A Chanced Meeting

[Calum Finley]

The Coruscant Underworld​

Coruscant. The capital planet-ecumenopolis of the mighty Galactic Republic. Half a dozen trade routes ran through the planet, which made it the center of the Galaxy for trading. Calum had expected Coruscant to be a bit different from Corellia. To be better, to have better living conditions. But he was quite disappointed. The wealthy could afford all the luxury they wanted. In the lower levels, people of the Galactic City barely managed to scrape by living. Crime was everywhere: No wonder the Republic never bothered to keep their police down here. When he had first seen the brilliant planet from space, it had looked quite promising. Down in the under levels of Coruscant, not so much. Was there no way out of this frustrating cycle of poverty?

Two full years. That's how long he had lived in Coruscant. Two years back, he had sold his two younger sisters into slavery to buy himself a ticket to Coruscant. Time seemed to pass quickly here. There was no way to distinguish day from night, according to some people Calum had met, some people here had never seen daylight in their entire life. These hundreds upon hundreds of levels that made up the Coruscant Underworld, that made up almost a third of Coruscant's population, lived in poverty. Calum, in his two years working at a local tavern, making barely a dozen credits a day, further grew his hatred. One day, he promised himself, one day he'd take revenge upon the world that had left him in poverty.

The Nexus Tavern. That was the name of the tavern in which Calum worked in. No matter what time of the day it was, the tavern seemed to have at least had a dozen people in it. Calum's job, was to mop and clean the tavern, as well as to serve food and drinks to the people that paid for it. He barely got any sleep, and the only breaks he took was at a spare table in the corner of the tavern. On this day, Calum was once again cleaning the tables in the tavern. People were coming in and out of the tavern, but more seemd to be coming in than out. As usual. He knew that it was the time of the day in which people often enjoyed a drink and a quick snack here at the tavern. What he did not know, ofcourse, was that his life was about to change forever.

@[member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""]Darren Shaw

 

[Garza]

Darren was hiding from the Empire an one place he thought was the underworld. As he walked men women and children would fight over the most prized thing here. Food. A man earlier tried to steal Darren's sword from his sheath. He was very suprised to find out that you dont steal from a Dark Jedi. He clothed himself in his white robes and black tattered hooded cloak. His sword was on his hip smacking his leg as he walked into The Nexus Tavern.

A lot of shady people were here getting something to put down their gullets. He was more intrested in the rooms they may have. Darren walked up to an empty spot at the bar and requested a room. He was about to leave when he felt a strong untamed force energy around him. pinpointing would be hard because there were so many people here. The force seemed as though it wanted to explode.

Darren looked around to see anybody who may have a spark of the powerful energys that was pounding at his head. It looked like he would have to cause the explosion to occur.

 

[Calum Finley]

People were always thirsty in the Galactic Underworld. There always at least half a dozen people in line that were waiting to get some refreshing beverage. Many were usually heavy drinkers. There were always drinks and garbage that people just drop on the ground, which ended up being work for Calum. Calum started mopping the floor once more, knowing that if there was a single garbage on the floor or drink at the end of the day, the tavern owner would not pay him the full twelve credits that he worked for that day. Mentioning credits... Calum leaned against a nearby wall and took out a small sack from his pocket. The small sack was his wallet, where to stored all his credits. He held the small stack in his hands, looking inside and counted about five dozen credits inside. Much of the money he earned was spent on feeding himself, but he was still saving up money... to do what exactly? He had no idea.

It happened suddenly. Theft. A Rodian that had been standing near him and eyeing his sack of credits suddenly ran towards him, punched him the face, took his sack of credits, and just ran out of the crowded tavern. Calum cursed out quite loudly as he tried to run after the thief, but the crowd was getting in his way. Finally he reached the doorway, and was ready to sprint down the street to find that thief Rodian when a fat and seemingly drunk human blocked his way. Angered and frustrated, Calum punched the drunk person on the stomach. "Get out of my way you-" Click. Without a warning, the human that had appeared drunk suddenly flipped out a blaster rifle, reloaded it, and pointed it at Calum's face. Suprised, Calum backed away slowly, leaning against the doorway. "Woah-hey, chill." muttered Calum. At this point, everyone in the tavern was turned around and looking at the commotion by the doorway.

@[member="Darren Shaw"]

 

[Garza]

Darren had seen what had happened and watched as the event unfolded. The Rodian had ran off with the young mans credits. The chase started and ended quicker than a few seconds. He was not suprised when the man pulled out a blaster. It shook in the mans hands from being drunk or he never pulled it out and fired it. Darren had his hand on the hilt of the blade beneath his cloak. He entered the mind of the young man sofly saying "Tak the gun." If the lad did it then he wouldnt need to worry about the fat lard He'd back up.

Darren just waited for the tavern to explode an fall on itself. Darren readied himself for this skermish.

 

[Calum Finley]

Calum intently stared at the blaster pointed at his face. Again, crime was no unusual sight here in the Galactic City's under levels. The man probably was drunk, observing the fact that the person was swaying from side to side, and his aim was trembling slightly. Suddenly, he heard a voice in his head. "Take the gun." Calum had never been so frightened in his life. He did not recognize the voice, and knew that it wasn't himself that was speaking. No matter. It was a good and worthy advice. But he'd have to suprise the man to take the gun, or at least he might shoot. Calum knew what he was going to do, and knew he'd regret it.

Only a few weeks ago, he had discovered he could move objects around if he really focused intently on it. So that's what he did: Calum focused his attention entirely on the gun, and making it fly over and land on his hand. The blaster started shaking violently in the man's hand, and suddenly flew out of the man's reach, and Calum quickly raised his hand to catch the blaster. The tavern had gone silent. Then all of sudden, about half a dozen pistols and blasters were aimed at Calum from inside the tavern. There were angry glares directed at him. "You Jedi scum! Your kind is not welcomed down here..." said one of the mercenaries that was aiming the blaster at Calum's face. Confused, Calum looked around bewildered.

 

[Garza]

Darren found who it was with the power. He smiled and walked in front of the boy. and said to him in a whisper through the force again. "Nicely done now let me deal with the rest."

Darren slid the sword from the sheath with a ring. Quicly he flicked his wrist to cut the closest mans pistol. The man stod there like a fool for a sec and next his face went cold. "Kill the damn Jedi scum!" he yelled.

Darren used the force to push all the men in front of him to the wall. they fell like dominos. The men to the side rushed him and the boy. A white lightsaber sprang to life in his left hand and cut the nearest person down.

They backed off for a split second and "RUN!" escaped his lips to the boy.

 

[Calum Finley]

Calum blinked in confusion as everybody continued aim their weapons at him. The bar owner's menacing glare towards him told Calum that Calum had just lost his job. 'I'm going to probably die out in the streets, now. Thanks for the advice, Mr. Voice in My Head. Hey, maybe one of them will shoot me right now.' Calum thought angrily. Suddenly, a man appeared from the angry crowd. He came up to him, and spoke in his mind. Immiediately, Calum knew it was the same person who had advised him to take the gun. "Nicely done now let me deal with the rest." said the voice.

What happened next seemed to have caught everybody off-guard. The hooded figure seemed to suddenly conjure up a sword from nowhere and slice down on one of the mercenary's blasters, cutting it neatly in half. Stunned silence, then... "Kill the damn Jedi scum!" Calum could only watch in awe as the mysterious man, with another flick seemed to throw the armed customers infront of them flying towards the wall with what seemed like a giant invisible hand. There were still angry men on either side of them that started rushing them. Suddenly, another sword sprang up on the man's left hand, that took down a nearby mercenary. Except this sword... seemed to be glowing with some sort of white light...

Calum had not much time to observe the mysterious sword, when the mysterious man suddenly ordered him to run. Deciding to put his trust in the mysterious hooded figure, he sprinted alongside the man as they tore across the street. Blaster fire erupted from behind them, but didn't hit them since they took a sharp left. They ran for what seemed like an eternity, and until they could no longer hear footsteps chasing them. They ended up stopping in middle of a dark alley. Feeling exhausted, and rather nauseous, Calum leaned against the wall and closed his eyes, trying to regain his breath. "Thanks, but... who... are you?" gasped Calum as he attempted to wipe the sweat off of his face.

@[member="Darren Shaw"]

 

[Garza]

Darren and the lad ran into and ally and nether of them were hit because he deflected the blaster shots that came close to them. He was okay and not out of breath because he was trained for this. He looked at him to see that the young man was okay and very much alive. The man asked him "Thanks, but...who..are you?"

Darren didnt answer his question as he said out loud. "Relax hold your hands above your head and stand up straight it will help you breath." It took him a second to feel in the force around them as he searched for anyone that followed him. There was one man. he was trying to sneak up on them. Darren took his hood off and put his finger to his lips to show that he wanted him silent. Slowly he walked around the corner and grabbed the man by the scruff of his neck.

Darren slammed him into the wall and looked him dead in the eyes. Darren used the force to make himself look like the mans worst nightmare. he began to scream like a whipped child. Darren yelled in a deep voice he said to him "Leave and never return, you do not know what happened in the bar and you did not see us leave." The man nodded his head and repeted what he just said. Darren let him go and he ran.

Darren faced the boy and looked at him. "Im Darren Shaw. Your welcome back there. and did you know that you have the force within you?"

 

[Calum Finley]

"Relax hold your hands above your head and stand up straight it will help you breath."
Calum continued to gasp for breath but decided to follow the given instructions. He put his hand on top of his head as he stood up straight. He realized he indeed was breathing a little easier. There seemed to be less weight and pressure on his chest. The mysterious man then pulled down his hood, showing that he had long white hair and blue eyes. He seemed to be in his 20s, so not as hold as Calum had thought.

Suddenly, the man motioned for him to remain silence, and Calum obeyed. For the third time in less than fifteen minutes, the mysterious man suprised him again. The man seemd to almost pull a mercenary out of thin air. (Calum recognized the man as one of those that were chasing them.) The long white haired man had grabbed the mercenary by the scruff of his neck. Whatever happened, it seemed to have scared the living hell out of the mercenary, as he screamed his head off. "Leave and never return, you do not know what happened in the bar and you did not see us leave." With that, the mercenary ran off.

The long haired man turned to face Calum. "I'm Darren Shaw. You're welcome back there. and did you know that you have the force within you?" Calum blinked, confused that the man / Darren Shaw had asked him if he knew that he had the Force within him. Calum stared curiousely at Darren. "Have the Force? If that means being able to sense other people's minds and be able to push / pull things around, yes." he said, still curious why he'd ask such a question. "Not that it matters... I've just lost my only job. I have no money. I'm probably gonna end up dead in the streets." muttered Calum angrily.

 

[Garza]

Darren looked at the man. as he talked to him.

"Have the Force? If that means being able to sense other people's minds and be able to push / pull things around, yes." he said, still curious why he'd ask such a question. "Not that it matters... I've just lost my only job. I have no money. I'm probably gonna end up dead in the streets." muttered Calum angrily.

Darren nodded his head. "Yes you have lost your job and I am sorry for that, though usualy when someone gives you their name they give theres in return." He didnt wait for him to respond because he was going to get right to the point. "I am a Jedi and you have what we call 'The Force'. Its a powerful energy that allows you to make the impossible become possible. I threw a good 15 men all at once and felt that they guy was around the corner snooping on us. I can also talk to you..." Darren said the last part of the sentence in his head. "... With out uttering a word from my mouth. instead we talk thought thoughts."

He opened his cloak to put away his sword and lightsaber. as he did so he revealed white robes and two other lighsabers. as well as a sheath that housed the white sword. Darren closed up his cloak once more and covered his head again. "Here is not a safe place to talk. Do you have a private room somewhere?"

 

[Calum Finley]

Calum realized that he had not indeed told Darren his name yet.
"I apologize... sir for not telling you my name earlier. My name is Calum Finley." said the Corellian rather apologetically. He listened intently while Darren (who was apparently a Jedi himself) Calum shuddered slightly as he heard the Jedi speaking in his head again. So apparently he could make the impossible possible because he could make use of 'the Force'. He watched, amazed, as Shaw displayed that underneath his clock, that he had two other lightsabers as well as a sheath for his white sword.

"Here is not a safe place to talk. Do you have a private room somewhere?" Calum shook his head. "This alley is as private as it gets for me, Mr. Shaw. The only thing I have with me besides my clothes is this." He took out a small hand knife and showed it to Darren. He looked around the deserted alley. "Anyways, you said that you are a Jedi. So that means you're part of the Galactic Republic, right?"

@[member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""]Darren Shaw

 

[Garza]

Darren under stood that the man may not have a place to stay. Luckly he had the credits to get a place. "Walk with me" Darren started walking in the opposite direction of the tavern to His stolen YT-1300. Through the force he talked to Callum.

"Just think of saying something and I will hear you. You are almost correct with me being part of the Republic. I was once sided with them. I am whats called a Dark or Fallen Jedi. We live in both of the sides of the force. Light and Dark. We are not Sith or Jedi. We walk the edge so to speak." Darren waited for his responce as he felt a question coming.

 

[Calum Finley]

Calum nodded, wondering why in the world this Darren Shaw was willing to pay for them to have a place to stay in. He patiently listened to the Dark Jedi, his brains absorbing all the new information. Literally. The Jedi was sending his thoughts to his brain. Calum focused, and tried to look at Darren and tried to speak with him via thoughts. Suddenly, he could hear his thought be voiced outloud.

There was a question that he wanted to ask the Dark Jedi, just like Darren had predicted. "So like you I have the ability to use the Force... How can I become a Dark Jedi like you? ...Will you train me to become like you? Please?" Calum voiced these thoughts to the Jedi, with almost a pleading tone. If he couldn't become a Dark Jedi, there was no future for Calum except to die in the streets of the Coruscant Underworld.

@[member="Darren Shaw"]

 

[Garza]

Darren thought about the pleading in the thoughts directed at him. He was going to train Callum to be a Dark Jedi like he was. Only problem is that most if not all people will not know him. Darren was known yes but that was because he had done things everywhere. This path will bring pain and suffering to him.

"Yes, I'll train you. Just know that this road you may travel is full of hardships that only you can overcome...with a price." Darren walked towards his ship with the ramp seemingly to open by itself. "Get in and find a bunk you want." Darren walked into the ship and went to his own room where he kept all his items.

 

[Calum Finley]

"Yes, I'll train you. Just know that this road you may travel is full of hardships that only you can overcome...with a price."
Calum rolled his eyes in exasperation. Hardships? A price? The sixteen year old let out a snort. "Darren, I sold my two younger sisters to slavery and lost my mother in a factory accident. I don't see what I've got to lose. Oh yeah, should I call you Master Shaw now or something?" Calum asked. To Calum, anything would be better than living in the streets, anything...

Suddenly, all thoughts were erased from his mind. "Get in and find a bunk you want." said his new master, walking into a YT-1300. A freaking YT-1300! "How rich are you?! Is this actually yours?" asked the Corellian in awe as he watched Darren walk to his own room. Calum had only seen a YT-1300, never been actually near one, and obviousely not in one. If being a Dark Jedi allowed him to afford YT-1300, than the future was looking bright for him.

@[member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""][member=""]Darren Shaw

 

[Garza]

Darren heard Callums story and knew that it was true. He had once been stupid enough to not care for his mother and she ended up being a hollowed out shell of who she once was. He laughed at him when Callum asked how he bought this. "No I stole it from some smuck. and yes you can get a few 10 thousand cred here and there for a living." Darren was not much of a Master person. He felt like he would make people his slave. "No call me Darren or Shaw. but in public Yes you must do so."

Darren took off his cloak and placed it on his bed. He knew that Callum may be watching but he didnt care. Darren took off his belt with the sheath and placed it in a safe on the ground at his feet he did the same for two of his lightsabers. Once he did that he closed the safe and pressed a button on the side to make it lower into the hull. There was a small time lapse when he asked "You want to fly this ship?

 

[Calum Finley]

@[member="Darren Shaw"]

Calum nodded when Darren told him to only call him master in public. He listened intently as his master talked about how the ship was stolen, but how he managed to still get ten thousand credits here and there for a living. Ten thousand credits! That seemed like an impossible sum, compared to his twelve credits a day. He watched as Darren retired to bed, and lowered himself lower into the hull. During the time lapse that Darren was lowering his bed, Calum was plenty occupied as he observed the blinking controls of the YT-1300 in the cockpit.

He nearly jumped out of his skin in excitement when Darren asked if he wanted to fly the ship. Fly a YT-1300? Calum would've never have dreamed he ever would fly one twelve hours ago. Yet, he was actually now going to get to pilot it! "Yea, definitely!" answered the Corellian enthusiastically. He was a decent flyer, but his family had never been able to afford themselves even a speeder, much less a starship. "Where are we're going?"

 

[Garza]

Darren smiled at his enthusiasm of flying the ship. Darren thought about bringing him to his sanctuary. It was a planet that was some what known but well hidden from the war. "I'll put the destination in but you can still fly it. That is if you are up to the task?" Darren knew that Callum would have questions about where was the place they were going. "And if you want to know about where we are going, I can't tell you because I am currently being hunted. I would like to leave it at that for now." Darren closed the ramp with the wave of his hand. The cockpit was quite large and may have been complicated for callum, because of all the switches and buttons. "I'll teach you how to fly this and if you have proven your worthy to fly It will come with benafets."

 

[Calum Finley]

@[member="Darren Shaw"]

So they were being hunted? By whom? He decided it was not the time to ask his master. He nodded eagerly when asked if he was up to the task of piloting the YT-1300. It would almost be a dream come true to him. Darren also seemed to give very little information on their destination, and made sure Calum didn't ask any more about on the destination with a simple "I would like to leave it at that for now." He watched his master eagerly, ready to get the hang of how to control the giant starship. After all, no matter how big a cockpit was and how complicated the controls were, a pilot, once educated on how to fly, could easily get hang of piloting any plane.

 

[Garza]

Darren sat in the co-pilot seat and pointed at the chair next to him with an open hand. Darren flipped some switches and messed with the controls to get the right destination. He set it for his sanctuary where he could train Callum in peace. "Alright grip the joysticks and press this button to activate the engines." Darren let him Press it and continued "Now disengauge the legs with this lever. and we will be hovering above the ground." Darren flipped some switches on his side to unlock the steering mechanisms. "Now take us into the air."