Ask Coruscant Gold Rush

[Jackie O]

Inky was in front of a retro gaming cabinet in the back. No one was really allowed back here, but this was her domain. The owners had long since learned not to mess with her.

There was a short stare-off between Six and the young slicer. "Hey hey hey..." Jackie said, stepping in between them. He took a step closer to Six. "Look..She's good. Trust me." he said, voice genuine.

He turned back to Inky. "Look, kid. We got a job, a big job. We could really use your help!" he said. "Oh yeah, is it to remove the stick about your girlfriend's butt." she said, snorting at her own joke. "It's not that hard of job." he said with a grin.

"What do I get?" she asked. "What do you want?" he asked. "A BILLION CREDITS!" she said, proud of herself. "Wh..What? No, be for real.." he said.

The girl thought for a second, hand dramatically tapping her chin. "The Arcade, two levels down, has the new Rancor Raiders game. They won't let me in because they banned me for "cheating"" she said with disgust. "Get me that game!" she said.

"..Allllright. We'll get the game. Meet us here tomorrow after school." he said. "Let's get you out of here before we both get in trouble." he said, opening the door for the little girl. She murmured in protest but went along with it. "See, told you I'd get her out." he spoke with Inky's mom. "Hey, did you do something with your hair? Looks good girl!" he said with a wink.

"Ew. Gross." Inky said from the back seat. Jackie tapped the outside of the speeder and stepped back. As the speeder pulled out of the alley, he stepped back to Six. "So how about one more detore!" he said. "Trust me, you're gonna love the kid's work." he said.

@Sreeya

 

[Cipher Six]

Six opened her mouth to retort to the girl’s rude comments. However when Jackie piped up, she shoved him. Of course, with her Firrerreo strength the playful shove was more of a drive into the wall next to him. Unfortunately, Inky only read this as old people flirting and gave a disgruntled sigh. Six stayed silent during the rest of their exchange, watching as the girl got in the speeder.

Jackie barely got done saying anything before Six turned to glare at him, “A kid?” She hissed, “What if something happens to her?” She asked. Six wasn’t supposed to be concerned about these things, but Tali wasn’t as icy as her other covers. It still fit with the profile, “Her mother doesn’t know what you just signed her up for..” She grumbled.

Six let Jackie lead the way to their next destination, “And it’s all for such a shitty game..” She remarked dryly, having already played the game in beta testing. It was nowhere near as good as its predecessors.

“How do you know them?” She asked quietly, her earlier irritation disappearing.

@Raydo

 

[Jackie O]

Her extra-human strength sent him stumbling forward slightly, catching himself on the nearby wall with a slight grunt. The deal was struck, and he stood next to her, blood starting to drip from his nose.

"Where do you think we are?!" he asked, lashing out at her judging tone. "Before I showed up, this level had roaming thugs who had no qualms about killing little kids. They are safer because of me." he said defiantly. "Her Mother trusts me, and so should you." he replied. “And you better watch who you are pushing around with those knifing Wookie arms of yours…” he said

"Pony up for another slicer if you want to sleep better tonight," he said, his voice still raised. "We will go get someone else and the kid can sit out, but I'm telling you, she is the best," he said.

He and his crew had been the place better, but he knew he was using the kid. Everyone got used here; it was the life they were born into. You got what you could out of it, and you moved on. The wealthier classes always had some moral judgments to pass, but he didn't see a gods damned one of them down here helping anyone.

"So what will it be?" he said, turning his red gaze on her.

@Sreeya

 

[Cipher Six]

Six was genuinely surprised and confused at how easily he knocked into the wall. She glanced down at her own hand. Maybe she needed to ease up on the gym. She wouldn’t fight him on the child beyond what she already said. She had run enough jobs to know that when people needed to be used, that was it. However, Tali was supposed to be an upper level businesswoman and would find all this rather horrifying.

“I didn’t realize a strong gust of wind could take you out,” She remarked dryly as she reached into her purse and took out a travel medkit, “Here, let me help,” She said, actually taking the time to help clean up the mess from his nose and giving him a small salve that would staunch the bleeding right away, “Sorry about that,” Six said quietly, not having intended any harm and genuinely apologetic, “Is showing me a good time off the table now?” She smirked. She hated using Inky on levels that went even beyond just the cover, but the job was always priority number one.

“Whatever, if it’s what we have, it’s what we have,” She said with a shrug, making her way back towards the repulsorlift. They were taken two levels down and once again into much worse conditions. The smell was back and she grimaced.

“So are you some type of Hobin Rood? Committing crime to help the poor?” She asked curiously. His impassioned vent about Inky and her mother was certainly telling.

@Raydo

 

[Jackie O]

"Strong gust of wind? Maybe if you didn't have Wookie arms.." he shot back. He tilted his head back, the salve quickly stopping the bleeding. "Hey, we will just say I won at AMS Blaster and call it even.." he said, a relaxed grin returning to his face. "The bloody nose does it for ya, huh?" he replied. "Didn't strike me as the type, but..." he said, trailing off with a suggestive shrug.

She would see, Inky was the best, and she would be far away from any of the action. They would have her back in time for dinner the following day if they could pull off this heist, that is...

Calmer now, he let out a breath. "It ain't like that..." he said. "Ya gotta help out the neighborhood..." he said, lighting another cigarette as they moved back down the lift. "It's just how things work down here." he said. There were crews that just oppressed the areas they were in, but they never seemed to last long. Sooner or later, people got tired of the shit, and another crew came in and wiped them out. Jackie wanted something more. This weapons factory was the key to starting building on that dream.

"What about you? You just wonder the slums, getting people to kill each other so you can swoop in and make a few credits?" he asked. "If you wanted to make some real money, I know some underground boxing rings where we could make a killing off those arms of yours...damn girl." he said, glancing down at her arms before returning an appreciative gaze back to her.

@Sreeya

 

[Cipher Six]

Six scoffed, “Please, you could punch in the Komani Code and you’d still lose to me in AMS Blaster,” She quipped back, unashamed of revealing the depth of her dorkiness when it came to classic gaming. She could tell he was entirely too invested in what happened to the people here, and it was exactly what created liabilities. However, Tali Karn was more ‘human’ and could sympathize.

She walked with him towards the district with the arcade. Unlike the other place, she could see why Inky wouldn’t be allowed around these parts. There were gentlemen’s clubs lining the streets and drugged up citizens leaning against walls. Six paid it no heed, spotting what looked like an arcade up ahead.

“I’m just a middle man,” She explained, “I’d be fine with you in charge of operations in the weapons facility,” She said as she looked at him, “As long as it’s funneled where it needs to be, I don’t care who runs it. Maybe you can give it a makeover and turn it into a legitimate business,” She said, the idea formulating in her head. It sounded like a win win - people in the lower districts could get jobs.

Six had to chuckle at his quip about the fighting rings, “What, you got a tough chick kink?” She asked with a smirk. However, the thought of a fighting pit sounded entertaining, “I’ve only heard of fighting rings. Never seen one. Would love to see a…show..” It was a show, right? Or was it actually real in these districts? She suddenly looked surprised.

@Raydo

 

[Jackie O]

"Whatever you say, nerd." he said, pretending the loss never even happened. It burned him up secretly on the inside; he would likely spend hours practicing after this job was finished.

"Well, there is a whole lot of less than legitimate work to get there, but maybe..." he said with a shrug. It would be nice to be a bit more legit, not having to look over his shoulders for the law all the time. He wasn't naive enough to get his hopes up, there was still a lot of time for this deal to go sour.

"I ain't sayin' no..." he responded to her comment. "Gotta keep an open mind about these things..." he continued as they came to a stop in front of their target. They blended in enough that they were in no rush, so he leaned up against the building on the far side of the street. "Its a show, alright." he said. "We should go sometime; we'll turn you into a street rat yet." he said with a smile.

"They should be closing soon; then we can move. Shouldn't be too hard to pop in, and find the cabinet. The hardest part is going to be transporting back up to Blix's." he said, looking down at his chrono. They should close with in the next five minutes or so.

@Sreeya

 

[Cipher Six]

Six nodded, “All right, if we make it out of this, we’re going to see a fight,” She declared. It was different from what she expected when they joked about having a good time, but it sounded exhilarating. Combat for her was always part of the job and a fight or flight scenario. To see it as an art form would be something else entirely.

“You do have a way in, right?” She asked suspiciously. Tali didn’t have any skills with breaking into places even if Six did. She had to play dumb. Some of her covers irritated her to no end, but she couldn’t break the facade. She had to rely entirely on Jackie to slice or find some other way in.

“How are you planning to move the game with your noodle arms?” Six asked with a smirk. If she had wookiee arms, he was definitely getting some shit from her as well.

When they arrived, the arcade closed up. However, there was just one worker that lingered outside. The Cathar was leaning against a wall texting away on his EZPhone. Six grimaced at the sight. Technically they could probably navigate around him, but it would be much easier with him gone. Tali wasn’t specialized in this, so she glanced at Jackie for a suggestion.

Obstacle roll: 9/20

@Raydo

 

[Jackie O]

He chuckled. "If?" he said, lazily glancing over. "Your confidence is inspiring." he said, shaking his head. Maybe it was a delusion; maybe it was just optimism, but Jackie thought it would all work out, and if he were too wrong, they'd be dead, and he wouldn't much care then either. "But yeah, when we make it through this, we'll go." he said with a smirk.

"I mean, its not a fuckin' bank." he said, the one younger Cathar employee hanging in the area. They could deal with him in a number of ways. Beyond that, some simple lock-picking would get them in.

"Why do you think I brought you..." he said, pushing himself off the wall, turning, and giving her a wink. Jackie casually strolled up to the arcade worker, deep in his phone. "Yo boyo." he said, his voice dipping into a street cant accent. "You lookin' for work? Willin' to pay someone to help me borrow a game from your boss." he said, the meaning behind his words clear. "I ain't helpin' you steal from my boss!" the Cathar said.

Jackie took a step closer "Then you gonna take these 50 credits, take your girl for a nice meal, and forget this ever happened." he said, palming the credits in his jacket and slapping them in the Cathar's palm. "If that don't work out, maybe we come back and have an unpleasant chat...you catch what I mean?" he said, meeting the guy's eyes.

The Cathar made minimum wage, 50 credits would be huge, and he wasn't about to die for this shithole job. Maybe he would just quit and move on with his life. He took the credits and walk hurriedly away from the shop.

He glanced back at Six across the street, nodding to the alley where the side door was. "See? Ain't a thing." he said once they were back together.

@Sreeya

 

[Cipher Six]

Six had to admire his method of operating. He didn’t actively threaten the Cathar or rough him up, choosing instead to pay him off. Was that money for a potential meal? For rent? Was it worth spending that to avoid an altercation? It was her job to study people and surroundings, and she found this Chiss rather curious. In her experience, hush money almost never worked because they kept coming back for more to ‘keep from slipping up’.

She only smiled and shook her head when Jackie walked back, keeping her thoughts to herself. It was easy to get in through the side door, and she once again found herself fascinated by all the vintage gaming systems. She stopped to inspect each and every one, rambling about some trivia before moving on.

At last, they came across the Rancor Raiders system. Six stared at it, “She seriously expects us to lug this thing up two levels without anyone noticing?” She asked in exasperation. She unplugged it and tried to look for ways to hoist it up, “Find a repulsorsled or something,” Six called out to Jackie, “Maybe if we put a tarp over it, we can make it look like regular boring cargo..”

This was by far one of the most bizarre things she had done on a job. Six looked around for cameras. She only spotted one that looked old and janky. In fact, it was propped up with a popsicle stick and some tape. It was set in the direction of the front door alone so they were fine.

@Raydo

 

[Jackie O]

Lockpicking the side door was nothing; the door clicking open almost immediately. They walked inside. This place was run down compared to the Blix's, but they had somehow scored a Rancor Raiders cabinet which was set up towards the back of the floor.

"ARE YOU READY TO RAID?!" it blared as 8-bit music started to play, the demo flashing across the screen. "I mean, another good slicer might have cost us the price of an actual rancor." he said with a shrug. It was certainly an exaggeration, but they were still getting a slicer for next to nothing.

Jackie took the back in search of a lift of something. "There..has..to..be...Oh! Here it is." he said to himself, sliding the lift out. It hovered a few inches off the ground. With a running start, he jumped onto the repulsor sled and shot towards the door to the game room. He was going a lot faster than he had intended. With a shift of his weight, he spun slightly, coming out the door. He almost collided with Six but managed to slide to a halt just before. "Got it!" he said, glad he didn't eat shit coming out of the room.

He clicked a foot petal, locking the sled in place. "This thing looks heavy as fuck." he made the super obvious observation. "The Tarp is a good idea, though; we will have to check the back again." He got around the one side. "Alright, lend me your Wookie strength." he said, nodding to the other side. "3..2...1..LIFT!" he said, grunting as he lifted his side. They inched it toward the sled.

@Sreeya

 

[Cipher Six]

“Whoa whoa!” She barely jumped out of the way as Jackie came careening in with the repulsorsled. How uncivilized. She stood up straight, moodily placing a few errant strands of hair back into place. Admittedly, that looked more fun than she cared to admit, her gaze lingering on the repulsorsled. She had seen a million of those things and had never once thought to ride on one…

Six walked around the other side, grabbing the edges. She hated doing manual labor like this, but with Jackie practically giving credits away, she had a feeling it would come down to them two doing the heavy lifting. Literally. She reached down and lifted with her back. As expected, she had an easier time than Jackie in hoisting the machine up.

For a moment everything was okay, until a heavy chunk from the bottom of the system collapsed and fell right on her foot.

“OUCH!” She yelped in surprise, searing pain traveling from her foot. Her eyes watered and she released the game. She was sure her toe was broken, but she was in too much pain to move the thing, “Lift it..lift it..” She whispered urgently, her body trembling from the pure agony.

As if to add insult to injury, the backup battery kicked in from the collapse so the demo started to play on the screen. A cartoon rancor started flexing and dancing on the display.

“IT’S RAIDIN’ TIME! RANDY RANCOR IS READY TO PLAY!”

There was a loud thud as Six angrily punched the side of the game to leave a dent.

@Raydo

 

[Jackie O]

They lifted. "What the hell do they make this stuff out of..." he grunted as they slid closer to the lift. Something dropped off the bottom and apparently slammed into Six's foot. He grunted again as she dropped her side.

She begged him to lift, and he grabbed the machine, mustering all his might, and lifted the thing off her foot. He slid the last inch or so onto the sled even as the stupid machine screamed in his ear. With a couple more pushes, it was on the sled. He peeked around the machine as there was a loud bang, seeing Six pull a fist back from the machine. The game's audio skipped with the sudden jostle of her fist, but it soon resumed its normal loop.

Jackie reached down and switched the machine off, and they were left in silence again. "You alright?" he said, moving around the machine to get a good look at her. Noticing she wasn't putting weight on her foot. "Fuuckk." he said, pulling over a bar stool from a nearby game. "Sit." he said. They would need to leave quickly, but she wouldn't be moving anywhere fast. "Let me take a look." he said, kneeling down to gently pull off her shoe. "Don't kick me...." he said before starting, knowing it would likely hurt a bit getting it off if it was truly broken.

@Sreeya

 

[Cipher Six]

Six was still trembling from the stupid game being dropped on her foot. She had been combat many times before and in all sorts of terrifying scenarios. Yet, she couldn’t have foreseen something silly like this. She eased into the stool that Jackie brought over, still surprised that he managed to singlehandedly lift the system off her foot, “Well look at you, tough guy," She managed to quip through her eyes watering.

She almost objected against him going anywhere near her feet, but he was already dropping down to take the shoe off, “Don’t touch the heel,” She warned breathlessly without an explanation. Six bit down on her lip, her nails digging into the stool while he peeled the shoe off. She didn’t make a sound, but her body language revealed it was bad.

While it may not have been a full break, there was definitely a thin fracture. Her perfectly manicured foot was already swelling. Six cursed at her luck, “I’m fucked,” She declared, “Think we can catch your Cathar friend? I’ll pay him to actually do the job,” She suggested, angry at herself. How could she not have predicted janky, old game systems?

“Otherwise you’re going to have to wheel me out of here too,” Six said with a soft chuckle. She tried standing up, but the pain was almost unbearable. Being a super spy didn’t mean she was immune to pain.

@Raydo

 

[Jackie O]

He flexed slightly. "Must be like those Halos where a mom lifts a burning speeder off a kid or something..." he thought. "...and obviously, I work out." he joked, winking at her as he knelt down. Jackie wasn't out of shape but was more lean than muscular.

He went slow, avoiding her heel as he didn't think he'd much like the taste of his own teeth. "Oh yeah, that's rough looking. I have some stuff that would help with the pain if you want, but you should get this looked at. I don't think its supposed to be turning that color." he said. His medicine was not exactly legit, but it was what he had, and it would make her feel better...

"Nah, that kid is long gone. I'll push you out of here; don't you worry one bit." he said. "Alright, be back in a flash." he continued, disappearing again and coming back a moment later with the straps and a tarp. "So when you say you want to be wheeled ou of here, do you want to be under or over the tarp?" he asked, completely serious.

@Sreeya

 

[Cipher Six]

Color? Her foot was changing colors? She took a closer look and it definitely wasn’t looking so hot. She groaned to herself, knowing it would only get worse if she tried standing on it. Six was still furious at herself, but she pushed the thoughts aside. Tali was just a regular businesswoman, not a professional agent. She could afford to cut herself some slack technically. She blinked with wide eyes when Jackie asked about whether she’d be under or over the tarp.

“I…what..” She hadn’t been serious about being wheeled out. However, they were running out of time and Six wasn’t egotistical enough to limp along on a practically broken foot to slow them both down. She pondered for a moment before she hopped over and plopped down on the repulsorsled, “I’ll pretend to be your drunk girlfriend that you’re graciously taking back home. I’ll be distracting and no one will care about the game,” She explained as she elbowed the system again to make Randy Rancor shut the hell up in his two bit voice. If he started gabbing away during the transport they would have a lot of explaining to do.

The idea was stupid and brilliant in her opinion - upon observing all the drunkards and spiced out people along these districts, she wouldn’t be out of place whatsoever. Six sat down with her prized shoes, letting him push her out.

As they were out in the street, she started swaying back and forth, purposely belting a song at the top of her lungs, “What shall we do with a drunken sailor! Early in the mornin’!” She threw in a giggle as she sang the old timey pirate shanty. There was a muffled "Randy Rancor's Ready to Rumble!!" that resounded and Six loudly bellowed over it, “Come on, baaaaabe, sing with meeee!” There was a very convincing hiccup. The acting was astonishingly accurate to where even Jackie would wonder if she was actually blitzed or not.

Passerby didn’t even bat an eye. A few people shook their heads as they looked at Jackie in a “solidarity, brother” sort of way.

@Raydo

 

[Jackie O]

He returned a moment later, tarp in hand. She seemingly made her decision to be over the tarp. He threw the tarp over the machine and strapped it down so it wouldn't kill his injured partner. He loved her plan, it was just silly enough for people to give them an overlook and just turn the other way.

"Alright, love. Hold on!" he said, spinning the sled and heading for the side door they had come in. He stood on the back of the sled, pushing it like a cart with one foot as they drifted around the corner onto the street.

Her song was loud, it was off-key, it was perfect. They caught looks as they sailed past onlookers, but according to plan, they weren't paid a 2nd thought. She called out for him to join in as he met the eye of one passerby who shot Jackie an apologetic look. Jackie touched his head and gave the man a lazy salute before joining "EARLY IN THE MORNIN'!!" he sang, continuing to push their cart before gliding again. He banged out a steady rhythm on the back of the arcade game as they "sailed" down the street.

@Sreeya

 

[Cipher Six]

Six kept singing purposely off key. Her voice was like nails on a chalkboard, but she was having fun with it. Clearly so was Jackie with the way he rode the repulsorsled all the way into the lift and up two levels. Once they were in the clear, Six finally stopped singing. She looked over at the Chiss and burst out laughing. It was unexpected and completely genuine, and she couldn’t help it. Six thought about how he played along and also belted the song and started laughing even more, her eyes practically watering from the thought of it.

“You are something else,” She said as she finally began to calm down from laughing, still smiling. Six’s foot didn’t feel any better, but they were out of danger of being caught. The journey to the arcade on this level went off without a hitch, and the game was placed with the others. It certainly looked like it belonged there - even the dent added character.

Six finally rose from the repulsorsled, wincing as she put some weight on her legs. She hopped over to take a seat, inspecting her toes again, “Do you have a medkit or anything here?” Six asked. She had all her supplies back on her ship, but getting there would be a pain. She knew with a bit of bacta, she would at least be able to walk again.

@Raydo

 

[Jackie O]

They entered the elevator, their song crescendoing to a climax as the doors closed. There was a second pause of silence when...

"ARE YOU READY TO RAID!?" the muffled arcade machine played again. They both burst into laughter. Jackie buckled over slightly with the laughter that filled his chest. It was hard to breathe. "I told you I'd show you a good time! You'll learn." he said, actual joy glinting in his normal blank red gaze.

The rest of the ride went off without incident. He unloaded the cabinet, pushing it into place and plugging it in. He dusted off his hands, turning back to Six. "Well...no BUT! I'll call Mama Din, she's a healer or witch or somethin'," he said with a shrug. "But I'm sure she could fix you right up!" he said.

"Come on, we can meet the rest of the crew while we wait," he said, shooting a quick text to Mama Din to meet them at the pad. "I was gonna say I'd kick your ass in Rancor Raiders, but the game already did that for me.." he said as he helped load her back on the cart.

@Sreeya

 

[Cipher Six]

“Healer or witch..?” Six repeated, unsure whether to or cry. She really was on the set of Trick’d and just waiting for someone to jump out and shout it. The day was getting more and more bizarre by the second. As usual, however, she rapidly adapted to the situation. She watched him set the game up, listening to Randy Rancor come to life.

“One round,” She called out, even through the pain in her foot. Her competitive nature was coming out ahead. There was the fact that she was beginning to enjoy Jackie’s company, but she wasn’t going to admit that out loud anytime soon.

Six hopped over towards the game, waiting for him to do his coin trick before she leaned over to start playing. She was using the machine to hold herself up, but she was going to get just one round in, dammit! Right away, she was coasting through the levels, raiding all the dungeons and picking up the best loots.

Roll: 17/20

@Raydo