to make that mistake got turned inside out."

Frosty picked up on Zuko's move. "You got lucky. We got to you before they did. The Sith Lord was bad enough. If you think we're harsh, you should see what Sith do for interrogations. They have all sorts of nasty devices and tools to make you talk. Things that eat your mind. Parasites that consume you from the inside out. Or the classic zap you with lightning for days at a time, nonstop."

"Take your pick," Zuko said. "Even if the Sith killed the Predator, you can bet there's a cloaked ship full of more waiting for new prey. But call me an Elite again, and I will personally hand you over to whichever one we come across first. Got it?"

[Blaiiine]

The prisoner spit out two teeth and looked at Zuko. "Elite.." He growled. Blaine immediately put his arm against Zuko's chest. "Let me handle this," Blaine said, then began striking the wolf. He finished with a gut punch from the brass knuckles. The prisoner gasped and lowered his head. "Now I'm giving you a gift here. I could always just put one through that ugly mug of yours and pull the info out of that neural interface of yours." Blaine sternly stated while holding the prisoner's head up by his hair. "Now unless you just want to keep getting your pearly whites knocked out, let's start with the weapons." The wolf looked up, spat out another tooth and began talking. "We got the weapons from the Covenant, you already know that. It was Luro 'Taralumees' weapons. I assume you know him." The wolf said, looking at Blaine. Blaine looked to Zuko and Frosty with a concerned look. "Luro was one of the Covenants' Supreme commanders. He went rogue after the war, we always suspected them but never to work with rebels," He said before looking back to the wolf. "Yeah well he is, spook. And the Sith? He's using Luro. Or at least it looks that way. He's at every meeting and weapon shipment." The wolf finished, giving a somewhat sickly satisfied smile.

[Romulan_Furry]

(Frosty's comment is me going off an assumed idea)

"Luro..." Zuko repeated, as though hearing the name of an old friend. He backed up a step, then turned away.

"Nazar isn't exactly social," Frosty told Blaine over a private channel, inaccessible and inaudible to the prisoner. "He refuses to work with anyone, even an army. If what the Rebel is saying is accurate... his game has changed. If he's after the weapons, he may be looking to arm followers... or has something to gain from keeping the rebels from getting their hands on the weapons." He looked to the prisoner and spoke aloud: "How do the Predators fit in? And for that matter, when did they start stalking you?"

[Blaiiine]

"This is the first time those things showed up. We got to the site but on the way spotted some Sedra colonial guards, heads blown clean off. Plasma burns now that I think about it," The wolf stated, "It was probably that Predator. We showed up and that Sith showed up for a moment then disappeared into thin air. The guns showed up, the Covenant agent bugged out and then you chumps crashed the party." He finished before asking Blaine for a cigarette. Blaine lit him one and turned to Frosty & Zuko. "I doubt he'll know about the Predator. If we couldn't see it, I doubt they could on that old gear. But it seems Nazar is pulling puppet-master with Luro," Blaine said, sighing. This went beyond what ONI predicted. Sith Lords were far from documented in Section Three. "Luro's using the URF to destabilize the UNSC. And if Nazar has an army or is working for someone who does, a weakened UNSC is an easy target."