Out of the Past (Joy)

[Cadmon Geller]

Cadmon was a wanted man, multiple murders of GADF personnel chief among his charges, so why would the ex-commando drag himself to their capital? Perhaps he missed it, he'd spent months deployed here when the One Sith ruled, their crimson banners hanging over the cityscape, or perhaps he was just blatantly stupid.

As he made his way down the streets, hands stuffed in his pockets, the latter seemed more and more likely. Everyone and their mother knew about the vigilante attacks that had ripped through the underworld, but no one could tell him anything about who was behind them. Geller was chasing a ghost.

It was only a matter of time before CSF realized he was here, tried to bring him in again and lock him up for good, which meant it was only a matter of time before his rapsheet accrued a few more assault charges. Ragmar's Raiders had been a mistake, he knew that now, he should've known better than to fall in with the rest of the only family he'd ever known and just karked off to some desert world to be a moisture farmer.

Instead he'd taken contracts from the Hutts and worse, stacked bodies just like he used to until CorSec, CSF, and GA Special Forces cut everyone but himself to bits. His comrades were dead, and he was left with the stark realization he'd made a bad call. So, of course he jumped at the mention of a vigilante who's MO matched that of a long lost brother in arms.

Turning into one of the infinite seedy dive bars of the world he approached the bartender, his face locked in a solemn gaze. "Tihar?" He questioned, to which the bartender simply raised an eyebrow. He wouldn't be finding Karsan here, bastard had always talked about his heritage with some measure of disdain unless it was the alcohol, that he never shut up about.

"Corellian Brandy then." Cadmon sighed, passing over a few credit chits, failing to notice as a Twi'lek stepped outside the establishment to fire off a tip to CSF itself. Everything was about to get complicated.

[member="Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento"]​

 

[Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento]

Coruscant, Lower Levels, Undetermined Time | Line It Up

---

---

"CSF-HA-5, please advise, a tip received about that mark. Loading co-ordinates to your communicator."

A sigh. "Understood, base. En route now. Standby for backup if needed." Joy quickly did a U-turn, her speeder beginning to descent past flashing neon lights and traffic towards the lower Coruscanti levels. On the interface of her car, the location she was heading to was highlighted in a bright green, and her navigational systems were pointing her towards the fastest route, her flight guided for optimal arrival time and travel speed. With luck on her side, she'd be inbound before the perp fled the scene.

Normally this was a job for some droids and a couple of beat cops with bones to pick. Yet, here she was, a decorated detective, bringing the trash in. Highly dangerous, armed, murderous trash, but trash still. Holding back another exhale, Joy flicked a switch and the bright sirens of her hovercar illuminated, almost immediately parting the sea of traffic to let her through with the flashy lights and loud squeal of the siren. The weight of the ultra-slim standard-issue armor suddenly felt a lot heavier on her chest, and she scowled.

Focus on the mission. He's the mission.

His stupid mugshot flashed through her brain and she huffed, the sirens drawing ever nearer to the destination and she quickly flicked them off to avoid rousing suspicion; they had done their job and gotten her through the notoriously disastrous Coruscant traffic. 5 active arrest warrants, that had to be some sort of record at her precinct. And maybe, if she brought this skug in, the captain would look on her a bit more favorably in terms of case assignment...

Fat chance. He was still pissed after that chit she had pulled with the deathstick dealer. Grumbling a quiet curse in Nyriaanan, the CSF detective set her squad car down a reasonable distance from the bar indicated and ensured her blaster was safe on her hip, concealed but easily accessible. Attempting a quiet arrest would be for the best down here, especially with everyone and their mother owning some sort of probably-illegal weapon that could turn her to ash with the pull of a trigger. Tucking her badge away and out of site, Joy tugged her unmarked windbreaker closer around her shoulders, and, satisfied in her appearance as a rugged type as opposed to a squeaky clean officer, moved to enter the establishment. The thick smell of alcohol hit her like a wave and she briefly wrinkled her noise.

The hunt was on. Her adaptable eyes swept the crowd, in search of one face in particular. It was hard to hide the fact she was looking, and a few people gave her uncomfortable glances and leers, but she pressed ever onward, heading towards the center bar. At the very least she could enjoy a drink before things went to hell.

---

---

---

Spoiler: Interacting With

[member="Thane Danson"]

 

[Cadmon Geller]

Geller was already two drinks in by the time [member="Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento"] set down. He'd waved away the bartender when the usual 'drinking to forget' questions were thrown his way, even if that was exactly what he was doing. Cadmon did want to forget, he wanted to forget the things he'd done crammed into Blackblade armor, what he'd done on these very streets to keep order in the name of the Dark Lord.

Frankly, if anyone here knew who he was, or what he'd been, Cadmon would've been in more danger than any cop. The One Sith had been brutal in their crackdown on Coruscanti crime, they'd driven the festering sickness down to the deepest sublevels along with anyone who dared question their authority. Come to think of it, Cadmon had split a protester's skull in this very establishment.

The screams still echoed in his mind, endlessly looping in his dreams.

He drained another glass, and slid over the credits for another. As the alcohol entered his system the fine details of his years in service to Carnifex and Praztius became blurred, the razor sharp images of burning villages and stacked corpses becoming little more than hazy blobs in his mind's eye.

With another drink being set before him the mercenary when it would be time to call it quits and make his way back to the dingy room he'd reserved for the duration of his trip. Surely he could stay just a little longer, surely in this crime infested area he'd be safe from the CSF's efforts for just a little longer.

All evidence pointed to the fact that something had changed, and no matter who this vigilante had been, it was not Karsan Calnov anymore. And that meant it was time to book a flight off world and out of the grasp of the Galactic Alliance. That was the plan anyway.

 

[Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento]

Coruscant, Lower Levels, Undetermined Time | Line It Up

---

---

"Shot of Chadian rum with lime, and don't dawdle." The detective tried to keep the edge of urgency out of her voice, but it was hard to blend in and scan the crowds for your prep at the same time. Tapping her fingers impatiently as she waited for the bartender to serve her, she could feel the sweat beginning to gather in her shoes, a telltale sign of her own nervousness. Briefly, she let her toes wiggle in the confines of her durasteel tipped boots and then her gaze caught on a certain individual sitting nearby on the bar. He'd been freshly served and now the bartender turned his attention to mixing Joy's drink but she paid little mind, already attempting to hide the fact she had seen him and recognized him.

Geller. There he is. Swallowing dryly, Joy smiled vaguely in his direction to see if he'd react in any way before her focus darted back to her drink, sliding a few credits across to pay. If there was one upside to places like this, it was that they always had the best booze. Knocking back the drink in one swift motion she set the glass upside down on the table, a few stray curls of hair flicking over her shoulder as she resumed looking around the bar casually. No matter how far her eyes wandered though, they always seemed to lead back, and remain, on her target nearby. Soon. Once he moves to be alone. A scene wouldn't do.

---

---

---

Spoiler: Interacting With

[member="Thane Danson"]

 

[Cadmon Geller]

The mercenary took the last drink slow, savoring the momentary dilution of potent memories, heavy eyes drifting over to [member="Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento"]. She smiled at him, a man who practically exuded anger and hostility. She looked a little too not strung out on spice to be from this part of the city, and something about her seemed dangerous. She was either an assassin or a some sort of cop. His money was on the latter, an assassin would've just told the whole bar what he was and let him tear apart. Or maybe she was just one of the ones with a thing for theatrics, Sith had plenty of those types.

"Another for my friend on the end." He grunted, flicking the credits to the bartender before pushing himself up from his stool and doing what he hoped was the last thing the woman would expect. He walked right on over, glass in hand as the bartender slid the woman another drink. There was a chance she'd still just shoot him, cop or not maybe he'd killed a friend, or a loved one? No, she didn't have that kind of hate in her eyes.

Leaning on the bar he motioned for the barkeep to pour him another. "Nice day." Cadmon remarked, looking to the woman, the same solemn expression on his face as always. They were both sitting in a place where the revelation of their true nature would see them shot dead or worse, so he'd have to do his best to play coy. She had to be alone, CSEC couldn't deploy SWAT or the like here, not without having tipped him off first, it was just her.

He wasn't sure if it put him more or less at ease that someone thought she could take him in alone.

 

[Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento]

Coruscant, Lower Levels, Undetermined Time | Line It Up

---

---

Chit. Chit. Tilting her head a little in recognition and offering a smirk of thanks, Joy briefly locked eyes with the man buying her a drink. No hate, indeed. "Don't know how you could tell, down this deep," She honestly remarked, watching as the bartender poured her another shot of the bronze-coloured liquid, "Skyscrapers start to just look like a sky after a while." It was impossible to suppress a sigh that escaped and she picked up the glass, briefly toasting with a slight tip of the shot glass in his direction before she downed it.

"Thanks for that. Needed it. Call me Joy."

Something innocent like that wasn't hard to share, or illegal either. Tapping the rim of her now-empty cup, her eyes flicked back up to him and there seemed to be a different edge to her gaze now, "You?" She already knew, but it was polite.

---

---

---

Spoiler: Interacting With

[member="Thane Danson"]

 

[Cadmon Geller]

She was right, in this deep one tended to forget how it felt to look up and see something in the sky other than twisted metal spires. He'd seen a thousand different skies, each with their own suns, stars, and moons, he'd watched dawn break over endless oceans and night fall over infinite deserts, those memories were burned deep into his mind, but they too faded this deep in the city.

Then she gave a name, Joy, ironic considering how little joy she was planning on bringing to his life. "Don't mention it." Geller responded, tipping his own drink towards the woman before downing it. "Name's Cadmon." He answered, looking onto the woman with a look that may as well have screamed 'but you knew that already' as he drained the liquor.

"Mind if I ask what brings you down here?" Cadmon knew the real reason, but it never hurt to ask, to play the game a little. As sure as he was that SWAT wasn't going to be bursting through the door any time soon, he had to get her to drop her guard or something. Give himself some kind of exit.

Force help Geller, he could kill most any species thirty different ways, but not once had anyone ever taught him how to hold a conversation.

[member="Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento"]

 

[Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento]

Coruscant, Lower Levels, Undetermined Time | Line It Up

---

---

"Best drinks this side of Coruscant, didn't you know?" Joy mused jokingly-- The shots had been nice, but legal was always better -- and she turned her body slightly to face away from him, "I don't know. Wanted to hit up a dive, I guess. Lookin' for company."

A very, very certain kind of company. This one.

"And what brings you?" Taking her hands off the bar, she set them on her hips in a rather casual and relaxed manner. She could ask all this in interrogation later, of course, but he wouldn't be so forthcoming then in the box. And it was slightly amusing to witness him fumble through trying to hold a natural chat, but she couldn't take that much enjoyment out of it.

He was a borderline terrorist. Psycho-terrorist, even. Who knew how many died because of him, how deep did the womp rat hole go? Pursing her lips in thought, she waited for his reply, every passing second making her more and more tempted to reach for her badge, her firearm, her cuffs, or all three at once.

---

---

---

Spoiler: Interacting With

[member="Thane Danson"]

 

[Cadmon Geller]

A small laugh escaped his lips before he took another drink. "Any company you find down here is trouble." He replied with the slightest of smiles, but she knew that, she was here for him after all. Cadmon thought of just shooting her, being done with it, it wasn't like people didn't outright murder one another in chitholes like this on a regular basis anyway. But something stayed his hand, the lady was just doing her job, protecting the people, even seemed like she wasn't corrupt. All she wanted was a dangerous criminal off her streets.

Funny thing was he wanted the same, but he supposed they didn't have the same person in mind. "I'm here for an old buddy, down on his luck after the war. Oh-Es bastards took everything from 'im." It wasn't a lie per say, just a convenient rewording of the truth. Karsan at least knew his family enough to hate his father for leaving, Cadmon couldn't even remember the sound of his mothers voice saying goodbye when they forced him into the academy.

He'd been seven.

The Sith had indeed taken everything from his friend, but they'd gotten him so young there had barely been anything to take. His eyes were heavy, the drinks were no longer giving him a reprieve, and instead threatened to bring him down into the endless abyss that was his self-loathing. Cadmon had to get her to leave, but somehow he doubted there was any way he was going to accomplish that here.

[member="Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento"]

 

[Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento]

Coruscant, Lower Levels, Undetermined Time | Line It Up

---

---

She shook her head slightly as she heard the sob story, burying any emotion it might have dared to provoke, "Well, I hope you find him." Yeah, in the yard. Someone like that seemed like they'd be in and out of institutions, in Joy's experience, and that was probably exactly where he was. Oh well. His loss, her gain.

Lifting her hand to call down the bartender again, she ordered another shot on her own tab. Keeping an eye on him even while she ordered in a calm voice, she eventually turned to rest her back against the bar, that windbreaker still effectively blocking her armaments and badge from his view still, "Not worried about the crowd givin' you trouble? You look like the type to... Attract it." Something in the back of her mind, like a mental timer, was ticking down. She couldn't chat him up all night, despite what else she might hear from him; soon enough he'd need to get thrown in the back of her car and hauled back to the station.

---

---

---

Spoiler: Interacting With

[member="Thane Danson"]

 

[Cadmon Geller]

Yeah I bet you do

A smile tugged at his face as she got herself another drink and turned around to face him. She was good at this, she played the game well, he almost believed she wasn't trying to put him in cuffs the second he was somewhere she could pull a gun on him. Leaning forward and resting his elbows on the bar he let out a gruff chuckle at her remark. "Don't attract trouble, I am trouble." He remarked with a smirk, leaning closer to the woman.

"But you know that, I'm certain you read the warrant, officer." He whispered into her ear, keeping his voice low enough so that only the two of them could here. Cadmon's expression remained the same, cocky smirk, but he threw in a wink for good measure. The ex-Stormtrooper had no intention of being brought in tonight, even if the woman had a gun on him.

"So, you hear about that 'vigilante' running around?" Geller asked, throwing back the rest of his glass' contents as he leaned away and his gaze shifted forward, the smirk fading from his face.

[member="Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento"]

 

[Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento]

Coruscant, Lower Levels, Undetermined Time | Line It Up

---

---

Her spine stiffened in an instant, visibly pausing as he leaned in and spoke. All the while the bartender poured her another glass without a second blink; he'd probably scene a hundred 'pickups' like these over the years, and to the naked eye there was nothing different about this one. Joy's gaze turned from the rather neutral look she had been maintaining into something more venomous and hated. For a second she stayed quiet, as if considering her options, before finally she spoke up, "Maybe. It's a big planet, you'll have to narrow it down for me. Is that your 'friend'?"

Picking up the small glass, she took a slow sip instead of wolfing it down like before. She savoured it instead, enjoying the burn. Maybe a bit of penance for her foolishness at this approach. She hadn't expected to get made that quickly, and it was certainly falling out of her control very, very fast, but the drink grounded things for a few precious seconds. There wasn't a chance in hell he'd be walking out of here without being in her handcuffs. A long sigh, and she set the half-full glass down, despite feeling very half-empty at how things had turned out.

---

---

---

Spoiler: Interacting With

[member="Thane Danson"]

 

[Cadmon Geller]

"Trust me, if it was him you'd never have known he exist-" Before Cadmon could finish his brag, an explosion rocked the building, a piercing bang that shook the little dive bar as it erupted into screams. He didn't think about anything he was doing in that moment, for a second he wasn't on Coruscant, he was in a trench on Torgoria, and Joy was just another trooper. Geller turned on a time and yanked the officer to the ground, to keep her out of harms way.

Even if the explosion had done more than shattered the glass of the windows, he'd probably put himself more at risk by putting a hand on the woman. As he took his arm off of her, he was unsure of if she'd shoot him right there. Put a blast right through his head. So of course he did the logical thing and made a smartass remark. "You gonna help with that or they paying you to look the other way this deep?" He snapped angrily, trying to dispel the fact that he'd just attempted to protect the officer here to take him in.

Not waiting for her answer he pushed himself up off the floor and waded his way through the sea of panicking patrons out the door of the dive bar, his eyes setting on the apartment now ablaze next door. Cadmon could hear screaming coming from the inside and cursed himself.

He was about to do something stupid.

[member="Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento"]

 

[Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento]

Coruscant, Lower Levels, Undetermined Time | Sinners

---

---

In the academy, they had gone over bomb control. Perhaps not as in-depth as Joy would have liked, but they had still reviewed procedure. That procedure echoed hollowly in her brain as she heard the ripping explosion, knocked off her feet by both the force, and Cadmon pulling her down to relative safety.

CSF yielded to the Coruscant Rescue Corps after a bomb detonation for a chain of command. First officer on the scene was to focus on helping injured and getting them away from the blast radius to prevent further explosions going off. Feth, I'm that officer.

His snarky comment managed to somewhat ground her back in reality. Joy's face twisted up, first angry that, yeah, he had touched her and that along usually entailed a fractured wrist, but then truly, truly angry that he'd taken this opportunity out of any to sass her, "I don't know, Do you still have a h--" Before she could finish he had already left, and a scowling Detective yanked her windbreaker off to reveal that delightfully blue reflective badge indicating her rank and role. She left the jacket on the glass-covered ground, turning around to survey the room of cowering bargoers, "Stay here, don't move, and wait for the Security Force to direct you." There was no way to tell how the room would react, but she stopped caring the moment she saw what exactly had happened.

"My God."

At first, the smouldering remains of the apartment building drew her attention, but then it flicked to Cadmon, her face getting that same expression as before albeit lessened. In the face of horrors, people had a funny way of pulling together. Raising her forearm and tapping at her communicator, she began to speak quickly across an open CSF channel, "This is CSF-HA-5, explosion detonated at my location. Civilians injured, repeat, civilians injured, more inside the radius of the explosion. Awaiting CRO arrival, will begin rescue operations/perimeter establishment in the meantime." For a second, her comms were quiet. Then a flurry of activity quite aptly exploded in her earpiece, various stations beginning to co-ordinate a response effort. Lowering her arm, Joy could finally focus on Cadmon again. And whatever stupid idea he was clearly planning.

---

---

---

Spoiler: Interacting With

[member="Thane Danson"]

 

[Cadmon Geller]

The light of the flames glinted in his eyes in the early night, [member="Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento"] had called in the strike, as he knew she would, and that gave him only a very small window to do the stupidest thing he'd thought of in some time, he was going to save those people. Drawing up the collar of his coat to cover his face, Cadmon Geller stormed into the building through the gaping hole in its side.

Charging through the low flames he entered a scene straight out of one of his worst deployments, bodies torn to bits and thrown everywhere, some dust that he suspected was spice hanging in the air, and broken pieces of blasters strewn about. No doubt about it, this was him, this was the man putting Karsan on the line. Those who weren't hurt had fled through the front door or any other feasible exit, but those who were cried out for help.

Geller didn't pause to wonder what Joy would do, but his cynicism lead him to believe he'd walk back out with a small armory's worth of blasters leveled at him. But there was no time for that, not now. He'd yanked his brothers and sisters in arms through burning Star Destroyers and out of crashed dropships, this was no different, he just had to go through the motions.

Even as smoke entered his lungs Cadmon pushed deeper into the building before he found two Nautolan boys, one clearly the elder brother of the other, and nursing a nasty would from shrapnel as his younger sibling wailed. "If you're in here, there's a woman to my right!" He called out as he scooped up both of the children and began to move towards the exit, an elderly Zabrak woman still laying against the stairwell.

He was banking on the good detective being right behind him as he turned around.

 

[Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento]

Coruscant, Lower Levels, Undetermined Time | Sinners

---

---

He's a fething idiot.

For a few panicked heartbeats, Joy only watched as her perp charged into the dangerously unstable structure, ablaze with fire and possibly wired with more explosions. And, somehow, her body too was willed to move.

Following after him into the chaos, the Detective raised her hand to her face and covered her mouth and nose, sparing a glance to the carnage the attack had caused and immediately wished she hadn't. Crisped and charred bodies were in pieces around her, the faint dust in the air unrecognizable to the naive Nyraanian, but those weapons certainly were. Their importance, though? Utterly lost on her, who was more focused on the task at hand. Shaking her head she pressed on behind Cadmon in spite of hell falling down around them and almost immediately replied once he spoke, already heading towards the woman, "On it!" Joy let the elder sling her arm around her shoulders, helping the woman out the way they came.

Already crowds were gathering, and noticeably, another CSF squad car was approaching the scene just as Joy exited with the wounded woman out of the flaming hole. She helped the Zabrak to the ground where she could rest, her eyes searching for Cadmon after her attention could safely be taken off of the wounded.

---

---

---

Spoiler: Interacting With

[member="Thane Danson"]

 

[Cadmon Geller]

He got the boys out the building, all of them coughing heavily thanks to the smoke. But unlike on the battlefield where he'd been fortunate enough to have a helmet which filtered out the stuff, he took as much of it as the boys. [member="Joy Erantes-do-Nascimento"] had indeed been right behind him, and he found himself dumbfounded at the idea of a cop who actually gave a damn about the people they protected. Still would try to arrest him, though.

Without a word Geller stood up from the boys and moved into the crowd. Fading away among the sea of faces, disappearing as if he had never been there. For a man who had lived solely to fight, he happen to be quite knowledgeable on how to run. He knew that the detective would give some sort of chase if she caught even the slightest sight of him, good deeds be damned, he was sure of it.

The only thing that he was more sure of, was that this wouldn't be the last time the two met.