Ask Necessary Complications

[Elias Ryn]

Elias stepped foot on the dock, his hood drawn as he glanced around at the bleak surroundings. He arrived at the nearest place that could be considered a town on the planet Mimban, it suspended above the sticky swamp by supports. There was an overcast over the entire planet and cast a grey tone to the entire town and seemed to mirror the general attitude around him. Life was hard out in the outer-rims and the further the planet was, the worse it could get for those who could be classified as survivors. He knew all too well the influence the Cartels and Syndicates had in the outer-rim and it only made things for people harder than they already were, it was a grasp he hoped he could free his parents from, soon enough.

While he wasn't the hugest of fans with the Syndicate, he needed service with one of their slicers and it was a necessary pill he would have to swallow if he wanted to get to his true objective. He had acquired the services of a slicer named "0R4CL3" and Elias had messaged him about a job against the Hutt Cartel and a generous sum of credits to go along with it. Truth be told, he didn't have the credits he promised but he was desperate and he hoped his skills could suffice enough that they would be more valuable to him. There wasn't a constant salary with the Jedi unfortunately and that meant his pockets had run a little dry. Desperate time called for desperate measures. Elias drew his hood a little tighter as he proceeded down the dock and strode further into town.

As he approached, shouting voices became discernable, and could tell they tried to sell off various wares, either counterfeit or handmade by their generations of their families supposedly. Elias ignored the calls for attention as he proceeded and weaved through the crowd of people directly to the bar. It didn't appear to have a name but it had people drinking outside of it and that was a good enough sign for him. He approached the front door before pushing it open with one arm as it parted. The bar wasn't empty but drawing near, a few tables filled up here and there with either pairings or larger groups of different races. Some of the patrons cast a glance at him when he entered but when he wasn't carrying a symbol of authority, they returned to their activities.

Elias scanned the bar quickly before he found an empty booth in the corner that allowed him a view of the entire interior. When he approached and slid into it, he pulled down his hood and waited patiently as he visibly relaxed to blend in. Instinctively, he submerged his signature even though he wasn't meeting a force user. Even though he could get ahead of himself, he was still precautious when he could afford to be and it made him feel more comfortable. He ordered a drink to pass the time as he pulled out a cigarra from his pocket and placed it between his lips before he ignited it and blew out a cloud. His addiction had been reignited and he couldn't help himself. All he had to do was wait until 0R4CL3 showed up.

 

[Tommy]

Tommy had arrived early on the planet to enjoy herself and take a break before she met the contact. She stopped by a lake to go for a swim, diving all the way to the bottom and zoning out for a while to detach from everything. Tommy was there for almost an hour before coming back out and changing into her clothing.

Though her skin could withstand almost any environment, she was partial to overcast skies. She slinked past the shops and stalls, but she did pause at a particular one to buy herself an ewok bracelet. It was clear that she was in no real rush - her clients usually needed her more than she needed them.

Tommy had tracked the man’s details, staying up till she could profile him and pinpoint him to his usual whereabouts. From her analysis, it didn’t come up that he was affiliated with Rangers or FWA, but the lack of extensive details on him also made her uncomfortable.

She entered the bar, glancing around till she spotted him, having already dug up enough to identify him by face. Dressed in a black leather jacket and jeans and boots, she looked like any other civilian. She made her way over after he had been smoking for a bit.

Tommy slinked into the seat in front of him and simply stared at him for a moment. She cracked a grin, “I bet you thought I was a fat, geeky dude,” She blurted before snapping her fingers to bring over a waitress. Once she did, Tommy looked up, “A Naboo Sunrise, please, and put it on his tab,” She looked back at the man. The waitress nodded and left.

“So, Mr. Ryn,” She said as she turned back to him, “What can I do for you?”

 

[Elias Ryn]

Elais remained in his booth as his drink finally arrived from one of the waitresses. He gave her a nod of thanks as he took another drag from his cigarra before taking a gulp from his beverage. His contact was running late but the drink was at least keeping him company. A nautolan eventually entered the establishment and she caught his eye for a moment before he just redirected his attention to his drink. He was expecting some type of man, either a tall lanky one with some sort of gizmos on him or just someone who would be easily forgettable once their business was concluded. Elias picked his cigarra up once more but as he put it in his mouth, the woman came and sat down in front of him like she intended to see him and he paused.

He stared at her for a moment, the cigarra hanging from his lips as he glanced to his left and then to his right slowly, wondering if this was a middleman or just a mistake. But when she spoke that he probably expected some "fat, geeky dude," Elias couldn't help but smirk as Tommy was dead on the money about him. "I won't lie, you caught me but it's a welcomed surprised compared to what I had in mind." At least she appeared to be in good physical shape and that was a step up from what he imagined.

When she turned to order from the waitress and put it on his tab, Elias closed his eyes for the briefest of seconds as it reminded him. Shit, the credits. He had enough for one drink and the combination of the nicotine and alcohol made him forget for the slightest of moments that she expected a much larger sum at the end of this. The second drink practically made him have as many credits as dirt. The waitress left before he could even say anything as once she heard the drink, it was her cue to leave.

Tommy asked him what she could do for him and he bobbed his head from left to right slightly before giving a shrug, like it was the most typical answer he could have given. "I need your help to break into the Hutt's palace on Nal Hutta and get in without raising an alarm. Possibly deactivate some security measures once I'm inside." The palace was one of the most secure places unofficially there was and was the home of the Cartel. If one of them got caught, they could simply be flayed alive and nobody would give a damn or question. But there risks to everything and the gains from this outweighed the dangers wholeheartedly for him.

Elias took another drag from his cigarra and he opened his mouth slightly as he let the smoke travel up and into his nostrils and out through his mouth again. "That's pretty much the gist of it."

 

[Tommy]

Tommy simply stared at him as he rattled off the job as if it were a cakewalk. She drummed her fingers on the table, wondering if he had any idea what he was asking. Her eyes would sear into him as she silently judged him in every way possible. Hutt palaces were especially rough to navigate and crack, and he didn’t even name a specific Hutt. It sounded like he simply wanted to go on a field trip.

“You are aware of my compensation, correct?” She asked. At the end of the day, the money was all she was concerned with. He could ask her to do any sort of breach and she would keep her personal feelings removed from it as long as he could cough up the credits.

He looked like a simple enough civilian, but she had to wonder why he was getting into this. Unfortunately, it was part of her policy that she didn’t ask questions.

“I will not be deactivating anything,” She clarified, eyeing him, “That’s just stuff you see on Holomovies. Deactivating is the first thing that tips people off,” A smile appeared on her face, “I make sure that everything operates business as usual and that your actions are largely invisible so no one notices a thing.”

 

[Elias Ryn]

The moment the words left his mouth, he could tell that Tommy realized the severity of what he was asking. The only reason he didn't highlight the dangers more was that it was an inevitable outcome that he would arrive at and he naively ignored the rest until he crossed that bridge. Elias had always been a daredevil and he was precautious when he was conscious enough to do so. Even though the force, he could sense the uneasiness that leaked from her but he couldn't blame her as he didn't appear like someone of power or the capability to follow through.

Tommy brought up her price this time on her purpose and Elias took a drag, a long one to think about he was going to find a way to get through this one but she continued on to give him a little reprieve. Her explanation of her not wanting to deactivate any of the measures and make everything appear like normal made him smile as he realized that he had found the perfect person for the job. Plus, with her question instantly heading to the money, she didn't seem too much of the inquisitive type and that worked for him.

"Whatever can work, this is your realm of expertise. As long as you can get me inside without getting sicked on by hounds by the time I take my first step, I'll take that as a success." However, Elias knew what she really cared for was the money and he had done enough mercenary work with his father to know how these types of discussions transpired. He ran a hand through his dirty blonde hair to clean it up slightly as he finally spoke to the bantha that was about to enter the room and break a wall down, "Truth be told, I don't really have the credits to pay you for the job."

Elias gave a little cock of his head as if to silently say, "Unfortunately." But before she could get up from the chair, "I have heavily been following in Cartel activities and know quite about a few of their operations. One of them is here on Mimban, apparently an up and coming mining one." The mining of Hyperbaride on the planet had turned quite profitable recently. "It can be considered a sort of advanced payment as you can get their plans for this planet, who they intend to sell to, or whatever you consider valuable." The only reason he hoped this could work was that she was a slicer and to them, information was worth even more than gold. He knew the information she could retrieve could help the Syndicates mightily but it was a fact he would just have to accept. "And if we get to the palace, you can have the whole entire damn mainframe for all I care for whatever you want. I just need to get inside."

 

[Tommy]

Tommy listened to the man as he more or less said he had no credits to offer. She crossed her arms over her chest, kicking herself for even coming here. She was internally fuming, and she wanted nothing more than to hit him over the head with her drink. However, with her clumsiness, she would probably spill it all on herself instead.

A second passed after he finished speaking and she simply rolled her eyes. She simply wanted to leave. However, she had come all the way here and it nagged at her to simply have to make her way all the way back. She glared daggers at him, her fingers curling into fists.

“You seriously brought me out here to insult my intelligence and waste both our time,” Tommy said hotly, “Unless you happen to have any Sith or Jedi artifacts up your ass, you simply can’t afford me,” She snapped before she rose to her feet and prepared to leave. Tommy normally kept her composure, but the cheapskate pulling a prank on her was enough to push her over the edge.

 

[Elias Ryn]

Elias didn't need his eyes to see that Tommy was more than pissed at him. Her very air changed and he could sense the blood in her veins that turned to lava in a matter of seconds. His eyes went to the glass that she thought of hitting him with and he cocked his head slightly once more in silent response to her thoughts, fair. He hadn't come here with any money and this certainly wasn't the protocol that was typically followed with these arrangements. Each word seemed to strike her and bounce off as not a single one caught her interest.

He was leaned back in his chair and just passively stared back as she gave him daggers. Tommy chided him and he had to give it to her that it could have been seen as an insult to her intelligence but it wasn't a waste of their time. She mentioned Sith or Jedi artifacts before she quickly got up and was about to make her way to the door. Elias closed his eyes as he exhaled slowly when her back turned as his chance of entering the palace started to walk out of the door. This was one of the moments where both the positives and the cons of each side flooded to his head, warning him to not reveal his nature to a stranger, especially during these times of uncertainty.

But an image of him at the dinner table with his family somehow overrode it all and found it's way to the forefront of his mind and the sadness that accompanied it. The familiar feelings he had once felt rising up to give him a taste before that simply vanished with the short memory. Within a split second, he knew what his decision was and the reckless nature him revealed itself. With one finger lifted from his hand, Tommy would feel the force slither around her legs as she would be pulled back into the seat across from and appeared like she simply tripped backward and into the seat to face him. "This is not a waste of time." There was a new tone to his voice, a seriousness that wasn't there, and an authority that he had kept hidden.

"No, I simply can't afford you but I need your skills. You're a slicer, I know the information worth that palace is possibly priceless to you and your associates and I know alone you simply can't touch the place. Let's not insult both our intelligence by believing that whatever they have stored within those walls isn't valuable at all." There were potential business meetings, alias', associates', and future deals of the Hutt Cartel. "Even if you don't consider them an enemy, I'm sure you can find a use."

But Elias shook his head slightly as he hoped the Order could forgive, if he was at least caught, "And an artifact could be acquired but after the job is done successfully." It wasn't unheard of for artifacts to turn up missing but he never suspected he would one day have a hand in it.

 

[Tommy]

Tommy yelped as an unseen force coiled around her and pulled her back. She toppled into the seat and thought for sure it was a ghost. She looked around frantically before turning to stare at the man before her. His demeanor had shifted entirely, and he was suddenly far more serious. The pieces slowly began to fit together and she couldn’t even believe it. Was he a Force user?!

She had only heard about it in legend and had read about how it was described. What she felt was unmistakable and the deathly calm he displayed pointed to him doing it. This also explained why he was more or less off the grid and someone like her found it challenging to track him.

Tommy was still shaken, hearing only half of what he said. She stared down at the table, almost too afraid to look at him. Her crime family valued Sith or Jedi artifacts, but the thought of actually running into a live one was unheard of. She exhaled quietly after a while.

“It’s not that it’s not worth it,” She said after a moment, “It’s very dangerous,” Tommy looked up at him, “Think about it - these palaces hold hoards of treasures in a planet literally made up of criminals. They expect infiltration and trouble any given day. They are always on guard and they have the funds to hire the best defenses. We can’t simply barge in.”

Tommy thought for a moment, meeting his gaze, “I will need to be able to walk right in as a terminal tech that’s filling in for someone else. That’s the only way I can get access to their machines. Once that’s done, you’ll have to keep a low profile and act like you’re there to drop off some spices. This isn’t an operation where you can just….” She tried to look over the table, “Wave a laser sword around. Discretion is everything for both our survival.”

 

[Elias Ryn]

Elias' gaze bore into her, this time a certainty behind it as it wasn't him not letting no be an answer, just that it couldn't be an answer he could afford to hear. But when she was brought back into her chair and faced him, her entire demeanor shifted completely compared to how she had entered and it surprised him a little. He didn't know what Syndicate that she was affiliated with and didn't realize that his people were practically myth in her point of view. Instead, he thought it was fear from her because of him and he eased his gaze as a result, not having intended that and tempered himself.

When he finished, there was relative silence between them for a few moments before she eventually spoke once more and started to fill him in about the dangers of his plan. When she commented it wasn't worth it and suicidal practically, he only replied, "It's worth the danger to me." There just wouldn't be a way for her to understand it. Elias let her finish afterward and that's when he gestured his hand towards her, "And that's where you come in." He was reckless but he wasn't stupid and if he had tried to do this by himself, he would have been delivered in pieces back to the Jedi and his valuables stripped. As if on cue, Tommy already began to form a plan in replacement and informed him of what she required and what needed to be done.

Elias thought for a moment before he jutted his head toward the wall but meant the general direction. "The mining operation I spoke about. We can get your tech outfit there. I'm sure it will be adapted for this environment but we'll be able to modify it once we have it." It would work. Thankfully, the Cartels weren't so strict about uniforms their people wore but more about efficiency. When she mentioned keeping a low profile and his laser-sword as she leaned over the table to try and peek, he pulled his jacket tighter to him and gave her a look that simply said, very subtle.

"I can remain low profile and make sure you aren't bothered. Don't worry about me." When he finished with that, there was sort of an awkward silence there as he half expected before this meeting happened where they walked out of here synchronized in plan and execution. But Elias simply and slowly arched his eyebrow at her in questioning, "So, does this mean you accept?"

 

[Tommy]

As much as she wasn’t convinced about her ‘payment’, him proving to be Jedi was enough to hook her. She had never run into one in person, and she had to keep from peppering him with questions. She kept eyeing him, looking for that elusive saber that he annoyingly kept out of view. Tommy didn’t even believe him at first and assumed even the mining facility thing was a load of crap.

However, after they had arrived at a valley, she could make out a facility nestled in between the woods. She could see a few workers here and there, and they certainly looked as if they were Hutt affiliated. Cracking this data would be worth tremendous amounts of credits and prestige within Dawn.

She looked over at Elias skeptically, “Is this the part where you ditch me and just tell me to go get what I want?” She scowled at him, “Because I don’t fight. It’d just be me having to do extra work to get my ‘advance’.”

He was a Jedi, right? What did they even do? Everything she read suggested they meditated and were keepers of peace. Which sounds useless to getting her what she needed.

 

[Elias Ryn]

Tommy didn't give him an answer or tell him any opposition to arriving at the mining facility to get the tech uniform for her, amongst other things. So, Elias assumed that meant she was on board with the plan and the two of them left for the bar. The trip wasn't a long one and the pair eventually arrived deeper in the swampy heart of the planet as they arrived at the coordinates he committed to memory. There was a small perch and it provided a good enough outlook for them to get a look at the facility.

Elias was at the edge of it, one knee planted securely in the ground as his gaze flicked between each guard and worker that walked along the grounds. Before he could finish, she spoke up about what she thought and he just chuckled, "You certainly have quite an opinion of me for the last hour." First, it was that he wouldn't understand the concept of discretion and now it was him possibly ditching her. He wondered what else would be on the list next. On her not being able to fight, Elias cocked his head slightly, "I could tell from that squeal earlier." It was quite a sound from the ultimate badass 04RCL3 he was getting to know.

His gaze focused on a pair of workers that remained on the periphery of the facility."If we get close, I can get us inside. I don't know the layout from that point and that's when your expertise will come to play." Elias stood up from the perch and took a few steps back the ledge to get out of view. He started to make his way down and cast a glance toward Tommy as he did so, "This may be one of the first jobs where you actually use your legs. Could be fun for you." As far as he thought, the image he had of her was her leaning intensely across a computer screen and that's how far her usual missions went. With the tidbit of her not being able to fight, he thought this could turn out interesting quick. if it somehow went south for them.

 

[Tommy]

Tommy scowled as he pointed out she had quite an opinion. No shit she thought of him that way - dude was probably a phony. For all she knew, he had all these cool abilities but he couldn’t use any of it. Weren’t Jedi just neutered Sith? She suddenly blinked and stared at him, remembering that these weirdos could probably read her mind.

“I didn’t squeal,” She muttered, “I was taken by surprise. That was a cheap move,” She didn’t know if she was telling herself that or him, but the words were muttered under her breath and grumpily as she stared at the ground. Tommy looked up as he relayed the plan which….didn’t sound like a plan at all, “What’re you going to do, invite them in for a hug?”

Tommy rolled her eyes, “I don’t want to use my legs,” She complained as they made their way closer quietly, “I’m in the field I’m in so others can do the walking for me,” There was truth to it. What was the point of being brains if she had to do the braun too? Except having a Jedi sounded like being armed with a cooked noodle.

“In other words,” She whispered at him, “You could get us inside and it could turn out there’s not a single terminal in sight,” This was sounding like a worse idea by the second.

The two workers standing around were only half paying attention. One was checking his comlink and the other had earbuds in and was bobbing his head to music. It was very clear that there was generally no action at this facility. Droids were stationed to do the heavy lifting, though there were a few aliens prisoners also forced to do hard labor.

 

[Elias Ryn]

Elias did consider himself a decent hugger but not enough to make them pass out from it. As they navigated closer and closer to the facility, he stayed low at first but security wasn't extremely tight except for the simple guard or two that patrolled around with a simple blaster pistol. He straightened himself and instead just walked with Tommy as they approached where the two workers had been that he spotted. The Cartel most likely faced no opposition out here. "You got nice legs, surprised you don't." It was a sly comment and one that he intended to just leave out there as he knew it wouldn't fly and possibly unsettle her because of what she thought of him.

When they were finally close, Elias crouched down by some formation of rocks and clumps of machinery at the edge of the facility, his eyes locked on the two workers that had no clue they were even there. When he heard her hushed words, he simply turned and arched his eyebrow at her, "Do you want to tell me where I claimed this was a perfect plan or where you objected to this plan before you decided to come along?" He stared at her for a few seconds, waiting for the answer to his question before he just gave her a nod of understanding and turned around to face the workers once more.

When one of the droids passed the group of workers and they were left alone, he stepped out from his cover and simply walked over to them. The one that bobbed his head to music finally looked up and glanced around only to find Elias heading straight for him. He tapped the other worker on his shoulder to get his attention before the pair walked over to him suspiciously. The Knight gave them a fresh smile when he approached but he was only met with skeptical looks that typically led to violence. "Who the kriff are..." Before he could finish, Elias raised his hand and waved it slowly in front of the two, "You two, take off your clothes quickly and hand them over. After that, take the day off and go swim in the swamp." This was one trick that he would never get sick of.

The pair stared at him for a second before giving a nod and followed his orders. A few seconds later, Elias would walk around the corner with a large pile of clothing in each hand. The Jedi's gaze would land on Tommy and would slowly scan over her for a few seconds before he tore it away and brought it back to the clothes. He nodded to the one in his right hand, "Seems like that one is your size. Mostly."

 

[Tommy]

Tommy was making her way over when he dropped a casual line about her legs. The result was her staring at him and promptly running into a tree they were passing. She groaned and rubbed her head tendrils, “You’re pretty damn mean for a Jedi...I thought you guys were like the nice grandmas of the galaxy.”

She opened her mouth to argue when he pointed out that she never objected to the plan for the mining facility. Unfortunately, she had nothing to say. She had jumped on board without even discussing it with him because she was lured in by the promise of Jedi artifacts. She simply glowered and gazed ahead until they made their move.

Tommy was about to call out to Elias but she couldn’t help but watch. What happened next was straight out of fantasy. Her jaw dropped and she simply stared. The men had wandered off in their undies and left a pile of clothes. Elias turned over to look at her as if they had just been standing around discussing the bark fortitude of the average ficus tree.

“Dude what?” She blurted as she grabbed her head with her hands, “You got me kriffed up man!” She shook her head, taking a step back and then another, “That was some straight up Obi Wan shit and I don’t play that, no way man!” She promptly turned and began to shuffle away, thoroughly terrified.

 

[Elias Ryn]

The nice grandmas of the galaxy? That was positively the first he had that as the description of his kind and if wasn't for the fact they were trying to sneak in, he would've busted out laughing at that moment. Elias didn't know whether he has considered it an insult or rather accept it then the other depictions that were given for his people.

When he had come back around to find Tommy with the clothes in hand, he hadn't expected her reaction in the slightest. Her jaw was practically on the ground and her eyes wide as a baseball as it appeared she saw a ghost. Elias just arched his eyebrow at her and thought to himself, what is happening? He glanced down at himself as he thought maybe something happened to get on him that he missed but then Tommy let him know. She grabbed onto her head as she tried to process what he had just done and threw out the name of one of the most legendary Jedi that had ever been born. There was one thing to tackle at a time and he tossed the clothes to the ground as she scooted away.

"Can you hold on a second?" Elias walked over to her and grabbed her arm to make sure she couldn't leave and when she was turned around to face him, he would finally let go of her. There was a seriousness to his voice, one that was similar to when he had spoken in the bar but carried something else. There was a sort of pleading nature as his light brown eyes connected with hers, "Please, you can't leave. You can't." He was right there with his slicer as well, this couldn't be the time for him to turn back and start all over.

"I need to get into this palace. It's not for money, power, or anything like that and I can't tell you why but I need to get inside that palace, 0R4CL3." Elias closed his eyes for a moment and let out a quick exhale before speaking again, "Yes, I have powers but I won't use them on you, alright? I can promise that if that's what you're concerned about." A few seconds passed as he just stood there with her as the silence just seemed to build, his thoughts rapidly circling through his head as he asked her once more for consideration,

"Will you stay?"

 

[Tommy]

Tommy was perfectly content on continuing to walk and never looking back. However, he quickly caught up to her and lightly grabbed her to catch her attention. She whirled around and quickly brought her hands up in karate poses like she had seen in the movies, “Back off! I’m dangerous!” She called out, only to realize that he was already standing back a respectable distance. She awkwardly lowered her arms and shifted around where she stood.

He was genuine in his words, and she could see him practically pleading with his eyes. Tommy sighed, rolling her eyes. She hated that she always fell for the puppy dog eyes, but it worked every time. People realized she wore her heart on her sleeve within seconds.

“Fine, but I’ll hold you to it,” She said sternly, “No using the Force on me in any way,” Tommy said as she looked back at the base again. With a sigh, she walked over and began to change into the new clothes.

“We’re gonna have a hard time explaining why Bork Divan suddenly turned into a hot nautolan chick,” She grumbled, glancing down at her new nametag. There wasn’t exactly a way to contain her tendrils.

 

[Elias Ryn]

Tommy stared back at him and when she rolled her eyes along with a sigh, he knew he had her. She really was emotive as someone could be and he was glad that the angle he chose while genuine, worked on her. She agreed but reminded him firmly not to use force powers on her in any way. Elias put his palms up and out, silently agreeing with her demand not to be touched. He didn't really see a possibility of it happening in the future unless it was drastic. When she went to put on her clothing, he turned around to let her change before he took his turn as well and quickly switched outfits.

When he heard her grumble, Elias, straightened himself and glanced over at her outfit. With a quick flick of his finger, the nametag on her was ripped off and flung into the nearby bushes. "Well, hopefully, they're distracted too much by the hot nautolan chick to care about the difference." He gave her a smirk as her tendrils really did stick out, "I'm sure if you get into danger, you can utilize those lethal moves you were about to pull on me." The sight of her getting into stance earlier was humorous, to say the least, and he wondered if she had ever actually been in a fight.

Elias tore off his own name tag before turning toward Tommy and gesturing his head to the base, "Let's get going." He began to walk out from their little secluded area and into the open. A couple of workers took notice of him but returned to their duties shortly after as more droids continued to fly by and observe. The Knight looked around for a second before he bent over and picked up a box of metal equipment to blend himself in. He offered a glance to Tommy afterward before proceeding to walk straight toward the facility. "What type of terminal we searching for?" Elias murmured under his breath.

 

[Tommy]

Tommy gave him a dirty look as he mentioned her karate moves, “I’ll have you know I’m a ranked player on League of Myths,” She rattled off proudly before she sighed, “Not that you’d get the reference, damn space hippies…” She muttered under her breath as she grumpily followed him.

She felt like a neon sign as she walked in with him. Her tendrils were sticking out like a sore thumb and he kept going on cool and casual. In fact, her surprise at no one batting an eye was probably what drew more attention to her. She quickly looked ahead, trying to keep it cool. She told herself this was just another con and she was playing a contractor role. Yep, just here to sell some cybersecurity products.

Tommy stayed slightly behind him as he walked straight up to the facility, “Usually there’s a control room in these facilities. That has the main terminal I need. We just need to get inside and navigate to it without dying, I suppose.”

Why the kriff did she agree to this again? She wasn’t even getting paid. She was literally risking her life to get payment for a job that she would also have to risk her life for. Tommy wanted to slap the shit out of this fairy ass fool, but she silently simmered instead. She would see what other bullshit tricks he could pull to make this go smoother.

 

[Elias Ryn]

Elias remembered when she commented on how he probably thought that she was going to be some fat geeky dude. She certainly didn't fit the bill with being fat and a dude but she did with the geeky aspect. Titles of games or whatever were mentioned that he had no inkling about and he was starting to realize that maybe she really did not like to use her legs all that much. With the box, all he had to do to pretty much blend in was just walk but even that seemed like a troubling task for Tommy as she couldn't stop looking at everything or mess with herself.

Elias simply cast her a glance that told her, What are you doing? He was starting to wonder if he should worry about what he signed himself up for. "Control room. Got it." That should be easy enough to find, a big room filled with computers and droids. They eventually arrived at the massive sliding doors and still not many guards were present to watch them or the prisoners. The reliance was mostly on the droids as they floated around. When they entered, they would be able to hear a raucous as the sound of cheers and screams would echo out through the tunnels.

When they cleared the entrance and any prying eyes, Elias put down his box of goods and looked in the direction of the constant shouting. "Stay close, hopefully, we can find you a regular terminal to help bring up a plan of this place." It was the best they could hope for without sticking out by just wandering around without a clue. He gave a gesture of his head to keep going. As they went further down the tunnel, they would continue to pass crates filled with crystals pushed by workers. He wasn't interested in the crystals in the slightest but it would at least prove his information was correct and that this place had drawn the interest of the Cartels.

When they reached the end of the tunnel it opened into an enormous cavern that was the heart of the mine. Metal supports lined the wall that held the hold things together, railways had been carved out above them to create an efficient system of transportation for the mining. Light fixtures were implanted everywhere but more than half of them were fixed on location that was the cause of all the shouting. It was a fighting arena, a makeshift barricade propped up with a second level above to watch clearly. There more than dozens of workers on the second level, either holding some crystals in their hands as currency or just straight credits while they bet on who would win. A ring of guards was on the outside of them and made sure no trouble was started. It was extremely boring out here and it was one of the ways they discovered how to pass the time.

Elias peered at the arena from where they were and then at Tommy, "Works out better for us. Keeps them distracted for the time being." These weren't uncommon sights in the Outer Rim and he had even visited a few of them. He was actually quite a fan of watching those types of backyard scraps but there in the mine for a reason.

 

[Tommy]

Tommy was hating this more and more by the second. They walked into the facility, and she began to silently panic. She was quite literally behind enemy lines now. She looked around, beginning to breathe rapidly. Tommy had to slow her pace to keep it together, expecting to get shot at any point. Normally she had a retinue of people that stormed in first and cleared the way. Now she just had this mook.

She saw the crystals being pushed and had to stare at them. Those materials were worth a ton and knowing the trade lines and inventory would be a huge payout. She felt marginally better knowing that at least Elias hadn’t lied about that part. She stayed close to him, probably almost too close to where if he stopped, she would run into his back.

Tommy could hear cheering at the end of a tunnel and she wanted to stop right there. She made all sorts of faces trying to silently tell the Jedi this was a bad idea. She even believed if she intently thought the thoughts, maybe her brainwaves could speak to him. That’s how the Force worked, right? She threw in a couple of insults in her thoughts for good measure, convinced they were all spilling into his mind.

It was to no avail as they finally arrived in the arena. Tommy looked over, eyes wide to see such an operation in here. The men were shirtless and scuffing one another up, crystals being waved around in all directions. Tommy stared for longer than necessary before remembering she was on the job.

“Okay let’s go,” She muttered, trying to inch away discreetly. She scowled at Elias, “You really had to pick a packed place?” She hissed angrily as she started to follow a path towards another tunnel that branched off away from the arena.