Private Into The Abyss

[Yuri Maji]

CORUSCANT | UNKNOWN
TAGS: Gillem

---

The world didn't make any sense. It was dark, but some lights managed to at least allow someone to see their hand in front of them, even if only barely. Debris, rubble and wreckages littered the area, though some of it seemed to have been there for an incomprehensibly long time. Yuri's vision faded and returned several times, his body refused to work with him and protested with even the slightest movement. Eventually he regained consciousness and tried to look around.

Wherever he was, it was an area that hadn't seen any normal life for a very long time. He found himself unable to move, more resistance than injuries. Baby's enormous claws huddled him close to the Basilisk's body in an attempt to protect him from a clearly bad fall. The droid was unresponsive for the moment, leaving Yuri completely isolated and alone in a strange land.

:: This is Vandal, anyone copy? :: He mumbled, blurry vision barely able to concentrate on the lack of signal. Various warnings flickered across a cracked visor, the more concerning one being the overview of his health. :: Anyone copy? This is Vandal, come in. :: He tried again, but there was no chance of him reaching the upper levels. With a pained grunt, the Hound broke the seal of his helmet and pulled it from his helmet to heave a series of bloody coughs away from him and Baby. The air around them was hot, every breath stung and burned his lungs. Eventually he slid his helmet back on and relied rather on the integrated rebreather to keep him alive.

"Baby... come on, big guy. You good?" He knocked on the Basilisk's armour with no results. Whatever happened, his droid wasn't operational and he was badly injured. His ribcage refused to work with him, his back felt funny and one leg sat at a crooked angle. He fought the urge to move the leg even an inch. A ragged sigh fogged up his visor for a brief second, he was isolated and broken with no means of even figuring out where he was. His mind was foggy, memories didn't want to line up.

Eventually his eyes fluttered closed once again, his only hope being the distress ping emanating from his commlink in hopes of anyone finding him.

 

[Gillem]

GILLEM

He watched the mando wake up, the look of confusion and the hacking of blood coming from his mouth. Must’ve been a nasty hit.

He didn’t notice him. Not yet at least. That was good. A hard fall like that would rattle anyone, the s.o.b was tough he had to admit. He stepped closer as the mando’s eyes started to flutter closed again. Unfortunately, while he wore that helmet, his eye wouldn't be able to identify him to clarify what side he was on. He would have to use good old fashioned questioning for now.

“Well hell. I think I am developing a talent for finding broken and mostly unconscious bodies at my feet.”

He took a long drag of his cigarette as he tossed the droids power core in the air, slow flips, before catching it over and over, standing a good distance away from him. Guns hugging his hips, heavy six shooting irons. He finally stepped closer.

“Wakey wakey, sunshine.”

He splashed some water from his cantine on him. Likely he wouldn’t feel it through his helmet but it was worth a try. He didn’t know if he was friend or foe at this point, and the power core was just for…extra security. He had no intention of keeping it, but the mando did not need to know that.

“Ain’t no one gonna hear you down here. Just you and me I’m afraid. Here.”

He offered him his canteen.

“You look pretty banged up.”

Yuri Maji​

 

[Yuri Maji]

The sudden presence of an unfamiliar voice shook Yuri awake. Water splashed against his visor which, although not as effective, did get a reaction out of the Hound. He shakily raised a vambrace at the stranger but he knew that he was in serious trouble. Baby held onto him too tightly, his body was battered and, more importantly, he was stranded.

Golden eyes studied the man as he held a canteen of water out to Yuri. His other hand held something far more concerning. "That's my core..." He growled, though he accepted the water and pulled his helmet off for a few greedy gulps. Everything burned, stung and ached with even the slightest movements. "I took a speeder to the face. Whatever the kark those kriffers did topside... yeah..." He took one last sip and handed the canteen back to the stranger. His eyes took a while to adjust to the darkness, but even then he couldn't make out the man's face.

What was he doing down there?

"Why're you sitting with my droid's core? Who are you?" He questioned with suspicion, trying as best he could to turn for a better look at the man. Without any help, he was stuck for the foreseeable future. "You mind grabbin' a medpack from the cockpit? There's a bottle of Tihaar stashed with it." He asked, taking a leap of faith that the man wasn't planning on killing him immediately.

Gillem

 

[Gillem]

GILLEM

He plucked the rolled paper from his lips after the mando struggled to speak, his eye flashed dimly as he took in his information on multiple databases.

“Is it now?”

He caught it one last time and took a closer look at it.

“Thats a mighty shame. A lot happened top side.”

He knelt down in front of him. Studying him a bit closer as he retrieved his canteen, then slowly stood back up as he wandered around to the cockpit, pulling out the medpack. He took the opportunity to also observe the interior of the vessel, taking in some schematics with his eye. He also picked up the fancy bottle he talked about.

“This is one hell of a vessel ya got.”

He walked back over to him and passed him the medpack, he studied the bottle closely, his eye taking down any ingredients inside, searching for any…foreign contaminants. If it was poisoned or tampered with to be declared harmful to his body, the eye would find it.

“As for your core, well, I couldn’t help myself. Such an interesting droid ya have, I needed a better look at it.”

He paused.

“Now, don’t worry. I didn’t tamper with anything else. I assumed the way it was cradling you it would be…protective.”

His eye glanced to the mando’s helmet.

“Yuri, is it?”

He asked before the Mandalorian even offered to speak his name.

“You have certainly lived quite a life huh? Adopted, native to this planet. Hm, interesting, you certainly travel quite a bit.”

He took another drag of his cigarette.

“So, what warranted you being hit by a speeder?”

Yuri Maji​

 

[Yuri Maji]

As the man leaned in closer, Yuri got a much better look at him. He nearly missed it, but the strange glint in one of the stranger's eyes told Yuri that he was dealing with a professional of some sort. He resigned himself to the fact that his own identity and anything else around him was already scanned and documented. At least building a decent Basilisk wasn't a walk in the park.

"You tamper or scan anything ya shouldn't..." Yuri began, zipping the medpack open as he glared at the man. "I'll shoot you right here." He warned him, stabbing a bacta injector into the side of his neck. The effects immediately had him feeling better, though there was still a lot to deal with. No matter how much he patched himself up, he was going to be out of commission for a few days.

For better or worse, playing nice with the schutta was the best move.

He remained quiet for the most part, stripping armour and medicating himself as best he could as he listened to the man's comments. He was rather surprised that the stranger had his identity, and for a moment it seemed that he found himself in the company of a bounty hunter. "Not native, just born here." He corrected him, but the rest was accurate. He was rather impressed. The stranger went on to ask how Yuri ended up in the lower levels, though the Hound didn't immediately answer. He finished up with wrapping bandages and injecting bacta before finally beckoning the man closer for a sip of the liquor.

"One good deed." He answered truthfully. "Was finishing up with a delivery job, met some old friends. Those moof milkers upstairs kinda threw a spanner in the works, I went to try and clear a path for us. Now I'm stuck with a busted droid and a bounty hunter playin' 'twenty questions' over here." He finally looked at the man and wiggled himself loose to turn in Baby's embrace to be more comfortable. "What are you doin' here? This don't look like the normal levels, definitely don't smell like it. So ara ya just gonna shoot me or do you mind gettin' me outta this grip?" He grumbled, gesturing to Baby's enormous claws wrapped around him.

Gillem

 

[Gillem]

GILLEM

His brow arched at the threat.

“Son, you could barely hold a blaster. Besides, I'm no fool on Mandalorians. walking armories, but all that tech and all of those weapons have weight. When you add more to the pile...Complications happen.”

He passed him the fancy bottle as he medicated and bandaged himself.

“Born on a planet to some could mean being native. But, I suppose many different people have different viewpoints on that.”

He chuckled lightly.

“I’m no bounty hunter, Yuri.”

He watched him shift underneath the construct.

“Name’s Gillem. Mercenary. And you should know, no good deed goes unpunished.”

He tossed the core back up with a small slow flip catching it again.

“Tell ya what I’ll do. I’ll put the core back in that thing of yours, let you get yourself medicated and standing at least. Then we can swap more accurate stories. I’m a fair man of my word. If you decide a shootout needs to happen after that then…”

His eyes grew cold, calculated. Not full of whatever swagger he had displayed beforehand, but displayed a presence of someone who had been in countless gunfights.

“May the best man win.”

He tilted the core towards him to get a better look at it.

“I also give you my word that I did not tamper with your friend there. Not my style.”

He held out his mechanical hand to shake.

“We got a deal?”

Yuri Maji​

 

[Yuri Maji]

The Hound remained quiet as he listened to the stranger who finally introduced himself. His eyes grew cold as he knocked the bottle back for a few hearty swigs, likely not the best option for his current physical state, but it did miracles for the pain he was feeling. Along with the bacta, he would be in a half decent state in short order. But that wasn't on the forefront of his mind.

Gillem proposed his deal to Yuri, who simply let out a hoarse chuckle as the toxic air and busted ribs tore his chest up. "Let's get one thing straight here. Only reason either of us didn't fill each other with holes already is 'cause it's likely better not to. So slot my droid's core back in, then we talk proper, ya dig?" Another cough followed shortly before he slid his helmet back on. His gut told him to blast the man, let loose his entire arsenal on the stranger and simply make his peace with his newfound tomb.

Sadly, he had someone waiting on him.

"Between you an' me... the single life was easier. Could've blasted you and just died down here, now I got a harpy who will literally find my corpse just to kill me again." He remarked in an attempt to ease the tension between them as he waited for Gillem to start Baby up again. The moment the droid reactivated, Yuri fell by the wayside while the droid looked for the culprit responsible. Thankfully, the Hound managed to draw its attention with a whistle and a wave of his hand. "Baby! Stand down, he's green. Unless he tries something, he's green!" He quickly ordered the enraged War Droid. A low, binary growl rumbled from it as it took a few steps back and settled on the ground, waiting for its master. A smile formed behind Yuri's visor for a moment, he could always count on Baby.

A few grunts and whines escaped the Hound in his attempts to get on his feet, but once there he felt a bit better. All he could do was wait for the bacta to do its work while he sat with the stranger. "Never told me why you're down here." He commented, holding the bottle of liquor out to the man.

Gillem

 

[Gillem]

GILLEM

Gillem tipped his hat to him then walked towards the droid's core receptacle. The compartment laid empty and his eye wandered over the droid, secretly he prayed this thing would not come back and bit him in the ass.

But what he said next caught his eye before he punched in the core. His eye scanned him, he was telling the truth. Someone was waiting for him, a chuckle and and exhale escaped him.

“Ahh, damn it.”

He punched in the core and watched as the droid punched to life, looking around for enemies of any kind. Yuri did his best to calm the big guy down, and it seemed to work. Gillem's hand was already on one of his revolvers, armor piercing rounds at the ready, before he settled.

Gillem looked at the mandalorian as he stood on his feet, offering the bottle. He gently took it and then downed a couple of Swiss. His face scrunched slightly as the liquid warmed his chest.

He flicked his cigarette and looked at Yuri.

“I'll tell ya, but you gotta let me finish the story.”

He walked up to a piece of rubble and leaned back towards it, resting himself over the edge.

“I came with the covenant.”

He paused for a moment, keeping an eye on the droid and the mandalorian.

“But I don't really have a choice. Someone's waiting for me too.”

He pulled out a datapad from his coat and handed it over to Yuri, revealing a picture of a Rodian child about ten to twelve years old and a Rodian mother, presumably his mother.

“I'm looking for these two. Sold into slavery from tatooine, and are currently circling in the Black Sun. The Covenant is the easiest way I can get to them.”

He kept his eye on Yuri and his droid, not blinking.

“Scan my vitals, you'll see I'm honest.”

Yuri Maji​

 

[Yuri Maji]

A silent prayer of thanks bounced in Yuri's head once Gillem slotted Baby's core back in. His body was beginning to go numb from the awkward angle he was pinned in. Baby stayed a few steps back, but its piercing red eyes remained on the stranger while its scanners monitored everything around the group. Yuri decided to make himself comfortable for the man's story, gesturing to Baby to extend one leg out for him to use as a seat.

Gillem's confession didn't help Yuri's current mood one bit.

As per their agreement, Yuri kept his mouth shut and reserved his thoughts for himself as Gillem explained his situation to him. At least his visor hid the skeptical frown plastered along Yuri's brow. Finally he passed a datapad over to Yuri, showing a little family that looked sweet for all intents and purposes. Yuri's gaze shifted back to Gillem with a mixture of confusion and doubt. "Last I checked, humans and Rodians ain't exactly... compatible. So who's the kid and girl?" He asked the man, passing the datapad back to him.

As far as he could see, Gillem was telling Yuri the truth. No strange smell or noticeable shift in features. Who were those people to him? "I hope I ain't the first person to tell you that workin' with karkin' Sith isn't the most efficient way of finding people." Yuri seethed. "Those kriffers don't do favours, I've met loan sharks and politicians with better morals than the Sith." He continued to scold the man, though his ranting was interrupted by a pained cough. Baby rumbled in mechanical binary, expressing his concern for his master. The Hound simply waved him off and turned his attention back to Gillem.

"What's your leads? Why the hell would a band of psychotic marauders know about two random people in the galaxy?" He asked, though his tone was far more calm this time around.

Gillem

 

[Gillem]

GILLEM

“They ain’t mine.”

He spoke quietly.

“His mother I only know her name, Lorellia Eckon. The kid I know a bit more. Dash Eckon.”

He offered him back the bottle as he reached for his pack of smokes in his coat pocket.

“I was on Tatooine, selling some scrap from some extra credits when the kid found me. Asked me for help which I tried to refuse, but he was real stubborn. Tuscan Raiders came by their home and ransacked the place, took his mother and put a round in his father. Told the kid to have some credits ready within a couple of days or he would never see his ma again.”

He paused.

“I broke Rule 0 of the Morellian Rangers, more of a personal rule really, don’t make promises. And I did.”

He lit the rolled paper with his mechanical thumb and offered a cigarette over to him.

“I agreed to help him with his problem, meant to sell some things to get the credits to get his mother back and have them leave the planet, start over. Kid wanted me to kill them all. When he found out that was not my intent he left while I was asleep and they ended up taking him. A trail led me to someone who sold Dash and his mother to them as slaves into the market with the Black Sun.”

He looked up at the levels above them, taking in the infrastructure around them and the way it settled.

“I joined the covenant not because I think they know of them, I know they don’t. But they can get me close to the Black Sun. Maybe into it where I can find them.”

He paused.

“My leads are severely limited unfortunately, but I have worked with less.”

He stood there, his eyes falling back to him.

“If you were in my shoes, and the person waiting for you was sold into slavery and held captive, what would you do?”

Yuri Maji​

 

[Yuri Maji]

Yuri accepted the bottle and removed his helmet once more for a long swig as he listened to Gillem's story. His gaze idly drifted to the man's cigarette, tongue licking his chops in contemplation of whether he should ask for one. His own packet was crushed somewhere in the tumble between the upper levels and his current location.

To his surprise, he didn't have to ask as Gillem offered him the lit cigarette. Yuri accepted it with a nod and a faint smile before taking a long drag. The effect was almost immediate. Smoke rolled from his nostrils and lips in a satisfied sigh. Coupled with the amount of bacta in his system, he was feeling better by the minute. He nearly forgot to pay attention to his companion's tale in the brief moment of euphoria. "Hell of a case." He muttered, eyes and ears fixated on Gillem until the mercenary asked what Yuri would do in his shoes. He remained quiet for a moment, taking another long drag of the cigarette. "I wouldn't ask a bunch of psychotic murderers for help, that's for sure." He answered with sarcasm thick in his voice.

Yuri caught himself, shaking his head to fix his lacking attitude.

"Listen, man..." He tried to find the words to diffuse the tension. "You look capable. You definitely don't look like a savoury character and you definitely got some flexible morals. Have you tried workin' your way into Black Sun directly?" He immediately realized how silly his question was the moment it left his mouth. Once again he shook his head, unsure of what to tell the man.

A thought began to creep up.

"I might... have a way in." He sounded a lot more hopeful. "If there's one thing I'm good at, it's networkin' with people. That eye of yours ain't got everything on me." A grin took hold as he took a sip of the bottle and held it out to Gillem. "I got friends in the syndicate. One of them's a big operator for 'em. She knows what's what with 'em. But..." His smile faltered and his gaze shifted to their surroundings.

He looked back at Gillem after a moment. "Don't matter how good your intentions are, burnin' planets and helpin' the Enemy ain't gonna make things easier. Trust me, I'd know. Process of elimination only goes so far. So, I can offer you this. I can try to help you, put some feelers out and even help you personally if I'm able. But... I ain't gonna do it for someone who helps my enemy." Another long toke of his smoke brought silence to the Hound as he watched the man for any indicators or changes.

Gillem

 

[Gillem]

GILLEM

“I didn’t ask them. Last I heard they had more direct ties to the Black Sun. Me working where I am now, that's about the furthest I am willing to go for employment to get near them. Besides, every shot I have taken against someone who I saw was innocent were nonlethal, but believable. It’s not like I am slaughtering innocents.”

His head tilted when he spoke of a possible way in.

“Go on…”

Gillem took the bottle back and took a few swigs, savoring the taste as he spoke.

“The Covenant is only a means to an end. I don’t plan on truly helping them, but until I had met you, they have gotten me closer than anyone else. And I have stacked a lot of bodies to get this close.”

He took another drag from his cigarette, and slowly exhaled. His gaze glanced upwards to the levels above them.

“Who is this friend of yours? The sooner I know and can get in there, the sooner I don’t work with the enemy. You won’t have any problem out of me in the future with them, and hell who knows,”

He plucked the rolled paper from his lips giving him a bit of a shrug.

“You may even have me fighting at your side, just depends on the price.”

He flicked the butt to the side and offered him the bottle back.

“You know I would never truly work for them, otherwise this conversation wouldn’t be happenin’.”

The lines he would blur to fulfill that damned promise he made, it’s evident he would do just about anything up to a point. The risky part is if he knew what that point would be, what would his moral limit be, or would he be caught in some slippery slope.

He looked back at him again, staying quiet for a moment.

“I feel you would be in my shoes if the person waiting on you were in the same situation.”

Yuri Maji​