Log:Ebon Guard: Can You Kill a God?

Can You Kill a God?

OOC Date: December 1, 2017
Location: Unknown Regions
Participants: Vraag Rengh, Jarret Sur, Ayeeou Wanaii, Zandra naMuriel, Hopp Nooram, Narsai Ordo, Siha Archer, Ebon Guard

The sirens that had been wailing down on the floors below are not present in the higher reaches of whatever sort of structure this is. The lights are also on, aided by the bright sunlight streaming through the open windows and causing the Ebon Guard's eyes to sting and water after being kept inside for so long. The children on the thrones stare back at the group that has barged into their chamber, their little brows furrowed in a hateful look. Youthful faces contort in anger and the female screams out at the intruders, "LEAVE! GET OUT!"

For his part, Vraag seems completely stunned by the revelation of who it is that sits on that throne, and it takes him a few moments to gather his thoughts. Finally he turns his head to peer over his shoulder at the group behind him. "Can one of you disable the lift?"

Narsai could probably figure out a way to disable the elevator, but the thought doesn't even enter her mind. She was also one of the few people not all that injured and was currently armed. Besides, there were other people just as capable if not more. Her own eyes narrow at the sight of the 'children' on the thone and she steps forward, clutching her well-used weapon tighter. Children or not? It only slowed her down for a bare moment. She'd watched people starving to death driven to eating an innocent man all for the purpose of entertainment of these 'gods'. Evil was Evil.

"We're taking the princess, and our gear back." she says slowly, stepping past Vraag if he had stopped in place.

"Interesting," Jarret says from behind the knot - that he is so blase upon seeing the children on their thrones says much about his own upbringing. "Is that woman the princess, Vraag Rengh?"

Hopp Nooram, the oldest, skinniest, rudest member of the Ebon Guard, stares at the pair on the dais, and stares, and squints, and stares, either battling the sunset, vision problems, or both, until he can finally make out exactly what they're dealing with. The old man grunts, then, in incredulous disbelief. "These're the gods these people serve? A coupla bleached brats with fancy crowns? The galaxy is fucked," he decides flippantly, turning to stalk on his long, thin legs back to the elevator, stepping inside to peer at the control panel. It doesn't take him long to locate the emergency stop, and he casually tugs it out, engaging the mechanism. He's still got his pants wrapped around his chest like a bandolier and weird-looking bundles knotted up in them.

Vraag glances in the direction of the princess where she is, huddled in the corner. Her cries have stifled with the appearance of the Ebon Guard, however, and she peers over her arm at the gathered group. The girl seems shocked at what Narsai says to her, leaning forward in her throne and gripping the edges so hard her fingers pale even more. Her eyes are mean, and her teeth bared as she says, "Do you know who we are? How DARE you talk to your gods in such a way!"

Vraag looks toward Jarret and nods his head, gesturing toward the princess, before he steps up beside Narsai. "Easy. I don't want to leap in and kill children right off the bat here," he says quietly to the woman. "What is a god to a non-believer?" Narsai answers the screaming child, stepping now towards the corner of the room where their gear is piled. Assuming she's not stopped, the right gauntlet for her armor is slid onto her hand, then her E-11 is scooped up and its power pack checked. A familier weight, a comfort to hold in her hand again. Vraag's warning was heard, but Narsai wasn't going to shoot the kids. Not yet anyway. What could they do to stop them? Mindful of any traps she walks towards where the crying girl rests, glancing back at the others. "Suit up and fast, I'll cover you."

"We do not worship you," says Jarret flatly, looking past the children to the woman huddled in the corner. "Ours is a pantheon of violence. We are here for the princess. We will take her, and we will go. Be silent, or we will eat you both for the glory of our own religion." He says this, his shift covered in blood and bearing knives made from the bones of dead men, his own eyes as cold and empty as those of the corpses from which his weapons came. He goes to collect his gear, then, giving the children a final warning look before gathering up his armor.

"They got my cigs over there?" Hopp asks, stepping out of the lift with no apparent concern for booby traps or regular traps either, his legs naked to the hip and leaving not a lot to the imagination there. He heads over to the area their gear is in and starts rifling through it, looking for his drug of choice, raking through armor and guns with a petulant frown on his face until he finds a small crumpled paper box. The old man shoves one in the corner of his mouth, sniffing as he glances around for his lighter. "Look Vraag, I'm not sayin' we kill a coupla kids," he begins, finally plucking up the little butane lighter and firing it into life, puffing a few times to get the cig going. "But, and this is a big but, Vraag, these ain't kids, they're /gods,/ okay, and I never seen what makes a god tick before.”

Ayeeou was still leaning on Zandra as they came off the lift, though somewhat less than she was. And she manages to get to their pile of stuff on her own, so that's something. The numb has mostly faded, and though she's aching from falling to the ground she's so far holding it together. She looks to what's happening, but is quiet. This, too, is way outside her areas of expertise.

Vraag nods to his men, waiting for them to move and gather their things before he himself starts across to begin pulling on his equipment. He pulls his helmet down over his face, as if hiding himself behind the faceless mask will help him with the business at hand, and what needs to be done in regard to these children. He turns his head toward Ayeeou and says gently, "Ayeeou, when you get your things together and feel up to it, will you see to the princess please? Check her out and make sure that she is not injured and has eaten."

The girl launches to her feet, her face a mask of rage as she points a finger at Vraag, the weight of authority and command settling easily on her thin shoulders. "DO NOT TOUCH HER! THE GOD'S FORBID YOU!" she screams, her face flushing scarlet. Vraag's golden T-vizor turns slowly to regard the girl before he takes three booming steps in her direction and socks her right in the chin. Her feet are lifted slightly from the floor as she drops back into the throne, crying out in pain. Only now does the brother react, leaning forward quickly and then stopping, he looks from one to the other and says softly, "Stop.... please…"

"Whoa, did he just ..punch a kid in the face?" Siha will ask as she meanders in after getting her gear on, the woman back in her armor which helps hold her together, though she's still like, fairly useless, "That was amazing." No doubt everyone wanted to punch that kid in the face, but the man just ..did it. Props. Of course Siha isn't asking anyone in particular, and with a zip up of her jumpsuit she'll check the pockets, making sure they didn't steal her stuff, and in her junk finds a pain med pill. Sweet bliss. Plucking it out she'll pop it into her mouth, letting it melt beneath her tongue, watching now what will happen next, "Wait, Hopp ..did we do the thing?" Asked of the old dude as she limps her way to him, "Like ..will it work?”

As he dons his armor, Jarret witnesses his leader punch a child - and frowns, though it does not stop him. Finally the helmet is pulled on. "I am prepared, Vraag Rengh," he tells his chieftain. "Shall I stun them and we can go on?”

"We won't know until we try, kid," Hopp replies, sucking down that cig faster than it seems would be healthy and lighting up another before tossing his armor on haphazardly, not really doing up any of the fasteners. The threadbare pants, he ties back on top of the armor. "But Vraag, I'm just saying, like, it's not every day I get the chance to extinguish a religion, okay, and- and I'm just not sure I want to pass up the opportunity, you know?" The old man picks up his pistol and charges the powercell meaningfully.

When Vraag directs her towards the princess, Ayeeou nods and grabs her Medpac once her armor is on and her blaster at her hip. Then she walks over to the huddled woman, since hurrying might be a problem for her still-healing injury. She says quietly as she starts carefully checking the woman "Are you hurt? I'm a doctor." She leaves the question of what to do to those children to the professionals.

Vraag looks toward Jarret, and then includes Hopp in the gesture before he says, "Not yet. Not until we have some answers." The girl is laying back in her throne, blood tricking down her chin, but Vraag doesn't spare her a second glance, his eyes instead on the brother. "Now's your chance, kid. Start talking. What is going on here? Why kidnap the princess? Why do you have a room full of starving prisoners down in the prison below? Why should we not kill you both and be gone from this place?"

The boy glances aside to his sister before he looks back to the Mandalorians, his bright blue eyes shifting from each person before finally he sighs and says, "All of the people of Ahkeldia are starving. This planet is a prison for us all, except for the King of the diamond mines. He is the only one that has a means of providing for his people. We have steadily been starving to death and growing weaker and weaker. The only way that we have to get food is to send our people to toil away in his mines, while he reaps all of the benefits and tosses us crumbs from his table. My sister thought that kidnapping his daughter would get us the freedom and fortune that we need.”

"Instead, it has brought death." Jarret looks between the two children, and then to Vraag. "Social engineering, Vraag Rengh? Do we dare affect a change of regime in the name of justice?”

The answer doesn't please Hopp Nooram. He stomps up to the thrones and shoves his blaster pistol into the boy's face, squinting down at him. "I don't give two shits how bad the king of whatever treats you, alright kid. You fucked with the wrong crew." His wrinkled face scowls furiously, about spitting with anger. "This is a DL-54, one of the most powerful handguns in the galaxy. It'll blow your head clean off, god or not. So there's just one question you gotta ask yourself. 'What can I give this old git with the gun to spare my miserable life?' Think quick, kid, I'm an old man, alright, I don't got a lot of time for this sorta shit.”

Yee's attention is someone split. She's trying to stay focused on the princess, but what's going on over there is really distracting. She does get the woman checked out though, and then immediately sets to bandaging her hand. Which seems to be recently minus one finger.”

Siha Archer's right brow raises as she eyes Hopp, a glance given to everyone else around the room. Then back to Hopp. She ..is really in no shape to do much more than observe. Until something comes up she can handle. Besides, these guys got the questioning down.

The boy does not flinch away from the gun placed in his face, quite the opposite he smiles in a sad sort of way. "I would not fault you if you took my life here and now, " he says in a soft voice. "You have been held captive and kept starving... But keep in mind the situation that my sister and I inherited from our crazy father. He left us this place and these people after a lifetime spent selling us one by one to the king. My people are starving, and my sister is losing her mind in the same way that my father did. It would actually be a relief to not have to sit and watch my people die of starvation... to not be haunted by the sight in my dreams…"

"Right," Hopp answers, nodding thoughtfully, and then before anyone can stop him, he flicks the pistol towards the girl and blasts her straight in the leg, two powerful bolts blowing flesh and bone apart with terrifying ease. He'll wait for the inevitable initial shriek, nodding patiently, and when it quiets down enough, he yells as he turns the blaster back on the boy. "Wrong answer, 'god'," he grates, puffing smoke like a chimney, the tendrils rising up around his crazy grey hair. "You know there's a chance she'll walk again if someone cuts that leg off," the crazy old coot points out casually, sucking on his cig for a moment. "One more shot here, and then I'm- I'm gonna see what's- you know you're probably just normal kids, I get that, but I'm curious." The shrewd light shining in his eyes under those wiry brows actually makes him that much more terrifying in that moment, as it's clear he's very aware of exactly what he's doing.

As she works on the princess, Yee notes towards the others "If they've also been eating their own dead, that madness might be physiological." And then Hopp shoots her, and her eyebrow ridge shoots straight up. She blinks once, then looks towards Vraag for direction.

"Prion disease." Siha will murmur towards Yee, nodding, "Oh man, those prions. Eating others, probably brains. I mean, I gotta tell you, I ain't feeling bad for these kids, they're eating people? And then ..I'm sorry, but who eats people. I mean ..other than like carrion things but ..people." She looks disgusted, and the shooting of the girl in the leg doesn't seem to disturb her. Too much. She's weak. She was probably going to be eaten. Things are not looking good for the kids.

Vraag reaches out a hand to place on Hopp's shoulder. "Easy, Hopp," he tells the old man as he watches the girl cry out and squirm in pain, already bloody mouthed and now bleeding from the smoking wound in her leg. "They are just normal children. Gods don't bleed," Vraag says.

The brother flinches as his sister is shot, his face obviously exhibiting pain at his sister's wound. He does nod in agreement with Vraag, however, as he says, "Yes. My father was the one that began calling himself a god. Then when he fell to the madness, we were advised to keep the story going. As our people began to starve more and more, it helped their morale to think that the gods were there with them. That we cared." He pauses to look toward his sister, "She has my father's illness. But I do not." The last is said with a measure of strength that had not been there moments before. "But what am I to do? The King controls all of the might with his diamond mine. And he won't share.”

Zan is now on her own, so she's standing there looking uncomfortable, gaze going from one to the other as she listens.

Hopp flinches when Vraag puts his hand on his shoulder, and about spins around to shoot him too, he's so hopped up. Get it? Anyway, he backs off, glaring up at the two kids, looking like he'd dearly love to put a bolt in each of them. "I'd dearly love to put a bolt in each of 'em, Vraag," he rasps out, checking his pack of cigs and seeing he's only got two more. "He won't share with you, but he's payin' us, and you- you kids are up here kidnapping people and eating them, alright, you don't get to play the sympathy card. Your daddy messed up and you messed up worse, and you messed up worst of all when you messed with *us*," he finishes, waving his pistol around. "I say we kill them all, Vraag, no one kidnaps the Ebon Guard for the purposes of cannibalism. Maybe to use as breeding stock, but not *cannibalism*, dammit.”

Oh, Yee's just going to stay quiet while they work this out, though she nods to Siha when the disease is mentioned. The princess' hand is finished being cleaned and carefully wrapped, and then she can give her full attention to what's happening with the Guard and the children. Mostly quiet, actually. She asks the princess quietly "What do you think of how your father treats the others?"

The slicer had been keeping an eye on the lift while the preliminary conversation was taking place but now Bark steps back into the conversation. "We are the Ebon guard which is why we shouldn't just kill them all. We're brining order back to mandalore and the moment we start to resort to just killing everyone who stands in our way is the moment that we become no better than the scum on Mandalore." The slicer breaths deep and says "What exactly is the deal between these children and the king?" he directs the question to Vraag for the moment ignoring Hopp.

Vraag turns to look over his shoulder at Barquo. His gray eyes look the slicer over for a moment with hard scrutiny, finally he gives the man a nod before turning back to face the brother. He gestures toward the princess with a wave of his hand before saying, "She will decide the fate of your people and what is to happen here. She has been your prisoner, your captive. She is the victim in all of this." The sister suddenly leans forward in her throne to say something else but Vraag lifts a threatening backhand and she suddenly cowers back into her throne to whimper in pain over the blaster wounds in her leg.

The princess gives Ayeeou a hesitant look before she leans forward and says, "My father loves me very much... in his own way. He means well, but from what they have said, my father and theirs share a lot of traits. He is hungry for his own power. He will do anything to keep it... including how he treats the people working in the mines. If they do not produce enough, he punishes them very harshly. He can be selfish... like that one there." She lifts her hand that is missing an index finger and points with the middle toward the sister.

Barq always feel a little uneasy when he gets that look from Vraag but he stands his ground. He lets out a breath as Vraag turns his attention elsewhere though. As the princess speaks he listens carefully and then looks back to Vraag "I know our deal was with the king but it seems to me that the princess is making a strong case for being the level headed ruler that her father should have been."

Vraag nods his head in agreement with Barquo, considering his statement before he looks toward Zandra and asks, "What about you? What would you think if we altered our deal with the king? Maybe we could do both options in one move... Maybe the king is unfit to rule. But neither is it good that these people would not have a voice in their fate." He gestures toward the brother, the more sane of the two siblings. "What if we pluck the king from his throne, and instead seat the princess and this fellow in charge?”

"I would deem this to be a much more rational regime," says Jarret, though his visored face is still turned toward the injured sister. "If the father is indeed exploiting the populace as claimed. Do we wish to be named arbiters of government, Vraag Rengh? It will shape our reputation."

Zan blinks, staring. "Me?" She pauses, and then says, "Based on what we've seen, these two are the sanest of the lot. I think that might make more sense than leaving the crazy to continue these horrors. And better than killing them all." Though she's still a little bit tight, holding herself together, but not at all sure how. She takes a deep breath, and then says, "But I'm not Mandalorian. I think we'd have met our obligation by rescuing our friend here so the rest - is really up to us.”

The slicer crosses his arms over his chest with a bit of a smile "It certainly makes me feel better than re-establishing a regime that sustains itself off the slavery of its people." Barq looks to the boy on the throne "You'd be a leader though, not a god."

The boy on the throne looks around toward the princess, who appears to be around four years his senior. He looks at her for a moment thoughtfully before he turns his attention back toward the Ebon Guard and dips his head into a bow. "I would find this acceptable... So long as I can take my people with me so that they might finally have enough to eat and perhaps lead a happy life for once," he says with a humble sort of voice. The Princess similarly nods her head in agreement with the course laid out by the Ebon Guard.

"WHAT?" shrieks the sister on her throne, blood now running down her leg freely and her skin even more pale. "WHAT ABOUT ME? What would you have of me? I deserve to rule!" Her voice certainly has an unhinged timbre to it, her eyes wide with hate and madness. Vraag looks at her and it would be clear enough for all to see the stiffness in his body as he bristles. But he does not move to strike the girl again, instead turning his attention around toward the others and tilting his head in a questioning fashion.

Ayeeou has just been listening, then says "On many world two warring peoples are brought together though marriage and joint rule." She shrugs. Easy solution, right?

Except for that crazy one. Zan is watching her now, curiously. Not that Zan is the fighting type, but she's watching. "You need medical help," she says simply. "And lots of it." The simple solution sounds good in principle, but she's kind of wondering. "I suspect there will be many who don't like this solution. How should they be dealt with?" It's a question more to Princess and boy, rather than anyone else in the room, curious to see their answers.

"Diplomatically, one hopes." Jarret looks about the room. "Else we may potentially be seen as conquerors, and installing a regime at gunpoint may well discredit it before it begins. Perhaps we might challenge the king and have him show his colors before the court before he is…removed?”

The slicer glares at the mad girl "You don't /deserve/ anything child!" he takes a few steps closer to the girl on the throne "No one is born deserving to rule, they earn that right through treating their people with respect, and honor." he spits at her "None of which you've done. Just be happy that your brother has more sense than you and can see a path to honor through this quagmire you've put in front of him."

The boy does perk up at the prospect of marrying the princess, his brows lifting and a smile beginning to form on his face, the princess turning a deep scarlet blush and averting her eyes downward. Vraag shakes his head and says quietly to the boy, "Easy there, son. Back straight. Keep your mind on the important things." He nods as Barquo speaks to the sister, finally turning his attention back to her before he says, "What happens of you and the king will be left up to your new rulers. It is not our place to make judgement on this issue, for these are not our people and we are short on time."

He looks around toward the princess before saying, "I imagine that your people have some sort of military or security force. This boy does as well. Your two military forces will become one, and they will help you establish order. Those who resist, will be jailed. They will be FED." He looks around toward the boy sharply. "If they cannot come to terms with their new leadership, then you will arrange for their transport off of this world. The diamond mines will belong to both of your peoples." He turns toward the Ebon Guard members and says, "Is this agreeable to all?"

Zan listens to Vraag, a slight smile on her face at the reactions of the new rulers. She moves to face the two youngsters, though they probably aren't all that much younger than her own 18 years. "I'm okay with that. I suggest to both of you, that you learn to trust each other, and also, make sure that you have advisors who are both knowledgable and trustworthy. I'd hate to come back here in 6 months and discover we've got to go through this again. It would make me cranky." Though that really doesn't mean much, coming from Zan. Still, these folks don't know that.

There is a stern nod from Barquo "I agree to what you have proposed Vraag Rengh." he looks to the boy and leans toward him whispering "She's got to agree to marry you as well young man. You don't just get to marry her all willy nilly." he winks and then stands straight "I would like to get my armor and weapons back before we make the new arrangement known to her father however. I'm feeling a bit naked in combat without any sort of protection or weaponry."

"You know I really got a bad feeling about this, Vraag," Hopp growls from the periphery, having stepped back to let the others have a say and/or light up one of his two remaining cigs. "These two, who's to say they won't be worse together than apart? This sorta thing, it's never clean, it never works how you think it will. But killing everyone in this place for crossing us, that's clean and it works exactly how you think it will, alright. That's my two cents, not that any of this will matter in a couple centuries, but I don't want any aggravated diamond-mining bastard son of the last king coming after me any time soon, and- and if that happens, it's on you, Vraag, you're gonna have to officiate my funeral. You're gonna have to say some real touching stuff about me in your eulogy, Vraag." The old coot takes a long pull on his cig and puffs it out. "Whatever it is, let's do it and be done with it.”

Silent now, Jarret seems to have said his part - now he watches the door.

Vraag considers Hopp for a few moments before shrugging his armored shoulders. "If they fail their people, then it will hardly matter to us in the end. We will be gone from this world. If someone comes after us, then they will have to face down our joined wrath to get at you, old timer. I think this is the best course of action for now. If one day they need help, these two will know how to contact us. We will leave them a holocomm."

Vraag turns back to the boy on the throne before he says, "Very well. We will require you to pardon us to the security officers below that are even now trying to figure out how to get up to us. And then we will require a land speeder to get back to the northern kingdom. If you trust us and the path laid out here, give us these things and we will see that your two peoples are joined and set on a brighter path."

Yee looks towards Jarret, then says "I don't think our Medpacs will help with what's wrong with her. We'd need to take her to the medbay on the ship, to even begin to treat her." There's a shrug that says she wishes it weren't so.

Zan shrugs now, just waiting to see what happens. "I'm good," she says finally. There's a brief smile as her attention now goes to the boy who has decisions to make.

The slicer nods along with Vraag and finally sees his gear sitting in a pile with the rest of the ebon guard gear. He goes over and tosses gear until he finds the blaster that belonged to his father. He gives a restful sigh feeling better that it is now back in his possesion. He looks up as Vraag talks "I'd also like to hear if there are any security measures that the king has that I could bypass from a computer. The less we have to deal with when we get there the better." He starts sorting his gear getting ready to arm himself again.

"I kinda like her better that way," Hopp observes, flicking the butt of his cig away and wandering back into the lift to get it operational again once the prince agrees to their pardons.

"You realize we gotta stage a coup after this, right, Vraag?" he points out, shoving his frizzy grey-haired head back into the room. "Take out a king who /does/ have resources and isn't a half-mad kid? What's the plan on that, by the way, I'm- I'm dying to hear it."