Private Caught in a Bird Snare

[Evelyn Shaw]

Once they were back on the ship, Evelyn's entire posture relaxed as she felt several degrees more safer. She sighed as she took up a place against the wall, back against it as she stood opposite to Amea. The Echani raised an eyebrow, letting out a small chuckle when the young woman suddenly burst out with her opinion on Jedi.

"Because they're like lighthouses, swinging their light around like they just don't care." Though the Sith weren't exactly any better either, just another side of the same coin. "Not realizing until it's too late, just how much attention it draws." Evelyn knew well how powerless it felt to be caught between the two groups, with the Force being thrown about left, right and center.

"I'd wanna say we were in the wrong place, at the wrong time?" She looked over at Amea, shrugging at the cliche. But then Evelyn wasn't entirely surer which option she would've preferred. SImply waiting around on the Jedi, getting increasingly bored. Or getting thrown into some issue that would've potentially happened all the same, given her penchant for running into them. "Unfortunately, this was the enclave we picked. Let's get going, see if there's been any updates."

Their return to the Jedi Enclave was uneventful, greeted at the door by Corbin who saw them inside. Luck would have it that Master Quellus was in the courtyard when they had arrived. They informed the Bothan Jedi about the rising issue with Willowdale, that a potential third party was attempting to worsen the already thin relationship between them. Quellus had voiced his appreciation that they had directly come to him, giving him the opportunity to discuss with the other Masters, and avoid the inevitable Padawan gossip.

Evelyn asked about her small charge, and Quellus simply smiled, pointing over at the tree. Atop it the white furred creature was soundly sleeping high up in the branches. The Bothan explained that while they were able to feed it some fruit, it's malnutrition had been a result of 'Light Exhaustion'. It was a creature very entwined with the Light Side of the Force, and being forcefully concealed from it, caused it to effectively starve in a sense. Thus the light of the Uneti tree was a perfect means to see it to a full recovery.

The Echani was relieved, like a weight had been lifted from her chest ever since she had rescued it. She went on to ask about any information, but Quellus had shook his head. Their historian was still looking for any, but so far it seemed a lost cause.

With that, Quellus arranged for some 'sleeping quarters' for both women, which unfortunately meant they'd be sleeping on the floor, or on a chair. Although, it wasn't like either Amea or Evelyn were unfamiliar with not having a bed. Evelyn made no complaints, and tried to find a bit of sleep as the night drew in. Only for it to get interrupted a few hours in, as a commotion started to erupt outside.

"Oi! I said don't take another step, get back on your speeder and bugger off back home!"

The Echani barely spared Amea a glance, before she was up on her feet and heading towards the entrance. Outside, they were greeted by both Corbin and Kal with their weapons raised. Ahead of them was a group of four men, having seemingly arrived on the landspeeder behind them. Evelyn frowned, recognizing one of the men.

"They're from the cantina..."

And were very, very drunk if their constant stumbling around was any indication.

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

Evelyn Shaw

Lighthouses was certainly a word for it. Uneventful as the arrival back at the enclave was, Amea couldn’t help but be on edge. The Jedi were aware of the intrusions, but that didn’t mean word wouldn’t slip. If they were indeed operating within the confines of some sort of conspiracy to incite violence between two groups…

No, surely they wouldn’t. Right?

Amea’s cheeks pressed against her kneecaps, strands of her hair wrapping around her legs like a curtain to block the light out. It wasn’t sleep, but at the very least the darkness helped her gather her thoughts somewhat. The most likely suspect was usually the one she often found. The web weaved made all of this seem off. If her bait was used, if the twi’lek was in on this…

Amea’s eyes darted towards the door as the voice of the guards echoed down the hallway. Her eyes met with Evelyn’s before they both got back on their feet. Tugging the Echani back behind the corner she kept them both out of sight before they glanced over at the guard.

“It’s an act.” Amea whispered to her friend and squinted at the suspects.

“Heeeyyy, my friend, it’s me!” The man who approached the guard exclaimed with his arms spread wide, creditchit finding its way into his hand before he clasped it into the guard’s hand, chit curiously missing upon pulling away.

“Ah, yes. Sorry, my friend. I didn’t recognize you in the dark.” The guard made a sweep for his backpocket. “Extra security on account of the break-ins, you know? Can’t be too careful.”

“Naturally, naturally.” The man seemed to sober up quick enough.

“Corbin…” Kal said, his voice laced with worry at the display. Not that it lasted, one of the others had rounded him, knocked his lights out before he was any the wiser.

“What do you have for me this time, Cor-cor?”

“The big one. Some kind of creature, it looks like it’s worth a lot of credits to the right buyer.”

“The one Tess—”

“Sssh!” The ‘guard’ hushed his friend. “Yeah, that one.”

 

[Evelyn Shaw]

Evelyn frowned as she watched things play out, an unsettling feeling growing in her stomach. The moment the ‘drunkards’ drew closer to the guards, the more it increased. Amea’s whisper confirmed the Echani’s fears, and she had to stop herself from audible cursing.

What a mess of a situation this had all become.

The mention of the small creature angered Evelyn, and she almost went to make a move. But she felt Amea hold her back. Emotions weren’t going to do any good when they were presently outnumbered. At least it seemed like Kal was innocent in all of this, hopefully. Unless these guys were playing some Four-Dee holochess. But that still left one last guard accounted for.

“Where’s the scrawny one?” The man asked, scratching his stubble beard, as he looked down at the now unconscious Kal. “Ya know, with the broken arm.”

“Rufus? He’s gone in to prepare, said he’s gotta have some backup in case the Jedi make a fuss.” Corbin looked around at the others. “Speaking of, why’d you bring so many men with you? We’re meant to be doing this quietly, without any violence.”

“Like you said, they’re here in case ‘the Jedi make a fuss’. They’re peacekeepers aren’t they? They’ll refrain from lashing out if there’s so many around them.”

Evelyn frowned, wondering if this ‘Rufus’ person was the guard who had been stealing things. Or rather, was the one actively doing it with assistance from Corbin in hiding them. But with a broken arm? That didn’t make sense. Why let someone with a handicap take the lead?

The Echani felt the hairs on the back of her neck suddenly stand up. It wasn’t the Force, but she felt something off. She turned around and quietly rushed back to the courtyard. However Evelyn stopped the moment she was in view of the tree, catching as a skinny man guard, a cloak concealing his left arm, was attempting to reach up towards the small creature, who was still peacefully resting.

Not wanting to make too much noise, Evelyn stepped forwards with a particular heavy footfall. It rang out across the courtyard, catching the guard; Rufus’ attention.

He didn’t hesitate to respond. “Don’t even think about it, Echani. One more step and I’ll torch this whole tree.” To prove his point, Rufus pulled away his cloak to reveal a flamethrower hidden beneath it. He aimed it towards the base of the Uneti tree.

Amea, if she attempted to try and manipulate Rufus’ technology from afar, would find her attempt halted as she reached the man’s vicinity. There was a bubble around him, blocking any use of the Force. He had some means of Ysalamir on his person.

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

Evelyn Shaw

There was a word that Amea looked for. Amateurs felt appropriate yet not quite. They were out of their depths, putting on a good show despite the fact that in all reality they were actually about thirty seconds away from realizing that they were but little flies entangled in the webs that Amea had weaved from the start. All of them except the twi’lek, but It was debatable whether or not the twi’lek had been in on it to begin with. However given that her information had already leaked it was fair to assume that someone was providing them with fresh data from the tap.

That left them with an interesting scenario. The men approached them, the flamethrower at the ready as Amea began to chuckle. For a brief moment the men all looked at each other before a sullen, angry look spread upon their faces. What was so funny?

“You don’t get it?” Amea spoke, her voice bright with mirth before the smirk on her lips quickly soured into a scowl, her voice dropping low with a hint of acid to each breath that parted her lips. “You are all exactly where I want you to be.”

“I set this trap,” Her eyes met with Corbin. “I gave you the information,” Her eyes met with the newcomer who had bribed his way in. “And I hold all the cards.”

“I know amateurs when I see them and I’ve killed them for less. So if you think I give a shit about some tree on a planet I will never see again,” She pulled the gun in her jacket from its holster and fired at the canister of the man’s flamethrower. “You’re not only wrong but foolish.”

The pellet attached to the tank with a loud bang. A quiet hiss called into the open from the hole that had been poked through the canister’s protective shell, each second sipping away at the man’s precious fuel as he turned it towards Amea to pull the trigger but something went wrong. The hiss became a whistle, the flames at the barrel of his weapon never finding air before they spilled into the propulsion gases, and with it the whistle turned into an explosion that shook the ground around them.

The tree was now on fire. The remaining thugs pulled out their weapons and opened fire on the two women. Amea dove for cover and could only hope Snowbird would do the same.

 

[Evelyn Shaw]

In Evelyn's mind, there was a short list of how this was all going to go down, and what happened wasn’t one she expected. Perhaps she should’ve, given how Amea handled the situation with Aleksandr. She didn’t waste time, preferred to cut to the chase and had no time for any bantha crap. If lives were on the line, it was better to shoot first than continue talking.

Part of the Echani’s mind wanted to take offence to that, as violence should never be the right option. But Evie was no longer the naive young girl she had been growing up. Her time as a smuggler had made it clear that the galaxy would consume you if you hesitated. Kindness was good in some places, but could get you killed too.

The air around them grew tense the more Amea talked, the men before them were growing more agitated as their plan seemingly unraveled. No doubt upset that they had supposedly been outplayed. Although, Evelyn was sure they still held some confidence in the fact they had the greater number.

Not like that ever stopped her in the past, nor Amea if she was going to make a guess.

Time seemed to slow as Amea pulled out a blaster, immediately firing a single shot at Rufus. It happened so quick that the man hadn’t even noticed by the time he raised his flamethrower. There was just another time for him to glance, to notice the new hole in the tank, at the same time as he squeezed down on the trigger. The explosion rocked the enclave, and the man himself was just...gone.

Hell broke loose as the men began shooting, mainly aiming for Amea initially. And much as she hoped Evelyn had ducked for cover, she hadn’t.

Instead, the Echani made a dash towards the tree. She had no love or concern for the Jedi or the Force, but the whole reason they were even there was still residing high up in the Uneti tree.

Evelyn got as close as she could to the now burning tree. She looked up, seeing the small creature now very much awake and trying to scramble higher up. Even from where she stood, Evie could feel the fear and panic from the creature. Not really thinking on how that was possible, the Echani whistled sharply. It seemed to have the intended effect, as it quickly looked down towards her.

“Just jump, I’ll catch you!” To its credit, the creature didn’t hesitate as it leaped from its perch and fell soundly into Evelyn’s arms. “That’s it, I got you. We need to ge-” Evelyn was interrupted as a blaster bolt soared over her head.

“Get the Echani, she’s got our prize!” Okay, now was the time for Evelyn to find some cover. Fortunately however, they weren’t going to remain outnumbered for long.

If the negative emotions wasn’t going to draw their attention, the sudden explosion and subsequent tree burning caught the Jedis' attention immediately. Two of the Masters came rushing into the courtyard; Master Quellus was one, while the third remained back, protecting the Padawans who had also awakened.

Suffice to say, their lightsabers were drawn and ignited.

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

Evelyn Shaw

For a second Amea could have sworn that time stood still as she watched the Echani dart towards the tree, towards the creature stuck in it. A silent curse parted her lips to expose the gritted teeth behind them. A momentary lapse of judgment, a consequence to consider for later. Right now all she had to do was wrap this thing up. The thugs were slowly losing their desire to fight as the lightsabers came into play. Not one to care much for the concept of fair play, Amea took this as her cue to act.

The force wrapped around her, the muscles beneath her skin working overtime against an oddly soothing wind of air. She sped up to close the gap between her and Corbin, her hand wrapped around his gun as it slowly dismantled in his very grip, discarded on the ground as nothing more than a pile of loose screws and factory-cut metal. The fear was evident in his eyes, the anger all too evident in hers.

It was too late for him. Amea placed the barrel of her gun against his stomach and pulled the trigger. At first he tensed up, then he shook as the electrical current streamed through his body. A whack to the side of his head and he was fast asleep.

The Jedi were already wrapping up their work with the rest. Some shooting a disapproving glance towards Amea who slowly but steadily let herself snap out of it with each passing breath that she seemingly heaved for.

“Snowbird.” She exhaled and began to look around. “Evelyn?”

She caught sight of the Echani and began to jog over. “Are you okay?”

 

[Evelyn Shaw]

Fortunately, Evelyn had managed to dive behind an overturned table, just about dodging another volley of blaster fire. The small creature clung against her chest, as her arms wrapped around it protectively. It was trembling, whether from the chaos or the Uneti tree burning. A creature of Light would no doubt feel pain from such a thing.

“Hey, it’s alright little one. You’re not going to get hurt anymore.”

Evelyn had no idea if such words were going to work, it felt right. She didn’t even know if the creature could understand her language. That it just acted on instinct to get away from the danger and into her arms.

At times like these, Evelyn wished she had remembered to keep a blaster at her side. It was foolish of her to assume they’d be kept within close quarters if a confrontation were to break out. Now she was stuck taking cover, unable to defend herself. Although, they were in a Jedi Enclave right now, and one such Jedi had moved into position to start deflecting bolts heading her way.

Feeling some measure of safety, the Echani adjusted her hold on the creature before peeking up from behind her cover. It was just in time to see Amea suddenly rush towards Corbin, at a speed the Echani only assumed was due to the Force. The man had shifted his weapon over in anticipation, but the woman was quicker. His gun practically disassembled itself before his eyes, fear and panic taking hold.

Evelyn felt her breath hitch slightly, watching and waiting to see what Amea would do. But to her surprise, Corbin was hit by a current of electricity and summarily knocked out. Amea hadn’t gone for the kill.

As the Jedi began to round up the men, Evelyn felt safe in stepping away from her cover.

“Over here!” She called back, meeting Amea half-way as she jogged over. “I-we’re doing okay, yeah.” Evelyn had opened her mouth to speak further, but a new commotion outside caught her attention. “What’s going on now?”

Now being more cautious about hurrying somewhere, Evelyn headed towards the enclave entrance. The Jedi had restrained the men and had moved them outside, where apparently a bunch of newcomers had arrived. Peering outside, the Echani saw two more landspeeders, though both looked more official.

Standing before them was Mayor Hughes, backed by a group of armed guards. The rugged man looked on edge initially, but seemed to ease off as he took in the situation.

“Master Jedi, we were just about heading here when we heard the explosion. What’s happened?”

“It would seem we’ve caught our thieves red handed.” Master Quellus spoke, but the Bothan didn’t sound too happy. “Unfortunately, the said explosion has set fire to our tree.”

“That is...unfortunate to hear.” Hughes didn’t show any sign that he was upset by that news. A knowing look shared between Mayor and Jedi Master. “You, you and you. Go and tend to the fire.” The three guards hurried over to one of the vehicles, pulling out equipment presumably to help extinguish the fire. “The rest of you, get these thieves properly restrained and ready to move.”

Hughes looked around as his guards got to work, his eyes falling on Evelyn and Amea. “Ah, so you two must be the women my secretary had approached.”

“Tess spoke to you?” Evelyn asked, her curious eyebrow raising.

“Oh yes, she confessed about what had been going on under my nose.” Hughes caught the glance of skepticism from Amea. “She’s in a cell right now, awaiting a fitting judgement. Tess might not have played the game, but she had a hand in placing the pieces.”

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

Evelyn Shaw

Snowbird was okay, and so was her little creature. Amea let out a sigh of relief and wiped the sweat off her brow. Her eyes were pried away from the hasty reunion as more players made it onto the scene, for a second her fists tensed up before they eased up as it grew all the more evident that they were friends of the Jedi.

He approached them to speak of Tess, Amea shook her head in frustration. Air blew from her nose to signal the indignantly precariousness of their situation.

“The girl is an idiot with good intentions.” She said and continued to shake her head. “Bit off more than she could chew, tried to get us to help her fix this.” Amea exhaled another indignant scoff. “We were going to have to either way, I suppose.”

She glanced down at the creature they had brought. “Our goals crossed wires.”

“In reality you’re just lucky. I am fairly sure this might be more than just organized theft, but I’d say that’s something for you to investigate and not us.”

 

[Evelyn Shaw]

Mayor Hughes said nothing initially, just staring Amea down as she spoke. There was no expression on his face that betrayed what he was thinking, but once the technomancer had finished, he nodded.

“I’ll take your words into consideration. She did indeed confess, when it was close to being too late. Should’ve come to me immediately about this rather than trying to fix it herself.” Hughes was very much a hard-ass, but it was clear the man knew Tess had simply been fearing for her own life.

The man glanced over at the creature when Amea did, his gaze shifting between it and over to the enclave, where a hefty cloud of smoke was rising from the courtyard.

“Probably best to take the little one away from here, they look distressed...” Hughes turned to address Amea. “You’re right, we’ll investigate further and see who's really behind this. But thank you both for your part in this.”

One could argue they hadn’t done much to be thanked. Simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time, just happened to come to blows with those that wanted to sow chaos. But the situation was what it was, and Evelyn wasn’t one to complain.

“Uh, should we head back to Willowdale for a bit?”

Hughes departed to deal with the prisoners, while the Jedi and the mayor’s men focused on extinguishing the fire. Right now she wasn’t going to get any information from the Jedi until things had calmed down.

-x-​

It had entered the early afternoon hours by the time Amea and Evelyn returned to Willowdale’s starport, for hopefully the final time. After everything had calmed down, they had returned to the enclave to inquire with their Historian. Fortunately, she had managed to find a small bit of information.

Their kind were known as the ‘Shinri’, seemingly named so by a race of sentient trees called the Dalan. Given that connection, the Jedi master figured the race’s origin came from the planet of Raykka.

Evelyn thanked the Jedi, filing that bit of information away for another time.

Now the pair were back in the hangar bay where the Squealing Shrieker had been docked. With the situation seemingly all clear, there was little reason for Amea to remain. Much as Evelyn had enjoyed the woman’s company, it was unfair to keep her around when she had already helped so much.

“Nah, I’m sure. I’m going to remain in Willowdale for a bit longer, make sure this little one is at a hundred present. Maybe see if I can get anything more out of the Jedi before they depart the planet.” Evelyn’s words drifted off as she looked up at the ship she had inhabited for a short time. “I might also speak with the Mayor, see if I can leverage a free ship as a reward. You know, for having a part in uncovering a potential conspiracy against his township.” She glanced over at Amea, a small grin on her face.

Evelyn chuckled quietly, her focus shifting away from her companion as they both got lost in their thoughts. Although a second later an idea came to the Echani, and she looked back at the brunette woman again.

“Hey, Amea?” She waited until the right moment, just as the woman turned her head to look. Evelyn dropped the bag she had packed, and took a few steps forwards. The Echani leaned in and gave Amea a small kiss on the cheek. “As thanks for helping me out, more than you needed to after Aleksandr.”

She stepped back, watching the reaction that drew out of the woman. Evelyn bit down on her lip, trying her best to not grin in response.

“Oh, before I forget!” Evelyn reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. slipping it into Amea’s hand. “Gimme a call, yeah?” This time the Echani showed no restraint, and winked at her. She began to walk backwards, leaning down to pick her bag back up. “If you need help with something, even if it’s to just bail out of a situation.” She clarified the technomancer’s probably befuddled mind, or had she? Evelyn turned around, hauling her bag up over her shoulder, but stopped for a moment and looked back.

“Or if you want to get another drink sometime.”

With that, Evelyn flashed Amea a playful smirk and walked out of the hangar bay.

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

Evelyn Shaw

Things were winding down and as the day grew long there was finally a time for goodbyes. Part of Amea had to admit that the idea of separating from Evelyn would feel weird given the intense few days that they had shared, but then such was the way of strangers on the hyperlanes. In for the job, out with the money. Met a lot of good people that way, many that you would never see again. People that you’d remember, and Evelyn and her little creature was certainly one worthy of retelling for story night at the local pub.

With an understanding nod, Amea gave the echani woman a weak and crooked smile as well as a small salute. Words didn’t really do this moment any justice, there weren’t any that could do it justice. It wasn’t a ‘see you later’ because that could just as much be a lie as a truth, it wasn’t a ‘goodbye’ either because it certainly didn’t feel quite good to say bye.

Amea pushed against her salute and slowly turned towards the ramp of the Shrieker. A deep sigh filling her lungs with air. And yet, that voice called out for her. She turned around, surprise transitioning into shock in an almost instant as a pair of soft lips brushed against her cheek. Shock turned into paralysation, paralyzation into dizziness, and dizziness into a hard swallow as her cheeks both began to burn a bright red. Lips tucked, eyes glossed over as she stared down at the ground to avoid eye contact.

Soft skin brushed against her hand, a note was deposited and Amea slowly raised it before her to read. A set of numbers? Her brow eyebrow rose for a second, the explanation causing the other to join in a reach for her hairline.

“Oh- oh, uhhh-”

An awkward chuckle parted her lips into a queasy grin as she tried to comprehend that this had happened.

“You too.”

She shook her head to snap out of it.

“Number, that is.”

Her arm extended, the wrist-mounted device broadcasting a number straight to Evelyn’s personal device.

“Drinks, and uh-”

She whined, exhaled, nervous.

“Bail.”

Another hard swallow.

“See you around, Snowbird.”

Her head refused to stop spinning as they separated. Amea excused herself to seek comfort in the solitude of her room. And there she sat as the ship took off, as it breached atmo, and as they made the hyperjump.

“Goodbye.”

Amea muttered before she let in a deep breath and stepped out of the room to join the others in keeping the rust bucket from imploding. It was… Strange to be alive.