Private Ruins on the Demon Moon

[Grigonju]

​

ONDERON​

Iziz​

Gri had had enough of Coruscant. All that grubby urban planet seemed to bring him was bad luck. It was a curse that followed him over the years and no matter how far he ventured, its grasp never waned. It was especially so on the planet-sized city, so it seemed. A job could seem simple enough but there would always be complications. Whilst still young in body, Gri grew weary of the relentless grind of obtaining bounties but he had to eat somehow. In truth, he couldn't imagine himself doing anything else. That life was so engrained into who he was now that it was almost entirely who he was. Enraptured by the adventures he went on with a friend now lost as a boy new to what the galaxy held, it was the only way of life he knew. The difference now was that he was alone. Jumping from planet to planet in search of pay with no one but himself. He had Kaliah, of course, but a nexu didn't make much of a drinking partner.

Sipping on a drink of bahkata, Gri sat alone in a booth. Onderon seemed as good a planet as any for a bit of peace between work. Plus, the high-walled capital of Iziz to keep trouble at bay felt like a comfort from having to deal with hostile fauna again. He swore that the smell of the Coruscant sewers still clung to his nostrils. If he never saw a grotesque hive rat or corridor ghoul again, it would be too soon. The cantina had a fair few people in it but it was far from busy. Gri's helmet rested on the table in front of him, the rest of his navy armour still adorned on his body. Though he doubted that any trouble would happen, he always felt safer in the armour. Having Kaliah by his side also helped but he couldn't bring her to a cantina. The had been times when she escorted him in public but it was always more trouble than it was worth. The sight of the feline predator caused people to go hysterical or see Gri as a target. Clearly it invited a challenge from big shots looking to make a scene for the reputation. They usually wished they hadn't.

Finishing his glass, Gri was lost in thought as he adjusted his left wrist gauntlet, swishing the last mouthful around his mouth to savour the flavour before swallowing it. Before he looked up, someone else was joining him across the table. The man stared at him for a moment, his gaze hard and stern. "Can I help you?" he asked, though it wasn't really a question. More of a 'what the hell are you doing?'. He was prepared in the event that things turned south but the curly-haired man didn't look like much of a threat.

TAGS: Sylas Taff​

 

[Sylas Taff]

Location: Iziz, Onderon

Sylas often went to Onderon for a drink to get away from Noverskaa for a while. To gain a bit of peace and quiet at least away from the preparations, inquires and various other things he always went through on a day to day business. However this time, he went to Onderon instead to see if he couldn't find someone to assist him having a look at Dxun, that demon moon not far from Onderon. According to various information found by his family there was supposed to be various mandalorian ruins and even an old Sith tomb. Most likely both had been raided already for gear, supplies or whatever else was likely hidden back when these places were active. However the history of the places would still be there thanks to well the force and psychometry which he had found a natural talent in.

So it was he went to his usual watering hole to see if anyone there would be able to assist him in going over these places. He wasn't necessarily looking for someone who was also going to be amazed by the ruins. However he was definitely looking someone who looked well armed and armoured. So it was very quickly he spotted the man sitting in Navy coloured mandalorian armour. Sylas thought on this for a bit, there were a lot of outcomes from this potential, perhaps they would also be interested in learning more about their history, perhaps they would try to stop him from going. It was hard to say as while sylas was aware his father and grandfather had followed the mandalorian code, sylas never had. The empire his grandfather and father had joined collapsed a while ago, as such they never forced him and allowed him to make his own choices.

But he was looking for the help and it didn't appear like anyone else was going to fit the bill. He stepped over to the man's table and waited to be acknowledge before he would start speaking. Sylas was unsurprised and unperturbed at the can I help you, which honestly sounded like a threat. He said plainly keeping his features neutral. "I was hoping you would, of course it would be for the right price." He then pulled out the chair and sat on it, "Job is I require a person to keep me protected while I explore Dxun. I have heard that there are some ruins present on its surface which I would like to see, when I do I will need some time to look over them and I can't multitask that hard. So how much would it take to have you 'baby sit' me?" He said with a smirk crossing his face.

He was slightly surprised by himself managing to pull that together, but then he remembered some of the last days at the temple before everything in his memory went hazy. He was trying to train to become a jedi shadow, and part of their deal was being able to slip into various persona's as needed and in this case he might just need it.

Tags: Grigonju

 

[Grigonju]

​

ONDERON​

Iziz​

Gri looked the man up and down, though his posture relaxed when he explained his intentions. "That depends on what I'm protecting you from," he replied, his gruff voice blunt and lacking much emotion. He had never visited Dxun but he had heard of the beasts that lived there. Heck, they were fearsome enough to force the planet's inhabitants to hide behind their high walls that were patrolled continually. "They don't call it the Demon Moon for nothing."

With a gesture, another drink was brought over. Gri sighed into his glass as he took a sip. He'd hoped to get some peace before another job but work was getting slim. Especially since his bounties often got hijacked by others looking to get some credits. Gri wasn't no hired bodyguard but it sounded relatively simple, if he was lucky.

He was almost never lucky.

"Zekkegs and Gharzr are fearsome but solitary. I have to deal with a swarm of Beast Riders on Drexl, the price doubles." He wasn't sure if the Beast Riders were still around or if they were just stories but an organised group of targets would be much harder to deal with than wild creatures. Gri chewed his gum as he thought of a price. It appeared like a simple job that wouldn't require much but the guy looked like he could afford to be squeezed out of a bit more. "850," he offered, picking up the drink again and looking around at the other patrons as though he was uninterested.

"What's so special about these ruins anyway?" he asked, wanting to get more of an idea of what they could face. If someone was willing to risk their life to just look at some rocks then there must be something significant about them. Being on the jungle moon could also give Kaliah the chance to stretch her legs and aid in protection if needed.

TAGS: Sylas Taff​

 

[Sylas Taff]

Location: Iziz, Onderon

Sylas nodded also signalling for a drink for himself. "Course it does, I wouldn't expect any less. From my current understanding you'd just be protecting me from nosey wild life. Not many people go to or live on Dxun." Sylas quickly ran through a list in his head of all the creatures on Dxun, really the ones that would give the most trouble were going to be cannoks, the potential of a large pack of boma, or that a zakkeg might disagree with where he was. There was a chance that some sith cultists could be floating around near the tomb of freedon nadd but he doubted that seriously, along with doubting that they would bother him much.

Sylas thought for a while before speaking back, "I haven't heard of the Ghazar before, the rest I am aware of. As for if the beast riders ever show up on drexls we have a bit more to worry about than I would have liked, thought I doubt they will appear, they have become quite reduced in number and also less savage over the years." Sylas said shrugging before continuing, "Should a group of organized people show up, beast riders or potentially others then agreed your contract will be doubled. Only fair." Sylas blew out quietly at 850, that was really low balling themselves. Perhaps they were more desperate than he thought they were. Hell they had full mando armour, he'd been expecting a 4 to 5 figure price tag.

Thinking for a bit looking into his drink, he then thoughtfully responded. "Supposedly they are Mandalorian ruins from back during the early days of the republic. I have an interest in seeing what's left, and meditating in it to use some space magic so I can learn more. Hence the need for someone to be watching my back, otherwise I would just go myself." He then thought a bit longer before looking up and speaking again, "It would seem from your gear and weapons that 850 is low balling yourself, even for a simple job. So instead I'm going to offer 5k upfront to go within the next couple of hours after we finish our drinks and 5k on a safe return." He wasn't sure why this guy was lowballing so hard even though he was sure it was a mark up because sylas as per usual looked like he could afford it.

Tags: Grigonju

 

[Grigonju]

​

ONDERON​

Iziz​

Gri nodded in return, glad that the pay would be doubled. Now the precedent was there, there shouldn't be any need for renegotiation if things got difficult. If the ruins were sacred to someone, just entering could cause agitation and if the guy wanted to take things, there was the possibility of conflict. It was all speculative and hypothetical; Gri didn't know much about the moon. At least now all bases were covered.

The thought of going up against Mandalorians also wasn't a welcome thought. They were fierce warriors and his armour often caused people to believe he was one of them. With the current rise of the Enclave, it became increasingly more likely that he would cross paths with them, and from the stories he had heard, it wouldn't work out well for him. "You a Jedi?" he asked, thinking back on the young Force user he recently worked with who did a similar thing.

Gri nearly choked on his drink when he heard the job would be worth 10,000 credits. He hadn't earned that much in the last 3 jobs combined. He'd guessed right that the man had money but he didn't think it would be that much. "You got yourself a deal, mister," the man said, trying to hide his surprise. His hand was outstretched to shake on it, sealing the deal. "I got a ship in the spaceport nearby ready to go." Gri couldn't remember the last time he was on a ship that wasn't his own. For some reason, he felt uneasy being confined in an unfamiliar vessel owned by someone he knew nothing about. People paid him to do a job, not to ask questions, so he only inquired about information that could affect to work. The little drink he had left was gone in a large gulp.

TAGS: Sylas Taff​

 

[Sylas Taff]

Location: Iziz, Onderon

Sylas snorted at the question about if he was a jedi. "Once upon a time, there was a chance that I could have been a jedi. No, I'm not a jedi. Just an independent person with a little bit of the force." Technically it was a lie, he had a lot more than a little bit of the force and had been quietly training himself up in the way of the force.

Sylas finished off his drink putting the mug down on the table. "Good and fair enough, then shall we head off?" Sylas asked grabbing the man's hand and shaking it. Sylas double checked that everything was in place before getting up quietly, that his sword was still hidden in it's sheath, that his lightsabre was broken apart and hidden deep in the recesses of his pockets, both of his arms had vambraces hidden beneath the cloth of his shirt. His boot had a vibro knife just in case. He felt prepared for anything that might pop up.

Tags: Grigonju

 

[Grigonju]

​

ONDERON​

Iziz​

Gri just nodded, accepting the answer and not pushing any further. When the Force was involved, things seemed to get more complicated. As much as he was skilled with blasters, they were nearly useless against lasersword-wielding wizards. He had recently encountered a dark Jedi in the catacombs that were the Coruscant sewers and he wouldn't have made it out of there alive if it wasn't for the young Jedi that accompanied him (though it wouldn't be something he'd say out loud). Taking down the enhanced rancor had taken all of his efforts and he would have been less than a minor annoyance to the man. His shoulder still ached from being thrown around like a ragdoll.

"Ready when you are," he replied. His drink was finished and the promise of credits on the horizon encouraged his haste. Standing, Gri tucked his helmet under his arm and waited for the man to do the same. He wanted to keep him in his sights - after all, the job was to protect him. A man of few words, he barely made small talk. Most of the time people just rambled on about dull and repetitive subjects that the bounty hunter cared nothing about. There had only been one who he was close to but that person was gone; he wasn't interested in anyone else. He had learned that people eventually left your life and it wasn't anything that could be avoided. It was easier to expect it and not build bridges than to watch them burn.

The pair approached the spaceport, navigating the place to find the bay where the Lighthawk was docked. The grey-blue ship was the only home he had. "There she is," he said to Sylas, looking upon the Lethisk-class armed freighter. It wasn't anything extravagant but it was reliable. The rusting panels and dodgy wiring had been replaced years prior and the way Gri looked after it, it was almost new-looking. "So, about that upfront payment."

TAGS: Sylas Taff​

 

[Sylas Taff]

Location: Iziz, Onderon

Sylas was surprised the man didn't ask anymore questions. Usually people would ask why he didn't number himself among any force order, but thankfully it didn't seem to matter to this man in question. Well that was a good start, Sylas followed the man out slowly double checking his gear was safely hidden on his body and that his armor hadn't screwed up somehow while he was seated across from the man. He kept in sight of the man while also keeping the man within his own sight. He still wasn't sure whether the mando armor was genuine and if it was, the man seemed to be a bounty hunter for the most part anyways might have taken it off a mark at some point. Not that it fully mattered at all, at one point it might have but sylas had lost most of his ties to his past life anyway.

Having finally arrived at the space port sylas was interested to see an armed freighter was the man's ship. He supposed he shouldn't have been that surprised, it was common for bounty hunters to need transport to get their marks back to the client and it was always better to use your own gear anyways, he particularly knew that. Sylas then nodded at the question, it only made sense. He pulled out a small card and handed it to the man. "5K as promised up front, you can run it to double check it but it will be good regardless. And they are regular galactic credits that can be used anywhere. I'm not going to scam you out by giving you credits to one of the current groups in the galaxy only for them to fall through when that group once again disintegrates. Also nice ship."

Tags: Grigonju

 

[Grigonju]

​

ONDERON​

Iziz​

Gri took the card and looked it over. As Sylas spoke, he checked the authenticity of the amount, satisfied to see that what he had promised was true. Perhaps he was in the wrong profession. Maybe he needed to change to a hired gun rather than collecting bounties. Apparently, it paid better, already wealthier now than he had been in a while.

He strode towards the Lighthawk, not looking back as he spoke. "Thanks." The ramp was already down as they approached. "She's gettin' on a bit now but she's kept me alive so far." There were so many memories he had on the ship. Some pleasant, some stung with the reminder of what was lost. His boots clanged on the metal as he entered, presuming that the man was following behind.

Entering the hold of the ship, Kaliah was curled up in the centre of the floor. At the sound of people approaching, she unfurled and nestled her head against Gri in greeting. Noting the other man, her shoulders broadened as she snarled, the spines on her back clattering. "Easy," said the bounty hunter nonchalantly. With one word, the nexu relaxed, four red eyes still trained on the stranger. "She won't harm you," he reassured. "Not unless I give her the word." It wasn't exactly a threat, more of a reminder to not give him reason to mistrust him.

Gri continued to the ship, entering the cockpit and taking a seat. He flicked various buttons, preparing the vehicle for the journey. It whirred to life, the loading ramp closing at the rear. He presumed that the man would join him up front and not stay back with Kaliah but he didn't mind either way. He could keep an eye on him easier if he followed but he also knew that the nexu would be watching him even more intensely.

TAGS: Sylas Taff​