Ask Difficulty: Boss Level

[Aska Ryun]

Racing through the jungle, Aska felt at home in more ways than one. Sure, the clone had spent the vast majority of her freedom in the streets of Nar Shaddaa amongst the bustling urban terrain, but here? On Teth? It all just felt so… right. More so than when she had visited the jungles of Onderon, to be sure. With each graceful stride, it was almost as though some unseen force was guiding her movements. Nothing could slow her down. Nothing could get in her way. She had half a mind to close her eyes and let her senses guide her, almost positive that she didn’t need to see to know what laid ahead.

”Heh, why the hell not?” she chuckled to herself as she leapt over a fallen tree. She could use the challenge, after all. Between the traps Klied had laid in the jungle partnered with his sharp eye, the sheer brute strength of Poffo and her own keen survival capabilities, it seemed almost inevitable they would succeed. So why not have some fun with it? As her feet touched the damp soil, the clone closed her eyes and forced herself to continue on. Much to her amazement, she was right. It was almost as though she could still see everything around her as she jumped up, sliding on the seat of her pants across a large boulder that had surfaced along an elevated ridge before coming down into a roll on the other side of a large pit. No doubt one of Klied’s traps set out for their pursuers, but even without her eyes… she knew it was there.

Standing tall and turning back to look at the hole, Aska immediately recognized that it was man made. Dug deep with foliage pulled over top to cover it from the untrained eye. At her guess, there was no doubt a very dangerous and likely very sharp surprise waiting for it’s unsuspecting victim. Smirking, the clone spun on her heel and began to walk towards the rendezvous as it grew near.

”Guess he’d never be able to catch me if it came to it. Not here, anyway,” Aska joked with a tone of cockiness. Prematurely. As she placed her foot down on the tall grass, a sharp snap came from below and her eyes shot wide. ”Uh oh…” The next moment was an absolute blur as a whirring sound filled her ears and soon, she was suspended in the air in a nylon net, swaying in the open from side to side. The net forced her arms tight to her chest and brought her knees and legs firmly upward. No doubt, she was stuck. ”Dammit, Caveman!”

”D’ya hear that?!” A voice came calling from back in the jungle, a short distance from the direction she had just arrived from.

”Yea! Another of those traps? How many of our guys you think that hunter got already?”

”Don’t give a shit. Let’s go check it out. Blasters at the ready…”

Soon, two men stepped out of the jungle. A Twi’lek and a human, both armed with large and terrifying blaster carbines. And here Aska was, stuck like a gizka.

”What have we here?” The Twi’lek laughed as he stepped closer. Groaning, Aska closed her eyes. She didn’t need to hear his goading.

”Ain’t one of ours, Neeku. Let’s cut her down and bring her to the boss. Must be one of the hunter’s accomplices,”

”Yea yea, I’ll get on it,” Swinging his carbine back over his shoulder, the Twi’lek pulled a blade from his belt and began to advance towards Aska in her prison with a menacing glare. ”Maybe he’ll let me keep her as a pe- WOAH!” Suddenly, the Twi’lek was no where to be seen. Instead, where he once stood, was now a large gaping hole in the ground.

”Neeku! You okay?!” the human called out as he rushed over, but his companion made no reply. Instead, as the human peered down into the hole, his face went white as the blood rushed from it. Aska didn’t need to see what had happened in the pit to know Neeku’s fate.

”You guys should really open your eyes out here, hey?” Aska joked as she spun in the net, the irony of her own current situation not lost on her. The human, still in shock from what had happened to his partner, looked to the woman in disbelief.

”You guys are sick! He had a wife and kids y’know!”

”Yeaaa, not exactly my problem,” she responded. Trying to reach for her daggers, it became obvious to her that she wasn’t going to be able to lay a finger on them due to the tight constraints of her prison. But there was still another option, though as the human stammered in an effort to find the words, it became clear she was running out of time. He soon took a few steps forward and raised his rifle, bringing it’s sights in line with his prey.

”Screw bringing you in! I’ll leave you out here to rot! Say good night, schutta!” the man spat but as he squeezed the trigger, a snap and hiss could be heard as the red glow of Aska’s lightsaber cut through the top of the net, freeing her and sending her back towards the ground. Still, the bolt from the rifle whizzed past as she descended, burning through her jacket and singing her left shoulder. As she hit the ground, grimacing in pain from both the impact as well as the blaster burn, Aska soon scurried to her feet, the red blade pointed towards the ground. Now the human quivered in fear, taking a step back as he shook. ”A Sith!”

Smirking, Aska winked at the terrified man. ”Not quite… Boo!’ Lunging forward slightly as she taunted the man, he lost his footing and began to fall backward. Except there was no ground to fall on as he soon joined Neeku in the pit Klied had dug hours earlier. Disigniting the blade, Aska advanced on the hole and glanced inside to see both men with large wooden stakes through their chests. ”That was too close,” Aska sighed but as she prepared to continue towards the meeting point, an explosion shook through the forest followed by blaster fire, causing the hairs on the back of her neck to stand on end. So far, Klied’s traps had all utilized the natural landscape and what was available. There hadn’t been any detonations until now, so it must have been Brag. As she came to her conclusion, a gnawing feeling began to eat away at her. Something was wrong.

”Klied…” Aska stated coldly to herself before running in the direction of the explosion. She needed to investigate. Something wasn’t right…

@Isen @Reyn

 

[Poffo Sauvage]

Poffo, completely unaware that Aska had decided to run the Gladiator obstacle course, had no idea she had been strung up in a tree, managed to get two bad guys to fall into a pit to their certain demise, and cut herself down with a lightsaber. He was focused on getting to the rendezvous point. He was about 75 meters away when he heard the explosion and immediately, Poffo ducked and took a survey of his surroundings.

Once he got his bearings, he determined that the explosion came in roughly the that Klied was stationed on the map. Other than the rifle, he didn't think there was part of the plan that had a big boom involved. Through the power of deductive reasoning, the brawler took this to be a rather bad development. Tyllon had once again managed to get the upper hand.

Sauvage began navigating his way through the jungle as best he could and as fast as he could while trying to be safe and unseen. There were so many hiding places, so many places for an ambush, you could move like a sloth and still be moving too fast. He knew his pace had to quicken when he hard the fire of a blaster that he did not recognize to be Klied's. Now he knew that the hunter was in deep scat.

Sauvage could hear talking and coming into a clearing, he could see Brag and three of his associates looking downhill. One of them, a Dressellian, was surveying downhill through the sites of his blaster carbine. Poffo wipes his mouth wondering what to do. Stealth wasn't his forte and he wasn't accurate enough with his own blaster to make hay out of it. If he were Klied, he could just rattle off a blanket of shots, mowing them down like grass. But, Poffo was not Klied. The distance was too far for him to do what he did best, and the distance was too far to close without being spotted and shot down himself.

Still, Poffo had to act fast, so he did what he could. The jungle floor did not provide much in the way of rocks or nuts or even the pits of large fruit. But, what the jungle did have a lot of was large branches that fell from the massive trees. Poffo found two that he felt he could reasonable chunk a good distance. He threw one as hard as he could to the left of the group at the top of the hill and one to the right.

That certainly got their attention. Tyllon pointed to one of his men. "You, got check that out over there." He pointed to another one of his men. "You go check that one out over there." Tyllon put his back to the Dressellian and held his gun at the ready, ready to fire. Poffo had temporarily cut the problems from four to two, but Tyllon was an ace shot, and Poffo still had no chance to close the distance. He wouldn't admit it, but he would love to see Aska's face right about now...or better yet, Aksa's feet kicking some ass.

@Tulos @Reyn

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

Klied chewed on his lip as he lay still within the dead log at the base of the hill, one arm clutching his side. He was hurt bad. From this position it was unlikely he'd be able to get the drop on his pursuers. They could just pepper the underbrush until they got lucky and hit him, or leave one man up above while the others came down to investigate. With the high ground they'd spot him making a move before he managed to do anything. He needed his partners...

And just like that he heard the sound of something off in the distance, too loud to be unintentional, followed by Tyllon directing two of his men to investigate. Alright, that was a start. But now what? Klied slowly moved his hand to grip his blaster pistol, inching the weapon out of it's holster. His mind raced to come up with some kind of plan. Meanwhile up above Tyllon shouldered his rifle and brought out a pair of what looked like grenades. One in each hand.

Kark. Klied thought, his eyes going wide. Not good. "I can see we're short on time so I'm going to tell you how you're about to die Raxx." Brag called out. The hunter rolled his eyes. "Despite what you might think after that last display Doman here is a pretty good shot." He explained, nodding to the Dressellian who had his sights fixed on the hill base, smiling maliciously. "Good enough to take you down once you show yourself at least. Now I'm going to toss you these two grenades. And you have two choices. Die, or run." He sniggered a bit. "And then die. Choose well bounty hunter!" He primed and tossed the grenades without a second thought.

"Kark!" Klied shouted aloud this time, and scrambled to move. He had to do this right or he was dead. Hell, he'd probably end up dead anyway. Pushing himself out of the log and raising his blaster he took one quick shot. So did Doman. Klied cried out as he felt a sudden intense burning sensation all along the left side of his skull, his ear being practically incinerated and part of his hair lighting up in flames. That was nothing compared to what happened to the other two. His shot struck true, hitting one of the grenades in mid air and causing both to explode in a chain reaction. The Onderonian saw the silhouettes of Brag and the Dressellian above, flinching away from the blast. Whether or not he managed to kill them he wouldn't know, as his vision quickly went dark and he collapsed into the brush.

@Isen @Tulos

 

[Aska Ryun]

Aska’s breathing was heavy as she sprinted through the jungle, albeit with a bit more care than she had previously displayed. The last thing she needed, nor wanted, was to get caught up in yet another of Klied’s traps. Not only for her own safety and already damaged pride from her first slip of judgment, but for the sake of both Poffo and Klied. With her lightsaber hilt tucked away inside her jacket and replaced once again by the ever trusty SE-45, the clone came to a stop on the top of a ridge that overlooked a small gully. A rather busy one, at that, as four men stood above a long descent that led further into the jungle. One man, who Aska immediately recognized as the one and only Brag Tyllon, stood with an air of authority as he called out to the bottom of the incline.

”Ah, so that’s where you are, Klied,” Aska whispered to herself as it became clear that the Onderonian was indeed pinned down, her gut instinct proving to be correct in assuming that the original explosion was not one of his intentional doing. However, she was outgunned two to one at best and that was only if Klied wasn’t already injured. Then the unexpected as two branches seemed to fall from the sky, both perfectly placed some distance to each side of the gangster’s position causing two of Tyllon’s escort to investigate. ”Well that was lucky,” she continued, though she had no doubt it was not exactly luck. While she couldn’t see the gargantuan brawler, Aska had a suspicion that perhaps Poffo was closer than any of them expected.

Then the worst; grenades lobbed down to Klied’s position. Gritting her teeth as they detonated in mid-air due to Klied’s well placed shot, she knew it was time to act. Hell, it was time fifteen seconds ago. Kneeling down, Aska took aim at Brag before he had the opportunity to recover from protecting himself of the shrapnel that was thrust from the grenade detonation. If she could at least injure the leader…

Squeezing off three rounds, the blue energy bolts raced through the air towards Tyllon but two of the shots were off slightly to each side. The third, while aimed true, had given him enough time to move out of the way due to the prior rounds missing their mark and providing him enough warning to react.

”Ah, so the third wheel finally reveals herself,” Tyllon called up to the clone with a sly grin, clearly unshaken by the attempt on his life. ”Doman, if you would take care of her? You two!” Calling to the other two men who had gone to investigate, Brag then motioned for them to fire on her location as well. Blaster fire rained around her, causing Aska to slip away from the edge of the cliff face but not before yet another blaster bolt slammed her already injured shoulder. Klied, injured and potentially dying at the bottom of the gully. Aska, pinned down by three gunmen and unaware of what Brag was doing.

”Alright, big guy. Where the hell are you?”

@Isen @Reyn

 

[Poffo Sauvage]

The sound of a by-God battle were echoing through the forest bottoms of Teth. People were flying all over and keeping their eyes on the most clear and present danger they could find. Everyone was in survival mode, even Brag...whether he would admit it or not. Having grenades blowing up around you will have that effect on any man. Brag, while a confident wily bastard, was not immune to fight or flight which hyperfocuses the individual on the most pressing concerns...that they are aware of.

It was the opportunity that a man like Poffo needed. He needed their eyes to be diverted to something pressing, and he needed the sound to protect his movement through the jungle. Poffo was a lot of things, but stealthy was not one of them. Poffo used all of the sound and excitement to circle around to flank Brag. The man that Tyllon sent to investigate to the right was starting to make his way back at Tyllon's command to start firing on Aska, but Poffo surprised him with a clothesline lariat at full speed. The human goon did a somersault he did not intend to perform, and the brawler wasted no time cracking his skull with a boot to the jaw. He felt the jaw crunch underneath his boot. The man was knocked out. His jaw was shattered. He wasn't dead, but he likely would wish he was when he woke up. Typically, Sauvage would finish the job, but time was of the essence.

The bearded brawler sprinted back through the forest toward Brag. Poffo came storming out of the brush toward Brag who turned around expecting it to be his hired gun. "I thought I told you to..umph!" Sauvage form tackled the mark with a sickening thud. He hit Tyllon with such force, the two started rolling down the hill, and Poffo was careful to keep his arms wrapped around Brag tight, bear-hugging him, squeezing him like a constrictor snake as they made their way down the hill.

Doman panicked and took his fire off of Aska and aimed his blaster toward the tumbling pair of Brag and Poffo. He got jittery, afraid to shoot- afraid he would hit Brag instead of Poffo. Poffo may not look like a scientific rocket, but he was no dummy. He kept Brag's arms pinned to his body to prevent him from being able to access his weapons and he made DAMN sure to keep Brag between him and the gun up the hill.

They finally came to a crash at the bottom of hill. Brag was struggling to breathe and rested on top of Poffo, protecting Poffo from being shot by Doman. "Oooh, yeah...." Poffo said. He pulled his head back and gave a sharp head butt to Tyllon's nose, smashing it, and blood started to pour out of his nose. The villain was already struggling to breathe, and this only exasperated those problems. "I told you the last time we met, yeah, I told you that if we met again, you would be a lucky, lucky, lucky man if you escaped with your life, yeah! Weeeeeeeell, I don't think you're a very lucky, lucky, lucky man, no. In fact I don't even think you're a lucky man much less a man with three luckies! Yeah!" Poffo would again head but the man in the face.

Brag was trying to scream to Dpman to just shoot, to kill somebody, even it was him, but he couldn't get enough air to make noise when he tried to speak. Just some gasps.

"I can't hear you, Braggy, no, no I can't," Poffo said. "And right now, I have a feeling that the tides have shifted, the sands of the beach are being swept away from you, yeah!" He lowered his voice into a raspy whisper. "Yeah, now that the the broad has even odds...oooh, yeah, I don't think they're very even., no. I think she's got the distinct advantage. Yes, I do."

Poffo was content to keep the squeeze on, banking on Aska being able to take advantage of the newfound odds. She only had the one guy to worry about with Doman keeping his sites set on Poffo and Brag. Or, if Klied managed to make a comeback, that would be sufficient too.

@Reyn @Tulos

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

As Doman watched the squabble play out between Poffo and Brag he became increasingly nervous. It was plain to see even having seemingly taken out one of their opponents this was still going to be an extremely close shave for both parties involved. It was unclear who would make it out on top.

"Keep her suppressed!" Doman finally shouted to the lone human remaining at the top of the hill before starting to scramble down the side. While the man above would keep firing on Aska's position to keep her down, the Dressellian was half running, half sliding down the hill towards Poffo and Brag with weapon in hand. "Don't worry Brag!" He shouted reassuringly, while still dripping with fear. "I'm coming for ya!"

Meanwhile Klied was just starting to come to, hearing the sound of blaster fire going on. There was smoke in the air, and all the colors and noises were blending together. He could barely tell what was going on. Slowly rolling onto his side the bounty hunter peered across the battlefield. He could see two figures on the ground, and another approaching them. He had a blaster in his hands. The Onderonian squinted, trying to make out the features. Was it Aska? He really hoped it wasn't. With a shaky hand the man raised his blaster and fired off a shot. The heavy blaster bolt exploded beside Doman and the alien cursed in surprise and fear, covering his face as he was showered with dirt from the blast.

Klied growled and raised another arm to take hold of his blaster with two hands. He closed one eye and did his best to steady his aim. Doman spotted him and started to raise his blaster rifle, but he was too slow this time. Klied fired. Again his shot was off course, but this time he managed to hit the Dressellian in the thigh, drawing a pained cry from the alien as he dropped his weapon and tumbled the rest of the way down the hill, right on top of Poffo and Brag.

Tyllon took the momentary confusion to struggle as hard as he could against the brawler's hold, not grabbing a weapon, but instead pressing a button on his gauntlet. The merc didn't explain, only offering Poffo a bloody smile. Knowing Brag, they were most likely about to be waylaid by more droids.

@Isen @Tulos

 

[Aska Ryun]

As Aska remained dug in, suppressed by enemy gunfire and clutching her wounded shoulder, she began to plan out her next move. Standing and taking aim on the grunts below wasn't an option; it would only turn her into an easier target. She could retreat back into the jungles and come back at their enemies from a different vantage point but time was of the essence and was a rapidly depleting resource. That is, until new found screams of confusion and terror filled the area below that soon led to a significant decrease in the blaster fire that had been keeping her pinned. Peaking up from her cover of foliage and rock, she soon spotted a now writhing man with a shattered jaw. Or was it simply convulsions of a man on the brink of death? It didn't matter. Poffo had done what he was best at once again and left a trail of destruction and blood behind him. And he had provided her the opportunity she required.

Looking to the tree tops while still remaining as covered as she could to keep from harms way, Aska spotted a dying tree that rose dozens of feet into the air. The wood was rotten and already falling apart, the battle around it not helping with it's already diminished structural integrity but it also presented her with options. The man below soon over heated his carbine in his failed attempts to subdue the clone and took cover next to the same tree, desperately pleading with his weapon's energy cell to cool but it was the wrong choice. Rising from her position, Aska turned her SE-45 on one of the higher and thicker branches before firing off a volley of four rounds. Each shot found it's mark, burning a hole in the dead plant again... and again... and again. Finally, unable to hold the weight of the extremity, the branch soon fell to the surface and landed directly on the man who had proven to be her last remaining threat. She could still see his face and a single arm protruding from under the branch, partnered with a growing pool of blood, but that was all.

Now she needed to get to her partners and bring the odds further in their favor. Jumping up from her position, Aska leapt over the out cropping of rocks and slid down to the same level as the dead or dying grunts. She still had another descent to reach Poffo, Klied and Tyllon but at least she could now see the men as they each struggled for dominance over the other. Their positioning, however, made it complicated for her to get a clear shot on Brag without chancing burning a hole in Poffo as well. Not long ago, that wouldn't have seemed like such a bad thing. Hell, she may have even found a great deal of satisfaction in wasting both of them simultaneously. Now? Now she needed the brute to survive.

"Get him on top of you, big guy!" Aska called out as she raised her SE-45 to get a clear shot but before Poffo could comply, a burning sensation in the back of Aska's right knee dropped her to the ground. Soon after, two probe droids began hovering above her, taunting her with their movements as they knew they were out of her reach. Or so they thought. Grimacing in both pain and anger, Aska rolled over to her side and took aim, firing a single shot that tore through one of the droids. The second, however, had proceeded towards it's Master's location.

@Reyn @Isen

 

[Poffo Sauvage]

Well, damn. Damn, damn, damn, damn, damn. Poffo was going to have to change something up. He figured out that he couldn't rely on Klied or Aska to finish this up. He peaked over Tyllon's shoulder and saw one remaining droid coming his way. It didn't seem that Klied and Aska were in were their best shape, and Poffo wondered if he was on his own against a killer droid and a killer thug for the time being. There wasn't a lot he could do about the droid in the here and now, but he might well be able to do something about Brag. Poffo threw his body upward and allowed his shoulder to connect with Tyllon's jaw. Deftly, quickly, as Brag's chin lifted upward with the blow and the thug was loopy from the forceful shot to the jaw, Poffo slid to Tyllon's back, putting him in a modified rear-naked choke, using his legs to pin Brag's arms tightly against his body.

The droid was coming in hard and fast, firing on the both of them. Poffo started rolling with Brag in his clutches, trying to create a moving target, but finally butted up against a tree and was forced to stop. He shifted to make sure that if the droid fired, it might hit Poffo, but it would have to smoke a hole through Brag to do so. "Oh yeah, you might want to call your bucket of bolts off, yeah!"

Tyllon tried to respond, but could only gasp. Poffo wasn't completely making him go dark because he needed him to call off the droid. He could hear and feel Brag reaching for something, and he assumed it was the button to disable the droid. But instead, what he heard was terrifying. The discernable click of a frag grenade. Klied just the pulled the pin and was determined that if he would be taken back in it would be as a corpse and he would not die alone. He and Poffo would die together.

"OOOOOOOOHHH, NOOOOOO!!!!!"

Poffo released his hold and took off at a sprint as fast and as far as he could before the inevitable explosion. The droid followed and began firing. One shot tattooed the bearded brawler in the shoulder blade, sending him face first into the dirt just as the frag grenade went off. As much as it sucked, it likely saved his life. The shrapnel from the grenade destroyed the droid. It exploded in midair from the barrage of metal flying into it at rapid speed. Poffo was not spared from the grenade either. His lower legs and feet were peppered with with the destructive projectiles from the frag.

At this point, Poffo hoped for two things. First, he would be totally satisfied if Brag was a gorey mess of goo against that tree and second, he hoped that Aska and Klied were away from the blast or were able to take cover. Poffo thought would be ok. He would have to spend some time in a bacta tank in all likelihood, but the fact he felt excruciating, burning pain in his lower extremities was a hopeful sign that he would keep his legs.

@Reyn @Tulos

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

The explosion was yet another disorienting blast that left Klied even more discombobulated. After the smoke cleared he slowly started struggling to get up, grabbing onto the log beside him and hefting his torso into an upright sitting position. Everything was in pain, his vision was still blurred, sound was distorted, and his head felt like it was on fire. He had to keep one eye closed as he felt the warm sensation of running blood painting the entire left side of his head. But he could hear no more blaster fire... No more shouting...

"W-what happened?" He managed to choke the words out, shouting over the sound of his ringing ears. His head whipped left to right as he tried to spot Poffo or Aska. "Did we win?" In all honesty he looked like a dead man himself, blaster scoring here and there, cuts and bruises all over his body. Obviously the worst damage was where he took the shot to the head, leaving a deep carbon scar that left hardly skin covering his skull on the left side near his eye, and much of the flesh where his left ear used to be was burned away.

"You guys?" He shouted again, slightly panicked. He could still barely see anything. Everything was just one big green blur. He grit his teeth and tried to get up, only to gasp and slouch against the log. It was no good. He wasn't going anywhere. The Dressellian had been blown to bloody chunks by the grenade. And Brag? He was missing a few limbs, his charred body laying on it's back a few meters away from Poffo. It was unclear if the man was dead or not, his bloody face motionless, open eyes staring blankly up into the canopy above. It would seem the fight was over.

@Isen @Tulos

 

[Aska Ryun]

If you had asked Aska where she thought the days that followed departing Nar Shaddaa would lead, the current situation was far from what would be her best guess. Smuggling spice to Coruscant soon turned into chasing down a run away gambler and further still to the here and now. Laying on the damp soil of her ancestral homeworld, her left shoulder and right knee both torn open and covered in dirt and blood. In the end, she truly did walk the same path that was intended for her at her creation. It seems the choice was never hers all along. Finding the strength to push herself to her feet, the shooting pain in her knee making limping to the edge of the descent an excruciating endeavor, she finally saw both her partners as well as a very disassembled Brag Tyllon below. Though it seemed, at first glance, that she may just well be the one walking away with the least of it all.

”Hey, Caveman!” Aska called down to Klied as he sat himself against a fallen tree. With a pained smirk, the clone brought her index finger to her left ear and moved her lobe back and forth. ”You seem to have misplaced something, yea?” Chuckling slightly, she began to try and make her way down the incline to the two men but what started off as a careful and precise descent soon turned into a rapid tumble as her knee seared with pain once more. Finally coming to a stop at the bottom of the hill, she stared into the sky. Today was just not her day and karma immediately snuck up on her for the cheeky comment towards the Onderonian. ”Mud sucker…” she croaked hoarsely. Remaining still on the ground, Aska groaned as she reached into her jacket and plucked a cigarra from the pack buried deep within. Placing it in her lips, she lit it and tilted her head backward to catch a glimpse of the brawler a good distance away.

”What about you, slug? Missing any appendages?” she chuckled as she wiggled her fingers above her for both men to see. ”Can’t be any worse than this sleemo,” Referring to Tyllon, Aska looked him over as best she could from her position in the dirt. He had definitely seen better days.

@Reyn @Isen

 

[Poffo Sauvage]

Poffo flopped over and laid on his back. He tried to stand, but his legs were blown to hell and weren't having it. Aska seemed to be in high spirits, so Sauvage assumed that the Brag Frag peppered him to death. Poffo wanted to beat him to death, but under the current circumstances, this would have to do.

”What about you, slug? Missing any appendages?” Aska asked.

"I still got the one that counts, Ooooooh, yeah..." he coughed out. "Is there enough of him left to get credit for his puck? Don't forget, we have Ro's puck to turn in to. He's at the bottom of the mesa." He started pulling his body closer to the other two, dragging himself by using his arms. He tuckered out and just collapsed again. "I might need a hand to the ship."

@Reyn @Tulos

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

Klied's head snapped to Aska as she called out to him, squinting as he tried to focus on her. He couldn't make out much of what she was saying, but he was fairly certain it was her. After all, there were only two people out here that weren't on orders to shoot him on sight. As his vision started to clear up a bit he noticed her smiling, pointing to her ear and saying something presumbably amusing. The hunter blinked. "What?" He shouted, uncomprehending.

Aska took a spill on her way down but seemed alright. While she continued to survey the aftermath Klied would slowly maneuver himself onto his knees and inch himself towards his partners, continuing to use the log for support. The pain was intense, there were few times he could remember getting this beaten up on a hunt, and he had hunted some pretty nasty creatures. Still, he figured given a few more minutes he'd be strong enough to hobble his way back to the ship on his own two feet. As he got a bit closer he spotted Poffo laying in the dirt as well. He looked to be in similarly miserable shape, but at least he was alive. As he dragged himself closer he started speaking too. "What?" Klied shouted again, looking hopelessly lost.

@Isen @Tulos

 

[Aska Ryun]

Unable to suppress some slight laughter as Klied remained incapable of hearing the discussion taking place between the trio, Aska let her head rest back against the ground as she took a drag off her cigarra. It was over and all three of them were going to walk away from it. Well, all three survived at any rate. While she wasn’t able to get a good look at the injuries her partner’s had suffered, Poffo made it quite clear he wasn’t going to be able to walk and while Aska could still limp her way back to the ship she knew that doing so with Poffo leaning on the shoulder’s of both her and Klied were out of the realm of possibility. Raising her commlink to her mouth, the clone activated the device and connected to the ship back at their camp.

”Kayto, Kayto can you hear me?” she queried in a neutral tone.

”Yes, Mistress. I am still here. I’ve been registering a good deal of explosions in the distance and was beginning to wonder if I would be leaving without you,”

”You ain’t that lucky pal. Lock on to my location and bring the ship around. We’re going to need a pick up,” Pausing as she pushed herself back into a sitting position, Aska looked over to both Klied and Poffo and chuckled again as both men’s injuries became clearly visible to her. ”And get the med bay prepped. I think these boys are going to need some attention,”

”As you command,”

Looking back over to the two men and the burnt corpse of Brag, Aska gave them a smile.

”That could have gone much worse. Could have gone a hell of a lot better too, but all in all I’d say this was a success,”

@Reyn @Isen

 

[Poffo Sauvage]

Hearing that Aska was calling on the droid for a pickup, the bearded brawler rolled over onto his back and looked up at the sky. A success she says. Easy for her to say. She's still walking. But, at least she had a ship with a medbay and a droid that could get his crippled ass onto the ship.

"Hey!" Poffo yelled out. "Is Hunter Man saying anything besides "'What?' yet? Tell him I'm expecting all the perks of Guild Membership after we turn these two asswipes and their pucks in, yeah...Yeah, I am. He's the famed bounty hunter afterall. Isn't ath right, Famed Bounty Hunter Man? Yeah!" This was a crack at Raxx's bit of dishonesty in getting Poffo to help him get T'lol. It was something they got past, but Poffo still enjoyed a good ribbing now and then.

But for Poffo, this was a big step. While Klied seemed to have a lot of fallback options if the bounty hunter thing fell through, Poffo needed this career plan to work out. Poffo was a badass with his fists, no doubt about it. But, he was in his mid 30's, and soon, the physical wear and tear on his body would make him less and less a badass. Maybe it would be a slow deterioration, but Poffo had been in the fight scene long enough to know that maybe it wouldn't be so slow. Sometimes prize fighters just lose it. Overnight. When that happened, the money stopped coming in overnight.

Poffo needed to be a bounty hunter and a successful one. He needed to get some notoriety and make some bank with some big scores. This little trio had an opportunity to be quite the team...if Aska and Poffo could manage not to kill each other.

Soon, the droid had the pickup ready and Poffo was ready, but he said, "Get the famed bounty hunter man first, yeah," he said over his comms. "Ladies first and all."

@Reyn @Tulos

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

"The both of you need to speak up!" Klied said with an all too loud tone as he reached his partners and collapsed on his back beside them. Slowly his hearing was starting to return to him, but he still had a nasty ringing to cope with. Not to mention his skull felt like it could split like a melon at any second. He raised an arm to wipe off some of the blood and touched his damaged ear, gasping as he irritated the tender flesh.

"Oh that's just great..." He muttered to himself. While they waited for the ship Klied remained still like the others, staring up at the sky. As the adrenaline started to wear off his mind became muddled with conflicting thoughts. What a hunt! Was the first thing on his mind. It had been just like with T'lol. This was a kind of high he'd never experienced before. Chasing down sentients felt so much more rewarding then the wild animals he had been hunting before. But he just couldn't enjoy it to it's fullest extent. He kept seeing Uncle Odo's face... frowning. Would he hate me for this? ...I don't know... His uncle was such an important figure in his life. One of the only people in his life before recent years. The man loved the wild just as much as he did, but he had still come from civilization, and he was always able to keep a bit of it with him. Honor was the word he used. It was supposed to be important. Klied knew deep down that was something he could never really understand. He could imitate the behaviors his uncle had displayed, but he could never be what he was. He was a wild animal. A hunter. That's all there was. Maybe it was time he stopped pretending like he was anything else.

When the ship finally arrived Klied grunted and got up on his feet, pushing the droid away as it tried to assist him. "I'm alright..." He insisted as he started hobbling his way towards the ship. Before making his way onboard he would turn to look at the others. "You know... Aside from a few kinks... we make a pretty good team..." He paused to look down at himself before shrugging. "The kind that knows how to stay alive anyway. We should do this again some time..." He would then continue his path back up onto the ship.

@Isen @Tulos

 

[Aska Ryun]

The banter of the two men, brothers in battle and blood by most standards. It was something that Aska found she respected above all else. Their words meant little but showed that both Poffo and Klied had likely developed a bond that could lead them both to wealth and infamy if they worked side by side. But as the Onderonian mentioned that together they formed a good team, Aska’s smile faded away.

”One day, Caveman. Yea, maybe one day… but I have some business back on Nar Shaddaa that requires my attention. You remember Boola? Thing’s have… escalated… since our little party in her bar. Until I’ve settled things with her, I’m afraid I’m her’s to command,” Sighing, the clone pushed herself to her feet and began to limp aboard the freighter behind Poffo and Kayto. She certainly wished that she could just walk away from the Rodian woman, join Poffo and Klied and track down all the scum the galaxy had to offer. And she meant it when she said that one day perhaps she just might. Still, she had her friends back on the Smuggler’s Moon in Boola’s grasp and until she knew they were safe, she had to play the woman’s game.

Both men needed the attention of the droid so Aska decided that it perhaps was best to leave the three to it. Instead, she found herself seated in the co-pilot’s chair of the craft. Solitary suited her fine in the moment as she gazed upon the holocron in her hands. Once again, the small device began to grow warm to the touch, the red glow emitting from within pulsing in a steady yet slow rhythm. It was almost… soothing, in a way. Finally, her focus was broken as an incoming communications hail beeped through out the cockpit. With a pained groan, the woman reached ahead and activated the hologram to see the blue aura of Boola’s form.

”Aska! You’ve been gone far longer than I had anticipated! When are you returning with both my ship and my droid?” Boola growled, crossing her arms as her starry eyes bore deep into Aska’s own.

”We’re leaving soon. Our job was a success, by the way. Thanks for asking,” Devoid of emotion, Aska stared ahead of her though at nothing specific as she set the holocron down on the ship’s dash panel.

”One would suspect that a ‘job well done’ would result in a more positive demeanor. Something is troubling you?” Boola’s words caught Aska off guard. Turning her attention back to the hologram, a look of stern bewilderment dominating her face, the clone blew the bangs from her line of sight and leaned backwards in her seat.

”Possibly,” Aska paused. What did Boola care if something was causing her to be torn? And why did she feel like the Rodian was truly sincere? ”My life isn’t my own, bug. Never has been and I’m beginning to think it never will be. I served my first… boss… all my life. Finally get my freedom and now I’m tied to your scaly ass. This trip… It reminded me of what I don’t have. What I wish I did…”

”Perhaps in due time, and with a bit of luck, you will.. Now return to Nar Shaddaa. I have another assignment for you,” Boola’s form faded immediately after she finished speaking, leaving Aska in the darkness of the cabin once more alone. Staring at the holocron again, a slight sound of defeated laughter fell from her lips.

”Yea… Luck… Afraid I’ve never known her,” she complained. As she pushed herself up from the chair to go and check on both Klied and Poffo, however, a cold chill descended her spine as an all too familiar voice could be heard all around her, though the holocron had grown incredibly bright..

”There is no such thing…. As luck,”

@Reyn @Isen

 

[Poffo Sauvage]

The pickup came for Poffo and once on the ship, he was immediately taken back to the medbay. He heard Klied make mention of this trio being a more permanent team. If you had asked him not long after he met Aska for the first time, the brawler wouldn't have said no. He would have said hell to the no-no. But, Aska more than proved herself as a fighter, and damn if she wasn't clutch. "Oooh, yeah, brother. If we want to make this a....threesome...of sorts, yeah, I think I could oblige."

Of course, Aska made it clear that in the very short term, she had some other business to take care of. Poffo understood that. People like Poffo, Aska, and Klied had their hands in a lot of different pots, some of which required immediate attention. Well, at the very least, Poffo hoped that he and Klied to stay partnered up for a while. In addition to Klied having more experience, he was also the shooter. If Sauvage was going to continue in this line of work, he was going to need someone that could over him with firearms, and Klied was money with the blasters.

But, at this point at least, he could get his status as a member of the Bounty Hunter's Guild. That was a big career step. Cashing in on Mil Ro and Brag Tyllon's pucks would be a significant feather in the caps of Sauvage and Raxx. Aska too, though she said she had no interest in joining the guild.

Poffo took some sedatives. He thought it would be easier to heal and let the medical droid do its work if he was asleep. When he would wake up, it would be a new day and a new adventure.

/exit thread attempt

@Tulos @Reyn

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

Klied rolled his eyes at Poffo's joke, even if he did find it just a bit funny. He was disappointed in Aska's refusal, but her explanation brought a frown to his face. Boola, the Rodian woman that tried to clip them back on Nar Shaddaa. The hunter would have liked to offer his assistance, but he wasn't exactly in the best shape to help. What was more, he had a feeling this was something the clone would have preferred to handle on her own. Aska was very... independent after all. He was certain she would figure her way out of her predicament, but still. He had taken a liking to her, and had been hoping they could continue working together.

He would retire to the medbay, laying down on a bed across from Poffo as the droid went to work reconstructing his ear. At least the mission had been a success. Bringing down T'lol had been one thing, but Tyllon? This would be a reputation boost. No doubt he and Poffo would get some good job offers after this, if the Hutts didn't come after them for smoking a few of their boys that was.

"After that I think I need a vacation." He said to Poffo As he closed his eyes, letting Kayto go to work applying bacta to the side of his head. "I've got a place back in Iziz where we can rest up and resupply. Not to mention I could give you a few pointers on how to shoot." He told his partner. "Like which end to point at the bad guys." He added with a smirk. Intense pain and physical maiming aside, it had been a pretty good day. He looked forward to what kind of trouble they'd get up to next.

/Exit Thread