No, they are just fireworks, man!

[Waylon Novasoar]

He sat in an unrecognizable room, grinning wickedly as the camera's static cleared up. He had finally managed to broadcast to the govenor, personally. "Hello! This is your planet's friendliest demolition man. I'd just would like to know, do you care about all these good people out here in Annaj? Well, you see, Mr. C ain't here so I'm taking over for today!" He then slowly positioned the camera to reveal a gagged police officer, covered in bruises and cuts. The officer attempted to scream, but was ultimately cut off due to the gag. Waylon chuckled uncontrollably, turning back to the camera. "Apparently, explosive devices are prohibited to be brought aboard personal ships...that's alright, though! I just took your little pig here and had a jolly good time. Ain't that right, officer...?" He stopped himself, reaching into the officer's shirt pocket and removing a black badge.

He held it up to the camera before glancing it over it himself. "Officer Johnson, yes. That's him alright!" He grinned, dropping the badge on the floor, unseen by the camera. "Now, let's get down to the point, shall we? I placed a little...bomb in your precious city. You'll recognize it once you see it, my friend. Perhaps I'll give you a small, small, small tip, indeed. It's covered with a giant smiley face. I mean, what better way to celebrate our joy for this little scavenger hunt. "Oh, oh, oh!" He quickly reached into his purple tuxedo, removing a pocket watch with a large skull printed on it. He popped it open, glancing at it for a second. "You got ten hours. Ten hours before I set off some fireworks in a certain part of this little planet. However, if you attempt to track my position or send out your little police to attempt to stop me, I'll set off more fireworks and take out your little piggy here!"

He slowly climbed out of his wooden chair. "NO! WHY DON'T WE ADD MORE FUN!" He shouted into the camera, removing a rather large dagger from his tuxedo. He headed over to the officer, placing the blade on the man's throat, chuckling. "I believe the game is starting now, you should hurry", As soon as the word "hurry" left his mouth, he twirled the blade in his fingers, driving it into the officer's gut. The officer screamed in agony but his cries of agony were still muffled. "OH, DID THAT HURT, OFFICER JOHNSON?" He then removed the blade, bringing the blade back in fourth, into the officer's gut. He finally came to a halt, leaving the blade in the officer's stomach. "I left out one little rule. I'm going to leave you with our little friend and you are required to find this location I am currently standing on. From there, you'll receive a clue and must follow each of them", He chuckled, shaking his head. "If you follow my guidelines, you shall find our little bomb. Enjoy..."

[member="Matsu Xiangu"](I know this ain't that character but I wasn't sure so I just tagged this char)

 

[Matsu Xiangu]

[SIZE=12pt] Matsu watched the broadcast with a certain detachment, her eyes flicking over the (obviously mad) man’s face as he gesticulated to the camera. He was certainly putting on a show and were it anyone else’s planet she may even have applauded such showmanship. But alas – it was a planet she cared about, and quite a bit. It happened to be the capital of Fringe space, a planet her old Master governed, one of the spheres of dust she called home –and above all, it belonged to the Fringe. She’d come to be madly loyal to the cause and any threat to what she considered hers was not to be tolerated. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] Her face was impassive, even as the officer let out a scream of pain when the assailant stabbed him in the gut. (Excellent timing, she’d seen holodramas that could benefit from the man’s sense of pacing.) She didn’t mourn the loss of the officer so much as the peace of the day she had had planned. But she wasn’t going to sit back while someone threatened the peace of her home. No…she turned her head to her former Master, her friend and the man she’d sworn to protect and work for.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] “I’ll take care of this,” she said quietly, watching him lift himself from his chair and leave her to fix the problem she’d taken as her own.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] The man had said if any tracking was done or the police were sent out after him he would set off his ‘fireworks’. Matsu was familiar with the concept of acceptable loss but, if she could, wanted to stop the bomber in his tracks. But it would have to be her for now.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] Smiley faces, trail of clues…she had to start with the location of the – presumably now dead – policeman. She watched the video over, and then again, looking for anything she knew. This man, for all his threats of setting off fireworks if the police were sent out, wanted someone to find his little clues. There had to be some hint in his message to get her started. Her eyes narrowed as she studied every detail, eventually pausing the holofeed on one frame, the image skip-skip-skipping as she focused on the neon signs outside the window of the room rang a bell. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] He was in the industrial district, right across from a manufacturer’s building with an easily recognizable display. She spun out of her chair, calling her lightsaber in to her hand and heading out the door.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] Let the games begin.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt][member="Waylon Novasoar"][/SIZE]​

 

[Waylon Novasoar]

The moment the video went live, he pulled out a pen and a Sabbac card, setting it on the police officer's leg. He began writing, rather patiently. By the time he was finished, this was written on the card. "You need a bottle of whiskey? Head over to a building that is quite old. It is covered in mold and is surrounded with beautiful women. Quite too many steel poles inside and lots of alcohol. Now..Gniraor ahtnaB and I suggest you read it backwards to discover the name of this...building", The card had read.


From there, he stood up and headed straight for the one window, which was visible on the camera. He crashed through it, slicing up most of the tuxedo's right shoulder, revealing more of his sickening pale skin.
He headed into the filthy cantina, which had no visible sign outside. Once he got inside, Twi'lek dancers were on a rather large stage and men and woman were drinking alcoholic beverages.

Waylon headed over to the bar, grinning at the bartender. "What can I get you?" The bartender asked. "I'm an inspections officer...I'm here to check the freezer", Waylon quickly sighed, shaking his head.


"I-" Waylon interrupted the bartender once Waylon had slid fourteen credits onto the table. "Sure!". The bartender led Waylon to the back, opening the door to the extremely cold freezer. Waylon and the man stepped inside, Waylon laughing uncontrollably. "What is the problem?" But Waylon did not respond. Instead, he quickly brought his fist shooting into the Correlian's throat, sending him stumbling backwards.

The man began to gag for a few moments, before falling to the floor, obviously dead. Waylon removed a card once more, pulling out a pen. "Congratulations, you've found another clue! Where daring people meet, wanting to test their luck! The building is quite large, indeed and has a bright yellow neon sigh outside of it...the color of a smiling face. Most are rich, some are poor, but it is definitely costs 'em a lot of credits!" He had written.

He then placed the card on the corpse's shoulder, walking out of the freezer. He then slowly pushed the door shut, sprinting back outside.

[member="Matsu Xiangu"]

 

[Matsu Xiangu]

[SIZE=12pt] By the time she reached the first clue the pale, gaunt showman was nowhere in sight. She hadn’t expected him to be – he may have appeared insane, but act or not he wasn’t stupid enough to hang around a place he’d purposely given enough clues to indicate. But the clue he promised was perched on the leg of the downed officer. By the time she reached him he’d bled out, his eyes staring sightlessly up towards the ceiling. She plucked the note, stained and curled around the edges with blood and read the clue.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] Lovely![/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] She wasted no time leaving the factory, already seething at this touch-and-go game and wanting to catch up with him, catch some glimpse of the man leaving one of his set pieces.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] When she got to Bantha Roaring – a place about as appealing as the dung of the creature it was named after – she found it suspiciously quiet, few patrons and no one manning the bar. She leapt over the bar, sliding the two feet to the other side and half-expecting to find the barman lying there behind it, perhaps hit over the head with a bottle though her guesses came to no fruition. Instead he was lying prostrate right inside the freezer. She cast her senses out quickly over the area, finding no one living, though she left her guard up as she stepped inside the freezer to pick up the card lying on the man, perched right in front of the bend of his neck where he’d fallen against the wall.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] Theatricality, indeed.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] The casino was the obvious destination, its neon yellow signs a garish if complementary announcement in Annaj’s reds and oranges. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] The color of a smiling face…[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt] It’s covered in a giant smiley face…[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]Was the bomb in the casino?[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] She took off, willing herself faster and faster with the Force. She wouldn’t keep playing this game of chase – she was hot on his heels.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt][member="Waylon Novasoar"][/SIZE]​

 

[Waylon Novasoar]

He pushed himself through the casino, pulling himself through the shouting and obnoxious crowds. He stopped at one of the many Sabbac tables, quickly counting each one. Thirty sabacc tables, perfect for one clue. He removed a Sabbac card from his tuxedo, heading over to one of the tables, the thirteenth table. He set his own personal Sabbac card down, removing his pen. "Congratulations! You found the next clue...if you follow this one...the bomb is yours! So, a place people use to tell the time! Extremely large and is off limits to everyone but city officials...I'm sure you'll soon learn!". He then took the card, placing it in the deck of cards already set out on the table. He quickly shuffled them all, setting them back down. From there, he sprinted forward, pushing open the fire exit and heading out onto the streets. Now, he just had to wait for the fireworks to go off, assuming that [member="Matsu Xiangu"] didn't discover the correct card in time.



(Is there a clock tower in Annaj?"

 

[Matsu Xiangu]

There were about a hundred different places the madman could have gone in the casino, and in the interest of time Matsu went straight for the holofeed banks at their center. She was obviously not an employee, but most of the people in Annaj knew her face. Not to mention the amount of control her Master had over the casino's profits and workings. Her eyes sped over the different cameras until she spotted the tall, gaunt man running from the Sabbac area - he was freakishly fast, almost unnervingly so, and she wondered if he didn't have the Force. She had assumed not because of the proclivity for bombing, but now she wasn't so sure.

She yelled at the technician to rewind that feed, watching the man mess around at a Sabbac table. She sprinted out, finding the table and flushing the cards out straight before her only to find a card leading her to yet another place. This however was a clue that took no time to puzzle through.

The clock tower.

It took her less than ten minutes, leaping on small ships in her haste to get there before he could enact his plan.

She sprinted up flight after flight of stairs, each floor increasingly more industrial and sparse until she'd reached the top, narrowing her eyes as she came upon an elaborately painted bomb, covered in smiley faces and festooned in purple confetti. She ripped open a panel on the side, taking her time and staying calm as she had forty-five seconds until it went off, calling on the Force to keep her moving.

With a momentarily terrifying beep it disarmed itself and she went to look around. And just in time as she heard something behind her...

[member="Waylon Novasoar"]​

 

[Waylon Novasoar]

"Did you miss me?" With that, Waylon reached into his tuxedo and removed a large hunting knife. "I've seen you discovered our friend," He climbed out from behind two crates, bursting into laughter. He took a step closer to the woman, taking position right in front of a rusted guard rail. "Mr. C won't be pleased! Y-y-you found the bomb! THAT. AIN'T. EXCEPTABLE" He lurched forward, attempting to slash the woman in the arm with the blade.


[member="Matsu Xiangu"]

 

[Matsu Xiangu]

[SIZE=9pt] The voice seemed to come from nowhere and Matsu’s head snapped up in an attempt to pinpoint a direction. However it wasn’t the voice that revealed his position but the glint of his knife as its length caught the light reflecting through the tower. He moved like a spider, some unearthly creature that would send the weak-minded in to convulsions. She wasn’t all that surprised when he used that willowy speed to come at her, the hunting knife cutting through the air with a ‘whoosh!’ that had her bending backwards to avoid it, raising her hand up and letting out of a blast of a push in the Force, attempting to pin him to the guardrail. “Who’s Mr. C?!” she demanded, stalking towards him and letting her saber flare to life in her hand.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt][member="Waylon Novasoar"][/SIZE]​

 

[Waylon Novasoar]

A look of terror appeared on his face as he was slammed into the guard rail. Suddenly, a loud noise as if a creaking door was slowly closed. The bolts on the rotting and filthy steel railing slowly gave away, the railing slowly leaning backwards. "NO! HELP M-", He was interrupted as the railing gave way, falling from the stairwell altogether. Waylon, who's arms were wrapped around the railing simply had no time to escape. He plummeted towards the floor, which was at least thirty-five feet. He screamed in terror as he fell with the railing, unable to do anything to save himself. "HEEEEELLLLLPPPPPP!", He yelped as he looked from side to side at his trapped arms, still barking. "I'LL-" Once again, he was interrupted as a loud crashing sound was heard at the bottom of the tower and his voice was silenced. The world would seem peaceful once more as Waylon was heard no more. The question real question was, however...what had happened to Waylon?

[member="Matsu Xiangu"]

 

[Matsu Xiangu]

[SIZE=9pt] Matsu dashed to the edge of the railing as the man fell, reaching out with the Force to try and grab him but without a visual it was useless. He as good as disappeared in to thin air, leaving her questions unanswered. She had managed to rid Annaj of his bomb, but not of him. He was out there somewhere now, spider-limbed and unhinged and most likely not without a backup plan. She had the distinct feeling that perhaps he was not insane as he appeared, though the question of Mr. C still lingered. Was he someone that even existed, or a figment of the man’s imagination to negate all that she thought she picked up? [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt] She stood at the edge of the railing for a moment or two longer, waiting for some magic reappearance that didn’t come before she turned and started on her way back down the stairs, taking them one at a time as she called in the report and a Wanted notice. He may have escaped her alone, but now with his bomb defused the entirety of the Fringe would be looking for him. And that was nearly impossible to escape.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt][member="Waylon Novasoar"][/SIZE]​

 

[Waylon Novasoar]

However, once [member="Matsu Xiangu"] reached the bottom of the stairwell she'd be in for one big surprise. The corpse of Waylon was nowhere in sight, only the metal railing. Had he managed to grip onto another railing before he hit the ground? That didn't matter, what did was that his corpse was missing. Though, a small object would appear to be wedged into an open space in the railing. A sabbac card and it read "See ya later!". Then to the left of Matsu would be the clock tower's door and it would be pushed open, the rain pouring down.