The Jester & The Dead Woman (6 months Prior)

[Luster]

"Ah you seem to already know me. I'll take some some of that brandy on the third shelf, second from the right since you're offering. It's been a while since I've had a chance at drinking Corillian." She, reluctantly, stood up from her chair and followed Jester to the bar, finally getting over the opulence. As much as she loved money, as determined as she was to be one of the richest in the galaxy, she just could not imagine converting the Wind into the yacht she was standing in. Maybe another vessel -possibly a classic like this one- but never to the Wind. She had found it in a scrap yard, built it up into what it was now with her own two hands. It was lived in and had a history that she did not want to erase. It had a significant life of it's own in her eyes, one she was not going to change just because she could. No, the wind was and forever would be a cargo hauler meant specifically for her to fly. But she would have something else, a ship much like this one to call her own.

Smiling Belleza took the drink that Jester poured her and waited for him to pour his own. When he had the bottle re-corked she raised her glass and looked him in the eye. "A toast, Jester. To a long, healthy, and extremely profitable partnership." With that she brought the glass to her lips and sipped the brandy, letting it sit on her mouth to savor it before swallowing.

 

[Kreeps]

"I'll drink to that." Jester said in a calm tone of voice before knocking back the whole glass. Maybe you could call Jester an alcoholic. Sure, he wasn't drunk all day, everyday, but he did drink a hell of a lot more than your average person. Maybe it was the stress of the job, maybe old habits just die hard. He'd been drinking since a young age, but back then it was Spice too. He swore off that a while ago save the odd dose here and there. But Jester most certainly was a drinking man.

After he knocked back the glass he poured himself another one and took a sip. He'd go easy on this one, couldn't get legitimately drunk in the company of a business partner. even though, it'd probably take the whole bottle to get Jester what most people would consider drunk. He took a second to look around his vessel. She was a beauty, no doubt about that. She was the fruit of his labor. The reward for his hard work. Someday, he would get out of this game and buy himself a palace somewhere. But probably not. That's what he told himself, but Jester was as addicted to credits as his customers were to his product. He would probably did this until he died. Only thing he could really hope for was that he had a few more years left in him.

"How do you like the swill?" Jester asked, trying to make small talk. He would finish the tour once they had finished their drinks.

 

[Luster]

"I wouldn't exactly call this swill, this is good stuff. But if you must know I like it a lot." She said with a smile before taking another sip. Jester had been quick to down the first glass and she wondered why. Was he celebrating? Nervous? or did he always do that? All were equally likely options but it didn't really matter right now, she was here to get to know him so maybe the answer would come later, maybe. She was still looking over the ship while he attempted small talk and locked in on one key detail, this interior was immaculately clean. Nothing was left laying around, sign of a good steward for a ship, and every surface seemed to shine with no sign of grease or dust anywhere. Most likely he had a couple of cleaning droid go through it every day or so but if he did that all himself what did that say about him.

She was taking her third sip when a question came to mind. "If you're usually alone on this ship who mans the guns if you run into trouble? And don't tell me you don't run into trouble out here, everyone does once in a while."

 

[Kreeps]

Jester took another sip as he listened to her speak. She liked the swill, but that was no surprise, it was some of the finest in the Galaxy. Then she asked him how he used the guns when he usually flew alone. Well maybe he had to give up one of his secret weapons.

"I've got a targeting computer hooked up to both of the guns that's wired to the cockpit. It tracks hostile vessels that come within range, all I have to do is pull the trigger which I have linked into the cockpit as well. They work really well. They're probably better than your average gunner but I'm sure someone experienced could out shoot them. They haven't failed me yet so I guess it was a good investment." He knocked back the rest of his drink before pouring himself a third. Maybe he should slow down out of courtesy, but he probably wouldn't. He was already in anyways. Besides, he was still hardly feeling the effects.

"I've thought about buying a droid or two to help out with piloting and maintenance and such, I'm just not sure if I want to trust my livelihood to a droid, I've never been big on them. When I was growing up the only droids I ever saw were pieces of junk that I wouldn't trust with taking out my trash much less with my ship. Then again I'm sure I could get my hands on a decent one. How'd you get yours?"

 

[Luster]

It made sense to keep the guns hooked up to a targeting computer with a tracking function, it did mean less crew needed to defend the ship. And he also unknowingly answered her unasked question, all this cleanliness was simply a product of his own labor. While that didn't quite set off an alarm it was interesting that someone like him would take the time to clean every inch of the ship that she could see. Then again this was basically his home. But after the topic had been on him for so long he shifted it to Druid, and to her by default. Asking about their shared history was like opening a flood gate for the usually quiet woman.

"Druid? He's a Techno Galactica seventy-seven, his line was meant to be use for everything you could think of from load lifting to light armor support in combat, from maintenance work to etiquette and protocol. But that was a long time ago when TG was a common household name. Most seventy-sevens have been scrapped by now but there are a few still around. Druid though was one of the scrapped ones, but I dragged what I could find of him out of the heap and started to rebuild him. That was over three years ago. Well he still had his brain but most of his programs and all of his memory had been wiped so I had to put new ones in myself. I had to reattach the legs and clear out all the gunk from his arm, since I only found the one. And when I first turned him on it was that bland speech only single purpose machines have so i upgraded his voice box and added a limited protocol program. As you could see I fixed the arm situation by attaching a cannon to his right shoulder. Ever since I reactivated him we've been inseparable."

 

[Kreeps]

Jester listened to Bellezas story intently as he took light sips from his crystal glass. She was quite the tinkerer, that much was clear. It was pretty amazing to Jester how she had made a living out of what was essentially scrap metal, from her ship to her trusty droid. She reminded Jester of himself in more ways than one. She had built her business out of junked ships and spare parts, Jester had built his from an old Rodian blaster and a pound of Ryll. Two sides of the same coin it seemed.

"That's pretty incredible. You're the resourceful type aren't you? I can relate to that. Seems to have served you pretty well so far. I'm inclined to think things have worked out for me in a messed up fashion as well. Any other parts of the ship you're itching to see? We can walk and drink I suppose. Just try not to spill it on anything important." Jester winked at his guest after the small joke and flashed a quick smile before standing back up from the bar counter he was leaning on.

 

[Luster]

She normally would never have said that much all at once, and never as jumbled when she was thinking. But Jester had managed to find her weakness in conversing, talking about droids and ships. But her little monologue seemed to have impressed him, there was nothing overt to make her believe so but his eyes had widened just a little and his nostrils had flared slightly a couple of times. It may not have been surprise but she had mentioned that the two biggest-and most important- things she owned had been built almost from the ground up. Of course if he was impressed with her tech skills that meant more job opportunities, which in turn meant more money.

"I'm not that uncoordinated, but I'll try. Why not show me to the cockpit so I can screw with your setup?" she asked with an evil smile of her own.

 

[Kreeps]

Jester waved for her to follow as he started walking across the hub and into the short cylindrical hallway that led to the cockpit. This area had the same lighting as the rest of the ship, just accented with back lit buttons and screens, readouts and dials and all of the other gizmos essential to a star ship. The cockpits glass was in the traditional YT series style, with the pilots seat in the very front, the co pilots seat a couple of small steps above it. Both were the same dark leather as the rest of the chairs in the star ship. There were buttons on almost every surface, each having its own precise use. All of the back lit multicolored buttons looked almost like stars dotting the surface of the cockpit, sending tiny multicolored glows out around them. Then, of course, the bunch of silver sicks protruding from the center of the controls, the classic YT series hyperdrive controls.

"Here ya go, the heart and mind of my good ol' girl. Try not to mess it up too bad." Jester said with a joking smile as he motioned for her to take a seat.

 

[Luster]

She nodded her thanks and slipped past him to sit down in the pilots seat. It was nice-and trusting- of him to let her do that and check out his layout. Honestly she knew he was probably watching every twitch of her hand in order to protect his beloved vessel from idle hands. Besides she wasn't there ti fiddle with anything, just to get a feel for old style corillian engineering as well as maybe tap into a few of Jester's idiosyncrasies. After taking a moment to feel the soft leather underneath her she slowly ran her finger over the control surface, feeling the ease of reach, memorizing the layout, and even making a few notes on how she might better her own setup. But at the end of the panel was was the hyperdrive activation lever, and gripping it she had to fight hard not to push it forward in anticipation of another brilliant jump into hyperspace's beautiful tunnel of light. She had to remember she was still on the ground and on someone else's ship.

"I have to ask," she said turning to face him "and I could never be called a pilot if I didn't, how much of this setup is your doing and how much is the original CEC layout?"

 

[Kreeps]

Jester couldn't help but smile as he watched the smuggler toy with his ship. He took a lot of pride in The Jester and it wasn't very often that another person got to sit at the helm. He obviously watched to make sure she didn't mess with anything critical but she didn't. There was a sort of unspoken code among pilots that you don't mess with someone else's vessel. Then she turned back and asked about the origin of the myriad array of controls in the YT's cockpit.

"A solid amount of it is still the original set up. the hyperdrive controls are the classic YT series as I'm sure you know, just hooked in to the new hyperdrive. A few of the screens and panels are for the targeting computer and a few other modifications, but most of it is still the original suite, just hooked in to the new hardware. I like the classic feel and I'm used to it by now." Jester had gotten the old freighter with bare bones modifications and a completely original control suite and had flown it that way for years. He didn't want to change it too much because it was all he knew.

 

[Luster]

"That close to original?" She was a little surprised that after all this time a YT series was still this close to stock in terms of setup. If it weren't for the upgrades this ship would be a collectable. "And other than the additions why should you change it? CEC got it right with this setup, it fits like a glove and just feels right. But thats coming from a human, a Wookiee, Trandoshen, Ithorian or several other species would probably disagree since this was designed with people like us in mind."

There she went again, ranting about ships. It was almost impossible not to talk about a ship, especially one like this. she closed her mouth not wanting to say anymore. Honestly she hated talking like that, not only did it make her feel exposed but back before she escaped slavery she would go on and on about this engine or that when she was supposed to be dancing and slacking off usually ended in a beating.

 

[Kreeps]

Jester listened intently. This girl was like a textbook full of knowledge about ships. No wonder she had lasted so long in this business. A little know how goes a long way. Knowledge is power after all. Jester liked to know his ship too, he often got stuck with maintaining it and its plethora of upgrades so it was mainly out of necessity, but he did have a fleeting interest in star ship design so he could throw in his fair share whenever conversations called for it.

"Yeah, the Corellians sure do know how to build a ship. I think most species can deal with the YT series, so long as they have two arms and ten fingers. Once you change that formula is when it gets awkward. You ever been to Corellia? It's a nice place when CorSecisn't on your ass." Jester thought back to the events of his last trip to that famous Core World and his run in with CorSec. It was a hell of a time to say the least.

"I was just in Coronet not too long ago. Sadly, I had a little scuffle with CorSec. Other than that it was a pretty productive trip." Productive was an understatement considering the giant, blue, beast of a man he had forged a fast friendship with.

 

[Luster]

"Yeah, I have. Im not often in the core worlds but thats actually where I got my business off the ground, though I only started making a name for myself out here. Corillia is a nice place and Coronet is a great city, and good for business too if you can avoid CorSec. Most small frys and "tough guys" dont see them as a threat, but you have to give credit where it is due and the Corillians have earned it."

As much as she loved talking tech it somehow felt better to drop the subject for now. Maybe it was because she didn't want to rant but she also didn't want certain memories to flash through her mind, at least not while getting to know a new employer. But her most extensive time in the core had been just after her escape and those were good days to remember. Those were the days of discovery and good fortune, she had found both the Wind and Druid around that time. She still did business or met with clients there from time to time. But really if she was there it was for a little vacation, not that she had shone up there since the Jordi incident.

 

[Kreeps]

Jester figured she would have been to Corellia. It was a pretty major Galactic hub and any smuggler worth there salt had been there a few times. Really one of the nicer planets out there, probably the most famous outside of Coruscant. CorSec was a thorn in any criminals side though. They were actually very competent and knew how to handle their business. Jester was lucky to have escaped his last run in with them.

"The Corellians certainly have their shit together when it comes to star ships and police work. Bit of a double edged sword for people like us eh?You done with the cockpit? There's still a few rooms left on the ship. Only one or two would really be worth seeing. Unless you find crew quarters and sonic showers incredibly interesting." Jester smiled at his joke. Belleza's droid had probably made a good dent in the substantial cargo she was hauling by now, and time was running out to finish the grand tour.

 

[Luster]

Belleza stood up in the small cockpit and took one last look around before motioning for Jester to lead the way. She was really interested to see how the newer engines fit the old frame and knew they were on the list. He had been cracking light jokes here and there and while she may not have smiled or reacted to them they still managed to lighten the mood between them. It was odd, she had met this man only a little while ago yet she felt like she knew him like family. It could have been due to their shared heritage in a rough part of the galaxy, similar outlooks on life, apparently similar ambitions, or just that they were two people looking for company in a lonely galaxy. Either way she was beginning to trust him, no matter what her memory brought to light. She just hoped that things didn't go so badly this time.

"The crew space is really your private sanctum, but I could really go for a sower right now." she joked as they passed back through the hall and back out into the lounge, as she had taken to calling it. Her voice held a little hint of humor in it, just enough for him to know it was a joke. "I wouldn't mind seeing the engines though."

 

[Kreeps]

Jester gave a light laugh at her joke and led the way to the back of the ship towards the engine room. As they approached the door slid open, revealing a humming beast of a hyberdrive flanked by two even more beastly engines. The engines were both sleek, clean and obviously very well maintained. They were covered by a durasteel shell made with sharp lines that added to the sleek look. There were small, barely noticeable seams that concealed two hatches that could allow the pilot or mechanic to work on the engines without having to remove the whole shell. The shells themselves were for both aesthetic and defensive purposes, minimizing the risk or fire or blaster damage in the event of a battle inside the ship.

"There you are. Two XM-640's and a Class IV." Jester pressed a button on each engine, causing the maintenance hatches to slide into the deck and revealing the inner workings of the two engines. The guts of the engines were arguably as aesthetically pleasing as the exterior, both very clean and obviously new, with quality construction materials throughout.

 

[Luster]

After he dropped the first hatch Belleza moved past him and squatted looking into the guts of the engine. While the casings had a definite predatory look to they they were not much more than a pricey and flashy precaution, what she really wanted to see was inside. A smile spread across her face as she gazed over the jumble of well maintained equipment that to an untrained eye would look like a random assortment of junk. These things put out a lot of power, I'll give him that. But I'm not sure he knows that having them backed up to the hull like this makes it nearly impossible to get to the other side if he needed to fix something there. Then again I doubt he does more than maintain it. She thought. But a second glance showed a bit of build up in the hard to reach areas. Yeah, he knows.

"Calling these nice could almost be considered an insult." She said without pulling herself out of the engine "These beasts put out a lot of power for a ship this small. While the pushers I have in the Wind are not top of the line I think I have them linked much better than these two are. I'll be honest," She pulled herself up and turned to look Jester in they eye If we were to race the Wind would win hands down."

 

[Kreeps]

Jester smiled. She was a cocky one alright. She knew her stuff when it came to ships and the like, but Jester felt like she was underestimating him. He was a solid pilot when he was at the helm of The Jester and these two beastly engines packed a hell of a punch. But Jester figured the smuggler took a lot of pride in her ship and Jester would humor her. A little.

"Maybe you would. Maybe you wouldn't. Maybe we'll find out someday." Jester said with a competitive smile. Maybe if they both had time they could go head to head someday. "I only race in asteroid fields." He added. It was sort of a half joke half challenge. Hell if he was gonna race her, it wouldn't be a straight shot. Gotta test maneuverability too.

 

[Luster]

"Wouldn't be a challenge, or a fair match, otherwise." She said with a smile of her own. "I assume that you clean and maintain your engines. If, or when rather, something breaks who do you have to fix it?" It wasn't that she was offering her service in that area, the Wind still needed a lot of attention, even the most skillful craftsman needed to look after what amounted to a hodg podg collection of parts. But she doubted that if he offered she would work over The Jester, for a price of course. Although she really wanted to start crawling around in the engines and maintenance ducts to see what really pushed the ship she didn't have the time for it, Druid had to be well on his way loading the crates.

Checking her crono she suppressed a wince. If she had been helping with the load they might have been done by now and on their way to collect that hefty early delivery bonus. While Jester may pay more than her current client it couldn't hurt to make a quick ten thousand for beating Fondor's man to the offloading point. Then again, if she stayed she could still get a much better feel for the man, not to mention get to look around an old YT series and ,like it or not, she was warming up quickly to the guy. She decided to wait. Even if I talk for a little longer we can still get that bonus.

 

[Kreeps]

Jester caught the air that this girl may be hinting at a few spare credits. Sure maybe he would throw her a few chips to tune up his ship, but in the event that something broke so catastrophically that he couldn't fix it himself, he would probably just replace it. There were few things Jester was comfortable with pouring money into, but his ship was one of them. So he really didn't have a mechanic. He had a few connections on Kaut and Corellia to make him custom parts for a hefty fee, but he didn't really have a guy to just fix things that break. He had been flying The Jester for years, and he knew the inner workings of the vessel almost as good as his old stomping grounds on Nar Shaddaa, so he usually took care of tune ups and small fixes himself with experience and a little bit of elbow grease.

"Well that depends. I know this bad boy pretty well, so I make most repairs on my own. If something ever broke so badly that I could't fix it personally, I'd probably just replace it. Haven't had that issue yet though. She's held up pretty well so far." That was just about the best answer he could give. Knowing her habits, she would probably think the whole "replace" it thing was wasteful and stupid, but Jester could afford it. He liked new things any way.