Secret Pazaak Game (D8EN)

[Byron Mik]

Byron added, "I feel for you guys I have been here a day and I already regret it."

[Hatoful GM]

"Ooh, looks like someone's played before." Deveraux gave a throaty laugh as Zanja put down some nice cards.

Ross shrugged. "Eh, it's not so bad. Just... boring most of the time. Not a whole lot to do. And cold. But you probably noticed that."

"Depends what you're into." Kedge put in. "Commander doesn't authorize as many ruins expeditions as I'd like. You can find some weird stuff in those ruins."

[Byron Mik]

"Any local creatures causing a ruckus or needing to be pushed away from the base? I got a friend who would enjoy taking on something tough, for a good cause," Byron asked.

[Zizzy Roosh]

"Oh yeah? Ruins expeditions sound interesting! What sort of things have you found? And who left the ruins?" Zizzy got caught up in her own questions, wondering what they might find on this icy planet of crystals, snow, and not much else.

She gave Byron a concerned look, he didn't seem like his normal jovial self.

[Hatoful GM]

Kedge seemed to be the local expert. He spoke up. "Base doesn't have many problems like that. A patrol goes missing from time to time, usually if it gets too close to a cave. That's where the panthers tend to be."

Looking at Zizzy, he shook his head. "There's a few settlements on Ilum that met with one sort of disaster or another. Biggest one is over in Holonesh cavern. It was a big research post, support staff and everything. One day, they were getting some weird readings, then there was an earthquake. By the time the Jedi got there, it was too late."

He leaned forward, his voice dropping. "I hear they didn't find near enough bodies, though. No one knows what could have happened to the rest."

[Zizzy Roosh]

"Huh. So it wasn't a Jedi research post? That's interesting." She swallowed when he mentioned missing bodies. "I think I've had enough of zombies for a while. Although it does sound mysterious..."

[Zanja]

"Ugh, yeah." Zanja shook her head to dislodge the mental picture Zizzy had raised. "But panthers would explain it, I bet. No Sith here."

"Why's the commander have a problem with you lot doing this, anyway?" she wondered as she collected her share of the small pot. "It's not like there's a lot of other recreation around here. Even Jedi are allowed to have fun sometimes." As evidenced by the fact there were four proto-Jedi here right now!

[Hatoful GM]

"I think a lot of the researchers were Jedi." Kedge said.

Ross grimaced. "Commander's got a weird idea of what a proper Republic soldier should be. Seems to think we should all be droids with patriotism chips or something."

[Zizzy Roosh]

Zizzy gave Ross a sympathetic look. "Sounds like your boss has been watching too many of those Captain Alderaan recruitment holos."

[Hatoful GM]

"Not as many as I've been watching." Deveraux said with another throaty chuckle.

[Byron Mik]

"I will look into these panthers, see if we can't get them to clear out from that cave," Byron said after taking a drink of the alcohol.

[Esla Tor]

Esla took a few sips from her canned fizzy drink and gave a hand of pazaak a try. It might have been beginners luck but she did pretty decent. At the mention of the lack of Sith was a relief to hear, she had concerns if those Sith from before would follow them to this planet, knowing that there were junior Jedi to steal. However, it seems like there were equally strange things happening on Ilum that made it difficult for her to be completely at ease.

Day 8, Early Night: Pazaak with Cool: 2eP+2eD 1 success, 1 advantage

[Zanja]

"So which is a bigger hardship, the weather or the commander?" Zanja asked with a gravelly chuckle. "Ah, and don't mind Byron. He thinks he's a one-Human security force."

[Byron Mik]

Byron added in a gravelly voice, "I am the law."

[Zizzy Roosh]

"He likes it if you call him Jedi Cop." Zizzy gave Byron a big smile and went back to watching what Esla and Zanja were doing with their cards. They seemed to know how to actually play the game.

[Hatoful GM]

"It's about fifty/fifty." One of the soldiers shrugged as the cards were dealt again. "Either way, you just try to stay out of the way."

Kedge shrugged. "There's a lot of different caves, and a lot of panthers. Probably just better to leave them alone."

"Jedi Cop?" Ross asked.

[Byron Mik]

Byron chuckled and said, “It’s a long story, sometimes you have to break the rules to clean the streets and Jedi Cop has no qualms breaking the rules.”

“Really it’s just a stupid thing,” Byron joked trying to downplay it.

“Well if the panthers are to be avoided I suppose we can do that, but if there is an issue that Jedi can solve I am all ears… sitting around here twiddling my thumbs will drive me crazy.”

[Esla Tor]

Esla looked up from her cards and raised her brows, clearly missing some story about the Jedi Cop that she wanted to learn about. Pather hunting didn't seem like something the Masters would approve of but she kept mum since apparently, the Jedi Cop was the authority here?

[Zanja]

"Are they a native species?" Zanja asked, her curiosity finally piqued since it seemed panthers might be one of relatively few local topics of interest. "Illum's more their home than any of ours, in that case."

[Hatoful GM]

Kedge nodded. "Far as we know. Back as long as the Jedi or the Republic have been keeping track. So, at least ten-thousand years."

Ross smirked at Byron. "Only a day, and you're already going crazy? Chill, bro. Jedi Cop. Whatever. Have another drink." He passed Byron another bottle.