Open Down The Rabbit Hole

[Sevrin Valtiere]

It was night time on Raxus, though the industrial planet was always alive and operating. City lights glinted as far as the eye could see and the distant humming and whirring of speeder vehicles resonated in the air. Sevrin had arrived in a borrowed ship from the attack on Sullust - a ship that had Sith transponders to allow for easy passage.

Sullust had been a significant victory and the Jedi were working meticulously to decode everything. Denon had seen some very shady looking cultists in robes that two padawans unceremoniously parked their speeders on. Intel on known Sith worlds like Raxus suggested that similar garb was spotted.

Investigating this sub group of Sith was a recent Jedi Shadow mission. It involved operating deep in Sith space and covertly working to identify just what this group was and who they followed.

The Sephi was adorned in dark, generic armor instead of any Jedi robes. His saber hilt was stashed out of sight. As always, however, his hair was in a neat ponytail resting down his back.

He strode from the cockpit of his ship, walking right past where he heard his comrade shuffling around.

“Once again...You don’t need all your teas for this,” His dull tone cut in as he walked past the crew quarters towards the exit ramp.

@The Steel Stag

 

[Vahn Berand]

“I mean, you can say that but does that make it true? Really?” Vahn mused. He’d only brought about a half dozen varietals. Sensible, really. “Besides, I’m actually bringing something much more fun,” he said, and shouldered a sling of small explosives across his back. “Some smoke, some flash, some big booms. Very fun stuff, it’ll be great!”

Vahn was dressed similarly to Sevrin, and his matte charcoal grey armor cut a form fitting silhouette. He had his saber tucked in a leather holster at the small of his back, preventing it from dangling and making unnecessary noise. He had a leather vambrace around his left forearm, discretely laden with a number of durasteel darts in addition to the ones he had hidden in a pouch at his side. His boots were a dark leather, with soles designed for a firm grip on the ground, and had slots for a few extra darts. Little fashion, all practicality. He didn’t want to attract unneeded attention.

He followed Sevrin down the gangplank, having to hustle to keep up with the long-legged strides of the Sephi. When he stepped off, he looked out into the decaying, urban sprawl with a frown. It all looked eerily familiar to him. He’d been raised on a decaying urban world, and he wasn’t pleased to have to return to junkyard urban centers like you found commonly on Raxus. But, at the same time, this likely made him one of the best people for this job. He knew what to expect.

“Feels like being back home,” he said bitterly, and swept a hand back through his hair. His blue eyes were filled with a storm of mixed emotions and memories. He tugged his gloves on just a bit tighter. He breathed, and centered his mind. It wouldn’t do any good for him to be leaking errant thoughts on a world they knew to be inhabited by Sith.

“Alright, this is your op. What’s our first move?” Vahn asked, his voice low. He kept his head on a swivel looking for any potential eavesdroppers.

@Sreeya

 

[Sevrin Valtiere]

Sevrin quirked an eyebrow and glanced over at Vahn as he excitedly announced he was bringing explosives. He had certainly applied them on Sullust, “Covert, Vahn, covert,” The Sephi’s smooth voice reminded him as he gave a slightly stern look to the other man.

He strode out of the ship and began to walk towards the city districts. Sevrin cast a sideways glance as the other Jedi remarked about the planet reminding him of home. He didn’t need to ask to feel a sense of distaste coming from him. The Sephi wasn’t nosy by nature, and he remained silent as they walked, understanding that this dug up some unpleasant memories for Vahn.

“Correction,” He stated after a moment, “This is both of our operation. Things go sideways and it’s both of our rears answering to the council,” Amusement glinted in his eye as he pulled up his datapad.

“Apparently these characters have been spotted mainly around the poorer districts. Lots of reports of people mysteriously going missing but it’s never enough to catch any media attention,” The Sephi’s eyebrows rose as he glanced at Vahn, “We may need to talk to some of the local prostitutes. Thankfully you’re the charmer out of the two of us so I will….stand guard from a respectable distance.”

@The Steel Stag

 

[Marasi]

Marasi was the image of compliance as she walked behind the woman who was her key to cracking this whole assignment wide open. It had taken her the better part of a month, and almost all of her bribe allowance to get here, and she wasn't about to let all that go to waste by letting her ego get in the way. She served at the pleasure of the Eternal, and what it commanded got done.

"Are you listening girl?" Marasi suppressed the impulse to strike her down where she stood, but there would be enough time later for repayment. And there was much in that regard in the woman's future, Marasi would make sure of it.

"Yes mistress," she replied, just the hint of a fearful quiver in her voice, "every word mistress. Seek only the weakest, the most desperate, and those they keep company with." She got a glare in response, and a raised brow, waiting for more. "And I am not to speak to them, only to bring their names to you."

A satisfied nod was the only response she got, and they continued walking in silence for a few moments, before Marasi spoke up once more. She had been building up to this for some time now, buttering her up so that she would reveal more. "But how do you convince them mistress? What do you say?" A week ago such a question would have earned her a quick slap, but everyone had their buttons and Marasi had been pressing the right buttons for a week. She knew that wouldn't happen, this was another opportunity for showing off, and her "mistress" never missed such an opportunity.

"Potatoes girl," she replied in the most smug tone imaginable, again Marasi fought the urge to kill her, "potatoes. We give them food, and they fall in line." Marasi's act did slip at that reply, but thankfully the frown of frustration that formed on her face was what was expected of her. "Yes, they already have food, but we simply offer more. As the saying goes, two potatoes in the hand are better than one in the stomach."

Marasi simply nodded and continued walking. She didn't bother to correct her on what the actual saying was, nor did she even waste time wondering just how stupid this woman was. She had learned that on her very first day. No, what she was learning now was that the people she was recruiting might be even worse. And she did not know if that was good or bad. You could beat someone without even lifting a finger, all you had to do was convince them they had lost. But fools, fools weren't so easy to convince. And that might just be the type of the enemy she faced today.

@Sreeya @The Steel Stag

 

[Darth Caelestis]

"What do you mean you left the credits on the ship?" Artorigas shouted in the middle of the street. "Umm, sorry Sir but I thought they would be safer there than with us." The younger man replied looking around the street eyeing up a few shaddy looking people. "But you knew, we were coming out to buy droid parts! How did you think we would pay for them with no credits? You going to pay them with your arse?" He was pissed, they had come all this way across Sith space to purchase some droids for his upcoming plan now his apparent idiot servant Cydric had decided to leave their money back on the 'Wyvern'. The ship was halfway across the city at the spaceport, they had spent more than half a day combing across the planet looking for a dealer who was not charging an arm and a leg for a half built droid and now the sale was disappearing faster than a Klatooine paddy frog down a Hutts throat.

The Dug was not happy to wait and as they argued the shutter on the shop came down, business was closed for the day apparently and perhaps permanently with the Sith Acolyte and his useless servant. Artorigas rubbed his face with his hand wary of another day searching for the items he needed, he was becoming impatient with the whole thing, his time within the greater Sith hierarchy only pushed his desire to move things quicker not slower and mess ups like this only frustrated him further. "Go back to the ship, I'm done for the day I'm going to go get a drink." He said pointing Cydric back towards the ship. "But I thought you said you had no credits?" Artorigas had to hold himself from smacking the man upside the head, though Cydric seemed to notice and had braced himself for the pain. "I have enough for a few drinks." He replied between gritted teeth holding up a small credit chip. "Now give me that and leave." He pulled the mask from under Cydric's arm placing the metallic structure over his face. He had come accustomed to the presence of the mask over the past few weeks and now felt almost naked when walking among strangers without it.

He watched Cydric scurry away back up the road to the docks before turning and heading into the more seedy part of town, it was there he could get some good alcohol and maybe another lead on droid parts. He wore his usual half formal robes from Serenno. The Wessex family crest sitting over his chest, though in a place like Raxus that meant nothing, a long cloak hung over his shoulders to keep out the worse of the cold and also help conceal his blaster and long handled lightsaber hanging at his hip.

As he walked he wondered if he had enough coin for something a little more than a drink, perhaps the company of a pretty young lady, though looking at the coin, he might have to settle for something not as young or as pretty as he would like. At least he could let off some steam, it was either that or tie Cydric up and use his lightsaber to cut his hair again and he was sure the servant would desert if he tried it a second time, no Bacta could fix that ear. Dropping deeper into the worse parts of town he smiled behind the mask, only a few years ago he would never dared visiting such a disgusting sort of place. But now he relished the freedom of it, hidden behind this mask and the power of The Force.

@Sreeya @The Steel Stag @Wit

 

[Vahn Berand]

“I’m just saying. Sometimes if you level a building so that there isn’t anything left *to* detect it’s the same as if you snuck in all slick-like,” he protested, while making an explosive gesture with his hands. “Tell me I’m wrong.”

“Makes sense to me at least,” Vahn said after a moment, shrugging helplessly. He walked alongside Sevrin, trusting in his sense of direction as they made their way into the urban sprawl of Raxus.

He then winced as Sevrin corrected him. True, the blame would fall on both of their shoulders. He supposed they might as well not fail then. The Jedi had been having a goo run of things lately, but if the turn from Denon to Byblos told him anything it was that the fortunes of war could be fickle indeed. They needed to be at the top of their game at all times.

“Prostitutes are a good start. They watch out for each other because no one else will so they’re the first ones to hear of trouble. Also kids. Kids hear everything. Keep an eye out for a gaggle of the little shits. Got anything to give ‘em?” Vahn asked, already searching his pockets. “Food is good, money is better.” he stated, dredging up a handful of credit chits. He counted out small amounts of the unfamiliar, local currency.

“The local meat market shouldn’t be hard to find, just follow your nose to where the air smells most foul of sweat and urban decay. Sex workers will be more likely to give us a lead if they think we can solve a problem for them. Kids always want something in trade,” Vahn said. There were certain universals. Being a little snitch was one of the ways he kept food on his plate before he was old enough to be a thief that had a hope of not getting caught.

Truth be told, walk into any direction in a run down city like Raxus and you’re likely to run into someone desperate enough to need to resort to unsavory means of survival. The only variable was density. Vahn’s expression was tight from the familiarity of the city. This is where Vahn took the lead, staying a half step ahead of Sevrin in order to start guiding him through the seedier corners of the city.

Eventually, he put a hand out as the two Jedi turned a corner and Vahn gestured forward towards an older twi’lek woman seemingly loitering under a bright street light. People passed by, but she seemed to pay no mind aside from the odd pedestrian passing by. There would be a moment of observation, cunning eyes scanning the passerby’s body language, and occasionally a brief exchange before they parted ways. Vahn guessed no one was biting yet. He turned to Sevrin, and nudged him on the arm.

“There, she’s standing under the light so that she’s in plain sight and unmistakable, both to potential clients and…” his eyes wandered, scanning across the streets. “There. In the window, dude’s doing nothing but watching the street. I thought he was a creep at first but he’s not watching her specifically,” Vahn said, while gesturing curtly to a second story window where an older Duros man sat with one arm resting on the window sill. Every so often those big eyes would scan from one end of the street, down to the next, obviously searching for potential threats.

“Don’t stare, look outs get nervous when they’ve been made,” Vahn explained, and he actually turned away from the window to emphasize the point while nudging Sevrin into a nearby alley.

“Keep an eye out, I’ll see if I can get us a lead,” Vahn said.

“Ma’am,” Vahn said, “My friend and I are new here, but we’ve been hearing about some unsettling matters that have gotten us very concerned. We’d like to ask a few questions, and I know for a fact that it’s the people of the streets who have their fingers on the pulse of the city best of all.”

She seemed skeptical, her eyes darting towards the Duros at the window. Vahn could sense a spike of distrust and hostility from behind him. Vahn knew he surely had a blaster aimed at the back of his head. He knew this would get tense before it got easier.

“Ahntie,” he said. “Oyn menn you ne’ ‘arm.” he spoke in his native Lower City Tarisian accent. It would certainly be identifiable as one of the many street languages of the galaxy. He then did something else, something perhaps unexpected. He raised a fist to his heart with his little and ring fingers extended, and then lowered his hands, into an inverted triangle just below his navel. This was one of the many forms of street signage, signalling that he was the son of one of the ‘working women’ of the galaxy’s streets. To know this sign, in this context, would show that he was raised right, the thought to respect these vulnerable women drilled into his head from a young age. “Oyn swear on moyn ma’s sweat ‘nd blut.”

She pursed her lips, and seemed to consider the man before her. Tense moments passed, and then she then nodded, and waved dismissively towards the window. Vahn felt a palpable relaxation from behind.

“Okay. Okay, five minutes,” she replied. “For your ma’.”

“Thank you, ma'am,” Vahn nodded, before leading her back towards the alley where he had left Sevrin.

@Sreeya @Wit @Braden Drake

 

[Sevrin Valtiere]

Sevrin was silent the entire time Vahn explained about prostitutes and meat markets. He was quite frankly fascinated by all of this. Coming from nobility meant the Sephi was delightfully worthless on this topic.

“You appear to be an expert on the subject matter,” He said as they walked together. Sevrin followed along as Vahn pointed out the difference between people staring or simply hanging out. The Sephi stared blankly as Vahn told him not to stare, “It’s not me doing the staring that we have to worry about,” He said coolly. He had an uncanny ability to draw glances, which made his line of work always a bit more challenging.

Sevrin’s ears picked up Vahn switching over to a rather atrocious dialect, but it appeared to work on the woman. The Sephi remained a short distance away, hyper alert of everything going on around them. Within moments, the tension faded as Vahn succeeded in convincing the woman. Sevrin’s hand relaxed away from his saberhilt and returned to his side.

The woman’s heels clicked as she all but strutted back with Vahn. Her eyebrows rose a bit, “Say, who’s ya' friend? The one that looks like a hot vampire. Me and the ladies wouldn’t mind climbing that tall tree.”

Sevrin, whose fluted ears could pick up every single word, pointedly looked in the other direction. His face remained impassive and he stared at a light post as if it were the most fascinating thing ever.

His gaze shifted then when he heard movement approaching them. He heard them long before he could see them. However, he didn’t react, casually standing around as if he were just another sketchy dude in an alley.

@The Steel Stag @Braden Drake @Wit

 

[Marasi]

Marasi grew excited as they got closer and closer to their target, she hadn't actually been let into one of the bases before, and much of what she wanted to learn would only be possible once she did. The woman she followed, who called herself Tiss, was only willing to share so much. She needed access to more of her cohorts to get a real read on the situation.

As they rounded a corner, Tiss suddenly stopped, her eyes locked on a Duros figure on the second story of a building. "Wait." That was all she said, so Marasi observed on her own. Tiss might think her to be stupid, but she knew what to look out for. She saw two figures disappear into an alleyway, and at the same time the Duros gave Tiss the most subtle of nods. "Come." Tiss started walking again, a noticeable sense of urgency to her step. Marasi had her eyes open and spotted four figures moving towards the same alleyway, and as she and Tiss walked by the same alleyway she took a quick glance to spot two men, one particularly tall one, speaking with an older looking twi'lek woman.

The thugs approaching the alleyway were obviously working with the cult, and Marasi saw an opportunity that she could use to her advantage. Whatevr they were about to do, it had Tiss on edge, and Marasi knew that the woman did not do well will pressure. So she intended to pile it on, make it easier for her to manipulate and draw information from the idiot woman.

As they were walking past the alleyway she made the slightest of gestures with her left hand, and one of the thugs slipped and went crashing loudly to the ground. That was all the nudge Tiss needed as she let go of any pretense of caution and made a beeline for the building. Marasi followed, noticing with amusement the look of pure horror on the Duros' face on seeing the woman draw attention to herself in that manner.

@Sreeya @The Steel Stag @Braden Drake

 

[Darth Caelestis]

"Six credits for a beer, that man was living in the Inner Rim." He called back as he exited the first bar he found. He never expected a planet like Raxus to charge so much for so little, he could tell by looking at the beer his other patrons were drinking that it was passable at best, it was as pale as a Dathomirian's arse. Wouldn't get you pissed if you drunk a butt tun of it. Looks as if he would have to dive deeper into the undercurrents of the city before he would find something darker and stronger without costing him a Hutts ransom.

It was getting late, Cydric would be back at the ship by now and really if he was being sensible Artorigas should be returning as well. It done him no good to be out spending credits like this, he had more important things to do. "One last bar, lets see how it is, then head back." He said to himself as he rounded a corner, it looked like any other backwater street in the lower part of the city but it was what happened upon the street which caught his attention. He caught the arse end of two people entering an alleyway off to his left, it seemed he was not the only one who noticed as soon after four others began to move rather hastily towards that same alleyway.

This looked interesting to say the least, maybe he could spot someone with a good knack for a fight, that could come in handy down the road. Keeping to the opposite side of the street to the alleyway he started walking, his hand slipped inside his long cloak to rest on the blaster, just encase. Caution was always best applied in these kind of dens but drawing a lightsaber would pull more attention that he wanted, so it was blaster for now. He was about a third of the way to the alleyway when two others appeared they seemed to cross close by the larger group, then he saw, no felt something as one of the men stacked in clean onto his face.

The 'oof' as his face collided with the stone floor was audible all the way to Artorigas on the other side of the street, that was going to hurt. But that was not what had caught his attention, it was the cause of said trip. The young women, he recognised her presence, though he could not yet see the face, he felt that he had met her before.

Both her and the women she was with darted towards the building just in front of him. He kept his eyes locked on the younger of the too, trying to catch her eye to pull her face over to him, so he could put two and two together and hopefully, not find an ex.

@Sreeya @The Steel Stag @Wit

 

[Vahn Berand]

Vahn turned his gaze sharply back down the alleyway he had lead the twi’lek woman down. There was something...for a split second a brief flash of the Force, and then a snap of pain. He could also sense the presence of life, at least half a dozen figures out in the street behind them. His eyes narrowed and he exchanged a meaningful look with Sevrin. He was certain the Sephi could sense the same. Whoever was back there could use the Force, and they had just harmed someone. Who they were, what their intentions were beyond that were a mystery to him.They needed to make a quick change of plans.

“The ladies? Well, actually, now that you mention it, my friend here has been voidbound for, what, a good three months?” Vahn said, while giving Sevrin a friendly nudge on the shoulder. “Could really use a bit of unwinding while we clear the air about some of those local concerns of ours. Maybe you and a couple of your friends could come cut loose with us? Do you know a place? Somewhere safe and warm, of course. On your terms.”

“Well, if he just needs to unwind we could just tuck in around the corner over there….” Vahn raised his hands, shaking them as if to wave away the idea.

“Oh no, he’s very shy. He doesn’t like getting undressed in public if he can prevent it at all. Not since, well, the incident,” Vahn said, gesturing vaguely around his pelvis. “It’s all very sad, really.”

The twi’lek woman turned an appraising eye over the tall Sephi, and tapped a fingertip at her chin before sidling in against him, one hand comfortingly wrapped around his back to grip at his shoulder from behind.

“Oh honey, you’ve got nothing to be ashamed of, I’ve seen all sorts. Nothing can surprise me,” she whispered, just barely loud enough for even Vahn to hear. He could barely hide his gleeful grin.

“But if a bit of comfort is what this gorgeous man needs, my sisters and I would be glad to be of service.” She paused mid sentence, and bore a stern look at Vahn. His eyes widened in reflex.

“We can discuss your bill when we get there,” she said. Vahn wince at the strong emphasis on the word “your”.

"O... Of course, ma'am," Vahn replied.

She then took the initiative, leading the two Jedi through the alleys, deeper in at a casual, yet brisk pace encouraged by the long-legged strides of Sevrin and Vahn. The scent of bodies and urban decay grew stronger, and he couldn’t help but feel subtle disquiet. He kept his guard up however, his emotions bottled up behind the walls of his mind as he followed.

Vahn could tell this was not the first time the twi’lek woman had taken this path. It was like she was following a map in her head even as she tapped away at some kind of old model communicator.

“It’s right around the corner here,” she eventually said. “We’re going to treat you both right, honeys.” she mused, and kissed the air in Sevrin’s direction. She then lead them down a short set of misshapen old stone stairs that lead into the basement of some larger, dilapidated building. Vahn could sense a storm of emotions from within; there were at least a dozen people in the rooms beyond, embroiled in a whirl of lust, pleasure, jealousy, frustration, and simple catharsis. He gave a weak, sheepish look towards Sevrin as he followed the Twi’lek woman inside.

@Sreeya @Braden Drake @Wit