Survivor's Foundation

“No, curse you, it will take us days to unload if we have to do this by shuttle. We need a landing strip. One kilometer of unobstructed duracrete. Seven hundred meters will suffice.” Captain Akhrirar of Organa growled and paced the bridge of the Victory-class Star Destroyer. The Noghri’s hands were clenched and his nostrils were flaring in frustration--the local air traffic control was being very polite and political, but it was clear that the local official either lacked the authority or the imagination to exercise the creativity that a crisis like this demanded. He gesticulated angrily towards the crewpit, signaling--he hoped--that his bridge crew was welcome to improvise. The Noghri endured the polite remarks of the Chandrilan air traffic control for another minute, until one of his crew passed a piece of flimsi into his large hands. “My crew has located a partially bare strip approximately seventeen kilometers north-northeast from the city center. There is some minor construction in the area, largely low-yield walls and temporary structures, a small number of landspeeders surrounding a central structure. We must ask that it be evacuated for our landing.” Had the communique been both visual as well as audio, he would have been greeted with the sight of a Chandrilan’s eye widening in horror. “That’s a stadium! There are ‘speeder races there!” “Excellent. Blast-treated duracrete will be much better suited for the task. Have a radius of two kilometers evacuated; the demolition will not be… clean.” Eighteen minutes later, a Victory-class Star Destroyer hung a few hundred meters above Vandor 800 Speedway. Three hundred meters below it, the staccato lights and sirens of emergency vehicles were racing over the grounds of the stadium and surrounding parking lots, evacuating survivors and vagrants who had taken shelter within the oval-shaped structure and the stores and other venues that surrounded it. As Organa began to descend, filling the air with the roar of capital ship-grade repulsorlifts, it soon became clear that the ship wouldn’t quite fit within its grounds--it was just slightly too long, and its engine block was far too wide to be contained by the structure. In fact, it appeared that it was going to significantly overshoot its mark, that it wouldn’t quite land within the stadium. And then after descending within fifty meters of the planetary surface, the bow of the Star Destroyer began to rise, slowly and ponderously aiming the ship’s engines towards the crude, cheaply-built walls of the stadium. What happened next would have mortified any lover of motor sports. With a single great firing of the ship’s sunlight engines, half of the stadium was blasted to smithereens, reduced to so much rubble that tumbled over and crunched most of what remained to ruins. Little more than the foundation remained--and that was very flat and perfectly suited for the task of landing a gargantuan starship. Several minutes later, Organa returned to the site of the demolition and settled on the ruins on several sets of titanic landing struts. The roar of the Victory-class Star Destroyer’s engines quieted to a dull, rumbling murmur over the next several minutes. Finally, a large boarding ramp descended from what had once been the Star Destroyer’s hangar and dozens of cargo transporters came spilling out, unloading hundreds of tonnes of cargo every hour. A warehouse and field hospital capable of servicing thousands of casualties would be erected in the perimeter of the ship by the day. On the bridge of the Star Destroyer, however, Akhrirar could not allow himself even a small of satisfaction, even as the field hospital began to take shape. For all he knew, there may have still been a small remnant of Mandalorians on Chandrila, and his ship, with its diminished crew and nearly non-existent armaments, would make an excellent prize to the raiders.

A planetary economy bent almost to the breaking point by refugees from Coruscant. An orbital satellite grid devastated by battle. A world pillaged during a prolonged military occupation and all the exploitation and looting that come along with that unfortunate fate. And finally, there was the unprecedented complication that the Mandalorian Crusaders--a fanatical off-shoot of a people who were never renowned for military discipline--may not have been completely driven from the world, but instead had gone to ground to take refuge in hidden coverts and redoubts across the planet. The Survivor’s Foundation had faced complicated reconstruction projects in the past. There was the rebuilding of Mon Calamari, where Esperanza had restored an oceanic ecology from an almost-primordial state of ruin. But industrial waste and chemical hazards weren’t actively trying to kill people, and for the potential presence of the Mandalorians alone, Chandrila was likely to be the most complicated mission they had undertaken. For that reason the Foundation had determined they were likely to require a more forceful intervention than any they had launched in the past. Not only had they decided to dispatch a larger squadron than normal, but they had taken the unprecedented step of requesting the assistance of the Jedi Order. Two pristine-white Star Destroyers popped out of hyperspace within high Chandrilan orbit--one an ancient Venator-class that continued its service as an armored flight deck, and a comparatively newer Victory-class that had been converted to a massive spacefaring hospital. The hulls of the two vessels seemed to glitter as they descended into orbit--closer inspection would reveal that the effect was not an unusual paint-job of Star Destroyer White but the engines and running lights of dozens of freighters and smaller vessels launched for the first hours of the intervention. The Venator-class Martyriai, flagship of the squadron, took up a geosynchronous position in Chandrila’s orbit, forcibly positioning the great bulk of the converted warship in the debris ring that circled Chandrila to protect her shuttles. Numerous pinpricks of sparks and minor explosions could be seen against the maroon-and-white hull of the carrier as the smaller pieces of debris glanced off of her shields. Only slightly smaller than Martyriai, a Victory-class Star Destroyer stabbed into the void cast by her shadow. Organa, a derelict warship that had been converted to a kilometer-long hospital and stores-ship, began to dispatch shuttles in search for a suitable landing strip that could support her bulk. Even a kilometer-long strip of duracrete that was free of debris would suffice. The answer to this initial survey, after several sensor-laden freighters combed the outskirts of Hanna City, was that there were none. And so the list of complications grew one entry longer.

The galaxy’s worst brings out our best ---------- Founded shortly after the infamous Shield Incident of Coruscant, the Survivor’s Foundation is dedicated to assisting worlds rebuild after they have been ravaged by war, terrorism and plague. Originally just one of the many non-governmental organizations that assisted in the rebuilding of Coruscant, the Foundation rapidly outstretched its original mission after a public endorsement by Jedi Master Armiena Draygo, soon obtaining the finances and materiel necessary for the rebuilding of entire worlds almost on its own. This promotion could not have come at a better time for the galaxy, for during the climax of the Galactic Civil War, numerous worlds had experienced terrible ravaging by the war: Coruscant’s cities had been flattened by multiple raids by the Galactic Empire and a pirate gang led by Ronin Wartide, Mon Calamari had experienced an entire ecosystem collapse after its orbital shipyards were blasted into its oceans, and Gateway Station had been afflicted by a virus that transformed its inhabitants into drooling, shambling, flesh-eating drones. After peace broke out, its operations shifted towards the Outer Rim to help those neglected worlds rebuild after decades of resource exploitation and pirate raids that exploited the military struggle in the Core. Its mission has remained constant: to heal the depravations of war, to rescue those in immediate peril, and to combat the creeping forces of decay and pestilence. On paper, the Survivor’s Foundation has jealously guarded its neutrality. In reality, it will inevitably be tied to the activities of the Jedi Order, who supplied it with a number of ships and whose endorsement secured it with a steady supply of liquid capital. This conflict has manifested itself in tragedy on a number of occasions--Foundation craft have, from time to time, been fired upon during planetary invasions. But the Foundation has attempted to at least maintain a status of legal neutrality. Its ships are bear number of universal symbols of neutrality, and the few weapons that are mounted by its ships or present in their arsenals are strictly nonlethal. An Armada of Mercy ------ The Foundation favors small, light ships--corvettes and frigates, typically--for the initial response to emergencies, though a number of capital ships are kept on stand by for situations that require a prolonged staying power and deployment of planetside hospitals. In truly dire situations, requiring both vast influx of materiel and transport of refugees, the Foundation maintains a number of droid-piloted transport barges. These ships spend most of their time in hyperspace, maintaining an automated patrol until they are diverted to a system-wide crisis that requires their resources. A number of ships have formed the nucleus of its relief fleets, providing both enormous hospital space and command facilities for system-wide crises. Esperanza (flagship) MC90a Cruiser Length: 1255 meters Armaments: 8 tractor beams Modifications: Heavily upgraded shield generators The “Cold Labs”--a modified pod on the dorsal surface of the ship that house the most sensitive laboratories in the Foundation. If needed, the entire pod can be jettisoned from the ship and self-destructed. Martyriai and Serendipity Venator-class Star Destroyer Length: 1137 meters Armaments: 6 tractor beams Modifications: The ship is gutted to make space for more hangar and cargo capacity. Sanare and Organa Victory I-class Star Destroyer Length: 900 meters Armaments: 10 tractor beams Modifications: Landing struts for in-atmosphere deployment to local landing strips. The ship is gutted to make space for additional cargo and hospital space. Very few starfighters are present in the Foundation’s fleet, and even those have been equipped strictly with non-lethal weapons such as ion cannons and ion-pulse warheads. The majority of vessels within its hangars are light and medium freighters for cargo transport, and passenger shuttles modified for use as field hospitals. The same attitude applies to the stocks of weapons within the armories. While the Foundation keeps a small stash of blasting agents for the rare occasions when demolition is required, the few small arms that the Foundation keeps on hand for self-defense are almost entirely stun-only. On the rare occasions when brute force is necessary, the Foundation is far more likely to dispatch security personnel equipped with heavily-reinforced combat armor than it is to exercise lethal force. The present commander-in-chief of the fleet of the Survivor’s Foundation is Niklas Vandro. He is an obscure figure to most of the galaxy, but characters who are exceptionally well-versed in the history of the Imperial Navy will be familiar with his background. He was a commander of minor repute who served during the Empire’s expansion into the Outer Rim, operating on a shoestring budget during the Galactic Empire’s attempts to spread law and order into the anarchic territories that had been exploited by the Confederacy of Independent Systems. And this he achieved with aplomb, pulverizing pirate gangs that operated out of CIS battlecruisers with only a handful of Carrack-class Light Cruisers, picket ships, and one obsolete Dreadnaught-class Heavy Cruiser. The atrocities that characterized the Empire’s reign of terror in the Core were wholly unknown to his command--in his territories, the banner of the Empire represented security, stability, and prosperity. It suffices to say that Vandro is nothing but proud of his service to the Empire and views the current regime as a blot on the record of the Imperial Navy. Unique Equipment USRD Mk3 “Momma Spider” The Unmanned Search and Rescue Droid Mark 3, also known as the “Momma Spider”, is a droid deployed by the Survivor’s Foundation in large numbers in the initial response to a mass casualty event. They are squat, eight-legged automatons, equipped with powerful magnetic-spike “cleats” that allow them to traverse rugged terrain, particularly that of a destroyed cityscape. Their primary directive in a mass-casualty event is to infiltrate into wreckage, clearing debris with their magnetized cleats and low-yield tractors if necessary, and to conduct a search for potential survivors. Upon locating organics, they conduct a brief vital-signs scan for triage purposes. If immediate evacuation is not necessary (for example, if the victims are not in immediate danger and their vital signs are close to optimal), they merely alert Foundation personnel to their location before infiltrating deeper into the rubble to continue their search. If necessary, perform evacuation on their own, reversing up to four of their legs to form a makeshift stretcher to immobilize and carry them on their backs. For especially dire cases, the droids are capable of administering basic aid, but their capabilities are limited to administering bacta-infused foam to local injuries and immobilizing critical spinal injuries. The droids are remarkably intelligent in their designated role and are capable of coordinating to clear debris of much greater mass than what a single unit can manage. They’re often deployed beyond the initial search-and-rescue phase of an operation to assist with reconstruction. They are also capable of functioning as scouts, and their multitude of sensors and transmitters has been exploited on numerous occasions when sending an organic being into a hazardous zone would likely be a death sentence. There are also variants designed for underwater rescue and zero-gravity operations, but these are used in very small numbers by the Foundation. Their first appearance was during the Shield Incident of Coruscant (about Summer 2005), where large numbers of the droids were deployed to rescue victims from the devastated cityscape. They were remarkably successful in their deployment, successfully rescuing hundreds of millions. However, as this was their first deployment and very few were aware of their existence, they also triggered more than a few phobias in those that they were rescuing. Aegis Hazardous Environment Suit The Aegis Hazardous Environmental Suit is a heavily-armored power suit equipped by the Survivor’s Foundation in very small numbers. In the vast majority of scenarios dealing with hazardous environmental conditions, a droid or unmanned drone is dispatched to search for survivors and clear the hazard, if necessary. There have been a number of situations in which the automated routines of a droid cannot be trusted, and the intuition, dexterity, and vaguely-reassuring form of a humanoid is necessary. For these situations, a small number of field personnel are dispatched in these suits. The first impression that one has of these suits is their bulk. They are massive, with enormous pauldrons and a domed breastplate to protect their wearer from all threats. Their sheer bulk protects the user from physical blows, chemical exposure, and radiation. A unique non-conductive plasteel alloy composition protects against thermic and electromagnetic threats. Air filters protect against biological and atmospheric insults. A user protected by one of these suits could be reasonably assured of survival in any condition, even if they were to walk into blaster fire. It is not lightsaber-resistant, however. As this level of protection inevitably hampers mobility and peripheral vision, the suits amplify the user’s strength and a number of sensors provide audio, visual, thermic, electromagnetic and chemical detection capabilities. Because their situational awareness tends to be impaired by all of this bulk and sensory information, the wearers are invariably being guided through a hazardous zone by a team of Foundation handlers watching their every move. In theory, the suits could be deployed to security teams or in reconstruction efforts, but simulated crises revealed that situational awareness in the suits is so poor that the armor was almost a detriment rather than an asset. Fine motor skills were similarly impaired, with their wearers unable to operate any instrument more complicated than a hypospray. As such, the suits are only deployed to evacuate victims in scenarios where a nearby and lethal threat has yet to be resolved.

The Survivor’s Foundation is largely used for flavor in the RP, to demonstrate that worlds affected by the war gradually rebuild and recover. Most of the posting on this account is done through NPCs, but there are a couple of consistent characters that I want to have character sheets for. Niklas Vandro’s CHARACTER SHEET Identity Real Name: Admiral Niklas Vandro A.K.A: “Admiral” Homeworld: Bespin Species: Human Physical Description Niklas Vandro is a gracefully aging man, with full command of his mental faculties and still in fairly excellent physical shape despite being nearly 69 years old. That said, he has a visible paunch around his midsection despite doing his best to keep in prime physical condition. His face is lined deeply around the forehead and cheeks from worry- and laugh-lines. He maintains the appearance of military uniform despite the fact that the Survivor’s Foundation has no military privileges. Age: 68 Height: 5’9” Weight: Slightly overweight and thickening around the midsection despite his best efforts to stay in shape. Hair: Black-and-white salt-and-pepper, kept military-short and receding significantly. Clean-shaven, though reliably has a Five O’Clock shadow by the end of the day. Eyes: Hazel Sex: Male Equipment Clothing or Armor: Niklas Vandro typically wears an olive-drab uniform and boots cut along similar lines to that of Imperial uniforms. Like Imperial uniforms, Vandro carries a few code cylinders in the pockets of his tunic, though Foundation officers do not typically wear headwear. Foundation uniforms are invariably marked with universally-recognized symbols of neutrality that denote their status on a mission of mercy: red equilateral crosses, ultraviolet crescents, et cetera... Weapons: Vandro rarely goes armed, though he will on occasion carry a service sidearm. The Survivor’s Foundation makes use of a variety of light small arms, but they are invariably kept on stun settings for the purpose of self-defense or crowd control. Common Inventory: Code cylinders for accessing sensitive information, datapads, comlinks, et cetera. Also, Vandro has 36 years, 223 days of service in the Imperial Navy to his name. It suffices to say that there are few worlds with which that he is not familiar, and he has an encyclopedic memory of ship designs and fleet maneuvers. Faction Information Force Sensitive: Not Force Sensitive Alignment: Good Current Faction Affiliation: Independent. Current Faction Rank: Admiral of the Fleet in the Survivor’s Foundation. History: Niklas Vandro enlisted for service in the Imperial Navy as soon as he was of legal age, rising to NCO status fairly quickly and later receiving a battlefield commission as an officer. He has spent nearly his entire adult life in service to the Empire, serving primarily in the Outer Rim where he had to make use of very limited/obsolete resources, difficult/non-existent supply chains, inconsistent cartography, and borderline-anarchy in many of the worlds he visited. In his eyes, the Empire stood for order, civilization, and a better way of life for many of the worlds he visited, and he rarely had to resort to drastic measures in his service. He retired from Imperial service with good standing and is fond of his time in the service. Shortly after retiring, however, he had difficulty adjusting to civilian life and was scouted by Jedi Grandmaster Armiena Draygo to lead the fleet of a newly-formed NGO. Force Side: N/A Trained by: Trained who: Known Skills: Background: Ship Registration This will be filled in the future. The Survivor’s Foundation makes use of a number of converted military vessels. Their armaments are minimal, and due to not having to carry a crew for military engagements, their crew requirements are greatly diminished. Their deck space is largely converted to hospital space and medical laboratories. Taken from a previous post in the Ship Registration forum. (Again, all mod approved.) MC90 Cruiser Esperanza (current flagship): Length: 1255 meters Armanents: None, only 8 tractor beams. Crew: The standard crew for an MC90 is 5860, but given the fact that the ship doesn't require troops and other military personnel, it is reasonable to assume that it is below 5000. Starfighter complement: Lacking the need for starfighters, the space in the hangars is allocated entirely to shuttles and light freighters. Assume 36 shuttles. Appearance: Entirely white, with the exception of a red cross painted on its bow, keel, and sides to mark it as a neutral vessel of mercy. Modifications: laboratories for studying and producing cures to calamities. Heavily upgraded shield generators. Venator-class Star Destroyer Martyriai and Serendipity Length: 1,137 meters Armanents: None, only 6 tractor beams. Crew: The standard crew for a VSD is 7,400, but given the fact that the ship doesn't require troops, military personnel, etc, it is reasonable to assume that the crew complement is somewhere closer to 5000. Starfighter complement: The space in the hangar is allocated entirely to shuttles and light freighters. Assume ten squadrons of shuttles and freighters. Appearance: Marked with the traditional red striping of the Old Republic, along with a red cross on the sides to identify it as a neutral vessel of mercy. Modifications: Upgraded shield generators. It should also be noted that the VSD is capable of landing in atmosphere. Victory I-class Star Destroyer Sanare and Organa Length: 900 meters Armanents: None, only 10 tractor beams. Crew: The standard crew is 5,200, but given the fact that the ship doesn't require troops and other military personnel, it is reasonable to assume that the crew complement is somewhere closer to 4000. Starfighter complement: Three squadrons of light freighters and shuttles (the VSD-I normally carries only two squadrons of TIEs, but 10 AT-ATs and 15 AT-STs) Appearance: Entirely white, save for a red cross on its sides to mark it as a neutral vessel of mercy. Modifications: Upgraded shield generators. Expanded cargo hold. It should also be noted that the VSD is capable of landing in atmosphere.

The reply from Esperanza came quickly, terse and to-the-point. ”œVice-Admiral,”

"Emperor Black," a steady Coruscanti accent hailed the Imperial flagship, coming from a Mon Calamari Cruiser that orbited Dac. "This is Admiral Vandro of the Survivor's Foundation. I sincerely hope that this demand does not include the Survivor's Foundation, otherwise you will be in breach of treaty." Five ships bearing the humanitarian organization's colors orbited the watery planet, still carrying out their mission of restoring Dac's ecosystems. The Imperial veteran was confident that his command would not be hassled--the fleet was comprised of quite an eclectic crew. There were citizens from both the Republic and the Empire--an even mix, as a considerable fraction of the crew hailed from Coruscant, but the Republic had been outspoken in its support of the organization in the past.

”œAdmiral, there's been a broadcast on the Holonet. It's Faust, he's trying to pin all this on the”””œ ”œDamn it all. Prepare a Holonet release--I am not going to--”

On the flagship of the Foundation's fleet, the MC90 Esperanza, Admiral Vandro stared out at the polluted blue expanse of Mon Calamari from the bridge's canopy, hardly even blinking. The whirl of sublight engines almost resembled a battle””the floating cities on Dac were almost overwhelmed with the rush of incoming shuttles, and their transports were repeatedly returning to their homes to pick up more supplies. However, his presence was not really required at the moment””they'd repeated this action regrettably often enough that his crews could work with little direction from their admiral. However, once the barge arrived... simulations were one thing, but space barges were so rare in the Rim that most of his crew had never worked with one. He would be needed then. He strode towards the comm. officer's station with vigor uncommon in a man of his age when the message from the Republic's fleet was received. Folding his arms across his grey shirt, he spoke clearly, in an Imperial accent that might have caught their officers off guard. ”œVice-Admiral Sikaot, this is Admiral Vandro speaking. I'll be happy to speak with you, but I will not be able to leave the Esperanza for some time. I'll notify our hangar crews to reserve a berth for your vessel.”

With a degree of precision more commonly seen in the galaxy's military forces, the better part of the Survivor's Foundation's fleet appeared out of hyperspace. Among them were the Esperanza, the first command ship and oldest vessel of the fleet; the twin Venator-class Star Destroyers Serendipity and Martyriai; and the Victory-class Star Destroyers Organa and Sanare. Within minutes, the majority of the fleet was deployed, hurling shielding pylons to again partition plagued portions of Dac's oceans for purging. These five ships, however, were only a fraction of the fleet that had been sent to Mon Calamari. Certainly, these were the largest ships of the armada, but a considerable number of transports had been contracted by the burgeoning charity for the sake of hauling extra cargo. After all, the goal here was to relieve an afflicted population, rather than cleanse a world inhabited mostly by the ghosts of its citizens. An emergency shipment of supplies was shuttled to the surface with all possible haste, relieving the planet's refugees””in other words, most of its population””from what threatened to become a devastating famine. Analysis already performed by the local outpost had already determined that the microorganisms used to treat the last infestation wouldn't work””these were industrial chemicals of a different breed””but that mattered little. An entire barge of decontamination equipment had been ordered, and it was only a matter of time before it arrived. Until then, all the Survivor's Foundation could do was keep Mon Calamari's population alive and evacuate it to nearby worlds that had agreed to take on a portion of the refugees.

It quickly became apparent to the men and women at the Survivor's Foundation outpost that their attempt to send a courier had failed miserably. The Empire had obstructed their ability to perform their mission, and outright murdered one of their co-workers. However, there was no time to grieve and swear oaths against the Empire, for the local government had summoned them only minutes after they received the grievous news. The purpose was obvious””members of the first mission that had cleansed Mon Calamari of a similar plague, they had access to the equipment that been left by the Foundation. It was quite apparently theft carefully disguised by a request for their assistance; both parties were fully aware that if their oceanic partitioning shields weren't immediately deployed to protect Mon Calamari's floating cities and the few remaining Quarren settlements (they had been hit even harder by the previous attack than the Calamari, for obvious reasons), a lot of people were going to die. Not that the implied threat was necessary; the Survivor's Foundation was happy to contribute to their efforts. ”œWe have one more request for your employees.”

Ironically, it wasn't the Republic that learned about the catastrophe that had befallen Mon Calamari. It was the Survivor's Foundation. Even after Mon Cal had been declared safe for resettlement by the displaced Calamari population, the work of cleaning up the planet was far from over. Some of the most obscure depths of the watery world's oceans had yet to be touched, as the Foundation's scientists found that cleansing those regions required a very different beast to continue the work of their original bacteria. Hence the small outpost of bioengineers and technicians that continued the great work, monitoring the data feeds from the probes that were still functioning, and engineering new strains capable of surviving--and thriving--at those crushing pressures. Those probes--and a few sets of electrobinoculars owned by the indigenous population--were the first warning that a plague was on Mon Calamari. One of the Foundation's few shuttles was immediately launched on a mission to contact the remainder of the humanitarian fleet, and compel them to scramble from their previous tours. Judging from the shuttle's prodigious velocity, the pilot in charge didn't care about the orbital lockdown; she was going to get this news out to the rest of the fleet, even if it meant giving her life. As far as prices went for a life, saving millions of others was a pretty decent bargain, she had decided.

((I believe that this is the site of the Link's shipyards. If I'm wrong, sue me; this can just go in any other thread without consequence.)) Two Victory-class Star Destroyers arrived at the Link's shipyards, the SF's Sanare and Organa. Serving this day as overblown transports, they docked with the Loronar Strike Cruisers Terminsel and Quarantine, quickly transferring the latter ships' new crews. Minutes later, control of the ships was transferred from the shipyards to the Foundation, at which point the quartet found their way back into the unseen depths of hyperspace.

A Holonet message arrived for the proprietors of the Casino. Master Nargal, Admiral Vandro speaking. I beg your pardon for our tardiness, for recent events in the Rim made it impossible for us to spare crew to take command of the ships we requested from your enterprise. We now require them for another major project, one of the scale of Mon Calamari. Payment shall immediately be forwarded upon the arrival of the Sanare and Organa at your shipyards. I trust that you, your children, and your endeavors are well. Your servant, Admiral Niklas Vandro

Admiral Vandro nodded one last time before he spoke. He came to the Golden Link expecting at least some small amount of magnanimity from its owners, as The Link was own of the corporations that originally backed the Survivor's Foundation, before its trial by miasma at Mon Calamari and Gateway Station. And he was pleased to see that his expectations were fulfilled””it was a reasonable price, considering the new demand for ship production and the rather customized work that he needed to be done. ”œVery satisfactory, thank you.”

"I would prefer to arrange payment at this moment." The Survivor's Foundation could certainly afford the expansion of its fleet, especially now that its ships were scattered all over the galaxy in assistance of the myriad refugee camps that had been spawned by the Arach'tar threat. Admiral Vandro knew what to expect in the terms of price--he came prepared--but business sanity demanded a certain amount of prudence before the purchase was finalized. This was very much according to plan. It was a swift, barely-present negotiation, and soon the Foundation would possess two extremely valuable assets.

"We require two ships capital-class ships, though I expect that number to change in the future--upwards, of course." Vandro couldn't help but smile faintly. "Both are to be Loronar Strike-class Cruisers, though of very different configurations." Retrieving a small datapad for the convenience of his memory, the retired fleet officer began to recite the summary of the technical details. "The first is intended to be a research ship of sorts. We'll need a vastly improved sensor suite, packages for investigating various phenomena, equipment for conducting long-range scans, analyzing gas emissions, detecting transmissions... the full list is on this datapad." It was a rather hefty number of modifications, a job that would have required either a much larger ship, or the impressive modular capabilities of the Loronar Strike Cruiser. "For Terminsel--that was the proposed name of the first ship--the complement of smaller craft is planned to two squadrons of T-65BR's, the scout variant of the X-Wing, and I've been told that it might be possible to pack as many as a half squadron's worth of shuttles in the hangar. "The second is to be outfitted with two gravity well projectors. After the mission to Gateway Station, we found that we were extremely fortunate in that none of the civilians there were able to commandeer a vessel and flee the station, possibly spreading the virus to other planets. We should have had some way of enforcing a quarantine on the area, and that's the role that this ship needs to fulfill. "The full details are on this datapad, though we think we'll be able to fit as many as two squadrons of starfighters--we've specified XJ X-Wings, to be refitted with ion cannons in place of the four laser cannons and ion pulse warheads for the launchers--and a half squadron of shuttles." It was a rather... militant vessel for the strictly pacifistic Survivor's Foundation, but by equipping the vessel with only non-destructive weaponry, Vandro hoped that he could minimize the fallout from its introduction. Besides, if another local outbreak like that seen at Gateway Station occurred, the Foundation needed to be able to enforce a strict quarantine.

Immediately when Vandro turned to the sound of the conference's door opening and saw that Ms. Nargal had arrived, he stood and offered the woman his hand to shake. "Ms. Nargal, a pleasure to meet you at last. I understand that The Link was one of the original supporters of the Survivor's Foundation, before publicity allowed us to operate on charitable donations." The fleet officer inclined his gray head in thanks to her, waiting for her to take a seat before he followed suit. "I'd prefer to keep this as brief as possible, so you can return to your guests. "In the past, the Foundation relied on the Rebellion's shipyards at Mon Calamari to produce and retrofit the ships that our fleet has used in our operation. However, because of recent developments and the massive military build-up in both the Rebellion and Empire, I've decided that it would be inadvisable to continue with this arrangement--in this sort of emergency, it's best that military shipyards be used exclusively for military purposes. I believe that The Link has succeeded in acquiring a shipyard for its use?"

While he was escorted to the meeting with Ms. Nargal, Vandro adopted a slight limp to his gait. It was far from a handicap that an observer would fret about, but rather an imitation of a hard-earned arthritic limp, the unwanted company of having lived one's fair share of years. It had just occurred to the Admiral that he had chosen to meet with the proprietor at the evening mealtime, so even a slight limp would give her a few extra minutes to eat and prepare for the meeting. However if things went the way the Niklas Vandro hoped, the meeting would be extremely simple, only a short interruption to Ms. Nargal before she could return to more interesting activities. When Vandro arrived at the conference room, he turned down the obligatory offer of an alcoholic beverage, instead requesting a pitcher of cold water. He was far from an ascetic, but he had a job to do””until it was completed, he would abstain from the finer refreshments. Although”¦ when it was completed, he knew that the Esperanza and the rest of the fleet could carry on in his absence. In fact, it was probably better that he had come nearly alone””let the lower officers of his command perform their duties without his constant vigil. Content that all would be fine without his presence, Admiral Vandro waited for the arrival of Ms. Zara Nargal or another of the Casino's proprietors. Though left alone with his thoughts, he was perfectly patient while he waited.

In the vicinity of the Golden Link Casino, a single Lambda-class shuttle appeared out of hyperspace and went through the necessary arrangements to dock with the space station. The pilot of the shuttle also requested a personal meeting with one of the entrepreneurs of the Link be arranged with his passenger, Admiral Vandro of the Survivor's Foundation. While he waited silently for his pilot to complete the journey to the casino, Vandro resisted the urge to fidget idly in the passenger cabin of the ship. It was rude, perhaps, to request a private meeting with the top officials with so little forward notice, but he always preferred meeting somone face-to-face rather than an impersonal message over the Holonet, even for business such as mundane as his. Besides, the Esperanza and the rest of the fleet could carry on in his absence.

Somewhere in the outskirts of the Corellian system--what used to be the Corellian system, that is--a set of seven spacecraft left hyperspace. The first six of these were single-burn probes, bullet-like craft that bristled with sensors and comm equipment. The last of these craft was a boxy, shapeless monstrosity that served only to receive the transmissions from the probes and relay the information to the Esperanza via holocomm. One of the probes traveled to each of the murdered Brothers of the Corellian system, thoroughly studying the artificial asteroid fields for clues as to what caused the destruction of the planets. Even if the fleet that had destroyed the planets was long gone, it might have been possible for them to detect evidence that would allow them to determine the nature of the weapons that had been used: exhaust from propellant gases, ionized particles from laser-based weapons, and other minute traces that some of the military-minded researchers with the Foundation knew of. The three that went to the vicinity of Talus and Tralus all took flight paths that would allow them to pass by Centerpoint Station. It would have been impossible for the Arach'tar to not detect the craft if they had a presence nearby, considering the vast power of their sensors. However, these craft served only one purpose: to collect as much data as they could before their power was depleted or they were destroyed.

The white, dagger-like hull of a Victory-class Star Destroyer appeared over Myrkr, and the Survivor's Foundation vessel Organa began to signal to any hidden bases on the surface, through both conventional and cruder methods, that it came in peace. Its purpose was a personal errand on the behalf of the Foundation, not to spark a shooting war. It began to disgorge its squadron of shuttles, dispatching a team of its heavily armored security personnel and more specialized crew for the purpose of harvesting ysalamiri from the surface.

This is going to be a very exciting day”¦ Captain Vandro decided that immediately after the four ships he had ordered, a pair of Venator and Victory-class Star Destroyers, appeared in the view of Esperanza like little red and white scalpels against the black void of space. Performing a sensor scan to affirm that they were loaded with the manifest of shuttles and freighters that the Foundation had requested, he gave confirmation to transfer the necessary credits to the manufacturer's account. Serendipity and Martyriai”¦ the Venator-class Star Destroyers. They were incredibly powerful carriers””Vandro was surprised that the design for their hangars hadn't been adapted to serve in this new civil war. Within their ship-length hangar were nestled ten squadrons worth of shuttles and freighters””more than three times what they were able to carry on board Esperanza. Sanare and Organa”¦ the Victory-class Star Destroyers. One of the largest ships able to perform atmospheric operations, they would be able to ferry massive amounts of supplies to the surface of a stricken planet. Now”¦ now we're ready. Not a day too soon, either”¦ ”œWe're ready.”

After the nightmare that was the mission at Gateway Station (quite literally, as the rest of many of the crew was plagued by devilish dreams of the zombie horde), someone in the upper ranks of the Survivor's Foundation decided that it would have be appropriate if the crew of the Esperanza was given a prolonged tour of duty on Naboo. The world wasn't quite in need of the Foundation's assistance, but the temporary boost to the planet's economy in the form of the resources that the flagship required and the tourism of her crew was certainly welcomed. Most importantly, Captain Vandro's crew was given a badly needed reprieve. The most strenuous duty that was required of his men was teaching little kids in the backwater areas of the planet of the benefits of dental hygiene. The most exhausted of his crew were those that returned from weekend furloughs in the Lake Country and Theed. Captain Vandro considered it to be a working vacation--with the publicity that surrounded the Outbreak, as some of his crew referred to the Gateway Mission, the offices on Coruscant had been buried under the weight of applications of those seeking employment in the Foundation. With the influx of funding, it was an appropriate time to expand the Foundation's fleet. A transmission to a shipyard was soon sent.

A transmission from Esperanza, the now famous flagship of the Survivor's Foundation, reached the surface of Roon. It was a request for the services of the shipyards belonging to Mortati. The ships requested were detailed within the message: 2 Venator-class Star Destroyers. 2 Victory-class Star Destroyers. Over two hundred shuttles and freighters of various designs were also requested.

After many days of dragging the infected civilians on board the Esperanza for treatment of the so-called "Zombie Virus", numerous minor security breaches that gave the security forces on board the ship and nearly drove the science personnel to madness, and uncounted syringes later (at the end of the mission, they were all stuffed in a massive crate which was then incinerated in Corell), the Foundation's mission was complete. Although some of the victims of the virus were too badly wounded to be "revivified", as one of the scientists eloquently described the procedure, most of the men and women on board the station were soon cured. Minor amputations were common, and quite a few of the afflicted later expressed an insatiable craving for rare meat once they were released. Captain Vandro, staring at the latest reports with slightly bloodshot eyes and a few days' worth of stubble on his chin, made a note to himself to consider expanding the fleet. With the funds flowing in after the wake of the Gateway disaster, the Foundation could certainly afford to purchase a new ship to serve as a carrier and a secondary flagship. If they had learned anything over the past few months, it was that their resources could be stretched thin very readily. And meanwhile, he put in an order for more of the Aegis-class environment suits to be produced, with some variations. Their mission complete, the Esperanza shuttled a comparatively smaller number of men over to Gateway Station to assist in the rebuilding process, then jumped into hyperspace.