First Reply Strange Silver Box

[0-7]

Strange Silver Box
Denon
Tags: Open

NK-Witell-class Freighter, 0A-155, Songbird (lightsaber), Vibrosword
​

Heavy rain set the mood of the gloomy evening on Denon. The rain was good to drown out the noise. In a back alleyway, a figure clothed in black slumped down into the rain, disturbing the water that had pooled on the non-level duracrete walkway. It was the former Sith Assassin, now free from her dark shackles, who stood to witness him fall. In fact, she had been the cause. It was for one reason only. The young woman strode over to the agent of the darkside and plucked a lightsaber off him. Bled kyber. It was a cruelty that needed to be answered for. For a good month now the Evereni had been hunting low-level Sith to reclaim what they had tarnished. Some redemption for her bloody past, she hoped. At the very least it took dangerous items out of circulation. Sometimes she'd get a holocron or two she could destroy. No such finds today.

With her hood up, it was back out into the streets. Or more alleyways, in all honesty. She didn't have it in her to tread the main roads. Too many people, and she was still uneasy in public spaces. Having lived a life where survival was determined by who you could efficiently neutralize from the shadows, trust was not something she carried with her often.

Something, though, was quick to catch her eye as she walked along in the rain. It was under the cover of an abandoned awning, left in a pile of scrap. It reflected the light of the nearby neon sign as though to specifically call to her. Typically she knew better than to root around in a scrap heap... but something told her otherwise today. Curiosity had begun to flourish in her heart now that she had pushed off the thumb of her Sith Master. She couldn't fight it.

It was instinctual. Something suppressed that had now resurfaced.

Seven knelt down and picked up the object. It was a speaker of some kind, a handheld slab with a tacky chrome finish and buttons that seemed to indicate some kind of pause and volume controls. There was a slot to insert a data chip. When she ran her nail through the gap she felt that there was a chip already inside.

Hesitantly, she pressed what looked like the play button. By some miracle, light emerged from a little screen on the device. There was a long pause of nothing, then-

​

Music. The device was louder than she had expected, and it made Seven jump. She nearly dropped the thing, re-stabilizing it in her hands. An exhale escaped her chest as she settled herself back down. It was mundane, really. Nothing of any sort of spectacular note, just some toy to pass the time listening to. She didn't need something like this.

But Seven didn't move to discard the music player. She just sat there under the awning, sheltered from the rain, listening. It's like she was glued there. She couldn't bring herself to stand up and leave.

She didn't want to.

For a moment, just a moment, Seven didn't fight her weakness. She forgot about the world and let herself drift away, guard fully down. The sound of the music echoed down the rainy back alleys of Denon, carried by the tight corridors a small distance...

OOC: Reusing this one from a public thread cause that's burried now and I think this is better as a first reply.

 

[Juniper Le Fey]

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​

The rain on Denon had a way of flattening everything. It dulled the neon lights that flashed against the gray storm clouds, and it muted the murmur of the everyday. Most people found it depressing, but not Juniper, she found it useful, something to hide in while she stalked her prey. The Sorceress had been following her mark for the better half of a day, studying his habits and finding their flaws, watching as he stuck to places where the shadows clung just a little too deep. The Sith thought themselves tactful, but that was rarely the case, they were too proud to ever truly be silent, something Juniper used to her advantage.

He had been circling something, or someone, building up the courage to make his move. It had to be important for him to keep such a tight leash on his instincts. Juniper kept her distance, careful not to give herself away as she tracked him into a narrow alleyway. Climbing up the building across from it to gain a better vantage, she caught sight of Misch doing much the same, gliding himself into position above the Sith, something had clearly caught his attention as well.

As Juniper reached the top, she looked down through the falling rain and followed his line of sight, catching the faint sound of music drifting through the alley. There was a young woman below, sitting beneath a broken awning, a small device in her hands playing the tune. Juniper's eyes narrowed slightly as she took in the scene, the girl completely pulled into whatever she was listening to, unaware of what was about to happen. That made this easier. Juniper gave a small nod toward Misch, signaling him to follow her lead and move in on the girl when she engaged.

Her gaze shifted back to the Sith as he settled into position, his hand hovering just a little too close to the lightsaber at his side, his body coiled and waiting for the right moment to strike. Juniper watched the tension build in his frame and matched it, weighing the timing carefully, too early and he would panic, too late and the girl would be dead before she hit the ground. The huntress took a slow breath in, drawing on the Force as it settled into her limbs, two of her Hexfangs already in her grip before she let that breath go slowly and dropped from the building into the rain below.

As she fell, she shifted within the Force and released both weapons at speed toward the unsuspecting Sith, one tipped with a neurotoxin and the other laced with hallucinogenic agents, enough to cripple him even if the strike itself didn't finish the job. The Sorceress followed immediately after, her Pathbreaker extending into her grip as she twisted through the final motion and landed just behind him as the blades found their mark. His gaze turned to her for a single moment, just long enough to register what had happened, before pink lightning cracked along her staff and she drove it across his face, the impact snapping his neck clean. His body hit the wet duracrete harder than she did, breaking the rhythm of the rain for just a second before everything settled again.

By now she had likely caught the woman's attention, as Misch landed nearby a second later, large and imposing but carrying himself in a way that softened the threat just enough. "Are you alright?" Juniper called out, her voice cutting through the alley now that the music had become the loudest thing in it. Getting a better look at 0-7 , Juniper realized the situation wasn't as straightforward as it first appeared, the girl small, but far from meek, equipped with both a lightsaber and a sword from what Juniper could make out through the rain and neon wash.

"Do you know why my bounty would be targeting you?" she asked, giving the dead Sith a dismissive kick in the ribs as she stepped over him, tearing out the blades from his back and chest, while closing some of the distance but not all of it. It didn't feel random anymore, not even close. "My name is Juniper." She stopped just short of the awning, letting Misch hang back a bit as well, not wanting to escalate things further unless she had to.

 

[0-7]

Denon
Tags: Juniper Le Fey

NK-Witell-class Freighter, 0A-155, Songbird (lightsaber), Vibrosword
​

Seven's ear twitched as she felt someone approaching from her side. It was a dark presence, which took her out of her moment of stasis. She feigned ignorance for a moment, but then stood quickly and drew her sword in anticipation of an impending battle with whoever had come to meet her. It didn't happen, though. She was met instead with the sight of an individual slumping to the floor, taken out by the weaponry of humanoid woman.

"Are you alright?"

Not hostile, at least. She assumed the now dead man was Sith, so at least they had common enemies.

"Fine," Seven insisted as she returned her sword to her waist. "You're... assistance is appreciated."

She had, admittedly, been caught slightly unawares. Seven ran her thumb over the pause button of the music device and squirreled it away into her satchel. Then came another question.

"Do you know why my bounty would be targeting you?"

Question of the century. Seven had no public identification records. In many ways she was a ghost. If she had to guess, it was Lord Kalrath who had made this Sith aware of her existence. Last they had spoken he had stated having an intention to salvage her for parts. Her former master was a likely culprit. Sith held onto grudges, and he surely was angered by the loss of his pawn. He'd want his property recovered.

"Grudges," she stated in a mysterious tone. "The ire of a Sith Lord is not easily shaken. I suspect a relation to such a thing..."

A sigh escaped her chest as the woman introduced herself.

"Seven," the Evereni responded. "Do you... seek too interrogate me then? I suppose I have some spare time..."

The former assassin didn't want to, though. All she could think about was that little music player. It would be so much easier if she could just sit and listen to it in peace and quiet. Seven didn't want to be the escaped pet project of a Sith Lord.

She wanted to be normal.

 

[Juniper Le Fey]

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The rain didn't relent, it kept streaking down Juniper's coat, leaving an oilslick gleam against the polished leather it clung to. Her eyes never left the girl before her, not out of fear, but out of curiosity. It seemed she was more prepared than Juniper had expected, noting the ready stance, the weapon already in hand. Juniper had still been quicker, something she tucked away for later. It only added to the perplexity of the situation. None of this had been random, and she was starting to wonder if her involvement had been either.

Her attention to 0-7 softened slightly as she broke the intensity of her gaze. Juniper knew well enough that if either of them had come here to strike, it would have happened already. "Well, the enemy of my enemy, as they say." She let out a light chuckle, an attempt to ease the tension without forcing it. Juniper was aware of how she came across, leather and vinyl, towering over most in any room she stepped into, a presence that demanded to be acknowledged. It was something she took pride in, but there was a time for that, and a time for something quieter. Not everything needed to turn into a contest. Misch shifted just behind her, feathers slicked slightly by the rain, his attention fixed on Seven with a curious, almost protective stillness that Juniper didn't bother to correct.

"Seven." She repeated it under her breath, like she was feeling it out, deciding if it was worth remembering. "I liked the song you were playing, Seven." Her gaze flicked briefly toward the satchel where the device had disappeared. "Hope I didn't ruin it for you by killing that guy." She gave a small shrug, like it had simply been the better option.

"Interrogate you?" She scoffed lightly, glancing around the empty alley as the rain filled the silence between them. "If I wanted information from you, I wouldn't ask nicely." There was a smirk there as she stepped back toward the body, pulling a small device from her pocket. A brief flash of light scanned over the Sith's corpse before it gave a soft confirming beep. "Besides, I just did my job. Anything else is…" her eyes drifted out into the dark stretch of alley beyond them, "…a bonus." The Sorceress had made a solid amount off the bounty, enough to justify sticking around a little longer than she probably should. Mischief let out a soft chirp behind her, shifting his weight but not advancing, mirroring her restraint.

"Have you eaten?" Juniper asked, more casually now, rubbing at her stomach like the thought had only just occurred to her. "Where's a good place to get some food around here?"

 

[0-7]

Denon
Tags: Juniper Le Fey

NK-Witell-class Freighter, 0A-155, Songbird (lightsaber), Vibrosword
​

"If I wanted information from you, I wouldn't ask nicely."

"Besides, I just did my job. Anything else is…"

"You might be surprised what asking nicely can get you," Seven noted. "In any case, my mood isn't dampened. Death and I are acquainted well enough."

And this was Denon. Nothing much in the way of good happened on this planet, at least deep under the noses of the corporate aristocracy that sat comfortably up above. Seven was not very fond of planets like these. It felt suffocating in the same way being the plaything of Kalrath was suffocating. You ultimately knew where the true power lie. All things considered, Seven was quite relaxed. Cordial, even. Perhaps it was because in another life where she was still an assassin it was her that would be doing the killing. It was familiar territory, even if she found herself in the position of the witness now.

The mischievous facial expressions of the woman weren't lost on Seven. They reminded her of Braze a little. Something to do with a more playful disposition, that much she knew, but those sorts of things were still a bit lost on her. People didn't openly share emotions where she had come from.

Such expression would be met with a flatter face and a more monotone voice. Seven trended towards keeping herself reserved.

"I couldn't tell you," the Evereni admitted. "Not one for... local cuisine. The street vendors... smell good when I pass by, at least. I think there's a marketplace nearby..."

The bounty hunter would probably find that more appealing then the nutritional pills Seven used to get her calories.

 

[Juniper Le Fey]

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"Oh yeah?" Juniper quipped back toward Seven. "I might have to try that sometime." There was an innocence to her statement that didn't quite read as the usual sarcasm the Sorceress leaned on in her day to day interactions. For a brief moment, something older flickered through her, memories of her youth, that kind of confidence only a twenty-year-old could carry without thinking twice about it. A version of Juniper whose eyes had been too big for her heart, who found herself drawn to anything that needed help. That was before she left Kiffu, before she met her former Master.

Juniper's eyes lingered on Seven a moment longer as she took her in, reading the smaller details, the expressions that weren't really expressions at all. The girl was Evereni, not a species Juniper had spent much time around, but she knew enough. Death-adjacent, often misunderstood, a little disconnected when it came to things like humor or softer emotion. That didn't bother her. If anything, it kept her from overreaching. Juniper had a bad habit of getting a little too empathetic with the wrong people.

"Well, if you want to figure out how they found you, I might have some information." Juniper motioned toward the end of the alley, where the neon glow bled out into something busier. "But I need to get something to eat, and he might've had friends on the way." Her chin tipped slightly toward the body before her attention shifted back to Misch. At the cue, he flapped his wings and lifted off, gliding up toward the top of the building again. He lingered there for a moment, scanning, before calling back down to her, a sharp sound that carried over the rain, enough to signal that nothing else was moving in on them. Not yet.

"Also, don't be afraid of Mischief, he's mostly harmless." Juniper added, almost as an afterthought as she started to move, though there was a faint hint of amusement in it. "He's going to get pushier and pushier until you say hi." As if on cue, the Noctua dropped back down behind her, slipping into place with practiced ease before ducking his head between Juniper's legs and letting out a low, insistent chirp toward 0-7 , curious and expectant in equal measure.

 

[0-7]

Denon
Tags: Juniper Le Fey

NK-Witell-class Freighter, 0A-155, Songbird (lightsaber), Vibrosword
​

"Well, if you want to figure out how they found you, I might have some information." Juniper motioned toward the end of the alley, where the neon glow bled out into something busier. "But I need to get something to eat, and he might've had friends on the way."

How they found her? Seven hadn't even thought to consider such a thing. She had been so lost these past few days, drifting aimlessly from place to place. That made it easier for those simpler sorts of thoughts to slip her min. She had no doubt that she would have considered such if she were still an assassin.

Before she could speak, the chirping of the woman's bird took center stage. Pushier until she said hi? Animals certainly were interesting. She loved birds as a girl...

That wasn't something she wanted to think about.

With a sigh, Seven crouched down to the level of the bird, named Mischief. That certainly was a name. It gave her a good idea of the personality of both the bird and the woman it followed. She would offer a meek half-wave, the sort that was done when one had few social skills.

"Hello..." she offered simply to the bird.

Maybe she had taken Juniper's words a bit too literally. In any case, Seven stood back up and recomposed herself. She gestured to the mouth of the alleyway.

"I'll lead you to those food stalls then," the Evereni decided. "I'm not in a position to deny free intel..."

That would make her a fool.

 

[Juniper Le Fey]

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​

Juniper watched the interaction between Misch and Seven with a silent amusement. The juvenile Noctua was equal parts bird and feline, and even in his grace, there was a pubescent clumsiness to his movements. The sorceress could tell Mischief was satisfied with the interaction for the moment. That was enough for now. "Be careful," Juniper quipped, "that's how it starts, soon enough he'll think he runs the place." She laughed slightly as she patted the animal on the back. He then took off toward the rooftop again. He really enjoyed the height.

"That works for me," she said, pushing off from her spot and falling into step easily once 0-7 started toward the mouth of the alley. The rain hit a little harder as they moved out from under what little cover there had been, neon light stretching further across the wet ground as the space opened up ahead of them.

"You'd be surprised how often people don't think about it," Juniper continued after a moment, tone casual, like she was picking up a conversation they'd already been having. "How they get found, I mean. Most of the time it's not anything dramatic." She glanced ahead, then back toward Seven briefly. "It's patterns, it's habits. Someone notices you twice in the same place when you thought you were being random."

A small shrug followed, like it wasn't anything particularly groundbreaking.

"Or someone talks when they shouldn't," she added, just as easily. "That one's my personal favorite."

"Either way," she went on, a little lighter again as the glow of the marketplace started to come into view, "we can figure the rest out after I get something that doesn't come out of a ration pack."

 

[0-7]

Denon
Tags: Juniper Le Fey

NK-Witell-class Freighter, 0A-155, Songbird (lightsaber), Vibrosword
​

"Or someone talks when they shouldn't," she added, just as easily. "That one's my personal favorite."

Seven doubted it was that option. She wasn't much of a talker. It had to be, if she were to guess, her pattern of behavior. Chasing Sith artifacts to destroy and bled crystals to purify gave someone a reason to want to find her. It was more difficult given her lack of any formal identification, but one could still follow a trail like that. Either that or Kalrath had discretely put a bounty on her head. She figured she would have known by now if he had, though.

True to her word, Seven led her out into a bustling street market. It was sheltered from the rain by a series of tarps that were draped across the pass above, sagging slightly in places where it had been poorly angled and was collecting water. Electronic lanterns were spread out between booths of varying quality, all peddling wares or freshly prepared food of some kind. Fried porg sizzled in grease fryers, kebabs charred on open flame grills, and noodles were dispensed from large woks into personal-sized take home boxes. The Evereni took a moment to pull her hood a little tighter over her head, then let out an exhale.

"Right then..." the young woman muttered. "Take your pick, I guess."

They did smell good, didn't they? It wasn't something she'd be partaking in. Seven was trying her best to avoid distractions so she could focus on her goal...

That music box had already distracted her enough.

 

[Juniper Le Fey]

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​

Juniper followed Seven into the marketplace, keeping an eye on her flank at all times. It felt too clean to be over already, but she wasn't going to ruin the moment by stressing it. The last one had been easy to take down- Sith usually were, if you caught them right, but she still wanted the pieces of the puzzle put together. Not just for 0-7 , but for herself as well. She had the nose of a Gamorrean when it came to opportunity and credits, and this smelled ripe for the picking.

As they stepped out into the marketplace, neon signs and color burst across the puddles at their feet. It felt like stepping onto a stage. It was almost jarring how much the alley and the rain had dampened the noise of the city; out here it hit all at once. Stalls lined the way in every direction, selling everything from skewers to noodles to things Juniper couldn't quite place, and it all sounded good. Still, she was tired of standing in the rain, and she could admit they both needed a bit of cover.

They moved through the busy streets, the people of Denon largely unfazed by the weather. Some clustered under tarps, some carried their own cover, but most just let the rain fall like it didn't bother them in the slightest. Juniper scanned as they went, looking for something more enclosed, somewhere they could actually sit and think. Behind a row of vendors she caught the faint neon glow of an open sign, the most promising thing she'd seen so far. She caught Seven's attention and tipped her head toward it. "Here, let's take a second to rest." Juniper led them both toward the restaurant without waiting for much more.

Inside, they were met by a Weequay hostess chewing gum and eyeing the clock like she was already late for her next smoke break. It wasn't glamorous, but it would do, and more importantly it felt contained. Spotting the "seat yourself" sign above the bar, Juniper slid into a booth facing the door, settling in where she could keep the entrance in view. She picked up the menu, scanning it quickly before deciding on something simple, a stack of fried nerf patties with eggs and toast, the kind of thing that you couldn't kark up.

"Did you know what song that was earlier?" Juniper asked after a moment, breaking the quiet as she set the menu down. "I liked it. Might steal it for my playlist." Her eyes flicked up to Seven, catching that she wasn't really looking at the menu at all. Whether it was the fight or something else, Juniper didn't push it. "Get whatever you want. My treat." There was a small smile there, more genuine than the devilish one she usually wore. The rest, the theories, the hunt, the why of it all, could wait until after there was stim-caf on the table.

 

[0-7]

Denon
Tags: Juniper Le Fey

NK-Witell-class Freighter, 0A-155, Songbird (lightsaber), Vibrosword
​

Seven followed along into the restaurant that Juniper had chosen and sat herself at the bar. As she got herself comfortable, the bounty hunter said a series of words she didn't understand.

"Did you know what song that was earlier?" Juniper asked after a moment, breaking the quiet as she set the menu down. "I liked it. Might steal it for my playlist."

Playlist...

Of course, it didn't really matter if Seven knew the word or not. She didn't know the song. The music box hadn't told her what it was called. The Evereni could only offer a shrug.

"Don't know what it's called," she admitted. "Found that speaker-thing only moments ago. Seems like the only song on whatever data chip was left inside..."

Maybe the data on the chip had the name of the song on the file? Perhaps. There was just as good of a chance that the file had been renamed to something entirely irrelevant. Whatever the case was, it was something that she may be able to interface with her cybernetics. Perhaps she could discretely slip it into the insert in her wrist so she could read the name of the file with her Vessel Implant.

"Get whatever you want. My treat."

Oh. She wanted to get her something? Seven frowned a little. Charity wasn't something she often accepted. The one time she had accepted a free drink from Gavin Restur she had discovered that she had a painfully low tolerance to alcohol. But food? It did smell good in here. Would it be so wrong to indulge in what everybody else did?

Seven moved her eyes to the menu and studied it for a moment. After a moment, she spoke. Her voice was mostly monotone, as it had been every other time she spoke, but it carried a hint of uncertainty.

"I do not know any of these foods," the Evereni relayed.

Of course, she knew why she didn't. Sith slaves tasked with the soul purpose of killing the enemies of their master hardly had the time to indulge in a decent meal.

Her experience with something as mundane as restaurants was non-existent.