Race To The Finish

[EmilyHuene]

Concord Dawn
~Monroe Estate~
@EmilyHuene ; @Kel Dor​

Need Help. Daughter Missing!
Serisha Monroe: Age 19
Brown Hair & Eyes
Last Seen Three Weeks Ago
Please contact the Monroe family with any information on her whereabouts​

This was the message that was sent to the Jedi over two months ago. The Monroe family has not seen their daughter in almost three months now and there has been no word of ransom or foul play. Some suspect she was picked up slavers. Distant relatives put out a rumor that she simply ran away. No one is talking and no one has come to investigate. The family turned to other hands. With no word from the Jedi, the Monroe family began to get desperate. They would turn to a bounty guild, The Accord, for assistance in their plight. Who responded was a redheaded pilot who felt sympathetic to their story. She was not the best in combat, but she had enough connections in the lower circles to find out where the girl may have been taken.

Outside the estate, one cold and raining day, Rico Redella would fly her ship, the Crimson Scarlet, into the estate and land near their landing strip. She normally wore her flight suit when going out on a mission and her body armor over it, but today she didn't anticipate any gunfights. So she would present herself to the family in a more suitable attire. She had a black button up jacket that covered her neck down to her wrists. She would then wear matching shorts that may have been a little too short, but no time to change now. Her long red hair and been pulled back into her hat which covered her face from some of the rain pouring down on her. Her brown eyes watched each step as she walked. careful not to slip on the rocks. Rico really liked this outfit because it covered up her front, more specifically what was on her front. It was no secret that Rico was well-equipped, but she didn't like to flaunt it. She hated when men would try to talk to her and get lost in her valleys, in a manner of speaking. It was humiliating feeling like some piece of meat for them to drool over. Dogs, every one of them.

She would come to the door and knock several times before one of the butlers answered. "Hello! I'm Red. I'm from the Accord."

"Greetings, young miss," the man would say and ushered her inside. "Would you care for a towel to dry yourself off?"

"Yes please, that would be most kind."

The man would then vanish for a moment while he found her a towel. Rico patted herself down not once, but three times as the man seemed unimpressed by her efforts. Each time he'd give her a look saying "You missed a spot. Keep going. If you so much as drip on the carpet I'll feed you to the wolves." At least, that's the way Rico saw it. In all likely hood the man was probably upset she was taking so long.

 

[Kel Dor]

Kast was meditating inside his quarters onboard the Peacekeeper, the Jedi Knight flagship on which he had spent most of his career as a Knight so far. He was levitating a few feet in the air, his legs crossed. The Kel'Dor was using this time to explore his feelings regarding his first mission, from which he had recently returned. His feelings about the events that had transpired on that planet weighed heavy on him, and he was not sure what the correct response would be. Allowing himself to slow down and feel the Force flow around and through him, Kast wrestled with his options. He was never happier than when he was free to engage with the Force. Later, he decided, he would take a trip to the Peackeeper's archives and study a little history. The pursuits of the mind, he had always believed, were the most important aspects of life to a Jedi. Sadly, he knew many would disagree.

Nalro's meditation was suddenly interrupted by soft beeps emanating from his terminal. He allowed his feet to return to the ground and took a moment to be sure that he was steady. Though he could've been slightly annoyed by the interruption, he found instead that a deep sense of calm and tranquility over took him like a warm blanket. Force meditation tended to have that effect.

It wouldn't last long.

"Kast," called out a human female voice from the machine, "you have several unread messages, as well as an all-call sent to all Knights."

"Right, thank you. I will check them immediately." Kast had forgotten to check his terminal upon his return to the ship. Taking a seat, he began to scroll through his unread messages. Mostly, they were housekeeping notes sent to the crew of the Peackeeper. A debriefing he had no desire to read at the moment. And then...something different. The all-call.


Need Help. Daughter Missing!
Serisha Monroe: Age 19
Brown Hair & Eyes
Last Seen Three Weeks Ago
Please contact the Monroe family with any information on her whereabouts

Attached to the original message was a concise statement presumably written by some General somewhere. "Any Knight with ample time that wishes to pursue this lead is granted the ability to due so. The allocation of official Knight resources is unavailable at this time."

Kast felt a flush of anger rush through him, though he was quick to subdue it to a controllable level. What was this? Allocation of resources unavailable? The resources were too busy with, what, gaining some more territory? Fighting and killing on some barren wasteland of a planet? Gaining favor? Kast was frustrated, ashamed, and sad all at once. How could the Jedi Knights be so...misguided?

No, no, that was unfair. There was a war on - one that the Jedi didn't start. If they allocated an army to go hunt down every missing person in the galaxy, the Sith would rule within the blink of an eye. Kast was being immature and impulsive. Surely no Jedi had taken on this mission because they were all busy.

But Kast? He had just returned from a mission. He had not even been (officially) debriefed. He could do it. His mind was made up. In a moment, he was slipping his robe on and clipping his lightsaber to his waist. If this girl had been abducted, or even if she had simply run away, Kast would find her. He would not allow the people of the galaxy to think that the Jedi cared only for themselves.

The location of the Monroe family had been attached to the message, so when Kast boarded his starship (a generic model assigned to all Jedi) he knew exactly what coordinates to input. His ship blasted away from the Peackeeper. He was on his way to find this Serisha Monroe.

He only hoped he would find her alive.

 

[EmilyHuene]

While the woman dried herself off, she had no idea that another soul was currently on the same path as she. Somewhere out there a Jedi had decided to take up the request. But neither of them knew about the other so it was bound to cause some trouble soon. The master of the family who had reached out to the Jedi did not wish to have to pay a reward fee to whomever saved his precious daughter. Maybe that's why the Jedi never responded. Greedy self-righteous fools. Still, now money was on the table and The Accord came to claim. How would the Jedi react when he found out that the very same mission he wished to join had already been given away to some greedy smuggler?

Rico was then led into a nearby room and asked to sit while the butler called on his master. She was given a drink to await her time and she sipped from it slowly. Rico could handle her liquor just fine, but didn't wish to lose any self-control whilst presenting herself to the Monroe family. He would be looking for a smart and capable person to put his faith and trust in, not some drunk female who couldn't stand on her own feet. She was already at a disadvantage with her gender, so she didn't need anything else going against her.

Finally the doors would open and a man in a fancy suit would walk in. Though he seemed tired and stressed, he carried himself with dignity and pride. He would sit at the end of the table Rico was waiting by and take a drink for himself.

"You must be Ms Red, am I correct?"

"Yes, Mr. Monroe Sir. I'm Rico Redella, but my friends call me Red for short."

At one point in time, Rico had actually been known as Red Haired Rico. She had been a swoop bike racer as a young teen, but lost her fame in gambling debts. Though her fortune went down the toilet, she was still left with her name. She smiled and gave a bow to the master of the house before sitting down herself on the other end of the table.

 

[Kel Dor]

Kast tore through hyperspace, keeping himself occupied with the Force as he went. The Knight had never been tasked with hunting down a missing person across (potentially) the entire galaxy before. He reached out to the Force, hoping that it would guide his instincts and, if he was lucky, perhaps tell him exactly where to look to find the missing girl.

After a few moments, he came to the conclusion that he must be very unlucky. Although, if he was honest with himself, he knew the Force didn't exactly work that way but..worth a shot.

Nalro slowly withdrew from his meditation and began wondering what he was going to say to the Monroe family. How would he explain the amount of time it took for a Jedi to respond to their plea? Would he tell the truth - that it was mostly a resources issue - or would he make up some nice platitude so as to protect the Order's reputation? Honestly, if it were up to Kast the Order would take a hit to their image over this; they deserved it. But then, it was up to Kast, wasn't it.

After some time, his ship emerged from hyperspace just outside of Concord Dawn's atmosphere. Kast brought his ship down to the Monroe estate, and noticed a bright yellow ship already docked at their strip. Considering the fact that he was flying a standard issue fighter, he felt that he had no right to judge the somewhat flashy paint job. Perhaps the Monroe's just had a particular taste.

Kast landed his ship and approached the estate. He strolled up to the door with his head high, though he felt nothing but shame in his heart.

He knocked on the door. No response. After a few moments, another knock. Perhaps he should've contacted the family before he came. Still...he was here now. He knocked again.

 

[EmilyHuene]

While the Jedi landed outside the master of the mansion would open up a data pad of his personal files. He displayed them on a small hologram projector he'd previously placed out on the table. He'd then start scrolling through some of the images and videos he wished to hand over to Rico in part to her investigation. Naturally he couldn't very well give away family secrets or things of that nature, so Rico could tell he was hiding some valuable information. However, with no authority to act on it, she couldn't very well ask him to reveal what he was keeping from her. She only hoped that the information provided to her would be suitable to her needs.

As they conversed about last sightings and behaviors of his daughter, there came a loud knocking at the door. It would come again until the master sent the butler to answer it. The Jedi outside would knock a third time before finally the door was opened to him.

"Greetings, Sir. Is there something I may help you with?"

 

[Kel Dor]

Kast stood tall above the servant, though he felt like a sniveling rodent.

"Is there something I may help you with?"

The question filled him with guilt. If he was being dramatic, he didn't care. A girl's life was on the line - a sentient creature, not some objective or token of pride. A life.

"Actually, I would like to help you if I could. My name is Kast Nalro. I am a Jedi Knight. My presence here is on account of the missing person's report filed...some time ago. I'd like to find Serisha. Is Mister Monroe home?"

The butler looked puzzled, if not bewildered. This seemed strange to Kast, to say the least. Sure, the response had taken a little while to come but at least it had arrived. Why the look of total confusion? Were the Jedi really held so low to the common people of the galaxy that their mere appearance was confusing?

"The Master is home, yes. Please come in." It seemed to Nalro like the man could hardly stand, he was so shocked. "Mister Monroe is currently, er...predisposed. Would you kindly wait here in the foyer while I fetch him?" The butler did not wait for a response before he left, which did not bother Kast; the question had obviously been rhetorical. The Knight made no move to sit or make himself comfortable while he waited. He felt that even a nice long meditation session would barely make a dent in the amount of shame he currently felt. He desired desperately to take a decontamination shower and scrub himself raw. The fact that the Jedi could not even offer help without shocking the citizenry of the galaxy was disgusting. In his mind, the Jedi were meant to be friendly faces on every corner. They were supposed to be the shining beacons of love, peace, and generosity to the galaxy. Parents were supposed to calm their children with promises of, "No there are no monsters in the darkness, child. You know better! The Jedi would never allow anyone to harm you." What had made the Jedi so short sighted, so distracted? The Sith? Then the war was lost already.

But even as Kast had the thought, he chided himself. How dare he presume that way. How did he expect the Jedi to help everyone in the galaxy? It was preposterous. Especially now with the constant threat of the Sith. He reminded himself for the second time that day that the Jedi had not started this fight. The Jedi were not the corrupt ones, the prideful and greedy men and women too weak to stand up against their own selfish desires. The Jedi were simply distracted with the big picture to notice the smaller pieces, and that wasn't so bad. They would pick up those pieces once the Sith had been once and for all defeated, surely.

The butler returned after a few moments to find Kast deep in thought. It might've appeared that Kast didn't realize the man had returned, but the Knight certainly had. He was just too busy with his own thoughts to acknowledge the man for some time. Eventually, Kast looked up and awaited what the man had to say.

"Mister Monroe will see you now." Kast had not known what transpired while the butler was away, nor did he realize the situation in which he was about to step. All he cared about was finding that girl, and nobody was going to stop him.

 

[EmilyHuene]

While Rico continued to sort through the files getting familiar with the information given, the butler would then return and disrupt them, "My apologies, Sir. It seems there is a Jedi to see you. A master Kast Nalro. He says he's here regarding the case."

Rico looked up to the man with much confusion. She was not aware that the Monroe family had also sent out word to the Jedi. It was kind of in poor taste to show up for someone else's mission. Did the Jedi think he could come in and snatch up the reward? Were they that desperate? No there had to be another reason for him being here. Surely the two would get to the bottom of this quickly. Rico did not want to be sent away without pay. She'd come all this way, she needed this score.

"Send him in," the master would say a little too quickly for Rico's taste. She would gasp and start tapping her foot against the ground to distract herself from the anger building up inside her. When the Jedi then came in, the man would offer him a seat. "Do make yourself feel at home. I was just going over the case file with Miss Red here."

"Um, excuse me," Rico say kind of awkwardly. "Why is there a Jedi here?"

 

[Kel Dor]

Kast was surprised (to the say the least) at the presence of the girl. She was a human, with red hair hidden by a hat and shorts that the Kel'Dor surmised would provide very little protection from, well, anything really. He wasn't sure who she was or what she wanted to do, but she was introduced as Miss Red. She was being briefed on the case file? Did that mean...

"Um, excuse me. Why is there a Jedi here?"

Kast turned his head to face her. "The Jedi received an urgent message about this missing girl. Sadly, we were not able to reply for sometime. But I am here now, to help." He then turned his head to face Mister Monroe. "Sir, I offer my sincerest apologies about your daughter. I cannot say why exactly our reply was not more expedient, but my assumption would be that your request got lost in something of a clerical issue." Only a slight lie. "I hope you can forgive the Order for our mistake. If I may be so bold as to ask, who is this Miss Red? Has she been brought in to exist in the investigation?"

 

[EmilyHuene]

"The Jedi received an urgent message about this missing girl. Sadly, we were not able to reply for sometime. But I am here now, to help...Sir, I offer my sincerest apologies about your daughter. I cannot say why exactly our reply was not more expedient, but my assumption would be that your request got lost in something of a clerical issue. I hope you can forgive the Order for our mistake. If I may be so bold as to ask, who is this Miss Red? Has she been brought in to exist in the investigation?"

Standing up and hinting that she was more than offended, "I am Rico Redella, from The Accord. We've already been contact about the mission and accepted it. I had no idea the Jedi were coming. Don't you have a war to fight?" Rico had nothing personal against this particular man, she just didn't approve of what the Jedi were doing as of late. She didn't quite agree with the Sith either, but....well it was complicated. And she wouldn't explain herself to either of them.

"This is very interesting," Master Monroe would say hoping to break up the squabble. "A Jedi and a Rogue. I daresay they would make an excellent team."

"I'm not sharing any reward money," Rico would blurt in.

"Now now," Monroe would say backing up a little and raising his hands. "I have plenty of money for the both of you if the Jedi so desires a monetary reward." He would look to the Jedi now with a sly look on his face. He fully understood no decent Jedi would ask of something so deceitful as money to help out a poor-little-helpless girl.

 

[Kel Dor]

Kast held a hand in the air. "Of course I will not require a reward for my help. I do this for the good of you and your family, Mister Monroe." He turned to Red. He found himself amused by her offense and her stubbornness. There was a lot of fight in this girl. Judging by his interaction with her so far, he judged that her power was uncontrolled, immature. That might be wrong, he allowed. But he doubted it.


"I can assure you I have no interest in stealing from you any sort of agreed upon exchange you have made with Mister Monroe. I only want this girl found."

He turned back to the head of the estate. "If you would be so kind as to show me what you have shown Miss Red here, we can get started."

 

[EmilyHuene]

"Of course I will not require a reward for my help. I do this for the good of you and your family, Mister Monroe. I can assure you I have no interest in stealing from you any sort of agreed upon exchange you have made with Mister Monroe. I only want this girl found. If you would be so kind as to show me what you have shown Miss Red here, we can get started."

"Excellent! Excellent!" the master would reply. He was more than overjoyed that he would not have to double his reward fee. The Jedi played right into his hands and now, he still could use their power to save his daughter. Maybe there was hope for this after all.

Rico, however, was not as pleased. She had no reason to be upset anymore for she was promised her reward in full. And, now she had someone to help her out in the task. Technically speaking, she was better off this way than going it on her own. Kast would not know this about the girl, but he could quickly figure it out, she was not a Force sensitive. Rico never believed in all that spiritual stuff and in a way was afraid of people who could move things with their minds. Made the world that much more unfair to those without power, such as herself.

"I guess I don't have a choice then," she would say compromising.

"Excellent!" Monroe would repeat himself. "Very well. Master Nalro, Miss Redella, I hope the two of you will get along. If you'd like, stay the night here and leave in the morning when weather conditions are more promising. You can use that time to study up on our investigation and see if we've missed anything. If you need any assistance, my butler, Corren, will be down the hall. Please excuse me." He would then nod his head and leave with the butler in tow.

Rico would look to the Kel'Dor Jedi and cross her arms, "Alright then. Let's get to work."

 

[Kel Dor]

Kast took a seat across from the girl and leaned back, his hands on his knees. He inhaled - a long, raspy breath made all the more alien by his mask, which distorted his voice. He examined her for a few moments, even reaching out with the Force to test her sensitivity, of which there was little. He wasn't all that surprised. Few Force sensitives in the galaxy managed to stay independent of both the Jedi and the Sith.

"Well, in the first place I don't much like the idea of staying the night in this estate. This poor girl has been lost long enough, we can't afford to spare any more time."

He continued without waiting for a response from her - less because he didn't care about what she had to say and more because he felt he wouldn't be able to get a word in once she got going.

"So, are there clues? Do you have any hunches? Anywhere at all at which we may take our first step?"

 

[EmilyHuene]

"Well, in the first place I don't much like the idea of staying the night in this estate. This poor girl has been lost long enough, we can't afford to spare any more time. So, are there clues? Do you have any hunches? Anywhere at all at which we may take our first step?"

Stopping short of her words she would close her mouth because he was right, she would not stop if he said something. She was kind of good at that. Or bad at that, depending on where one was sitting. Still, she would say, "Well if you'd like we can gather this stuff up and head to my ship. We're flying my ship by the way. No arguments." And as he expected, she would continue, "As for hunches. I am at a total loss. Mr Monroe said they checked missing persons and filed reports with the local police. If anyone took her, their likely off world by this point. There's a few people in the system would could shake down, but that isn't exactly the Jedi way. Or is it? I don't know how you people work. Anyways. We could see if any of them give us any clues that they didn't write in the witness reports. Though that may not lead us anywhere at all. Our best bet is to see if there were any clues left over from the day she disappeared and see if we can find something the police missed. After that, it'll be a guessing game to find where she was taken. Finding one girl in the whole galaxy is.....well the odds are bad let's put it at that."

 

[Kel Dor]

He nodded. Seeing no reason to argue with taking her ship, he moved on to their first move. "I can't imagine where we would go first off-world, though I have no problems with questioning anyone who may be able to help us. I think we should first go to the police of the planet and see if there is anything at all they can tell us. Perhaps Mister Monroe failed to properly articulate each aspect of the case."

The Jedi stood, adjusting his robes somewhat. "Lead the way to your ship."

He was amused to discover that her ship was the gawdy yellow one near his on the landing strip. He said nothing of it.

They flew to the nearest police headquarters. Kast made an effort to take the lead so that their inquiry would possibly be subtle and restrained. He entered the door first and approached the Officer at the front desk, hoping Red would allow him to take the lead.

"Ma'am, would you please allow us to examine the case built in regards to the missing Monroe girl? We have been hired by her family to find her and would appreciate whatever help you could offer."

 

[EmilyHuene]

"I can't imagine where we would go first off-world, though I have no problems with questioning anyone who may be able to help us. I think we should first go to the police of the planet and see if there is anything at all they can tell us. Perhaps Mister Monroe failed to properly articulate each aspect of the case. Lead the way to your ship."

"Alright then," she would say in agreement.

The two would then gather up the files and data chips that Mr. Monroe had provided for them before stowing them in a small duffle bag to make their journey. She really didn't wish them to get wet. She informed the butler that the two were declining to stay in the manor, but he was relieved to hear the two would quickly get on the case that much sooner. He appreciated the heads up from the two and would go to discuss what had been said to his master while the two stepped out into the rain.

The journey over would not take long, but they had to obey speed regulations inside the city. For that reason, traffic was a rather large nuisance. Even with hundreds of paths to take there was always traffic. It seemed incomprehensible. How can you have traffic jams in an aircraft? Still, here they were. With only a ten minute delay the two were back on track and landing at the police headquarters. Rico was in no hurry to get inside for she rather hated dealing with the law. So when Kast wanted to take the lead...Rico didn't stop him.

"Ma'am, would you please allow us to examine the case built in regards to the missing Monroe girl? We have been hired by her family to find her and would appreciate whatever help you could offer."

"Oh," came the response from the secretary. "You probably want to speak to the special agent on the case." She would then pick up her phone and call over to the captain via an audio call. His response was not heard, but she would relay the information and then direct the two over to his office. Rico nodded her thanks to the woman before they continued on.

"Welcome," the captain officer would greet them with a shake of his hand. "I'm Captain Blake Gustav. I was tasked with finding Serisha Monroe. I'm sorry to say we haven't had much luck. I assume you're...bounty hunters of sorts..." he didn't seem to keen on that idea, for he could tell the man in front of him wielded a lightsaber; the girl, her pistol.

 

[Kel Dor]

Surprisingly, Kast found himself confused on how best to answer. "Well, Captain, actually...I am no Bounty Hunter, though my partner is, as you say, of sorts. I am a Jedi Knight, which I'm sure is not hard to tell."

"Well, you aren't wrong. Never seen one in real life before, but, people know what a Jedi looks like. So, you're here for whatever information I can offer, correct?"

Kast nodded down at the man; he was nearly a foot taller. "Precisely."

"Well, I'm not totally sure what I can tell you that I didn't already tell her father. It's a shame, too. She was so young. Well," Blake fumbled around his desk looking for something or another for a few moments before his hands finally clutched a datapad. He handed it to Kast. "Might as well keep that. It's got all my notes on it. She was last seen by a bartender downtown. I got what you're thinking; we questioned him. He knows nothing."

Kast found that hard to believe. Surely this bartender had seen someone she was socializing with, perhaps even left with, if they were lucky. But why would he hide that from the police? Kast believed they had found their first lead.

"Thank you detective. This will help immensely." The two exchanged polite platitudes before Kast and Red left. Kast spoke to his new partner on the way back to her ship. "We need to speak to this bartender. He or she must have some clue as to what happened with the girl that night. Why he wouldn't be open with the police, well...I have ways of figuring that out." A light sprinkle dusted across them as they reentered Red's ship. Kast handed her the datapad which contained the coordinates of the bar at which the girl had been last seen. "Perhaps you should take the lead on this one. I've no doubt you have more experience with the seedier bits of human culture. If you can't get anything out of the bartender, we will try my method."

 

[EmilyHuene]

While Kast and the Captain talked things over, Rico would look around the room eyeing the man's works and medals he'd won from such. He was rather decorated, so it was clear to see he was well liked or at least respected enough in the law to be known. Rico hated people like that. She was sure the man had some black mark on him somewhere. Everyone did.

"Thank you detective. This will help immensely."

Again Rico would leave with Kast after not saying a word to the policeman. She was more than happy to work standby. Still, it felt good to get out of that building where she felt one of them would attempt to arrest her on some charge or another. Although she currently had no charges against her, she had been apprehended a time or two that she didn't quite care to recall.

"We need to speak to this bartender. He or she must have some clue as to what happened with the girl that night. Why he wouldn't be open with the police, well...I have ways of figuring that out...Perhaps you should take the lead on this one. I've no doubt you have more experience with the seedier bits of human culture. If you can't get anything out of the bartender, we will try my method."

"I agree. This is more my territory and no one is going to spill anything to a do-goody Jedi. You should consider a change of outfit. I'll be doing the same if you don't mind. Then we'll be on our way."

She would close up the ramp once they were inside but not head to the cabin. Instead she walked to the other side of the small ship into a room labeled "Rico's Bedroom" with a hand-crafted, sparkly, decorated sign. In the comfort of her own room, the woman would strip out of her current outfit and put on a red and white flightsuit. It was only the underarmor for over it she would begin to dress herself in a Mandalorian style battle suit. It had several large plates to cover the vital areas and then smaller ones to cover the rest. She would then return to Kast and strut past him in a rather seductive manner. That was more of her style for things.

"Something like this always gets the boy's attention, ya know."

 

[Kel Dor]

Kast was completely against ever trying a "change of outfit". These robes were tradition! Besides, he saw nothing wrong with showing people that the Jedi had a presence. That they were trying to help. And he had ways of getting information from people if it was important enough.

He couldn't help but laugh a bit when Red emerged in her armor. "Does it? Expecting a firefight in the bar?"

Kast wasn't sure if she just didn't want to be seen by locals without her armor or what, but he felt himself get slightly antsy at the idea of getting into a fight downtown. He had only just finished a mission that involved so much death, pain. He was not eager to kill again - not on this endeavor, or hopefully any other.

The Kel'Dor followed her to the cabin and took a seat in the Copilot's chair, wondering what good Red would be in a firefight. She was obviously no stranger to at least the idea of combat - a battle suit like that couldn't have been cheap. Even so, she was a non Force sensitive. The duo were walking into a densely packed and apparently possibly extremely hostile environment; would she be able to handle herself against some fairly nasty odds, if the situation were to arise? Furthermore, how diligent would she be in doling out her brand of killing? He had no desire to suddenly wind up with a blaster hole in the back of his head. Part of him wanted to ask her about her combat experience; another part judged that would be a bad idea.

He listened to the latter and sat in relative silence on the ride.

 

[EmilyHuene]

"Does it? Expecting a firefight in the bar?"

"Let me tell you a little secret," she would say as he joined her in the cockpit while firing up the engines. "When you go to dangerous and shady places, you dress the part. You go out in a dress. You get hit on. You go in a suit of armor, well they stay out of your way. It's a deterrent. Just like your lightsaber."

Once more the ship would rise above the ground as Rico piloted them toward the inner-more parts of town. It wouldn't take her long to find the bar, but finding a place to park would again spell trouble for the two. They could literally park anywhere! So why was parking always an issue. Kast would feel her aggravation as she struggled to not crash her vessel into some of the taller buildings while looking for a large enough area to set down in. Had they been in a smaller ship, maybe a two-seater, then finding a spot would be simple. But hers was a living craft and needed a wider space. And the nearest hanger was a few miles away. It seemed after everything they would have to walk.

Angrily, Rico shut off the engines and left the cabin when they had docked in the hanger. She would then head over to a ladder which took her into the ship's cargo hold. It wasn't an extremely large room, but it was bigger than Kast would likely assume for the size of the ship. The cargo bay was neatly organized and labeled accordingly, though it was all in a secret code Rico had written (or rather borrowed from a friend). Still, she knew what every crate had in it. She would walk over to one of the larger ones and pull out a light machine rifle to sling over her back while going downtown.

"What?" she would ask to Kast who likely had a look on him. "A girl's gotta be prepared."

 

[Kel Dor]

The Jedi failed to see how "getting hit on" was any worse than "getting shot at and having to blast a room full of people", but to be fair he was neither a female nor a human. So, he decided to give her the benefit of the doubt. What he did not want to give her the benefit of the doubt on, however, was the rifle she slung over her shoulder from her cargo bay.

"At this point you are simply inviting trouble, Miss Red. People will see us and take it as a challenge, not a deterrent."

But the duo were already exiting the ship. Too late, he figured. They made their way through the crowded streets, Kast pushing his way through the crowds. They drew plenty of eyes, a few curses, but mostly people got out of their way when they saw them coming. This frustrated Kast. They did not need word getting out that something was about to go down; it only invited violence. He wanted to place the blame on Red - but there were several armored individuals walking the streets. The eyes, and the curses, were pretty much directed exclusively to Kast. What had the Jedi done to garner this reputation?

They continued toward the bar.