Can I loot some Power Converters? (D2, LM)

[Djanik]

Djanik was back in the scrapyard, searching about.

This time, like before, he ensured the comm links were synced, powered down the rental, and then made his way into the junk.

Today, everyone would search, and he'd be ready to do pickup.

Nothing like a day in the scrap yards...

[Elaranu]

Ela comes along today, making sure to bring her pistol.

Day2, Late Morning, scavenging, average (2) Streetwise, boost from Graveyard: 2eA+1eB+2eD 4 successes, 1 threat


The young woman finds a lot... but she is neither subtle nor quiet about it, listening to music from her datapad loudly and singing along with it as she digs through things.

[Dapper Dog]

So far things seem calm...

[Djanik]

For his part, Djanik finds a lot less, while also making a lot of noise.

In his case, not on purpose, but tripping in the gutted remains of a droid landing craft, falling over a heap of disabled battle droids, and then sending them clattering down the trash heap spilling out the side of the ruined ship, it makes some noise.

After that noise, he tried to hang out by the speeder, in case trouble showed up.

Digging about in the LM: 1eP+1eA+2eD 1 success, 2 threat

[Elaranu]

Ela looks over at the noise, turning down the music a bit as she lifted her goggles to her forehead, "You okay there? Oh, and thank you for help load the stuff in the vehicle, yes."

[Djanik]

"Uh, yeah, sure."

Djanik was feeling somewhat embarrassed. For reasons he couldn't fully explain, she set his pulse racing like he hadn't experienced since before he enrolled in the academy.

By the force, had he been on his own that long? He felt like an idiot, responding that way, so he just managed, "I'll be fine, I'm just having trouble focusing today."

Yes, that would inspire confidence.

[Elaranu]

"Get your mind in the now then; It does not pay to have wanderings, at least while you try to get something done. Especially in a place like this, no?"

She tied up a bundle of wires as she talked, making sure they'd take up as little space as possible in her shoulder bag.

[Djanik]

"That's true."

He cast a glance her way.

"Are you out here looking for anything in particular?"

[Elaranu]

"I am a starship mechanic. I can always use spare parts; Wires, plates, panels, glass, couplings, holoprojectors... Anything I find is one less thing I need to buy. The more I use that I did not need to buy, the higher my prophets. The higher my profits, the greater my freedom. I do not wish to be beholden to debt and moneylenders all my life."

She tossed some clips in her bag as she talked, squatting down to sort them out of a pile of spent ferrite dust.

[Djanik]

"Oh?"

He wandered that way, having set his find in the speeder.

"I'm more of a pilot than mechanic, if I ever find a hull I can put a down payment on, sounds like I know who to ask to fix it up."

The talk of ships had momentarily distracted him, as had the sight of a familiar shape in the rubble.

"Would you look at this - a charger... or... half of one. I haven't seen one of those in..." Years. Not since the clone wars. He'd been on one, a few years ago.

Gazing up at the bridge, the ship almost looked intact, until you looked past that first rounded section to see where some horrible explosion had shredded the corvette into chunks.

In some strange way, the sight of it made him rather sad.

[Elaranu]

"Oh, a fellow pilot?"

Standing back up straight, she poked a thumb at her chest, "You just happen to be looking at the best starship pilot at my academy. I could fly through a skysea roil without a navigator, even when it was very choppy. Usually they group ships by that point, but I learned to multitask between the sensors and the controls with some adjustments to my droid."

As he was gazing up lost in thought, suddenly she was next to him, looking over his shoulder at the thing in his hand, her voice near his ear as she looked down, "A wreck. Certainly looks picked over, but it still has some beautiful lines."

[Djanik]

He didn't exactly jump in surprise, but he did do a step and pivot to bring her into view. His cheeks were an interesting shade of indigo as he replied. "Sounds impressive - I'd love to watch you, I mean, see you fly - I'm sure you could make loops around me." Her last comment drew only, "Beautiful lines. Yes." He was probably talking about the ship.

Why was he losing his calm so much around this woman? Accursed biology, robbing him of his balance.

Trying to get back on an even keel, he held up what he had found. In between his fingers an ignition chip glittered in the overbearing sun. "I recognized this. I used to have one. V19 Torrent. Useless, given the ship is almost certainly a pile of scrap somewhere in this yard or another... but it brought back memories."

[Elaranu]

If she noticed the coloration changes, she didn't seem to react to them. Instead, her eyes stayed glued on the wreck.

"You were the pilot aboard a ship like this? Or did you do something else?"

Ela had no experience piloting non-Chiss ships, but this was clearly larger than a one person ship. Maybe some sort of escort ship.

[Djanik]

"I worked alongside one of these as a..." his voice trailed off as he sought words.

The memories came back. The crying of children as their mothers and fathers yelled for supplies. Always so many voices, clamoring for relief, and him, having to get the transports in and out between bombardments. Never enough time...

"... I flew escort for supplies to people in need, back in the day."

Turning the ignition chip in his fingers over, he added, "I flew a V19 Torrent for much of my career. Before that, we trained on the Z-95s."

Pulling out a datapad, he flicked through a few windows until he found a holographic image.

"One of these - I wouldn't be surprised if you hadn't seen one in factory condition, they stopped making them after the war. Bit tricky to fly in atmosphere, but they had a sharp turn once you got used to it."

Glancing up at her face, he realized he'd just admitted to flying for the Republic. The same navy that had become the Empire. He wondered if that bothered her.

[Elaranu]

She looked at the hologram as he held it up, nodding slowly, "I have not seen one in new condition in person, no. But I have seen pictures and holograms of these ships, yes yes. Unlike this ship right here. Those z-95s in particular are quite famous, even off in the 'Unknown Regions'."

Datapad out, she flipped it on to show a schematic of an odd looking starship, "I trained in a Nssis, mostly, at the academy. A slightly stripped down version with the hyperdrive replaced with a droid integration unit. I also trained some in an older Ozyly-Straeker assault ship. I do not have a picture of one of those handy."

[Djanik]

"Ah, another fighter jock then."

He grinned.

"Now I really wish I could see you fly."

Glancing at the ship more closely, he noted, "Looks like it might have similar controls to a TIE - seems like it's borrowing some components... is that a regional variant for... uh... your home world?"

He realized he wasn't entirely sure where she was from, or even what species she was. Only that he'd love to see what she could do with a flight stick.

[Elaranu]

"It was a more recent collaboration between the new Imperial government and the Ascendancy, yes. I do not know if you could call it a variation on something so much as trial prototypes based on integrated technology discussions between the strengths and weaknesses of older clawcraft and the Imperial designs. I say that because I do not believe the Imperial Navy actually has any of them themselves, only the Expansionary Defense Force."

[Djanik]

"The..."

Expansionary Defense force.

Now that was a contradiction in terms if he'd ever heard one.

"May I ask what planet you call home? At first I thought you were Pantoran... but I imagine you get asked that a lot, don't you?"

He scratched the back of his head, a little embarrassed. "Sorry, I don't mean to be rude, I just never heard of an Expansionary Defense Force or any of that. I'd love to know more."

[Elaranu]

"You mean you are NOT a Chiss as well? I suppose that explains a lot; When the customs agents were calling me a Pantstoran, I thought perhaps it was some sort of derisive term. And I had put off asking what was wrong with your eyes; I just figured perhaps one of your parents was Chiss, and the other was a Human."

She rested a finger on her chin curiously, tapping it in thought as she looked him over.

[Djanik]

"A Chiss?"

He tried the word out, seeing how it sounded.

"No, not a Chiss. I've never heard the name before. My homeworld is the primary moon orbiting Orto Plutonia in the outer rim. It's a cold world, much more comfortable than Bankor." With the sun beating down, he was thankful for the shade provided by the charger's wreckage - it offered some respite, and let his sweat at least feel cool.

Raising an eyebrow, he added, "I suppose all chiss share those striking red eyes of yours, or is it just you?"

[Dapper Dog]

A blaster bolt hits the ground near Djannik, tracking where it came from they see several people in a dune ridge.

One even waved.


Then they hear a voice from the opposite side from atop the wreck of a ruined freighter in Huttese, "Well... well, look at what the mynock dragged in."

"Can you believe our luck we got ourselves two thieves!"

[Djanik]

Military reflexes moved Djanik between Elaranu and the source of the attack, angling himself to dive for cover. "Get down."

By the time his brain had caught up with his body, he stopped himself from fully drawing his own weapon, keeping it hidden with one hand in his pocket.

"Not thieves, just mechanics, looking for fixer-uppers."

He tried to gauge the distance and the cover between him and the rental speeder.

Though he'd been careful not to go far, he was cursing himself for leaving even this small gap between him and his main tool.

[Dapper Dog]

"Certainly you have tribute for me?" the man continued in Huttese.

[Djanik]

"So far, I've yet to find a ship I could get running."

Djanik was still a bit sad about that.

"I did find a few phase 3 power converters - if you have use for them. They're old, but they still work."

[Dapper Dog]

"What about for yesterday? You think you can come and go through our turf without tribute?" he responded in Huttese.