Epsilon's Quest

The hole was covered as one of the men pressed his face to it, looking in. He jerked his head back. "Hey, there's something in there! I saw it move!"

"Something get in the crates?" murmurred the other. "Could be bad... what is it?"

"I dunno, but it's pretty big. I'll get the pistol."

"You know how to use it?"

"How hard can it be?" Footsteps clanked on metal flooring.

Epsilon narrows his eyes at Dunne. "Oh, I hope you're happy," he hisses. "Okay, look. Get as far away from the hole as possible. When they open the crate, we spring out and hope we can silence the two of them without anyone noticing. Then we get back in the crate. Are we clear?"

The footsteps were coming back. "Ok, you pop it with this and I'll shoot whatever's in there..." The crate's top creaked from pressure at several points.

"That ought to do-- wha!?" Epsilon threw the lid off and lunged out of the box. His target leveled a small firearm at him and pulled the trigger. The weapon let out a vicious-sounding click as Epsilon pounded his fist into the surprised technicians face. The man bounced off the metal wall behind him and slumped to the floor.

To Sy's right, Dunne threw himself from the box, catching his feet on the edge and falling headfirst onto the floor. Pedro followed, but perched on the edge of the crate, swinging his little fist in a lightning fast grab and plucking the second tech's crow bar right from his hand. The man stared in confusion at the moogle, now holding his crow bar, and then Pedro swung it in a wide arc and connected it solidly with the crown of his head. He stared for a second longer, then sank to the floor next to his comrade.

A metal box on the wall buzzed to life. "... what's going on back there...?" asked a tinny voice.

Epsilon walks over to the box, studying the guards' dog tags as he passes. He presses the button. "Nothing to report," he announces, in his best Imperial accent. "Some crates fell over and knocked Wedge for a loop, is all. I've got it under control." He releases the button and turns back to the guards. "Erm, we probably don't have much time. Do you think we can fit into these uniforms, Dunne?"

The tinny voice laughed. "Don't screw around back there. You don't want to annoy the lieutenant."

Epsilon hits the button. "No worries; we'll have it all cleaned up before he sees anything."

Dunne was already peeling the jumpsuit off of Pedro's downed man. His efforts revealed the man's lacey undergarments. "Um... I'm not wearing those." He struggled to pull the jump suit on over his armor. It didn't fit over the plate very well. "How's that?" said Dunne, with a flourish.

Epsilon shook his head... it was a sorry sight.

"Dunne, you... erm, you have to take your armor off, first. _Then_ put the jumpsuit on." Epsilon demonstrates, stripping down to his tunic and pulling the suit on over it. He stows his armor... and his prodigious hat... safely in Hammerspace. Epsilon also makes sure to pick up the tech's gun and tuck it into a deep pocket. He shows Dunne where to pin on the ID card -- "Remember, Dunne, you're Biggs," -- then sets about tying and gagging the techs and loading them into the crate.

"Pedro, can you stay hidden well enough, or should we find shackles or something for you, so you can masquerade as a prisoner?" Pedro bridled at the mention of prisoners and shook his fist at Epsilon.

The work was done soon enough, Pedro lending a hand in lowering the crate and leaving the two techs bound and gagged inside. Dunne was finishing putting his armor on over his new jump suit. He looked at Epsilon, "What now?"

Epsilon thinks for a moment, then hits the button. "We sent someone back there a while ago, but he never reported back. I'll head back to check up on it. What exactly am I looking for again?"

There was a long pause. "The tail... it's the opposite end of the airplane from where you started. Do you need me to send you a guide? Maybe I can draw you a map?" There was another pause, with an almost imperceptible sigh. " ... Just check the stupid door."

Epsilon sighed. "I meant what exactly is wrong with the door. Thanks anyway. I'll get right on it."

At the back of the cylindrical fuselage, a jumpsuit clad man was already tapping on the large cargo door with a wrench. Next to the door was a panel with a blinking red light on it. "Eh," muttered the man, not looking up from his work, "did that light go off yet?"

"Erm, no," said Epsilon. "Have you ascertained what the trouble is, yet?"

"Yeah, that light won't stop blinking." He crouched, tapping lower, then stood up, tapping the door at a higher point.

Dunne made his way over to the panel with the blinking light and touched it. He leaned down, speaking into the panel, "Hello? Hello?" He looked at Epsilon and the other tech in consternation. "Wait, I'll fix this..." He slammed his hand into the panel, then hit it again, drawing sparks. The cargo door lurched open on hinges in the floor, lowering itself and revealing ocean rapidly moving far below them. The tech lost his balance and fell, catching onto the door and dangling in the open air. Dunne did a double take, seeing the water far below. He stood frozen.

Epsilon made a strangled noise, which meant his throat suddenly disgorged a sound not entirely unlike sheet metal tearing. Fortunately, the circumstances concealed it nicely. Without even pausing to think, Sy grabbed a hold of the doorjamb and reached a hand out towards the tech.

"GRAB MY HAND!" he screamed, his voice barely audible over the roar of the wind.

The man reached up to take Sy's hand, but his grasp fell short and he slid further down, yelping pitifully. "Real--really high..." muttered Dunne, transfixed by the world below.

Epsilon stepped on the edge of the door, leaning out as far as he dared to catch the unfortunate tech. He couldn't quite reach. Dunne came to life, hitting the panel again. "Hello?! Help! Send help!" The man slipped down the door, now well out of reach. "Hey, hang on!" said Dunne, stepping up to the edge of the door.

Before Epsilon could think to do something else, Dunne lost his balance and he too fell, landing face first on the open door and grabbing at the flailing man as both began to slide. Without a moment's hesitation, Sy lunged and grabbed Dunne's feet. With a great effort, he slowly pulled both men back inside. They both lay on the floor, panting, arms entwined.

Epsilon extricates himself from the two men and crawls a few feet away, where he stretches out his arms and back to the faint sound of steam escaping. Small damp patches appear on his jumpsuit at his joints. He then turns back towards his companions, rotating one shoulder and flashing Dunne a grin. "Du... er, Biggs, you are truly something else. I have never met a man so stupid yet so unequivocally brilliant. I would never have volunteered to be the rope."

Dunne crawled in the other direction and brushed himself off. He shakily stood, leaning away from the open cargo door and glanced at Epsilon. "What?!" He looked in confusion at Sy, then at the tech who was also pulling himself to his feet. "Oh, yes, it was a very good rescue on our part, thanks to me, Sir D-- Biggs and you..." He leaned over, squinting at Epsilon. He looked nervously at the rescued man. "Hmm... just you. Good show! And we are flying!"

"I lost my wrench," said the new man, staring out at the ocean below.

"Better to have lost your wrench than a more wrenching loss, eh?" Epsilon quips, patting the man on the back and trying to sneak a look at his ID.

"Piette" read the badge. The man to whom the badge belonged seemed to recover from his shock, but not enough to appreciate Sy's jest.

"Hey, uh, we should, uh, close that before the Lieutenant gets wind of this..." He carefully moved towards the panel, giving the open cargo door a wide berth.

Dunne followed, saying, "Yup, I am... Biggs. I know how to fix these things." The knight hit the panel again and looked at the door expectantly. He turned helplessly to Epsilon. The panel sparked, making Dunne jump and back away. Piette stared at it blankly.

Seeing no help coming, Dunne looked at the sparking panel again. He leaned back and kicked it with the bottom of his boot. The box sparked and hissed as the cargo door closed itself. He looked smugly from Epsilon to Piette. "Told you I know how to handle machines. Just have to show them who's boss."

Piette glared at them. "You guys aren't going to pin that on me... are you? We'll just say it was like that when we got back here. I'll report in." He stepped past them and began walking the way they had come. Dunne nodded smartly.

"Right, then," Epsilon says, giving a casual salute. "We'll just stay back here then, and -- erm -- continue guarding the crates."

Pedro popped up from somewhere within the sea of cargo boxes. He chirped a tart "Kupo". Dunne blinked at him. "I did so rescue him... you heard Epsilon." Pedro countered smugly, launching into a barrage of nonsense. "No, I did not slip. It was a daring rescue." The moogle needled him again. "I was not trying to push him off... you weren't even there... you didn't see anything." He rolled his eyes. "Moogles."

"You two make a good team," Epsilon mutters.

Dunne was apalled. "Team? He's a lowly squire... if anyone is a team, it's me! Pedro just carries my things..." Pedro retorted, then disappeared into the boxes.

Piette returned. "They want you guys up front..."