Crystal Clear

*A message on the agents' datapads flashes from Boge:*

*++I need a few skilled hands for a sensitive job. This is a quiet operation, if we do it right, no one will even know we are there. Got a decent chance to make some good credits if we pull this off right. Meet me on the Silver Lining at 0600 if you're interested.++*

## Chronology

Within the Shadow of the Broker canon, this mission takes place between SotB XXII: Cutting the Red Tape and Beyond the Rim I: Tale of the Sa Nalaor.

## Agents

* Durin Boge
* Fai Mei
* Kii'Vera
* Nogg Nubo
* Rogesh Vai

## Mission Report

*This one was quick enough that you're probably just better off reading the thread yourself. Just skip everything before the party starts and you're in for a good read. Just be careful if you're allergic to Triumphs.*

With the promise of a healthy payout, Durin recruited several agents of the Broker to join him on a journey to Taanab, a developed agricultural center and home to wealthy nobleman Landon Cobb. Cobb, a collector of sorts, had decided to open his home up for a large party, creating a perfect opportunity to skirt security and acquire a few of his more precious possessions.

Making haste to Taanab in Durin's new ship, the Silver Lining, the crew spotted a Vindicator-class Star Destroyer docked in orbit, and though it didn't pose an immediate threat, it meant that complications were looming. Without incident, they set down in the planet's capital, Pandath, where they spent the day shopping and gathering information before the next night's event. Nogg spent his time combing the holonet for information about the planet and the potential score from Cobb's estate. He found that Pandath had once been home to a Jedi chapter house, but it was destroyed after Imperial intervention, and the relics it once held were mostly destroyed. A few, apparently, had managed to survive and were being traded around by the planet's various black market dealers.

Meanwhile, Kii and Rogesh spent their time offloading a crate of spice in a local cantina after receiving a tip about the demand for illicit narcotics. Netting a tidy profit, they then headed to a nearby meeting hall, where they'd heard a man was recruiting entertainment for the next day's party. After a suitably impressive improvised acrobatics act, the two actually managed to land themselves a spot in the lineup, securing an in for the two of them.

After some research, Fai realized that the ship stationed in orbit was actually a part of her husband's unit, and that some of the people he served with were likely to attend the party as well. Opting for a less deceptive way in, she decided to pick up a dress to look the part. That night, Durin got a little too involved with some visiting Imperials, and although he managed to lift some code cylinders from them, he thought it might be too risky for him to attend the party, so he graciously ducked out, hoping the others would be able to finish the job on their own.

The next day, Nogg formulated a small plan. Renting a landspeeder from the spaceport, he would act as Fai's chauffeur and attempt to slice in and direct the others from the parked speeder during the party itself. When the time came, it all started rather smoothly. Kii and Rogesh gained entry as entertainers and began their warmup while Nogg dropped Fai off at the entrance. She got in without issue, and Nogg pulled his speeder to the parking area to set up. Before long, though, he was approached by a valet and told to move over by the servants' quarters. Not wanting to cause trouble, he complied and continued his work there. Some quick slicing offered up basic maps of the estate and limited access to some of the security systems.

With everyone in place, the evening started. Kii and Rogesh impressed with just their warmup routine, gaining the audience's favor while Fai moved around in search of the evening's big names. She did notice that there was, indeed, a large Imperial presence throughout the event, and while Cobb was willing to talk about his collection, none of it was on display in the gathering areas. Through the schematics Nogg managed to lift, it seemed that most of the valuables were either in the archives in the sublevel or the closed off exhibition hall.

With their warmup over, Kii and Rogesh began the routine proper, captivating the audience while Fai moved to chat up Mr. Cobb himself. In the meantime, Nogg decided to utilize some climbing gear to stealthily scale the wall of the main building. On his way up, he caught sight of a Lambda-class Imperial shuttle parked in a nearby field, guarded by a pair of stormtroopers. He filed that into the back of his mind and proceeded toward the roof-mounted communications array to slice in and access the local commnet.

Down below, Fai didn't do the best job of getting Cobb on her side. After attempting to apply her feminine wiles, she discovered that he is happily celibate and not at all swayed by temptation. Moreover, he also stopped expressing interest in discussing the artifacts in his possession. Still, he found entertainment in the undercover acrobats' show and cheered them on, urging the crowd to tempt the performers into more and more dangerous stunts. The two gladly accepted, and as their act wound down, they constructed a clever ruse, with Kii putting on his best facade of illness. Cobb, seeing Kii grow faint, takes the boy, along with Rogesh, to his private chambers to let him rest.

With Cobb distracted, Fai moved back to the aristocrat's personal office to have a look around. Almost immediately, she found a very sophisticated safe situated in the corner, as well as a computer on his desk. From the roof, Nogg accessed the room's security and found that the safe itself had still been hooked into the room's security systems. Remotely, he managed to get it open. Inside, Fai found both a Jedi robe and a lightsaber of myserious origin.

After laying Kii down to rest, Cobb returned to the party, leaving a guard outside the door where Rogesh and Kii were left behind. With the coast relatively clear, Rogesh managed to seduce their assigned guard and obtain both his uniform and credentials before slipping away into the halls of the estate. Without a guard to cover him, Kii also flipped on his stealth field and headed out toward the north, where Nogg had identified the exhibition area.

The party had begun to wind down at this point. Fai, having gained a lightsaber and robe, decided to open one of the office windows and throw the items outside before scrambling out, herself and heading to the parked speeder. At the same time, the others had been setting up to execute the heist itself, running against the clock with less than an hour or so left of festivities to cover their activities. Still, there was need for something drastic, as many security measures were still active in the relic rooms.

After taking a moment to formulate a plan, Nogg had Kii wait by the entrance to the exhibition halls while Rogesh went down to the sublevel to cut the estate's power, with the hope of allowing Kii unrestricted access to the gems and other treasures encased in the halls. It didn't go quite as planned, though. Rogesh's sabotage did cause the power to flicker, and some of the security measures were taken offline, but the bulk of the security was still very much online. Having to think quickly, Nogg decided the only way left was a clever distraction. He took a moment to record a message into the local comm channels, and bound it to a remote send command on his datapad.

Nogg made his way out toward the parked Lambda-class shuttle, but was discovered by the stormtrooper guards before he could get close. One approached and demanded to know his business. With the help of Rogesh, he managed to convince the Imperials that he was a mechanic under the employ of the estate guards, sent to do some maintenance work on the shuttle during the party. However, the troopers weren't about to let him aboard. That is, until one of the shuttle's landing struts failed catastrophically, causing the ship to tip off balance. Panicked that they may have made a mistake, the troopers begged Nogg to fix their ship.

The sullustan agreed and requested access, which the guards happily gave, and climbed aboard to carry out his plan. After finding the console locked, he quickly called up Durin, who happened to have the code cylinder containing the shuttle's access information. With everything in place, Nogg started up the engine and called in to the others. He told Kii and Rogesh to make a dash for the diamond exhibition at the far north end and grab everything that they could, but to stay clear of the north wall. He also told Fai to bring the speeder around to the north side of the estate in a moment.

Lifting off, he took the stolen shuttle in low over the courtyard and started firing the cannons wildly into the distance before sending the message he'd recorded earlier: a fake warning of a rebel attack. He shouted into the comms about taking a hit and steered the shuttle back, swinging it back out over the field before putting it into a shallow dive straight for the back wall and crashing straight through it, demolishing the back quarter of the diamond exhibition while Rogesh and Kii finished lifting everything they could. Battered, burnt and pumped full of adrenaline, Nogg managed to crawl out of the crashed shuttle and hobble over to Fai and the speeder before pitifully sliding over the hood and climbing inside to take the driver's seat. Kii and Rogesh followed suit, and they quickly sped off toward the road.

Guests and guards alike piled into their speeders, some escaping while others bore down onto the agents' trail. In the skies above, Durin pulled low in the Silver Lining, doing his best to match speed while lowering the HWK-290's back ramp. Before the pursuing speeders could even get close, Nogg pushed their rental to its limit, powering it clear over its operational ceiling and sending it sliding up the Lining's ramp, nearly crashing into the cargo hold as the ship nosed up toward the upper atmosphere. Still, that Star Destroyer in orbit meant bad news, so Nogg hurried to join Durin at the helm while the others did their best to wake Kii, who had succumbed to one of the estate's gas traps.

Nogg tried in vain to punch in the jump coordinates, failing again and again while a squadron of TIE fighters bore down from their station aboard the Vindicator-class. Durin then forced Nogg to switch, taking over astrogation while the sullustan slumped into the pilot's seat. The Lining took some hits, and the situation looked grim until Nogg found a breath of inspiration and spun the ship into some incredible maneuvers, utterly trouncing the Imperial pilots and getting them clear of their pursuit in a matter of moments, allowing a safe jump away with their prize.

In all, they pocketed half a dozen precious gems, a lightsaber and a very mysterious crystal - the centerpiece of Cobb's collection.