Public Jamais Vu

[Jack Sandrow]

Corellia

"Consequential dormancy occurs when organisms enter a dormant phase after adverse conditions have arisen."​

Jack stepped off the transport, readjusting his rebreather mask. How long had it been since he had stepped foot here? The galaxy at large seemed unfamiliar and hostile, and returning home had seemed the only reasonable solution. Yet here he was, freshly-purchased shoes scraping along the duracrete as he hugged his cloak around his person a little tighter. Nothing was the same here. The skyline had all changed, and buildings that should have been familiar seemed alien and hostile to him. His hand brushed his empty hip, and he bit his lip with a slight wince. He felt naked without any weaponry, but... there was a freedom in it as well. Keeping his gaze forward, he worked his way through the semi-dense crowds of passers-by, murmuring an apology here or an excuse there, as he tried to find some semblance of home to return to.

The bar had been gone forever.

That was all he could surmise, staring up at the burnt-out sign that had been graffitied and smashed to pieces. What had been a bar was repurchased, resold, refurnished, and re-destroyed all over again. He kicked a piece of glass that had made its way almost to the curb. Well. So much for that, then.

The next hour was spent travelling from corner to corner, asking a few questions here and there. While his asking did receive a few odd looks, he was able to find his way to a hole-in-the-wall that seemed to look at least semi-disreputable.

"Please tell me you still serve proper Corellian whiskey." Jack tugged down his rebreather mask and slid two creds - his last - across the bar. "I'm really thirsty."

"....this is Corellia, kid. I'd be run off the planet if I didn't." A burly female Togruta shifted across the bar. Her lekku denoted significant age, and the ease of her pour denoted significant skill. "This is enough for... two."

"That's it?" Jack blinked.

"It's 900, kid. Galactic Standard Credit doesn't buy much of anything these days."

"Well then." Jack tossed down the first shot, closing his eyes as the immediate wave of nostalgia and sweet, sweet homecoming rushed through him. "....guess I'd better get myself a job."

"Guess you'd better." She waved out at the bar at large. "It's a free planet."

Jack nodded, taking the second shot with him as he got up from the bar. "That's what people say." His eyes quickly surveyed the other occupants of the bar. "Let's see what other things people say..."

 

[Shasill Kaarte]

Shasill stared up at the ceiling in boredom, tapping his glass cup rhythmically while losing himself to his thoughts. Corellia. It sure had changed since he'd been here last. Probably a year or so ago. When he had met his Master for the first time. Maybe Nwul was trying to force Shasill's "hidden emotions" to come out into the light by sending him on a mission to his homeworld. But no matter what feelings surfaced, the apprentice knew he would finish this mission. Because it would be a cakewalk. All his Master wanted him to do was hire someone to go with him to find a major arms dealer (who was selling all sorts of weapons to anti-Sith rebellions on Shiva IV) and end him.

Easy. The hard part would be finding someone willing to accompany a 16-year old Sith apprentice, who didn't have a lot of money to pay them. It was either bribe them with fifty credits, or bend their minds to his will. And Shasill wasn't the best at the latter.

The Sith perked up as someone else entered the room. It was quite the event when someone stepped in, as this establishment was out of the way and small compared to the more prestigious cantinas in the city. Shasill saw that this newcomer was tall. He had green skin, and seemed human...no. His hair was leafy instead of...well, normal. Interesting. The apprentice watched the man approach the bartender and slide over two credits. Pathetic.

But maybe it was just what Shasill needed. A man in need of credits. Maybe he would do anything to obtain them. The teenager slid out of the booth and walked over to the man, who's Force presence made him seem like the rancor in the room. Without invitation, the apprentice took a seat opposite the newcomer and lowered his hood. Good thing he wasn't wearing his mask today. Otherwise, he might have been a little intimidating, even though he was a full foot shorter than the green man.

Shasill smiled, trying to look friendly. He failed miserably. "Hey there, stranger. What's your name?"

Jack Sandrow

 

[Jack Sandrow]

Jack looked over at the younger man who had decided to introduce himself. Reflexively, his inner eye took a look at the other's Force presence, before his own better judgement pulled him back. What little he had seen, elicited the sensation of a roiling mass of emotion and impatience. A Sith, new in the ways. Or perhaps... just a teenager. Jack didn't know any better these days.

His eyes quickly surveyed the newcomer, in a more practical fashion. Young, emotions barely hidden behind his eyes. Definitely a teenager then.

"Jack." A lopsided smile. "Just Jack, for now. How about yourself?" He rested against the bar, trying not to look too credit-hungry. "You've a name? or a moniker? Pseudonym?"

Shasill Kaarte

 

[Shasill Kaarte]

Shasill leaned back, presenting an aura of relaxation. "You can call me Kaarte. Listen. I've got job that needs doing and," he fought the urge to say, I know you're poor, instead continuing, "nobody else here looks like they've got the skill. I need you to help me take out an arms dealer. If you're interested, we can talk details while we're headed over to his location. This mission is pretty time-sensitive, as he moves around a lot. If we don't get going in a few minutes, well...we're gonna have to scrounge for credits to get on a transport."

The apprentice glanced at his chrono. Yeah, he was running out of time...

Jack Sandrow

 

[Jack Sandrow]

Money, guns, and a job. This was too good to be true. Jack refrained from biting the inside of his cheek. "I'd hate to hold you up. Is this a two-person job, or are there others?" His finger twitched against his side absently. So much for turning over a new leaf. Well, he figured, he could always re-turn it over again when he was a bit more flush.

"I'm in, just so we're clear. Tell me what needs doing."

Shasill Kaarte

 

[Shasill Kaarte]

"Just us two. I'm glad you've accepted. Now, let's talk details," Shasill said, getting up from his seat and stretching. Casually, he pulled a holoprojector from his pocket and threw it onto the table. A ghostly image shimmered to life. An image of a Nautolan with four teeth, with a rather creepy smile. "This is the arms dealer," the apprentice explained, gesturing to the alien, "who has been selling weapons to an unwelcome rebellion. He is located in the outskirts of Coronet City, maybe a thirty minute drive away."

The image changed to a birds-eye view of a large section of makeshift warehouses a few kilometers away from the edge of the city. It was hidden from view by a grassy cliff overlooking the sea. "I bet that arms dealer has a great view of the beach...It'll be the last thing he sees."

Shasill walked across the room, beckoning for Jack to come along. His landspeeder was parked just outside.

Jack Sandrow

 

[Jack Sandrow]

Jack nodded slowly, memorizing prominent details about the Nautolan. "Can't wait to go make a withdrawal," he murmured, quickly downing his second shot before picking his rebreather up and pressing it onto his face.

Outside, he looked up and around at the buildings once again, shaking his head at the unfamiliarity of it all. <<Kaarte, would you mind if I asked a couple questions on the way?>> His voice was raspy through the rebreather, but still fairly recognizable. <<They may be slightly weird questions, just as a forewarning.>> He hopped into the passenger side of the speeder, eyes surveying the crowd for a tail. Old habits died hard.

Shasill Kaarte

 

[Shasill Kaarte]

Shasill fixed his rebreather to his face and climbed into his landspeeder, already booting up the repulsorlifts. The apprentice raised an eyebrow at Jack's question, but nodded. <<Go ahead.>>

He could already feel that the questions would not be about the mission, but that was fine. Maybe Jack needed to de-stress. And Shasill would allow that, as he needed the man to be fully functional when they arrived at the hidden storage town.

Jack Sandrow

 

[Jack Sandrow]

<<So, say I've been gone for 40 or so years. Can you tell me what the galaxy at large has been up to?>> Jack kicked back a bit in his seat, still keeping an eye out for a tail. <<Major factions at play, planet-shaking events, et cetera...>> He picked at his finger absently, looking over at Kaarte. <<A lot of it is all fuzzy... last I recall, the Omni crisis was coming down hard on Coruscant.>>

<<Also side question, do you have a spare blaster? I've misplaced all of mine.>>

Shasill Kaarte

 

[Shasill Kaarte]

<<Csilla was destroyed, the Brotherhood of the Maw was defeated by the GA, war war war, and a few new factions rising. For example, a few factions that were created recently are the UGF...the Slice Syndicates. Really, you should search this stuff up. I didn't complete school, so my knowledge is sparse.>>

Shasill turned his attention back to the road. They were almost out of the city.

<<Oh, yeah, here. Take this.>> Shasill handed Jack a DL-18. It was cheap, but it would do. Finally, the speeder passed through a dark tunnel, signaling that they had exited Coronet City. Now that there were no restrictions on him, the teenager slammed the accelerator hard and was pushed back into his seat as the speeder picked up speed.

Minutes later, Shasill slowed the vehicle as the road simply...disappeared, like the pavers decided not to put in any more effort. He veered off the road, now hovering above the grassy plains. To the left of the speeder was an incline, and the sun was slowly setting above it.

He hopped out and lowered his hood to block the harsh light, and walked forward, all the way to the edge of the cliff. Shasill ignored the sharp, stinging pain of the razorgrass and lowered himself to the ground, taking out his macrobinoculars. He peeked over the cliff, and immediately ducked back into cover. There was one freighter, approaching low over the ocean. From his brief glance at the base, there seemed to be ten warehouses (just like the holo showed) surrounding the landing pads. A dozen or so loader droids were standing at the ready in front of the landing pad, arms filled with crates.

The roar of the ship's engines got louder and louder. A strong wind whipped over the top of the cliff, nearly tearing off Shasill's cloak. Then, the roar stopped. Three, two, one.

The Sith looked over the edge of the cliff again, and saw that the freighter had landed, and the droids were beginning to load the ship. But there weren't just loader droids. A good dozen or so masked figures were standing there, blaster rifles slung over their shoulders, overseeing the operation. The rebels.

Shasill grinned. This would be a good time. Taking out the arms dealer, and some of the rebels in the same attack.

<<Alright Jack, this is the plan>> Shasill began, turning around to face the man. <<We slide down this cliff and enter the closest warehouse through the backdoor. Take out anyone inside. Then, we try and stop the freighter from leaving.>>


Jack Sandrow

 

[Jack Sandrow]

Jack turned the weapon over in his hand. The old reliable. The familiar weight felt like a return to an old life. He pursed his lips slightly, thinking to himself, before sticking the gun in his jacket. As they left the city, he popped the rebreather off, taking in big lungfuls of fresh air while he pondered the information. Chaos at large, huh? The galaxy might have changed less than he thought.

He stepped out from the speeder in tandem, the razorgrass softly bending away from him with each step. He looked down, kneeling a bit for a moment as his fingers caressed the leaves. "...hey you." A moment later, he shuffled up and took a spot on the cliff edge next to Kaarte.

"So, rules of engagement... Are we killing everyone? Or just incapacitating everyone other than the arms dealer themselves?" His finger tapped the blaster in his jacket absently. "I'm fine with either, but... I'd prefer to avoid bloodshed if possible." A soft snap of his fingers. "Oh! Do you need proof of death?"

Shasill Kaarte

 

[Shasill Kaarte]

As Shasill overlooked the base, he felt Jack’s tremendous Force presence approaching. He turned back and said, <<I will be killing, but you can incapacitate the goons if you want. All that matters is that the Nautolan is dead. And the crew of that freighter. Proof of death? I guess I’ll take the dealer’s head.>>

Without another word, Shasill leapt over the edge of the cliff, landing hard on its smooth face, and sliding all the way down, wind swooshing furiously in his face. Finally, he arrived at the bottom, right before the warehouse’s back door. Nobody was guarding it. The apprentice looked up to make sure Jack was following.

Jack Sandrow

 

[Jack Sandrow]

"I'd rather be doing the incapacitating, if it's all the same to you." Jack slid down after the other, palm out and the Force flowing to cushion his fall. Landing light as a cat, he followed Kaarte as a small twig jumped from the ground to alight in his palm. "You want I should take point? Or do you want to lead on this?" he murmured, voice a rustle in the leaves.

Shasill Kaarte

 

[Shasill Kaarte]

Shasill took off his rebreather, stuffing it in his robe pocket. It was useful when in a landspeeder going hundreds of kilometers an hour so that the wind didn't prevent him from breathing. Funny thing. So much air in his face that he couldn't breathe. Something due to air pressure? One of the wonders of the galaxy. At least for a teenager. Ugh, why am I thinking about this? Focus on the mission!

Shasill replied, "Sure, go ahead with incapacitating. But I'll be the lead on this."

He wasn't about to let a stranger lead his mission. Jack was cool and all, but the apprentice didn't trust him for a minute.

Shasill inclined his head towards the entrance, crouch-walking to it. He pressed a button, and the door slid open. I guess nobody locks their back doors nowadays...

The apprentice invited himself inside, and at a single glance, he could tell what he was working with. Massive towers of cargo boxes were stacked almost to the ceiling, maybe thirty meters up. There were heavily modified loading droids with repulsors on their feet, hovering by the tallest tower. Seemingly trying to take down some of the crates. Straight ahead, though, was the main entrance. It was a blast door that was as tall as the ceiling, and forty meters wide. Quite the warehouse.

Suddenly, there was a tremor in the ground as the blast door began to open. Outside, he could see several normal loading droids marching in, coming to get more weapons to load on the freighter. And two masked enemies were coming with them. Shasill motioned for Jack to follow, and he dove behind a tower of cargo. Carefully, he peeked around it to his left...the rebels weren't looking. One of the loader droids was staring at the Sith, but good thing they weren't programmed to atta-

Shasill felt a warning in his head, and his eyes widened in disbelief as the loader droid's claw hands snapped aside to reveal dual blaster cannons. He barely took cover again before red light flashed past him, burning a sizeable crater into the duracrete floor. Of course the arms dealer's loading droids weren't just built for carrying cargo.

"Looks like we're spotted," he said to Jack.

Jack Sandrow

 

[Jack Sandrow]

"So I see." Jack fished the blaster out of his jacket, tossing a few bolts over his head at random. He tossed the stick in his hand, sighing as he eyed the kid. Definitely kid. Probably his first rodeo, too. "Alright, my turn."

Lifting the stick in his hand, he closed one eye, the stick sharpening in his hand into a lethal-looking flechette. "And... away." His fingers flicked forward, and the freshly-made thorn embedded itself in the droid's headpiece. A half-breath later, and the thorn yanked itself out, whistling through the air into another droid's face. "...Like riding a speeder..." Jack hummed, letting a grin slide across his face, his fingers twitching as the thorn smashed into one droid, then the next.

"You getting involved? or am I just cleaning up after your mess?" Jack joked with a smirk, eyes sliding over to the other Forcer next to him.

Shasill Kaarte

 

[Shasill Kaarte]

Shasill watched in awe as the stick, which he thought would break on impact with the droid's metal head, pierced through it unharmed. He whirled back around to face Jack (and to dodge a sizzling laser blast from one of the rebels) and said, "What kind of..."

He shut his mouth and decided to ask that question later. For now, it was his turn to show this green man what even a Sith apprentice could do. Shasill stood up, pressing his back against the tower of boxes. He had an idea for a second...but it was too impractical. He would have tried to use the Force to push the tower of crates over, but there would be many problems with that idea. First, he didn't know what was in there. If some fusion bomb went off... well. Second, the tower looked impossibly high, now that he gave it a thorough observation. And heavy. It wouldn't impress to have to ask Jack to help him push it over.

So instead Shasill went for his lightsaber, stepping out into the narrow walkway between the "skyscrapers". One of the rebels was waiting for him, and fired. Before the man's finger even hit the trigger, Shasill's crimson lightsaber was already ignited in position to deflect the attack. And he did. The bolt was batted back straight towards the rebel's stomach, dropping him. He was writhing in pain, and he had dropped his blaster. Too bad.

Shasill walked over and ended him swiftly with a cut to the neck. Suddenly, his vision brightened and a red haze spread to his right. A warning. He turned just in time to see one of the "loader" droids fire three shots at him. The apprentice twirled his lightsaber, deflecting all of them away. Before the droid could fire again, Shasill dashed forth, lightsaber extended. The blade pierced right through his target's torso area, frying circuits and wires. But the droid wasn't done yet. It kicked at him. Kicked! Stupendous.

The metal leg caught Shasill in the stomach, driving the air out of him and causing him to stumble back. Kriffin' droid. Rage filled the teenager's heart and mind. How dare a simple droid, not even built specifically for combat, catch a Sith off guard!

His face contorted in anger, Shasill lowered his lightsaber and extended a hand. He imagined lightning flying from his fingertips...no. He wasn't that skilled yet. Instead, a powerful Force push sent the droid flying back into the sharp corner of one of the crates, impaled through the head.

He turned back to face the last rebel...she was running. Running! Shasill wouldn't allow that. He threw out his hand, then pulled back. The woman followed his will, and came flying back towards him, landing on the floor a meter ahead. The apprentice plunged his lightsaber into her stomach and sighed. That Force Rage had taken a lot out of him. He made a note to practice his endurance when he was back "home", and extinguished his lightsaber. "Jack? The room is clear. Let's go take out the freighter before it leaves."

Jack Sandrow

 

[Jack Sandrow]

Jack let out a low whistle. Despite the Sith's lack of training (but no lack of Force power), he knew how to wield a blade with skill that already equaled Jack's. Jack moved through the box-sky-scrapers, avoiding the rebels or knocking them down as he went. Kicking off a few walls, he smashed a boot across another rebel's face, hopping down just as another rebel was yanked back and impaled. He winced slightly, but after a moment, shrugged it off.

"Right, a minor concern about that." The rumble of freighter engines resonated through his feet, and he eyed Shasill with a slow grin. "Okay, new idea. I Force boost you up to the freighter, you take it down, and I'll follow in the speeder?" Fights at heights weren't really Jack's forte.

Shasill Kaarte

 

[Shasill Kaarte]

Shasill let out a low growl, the same note as the freighter's engines taking off (not the same octave, of course). He had to move quickly if he wanted to catch the rebels. "Fine, let's go!"

He headed out the warehouse blast door at a sprint, dodging the lasers flying his way as the loader droids noticed him. Trusting that Jack was serious about this, Shasill jumped, feeling his Force power lifting him higher. But he was still depending on Jack's added strength, especially with the freighter's repulsorlifts pushing him down.

Jack Sandrow

 

[Jack Sandrow]

Jack weaved between blaster bolts, the lack of a lightsaber adding an extra level of danger to his movements. "Alright, ready? One, tw- oh." He watched as Shasill leapt into the air, and chuckled briefly before concentrating his own Force power.

Invisible tendrils of power gently wrapped around Shasill, cradling him from the buffeting repulsorlifts, as the Force-wrapped Sith was suddenly plucked upwards, racing skyward as if pulled on a string, the acceleration quick but not horrifically jarring. The Force around him gently let go at the apex of the flight, and now moving in a ballistic arc, Shasill was on an easy downward course right onto the top of the freighter.

Satisfied that the kid had his choice of targets to land on, and also satisfied that Shasill could handle himself just fine solo, Jack spun around and began sprinting up the cliffside, plant roots punching out from the dirt to catapult him right up to the ridge. Plunking down in the speeder a moment later, he fumbled for the starter before punching the accelerator. "God I hope this works." Just as he crested the ridge, now in the speeder, he cranked the repulsorlifts and gulped as his stomach leapt into his throat, the massive hunk of metal now plunging to the ground with a complaining squeal of the engine. A loud THUD and bump almost knocked Jack's head against the steering wheel, but the underside was mercifully unharmed. Well, mostly unharmed. Well, at least that dent was there when he found it. Probably.

Now reacquiring the freighter, he used the scope of the blaster rifle to keep an eye at a distance. Drat. Commlinks should have been shared beforehand, he realized quite belatedly.

Shasill Kaarte

 

[Shasill Kaarte]

To the left a bit more... there. Shasill tucked into a roll and came up in a crouch. He was on the dorsal hull of the freighter. And man, were the winds strong up here. His cloak had flown off a few seconds ago, and was beyond rescuing in the thrashing waters below. The apprentice was on his belly, fighting to gain every inch towards the hatch just ahead. He was grabbing onto each and every small crevice in the hull.

Finally he made it to the rectangular hatch and slapped the release button. The hatch opened wide, and Shasill fell into it gratefully. After crashing to the floor, rising, and dusting himself off, he hit the close button, and he was fully inside the freighter. Now, where was he?

Shasill surveyed his environment. He was in a narrow corridor, with access panels all around. A turbolift was behind and to the left, while there were two doors ahead. The Sith decided to take a bit of a gamble and guess he was on the same floor as the pilots. Now...how to do this? Would he take out the pilots first and return to the ground? No, that would draw too much attention. He would take out everyone else in the freighter, and save the pilots for last. That way, he didn't have to worry about any rebel soldiers busting into the cockpit while he was trying to land this heap of junk. Any distraction could be catastrophic.

The teenager made his way into the lift and hit the down button. Seconds later, the door opened to reveal three hooded men with blaster carbines in hand, talking to each other in Huttese. From behind, the young menace ignited his lightsaber and cut them all down in one slash. "Dotkot bo kouocea!" yelled another soldier, who happened to be standing in a corner right in front of him. He'd been spotted.

Shasill quickly silenced the rebel with a stab to the heart. Now to search for the rest of them. He stalked down a darkened corridor, though his lightsaber revealed the narrow hallway's secrets meter by meter with a crimson glow. He rounded a corner... into a barracks. The men were asleep. How cute.

Half a minute later, they were all slain and Shasill was outside the cockpit. He gripped his saber tightly and pressed the open button. Nothing. He slammed it in anger. Nothing. Kriff!

And then Shasill remembered he was holding a lightsaber. He plunged it into the door and carved a neat circle into it. The remaining chunk fell inward, surprising the pilots inside. The apprentice entered through the opening and rose to his full height (not much). One pilot pulled a blaster, but both he, his copilot, and Shasill knew there was nothing they could do. They were hacked down by the red blade.

Once Shasill had cleared their bodies from the seats, he cracked his knuckles and began to bring the freighter back, touching down right outside a closed warehouse.

Jack Sandrow