Flight Of Icarus

[Lief]

╫ D E N O N ╫​

FLIGHT OF ICARUS​

The vast expanse of space flickered by in what felt like the blink of an eye. Streaks of white cascaded past the transparisteel viewing port to his right as they barreled on through hyperspace, down the Hydian Way. He believed that they'd been in space for a week now, making just the odd stop to pick up more travelers at random spaceports and stations since leaving Cato Neimoidia, and longer still since leaving Serenno, but to be frank he wasn't exactly paying much attention to the passing of time.

Instead, Valin had found himself lounging around in his much too tight suite, a space which would drive him crazy had he a single claustrophobic bone in his body. He didn't, of course, he actually liked the den-like feel of small spaces, but even so after several days he was beginning to get back ache and longed to stretch his legs more than the walk down to the mess hall provided.

Where was he headed? To tell the truth he didn't really know. It felt like an eternity since his return home from the grasp of the Jedi, since he traded one cell for another, and then withered away within the estate of a vanished man. All that Valin wanted to do was shake things up, live a little... Find a new spot to read from. Was that too much to ask?

One hand lifted, hiding a long yawn, before he brought it back down to turn the page of his book. He preferred datacrons, after all he didn't have to do anything more than listen when he used one, but the old grump in the suite next to his had gone and complained to the stewardess. Valin wasn't the kind to seek out trouble, not if it left him stranded on some backwater planet, so reluctantly he'd traded it in for a much older model. He could already feel his attention waning, however, so it was much to his joy to discover that they had reached their destination - or, at least, a destination - when next he glanced toward the viewing port.

The ship jerked slightly as it exited hyperspace, and an ecumenopolis drifted into view all at once. Valin couldn't recall ever having seen a world quite like it, indeed it was a huge change from Kashyyyk and Serenno. His eyes widened; of course, he'd read about such things, he knew of worlds like Coruscant, but to finally see one in person?

Whether or not this had been the end of his particular fare, the boy felt certain he'd have left the vessel here and now regardless. It was a marvel, a technological wonder, and he wanted nothing more than to become consumed by it, to walk among it as small as an ant. So he rose up, gathering his paltry belongings, and headed out toward the shuttle bay. There was only one destined for the planet below, though they looked to be prepping for far more arrivals than departures, and as he stepped into the mayhem of stewards and busybody workers he finally learned the name of the world he was about to see.

Denon.

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Scherezade's face wrinkled as the scent of Denon hit her nose the moment she exited her ship, the ramp lowering itself too slowly. Force. Another ecumenopolis. She could understand why her Minister of Secrets constantly wanted to send her to places like that; it was easy to get lost in the crowd, to have people not notice you. Not that Scherezade was any good at that; she'd somehow developed the knack to be noticed almost everywhere, and not just because her armor was shiny, yet at the same time be considered as someone you did not notice at all. Certanly not spoke to or formed connections with. At least, that was how things usually happened in the Confederate space.

So here she was again, doing another mission on her own. It was supposed to be a simple one; scout the dockyard for anything suspicious and report back. Scherezade didn't really get it. Mingling with people was hardly one of her fortes. Killing them, sure. Sabotaging their ships so they'd explode once the engines revved up? Certainly. But mingling? Uhg. Especially when they didn't actually give her any information. She was walking into it entirely blind, and the little nanodevice inside of her ear would maybe, if she was lucky enough, give her the very occasional and incredibly discreet ping.

Sighing, Scherezade walked casually to the cantina just outside the dockyard. There was always a cantina, and pretty much everyone passed by it on their way in or out. She'd chosen a look that seemed casual, harmless. It was not. Ever the gifted person when it came things that went with the pointy end into the bodies of her enemies, Scherezade had managed to hide four of her Nozhi blades beneath the skirt, and two more Czerka knives beneath her shirt. Her lightsaber hilts were hidden in her boots. She was nothing if not crafty and creative about how she did these things. It was slightly weird to not have some of the wrist weapons she'd become so accustomed to using, but it'd be fine. She was deadly even without anything on her at all. And if worst came to worst? She had Glitter Bullets in her bag, as well as a gun that could fire them.

Leaning against a wall close to the door, giant sunglasses kept the glow of her eyes contained as she looked at people. So many people. The planet was a city-planet, and true to that, every habitable inch of is was covered in buildings. Tall buildings. Lots of people that went into restaurants, homes, and hotels. Why those people never wanted a green garden, a forest, a meadow, or even a lake, was beyond her.

Little did she know, that the place she'd chosen would bring [member="Valin Seek"] so close to her. And even less did she know, that this was exactly who she was supposed to meet that day.

 

[Lief]

The world below was as vast and populated as it had seemed from above, not to mention busier.

From the moment he exited the shuttle Valin was swept up within a sea of bodies, all pushing toward the customs officers who blocked their entry. For a second there the boy panicked, unsure of what this would entail. Since leaving Serenno he hadn't needed papers or anything of the sort, the other world he'd visited had been largely unpopulated after all, save for the strange bridge-cities... Those had been the difficult part to enter, not the world itself.

By the time he reached the front of the line he had fished what paltry documents he had on his person from his pocket and held them out with shaky grasp to the officer. They saw his place of birth, where he was coming from, and waved him through without another thought. Apparently it paid to be Serennian out here. Maybe because it was a wealthy world... He could see others, in lines on the other sides of him, having a much harder time, and counted his lucky stars as he passed on through into the rest of the spaceport.

Valin knew that he needed to find somewhere to sit down and catch his breath, his heart was beating a mile a minute, so he hastily made his way toward the nearest cantina and ducked inside. It was decently lit up inside, nothing like those back on Cato Neimoidia which had been decidedly more dim, so hiding in the shadows wasn't much of an option. Truth be told he still didn't know if Tyric had returned and was now looking for him, or if his parents had heard of his escape from Serenno and sent men after him.

What he did know was that the card he had been using to get around still worked. Apparently his family had not yet cut him off from his trust fund.

So he ordered a drink, and slid into one of the smaller booths. Soon he'd stretch his legs, and explore the city... But for now? For now he'd enjoy his freedom in a less busy manner.

[member="Scherezade deWinter"]

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Scherezade had been standing by the door, pretending to be minding her own business, when he came in. Under most circumstances, she would have not even noticed him at all. Heck, she hadn't even noticed him now. But her sunglasses were of the special sort, sending back data to the Rook that had been assigned to her for this mission, and that damned Rook beeped the crap out of her as soon as [member="Valin Seek"] was inside the cantina.

She pretended to keep on not noticing, though she did check him out from the corner of her eye, her little gadgets collecting any and all data they could on him based on appearances alone. That guy?! The Sithling still couldn't wrap her mind around it, not properly, but he's just a kid!

But no. This was her person. They were not going to cancel the mission.

With a sigh, Scherezade slid right into his booth and leaned back, making it look as though she felt right at home there, though her heart was pounding. Why had they given her a people mission?!

"The other booths were all taken," she smiled at him as she removed her sunglasses, the green glow of her eyes becoming as apparent as her blatant lie.

[member="Valin Seek"]

 

[Lief]

Caf wasn't something he typically indulged in; he'd read somewhere that it stunted your growth, and Valin was far too concerned with his health and appearance to allow such a travesty to take place. If he was going to end up short he'd rather chalk it down to his parent's shoddy genes than anything he personally had been in control of. And yet when the waitress set down a mug on his table it contained exactly that.

Valin was tired. Nay, exhausted. His escape from Serenno had been an arduous task, between Tyric's house staff and guards, and his parents own people, he'd had a lot to contend with. Nevermind the lengthy journey he'd undertaken on his way out of Sith Space, and down to... Here. Denon, right? He'd practically forgotten the name of the place since he'd first heard it an hour or so ago. Suffice to say, he needed that extra caffeinated kick today of all days.

Lifting the mug with both hands he basked in its warm glow for a moment, before lightly blowing air upon its surface in hopes of dispersing some of the heat. After that he took his first sip, closing his eyes and savouring it. As much as he disliked the potential side effects of this particular beverage, he could not deny its appeal.

When he opened his eyes once more, having just set his mug back to the surface, he found himself startled - met with the sight of someone who had not previously been there. A woman.

Her statement was rather ludicrous. One quick glance around the room revealed the truth of the matter, the cantina had many empty tables and even one or two free booths if that was more to her preference. He mentally chewed on that fact for a second, unsure of whether or not it was worth being confrontational over.

"Really?" he asked, though he kept his tone level in an attempt at finding a middle ground between pacifism and outright aggression, "Couldn't think up a better excuse than that?"

Valin let out a small sigh, and then took another sip of his caf. It didn't exactly steel his nerves or anything, but it did allow him more time to think on what was happening without sitting there like a guppy out of water.

"I don't want whatever you're selling, I'm not interested in whatever religion it is you follow, and no I don't have any cigarra's as I don't smoke."

He hoped she fell under one of those categories so that he could go back to relaxing. Why else would a girl be trying to speak with the likes of him?

[member="Scherezade deWinter"]

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

"Nope," Scherezade answered with a carefree shrug, and smiled at the droid that wheeled by, "Tall cream on the rocks, please."

Relaxing in her seat, she leaned against the back of the booth, she stared at the young man, glowing green eyes showing no shame as she studied bits and pieces of his face and body that was revealed above the table. Nope. She still couldn't figure out why it was him that the Ministry had wanted. He was young, smelled inexperienced, and…

Serenno.

Scherezade blinked as the word came through the piece in her ear, and looked at him again. Who the heck cared about that world, anyway? The only people she could think of that did were- Oh, motherkrakkers! They'd sent her on a mission for the friggin' Exarch?! Couldn't he do his own damn work for a change?

"And I'm not selling anything," she added after a few moments of silence, letting the information flow into her ear piece, "I'm here for your protection."

As though exactly on cue, the doors opened and four men that didn't exactly seemed friendly entered, not being all too quiet or discreet about it. On one hand, it was a spaceport, so all sorts of people came and went pretty much on the regular. On the other hand, these four chumps were scanning the patrons inside the cantina.

"Friends of yours?" she purred as her drink arrived, and she took a single sip. Full fat cream with ice cubes. No liquor. Just the way she loved it. "I suggest you play all natural until they go away," Scherezade winked, "if they don't get the hint, I'll take care of them."