500 PARSECS ~

[Kaile Vera]

​

TATOO SYSTEM
Tatooine

"So I was scouring the Holo-Bazaar." Kaile's cheerful voice would float over to Kurt from her perch. She was in cut off jeans, one of his old shirts, and a messy ponytail that sat at the crown of her head. She had her server driver in one hand, and her datapad in the other. The trip from Cloud Nine had been littered with the duo planning out the Messa's next upgrades.

"And the Expo is still in full swing!" she said with wide-eyed excitement. That was fantastic news. With this, they'd be able to haggle over parts and other items they couldn't really salvage at a great price. Maybe even trade a few favors. "One of the largest Jawa clans is parked right outside of Anchorhead for it, so I reckon we can head their first after meeting up with your mom and dad."

The trip was a two fold event. They were here to spend some time with Kurt's parents, who Kaile would meet for the first time. That excited her as much as it made her nervous. She decided that she needed to bring some sort of house warming present, so she ended up using the money she was gonna use for Kurt's dessert to instead bake a simple chocolate cake.

Which let me tell you, was hard enough as it was with that tiny galley they had. She had to improvise, and might have made a mess. Chocolate frosting certainly got everywhere.

Granted, maybe that hadn't been such a bad thing!

She was waiting for it to finish so she could spread the icing, having to use the sort that wouldn't melt so easily in the heat. No one wants gooey melting icing off their cake! In the meantime, she was here taking measurements in the workout room. Measure thrice and cut once!

They were already gonna rig the hot tub, and considering how fast the Messa could go, if it wasn't secured just right, it might end up sliding one side to the next and making all kinds of damage.

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Kurt sat on the floor, tools splayed around him and his own clothes messed with grease and half a dozen other things. He had spent most of the journey working on the ships shields and cloaking system that the two of them had talked about. It hadn't been too difficult really, and eventually Kurt had managed to get a rudimentary understanding of how something like a cloaking device would actually work. Luckily he had managed to find a book on the holo-net, "cloaking for dummies", that had been very helpful.

The idea was that he could rig the shield generator to turn into a cloaking device and vice versa.

The problem of course was when one needed both, but as he had told Kaile back on Cloud Nine Kurt hardly thought that would become an issue. The Messa was fast enough as a ship that it could outrun any trouble that might come to it, so shields were just a nice thing in case something else happened. There was confidence in that, perhaps overconfidence but then again Kurt wouldn't be the one to mention that, because...well he didn't think it was overconfidence at all.

"Uhh." Kurt said musing slightly. "Which Clan?"

His father had an absolute hatred of one of the Jawa clans, they had multiple times attempted to steal equipment from the farm, little runts.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

" Cheka." the scent of baking chocolate would slowly start to permeate the ship. It was enough to tempt anyone getting handsy with the cake, but Kaile had already smacked Kurt with a spoon. Not yet!

[ And I would walk Five-Hundred Parsecs... ]

The upbeat song would resonate in the background. Kurt's MP3 would play one of the classic hits, prompting the occasional singsong from the Lorrdian as they worked. The one other thing that the Messa could brag about as much as its engines, it was the custom sound system. Kurt had set it up while Kaile had been on one of her little trips. Needless to say, there was some Berry the Hutt floating during one of Kurt's more random moods.

This time however, it was all about energy. Of the updates they would do. They had the stealth system, the tractor shroud, and the hot tub. It was great that they were going to Tatooine because with the Bazaar going at full swing, they could likely get things set up rather quickly.

Now if it didn't short out anything in the meantime, well that was a different story.

Bobo went scrambling from Kaile's thigh over to the next, where he curled up beside her hip.

"S-urrendeerrr!"

[ Surrender! ]

"Surrender!"

Yeah, Kaile was getting into it.

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Kaile began to sing rather loudly, Kurt only smirked.

It was a small smile, and he probably would have joined it had it not been for the loose floor panel that still not had found its way back into proper place. He sat in front of it, a dull grin on his face as he watched Kaile dance about. It was a shame that the blue frilly dress she had tried on during their Cloud Nine visit had bene so expensive, it would've been perfect for this moment. An idea popped into his head, a small one, but it stuck.

His grin broadened, and slowly he turned back towards the panel, fitting the metal sheet into place and beginning to seal it with the screws.

At the same time the alarm went off, a loud drawn out beep that would signal the nearing of the Messa to Tatooine. The hyperspace alert. Kurt let out a whistle, rather impressed with how far they had come in such short a time. Was it possible that they had upgraded the Hyperdrive again in their odd tinkerings during the trip? He hoped not, mostly because it meant that they likely could've blown up during the flight. A slight frown crossed his face, then a shrug rolled over his shoulders.

No use worrying about it now.

With a stretch, Kurt stood from his place on the floor, sliding passed Kaile with a small jig and climbing into the cockpit.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

[ ....and if I haver, hey, I know I'm gonna be..]
"I'm gona be the man who's havering to you!"

Kaile's face would scrunch up as she exaggeratedly sang the verses as Kurt shimmied past. The Lorrdian was a bobbing, swaying body of curves and cheerfulness.

[ Da lat da (Da lat da), da lat da (Da lat da) ]

"That's a record ain't it?" Kaile would break from her singing to follow behind the pilot, half dancing and half interested to see what the results were. The Messa had some rather... potential explodey reactions if pushed too far. That risk only grew with all the upgrades they made. This wasn't even including the potential of streamlining with perhaps Tibx fuel... but that would be rather expensive to switch out. Going fast was great, blowing up... not so much.

Her hands came to rest around the top of the pilot chair, tapping for a bit as she watched Kurt do his thing. This was actually one of her favorite things; observing him as he flew. He always had this content look about his face, as if he thoroughly enjoyed it. It wasn't like podracing, but she imagined that the Messa was his girl and he really loved taking her out and seeing what she could do with each and every upgrade.

"Careful.. it's bound to be all kinds of busy with the Bazaar at full swing." it was one of the few times Tatooine would be the center of the 'Verse. Companies from throughout the galaxy would come here to show case their new wares and to give exclusive sales. This wasn't even including the orbital shipyards or space stations... the traffic alone would be.. well.. would surprise anyone really.

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

"Pfff." Kurt said out loud.

"How busy could it possi-OH GOD!" The Messa dropped out of hyperspace to the sight of a massive freighter cuttings it's way across the same hyperlane. Kurt barely had time to react as he pulled up on the controls and dashed the ship above the massive vessel. His eyes nearly popped out of his head, his eyebrows nearly climbing off of his head as he ducked the Messa over the obtrusive vessel and cut back over it to land in a steady path towards Tatooine.

The Pilot let out a sigh.

Kurt knew that during the expo parts of Tatooine got quite busy. Arceneau Trade tended to help with planetary navigation and all that, but Tatooine wasn't Coruscant. There were really no official starports of major size and nothing really controlled all the space traffic around Tatooine itself. That was something that the residence liked, the relative lawlessness of the planet made it more homely for those who had settled their families there, though of course others didn't really have a choice in the matter.

Of course when the expo rolled around and more people came to Tatooine, it tended to cause problems, hence ATC picking up the rest of the slack. Still, Kurt preferred to not even need a flight path, especially since it allowed him to land right at home.

"See?" He told Kaile. "No Problem."

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

Kaile was holding on for dear life on Kurt's chair. Big brown eyes had bulged out, and she had even given a tiny squeak. Her heart was practically at her throat and now she had an adrenaline rush like nobody's business.

"Oh.. geez..." as they went over the freighter. However, the slight jumpiness was not quite gone yet. Peeking over the chair, with her hair sticking in all directions, the Lorrdian would blink. Had to get her bearings back.

In the background -- [ Our ship, in the middle of the hyperlane~ Our ship! In the middle of the --]

Oh the irony...

A heavy snort and then a playful punch on his shoulder would be his punishment. "I told you to be careful there flyboy!" there was no venom in her voice, only the intimate chiding of one friend to another.

"Maybe someone won't get cake!" Ah-hah, the threat! One that would remind Kaile she needed to check up on it before they get to Kurt's parents moisture farm.

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

He scoffed again, as if the idea of not getting cake was too preposterous to even consider. Of course, that was if he didn't inadvertently crash them into another freighter. It seemed that the Expo really had drawn everybody and their mother to Tatooine. That wasn't really a bad thing, some of the towns could really use the business and generally it was a boon for everyone. Of course, it also meant that Barog The Hutt and other more unseemly elements likely picked up activity.

Arceneau kept them in check, but Barog...well he could get a bit territorial with new people.

"We'll head home first, then see about going for the expo." Home was better, he could make a few calls from there too to see if anyone was up to something. It would be a neat way of getting what they needed, the name of Kurt Meyer still had a little bit of pull when it came to getting parts for ships and pod-racers, or so he hoped anyway.

His lips tugged into a smile. The Messa roared slightly as he pressed the throttle forward, pushing the ship and sending it slicing through Tatooines atmosphere.

Today would be a good day.

 

[Kaile Vera]

While Kurt flew them towards the Southern Hemisphere, Kaile quickly got to the galley to check on the cake. Big, brown eyes would peer through the small window, the Lorrdian guesstimating that it should be done. The galley was rich with the scent of chocolate- which was a pretty penny by itself - and it make her lick her lips.

Grabbing thick kitchen rags, Kaile would grin up to Bobo. He had traveled up to her shoulder.

"What you reckon? Done?" Bobo gave a perk flick of his tongue. "Yup! Done!" Kaile was just too excited to wait anymore. Pulling down the oven door she went in for the goods! Oh that smelled divine!

She set the cake off to the side. It would need to cool off a bit, but they had time. In the meantime she would turn off the oven. Can't have them blowing themselves up. Kurt already practiced that enough!

Now... What to wear...

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Kurt didn't have to worry about what to wear.

He usually wore the same clothes day in and day out, and he wasn't trying to make an impression. His parents were refugees from the former Sith Empire, both of them had lived on Dromund Kaas and both of them had worked for the Empire as researchers and scientists, they had never been rich, and they had never expected their son to be. His parents lived a modest life on Tatooine, a large moisture farm, yes, but other than that they displayed no real wealth or opulence, knowing full well that there was no point to that. Unlike Kurt, both of his parents were rather modest.

His mother, oddly enough, resembled Kaile very much in her outlook on life, always happy and always looking to help.

It was one of the reasons that Kurt had picked up Kaile, his mothers nagging tone in the back of his head.

As the Messa cut through the atmosphere Kurt reached over towards the small communications suite located on the other side of him. He tapped in a holo-frequency and began to dial up his parents. Truthfully it would have been better to do this before they left, but his parents had never minded a surprise visit from their son, Kurt being an only child, and he was more than sure that they wouldn't mind this time. A smile pulled at his lips, The Messa cutting close to the desert floor.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

With the cake cooling, Kaile and Bobo hightailed it to her bedroom. It was a tiny little thing, but it was hers. She'd decorated it according to her fancy, with a few trinkets and shinnies here and there. She had set up a small nutrient perch for Bobo to rest on, placed right next to the small golden cube they had picked up at Bahrain after the Podrace.

Off came the shirt, tossed into a small but organized pile at the foot of her bunk. Shorts went sailing mid,"... I-II went to the Dangerzone." playing in the background. She was a mess of headbobs and foot tapping, her cheerful and growing excitement in every dance wiggle she gave. She wasn't looking to dress up fancy, just nice.

A fresh clean button up blouse in a pale blue. A pair of tan pants, her wide bantha leather belt. Slip on her trusty boots and she'd be golden!
Humming along with the song, Kaile popped up, moving over towards the small mirror she found on Raxis.

Tugging her hairband from her hair, she let the strawberry blonde waves fall down around her shoulders. A quick finger comb, a check to see if she had anything in between her teeth and she was done.

With a bright smile, Kaile scooped up Bobo to put him in his nutrient tube in get satchel. " Gotta be in your best behavior Bobo!" She'd tell him, securing him inside.

"No talking back you hear!" She would joke. Securing the bindings, she swung the bag onto her back. "Dangerzone!" She sang again, moving to exit her room.

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

The ship swooped down and low over the desert sands, slicing off the top of several dunes as even in atmosphere The Messa accelerated to unbelievable speeds. It was amazing really, just how fast such a big vessel moved through the desert. Sand began to swirl behind them, a massive wave of debris kicked up by Kurt flying so low. He left a trail in his wake, a disruption of the oceans of beige that spread across all of Tatooine.

There was a massive grin on his face as they got closer and closer, eventually the horizon breaking to show the flat plateau that contained Kurt's home.

His hand pulled back on the throttle, a steady deceleration that caused the engines to cut down and the forward thrusters to press just a bit. Slowly, The Messa cam back to a normal speed, it's repulsor engines kicking in to grab the vessel and move it over the sands without the massive engines reaping the benefits of the reactor. The control jutted for a second as the engines just down, the repulsor lift taking over just as they reached one of the more flat zones right outside Kurt's childhood home.

The Messa roared, it's landing gear splaying out and whirring as the ship slowly touched down onto the limestone rock.

A feeling of happiness surged through him, a mirth that he couldn't quite described. It always happened when he came home, always without fail. A wide smile pulled at his lips, and with one quick leap Kurt was out of his chair and down the ladder.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Needless to say, Kurt coming down the ladder provided for Kaile to take advantage. See she had a little, teeny, tiny weakness. And it came in the form of a well rounded rump that begged to be groped. So it would be to no surprise that Kurt would find one right cheek captured in Kaile's hand.

"Ready?" Came a waggle of her eyebrows and a cheeky grin. " I'll go grab the cake!" She'd add, waving a finger just as she stepped back to let Kurt in all his excitement through.

Who could blame him? He was home.

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Kurt nodded to her.

She was rather excited about this, though he could also tell that Kaile was a little bit nervous. He watched her go gather the cake, though Kurt himself was already halfway down the ramp. He moved quickly down onto the sands of his homeworld, a deep breath entering his lungs. The dry air would have hurt others, would have annoyed them and instantly cracked their lips, but Kurt wasn't some stuffy CEO stuck in a board room all day, he was a true son of Tatooine.

This was his world.

"Kurt?"

A voice called to him out from behind one of the odd mechanical spires in the distance. It was gruff, and oddly similar to his own, though there was a touch of age to it. Kurt smiled, turning towards it and spotting his father. The old man grinned at his son, the two looking almost like mirror images, save for the age that obviously carried on his fathers face. The Pilot wandered over to his old man, embracing him in a deep bear hug.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

In no time flat, she too was swinging and lowering her long legs down the exit ramp. There was a bit of a commotion outside, and the dust, sand and grit that Kurt had billowed up with his trick was still in the middle of clearing.

Good thing she had this cake nicely protected under the plastoid cover. However, there was no denying they were on the land of the Twin Suns. The air was arid. The suns baked their heat into her pores, and Kaile swore that the icing was already starting to melt.

There was nothing like the Tatooine heat.

Squinting, Kaile jumped off the last foot and hit dirt. A wave of her hand in front of her face would try to clear her sight.

But it didn’t help the slight cough she had next. Shoulders lifting, she would rock on her feet while she shyly waited for Kurt to finish hugging his dad. It was a cute scene actually. Kaile couldn’t help but grin. Oh who cared about a bit of sand in the teeth!

The hand that had attempted to wave off the cloud of dust from her face would in turn give a wiggle of her fingers in hello. This was most definitely his pa. You could tell just by how they were the spitting image save for the weathered, tanned skin and the silver in his hair.

Same rakish smile too.

No wonder his ma roped him in quick!

“Hi.” it was a shy hello, but a friendly one. All sunny smiles and sweet disposition.

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Kurt turned half away from his father, and arm still half around him as he lead the old man towards Kaile.

There was a smile on both of their faces.

Kurt had of course told his parents about Kaile. He talked with his mother every week and his father once or twice a mother, he wasn't going to not mention her, that simply wasn't how he was raised. Kurt might have been a scoundrel, but he leaved his parents something fierce. With a slow, almost meandering walk he moved over towards Kaile, switching sides so that he could gently slide his hand onto the small of her back and push her ever so slightly forward towards his father.

"Dad." Kurt said with a smile. "This is Kaile, my roommate. Kaile, this is my dad."

His father smiled, taking the outstretched hand that Kaile had offered and kissing the back side of it with a roguish grin.

"Well, you sure know how to pick em'."

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

Warmth and another few notches of cheer beamed upon Kaile’s face.

“Well, now I know where he got all of his charm.” the Lorrdian would banter out, her eyes twinkling with knowing mischief as Kurt’s dad played the gallant. A guffaw came from Kurt -- Wait now, was that a wink?

The same matching devilry within his father’s eyes said that Kaile didn’t imagine that!

“I’d say he gets that from his mother. Leastwise the best bits.” Kurt’s father would smile wider, right on his toes in wit, a good amount of draw in his voice.

“Ooo… good save.” Kaile say in compliment. She was enjoying this already, all abuzzed in energy. “Baked ya’ll a cake!” she’d enter in proudly, holding out the container as if it held pure bricks of platinum and gold.

“Chocolate too. Didn’t want to come empty handed, so hope ya’ll like it.” She thrummed with energy much like a little girl. This was her first taste of family. So far, she liked it very much.

Oh Kaile, never change.

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

"Chocolate, huh?"

Kurts father said with a smile, his hand slowly slipping away from Kaile's. The man had a charm about him, but it was more...knowledgeable than Kurt. The pilot gave off an air of confidence and well being, he seemed like a scoundrel while remaining with a heart of gold. His father on the other hand seemed like a man who had been through hell and back, who seemed intelligent and knowing in all walks of life. He had a look of an intellectual about him, but a gruffness that told of years of hard living on Tatooine.

"Well, I suppose we'll have to save some of this for your mother for when she gets back, thank you dear."

Kurt raised an eyebrow. "Where is she?"

"The expo, idjiit."

Oh.

Yeah that made a lot of sense. His mother liked going to the expo every year when it was up, generally by herself since someone had to take care of the farm. She generally stayed for a couple of days and left dad to her own devices. So apparently she had gone a tad early this year, though that shouldn't have been too surprising given everything. Kurt's hand gently drummed on the small of Kaile's back.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

Kaile had been looking forward to meet Kurt's mom, so a little bit of wind fell from her sails. However, hearing how Kurt's dad bantered with his son was enough to brighten the smile on her face.

"It's my pleasure. Didn't want to come over empty handed." she'd said, beaming under his weathered gaze. "Kurt can't stop talking 'bout you both, kinda feels like like I know a whole lot about you." she meant it with genuine friendliness and down to earth charm.

The sun was beating on them, but it was clear that the air was thrumming with energy. They might have come on over unexpected like, but they certainly weren't unwelcomed.

"That so? I wouldn't put too much stock on his tall tales. Likes to talk up a bit." Kurt's father would tease, gesturing them to please go inside the pourstone home. The drumming at her back increased and Kaile glanced back, "Well, I reckon he's earned a bit of hot air."

At that she stuck her tongue out at him in a tease.

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

He grinned.

Kurt had made achievements aplenty, and his father knew it. Both of his parents were more than proud of what he had accomplished. His winnings in the Boonta Eve, his service in the Republic Navy, and even his more lax career as a Courier. They had never judged him for his choices, had always supported him and guided him on whatever path that he had chosen to take. In truth, Kurt had the perfect parents. He could never lodge a complaint against either his mother or father, nor did he want to.

The Pilot loved his parents dearly. "Well, when's mum gonna be home?"

While Kaile and his father bantered, Kurt was more thinking about his mothers home cooked meals and how he would most certainly be missing out on them if his mother was gone too long. That would be an unfortunate thing, especially considering all the work that Kaile had put into her cake.

"A day or so. She left three days ago."

Oh. So she had been gone a while. He shrugged slightly, he could live with his fathers cooking for one day of his life...or maybe he could convince Kaile.

"Come, lets go inside, it's scorching out here."

His father smiled, knowing that Kaile likely wasn't used to the twin suns of Tatooine and the amount of heat that they brought. Kurt only smiled at her, gently pressing his fingers against her again to guide her forward. There was still more than a bit of boyish excitement in him.