While the City Sleeps (Open)

[Green Ranger]

Coruscant tonight was...cold. The calmness in itself was not entirely unbearable, but the chilling winds that whipped around the spires brought a shiver to the spine. Few tonight braved the open air to admire the eerie beauty of the city-world in it's most glorious hour, when the sun descended, but the darkness never came. The light pouring from every window and streetlight kept the shadows at bay, descending the city into a near twilight at best.

Autumn shivered in the wind, wrapping the folds of her robe around her just a little tighter. Her fair hair whipped around in the wind and her eyes stung, but she was enchanted by the scene, captivated by the scene - endless spires, each their own little beacon of light and life, as far as the eye could see. And beneath it all, like an after-image across the scene, the subtle waves of the Art ebbed and flowed, a great current that encircled the world, wrapped itself around every living being. In such a congested location, it was like a beam of sunlight, piercing and warm. It was such a thing that caused the girl to brave the cold tonight. And despite her discomfort, she found herself smiling.

* * *

He was cold. The wind whipped through his thin, ragged clothes, chilling him to the very core. But he was used to being cold. Always so cold...he wrapped the rug a little closer to himself, his eyes unfocused as he stared at the hard, grey floor. It was not so clean as it was eye-catching, yet it was not dirty enough to do the same thing. It was just...there. And so was he. He shivered.

Thoughts came into his mind...a happier time and place, an existance of meaning...no, that was just a dream. He had always been like this...hadn't he? He did not know. The days and weeks faded into each other so easily. His mind buzzed...he was never alone, not truly. Feelings of hopelessness, despair, agony...all passed through him in a split moment, stealing the breath from his lungs.

He choked, coughing violently. It had hurt once...no more. He was used to the heaving, the gagging...the feelings of suddenly losing all senses and ceasing to exist, if only for a moment. This was a place of pain, desperation and hopelessness. And he felt it all.

He shivered again.

 

[JM76]

Remiel Vaern had left his dingy apartment hours ago with plans to scour the nightlife of the galactic capital. He was still wearing his business suit - a charcoal black overcoat and a white undershirt - despite the fact that he had long since been exempt from his duties as a corporate executive. The clothing was lightly tattered here or there, although it still held itself together. The smell of alcohol lingered on the Miraluka's breath; he had been drinking in the Outlander's Club for quite some time and had passed out in the process. It was only now, three hours later, that he was sobering up.

Now Remiel was drifting through the nighttime crowds, rife with scoundrels and politicians alike, trying to get back to his apartment, which was on the far side of the business district of Coruscant. Scratching his beard absentmindedly, Remiel felt the subtle pangs of discomfort from a fellow Force-sensitive in the distance. He had very little Force power, but as a Miraluka, he had some affinity for it. In particular, he had attuned his senses to hone in on those in pain. Suffering. He had come to thrive on it.

Remiel pulled himself away from the sea of people he was wading through and entered a nearby alleyway. Sitting in the damp corridor for several minutes, the Miraluka allowed his strength to return to him - the Force was tiring, even when used subconsciously. Once he had finished, Remiel began to avoid the crowd by taking a rather-empty sidestreet. In the meanwhile, he would stay wary of anyone suspicious in the area.

There was a chance that this night would be more interesting than what Remiel had planned.

 

[Viggy]

A bulky freighter touched down in a cheap but trustworthy Coruscant spaceport, sparks flying as the hull scratched across the floor of the docking bay thanks to the pilot's clumsy landing. No real damage was done to floor or ship however, and the old human owner of the small port merely put his hands on his hips and walked up to the craft, waiting for its pilot to exit. As he waited, he noticed the letters CWD printed across the side of the freighter.

"Aren't they those garbage-haulin' sonuva bitches?" he asked himself quietly in his raspy old voice, scratching his head as he looked at the freighter more closely.

At that moment there was a loud hiss of escaping air as a hatch opened at the top of the freighter, and a diminutive pilot climbed out. The first thing seen of him were his long blue ears that pointed straight up from his head, through holes in his scarlet hood. Metal boots clunked loudly as the Squib hopped down from the top of his starship, but apparently they didn't weigh much as he had quite a spring in his step walking up to the human.

"You are in high possesions of owning-rights for parking spot, correct?" the Squib inquired, yellow eyes sparkling a bit in the city's neon light as he looked up at the human. He spoke very quickly and with a high pitch, and a generally cheery attitude about him.

"Correct," the old man grunted, having little time for joviality. "Name?"

The blue-furred pilot straighted to his full height of exactly 33 inches. "Dmivotiktokalalakee!" he replied with obvious pride.

"Er... right," the human muttered, raising a brow. "Well, you can keep your ship here for 30 creds, sound good?"

Dmivo's eyes widened and his mouth fell open as if he were disgusted by the offer. He furrowed his brow at the man. "Good? Good? Sounds full-on scammy to me! Us Squibs can't be cheated easy-like, got awesome-good senses of values and stuff, you bet."

The old man just sighed. "Prices are non-negotiable. Pay up or leave."

Grumbling quietly, the Squib fished in his pockets for a minute. He took out twenty-five credits and an old droid restraining bolt, and held it all out. "Good?"

The old man took the credits and pocketed them, then took a closer look at the restraining bolt. "This thing work?"

"Like a slave, you bet!" Dmi quipped.

"Hmph... Alright, fine. Just get out of my sight... and my earshot..."

"You got it!" With a grin and a jaunty wave, the Squib skipped out of the spaceport and out into the streets. His head was always turned upward, not just because he was short, but because the tall buildings and numerous lights of the city never ceased to fascinate him. In fact , he was so busy checking out the skyscrapers that he didn't really look where he was going.

Suddenly bumping into someone, he was knocked back and fell on his ass with a squeak. "Eep! Sorry lofty friend!" he cried, looking up from where he sat on the street to see who or what he had bumped into.

 

[Jiang Winters]

Coruscant. There was something about the lively planet, something strangely alluring and fascinating that kept drawing Jiang Winters back to the city-world.

He couldn't put his finger on what kept drawing him back. The glittering upper levels were too glamorous and high-profile for his tastes, and the lowest levels were dark, dangerous, and filled with criminal scum and homeless folk he had no desire to interact with or even see.

Perhaps it was the liveliness and oppurtunities granted by the middle levels, where the people were neither too stuck-up nor too crude. Instead, they found a happy medium, and thus were far more likable than the denizens of the upper and lower levels.

Maybe it had to do with that little bit of nostalgia for the old CARD facility tucked away in the mostly-lifeless depths of the city, the place where he crawled out of a stasis pod years ago. If one were to get all deep and spiritual about the matter, you could say that emerging from the Pod with almost no memory of his past life was, in a way, a rebirth. He went into the pod a mere man, and emerged stronger than any of his kind had ever been.

Though personally, Jiang preferred to think of it not as rebirth. He thought of it as what it was: He went to the CARD facility, he got hacked apart and stuffed with cybernetics, and then he got stuffed into a stasis pod only to come out five years later with a case of freezerburn that addled with his memories.

He chuckled as he thought of himself having suffered freezerburn as he walked along, making his way down one of Coruscant's many streets as he decided what to do next. Maybe he should pay the CARD facility a visit. He had sealed the facility when he left, and going there now might be kind of fun, considering how he had the time to fully explore the abandoned area.

The male abandoned that train of thought when a chilly gust of wind caught the Kasa Horansi's rich sienna pelt, causing it to ripple ever so slightly as the cool air ruffled through and caressed his soft fur. He didn't shiver, though. Rather, he found the cool temperature to be a relieving change from the uncomfortably hot interior of the nondescript light freighter he had landed in the spaceport that he had left only a few minutes ago. Coincidentally, it was the very same spaceport a certain Squib had set down in just a short while ago.

The massive feline paused under a streetlight and sighed contentedly, folding his arms over his chest as he stared down the street ahead of him. It was somewhat empty and quieter than he remembered the streets of this level of the city being. There was probably a concert or show drawing the people away, or maybe the night air was cold enough to entice them to stay within their cozy apartments.

He didn't care which was true, he was just happy to see the streets empty.

Jiang moved to begin walking forward again, to keep moving in an almost random direction just to see the sights, when something impacted him right in the tail-end. At first, he thought it was some drunkard who had the brilliant idea to smack him in the bottom, which prompted the Kasa Horansi to whirl around with a slightly aggravated frown on his muzzle.

Much to his surprise, he saw no-one behind him. No-one at all. He was beginning to suspect that mother nature had played a prank on him, when he heard a voice call up to him from below, apologizing. The tall male took a step back and looked down, one eyebrow arched as he examined the being who had ran into him with his luminescent blue eyes.

His expression softened, then warmed into a cordial smile as he knelt and extended one of his large hands to the fallen squib to help the small creature to his feet. "It's fine, friend. You alright?" He asked, looking the squib right in his yellow eyes.

 

[Viggy]

The Squib’s yellow eyes widened as his gaze made its way up the incredibly tall Cathar’s body to those frighteningly bright blue eyes. His first thought was that he was about to be crushed by this giant for having disturbed him, but then with relief he saw a smile on the feline’s face. A paw was even being held out to help him up. Wrapping his hands around one of the Cathar’s fingers, Dmivo used the larger sentient's steady support and pulled himself to his feet. He still had to look way up to make eye contact, since the feline was more then six feet tall and the Squib himself was a few inches short of standing three feet tall. He dusted himself off as he smiled back at the Cathar.

“I’m perfectly good and fine, kind giant! And much thanks and obligatings owed to you for kind-minded forgivings of the misblunder on my own part, all other parties in possible guilt-places not relevated, no less!”

He gave a courteous bow, then stood up straight again and stuck a paw up in the air for the Cathar to shake.

“I am Dmivotiktokalalakee, much so honourized to be in acquaintances with your loftiness, you bet! So much so, that you can make referations to me simply as Dmivo.”

 

[Jiang Winters]

[FYI: Jiang's a Kasa Horansi, not a Cathar. ;) ]

Jiang decided to remain on one knee to make it easier for the Squib, now back on his feet, to get up. The striped feline even bent his torso down slightly to bring his head to the little fellow's level, with his left arm - the one he had helped the Squib up with - laid over his raised left knee.

He had to hold back a chuckle as the blue-furred thanked him, referring to him by the title 'kind giant'. Somehow, despite how amused he was by the squib, and how much he just wanted to tell the little guy it wasn't a big deal, he managed to remain silent as the fellow bowed, then extended a paw up for him to shake.

"Pleased to meet you, Dmivo." He replied, very gently taking the small alien's paw in his and giving it a light shake. "My name is Jiang." While introducing himself by his real name might not be the brightest idea, considering his line of work, he immensely preferred to be called by that name.

Besides, considering how all records associated with his name had been wiped clean, he didn't see a problem with it.

"What brings you to Coruscant, Dmivo? Looking for work and salvage? Or just taking in the sights?" He queried, that disarming smile still worn on his lips, as the strange glow in his eyes subsided slightly, making them look more natural than they had a few moments ago.

 

[Viggy]

((Ah, my bad))

Dmivo’s smile widened to a grin, grateful that the larger one was crouching down and saving the Squib the trouble of craning his neck. He energetically shook Jiang’s paw, his long tufted ears rotating in reaction to the sounds of the city around them as he kept his large yellow eyes focused on the Kasa Horansi.

“Sureful and incontrovertibalated that the pleasure is utterfully mine, Jiang!” he replied, letting go of the tall feline’s hand and meaninglessly waving his own about as he spoke. “My reasonabilities for being here are variables without any doubtables, but topmost and first-place, I am seeking fuel. My means of space-bound travelations are hampered by a lack therebefore, and with credits also in minimable supply I must find the most agreeable terms on my desired haggleprize.”

He paused, stroking the long hairs at the tops of his ears as he closed his eyes for a moment in thought. Quite suddenly they opened wide again, looking at Jiang.

“You… You wouldn’t happen to have extra fuel for trade and bargaination with myself, would you?”

 

[Jiang Winters]

The striped male paused, thoughtfully stroking the black patch of fur on his chin as he look off to the right for a moment, as he mulled over what Dmivo was searching for. He had plenty of credits, he had random junk in the hold of the freighter he had landed in, and he had part of his kit, but no extra fuel.

"Sorry Dmivo, I don't have extra fuel to trade with you. If I had even a drop of spare fuel, rest assured, I'd accept any reasonable trade for it." Jiang apologized, as he looked back at the squib, the hand that had been at his chin falling back to his side as he paused, then continued. "But I do have credits, and I know of a couple places you could get some valuable salvage."

The Kasa Horansi's synthetic eyes brightened back to their usual luminance as he rose back to his full height, towering well over the Squib, though it was certainly not his intention to intimidate Dmivo. Rather, he was simply getting ready to start walking. "Why don't you show me what you have to trade. If you have something I could use, I might buy it from you. And if you still don't have enough for fuel, then I'll show you a place that should give you quite a bit of salvage. Does that sound good to you?"

 

[Viggy]

The Squib sighed softly, ears drooping a bit as he heard that Jiang had no extra fuel to trade. It was not the feline’s fault, but it certainly was a shame. Just as he was beginning to try and think of how he might steal some fuel from the old man who owned the spaceport, the Kasa Horansi started speaking again about salvage. Dmivo’s ears perked back up and he watched the tall striped creature rise to his full height, those blue eyes of his seeming to shine in their sockets like the city’s neon lights.

Hearing the suggestion, the Squib nodded eagerly with a grin. “Good? It sounds like most excellent thinkings, buddy-buddy! I have a whole hoardpile of stuff for sale, and every treasure is going at bargain price! Do follow me…”

Turning around, Dmivo skipped right back the way he had come. Though he was an unstoppable ball of energy, it would be very easy for Jiang to keep up, as the feline had much longer legs. They soon reached the spaceport where both of them had happened to dock their respective freighters.

Going to his own craft with the CWD logo painted on it, the Squib climbed on top and unlocked the hatch, opening it up. “Sixth of a minute!” he called, dropping down the hatch and closing it. About ten seconds later, a large section of the craft revealed itself to be a door, pushing out with a hiss of escaping air and sliding away to reveal the Squib’s cargo hold. It looked as though someone had gone to the dump and carefully organized everything according to its material and quality, and in essence that’s what it was - garbage that he had pulled in from space with the tractor beam, sorted and organized by his cheap worker droids. The piles were by no means neat, but it was better then sifting through one big heap.

“Take a look around! Other then the metal-men, it’s all for sale. Unless you put up a really invincible offer on the metal-men, then they‘re for sale too,” he said, the metal-men being his word for his worker droids.

((Feel free to invent anything you want to be found in the garbage piles ^.^))

 

[Jiang Winters]

'This guy is like a cub pumped full of sugar and hammered on energy drinks.' Jiang thought with an amused chuckle as he walked after the energetic squib, his heavy combat boots making rhythmic clicks as he walked.

Once back at the spaceport, he watched as Dmivo clambered up atop his craft and dropped inside, with the vessel's cargo bay doors hissing open ten seconds later; a sixth of a minute, just as the furball had said. Unfazed by the sight of what appeared to be little more than a hold full of worthless junk, the Kasa Horansi made his way up the ramp and stepped into the hold.

His bright blue eyes wandered over the neatly arranged piles of salvage as he listened to his new acquaintance chatter. The piles looked to be sorted by material and quality, though he could be wrong. Armed with that guess, he started walking through the hold, pausing every time something caught his eye, until he finally came to a heap of old electronics and computers.

At first he was going to brush it off as nothing, but a dinged and slightly rusted round table-like device, with a black and white checkered top and what might have once been chrome finish on the main chassis, caught his attention. After carefully moving an assortment of nick-nacks from the top and setting them atop a conveniently located broken datapad, Jiang effortlessly hefted the table, which was at least half as tall as he was, and set it in the walkway between junk piles to give it a look over.

"This thing's pretty cool. Looks like an old holo-game table." He said largely to himself, as he bent down and looked up into the underside of the table, which was supported by one large central leg. "But it looks like the internals are fried." He muttered, grasping and pulling out a small black box from the table's guts, and examining the badly cracked and scorched box, which had at one point been the CPU.

Leaving the table in the center of the path and dropping the useless component back into the salvage pile, he turned back to the pile he had found it in and dug through it for a few moments, until he found what he was looking for. The Kasa Horansi picked up a pile of old datapads and game pads, roughly ten in number, and set them on the table, then began to pick them up and examine them one by one.

After going through the pile of datapads, he decided he could repair the holo-game table, and so turned to Dmivo, a thoughtful expression playing out across his facial features as he asked, "Dmivo, how much do you want for this pile of broken electronics? I was thinking something around two hundred credits, plus two power packs."

 

[Green Ranger]

One foot in front of the other, with no direction to any of the steps before or after. He wandered aimlessly, the cool air causing him to shiver slightly in his ragged clothing. His hands shook slightly, and his step had a distinct sway in them, as if the soft wind were enough to blow him over, given the chance. His eyes, hidden behind dark hair, did not wander - unfocused, he stared blankly ahead.

The few figures he passed by in the night were as blurs, faceless ghosts he could not touch. He knew they didn't want to see him - the way their heads turned aside as they approached him, or the subtle sidestep away from him. He probably looked drunk, he thought to himself - a rare moment of clear thoughts, before he lost himself to the endless pain and suffering that surrounded him. Even when the city was silent, it was painful to listen to.

Eventually, his feet found their way to a landing pad - a starport, he heard someone mutter. Or was it he who said it...? He wasn't sure. It was a refuge from the cold, in any case. This one in particular had an especially sympathetic yet fearful manager - one who didn't like the feeling of another crawling through his mind. There were a lot of walls in that mind, a lot of memories best forgotten. He shivered again, though this time at the thought of those memories. Some minds were better off ignored.

He stumbled his way into the port, seeing nothing but the faint blurs and hearing little but muffled voices in the distance. His legs shook some more, and he stopped for a moment. He wondered to himself how long it had been since he had eaten. His legs gave out beneath him, and he collapsed in a small heap on the ground. The thrum of Coruscant coursed through him still, and he lay, still as a corpse, taken away by the current.

***

Autumn gave a small sigh of contentedness, breathing in the night air. She paused for a moment, then glanced down at her slender hands - her pale skin had taken on a distinct blue tint, and shook surprisingly violently. She smothered an embarassed grin, then wrapped her hands in her golden sleeves after carefully placing a silvery veil over her face. The Tae were distinct in their large, almost luminous eyes...and, all things considered, she didn't want to attract unwanted attention.

She had originally intended to return to the abandoned apartment she had found the night before, but the countless walkways and towers of Coruscant all looked so similar, she soon found herself hopelessly lost. There was a distinct smell of sweat and fear on the air. And...something else.

It wasn't exactly a smell, but she could almost taste it. Traces of the Art - like many emotions had been dragged from their owners and brought to a single point. She frowned at the idea - it seemed ridiculous, but when it came to the Art, little could be considered as such. Something told her to follow the source of the strangeness...but at the same time, she felt the urge to simply walk in the opposite direction. She paused for a moment, lost in indecision.

 

[JM76]

Remiel had found himself drinking again. Stealing a bottle of alcohol from a vendor that was closing shop, the merchant behind the streetside counter did not even notice the Miraluka snatch the bottle from his wares. By now, the bottle was almost entirely gone, and Remiel was getting riled. He assumed it was because he saw them again. The memories. Remiel ran to the nearest railing at the edge of the street and retched over the side, gagging a bit as he did so. Needless to say, a few unsavory passersby noticed his grotesque mannerisms and stared at him in confusion.

The Miraluka ignored them. He did not have time for this. Discarding the alcohol flask he had collected earlier, Remiel threw the nearly empty container into the street below. A few strings of profanity followed from pedestrians who had almost been hit by the projectile.

Remiel continued navigating the streets of Coruscant, dodging in and out of the crowd as he pleased. During one of his crowd-surfing maneuvers, Remiel spotted a female of a humanoid species on one of the many streets of this ecumenopolis. Thanks to the powers of his Force-imbued Sight, Remiel could tell that this one had quite a degree of Force-sensitivity. Perhaps she was the one he had sensed earlier? Needless to say, she was wearing a rather unique style of dress. Not so unique that it was exotic or outlandish when compared to the other styles that flocked Coruscant, but it was different, nonetheless.

Remiel approached the young woman, who had covered her face with a veil of sorts, by making his way through the always-stubborn Coruscant crowd. The alcohol still permeated on his breath, and it was even noxious to him, despite his tolerance for alcohol. As he approached, the Miraluka caught a glimpse of her eyes - they intrigued him, considering Remiel did not have eyes - which assured him that she was not Human.

"Excuse me," Remiel said, approaching her with a bit of a clumsiness in his gait, "I could not help but notice that you seem lost. Are you looking for someone?"

 

[Viggy]

Dmivo went to a corner of the cargo hold that was something of a workshop area, as Jiang searched the junk piles for anything he liked. There were a few lengths of metal tubing there. The Squib used his tensor gun to break up a few cell on the tubes, softening them so he could twist them together in a way he thought quite artistic. He was making a few finishing touches on the art, when he heard Hakim offering a price on some broken electronics. His ears perked up at the figure given - two hundred credits, plus two power packs added into the bargain!

First banishing the excitement from his face, he walked over to the tall feline. He looked at the pile of junk Jiang had chosen, and pretended to carefully consider the offer. “Mmm… yeah, sounds koovy!” He grasped the Kasa Horansi’s hand with a smile, and gave it a shake. “Just give the creddies and the power packs to the orange metal-man. And the pink one will cart your goodies to your ship for you at no extra charges, you bet!” He pointed to the droids he was referring to, a grin on his face. With two hundred credits, he was sure to find some fuel in this city.

At that moment, the Squib noticed something strange. A man had entered the spaceport, seeming to stumble as he walked, as if tired or injured. The owner of the port was just avoiding him. Frowning slightly, the diminutive blue-furred alien jogged over to the fallen man. He rubbed the fur of his forearm against the man’s head, the sensitive hairs picking up information about the man’s health, age and even his emotions. The Squib could even smell and taste through his fur. “Jiang, something not full-on rightygood with this fellow here!” he called to his new friend.

 

[Jiang Winters]

The tall feline watched as Dmivo walked over, seeming to be carefully considering the offered price on the heap of electronics. He wasn't too worried about the Squib wanting more than the offered price on the pile he chose, as he had offered what he felt was a reasonable trade. Still, he smiled with a bit of relief as Dmivo accepted the offer and shook his hand.

"Right. Thanks." The Kasa Horansi replied, producing a pair of 100-Credit chips from one of the pouches clipped to his belt, and starting to make his way towards the orange-painted droid. He had just handed over the credits to the 'metal-man' when he heard Dmivo's boots clacking against the metal floor of the ship as he jogged out, prompting Jiang to turn and follow after the blue-furred fellow.

He reached the cargo bay door just as Dmivo called out to him. Seeing the fallen man that the friendly squib was standing over gave Jiang a sense of urgency, even though a cynical little voice in the back of his head told him the collapsed man was probably just another drunkard or spice addict. The Kasa Horansi left the ship at a light run, his long legs quickly carrying him over to Dmivo and the fallen.

He knelt beside the dark-haired man and lightly pressed the pads of his right hand to the man's cheek. "He feels cold as snow. Lets get him inside where it's warm. We can put him in my ship, it has a medical bay." The feline said, as he slid his muscular arms underneath the poor soul and scooped him up. Despite the nature of his work, Jiang was not a heartless man - he had compassion for those in need.

He stood back up, the unknown man held in his arms, then started walking towards the crew boarding ramp of the aging freighter he had. He had to set the man down for a moment so he could enter the ship's access code - he would have had Dmivo do it, had the squib not required a ladder to reach the door controls - and then picked his charge back up again, carrying him into the ship.

Assuming that his blue-furred friend would follow, he didn't use his mildly prehensile tail to strike the 'close' button on the ship's interior control panel, and instead padded along the gray durasteel corridors until he reached the medical bay. After setting the man down on the solitary exam table inside the ship -which was still uncomfortably warm to the thick-furred Kasa Horansi- Jiang moved to stand alongside the table, and gently prodded the man with the back of his furry hand. "Hey, can you hear me? Can you tell me your name?"

[Jiang's Ship Image]

 

[Green Ranger]

Autumn whirled around, surprised at being spoken to. She wished she hadn't. The stench of alcohol caused her to gag, and the eyeless near-human looking at her completely shocked her. Calm! Calm! she screamed mentally, letting the sense of shock pass over and wash away from her. She felt the familiar tingle of her eyes settling as well - most likely they had glowed somewhat fiercely from the shock. It was a...tendancy amongst her kind, another factor that did not help her to blend into groups unnoticed.

So much for not attracting attention. Silently cursing her own paranoia, she allowed a small smile of embarassment to play across her features. She didn't know where to look on the man...his eyes? But, he was blind...

***

He groaned slightly on the table, his eyes wandering around the medical bay slowly in confusion as he slowly sat up. There was something odd about his eyes...so young for a face so seemingly worn. He grabbed his sleeve and wiped a thick layer of grime away from his eyes. Beneath the caked-on dirt and grime...it was just a kid.

It was evident from the look of him - and the smell too -that he hadn't even seen a shower in a long time, but on closer inspection, he could probably have only been about fifteen to seventeen years old. He rubbed his eyes one last time, then he realized he was being looked down on by a giant furry man-cat...thing. He froze in muted fear.

 

[Viggy]

Dmivo followed as Jiang lifted the human up and carried him away, the Squib hopping from one foot to the other in worry. He could be quite compassionate at times, and when he had rubbed his sensitive fur against the sick one he had detected that this human was still pretty young. Kids shouldn’t have to suffer, even in a frightening city like Coruscant.

The Squib’s gaze wasn’t even drawn to the things inside Jiang’s ship as they moved down the halls into the medical bay. As far as he was concerned, this was an emergency. As the human was laid down on an exam table, Dmivo stood on his toes to watch him. At first the sick young man just wiped dirt away from his face, revealing youthful features that confirmed the Squib’s earlier suspicions. But the sight of Jiang seemed to frighten him, making him freeze up and stare. Dmivo could certainly understand that, the big cat had scared him too.

Poking the human with one of his small fingers and looking at him with those big yellow eyes that only just barely made it over the edge of the exam table, Dmivo tried to be reassuring. “Fear not, human! The lofty felinoid and myself are here to help, you bet! You may call me Dmivo.”

 

[JM76]

"Are you quite all right?" Remiel asked. His voice took a peculiar mix of intrigue and annoyance, but he took a few steps back, noting her distaste of the alcoholic scent. "Are you able to speak?"

The Miraluka had taken note of the slight glow in her eyes and was quite bemused. In fact, he thought he recognized that trait from somewhere. He swore he had seen it during his time on Alsakan, so long ago. But maybe not.

Remiel stammered to speak, but no intelligible words came out. He figured it was the last bit of the alcohol causing him trouble. Shaking his head, he noticed the young woman had a peculiar look on her face; her veil hid most of her facial features, but from what he could see, she was alarmed.

"I apologize if I startled you. That certainly was not my intention," Remiel began. "Never seen a Miraluka before? My name is Remiel Vaern, native of Katarr." He bowed a bit in a sardonic manner, although he was a bit tipsy and almost fell over.

 

[Jiang Winters]

Jiang sighed inwardly as the fellow wiped away the dirt covering his face, revealing the youthful features of a boy, no more than seventeen years of age, if that. 'Poor kid.' He thought, as he stood up straight and placed his fingertips on the edge of the exam table. 'Wonder why he isn't with his family... If he even has one.'

When the teen choked up in terror upon seeing the intimidating sight of the Kasa Horansi, the large feline just started to part his lips to speak, when Dmivo chirped up. Jiang paused and looked down at the squib. It was probably better that he be the first to speak. On the surface, squibs were disarmingly cute. Like a living stuffed animal.

After Dmivo had spoken, the striped male turned his gaze back to the teen, luminescent eyes softening as he spoke to him in a warm voice. "And my name is Jiang. Don't worry, you're safe." He assured him, offering up a small smile before asking, "What's your name, kid? Are you hurt?"

 

[Green Ranger]

Autumn took a tentative step backwards, away from the drunk. She wasn't used to being approached by complete strangers like this, and she didn't quite know how to respond. She took a deep breath, mustering all her courage, before squeaking out a pathetic, 'Hello!'

Her heart thumped in her chest. What was she even doing here, anyway? She was way out of her element. Clenching her fists at her sides, she took another deep breather, then looked again at the...Miraluka, was it?

'Um...i'm Autumn,' she mumbled softly, 'and...um...sorry if I'm a little jumpy. I'm um...er...new here. I guess I got a little lost...'

***

He had just woken up in a room with a giant cat-man and a...tiny, hyperactive little monster thing. It wasn't entirely unexpected when he leapt off the opposite side of the table as the two were standing on, cowering behind it. He began muttering, rambling on about something, though his voice was so croaky it was almost entirely unintelligable. Something about not meaning to steal something or other...it was hardly important.

If either of the pair were highly attentive, however, they'd notice the barest of distortions in the light around the child...all around him in an almost-sphere, the colour seemed to drain away ever so slightly. If either of the pair tried to touch the boy, they'd find themselves repelled by an invisible force, with enough strength to fling even the giant man-cat across the room. He'd done it before...in the middle of a crowd. At least fifteen people were seriously injured. The pain from that memory...

His face fell blank, all emotion draining from his face. His eyes lost all focus and ceased to wander around the room. He even stopped his wild rambling. He went completely still, not even blinking. Whatever personality the boy had previously shown was now completely void...it was almost like looking at a hollow statue in the semblance of a person. As if it didn't matter how realistic it appeared, you just knew it was empty inside.

 

[JM76]

Remiel smirked ever so slightly as the woman stepped away from him. He was just pleased that she had not broken into a mad sprint to get away from the admittedly-inebriated Miraluka. And he almost laughed aloud when she hardly was able to say hello. At least she can speak... Remiel thought.

"It's quite alright. I myself, did not know what to expect walking about here. In either case, it's a pleasure to meet, you, Autumn," he said. He prepared to extend his hand to shake her own, but decided against it. "I, myself, was going to ask for directions to the nearest docking bay. But, if you're having trouble finding your way around, I can help you. I've been here long enough to know my way around."