Beware Hitchhiking Bounty Hunters

[Eoto Vrisor]

Eoto was surprised when he looked to his right and saw Aurelie's goggles. How many gadgets has this kid got? He thought to himself. Ignoring his questions for now he lowered his rifle and nodded at her assessment. "We'll need to be careful and avoid using blasters unless absolutely necessary. Any noise will bring the whole base down on us. I can take the lead once we're inside and you can watch my back." He placed a hand on the hilt of his vibroblade dagger. "If you've got any blades on you I'd suggest using those. You can use mine if you don't."

On the way down Ines took the lead and Eoto didn't protest, he just stayed to the side behind her with his rifle raised, ready to offer supporting fire if a threat appeared. He stopped promptly at her order, hearing the voices just as she did. They were distant though and too hard to make out intelligibly. They could be pirates or just squatters, it was impossible to tell at the moment. Either way Eoto shouldered his rifle and slowly drew his dagger, looking to Aurelie and putting a finger over his mouth as he pressed his back up against the wall on one side of the doorway to the staircase. With an incline of his head he gestured for her to do the same on the opposite side and then remained still, waiting to ambush whoever was coming. He'd take them alive if he could. But even if they were just civilians they'd need to be incapacitated to make sure they didn't alert the Black Ring to their presence.


@Pyrenees

 

[Aurelie Fleury]

One person on each side of the door. It seemed like a rather classic set-up. That meant it had to work, right? Hoping to avoid a scuffle, Aurelie opted to increase the level of perceived threat she'd pose to the incoming unknowns and drew her blaster pistol. Realising how it would look like she just completely ignored the man, Aurelie patted the arm with the NEWDA attached to let him know that she did indeed have a blade if needed.

The voices got closer and closer. The two men were discussing money, girls everything in between. Eventually, both the investigator and his temporary companion could see the door handle lower - the automatic function had ceased long ago. Without much care, the man pulled the door open and stepped out into the stairwell, soon followed by his companion. The two humans looked surprised as a third human, Aurelie hopped out waving a blaster in their face, causing them both to miss that there was a forth being behind them. Both of them dropped a bag each and were now only holding metal bars in their hands. "Hey, drop that!" the first one said with an insulted tone. He seemed to be the more charismatic of the two as his larger friend watched them in silence.

A look of confusion appeared on the girl's face causing her to blink hard "What?" she asked, confused. "No, you drop it" she countered, pointing at their metal sticks with her free hand. The two guys looked at each other and then at her "Screw you!" he exclaimed - maybe he wasn't so charismatic after all. The upset guy continued, opening his arms up wide as he looked down on her "Shoot me, girly. Common, shoot me and my friends down there will find you and tear you apart limb by limb" he threatened, earning a chuckle by his otherwise silent friend.

Whether he was bluffing or not, it certainly worked rather well as the young woman slowly started to back away, taking one step down at a time whilst the man slowly followed.

@Reyn

 

[Eoto Vrisor]

Eoto nodded when Aurelie indicated her NEWDA, figuring it had more than just pepper spray equipped. His heart skipped a beat when she immediately revealed herself to the newcomers, although he quickly saw what she was doing and mentally applauded her for it, drawing the thugs' attention to herself and luring them into a position where the bounty hunter could attack them from behind. Given the bags and the simple weaponry Eoto assumed they were looters. Not particularly dangerous, but not to be taken lightly either.

He didn't know if the loud-mouthed man was bluffing or not and couldn't risk it. They had to take the two men out before they had the opportunity to call for help. He watched as Ines slowly backed down the stairs, the two men following her. Slowly Eoto crept up behind the larger man, then suddenly jumped up and grabbed the railings on either side of him with his hands. "Ines move!" He shouted at the last second, giving the looters as little time as possible to react and hoping it would be enough for the girl to get out of the way in time. Swinging both his feet forward with all his strength he kicked the large man in the small of the back and sent him flying down the stairs with an unexpectedly high-pitched scream, the metal bar released from his grasp. "Wha-" The loud-mouthed man started as he turned around, only to be bowled over by his companion tumbling down the stairs. Now the two of them were hurdling straight towards Aurelie.

After the initial attack Eoto immediately dropped to his feet and began rushing down the stairs, dagger in hand, ready to finish off the two looters and help Aurelie if she needed it.


@Pyrenees

 

[Aurelie Fleury]

Her one biggest advantage over the thugs was that she could see the approaching Bothan whilst they could not. It was clear to her what was going to happen when he called for her to move. Unlike the loud-mouth, Aurelie immediately turned around to run down the stairs and round the corner. Once she turned around, she could see the two men having rolled into each other as they fell down the stairs. A few really bad crushing sounds could be heard each time the larger one found himself on top of the other until they finally landed. A pained grunt could be heard coming from the silent thug while the other was silent. Way too silent. Carefully having a look, Aurelie saw blood seeping out of the one who spoke earlier and from the way his head was in relation to the body, it became rather obvious that he was no longer alive.

A streak of sadness appeared in her eyes as she looked upon the dead body. No one had planned on it and it seemed rather unavoidable considering the circumstances, but a life was lost and that was rarely, if ever, a desired outcome. The large human who still remained kept groaning painfully. He tried to get up but quickly fell down back again as a spike of pain hit him, causing both of his hands to quickly reach for his lower back. Taking a careful step up, the girl asked "Hey, how are you?" with a concerned voice but only got a pained "AAaahh" in return as his breaths started to quicken, almost as if entering a panicked state. Taking another step up, avoiding the deceased thug, she knelt down by his side and put her one hand on his elbow and the other at the side of his head "It'll be alright. Just calm down, okay? Take deep breaths" While she kept comforting the man, she threw a couple of glances at the Bothan but was always quick to return her gaze to the large human who was slowly starting to calm down.

"I might have something for you" she said, bringing out what looked like a small dart from another pocket. While subconsciously trying to hide it from the investigator by opening it to her side, she wouldn't go any further to keep it hidden. Screwing open the bottom revealed a liquid inside "Here, have a little of this" she said, pouring a third of it into the man's mouth. The sedative quickly took effect, causing his pained face to relax "Ahh, thank you" the man said. "Do you, really have friends down there?" she asked carefully, hoping that they had a chummy enough relation for him to be honest and not react defensively.

@Reyn

 

[Eoto Vrisor]

Eoto quickly slowed his pace as he realized that first attack had been more than enough to end the fight before it started. Sheathing his dagger he slowly came down the steps one at a time, watching with bemusement as Aurelie tended to the fallen looter. He glanced at the loud-mouthed man and could tell at once his neck was broken. He scowled beneath his helmet.

He threatened her. He thought to himself. She had a blaster pointed right at his face and her threatened her. What kind of idiot does that? He hadn't intended to kill him, but there was nothing for it now. The man had played a dangerous game and lost. He had no one but himself to blame. He instead turned his attention to the larger man under Ines' care. It was harder to tell but he likely had several broken bones. His back looked to be in a lot of pain as well, although Eoto highly doubted he had hit the looter with enough force to fracture his spine.

"N-no..." The large man answered Aurelie's question somewhat fearfully. "It's just us." He looked up at the bounty hunter, clearly terrified. "J-just us. We were looking for... Just wanted to see if there was anything worth selling." That hit Eoto harder. knowing it had been a bluff made the regret for the dead looter all the more present. He was a fool to be sure, but ultimately a harmless one. The Bothan stared down at the two below him, his face a mixture of sorrow for what he'd done and frustration over their actions making him feel it was necessary. Aurelie wouldn't have been able to read any of this on his face though with his helmet on, and when he finally spoke up he imagined he must have sounded quite cold.

"We need to go." He said firmly, and continued his descent down the stairs.


@Pyrenees

 

[Aurelie Fleury]

It took a while to process what the man had said. A bluff. She was impressed as the smaller looter had been able to pull it off quite convincingly. She looked back at the dead body, slightly blocked from his sight by hers. The emotional trauma it could cause had to be considerable. Eoto called for them to leave in a rather cold manner which resulted in an annoyed look from her "I'll be right with you" she said, letting him pass her by before returning her full attention to the injured one. "Here, have this, it'll make it better for a while, okay?" she said, looking at him with concern. The thief then proceeded to offer him the rest of the sedative which was eagerly accepted. As he was sent into a deep slumber, Aurelie quickly got back on her feet and tried to catch up with the investigator.

The decent was a quiet one. Despite wanting to ask him how he could be so cold and seemingly remorseless, creating noise to disturb the slumbering looter or to attract others was not at all desirable. The immediate desire to question him about his behaviour had ceased by the time they reached the bottom, causing the young woman to maintain her silence as they made their way towards the fence leading into the facility.

Once close, a couple of voices could be heard along with regular footsteps as boots hit the ground. It had to be the patrol they saw from their vantage point. Not seeing any reason to linger out in the open, Aurelie sprinted back to hide behind a nearby building to wait til the two guards had passed them by. Perhaps the silence wasn't so bad after all. But then, if this was going to work they'd need to cooperate. Once the immediate danger had passed, the thief crossed her arms and looked at her ally with the head at a downwards angle "What now?" she asked, breaking the silence.

@Reyn

 

[Eoto Vrisor]

Eoto's heart sank at seeing Aurelie's expression and hearing her curt response. He didn't like it either, but they had a job to do. He had hoped she'd understand that. Then again she was just some rich kid. It was likely she didn't have to deal with death very often.

As he walked past the large looter her cringed slightly, cowering away from the Bothan. Eoto didn't bother looking at him. He continued down the stairs in silence, thinking about his own experiences with death. It wasn't something he considered often, he'd seen plenty of it on Nar Shaddaa growing up. He'd killed men and women in a very intimate manner in the dueling ring, close and personal. He'd killed his targets without mercy or consideration for their lives as a bounty hunter. He'd never taken pleasure in it, but never much cared about the gravity of the act either. All that mattered to him was supporting his family. If he had to kill other fathers and mothers and siblings to do that then so be it. He looked at Ines as she joined him in the descent down the stairs. He wanted to tell her this, make her understand why he was the way he was. He wanted to justify himself rather then continue to feel the judgement emanating off of her. But he wasn't really the type to talk about such things, so he decided to just let it pass.

He was snapped out of his ruminations by the sound of the approaching patrol and quickly followed Aurelie's lead to hide behind the building. When she asked him what they should do next he could still hear the distance in her voice. He sighed, then looked at her and began laying out his plan. He spoke quickly and with a serious tone. "I counted how long it takes the patrol to do a circuit around the base while we were up there, we have about eight minutes to act." He explained. "We scale the fence and move to the back door. I'll take the Weequay out while you focus on getting the door open as well as keeping watch. We'll bring him inside with us when we go in and close the door behind us. That way if the patrol looks towards his post when they pass again they'll assume he went inside. We may not have a large window though so we'll need to work fast. That's why we need to split up inside..." Eoto pulled out a small hologram projector displaying the image of a human boy, about twelve or thirteen with scruffy black hair and an impertinent expression. "This is what Daven looks like. Try to bring him back to the back door if you can. If he's under guard don't approach them. I don't want you getting hurt. Find me and we'll get him together. Did you get all that?" He waited for her reply expectantly, his face still hidden beneath his blank helmet.

​

@Pyrenees

 

[Aurelie Fleury]

She asked her question, and he spoke. It was simple, serious, businesslike. Perhaps it was for the best. They each had a job to do and that would be it. She knew that it rarely ended as simply as that, but after his callousness after the impostor in the apartment had died, maybe it was for the best. At this moment, however, it didn't matter as their time to strike was quickly slipping away. "What about you?" she asked, curious about what he'd do while she took the boy to safety. His answer wouldn't matter much as she was quite confident that the man would ensure that his hands was full regardless. He had proven to be quite diligent so far.

Soon, the two of them were on their way. Not knowing if his short stature would create too much of a challenge, she stood by it and offered to boost him up before backing up to take charge to get above the wall herself. With the two of them running up from the side, using whatever cover they could find, it was soon clear that they'd reach their destination without being noticed. Throwing a glance to the Bothan, she could see that he was determined to take out the lone guard. Once he gave the signal to go, the thief rushed past the Weequay towards the door. Feeling relatively confident in Eoto's skills, Aurelie didn't pay too much mind to the thug and instead devoted her full attention to the security system. While it was a bit more advanced than she had expected for a back door, her skills as a thief would prove more than enough for the system. She wasn't too sure if the typical Ines Coudre would be able to handle it, but taking it slow was not an option.

After some time, a small beeping sound could be heard "That's the alarm. Just a few more moments" she said in a whisper as she got to work on the second part of getting through the door. Assuming that nothing happened outside which would draw her attention, she'd soon be able to open the lock too "We're in"

@Reyn

 

[Eoto Vrisor]

"I'll be looking for him too," Eoto answered her question. "But as I said we don't have much time before the base is on alert. We need to double our efforts to find him quickly and slip out before things go to hell." He quickly glanced out to see if the patrol had come back yet, then turned back to Aurelie. "Tell me what channel your commlink is on, that way we can keep in touch while we're inside, just remember to be very quiet while speaking." He waited for her to tell him and changed the frequence of his own commlink accordingly, then looked up and watched as the patrol passed again. "Come on, let's move." He said, tapping her on the shoulder, then made a break for the fence. He paused when he got to the barrier and rubbed his hands together, preparing to make the climb. When Aurelie offered him a boost he couldn't help but scoff somewhat amusedly. "C'mon kid give me some credit. You're making me feel old..." He backed up and ran forward, leaping up and latching onto the fence without too much difficulty.

Dropping down on the other side the two of them moved in good sync from cover to cover, making sure they wouldn't be noticed by anyone from the windows. As he set his eyes on the inattentive guard Eoto nodded towards the door to signal Aurelie. "Go." He said shortly, and then dashed towards the Weequay. He was standing a few feet away from the door, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed and eyes closed, an easy target. Eoto ran right into him, one hand coming up to cover his mouth and grip his jaw forcefully. The alien's eyes shot open in panic, a muffled cry escaping him, too quiet for anyone to hear. Eoto pulled his head forward and slammed it back against the wall, once, twice, and he slumped to the ground unconscious.

Crouching down and looping his arms under the Weequay's, he picked him up and dragged him to the back door where Aurelie was working to open it. He set the body down gently and kept his back to her, watching the perimeter carefully to make sure they weren't spotted. Once the door was open he picked up the body and dragged it inside after Aurelie, making sure to close the door behind them as planned. Fortunately there was a storage closet not far from the entrance where he was able to stow the unconscious man. There was no way to bar the door though, so once the alien woke up their window would quickly close.

"Good work," He applauded Aurelie on getting the door open. "Now you check this level, I'll head upstairs." He was about to leave before pausing and turning back to her. "And remember to be careful. Any sign of trouble and you call me alright? I'll be there to help you as soon as I'm able." Ines' repeated displays of ability were making him forget who she was, or at least who she was pretending to be. He had to remind himself to watch out for the rich girl. He didn't want her death on his conscious as well.


@Pyrenees

 

[Aurelie Fleury]

Aurelie was too soft for her own good. The Bothan kept making a few comments here and there and was bound to break through her bitterness over his callousness sooner or later. Of course, she wouldn't forget it, but her cold attitude towards the man would soon fade away. By the time she cracked to lock to the door, relations would be back at normal - normal being what they had established during their brief acquaintance.

Soon, the two were inside "Thank you" she said upon being praised by the investigator. Her eyes went down to the unconscious man. He wouldn't be doing anything active in the near future, but he was a live. A smile appeared as she spoke lowly "You too" with a glad voice, happy to see that he didn't take lives casually.

They then got to the second part of the plan - finding the boy. Being careful not to be discovered was key here, as any sign that they may be under attack might lead to a swift and prompt execution of the hostage. She nodded at his final instructions before proceeding into the area ahead. Walking in an almost crouched position, Aurelie slowly made made her way further into the building, keeping her head hidden beneath the height level of the crates and tables which littered the area. The storage area which she was in had two pirates talking to each other at the one side, and another sitting by a desk directed at the wall by the other side. Coming to a halt, Aurelie thought of how she should do in order to get past them.

The problem would soon solve itself as the two men walked away, heading towards the stairs Eoto used to get to the second floor. While they didn't go up, it would make it trickier for the bounty hunters to aid each other. Quickly, she made her way past their old position and into a smaller room. It looked like a workshop of sorts, filled with tools, spare parts and a mechanic. The mechanic's welding paused, but his mask remained on and he didn't even bother turning around, "Who's there?"

@Reyn

 

[Eoto Vrisor]

Eoto crept up the stairs slowly, dagger in hand. As he reached the second floor he peered around the corner and quickly moved back, staying absolutely still as an armored pirate walked past his position and continued up the stairs, the Bothan thankfully going unnoticed. Carefully, Eoto rounded the corner and started moving down the dark hallway, lit only by a few flickering lights.

He went to the first apartment and folded back his helmet, closing his eyes as he pressed his ear to the door to listen for any sound inside. Nothing. He opened the door and quietly moved inside, but the room was completely empty. Slowly he turned and exited the room, pausing again to make sure there were no pirates around before moving on to the next apartment. This is going to take forever... He thought to himself as he went from room to room. Some of these small apartments had been converted into storage areas, others quarters for the pirates. Thankfully all of them were empty at the moment.

After clearing the entire floor he moved up the stairs again to the third. He thought of Aurelie in the back of his mind, hesitant to put more distance between them, but he had to think of his mission. And she knew what she was doing he assured himself. He desperately hoped he was right about that. Before he reached the third floor two more pirates appeared talking to each other, heading right towards him. Eoto cursed and, thinking fast, lept over the railing and hung there, hoping the pirates would not notice him until they passed. Luckily they seemed too preoccupied with their conversation.

"-wants the kid moved to the garage, somewhere without windows," He caught the end of one's sentence. "He tried escaping again and it's getting on her nerves."

"Could just cut off his hands and feet," His companion joked. "Sell them back to the Strengs as extra."

"Don't tempt me," The other scoffed. "We can't harm a hair on his head if we want the ransom and he knows it, he never shuts up."

"Yeah? Well he bit me," The companion said. "I'm not going near that kid. Have Jiinan move him."

"Fine, fine." The first man relented. "I think he's standing watch out front. You tell him. I'm getting something to eat."

"Yeah yeah..." The companion replied. From there the conversation became unintelligible. Eoto climbed back onto the stairs and sat for a moment, thinking. Need to find this Jiinan guy and let him lead us to the kid. He thought. Ines will be closer to the front door. Should have her do it. He raised his commlink and whispered into it.

"Ines? You there?"


@Pyrenees

 

[Aurelie Fleury]

Standing completely still, Aurelie looked at the man with her eyes wide open. This was a problem to say the least. "Jinnie, is that you?" he asked and was once again met with silence. At least for a few moments as solutions to the dilemma were speedily thought of and dismissed until something appropriate finally became apparent. "Ye-a...." she said with a hoarse voice and stopping mid-sentence to cough "The.. the flu finally caught me too" she continued hoarsely, pretending to being on the verge of coughing. The mechanic chuckled and continued his welding for a few moments before another pause "Your conditions deteriorated quickly. Last night, you were the rowdiest one on the AW." Starting to inch closer to the man who had his back turned against her, the thief thought of what she could possibly have as an excuse "The coughing is from the flu" she said, causing the man to smirk as he had a good idea what she'd say next "But the voice is from last night" she continued, causing the man to laugh heartily before continuing his work.

It seemed to be working out well enough for her. It was fortunate that people tended to adopt reality in accordance with how it looked in their minds. Seeing as the mechanic had once again gotten busy with the welding, Aurelie slowly walked towards the door on the other side of the room "Laters" she said, keeping the hoarse voice along with letting it fall lower. With that, the thief left the room, closing the door and pushing her back against it. Frightened, she now stood in a dimly lit corridor, similar to the one Eoto had been in upstairs.

Hearing her commlink, the young woman walked away from the door and picked up. "I'm here. In a corridor behind the workshop that's connected to the storage area." she whispered. Walking along the corridor, her eyes scanned the different signs by the doors. It seemed like most of the bottom floor had been storage with a few maintenance rooms and lavatories - what they contained now, however, was an unknown as the signs did seem rather old. "Got any leads?" she asked upon reaching the middle of the corridor.

@Reyn

 

[Eoto Vrisor]

"Just one," Eoto answered Aurelie as he cautiously started moving up the stairs again. "Two pirates were talking about moving Daven to a 'garage'. I assume it'll be on the bottom floor. They're going to the front door now to send a man named Jiinan to pick him up. I want you to tail him if you can and see if he leads you to where they're keeping the boy. I'll keep searching on my end."

As Eoto finished speaking he reached the third floor, stepping through the threshold into another hallway and finding himself face to face with a Rodian pirate. The two looked at each other quietly for a moment, both stunned.

"Who are you?" The Rodian finally demanded, putting a hand on his blaster holster. Eoto slowly raised his commlink to his face as he put his helmet back on. "I'll call you back..." He said slowly, then turned off the device. The Rodian attempted to draw his blaster but Eoto quickly reached out and grabbed his hand, holding it in place. He grasped the alien's shoulder with his other hand and kneed him forcefully in the gut. The pirate managed to let out a pained cry as he doubled over, right before Eoto brought his elbow down on the Rodian's back and brought him to the ground.

"Did you hear that?" Came a voice from one of the open apartments down the hall. A moment later footsteps could be heard.

"Oh kark me..." Eoto muttered.


@Pyrenees

 

[Aurelie Fleury]

A concerned frown appeared on her face as a garage was mentioned. They tended to be rather open and even though there were many benches to hide behind, some of them could be seen under. Furthermore, there was a tendency for tools and cables to be at the most unexpected places, perfect to trip over when in a hurry. She thought for a moment and figured that it would at least be possible to keep an eye on them when they went to the garage. "On it" she said, right before hearing the voice of another followed by Eoto's cautious response. Realizing that things might go south quick if the Bothan was discovered, Aurelie decided that she needed to work more quickly. The priority went from being careful and slow to getting herself, Eoto and the actual brat out, even if it had to be a little riskier.

Knowing that the main entrance of the building was close to the middle of the corridor where she now stood and the garage being on the opposite end from where she came, the girl jogged down the corridor until she was between the supposed entrance and garage. Her pace slowed as she put her hand on the handle to one of the rooms. Before entering, she retrieved a K.O. square and a white napkin from her pocket. Holding one of the items in each hand, she slowly entered the room. It looked like a small sleeping area containing for beds in a row along with four lockers and a few personal images hanging on the walls. While the interior of the room itself wasn't a problem, the two men inside it certainly were. The Twi'lek sat on the one bed with his bare back facing her while the Zabrak could see her as soon as she stepped in. "Hey! Who let you in here?" he said accusingly, going as far as to stand up from the bed. While she had expected one person, two would be a problem, forcing her to improvise way more than expected.

Walking towards the confidently, she spoke "Relax, we're in the middle of your base." The alien looked surprised, uttering a short 'but' as she kept walking. Not allowing her momentum to slow, she moved in to the row behind the Twi'lek and raised her arm to fire a sleeping dart at the Zabrak. Before the surprised Twi'lek managed to turn around, the girl slipped the K.O. square onto his back where she knew he would have a hard time reaching it. While her original plan was to use the napkin to keep her victim silent, it seemed like the alien had other plans. Grabbing her wrist, the man threw a punch in her abdominal area "What do you think you're doin'?" he asked in an upset manner while staring into her eyes. Before he managed to throw another punch, the alien fell asleep as the sedatives kicked in.

Peering through the curtains, Aurelie could see a lone man, presumably Jiinan waiting outside by the entrance. Deciding to make it as safe as possible, she worked on making it look like the two aliens were sleeping in their beds before returning her attention to what happened outside. Eventually, Jiinan met the two men - the three appeared to have an argument of sorts. Finally, resigned, Jiinan started walking - the two had convinced him.

@Reyn

 

[Eoto Vrisor]

Panicking, Eoto dashed forward as fast as he could, arriving at the doorway to the occupied room just as a pirate stepped outside to investigate. Before the man could even turn his head the Bothan blindsided him, sucker punching him in the side of the head and sending him sprawling on the floor out cold. The bounty hunter stopped and turned, seeing two more men inside the apartment, now looking at him astonished. Then they scrambled to grab their blasters.

No time... Eoto thought through gritted teeth as he went for his own holster, drawing like lightning and squeezing off two shots, each hitting their mark and killing both men. Before they had even hit the ground Eoto had holstered his weapon and was moving to pick up the unconscious body before him. The whole base would have heard that... He thought as he dragged the pirate into the room before coming out again and dashing towards the Rodian. He uttered a string of curses in his head. Why the hell did I take this job? Luckily the Rodian was lighter then his comrades and Eoto was able to pick him up, throwing him over his shoulder and quickly moving back towards the apartment. Nothing for it now, just need to draw as much attention to myself as possible and hope Ines is able to find the kid...

Just as he was reaching the apartment doorway again three pirates came rushing down the stairs to investigate the noise, blasters in hand. Eoto quickly grabbed his own blaster again and fired blindly at the stairwell, forcing them to take cover. He dropped the Rodian in the apartment and sealed the door behind him. Holstering his weapon he quickly moved to a nearby table and flipped it over, taking out his commlink again as he pushed it towards the door to barricade it.

"Ines... We got a problem," He started in a somewhat embarrassed tone. "It's ok though, uh, remain calm. We're gonna role with the punches here..." The Bothan ducked down and cursed as a vibroblade burst through the door, barely missing his head. He could hear furious shouting outside as they continued hacking at the door with the blade. Doing his best to remain level headed Eoto hastily moved to take cover behind a couch as he picked up his blaster rifle and aimed it at the door, waiting patiently. He spoke into his commlink again. "Find Daven and get the hell out. Don't wait up. I'll follow when I can." If I can. He thought, but quickly shook that thought from his mind. He had to focus. He took a deep breath, in and out, then looked down the scope. They were about to break through the door.


@Pyrenees

 

[Aurelie Fleury]

Was that? The sound was faint, but it sure did sound like blaster fire. Something was wrong, but for the moment, the thief couldn't tell if it was coming from outside the base or inside it. Regardless, any blaster fire meant that the kidnappee was in danger. At least if they intended to maim him or perhaps even execute him if things got too dangerous. The guards outside along with the two new arrivals became more alert upon receiving the message via comlink while Jiinan started a light jog instead of just walking. When she saw that the ones who already were outside remained there, she felt her heart sink - it meant that the threat was coming from within, probably meaning that Eoto was in danger and that the pirates would be on the lookout for an intruder such as herself.

"Really?" she asked sarcastically upon being informed that they had a problem. Stress was getting to her but the young woman made an effort to calm down. She had been in hairy situations on multiple occasions before - it was far from sure that the Bothan was to blame and even if he was, they had a job to do. "I'm sorry" she chirped before he continued speaking. "Get the boy and take him to safety, got it." she said, repeating what she heard just to be safe. Figuring that the Bothan might have use of the information she got from her position, Aurelie started speaking whilst leaving the window "Ten of them are outside, two of them are in here with me, Jiinan is still down here as well as a mechanic and at least one more pirate. So, at most, 15 people will be up there with you, at most." she said whilst speaking unusually fast. With that, she put away the comm and walked to the door. She soon heard Jiinan's footsteps running from the entrance towards the end of the corridor where the garage was. Once he was no longer too close, she peered out and saw that the thug entered one of the side rooms.

Hoping that it would be where they kept Daven, the girl left her room and ran to the door. Suddenly, a voice called out for her, it was the mechanic from earlier, running towards her with a raised fist and a woman next to him - presumably Jinnie. Deciding that firing at them would draw even more attention to her and inform the kidnappers of the immediate danger, she kept running and entered the same door as Jiinan had gone through - drawing her blaster with the one hand, and locking the door behind her with the other. Just as she had expected, there was one permanent guard in the room and one Jiinan along with poor Daven.

With both foes being on high alert, Aurelie was lucky to be able to down the guard almost as soon as she closed the door, only needing a single stun blast. Jiinan managed to fire off a shot which scathed her side by the waist, causing the girl to whimper as she fired off another shot which stunned the man. Putting a hand to her side, Aurelie moved forth, clearly pained by the burning bolt which had punched a hole in the door behind her. "Daven? Let's get you out of here." she said, moving up to remove his restraints. Soon, powerful bolts could be heard on the door. It was the mechanic in Jinnie. Aurelie could hear a female voice ask "Isn't this where we keep the brat?" and realised that she needed to deal with them or get away before they could call for reinforcements.

@Reyn

 

[Eoto Vrisor]

Oh just fifteen? Eoto thought to himself sarcastically. Wonderful! Easy! I'll be out of here in no time! Still he kept his focus on the door, ready to fire the second the pirates made an attempt to get inside. If he could bottleneck them in the doorway he might at least last a few minutes and take a good number of them with him. That would make things a bit easier for Ines at least.

The one pirate kept hacking away at the door with his vibroblade, sending splinters and chunks of wood flying until Eoto could start to see the man through the hole. He tightened his finger on the trigger, ready to open fire, but then the man suddenly stopped. After a moment of speaking quietly with someone the pirate stepped back and Eoto heard a new voice. It was deep and powerful but definitely female, likely a non-human.

"Well well, you've caused quite the mess haven't you?" She said with surprising amusement given the situation. Eoto assumed this must be Reu Lai, the Black Ring's leader. "Just who is it that decided to commit suicide today?" She asked, and moved to look through the hole in the door. Eoto saw some of a large creature, unable to identify what kind of alien it was. He didn't waste any time at all in firing a blaster bolt at her, the woman managing to get out of the way in time. Afterwards she released a hearty laugh.

"A bit trigger happy aren't we?" She asked, still enjoying herself. "Who do you work for little rat?" Eoto hesitated, trying to come up with a good lie. Finally he spoke up in Huttese, adopting his natural Nar Shaddaa accent and doing his best to come off as a dangerous thug.

"You'll regret calling me rat," He said in a haughty tone. "Almost as much as you'll regret getting in my way. I work for Lorzo the Hutt you fool." The pirates outside went deathly silent, even Reu Lai. "You should vet your crew more closely next time. One of your men here is a cheat and has been marked for death. I have half a mind to kill the lot of you for defying the word of Lorzo. Fortunately for you I'm in a generous mood. So drop your weapons and leave. I'll collect my bounty and be on my way." He looked down at the two unconscious pirates in the room. "Otherwise I'll kill the hostages I've taken and kill you next. Reu Lai." This time the pirates hesitated. Eoto grinned to himself, thinking he had sold the lie. Then another faint blaster bolt could be heard somewhere else in the base. Eoto's pulse immediately quickened, worried Ines had been caught. It also made Reu Lai think twice it seemed.

"Did Lorzo send two bounty hunters?" She asked skeptically. "And why wouldn't he send one of his agents first? I have no quarrel with the Hutts…" Eoto hesitated again, thinking. This was too slow though, and Re Lai decided he was playing her.

"He's bluffing," she addressed her men. "Go find whoever made that noise and bring them to me alive, make sure the boy is secure." She glanced through the hole in the wall again, a vicious look in her yellow eye. "You're going to die here little man..."

Eoto sighed before picking up his commlink. Don't count me out just yet lady... He thought as he spoke quietly into it. "L5, I need an extraction from my current location, pull a 'home improvement' if you will." He received an excited beep in return, then switched his commlink's channel to warn Aurelie of the incoming danger.


Meanwhile Aurelie found Daven as she entered the garage she spotted Daven, an expensively dressed young teen with ruffled black hair and green eyes. He smirked at the pirates as he saw her enter. "See? I told you guys you were dead meat." After both the men were stunned he started to address Aurelie with no regard for the injury she had just received. "What took you so long?" He demanded indignantly. "And what kind of bounty hunter are you anyway? Did my dad decide to hire cheap?" He didn't even thank her as she started to remove his restraints. "You know I'm going to tell my dad you took your sweet time getting here. You better have a plan to get us out too moron."


@Pyrenees

 

[Aurelie Fleury]

With a hand held to her side, the thief looked at the brat as he berated her. Her eyes looked apologetic and she stood in silence, allowing his poisonous words to wash up upon her. While she had been able to work in Ines Coudre as a rich girl with the bounty hunter, someone as Daven probably knew the people on the top of the food chain well enough to realise that she was not one of them. With that, she kept repeating two phrases, "Yes, sir" and "I'm sorry, sir" While obnoxious, he was correct in one regard - they needed to get out of there. She already knew of the numerous guards outside and didn't feel taking the risk of sneaking past them with her new companion. "So sorry, sir. I'm a bit in over my head." she stuttered apologetically, hoping to earn a little sympathy from the man. Something which would be needed if they were to work together. Another powerful slam could be heard against their door. It was the mechanic and his friend.

Soon enough, it started sounding like he was bashing his body against the door at a rather regular rate. It gave her an idea. "Is he just throwing himself against the door?" she asked the brat. "Yes. At least you aren't deaf" he said with a slightly less obnoxious tone than before. Instead of wanting to dump him in a sarlacc pit, she now only wanted to strangle the boy. "What would happen if we, you know, opened the door?" she asked carefully in order to let the idea take root in his mind too "He'd fall in... And then we could shoot him too!" Daven spoke with excitement upon 'his' idea and bent down to take the blaster off of one of the stunned pirates.

"Well, what are you waiting for? When I do the thinking, you do the heavy lifting." he said, producing an utterly annoying facial expression as he took cover behind a couch overlooking the door. "I'm sorry! You're right" she apologised. It was working out rather well, as Daven seemed both keen on helping and surviving. With that, she moved forth towards the door. Once it seemed like the brat was ready, Aurelie opened the door. The mechanic's tackle hit nothing but air, causing him to stumble and fall. With that, the girl shot the woman, Jinnie, with a stun blast and quickly pulled her in before closing the door again. Once it was locked, she was horrified. The mechanic laid in a pool of his own blood as the rich teen had apparently decided to let his weapon remain on its normal lethal mode.

It gave her some comfort to see that Daven was just as shaken as he could be, obviously not mentally prepared to kill another being. Feeling a sense of sympathy for him, Aurelie holstered her blaster and approached him. Gently lowering his blaster, she hugged him "You did what you had to" she said whilst patting his back with one hand, and switching the weapon to stun mode with the other.

Soon, numerous boots could be heard in the corridor, it seemed like a larger party was approaching. "Uh-oh" she made a troubled sound as she released the hug. They'd need to think of something quick. But at least now, it seemed like Daven wasn't treating her like complete garbage anymore.

@Reyn

 

[Eoto Vrisor]

Eoto's blaster rifle shook in his hands as he heard another shot fired somewhere else in the base. Ines was in danger. He couldn't waste anymore time here. He began strategizing, trying to come up with a way to get out of his current situation when Reu Lai interrupted his train of thought.

"If you're going to hide like a coward bounty hunter we're just going to have to encourage you to come out and play aren't we?" She said ominously before stepping away from the hole in the door. A moment later a grenade was tossed nonchalantly into the room, rolling right towards Eoto. The Bothan's eyes went wide as he dove for cover. She's insane! He thought to himself. Did she not hear I have hostages!?

A massive explosion filled the room with black smoke and shook the entire building. Eoto was curled up in a corner of the room behind an old refrigerator, hands over his head, slowly turning to look at the destruction before him. Most of the apartment's floor was gone, and the unconscious pirates he had brought inside with him were nowhere to be seen, likely vaporized by the blast.

Reu Lai kicked down what was left of the door with ease before stepping inside on the far end of the room, followed by several somewhat shaken pirates. Eoto got a good look at her now, a Besalisk, huge and terrifying. And brandishing four blaster pistols. She laughed as the smoke cleared. "You still alive in there little rat?" She called tauntingly.

Eoto's grip tightened around his weapon, angered by the casual disregard the pirate captain had for her own crew. Without responding to her blustering he rolled out from behind the refrigerator, coming to a crouch and taking several shots at the pirates. Two hit the Besalisk, Reu Lai retreating with a grunt as she returned fire. Another hit a human pirate center of the chest. The rest missed their mark. When the pirates returned fire the Bothan took two shots to the torso, crying out in pain as he slumped over and fell through the hole in the floor.

He landed hard on the second floor, groaning as he slowly gathered himself and reached out to pick up his rifle. He didn't have much time to recover as the pirates quickly moved to stand on the edge of the floor above, shooting down at him. Scrambling to his feet Eoto began limping down the hallway towards the stairs to the first floor, commlink in hand. "Ines, are you alright?" He asked in a pained voice. "I'm coming to you now." Come on L5 hurry up... He thought privately as he grit his teeth through the pulsing pain all over his body.


@Pyrenees

 

[Aurelie Fleury]

The footsteps were getting louder and louder. The thief looked at her new ally with concerned eyes "Any ideas?" she asked. The brat looked dumbfounded for just a moment before his facial expression shifted into something telling of fear and perhaps even a hint of anger. He opened his mouth, about to blast her for not coming up with any ideas herself when an explosion could be hear. The foot steps halted as the pirates looked about, confused as to what had just happened.

Seizing the chance, Aurelie rushed to the door. In one swift move, she pulled it open and leaned out, only to expose her head, shoulder and arm. A quick count gave her six foes, including the one who had been reading in the room where they first entered. Not hesitating for long, she fired off a flurry of stun bolts onto the unsuspecting enemies who were still looking about for what it was that could've caused the explosion. Not wanting to risk getting shot herself, the girl soon returned back in and shut the door close. "I got two of them, but there are still four more in the corridor" she said, still feeling the rush from the recent action.

Her chest was rising and lowering with every breath as she calmed down whilst looked onto the teen for a reaction, but she got nothing. It seemed like the reality of their situation was starting to sink in as fear was clearly spreading in his eyes. "It'll be alright. They want to keep you alive, right?" she asked with an encouraging tone, hoping that Daven wouldn't start to panic. But at this point, she found it hard to keep her composure herself. Soon, Eoto's pained voice could be heard through the commlink, immediately causing the young woman to grow concerned. "I'm fine. What about you?" she said, intentionally omitting having been grazed by a bolt. Throwing an eye at the rich teen, she added "And Daven is pretty good too."

While sending her an annoyed look, the brat didn't berate her like he did when they first met. While the steps they took were small, Aurelie appreciated every step towards some kind of normality they could take.

Soon, the handle of the door was yanked down as someone tried to open it. It didn't work and caused a few more frustrated yanks. "We need help on the first floor. Four hostiles are trying to get in" she said whilst looking around. When the door to the toilet on the one side and kitchen on the other was closed, the room was T-shaped with an entrance at the bottom of the letter. With a couple of beds on the east side and a heavy metallic desk on the western one, Aurelie sent the brat to the desk while she headed in the other direction.

"Tip it over" "Huh?" "Tip it over" after some initial confusion, the teen tipped the desk over, creating a defensive fortification for him. "I'll grab their attention, you just stay alive and help me if you can" she said, right before starting to push a bed to stand with the side towards the middle of the room. "If you want to, of course" she added, being quite well aware of the rich teens inherent desire to feel like he was in control. Soon, they had a defensive fortification each. The time was right too - a blaster bolt could be heard, causing the door to fly open after a heavy kick. Battle was soon to commence.

@Reyn