Private Forget Me Not

[Raya Krayt]

Location: Coruscant
​

With the battle for Mandalore behind them, Mandalorians were becoming a rarer sight across the galaxy but on this level of Coruscant people didn't bat an eyelid as bounty hunters were commonplace so Mandalorian bounty hunters were hardly a rare sight which was clear as Raya didn't get any looks as she walked through the crowds on the street to meet with another bounty hunter who had been assigned the job, outside an agreed bar.

The target was apparently dangerous enough to warrant two bounty hunters, two Mandalorians at that, though she knew nothing about the person she would be working with. However, both being Mandalorian meant she expected them to work together with ease, unless the other was Force sensitive. She didn't see other Mandalorians often aside from her sister because they were scattered after the invasion of Mandalore so it was a pleasant surprise.

Raya leaned against the wall by the bar, casually, as she placed tranquilliser darts into her vambrace in preparation. The target was worth less dead but if they were too much of a hassle then it was always an option. In her peripheral vision she saw someone walking towards her and looked up to see her business partner for the excursion. She pushed herself off of the wall and walked towards him to greet him.

Talo Krayt

 

[Talo Krayt]

Since earning his armour and helmet and setting off to explore the galaxy on his own, it had been some time since Talo had seen another Mandalorian and even more so since he had seen another member of his clan. After completing a few jobs, the young Mandalorian had begun to build a small reputation and so, his skills were hired by an elusive client with big pockets. The target was so high priority that the client, in fact, hired two Mandalorians for the job.

This'll be interesting.

Aside from members of his clan, Talo had issues trusting others even other Mandalorians that were not part of the clan, so he would have his guard up upon meeting his temporary partner. Nearing the bar, Talo would spot the other Mandalorian although... strangely enough, her armour and her colours... looked familiar. As she pushed herself off the wall and closed the distance between them, light bulbs went off in his head and behind his T-visor his face turned to pleasant surprise.

"Raya?" he calmly asked, a hint of excitement trailing through his voice. It had to be her, her beskar looked the exact same as it did when she first earned it and departed to find work and explore the galaxy. "It's good to see you." Talo displayed genuine happiness in his claim, then, he frowned "I'm... sorry about your mother, she was a good woman and a great warrior." showing his sympathy through his body language, he placed a comforting arm on her shoulder plate. With Raya here, this job was about to be much more easier.

Raya Krayt

 

[Raya Krayt]

"Yeah...?" Raya replied, confusion evident in her tone. Who was this and why did he know her name? She wondered, gazing upon him with a frown beneath her helmet. As he spoke again, she analysed the voice but couldn't put a finger on who it was, though he clearly knew her. "Oh yeah, thanks. That means a lot." She replied sincerely despite still being baffled how this person knew so much about her and she couldn't even product his name. After a few moments of cogs whirring, her mind came to one possible conclusion.

"Wait... Talo?" She asked, looking him up and down. "I didn't recognise you in the get-up. You look good!" She told him with a newfound excitement. It had been years since she had seen her old friend and she hadn't been sure if he had even survived Mandalore. "This just got a whole lot better." She declared as she gave Talo a hearty slap on the back. "It's not too far from here which is kind of odd given that this is quite a populated area." She told him as she produced the tracking fob from her belt to show him before leading the way as she had always preferred a leadership role.

"How have you been?" She asked when they were on the move. "Where have you been?" She followed up quickly. The walk allowed them to briefly catch up with each other but the fob brought them to a building which looked like an abandoned cafe at the bottom of an apartment in an even more unfavourable part of Courscant where the entire street seemed derelict. Raya walked up to the window and peered in, pulling her rangefinder down to see if there was anything she missed in the darkness. The brief darting of a shadow behind the counter suggested so. "This is it." She told Talo.

Talo Krayt

 

[Talo Krayt]

Talo grinned under his T-visor, she hadn't recognised him yet. Why would she? Last time she saw him he was the armourless red-headed Foundling. However, he placed his hands on his hips and waited for her to put two together - once Raya's body language gave off her deep thought, she finally realised it was him. Once she did, Talo's shoulders raised up and down in quick succession as he snickered quietly at how long it took her "Thanks." he responded chirpily, although, he knew she was just being nice. His incomplete armour wasn't really a sight.

Letting one of his hands relax at his side, he received her hearty slap on the back in stride "Couldn't have said it any better myself." Raya was right, them two together again made things a whole lot better. Honestly, with how big the galaxy was, he was unsure if he'd ever see her again but he was glad that wasn't the case. Raya showed him the tracking fob detailing where they needed to go, with a simple nod, he allowed her to guide him of where they needed to go.

During the walk there, the two would briefly catch up. She had asked how and where he'd been, he would answer the latter first "After... you know..." he answered sorrowfully, sadness buried in his calm voice "...we fled to Teth. Set up a small base there, off the Hutt's radar, and tried to continued as if nothing had changed but..." he stopped himself before switching topics "I only got my helmet and armour a few months ago. I've been working for the Network, sending my earnings back to the clan. Or as much as I could." Talo would pause for a few moments after this, letting things sink in. Head still facing forward, he would address his counterpart "What about you? How've you been holding up?" he asked, concerned for her feelings but also eager to hear all the adventures she's had.

Finally, the two Mandalorians had reached a structure that resembled some discarded cafe. Looking the structure up and down, he then turned to Raya "Well, this isn't ominous." he sarcastically stated. After she peered inside the window, he waited. Once she was done, he would look toward the darkened window but still address the experienced Mandalorian "What's the plan? I'll follow your lead, burc'ya." hoping to learn a new thing or two from her.

Raya Krayt

 

[Raya Krayt]

Raya was pleased that Talo had managed to do as well as he did, not because Foundlings were treated any differently or worse to those born into a clan but because they were at a disadvantage from the lack of training they had compared to their peers who sometimes had upwards of ten years extra training. Seeing him now drew her mind back to their first meeting as teenagers and a smile formed on her face at the memory and made her want to hug him, thankful that he had survived, but now was not the time.

Listening to his answer made her feel the need to apologise. "I'm sorry for leaving after Mandalore. It was too painful." She apologised for practically abandoning the clan in the worst time. She knew that if she ever wanted to attempt to step up as Alor then she would have to take responsibility for her actions and her clan but she wasn't ready to try yet. "I've been ok." She replied with a nod. "Mostly just keeping on the move. If people get too familiar with you then it's a risk." She told him, half-warning him. "I see my sister occasionally but she's... busy, understandably, so I'm just on the look-out for work." She replied.

"Well we could go in quietly, or..." She planted her foot firmly against the glass and kicked it hard a few times until the glass cracked and then shattered before leaning in and unlocking the door from the inside and then swinging it open. There was no reaction from inside as the Mandalorians entered the premises. Raya turned the light on her helmet and scanned the darkness but there was no one so she vaulted over the counter in the middle and into the kitchen behind the restaurant area. Once inside, she was immediately shot at but the bolt deflected off her shoulder pad and into a wall. In seconds, she had both blasters in her hand and returned fire, alerting everyone else in the building to their presence.

The sound of footsteps came from ahead until a group of men burst through the doors. "This is going to be fun." She told Talo before jumping up onto one of the kitchen counters to exchange blaster fire with the enemies.

Talo Krayt

 

[Talo Krayt]

The young Mandalorian shook his head at her apology, not accepting it "You have nothing to apologise for, Raya. You did what you had to." he assured. Although, he did always hope she'd return to take up the role of Alor - maybe... it was still possible. After all, Talo could see no one better suited than Raya. Angling his helmet slightly to face her, Talo listened to what Raya had been up to for all these years and of course, it didn't surprise him much, he was happy for her though still. She was able to live life the way she wanted to, it was commendable.

*******
​

Talo simply watched, his body was completely still but under his helmet his expression was that of confusion - wouldn't that cause too much attention? Once Raya managed to break the window and unlock the door, "Okay, then." he uttered calmly with an undertone of jest before following her inside. Switching on his helmet's spotlight and scanned the side of the room he was on, what had him cautious was the fact no one had reacted to the crashing sound despite the target being here. Vaulting over the counter close behind Raya into the kitchen, a bolt hit her and in-turn startled him, on instinct Talo pulled out his own blaster and shot at where the bolt had come from.

As thundering footsteps drew closer, Talo lightly quipped "Well, they know we're here now." as he stared forward, unsheathing his vibrodagger in his left hand and holding his blaster pistol in the other. Contrary to what Raya was doing, Talo's beskar was incomplete and so he was more vulnerable, instead the young Mandalorian took cover behind the kitchen counter near Raya. Of course his old friend was ready for a fight.

Once the group of men had burst through the door with lights attached to their blaster and helmets, blaster fire literally lit up the room. He had no idea how Raya was doing but right now, he had to focus on surviving. Besides, he had to trust she could handle herself as the more experienced of the two. Erupting from cover, Talo put two bolts through two of the men's chest, killing them instantly - before launching his vibrodagger at a third member's hand, disarming them from taking a cheap shot at Raya before promptly shooting them dead as well.

Ducking into cover again, he allowed his blaster to cool down before taking out his second one and emerging from cover to continue fire. "Would be great if I could see properly." he muttered.

Raya Krayt

 

[Raya Krayt]

Wary of being a stationary target, Raya moved across the counter tops while continuing to shoot at the men ahead of her, killing two with ease. She advanced on the enemies by taking leaps across the gaps in the counter tops but similarly making herself an easier target which was proven as she took a bolt to the chest, the force of the bolt knocking her backwards and onto the floor, though she was protected from further blaster fire by the counters between her and the enemies. It had arguably been a foolish move but Raya didn't care.

While concentration was on Talo, she peered over the counter and shot one of the men in the chest and at the sound of footsteps behind her, followed by a bolt sailing over her head, she didn't so much as look as she threw a proton grenade over her shoulder towards the new group, leaving only two of them. Trusting that Talo could handle the situation ahead, she turned around and stood up, shooting towards the remaining enemies behind her. She received another bolt to the shoulder, knocking her backwards again, though she remained on her feet and quickly recovered to shoot the remaining assailant.

The fact she hadn't been shot in the back suggested that Talo had successfully sorted his end of the room so she joined him to search the property further. Through the next door was a staircase leading to the apartment. "I wonder what they're protecting." She thought aloud as they began to climb the stairs. Whoever was inside would likely be aware of their presence as they hadn't exactly opted for stealth which was confirmed by the panicked voices inside.

Now they would have to exercise caution as the bounty was wanted alive, so she switched her blasters to stun and the fob confirmed they were in the right place. Once they reached the door, she shot it, causing it to override and the door to slide open. Immediately at attention, she aimed both blasters at two men who similarly aimed at her, though there were five armed men in total and then an unarmed one on a chair in the middle, who she could only assume was the bounty.

Talo Krayt

 

[Talo Krayt]

While providing cover fire, he got a glimpse of what Raya was up to - she was completely reckless and he wasn't sure if the beskar had anything to do with her carelessness. Regardless, she was a warrior, he expected her to know what she was doing. Eventually a blaster bolt had managed to knock her off her feet and behind one of the counters, prompting Talo to shake his head.

Talo took the small opportunity he had to spring up from out of cover, the Mandalorian fired off two blaster bolts from each of his pistols into the men shooting at the counter Raya had fell behind, thus turning their attention to him. He slid back into cover once he saw a proton grenade launched from where Raya was, she had a whole new group to deal with. Peeking over the counter top, he saw that not many men were left on his side and felt confident enough he could engage them hand-to-hand.

Talo unclipped one of his shock grenades and lightly tossed it in the direction of the enemies on his side. Once it detonated and left the targets temporarily paralysed, the Mandalorian Vaulted over the counter top, activating his wrist blade and had one blaster pistol at the ready. Talo shot at one of the men clean in the head, before stabbing another in the neck with a leaping manoeuvre, the final one was mobile after the effects of the shock grenade wore off but before he could react, he was quickly shot down by Talo.

Finally clearing out the area, Talo gave Raya an approving nod "Not bad." he complimented, smirking under his helmet. Picking up the vibrodagger that he had thrown earlier, he caught up with Raya as they climbed the stairs "Let's hope it pays a decent price." he said in response to Raya's out loud thoughts. Just outside a locked door, he could hear panicked voices inside which caused Talo to let out a light chuckle "You think they know we're here?" he asked sarcastically.

Setting his blasters to stun, Raya deactivated the locks and what met them on the other side were five armed men. Talo aimed his blasters at the three other men in the room, glancing to look at the unarmed man sat in a chair - the two Mandalorians were at enough distance where they could whisper to each other without the other men hearing. Blasters still drawn, he whispered to Raya "On my mark, lunge for the bounty and get him out of the way - your beskar will protect you."

Once he was certain, she got the message, he stared down the five men who stupidly stood together in a line - making his plan all the more easier. "Go!" he yelled as he simultaneously dropped his blasters to the floor, and placed his left hand over his right vambrace, pressing his finger down on one of its many buttons. What came out of his vambrace however, was white hot fire as he sprayed down the moronic guards standing in a line. The time it took for him to activate his flamethrower should have been enough for Raya to have tackled the bounty out of harm's way. He hoped. Or they'd both be losing credits.

Raya Krayt

 

[Raya Krayt]

"You weren't so bad yourself." She responded in a similar fashion with an added nudge of her elbow. Raya didn't answer his following comments as she was too engrossed in the mission. Her recklessness may have worked against her at times but her focus proved to be an asset. Once they entered the room they were surrounded by the familiar sound of weapons trained on them but the two Mandalorians were quick to respond. They were outnumbered by one but she doubted it would be much of an issue. However, they needed to be wary of protecting the bounty while disposing of the guards.

As Talo told her what to do, she frowned. While his plan was a good one and he was correct in the fact she would be protected by her beskar, the same couldn't be said for himself as his armour was incomplete. It was risky but this was the life he had chosen and she trusted he knew what he was doing so she gave a single nod in response and upon his next command she dived towards the bounty and tackled him to the floor, shielding him from any attack, before pointing towards a table that was flipped on its side, in the same state of disarray as the rest of the room. It seemed no one wanted the bounty dead so he would be safe from any stray attacks there.

Raya opted to stay with him in case anyone tried to snatch him from behind their backs so she followed him to the table but stayed in front of it. However, it didn't seem to be of much benefit as she felt a hand on her shoulder and whipped around to see a sixth man who had ambushed her. She reacted quickly, meeting his blade with the blade from her vambrace as they engaged in a fierce hand-to-hand battle with the odd sound of her opponent's blade scraping against her beskar. With her free hand, she drew her blaster and shot her opponent in the abdomen. He fell to the ground and the room fell silent.

Her attention was still on the bounty however as she trusted Talo could take care of things at his end. The bounty stood up from behind the table, granting the pair with the first proper good look at his face. He only seemed to be a few years younger than her and Talo which made her wonder what he had done to have a bounty placed on him, especially as he didn't seem too combative. "Let's get out of here before more of them come." She ordered, grabbing the teen roughly by the fabric at his shoulder and pulling him over the table before letting him go and leading him to the door. "That was weird. I wasn't expecting a hostage situation. Who is this?" She asked Talo with a glance over her shoulder at the teen who didn't make any attempt to escape, likely aware that the Mandalorians were his best chance of safety.

Talo Krayt

 

[Talo Krayt]

As Talo dosed the thugs with his flamethrower, a pleased smirk formed on his face as he glanced at Raya and the bounty who she'd manage to get out of harm's way. The thugs howled in pain as they were set ablaze but the young Mandalorian felt nothing, any kind of remorse for his enemy was beaten our of him back in the Fighting Corps. Talo unsheathed both of his vibrodaggers as the five men flailed about, trying to escape the fire consuming them.

He took the opportunity to rush them and quickly finish them off, to end their suffering. Once that was over with, he sheathed his vibrodaggers, picked up his dropped blasters and holstered them before dusting himself off. As far as spur of the moment plans went, he was surprised that it went down so well... then again, these thugs didn't seem like the brightest.

Talo approached the table that Raya and the bounty were hid behind, also passing the body of a sixth member along the way with a smoking blaster wound in their abdomen - he smirked again, Raya was really one of the best he knew. Much to his surprise, their apparent bounty was just some kid... just a few years younger than he and Raya. The three then began making their way out with the kid walking ahead of them, she asked him who the kid was but Talo simply responded with a shrug. He truly had no idea.

Bluntly, Talo called out to him and asked "Who are you? What'd they want with you?" the boy, still walking ahead turned his head around to meet the two Mandalorians' gaze - nervousness and fear glistened in his youthful eyes. "M-my dad is a rich entrepreneur, t-these guys jumped me and kidnapped me after school... and demanded five million credits from my dad." he revealed through choked backed words, desperately fighting off tears.

The young Mandalorian turned his head to face his counterpart, it all made sense now - now that was over with, they needed to get this kid back to the upper levels and back to his father, or in the Mandos cases, their employer. "Those guys in there probably aren't the last, I've got a bad feeling more are coming..." he regretfully predicted.

Raya Krayt