Ask Plausible Deniability

[Renfry]

Andruil continued her work as the Manda sorted through his emotions. In fact, she felt the emotions of everyone around her. The slavers had a sudden mix of fear followed by anger of their own, but the Manda seemed to recover from his own shock more quickly. And that was good. She didn't want to have to fight someone behind her as well as in front. She was banking on his survival instincts keeping her alive. If she died, his cover died.

Another bolt coursed through the air only to be struck down. Though her lessons with Morgan had focused more on dueling, she was now grateful for the extra practice.

The shout of "done" was a welcome one and she heard the gas system beginning to vent into the room behind them. Fortunately, the number of slavers had been whittled down to only a handful.

You shoot, I'll cover! she said. It was a maneuver practiced by Jedi and their soldiers for years: mobile cover system.

@Orbit

 

[Nox Solus]

The gas system activated, it would be a few minutes before it completely ran through the whole building. That still left it exposed and meant the two would have to work together if they wanted to keep it that way. With the last of the two taken out by a reflected bolt, Nox swung his gaze over to his rifle and rushed over to it. When he picked it up and turned to face the backside of Andruil, it would just be her exposed flank as more slavers rushed toward them in front of her.

As he stared at her, images of his people being slaughtered surface to his mind, the stories of Mandalore being utterly devastated without remorse for the lives on it who hadn't even partaken in the war. What the Sith had done to his clan couldn't be forgotten and he almost felt ready to risk the chances of escaping himself after she was taken care of.

But as the bolts started to soar in, Andruil would feel a rifle be placed on top of her right shoulder, stabilizing his weapon. When there would be a break in between her deflection and a pirate firing, he would squeeze out a shot and pick someone off. "Move forward." His modulated voice came out, intending for her to walk straight to them as he put down fire.

 

[Renfry]

It was an odd moment where she seemed to see everything around her. She could almost sense what he was planning. The pressure of the rifle against her shoulder could be felt through her flight suit and she was thankful for its insulation against the heat of the rifle's barrel.

She started moving forward and caught another bolt with her saber. They were down to only one more slaver now, and then the work would be finished. Or at least it would supposedly be finished. She turned slightly so that they were both facing the final slaver and he could pull the trigger.

As soon as he did, she shrugged the barrel of the gun aside and turned to face him. His animosity toward her was unmistakable in the Shadow and her saber was still in hand as she watched him, half braced for him to turn on her now. She wasn't going to leave him behind her to shoot or stab her if that was how things went.

The gas will be finished soon, she said, though it was more to test the waters than because she was really worried about the gas right now.

@Orbit

 

[Nox Solus]

With her acting as a deflector shield, even better than that really, it easily allowed Nox to clean out the rest of the slavers. Well placed shots here and there and the last one would fall with a bolt right into his heart. Without even needing the shrug from Andruil, he lifted his weapon and already took a few steps back away from her.

The Mandalorian stood there and stared right into her, completely covered in mud and holding onto an equally dirty weapon. His two hands squeezed the body of the blaster routinely, almost as if every time it was him deciding to do it and then stopping himself. While he remained silent, Andruil would be able to still sense that rage, disgust, and other emotions that flooded through him, hot enough to melt and burn the mud off his armor if it was actually palpable.

But when she brought up that the gas would be finished soon, it broke his concentration on his own emotions and most likely spared him from being killed by her if he had pulled the trigger. Slowly, he slipped the rifle onto his back as he stepped past her, "You can check on it." Nox walked away and to one of the reasons why he decided not to let his emotions get the best of them. He made his way to the sound of shouting and screams for help, finding multiple cages lined up next to each other further in the camp.

With one smooth motion, he pulled out his blaster pistol and shot at each lock, disintegrating the cheap metal as the doors would swing open almost in unison. As slaves slowly filed out, the Mandalorian would inform them of the camp nearby and that they were safe for the time being.

 

[Renfry]

Tensions continued to mount and then a moment later all that tension seemed to crack. He put his gun away and she let her saber flash out as they passed one another. She continued to watch him as he went to the cages, giving an approving nod that he wasn't likely to see as he began blasting open the locks. Nightsister, Sith, vicious killer, but not a wholehearted monster. These slavers were despicable and their captives would be given safe passage off world.

For her part, she began to check on the gas. The meter read that it was nearly empty, and through an enhancement of her hearing, she could just make out the sounds of hacking and coughing on the other side. The gas was working and they would be unconscious soon. Then it was a matter of tying them up and taking them away. Then the real horror show would begin for them. Their just desserts in this life.

She turned back a moment later, heading in the direction of the Manda, lightsaber now on her hip as she approached. People from the cages had now all but mauled him, trying to hug him, kiss his helmet, and a couple of people even appeared to be attempting to lift him up for some sort of crowd-surfing. She couldn't help but smile from behind her helmet.

@Orbit

 

[Nox Solus]

Nox was sore but he stood firm as he imagined once the slaves had heard of the camp, they would have eagerly rushed for it. But a kid that appeared at least sixteen years old, maybe younger, ran up and wrapped his arms around him surprisingly, it started a domino effect. Most of them then ran over, touching all off his armor as others kissed his T-visor and where his mouth would be despite the mud.

While he appreciated the sentiment, he wasn't exactly comfortable being completely surrounded and just showered with affection. A small group of them attempted to lift him up and they started the process but he was already resisting, "Wait, wait." They hadn't been fed consistently and well taken care of and with him fully armored and armed, he wasn't exactly the lightest thing to toss around. His feet left the ground a few feet but the people already started to stumble over and he quickly escaped by hopping off before distancing himself once again.

The Mandalorian put both his hands out gently as they stopped in front of him, some of them laughing at the debacle that happened a few seconds earlier. "I just shot the locks, no need to thank me." Then he pointed over to Andruil and her emotionless mask as well, "Please, go to the camp and get food and water." A handful of them stared at him eagerly but eventually all of them turned and departed, their stomachs more important than adoring him.

Nox turned slightly, his masked gaze finding Andruil's as silence would fall between them for a few brief moments. But eventually, he would break contact and walk back to their camp behind the freed slaves, intent on cleaning his armor and taking a shower.

 

[Renfry]

Renfry watched the commotion surrounding the armored man and continued to smile behind her mask. It felt good to see them freed and the affection they showered on him was almost comical.

Eventually, he managed to redirect them toward food and they decided that was a better option than continuing to maul him. She had a feeling he was glad to be free of all their attention, and she headed off in the same direction as him.

There was still quite a distance back to the camp, and she wondered if he would get ideas about trying to kill her.

I never caught your name, Child of the Manda, she said to him as they walked back. He and the sniper were practically the only people who had survived, which meant a cheaper payout for her. It also meant that he had gotten the job done, and that was the kind of thing she took note of. Though, she got the impression that he wasn't going to be interested in taking jobs for her anymore now that he knew she was Sith. Still, worth considering.

@Orbit

 

[Nox Solus]

Nox just walked slowly back to the camp, a respectful distance between him and the freed slaves, almost acting as a rearguard despite his lack of energy. He just kept his gaze forward and focused it there best he could, not trusting himself if he glanced around with the truth revealed to him. The emotions inside him were a seesaw, an extreme on each side that would flare up before being pushed aside by another.

Barely noticed by him, Andruil appeared by his side with a few feet between them. Lethal thoughts crossed his mind, the first being him using his blaster and then possibly using his blade. It would either ended with him dead or both of them and he didn't mind the latter. But he tore his T-visor away immediately, recognizing that her death most likely meant the death of the people they had just saved, Nox's jaw tightening as he controlled himself.

She practically asked for his name and his reply was almost instant and cold, "It doesn't matter to you." Nox had heard enough to know what they were like and how eventually they always corrupted what they touched. When she called him a Child of the Manda, the hairs on the back of his neck rise, almost making him stop if it wasn't for the fact that their camp was almost in view. "Don't call me that." Andruil said it like she knew what he was and he would have just have preferred the classic, Mandalorian.

When they entered the camp, Nox stopped and turned towards the barracks where most of the mercs had stayed. He called back to her, "We'll discuss payment." The Solus' immediate destination would be the shower room as he wanted to wash off more than just mud.

 

[Renfry]

You are not one then? she asked. She had only met one other Child of the Manda but she hadn't been this... angry. The feelings were flowing off of him in unmistakable waves of malice and hatred. She was beginning to suspect that he had had a recent bad experience with the Sith. She also began to seriously contemplate killing him. She wasn't going to risk her operations here being compromised and he was a potential loose end if he was this hostile to her.

They made it back to camp and he broke off to head toward his area and she headed toward her own, making her way onto her ship rather than a tent. Cleaning the flight suit would be a pain and something she was very likely to assign to one of her guards who had remained aboard the ship, a requisitioned light freighter that served her for the time being.

After a quick wash down of her own, she emerged from the ship with her other combat suit on. Not much of armor, but flexible and comfortable with a helmet that covered her face still. Her lightsaber was re-concealed as she headed out into the camp. Rumor had already begun to spread through the camp that almost no one had come back alive and she wondered if word of her status as Sith had gotten out as well. Somehow she doubted it. Neither the Manda nor the sniper seemed the type to say much.

The others would be paid their retainment fee and sent home none the wise about what had happened. For now, she headed in the direction where she heard the commotion of people waiting for food: the slaves.

@Orbit

 

[Nox Solus]

Andruil asked if he actually was then and he just didn't answer the question. Nox despised the fact the way she spoke it was like she understood where he was from, not that he wasn't an actual Mandalorian. They separated once they reached the camp, his destination the barracks, and specifically where he could be cleaned up. With the casualties sustained on the mission, the building was relatively empty and left him some privacy.

Nox went through a hall and into a section of the building that consisted of showerheads and toilets. Quickly slipping off his armor, he entered one of the stalls and locked the door behind him with a click. His second skin was arranged neatly on the side, the last piece to be removed being his helmet. Once it was, the hot stream of water would collide against a human face as brown water started to cascade down his body.

It would reveal a man who was in his mid-twenties, fit and lean from his time in the galaxy, a beard completely covering his jaw as he had a scratch mark that started near the back of his head and was brought almost to his left eye. At first, he was about to put the helmet down but then he twisted it so he held it right above his stomach, it staring up at him. The thin layer of mud was washed away, revealing a stark and sharply defined metal frame with a T-visor in the center of it. Amber eyes would reflect back to him, filled with something that wasn't so easily peeled back to discover the answer.

Flashes of his ancestors went through his mind, their image either created by himself or what he had been taught in the past. The rivalry between the Sith and Solus had been legendary for the wrong reasons. What would those that battled for his freedom and died so many years ago say about him? They most likely would have shot him right then and there if he didn't know any better. After a few more minutes in the shower, Nox eventually exited, refreshed but still weighed down.

When he found himself outside, he was dressed in his complete armor and weapons once more. Normally, he would seek his payment and left right there. But as he watched more slaves file in, he couldn't keep his curiosity in check. Andruil would hear Nox approach from her rear until he stood side by side with her, a few feet between them. The T-visor locked on the malnourished people that surrounded them, "What's your plan with them?"

 

[Renfry]

Andruil was on high alert with the recent near conflict, and so she sensed the Manda as he approached. She sensed no malice or intent to kill from him but she still cast a glance briefly over her shoulder as he came to a stop next to her.

She expected him to ask about his payment and be gone, but that wasn't what he did. Instead, he asked about the slaves. She looked back to them. There were a lot of them, lined up for help from the overwhelmed cooking team in the mess tent.

Give them traveling money and get them to the nearest spaceport, she said. She didn't have the time or inclination to sort out the life details of every person here, but she also wasn't going to simply leave them to die on this planet. What they did from there was up to them.

Where they go from there is their decision, she said. They could travel home if they still had one or make a new start for themselves. Not that doing the latter would be easy, but some of them likely had homes to return to.

Why? she asked. He wasn't being paid to deal with the slaves and from what she'd heard, mercenaries didn't usually work out of the goodness of their hearts.

@Orbit

 

[Nox Solus]

It was almost so neatly wrapped in a bow he couldn't believe it. Just traveling money and to the nearest spaceport and that was it? It didn't exactly align with the Sith's natural beliefs that the strong should reside over the weak or whatever their mantra was. But as he thought about it, he realized the slavers hadn't been mentioned, the unconscious collection of bodies they managed to make after their little gas trick.

It was revealed that they could go wherever they pleased and Nox just took her word for it, not really having anything else to counter except just her true nature and what her people had done in the past. She asked why he cared and Nox simply crossed his arms across his chest plate, his T-visor still focused on the malnourished people that surrounded them. They weren't Mandos, they hadn't helped him before, in fact, he had only heard of the slaves when the contract had been brought up to him. But a voice inside his head refused to let it be.

"The part of me that doesn't know to shut is curious." It was the best answer in his mind that he could without explaining too much. His gaze lasted on the freed slaves for a few more moments before he finally swung his T-visor over to Andruil, payment finally being discussed, "Out of the team that went with us, I'll take seven of their fees. I assume you didn't anticipate that many casualties and with the rest of the twenty still in the camp, they won't be paid in full."

Nox then nodded over to the sniper that idly walked past people and to her room in the barracks, "She can get the other two's pay, the Shistavanen and your thief." That was all the pay and he simply waited for Andruil's reaction.

 

[Renfry]

Two of Andruil's guards had been dispatched to deal with the unconscious slavers, and their existence would be nothing but torture from here on out. A shame for them, but not something that Nightsister was going to worry about any longer. Their fate was sealed.

Ah yes, curiosity, she said. She was a curious person as well, and had a long history of pursuing knowledge simply for the sake of knowledge.

When he moved on to payment, she turned to him, her helmet betraying nothing.

Excuse me? I'll pay you double your rate, she said. She didn't argue that the Manda had gone above and beyond and was willing to pay him a bonus for that, but each of the contractors had been hired separately. She wasn't going to pay out the fees of the deceased to another random individual who had no association with those who were dead.

I'm not paying you 7x your normal fee. You're not a team or a PMC, she said bluntly. And she will receive her regular rate, she said, referencing the sniper who had certainly not performed above and beyond.

She watched for whether or not he would lash out and was ready if he went that direction. Hopefully not, he was a professional after all.

 

[Nox Solus]

"You heard me." Nox simply stated back, as if he was just conducting normal business with the woman... Sith. It was a hard characteristic for him to forget. She added that he wasn't a team or that he was a PMC and he shook his head, "You're right, I'm better." There was confidence in his words, about his own skill, and the fact that his clients weren't ripped off with his prices.

"Lady, it was an open contract. I wasn't paid to arrive and neither were the other mercs, which means you haven't handed it out yet. You were ready to shell out for over 30 men and I reduced it to ten, leaving you plenty of money in your own pocket and reducing the cost of this operation in total. There is no need to pay them as they'll most likely walk off with their skills no longer required. I'm asking for a sizeable portion for what you were already willing to pay, not all of it. It's still less than what you've planned on spending for this." Nox spoke evenly, breaking it down as how he saw it and what he had done. While expecting the seven fees may be a lot, you had to start from somewhere.

The Mandalorian then gestured to the slaves, "You can even use the fees from the other twenty to help give their traveling money." Then he glanced at the base around them, "Clearly funds aren't an issue for you either way." His helmet then swung to the sniper who was still in view, "I don't give a shit about her. That was just so I didn't get shot leaving because of the split." Snipers had a knack to remain out of attention until they weren't with a bolt to someone's spine.

Nox however, shrugged and also threw in, "You can take 25% cut from each fee, for their unfortunate deaths in your... rescue mission." The asking amount was even lower with a share reduced for the sniper and the cut from each take for him. Even though his words were slightly modulated, Andruil would be able to tell that he wasn't speaking from greed that made him want the credits, but something else entirely, more of a need.

 

[Renfry]

The others will be paid their retainment fee as per the agreement, she stated. Each of those not selected were still being paid for their time. A significantly lower fee, but for doing nothing but sitting around in camp, it wasn't such a bad deal.

You agreed to a fee, and you're getting double that, she said simply. Unless you can convince me that you are next of kin to the deceased, then you're not getting anyone's share but your own, she said.

She started to simply walk away when another thought came to her mind. She probed lightly at his mind, taking in his feelings about the slaves. Curiosity... and even compassion. Compassion he didn't even know where it came from.

She paused and turned back to him. I'll make you a deal. You want the other five shares, you do another job for me, she said. He claimed to be better than a whole team or PMC, and she'd seen enough of his skills to arguably back up what he said. Keeping just him around also meant more compartmentalization for the operation.

I don't want these slavers on this planet again, which means taking out the source, she said. She wanted to cut the head off the snake.

He didn't like her, but her money was good, and the job was something he could have gotten behind on principle. If she captured some more victims for her own experiments, all the better.

 

[Nox Solus]

Nox certainly wasn't a fan of how business was conducted in Sith space, to say the least. There had been at least been room to conduct haggling within true Outer-rim space. He thought that saving her a platoon's worth of credits would have been a factor for more but it seemed not so much. Andruil walked away committed to the double pay and the Mandalorian just softly exhaled as he turned himself, making a promise to himself to not make the mistake of working in Sith space.

Before he could get to far, Andruil called out to him and he stopped to only turn around slightly towards her, practically his cheek and the face of his shoulder. Another job for the other shares and to specifically kill or incapacitate the rest of the slavers. Nox didn't believe her, at least for the reasons he was supposed to believe, naturally not trusting the Sith as the slavers were only used as a guide for a different purpose.

With the offer of a job, there was a possibility that it was both a risk for him and for her. It could mean his death if he tried to pull something and if everything worked out smoothly, it could end with her's if he got a well-placed shot. The Sith would most likely feel the debate inside him as he was unknown about the skill and the mask really being his own defence to not exposing what he thought constantly.

"Where and what is the source?" It was the only question asked by the Solus, still listening intently as the credits provided wouldn't be just for him but for his clan. If she answered, he would be using it to extend his own internal conversation about what to do.

 

[Renfry]

That's the job to figure out, she said. Just killing them was one thing, but finding them was another problem. It was difficult to say precisely what that process would look like. Unlike with this operation, she was less interested in wiping everyone out and more interested in purging an operation. It meant killing the leadership, stealing funding, and sabotaging operations. It was less straightforward.

It's a dismantling operation, not a smash and grab, she said. We go back to the camp, get what information we can, and head to the source, she said.

She could sense the conflict within him, but she didn't say anything more. She simply waited, pondering the man in front of her. He was unusual and not a typical mercenary she had met. She had yet to decide if he had a moral compass per se, but he certainly didn't seem to like her. She once again wondered what it was that had gone so poorly between he and a Sith in the past that he had such strong feelings. But then, the Empire was technically Sith and it had wiped out most of the Mandalorians. Maybe it was simple as that. He certainly wasn't sharing with her about it. He had yet to even admit he was a Manda.

She rolled her eyes behind her helmet at the thought.

@Orbit

 

[Nox Solus]

With Nox standing still for so long, the index and middle finger of his right hand tapped against his left armor plate, his arms still crossed over his chest as he listened to her describe the conditions of the new job. A chuckle came out of him over the details, first him glancing in the opposite direction before bringing the T-visor back to her. They would have no idea what they would be walking into, defenses if there were any. In truth, that didn't really bother as what happened prior was any indication, it shouldn't have been too difficult but they were talking about the slaver's base of operations.

The Solus then glanced over to the slaves, seeing their condition and how many of them were in their younger ages. While he certainly felt something for them, he knew the woman wasn't doing this to just rescue slaves that needed help. Nox didn't trust her and while he wanted the credits to help his clan, he couldn't continue the job knowing what her actual true nature was. He cared more about his honor and the memory of his clan's ancestors than betraying them for credits he could acquire elsewhere.

Eventually, he came to his decision, "You'll have to find the source yourself. I'll take my pay." Nox offered his hand out, signifying that if he had the credits on her then he would leave right then and there, if not, then he would just follow her into the tent and collect it then. Once he had secured his payment, Nox would simply take a speeder and leave the camp.

---​

With the slaves that had been rescued, it would take until night to transport them and keeping the Sith to the base. Nox had detoured once he had gotten out of sight, finding a camouflaged spot between two trees as he peered down the scope of his rifle, the last of the ships about to take off. By this point, he suspected the woman had discovered what she needed at the camp and would move out or didn't and most likely leave.

The Solus would barely move and keep watch, his speeder bike behind a nearby tree and hidden in case he needed a quick escape.

 

[Renfry]

Andruil simply shrugged as he said he would take his credits and leave. It was perhaps mildly disappointing, but she would find another means of finishing off the slavers.

She motioned with her head for him to follow her and retrieved his credits before the pair parted ways. Where he would go and what he would do was unknown to her, but she had half a mind to keep an eye on him or hunt him down. There was no question in her mind that he was a potential threat, but he also didn't seem the type to do something stupid.

But more likely than not, she would simply never see him again.

---​

It was several hours later that Andruil finally made it back to the slaving camp. All but the last cohort of slaves had been dropped at the starport and the final group was being overseen by a droid manager. It didn't require her personal touch, so her ship landed at the base.

The pair of Nightsisters - clothed in dark clothing to blend with the night - that she had sent to deal with the base had managed to bind up and mostly strip the unconscious slavers and promptly place them in the same cages they had used to heard their prey.

For her part, the Queen headed into the main building - now fully aired out - and began to rummage through the datachips and terminals that had been left "unattended" with the release of the gas. Surely there were some clues for her to use here.

@Orbit

 

[Nox Solus]

Nox laid fully prone amongst the grass and foliage, his cloak covering the reflection of most of his metallic plates. The only way he could be noticed was if something was directly behind him and able to see the tip of his foot lightly tapping the ground.

With the slaves having been transported to wherever they were going, it left the reason to scope out the Sith's base to be void at the moment. Their conversation before he left had given him a general notion about her plan and he slowly crawled back to disappear behind bushes and trees. With practiced ease, he would change positions, taking the necessary time to not be spotted as he knew with the slaver's wiped out, there would be no need to be rushing.

Accessing a new position on the bluff that the sniper had used from before but a different position and assumed his prone stance once more. With a quick adjustment of the rifle's scope, the crosshairs swung over the slaver camp he had recently taken down with who he was watching only a few hours ago. The memory of how everything shifted from a simple job to being across from an enemy that nearly eradicated his people.

Crosshairs first drifted over the two Nightsisters, his intention only being to keep an overwatch and leaving the only thing to be felt being the wind. At first, his crosshair followed the pairing for only a few moments, having never witnessed one of their kind before. But then the sight caught who he was actually interested in as the familiar armor and mask stood out. Nox would be able to catch the tail end of Andruil heading into the building, most likely beginning her search.

In the meantime, his rifle would just be aimed at the door she came through, his angle providing an entire view of the building if he peered out from the scope. All that was left to do was be patient and he did that, the reticle from time to time flicking to something else before returning to the barracks.