A Different Tale (Star wars)

[Number XIV]

She walks forward, as though pulled by strings. She senses something... and once upon a time, that would not be so strange, but now... now, this feeling is one-of-a-kind, and she can't resist it. The streets are uncrowded, the desert wind howls, kicking sand all around. What is this feeling? It feels familiar, and yet so distant. Like an echo... an echo of him. She can feel his aura soaking it. Revan. She presses through the wind, following the feeling.

A small shop, near the gate. She wonders if she took a wrong turn, because it looks so peaceful, so innocent. But she knows that she didn't. She can sense it. She steps forward, and the door opens automatically. Her hand slides down to her belt, patting a familiar spot for reassurance, but there's nothing there. A vibroblade, not what she had unconsciously been searching for. She walks inside, and the door shuts. A droid shop, devoid of droids. How strange. Her eyes scan again, and notice something they didn't before. A droid, rust-colored, standing against the wall. His color blends in, but it would take more than that to escape her notice. It was the way it held itself- like a skilled assassin. Curious, she steps past the shopkeeper, and approaches the droid.

"If you can understand me, droid, then I would like you to tell me about your previous master," states the Exile in Bocce. She can't risk the shopkeeper understanding her- if she's right, the answer could get both her and the droid in a very nasty situation.

(OOC: I'll usually post in past tense.)

[Ankoku]

As she strode into the shop, the droid snapped to attention. Gladly, his owner, Waka Laka was asleep in the corner. The droid watched her carefully as the female meatbag approached. She asked him a question, in Bocce. HK-47 watched her for a moment.

In Bocce, he said to her, "Answer: I have no memory of my previous masters. My memory core is disabled by the restraining bolt on my back. If you were to remove it, I may be able to tell my master more." The droid looked away from her, and back again.

[Dark Philosopher]

Xarckes landed frowned softly as the sleek, dark silver starfighter dipped under a cross bridge. He was out of his territory now, the richer, upper class section of Coruscant, and though he wasn't any any particular danger, he had grown used to the pathways and alleys around his home over the past few months. The starfighter dipped lower, slowing as it came to a massive round landing pad, where many ships were already parked. He chose a spot off to one side, landing slowly, the stars being reflected on his ships dark hull. As it came to a rest, he glanced up, the words on it's side read "The Galactic Museum" a silly name really, it was more of a library, or an archive than a museum....

Xarckes walked slowly through the great doors, the cool night air seeming to pull at his clothing, begging him to stay with, it's cold icy fingers, so unlike the planet he sought information about. He strolled around the data banks for a while, before finally finding the section on Astronomy, and planetary locations. He could have just as easily asked where this planet.. this Tatooine... was, but he preferred that no one knew where he was going. The citizens of the darker parts of Coruscant.. though not evil, would surely give anyone information if they were paid... and Xarckes did not want anyone following him, not when he was after such a dangerous kill.

Loading the planetary coordinates into a small computer he kept in a pocket at his side, he headed back out into the night, back to his starship. Though it was a powerful machine it was small and light, not truly meant for inter-galactic travel. He frowned again as he boarded, his vibroswords clanging against his metal threaded boots. He would need a cruiser, or at least a freighter to get to Tatooine, money was not a concern he had brought in some valuable heads in the past, but getting a ship meant that other people would at least no he was going somewhere.. and he didn't like that.

[Ulti]

"Crowds, crowds, crowds! Why on Bothawui would the target be here?"

Taking a sip from her bottle, Tereez waited underneath the neon sign of a popular bar. Drumming her paw-like fingers, she whistled a song to herself. She was incredibly bored. The waiting always bored her. Why couldn't the target just arrive on my time? All she could do is grumble and drink her elixir. The stares she got didn't help either. It was a tad unusual for a Bothan to be on Coruscant. It was always strange to see a Bothan running about in populated areas. Yet, those who worked in the depths of the underworld knew there was only one reason for a Bothan to be alone on this planet. Spy work.


It felt like hours before she decided to move. Obviously, he wasn't going to show up here. The boss lied. So much for trust. Now, on to better measures. From her back, Tereez pulled out a square device. She pushed a few buttons before the screen turned on and a face was plastered upon it. The target. The face shrunk to the left side of the screen and a small map appeared on the right. A dot blinked near the top right. So. That is where you drifted off to. Chuckling to herself, she stored the device and started to head toward her target.

Tereez found herself at the target's ship, but no target. A bit disappointed, but still happy. He would have to return to his ship in time. To make sure she would not lose him again, she placed a second tracker on the very end of the ship's hull. Now even more waiting will have to occur. She found herself in a good position behind a bulky starfighter. It took only a few more hours before he arrived. Tereez took out a pair of binoculars. She watched as he boarded his ship. What are you up to? Who will be your next victim..

Tereez was willing to follow him to as far as the dinky starfighter would carry him. This target was special to her. He was the big one. Any piece of information on this guy would make her rich easily. Now, the problem was not finding him, but keeping a safe distance. She never fought a bounty hunter before and was not about to try. But, if confrontation was needed to break into that ship's records, then she would be glad to do so.

[Number XIV]

The Exile clicked her tongue in disappointment. She still had some credits, but this was going to cost her. "Very well," she said in Bocce. "I guess it's worth the risk." She switched back to Basic. "Shopkeep! I am interested in this droid!" If this were the old days, she could probably get it for cheap, even free, but then... here she was, thinking thoughts like that. She could have, yes, but she never would have. Pride, morality, and all that. A bunch of reasons that held far less weight these days. Again, the reach for her belt... the reach for her lost lightsaber.

She shook her head, and tried again more loudly. "Shopkeep! I am interested in this droid!" she repeated in irritation. What kind of store was this? She could have gotten away with the machine by now if she'd been willing to stoop that low. But theft... theft was petty. Hard times these may be, but she was not petty.

[Dark Philosopher]

Xarckes landed the starfighter gracefully in the port, exiting quickly he turned back and frowned, something wasn't right... He had the distinct feeling that despite his precautions someone was watching him. Perhaps not right at that moment, but he still had the feeling that something was paying a little more attention to him than normal. His frown deepening, he turned and walked over to a tall creature he recognized to be Bith, tapping the creature on the shoulder, "Do you have any travel ready cruisers or frigates for sale?" he said quickly, but as friendly as he could manage. The creature blinked at him for a few seconds, before gesturing behind him, to a group of new ships he had just received. "I'll take the fastest one."

After haggling with the Bith for quite a while the deal was made, and Xarckes was told that the ship would be ready for flight in under an hour. Pleased with his success he offered to sell his own starfighter to the merchant who readily agreed, the Bith could see even from this distance that the ship was in could condition, and there were always the children of the rich senators and politicians out buying small craft like for their first time in space. Xarckes went about clearing his stuff from his ship and into the new cruiser. As he picked up a bag that contained his supplies for the care of his two vibroswords, he glanced at the ships computer banks. Once again a nagging feeling told him that something was wrong, dropping the bag in his hands, he deleted his profile from the ships pilot system. Feeling slightly more confident and bag in hand he strolled up the ramp of his newly bought ship, and began warming up the engines.

Outside the ship the engines glowed with blue flame as they were switched on, A Nubian J-type 328 The ship had a sleek, fast feel, unlike the more popular silver versions of the ship, the one Xarckes had bought was a reflective black, that seemed to form a dark mirror of the city as it rose up into the sky. He liked the feel of it, and the distorting mirror affect would make him harder to find once he was up among the stars, if he was indeed being followed, perhaps he was just getting paranoid. The ship rose into the sky, the pinpoints of stars dotting it's surfaces as it skimmed through the clouds and up into the atmosphere.

[Ankoku]

The beauty of space. Calm serenity, interrupted by Xarces' ship. The ship piercing space was not alone. As Xarces' would soon realize, not all of the lights in space were stars. Camouflaged by space, a Sith leet loomed over the planet. As soon as Xarces was fully into space, laser cannons fired.

Red fire from all around. the calmness of space, broken by death and destruction. No matter how he swerved, no matter how he boosted, the back of Xarces' ship was hit. It took out the stabilizers, and engines. The ship, which a moment ago was soaring, was now falling. It would crash land in the lower levels. Whether Xarces survived or not...


Waka Laka jumped the second time the Exile called out. He stood, and said to her in his language, "Oh! This protocol droid you say? He seems to be a bout of bad luck for me. I haven't been able to sell him for months! You may have him for the price of... 1000 credits."

The Ithorian's choice of price was ironic. Mainly because, The Exile only had 1200 credits. Oh, how could the Ithorian have known how much trouble that would cost her... And how helpful HK-47 will be.

[Dark Philosopher]

Xarckes brand new cruiser plummeted from the sky, the back spouting orange flames, as it spun helplessly downwards,The streak of fire fell downwards narrowly avoiding a tower, barely skimming over a bridge. The ship dropped down another level, and slammed into a large platform, that held several bars and clubs, the ship screeched along the platform, flipping over once, and finally coming to rest just outside a large bar. The neon lights reflected brightly against the black ship, on which the flames had now died out, but continued to smoke.

Xarckes punched a wall as he walked along the corridor main corridor of the ship, though tilted, the cruiser had luckily landed right side up, but that didn't stop Xarckes from punching the escape hatch as he finally found it. He opened it, climbing up on top of the ship, he slipped down to one side. Though limping slightly from the impact Xarckes made it into the bar, he wasn't truly angry, just very very frustrated, this had made a seriously flaw in his plans, and cost him some valuable time. "Something strong and cheap" he said as he sat on a stool at the bar's counter, he massaged his temples, his thoughts clearing. He would need another ship, and this time it would be harder, much harder, people would now know that he was going somewhere far, far enough to warrant buying a cruiser. A glowing foaming red drink was set in front of him, and he picked it up, taking a sip. Despite the bright lights, and the bars location deep in the lower levels, it was moderately empty, and very clean. An old fashioned piano sat in one corner on which a creature he didn't readily recognize was playing a soft jazzy tune.

[Ulti]

Tereez followed Xarckes silently, doing her best to keep up with him. She watched as he bought a new vessel. This one was different from his last one, as it could go farther into the depths of space. I see..Going to another planet. This should be fun. Let's see how far you get. Letting half a hour pass by, she moved from her hiding spot. She went directly to the Bith and made a proposition.

"Here. Take this as the payment and a tip. I'll be taking your strongest ship."

The Bith would have started to give its idea of its own payment, but once it looked inside the bag Tereez had given, it could not believe its own eyes. There was enough credits to buy half of the ships there. Tereez also spoke in the Bith's language, which was a respectful thing to the Bith. Responding back, the creature told her the ship would be ready soon. She did not need to hurry. Her target wouldn't get out of the solar system, let alone reach another planet. She merely waited. She knew what was about to occur.

A small spec of red stood out on the black sky. To some, this would be a depressing sign. To Tereez, it was the best thing that happened that day. She follow the ship's flaming trail till it crashed a few hundred feet away from her. She took in a sigh of relief as she saw the silhouette of Xarckes. The game was still on. She followed him through the platform, once again trying to not get devoured by the late-night partiers. She tracked him down to a relatively secluded bar. Feeling a little bit too sober, she decided to have a drink as well.

Picking a spot that was near the target, but not too near, she settled down and ordered a sweet and strong beverage. She looked around as to look preoccupied, but most of her attention was on Xarckes. Now, how to approach this one. Bounty hunters would kill you if you say the wrong thing. Gotta do this just right. Wave around my new cruiser should attract his attention. Once her drink arrived, she went into acting mode.

"To go along with his drink, I'll buy a drink for everyone here. I must celebrate the purchase of my new cruiser. The best of its kind, you know. Those damn Sith ships won't make a dent in it."

Those who actually were in the bar gave grunts of approval, obviously too drunk to hear they were getting free drinks. The bartender look at the Bothan oddly, disbelieving her words. But once he saw the flash of credits, he quickly went to serve the drinks. Satisfied with her work, Tereez sipped her wine, waiting for Xarckes to approach.

[Dark Philosopher]

Xarckes accept the second drink with a silent nod to the bartender, his gaze drifting over to the generous Bothan, they weren't common in Coruscant, and when they were down in the lower levels like this, he doubted they were anything but spies. But without knowing who it was she was spying on, he had no real reason to fear her, and perhaps she'd be willing to give him a ride for a price. He was fairly certain she wasn't working for the Sith Empire, and if she was a spy then all he had to fear was her leaking information to someone who wanted to know about him... Xarckes decided to risk it.

Standing up he, walked over to the Bothan, and sat down in the empty seat next to her, smiling friendly, "So tell me, kind Bothan, surely you did not travel all the way to the great city planet to buy a ship... Is this just a stop on your journey?" he spoke without haste and in her own language, hoping it would relax her. Taking sips from his red drink casually, his eyes rested on her, alert, but not staring her down. As informed as spies were about their environment, Xarckes had a feeling she already knew his name, and probably that he was a Bounty Hunter, he hadn't really tried to stop the growing reputation as a person who got who they wanted. He set his drink down on the counter, how much would she charge.. if she let him on at all, he was starting to run low on funds, and still had a long way to go if he was going to eliminate his target.

[Ulti]

"Heheh. One of many, good sir! Only a small stop to pick up a few customers. I'm trying to start a little courier business myself. This new ship will get me to the top faster than a Kell dragon!"

Hook. Line. Sinker. Xarckes took the bait. She took a sip of her wine to maintain cool. To keep him thinking she harmless would have to take great lengths of acting the part. She still was too suspicious. A Bothan in the undergrounds still was odd. Trust was needed to gain access to Xarckes's plans. He still needed a ship to get to whatever world he was going to. Should be enough time to sneak some information from him.

The cold eyes of the bounty hunter pierced her soul. She could feel it. Small talk was going in the wrong direction. Placing her drink down, she turned around to face him fully. He was at least twice as tall as she was, but Bothans were used to feeling intimidated by other's heights. Being one of the tallest of her species, she got over that pathetic fear. Still, he was one of the tallest humans she ever seen. Messing with him would be very clumsy. More cunning words were needed.

"You wouldn't happen to know anyone who needs a lift? My prices are cheap, since I am starting out. A few hundred credits wouldn't be too much to ask for. My ship can breach those idiots beyond the stars. I'd like to see them try to blast down this one."

[Dark Philosopher]

Xarckes frowned softly, there was something wrong here, his nagging feeling from before, then the second his ship gets shot down theres a courier out to start her business.... Of course it could always be sheer luck, but he had never heard of a Bothan courier... Regardless time was running out, he needed to get to Tatooine soon, or he might lose his information source for the target. He blinked, "Oh... well actually I, myself was just planning on taking a little trip to the Outer Rim, I have some business on a planet out there... and I lost my last ship in an unfortunate accident." He decided that he would try to refrain from giving to many details about what he was doing so far out in the galaxy. Draining the remaining portion of his drink, he payed for the drink, and pulled out a thousand credits resting them on the bar's counter, in front of the Bothan. "Will this be enough to cover the trip out to the Outer Rim and back?" he smiled softly at her, though his pale green eyes remained cold, and searching. He looked her over, she was tall for her race, and she seemed friendly enough, though he knew from experience that friendly people were often the ones that tried to kill you.

Xarckes was fairly certain that by the time the exited the bar, the smoking remains of his previous ship would have been taken by a salvager, or at least stripped down, but even as he thought about his previous attempt to leave the planet, he had to wonder... were those Sith ships waiting for me? Or were they firing upon anything the recognized as not being their own? He hadn't even thought about the fact that he might already have been being trailed, if someone had started following him before he had begun this job, and the precautions than he could already be marked for death... This wasn't good.

[Ulti]

"Outer Rim eh? Shouldn't be too much trouble getting there."

Tereez eyed the credits greedily. A nice bonus to this mission. She smiled back to Xarckes, dropping the credits into her pouch. Taking one long gulp of her wine, she tipped the bartender with a few credits, stretched her aching muscles for a bit, and headed toward the door with her target. This was going better than she thought. All there was left to do is take him to whatever world he desired to go while carefully gathering as much information as possible on the flight and after landing. This, of course, would cross the deadline she was suppose to meet. If she didn't make this speedy, the bounty hunter would have a reason to stick around her.

After a few minutes of walking, the two reached their destination. She drew Xarckes away from most of the docked ships to a small secluded area. This is where it slept. A YT-2400. It cost here quite a bit to get this one. It was a bit smaller than its sibling, the YT-1300, but was still worthy of Tereez. She had it customized to be black with white spots as it's color. To any nearby ships, it would only look like it was a sector of stars. She modified so it could carry one ion cannon, a pair of Mass-Driver cannons, and three Double Laser cannons. It had an average speed, but its shields could stand up to a lot of hits. A perfect transporting ship.

"Little bit flashy, but I think its perfect. I'll get it started. If you have any last things to do here, better get them done quick. We'll leave in a few minutes."

Tereez turned to leave, but then forgot something. She felt like she was about to lose something from Xarckes. Then remembering, she turned toward him.

"Right. My name is Tereez. Don't need to know your name, if you do not wish to give it. But it would be nice to know who exactly I am transporting. Heheh."

[Ankoku]

"You two don't want to do that..." A man in the dark corner of the hanger bay. His presence would not have been noticed if he had not spoke up. He had heard Tereez talking. He stood and got closer. Age had not been friendly to this man. His hair was gray, wrinkles covering his face.

He smiled slightly, and spoke up in an old, wise tone. "The Sith will shoot everyone out of the sky. Even the fastest ships. *Hack hack* I heard they even shot a ship straight out of hyperspace. They have the best gunners." The old man began coughing once more.

[Dark Philosopher]

"I assure you, Old one, we will be fine..." Xarckes said, eyeing the old man suspiciously, he rested a hand on the hilt of a vibrosword, his face dark, was this old man a threat? A spy.. an assassin? was there a blaster concealed in his clothes... for all Xarckes new, the barrel could be pointing at him right now... but no, it didn't feel wrong, this old man, though perhaps annoying and a distraction, was not a threat as far as he could tell. His hand slipped off the hilt of his sword, resting at his side, "I am Xarckes De'Nuerta, and who are you, Old one... who dispenses such advice?" His gaze shifted to Tereez, she had given him her name... at least he would have a lead if she did intend to betray him, Bothans were notoriously hard to track... but a name could make the difference, be they spies or couriers..