35:1:24 01:14
- Portions encrypted for personal use only -

I was right to be worried about the mission… just not for all the right reasons. But the group is safe now, what had to be done was done, abhorrent as it may have been (the alternative was much moreso, even if some might disagree).

I'm digressing though - too easy to let thoughts ramble due to exhaustion – and other reasons – .

Sprend & I were just about finished our surveillance when a call came through from the Baron - he'd figured out the code the Black Ops were using to communicate – after they read our private messages – STILL burns me! All those classes on data security and this STILL happens! – . That could definitely come in useful - we agreed to all meet back at Brown Fox's warren and hone our plan for the evening then.

That's when opportunity knocked – and, as so often does, rang the doorbell and left a Rancor-sized flaming pile of excrement on the doorstep – – another one of the black vans started to approach the building. A chance to see inside! I quickly dropped the drone down onto its roof as the van neared the warehouse… and then something happened to the controls. Just as the van was clearing the building's doorway, the drone shot back up unexpectedly (interference? jamming?) – I'm sure Sprend thought “incompetence” – and hit the wall, bouncing off and landing outside. The only saving grace was that it rolled under a pile of trash, so the guard who came out to investigate the noise didn't see it… but he may have caught a glimpse of Sprend and I as we quickly ducked out of sight. We heard shouting - so much for complete surprise! Sprend quickly slid down the ladder to the ground below and I followed suit… mostly. A stumble at the bottom sent a discarded bottle of Bantha milk skittering across the alleyway – Black Ops *I* am not, it seems – , and Sprend hissed out a “Let's get out of here!” in response. Thankfully we managed to clear the area before anyone showed up, and soon were on a bus headed back towards the rest of the team.

We all straggled back into Brown Fox's den and started laying out what each team had found out. It sounded like there'd been a few hiccups along the way, but overall a success, including procurement of some explosives by Brown Fox & Seth. Just as we started to cobble together a plan, another distraction - 6 guys in tattered clothing melted out of the shadows, holding makeshift pistols and advancing menacingly. One of them seemed to recognize Fox, as he locked eyes and simply muttered “Told you to leave…” – I think Fox may have left some details out of his report… –

A quick glance towards the Baron confirmed we were on the same page - we didn't need more bloodshed or attention on our hands. The Baron walked right up to the leader – bold? foolish? Sometimes I think a bit of both… and demanded to know his name – no success, these guys weren't here for talking. Another angle from the Baron - “You should leave now, my friend here is quite trigger happy!” A quick glance over towards Sprend, who was not-so-subtly starting to level his gun, threw the junkies into a worry - one even panicked and fled!

I attempted – getting tired of that word, “attempted”… seems to always mean “…and then the plan fell apart” – to stare down the rest of the would-be attackers as I let loose an Imperial-style tirade on them, warning them to leave now and stay out of business that wasn't theirs.

“What, are ya tryin' to command me like some kinda trooper?!” the leader sneered. – Reconsidering that “no bloodshed” thing… –

Another exchange around Sprend, this time with Brown Fox warning that Sprend is about to open fire, they'd better leave while they weren't perforated - another junkie panicked and turned tail! Tor-Nenko then upped the threat level, staring down the sights of his blaster at the head of another menacer.

Seth had apparently had enough by now, he pulled his gun and pushed by the Baron as he stuck the gun into the leader's chin. “You will LEAVE and your friends will go with you”. Two more fled - just the leader & a buddy now! Thankfully Seth didn't immediately shoot… our “peaceful” plan still had a chance!

A shot rang out - what happened to “no bloodshed”?! As my eyes adjusted I saw Sprend had managed to shoot the gun in the follower's hand, which was now on fire. The sound of his screams dopplered away into the night soon after, leaving just the leader – who wisely, finally, back down and left.

A short while later, we had our plan. I'd message the Baron about our fictional relative the Black Ops seemed interested in – according to Seth, at least – , hoping to draw off at least some of the troops. D'Gane would “meet” said troops at the airport and extend her warmest greetings. The idea of remotely controlling our van briefly came up, until Tor-Nenko was unable to cobble enough parts together from the den to rig it up. Instead, Brown Fox volunteered to drive the van while the rest of us prepared to strike during the dual van/explosion distraction. – assuming Fox's “associate” actually delivered the explosives to the side of the warehouse… “surprise party”? Really?! Well… I guess I've heard wilder… – From there it would pretty much be “wing it”, with gathering or destroying the intel against us being the top priority.

20:00. The plan was in motion; Fox dropped us off a couple of blocks from the warehouse and then circled around to start his run while we shadowed the alleyways towards the side where the explosives should be. They were there! As, unfortunately, was a much-increased guard presence - twice as many on the roof, and several more on the ground. – Frak! I wonder if there are anti-jamming kits available for drones? – A quick comm to Fox started the distraction in motion.

Quite a distraction it was, too! A careening van, honking like mad, smashing over lightpoles and a sickening wet thud as it plowed through a couple of guards. Sprend quickly took aim at the explosives and lit up the night sky… we all dropped to the ground as the shockwave roared over us, light and sound and heat washing out all else. A feeble scream as one of the guards fell off the collapsed corner of the roof into the fire. This isn't what I signed up for! Maybe I should have just kept wandering Balmorra, so much of this conflict might have been avoided for myself and the others! How can I lead if I can't handle the necessary casualties?! Why is Sprend just laying there staring at the fire as well? What if – SLAP

My eyes – and thoughts… this is where I was, this is the situation we were in, and it had to be dealt with, for better or worse – snapped back into focus as the sting of Tor-Nenko's hand flushed my cheeks. Trying to ignore the sound of gunfire and screams from the area of the van, I quickly ran over closer to the intact portion of the building, hoping to see – or rather, sense – if any guards might be inside. Nothing – odd… I had trouble concentrating at first, but the fear of this mission failing crossed my mind and as I grasped onto it I could feel the Force flowing once again – but… different. I will have to be careful I think… – , other than the dying gasp of a guard drifting out from the burning rubble of the building's corner.

Seth ran across the street and leapt through the fire, stumbling on the other side and hitting his head. Thankfully he quickly popped back up and grabbed an extinguisher from the wall, managing to clear enough of a path in the flames for the rest of us to follow.

Just as I prepared to do so, a blaster bolt threw gravel from the ground at my feet into the air. Another guard on the roof! I quickly took aim and stunned him… only to see him fall into the flames below and perish. – No mental fireworks yet, thankfully – I feel hesitation in this situation could lead to a fatal failure for the entire team –

The inside was oddly barren. We moved from room to room, Sprend taking out the minimal resistance as we went… garbage. Empty rooms. Power generators. More emptiness. More garbage, even were Seth claimed the intel should be. – This was starting to raise red flags all over the place – Brown Fox commed in a whisper that he'd made it inside and found some computers, but none containing the intel we wanted – but there was an office with people inside. We decided to meet just outside, thinking surely this must be our goal.

As soon as we regrouped, the Baron flung open the door to the office and walked right in. – Dammit, Baron! You don't avoid bloodshed by going in blinding without even trying to recon or sense beforehand! We were going to have to talk after this, this odd bravado was going to get one or more of us killed yet – The rest of us quickly followed to back him up - there was Sabik (and a few guards)!

“What're you fools doing blowing up my warehouse?!” he demanded as he stood up. The Baron retorted with wondering why they'd blown up our pub, at which point Sabik looked a little confused and asked who we were. After the Baron's prompting, Sabik claimed to not know who Seth was either, and laughed at the idea of hunting anti-Imperials. – I quickly sidled close enough to him to sense his thoughts – truth! He was a criminal, yes, but not Imperial at all.. which meant oh frak –

A gun to my head. Seth! “I guess you found me out”, followed by a quick-thinking order from the Baron – I had to steel myself against the command to sit in the corner as well; I don't know if it was panic or what, but the Force was strong in that order! – . An outpouring of information, the hatred in Seth's eyes apparent even as he was forced to reveal all. It all started as a huge misunderstanding… Atheon Na'os, a former Firebird compatriot, was suspected of leaking info to the Rebellion – but she managed to orchestrate a huge coverup in the Imperial ranks and laid the blame on me instead – bitter irony, that the person she picked ended up a rebel in fact – . That brought me to Seth's attention – he was a lone Imperial operative, deep undercover, tracking me which led to the Baron as well, and the hacking of our messages. The whole Reactor Core attack was a ruse by hired thugs to get Seth into our ranks! – I can't believe I fell for the “tell the truth as much as possible” motto Seth seemed to go by… looking back, I needed to word my questions better! –

As the Baron continued to try (unsuccessfully) to pry more information out of Seth (such as how he had Rebellion codes), my thoughts went into overdrive.

– The sounds of discussion and argument between the rest of my team and Sabik's gang washed over me, only the occasional random wording sticking into my mind. I… we… had been so fooled! Seth was far too dangerous to risk letting loose – much moreso than Madar had been, or even the guard who was stashed back at the pub. He knew all of us, and one quick opportunity to report back would result in all of Balmorra's Imperial forces hunting us down… or worse. The Baron wasn't going to get anything else out of him either, I knew… at least not anytime soon, and time was not on our side with Seth. I'd seen what undercover operatives could do in the past. I knew what had to be done. I knew what the cost might be, to myself and among the group. The cost of NOT doing so was much higher though, even if not everyone could see it! It HAD to be done. No one else looked ready to do it, so I had to be the one, fear be damned. –

Seth had to be dealt with, NOW. Shaking the fog from my head, I flicked my gun off stun and put a bolt right through his brain – flashback to the shot through a head that triggered all that's come since… but no pain. Not this time. Not from the Force, at least. – , his body just starting to slump to the ground as the others turned back towards the sound of the shot. What had to be done, was done… maybe they'd see it in time, maybe not… but we were all safer now.

A quiet ride back, Tor driving the van. I could tell the Baron was trying to lighten the mood a bit, not very successfully. – I didn't even have to sense to know he was seething inside, highly disappointed with how things turned out, myself in particular. Again… hopefully, in time, he'll see I can still be trusted, that what needed done was done, that sometimes there is no other choice. Hopefully. – Finish up this report, and to sleep… if any can come.


35:1:25 17:32

The Baron has invited everyone to the bar later this evening - his tone seems a bit lighter than before, but I'm still dreading it. Hopefully he – and the others, of course – have had enough time to process what happened and why it had to. Still, I'm not looking forward to this…

In other news, I've been carefully practicing my Force sensing off and on since yesterday morning – perhaps if I'd been more attuned, I could have caught onto what was happening sooner! Hopefully this will pay off in future missions…

(OOC: gained “Touch of Fate” talent)