Rival Serenity

[Lamper]

Eyes rolling back into blinking lids, Cappi's fingers sank thereby dropping the beam; arms falling with a releasing sigh. The beam and other collected debris crashed with a billow of smoke that Cappi accidentally inhaled as it enveloped him, coughing and slashing his hand through the dust. He batted the polluted air away from his face as he turned around and headed back the direction he was sure he'd come from, though it was difficult to see. Aeryun's presence was his guiding light then, as moments later he stumbled out of the structure, almost taking a knee but for the refusal his pride clung to. Reaching Aeryun, he placed a hand onto her awaiting shoulder; conveying a range of emotions from humility to frustration to affection.

"I'm sorry," he coughed, head down.

It still was a difficult thing for him to say, even while avoiding eye contact. But after Wroona, those words were always close to the tip of his tongue. There were a lot of things he was apologizing for with that one statement, none of which he would go into however; save one.

"I let him get away," he thumbed back over his shoulder. "I shouldn't've..." he stopped himself at that, balling that hand into a fist. Aeryun undoubtedly would've asked him who or what he was talking about with words or even just a look. To which he would grouchily reply, "This Gand at the back of the warehouse. He was hurt. I think he's one of the operatives, but he wouldn't answer my questions." Then he added with regret, "I hurt him."

Then Cappi realized, remembering Aeryun had fished her own find out of the fires and he looked up at her with renewed optimism. In that look and the emotions leading up to it, Cappi blatantly demonstrated a severe sensitivity to failure. Though he was aware of it enough to be embarrassed by it, as it was not who he used to be. He used to ridicule people like that. But now he just could not fail.

"Was that it?" he pointed to the weakened operative beneath them. Then he looked back to the warehouse. "Were there others?"

 

[EmilyHuene]

As she waited for Cappi, she was relieved to feel him unharmed. He was coughing, but it wasn't enough to bother her. When he came around and out his hand on her shoulder, she felt a strange emotion coming from the Jedi, one she hadn't felt before. Why was he being so caring? It was...strange. That was the best word she could describe for the situation.

"I'm sorry."

"Sorry?" she mouthed in response. Thinking to herself now, "Did he just say he was sorry?"

It all felt so random and out of character considering this man basically hadn't even bother talking to her up until this point. Now to hear he was actually feeling some sort of regret...it just took her for a loop. Maybe there was some anxiety hidden in his fear he experienced. Aeryun began to assume he'd lost someone...maybe even recently?

"I let him get away....I shouldn't've....This Gand at the back of the warehouse. He was hurt. I think he's one of the operatives, but he wouldn't answer my questions....I hurt him."

And then suddenly it made sense. He wasn't so much sorry for something he did, to her. He was worried about something else altogether. Aeryun leaned on her hip and put her hand on her side. She looked to her side and some of her hair covered the rather angered look forming on her face. Sure she should have felt a little sympathy for the Jedi, clearly going through something personal, but yet the little girl was simply more annoyed because the attention wasn't focused on her.

"Was that it?...Were there others?"

She could tell he was looking over to the man she'd saved, so she crossed her arms and turned in his direction. She spoke in still a rather annoyed tone, but tried not to seem angry. "Yes. He was the only one alive. I could tell there were two others, both dead. I didn't have time to search for others, the place was kinda coming down on me...if you didn't notice."

 

[Lamper]

His head swiveled back to her awkwardly, hearing the displeasure in those last few words of hers especially; his hand finally letting go of her shoulder, feeling unwanted there. He pursed his lips, biting onto a bit of flesh inside his mouth as his demeanor hardened like a shell around the raw emotion he'd just let spill out; thinking about what she'd said.

"Yeah, well. I'm glad you're alright," he mumbled trivially, looking away again; throwing away the line so as not to give her the wrong idea that he was some affectionate, friendly guy. Then his gaze turned down to the weakened man at her feet, and he scratched his scruffy chin. "Hm. Two others. That makes three. Then who was the Gand I found? He'd jumped through the back window, or was blown through it. He must've had something to do with that explosion. Which means he's connected to these operatives somehow."

In the distance, sirens droned into notice; faintly announcing their approach from the sky on this side of the aqueduct.

Cappi's eyes shot up, head turning over towards the sounds in the dark; stars showing a little brighter in this pocket away from city lights. Troubled by the coming of company, Cappi worried what it might mean for them. Whether it was the fire-brigade or the local authorities, they would delay Aeryun and Cappi and could possibly take their only lead in the form of this operative away from them. So Cappi, being physically larger than Aeryun, quickly knelt down and heaved the man into the cradle of both arms to make a run for the back of the warehouse where the Gand had been, hoping the Gand might still be there.

"Quick! We gotta hide. This way."

Cappi had felt the diminished vibrance in Aeryun after having escaped the warehouse and knew they needed to find shelter to recuperate. Leading her to the blood-stained back ally littered with broken glass was only the first step he had in mind to avoid notice from above. Once there, he hoped to find a way through the maze beneath detection of any search-lights and get to shelter where they could lay low for a time.

 

[EmilyHuene]

"Yeah, well. I'm glad you're alright...Hm. Two others. That makes three. Then who was the Gand I found? He'd jumped through the back window, or was blown through it. He must've had something to do with that explosion. Which means he's connected to these operatives somehow."

Aeryun wondered what was going on herself. She didn't want to sound a little racist, but she trusted the human she'd saved a little more than the bugman who was clearly no longer here....She was about to say something when she felt a sudden shift in Cappi's mood once more. Distress. Worry. Her ears picked up on the sirens far out in the distance.

"Quick! We gotta hide. This way."

Cappi bent down and grabbed the man and then began to run for it. Aeryun followed suit. They weren't running in full sprint or using the Force to aid them, so she didn't feel the exhaustion pulling at her. When they got in back, she trusted her instincts, but mostly placing her faith in Cappi to avoid the lights so obviously would not see coming. Unless he said it aloud, she'd likely walk right into their paths. Although Aeryun could basically minimize her Force aura to a standstill, physically being stealthy was not much of her thing.

"So what's the plan?" she would ask as she crouched down by one of the dumpsters in the back. It wreaked like something awful, and her already sensitive nose felt like it was on fire.

 

[Lamper]

Cappi's nose prickled to the smell as well, though not caring the slightest in light of a missing Gand and crafts harrowing overhead. Glass crunched under his shoes as they came to the spatter of blood left by the mystery Gand. And Cappi smacked his lips with disappointment.

"He's gone. Damn."

Cappi looked back to Aeryun, noting her lack of eyesight and the relevance to their situation. Getting a grip on their options as the crafts became louder made him tense. And the bastard in his arms was starting to come to slowly. Cappi cursed his sneakers for their lack of grip over glass. Then he noticed the trail of blood leading off from the ally. He clenched his teeth and decided it was now or never. Whatever the decision, he'd waited too long to answer Aeryun already.

"Alright. Put your hand on my back. Move with me. We're getting out of here."

Then Cappi turned around, giving Aeryun the opportunity to put her hand to his back if she wanted, and started jogging in the direction of the blood trail. It was easy. There was a clear speckled line towards this end of the warehouse. They came to the edge of cover and Cappi stopped, leaned right, and propped his shoulder against the building. He looked out. Saw the incoming lights glaring forward.

"Okay. Go," he whispered.

Rushing through the open alley, they'd make it past another building and to a sort of street. He stopped abruptly. And suddenly Cappi's heart dropped. The blood trail just stopped. He looked both ways in disbelief.

"No," he cursed through his teeth, lock-jawed.

He looked both ways again, starting to lose his cool. But then forced himself to calm, forced his breath to steady. He squeezed his eyes shut. Focused. Then reopened them, a whole new world reviled to him under power of Force Sight. He searched both ways again, the sounds of the crafts above nearly on top of them with their intimidating spot-lights peeking over the building tops, and then he saw it. To the left, some blood down the street.

"Ah," he sighed bestially.

Then they were off again, down the street along the shadows. Covering here and hopping over sewage puddles there. Hugging corners and following the spaced out trail, implying speed; which confused Cappi, but didn't slow him. But the operative in his arms was coming to, and they didn't have time to question him here. Curse their misfortune. And after the way Cappi had treated the Gand, he was hesitant to just bang the guy's head on a building's edge while they ran lest he never wake up or when he did he'd never cooperate. So Cappi spoke over his shoulder.

"Aeryun. Put him back to sleep. Influence his mind. Just keep him under for a little longer."

The operative was weak willed in this moment and easily influenced. Cappi hoped Aeryun knew how. Or perhaps she'd have to wing it.

 

[EmilyHuene]

"He's gone. Damn."

"Well, isn't that just lovely," she would say to herself.

"Alright. Put your hand on my back. Move with me. We're getting out of here."

"I don't need your help," she would say with a stubborn and childish tone. She really felt like he was looking down on her just for her blindness, when in all reality that's exactly the problem he was trying to solve. She'd move past him and start heading the way he had directed. When they got to the corner, she would wait and let him look around.

"Okay. Go,"

She'd nod and rush forward, sensing they were avoiding someone looking out for them. All this sneaking around was actually starting to bring out a more playful mood in her. Stopping and moving, hiding and waiting; it got her blood pumping. Cappi would likely sense a more playful tune coming from Aeryun. She was actually having fun with this.

"No."

"No?" she'd repeat and tilt her head to the side, "What do you mean 'no'?"

"Ah."

"What's going on?!" she whispered loudly. "What do you see!" She groaned and followed him as quickly as she could.

"Aeryun. Put him back to sleep. Influence his mind. Just keep him under for a little longer."

She would move over to them now and place her hand over his head. She placed her thumb and fingers over his temples and took a deep breath. Using her persuasion she entered into the mind of the man. "Sleep," she thought and pushed it into his head. He'd be out for a little while longer.

"There. It's done. Now what? We need to get back the ship."

 

[The Captain]

As Gand stumbled through the back alleys of the city, leaving a trail of blood and debris in his wake, he inwardly cursed the sleemo that had set him up on this job. Jedi, Imperials, cops, this job was clearly a suicide mission. He eyed the alley for any signs of the Jedi or the surviving agent, occasionally flashing his blaster to dissuade people from doing anything they would regret. Gand collapsed in a heap next to a dumpster and pulled out his datapad, calling his contact on Nar Shadda.

The screen flickered and lit up, revealing the face of the Rattataki who set him up with this operation.

"What do you want, Gand? I told you not to contact me unless you were off world." He snapped.

"There has been a complication. Gand has the crate but the repulsorlift went down outside the factory." Gand replied, trying desperately to maintain his composure.

"Really? Show me!" He barked. Gand turned the datapad toward a nearby dumpster and smacked the device to temporarily scramble it's video. He hoped that this simple trick would fool his associate. "...Fine, what do you want now."

"Gand needs your help to move the supplies, bring some muscle. Gand will send you his coordinates." He tapped away at the datapad keys, giving a false location for a nearby shipyard. It was time to repay his friend.

 

[Lamper]

Cappi was surprised by Aeryun's need for self-reliance. But after some consideration it was obvious why that has been a tender issue for her. He'd definitely taken for granted the day to day life with sight. So he felt like he owed her something. He felt the need to include her at least. That's why he'd asked her to help put the man back to sleep. Lucky for Cappi, Aeryun didn't seem to pick up on that fact. Otherwise she might've taken offense at a hand out, seeming like pity. But it was easier for her to do it than him, as this operative was no dainty flower. So it wasn't entirely just for her sake.

"No," he sharply denied the notion to turn back and return to their ship, frustration coming from the readjusting heft of the man's increasingly heavy body in his arms.

Cappi was just about fed up with this whole mess, everything he'd been through this past month, spread thin; and before he knew it he was taking it out on Aeryun and her questions.

"I'm following the blood! On the ground! That you can't see! Because you're blind! And we're being chased! By lights! In the sky! That you can't see! Because you're blind! And we've been going in the opposite direction of our ship! But you wouldn't know that! Because you can't see. Because you're blind! And I'm not letting this Gand get away! You could tell I mean that by the look on my face! But you can't see it! Because you're blind! Do you get it now? Do you understand that I haven't wanted to hurt your feelings this whole time? But you're so damned touchy about it! I just want you to help me! ... ...I-I'm sorry."

Finally he'd let it all out. The tension. The unspoken. Feelings built up since before he'd met Aeryun. Feelings built up after. And almost immediately he knew what he'd just done was wrong, apologizing softly with his head down.

They were closer than they knew to the Gand. They'd be able to reach him soon, and whatever else he had with him. But first they had to overcome this obstacle. For Cappi, it was this pain he couldn't bury. It begged a transformation from him. He couldn't just be who he was, but stricken with hurt. He had to face it, and evolve.

 

[EmilyHuene]

"No...I'm following the blood! On the ground! That you can't see! Because you're blind! And we're being chased! By lights! In the sky! That you can't see! Because you're blind! And we've been going in the opposite direction of our ship! But you wouldn't know that! Because you can't see. Because you're blind! And I'm not letting this Gand get away! You could tell I mean that by the look on my face! But you can't see it! Because you're blind! Do you get it now? Do you understand that I haven't wanted to hurt your feelings this whole time? But you're so damned touchy about it! I just want you to help me! ... ...I-I'm sorry."

And just like that the mood changed again. Silence was in the air. A chilling and dark breeze blew past the two. Aeryun felt like she'd just been frozen in ice. Her heart stopped for a moment, and a single tear appeared in the corner of her eye. Then, just like that, the ice cracked and then shattered before her like a broken mirror. Aeryun's hands clenched shut and she forced the tears back down inside her.

"Well you know what?!" she screamed, "Maybe you'd like it better if I just left you alone!!"

Aeryun began to build the Force insider her. It was strong, and powerful. Her ally for good and peace in the world. But then there was something else. The anger that was inside her suddenly begged for the power to back her up. It was the Dark side. The air around her began to get lighter and some of the loose gravel began to float upwards.

"You've looked down on me this whole time! You think I'm weak. You think I can't handle myself. Well let me tell you something. I am more powerful than you can imagine!" Her voice began to get a little deeper as the Dark side was sliding its way inside her. "Do not underestimate me!"

 

[Lamper]

Cappi felt her energies eclipsing his, subtly infecting her, and he stepped back. Eyes widened, he wondered if this was what he'd felt like to Jaleer back on Nar Shaddaa when he'd lost it. To see it, or rather to sense it, first hand from this side so soon after he was the one breaking apart was sobering. But he didn't know how to address it. Jaleer was like a wellspring of hope and positivity. So much so it made him want to hurl even before recent events. Cappi had no idea how to handle this.

"...You're right."

Cappi bowed his head remorsefully. He knelt down with a quiet grunt and gently laid the operative's body at her feet. And he stayed there on one knee, a meter from her, looking up sadly; energy offering the same. Then he continued softly.

"You are more powerful than I can imagine. You always were. Nothing's changed except my opinion of you. Not this," he waved his fingers at her darkening aura. Then palmed his hands together. "This isn't the source. You are."

He was in the moment, where he always lived, addressing what was before him. He had no idea the implications it foretold. He just knew this was him. He was watching his darkness turned back on him, in a personal way. But he didn't know her. She was different. Her hurts unique to his. Where she was helping him realize what he needed to turn around, he was perhaps pushing her further down that dark path. And he wished he could stop it. But, in truth, he understood it more than he did the path of enlightenment and restraint. The blind leading the blind, somehow he'd discovered the rival to serenity. And it was staring him in the face, without eyes to see in return.

"It's your choice. What do you want to do?"

 

[EmilyHuene]

"...You're right."

Cappi moved toward her slowly, and she carefully sensed each movement he made. Would he attack her? Would he try to knock her out? She watched as he set the man down and lowered his head, bowing to her. His mood was so sad. She could sense he was troubled and worried. He should be.

"You are more powerful than I can imagine. You always were. Nothing's changed except my opinion of you. Not this...This isn't the source. You are."

Hearing him praise her, in a manner of speaking, fueled Aeryun more. The wind picked up and tossed her hair wildly in the wind; her bandana (the one she'd received from Taruna when she thought Aeryun how to be a Jedi) that held her hair back was slowly starting to come undone. A symbolic gesture showing the Jedi way desperately trying to hold onto Aeryun.

"It's your choice. What do you want to do?"

She could tell he was waiting for her to act. Maybe he wouldn't try to take her, but that wouldn't stop him from fighting back if his life was in danger. Well Aeryun never wanted to fight Cappi. He was her ally. He was supposed to be her friend.

Sighing ever so slowly, Aeryun tried to calm herself. It was hard, pushing back the raw power at her fingertips. Never before had she let herself lose control like that just out of emotion. It scared her a little.

Aeryun dropped to her knees and lowered her head. Her hands cletched shut in her lap. Was she crying? She felt like she wanted to, but no tears came. She couldn't believe herself. Getting so angry and so hurt by Cappi's words.

"Taruna would be so ashamed of me," she would say to herself but also loud enough for Cappi to hear.

 

[Lamper]

Her bloating of torrential power concerned him. Jaw locked. Thoughts turned to self preservation. The image of his lightsaber flickered in his mind. But he suppressed the urge. It was fueled by fear, by the self. This was exactly the opportunity to face himself in her. To find his faith. To serve someone else, be for someone else. To finally understand what it means to be a Jedi. No. Just to help someone else for once.

In Cappi's eyes came the decision to give himself to her, whatever the repercussion. He gulped a vulnerability then.

Her sigh brought hope to him. His brown eyes widened, wanted to believe. Feeling her emotions calm, Cappi anticipated success. He believed she could beat it. Rooted for her silently. Still governed by a guilt that he was the cause. At least of this particular episode. Then he was given the sign, Aeryun falling to her knees head bowed, confirmation of her triumph. And he breathed deeply, as though for the first time.

A somber and stoic tension in Cappi's face remained, in place of joy. This was no light issue. They had both of them lost themselves. But now he had been found. He heard what she said to herself. He pursed his lips tight, thinking over his next words patiently. Then he responded quietly, just between them.

"No. She would be proud. You gained control. You. Pain happens, no matter who dishes it out; me being the idiot this time. It's how you take it that defines you."

He just watched her. Sat there with her, the both of them kneeling. Didn't touch her. Let her determine the pace. Let her decide on the course of action. Not to give her a handout. Not to make her feel better. But to turn his own selfish thinking around and not focus on what he wanted to do or what he thought was best. This mattered. Right here. Right now. Everything else could wait.

 

[EmilyHuene]

"No. She would be proud. You gained control. You. Pain happens, no matter who dishes it out; me being the idiot this time. It's how you take it that defines you."

Aeryun was happy to hear that he'd said that, but she wasn't quite convinced. Still, it was a nice gesture. She gave him her best smile and would get off her knees. "Look, I really am sorry. I don't know what came over me. I've just been...so angry recently. I can't seem to focus like I used to. With this war going on, I feel it gets harder and harder every day."

She would give him a kind of expecting look, hoping he felt the same way. She really needed assurance that anyone could struggle like she was and she wasn't just some loser who couldn't control their power. If she bothered to explain herself, then maybe he'd understand. Yet, she really didn't want to go into her recent painful memories. It was likely he would have heard about them, but Aeryun would not bring them up if she didn't have to.

Barely a month ago, Aeryun had been captured by the Sith. She stupidly ended up flying right into their base and surrendered when the Sith hunted her down. She was imprisoned for a good week before she escaped, but the pain she'd felt was more than anything Aeryun could ever bare to describe. Aeryun had to watch as her captor murdered random civilians to get answers out of Aeryun. She'd talked to her master Taruna about the situation and everything that had happened, to which Taruna reported it to a few higher ups. What was talked about behind her back was unknown to Aeryun, but she had a feeling people looked down on her for the deaths she'd caused. She could still feel their hatred for the Jedi. They died because of her. Aeryun could never forget that.

 

[Lamper]

He really felt the impact of her next words, wounds still fresh in his recent past as well. He squinted an empathetic mourning for her struggle here today, joined her in standing back up, bit his lip and looked away.

"You're not..." alone, he wanted to say with an unfinished thought she'd hear choke up his throat.

His thoughts turned to the loss of Mancer. How he learned about his death so soon after the tragedy on Wroona. He couldn't call it a murder because it felt like it was more his fault than the Sith who swung the final stroke. If he hadn't brought her to him, things would have been different. So all those hostages in the spaceport terminal, gunned down before his eyes because of him: their deaths were tied to Mancer's by the damaged nerves webbed over wounded memories.

He bit his lip, considering the capability to share these emotions with her. Then he returned his eyes to hers.

"You're not ... wicked for being angry. Or weak for hurting. The conflict going on in you means you have a heart. And it means you have a soul." If at first his words enunciated a harsh bite, more for their difficulty in execution than anything else, they ended with a sad smile like fine velvet lace slowly strung into a snug bow. "If these things bother you, then it's probably because you want to change something. ... ... So do it. Whatever that change is for you. Whenever you're ready to do it. So long as it's in service to the memory of the people you couldn't save and for the benefit of those who you still can save. And maybe even a little good for you too."

Cappi half grinned with that last bit, leaning in almost playfully; breaking away from this depressing speech that may sound intended for her, while secretly was really him talking to himself. If she had any kind of affinity for picking up on other people's subtle undertones, then she would get that underneath it all Cappi was saying he was going through the exact same thing. Maybe a little further down the road and under a different sun, but similar nonetheless.

"Still wanna get outa here?" He asked, brotherly and distantly affectionate with a tilt of the head.

No longer in a hunting mood, Cappi could resign himself to leaving the mission behind in a sense. Not in that they wouldn't do their duty. But he didn't need the bounty credits for a few heads. Instead, he felt that they could take their captive back to the ship, like Aeryun wanted, probe his mind for answers, and then leave him if he had no direct connection to their target. Justice would rule the day, while vengeance could be left at the door; perhaps awaiting the day it might be let back in again. He felt he needed a symbolic victory, but didn't know what that was. He just felt it best to turn his back to the chaos in some meaningful way. Maybe a few days from now he'd find that victory.

 

[EmilyHuene]

"You're not..."

Aeryun looked at him wondering what he was going to say next. She could tell he was filled with some deep sense of conflict. It saddened her to feel like this. Part of her felt that it was her fault.

"You're not ... wicked for being angry. Or weak for hurting. The conflict going on in you means you have a heart. And it means you have a soul...If these things bother you, then it's probably because you want to change something. ... ... So do it. Whatever that change is for you. Whenever you're ready to do it. So long as it's in service to the memory of the people you couldn't save and for the benefit of those who you still can save. And maybe even a little good for you too."

A heart? A soul? Well Aeryun didn't know about that. She wasn't the religious type. Ironically enough. She believed in no deity other than the living Force. Her 'soul' as it were, was simply the essence that proved her was alive. No different than any other person. It's what separated her from droids. She understood what he was trying to say though, so she kept her own opinion to herself.

Still, he was right about her wanting to change things. She had been feeling lost and confused ever since she came back from that Sith camp a month ago. Her whole perspective on the Force had changed; her morals questioned all of her life choices.

And then she noted his mood. He too felt a similar feeling to what she was experiencing. Regret over a past choice. Was he hoping to change stuff too? What dark secret was this Jedi carrying?

"Still wanna get outa here?"

A smile seemed to come on his face, so she picked up her own mood in spirits. He had a certain protective vibe going on now and Aeryun liked to hear that. Maybe it was a certain girlie instinct?

"I guess so," she would answer. "There's no lead to follow, and we should check in on the man I saved to make sure he's ok. And he may have answers to our mysterious criminal."

 

[Cappi Tremaine]

"Right," he replied obtusely, looking left to the physical form of a man on the ground there as though he'd forgotten about him.

Cappi looked back at Aeryun with an odd muted pause, feeling inclined to fit the moment with a proper platonic hug but just couldn't will himself to do it. Not that that was what she might've wanted, nor was it what he wanted. It just seemed like the thing people did, that someone should do then. Considering any aspect of Cappi, it was difficult for him in every way. Never before had he separated the intimate with the sexual. These days not feeling intimately interested at all. And after recent events, he didn't feel capable of handling physical touch even as harmless as this. And on top of it all, he kind of got the vibe that she wouldn't be into it regardless. Yet it just seemed like the right thing to do. Just hug it out. But he just couldn't. So the awkward pause passed until he resigned himself to moving on. Lingering wasn't his thing.

"Right," he repeated himself with a more conclusory tenor. And though more staid, Cappi's demeanor evolved with a trifling finger-point and a lampooning half-grin to her highlighting of her heroism; an insignificant gesture to make fun of her for and not one he felt necessary to make her aware of, as she had every right to say what she had. It was just so overly spelled out: 'the man I saved'.

His reaction was more of a slip into old Cappi, which only succeeded in making him feel depressed again.

So he ignored it, ignored himself, and silently acknowledged her accomplishment rightly. And he moved on. Coming emotionally full circle, he returned to that comfortable, distantly protective affability. It was his new center of being. This distantly caring stoicism. It was closed, yet nearby. Hard, yet reliable. Broken, yet familiar. This was who he was comfortable with being now. Anything reminding him of the past just hurt.

"Let's see," he brooded with a gently crossing pass in front of Aeryun that grazed his shoulder and forearm against hers, turning his attention to the man on the ground. "Seems healthy enough. Looks like an Imperial to me. Bridged nose. Slanted eyes. A natural frown. Look at him look down on us even when he's underneath us. A true elitist, even one who does their dirty work. Must have all kinds of secrets hidden in that bantha-brain."

Unfortunately for them, there were no secrets directly related to the Imperium in this man's head. Of secrets relating to this case, however, there was plenty.

"I'll take this guy, unless you'd prefer the honors," he jokingly volleyed to Aeryun as he bent down and checked the man's breathing patterns with a hand over his mouth and nose; not only feeling air sigh out but also sensing for unusual activity that would suggest a fully alert man waiting to pounce.

He seemed convincingly unconscious. So Cappi hefted the man over his shoulder and situated the man's torso close to his neck. Probably not the most innocent picture, a man being carried over another man's shoulder, but people here weren't the most interested unless money was involved.

"Guess we'll have to go around the search party. Don't want to get spotted now. We can take the side streets."

A short column of smoke filled the nearby sky from the now put out fire, while a single craft combed the surrounding areas with that limited spotlight. The rain had stopped. But the aqueduct was still rushing, full. A short detour around the warehouses and back across a bridge would take them back to the privacy of their ship. They'd picked a shady spot to avoid notice, a lot with plenty of open property under a sheltered garage. Cappi hoped they could get there before his shoulder cramped up and without any unwanted attention. So he led with a brisk walk, considerately and inoffensively narrating his changes in direction as he decided internally with her by his side if that's where she chose to be. Simply saying 'left' or 'let's take a right' to give Aeryun an idea of his movements as he tried to navigate the unfamiliar cityscape and safely make it back to the ship.

 

[EmilyHuene]

"Right,"

"Right?" she questioned in her head. "What does that even mean?"

Aeryun wondered what he was trying to say, so she stayed quiet, hoping he'd finish his thought. Her heart was pounding for some reason. Why was this so awkward? Should she say something? Was he waiting for her to break the silence?

"Right...Let's see,"

There was that word again. Guess the moment passed. Whatever was supposed to be said, clearly didn't get said. She felt his confusion turn into determination as he burried whatever was going on in his head. He got up and moved past her, his shoulder gently rubbed hers as he passed. If he was trying to 've friendly or romantic, the feeling wasn't heard. All she felt was him pushing her out of the way which brought a scowl to her face. She turned and took a step back, making sure to give the jackass, as she called him in her mind, all the space he needed.

"Seems healthy enough. Looks like an Imperial to me. Bridged nose. Slanted eyes. A natural frown. Look at him look down on us even when he's underneath us. A true elitist, even one who does their dirty work. Must have all kinds of secrets hidden in that bantha-brain...I'll take this guy, unless you'd prefer the honors,"

"No. Have at it," she spoke without emotion, hiding what feelings she was holding in.

Cappi picked up the man and they were ready to move. Aeryun grabbed her saber, just to be safe. She didn't need someone shooting at Cappi and him being slightly defenseless to save himself. She'd be his shield now.

"Guess we'll have to go around the search party. Don't want to get spotted now. We can take the side streets."

"Lead the way," she offered politely. Though, behind her words were some more spite than respect. He needed to feel like he was in charge; she would let him.

Had they taken the same way back, Aeryun could have been more comfortable leading rather than following. Her instincts told her what direction she was going and whether or not she was going completely in the wrong direction, but in the bigger scheme of things she had no idea what she was heading for. Maybe it was best for Aeryun to follow him now.

She let her lead him down the halls and side streets, careful not to run into any stray garbage cans or low hanging fire escapes. She sensed out with her feelings while searching for malevolent forces. She hoped no random pedestrian would want to fire at them. They were basically kidnapping this man, Jedi business or not. Not that being a Jedi had the influence it used to...

 

[Lamper]

Clearing the small side-streets, crossing the bridge, and feeding into pedestrian traffic on the main road, Cappi felt the pressure of unwanted eyes bearing down on him curiously. His eyes naturally tuned to their sightline where their eyes met for a moment before they turned away, Cappi's also returning forward; trying to act casual.

Walking briskly, the man's body hung over shoulder, his legs were being kicked by Cappi's stride and he had to hold them down for fear of those heels knocking into the back of the person ahead of him.

He felt another person's curiosity linger, his eyes turning and meeting theirs before turning away to mind their own business. The feeling was just shy of worry, unwarranted concern; more like certain people just making sure they weren't also going to get nabbed for some shady deal they'd recently committed. Like Cappi and Aeryun were some clean-up crew for a mob and everyone wanted to check the pick-up list and clear their name from the roster. A pretty funny duo for such a dubious vocation.

Cappi took a deep breath, seeing their destination a ways up ahead; nevertheless in sight. Perhaps a premature sigh of relief. But the shelter of building top peeking over peoples heads gave him hope for the home stretch. But then something tingled in his spine, skin raising. Some palpable intent felt in a man walking towards them, angry. Cappi turned his head to see who it was, to find them in the crowd. There. A hatted head bobbing aggressively towards them. And Cappi's gate slowed.

"Aeryun," he whispered to her anxiously, calling her to attention. Hopefully she'd felt it too.

As the man came closer, Cappi waited with a rising temperature. Who else was with this man? What kind of weapons would they face? Maybe the local authorities had finally found them? Or was the entire Imperium alerted to their presence here? Cappi's eyes searched for a way out through the people. Too late. He imagined what kind of space he'd need to fight and what he'd have to do to throw everyone back to safety. But then the man was already upon them.

Cappi saw his face.

"Wait..."

The man mumbled, cursing to himself. Not looking at them at all, he walked right passed them; cutting strangely across the axis of the crowd's main directions. And that was it. Cappi turned to watch the man disappear behind them into the bodies off towards wherever he was headed that decidedly had nothing to do with them.

Cappi sighed a self-ridiculing laugh, eyes searching the ground for his dropped ego. Then he looked to Aeryun.

"Must be having a bad day," he joked blandly, having misread that whole situation.

The man on his shoulder groaned for the first time in a while, which gave Cappi an inclination to move on; but also spawned an idea in Cappi's thoughts, as he projected a faintly intrusive image into Aeryun's mind of Cappi amidst his surroundings with the hangar garage up ahead and Cappi tilting his head to beckon her hereto.

Their ship would be just up ahead. Bound for the pedestrian's side entrance, rather than the front glass office, they could avoid any further attention. Hopefully without any further interruptions, their ship still there by the will of the Force, they could get to this agent's interrogation and get a step closer to finding out the mystery of their Jedi killer.

 

[EmilyHuene]

Walking down the streets was no picnic. Aeryun could feel it. Eyes watching her. Even though she was blind there was the innate sense that people were staring her down. The problem was she could look every which way and not know where the eyes were coming from. But Aeryun had learned to deal with this feeling a long time ago. She was used to the looks of pity and shame that others would send her way. She did what she had always done, and that was to walk with her head held high and a stern look upon her face. She was tough. She was a fighter, a warrior. Aeryun would no longer looked down upon but feared. Especially with Cappi standing next to her. They were rather intimidating.

"Aeryun,"

As he spoke, she too would return a whisper, "I feel it too."

Her senses much more attuned to people's feelings rather than looks. She could almost smell the hatred in this stranger coming towards them. But what could they do? They couldn't just attack this guy, right? They certainly couldn't just up and run because then everyone would know something was up.

Aeryun's hands reached behind her back for her saber. It was so Un-Jedi like to do: instinctively going for the weapon. But in these troubled times....

He was getting closer. Her blood was pumping and her heart was ready to jump out of her chest. Here it comes. This is the moment. If the man made any sort of notion, anything at all...he'd be dead.

"Wait..."

Aeryun let go of the saber. Wait?! Did he say wait? The moment felt like it took forever. Her instincts wanted her to grab the saber and strike the man down, she was begging for it. Begging for a fight to proove herself. But fate wouldn't let her.

The man pushed through them and kept on walking. Aeryun sighed loudly and would give a slightly more than playful shove at Cappi. Maybe it was more like a sibling rivalry kind of push?

"What was that all about?" She'd ask him and cross her arms.

"Must be having a bad day."

She would grumble and shake her head. She then senses that Cappi wanted to continue and she would continue walking again.

"Come on then. Let's get out of this place. I think we need a vacation."

 

[Lamper]

His larger frame swallowed her playful shove, arm twisting in, and he smiled a thin smile. Her touch both shriveled his flesh back inside his shell and goaded his playful inner child to come out, a mixture that contorted his posture while still holding the Imperium agent on his shoulder. Life was becoming more and more difficult to let breath. But he was feeling better aquatinted and more relaxed with Aeryun at least.

"You're tellin' me."

So, false alarm behind them, they put the crowds of Druckenwell to their backs and strolled into the shelter of the side entrance to this private dock. They had to turn in and walk along the inside railed perimeter rise back behind the main entrance, taking them down some steps into a sunken amphitheater of ships. A fairly small structure, the open air coming in through the raised mouth of the dock and mixing with the smell of fuel trapped in the back, Cappi followed the tight pathway between other ships' wings and landing apparatus towards theirs. If anyone ever had to make a quick getaway, this was not the dock to park in; as the whole thing was set up like a rubix cube, almost too efficient in its utilization of limited space. But it was cheap.

"Here we are," Cappi grumpily muttered almost more for the groaning shoulder-strung agent than anyone else.

The fleshy underside of Cappi's fist pounded into the hatch's panel, the sound shaking the groggy Imperial but not waking him. And the curved door bowed open to their feet.

"Ah," he sighed. "After you," he cordially invited Aeryun in first.

Entering up the small steps into the belly of the ship, Cappi'd find the one bare-bones metal cot in a small corner of the ship to set the body down onto. And he achingly rolled the agent down with only a little care for his well being. The agent groaned. And then Cappi groaned back angrily, as if to speak neanderthal with the man to argue who deserved to groan more.

"Do we have some kind of bindings in here somewhere?"

Cappi's hands pressed down on the man's chest and thigh, holding him there just in case while he waited for Aeryun.

"Check, can you check in the utility locker... Here. Can you hold him for a sec?"

He didn't mean to be rude. In fact his tone was very inquisitive rather than domineering. But searching through lockers and crates wasn't exactly suited to Aeryun. So if she took over for him, or if she just deemed holding the man unnecessary, either way he'd go and look for something to hold the agent with. Searching for binders only took a moment and rummaging through different pools of tools, until he found some insulated wire. He smiled thinking, this'll do nicely. It'd even give the guy a little rub burn, and that was okay in Cappi's book. So he returned to the man and rolled him over onto his face, tying his wrists behind his back and tying his ankles together. And finally he tied his ankle bindings to the base of the bed and let the man roll back onto his back as he started opening his eyes and looking around dizzily.

"Here he comes." Cappi snapped his fingers before the man's eyes, bent over. Then gave him a little cheek slap. "Come on. That's it."

He suddenly jolted awake with surprises all around: new faces, new environment, new shackles.

"What the? What's? Who?"

"Don't remember us? Not her? Not your savior?" Cappi apathetically antagonized the man for a brief moment, deadened eyes turning away for fear of rekindling their ire. He stepped back and leaned against the wall, folding his arms. He turned to Aeryun and asked, "Do you even want to ask him questions or should we just go in his head?"

Cappi was likely to lose his cool if this guy gave him any back-talk, so he'd probably relinquish interrogation rights to Aeryun anyway. Whether they delved into the man's memories or simply asked him questions, or both like some polygraph, Aeryun would probably have to step in here.