The Game is Over

[Aren D'Shade]

The young woman was a shadow runner, slicer, and generally good-natured. When she was on the job though, she could be quite serious. Rarely did she question who her employers were and they did not question her much either. It helped to keep each party a secret from the other and this way neither one could say they knew who the people involved were.

However, when a new job popped up on her feed, she couldn't help but wonder who the employer was. They needed some restricted information that could only be found within the Silver Jedi space. Not just that but the only known area of access was on Commenor.

Looking at the job, she narrowed her eyes slightly but against her better judgment, accepted the mission. Doing a run-through of the planet, she chuckled at just how easy she expected this to be. Gathering up the tools she felt she would need. She was easily able to access the blueprints of the location she was going to be going to.

Putting this information on her datapad, she left her comfortable home and headed out to the job. Along the way, she made a few stops...just to make sure she fit in better and wouldn't draw too much attention. On her last stop, she left her ship behind and traveled via public transport. Using a false name, getting to Commenor, she departed the ship and started to make her way to the facility she was heading to.

One thing about Aren was she almost always wore her headset. This mission was no exception to the rule. Nodding her head as she walked along, with a few waves of her hand and a couple of delays, she used her Mechu-Dero to gain entry to the Silver lands. Hoping quietly to herself, she had the tiniest feelings something was going to go wrong. It wouldn't be the first nor would it be the last, but she would do her best to keep her word to her mysterious client.

As she walked the halls, there were a few people around. Most of them didn't pay her any mind and it made her a little cocky. Reaching out with the Force, she searched for a silent room that screamed technology to her. After wandering around for only a few minutes, she found it.

Slicing into the lock quickly, she snuck into the dark room. Hearing the hum of the devices, even through her music, she let out a sigh. Taking a second to get her bearings, she located the terminal she needed to and approached it openly. Any cameras that were in the room, mysteriously started to loop the feed they were displaying for any security watching. Almost as if she were a ghost in the machine, she plugged her device in and leaned back while waiting for the wanted information was taken and stored.

Closing her eyes, they popped open when she sensed she was no longer alone. Cursing to herself, she grabbed the chip, unplugged it, and hunkered down under the terminal.

Mathieu Brion

 

[Mathieu Brion]

The Game is Over​

It was a hero's welcome. Mathieu had just stepped off of the city shuttle along with the team he had conducted the mission with and a number of officials, businesspersons and Jedi of various ranks were there to greet them and offer their praise. While it was a pleasure to hear what a good impact they thought that Mathieu and the team he was with had made, he ultimately chose to slip away when the time was right.

Joining up with some friends, the group walked down the large hallways. Padawans had to study and they were no exception. Still, Mathieu was rather well aware of the fact that the coming hours probably wouldn't be very effective, seeing as how he was still tired from the mission. Once they had all sat down, their surroundings were pushed into the peripherals as they put their focus on their studies and on the banter within the group.

"Was that the archivist?" his friend asked, looking to Mathieu who simply responded with a shrug "I think he called for you" The large Padawan looked to his friend, seemingly a bit confused "Alright, I'll go check on what he wanted, I guess" With that, he stood up and started looking. Initially, it was not all too successful but not being one to give up all too easily, he continued walking down the hallways, making it deeper into the building. Finally, Mathieu spotted the man whom he was looking for. Unfortunately they were busy speaking to another Jedi.

Mathieu could feel how it was becoming more and more awkward by each moment. If he just stood there, he risked stressing the Archivist and Jedi out and he was starting to get odd looks from those around him. But at the same time, walking back seemed less than ideal. It put him in a tricky situation but one which could ultimately be resolved in a rather simple way: Hiding. Acting more on instinct that anything, he quickly moved towards the closest door which happened to lead into the same dark room which lock had just been sliced. While he knew most of those who worked there, he was not quite as familiar with the intricacies of the facilities.

With a heavy sigh, Mathieu shook his head, disappointed that he had resorted to hiding away in a dark room. The building they were in house many different impressions which the force could pick up on and for now, Aren seemed to be beyond his reach. Mathieu didn't suspect something to be awry and was simply happy to relax after his mission. With that, he took a seat by a computer terminal with his legs getting dangerously close to the woman hiding underneath if she remained there.

Aren D'Shade

 

[Aren D'Shade]

Not more than a few moments after the Sith went into hiding did a pair of feet stop next to her. Freezing as much as she could, she quickly realized her music was still playing. Blasting in her headset, Aren was positive he would soon hear it. Hoping she could easily deflect any of his questions by telling him she was doing upkeep on the systems.

If she shut the sound off, then he would probably notice the absence of the music. Then again if she didn't turn it off, then he would hear it. Feeling she was trapped, she considered her options. While she had been standing, she had been still. However, being hidden under the cramped desk was something else.

She was not one used to staying still unless she was working on something. That wasn't happening right now and all she was doing was waiting for her unexpected guest to leave. Attempting to shift her weight very slightly and slowly, she ended moving more than she expected. Losing one's balance would do that.

First, her bag hit the floor and her knee followed. After that, her hand came out to catch herself and she ended up blushing as she looked up at the thighs of the stranger. It was a good thing, the room was dark or he would have seen the blush. Letting out a sigh, she finished crawling out from under the desk and stood up. Dusting her pants off, she then rubbed her hands together.

"The computer is working properly. Please excuse me."

As she finished, she started to walk away. This time, she was too distracted from keeping herself hidden and secret that the lights turned on. Even though she dressed to try and fit in, there were going to be a few obvious differences. The headset for one. Her shoulder was also revealed and it showed off the tattoo there.

Mathieu Brion

 

[Mathieu Brion]

The Game is Over​

It was all a little odd. Why would there be music in there? From what he could see, it was just some secluded computer hall - not at all the kind of place where the building management would install it. And considering how - surprisingly - good it was, the music had an annoyingly low volume, making it rather hard to listen to.

Instead of continuing to ponder on it, Mathieu chose to ignore the music for the moment and started browsing through the computer console. The sudden sound that came from underneath it was far from expected. Instinctively, his feet searched the area below until they soon found something in between them. With a quick move, he brought his legs together, trapping whatever or whoever was down below between his calves. It was not long before he saw the silhouette of a person and heard something about the computer working properly.

Keeping his legs in place, firmly locked against the stranger, the large Padawan slowly started to realise what might have happened. A first attempt by the woman to move away would most likely fail as he had yet to release the pressure "Wha-..?" he mumbled, looking at the girl in the darkness with a most surprised face. The idea of what a massive mistake he must have made started to seep into his mind. Quickly, he removed his legs from her sides and stood up, extending a hand to help her get up if she would have it.

With the chair behind him, it was hard to back away properly and after bumping into it resulting in a few awkward noises, he stayed on the spot. If she hoped to avoid an uncomfortable angle to put her head in, taking a step back might be prudent. Looking down at her, he showed both palms with an apologetic expression "I'm so sorry! I didn't know you were down there or I would've picked another console. I didn't hurt you, did I?"

Aren D'Shade

 

[Aren D'Shade]

Before she was actually able to get away from the stranger, he prevented her from getting out from under the desk. Getting squished between his feet was uncomfortable and she stopped moving. Letting out a sigh of relief when he let her go, she looked at his extended hand before taking.

This probably was a bit risky because if he was a Force user like her, he would be able to pick up on her ability. Maybe even be able to tell she wasn't with the Jedi.

Manovouring so she didn't accidentally bump him on her way up, she finished standing and then dusted herself off. Looking up when the lights turned on, it now wouldn't take long for him to realize she had something to do with the darkness that had been hiding her.

Trying to keep cool, Aren brushed some hair out of her eyes and met his blue with her brown. Blinking a time or two, she couldn't help but take in his appearance. If Jedi were made this way, she would seriously have to rethink her alignment. Clearing her throat, she was quiet until she felt like she could speak without entirely stumbling over her words.

"I am fine. What are you going in here anyway? It's really late."

Most computer techs also worked when it was during the day so she might have just convicted herself of trespassing when she shouldn't have.

Moving her bag slightly, she zipped it up the rest of the way and rested it on her shoulder. If Mathieu was going to look for a lightsaber or a weapon, then he would find a pretty standard blaster on her body. Nothing about her outward appearance would indicate she was anything other than what she was pretending to be.

Mathieu Brion

 

[Mathieu Brion]

The Game is Over​

Feelings, emotions - they were powerful not only when used to fuel a person's capacities to channel the force but also when it came to occupying a person's mind, distracting them from true clarity of thought. Awkwardness had been a significant part of why the Padawan had been trying to suppress the odd yet vague feeling he was getting - something nearby was not quite as light as everything else. It was something he could ponder on once he had survived this encounter with the technician.

It was odd for how long they looked at each other, her eyes locked with his. The question caught him by surprise when it was eventually asked. Breaking his gaze, the young Morellian blinked a few times before bringing up a watch, only now thinking the thought. "It is pretty late" he said as his eyebrows rose "Huh.. I was, uhm, just coming here to check something on the computer console" he lied - not quite at the level where anyone would believe him. It was as obvious to Mathieu as it would be to anyone else, causing him to allow his broad shoulders to fall with a sigh "I was hiding from the archivist" A goofy smile formed on his lips after having admitted to it.

The smile soon faded as he looked to her as if just having thought of something that made him suspicious. Could the odd feeling he had actually be her? "And what about you then?" he asked, soon adding a neutral "The computer terminal you were working on seemed to be working fine when I got here" Although he was not fully suspicious of her yet, he was slowly but surely starting to reach out through the force, trying to figure out what was going on.

Aren D'Shade

 

[Aren D'Shade]

For a moment, Aren felt like the gig was up and he was going to apprehend her. Luckily her question distracted him enough and he broke their shared gaze to look at his watch. Letting out a sigh of relief, she mentally kicked herself. If that wasn't an obvious feeling, then she didn't know what would be.

Lifting an eyebrow at his statement, disbelief was probably clear on her face but she didn't comment on it until he fessed up to why he was actually in the room. In a way, she was too but not for the same reason. Mathieu had almost caught her and now she had a potential weapon she could use against him. Or a possible alternative for getting them out unnoticed.

Then his smile faded and that caused Aren a bit of distress. When he asked his question, he added on a small observation he had made. Trying not to appear nervous, there were some signs from her that indicated she was. A slight shift in her stance, not making eye contact as much as she had been and breaking out a little sweat.

"I had just finished working on it. A small glitch in the connection with the display."

Wishing she would have thought farther ahead than she had, in her bag were only tools. There were no real parts that could be used in replacing the item. Hopefully, he wouldn't ask to look inside her bag. Then again, perhaps he wasn't too familiar with how computers really worked.

Realizing something...her music was still playing. While her headset had been knocked off of her ears, the sound of the tunes was still going on. Groaning just a little, her hand reached for her player and shut it off.

"Sorry about that. Hadn't noticed it was still playing."

Attempting to come across as a normal working person was getting more difficult.

"Is there another way out of this room? That way we can both avoid getting caught by the archivist?"

Shifting the weight onto her other foot, she was starting to look like she was getting ready to try and run.

Mathieu Brion

 

[Mathieu Brion]

The Game is Over​

It was a rather awkward encounter they had. Mathieu almost forgot to listen to her answer for a little bit as his mind went over what had just happened. Her hair was still a little ruffled from when the headset had fallen off and the low and distant hum of music could be heard as he looked down at her. "Right" he said as the thought of whether he had startled her or not crossed his mind. He had, after all, given her a bit of a squeeze and kept her there when they first met. Had they been foes on the field of battle, the outcome would have been very different. There was little room to keep thinking about it, however.

Mathieu didn't question her on the repairs any further - for all he knew, she was telling the truth and while she did seem a bit odd, it was understandable after all that had happened. A soft smile spread across his lips "Of course" he said, waiting a few moments for her to turn the music off.

His smile lingered as she asked if there was another way out of the room. She seemed to have misunderstood his purpose rather severely and that, if anything, made him suspicious. "I just didn't want to stand waiting for them out there" he said with a rather amused tone. He still wanted to speak to the archivist when they were available. But what was suspicious here was that she seemed to want to avoid the archivist too. Looking down at her curiously, he asked "So, what is it that makes you want to avoid them so bad that you'd look for an alternate route out?" he said but quickly added "There's that ventilation shaft, but otherwise, I think it's just the door" first looking up at the ventilation shaft and then pointing to the door behind him - figuring that he might as well just answer the question while speaking, nothing bad would probably come of it.

Aren D'Shade

 

[Aren D'Shade]

Silence returned to the room when Aren turned off her music. After she spoke, she sensed she had possibly asked the wrong thing. His answer was rather amusing and she smiled at him a little with some humor in her eyes. Then he asked why she was so interested in an alternate route.

Putting her hands in her pockets to avoid fidgeting, she shuffled her feet slightly while she thought of an answer that would come across as convincing.

Looking at him when she came up with one, she nodded just a little. More to herself than Mathieu.

"You see, we're not normally around to be seen. Work more when others aren't around to interfere with our job. The door will have to do."

Lifting a hand to replace the headset on her ears, she adjusted her bag as well.

"Want to go check if your archivist is finished with his conversation?"

Hopefully, he was he and she hadn't just made another mistake. If that was the case, then this Jedi would certainly figure out she didn't actually belong here.

Mathieu Brion

 

[Mathieu Brion]

The Game is Over​

His eyebrows furrowed in an amused expression as she explained why she wanted to find an alternate route. A gentle smile grew on his lips as he shook his head "Are you really saying that you guys actively try to hide from other people when you work?" he said, appearing as if thinking of her answer as a genuine joke "The Sith are in the outer rims, y'know? We don't hide our technicians here, now do we?" he continued playing on the joke as he perceived it.

Eventually, she asked whether he wanted to check on the archivist, indicating that she was now really ready to leave. "Sure" he chuckled, sending her a mischievous smile "We'll go talk to him together. See how surprised he'll be when finally spotting a technician for the first time" he joked while moving towards the door, only to slow down right before reaching it.

Turning to her, Mathieu casually extended a hand to her "I'm Mathieu, by the way" he said, figuring that they might as well learn each other's names before going to the archivist.

Aren D'Shade

 

[Aren D'Shade]

So far he was assuming she was joking and it worked in her favor until he mentioned the Sith being so far away. Drawing in a quick breath, Aren coughed slightly and covered her mouth to hide her discomfort.

"Of course not but I try to stay out of the way most of the time, at least. It's called courtesy."

Who wanted techs to get in the way when they wanted to actually do something on a computer? Her coughing fit ended and she was able to breathe clearly again.

"Sorry about that. Must have been dustier under the desk than I anticipated."

Wanting to fade into the shadows, she kicked her butt mentally for not learning that skill. Instead, she had focused on those relating to technology and its manipulation. Trying to return his humor, she smiled a little nervously when he said the archivist would spot a technician for the first time.

When he introduced himself, she accepted his hand as calmly as she could and gave him a return shake. Taking her hand back, she once again pushed her hair behind her ears. Having to think on the fly to come up with an alias, she looked at him as she spoke.

"Pim Azuli, pleased to meet you, Mathieu. Lead the way."

There wasn't going to be an easy escape for her this time. Sensing more than seeing that his attention was not going to go away, Aren would do her best to play it cool and make a getaway as soon as she could.

Mathieu Brion

 

[Mathieu Brion]

The Game is Over​

Mathieu didn't really buy her talk about staying out of the way being a courtesy or meaning the same thing as staying hidden. But to him, this did not accumulate to much more than the technician he was with being quirky and a little weird. He didn't think much of her sudden coughing either and simply shook his head with a smile "Don't worry about it" he said, keeping a friendly tone. She had reasoned oddly and had a few weird reactions during their time together but so far, it was easy for him to dismiss them as personal quirks rather than anything suspicious.

"It's good to meet you, Pim" The large Padawan nodded and turned around to open the door, walking out as soon as it swooshed open. He was glad to see that the archivist was no longer preoccupied in another conversation and looked to his temporary companion with a smile "Looks like he's free" His voice carried a certain sense of enthusiasm as he started to move towards the man which he presumed that they both sought.

Once the two arrived, he let out a short "Hey, it's Mathieu-..." but seemed to trail off. The Jedi looked to Pim - the archivist was the one who had called for him to come so if she wanted a chance to speak with the man, now was the time. With that, he changed his tone "And this is Pim, the technician you got to fix the computer console in the hall" he said, pointing to the computer hall they had just been in. It was only fair for him to give her the chance to go first so that she could go home after.

Aren D'Shade

 

[Aren D'Shade]

Luckily, Mathieu either hadn't caught onto just how uncomfortable she actually was or he decided not to comment on it. Recovering from her coughing, they introduced themselves, even if she used a false name. This would come back to haunt her rather quickly. Following him out as he held the door for her, she noticed he walked directly to the Archivist.

He must have moved closer to the room they had been in because he seemed to be waiting just a couple of steps from the door. So much for getting away. Looking at the ground as Mathieu spoke, she briefly glanced up at the Archivist and let out a small sigh.

Aren could feel the gaze of the man she had just been introduced to. She could almost feel the confusion coming off of him and that was confirmed when he spoke.

"I did no such thing. Who are you really, girl?"

Placing a hand on her shoulder, it prevented her from moving away at all. Combat was out of the question as she was surrounded by too many and her flimsy excuse for a uniform would fail under close scrutiny.

"Pim, sir. I really am.!"

Almost guilt came from her as she lied to the potential Master. There would be no fooling one of those. The grip tightened and she was held still. Probably with the Force. Aren had to give him credit, he did remain calm but she felt his motion just slightly with his free hand. Within a moment, they were surrounded.

"You did well to accomplish whatever it was you were trying to do and not get caught before. However good you are, you will eventually get caught. Now, who are you?"

Practically wilting under the pressure and attention she was getting, if she could have slumped over she would have.

"Aren D'Shade."

"What are you doing here, Ms. D'Shade?"

Growling a little, she looked defiantly at him and remained silent. They would have to get that out of her by force. Glancing at Mathieu, she hoped he might defend her...maybe try to get her free.

Mathieu Brion

 

[Mathieu Brion]

The Game is Over​

It had been quite some time since Mathieu had last seen the Archivist as confused as he looked now. Thinking about it, he had probably never seen the elder as confused as he was now. It was an odd sight but made sense to him once the man mentioned how he had in fact hired a technician to fix the computers. What happened next was more surprising still as the Archivist put a hand on Pim - in the Padawan's eyes, it was excessive. As if by instinct, he took a step forth to put himself between them as his own arm shot up to remove that of the Archivist.

The elder turned his gaze to Mathieu, sharp and stern, he sent a rather clear message to not interfere. Mathieu did, indeed, trust the Archivist and while he did not manage to prevent his actions from becoming reality entirely, he did manage to stop himself from removing the Archivist's arm but still held his wrist in his hand. At least Pim seemed to feel safer as she managed to speak up to defend herself.

While the Archivist had managed to remain calm, he had also called for reinforcements. Mathieu watched as a number of guards arrived to surround them - this was more serious than he had thought and so, he removed his hand from the Archivist's arm and took a step back whilst throwing a confused look at Pim. But the girl had lied - Aren had lied.

The two of them had not known each other for long - not at all. But he still felt betrayed and made that very clear as he quickly turned to her and taking half a step closer "I trusted you!" Mathieu could see the hope that had been in her eyes as she glanced at him but his gaze was far from friendly. Two of the guards stepped closer to search her and put cuffs on her, giving the Archivist the opportunity to turn to Mathieu, heeding him to not give in to anger and to remember to show compassion. "I am sorry" he said, giving the elder a slight bow "It has been a long day"

He looked to Aren, feeling how the very idea of Pim lingering in his mind whilst trying his best to erase it. The hostility that had been in his gaze was gone - for Mathieu had come to his senses and wrested back control. But just like the hostility, he no longer looked to her with the same friendliness as before. His mouth opened to speak, but no words came. Soon, the guards started to start pulling at her for their journey to a secure holding cell. Mathieu did not intervene - he did not look away either, instead, he just stood there, trying to process all that had just happened.

Aren D'Shade