First Reply So, What Are You In For?

[Levi]

The implication of a simple neck snap was unexpectedly reassuring, given where his thoughts had been previously. But the shoulder pat was enough to keep Levi from getting too comfortable at first.

In spite of it all though, his gamble seemed to pay off. Her hypothetical target confirmed a mutual end goal, and Levi knew just who fit the bill. It was enough to elicit a stifled chuckle out of him.

"Say this aspiring crime boss was interested in a space yacht investment. And say they had an unaffiliated grifter hired to make the purchase on their behalf. In the spirit of keeping things unmuddled, said grifter used his own credits on the condition that he'd be reimbursed at a later time. Naive maybe, but the boss had never been one to flake on compensation in the past. Unfortunately, now that this boss is in jail, they're being stubbornly tight-lipped about where the credits are. Maybe they've gotten too big for their britches. Maybe they think they're untouchable here…"

Satisfied he'd made his point, Levi took a final drag from his cigarette, and dropped what remained onto the floor, stamping out the cinders under his heel.

"Considering my occupation, it may surprise you that I take matters of trust rather seriously. When someone gives me their word, I expect them to keep it, particularly those who share the trade. If it wouldn't inconvenience you to… persuade them to reveal where they may keep some of their disposable income before you finish your own job, I'd greatly appreciate it. And, to make things even, I can show you exactly where they are. Block and cell."

He revealed his previously mentioned lockpick, then outstretched an open hand to Mercy, "It seems destiny has brought the two of us together, madame. Favor for a favor?"

Mercy​

 

[Mercy]

Levi

That... that was very helpful, in fact.

Her plan had been elegant in its simplicity.

Go out during yard time and beat him to death. It would have had to happen fast, real fast, before the guards could interrupt. Even Mercy realized the difficulties that lay with that strategy though. This? Just go in during the cloak of night and snap his neck while everyone was sleeping? That made everything so much more simple.

She wouldn't have to spend a week or so in solitary either and could be extracted almost immediately.

"Sounds... perfect." But before Levi could get too smug- "S'long as ya willin' to share in the spoils, Gray." Grabbing hold of his extended arm, by his wrist, and pulling him in for a warrior's clasp.

"Since ya askin' me to be gentle til' he talks... an' I dun' do gentle often, dig?"

Eyes cast down there with a lazy smirk. Levi could decline, but he already experienced some of her stubbornness and homicidal urges. In Mercy's eyes it seemed only fair to split up a monetary reward, if she was gonna be helping him out with acquiring said loot. She didn't like to hold back and with this additional job in mind?

She'd have to make sure the boss could still talk.

 

[Levi]

"It pays to keep one's ear to the ground in these circles. Information is just as valuable as credits."

Knowing people, and knowing things about people, was both useful and necessary for Levi. Even when coffers were dry, a few favors or exchanges of knowledge had kept the hyperdrive running more than once in his past.

He was unfazed by the demand for a share. Such deals were just another part of the job, "Of course. Once I've recovered my due payment, with a little bit of accrued interest maybe, you may help yourself to whatever is left. Consider it a show of good faith."

In a different scenario, Levi might have haggled a better split, but he was eager to free himself from an early onset of cabin fever. Preferably without irritating Mercy in the process. That handshake hurt enough as is.

Content with the arrangement, Levi stepped aside to begin picking the lock of their cell. A quick glance to make sure there would be no incoming guards, and he was off to the races. "You know, if you were ever in need of a few extra chits down the road, the occasional job crosses my desk in which hired muscle, though not required, is often beneficial. Without a- oh, hang on-" His face contorted as he seemed to struggle a moment with the lock mechanism, "-Ah, there we go. What was I saying? Right. Without a full crew, I can't rely on sheer numbers for security anymore. And my days of underground boxing are long behind me." A rather accomplished prizefighting career at that, thank you very much. But even then, he was more known for his speed than his brawn.

"Something to keep in mind, if nothing else. Just another… done." With a satisfying clunk, the lock was disabled, and the two of them were freed from their confinement. Levi stepped back to admire his work, and proudly presented it to Mercy with a slight bow, "Block 3, Cell Krenth. After you."

Mercy​

 

[Mercy]

Levi

Unless there was nothing left by the time that Levi got his.

Mercy didn't seem to be concerned by that prospect. She took it in good strides and grinned in the warrior clasp. "Aight, great, we in business then. An' chief, I agree withcha entirely. In our business? Truth and keepin' ya word is important. Am glad we got the same mind in that." There was a sharp quality to her smile as Mercy let go of his arm however.

"Buddy, I always need chits." Responded easily as Mercy waited for her to start picking the lock.

Her lifestyle was rather expensive.

It needed a lot of credit influx to keep afloat. "But I dun' do small jobs usually. Big jobs, big pay, eh?" A shrug there however. "Lessee how dis goes, if we both walk away satisfied? I will keep yar offer in mind."

It would be more a 'favor for a friend' type of deal. The kind where Mercy was still being paid, but below her current rates, because she liked a person enough to bother. Levi would need to really stroke her ego more than he was doing right now though. And probably leave a really nice 5/5 review on her DarkNet page.

That last part Mercy would mention at the end of all this though, don't worry.

She peered at the now lockpicked door and nodded then. "Yar good at that. I will give ya that." Cheerful as Mercy stepped on through. And then began to walk towards the block Levi indicated.

"Jus' stay outside the cell while I do the work, yeah? It uh... won't be pretty an' I dun' need ya to throw up or anything. Shouldn't be leavin' a trace o' ourselves..."

 

[Levi]

He nodded amusedly as Mercy concurred with his line of thinking. True enough they were in cahoots for the time being, but for all his talk of trust, Levi knew most of the criminal lot were inherently dubious. It was not a denigration, it was simply the nature of their dog-eat-dog lifestyle. Levi would freely admit to many of his own vices. Still, he took pride in at least being consistent when it came to his personal code.

He'd see how genuine she was soon enough.

In the meantime, however, they were partners, and he would treat them as such until he was given reason not to. "A measured response. Either way, you know where to come should you ever find yourself on the verge of destitution."

He awaited Mercy's exit before tailing her, "Comes with experience." The complement was genuinely appreciated. Some folk just don't give due respect to the more subtle qualities of this job nowadays.

"Oh, gladly. The less connected I am to our mutual friend's untimely demise, the better." Levi was not particularly fazed by violence, even if he often found it uncouth. But he had never seen Mercy's methods before, and he didn't take her for a delicate artiste. You never know. Besides, as he said, why risk further implicating himself in a premeditated murder? That's just all sorts of extra baggage he didn't need.

"All I ask is the location of my payment. Beyond that, your job is your own."

Mercy​

 

[Mercy]

Levi

"An' ya got spades of experience. Years.... and yeaaaaaars..." Mercy drawled with a chit-eating grin. Absolutely karking with him about his age and then some.

Still.

That was a big improvement from being a few inches away from having his head wrenched off. Things certainly seemed to be turning up Levi. Not just did he land into a jail with someone who was targeting his exact enemy. Said person was also willing to go out of her way to help him. Was there some sort of patron god of thieves?

If there was? Levi certainly had reasons to light up a few prayer candles as thanks.

"Yah, yah, we got da deal, grey-mane. Dun' worry. Ya jus' stand on look-out and if someone be coming... start making noise."

Hopefully Mercy would hear over her work. Then again, hopefully they wouldn't need any sort of warning, because a whole jail waking up and throwing itself at them?

Not even Mercy could fight her way out of that one.

Probably.

She patted Levi on the shoulder (the Mercy equivalent of a pet) and stepped through the corridor. "See ya soon, buddy." Before disappearing around the corner into the direction of her target's cell.

 

[Levi]

"Indeed…" He simply smirked at the continued observations of his age. Levi wore his seniority as a source of pride. In spite of some underlying doubts he'd had in the past regarding his own relevancy, he knew that at the end of the day he was a survivor. Thanks to his own wit, speed, and yes, no small amount of good fortune. As far as he was concerned, being lucky was a skill of its own merit. It couldn't be trained or mastered, but it was most definitely not possessed by everyone. And that made luck very useful.

"That I can do." First criminal job he ever did was play lookout. Easy enough. Unless something goes wrong, but oftentimes that was up to the aforementioned whims of fate. Which is to say, Levi was quite confident in their success.

"You know where to find me." He watched Mercy round the corner, then pulled out a toothpick in place of a cigarette, gnawing it patiently as he awaited the next call to action.

Mercy​

 

[Mercy]

Levi

It took Mercy about half an hour to extract the information from the guy.

When Mercy came out the corridor and approached Levi? She was surprisingly bloodless. Not a smidgen of blood. Nothing that suggested she ruthlessly tortured the guy, in fact. Which was odd indeed. For that matter, Levi hadn't heard any screaming either. "Gotcha location, bud." By way of greeting as she yawned and stretched a little.

"Took me a bit longer than I hoped, but..." A shrug as Mercy glanced around to see if nobody was around. "...gotta celebrate any sort o' success that ya get, no?"

Nobody around.

"Huh, guess ya had no trouble yarself?"

 

[Levi]

Mercy's return came as somewhat of a surprise to Levi. The total silence both from her and any potential intruders was curiosity all its own.

"Really now?" He studied her, the tone in his voice both impressed and skeptical of her apparent efficiency. Too much longer, and Levi may very well have cut his losses and made an escape for it all his own. Be it an error on Mercy's part or a betrayal, better to make it out with no money than not make it out at all.

Hopefully that would not continue to be a concern.

"Indeed. Guess it's a quiet night in the jailhouse…" Far from an excuse to dally, though. "Where is it then? Nowhere too problematic, I hope?"

Mercy​

 

[Mercy]

Levi

She chuckled at his skepticism.

"Ah, what's that, old man? Ya think all I can do be smashing skulls an' snapping necks?" She waggled her meaty fingers to illustrate it. "Information extraction be an art. Hurt a man an' they be sayin' whatever they need sayin', jus' to make da pain go 'way." That magical lesson Mercy was taught in the Sith Academy on Korriban.

They taught them different ways.

Extraction straight from the skull through mentalism. Mind tricks. Mentalism. Poisons to make the tongue loose. None of which Mercy had any use for or the ability to execute.

"Sit down with a man. Explain their death be written in da stars already... jus' a matter o' how the death be? Give 'em a cigarette, an ear to listen to... an' play a card game." Mercy shrugged. "They be divulging whatever the kark jus' for da and a quick death."

And quick it had been.

Quick snap of their neck. No pain, no fuss, no blood.

"Nah. Luck be 'ave it his treasure trove is on-world. One o' his ol' haunts, loose panel. He told me 'ow to open it all up." Mercy smiled. She was exceptionally pleased with herself right now.

 

[Levi]

It seemed Mercy had another surprise in store for him. The tale behind the man's demise was enough to stretch a grin across Levi's face. He raised his hands for the most silent of golf claps, "Well well, color me impressed."

She was a curious individual. But then again, so were most assassins he had come across. "I admit, I simply had no idea of what to expect. But you are indeed a master of your craft. My proverbial hat off to you." He mimed the gesture, and his grin only grew wider at the mention of his money.

"Music to my ears." As if on cue, the distant but unmistakable footsteps of a guard echoed ever so faintly through one of the far halls. Faint enough to still slip past unseen, thankfully, but a fair reminder of the time crunch. "Perhaps that is our cue to make our daring escape. Shall we?"

Mercy​

 

[Mercy]

Levi

Mercy was so busy showing off she forgot they were in a prison.

A prison that had guards in it.

Guards that were currently patrolling.

"Oh, right, yah." Nodding there. "Lead da way, master thief, I will be right behind ya." Which wasn't exactly a comforting statement, since Mercy had presumably just snapped someone's neck. But there was no indication at all that this would be Levi's fate either. In fact, Mercy seemed absolutely thrilled to go on a treasure hunt.

A chuckle as they went.

"My bosses are gonna be shocked when I ain't on roll-call tomorrow." That was an amusing idea. After all, they put her in that position, with the express need to keep a hold of her.

'don't do what we say and we won't get you out either'

Funny how these things went and got resolved for Mercy.

"So, once we get the cash, what are ya gon' do with yar share?" No indication at all that she had just murdered a man.

 

[Levi]

Levi attempted to deduce the layout of the jail as they moved, taking them down a hall at the far end to stay out of sight of the guards they so far knew were about.

He scoffed, “Well, if my recent job experience is anything to go by, bosses can stuff it.” Evidently, still a bit bitter about the betrayal. But it wouldn’t be an issue for much longer if Mercy’s information rang true.

“Good question. I’d say making sure I have enough fuel to get off this rock is probably my number one priority,” He chuckled to himself. “After that? Well, there’s a few ship upgrades I’ve had on my mind, lately. What about you?”

Mercy​

 

[Mercy]

Levi

A click of her tongue.

"Dun' be like that, grey-mane..." Mercy drawled bemusedly as they walked. "...poor poor employers o' ours. 'Aving to deal with the likes o' ours... truly a frustratin' experience."

This was a layer of self-awareness that people didn't often expect from Mercy. She was more a walking mountain that rolled off a galactic-sized slope, crushing everything in its wake. You didn't expect people like this to be aware of their own faults. "Fuel... starship upgrades... really?" Even more bemused there as they turned another corner.

Up ahead Mercy knew was a hallway that would lead to a side corridor with an exit.

One of the details memorized for the off-chance Mercy needed to crash through the prison for the exit herself. She hadn't expected to just stroll out of there however.

Pleasant surprise.

"C'mon now. Surely ya got something more ambitious planned. No schemes to fuel, eh eh?" Once they were outside Mercy streeeetched and yawned. "Well, as for me, am gon' go on a drug-fueled binge through Nar Shaddaa. Explore every lil' vice out there. Ain't that fun?"

 

[Levi]

Levi managed a chuckle, "Yes. Perhaps they should do a better job of vetting their employees," Or by all means don't, whatever gets him paid.

"Wellll, my attention as of late has been spirited away by this mess. Usually, yes, I'd already have other plots lined up. I think for now I'll keep things on the downlow, while this mess sorts itself out." He didn't get this far by jumping into every risk that reared its head at him. Best to space out the big schemes. There were a few potential avenues were in the running, though.

"Ahh, lovely," Levi sucked in a breath of fresh air. Just like that, they were out of the inner confines. "I find Nar Shaddaa to be a bit, er, grungy, for my tastes. But a place for vices it certainly is, and I have my own share of contacts there."

"Now, where is that cache our friend was so generously willing to share?"

Mercy​

 

[Mercy]

Levi

"Dun' give 'em ideas, Graymane. That be the last thing we need."

Mercy grinned at that as she breathed in again. Sure, it was still the coppery metal texture of Denon's atmosphere. But it sure as feth was better than the stale prison air. That chit back there was miserable in air-form. This was more like... desperation mixed with risky opportunity. Mercy would pick the latter any time o' day.

"We gon' need a transport." Said unceremoniously to his question. For now however? "First we gotta put as much distance between us an' da place back there."

A thumb pointed back to the structure behind them.

She put it into practice.

By a brisk walk with long legs carving out the distance. "Ya ever 'ear o' the Seven Corners? Our buddy has a place there. Off the books, but that's where the treasure be."

 

[Levi]

"You'll hear no complaint from me," The further away from that station, the better. Levi kicked into motion, having to put in a bit more effort to keep pace with Mercy.

"Seven Corners, eh? Heard of it, never had the pleasure of a personal visit." There were worse places to track down hidden treasure. The biggest inconvenience for Levi now was getting there.

"I hope by transport you don't just mean our own two feet?"

Mercy​

 

[Mercy]

Levi

"I read a couple'o brochures about it. Fancy as kark digs, but mebbe we shouldn't be surprising yar expired boss had a place there." A shrug there. Most of these folks enjoyed pretending to be something they weren't. Violent crime boss by day? You just had to have a nice shindig in a clean peaceful neighborhood by night.

It was fake.

This was why Mercy lived in a chitty run-down industrial zone. The fact that she got her workshop there for free after massacring a whole gang of cybernetic butcher-thieves?

Well, that didn't matter.

"Oh, kark no." Mercy chuckled there bemusedly. "Can yar imagine having to WALK there? The planet is definitely not build for pedestrians. I figure ya can use yar fancy lockpicking skills an' steal us a speeder car?"

Gesturing towards the parked ones off to the side.

Probably belonged to the coppers that were staffing the very facility they just walked out of.

"What say ya, wan' to piss off the coppers even more?"

 

[Levi]

"Quite. I should've been a lawyer. Maybe then I could afford a place like that. Would've been a damn good one, too. Or maybe a preacher." Of course, Levi wasn't in this business for money alone. The 'normal' life would be far too sedentary for his tastes.

"I was of a similar mind," A mischievous grin spread across Levi's face as they came to the row of speeders, "After a certain point, it's just another check off the list, right?" Just like that he set to work, and it was only a matter of moments before the door lock clicked open.

"All too easy," He slid into the driver's seat, unlocking the rest of the doors from inside, "Hop in. The seats are quite comfortable, actually." Once Mercy joined him, Levi would set off in the direction of Seven Corners, and their long-awaited treasure.

Mercy​