Private Of Cats and Crystals

[Jasper Kai'el]

Of Cats and Crystals
Nar Shaddaa, Red Light District
Tags: Causmyq Khimon ​

Ilum had been a mess. The Empire had torn the planet beyond recognition, claiming the supply of Kyber from the planet that were, at one point, vast. In the chaos, a few of the freelance agents hired on by the imperials made off with some of the Kyber, shipping it back to the Hutt Space Consortium. This was unexceptable. Jasper had made a promise to the Bendu while on Ilum. He told the old Neti that he was going to return the Kyber to Ilum. To that extent, he had failed. Now, the duelist had to pick up the pieces of his broken promise.

Nar Shaddaa was a planet Jasper had no fondness for. A world built on the back of crime, slavery, and murder, even during the brief time the Silver Jedi Enclave attempted to hold it. Jasper, with the help of his droid companion Pyf, had managed to track the Kyber as far as Nar Shadda. Unfortunately, he lost the trail in the Red Light District. The duelist was without leads, without back up, and deep in Hutt territory. Even as cautious as he had been playing it, the plan was foolish. Jasper perched himself on a dumpster in an out-of-the-way alley, taking a moment to recompose his thoughts.

“Anything, Pyf?” Jasper asked the little droid hovering at his side.

“Nothing in public records,” Pyf explained. “They keep their systems locked down tight.”

“Great,” Jasper sighed. “Just great.”

Flying solo had its downsides. Whenever your skills ran out, you were left without anywhere to go. As frustrating as it was, there weren’t any more results that he could produce. Still, he couldn’t just settle with the info that the kyber was on Nar Shaddaa. He needed something more concrete.

But how?

 

[Causmyq Khimon]

Location: Nar Shaddaa | Red Light Sector
Tags: Jasper Kai'el

Causmiq always felt dirty when she was asked to complete a mission in the Red Light Sector of Nar Shaddaa. She much preferred working at home on Ylesia with her master Lady X on new Force stuff. But her Master had a lot to worry about. Causmiq also liked thieving around the new hotel that was just finished on Ylesia. She was pretty sure that Lady X had something to do with the hotel, but Causmiq was never asked to do anything other than walk around and listen for news.

It hadn’t been long ago however that word of kyber crystals in Hutt Space hit the Lady’s ears and ever since then Causmiq had been ferrying here and there and putting her ears to the ground. Varl and Kwenn turned up nothing concrete, so the next logical stop was on to Nar Shaddaa. Of course the first logical stop was Nar Shaddaa, but there was always the chance she could have gotten lucky.

Not only did Nar Shaddaa seem like it was going to be the place to find intell, but here to the Red Light Sector. A paradise for a grungy smuggler with a few spare credits. Not so much for a young Cathar girl who has to stick her nose in things she doesn’t want to in order to get information. Causmiq would give anything for a friendly face who didn’t ogle her like tonight’s nerf steak special at the Casino​

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

Nar Shaddaa, Red Light District
Tags: Causmyq Khimon ​

Jasper couldn't sit around forever. He needed to continue his search for the lost kyber, and for that he actually needed to investigate. The padawan pulled up his hood, setting off into the streets of Nar Shaddaa once again. Pyf levitated in the palm of his hand, projecting a map of the sector for Jasper to assess the locations he had already been to.

"Club Ufora is clear, so are the slums..." Jasper muttered to himself out loud. "This is gonna take ages without any intel."

It was frustrating for Jasper to track the crystals all the way to the Red Light Sector only for the trail to go colder than Hoth. He beileved himself to somewhat be responsible for what happened on Ilum, even if he wasn't really at fault. Realistically, what could he have done? Still, the duelist was troubled by the words of the Bendu, an ancient being who, after defending the planet for centuries, believed that it's allies had betrayed it. Now he was running in circles trying to fix a mistake he hadn't actually made.

"Are you okay?" his droid asked him.

"I'm fine," Jasper insisted. "Bring up the map of the area around Crimson Road."

He had to find the kyber now. He was so close. Jasper just needed one lead. Any lead.

 

[Causmyq Khimon]

Location: Nar Shaddaa | Red Light Sector
Tags:

Causmyq had done a quick run through Dream Street. That was always her first stop in the Red Light Sector. Just as sleezy as the rest of the sector, but at least she could depend on the security there. Next she looked into Morbo's Paradise. Didn’t come across any juicy rumors or any details about the kyber crystals, but she did manage to walk out with fifty more credits than she walked in with. Gamblers one would think would keep a good eye on their money. Turns out the games are more interesting.

As Causmiq’s tummy started rumbling she made a stop at the Heartache Bistro. Despite its name, it was an easy place for Causmyq to spend those fifty credits and walk out full. She hadn’t expected to find more than a good meal in the cantina, and the cantina didn’t disappoint.

“On to Crimson Street,” the Cathar said to herself as she started towards the spot on Nar Shaddaa she liked least. It was strange that something as valuable and unique as kyber crystals would end up on Nar Shaddaa and Causmyq was not able to hear a whisper about them. She was beginning to doubt her skills.

As she walked the streets she saw a good mark walking and talking to his small companion droid. “Easy credits,” she said to herself as she made her way over to make the pick and boost her confidence. She bumped into the young man and reached for some kind of wallet or something containing credits, but instead her hand grazed a lightsaber under the man’s cloak.

“Oh,” Causmyq said, quickly pulling her hand back. “I’m sorry. Silly me not looking where I’m going.” There was a weird sense of deja vu in Causmyq’s mind. But she had never ran into someone on this street before that had a lightsaber. It had to be the Force playing tricks on her.​

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

Nar Shaddaa, Red Light District
Tags: Causmyq Khimon

As Jasper walked, paying more attention to the map then the road ahead of him, a young girl walked into him, a Cathar maybe only a year behind him in age.

“I’m sorry. Silly me not looking where I’m going.”

That didn’t seem right. Nar Shaddaa wasn’t exactly the world to be wandering around carelessly, especially in the Red Light Sector. Still, he decided to give her the benefit of the doubt. Maybe she was simply lost.

“You’re fine,” Jasper assured the girl, not exactly in the headspace to start a conversation. “I-I wasn’t paying attention myself. I’m a bit lost right now.”

This wasn’t exactly a lie. Jasper knew exactly where he was, just not where he needed to go. Strangely, there was something familiar about this girl. Had he met her before? There was certainly a level of deja vu about this entire scenario. Jasper reasoned he was probably overthinking it… Or was he?

“Wait a minute…” Jasper frowned, studying the girl’s face.

He tucked his hand into the large pocket in the side of his flight suit pants, fishing though the clutter before securing a now bent piece of flimsi with contact information written on it. It had been months ago, but the events of Varl Station were starting to come back to him.

“I know you.”

 

[Causmyq Khimon]

Location: Nar Shaddaa | Red Light Sector
Tags: Jasper Kai'el

The feeling of a vague connection to this young man grew stronger as he accepted her apology and offered his own. He was the first to recognize Causmyq however. Cathar with spots probably weren’t all that common. Causmyq knew that she had never seen another one before in Hutt Space.

“Wait a minute…I know you.” he blurted out after making the connection.

Causmyq looked at him closely. She saw a lot of people. A lot of faces tracking down credits and rumors for Lady X, but she knew this one from something else. She wagged a finger in his direction when she remembered. “Varl Station! You foiled an assasination at the arena.” She tapped her chin. “What’s your name? What’s your name?” Her nose crinkled. “Hey I gave you my digits. How come you didn’t call me when you got back to Hutt Space?” She gave him a wink that he would hopefully realize meant she was joking. “There another poisoning going on in the Red Light Sector? I imagine they happen all the time. So probably not what you’re here for.”​

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

Nar Shaddaa, Red Light District
Tags: Causmyq Khimon ​

“Uh, well… About that,” Jasper began, awkwardly scratching the back of his head.

Before he continued, he quickly scanned his surroundings. There were too many people. He wanted to be truthful with her this time, but not at the risk of outing himself as a Jedi in front of people who despised them. In the most polite way he could, he pulled the Cathar aside to the seclusion of a nearby alley.

“So none of what I told you was true that day,” Jasper explained. “Well, it was kinda true. It is my job to keep people alive, but that’s besides the point. It was a deep cover thing. My name’s Jasper, so it’s probably fine that you forgot the fake name I gave you…”

Jasper let out a sigh. He did feel bad that he had told her a false story, even if it hadn’t been a very complex one in the first place.

“Sorry about that,” he apologized. “I don’t really like lying to people.”

 

[Causmyq Khimon]

Location: Nar Shaddaa | Red Light Sector
Tags: Jasper Kai'el

“Hey what’re you trying to pull,” Causmyq growled as she was being pulled into the alleyway. Her hand went to the small vibroblade she always hid in her belt until he started talking again. He explained that he had lied to her on that day. She shrugged about that. It was a gathering of the underworld; those not doing important business all probably lied to someone during that event. Some who were doing important business lied or omitted things as well.

He introduced himself as Jasper, and apologized for lying. Causmyq gave a bit of a smirk. “Don’t worry about lying. It’s something that happens when you’re in Hutt Space. Seems like the truth hardly ever gets you what you need.”

Her smile grew, “What was true was when you spit that koja nut like a pro. And you stopped someone from getting killed. It was awesome. So I don’t care that you gave me the wrong name. Just glad I’m seeing you again. My name is Causmyq. And the number I gave you is still the same. I’m looking for word on some secret items from my boss so unless you know something about crystals. You can call me when you finish your business here and we’ll get a bite.”​

 

[Jasper Kai'el]

Nar Shaddaa, Red Light District
Tags: Causmyq Khimon ​

Jasper was famously terrible in social situations, so it concerned him when the Cathar seemed to take him pulling her aside to be a threat, but she seemed to relax again once he had explained himself. She reintroduced herself and things seemed to be going okay… at least until she brought up that she was looking for crystals.

“Crystals?” Jasper noted, “I might possibly be looking for some myself. Don’t think I can help you with any leads. The trail went cold once I got here.”

He wasn’t super familiar with this side of space. Perhaps it would be helpful to have an extra pair of hands with some experience in the area. They seemed to be on friendly enough terms. Maybe Jasper could strike up an alliance with the Cathar.

“Well… since we seem to be looking for the same thing, why don’t we team up?” the duelist suggested. “It might be easier with two of us looking instead of one.”

 

[Causmyq Khimon]

Location: Nar Shaddaa | Red Light Sector
Tags: Jasper Kai'el

“No way!” Causmyq yelped out in excitement, before remembering that she wasn’t supposed to be blabbing what her mission was. “Are you really looking for crystals too? Or are you just playing me again?” Causmyq asked, trying to give Jasper a serious look, but it just wasn’t something that the young Cathar was able to pull off. The looks she gave seemed more confused than accusatory.

“I guess we can team up. Not against my rules I don’t think. I can at least be your guide on Nar Shaddaa, or the whole of Hutt Space if you need. I get around a bit doing odd jobs for Lady X,” Causmyq finallys said. Anyone else might not have accepted what he said as the truth so quickly, but Causmyq was very trusting. She also seemed to make the best out of things even when she was led astray by someone. She was looking for info and credits. Most of the time even when she was lied to she ended up with one or the other.

“So I’ve been to Varl and Kwenn and didn’t hear anything,” Causmyq gave her own status report. “I started hearing things when I got here on the moon, but nothing but crickets once I narrowed it down to the Red Light Sector. Makes me think there’s something big hiding here.”​