There And Back Again

[Rikard Tetalar]

Unknown Region​

Aboard the Freighter Hyperion​

Resupply had gone smoothly. The freighter now easing out of the Sirat Wen System and in to the greater vastness of the Unknown Region. Rikard still held some reservations about the old bird, but it had seen him this far. He figured it best to give the ship the benefit of the doubt. All they had to do was make it to the Inner Rim at this point. Not so great a feat if one really thought about it. The hard work had already been done. All that remained was seeing the artifact safely to it's destination.

Rikard could not help but cast an uneasy eye over the container again. He never had been able to trust relics supposedly linked to the Force. Not that he ever had a reason to validate such a feeling. Just that he always felt a mite off when dealing with them. Sad truth about ruins and artifacts in this Galaxy though. The older they were, the higher the chance someone would claim it linked to a defunct Force cult. At least that had been the case in Rikard's experience.

The rest of the crew seemed to more or less pass by in blissful ignorance. Most of them knew little to nothing about their cargo, or it's worth. Rikard himself had been hired to oversee it's transportation, which told him more than the official information he had received. If he was here instead of a one of his more reputable peers then not everything was on the up-and-up.

"Just get paid old boy. It's none of your business." He coughed a bit as he turned away from the container. His words spoke the opposite of his heart's want. Rikard had been fighting the urge to get a closer look at his mysterious ward. Only time would tell if he'd be able to resist.

Spoiler

@Ra'a'mah

 

[Riamah]

Working for the Merchant Fleet had its advantages as well as disadvantages. The Metal Lords had no clue she could use the Force or was a secret Sith Lord within their ranks. When the opportunity arose where artifacts were found, she had to be rather careful to keep it off her official manifests. Doing such an action too many times would draw attention, so it was very rare for her to do this personally.

Having hired a person to help guard the transportation, the ball was in her court now to make sure the job was being completed to her liking. She allowed him to use a ship he was comfortable with instead of her own, this also kept it off the Merchant Fleet property entirely. Not on their property, meant off the books. All in all, this worked out in her favor and her hireling wasn't aware of who she was at all.

She oversaw the loading, hiding in the shadows and keeping herself hidden. It gave her the opportunity to observe the man at work and Ra liked what she saw. A professional man in his demeanor. One that would see a course through to the end and somebody she would probably get along well with. However, he didn't even know she was now on board his craft. Posing as one of the crewmen, she blended in well. Only a couple of things separated her from them.

Being female in a male dominated field was one, the other was the confidence in which she moved. Even if the mask she wore presented herself as a neutral apprentice within the Force, the confidence she couldn't hide. She was no longer the meek child or young adult that had worked on ships before. Having once been in a position similar to Rikard's, she knew how to work a cargo carrier and what needed to be done.

Seeing he was alone with the cargo, she came out of hiding. In all aspects, visually came out of the shadows and through the Force. It would seem to him, that maybe a dark, but calm presence had just manifested itself near to him on the ship and she walked through the door to room he and cargo were in.

[member="Rikard Tetalar"]

 

[Rikard Tetalar]

The cold metal tinged his fingertips. "What are you?" The man spoke softly, eyes transfixed upon the container. He was used to finding these relics. Being on the forefront of discover. Rarely had he experienced the displeasure of unknowing, at least not like this. How was one that claimed to be an explorer supposed to ignore such an adventure? How, when the answers could be so easily obtained? Rikard shook the notions of temptation from his mind and stepped away. Perching himself on a small crate fasted to the opposite wall. "If only Garmon were here to keep me in line."

It was only after a rather amusing thought passed his mind did the feeling fall over Rikard. A smile fading only to be replaced with a mixture of confusion and awe. At first he turned to the container. Could the artifact had given off such an indescribable feeling? No, if came from behind the container. In the darkness there. A figure, slowly forming into a somewhat familiar shape. "A...woman?" He spoke in a hushed tone. She wore the uniform of the crew, yet something seemed off. Who was she, and how was she pressing such emotion upon him?

"This area is restricted!" Rikard managed to blurt out. Trying his damnedest to regain a modicum of authority he could feel himself losing grip on. "State your name, now." He tried to calm himself. Assessing, thinking, planning. It was possible she had somehow gotten lost. It was long ago they took on new hires after all. Yet that, somehow, did not quite sit right with Rikard. The way she looked, the way she moved, it was if she had just 'appeared' from the void. The familiar weight of the slugthrower hanging from his side caught his attention, but Rikard dismissed the idea. Even if she spelled trouble he couldn't risk an engagement here. Not with the artifact so close. His only saving grace at this point? That this crewmen was closer to what she appeared, and less of what Rikard feared.

@Ra'a'mah

 

[Riamah]

Not wearing her cloak like she would have if were dressed for business, the only real tells Ra could pick up on were his outward reactions to her appearance. Since he could pick up on her signature through the Force, he would know it was dark and calm. If he could read people at all, there was no hostility, threat or even any real danger.

Her eyes were a natural gold, not corrupted by the Force. Preferring to find more mundane ways to solve issues, when Ra did use the Force she more often used neutral skills that both Jedi and Sith could use. She didn't allow her emotions to rule her and kept a leash on them. The code she followed, she only applied to herself and allowed others to do what they wanted. Unless they got in her way.

While he questioned who she was and stated the area was restricted, she calmly and openly reached into one of the pockets of the uniform. Moving slow as to not appear to be going for a weapon, one hand was kept open at her side and the other moved to the pocket. If Rikard didn't stop her, then when her hand came out, it would be holding two things.

One was more or less a business card. The other was closer to an envelop. She stopped far enough away from so they could not touch, no invasion of personal space and looked at him before speaking.

"I am Ra'a'mah Numare. The one that hired you, even though we never met and worked everything out through simple lines of communication."

If he relaxed, then she would further approach him to hand him the card and package. If he remained tense, then the items would be set down and she would back off to allow him the time he needed to pick them up if he wanted to.

[member="Rikard Tetalar"]

 

[Rikard Tetalar]

"The one who...?" Rikard mused. His eyes drifting from the woman's figure to the items in her hand. This was, no doubt, beyond strange. The whole purpose of this expedition, of him being here, was to act as a surrogate for his employer. Yet, before him now, stood a woman claiming to be just that. The tension that had been boiling over moments before appeared to have faded as quick as it came. Rikard's apprehension wholly replaced by confusion and ire. Was he being played for a fool? Was this all some sort of elaborate jest by the rich and proper? Stepping forward to take the card Rikard intended to find out just that.

The name was right. "So you are her." He managed to say, shaking his head a bit. Thinking back her voice did seem to match the one he had heard through his previous communications. "I still don't get it though." Running a hand through his hair before stepping towards the container. "Why bring me in to watch over this thing if you were gonna oversee the journey yourself." A good point, at least Rikard thought so. "And better still..." He turned and pointed to Ra. "...why are you dressed like one of the crewmen?"

While Rikard was consider intelligent by many standards, the man had no guile. Subterfuge and the like passed by his mind like nothing at all. The trappings of corporate politics were the man reason he had left Chandrila in the first place. Never wanting to weigh himself down and slog through that mess. No now, standing here, it was hard for the man to grasp what truly was going on and just why Ra had gone through so much to arrange all this.

@Ra'a'mah

 

[Riamah]

It took him a few moments to piece things together, he still posed a couple valid questions to her. After he took her offered items, Ra chose to lean against the container now she was close enough to it. He asked why she was even there is she had hired him to watch over it along with being dressed as one of the crew. That last question brought a small smile to her face.

Crossing one of her arms across her body and placing the elbow of her other on top, her hand went up to her chin to lightly cup it. While she did not need to give much thought to her answer, it may indicate she had to think of the choices she had made to get here.

"You are the one overseeing its journey and I am here as a simple crewman. Until this moment, did I not follow proper procedure and instructions?"

While their own personal interaction had been limited prior to now, when they had met, she had followed his instructions. Besides the fact she knew about the job having done it before. Before she had known what her past was or where she had come from. A simple freighter pilot and captain in her own right. As former head of intelligence for the Dominion, she kept much of her past occluded from people that looked into her. That bit of information was still out there though.

One thing she had revealed to Rikard that only a handful of people knew outside of the Sith was the fact of her alignment within the Force. It was something she kept secret as much as she could. Thinking along the lines of business over being sith, Ra went about quite often as if she couldn't use the Force at all. This little bit of information could be used against her, if he chose to follow that course of action in the future. Something about him though made her feel she could trust him with it and so it was revealed.

Taking on a slightly more serious look, but certainly not hostile, she lowered her arms and met her eyes with his.

"How better to fit in?"

[member="Rikard Tetalar"]