Familiar Faces In Unfamiliar Places

[Audren Sykes]

Level 1298
Coruscant Underlevels
[member="Abaigeal E'ron"]

Coruscant was a dangerous place for a Jedi to be. In fact, it was a rare occasion for it to not be dangerous for a Jedi. Those comparatively infrequent spans where it was affiliated with a Jedi-friendly government were typically short and involved significant reconstruction, only for the resources to fall right back into unfriendly hands.

Many of those who resided on one of the Core Worlds carried the belief that whoever controlled the Core controlled the Galaxy. Many of the rulers outside the Core Worlds carried the same belief and structured their fiefdoms in alignment with that thought. What happened at the bright center of the galaxy - the trends, the fashions, the behaviors - radiated outward and were sometimes seen even years later in the Rims. This had been the case for thousands of years. Of all the Core Worlds though, Coruscant was the Core, it's crown jewel.

Some knew differently.

For all the resources - all the lives - invested into the planet, the glittering view that most imagined when thinking of Coruscant was a facade. A window dressing. Drop fifty levels from the shining spires and the sun was no longer visible. Go further down and the only light was artificial in nature. Even with all the rebuilding efforts that repaired the damage the underworld was rarely touched. The actual surface of the planet hadn't been seen in living memory and creatures of legend lurked in the shadowy caverns lost to time. Billions of sentient beings called this place home, and under the surface was where it became apparent.

Audren Sykes had been here at least once before, part of a Galactic Alliance assault on the Sith-held planet. That had resulted in hefty damage - maybe the destruction of - the Sith Temple at the time. It had been years before however, and he'd been on the periphery of the battle. Nowhere near where he was now. Somewhat fittingly, however, he'd learned a few of the skills it had taken to get in here during his time with the Alliance.

The Core Imperial Confederation currently held Coruscant, and while they weren't exactly unfriendly to Jedi, neither were they friendly. Having a Jedi Master show up would invite scrutiny and suspicion at the very least. Thus Audren had slipped in under the radar so-to-speak and was disguised for the duration of his stay. Uncomfortable shoes and a minor self-inflicted wound to one of his feet altered his gait. Contact lenses changed both his eye color and retinal pattern. Dye colored his hair a dark brown, hair that was styled quite differently than his normal. Minor prosthetic devices adjusted major points of his face such as cheekbones, nose, eyebrows, and mouth, and also modified the look of his ears. The clothing had been the simplest alteration and likely the most effective, allowing him to blend in with the crowds of beings.

The Sephi was on the world to retrieve a potential asset. A self-taught slicer and electronics technician had come to his attention some weeks ago and if the samples of his work were any indication, he would be a good fit for a project he had in mind. As part of the payment however, he wanted off the ecumenopolis but was prevented from leaving legally. To boot, he wanted to be escorted out by someone he knew he could trust. Not some random employee, not a smuggler who did this sort of thing for a living. It was fortunate that he lived in the underbelly of the world, where the eyes of the government weren't so ever-present. Ironically, mistakes made would carry less of an impact below than up above. There was more wiggle room, more flexibility. More opportunity to disappear as just another face in the crowd.

 

[Abaigeal E'ron]

For a price, Kalin the Fiddler, had done some work for the Soup Kitchen. Able to hack into the Tears computers and lift the files of their entire operation. Names of contacts off world, their rank and file, warehouses, trade, the lot. Except for the one thing they needed the most, a list of names of people they had on their ‘books’, anyone that they paid off to turn a blind eye, or informants. The Fiddler had got too cocky, and got caught and their slicers tracked him. Now he needed to get off world else he would be silenced.

“I don’t like this”, she uttered under her breath, not sure if Fiddler had heard her. “Who is this contact?”, he had not given a name, she could have checked on the guy to make sure she was not leading Kalin into the hands of the Tears. And even if this contact was not on the books, “Are you sure you can trust him?”.

No answer came.

The lower you go in the levels on Coruscant is the when they begin to blur into one another. It is the same sense of poverty, and despair which just wrinkles on the skin and seeps into your spirit. It is even darker down here, literally and figuratively and in each shadow lurks more of the same people lost in a world that did not care. Darker meant dangerous, more places to hide in and set traps for the unsuspecting by passer.

The Fiddler pointed up ahead, they were nearing the meeting place, a small corner of the shadowy level right next to a bar filled with more despair and desperation. They went down the small narrow alleyway and stopped to wait in the darkness of the shadows, for now they were alone apart from the scuttling creatures that called it home.

Then a thought entered her mind, and it was not a nice one. What if the Tears got to him, and now he was leading her into a trap? She didn’t like where they were stuck in this narrow alley, there was no room to move if attacked, a perfect place for an ambush. Abaigeal reached for her blaster, “You wait here”, her only words before moving off to the end of the alley with the Kalin still in her sights. The Fiddler watched her leave with a strong sense of fear around him and wanted to protest but that would draw attention to him.

[member="Audren Sykes"] ​

 

[Audren Sykes]

Of course the pickup had chosen a bar. They were usually crowded, boisterous, and anyone could hide there. Rather, as Audren checked his datapad, it was the corner next to the bar. Even better...dark space next to the crowded area. He paused momentarily to consider his options then turned, only to catch the dim glint of a metal barrel pointing at him from under a meter away.

"Why don't you step back a couple steps so we can discuss your charitable donation, friend."

The voice was rough but unwavering, showed no indications of nervousness. The Sephi likewise showed no signs of nervousness, keeping his hands - one holding the datapad still - slightly out and visible as he followed the instructions. That was the downside of holding his Force presence in such a way: he needed to remember to keep his physical senses alert. This close though, he could tell there was only one of them. He stopped only when the barrel of the blaster pistol poked his ribs and shifted to his back.

Amateur.

One angled step to the rear brought the gun under his left arm and allowed his free hand to reach it, finger sliding in to prevent the trigger from being pulled. Simultaneously, his other elbow slammed back into the being's head and his left leg hooked the one behind him. The combination tripped the being up and - given the Jedi's grip on the gun - disarmed him. It was a matter of seconds to disassemble the weapon; he left the grip on the ground and began walking, discarding pieces in trash receptacles as he went.

"Find another career, kid."

He slipped around the corner and went into the bar through the back door...there was always a back door. As he wound his way through the tables he didn't see any abnormal attention on the meeting corner. As tightly as he was holding his Force presence - he wanted to be sensed as a normal being, not a sensitive - he could only detect the people he walked by, he couldn't sense anything that would make him wary. There was the normal mix of dangerous beings, and the number of weapons on display was enough to make any sane security officer call for backup before entering. He went out the front door close behind another group.

From this angle he could barely see the shadow at the front of the alley. Smart enough for someone who didn't want to loiter in plain sight...which down here was pretty much everyone. The alley went further in though, and he couldn't tell who was down there without a Force scan. Actually, he couldn't even tell if it was the Fiddler there, it was an assumption. He could try to loop around the back like he did with the bar, but on his side of the alley there was a chasm dropping at least five stories. He'd have to cross in front of the mouth of the alleyway to do so, but the rendezvous time was now. Roll the dice. He stopped just before the mouth of the dark alley, where he was shielded by the building walls.

"Time to go, mister music."

[member="Abaigeal E'ron"]​

 

[Abaigeal E'ron]

At the end of the alleyway was another alleyway, cutting across the back of the buildings. Strangely, it was more lit up by back door lights, there were the usual piles of rubbish, a smorgasbord of refuse and waste, that the creatures of the alleys would battle over and the homeless would pick through. The vent spewed out a steam of toxic air and seemed to cling to the walls and glistened, and if you touch it, it felt slimy.

A propelled force jump would be enough to land Abaigeal on the ledge of the roofing which she quickly scampered along to get to the front and the main street again. Out of sight, but everything else was in her view.

The meeting time was upon them, there were plenty of people on the street at his hour, and none of them seemed to be heading their way with purpose. A group exited the bar, dressed for the occasion expect for one figure walking behind them. That figure stopped at the mouth of the alleyway, the Fiddler frozen on the stop, but she could seem him speaking but unable to hear the content of the conversation. From up on the floor it was impossible to see who it was that had come for the slicer, who took one last look down the alleyway for Abaigeal only to find her gone.

It was not the way the figure looked or what he was wearing, but there was something odd about him. It was a him, she could tell by his build and gait of his walk, as they two began down the street. Something vaguely familiar prickled at her mind and she grew curious. The contact was not supposed to be familiar to her, and this caused her more concern, maybe she was right all along, this was a trap.

There was only one way to find out.

Once they had proceeded along the street a distance, she jumped down onto the hard surface in front of a group of people, who jumped back in surprise at the sudden appearance of a being landing in front of them. She dodged around them quickly not wanting to lose sight of the Fiddler and his contact, as she followed them.

A block away from the point of contact, the street was more lit and people bustled about, it was safer in a crowd to approach. No one was going to open fire and drew attention to themselves in the open like this, so Abaigeal approached them.

“Kalin is that you?”, she suddenly opened up smiling as if seeing an old friend for the first time in a long time. “Good to see you, you are looking well”, she pattered him on the back like an old friend would, and paying no attention to his ‘company’.

That vague familiarity was still there, and as she turned to look at the stranger, nothing about his features were familiar. Her eyes would speak the unspoken question, searching for his identity.

[member="Audren Sykes"]​

 

[Audren Sykes]

Once Kalin saw Audren he looked relieved...or maybe it was the use of the agreed-upon key words "mister music". Not the Sephi's idea. Whatever the cause, the Cerean relaxed somewhat and came along without complaint. They moved with the pace of other pedestrians and did their best to blend in. It wasn't so difficult given the city's diversity, but even with the plethora of beings the tall Cerean attracted more than the fair share of glances. Since it was Coruscant and everyone was busy not attracting attention to themselves, very few watched the two long enough to realize they weren't speaking despite walking together; small talk was not a strength for either.

The two headed along a pre-determined route. Audren had chosen this one as his primary option as it kept them in what should be relatively crowded areas for most of the trip. His educated guess - his gamble, really - was that the additional beings would keep potential attackers at bay. The real risks were the two stretches where very few beings were predicted to be. The percentages were telling though, and he did what he could to tip the odds in their favor. Alternate routes were planned of course, if it came to that. He would prefer it not though.

Ironically, though they were safer in the crowd it also increase the chances of a lone attacker. So he was aware when the woman closed on their position. To little surprise, Kalin was not and jumped slightly once he saw her. The Jedi was taking his cue from how his charge reacted; the initial jump was normal. The follow-up of relaxing, then tensing suggested that the newcomer was known, but not expected to be here. That in and of itself was disturbing, since it could indicate a plant. On the other hand, it could simply be coincidental.

More disconcerting was that he knew the woman. Or at least, he knew a woman who looked like her. Only back then, both had worn Jedi robes and worked with the Silver Jedi, or maybe it had been the Silver Sanctum at that point. Who knew, it all blurred together over time. Though it was rather unlikely that there would be another who looked like her, cloning was a thing and the galaxy was a big place. He quickly decided to treat her as an unknown instead of the woman he'd known. After that second of analysis, his professionally blank face opened up into a quick grin.

This, or something similar, had been anticipated.

"Kalin and I were just heading to get some food. Nice to meet you, miss. Kalin, are you going to introduce us?"

As he spoke, the Sephi's left hand gestured in a direction off their intended path, but close enough to be plausible. His own wording didn't include his name, though the pacing and inflection didn't advertise that it was entirely intentional. In a distant part of his mind, he wondered what name the Cerean would give the newcomer, it would also point to the level of trust. If he gave the name Audren had provided, the trust was there. If it was an entirely new name then he could base his decisions on that.

[member="Abaigeal E'ron"]​

 

[Abaigeal E'ron]

The look on Kalin’s face was a strong mix of confusion and nervousness. Uncertain what to do or say, as he flashed looks between the two of them. He couldn’t give either of them away with their true names, one was a person he had worked for, and had kept him safe till this point, the other his next employer, and safe guard as well. Quite frankly all Kalin wanted to do was get off the street and nothing more, and each passing moment he grew more nervous and anxious and soon enough people would start to notice.

Sensing this, Abaigeal shot out her hand taking hold of the man giving him a shake. “Geal, is my name, Geal E’ron”, she added and watched his face intently, if it was actually someone she knew then maybe some form of recognition would appear. She flashed him a smile, at this point there was no reason not to be friendly, that may change of course, but he seemed that Kalin’s interest was at the heart of the matter, after all he just dodge her intrusion with a subtle change of plan to eat.

Besides it would take the pressure off Kalin, and the pick up would have to introduce himself.

“I won’t keep you from your lunch, I just thought I would say hello to Kalin here .. before he leaves”, now the emphasis on the last three words could go in two different ways she anticipated, he would either not notice, or he would and wonder how she knew the plan. How he was going to react to that was anyone’s guess.

That prickling up the back of the neck wouldn't go away, that little worm of doubt still ate at her mind that this guy was no stranger to her, it wasn’t just the sensation of knowing him which was so close that she though she could reach out for it, and yet not which made her believe, that it was a ‘cloak’.

But there was one thing that was not hidden, and it was unmistakable to her, she would know it anywhere.

His voice.

​

​

[member="Audren Sykes"]​

 

[Audren Sykes]

Kalin's answer wasn't long in coming. Not the verbal answer - that didn't happen at all - but the non-verbal one. The rapid shift of his eyes back and forth between them and the subtle tensing in his stance indicated that he didn't want to introduce her. To his credit he also doesn't introduce Audren, though it might not take much convincing. It was a very good start though.

Without warning, her hand shot out and gripped his own in a quick shake. Good thing he hadn't been palming a weapon of some sort, that could have been rather awkward. At the same time, she introduced herself. Geal E’ron...it was the right surname, but the given name wasn't right. Something wasn't adding up though. The slightest of frowns crossed his face as he thought about it. That abruptly switched to a minor flush of embarrassment and expression of realization at how much of a pure dope he was. Geal was the shorter version of Abaigeal. If someone else had run into this situation and voiced their thoughts, he would have rolled his eyes and rather sarcastically duhed them.

Didn't mean he couldn't have some fun though.

"I'm Drennan, call me Dren. I knew someone named Abby E'ron a while back. A sister maybe?"

What was she doing on Coruscant? It wasn't exactly the safest place for a Jedi to be, though neither was it the worst. Then again he hadn't seen her at any of the Silver Jedi functions he'd recently attended. It was entirely possible that they could have missed each other however, since he didn't attend many. A better question was how she knew the Cerean. Clearly he knew her and had some loyalty given the reticence to provide her name. Coruscant was a big place and the odds of these two people knowing each other were rather slim.

Then she dropped the bombshell that she knew the Kalin was leaving. That implied inside knowledge, but didn't clarify whether that was a good or bad thing. The other's reaction, however, did. He relaxed. Unbeknownst to Audren, the slicer had almost been expecting Abaigeal to have intervened to stop him from leaving, that the Sephi wasn't the right person to go with.

"That's actually the reason. You're welcome to join if you'd like, it isn't far."

It wasn't he optimal plan, but interruption had indeed been anticipated. The Master paid good money to several people - kept them on staff, actually, just as Kalin would be - some of whom were experienced in this sort of thing. They'd identified a restaurant that served multiple purposes and wasn't far away from the pickup point, and reservations had even been made. Halfway wasn't a thing with them.

[member="Abaigeal E'ron"]​

 

[Abaigeal E'ron]

Only the slightest movement on her lips gave away her mind. Even though she had an inkling she knew this man here with Kalin, his words confirmed it. He did not look like Audren Sykes and she was surprised at the level of his concealment, it had to be him. “Dren huh?”, she smiled a little more. “How could I refuse such an invitation”. She was going to get to the bottom of this, for the sake of Kalin.

“Some used to call me Abby, a long time ago. But I am one in the same person”. She started to move to follow the both toward the restaurant, even still she kept a good eye on the way and watched for anyone that might be following them. Kalin had grown nervous again, and made sure he was close at hand should anything happen, but for the moment he was safe.

“Where do I know you from?”, she asked, “You do seem familiar. Although the name is not that known to me, you do remind me of someone I travelled with to Panatha”, if it was truly Audren, he would know of this and the events that occurred there.

The pace slowed, and she assumed they had arrived at the pointed place. A small open café just off the main street, with tables out the front for those that wished for an ‘open’ dinning experience, not that that was the actual case down here.

Abaigeal made sure Kalin was placed between them both as she sat, a small measure of added security for him. She looked to the opposite side of street, casing the place for possible points of attack, unfortunately there were several vantage points should someone be tailing them.

The waiter came, she ordered the lunch special, a burger with the lot. Her favourite meal.

[member="Audren Sykes"]​

 

[Audren Sykes]

'Geal' agreed to join them and began walking towards the restaurant with the two of them. Along the way, she confirmed that she was Abby, that it wasn't a sister. No response to the joke, which was too bad. As the pace slowed, she brought up Panatha.

Fortunately, they were seated right away and the server showed up relatively quickly, giving Audren time to consider his reply. Abaigeal ordered a burger of some sort; while that sounded good the Vorzyd slider sounded better to him. Kalin, on the other hand, just ordered some Pukkha broth. He was rather nervous sitting out in the open like this, despite being sandwiched between the two others. It was becoming clearer by the minute that they only had so long here before he would bolt.

"I'm not so much a fan of Panatha, too dangerous for someone like me. Vaynai is much preferable."

The two places couldn't be more different. The only real similarity between the two was how expensive they were, though the currency differed. On Panatha one paid with blood, on Vaynai with a lot of credits. He'd only been to each place once in his lifetime; one he wouldn't mind going back to but the other he'd avoid. Coruscant...wasn't much like Panatha, but he didn't really enjoy the ambiance, at least in this area. Open air seating was supposed to be open air, not sandwiched between four other buildings with the barest of breathing spaces.

Across the street, back the way they'd come, an older teenager stopped at the corner. He stared at the three of them for a moment then glanced around before moving on. It had to be the food that was arriving, obviously had nothing to do with following them. Two bites into the meal - his had come with hubba chips to boot - three rough-looking fellows sat down at one of the other tables. Each ordered fried crispic and only that, which was odd given the general use as a snack. Who was he to judge though. More telling was their clothing - a bit rougher than this area typically saw - and the wear pattern of a thigh holster on one's pants. No holster there now.

Fortunately, the Cerean was too nervous to spot the missing holster. The clothes he recognized as not belonging, but they caused him to just keep his head down and focus on his broth. Audren felt sure the man would have tried to run if he had noticed it. The three were good about not watching Kalin or his protectors though, there was at least some professionalism about them.

"What has you here on Coruscant? Very different than the other planets."

[member="Abaigeal E'ron"]​

 

[Abaigeal E'ron]

As soon as he mentioned Vaynai her suspicions were confirmed, she smiled. “You have changed Dren”, she wanted to tell him he looked bloody awful in that disguise, instead, “I remember you to be less, chatty”. In the days when they first met, she was lucky to get more than three words out of him, but one thing hadn’t changed it appeared, Audren was still open to dangerous situations which she supposed had brought him to Coruscant.

But she had to agree, Vaynai was far more pleasant.

Abaigeal caught the shift in his eyes as he looked over her shoulder, something or someone had gained his attention. She didn’t move her head, not in the slightest only her eyes returned acknowledgement of possible danger. “Oh you know, wanting to do some good”, which was the reason for her being on this planet, but now was not the time to go deeper into details.

They needed to get on the move again, it would not take much to ignite the situation here at the tables and she did not wish to place innocent bystanders in danger. A single strand of hair would do the trick. “Waiter”, she suddenly called out and waved, it was time to cause a scene.

“There is hair in my food!”, she said very indignantly, “What kind of establishment are you running here”, she stood and threw her napkin down in discussed. “Don’t expect my friends and I to pay for this … this rubbish”.

The poor waiter tried to placate Abaigeal offering a new dish and trying to get her to keep her voice down. “No thank you! I have lost my appetite. Come on we are leaving”. She all but man handled Kalin out of his chair and placed herself between the position of the men. She keeps up the pretence of Audren’s cover name. “Dren I hope you have got a back up plan?”.

[member="Audren Sykes"]​