Operation Plain Sight

Chapter One

Arcona Citadel, Estle City

Tearing her eyes away from the panoramic view of the city, Ronovi Tavisaen Tarentae returned her gaze to the two Arconan leaders standing across from her and her Aedile, Scion Altera. The stern visage of Wuntila, matched with the intense brown eyes of Zandro Savric Erinos Arconae, lit the chamber with an impressive flare of intimidation and power - after all, the house that had once been named First Clan after the Reclamation was not to be taken lightly whatsoever.

Still, it was not often that Arcona's Tarenti allies were called to Estle City. However, there was a debt to be paid; Arcona had assisted greatly in recovering Yridia when it was under attack by the Church of Infinite Perception. Now it was time for Tarentum to return the favor, albeit in a very simple matter.

"So this cruise liner you speak of," Ronovi said, pursing her lips. "Where is it located?"

"Heading toward the Dajorra system as we speak," replied Zandro. "Our reconnaissance efforts have been incredibly fruitful. My men have done well in mapping the direction the liner's pilot is taking. Of course, if it nears the boundaries of our Confederacy, it won't be able to leave so quickly."

"And you want us all to seize that ship for a certain valuable object?"

"Yes." Following the brief affirmation, Zandro drew a small holopad from his pocket. When it lit up, a blue hologram of a modest looking cruise liner emerged, zooming in on a specific cargo bay. "We believe the ship contains a holocron. Now, we don't know which holocron, or what it teaches, or why it's even on that ship. But to find it could be profitable for both Tarentum and Arcona."

"You know the Dark Council will be demanding such an artifact if we get our hands on it," Scion interjected, but Zandro waved off his remark. The hologram had changed into the image of a standard holocron, pyramidal in shape.

"No matter. The operation will be straightforward - go in there, take over the ship, take the holocron. Simple. I'm sure you'll both be interested, right?"

Ronovi's lip curled instinctively in a smirk of simultaneous amusement and fascination. This was good. Very good. Alhough she wondered if the members leading the reconnaissance had sensed the holocron through the Force, it was a question that seemed irrelevant and rhetorical. Still, if she were to accept the mission, the houses would have to carry it out properly.

"Interested, sure," she said. "But don't think we can just march onto the ship waving our sabers around."

"Very funny, Ronovi," Wuntila grunted.

"I'm serious. This has to be a quiet operation. A bunch of Dark Jedi just grabbing a ship will alert the New Republic, especially if it's a New Republic cruise liner. So we need to follow some limitations."

"Like what?"

Ronovi was sifting through the ideas in her head quickly - her past experiences as a brawler often gave her plenty of fodder for strategy. "Here's what I think. We go on the cruise liner in groups under the pretense that we're passengers. We'll have to get the expensive garb down, the ships we use to get there down, the hidden weapons down, everything. But that means two things. One, no Force usage. Two, no lightsabers."

The glances she got from Zandro and Wuntila were pretty spectacular, though she sensed a shade of approval from Scion. Zandro's eyes narrowed in skepticism with a tinge of reluctance.

"What."

"I told you, we have to do this right," Ronovi said. "And if that's the way we do it, Scion and I are more than happy to help out. So what do you say, Arconae? Is it a deal?"

She offered a scarred hand, the setting sun glinting off her blue eyepatch. A smile soon sprang to life on her face when Zandro took her hand and shook it, forsaking the standard bow.

"All right. No Force usage, no lightsabers. I'll have my men ready in the morning. I trust your fleets can bring your house members over here in that time?"

"Naturally." Ronovi grinned, then looked at her Aedile. "C'mon, Scion. We have a holocron to snatch."

Chapter 2
Liner Tutti Frutti Port of Call 778a

“In position, reaching the checkpoint in a little over a minute. Radio silence from now on people, we’ll meet up on board as we explained before during the briefing. Good luck.”

The crowd of people that were orderly waiting to board the liner was large and loud, a chattering mass of different species and genders. Impatience was thick in the air but to the liner crew’s credit, the lines were moving quickly, as were the Dark Jedi who hid in their ranks. Arcona and Tarentum had split up into a handful of different teams, all with meticulously created identities that varied from the rich to the obscenely rich.

My cover of being the most recent winner of the intergalactic lottery is hardly concrete, but as long as no-one really asks about my eye I should be fine.

Within fifteen metres of him, the Battlelord could sense numerous other presences that marked the rest of the members that were making up his ‘cell’ for the initial stage of the operation. Each seemed nervous but there was a definite air of excitement that the Arconae could sense, a feeling that he too was experiencing to an extent. After all, how often did someone in his line of work get to see the inside of one of these fancy cruise liners? Shaking his head to clear it of the thoughts that were slowly pulling him away from the objective at hand, Zandro walked into the gap that had opened before him and handed the newly-forged identification package to the security guard, sending out a silent prayer to whatever deity would listen that his slicers had done a good enough job.

“Mr Trent Devran is it? Everything seems to be in order here...and congratulations on your win.”

Zandro put a drawl into his voice and slightly upped the pitch as he spoke, trying to hide the clipped tones that normally would have identified his origins.

“A-thank you very much good sir, I’m mighty pleased to be here and all.”

The security guard barely constrained a laugh but Zandro knew exactly what the man was thinking and was happy for that fact as it meant he had managed to avoid suspicion for the moment at least. Grabbing his bag and slinging it over his shoulder, the Erinos walked forwards and up onto the cruise liner, his gait slow and steady as he acted the part of the slightly bumbling idiot with concerning ease. The prosthetic eye that he had in the socket where his left eye had previously been itched furiously but Zandro couldn’t afford to scratch it, dealing with the agony is frustrating silence as he meandered into the liner and up to the bar that sat right by its entrance. He would meet the rest of his cell here and then they would split up, simple surely?

We’re on, phase one completed successfully at least. Time to examine the ship once my team gets here, get our bearings and see just what else there is on board that we might want to grab while we’re getting the holocron.

======

This Week's Events

Fiction: Aboard the Liner

You are a member of one of the various groups that are scattered throughout the ship doing recon. Teamed up with a member of the opposite House, you are investigating the ship and it’s inhabitants, but how? Write about what you do to try and gain information, what you find out and what you get up to in the opening portion of the operation. However, you are under strict instructions not to use the Force or lightsabers, so take that into account.

Submissions must be a page minimum, preferably in .doc format. Submit all entries to Taigikori at taigikori@gmail.com. You have until December 13th to do this.

Graphics: So How's It Look?

Create a graphic to do with the opening part of the operation. Be it a picture of the liner, a picture of one of its rooms, a picture of the meeting between the two summits to arrange the whole thing. Use your imagination, but make it relevant. Submit all graphic entries to Taigikori at taigikori@gmail.com. You have until December 13th to do this.

Trivia: The Basics

Below are ten trivia questions regarding Arcona and Tarentum. Placing will be based on accuracy and speed - the fastest person to e-mail with the most correct answers will gain the top spot. Here are your questions:

1. What is the name of Tarentum's capital?
2. What is the name of Arcona's capital?
3. Which system is farther from Antei, the Dajorra system or the Yridia system?
4. What is the system of government in Tarentum called?
5. What is the system of government in Arcona called?
6. What are Arcona's specific house powers?
7. What are Tarentum's specific house powers?
8. Which house used to practice Necromancy before the old clan powers were halted?
9. What is the code name for the Arcona-Tarentum alliance? (Hint: It's easier than you think)
10. What is the name of the coalition between Arcona and Tarentum, as established by the Treaty of Kessel?

Submit all answers to Taigikori at taigikori@gmail.com. You have until December 13th to do this.

Chapter Three

Nichos Rhade of Tarentum was on the move. He had led a small team, most of them being members of the Reckoners, toward the western part of the cruise liner. If the information he had received from his superiors was correct, then they'd be able to seek out the cargo bay where this holocron was allegedly located.

He turned the corner and found himself in a narrow corridor. It appeared that a small group of men was already there, many dressed in overly aristocratic outfits. He set his eyes on the one with the strange eye and smiled.

"Quaestor Zandro. Glad you see you made it."

Zandro smirked and put a finger to his lips. "Keep calling me Trent for now," he said. "I assume you're here to check out the bay?"

"Yes, sir," replied Nichos.

"Then stick to my group," the Arconae said. "I've just contacted Ronovi. She'll be making her way to the bridge. In the meantime, we're going to open up this bay and get our treasure. The access code shouldn't be hard to figure out."

Nichos frowned. "The bridge? Why is she going there?"

Sneering, Zandro waved a hand at his group as they scurried down the corridor. "Just because we're mostly here for a holocron, Tarenti, doesn't mean we can't pick up something a little extra along the way."

No wonder Arcona and Tarentum are allies, Nichos thought to himself, smiling as he followed the Arconans toward their prized destination.

***

Captain Jacky Iglia was not expecting disruptions. Especially disruptions in the form of a vibroshiv pressed against his neck.

"All right, cap'n," Ronovi snarled before dropping the heavy accent she had taken up for her disguise. "Why don't you keep quiet so I don't have to slit your throat?"

The vibrations of the blade were dangerously close to drawing blood, and Jacky whimpered as he raised his eyes toward the older man standing in front of him. Scion, shedding off his gaudy hat, looked toward Ronovi as they finished up their facade as two battered, yet loaded, war veterans. As Ronovi pulled off the regular eyepatch over her cybernetic patch, she didn't loosen her grip on her weapon.

"I think this guy could give us a good, healthy ransom," she said, casting a sideways glance at her Aedile. "What do you think?"

"Always good for the economy," Scion replied, as he checked that the door to the bridge was sealed and a white-faced Jacky was led to the comm station.

"Spread the word, mon capitan."

***

The door to the cargo bay slid open with a soft hiss as Zandro led the way inside. A chill crept from the floor up into his legs, and he remembered the blade at his side as he sidled into the cramped space. Not having the light of his saber leading the way bothered him, as the place was dim and he had to strain his eyes to see what was there.

"Looking for something?" A disembodied voice rose from the corner.

Immediately blasters were cocked and vibroblades raised, as the teams turned to face the source of the voice. At once, a tall silhouette materialized from the shadows, distinguished by the long, flowing white beard that shone like light from the stranger's chin. Zandro immediately furrowed his brow and gritted his teeth.

"I was expecting a holocron..."

A low chuckle burst from the man, amusement at the Quaestor’s comment evident in his laugh as he shook his head, his white hair waving slightly with the motion. The man looked over at Zandro and his group of warriors, sizing them up as he paced from side to side.

What the hell is going on here?

“Where is the holocron?”

Another low chuckle and the old man stopped pacing, his eyes boring into Zandro’s remaining right eye.

“There never was one, merely smoke and mirrors to lure as many of you Dark Jedi here as I could manage...did it work?”

Zandro snarled and immediately wondered just who this man was, apart from someone with an apparent death wish considering he had called down two houses onto him with the lure of a holocron.

Perfect lure, pretty hard to sense unless you’re up close and more than powerful enough to get a lot of bites from eager Dark Jedi...we’ve walked into a trap.

Zandro turned to Rhade and walked up to him, whispering as he pushed himself as close as possible to the other man so as not to be overheard.

“Any idea who he is?”

“Seems like a member of the Church, but I can’t be sure.”

Zandro swore violently under his breath and reached for the commlink that was on his belt, bringing it to his mouth and keying it on.

“Roni, we have a problem.”

=====-*-=====

“Right back at you Zandro, although the one up here could prove to be a bit more volatile.”

“More volatile than an escaped Elder of the Church who faked the information about the holocron for the sole reason of luring as many Jedi here as possible so he could kill us all when he blows the ship?”

Ronovi couldn’t quite believe what she had heard and took a few moments to fully digest the information she had just received.

The Church...here?

Popping around the frame of the door that she was hiding behind, Roni fired off a few bolts from the pistol she held before ducking back behind cover.

“Well, we’re under fire and we’ve heard from several other groups that they two have been foiled by some of the passengers fighting back. Turns out that there were a number of Galactic Alliance troopers on leave on the ship, and that would explain why we haven’t quite managed to wipe them all out yet. Could be that you’re in the best position of all of us, at least there is only one of him.”

“Depends on your point of view. Right, consider this all systems go, let’s take away the Force restrictions, we just need to make sure we get out of this alive now. Repeate, Force restriction released. Zandro out.”

Thumbing off the commlink, Roni turned to the rest of her team that littered the bridge and grinned slightly, pity for the fools facing them almost appearing...almost.

“Free use of Force powers guys, go nuts. Let’s just do this well and get the hell out of dodge.”

=====-*-=====

“Understood.”

Orv Desserx d’Tana had been in charge of the team that had been tasked with securing transportation off the liner but had been pinned down just outside the hangar bay by the liner’s security forces. The fighting had reached a stalemate of sorts with the two sides cancelling each other out, but with the restriction on using the force lifted, the fight should soon be over. The Krath grinned as he turned to the rest of his group, a predatory glint once more in his eye.

“Use of the Force is now free, let’s finish this quickly.”

=====-*-=====

Zandro turned off the commlink and brought the sword he held into a two-handed grip, his eyes narrowing to slits as he glared at the white haired man before him.

“Use of the Force is now allowed, we need to take this guy down. If we fail, the two Houses fall...we cannot lose here.”

The Arconae charged, his sword held high by the side of his head, leading the charge towards the Church member who had vowed to wipe him and his kin from the face of the Galaxy.

Die!


---------------------------------------------------------


Fiction: Round One...FIGHT!

You've done your searching - now it's time for the obligatory combat! Write a story detailing a battle with GA troopers and/or with the crazed Elder of the Church. Remember that using the Force may give you away to civilians on the cruiser, so be sure to remember your limits!

Submissions must be two pages minimum, preferably in .doc format. Submit all entries to Taigikori at taigikori@gmail.com. You have until December 20th to do this.

Graphics: The Carnage

Create a graphic presenting the recent happenings of chapters three and four. It can be of a battle with your character, the Elder, the GA troopers, whatever is relevant to the chapters. Submit all graphics to Taigikori at taigikori@gmail.com. You have until December 20th to do this.

Trivia: Know Your Stuff

Below are ten trivia questions regarding the Brotherhood as a whole. Some of these questions will have nothing to do with the storyline at all, so be sure to check everywhere for the answers. Placing will be based on accuracy and speed - the fastest person to e-mail the most correct answers will gain the top spot. Here are the questions:

1. During which Great Jedi War did Arcona place first? (Listing the number is acceptable)
2. Which two former clans did Tarentum upstage during the knock-out bracket in the sixth Rite of Supremacy: Spoils of War?
3. Which Order was victorious in the most recent vendetta?
4. Which former Consul of Tarentum later moved on to become one of the most controversial Grand Masters in DB history?
5. Which two DBers have served as Deputy Grand Master under Muz Ashen?
6. Which former leader of Arcona shows up in later storylines as an "adversary," including "Breaking Point"?
7. Tarentum, as a clan, had three houses before House Kaerner and House Reinthaler. Name them.
8. In the recent DB-wide storylines, what is the name of the Jedi who has infiltrated the Shadow Academy? (Check DC reports)
9. What was the name of the Grand Master who led the Brotherhood through the Exodus?
10. Arcona, as a clan, had two existing houses. Name them.

Submit all answers to Taigikori at taigikori@gmail.com. You have until December 20th to do this.

Chapter Five (Last one was Chapter Four, I swear to God )

Cursing under her breath, Ronovi lowered her blaster after blowing off the kneecap of a trooper and slammed a fist full of vibroknucklers into his armored face, watching as the blades split open his visor and split open his eyes and nose. As the blood ran in currents from his wounds, she turned to Scion, who had wrestled off another trooper while still managing to keep the ship's captain pinned to the floor.

"Forget about him, Scion! We have to move! Now!" Ronovi barked as she headed toward the door. It slid open and blaster fire scattered across the panels, threatening to shut down the controls.

Nodding, Scion released the sniveling Jacky Igila and dodged another shower of bolts as he and Ronovi gestured for the rest of their team to follow. As Dralin Fortea, Syrna Valkiss, and Apollo all raced toward the exit, bursts of the Force could be felt throughout the vessel. It seemed that both houses were happy with the recent uplifting of the restrictions, and Ronovi grinned as Apollo Force shoved his way through and cut a trooper open with a swooping vibroblade.

"What's the status of the other teams?" Scion asked his Quaestor, appearing beside her as they and their comrades disappeared down the corridor and sent shrieking civilians against the wall.

"Orv and his team should still be in the hangar bay. You take Apollo and Syrna down there. Dralin and I are going to find Zandro."

"Is that safe?"

"Dralin's one of the few people here I trust," Ronovi whispered. She delved into the Force momentarily to catch Dralin's attention, and the human assassin turned and nodded before the two raced town another corridor. Scion rushed to catch up with his old friend and the greener Guardian, both of them looking at him as he appeared beside them.

"So what, we're going to snag some ships already?" Apollo said, sounding rather enthusiastic.

"Yeah," Scion said, as they turned the corner. "And then, I'm assuming...kaboom."

***

"Don't you understand?" the crazed voice of the Elder shrieked from an adjacent wall. "You may have your blasphemy, but we still live! You only severed a limb back on Yridia, but we can regenerate such an appendage and grow stronger for it!"

"Just as I thought...you're a fracking lunatic," Zandro muttered as he stalked the small bay. While the Elder was not fighting, he was almost unnaturally quick. He could jump over crates and dodge blades easily, and many times blaster bolts from other team mates would only scorch the wall and not their opponent's skull. Zandro swung his blade viciously outward, splitting open a crate and ducking from the cascading splinters as he leapt over a metal chest.

"Admit it! Soon, you heathens will be dead, and your precious groups weaker for it. The Church shall continue its doctrine in greater numbers! You have only helped such a conversion! You have angered the people, and they grow zealous due to it!"

Nichos couldn't believe this guy was for real. He had not seen much of the action on Yridia IV when the Church had attempted to seize the system, but now he was ready to finish the job. With an acrobatic jump, the Umbaran landed beside Zandro, cocking a blaster and nodding with stark eyes at Zandro. Both connected with the Force to communicate.

You take the left, Zandro "spoke". I'll take the right.

"Boys, let's clean up!" Zandro roared as a torrent of blaster bolts flew over his head.

Several wooden crates burst apart from impact, while other metal crates grew black from the marks. The raucous laughter of the Elder only served as a tracking device for the Arconan Quaestor and the Reckoners commander to utilize. Branching apart from each other and slipping through two gaps in the crates, the two swooped in on the Elder, who in his fanatical rambling found himself cornered, but smiling.

Nichos kept his blaster cocked as Zandro did the dirty work. The Quaestor did not give the old man time to revel as a martyr. Instead, he let him scream, his laughter dissipating as the Elder suddenly realized who he was dealing with. In the end, there was nothing but a twisted lump of flesh, stripped from the bone. The Tarenti battle team leader's mouth drew into a thin line as he perused the blade work.

"Not bad, Arconae, not bad," he said, grinning as he faced his superior ally. As the Arconans and Tarenti in the team gathered around the body, footsteps were heard from outside. Blasters were cocked again only to be aimed at familiar faces.

"I figured you'd be done with him by the time we got here," Ronovi grumbled as she climbed over several crates with ease and dropped beside Zandro.

"Yeah...and we didn't need too much of the Force, either," Zandro said. "So...shall we call off the rest of this lovely cruise?"

"Too bad. I was starting to enjoy it." Ronovi nodded to Dralin and the two led the way, as the team stampeded out of the cargo room toward the waiting bay below.

The group wasted no time in making their way to the hangar bay, reports flying in from the other groups that were scattered throughout the liner as they all worked towards the bay that held the ships which would get them off the cruiser. Not much was said as Zandro and Ronovi’s group covered the ground that separated them from Scion, Orv and the hangar bay that they were trying to liberate, but there was a definite aura of anger and frustration hanging over the team. It was natural really, they had gone into the mission with the view of gaining an artefact of unparalleled power and instead they had walked plum into an ambush that had almost cost them everything. To make matters worse, they had learned that apparently the supposed destruction of the Church had not been quite as total as they had originally thought.

We’re almost to the hangar bay and then we can get off this ship and back to normality...this cruise has been pretty crappy all told.

“Give us a report guys, what can we expect when we get to the hangar?”

The sound of blaster fire came back over the commlink, swiftly followed by Orv’s voice.

“We’re holding the hangar bay, necessary ships are ready to roll as soon as you guys get here, but we’ve got a lot of opposition from security who are currently trying to fight their way into the bay as you can probably hear. If you can hit them from behind, you can probably catch them by surprise and really kill them off.”

“Thanks, not long now, then we can get off this ship. Zandro out.”

The footfalls of the running Jedi were steady and they began to move faster, the end of this nightmare just within sight.

“Right, the security that has our guys holed up is just ahead, we’re just gonna cut straight through them. That ok with you Arconae?”

“That’s fine, let’s just make it quick.”

It took fifteen more seconds for them to reach the security team that had been causing problems for the team in the hangar bay. It took ten more seconds to kill them all.

“What the hell just happened?”

Zandro looked over at Orv and grinned, gesturing widely to take in the entire group that had just entered the cavernous room they now stood in.

“Tarcona is just that good. Come on, let’s get out of here. Did you guys succeed in your other mission?”

“The magic button will give us a nice show when you push it. I’d recommend we move before that happens though, so let’s get going.”

=====-----*-----=====

“What was all that talk about a button, seemed pretty cryptic to be honest.”

Zandro looked out of the window at the rapidly shrinking form of the liner, gently rubbing his thumb over the button of the device that he held in his hand. He paused for a second, the reality of the situation sitting in the pit of his stomach.

“This is the button, and it’s linked to a series of high-yield explosives that are placed at strategic points throughout that liner.”

“You don’t intend t-“

“They can’t tell anyone about us. This mission was, in all honesty, a damn failure. I don’t like leaving reminders of my failures around, especially when they put us at risk. They have to die, it’s just that simple.”

Ronovi seemed at a loss for words for several moments, her gaze firmly affixed out of the window.

“Do it.”

The thumb that had been caressing the button pressed down, condemning countless thousands of beings to death. Sometimes, the cost of keeping a secret is far steeper than one might initially think.

=====-----*-----=====

“That went worse than expected, but we didn’t walk away empty handed.”

Zandro smirked at the hologram that hovered on his desk and ran a hand through his hair, scratching the back of his head as he began to speak.

“Yeah, not exactly the fantastic success we were all hoping for, but it wasn’t exactly a complete waste of time, we learned some interesting things. First and foremost, we learned that our eradication of the Church was not quite as complete as we originally thought.”

“Our eradication?”

“Yes, I seem to remember me and mine giving you a hand in that particular shindig. That’s beside the point, we can consider this mission a success and a failure, but whatever way you look at it, it’s over with. Thank you for your assistance in this matter, you may well have helped to save my House.”

“We’re even Arconae, you’re welcome. Ronovi out.”

The hologram winked out and Zandro interlinked his hands before his face, contemplating something for several seconds before speaking again.

“What do you think then, can we consider this alliance firm or not?”

Wuntila extricated himself from the shadows and came to stand next to his Quaestor.

“It’s firm, and I think the mission could have gone a lot worse. Your thoughts?”

“I think I’ve just adding a couple of thousand more souls to my tab...but it could have been worse. Right, we’re done here for now, go get some rest.”

Wuntila nodded at the Battlelord and left, leaving Zandro alone with his thoughts in the dark and empty room.

------------------------

Well, that’s all folks. I’d like to thank Ronovi, Scion and all of Tarentum for their participation and help in getting this thing done. It’s been a joy to work with them and I look forward to possibly doing so again in the future. I’d also like to thank Taig for the work he’s put in, volunteering to judge one of these types of events can be hard, especially when there have been as many submissions as we have seen here, so thanks for that.

Hope you enjoyed it folks, catch you on the flipside.

Whoops, Maxi was still logged into my account - Dash