First Steps Forward [Kyra]

[Connor Harrison]

Sartinaynian City, Bastion
Sartinaynian system​

Krius Syonis threw the body of the young girl to one side into the small lake beside them both, outside the city of Sartinaynian, illuminated by a low setting sun.

It was safe to say she was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and she couldn't even help him after trying to mug him. How disrespectful. And what a waste. No matter, she was a simple beggar, a thief, no more than 16 years old, and one who did not have the Force as an ally.

That was a good enough reason for her to die, and it made him feel better. Her windpipe closed up far quicker and easier than expected. He didn't even have to try.


--


Walking through Sartinaynian, Krius stood looking up at the wonderfully quiet city. It was like a work of art, crafted from the richest materials and pricked with lights, illuminated signs and spotlights reaching into the sky to guide in cruisers and cargo ships from all over the galaxy wishing to trade and do business with a thriving city.

He knew this city itself was rich with technology and those adept at crafting, building and shipping, and so it was the first place he would start to find someone who could give him what he needed.

He needed a material strong enough to protect him from blaster fire and intense heat from energy blasts or extreme environments. Not a suit, no. He wanted a helmet to protect his head, and more so his mind. Having seen first hand the damage a stray blaster bolt could do, he wasn't going to take that chance out in the galaxy.

Krius headed across the city's outskirts looking for anyone who could direct him to where he needed to go. There was no rush, and so he took his time in looking around.



[member="Kyra Sol"]

 

[Lief]

Kyra hadn't long since left the establishment of Eamon Tragon's droid shop. She had quickly come to gauge throughout their conversation that she had to find ways to boost her sales pitch with regards to gaining new members of the Rahvin Industries company. But I am new to this, what do they expect? I can speak to the Senate on behalf of the Company, and the Mandalorian Clans, but Force help me if I try to find a way to recruit a simple engineer. It was frustrating, but she figured it wouldn't always be that way.


Sartinaynian City was her next stop, a bumbling metropolitan area of urbanised living which housed a Rahvin Industries HQ. Better that she seek out the areas of her corporate Empire while she was here as opposed to remain blind to it all. She had to do the company justice, she supposed. There was also a storehouse which held a few resources which belonged to Kyra as opposed to the company itself. I should probably check that too. The minerals Kära had given her had been spread about numerous locations across the Galaxy, with the largest bulk remaining in the Bunker at Teth where it was safe beneath the ground.

I have no use for so much she reflected dully. But perhaps in the future a need will arise. After all, it did not hurt to have so much material with vast properties.

[member="Krius Syonis"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

It seemed not everyone on Bastion was helpless. A charming old Twi'lek directed Krius to Rahvin Industries, just two streets over the city, back towards near the lake he had left his ship by, and the dead girl.

As night was drawing in, Krius was starting to lose his sight. Not totally, but the downside to his Hapan heritage from his deceased Mother. He would need to expand his Force awareness to help heighten his senses and paint a picture around him. If there was ever something he could change about his life, it would be that.

Coming around a corner by a large spotlight, Krius pulled his brown jacket tighter to him as he looked up at the large RI symbol above him in front of a rather disappointingly small building. 2/3 stories high at most and dwarfed by another, more modern looking building beside it. Sighing a little and not expecting much, he walked to the ornate door and pushed the intercom, a small chime echoing out in the street.

He didn't expect anyone around at this time, and it was frustrating his search had taken him so long, but he would try.

Nothing.

He pushed the intercom again, longer this time.

Still nothing.

This was annoying.


[member="Kyra Sol"]

 

[Lief]

"It's closed" she said, when she came across a man trying to enter the old HQ for Rahvin Industries. They had moved some weeks back and the older block was simply sat there waiting for its new ownership to be settled. "You'll be wanting that buildin', up there" she extended a hand out, pointing a few streets down, where higher towers ascended above the rest. "I can show you, if needs be. I'm heading there myself." She shrugged, it was of no consequence to her: besides, it meant more consumers for her company she supposed. Of course she left that little detail out for now.

Gesturing with her head she turned to lead him away should he wish to follow her example. Whatever he needed Rahvin Industries could provide, one way or another. They liked to be helpful like that where civilians were concerned. Could even be convinced to do some off the radar military sales for a price and a hushed voice. But that wasn't something 99% of the Galaxy was aware of, and she intended to keep it that way. Bad for business, especially when she was planning so many new hyperlanes.

[member="Krius Syonis"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

A young confident voice snapped his attention back from the frustrating intercom. Krius turned to see the young girl behind him, looking world weary and fresh from a grease-pit at such a young age. His eyes flicked up the street ahead where she pointed, then up the old building he was stood at, and then back to the girl.

"Thank you."

Following her as she walked, Krius was pleased to feel her Force sensitivity. It was weak in general, but she had a strong inner core, as if she had a lot of potential. Either way, she would develop in time hopefully and it was nice to see another one of his kind making a good trade for themselves.

Walking up the cool streets of the city towards the more built up area, Krius scanned the area for that Twi'lek who sent him to the wrong place. Old and alone, he wouldn't last long if Krius saw him again. What a waste of time that was.

Still, at least this young one had been around when she had.


[member="Kyra Sol"]

 

[Lief]

Her commlink buzzed a few minutes into their silent walk. It was the engineer from earlier, seems he had come to his senses. She reiterated the generic work he'd be expected to undergo into the commlink, half rolling her eyes as she did so. "Company droids, patrol droids, astromech droids and civilian-friendly workplace droids, to name a few. You will be well paid for your services." She hoped it'd be enough to win the engineer over, and sure enough his response was promising. She didn't reply right away though, it'd be rude to discuss company affairs around a complete stranger, after all. Instead she shut off the comm with the intentions of returning the link later on. "Eh, sorry about that, business affairs" she said with a shrug. The likelihood was that this man didn't care.

"So, what you after up at Headquarters?" she casually asked, it was best she had some idea what her people would be faced with when he reached their doors. Despite how late it was, however, the place would still be open - they aimed for an always-open Headquarters and even storefront in numerous areas by rotating their personnel. After all, what use was luxury service if it was on a timetable?

[member="Krius Syonis"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

He listened in on the girl's conversation. She was young but certainly knew what she was talking about. Young and full of potential. Brilliant.

And so the inevitable questions was asked of him, and rather than go around the houses with a story, he decided to just tell her. He wasn't going to waste anymore time. He'd travelled across the galaxy and Bastion was one of his last hopes for at least a more legitimate acquisition.

"I'm searching for Cortosis. Or Phrik. One of the two, I don't care which."

He held up his hands to paint a picture as he walked with her.

"Not too much, but enough for some personal creativity."



[member="Kyra Sol"]

 

[Lief]

She pondered on it for a moment, gaze roaming over the man as he informed her of what it was he was after. "Depends what you're after, Cortosis itself is far too brittle to be of much use, it'll break if you try to use it as armour - won't last long at all - and if you water it down with, say, durasteel to make an alloy? Well then you're wastin' good cortosis!" It angered her when people did that, but it wasn't her call to make if they wanted to waste perfectly good cortosis! "But it is excellent at stoppin' them fancy Lightsabers, 'specially as a powder. Phrik on the other hand is a good armour, light yet extremely durable, resistant to all sorts." She shrugged, it was only her opinion. "Honestly, I prefer Phrik to even Beskar, that Mando crap is far too heavy to be of use."

Realising she'd been rambling she fell silent for a moment, glancing on ahead. "Rahvin Industries itself don't have any of either, but the C.E.O has a stock of it. Would be willin' to sell for the right price, I hear, not necessarily credits mind." There was no use telling him who she was right now, it wasn't like she had any of the stuff on her after all.

[member="Krius Syonis"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Krius had clearly come to the right girl. Self-assured, cocky and a bit of a mouth on her. Reminded him of when he was younger. He nodded gently at her valuable information.

"Phrik it is then. Thank you for your...expertise. You seem to know an awful lot for a girl of your age. I'm impressed."

He held up a finger to his mouth in mock thought.

"But, here's the thing, I have credits and not a lot of patience to have propositions thrown at me from some grease monkey."

Krius moved towards her two steps.

"Now can you get me what I need or not, and fast."


[member="Kyra Sol"]

 

[Lief]

Ugh. Kyra hated it when people tried to act smart on her. Well it wouldn't work, not here in her territory. Her eyes narrowed and she didn't even seem taken aback by his advances. "Look, mister, I have no clue who you are or who you think you are, but you'd do well not acting so rash and self important round these parts. You wanting Phrik? Well you're looking at the only person in these parts who can get you what you need, and if you try'an force it from me you're gonna be sorely mistaken. Ain't no one in this Galaxy who knows where I've put what I've got, so back off, you hear?"

Her eyes narrowed and it was clear she was being deadly serious. "You need some patience, we're almost at the Headquarters, alright? Credits ain't necessarily the best course of action when lookin' to buy somethin' as rare as Phrik, so get your attitude in check an' we can discuss terms."

[member="Krius Syonis"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Krius was enraged by this little slime mouthing back at him - she clearly was one who had no respect, no sense of urgency and not knowing when was best to shut her mouth against those who could easily end her days without batting an eyelid.

"Fine."

She wasn't going to have this victory.

"Just make you sure hurry up because I don't have time to waste. And your terms of "payment" will be deemed acceptable or not once you tell me what they are, and I hope they are fair."

He pushed forward, brushing past her shoulder with slight force.

"And if you talk to me like that again, Phrick will be the last thing on your mind when I've finished with you."

Krius held out his hand and gave a mocking smile.

"Shall we?"


[member="Kyra Sol"]

 

[Lief]

This one infuriated her, but what did she expect from such a pompous Forcie? Ugh. Narrowing her eyes she purposely avoided his actions and side stepped from him, continuing to walk on without much regard towards his threats. He'd realise soon enough that she really was the only one on this rock who could get him the phrik he was after. Shaking her head she merely sighed and continued on; she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of verbally fighting back.

"Lady Sol" someone said as they approached the HQ of Rahvin Industries, inclining their head at her arrival. "There are a few individuals awaiting you in the Tower, and a Mister Tragon has called ahead to inform you of his imminent arrival." Glancing up at the tower she merely nodded her head. "Alright, thanks for the heads up; see you tomorrow." She knew his shift was up, she tended to know when anyone had their shift these days, it was her job to 'be aware' as they had put it.

"Come on" she hated the fact that this fool had heard her called "Lady" anything, but it didn't matter so much. Inside the place was pristine clean, sparkling and white, with the odd dashes of electric blue to mark it as a Rahvin Industries building. "Lady Sol" a few others said as she passed, but for the most part she paid them no heed. She still wasn't used to such a damned title. "Will you send Screw up to the Tower?" she asked one of the assistants. She needed her familiar little droid.

Then she entered a turbolift, waiting for [member="Krius Syonis"] to join her before allowing it to rise...

 

[Connor Harrison]

Raising his eyebrows at her firey stubbornness, Krius dropped his hand, smirked and simply followed the girl towards the building, looking quite impressive from the outside at least.

Hang on..."Lady" Sol? At her age? Who was this girl?

As she conversed with a lesser being to him, he couldn't help study her for a moment, reading just what she was about. She had a Force core, that was clear to him, but she...she was trying to hide it, or ignore it, to be someone...like a NON Force user?

She moved on, and he brushed past the worker leaving, too busy studying the Sol girl as they moved into the building. The vast, clean and simple interior distracted Krius enough to glance around, again impressed by the structure and flash of blue on white. It was very modern and he had confidence they could help him with what he wanted. If he could get past this...Lady.

As she entered the turbolift, he was amused at the bodies fussing around her like royalty. A small smile on his face as he entered the lift, Krius looked down at the greser beside him as the doors slid shut.

"Lady? You're just a teenager."


[member="Kyra Sol"]

 

[Lief]

Kyra merely shrugged her shoulders. Evidently she disliked it as much as he did, but it wasn't something she argued anymore: her denial of the title had only made them use it more fiercely. She supposed it was at the behest of Lady Kyros, to groom her into a woman or something... Yeah right, as if that would ever happen.

"Tell me what you are using the phrik for and we can come to an agreement with the quantity and the price" she said instead as the turbolift rose and rose and rose... A soft hum like the purr of a bantha caaaattt (cue superhero theme tune) cascaded through the shell of their lift, causing a lull in her eyes like a child being rocked by the comfort of their parents.

"I think you'll find that informing me of the usage would be beneficial to yourself: I have more contacts in this Galaxy than I care to admit, and Force knows your hands haven't picked up a blacksmith's hammer in recent years."

[member="Krius Syonis"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

He didn't bother looking down on her as she spoke, he simply smiled at her youthful attitude. He was happy to kill, but not one of his own kind. And besides, Krius wasn't a monster. Not all the time.

"I only need enough to make a helmet, for me and only my use. Nothing elaborate, just something to protect what you see before you. No modifications, no electronic additions, just a good, solid helmet to take on and off with ease. And it will not be mass produced."

Looking upwards in the slick turbo-lift, he counted the numbers as the lift seemed to rise for a very long time.

"And I would expect you to have contacts, especially one in your position, little Lady Sol. I would be grateful for one who could produce this for me."

He finally turned to her.

"And I will be happy to pay you for your trouble."


[member="Kyra Sol"]

 

[Lief]

She chewed on her lower lip for a moment in thought, her eyes glazing over somewhat while she managed to still retain a sense of her surroundings. A phrik helmet, well stranger things had been made. Her mind flashed back to her childhood, not with the pirates but before then, before Levia's family had come to take her away.

There was another Sol, well there were many other Sols dotted about Drommund Kaas and Panatha and Force knew where else. With a nod of her head she figured this could be a good enough trail. Besides, it means I must get back in touch with my family again, who knows what wonders that could bring?

But before she could give the name she needed a point of contact. The implant within her began to run its course, flashing through the holonet connection within the building and hunting down some shred of a connection to one Thyra Sol.

"I know of someone who can aid you, although I'm not certain they will remember me; we shall have to see, I will contact them when we reach the Tower."

Speaking of which, the turbolift stopped and the doors opened. Stepping outside she ventured through the hallway down to her own office. Outside several men awaited an audience with her, yet to her dismay none were Eamon. He would be here soon, though, she knew.

Unlocking the door, which swished to the side, she permitted Krius to enter before turning to the others. "One moment." It would take longer than that, however. The room was befitting a C.E.O; spacious and with some small amount of luxury... Yet it reflected its previous owner. The actual furnishings were very practical instead of fancy. Kyra didn't care.

"Have a seat, I'll get to contacting her now." Although she would not care to admit it, her heart raced at the thought of speaking to yet another Sol. Maybe this could be a new start.

Then again, maybe not.

[member="Krius Syonis"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Krius let the girl run her course of business minded thoughts, it was beyond him anyway. He only wanted the materials and then he could get on. Following her from the lift, yet more minions were dotted around waiting for her, but they were beneath him as his cold gaze quickly confirmed.

Moving to the side for her to open the door to her office, he nodded his head gently at her graciousness as he walked inside, letting her sort the men out.

Well, the office was...practical, and not what he had expected. He imagined it far more grubbier and cluttered, but it served the purpose.

Nothing to say to her command, Krius slowly walked to a small black chair before, what he imagined, was her desk full of various junk.

He rested his left leg over his right thigh, placing his chin on his fingers...and waited.

She was all over the place with her emotion. And she was running a company?


[member="Kyra Sol"]

 

[Lief]

Hyperspace was still very new to the claustrophobic blacksmith from Panatha. Jett, her pilot companion, had tried his very best to keep her mind from it, playing Pazaak, Holo-Chess and Desert Draw amongst other games, all the while trying to keep her away from the transparisteel windows. "More blue milk?" he asked her in Epicant, after a three-rounded, winner takes all, quick fire game of Desert Draw -- which he had once again won. The Epicanthix merely smiled and nodded her head. "Yes, please, Je--"

Her gaze dropped to the wrist-based commlink, causing her to frown as it began to noisily flash and beep. How odd, who would have been trying to contact her? The words spoken were unintelligible to the Epicanthix, and in the end she handed it across to Jett, allowing him to translate between Thyra and the woman on the line. "Are you free to do some blacksmithing?" he asked, condensing down the conversation to make it more manageable. The question brought a small smile to her face. "Always." It was her passion.

[member="Krius Syonis"] [member="Kyra Sol"]

 

[Lief]

Well, the person she got to talk to wasn't her Aunt Thyra, but all the same the discussion was underway and eventually they reached the terms of their agreement. "Are you able to venture to Felucia?" she inquired of Krius. Kyra had a small forge set up there, courtesy of Lady Kyros, which would be perfect for Thyra to carry out the smithing of his helm. "My associate is able to create the helm if you can meet her there."

Now came the tricky part of deciding what it was she needed out of this venture. "I'm going to ask you to pay 1,000 credits to the blacksmith for the creation; otherwise I ask for one small favour to be called in as and when I deem necessary. It will not be anything too troubling on your time. Oh, and one last thing: the woman you'll be going to see cannot speak Basic, only Epicant." She shrugged her shoulders. "But she's capable of working the Phrik, and has someone who can aid with the language barrier."

[member="Krius Syonis"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

That was all Krius needed to hear.

The Phrick was his, and he made it clear that payment would not be an issue. He wasn't going to owe this girl anything anytime soon.

Felucia was a way out, but if this person could help him in the future, he would certainly pay them a visit with his material.

He arranged to return to collect the Phrick and signed what he had to in order to keep things nice and legal and above board. Kyra had been helpful, but he didn't want to meet her again in a hurry. Little brat with a big company.

Done.

Krius has taken his first steps forward in carving his place in the galaxy.

FIN​