5913/Daughters of Daratar: Alpha & Omega

Daughters of Daratar: Alpha & Omega
Date of Scene:	04 December 2018
Location:	Space
Synopsis:	Star-Lord investigates Omega and makes some interesting discoveries...
Cast of Characters:	Mon-El, Star-Lord
Tinyplot:	Daughters of Daratar

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Mon-El has posed:
    Omega. A planetoid on the outer rim of the Faryar system. It used to be a penal colony belonging to the Daratarians many years ago, but as Corlis had explained to our intrepid heroes, it had been overrun by pirates. Eventually, Daratar stopped trying to reclaim it...thus, it is now a lawless land filled with criminals and lowlifes. Gambling, slave trade, trafficking of illegal goods, all of it blatantly flaunted here, for there is no fear of retribution from a law of any kind.

    Yeah, and it's dirty, smelly, and nothing is well-cared for at all. No one really cleans or maintains any of the streets or other public facilities (again, no law, no government) on a regular basis, so as it is, Quill probably finds himself perfectly at home here. It might even feel a little bit like Knowhere, just a bit smaller.

    No one checks ID or asks who Peter is when he arrives at the docks, no one asks any questions, either--well, that is, other than whatever amount of money is owed as a parking fee for the use of the docks. As long as he pays, no one cares.

Star-Lord has posed:
Peter Quill might be a mercenary at the best of times, but he's a mercenary who tries to leave the world better than how he left it. While drugs are peoples choice of how they alter their bodies, slavery has never sit well with him, so it takes a bit of self-control to not turn lava blasts on those selling such 'goods'.

Besides that though, the more subtle Guardians have spread out into the place to gather information, while Quill heads out into the main areas of activity to 'make friends'. This might be a backwater, but a criminal underworld is a criminal underworld. Finding the rest people is mostly about saying the right thing to the right people and finding the fronters.

Peter is chill about it though. He's a newcomer who might or might not be recognized. Either way, he's mostly in his element as he 'tours' the hub.

Mon-El has posed:
    Well, at least no one seems to question his presence or anything, not yet anyway. As he makes his way down the street, there are the criminals getting drunk out of their minds and being downright assholes, there are the victims of the slave trade being jerked around, and there are also homeless people who may have ended up stuck here against their wishes in one way or another and are languishing on the streets.

    One of the many dive bars around here appears to have some kind of commmotion going on in front of it. People are yelling and hooting and standing in a circle...yeah Quill probably can tell what -that's- about without even glancing at it twice.

    Certainly, Star-Lord has plenty of options when it comes to who he might try to start saying the 'right thing' to first in order to try to get the information he needs.

Star-Lord has posed:
    Commotion attracts unwanted attention, and usually ends up with enforcers subtly getting people to take a hike. Peter is looking for the quiet (but not too quiet) bars and establishments. Good business usually means the trouble is /elsewhere/, and he has a fine sense of orderly places from finding clients.

Mon-El has posed:
    Well, that place the street fight is happening in front of seems to fit the bill of what he's looking for. The fight -is- outside, so inside the establishment is moderately noisy but not utter chaos.

    He'll just have to sort of slip past that small but rowdy gathering out front. They seem pretty focused on the brawl they're watching, though.

Star-Lord has posed:
Sure, getting by without a fight would be great... but in a place like this, being tagged as an easy mark would be a death sentence towards good relations. He makes no attempt to lower his presence as he walks past the brawl. Anyone looking his way gets a calculated non-verbal greeting (probably a headnod).

Time to see how sadistic the locals are.

Mon-El has posed:
    Peter gets a few glances as he walks by, though most of them don't pay him much mind beyond a smirk or something. The population inside is just as diverse as outside, as might have been expected, though it isn't -too- crowded at the moment. As such, the bartender notices him and grins toward a seat at the counter, inviting Quill to have a seat. He looks sort of humanoid, but has ridges across his forehead and tentacles hanging from his face where a beard might have been on a human. The tentacles are adorned with gold-colored rings.

    "Well look here, have we a new face tonight?" he asks. "Welcome, welcome. What can I get for you, sir?"

Star-Lord has posed:
There's a moment as Peter studies the bartender, before he slips a credit chit onto the counter next to him, "looking to try new things tonight, maybe make new friends." Peter offers charmingly. Going on too strong might set off warning bells. Good faith gestures are always appreciated, though, "what do you have on tap?" The translator implant is working overtime as Peter listens in on the conversations around him as well.

Multitasking. One of the perks of being half-whatever-he-is.

Mon-El has posed:
    "Something new, eh? Sure thing, sure thing! I hope I can offer you a fresh take." The bartender nods and hands him a holograhpic menu, although it is somewhat shoddy. On the tap:

1. Nitrex Cronum
2. Attican Remix
3. Shot in the Dark
4. Point Blanc
5. Bordeaux Blend

As Peter tries to listen in on conversations around him, he might notice there is a lot of mention of some group referred to only as the "Alpha". It kind of sounds like they are the ruling class around here...though there are no laws, it seems they sort of decide what flies and what doesn't whenever they feel like it.

    Admist all this, the bartender also starts to apologize a bit. "Sorry about the brawl outside, by the way. Hope it didn't bother ya too much, but not much I can do about it. Lotta people into fighting for sport around here, if you can't already tell."

Star-Lord has posed:
"Got to do something to pass the time, right?" Peter notes with a casual air, like it was nothing new to him.... which it probably isn't.

Scanning over the menu, he gives a grin, "Shot in the Dark sounds fun." Peter offers, "an ironic name given my business here." Leave an opening for the bartender to walk through. Make it sound less leading if it's his idea.

Mon-El has posed:
    The alien nods. "Hn. Yes I suppose. The Alpha love it to death." he mentions. "Me....ah," he shrugs. "Guess it's not really my thing." A sigh, but he perks up when Peter decides on a drink. "Good choice! One Shot in the Dark, coming right up." He starts to fill a mug with a murky dark grey-colored liquid.

    Sure enough, the guy walks through the opening made. "Oh, business eh? What sort of business? If you don't mind my asking." he lowers his voice. "Of course, if you'd rather not say much out here, I'll understand."

Star-Lord has posed:
"Who are the Alpha? I've heard that name a few times, but I just figured it was one of many. You make them sound like the head honchos." Peter prods the bartender as he takes a shot.

Mon-El has posed:
    "Ah, you must not have been around these parts for very long." The barkeep replies. "Alpha is the most powerful syndicate on Omega. Whatever they say, goes. Not that they tend to make too many rules, but there are a few things that they -do- care about. Such as the arena fights. Certainly, it's worth a lot of credits." he says this with an air of regret. "And credits are the real power around here."

Star-Lord has posed:
"Not surprised. There's always a group like that around these places." Peter downs another shot. "I might go pay my respects while I'm here. You got a location?"

Mon-El has posed:
    "Heh, which one? I think there's at least three." The bartender answers. "Largest one's in the east sector though. Can't miss it, Alpha's got signs about it all over the place over there. I hear they've got some new big shot champion these days, too. Massive credit machine, everyone loves watching him destroy all the competition. And of course, they also love the credits they get when they win the bets." he shakes his head.

    "Anyway, yeah. East sector, quadrant 2. If you get lost almost anyone could tell where to go." Then he leans in a bit, again lowering his voice. "Listen pal, I get the feeling you're not like the rest of these scum..." he glances around the bar. "And I don't think you're headed out there just to revel in some twisted bloodthirsty game. So whatever it is you're trying to do...I just uh...hope you succeed." He straightens back up. "Best of luck, kid."

Star-Lord has posed:
"Oh, I'm just a tourist." Peter states nonchalantly. "I just know that if you want to stay long term on these sort of rocks, you need to have a relationship with the powers that be, or stay off the scanners." Peter affirms, as if he wasn't a complete badass in his own right capable of taking on most of the people on Omega by himself.

"I appreciate the concern, though." Peter raises his glass in a non-verbal thanks, and downs another shot. He'll stay for a little while longer so it doesn't look like he was here for information, before he stands, placing a spare chit, "keep the change." He walks out soon after with a destination in mind. First things first though....

Taking a hypospray from a pouch, he presses it to his neck when he's out of sight and presses the trigger. a cocktail of anti-drunk stims hits his bloodstream, and both clears out the buzz and gives him a nice energy boost. "Woah, forgot how much that stuff kicks." Peter presses a hand to his forehead as he waves for the lightheadedness to pass, before he starts over to the East Sector.

Mon-El has posed:
    Sure enough, as Peter closes on the area his new friend had told him about, there are a ton of advertisements all about almost every business and every available wall. They brag of a new and powerful champion at the arenas this season. Arena patrons must pay a fee (which no doubt goes to Alpha) to bet on him.

    He probably doesn't need to ask anyone for directions, either, since there are plenty of arrows and signs all about pointing toward the big hotspot attraction.

Star-Lord has posed:
It's always a tough decision; covert or overt survillance. Still, better to get an idea is what's going on for a profile first.

He occasionally glances towards the businesses as he goes -who knows, there's bound to be something worthwhile to buy- and heads towards the arena. No doubt he'll have to pay... but it gets him an in.

Mon-El has posed:
    The arena is probably the most well-maintained thing on this entire celestial body, and it certianly is as far as Peter as thus far seen. The barkeep had been right, it seems Alpha really cares about these, and not a whole lot about anything else. It is not unlike one of those large ampitheaters back on Earth, with massive grandstands all around a center area. Large holopanels with live feeds of the action below sit on top of them.

    At the entry, of course as he predicted, he is expected to pay an entry fee, and any additional fees associated with betting if he chooses to do so. The admission booth is operated by a fairly realistic looking gynoid, the only telltale thing about her appearance is some glowing circuitry in the side of her neck.

Star-Lord has posed:
He's not here for the fight. He's here to observe. "Good stuff." He casually mentions as his ticket is punched, so to speak. When he's through, he's checking patterns, patrons, customers, employees. He's looking to sneak his way around under the cover of the energy of the place. Positions. Equipment. Likely hiding spots. It's all mentally catalogued as he goes. Is it even possible to slip by patrols, or do these people have dozens of bodies everywhere?

Mon-El has posed:
    The arena is pretty crowded, and there is certainly a lot of energy. A fight is going down in the middle between two reptilian-looking aliens, and the audience is roaring with enthusiasm. A corridor leads right into the grandstands, but there are -other- ways he can go. Bathrooms for those who need to relieve themselves in that way, food and beverage stands, gambling booths where more betting can take place, or where bets can be changed, that sort of stuff. Around the staging area itself are cage doors that are currently closed, presumably where the combatants come out.

    If he is looking for hiding places...he may notice that there are some tight squeeze spaces between the stands and the ground/the outer wall of the arena. He'd probably fit into them if he pushed hard enough. Otherwise, losing oneself in the crowd probably wouldn't be a bad idea, either.

    Oddly, security here doesn't seem all that tight. There are some armed guards who are presumably Alpha personnel walking around, but they seem kind of few and far between. But if they cared so much about these fights, why wouldn't they invest more in protecting them? That doesn't quite seem to add up.

Star-Lord has posed:
It's definitely a question to ask, but that'd require a higher up to interrogate, and better to case the place beforehand.

Time to go to work.

Memorizing patrols, Peter starts to look around. Finding the one in charge shouldn't be difficult... and once he does, he starts to find his way into the backstage areas. Are there obvious cameras? Those are given a virus scrambler launched from a mini-crossbow under his wrist to send them into loops. It pays to be prepared.

He wants a security hub, or at least a head honcho chamber to comb through.

Mon-El has posed:
    Perhaps surprisingly, Peter does not find much of any resistance as he makes way into some of the backstage areas in search of the one in charge. Yes, there is surveillance, though his scrambler seems to work just fine to loop the footage. As he weaves his way back, the amount of people milling about thins until he is basically alone. He might note some locked vaults probably filled with weapons along the walls, and an elevator that requires a security code to access.

    Soon enough though, he would spot a room at the end of a hallway that definitely looks like a security hub, with video panels all around the back wall showing various parts of the arena. All this seems...-too- easy. It doesn't seem right at all...

    But wait, there is someone else in that room. Someone familiar, who he would at least recognize from the images Corlis gave him of the guy he claimed helped them fend off the slavers.

Star-Lord has posed:
Right, inside job. It's always an inside job with the naive ones.

Still, this is a perfect target.

Sneaking his way casually over to the man, he grabs the guy from behind, putting him into a chokehold that both cuts off arm movement, and cuts off his air. One of his hands go around his mouth to make sure he gets nothing out as he tries to subdue his target.

Mon-El has posed:
    When Peter tries to sneak up behind the man and grab him, he finds his efforts are met by an extremely strong grip simply grabbing his arm and pulling him off as if he were a piece of grass or something, although it is done gently. And now that the man has turned around, Quill will realize that he knows this guy...

    Yes, back on Knowhere some time ago, the two of them had helped protect a mutant Terran girl from an army of assassin bots sent by the Khunds to off her. And now that he's front and center, he is also definitely the one in the pictures Corlis had provided of the one who apparently single-handedly sent the slavers' entire detail running for their lives. Well that certainly made sense. And it also made sense now for why Peter's attempts to subdue failed spectacularly.

    However, what does -not- make sense, is why he's behaving this way now. He simply fixes Peter with a blank stare, as if no one is home, and points toward the door to indicate he should leave now before things...get ugly.

Star-Lord has posed:
"Ohsh-" Peter gives in surprise as he's tossed around like paper. Peter is hardly weak himself... but he knows kryptonian level strength when he sees it.

Hypnotism, or a controlling implant usually. Peter isn't trained to handle deprogramming, but he /does/ have an EMP bomb he brought along, just in case.

What? It's a recon mission, and you might need a quick getaway.

The bomb is set to go off instantly, and is tossed to the back of the chamber so he can't just break it.

Peter starts to run, heading for one of the hidey holes as he goes. He just set off a giant EMP nuke in the middle of a pirate haven. Things were about to turn into a mess.

Mon-El has posed:
    Well, the EMP does do one thing--cover Peter's escape by knocking out most of the power and causing the audience to fly into chaos and confusion. While Alpha scrambles to get everything back under control, it will be easy for Quill to slip out unnoticed. As for Lar...well, at this point it's impossible to tell whether the pulse bomb did anything to bring him back to himself or not...

    Still, on his way out, Peter might notice what some of the advertisements are flaunting--which is the fact that the signup for going up against Alpha's new 'champion' is open to any and all, and they are allowing groups of individuals to -team up- against him as well. Within reason, of course. And at this point, is there even any question left as to who this 'unbeatable champion' is? It should follow then, that if anyone knows where the princesses are, Lar probably does. Get him to snap out of whatever that was, get the girls' location...

Star-Lord has posed:
The helmet is flicked on with a touch, the life support within it making sure he'll be fine when the air starts to thin. Now, he needs to get back to the Milano and find the newest subspace comm relay to link into. The Legion had to be contacted.

"This is Star-Lord. I want the entire team back at back within a half hour. New information requires us elsewhere." Peter states over the Guardian commnet as he waits for an opening.

This was fun.