Vyrigan

Greetings!

Do you like to play Star Trek Online, but don't want to spend money for a Tier 6 ship?  Good news!  The 11th Anniversary event is coming this week and with it comes a chance to earn a T6 alliance vessel inspired by a combination of Romulan and Klingon tech, and as such comes with an enhanced battle cloak!

Those who may remember the anniversary event from years past may remember the sometimes annoying Omega molecule event that you use to earn daily rep for your ship.  And while that event is still available to earn your daily progress, this year continues the new philosophy with STO of multiple opportunities to earn daily progress (similar to how the winter event added every event as an option for progress).   So you can do the omega molecule task if you like, or one of a host of other things if you prefer each day!

So take a moment, pop in each day, and get that daily progress to pick up your FREE (and I think very sharp looking) ship!

Oh man, I am down for some STO! I have been enjoying the glorious sands of Risa as the newly redone T6 Risian Corvette is a gorgeous ship (although I will probably never really use it except for show). 

I don't have any KDF toons, but I've got a good Fed and Rom (Fed aligned) who are ready for adventure.  

So I have always been a fan of the Galaxy-Class lineup.  So much that in the early days when I started I owned the Galaxy pack, then picked up the Andromeda cruiser and my Engineering main's favorite ship, the T6 Yamato Dreadnought cruiser (designed in the Galaxy-X style of course from "All Good Things").  

I decided to run this ship as a phaser build.  I run Miracle Worker with Command as secondary which makes me super tanky and the Command expose allows me to take advantage of using the new Agony Torpedoes (these are increased by phaser boons).  With that I have the Trillithium phaser set, a nice wide angle phaser cannon in the front, and the Omega rep cutting beam (that thing is deadly).  With the anniversary event came the Bajoran Defense Warp Core, so that set is complete and can be pretty devastating in the 4-piece version with passives now reaching out to 5 km.

Lately, it just seems like so many good things are coming up phaser.  The Domino console from the anniversary ship is awesome for fire rate and gives a decent phaser boost.  The weekend event goodness with the prolonged engagement console ramps up all my power levels and the (soon to aquire) prolonged engagement phaser beam array with it are a nice touch to getting my BOff abilities out more. 

Also, the Dreadnought comes with a hanger, and what hanger is complete without those sweet Romulan rep Ultra-Rare Scorpion Fighters?  Those plasma torpedos do a tremendous amount of damage (I'd love an OP phaser style hanger-pet, but I'm good with working with the Romulans, I have a cloaking device so why not their fighters?)

Oh yeah, so I mentioned I have all five Galaxy related ships, which means I have all five Universal consoles.  And although many will say using so many Universals is a waste, for me it makes a fun play style and gives plenty of boons to help me when I'm in trouble.  

• Wanna fight like a tac ship?  Use Saucer separation to increase damage, speed and turn.  Oh, and that saucer is bringing a good amount of it's own utility and damage to include the phaser lance!
• Wanna sneak up on someone, and get a little damage boost to start the fight?  Need to get to an objective quickly and don't want to be caught up?  Time to cloak up (not a battle cloak unfortunately so once I'm fighting, I'm out there until I get out of combat.)
• Too many things firing at you?  Use Antimatter spread to blind them with a chance to pacify!
• Still have things firing?  Use Overload Supplemental Subsystems to increase power and have a chance to short out all enemies within 5km.
• And my favorite thing for those pesky Hur'q buggers?  The Molecular Cohesion Nullifier!  This little baby reduced you damage taken and damages enemies caught within 2km with the damage ramping up with the more ships within range.  I hunt down those things now and simply explode them!   

It's not top tier by any means, but it can hold it's own in a fight and provide decent damage.  Plus it's super fun to play.  Some things are epic, some are ultra-rare, while the rest is very-rare and it certainly does a nice job.  

Whoo hoo.  Come on in @Koro, there is simply so much to do right now!  I'll be on tomorrow night if you need an invite and haven't been able to link up by then.  

Right now I'm just working on little rowboats to use and to get them on the market.  Not sure what other crafting I may do along the way.  Mainly I want to sail the seas.  

Ahhhh!  Starting over again! 

My weakness is I'm a hoarder and I like to gather stuff and then just go adventuring.  So when I lose stuff it's a bummer.  

Hope the map rocks though!

Vyrigan enjoys this smuggler and her forwardness.  Eyes sparkling as she mimics the jedi mind trick he had been contemplating.  Vyrigan decides to test the waters.  To see if this agent really is all he's cracked up to be, if he really is trained against jedi techniques.

Most individuals, especially those not trained in the Force, don't know how the Force really operates.  Heck, some jedi don't truly know the Force and its ebb and flow.  The biggest myth, and one the jedi have allowed to continue for years, is the idea that the Force requires "hand gestures" to work, like some cheap parlor trick.  In truth, jedi use movement as a way of focusing their efforts.  If you want to lift a rock, it helps to move your hand like your actually lifting it.  It helps your mind focus.  This is the same with most any Force ability.  A push with the hand can help increase the overall effect of a Force Push.  And on the dark side, Force lightning is all the more effective when shot from the hand, instead of spontaneously appearing as it can be done.  

For Vyrigan, who had negotiated countless treaties during his time serving the Jedi Order, the tactful use of the Force in extremely difficult negotiations was sometimes a necessity.  Unfortunately, one just doesn't go into a meeting hall and begin waving his hand around hoping people don't notice the often-imitated hand gesture when bitter enemies suddenly begin to move toward peace.  Such an image would tear away the trust that people have in the Jedi Order.  And in essence, the practice was used sparingly to prevent loss of life, and never in crucial points of negotiation.  In practice, the idea was to find a point that both sides could agree on, but that one side or the other was being willfully stubborn to, simply to be contrary.  This was the point where the "nudge" from the Force started toward real peace.  In most of his negotiations, once the nudge happened and a simple point was agreed on, then true progress was made, without further intervention from Vyrigan besides serving a mediator.

So, Vyrigan had worked hard to perfect the use of the jedi mind trick with no motion whatsoever.  It had taken nearly a year to get his mind focused on employing the trick without the steadying hand movement.  The Jedi Council had praised his ability to mediate difficult disputes, and he had been sent to some of the more difficult planetary conflicts before they became all out war between star systems, saving countless lives in the process.  Of course, he had let Master Shan know of his use of the Force in negotiation and while she did not wholeheartedly agree, she could not argue the results.  And as long as the basis of any treaty did not come from Vyrigan's use of the Force, she did not care how he began the process of talks.

With that, Vyrigan made a calculated risk, especially with other Force users present, to try his luck and cut to the chase.  Heck, if it got things moving, all the better.

"Indeed," Vyrigan says calmly, echoing Azraella's question, extending the Force through his words towards Tyke while his hands remain motionless clasped in front of him, "You should tell us what is going on."

Vyrigan's face remains calm, passive, without a glimmer of concern.  Good thing for that extra bit of training from Cam, because Vyrigan's insides are doing somersaults. 

Oh, he thinks within a blink, he's good.  Showing his hand right out of the box, trying to put me in my place.  Next time I see Cam, I need to let him know that he's well known in...SIS I suppose.  Deep cover he says.  This is probably my fault.  Shouldn't have been so gung-ho to keep tabs on him, I don't want Cam in danger, but I don't want him thinking I'm not proud of him, or love him, no matter his loyalties. Can't deny, can't corroborate.  

"I'm still in touch on occasion," Vyrigan replies, the epitome of jedi serenity, "It's been a while. But I doubt you came here to find out if I know anything worthwhile from an old contact.  If you were, I would sincerely doubt the feasibility of completing this mission, whatever it may be."  Vyrigan allows a light smile to pull at the corners of his mouth, almost imperceptible.  

Check Vyrigan's eyes seem to say as he ponders if this agent has implants to prevent jedi mind manipulation, just in case, Your move. 

Vyrigan watches the new visitor.  No sign of surprise, no question as to who these people are just standing in the meeting room.  No polite introduction to absolute perfect strangers as would be expected when walking into a group that are obviously in conversation.  

So...he knows something.  And he wants the appearance of mystery and control.  Vyrigan resists the impulse to roll his eyes at the obvious drama play.

"So," Vyrigan starts with a light air, "Are you going to tell us why we are all here or do we get to guess?"

Vyrigan watches the proceedings with an air of calm, mindful of everything around him, feeling through the force.  Although at this point, he may have appeared rude by not speaking up quickly, he has learned to take time in moments like this, get his bearings.  Something he learned from his son, Cam'ek in Imperial, no... now Sith Intelligence.  He never did like that name, like calling out that Cam worked directly for the heart of evil he fought against.  The smuggler, another Chiss like Cam, seems uncomfortable.  Understandable, as Vyrigan remembered Cam's initial visit to Tython so long ago.  Some jedi were slow to let go of old prejudices and stereotypes, and they are quick to give a harsh word or action.

Vyrigan had just returned from visiting his son at one of his meeting houses on Nar Shadaa, checking up on him.  A much better alternative to his old habits of getting SIS to smuggle him directly to Drummond Kaas.  Cam eventually reminded him of the "waste of Republic resources" that required and that not even an esteemed jedi would be allowed to do such things if SIS knew the real reason he visited the seat of Sith government.  The best thing about Nar Shadaa was is was anonymous and if there was one thing Vyrigan had learned as a jedi, it was how to blend in when needed.  Cam, didn't look great, and Vyrigan was a little worried about the savage bite on his arm, but Cam'ek assured him that things were fine and he was medically taken care of.  Vyrigan would have stayed longer but was alarmed when he received the emergency call to report to Tython.  He was unsure of what he would find but so far it appeared that his apparent co-horts were as clueless as to the nature of this meeting as he was.

"I am sure Azraella's expertise will be sufficient, else she would not be here." Vyrigan said.  "By the way, I am Vyrigan."  He makes a short bow to the rest of the group.

"Regardless," he continued, "It looks like whatever we're doing is going to be interesting at least."  He looked at Azraella with a small smile, "You can get your official Jedi fan club robe in the closet across the hall."

Session Report..........................................

<Error> Transmission Intercepted - Interference Detected - Decrypting Signal

.................................................................

If you are reading this, then there is still hope.

We are stranded...on a merciless world we know nothing about.
There is an outside force controlling this world, we are test subjects, experiments, freaks.
We have tamed the savage beasts of this land, and although we do not know if we will ever see home again, we know this.
We stand together.  We fight together.  Man and beast bringing order to chaos.
From fire, to machines, we grow and evolve.

We are survivors, we are inventors, we are warriors.

We...are...

Dino Riders.

<Transmission Ends>

Session Report - The Efforts of Mice and Men

Day 1

Wake up from long nap.
Base looks nice, wall coming together nicely. 
Find more dinos than ever - to include a gorgeous bronto.
Ride bronto, discover tail swipe is rather large (accidentally kill dino being tamed on beach).
Decide to wait on getting my own bronto.
Time to get some smaller herbivores.

Day 2

Visit Tayte's super home.
Decide to renovate the old cabin.
Expand - out and up!
Windows!  Leave some higher windows open for light, house feels better.
Get some better organized storage areas.
Ready to go get some dinos!

Day 3

Head north to herbivore beach.
Find an ankylosaur - tranq it, tame it, name it Thrasher.
Zeller finds an armadillo nearby - tranqs it, works on taming.
Dilo's attack, kill Zellar, kill armadillo before I can get to them.
Terrence knows what must be done.... (lots of meat and hides).
Find a stego - attempt to tranq.
Stego calls mate, they gang up on me.
I get hurt badly.
Hop on Terrence.
Play time is over...(more meat and hides).
Go help Tayte with taming his own armadillo (these things need a lot of narcotics!)

Day 4

Find another stego by itself.
Do the tranq and run.
She's down!!!!
Tame her, call her Swipe.
Taking her home with Terrance on escort duty.
Bug attacks Swipe - Swipe kills them.
Swipe's tail accidentally hits a bronto.
"Brontos are big but they're not really dangerous."
Six brontos appear - kill Swipe.
Hop on Terrance - fight for life - Terrance hurt badly - running.
Brontos chase.
"We're going to die!!!!!!"
We get away, wounded and limping.
Sneak in and grab the saddle from Swipe, vow to find another stego.

Log out.

I hope this can help answer your question:

Session Report - To Arms!

Day 1 

Have issues staying conscious. Can't log in completely with "tweaks" to game performance.
"Let's drag him to where we are so he's there when he logs in"
"Don't drag me somewhere dangerous."
"Describe dangerous."
"Anywhere I can get eaten."
Listen in to trouble taming new dino.

Day 2

Finally log in - game running very smooth.
Hop on faithful Terrence II
Kill T-Rex bullying team.
Go looking for more T-Rex's, kill them all on sight. 
Meet new dino - Ankylosaur!
Tayte names her Sara, we take her home, Terrence II provides guard duty.
Examine the dino gate.  Feel like building some.
Look at old wall - desire fades.  Maybe explore instead.
Tayte destroys many boulders with Sara (stay away from swinging tail).
Mount up on flyer (Echo), head southeast.

Day 3

Discover island of herbivores at the bottom right of the map - very peaceful - nice spot for vacation shack.
Travel up the east coast, filling in gaps.
Echo and I stop to rest, bugs attack, Echo goes crazy, takes a while to get her back.
Echo and I stop again, raptor attacks, accidentally hit wild Trike.
Wild Trike attacks. Echo just flies around acting crazy, scared Echo is going to die and I'm going to be stranded.
Get Echo back after several minutes.
Explore the entire east coast, time for home.

Day 4

Haloa has magic powers - new wall has no gaps.
Hit level 30 - unlock new item.
Now it's my turn "Tayte, I got something for you"
Give him pistol...and bullets.
Sleepy and content - log out.

Session report - To the Skies

Day 1

"Hey Vyrigan, I got something to show you" 
Tayte comes flying in on dinosaur.
Gives me a saddle.
Hop on faithful Terrence II, look for my own flying dino.
Find very few, realize they eat meat, Terrence II knows what to do.
Find a spinosaur (family of killer of Terrence the 1st), kill on sight.
Find 2 T-Rex's picking a fight with herbivores, kill them both. (don't mess with Terrence)
Find a level 4 flyer, tame him, name him Maverick.
Want to tame all the herbivores, definitely want a brontosaur.

Day 2

Tayte finds a higher level flyer, tempted to name Iceman but find it's a girl. Name her Echo.
Echo and India (Tayte's flyer) take to the skies.
Landing is a challenge, flyer keeps circling and I can't get back on.
Learn how to whistle for dinos.
Hit E to loot, fall off (thankful that I'm low to ground).
Learn how to make parachutes.

Day 3

Fly looking for crystals and metal.
Meet up with Wildstar team near lovely waterfall. They show us a spot to get goodness.
Love to fly, going to explore the whole island soon.

Day 4

Tayte tames a turtle, names him Arty.
Rides him, one word - hilarious. (indescribable - you have to see it)
The cutest thing I have ever seen.
He lets me ride.
I laugh all the way to the river.
Swimming with Arty is good, very fast.
Tayte tames a turtle for me. Female, I name her Venus (after the female ninja turtle).

Day 5

Getting a lot of dinos, need a wall.
Make stone fence foundations and walls.
NOTHING snaps together, can't see where foundation is going all the time due to grass.
Gaps form in wall - destroy wall.
Try again, gaps smaller, Haloa comes to help.
Make a dino gate, really like it - only thing I've made that I like today. ("Welcome to Jurassic Park" style)
"Wall has charm, it looks primitive and that's what we are"
True.......... Still think my wall looks like poop...
Haloa logs out, body collapses outside house.
Drag Haloa into the house, accidentally drop her in poop.
Better log out before she wakes up.

Trying again next time. Maybe more exploring, less building.  Want to fill out the map.

Session report - Buddy time

Day 1

Wake up dead, but I have a home so it's not so bad.
Faithful Triceratops, Terrence the first, is dead.
Haloa comes to help "Shanty Town" (it was kinda messy).
Tayte downs another Trike for me, name him Terrence the second or Terrence II.

Day 2 - Exploration

Decide to explore, head east.
Mount up on Terrence II, grab a bunch of berries, and head out.
Stumble upon unexpected Outpost, close to Shanty Town.
Decide to head north, looking for other outposts or bases - follow the river.

Day 3 - Travel

Traveling on a Trike is slow, but safe. 
Bugs attack, we kill them.
Raptors attack, we kill them.
Carnisaur attacks, we kill it.
Level, level, level, for both of us.
Terrence gains a good bit of stamina, can run for quite a ways.

Day 4 - Discovery

Find a nice base, really well done.
Find a mountain, start to climb, almost freeze.
Attacked by T-Rex on the way down. 
Accidentally hit mammoth while fighting T-Rex, have to fight mammoth.
Mammoth's mate wants to fight too.  We kill it.
More T-Rex's coming.
Time to run away - heading back south.

Day 5 - Midgard

Find Florida base, beautiful beaches, nice area.
Give some berries and boots.
Get locked in the house, threaten to have Trike break me out.
Get let out of house. 
Head home.

Day 6 - Not so Shanty Town

Neighborhood picking up - condominium development.
Make 139 Narcotics from all the spoiled meat from our kills.
Move into the condo. Park my trike on the hill. Logged out.

Message Received:  Terrence II is fine.  I glitch through the wall and get eaten. Stuff recovered. In condo. 
Going to need a wall.

More coming tonight!

First session - a time of learning and adventure! 

Day 1

Had trouble making my character look like me, too much jaw, not enough fat.  Had a six-pack on a huge bulge.  Decided to go for "heavier" look instead.
Started out well, made a pick, then a hatchet, then a campfire, then a torch, then a spear, then clothes.  Began learning to make a house.
Chatted with allies in the world. Famous last words "I have a full belly and a nice fire. Ready for tomorrow."
Immediately killed by Dilo...

Day 2

Forgot where my nice roaring fire was, couldn't find it, got lost.
Made a pick, then a hatchet, then a spear, then a torch, then clothes.
Killed a pig-thing.
Made a fire, ate some meat, leveled up.
While selecting emgrams, music changed. Eaten by raptor.

Day 3

Wandered around looking for either campfire, got lost.
Made a pick, then hatchet, had leftovers for a hat.
Saw 2 buildings across the river, started to swim.
Eaten by piranha.

Day 4

Remembered on map where buildings were, went back to river.
Ducked under and looked around before swimming across.
Found a nice building, door locked.
Made clothes, then pick, then hatchet, then 2 spears.
Dilo attacked, threw spear through its head - killed it.
Took meat and made a campfire. Logged out!

Hopping on tonight.  Excited to begin my journey!

Cam'ek fought through the swarm with the trooper and the jedi, a swarm that seemed to be never ending.  A cold feeling in the pit of his stomach as a cold sweat began to form on his brow.  It was just exertion, he had vaccinated before hitting planet-side, as always prepared for anything.  As they came to a gaping hole in the bulkhead, obviously from their fellows, Cam took a moment and caught his breath, wiping his hand across his brow as the unpleasant taste of bile began to build in the back of his throat.  He needed to stay cool in this.  He had no allies here, no matter what he would have liked.  His sloppiness had already gotten himself into trouble, it was time to double-down and get through this mission.  Let the consequences come later, hopefully before things went too far.

Even with this, he couldn't help but smile at the ever awkward trooper's call of "Hello?"  It was amusing how he was able to overcome his cool-under-pressure attitude with his comical personality type.  Cam'ek peered into the breach, ready.

Battle...whether against the Republic or the bloodthirsty swarm descending upon them now, it always brought Cam into focus.  The trooper and jedi had already started to hold off the attack, providing the opportunity for a strategic retreat.  Cam'ek saw Zed begin to retreat into the room where the others had just emerged and motioned for her to start down the hallway with him.  No sense being stuck in a dead end room.  Kota was right, they needed to get back to the others.  And there wasn't much time.  Kaliyo had intercepted a transmission from the ship that the Republic was going to "clean up the mess".  In some ways, they were like the sith.  Blow it up and take stock later.  They had a couple hours at most and Cam did not plan to be here when they arrived.  

Cam grabbed a thermal detonator from his belt pack and threw it down the opposite way from his fellows.  With a loud call of "FIRE IN THE HOLE!" the rakghouls disintegrated into a fiery mass of death.  After the ringing in his ears subsided, Cam led the retreat, shooting back with his blaster to help the trooper and jedi provide cover.  His portable scanner beeping from the swarm's life signs, He turned down a hall and heard a sharp growl just inches from his face.  In pure reflex, his vibroknife was up and slicing through the rakghoul that materialized in front of him, all teeth and claws.  It had been crawling in the ventilation and had tried to cut off their escape.  Cam had hardly noticed.  After a moment, the creature was cut in half and Cam was breathing heavily.  

"Need to focus, can't be this sloppy." Cam'ek thought to himself as he continued the retreat, stepping over the sliced rakghoul, a slight burn in his arm and a hint of blood the only evidence of the wound he had received.

Cam'ek never considered himself one to brood.  There was work to be done, you did it, and didn't brood.  Brooding is for sith who have nothing better to do than think of all the things they hate so they can be "strong with the force".  Frankly it was rather silly.  

But at this moment, brooding came so quickly to mind.  Why is there a sith here that seems to know Kota on a super-intimate basis that was completely off Cam's radar?  He was also annoyed by his "partner" and her attempts to figure him out.  Cam'ek remained silent under her questions.  Let her prod, let her rail, he would be more than happy to knife her in the back.  Cam was surprised that she was so thrown off by his presence.  As if she suspected he was here on orders pertaining to her.  Cam'ek would have to watch her, she might be desperate, and in turn dangerous to anyone she saw as a threat.  He had already sliced into the transmitter she had placed on Kota so he could hear what was going on.  Good strategy, he should of thought of it.

"Still getting sloppy" Cam thought.  He really needed to do some intensive mental training after this mission.  He really shouldn't be making so many little errors. It could very well get him killed, and not from a rakghoul.

Since when were agents known for doing everything command wanted as requested anyway?  He doubted very seriously that his "ally" always played by the insanity which was the Intelligence rule book, more like a bulletin board of crazy really.  Cam'ek respected Kota, and had a certain loyalty to Lari, although that was often tenuous depending on which way she was flipping out that day.  He hoped that there was no such command from Intelligence to exterminate all witnesses, but if there was, there were only certain ones he would have to remove.

So, all these thoughts made him brood all the more.  That, and the sound of another swarm of rakghouls searching for food.  They were getting close now.  Cam'ek turned to inform the rest of the group of the soon to be arrivals and hoped this new sith could use that lightsaber for more than a night light.

Once again, Cam'ek was glad for the recent maintenance work he had done to his stealth belt as it was obviously going to be used heavily on this mission.  As they moved, Cam took the opportunity to download the schematics for the ship into his wrist scanner.  Thankfully, Kaliyo had searched the type of vessel once she got back to their ship and sent the downloaded schematics to him.  

Cam was just getting orientated to the endless maze of corridors when he thought he heard the echo of a nursery rhyme coming from the front of their little party.  He glanced forward to catch the shadow of a finger moving back and forward in the little amount of light.  "Well, there's nothing like knowing where you are then." Cam thought.  This was certainly interesting and if Cam'ek wasn't in extreme danger of being a tasty treat, he would have honestly laughed out loud at the trooper's ineptitude.  He followed the group down the hall, enjoying the silent laugh at the troopers expense when the sound of explosions snapped him back to reality.

"Gotta stop getting distracted," he thought "it's going to get me killed."  He approached a doorway to see the jedi already there and the glow of a red lightsaber.

Cam'ek stopped.  Glad to be stealthed but knowing it didn't matter much to one who could sense people with the force.  

"Well damn..."

GROUP 1

"You should take their example Cammy"  If there was anything Cam'ek liked less than sith, it was stupid nicknames.  He's been called everything in the book.  Blue man, stony, alien worm, a**hole, but never something so simultaneously cute and deprecating at the same time.  

And if anyone needed protecting, it certainly wasn't this woman with a death wish.  Has she never heard of subtlety? Of patience?  

Cam was so nonplussed that he almost didn't see the jedi checking his equipment.  Funny, Vyrigan would say jedi don't have a penchant to look for loot on bodies that were still alive.  Perhaps he was planning ahead. 

Regardless, now things have gone from a bomb that's about to go off to a rather unfortunate hand-grenade.  What could that pious trooper been thinking to put together these groups?  Work together?  Hell, Cam didn't want to work with the sniper and they were supposed to be on the "same side".  Although Cam'ek didn't think he could fall far enough into madness to be on whatever side she was really on.

"Don't worry, I'll watch our backs." Cam'ek said has he switched on his stealth belt.

*IMPERIAL*

Cam'ek's nerves went on edge when the sniper began clapping.  That was not good.  Cam knew Intelligence, knew planning, and frankly didn't trust his "comrade in arms" any more than his Republic "allies".  He decided to take a more direct approach, once again following Victarion's lead. 

"So, we're agreed then." Cam'ek said, taking on a more serious demeanor.  Cam could not deny the words or skills of Lord Victarion, even if he was touched by that special kind of sith crazy, Cam was definitely mindful of the fact that he would be better off with Victarion as an ally than an enemy.  Besides, there was no reason to kill the Republic team.  He had spent years building those connections and might need to use them one day.  

"What's the plan, then?" he pointed to his wrist scanner "if we have a better idea of what we're looking for, I may at least be able to scan for it, but there's a whole lot of organic interference.  And some are much bigger than the others."  

He looked around the room, gauging each individual and his or her abilities.  Who could he count on when needed and who would be just as useful as a delicious distraction when they encountered their next surge of creatures?  Cam was not in the mood to be food nor to be "Imperial ambassador".  Vyrigan would have been on with the Jedi about honor and fighting against a common enemy.  Cam'ek was already tired of this mess.  But the one thing you learn in Intelligence above all others is never show your real face, least of all to your "friends".

*IMPERIAL*

A blur...that was all Cam'ek had time to process during the fight as he and his cohorts held back wave upon wave of flesh eaters.  He used techniques he hadn't employed since training and was supremely thankful for the fact he was still in relatively good shape.  Once the last creature had stopped twitching, Cam joined the rest of the team to explore the hallway.  The sound of boots on metal from down the hall immediately sent Cam's senses on edge. 

"Now what?!" he thought to himself as he activated his stealth belt.  As his group came down the hall, the smug sound of a republic trooper came to them.  With that self-righteous air and swaggering gait, Cam'ek knew who he was, and wasn't sure if he felt better or worse for it.  Of course, when Lari first contacted him on this frozen wasteland, Cam'ek should have known that she would bring HIM.  There was a begrudging respect there, but it was very thin and in this situation, Cam wasn't entirely sure it would be enough to stop a bloodbath.  Especially when, Zed'la, whom Cam thought wasn't crazy, decided to do something that could only be called... well... crazy.

"Aggressive fools. Not everything is solved with indimidation." Cam'ek thought to himself as he walked forward in stealth.  He was relieved a second later to see Victarion take a more direct, and bold approach with the Republic team and decided to throw his lot in with that approach.

Cam'ek stealthily moved forward until he stood next to Victarion, he had no doubt that the sith by whom he stood felt his presence the whole time, but he wanted to have a dramatic effect.  Sometimes, showmanship can solve more problems than bluster.  

"Kota," Cam said as he unstealthed next to Victarion, "didn't they train you in Republic relations that blaming the enemy is not a smart way to start relations?"

**IMPERIAL**

Cam'ek had just turned off his comm from his recent announcement to his fellow Imperials and had not walked 5 steps when his comm re-activated.  It was Larial, a friend of his who had issues with mixed loyalties, depending on the day and phase of the requisite moon or moons on whatever planet she happened to be on.  Apparently, although they were first on the scene of this wreckage, they were not the only ones interested in this monstrosity and the secrets it held.  As Cam'ek listened, he heard the sudden bang of electrical shorting and soon heard the boom of a ship entering the atmosphere at far more than safe speeds.  He looked up to the second ship to be seen crashing from the sky and realized it was the Republic ship that Lari was most likely on.  

"Great," he said to himself, "another flashy entrance.  Any hope I had of doing this quietly is just shot I suppose." 

Cam'ek topped the rise to find one member of their newly formed party grovelling to a sith.  "Oh, even better," he thought, "one of THOSE sith, thinking they're the Empire's gift to all civilization.  Probably the same one that crashed the first ship I bet."  

As Cam'ek reached the group, the sith, who Cam'ek heard referred to as Darth Victiss, started down the hill to the ship which was their target.  With the arrival of a Republic contingent, time was very much of the essence and Cam was not about to fail a mission because they sat around wasting time.  He jerked his head at the sound of falling snow to find this Darth Victiss tumble headlong down the hill and end up flat on her face.  And apparently, at least some of the others there completely expected this for all the expression they gave.  The yell of "That was completely deliberate" from below only confirmed that this was a common occurance.

"Oh great," Cam'ek thought, "not only is she crazy, but she's clumsy. How I am going to get through this without killing her will be a miracle."

Cam'ek watched as she made a great show of slicing a hole in the doorway as he made his way carefully down to the ship.  Although the original entrance was enough for a small company to walk through with several people at a time, the hole she cut was barely big enough for her stupid bird to fit through unaided.  If Vyrigan was here he would feel pity for the poor sith stumbling through existence like this.  Cam'ek had to stifle a laugh.

Another member of their party, Cam'ek heard him named Victarion, took a moment to give a long, solemn, amazingly inappropriate kiss to his apparent lover whom Cam had not yet met.  This connection though, was good information to know, it was a weakness that he might need to exploit later.  And Darth Victiss couldn't help but show a flash in her eye at the sight of Victarion's passionate embrace.  There was something there as well to exploit if the timing was ever right.  Either this Victarion was a master of manipulation, or a complete idiot when it came to women, it would take time for Cam to find out, but based on the makeup of this rag-tag group so far, Cam expected the truth was the later.

As Victarion flipped into the incredibly small opening, almost cutting off various parts of his body on the sharp metal, Cam followed to enter at a less potentially lethal rate.  As he approached the opening, he heard the sound of vicious, guttural snarls and immediately recognized the sound that chills even the most courageous, the sound of the Rakghoul. Insanely feral creatures whose mere bite can turn you into one of them, mindless, hungry, and seeking to infect others.  It was a mercy to kill these abominations, and from the sound of the lightsaber spinning in the dark corridor ahead, that was exactly what was happening.  Cam'ek wanted to get inside to assist, but found his way blocked by the insane Dark Lady and her stupid bird.  Cam was already annoyed and knew this mission was going to be even more of a challenge than he originally thought with this group.  

As he heard the lightsaber extinguish itself, Cam checked his gear and made sure he had everything he needed.  He strapped on his wrist light and used his scanner to get a quick look at the ship.  Because the scanner was small enough to be arm-mounted, it had very limited power and as such had a limited range, but it gave him enough information to make sure that the life sign in the ship was still Victarion and not one of the Rakghouls.  When the way had cleared, Cam'ek carefully entered the derelict and flicked on his wrist lamp, keeping his scanner up and looking for signs of more of the infected.  

He really didn't want to die here, but even more, he didn't want to become one of the infected.  He had been recently vaccinated, but you never really know how effective those vaccines are against a virus that is constantly changing and creating new, more vicious Rakghouls.  And even if he didn't turn into one of them, Rakghouls still had a nasty habit of wanting to eat you alive.  Of course, if it came to that, he could think of a couple of his comrades that would serve as Rakghoul fodder if needed.