as written by barney_fife, Tiko, and Script
The Quartet of Condors circled around above Lochrest, as the Pilots noted the ship nestled within the city below.
"Condor-Alpha to Apocalypse, we have a situation. Package is in an urban area, looks like it's overrun with locals. How shall we proceed." The Pilot hailed, as the four Condors now circled Lochrest at high altitude, in a holding pattern.
"Apocalypse to Condor Alpha, proceed with the mission, we'll send down additional Reinforcements." The Commander responded, and the four Condors began to lower in altitude, the Marines on board checking their weapons, and the Cuirass suits.
At key points around the ships, the Condors touched down, kicking up dust and snow as they landed in the densely populated area. Their ramps deployed, and a dozen Marines per Condor filtered out, moving in formation into open yard around the ship.
A marine sergeant called out. "Clear out the locals, secure the ship." He ordered, while the Fleet Tender, large tug comprised of mostly framework and scaffolding began to descend from orbit, it's Antigravity drives humming loudly and echoing through Lochrest.
At that moment a squad of War Adepts from the Ultras Company were loaded into drop pods, with freshly painted blue and white Adept armor, they readied for drop, grasping their Heavy Magnetrons and checking their systems. They would be needed if the situation turned ugly.
A Marine Lieutenant was the last to step from the Condors, surveying the ship as his men converged on different entrances.
"Whose in charge here!" The Lieutenant bellowed.
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Clearing out the shipyard and securing the ship was a matter easier said than done, unless they wanted to start shooting the locals. The term civilian was only loosely used in regards to Cryons who were known to pack military grade weaponry, and typically were more capable and well armed than Isirian soldiers.
None of the locals seemed inclined to actually clearing out of the ship yard at the random orders of foreigners, and in fact they took up positions to intercept the approaching marines.
The marines would find themselves facing down armed mercenaries and Cryon mechs. No one had raised a gun yet, but it was clear that most of the locals were armed.
"That would be me," Kane answered as he stepped forward.
Kane was well known around these parts for piracy, smuggling, and worse. His preferred cargo of choice was the illegal trafficking of kidnapped women and children for prostitution and other manners of slave labor to the outer planets beyond of the scrutiny of the law.
A deplorable individual, and one of many to have profited greatly since the arrival of the Aschen Empire.
At his back his men kept in formation, ready for trouble should things go south.
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"War Adepts on Standby, sir." A Sergeant reported, as the Lieutenant approached Kane, as the Cryons took up intercepting positions, the Marines took up their own offensive positions, painting Cryon positions with laser rangefinders to coordinate orbital strikes if the need arose. However no shots were fired.
The Lieutenant took a step forward, shifting his Cuirass before speaking.
"I'm Lieutenant Jon Aiken of the Iconoclast Battleship Apocalypse, this ship here is property of the Imperial Navy, and I've come to retrieve the Empire's stolen property." The Lieutenant explained.
"You can either profit from this, or be destroyed. But I must remind you the Empire has allowed you and your people to operate with impunity, while they look the other way. For that trend to continue, your cooperation is appreciated." The Lieutenant said.
"Consider your next actions very carefully, Mr. Kane, as they could decide the outcome of your operation."
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Quietly, a red-haired man perched himself on the edge of a crate close behind Kane. In one hand he held a small coin, that he began to flip with unerring accuracy as he watched the exchange. He was clearly armed, but all his weaponry remained holstered, and his posture was far more relaxed than that of his fellows.
Vaughan raised an eyebrow as the Lieutenant spoke, but stayed quiet.
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"Stolen?" Kane inquired with an arch of an eyebrow. "Out here, possession is property," he told them. "And we don't respond kindly to threats."
The weight of a warning hung in his words.
"But it would seem you and yours came a long way to acquire this ship," he noted. "A ship I paid 1.25 million Drachmali for. I'm a reasonable man though, and I wouldn't wish to send you packing empty-handed without so much as discussing the matter. Have your men put their toys away, and we can talk how much it's worth to you."
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"I wasn't making a threat, merely stating the obvious. You seem to do well for yourself out here, and I know that the Empire sticking it's nose in Cryo's direction is bad for business." The Lieutenant said, gesturing for his men to lower their weapons, they did so however cautiously, though the moment things went south, War Adepts could be there within seconds.
"Considering you and your friends have gutted this ship of most of it's crucial systems, it's not worth much more than scrap, I'll pay no more than one-hundred thousand Cubits, and the Empire continues to ignore your little operations here, you can take it or leave it, either way we're leaving with this ship. I would prefer to leave peacefully, but the Imperial Navy's not one to take no for an answer." The Lieutenant warned.
"If you tell me who sold you this ship, where they went, and what kind of ship they left this planet with, I might be able to convince my superiors to offer you more of a fair deal on this trade."
"It's your choice Mr. Kane." The Lieutenant said, tugging at the collar of his Cuirasse suit, revealing an intricate neck tattoo of Tauron design.
"Work with me, and I might be able to talk to some good business your way. Like I said, you can profit from this, but I can't leave Cryo without that ship."
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Kane eyed the tattoos before looking to the other marines present. He propped one foot up on a crate as he gave it some thought.
"That scrap we salvaged off it won't be nearly enough to recoup my losses," Kane answered. "600,000 cubits, and you can walk away with the ship, and the information you want. Call it a business investment."
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The Lieutenant keyed his comm device, and there was a brief exchange in Anquietas. An agreement was made and the Lieutenant nodded. "We have a deal, you'll be paid in Banknotes, they'll be shipped from the Empire once we ascertain everything we need is intact." He said, writing out a small claims card and handing it to Kane.
"Hang onto that, you lose it, you won't get paid." The small claims card could be redeemed in the cash amount of 600,000 cubits on any Imperial world from any Imperial Bank, or if Kane decided to wait, the money would be shipped to him.
The fleet Tender was already a several hundred feet above them now, cables descended from the ship's scaffolding, and once the deal was concluded, the Marines could move in and secure the ship.
"Secure the AI core first, that's going to have our data. Everything else is gravy." He ordered, as he took a step forward.
"Now, who sold you the ship, and where did they go?"
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As the marines moved off to see to the ship, Kane and the Lieutenant were left alone to finish out their deal without risk of prying eyes from the non-Taurons among the squad.
"We don't deal in paper promises out here," Kane answered.
He took the offered claims card, but had something far more valuable in mind before the deal could be concluded.
"I want a meeting, with your boss," he explained. "To compensate the hazards of flying through Imperial space."
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"I can't make any promises, Guatrau is a busy man." Aiken answered, looking to the ship. "Come see him when things have cooled down a little bit, I'll put in a good word. Tell him a mutual friend sent you when you go to see him. Fortunately for you Hadante isn't in the Imperial Core." The Lieutenant explained.
"For now now you have to make my other bosses happy.. You see I'm atoning for my sins." He said, showing the Barcode on the back of his neck, a brand for Penal Battalion soldiers.
"Once I'm out I'll make the arrangements." He said, shifting his Cuirass suit. "Now, about who sold you that ship, what do you know?"
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"Don't have a name, only a face," Kane answered. "She was about 5'2", 5'3", with long red hair, and balls enough to rival half my crew. Might have taken her for a Cryon, if it wasn't for the accent. Offered her a job, but she just wanted the money."
While they conversed, orders were making their way through the workers aboard the ship to clear out and let the Aschen take it.
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"Was there a blonde with her?" The Lieutenant asked. "Anywhere I can go to find out where she may have gone, what kind of ship she may have taken? Did she say anything noteworthy to you?" The Lieutenant asked, while Kat was simultaneously listening in on the Datalink.
"So Zaria is partly behind this, the question is, is Kianna a victim or an accomplice?" Kathryn asked herself from her crow's nest in Illumene City.
The Lieutenant's men were already clearing out, reporting that there was no new data, that all internal sensors were taken offline when the Datalink was taken offline, They were going to send the ship back to the Empire and have it examined piece by piece.
By this point the Fleet Tender was lifting the derelict vessel off the ground, the Lieutenant's men were disembarking, some of them returning to their Condors. With a deal established, and the ship secure, the War Adepts were taken off of high alert. The Tender was now pulling the ship up into it's chassis, before it started up into the sky.
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"Never saw a blonde," Kane answered. "The rest I'll need time to get. Give me a few hours to hit up my contacts and find out if she did any dealings with anyone else in Lochcrest, or if she signed on with anyone's crews. If not she's probably still here somewhere. There's only so many ways off this rock."
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The Lieutenant nodded, before he looked about, he had now received explicit instructions from Kat, and a promise to mitigate the sentence if he fulfilled them.
"Is there somewhere i can stay where you can contact me in the Meantime?" The man asked. "My bosses want me to assist you in any way, and to be available if you have any more information. These men are going to pull back and return to the ship, so you'll just be dealing with me." Aiken explained.
"Theres a blonde woman we're looking for especially. If you can secure information about her, My superiors would be willing to pay for it, in addition to what you're already owed."
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"There's a bar up the street that way," Kane said. "If anyone asks, you're waiting for me. What can you tell me about this other woman you're looking for?" he asked.
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"There's not much that I can tell you, only that finding her is a matter of the utmost important to the Empire. Her name is Kianna. She's the former Empress, but we suspect something happened between her and that redhead who was supposed to be her bodyguard. We need to find them both." Aiken explained, nodding to the bar, as his forces finally began to clear the planet.
"I'll be awaiting your return, pull this off and I'll see about having Guatrau toss something extra in for you, I shared a cell with one of his top Lieutenants, Netan, if you're familiar with that name."
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Kane raised an eyebrow at Kianna's name.
"People lose a lot of things on Cryo," he remarked with amusement. "But an Empress is probably a first. I'll see what there is to find. She's well known around here. Comes by every few months to hit the slave markets."
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Once the Aschen marine had move on Kane gave his head a shake and tucked the note into one of his pockets. He turned then to Vaughan.
"Follow him," he instructed. "Don't let him out of your sight."
He didn't particularly trust the Aschen officer, but in his line of work you didn't make a point of trusting most anyone. Especially on Cryo.
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Vaughan nodded his head and rolled onto his feet, "Send him to a bar and tell me to follow? You're a man after my own heart, Kane," he remarked with a grin. "He won't go anywhere without my knowing, don't you worry."
With a hum, he made off in the direction of the bar, making no effort to stay unseen. Plenty of the crew from the shipyard had dispersed towards the local bars now that their salvaging efforts were no longer required. Vaughan was just one more face amongst them.
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As Instructed, the marine went to the bar and found a table. Ordering a stiff drink and settling in for the long haul, he waited. It wasn't long before he was joined by a young blonde, green eyed woman. She was dressed much like the locals, sporting the appropriate attire to blend in and not attract much attention.
On close observation the pair were talking, but it wouldn't be in any language Vaughan could understand. The Aschen language of Anquietas was still not widely taught in Isiria, afterall, and likely even less so on Cryo.
The Pair exchanged brief conversation, and exchanged notes before the woman finished her own drink, got up, and left.
The Marine now waited quietly for Kane to return with much needed information.
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It would be a few hours before Kane turned up, and though he quickly spotted out the Marine sitting in the bar, it was to Vaughan that his footsteps took him. He paused briefly enough to speak lowly.
"Anything?" he inquired.
He flagged the tender down to bring him a drink.
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"Hasn't moved from there since he got here, boring son of a bitch. He spoke to a blonde woman. She looked local by her outfit, but I didn't recognise her and they were talking Aschen. Nobody else." Vaughan shrugged, "Not much to go on, but I reckon she was some sort of intel operative. Would explain why she was blending in, she's probably been here a while reporting on... well, fuck all of use, I'd imagine."
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Kane took the drink as the tender slid it over to him.
"Alright," he said. "Keep an eye out, I'm going to go talk business with our foreign friend."
With that he made his way to join Aiken at his table where he seated himself across from the marine.
"You're in luck," he said. "Seems your red-head got around while she was here."
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"Got around?" The Marine asked, as he took a sip of ale from his glass. "That much is obvious I would imagine, given that she's abandoned a perfectly good battle cruiser that would probably do more in a fight than anything she would have left this world with." The man said, while thumbing a note in his left hand.
"So, what do you have for me?" The man asked, twirling the yellow piece of paper between his index and thumb.
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"She hit three different ship yards after mine," Kane answered. "Wanted a stealth ship with some serious ftl capabilities. More than what you'll typically find around here. Leeroy sold her a cross-wing peregin-class ship with an ftl drive scavenged off an old abandoned Reverence S. Says she paid nearly twice what the ship was worth and didn't bother trying to haggle him down on it. No one knows where she was headed after that, and if anyone saw your missing Empress, they're not talking."
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"I have a fair idea..." The Marine replied, listening to the chatter into his earpiece.
He pondered a moment before he slid a yellow note towards Kane. "This is the location of a dead drop that has your payment, in cash."
Standing up, he finished his drink before he turned to leave, his job here was done for now.
---
It was at that moment that Kat had settled in back at the Arastel field office with a cup of coffee, a map of the Andromeda Galaxy played out before her.
"If she's a Dominion Spy... there's only one place she could have gone..." Kat said, pulling up a map of the Umbral sector.