Survival

[Shamira Karuto]

Location: Thule – capital city
Equipment: Black cloak covering her body, ragged clothing, and her lightsaber hidden deeply on her belt.

This was it. Her final stop. Thule. If Shamira had her way, she would have skipped this part of the galaxy entirely. However, she had heard of plenty of jobs for bruisers on Dromund Kaas and a steady, long term job was just what she was looking for. Plus, she had heard that the Kass underground was a perfect place to lose your identity and to gain a new one. If she could save enough money, that’s exactly what she would be doing. Wiping her past clean, and starting anew.
Maybe she would even find a force user while in this part of space that could give her a direction to go for. Without the jedi, Shamira was wayless, hopping on public transport to public transport, trying to find a long term employment that would keep her set. After she had enough credits, maybe then she could figure out what to do with her force powers. Keeping them, and her dueling skills, on the down low, was definitely her best move.
Shamira pulled the cloak closer to her body, wrapping it around her as she sat at the grimy old bar at the spaceport. Her final ship left in an hour, and the former jedi didn’t feel like leaving the hanger to find entertainment for fear she would miss it. So she bid away her time her, downing Corellian Ale and watching the Zeltron dancer move up and down the pole in the middle of the room. She had half a mind to hire her out, debating in her head whether or not she would have time to get back to flight.
A thought began worming its way into her mind as her eyes narrowed. Being part of the NJO, she hadn’t studied much about who owned this area of space. She bit her lip, worry starting to creep over her mind. Hands pulling the cloak around her once more, a free hand ran over the hilt of her lightsaber, giving her comfort it was still there.
The former padawan gave a final look towards the Zeltron, walked over, tossed a 10 credit at her bare feet, then walked out of the bar. It was probably better to keep a low profile on a planet that she was ran by people unknown to her. They could not be friendly to Jedi. Or even former Jedi. Not many people made the distinction long enough to yell in her face about being the scum of the galaxy after she had left Galactic Alliance space.
Her booted footsteps were muffled by the tens of voices outside the cantina, voices speaking in different languages, many of which she didn’t recognize. She slinked her way into the crowd, moving with it, attempting to make it to her hanger without any further interactions with any people, aliens, or whatever might want to do her harm. Just wanting to get on her ship, Shamira hurried through the crowd, her smaller form allowing her to move quickly through the thick mob of people.
​[member="Yidhra"]

 

[Yidhra]

Didn’t much matter where you stumbled through the doors of a cantina – see one, you’ve seen them all. Sure, decor and languages varied from region to region, and maybe the joints on the Outer Rim eyed your credit chits with more suspicion, but a bar is a bar.

It had its advantages, this galactic pub uniformity. Alas, it had a tendency to breed a false sense of security – the familiarity of vapid small talk and drunken patrons who clung to the counter like permanent fixtures.

Changes had occurred in the sector since the Resurgent Empire had taken over, but they were much subtler than one might expect. Where there was working infrastructure in place, it made no sense to demolish it. They simply replaced the leaders with loyalists and moved on to greater challenges.

On this arid planet, it was much the same. The spaceport’s main watering hole, Thule Shed, had withstood the ups-and-downs of millennia, and persevered. Its current owner, a hunched old besalisk, didn’t give a flying frak about which Order of Something or the Other was taxing his business this year. So long as they let him keep his spirits permit and didn’t crack down too hard on the spice deals he cut under the table, Zaheed was content.

Okay, so maybe ‘content’ is a tad too generous – but at least he didn’t fly off into one of his famous rage benders. Nobody wanted that.

Especially not the Hidden Hand spies lurking in the low-lit corners of the joint. It was still pretty early in the day, so the only one in was a local convert by the name of Naedim Rahn. Nursing his first beer of the evening, the noghri was rubbing his clawed thumb over a small stone in the palm of his hand. Created through alchemy for HH operatives, the innocuous pebble was enchanted with the power to identify users of the Force within a certain radius. Since most agents in their employ weren’t Sith themselves, the trinket was immensely useful for spotting would-be infiltrators trying to pass as inconspicuous spacers.

He was halfway through the glass when the polished rock started burning against his skin. Peering into his palm, the noghri slowly rose from his seat. Gray-blue.

Stalking over to the zeltron stripper giving it her all at the pole, the scaly alien dragged a sly glance over her pink curves. In truth, the ogling was nothing but a cover to get a better look in the space-mage’s direction. Alchemy was powerful, but it was difficult to be precise in a crowd this big. Thus, the operatives were still required to combine the nod of sorcery with skill.

Unfortunately for [member="Shamira Karuto"], the noghri were talented warriors and hunters. They could practically smell fear. While the robed togruta on the other side of the podium didn’t exactly reek of it, there was a treacherous aroma of dread wafting off her.

Rahn quirked his lips and left a credit chip for the talented dancer after the suspect left. He knew the zeltron – Eleida, good with her tongue – but putting pleasure before business was a sure-fire way to get you killed when your employer was the Sphere of Intelligence.

If there were people who couldn’t be reconciled with the concept of ‘fun’, they'd be intelligence officers.

Casually lifting a random coat from the hangers at the door, Naedim slipped out into the bustle of a late afternoon. Shoving his thick arms into the tailored jacket proved more difficult than expected, but he managed it without a single ripped stitch.

There was a good reason they were called covert operatives, after all.

A quick pat-down revealed a virgin packet of rashallo cigarras. Rahn stuck one brown roll between his thick lips and pulled in a deep whiff of smoke as the fire took to its tip.

The pale red plumes trailed the agent even as he trailed the padawan.

 

[Shamira Karuto]

[member="Yidhra"]


Being a jedi had taught the young Togruta many things. How to wield her force powers, how to duel, and how to keep any form of the dark side under control. They did not teach her, however, how to disappear or keep hidden in crowded cites very well. Basic pointers here and there, but nothing more than a class or two. It was never a skill that was taught very toughly to padawans.
So as the little alien tried to make her way through the crowded spaceport hallways, walking away from the bar and attempting to make her way to the hanger, it was obvious where she was in the crowd. She attempted to keep it stealthy, but had failures. Little bumps into people, a murmured apology, before attempting to blend back into the crowd without drawing any more attention to herself. Shamira found that it was almost impossible for her to stay in the middle of the crowd without bumping into people constantly, and found herself maneuvering to the sides of the hallway to be able to clear herself better. She just wanted to get to the ship, get to her seat, and leave this hellhole of a planet already.
Thankfully for her, everything felt normal. Everyone else seemed to think the same as her, their heads down just looking to get where they were going without talking to or annoying anybody else. As long as she didn’t bother anyone, no one would bother her hopefully. Taking a quick glance behind her, nothing peeked her interest and she just kept walking, pulling the cloak around her tighter, and the hood over her head lower. Something about his planet made her feel uneasy, but she couldn’t figure out if it was the planet, or something much darker.
Shamira took another look behind her and her silver-blue eyes caught the sight of a ring of smoke slowly rising in the air, though she could not see it’s source. Her uneasy feeling was growing stronger. Something was following her. Whatever it was, it was well hidden. She couldn’t place it’s origin whatsoever.
Biting her lip, she came to a split in the hallway. To the right, was her hanger, her ticket off this rock. To her left, the hallway opened up into an exit for the city, to which she could see an open air market in the distance. Swallowing lightly, nervousness boiling up in her, shamira turned left, reserving herself that if something was following her, she would be able to lose it in the market or city. If she needed, she could get another ticket. She hoped. But right now, whatever was following her was priority.

 

[Yidhra]

Going for the bazaar, eh? Smart girl.

Trouble was, this were his hunting grounds. His home turf. Naedim Rahn knew the streets of Hurom like the back of his hand. With a quiet sigh, he engaged his comms. If the burning stone in his hand weren’t evidence enough, the evasive action was the final nail in her coffin.

::This is Golden Dragon Three. Requesting permission to apprehend an undeclared Force user. Alignment tends towards light. Rank unknown.::

There was a brief pause on the other end, then a familiar scrambled voice came through.
::Golden Dragon Three, this is Thule Control. What’s your situation?::

Rahn glanced around even as he flicked the butt of the cigara to the ground. The robed togruta was weaving through the crowd a ways ahead, the cowl of her cloak a treacherous give-away in the colorful throng of the marketplace. He resumed his pace as he responded, analyzing the side alleys and isles of the bazaar.

::Bazaar south, heading north-northwest. Give me a distraction, main north, and I can reroute her to the arcades.::

The arcades were the covered part of the bazaar – a sprawling maze of narrow corridors, stalls, and balconies. Even Naedim got lost in there from time to time. To a frantic alien, the place would be a convoluted labyrinth. The best part, though, were the dead ends scattered all over. Perfect for cornering fleeing suspects.

::Golden Dragon Five is on location. You’ll get your distraction, Three.::
::Roger, Control.::

His slitted eyes narrowed as he blended deeper into the flow of people, trying to circle around the target. In a few moments, one of the delivery speeders would crash into a market stall ahead of the Forcer, causing a right mess in the middle of the street. She’d be left with only two options then:

Head left and into the arcades, or head right and cross the vast open space of the main market square.


[member="Shamira Karuto"]

 

[Shamira Karuto]

[member="Yidhra"]


The market was, as Shamira was expected, pretty crowded. Aliens from tens of different species yelled out in languages that she didn’t understand, while other’s shopped at various stalls. It was chaos, just what she needed to get away. Yet, she knew she didn’t blend in, whatsoever. Looking down at herself, the Togruta frowned and unlooped her cloak, pulling it off and tossing it to a beggar on the side of street. She flashed the Rodian a small smile then increased her pace, hoping without the black, standout cloak she could blend in better.
The former padawan continued through the market, eventually coming to a three way directional stop. If she continued forward, it would probably work out best for her. A small market, with a few larger booths and stores, ones that she could hide in would be perfect to lose whatever monster was on her tail. She could feel her pace increasing as she started towards the small, boothed market.
She was only a few meters away from entering that market, when shouts and screams peaked her attention. The Togruta was only just able to dive out of the way as a delivery speeder suddenly came out of seemingly nowhere, slamming into the booth, blocking her entrance into the smaller market. “No..” Shamira could feel her spirit beginning to drop. Her best option was suddenly ripped from her.
Eyes looked to the right and to the left, observing her other options. A massive open market, with way to much view room, was to her right. There was nowhere to hide, and whatever was behind her would definitely catch her. But to her left, the arcades, where there was a good chance she would get lost. Hopefully, whatever was tailing her would get lost to.
She made one last glance behind her, muttered, “Kriff,” under her breath, then took off, sprinting, into the arcade. If she was going to get lost, she was going to make sure that whoever was tailing her was going to have trouble. Bobbing weaving through the ever increasingly small arcade, Shamira took random turns, trying to just lose her tailer. Getting out of the arcade was second thought at this point. Staying free, staying alive, was first priority.

 

[Yidhra]

Rahn’s face split into a sly grin. Gotcha.

As predicted, the tall togruta darted left into the arcades, her pace turning frantic. As the agent turned to follow her, another figure matched his stride. Naedim’s smile faded.

“Eskel,” the noghri sneered, shoving his hands into his pockets. Not so much to mimic the sullen gait of a slighted teenager – though the resemblance was uncanny – but rather to palm the hidden piece he carried. Clothes a size too big gave him just enough room to strap a compact blaster against his ribs. The hole in his pocket was a necessary sacrifice in this case.

“Dim. Fancy meeting you here,” the other man murmured out of the corner of his smirking mouth. “Haven’t seen you in, oh… three years?”

“Feth off, Eskel.” Rahn ducked his head between his shoulders, elbowing through the crowd after the fleeing target. The stone in his other hand was leading him more than the togruta, now far ahead of him thanks to the absolutely unwelcome fething distraction.

“Don’t be like that, Dim. That’s no way to treat an old—”
“Shut it!”

The agent wheeled on the human with bared teeth. The muzzle of his blaster was pressed an inch into Eskel’s gut, invisible when they were standing this close. Eskel’s blue eyes widened, and then his grin followed.

“Is that a gun in your pocket, or are you just that happy to see me?”

“Eskel,” the noghri hissed, clicking off the safety, “get lost this fething second.”
“Or what, darling Dim?”
“Or I pull the fething trigger, is what.”
“Even you wouldn’t shoot an unarmed man in the middle of a market in broad daylight, Dim.”
“Yeah? You willing to bet on th—”
::Golden Dragon Three, what’s your status?::

“Frak!”

“What was that, Dimmie?”
“I— shet. I’m running a job, Eskel, okay? So you can feth right off. I don’t need your mess. Not now, not ever.”
“You wound me, baby. Used to be you just loved my mess.”
“Yeah, well. Times change. People change.”

With that, the noghri pushed away, stalking deeper into the arcades. The stone had gone cold in his pocket. Time to resort to more primitive means of tracking.

“Thule Control, this is Three. I got… delayed. Back on track, everything’s under control.”
::Roger, Three.::

Rahn stopped then, closing his snake eyes. Exhale. Inhale.

Fear.

His legs moved of their own accord as the lizard brain took over.


[member="Shamira Karuto"]

 

[Shamira Karuto]

Without her cloak, Shamira moved with a much greater speed and mobility that acturately reflected her slim, athletic frame. She was able to weave throughout the crowd, sliding through small spaces when one presented itself, and when the tiny roads of the arcade were blocked, she either slid across the tables, calling out apologizes to the angry patrons, before continuing to run for her life.
Slowly, she began to come to a stop. No longer was the presence of complete danger following her every step. It would seem as though she had lost whatever was following her so closely. Either that, or it had gotten distracted momentarily. It didn’t matter what the reason was that she was no longer being followed, if this thing was as persistent as she believed it would be, then Shamira had two options in front of her. She could keep running until she lost her stamina, and by that point her stalker could have caught up to her. Or…
Her silver-blue eyes scanned the area around her. Booths lined on the sides of the arcade, pushed together closely to accommodate as many as possible in the tiny area. Patrons milled around, some aimlessly, while others browsed at specific booths. Eventually, her sight settled on her target. An alleyway, boxes at the entrance, with a small opening in between them to allow access into the dark space between the buildings.
Taking one last look behind her, Shamira turned, took a deep breath, and jogged into the alleyway, squeezing in between the opening. The former jedi slowly walked into the darkened space, spying a homeless man in the corner. Motioning him over, she laid a ten credit in his hand before motioning out of the alley. “Go buy yourself a drink. Come back in an hour or so. Just need to borrow your alley.” Shamira smiled lightly, watching the alien hobble out of the alleyway, presumably about to have himself a good time.
Pacing back to the back of the alley, the togruta slowly lowered herself to the ground, crossing her legs as she sat. “No more running.” Unclipping her lightsaber from her belt, she soon fell in a deep meditate state, awaiting her predator.

 

[Yidhra]

Rahn curled an annoyed lip at the third shopkeeper who failed to provide information.

Nobody had seen anything. How fething typical. See no evil, hear no evil… what a load of bullshet.

With a deep grunt, the agent shoved his way through an unsuspecting group of tourists, stalking over into an adjacent alley. With hurried claws he fished out the pack of cigarettes, sticking one between scaled lips. Just one more…

Man. Eridna was gonna kill him if he found out he smoked again. How long’d he last this time? A month? Pathetic.

Soon enough, the smoke filled his lungs, clouding his amber eyes. He leaned his head against the cool, comforting ferrocrete of the arcades. Time to clear his head. Time to find a fething rogue Forcer. Time to not lose his job – or worse.

He stuffed his hand back into the pocket of the coat, wrapping his thick fingers around the Sithstonehttp://starwarsrp.net/topic/111448-wisa-ziji-tzihra/. It was still cool to the touch.

No dice.

::Golden Dragon Three, what’s your status?::
“Shet!” Naedim dropped the cigarette like it was hot, standing in an instant.
::What was that, Three?::
“Shift. I said shift. As in shifting the tactic. I’m gonna need a sniper with sleeper darts, riding above. Should have a clear shot through the glass dome.”
::We can have Five up and running in… seven.::
“Yeah, okay. I’ll distract the target. Three out.”

Wiping his brow of sweat, the agent sniffed the air again, trying to catch the pungent stink of fear. Eyes closed, the noghri swayed on the spot for a few seconds, then strode deeper into the maze.

Soon.


[member="Shamira Karuto"]

 

[Shamira Karuto]

[member="Yidhra"]


Shamira continued to sit to cross legged, silent in the alley between two houses in the arcade. Her breathing had slowed greatly at this point. No longer was she breathing out of control, rapidly and in fear. Instead, her breathing had slowed as she began to meditate on the next move she would have to make.

There were two options at this point. The first was whatever was chasing her would find her in the tight, constricted alleyway. At that point, she would have to fight for her life. This was something she hadn’t done against a, in probability, experienced opponent. There was a good chance she would either die or be captured at that point. But in the small chance she survived, she would be able to disappear, and would need to find somewhere to lay low for a while.

The second option was if the hunter didn’t find her, or gave up. She would wait in the alley way a few hours to confirm this, but if it happened, she would go to the hanger, buy the first available ship off the planet, and never look back.

At this point, she sorely hoped this person wouldn’t find her and she would be able to escape. But if that didn’t happen, she found her hand slowly moving to her lightsaber. The togurta would defend herself, and attempt to kill whatever was hunting her like prey.

She wasn’t anyone’s prey. And that would be known to whatever was hunting her. Before it was killed.

 

[Yidhra]

[member="Shamira Karuto"]

Naedim was sweating like a pig.

Being in the Arcades, which had never even heard of air conditioning, this wasn’t at all abnormal. However, this wasn’t the only reason he was sweating bullets. He’d never actually faced a Forcer.

They were trained for it, of course. He’d watched a trillion tutorial holovids and listened to the veterans’ stories and ran through simulations until his head was about to explode. Nothing could prepare him for the real thing, though.

The noghri took a deep breath, squeezed the burning rock one last time, and slithered into the alley. For this planet, he looked normal enough, but they’d been warned how Forcers worked. Just thinking about cutting them down was enough to warn them.

What a fethin’ joke, eh?

Rahn licked his chapped lips, squeezing his blaster with perhaps a bit more force than necessary. The weapon was hidden in his jacket, small enough to be concealed. It was set on stun – bosses on high liked collecting any stray space-mages, apparently.

What they did to them after, though, Naedim didn’t want to know.

“Hi there,” he grunted at the seated figure, trying desperately to think about anything but the fact that he was here to capture the girl.

“You lost?”

 

[Shamira Karuto]

Heh. First option it was. That was confirmed the moment a large looking lizard practically slithered into the alley with a, large maw like hand buried into his coat. It wasn’t hard to assume that he was holding a some sort of weapon. Good thing that Shamira wasn’t defenseless herself.
“Hello yourself.” Slowly, the Togruta rose to her full 5’10, including the montrals, height, lightsaber in her hand. “I wouldn’t say I’m lost. Honestly? I was just about to pay for that Zeltron for a few hours before I left this hellhole of a planet.” A scowling look slowly began to cross her face as she gripped her lightsaber tighter, spinning in front hand and backhand. “Until someone decided they wanted to chase me over half the city for kriff knows what, when I was just minding my own business.”
Her lightsaber ended up being front hand, and with the flick of a button, a sharp blue blade emerged. “And now, I assume to get past you, I either have to kill you or hurt you to the point you cant follow me anymore.” The blue blade cut through the air as Shamira spun it to an Atura grip, her feet shifting to meet the style. If she was going to get out of this, the former jedi might as well be the on the offensive.
The Togruta gritted her teeth, her scowl turning to a look of pure anger. “I am no jedi. So for killing you, I have absolutely no reservations.”

| [member="Yidhra"] |

 

[Yidhra]

“Zeltron?” he felt dumb playing dumb, but anything was better than admitting his guilt. For once, his ugly lizard mug was a saving grace – hard to read a face whose gamut of expressions ranged from ‘angry’ to ‘pissed off like a Sith in a Ysalamiri bubble’.

Naedim shrugged, left shoulder only. No sudden movements with his gun hand – that experience, he had in abundance.

“Dunno about no Zeltron, but I know this ain’t a good place for women to wander on their own.” He didn’t move, keeping his body half-turned away from the togruta.

Predictably, the ruse didn’t work. Well, at least he tried – not much as far as epitaphs go, but he’d take it. Better than ‘He died running away from a Forcer like a lil’ queen’, at least.

“Right,” Rahn straightened, rolled his shoulders. Space-mage or not, he was a fethin’ nohri. He’d go down fighting, do his brother proud. This one’s for you, Krellan.

“My bosses don’t give a frak if you’re a Jedi or a Sith or whatever else you lot’ve come up by now. They do take issue with the small detail of yer failure to register, though.” He grinned, then, showing off two brilliant rows of awfully sharp teeth.

“Hell, if you don’t mind a good killin’, you’ll probably get a damned job offer.”

Only one thing on his mind now – stall.

[member="Shamira Karuto"]

 

[Shamira Karuto]

Failure to register? Really? That was the whole problem with the kriff? She was being chased like some horrible criminal because she didn’t register with some overlords feudal system? The Togruta couldn’t help the roll of her eyes at the absolute ridiculousness of the whole thing. She was about to have to fight because of this whole thing.
A wide smirk slowly came over her face because of the little job offer comment. With her now having left the Jedi Order, and she was looking for a place to work and possibly make some credits consistently. But something told her that these people weren’t actually trying to hire her. Why send a killer lizard after her if she was getting a job offer? Shamira just scoffed in the lizards direction, smirk still plastered on her face. “Oh, I might have considered. Unfortunately, your ugly mug has turned me off for working for whoever you might be working for.”
With a flick of the switch, her lightsaber ignited, blue glow casting a hue over the darkened alleyway. The former jedi brought it in front of her face, brow furrowing in frustration at this whole thing. “I am leaving now. Whether its with your dead body in the back of this alley or not is absolutely up to you.” Slowly, the Togruta began to advance on the lizard, spinning her blade so that it stood horizontally by her side. She knew he wasn’t going to move, but she wasn’t going to let that stop her from getting off this force forsaken dustball.

​| [member="Yidhra"] |

 

[Yidhra]

Naedim expelled his caged breath through dry lips and squeezed the trigger.

Three shots, quick succession – two towards center mass, one towards the head. Stun setting might do him actual favors this time around. They weren’t bolts, but rings, and blocking them with a lightsaber was hella difficult. He’d been taught that much in training.

Girl thought he was here to kill her, so perhaps, if he got lucky – for once in his life – she’d be expecting bolts. And if she was expectin’ bolts, she’d try to block. And if she tried to block—

::Golden Dragon Three, this is Thule Control. Five is on location::

The noghri nearly shat his pants.

::Five here, Three. I’ll need you to keep the Forcer still for a clean shot::

He couldn’t say anything – couldn’t nod, even – but he knew the other agent would be ready anyhow. Fether had an easy job, all told. Rahn was all kinds of frakked, though. Keep a Forcer still, yeah.

Good fethin’ luck.

[member="Shamira Karuto"]​

 

[Shamira Karuto]

Instinctively, Shamira began to raise the lightsaber to block the incoming shots, before realizing a half second too late exactly what the shots were. Her ankle turned, boot pushing in the ground as she attempted to leap off to the side to avoid the stun shots that were rapidly approaching her. However, that half second miscue would cost her dearly, as the stun shot aimed at her head clipped her shoulder, and in term, her right arm went numb entirely.
The Togruta hissed lightly in frustration at the bone headed mistakes before flipping her lightsaber to her left hand, spinning it lightly to get a feel for the grip. Her useless, stunned arm tucked behind her back as she turned to thrust her left shoulder forward, so the stunned side of her body received as much protection as possible.
She wasn’t letting this thing get another chance at stunning her. She. Was. Leaving. It took a mere second, but suddenly with a knee bend, she was springing over the head of the lizard creature, landing softly on the other side of him. Lightsaber raised once again, stun side of body, the former jedi slowly move backwards out of the alley, all attention focused on her hunter. “I..am leaving now. You will not follow me.”

| @Yihdra |