Private Show & Tell [Judah Dashiell]

[Balun Dashiell]

Show & Tell
Judah Dashiell

​

Balun stopped and turned back to look at Judah Dashiell for a moment, searching his expression as though trying to judge if he was being serious or otherwise. "Grist, I hope you're taking the piss here, Pops", he replied under his breath with a half smirk and a shake of his head. Sure, whoever the voice behind the intercom was, likely knew his Mother or had at least recognised her name and the name of House Arenais, but he didn't want to know the details. Balun was looking for a way inside.

"C'mon..." Balun encouraged his father as he moved on through the open doorway. The corridor split off with various other entry points, leading left and right to other parts of the facility as Balun followed the signage lit in neon lights against the durasteel walls, searching for the Command Centre. The Shipyard seemed like one giant metal maze from within, and they were like vermin having to run the trap, all the while being watched from someone above. Not the Force or some deity, but a stranger who seemed just as reluctant to trust them as they were, him.

"On the way over here, I did some research" Balun explained as the pair walked side by side, "House Arenais was a prominent family known to the Jedi, but my Mom was part of the Confederacy of Independent Systems back when they ran Naboo. They had a Force Order known as the Knights Obsidian. Her father was Caedyn Arenais, who once stood near the height of the Silver Jedi Order...".

Balun didn't know if any of this would mean anything to his Father, but it helped to fill in the time, as well as the blanks for Judah as well. No matter the stance his father had against his Mother, it was both justified and worth educating the man so that they both knew what they were up against.

"Veiere and Kay Arenais were apparently Caedyn's parents, my great grandparents on Kristyls side. They ruled over Commenor as a Monarchy which become the Commenor Systems Alliance when they spread their influence out across other worlds and territories. It sounds like it was more of a diplomatic leadership than a contested dictatorship. And they regularly saw conflict with the Sith-Imperials and criminals of that time".

He turned to glance aside to Judah, a look of a silent request. Naturally, he expected his father to do some digging of his own, and figured that Judah had more contacts and means than Balun himself did.

Jedi Master: Ala Quin
Major Faction: The High Republic
Sub-Faction: Jhaessa Prime
Conglomerate: Dashiell Incorporated™
Subsidiary Company: Dashiell Retrofit™​

"Speech"
'Thought'​

 

[Judah Dashiell]

"Your sense of direction is horrific. You know we could have looked at the arrows on the water pipe and gotten some idea of which way to go."

Amused, Judah was following along. Perhaps they could stop and look at signs but Balun Dashiell was very impatient. He often wondered why, from what he knew the Jedi valued patience. He was a fairly patient person. Judah surmised it must have came from his mother, coupled with the age of his youngest son.

Listening to the history behind the family name, Judah kept his oceanic gaze on the direction they were headed in. They only seemed to get turned around once and when he found the bank of turbolifts needed to reach the administrative level. Hand reached out and pulled Balun back, ushering the boy inside.

"Sounds like a trip to the Commenor area next."

Turbolift started and he caught the look Balun was giving him. Judah waited a moment but his youngest was still staring at him. The old salvager looked behind him in the turbolift to ensure there wasn't something odd happening before speaking.

"You're staring at me son. I look the same as I did fifteen minutes ago."

 

[Balun Dashiell]

Show & Tell
Judah Dashiell

​

Balun smirked a little awkwardly, "Sorry. I was thinking you could use some of your contacts to do some digging of your own, considering what I just told you. Kristyl's father, the others. The help would be appreciated, is all" he shrugged a little as the turbolift started to take them higher into the facility.

Riding the turbolift offered them some time, albeit not a great deal, but enough for Balun to slow his breathing some. He thought of Commenor, though admittedly didn't know much about the world. He hadn't had any such connections to these places like his Mother, and with all the thousands of worlds out there, it really was an incredible coincidence that he'd set foot on Mnemosyne, only thanks to Iona Starchaser .

Bringing his mind to their present circumstance, he wondered what lay ahead for them. Who was this man on the intercom, and what connection did they share with his mother? Would they be amicable, or were they hunting her down like the ISB was? Perhaps they'd been allowed entry only to see what information this person could gain from them.

"Possible romantic partners aside, this guy could be playing us for information on Kristyl. I know what he said, but be ready in case we have to draw on him. I'd really rather not have to kill someone but better him than us if it comes to that".

Jedi Master: Ala Quin
Major Faction: The High Republic
Sub-Faction: Jhaessa Prime
Conglomerate: Dashiell Incorporated™
Subsidiary Company: Dashiell Retrofit™​

"Speech"
'Thought'​

 

[Judah Dashiell]

"Oh." Judah was never good at reading between the lines. He still wasn't quite sure what Balun Dashiell was after. Clearly some type of connection but it sounded many had passed. Still, for Balun he would do his best. "I will put some feelers out and see what I get."

Quiet on the ride up, Judah was leaning against the back wall when Balun spoke of this mysterious man. He had many theories. At first Judah thought it was a squatter, one he was prepared to offer relocation for. Least he could do for keeping the station up. Or even keep him aboard as some type of maintenance manager. Now though it seemed this man had intimate knowledge of the Arenais family.

"Possibly. I am sure there may be things on the HoloNet to read and give a framework of the family. They seemed semi-famous at the least so there is bound to be general information out there. Now, he could be using this to try to get us to give him more information. Just hook us with enough. My theory? This isn't a man and its really your mother hiding out. I think a real man would have met us down in the hangar."

Shoulders shrugged.

"No need to kill anything yet. Patience. We find out first and go from there. If things get dicey then we take action."

 

[Bren Raddik]

The Control Centre of the Mahina Shipyards had become his own private base of operations, an unusual gig for an extremely average man such as Bren Raddik. He had never wanted for much, but credits were the way of the Galaxy and his sole motivation for doing anything in life, and it had been roughly eighteen months ago that he had been approached by a woman claiming to be a friend of a former illicit business partner from back in Bren's amateur years.

Bren was a criminal; there was no two-way about it, and he didn't much care what the authorities thought of him. He took on any job as long as it paid him equal to the risks he took to fulfil the contract, and in most cases would move on without further contact; but Kristyl Arenais had a desire for information and a consistent stream of funds that had convinced Bren of a profitable business relationship.

Mnemosyne was fairly unassuming, and the Galactic powers that be often overlooked her twin moons. Mahina had not seen activity in a long time, and those few that did venture out this way were salvagers, scavengers or pirates. The facility itself was largely automated, and from the control centre, Bren had learned how to set the security systems and activate the anti-personnel turrets and anti-air defences as required. It was something he only did on a rare occasion, and perhaps in hindsight, he should have done so this time around. He had sworn at himself when the ship of Judah Dashiell and Balun Dashiell had landed in the Hangar, but it wasn't until they had tried to breach the blast door that Bren had reluctantly taken special notice of the pair.

Surely his employer would be especially pissed if he had killed her wayward son.

As the turbolift arrived, and the doors of the cylindrical tube opened with a mechanical hiss, Bren stood waiting with the scattergun aimed in their general direction. One didn't need to be a surgeon with a blaster that fired a magnitude of energy pellets in a wide spread. "Aight you two, step out slowly and don't do nothin' to give me cause to reconsider", he gestured off to his left with a bob of his head, a quick glance towards the conference-style table closer to the entrance of the floor.

"Kris wouldn'ta given me up if she knew what was good for her, so your bein' 'ere and knowing her doesn't exactly sit right wit' me".

 

[Balun Dashiell]

Show & Tell
Judah Dashiell

​

The turbolift doors swept aside, and the command floor introduced them. The space was fast and wide, with multiple rooms sectioned off by transparasteel, durasteel, and permacrete walls and holdings, and the floor was lined with dust-laden workstations and terminals, most of which appeared as though they hadn't been used in decades.

At the front and centre of the lifts' opening, however, stood the man who had spoken to them prior over the internal communication system, now speaking to them once more in a perverse form of basic that reminded Balun of someone uneducated. In his arms, a rifle, familiar in style to many Balun had seen in the field of war, a scattergun with destructive power at close range.

"Easy now..." Balun cautioned the man, his left hand parting from his side to present the Bryar Pistol he carried, intentionally showing that he was armed as well. Slowly, he pointed the barrel of his pistol back down into the leather holster on his hip, making a show of his choice to house the sidearm. From there, Balun moved towards the table that they had been directed to, showing compliance for the time being.

Of course, he still had his Lightsaber within reach, as well as the Force at his beck and call, but right now it seemed there was more value in hearing what this man had to say, perhaps learning more about his mother and other possible locations that Bren Raddik knew of. From the comment, this spacer certainly was in league with Kristyl Arenais somehow, but to what end? And what would he risk for her?

"As I said, my name's Balun. We're not here to fight if it can be avoided," he added before sparing a glance at Judah Dashiell , wondering if his father would play along.

Jedi Master: Ala Quin
Major Faction: The High Republic
Sub-Faction: Jhaessa Prime
Conglomerate: Dashiell Incorporated™
Subsidiary Company: Dashiell Retrofit™​

"Speech"
'Thought'​

 

[Judah Dashiell]

/

Unlike his son, Judah wasn't interested in showing off his blaster rifle. One, the strap was clearly visible on his shoulder. Two, he didn't want to get into a phallus measuring contest with a lonely spacer. One he couldn't tell if the guy was bluffing or was being genuine. Difficult to tell when they didn't expect anyone in the station, and if they did, it wasn't a man who apparently knew Kristyl. Maybe some enterprising pirates.

Part of him was amused, the other part curious. Impulsively, he was going to combine both.

"So." A small pause, he was trying not to grin, especially since Balun would preemptively kill him. "Are you dating Kris? Prepared to be a stepfather to this one? Crazy way to meet but..."

Voice drifted off and he didn't dare look in the direction of his son. However, he wasn't completely done with his fun for the day. If the situation was less questionable he might be serious. Right now though it was worth having a little expense at his son.

Hand outstretched in greeting.

"Judah Dashiell, a pleasure." A small pause. "You've been out here long?"

 

[Bren Raddik]

Polite and respectable as Judah Dashiell portrayed, Bren Raddik primed the scattergun with a press of his thumb, releasing a quiet yet high-pitched whine as energy built up within the blaster's capacitors, the barrel-end being raised as if to answer the other man's attempted handshake with a clear warning.

It was a show of force, not accompanied by the intention to kill the man, but merely to remind Judah that they did not know one another. Raddik had no friends here, and for that matter, anywhere in the Galaxy. He would not trust these two as far as he could throw them.

"'Pologies mate, but I ain't prepared ta' give you in inche" Bren replied, his voice calm yet his eyes sharp as he watched Judah carefully. It wasn't personal. Bren had learned early on in life that trusting in others quickly led to disappointment and death. Turning his head slightly, yet never taking his eyes off the older man, he gestured with his head to the table where he had asked them to sit. "You're lucky we even talkin' at all".

Waiting for the pair to seat themselves, Bren would take up a position with the table between them, keeping the scattergun across his lap as he sat in one of the chairs and glanced between the two, back and forth, as if seeking to discern their intentions.

They weren't the type to come looking for him. His being there had surprised them equally as much as their arrival alarmed him. The comments about Kris being his woman also spoke loudly for how little they knew. Bren had his share of choice across the Galaxy, and Kris didn't even factor into his pool of fish in the galactic sea of pleasures.

"To answer ya question, nah she's just another job" he spoke, his shoulders relaxing slightly against the comfort of the chair, though he didn't drop his guard at all; "Her creds are all I care about. I set her up with some of my people, a bit of information here an' there and she pays well. This place though.." he bobbed his head lightly, regarding the Mahina Shipyards without looking away from the two of them, "Just a temporary perk of the job, but it ain't no skin off my nose if I gotta move on and givin' you two know about me bein' 'ere then I s'pose the time's come to jump ship".

Balun Dashiell

 

[Balun Dashiell]

Show & Tell
Judah Dashiell

​

'Grist, what've I done to deserve this?' Balun mused within as he listened to his father and did his best to stop himself from smirking. Judah Dashiell just couldn't help himself, but then he was also where Balun and Makai Dashiell 's sense of humour and brotherly competitiveness came from. They were their fathers' sons.

"Pop..." Balun cautioned, tensing at the sound of the scattergun charging. He wouldn't approach lest he risk his father being scattered, but his tone made it clear he wished his old man would step back and de-escalate the situation as best he could. Bale himself took the lead in that regard, moving around to the far side of the conference table as he returned his blaster into its leather housing, soon pulling a chair back and parking himself upon it.

'This guy doesn't have an honest bone in his body. Thank the Force he's not with Kristyl', he reflected while awaiting his father and this Bren Raddik fellow to join him at the table. To be fair, he didn't see himself meeting his Mother anyway, so what would it matter at the end of the day, but for the sake of his self-respect, Balun was glad to hear the spacer's impersonal stance towards the woman.

Surprisingly, Bren Raddik was quite forthcoming, actually. Dealing in intelligence, despite sounding like he lacked a great deal of it personally, and arranging some form of mutual business meetings with others he was associated with. Honestly, the possibilities could be speculated on for hours, but Balun wasn't interested in half-answers.

"What do you know about the Imps supposedly after her?"

Jedi Master: Ala Quin
Major Faction: The High Republic
Sub-Faction: Jhaessa Prime
Conglomerate: Dashiell Incorporated™
Subsidiary Company: Dashiell Retrofit™​

"Speech"
'Thought'​

 

[Judah Dashiell]

It was best to take such a situation in stride. As much as he didn't want to sit the salvager settled himself into a chair opposite of the odd caretaker of this place. It was becoming clear though the man was less caretaker and more informant for Kris. How one was an informant or information broker while holed up in an old shipyard was beyond him. Maybe the man made frequent trips away from the shipyard and this was a defacto home since Kris had probably mentioned it or offered before.

As they settled in, Judah was going to ask a question but Balun Dashiell got to it first. A small glance in his direction. Despite everything Balun stated about his mother, he often had a great deal of questions surrounding her. Or was always eager to ask. While he didn't mind, Judah just wished Balun would be honest with himself, that he actually did care on some level.

"We have plans to get the shipyards active once more, just for clarity. I'm prepared to either let you stay or pay for you to settle elsewhere."

 

[Bren Raddik]

Bren Raddik leaned back into his chair, balancing the scattergun across his lap and glancing between the two men as if he were sizing them up. He listened to their words, though they didn't share much. The younger of the two appeared curious, mentioning the Imperial Security Bureau, which Raddik was indeed aware of, and the older man appeared somewhat less interested in the past and more focused on their current surroundings.

Naturally, the mention of credits took priority here, leaving Raddik to decisively leave his gaze upon Judah Dashiell , his attention well and truly bought. "If it's all the same to you both, I reckon I'll take the credits an' leave you to it", he feigned a smile, nodding once in agreement; "And for a little extra, I'll even wipe the security protocols I've put in place, freeing up yer' use of the facilities faculties and such" he waved a dismissive hand, not having the appropriate terminology for what he wished to express, but knowing all the same what he meant. "Twenty Kay oughtta do it", he concluded.

Glancing back to Balun Dashiell acting as if the older man had already agreed to their terms, Raddik shifted his weight in his seat and cocked his head to the side, "Yer' bein' one of them Jedi, I figure you know how ta' handle yerself, but for the record, the security bureau ain't to be karked with. Kris is after them because they offed her friends and family. They're after her because her family were all Jedi and do-gooder political types..." He let that sit with the younger man, inhaling deeply as he thought back on what Kristyl Arenais had gradually shared with him over the months. She'd not been very trusting, nor forthcoming.

"Last I heard of 'er, she was after some bloke called Thalvar. Varik or Veyrik, somethin' like that. Top dog in the kill squad, Kris's number one target. They've been chasing each other for the last ten... fifteen years, maybe. Thalvar's a slippery bastard, but then so is Kris from what I make of 'er" Raddik continued, soon kicking his feet up atop the table and crossing them at the ankles as he glanced between them. "ISB don't send out kill squads for small fish either. If ya really are family, then you oughtta be looking over yer back. It's a wonder they ain't come for you already...".

"Or have they?" he soon asked, pausing to regard them both as if a thought had suddenly occurred to him; "Chit, you better not have been tailed here?!", Raddik suddenly swept his feet off the table and jumped up, turning and stalking his way across the deck towards the nearest terminal with a vested interest in tapping into the communications array.

 

[Balun Dashiell]

Show & Tell
Judah Dashiell

​

Watching as Bren Raddik lept to his feet and ran towards one of the work stations nearby, Balun sighed under his breath and turned to look across to his father, shaking his head slowly. Raising a hand to his forehead and giving a twirl of his index finger, Bale made a silent gesture towards Raddik's mental state before reluctantly pushing himself up to stand and leaving the table.

"We weren't followed", Balun called out after Raddik as he slowly followed the man, keeping his distance so as not to startle and give the impression of being a threat to him; "The Imperials haven't made any connection between me and her. She abandoned me as an infant and only my father is on record as my sole guardian" he pointed out, trying to reassure the unhinged man.

If this man was to be believed, then perhaps Kristyl Arenais did have some reason to keep her distance, but it did not excuse her from a life spent isolated from his family, leaving his upbringing to complete strangers, regardless of the fact that they had been Jedi.

Crossing his arms over his chest, Balun leaned back against one of the cubicles, chewing upon his inner cheek subconsciously in thought. From his personal experience, he wouldn't put it past the Imperials to snuff out those they deemed a threat. Especially political figures, but then he had also heard nothing about the dismantling of House Arenais. Judging from his research, their time in power was well before his coming into the Galaxy.

Jedi Master: Ala Quin
Major Faction: The High Republic
Sub-Faction: Jhaessa Prime
Conglomerate: Dashiell Incorporated™
Subsidiary Company: Dashiell Retrofit™​

"Speech"
'Thought'​

 

[Judah Dashiell]

"Crazy flocks together."

Judah muttered under his breath. This man was insane. Kris was insane. It was no wonder they had found one another. Although he didn't know what this said about himself. Drunk when they had...encountered...one another, he did often think back if the woman at one time was in a more peaceful position. Time did funny things to people.

"Getting back to the real subject at hand. Twenty thousand is more than acceptable for your service here. I am prepared to offer it today. After you wipe the security protocols."

Even if the man couldn't wipe the security protocols, getting him off the shipyard would be worth every credit spent in this case. Balun needed to get the yards online and figure his next steps. Hard to do when they were jumping at shadows known as the ISB. Judah took security seriously, but with his son and this nutcase thinking they were being attacked at every corner it was just downright comical.

"It's true. As of right now I doubt ISB has any real concern for myself or Balun. Now that may change once this shipyard becomes operational but I would suspect we are fairly safe for the moment. I would also suspect you're safe for the moment as well. Although once you leave here you might want to avoid the core until you get your bearings."

Balun Dashiell ​

 

[Bren Raddik]

"Getting back to the real subject at hand. Twenty thousand is more than acceptable for your service here. I am prepared to offer it today. After you wipe the security protocols."

Raddik's shoulders relaxed somewhat as he confirmed there were no further intrusions in the airspace over Mahina, only then turning back to listen to Judah Dashiell , who appeared quite happy to pay the twenty thousand.

I should have asked for more. He's obviously got pockets deep enough.

"Once I leave 'ere, I'll disappear for'a spell. I've other places I can hole up'n" he replied, though he turned back to the station terminal and began tapping away at the keys. New windows of information, not yet clear to the two Dashiell's, soon popped up, and then Raddik drew a modified lockbreaker and inserted it into the droid port below.

"Don' worry, nothin' broken. Kris never actually gave me the access codes, so I had to make do. Bare with me a moment, gents," he explained as he stood upright once more and began the process of accessing the security platform, releasing all the blast doors and reopening access station-wide. Before long, the interior lighting across the other sections of the facility all flickered to life, power being redistributed across the entire board and returning Mahina Shipyards to the vision of productivity it had once been long ago.

"Well friends, that's the protocols clean and wiped. Shouldn' be too difficult for you both to fire 'er back up 'n' running again" glancing sideways to Balun Dashiell , Bren gave a slight smirk; "I'll be sure to let ya mother know yuv' taken the reigns, so to speak".

Stepping away from the control station, Raddik turned back to face the pair, holding the scattergun at his side. With a flick of his thumb he powered down the charged capacitor and soon slung the rifle over his shoulder. "If there's nothin' else..." he turned to glance at Judah, "I'll be taking my creds and getting clear of here before anyone else comes lookin' around".

 

[Balun Dashiell]

Show & Tell
Judah Dashiell

​

Judah Dashiell and Bren Raddik seemed to have reached an accord. Balun made a mental note to pay his father back, given that he didn't have the credits on hand to offer, yet his father had willingly agreed to the scavenger.

Standing back, waiting and watching Raddik, his mind went back to what the man had said of the Imperial Security Bureau and the one named Thavlar. Whether Varik or Veyrik or whatever his first name was, having a surname gave Balun something to go on, and he would take some time to do a little digging himself once he and Judah had parted ways in the next few days. Running up research on the ISB wasn't exactly a safe bet, but if they were to turn their sights on the Dashiells, somehow discovering Balun's connection to his Mother, then he wanted to be sure he had a head-start, at the very least to protect his family. Kristyl didn't factor into that category.

It would have been easier to pass Raddik off as crazy, but the possibility that there could be some truth behind it all gave Balun some pause. Best to consider the worst-case scenario, even if it might seem like some irrational way of excusing his mother's absence in his life, to some. The subject of Kristyl Arenais wasn't so easily set aside for Balun, not something he could easily forgive, if do so at all. To his mind, his entire life had been made so much more difficult thanks to her irresponsibility. Had she told his father, and simply given him over to Judah when Balun was an infant, things today would look entirely different...

-Yet he had to accept what was his life, and where it had led him. Ultimately back to his father and the Dashiells, and with a Son of his own now.

Jedi Master: Ala Quin
Major Faction: The High Republic
Sub-Faction: Jhaessa Prime
Conglomerate: Dashiell Incorporated™
Subsidiary Company: Dashiell Retrofit™​

"Speech"
'Thought'​

 

[Judah Dashiell]

Judah set to work with the credits. An easy enough request, the man even mentioned he would tell Kristyl himself. That was so much of a blessing he added five thousand credits, making the total twenty five thousand credits. As Bren Raddik worked, the old salvager set up an electronic transfer between their personal datapads. An easy, more secure way. Plus Judah was not the type of man to keep real, hard credits on him in such amounts. That was asking for trouble.

"Alright, should be transferred now. Appreciate you telling Kris. Makes my life ten times easier. If we have any other questions as Balun here takes over his family inheritance I will reach out. Compensated, of course. You seem to know the ins-and-outs of this shipyard and its great to see you took care of it for so long."

Paid to take care of it, but it seemed the man had at least taken it seriously.

"Pleasure doing business with you."

 

[Balun Dashiell]

Show & Tell
Judah Dashiell

​

Bren Raddik , true to his word, didn't waste a moment longer in the command centre, instead shuffling off with what few possessions seemed worthwhile and leaving Balun and Judah Dashiell alone in the vastly oversized heart of the Mahina Shipyards, clearly designed with a full complement of administrative personnel in mind.

"I'm not sure what to make of that one", Balun remarked as he still stared off in the direction Raddik had disappeared into. Something about the man whispered of greater promise beyond the simple smuggler identity he presented them. An information broker seemed the most likely case, given what little he had offered the pair for free, but this wasn't exactly the type of location to run a business dependent on repeat customers.

Regardless, he had left without a fight, and now it seemed the facility was Balun's by right.

Reluctantly, he turned around to face the room at large and moved across towards the terminal that Bren had been working at only moments ago. Balun sought to pull up an administrative history of commands issued to the computer, yet Raddik had apparently also wiped the database clean, leaving no trace he had been there at all.

"I'm putting the facility back on full lockdown until I can get Tharan over here with a team", Balun announced, tapping the terminal's screen as he actioned the command into the security grid. Were the other terminals and holoscreens active, he imagined they'd be seeing confirmation of blast doors closing across the board; "External defences offline, of course", he added, thinking of the turbulaser cannon installations dotted about the perimeter of the manufacturing plant.

"Truthfully, I think Tharan will be ecstatic when he learned of this place. Mahina really is a profitable dream that has basically fallen into my lap. It's difficult to grasp the potential of this place...".

Jedi Master: Ala Quin
Major Faction: The High Republic
Sub-Faction: Jhaessa Prime
Conglomerate: Dashiell Incorporated™
Subsidiary Company: Dashiell Retrofit™​

"Speech"
'Thought'​