First Reply Echoes in the Swamp

[Edward Ashcard]

Location: Location: Mijos — a Sunken Spaceport

Edward Ashcard had lived in self-imposed exile in the swamps and among the ruins of Mijos since his failure to rise in importance within the Eternal Empire.
He had settled among the ruins of a Lutrillian spaceport and kept a small section of it in good enough condition to call his own. His own rations had run out a long time ago, but he had kept his mind and body sharp by hunting the local amphibians and reptiles. He never had a green thumb due to his childhood as the son of miners and his career as a solider, but even he had learnt through careful trial and error the local reeds he could eat and grew to like the starchy taste of rhizomes.

His gear did not have the same luck as himself, with most of it being reduced to scrap due to the harshly salty environment. While it would be hard to tell Edward was ever part of the Blackwatch apart from the red and black spots still visible on his clothes, he had taken great effort to maintain his Dragon 1M pistol and a few remaining rounds of ammo. He did not keep it for hunting (wooden spears and simple traps were enough for that) but in case the enemies of the Eternal Empire required him to fight one last time for the ideals he believed in.

He was alone and had been for the duration of his exile, and was unaware of events in the galaxy or even elsewhere on the surface of Mijos. Furthermore, he missed the discipline of his old life, and any smile on his face disappeared when he left his neat couple of rooms to be reminded of the ruin he had been living in.

His desire for structure and order in his life had finally overtaken the shame he had imagined for himself, and so slowly he had been learning about the sunken systems and worked on repairing a comms dish on the roof of his swamp home.
With all the time in the world and plenty of scrap, it was only a matter of when and not if, even if he was more used to destroying systems than restoring them.

The time had come and, unsure of the Eternal Empire's fate and its place in people's memories when the comms dish spluttered to life, Edward set a simple message to repeat and awaited a response, friendly or otherwise.

“This is Edward Ashcard, skilled soldier and operative, gracefully awaiting rescue or response. Located at point of transmission on Mijos. Willing and prepared for collaboration—answer or land, if inclined.”

 

[Pal Veda]

Mijos
Tags: Edward Ashcard


Beep boop! Whirrr!

”Yeah, I don’t like it any better than you do, but Mijos is where we’re going.” BB continued to protest, cursing in binary, but Pal largely ignored the astromech. They didn’t have enough fuel to get back to Corellia, and the swamp world was the nearest planet with a decent spaceport. Once out of hyperspace, BB scanned for a station that had managed to be built well enough not to sink into the muck.

An hour later — and after having to pay way more than he would’ve liked — the Captain lifted off in the Rubicon and headed toward the upper atmosphere. Back to the core to drop off a bit of spice then see what kind of trouble the Galactic Alliance wanted him to get involved in on their behalf next. It was always something.

Ding!

”Hey BB, what’s this?”

Beep boop!

”Yeah, I don’t know, either, or I wouldn’t have asked.” Pal tuned into the broadcast transmitting from below.

"This is Edward Ashcard, skilled soldier and operative, gracefully awaiting rescue or response. Located at point of transmission on Mijos. Willing and prepared for collaboration—answer or land, if inclined."

“What the Sith is this guy goin’ on about?“ Edward Ashcard, skilled soldier and operative, eh? Could be worth some creds. Pal glanced over at his astromech, BB‘s emotions transparent despite having an inarticulable droid face. “I’m gonna do it.”

Boop! Boop!

”I’m gonna do it!”

Boop Boop boop!

The poor astromech continued to protest, but Pal didn’t care. He opened a line to the source of the transmission and sent a message back. “Ashcard, this is Pal Veda of the Rubicon. I’ve got your position. But I’ve also got a question for you. Let’s say I fly my nice little ship down there and give you a ride off this mudball of a planet. What’s in it for me?”

 

[Edward Ashcard]

Location: Mijos — a Sunken Spaceport
Tag: Pal Veda

Edward was sitting on the edge of the spaceport, watching the swamp and working on a new wooden spear, when he heard the response from the Rubicon. He dropped the incomplete spear, which was still essentially a stick, and paced over to the comms system he had repaired, and he only hoped that it would not burst into flames before he could get the ship to land. After so long alone, he was cautious about any would be rescuer, but the request for payment brought a smile to his face.

He spoke to himself as he checked over the equipment, in part to see if he could still hold a conversation in Basic.
"A demand for payment, an informal tone and a ship? Likely an independent captain; hopefully a merchant, probably a smuggler and hopefully not a pirate. At least this Pal Veda is unlikely to arrest me on sight."
Edward looked down at himself, seeing the tattered and discoloured uniform he was wearing, and shook his head.
"Nobody knows I'm here, and who's to say that the red is not blood and that the black is not charcoal or soot?"

Finally, Edward pulled an old wire around the back of the machine, causing the microphone to spark to life once more.
"Pal Veda of the Rubicon, I have received your message, and I am speaking to you directly. My personal account has likely sat untouched while I have been here, but if that's not enough for you, I offer my skills at demolition and infiltration for a time in exchange for basic food and lodging. Finally, I might be able to secure you some crates of slugthrowers at a discounted price, although as you can assume I have been unable to keep track of the Galactic economy down here. Over."

 

[Pal Veda]

Landing on Mijos
TAGS: Edward Ashcard


“See, I told you, BB,“ Pal poked at his astromech, “This why I’m the captain, and you’re the . . . Other guy.” Truthfully, BB-99 was a lot of things — a navigator, a slicer, a scanner, whatever he needed to be. Pretty decent to have around. But he definitely wasn’t a captain.

Captain Pal Veda pressed the comm button and replied, “Alright, Mr. Skilled Soldier and Operative, it’s your lucky day.“ He wondered if he even cared what this hitchhiker had to offer. His nest egg had grown quite large, and it only got bigger by the day. If running spice wasn’t profitable enough, the occasional bounty and consistent contract work with the Alliance filled any gaps and then some. Maybe he was getting soft, offering this abandoned soldier a ride out of this swamp. Or more likely, he was just curious and bored, and needed a little thrill.

”Pack your bags, I’ll try to find a spot to sit this bird down without sinking into the abyss.”

The Rubicon was a fine ship. A bit outdated, but it had upgrades galore. Pal guided it through the lower atmosphere toward the source of the call. It took maybe twenty minutes to get there. As he approached, he visually scanned the area below, while BB-99 performed an actual scan with the onboard sensors. “The spaceport’s mostly sunk,” he commented, reducing the engine speed to get a better view. “Looks like that spot over there could work?” He pointed toward what looked like an old landing pad that was actually a couple clicks north of the spaceport and turned to the astromech. ”What‘s the read?”

Beep beep!

”Agreed. This shouldn’t take long.” With grace and expertise gained from thousands of similar landings, Pal guided his YT-2400 to the clearing and stopped to hover before lowering the landing gear and descending to the ground. He initiated the shutdown sequence then addressed BB-99. “Run this name, Edward Ashcard. See if you get any hits. Relay any info to me on my wrist comp.”

Beep boop!

”Great. And you’re in charge while I’m gone.” Pal rose from his chair and headed toward the main room, yelling for his other droid. “B-One, where are you?”

”Roger, Roger!”

”Right. Roger, Roger. Come with me.” He led the old battle droid toward the landing ramp and grabbed the shotgun hanging from the wall on the way down. “Stay here, guard the ship. If you see anyone that isn’t me, put a hole through ‘em. Got it?”

”Roger, Roger!”

”Yes. Okay.” Finally, with his ship secure, Pal opened comms with Ashcard from his wrist comp. “This is Veda. I’m about two clicks north of your location.“ But he wasn’t stupid. This could easily be an ambush. That was part of the excitement. So instead of waiting like a sitting duck, Pal took off toward the spaceport, hoping to catch Ashcard halfway and scope out the situation before letting him on his ship.

 

[Edward Ashcard]

Location: Mijos — a Sunken Spaceport
Tag: Pal Veda

"Affirmative, there is a landing pad in that direction and the distance seems about right and so you are likely landed there, or it will serve as a landmark. I will begin my walk after this message, however, I will be unable to contact you again until we are in shouting distance. Additionally, be careful in the swamp, there are macropredator snakes with what I believe to be grooved fangs. I have not encountered any with venom, but it's possible that it was simply too mild for larger mammals. This comms dish will broadcast an ultrasonic whine for the duration of its remaining power."

"Eeeeeeeeeee eeeeeeeeee nnnnnnnnnnnnnnn nnnnnnnnnnnnnnn eeeeeeeeeeee eeeeeeeeee nnnnnnnnnnnnnnn"

Edward looked around the sunken spaceport and only spared a few moments to think about his time here. He never regretted his exile, but he had no love for the sunken spaceport or the surrounding swamp.

He rammed a handful of smoked meat into one of his uniform's remaining pockets, topped up the tied off stomach hanging around his neck with clean water before putting on his leaf poncho.
Quickly as if he was preparing for deployment, Edward moved into his neat room, put on his reed shoulder sling and grabbed two of his fire-hardened wooden spears. One for his back and one for his hands.
Finally, Edward pulled his Dragon 1M pistol out of its well-maintained holster and carefully examined it and the ammo inside. It was his last real weapon and the only undamaged reminder of his duty.

Without a second thought, Edward marched north out of the sunken spaceport along the narrow and soft paths in the swamp. The famillar smells of wet earth filled the air and strangely Edward was looking forward to the metallic smells of a starship. One way or another, his exile would end today.

 

[Pal Veda]

Mijos - Sunken Spaceport
Tags: Edward Ashcard

It didn’t take long for Pal to regret his decision. Moving through the muck was a slow process, so he tried to use stones, exposed roots, whatever he could find as a step to avoid the annoying suction of the mud. The ultrasonic whine broadcasting from the sunken spaceport exacerbated the problem, almost like an unshakable tinnitus in his ears. Adding macropredator snakes into the mix just made the whole situation even more ridiculous.

What the Sith was a macropredator snake, anyway? That was vague enough to give him some pause, but the hitchhiker had converted the comm into an audio deterrence weapon before he could ask. “Nah,” he told himself, “That ain’t how you’re goin’ out.” Pal realized he probably talked to himself too much, but that was a problem for another day.

Large bugs flew through the air, landing in random puddles. Oversized worms crawled across the ground. Froglike creatures croaked from the edges of small watering holes, snatching the smaller flies out of the air. At least the sun was still up. Navigating through the swamp in the dark would be a nightmare.

Pal made it a couple hundred meters before a hissss! caught his attention. He spun around, leading with his shotgun, looking for the culprit. Is that what a macropredator snake sounds like? Probably. He kept his eyes peeled, staying put momentarily until he could identify the source of the sound.

 

[Edward Ashcard]

Location: Mijos — Squelching Swamp
Tag: Pal Veda

Edward was used to moving through the swamp; he had gone on many hunting trips during his exile, although if he was honest with himself he could have survived on traps and fishing alone. He enjoyed it, and while solo hunting was far from the discipline of the Blackwatch, it gave him something to do and gave him something to think about apart from his failed attempts at reinventing metal working.

The insects and foul smell in the air were not a good sign, as they signalled that the wildlife was rising from the mud. He was unsure if the ultrasonic whine would calm or enrage the local predators. He had never tried it before, and it had been years since he last had any access to technical or scientific books.

Furthermore, he knew that if he wanted to reach the landing pad he had to head in more or less a straight line, so there was a limit to how careful he could be, and he regretted at the moment not having a compass on him when he went into exile.

Hearing a gunshot for the first time in years, Edward bounded towards it, kicking the less determined local predators back into their putrescent puddles. Arriving at the source, he spotted a man with a shotgun, hopefully Edward's rescuer, and a snake. A big six-meter snake covered in wet dripping mud with curved sinister eyes. The mud hid its bile green scales and movements as it slithered.

"Watch Out! The fangs will grip you and get stuck on your clothes," Edward shouted with a firm tone.

He grabbed his fire-hardened spear tightly and charged in. It was better to kill this one quickly and move on before other creatures spotted an easy meal.

 

[Pal Veda]

Mijos - Sunken Spaceport
Tags: Edward Ashcard

Life hits you fast when you’re living on the wild side. The first shot missed, barely, and Pal cursed for loading the gun with slugs instead of scattershot. He couldn’t be too hard on himself — slugs were preferred in most scenarios, why would he think he would be shooting at a giant snake in the swamp today? Before he could get off a second shot, he heard someone shouting at him, rushing past with a . . . With a wooden spear?

That had to be Ashcard. And the man had obviously gone native out here in isolation. In this moment, Pal was thankful for it. “Fangs, right,” he repeated. Regardless if Ashcard posed a threat to him, Pal knew in this moment they had a mutual enemy, and a mutual desire to stay alive. But he didn’t have a clear shot.

The snake rose from the muck, hissing with its slithering tongue, revealing most of its full six meter length to the pair. Its eyes were devilish, downright evil looking, shining yellow through the mud clinging to its scales. It struck out at the newcomer, snipping in reptilian fashion.

This is stupid . . . He set his shotgun down and drew his knife. This is really stupid. Taking a reverse grip on the handle, Pal rushed in to assist. But of course not head on. Instead, he tried circling to the side, hoping to get behind the creature while distracted with Ashcard. Maybe he could hit it from the rear, try to climb up the back and tackle the head lower toward the ground, giving them a chance to take it out quickly.

 

[Edward Ashcard]

Location: Mijos — Squelching Swamp
Tag: Pal Veda

He had hunted many of these snakes before, but even Edward had to admit that this one was on the larger side. As he stood there for just a moment analysing his scaled foe, the snake lunged at him with its gaping maw open for all to see. Edward ducked and shifted his body to the left while using his spear to act as a pivot as he pressed its base into the mud. The snake had missed and Edward plunged his spear into the beast's side but the thrust was imperfect and glided off the thick scales. The spear did not suffer any damage, luckily, but there was only so much punishment it could take.

After the snake's momentum carried it past Edward, it put its muscled coils to good use by twisting itself around to face Edward once more. The end of its body almost caught Edward's feet, but he stepped back only to find himself on the edge of a muddy puddle. With a loud hiss, it struck low towards Edward's knees and while his movement was now limited, Edward stepped to the side and held his spear across his body at an angle as the snake's lower jaw glanced off the spear shaft. Edward ducked, put one leg forward and lunged with his spear again, but as he did so the great snake dropped into the mud, causing Edward's spear to find only air.

Edward saw the other man draw his knife and smiled. It would have a much better chance to penetrate the scales if he could only get close, enough to strike. He did not mind being the bait at all. He had the reach advantage but the less effective weapon. Edward dragged his foot through the mud, kicking it towards the snake as he dodged away from the puddle.

 

[Pal Veda]

Tags: Edward Ashcard

It was clear that this wasn’t Ashcard’s first run-in with one of these creatures, and Pal marveled at how he dodged and weaved the snake’s strikes. He made contact with his spear a couple of times, another couple of near misses, but no penetration. Time to change that.

With the reptile distracted, Pal made his move. He sprinted in from the opposite angle, and dove, landing high up on the snake’s back. It slithered with unexpected quickness, but the captain held on tight, wrapping his arms around the giant cylindrical body. Mud flew in his face, nearly obscuring his vision, so he relied mostly on feel to climb higher toward the top.

Surprisingly, the vile creature lifted its head from the muck, rising several feet into the air, so high that Pal’s feet could no longer reach the ground — had they not been locked in place to keep him from falling off. So much for his nearly 200 pound frame weighing it down. In a desperate move, he let go with his right hand and flipped the knife back to a regular grip, then plunged it through the scales, cutting as deeply as he could.

The snake let out a violent, guttural sound and bucked wildly before crashing back down. Pal finally released, opting to fall into the mud in an attempted roll rather than be crushed. “Finish it!” he tried to yell, gasping for air from the excitement and having the breath partially knocked out of him when he hit the ground. With its head landing near Ashcard, he hopefully has a clean shot with his spear.

 

[Edward Ashcard]

Location: Mijos — Squelching Swamp
Tag: Pal Veda

Edward should probably have been more cautious about the man who was almost certainly Veda, as he could have easily turned around and blasted Edward into gore with his shotgun, and old fabric and dried leaves would have only served to add some variety to the splatter. However, Edward could not deny himself the enjoyment of fighting alongside another. It did not matter to Edward who the Captain did or did not serve. In the moment, he only thought of the primal struggle for survival.

As he prepared to move to support the Captain, Edward noted his bravery, even if he questioned how wise mounting the snake was. Edward advanced towards the beast, hoping to give the Captain a chance, but he was sure that if the fight went on much longer his spear would break. His regret over never figuring out how to melt and shape the scrap at the spaceport only continued to grow.

Seeing a trickle of blood and hearing the guttural curl from where the Captain plunged his knife into the monstrous snake, Edward exclaimed, "good strike" before hearing the Captain's tired request.

Edward rushed forward again as the bile green snake recovered, mouth open in pain, in the mud crater of its own making and thrust his fire-hardened spear, with the weight of his body, into the soft tissue of the floor of the monster's mouth. A light red splatter confirmed his strike, but Edward was not done as he stomped on his spear, causing it to tear through the snake's flesh. The beast predictably reacted by violently shaking its head, but as it did so the spear shattered, launching the fire-hardened spearhead into the roof of its mouth. Edward never had the angle to aim for the snake's brain, but the bleeding and internal wounds were too much for even such a beast to ignore. The thrashing died down as Edward stepped away to face the Captain.

Edward put out his hand as he spoke and nodded, "Captain Veda, I presume? Good work there." Edward said, trying to conceal the shortness of his breath.

 

[Pal Veda]

TAGS: Edward Ashcard

Pal climbed to his feet and swept the moist dirt from his face. Although Edward extended his hand, Pal did not immediately accept it. Instead, he stepped just to the side and plunged his knife into the snake’s head. Of course it was already dead, or at least dying, but he would not deny himself the satisfaction of this moment. He withdrew the knife and wiped both sides off on his ruined shirt, then shoved it back into its sheath. Only then did he return to shake Edward’s hand, formally introducing himself.

”That’s right,” he replied, breath starting to return to normal. “Not so bad yourself.“ Pal turned and looked around, getting his bearings and locating his shotgun about fifteen feet away. As he walked to retrieve it, he continued, “Edward Ashcard, eh? Tell me, Eddie, what the hell are you doing out here?” That reminded him, he forgot to check in with BB to see if the astromech dug up anything on this hitchhiker. Inconspicuously, he checked his wrist comp and read the message while bending down to pick up his weapon. “This is an odd place to find an advisor for Tygeria Dragon.”

Having just fought together in a life or death struggle, Pal felt like he could trust this guy, but he never trusted anyone fully. Adrenaline still high and making sure Edward understood his place in this little rescue, Pal fired off his shotgun into the distance before turning back to face him. “Just making sure it still works.”

 

[Edward Ashcard]

Location: Mijos — Squelching Swamp
Tag: Pal Veda

Edward did not flinch at the sudden firing of Pal's shotgun. Sudden gunfire was not uncommon in his line of work, and whatever his reason for doing so, Edward did not think any less of the Captain. After all, if Pal wanted him dead, all he had to do was point and shoot.

For a moment, Edward thought to himself about how to answer Pal's line of questioning. Deception was not always the best path to secrecy. His feeling of shame during his exile was real, and his last mission really had gone poorly, but had he really run away from his duty just to live in a swamp? No. In Edward's mind was a list of ten. Ten Sith agents within his very own Blackwatch.

"My last job did not go well, and I needed some time to reflect on it, but perhaps I went too far." Nothing he had said was false, but it wasn't really true, either. He almost instantly regretted saying 'job' as it did not match the rest of his mannerisms, but it was too late. Just as he was about to continue, Pal had asked him about his role as Tygeria Dragon Armaments' Technical Advisor, which brought a smile to his face. "I'm pleasantly surprised that I still hold that position. I suppose I did leave them with a collection of good notes and sketches."

Not wanting to dwell on his mission unless Pal pressed further, Edward turned his head to the dead beast and said, "You know, it's almost a shame to leave that snake behind. This would be about fifteen days of food for the two of us, and sixteen if we had vinegar."

 

[Pal Veda]

Mijos
Tags: Edward Ashcard

The answer was vague, obviously intentionally so. But Pal could not help but chuckle at the comment about leaving the meat behind. It was appropriately placed to ease the tension. “By all means,” he replied, “feel free to stick around and butcher that thing. Or . . .” he paused for dramatic effect, “We can head back to the ship, clean all this crap off of us, and head back to civilization.” That idea sounded much more appealing. He wanted nothing more than a warm shower right now.

“There a lot of those things out here?” he asked, referencing the reptile they had just killed. He was hoping to hear an explanation about how territorial they are, this one was exceptionally large, others would be hesitant to encroach on its feeding grounds, et cetera, et cetera. Waiting on Edward to answer, Pal turned to head back to the ship, nudging his companion to walk and talk at the same time.

But Pal kept his shotgun at the ready, watching out for what was in front of him while keeping his ears on the man behind him. They still had a ways to trek to the Rubicon in this earth that wanted nothing more than to suck them in, meaning opportunities for additional predators, including the two-legged one that he had just met.

 

[Edward Ashcard]

Location: Mijos — Squelching Swamp
Tag: Pal Veda

Edward dropped his broken spear and joined Pal in the trek to the Rubicon. He chose not to draw the spare on his back since with the two of them they were unlikely to be taken by complete surprise and while it would have been a foolish way to die, Edward knew a wooden spear through the back was still a danger for his rescuer.

"I will take the latter, if at all possible" Edward replied with a chuckle of his own. Despite the gravity of his work, he was still a person like any other at the end of the day.

As they were walking, he thought about Pal's question. He knew enough about the snakes in the swamp to survive, but he was no expert on the subject in the scientific sense. "From my experience, now that the snake is dead, we have gone back to being unclaimed meals… but our scent is likely being masked by the snake blood." Edward paused briefly before resuming, "I would give us a sixty percent chance of making it to the landing pad without being attacked again."

He had found Pal agreeable so far, but his hunger for interaction would have made not doing so rather difficult. Edward cast his mind back to his mission and how if things had gone differently he could have spent his exile in the company of others, but the truth remained the truth. It had been too risky to return with the list of ten until significant time had passed.

"We should remain careful, but I can't help but ask, how are things out there? Same as always, I'm guessing?" Edward shrugged as he asked.

 

[Pal Veda]

Location: Mijos
Tags: Edward Ashcard

Now that was an interesting question. How long had Edward been out here? Wooden spears, familiarity with the terrain and the creatures that inhabited it. This wasn’t a recent exile — if that was even true. Maybe he was marooned out here? Maybe he crossed the wrong people and was left out here to die? Had it been treason, whatever military he was part of would have certainly executed him. Pal had heard of pirates leaving people in situations like this, expecting them to die, using it as a form of sadistic punishment. He briefly thought of the story of Jack Sparrow he heard as a kid, left to die on a remote moon after a mutiny led by his first mate.

”I guess that depends,” Pal responded, watching his foot placement as he navigated along rocks, fallen tree branches, and overgrown roots to avoid sinking. “When’s the last time you were out in the galaxy?“ They were getting close now, but a rustling in the trees caused him to stop in his tracks. He held up his left fist, the universal sign for halt and shut up.

Pal turned angled his head back, whispering over his shoulder while keeping his eyes on the canopy, scanning for any unusual movement. “Any flying megapredators we need to be concerned about?”

 

[Edward Ashcard]

Location: Mijos — Squelching Swamp
Tag: Pal Veda

Edward followed behind Pal taking a slightly different path to avoid the mud as the Captain in front depressed the stepping stones into the mud they were both trying to avoid. They must have been close but Edward was unsure of how things were going to resolve once they got there. Was he going to end up in the cabins, the brig or the cargo bay? At least Pal's discovery of his role as technical advisor gave Edward a source of value outside of his duty as an operative. He hoped that his accounts had not been frozen while he had been away. He was no tycoon but he had enough to make hiring safe passage back to the Eternal Empire a trivial task. A task that would become much more difficult without credits.

Edward prepared to answer Pal's question but the rustling in the trees and the Captain's hand signals brought Edward to a stop and the light hearted smile on his face vanished. He slowly drew the spear on his back from its reed sling. "Flying bird, one meter tall, scaled legs, hooked talons, hooked beak, large flat head, dark feathers, slugthrower sound" Edward whispered in as few words as possible.

The air was filled with a mechanical rattle that could have been easily mistaken for an automatic slugthrower. The rattle grew louder.

 

[Pal Veda]

Location: Mijos
Tags: Edward Ashcard

Fething giant birds? With hooked talons? The rattle grew louder, causing Pal to bring the butt of his shotgun to his shoulder and take aim into the dense leaves and branches above. Trying to focus, he couldn’t help but think about the precision with which Edward spoke. Normal infantry didn’t talk like that. No, this sounded more like someone who had spent some time in special operations, using calculated language to relay exact details with no anxiety or fear.

But back to the task at hand, the sound was becoming a little unnerving. He generally knew what to expect based on Edward’s description, but these creatures were all foreign to Pal. Then it came, like a mynock out of hell, descending down with a piercing screeeech!

Boom! Chh-chick! Boom! Chh-chick!

Two slugs to the giant raptor’s chest knocked it out of the air and into the large wooden trunk behind it. Dead on impact. “More meat if you’re still hungry,” he nervously joked, bringing the barrel back toward the canopy in case there were more. The shots had disturbed smaller wildlife that now rustled through the treeline, but the rattling had ceased.

After a few moments, Pal eased his weapon down, confident they were safe-ish for the time being. “Now, I think we were discussing how long you’ve been stuck out here?” he prodded again, looking back at his companion.

 

[Edward Ashcard]

Location: Mijos — Squelching Swamp
Tag: Pal Veda

Edward watched closely as Pal brought his shotgun to bear on the sound of the approaching flat birds. It was a name he had thought of himself, but with no one to share it with, the short and simple name was practical, but he would never admit to Pal that he had just been calling their fallen foe big snakes. Edward had hunted flat birds a few times during his exile, but he had found that it was not worth the effort. Instead, he scrambled to the nearest grouping of trees and made going after him not worth the bird's time. Pal and his shotgun made the calculation completely different, but Edward still prepared his spear in case Pal missed. Edward focused on the ground, making sure that an unexpected fall would not throw off Pal's aim.

Pal did not miss and as Edward watched the screeching bird crash into the mud, he was relieved that his assumptions about Pal's competency were not misplaced, although the nervous tone of Pal's voice was hard to miss.

"For that, Pal, you deserve a direct answer," Edward stated before adjusting his voice to sound slightly friendlier. "I've been exiled in this swamp and that ruined spaceport for three years. I only planned it to last around six months, but I underestimated how long it would take me to learn how to repair the comms dish. The message you received was the first and only transmission I have made since my arrival."

 

[Pal Veda]

Location: Mijos
Tags: Edward Ashcard

“You’ve been out here with these snakes and birds and Yoda knows what else for three years?” Pal was stunned for a moment, impressed, confused, curious. A dozen follow up interrogatories ran through his head, but that could wait. “Well, looks like you picked a good day to send out a call for help. The question now is whether I picked a good day to fuel up on Mijos.“

By now, the pair had made it most of the way back, and the Rubicon was clearly in view. B1-D1 stood guard at the bottom of the landing ramp, watching them approach. Pal stopped short and began the conversation they had mostly avoided until this point. This was the safest place for it. Pal could negotiate without the need of unnecessary hostilities, like holding Edward at gunpoint, while knowing the old refurbished battle droid had him covered from a short distance away should things turn sour.

”I think this is where we discuss price. You see my ship over there. I’m headed to the core. I can take you all the way to Corellia or drop you off along the way. Besides passage, I can offer you a shower, some food, and some clean clothes. Given the trouble this has caused me and the fact that you’re in no position to bargain, I think ten thousand credits is a fare price.“ He let that offer hang for a second before continuing, “But since this little adventure turned out to be more fun than expected, I’ll knock it down to eight thousand, just for you.” Pal didn’t bother adding that he would accept alternative forms of payment, such as spice, as that was just assumed in his line of work.