First Reply Uptown Funk in Zeltros

[Drifter]

By the time Leea Pandac 's watering, red-rimmed eyes went searching for Drifter, he was nowhere in sight. Well, nowhere but at least audible. The dry heaving seemed to originate somewhere behind the rotating heart-shaped bed.

Seems as soon as he read the signs, before she even brought her robe up he'd pulled chalks and had booked it to rush towards the other side of the bed, away from seeing Leea throw up chunks. There was no way he was going to linger around that. Nuh uh. No fething way.

At least though, he left the key within reach for Leea. Or maybe he dropped it in his haste to gtfo.

 

[Leea Pandac]

Leea sat for a moment, through the sudden bodily imbalance she found it difficult to locate where the sound was coming from. It was not long though before she locked on to the bed. She tried her best to put an apologetic tone into her voice, but really only managed to make the pained words sound warped, "Sor-ry 'bout tha-at. Feelin' bet-ter now."

Not really, the afterwaves of nausea were hitting hard, but she nonetheless felt like her stomach wasn't about to upend itself any time soon. She carefully wiped her eyes, with the other side of her hand to avoid the dribble that stuck to it. It did not help much, but she could at least see somewhat better. Leea searched for the key, hoping Drifter had managed to drop it nearby. Feeling along the ground with one hand, she shuffled awkwardly, her entrapped wrist starting to shift away from sharp pain and moving into dull throbbing.

Latching onto something small and metallic, Leea clenched her fist on it and dragged the little object close. Feeling more than seeing it was a key, she carefully placed it on the ground and lifted it in the right position. Almost maniacally she brought the arm around the got to work at the cuff. It took her three tries before she could manage to calm her nerves and see close enough to line the key up properly with the hole. With an unnaturally steady hand, she pushed the key in and twisted.

The pressure released from her wrist instantly and Leea dropped the key in a flurry and went to rub her wrist, wincing as she did so. After a moment relishing in her new found freedom, Leea sighed and asked, her voice croaking as her throat dried, "You ok-ay? Thank-s for the key." Only now did she wonder if Drifter could have used his powers to undo her cuff, although on reflection she did not feel like there was much in the way of opportunity for him to do so.

Half-heartedly, she lifter herself off the ground and stumbled towards the bed.

 

[Drifter]

By the time Leea Pandac managed to start stumbling her way over, Drifter had managed to unhook his Helm and breathe semi fresh air - until the smell of vomit came. Instant regret. He coughed a few times before he got himself situated, using his hand to wipe off the inside of the visor.

When the Mirialan was close enough to see, she only managed to get a brief glance at a dark mass of shaggy, sweaty brown hair before Drifter tucked his helm back on. No way he was not putting it back on. That filter inside was the only thing preventing him from smelling the acrid vomit in the room and on him.

[ Yeah yeah.] he wheezed out to her, annoyed and feeling hia stomach object. When he glanced up, he caught sight of Leea’s concerned face. Well at least he wasn’t the only one feeling like crap.

Needing a breather, he did his best to lean back on the bed but the blasted thing was rotating. Oh well.

Just breathe a few seconds. Get your bearings. Then figure out what in eberos happened?

 

[Leea Pandac]

Leea managed to keep upright long enough to reach Drifter and the bed. At first, she wanted nothing more than to drop onto the soft surface, knowing full well under normal circumstances she would have burned the bed from orbit before getting within arms reach of it. However, as she stepped closer, the Mirialan felt her stomach was still not entirely settled. She had a distinct feeling that is she laid down, she would probably feel worse. So, Leea decided to remain standing, or at least upright. She slowly walked around the bed, scanning the room for the exits while moving towards her uniform. "Do you think there is a refresher around here?"

She bent over just enough to lift the folded uniform with one hand. She looked the small collection, searching the sides and back for signs of anything missing. She did not want to unfold her clothes in this dump, if they were dirty she hoped to avoid getting them any worse.

Her attention was caught by a small card left behind, where it had been hidden by the clothes. It was a simple card, the light made it appear a light pink with red embossing along the rims in a fluid, swirling pattern. There was a simple message written in basic with a hand that suggested the writer had been at once both rather contended and somewhat weary. The writing was concerning to Leea.

"Thanks for the good times. H-"

Please tell me this is his, not mine... She was really not up for discovering something like this with her clothes. She hoped perhaps Drifter knew something that could at least begin to alleviate her fears, "Hey, do you know anyone with a name starting with H?"

 

[Drifter]

Leea Pandac 's response to the first question was a gesture that would encompass the entirety of the room. If there was a room with a heartshaped bed, there was bound to be a refresher.

[ Maybe? I don't know Leth] the start of a new nickname; he was going basic with the letter Leth. How this was any shorter than Lee-ah was up to debate, but it was the first letter of her name in Aurebesh. His head hurt from all the hacking and coughing and right now he just wanted to regain his bearings.

[ Forgive me for my short temper but I am not in the best of spirits after waking up cuffed to someone, with little recollection of what is going on, and then being tricked into concern when someone was pretending to hurl. ] his voice was tight, and while there was still a measure a guilt from earlier, his patience was wearing a little thin. The Darkside was still lingering within the man and he was struggling to reign it in.

[ Herf? ] he repeated the letter 'h', aloud, frowning. [ Uhh... if this is Zeltros... Heartbeat House? ] That was one of the most prevalent companies on Zeltros by none other than Joza Perl herself.

[ Why you ask? ] that's when he noticed the card. [ What's that say? ] he slowly came to his feet, that polarized helm reflecting Leea's reflection right back at her.

 

[Leea Pandac]

Leth. Don't know how to feel about that one. She had been called many nicknames in her time running around the galaxy. Apparently, few of her comrades had possessed the creativity to give her a nickname based on her name's beginning letter. Whether thwas a good thing or not was another matter. I guess if it works for him... She couldn't think of a good nickname for Drifter , but that was something she could probably come up with.

Still a bit sore about that. "I'm sorry about that." She might have continued, but Leea's parents had taught her not to give excuses. I wasn't quite myself at that moment.

Heartbeat House. I so hope not! She looked down at the card as she contemplated the possibility. Maybe it was just a drinking establishment? Who am I kidding? I don't think there is a single normal club on this planet. Her exact knowledge of Zeltros' businesses and organizations was minimal, to put it politely. She didn't know one building from the next, let alone what corporations set up here.

She was about to answer his first question, but then he walked over and his second question took precedence. She looked into the visor for a moment, afraid he might make some particularly degrading remark if he read the card, but she could no more see into his eyes through the protective metal than she could see through a brick wall. All that was visible to her was her own wearied and concerned face. She really didn't like the look she had at the moment, even looking past the distortions of the helm's uneven surface.

For a moment, she could not respond, she did not move. Finally, her mind hoping, willing Drifter not to say what she feared hearing, Leea held card for Drifter, her strained voice barely audible as she spoke, "Here, it was under my clothes." Her eyes darted about the space, looking for an obvious escape to a refresher if she needed it.

 

[Drifter]

Growing up, Lorrdian had been a second language to him. Kinetic communication allowed Drifter to read body language, to glean off the little tells and nuances over a person's face and form. What he managed to read along the lines and hollows of the Mirialan were weariness, apprehension, pain, and anxiety.

Ugh. The wave of guilt again.

He took the card, barely being able to look at it before his focus went on her. Another heavy sigh that would make his shoulders lift and fall. He gave a glance around, searching, settling on what appeared to be two doors. [ Look, one of those might be a refresher. ] his attention fell to her hand, noticing the dark mottled bruising already forming. Yeah, he did that.

[ Go check it out and I'll see if we can do something about your wrist. ] he wasn't a healer, but he knew the basics. However, if Leea Pandac needed something set, well, that was going to be fun.

 

[Leea Pandac]

Leea was surprised, which was saying something after everything that had transpired since she awoke earlier. This was quite the demeanour shift from a few moments before; she wondered what the impetus for the change was. She was grateful; indeed, she was heartened by his display of concern and offer to help. She nodded silently, unsure of how to respond, before walking towards the doorways Drifter had pointed out.

She took a few steps, wondering which was the one to choose. Fifty-fifty, either going to find a refresher and some time to clean up, or I'm going to find some really nasty bar or hallway. She really didn't want to have to deal with whatever establishment this room was connected to. At least, she wanted to be in a better condition before then. And preferably in my own clothes. She looked down at the dress she was wearing and shivered at the thought of who might have worn this before her and what else it might have been involved in. Grabbing the bundle of her clothing and walking on, she saddled up next to one of the doorways.

Chosen at random, she hoped she had selected well. She pushed the button and found the door slid open slowly, slow enough for her to glimpse through to the next room before it had opened enough for her to enter. The room that she percieved was dark, with enough space she could not see the edges in the darkness. Assuming it was the incorrect room she stepped back a pace, ready to try and hide herself is someone should come in. A moment later though, a dim light, barely enough to see by, lit the room and Leea recognized the standard utilities of the room she was hoping for. Waiting barely a moment, Leea quickly stepped in and pressed the button again, watching it close seemingly faster on the return journey.

As the door closed with a faint squeek, the light brightened considerably. Flickering and grimy, the light was enough to reveal to Leea the room in sufficient detail, such that she now paused and was suspect of her original assessment of this room's safety. Whatever debauchery occurred in the other room appeared to have spilled over into this one. A few clothes lay in a corner, there were numbers and names written across the walls in different languages and dialects, and though there was no blacklight in the room, Leea doubted there were no stains from previous occupents. Unconsciously holding her breath, she walked to the mirror, using a piece of her dress to wipe away some of the stains on it. She peered in and began the labor of cleaning herself up a bit. She was not certain she wanted to change in here, the door didn't lock and she wondered if whoever owned this building hadn't set up cameras in the rooms.

While at it, she took an occasional moment to check her wrist. It still hurt and her hand refused to obey most of what she wanted it to do, but she was still confident nothing was broken. Leea wondered if she should try to relocate it, assuming it was dislocated. But decided against it, at least for now. She thought it might be better to have an extra person around, especially a Jedi, who might be able to help.

 

[Drifter]

Leea Pandac stepped out and managed to find the refresher. At least, he thought that is what it was because she left and closed the door behind her. Turning his attention back to the card, he gave a frown.

"Thanks for the good times. H-"

Well, H could be anyone or anything. But the light pink with the hearts made him think of Joza Perl 's Heartbeat House. He had gone to Club Blush for information. Did this have something to do with the company?

It was Zeltros, so who knew. But he was going to find out. For now, he had to see what clues he could figure out from this room to paint a picture of what happened last night --day?

Hell, his head hurt.

 

[Leea Pandac]

Leea had managed to wipe away the worst of the remaining grime from the sonic shower, at least enough to give her space to work in without fear of sullying anything too important. After concluding there were no cameras inside of the shower, Leea grudgingly took the extra time to clean and change. She came out in her uniform, although she removed the name and identification badges on her chest, placing them safely in her pockets and covered the rank and ship insignias.

It was probably less than ten minutes before she finally stepped out of the refresher. Although she was cleaner, Leea hardly felt like the room had lived up to its name, she was nowhere near being refreshed. Then again, it was hardly like she could have expected anything more from a place like this, especially after a night? like the previous.

She wondered if Drifter had experienced better luck in trying to discern what had occurred leading to this scenario. For her own part, Leea recalled having a few drinks with her comrades in a small diner. They had hoped to avoid unwanted attention that most of the soldiers got at the big bars and taverns. While the name of the place eluded her, she did recall it having three blue stars connected by a scalene triangle. The waiter and owner of the place was a rather bombastic toydarian who seemed to have an opinion on everything. He had easily spent an hour talking to them about local and galactic politics, as well as business practices before he had taken their orders. The was about what she had expected from a backstreet diner, but then again it was better than the ration kits.

Some locals had come in, Zeltron girls wanting to talk with the owner. Leea couldn't remember the specifics but there was a bit of a disagreement about something. Beyond that it was still rather blurry and it infuriated Leea to no end. Nonetheless, she came out with a pleasant visage on her face and some weight off of her shoulders, she looked to see what Drifter had been up to in the mean time, asking, "Thanks for that, much happen?"

 

[Drifter]

Leea Pandac would find Drifter going through the room, looking for clues. What he found had been tossed on the bed. There was a feather boa. A pair of Lepi ears. A bright red sparkly high heel shoe. A few clothes. What looked like a few incense sticks, and finally a caboodle of makeup.

Now he was really confused. So far, he wasn't getting a crimey sort of feeling to this. Instead, it reminded him of the times his sisters decided to have a massive sleepover and he'd been caught up in a pantyhose jungle of dress-up, mascara, and his hair tied into tiny little braids while wearing a dress.

He held up a bright pink thigh high stocking between two fingers, asking [ ...uhh... do you know anyone who this may belong to?]

 

[Leea Pandac]

The menagerie on the bed caught Leea's attention. What could have happened here? Her train of thought continued more personally, And how was I involved? Half of the products she had never heard of... She was reminded of the wealthier citizens back home, those who would have parties almost entirely to show off what they had to the less fortunate 'friends'. She was a tad bitter on the subject of material wealth, not that she was going to admit it.

Leea's attention was drawn to the painfully pink stocking Drifter held up. I wouldn't be caught dead in those things. Indeed the brightness of the pink was such that Leea almost forgot the pain in her wrist. She had managed to relocate it in the shower, as far as she could tell. Leea would need to visit a doctor later to make sure it was in properly and there were no complications, but for now, it only ached lightly and she could deal with that. The stocking meanwhile was another matter, that thing needed to be destroyed; it was an atrocity to fashion, or at least what little fashion Leea was aware of.

As to the ownership, they were too larger, or perhaps too stretched, to be hers, kind of hard to tell in the light. Leea knew of only two types of people who would wear that type of clothing in that colour: Celebrities and then the kind of person this room was usually suited to. Since Leea was new on this world, she was certain she knew none of the former and did not wish to associate with the latter. Maybe on Zeltros, the two often overlap. To answer Drifter she shook her head.

"Do you?" She asked, hopefully.

 

[Drifter]

A heavy snort was Drifter's response to Leea Pandac 's question, tossing it back to the bed. [ Nope. ] he told her honestly, but added, [ But I am starting to think that whatever happened here had more to do with playing dress up than it did with anything sinister. ]

It was a mild relief perhaps, but it was just his initial theory. [ Did you find anything in the refresher that could lead to clues? ] if not, it was time to start exploring a way to get out of this place.

 

[Leea Pandac]

Uncertain whether to be relieved or not, Leea decided to shrug to herself. Dress up was definitely not the worst thing; although it was a bit personal for strangers, again not what she might have feared it being. Though dress up was not something Leea imagined herself doing, indeed she had never really been the type growing up. With three brothers, she had quickly learned to be tough and to enjoy the toys and games her brothers did. Not that she was complaining, she couldn't imagine being a prissy woman more concerned about clothing and makeup than staying in shape and exploring. She didn't want to be that kind of woman; it scared her too much. Of course, there was another reason for her desire to be what she was, a more prosaic reason. That kind of lifestyle often required a degree of wealth unattainable to the masses of the working class; at least it had been back home. Thus, if she wanted to live that way, she would have to settle down with a relatively well off man, and she had no intention of settling so young.

Drifter 's question reconjured the rather disturbing, for her at least, images of the refresher. "It was pretty much the same as out here, though the clothes were more centralised compared to this." She gestured to where there the piles of strewn clothes had been in this room. She endeaveored not to imagine what sort of dress up party would grow to the point of entering the refresher. Then, recalling the refresher in more detail, she corrected herself, "Although, there were names and numbers on the walls. Quite a few in other languages though."

After a moment of thought, she offered, "Maybe you'd have better luck with the languages." She was fluet in two languages, the one it seemed every being in the galaxy knew, and then her species native language. The latter had been the language used in her household for most of her early life, and the former had taken months of hard work to master when it became apparent a comprehension of the galactic trade language would be necessary in order obtain both higher education (something she had yet to accomplish) and any reasonable work (something she had managed). She thought her Basic was pretty good and it seemed few people noticed her accent, which reinforced her belief.

 

[Drifter]

[ Names and numbers on the sonic wall? ] That caught Drifters attention, moving from the side of the bed over towards where the sonic would be. Although he didn't miss the uniform, pausing to ask [ Wait a second...you military? ] actually, another question quickly followed that up, [ Which military? ]

With how vast the galaxy was, who knew just exactly where Leea Pandac came from and if there were any other friends that may be looking for her.

 

[Leea Pandac]

"That's right; they were on the walls on the right, next to the sonic shower." Leea shifted to the side to allow Drifter through. Once he was past, she moved to the bed with various pieces and materials spread in an ordered mess upon it. Not wanting to touch the stuff, she nonetheless leaned closely to examine them, willing some part of her brain to recognize something, anything. When asked about her military connections, her first instinct was to jokingly claim she had none. However, Leea instead took a second, straightening her back and contemplating, her back to Drifter and the refresher. Which one was it? Recalling after an instant, Leea closed her eyes to focus as she spoke.

The response may have been remarkable by nature of its being unremarkable. Leea's voice took on a light, almost bored tone as she spoke, however, Drifter might have noticed a moment's hesitation before her answer, "Forgein Expeditionary Force. Private Second-Class in the Amphibious Recon Squad Cresh." What made the reply interesting was the lack of any correlated emotions; there was no, passion in her words that might suggest a sense of pride in or loyalty to the military she was part of. Indeed, it almost sounded like a recitation, much like a student would blandly deliver the letters in a spelling contest.

As she finished her statement, Leea's eyes opened and she smiled to herself, she had remembered. Better than last time. Leea turned her back on the bed to face Drifter, forcing herself to take a more relaxed pose despite her current settings and seeming amnesia putting her on edge. "What about you? Any connections with the greater galaxy? Or are you one of those lone-wolf style Jedi?"

 

[Drifter]

Okay, that was some bit of information, but that didn't tell him what government entity. So he pressed further, [ Yeah, but what government? Planet? Coalition?] it was hard to keep track of what was going on in the galaxy recently when one was constantly on the run.

Presently, is current worry was that perhaps Leea Pandac 's friends or companions just might start knocking and think he was somehow at fault here. Just what did he have to deal with?

As for his question, he simply told her, [ Not a Jedi. I just can use the Force. ] as if that was explanation enough. Trying to dig into what he was is only going to be a headache.

[ I just came to Club Blush to get info. Turns out it seems I bit a bit more than I can chew if we are here.]

 

[Leea Pandac]

Now she had to think. The names were evident and the places, but Leea recognized that Drifter was fishing for more information. Let's see. How to put it? It took a few moments of consideration before she was pleased with her formulated explanation. "It's a localized policing force, aimed at protecting sectors against piracy and criminal activity. We're technically based on Manaan, and officially we are supposed to police several sectors directly adjacent to our base world. However, we have spent the last few weeks near the Prindaar system, using the small space station above Antar as our coordinating operation base. It's been pretty busy, a lot criminals jump the borders."

A little voice in her head reminded her, You might not be part of them anymore. Surprised, and somewhat unsettled by the statement, Leea racked her brain to remember why it was important. She felt like it was something she had thought of not too long ago and now it was a question of trying to retrace her steps.

Drifter replied to her question, but it created a bit more confusion for the Mirialan than it resolved. Not a Jedi, but you definitely have the powers of one. She was running two thoughts simultaneously, and it was not going well. Which Force? Magnetic?- What happened before? I woke up and we were chained together.- Gravitic?- I thought he might have been a... The process ran on for quite some time before there was a sudden resolution to one which immediately suppressed further thought of the other. "Umm, do you happen to know how long we were... well, like that? Chained up I mean? I am, or was, on weekend leave and if that is up they might have already left..." She didn't want to finish the logical process, And I might be out of a job.

As if the realization had unlocked something, she remembered a mite more about her time before awaking. The disagreement had resolved in something, Leea and her comrades had not been privy to the hushed conversations that the owner had continued with the Zeltrons in the far corner of the diner. She did remember being somewhat unnerved when the three had looked over at her and her friends with inscrutable looks on their faces. When they returned, it appeared the toydarian was far more relaxed and the Zeltrons seemed almost drunk, though Leea hadn't noticed them imbibing at any point during their conversation. The toydarian had proposed a toast to some industrial achievement as the two Zeltrons left; he brought out some delicious desserts and drinks. She and her associates had been reserved in accepting it, for fear of not being able to pay, but the toydarian had assured them it was on the house as part of the celebration. Just about everybody had laughed when Leea gagged on her drink, it had been far too strong for her tastes. There was more, she could fainly recall stepping outside later, but it seemed like it was unlike to reveal itself at this time.

 

[Drifter]

What he told her meant that at least she wasn't part of some large galactic group, but that odds were that she did in fact have some powerful friends. Especially a policing force. Not the sort of group he'd want to cross blasters with if he could. The last thing he needed was to make an impromptu bail call to his family and ruin his plans of staying out of their way and searching for his sister.

[ No clue. ] he replied, although a sudden thought came to him. [ But I know someone who might! ] he relayed, brining up his comm on his wrist. Using the Force he activated it and sent a message to Alex. Fine, she'll remind him of his failures but they could at least get some answers.

Before he could even ask, Alex' sultry mechanized voice would blast through the speaker, [ Where are you!? Why did you shut off your tracking beacon? I've been trying to get a hold of you for the past eleven hours and I haven't been able to reach you! ]

A wince. [ I'm... somewhere. Sorry, woke up in a place I'm unfamiliar with. Has it been eleven hours? ]

Maybe that might trigger some sort of memory from Leea Pandac .

 

[Leea Pandac]

Eleven hours? That's not too bad. Leea perked a bit at the thought. Only half a galactic standard day lost, might as well be centi's on the credit. That would give her plenty of time to establish her position, relocate her friends assuming they haven't already gotten back to the ship, and report back to command before the weekend concluded.

It seemed she was not the only one who had people waiting on her. Leea glanced at Drifter , as if wanting to pierce his mask with her gaze and get some glimpse of his thoughts. Unlike him, she was not well versed in reading physical manifestations of emotions. She could read faces, though to what degree was debatable. She pondered him, Who do you know? Where are you from? She might have whispered the question of why a droid would be angry at him for being late, but she was uncertain whether he would answer in any satisfactory manner. He had been evasive, or at least only sharing partially. Typically, Leea would forget it and push past, used to working with all manner of people across the galaxy. But in this emotionally compromised state, she knew she was more than a little unstable and because of this, she had clung to the person who seemed most helpful. Now she was uncertain whether she had made the right choice. She had shared plenty, something in her mind told her that he was able to read her like a book and was getting everything he could out of her. She didn't want to believe it, but he had been less than open with sharing information...

These thoughts seemed to dissipate though as Leea became aware of more memories fluttering back. She was confident she had left the diner with her mates. At the time she had believed herself entirely in control of her faculties, indeed she was the one shepherding her quite inebriated comrades through the streets. Now though, with the power of hindsight, she recognised she too had been drunk beyond her wits. She must have gotten disoriented, because they soon became quite lost and, despite her best efforts to keep her squadmates together and focused on getting to the ship, the group dissolved as each wandered in different directions. She remembered suddenly meeting a group of Zeltron, led by one of the two from the diner. She thought a brawl broke out, but the memory was collapsing inwards again, disappearing as conscious thoughts of the present struck her.

A thought arose, a single thought that threw her prior calm into disarray. Just because he was here eleven hours... "Um, you don't happen to remember when you arrived whether you saw me already here?"