Private "Did Someone Call An Exterminator?"

[Faison Kelborn]

TAG: Tovald Kahmen’’a Dantum Kryszar
LOCATION: Aboard the New Dawn, Faison's personal ship, heading to Kesh.

In all of his years, Faison had never really appreciated the threat the Drengir had posed on the galaxy at large. Perhaps it was because he was too busy fighting, getting drunk, or fighting while drunk. But that was the old Faison - the Faison who was simply out for himself to make a quick credit with a blaster at his hip, and likely another person dead on the floor with a hole in their forehead. He had dealt with a lot of anger over the past few years, and a lot of loss; but he had come a long way in his life despite it all. He was thankful to have met the likes of Siv Dragr , Vren Rook , and Jhira Mereel among others. His relationship with Jhira in particular came to mind as he reflected over all, aboard his customized AV-100X Gunship, named the 'New Dawn'. They hadn't known each other for long to be quite honest, but in a way - they knew each other better than most people in his life. They shared a moment on Kaddak, wherein he told her things he had only told a handful of other people. Even still, it felt different with her. It was hard to place at first, but he eventually came to realize that she really cared about him during the conversation they had on the rooftop of his former employer's club.

She saw him for what he was; lost, fondling for a lost purpose like a blind man grasping for his cane. Within that moment, he had realized just how... beautiful she was. Even with all the suet and grime caked on both of their faces, the warmth she had in her eyes made him remember what it was like to have a woman in his life, at least superficially. She likely didn't even know that was the effect she had on him, and maybe that just meant he was a sad, lonely fecker (probably exactly what it meant). Perhaps nothing would become of their first meeting, or perhaps he would have the courage to broach that subject should they meet again. Regardless, he couldn't deny that their meeting and conversation helped him continue down the path he had started when he met Vren that fateful day on Kestri. The very armor he wore now was a visible reminder of that day, where he swapped the patchwork and ill-maintained suit he wore when he first met his current companions ( Tovald Kahmen’’a Dantum Kryszar ) nearly a year previous on Mustafar. Instead, he now wore a suit wrought entirely of Beskar'gam, bearing the ancestral mark of his clan. He felt like a changed man after beginning this journey over a year ago, and perhaps that is why his thoughts were currently clouded over the events of the past few weeks.

He had missed the Enclave's invasion of Panatha, but not for want of being there alongside his brothers. Instead, he was bogged down over matters concerning the life he tried to leave behind. 'Funny how things work out that way.' He thought to himself with a bemused chuckle, sitting alone in the cockpit. He had no love for the Eternal Empire, given their past allegiance to the Sith Empire. To him, they were one and the same, for he cared not about rhetoric or claims of being a 'changed nation'. As he dealt with the persistent distractions from his former life though, he heard reports of the invasion itself - and the sheer devastation exact upon not just the military of the Eternal Empire, but the citizens too. Men, women, children; no one was spared from the brutality exacted upon them from his brothers.

He sorely hoped that such news was nothing more than exaggeration and rumor, or perhaps some ill-begotten propaganda spawned within the minds of the bruised Eternal Empire. It simply couldn't be true... could it? Could the people he had joined, who espoused justice and stability for all who joined their banner, really reduce themselves to being little more than barbarians? Even in the lowest points of his life, Faison had never crossed the line of killing people who were truly innocent. Perhaps he carried a level of self delusion then, and even to a certain degree now; but from what he knew, the people he killed had it coming to them somehow. Whether that meant they were criminals themselves, or people who tried to kill him but failed, he went to great pains to prevent putting himself in situations where he truly had to kill people who were guilty of nothing more than being born on the wrong planet. He had to follow up on this, perhaps even speak to Vren or Siv to get the full story. Otherwise, he would have to reconsider exactly what the Enclave meant to him.

But this reckoning would have to wait for another time. Perhaps out of divine providence, a rather interesting bounty revolving around the aforementioned Drengir had popped up amongst his alerts from his old registration with the Bounty Hunter's Guild. A special client ( Ashin Cardé Varanin ) had issued a bounty for the death or capture of any Drengir to be found throughout the galaxy. Initial research into what was known of the plant-like species had revealed that they were a threat he'd best not hunt alone. Given his uncertainty regarding where his future sat with respect to the Enclave, Faison thought it a prime opportunity to reconnect with some of his old contacts, hence why he picked up both Dantum and Tovald at the nearest port. Now, the trio were aboard his ship, with the New Dawn exiting atmosphere into the void beyond. He keyed in coordinates for the planet they were headed to, a terrestrial world known as Kesh. Rumors had abounded of mysterious disappearances, and unexplained fungal growths in the dense forests of the planet's remote regions, along with rumors of massive beasts unlike anyone has ever seen before.

With the information at his disposal, it didn't take much effort to piece things together that Kesh was within the entry stages of a Drengir infestation - or at least, there was a very high probability. So, that was their destination. Faison keyed in several commands, laying out the coordinates of their destination. Then, he punched in execute command, causing the hyperdrive to spool up. The stars before him began to stretch into long streets, and suddenly the New Dawn lurched headlong into lightspeed. Thereafter, Faison unstrapped himself from his harnesses and retreated into the common area, where he would meet with his two companions and get their briefing underway.

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[Tovald Kahmen’’a]

TAG: Faison Kelborn Dantum Kryszar
LOCATION: Aboard the New Dawn, Faison's ship, heading to Kesh.

The trip was uneventful, the harness he was in snagged on his clothing, so he had to pull it free twice in an hour. The offer of money piqued Tovald's interest, that and the unusual targets, sentient plants. Thankfully, however, there was no mention of spiders. Small ones he can tolerate, no problem, but ones the size of his head or The Cyclone he could do without.

So far the journey has been that of ominous silence. He recognised two others, they were all on Mustafar on a mission together, they worked well together, even if they only spoke to each other where it was deemed vital to do so. It was successful, well no one died from their party at least.

What he could glean from the pre-brief was that the Drengir were encroaching on somewhere called Kesh, so they were like mould, sentient and huge mould, no, no that did not fit the description at all, Tovald removed the word mould from his mental notes, as it sounded less sane as he mulled it over. Hopefully, his companions could add in the blanks. Something didn't seem right, something was making his scarred skin crawl. Tovald could not pin it down, it could be something he should know but don't.

Well, he thought dryly, at least it's not a spider nest, crawling across the planet in a giant heaving mass of legs and giant eyes. That would set him up for a rather confusing nightmare tonight or within a few days. Giving himself a shake to clear the pessimistic Spider Thought from his head, he refocused on why he was here in the first place.

With the jump to hyperspace Tovald undid his harness and tapped his foot to stave off pins and needles, they were neither of those, but it sure felt like he had pins in his leg. It took a while to calm it down so he can walk to the common area, as they will need to be debriefed on how they are going to take the mission and where they could begin without being those murderous plants' food.

He too entered the common area, ready to be debriefed. As going in blind will be disastrous, he'd hate to be remembered for being eaten by plants, that would be a very stupid way to die. That and falling over a brick, poor Togurutan, he didn't see it coming.

 

[Dantum Kryszar]

Tags: Faison Kelborn , Tovald Kahmen’’a

Location: The New Dawn

Objective: Assist Faison Kelborn and Tovald Kahmen’’a in exterminating some Drengir.

Dantum "Dan" Kryszar was nervous. And this in and of itself was anomalistic. Ever since the rigorous training and torture he had undergone at post-Empire training facilities, he had taught himself to never be scared. And yet even before this mission had started, he was emanating waves of barely controlled fear.

Dan was aboard the New Dawn, the ship belonging to his friend and fellow bounty hunter, Faison Kelborn . Also present on the ship was Tovald Kahmen’’a , whom he had also been acquainted with. After taking up several missions together, the three had proved to be an able, competent team. But there was something else in the atmosphere that was eroding Dan's confidence. He couldn't quite place it. Dan thought that he shouldn't be feeling this fear, that he and his companions could easily complete the mission. However, after doing research on the mysterious "Drengir" that the team was supposed to be hunting, his mind wasn't exactly eased.

The Drengir were rumored to be vicious killers that disguised themselves as trees, and morbidly took the life of everyone or everything that ventured into their territory. Dan wasn't sure if all of this information was true, but he had heard the stories. Whole villages and expeditions missing. People disappearing into the night. Dan wanted the very large sum for the successful completion of this mission, but he also did not want to end up dead.

As the New Dawn neared its destination, the bounty hunter decided to head to the briefing room. Faison would tell them about the mission soon anyway.

 

[Faison Kelborn]

TAG: Tovald Kahmen’’a Dantum Kryszar
LOCATION: Aboard the New Dawn, Faison's personal ship.

Faison nodded at both Tovald and Dantum. They had come a long way together, and he considered himself in good company. Tovald was as dependable as men came. Faison would rather have him at his back as opposed to many others, even amongst the Enclave. Dantum was a bit too eager and brash, but he was skilled nonetheless - particularly with a sniper rifle.

Between the three of them, Faison was confident in being able to see this through, or if nothing else; to burn the osik out of a few trees. The Mandalorian leaned upon a central holo terminal which dominated the center of the common room. It pulled up the planet of Kesh, and zoomed in on a region dense in forestry. Several red dots populated the area to indicate places reporting unusual activity.

"I don't know how much research you guys have been doing about the Drengir, but they've got a nasty tendency of hiding under the radar until they become a problem too severe for normal defense forces to contain." He met the gaze of both other men before he continued, keying in a command on the console to bring up data on known Drengir incursions.

"Incursions typically start off on the fringe of planetary society, within densely forested areas near outlier settlements so they can disguise themselves as trees. They corrupt surrounding flora and fauna, and sentient life forms report increases in what are described as 'visions of dread, anxiety, and darkness'. While many dismiss these reports as ramblings of conspiracy theorists and fringe radicals, reports have been verified throughout the galaxy. So much so, that there's a bounty to be had..." He couldn't help but smirk at that last bit, but he also couldn't shake the feeling at the pit of his stomach. The credit-amount associated with this bounty was alluring enough to attract alot of prospective hunters, and it also signaled just how deadly this bounty was. Alot of people would die trying to collect, he just hoped they wouldn't be among them.

"I've got some extra supplies if yall need it. Any questions? We are a few hours out from Kesh, so now is the time to hash through everything."

 

[Tovald Kahmen’’a]

TAG: Faison Kelborn Dantum Kryszar
LOCATION: Aboard the New Dawn, Faison's ship, heading to Kesh.

As part of the prep work, Tovald did do a bit of research, even spending three nights in a Libary, digging through datapads and news feeds. He noted a lack of definitive answers as to what exactly are they. He had more questions than answers. That said, he had found a really old traditional book that fell behind a shelf. It must be important.

Stealing from Libraries is wrong, but he needed to wonder why it ended up wedged in like that. So he hid it in his satchel and walked out. It had information and diagrams on the Drengir. Also, it confirmed what Faison said about the skirting under the radar thing. So it's like Athlete's Foot, you don't notice until an entire Gym gets it, and it runs wild as many don't get treatment and reintroduce it, ad verbatim. It will always be a blight on places like that, no matter what is done about it.

And, this is that but on a worryingly large scale. From a nuisance to a destructive murderous situation.

He thought better than to voice this because no one wants to know that. Soon Faison moved on to the meat of the matter, how they disguise themselves and become corrupting on everything else. He knows dread, he feels it when he sees a spider bigger than his head. Shaking the spider related issues to one side, he jotted a few notes down. Conspiracies do hold a minute kernel of truth if it is minuscule.

Bounty Hunters take any job that comes by, most have been taken or dried up, many need the credits to pay rent and/or food. So the lure is irresistible, seeing as living costs have been on the rise lately and many decide to live out of their ships to avoid this. So he can understand the concern for such a risky job. But they have proved time and time again that they are capable. None of them died yet.

<"How do we destroy them, what will work and what won't?"> Tovald asks breaking the quiet that has fallen the room.

 

[Dantum Kryszar]

Tags: Faison Kelborn , Tovald Kahmen’’a

Location: The New Dawn

Objective: Assist Faison Kelborn and Tovald Kahmen’’a in exterminating some Drengir.

Dan paid attention as his Mandalorian companion Faison described the Drengir, and the mission. The Corellian Sharpshooter was a person who normally liked to research stuff on his own time, but he knew that this mission was unlike all the others he had accepted and he needed the necessary information. He also knew that listening to Faison would pay off, because the Mandalorian had been in the "noble" profession of bounty-hunting longer than him and therefore had a good deal of experience. Also, Dan would welcome advice from the Ubese bounty hunter Tovald too; as he was just as experienced as Faison. The Corellian bounty hunter felt a mite overshadowed, but he knew that it was good to have experienced men with him on a mission like this. Dan just hoped that after this mission he would still be able to take part in the "noble profession". He could very well die. The Drengir were dangerous; far more dangerous than anything he had ever faced. Well, with a bit of luck, not to mention skill, Dan and his companions would make it out of this successful, rich, but most importantly- alive.

"I've got some extra supplies if yall need it. Any questions? We are a few hours out from Kesh, so now is the time to hash through everything."

Faison seemed eager to begin the mission, despite the imminent danger. Dan couldn't help but admire the almost careless attitude that Faison gave to the matter. The bounty hunter was about to ask a question when Tovald beat him to it:

"How do we destroy them, what will work and what won't?"

Dan couldn't blame Tovald for asking that question. That was the one that he was about to ask too. During his research, Dan had come up with some information on the Drengir themselves, but nothing on how to kill them. He awaited Faison's response anxiously- this was key to the mission's success.