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A Meeting Room in Tipoca City
One Week Later
Hrur'ziru'emetti aka Ziru's POV
"What is the purpose of this meeting Captain?" She asked after five minutes had passed without any explanation.
"I have a few ideas Ziru but let's wait until the Prime Minister gets here." Xander replied lounging in one of the chairs arrayed throughout the room, "Don't want to get the meeting off on the wrong foot because of a few half-assed theories."
Indeed. If they were Xander's ideas they probably were only half thoughts at best.
While capable of thinking a plan through and planning for possible developments her time as his second in command had made it clear that the human tended towards making loose plans that could be modified at any moment. While this did allow for adaptability and versatility this was only in response to immediate problems or obstacles. If a problem arose that needed more than an hour or greater to prepare for then the usefulness of this approach dropped like a rock. She preferred plans that were well thought out with all available facts taken into consideration with the strategy only locked into place at the last possible second to allow for new data to lead to revisions if necessary.
When it came to one's life or one's goals one should always strive for perfection.
Anything less was a symptom of the incompetent or the weak.
She was neither.
With her composure intact she merely mentally sighed at the waiting game they were being forced to play and hoped that they would not be forced to endure it for much longer. While she had been using the training facilities to pass the time while her captain recovered from his injuries such things barely kept her boredom at bay. She was the pinnacle of her species in all things and much greater stimulation was necessary in order to for her to be satisfied. Indeed another group training session would be more satisfactory than shooting at automated targets or empty droids.
Fortunately the doors chose that moment to enter to reveal three figures two of which she knew and a hooded humanoid female whose pale jaw was the only thing exposed to be seen. This caused her to take interest if only partially since there was little reason for anyone in the Republic to fear showing their face here on Kamino. The world was no ally of the Separatists and the clone security forces were competent enough to make infiltration and espionage difficult to accomplish long term. Her mind went through possible scenarios until she concluded that what they were about to become involved in was to be kept secret even from allies.
Interesting.
"Prime Minister Lama Su. Doctor Tri Gar." Xander said nodding to each in turn respectfully.
She could see his eyes pass over the hooded third person but the sharpness that was briefly in his eyes told her that he too, if on a lesser level, saw the importance of the person.
"Captain Xander. Thank you for waiting." Prime Minister said politely even as the newly arrived trio took their own seats, "Apologies for the wait but it was necessary in order to ensure that our guest could arrive here seen by as few eyes as possible."
"Then this meeting is about our 'arrangement'?" Xander asked causing her to scrutinize him for a few seconds in an effort to discern more.
What sort of 'arrangement' could warrant a secret visitor to Kamino and involve the squad she was on?
"Indeed it is. The matter has been discussed with the relevant members of the Republic government and it has been decided that your proposal has merit. However given the nature of your squad's missions going forward there will be a period of probation before it is formally accepted. They will not be for the weak of heart or those lacking resolve." Prime Minister Lama Su replied adding more clues to the puzzle.
It would seem as though part of the arrangement Xander had proposed involved going on difficult missions presumably for the Republic. Ambitious but also potentially foolish. She'd heard enough from idle chatter amongst the Fett clone troopers that new graduates were hardly thrown right into the harshest of assignments right at the beginning. They would be started off with light duties to acclimate to before being reassigned to more difficult tasks after they had proven themselves capable enough. Indeed only one group of clones were sent right into difficult missions from the beginning and were proving the odds questionable on a regular basis.
Clone Force Ninety-nine aka The Bad Batch.
Each member was an experimental Fett clone who'd undergone genetic modification while still in their tanks in order to amplify desirable traits.
Their squad was nowhere near that level and so she judged it foolish to send them on any missions more difficult than what an experienced clone squad could handle.
Better they simply shoot them now and be done with it.
"Understandable. I trust then that a ship has been procured along with the rest of it?" Xander asked revealing more about the secret deal between him and Lama Su.
"The ship is waiting at the nearby spaceport and the credits are ready in an account requiring only your biometric information to act as an access code." Lama Su replied even as Doctor Tri Gar pushed forth a table with the necessary equipment for creating the code, "As far as the rest all that will be required is your signature on the first, third and eighth page of this file."
"And this will make the ownership rights permanent? No reversals or nullifications?" Xander asked picking up the data pad Lama Su had indicated, "No room for legal trickery?"
"I anticipated that you would be concerned about such things so I ensured that the documents were as specific and airtight as possible." Lama Su replied with a nod, "The only chance of your losing ownership would be if this legal documentation was ignored outright by the hostile party or if you committed a serious enough crime that you forfeited all known assets."
"If someone does the former I'll make sure they regret it." Xander said in a manner that made the statement as solid as beskar, "As for the latter…it better be one helluva serious crime otherwise I'll wind up adding a few more to the list."
To her knowledge most crimes that could result in the Republic seizing the assets of the guilty party were those that affected more than one star system or were so heinous so as to be unforgivable.
At least by the standards set by the Galactic Republic courts.
She almost scoffed out loud at the idea of Xander resisting the efforts of the courts, the law enforcers and perhaps even the Jedi to bring him to justice. Even if she had a measure of respect for her squad leader's combat prowess it would hardly be enough to keep so many enemies at bay for very long. The only way any victories would be had would be if those sent to arrest him repeatedly underestimated him and those people would have to be hopelessly inept for that to happen.
However with the question answered Xander took the data padd with the documents before writing his name in the highlighted areas on the specific pages. Handing the padd back the Kaminoan looked to be adding his own signature before sending the file to be processed then deposited in the necessary databases.
"With that matter handled I would like to introduce our guest here." Lama Su said gesturing to the hooded female, "She is the Supreme Chancellor's official representative for this venture and will explain the specifics of your assignment."
"Thank you Prime Minister." The woman spoke with an accent that couldn't quite be placed but possessing a manner of false politeness, "As per the proposal offered by the squad leader the five of you are now considered a deep cover unit of the Grand Army of the Republic. Knowledge of your existence and your classification will be kept on a need to know basis with those briefed sworn never to reveal what they know without the expressed permission of the Supreme Chancellor. You likewise will not be permitted to reveal your affiliation with the Republic to anyone outside of a small list of individuals you will be provided with later. To anyone else you must appear to be nothing more than a small group of mercenaries, bounty hunters and criminals. No one can suspect that you carry out the will of the Supreme Chancellor and the Republic."
"So essentially we will be undertaking highly classified missions and should anything go wrong the Supreme Chancellor will deny all knowledge of our existence and offer no assistance. Is that correct?" She asked focusing on what truly mattered.
"Essentially that is correct." The hooded woman replied turning her gaze and briefly revealing white eyes, "However should you prove yourselves to be valuable assets to the Supreme Chancellor and the Republic efforts could be made to provide assistance to aid in extricating you from…unfavourable circumstances."
Truth or a lie meant to motivate them into trying harder to succeed while never once rising in value?
"What sort of missions will we be expected to carry out specifically?" Xander asked while the rest of the squad remained quiet, "Classified missions can mean anything from assassinations to espionage to eliminating key Separatist assets."
"You need not worry about anything too difficult in the beginning." The hooded woman replied turning her gaze back to the squad leader, "The Supreme Chancellor has reviewed instructor El-Les' reports on your training and while he sees promise that is not enough to entrust you with missions of significance just yet. Prove yourself with smaller tasks and you will be considered for assignments of more value."
Reasonable.
To put an untested squad on assignments of importance to the war effort would be the height of foolishness even with her on the squad.
"Has an assignment already been drafted for us or will we have to wait?" Xander asked no doubt ready to begin preparing the moment he had enough details.
"Possible missions are still being considered however I would expect your first one to be chosen within the week." The hooded woman replied giving little away of what she knew.
"Good." Xander said sounding like he'd heard all he needed to know.
Not so in her case.
She did not like being in the dark about whatever arrangement Xander had established with Lama Su especially if it involved her. She had plans of her own after all and being involved in highly classified assignments that would not officially be recognized by the Republlic put those plans at risk. Such missions were often morally weak as well as something that the government would do all they could to conceal their involvement in regardless of whether they were successful or not.
Including eliminating their operatives once they were no longer of any use.
I will have to plan my departure carefully and be mindful of the politics in order to escape the final payment of a 'grateful Galactic Republic'. She thought very much doubting that people with so many secrets in their head would be allowed to live to a ripe old age.
Approaching Landing Pad C in Tipoca City
An Hour Later
Kayla's POV
"What the hell have you gotten us into now wimp?" Crei asked in her usual dominant manner.
To be honest she was only paying half attention to what was going on because in her head she was devising new combinations of components and compounds for her next batch of explosives. The path of the BOOM was a never ending one and only a lazy nobody accepted what already existed in favour of innovation that would lead to something new. While she didn't much care about the reasons behind the war between the Republic and the Separatists the opportunities their new job could provide her with had her smiling. In chaos there was opportunity after all and if they were supposed to pretend to be mercenaries then no one would mind if she picked up stuff that didn't belong to her and took it with her.
During the course of the missions she would be able to procure parts that the Kaminoans would never let her have and possibly gain access to combustable chemicals that would have no reason to be on Kamino.
The possibilities were so great that she couldn't help but giggle with anticipation.
Not that the rest of her squad took much notice since this was a fairly regular occurrence for her.
"Just a little something to keep you four from getting fed into the Grand Army meat grinder." Xander replied without breaking stride, "I heard from Tervho that after my training is done you'd all likely get assigned to whatever general needed new troopers. Seeing as how some of them don't care much about efficiency or keeping the killed in action list small I decided to do something about it."
"By volunteering us as the Republic's black ops squad?" Ziru asked with a bit of ridicule in her tone, "One would think you would want us dead."
Personally she didn't think it 'd be as bad as Ziru was making it out to be. Already she could think of a few things that'd help keep them alive on such missions as well as ways to deploy explosives of various quantities to their assigned targets. In her experience bombs could solve a lot of the problems in the galaxy and if they couldn't she was confident she could put something else together that would prove effective.
"The black ops work is only going to be for two years and I didn't have much choice if I wanted Lama Su to agree to my idea." Xander explained as they reached the hatch that would open up onto the landing pad, "The real prize I'll tell you about once we've taken a look at the ship."
"It's probably some clunker that's barely good enough to survive travelling through hyperspace." Crei said immediately predicting the worst case scenario, "We're probably going to have to pull every side job we can just to keep it flying."
"We'll see." Xander said pressing the button that'd open the hatch.
Pulling herself from her thoughts and ideas for a moment she looked up to see what sort of ship they'd been given…
…and concluded that Xander was a much better negotiator than she'd originally thought!
"A Gozanti-class cruiser!" She exclaimed before she dashed forward to get a closer look at it.
With wide eyes she looked the ship over taking in every detail as well as recalling every detail she could from her times exploring the holo-net for ideas for her creations. The Gozanti-class cruiser was a class of armoured starship used by many groups and as a result had quite a few variants depending on what the owner did for a living. The manufacturer, Corellian Engineering Corporation, made sure that the vessel was easy to modify whether it needed to be a freighter for transporting goods to a cruiser meant for combat purposes. With a loading elevator on the bottom and docking ports on either side near the cockpit it had multiple ways of taking on passengers or cargo. Equipped with a hyperdrive and three sub-light engines meant it could get to just about anyplace it needed to go without taking forever.
Hmmmm…looks like four laser cannons, one proton torpedo launcher and two quad laser cannons. She thought taking in the armaments, Not bad to start with but with a few upgrades I can make this ship even better!
"Don't you even think about it girlie!" A voice said as the loading elevator finished lowering the ground, "No pod hyped newbie that hasn't even found her space legs is doing anything to my baby without getting a seal of approval from me first."
Looking towards the source she saw that the speaker was a female Nikto dressed in engineer overalls with a fairly well equipped tool belt around her waist. If the wrinkles and chipped spikes were anything to go by if the stranger wasn't an old woman now it wouldn't take much more than a few more years to make her one.
"And you would be?" Xander asked fishing for a name of some sort.
"Call me Neffie. I'll be the ship engineer until one of you manages to convince me that you can handle things without me." Neffie replied scrutinizing each squad member in turn, "From the looks of things I'm beginning to think that the war will be over long before that happens."
"Sorry to disappoint." Xander said politely to their new travelling companion, "Still if you want leave sooner than later you should probably focus on teaching Kayla or Moko. Crei's more into destruction than keeping a ship in one piece and Ziru probably won't listen to a word you say."
"And you? You an idiot or something?" Neffie asked sounding like Xander's response would decide the old woman's opinion of him.
"Nope. I lived on a world that just started learning how to make spaceships never mind faster than light travel." Xander replied casually with a shrug, "Unless you feel like spending time teaching me for a few years I'm pretty much a lost cause in the engineering department."
Xander wasn't COMPLETELY useless when it came to machines since she'd seen him do maintenance and repair on his gear. Sure her squad leader had to look stuff up from time to time and ask her some questions but she was pretty sure he could be taught to do simple ship repairs within a few months with a little help from her. Anything complex or creative though would need lessons starting from the kid stuff all the way up to the most advanced stuff she knew.
"Please! Like I've got nothing better to do!" Neffie scoffed at the idea of committing so much time to a task that benefited her so little, "Now get on the elevator so I can give you the grand tour."
All too eager to see what it looked like from the inside she wasted no time sprinting to the Nikto's side and impatiently waited for the others to hurry up and get on as well. Though in reality it seemed to take hours it in fact was only a few minutes before everyone was on board and the elevator rose back up into the cruiser's body. Once inside her eyes hungrily took in every aspect of the interior from the lightning to the controls built into walls. Everything was an item to be scrutinized and once she got the chance examined thoroughly so that she could understand them completely.
For the next hour the squad was shown what the cruiser had to offer.
At sixty-four meters long and almost twenty meters tall the ship firmly resided in the class of light cruiser but that was nothing to be ashamed of. With a maximum atmospheric speed of over one thousand kilometres per hour it could keep pace with some of the best star fighter's out there. Possessing a class three hyperdrive and while that didn't make it as fast as those on military ships it'd be a match for any civilian owned ship in service. According to Neffie while the crew compliment was usually twelve people with enough room so the people wouldn't feel crowded around each other the Nikto had made some modifications. Now the ship could be safely operated by five people or would be once the old woman brought the rest of them up to speed. There was even seventy-five metric tons of cargo space that could probably be repurposed to allow for even more people should it become necessary.
"And this is the captain's quarters." Neffie said as they came to the last room on the ship, "I've cleaned out most of the poodoo that the previous captain left behind but you still might find a few bits and pieces."
"Previous captain? You mean this isn't your ship?" Xander asked sounding somewhat confused.
"No it isn't. This ship was in an impound lot when the Kaminoans purchased it." Neffie replied as though she had different standards when it came to ships, "I was hired to fix any major problems this ship had that might interfere with the work of 'independent traders' such as yourselves. Once I was done I piloted it here planning on turning it over to you lot but I can see I'm going to have to stick around awhile longer. Wouldn't do for the Kaminoans to accuse me of substandard work if something went wrong so soon after you took possession. At least if I train one of you to the point where you can keep things running properly it'll be their fault if the thing crashes."
"Not going to happen!" She declared having taken a liking to the ship the more she saw of it, "Teach me all I need to know! I'll make sure nothing goes wrong!"
"We'll see." Neffie said pressing the button to open the door.
When the doors parted the room revealed looked to be quite spacious compared to the other crew quarters. To the left there existed a couch and two small chairs that might serve the purpose of making guests comfortable. To the right was a console that likely gave the captain access to several ship systems as well as a work table of some sort but without any tools on it. At the far end of the room though was a pretty big bed that seemed to her to be too large for a single person to sleep in.
"Just who was the previous Captain?" Ziru asked with condescending disdain, "A Hutt?"
"No. I don't know who the man was but I do know he was a Falleen pirate boss that did a decent job leading his crew." Neffie replied sounding like she'd only done a little bit of digging into the previous owner of the ship, "He had only one failing: his idea of relaxing after a job was to hook up with the prettiest piece of ass he could find and take her back to this room. Some stories even had him taking more than one to his room."
"And that's a failing how?" Ziru asked with only slightly revealed disgust.
"Turns out one day he'd pissed off the wrong person and they had an assassin pose as the type of girl the Falleen took a shine to." Neffie replied turning to face the group, "He was found dead the next morning along with most of his crew. The survivors were finished off by the assassin's employer. Let that be a lesson to you boy: never let your dick talk louder than your brain. Then again maybe it's too late for that considering the rest of your squad."
"Do not be insulting." Ziru stated with a new level of chilliness, "He is far from what I consider to be acceptable breeding material."
"Too squishy for my tastes." Crei stated putting in her own two cents.
Moko said nothing but it was clear that was flustered by the insinuation.
As for her…
"Not really into that sort of thing." She said continuing her appraisal of the room's technology.
Despite the fact that she was cloned from a race of people who loved as fiercely as they fought she'd never really been all that motivated to explore the former. Sure starting out she'd done what was asked of her and used the knowledge that she'd had dumped into her mind to the fullest but she'd never felt…satisfied? Intrigued? Motivated?
Whatever.
She'd heard one of the Kaminoans say something about certain gene sequences resisting activation and theories about how empirical instruction might play a more important role in Zeltron development then they'd originally thought but she didn't remember the details.
"Add to all that they're my subordinates." Xander said making it clear that this was a barrier for him, "There's a reason why its against the rules for a commander to be anything more than a friend to the rest of his team."
"Sure, sure." Neffie said not sounding entirely convinced, "Anyway if you wind up stumbling across anything left behind by the previous captain just toss it out the airlock or dump it the next time you're planet-side. I'll leave you lot to get settled in your rooms and move stuff aboard. After that we're moving onto piloting lessons 'cause all of you'll need to be able to fly this thing so you won't get stuck grounded because the only ones who can are dead."
With the loss of the reason for her to follow the group she headed for the elevator so she could head back to her room in Tipoca City. The cruiser promised many new things to try so she saw little point in keeping a room on the Kaminoan planet. It might take a few trips and she'd probably swing by to snag a few supplies but she'd get it done.
A change of pace was nice from time to time.
Two Weeks Later
Xander's POV
Gotta think up a name for this ship. He thought as he pushed the lever forward to bring them out of hyperspace and into normal space, Can't keep calling it something boring like Gozanti-1.
The only problem with that was that it had to be the RIGHT name that sent the RIGHT message to those who heard of it. The last thing he wanted was to choose a name that he thought'd be lucky only for it to wind up being the shittiest name ever. He needed to take his time and get it right after going over everything he knew until he got just the right amount of inspiration.
Looking out of the cockpit window at the planet they were advancing towards the planet of Muunilist where their first assignment was located. According to the orders delivered by encryption along with the usual com-chatter Kamino had received they were to infiltrate the capitol city, access the central database and acquire proof that a member of the occupational government was covertly aiding the Separatists. Early in the war Republic forces had assaulted the planet and managed to seize it. Once the last of its Separatist leaders had been captured and the present droid forces destroyed an occupational government was put into place. It was a prominent economic hub thanks to the Banking Clan and it was thought that it could be one for the Republic with the right people put in charge. Recently though evidence had popped up in the aftermath of battles with the Separatists to suggest enemy activity on Muunilist. The Republic could send official investigators but it was felt that it would send the wrong message if the public got wind of it. It would be like saying 'yeah we totally conquered this world but the bad guys are still managing to do things under our nose here' and make people doubt Republic competency.
It was the reason for his squad being chosen for this mission in the first place.
His cruiser had no Republic markings, no exclusively Republic tech and was officially registered in all the necessary databases as an 'independent trading vessel'. All the necessary paperwork had been filed and they had the right papers on board so there'd be no way for them to be found out on that front. It would allow them to slip onto the planet without raising any alarms since to those not on the know they'd just be another ship coming in for a landing.
The only wrinkles would happen if they drew unnecessary attention to themselves and prompted the wrong people to dig deeper. All it would take would be for the wrong people to be spoken with or the right systems accessed to learn that the paperwork was forged not too long ago. There was still a chance if their paperwork's lack of authenticity was revealed so long as there were no signs that it was the Republic behind the fakes being made. He'd already begun thinking up believable cover stories that couldn't be proven true or false in short order giving them a window in which they could complete their mission.
"Everyone ready back there?" He asked after switching to the internal comm-system.
"We are." Ziru replied from the interface near the elevator.
Naturally no details were given but honestly but this point it wasn't much of a surprise. The Chiss woman had made it clear she felt as though she should be squad leader instead of him but was willing to tolerate his figurehead position until everyone accepted that truth. As his self-appointed second in command she offered advice when she felt it necessary and pointed out his mistakes whenever she gained sufficient reason to. Most of the time he couldn't find any rational reason to ignore her advice and some of the points she made about his mistakes were valid…from a certain point of view.
Still he wished that he could have a relationship with her more like your typical sci-fi captain had with their XO minus the potential for romance.
Don't get him wrong Ziru was definitely attractive looking blue skin and all but her personality was the embodiment of a superiority complex. When added to the fact that she was his subordinate and romance was definitely NOT an option.
However he hoped in time a sort of respectful camaraderie would develop.
"Good. We'll touchdown at the Harnaidan spaceport in ten minutes." He said before sending the necessary data to the spaceport's administration for approval, "Once the ship's secure we'll start 'looking for work' while canvasing the city for points of interest."
"And then?" Ziru asked as though unimpressed.
"Then once we're sure no one's watching us anymore we'll begin making plans for infiltrating the central data centre." He replied piloting the ship down to the surface, "Our 'job hunting' will be a cover for confirming the location of the data centre along with making a list of the problems that might come our way."
"Understood." Ziru said before cutting the comm-connection.
Efficient as always. He thought with a half grin.
Ten minutes later he set the ship down on the designated landing pad and began to power down the systems while locking down the crucial ones. No planet was free of crime after all and if he was to keep up the fiction of being an 'independent trader' certain precautions needed to be taken in order to protect what was his. If Neffie had still been with them then he'd have left the ship in her care but the engineer had left the second the squad became competent enough to survive without her. If his squad grew in number perhaps then he could assign one or two people to stay with the ship while the rest left to accomplish the mission but he doubted that would happen. They were meant to be a black ops team that the Republic could deny any affiliation with and that worked best with a force small enough to be overlooked.
If they grew too large they'd become something that couldn't be overlooked and had to be monitored making their job that much harder.
Plus with their tour of duty only intended to last two years he doubted that they'd gain enough notoriety to warrant allocating additional manpower to them.
It wasn't like they were destined to become a respected team of freelancers with a rep for pulling off the impossible after all.
Getting out of the pilot's chair he slipped on the crimson jacket that was the final piece of his disguise and tightened his blaster belt. He wouldn't be going out there with a DC-17 hand blaster since it was a weapon at present used only by the Grand Army of the Republic. Instead he'd been given a more common model that one could acquire anywhere in the Republic but was still considered reliable enough for someone 'making their way in the universe'. There were a few other 'surprises' in his pockets courtesy of Kayla but they'd be kept up his proverbial sleeve until needed.
Soon her arrived at the elevator where the rest of his squad awaited him and so he examined them each to make sure their disguises weren't attention grabbing.
Moka did the best of the four though he imagined that it had to do with the fact that the young Togrutan didn't have the confidence to try for flashy or attention grabbing. Simple browns and whites with a common blaster at her hip as well as a short range scanner hanging from a strap over her shoulder. She looked like some sort of academic or logistics specialist which thankfully didn't rate very high on the threat-o-meter.
Crei however looked every bit like someone you'd expect to see in a bar with the 'rough crowd' enjoying a mug of ale and happy if the night ended in a fight. Dressed in leathers of a sort with a vibro-dagger sheathed on each thigh she'd no doubt be able to cement their image if someone decided to start something.
Kalya looked to have taken the grease monkey approach dressed in clothes that one would expect of a person put in charge of working on engines. With various tools and diagnostic equipment either hanging from her belt or placed in her pockets one would think her unarmed. Good thing he had enough experience with the Zeltron to know that any two or three of the things she had on her could be combined into a potent explosive.
As for Ziru…well…the best way he could describe her outfit was that it looked like it came out of The Baroness' closet from G.I Joe. Black and red as well as a tight fit with a jacket that while it had pockets the size of the jacket didn't allow for many. Armed with what was probably the best 'common' blaster rifle on the market it was slung over her shoulder looking like it could be brought to bear at the drop of a hat.
He just hoped that her eye catching outfit didn't wind up attracting trouble.
"You all know 'the job'. Let's get it done." He said before pressing the button that'd lower the elevator.
Thus began the first mission and the beginnings of a legend that would become known across the galaxy.
The Streets of Harnaidan, That Evening
Crei Menect's POV
She was SO bored!
It had been hours since they'd left the ship and all they'd basically done was wander around the city, stand for a couple of minutes to get readings and then walk around a bit more. A few times she thought that she might be able to get some action when some idiots started bragging that they'd earned the death penalty in eight systems wanting to have 'fun' with her. Initially she brushed them off since it was her opinion that the truly strong didn't need to boast about how strong they were. Too bad they couldn't take a hint but she'd brightened up at the idea of being able to 'aggressively' persuade them to look elsewhere. However before she'd been able to lay a finger on them Xander had gotten involved and used the numbers of the squad to make the morons buzz off.
And just like that they were back to just walking around while she tried to keep from expressing her boredom to loudly.
A short while later though the hand signals they'd been taught were used to get the squad into an alleyway far enough off the main flow of foot traffic. Flowing just like they'd been taught back on Kamino to enter the alley without drawing attention to the act they went about ten steps in before stopping.
"So how's it look Moko? Kayla?" Xander asked looking at the two most involved in the fact gathering.
"Most of the infrastructure matches what was on record prior to the Republic's invasion with most of the deviations being the incorporation of Grand Army security measures." Moko replied looking at her short range scanner, "I've mapped out most of the data lines both above and below ground but as of yet I have not been able to find any sign of where the central database is."
"Well where was it before the Republic invaded?" She asked thinking that the obvious might be the right answer.
"According to Republic files it was located beneath the central building below their main cannon." Kayla replied bringing up a holo image of the building in question, "However after the main cannon was destroyed by a team of ARC troopers the resulting power surge that damaged the connections to it as well as parts of the database itself. In the end it was safer to relocate and repair the database though its location was kept secret for security reasons."
"Even from the Republic?" She asked finding it stupid that their employers didn't just tell them where the database was located right off.
"According to the briefing file there was concern that there might be Separatist sympathizers in places where the data can be accessed." Xander replied sounding only a little irritated, "It only makes sense that the Separatists will want to take back this world if they can and doing something to the central database would help with that. Everything's probably linked to it so if it went down or got a virus inserted the whole defense of the city would probably go down."
"Virus? What the hell're you talking about?" She asked confused by what their leader had just said, "You can't give a machine a cold."
What sort of screwed up planet did their 'leader' come from that he thought he could make machines sick?
"What? You guys have spaceships and droids but you haven't figured out how to create computer viruses?" He asked sounding like it was ridiculous.
"Perhaps if you would explain what you mean by 'computer virus'?" The Chiss Bitch asked narrowing her eyes with scrutiny.
"A computer program designed to tamper with computers and anything linked to them." He replied all precise and deliberate, "The programs can do anything from steal information to grant access to secure systems to cause all kinds of malfunctions. Depends on what the programmer who made it wants it to do. Back home some people did it for kicks and others did it to commit crimes. Pretty sure the militaries had people who made them to use them on their enemies."
Most of what the guy said went right over her head but it sounded an awful lot like slipping poison into a machine.
No fun in killing someone with poison.
If there's no blood or damage then it was boring.
"Well that pretty much explains why we've never heard of them." The Chiss Bitch said in her usual condescending manner, "Not many systems in the galaxy that're networked well enough to make such a program practical. Sure there may be some clustered together in a room or on a floor but that's it. Anytime data needs to be transferred outside those clusters it's done by data card or data pad."
"Great way to keep systems protected." Xander said sounding a bit surprised, "Would the systems in a city like this be linked together much?"
"Perhaps individual buildings or major operation centres but that'd be about it." The Bomb fan replied after thinking on it a bit.
"Then we'll be checking those operation centres." He said without wasting time, "Anyone running the city would need access to the database anytime they wanted it. Plus most people in authority don't like to be kept waiting."
"That will cut down on the possibilities." Moko said trying commands into her scanner, "But it'll take some time to cut down the list to just one."
"If we can cut it down to three we can stake them out to see who comes and goes." He said a considering look on his face, "Soon as we find the one with the most important people paying it a visit we'll have our target."
"And how're we supposed to know who those are?" She asked critically, "We weren't exactly given a list."
"Simple. Whoever looks like their outfits could buy us a speeder or a starship." He replied as though it was obvious, "That or has people still working past the usual closing times."
Made sense.
Stuck up people liked to show off how much better they were than everyone else and often had those under them worked to the bone.
"It still seems like a lot of work." The Chiss said with annoyance, "Perhaps the secretive nature of the database's location is a deception. Perhaps it's located beneath the building housing the occupational government."
"Make the obvious choice look like a decoy when it isn't." He said sounding like he was considering it, "Maybe. But it'd still be the first place that'd get hit if the Separatists try to retake the planet. Unless they want history to repeat itself they'll have it someplace else."
"Whatever! Let's just get going." She said having had enough of the chatter, "The sooner we finish this mission the sooner they'll give us something exciting to do."
Like demolishing a Seppie base or killing one of their commanders.
She'll take a good fight over all this sneaking around.
Aboard the Gozanti-Class Cruiser
Cockpit, Past Midnight
Hrur'ziru'emetti's POV
"Captain? A moment of your time if I may?" She asked after closing the door to the bridge and locking it.
If she was to get the truth from him she couldn't have any interruptions if she wanted to prevent him from clamming up.
"Sure. Just going over the data we were provided." Xander replied before setting down the data pad, "What's up?"
"I would like to know the details of the deal you made with Prime Minister Lama Su and Doctor Tri Gar." She replied making sure her expression conveyed her seriousness, "A two year term as an unofficial Republic unit, credits, a ship and equipment? Such things are not done lightly or handed over easily. I would know the full details of just what you've gotten me into."
Originally she and the other three were only supposed to aid in Xander's training after which they would in all likelihood be returned to their previous duties. If the Kaminoans had intended for them to join the war effort they would have been dispatched to the front lines many months ago. Something had to have prompted them to assign them to this unofficial duty to the Republic and to devote resources to it.
Something substantial.
Looking at Xander she could see the contemplation on his face as well as the hesitancy and thought perhaps he would choose to keep the truth to himself. Thus it came as a surprise as with a sigh a look of earnest honesty took root on his face.
"I can't tell you what they wanted from me when we talked but I can tell you that in return for giving them what they wanted they agreed to give me year's worth of credits at the middle class rate, a ship with the features I wanted and…full ownership of you and the others under Kaminoan law." Xander replied looking like he expected an emotional outburst with that last bit.
Perhaps the other ones would but she saw emotional outbursts as a sign of weakness and therefore did not permit herself to indulge in them.
That said the answer she received only gave rise to a desire for clarification and that the captain was quick to pick up on.
"On the way back from Jedha Sergeant Tervho told me that the four of you would probably get added to the ranks of the Republic army once the training was done." He explained turning his chair more fully to face her, "Honestly I didn't have a problem with that until I heard about how some of the Jedi, especially one named Pong Krell, handled the clone troopers. They think you're all expendable since the Kaminoans can always make more. I DON'T."
A lofty statement but she had doubts that they were anything more than words.
"Even if clones are grown in tanks and take the same classes the second you start to think for yourselves and see places other than Kamino you stop being copies and start being people." He said with unshakable belief in his words, "That's why I couldn't just stand back and let you four get assigned to some Jedi that didn't know the difference between lives spent and lives wasted."
"Lives spent and lives wasted?" She asked quickly knowing the difference but wanting to hear him explain how he saw it.
"In war people are going to die no matter what. There's no such thing as a perfect plan where no one dies. Your side? The enemy's side? Death is going to happen." He replied with a look in his eyes that spoke of haunting memories, "The best you can do is try as hard as you can to make sure those deaths have meaning instead of just being more bodies thrown on the pile. Plan, prepare and do your best to keep the deaths to a minimum but also make DAMN sure that those who died didn't do so for nothing."
She raised an eyebrow at this for what she had been told was simultaneously practical and idealistic at the same time. Death was an inexorable part of war whether it was in the line of duty or senseless in the worst possible way people would die. At the same time however it was efficient not to waste resources needlessly and make sure that every loss was made in service to practical gains. She knew that if she was to wage war every action would be measured, the gains and the losses weighed objectively, before choosing the course of action that maximized the former while minimizing the latter.
"So I made it part of the deal with Prime Minister Lama Su that they transfer complete and irreversible ownership of the four of you to me. No take backs. No undoing. Nothing." He said with an almost admirable resolve, "Figured if I did that then you wouldn't get tossed into the meat grinder of this war. Plus I figured if we did a good enough job over the next two years maybe the next part of my plan will work out."
"And that part would be?" She asked not liking the fact that legally she'd been sold to her captain without her input.
"Well we're going to see a lot of people and a lot of places in the next two years. Good chance to make some connections with the right people and maybe get them in our debt if we play it right." He replied sounding less confident, "Then when the two years are up we make a deal with one or more of them to give you and the others full citizenship on whatever world they have influence over. You won't be clones that people can ignore or treat like things. You'll be able to do what you want just like everyone else."
It was an unexpected development but not necessarily an unwelcome one.
From the moment the possibility became more than theoretical possibility that she would be sent off of Kamino she'd worked to concede of the perfect plan to gain her freedom. Her current plan, assuming she didn't revise it further in the future, was to learn of all the ways in which they would try to keep her on her leash. Once she had that information she would gather that which would eliminate those ways one by one until enough of an opening presented itself to escape her prison. Once free of her cage and pursuit she would then seek to insert herself into the population of the Republic and make it look as though she'd always been there. After all unless a reason was given to run an analysis of her DNA there'd be no distinguishing her from a natural born member of her race.
Now? Now she had been presented with a way to achieve freedom that she had not anticipated and would only require that she survive two full years. Two years as a member of a black ops squad doing jobs that could not be linked back to the Republic. By its very definition that meant that they would be doing jobs that if the public did find out the Chancellor ordered them could result in his removal from office. Indeed the people might well lose faith in their government altogether and even if it didn't destroy the Republic outright it might be a thousand years before it was restored.
Such an assignment carried with it a risk as potent as the reward.
After all in the end they would be the sole witnesses to each job and thus the star witnesses in any trial against the Supreme Chancellor.
Reason enough to have them killed once the squad was no longer needed.
Still…if they could acquire the aid of a senator or even the ruler of a collection of systems then citizenship was a distinct possibility. So long as it was in place before the two year period was over she could simply vanish on a mission and escape the firing squad waiting for them at the end.
"And why would you do this for us? Some would say that owning four attractive women is every man's dream." She pointed out knowing well how some viewed them and would use them.
"Only the men who are morons or too cocky for their own good." He scoffed at statement she'd made, "I know from past experience that keeping just one woman happy is a handful. Keeping four happy? I'd be so far out of my league it wouldn't even make for a good joke."
"Slave owners don't need to keep their slaves happy." She said shoving aside Xander's attempt at humour, "Only obedient."
"Where's the fun in having four women who did whatever you told them to do and never talked back?" He asked with a little bit of snark before a more serious expression appeared on his face, "No person and no thing worth having should ever be that easy. If all I wanted was someone to get me off and do what I told them to do I'd just get a custom made droid. If we're still working together in five years it's gonna be because the four of you want to work with me. NOT because I haven't given you a say in the matter."
So he believes in earning what is gained and the freedom to choose ones own path.
She dared say that the number of people who thought the same were quite outnumbered by those that didn't in the known galaxy.
"Understood. Will you be informing the others of your motives?" She asked satisfied that she wouldn't trading one slave master for another.
"Only if they ask like you." Xander replied turning his chair back around and picked up the data pad he'd been using, "If they don't then it'll be a nice surprise for them once we're done in two years."
Given the intelligence of her other clone teammates…
…yeah they'd be getting a surprise in two years.
"Then I will leave you to your work." She said as she turned to leave.
While she could have offered to aid him it was the duty of the leader to examine the data and decide upon a course of action. If he failed to do so or the plan he devised failed then it would provide her with her first piece of proof that she should've been made squad leader. Gather up enough pieces and she'd have a case to bring before the Supreme Chancellor's representative that she was confident would see the command structure of the squad changed.
Why should she leave this squad as a subordinate after all when she could do so as its leader?
Two Days Later, Late Evening
Xander's POV
"Are you sure this is the place?" Moko asked from their concealed position on the rooftop.
"I looked over the data and crossed the other possibilities off the list." He replied looking through a pair of macrobinoculars, "This is the only location with the necessary connections to key places and has had any VIPs stopping by. This is the place."
"I have reviewed the data as well and concur with the captain." Ziru said looking through the scope of her rifle checking each method of entry in turn, "This is the most likely location. If there is someone aiding the Separatists from a position of power this would be a key position."
Lowering the macrobinoculars he mentally reviewed what they knew.
Someone on the planet was assisting the Separatists and using local resources to do it. Everything ranging from supplies mysteriously being 'misplaced' to copies of military communiques. Due to the secretive nature of the assignment Republic intelligence couldn't tell them precisely where to look so that'd left them to canvas the city for likely locations. It'd taken some investigating to figure out both what the potential traitor would need and where those things could be found. Fortunately for him he has a squad with a diverse set of skills that helped narrow down the possibilities in short order.
Now with the best possibility in front of them it was time to get inside to find the proof they needed to ruin someone's day…for the next ten to twenty years.
Though he had to admit that a nondescript warehouse lacking any informative signs didn't exactly look encouraging. Then again that was probably the point of putting the database here since it wouldn't stand out in anyone's memory much less convince them that something valuable might be inside. Still their fact finding on the place ticked all the right boxes so they had to at least scope the inside of the place out before looking elsewhere.
"How's it look on the outside?" He asked turning to his sniper.
"No battle droids if that's what you're asking." Ziru replied as though she thought only an idiot would secretly help the Separatists then put battle droids on patrol in plain view.
"How many guards? Any security cameras? Anything else interesting?" He asked getting specific with his questions.
"Four guards that I can see but probably at least one inside. There's a security camera over the door facing us but there are probably more at the other points of entry." She replied looking back at the building, "Probably inside too."
"So in order to get inside we need to avoid the patrolling guards and the cameras." He said more to himself than to the others, "Any gaps in the patrol guards?"
"Some but if you're thinking of sneaking in between them you'd have at best forty or fifty seconds before the next one comes along." Ziru replied recalling what she'd seen through her scope, "The cameras appear to be stationary but unless they're completely foolish they'll have cameras on the inside watching the doors. Get past the ones on the outside but get caught by the ones on the inside."
"Then we need a way in that they didn't think to cover." He said raising his macrobinoculars back up to look for inspiration.
Panning from one side of the building to the next he could see windows but based on the design he didn't think they were the sort that conveniently opened. Add to that the fact that they were a bit small and there was a chance that their gear would smack against something making a suspicious noise. Could there be bigger ones on the other sides? Maybe? If so then that was one possibility. He also wondered if there was some sort of roof access door or hatch on the top. Every building needed maintenance from time to time and that included the rooftop. The only hitch though was that in a world where you had vehicles that could fly maybe you didn't need ladders or stairs to the rooftop. Maybe you could just fly up to the roof to patch a hole.
Still something to be considered.
All in all the best ways in was the roof and the windows since only someone who'd been in the business of B would think to cover those spots.
Good thing his time as a Scooby had him carrying something for every occasion.
"We'll go in from the rooftop. There'll either be a hatch up there or Kayla can cobble something together to cut through to the inside." He said taking something off of his equipment belt and attaching it to the bottom of his blaster carbine, "If we're quick and quiet about it no one'll know a thing."
"What're you doing?" Crei asked sounding like she had an idea but wasn't certain.
"Well seeing as how we can't exactly walk up to the place I'm going with plan B." He replied before aiming at the top of the building an pulling the trigger.
Just like it was supposed to the business end of the ascension cable shot across the gap between where he was to the building he wanted to get into. Sure ascension cables were meant to for scaling structures but a little improvisation made for some interesting possibilities. Thankfully he'd been able to get some modifications done back on Kamino without giving away where they'd been done. Once the line stopped rolling out he gave it a good tug to make sure that the piton was secure before making sure his end of things was just as tight. They weren't in their safe to be around civilians clothes as the moment but rather the custom combat gear made on Kamino for when things got serious. It was all quality made but also designed to fit in with what was in style for the scum of the galaxy. One or two things might raise an eyebrow but they'd just say they had it custom done by a supplier that valued their anonymity. If pressed they'd drop the name of someone that had the rep to do the work but then they would 'screw up' by giving the wrong details. It'd make people think they got taken in by an imposter and were less than intelligent in some areas.
Being underestimated was a great advantage to have.
"You can't be serious." Crei said sounding like this move came out of nowhere.
"If you've got a better way of getting in there without being seen or heard now's the time." He said before walking to the edge of the rooftop.
Hearing nothing he wasted no time getting onto the cable and starting to shimmy his way towards the warehouse at just the right speed to keep from wasting time without attracting attention. It was a fact that people's eyes were attracted to fast movements but at the same time he didn't want to go so slow that one of the guards might just look up and see him. All in all it only took him a few minutes to get onto the warehouse rooftop and once he was back on his feet he turned back to his team before giving the signal for the next one to come across. Ascension cables might be rate to be able to handle a Trooper plus gear but he wasn't willing to risk seeing if it could handle more than one person at a time.
Twenty minutes later his team was with him so he did what he needed to do and cut the cable since leaving it hanging out there was just asking for the alarm button to be slapped. Plus he had a spare one on his belt for the return trip so it was all good.
Looking about the roof he was glad to see a hatch not too far away because he wasn't looking forward to having a hole cut. He had no doubt that it could be done but at the same time the cutting would cause debris to rain down inside even before the hole was made. If it turned out to be molten metal that'd be eye catching enough to trigger some warning lights in anyone who saw it. Looking at Kayla he pointed at the hatch before using one of his hands to make scissor snip-snip motions as a way of conveying that she should neutralize any security that might rigged to the hatch.
With a nod the Zeltron moved to the hatch before reaching to snag two tools from her belt before going to work. It'd been one of the training scenarios that they'd been put through but he was betting good money that the Seppies used better tech than this place had. He was proven right when less than a second later Kayla popped the hatch and no alarms went off so and so he descended down the ladder. As soon as he was far enough down to look about and thankfully aside from a few lights hanging just above the shelves inside it was pitch black. Still he figured if his world had night vision and stuff like that then Republic tech might well be capable of better…maybe.
It was kind of odd how advanced this galaxy seemed in some ways and yet was so behind his own. They had space travel, FTL engines and ray guns but their cyber warfare prowess was woefully under developed.
After two minutes of trying to find the cameras in the dark he only found two and neither of them looked like they'd be able to catch them given how far away they were. He didn't like not being able to pin down all of them but they were on the clock and he knew at least two of his team were not the patient sort. Descending the rest of the way down the ladder he moved away from the nearest light source to keep from being seen. Two minutes later they were all down but from here it'd be Moko's show since her short range scanner would give them advance warning of trouble ahead as well as lead them to the database. It'd be the job of the rest of them to quietly deal with any troubles that needed dealing with.
It wasn't easy for her.
She could only power up the scanner for four seconds before shutting it down again in order to avoid giving off any energy readings. Fortunately part of the training they'd been through on Jedha had been making resources last by using them sparingly and that included the power cells for the equipment they were given. Part of the training was working on Moko's ability to remember what her scanner showed her with only a few seconds at a time to look at the display. The Togruta hadn't mastered it though but the progress she'd made thus far had supported the possibility that she could if she kept up with the training. In this case since they were dealing with a much smaller area than the dunes of Jedha and certain artificial expectations there was less to memorize so it wasn't long before they were hot on the trail of the database.
With temporary scans they were able to spot the interior cameras with ease and navigate around them while also sticking to the gaps in the lighting. Only when they reached an area that was just a little north of the centre of the warehouse did they find the next part of their search: a section of flooring that did not match the rest and a seam that implied it could be removed. Looking about he tried to see if there was some sort of control mechanism involved but if there was it was well hidden and possibly disguised as something. When a minute had passed and Moko could risk turning her scanner on for another burst he waited to see if she could track down that mechanism.
"It's no good. The controls have to be shielded somehow." Moko whispered just loud enough to be heard by the rest of the squad, "I'm not picking anything up."
"And you're sure this is where we need to go?" He asked wondering if this was a red herring of sorts.
"Positive. All the scan results so far point to this leading further beneath the warehouse." Moko said with a resolve that'd gotten better as time passed.
At first he thought it best to have the team spread out to find the mechanism but before he could gave the order he considered a possibility: what if that was the trap? What if whoever had been behind the relocation and hiding of the database anticipated people looking for the controls at this point and rigged a trap? A trap people not in the know were almost certain to trip? On the one hand it sounded paranoid but at the same time he couldn't argue that it'd likely work.
How could he get around it then?
To find somerhing without tripping a trap.
The answer came to him in the space between seconds but when he considered it doubt entered his mind. He had not practiced with it and did not possess near enough experience using it to reliably make out what it told him. Should he really risk it here and now?
Wasn't the risk of not doing so just as great if not worse?
In the end he let instinct guide him and knelt on the ground before the discrepancy on the floor even as he took off one of his gloves. He could hear the rest of his team asking him questions but he pushed them aside since he was going to need every bit of focus he could manage. Pressing his now bared hand against the floor he closed his eyes and called upon the power that resided within him.
"Trace On." He whispered before putting his all into using his inheritance to grasp the structure and composition of not only the targeted part of the floor but everything around it.
In the memories he'd inherited from Archer EMIYA from the time when the man had been a teenager this ability had been used to aid in the repair of school appliances. It essentially allowed the magus to obtain a perfect picture in his mind of the appliance and swiftly see where the broken connections were or if a part needed to be replaced. While this power couldn't fix the item it eliminated the time that would've been wasted looking the only fashioned way.
He on the other hand would be trying to use it to track down the location of the switch or button that'd remove the fake floor panel that barred their path. Even if he couldn't clearly see everything if he could at least make out the wiring leading from the floor panel to the switch that'd be enough. Letting the magic flow out from the point of contact he did his best to guide it along the curves and over the forms of everything it touched. Again and again he sent waves of energy out each time trying to imagine its flow in his mind and hold onto the image that was created. At first it was like an image seen through the lens of a camera that was horribly out of focus but as he adjusted how he did it each time clarity began to improve. It was only when he began to feel some fatigue that he beheld an image that told him what he wanted to know prompting him to stop.
Opening his eyes he knew precisely where he needed to go and did not hesitate to rise up from his knelt position with his glove in hand.
"What's with the Jedi routine Xander?" Crei whispered in inquiry sounding like she thought precious time had been wasted.
"Just playing a hunch." He replied as he approached where he'd seen the cable go from the floor panel.
Namely something that looked like a simple light switch built into a support column.
However where some would simply press the button on the switch he knew from his amateur effort of using EMIYA's trick that the buttons were also trap. Neither the top or the bottom button were in any way connected to the panel floor but rather to something elsewhere in the warehouse. Instead the real switch was tucked behind the metal plate that surrounded the decoy buttons and this was proven when he 'opened' the plate like a door to reveal the truth. At the very centre, admits the circuits and wiring, was a secret button and without hesitation he pressed that button. Just as he'd expected the sound of concealed machinery hummed in the air and the panel that Moko had directed them to sunk half a foot downwards before sliding into a compartment to the right. Beyond that was a set of stairs leading downwards that little by little became illuminated by red lights that were bright enough to be of use but dim enough not to draw attention to those more than teen feet from them.
Made sense. Brighter lights might make it out the windows of the warehouse or get caught on one of the security cameras accessible by an outside party.
"How did you know it was there?" Ziru asked sounding genuinely surprised but restrained as well.
"The floor told me." He replied before beginning his descent down the stairs, "Lets go."
With that he focused on what lay ahead rather than those who would be following behind him. The hallway he reached once he finished going down the stairs wasn't anything remarkable but then there was no reason for it to be since it was a concealed part of the building. On the plus side unless something else was concealed beneath the warehouse there would be no searching needed since the one hallway would lead right to the database. After that all they'd need to do was access it, look for anomalies that might explain what was going on and then pass on what they found to their Republic contact. Nothing in their orders after all even gave them the option of taking down the perpetrator themselves much less made it a condition for the successful completion of the mission.
However if they learned of something happening in the next few days that needed to be acted on immediately…he just might consider pulling some 'independent action'.