Meeting the Guild

[Nujina Trilaet]

Cantonica, Canto Bight Spaceport
Outer Rim - Midday​

Cantonica wasn't a planet that Nujina had visited before, it was on her list of places to visit but she had hoped it wouldn't be like today. Walking into the Canto Bight Spaceport again she looked around, most of the people that walked in and out of the tourist world's spaceport looked to be either extremely rich or extremely poor and was there to work, whether it was willingly or not, Nujina didn't want to know.

As she maneuvered the crowds, bumping into the occasional person that didn't look where they were going, she managed to get back to her ship. Walking into the hangar she looked at the ship she had bought a while ago and damn if it didn't feel good to not be reliant on others for getting around anymore. Walking up to the ship she placed a cloth bag against one of the landing gears before lowering the boarding ramp. The sound of the ramp lowering drew out a smile from the Twi'lek as she went to pick up the bag when the Datapad at her side beeped.

Taking it out she unlocked it and glanced down at the text that scrolled through it, mostly it was just the regular news updates she had had it programmed to show once a day but among the articles there was one which stood out a bit.

"The Free Trade Guild is looking for Pilots, Couriers and Contractors."

Humming to herself she leaned down and grabbed the bag before walking up into the ship and raising the ramp as she walked in to sit down in the small mess hall which she was in the middle of making home. Opening up the Article she read it through and leaned her head back, while she was doing alright on her own, an entire guild who could throw jobs her way would be way better than what she was currently rocking. Looking back down onto the ad she bit her lower lip and scrolled further down until she found the person to Contact. Daesh'afenn, hmh, a Twi'lek? Now this certainly got a whole lot more interesting.

Leaning across the couch she was sitting in she grabbed the Comm-link that had fallen to the floor and sat up once again, looking at the ad once again before putting in the details for the Comm-link and recorded her message. Stating her interest, current location and duration for her stay. As she didn't know how long it'd take for Daesh'afenn to show up, she might as well take a short vacation before going to Nar Shaddaa for her latest job, they weren't in a hurry after all.

Pushing herself up from the couch the Twi'lek walked through the ship and lowered the boarding ramp again, she had to refuel before she headed out anyway, so, might as well get that done before she forgot it.

@The Captain

 

[Daesha Keever]

Nujina Trilaet. A Twi'lek courier on Canto Bight, apparently interested in joining the burgeoning Free Trade Guild. Her commlink message noted that she found an online advertisement for the group, one of the few that Daesha put out to try and reel in some extra pilots. Seven pilots wasn't exactly a force to be reckoned with, and Daesha didn't have a professional courier in her roster yet. Eice's ship was fast and she was a damned good pilot, but that girl was a part timer at best, and if Daesha was going to keep this operation on the cutting edge she needed every kind of pilot that she could get her hands on. She just wished that the pilot had come to her rather than her having to come to the pilot, Daesha liked a home-field advantage and Canto Bight was a pain in the ass to reach. Their customs enforcement and local guards were wound way too tightly for Daesha's liking, so she had to strip all the contraband from her ship and leave her blasters behind before she entered the space port. Her armor was subtle enough to fit under her clothes, but she still felt naked without her blasters. It had taken a day or two to reach the planet, hyperspace had its limits after all, but Daesha knew the ship that Trilaet would be flying so she decided to make her way over there. So as not to stick out like a massive, swollen, sore thumb, Daesha had opted for a nice pair of boots, a fine leather jacket, and a piece of decorative Twi'lek headwear. She clearly wasn't a high-roller or a Canto Bight native, but she didn't look like a guttersnipe, so that would have to do.

She soon spotted the ship she was looking for and began to make her way across the hangar toward it, although she didn't see anyone walking around the ship, Twi'lek or otherwise. The ramp was also shut, so there was a chance the Twi'lek just wasn't home, which would make finding her a pain in the ass on a world like Canto Bight. Still, she had to try here first, right? She knocked on the ramp hard and spoke.

"Nujina Trilaet?"

 

[Nujina Trilaet]

After she had sent out the reply message to this Daesh'afenn, she had kicked back and begun to relax, taking it as a short vacation and had decided to try and enjoy the world while she waited for whoever it was that was going to meet her. So, she had gotten drunk, way drunker than she should have. So, the first day after the message had been sent she was happy that they hadn't showed up, as she could just lay in her bunk and groan in what might have been the worst headache in recorded Galactic History. Day two, however, she felt much better, or it could have been day three, she wasn't sure how long she had slept but felt somewhat refreshed, being rather thankful that the headache was long gone.

After dressing up in her normal pre-flight attire, consisting of her Flight-jacket, utility pants and vest she headed out into the Spaceport to pick up some small things she had written up that she needed to buy before she headed off world next. Having picked up some clamps, wrenches, welding tools and the best tool ever created, hammer, she felt like she had everything she needed to get started. Heading back to the ship she crossed the Hangar and found herself wondering what it would be like to work with a larger business once again, last she had been a part of anything was the Serennian Navy. As her walk through the Spaceport began to draw to an end, she found herself looking at someone inside the hangar, stopping dead in her tracks when she observed the figure seemingly surveying her ship. The lekku gave it away as a Twi'lek and when the figure asked for her by name, and a feminine one, it all clicked. Readjusting her grip on the plastic box she had picked up to carry the tools she walked up to the ship and the figure next to her. "You could knock all you want, I wouldn't hear you." She said and brought out the small controller to lower the boarding ramp.

While the ramp lowered itself she put down the box of tools on the ground and extended her hand to the blue skinned Twi'lek with a smile. "Nujina Trilaet, Courier and former Fighter Pilot." She said with a grin and slight nod. "Would you like something to drink? Must've been a long trip from where ever you came from to here." The Twi'lek added and awaited the other's reply. From a first glance, she certainly didn't look like a Pilot or Courier, the finer looking jacket and the decorative headwear, compared to Nujina's own which had seen its share of combat. Perhaps she was just the recruiter and normally spent time behind a desk? Nujina had found that her people judging skills had been severely dulled as of late, and the still latent hangover certainly did not help her in trying to read the other without too much chatting. But hey, what could you do about a hangover that threatened to split your skull down the middle?

 

[Daesha Keever]

The sound of a Ryl accent caused Daesha to turn toward the woman walking up the spaceport toward her, dressed in the fine and well-worn hallmarks of a veteran pilot. She was an orange-skinned Twi'lek, of average height for their species, with the look of someone trained to subtly survey the world around them for danger, although she appeared to be suffering from something of a headache. She'd probably been drinking the night before or just come home from the cantina or something, nothing to worry about. After all, Daesha had made Herrith one of her seconds-in-command, and that girl was madness incarnate and bathed in spice, there unless Nujina was secretly two kids in a trench coat or a literal ghost she probably couldn't surprise Daesha.

"Daesh'afenn, freighter pilot." Daesha took her hand in a firm shake, happy to get such a professional introduction for once. Although it did make her wonder if Nujina knew what she was getting into. "No thanks, and it wasn't that long of a trip, I was in the system on business. Speaking of which, do you want to take this conversation inside?"

 

[Nujina Trilaet]

As Daesh'afenn introduced herself as a freighter Pilot, she managed to surprise Nujina, she certainly didn't look like one from her current outfit, but the firm handshake told a different story compared to the clothes she was wearing. It seemed that Nujina had a lot of work to do with her people reading skills again as her first judgement of the blue-skinned Twi'lek had been off by quite a shot. With the other Twi'lek asking if they should take the conversation inside the ship Nujina put herself a bit on guard but nodded. "Pleasure to meet you, Daesh'afenn. And that's probably wise, don't know who might be eaves droppin' round here anyway." Nujina spoke and leaned down, picking up the box of tools from the ground. "It's a bit messy however, so, don't tell me I didn't warn ya."

Chuckling Nujina walked up the boarding ramp and headed into the ship, dropping the plastic box of tools on a workbench that she had had installed so she had somewhere to tinker when she was just drifting in space. Coming straight into the ship from the boarding ramp one was greeted by a sparsely littered hallway that contained a few bags and racks that held a couple of tools already, and after Nujina had placed out the recent acquisitions she put the plastic box inside a locker before heading up a metal ladder and into what had become her living room. Inside the room turned Living room was a comfortable looking couch next to a small table. On the wall behind the couch a Serennian flag was pinned up, underneath the main motif was the text "Taillights.", which had been her unofficial name among her peers in the Serennian Navy when she still flew for them.

On the opposite side of the room there was a relatively clean looking cooking station, fridge and a few cabinets that stood open, containing rations from all over the galaxy, along with a few mugs spread out here and there. As Nujina walked into the Living room she walked over to the couch and sat down beneath the flag, taking the bottle of water from the table in front of her and unscrewed it to take a sip from it. "So, you're looking for Pilots and Couriers, well, I'm glad to tell you I can fill both roles." She said when Daesh'afenn stepped into the room and smirked at the Blue-skinned Twi'lek. "As long as the benefits outweigh the dangers of course." If there was one thing that Nujina had learned rather early in her career as a Courier, was to charge well, and not only for the distance traveled, but to also take into account the amount of danger she put herself through. Though Daesh'afenn looked like the kind of Employer who took care of her employees, but, as she had found out earlier, Nujina's people reading skills really needed work.

Taking another swig from the bottle of water she screwed the cork back on and sat the bottle back up on the table, the ball was now on Daesh'afenn's side of the field and it was now her turn to kick it back.

@The Captain

 

[Daesha Keever]

"Well, it can't be worse than Herrith's ship." Even if she wasn't here, Daesha couldn't help but make a crack at her friend Herrith's expense. Even after the overhaul that they had given to her ship, the Zia, somehow it always ended up dirty and cluttered again. At least the damn thing flew straight, so that was a bonus.

Daesha followed Nujina up into her ship, which wasn't nearly as unkempt as the other Twi'lek implied, walking through her clearly well-used work area and up into her living room. This answered at least one of Daesha's questions automatically, as there was a Serennian flag pinned up on the wall with the word 'Taillights' bolted underneath. So, Nujina had flown for the Serennian Navy? Daesha couldn't think of any other reason to pin up the flag and a military-esque callsign underneath it. If that was true then Nujina was definitely no slouch in the cockpit, as the navy was the only part of Serenno's military that hadn't been shot to kark during the Jedi Civil War. It also probably meant that she had a reason for leaving, or being forced to leave, the force.

She'd save those questions for later, as she followed Nujina to the couch, sitting in a chair across from her and facing the Twi'lek. She was cautious, good, Daesha needed more cautious pilots in her ensemble. She knew some good people, some great flyers, but the ratio of balls to brain cells in her organization was way off.

"Ah, but mortal danger is the spice of life." Daesha joked, leaning back in her seat. "But yes, I wouldn't be here if I was giving you a raw deal. This little organization of mine, think of us like a Bounty Hunter's Guild for pilots. We can help you network, provide supplies, keep you flying, and even provide backup if things go wrong on a job. We've got a facility on Ord Mantell right now, a warehouse and hangar combo with all the necessary fixings for a garage if you need your ship tuned up. Whether that tuning fits Republic regulation is up to you, though."

This was Daesha's first hint that her guild wasn't exactly a prim-and-proper legal trade guild, just in case Nujina didn't realize it yet.

 

[Nujina Trilaet]

As Dashe'afenn found probably the only chair that wasn't in the cockpit and sat it down before the table before sitting down herself, Nujina looked at her potential new contact. The joke showed some self-awareness and it drew a smile from the Orange-skinned Twi'lek as she chuckled, "You're damn right about that." She ssaid with a grin and listened to Daesha's explanation of what the Guild could provide to someone who flew for them. So, what she was offering was essentially what Nujina was doing right now, but on her own, with a whole lot less security. It was a tempting concept and she was certainly rather intrigued by the idea of working with a large amount of people with a chance to make even more credits than she was right now.

Considering she just had coughed up quite a bit of credits in buying this ship, her reserves was starting to wane a bit, but they were also at the same time slowly picking up again, at a more exponential rate than previous, now that she could take on more jobs at the same time. Then Daesha said something that caused Nujina to straighten her back for a moment and lean forward, resting her forearms on her knees she folded her hands together and with a tilt of her head she looked at the Blue-skinned woman. This just got a whole lot more interesting along with the danger levels skyrocketing. "So, what kind of non-regulation cargo do you tend to ship?" Nujina asked and turned her head to the side with a raised brow.

From her time in the Serennian Navy, she had encountered plenty of pirates and smugglers, shipping contraband from one system to the other, passing through Serennian space at the same time, and although most of the contraband had been confiscated, not everything had been found. So, if the Guld wasn't a bunch of rookies who thought they knew what they were doing, there was a good chance that they could get away with smuggling, and with Nujina on their roster, Serenno would be a much easier smuggling target as she could use her contacts to get in and out of security a whole lot easier. "Oh, and how much of a Cut does the Guild take for providing jobs and contacts? Surely you must get something out of having people running around the Galaxy doing errands for you?"

Nujina asked her final question before leaning back, she hadn't tried smuggling things herself, as she hadn't had the opportunity to do so with her lack of ship, but now, she had a light Freighter for herself that could have some rooms remodeled into storage compartments. Smuggling would also prove a new challenge for the former Fighter Pilot, something she felt that had been missing in her life since she resigned, the thrill of looking over your shoulder each time you entered a new system would make each trip feel reinvigorating again. So, while she awaited the other Twi'lek's response, she leaned back, having made up her mind already, but didn't let her face give it away, as the negotiation phase was about to begin.

 

[Daesha Keever]

Daesha was starting to like this girl, she had the devil-may-care swagger of a true smuggler, and if she was ex-military she would have the skills to boot. At first her seemingly concerned reaction to the concept of 'non-regulation cargo' had Daesha worried, but her concern soon turned to interest, and her question did seem rather genuine.

"Well, for starters we don't traffic in anything with a pulse, so you don't need to worry about any 'live cargo'." Daesha refused to traffic in slaves, poaching, or passengers for a litany of moral and practical reasons, so she kept them off the table in her guild. "Our usual fare is arms, armor, substances like medicine and spice, anything that local customs might cock an eye at."

As long as people wanted things, there were people who didn't want them to have those things, and there were people who could get those things for them. Smugglers were a natural part of the galactic economy, and Daesha had been a smuggler for the better part of her life. She knew the ins and outs of the black market like the back of her hand, and she only recruited the best. Well, at least the best people that she knew, but she knew a lot of people.

"Oh yeah, the cut." Probably the biggest sticking point in her sales pitch, asking people for money from their jobs. "Well the fee goes more to all the services and stuff we do for our pilots, but we aren't a huge organization so our current rate is 15%. If we get bigger we can lower the cut since we'll have more money coming in, but for now that's the best we can do."

It seemed that Nujina wasn't one-hundred percent clear on the nature of the guild, so Daesha decided it was time to clarify.

"We aren't a corporation or cartel or anything, we're sort of a trade union like the Bounty Hunter's Guild. We set up contracts and jobs, yes, but we're mostly about helping out independent pilots, you still get to decide what you do and when you do it, so long as we get the percentage, you go to the odd meeting, and you don't do anything really, really, really stupid."

 

[Nujina Trilaet]

Looking at Daesha she wondered what went through the woman's head right now, she seemed to have the other's interest and that was a positive thing. When Daesha went and explained that they did not do any 'live' cargo, that put away any kind of trafficking that had begun to become more and more common in the Outer Rim during the later years of the war as people tried to escape from worlds by using smugglers, only to end up as slaves. But, the biggest thing she somewhat worried about had been dismissed and she could relax a bit as she nodded. Smuggling weapons, armor and drugs was something she was surprisingly alright with, it was probably the least dangerous things one could smuggle and it was much better than trying to ship people around the galaxy while keeping them pacified in some cabinet.

During her time in the Navy she had encountered several weapon smugglers, trying to bring black market weapons to Serenno only to have the border patrols catch them, she could understand those who felt the need to resort to black market acquisitions if it meant they felt safer when they were at home. The spices however, was a bit touchier, she was used to stuff like Gabaki getting swept under the occasional rug, but she had also seen people get charged with very long sentences for trying to bring in Deathsticks or other dangerous spices that could kill you if you didn't use caution, but then again, those who consumed that kind of drug usually didn't use caution.

When Daesh'afeen said what the cut was, Nujina was rather surprised, only fifteen percent? That was less than some of her current contacts would charge for a job and it would probably mean that she'd be able to outfit this ship with some modifications that she had been eyeing, a lot faster than she had expected. Perhaps get herself an apartment somewhere too. Crossing her arms across her chest she listened as Daesha more clearly clarified what the Guild was like. It had, in Nujina's eyes, been a bit of a vague description in the article so she wasn't one hundred percent clear on how it all worked, until Daesha filled her in on the inner workings.

Reaching forward she pulled her left leg up onto her right one and leaned forward, placing her right hand on her ankle and her left elbow on her the her knee as she nodded. "Alright, so, don't do anything that'd get you shot or imprisoned, don't smuggle anything that can be defined as alive. Pay fifteen percent of what I earn back to you and show up once in a while for a meeting?" She asked, having just relisted what Daesha had told her, just to confirm that she had been listening closely. "I think..." She started, looking down onto the table before her, her smile that she had prepared was still hidden away behind that blank expression she had put up.

"... that this would suit me just fine." She said after a few seconds of silence, breaking her cold visage with a smile as she let her foot fall down onto the floor, standing up and extending her hand to the blue-skinned Twi'lek. "You sure you don't want anything to drink?" She said with a raised brow and a grin on her lips, "Got some high quality Caf beans from Serenno before I resigned, it's good stuff." Whether Daesha accepted the invitation for a cup of Caf or not, Nujina was going to make herself a cup either way, she needed the energy to fight off the last of her dying hangover.

 

[Daesha Keever]

Even before Nujina smiled, Daesha could see the tug of a smirk around her lips. The woman was interested, why else would she be listing off all the benefits of joining the guild unless she was considering it? The only major concern was the Hutt Cartel, but even then as long as the group kept their heads low until they built up enough strength and connections to stand on their own two legs, the Cartel would be nothing to worry about. So, until Nujina actually smiled, Daesha simply nodded along with everything she said, appearing stone-faced and contemplative, right up until Nujina smiled. At which point Daesha's grin spread from ear to ear as she stood up and took the other Twi'lek's hand in a firm shake.

"Then welcome to the Free Trade Guild, Ms. Trilaet."

"I could go for a caf right now." Daesha said in response with a firm nod, although she picked up something interesting in that statement. Apparently Nujina got her caf beans from Serenno before she 'resigned' from something, no doubt the military. Now that she seemed to be on the woman's good side, she decided to ask about her military history.

"You're ex-Serennian Navy, right? I assume you're 'Taillights', and to be honest I can't tell if that callsign is clever, speciesist, or both." She joked, trying to inject some humor into this situation before she got down to more serious business. "Don't suppose I could ask why you resigned?"

 

[Nujina Trilaet]

As the other Twi'lek took her hand and shook it with a firm shake, Nujina smiled back at her and nodded, and it seemed she'd be staying a while longer as she accepted her invitation for a cup of Caf. Walking out around the table she got up to one of the open Cabinets and moved around some cans before bringing out a metallic box, shaking it a bit, hearing the beans inside rustle as she popped the lid open and looked down into it. More than half left, and the smell brought back fond memories. Moving over to the cooking station she kept her focus on what she was doing while listening to Daesha as she first asked about the flag and then made an attempt at a joke about it being speciesist.

Chuckling she poured up enough beans into a grinder and started the machine, waiting for it to finish a few seconds later before speaking up. "Yep, that's me." She said and let the machine grind the beans down a bit longer before taking the ground up Caf beans over to start brewing the most important brew she knew. [color=orange}"And I'd say it's mostly clever, there was the occasional Togruta or Twi'lek that got annoyed and offended by it for some reason, why, I don't know."[/color] She said as she let the machine brew for them while she walked over to sit back down in her previous seat, leaning back and putting one foot up on the couch. "We all had our unofficial Callsigns, and after a few months they began to call me Taillights as it was all they saw when we entered an engagement, almost got me killed a couple of times." she said, chuckling at the memories.

At the time of making the memories she hadn't been chuckling or thought of it fondly, but now in hindsight, it was something she could look back on and smile at how stupid she had been to rush in head first without proper backup. "You're free to ask whatever you want, whenever you want as many times as you want, just as long as you respect my choice to not answer, yeah?" She said as she looked at Daesha. "Now, as to why I resigned, it's no secret, four years of constant fighting takes its toll even on the best of us, so, one day, I woke up and decided I had had enough. I walked into my CO and resigned. Four days later I was preparing to board a Starliner to Onderon when my squadron showed up and gave me the flag, been in a bag until I bought this ship." She said and shrugged a bit.

Deciding to turn the question back on Daesh'afenn she nodded at her. "What about you? How long have you been a Pilot? You don't look much older than I." She said and smiled, feeling the smell of Caf slowly filling the air as the thermos she had put there was slowly starting to get filled up, shouldn't be too long before they both could have a cup each. In her head she was starting to map out her coming few jumps, Nar Shaddaa was on the list and then there was the potential of a trip back to Serenno before heading to Ord Mantell to check out how well equipped this Free Trade Guild was when it came to logistics and equipment.

 

[Daesha Keever]

"Yeah, beats me too." Daesha joked as Nujina moved back over to the couch, clarifying that her callsign came from her apparent aggressiveness and speed in combat, leaving her wingmates seeing only taillights in her wake. So Nujina was an aggressive flyer then, huh? Good, a good, independent combat pilot was hard to come by in the galaxy and Daesha could always use more military fliers. So long as Nujina was willing to fly in a combat capacity of course, although it seemed that her military career was not without regrets and bad memories.

"Of course, I won't make you say anything if you won't make me. I haven't exactly led a charmed life either." Little Ryloth, running away from home, street gangs, taking to smuggling, Daesha not only had regrets and bad memories but hers were a lot less legally oriented. In any case, Daesha was rather touched by how Nujina's comrades gave her something to remember them by. All Daesha got from the Gutkurrs was fusion burns and callouses, the echuttas.

"Me? I've been flying a Nerf-Herder freighter since I was about seventeen, a bit over a decade now for me." Daesha said, taking in a quick whiff of the fresh caf filling the air. So that was what Serennian caf smelled like. "So how'd you get into the courier business?"

 

[Nujina Trilaet]

As she reclined in her seat she looked over at Daesha'fenn as she said that she had been flying a Nerf-Herder since she was around seventeen. Judging from the looks of things, she might have been flying for eight or nine years, if Nujina's assumption was on point, which she now doubted. As the spotlight was then turned back to Nujina and how she had gotten into the Courier business she shrugged and leaned back into her seat. "Well, once you've gone up against Jedi Pilots and their magical force abilities there isn't much that gives you the same thrill." She said and chuckled.

"But for real, the reason as to why I got into Courier work was because it was something that guaranteed that I'd be traveling all over the Galaxy, though I still think I have the largest amount of trips made is from Coruscant to the Sub-levels of Coruscant, man that kark is like entering Nar Shaddaa through some kind of portal." She said with another chuckle and pushed herself up from the couch as a soft two-tone beep came from the Caf-machine. Crossing the short distance she pulled up a cabinet and brought out two cups, grabbing both handles in one hand she took the newly filled thermos in her other and went to sit down in her seat once again.

Setting down both cups she clicked button on the lid to the thermos and poured up some Caf for the two of them before sliding over one of the cups to the other Twi'lek, taking her own cup and raising it to her mouth to sip on the delicious Caf, it was a bit on the stronger side, but hey, her Wing-leader couldn't brew Caf at all and was practically the only one who brewed it back when she was still there. "So, I did it to get a chance to explore the Galaxy, see various worlds, meet different people, it provided its own challenge which was completely different from what I had previously done. But, I think that's enough about that." She said with another sip. "So, Nerf-Herder's eh? Reliable buckets of scrap aren't they? We used some to fly various goods across Serenno and in and out of System, they are as ugly as a Hutt but they are a whole lot more reliable in a pinch, from my experience at least." Nujina said, closing her eyes and laughing as she took another sip of Caf before setting the cup down on the table and leaning back.

The day had so far been a rather good one, she had picked up some tools, met someone who was rather friendly and professional and the headache was disappearing. So far, so good.

 

[Daesha Keever]

"I can respect someone who's addicted to adrenaline." Daesha replied to Nujina's joking comment. Although to be fair, Daesha could also relate to and respect someone that wanted to see the galaxy at large, it was the reason why she wanted to leave Nar Shadda in the first place. She had been tired of duracrete towers and darkened skies and blinking neon lights, she wanted to be free and to see the galaxy. Her only point of contention was comparing Coruscant's Undercity to Nar Shadda, as being a native to the Smuggler's Moon Daesha was far more aware of just how terrible Nar Shadda could be. The planet's surface was similar to the Undercity, that much was true, but it was also true that the deeper you went the darker it became. There were some corners of Nar Shadda where even the Hutts wouldn't go, and that said something.

It was at this point that the caf was brought out, something that Daesha was more than happy to see considering how heavenly it smelled and how high quality it was. As she eagerly took her cup, Nujina finished her tale of seeking challenges and adventure before turning back to the subject of Daesha's ship, a Nerf-Herder.

"Yep, it's a reliable hunk of scrap, but I've been looking to trade up. Or to improve the Burnout." Another topic beside her shipped weighed a bit more on Daesha, however, concerning Nujina's distinct Twi'lek accent. Daesha had one too, but she came from a Twi'lek ghetto on Nar Shadda, so how did a Serennian navy pilot get one. "So, where are you from? I know that isn't a Serennian accent."

 

[Nujina Trilaet]

Opening her eyes again she looked at Daesh'afenn as she mentioned the 'Burnout', which she assumed was her ship, and a Nerf-Herder at that. She hoped she hadn't hit any nerves with her comments about the Nerf-herders, although few actually liked them for their appearance, so if Daesha did, that'd been the first person Nujina had met. Reaching out she took her cup of Caf and listened as the Blue-skinned Twi'lek asked another personal question. She seemed almost cautious when she asked about it, which Nujina could understand, as not everyone liked revealing where they came from to someone they had just met.

But hey, for all Nujina cared, she could have known Daesha for a few months already, she was easy to get along with from the looks of things and she wasn't obnoxious, so the question wasn't that bothersome for her to reply to. "You're correct on that assumption. I'm actually not a native Serennian, don't believe there are many Twi'leks that are to be quite honest." she said and sipped her Caf once again and looked down into the cup momentarily, man, it was almost empty and she had just picked it up. She'd have to stop by Serenno soon if this Caf drinking kept up like it did at the moment, she'd be out of beans in no time. "My family and I moved to Serenno when I was... oh how old can I have been... six or seven? So, the majority of my life has been spent on Serenno."

She realized she was circulating the question a bit, which hadn't been her intention in the first place, but it just happened. Looking back up at Daesh'afenn she picked up her reply again and continued "But, before that, we lived on Ryloth, my father flew Cargo ships and my mother taught me how the different things like reading, writing and the traditions of Ryloth. However, we didn't live in any of the cities, so there was periods where Lyleks got too close to our home. So, when I was around six or seven, my father announced that we'd be moving, he and my mother had been having discussions about my future and they decided it'd be best to move off-world, away Ryloth's hostile wildlife and off to Serenno it was." she said and smiled. "I've been back to Ryloth a few times since I left the Navy, but not for any prolonged periods, it doesn't feel like Home, you know?"

She said and looked down into cup of Caf once more, it was a shame that Ryloth didn't feel like her home, when it actually was her first, but, times changed and so did people. Looking back up she took a sip from the Caf and nodded back at her. "What about you? Your accent isn't Rylothian, but it reminds me a bit of it."

 

[Daesha Keever]

Daesha was quite relieved to hear that Nujina wasn't some escaped slave, or the family of one, or some other suitably tragic and profane backstory. The Twi'lek people had been put through the wringer in the last few decades, and it seemed that more often than not, a given Twi'lek was similarly put through hell. Daesha would hardly call having to leave home for the world of Serenno hell, especially when Nujina had been so young that she never even considered Ryloth her home. Ryloth was no home to Daesha either, although she was a lot less respectful and knowledgeable of Twi'lek custom, having left behind with her family in Little Ryloth. Speaking of which, it seemed that Nujina was curious about Daesha's stunted, Huttese-mixed Ryl accent, something she knew was coming but still wasn't quite prepared for.

"Yeah...right." She braced herself with a swig of caf like an alcoholic with whiskey. "I'm...from Nar Shadda, the Little Ryloth ghetto in the southeast quadrant. That's where the accent comes from, a mix of Ryl and Huttese."

 

[Nujina Trilaet]

When Daesh'afenn took a swig of Caf that looked more like she was trying to get drunk than trying to savor the taste, Nujina raised her brow, it seemed like it was a rather touchy subject and she was about to excuse the question and move on when Daesha spoke up. Hearing that she was from Nar Shaddaa, she understood why she was so hesitant to say it. "Oh..." Rang inside Nujina's head as she heard about the ghetto in the southeast quadrant of the city-wide world. Biting her tongue she didn't know how to go on, so, she leaned back and looked down into her Caf.

After a minute of silence she spoke up. "It must have been rough growing up there." She said and looked up from the cup over at Daesha. Although Nujina hadn't known a life of overflowing comfort and wealth, she had had it a whole lot better than Daesh'afenn had from the sounds of it. The Hutts were a nasty kind who didn't take too well to the Twi'lek people, and considering a large portion of the Slaves around the Galaxy were Twi'lek, it didn't look too good for them. Reaching out she put her cup at the table to the side and leaned against her elbows on the cold surface. "You weren't a slave on Nar Shaddaa? I know it's a common fate for Twi'leks who live on Cartel worlds to end up slaves against their will." She didn't know what else to say.

Back in her days in the Navy they had rescued a few slaves that were getting shipped through the system to arrive at Cartel worlds, but those were few and far between and those who they couldn't catch, well, Nujina tried to not think about them. She wondered how close she had been to becoming one of those faces that were looked at but never truly seen, to be branded as Goods rather than a person, such a cruel fate. But this reveal also told Nujina why the Free Trade Guild didn't deal with Slavery, not that Nujina ever would ship another person against their will anyway.

 

[Daesha Keever]

"That's an understatement." Little Ryloth was a can packed to the brim with sad, scared Twi'lek's huddled together back to back in the hopes of warding off the overpowering darkness around them. It was a bitter existence, clinging to a culture and past very few of the residents had ever seen as if it would space them from Hutt slave hunters or back-alley thugs. Now, in all honesty Daesha bailed out of that life as fast as she could, so she didn't get the full Little Ryloth experience of being forced into an arranged, traditionalist marriage, having two kids, and resenting her mother for giving birth to her for the rest of her pitiful life.

"Sometimes slaves get loose, or they are freed, or they have kids. Or there are just some Twi'leks in the Cartel that escape, there's a district for just about every species in Hutt space on Nar Shadda." She tried to state that rather matter-of-factly, without letting emotion into her tone.

 

[Nujina Trilaet]

Nujina was more than thankful for her upbringing on both Ryloth and Serenno, and what she was told by Daesh'afenn only helped assure her that she was rather lucky to have grown up in a safe environment unlike her and so many other Twi'leks through out the Galaxy. Swallowing she reached out for her cup of Caf and finished her cup before straightening her back and looking over to Daesha'fenn with a solemn expression.

"I know that you've probably been through a lot that you don't want to share or talk about, but," she started and held out her hands to the other Twi'lek with a soft smile, "if you do want to talk to someone about it, don't hesitate to hit me up, okay?" She said and thought back to the days in the Navy. She had had her fair share of talks with Wing-mates and their families after someone had been shot down. She had even been on the other end of the talks. However, now she was offering to listen if Daesha ever wanted to ease her mind or just talk some time, she knew how much it could help just to have the option to talk to someone when needed.

"You know, when I first joined the Navy and saw combat for the first time, we lost only one pilot that day, I hadn't even talked to them before the mission, but, I was devastated. I could barely walk away from my ship once we landed again and I had to talk to a shrink for a couple of weeks before I was sent out to fly again. Despite that, I still can't imagine what it was like growing up like you did, but I will try and help if you want it, okay?" Nujina spoke softly, hoping that it might put Daesha'fenn at ease if she shared some of her own bad experiences.

 

[Daesha Keever]

"Hey, you don't have to worry about it, I've had almost thirty years to process this." Daesha still smiled warmly, taking Nujina's hands in her own. "But thanks Nujina, I won't forget that."

Daesha wasn't weepy or tense about her past, granted she wasn't exactly comfortable when talking about her past as a gutter rat, but she had managed to work through any trauma or pain by now. She hadn't lived in Little Ryloth for around 20-25 years, she didn't exactly check her calendar before crawling out the window of her room and down the fire escape. In that time Daesha had come to at least accept what she had lived like and what she had done, even if she didn't enjoy dwelling on it.

Despite what she said, Nujina was quick to offer a little story of her own pain, talking about the first pilot she ever lost on a flight. It was hard to get used to death, no matter how tough you thought you were nothing could prepare you for the initial shock of the loss of life. Even if it was a total stranger, dying and killing were never easy things.

"I'm fine Nujina, really, it was just rough is all." Looking down at her near-empty cup of caf, Daesha peered up at Nujina with a smile. "This is probably the most civil meeting I've had so far with a pilot. Or at least the most sane."