Private Neon Lights

[Sable Mur]

I Do Coke

From the highest echelons of corporate management, to the bottom of the filthiest slums, there remains two constants - money talks, and there's always someone who knows someone. Power, influence, and all of the pretty baubles that the leaders of governments the galaxy over take for granted, be they Jedi, Sith, or even the average man or woman, are concentrated here, in the underworld, just waiting to be taken. There's always a link in a long chain leading from one person to another, some degree of separation that ties everyone together. Nobody knows that more than the spice runners, crime lords, and those that are indebted to them.

Especially those that work against them.

"You can't seriously expect me to pay two hundred credits for this."

Her voice was low, hushed even, and muffled slightly by the dated ventilation that ran through the metallic ceiling that hung low over their heads. Standing near a drab, gray, steel wall was the source of the feminine voice - Sable Mur, a face among the millions of others that sometimes appeared in the occasional clothing catalog and holozine - and a bland, almost generic, man in his middle ages with a bag of sparkling red spice in a transparent baggy pinched between two large fingers.

"You've been burning through the stuff, Mur. It's two hundred credits or you start buying more, and in bulk." The man retorted, seemingly prepared for her visible disbelief with a roll of his eyes. He crossed his arms over his chest, resting them over his rather prominent gut, and grunted noncommittally as she started to work her jaw in irritation. "I don't know why it matters, you get to walk your skinny little behind into a warehouse, take some candid shots, and you make enough in one day to pay for what you've been buying all year. Either hand me the credits or no spice, unless you're willing to find some other connection to the stuff - and we both know you aren't going to find someone who isn't going to charge you more just for having a pretty face without a reference."

"At least they wouldn't be charging me twice the going rate for a gram of this garbage, and they wouldn't insist on meeting out in the open." She said. 'Even if I'd be paying an arm and a leg to keep them from getting any ideas.' Came the sound of her voice in the back of her mind, frowning as an expression of resignation set in. Even as she was about to pony up the creds for such an extortionate price her attention turned as the creak footsteps on loose metallic flooring echoed down the hall. Just as she'd complained moments prior, they were having this talk in what was essentially the open - a maintenance hall that connected two alleys in the Coruscant underground was hardly as private a place as one could find, even in the sprawling city-world.

The only question was whether she'd be paying two people to keep quiet or dealing with something else entirely.

Lok Xiangu

 

[Lok Xiangu]

Money

There was hardly any direction in his life, always going across in different lines that had no shape or pattern to it. One week he was relaxing, enjoying whatever he could afford with the stack of blood money he worked honest for which required him to point a barrel at whomever he was ordered to. The next week? Back on the grind again. Anything for survival, and to enjoy the bounties of life. Money truly did talked to everyone. Even if there wasn’t any banks and the modern system of economic collapsed by whatever reason, there was always value to something. Even an insignificant rock had value to someone or something.

The sin of greed would never cease to exist.

And neither would his hunger for wealth and his “hobbies”. Hobbies that weren’t killing and participating violent events.

Man’s gotta support his wants and needs.

His latest job was a short term mercenary contract out in the underworld of Coruscant. There was always gang wars in the underworld, and it was impossible to be a bystander in conflicts. Everyone was just a casualty in the conflicts, no stable life was able to be had in these rough parts. Lok’s job was to perform various tasks, jack of all trades. But that wasn’t to say he would take his job too seriously. That was for mediocre grunts to worry about. Sometimes he got paid for doing nothing at all.

Gotta work smart, not hard.

His armored footsteps could be hear, echoing against the walls but his steps weren’t the only noise to be heard. There was some voices, a male and a female. All alone until Lok interrupted this not-so-clandestine meeting. Turning the corner he quickly saw the individuals. A petite, yet beautiful woman in clothes that definitely don’t belong in these parts and the average Joe that was more than a dime-a-dozen.

“Hey! The fuck y’all doing ‘round here?” it was his natural way of approaching strangers in situations like this. Whatever their business was, was his business too. He was given the duty to scout about points of interest for his employer, ones that had mild conflict and scenes of skirmishes in order to sabotage or to conquer territory.

“Wanna tell me exactly what the hell is this?” and began to approach the two individuals, his hand ready for his pistol in case one of them acted. He had all the power and authority over them, and could probably take whatever he wanted from them. Especially the female.

Sable Mur ​

 

[Sable Mur]

Cocaine Model

Cold blue eyes found their focus on the hand Lok Xiangu trained on his pistol as her head turned towards the voice of their loud interruption. Hired muscle, of whatever kind, was generally the least welcoming image in the eyes of many - businesses shied from having hired guns in visible locations to keep themselves and their clients at ease, and the general pedestrian found their sight as more of a potential precursor to violence than to anything beyond than that. As Sable's expression soured it was clear that she, too, was put off by the appearance of a man with a gun. "The lady and I were just finishing some business, nothing to worry about - definitely not worth the trouble of any firearms." The dealer insisted, appearing quite a bit more calm and level-headed than Sable was currently feeling.

It was, after all, the nebulous idea that power came from threats and authority rather than respect or influence which bothered her most about the sorts of people like this. Brandishing a gun to get the point across that they were supposed to be obeyed rather than questioned, the implication of disobedience generally remaining unstated but were clearly as obvious as the instinct of self-preservation that sprung into the minds of anyone with a working brain. 'And always an attitude, too.' She noted mentally, pivoting so as to turn fully towards the hired gun. "Like the guy says, I'm just here to drop a few creds and leave." She added as she showed her open palms - she was clearly unarmed - to dissuade any escalation in tension from happening.

"Is that going to cost me?"

The phrase always meant the same thing - turn your head and I'll pay you off - but people tended to take it differently depending on their principles. The underlying disgust that lingered rather subtly behind her shift in tone implied she'd met more than just the kind that wanted credits in exchange for their discretion.

 

[Lok Xiangu]

Eye on Money

There was a couple of ways that could go down all depending on Lok. It wasn’t him being overconfident (okay, maybe a little), but he knew he was far better trained compared to these two stranglers. Or at least that’s what he thought by observing them more and more. The woman? Easily small and fragile who probably needed a diet to put some skin on her bones, and the random spice dealer was the only one to pull a weapon on Lok.

Maybe he could’ve let them go by their day, let random Joe get his fair money from his hustling and let the woman enslave herself more towards whatever spice she was going to screw herself over. Show some compassion to some fellow survivors of the Underworld. Survivors were an abundance down here, but compassion was such an uncommon thing to come by.

Ultimately? He decided to be a pain in the ass for these two. Even if he was offered something from the broad it didn’t matter to him. He took what he wanted. His attitude was all thanks of a life revolved around crime and other illicit activities just to survive.

“I’m not some crooked, slave wage cop, darling. I take whatever I want with or without a bribe. And whatever your business is, it’s mine as well,” and finally his pistol was unholstered, thought kept it to his side and not aiming it yet. Boldly and confidently he approached the duo, closer and closer to them.

“Just for insurance,” and raised the pistol slightly, aiming at the dealer’s legs before releasing a blaster bolt. “And I wouldn’t run if I was you, darling. Don’t wanna ruin the vanity on you,” and gave a mischievous smirk towards Sable.

“We play by my rules, everyone goes home happily, ‘lek? See what kind of values y’all got.”

Sable Mur ​

 

[Sable Mur]

Came For The Low

Maybe the older man had been armed, he'd not expected things to escalate - perhaps precisely because he had chosen to act in the way that he had in order to prevent precisely the events that were transpiring from happening. Wordlessly he slumped against the wall, the kinetic thrust of plasma on clothing and flesh both burning a cavity through his thigh and knocking his leg out from under him, unable to find anything but a primal groan as the adrenaline began to course through his veins and set his mind and body into shock. All things considered, however, he took it remarkably well - he was essentially crippled, certainly, but he simply let his own tool for self defense fall to the ground to symbolize his submission rather than blow a fuse and perhaps end up far more worse for wear.

Unfortunately the same couldn't be said for the far more sharply dressed woman that could do little more than watch as her bribe was rejected and the man she'd been trying to buy nothing more than a meager week's worth of spice from get dropped to the ground with the unprovoked discharging of Lok Xiangu 's blaster into his leg. Where the drug dealer's reaction had been closer to a passive resignation of his situation, Sable yelped and staggered back in reaction to the sudden violence. "What the feth?!" She shouted, her hands raising up higher at either side of her head in a gesture of passivity.

"Whatever, just don't shoot me!" She shot back at his threat, her eyes darting between the gun in his hand and the man slumped down just a few steps away from them. "If you want money, I can give it to you, anything."

 

[Lok Xiangu]

Sweet Leaf

Looks like Lok took the upper hand over everyone in this situation. He crippled thr old man with the barrel of his blaster pistol, making him to fall to the ground with a painful groan. The spice dealer had no nerve to retaliate against Lok, instead he even tossed aside his own weapon from his own person; meaning he would fully cooperate with whatever Lok wanted and demanded.

“Well, damn, consider me surprised. Usually folks cuss me out, not bad for a guy like you,” a sarcastic, dubious compliment was given to the crippled man as the spice dealer didn’t even wasted a breath in telling Lok to feth himself or something similar. Usually, they would be more aggressive which would result in someone getting killed.

Looks like this was an easy picking. Too easy, for sure.

His attention went on the woman, his eyes intrigued and attracted to her looks. Yeah, she certainly had beauty on her face which was complemented by the fabric she wore. She didn’t belong in these streets, not with what she was wearing. Interesting. Even the women down here with graceful looks couldn’t get half whatever the apparel cost. There were two common types of women here. The ones that used their beauty to their advantage, having funds just by looking pretty whether as a prostitute or some kingpin’s toy out of multiple others. And the others involved themselves with crime, fighting tooth and nail against their female and make counterparts on making it out throughout the day. In the Underworld it carved someone into telling anyone to “fuck off” unapologetically. Civility wouldn’t get anyone ahead of anyone in these parts.

“Anything?” nearing closer and closer to the woman, looking up and down on her figure. She money to offer just so he would leave her alone, but everyone has that around here. He wanted to know more. “Either you stole those clothes or...shit, I don’t know. Those clothes too fancy around here, certainly don’t belong in the dirt,” and finally near Sable, almost invading her personal bubble. “What’s the price tag on you, I wonder,” and a smug took over his face. She could already guess what was on his mind. Hell, any other man would think the same when encountering someone beautiful like her.

“I usually don’t give a damn about names, but you got me wondering; who the hell are you, darling? What uh, what business you got going here?”

Sable Mur ​

 

[Sable Mur]

(Give It To Me Like I) Want It

If it weren't for the gun being waved lackadaisically in front of her face she would have spat on Lok Xiangu 's face in disgust - she knew well enough what he was implying, and she wasn't some cheap hooker, the spice down here was just less ridiculously priced than it was several levels higher. Her eyes narrowed, nearly a glare, until she remembered the circumstances she had found herself in. "I'm not a schutta. I bought these myself." She replied icily. Her concern seemed to be squarely on her own perception of her level of class and, perhaps primarily, on her safety, it seemed the insinuation that connected her belongings to something of a more unsavory flavor of work struck a nerve, she certainly was giving more attitude than she had been just a minute ago, at any rate.

"Sable Mur, model. Fully clothed or otherwise, holographic or print."

"And I have no price, though if I did I can assure you that you wouldn't be able to afford me."

She grimaced at the thought, her gaze traveling up and down his body for evaluation. "Like I tried to explain to you before you shot my kriffing dealer, I was just trying to buy some spice. It costs a fraction of the credits down here and is basically the same stuff you'd get up there." She explained, jabbing up towards the ceiling with her index finger, clearly referring to the higher levels of the Coruscanti overworld that were literally built and paved over the both figurative and literal Coruscant underworld that they were standing in. "Can we cut to the bit where you tell me what you want so we can both be on our separate ways?"

 

[Lok Xiangu]

Cover you in oil

So she wasn’t her average run of the mill woman that these parts had to offer. Most women down here often cowered at the first sign of trouble and didn’t gave attitude when witnessing a shooting that they just so happen to be at. She stood her ground against him and didn’t wince in fear in front of him. Maybe she was afraid within herself, and did best to conceal it. She kept her cool, trying to find a way to get out of this situation she was in before it became a bigger predicament.

“I wouldn’t be so cocky with that attitude, babe. Don’t test around my patience with shit. Don’t wanna mess you up for your next photo booth,” changing up his tone a little as a fair warning for the woman, yet still retaining his relax composure and smug.

“Model, huh?” and then walked around Sable, continuing to eye her up to down. “Pretty, but could use some meat on ya. Especially,” and his free hand slapped Sable on her rear, expecting a reaction from her. “Never mind, you’ve got some back,” and allowed a soft laugh under his breath.

“And what do I want?” coming full circle and looking into the woman’s eyes, “well, Miss Sable, I should tell you that you should know how to lie instead of spilling out the truth when in this lovely side of Coruscant.” Maybe if she lied to his face about being some high-end hooker and not disclose her name and professional occupation, things would’ve been different for sure. But now? Well, he was interested in her. An extravagant model standing before him in the underbelly of Coruscant? Opportunities presented themselves to him, and whether they were steady or risky he would take them depending how handsome the reward was.

“Not everyone is as a nice guy as your dealer.” Who, by the way, was still in shock and groaning on the floor and focusing on keeping the pain at bay by not doing anything except lying there. “Basically what I’m trying to say, in an honest manner, is that I’m gonna make you my queen,” saying that in the most casual, unapologetic way to Sable. “And don’t react poorly, I don’t wanna make more of a scene here.”

Sable Mur ​

 

[Sable Mur]

Drowning

She bristled at his threat - apprehensive at the idea of being hurt, but perhaps even more so with the notion of being disfigured for the purpose of hurting or even ruining her career - and took a half-step back, only for Lok Xiangu to seemingly take advantage of the distance to leer over her like some kind of crazed lecher. Her mouth had opened to retort to his comment of her physique when she felt his hand on her - she gasped. Color flushed to her cheeks and she appeared visibly uncomfortable. She'd found herself in a situation, unarmed, where there was very little she could do.

His intentions were clear, and she paled at his words.

"We can work something out?" She posed, her words framed more as a question - a request - than a statement.

Her eyes moved cautiously towards the gun in his hand, now certainly more wary of saying anything that could provoke him than before. "Forget the money, clearly you're a man who isn't bought - but maybe we can work out something else." Sable offered, careful to choose her words wisely. "You have certain.. wants.. and you're obviously not going to let things go without getting what you want, so maybe we could ease away from the violence and approach things differently."

She gestured to the door that Lok had strode in through in the first place. "We could get some air, maybe go for a walk - to a place you frequent, maybe?" She continued, trying to suggest an alternative to having a gun waved in her face if the only thing he was after was her. "A drink or two, maybe forget all of this ever happened, and I'll try to make your evening a little more relaxing."

'Maybe don't wave a gun in my face and you might end up with more than just tonight.' She thought to herself.

Despite his crudity, or perhaps in spite of it, it wasn't as though he was unattractive - he just needed to learn how to act. If he wasn't going to give her any other option, she might as well try to make the best of a bad situation - or so she supposed.

 

[Lok Xiangu]

I want you

She heeded his words and completed changed her demeanor towards him. It was the most obvious thing to do when in a situation like this; however, she wasn’t exactly giving up and cowering from him. She was smart and was simply trying to play her hands best as possible from this. Sable was at his mercy for whatever he wanted to do, but he wasn’t completely amoral. If so, then he would’ve come out as a good Sith Lord or something else diabolical. Wrongdoings he had committed plenty such as murder and other grievances of its caliber.

Lok was intrigued with whatever idea the model had in mind, one that would mutually benefit the both although the mercenary would enjoy more of it by the sound of it. Enticing him something more than just credits. He could be bought; however, he took anything he could within his power. His loyalties were only him and his desires; making him a pretty terrible and scummy mercenary by his ethics of business, not his martial talents.

“Hmm, yeah,” his eyes bridging with Sable’s, admitting her beauty to himself before having another obvious look at her physique. Still some color on her cheeks from when he touched her.

“That sounds intriguing, definitely,” and finally did he holster his pistol as there wasn’t really any threat to his vicinity. Both hands went to her hips, pulling himself a little more towards Sable. “Although I’m gonna want more than just tonight. I’m always wanting more if you know what I mean,” a hand ascending from Sable’s hips up to the frame of her body.

“And no tricks. Otherwise, well...that is a pretty face you got there.”

“But we’ll do things my way, and I know what I want right now,” and gave a mischievous smirk at the woman. “Take the spice and whatever credits he’s got on him, babe. I needa get my dose as well.”

Sable Mur ​

 

[Sable Mur]

Behind My Eyes

She cringed, internally.

Babe.

If she hadn't already shifted her attitude from confrontational to concessional then she would have reacted in some visible, or at least obvious, manner. She didn't, of course, and instead passed along the same degree of rejection she would have thrown into his face into a stare she gave to her dealer, who looked to be about passed out - granted he didn't seem more than just very hurt, it wasn't like he was dying or anything. "You don't need to threaten me to get me to go along with you, just so we're clear." She said out loud, crouching down to swipe away the little pouch of spice that she'd initially been paying for before this entire ordeal began.

"I'm more than aware that if I try anything that I'm going to regret it," She added, turning her gaze towards Lok Xiangu with an expression that seemed to broadcast her understanding of her predicament. 'And you come across as barely more than a disgusting pig every time you talk about messing up my face after broadcasting what you want from me.' Came the whispers of her voice in her mind, opting not to press her luck with voicing her opinion by keeping her thoughts to herself.

Standing now, with considerably better posture than him, she held out the baggy. "Here." She said, notably missing a credit stick that the dealer presumably would have been carrying. "Assuming you have the credits to match your attitude, I'll be paying for things tonight, I guess." She said absentmindedly, taking a moment to give him a once-over with cold blue eyes. "Speaking of - where are we off to?"

"Hopefully somewhere that I can get you into something nicer than.. whatever that is."

 

[Lok Xiangu]

Electrify Me

Usually, he wouldn’t give in to someone’s demands or requests. He would tell them, unapologetically, to screw off outright; the whole “establish his dominance” attitude. Respect and reputation meant a whole lot in Coruscant’s Underworld and other criminal societies across the Galaxy. One had to be tough as nails to get by, and being a nice guy didn’t get anyone anywhere in these streets.

It sure didn’t for Sable’s drug dealer that was a regular seller for her.

But to Sable’s simple request? He’d be lenient. No reason to be blunt towards her, not after she was his for the whatever hours remained for the day; his for whatever pleasures she surrendered herself to. “Alright, alright, whatever. Don’t expect to get lucky with whatever requests you got for me,” his voice somewhat calm than before when he came around the corner to encounter Sable and random Joe, although keeping his dominant demeanor that hinted with his voice. He took a good look when Sable reached down to take the spice and credits that were on the dealer’s person, really enjoying the view he got from Sable. Keeping up that mischievous grin of his.

“Good girl,” when the sum of credits were placed in his palm from Sable’s hand with the spice kept on her person. Substance that they’d enjoy later. “Well, I ain’t broke but I probably spent a good amount on spice and hookers a while back so...yeah? A little bit? Who the hell knows, but I don’t mind being treated out.” Everything he did and said was without any regrets. Did he sleep around and acted the scum that he is? Absolutely. Stereotypical of men like him, but it was a true; however, he didn’t do it everyday. A few decent times in a month.

“Well, let’s see. Pretty lady like you I gotta take somewhere lax. I really don’t want anyone putting their hands on you except mine, especially if it’s some Rodian shit. Damn bastards,” if she hadn’t noticed by now, he was pretty outspoken on whatever was on his mind. There was hardly any filter on his tongue.

“Whatcha mean whatever this is? You new here or what, hot legs? Fucking amateur.”

His hand went on her rear as the pair walked out wherever Lok came to get inside. Walk out into the dirty urban streets of whatever level this was. “Got any idea where’d you wanna go, babe? Since you’re buying out.”

“And walk closely, I don’t want sorry shits getting the idea of walking on my woman.”

No need to stray him away from his current attitude. Don’t want another homicide for the sake of the lady by his side.

Sable Mur ​

 

[Sable Mur]

Outlaw

It was becoming more apparent by the minute that each and every one of the toxic traits this ass of a human had were more than likely rooted in a very bad upbringing, and not the romanticized sort either. She rolled her eyes at his approval, holding her tongue as he rambled on his rather perverse decisions - expenses she'd rather not hear, that she probably could have gone the rest of the evening without thinking about. If it was even remotely possible for her view of him to sink further, it certainly had.

"While I certainly appreciate your.. caution.. maybe keep your motives to yourself." Sable said with a notable frown, it wasn't like his intentions were hidden from her - he just didn't need to voice the bits that could have been left unsaid. "And those -- they're hardly rags. Aren't you a gun for hire or something?" She said with a modicum of confusion, what had he thought she'd meant? And just like a child, or maybe a drunk, his mind - and words - were leaping to another topic. 'Truly the pinnacle of desire.' Her voice whispered in her mind, absolutely dripping with sarcasm.

"If the choice is mine, then we're going to buy you some new clothes. You can dress nicely and have whatever protection it is you think your clothes are giving you right now." She said sharply, casting his clothing yet another withering glare. "After that.. I suppose we can stop somewhere to drink. I don't think you'd make it at any of the more.. respectable establishments, so maybe a bar on the surface."

"I won't risk you making a fool of yourself at my expense.. and you won't get arrested when you get offended at someone asking you what you'd like to eat in a language you can't understand."

"Unless you're capable of managing yourself for an hour better than you have in the last fifteen minutes."

'I'd rather be dealing with you drunk than sober anyways.' She thought to herself immediately thereafter.

Lok Xiangu

 

[Lok Xiangu]

Big Balls

He saw that obvious roll of her eyes in regards of his approval. He didn’t care at all, though it did put a smirk on his lips. It wasn’t that hard to detect the atmosphere between them and there was no need to sugarcoat in any fashion. Lok presumed her emotions and overall opinions on him. She hated him?

Good.

As if he gave a damn about it. She could be the queen of Naboo for all he cared. It mattered little to him how she felt in this ordeal of hers. All he cared about was getting a few drinks without spending a credit and having his lustful desires fulfilled from Sable’s body.

And he imagined how well shaped and nurtured her body was beneath those layers of expensive fabrics. Kind of itched his desires of just taking her right now.

“Woah, hold up,” he began after she mentioned about buying him new clothes just to blend in with the pretentious noble society that bathed in Coruscant’s sunlight. “I’m not some sort of pet that you can dress up, Miss Sable. I don’t rock that way. I’m not some spineless prick that you’re probably used to sleeping with up in wonderland. If anything, you’re my pet and I’ll do whatever I want with you. Got it straight? Never find me bending backwards for a schutta.”

Rather he makes them bend forward.

“So okay, that’s off the list. It ain’t like I wasn’t gonna make a scene at whatever fancy store we were gonna go, so I’m probably gonna get arrested either way for some stupid reason. Know what? I’ll find something relatively nice that you’ll tolerate. Clubs and bars down here are one of the few attractive places to go to from all the shit existing. Oh, and one more thing.”

And he pulled out a device from his jacket. A personal shield unit.

“Put it somewhere on you, I don’t care if it’s between your breasts. I just don’t want my goods being damaged if shit hits the fan. Then again, maybe a little bruise here and there on that vanity would be exotic.”

“But that’ll come later,” and gave a mischievous smirk and wink to the exotic model.

“Let’s get a move on, don’t wanna waste more time,” especially when he had a woman like Sable to enjoy. The pair walked out into the streets of whatever level they were on Coruscant. Not too far down in the hells of the Underworld as there was that small hole of light that separated heaven and hell on this world. Slums, all kinds of people walking down the street whether they got off from the tiring work shift or looking for a profit from whatever illicit activities. A dozen of beggars filling up the alleyways and curb. His blaster was back in his hands as he shot a poor Duros that got rather too close to him and Sable for his liking. Necessary? No, but it sent a message to anyone that witnessed it.

“I don’t know how no one’s tried to kidnap you with all that clothing on you. Even having the nicest rock is enough for people to stare at you down here.”

Sable Mur ​

 

[Sable Mur]

Feel

She smirked, even though she felt it was pushing it, as he sprung to reject her insistence on his clothing. She eyed him curiously as he spouted off some nonsense stereotypes that sounded like he had much higher expectations of her social class than where she actually belonged, but she didn't say anything to correct that misconception as he rattled on. It was, arguably, the only real personality she'd been able to drag out of him that wasn't some teenage boy's wet dream of toxic masculinity, though he masked his desire for individualism quite well with that nauseating brand of superiority.

"Sure, whatever, don't buy new clothes that might actually fit you with my money. It's not like I get paid to model clothes or anything." She said, the sarcasm almost palpable in her voice.

While his refusal to take her advice on changing his wardrobe did little more than amuse her, the manner in which he seemed to ignore that she'd even proposed they go to a bar sparked a little heat on her cheeks. He'd asked her, she'd even given him the exact same sort of suggestion she knew he'd want, and then he turns around and makes it his idea? Sure, it probably shouldn't bother her - not as much as being dragged around like some kind of cheap escort with the way he was talking to her - but there was just something that irritated her about being given some degree of agency, only to be completely ignored in the end anyways.

"If I'm even half as rich as you keep acting like I am, then putting a bruise on me to satisfy some kind of fetish would probably be a pretty bad idea, you know, considering how low a bounty can go on someone's head, hm?"

She took the device from him anyways, though - mostly because she wasn't in possession of some kind of unlimited disposable income, but also to maybe act as a reality check. Given that he shot a duros a few minutes later for just walking close, perhaps it wasn't really worth her effort. He probably didn't care about consequences anyway. "Nobody has tried to kidnap me because most people aren't willing to get killed by bounty hunters or a paramilitary group just to ransom off a model to her agency."

"You know, the agency that pays me and every other model signed to them - as in the agency with the kind of money to do that sort of thing and pay for ransoms at the same time?"

Truth be told her agency could and probably would do just that if he happened to think he could get away with some kind of ransom gig - and probably would if anything worse were to happen to her than whatever he'd done so far. "Maybe think twice before you try to get me to do anything I wouldn't already be willing to do is all I'm saying." She added with a shrug. It was a little subtle, but not so subtle as to be vague - she was willing to entertain him and his idle fancies, but anything violent or forceful was off of the table.

"I hope you can hold your liquor better than you can hold a friendly conversation." She muttered under her breath as they approached what she could only assume was some kind of club or bar.

Lok Xiangu

 

[Lok Xiangu]

Ibiza

“If you’re trying to get me to piss myself with that talk of bounty hunters and paramilitary grunts, might wanna try another angle,” after all, that was the industry he worked in daily. There was a dime a million of bounty hunters, and a large chunk of them were sloppy with hardly any combat experience. The ones with any credit to their name were those hailing from Warrior cultures or discharged veterans. He knew from experience the type of scum that worked as bounty hunters and mercenaries, and many weren’t that impressive. Anyone could a carry a gun, but that didn’t entitle them with elite prowess in combat.

Of course, his overconfident nature scoffed at that threat. A guy like him who’s been in this game so long? Yeah, he was going to be a cocky prick.

“Maybe I’ll kidnap you and put you on a leash. Could be my pet,” and maybe he would or wouldn’t. Chances are he would. She was too good looking to not keep her in his pocket. Better than whatever prostitutes this theater of the Underworld has to offer.

The establishment they entered was stereotypical to any other cantina in the underworld. Vibrant with colors dancing on the floor at the beat of the electronic music playing. The strong odor of alcohol and spice was noticed, same as the humidity from the crowds of people entertaining themselves. Exotic women of different species dancing on stages, money thrown their way. Some folks, when entering, glanced at Lok and Sable probably for the apparel the latter was wearing which was luxurious than most clothing here. Not surprising, but they had better not get smart with whatever ideas they had.

“Hey! Get us a private booth with a good view of strippers,” he called to a Devaronian who was security staff in the cantina. The pocket of credits taken by the spice dealer earlier was shown just to get him to comply and shut up before saying anything.

The booth was good enough for two people, spacious than just sitting down at a table. Away from the other patrons on the dance floor as they were up on the second floor. There was a third level, though that was reserved for VIP members.

“Maybe should get one of the strippers to join us, see which outta the two of you are better,” and smirked mischievously, knowing his words would annoy her further.

“Well, pull out the spice. It’s the good chit, yeah? Hope so with the kind of money you’re pulling.”

Sable Mur ​

 

[Sable Mur]

The Medicine Does Not Control Me

Rather than correct him, given that she wasn't really all that personally acquainted or even all that familiar with the sorts of people that might be contracted out by her modeling agency, Sable simply nodded dumbly with a roll of her eyes at his bravado. It was his rear on the line if he riled up the wrong groups of people, she was treated like a product by her firm and there were a number of precautions they'd take place if someone decided to turn a rather unpleasant night out into a hostage crisis. Needless to say that it wouldn't matter how tough a person might be, a single well-placed shot to the head or center-mass was going to put anyone down regardless.

Probably permanently, too.

"Ugh, you would." She said at the mention of a leash, not exactly enthusiastic about even the mental image that popped into her head. It had hardly even been a minute or two and he was saying something else that struck a cord in her - a good view of the strippers was about as cringe-inducing a request as any. It wasn't that she looked down on the people who engaged in that kind of business, instead rather put off by the way people like him seemed to label people by their line of work, as if they were an object or something.

"Do whatever you want, I couldn't care less if you found a Twi'lek in fishnets better looking than me." She shot back with a dismissive shake of her head. She pulled out the little baggy of spice she'd tucked into her purse earlier, dangling it out in front of him. "Not the best, but good enough for a daily hit." She said with a shrug. "It's not like I spend my entire advance on the stuff."

"So what is it that made you want to bring me to a.. I assume this is some kind of strip club?"

"Need the extra visual stimulation?"

Lok Xiangu

 

[Lok Xiangu]

Gold Dust Woman

“Don't get snappy at me, I thought we made that clear earlier," shooting back at Sable, though he carried a smile with his cool tone of voice warning her about the attitude she was giving. "And yes, duh, this is a strip club. Are you slow or what? Guess you don't need brains to qualify as a model," and she sure had a lack of it for being down below in Coruscant's underbelly. If she had the credits to afford luxurious fabrics and a good view of the planet's horizon, surely she had the resources to afford spice without getting below Coruscant's skyline heaven.

"Let's see that," and took the dangling bag of spice from her hand, putting it on the table of their private booth with walls and a door that secluded them from the rest. Spacious for two or three people at a time. Right in the middle a platform with a metal pole. Neon lights as the only source of lighting in the room.

"Take a hit," inviting the model after he took his dose of the spice, snorting it through his nose with the drug activating in his system. Gave a sense of dopamine and stimulating the body. The more time would pass, the more the drug would give effect to his body until it expired.

"Speaking of visual stimulation, why don't ya get on top of there and show off some moves. Try not to be inept about it."

"Well, c'mon, don't be shy and keep me waiting."

Sable Mur ​

 

[Sable Mur]

There was a limit for everyone.

Push could come to shove, but there was a point where whatever form of willingness someone had evaporated - and here, now, with some drug-addled thug demanding she debase herself like this, having been far more lenient in how she behaved than she ought to given the circumstances, was as far as she was going to go. She didn't say a word when she stood up, she didn't even look him in the face. "Feth you." She said, turning abruptly with a wave of her hand - telekinetic force knocking his pistol far as she started walking.

If he wanted to he'd probably be after her as soon as he'd realized what was happening, but then again he had just dosed himself with spice, so she wasn't quite concerned with any fine motor functions at this point. "Call the authorities." She said to a random waitress she happened to walk by, hardly slowing down to talk before she was continuing out the door.

Lok Xiangu

 

[Lok Xiangu]

Just as he thought he'd get a show out of the model, feeling a rush of dopamine in his system and all of a sudden an invisible push shoved into him the moment Sable turned around and cursed him. Took him by surprise with his pistol knocked out of his hand, and left alone in the private booth. Made him upset that someone tried to take him as a fool, play him up in some sort of charade and have the last laugh. Maybe that wasn't the case, but it seemed so to him.

"Damn b*tch, tryna get the best of me huh?"

Picking himself up, forgetting about his blaster pistol as he shot out of the booth with his mind focused on getting back to Sable.

"Feth me? Feth her, lil' devious chit."

Still fuming off with a vendetta.

And there she was.

"Hey! The hell think you're going?!"

Sable Mur ​