An Inconvenient Situation

[Aster Rose Baelor]

An orphanage in a small village on Csilla

The sound of heels clicked against concrete steps, accompanied by the sound of heavy boots stopped outside the door, and small hand rapped against the heavy wooden door alerting the staff to their arrival.

Hurried footsteps could be heard by the visitors as someone rushed to the door to let them in and a smiling face welcomed the visitors.

"Lady [SIZE=14.6667px]Baelor[/SIZE], thank you for coming." A male staff member greeted the pair.

"No need for thanks, I'm only doing as I should. Furthermore, I too am an orphan so I can somewhat understand and sympathise with the children's situation." Aster replied politely in a ladylike manner.

The teenager may not have cared for many of her lessons, often skipping them but her lessons in etiquette, and how to speak like and act like a lady were an exception. She may have taken her uncle's surname as her own but she would not have had the full respect of his staff if she looked and act as if she was some lowly street brat.

"Follow me," the man gestured at the lady and her bodyguard and led them to the yard behind the orphanage where the Chiss children, orphaned by the Sith during the assault on Csilla sat restlessly as they awaited the arrival of their visitor.

"Be on your best behaviour," a member of the orphanage's staff ordered the unruly bunch but it was to no avail. Children will be children.

Exasperated, the woman sighed as the man exited into the yard engaged in polite conversation with the guest.

"Lady [SIZE=14.6667px]Baelor[/SIZE] has arrived and it seems like she has brought gifts for everyone," the man smiled as he introduced the teenager to the children.

"No need to be so formal, please call me Aster, children," she grinned, greeting the children, and sat on one of the benches. "Pass me the bags," she orders her bodyguard who quietly complied and set the two big and heavy bags on the snow covered ground next to her and watched silently for any threats as she interacted with the children.

The man glanced at Aster, careful to hide his smirk before he re-entered the orphanage. She was his key to a better life, one of indulgence and wealth.

"Is everyone in position?" he whispered over a private channel through a well-disguised comlink. "The front door is unlocked, enter now and don't forget the lizards. We can't have any Force users potentially [SIZE=14.6667px]karking[/SIZE] up our plans."

[member="Sorel Crieff"]​

 

[Sorel Crieff]

Rumours. They were the lifeblood of the Jedi and also their bane. There were too many to even consider dealing with every one and most were entirely wild bantha chases – but every once in a while a snippet overheard in some sleazy cantina paid off. Slavers were thwarted here. An assassination was stopped there. A major heist averted somewhere else. People rarely understood the Jedi ran these missions. Not that they were necessarily covert, but no news rarely makes the press.

And the headlines today. On Coruscant, genocide didn’t happen whilst on Kashyyyk, chemical weapons weren’t used. Nope, that would never happen!

So she was visiting one of her favourite kinds of planets. White ones. A brief orbital scan of the icebound world revealed dozens of glaciers around the equator, as well as solid ice shelves that covered vast expanses of the planet. It made Rhen Var look positively temperate.

But the overwhelming sense from the planet was how bright it was. But Sorel knew that the harsh white of reflected sunlight belied the cold heart of Csilla.

As she neared the planet, she saw huge cities skating the glacial fields, riding the near-geologic flow of the ice. And she knew of others that were buried deep under the cold, tunnelling into bedrock in search of geothermal warmth far below.

She checked the coordinates for the umpteenth time – it was all the informant gave them – and put her ship down nearby. Close enough to be able to walk the distance but far enough away not to cause undue alarm should a major drugs deal be going down.

Once she lowered the lamp she heard it. The wind howled like a lovelorn wampa, tearing at the hull of her ship. Sorel had experienced nicer walks before. But at least she wore her Master’s bracelet, so the cold would not be too much of an issue. But she wore goggles and a mask to protect her skin. She might not feel the cold, but that wouldn’t stop it peeling off under the effects of the snow and wind.

She checked the coordinates again and sighed. There was a small village ahead, which was clearly where she was supposed to go. So carefully she exited her ship and put her head down as she fought against the wind. Perhaps it’ll brighten up later, she thought as she walked.

Here’s hoping.

[member="Aster Rose Baelor"]

 

[Aster Rose Baelor]

Aster interacted cheerfully with the children under the watchful eye of her protective detail, as she passed out the toys she had brought with her. Though they were no replacement for the children's lost parents, she hoped that the stuffed animals - each unique in their design would be able to become a source of comfort for them.

"I'm going to name you Softy!" a child exclaimed almost cheerfully, and embraced her plush.

Unfortunately, this period of happiness was only fleeting. The sounds of joyful children were soon replaced by the sound of screams, scared, as a masked group charged out, guns poised into the orphanage’s yard.

“Don’t move!” the leader of the group yelled at Aster and the orphans, and turned to teenager's security detail. “Slowly remove your weapons and slide them over!” he ordered.

Reluctantly, the man obliged with a frown, pulling out a heavy blaster pistol and a vibroknife out from underneath his black tailored suit jacket and slid them over silently.

“Two, put down your weapon and give him a pat down, ensure he is really unarmed,” the leader ordered one of his subordinates.

“Gotcha,” the man replied and did as he was told. “He is unarmed,” Two confirmed when he had completed the pat down and returned to his position.

“Good. If our intel is correct, the bodyguard is probably a member of the Wolfsglaive – someone we certainly do not want interfering in our plans,” the leader smirked at the bodyguard and turned his attention to Aster.

“Lady Baelor,” he said, maintaining his smirk. “Come with us unless you want to see blood spilled. We need you to send a little message to your uncle, the Emperor with our demands.”

Although she was scared, Aster chose not to show her fear. She had to be strong. “Fine,” the wilful teenager replied coldly, stood up, walked over to the leader and pushed his gun away from the children. They needed her alive so she was confident that she would not be harmed.

“I will comply but it will not matter, by the night’s end, you will all be dead,” she said as she glared coldly at the men with their guns poised at her bodyguard and the orphans.

Surprised by the teenager’s over-confidence – or foolishness as some may call it, the men burst out into laughter, amused.

“By the night’s end, we will be rich and gone as Emperor Baelor will have given into our demands,” the leader corrected and gestured at her to follow.

“My uncle does not negotiate with terrorists, you all will be hung by the time the night is done,” Aster retorted as she followed the leader into the building.

[member="Sorel Crieff"]​

 

[Sorel Crieff]

Sorel made slow progress initially but the blizzard abated and without a headwind of snow cutting into her she was able to speed up.

In the distance she saw a village – and despite the cold and the bleakness of the setting – it seemed an inviting place. Perhaps that was because of it? Regardless, she pressed on and thanked her lucky stars that the first thing her Master gave her was the protective bracelet.

As the buildings drew nearer, she sensed something. Something wrong. Or rather it was a lack of sense that bothered her. It was as if she was being deprived of her Force sense. Even a dark side nexus gave a sense of the Force, albeit a cloying and uncomfortable one. This felt entirely different. It was as if there was a hole in the Force up ahead.

She wondered if it had something to do with the weather or a geographical phenomenon. The alternative was entirely unpalatable. What if there was some cloaking device in place? The point was that the substitute was not a good sign.

Regardless, she pressed on.

Which was when she heard the screaming. Young voices. Children’s voices and not shouts of play but genuine fear. Sorel jogged now, still wary of her footing, but she kept up the pace.

Which was when it hit her. It was like entering a room and not being able to hear. Or see. One of her senses was completely blocked out. In this case her Force Sense. The coincidence was too great – someone was supressing the Force. And the someone was endangering the children.

So she reached the doorway and glanced inside, keen to see what was going on but doing her best not to give herself away.

Which was when she heard merriment. Not the children this time – but the callous laughter of men. As she peered through, she saw some men and a teenager enter the building. The young woman’s words echoing as she disappeared.

Terrorists? Kidnappers? Regardless, without the Force, she would have her work cut out to deal with this many alone. But she was a Jedi and had no choice. Back-up would take too long and innocent lives were at stake.

[member="Aster Rose Baelor"]

 

[Aster Rose Baelor]

"Uncle Isamu, I have been taken hostage by a bunch of cowardly goons. They are demanding that the Iron Empire pay them a sum of one billion credits, and safe passage outside of Iron Empire in exchange for my safe return," Aster spoke into camera, pokerfaced. "I told them that they would be hung by-" she attempted to continue before one of her assailants smacked her with their gun.

"Stick to the script, say you're scared," the man spat at the defiant teenager, annoyed.

"But I'm not." The teenager glared at him, her face numb with pain. She had to maintain her facade, she told herself. So long as she didn't show fear, she still had some power, however, the moment her resolve wavered, she would be at their mercy. "If you don't like it, edit it out or, is that too difficult for you simpletons."

Amused by her fearlessness, the leader let out a loud laugh. "Are you stupid or, are you unaware of the danger you are in, girl?" the man asked the teenager then turned to his men. "This clip is more than enough, boys. Move the children, the staff, and the guard to the back room then have the young Lady Baelor join them. We could probably smack around a child or two to encourage her cooperation."

"Scum," Aster muttered, refusing to look at the man and looked instead at the curious lizard on his back that was worn by all the assailants.

[member="Sorel Crieff"]​

 

[Sorel Crieff]

As the men moved inside the building, Sorel found her connection to the Force return – but where they had moved to was a closed book to her still. Clearly something they had was having this effect. There were natural reasons of course or perhaps some technical break-through. She visibly shook her head at this thought. No, if that were the case, it would be in the hands of far wealthier individuals than this. No, a more down to earth explanation was in order.

But until that presented itself, she just had to assume she could not use the Force in their proximity. Which limited her options. She was a Jedi and like most of her kind, she was trained from infancy to use the Force. She was the weapon and the Force her power. Even her sabers were essentially useless without the Force as she was able to wield them most effectively by channelling that energy – it was what allowed her to fight with a weightless blade and predict an attack as soon as it was launched. She had the added advantage of being innately attuned to the future so as to enhance this ability even more.

So she checked her pockets. She never carried a blaster. That would have to change she decided. She had her sabers and up close they would still be an effective weapon, but she would not be able to deflect blaster bolts with them. And she was decent in hand to hand combat – this was part of her training. It was just she no longer had the advantage of precognition. But she did have anatural athleticism and excellent speed in her favour.

So she edged forwards, using the men’s ‘cloaking’ ability against them. Those null points on her Force map were the miscreants, so she knew exactly how many and where they were. Her plan was now simple. Divide and conquer. She could not rush them all at once – but if she could pick them off? One at a time? That would work, she was sure of it.

[member="Aster Rose Baelor"]

 

[Aster Rose Baelor]

With a calm demeanour, Aster entered the room where the children, and the bodyguard had been forced into by the men, unfazed by the blaster that had been pressed against her back, she was too valuable to be killed just like that. Relieved, to see that the children looked to be relatively unharmed, Aster rushed to them.

"They haven't been hurt have they?" the teenager asked her bodyguard sternly whose hands had been bound behind him with rope.

"No," he replied.

Thank goodness, she thought, relieved.

"Are you alright, Lady Baelor?" he asked.

Blood had pooled under the skin where the teenager had been hit with the firearm, and a bruise began to form on her cheek.

"For the most part," she replied, and turned her attention to the children, ignoring the three gunmen in the room.

***​

The Leader of the Gunmen

"Two, Three, Four are in the back room with the hostages, and Five is standing guard outside the door. Six, Seven, Eight, patrol the building. Ensure that no one enters. I'll wait for Baelor's reply. If contact has not been established in half an hour, we'll live stream killing the hostages, starting with the children," the leader, spoke into the comlink, and took a long drag of his cigarette. Waiting was always such a bore.

[member="Sorel Crieff"]​

 

[Sorel Crieff]

Sorel knew she had to move quickly. Once she took care of the first of the men, she knew that they’d become jumpy – and innocents might die. The fact that no one had been yet killed meant there was value in their lives, so she relied on the fact that immediately ending a child’s life was not going to be top of their priorities.

She identified nine gaps in the Force. She made sure she had a strong mental map before she moved forwards. Once she closed in on the first one, she knew her Force connection would stop and she would not be able to see where they moved to.

Her first target was one man on his own, standing guard no doubt. She had to time it right as three more were patrolling the building and would raise the alarm if they saw their fallen comrade. She walked forwards and sure enough, she felt her connection to the Force dissipate.

Knife in hand, she approached from a vantage point that allowed her to see him but hopefully he would not see her. As she did, she realised why she was disconnected from the Force. The lizard strapped to his back was known to all Jedi. Around it was a virtual bubble that the Force could not permeate. And she was within that zone now.

She sneaked up behind the man and the lizard began to wriggle. The man cursed the creature – and Sorel knew it must be uncomfortable to carry one on his back. And it would affect his balance too – something she might need to use.

As fast as her natural abilities would allow, her hand snaked out and she cut the strap that held the furry lizard in place. It scuttled away, seeking high ground naturally. As it climbed a wall, Sorel felt the Force return to her. Using it, she punched the man with the butt of her knife so quickly that he had no time to react. Blood spattered from the bridge of his nose as he crumpled to the floor.

One down and eight to go. But she knew the rest would not be that easy. She glanced around and then dragged the man inside the door he was guarding and out of immediate sight.

Next she needed to take care of the patrol. She grabbed the man’s blaster. It was not an ideal weapon, but it was better than none. Then she bound the unconscious man’s wrist and pulled a comlink earpiece from him and popped it into her own ear.

[member="Aster Rose Baelor"]

 

[Aster Rose Baelor]

Once one child began to cry, others quickly followed suit, scared, and stressed by the situation. Their home had been invaded by the Sith, their parents slaughtered, and now they were at the mercy of scary men, all by no fault of their own.

Desperately, Aster tried to calm the children, afraid that the crying would agitate the gunmen, but it was to no avail. They continued to cry despite her best efforts. Kark, she thought as she shot a look at the men who guarded them. Experience had taught her that men like them had [SIZE=14.6667px]little[/SIZE] patience, and it would not be long until one got angry, and started threatening the children in an attempt to silence them.

"Shut up brats," a gunman spat at the orphans, blaster pointed at them as Aster had predicted.

"Leave them alone, they're just scared," the teenager said sternly. "I'm the one you guys came for, let the children go. They have nothing to do with this."

"Well they do now," the man replied annoyed, his gun still poised at the children.

"Please," Aster begged.

"No," the man said [SIZE=14.6667px]firmly,[/SIZE] and turned to the orphans. "Shut up, or I'll shut you up."

Worried for the children's safety, Aster lunged for the man's blaster in an [SIZE=14.6667px]attempt[/SIZE] to wrench it out of his hands, however, as she was still only a child she did not have the strength to overpower the man, and had been thrown to the floor.

"[SIZE=14.6667px]Fething[/SIZE] girl," he yelled, the butt of his blaster raised to strike her. "We're not supposed to kill you, but that doesn't mean we can't rough you up a little."

"Two, stop. Stick to the plan. Is it really worth risking that payout?" 'Three' one of the three gunmen charged with guarding the hostages spoke up in an icy tone.

"Fine," Two replied bitterly as the comlink buzzed, and a message was relayed to all the gunmen.

"We're in business boys!" The leader announced over the comlink. "Negotiations were a success. We have a ship incoming for our escape, loaded with half of what we asked. Everything went smoother than expected."

[member="Sorel Crieff"]​

 

[Sorel Crieff]

Sorel found the lack of connection to the Force unnerving but she knew she simply had to deal with it. The life of a Jedi dictated as such.

She held the blaster in her right hand. The weapon felt uncomfortable and almost alien to her, but she was a decent shot and the model was fairly standard. She checked the safety and powered down the intensity of the blast. On this setting it ought to stun anyone shot – as long as she hit the right part of the body. A chest shot would be ideal, or the spine. A head shot might be too dangerous if she wanted to keep them alive – which she did.

She circled the building, heading for the space in the Force that was closest to her position. They were rotating around the perimeter of the building individually, equally spaced. If she was quick enough, she could take all three out and keep a sense of surprise over the ones inside.

The first was easy. He paused to light a death-stick and she hit him square in the chest. She had just enough time to pull the body out of sight before the second man appeared. He let out a shocked cry before she hit him twice. The first only numbed his arm but as he spun around, she managed to shoot him in the chest. He went down heavily and she dragged him to the hiding place she’d left the first patroller.

As she turned to find the remaining guard, she found him quicker than she expected – or wanted. He was staring right at her and had a blaster aimed at her face.

“We got company,” he said into his com-link and Sorel heard it in stereo, through the ear-piece she had inserted.

The instruction was simple. She was to be brought to where the hostages were. It appeared they needed to know what she knew before they killed her. Well, on the bright side, it ensured she’d get to the children quickly.

[member="Aster Rose Baelor"]

 

[Aster Rose Baelor]

A look of surprise appeared on Aster's face when she had been informed by the criminals that there was another in the building. As far as she was aware the rest of the Wolfsglaive, one of the Iron Empire's most elite unit had been sent away to another planet under the Empire's influence, attending to a task that the Emperor had assigned them so one of them could not infiltrated the building so quickly.

"Is this why you haven't shown an ounce of fear?" One of the men guarding the room asked, agitated.

"I don't know who is inside the building," Aster replied, worried. "Whoever they are, they are probably not with the Iron Empire."

"Right," the man said sarcastically, and began to speak into his in-ear intercom. "Boss, apparently little miss blondie here doesn't know who is inside the building. I reckon she's lying. What do you think we should do with her."

"Bring her to me. We'll have her tell our uninvited visitor to stand down, or else children will start dying through the intercom. If they hand themselves in, we'll have a few more hostages. If not, shoot on sight," came the response.

"Gotcha Boss," the man replied, turned to Aster, and grabbed her roughly by her messy ponytail. "The Boss wants you to do something for him," he said firmly, and dragged her out of the room by her hair.

"Lady Baelor," he guard called to her as he watched the armed man drag her out of the room with his front hand on his gun, and his other hand gripping her hair.

Though she was in pain from the man's rough treatment of her, she held in her teats of pain. She needed to be strong not just for herself, but also for the children as she didn't want to give them more reason to be scared.

Come tomorrow, they will be dead, she told herself as her scalp burned with pain as she was dragged down the hallway, and towards the room where she had recorded the video for these villains.

[member="Sorel Crieff"]​

 

[Sorel Crieff]

Sorel was, above all else, a pragmatist. Some saw that as odd, she was a Jedi after all. But deep down her behaviour was driven by realism and not theoretical considerations. For to her the Code was not conceptual but a set of practical guidelines. The Force was not mystical but a means for prediction, problem solving and action.

Which is why she was going along with the man that was escorting her. To resist now might risk a life and that was not acceptable. She was a Jedi and felt strange without her connection to the Force – but if she was right – and that there was more to her kind than using abilities, then she would prevail. If she died to save the lives of others, so be it. It was something she had to consider every day and so did not fear death. When she died, she would join the Force – that was a fact. And the circumstance that she would die one day was also a fact. Only the given day was unknown.

Entirely rational.

So she walked in front of the man, pleased he hadn’t checked her ear for the comms link. He’d taken her sabers and her knife and the blaster she’d liberated from the first thug and was – in his eyes at least – unarmed. Except a Jedi was taught that ‘they’ were the weapon, not the saber or the gun. It was something most overlooked when considering to disarm a Jedi. Those poor creatures strapped to the backs of the guards were more of a hindrance than the loss of her saber – but even this was not unsurmountable.

She just had to figure out in what way she would prevail. ‘If’ was not on her mind, just ‘how’.

The commlink told her that she was being taken to meet the boss. That was never a bad thing. Cut off the head and the rest of the body often failed to survive intact.

So finally she was brought in front of a few men and a young woman who looked as though she’d been manhandled – but appeared to be holding up remarkably well. Without the Force, she could not ascertain as much as she would have usually – but she was used to improvising.

The moment she was pushed into the room, she stood up straight and then bowed to the young woman. “Hello. I am Jedi Knight Sorel Crieff. I have come to rescue you and the others.”

Her voice was calm and impassive, her resolve firm. Let’s see how confident the thugs were.

[member="Aster Rose Baelor"]

 

[Aster Rose Baelor]

The men barked out in laughter at the Jedi's words before Aster could respond.

"You must be delusional or somethin' lil missy, but you be savin' no one today," one jeered.

Jedi Knight? The dishevelled, and bruised teen felt relieved at the young woman's words - so much so that she could feel herself close to tears. Staying strong was difficult, and she had been close to tears many times so far during this incident, but it was the only control she had, she could not let the men take that from her.

"I'm Aster Baelor of the Iron Empire," she introduced herself, as the Boss was engaged in conversation with one of his co-conspirators, and another watched over the pair, his gun poised to shoot. "The children are safe for now," she informed Sorel. There was more she had wanted to tell the Jedi about the situation, but could not in the presence of these men.

"Return the lovely Lady Baelor, and the Jedi to the room with the rest of the hostages," the Boss ordered with a smirk into the comlink within earshot of the two young women. "The corvette with the credits is coming, we're taking all the hostages with us. We can sell the Emperor's niece to one of his many enemies, and I'm sure the Jedi will fetch a quite pretty penny as well, but the children, and the man we'll offload to slavers for a good price."

Though she could not allow herself to show it, fear welled up inside Aster - being sold to one of her uncle's enemies seemed a fate worse than death. Desperate, she shot Sorel a look as if she was asking her 'What should we do?' as two men made their way to escort the pair into the room where the hostages were held.

[member="Sorel Crieff"]​

 

[Sorel Crieff]

Sorel remained impassive when the men laughed and ignored the wisecrack of the boldest one. People often feared what they did not understand. These men used violence and threats on a daily basis. They expected fear in return. And sometimes defiance – victims that refused to be intimidated. Sometimes it unsettled them back, other times it fuelled their desire to break the person. Other times they received anger back, neither side willing to give ground for fear of being subservient.

But apathy? She suspected they rarely saw that as a response. Except from those in authority over them. It might anger them – it was a risk of course – but emotions tended to lead to mistakes. And at least one would find the response unsettling – she was sure of that.

So Sorel continued to ignore them and spoke directly to the young woman. “I’m pleased to make your acquaintance,” she replied. “I have to admit I do not know a lot of the Iron Empire, but once the present matter is dealt with, I would appreciate you sharing information of them. If that is alright of course.”

Her words were calm and smooth. There was no Force influence as she could not connect to it, but the tone was deliberate and calculating. She exuded confidence in both the present situation and of the likely outcome.

“And I’m pleased to hear the children are well.”

As the one that was clearly ringleader spoke, Sorel picked up on the key information. The young woman was important. More so than the other hostages. So when the man moved to escort the pair, Sorel allowed herself to be shepherded. But her carriage and demeanour suggested she was being escorted to somewhere pleasant, not to a confinement area.

“So, please tell me, how many children are here and what are their names?” Sorel’s voice now was conversational – as if this were any other day in the galaxy. She was, above all, biding her time. Here and now was a bad place and time to act. If left alone, she might be able to use the Force. If left with just one or two guards, the odds of overwhelming them increased exponentially.

[member="Aster Rose Baelor"]

 

[Aster Rose Baelor]

"That sounds agreeable," Aster said, regaining a little of her lost composure. Though thoroughly shaken by the idea of being sold to one of her uncle's enemies, she maintained a brave facade. Once they know you're scared of them, they hold all the power, she had to remind herself as she felt the barrel of a blaster rifle press up against the small of her back.

"I hope you've set that thing on stun. Would be a real shame if you guys weren't able to collect that ransom because one of you accidently killed me," Aster said coolly then turned to Sorel.

"As this is a newly established orphanage, there are not many children here. If I were to guess, I'd say there are thirty or so. Unfortunately, I'm good at remembering the complicated names of the Chiss so I can't recall many of the children's names but I think one is named Wew'eden'gleri." she replied. "You'll have the opportunity to meet them soon."

Having said all she felt she was able to in the presence of the criminals, Aster began to walk faster wanting to tell Sorel more once they were in the room and the attention of the men who guarded them was diverted elsewhere.

"Someone is eager to return to the room," one of their escorts remarked.

"My legs are tired, I want to sit down as soon as possible," she replied and opened the door to the room where the children awaited them.

[member="Sorel Crieff"]​

 

[Sorel Crieff]

Sorel had no way of telling if Aster was as brave as she sounded and appeared or was simply putting on a façade. Without the Force, she was relying on the social clues that everyone else did – and being a Jedi meant you tended to underwork these skills, given you had a better way to sense such things.

Sorel smiled politely as Aster spoke, as if she were some patron being given a tour of the facilities before making a donation. From Sorel’s perspective this was entirely planned and she would keep up the pretence for as long as it was needed – especially in front of the children. Hope was a great ally in these situations.

Sorel matched Aster’s pace as they headed back to the room and ignored the man’s comments entirely, speaking to and acknowledging only the young woman’s presence. And then the door was opened and she saw the children – huddled together as was common when a threat presented itself. There was a perceived safety in numbers and most times, when presented with a predator, the herd and flocking instinct came to the surface.

Sorel beamed and bowed to the ensemble. “Hello to you all. I am Jedi Sorel Crieff. Why don’t you all tell me your names, so that we might become better acquainted.”

Being busy was another useful tactic when faced with fear. Action tended to deflect attention away from the problem.

[member="Aster Rose Baelor"]

 

[Aster Rose Baelor]

Aster stepped into the room and waited for Sorel to enter before approaching the children together. Although she did not allow herself to show it, she felt safer in the presence of the Jedi, and watched quietly as the children meekly introduced themselves to them while she awaited an opportunity to speak with the Jedi.

"When the ship arrives, there will likely be a siege on this building and Iron Empire personnel will attempt to enter," she whispered to the Sorel once the guards were out of earshot. "If possible, we should find a way to incapacitate all three of them and barricade ourselves inside until help has arrived."

Carefully, Aster gazed around the room again, ensuring the men were still out of earshot before she continued. "I think you and Adair, my bodyguard in the stun cuffs over there," she gestured at the man, "Should be able to overwhelm one guard each. I don't know if I can disable one by myself, but I will do my best to hold the last off until one of you can assist me. Alternatively, I could ask to use the bathroom so that one will escort me there, allowing you and Adair the opportunity to incapacitate the two who'll remain and deal with the third when he escorts me back. What do you think of this plan? It's a rather risky move, but we're not safe as long as those three guards the room."

[member="Sorel Crieff"]​

 

[Sorel Crieff]

Sorel listened keenly as Aster spoke. She did her best not to lower her head or appear to be listening to a whispered message. But then, she figured the guards would be expecting them to conspire and so would not be surprised if they exchanged information in this way.

Once Aster stopped speaking, Sorel nodded her understanding and then walked around the room, checking if the Force was nullified in all four corners. Sadly it was, but she’d managed to overcome guards so far, one or two more should be within the bounds of possibility.

She shot a glance at Adair and then returned to face Aster. “Divided is definitely best. If you’re prepared to take the risk, leading one away whilst Adair and I deal with the other two sounds like the best plan. One each is certainly achievable – and then it’s three onto one for the man you bring back to the room. Risky or not, it’s a sound plan and once we take those three out, we could barricade ourselves into the room if need be. Or at very least ensure the children are safe from the guards.”

[member="Aster Rose Baelor"]

 

[Aster Rose Baelor]

"I am," Aster replied solemnly then made her way to Adair.

"I hope those horrible men haven't been mistreating the children," she said simply as she tried to work out if the men who stood guard were paying attention to what she had said to her bodyguard.

"They haven't yet," he replied simply. He could tell she had something else to say. "Say what you need to, they don't seem to be paying us any mind for now. Overconfident nerf herders," he whispered.

"Have you untied yourself?" she whispered quickly.

"Yes."

"I'm going to ask to go to the bathroom where one will escort me out of the room. You and the Jedi," she carefully shot a glance at Sorel. "Deal with the two that remain and..."

"Understood," he cut her off. From what she had said, he was able to guess what she had planned. "And we'll deal with the last when you return?"

"Yes," she replied and returned to Sorel and to the children.

"I need to use the bathroom," Aster announced after approximately 10 minutes had passed since she had spoken to Adair.

"Me too," a child pique in.

"I peed my pants," said another.

"How annoying," a guard groaned. "Baelor brat and Chiss brat, to the door. If either of you attempt to escape, I'll shoot you down before either of you two can leave the building," he threatened and escorted the pair out of the room.

[member="Sorel Crieff"]​

 

[Sorel Crieff]

Sorel was pleased that Aster delayed between talking to Adair and asking to use the bathroom. To have spoken straight away might have caused suspicion. Sorel was impressed by her calm-head and bravery under the circumstances.

So when the request came, the guards found it an annoyance as opposed to a potential threat. And the focus was on the children leaving the room, not on those that remained. Complacency was often the undoing of even the most meticulous of plans. It was how you dealt with variables that mattered – and too often they were ignored as long as the plan progressed. Except now that was a positive.

Sorel glanced at Adair and having gained eye contact, switched her eyes to to the guard closest to him. She repeated the action. Sure he was clear which guard he should aim to disarm, she moved across to the other one.

“Tell me, whose idea was it to bring the creatures?” She indicated the furry reptile on his back. “It was clever, very clever. Did one of you think of it, or are you answering to a higher order?” The questions were pointless; she didn’t really care what he said. But she wanted him to think she was pumping him for information – as opposed to looking to overpower him. And all the while she waited for Adair to get into position, so they could pounce at the same time.

[member="Aster Rose Baelor"]