Star Wars Roleplay: Chaos

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Private Misadventure on Nar Shaddaa


Nar Shaddaa
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Memories of Tatooine flooded Talo's mind as he wandered the busy, grimy streets of Nar Shaddaa. The two planets were similar, it was a breeding ground, a cesspool for scum and villainy and that was exactly what he was there for. The Network has given him a job, a job to bring in a dirty cop - dead or alive. She was making deals with the local Hutts and other crime families to improve her own standing, she needed to be taken down and soon so a semblance of order can be restored on this karkin' planet.

Regardless, this was his first proper job and as a Mandalorian he knew a lot was expected of him - Talo was somewhat anxious to get this job right, not only for himself but for the honour of his people too, for they had already been through enough as it was. Currently, the young Mandalorian was en route to a cantina in order to meet a contact that had information on the dirty officer.

As Talo neared the designated cantina, he noticed something interesting. Still getting used to his beskar, or lack thereof, he would admit one thing: the fear, anxiety and respect these criminals would display when glancing at Talo was satisfying, completely contrasting the way others would look down on him as an orphan on Tatooine.

Shai Maji Shai Maji
 
This was great! Not only did she score a deal with the Hutts just in time, but she also received word that a dirty cop would be helping her out. If nothing else, having a dirty cop as a friend on a planet like this was always a good thing. They had great sources of jobs, kept her in the loop and could be trusted to get people out of a bust...if they were the good type. She had a sneaky suspicion she had to bring a Beskar back plate with some Durasteel reinforcing along for this job. While she didn't do that, she did bring her trusty pistol and thermals along for the ride.

She was nearing the meeting point but a glance at the time told her that she was fashionably early. With nothing better to do for the next hour, she headed down to a nearby cantina.

She entered the cantina and headed over towards the counter. "Beer, please...with a shot of Tevraki." she ordered and the bartender provided. She hopped onto a stool and lit a cigarette while waiting for her drink. She turned around and glanced at the patrons while waiting for her drink. A bit of a mistake to do for a woman on the seedy side of this planet. She spotted some guys checking her out and instead turned back around with har hand gliding down to her pistol. "Mind turning that bottle just a little? Just to get the label out the way?" she asked the bartender who eyed her curiously for a few moments. Shai lightly nodded to the direction of the two brutes approaching. He got the idea and did her one better by placing a very reflective piece of metal there for her to use as a mirror.

She gave him a tip for the improvised mirror and downed the shot before taking a sip of the beer. She waited for the brutes to introduce themselves, her hand ready for if they tried to get frisky with her. The one guy sat down beside her while the other one leaned on the counter on her other side. "Hey, how you doin'?" the first one asked. She merely chuckled and lightly blew the smoke of her cigarette in his face. "Would be better without the stench sandwiching me." she quipped, glancing at his friend. They were big. If she couldn't get a shot in first, she would be in trouble...

Talo Krayt Talo Krayt
 

Entering the cantina, all eyes turned to him - it wasn't unexpected, it was something Talo was still getting used to. Regardless, he said nothing before continuing on his path to meet the contact. It was said that the meet-up would be at the bar, so, that's where he headed. On his way toward the bar counter, he noticed two guys sandwiching a Shistavanen - probably unwanted no doubt.

Reaching the counter, he leaned forward relaxing his arms on the counter and stood just beside one of the men, ignoring what was going on. He maintained a calm demeanour as he would wait for the contact to arrive - however, he couldn't help but overhear the annoying advances these men were making on the Shistavanen.

Rolling his eyes under his helmet, he sighed loudly for them to hear "You want to keep your hormones off her for two parsecs?" he asked rhetorically, cold and unimpressed, T-visor still facing forward. These men were big, bigger than him even, but... he was confident he could handle them if they tried anything - otherwise, what were those six years in the Fighting Corps for? One of the men turned their head to face him, approaching him and looked Talo up and down "How's about you mind your business and back off, Mando?" he threatened.

Talo hovered his hands over his vibrodaggers before relaxing them. He grinned under his T-visor, these morons weren't even worth his weapons - if he was going to have to floor them, he'd do it the old fashioned way.

Shai Maji Shai Maji
 
The one behind her pressed more against her. "Now no need to be like that, sweetheart." he said which earned a glare from Shai. "We're simply looking for a good time, you-" he was cut off when a voice spoke up behind them. Shai glanced at the mirror to see the T-visor staring back. A smile crept onto her lips.

The two brutes turned to face him and both stood up, towering over him. "How about you listen to my friend here, Mando." he threatened, reaching for his holster. But a sudden barrel against his groin stopped him from doing anything else. "How about you listen to what the Mando says and get lost." Shai spoke with a growl. The other one looked like he wanted to do something but Shai beat him to it as she drew his weapon and pressed it against his chin. "Because if you don't listen to the Mando, I'm turning you two into wall plaster. Got it? You're gonna beg for the Mando to save you from me by the time I'm done with you." she rose from her seat and turned to stand beside the Mandalorian, still holding both weapons at the ready. The two thugs exchanged glances and left, glaring at both of them as they exited the building. "Ten creds says they're gonna be waiting outside for both of us." she quipped once they were gone, glancing up at him before handing the bartender the one blaster and holstering her own. "Get him anything he wants, and remember the straw." she ordered the bartender and he complied, waiting for an answer from the man.

"Grab a seat, dude." she quipped with a grin as she nodded to the chair beside her. "Anything with a T-visor is welcome to a drink with me." she said as she lit her cigarette once again and took a drag. "The name's Shai. What brings you to this depressing planet?" she introduced herself, offering him a hand to shake as she held the cigarette with the other.

Talo Krayt Talo Krayt
 

Talo prepared himself for a scuffle but the Shistavanen stepped in and stood her own ground. He simply watched through his expressionless helmet as she did her business, threatening her way out of the situation - he respected it. Reminded him of himself as a boy back on Tatooine. Well, her threats worked as he watched the two men, begrudgingly, went on their way and exited the cantina. The young Mando simply scoffed at her estimation, he wasn't worried about them.

Turning back around, Talo returned to his former position and leaned forward on the counter. "I don't drink when I'm working." he coldly addressed the bartender, turning down the Shistavanen's generosity, he didn't trust anyone on this moon and that wasn't about to change now. The Mandalorian ignored the Shistavanen and remained standing, hinting he wasn't interested in talking. Shai then proceeded to introduce herself and then poked her snout in his business, Talo simply turned his head toward her and said nothing before returning his head forward - if that wasn't hint enough, he didn't know what was.

The Mandalorian then rotated his body, folded his arms and leaned against the counter with his back. As he did so, he noticed a Mirialan female enter the cantina and as she approached the counter, he wondered if this was the contact. The Mirialan stopped a few feet in front of him and asked "You Talo?" arms still folded over his chest "Yeah." he confirmed.

What happened next caught him off guard, his eyes widened in surprise as the Mirialan reached behind her and pulled out a blaster pistol on him. It was a karkin' setup. She had an advantage over him for the simple fact that his armour wasn't completely beskar yet, he had to think fast, activating his retractable Talo swatted at the end of the pistol with it before headbutting her, knocking her out. Things then went from bad to worse as the two men from earlier were launched inside, smoke erupting from their chests, and a group of maybe a dozen thugs entering after them blasters at the ready.

Grabbing Shai by the fabric of her shirt, he threw both of them behind the bar counter to avoid any of the incoming blaster bolts. This right here is why Talo trusted no one. This dirty cop must have been onto him this whole time.

Shai Maji Shai Maji
 
He turned down her offer of a drink and kept to himself. But Shai persisted...that was until he turned his head and Shai got the message. She had picked up a thing or two about reading T-visors by now. She held her hands up defensively and shrugged. "Okay. I can take a hint. No need to threaten me." she quipped with a smile, turning back to her drink. She kept to herself, glancing around and at him now and then as she sipped her beer and ordered another shot.

Her interest piqued, however, when a woman approached the Mando...knowing his name as well. She raised an eyebrow and started to smirk, but that soon faded when she straight up drew a pistol on him. She didn't even have time to react before being yanked over the counter as bolts started flying. "One night stand with a grudge or something?" she asked him with a frown as she drew her pistol and flipped the safety off. Above them she spotted a thug approaching in the little mirror she was using. She quickly got up and blasted a hole through him just before he could get on top of the bar to end them both. She dropped back into cover and looked over to him. "Thanks for the save, by the way." she said quickly, getting that out of the way before anything else.

She quickly peaked over the bar counter and fired a few bolts at the attacking thugs, trying not to hit the innocent bystanders desperately trying to escape. She ducked in behind cover again and glanced at a very nice vintage bottle of brandy hidden beside her. She took hold of it and pulled the free-flow pourer off with her teeth, allowing her to freely take a swig. "Alright, Mando! What's your plan to get out of here?" she asked him with a raised eyebrow, keeping an eye on the mirror to see if anyone else would be advancing.

Talo Krayt Talo Krayt
 

"Sure." Talo answered nonchalantly to Shai's quip - right now, he was focused on the skirmish at hand. This is what he trained for. Adapting to situations gone south. Hearing incoming footsteps amidst the blaster fire, Talo anticipated taking him out but before he could do anything Shai was already on it, the Mandalorian nodded at her in acknowledgement.

Un-clipping his smoke grenades from his belt, his head turned to face Shai "We fight our way out but we keep one alive." he answered bluntly "Keep me covered." Talo would further command before throwing the smoke grenades in opposite directions. Activating his helmet's infrared function, Talo leapt over the bar counter and rushed into the smoke let off by the grenade.

Unsheathing his vibrodaggers, right now he didn't trust Shai but he had to trust in her skills to keep him from getting surprised by the eleven thugs left. Through the T-visor's infrared setting, he spotted the first thug, aiming aimlessly in the smoke and calling out to his partners - Talo swiftly charged at him, using his velocity to slash at the thug's torso before finishing him off from behind. Seeing another thug, attempting to follow the sounds of what had just transpired, the Mandalorian extended his left arm and promptly activated his whipcord launcher, sending it directly at the thug's ankle. Pulling his arm back sharp but swiftly, the thug would be tripped up and slam hard on their back into the ground.

Gripping the rope tightly, Talo heaved the thug over to where his feet were, crouched down and finished him off. Talo scanned the fading smoke for more targets, he and Shai would have to take them out quickly.

Shai Maji Shai Maji
 
He told her to cover him and she gave a nod, ready to do just that as she held her oversized pistol with both hands. He leapt over the counter and she stood up, resting on it and taking aim...but what he didn't factor in was the fact that Shai didn't have a means to see through the smoke. She stood awkwardly and listened to everything happening in the smoke, but gradually relaxed and gave an annoyed frown.

Pretty soon her pistol was on the counter, a bottle was in her left hand and her right hand was holding up her head with her elbow on the counter as she stared at the smoke with boredom and annoyance. She took a swig every time she heard a guy dying and pretty soon the bottle was empty. She was about to go for another one until she spotted Talo as well as one guy behind him. The thug noticed Talo and was about to shoot him in the back of the head...until a bolt smashed into his gun arm and completely removed it from the rest of his body. the man screamed in agony as he fell backwards, clutching the messy stump of what was left of his arm. Behind the counter, Shai was holding her smoking pistol with a smug grin. "There's that one alive for you." she quipped before spotting another guy emerging from the smoke. She lobbed two bolts at him and lowered herself behind the counter, poking only her head and pistol out to keep an eye on everything...until her free hand felt a bottle underneath the counter and that quickly found its way to her lips again.

Things went back to normal as she waited for him to finish up, shooting any of the thugs that emerged from the smoke...the ones he didn't carve up first, at least.

Talo Krayt Talo Krayt
 

Talo charged toward another thug and dropped into a slide to avoid a stray blaster bolt coming his way, before slashing at the thug he targeted's ankles as he slid passed. Halting himself, the Mandalorian twisted round and positioned himself on one knee, then grabbed the back of the thug's head, wound it back and slammed it into the floor.

As the smoke began to dissipate, the Mandalorian whipped his head round after hearing a blaster shot go off behind him - luckily, it was Shai watching his back. The canine-like woman took out a straggler by literally disarming him, good, he'd use him for questioning later. Looking in her general direction he gave her an appreciative nod. Seconds later, he would continue his offensive which lasted for another five to six minutes.

Once that was over with and the smoke had cleared, Talo scanned the now empty cantina's perimeter - when he knew for sure they were in the clear, with his head, he motioned for Shai to come to him. Talo would then step toward the thug Shai had taken care of earlier with a guarded but menacing demeanour. The thug was wriggling on the floor, groaning in pain, clutching what remained of where his hand used to be - placing his boot on the thug's chest, Talo applied heavy pressure and tilted his down where his T-visor would meet the man's eyes.

"Who sent you?" he asked calmly with slight shortened breath behind his tone. The thug attempted to use his remaining hand to move the Mandalorian's foot but to not avail, Talo would simply just apply more pressure - "Go... to... Hell." he gargled, the Mandalorian let out a frustrated grunt before shoving his boot down hard on his chest. Coughing, the thug relented and raised his single hand in defeat "Alrightalrightalright."

As Talo loosened the pressure, the thug coughed and gagged before clearing his throat "It's... it's her. Detective Starsun, someone tipped her off a Mando was after her and she sent us to take you out." for a moment, Talo glanced at Shai before returning to look down on the thug at his mercy. Adding some pressure once more, the Mandalorian demanded answers "Where is she?" growing slightly more impatient - the thug shook his head and attempted to shrug "I-I don't know... once she found out about you, she went off the radar. Even local law enforcement is after her." Talo scanned the thug for a few seconds before deciding to release his boot. The Mandalorian knew he was telling the truth. "Go. You might want to get that looked at." he quipped in a dry manner, T-visor staring at what was left of the thug's hand.

Clenching his hand, the thug slowly limped away and left the cantina. Talo exchanged another glance at Shai "Thank you, for the assist." he nodded, flicking a credit chit in her direction "See you round." with no intention of actually seeing her ever again, he turned toward the exit to begin his search for Detective Starsun.

Shai Maji Shai Maji
 
Soon enough the fighting was over and the smoke cleared. Shai joined up with the Mando and kept her gun pointed at the wounded man as Talo worked on getting information. She was rather miffed when she heard the same cop she was supposed to meet was not only this man's target but also almost got her killed. And now to crown it all off the dude wants to go kill her and not even give Shai the option of getting her money.

He greeted her and turned to leave, making her stop in confusion for just a moment as he neared the exit. "Hey! Now wait up!" she called after him as she picked up the credit and rushed to catch up. Once next to him she matched his speed and holstered her gun. "That cop was supposed to be my contact for a job. A damn expensive one that would get me a lot of money. The least you can do is drag me along so I can at least get some payment out of this if you're going to kill her." she explained to him with an authoritative tone. "So, love it or hate it, I'm coming along." she declared as she walked beside him. "Besides, I don't know where you're from but you don't exactly look like you know the underbelly of this planet. I do. If you wanna get closer to her and actually getting some proper Mando armour that doesn't look cheapskate, I'm a damn good shot at that." she continued to explain, driving home the point that she wasn't going to leave him alone.

She lit another cigarette and glanced around. "So, Mando? Where we heading first?" she asked him, resting one hand on her pistol and the other on her hip as she looked up at him.

Talo Krayt Talo Krayt
 

Ignoring Shai, Talo continued walking out and away from the cantina. As she caught up to him he listened to what she had to say to him - Shai revealed that she in fact had ties to the cop, minimal ones at best, but they were ties nonetheless. A metaphorical light bulb shined on the Mandalorian's helmet, luck seemed to have graced him and this job was about to run a lot swifter.

Without a word out of him, Shai invited herself along but once she mentioned beskar to him Talo's head snapped to her direction. "What do you know about beskar?" he asked in an accusatory manner, Talo had negative opinions on anyone that owned beskar and wasn't a Mandalorian - it was a sacred material and it being in the hands of someone that didn't follow the Code was an insult to him.

Once that matter was dealt with, he stopped in place, folded his arms and faced Shai. His T-visor practically burning a hole in her head. Initially, he was going to go to the local law enforcement precinct and knock a few heads for answers, but with the wild card that was Shai, she was about to make things easier for him "Since she's your contact, you lead the way." the young Mandalorian stated, handing full reign over to the Shistavanen.

Shai Maji Shai Maji
 
The mention of Beskar certainly seemed to catch the Mando's attention. He inquired about it in a tone she didn't appreciate, but now that she had his attention she had something to work with. She stopped and faced him with a smug smirk and a glimmer in her blood red eyes. "Oh not much. Just that you guys get a hardon the size of a Coruscanti skyscraper for the stuff...and that I'm sitting with enough of the stuff to arm a battalion of Mandos. You help me get a proper score out of this mess and I might give you a crate or two. I'm half inclined to just give it to you already, because you look sad compared to the others I've met." she spoke with the greedy confidence one might expect from a criminal like her.

His T-visor glared at her and her glowing crimson gaze fired right back. As kind as she was by nature, she could still be a real jackass when it came to stuff like this. And she wasn't going to back down to a kid like him. Mando or not.

He finally agreed to tag along, letting her lead the way. She huffed and simply stared at him for a few seconds before sticking her right hand out towards him. "Name first. I don't do business with strangers." she said sternly. "Shai Maji." she introduced herself properly this time. She wouldn't move until he gave into her terms. Once he did, though, she would spin on one heel and start marching in a direction. "Follow me then. It won't help to go back to the meeting spot, she won't be there of course." she explained over her shoulder as she glanced around. "Though I'm sure word would reach her that her little attempt to shank your ass failed, so she might even be a little anxious right now. So hopefully she makes enough noise that a dreg or two would hear for us." she continued as she led him through some sketchy walkways.

She tucked at her fingerless gloves and reached into her pocket for a cigarette. She glanced at him as she lit it and blew out a light cloud of smoke into the air. "How old are you, kid? Twenty one? You're a little young to be getting into messy stuff like this, aren't you?" she spoke as she looked him up and down. But her look would fade as she gave a shrug. "Then again, you Mandos are good at this life." she commented as she looked around again.

They eventually reached a parked speeder and Shai hopped in. "Come on. I'm not walking all the way to the lower levels." she said to him as she reached in under the dashboard and started fiddling. Though instead of hotwiring it, she fiddled with a few switches to disengage a security lock. She hit the ignition and the speeder came to life. Once he was in, they blasted forward and flew down to the lower levels of Nar Shaddaa at rather unsafe speeds, missing a few freighters and speeders on the way barely with Shai's reckless flying.

Talo Krayt Talo Krayt
 

Talo's eye twitched in annoyance at Shai's slight dig on his lack of beskar, stirring up insecurities of where he stood as a Mando, though he didn't show it remaining calm in his body language. "Why the hell do you even have beskar anyway?" he queried, staying engaged in this apparent stare off between the two.

Shai earned a light chuckle from Talo, her "business with strangers" rule was pretty amusing. Resting his hands on his belt, his T-visor would meet her gaze once more "Talo." he introduced himself rather bluntly before raising his hand to shake hers. Once introductions were over with, he followed closely behind her through some walkways, she explained that Starsun would be too spooked at their meeting spot - which made sense in hindsight. Eventually, Talo met Shai's pace and walked alongside her.

She lit another cigarette which caused him to roll his eyes under his helmet, then she asked him his age. Talo didn't see how this was relevant at all and simply responded with "Does it matter?" he was mature enough, he had to be, otherwise why would he be wearing this helmet. Casually waving away the smoke he was walking into "You smoke too much." he stated, growing slightly irritated by the smoke's fumes.

Finally, Shai led him to a parked air speeder, Talo watched as Shai hopped inside and messed with the wiring under the dashboard. His shoulders slumped in defeat: it wasn't hers. Great. As if he needed more heat on him. Once she hit the ignition, Talo's T-visor stared at the air speeder as he evaluated his options - it seemed like she was becoming more trouble than she was worth. Then he realised... he didn't have much of a choice, silently, Talo stepped on the speeder's doors and slumped inside the passenger seat. Shai then sped off, aiming directly for the lower levels, Talo clenched the passenger side door tightly as if not to fly out of it. If she kept this up, Shai'd be sending him to meet Kad Ha'rangir soon enough.

Shai Maji Shai Maji
 
It was certainly a fair question. Though she was starting to get tired of his attitude. "Stole it from another smuggler who wanted to sell it to some hate group on Naboo or something. Another Mando was supposed to buy it over but I haven't heard of her in a long time." she answered flatly. At least he introduced himself to a degree, so there was that.

Walking along he commented on her smoking habit which seemed to get a reaction out of her. "And your wannabe tough guy Mando attitude stinks and is getting really annoying but you don't hear me bitching about it." she fired right back with an annoyed tone before glancing at her cigarette. "Well done, you ruined it for me." she grumbled as she flicked the half smoked cigarette against his helmet, watching it ricochet off. In the speeder she kept him in the corner of her eye. A grin formed on her lips as she watched him tense up with her piloting. Just to put him more on edge, she rotated the speeder vertical and flew right between two other speeders flying side by side. With a cackling laugh she straightened out and turned off into a different direction. "Relax, kid! I might not be much of a fighter, but I definitely know my stuff when it comes to piloting. Give me a speeder or a ship and I'll work magic for you." she assured him casually as she shifted her position. The speed slowed to a calmer number and Shai relaxed. Her arm rested on the doorframe, barely holding the wheel while her other hand laid in her lap.

"You never mentioned which clan you're from." she spoke up again, glancing at him. "Trust me when I tell you, kid. If I were your enemy, I could have taken you out at the bar. You can stop being on edge the whole time, it's making me nervous." she spoke as she glanced around them. She turned again and headed down a bunch of levels. "I've dealt with a few gangs on this planet. One of them is pretty big, got many eyes all over. They're bound to know something or at least point us in the right direction." she explained as she turned the speeder towards a swoop gang in the distance. "Keep your gun holstered and your attitude in check...otherwise you get vibe checked. These guys don't dick around with strangers." she continued with a serious note as she started to slow down.

Talo Krayt Talo Krayt
 

Her answer... seemed sound, he didn't respond however but he would assume that Shai would take his silence as him accepting the answer she had. Her response to his complaint about her smoking habit indicated that he hit a nerve, prompting a smirk from the young Mandalorian - without turning to meet her gaze, Talo retorted one last time "Struck a nerve?"

Talo glanced sideways at Shai, she was getting a kick out of watching him fear for his life. "You drive like you're on spice!" he snapped back, Talo felt the adrenaline coursing through him and not in the good way. Finally, she slowed down to an appropriate speed which allowed Talo to ease up and loosen his grip on the door frame. His shoulders rose quickly and then slowly lowered as Talo took a relieved but quiet breath, the Mandalorian removed his hand from the door frame and relaxed both hands in his lap. Talo stared forward at the skylanes ahead as Shai assured him he could trust her - her comments on being able to take him out earned her a chuckle.

However, Talo turned his head to face Shai "You wouldn't have heard of it." he stated sorrowfully in response to her question about his clan. He wasn't lying, it was a small clan and reduced to an even smaller number after what had happened on Mandalore. Shai went on to explain about a gang with a lot of eyes scattered around the planet, useful, which explained why they'd be heading there first - then came her warning.

Folding his arms, his eyes were locked on the incoming swoop gang they were about to park near. "Don't worry, I know when and when not to take out my weapons." he retorted. Honestly, he was more worried that Shai would lose her cool and invoke a shootout - he didn't know her well enough to think otherwise. Once Shai had parked a few feet away from the swoop gang that was just hanging around, Talo vaulted over the door frame and onto his feet - Talo maintained his composure but folded his arms once more and leaned against the speeder.

Before she headed off, he halted her by grabbing her bicep "You do the talking, I'll stay here and scope out any attempt at foul play." Talo informed by letting her go and crossing his arms again, watching Shai and the swoop gang.

Shai Maji Shai Maji
 
Hearing his comment on her driving, she answered with a hearty cackling laugh. "If you think this is driving on spice, you haven't seen me actually drive on spice!" she proclaimed through her laugh. However har mood shifted to a mix of sympathy and annoyance as he kept on refusing to tell her his clan name. "Well nobody's gonna hear about if you don't tell people about it! You think the Sith are as famous as they are because they don't tell people about them?" she retorted. "Forget it. You wanna act like a moody teen, be my guest." she dismissed as she drove. "No wonder you mandos die out like flies, you'll never make friends with that attitude." she kept on commenting. Her patience was wearing thin with him at this point. And her patience was wearing thin with herself too. She hated being a hardass. That was reserved for clients and victims, not associates or allies. She took a deep breath and instead focused on the road. "Stop being a douchebag, otherwise I have to be one and I hate being a douchebag." she said with a commanding tone as if scolding a kid.

By the swoop gang they both hopped out. The gangsters were eyeing them and a few pulled their blasters closer, but for the most part they were all relaxed. Music thumped from a souped up speeder and they were all simply doing their own thing. Shai started walking closer but stopped when Talo grabbed her arm. She had to hold a laugh in at the sight of his entire hand fitting around her arm. She smirked and looked up at him. "Like I said, stop being on edge. This is my scene, my dude." she casually reassured him, continuing towards the gangsters. One of them, a Nautolan with a mechanical arm and a girl on his lap, shifted her off and got up. "You got a lot of nerve showing your face around here." he spoke with a voice like sandpaper.

Shai walked right up to him and folded her arms over her chest. "You got a lot of nerve talking like you own the place after still owing me money." she fired right back. He gave a low chuckle and glanced at the Mando behind Shai. "Who's the buckethead? You bring us fresh meat this time around?" he asked, reaching to light a cigarette. But before he could even take a puff Shai casually pulled it from his mouth and smoked it herself. The other gangsters were eyeing her and Talo, clearly on edge and ready to shoot. "Showing him the ropes. By the way your tough guy act is worse than mine, sweetheart." she continued with a bored tone as she handed the cigarette back to him.

The Nautolan glared at her for a second and then at Talo...before bursting with a hearty laugh. "What do you expect, can't look weak in front of the ladies." he quipped with a shrug, bumping Shai's shoulder. Shai chuckled and gave him a smile. "How you been doing, Chase?" she asked him calmly, glancing at the rest of the gang. They all relaxed and holstered their weapons. She looked at Talo and motioned for him to get closer. "The Mando and me need your help. We had a deal with a dirty cop and she tried to kill us. You heard anything?" she asked him, but the gangster merely gave a pained expression. "Oh come on! This the only reason you came to see me?" he teased before looking at the Mando. "Can you believe this?! Coming all this way to simply use me like this!" he kept acting as if he was offended, though it was clearly just another act.

"Cut the theatrics, he's already wound tight. You keep this up he might start blasting." she joked, glancing at Talo with a smirk. "You need to hang out with this guy, he knows how to help you unwind" she quipped, looking back to Chase.

Talo Krayt Talo Krayt
 

Talo ignored her comments, indifferent to what her opinions were - he was extremely protective of his clan, even more so after Mandalore. However, her comment and her tone; as if she was talking down to a child prompted Talo to turn his head toward her "It's not personal." he stated bluntly "But you'll just have to accept it." Talo asserted.

"I'm not on edge, I'm just prepared." he whispered back in a harsh tone. He then watched the exchange between Shai and the gang, arms still folded, he placed a boot on the side of the speeder and balanced himself with one foot. He couldn't hear what was going on but judging by the facial expressions and body movements, it looked tense, however, he maintained his cool and kept an eye on everything. Noticing the other members that surrounded Shai and the Nautolan slightly on edge, his arms loosened as he mentally and physically prepared himself for a skirmish. Then he heard a hearty laugh erupt from the Nautolan she was talking to. Not bad, not bad at all. She pulled through.

Shai motioned for him to go over, and with a quiet sigh, he kicked off the speeder and begrudgingly approached the group. On his way over, he heard the Nautolan address him and jokingly feign offence that Shai was here to use him - "You must be heartbroken." he dryly quipped back, ignoring Shai's comments about him being wound tight, the Mandalorian simply responded "I'll take your word for it." wanting to get this job over with already.

"Alright, alright." Chase relented, throwing his hands in the air. Resting his hands on his hips, his large black eyes glanced between Shai and Talo "I'm guessing that mess in the cantina up top was you two?" Chase asked rhetorically with a smirk "Word has it, that your dirty cop is in hiding. Some secret safehouse the Hutts provided." glancing at Shai next to him, Talo returned to Chase "You know where it is?"

"Weeeeeeell..." Chase glanced at his gang which had now surrounded the three "It might cost ya." he revealed. Talo clenched his fists tight enough you could hear the leather of his gloves tighten, then he regained his composure "Take it off what you owe, Shai." he proposed. Another smirk befell Chase's face as he hooked his index finger and thumb to his chin as if to think it over "Deal." he agreed, winking at Shai "Rumour says the safehouse is somewhere in Wormstew Town, I don't know where though." Talo nodded in appreciation, regardless, it was a lead. Turning around, he passed through the gang members standing behind them "Let's go." Talo commanded as he made his way back to the speeder.

Shai Maji Shai Maji
 
At this point Shai was just trying to press his buttons, get a reaction out of him and laugh as she did it. His interaction with Chase was hilarious to watch and it was becoming more of a struggle to keep her laugh to herself. At least that was the case before she heard Talo's suggestion over the price. The smug smirk disappeared and her eyes went wide as she stared at Talo. "No, wai...what?" she muttered, her eyes dancing between the two. She didn't even get a chance to argue the case before Talo made his way back to the speeder. "You still owe me, Chase!" she grumbled and rushed off before he could even argue. Though she could feel the smug grin on his face even without looking at him.

Wordlessly and with a hard scowl she slowly climbed into the driver's seat and started it up. She calmly turned it around and flew off towards Wormstew Town with a very calm and legal speed. Once they were out of sight from the gangsters and well on their way towards Wormstew Town, she pulled out of the skylane and parked between two buildings in a secluded spot. She took a deep breath and looked at him with a smile and eyes that would befit a serial killer. "Do you have any idea how much the sucker owes me? Fifty thousand. Fifty. Thousand. And because of that little stunt you pulled back there, I won't be getting one single credit from him now because it's gonna be "a favour for a favour"." she explained calmly and politely, her grin unwavering.

She turned more towards him and her grin turned into a vicious snarl. "DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MUCH I NEED THAT KARKING MONEY?!" she suddenly exploded, throwing her hands in the air and leaning right into him. "Listen up, chrome dome! You and I might not like each other. You and I might wanna kill each other. That's fine, we can leave each other alone forever once this job is done. But I'm warning you now, if you ever, EVER, stick your Mando snout in my money business again, I'll tear you a new one! You don't got no karking clue what I need that money for. No karking clue!" she let loose, jabbing a finger against his chest plate as she got right into his face. Her glowing crimson eyes were filled with anger and even a hint of worry, though that might not be abundantly clear in the current situation. She shifted back to her side of the speeder and placed her hands on the wheel, clenching it in a grip of death as she gave him a sidelong glare. "So next time something like that happens again, you keep your trap shut and let me handle the money." she finished, looking back ahead of them.

She worked on starting the speeder again with shaky hands which gave plenty of time if Talo had something to say as well...

Talo Krayt Talo Krayt
 

As Talo waited in the passenger seat, he could feel the hostility in the air between the two. She stayed silent as she drove off and away from the swoop gang and only once when she parked somewhere discreet in Wormstew did it all come to a head. He expected this and simply sat there calm and composed, T-visor locked on to Shai's vicious snarl as he let her air out her, rightful, anger.

Once that was done, she began working on the speeder and Talo would remain silent and still for a few moments, looking straight ahead. Finally, he spoke "You shouldn't have called me over there." he quipped in a monotone manner, with that attempt at an ice breaker out of the way - he did feel slightly bad for what he did, but he just wanted to finish this job. Regardless, he knew that he had now caused issues for the pirate who was just trying to help him out (out of her own interests, of course.)

He stayed silent again, before turning to face her once more "I'll give you half of the profit when this job is complete." Talo assured "Then, I'll help you get the credits you need." he added, remembering the hint of worry he saw on her face as she went off on him. All things considered, he was still a man of honour, he was taught to be by his clan and deep down, he knew he had a responsibility to make this right for her.

With that over with, the Mandalorian would quickly switch the focus back onto the matter at hand - finding Starsun. Talo crossed his arms and gazed ahead again "How many safe houses do you think she can be holed up in?" he asked "Know anyone who works under the Hutt cartels?" Talo added, figuring Shai would have some information since she claimed to know this moon so much.

Shai Maji Shai Maji
 
Shai stopped fiddling with the speeder when she heard his comment, slowly turning her head to glare at him as her face curled into a snarl all over again. But she kept quiet, deciding to just get going so she could get rid of him sooner rather than later. That idea held a solid few seconds until Talo offered a cut of his money on top of the payment.

"I don't want your karking charity..." she hissed as she looked at him again. "I WANT MY KARKING FIFTY THOUSAND CREDITS!" she screamed as she grabbed him by his shoulder and shoved him hard into his side of the speeder. "Help me get what I need, hey? Oh how nice! What, you gonna pull half a million credits out of your ass?! 'Cause guess what, nerf herder! That's how much I need! That fifty would have gotten me that much closer, I might even have been able to pay for parts for my ship! But no! 'Take it off what you owe Shai' he says!" she kept going at him at the top of her lungs, a smile of pure anger and disbelief on her face. She ran her hands through her hair, rustled it up and pulled at it before slamming her hands into the wheel. She took a deep breath and shakily let it out before opening the door with a trembling hand and getting out. Her heavy breaths only helped to make her light headed along with her anger and soon enough she was leaning against the speeder with a hand on her forehead.

She gave a sniff and fished for a cigarette with a groan before lighting it as another sniff escaped her. In her whirlwind of emotions she cleared her throat and swallowed while taking a puff which messed her up even further. She went into a coughing fit and dropped her cigarette as she tried to recover from her mistake. "...Kark you..." she managed to croak out to Talo before coughing further. She turned and slumped down against the speeder until she touched the ground and adjusted her tank top. Her hands came up to rub at her eyes as she cleared her throat and sniffed again. She pulled her goggles off her forehead and dropped them on the ground before burying her face in her hands and fighting back a sob.

She sat in a ball with her face in her hands for a couple moments, quietly letting out a sob or sniff, until she finally broke her silence. "The Hutts got a fence that hangs out in the Spiced Spider nightclub. He knows all about their safe houses and crap like that. Now kark off already and go get your bounty." she spoke coldly, not looking up for even one bit. She peered through her fingers at her cigarette on the floor and reached out to it, slipping it back in between her lips and puffing it to reignite it.

There she sat, quietly sobbing to herself and trying to cool off without a care of what the Mando did now.

Talo Krayt Talo Krayt
 
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