Private The Seeds We Sow

[Mariya Pyne]

Barkhesh
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Silence captivated the air around Mariya, broken only momentarily by each light step of her chestnut colored boots against the metallic grating of the floor beneath her. The building was dark, long since abandoned by its proprietors. Cobwebs made themselves at home along the intersecting walls and along the ceiling. Scorch marks from blasters marred the once pristine durasteel. Whatever had happened here Mariya wasn't privy to the details. All she'd known from her data collected over the past few months was that there was supposedly a cache of corporate data chips and perhaps a few worthwhile secrets leftover in the archives room on the lower levels of the facility.

The issue? Well, for one the building was dilapidated and in severe disrepair. The other? It might have become home to a number of native, predatory species. But neither of those things would deter the young woman from reaching her goal. No risk - No reward.

Click. The latch closed around the threaded durasteel loop on her belt, connected to a secure post along the inner wall of the lift. Within her pocket the girl retrieved a small lamp which fit conveniently in her mouth as a sort of mouth guard to provide a bit of light to her descent. Slowly she leaned backwards over the ledge, grasping tightly to the line while slowly lowering herself into the chasm. It wasn't until Mariya nearly ran out of length in her cable that she realized the depth was about 40 meters from where she'd begun. With feet firmly on the ground brown eyes circled the small square space until finding the partially sealed door separating the shaft from the corridor beyond.

Luckily, it was just wide enough for her to slip through, though she had to push her pack of supplies through the gap separately.

Sitting down Mariya opened the pair of flaps on the bag, riffling around for a brief moment in search of her datapad. When finally fingers felt the smooth edges of the device she activated it in the same motion as she drew it from its dwelling. A few tip-taps on the screen and a scroll or three down she located the data file containing the layout of the building. The archives were on the opposite end from where she sat. It would have been more convenient if the lift shaft on that end hadn't caved in. But such was the way of things.

Caulder Dune

 

[Caulder Dune]

Mariya Pyne

Darth Adekos frowned thoughtfully, and turned his head to look over his shoulder. Nothing in his line of sight. Just the dark and abandoned hall they had come through, and the two others they had avoided.​

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Still, he felt compelled to ask. "Did anyone else hear that?"​

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Three Nanogene Troopers were with him, but none of them answered. They were not big on talking, these clones, even if they weren't currently busy setting up the disruption drill. It was a large and unwieldly piece of technology, about the size of an E-Web and requiring just as large a power-pack. And it was an unfortunate necessity if the archives were going to be accessed.​

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Five layers of blast doors. Five. And all lined with a bizarre combination of improbable alloys to boot. Even a lightsaber wouldn't be enough.​

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Adekos looked back to the industrious little team. "Startop."​

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A pasty human cyborg in the uniform of an Imperial officer started and looked up from the drill's power supply. "Oh. Ah. Yes?"​

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"Just now. Did you hear something?"​

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"Hear what?"​

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Adekos sighed wearily. "Never mind."​

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He had been about to say something like a rucksack hitting the ground, but thought better of it. A bored mind imagining noises. And it was likely to get worse once the drilling commenced.​

 

[Mariya Pyne]

Hands scooped up the bag and quickly slung it back over the right shoulder, pace returning to a brisk walk towards the end of the first corridor. The purple haired infiltrator took another quick glance at the datapad, noting her path to the goal before killing the screen and slipping the device into the side pocket of her vest. The lamp in her mouth remained the only source of light as she navigated through the partially collapsed halls.

Left, Left, Right, through a crumbled door, left again, right again.

Then she stopped. Hands pressed against a cave-in where she had intended to pass. Just on the other side she could hear something though, scuffling? Shifting of something? Metal. Voices.

Kriff.

What now?

Mariya turned, sitting on the cold duracrete floor and retrieving the datapad once more. She pulled up the layout, studying it for an alternate route. If she doubled back and took the opposite corridor she would emerge across from the caved in route she was currently blocked in by. That was the lesser of the two problems at hand, however.

What to do about the people who already arrived? Who exactly were they? Folks that intended to retrieve their old data? Perhaps. Thieves? Perhaps just as likely. The real question was how many.

She bit her lip in contemplation. To leave now would be a tragic waste of resources spent getting here, only to leave empty handed. No, she stood, brushed herself off, slipped the datapad back and proceeded to make her way to the opposite corridor, though now the blaster strapped to her thigh had been drawn.

Whoever was down here likely wouldn't take friendly to her arrival.

Caulder Dune

 

[Caulder Dune]

Mariya Pyne

Tinkering with the drill carried on. One trooper was now placing markers along the blast door to indicate the correct path. Startop transitioned from adjusting the power supply to adjusting the sights. This was not a toy. One twitch or stumble and they might accidentally disintegrate someone. Or worse: one of the mainframes within.​

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Caution was of the utmost importance. And yet...​

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Darth Adekos turned again, glaring with disgust at the dark hallways behind him. Someone else was present. He could sense it now. It was a faint thing, a subtle and fleeting thread of consternation. Nanogene Troopers were not capable of such feelings, and Startop had not experienced nervousness since his conversion.​

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He unclipped his lightsaber from his belt, a garish and gilded thing. "I'll be back in a moment. Carry on without me."​

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Startop turned. "Lord Adekos?"​

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Adekos waved dismissively, already turning down the right corridor. Regardless of how long it took, Mariya would hear his footsteps long before she caught sight of him.​

 

[Mariya Pyne]

The girl was feet away from turning the corner when she heard the steps approaching in the distance. Immediately she clicked off the light still pressed between her teeth, dropping it to her hand to be stowed away in her pocket. Palms both gripped the blaster as she pressed herself flat against the wall where the two corridors connected. Half a face peered around and into the void of darkness engulfing the pathway ahead.

Just one though? Eaaaaaasy.

Perhaps some underpaid goon hired to patrol while the others worked to access the archives.

No matter. Despite the inability to see the target, Mariya had on her belt a pair of Spore/B stun grenades. A mildly quieter than a blaster, non-lethal grenade with which to incapacitate a wandering miscreant. Rather than firing blaster bolt after blaster bolt, detonating the hall full of spores was a more direct, and less accurate reliant approach to the problem. The smuggler waited until the steps got a bit louder, drawing closer, before releasing the pin on the device and, with devilish grin, promptly tossing it into the blackness.

Clink!

Caulder Dune

 

[Caulder Dune]

Mariya Pyne

Darth Adekos marched along, soon growing absent-minded, thoughts drifting to something financial, and then something mechanical. And then a grenade rolled out from around a corner. Eyes widened, but then the spores released. And instead he looked only off-put, remaining so even as the cloud grew larger around him.​

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This might have done a number on someone whose respiratory system (and most other systems, come to think of it) hadn't been replaced with cybernetics. As it stood, this was only a mild irritant. And it smelled like industrial disinfectant.​

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He turned his head, and looked the source of this nuisance straight in the face. A girl; a literal child. Or maybe not really literal. It was hard to tell.​

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Everyone under forty looked the same to him.​

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"I hope you have a backup plan,," he said, spreading his arms. "Go on, I'll wait."​

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The cloud of stun spores continued to enwreathe him, slowly thinning to a mist-like consistency.​