Into the Fire [Vik]

[Yula Perl]

After meeting Joza had gone well in the end, Yula and Vik spent their time exploring the urban sprawl Yula had grown up in. She was eager to show him all of her favorite places, dive bars and clubs, shopping centers and restaurants. Zeltros was a particularly friendly planet, and some of those who appreciated the world’s local customs settled there.

Given the pleasure-seeking nature of the Zeltrons, it was only natural that some undertakings would diverge from fun and indulgent to downright insidious. Zeltros had a seedy underbelly as dark as Nar Shaddaa, but you had to know where to look. After all, pleasure comes in many different forms.

Yula had taken them to the Indigo District, a place that was far from the luxury of the Lapis Lazuli hotel. It was where Joza had grown up and gotten her start, but beyond that she wanted Vik to try one of her favorite restaurants, if it could even be called that. It was a cheap Atrisian noodle bar but it was comfort food for her all the same. The couple was leisurely making their way toward the city center, back toward the hotel when harsh whispers drifted from an alley a little ways away. This wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, all sorts of shady deals went on around here and you were better off keeping your nose out of it.

Their voice drifted closer as the pair passed by, words indiscernible except for one. Shag. The Huttese word for slave. Yula slowed to a stop as a chilly night breeze swept through the street, moving closer to Vik as if she were cold. Even if she was, her focus was towards the ground as she concentrated on what was being said. Huttese was the language of the underworld, of smugglers. While she didn’t understand every word, she knew enough to get a handle on the exchange. Young girl. Slave. Child. Auction.

She swallowed thickly, hand curling absently into Vik’s jacket before she looked up at him. Something was wrong, and the intensity in her gaze said that they were going to do something about it. “Vik…” she murmured, voice barely even a whisper but he’d have no trouble hearing. “We have to…” She trailed, wondering how to explain what she had heard.

[member="Vik Velkarson"]

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

It was a side of Zeltros he had not visited before, or any planet he had visited for that matter, but he was coming to realise that not everything was as it seems. For the most part Zeltros was a great place of fun and adventure and all you had to do was walk out your front door. This was the great aspect about it, but as they walked along the streets of a place Yula called the Indigo District his eyes were opened to a new Zeltros, or rather another. Just like the galaxy as a whole, there was good and bad, just like in people, there was always an undercurrent of something hidden in them that was less than desirable.

There were all manner of conversations that his Aelvarian ears picked up on, none of which he understood, the languages used escaped him. Although he enjoyed their day out together, and lunching in her favourite eating place, he was more than happy to head back to the hotel. It was not safe here and he had vowed to protect Yula.

But she stopped and as he looked down into her face it was clear that somewhere there was trouble. "What, what is it?", he replied matching her low voice. His ears twitching in many directions, picking up on low voices from an alley way but he could not understand them. What he could understand and very clearly was her presences in the force, Yula was very distressed but determined about something and as he turned to position directly in front of her, the beings from the alley entered the main street on which they were.

The men hesitated at the sight of them on the street, too close to the alley and wondered at their business there. Vik leaned toward Yula's face close to her ear, "You are insatiable", he said with a suggestive tone and loud enough for them to hear. He pulled her close pressing their bodies together in a ruse to deflect attention. It worked for the moment, the two men glancing to them in a quick study before parting ways in opposite directions.

"What did you hear?", something was clearly wrong.

[member="Yula Perl"]

 

[Yula Perl]

Out of concern but also playing along, Yula raised a hand to rest against Vik’s cheek as he pulled her close to him. He knew as well as she that this was not a particularly safe area, but typically you wouldn’t be bothered much if you minded your own business. Trouble was, Yula wasn’t the sort to mind her own business.

It took her a few moments to find the words, even after the men from the alley had departed. A Rodian and a Trandoshan. Her mother hated Trandoshans. She never explained why, but given their prevalence in the slave trade, Yula figured it had something to do with her past. “Vik…” Her voice trailed, a desperate hush against the duracrete walls surrounding them. “Those men…they’re slave traders.”

Her hand lowered from his face but her eyes did not leave his own. “They found a buyer for some of their…girls.” She swallowed. “Young girls.”

Hearing it was one thing, saying it had her stomach twisted in knots. Slavery was an awful rabbit hole, an act that had touched members of her family and left them scarred. Whenever she sat and thought about it, she’d become livid. Right now, there wasn’t any time for anger.

Her voice lifted now that the shock had worn off. “We have to do something, Vik. We can’t let them hurt those girls.” The damage may have already been done, but maybe they could avert another disaster. Either way, she couldn’t walk away from this. “They said they’re headed toward Nar Kaaga.”

[member="Vik Velkarson"]

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

From Yula's face, Vik's eyes looked up to follow the being as he walked away. Both the men, their races was foreign to him including the nature of them but he knew Yula did and the look and concern in her voice was enough to convince Vik they needed to help these girls in whatever way they could. Young girls at that, which was just something he did not comprehend who people could do something like subject others to slavery. Of any description.

"No we are not walking away from this, neither of us could do that", he turned his gaze back to her. But he was out of his depth in knowing what to do next, for one thing he did not know of this Nar Kaaga, and he supposed it was another world he was yet to discover.

"Is there any way to track them or one of them", they would have to move fast as the both men would be out of their view and range within moments. Like any planet Nar Kaaga would be a large place, and once they were out of their sight almost impossible to find again. Which one did they follow? maybe Yula had that answer.

The lizard man, or he seemed that way was heading toward a part of Zeltros Vik did not know which the other was walking directly toward the starport. Vik nodded his head in that direction, "That one?". he asked. "Maybe the girls are already there, and that guy with the big eyes is looking for buyers".

"We are not going to let them hurt anyone", he assured her.

[member="Yula Perl"]

 

[Yula Perl]

“No.” Yula’s hand fisted tighter into Vik’s shirt, eyes focused on the retreating form of the alien heading towards the starport. “They’re the ones who are going to get hurt.” There was something dark in her voice, something Vik hadn’t heard from her before.

They’d made it to the starport after trailing the Trandoshan , luckily they did not have to follow him close behind for now given that they knew where he was headed. All they had to do was make sure that he didn’t fall out of their sight.

“We can try confronting him here, but the starport is busy and we’d risk hurting bystanders. We can try to board them in space, but there’s only two of us and we don’t know what their number are or how heavily they’re armed.” Her eyes narrowed, not liking either of those two options, nor anything else that came to her mind. “The Mariposa is fast, I’ve made sure of that.” More than once she’d had to make a quick getaway in order to evade pirates or the authorities alike.

Turning towards Vik, she searched his eyes. “It might be best if we follow them to their destination. Kaaga is Hutt space, which means that it will be crawling with slavers and the like. It also might give us the chance we need to slip in unnoticed, grab the girls and make a break for it.” Was it risky? Of course it was. But right now, it was necessary. They couldn’t walk away from this.

“Do you think you can follow him, get a description of his ship? That should be all we need. I’ll go start up Mariposa.” With Vik’s silent footsteps and enhanced eye sight, he should be able to follow the slaver unnoticed. "Unless..." She paused, lips pursing. "We wanted to sneak aboard and commandeer their ship?" This was going to be a difficult task, and they needed to be in agreement with one another first.

[member="Vik Velkarson"]

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

His eye brows peaked at her words, it was a side of Yula that he had never seen and given the circumstances and the situation unfolding around them, he did not question it .. in fact, he liked the idea of it and that this emotion came from her. Neither of them deliberately set about hurting people, but within them both was a sense of justice and that justice was dealt with a heavy hand. Whether it was a matter of survival, which he dealt out in his early days of discovery in the wider galaxy or this .. in fact this situation was more warranted for it. The removal of another persons liberty.

Yula presented the options, none of them easy or without a strong chance of danger to them, but that was the price to pay if one is to find justice for another. They kept the Trandoshan in sight and soon found themselves surrounded by the crowd of people coming and going from Zeltros, he thought about it for a moment, "I think confronting him here is too dangerous", he looked around at all the people totally innocent to the situation.

"But lets see if we can get the description and identification of his ship", tracking was Vik's forte on ground but in space? he would leave that up to Yula and her ship to do. "If we can get there first? this Nar Kaaga, we could confront him there", maybe, it all depended on the situation to other end.

"But you want to commandeer his ship don't you", he grinned at her, he could see the plan ticking over in her mind. "So what's the plan?".

[member="Yula Perl"]

 

[Yula Perl]

Her lips tilted upwards in a smirk, but there was no humor behind it. Though she was looking at him, her eyes seemed to be elsewhere. The past few months with Vik had been like walking on air, but she’d been living in a bubble which had just been popped by reality.

“I do want that. But we’d need to know more about the crew. Who they’re working for, what sort of weapons they have. We’d also risk hurting the…transports.” The word ‘slave’ felt wrong, even if that’s what they were. “We’ll get ahead of them to Kaaga and work from there.”

A YT-2400 light freighter, dark grey with blue stripes down the hull. Thanks to Vik, they had their mark and were on their way to Nar Kaaga. Yula had used the downtime to contact a smuggler friend who’d done work in that area.

“They’re most likely to be sold to one of the Hutt lords on Nar Kaaga.” After returning from her conversation via commlink, her upper lip curled into a sort of sneer at the mention of Hutts. Yula had never met one in person, but she’d heard stories and found them downright disgusting. “Hutts are notorious for their participation in the underworld. There are two clans that run on Kaaga: H’uun and Shell. I’ve never heard of them, so I don’t think they’re very prominent but it’s still a problem.”

Collapsing into the pilot’s chair, she couldn’t help but offer him a wry smile despite the seriousness of the situation. “Even if we pull this off, we’ll have bounty hunters on our asses for the rest of our days.”

[member="Vik Velkarson"]

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

The time from the start of this situation had not allowed them the luxury of planning anything with thought or preparation. Quietly he was pleased she did not truly want to take the ship of these slavers, there were too many unknowns to be able to do it without danger to themselves and then they would be good for no one. "We had better get a move on", he said as they both turned to her ship and entered it.

Vik took up position in the co-pilots seat, not that he had any knowledge of providing her with skills of that nature. But his eyes were pinned to the slavers ship which began to lift off and clear the starport. "Bounty hunters?", this was something he had heard about but never considered them any sort of threat unless one got in the way of .. well they were about to. "Only if we get caught, and only if they know who we are", he grinned to her trying to lighten the mood of the situation.

He strapped himself in the seat as Yula prepped to take off. "What weapons have you got on board?", he asked while trying to formulate a plan. "And tell me everything you can about dealing with Hutts". The more he knew of them the better, Vik had only see one once and that was at a distance on Nar Shaddaa .

Looking into her eyes it was like the light of the galaxy had gone out, gone was the sparkle that he found there when he looked at her. This was important to her and he was not about to let her down or let these people take slaves, "Don't worry we can do this", he said hoping to encourage her hope.

Somehow they would do this ...

[member="Yula Perl"]

 

[Yula Perl]

Despite her sobriety, Yula couldn’t help but smile back at Vik. “We have to.” She agreed, as there was no way that either of them could walk away from this. Were they perhaps arrogant in thinking that they could pull this off, getting in over their heads? Maybe, but they had some tricks up their sleeve.

“Hutts,” Yula didn’t take the care to mask the distaste in her voice as she charted a course for Nar Kaaga. “Are this race of big, gelatinous slugs. I’m not sure how they do it, but a lot of them are crime lords. Good at business and the like, greedy as hell. Push drugs, keep slaves and all that. Beyond that…not much to say. I haven’t been in the company of one personally, and I’d like to keep it that way if possible.” She shrugged, fully aware that they might be putting themselves in the path of a Hutt very soon. “Some of them are powerful, but I haven’t heard of any Hutt clans out of Kaaga. Doesn’t mean that they don’t exist, but I’m willing to bet that if there are any, they’re not very well-known.”

After they lifted off and the auto-pilot was in place, a smirk twitched at the corner of Yula’s mouth. While maintaining eye contact with Vik, she banged a fist against one of the panels beneath the controls. The side came off and a blaster tumbled out, discharging and narrowly missing Vik. The smug expression had evaporated from Yula’s face, replaced with something more sheepish. “Woah, uh, sorry about that!” She leaned down to pick up the pistol, clicking the safety on and handing it to him. “I usually keep one ready to go for emergencies. I sort of forgot that it was in there."

There were a few more blasters in the hiding spot, along with a handful of flashbangs. “But that’s not all—” Getting up from he seat, she pushed aside a crate, removed yet another rickety panel (this time from the wall) to reveal a slightly more stocked cache. It wasn’t a whole lot, but hey, this wasn’t a warship.

“I’ve got a few rifles, a slugthrower, and some grenades. Oh, and a vibroknife my brother gave me.” She held up the blade, thumbing the button on the side for a brief moment. The vibrations whirred against durasteel for a moment before dying down, and Yula collapsed back into the chair. “So, yeah…not a whole lot, but hopefully enough to defend ourselves with. Hutts tend to have hired muscle so we should be prepared for a fight in the event that we can’t be sneaky.” Yula peered longingly at the man sitting across from her. Some days she wished she were as light-footed as Vik was.

"Have you used a blaster before?"

[member="Vik Velkarson"]

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

His first reaction of that of incredulity and it showed on his face in the form of a grin, big slugs? So those holodisplays in the malls on Zeltros were real? in the sense they depicted such creatures that Vik though where some sort of brand icon. His grin turned to a chuckle, "Well dealing with a Hutt is not the main problem though is it", he had something already in mind for them if they were to come across one, after all slugs are slow and made up of nothing but water and water can turn to ice. "It is who works for them". The men and women that are in the Hutts employment are the true targets and no doubt have their own vested interest which will be at stake.

Next minute he knew Yula was thumping the console and out of one hidden panel fell a weapon, then she revealed several more and it seemed that although she expressed they were lacking he, on the other hand, looked at her wide eyed and in disbelief that she was so well prepared for such situations. "You really are full of surprises", he liked that very much. Weapons they were but not something he was familiar with, but he picked up the blaster and looked it over, "No, can't say there are many of these on Midvinter", but it was not the first time seeing one, as many people walk around the galaxy with them attached to their hips.

"Just point it and pull on the trigger yes?", he said letting the blaster sit comfortably in the palm of his hand. "What is our cover?", he assumed they would be role playing to get in or close to the Hutts. "And I might need a change of clothes to fit in".

Vik leaned back in his seat, his hand raised as he looked directly into his palm, "Don't forget, we have other weapons", the white energy flickering across his skin.

[member="Yula Perl"]

 

[Yula Perl]

“Oh, come on,” She grinned back at him, some of her good humor returning. “You’re surprised that I have all of these weapons hidden away? A smuggler can never be too careful. Never know when you’ll be boarded by pirates or angry customs officials.”

She watched him pick up and inspect one of the blasters. “Pretty much. You should get some practice in, first. The more you get used to it, the more comfortable you’ll be in using one when you need to.” Nothing was worse than hesitation, that’s what her grandfather would say. [member="Zef Halo"] may not have been the greatest dad, but he had one of the quickest draws the underworld had ever seen. According to him, that was what had kept him alive all these years. “Here,” Yula reached out to adjust his grip properly. “Aim at that crate.” With he free hand, she’d motioned to one of the boxes she’d moved to get to the wall panel. “It’s full of old, rusted parts I can’t find a use for. Good for barricading the door when I need to.”

She brushed his forefinger against the trigger. “Make sure the safety is off.” Her hand lingered against his before pulling away, not out of any sense of shyness. They were long past that. Yula sat back in her chair while trying to come up with an alibi, but something else was needling her mind.

“I thought you could only use that on Midvinter?” Referencing his ice abilities, she seemed curious. “Not that I didn’t enjoy you almost freezing my jerk of a brother to the wall.”

[member="Vik Velkarson"]

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

"Smuggler huh?", this was something he knew of course, but the real essence of that that meant was something he had yet to learn. He supposed it was easy to forget that Vik comes from a world were such 'incomes' are not a tool of trade. He grinned at her though liking the idea that Yula was not entirely pure in her soul, even though her heart was. "Are you sure you want me to fire this thing inside the ship?", I mean the bolt could go anywhere, hit something of great importance, after all this would be his first attempt.

Her lingering hand did not go unnoticed by him, and he smirked at her just before letting the bolt fly from the blaster, he did not wait for her response to his question, fate would guide the shot he supposed. The kick back surprised him a little not that it was heavy by any means, but still he felt the jolt in his hand. The bolt grazed the crate, burning the side and zinging to the wall behind it. It made a loud noise, at least to his ears, which caused him to recoil more than the jolt and his pointed ears pinned back to the side of his head to minimalised the sound.

"I meant the Frostvatn .. I mean the force, but .. I can use the err.. ability off Midvinter but only in a weaker form it seems. The further away I travel the weaker it gets. On Coruscant I could barely feel it". But the force is everywhere and that part of him was stronger than his fledgling ability with magic.

"Now you say that these low lifes are slavers selling girls and boys and that Zeltrons are some of the most prized .. well. As much as I don't like this suggestion we have a very beautiful one on board this ship. Is there any way to use that advantage?". This time his hand lingered a lot longer on her arm, slowly caressing her. "I could be a 'seller' of such a beauty .. maybe even 'taste' the goods for confirmation". His grinned widened with wickedness in his green eyes.

[member="Yula Perl"]

 

[Yula Perl]

In hindsight, she should have given Vik lessons in blaster use while they weren’t on the ship but…you had to work with what you had. And time hadn’t been on their side. Still, she wore a proud smirk as the bolt cut through the side of the crate and fizzled out against the wall.

When the talk turned to how they were going to sneak their way into a Hutt’s lair, Yula felt the good humor drain from her body. She didn’t like the idea of playing the role of slave, but it was, admittedly, their best shot and infiltration. Her family had a dark history with slavery, it was one of the things that had worried her mother the most while raising Zeltron daughters. Something in Yula hardened with anger as he spoke, caressing her arm.

“A slave.” She spat out. “You want me to play the role of a slave. Call it what it is.” Her discomfort was evident as she jerked her arm away. “And don’t talk like selling me to a Hutt is some game for you!”

All at once she stood, fists clenched and teeth gritting together. She lingered for a moment before turning to exit the cockpit. “Alan may have left some of his clothes on board. They might be a little small. I’ll go find them.”

[member="Vik Velkarson"]

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

In that instant Vik realised there was more to the history of the Perl's than he knew, a hard lesson to learn the hard way with Yula becoming mad at him. And she was right to do so, considering the situation. He regretted every word he spoke as she left him alone in the cockpit, his eyes the only thing to follow her at this point. He sat still with his mind working rapidly, one: how to make it up with Yula and two: there just might be a second options to this 'plan' of theirs.

Vik stood and walked to the back of the ship to find her, and he did as she rummaged through some boxes pulling out clothes with a healthy sense of anger. For the moment he said not a word, but kept a keen eye on her before turning his attention to some of the discarded clothing. He did not bother with the shirts or jackets but picked up a pair of trousers that would 'form fitting' on him and Vik decided this would do the trick.

"I am sorry", he stared glancing over to her, and as he unbuttoned his trousers removing them. "I did not mean to hurt you Yula", he stood in his undergarment and nothing more before starting to climb into one of Alan's rejects. The length of the leg was good enough for a fit, but the crotch? that was snug and just what Vik wanted. His hands dived into his own long black hair and ruffled it loose and let it fall around his face, he pulled a thick strand of it to frame his features and tucked the rest behind his elegant pointed ears. He spied a black leather belt on the floor with what appeared to be studs along the length of it and put it on, and a pair of boots would complete the look.

"I would never plays games with you, or with your life my love", he approached her in his new apparel. And then he threw out his arms and turned in a circle for her to look him over. "I have a better option. I will be the .. slave". The word slave was simply a foreign word to him so it did not sit easy on his tongue, which he supposed she took for him being casual about this. "After all, am I not the more exotic?", he bit his lip hoping she would smile as his teasing of her, either that or she would thump him.


[member="Yula Perl"]

 

[Yula Perl]

Immediately after Yula had stormed off, she almost regretted snapping at Vik. Almost. Slavery was a beast she’d tangled with personally, a monster that had taken parts of her mother and sister away. In retrospect, now that she was exercising her anger through aggressively sorting clothes, Vik likely hadn’t had much contact with the concept of slavery. As he’d explained to her, such a practice simply did not exist within Aelvar society.

Vik gave her a few moments to herself before approaching her where she stood in corridor, leaning over a box and tossing the contents haphazardly to the floor. They were only Alan’s things, after all—though the pair of siblings did not appear to get along, they were still quite close. Alan was a decent pilot in his own right, but Yula had gained the upper hand in recent years.

‘’I know.” She said simply, pushing herself back from the box and looking Vik in the eyes. While trying to find the words to elaborate on her feelings, she observed Vik changing into some of Alan’s discarded clothing. Her brows perked as he sauntered over to her and turned to give her a full view of his new outfit. He wanted to be…the slave?

“You…” Yula sighed, exasperated but still a little charmed. “You’re almost as reckless as I am, do you know that?” With a tired smile, she slipped her hands over his shoulders and pulled him close. “I don’t like the idea of you being the slave…even less than I like the idea of myself being one. You do have a point though, plenty of Zeltrons but not many Aelvar out in the wider galaxy.” One of her hands slipped up the side of his neck to trace the outline of his pointed ear. She had to admit that he did look rather tempting.

Reluctantly pulling away from him, Yula took a step back to the row of crates where she’d laid out some instruments of their operation. She handed Vik a small pistol that he could conceal in his pants—if there was any room left for that, a thought she had while eyeing him up. The second item was a chain breaker, a combination of a basic durasteel knife and a deactivating wand for slave collars and implants.

The last time was a slave collar, an accessory that would complete the look. Yula turned towards Vik, holding the piece of rough, black material in both hands. She almost felt guilty placing it around his neck but in doing so, pressed her lips against his own before she went about fiddling with the clasps. She took care to be gentle while still making sure that the fit was not lax. Looking at him now, the illusion was almost too real and she could feel a lick of guilt in her stomach.

From the cockpit, the autopilot let out a series of beeps indicating that they’d reached their destination. Exhaling quickly, Yula mustered up her courage and gave Vik a confident smile. “You ready to do this?”

[member="Vik Velkarson"]

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

"But I am not a slave, nor are you. I am just playing the part of a slave so don't feel guilty about this. We will prevail", Vik assured her as he now stood complete in his costume. "The only thing I hope for right now is that this pistol does not go off in my pants". He winked trying to make her smile, with a little hint of mischief. But something was troubling him, in the words she spoke that did not sit well on his mind.

Vik paced for a moment, the sound from the cockpit heralded they arrival, "Yula, you cannot mention Midvinter for the sake of my people and the others that live there, nor can you name a planet in which I could come from simply for a matter of convenience for this plan. I would not be able to forgive myself if we succeed or not, that these people or people like them, seek out more of my race or those they believe to be my race. Make something up, anything .. you found me on the streets of Zeltros begging or selling myself for 'favours' .. whatever", he looked at her with ernesty.

He placed both his hands on her shoulders as he near her, "We will be separated at some point in this, will you be able to locate my position?". What they will be facing is unknown to them, although by all accounts this place, this planet is more of a backwater and my not have security to match those found on more established slave compounds.

Leaning in he kissed her fully and deeply one last time before they would land and set their plan in motion. "I am ready".

[member="Yula Perl"]

 

[Yula Perl]

As Vik spoke of the precautions they must take, Yula nodded solemnly. Protecting Midvinter and the identity of Vik’s race was important. Even if she let something minor slip, it could trigger whispers, and whispers could turn into raiding parties. Though the operations on Nar Kaaga were minor, some crime lords across the galaxy had deep pockets. “I should be able to.” Her response came out softer than she’d intended. They’d bonded closely by now, enough for Yula to be able to sense his presence when nearby via the Force. Hopefully, the physical distance between them would not be too much.

Her normal clothing would do for now, after all Yula was playing the part of a smuggler. After throwing a cloak over herself, she attached a chain to the collar that Vik wore—just looking at it made her queasy, but she fought back the unpleasant feelings. As they parted from their final kill, Yula paused, staring at Vik with an intense determination mixed with guilt and sadness.

“I love you, Vik.” The words came out not as a whisper as they had before, but with a solid conviction.

---


“Stop! State your business!”

Most swamp worlds tended to be uncomfortably warm and humid, but Nar Kaaga was disturbingly cold. Yula had pulled the cheap, thin material of her cloak closer and gritted her teeth as the Trandoshan with a semi-automatic blaster rifle barked out towards her as she approached the compound. Fortunately she didn’t have to worry about Vik being assaulted by the cold weather, given his natural resistance.

“I’m here to see Urdru the Hutt.” Tugging on the chain she held lightly, Yula felt bad immediately but kept her face straight. “I’ve brought her a gift.”

The Trandoshan grumbled and stepped forward, scrutinizing both the Zeltron and her prize. He grabbed Vik by the chin, turning his head this way and that, getting a good look at the merchandise. “What the kark is he? Never seen ears like that.”

Yula cleared her throat, placing herself firmly between the lizard man and Vik. “Hey, hey! Hands off the merchandise. He’s for Urdru, not you!” She growled, waving his hands away. “He’s some kind of a mix, I don’t know. Exotic enough, right?”

The Trandoshan stepped back, now holding the blaster rifle in one hand. “What do you want with Madame Urdru? No one brings her a gift without owing her anything, or needing something from her. And I've never seen you before.”

Yula grinned awkwardly, sheepishly. “About that...I’ve sort of gotten myself into some trouble. Messed with the wrong guys. I was hoping to strike up a deal with the Good Madame Urdru for some protection.”

After some more visual scrutiny, the Trandoshan waved them through. “Follow me.”

[member="Vik Velkarson"]

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

It was show time.

Yula walked ahead of him, the chain around his neck looping down as Vik walked a few paces behind her. His eyes cast to the ground, which he was practiced in having spent a lot of his childhood doing this. The only sound to come from Vik was a sharp grunt as Yula pulled at his chain, playing the part of the slave. When they were stopped, he kept his eyes on the feet of the creature man that questioned Yula, any sudden moves of aggression and Vik would jump, his hands may be bound but they were not useless.

He felt the hard grasp of the man's hand on his jaw, not caring about the discomfort of his neck, looking him over like a piece of meat. Vik pulled his face away from the man's grasp in a slight show of defiance after all he was playing the part of not been born into slavery. To add to it, Vik flashed a look to Yula with a fear at her retribution for this show of defiance and lowered his head once more.

Funny the things that run through ones mind in situations like this, all Vik should think about in this moment, was how ugly the man was, he had to stop himself from grinning. Yula's was convincing enough for the man to allow them in, and they followed into an encampment, once passed the gates the scene changed very dramatically and very dangerous and now Vik was worried for her. There were people there far more deadly and would take more convincing than the man they encountered at the gate.

He could sense the fear .. not only coming from those that were held against their will but from some of the slavers and he had to suppose it was because of this Hutt. It was a dangerous melting pot of emotions from everyone and it would not take much to trigger a reaction. This might be something they could use when the time is right.

For the moment, Vik followed behind Yula's foot steps and waited for the next move.

[member="Yula Perl"]

 

[Yula Perl]

Yula strode forward, several paces behind the Trandoshan guard as he escorted her into the main room. The compound was largely underground which would make things more difficult, but Yula and Vik would manage. They’d likely be separated at some point in this scenario, and hiding a comm on Vik would be too risky.

The master and slave were lead into a central room, with the Hutt crime lord at the center. Various men and women of criminal ilk were milling about the perimeter, and nearly all of them turned an eye to the new arrivals. None of them said anything, but some were clearly taken aback by the sight of a young Zeltron woman leading in a larger man by a chain and collar. Wasn’t it supposed to be the other way around?

“Ah, the Great Madame Udru.” Yula stepped forward and bowed, giving Vik’s chain a tug (not too sharply) to do the same. “I am Elysia, a humble trader from Nar Shaddaa. I will not waste Madame’s time with stories of my hardships, but I have come here today to seek the protection of Madam Udru.”

The others in the room whispered among themselves, some eyeing the Zeltron with disgust, some with suspicion, and others looked at her in what she would consider a worse way. Still, she continued on.

“In attempting to expand my business to Nar Kaaga, but my modest operations are constantly under siege by bandits. I’ve already lost some of my prized merchandise, and I can’t bear to lose anymore.” Raising her head, she tugged again on Vik’s chain, urging him forward for display. This was the first time that she’d gotten a good look at the Hutt, with a surprising smattering of bright red lipstick across her mouth.

“I bring you this gift as a token of good will between us. I confess that I do not know where he hails from, but let’s just say that I found this exotic specimen on Coruscant, and he is deeply indebted to me..”

The Hutt made an odd sort of grumbling sound before uttering some guttural words.

“Madame Urdru asks that you bring him to her.” A Quarren, garbed in some sort of scholarly robe standing near Urdru translated the Hutt’s request, and Yula pushed Vik forward.

Her stomach churned at the thought of the Hutt touching Vik—of anyone else in this room touching him, really—but they had to comply with the request. Taking stock of the room once more, Yula counted the people she saw, the weapons they carried, and tried to imagine the weapons they kept hidden. Reflexively, she was conscious of where her own blasters and knives were strapped and hidden away.

[member="Vik Velkarson"]

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

He stood a pace behind Yula, and it was not until entering this room standing in front of the Hutt did he feel vulnerable. Not only that, the sight of the Hutt was nothing short of disgusting with his heightened sense, the scent of her was almost overwhelming to him. But he remained in a suppliant posture, with his shoulders slumped slightly and head cast downward. Yula tugged on his chain and pushed him forward, the words of the translator enough to let Vik know what was said and between Yula and this, he was prepared for whatever they would do to him, they just had to get through this initial introduction and acceptance and no doubt into the cells with the others.

Vik stood before the Hutt, her red lip stick a horrid contrast to her skin colour, if that was what it was and he would have to leave the scouting of the room to Yula, if he lifted his head they would begin to suspect something. He could see a greyish green tongue slide across her lips before a chuckle came from it. If things could not get more disgusting, Vik turned his head slightly to try and shield from the bad breath.

He was being sized up, like a piece of meat for either eating or something more lurid. Neither of which was pleasing to him, and he now understood what others in this position must go through and worse, after all they were here to get slaves out, not become one. This was just the tip of the iceberg. A natural reaction in him to a situation that involved a danger, his powers pulled forth to the palm of his hands, ready if needed and he could feel the cold icy effect on his skin. It would not be seen not even by Yula but one move in his direction that was a threat to him or Yula and all hell would break loose. He would protect her first and foremost.

There was nothing to do at this point but wait for his acceptance by the Hutt.


[member="Yula Perl"]