In the Dark of the Night 2 - Nightmare

*The team fights off the Imperial intervention of the New Republic gala celebrating recent efforts on New Anoat City. Jimmy practices his flute mastery and Rusty tries to ride a prehistoric beast while everyone else does boring normal things like shoot blasters. The unexpected arrival of an Imperial troop transport only gives Bota more people to boss around as Jowkazza makes the bold move to jump aboard a moving vessel, and Katira makes sure to comment she wants to get paid for all this.*

## **Previously**

*After some well-deserved time off to recover, repair droids and equipment, check in on business, and debate their recent life decisions, our heroes were extended an invitation by Bota Zi to join him at a celebration held in honor of recent developments on the nearby planet of Anoat. Awkwardly loading on to Katira’s part nightmare, part death trap, completely unsettling ship, the group arrived on the massive floating just in time for the celebration to begin. Making their way far too confidently through security and as awkwardly as could be expected through an impromptu interview, the gala was rudely crashed by a group of incoming dactyl riding stormtroopers.*

## **Recap**

### **Preparatory Actions**

* Katira takes a glance around the crowd for anyone acting suspicious and finding that everyone appears unprepared, takes cover behind a cloud car near the platform edge.

* On the opposite end of the platform Rem asks a guard if this is a normal occurrence as he uses his ocular implants to get a better look at the incoming Imperials. He notes that the incoming creatures appear to be carrying large crates to be used on their upcoming arrival.

* Jawa Jimmy switches his vision into thermal as he climbs atop Sparky to get a better look over the crowd. Jimmy notices a massive heat signature emanating up from below the platform at the far end, just beyond the dignitaries and guests of honor. Relaying this to the rest of the group he jumps down from Sparky, trying not to annoy the death machine more than necessary.

* Rusty goes for cover in the densely populated center of the platform, taking a moment to flirt with the most attractive woman nearby.

* Still standing nearby the Coruscant reporter, Jowkazza quickly realizes that she is as confused as everyone else. Taking her by the hand, he leads her off to cover as she hastily commands her camera droids to take optimal position for recording the upcoming fracas.

> "*Come with me unless you want to be dactyl dinner.*"
> ― Jowkazza
>
>

* Standing with the ambassadorial entourage from Ibis, Bota instructs the honor guard to form a perimeter around Lynn and protect whatever civilians they can. He then shouts a command to seek cover to the confused crowd and heads straight for the approaching Imperials.

### **Round 1: Fight!**

As the crowd scatters for cover, the first dactyl announces its arrival with a screeching caw as it releases the crate it carried in. Crashing onto the platform, the box explodes open revealing an Imperial speeder bike. The rider quickly brings the bike to bear on the nearest guard, who narrowly dodges the vehicle blaster fire.

As Katira tries to keep herself out of the line of fire, dispatching the slow-moving camera droids to intercept and collide with the still incoming dactyl rider, Rem decides that a more direct course of action will have a better effect. He shoots at the still approaching dactyl, hoping to startle cause the creature to drop its cargo in surprise, but to no effect.

Seeing blaster fire begin, Jawa Jimmy gestures for Sparky to head toward the nearby speeder as he knocks it to the ground with a well-placed shot from his ion cannon. The crowd looks on in terror as the astro-monster marches at the downed soldier with deadly intent.

> "*This trooper falls down, not dead, but looks like they are hurt by the fall.*"
> ― Jordan
>
>

> "*I know he’s not dead, yet.*"
> ― Jawa Jimmy
>
>

Emerging from the original astromech body, Sparky ignites his arc welder to incapacitate the trooper via his signature method.

Choosing quite a different tactic, Rusty simply runs toward the dactyl rider that released the speeder bike and begins to yell at it in anger. Seeing the rider and the creature dismiss his attempt to intimidate them, Rusty pulls a frag grenade from his bandolier and expertly throws it at the pair. Perfectly thrown, the grenade sadly has no noticeable effect as the explosion is absorbed easily by the massive dactyl as it flies straight ahead.

> "*That actually looked really cool for them.*"
> ― Katira
>
>

> "*I hope I got that on film.*"
> ― Zalia Artemy
>
>

Overconfident after Rusty’s failed attempt, the stormtrooper fails to notice the Wookiee deeper in the crowd leveling a bowcaster at him. Suddenly a flash of green explodes into the rider’s chest, stunning him and leaving him unable to stop himself from sliding from atop the dactyl and into the noxious atmosphere below, where his screams for help fall on deaf ears before he collides unceremoniously with Anoat’s surface some time later.

Further back on the platform, Bota fires off his jetpack and heads toward the second Imperial. Taking them by surprise, Bota blows the Imperial’s leg clean off, leaving him dangling precariously close to the dactyl’s face. The creature responds by turning to rip the rider from its back, tossing him into the air and devouring him whole. In the process, the dactyl drops the crate held in its legs, leaving a second speeder bike and rider to plummet to the planets surface.

> "*I guess that box really ‘’’was’’’ a coffin.*"
> ― Jordan
>
>

Similarly freed, the remaining dactyl and their smaller companions descend upon the platform in a frenzy. Rusty narrowly avoids the massive claws of the largest creature, but the smaller reptiles tear into a nearby New Republic mechanic, ripping a cavity into his chest and feasting on whatever they can get into their beaks.

### **Round 2**

As the crowd begins to panic, smaller dactyls now beginning to fly into view, the main dais meant for the ceremony is suddenly set upon by Imperial jetpack troopers. Flying up from below the floating city, five troopers fire whipcords at the New Republic scientists still cowering nearby, entangling three. In response, Katira sprints forward, draws her slugthrower, and drops two of the Imperials nearly immediately while Rem fires an expert shot from the crowd to take out a third before melting into the crowd.

In the middle of the platform, Sparky continues to perform his particularly gruesome style of surgery on the downed speeder bike trooper with no concern to the screams of pain from the Imperial or looks of abject horror from the citizens surrounding him. Meanwhile, Jawa Jimmy reaches into his pocket and produces the ornate box so recently received from the Jawa King. Soon the disturbing song of the Krayt Dragon begins to lend a comedic air to the events unfolding, causing the massive dactyl to pause momentarily before continuing on in its carnage.

The brief pause of the dactyl inspires Rusty, who leaps at the massive beast in an attempt to become its new rider. Mistiming his jump terribly, Rusty fails to mount the dactyl but instead finds himself held aloft as his glove catches on the animal’s claws. Looking down below, Rusty extends an arm to Jawa Jimmy to help him climb up but Jimmy simply glances at yet another of Rusty’s antics before returning his attention to his music.

Still standing near the center of the platform, Jowkazza takes aim at the only remaining Imperial that has a scientist bound to them. Striking them center mass, the trooper crumples to the ground and falls back over the edge of the platform.

> "*Interestingly, as he falls off the side of the platform you hear the distinct sound of him hitting something.*"
> ― Jordan
>
>

> "*Huh… must have been a magic carpet.*"
> ― Jowkazza
>
>

With things now looking mostly taken care of, Bota flies across the platform to take a defensive position against the vector that the Imperials initially arrived on. Dropping the two remaining stormtroopers on his way there, Bota is surprised to discover a U-Wing style troop transport hovering just below the platform.

### **Mopping Up**

Noticing Rusty clinging to its leg, the large dactyl begins to fly erratically in an effort to remove the Aqualish. Dipping low in an attempt to drag Rusty along the ground, then rising sharply into the air, the beast is unsuccessful but puts Rusty into a bind as letting go now would mean plummeting to his death. Similarly freed from the commands of a rider, the other large dactyl dives down toward the ascending Imperial transport. As the ship rises, the dactyl begins to peck at the vessel. As the bay doors of the transport open, the dactyl spears one of the soldiers and tosses him like a rag doll into the open expanse outside.

Atop the platform, the sole remaining jetpack trooper entangles a scientist and begins to reel them in, the transport now giving an apparent escape path while the soldiers therein begin to open fire indiscriminately into the gala.

Having closed in on the main dais already, Katira runs for the middle of the whipcord connecting the stormtrooper and the scientist. Drawing a vibrodagger, she slides below the cable while firing off at the stormtrooper, simultaneously severing the line and knocking the soldier unconscious.

Jimmy continues to give the scene a musical score, pausing only momentarily to draw his overly large heavy blaster and blow another jet trooper off the platform. Overhead, realizing that his gamble with the dactyl is not looking like it will pay off in any way that leaves him alive, Rusty decides to abandon ship. Timing the swing of the creature’s legs, the beating of its wings, and avoiding the ever growing expanse of open air below, he lets go of the beast and slams headlong into the platform, coming to a hard stop when the outer skirt wall arrests his momentum.

> "*What the… I’ve never seen anything like that before.*"
> ― NR Security Guard
>
>

> "*Just another day with this group, man. Just another day.*"
> ― Rusty
>
>

> "*I’m glad the security guard is so interested in protecting everybody.*"
> ― Bota
>
>

Looking to cut off their escape, Bota rockets into the transport, taking the stormtroopers inside completely by surprise. Holding the upper hand, he assumes that they will obey as he commands them to get off the ship, and heads for the cockpit. Startled for a moment, the troopers regain their composure as Bota shows his back, spraying the bulkhead with blaster bolt scorches in a show of typical stormtrooper accuracy.

> "*Why can they not take a hint? There’s two pterodactyls trying to tear the ship apart and they’re still gonna shoot at me?*"
> ― Bota
>
>

> "*What else should they do?*"
> ― Jordan
>
>

> "*Get off the ship!*"
> ― Bota
>
>

On the platform and refusing to be left out of the remaining action, Katira runs to the nearest jet trooper. Being sure to let Cal Omas know that she expects to be paid well for everything going on, she ignites her newly purified lightsaber, killing the trooper as she begins the process of transferring his jetpack to herself. Not having a problem with letting everyone else risk their lives to stop the transport, Jimmy continues to play his flute and manages to draw the interest of one of the smaller dactyls.

### **Be Useful!**

Thoroughly frustrated at the night he has been having, Rusty gets to his feet and begins to berate the security guard who commented in surprise at his arrival on the platform from the dactyl.

> "*What are you doing? Give me that blaster! Be useful!*"
> ― Rusty
>
>

> "*It’s my first day!*"
> ― NR Security Guard
>
>

Taking the blaster, Rusty realizes that he has no idea how to use the weapon but still decides to pull the trigger while pointing in the general direction of the dactyls. Though he misses with every shot, he does miraculously manage not to accidentally shoot any innocent bystanders in the process.

Onboard the transport, Bota glances back at the troopers who shot at him to see Jowkazza leap into the vessel without drawing any attention to his presence. Satisfied that the troopers won’t be an issue, he opens the cockpit door and barges in to see if the pilots know when to follow orders. Blaster to the back of their head, the pilots comply with the command to land atop the platform.

## **Featured Characters**

### **Our Heroes**

* Bota Zi
* Katira Eve
* Roostan “Rusty” Steele
* Jawa Jimmy
	+ Sparky
* Jowkazza
* Rem Chanceux

### **NPCs**

* Cal Omas
* Zalia Artemy (CRESH News Anchor)

### **Mentioned**

* Jawa King
* Lynn

## **Inventory**

* -2cp to mount the dactyl (Rusty)
* -2cp to escape the dactyl (Rusty)
* +Imperial jetpack (Katira)

## **Notes**

* It is unclear how the Imperial transport was able to sneak through all New Republic defenses and position itself at the platform before the gala

## **Quotations**

> "*I got this. I have a flute for this situation!*"
> ― Jawa Jimmy
>
>

> "*Ooh… what does a Jawa look like without a cloak?*"
> ― Rem
>
>

> "*Be careful what you wish for.*"
> ― Jawa Jimmy
>
>

> "*Too late, I already started searching.*"
> ― Rem
>
>

> "*I just want you to think right now Rusty: Droorassic Park – DACTYLS.*"
> ― Katira
>
>

> "*What I’m really thinking about right now is falling off this thing.*"
> ― Rusty
>
>

> "*I’m so terrified right now. This might be the last we ever see Rusty.*"
> ― Rusty
>
>

> "*Exit the vehicle!*"
> ― Stormtrooper
>
>

> "*Alright… so they’re not gonna leave, huh?*"
> ― Bota
>
>

> "*Where would they go? Jump off the side to their death?*"
> ― Jordan
>
>

> "*You have climbing and jumping as a skill, so it wouldn’t be too hard to follow Bota onto the transport.*"
> ― Jordan
>
>

> "*It would be one thing to jump on it, but Bota can jetpack off if it keeps moving away.*"
> ― Jowkazza
>
>

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