Private Following A Cat's Trail

[Viktoria Anetheas]

Location: Nar Shaddaa
Tag: Talohn Atar

As the Tau-class shuttle descended through the atmosphere of Nar Shaddaa, the notorious criminal moon, Viktoria Elyssia Anetheas went over all of the information she had available on her datapad. This wasn't Imperial space, though none of the other interstellar governments of the galaxy owned it, either. So technically she wasn't going to cause in international incident by being here. Of course, she was still taking a huge risk with this venture, which was she had to ensure that it paid off.

The Inquisitor had come to Nar Shaddaa in pursuit of a lead. She was always on the look-out for leads on individuals that could prove advantageous and beneficial if recruited to her cause, and by extension, the Empire. The lead she was following now was of a young Cathar mercenary and his droid, by the name of Talohn Atar and Madlad. The Cathar had made some waves on Corellia, and rumors had come through the network until they reached her desk. He had piqued her interest, and after some investigation, had found him. He was here, on Nar Shaddaa. And now, so was she.

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The Rusty Gear was an absolutely subpar establishment that normally she would not be caught dead at. Only business could bring her to debase herself in this fashion. That was the only comforting thought going through her mind as she entered. She had considered blending in, using her skills to become a chameleon in the crowd. But that wouldn't be the point of recruitment, now would it? Nar Shaddaa was a neutral world, and she needed to impress. So she wore her coat and shoulder cape, and her cane in her hand. She had left her Purge Legion escort at the shuttle. Anything that came at her here, she was more than capable of handling on her own. And even if a Jedi did show up, they were only one comm call away.

She strolled into the bar casually, glancing around for her target. And there he was. The Cathar at the bar, sipping on a drink. His droid was nearby. She watched him from the corner of her eye as she approached the bar, and ordered a small glass of wine. She was going to have to stay sober as best she could for this, after all. There was something strange about him. It triggered her extra senses, a tremor and presence in the Force. Oh. Now this was only getting better.

The Sith Knight finally approached, setting her glass of wine down next to him, leaning casually against the bar, smiling at him.

"Hello there. You must be Talohn. I've been looking for you."

 

[Talohn Atar]

Talohn's fur stood on end from the moment she entered the bar. For some reason, he could feel her existence from a mile away. That orange gaze looked her over from the corner of his eye. A sith, likely a crazy one. Why were the pretty ones always crazy? Either way. she was now beside him, smiling his way. To mentally prepare himself, the cathar took a long drink of his whiskey, making a sour expression for a moment. "You're a sith. Judging by your unusually studious gaze, you're an inquisitor, yea?" The cathar grew up travelling across the galaxy, and learned one thing. Always be observant...or perish.

The droid speaks up now. It's voice is dark, cold. The power of a force choke in verbal form. Everything about this droid, despite it's white and orange paint job, seeped a threat of death and suffering. There is definitely a presence in the force within this room, but it's unfocused, hard to track. It could be from Talohn, but with how the droid is....it could just as easily be the source as well. "Don't do anything stupid, sith. I'm programmed in infinite forms of bashing in your skull." Madlad states, it's mechanical insides whirring as it forms one of those flexible hands into a fist.

Talohn rolls his shoulders, turning on the barstool to face the inquisitor, orange colored eyes meeting hers. "Soooooo, if you're from the empire, and you're looking for me.....You either want something from me, or you're here to kill me. No matter how pretty those eyes of yours are, I would prefer to know which it is before trying to make conversation." Talohn was in his usual attire. Black boots, armorweave pants, a white shirt, and an armorweave longcoat. His trusty DE-10 blaster is at his side, and there's a vibroblade in a leather sheath on his back. He's not fully armed, but he's at least prepared.

Viktoria Anetheas

 

[Viktoria Anetheas]

Location: Nar Shaddaa
Tag: Talohn Atar

Suspicion. Good. That meant he was smart. No smart person trusts anyone immediately, though personally she leaned towards never. Her eyes flicked towards the droid, that voice sending a shiver down her spine. Viktoria was a powerful mentalist, but all of her illusions and Sith magic weren't much use against a droid. Her sabercane was a decent surprise weapon, and she could even wield it quickly. It's even possible she could slice the Cathar in half.

But the droid was too far. Too heavily armed. Combat was not her specialty, and her Purge Legionnaires weren't ready. She slipped her comm link into her hand, her finger hovering over the button to call them. Just in case. She had no intention of fighting these two, but that didn't mean they felt the same. Killing them would gain her nothing. Recruiting them would. In her mind, the logic of the situation was that simple.

"Relax. If I wanted to kill you, I would have done it without ever approaching you. I came to talk, not do battle." She kept her smile on her face, her eyes never moving from Talohn. "You and your droid have made some ripples, gained some interest. And it is my function to look after interesting things. Where does your droid come from?"

 

[Talohn Atar]

Talohn takes another long swig of his whiskey. Meanwhile, the droid keeps watch. Menacingly. "Don't stress about Madlad there, if you aren't here to kill me, he won't kill you." He states reassuringly. The droid then adds. "Remember...infinite forms of bashing in your skull...." Talohn peers back at the droid. "Hey man, lay off for a bit." A dark chuckle leaves the droid at Talohn's protesting. "Fine." That's odd indeed, the droid just laughed. Even engaged in humor, even if it was just humor for itself by scaring a sith.

With that done, Talohn sighs. "Ripples?.....is....this isn't about the slaughter on tatooine is it? The eyeball gouging on dothomir? The crotch assault on mustafar? Which borderline warcrime did my droid commit to get you here?" He raises a brow. "Way to throw me under the buss." The droid chimes in, crossing it's arms. Ignoring the droid, Talohn continues. "Wait no, it's the bite of asteroid 87 isn't it? Dammit. I thought we had that one under lock and key...." He pinches his brow.

"If you don't know the asteroid bite of 87, I need you to completely ignore that statement." He points at her. "Now, interesting how? Aren't you supposed to be tracking down new force sensitives to recruit? Not tracking down droids." He sighs once again. "Guess it can't be helped." With a helpless shrug, he answers her final question. "He's gone through a lot of upgrades since then, but I made Madlad myself from salvage when I was 19. Never changed any of the mental programmings though....I found uh...I don't know what kind of mental processor. It was a self learning kind, I know that much. I've never done a memory wipe on Madlad, I don't believe in it. He's a self learning unit...I did something with the mental programming parts when I got them. By accident. The result....he's..." Talohn peers back at his droid. "I'm sure you've noticed it already. He's more alive than most droids."

Viktoria Anetheas

 

[Viktoria Anetheas]

Tag: Talohn Atar

She listened to him carefully, mentally corroborating the information he offered with what she already knew. Most of the incidents she knew of, and those that she did not, she made mental notes to check the legitimacy and details of later. It was her function to ensure that all information she reported was as accurate as possible, after all.

She took another sip of her wine, keeping the small smile on her face, and not showing how she truly felt. It was an art, a skill she had developed over years of interrogation training. The art of the neutral expression. Viktoria had little doubt that in another life, she would have made an excellent pazaak player.

"Yes, that is for certain. However, now that I spend time in your presence, I find myself intrigued by you. There's something strange about you. Different." Her eyes made contact with his.
"Have you ever felt different from everyone else around you? Like you can feel and sense something more to life?"

 

[Talohn Atar]

To the unobservant eye, Talohn seems easy to read. A skilled yet careful mercenary that hides behind his droid. But to those who know how to read people, the story differs by a lot. The droid, no doubt, is scary as all hell. However, it seems he cathar is the one to be careful of. Even the presence in the force that surrounds him feels odd. Weirdly unsettling, eldritch even. To the trained eye, it becomes increasingly obvious that the droid's creator is ten times more dangerous than the droid itself. Though the worst part is that it's hard to tell how, it's all clouded.

Talohn goes silent, taking a sip of his whiskey. he looks ponderous. "Different? Aren't we all though? Course I feel different by a lot. All these folk surrounding me, and I'm the only cathar in this bar. The only cathar in any bar I go to. Definitely makes me feel different. Specially when I see some of the other things out there. Like the Huk? Poor fuckers don't even have actual hands." He chuckles. Then his eyes meet hers. "Ah, I see what this is about. I'm not force sensitive, far as I know. Sure....when I'm in a fight, everything feels slow....The bolts never seem to hit me, and i can dodge through the punches with ease. But....that's just good reflexes. I'm not picking things up with my mind or throwing lightning from my hands."

He rolls his shoulders, taking in a deep breath. She'll become aware of it, likely. But he's not. He's already using the force to enhance his reflexes while not even aware. The man's a walking jackpot. "How am I different exactly? What's strange? I'm just a merc with a good trigger finger."

Viktoria Anetheas