Under the Twin Suns.

[Vash Windrider]

Tatooine

​

Vash Windrider had spent the past several months in the oldest, and as far as he knew ONLY settlement on this insufferable desert planet. He had allowed himself to get complacent and apathetic to his environment. When his credit flow started to run short he started to influence a local cantina bartender. Useing the force to twist her mind she gave him free drinks, food and for the past couple of weeks, a place to sleep. She was a free meal ticket, nothing more.


@EmilyHuene

 

[Aris the Witch]

The bounties were low. The board was full of people out to get one another, but tracking down some random lowlife wasn't worth the fuel it took to chase them down. That was the problem nowadays. A good bounty, one that paid the bills, was hard to come by. But as luck would have it one back water raider happened to be passing by Tatooine. He hated the heat and the dry air, but the wretched hive of villiany was perfect for picking up rumors.

The man in the brown coat entered into the cantina and took a booth near the back. His eyes scanned the room for all those around. A few locals. A couple smugglers he recognized. More than a handful of drunks. But one man stood out. At the bar, talking smooth with the lady tending the drinks. The bounty hunter had certain feelings about people, that was his line of duty. This stranger gave all off the wrong vibes. Perhaps he was the lost cache he could cash in....

 

[Vash Windrider]

Vash was relaxing up at the bar, enjoying the drink he had managed to convince the bartender he needed. The force had turned he will into sand. She had no resistance left in her. "Chock another up to Jedi training", Vash thought to himself. In truth he'd fallen far from his Jedi training but then again the Order was far from what they appeared. Vash continued to dwell on the irritation and hypocrisy of his former Order the the force snapped him back to the here and now.

The former Shadow closed his eyes and allowed the force to push his senses across the room. The bar was to crowded, he could not peal back the layers of people to find what was off. This was his own doing, he was distracted. Getting lazy in his training. Vash cursed at himself and finished his drink with one large swing. Placing the glass on the bar, he waiting until a passing customer blocked him from view from at least half of the bar. Then ducked out the front door.

No sooner was he out the door that the Exile fell in step with a merchant towing a cart of goods behind a bantha. In was just in step enough that the rider didn't suspect him and the average passerby might mistaken him for another member of the merchant's party.

 

[Aris the Witch]

The man in the brown coat was eyeing the stranger like a hawk. So when the man abruptly disappeared behind a passing bar patron, the bounty hunter knew he'd been discovered. Pistol in hand he fled the cantina in hopes of finding his prey. It wouldn't take long, the hunter was keen at tracking. His eyes searched left and right out the door for something amiss. Someone running, a fallen cart pushed over, anything out of the ordinary.

The trail was quickly going cold. The stranger vanished right before his eyes. This was no doubt the work of someone trained. He would make a good catch. The man in the brown coat pulled out a datapad and signalled for his droids to active. Three small floating droids left the hanger of his ship and began buzzing about the marketplace. The man would turn up...eventually.

 

[Vash Windrider]

The former Jedi double backed around the new stranger. Causing the hunter to now be the hunted. Yet another little trick he picked up during the war. Calmly Vash watched as the man looked round, head darting back and forth trying the get a set for him. The man in brown had no idea he was dealing with a force user. He was still fresh to the craft of hunting men for profit.

Just then the bounty hunter paused and pull from his belt a....datapad. He could be signalling for others. Vash had to move quickly. Cold calculated malice. The kind that years of conflict created, the kind the dark side feed apawn and fueled him. The force shielded him, silenced his steps and brought indifference and calm to the senses. Allowing the Exile to step right up behind the bounty hunter, bring his saber hilt to the center of his back just above what should of been his nipple like and tap the ignition switch on for one full second before switching it off again.

Vash would catch the rookie bounty hunter as shock would quickly set in and the life would start to flee from his wounded body. Quickly dragging him out of the street and into an near by ally. Setting him down facing outward Vash watched as shock and surprise to hold, tears began to roll down the mans face as fear crept in during the last fleeting moment.

When the life was finally out of him Vash picked his pockets like a common thief. Taking his pistol, data pad, and his credits. Pad in hand he changed he disengaged the searching droids, then flipped through the unit giving a pleased "hmm" sound.

Sliding the computer to a pouch on his belt Vash then checked the credits. Just enough for a slicer, he thought. Suddenly however the noise twitched his ears. Around the corner. The sounds of a slave auction starting. Vash stood once more and with the aid of the force, moved some ally trash over the body of the bounty hunter. Then walked to the sounds of small crowd.

 

[Aris the Witch]

The slave auction. A place most in the galaxy wouldn't go near. But then there were some who explicitly traveled to barren wastes such as Tatooine to shop at them. This is were the true scum of the universe gathered. Out in the pavilion between two marketplaces stood a small stage where a large crowd was gathering. This was no ordinary auction. There was a special prize in store today. That prize is what brought even the Hutts from their palaces to attend today. Sitting near the edge of the stage was one such Hutt. A slimy thing he was, but fat too, where it counted. He was being fanned by two malnourished Twi'lek girls; a third was holding a parasol to shade him. Two grotesque pig-like guards stood on either side of the couch that supported the Hutt as protection.

In the center of the stage was a greasy man who seemed to be missing a few teeth. He was shouting to the crowd trying to get them riled up about the items on the docket to be sold. One by one a girl was pulled from the cages behind the stage and dragged up to the center to be sold off like a piece of meat. Some would buy, some would bid. But everyone was holding out the coin in their pockets for the real prize. Being pulled by her chains was a grey-skinned woman with light silver hair and blue eyes. The girl was Nagai, similair to the Chiss race, only much more fair skinned. Around her neck was a Force-negating collar; she was the reason so many had gathered here today. A Force-wielder was frowned upon in this part of the galaxy. Anyone who could get a piece of one in their hands would give their last credit to purchase her.

 

[Vash Windrider]

The day was going from unexpected to interesting. Vash emerged from the ally and immediately blended himself into the building crowd of scum and slavers. The practice of slavery was a strange thing to him. More often then not those in chains had the ability to set themselves free but simply lack the will to do so. Somehow, someway the will to fight had left them, or rather taken from them in most cases. It was no different with this girl he thought.

Vash watched as one after another the common slavers were bought and sold, or not. Finally the young Nagai appeared. The simple fact that he could not feel her within the force hit him before he noticed the force negating bonds. It was incredible that she was even here and not a headless or hole filled mass on some unknown world. Capture of a force user, especially those of the Jedi and Exiles alike normally meant death. The fact that she was being sold for sport made her of great interest to Vash.

Just as he made the realization about his interest in her, the auction for her began. In a split second he was well out of his financial league. Quickly he sized up the buyers around him. The Hutt would be impossible, so was the flying winged creature who species he couldn't think of at the moment. Most of the rest didn't look like they had the coin to compare with the slug. Just then, a Rodian bid. Putting and evil looking smirk on the Exile's face.

It was going to tax hs ability greatly and leave him more then a little exposed to those around him. Still. Vash concentrated, letting all but the Rodian business man and the Hutt fall away into the background. Vash then focused, pushing his will into the mind of the Rodian. "You must out bid the Hutt, you will spend every credit you have if you must." Vash pushed the thoughts into the force and into the blue skinned fool's mind.

 

[Aris the Witch]

"You must out bid the Hutt, you will spend every credit you have if you must."

And so it was. The Rodian became lax as his mind surrendered to the foreign power. His eyes seemed to dim, if that were possible for the brilliant blue color of them. Vash's will took hold and just as he wished the man began to return every bid. He would not lose to the Hutt. Each motion of the slug was answered by a following immediately after by the Rodian. A little strange sure, but perhaps desperate for a chance to get a Force user of his own. It was no doubt their kind had been plagued by the Jedi time and time again. Anyone would give up their last coin to get even.

Meanwhile, the slave up on stage eyed the group with a loathing look in her eyes. They glared around the crowd slowly as the masses soon died out until it was only a matter of two of them going back and forth. This was the truth of her life: one of these two men -if you could even call them such a thing- would soon be in complete control of her. Just like that. A simple matter of who had the most coin.

Finally the deal was brokered. The Hutt refused to keep arguing with the Rodian who insisted on upping the bid with every move. It wasn't becoming a sport now, it was now turning into an annoyance. The Hutt spoke quietly to his assistant beside him who would leave his side to go do a little digging. The Hutt wanted to know why this Rodian was so stubbornly opposing him. The Hutt would get even....just not in the public's eye.

"Sold!" The leader of the sales would say. "To the Rodian in the back. Come on around sir and claim your prize."

The crowd would cheer as the girl was pulled off stage to a table in a tent behind the event. The chain was locked to a ring attached to the surface of the table while she waited for her new master to come pay for her. Her eyes silently stared at the ogre who brought her here and then left to fetch the next slave in the auction. A droid sitting at the table beside her who would handle the transaction would ask for her name. The girl did not answer.

 

[Vash Windrider]

The auction of the girl could not have gotten over soon enough. To control the will of another, even a weak minded fool such as this Rodian, was taxing. Added to that was the concentration and effort to do in in such a crowd. Vash eased out of the slaver's mind as cold sweat appeared around the edge of his hair line. Vash took several deep breaths to recover himself before noticing that his pawn had moved to claim his would be prize.

Following the Rodian and his guard Vash blended in with the pair as they slipped into the tent where this girl was waiting in chains. As the Rodian slaver slinked toward the Droid to pay his fees for the girl Vash activated his blue saber and before the guard could turn around, the former Shadow cut him in half. Then with the aid of the force, sent the two halves slamming into the Rodian and the droid. Knocking them to the ground. A couple quick steps and another slash of the blade and the two were no longer an issue.

Vash then stood over the girl, just out of her reach for the moment, turning off his weapon but keeping it in hand. Time was short but he was confident in his ability, and reckless as always. With the force the Exile pushed outward the feelings of fear and dread toward the girl, a sense that any moment he could and would finish with her what he had done to the rest.

"Are you a pawn of the Order or a friend of the fallen and exiled ?"

 

[Aris the Witch]

The girl's eyes would flash upwards as the tent billowed open and the Rodian entered. He sleezily crept toward the table in anticipation of getting his prize. Aris sighed with annoyance that this was the creature who'd be claiming her. If only she could do something about it.

The ignition of the lightsaber made her skin jump. She'd heard the sound hundreds of times before on recordings that her old master had kept. But never before had she heard one in real life. She could barely follow the sight of the blue beam as it cut down the guards, then the droid and the man who was to own her. In fear of being killed she would cower and pull away from the table to hide from this strange intruder. The chains tightened as the links pulled together forbidding her from getting but a foot away.

With a shriek she cried as she was the only one alive and looked with terror at either side of the tent hoping someone would come to her rescue. This was it for her. The Hutts were coming to finish her off. She was done for. She was doomed. Aris tried to find her voice to call for help, but nothing came.

The man turned to her, and although turned off his saber, looked into her mind with fear and anxiety. Already was she terrified of him; his extra little push made it worse. She fell to her knees with her hands bound at the table and hid her face beyond the ledge so he could not see her cry.

"Are you a pawn of the Order or a friend of the fallen and exiled ?"

The girl whimpered and continued to shiver and quake to herself without giving him an answer. Outside, a few other guards would come walking around. Curious about the strange sound they thought they heard....Activating his saber was not his brightest move.