A Bounty of Employees is Common

[Darlyn Excron]

"In fairness your job doesn't take you into mines, so it's hardly a fair comparison." He bowed his head in thanks for the tea, and cradled it in his lap. He tended to wait a little less time than [member="Lady Kay"] for his tea to finish, but by no means was it ready even for him yet. "Perhaps, but I hardly work for promotions. Keeping things running well and smooth is plenty enough thanks."

He glanced over at [member="Macoda Haberon"] as Kay mentioned the investigation. Ah.. yes. He would have to work extra hard to fudge the results, explain everything away so Macoda's head wouldn't be called for. Another wave of emotion washed over him, though unlike before rather than pulsating anger, it was just, sad. Good men had died, he'd be telling their families the news shortly, and he'd have to lie about why they were dead. Things never went well it, if the Force had a will it really enjoyed messing with his day. "Yes... the investigation. I don't suppose someone wants to suggest a new reason for the gashes across my guardsmen's chest?" Not an angry tone, but one that definitely held disappointment at the situation in it.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

A promotion?

[member="Lady Kay"]'s mention of promoting [member="Darlyn Excron"] intrigued Mac. While he was nervous about Darlyn from what he had seen so far today, it was evident that Lady Kay trusts him. For now at least, that will be good enough for Mac. However that also raises the question on who would be Darlyn's replacement as Head of Security. Hopefully it would be someone that Mac could get along with easier.

However Mac's attention was diverted back to Daryln when he asked for possible lies in order to cover up the attempted kidnapping. The thought of lying to the guards' families gave Mac pause. He frowned, Mac already felt a little guilt for what had happened, but lying to the families would just disrespect the guards in his eyes.

"Tell them the truth." Mac heard himself say. He paused before he continued, letting his suggestion register with Lady Kay and Daryln. "The guards fought bravely and died with honor in the defense of the Queen." Mac shrugged. "They don't have to know that it was I who killed them."

At least that's a step in the right direction.

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay smirked. Hardly a comparison? She's gone down into the mines and worse for her job. It wasn't as though there was nothing or no one of importance there. Those tunnels were more than just mines. They were an extended net of safety for the populace of Chasin City should Commenor be under attack. Even bunker buster munitions couldn't penetrate it's depths of up to 10,000 feet below the surface.

She drank her tea, lookong from [member="Darlyn Excron"] to [member="Macoda Haberon"] as how best to handle the bad news was being discussed. "You're right Mac. The truth is the best way to go." Kay had deaths of her own to make up for. And one day she will do just that. She was already making preperations for it in secret.

Kay had another sip of her tea. It was time for them to move forward, to think of the future. She had some decisions to make. "I am need of some advice. Veiere wishes that I tell everyone that my long-lost adopted son has returned, crowning him Prince and giving me an heir. I just don't know if I should do that at the wedding ceremony, or before. I also have an adopted daughter that has yet to be found. I didn't search for them because of fear. And with you two being good at tracking people down...maybe you could help?"

 

[Darlyn Excron]

"A lie will show up eventually. Who did it, the results of the investigation, something somewhere. There's only so far you can tell the truth before we'll need a story. But, I suppose I'll have time to think on it." He lifted the tea up and took a sip, listening to [member="Lady Kay"] as she relayed her concerns to him and [member="Macoda Haberon"]. He hummed a bit, putting the cup back down in his lap and cradling it with his hands as he thought. Crown [member="Bradshaw Ku"] prince...

"While the boy's earned his share of rewards, I don't think it would be wise to give him that as one yet. He's nowhere near competent enough to defend himself against the guardsmen without the force, and he can't summon up anything meaningful without blinding himself in a mad rage. He works well when focused, though, so perhaps he'll be more competent by the wedding. If you give him a title, it paints a target. I'd at least like him to be able to defend himself. As for your other child..." He lifted the cup to his lips and drained the remaining tea a little quickly.

Then he stood up, and smiled. "Well, I still have a proxy server and plenty of old contacts from my hunting days. I'm sure if you have any details you can divulge I can find something. And so long as the big man over here doesn't get on my nerves too much I'm sure we can manage to work together."

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac listened intently to the conversation. He didn't even know that [member="Lady Kay"] had a son, let alone that he was adopted and long lost. Come to think of it, Mac didn't ever consider who was Lady Kay's partner. What's more is that the son was a force user as well! Mac swore internally, he was surrounded by force users. And a wedding?? This was a lot of information.

Let's just hope that the kid is more like his mother than like Darlyn.

"I've never met this [member="Bradshaw Ku"] before so Darlyn knows more than I do on that proposal. However if he has trouble fighting without using the force, then maybe I can help with that." Mac let out a small, perhaps a little mischievous grin.

Mac then addressed Lady Kay's request for them to track down her missing daughter. Though he wasn't looking forward to working together with [member="Darlyn Excron"], perhaps this would be a way to smooth things over. Besides, this would be a small step in the right direction in repaying his debt to Kay.

"Aye I can help find your daughter Kay. I have a couple friends from my.... past profession..... who are very good at tracking people also. I can put the word out, see if they can dig up anything that can help us find her. You can trust them. I do." That was saying something, Mac rarely trusted anyone. He had always been a chit bounty hunter, his talents served better in melee combat, but perhaps some of his old pirate friends could lend a hand.

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay sipped her tea while [member="Darlyn Excron"] spoke about Brad. He was right, she felt the same way. Yet at the same time, Veiere told her that it wasn't fair of her to keep Brad away from being known as her son, adopted or not. She knew that it would paint a target on him, which was why him and his sister were kept from her to begin with. They could be used against her.

Her gaze was drawn to [member="Macoda Haberon"] as he spoke up, suggesting that he too could help with Brad and his ability to protect himself. "Thank you both. The sooner that Brad can better protect himself from others and control his temper, the better off he'll be. And yes, he'll need to learn to not rely only on the Force either." There were ways that people could take that from him. She knew that from experience. Although she didn't rely on it most of the time anyways.

On the topic of her daughter, Kay got up from her chair and walked over to her desk. She set down her tea and opened a drawer, pulling out a datapad. After going through it, she held it out for the two of them to see, displaying the only picture of her daughter that she had.

Spoiler

"Her name was Rae-Anna Ku. She was five years old when I last saw her, bright, funny, full of life. It was easy to be drawn to her...She'd be near twenty now. We were on Bakura when we were seperated. Brad might know more."

It was a longshot and she knew that. She couldn't keep her hopes up. But it would be nice to have the family back together.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac tried to hide his doubts as best as possible. All the information that him and [member="Darlyn Excron"] had to go off of was one picture taken 15 years ago, a name, and the last planet that she was seen on. Mac scratched his beard, analyzing the girl in the photo. This galaxy is a huge place and Rae-Anna could be dead for all they knew. They needed more information or more help unless Darlyn is quite the tracker. Mac was friends with a couple trackers that could possibly help but even then. This was a long shot to say the least.

Still, Mac figured that [member="Lady Kay"] must've known that as well, and there was no point in reminding her of that. This was her daughter after all. The least that they could do was at least try and find her. Besides, if [member="Bradshaw Ku"] managed to show up after fifteen years then perhaps Rae-Anna was not too far behind him.

Mac stood up, his hands going to his axes as they were wont to do. "I can start as soon as Darlyn is ready. But first, I think it is time that I meet your son, Lady Kay." Bradshaw would have the best knowledge of where Rae-Anna could've ended up, if she was even alive. Besides, Mac was eager to meet the son of Kay.

 

[Darlyn Excron]

Glancing from [member="Lady Kay"] to [member="Macoda Haberon"]. How well would they work together, he had hopes they'd at least not try to kill one another. That was messy, and delivered more paperwork than he'd care to do onto his desk. He cracked his knuckles, and bowed his head. "I'll fire up the proxy and start looking. I doubt she'll be on the bounty boards under her real name, but I doubt she'd stray too far from it. Not to mention there are a number of features I can compare, eyes, hair, at the least we might find something similar. Some of her facial structure will have stayed quite similar as well.. though anything [member="Bradshaw Ku"] can add would be helpful."

He moved to the door, and glanced back at them with a nod. "I'll get to work, between fudging the investigation and this I've got plenty of paperwork to do." And with that he headed off, to get started on said paperwork.

<<EXIT darlyn stage right. >>

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay nodded in thanks to the both of them. She turned off the datapad and slipped it back into desk. Then she finished her tea while [member="Darlyn Excron"] spoke of bounty boards and paperwork. She hoped that Rae-Anna didn't have a bounty on her head. That would really make her worried. And she was kind of shocked that [member="Bradshaw Ku"] didn't have one, given his playboy attitude.

She watched Darlyn leave and then rounded her desk to approach [member="Macoda Haberon"] , noting how his axes were his crutch. It was okay. Tea was hers. "Thank you, Mac. I'll take you to Brad. He's quite the cocky sort, but don't let that bother you. He'll grow up one of these days..." Veiere reminded her at times of how he had needed his mother and that without her love and guidence, he had no focus. Hopefully that'll change.

Kay led him out of her office and down the hall. Not far off from there was where [member="Bradshaw Ku"] 's bedchambers were. Hopefully he was there and neither drunk or with some young lady that he more than likely picked up from one of the clubs. She knocked on the door. "Brad? Are you in there? It's your mom." She didn't mention Mac yet. First she needed to find out if he was there.

 

[Bradshaw Ku]

Bradshaw stopped in his tracks when [member="Lady Kay"]’s voice sounded through his door, one foot still hovering inches from the ground like some cartoon character. "Frack," he mumbled to himself. How did this keep happening? It was like she knew whenever he was about to get lucky and then deliberately found ways to bring his plans to a screeching halt.

He’d just been about to leave the palace for the warm embrace of a pretty little Commenori woman. Now, depending on what this was about, instead of kissing her, he could look forward to kissing that prospect goodbye. And it had been so long since he managed to pick up a woman.

"Frack."

Taking in a deep breath he steeled his nerves against the disappointment. Comes with the territory, he tried to remind himself. You get to live in a palace and tell women you’re the Queen’s pilot. At least he still had that. Not that he’d as of yet flown his mother anywhere. They didn’t need to know that.

He swung the door open only expecting to see Kay. What he saw instead was Kay plus a lot more. He wasn’t a short man himself, but the man now standing in front of him was half a foot taller and quite a bit beefier.

“Umm..” he started, then noticed the axes hanging from his belt. That was weird. Not too many people walked around with cold hard steal weapons. Looking back at Kay he regained his composure, “Sorry If I kept you waiting, I was just finishing my pre-workout and was just about to head out for some training exercises,” he bluffed while he rolled his shoulders in a circle as if to relieve tension. “So, to what do I owe this pleasure?”

Then it occurred to him. Did she say ‘it’s your mom’ in front of this guy?

([member="Macoda Haberon"]) ([member="Darlyn Excron"])

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

The door swung open to reveal [member="Lady Kay"]'s adopted son.

So this is who everyone is talking about.

Mac had heard about Brashaw's sexual escapades. He picked up on a lot of things when he sat next to city guards in the cantina. A bunch were gossipers, trading stories on the happenings of the palace. Nothing serious was ever said of course, Mac knew that Darlyn trained them better than that, but the guards made for a good eavesdropping. Mac looked down at Lady Kay's son, sure he was handsome but there didn't look to be much to him other than that, besides the force abilities of course.

Mac took the liberty to introduce himself. "My name is Mac, I'm Kay's pilot." He outstretched a hand to shake [member="Bradshaw Ku"]'s out of nothing more than courtesy. The giant pirate took up most of the doorway, and he felt the instinctual need to duck when entering the room although it probably wasn't necessary. Mac took in his surroundings as he stepped into Bradshaw's apartment, his hands resting causally on his axes. Mac raised an eyebrow.

Or should I say bachelor pad?

He turned around and just got straight to the point. "We are going to look for your sister."

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay raised a brow. [member="Bradshaw Ku"] wasn't really dressed to go out for training exercises. Even for flying. And was that cologne that he was wearing?

As [member="Macoda Haberon"] introduced himself, Kay stepped in behind him and had to interject. Brad was Kay's pilot too, afterall, yet she had been coddling him somewhat, not wanting him to get into danger. "My other pilot, Brad. I know that you haven't flown me anywhere yet, but I haven't really needed to go anywhere yet." That was mostly true. Outside of flying a few times with Mac, they hadn't really left the system except for during Mac's attempted kidnapping.

Then their purpose was all layed out quite bruntly. "Yes. We need to find Rae-Anna, to complete our family. You are our biggest lead. You were with her last..."

 

[Bradshaw Ku]

When [member="Macoda Haberon"] introduced himself as his mother’s pilot, Bradshaw cocked an eyebrow and stared the larger man down. At least until [member="Lady Kay"] quickly stepped in behind him to clarify the statement. Still, Bradshaw certainly didn’t like the sound of another pilot. Why did she need two when she apparently hadn’t gone anywhere the whole time he’s been back? His eyes narrowed slightly. What was the point of having two pilots if the one pilot you had was practically grounded for months? The whole situation didn’t smell right.

Noticing Mac’s outstretched hand, Bradshaw gave it a quick, firm but short, shake. He was about to protest the hiring of another pilot but then Mac said something unexpected. They’d be looking for Rea-Anna. His mother quickly added to the statement. Apparently, another pilot wasn’t the only surprise. Kay had changed her position about looking for his sister. When he first arrived, she seemed so against looking for her, hell, she was deathly afraid of having him back in secret. He didn’t know what changed her mind, but he didn’t much care.

Intentionally snubbing Mac, he addressed his mother, “Alright, you got my attention. Though, we’re going to have to talk about this,” he tilted his head toward Mac, “later. I’m obviously completely on board with finding her, so what’s the plan?”

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac was surprised, he hadn't expected [member="Bradshaw Ku"], [member="Lady Kay"]'s son, to be so bratty. But he supposed that years of hiding in secrecy without parents would do that to a horny young adult. But what terrible thing had lead Kay to place her own children in hiding for such a long time? And to not seek them out afterwards? Mac was sure that Kay had plenty of opportunities to seek them out, but Bradshaw's behavior showed that she didn't. Mac wasn't judging Lady Kay, but this whole situation seemed..... bad.

Mac's surprise at Bradshaw's behavior was quickly replaced by anger. Here he was, trying to fix this damned situation, trying to find his sister, and the kid would barely acknowledge him. Mac crossed his muscled arms, his axes at his hips, as Bradshaw turned his back to him to face Kay. He furrowed his eyebrows and clenched his jaw. He cut Bradshaw off, "Your mother has tasked Darlyn and myself with finding your sister. Darlyn is running her name and physical characteristics through the Bounty Board. When was the last time you saw her. No detail is too small."

Give me one spar with him and I'll knock him down a peg.

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay chewed the inside of her cheek a bit. [member="Bradshaw Ku"] was upset. She saw it in his mannerisms and the way that he spoke. He even seemed to be mad at [member="Macoda Haberon"] for some petty reason. But Brad was young. She tried putting herself into his position, so that she could better understand, yet it was difficult. For most of the fifteen years after Shaw had tied, she travelled alone, lived alone, worked alone. Yet she didn't turn out like Brad. Maybe it was because she was a bit older. It was difficult to say.

As Mac spoke up to answer Brad's question, Kay nodded in agreement. "Mac's right. The last I knew, you two were on Bakura. What happened after you were taken from me? How long before you two were seperated? Was she adopted? We need to know."

 

[Bradshaw Ku]

[member="Macoda Haberon"] cut in before his mother could answer, obviously out of some irritation over his having completely passed him by in favor of addressing [member="Lady Kay"] instead. Bradshaw gave a little cocky smirk. Not only had he gotten to the larger man with axes, axe man was also feisty. He kind of respected that. Then his mom added to Mac’s statement like the last time, agreeing with him but also adding and clarifying.

There was no cocky smirk left on his face after her mention of Bakura. Rea-Anna and himself had been taken there by some of his mother’s friends, to be put into hiding for their protection and Kay’s, after barely surviving Masq’s assault on their family and the Sith’s murder of his adopted father. That’s what they’d told them, anyway.

Of course, at nine years old, Bradshaw couldn’t understand the reasoning behind being taken from his mother, especially after watching his father be killed. He thought she’d given them up, and that blame quickly blossomed into blaming her for his father’s death as well. She became an easy scapegoat, one he didn’t let free for fifteen years.

What Kay didn’t know, was that Bradshaw hadn’t stuck around on Bakura for very long and that the guilt over leaving his sister slowly ate at him for a long time.

Head down, he bit the inside of his cheek for a moment, perhaps a mannerism picked up from his mother. Lifting his head, he addressed Kay, but this time, it wasn’t to snub the larger man, but just because his mother had spoken of Bakura.

“Yeah, we went to Bakura.” He shook his head, “I wish I could give you more information than that, but” a guilty pause, “I didn’t hang around Bakura for long. I can’t remember how long I was there but it couldn’t have been more than a few weeks. I ran away. Stowed away on a few ships to get back to… you. I wanted answers, but, I never got that far. A smuggler found me and, I guess adopted me. It’s a long story.”

He threw up his hands,"I don't know where she is any more than you do. Maybe she's still on Bakura? I don't know. She did seem to like it more than me. She was younger, but, she never wanted to get away as much as I did."

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

This is going to be difficult. I may need to contact Tarro....

Their only lead had revealed nothing it seems like. Mac tried to hide his disappointment at what [member="Bradshaw Ku"] said, for the sake of [member="Lady Kay"] if nothing else. But make no mistake, this wild goose chase was quickly looking bleak. Rae-Anna could be anywhere in the entire galaxy if she was even still alive. However Mac was sure that Kay didn't need to be reminded of that. Mac looked over to her to gauge her reaction to Brad's news. Mac needed to be optimistic to protect Kay from a most likely horrible truth. He just hoped that Darlyn found something in the system.

Mac turned his attention back to Bradshaw. Perhaps there was something that could still be gleaned off this. "Who brought you to Bakura? Perhaps they could give us some more information, a location on Bakura if nothing else."

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay was disappointed. Not so much in [member="Bradshaw Ku"] but in herself. It was as though she had neglected them, her two adopted children that needed her as much as she needed them during such a horrible time in their lives. Fear had stopped her from looking, fear of what could happen to them if her enemies discovered them. She didn't want them to suffer because of her actions. And yet, were they any better off? From what Brad was now telling her and from what Veiere had been telling her, that answer was no.

She stepped into Brad and wrapped her arms around him. "It's okay. It wasn't your fault. You wouldn't of found me. I was so badly beaten that I was in a medical facility for months. I shouldn't of been so scared. I should've looked for you sooner. I should've been there. But the information on you two was kept from me. I was denied access."

She looked to [member="Macoda Haberon"] as he asked his questions. "Her name was Daiq. She was a close friend at the time. But I haven't seen nor heard from her ever since, either. It was her decision to take them as soon as she got me to safety. All that I had gotten from her was a note. Whether or not she's still on Bakura, I don't know. But it's something."

 

[Bradshaw Ku]

Bradshaw blinked and in a moment, his mother was wrapping her arms around him. They hadn’t embraced often since he’d been back. Really, they hadn’t had many close moments. The onus was more on him than her, he being still afraid of close relationships of any kind and the vulnerability that came with them. So [member="Lady Kay"]’s embrace came as a surprise, but not necessarily an unwelcome one.

Still, as she spoke of blaming herself, he couldn’t help but feel guilty. Of course, she couldn’t have stopped his sister and him being taken away. Anyone could have taken them anywhere and she would have been powerless to stop them after the assault. A little uncomfortably, not helped by [member="Macoda Haberon"]’s presence because he didn’t want to appear weak, he wrapped his arms around her, returning the embrace.

After his mother responded to Mac, Bradshaw let go. “No, it wasn’t your fault. You didn’t have a chance.” He looked into her eyes, then away, “I did. I was there with her,” He poinnted at himself,” … and I left her.”

Then the anger. Jaw clenched, he felt the dark side flooding into him, through him as his adrenaline surged. In the absence of any other coping mechanisms, his first emotional stop was at anger – if humor wasn’t an option.

“I’m her older brother – and I left her! I left her!”

Act! The force told him. Do. Something. Anything. It urged.

Clearly disturbed, he started to back away from his mother and Mac as he shook his head. “I went back for her years later. A few times. She wasn’t there. I couldn’t find her. Either she changed her name… or… she’d left.”

A fist, driven by the force, slammed through the nearest wall, “I should’ve been with her!”

The only sound was the clinking of bits of plaster and stone falling to the floor as he pulled his fist from the wall.

“I should’ve been there.”

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac uncrossed his arms as [member="Bradshaw Ku"] went to embrace [member="Lady Kay"]. He could see how much this has impacted their family. Mac of all people knew how terrible it was to lose a family, and his loyalty and newfound friendship to Kay made it Mac's duty to try and preserve her family. It was the least he could do after Kay had taken him in despite his attempted kidnapping.

However the tension in the room soon picked back up. The embrace ended as Bradshaw was filled with anger. Mac began to back away slowly from him. He had heard that Bradshaw was also a force user and he wasn't going to take any chances. He shot Kay a worried look as Bradshaw began to rant. The air around him was charged with a dark energy, the same energy that swarmed Darlyn in Kay's office not minutes ago, and the same energy that saturated the battlefield where his father had died. Mac stumbled back and a hand found Kay's arm. He white knuckled her arm out of fear. Mac felt the hair stand up on the back of his neck and both his heart and his head began to pound.

Mac wasn't a force user in the slightest, but his crippling fear of the force had rendered him the ability, or intuition rather, to detect obvious amounts of force energy like the kind that surrounded Bradshaw. When Bradshaw unleashed his built up energy into the nearby wall, it didn't take a force user to tell that he was unrefined and dangerous. A loose cannon. Mac felt that the wall could've easily been him or Lady Kay. He still maintained his grip on Kay's arm.