Luminosity

[Relina Zhan]

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

Relina had been making some sharp, combat-like manoeuvres, indeed. However, the airspeeder wasn't meant for that and had its limits on just how manoeuvrable it was. The thing simply couldn't make the high-G turns she preferred in military aerospace craft. This was just a sexy hotrod she flew when a fighter wouldn't exactly be appropriate or technically legal in a non-combat area. "Perhaps he isn't a man at all. Who knows?" she asked. "At least most of our men are gentlemen, but we aren't an exception when it comes to diversity in personalities. Some men are fools and do their traditional social standing no favours... although the same can be said for some women, too." she added as she angled toward a tunnel.

When Josh asked her to slow down, she blinked in hesitation. her immediate unspoken thought was .... wat?... Then, she glanced over to him a brief moment and saw him reach for the famed Jedi's weapon, his Lightsabre. She hit the airbrake to slow down gradually, dipping the nose of her speeder slightly and carefully so she can get into the tunnel without Josh's head hitting the threshold. "Be careful..." she said, somehow impressed by the grace of the weapon, although the sound of it bothered her a little.

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

"Bah, kark the Hapan standards.... Man... Woman.... What does it matter? If they're a scumbag, sweetheart... They're a scumbag. Why expect any more or any less depending on if they're a man or a woman, just because of your states preferences? Someone's a skittlefart? They're a skittlefart" He would crack as the top doors would open and he would soon find himself standing on the roof. He waited for her to take his request to slow the speeder down as his lightsaber would hum as it seemed to be anticipating the strike. Once she did slow, he grinned as he would wait for them to come close enough before suddenly getting a running start. The Jedi would quickly use the force to augment his jump as he leaped high into the air. "Wooooo!" Joshua would cry out as he would soar through the air, before landing on the windshield of the enemy speeder.

"Hi!" Josh would chirp happily toward their pursuers in the speeder before he would have to somersault across the roof to dodge blaster fire coming from the windows. Quickly, he held out his free hand and snapped it forward, causing the heads of the driver and passenger - if any - to smash into the wheel - or bar if the other seat, knocking them unconscious. Josh let out a sigh in relief as the speeder would stop in the air.... Though that relief stopped the moment the controls on the speeder started crackling and he could see hits of electricity start to emit from the malfunctioning speeder. Looks like they'd hit it too hard, because now the speeder was going down, and it was going down fast!

The Jedi Master's pupils would shrink the moment he realized what was happening.

"..... There are plans that I think through... And then there's this" Joshua would remark, facepalming as he would look toward Relina's speeder above him in a panic, then started to scan for buildings that he might be able to jump onto the roof of if they neared it to save himself, if there wasn't going to be anything to catch him when this thing crashed...

[member="Relina Zhan"]

 

[Relina Zhan]

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

Relina, luckily, was watching the feat, rather impressed. She had really only heard of such things being possible by users of the Force, but for her to witness it firsthand? Part of her had a renewed healthy respect for space-wizards. She saw the other speeder stop. Whatever he just did apparently had some positive effect... until the thing started to take a nose dive... with Josh still on it. Relina gasped and turned her speeder around and downward to go after him... or try to anyway. They were at least 600 metres above the bustling city streets below. The fall could be fatal and she wasn't particularly interested in seeing if Josh could stick the landing unharmed. Jedi had amazing abilities, but surely immortality wasn't one of them.

"SWAXI'F!" She nearly shrieked as she 'floored' it, so to speak. Really, she just threw the throttle forward as far as it would go, hoping to the gods, the saints, whoever happened to be watching their back from on high today, if anyone, that she could reach Josh in time.

"Come on... come ooooon... dammit! GO!" she grumbled to the machine as it rapidly accelerated... albeit not quite fast enough to suit her. The media would be eating this up, no doubt. In public, they always managed to catch things like this. She doubted the secret could be held in for long... that is, without her lawyers assistance.

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

Immortality really wasn't one of them. And that was pretty obvious considering the Jedi was looking around trying to find a building that he could leap onto once it got close enough. But so far, he hadn't found anything. This... Would probably kill him. Good chance. "Well, I had a good run" The Jedi would joke to himself as he would look up at Relina, who was flooring it on her civilian speeder. Hmm.... Perhaps.....

The gears were spinning in his head as he would stare up at her speeder.... And then a mischievous little grin crossed his face as he would begin to build up the power it would take....

Finally, he would get a running start and leap high into the air, aided by the Force, as high as he could. Once he stopped going up, he started going down. And then he started flailing his arms like he was trying to fly. Okay, seriously, Relina needed to catch him ASAP.

"Well, Josh, it was nice knowing you" Josh would talk to himself. "I would like to thank the academy for granting me such a gruelling death that involves the stuff of my nightmares. No. Seriously. I totally appreciate it. I totally appreciate you having me fall to my death. Oh brain, why do you work like this"

[member="Relina Zhan"]

 

[Relina Zhan]

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

Relina was watching the falling speeder like a hawk. She saw Josh shoot straight up with inhuman swiftness and power, at which she threw back the throttle again to airbrake as she pulled up. She'd then bring the speeder down, as if attempting to land it, when Josh started to fall again. She wouldn't exactly match his falling speed, but he also wouldn't reach terminal velocity at the distance they were. At least some descent should cushion his landing.

Relina opened the roof as well to give him more area to land in. "... please don't land on me." she thought out loud. She'd lean over to her right as far as she could, since the pilot's seat was on the right-hand side. Meanwhile, sirens could be heard approaching. It would seem Hapan Security was on the way... finally.

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

Oh thank the Force gods, if the Force actually had gods. Relina had just managed to land below him, and he would happen to land in the seat next to her, on his feet. It certainly cushioned the blow at least, though his legs felt wobbly as he would turn and sit down in the seat. He smirked over at Relina as he buckled up and gave her a thumbs up, his breathing heavy. Inhuman or not, these feats took a lot of energy. His own conditioning combined with his skill was likely the only reason he had survived long enough to even land in her speeder.

"Thanks" He said, looking over at the source of the sirens. "Took them long enough, huh?"

[member="Relina Zhan"]

 

[Relina Zhan]

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

Relina ascended a little to get out of the way, but waited until the cops got to them. It was likely they'd want to cordon off the area where the fallen speeder had crashed and would certainly want a statement. "That is twice you have interfered with an assassination attempt against me. I still owe you one." she said with a soft smile.

There was an instruction and identification over the comm wired to the panic button. Relina replied back in Hapan with an affirmative and turned the speeder downward toward the crash site. Escorted by Security, she landed her speeder on a pad to the side of the pedestrian walkways. Security operatives were already responding to the scene. "Yes... Good Morning Gallinore will make this a headline... " she said as a news crew was attempting to get as close as they can with their holocam droids.

Relina stepped out of her airspeeder and began explaining to one of the ranking security operatives, a lean red-headed female, who was jotting down her statement. The conversation was, while sterile and to the point, mellifluous all the same. Hapan was a romance language if there ever was one.

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

"I suppose I can't argue with that" He joked. Although she'd caught him in the middle of an attempt to save her life, did it count? Eh, he'd count it. He relaxed back against the seat, wanting to try and rest and regain his strength as the speeder, escorted by security, would go down toward the crash site. His gaze would turn toward it as they came ever closer to what could have been his fate if he hadn't jumped. "Eesh..." He remarked as he peered at it. "That looks nasty"

He peered over at the news crew and sighed. "Well, if there was ever a time to turn being on TV into a modelling career, this would be a good one" The Jedi would joke, rolling his eyes a bit. They just lapped at any chance to get a scoop that they could, wouldn't they? And of course they'd jump right on this one. Ducha Of Gallinore chased by assassin in speeders. Jedi Master leaps through the air to save the day. The kind of story they'd kill for, he was sure.

He couldn't understand a damn thing she said, so the Jedi would just stand beside Relina, arms folded, staring at the wreck, imagining just how close he'd been to being on it when it had crashed.

[member="Relina Zhan"]

 

[Relina Zhan]

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

The Security lady nodded and closed her datapad. She issued orders to the other Security operatives present to keep the gathering crowd away.

"She has my side of the story, although i doubt our acquaintance there is going to be telling his." she said, pointing out the wreck. There was a man in the cockpit who looked dead. Either that or deeply comatose. A medical speeder flew in overhead and began steadily lowering to the ground. The cops present would help move the crowd out of the way.

"I also advised her that we are heading to the Security spire and we'll be escorted for safety. They seem interested in your involvement, however. You'll likely be questioned. You have the right to have an attorney present during questioning, so i can call my lawyer to help if you wish." she offered.

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

".... Wait, what?" The Jedi Master would inquire, looking over at her when she would start bringing up attorneys and such. "Why would I need an attorney? Anyone with eyes could see what happened clear as day. The Ducha and a Jedi were taking a tour of the city in a civilian vehicle, which was fired on by a vehicle headed by assassins. Jedi leaped out of the vehicle and took the opposing one down, and the civilian vehicle caught him while the assassin vehicle crashed. What else is there?" Josh would inquire. Legal mumbo jumbo, after all of the years dealing with the Senate, deeply annoyed him, and that was obvious by the tone of his voice and the look on his face.

"I can't just... Y'know, tell them what I told you and get back to our day out?" Josh would ask, blinking as he looked back at the wreck again. ".... Well, looks like that guy won't be talking about his bold attempt to assassinate a Ducha" He remarked toward the man in the cockpit. "Two assassination attempts in a row, dear... You really gotta be careful"

[member="Relina Zhan"]

 

[Relina Zhan]

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

Relina waved her hands a little in a placating manner. "You're not under suspicion, Joshua. I'm just informing you of how it works here. If you wish, you can just tell them what happened. They know what happened last night, too. Worry not." she said. Something told her that maybe she should be present at least. They would probably want to pick her brains more, too.

At being careful, she would nod with a sarcastic grin. "Ah, yes. Someone out there evidently wants me dead for some gods-damned reason, but with a little care, surely I can evade them, no?" she asked. "I'm not going to hide myself away, you know." Relina was not the type to run when things got dangerous. She was a fighter.

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

The Jedi would take a deep breath and nod at her response. After so many years dealing with the Senate, anything that had to do with politics, lawyers or court sessions.... Honestly just really, really irritated him. If he could avoid it in any way, shape or form, he would. The idea of a lawyer being needed possibly, understandably caught him off guard, especially as he was unfamiliar with how the Hapans dealt with questioning. Their ways were still unknown to him, so he wouldn't know if he'd done something wrong or not in his bid to save the Ducha from assassination.

"I'll just tell them what happened then go take a nap or something. All heroic people tell their stories and then go take a nap, right?" The Jedi would joke with a cheeky grin. "Ah, the life of a Ducha. How envious I am. Assassination attempts left and right, every single day. How lucky you are, Ducha" Josh would joke again, chuckling.

[member="Relina Zhan"]

 

[Relina Zhan]

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

Relina nodded. "They just want a formal statement from you, from what I understand. Twice now you've gotten between me and a would-be killer. Even though you're the hero, the justicce system still has its red tape." she said with a shrug. "If you wish, I'll sit in with you."

She'd giggle at his next snarky comment. "Actually, I haven't had any attempts on my life since the last war. Of course, being that it was war and I am a combat pilot, those who were trying to kill me may or may not have known nor cared who I am. This is very deliberate and someone wants me, specifically, dead. They have not gone after my sister for some reason...." Relina trailed off, as if in thought. Her intuition was poking her hard. ".... Hmmmm." she hummed as the thought of someone close to her family crossed her mind. She didn't know why she of a sudden got this idea in her mind, but she kept it to herself for the moment. "Anyway, we will go as soon as they get the body to the Medical centre."

Medical personnell were already working to that end as she spoke.

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

The Jedi nodded in response, seeming to understand a little better. "Well, I guess a formal statement wouldn't hurt. Apologies for the outburst. Politics... Never really sit well with me" He admitted, laughing a bit. "If you wish to sit with me, I'd appreciate that. I'll try to keep from booting you in the rump out of boredness while I'm there" He teased with a playful smile. At least he hadn't lost his sense of humor.

The idea that they hadn't gone after her sister yet though... He'd noted that. But he tried not to think maybe her sister had something to do with it. He really hoped not.

He nodded, and waited for them to be ready to go.

[member="Relina Zhan"]

 

[Relina Zhan]

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

Relina smirked and moved closer, just a bit, on purpose. The move was subtle, but the holocams were pointed at her by now. Her face was hard to mistake to the locals. "... Yes... I think I shall have some sort of damage control on standby..." she murmered.

Soon, the scene was resolved and it was time to move on after this unwelcome diversion. Relina got back into the airspeeder and was escorted to the Security tower with Josh, getting back on schedule with their itinerary. The man who made the arrest the night before had been waiting for them on the landing pad.

"Welcome. I had heard what happened. It would seem your enemies persist. Perhaps the situation is more serious than we initially gathered." The Master at Arms opened. "We haven't yet begun, but Miss Tamm is ready for you both, as requested." He then looked to Josh. "And afterword, my good man, we will require a report from you as well for the investigation. I apologise for any inconvenience, but... procedures and protocol."

Relina steeled herself for what must be done. Someone she considered a friend and what might as well be family was in the interrogation room awaiting confrontation prior to holding and the inevitable court date... everything one would expect from an attempted murder case. Relina hated to think about it. She sighed and nodded her own ascent. "...very well. The sooner this is over with the better." She kept Josh's suggestion of what to do with her in mind.

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

The Jedi smirked, noting her moving a tad closer. "Or maybe I'll let myself fall victim to temptation after all" He'd whisper with a playful, teasing smile. He couldn't help but tease Relina just a little bit after that. The timing was just too good. Once the scene was resolved and they were escorted to the security tower for briefing, the Jedi would try not to look bored and irritated once the guy - who he could almost swear was the same doofus from before - started talking. He tried to hide his irritation when he was reminded that a report would be required. He'd done enough paperwork as Grandmaster, he wasn't keen on doing more. Oh well.

"I gotcha. Procedures, protocols, all that lot" He spoke, trying not to sound bored. It looked like the interrogation would be next. He just hoped that Relina would know to do the right thing. Not just morally, but to prevent herself from making more enemies as well.

[member="Relina Zhan"]

 

[Relina Zhan]

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

Relina followed behind the Master at Arms. She really didn't want to have to do this, but better was it she endured this than more attempts on her life than was strictly necessary in the meantime. As they entered the building, the shape of a small firearm flashed bright and clear over her right side and a bevelled rectangle on her left. She had been scanned by a passive, minimally invasive security system that sought solid objects on one's person. The small hold-out blaster on her person was obvious. The other object turned out to be her commlink, the casing for which contained her bank card and ID in a small sleeve thereon. She would produce the items, checking her gun to make sure the safety was on and that it was powered down, before turning them over for safekeeping.

"Perhaps I ought to have brought my rapier. It would have been more conspicuous, no?' she asked, her tone slightly sarcastic sounding. The officer in charge of the security system chuckled lightly. She replied a response in Hapan, to which Relina replied back and a thank you. She'd then move forward a few paces, figuring they would have noticed what her companion carried.

"Just as well, I started fencing when I should still have been playing with dolls." she added, looking to Josh.

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

The Jedi Master followed alongside Relina briskly, his expression serious and emotionless, giving nothing away to onlookers or observers. He preferred his cards to be kept close to his chest, in this instance. He didn't seem bothered by the stop when they entered the building, and showed no emotion still when they were scanned. Pretty standard fare for a security era, he supposed. He had his lightsaber, and a few "just in case" weapons, and he'd flash his belt after being scanned but didn't hand them over. He had his reasons, of course. If Relina were attacked again, there was no way in hell he was letting her be killed because the security were idiots and he was unarmed.

The Jedi chuckled when she brought up fencing. "Perhaps we could spar later?" The Jedi would offer. "I can set my saber to low power, won't do much if it hits" He would add.

[member="Relina Zhan"]

 

[Relina Zhan]

[member="Joshua DragonsFlame"]

Relina looked to the officer, who seemed a little eager to liberate Josh's weaponry. "For what it is worth, I can vouch for my hero." she said evenly. She didn't expect it to work, knowing that even she turned over her things. The officer looked back to her a moment.

"Alright, My lady." She said after a moment's thought. Technically, those protocols were in place for a reason, but Jedi were... well, they were a grey area anyway. She let him pass after realising what the flashing hologram outlining the shape of a lightsabre was.

".... If you're sure that it won't damage me, then sure." she said in response to Josh's suggestion. "Although I would imagine you can manoeuvre that thing better than I can any weapon. Jedi have a reputation, you know? I trust there is a kernel of truth to it." Relina had seen Jedi do Jedi things before. She had never fought one before, but was aware that they had some sort of space magic at their disposal that gave them an edge. From what little she understood of the Force, it allegedly required a measure of control over it to be able to wield a weapon that bore weight only in its hilt and generated a cumbersome gyroscopic force that would confound even the strongest of blademasters.

They would move onward toward the interrogation room where Coryn was seated, still dressed as she was the night before, although her hair wasn't quite as neat. She only had binders mag-locked on her wrists and there was a Security operative supervising. Relina walked in, once again with mixed feelings about the woman before her. "Shall I wait outside, Joshua?' she asked, unsure if he needed to be alone with her or not.

 

[Josh Dragovalor]

When the officer seemed eager to relieve him of his weaponry, the Jedi stared a hole through him, an icy look in his eyes that pretty much told him "No" without him speaking a word. They might be gun-control-crazy idiots, even while their Ducha was here and liable to be attacked while it was publicly known where she was, but he wasn't one. With the Ducha's blessing, of course, they would let him pass. Good. He wouldn't have taken kindly to it if they had tried to take his lightsaber by force. He wasn't afraid to defend himself if they got a little too touchy, even with Relina there. He spent so many years with the Republic trying to put the Jedi under their thumb and pacify them to their needs... He'd freed himself from that. The Hapans wouldn't be allowed to try the same.

He smirked faintly as they walked, once they passed, and Relina had answered. "Well, I have little fencing experience, I'm more used to my lightsaber... And you're more used to your fencing rapiers. Would you rather a pacified, weakened and nowhere near in strength version of me to spar with, or the real me?" He would answer, with a chuckle. It was something to consider. Did she want to spar with Josh? Or did she want to spar with someone who wasn't used to rapiers?

But alas, it was time. Time for the interrogation. Once Relina left, he stepped forward, stopping in front of the serving woman who had tried to kill Relina earlier.

"Boo" He spoke, smiling faintly.

[member="Relina Zhan"]