Cheeseburger in Paradise

[Kana Truden]

“Yeah, sure, okay we’ll do it.” Kana agreed with the young Miss [member="Sasha Santhe"] before looking over at [member="Damian Starchaser"]. “You should stay here and rest up, Damian. I’ve got a room waiting for me on the lower levels. 1302, swing by when you’re feeling better.”

Which of course didn’t mean much on a ship like this. The room was just a slight bit smaller and there was the distinct lack of an all-inclusive minibar. The jedi healer collapsed on her bed, the almost-non-luxury-line bed had never felt better as she smudged the dirt in her face all over her pillow before falling asleep. After all, there was no time to mess with covers, nor change into something more comfortable.

Damian eventually came by, several times. First time she was deep asleep, the second time she was washing away the dirt, but by the third time she was back to her old self again save for the new and slightly more form fitting clothing that she had received as a ‘reward’ for coming along with the senator. Part of her had to admit it was growing on her, but she would never openly admit such things.

Covering it all with a olive cape she eventually answered the door to meet Damian and what ensued was the obligatory run down of what it meant to be a jedi. He was free to leave at any time as long as she was aware of it or had supervision; the lightsaber was not to be built until she could be present for her to instruct. Easy things to remember, really.

At the end of the day they departed for Lianna in Damian’s rental.

#####​

The last of the bruising from Damian’s ‘accident’ in the theater had just about faded away and here they were back at the starting point of it all. The urban landscape seemingly spanned as far as the eyes could see and in a sense it was weird to be back in Lianna City again. The last few days’ adventure still ringed at the back of their minds and reminded them of what they had signed up for.

“Well she said they’d meet us here, right?” Kana calmly checked a nearby clock for the time. “The security officer was supposed to be here five minutes ago.”

She allowed herself a final sip of her tea before chugging the whole thing down. As much as Kana liked to keep herself punctual her time with the jedi had taught her more about patience than anything else. It would seem no matter what they did there was that one person who was always late.

“I don’t sense that anything has happened to him, but I worry about those schematics.”

 

[Mammut]

"Oh, I assure you, there are no vows of chastity among the Priests of Dim-U. The Stalwart Bantha would never presume to restrain his followers proclivities. After all, if the Banthas procreate why shouldn't the faithful?"

"Mmm, I love a man of faith," cooed the Zeltron girl, clad in nothing but a few nylon strings and inching closer to me in the dim light of the land speeder's lengthy interior.

"Ahem. Driver, the partition, please?"

Ah, it pays to be holy.

A minute later the land speeder lurched. The sort of lurching that was very uncomfortable given my current activities. I peeled myself away from supple lengths of red legs and peered out the window.

"What the blazes?"

Another land speeder was level with us, only this one had a weapons emplacement on the top and was aiming it at us. I reacted like I usually did to danger. I pounded furiously on the partition and yelled for the driver to hit the accelerator. He did and they fired and then I blacked out.

I woke up amid the wreckage of the land speeder. The Zeltron girl was lying on top of me, crying weakly. I groaned and pushed her off, trying to wobble to my feet. At that moment, a loudspeaker nearly blasted my eardrums apart.

"THIS IS SANTHE SECURITY, PUT YOUR HANDS IN THE AIR!"

Blinking through the blinding light showed me several angry fellows with weapons pointed at me. Putting my hands in the air seemed like the best course of action. So I stuck them up. Pain blossomed in my side, like somebody had rammed a spear through me. I looked down. Oh. It was because I did have a spear rammed through me. Or an absurdly long piece of shrapnel. Either way, the sight of my own blood induced me to take a nap.

Next time I woke up I was in a hospital, bound by restraints.

"What the- unhand me," it came out much less imposing than I wished it to. Especially given my tattered priest robes. Priests aren't very scary, on the whole, much less priests who worship Banthas.

"Shut up, scum. We know you stole a weapons shipment from Santhe. Now tell us what you did with it."

Oh.

That.

"I see..." I muttered, thinking very quickly and grinning weakly. Never let it be said that Sasha was lost for words. "Well, you are too clever for me. I uh, I would give it to you. Just a bit of fun, really. Consider it a test of your security systems."

The fellow glaring down at me seemed to be considering testing my immune system by sticking a vibroknife through it.

"But, ah, I can't give it back."

"You can't.'

"I can't. Because... I sold it."

"You what."

"Sold it. To pirates."

And then I gave him my best chagrined smile. The sort that said 'please don't kill me, I'm really rather harmless.'

The fellow turned to look over at someone. I turned to look too. A - oh dear.

"You heard him, Miss Santhe?"

[member="Sasha Santhe"], [member="Kana Truden"].

 

[Damian Starchaser]

As if summoned by [member="Kana Truden"]’s words Santhe Security forces arrived on the scene. Damian gulp as he examined them. The security personnel took the pair to the spaceports Santhe Security office where they gave them a quick rundown of the procedures, offered drink and then got back down to brass tax.

It wasn’t the armor, or the weapons that made them frightful. No it was the fact that they were carrying the most dangerous weapon of all…. paperwork. There was a brief little conversation where the authorities explained exactly what was located within the stored data. Kana was forced to sign for the information and verify her identity and then security was off. It was a bizarre encounter. “These are the files on the pirates, the location of bases, and safe houses across the galaxy.” Damian said looking over the data.

“They are a pretty big group if this information is correct. Security doesn’t have the reach to crack down and even if they did it wouldn’t guarantee the schematics didn’t get away. I know you don’t like subtly master but I believe that may be the only way we get to these plans.”

 

[Kana Truden]

Kana should have complained more often. Or not, judging by the look on the rest of the café visitors. The officers sat down and laid out the information. Kana reached over to grab it but quickly found papers pushed in her face at the courtesy of Santhe Security. Oh how she loved bureaucracy, something about it just made her want to give a really insincere smile as she handed over the signed non-disclosure documents to the officer.

A swift look through the data and sure enough Damian would have a point about subtlety. With a quick lean back into her chair she put the most amount of distance as she could between herself and the horrible news.

“I am not going to lie, Damian.” She looked over to the kid. “It looks like you’re right.”

She leaned back over the papers. “If we can somehow minimize the chances they have of escaping again by cutting their retreat then we’re golden.”

It looked doable, question was how ready Kana was to risk failure again. It didn’t matter, this [member="Damian Starchaser"] kid seemed fairly resourceful. If anyone of the two of them could figure it out it’d be him. Not that Kana wouldn’t be at least trying to help. What better place to plan secret covert mission than out in the sun. On public property and with plenty of others around.

Kana Truden - Stealth Specialist.

“What about this ventilation shaft?” She pointed at one of the pictures provided. “Do you think we could enter through there?”

 

[Damian Starchaser]

“Of course I’m right,” Damian said stiffening up a little bit. “I was designed with correctness in mind.” It was a joke, although judging by the stern look [member="Kana Truden"] would give him whenever he spoke as such he doubted that it would go over well.

Leaning over the table he took a look at the schematics she had pulled up. He frowned. “Problem is,” he said. “While that is the closest pirate base to the raid there is no guarantee that is where they are keeping the schematics.” He stared at the schematics. “Industrial ventilation for chemical plants is pretty much the only vents a grown adult can climb through.” He made no mention of trying to crawl through vents and getting stuck as he grew older. “A few starships have big vents.” The ones on the schematic looked large enough. Then again they probably hadn’t been maintained and he hated to think of what might have crawled up one and died, or even worse what might be living in them. He shivered at the thought.

He thought for a moment before staring Kana in the eyes. She was really pretty… he thought himself as he looked at her. His grew a little red as he quickly diverted his gaze. “If we break in maybe we can get some valuable intelligence. Maybe figure out how they intend to sell the schematics and bust in on the buy?”

 

[Kana Truden]

“Right, kid. Don’t get cocky.” Kana leaned in over the schematics again. Her game face came into play as she watched Damian’s fingers slide across the map to point out areas of interest. Usage of the words chemical and ventilation felt unnerving, but if it was the only sneaky way in there wasn’t much they could do.

“I like it, break into the facility and keep it quiet until we know where the sale will take place. Go for the bigger catch.” Kana pointed at the map again. “What about this here door? It could be more risky but it gets us closer to the great chamber.”

The hand withdrew itself from the map before she crossed her arms. It was a risky move but high risk meant high reward. At least most of the time. “We could hear what they’re saying while at the same time being at a risk to get shot in the back. It’s a fifty-fifty type of situation.”

“So, what do you think? Vent crawling or suicide mission?”

[member="Damian Starchaser"]

 

[Damian Starchaser]

“So,” Damian said looking at the schematics. “The vents are industrial grade. They will have big fans that will need to be stopped.” And then Kana’s face ‘came into play’. She was close to him, which caused a shiver to run up his spine and his heart to race. He still wasn’t used to working so close to her. Damian focused on the map staring, analyzing. If he didn’t work this out “We can bypass or…” and then he smiled and looked up locking eyes with [member="Kana Truden"] then and there. “We can use the force….” Their face were near each others, so close he could feel her breath on his neck. He wanted to lean forward, to embrace her… but that wasn’t appropriate.

“We can hold the fans with that there space magic and just sort of walk on through,” The idea of learning on the job was somehow appealing to him. “So yeah, I think vent. We try a snatch and grab, get some data, and then bust the buy.”

 

[Kana Truden]

Industrial grade vents, Kana had seen enough horror flicks to see how those scenes ended. Her finger traced along the layout of the ventilation shaft in an effort to memorize it. A bit of a maze with at least three different fans that had to be dealt with before they could reach their destination. Could be troublesome to explain in hisses and whispers what the boy was supposed to do, but she’d find a way.

“Then I suggest this route.” She traced it again. “Practice makes perfect,” And then she grinned. “Padawan Starchaser.”

“We shouldn’t waste anymore time, not in the open like this. We’ll bring this by the hotel room and finalize the details from there.”

She motioned at [member="Damian Starchaser"] to pay for their drinks before staring off at the horizon. A fair amount of adventure was to be had, far more than Kana had ever had. She was both excited and terrified at the idea. In the end it was probably just for the best. After all, she had always wanted to get out of the temple and see the real world again.

This was as good of a time as any to do that.

“Let’s go.”

 

[Damian Starchaser]

And then they were in a vent. And it was awesome! [member="Kana Truden"] was in front of Damian leading the way on all fours crawling. They didn’t need to low crawl, the vent was big enough, but still they couldn’t stand. Damian enjoyed the view all the while trying to vanquish impure thoughts from his mind and hoping that Kana wouldn’t pick it up through their force bond.

“Almost there,” Damian said in a whisper as they reached a junction. “Right leads to their server host and left to the main offices. Its late, there shouldn’t be anyone around.” Midnight local time. Damian had memorized the labyrinth of tunnels. “Fan up ahead…” the last one had been broken. Apparently the pirates didn’t care about keeping the air in their base clean.

Damian sucked in some breath and focused on the force. He reached out with his hand and tried to extend his senses like Kana had taught him and slow or stop the blades. “This isn’t easy….” Damian said as the blade started to oscillate and slow, but not stop.

 

[Kana Truden]

Cramped places such as these were kind of cozy. At least they would be had it not been for the tiniest fragments of impurity that waltzed through Kana’s mind at every single turn. It wasn’t hers, the bond told her that much but at the same time there was little she could do to help a hormone mongering teenager from keeping it all locked up. Honored, perhaps, but it was still... Creepy.

“It’s okay, Damian.” Kana pursed up as she turned around in a whisper. “Just focus, be calm like I showed you.”

“Remember patience. Let it flow through you and guide you.”

She was certainly not going to step in and help him. [member="Damian Starchaser"] wanted to learn space magic, he was going to do space magic and she would be there to guide him but the fan that was on him.

“Keep calm, find your center.”

Really, she was just repeating a whole mess of jedi slogans at this point. Hey, it worked on some people.

 

[Damian Starchaser]

And so Damian did as he was instructed. He calmed himself, breathing in and out and concentrating. There was a task at hand. Find his center. His mind started running through his last dimensions taken from a laser scan during a fitting for the suit that he wore on the cruise where he met Kana….

The point just below the ribs and above the naval. His center. Great now what? He’d never asked Kana that before, didn’t want to question her on the whole space magic thing. “Flow through me….” he repeated. In his head he imagined his arm like a hose, and it went stiff. No that wasn’t the right imagery. Damian frowned a little staring at the blades and imagined his arm as a tractor beam. Rays of energy flowing forth to grab the fan.

And his center? What was that? The power source! Yes that worked out for him. The power source which fed through his arm and into his hand reaching out and grabbing the fan blades.

They twitched and became unsteady for a moment slowing to a crawl before finally Damian reached out his other hand and together the two mental projections of tractor beams stopped the fans from moving. “I’ll hold it for you,” he said knowing the minute he let go the fans would start again. “Once you’re through you can hold it for me…”

Sweat was on his brow and his arms were tired as he held back the fans. The force had to be like a muscle. He wasn’t used to using it and so he tired easier. At least he hoped it wouldn’t be this hard all the time….



[member="Kana Truden"]

 

[Kana Truden]

An outraged fan complaining that it’s cycle stopped. Kana quickly crawled through letting Damian rest up. The ventilation shaft caused each footstep to turn into a booming noise causing the non-sneaky-sneaky Jedi Master’s heart to skip just a little bit. Her focus turned back to the fan and her new student who for all intents and purposes was a fan too. All puns intended.

“Alright.” With eyes wide shut she reached out with the force to grab a hold of the fan. While not as heavy on someone who had practiced the skill it was still, well, a heavy fan. Haste was recommended. “Climb on through, quickly.”

Upon command, and only after the kid had come through, did Kana let go. The swooping sounds of a rusty fan was once again free to emanate around the dusty passages that was their immediate surroundings. With a slightly tired look she gave Damian a small smile and a pat on his back.

“You done did good. I am impressed.” She sat down much like she instructed Damian to do as well. “Take a rest, we have a whole night for this. Even less if we wear ourselves out.”

“I can understand if the things I tell you get a bit ‘cloudy’ at times,” To say the least. “Trust me, I had a hard time getting into the way it all worked as well.”

[member="Damian Starchaser"]

 

[Damian Starchaser]

Damian winced as [member="Kana Truden"] clomped up the vent. “You don’t have any creep to you, do you?” he said walking up to her. “Watch,” he said bending his knees and lumbering forward. “ As you walk, roll your foot. Step with outside and heel of your foot and roll your foot down until your sole is flat on the ground, almost like you’re walking flat footed.” He moved ahead of her and smiled back. “You make less noise that way, and if you’re in a wooded environment you muffle the sound of broken leaves or branches.”

And then he beamed at her compliment. He did go good didn’t he? “You’re doign a good job teaching me about the force,” he said with a smile sitting down with his back against the wall preparing to rest. “It’s only fair that I teach you something in return right?”

The pair was sitting close in the vent. So very close taking a rest. The force was exhausting to Damian and he needed the quick break. “I know it's not easy, me being your student. I’m sorry.” he said refusing to look her in the eyes. “I will try not to disappoint you.”

 

[Kana Truden]

“Oh.” Kana got up and tried to do as Damian showed her and sort of ‘slide’ her foot before letting the soles of her feet straighten themselves out along the ground. While still noisy the sounds were far less louder than only a few moments ago. “Like that?” She did a short back and forth to demonstrate. “Oh, I think I get it.”

She smiled at the kid again. “I will make the most of this, uh, skill.” If one could call it that. “Just you wait.”

She sat down by her student again. Their connection was kind of a mixed but mostly positive blessing. He offered attention she wasn’t used to, he could get on her nerves and perhaps act in ways that made put her at a loss for words, but in the end she could quite often do the same to him. It was a boost to confidence and patience alike, something that without doubt would prove far more valuable in the long run than the mistakes they both made in the short-term.

“Nonsense.” She lightly nudged his shoulder. “You are doing great and even though I can be a bit of a grump at times I still want you to know that not once have you disappointed me. You’re just being you, and that if anything is what truly matters at the end of the day.”

Slowly rising to her feet she held a hand out for [member="Damian Starchaser"] to grab. “Now come on, we have a black-haired damsel in distress to save.”

“Or well, her business.” Kana pulled her student from the ground. “Next step, finding the next big fan.”

 

[Damian Starchaser]

Kana’s reassurances help to diffuse the negative feelings he had. A few deep breaths and a little concentration kept away the impure thoughts. It was easier now. Although the thought of helping a black haired damsel in distress and the way Kana Truden said it, making him out to be a storied hero… well it didn’t help.

He looked at the schematics, though he didn’t really need to. “I don’t think we need to go to the next junction,” he said letting a holographic display pop up and show Kana. “If we go down here, there is a long hallway that doesn’t connect to quarters or commissaries or anything. It’s just a maintenance access between the computer core and the communication relay node.”

Damian bit his finger. “They won’t risk sending the schematics on open airways.” Damian said, although he wasn’t too sure. Pirates weren't the smartest. “I know it wasn’t part of the plan,” Damian frowned, “but being realistic I’m not sure how many much more I can do this with the fans without being useless….” His head hung low looking down at his feet. Kana said that he never disappointed her, but he couldn’t keep up. What was there to be proud of here?

 

[Kana Truden]

“It’s taxing at first, it’s natural.” Kana gradually let the soles of her feet touch ground just like Damian had shown her. “I’ll take care of the fans, you just keep your mind on crowd control should we see anyone.”

In an evenly paced sneak ahead they made progress. The sound of the fan’s hum lead them forward in their quest to earn the princess’ boon. Actually, there probably wasn’t any reward but would she truly expect one as a jedi? No, she wouldn’t. The least she could do was smile at the woman as she beamed up in gratitude. If such a thing were to occur, of course.

“Just a bit further now.”

The hum grew louder and before long they found themselves standing in front of yet another fan. Motioning at Damian to be ready she repeated the same process as before. The fan stopped and the boy was able to climb on through. Keeping the focus on not failing half-way through the hole herself it came as a surprisingly big relief to see the fan released again.

A quick exhale followed by the hunched grab of her legs had panting. “You know what they say,” She swallowed air. “The bigger they are, the harder they... Something. Just let me catch my breath and we’ll go again.”

[member="Damian Starchaser"]

 

[Damian Starchaser]

When [member="Kana Truden"] took another rest, Damian wasn’t sure exactly what to do. There wasn’t a alot of space and so he jammed himself in next to her and sat down. Their bodies were close and touched one another. “Kana,” Damian started but then shut his mouth. She needed her rest and talking could blow the operation.

He looked down at his feet. “We don’t need to go through another fan. We need to get the data we’re looking for.” He moved to an access panel and started to open it. “Down here,” he dropped himself down the hole and landed softly on the ground. He reached his hands up and motioned for Kana to jump down after him. “I’ll catch you,” he said his face turning red. “So you don’t make noise when you hit the ground….”

 

[Kana Truden]

Less fans, good. She nodded at the kid that they should go. To say she was totally out of breath would be a lie, but resting up just in case something bad was to happen was never a bad idea. Nothing spelled preparation like a master passing out mid-battle or sneak. They traversed the unknown vents going forward using only what they knew from the schematics of the place. Eventually they reached their drop zone.

A few careful glances down the hole was all Kana needed to be reassured of the situation. It wasn’t a long drop. Given the right approach she could make the landing by herself, but to let the kid help on the way down was not a bad idea if it would reduce the amount of noise they’d make. With a gentle push she hoped to all that she held dear that the kid would deliver.

Which he did, of course.

“Good work.” She whispered before hunching down into a very sneaky pose. Well, sneaky to her at least. “Let’s go.”

A peek around the closest corner provided no sight of any nearby patrols. “They’re not here yet.”

[member="Damian Starchaser"]

 

[Damian Starchaser]

Kana jumped out of the vent and Damian caught her. He cradled the woman in his arms for a moment his head staring level at hers. Their met in a moment and a weak smile overtook the lad before looking away and releasing his grip on [member="Kana Truden"]. He watched as she crouched low and tried her hand at being sneaky. Really it wasn’t that humerous of an attempt, but still Damian couldn’t help but chuckle internally. “Good,” he responded to her tell him there wasn’t anyone around.

Damian turned and started walking down the hallway. He wasn’t exactly crouching, but his knees were bent enough to cushion his footfalls. They went down the hall and into a room where Damian hooked up a small device the computers socket.

“Downloading the information now,” he said looking behind them.

There was a sound on the other end of the door and Damian panicked not sure of what to do exactly. Fight or flight ran through his mind and he quickly pulled Kana toward a maintenance closet. He opened the door and pushed her inside squeezing in beside her.

The device was left downloading. They might have to act if the pirates discovered it… but until then…. well until then he was stuck in a closet with Kana, no room to move around. The servers from the maintenance area was throwing out incredible heat and sweat was already starting to form on his brow. “Kana,” Damian said. “If he finds the data sifter you need to be in position to get out quickly.”

He shifted his body across hers and pushed himself further into the back of the closet. “You can mind trick him. I can’t do that yet.”

Too close. Not enough room. Hotter than hell. All of these things described their prediciment.

 

[Kana Truden]

Out of the fan and into the of a server towers. It was like a digital sauna, the heat of her past occupation. It wasn’t the time to be feeling nostalgic but she couldn’t help it. The sweat running down her forehead, the enclosed spaces with a colleague. She knew of these working conditions. At least this one wasn’t as obvious in his advances on her, if performing any advances at all. It was somewhat funny to the master.

It was her time to be awkward. “Don’t tell me you are hot and bothered, Damian.” She pouted jokingly. “It’s just an enclosed space with several different servers running the entire base’s networking and most likely security procedures. If anything this should in theory be the most secure spot in the entire base.”

“See, this model is great but that despite the slower processing power that came with the X-249 models it was still a lot more secure. The saddest part here is that people moved on to the Y-213’s because of the cooler desi-...” She cleared her throat. “Right, mind trick.”

With no further ado she stepped out of the server room and into the open. In an instant there was a blaster held to her face and Kana let a hand sway in an arch. “You want to lower that rifle and listen to me.”

“I want to listen to you.”

“Do you see that server room?” She pointed at the very room Damian was in. “You want to lock yourself inside that server room.”

“I want to lock myself inside that server room.”

With no delay the man did as she told him. A hand beckoned at [member="Damian Starchaser"] to come out into the open. “The download is three thirds complete. Think he’ll last in there?”