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The Enemy of my Enemy...
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| CastorVax | Date: Thursday, 18 Nov 2010, 2:08 PM | Message # 1 |
 Lieutenant colonel
Group: Users
Messages: 125
Status: Offline
| "If I was going to have that talk with you, boy, I'd do it. You don't need an old Jedi telling you what to do. Besides, I was never the best teacher. The dark side is a rather weak point for me in some ways." Vax's grim response led to his silence for a time as he reflected back to what some considered the 'glory days' of the Clone Wars. There was no glory. There was only blood and dust and wreckage. Whoever thought that combat in such a form was honorable was a fool. There was no glory for the dead Jedi on Geonosis. There was none for any of the lives lost the day Palpatine was abducted over Coruscant. There was simply the grave, no more and no less. After a time, Vax spoke again. "Did you know him, Caden? He seemed to be rather intent on you. More so than on myself. As you say, Anoat is some distance away, so we have time to talk." --- Back on Nar Shaddaa, Darren Lopek was still at his work. Of course, word got around of a lightsaber battle in one of the docking bays, something that Lopek had a feeling would draw attention back to him. Fortunately, he was smart enough to have an escape planned, so when Fett would eventually spot him leaving his workplace, Lopek was surrounded almost by thugs. Four Trandoshans, a Weequay and two Rodians made up his retinue. They were headed towards a rather large speeder-van that would take Lopek to his emergency vessel.
Castor Vax
Jedi Knight
Message edited by CastorVax - Thursday, 18 Nov 2010, 2:16 PM |
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| Caden_Sturn | Date: Friday, 19 Nov 2010, 9:45 AM | Message # 2 |
 Major
Group: Users
Messages: 92
Status: Offline
| Caden's silence hung in the air for quite a while, as he gathered himself and allowed himself to relax a little. Only now that he'd had time to settle did he realise how much of a toll the day had taken on him. As for the Inquisitor... there was something familliar about the man, but Caden couldn't think what. Perhaps they'd passed in one of Citadel Inquisitorius's halls one day.
"I don't know who he is" he finally said. "But I've met every Inquisitor at my level and below. Which makes him a High Inquisitor" said, the realisation forming as he spoke. This meant things were going to get bad, for Caden didn't feel confident he could face off against a High Inquisitor and come out in one piece. He let that thought settle, all the while wondering if there was any deeper meaning to Vax's words about the dark side. The man didn't seem the type to have fallen into the dark side of the Force himself, which meant...
"Did you know someone who turned to the dark side?" he asked, before he'd been able to restrain his abruptness.
Caden Sturn
Former Inquisitor - Fugitive
Imperial Inquisition Ace Pilot
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| Boba_Fett | Date: Friday, 19 Nov 2010, 9:59 AM | Message # 3 |
 Sergeant
Group: Users
Messages: 33
Status: Offline
| Fett was patient, for the most part. There was the risk that Deschain would catch up to the quarry while Fett was still here investigating, but he liked to be prepared. And if he could drive information, and possibly a location, from Lopek before Deschain tracked Sturn and his Jedi friend to wherever they were going, it would be much easier to plot a shorter route and get there first. Either way, he'd been paid half up front, but he didn't like to see a job go sour. He had a reputation to uphold.
Aside from his patience, Fett credited himself with his ability to survive. And confronting Lopek while he was surrounded by thugs was a good way to cut that survival short. Getting ripped apart in a fight where the odds are stacked eight-to-one at the outset was neither glorious nor practical; dead men can't collect bounties. So he waited, keeping himself visibile enough to trigger panic alarms in the heads of Lopek and his men. Worried men in a hurry made a lot of mistakes, and Fett liked it when people slipped up, ready for him to exploit them. He noticed their destination; a speeder van, large enough for Lopek and his motley entourage.
Silently, he prepared his anti-vehicle homing missile for fire by issuing an unheard voice command to his HUD interface. He'd rather take them all out while they were conveniently holed up in a tin can, than risk getting Lopek caught in the crossfire of a shoot-out before having chance to interrogate him. He waited for Lopek to enter the speeder van before setting a target lock, not wanting to blow him to pieces when the missile struck. Then he simply waited.
"I bow to no one and I give service only for cause".
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| CastorVax | Date: Friday, 19 Nov 2010, 1:01 PM | Message # 4 |
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Lieutenant colonel
Group: Users
Messages: 125
Status: Offline
| "A High Inquisitor. Well, boy, you know they've pulled out all the stops now. I doubt he'll be the only one coming for us. Bounty hunters. Imperial assassins. Who knows what else. At least at Anoat, we'll have some answers, and possibly a few allies. Until then, it's just us... and your droid, I suppose, and that is a poor start for a rebellion. Ah, well. All good things start small." Vax leaned forwards to monitor the shuttle's progress through hyperspace. All the systems were in the green and they were traveling at a good pace as well. Anoat would be upon them sooner than they thought at this rate. If nothing else, there was time for rest and recuperation, as well as more talk. "I knew someone who turned to the dark side... at least for a short time, but then came back to the light. It was a hard process, very hard, but with people who believe in you... there is no limit to what be accomplished. Then again, I knew a man who turned to the dark side and fell forever... but that was at the end of the Clone Wars, a small issue beside that of loosing Skywalker." --- Lopek and his men spotted Fett easily in the crowds. Fett, by reputation alone, cleared a wide swath, making him easy enough to mark. Lopek though, seemed unconcerned. He'd paused a short distance from the speeder van, his men watching as well, poised, but not acting. Lopek smiled widely and saluted Fett, then turned and ran, away from the speeder, followed by his men. The van's door slid open, revealing inside a pair of Rodians who opened fire with E-11 blaster rifles at Fett.
Castor Vax
Jedi Knight
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| Caden_Sturn | Date: Friday, 19 Nov 2010, 1:17 PM | Message # 5 |
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Major
Group: Users
Messages: 92
Status: Offline
| Caden nodded solemnly to Vax's story, while reaching behind him to switch off El-Tee. He figured he'd may as well use some of the time ahead of him to repair the droids burnt-out processor.
Reaching into his survival pack, he extracted a tool set, and went about popping off El-Tee's chest coverings and removing the processor.
"I just hope this Separatist is good for something" he muttered, thoughts going back to their upcoming meeting. "In this day and age, credits seem to mean everything, morals can go out of the window. Just look at your pal Grullo" he pointed out. He hadn't yet rubbed in the fact that Castor's contact had tried to sell them out the moment they'd walked in through the door. Then a thought hit him like a punch in the gut; if the High Inquisitor had stalked them to the spaceport, then Grullo was likely dead. At least, that was the only conclusion he could draw, coupled with the daunting pile of corpses from his visions. Corpses not of the innocent, he now realised, but of those his path crossed. No justice was being done here, just wanton destruction. The Inquisitorius should be above this. "When we get to Anoat, we need to be more careful" he said in an undertone; he didn't bother to point out his revelation concerning the Toydarian to Vax. "I don't want people dying because of me".
Caden Sturn
Former Inquisitor - Fugitive
Imperial Inquisition Ace Pilot
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| CastorVax | Date: Friday, 19 Nov 2010, 1:20 PM | Message # 6 |
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Lieutenant colonel
Group: Users
Messages: 125
Status: Offline
| Vax chuckled at the first comment Caden made, shaking his head slightly. "I expected Grullo to try that. I just wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt and assume he'd show us his good side. Unfortunately, I think that actually was his good side. If he'd known we were coming, he'd likely have had more men... or traps. Either way, you do have a point. We do need to be more careful. Go get some rest, boy. We've an hour or two to Anoat yet. This Separatist may be a tricky sort."
Castor Vax
Jedi Knight
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| Boba_Fett | Date: Friday, 19 Nov 2010, 1:32 PM | Message # 7 |
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Sergeant
Group: Users
Messages: 33
Status: Offline
| As he sailed up and over the firing arc of the newly-revealed distraction in the form of a pair of Rodians, Fett had to hand it to the man; he had stones of steel, to be trying to play him this way.
Landing on a support beam and crouching to grip it in his hand and balance himself, he selected the open door of the speeder van as his target, and let loose his anti-vehicle homing missile. He didn't pause to witness the following carnage, but he could imagine the mess it would cause once it detonated inside the closed space, mincing both bodyguards if they hadn't had the reflexes to jump clear. His mind was set on Lopek now, and no amount of guards were going to stop him. Leaping outward, he brought his jetpack back online, using a quick, fuel-saving thrust to steer him where he wanted to be; directly behind the last of the retreating bodyguards. A vibroblade extended from inside his gauntlet, and he deftly punched forward to slide it between the neck vertebrae of his nearest obstacle, which happened to be another Rodian. At the same time, he brought up his EE-3 carbine one-handed, and fired a four-shot burst at the cluster of Trandoshans, aiming dead-centre and adjusting his aim with expert reflexes and precision with each shot, so as to hit them in the middle of their spines and down them instantly. He didn't like prolonging fights when there was a bigger picture involved, and this was way, way bigger than Lopek or his thugs. If the slime played his cards right, he might even get out of this encounter clean.
"I bow to no one and I give service only for cause".
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| CastorVax | Date: Friday, 19 Nov 2010, 1:47 PM | Message # 8 |
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Lieutenant colonel
Group: Users
Messages: 125
Status: Offline
| The van exploded quite spectacularly, showering the area with twisted, burning pieces of metal and flaming chunks of Rodian, though the former were much larger than the latter, though no doubt the latter were less pleasant to be struck with. Pandemonium ensued in the crowd, with people screaming and running for help for injured bystanders, though most just ran to save their own skins. With one Rodian and one Trandoshan down, as well as one injured, the bodyguards turned to fight. The sound of Fett's jetpack was unmistakable after all. The Weequay was the second closest, and he lashed out with a vicious vibropike in a sweep aimed to take Fett across the throat. From his stands, it was obvious the Weequay had some sort of training with the weapon. The second Rodian had a blaster pistol out and tried to turn and fire at the same time, spraying badly and likely hitting more bystanders behind Fett than Fett himself. There was, however, something that looked suspiciously like a thermal detonator clutched in his other hand. The trio of Trandoshans were another matter. One continued running with Lopek while the injured one covered them with a pistol. The second, uninjured lizard wielded a DLT-19, much like that encountered by the men in Grullo's shop, and his fire was relatively accurate. If Fett used the air, he was likely to be picked off.
Castor Vax
Jedi Knight
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| Caden_Sturn | Date: Friday, 19 Nov 2010, 1:48 PM | Message # 9 |
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Major
Group: Users
Messages: 92
Status: Offline
| Caden unbuckled himself from the co-pilots chair, and disappeared into the back, still carrying the burnt-out unit in one hand and a small probe in the other.
"If I fall asleep, don't let me go too deep" he warned. "Otherwise we might end up coming out of hyperspace a lot sooner, if at all". It was a grim fact that he couldn't control the direction, nature, or even the side effects of his vision-like dreams. What was more disturbing was the frequency with which they hit him now; a year ago, he'd be lucky to receive one scrap of input after days of searching the Force. Now, it felt like the Force was searching him, at every opportunity. He sat on an upturned storage crate and rested his back against the bulkhead, listening to the steady throb of the ships engines as she pushed through Hyperspace, bringing them closer by the second to the next stage in their improvised operation. Whether it be prosperity or annihilation that awaited them, his stomach was doing backflips, the feeling of which was outweighed only by his inability to keep his eyes open.
Soon, he drifted into the dreaded world of dreams, where he had no control whatsoever. Desert stretched before and behind him, white light glaring down from above, its source indiscernable due to the intensity.
He'd been here before; in dreams, visions, anyway. It could be any nondescript desert world in the Outer Rim or beyond, had it not been for the Krayt Dragon staring him in the face, breathing a steady rhythm that exuded calm. Suddenly the world around him was lost to storm, sands swirling and ripping at his flesh, cutting deep and battering him from all sides.
The Dragon was dormant. The world around it was turbulent. Caden felt torn between standing closer to the predator or hoping the storm would fade.
Then the Dragon changed; its eyes opened, it let out a bellowing roar which drowned the noise of the sound in instinctual anger, and all fell quiet. Sands settled, falling like abrasive snowflakes to cover the corpses that now littered the ground. Corpses which had been uncovered, exposed, in the wake of the storm.
The Dragon disappeared, and he was left standing among the blameless dead, his chest heaving. He hadn't realised it, but the roar hadn't come from the Dragon. It had come from him. His eyes opened and he felt his head swimming; every sense was on overload, and he could feel the shuttle around him as though it were part of him. He tried his best to remain calm, to empty his mind, lest that connection somehow end up ripping them from hyperspace or blowing some vital function that was keeping them alive.
Eventually, he felt his mind returning to normal, no longer opened unwillingly to the violent throes of the Force, but contained within his own ability to control.
Something dropped from the crate beside him; it was the probe he'd been using to test the functions of the processor, but his hands were still full. As always, his lightsabers were gripped tightly, thumbs a slight depression away from bringing them to life.
Caden Sturn
Former Inquisitor - Fugitive
Imperial Inquisition Ace Pilot
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| CastorVax | Date: Friday, 19 Nov 2010, 1:55 PM | Message # 10 |
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Lieutenant colonel
Group: Users
Messages: 125
Status: Offline
| Vax had remained awake the entire trip. The feeling of the Force surging from the rear of the shuttle was unmistakable, but he did not interrupt the younger man. Caden would do what he had to do; go through his own personal trials and it was not something Vax could lead him by the hand through. The young man would find his path, with or without the Jedi's assistance. If, however, he fell to the dark side unmistakably... well, Vax had walked that path once himself. Vaapad was now his conduit for it. If the boy was lost forever, as much as it pained the older man, he would remove Caden from the living, for the betterment of the galaxy. It was a sad prospect, for he'd come to like the boy. At long last, he spoke over the vessel's small intercom system. "Boy, it's time to rise and shine. We will be dropping out at Anoat in several minutes. Perhaps you ought to come up here."
Castor Vax
Jedi Knight
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| Caden_Sturn | Date: Friday, 19 Nov 2010, 2:49 PM | Message # 11 |
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Major
Group: Users
Messages: 92
Status: Offline
| Caden dropped himself back into the co-pilots seat, his tired eyes rimmed with red. Pools of yellow and orange retreated from his irises, leaving them their natural shade of brown.
He returned El-Tee to simulated life, though the droid just wasn't the same running on back-up processors; gone was his personality and all of his higher functions, leaving him a walking shell with little more than a language center. At least until Caden could get his primary processor fixed or replaced, anyway.
He realised belatedly that he was still holding his weapons, and stowed them away in his belt. It wouldn't do for him to lapse into another dream-induced hallucination and end up igniting the blades through the primary viewport. Thumbing on a holo display, he brought up a summary of Anoat, and quickly found that there wasn't much there to speak of.
"Gravity is gonna be a pain" he noted, reading that it was a fraction lower than most other habitable worlds. If Anoat could be called habitable, anyway. "Looks like we're gonna have to crack out the rebreathers. That place is toxic" he noted, glad he'd packed a respirator unit in with his possessions.
He went through a few file images of the local terrain, and snorted with disgust. Most of the images depicted little more than sludge and all manners of pollution, from abandoned toxic spills to mounds of garbage which seemed to have melded together and rooted as fabricated hills. Only Raxus Prime could have been a worse place for a meeting, at least aesthetically speaking. Logistically, it was a sound location.
"If I ever bump into Lopek again, remind me to thank him for this wonderful vacation spot" he muttered, flicking off the holo images. "Might be a rough entry, what with that damaged atmosphere. Want me to take over for the landing?" he asked, nodding at the controls. He assumed Castor was upto the task, but he was yearning for a chance to get back behind the helm of a ship, even if he couldn't think of her as his own just yet.
Caden Sturn
Former Inquisitor - Fugitive
Imperial Inquisition Ace Pilot
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| Boba_Fett | Date: Friday, 19 Nov 2010, 3:05 PM | Message # 12 |
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Sergeant
Group: Users
Messages: 33
Status: Offline
| Fett ducked under the lethally-intended strike, memories of Geonosis briefly flashing through his mind, as the vibro-pike swung overhead and narrowly missed severing the antennae from his helmet. His reaction was instantaneous; as the guard was inevitably carried around by the momentum of swinging a heavy weapon such as the pike, he pushed himself up and forward, his helmet lined up to smash into the Weequay’s chin and snap his head back, while he kicked out with the toe-spikes of his right boot, sweeping at the bodyguards ankles where he was least likely to be wearing armour, intending to tear through muscle and tendons. A quick assessment told him that the Trandoshan with the DLT-19 was a greater risk than the Rodian with the bad aim. Lining up the Trandoshan with the rangefinder in his flipped-down antennae, he fired off a single poison dart, which whipped through the air, likely taking the reptilian in the neck before he even heard it. Next, he knew he’d have to deal with both the Rodian and the injured Trandoshan, but he was already on the move, ducked low and using the scattering, panicked crowd to cover his movements. He tried edging through the tidal wave of running civilians, to edge closer to Lopek while allowing the remaining bodyguards to tighten up, hoping they’d lost him long enough for him to get between them and the running cargo handler.
"I bow to no one and I give service only for cause".
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| CastorVax | Date: Sunday, 21 Nov 2010, 1:03 AM | Message # 13 |
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Lieutenant colonel
Group: Users
Messages: 125
Status: Offline
| "You're more than able to take over, boy, but I don't think we'll be landing. Long range sensors show another Theta shuttle in the system, heading our way. If you'd like to take over, I can run comms and the rear turret if the need arises." Vax shifted from the pilot's chair, motioning for Sturn to take his place. The Jedi was good primarily in small craft; the shuttle was a bit bigger than he was used to handling and due to unfamiliarity, he was unwilling to jeopardize their lives. "We should know in a minute or two if they are friendly or not. They seem to be slowing down at least." --- The Weequay fell with a scream, still flailing about with the pike, attempting to strike Fett. More than likely though, he'd have no luck. The Trandoshan with the heavy blaster rifle dropped like a sack of meat. With the injured Trandoshan trying to follow Fett, as well as the Rodian, Lopek was left with only one Trandoshan next to him as a guard, but in the throng of people, both were moving quickly and Lopek's shuttle was close. Within perhaps two minutes or so more of running, he'd be within the docking bay he needed.
Castor Vax
Jedi Knight
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| Caden_Sturn | Date: Monday, 22 Nov 2010, 12:26 PM | Message # 14 |
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Major
Group: Users
Messages: 92
Status: Offline
| Caden shifted to the pilots chair, glad of having something to occupy his mind and, more importantly, his hands; at least this way, he was unlikely to lapse into another dream and wake up with his hands holding a pair of lightsabers.
"I'm gonna scan their vessel" he announced, mostly for the sake of breaking the silence once Vax had stopped talking. "If they're powering up weapons, I'd like to know before they start firing" he added. He punched a couple of buttons on the computer before him, bringing up as detailed a scan as he could of the approaching vessel, to determine its weapons status and registration (and subsequently any Imperial or other ties the ship may have).
He slowed their own shuttle accordingly, bringing her alongside the approaching ship, until they were practically at a halt.
"Open a comm channel, tell them to state their business and ask if they know the name 'Lopek'. Might give us some indication of their allegiance" he said to Vax, though at this point he was sure that the shuttle was part of the meeting arrangement.
A wave of relief came over him at not having to set foot on Anoat, followed by an equally strong wave of tension as he realised they were being given no ground; everything was being organised by their Separatist contact, and they'd lost control of their own situation. Small though it may seem, it might give their contact the impression that they'd be willing to play by any of his - or her - rules in the future.
Caden Sturn
Former Inquisitor - Fugitive
Imperial Inquisition Ace Pilot
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| Boba_Fett | Date: Monday, 22 Nov 2010, 12:33 PM | Message # 15 |
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Sergeant
Group: Users
Messages: 33
Status: Offline
| Giving the flailing Weequay a wide-berth to avoid being hit by his wild swings, Fett remained as low as he could as he wove through the crowd. He was aware that the remaining Rodian and the injured Trandoshan were trying to follow him, but he had little alternative but to give away his position in order to look properly and get a feel for Lopek's position. No sooner had he spotted the fleeing man and his one remaining guard than he activated his jetpack again, bursting forth from the panicked crowd and sailing up and over their heads. Mid-flight, he drew his disruptor pistol; disentegration was messy work, but this chase was becoming a waste of time, and he'd rather be dealing with Lopek directly than fighting unimportant thugs while his quarry got away.
Landing between Lopek and his intended docking bay, he levelled the disruptor at the Trandoshan's left knee and fired.
"You're putting a lot of lives on the line, Lopek" he growled, turning the disruptor to Lopek's face whether the Trandoshan fell or not; he had eyes only for Lopek now, and he doubted the Trandoshan would risk his creditor losing his face to a misplaced shot from the deadly weapon.
"I bow to no one and I give service only for cause".
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