Star Wars: Rogue Traders (RP Thread - Open)

[Chavvy]

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A LONG TIME AGO, IN A GALAXY FAR AWAY...

STAR WARS: Episode 3.142
Rogue Traders

The galaxy is in turmoil, nations divided as the new Empire rises from the ashes of the republic. Resistance fighters of various systems are being crushed under the thumb of Darth Vader and his legions of storm troopers, and whispers of a united rebellion are coming to the surface. The Jedi that once protected the galaxy have vanished, those that still linger fighting for their lives as the darkness consumes their light.

The criminal world remains unchanged however and is business as usual. The smuggling trade in particular if prospering, both of goods and passengers, the mist of chaos blanketing the activity as the galaxy turns a blind eye to those breaking the laws.

A lone freighter is docked on Nar Shaadar, its minimalist crew in a nearby cantina, on the outskirts of Gatwin sector. They come looking to recruit for a mission of high importance, for one of the major players in criminal activity, the Black Hand. Their hope, to turn power on its head for the first time in centuries...

Current Players:

Fesa Thorn - Pilot - Chavvy.
Lah-TekTek (Tek) - Co-pilot - Damxge
Ardana - Gunner - inSYNCinSANITY
Kinto Scrimp - Mechanic - Conor

Notable NPC's:
Hiss - R2 unit on-board The Skipper

[Chavvy]

I've missed Nar Shaadar, the endless city of the smugglers' moon. Famed for its sheer overcrowding, it makes it perfect for people like us, so much going on, people fail to see what actually happening. Just walking the streets, taking in the smell of bad street food and piss, and watching a few muggings helps you feel alive, providing you can keep yourself hidden in some respect.

"I don't get why you even needed me back there, Thorn." Kinto said, panting slightly as he tried to keep up with my pace.
"Just in case things turned ugly. Never a good idea to go alone to those kinda meet-ups." I answered, still getting over the fact that I was still alive.
"But you said you had links with them? Wouldn't that have been enough trust there to know not to shoot?" Kinto asked, probably feeling the same way.
"Only with a two lower members of the hand. But links nonetheless." I stated stopping to make sure he heard.
"You could have easily done this on your own. Besides, I still don't like the idea of leaving the ship where it is. its not exactly sec-"
"It'll be a good chance to test the security you fitted, we'll just have to make sure to stand back when them repeaters start ripping up intruders." I joked.
"Good point... so what's the plan now?"
"Get a few drinks down our necks, and see what happens. I'll leave word at the bar of our need of crew, you know how it works. Its usually worked in the past!"
"... You're buying first round then, I'll find somewhere to sit."

We had found ourselves to a cantina not far from the spaceport, sat in a booth that had seen better days. Admittedly, it wasn't anything fancy, but we came here looking for crew, not twi'lek prostitutes, so the level of class had to be lowered a bit. We had two days to kill before our mission could begin anyway, and it was about time we let our hair down a little. As much of a friend Kinto had become over the last couple of years, but three weeks on the ship, just the two of us can get a little much, and I craved a little bit of interaction with other people. Here seemed a good mix, many species, many stories, and hopefully one or two of them looking for employment...

[Damxge]

"And there I was!" I said loudly, continuing my story after having downed a shot of whiskey, the folks to whom I was talking sat there expectantly at the bar. One guy was an ex rebel, another man, an outer galaxy explorer, and three beautiful twi'lek women, the bartender, a waitress, and the last, I honestly didn't know where she came from, but I was praying that if I played my cards right, I could get one or two of them back to my room at the inn up the street.

"The captain was dead, a bunch of the crew as well," I said, "I wasn't sure if I was the last alive or not, I just had to escape the crash. So I crawled through the smoke and debris until I found the windscreen and climbed out, cuttin' the sh*t outta my hands and arms on the way," I showed the bandages wrapped around my hands and arms.

"But how did you survive? A crash from space, impossible!" Chipped in the explorer.

"We Vatik are a tough race, a little 'ole crash ain't nothin for me," I laughed, flexing my long arms, grinning at my audience.

"But if your captain is dead, the ship is in pieces, what are you going to do?" one of the women asked.

"I plan on gettin' drunk and finding work tomorrow," I laughed, taking another shot, "I'm sure someone could use a co-pilot 'round these parts,"

"What did you pilot?" came a new voice from my left. I turned to find a new face, a male human with green eyes and brown hair, standing there staring at me.

"A custom rigged empire gunship," I responded, "Why ya wanna know?"

"I happen to be in the market for a co-pilot, care to chat?" He asked, cocking his head a bit.

"Lead the way, good sir," I said, hopping off of my stool, "It was nice ladies, I'll be around," I winked at the girls as I followed this guy over to his table where another human sat, this one with blonde hair and some weird tech on his face.

"My name is Fesa," Fesa said, sitting down opposite me, next to the blonde fella. He folded his hands in front of him on the table and I suddenly felt like I was in an interview. After hesitating for a moment, I sat down across from them.

"And your name is?" Piped up the blonde man, raising his eyebrows.

"Oh, uh, right, my name is Lah-TekTek," I said with a sheepish smile, having completely forgotten my manners, "You can call me Tek if you like, most people do,"

[cyclonecasey]

(Was she green? )

Still checking the door periodically in case Jarik or the others came in looking for me, I watched the human men in the corner conversing formally with the Vatik. I couldn't help but think, if they needed a co-pilot, maybe they were looking for other crew members too, maybe they could be my ticket off this rock and out of Jarik's reach.
But how do I even approach them? They'd take one look at me and dismiss me as utterly useless, nothing more than pretty face a desirable body for rich men to use for whatever they need.
My hand found my way down to the gun at my hip, fingers twitching at the trigger.
Perhaps a show of force will prove my capability and make them come to me.

(Sorry for such a short intro but I'm honestly not sure if I should start a fight with a random or have one of Jarik's crew come in and find me and I kick his ass, thoughts?. Also, if you want to make Jarik an NPC that causes trouble latter, I'm cool with that)

[Conor]

"I know you're kind," I began, pointing a leather-gloved finger at the spindly beast "You're a Vatik. Our deckhand was a Vatik back on the Swan." Tek's big eyes widened more so "We used him for reaching the cobs on the top of the cooking station, but he was pretty good with a blaster, too."

"Ah, well..." the Vatik began "I'm more of a pilot. A co-pilot, of course. I've been stuck here for a while, and I'd like some work." I looked to Fesa, who just sat with the same indifferent face as he slumped in his chair.
Music began to play. Upbeat, jazzy, and quick. Heads of all shapes and sized began bobbing up and down across the bar.
"I love these guys." Tek smiled, bobbing his head in unison. I looked to Fesa.

"We could use a co-pilot. I'm tired of fixing the scrapes you keep givin' her, need someone else to keep you in check." i flipped my gaze to Tek, whilst heaving off of my seat "But you're the boss man, bossman. I'm going for a smoke."

"That'll kill you at some point!" Tek exclaimed to my back as I walked away, and I stopped in my tracks. Like a whirlwind I span, u-turning back to the table, and leaning over close at Tek. My wrist flicked, a small blade protruding from the palm of my hand, ripping the skin, the tip pointed at the Vatik's eye.

"I'll f***ing kill you at some point, matey, if you keep up that f***ing cheek." I hissed with a murderous look in my eye. The alien leaned back in his seat, not scared, just surprised. Since when did humans grow balls? he must've thought.

"I'll keep the health advice to myself, then?" he murmured.

"That'd probably be for the fuckin' best." I growled back, the blade vanishing back into my palm as I recoiled, marching off with a madman's swagger out the front door. "Sorry about that." I heard Fesa's voice say before it faded off into the music.
Outside, a blue two-moon glow blessed the flat savannah this hellhole was built on. I flipped a smoke into my gob, a small mechanical hand coming down from my goggles and producing a flame. Taking a drag, I shook my head and rubbed my eyes.

"f*** Vetik rub me up the wrong way..." I grumbled to n oone in particular, the light from the moons strong and warm, yet the night air was cool. Sand captured by the breeze battered onto my jumpsuit, forcing me to do it up fully. Oil and grease coveted my knuckles as I wiped my forehead, as the hardest decision of the night hit me: what shall i have to drink?
Round the corner, i heard a commotion, followed by the unmistakable noise that was muffled blaster fire. i poked my head around the corner of the yellow stoned building. A bunch of men stood over a body, smoke oozing from the blaster wound in its head. I quickly retreated back round the corner, not taking in the appearance, just the figures.

"I hate it when they don't just give us what they need." came a voice muffled by a helmet.

"We'll split up, we've got to find her faster." came another, followed by the marching of feet. A few came this way, snaking around the corner and to the front of the bar. There I was, fag in mouth.... and acting blind drunk.
These men were mercs of some kind. Black helmets and shoulder capes on the higher ranks. They were also all above 7ft tall, dwarfing me completely. I stumbled around a bit, before one of them addressed me "You! Seen this girl?" one of them began, a small devise in their gloved hand exploding with a hologram. It was a beautiful Twi'lek woman, probably a whore of some kind. These guys must be pimps, best to just keep it cool.
I took a purposely dazed look at the hologram before looking back up at the men.

"I dunno geezer but I'm sure there's someone of satisfactory quality in this sh*t tip." I slurred. One of the mercs reached up to their helmet, removing it slowly to reveal black hair... no... fur! this man was no man, he was a wookie!
A guttural grunt emitted from his gullet, but luckily i understood it. "We'll try in here!" he said to the others. They must have translator prossessors in the helmets. Not everyone can speak an old world language, after all. The wookie gang dissapeared into the bar, and I straightened back up, pulling out my communicator.

"Fes, a bunch of blinged up wooks are coming in, they're looking for a Twi'lek."

"So?" came Fesa's radiated voice.

"So, don't give them a reason to beat you to death with your own arms, yeah?"

[cyclonecasey]

Suddenly the bar door slammed open, so hard I felt the vibration from the opposite end, so loud the whole bar went quite. I leaned out and snuck a glance at the door, immediately bulling back and cursing.
It had to be Slorth. The Gamorrean was accompanied by four large men in suits that I knew were actually Wookies. I pulled my gun out and pressed myself harder into my seat, waiting to see if they'd find me before my heart beat out of it's chest, which honestly would be less painful than what would happen if they managed to take me back to Jarik.
"You fellas need something?" I heard a voice call out, presumably the bartender. There's a crash of glass and I can just imagine Slorth grabbing the bartender and dragging her across the bar.
"Please, I don't want any trouble" she pleads, confirming my suspicions.
"We're looking fro a green Twi'lek girl, turn her over and we wont have any" comes the gruff and angry response.
"Green? I, uh, I saw one earlier but I'm not sure where she is now"
"SEARCH THE ROOM!" A thud signals Slorth dropping the bartender.
My eye's dart around the room trying to find an escape and the land on the Human and Vatik, both of them looking back at me. The Vatik was wide eyed as though slapped in the face, but the humanl he's eyes were narrowed, glancing between me and the Gamorrean curiously. I took a deep breath and jumped out from behind the wall that hid my seat.
"Here I am!" I yell tauntingly aiming my gun. I shoot at each Wookie and then at Slorth. All four of the Wookies fall down, three dead, one badly injured. Slorth squealed loudly, dropping his axe and clutching at his right arm with his left.
"Ardana! I will take you back to Jarik. Making a scene wont help you"
"Over my dead body" I hiss back. I put my gun back in it's holster ans instead taking hold of the shockstaff I'd stolen from Jarik's room before sneaking away. I press the button and the staff extends to it's full length and electricity starts jumping from each end.
"Oh no. Unconscious should be enough. Jarik would kill me if I destroyed his property"
"I AM NOT... HIS... PROPERTY!" I yell at the top of my lungs. I scream in anger and run at him, swinging the shockstaff above my head as I ran, and swung it at him as I got in range. His right hanging limply at his side, he blocked, instead, with his left the electric current coursing through the his gauntlets and up his arm for a split second before wham, he he kicked my legs out from under me.
"I always said I could beat you with one hand tied behind my back" he teased through bouts of laughter.

(I'd actually like my character to kill this guy eventually but she's just not up to the task yet. I'd say Fesa steps in? My intention was to impress him with my shooting ability.)

[Damxge]

I sprinted across the bar on all fours, over a table, then over the bar, launching myself with ferocious speed at the man. As I landed, my left foot grabbed onto the sparking staff he held, pointed at the twi-lek's face. I pulled him off balance, the staff coming out of his grip as my right hand found a nearby chair and swung it over my head and across the guy's back. Shocked at the explosion of activity, he fell forward into the bar, his face smacking off of the edge as he crumpled to the ground. It was then that five more guys, dressed identically to the wookies, barged in through the front door. With no time to think, I grabbed onto the twi'lek's ankle and hauled her onto my back as I sprinted for the back, blaster fire lighting up the room, glasses exploding, tables overturning, the patrons going for their own weapons to return fire.

I made it out back to find Fesa and his violent blonde compatriot leaned up against the wall, the stink of a cigarette filling my nostrils.

"Put me down!" Came the disgruntled, upside down cry of the twi'lek I still had strung across my back. Without a word, I lowered her to the ground where she clambered to her feet, her head tentacles, or whatever the f*** those things were, all discombobulated.

"The f*** would you do that?" The blonde man asked, spitting the stub of his fag onto the ground.

"Jarik owns you, right?" I asked, ignoring the angry comment, directing my question to the twi-lek.

"He does no-" She started to yell, but I clamped a hand over her face, muffling the rest of the sentence.

"I get it, I get it," I hissed, letting go once she'd stopped talking.

"We gotta move, Tek, you're hired," Jesa said, straightening up and marching off down the street at no hurried pace. These two were either the slickest fuckers I'd ever seen, or they were slow in the head.

"Come with me," I said to the green woman, motioning in my new crew mates' direction, "I need to talk to you about Jarik,"

"How do you know Jarik?" She asked, trailing behind me, slinging her zapper stick thing back onto her back.

"He visited my planet when I was young, took a good portion of the youth and killed a lot of my village," I explained, following the pair's winding path through the slummy port, "I personally don't give a f*** about slavery, but what he did was a personal affront to me and my village, I want some payback if I can get it," I could hear shouting back from the direction we came, the distinct voice of the freshly one-armed guy calling out.

"Ardana! We'll find you you b*tch!"

(Hope all is good.)

[Chavvy]

Dammit mike, you ninja'd me!:

We ran as fast as we could to the space port, the best chance of getting out of here alive was to fire up the Skipper and move to another part of the planet. We couldn't leave given our task, but at least moving out the way until we need to will have to do for now. We approached the hanger, and I threw some credits at the Ithorian at the front desk before he had chance to count it, knowing it was nowhere near enough. The others trailed behind me as we approached the ship. The large blue and grey vessel stood out among the rest, though not enough to draw attention to it... then I remembered the security system.

"Wait there." I ordered, continuing to run towards the ship, Kinto stopping with the other two, knowing what I had to do. if the new crew approached the ship now, they'd be cinders before they could even smell the oil in the hydraulics of the loading ramp. I should really get Kinto to fix that leak. I ran as fast as my legs would let me until I was in range to deactivate the system, and open her up, the loading ramp hissing as it dropped to let us in. I gestured for the others to follow, quickly getting in as I heard faint shouting from the hanger door. I plonked myself in the cockpit, and started to ignite the engines as the others got in.

"Just grab onto something, we don't have time!" I shouted, as the others appeared in the main chamber. Kinto threw them into the benchknowing I wasn't gonna go steady, we'd been in these situations before, and I was thankful Kinto had partnered up with me, given his modifications to the hyperdrive, meaning I could fire up in seconds rather than minutes. Yeah, sometimes it failed, but it was good nine times out of ten. Before we had chance to catch our breath, we were airbourne, the landing gear retracting, and blasted out the hanger as Jariks' men appeared on the hanger floor. I didn't have a destination in mind, we just needed to disappear for 36 hours or so.

Once airbourne, I took her a little more steady, and the others started to wander towards the cockpit, Tek taking keen interest at what would be his main area from now on.

"That happen often?" I asked the Twi'lek.
"Don't even go there. I've not even been free for a week and already had four encounters. No doubt they're already working on finding this ship." She answered.
"You must be worth something if they're this eager to re-capture a slave, usually they only pursuit for a day or so." Kinto commented, already with tools out, performing maintenance to Hiss on the cockpit floor. She remained quiet, maybe it was a touchy subject, or simply didn't have any trust in us yet, which would be understandable.
"All I know is that Jarik is a bastard, and deserves to die." Tek calmly said, sitting down in the chair to my right, his new station. "Any idea where we're going by the way?"
"We'll just go a couple hundred miles round, and find a port, change our course halfway to knock them off our scent." I replied, before turning towards the Twi'lek "As for you, I'd suggest trying to disguise your appearance somehow for a while until the heat dies down on you. See if there's some spare clothes in the crew quarters, that should help."

I turned back to focus on piloting the ship, as Tek continued to survey the layout of the switches, familiarising himself.

[cyclonecasey]

"Somehow I don't think a disguise will help. Knowing Jarik, he's probably kill every green Twi'lek he comes across until he finds me" I didn't know if the others heard me or ever cared, they seemed to be doing their own thing. I wandered over to a window and sighed, realising with surprise that I wasn't scared.
I was free. I didn't know how long it would last but at that exact moment I was free. I sat on the cushioned while bench next to the window and settled down, content to watch the galaxies pass me by. Strugling to understand that these were the same stars and planets I'd seen from Jariks ship those five long years. Everything just seems different.

[Conor]

A shower.
Not many people know this, but a long, hot shower has the ability to take away any of your worries. I know this - all too well in fact - and that is exactly why I installed one in the Skipper's lodger cabins.
It was a claustrophobic thing, but I had to work with the space I had. But the jets work wonders on the back muscles, and pressure is good as long as Jesa isn't steering right... For some reason.
the ship was quiet. Fesa cruised along without help, as he had done thus far. Tek sat at the secondary terminal, familiarising himself with the Skipper's diagetics. Hiss rolled around goofily, trying to sniff out anything that needed fixing, but luckily, nothing yet. I caught Tek's gaze for a second, his bug eyes looking my way. He sent me a nod, and I returned it back. I then retreated into the cabins for a snooze.

"Uh... Any towels?" Came a voice, metallicised by the ships interior. I looked around, discovering the sound came from the shower.

"uh... Yeah, sure." I searched around, heading for the freshly folded stack. I looked away, handing it out only for it to be snatched away.

"Thanks."

"No problem..." I murmured, making sure I didn't catch a glance "Ardana, was it?"

"Only recently have I been able to use that as my name again." I nodded, knowing what she meant.

"Well, Ardana, I'm just a mechanic on this ship, but I know someone's not normal when they ain't."

A green head poked out from the door way. Her expression was one of confusion. "What do you mean?"

"There's a darkness in you, I feel it." I growled "it is one I have felt before" Ardana's expression became one of curiosity. "Just know - I'll do all I can to help your cause. Freedom is fundamental." She simply nodded after a moments pause, before retreating back into the shower. Soon after, she emerged, wrapped in a towel, nothing more. I was trying to work out why my bed was on a slant, when I looked up to see her.

"Should I leave, or...?"

"Oh, please. You humans and your gender separation" she scoffed before strutting to her bunk and processing to get ready.

"I think you'll be find in this ship." I laughed.

"20 minutes!" Explained Fess from the cockpit. Ardana looked my way.

"Till what?" She asked.

"Till showtime."

(Hope this was okay Sync, just interaction, feel free to write with my character but I can change owt you want me to)

[Chavvy]

"So... What do you reckon to Skipper?" I asked, trying to break the silence.
"I'll tell yah when I've flown her." Tek answered, not looking away from what he was doing, which from the corner of my eye, was looking over the hyperspace controls. "How did you get your hands on her? No offense, but I can't imagine you ever being able to afford to buy a ship this advanced."
"I didn't, that's why. The right opportunity came along when I was at my lowest, though it also means I cannot ever go home, as I'll be arrested for craft-jacking, and given that Skipper belonged to the Duke of the southern Isles, I doubt I'd get off lightly." I responded, tapping on the left monitor of my dash, as the HUD flickered, before coming back to life. I set up a scanner to look for nearby ports, and typed in a course to one a few minutes away.
"We all have to get ships somehow, I had to build my own to leave my planet!" he stated, flicking an isolator to test part of the board, though looking puzzled at it.
"Really? I'm guessing your kind aren't much into spacefaring yet then?" I asked.
"Only a few have ever left the planet. Though we do know our fair share, it's a dumping ground for scrapped crafts. Last I heard, the Empire are dumping their Republic ships there, so maybe it'll pique a bit of interest with the Vatik. But no doubt the elders will have sonething to say about it." Tek explained, now flipping up the panel to find a loose connection to the board.
"If it's any consolation, ive never spent enough time on land to really appreciate it. I was born into an airbase, and been a pilot not long out of diapers. So I guess we have the opposite problem." I joked. "Ten minutes people, hitting Norun sector!"

[Conor]

The Skipper docked bumpily, but Fesa did a good job. I've worked aboard her for two years and replaced nearly every part, and i still don't know how Fesa manages to fly her. But the Captain is the Captain for a reason.
Landings were usually a relieving part of a journey for most, but if you're a deck hand you see it in a different light. While Fesa flipped switches and steered frantically as gravity began to pull at the Skipper's belly, I whizzed two and fro, stabilizing the engines and watching the levels. As usual, I couldn't tell what the thrusters were doing, because the meters were going haywire, and always f***ing did.

"Why do you never fuckin' work?" I yapped, my hand clawing on a lever and pulling down. The ship vomited steam before letting the sunlight through as the hatch opened, revealing the ground 10 ft below. I pulled my goggles over my eyes as the dust flew, the deafening noise of the engines battling against the ground becoming more and more thunderous. A mechanical singing erupted from below, followed by three thuds, one for each landing leg. The hatch then opened fully, folding out onto the ground, and by that time, the engines had faded to a soft humming, until there was no sound but the happenings beyond the deck.
"Nice landin', Captain." I exclaimed, jumping down the stairs and running under the ship. I reached for a small valve, turning it until it released, spitting out the last remaining bits of steam as the engines began to cool. "Okay, go for it!" I yelled, running out from under the ship once more, before the Skipper's body dropped a few inches with a metallic screech. That was the clutch. "She's docked."
Norun docks weren't that much better since our previous visit. Fesa tried to keep a distance from this place, but sometimes you just had certain stock you couldn't sell anywhere else. I looked up to a burning orange sky. it was dust season on this side of the rock, but we'd struck lucky with the weather in all honesty. Being the Captain that he is, Fes has driven us through some outrageous conditions, and some of those happened to be the dust storms of Norun.
On the horizon, however, one's eye could just make out the faint silhouette of the main settlement. Norun was congested and bunched together. The streets throbbed with civs, each one just as untrustworthy as the next. Four years ago this used to be a pirate town, and let me tell you, it was a far sight better back then.
I wiped the already formed drops of sweat from my brow and pulled out a smoke, sliding it between my lips. From the top of the hatch, Tek and Ardana began to emerge, which caused me to wonder where the dock hands were.

"At least when the pirates owned this cesspit they had dock hands!" I yelled up to Fesa.

"I may as well land in the dunes and let the sandfish do it." he joked back.

"Well she needs refuelling," I began, flicking a switch on my goggles that allowed me to see more clearly through the dust, a small pinging sound emitting from the devise "So I'll see you in a minute." No reply, just Fesa's preoccupied grunting. I looked around to see a small station a couple of yards down the landing pad, and began to walk.

"Take one of them with you then." came Fesa's voice eventually.

"He needs an escort to pay for gas?" piped up Tek, chuckling. I took a drag of my smoke and made my way swiftly up the hatch and in front of Tek.

"We don't pay for gas. So no, I don't need an escort, mate, I need backup."

"I'll do it." came Ardana's voice. Everyone looked in her direction. Even Fesa looked surprised.

"I've seen you're shootin'," I chirped "Welcome to the crew Ardana, follow me."

"Make it quick, we're not waiting!" Fesa barked as we left.

[Chavvy]

While Kinto and the Twi'lek stole some gas for the generator, I took it on myself to try and fix my monitors on the dash. My idea was something had just rattled inside it, but I would be f***ed without it. Meanwhile, Tek left the cockpit, and going into the armoury room just off of the cockpit corridor. My guess was to look at the main navigation console, and the weapon controls. He seemed really interested in the ship, which on first impressions, I thought he would be hard work, just coming to do a job, but his passion shone through here, the excitement of all the new gear he was seeing bled from him, metaphorically matting his fur.

"Maybe while you're in there, you should register yourself on the security system, so it doesn't try to kill you if you go outside for any reason." I mentioned, just loud enough for him to hear. "Just go to the part on its own to the right as you walk in, and just keep going back until you find settings, and go from there. should only take a few minutes. If you look in the draw next to it, theres a pad interface to plug in so it can scan yah. Just leave it out when you've done, and we can get the girl to do the same."
"Her name's Ardana by the way." Tek muttered, assumably searching through the drawer.
"Thanks, that'll save one awkward question. Though I'm curious to know why this Jarik wants her back so bad, secrets in a crew are never good." I stated, placing the monitor back into its mounting. Kinto will have to try and bodge it together, as the fix I had made would not last long.
"I hear yah, its cost a few lives in previous crews I've been in" He answered, slight humming coming from the armoury, meaning that he had started up the scanner.
"I don't think theres a crew alive that hasn't had some problems with secrets. Think the scariest for me was a mutiny in the early days of being on Skipper, before any of us had a reputation." I continued, sitting back down in my seat as Tek walked back into the cockpit.
"You have many enemies then?" He asked, swivelling his chair to get into it, to face me.
"I've had my fair share. People I've ripped off, the majority of the Hutt exchange, Bossk the Tradishan bounty hunter... of he's a barrel of laughs when you have a bounty on your head. Luckily, the Black Hand got me out of that before that bounty could be cashed in, in exchange for a bit of work." I explained.
"And this mission you spoke of before, I'm assuming its for them?" He then asked.
"Kinda, but I'll explain all that when the other two get back." I finished, continuing my checks.

[Damxge]

"I haven't got much of a reputation yet," I admitted, leaning back in my seat, propping a foot up on the side of the cockpit, "I didn't really deal with people that much, that was always the captain," I gazed out of the ship at the windswept plain, dust blowing about in small dervishes.

"So you stayed back, kept your image clean," He said, staring into space, "I have to apologize in advance, if you're gonna crew here on Skipper, you're probably going to get known. You won't have a chance to hang back and hide with other crew,"

"I understand, I figured it'd come to it eventually, if I continued down this path," I laughed, tracing the lines on the seat with a finger.

"Do you shoot?" He asked after a few minutes of silence.

"I shoot that," I said, pointing at my bow, which I'd found a hanging place for against the wall, near the cockpit.

"Not blasters?" He asked, cocking his head.

"Ah, no, I'm not the best with a blaster, haven't had that much practice to be honest, I make do with 'ole Nokthukker," I admitted, trying to follow it up with something positive.

[Chavvy]

The others had returned, Kinto slightly disappointed nothing had happened when stealing fuel. I fired Skipper back up to move to a different port a few miles away, just in case someone noticed the missing fuel, but we were back on the ground in no time. I stood up and moved to the main chamber, and pressed a few buttons on the edge of the table, then inserting a holodisk into the slot on the console. The centre of the table glowed, a hologram of Nar Shaadar being produced hovering a foot above it. The others, curious, gathered, sitting on the bench seating, observing the hologram.

"I guess now would be as good a time as any to explain why we needed you. Kinto and myself have been given a task via the Black Hand. As is their nature, we do not actually know who set up the task, as they sent lower level messengers. The aim of this is to assist in the acquisition of a spice cache, being kept my Kihmo the Hutt. As far as they know, the stash is somewhere in this system, and that the Hutts are taking measures across the galaxy to ensure their investments remain safe and hidden. With this,they are recruiting more security, which provides opportunities to find these hidden caches. We were chosen for the task as I've already done work for them before, so knew I could be trusted. The problem I had is that my face is also known to the hutts, so I would need to be careful in the first part of the task, so decided we needed more crew to help.

We've received word from an unknown source that there is a meeting in Gatwin sector between Kimho's lead security, and new recruits. If we can eavesdrop on the meeting, my hope is that it will give us the location of the cache, or at least lead us towards it, to which we would have to pick up the trail somehow." I explained, the others just nodding as needed to. "Any questions? If not, we have around 32 hours to kill before the meeting, roughly two hours to get there and find a port, and about an hour on foot. So... you have a day to yourselves before we go earn some money."

[Damxge]

"I gotta get cleaned up and take a nap," I said with a yawn, climbing off of the bench and stretching. It had been a long, weird day.

"You saw where the quarters and shower were?" Fesa asked, raising an eyebrow in my direction.

"Aye, I did," I nodded before making my way to the quarters and to the tiny, human sized shower. I could barely fit my shoulders inside and if I tried to stand up straight, my head would hit the ceiling. I took what I could get, though, and rinsed off, scrubbing my fur with a soap I picked up in my time on the streets. Just not smelling bad did wonders for your reputation and sales, as I'd learned pretty quick. Most vatik didn't bathe in the traditional sense. What most vatik did was take dust baths, like chickens and other birds. Just flop around in a dust hole for ten minutes and you were set for a week. It may have helped way back when we were just monkeys running rampant in the jungles, but we'd evolved to a point where we wore clothes to protect us from the heat and bugs, we had homes to live in. It was one of those old world traditions what they just wouldn't let die. It was only after I escaped my planet that I discovered the wonders that were showers and the amazing invention of shampoo. Despite many vatik liking their fur hard and matted, I liked it soft, not only because it meant I was clean, but because most girls I pursued liked it.

After a time of just standing in the shower, I turned off the water and stepped out, only to find the twi'lek standing there, her hands on her hips.

"Took you long enough," She complained, "What the hell were you doing in there?"

"I-" I started, but she held up a hand.

"I don't even want to know," She shook her head. Snorting, I walked my way over to the bunk I'd claimed, my sh*t all scattered across it, and grabbed my towel.

"I thought you took a shower earlier," I said, toweling off.

"I did, I wasn't waiting for the shower, I was waiting to talk to you," She replied, sidling over to stand next to me.

"About what?" I asked, putting on my pants and tossing my towel over my head and shoulders, like a hood.

"You said you knew of Jarik, that he visited your planet," She explained, sitting on the edge of my bed while I walked over to the sink to brush my teeth.

"Yeah, he did," I said through a mouthful of brush. A big wiry thing I'd made myself out of old scrap. My teeth were a bit harder than most creatures', so the rough wire didn't really hurt me.

"What happened? Why do you hate him? Why did you decide to help me?" She pressed on.

"He came and told us to hand over our youth. I was young at the time, only a couple years old," I said, spitting a glob of toothpaste into the sink. I glanced up to find Kinto standing at the doorway, propped up with his arms crossed, a cig burning away clasped between his lips. Ignoring him, I continued, "He held a lottery," I did air quotes, "To decide who he would take. Our elders tried to stand up to him, but his crew executed them in front of the whole village. After that, he just picked who he wanted and left," I rinsed out my mouth and turned back to my crewmates.

"He just left?" Ardana asked, cocking her head.

"You know him, you know he doesn't just leave," I laughed, "He set fire to my village, every hut, including the one I was hidden in, and then his crew started shooting,"

"So that's why you hate slavery?" She asked with a knowing nod.

"Slavery isn't what I hate," I shook my head, "I'm not the altruistic type, I've dealt with the slave trade when I was with the Red Band, and as disgusting as it is, it's just another business, just like our little spice run we're going on. Hell, I've been a slave, I've been beaten for not cleaning well enough, I've been branded to show ownership, they even chained me to a wall for a month after I raised my voice,"

"So payback is what you want," Kinto said with a laugh.

"Aye, payback is my goal. And you," I pointed to Ardana, "Are my best chance at payback, that's why I risked my life to save your green ass. I'm sorry, but I know better than to get between a slaver and his target unless I have a really good reason, they're a special kind of cruel,"

"Well, thank you regardless," She sighed, standing up.

"But I do have to ask you, why does he want you back so badly?" I asked as she made for the door, "Don't get me wrong, you're pretty, you'd fetch a nice price on the market, but one slave isn't worth this kind of pursuit, especially from someone like Jarik who has hundreds of other slaves to take your place," She froze, standing before Kinto, who didn't budge as she tried to exit the bunk room, "Any slaver with a brain, which I assume Jarik has, considering his success, isn't going to expend more resources to capture a slave than he could make by selling it. It's just bad business. And he sent four wookie goons and a ranking officer in his force. That's not cheap, it would arguably be cheaper to put a ten K bounty on you and leave it at that," She just stood there, frozen. There was something going on here.

[Chavvy]

After the talk, the others went their separate ways around the ship, Tek going for a shower, Ardana sitting on the edge of the bench, waiting for him to finish, and Kinto moving towards the cockpit to look at the broken scanner monitor. Myself, I headed to the armoury to check over my weapons before the mission. I took a seat at the desk, and took my blaster from the holster, and placed it on the desk, opening the draw underneath, and picking out a selection of tools, for cleaning and maintaining. I've had this blaster since the initial Naboo invasion, where most of Theed were captured by the trade federation droids, and held hostage. Only a handful of people managed to avoid the droids, myself being one of them, with the help of a friend in the royal guard, Shek Poron. It was then that I was given the blaster, being that they are usually restricted to security personnel, unlike to standard issue Q2 hold-outs, which weren't really up to much. Long story short, we managed to release a few hostage pilots and security, which all helped with the uprising, to free everyone else as I got in my starfighter to hit the command ship, in the famous dogfight above Naboo. Since I never had to give it back afterwards, I've always felt that I had to look after it, and it has always served well. The grapple attachment comes in handy too, that has certainly had its fair use since leaving home.

As I started to strip it down, I heard a conversation between Tek and Ardana taking place through the wall. Given that the Vatik was mainly speaking, and Ardana hardly speaking at all, it sounding like an interrogation. As captain, I thought that it might be best to try and calm the situation.

"Any slaver with a brain, which I assume Jarik has, considering his success, isn't going to expend more resources to capture a slave than he could make by selling it. It's just bad business. And he sent four wookie goons and a ranking officer in his force. That's not cheap, it would arguably be cheaper to put a ten K bounty on you and leave it at that?" Tek questioned, Ardana looking slightly intimidated by the large ape. I peered round the corner to the crew quarters, observing the interaction.
"I know you're hiding something Ardana, and if we're gonna work together, I think we need to know who we're dealing with." He continued, getting closer to Ardana, the Twi'lek visibly shaking.
"And I'm sure she'll tell us in her own time. we've known each other for five bloody minutes and already we're wanting life stories? f***, I've been with Kinto for two years, and he still doesn't know half the sh*t I've done!" I snapped, Banging on the wall for shock value. "Now, can we just try and get along until after this contract? we can deal with the Jarik guy later on. We couldn't even assault a slaver ship even if we tried right now, we need money for that, and a bloody good plan. Lets earn some money first before we start thinking of murdering your "master", shall we?" The others were stunned at the outburst, but I felt it was needed. "Anyway, I'll be in the armoury if you need me, but I'm heading out to see if I can get a decent drink later, you're welcome to join me if you wish. If not, just make sure skipper is locked up as you leave."

[Damxge]

I made my way to Captain Fesa after Ardana and Kinto had wandered away, the issues still on my mind.

"This isn't about revenge, Captain, I can go a hundred years before I see Jarik's death and I'll be happy, it's about why he wants this one slave so badly," I started softly, making sure no one overheard me.

"I understand that, but you need to drop it for now," He sighed, looking at me with a tired expression.

"She's special," I said flatly, "Jarik wants something from her and he's willing to kill a lot of people and spend a lot of money to get her back. You may not believe it, but it's a lot more pressing of an issue than revenge,"

"What do you mean, more pressing?" He asked, taking a seat.

"He wants her badly, that means he's not going to give up because she killed a few of his goons and seems to have made friends," I explained, "He's going to be a permanent thorn in our side, his men are going to be tracking us, they're going to make our lives a hell of a lot harder. This is a serious issue that needs to be resolved as soon as we can. I'm not saying go kill Jarik, I'm saying kill whoever is following us right now and wipe our trail clean so it'll be harder for them to catch up,"

"You suggest we kill the guy who attacked her in the bar?" Fesa asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Him and the rest of his crew. Then whoever Jarik sends next won't have nearly as much of a lead to go off of," I proposed, "They know what the ship looks like, they know our faces, they're not going to just give up because we flew away, they'll keep searching ports until someone points them in the right direction, because someone always sees something,"

"We're about to take a massive job that will bring in a lot of credits for all of us," Fesa said tiredly, "We can't be dealing with this right now,"

"Let me do it," I insisted, "I'll take Ardana and Kinto if he wants to go, we'll steal a small ship from the port and go take care of these bastards, and we'll be back in time to get the intel on the spices. You said it yourself, we have a day to kill,"

"I'll talk to Ardana about it," He said, heaving himself out of his chair and walking to the door, Hiss, the ship's repair droid, rolling past, beeping enthusiastically, "I'll fuckin talk to her, not you, go fix something ya useless tincan!" Fesa yelled after the rolling chunk of metal.

[Chavvy]

I left the armoury, and headed around the corner into the crew quarters, where Ardana sat in her bunk, knees to her chest, back against the hull. She was still in shock, but seemed to be getting it together.
"Sorry things came to that before" I said softly, sitting on the edge of the bed.
"It's not your fault, you wasn't the one interrogating." She answered, keeping her head down, avoiding eye contact. I think she may have been crying, but I couldn't be sure.
"But he did have a point, I'm not gonna lie. Myself, I don't care of your past, but certain bits are affecting the present, so I do need to know a few bits, otherwise its gonna end up dragging us all down, and you can f*** if you think they're dragging Captain Thorn to some backwater system to crack rocks with my bollocks hanging out." I joked, trying to lighten the mood. She giggled a little at the thought, but it wasn't enough to get her to give any information. "I know we can't deal with the big problem now, but we need to at least get them off our tail. At least then he might leave us alone a bit"
"What are you suggesting?" She asked, now untucking herself a little.
"Its not what I'm suggesting, it was Teks' idea. He wondered if you had any ideas on who is running Jariks operations here." I stated. She seemed to perk up more now.
"I don't know who, but I think I know where. I was being held in an industrial unit in Kelvatos sector. They've been using it to house some of his enforcers, so no doubt the guy you're looking for will be there. To get in, you could use the way I got out, theres a drainage outlet that runs underneath, and takes you about quarter a mile away. Only problem is that its in the prisoner quarters, so you'd have to figure a way of opening the door." she explained.
"Sounds a solid enough plan to me, get yourself cleaned up, and get ready." I answered standing up and walking out of the room.
"Why?" She asked.
"Whats going on?" Tek then asked, overhearing from the other side of the door.
"I'm saving you some hassle. You owe me a drink, shagpile." I joked, storming into the armoury and putting my blaster back together within seconds. I f***ing loved these modular designs. Quickly shoving it in my holster, I made my way to the cockpit, Tek following.
"Think you can handle her yet?" I queried.
"I'll never know until I've felt her out properly." Tek replied, with a smile on his face.
"Here's some advice. Forget everything you know about flying, Skipper is a class of her own, you'll see the method in my madness eventually" I said with a smirk and a sly wink, swivelling into the drivers seat. I started the take off sequence, and we were airbourne in seconds, turning round in the port, swiftly ejecting though the hanger door...

[Conor]

"Almost... steady... That's it... Yes..."

My weight shifted as the floor below me tilted suddenly, sending me flying off to one side. I was trying to upgrade Hiss' pathfinding software, but it's hard enough with the limited selection of tools I had. But when you throw in a complete shift of gravity, it becomes impossible.
I landed with a thud, a sharp pain stabbing in my leg. I looked down to see a screwdriver wedged in there, and pulled it out without hesitation.
Another shift, and I found myself rolling aong the steel panelled floor, Hiss rolling around next to me, but keeping his head afloat.

"Have you forgotten how to f***ing steer!?" I barked, hearing jolty footsteps clang behind me.

"Yeah, what's the problem!?" came Ardana's voice behind me, obviously annoyed.

"Gimme a break, I'm still getting to grip with this thing!" yelled back Tek, and I just gave a grumble and heaved myself up once the ship had steadied.

"He can't drive and you can't fix a f***ing meter, it's still buggered!" added Fesa. Finally, the ship had a crew again.
I wandered up from the deck chamber and through the hallway, into the cabins. Opposite by bunk was Tek's his bow lying on the sheets. Suddenly, inspiration hit me. I had a while before touch down, i had time to waste. I looked over my shoulder before nabbing it and sneaking it into the workshop.
An hour I spent on that thing. it's all i needed. The tech was already in such good condition that upgrading it was actually pleasurable. Should i surprise tech, or show him now?
Too late. He wandered in there and then, his eyes just widening at the sight.

"Couldn't resist mate." I laughed, as his long, hairy arms snatched back his bow with light speed.

"What are you doing with my bow?" he asked defensively.

"I got bored, so i added some stuff to it." I said, slowly edging my way to the doorway for a hasty escape, should Tek not receive the notion kindly.

"I didn't ask for it."

"Ah, but you'll want it now you're on an assassination mission. Check it out..." I snatched it back, flicking a small switch on the hand. From the side came an iron sight with a holographic screen. "This is an iron sight that you can look through, but here's the best bit, lift it up to your head, as if you were aiming."
Tek snatched it back and did so. I notioned to another switch on the handle, and Tek flicked it. Suddenly, the sight stretched out on a curve, fitting around like a thin visor around half of Tek's head. "Wow, it actually works."

"That's impressive." he groaned, "But what's this do?"

"Well if you look down in the corner of the visor, you'll see data like wind speed, angle and gravity levels. They'll all be at zero now, but when you're out and about they'll be moving all over the f***ing place, I guess. I dunno, I've never used a bow."
Tek's eyes flicked to where I instructed, and his expression brightened.

"And best of all..." one last switch, to which Tek interacted "Night vision, and infrared."

"You've made me a death machine. Back on my planet this would be some sort of legendary relic."

"Still managed to keep the nice wood bits, too. All the engravings and stuff, untouched. Consider it an apology for my harsh behaviour since your arrival. Fesa and I had been on the road for six months, and it gets a bit tense at times." Tek nodded his head.

"I can imagine. You too seem very different."

"Yeah but we'd both like to be rich, and that's all that matters." I laughed.

Suddenly, Fesa appeared.

"And ain't that the truth!" we all shared a chuckle.

"Wait, who's driving?" I asked.

"Tek, assumingly." Fesa replied slyly. Eventually, Tek got the hint just as the ship began to take a slight swerve, bursting into life and running to the cockpit in a burst of dancing fur.

"I'll never get your sense of humour, and how you find the possibility of a horrible death humourous." I chuckled, forcing my heart back down my throat.

"He'll learn better that way. I'll skip to the point Kinto, are you coming on this little mission of Ardana's?" I gave a surprised expression as a cigarette slipped in my mouth.

"You're joking, yeah?"

"i thought as much. Keep your radio on, and make sure she's ready for when we come back, it might have to be a swift exit. We land in thirty minutes." i flicked a glance at my watch, before nodding, and Fesa marched off down the corridor. I took a drag and looked down to Hiss, who was rolling along.

"Hiss, lung capacity check." I ordered, and the robot rolled my way, a small probe coming out of it's body and placing itself softly on my chest. The steel was cold, but it didn't stay there long.

"73%"

"Hey, that's better than last week." I chirped, taking another drag and wandering to the cockpit.

(Hope that's okay Mike)

[Damxge]

"Slowly, Tek, slowly," Captain Thorn said, his hand firm on my shoulder as I piloted us into a landing. It was dark now, around nine in the evening, so the soft orange glow was still fading on the horizon. The soft shadows of the forest in which we were landing enveloped the ship as if welcoming it to their home, sliding over Skipper's surfaces like tentacles. Despite my nerves, I managed to land us in a small clearing, avoiding setting us down on any large trees or rocks. As we'd gone dark about ten minutes prior, the only light came from the thrusters outside of the ship, which slowly began to dim as she powered down.

"I'm shooting her if this goes fucky," I said softly to the captain as I eased myself out of my seat, making sure Ardana didn't hear.

"I don't think she would lie," He reassured me, laying a hand on my shoulder, "And that call isn't for you to make, leave it to me,"

"Aye Captain," I nodded, feeling considerably reassured by his words.

In almost complete darkness we made our way down the loading ramp and into the humid forest. It was similar to where I'd grown up, more overgrown though, with fewer hanging vines. We gathered just outside of the ship, mine and Fesa's gaze fixing onto Ardana, who had donned a dark colored robe with a hood. After all, her green stood out rather brilliantly in the low light, almost glowing.

"Okay, it's this way," She said after gathering herself for a moment. And with that, we set off.

"Thanks for the upgrade, Kinto," I said, saluting back at him where he stood at the bottom of the ramp, a blaster rifle propped against his shoulder, the soft orange glow of his fag lighting his face as he nodded . Hiss sat next to him, humming softly in the warm night air.

I took to the treetops immediately, following high above the others, keeping an eye out for any possible danger for the duration of our half hour walk to the drain outlet. The smell hit us long before we could see, the stink of bodies, sh*t, and piss. In fact, it seemed like we should have been right on it judging by the smell. But it kept growing in intensity until I was dry heaving as I lunged from tree to tree. Then finally, we were there. It was a massive cesspit with a person height pipe protruding from a hill dumping vile sludge into the murky pool. The pipe was blocked off with a huge iron grate, on one edge of which was a small hole.

"That where you came out?" I asked, dropping to the ground next to Ardana, startling Fesa more than her.

"Yeah," She said, a sour look on her face. I suddenly had a great deal more respect for her.

"I don't think I'll fit through there," I said, wandering around the edge of the pool to inspect the small hole.

"I'll make it a bit bigger," Fesa said, marching up to the pipe, pulling a small power saw from his pocket. He looked around at the pipe then turned to me, "Hop up there and cut the hinge," He said, tossing the saw to me. I acknowledged him with a nod and leaped up onto the pipe and began sawing away at it. It only took about fifteen minutes of patiently waiting for the blade to clear the metal. With a triumphant grunt, I gave the cap a hard kick, breaking the rust and grime that had gathered to connect it to the pipe and sending the chunk of metal splashing down into the muck below, causing Fesa and Ardana to flinch away for fear of getting coated in the splash.

"They probably have guards around the entrance to the pipe now," Ardana warned as I swung down into the pipe, the nasty contents squelching beneath my feet. I helped Fesa and Ardana climb in, which mostly consisted of grabbing their arm and swinging them in to avoid them dropping into the pit. Once we were inside, I drew an arrow from my quiver and knocked it to the bow, flipping the NV switch, the visor lighting up to give me a clear view of what was ahead. Which was a longass pipe full of sh*t.

We advanced slowly, doing our best to keep from making noise as we sloshed through the filth. After what seemed like an eternity we arrived at our location, which was the underside of a latrine. A latrine that had recently been repaired. It looked as if someone had used a battering ram to break a hole in it previously.

"Now what?" I asked, turning to the others, a blank look on my face, "We can't use the saw, it'll take too long and attract too much attention before we can actually get out,"

"There's a grate up further that drains from the exercise pit," Ardana whispered, "There won't be any guards out there this time of night and the grate is loose,"

"Why didn't you escape from the grate if it was loose?" I asked, continuing up the passage.

"It was plan A, I spent weeks loosening it, but some unforeseen problems arose and I had to make a faster getaway," She explained as we reached the grate. Thankfully, I was tall enough to reach up and lift the grate, breaking it free of the little cement still in place, and like Ardana said, I slid it off to the side with ease.

"Throw me up, Tek," Captain Fesa said, stepping over to center himself with the hole. I nodded and cupped my hands in front of me, letting him step up onto them before throwing him up, his blaster in hand as he flew up into the air, about five feet above the opening. His blaster must have been silenced, because he fired twice and all it sounded like was a sock being slapped against the ground. I tossed Ardana up next after Fesa motioned to me, thought considerably less aggressively than I'd done with Fesa. Once he was up, I hauled my own ass out of the filthy tunnel and into the slightly fresher air. Two guards lay on the ground near the door, both of them having had their backs to the grate when I threw Fesa up.

"Thought you said there wouldn't be guards," I said, looking at the pair.

"I didn't think there would be," She replied, marching over to them to search them for a key.

[Chavvy]

I suddenly felt slightly nervous in the room. It reminded me of the duel arenas on more primitive planets, the room being full height to the roof, the second floor cut out, and the walls up there replaced with glass, so that the exercise room could be observed.
"Damn, the key doesn't work, it must be for a different room." Ardana moaned.
"Looks like I'm picking it then." I commented, running over to the door. I knelt down to start working on it and in a few moments, I cracked it. I picked my blaster back up, and held the door open for the others.
"I just don't understand it, why would he be in there if he didn't have the key to get back out?" Ardana quizzed.
"Maybe one of the other guards shoved him in there as a joke? Or a punishment?" Tek replied, keeping his voice down as he scanned the corridor before stepping out of the room.
"Either way, he still won't be leaving on his own accord!" she joked. "Anyway, at least being this side, we're closer to the stairs, the guy we're looking for will no doubt be up there, probably on the other side, I never really went upstairs when I was here."
"Way to fill us with confidence..." I thought, we don't even know what species this guy is, if he's even a guy, now we don't even know what area he'd be in.
"No time like the present then." I stated, making my way up the corridor, and stopping at a corner, leaning round to see the staircase she mentioned, but with three guards standing at the foot, two rodian henchmen at either side of a large male twilek, with pale blue skin. They seemed well equipped, the rodians armed with rifles, and thick leathery coveralls. The twilek carried a heavy blaster on his hip, but seemed armoured, plates on his coveralls, under a long green coat, sporting military markings on the sleeve.
"We won't be getting past those so easily." Tek commented. "Any ideas?" I looked around, seeing that behind the stairs, more corridors joined the wider main corridor in which the stairs lay.
"Ardana, is there a way around the back to get further up the corridor?" I asked, turning to face her.
"Planning to flank them?" Tek asked.
"I'll stop here and see if I can draw their attention, and try and charm myself out of getting shot, while you and Ardana make your way round and attack them from behind. Then just fire when in position." I explained.
"Consider it done, there's a way round this way, past one of the storage rooms" Ardana said enthusiastically. She ran, grabbing Tek by the arm, playfully dragging him behind her.
"Hey! I seem to have lost my key, I'm supposed to be cleaning!" I shouted, trying to make out I was a cleaner.
"I don't recognise you..." the twilek replied, gripping his gun on his hip.
"Outside contractor, Seca Shunned. Your boss said standards have slipped, so needed extra help cleaning this shithole." I added, making up the story as I went. The looked suspiciously at me, the twilek approaching me, leaving the two rodians guarding the stairs.

"Hurry up, you two!" I thought, my lies not serving as well as they usually do. As if my prayers were answered, an arrow pierced one of the bug eyed rodians faces, the Vatiks head peering around the corner, Ardana running behind the stairs, to take out the other. I punched the twilek in the face, and steeped his legs from under him as his body turned. I pulled out my blaster and pointed it at his face, his surprised face staring at the barrel.
"Don't worry, the real cleaners will deal with your mess." I joked, pulling the trigger, a green blast eruption from the barrel, to between his eyes. The othersvstarted heading up the stairs, and I followed close behind
..

[Damxge]

"This guy's lieutenant's name is Slorth, he's a nasty slaver with a bad temper," Ardana explained as we crept through the facility, the cries of the damned echoing through the dark halls, "His quarters should be up ahead,"

"I thought you said you were never up here," I questioned, sweeping my bow from left to right, the night vision making this whole ordeal considerably easier.

"I haven't, but others have and I've spoken to them," She explained, slowing as distant footsteps echoed their way to us. On a split decision, I shoved Ardana to the left into an inset in the wall where the door had been bricked up. I then grabbed Fesa by the back of his shirt and tossed him upward, to the ceiling where several large pipes stretched their way down the corridor. Like a pro, he grabbed on and hung above the hall, out of sight. Just as the guard rounded the corner, I leaped up to join Fesa. Considering I was quite a bit bigger than him, it made for a tight fit between the pipes.

Slowly, the guard made their way down the hall, their flashlight sweeping beneath us as he casually strolled along. I looked to Fesa as he passed underneath, and the captain gave a nod of approval. With that, I dropped down, directly on top of the human, breaking at least a couple bones just from the impact. My hands found their way to the sides of his head and I twisted hard, just like hunting deer back home. The threat gone, I took the body and hoisted it up to where Fesa sat, laying it over one of the pipes and out of sight to anyone who didn't look up. With that little issue out of the way, we continued on our mission.

It wasn't long before we found a door painted bright red, it was this door that Ardana stopped at, motioning for us to come over, "This is it," she said, checking the lock, which was of course, locked.

"I'll get this one," I said, pulling some lockpicks out of my pocket and setting to work. It only took a few moments to pick the old lock, and then we were in. Ardana was the first to enter, her blaster at the ready. In an armchair across from the door sat a guard, sound asleep and snoring away.

Instead of killing the guard, I motioned for us to find our target and get out.

[cyclonecasey]

[Mike. Did you even read the thing I wrote for Jarik in the sign up? At all?]

[Chavvy]

(After a couple of hours brainstorming and negotiation, Casey and myself have found a way around the problem. We have kinda overlooked an important fact that Cas has stated from the beginning, that being Jarik is NOT a slaver. I would say we'd have to remove all references to slaves, but I think I've got a work-around.

Mike - Don't worry about the backstory you have about Jarik massacring Tek's village. We've agreed he was there, but not in charge, so Tek can still be mad at him, he is just yet to find out the whole story, which we will explore later. Any mentions of him being a slaver can still sorta be valid, as up until that point, Tek won't really know, so will have had to draw his own conclusions. Though if you don't mind, could you edit your previous post to remove Ardana mentioning Slorth as a slaver, as he isn't, and my post will explain.

Im gonna start the work-around, but I ask that no-one else posts until Casey has, which she has promised that she will do when she wakes up. This is just to establish the work-around, and put a few things in place. Thanks!)

Ardana went ahead, being quiet as possible sneaking past the guard at the front of what I could only assume was a small apartment build into the facility for those in charge. but when she opened the door, she threw herself back, as when it opened, the light was on inside. Someone was in there, and they weren't sleeping. She peered in again, checking the coast was clear before entering, gesturing us to follow. We entered what looked like a waiting room at a brothel, expensive furniture, smooth music, and holograms of semi naked women of various species dancing provocatively. At the back end of the room, was a door, light pouring through the glass. Ardana made her way up to it slowly, with us close behind.

"You have 5 minutes until the guards get here, so you better make whatever you came for quick." a voice hissed smoothly though the speakers, before the door Ardana was at swung open an a tall figure stood in its place... But it wasn't Slorth.

"Se'queesh..." Ardana muttered. The man before us was a Quarren, his triangular head and mouth tentacles making it obvious now in the light. "If you're here, then where's Slorth?"
"Nice to see you too, Ardana" He answered sarcastically, though to my surprise, speaking in basic, usually aquatic races tend not to. "And I see you bought company. You much be Fesa Thorn... and you... I don't even know what you are..."
"Ooh look... I'm famous!" I joked, nudging Tek.
"Where is he, slimeball!" Ardana roared, pulling out her blaster and pointing it at him, getting closer to him.
"He left hours ago, to rendezvous with Jarik about your disappearance. At least you came back like a good pup. What happened, did you get hungry?" He snorted.
"Who are he, Ard?" Tek asked, puzzled now that the plan had gone pear shaped.
"This is Se'queesh, Slorths' handler when Jarik is away. He's also a strategist, despite his nature, he is bloody smart, I'll give him that." She explained.
"And you should no anything that happens from her is just gonna be bad for you. Kill me, and they'll know you've been here, leave me, and I'll just tell them." He said slyly. Tek erupted forward, picking the quarren up by the throat and slamming him against the wall.
"But at least the slaves would be free!" He bellowed, his roar rattling my chest with the sheer bass of it.
"Slaves? You're joking right?" He squawked, struggling for breath. "We train soldiers here, I haven't been involved in slavery for over ten years!"
"Then what about Jarik? Him and his slavers destroyed my tribe!" be continued, and started to give me a headache.
"On Vason Six? Fifteen years ago? I can assure you, it wasn't his call, they were just made to do it. Is that why you're here? Revenge? You time will be wasted, the ones that hired them are long gone, out in uncharted space, Jarik was just a pawn." He explained. Tek seemed disheartened, putting him down, but not before Ardana took his place, hand at his throat, and blaster in his face...

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