Private Ready When You Are

[Varen Ardos]

Ready When You Are

Location: En route to Denon, Core Worlds
Objective: Take down the Cartel Ring
Gear: Lightsaber | Blaster Pistol

Tags:
Cinjay Saito

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The soft blue hue streaked with white brought a calmer atmosphere to the cockpit of the Vagabond, satisfied that he'd had an excellent take-off, Varen plopped down in the small common area somewhere in the main body of the ship. Kicking his feet up, he began to munch on some unknown substance, his ever-suffering droid at the controls making sure they didn't crash into a black hole. Relatively cramped, this wasn't helped by the memorabilia that he used to decorate the area. An ornate shield here, a ceremonial sword there, they all told stories of travels to far-flung reaches of the galaxy.

Varen picked up a datapad and flicked through some intelligence. Some sort of cartel ring? Sounded like a job for Master Kaze and his buddies, but he wasn't complaining. He always took any opportunity to get out into the galaxy when it came his way. Quickly growing bored, he flung the datapad onto a nearby couch and attempted to make some conversation with his companion. "So uh.. make yourself feel at home. It's not the most glamorous thing in the galaxy, but it's home I guess." He mentioned warmly. It truly was home. Though he was always reassured by his master that he always had a home at the Temple, it hadn't really felt like it.. Varen had never really liked Coruscant.

He swivelled his seat, solemnly glancing out the window at the scene which resembled an old art piece created by some ancient master. "You ever hear what the old spacers say about hyperspace?" He mused. "If you stare out there too long you go crazy. Hyperspace madness they call it. Never truly believed it of course, but sometimes.." The padawan stopped himself. He was talking too much, and was surely making his new companion uncomfortable. The words of Master Nox came to mind. First impressions were everything, and Varen didn't think he was making the best one by rambling off.

"Never uh, introduced myself how rude of me, I'm Varen. Varen Ardos." Unwittingly, he found himself inspecting Cinjay, as he did with most people, hazel brown eyes moving to the lash across her eyes. While of course he didn't want to be rude, he'd be remiss not to at least ask. A more serious expression colouring his face, he took his feet off the table and placed his food down. "How did it happen? I mean, your uh, scar. Don't get me wrong, it looks cool, I'm just overly curious if you will."

 

[Cinjay Saito]

Location: En route to Denon
Tags: Varen Ardos
Appearance: x

Cinjay had all but taken a vow of silence since first slipping into the Vagabond’s cockpit. It struck her as odd that for a mission of their scope the pair didn’t have some alliance-sanctioned freighter readily at their disposal. Not that the alternative failed to impress by any measure. Her counterpart must’ve pulled a few strings for this level of autonomy, and she certainly wasn’t complaining. With no stringent Master looming over their shoulders, there was also no moral compass to keep her chained to pacifism. Certainly not when it came to the slaver scum they’d be facing up against. The less supervision the more liberty she had to really put a wrench in the works. And she wholly intended to make good on that.

Skimming whatever goods Varen had stockpiled, the girl returned her attention to the mission at hand. Suffice to say her mind was occupied. Enough so that any vain attempt at socializing seemed negligible. It was never her explicit intention to come off as aloof, but she somehow always seemed to manage.

This however didn’t seem to totally deter her counterpart.

His short-lived blurb was met by a raised eyebrow and faint look of amusement. “No- Can’t say I have. Though to be fair I don’t get out much, interplanetary travel is a relatively new fad for me.” With something of an amused exhale, the girl waved a hand in front of her face as if to indicate she was blind, “Suppose it’s good to know I’d be immune.”

Regarding the boy across from her she couldn’t help but feel a flare of curiosity. By no stretch of the imagination could he qualify as a conventional Jedi. The more zealous old guard would likely frown at his wanton independence, but she couldn’t help but admire it to some degree. Must be freeing.

“Cinjay Saitio.” She offered her name in return to his introduction before flagging down his question with an undetectable edge of predictability. Her appearance tended to draw unwanted attention, she was more or less desensitized to it.“Thanks, I did it myself.” With enough injected humor to ensure it came off as a joke the girl leaned back, a shade more genuine. “It’s from back when I was a kid- messed with the wrong Zygerrian and got my shit rocked. Lesson-learned.” Shrugging off her answer, she negated any further context, instead turning a question back on him.

“Seems like you’re growing a pretty sizable collection. That a hobby of yours?”

​

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[Varen Ardos]

Ready When You Are

Location: En Route to Denon, Core Worlds
Objective: Take down the cartel
Gear: Lightsaber | Blaster Pistol

Tags:
Cinjay Saito

​

Varen nodded slowly, taking in her words and allowing a small smile to form on his face. She'd been pretty silent for most of the journey, but was a surprisingly good conversationalist. Re-investing himself in his snack, he briefly glanced to the cockpit, the intense light filling his eyes and causing him to turn back sharply. Maybe the stories of those old spacers had some credence to them. One thing he knew for sure was that he wasn't going to wait around to find out.

"Nice to meet you Cinjay."

“It’s from back when I was a kid- messed with the wrong Zygerrian and got my shit rocked. Lesson-learned.” Shrugging off her answer, she negated any further context, instead turning a question back on him.

"Sheesh. Nasty bunch. Been to Zygerria, not a fun place at all. I'm sorry to hear that happened to you." He answered genuinely, the grin reappearing on his face as he heard obnoxiously loud clunking footsteps moving through the short passageway to the common-room area. A towering machine with a matte-black finish and a red starbird insignia poorly stencilled onto its chestplate stared down with seemingly cold indifference at the girl. It's photoreceptors flickered, perhaps in the manner of blinking, giving it an almost questioning look. "Hey buddy." The padawan spun and smiled at his companion in the vein of an old friend.

"Cinjay meet Wooster. Buddy of mine since forever. Met him when I first escaped. Say Hi, Wooster."

"Hi Wooster." Came the monotone reply. It then turned over to Varen, greeting him with a stare before informing him of current situation. "We will be approaching Denon in twenty minutes. I advise you get ready." It said, stamping back off from whence it came.

In response to her inquiry about the trinkets in the common room, he paused thoughtfully to think of a response that might be the simplest explanation. "Could call it that I guess. I don't really go out actively looking for them, more like mementos. I made one of 'em myself actually." He said, perking up at the opportunity to show off his handwork. Getting up, he disappeared for a couple of seconds before returning with something that resembled a moderately large cloth. Unfurling it across the temple, it was a black flag with the same red starbird stencilled on the droid. On it read: FREE CENTARES in bold aurebesh lettering.

"It's kinda precious to me. Could say it reminds me of home." He told her, rolling it back up and sitting it up against a compartment. "So. How'd you end up joining the Jedi?" The brown-haired padawan asked, placing on a headset in preparation and handing over another to her.

 

[Cinjay Saito]

Location: En route to Denon
Tags: Varen Ardos
Appearance: x

Before she could dismissively wave off his sympathy, a set of clambering footsteps redirected her attention to the massive-hulking figure lingering in the dorm frame. How did that manage to slip her radar.

In truth she had something of a mental blind spot for droids. Or any stretch of non-organic life for that matter. If their presence wasn't one she could sense through the force, it was as if they virtually didn't exist. One of the many complications that came with being blind.

Silently reprimanding herself for letting her guard slip, the girl regarded the droid with a look of unreciprocated interest. His apparent monotony and lack of emotional intelligence just another object of curiosity. "He must be fun at parties." she snarked as the droid retreated back to his preferred solitude. Turning to face Varen, his previous statement seemed to fully register. "Escape? Where from?" She didn't seem to share his hesitance when prodding for personal information. Besides, he'd already set the precedent.

He was quick to roll out one of his many mementos, it's soft thud indicating some sort of fabric. A flag maybe? "What's it supposed to be?” She asked, her gaze flitting up to meet Varen's.

To his next question the girl readjusted.

"Dumb luck." The brunette responded with a shrug, deciding to forgo the whole former-slave turned mercenary speel. That was still very much a raw nerve, and she'd yet to gauge a level of trust with the Senior Padawan. "-Got discovered by a Jedi Master on a whim and he made me an offer I wasn't really in the position to refuse." The Jedi had in essence freed her from her bonds. And while Temple life was undoubtedly a step up, subscribing to the full extent of Jedi doctrine was easier said than done. Rolling her shoulder back she accepted the headset with a look of acknowledgment.

"I'm out of my depth in more ways than I know how to name, but hey I'll take the free room and board. It's a step up from roughing it down in Coruscant's lower levels." Tilting her head the girl eyed Varen with a measure of curiosity, "Not to make any assumptions, but you don't seem all that attached to the monastic life from the look of it. What's your story?"

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[Varen Ardos]

Ready When You Are

Location: Denon, Inner Rim
Objective: Take down the Spice Ring
Gear: Lightsaber | Blaster Pistol

Tags:
Cinjay Saito

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"You'd be surprised." Was his prompt answer to her initial remark. He opened his mouth to answer the more pressing question, but was stopped in his tracks by a light thud that sent him to his seat. Varen itched to explain, the only person he'd ever really confided in about his past was his Master, and to anyone else, it was the regular old sent for Jedi training at some age. It could vary from five to twelve but the lie was all the same.

The mission took precedence. "I'll fill you in after, looks like we're here." Rolling the flag, he stashed it against the seat and hopped up, gesturing for Cinjay to follow as he jogged up to the cockpit. Larger than usual for a freighter, it potruded out, leaving an almost cavernous space for the pilot and co-pilot, and a passenger seat behind the co-pilot. A mass of kaleidescope colours, all brightly flashing entered his eyes, as they adjusted from the relative dimness of the common room area. In middle of the blackness sat a large ball, that almost seemed on fire with the blinding city lights of a city-covered world. One reminiscent of Galactic Center. He slipped into the pilot's seat, next to Wooster who sat at the co-pilot controls on the starboard side.

He flicked a switch above his head, letting the ship settle, he made sure his headset was on properly and kicked in the throttle, hurtling down toward the planet. Denon was weird. An Inner Rim world, once renowned as rather beautiful, if albeit conservative in building efforts had become a hive for some of the worst scum and villainy the galaxy had ever had the opportunity to deal with. At least, from what he'd seen that was the case. The more wealthier citizens could afford to ignore what was going on and get fat on contracts from the Corpos. At least, that's the story his friends in Darkwire told.

He was inclined to agree. "Engaging shields."

The ship was engulfed by red hot flame that caused their ships to glimmer as the tips of the towering Corpo skyscrapers pierced the clouds. Varen guided The Mynock down out of upper atmo and toward their assigned bay, touching down and being greeted by run-down homes, streaked with age, accompanied derelict infrastructure that begged for a new lick of paint. The ship was immediately bathed in dull neon light from shops that didn't look like they'd seen customers in years.

"Welcome to Denon."

 

[Cinjay Saito]

Location: Streets of Denon
Tags: Varen Ardos
Appearance: x

His fraction of reluctance was enough for her to drop the topic entirely. She never had much love for small talk to begin with; all it did was keep the interim tolerable. If he was fine leaving things unsaid she could easily match his indifference. Shadowing Varen to the cockpit, she slipped into the passenger seat without the apparent struggle of having to adjust to the brightness. Instead her eyes scanned the approaching horizon vapidly, feeling a slight tug of exclusion over the fact she couldn't see it. Not that she'd ever outwardly admit to such.

Before long they broke the atmosphere, tendrils of smog trailing in wake of their descent. From word of mouth, Denon was one hideously flawed planet. Not such a far cry from the deep-seated corruption Coruscant seemed all but embroiled in but, unlike the galactic capital, Denon couldn't hide its ugly head under some gilded mask. Its fall from grace was a morbid curiosity, like a speeder crash you just couldn't look away from.

"Homey." Her response was blunt, a subtle grimace dying on her lips. She knew all too intimately the reality of the slums that encircled them. It was like getting head-butted with shitty nostalgia.

Moving from her own seat the girl rested a hand on Varen's chair, allowing him space to complete whatever post-flight procedure he saw fit. "Intel suggests the cartel has a few faces staked out in the entertainment district." She lifted her wrist, a small string of projected IDs circling her comlink."We're here to take names, and leave the Alliance with damage control. Which is to say keep a low-profile." Motioning to the lightsaber at his side she unclipped her own, sliding it into the lining of her jacket where it remained within reach but hardly detectable. They couldn't risk drawing attention to themselves so blatantly. Blasters would have to suffice.

"There's a joint a few levels down from here-" She continued, regurgitating whatever keynotes she'd surmised from her research as she made her way towards the ramp. "It's called The Den, and lucky for us it's rumored to have some pretty damning ties to the cartel. Possibly a head of operations, but we're working off pure speculation." Delivery leveled, she made it clear her mind was honed in on the severity of their mission. She had her own sins to pay for, but karking up a few spicers certainly wouldn't get in the way of that.

Tossing Varen an expectant glance she drew her hood before stepping out into the full reach of the acid rain encircling them, "I say we start there."

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