Underworld Livin [pm to join]

[Rexus Drath]

A hover train roared and its horn went off in a loud honk that could deafen people up close. The smell of rotten food and feces wafted through the air along with a sense of desperation. But the sight was a simple one, a man named Jack Smith lay curled up in a ball near a trash fire on the under city streets of Coruscant. Recently Jack had been let go from his job, had his apartment explode, and found out that he had lung cancer, now one might ask themselves why wouldn't Jack just Walter White the system and cook up some of that sweet sweet blue meth. Well to answer that question, Jack wasn't the smartest fellow in the world. At least he didn't think he was.

Jack ​

And here I thought living alone in a over furnished small apartment was rock bottom, well now I know. I used to have a job, a house, well not a house but an apartment. But I had all of that, then in a blink of an eye, poof it was gone. Really goes to show that life can always find a way to screw you more than it already has, so I guess this was it. Die alone on the coruscant under city streets next to a trash can fire and a guy named Sticky Joe.

I hated Sticky Joe, such an ass. Always wants some of my food, I don't care if you were a five star republic general joe, get your own food. That's what I thought as I looked over to the sleeping pile that was Sticky Joe, a person buried in mounds of ratty old blankets. It might as well of been his tomb, he was dead, I was dead, the only difference was he didn't know it yet. There really wasn't any hope down here, we were just passing the time until some underworld agency picked us up and took our organs. Like Zeltros, now I'm afraid to go to Zeltros. I hear homeless people have it made over there.

But sadly all my ramblings would be lost shortly after I heard a noise coming down the alley. A noise like footsteps hitting the ground with a rhythm that spelled game over Jack. Well you had a good run, solid thirty years. Who am I kidding, I had a terrible wasted life. Pet frogs live more productive lives. As the footsteps got louder and louder I simply lay there and waited for certain death. Hopefully this one wasn't a stark raving psycho and would just hit me in the head with a large rock or something.

 

[Dani Ticon]

Taylor was on a bit of a midnight stroll that night, the putrid air in his lungs and the stench of garbage in his nose. It truly was home, a place where he could get connected to. Recently Taylor had come to the Coruscant undercity to make a name for himself in the gambling business. Mostly in terms of unlicensed boxing matches, prostitution, and of course his personal expertise being chemical engineering. There was always somebody on Coruscant that needed a door or a safe opened without having to hire one of those expensive hackers.

But Taylor wasn't on a stroll without a reason! No he was looking for an assistant, after his partner got punched by One Sith forces in a raid he was going solo. And in this business you always needed a partner. So with a brisk step he would have to recruit the more desperate people in the underworld. Namely the people who would do anything just to have a roof over their heads.

So the anarchist saw the trash fire and with rhythm in his steps he walked down the alley in a almost dance like movement until he reached the fire. Once he arrived at the fire he put his hands up and started to warm them from the cold undercity air.

"So I'm looking for someone to help me out, and before you ask. No I'm not here to steal your organs or kill you." the man said with a smile as he kept his hands to the fire.

 

[Rexus Drath]

I wanted to scream, I wanted to run and find help, but I knew all those things would kill me in my current state. Maybe I should just go for it, I'd die faster that way. As the footsteps came closer and closer a man in a leather jacket stood next to my fire and put his hands up to warm himself. He didn't look like someone here to take my kidneys, and then he started talking. And of course I flinched and pulled away and would of peed myself if I could have, why did I just think that?

The man spoke offering a job, and a need for help, and for some cosmic reason I believed him. Was I going to go out there and risk being black bagged by some Sith who was strolling by, no. I was content to sit in my little hole and die of cancer. With a heavy raged cough that came out of my lungs forcefully, I quickly covered my mouth and hoped he had not heard me.

"Please, please, please take Sticky Joe. I whispered to myself beneath my hands.

Knowing my luck it was too late, I was going to be taken away and strapped to an operating table where some blue guy was going to remove my organs to "Hip to be Square" just make it quick, that's all I was asking.

 

[Dani Ticon]

It wasn't hard for Taylor to hear Jack's ragged coughing and semi crying, really it was kind of sad. The man rolled his neck with a few pops until he looked up at the sky and sighed, steam floated from his mouth as he stared up at the roof and shrugged his shoulders with a look that said "really?" afterwards he walked over to the pile that was Jack. Once there he kneeled down and looked at the man who was playing dead and rubbed a hand through his own spiky hair.

"Hey buddy, hey, wake up. I need your help and you need money." He said as he grabbed a nearby stick and started poking at him.

"Well I can see you're intent on this whole playing dead thing. So just lay there and let me give you this." He said as he reached into his pocket.

Producing a card he slipped it to Jack's front breast pocket and sighed once again.

"Call me when you're ready to do something with your life." Standing back up the man took a cigarette from his pocket and placed it in his mouth.

Walking over to the fire he bent over and light the cigarette with the fire inches from his face, the heat burned the man a little but he didn't seem to care. Pulling away with his face sweaty and red and inhaled the smoke and walked down the ally the opposite way he had came.

 

[Kerrick Sereta]

It had been awhile since Kerrick had wandered far enough in the Coruscant Underworld to the point where the primary population wasn't consisted of solely criminals and was instead comprised of the average citizen down on their luck as well. Every time xe did so xe was reminded of the true prosperity that came with being a denizen of the greater galaxy. After all, it was better to participate in mostly legal activities and profit rather than keeping a regular nine-to-five office job that only paid enough to support yourself and take care of the bills - maybe - and lying to yourself about being satisfied with such a lifestyle at that. It was a scenario xe could never imagine finding xemself in.

However, there was one individual who fit the above description which xe had formed a sort of acquaintanceship with and never really spoken to after that brief conversation on the train. It was that man xe was looking for now, one [member="Jack Smith"], an accountant that had given xem his business card and not much else. In comparison to smuggling illegal goods and other illicit substances for hundreds of thousands of credits each job, his life and times were extensively ordinary. But maybe that was what xe liked about being around him. Sometimes it was nice to hear about the mundane problems the average person took on. Not always, but sometimes.

Absently kicking a pebble as xe walked, the quiet mutterings of an individual in an alleyway caught xir attention rather quickly. While it wasn't safe to assume that everyone in the Underworld was the most balanced psychologically, most weren't so blatant about the fact that there was a screw or two loose, either. And so, naturally, xe went to investigate, keeping one hand near the heavy blaster pistol at xir side. One could never be too careful, especially in a place like this, where there were always bigger fish lurking around the corner. Xir astromech droid trailed behind, whistling its skepticism for all to hear, assuming they were capable of interpreting droidspeak.

"Nice to know you're confident, Micro. I'll keep that in mind next time you need help, you hu'qouxêi'uêêie chou tl'ojoma." Once the source of the disturbance came into sight xe blinked, frowning slightly before approaching. Well, this wasn't quite the lunatic xe had expected, but life was full of surprises. "What are you doing here? Thought you didn't like us down here." A half-smile crept onto xir lips with that half-serious assertion, Micro whistling an inquiry as well.

 

[Rexus Drath]

[member="Kerrick Ikon"]

To be honest, I had passed out once the man had slipped the business card into my pocket. Maybe it was the exhaustion, or the cancer, or maybe it was because I was a scared little Lepi who more than likely soiled themselves at the sight of a new job. God I'm so pathetic. But my misery didn't end there, why would it?

I had awoke a few moments later to hi- her- their face, yes their face. It was the smuggler I had given my card to, the one from the train. As if my life wasn't confusing enough already, now I was thrust back into this awkward situation. Just pick a gender and stick with it! None of this yes crap! I had half a mind to tell them off about thei-

*HACK* *COUGH*

After a ten second coughing fit I spit on the ground and looked back up at them, my vision faded a little and my world was a little woozy. I sat up a little and placed my head against the back of the wall trying to gather what little strength I had.

"I remember you, you were the la- dud- person from the train. If you are looking for finical advise I'm afraid I'm not in that line of work anymore." I said weakly as I attempted to stand.

"All I can say is you have a better chance of asking that droi-" That's when things got woozy.

I fell and my face hit the concrete and everything went dark. Maybe this time I was dead, and this was the end. But who am I kidding, I'd never be that lucky.

 

[Kerrick Sereta]

Just like nothing had changed that same confusion about the specifics of xir gender returned, melding seamlessly into the man's expression as if the two had been transported back to that same moment. It was all too tempting to make a sarcastic remark in retort to the uncertainty blatant on his face and in his words, but for the time being xe would remain silent. There were more things to worry about than something that was so common in xir life it became trivial after a while. "It's alright, I missed you too." A quiet chuckle escaped, and xe crouched so that the pair were at eye level. "Name's Kerrick, since you seem to have forgotten. You know, the one that scared you with my pistol."

Within the next second he was passed out flat on his face, a sudden action that furrowed xir brow with a frown. Having had experience with a number of drunks in xir life, it was evident that the man wasn't intoxicated in the least. He had been far too alert in the previous seconds for that. That meant there were underlying causes that weren't so easily explainable, but xe was no doctor. So instead of contemplating such a thing any longer xe merely picked Jack up and began walking towards the spaceport as if this was a typical, everyday occurrence. Truth be told, it was far more usual than a lot of things usually encountered on the job. That was a start.

Upon entering xir ship xe laid him down as gently as possible on the single bunk, sitting down nearby, Micro rolling to a stop at xir side. There was nothing left to do now other than wait for him to wake up, and xe was content to do just that. Once again the astromech had a comment, and xe cracked another smile. "No, he's not dangerous. The guy can barely take care of himself. I think we'll both walk out of this without a scratch. For a bucket of bolts you sure do worry a lot."

[member="Jack Smith"]