Cracking Down Crime

[Kaalia Pavanos]

"We are preparing to land on Val'Hala."

A stormtrooper had entered the part of the shuttle Kaalia and two other people were in, notifying them of the fact they were about to arrive. A nod and an "Understood." from the redhead later the white-armored soldier saluted and left the three to prepare to leave the craft upon touchdown. Kaalia had been sent on a mission together with the other people in the vessel, [member="Ara Ren"] and [member="Brennan Cabrol"], to locate and wipe out a spice syndicate that was recently discovered. Ara had asked for Kaalia to come along after she and Brennan were appointed the task and the redhead accepted, making it a three-person mission.

The plan was to blend in. Spice dealers were shifty and finicky, often willing to go to the extreme to not get caught. On many an occasion would an entire compound be set ablaze by their owners to eliminate any evidence, leaving the First Order with nothing to go on. They had to get close without raising any suspicion. For this reason Kaalia wore an outfit to fit the job, with her lightsabers stored away in a pouch on her belt to make sure they weren't revealed to the public.

The Knight got up from her seat and stretched. "Remember," she turned to Brennan, the disciple of the group. "Subtlety is key. Drawing your weapon is the last resort." She moved over to a terminal for a last check on the details of their operation. "The FOSB has discovered a group of spice traders collaborating to spread their wares further across the planet. They have a compound somewhere in which they store everything and hold meetings, but it is kept a secret to all but the most influencial people." She paused for a moment, glanced back at the terminal and turned back to the other two Ren. "Our objective is to pin down one of those people, interrogate them, and find the compound. From there we can choose our next plan of action."

 

[WolfMortum]

Spoiler

Too few occasions of late had held the potential benefit for the First Order in his personal efforts of late; having distanced himself, he had given himself too much room to focus on his personal grudges rather than putting his time where it should rightly have been committed. After months of inactivity and isolated training, things had peaked up starting with a personal venture led by Kriel Firin; now he had been assigned a new mission under two other superiors of his, Knights of Ren. He didn't know either of them, he had never once spoken to them in the past and by all assumptions, to his mind they were to keep an eye on him as much as they were to focus forward to their objective. It would not have surprised him in the slightest that perhaps his Mentor was trying to gauge his progress through the feedback from his peers. Either that, or he was being paranoid and this mission was simply one given by chance that held nothing in the way of a connection to his short comings.

Regardless of his suspicions, he had kept his head down the majority of the trip, his arms pressed into his knees as he leaned forward and kept his gaze to the floor, silent and observant of every detail in that which was beneath him. In his current attire he looked nothing of the presence he often portrayed, there was no intimidating factor in the clothes that he wore, his hair held back and away from his eyes with the beanie, a black cotton make that warmed his skull. His sword hand was gloved so to make for the best grip in combat were it to come to that, the added protection never hurt though the rest of him matched the outfit of a civilian, a jacket one size too large and the gray/black pants of no outlandish fashion complimenting the fault in his choice of clothing; a small fault that only added to the appearance of his age, a young adult with little a care for how he might look to others, least they presume. His boots weren't anything overly fancy either, though they ended half way up his shin, holding both his Dirk of which was sheathed beneath the left legging of his pants, and on the right, the holstered Sidearm that was standard for their people. His Lightsaber was slightly closer in reach of himself, clipped on the inside of his jacket and ready for a quick draw should he so demand it.

[member="Kaalia Voldaren"] caught his attention, speaking in his direction and causing his gaze to betray the rather lackluster attire that he wore, showing not the withdrawn teenager that he appeared but the eyes of a young man who had submitted himself to the Dark-side of the Force. Their intention was to remain elusive, that much he understood and offered but a simple nod in response before glancing back down to the floor and listening as she explained the mission in further detail. Intelligence had pinned down some sort of spice trading ring and their job was to track it down and eliminate it. Being the lone disciple here, he knew the expectations on him, to follow the chain of command for the best interests of the First Order, something he was readily prepared to do even against that spark of attitude in him that at times threatened to compliment his obstinance.

Turning to glance back towards [member="Ara Ren"], he questioned silently what sort of training the pair had undergone to get where they were today. How much of the Knights of Ren followed obediently and without compromise to what was expected of them. The more he had allowed his frustrations to surface of late, the more he had come to question these things; never once making light of these thoughts for concern of brandishing himself a traitor or too weak to make it in their Order, yet to be worthy of the Ren, he wondered what he would need to do to get himself there. A place, not a rank, of confidence in his ability to serve the Order. Everything had a price in this galaxy, and his was to deny that uncertainty that now and then grew inside of him, shutting it out in place of his refusal to look to anyone else but the Supreme Leader for incentive, an example of power and domination over both the Jedi and the Sith Orders. A man who even his superiors dared not question, what better example could their be?

 

[Ara Zambrano]

As the trooper left, Ara barely acknowledged his passing, her attentions focused on the bandages she was unwrapping from her arms and hands. At this point, they were strictly unnecessary, but a few lectures from [member="Kaalia Voldaren"] and the head medic of the Bastion had her behaving with extra caution, much to her own chagrin. The methodical unwinding of the gauze gave her mind a point of focus other than their flight and descent to the surface of Val’hala, something that always sparked fear and anxiety within the woman. The wounds she’d received during the invasion of Mustafar would serve as camouflage for their espionage, the small white scars and pocket-marked skin imitating the wounds of a spice junkie. Soon they would be all but gone, but for now, the scar tissue had a purpose to serve.

Her outfit had been carefully picked, a sharp counterpoint to the street rat and rave clothing her partners on this mission chose. The dress hugged every curve she had, stopping just a bit longer than too short, the straps accenting her chest and shoulders. As she often had, she was playing the socialite, not a far cry from the realities of her recent years. The two knights had decided a while back to play up her natural talents during this ruse, the brunette playing the part of a rich, addicted young woman looking for her next fix.

As the last of the bandages came away, she glanced up sharply, eyes thoughtful as she listened to her friend and fellow knight speak to the disciple, [member="Brennan Cabrol"] , who had joined them for this particular mission. Her former Master, Talon Ren, had requested more experience for his apprentice, Ara having accepted the disciple’s presence out of respect and gratitude towards her former instructor. Personally, she disliked working with those she hardly knew, but the Ren were a unit and as such, had to be prepared to collaborate together at any given time. This would be a test not just for the disciple, but the knights’ abilities to lead.

”We shall be infiltrating their base of operations, the Lion’s Den, a gambler’s paradise.”

A smirk directed towards the red-head accompanied the words, both women acutely aware of her experience in such a place.

”You both will enter first, establish a presence and enjoy a drink or two. I will follow shortly, slight more inebriated than I should be and very interested in what other specialties the den has to offer. Now, will you two be portraying siblings, friends, or lovers?”

Her question was directed to both of them, unsure if they had discussed the plan more on the journey over, her own meditation being her sole focus. Uncurling herself from the cross-legged position she’d taken up throughout the flight, a wince crossed her features, legs and feet tingling from lack of blood flow. Knee high stiletto boots completed her outfit, the hilt of her personal lightsaber tucked down in the space between leather and calf. As their ship exhibited the tell-tale signs of a landing sequence, the shut her eyes, power swirling around her. One of these days she’d find a way to sleep through the descent portion of their travels, until then, she’d let her fear pull the dark side close

 

[Kaalia Pavanos]

"Friends." It was a short answer but said enough about their assumed role. "We're just there to grab a drink and catch up. It's been a while, huh bud?" An elbow would softly hit [member="Brennan Cabrol"]'s side as Kaalia walked past him. She had already slipped into a more relaxed mood to fit the occasion and as she motioned the Disciple to follow her she whistled a few notes. "We'll see you in a bit, then." A nod towards [member="Ara Ren"] later the Knight was off towards the Lion's Den.

When Kaalia entered the place she immediately made her way to the bar, carefully picking out a place that gave a good view of the entire establishment. Sabacc tables were all over the building, people that most definitely weren't sober could be seen in more than one place, and it was clear that a good amount of people had enjoyed more than just alcohol. She sat down and motioned to the man behind the bar. "A brandy, please." She wasn't going to drink from it, she needed to be sober for obvious reasons, but simply having the drink in front of her was one of the small things one needed to have to blend in. "Come on, sit down." She patted on the seat next to her, inviting Brennan to sit down. "We have a lot of catching up to do. How was your journey across the galaxy?"

 

[WolfMortum]

The question had caught him off guard and he cocked a brow back at [member="Ara Ren"] in skeptical query, fortunately not needing to make any further light of his surprise with [member="Kaalia Voldaren"] cutting in before he could even dismiss the idea. It wasn't like there was anything specifically wrong with her, or either of them for that matter, they both looked like what Brennan supposed was relationship material though how in the kark would he know, his mind-state was so twisted up, he barely knew what he expected of himself let alone someone else in his life. The gentle elbow that came against him in Kaalia's passing caused him to flinch, his gaze darting back at her as though he were put on edge; soon trying to disguise this new found anxiety by rising to his feet and following in line with her saying nothing of the ordeal.

On the inside, the public establishment came as a far easier lie, a facade of which came naturally. Here situated with others just as damaged as he was, he wandered in alongside his superior with an air of confidence about him, soon finding and leaning forward against the counter, listening first to Kaalia requesting a drink before gesturing to the far bottle upon the shelf; Alderanian Whiskey. Again he didn't speak, simply giving a firm nod to the barkeep before turning his attention back to his female companion whom asked him about his time of late. "I suppose it's been a while huh..." He remarked, turning in to offer her his best smile, subtle and genuine enough; likely the first evidence she had seen to the fact that he actually held some teeth. To say that he was emotionally withdrawn was an understatement yet pretending to be the image of another, something that society expects in such a place, he found that far simpler; "I had to take public transport in this time" He rolled his eyes, turning back as the barkeep brought their beverages to him, Brennan nodding once again in acknowledgement and this time thanking the bloke before glancing back to Kaalia, "The old man's 'firebrand' had to be decommissioned so for the moment I've got no other means of getting about. Apparently he hadn't taken a look at her guts in months and the hyperdrive's been leaking fluid, the engines all shot to hell...". Brennan was still fairly young, he spoke of his father as though he were an idiot in his old age, yet had never had an image to go by for what a parental figure might actually look like to him, in his experience most people were idiots...

"What about yourself, I heard you got into trouble out near the Modell Sector..." He made it easy, giving something of a start that she might be able to go off of; "South of Bakura somewhere?...What's that about?" he added in the case that she wasn't familiar with the sector, though it was First Order space.

 

[Ara Zambrano]

Meditation lessened the fear-inducing landing, the knight lost to her thoughts as two-thirds of their team disembarked and made off to the designated location. The sounds of boots and the subtle shift of armor, the occasional cough or twitch giving away the nervousness of the few troopers who continued milling about the corvette. Her lips curled up in a smirk as she opened her eyes, one of the troopers instantly turning away from her gaze.

These were not her normal squad of soldiers, the pair she was familiar with having been assigned to a reconnaissance mission on Mustafar shortly after their successful invasion. A slight sigh accompanied the thought, the girl moving away from the wall she’d chosen to lean against for the remainder of their trip reluctantly. There was something to be said about working with known agents instead of the uncertainty of these yet-untested troops. They history could be anything, their experience with the Order of Ren also up in the air. With any luck, they would prove as capable as their counterparts, the rigorous training of the First Order shining through in the end. At worst, they would fail miserably in some way and she would request reconditioning for the guilty parties.

A grim smile crossed her features as she watched one such white-armored soldier from her peripheral. Having the utmost faith in the faction of which she served meant she accepted the small squadron without question when commissioning the use of the spacecraft. It did not mean that she was cautious and had plans should their back-up prove less than exemplary. It was part of her role as a Knight, to command and lead small units of Stormtroopers as necessary, something the girl would have to adapt to quickly.

Her steps echoed through the craft as her made her way towards the ramp, the cool metal of her saber rubbing against her calf with every movement. Barely acknowledging the crew who rushed to stand at attention as she moved past, the Ren made her way off of the ship and into the busy space port, a mental map and plan already forming in her mind.

[member="Brennan Cabrol"] | [member="Kaalia Voldaren"]

 

[Kaalia Pavanos]

Kaalia nodded at Brennan's story of the Firebrand, giving her ample material to continue the story with. "He really needs to start taking care of that thing better. It's going to fall apart in the midst of hyperspace one day." She almost picked up the glass of brandy to take a sip before stopping herself. She promised herself to get another one after the job was finished. "He's a good man, your dad, but he needs to slow down. He isn't getting any younger." A quick eye throughout the place didn't reveal anything too suspicious, and so she remained seated.

He then spun up something about the redhead getting into trouble, which made her smile. "Did you really have to tell everyone..." She spoke in an introspective tone, a small tinge of amusement present within her voice. "Technically, the girlfriend was the one who got in trouble. I just got caught up in it as always." The best stories were based on small bits of reality, and so she thought of Ishana while 'explaining' what happened. "She was playing Sabacc and I was enjoying a drink while watching. One of the guys at the table recognized her from something before I met her, it could only have been something bad, and well..." She shrugged. "I wasn't going to stand for his rude behavior, and she wasn't either." She chuckled at the mental image of her story. "We decked him, but it turned out he was good friends with the owner of the place. Let's just say we had to run very quickly." She tapped her fingers on the bar for a moment while she continued. "We jumped into her ship, flew off, and laughed throughout the trip. She's a troublemaker, but that's still one of the things I love most about her." The thought of Ishana made her swoon for a second before snapping back to reality. "Have you had any luck finding the right lady?"

[member="Brennan Cabrol"] | [member="Ara Ren"]

 

[WolfMortum]

[member="Kaalia Voldaren"] smiled in response to the story that he had dreamed up, though he knew not exactly why, he played it through with a bemused half smirk of his own; the truth was that he knew nothing about her and the news of this girlfriend was as much new to him as the world around him, yet he had become something of a gifted liar, finding the need to do so more and more of late in order to protect the secret of which all three of their team shared, the truth in their affiliation to the Supreme Leader and his Knights of Ren.

"Can't teach an old Colt new tricks so they tell me" he responded nonchalantly, offering a half-assed shrug in the face of his would-be fathers supposed identity; "Truth be told his ships probably not even worth the effort these days though it belonged to mother and he's desperate to hold onto it for the sake of sentimentality I suppose..." He spoke as if his mother was long since passed, using the moment of proposed loss to turn away from Kaalia and cast a passing glance about their surroundings, taking in the sights of those closest to them in the short moment that he allowed himself to subtly break cover. Few people around them held the look of proper citizens, nothing about this place was clear if not for the blatant disregard in moral standing in their lives, not that he could honestly judge. Most of these people were well beyond intoxicated and those that were not, seemed to be taking advantage through the pazaak stalls and other tables that held games Brennan could only assume involved someone losing a decent share of credits.

"The old man wants me to settle down but I dunno if it's in me, honestly..." He turned back to look to his partner in their mission, nodding in a sideways moment of indifference, truth more present in his words than was perhaps considered wise; "I'm more focused on work, I suppose you'd say" He covered himself, though that too was a partial truth, his career being the First Orders interests first and foremost; "Besides...-I'm terrible with all that" He feigned a chuckle, his tone coming off dry under his breath as he turned and reached for his drink, taking a swig to cover for the bitterness that threatened to come out following the remark.

[member="Ara Ren"]

 

[Ara Zambrano]

A perfectly placed stumble, a stagger to the side, high-pitched laugh, the combination of body movement and sound drawing attention and dispelling it just as quickly. No one stopped longer than a few moments to notice yet another pretty girl lost in the throes of alcohol, and if any caught sight of the thin lines on her arm, one could assume Spice addiction. A few leered openly, cat-calls echoing into the wind, although a well-placed glare diverted the only person brave or stupid enough to try and take advantage of someone well past inebriated. Few stared long enough to notice the red and yellow rim around her eyes, those who did shifted their gaze with haste.

A small, pleased smile crossed her face as she felt the force auras of her two companions shining from a nearby building, their target location. A few other blips on her mental radar distracted her as she wandered, but the Knight chose to dismiss them as momentary annoyances.

The den was exactly as she’d expected, a long bar on the far wall, sabaac tables scattered about, noise at an almost deafening level. She’d find it amusing that in her time with the Ren she’d visited these establishments almost as much as she had when it was her way to make a living, if she wasn’t so focused on a far game table and the easy marks she found. Her eyes never wandered to her friends at the bar, even as she neatly marked their presence, wobbling steps narrowly avoiding collision with a droid, another girlish giggle wrung from her throat.

”Mind if I join-“

A small squeal and round of laughter accompanied her less that graceful fall into a chair, a credit chip tossed in the dealer’s direction with a blinding smile.

”Haven’t played this in forever, sorry if I’m a bit rusty, boys.”

The gentlemen gathered, if you could call them that, hardly seemed disturbed by the new player who interrupted their current hand, a few grunts and exchanged glances followed up by predatory smiles, either motivated by the amount of money she’d casually dropped before them or the cleavage she was displaying. Either way, it was to her advantage. A few hands of badly played sabaac, a drink of brandy or two, and then she’d start asking the serious question, where did one go for a good time around here?

[member="Brennan Cabrol"] | [member="Kaalia Voldaren"]

 

[Kaalia Pavanos]

Kaalia made a clicking sound with her mouth and nodded thoughtfully. "I can imagine. The last time I saw the thing it wasn't doing too hot anymore already. The poor thing's way too old to keep flying." She furrowed her brows for a moment and tapped onto the bar with a finger. "You know..." the woman said, "I think the best way to go is to clean it up and give it a nice place somewhere as a showpiece. I get why he wants to keep it, but that doesn't have to mean it has to be used the way it is now. He's stubborn but it's worth suggesting."

As Brennan answered her question she notices Ara stumbling into the place. No matter how many times the redhead watched her play to get what she wanted it was impressive every single time. She watched her drop into a chair at a Sabacc table, meaning it wouldn't be too long before everything would be set in motion. For now however the act would have to be kept up. "There's nothing wrong with focussing on work. There's no time limit and if you're not feeling ready that's completely fine. Your pops can wait, it's not like you can just find the right person just like that. When the time is right it will happen naturally." She flashed him a smile and bumped his shoulder with her fist harmlessly. "And it's for everyone. You're not 'good' or bad' at it, that's not how it works."

A quick glance towards Ara would reveal she had settled in quite well, meaning it was nearly time to get to work. "One second," Kaalia told Brennan as she motioned to the barkeeper. He came over and asked what he could do for her, to which she answered with a simple question. "Where are the restrooms around here?" A pointed finger led her to the place she asked for. She got up from her stool and made her way over, picking out a random stall as she entered. Now it was a matter of patience.

[member="Brennan Cabrol"] | [member="Ara Ren"]

 

[WolfMortum]

Brennan had to double take, throwing [member="Kaalia Voldaren"] a rather skeptical glare in response to her claiming that romance was for everyone. For a moment, that social mask had fallen from him and he had to remind himself that he was playing a facade, a fake identity for the sake of the venture. "...-Ch'yeah, right!..." He forced a quiet chuckle, shaking his head in obvious dismay and turning back to his drink and the counter. The barkeep in front of them getting a bit of a laugh himself as he looked to Brennan and offered him an encouraging word; "What's the matter Kid, afraid she'll bite?" the man boasted, whilst the Disciple of Ren simply looked back at him silently amused at just how little of a clue he really had. Choosing not to respond, the barkeep simply raised his eyebrows in surprise at the boys refusal to comply to conversation with him and shrugged his shoulders, turning away to move off to serve his other patrons.

While Kaalia Voldaren turned away from the counter and sought the privacy of the Ladies Room, Brennan swiveled around on his seat to cast his gaze across the room. [member="Ara Ren"] playing her part in their little game exceptionally well, her performance as a drunken mess was rather believable and had he not known better, he would have presumed she'd had more than a few too many. Not wishing to pay her too much attention and suspecting that she would soon wish to make contact with Kaalia, Brennan sought to further study the inhabitants of the room, seeking out any sign of interesting parties that might resemble their targets for this mission. Spice traders and those who dealt in narcotics frequented places like this more often than not, most people with low standards and a wet tongue and addled mind often sought a greater high, fearing that they might lose grip of the blissful state they'd drank themselves into, the concept of dutch courage or falsified confidence and general happiness in life that was frequently found in such establishments was precisely the reason people came to such establishments and thus were also made easy targets for dealers to ply off on their trade.

Unfortunately the closest thing resembling a mind altering state that Brennan had been in was an intense meditation session within the Bastion upon Virgillia. He had never experienced the impact drugs had on the mind and while this bode well for his general mental stability and intellect, it didn't help him much in the way of picking out a spice dealer from your typical smuggler within a den such as this one. It seemed for the moment to be very much a waiting game, Brennan much more comfortable with the run and gun aspect of their missions, the action and bloodying of their targets came easier to him than sitting there stuck with his own thoughts and perceptions of peoples of which he lacked any real understanding over. Social interactions and relating with their friends or the opposite sex in which they pursued. These were all foreign concepts to him, unable to fathom how someone could open themselves to such vulnerability when he had experienced the worst of other peoples mental and physical manipulations of his body and mind at the hands of those who revered in their methods of torture and sadism. If Romance truly was for everyone, it'd be a miracle for anything of the like to reach a part of Brennan that hadn't already been killed off in his mind.