Campaign Spring Break Adventure

[Jaeson Starchaser]

The shuttle shook a little bit as it entered the atmosphere of the planet. The pilot wasn’t very good at his job, and hadn’t given them a very smooth flight from the University of Rudrig. Class was in break, not that Jaeson spent much time in class anyways, and his roommate and a few friends had decided on a vacation. Their destination was where any red blooded academy student would want to go, Zeltros. “And it’s all purple and pink, the bodies, the hair, everything!” In point of fact it wasn’t, although from tourist holograms and the magazines Joza Perl had put on the net you’d have assumed that at least all of the lighting was indeed purple and pink. “Aren’t you excited for your first visit Jae?”

Jaeson was reading his datapad. It was interesting stuff, a new tomb discovered that may have some sort of relationship to the Cult of The Universe. The cult itself believed in a conscious universe theory of creation. The concept was that the universe began with a thought, and that we were all the creations of the universe, all manifestations of itself designed so that it could attempt to understand itself. Around three thousand years ago the cult had prominence in some areas of the galaxy and it is believed to have been co-opted for a time by a line of Sith following something akin to the rule of two.

Images appeared on the screen of the find, the architecture was reminiscent of…

His thought was interrupted as he heard nothing but silence. The realization that he was asked a question finally dawned on him, “Oh, no I’ve been to Zeltros,” he said looking up ever so briefly. All eyes were on him but he didn’t mind. With luck he had deflected their need for socialization so he could spend the rest of the flight filtering the new information.

“So what’s it like,” One of his peers spoke. Of course he wasn’t that lucky.

Looking out the window he let out a sigh and put the datapad away. They were almost landed anyways and soon to be checking into the resort. “It is a planet filled with beautiful people who all exude mind altering substances. That seems great at first until you realize that most of the planet is designed as a trap to separate you from your credits.” the shuttle lurched as the landing gear came out and they began the final process of landing. “They are going to eat you alive.”

Jaeson didn’t bother to listen to the rest of their replies although he was fairly certain one was extolling the virtues of being eaten alive by a zeltron. Frat guys were idiots, but his patron had insisted he get in and learn their apeish ways in order to gain connections in later life. Still he never really fit in, he was smart, but young having gained admittance into the university early through his patrons connections and merit. This left him an outsider even within the group he joined. Still they treated him well enough and even invited him on vacation to Zeltros even letting him pick the hotel resort. Money wasn’t an issue to these people, and for that matter it wasn’t really an issue for him, so he had carefully chosen a Chase Resort on planet. The place was called Brightstar Resort, a holdover from its days as a Casino under a Starchaser that wasn’t his clone template Damian. It gave him a bit of amusement to spend money at the place.

The group assembled and left the shuttle landing on a private pad. There was people waiting to take their bags as they checked in. There was an awkward silence when Jaeson was welcomed back, as if he were a regular, and treated like a VIP. Not everyone that went to the University was wealthy, most weren't, but in order to get into the Fraternity he had joined they had to be special in some way. He could see the others reevaluating their younger ‘brother’.

It didn’t take long for the group to settle into the suits assigned to them. For the most part people simply threw suitcases into corners. “Hey we’re going to try to get into the Sucre. You want to come?”

Jae didn’t respond at first before giving a wry smile, “Well if you can’t get in there you can try the Blush Club.” he brought up a hologram and pointed to the less exclusive locale. Now it was a challenge and he knew it would keep the others out of his hair for a while. “I think I’m going to try the beach and artificial lagoon out. Relax on the sand you know?”

There was little protest. The older students didn’t really want the junior there when they went about their more licentious behavior anyways. Jaeson waited for them to leave and then changed into his bathing suit and grabbed a datapad downloading the most recent dig data and articles. It had been some time since he’d delved into an ancient ruin and his blood was running hot to find a new lead.

Avoiding fanfare and foolery was hard in the resort, or even on the planet. Everyone wanted to know your mood or arrange activities for you. Still Jae was able to get to his destination and find a seat. The beach itself was pleasant with a breeze that made the heat of the sun outside of the water bearable. A bit of red flesh passed him catching his eye briefly. The sun itself felt good as Jae read from the datapad and shuffled through the data. Most of it was boring logs but on occasion a new mystery would present itself. A flip of hair in the distance distracted for a moment. There were theories assigned to most but some were truly bizarre, unknowable without further research. For instance between two labeled floors of the temple was a secret floor that no elevator or stairs led to, and yet there was evidence that people lived there and inhabited the depths.

A server came over to where he sat and bent over to stare him in the eyes as she asked about what he wanted. Jae smiled politely suppressing a hard gulp and ordering a drink and a tray of local fare. Continuing his reading he glanced off to the side once more at a bit of fabric on a swim skirt that nearly brushed his face. Taking a deep breath he noticed his food had arrived and partook. There was fruits and small fried pieces of something. He was sure that the fruit at least had some name with the word passion or love in it, but didn’t dwell on it much further.

The temple find was, at its core, remarkable in that it was found by accident. People looking to open up new land for agricultural pursuit had found… the thought was interrupted by a slight splash. Water landed on Jae’s face as he looked up and saw a sight. Glistening wet, there was a girl swimming along the pool. His eyes were transfixed for a moment on her pink skin, his eyes following each stroke as she moved through the water. He knew it was a product of pheromones, it had to be, the entire place was designed to entice and yet he was mesmerized watching the scene before his eyes. By force of will he pulled his gaze away and back to his pad, his face getting a bit red.

It was the sun, nothing more… it was a mantra he’d repeat to himself. Yes Jaeson had been to Zeltros before and new well the intoxicating allure of the locals, but there was work to….

Another splash drew his attention...

Spoiler

Allya Vi'Dreya Jerek Zenduu Kyra Perl Joza Perl @Folk

 

[Kyra Perl]

Water engulfed Kyra as she splashed into the deep end. For a moment the world was quiet, filled with nothing but the dull sound of water against her eardrums. She let herself float weightless under the water's edge, ignoring the burning of her lungs as she just... tried... to exist.

But then she could not ignore her need of air, her body's needs screaming through the calm the water had cultivated.

She crested the surface with a kick off the pool floor, half her body sky rocketing into the air in another spray of water before gravity sent her back down. And then the world was loud again.

She sputtered a protest, pushing her red locks back off her face. She was alone. Seemed to be her fate a lot recently. She was allowed a trip home, sure, but home to what? The bedrooms of her mother's house was void of its once many occupants. It was boring. So boring. She caught a boy looking her way and cracked an easy smile, sending him a splash in retribution.

Clearly not Zeltron. Oh well, couldn't blame him. "First time here then?" She called out, swimming easily over to him. He stuck out like a sore thumb. Not because he wasn't pink-- she barely contained the hue herself.

No. Because he wasn't smiling.

"Why so serious?"

 

[Jaeson Starchaser]

Water rained down on him in small irregular droplets as he looked up from his datapad. For a moment Jaeson looked around trying to decide if the girl had indeed meant him and yes, she did. “No, I’ve been here before.” He set the datapad aside and smiled a big rehearsed smile. It almost never worked, instead of being charming his fake smiles had a predatory look about it. How did his father template get away with it?

“I’m on break from university, my friends have sort of abandoned me to go see the erm… sights.” He replied to her question in a way more diplomatic than his fellows deserved. They were lude in a way he didn't care for despite being assured that it was natural for young men to act like idiots around the opposite sex.

The girl was swimming closer allowing him to get a better look. His age, or near enough equivalency, and perhaps a quarter cubit shorter. The water glistening off of naked flesh and... nope. There would be no honeytrap for him today, there was no falling for this planets turpitude. Eyes moved away towards her face and then sea blue eyes. Making direct eye contact he stared for more than a moment feeling his smile soften and become more genuine as she approached. “I was just hoping to get more done on my studies is all.” Awkwardly he shifted in his seat, “It isn’t that I don’t enjoy it here or anything…”

 

[Kyra Perl]

"Ha," she laughed, seeing right through that smile and those thinly veiled words. "You've sure come to the wrong place to study." Her eyes sparkled with playful friendliness, the girl pulling herself out of the edge of the pool to sit on the edge across from him. She was dressed, perhaps mercifully for him. Not everyone on this planet swam with clothing on. It was a modesty statement that didn't suit the Zeltron's culture.

Kyra had been off Zeltros for a long time.

Her yellow pocket dotted bikini was bought off planet-- simple, efficient. She would have stayed in the water otherwise. She could see how uncomfortable he was. A sever brought her a towel, she accepted it with a grateful smile, murmuring a word for a drink and more sunscreen. The server left them both. She looked back to him, rubbing the towel down her arm.

"What can be more important than fun?" She chirped, clearly having no intention of leaving him alone. If it wasn't his first time, he would know well and true a Zeltron's innate desire to see those around them happy. His smile wasn't cutting it.

 

[Jaeson Starchaser]

Standing in front of him she pulled her out of the pool. The ever dutiful server brought a towel and she began to wipe down her body. His eyes followed the movement of the towel...

Don’t stare. That was the thought that crossed his mind. And don’t breathe, or else you’ll end up staring. He took a deep breath and sighed. Well that didn’t work. “It isn’t that I don’t enjoy the planet,” he started, “there are plenty of attractions” divert your eyes damn it, “to see.”

Exasperated he finally said, “I just had my heart set on going to this expedition,” he waved the datafile in front of the girl, currently showing a wall of text and picture of a half buried temple consumed by overgrowth. Staring as if he made his point he came to a realization, “You’re not going to leave are you?”

Leaning to the side he pulled a chair closer to his own and offered her to sit with him. There were worse ways to spend an afternoon he supposed. “My name is Jaeson by the way.”

 

[Tobias Katarn]

The lady was a slim one-twenty, at least ninety pounds of which was tentacles. As she lounged on a deck chair, one tentacle wrapped delicately around a mai tai, Tobe rested his elbows on the edge of the pool and chatted with her.

<Ugronk'la quisiqagga.>

"No kidding, you've been there too? Then you know I'm right. Those Sluissi girls - something about the tails."

The lady's tentacles swirled with amusement. <Ghathighathi muklukk.>

"Hey, I ain't judging." He grinned as a tentacle-tip brushed his tricep daintily. "That is absolutely my style."

Half the mai tai disappeared. <Jiproguri fluugafluuga.>

"That a promise?"

She unfolded from her deck chair, all thirty linear feet of her, and sauntered off. <Lagupthooi,> she said over her hypothetical shoulder.

Tobe tossed her a two-finger wave and climbed out of the pool, struggling to hide a goofy grin. "Yeah, see you later."

There were a couple folks his age nearby, a twinky human and a vanilla Zeltron in cute polka dots. Tobe flopped down on an empty deck chair and sighed happily.

Jaeson Starchaser Kyra Perl

 

[Kyra Perl]

Kyra gave a light laugh, saving the poor foreigner his discomfort all together by wrapping herself in the towel as she stood. "I really hope you don't do this in your homeworld." For she really didn't think she was being unmodest! Maybe it was just the implication-- the world that had the thought at the forefront of his mind.

Kyra was nothing if not use to the reaction of off-worlders when they first met and guessed her origin. Either they were entirely to presumptuous or assumed she would be. Well he would get to know she was nothing like that in due time. Perhaps for that exact reason!

She took it all in stride, grinning wider as he ascertained that no, she would not be leaving him alone. "Oh, I would, but where's the fun in that," she answered bluntly. She stood at the edge of his chair, pool water pooling at her feet as she wore the towel like a cape. At once, her gaze went to the boy their age flopping nearby.

"Is that one of your friends?" She asked, her voice lilting higher as she looked Tobias Katarn over. If one didn't know any better, they'd think she was trying to draw his attention. She was. She was just as keen on setting Jaeson up with someone else if her presence undid him so bad. Kyra was nothing if not a problem solver!

"Hi! I'm Krya!"

 

[Jaeson Starchaser]

Where would the fun be in that?, a genuine smile appeared on Jaesons face. There was something reassuring in her persistence, or at least that is what Jae seemed to think in the moment. The truth, as subjective as it could be when coming to the thoughts of a teenager, was probably more that now she was covering up. There was an undeniable pleasure in seeing her, or most of the planet's inhabitants, in a bikini but it was a pleasure that Jaeson didn’t trust. Let the fashionista in his family run his mind through the gutter, that was his way, not Jae’s.

Practically cocking his head to examine her he stared for a moment. She had just said something about homework he’d missed. “Uh no, I don’t like homework. I’ve always been more one for practical studies.” Stupid. That could be taken the wrong way. It would be taken the wrong way. It didn’t matter, just recover.

When she mentioned one of his friends he turned and saw the boy about his age. This snapped him out of his stupor for a moment. “Uh, he’s not one of mine.” Jaeson said. A quirked eyebrow met the new fellow. “You here alone friend?" he rolled in his chair to face Tobias and extended a hand, "My name is Jaeson Starchaser."


Kyra Perl Tobias Katarn

 

[Tobias Katarn]

Jaeson Starchaser got a handshake to match, kind of awkward over the arm of a deck chair. Kyra Perl got a grin, but hecked if Tobe's mind wasn't still on the lady with the tentacles. "

"Tobe Katarn, Tobias. Space trash and professional xenophile. Well, semi-pro." He leaned back in the chair, arms behind his head, and closed his eyes happily. "Good feth but I love Zeltros. What a great place to do kark all."

A Sluissi snakegirl swam by with a swirling flick of her tail. Tobe's eyes snapped open.

"You visiting? Local?"

He was talking to Jaeson and Kyra - the Sluissi couldn't hear him - but his focus was, shall we say, divided.

 

[Jaeson Starchaser]

“I’m from here,” that would be a surprising revelation. It was true in a way, although he was really young when he lived here on a more permanent basis and interacted mostly with nanny droids. “Well here, Kamino, LIanna, currently attending university on Rudrig.” In truth he was the youngest human to ever attend. Of course the results were also skewed by genetic engineering so it probably wasn’t a point he should make. In point of fact if you took age equivalency into effect he was probably tied for second place with Sasha Santhe, first place being some genius years ago.

“My classmates decided to go on vacation, but I just wanted to relax after the trip.” A nicer way of saying he wanted nothing to do with their creepy extracurricular activities. His face brightened a little as the tension was eased. Turning to Kyra he said “What about you local?” It was best not to assume that a Zeltron was from Zeltros just like not all humans were from Corellia or Coruscant.

Kyra Perl | Tobias Katarn

 

[Kyra Perl]

Xeno...phile? Oh. Heat touched Kyra's cheeks, easily mistakable as too much time under the sun. Or perhaps her watered down ancestry! The empty chair Jaeson offered her stood empty between the two boys, but she didn't take it, instead preferring to chat easier in their vague triangle format.

She rocked happily back on her toes as the two introduced themselves, the pleasantries all going to plan! Jaeson's relaxing posture had her beaming in turn. Her interest only peeked when she heard the boy's last name. Ahh, yes. She knew a few of those! She would have commented on it but her fickle attention was swept away by their lively energy. The server handed her a fresh fruit drink, the cool class clasped gratefully in one hand. In the other she took the provided sunscreen, her fingers straining to hold the load and keep her towel over her shoulders.

They both looked at her mid sip.

"Uuuuh," she spat the straw out of her mouth, twisting her body to grab momentum enough to toss the sunscreen at Jaeson's feet. With a hand free, she readjusted, glancing around them.

"Yeah. Local. Home's just... empty right now," she excused. "Empty swimming pools aren't so fun." Another Zeltron might catch the tell-tail catch of emotions on her face. She carried on regardless.

"You don't look much like trash," she told Tobias, sipping deeply. She grinned over the cup's edge, straw between her teeth. "Must be the pool water cleaning you up."

 

[Jaeson Starchaser]

Lotion landed on Jaeson’s feet. Jaeson twisted in his seat bringing his legs from reclining to dangling off the side. He grabbed the datapad and wiped the droplets of water off it making sure it was clean before depositing it into his satchel bag. Standing up he walked over towards the girl and wordlessly bent over to grab the lotion from his chair.

Standing now he could see that he was taller than her, although shorter still than his template, and reached out a hand. “Let me help you,” he said, his face a bit red. His hand reached for her drink or the towel, it was unclear as he sort of stumbled through the motions unsure of what exactly to do.

“I know what it’s like with empty houses. If you want you can stick around me” Jaeson paused and then remembered the two of them weren’t alone, “uh, us. WE can hang out or go do something or whatever.” Yeah play it cool don’t act like a stumbling idiot. That’s the ticket.


Kyra Perl Tobias Katarn

 

[Tobias Katarn]

Kyra Perl Jaeson Starchaser

The serpentine Sluissi girl kept swimming laps with corkscrewing motions of her long tail. Tobe finally looked away and refocused on the people he was actually, you know, talking with.

"Well get your eyes checked, lady," he said with a grin, "I'm so spacer trash I just about clogged the pool filter. So we've got a Tion Cluster university guy - how was the border run, by the way? - and a local chick who's got swimming pools in a big empty house? Heck, I should've scrubbed down harder if I knew I was gonna be in such exalted company. Oh feth..."

He broke off as a female Barabel swayed past. Light danced off her jewel-edged scales majestically. She caught his eye and grinned sharply.

"Kark, I love this planet."

 

[Kyra Perl]

Kyra gave a long siiiiip of her drink, handing it over to Jaeson because clearly he just wanted some too. It was hot and the girl was more than use to sharing her things, being the youngest of 14345 children as she was. (xo)

"Oh that would be cool," she said to Jaeson, her attention half torn between handing him the drink and giving Tobias an uncomfortable glance. "Maybe we could go to an arcade. Or get ice cream. I hear there's a laser tag place down the street, we could play Imperial n Rebels. " Surely there wouldn't be half naked alien ladies for Tobias to swoon over there.

Not that she was judging.

She glanced back at Jaeson, giving him a warm smile. "Too much sun scrambles people. You can finish that if you want." She gestured to the drink.

 

[Jaeson Starchaser]

Laser tag, uhg. He blew it. She thought he was an immature kid. Jaeson took the offered drink a little confused for a moment. Briefly staring at the glass he took a little sip from the straw more to be polite than any desire to try the beverage.

“I could go for an ice cream. I’m pretty sure there is an Ice Cream Parlour and Eatery about two blocks down the beach.” If memory served him the place was a cozy little parlour just off the water serving to the various beach goers. “Maybe get a burger…” It was also a place that wouldn’t require them to get changed from their pool attire thus maximizing his time Kyra. Ingenious, or at least so he thought.

He started to head towards the pool exit and remembered his backpack which he had left by his seat. “Can’t forget that, it has all my research in it and even a few trinkets from my last dig. They aren't worth much, except for research purposes.” A smile crossed his face as he grabbed the bag and looked up at Kyra. Opening the top he rearranged the contents briefly before putting the strap over his shoulder and standing back up.

Kyra Perl Tobias Katarn

 

[Tobias Katarn]

Jaeson Starchaser Kyra Perl

Tobe checked his shiny and durable wrist chrono. "I'm down for whatever. Don't need to meet Zsilaquine for a couple hours, and I've already been out a while. Starting to burn."

He chuckled at nothing and got up off the chair. "So you're an archaeology student? They let you run around with artifacts like that in those big Tion schools?"

Truth be told he knew his mostly-joking derision came from a place of insecurity. Tobias Katarn had not attended an institution of post-secondary education.

"So, uh, what kind of digs? What's that, pick and shovel and toothbrush?"

 

[Kyra Perl]

"Oh... we're going now?" She gestured in vague confusion, speaking to the air around her as the two boys walked easily passed. She looked down at herself, then shrugged.

"Well okay."

She dropped the pool's towel on the chair, everything she needed inside the watch she wore. Thanks Uncle Dami. She scrambled after then, sliding barefoot across the cement as she caught up. "I think he means like, missions," she pitched in, her head appearing between their shoulders.

"You know, for all forgotten things in dangerous places. Sith places, oooo~ " Her fingers waggled by both their ears, the girl giving them a sudden poke in the ribs as if they were attacked!


Tobias Katarn Jaeson Starchaser

 

[Jaeson Starchaser]

The trio started to leave the pool area heading towards the street. Jae deposited his towel at the receptacle as he left and stared over toward the girl who squeezed in between the two boys. Jae jumped a tiny bit as the girl poked into his side, although from the poke and impact itself or from the bikini clad girl touching his naked side he couldn’t say. He recovered quickly from being startled and played it off as if it were nothing.

“Well it can be digs of course, moving dirt aside with heavy equipment and using brushes and other tools to wipe away other debris. It’s not always booby traps and Sith Temples, I’d say more than half the adventures I’ve been on have been duds.” Of course that implied the other half weren’t. “There is a pretty nice market for artifacts found this way especially if you can verify them, but I prefer to sell to museums over private interests.” In most cases the price wasn’t that different the more minor artifacts that you found the most use of having the least value to private collectors. “Some places there are authorities you have to answer to and others are just barren or dead worlds.” He shrugged, “there is no shortage of dead worlds in our galaxy.”

He patted his bag “That’s where I found these. Museums don’t want them because they are a dime a dozen but I figured I could sell them to some private collector after I’m through giving them a thorough look over.”

It was either the presence of another boy, or perhaps being allowed to talk about himself which calmed his nerves as he walked next to the girl. He wasn’t going to let the planet win, he wasn’t going to fall for her… but a little company was nice

Spotting the little parlour off in the distance he motioned to the place. It was busy, with a line out the door, although some of that was probably walk through customers from the beach.”We can get a table,” he suggested to the group..


Kyra Perl Tobias Katarn

 

[Tobias Katarn]

Just how hard would it be to gank that stuff from Jaeson Starchaser while he was playing twitchy-virgin with Kyra Perl ? Probably not that hard. But he seemed like a decent guy, so stealing was off the table.

And speaking of tables, Tobe's stomach growled significantly. "Sounds like a plan." He got in line like a good little boy and started trying to estimate how long the line would take to get inside the - what had Jae called it, a 'parlor?' Some Zeltros thing presumably, or maybe people bought food in 'parlors' in places that weren't the Outer Rim. Tobe wouldn't know.

"So wait, you do Sith digs and go to college in Sith space - Jae, buddy, you got a lightsaber in there or are you just happy to see Kyra?"

 

[Kyra Perl]

Kyra looked down, then grinned easily. “Definitely not a saber. I would know, I have one— wanna see?” She reached for her hip, then faltered, brushing bare skin.

Oh right.

She kicked up her speed, falling into place besides them in the long line for food. “Do you think this thing shows pictures?“ she mused, poking at her watch.

She loved showing her saber to others. It was a bit of a trend amongst Silver Rest, now that most in her class started picking up Kyber crystals of their own.