Race To The Finish

[EmilyHuene]

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

"Just let me handle the locals, ok Mr Jedi?" She would roll her eyes and give an exasperated sigh at his fatherly protests. "Sheesh. You need to take a chill pill."

The two would walk down the long streets and several people would move out of their way. Others didn't quite move far enough and ended up bumping into them, but Rico paid them no mind. She had plenty of protection in her suit and wasn't worried in the slightest about getting stabbed, mugged, or injured. To them, she was the person to fear. She rather liked not feeling like a victim for a change. The walk would not take them very long and soon they came to the designated bar. Rico walked up to the door and pulled it open, barely holding onto it for a second before expecting Kast to grab it for himself.

The bar was simple. There was not much else to say about it. Down a small flight of stairs led them into a wide room from side to side. In the center of the room, which took up almost the entire length of the room was a rounding bar where two bartenders worked on their customers. To the left of them were a selection of tables that could fit maybe six people in a rounded booth; there were five of these in total. A group of three sat in the second booth. A single man sat in the third booth. A larger group of five women occupied the final one. After the booths were three tall tables which stood on the other end of the room that the two had entered in from. Two of them were occupied by business men of sorts, two and two each exchanging pleasantness. And lastly to the right of them were two more tall tables and a make-shift stage that took up the rest of the space on the East-most side of the bar. It was busier than Rico expected. A place so small as this wouldn't give off the impression it was busy enough for two employees to be working. Maybe it was in the middle of a shift change? Neither of them would look up at the two would entered for they were being rather diligent about whatever drinks they were making.

"So..." she would turn and look at the man. "You getting any feelings?" Her question was in regards to the whole Jedi-mind reading skill she assumed all Force sensitives could have. Magic that was far above any average humanoid.

 

[Kel Dor]

"Yes," Kast replied, surveying the bar as he spoke. "I sense that we should get what we came for and then leave. Go have your conversation." With that, Kast left her side and went to sit at an empty booth in the corner, away from the denizens of the establishment. He assumed Red would go and take care of her business. The Jedi got a bad vibe from the place even without using the Force. With his training, he knew that his presence put people immediately on edge in the bar. Terrific. He tried to hide as best he could.

It didn't work, not really. After a short time of sitting in blessed silence, a blue Rodian took a seat in Kast's booth. The Kel'dor glared at the newcomer.

"How interesting to find a Jedi here. This is rare."

Kast waved his hand in front of the Rodian's face. "You feel like going to the counter and avoiding me."

"No, I don't believe I do. I've been at this a long time, Jedi. Your mind tricks won't work. So.."

Kast felt the cold press of a barrel against his knee underneath the table. "You're looking for the girl...aren't you?"

 

[EmilyHuene]

"Suit yourself," she would say as he went off to hide in the corner. Not exactly good police work. But she wouldn't complain. This was her scene after all, not his. Rico moved further into the bar and would first go straight over to the bartop to get herself a drink. She wanted the other patrons to know she wasn't here to cause any trouble and was maybe just looking for some time to relax herself. She'd order some red drink, cherry flavored, and then go and sit by one of the hightops in the back. She tried to drown out the business talk of the men on either side of her and focus on anything else she could gather from the other random conversations going on. She knew it wouldn't be long before one of the other patrons came up to her, but sadly it wasn't her that was greeted...it was Kast. Rico watched with a curious eye as she saw the Rodian sit down. Where she was sitting, she could not see his hidden gun, so she had no reason to feel any fear. Yet, she still wanted to know how this would play out.

 

[Kel Dor]

"The implication being that you know something? If so, you are obliged to share this information with me." The Rodian laughed - a high pitched, nasally sound which grated against Kast's ears. "You speak with the authority of the Jedi. But the Jedi have no authority down here, Kel'Dor. You haven't spent much time out and about recently, have you?" Kast felt the sudden urge to slam the Rodian's head against the table and choke the life out of him. But he fought against this urge; even told himself it had never existed. The desire scared him.

"I'm here to give you a message. This girl don't wanna be found. She's fine. If you know what's good for you, and your little sweetheart of a partner, you'll leave it alone." Kast felt the barrel fall away from his leg. The Rodian apparently put his blaster away. It stood.

"What's stopping me from snapping your neck right now? I wouldn't even need to stand."

"There's a lot of people in this room who would love to put a hole in a Jedi."

Kast found that logic unsatisfying. When the Rodian turned to leave, Kast jumped to his feet and extended his arm towards the creature. He reached out with the Force and stopped the Rodian in its tracks, gripping at its throat. He pulled the Rodian backwards and into his grip. No sooner had he wrapped his arm around its neck than a handful of people from around the bar stood, blasters aimed for Kast's head. Kast had unclipped his lightsaber and had it ignited, pointed out and away from his captive. He alternated pointing it at each armed patron. Kast and his new Rodian friend were bathed in green light.

"Everyone stay calm. This Rodian has been involved in the recent disappearance of a young girl from this planet. He attempted to scare me into submission just now. I consider this to be an affair between myself and this creature and would like to keep it that way. Any objections?"

No one spoke, but no one lowered their weapons either. The Rodian squirmed against Kast, but the Jedi held his prisoner firm. He stole a glance toward Red, a clear call for help, but kept his focus mainly on the blasters aimed for his brains.

 

[EmilyHuene]

The two would talk for a moment, nothing out of the ordinary. She didn't really know Kast all that well, so his distress in his facial features wasn't something she could pick up across the room. However, him standing and drawing his lightsaber was more than enough of a hint to get the girl to arms. She would jump up from her seat much like all the other patrons and raise her gun....at Kast? She would look around and not a single person had aimed their guns at her. For fear of changing that fact, she simply pointed the barrel of her blaster at him instead though she never dreamed of pulling the trigger.

"Everyone stay calm. This Rodian has been involved in the recent disappearance of a young girl from this planet. He attempted to scare me into submission just now. I consider this to be an affair between myself and this creature and would like to keep it that way. Any objections?"

It was then that the people started to look around and at the girl who had come in with him. They would keep their guns on the Jedi, but some of their eyes looked at Rico now instead. She would lower her gun, but not put it away. She made a gesturing motion toward the door with her head in Kast's direction so he would see it. Then, slowly, she would start to back up and around the bar so she could leave too. None of the other patrons would lower their guns, but they did point a few her direction as she and Kast met up in the center. Careful not to be the first one to be shot down, she would continue backing out of the club with her eyes fully trained on the people below her whilst she walked up the stairs.

Finally they reached the doors and Rico slammed them shut once Kast had made his way past. "What are you doing?!" she would yell hysterically at the Jedi.
"Are we kidnapping people now?!"

 

[Kel Dor]

"This Rodian has information about a missing person. Our missing girl. Do you understand? He knows where she is." Kast spoke with the frustration of someone carrying a lot of shame in his body. He had not had time to sort through the feelings he felt as a result of the events of his last mission - that, he realized, was a mistake. But it was too late to fix that. He had the Rodian by the collar now, and dragged him to an alley to the immediate right of the bar. "Keep watch Red. I'm going to get the answers we need."

He threw the Rodian down against the wall. The Rodian tried to speak, tried to stand, but Kast kept him on the ground with a swift kick to the chest which likely broke a few ribs. He kept his foot there. "You threaten me, Rodian? You think you will threaten a Jedi to his face?"

Admittedly, Kast cared very little about the threat itself. Finding this girl was causing him a lot of stress, and a lot of fear. He was terrified that he would fail to find this girl. And what would that do to the reputation of the Jedi? He could not handle a failure. Not to mention...it felt good. To a very small part of him. He had trained to control these impulses, to control his fear, his anger. But there were times when none of that mattered - times such as these, when a young girl's life was on the line.

Kast took his foot off the creature's chest and took a step back. "Will you stand now?" The Rodian made no effort to move. Good. "I will ask one time before this gets bad for you. Where is she?"

"She does not want to be -"

"That is not what I asked you." He held his arm towards the Rodian. The Force rippled through him like a drug. His heart raced as he felt the energy flow through his arm and towards the Rodian. The Force slipped forward and wrapped itself around the Rodian's throat, lifting him up out of his seating position. It clawed desperately at its throat, though really it could probably breathe fine. Probably. "Pathetic. You would hide a child from her family." Kast took a step towards his victim. "A child."

"Her family-"

"That's not what I'm asking for!" The Kel'Dor screamed. He allowed the Force to begin clamping down on the Rodian's windpipe. "O...Okay." "What? Are you ready to speak?" It couldn't speak anymore, so it nodded as best it could. Kast dropped it to the ground. "She's on a ship. A slaver's ship, headed for Bakura. But you don't understand, she doesn't -"

"Shut your mouth. I got what I need." Kast turned to leave the alley, but was stopped in his tracks by a hacking gag of a laugh from the Rodian. "Protectors of the galaxy. Jedi scum. You're just like the rest of us. People will hear about this." Kast took a deep breath. That was about the end of his patience. Unclipping his saber, Kast spun on his heel and extended his arm towards the Rodian. "Wait, Wait-" It's speech was stopped with a gag as Kast resumed choking the Rodian. Kast's lightsaber extended, a light green hue illuminating the ground at which it was pointed. Kast lifted the Rodian into the air and thrusted his saber through its chest. The Rodian died with a wheeze. Kast threw it against a wall at the back of the alley, upon which it landed with a thud and slid to the ground.

The Kel'Dor turned, clipping his lightsaber back to his hip. "Bakura. Let's move." Kast pushed past Red without another word. His anger began to subside and was replaced by a deep sense of satisfaction and pride. He made no effort to suppress it. There was a low level of shame beneath his happiness, but in his mind his actions were completely justified. No one would miss that lowlife Rodian trash, anyway. He would deal with the moral ramifications once he found this girl.

 

[EmilyHuene]

"This Rodian has information about a missing person. Our missing girl. Do you understand? He knows where she is. Keep watch Red. I'm going to get the answers we need."

"Well yeah, but..." she couldn't really work up the courage to talk him out of the idea. It seemed like he was hell-bent on finding her; which was good, except for the fact he was supposed to be a Jedi. Jedi didn't hurt others...

"You threaten me, Rodian? You think you will threaten a Jedi to his face?"

She heard the kick and then the Rodian groan in pain. Rico would wince and look away. She didn't need to watch this. She moved away from them and took to watching around the corner for anyone to come after them. So far, none did. How long would that last? she didn't know. Behind her, the man continued to pull at the Rodian's will power by brute force. Rico didn't like this. She didn't like this at all. They continued going back and forth; Kast's temper getting more and more angry. Had she been more attuned to that mystic power he could claim then she might have been able to feel that anger and fear in his mind, both traits of the Dark side. But Rico knew nothing of that foreign religion. She had to trust Kast knew what he was doing. Her eyes closed as his voice got louder and more fierce. She really didn't like the sound of him screaming.

Then she heard it. She hadn't been listening to their words because she didn't want to hear them later in her head when she rewound this in her head. But she couldn't mistake the sound of a lightsaber being ignited. Rico spun her head around with a gasp as she saw Kast's green sword of light pointed to their would-be prisoner. She screamed in fear with a shriek as the man she thought to be a peaceful warrior plunged his weapon through the helpless Rodian. He'd then throw the man like a broken doll and his lifeless corpse slid to the ground against the wall. Rico was mortified to say the least.

"Bakura. Let's move."

Kast moved past Rico as he put away his emerald weapon and left Rico to stare at the disaster she had ignored. Murder. He had murdered that man. For what reason? Did the Jedi think they could just kill off anyone who got in their way of some righteous quest? What right did Kast have for killing him in cold blood? Nothing he could say would make Rico justify that action. She turned and watched him walking back to her ship. Her hand shook as she held her blaster. What could she do? If she tried to fight him, she'd lose. Rico was not a confident fighter and he was a Jedi. If she tried to fire on him from behind maybe she'd have a chance; he'd never expect it from her. But what if she missed? Would he kill her too? Would he kill her just because she turned her gun his way? What if she protested? What if she went to him and demanded an explanation; which, to be honest, was what she really wanted to do. But he'd lost control so easily and snapped over one missing child. What difference would one random pilot be? He could kill her just because.

He was several blocks down now. Obviously he didn't seem to notice Rico wasn't following him. But why couldn't she move? She was still staring back at the dead Rodian. She could have stopped all this. She could have said something. Anything. She should have tried interrogating him. Maybe then he'd still be alive. Her stomach quenched. Rico turned and vomited all over the wall as her body protested the sight in front of her. She felt sick. Rightfully so. This was wrong. Very wrong. She'd wipe her mouth off with her hand and pat it then against the back of her leg; she didn't exactly have a napkin. Finally, she'd turn away from the corpse and begin to head back to her ship so she could process what was happening to her.

 

[Kel Dor]

It was not long before that Kast would've found his own actions deplorable, shameful, and disgusting. The Kast of even a week before would've fought to the death for that Rodian's life - but the Kast on that planet had learned better. He knew that to expect everything to be smooth, to expect not to lose any lives, was nothing but naivete. The Kel'Dor had gone on his first mission with a Jedi who couldn't even cope with the reality of their lives without alcohol; in Kast's mind, to be able to do his job sober was enough strength.

This was nothing, though, compared to the danger that the Rodian posed to the duo if he had been allowed to live. What if he ran and got back to the slavers first? He would've given them all the information about Kast and Red, which would've made their jobs a lot harder. In his mind, it was perfectly possible that he had just saved Red's life by killing that Rodian.

Still, when he got back to the ship the pain began to seep in. That loss of life was required, he believed that in his soul, but it had been too brutal. Too Dark. He had taken his stress and his anger and his fear out on that creature. The Rodian deserved a quicker death. But, on the other hand, he had made himself a combatant by threatening Kast in that bar.

Kast sat in the copilot's seat of the ship, stroking his chin with his left thumb. He didn't speak, and wouldn't speak for sometime. He had no interest in defending himself to his new partner, nor did he see any reason why he should. Frankly, he needed that catharsis. Channeling his anger like that had felt good, it had helped him clear his mind to focus on the bigger task at hand, and above all it worked. But that...that sort of thinking was straying too close to the Dark. He suppressed the idea that channeling his anger had any positive effects. He sure as hell would never say it out loud. Still, when the Jedi way failed him...anger helped. Unleashing helped. Not holding back had gotten him the information he needed.

This sort of doublethink - believing on the one hand that emotions were dangerous and were meant to be suppressed, while having direct proof that unleashing one's emotions could lead to success - was clouding his judgment. He buried these thoughts, these feelings, these confusions, and decided to apply his focus on the mission at hand. They had their lead.

 

[EmilyHuene]

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Bakura
~Capital City~​

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The trip to Bakura was painful. Rico could not seem to face the Jedi who murdered a man in cold blood. And it seemed Kast did not wish to talk about it either. So, the two took their journey in silence. Painful. Rico hated silence. On her own, she would usually listen to music or something of the sort, but she didn't seem able to pull up the courage to ask Kast what kind of tunes he liked to listen to. Why she felt obligated to ask his permission was a question all in its own, but here she was. So, she spent the majority of her time in her room. She'd come out to eat, or use the restroom, occasionally she'd head down to the storage bay and test out her weapons to make sure everything was running smoothly. Regardless of where she was she avoided Kast.

Eventually the two would have to work together. As Rico brought her ship down into the system below she scanned the planet for any large craft or vessel that may or may not be approaching as well. Sadly, none were present at this time. Either they had beaten this other ship here, or it had already landed. That being the case, it would take some more digging to find where they had docked and what exactly it was they were letting off....

Setting her ship down gently in one of the larger, private hangar bays, she would then power down the ship and sigh to herself. Guess it was time to go face the Jedi. She was currently dressed in her same body armor she had a few days ago, but this time had her helmet nearby as well. Just because the air was breathable didn't mean they wouldn't get into a situation where she would want to protect herself. If they were going up against slavers....well slavers had guns. Rico moved to the ramp of her ship and waited for Kast to join her before opening the door.

"We need to talk about what happened," she would say after working up the courage; her hand resting on the button of the console so he couldn't open it without moving her out of the way first.