Boosting a Booster

[Nolan Kodd]

Spoiler: OOC

Here be dice rolls. After a series of rolls I'll link them to the post describing the results of those rolls in detail.

The Trailblazer, Fathier-class freighter
Nar Shaddaa District 1138, Hangar 22
7 hours before the job

It had been a long time since Nolan was that excited. He tried his best to conceal it and maintain the appearance of a person who had been through something like that before; he had been, in fact, but not on his own, and now it seemed like a lifetime ago. This time things were different. This time it was his show. His very own "adventure" and a chance to move up in the world, if only slightly. The excitement has resulted in Nolan talking a bit more than he usually did; or maybe it was just his need to explain the plan to his associate.

"Alright, here's the deal," Nolan started, standing in the central compartment of his freighter, with the holographic table in the middle. "There's a Weequay smuggler. Goes under the name of Tharo Qoth. He's in the same line of work as we are, but with two differences. Firstly, he has a crew. Six people, including him. He only needs 3 to fly the ship, the rest are hired muscle. They've been pushing the competition out of business, making sure that the best contracts go to Tharo. The Hutts don't care: we're all small fish here, and a Hutt always gets his cut. Tharo knows that rule, so he gets away with his business practices."

Nolan made a brief pause to take a breath, getting more confident as he continued: "That crew even messed with me and my partner once, so I have a score to settle with the guy. That brings me to the second point... Tharo's ship is the same model as mine, but it flies way faster. He boasted at the cantina once that he had a sublight booster installed. That's another reason the guy gets the best contracts." A smirk formed on the young man's face; this smirk didn't bode well for Tharo or his business. In the meantime, the mushroom-like MR-series astromech droid approach the holotable, using its interface arm to connect to it with a loud "Beep!", and the holographic layout of a Fathier freighter appeared on the table.

"Good thinking, Tick," Nolan patted the astromech on the dome. Although not really necessary (they were on a Fathier too, they didn't need a map to get the idea what it was like), the act showed that the droid was slowly gaining some sort of initiative, and Nolan could appreciate it. With a pause, he remembered where he had left off, and continued: "Anyway, the sublight booster. Tharo needs a lesson of humility, and I'm more than willing to offer it." Nolan turned to the person he was talking too, a content grin on his face. As he leaned slightly forward, he continued in a more silent, yet confident manner: "We're going to sneak aboard Tharo's ship, grab the booster and everything else we can carry, and run off." Nolan made a pause to let his vis-a-vis savour the plan.

He then turned towards the holographic layout, pointing at the engine room: "All I ask is that you watch my back as we go in. Just give me 15 minutes in that place with my tools, and the booster is as good as mine. Maybe we could grab something from the cargo of the ship in the meantime. With the money from the Ryloth job, I've got myself a a light trailer for my speeder bike. We load the loot into it and run off. With the booster and some cargo taken from under his nose, Tharo can kiss his reputation goodbye." The young smuggler smirked as he said that.

"Now, I don't want him to know I did it, and I want to do it quiet. After all, we can't teach Tharo a lesson if he's dead, and I'd rather not have the local bounty hunters going after me," Nolan continued, more serious at this point. "But things could go wrong. That's why we'll need more equipment. I'll take my blaster and hide a stun baton up my sleeve, but that ain't worth a kriff when we get shot at."

After a brief pause, Nolan continued: "I'm going to buy myself some basic armor, and you might need to do the same. I'll also acquire a couple of concussion grenades, and one frag for good measure. Could come in handy if things go sideways and we're forced in a firefight."

With his plan laid out, Nolan exhaled, satisfied with what he had concocted: "So, any thoughts or suggestions?"

@Deviant

 

[Leviticus]

Leviticus listened to the whole spiel. Something about a guy named Faro pushing the competition out of business and out of the market. Unimportant. Then something about his freighter, outfitted with a sublight booster and an opportunity to seize it. Alright, he had his attention now. And then there was the risk of facing down a crew of six, half of which were bred and hired purely for combat. Now, that was what Levi was looking for. A fight and an adventure. Yet with how Nolan was approaching it, the operation came off as more of a discreet heist than an actual adventure. Sneak aboard a ship and snag a booster? Boring. What the man wanted was some pirates to beat into a bloody pulp, a chance to blow a ship or two out of the sky. It wasn’t a party unless someone died.

Although Levi knew the younger man probably didn’t share the same sentiment. He was a lowbrow smuggler with his only friend as a droid and little credit or reputation to his name. What more could have he expected? If the man wanted a high-end adventure, he was deluding himself. Had he approached a more renowned, risky smuggler, recognizing the Sith Lord would have been almost immediate. Even if he was able to maintain his secret identity, convincing the smuggler alone would have been impossible compared to someone as small time as Nolan. All for a lower cut and a lesser position. At least, with the young man settled in front of him, he could feel needed for a change.

“I won’t be needing armor. Just a blaster.” From behind him, he revealed his generic weapon, twirling it with one finger through the air. Then, being the theatric he was, flourished it and coasted it back into the holster at his waist. Indeed, Levi had nothing to fear from a mission like this, as long as Nolan actually knew how to pilot the ship. Nothing like the Force to ensure the man emerge from this operation alive. After all, the Empire was not built purely by the temper of their lightsabers or the speed of a blaster. It was through the Force, they prevailed. Now would be no different should the situation ever take a turn for the worst. Albeit at the cost of having to kill all witnesses, Nolan included. Hopefully, it wouldn’t come to that. He was starting to enjoy his company, even if he found it hard not to stop talking for once.

“No suggestions either. Just one question: when are going to get started?” He was impatient. He always was. Levi didn’t exactly care about names or the details of his target or the reason behind it all. Just point him the way and he would follow. It wasn’t that the man was bored. Quite the contrary, after winning countless games of Pazaak against the tin can droid. But he was itching for the adventure he always longed for. It had been a long time since the Sith Lord ever had the chance, and he knew it would be among the last in the coming years. War was imminent. Soon, adventures like these would be impossible to come by for a man like him.

@Catbert

 

[Nolan Kodd]

The Rancor, Fathier-class freighter
Nar Shaddaa District 2244, Landing Pad 8

The landing pad was big and filled with crates of various shapes and sizes, with a modified Fathier freighter standing in the middle of it all, its ramp lowered. Nolan and his accomplice were nearby as the opportunity presented itself: 4 people including Tharo had left the area, leaving only 2 guards, who were loading up cargo. It was the best shot they were going to get.

Nolan's Terrex T-12 speeder bike had been prepared, with a light trailer attached to it. That's where the young man kept the tools for the job, and that's where the loot from the job would go. The newly-acquired light armor wasn't anything special, but it was just what Nolan needed. It didn't stand out, and the poncho concealed his weapons: a holster with his blaster pistol, a long stun baton attached to a special binding under his arm. And the last but not least, 3 grenades for good measure: 2 concussive, 1 frag. You never know how things could go.

"Showtime," the young man said to his accomplice quietly but confidently, putting on the hood to conceal his identity as best he could without drawing too much suspicion. "I'll go and find us a way past them, or at the very least get their attention. If things go sideways, you step in. If not, get the speeder bike aboard."

Nolan didn't expect any objections from Levi; they had gone over this before. The young man stepped out of the shadows and headed towards a Weequay who was busy with a container not too far from the ramp. The other guard was somewhere else, probably too far to react quickly. The odds seemed pretty good.

As Nolan was a few steps away, the Weequay guard noticed him, but didn't seem to perceive "the unarmed traveler" as a threat. "Hey," he started the conversation in Basic, turning to face the guest. "You looking for a ride off this rock or what?" Nolan kept walking, but the guard was too confident in his abilities and the blaster on his hip to get all defensive now. The mute traveler was probably too dumb anyway, taking too long to reply to a simple question: "If it's 'or what', you probably don't want to be here."

Nolan had to say something, but couldn't come up with anything other than: "Oh, but you want to let me in." Now it was the Weequay's turn to get confused: he certainly didn't expect this sort of reply. If anything, it was more dumb than the traveller's previous silence. Two more steps. "If you aren't here for business, you'd better beat it."

"Okay," Nolan smirked as he was just one step away from his mark. With a trained motion he tried to grab the stun baton with his left hand from under his right arm and connect it to the Weequay's face, turning the baton on mid-way. The mark, however, wasn't that relaxed and was slightly too suspicious for the plan to work as easily as intended.

The baton's electrified tip stopped inches from the Weequay's face as he blocked the approaching weapon with his left arm. His right hand tried to reach for the holster on his left hip, but it was inconvenient, granting Nolan an extra second he needed. A punch with the free right hand to the Weequay's stomach wasn't sufficient to get him drop his guard, but was enough to throw him off balance slightly.

The Weequay retaliated with a knee kick, but Nolan had gained momentum already, and a downward motion of his right right hand blocked most of the kick. That gave the opponent some room to punch Nolan in the stomach with a free hand, but what is a fist compared to armor? Nolan still got shaken, but the Weequay's fist probably took more damage. As a result of the exchange, there was some distance between the opponents again.

The Weequay had almost reached for his blaster when Nolan's prodding motion of the stun baton reached his gut. In a matter of seconds, the fight was over. Taking a moment to look around and take a breath (the other guard was too far off to notice anything), Nolan smirked: "Told you you wanted to let me in. But ok, I beat it."

 

[Nolan Kodd]

With one of the guards taken care of, the other remained. Luckily, he was nowhere to be seen, that gave Nolan a chance to put the unconciuos man seated on the ground, leaning his back against a large container. If someone were to come by, they could think that the poor sod had taken a nap... Until they'd try to wake him up.

Now the second guard remained. Nolan couldn't see him yet (he was probably busy with the cargo). Eventually Nolan found his mark not far from the freighter's lowered ramp, sitting on a crate. More problematic was the fact that the guard had noticed him too. Luckily, he didn't seem hostile, and Nolan walked toward him, intent on posing as another customer. After all, what was the point of shouting at range farther than the blaster bolt could travel?

"Hey," Nolan said loudly as he walked towards the Weequay. (Another one? Did Tharo only trust his own species or something?) Either way, Nolan had an idea how to start the conversation: "I'm looking for a ride off this rock. Thought you might help." Things were going good so far. Nolan was already in his blaster pistol's effective range and could use the weapon if the necessity arose. Not that he wanted it though; on the contrary he'd prefer to go unnoticed and unrecognized, but he couldn't get a drop on the guard, so now he had to improvise.

However, it all took a turn for the worse when Nolan got closer. "Wait, ain't you working with that Twi'lek schutta Shiri'vrei? She finally cut you loose, eh?" Blast! He recognized me! Nolan remembered now: that particular Weequay had had a crush on his mentor, but she was far less than inclined. When they tried to talk it over, and Tharo's man became particularly pushy, that resulted in one bruised Weequay and one Twi'lek emerging victorious from a fistfight.

What would he do? Shooting at the Weequay wouldn't weigh on Nolan's conscience too much: he knew for sure that the guy had intimidated some of the other pilots not to take contracts that Tharo wanted for himself. Those intimidations usually resulted in prolonged stays at the hospital... after the first offense, at least. Still, there was a better way. There had to be...

 

[Nolan Kodd]

"Not exactly," Nolan made a fake sigh as he continued his approach: "It's the other way around." The young man had to think on his feet, deciding how to continue. He needed to get aboard the ship. He needed the Weequay not to tell Tharo who had stolen his sublight booster. The Weequay had to disappear for good one way or another, or Tharo would learn of the perpetrator sooner or later.

Except for shooting the Weequay, the only logical choice was to make him betray Tharo or run off. That's the route Nolan was taking: "Shiri hasn't forgotten how Tharo took her contract, and she wants revenge, along with a bigger piece of the pie. And she'd stop at nothing to get it. Even going all buddy-buddy with the Hutts," Nolan's voice was dripping with contempt at "Shiri's actions". The locals knew that Shiri had saved Nolan from slavery, so the young man was hoping that the Weequay would put 2 and 2 together; after all, the best lies are the ones we figure out by ourselves.

"Revenge, huh? What can that schutta do? She's nothing important," the Weequay was rude, but correct. "That schutta intends to set Tharo up and make the Hutts think he's been cutting them out of their share on some jobs," Nolan let the guard process the implications. "When I told her I wanted to part in that scheming, she just went off the rails! Never seen her like that, she's like obsessed with her little plot now. I grabbed my stuff and ran off; if she wants to deal with those sleemos, she can do it without me." While saying all this, Nolan continued approaching, step by step, still undetermined how he'd proceed if his attempt at persuasion failed.

"Why getting off-world though? And why come to us now? We had some run-ins with you two misfits, and none of those would give you a reason to like us," the Weequay smirked mockingly, but it seemed that the persuasion was working, at least to some extent. Nolan sighed again, pretending that he was hesinant to reveal the true reason, but budging in the end. He lowered his voice, getting closer to the guard: "I learned about Shiri's plan, and she knows it. She'd suspect me if word goes around; so, if her scheme fails, I'll be the one to blame. And I think she's presenting the evidence to the Hutts as we speak; they could send a bunch of bounty hunters your way any time now. Not to teach lessons, but to make an example," Nolan hoped that the Weequay's cowardice would come into play and force him to flee Tharo's crew while it was an option, but his persuasion worked in a different way he might not have expected: "If what you told me is true, I'll trust you. But for now, wait here while I warn Tharo."

Kriff! That's worse than before! The guard stood up, checking his pockets for the communicator. With no other options, Nolan quickly reached for his blaster on the hip and aimed it at the Weequay. Maybe he could still force the guard to remain silent? Either way, the communicator in the guard's hand was a risk greater than anything: it could draw 4 more people to the landing pad in a matter of minutes. Not enough time to get the booster, clearly.

The guard, however, was suspicious enough to be prepared for a turn like this, and wasn't too intimidated to raise his hands up. But Instead of reaching for the gun (which he knew he wouldn't make in time), he threw the first thing he had at Nolan: the communicator. Nolan deflected it with his left hand and fired instinctively, missing the guard. Nolan's second shot landed on the corner of the container, just a moments after the guard hid behind it.

Cursing, the young man jumped towards the nearest cover to protect himself from possible retaliation. Instead of a standoff, it was turning into a sitoff behind cover. Now the guard wouldn't play games, so Nolan discarded the subtlety and "no casualties" approach. He was all on his own, until Levi decided he wanted to interfere.

Deviant

 

[Leviticus]

As he asked, it wasn’t long before the pair began their mission together. The journey to where the target laid was not far, albeit with the exception of traffic. Nar Shaddaa was not a pleasant place to live in many ways, that was certain. But given an hour of twiddling his thumbs and one awkward conversation later, the man soon found himself beside Nolan on Landing Pad 8 and settled before the modified freighter of this smuggler Tharo. A hunk of junk too, but with a little more style. Then again, everything to Levi was garbage. Months of traveling aboard state-of-the-art Imperial corvettes or private shuttles had left him blind to the reality of the rest of the galaxy. He hoped this small operation would help to change that shallow perspective he carried.

“No problem.” He answered at Nolan’s request. Levi didn’t want to sit back and watch a shit show unfold before his eyes when he could be apart of it too, but he chose not to question the young man just yet. He would step in when needed. Maybe he would watch Nolan dive into his own grave then take the whole bounty and ship for himself, as he thought before. It really depended on how he was feeling that moment. For now, he felt nothing. Up until the younger man sized up the Weequay sentry perched beside the freighter’s ramp and smashed him aside with a stun baton. A little botched, but Levi was impressed. The kid had more in him than he originally expected.

With the closest guard out of the picture, the man began his approach with the speeder and the trailer in tow. Nonchalant and casual, he marched over toward the ramp even as Nolan sought out the other Weequay guard in the distance. While the pair spoke, Levi continued on, seemingly oblivious of what was about to go down. A moment later, a blaster was drawn, a communicator thrown, and gunfire exchanged. The guard and Nolan were now locked in standoff, or a sitoff, the Sith didn’t care which. In fact, he didn’t care at all. He led the speeder onward and aboard the ramp of the unguarded freighter. To ensure the last sentry did not decide to peer out and attack him on the way, the man unveiled his own blaster and fired aimlessly at his cover. Without even bothering to look.

Needless to say, Levi wasn’t going to directly interfere. The little firefight Nolan and the Weequay had going on would remain their own. He wasn’t one to tip the scales of a fair fight, so he would leave them to their devices while he was left to his own. In particular, the speeder and the sublight booster tucked deep in the Fathier-class freighter. Once he entered the wide confines of the vessel, he would be pleasantly surprised to find next to no opposition, aside from the obstacle that came with removing the booster. He was not much a mechanic, especially in comparison to Nolan. Suddenly, he wished the younger man was here to help. But he didn’t he would soon.

@Catbert

 

[Nolan Kodd]

Nolan watched his accomplice lead the speeder bike towards the ship, as if ignoring the shootout entirely. Help wasn't something Nolan expected at this point, but even less so was the casual approach that Levi was taking: he just walked in, making a token shot at the last remaining guard. Either way, that was a question for another time, after the job. Nolan had more urgent concerns in the form of a Weequay guard.

Nolan looked out of cover, aiming his blaster, just like he had trained earlier. The Weequay however proved to be more than a dummy: he narrowly evaded two of the blaster bolts sent by Nolan's pistol, and returned fire. The shot grazed Nolan's right arm slightly below the shoulder, forcing a yell out of the young man's mouth, which he tried to reduced to a grunt to the best of his abilities. Nolan had his share of fights, but it was the first time he had actually been hit with a blaster.

Either way, the blaster shot also cauterized the wound, and even someone as unskilled in medicine as Nolan would know the basics, and that the blaster bolt hadn't hit anything vital. Yet the burning pain was there, igniting Nolan's fear and anger to a point that he managed to recover... somewhat. It was as if the pain gave Nolan a taste of what could happen if he'd remain wimpering and waiting for his doom; the only other alternative was to stand up and continue to fight. Nolan took the blaster with the other hand. He had to get over the pain if he were to survive and succeed.

The young man's yell didn't go unnoticed by the Weequay, who assumed that his target was down and it was time to call for backup. The comm device was still lying on the ground in the open. With no threats in the vicinity and some angry moans behind the container where the attacker was hiding, the guard tried to seize the opportunity: he slowly moved out of cover, trying to make no single sound. Blaster at the ready, he was approaching the device step by step... That is, until he heard a pained roar.

To the guard's surprise, the roar turned out to be his, caused by the excruciatingly burning feeling in the chest. The last thing he saw before succumbing to his wound was the angry face of the young man, with teeth clenched in pain; the man's blaster was aimed at the Weequay's chest, a puff of smoke indicating that a shot had just been made. Nolan looked at his own weapon, lowering it with a grunt; he was just as surprised with his reflexes as the guard had been. It was as if the pain from the wound had served as a catalyst to Nolan's sudden burst of speed and marksmanship.

With the imminent danger gone, the anger subsided, and the pain returned, albeit dumber than before. Nolan could continue limping towards the ship, but not before he'd drag the Weequay with his uninjured hand out of sight somewhere. Then he tossed the communicator out of sight with his boot and proceeded to the ship, following Levi. They had already wasted too much valuable time on dealing with the guards, and Nolan wasn't intent on having it all be for nothing.

"I'll go get the booster," Nolan said to his accomplice, voice still somewhat coarse due to injury; that wouldn't elude from anyone, let alone a Sith. As the young man was retrieving his tools from the speeder's light trailer, he continued, a gruff smirk on his lips: "Grab whatever valuable you can find, and don't let those sleemos get a drop on us," had Nolan known that he was talking to a Sith Lord, he probably wouldn't have been as blunt. Then again, they were on a job, time was of the essence, and the young man didn't make it sound like an order anyway. He needed to get aboard the ship. On this job, they were partners, and each of them had a part to play.

Not expecting any replies from his accomplice, Nolan proceeded to the engine room and got to work. His experience with fixing up Shiri's Fathier freighter was paying off: detaching the booster proved easier than the young man thought. Eventually he'd return to the swoop bike, putting his tools and the newly-acquired prized possession into the trailer. Assuming Levi was there with his spoils, Nolan would ask with a slightly smug smirk on his face: "Time to claim our spoils and leave the party?"

@Deviant

 

[Leviticus]

Finding and removing the sublight booster would prove difficult for the Sith Lord, who rarely ever bothered to repair or refurbish his own ships. He had men, droids, machines to do the work for him. Even if he was able to stumble across the booster, extracting it required an expertise and care that he did not have. Given a second of thought, he assumed it would have been better to have the smuggler around. Maybe he should not have left him alone against the likes of a Weequay pirate, trained and always inclined to kill, if what the young man said about Tharo was true.

Then, he heard a loud cry. One he immediately attributed to Nolan, which meant only one thing: he was shot. A stray bolt or a fatal blow, Levi couldn’t say. He was too busy lurking inside the modified freighter, looking to make sure there were no surprises waiting for him behind a corner. The coast was clear, but outside, not so much. Without a guarantee of Nolan’s survival, the man gravitated to the worst case scenario. That he died a terrible death and now a swarm of alerted smugglers and guards were converging onto his location right now, readying their blasters to bury him in plasma. Too busy reflecting to have heard the rest of the fight, his head snapped over to the ship entrance at hearing someone approach.

Blaster aimed at the opening, he prepared to litter whatever enemy came through with a few surprises of his own— then Nolan walked through. Scoffing at his own misleading worries, Levi turned away. “Oh, it’s just you.” He murmured, shuffling out from the cover of his corner and making his way down the narrow hall of the ship. “Nice.” The man added, a brief and lackluster compliment for having managed two guards all on his own. For a lowborn smuggler, he had to admit, that was impressive. Who knew what other secrets the young man hid up his sleeve, much like the Sith?

Ignoring the thought, Levi nodded at his request. Nolan was clearly injured, but if he thought he could get the booster on his own and continue with the mission, then the Sith wasn’t going to question it. As the smuggler went off to the engine room, wherever it was, Levi continued his wandering. Without the kid watching, he decided to pull a fast one and use the Force. Opening lockers, flipping over mattresses in the living quarters, checking the floors of secret compartments. Should Tharo return, it would look like he was sacked by far more than just two vagabonds. Still, while Levi failed to find anything more valuable than the booster they were about to take, he did find one thing: a little enemy of his own. Finally, some resistance. Needless to say, it wasn’t anything what he was hoping.

A small astromech droid rounded the corner. With a shocked beep, the droid slowly turned around and shambled away. Or so Levi thought. Once he pursued the droid to make sure it didn’t warn anyone else, perhaps through an unchecked communicator, the little metal demon sailed out of nowhere and slammed its bulbous head into his stomach. The man reeled back, surprised at the droid’s spunk and bold attack. For a bucket of nuts and bolts, it sure packed a punch. Still, it was absolutely ineffective and left him completely unscathed. Left with nothing more than a pissed attitude, he recuperated himself and shot his leg back. Seeing what was about to happen, the droid tried to retreat back to warn the others— and that was when he kicked the brazen tin can straight into the wall with a surge of the Force.

With a loud thud, the droid smashed against the wall. Sparks flew, and when it hit the floor, its metal head had caved in. By now, Nolan had returned with the booster and a smug grin in tow. Before he could bother questioning the Sith, he picked up the remains of the droid and shoved it into the trailer. A nice addition to his other spoils, some of which ranged from armor and weapons to a hefty amount of credits. But the droid would do well for spare parts, or if reprogrammed, one interesting robot compatriot for Levi. “Let’s ditch this popsicle stand.” He answered, again, ignoring Nolan if he had a question or two of his own. If anything, he would simply answer that the droid was like it as he found it.

A terrible excuse, but one regardless.

@Catbert

 

[Nolan Kodd]

While Nolan was too busy with the booster, he couldn't notice Levi's more-than-thorough search of the ship. What he did hear was the unexpected thud which (unbeknownst to Nolan) was made by the collision of an astromech droid with a wall at full speed. But before the young man could go and investigate, his accomplice had returned with his spoils. Nolan could've sworn the poor little astromech had been hit by a speeder bike or an angry mob with clubs.

One way or another, the young man wasn't going to question Levi now: they were on a mission, Levi could take what he wanted, and they had to make their getaway. Before getting on the speeder bike, however, Nolan went off to check the coast again. That decision saved his life.

When the young man approached the ramp, he heard distant voices, some of them belonging to Weequays. On his toes again, Nolan peeked outside, making sure he wouldn't be noticed. He spotted at least 6 people walking towards the ship and talking loudly.

Nolan didn't have the time to figure out their species (although he definitely noticed Tharo the Weequay among them), nor how well-armed they were. What mattered was that 4 people had left the landing pad, and more had returned. Kriff, kriff, kriff! Could it get any worse?

Although the young man was confident in his own abilities, he wasn't a fearless warrior who cherished unfavourable odds. He had his share of fighting, and he knew when to retreat and when to attack. Two guys against six, even with a few grenades and an element of surprise? The odds were still too unfavourable, even if their high ground on the ramp was taken into account.

Returning to his accomplice quickly, but quietly, Nolan uttered: "We've got company, Levi. Six thugs at least, may be more." He awaited the man's reaction, but didn't seek guidance or advice. He was just informing him of the situation. After all, Nolan got the two of them into this, and it was up to him to get them out in one piece and with their spoils.

Unless Levi suggested a brilliant alternative plan, Nolan would continue: "Guess we're coming off the ship elsewhere," a malicious smirk appeared on Nolan's lips. "I'll start the engine and take off. Can you stop them from getting aboard?" Nolan then prepared to go into the cockpit: the first order of business would be to raise the ramp and start the engines. Only then, when he was sure that the blaster bolts wouldn't get them too easily, would Nolan try and start the engines and take off.

@Deviant

 

[Leviticus]

“Company? Six thugs?” The man immediately perked up as Nolan returned back from outside the ramp. His quiet warning and a lacking smirk said one thing, but Levi took it in a different light. At last, real opposition. Unlike the two Weequay guards Nolan claimed for himself, unlike the astromech droid he smashed into a many little pieces— these were the pirates he was looking for. The smugglers he was going to fight. Brandishing his blaster and a flashing a wide smile, he nodded to the young man. With a plan of action now set in motion, the pair exchanged smirks and rushed into their positions. “This will be interesting.”

He sat back. Watching, waiting. Through the looking glass of the Force, he sensed the company of smugglers approach ever closer to the ship. Since Nolan had chosen to hide the bodies he dispatched before and prevented any warning from leaving, Tharo and his cronies were utterly oblivious. Once they were within range, that was when he would strike. He peered from the ship, aimed his blaster and fired. Needless to say, nothing came up. The blaster was jammed. An worthless dud. Slapping the side of the barrel or clicking the trigger half a dozen times did nothing to fix what was already done. Unbeknownst to him, the Sith Lord had completely forgotten to turn the safety off. Of course.

His reliance on the Force and his lightsaber was apparent. It would cost him. Already, by failing to catch onto the obvious, the approaching thugs were alerted of his presence. Levi had to think of something fast, else this entire operation would come crashing down from one dumb mistake. His lightsaber was hidden beneath his casual attire. Maybe if he— no. His mind was made. He would avoid using the blade whatever the cost, knowing it would only dull the experience and tip off Nolan from the cockpit. So, Levi did the next best thing. Cocking his arm back, he hurled the blaster straight ahead. As Tharo and his companions struggled to get their own weapons out, the weapon smacked right across the Weequay’s face. That would leave a mark.

Satisfied, he retreated back for more ammunition. Levi knew they wouldn’t take the strange attack lightly, and already he could hear their weapons cocking and feel the barrels aim toward the ramp. Smooth thunder and red lightning followed. Bolts charred the ship hull and the open ramp, which had yet to close. In the distance, he could hear Tharo clamoring about not damaging his ship. A good thing, but his cronies were quick to react by trying to get aboard the ship to shoot him point blank. But so long as if he could do something about it, there was no way in hell they’d hitch a ride. One man rushed up the incline and peered his head and his blaster over to scan the ship cabin. A second later, he saw Levi.

Rushing up from the side, he kicked the weapon out from his hand and threw a punch straight into his face. His armored face, at that. But with the Force, his fist smashed right through the visor and shattered his nose, sending the poor thug sailing back down the ramp. Before the others could react and fire, Levi retreated back. “I can do this all day!” He taunted. The man realized he could not hold them off forever, and instead, expected for Nolan to get the ship up and running any second now.

@Catbert

 

[Nolan Kodd]

As Levi prepared to deal with the opposition, Nolan had his own job to do. He rushed into the cockpit, the familiar layout of a freighter making it all too easy to find his way around. On his way, the young man couldn't but notice that it was as if a storm had gone through the ship, with everything turned either open or upside down. Levi had been thorough, there was no arguing with that. Nolan couldn't wish for a better accomplice on this mission.

Soon the young man ended up at his destination. To his surprise, the mission was almost as easy as he had planned (if it weren't for the injury): Nolan found no resistance aboard the ship, and the cockpit wasn't much different from his own (if only a little more modern). He knew how to get his own ship started without the launch key in case of emergency. Tharo was unlucky to have chosen the same ship as Nolan flew.

Knowing what to look for and where to find it, the young man removed one of the panels to the side of the pilot's seat. "So, this one goes there, that one goes there, right?" Nolan mumbled to himself as he tried to figure out how the various wires and schemes were arranged (it was slightly different to Nolan's own ship, probably a due to one of them being built later). Eventually he found what he was looking for, laughing briefly and victoriously as he exclaimed: "Pure Pazaak!"

It wasn't long before the ramp started raising with a humming hydraulic noise, and Nolan could only hope that Levi was successful at holding the smugglers at bay. If anyone got aboard, it was Levi's problem now; Nolan had a ship to fly. From the cockpit he could hear shots fired and saw a couple of thugs taking cover, but he did not know much else about the situation.

Amidst all the ruckus that was happening on the landing pad, the freighter taking off seemed like the most graceful moment; an outside observer could even find it out of place. With the ramp raised, the blasters of the smugglers wouldn't do much to the ship's hull; even if they did, Nolan wasn't planning on going to space anyway.

With the Nar Shaddaa skyline appearing in front of him as the ship ascended vertically, Nolan pushed the control lever, and the ship slowly accelerated, as if taunting the smugglers who were forced to watch all this, but couldn't (and probably wouldn't) do much. The lesson sure was taught.

Nolan allowed himself a longer victorious laugh as the ship kept speeding up, but the young man knew that the mission wasn't over just yet. Tharo would be looking for his ship, so Nolan couldn't keep it, no matter how much he'd want that. What mattered now was finding a place to ditch the freighter that had been searched through and through and deprived of its most valuable component.

Luckily, Nolan knew a place. There were a few run-down and almost abandoned districts on Nar Shaddaa; the young man had been spending a lot of time in one of those areas before, and each of them had one or two places where one could land the ship and disappear before anyone would notice.

The smugglers were probably too surprised by the brash hijacking attempt, or Levi had put up that much of a fight. Either way, even if Tharo's crew had mustered a pursuit, it would take them time; long enough for Nolan and Levi to make the getaway with the spoils of their raid.

For stealing a ship, the flight went smoothly; the only obstacle came when Nolan tried to guide the ship through a not-so-tall passage that led to a large open space, probably a run-down loading bay: as Nolan flew through, the Fathier's top turret hit the ceiling of the passage, leading to a jolt that could be felt around the ship, as well as the turret being damaged (or knocked clean off; that Nolan couldn't see).

The loading bay just enough room to fit the Fathier. If anyone was poor desperate enough to live or hide around these parts, they'd probably be scared off by a giant vessel landing in the area. As the ship touched down gently, Nolan remained in the pilot's seat for a while, with a silly absent-minded smirk, too exhausted emotionally to do anything just yet. He was only breathing and trying to search his feelings: there was disbelief in that he had actually pulled it off; the whole experience felt surreal. Happiness about the success of the job would probably come later, once the booster would be installed on his own Fathier.

Only in half-a-minute or so would Nolan press the button to lower the ramp and stand up again, his intention to leave the ship together with his accomplice. That was all they needed to finish this job.

@Deviant

 

[Leviticus]

The fist through the man’s visor and the ensuing taunt did little to ward the remaining men from attempting to board the ship. Absolutely relentless and beyond stupid, Tharo and his cronies had no idea who they were up against. Even without a blaster or a lightsaber at his side, they could not contend with the likes of Leviticus. They were mere ants beneath his feet. Then again, being unarmed and unarmored, they were more like fire ants. And he was barefoot. Alright— maybe they weren’t so easy after all, but either way, there was no way any of them would get aboard this ship. The ramp could not afford every man to swarm him at once, so Levi was comfortable dispatching each thug one by one.

Breaking noses and throwing punches, however, still did not deter Tharo the Weequay. His cries to “kill the damned punk” ultimately fell on deaf ears as his men were knocked unconscious with every second. Enough that Tharo himself decided to step into the foray. Blaster raised, he hoped to shoot Levi point-blank, given he had miraculously sidestepped every previous shot. Before he could finish the job, the man reached out his hand and crushed the barrel of his weapon. Stunned, the Weequay finally realized what he was up against. “It’s a damn force—“ His cry was immediately interrupted when Levi coasted his hand from the left and bitchslapped the smuggler to the side. His neck made a sinister crack as he sailed off the ramp.

Whether the man actually killed the Weequay or offered complimentary chiropractic therapy, he would never know. By then, Nolan was able to bring the ship off the ground and finally close the ramp. Relieved, Levi stepped back and slumped into the nearest lounge. He sighed before noticing a thin wisp of smoke waft in front of his eyes. Looking down, he realized he had been shot. Left shoulder, burned straight through his frayed jacket. Unfortunate, given he had ironed the damn thing just for this occasion. Now, there was no bother using it again. With a smooth motion, he slipped the jacket off and examined his wound. Already cauterized but accompanied by a sting of pain, the Sith smirked. “That’s a first.”

As he continued to inspect his newfound scar, the ship groaned and shuddered. With a snap to the side, Levi barely managed to stay in his seat. Either Nolan was a lousy pilot or they were being chased. Fortunately, it was just the former.

With the other man emerging out of the cockpit, Levi rose back to his full height. “That was fun.” He raised a brow and another smile. “A little choppy but I can’t complain.” He expected the young man would notice his own injury by now, as he caught onto Nolan’s too. Both went through hell but came out alive and well— and with what they were looking for. The sublight booster was in the young smuggler’s hands now, and the adventure Levi sought had come to its bittersweet conclusion. Maybe now they could share a drink or exchange contact details, but the man didn’t care. If their time together ran out, so be it. He would leave Nolan to his own devices and he would be leave for his own.

@Catbert

 

[Nolan Kodd]

Nolan returned the smile to his accomplice, who was apparently satisfied with the adventure they had endured. "Yeah, that was a blast," he chuckled quietly, referring to both his and Levi's blaster wounds; apparently Levi's injury wasn't critical either. Both of them would live, the grazes would heal, but the sublight booster and the memories of this job would remain.

"Thanks," the young man added more seriously, referring to everything that his accomplice had done for him. Not only was he watching Nolan's back on this mission, but he had actually served as the catalyst, spurring Nolan to carry out this plan. Without Levi, this whole thing wouldn't have been possible, and Nolan probably wouldn't have even thought of trying it. There was no need to elaborate, Levi would know what Nolan was thanking him for. That, and the mission was technically still not over.

"Let's get out of here before they find the ship," with that, the young man would proceed towards the swoop bike aboard the ship where all their spoils were loaded up. Luckily, the slight collision hadn't turned the attached trailer with the loot upside down. Nolan would occupy the driver's seat of his T-12 speeder bike; that left one seat free for Levi.

Were both of them to leave the ship now, Nolan would drive back to his ship in a winding path, trying to lose any pursuit or confuse onlookers as to where he was going. Just a precaution. After all, Levi would need to inspect his spoils somewhere, and Nolan would need to install the booster.

He didn't now how long his accomplice would stick around after that. Levi didn't seem to Nolan like the type to stay in one place for too long. Now that they had got the adventure over with, Nolan assumed that Levi wouldn't settle for a role of gunner on simple cargo hauling missions for much longer; the young man didn't have any adventures like this one planned just yet, although he had certainly developed a taste for them after boosting a ship from a smuggler.

What Nolan knew for sure was that he'd definitely be up for working with Levi in the future. Exchanging contact details was a must, even if Levi wouldn't want to stay on Nolan's ship for a drink to celebrate the successful little heist.

@Deviant

 

[Leviticus]

Leviticus slipped into the empty seat behind Nolan. The man had thoroughly enjoyed the adventure that was offered. To say he was content with the end result would be an understatement. In truth, he was beyond satisfied, enough that he was willing to refuse a cut from the whole operation. Impatient as he was, he never had to wait days for a jaunt to another world or spend the trip watching the younger man hog all the action. Levi got more of his fair share by the journey’s end. Although he wouldn’t admit it to Nolan just yet. At least the part about forgoing his actual cut. Rich and powerful the Sith Lord may be, there was nothing wrong with overflowing his pockets with only more spoils of war or adventure.

The trip back to the young smuggler’s ship neither took very long. It was there the pair would exchange their own individual contact details. But Levi particularly? He only tossed Nolan an age-old datapad with a single number typed into it: an exclusive line that led straight to the man. In case he ever come across another emergency adventure like the one today. That, and to ensure the man kept his identity near secret. Although at the same time, he wasn’t very good at keeping secrets. Neither was he much a man of patience. The ride back left some lingering thoughts, as well as several new messages. A raid on Mandalore, a world now under his jurisdiction. News from the Empire and their fleet. There was much to do.

Sharing a drink and watching a smuggler patch up a sublight booster was not among them. Interested as he was in Nolan’s company, he couldn’t afford the effort. Another time, he figured. Another adventure, he hoped. Choosing to leave the young man earlier than expected, Levi only smiled. “I have to admit— I was looking for an adventure and you delivered. Let’s hope this isn’t the last time we see each other, Nolan Kodd.” He waltzed away from the man’s ship. Out of nowhere, his hand reached out to the side, just where they had parked the speeder and the trailer in tow. The broken scraps of the astromech droid he smashed into the wall suddenly sailed out and tucked itself under his arm.

His smile grew. “Farewell.” Soon, the man disappeared back into the city streets. Although his identity was not yet revealed, he offered the young man a single clue. A bread crumb that led down a path that was always open to him, even if Leviticus had not fully realized the potential within Nolan. The choice remained with him now. The opportunity to stand among the most renowned in the galaxy or settle for the mound of scraps he called home. Either way, he had made a powerful friend that day. Whether they would stay friends from then on, could not be so easily said.

Exit Thread.​