After hearing the Baron's story at the Resistance meeting, and how Via has been missing since then, Fox decides to track down his “boss.” Hard Stealth Check w/ setback for city lights. Result: . 2 x threat = another ISB agent lives here, though he hasn't seen Fox due to the success. 1 x threat is he's a bit odd. The shistavanen keeps to the shadows, soundlessly approaching Via's apartment.

Skulduggery check (). Result: 0.0. All is dark, and the door is securely locked. It's as if Via knows something about security. Fox goes around to the back, no luck - shatterproof glass with transparisteel grating, with her room high up on the 4th floor. Interior fire escape - even with climbing gear it just wouldn't work to get past the transparisteel without blowing up the entire wall. He heads back to the door, and spends several minutes trying different techniques without success. The side entrance is very secure, and the main entrance is full of security cameras and visitors need to be buzzed in. This place is designed by the ISB to house agents, and they've done their job well. (addendum: the plural “agents” was supposed to help foreshadow the next encounter) ~KF

Opposed Perception check (). Result: . It is getting quite late, and Fox searches for any sort of clue to Via's whereabouts, but nothing catches his attention. No sign of a disturbance, nothing to move forward on. There isn't much to see - it's an apartment block on a side street. As he circles the building once more, Fox sees an old man shuffling towards the front entrance. This is a possible opportunity to get a clue, perhaps.

Later disclosure: = this is an ISB agent living here that now notices Fox, but Fox won't recognize him as such at first. means he's going to play Fox a bit. = he provides info that Via is not here, and hasn't been for several days.

Fox grabs a 50 credit note from his pocket, then runs up to the man. “Excuse me, sir. I think you dropped this.” he says, referring to the note.

“Oh my. Yes, well, I uh, well, thank you sir.” He bobs his head graciously. “Most generous, Mr., uh…”

“Marsand” he says before he even thinks twice. “You're out quite late, tonight. Surely someone of your age and wisdom has other, younger legs and backs to run errands for you at this hour?”

“Hey, are you callin' me old, fuzzball? Why, when I was your age, I respected my elders.” He spits on the ground, then grins. “Evenin' shift, sonny. So, you want me to do some errand for ya?” His words are just slightly slurred.

“I would be honoured,” Fox says, leading towards the apartment building door a bit, hoping to 'walk and talk' a bit as he goes inside.

“Wait, what? I was askin' if you want me to do an errand fer you. They just don't make ears like they used to.” He shakes his head. “Why else did you give me credits?” disclosure: He was thinking you wanted information from him, which is his focus, and he knows Fox is ISB property. He is a bit confused but sees an opportunity to mess with what he sees as a tool.

“Oh. Right. Sorry. I've been drinking and I locked myself out of the building here…”

“Oho, is that so, eh? Well, I ain't never seen you before, and I've lived here for 18 years. Know everybody in the place. Yup. Now before I report a shady character like yourself to the authorities, why don't you tell me who you really are, and what you really want.” His crazy grin widens. He has pointy teeth. You're not sure if that is normal.

“Oh, I don't live here. I met this Zeltron at the casino tonight, and she invited me for a little sabbac at her place. (She didn't tell me it was going to be strip sabbac. Wink wink, nudge nudge.) Anyways, we had our fun, and I stepped out to light up a death stick, and the door closed behind me, and now I'm out here, and she's sound asleep inside.”

He sticks out his hand, palm up.

“You know what? I had a pretty good night at the casino tonight. Perhaps I can share some of my good fortune with you.” Fox slips him another 50.

He grins with his pointy teeth, stashes the credits in his back pocket, while sticking out his other hand, palm up. Disclosure: Oh yeah, he's messing with Fox hard. But the credits provide indirect info about Fox's kennel later… If he gave more credits, he would have given more solid info.

“I think I've got another 50 on me somewhere. It's hard to tell in this lighting. I bet the lighting inside the building here would help out.”

He walks you to the front door, where security lighting shines on you both from above. Does his grin turn menacing while you delay? Not sure…

The crazy old hooded man with small eyes, pointy teeth and surprisingly nice breath is starting to try Fox's patience. The shistavanen starts searching his pockets. He pulls out his vibro knife, then puts it back. pulls out the riot gun, then puts it back. “Ah ha! Here it is!” He pulls out a bloodied fusion cutter. “Nope, that's not it. Listen, pal, I think I'm broke. Can you spot me a 50?”

“Oh good, yer a real player, you are. Zeltron. Yup, sounds like her alright. Except you'd be dead if you tried to break into her room. Ain't nobody goes there never. And not now, fer sure, hee hee. Hee.”

He breaks off, clears his throat, almost puts his hand out towards you again, and then decides to continue. “She's gone now. A few days. I think she crossed HIM.” He doesn't say who this HIM is, it's almost like he assumes you know. “That's very nice fur you have there. I bet it keeps you real warm, don't it. Nope, you wouldn't want to lose that skin of yers. Mebbe the Zeltron stuck her nose where it don't belong, and mebbe yer gonna learn from her mistake. You don't want to end up like yer precious kennel. Poor little puppies.” Disclosure: another ISB agent with Human League ties. Via escaped the Human League trap that caught Swift, but they saw her with him. This agent also knows that Agent 63 is getting impatient with Via and Fox, and has set up extra pressure to put on Fox now that Via is undercover. 63 doesn't know she is a double agent, but suspects.

He nods toward the cameras, and his voice changes; now a (British) Coruscant accent, and very abrupt and disdainful. “Keep your head down, finish your job soon, or you will be finished. Agent 63 does not tolerate failure, cur.” He spits, gestures for you to leave, and you hear multiple footsteps echoing from a nearby alley.

Fox analyses this guy for a minute longer, then takes off back to the Den. Too much to think about.

The next day Fox circulates around his Net, checking on their progress and circulating a picture of Via. He also describes the man he met the previous night, expressing interest in understanding him better. He also reminds them how dangerous some of these people are and to not engage in any fashion but to only observe.

He would have gone to ISB Headquarters the following day, but the old guy rattled him. Rather, Fox goes to the Shuftsbury facility (equivalent to an ISB Gym) to ask around about Via.

The Net: Fox has clearly been watching Swift and lifted a page from his playbook. The seven people that make up the Net (8 if you count Fox (9 if you count Merlyn)) aren't independent profiteers. Fox looks out for them by finding them a safe place to live and a network of people who will look out for them. They look out for each other. Their living costs are covered by odd jobs they take around the city, which helps them stay abreast of any intel that might be useful and uncover possible destinations for interesting information. Fox does pay them well for information they uncover, but that price is worked into the hefty fee he charges when he re-sells the information. On the whole, he stands to gain approx 100 credits every session per 3 observers he has in the city (rounded down).

They all really like and respect Fox (for saving their lives and all). If he is the purchaser of information regarding Via or the other wack job, then it could be assumed that they would want payment for that info. However, they're learning to become a family on their own, and as such would never expect Fox to pay for that kind of information. They owe him so much already…

At Shuftsbury, Fox has worked most closely with his melee trainer, Greggo, whom Via had set him up with. He now finds Greggo, shows him his fusion cutter, see if he has any tips for killing with it, then casually mentions that he hadn't seen Via around in a little while.

Greggo is happy to see Fox, and everything seems normal as you interact. “Fusion cutter, eh? Hmm, I suppose it would do in a pinch. Maybe if you were undercover, like a mechanic or something, and there were weapon scanners, that would probably be a very useful thing. But you miss once, I think you're better off with your bare hands - a prepared victim can easily dodge it, and a skilled victim might turn it on you - it's dangerous.

“But if it's melee, myself, I use the vibrorapier. I tend to be sent on jobs where the victim is well-protected, well-armored. And the rapier cuts through armor like warm butter. Very nice to block incoming attacks with, as well.

“For my stealth jobs, I use the molecular stiletto. Not much damage, but it is a vicious little beast, also great at punching through armor. Not very sturdy, but very effective at inflicting long-lasting harm.”

He goes on for another 10 minutes extolling different manufacturers of the vibrorapier and stiletto if you let him. When you mention Via, he doesn't blink.

“Oh, I don't know. I think she was working with 63 a few days ago. She is pretty tight-lipped, like she should be, when it comes to these jobs, but I overheard her talking to 63 on the comms. Something about a Baron or something, and while her voice was normal - you know how she is; always unreadable - her face was something else. I saw her reflection in the mirror here, without her knowing. I, well, she's nice to look at,” he grins and shrugs. “Anyway, she looked kind of angry. That was, oh, around the 4th or 5th.”

Fox spends more time inside Shuftsbury, but doesn't find Valance, the marksman he had seen Via training with many times. Spies - never around when you need them.

Fox arrives at the medbay late in the afternoon, and Merlyn greets him on arrival. Swift is busy at work in his room, Damaria with him. They are hunched over a small table - Swift's staff of office in pieces, and what looks like the remains of a blaster pistol are spread over its top.

Would he want to speak with Swift privately or should we get Damaria in on this conversation? ~KF

Are you kidding?!?! There's no way he's gonna paddle into that Bermuda Love Triangle! ~AF

Fox looks the debris on the table and nods his admiration for their… work (???) then asks Swift if he could see him for a moment. The Baron nods, “Of course, Fox,” and they retreat to an empty corner.

“I've spent the past couple days trying to track down Via. I can't pick up any trace of her. Someone at her apartment thinks she might be fleeing from some danger. Says she's been gone for days. It might involve you and Agent 63. Do you have any idea where she may have gone?” Fox watches Swift's face extra carefully while he says all this.

He looks a bit preoccupied, but Swift does take the opportunity to stretch his muscles, sore from working over a table for hours on end. When Fox mentions Via, he shifts his weight a bit, sighs and looks away. “Fox, I don't know what to think about it all. I keep having flashbacks, and second guessing. I knew there was something wrong the minute I stepped in that restaurant to meet with her, but I couldn't figure out what it was before I had some kind of tranq dart in my neck.”

His eyes squint a bit as he looks back at Fox. “Sometimes I wonder if she set me up, but if this was the Human League, that doesn't make any sense at all - she's a Zeltron. And she's had plenty of opportunity to betray us before this. No, she's part of our family, as unfathomable as she is. No one else knew where we were meeting, though either of us could have been watched and followed, I suppose. Did you have any specific questions?”

Fox chews on his lower lip while he thinks.

“Maybe it wasn't the Human League behind the kidnapping. Maybe they were just a tool. To get you.” He thinks a moment more. “Could Via be acting against her own best interests? Do you think it's possible that someone wanted to get you out of the way AND had something on her. They coerced her into meeting with you, and then used the Human League to do their dirty work. Could that be possible?”

Swift sits down in the corner, back against the wall, sagging. “It's possible. I hadn't heard of the Human League having a presence on Balmorra before, and I've lived here my whole life. Though groups like that tend to spring up where there's trouble and unrest. As for Via; I find it hard to imagine Via being coerced into doing anything, though I don't know if she's as committed as Sprend or Damaria - as you saw, both of them would sacrifice their lives for the rest of this family.

“She didn't sound unusual on the comms, but it's hard to say - I wasn't really paying attention to signs of distress. She's a trained ISB agent - and a double agent at that; as you know, she walks a fine line, and seems to do a good job of it. Who could honestly put leverage on her without her simply killing them first? You've seen her work with blasters…

“As for me, I do have a few enemies, but honestly they have enough power to just arrest me at the Assembly. Of course, that could incite a riot - I have a feeling that the citizens of Bin Prime are on the edge of openly turning against the Empire if the right spark is ignited.

“I wish I had the training to resist poisons - apparently the Jedi of old could do that; I could have fought off the toxins from the dart and we could have uncovered at least part of this mess. But I failed; if something's happened to Via, I'm responsible.”

“I should have just met Via at her apartment - but, well,” he glances over at his room where Damaria continues working. “Women are complicated, and I can't untangle the situation I'm in - at least without taking the chance that I ruin a good team. Any advice now that you're off meds?”

Fox shakes his head inwardly. This poor guy can't seem to think about anything besides the blaster in his pants…

“I don't know, Clark. If you're just playing around with one or both of them, then make that clear. It's all tons of fun until someone takes it too seriously. If you want something more with one (and hopefully not both of them) make that clear too. I personally wouldn't recommend getting into a “trusting” relationship with a spy. On the other hand, I wonder if you might be confusing the the Force-connection with Damaria with a deeper kind of connection,”

“If it'll help you think clearer, I know a couple humanoid gals back at the Den who can help you with your blaster training. They're pretty affordable, but Merlyn would raise his eyebrows when you came for a check-up. (If he had any eyebrows.)”

Swift shakes his head, flushing a bit. “Hey, I have a lineage to think of - it's not just about me, but about the family name. It's complex, but try to think of it from my point of view - there have been 20 generations of Swifts in the Assembly. I'm sure the Empire will gladly replace my spot with anyone from the Human League,” he arches his eyebrow, but doesn't look too upset.

Fox decides to give some help, for what it's worth. “Well, what ARE your feelings towards Via? If her flirtation is welcome, is cross-species fertilization even possible? If it is unwelcome, AND you have feelings for Damaria AND she had feelings too, then clearing the air would be required. Otherwise it seems kinda moot.”

“Via and me. Well, I'm not sure. Sometimes its nice and I'm flattered, but she is rather aggressive - typical for a Zeltron. I don't think I ever told you about my past - about Circe. I haven't spoken much about it. Via reminds me a lot of her. I was 17, and introduced to a beautiful young woman. She essentially seduced me, fooling me into believing she loved me - or maybe she even did, I don't know.

“It turns out Circe was an apprentice Inquisitor - a Jedi hunter for the Empire. Her first independent mission was on Balmorra and she discovered my Force talents. She had weaseled her way into my family, gathered secrets on the Peers and their plans to overthrow the Empire, and betrayed us all. On the night my parents were arrested, she was distracting me on a walk through the estate. She confronted me, and asked me to join her and some kind of secret circle of the Emperor. But I refused, and then she attacked me - thankfully she didn't have a lightsaber, otherwise I'd probably be missing a limb or two - but she underestimated my strength, and she fell…

“Sorry, I'm rambling. All this to say, I am attracted to Via, and yet… I don't want to hurt her feelings; if it wasn't for my past, I'd probably pursue her, but I just can't bring myself to trust her completely. Oh, and zeltrons are near-humans, so no… fertilization issues. Actually, I think my great-grandmother was half-zeltron.

“So you see the situation I'm in? Via shows her interest plainly, but I am not sure if she is “just being a zeltron” and actually doesn't care that much about me, or she is intentionally playing me like Circe. Damaria and I connect well, and there's definitely attraction there too, but she is much more subtle, and again I'm not sure if she's merely teasing or if there's a genuine attraction on her end. She also seems… mostly… stable, and politically-speaking would be able to navigate my public world easier. In both cases, I don't want to ruin either the team dynamic or get too distracted, and yet my biological clock is ticking and I have the expectations of generations, not to mention my constituency. Any time I appear in public with a female the headlines are ridiculous…

“So here I am, feeling like a teen, but balancing a Rebel Team with a political duty. Even if the Empire falls quickly, we will need generations of skilled politicians to keep a new Emperor from rising. Ha! Any answer for my melodrama? Maybe I'm overthinking all this?”

Fox considers further. “Hmmm. If succession is such an important priority, then put Via from your mind. There's no way your current circles will ever smoothly overlap. Maybe with years, but it sounds like you don't feel you have years. (And can you actually picture Via as the 'mothering' type?)”

“If you think Damaria might be possibly be interested in that life, then you should be having this conversation with her. If the flirting doesn't bother her, then you're worrying for nothing. If it does, then strategize a plan with her. Assuming Via isn't dead somewhere.”

“Good points. I suppose I hadn't stopped to actually talk it out with anyone before, not clearly, and this makes sense. I try to keep everyone happy and avoid conflict with the team, but that doesn't really resolve issues.” He clasps Fox's shoulder. “Thanks. Now I just hope I can muster enough courage to move forward.”

Fox is taken by surprise and touched. Their relationship status gains +1.

Fox tries to re-focus the conversation. “Back to that OTHER issue… What if Via's being coerced by someone she can't kill? I doubt she has any close friends, but what about family? Do you know if she has any relations that's she's close too? Ones that would want to set you up??”

Swift takes a deep breath. “From what I've gathered, Via has no family to kill. Her father was a bounty hunter and it sounds like she was close to him, but she despises her family back on Zeltros. She's had no contact with them for years. Her employer… you know, you need to talk to Tor. He may have information about who Via works for and the character - he knows them better than I. Though none have a connection to me, as far as I know.”

“As for those who hate me, well, I'd say the Human League has an obvious motive - I've been pushing for “non-human” rights for the past two years, and they are irrational. As far as the Empire is concerned, Commander Larness, head of security, probably feels threatened by the legislation I've introduced. Assembly bills are only “advisory,” but they have some political clout, and the people pay attention. The Imperial propaganda machine has difficulty spinning stories, and the INN occasionally lets an anti-Imperial story get through. I doubt the Imperial Moff for the sector has noticed my actions at all. Yet.” He grins at the last comment.

Fox points out some possibilities. “Maybe if her father is the only family member she's in good standing with, then perhaps he has re-entered her life. Maybe he's being used as leverage against her. If he was in trouble, would Via have set you up to save him?”

“It's possible. She hadn't mentioned anything, but the last time I spoke to Via was at the banquet, and then she seemed to be pretending that she didn't really know me personally. She had a chance to speak to me freely - we danced one song - but she never said anything directly, and didn't appear to be nervous or giving me any warning signals. Renee Wazertiz, the INN correspondent that wrote that hit piece on the Empire's slave trade here, was hounding me with questions later, so I was rather distracted.”

“Hey, what about that second alien you were getting cuddly with at the banquet? Maybe she would be a lead.”

Swift pulls out his datapad, and shows him the INN images from the banquet. “Right. The Falleen. Pretty girl, but, well, not much to say about her. I think her name was Ysanne - apparently one of Larness' secretaries. He introduced Via together with her, so I wonder if Larness didn't know that I knew Via. Ysanne didn't have much to say, she mainly, ah,” he reddens a bit, “I have a feeling that the banquet was a setup. I was essentially pinned in a corner by Via and Ysanne - and the result is in the headlines.”

“If it was a setup, Via could have just been keeping her cover for Larness - if he doesn't know that we know each other, it's best to keep it that way. And if her assignment was to create a headline, she probably thought it was fairly harmless fun. She definitely knows weapons, infiltration and counterintelligence, but I have a feeling she is not adept at politics. Or she is, and then is working with my enemies, but I just can't bring myself to believe that. Though your point about being coerced is valid. I just didn't get that sense.”

Swift pauses, then snaps his fingers. “Oh, I just remembered that Damaria was able to pick up some of their surface thoughts and emotions over the evening. Ysanne was afraid of Larness, but hid it well. When she focused on Larness' thoughts, she detected a fear and frustration of me - probably due to our many “discussions” about security policy - a hatred of non-humans, and he she had a few visions. One was a vision of Madar, probably being tortured; another was the transport in your recent encounter, and then a vision of a vertical afterglow of light, like a flame. These came after she asked him about rumours of anti-Imperial groups working here. Outwardly he said it was a small matter that would be taken care of quickly. Unfortunately Damaria didn't recognize the transport in her vision until it was too late.”

“Alright. I should have a poke around Larness's tonight. He's no doubt involved in this somehow. I think I'll see what I can find out. I wonder if I could convince Damaria to step out with me? Someone with her skills would be very useful in sneaking about undetected…”

Swift holds his hands out, a warning gesture. “Larness is one of those guys that doesn't sleep. Maybe catnaps a few times per day, but he is in the office before anyone else, or perhaps doesn't leave. As far as I know he lives at the Imperial Centre, has an office suite. He is a hands-on Head of Security, and micromanages his team. He does get out for meetings occasionally. But if you want to try to 'poke around,' you're going to be caught - there is no more secure spot on the planet than the Centre; everything is on camera and recorded, there are no blind spots - I've seen his layout. That control room is immense and all footage is constantly monitored by a double-rotating guard so there is always someone fresh on board. I'd rather not have you getting exported off the planet!”

“What exactly is Via's connection to Larness? He obviously has some hostility towards you and he knows Via.” Fox listens carefully, hoping Swift can make some sense of this complex situation.

“Via told me that her job as an ISB agent is to infiltrate the Balmorran government to make sure the locals are toeing the Imperial Line. You can't have governors or Moffs splitting off a sector because they get too independent. Disclosure: looks like the ISB did have some suspicions of Governor Varentari… Planting seeds for the Season 2 Finale here already! :) She is specifically working as a secretary at a secure R&D facility, and I imagine that Larness micromanages her to a degree as well. These aren't desk secretaries, but secretaries who keep minutes at meetings and are communication liaisons between Imperial facilities and Imperial Centre. I don't know if Ysanne is similar - though she seems like the classic receptionist type.

“Larness hates me because I defend the rights of Balmorrans. He thinks that safety, security, and order is more important than creativity and freedom, and he particularly hates the Assembly since we are not only humans, but a cross-spectrum of various species, representing sectors of Bin Prime. My specific portfolio intersects his significantly, and so we've had a lot of conflicts lately. I led the Assembly on a walk-out during our last session, protesting the curfew. Oh, that's another reason you should stick to daytime investigation. Unofficially, non-humans are arrested on the spot, no questions asked. Larness has been here for almost a decade, and he's gotten progressively more powerful and progressively worse.”

Fox frowns. “Hmm. I heard about Via talking to Agent 63 about you. If Larness has images of Madar in his head, and he knows Via and he might be responsible for your abduction, is there are chance he and 63 are connected?”

Disclosure: Alan, you genius, you got it! But Swift didn't know about it yet, so I couldn't give it away! Fox never met “Larness”, only “Agent 63.” Swift and Damaria were the only ones to meet Larness, but didn't come across “63”. Via was the only one who knew he was both at this point, and never thought to mention this to Swift. Maybe she was planning on telling him, but he was kidnapped?

“Oh, what did she say? I heard about Agent 63 for the first time two months ago, when Compatriot intercepted your mission briefing. I assume he is also careful to watch those in power, to make sure the ambitious don't get carried away, as I mentioned earlier. Maybe the next time you see Agent 63, you should mention that Larness has been acting suspiciously - I am almost certain that Larness is connected to the Human League problems. If we can get them acting against each other, that takes the heat off of our group.

“I think it makes sense for Larness to know about Madar - after all, the last I heard was that Madar was sent to be interrogated, and the facilities are in Imperial Centre, or perhaps underneath it if rumours are true. Madar was a 'popular' and arrogant officer, definitely on Larness' radar before you framed him. I'm sure they are interrogating him together - I imagine he would fall under both jurisdictions.”

The Baron is clearly enjoying this strategizing session, though he is glancing at his room fairly regularly, perhaps subconsciously. “Hey, do you want me to order in a snack? I think Marv was going to bring in some afternoon tea.”

Fox slumps in a chair. He hasn't eaten for a day or so, but the idea of food is still unappealing. He's struggling with feelings of wasting time on a pointless goose chase. He doesn't feel any closer to finding Via than on the 11th, and he's not sure it's what he should even be spending his time on.

It was in this medbay that he told Via she could count on his help should she ever need it. And then she stormed off ranting crazy talk. Maybe this is a waste of time…

Fox clasps Swift on the shoulder. “I'm glad we had this chat.” He looks up at Damaria, engrossed in her… project. He's tempted to ask her to come with him. To use her abilities. Then he shakes his head. Friends are not for using in that sense. And this Force power things can't be used as a crutch. Maybe her magic abilities would make some things easier, but it would make other things harder. Best to stick to his training and do things for himself.

“I'm going to visit a Bothan named Larkins about a lock breaking device. Then tomorrow I'll try to track down Ysanne to see if she has any useful information about Via or the setup.”

Fox stands to get up. “I'm glad we had this chat.” He didn't realize that he had already said this.