Clandestine Missions with Hipsters and Sith

[Spark Finn]

[member="Cameron Centurion"]

"Wait. No. Caf?"

She froze, back still turned to the Sith Lord. Still up on tip-toes with one hand reaching way, way up into the top shelf as if she could magically make some appear. Eyes widened that would be lost on Cameron.

"No caf," the whisper was hushed. As if this was a more traumatic experience than facing down sith. Being captured and indentured to Adekos or losing her favorite shoes.

#nocaf!!!!!

The galaxy was going to end. #omgee

Hand dropped to her side. She whirled to face him. She caught his gaze. Even though a very logical part of her mind could bet he was goading her, her pale cheeks still bloomed.

"Nope," voice hitched in her throat. "Sleep is good. Alone. Separately." Heat still rose to her face. She made a b-line to one of the empty rooms. Before locking it, she would pop her head out of the doorway.

"But really, no caf? This relationship would never work." Blonde-haired head ducked just as quickly back inside.

Thank the stars he was married.

#olderbrother

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Cameron could not help but smile at [member="Spark Finn"]'s parting comments. Awkward to the very end. The rest of this mission was definitely going to be fun.

Laying his head back, the Sith Lord closed his eyes for maybe two seconds before Spark's voice drifted to his ears once more. Opening a single eye, the Sith Lord shook his head before allowing sleep to finally take him. Hopefully this time there wouldn't be any shrieking nightmares to rouse him from his sleep.

Just shy of four hours later, Cameron was out on the expansive veranda of the apartment. Beads of sweat formed along his forehead and exposed upper body as he forced himself through a combination of armed and unarmed sparring combatives against three human males that Spark had not met. Nominally, they worked for the Sith Lord, but they were based off of his homeworld of Corstris. It was a part of his life that he'd shared with only a handful of others over the centuries.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Cameron Centurion"]

A good two hours after Cam got up. #sleepingin. Since Spark was normally a night owl, getting up before noon was no small miracle. And it was 11:35. #miracle

Her blonde hair had some serious bed head. Bare-feet padded out of the relative safety her room provided. And for some reason, she finally felt safe. Well, the most safe she's felt in a long while. That was saying something. Or maybe she was just being foolish.

Hand pushed beneath glasses to run at sleepy eyes. Her stomach growled. Hearing noises outside piqued her curiosity. She saw Cameron first. Then the other guys.

#otherguys!

Still in her crumpled clothes from last night, she scooted hallway back into the living area, using the threshold of the door as a shield. Who were these other dudes? And why did this Sith Lord always have his shirt off?

Throat cleared.

"I need some keys. Or transport. Anything to get me to a Starcreds."

This was life or death. The slicer needed some caf. And a pastry. #duh

"You don't have to come," she quickly blurted. Hand came up to fluff down the wild hair.

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Given the interactions they'd had last night, Cameron had grown slightly more aware of [member="Spark Finn"]'s general presence when she was at least somewhat nearby. As a result, it didn't surprise him too much when she had journeyed from her room to the edge of the living room. Even after her statements, the Sith Lord remained focused on the task at hand. In a quick flurry, he parried away the blade of one of his opponents, before kicking his left foot out to connect with the chest of another.

As the second man was sent reeling, Cameron released the third into a stationary torrent of the Force, immobilizing him in an invisible whirlwind of energy. By the time this had been completed, the first man that he'd temporarily parried was about to take off his head with a swipe of a fully active lightsaber. Ducking just in time, Cameron pivoted on his toes and connected the palm of his hand straight into the man's unprotected abdomen. The instant his hand made contact, the Sith Lord erupted a powerful force push to emphasize the action.

The man nearly fell off the edge of the Veranda before Cameron came to his feet and raised his free hand. "Enough. We are done for today. You may return to your duties."

Once the men had recovered from whatever Cameron had done to them, they stowed their weapons and bowed respectfully before making a hasty departure.

Finally, Cameron turned his attention to Spark, silver-green eyes evaluating her appearance with a thin, mischievous smile. Shrugging his shoulders, the Sith Lord sheathed his weapon and began walking towards the blonde. "Whatever you want dear." Rather than invade Spark's personal space too much, Cameron elected to pass rather close by without physically touching her.

It was early yet. They had plenty of time to be physical.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Cameron Centurion"]

#asyouwish #princessbride

She stiffened as the Sith Lord passed. She could feel the heat from his body. And smell that glistening sweat. #boys

"Okay, great. But no need to stop on my account, dear."

Cheeks flushed.

Yeah, she couldn't pull this off. She swallowed. Slipping on her converse and throwing on a cardigan, she hugged it tightly to her gangly-form. Hand held out expectantly, assuming she was about to go off on her own.

"Keys?"

#totesdriving #peaceoutdude

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Cameron paused for a moment, turning to regard [member="Spark Finn"] just in time to see her hold out her hand. Silver-green eyes dipped from Spark's blue eyes to her hand and back to her eyes. Arching a curious brow, Cameron chuckled lightly. "Let's take stock of the situation real quick. You are here, in my home, because in the hotel room that we basically acquired under aliases, two wayward Sith found and tried to kill you. Now that we've escaped, you think I'm going to let you go, in a mode of transportation I own no less, off into public alone? In broad daylight?"

The Sith Lord rolled his eyes. "I can't let that happen." He did have at least a partial responsibility to [member="Darth Adekos"] to keep his pet alive. He supposed she was kind of interesting to be around too. "Give me ten minutes to hop in the shower and get dressed." As he walked back towards the master bedroom, Cameron added one comment over his shoulder. "Unless you're trying to join me. Caffeine is such a half-hearted method of releasing endorphins."

The offer wasn't genuine, and the Sith Lord disappeared around the corner and down a hall mere seconds after he'd fallen silent. Part of him wanted to see the look on her face.

I wonder if I can keep her cheeks red for the remainder of the day...

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Cameron Centurion"]

Hands went to her cheeks as she saw the retreating form of the shirtless Cameron. "Your wife puts up with a lot, you know. And I can take care of myself!"

She wasn't sure if he heard that last part.

#uggh10minutes #toolong

Swooping her messy hair back into a sloppy up-style, she turned on her sneakered-heels and wandered toward the parking deck. Technopaths didn't really need keys anyway. #duh. Blue-eyes zeroed in on a speeder. Several.

She went for the sleek looking one.

#Camhadstyle

Hopping into the driver's side, she hovered her hands over the controls. It purred at her touch. She grinned and adjusted her glasses.

"Awesome."

Of course, she had no idea how close Cameron was when she pulled off the deck or if he was even done with his shower. But she had left him a note outside his door. #respect

'Cam. Ten minutes is too long. I've got a killer migraine. I'll be fine. You'll be fine.

Xoxo

Spark

P.s. I'll bring you back a danish'

 

[Cameron Centurion]

[member="Spark Finn"]

Cameron's shower was, as promised, relatively quick. However, he had seen Spark's departure in his mind's eye even before she'd flinched a muscle down the path of action. This had not really been the result of the Force or any close connection to the woman. However, her personality hadn't exactly been other than completely on display since they'd met. He did not credit her for being capable of submitting to logic when her sstubbornnesswas the alternative.

After pulling on a pair of dark trousers, Cameron pulled on a short-sleeve white t-shirt and returned to the living room. He'd recovered the note on the way, laughing softly as he made his way to where his speeders were stored.

"Oh of course she takes the best one... So done with blondes."

Returning to the interior of his apartment, the Sith Lord made himself comfortable on the veranda as he picked up a communicator to call the local authorities. "Yes. This is Darth Ashmedai. I would very much like to report a theft."

A pause.

"I hope that you do resolve it quickly, Captain. Otherwise, I will not come for you, but the entirety of your immediate and extended family. I will ensure that you live to watch their bodies be eviscerated in the most elaborate, public means that my mind can possibly conceive." The smile on Cameron's lips broadened. "I'm very creative."

After terminating the connection, he contacted the three men that he'd been sparring with earlier. My guest is going to have some trouble in rather short order. She'd made her desires clear enough...there were only so many places she could choose to go, and he had a feeling that the Coruscant Guard was about to violently crash into all of them looking for a girl fitting Spark's relative description. In fact...they'd probably just seize everyone for sake of not invoking the ire of a Sith Lord. They were very well regarded in the One Sith after all. Ensure she does not come to harm and have her returned here.

Now to wait. Did his holotube still work?

Click.

Perfect.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Cameron Centurion"]

To be fair, Spark made it through the fly-up of the Starcreds. She even managed to take some nice refreshing gulps of her skinny-half-caf double espresso when the authority lights blinked behind her. She pulled over. She could've used white current to disappear with the speeder. She could've easily lost them by shorting out their vehicles. She coulda shoulda done a lot of it.

#couldashouldawoulda

But to do so would cause more of a scene and certainly blow their cover.

It wasn't until after they ordered her out of the speeder that she realized who made the call to them. #Cameron

Was he trying to get her killed?!

#mostlikely

"No but officer. That's a danish for the sith lord. I'm being serious. You can't take that!"

An officer sniffed it. "Definitely contraband. Take her in with the others."

It wasn't until an hour or so later that Cameron's security dudes showed up. Identified her and brought her back to Cameron. She squirmed out of their hands and huffed back inside the apartment. "I'm fine. Don't touch me."

She parked herself in front of the holotube and stared Cameron down.

"Was that necessary? Do you realize how much attention you've just drawn to us? And the worst was, they took the danish I got for you!"

#loltheworst

Reaching through the force, her mind snapped off the holotube feed.

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Literally nothing on...

There was some new show about a bunch of married women on Spira and all of their drama that Cameron laughed at for a hot second before flipping to the ever-sterilized propaganda reel that served as news in this area of the galaxy. Eventually, the Sith Lord sensed the return of [member="Spark Finn"]. As she strode angrily across the Veranda, Cameron glanced in her direction before laughing softly to himself and returning his attention to the holotube.

"Was that necessary Do you realize how much attention you've just drawn to us? And the worst was, they took the danish I got for you!"

Silver-green eyes slowly tracked to the solid blue orbs of Spark. Whatever amusement had lingered on his features when she swept into the room was completely gone now. "You really need to learn to just chill the feth out and think about things before you do them."

Turning off the holotube, Cameron leaned forward slightly. "First of all, I've drawn no attention to us. You consistently make comments that lead me to believe you've actually blocked out what happened last night. There is already attention on you. In fact having you taken into custody just might have saved your life...because now if anyone was following you, they think One Sith authorities are after you. As such, whatever nefarious character wants you dead will either think twice about approaching you or abandon the effort altogether."

Pausing for a moment, Cameron came to his feet. "Second...I made a very public display of you being extracted from said custody and very obviously brought back here to reaffirm the perception to any that might be watching...that you ultimately belong to me or are otherwise important to me. The facade of this operation goes much deeper than us simply attending one event together."

Swiftly, Cameron closed the rest of the distance between himself and Spark, applying a moderate effort of the Force to try and keep her rooted in place. "Third...I don't do sweets." The Sith Lord winked playfully before stepping away from Spark and releasing whatever hold he may have managed to maintain over her body. "We all have our roles in this operation, Spark. You just worry about your end."

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Cameron Centurion"]

"Hey...," she squirmed as her personal bubble space was literally invaded. Foot tried to involuntarily take a step back but she found she was rooted to the spot. But just as quickly, the hold he had on her was gone.

#didhejustsaychill??? #totesOLDERbrother #likerllyold

She blinked.

"So then I....totally did you a favor!"

#yourewelcome

Harrumph.

"And I didn't forget about last night. But if I let every Sith attempt on my life or intent for capture bring me down, I'd never get anywhere. I mean, I'd never get some good caf."

She tried smiling but it wasn't quite there. She'd had to learn to move on from things quickly. Adapt. Move in the shadows. Or, she would've been dead a long time ago.

Didn't dtop the night terrors, though.

"But seriously. You don't have caf and you don't like sweets. You're the most dangerous Sith I've ever met."

Lips twitched, just a tad.

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Cameron arched a curious brow as he returned to his seat, gazing quietly at [member="Spark Finn"] for a collection of moments. "I will never be one to subscribe to abridging the freedoms in one's life because of the actions of others. You understand that if something happens to you, my mission fails." The Sith Lord paused for a moment. "I do not abide failure."

Glancing at the time, Cameron exhaled softly before heaving himself back onto his feet once more. "I don't prefer to partake in that which the body does not truly need." Silver-green eyes slowly crawled the length of Spark's form before resting on her own eyes once more. "For the most part..." Turning, Cameron casually began making his way back towards his room.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Cameron Centurion"]

Blue eyes bulged as her figure was roamed. "Oh please. You are MARRIED. Stop that." #stillblushing She quickly looked away and adjusted glasses that always seemed to need adjusting. It was certainly time to go.

#thankthestars

Most of the morning had been spent 'sleeping', eating danishes, and being held in lock-up. Funny how quickly the day went. "I'm changing. Don'g gawk too much, dear." She stepped lightly behind him and slipped inside her own room. #borrowedroom

Door locked securely behind her.

"I still don't know how we're gonna pull this off. No one will ever believe....and what about your wife? Is she used to this kind of stuff with you already or am I gonna have to worry about my life from her as well?"

Voice was muffled as clothes were stripped off and new ones were put on.

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Cameron's casual response to [member="Spark Finn"] came just as she entered her room. "I saw plenty last night...don't you remember?"

As the Sith Lord casually went about gathering his own clothing, he heard Spark's voice very faintly given they occupied separate rooms and both doors were closed. However, Cameron chose to mostly ignore the woman's inquiry for the time being. In truth, Cameron hadn't needed to do something like this in quite a while...certainly longer than he'd known @Amorella Mae. She knew of this mission of course...minus specifics. In keeping with her personality, Esmae hadn't really given much of a reaction.

Unlike most relationships that seemed to litter the galaxy these days, Cameron was completely, unabashedly devoted to his wife. Sure, he joked here and there with Amorella, but there was zero danger of him crossing the line of accepted behavior either emotionally or physically. The former false goddess and god were literally two parts of a whole...there was scarcely a situation that escaped the ever-present attention of his wife.

Souls linked across time.

No more than fifteen minutes after he had entered the room, Cameron emerged back into the corridor dressed in a patterned blue suit, silver-green eyes noting the still closed door of Spark's room. As he made his way back to the living area, he addressed her earlier concern. "My wife knows literally everything about my life...a piece of her is literally part of my soul. It's safe to say that she is more than aware of everything that has transpired between us. If you had a reason to worry, you would know."

Pausing for a moment, Cameron walked back towards Spark's room but instead entered the kitchen to get a drink of water. "She's also kind of a hippie, so she's fairly tolerant."

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Cameron Centurion"]

A click was heard as her door unlocked. The slicer tugged uncomfortably at her dress. Converse, skinny-jeans, and shirts forever. #Imissmycomfyclothes

Messy morning bed-head was finally gone.

"A hippie?" She stepped out of the room, wobbling slightly in the heels. #wheremyflatsyo

"Good, glad it won't be a problem. And you won't have to worry about anyone on my end." She winked. The man with blue eyes was long gone. Adekos maybe but not for a weird, gross reason. Plus, he had contracted out her services for this job.

"That's a really nice suit. You'll be a perfect distraction for anyone." Her smile widened. #Camwastheeyecandy

"I've got the address for the auction. When the tech comes up for bid, I'll know. I'm not sure the amount of funds you were given to play with. But...I guess we'll make up the rest as we go?" She was already walking back toward the car-deck, taking very careful steps in heels.

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Cameron had just finished downing his water when he heard the click of [member="Spark Finn"]'s door. Slowly, he tracked his head in her direction. This time...his eyes lingered more or less involuntarily, but he played it off with a slight shrug. "I suppose I can clean up alright. Though...there is one last thing..."

Stepping forward, Cameron removed a box from his pocket and opened it in front of spark. "You should wear those. You know, to project wealth. I expect them back at the end of the mission." It wasn't because he particularly cared about recouping the funds, but it was the fact that Cameron didn't give gifts. That is to say...he didn't give them unless they truly meant something. In that regard only Esmae had really been on the intentional receiving end for the long-term.

It was a simple pearl necklace. "Turn around." Tossing the box aside, the Sith Lord stepped forward to place them on the young woman. "Despite what you do or do not think about yourself...you are beautiful, Spark. Also obviously the smart people in the world wear blue because it's the best color." Once the jewelry was affixed, Cameron took a step back. "Nobody is going to be looking at me, and you should be much more confident in yourself in these circles. Confidence is the only actual attractive quality that tends to matter these days, to these people."

Stepping just past Spark, he glanced back at her as he got the door to the Veranda. They wouldn't be driving themselves. As if on cue, a sleek, all black, enclosed PL-90 pulled up to the edge of the Veranda. "Oh and don't worry about money. It's of no consequence for the radiant beauty of my life." A knowing, playful wink followed the Sith Lord's statement. Despite the fact that Spark knew about his marriage, it was actually a rather...well maintained secret outside of very specific social circles. Circles that would have no bearing on the mission tonight. In fact, as far as the One Sith were concerned, his planned very public marriage to one [member="Amorella Shamalain"] had been called off when the woman abdicated the Throne. At that time, there was simply no reason for the then Overseer of Kuat to engage in a marriage to the planet's royalty.

Esmae and Cameron had wed in secret with naught but very close family and friends present.

Naturally that meant Esmae's people because...Cameron had none other than her.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Cameron Centurion"]

She stayed very, VERY still as Cameron hovered behind her, wrapping the pearls around her bare skin. "Of course you'll get them back," she laughed nervously. "But if something happens and we get in a fight, you can always just put them on Lord Adekos' tab." Cheeks flushed furiously at his compliment. #foreverrosycheeks #allCam'sfault

She was gonna need some serious introvert time after this job.

"Thank you," she squeaked. Throat cleared trying to play it off. #smoothoperator "But yeah, blue is the best. Duh." A low whistle left her lips as the vehicle pulled up. "Wow, breaking out the real stuff. And to think you've been holding back all this time, dear." The gangly-limbed girl slid into the car, scooching over for the larger sith lord.

Wrist came up and her nimble-digits began typing in a series of buttons on a chrono's surface that hugged the curvature of her limb. Basically a mini datapad. She needed it cause it would've been hard to fit her datapad in this dress.

#nosecretpockets

They were whisked through the city. Glancing out the tinted window, she could see the location they were approaching. Chrono beeped and she lowered her arm. She gulped once, before her face turned more business, casting a sideways glance to Cameron.

"Almost showtime."

 

[Cameron Centurion]

[member="Spark Finn"]

Cameron slid into the speeder beside Spark. The driver already had the location provided, so there was no need to exchange words with the man. During the transit, the Sith Lord allowed his vibrant gaze to roam over the structures they passed by. His memory was always jogged down a distant path whenever he visited Coruscant. He remembered to days of old when Coruscant had suffered far worse than the One Sith could have ever hoped to bring to the planet during its invasion some years ago. At the same time, Cameron had fond memories...mostly from his youth. The days when he was still hungry for power and control over the entire galaxy, playing the political game as necessary to exact very specific ends. None of that...really interested him these days. That game had grown tiresome and boring to him.

Then he recalled the...quality of his life in his youth, and he could not help but cast his gaze in the direction of Spark. Obviously, she was too enamored by some piece of technology to seemingly notice his lingering gaze. She did remind him of someone that he'd known during those days. They'd been...close but not really in a romantic way. Well...not in a 'til death do us part way, at least. Rachael Dawson was about four hundred percent more annoying than Spark had been though.

Lost in those thoughts, silver-green eyes were still glued to her figure when she glanced his direction to report that they were reaching their destination. Shifting his gaze to the window, he confirmed with a subtle nod of his head. However, the words that left his mouth were seemingly unrelated. "Have you ever been in love, Spark?"

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Cameron Centurion"]

Sandy-brows furrowed and she openly stared at the sith lord.

#deepquestions

She never thought about emotions much. The blonde erred on the side of logic. And she was such a private, introverted person. It was hard for her to categorize what love exactly was. "I...," voice trailed off as the speeder came to a stop. But she didn't move. They remained idling.

"Once I thought I was." Thoughts drifted briefly to the man with the blue eyes, Coren Starchaser. Had she ever been in love with him? Maybe. Or maybe she just cared about him a lot. Qun Vel's face surfaced in her mind. He was a dear friend.

She loved him but not in the way Cameron was asking.

#complicated

"I have...had a friend whom I loved but not romantically. I would do anything for him. Isn't that what love is? Sacrifice?"

Hands drifted down to her dress, smoothing out the fabric with her fingers.

Sandy-brows still furrowed. "Why do you ask?" The funny thing was, the more time she spent with Cameron, the more she could imagine sharing some kind of friendship with him. She could already feel her loyalties shifting. Maybe it had to do with the actions he took to save her life last night. Maybe it was more.

But how could she befriend someone who was a sith and lived by sith principles? Would Gabe frown upon something like this? Could she walk this thin-line? And she was sure Cameron just saw her as sith property. A pet.

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Cameron held Spark's gaze, unflinching. He wasn't really sure what had prompted him to ask. Perhaps it was merely the memory of his own youth...the days of when he'd thought he was in love. In less than two decades he'd realized the folly of that hope, concept. He abandoned love completely at that point...never to give it room to take root in his heart. He'd known completely that he'd not loved his first wife...their union was one of convenience, and it provided a platform that Cameron needed to accomplish his goals. Esmae had sent that reality into the abyss. It had been so unexpected that he'd not even known how to react initially...other than to dismiss it as simple physical attraction or infatuation.

Even after Spark had finished speaking, the Sith Lord was eerily silent, mind still rolling over the many occasions in his life that had brought him to this point. In the end of the day, he knew what he had with Esmae was real because no amount of metaphysical presence in his mind could replace the warmth of her skin against his own. The melodic sound of her voice playfully chiding him for rarely being serious in their interactions.

"I think love is merely a word that people use to describe a sense of belonging with another. An attempt to over-simplify the connection of souls. As for why I ask..." Cameron allowed his vibrant gaze to return to Spark's features as a thin smile settled over his lips. "You remind me of someone from a very long time ago... Just took my mind to a time when I was so young and so sure of everything I wanted and needed to do to achieve it. I was foolish. The true nature of the galaxy did not become apparent to me for some time afterwards."

For that reason, Spark's own internal conflict would have been intriguing to the Sith Lord. He'd moved past the days of believing any one individual could be funneled into a specific classification because of how they chose to interact with the Force or others. The dark side of the Force and the Sith Arts simply spoke to who he was...a method of interacting with the galaxy. Cameron was and would forever be a creature of control and unreserved passion. For that - he could never view the Force as some entity that was to merely be studied and revered. The Force was life, and he preferred to seize life and use it to its maximum potential. Seeing your entire family and home burn will do that to you, however.

Cameron merely chose to take complete control over his life and the things around him. For that he suffered many labels...some he had no doubt deserved over time, but the purpose for all of his actions in life went so much deeper than what most were even capable of understanding. Jedi and Sith alike.

[member="Spark Finn"]