Session export: GJW XVII - [Sneaky Pete's]
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Kole moved through the hangar bay of the ISN Palpatine, looking around as the seemingly chaotic movement of an Imperial Star Destroyer’s support personnel that were arming shuttles, moving fighters around and prepping for what seemed to be an all out assault. He passed by the TIE Bombers as he made his way to the pilot briefing room to hear what his current assignment was. For the past several weeks he had been placed in everything from fighters to bombers to even landing shuttles, training and preparing for what was to come. The man nodded to himself and smiled. He knew he was ready for whatever the Clan asked of him.
The pilot entered the briefing room and took a seat, his TIE pilot armor creaking as he settled in. Kole wasn’t sure who all was supposed to be with him but he was sure at least one of the Clans Force users would likely be on whatever team he would be put on. Since the Sith he had been assigned to was listed as KIA, he had come into more contact with the Clans leadership and truly it made him uneasy. Sykes had already been a cruel taskmaster but he had heard rumors of much more ruthless individuals and he wasn’t sure if he truly wanted to meet those people.
Kole’s assumption would be correct as the Nightwraith slowly entered the hangar before the TIE/SB Sabre docked safely with hangar crewmen rushing to tend to the fighter. The hatch to the cockpit hissed open, before the pale, tall figure of Quaestor Sanguis Caldiren exited the ship. The Sith Elder offered a brief nod to the officer greeting him before allowing the man to guide him to the pilot briefing room to meet with the members assigned to him. It was good to be back in the field, the Nagai eager to spill blood again after months of desk work and overseeing excavations of ruins surrounding Havoc Base. Though the Marauder appreciated some of the peaceful aspects of his life, there was no hiding how ravenous he was for the possible carnage ahead.
Before long, he reached the room. With another curt nod, he dismissed the officer and entered the chamber. Awaiting him was a human pilot, whom he immediately identified as Lieutenant Colonel Kole Newberry from the mission brief he had received from the Hand of the Empress. He studied the pilot, assessing him silently before he finally addressed him. “Lieutenant Colonel Newberry. Well met.”
Kadrol fiddled with his comlink from the cockpit of his Gozanti-class cruiser. He had summons for a meeting on the ISD Palpatine scheduled in the next few minutes but had arrived to the star destroyer in his personal cruiser in characteristically early fashion. Even so, he could not be bothered to sit in some stuffy briefing room with the cheap, mass-produced chairs the empire now provided as a result of cost-saving measures. As time continued to pass, the Pantoran stayed motionless aside from the twirling of his fingers. The impending meeting never quite leaving his mind. With a begrudging sigh, Kadrol stood from his chair and made his way down into the larger hangar. The sheer quantity of moving parts, both man and machine, was amazing in its own right. War wasn’t up Kadrol’s wheelhouse near as much as some of the other Palatines he’d met, but he was ready to do whatever duty required. As he continued forth through the repeating hallways and towards the, he patted around at the utility belt around his waist. Alright, I’ve got everything, He thought to himself, unsure if he’d accidentally spoken his thoughts aloud. Finally, he reached the briefing room. As the blast doors pulled open, Kadrol scanned the room. Only two people were in the room so far: a pilot and his quaestor. Perplexed by the situation, He faced the only familiar face in the room.
“What’re we getting up to today?” He asked Quaestor Caldiren. Kadrol was surprised by the informality by which he had just addressed his superior.
Kole stood and gave a quick salute to the Quaestor. “Lord.” He began when the other man walked in. The pilot had a sinking feeling in his stomach already, his senses tingling as he felt what he could only describe as “bad feelings” rolling off the two of them. Kole could never explain why he felt that way but he could always get a read on the Force users around him.
“It seems we have a little team together. Don’t know why they would need me with you, but if you need someone to back you up from a fighter to an assault shuttle, I am your man. It’s my understanding that we are finally entering the war with the Collective again.”
Kadrol’s informality didn’t go unnoticed, and it rather amused the Sith more than irked him. As Kole spoke, Sanguis withdrew a chip from his pocket and entered it into the console in the center of the room. “Indeed. Although I wasn’t around when the Collective first plagued the Brotherhood, Lady Nighthunter has informed me of their rather intolerable history.”
Sanguis then offered a disarming smile, speaking more with the hypnotic, yet reassuring, tone of his Nagain race. “And I assure you, your skills will be needed, Lieutenant Colonel.”
He then addressed Kadrol. “As to your question, Director Hauen, we’ve been tasked by the Hand of the Empress to infiltrate the Isabella Shipyard.”
A hologram image of the shipyard came to life, along with its orbit around Nei’kapo. “Intel reports that this is where the Collective is mass-producing TIE fighters as well as performing maintenance and construction of their fleet. I don’t think I need to state how imperative it is for us to succeed with this mission. Without the shipyard, the Collective and their lunatic of a leader can finally be dealt with.”
Sanguis looked at the pilot. “Intel also reported that the station is armed with several tractor beams on top of the usual defenses. You’ll have your work cut out for you, but I trust you’ll be able to deliver us safely to our target.”
His attention jumped to the Force Disciple. “Unless, of course, you have a suggestion of your own, Director. I’m open to suggestions.”
Kadrol cringed slightly at being called by his title. While his position allowed him access to a whole slew of new opportunities, it had also in many ways replaced his name and become who he was, which he had become less than thrilled by as time went on. Beyond that though, he was also a tad bit confused as to how he had been selected for this mission. Nevertheless, he was present and ready. His eyes rolled up for a second as he ran through alternative strategies in his head. After forming his thoughts with the limited intel he was provided in the situation report, he took the Quaestor’s lead to speak up.
“Our intel has shown that just an hour ago, a small shuttle docked at Isabella Shipyards after having left from Nei'joule City. Given that the Nei'joule City is home to Rath Oligard’s estate and that the Shipyard is entirely automated, it is likely he is on it,” Kadrol began, pacing back and forth across the briefing room.
“Taking out Oligard should be our main objective. If we do that, we cripple the entire Collective.” The certainty in his demand was uncharacteristic for Kadrol, even beyond the fact he was making it to a direct superior, and he could only hope the others picked up on it as he continued to press the point,
“Of course, we have no idea if he was even on the ship, and the resistance we’ll face will be immense. Even if we land without tripping any sensors, it’s likely we’ll be under attack immediately. However, I think it’s worth a shot. Disabling the shipyard would also be a nice bonus as well.”
Kadrol stopped his pacing and looked to both his counterparts. “What says you?”
Kole nodded at the two and pulled up the fighter battle plan on his datapad. He hit a button, causing the fleet icons to show up on the hologram around the shipyard. “We aren’t the only ones hitting the shipyard. Arconan forces and a contingent of the Iron Navy is also attacking. The Palpatine is only one section on the assault force. Our fighters are to clear here.” He pointed to a section of the northern most hemisphere of the moon. “I would recommend we somehow assist with that first, then we take one of the Delta 9 stormtrooper transports with a squad of Death Troopers and insert around here.” He pointed to another section of the shipyard. “That should be the engineering and power for this half of the shipyard.”
Kole looked at the other two. “I can get the squad in and assist with the assault team but we need to clear some of the space superiority. It’s only TIE’s at the moment but who knows what else they may have been built here. I’ve been assigned a Defender as well as authorization for the transport.” He looked at Kadrol. “It’s my understanding you brought a Gozanti with you?”
Sanguis nodded in response to the Pantoran’s point. There was no assurance that Oligard was on the station, but there was still a chance. Even if he wasn’t, there was a chance that their attack on the station would get his attention and possibly draw him out. Regardless, the Elder was in the business of ruining someone’s day.
He listened to Kole’s observations thoughtfully, finding value in the pilot’s suggestion. The plan was sound, giving them a chance to approach the station with less resistance. Plus, going for power and engineering would give them an advantage, especially with Death Troopers for support.
The Elder held back from grinning, elated for this kind of mission. Though he appreciated his wife’s usual silent and “stabby-stabby” way of doing things, this brought him back to his military days and his time with the Sith. This strategy was more his style.
His gaze shifted back to the Director as Kole waited for a response to his inquiry.
Kadrol looked over at Kole. The presence of other forces we certainly enough to cause a distraction large enough to get them landed. Now, it seemed, it was up to their discretion to determine how they did so.
He looked over at the quaestor, and taking the silence as an unstated agreement, answered Kole’s question. “Yes. We could take the cruiser, but it’d only really be worth it if we want to go more stealthy. It’s a big ship with little firepower, but with the ensuing battle and it’s ability to carry all of us together, it might be a good option. The ship practically flies itself anyways.”
He turned his attention back to Kole. “It also has a starfighter I could take, and we can leave the Gozanti behind altogether. It’s a modified Delta-7b with upgraded shielding, which might serve us well in either scenario.”
Coming off the high of his previous suggestions, Kadrol backed off from pressing his train of thought. “But I’ll let you two decide on the best course of action to take,” he stated calmly, putting his hands up.
Kole nodded. “Whatever you feel is best. If that thing is fast however, it might make a good secondary escape plan since you say it basically flys itself. Always good to have some form of back up.”
The pilot leaned over the holotable. “I’ll speak with one of the other fighter commanders. We can launch fighters from the Palpatine then when we have a hole big enough, come back and take the boarding shuttle with the landing party. Get an escort right in. Should be easy enough.”
Sanguis nodded in agreement, seeing the plan coming to fruition in his mind. “Then it’s settled. Lieutenant Colonel, I’ll pass on our plan to Brujah while you talk with one of the commanders. Let us just hope Rath is on that station, or that we can draw him out while we cripple the Collective.”
It wasn’t long before they were given the green light from the Hand of the Empress. As fighter pilots prepped in the hangar for the assault to come, Sanguis finished sending a message from his datapad to his wife, wishing her a good hunt on Elizabeth-II. Though he had tried to persuade her to join them on their mission, Lady Nighthunter was far more interested in testing her skills against the Shikari hunters.
“Lord Caldiren.”
Sanguis turned his head slightly, having sensed the commander approaching before he spoke. “Yes, Commander?”
“Everything is in order. We’ll be ready to launch on schedule.”
“Good. I’ll inform my team. Thank you, Commander. You’re dismissed.”
“Yes, sir. Uh, the Force be with you.”
“May the Force serve us indeed.”
The commander gave a curt nod before taking his leave, and the Nagai Sith brought his arm before speaking into the wrist link. “Gentlemen, the show is about to begin.”
Kole nodded and spoke back. “Understood Quaestor.” He placed his helmet on his head and looked around. He was already inside of the TIE Defender cockpit and was finishing up his preflight checks. His sensors showed his flight of Defenders were fully in the green while a timer started to count down from the one minute mark. The pilot took a deep breath and settled into his flight couch. He was once again about to go into combat and fight for the Empire. He had been at this for a little over twelve years, and he still had pre combat jitters. He knew it would pass once he launched, but sitting here he let it wash over him.
The INS Palpatine hurtled through hyperspace. Alarm klaxons sounded throughout the vessel, calling the vessel to fully battle stations. As the Destroyer broke into real space it was immediately faced with a large contingent of Collective capital ships, swarms of TIE Fighters, several Golan defense stations and finally the large shipyards. Brotherhood forces of the Clans along with the entire Iron Navy formed up and immediately began to trade fire with the Collective forces.
Kole powered up his engines and dropped from the Star Destroyers fighter racks. Crossing through the mag con field into open space he took his first look at the setting. He was taken aback by the sheer amount of vessels from so many eras and factions of the galaxy. Imperial era fighters were forming up with modern X-wings of the New Republic. Seemingly Random fighters that looked cobbled together were being escorted by First Order designs. Even some ancient Sith Fighters were in the mix, all while heading directly into ever increasing clouds of TIE Drone fighters.
“Krayt squadron, on me. Line up a missile barrage and let’s try to thin these things out.” He received several double clicks over the comms acknowledging his order. He put action to his words and brought up his concussion missile targeting. The HUD in front of his eyes showed the closest drone and he brought the targeting reticle to hover over it. The reticle turned yellow as the computer beeped as it acquired a lock. As soon at it went red, Kole squeezed the trigger sending a single orange flamed missile lancing towards its enemy. He didn’t wait to see the results, he doubled up his forward shields, swamped to lasers and began firing at the next incoming fighter. The Battle of the Cor’neria Shipyard had begun.
Kadrol was pretty sure his heart jumped outside his body when the alarms started blaring. He knew to expect them, and yet they never ceased to scare him. As he acclimated to the noise around him, he began strolling towards his Gozanti cruiser once more. The hangar was bustling with crew running towards their TIE Fighters and taking off into the infinite darkness beyond.
Kole was among them, somewhere. Splitting up in times like this with a mission on the line was incomprehensible, but alas, it was not he who made the rules, only followed them. What was more, though, was being greeted by the quaestor, no his quaestor, when he boarded. “Kriffing hells!” Kadrol exclaimed, taken aback by Caldiren beating the Pantoran on to his own ship. He shook his head, removing any further thought of the situation. Kadrol knew better than to ask such things.
The next few minutes felt like hours as the duo sat in silence, waiting for the distraction to make suitable inroads for the Gozanti to make its way in safely. When the signal came, Kadrol fired up the engines and flew into the chaos unfolding amid the battle up ahead.
Explosions and fighter lasers silently flashed within the void of space, with only the comm chatter and the hum of the cruiser’s engines disturbing the peace within the cockpit as Kadrol navigated towards the shipyard. Sanguis watched the space battle taking place around them, though his focus was on the shipyard ahead. He thoughtfully tapped the lightsaber hilt hanging on the right side of his hip, his consciousness probing the surrounding area of the space battle through the Force.
A sudden sense of danger pricked the Quaestor’s mind, and he closed his eyes as his mind honed in on a pair of TIE fighters hunting a group of drones heading their direction. After a few seconds, the TIE fighters changed tactics, and before long, the drones were eliminated, and the immediate danger annihilated. “Stay the course, Director. The hanger nearest engineering.”
The Gonzati pressed forward through the chaos, Sanguis keeping aware of the surrounding onslaught. However, the enemy ships soon became the least of their concern as the shipyard’s defenses began lighting up the void around them. Quickly, the Elder activated the ship’s comms.
“Lieutenant Colonel, we’re nearing the shipyard. We need you and your squadron to cover our approach.”
His attention then shifted to Kadrol. “Ready yourself. The minute we get in there, we’ll need to act fast.”
Kole twisted his fighter around and fired another blast, the drone fighter under his lasers exploding, when his comm went off. “Understood Quaestor. Krayt squadron, on the Gozanti. Keep it safe while we make the run.” He got acknowledgment from his flight leaders, adjusted his sensors to scan the area of the Gozanti and pushed his throttle forward. The Defender shot forward, weaving in and out of combat while taking shots when able at any target of opportunity. Destruction followed in the wake of the squadron as it formed up around the Gozanti.
Two Sentinel landing craft trailed behind the Gozanti their guns trying their best to defend themselves. “Krayt 2, on my wing.”
“Understood.”
Kole brought his fighter around towards the shuttles. Five drones were harassing them with constant laser fire. “I hate these things.” The pilot muttered to himself as his reticle went green. He squeezed the triggers sending green beams to converge on one fighter when suddenly his fighter bucked hard. “Son of a-“ he cursed, instinctively sending his fighter into a juke to try his best to evade the drone behind him. The Defenders shields had held but he knew he couldn’t keep taking hits like that.
He brought the fighter around, facing head to head with the drone. He fired a quick snapshot, rolled his fighter and pulled back on the yoke. Kole squeezed the triggers every time his reticule went green, hoping that he hit. They were being swarmed by almost two squadrons of drones now. “We need to get to shipyard fast.” He complained, doing his best to keep the fighters off of his charges
Kadrol did his best to keep the Gozanti in as straight a line towards the targeted landing platform as he could. The truth, however, was that the droid brain he’d had installed was doing most of the work. His movements on the steering were almost certainly making the journey rougher and more inefficient, not that he’d allow anyone to let on. He gave an acknowledging nod to his quaestor, who seemed far too calm given the situation.
As the fight began to enclose in on the pair in the Gozanti, the laser turret began to light up, doing what little it could to clear the way. Kadrol could only imaging what an uphill battle it must be outside, having to rely on radar so heavily in a fight against automated TIE fighters. The landing zone grew as the Gozanti continued its trajectory, hurtling towards the Isabella Shipyard. As the swarm of fighters continued to battle around the Gozanti, the Shipyard’s defenses began to light up the abyss, targeting anything it could possibly lock on to. Kadrol reached towards the control panel in front of him, switching the laser cannon to target the defenses rather than the fighters, which had mostly been cleared off.
A squadron of TIEs raced overhead towards the laser cannons. Kole must be with them, Kadrol thought, though he had no clue which TIE he might be in. Bursts of metal radiated out in front, many of them TIEs, though crucially, the cannons as well. The chaos in front of the Gozanti turned calm as lasers and screaming engines fell quiet with the reduced numbers. Kadrol pulled hard on the controls, bringing the cruiser in for a landing. If there had been time to melt into his seat, he would’ve. Instead, adrenaline coursed through him. As the ship came to a standstill, now docked within one of the hangars, Kadrol unbuckled and jumped to his feet. Rushing to get to the ramp, Kadrol called out to Caldiren. “There’s work to be done, boss!”
As the Pantoran rushed into the open hangar, he took a second to survey the damage to his ship as he continued moving. Some glancing blows perhaps, and minor dents from the debris field the battle had created, but nothing seemed too poorly. That is, except for the TIE now entering the hangar.
Two crimson blades snap-hissed to life, Sanguis already deflecting enemy blaster fire with a squad of Death Troopers at his heel, firing their own blasters. From the corner of his eye, he saw two shuttles landing safely with a TIE following them in. More Death Troopers descended the ramps, joining in the fray as the station’s hangar crew and security team were mowed down with ease.
“Get to the hangar control room and secure the area,” the Quaestor ordered the troopers sharply before turning to the Pantoran. “Hauen, get to the control room as well. See if you can glean anything from their logs regarding Oligard.
Order given, Sanguis launched himself into the fight, drawing enemy fire away from the TIE. An arm and a head went flying, the Nagai’s blades cleaving through the defense team with ease. There was no remorse, but instead a calm, cold glint of glee lit up the Quaestor’s amber eyes. The fear that erupted from his unfortunate victims, as well as the scent of blood, was a tantalizing concoction threatening to pull Sanguis into the depths of the blood lust threatening to overtake him.
Kole landed his fighter in the hangar and looked out the viewport. The Death Troopers and Sanguis were cutting down the automaton troops as they began to pour out. “Frakking hell. I hate have I got myself into?” He muttered to himself as he grabbed the blaster rifle from its position behind him. “ID, we are gonna have our work cut out for us.”
The little droid on his back chirped and almost seemed to growl. It had been programmed for combat and it seemed to couldn’t wait to get into the action. Kole opened the hatch and raised the blaster rifle, firing red bolts anti the Collective troops. The onslaught of fire covered his climb down from the Defender. “I was never supposed to be in light fights like this. Oh well. Let’s do this.”
The pilot ran forward, dodging return fire as he caught up with the boarding party.
The squad of DeathTroopers moved forward as if they were machines. They were all part of the Empress’s Royal Guard, highly trained and efficient. Thermal imploders went off, clearing the way. Two squads split off to head towards the power generators while the three others moved with their Quaestor towards the command module.
Kole fired his rifle, striking a Collective trooper in the face when an explosion to his side threw him against the bulkhead. “Son of a-“ he began to curse when a hand reached out. Kadrol extended his hand and pulled the pilot to his feet. “Keep moving.”
Taking command of troops had never been a particularly enjoyable side effect of Kadrol’s employment in Scholae Palatinae. Whether or not he was any good he’d leave for his troops to decide. Having assisted Kole back to his feet, Kadrol hesitated for but a moment. His shoulders shook once, as though a cool breeze had just swept past them.
“He’s this way. I can sense him.” The Pantoran blurted out. Without any hesitation, Kadrol pulled both his lightsabers out, activating them at fourty-five degree angles downward. He didn’t care if anyone followed. He knew his instinct to be true. He must prove his intuition was correct. He made his way to the nearest connecting corridor and began walking down it. Faint visions of Oligard walking the same ground lit up in Kadrol’s subconscious. The skirmishes in the hangar were now inconsequential.
Kole watched the man move with his lightsabers out and shook his head. These Sith are always so strange. But they haven’t gotten me killed yet. He raised his blaster rifle and followed the Sith, firing to keep the man’s flanks covered. Using his tongue, he activated the comm unit in his helmet. “First squad on me. We are following the Sith Lords in. This one seems to have a bead on where to go. Squads two and three, cover our back and get to the automated defenses. I want the security down yesterday. Move.”
The Deathtrooper squads began to move out to secure the hangar. Blaster fire and explosions rocked through the station. Kole set himself and moved forward down the corridor a squad of DeathTroopers in tow.
Sanguis barely noted Kadrol’s sudden surge of determination in the Force, his blades having just cleaved a Collective trooper in two. The Nagai Elder’s brow lifted pensively at Kadrol’s declaration. However, he only responded with a nod, trusting the Force Disciple as he began to follow him.
Keeping pace, Sanguis reached out into the Force, sensing for the signature that had caught the Director’s attention. His eyes narrowed as a maddened, desperate consciousness lit up in the Force. A smirk crossed Sanguis’ lips. Their target was here.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if the fool plans to die a martyr, but just in case, have the other two squads keep an eye out for him in case he runs. Hopefully, we’ll just corner him like the womprat he is. This madness ends today.”
Kadrol followed the trail until it rounded off towards a door. He briefly looked back before Sanguis pushed the button to open the door. A gaggle of troopers followed in his wake like a gaggle of heavily armed ducks.
The room itself was small and crammed full of control panels, as well as a pair of swivel chairs. There wasn’t much time to take in the surroundings as the two Force users entered the room, turning immediately to take down two guards in quick succession. Now alerted to the presence of the invading force, the four remaining members of the Collective fired a volley at Kadrol. The Pantoran was able to successfully redirect one of the shots back at the Liberation Front partisan who had shot it, hitting him in the hand. Two other shots were parried aimlessly into the ceiling, while the last made it past Kadrol’s defenses, hitting him in the plastoid shell of his armor near his left shoulder.
There was a new lull in the combat as Kole arrived, leading a squad of troopers.
There squad of troopers pied out the room and spread through it, blasters aimed at Rath, their target. Kole raised a fist and gave the signal for the troops to set a perimeter. His eyes fell on Oligard who had his own hand above a large red button.
“Welcome my friends. What a nice surprise to see you all here.” The man said in an almost gloating fashion. He was a tall, heavily muscled man and his red haired Mohawk made Kole think of a type of bird he had seen on in some holovids. Oligard moved his hand closer to the button as one of the Death Troopers started to move. “At at. I knew you would come. The Brotherhood has wanted me for a while. I have no qualms of destroying this station with all of your troops onboard.”
Kole froze for a second. It had been a trap all along. The station was filling with Brotherhood forces and if this man set it off, it would damage the Clan forces by a massive margin. “Why should we believe you?”
Oligard chuckled lightly. “Because even without me the Collective will still stand. You saw how lightly defended this station is. The loss of me compared to the loss of so many of you kriffing wizards would be worth it for all.
Despite Rath’s confident threat, Sanguis remained unmoved as he studied their target and the environment pensively. Scenarios like this weren’t new to him; the Nagai had often faced similar situations from crazed Sith equally mad and desperate to the man before them. There was sure to be an opening, and he would find it.
“I congratulate you, Oligard, for having guts. Insanity truly does wonders when it comes to desperate men,” Sanguis spoke, his Nagaian voice flowing and hypnotic as exhibited by his race. “You might’ve made a great Sith, but Fate had other plans.”
“Be ready,” he spoke telepathically in Kadrol’s mind as Rath growled a retort.
As he noted Kadrol’s brief uncertainty in the Force, Sanguis offered a grin to the madman, bearing a fang as an invisible miasma of fear began to radiate from him. He zeroed in on Rath’s mind, a wall of resolve reinforced by lunacy and dogma. Such traits were his strengths, but the Sith also knew that they could be easily preyed upon. He just had to find that weak point.
There.
It was small, and it would provide a brief window, but it would be enough. With all his might, Sanguis focused and slammed against Rath’s mental wall with tendrils of terror, tearing and grasping for the Collective leader’s fears. He saw Rath’s expression become strained, his hand lifting away slightly from the button.
Now, Hauen. Now!
Kadrol leapt forward, impulse taking over from indecision as a result of his quaestor’s mental encouragement. As he landed, he brought down both blades down in parallel across the Collective leader’s body. Seeing their Force user reinvigorate the attack, the troopers behind quickly dispatched the remaining guards. The disembodied arm of Rath Oligard hit the control panel with a thud and slid harmlessly around the destructive button as it tracked its way to the floor next to the rest of its body. Kadrol looked down at the man who had caused so much pain to the Brotherhood, counting at least three different sections.
Unsure of the next course of action, Kadrol looked back to his quaestor. “I guess we get this thing shut down and go home,” he said with a shrug.