NationStates Jolt Archive

Kurt grinned at him. "Yep," he said.
"Well, can't win at everything." I shrugged, taking a sip from my drink.

Val pulled the Humvee behind the space port, to the ship they were on and stopped.
"Well were here," she said

Val pulled the Humvee behind the space port, to the ship they were on and stopped.
"Well were here," she said

"Right," Wes said, getting out of the hummer. "Wait here, I'll open it up for you."

"Well, can't win at everything." I shrugged, taking a sip from my drink.

"Well sometimes you do act that way," Kurt said with a cheeky grin.

"Sensors show nothing yet Little Master," Mary told them.

"Well sometimes you do act that way," Kurt said with a cheeky grin.

"Sensors show nothing yet Little Master," Mary told them.
"True, that." I said. "Well, I did lose a deadly duel against Kartion once. I still have the scars to prove it."

"True, that." I said. "Well, I did lose a deadly duel against Kartion once. I still have the scars to prove it."

"No need to show," Jr replied. "You know, this Lady Nocturne may not even show up."

"I know," Kurt replied.

"True. But at least we have the Interdictor and firepower in case she does." I pointed out.

"It's a big galaxy to go looking for her in," Kurt said.

Jr nodded in agreement, "We need scouts," he suggested.

Val waited for the doors to open before pulling the Humvee into the ship. Once it was in she stepped out, and started unloading the weapons into the armory.

Val waited for the doors to open before pulling the Humvee into the ship. Once it was in she stepped out, and started unloading the weapons into the armory.

"So you want to head to now?" Wes asked.

"So you want to head to now?" Wes asked.
"I have no place I need to go, Shall we go off in search of lady nocturnm or go to the norns planet. Whichever you see fit" She was sporting a different bag of clothes that she had more time to organize this time. She pulled her trenchcoat on after taking off her cloak.

"I have no place I need to go, Shall we go off in search of lady nocturnm or go to the norns planet. Whichever you see fit" She was sporting a different bag of clothes that she had more time to organize this time. She pulled her trenchcoat on after taking off her cloak.

"Well we got a message from Kurt," Remy said, sat at the controls. "Dey be on de trail o' Lady Nocturne. Remy t'ink dat we shoul' go with dem."

Wes nodded.

"That sounds fine. I'm ready to leave whenever" she finished putting the weapons and ammo into the armory.

Wes went and sat down next to Remy. "Time for lift off," he said.

The ship began to lift up from the spacport and headed towards the sky.

"Man Remy be glad t'get away from here," Remy said, looking back down.

"It's a big galaxy to go looking for her in," Kurt said.

Jr nodded in agreement, "We need scouts," he suggested.
"Yeah." I said. After this, I'll ask Captain Ledsama to deploy probe droids and seek her out.

Kurt groaned. "I'm just glad this won't end up getting weird like it did when we were looking for the Norns," he replied.

Kurt groaned. "I'm just glad this won't end up getting weird like it did when we were looking for the Norns," he replied.
"Me too." I said. This just might end up boring for a little while.

"Me too." I said. This just might end up boring for a little while.

"It's like a stakeout," Jr said with a grin. "Only we don't have coffee or doughnuts."

"And we are not sat in a car," Kurt then pointed out.

"It's like a stakeout," Jr said with a grin. "Only we don't have coffee or doughnuts."

"And we are not sat in a car," Kurt then pointed out.
"Still a stakeout." I replied, smiling at the good analogy. "We're still in a vehicle."

"Still a stakeout." I replied, smiling at the good analogy. "We're still in a vehicle."

"And still bored as fuck," Kurt grumbled.

"And still bored as fuck," Kurt grumbled.
"Heh, that's true." I called a waitress and asked for a Caesar salad.

Kurt rolled his head back and looked up. "Man, I hate to say this but I wish she'd hurry up and arrive," he said.

Wes went and sat down next to Remy. "Time for lift off," he said.

The ship began to lift up from the spacport and headed towards the sky.

"Man Remy be glad t'get away from here," Remy said, looking back down.
"It's not so bad usually. Just the space port. It's been taken over by the mob. By the looks of the drivers of the vehicles though I doubt that the mob will last much longer. The driver was young, which means that they have been breaking the law, and hence the government will intervene, and either force complince or death." She readied herself for the trip

Kurt rolled his head back and looked up. "Man, I hate to say this but I wish she'd hurry up and arrive," he said.
The salad came, and I started eating. "She'll show up soon, don't worry."

"It's not so bad usually. Just the space port. It's been taken over by the mob. By the looks of the drivers of the vehicles though I doubt that the mob will last much longer. The driver was young, which means that they have been breaking the law, and hence the government will intervene, and either force complince or death." She readied herself for the trip

"Either way Remy don' want t'come back," he replied.

The salad came, and I started eating. "She'll show up soon, don't worry."

"Yeaa, the sooner the better," Kurt remarked.

"Yeaa, the sooner the better," Kurt remarked.
"That I can agree with." I said, munching on a leaf.

"That I can agree with." I said, munching on a leaf.

A waitress brought over a pizza and the two dug in.

"Mary will tell us if she shows," Jr said.

Finishing my salad, I grabbed a slice. Pepperoni pizza's always good.

"So what do we do in the meantime?" Kurt asked. "I can't sleep like Quatre is."

"Eh, I don't know." I said. "Probably resume that game."

"Suppose we could," Kurt agreed.

"As long as you don't try and get it to be strip poker," Jr replied, folding his arms.

"No, I mean the sim." I said, eating another pizza.

"It would be more sensible to stay out of it while we're waiting for Lady Nocturne," Jr told him.

"So how long till we are near Kurt and company?" she asked pulling out a piece of paper to make a list of weapons she has

"So how long till we are near Kurt and company?" she asked pulling out a piece of paper to make a list of weapons she has

"A long while yet," Wes told her as they blasted out into space. "We have to go through those jumpgates and that'll take a while."

"A long while yet," Wes told her as they blasted out into space. "We have to go through those jumpgates and that'll take a while."
"I'll be taking an inventory of weapons, so I might be a bit," she said going towards the armory

"I'll be taking an inventory of weapons, so I might be a bit," she said going towards the armory

"You'll have plenty of time to do it in," Wes told her. "And we'd be happy to help."

"You'll have plenty of time to do it in," Wes told her. "And we'd be happy to help."
"Well then here's the deal. One of you take the weapons and write them down on the list, the other brings them to me, and I'll take them apart and make sure they are clean and in good working order." She handed the paper and pencil to Remy

"It would be more sensible to stay out of it while we're waiting for Lady Nocturne," Jr told him.
"Ok, then." I said, starting another game of poker. This time, it'll be the game where you can take out a card each time a bet is made until the showdown.

After they had made the list Remy handed it to Val, who looked it over.

this is what was on the list
Pistols
Colt M1911A1 * 6
Dessert Eagle *2
Browning BDM *4

Shotguns
Unidentified fully auto shotgun (Jackhammer Mk3A1) *1
Benelli M4 Super 90 *2

Sniper Rifles
M40A3 *1
M-93 Black Arrow *1
HK PSG1 *1

Assault Rifles
AK-47 *4
FAMAS *2
HK G36 *4
M16A2 *2
M4A1 with M203 40mm grenade launcher *2
FN SCAR *1

Machine Guns
BAR M1918A2 *1
M-60 *1
FN M249 SAW *1
Browning M2HB(mounted on Humvee) *1

SMG’s
FNP90 *6 (two silencers)
Uzi *2
MP5N *6 (two silencers)
MAC M10 *2
B+T MP 9 submachine gun, with red dot sight, tactical light, B+T silencer *2
Thompson *1

OTHER
RPG7 *2
Humvee *1

"Well then here's the deal. One of you take the weapons and write them down on the list, the other brings them to me, and I'll take them apart and make sure they are clean and in good working order." She handed the paper and pencil to Remy

"Done," Remy said.

"Ok, then." I said, starting another game of poker. This time, it'll be the game where you can take out a card each time a bet is made until the showdown.

Kurt and Jr nodded.

We played a few more rounds of poker, as time passed. Awaiting the time that Lady Nocturne would show up somewhere...

A beeping noise came from Jr, "Yeah Mary?" he asked.

"Somethings come up Little Master," the faint voice said.

Jr then looked at the others. "Sounds like she might be here."

Won a few, lost a few, I looked up. "Really? It's the ship?"

"They don't know yet," Jr said, standing up. "We'd better head back to the bridge."

"Ok, let's go." I said, packing up the cards and putting them away.

They headed back to the bridge, there they met up with Quatre and Eamonn. Both looked as though they had been woken up suddenly.

"Is it her?" Kurt asked.

Looking out they could barely see a ship approaching. From there they couldn't see if it was the same ship so they had to rely on sensor readings.

"So far its not reading as the Pantera," one of the girls that looked exactly the same as the others said.

"Well, wouldn't want to use the same transponder signals all the time." I said. "Sensors are never 100% accurate. Let's see what happens..."

"Agreed," Jr said. "But lets see how smart she is."

They continued to watch as the ship grew closer.

I readied my comlink for the plan. When this ship turns hostile, we strike.

"It's different," Kurt said as soon as the ship was close enough. "It's not the Pantera." He looked closer, "The Deathship."

"That doesn't sound good," Eamonn remarked.

Kurt nodded, "Get ready."

"Hit it?" I asked.

"Not yet," Kurt told him. "We don't want to start anything unnecessarily."

In front of them, the Elsa crossed the ships path, blocking it off from the colony.

"If it fires first, then we attack it," Jr said.

"Not yet," Kurt told him. "We don't want to start anything unnecessarily."

In front of them, the Elsa crossed the ships path, blocking it off from the colony.

"If it fires first, then we attack it," Jr said.
"All right." I said.

Kurt bit his lower lip as a kind of stand off began. The Deathship appeared to just wait in front of the Elsa as if the crew were waiting. Eamonn looked over at Kurt.

"They're waiting for something," he said.

"Possibly," he agreed.

"For what...a fleet?" I asked, half joking.

"Fuck I hope not," Kurt groaned. "I guess we can safely say thats not the Pantera, so we're looking at two ships now."

"Well, we couldn't expect her to stay dumb forever." I said.

Kurt nodded.

"So she is Goa'uld then?" Jr asked, looking rather worried.

"The possibility is increased," the prince then said. He then looked over his shoulder at Daniel. "Dan better tell your guys to expect at least another ship." His eyes then returned to the stand off in front of them.

"By now, they would have detected it too." I said, but called the ships anyway on my private channel.

----

"Yes, Daniel, we see the ship. You say to expect a possible second?" Captain Ledsama asked.

"Yeah. That's what Kurt said." I replied.

"Hmm. Thanks for the warning." The captain of the Firestorm said. Though a Star Destroyer is powerful, especially with it's escorts, two ships would double the damage inflicted. "You guys take one ship, while we'll deal with the other."

"General idea here." I said back.

"Alright. Let us know of anything else." The captain said, then switched off.

"Crap," Eamonn muttered. "I really didn't want to face just one ship."

Kurt smirked at him. "You're a Jedi, you'll face a fuckload more ships then this,£" he told him.

"We're on the Durandal. Barring the low chance of it being unarmed, we should be able deal with any second ship along with the Elsa, the Moonshine's fighters and it's long-range missiles."

"Of course," Jr said. "But considering Lady Nocturne seems to be smart, I'm betting she'll have gathered a small fleet so we may have a few more turn up."

"Damn, I knew I should have asked for more." I slapped my head. In my rush to define strategy, I missed the little detail called tactics. "Well, we'll just have to fight it out and hope we win."

"Well we'll have the Gods on our side, just hope we haven't pissed off the Norns too much," Kurt said. "Jr, can you get any more ships in?"

"Sure," Jr replied. "Somehow I think we should send them to protect the other colonies."

"How many you have? One or two should help." I said.

"We have more then enough to put two on each colony," Jr said, heading up to the command post beside Mary. "I'll get them on it."

"I'm liking this even less," Kurt said with a cold glare, staring out at where The Deathship waited.

"I wonder..." I said, then reached out into the Force, and sent a psychic probe into the Deathship. Now what do I see here...

The Deathship seemed prepared for such an occasion as a Jedi sending in a psychic probe. It returned the favour by blasting pain into Daniels head.

The Deathship seemed prepared for such an occasion as a Jedi sending in a psychic probe. It returned the favour by blasting pain into Daniels head.
"AAAH!" I forcibly removed the probe, the pain snapping me back in my chair like a whip. "Crap! That hurt! Don't go that route!"

"Looks like they're prepared for anything," Kurt commented, looking up at Jr.

"They'll be on their way to the other colonies shortly," Jr told him.

Meanwhile, Eamonn was concerned for his friend. "You alright Dan?" he asked.

I rubbed my temples. "Yeah. There goes the boarding plan for the Deathship..."

"We just need to get them when their defences are down," Kurt said.

There was a sudden explosion as The Deathship fired upon the Elsa.

"Shit!" Kurt swore.

"There it is!" I said. "Moonshine, warm up the gravity wells. Firestorm force, get in there and don't forget to jam all communications!"

The gravity well generators powered up, trapping the ship in between a bunch of gravity wells and soon, fighters poured out of the belly of the ship.

Not a second later, the large Star Destroyer and it's escorts appeared seemingly out of nowhere, and began spitting green turbolasers at the enemy as fighters and gunships zoomed ahead to deal with anything. ECM warfare items also got to work, blasting ionic energy into the ship to reduce or eliminate it's communications capability.

Now, it was only a matter of time before the Pantera would also arrive and get trapped in the gravity well...

The Elsa began firing back, it's own weapons more powerful then that of The Deathship. The shields however stood up to the attack.

"This is going to be tough, they've really modified those shields," Jr said.

"Yeah, but watch." I smirked.

The Star Destroyer intensified in firepower, the bolts growing brighter with each shot until they were in maximum firepower as they blasted a broadside straight into the enemy. That means that a majority of the 100 turbolasers have trained their turrets on the ship, and pumped out bolt after bolt after bolt, matching or exceeding the firepower displayed so far.

"Their shields are failing," one of the realian girls said. "Systems will fail."

Jr licked his lips. "Going well so far," he said as The Deathship fired upon both the Elsa and the fighters that came at it.

"Enemy shields failing!" Tactical reported.

"Very good, switch to ion cannons!" Turbolasers slacked off slightly, only to have blue bolts of energy shoot at the Deathship, to knock it offline for boarding action. Lightning skittered across and through the shields, shorting out equipment whereever it touched. A couple of fighters were lost, but there were too many in the swarm picking off weapons and sensors in order to whittle away at the enemy ship bit by bit.

Explosions ripped through parts of The Deathship.

"Shields are dead, engines are down to 10%, they have no hyperdrive capabilities now," the realians said.

"Good, we'll board the ship then," Kurt said.

"Captain, we'll be boarding now!" I said. "Send in the Marines!"

"Will do!" Ledsama replied.

"Let's go." I ordered the others.

Soon enough, assault shuttles holding marines and destroyer droids sped for the ship, to soften up the entry points for us. They either burst through a hangar bay or other door, or burned a hole through the ship proper to allow the Marines and droids in.

"Hey," Kurt said. "We were going to go just the few of us."

"Hey," Kurt said. "We were going to go just the few of us."
"Right, but that's their job. Would have done it anyway unless I specifically ordered them not to." I pointed out. "Besides, lightsabers are good, but you'd still want heavy blasters by your side from time to time. Junior, if you'll get us a shuttle or whatnot..."

"Well they have to watch out for the Pantera," Kurt told them.

"The shuttles this way," Jr said, heading for the left.

I followed Junior to the shuttle, walking quickly. The Marines would have already established an entry point for us, and are currently holding position, last I heard.

The headed down into the shuttle bay and boarded one of five shuttles. Jr put shields up to maximum just incase as they headed out to the ship. There was a part they were able to dock and sensor told them that there was life support available.

"You guys ready to board?" Jr asked.

Kurt held up his lightsaber, briefly igniting it. "Yep."

"Ready as ever." I said.

Jr nodded and opened up the doors to the shuttle. Kurt ignited his lightsaber and stepped out into The Deathship. It looked pretty lifeless in there.

"Coast clear," the prince told them.

"Hmm. Looks like they cleared some of it already..." I said.

"Well this may appear strange but I'm getting no lifesigns other then us and the marines," Jr said, looking down at the lifesign reader.

"That is strange," Kurt said.

"Colonel, Did you find anything in here?" I called ahead.

"No, we didn't and that's the strange thing around here." The Marine colonel said. "Just you kids and us."

"AI controlled, you think?" I asked.

"Possibly." The colonel replied.

"I'd say it is," Jr said.

"Right, head to the Pel'tak then," Kurt suggested. "Dan tell your men to stay where they are."

"Stay where you are, guys, we're going to check something." I said to the troops.

"Will do." The colonel answered.

Kurt made his way to the Pel'tak, "Just make sure they're on standby just in case," he told him.

Eamonn ignited his lightsaber in preparation as he had a bad feeling about this.

My own stayed unignited but at the ready for anything.

The ship creaked and groaned as they headed up to the pel'tac, alot of damage had been done to it. Kurt kept his nerve as he led the others through the maze of corridors before heading into the pel'tac at last. It was completely devoid of life.

"This looks bad," Kurt told the others.

"Well, my suspicions of AI gets better and better." I said.

Kurt nodded, "She can get the ship but not the crew," he said looking around. "What to do now."

"Check if the computer has anything we can use." I said.

"Shit," Kurt swore. "Knew we should have brought Namus with us."

"Oh, ok." I said, then called the colonel. "Colonel, you have a hacker in your team?"

A couple of minutes and then..."Yeah, I do."

"Good, send him up." I said. "Let's see if he can do it."

The hacker, stereotypically wearing glasses, came up. "Hey peoples."

"Can you try to get through the computer, see if we can pull up anything?"

He nodded. "I'll do my best."

The hacker went and sat down, he instantly went to work.

"Bet he's not as good as Namus," Kurt quietly remarked.

The hacker didn't reply to that as a hologram of a masked woman appeared in front of them. For a moment she seemed to stare at them.

"You may have defeated this ship but you will not defeat me," she said.

"Her voice, that is definitely a Goa'uld voice," Kurt pointed out.

"All infomation was deleted before you boarded my ship, it is now useless to you," and the hologram vanished.

The hacker slammed his fist down on the console. "Shit, it did get wiped."

"Well, that's confirmed." I said. "She's definitely a Goa'uld."

Jr grimaced at the thought of a Goa'uld returning.

"We could retrieve data if we'd had Namus here," Kurt said and shook his head. This was bad, very bad, but there was something positive out of all this. "A Goa'uld return is bad, but I think this is going to be setting me on the path to regaining my kingdom."

"Every cloud has a silver lining..." I smiled.

Kurt nodded. Outside he could see the Elsa move away, revealing Wundagore DN. "I am going to defeat Nocturne and Azazel," he said.

"Ambitious, aren't you, Julius?" I joked.

"It's not ambition, it is my duty as a prince to defeat such evil and protect my people," Kurt replied. "That is why I am Prince Kurt instead of just Kurt." He then looked towards Daniel.

"Yeah, I see that." I said. "So what next?"

"Figure out Lady Nocturnes next move," Kurt told him.

"So where could she challenge next with a small fleet?" I asked.

"Well I hope we've proven to her that the colonies will now be better defended," Kurt told him.

Jr nodded in agreement. "With our ships stationed there, she'll stand no chance," he said. "So where else would she attack?"

"She wouldn't dare attack Draconis Nightcrawlis itself, her small fleet wouldn't stand a chance," Kurt said, scratching the back of his neck. Talking about his home like that made him uneasy. "Any other suggestions?"

"Bait her with something she can't resist." I suggested. "The problem is finding out what would make her risk a lot to grab."

"And it depends on how smart she is," Quatre pointed out. "It's no use if she works out that we're baiting her."

Kurt smacked his head against his forehead. "You realise what we're doing don't you," he realised. "We're making plans in her ship."

"And it depends on how smart she is," Quatre pointed out. "It's no use if she works out that we're baiting her."

Kurt smacked his head against his forehead. "You realise what we're doing don't you," he realised. "We're making plans in her ship."
"Right. I forgot." I smacked my head. "Well, better try something else. Let's get out of here."

Kurt nodded and they headed back out to the waiting shuttle. As they pulled way from the ship, Kurt sat back and groaned.

"I can't believe we did that," he said. "Now she'll lay low for awhile knowing that we were planning to bait her."

Back on the shuttle. "Well, I guess there's nothing left to do but use the Firestorm's probe droids. If they find something interesting, we'd use recon ships."

I had Captain Ledsama deploy a cloud of droids to scour the galaxy.

"We were stupid," Kurt said shaking his head. "We need to start thinking better."

"I hope they find something," Jr said.

"Were not perfect, Kurt." I said. "Mistakes happen, and we just gotta learn from 'em.

"I know but that was one mistake we should not have made," Kurt said. "Master Elanessë would not be pleased with that."

"Neither will Dad, for that matter." I said.

"Mental note, avoid the academy for a week or two," Kurt said, disembarking from the shuttle. "Maybe he'll forget by then." He placed his hands behind his head and began whistling as he walked off.

Eamonn turned to Daniel and said, "Master Elanessë never forgets anything."

"Yeah, elders never let you off without learning your lessons." I agreed.

------

Some time later...

Probe Droids # 346, 27, and 176 have started scouting out a distant system, and they find some funny readings in that system. They report back to the Firestorm and the droid crew in charge sends up the report back to the Captain.

"Hmm." The captain stroked his salt-and-pepper beard in thought. "Get me Masaki."

"Yes, sir."

-----

"Yeah?" I asked in my comlink, then sat up. "Oh, Captain, what is it?"

"Some of my probe droids found some funny readings in the Outer Rim, Sector 27. It's a binary star system. One orange, one blue, seven planets, and an asteroid belt. About 2500 lightyears from the Colonies."

"Really?" I asked. Looks like another break. "Ok, thanks. I'll get the others."

I raced down the hallways to find the others.

Eamonn had joined Jr on the bridge as they watched over The Deathship. The ship stood there silently, haunting the colony.

"She still has control over it," Eamonn remarked.

Jr nodded. "She's bidding her time, waiting for us to relax."

"Let's relax then, make her think we're complacent." I said, walking in. "Captain's droids found some funny readings about 2500 light-years from here. Captain?"

"Right." He said, through the comlink. "We've just found it, and are now checking up on it."

"Right," Jr said. "We going there?"

*****

Sending out droids, I knew that was coming. I heard it from them myself. They are baiting, but I know better then that.

"Rengaw, destroy the droids,"

"We'll have to be quick, they'll likely detect them." I said.

-----

The droids put out as much information of the readings as they can before they are destroyed by the enemy forces.

"We lost 'em."

"Hmm. Daniel, looks like we have a possible location of Lady Nocturne." The captain said.

"Very well." I said on the other side. "We'll check it out. By the way, I think we might need another squadron. The presence of a second ship shows that she has at least a small fleet, and will amass more as time goes on."

"Very good. I'll contact the Dragonflame Squadron, then." The captain said. "Will be here soon."

"All right, thanks." I said, and cut off comms.

The Pantera disappeared into hyperspace.

*****

"If she destroys the drones then she'll probably make her escape before anyone even gets to the Pantera's location," Jr said. "This could end up a wild goose chase."

Recon fighters are sent out to the last known location of the destroyed droids, as the 497 others continue searching for signs of the Pantera, now that they know the signatures to look for.

The Pantera was already well on it's way to another part of the galaxy.

They'll send more drones, maybe even ships, but I'll be ready.

The fighters find no sign of the Pantera, but a thin hyperspace trail leads them onwards.

Trying to follow, how predictable.

"Do not leave hyperspace until my say so."

***********

"Do you think they'll catch her?" Eamonn asked.

"The fighters are A-wings." I smirked. "Few ships are faster than them in hyperspace."

---

The recon fighters follow the trail, knowing that once she drops out, they've got her.

"We don't know how much she has modified her ship," Jr pointed out. "She could have done anything to those engines."

"Right, but it's the fastest we have, other than the droids." I replied.

Jr scratched the back of his neck. "So what are we going to do about The Deathship?" he wondered.

"Done," Remy said.
"Well I'm gonna sleep now. If anything happens, wake me up," She layed down on the couch and stuck her hand in her trench coat. Haushinka sat on the floor next to her.

"Well I'm gonna sleep now. If anything happens, wake me up," She layed down on the couch and stuck her hand in her trench coat. Haushinka sat on the floor next to her.

"Sure," Wes said. "It'll be a long while yet."

"Remy be with her," Remy said, he sat back and closed his eyes.

For Wes, while they slept the journey would seem lonely for him.

"Give the ship's computer to Namus as a present." I smirked. "Otherwise, we can use it as target practice or scrub everything and use it in your fleet."

Three more Star Destroyers accompanied by a few smaller ships reverted to realspace. This task force is from the Dragon Squadron, so named because they're the only ships with the Great Core Dragons as part of the crew. We've never used them before, but I guess Dad and the King Dragon decided we needed the help. Core Dragons are not your average firebreathing lizards. They can change size at will from being able to sit on your shoulders to Great Dragon size (usually 60 feet, the King himself can reach 200). They also have have a variety of powers, too many to name right now. We're working with them to help them build their own ships, but right now, the Star Destroyers will have to do.

"Captain Kondar." I smiled as I spoke to the Dragonflame. "A pleasure to meet you."

A deep guttural growl-chuckle came from the comlink. "Scales! So it is you after all, young Masaki. Always dragging everyone in to help you do your good deeds."

I laughed, scratching the back of my head. "Well, uh, yeah! We needed help to deal with this lady..."

"Ah, Lady Nocturne...Horvath's told me about her." The dragon said. "So you're on the search for her right now, eh?"

"Mmhmm. Me and Kurt, Eamonn and Junior." I said.

"Did you say Kurt?" The dragon captain asked. "As in the Prince?"

"Uh, yeah..."

"And Quatre," Eamonn added.

Kurt yawned as he entered the bridge. "Man, you ever get that feeling of your ears burning?" he asked, still half asleep.

"Yeah, happens when I sneeze for no reason." I smiled.

"Ah, Prince Kurt. The King knew his father well..." Kondar said. "And unfortunately, his grandfather as well."

"Huh?" Kurt asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"Huh?" Kurt asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
"Well, looks like there's more contacts than just me..." I smiled. "Well, Kurt, looks like our King Dragon, Sarinoth knows you. By reputation at least."

"Indeed. Your father was well-known among us Great Dragons." Kondar nodded on the tiny comlink screen. "A shame he is no longer with us..."

Kurt just nodded and looked to the ground with sadness in his eyes. My father is still alive, Azazel has him locked away and bound somewhere.

The recon fighters drop off from the chase and return to the Firestorm, grumbling about the failure.

---

They returned with empty hands.

"Well, looks like a wild-goose chase after all." I sighed.

"Shit, she's good," Kurt cursed.

"Ex-military, definitely," Jr remarked, shaking his head. "That could be bad, it'll mean she's already recruited from the DN spacefleet."

"A true challenge." Kondar's predatory eyes shone with the excitement of the hunt. "Not since the wars against Tak'a-Tamen had I been involved in a challenge of the hunt."

I had to grin. "Yeah, it's boring sometimes, but when you get right down to it, it is a challenge. And we Coredians never back down from a challenge of this caliber."

"You got that right, boy!" Kondor roared (literally) with laughter.

Kurt's tail twitched nervously. "It's bad enough having one challange in my grandfather," he said. "Now we have this Goa'uld."

"Goa'uld? Truly?" Kondar asked.

I nodded.

"May they burn to ash..." The dragon hissed a curse. "The snakes should never have returned."

Kurts tail began swinging wildly behind him. "Well we could expect they would stay gone forever now could we?" he told the others. "They will probably always make a reappearence, only they won't be as big and bed as they used to be."

Kurts tail began swinging wildly behind him. "Well we could expect they would stay gone forever now could we?" he told the others. "They will probably always make a reappearence, only they won't be as big and bed as they used to be."
"Well, at least we'll have target practice for the newbies in the Navy." I shrugged.

"We'll need more then newbs," Kurt told him and began walking away to leave the bridge.

"Bah." I sighed, and went back to reports with Captains Horvath and Kondar.

"He is right, you need more then newbs," Jr said. "Otherwise you'd underestimate them and they'd kick your arses."

"I know that." I snapped. "Can't you take a joke?"

Why else would I say 'target practice'?

Jr grinned and made stirring motions with his right hand before walking back to the ships main controls.

Eamonn burst out laughing.

The shuttle soon cleared the jumpgate and flew out into the space near Tortuga DN. Wes looked toward the colony.

"Perhaps the jumpgate is too close to Tortuga," he said to himself.

Remy was still snoring beside him.

An eye twitched as I stared at them like they're idiots. "What the hell?"

"Ignore him, he's winding you up," Eamonn said, still laughing.

Val woke up, looked at Wes and asked "Whats up?"

Val woke up, looked at Wes and asked "Whats up?"

"We're out of the jumpgate," Wes told her.

"Ignore him, he's winding you up," Eamonn said, still laughing.
A sweatdrop rolled down the back of my head. "Aww, go throw yourselves out the lock."

I headed back to my room, going to sleep.

Eamonn laughed as he went and joined Jr. "He's so easy to wind up," he grinned.

"So I noticed," Jr said.

"Any new sightings of Lady Nocturne?" the young Jedi then asked.

Jr looked over the screen and shook his head. "'Fraid not," he said.

I slept the night away, but my mind decided to wander the Galaxy through the Force to try and figure out where Lady Nocturne is, and what her next move is going to be.

Gone, but they'll be back and I shall be ready for them.

**********

In front of their very eyes, The Deathship blew up in a huge explosion.

"Shit," Eamonn swore, his eyes widened at the thought that they could have still been aboard when it blew up.

Technicians working on the computer and other systems and a three-man Marine squad protecting them died in the explosion. Their families will be sent the Letter of Sadness, as military families have named the bad-news letter denoting the loss of a soldier, crewmember or pilot.

----

I continued to search the Galaxy for the Dark Lady as I slept, using the currents in the Force as the highways for the projection. Halfway through the night, I thought I spotted a darkness in the Force, and went to check it out.

I can feel someone, a Jedi isn't it. Masaki, so I'm told. Hello Masaki up for having your brain fried I see.

Daniel would have felt a pain as in his head was being crushed.

********

"What is all the noise?" Kurt asked as he entered the bridge, he looked as if he had just been woken up.

"The Deathship just blew up," Jr told him.

You bitch! I yelled telepathically, as I broke off contact and shielded myself before any lasting damage could be done. When I returned to reality, I sat up, sweaty, and that's when I heard the Deathship explode.

"What--?" I gathered up my clothes and put them on, and 'ported to the bridge, where I could see what happened to the Deathship as it lived up to it's name. "Damn, glad we didn't stay any longer than we had to."

Kurt yawned and rubbed his eyes. "I'm surprised it didn't blow when we were aboard," he said.

Mary was looking at the console with interest. "This says that something similar to The Deathship is moving away from us," she said.

"What?" Jr asked and turned the console. Sure enough, it was there on screen. Looking out in front of them, he could see the debris from the ship scattered across space in front of them. "A trick?"

"No way, not again?!" I yelled. "Firestorm, stop it immediately!"

"But it's not..." Captain Horvath cried, disbelieving.

Kondar growled on the other end. "Do it, Captain. Something is up, and we need to figure it out."

"Right. Open fire!"

Green turbolasers blazed after the ship as the Firestorm tried to stop it.

Meanwhile, I was trying to think. "It looks a lot like a Henge (transformation) spell, maybe combined with Bunshin (clone). What I'm saying here is that she probably made an illusion to fool us and the sensors while the real Deathship makes a getaway. A classic ninja trick. Crap, she's real smart here!"

A piece of debris entered the Durandal. Jr looked at it as it floated past just as it had done out in space. Moving a hand up to it, it went through.

"She cloaked the real ship while it was hidden by a hologram," he said. "Could fool us, but not the sensors. She must have been expecting us not to look at the sensors."

As soon as The Deathship was fired upon, the cloaking device was interrupted and the ship revealed.

"Tell your men to hold their fire," Kurt said. "Stop the ship using the wells, we need to deactivate the engines. Since she wants the ship, she'll have to come get it."

I did so and the Firestorm slacked off, while the Moonshine powered up it's gravity well to keep it from jumping. Kondar's task force then boxed it in, ready to fire plasma bolts into it if necessary.

The Deathship stopped moving, it just seemed to hang there.

"Should we board?" Jr asked.

Kurt stood there, silently wondering if it was safe to.

"Teleport." I suggested. "Kondar will back us up with a squad of dragon-troops. First sign of a disturbance in the Force giving warning of self-destruct, we 'port out."

"Good thinking," Kurt said. "Better put a t-shirt on then." He grinned at the others before teleporting away.

"The rest of us should prepare too," Jr then told them.

"Kondar, you ready?" I asked.

"Yes, Sergeant Chazor will be backing you up." Kondar said.

Kurt teleported back to the bridge, this time wearing a t-shirt. "Eamonn you and Jr stay here, it just needs to be Dan and I that go," he said.

"Ok," the young Jedi nodded.

Aside from my khaki cargo pants, I had on a navy-blue T-shirt over my white mithril shirt (long-sleeve). Over that is a forest-green combat vest designed to reduce damage from projectile and energy weapons by the Elven Clothing Corporation. It also looks cool on me, heh.

"Well, let's go Kurt." I said, and teleported towards the Deathship.

Kurt followed, leaving the smell of brimstone behind. "I think Eam's glad I told him to stay behind," Kurt grinned. "You have men aboard don't you?"

Seconds later, more pops sounded as ten human-sized dragons in combat armor appeared, wings folded. While they carry plasma rifles or blasters, they use their own draconic powers much more often.

"You were saying?" I grinned. I spotted a grizzled dragon with a big scar on his face near the left eye, a veteran of many battles and snapped a salute to him. "Sergeant Chazor, I presume?"

"Yes, young Masaki." The dragon nodded, returning the salute with a thick-clawed hand.

"Right. Uh, suppress any enemy you see, but if there's a commander with a lightsaber, be careful." I warned.

"Understood. Dragons, let's move out!" He roared, and the squad began to move ahead, ready to toss fireballs or flamestreams. They split up into two-dragon teams and began scouting out the ship. As for us...

"I meant guys like the hacker from before," Kurt told him. "I was going to suggest that they left just in case."

"I meant guys like the hacker from before," Kurt told him. "I was going to suggest that they left just in case."
"Oh, right." I said, and called them. "Tech Specialist Kevin, you there?"

"Yeah, this thing started moving on it's own while we were here." He said back. "Its AI is extremely--"

"Yeah, I know." I interrupted him. "Pack up and get back to the Firestorm, now! We don't want to lose you in case this place blows for real."

"But there's--"

"Now." I commanded.

"Fine, fine." The techie grumbled, and soon he and his charges were heading out of the Deathship. I nodded to Kurt for us to go on as they're safe now.

"It's for their own safety," Kurt said as he led Daniel towards the engine room. "Be careful, the engine room may be booby trapped."

"Right." I nodded, and as carefully as I could, headed into the engine room, peeking in.

"Looks clear," Kurt said and closed his eyes. "It's clear, no booby traps." He opened them and looked around the engine room. "Up for some sensless destruction?"

"You sure?" I asked, but grinned, and created an electroball in my right hand. "All-purpose ball lightning. I can use a bunch as grenades on this room, shorting all the equipment out."

"Go for it," Kurt grinned. "Then I can take out the central engine for good measure."

I threw the ball, and it exploded in a shower of sparks, shocking anything except us nearby. I continued throwing them until the whole place stank of ozone, and the equipment were beginning to melt due to the high-voltage transfer of energy into them.

"Good job," Kurt said. "Now for the finishing touch."

Kurt walked into the centre of the engine room and morphed into dragon form. Moving his large frame around, he repeatedly hit at the central engine, causing it to break up.

"There, now she definately couldn't run the ship," he said.

"Aww, the Sergeant could have done that." I laughed. "Ok, what next?"

"What and miss out on the fun myself?" Kurt remarked, morphing back into his elven form. "Now we just have to hope that she comes for her ship."

"Right." I said. "Sergeant, find anything of interest so far?"

"Nope, nothing." The dragon replied after reports from his troops. "We'll be heading back now."

"Ok, cool." I said. "Us, too."

"Right." The dragon and his troops returned to their fleet, leaving the two of us alone in the ship.

"Well nothing left here for us so I'll meet you back on the Durandal," Kurt said before teleporting away.

I nodded, as he went, and decided to take a short walk around the modified Ha'tak. The pyramid scheme is pretty good designing, and I do like to look around ships to get a better feel for them.

Other then that, there wasn't really anything there. Most of the ship was nothing but corridors appart from the armoury, the mess hall and the Jaffa quarters.

"Didn't Dan come back with you?" Eamonn asked.

Kurt looked around. "Hmm," he thought. Dan where the fuck did you go to?

Concluding my tour with an arrival on the Ha'tak's bridge, I teleported back to the Durandal, having satisfied my curiosity with the Ha'tak. "I'm back. Now we wait..."

"Depends on when she's willing to take the bait," Kurt said.

"Well, I think it's just going to take a while, then." I sighed. "I wonder if she has a base of operations we can find and deploy against, if it's not the Pantera."

The shuttle soon cleared the jumpgate and flew out into the space near Tortuga DN. Wes looked toward the colony.

"Perhaps the jumpgate is too close to Tortuga," he said to himself.

Remy was still snoring beside him.
Val stood up and looked at the colony, making no comment, but rather adjusting her clothes.

"Well, I think it's just going to take a while, then." I sighed. "I wonder if she has a base of operations we can find and deploy against, if it's not the Pantera."

"Please not be P3X-888," Kurt grimaced.

Jr shook his head. "I doubt she has a base other then her ship," he told them."

Val stood up and looked at the colony, making no comment, but rather adjusting her clothes.

"What do you think?" Wes asked.

"What do you think?" Wes asked.
"It's interesting, first time I've really seen one." She said, twisting her neck to pop it.

"P3X-888?" I asked. "What's that place?"

"It's interesting, first time I've really seen one." She said, twisting her neck to pop it.

"You didn't see it from up here when you came to the princes party?"

"P3X-888?" I asked. "What's that place?"

"It's where the Goa'uld came from," Jr explained with a cold stare.

"You didn't see it from up here when you came to the princes party?"
"I was working out or asleep," she said gazing at the colony

"It's where the Goa'uld came from," Jr explained with a cold stare.
"Ah. Ok." I said. "Well, she's probably has the Pantera as her base, but what about that colony?"

"I was working out or asleep," she said gazing at the colony

"Ah," Wes nodded. "It is most beautiful from space." He then looked behind him with at the hummer. "What do you wish to do with your hummer?"

"Ah. Ok." I said. "Well, she's probably has the Pantera as her base, but what about that colony?"


"Which colony?" Jr asked.

"Ah," Wes nodded. "It is most beautiful from space." He then looked behind him with at the hummer. "What do you wish to do with your hummer?"
"Are we going down to the planet? If we are we could use it as transportaion. I just didn't want to leave it on earth."

EDITOOC: I'm assuming the colony is a planet.

"Are we going down to the planet? If we are we could use it as transportaion. I just didn't want to leave it on earth."

EDITOOC: I'm assuming the colony is a planet.[Correct :)]

"Sure, although vehicles are pretty much banned within the colony itself," Wes warned her.

"Sure, although vehicles are pretty much banned within the colony itself," Wes warned her.
"Ok, well if we need to get somewhere that isn't in the colony than we can use it, otherwise it should stay in here."

"Ok, well if we need to get somewhere that isn't in the colony than we can use it, otherwise it should stay in here."

"Ok," Wes said. "By the way, got a message from the prince and the others. They've had another run in with Lady Nocturne."

"Ok," Wes said. "By the way, got a message from the prince and the others. They've had another run in with Lady Nocturne."
"Fun," she said, adding, "How long till we meet back up with them?"

"Uh...um..." I was trying to remember it, then snapped my fingers. "Foundation."

"Uh...um..." I was trying to remember it, then snapped my fingers. "Foundation."

"The Kukai Foundation," Jr corrected him. "We're fixing it back up."

"Fun," she said, adding, "How long till we meet back up with them?"

"From here it would be another few hours to Wundagore DN," Wes told her.

"From here it would be another few hours to Wundagore DN," Wes told her.
She nodded

"The Kukai Foundation," Jr corrected him. "We're fixing it back up."
"Ah, ok." I said. "I do seem to recall that something near it had disappeared or something...a base of some sort?"

She nodded

Wes manouvered the ship and they entered hyperspace.

"Ah, ok." I said. "I do seem to recall that something near it had disappeared or something...a base of some sort?"

"Yes the colony apparently moved, we are still investigating it," Jr told him.

"Yes the colony apparently moved, we are still investigating it," Jr told him.
"Ok." I said. "Well, looks like we'd have not much else to do..."

Though soon enough, we'd get some visitors.

Jr nodded and turned to keeping an eye out for any sign of the Pantera. Kurt had seemingly wandered off and Eamonn looked rather bored.

I decided to try my invisibility skills, and as bored a young Jedi as I could be, decided to wander the ship, careful not to go to places marked Employees or Crew only.

Eamonn soon wandered off and decided to see what else the Durandal had to offer.

"Come in Elsa," Jr said.

Chaos appeared on the sceen in front of him. "Hey Jr," he said.

"Where's Captain Mathews?" Jr asked.

"Asleep, want me to wake him?"

"No, it'll be fine," A pause. "When we wakes up, tell him to expand your patrol area."

I slipped invisibly into the casino under the nose of the bouncers, and just took a look around, not doing anything.

In the casino, a siren began wailing as soon as he'd stepped inside.

One of the bouncers began talking into the mic beside the door. "Confirmed, we have an underage in the casino," he said.

The bouncer then spread out to look for the underage offender while his partner guarded the door.

Huh, an Age Limit line. Well, at least the invisibility is working. My first self-training session is over. Now for my second. The bouncer would try to look for me, but I decided to toy with him a little bit. With a smirk, I walked through the area, just visible enough to be almost a will-o-the-wisp, then disappearing like a ghost.

"It's that fucking brat from before," the bouncer said. "One of those that were looking to get in, I told you they were Jedi."

He then took out a zat'ni'katel, looking for Daniel.

"It's that fucking brat from before," the bouncer said. "One of those that were looking to get in, I told you they were Jedi."

He then took out a zat'ni'katel, looking for Daniel.
A zat? Interesting. I wondered if I could stay conscious with the first shot. Probably, considering that I have lightning abilities on top of being a Jedi. It'll be the second and third shots that would be a problem. Well, the point of this exercise is how NOT to get hit by a stun-weapon, so I began to double-back, keeping a good eye on the bouncer.

The bouncer moved through the casino. All the customers had cleared off as soon as the bouncer brought out the zat'ni'katel. "Come out, come out where ever you are," he called out.

The bouncer moved through the casino. All the customers had cleared off as soon as the bouncer brought out the zat'ni'katel. "Come out, come out where ever you are," he called out.
"Not by the hair of your chinny chin chin!" I called out, near, yet far. The Force helps with that. I wondered what I could do next...

There was an explosion of purple smoke and Kurt appeared. "Guys, Jr told me to take care of this," he told the bouncers.

"Yes your majesty," the first bouncer said. "We will be at the door if you need us."

Kurt nodded and sat down on the table. "Dan, just because you're invisible, it doesn't mean you can ignore the ships rules," he said.

"Just bored." I said casually.

"I know," Kurt said. "Not much we can do until Lady Nocturne shows up, if she shows up."

"Well, she has to show up if she wants to take the colonies." I pointed out. "As well as to remove us kids from the galactic scene if she wants to take on DN."

Kurt nodded. "But we are a problem for her," he pointed out. "She'll have to do some more planning and planning takes time."

Kurt nodded. "But we are a problem for her," he pointed out. "She'll have to do some more planning and planning takes time."
"Right." I said. "We'll have to be ready for her, whatever happens."

Kurt grinned. "And causing trouble in the casino isn't going to help," he told him.

Kurt grinned. "And causing trouble in the casino isn't going to help," he told him.
"Yeah, yeah." I smirked. "The age line was unexpected, though."

"Don't think they're stupid now do you?" Kurt grinned. "The Kukai Foundation know that dragon people have powers so they had to do that just in case, probably expected a Jedi to do it as well."

"Smart. Had to give it to them." I said. "Well, I'm getting out of here."

I got up and walked out of the casino, hands resting behind my head as I whistled a tune.

The bouncers glared at him as he passed.

"If you see him near the casino again you have my permission to shoot him," Kurt grinned, he was still sat on the table.

The bouncers glared at him as he passed.

"If you see him near the casino again you have my permission to shoot him," Kurt grinned, he was still sat on the table.
"Shoot me, and you'll find yourselves on the floor faster than you can say 'blaster bolts'." I smirked, as I headed down the hall and into the mess hall.

Kurt laughed to himself and teleported himself back to the bridge.

"Dealt with him," he told Jr.

"Good," Jr nodded. "Because we have company coming, Lady Nocturne is on her way."

I grabbed a couple of hot dogs while in the mess hall, paid for them, and ate them as I headed back to the bridge. I wondered whether something's come up yet.

Arriving on the bridge, I could feel a sudden tension in the air, even without the Force. "What's up?"

"She's coming," Kurt said coldly.

"Hey troublemaker," Eamonn grinned from the command console.

"Hi." I sighed. "So, she's coming, eh? Well, looks like killing time back there actually paid off. Probably won't make it a habit, though."

A smirk crossed Jr's face. "A second offence allways gives the offender a very nasty shock."

Kurt checked his lightsaber at his side, making sure he would be ready to use it. Quatre had now joined them.

A smirk crossed Jr's face. "A second offence allways gives the offender a very nasty shock."

Kurt checked his lightsaber at his side, making sure he would be ready to use it. Quatre had now joined them.
"Nocturne's coming." I said to Quatre, just in case. "Better be ready."

"I know," Quatre replied.

"Slow on the uptake again," Eamonn grinned. He was stood at the controls having seemingly taken over from Mary who wasn't on the bridge.

"So what's her ETA?" I asked.