A Familiar Face, A New Name

[Brent Smith]

The YT-666's decks hummed softly with the vibration of its engines as it move through hyperspace. All was silent, save the sound of the vessel's systems. The lights were low, dimmed to almost pitch black. Through the darkness a few lights peppered the void with specs of red and blue.

The only member aboard the ship lay sleeping, slummed in the pilots chair. His body was clad in armor from head to toe, his left hand loosely gripped an E-33 blaster carbine. It dangled half an inch from the durasteel floor, looped around his pointer finger. The blue play of star systems passing by reflected off the gleaming black view plate of the helmet's v-shapped visor. The occupant's body twitched sporadically. He was dreaming, trapped in a private hell of his own.

"I'll come back," he heard a familiar but still so unknown voice.

The dreamer shifted, his body was as uneasy as his mind.

His mind flashed to a village. It was burning through the bleak of midnight. The destruction was rampant. Dead bodies lie across the streets of men, women, and children. He stood in the middle of it all, clad in his armor, wielding the same rifle his physical form did. Even though the flames flickered around him, he was unphased through the thick armor. There were screams of horror, please of mercy, and sobs for forgiveness, but the destruction wrecked on their civilization showed that none would be given. He marched alone through the destruction.

The dreamer's head shifted once more. The face of a redheaded woman appeared, vivid and real. He could see her piercing eyes, piercing like they could see through into his soul.

"I promise. It won't be long," he heard the familiar male voice once more floating through his mind. It spoke through the void, cutting through like a tide. He could see curtains shifting in the wind. Soft sunlight filtered onto the hardflooring next to the window. It was a cool, soft day. Perfect in everyway. The strange smell of baking bread filled the dreamer's mind for some reason as he heard, "You won't even notice I'm gone."

His head jerked to the other side, the dreamer's hand gripped the hilt of his E-33 tensely. Under his gauntlet, his knuckles were white from the tension.

In his mind he stood once more amid the burning village. This time he was looking down his carbine, steadily approaching a pair of figures. A young boy at the other end of his sights was hunched over the corpse of his mother, mired in mud and her blood. His wailing echoed through the dreamer's ears as hot tears streaked down the boys face," Momma! Momma! Wake up, momma!"

The dreamer's finger tightened slowly on the trigger, his weapon was unmoved from the form of the boy. Their eyes met. Through the tears, the boy seemed to know right where to look to see the dreamer's eyes as a final wail escaped his lungs.

The dreamer's body jerked upright. The horrors in his mind were gone. He couldn't remember the village, the face, the voice, or the boy. His eyes settled on the console, where at last he saw they had arrived at their location.

The YT-666 pulled out into realspace, descending to land on Vjun. It was the know location of Bast Castle, the home of Ra'a'mah Numare. The dreamer rose to his feet, moving into the refresher. His helmet came off, the man stared into the mirror. His face was pale. His jaw was toned and square with only a moderate speckle of unshaved facial hair. His longer dark hair was slicked back from the helmet.

This was the face of Viktor Hel. The ruthless bounty Hunter, slaver, and gun for hire. Viktor splashed some water on his face before once more sealing himself in his armor. He strapped his jetpack across his back, holstered a pistol on either side of his hips. On one gauntlet he mounted his flame thrower, on the other his dart launcher, rope and grapple hook launcher. Across his belt Viktor clipped grenades; sonic, thermal, and EMP. This Ra'a'mah was dangerous. A Sith. And the bounty on her head was massive. Viktor wasn't taking any chances.

He strode out of his ship into the forest. The HID in his helmet charted a clear map to Bast Castle. Over the dangerous wasteland he cut a long, ardorous path over crags, dodging pits of acid rain, and over boulders. It was subtle and that made it preferable to the front door.

Viktor ducked into one of the out flowing sewage pipes. The waste flowed out into the nearby river, dumping the clean water into the rest of the ecosphere. He sloshed through the waste, knee deep in water and refuse. His headlamp on the side of his dark helmet projected a white beam of light.

"Here," Viktor said to himself, muted through the helmet. If his calculations were correct, he was right under a closest.

Out of a pocket on his belt, Viktor pulled a fusion cutter. The tool sprang to life with a hiss, casting a purple glow. Slowly but surely it melted away the stone masonry, creating a hole just large enough for Viktor to climb through. As the armor clad man pulled himself into the darkness he was ready for anything--or so he thought.

 

[Riamah]

Today was as much like any other day for Ra. Waking up, she took her nexu for a run along with the Vjun fox. She returned to the castle. Not giving any thought to the ship that had flown overhead, there were other settlements on the planet, it could have been heading to any of them and not her castle.

She walked back into the building and had Vincent start to prepare breakfast. The old man already knew her routine and brought some caf in for her while the food was cooked. Akata and Ankharaa curled up on the floor near the fire. Surprisingly the fox and feline got along and Ra liked their company.

Something felt different though and she couldn't quite place it. Not one prone to vision through the Force, Ra had the feeling something was going to happen.

Sitting down at her desk, she took a drink of the caf and looked at her datapad for any needed updates on her projects and the news of the galaxy.

[member="Brent Smith"]

 

[Vulpesen]

Rolling over a bit, Vulpesen flopped his arm over his face to hide it from the morning sun. His head was cushioned by his tail, and over his body, his coat was acting as a blanket. Likely not the most glamorous moment of his guardianship of Ra, but the Valde was nothing if not dependable in his duties. ANd especially after the comenor incident, he found it difficult to let the woman out of his sight for even a moment. At the foot of the couch on which he was dozing, Ace stood guard as always, acting as a sentry for his bondmate.

@Ra'a'mah
[member="Brent Smith"]

 

[Brent Smith]

@Ra'a'mah @Vulpesen

Viktor had never considered himself a monster. He was ruthless and an arm of the law where there was no law. But more than that, he was efficient, and skilled. If that meant he had to kill a man or a dozen villages in the process to do the job--well, when Viktor got moving, the job got done right. His gloved hand opened the door knob of the cleaning closet. He couldn't smell anyone on the other side. He didn't know how he could smell that well, his senses had always been that strong. Like a shadow, he slipped into the hall, his boots glided across the floor without a sound. Viktor couldn't hear anyone coming but from the other side of the hall, he heard heavy breathing two doors down. Someone was sleeping the morning away. He could hear another set of breathing. It was steady, poised. Someone else was guarding. Viktor tilted his head to the other direction.

There was someone else. He could hear them breathing. He heard the sound of a glass being raised, and a sip being swallowed, then the sound of it being set down once more--judging by the sound of the contact, it was likely wood, quarter of an inch thick. He heard the rustling of papers, the flicker of a datapad.

That would be his target.

He crept down the hall, E-33 ready. There was something about all of this that was familiar, too familiar. Viktor shoved that down with all the will he had. This was a new job, a new quarry, a new target. None of that mattered right now. He turned the corner into the room, weapon raised to the woman at the desk.

"Don't move," he said quietly. His voice was slightly distorted by the helmet, "There's no need for you to die today, or anyone else. You are worth more to me alive than dead," he knew she was a Force User, extra caution had be used. "Hands up--slowly."

 

[Riamah]

The way she had the office set up Ra faced the door. So when the hunter entered, she had a clear view of him. There was something odd though. Her nexu made no more to attack him, it was as if he was familiar to her.

Looking up at him, she did not move as he requested her at first. When he spoke again and told her raise her hands, she lifted an eyebrow at him.

"It would be nice of you to make up your mind, hunter. First you tell me not to move and then you tell me to put my hands up."

However, unless he prevented her from doing it, she would set the datapad ​down and raise her hands. Her sabers were up her sleeves, so Ra was not without weapons. All it took was a trip from a finger and they would be in her hands.

"You realize that the bounty has already been completed?"

She also hoped the conve​rsation going on would help to wake Vulps up.

[member="Brent Smith"] [member="Vulpesen"]

 

[Vulpesen]

Being a servant to the living force had some perks to it. One of those perks being the sudden surge of alertness that hit Vulpesen whenever something important was happening. The possible arrest or assassination of the person he was currently sworn to protect, was one such thing. Shooting up from his resting position, the Valde snatched his coat and swirled it around himself. Someone was here and they were not to be welcomed.

Motioning for Ace to slip into his coat, Vulpesen retreated into the shadows of the force, disappearing from the senses of others as he made haste to his charge's office. Unclipping his saber from his belt, the Zorren slipped through the hall towards the doorway, his golden eyes burning fiercely. Once already, someone had taken her from his watchful eye. He would not allow it to happen a second time.

[member="Brent Smith"]
@Ra'a'mah

 

[Brent Smith]

@Ra'a'mah @Vulpesen

"You've got a mouth on you," he said in a guttural, irritated growl. "That won't do you any good. Just do what you're told when you're told and you will be fine."

He could hear someone coming up behind him down the hall. A number of hunters required external sensors and electronic gadgets to be hyper aware of their surroundings. Not this one. He heard the sound of the movement coming from far down the hall as the sleeper awoke and made his rapid quest closer. Viktor knew he didn't have a lot of time to get moving, he knew he didn't hold all the cards in his hands, or even half of them. But Viktor knew he did old a few previous ones.

"You think only one person wants you dead?" The bounty hunter tossed a pair of stun cuffs on the desk before the redhead. Even though his voice was low and stern, he wasn't angry or aggressive. Unlike other bounty hunters, it was actually more professional and business like. "Put those on, slowly mind you."

As she obeyed, or didn't, Viktor couldn't help but notice that there was something quite comely about her. She was a target, he made it a point to not get attached to either them or the targetters, but there was something rather nice about this one. Almost--familiar. He could sort that out later. The third actor made his entrance on the scene.

"Play your cards smooth," Viktor said without moving an inch, "I don't want this to get messy, but its your choice whether she leaves in a body bag or on her feet."

 

[Riamah]

It wasn't so much Ra was talking back to him, but attempting to give Vulps time to get there. What this hunter said though interested her. Wolfe had wanted her alive, whoever the second patron was didn't care of she was alive or dead.

"No of course not."

She could at least preten​d to go along with his orders. Looking at the cuffs, she could tell they would not keep her from using the Force, but could potentially disable her for a while. Picking them up, she moved slowly, slower than was needed.

He had noticed the approach of Vulps and called him out of hiding. Just how he had done she didn't know, but it reminded her of the ultra-sensitive nature of one person. A man that had disappeared just as she had started to gather this group of people together. If she had known where he was at all, he would have been among the first she approached to join.

His attention was on her though and only partially on Vulps, but he knew he was there. So instead of really doing anything great, she placed a Force barrier around her wrist only and started to slide the cuff on around it. While she was in motion, she also watched this hunter. Since she had the Force, there were things she could do and sent a light shove at him with the hopes of knocking him a little off balance and allowing Vulps to come into things.

[member="Brent Smith"] [member="Vulpesen"]

 

[Vulpesen]

Stang. Stopping where he was, Vulpesen kept his eyes carefully on the bounty hunter, his fingers twitching a bit. He had just woken up and already his blood was boiling. This man dared to come into Ra's home, and try to take her infront of him. It was time to show just how stacked his deck truly was. Clenching his fist with a growl, Vulpesen would relish in the sound of crunching metal as the end of the rifle would likely collapse on itself. "Surrender now." There was power in his voice, an anger that fueled his command as his tail lashed out behind him.

[member="Brent Smith"]

 

[Brent Smith]

[member="Vulpesen"] @Ra'a'mah

The carbine in Viktor's hand was reduced to nothing more than scrap. Expensive scrap, but still scrap. The bounty was rather calm for having her life put on the line. He guessed once you were traded in once you got used to it. But the way she looked at him was sort of like she knew him instead of fear or disgust.

It's a mind trick, Viktor told himself. It has to be.

"Well, your right, guess you got me," Viktor said casually thumbing a switch on the carbine and tossing it away. He hooked his thumbs on his belt loop. The animals with their ability to hear the higher pitches, like him, would likely hear that irritating whine most beings couldn't coming from the carbine. "Is this the part where I--"

Viktor was knocked off balance by Ra's invisible shove. He was sent three steps back towards the stranger behind him. The rifle exploded right as Viktor stumbled. It wasn't a massive explosion like a thermal detonator, after all it was just the gas canister blasting from over heating. But it was enough to cause no small amount of confusion, and send shrapnel through the air.

Viktor didn't try to recover his balance. Instead, he fired his jetpack up to full blast, barreling towards Vulpsen. As the velocity hurled Viktor towards his target, the bounty Hunter extended his wrist and launched his ripcord toward the redhead. If he was lucky, it'd wrap around some part of her. If he wasn't, well he would just catch air.

 

[Riamah]

The arrival of Vulps couldn't have been better and at the time Brent threw down his gun, she tossed the cuffs down. Her shove had worked and as he stumbled back, Ra would place a barrier around herself fully and move to tackle him. However, Ankharra tripped her and she went sprawling to the ground as the chamber exploded. Her barrier stopped the shrapnel from hitting her and as she regained her feet, she saw him charging at Vulps using his jetpack.

Since she had moved, the ripcord flew to the area she had been and not where she was standing up.

Letting out a sigh, she flicked her hands just slightly and those short saber hilts were in them in a second. However, she did not ignite them and waited to see what would happen between him and Vulps.

[member="Brent Smith"] [member="Vulpesen"]

 

[Vulpesen]

An elfish ear flicked at the sound of the high pitched whine that emanated from the discarded weapon, and in his mind, he was gaining confirmation of what was going on from the other beastialy gifted in the room. I know, working on it! Extending a hand towards the explosion, Vulpesen formed a dome shaped barrier over the explosion, capturing it and the shrapnel to keep either the resulting sound or metal from harming his senses and bodies. One threat handled.

Unfortunately, there wasn't time to enjoy his small victory as a humanoid shape came barrelling towards him, propelled by the power of a jetpack. Zorrens were heftier than your average human, sporting a muscle density significantly heavier than most. But a rocket pack might very easily make up for that difference. Thankfully, there was a trick up the Valde's sleeve that even Ra had rarely seen. "VAROS AID ME!" The words shot out of his mouth like bullets, and just before impact, Vulpesen's form shifted and grew, bursting out into luscious black fur. The Zorren's body, once imposing in the doorways, now covered it completely. [member="Brent Smith"] might have been expecting to collide with a doggish humanoid. What he might not have expected was the five strong tails and massive form of a Veran fox.

 

[Brent Smith]

[member="Vulpesen"] @Ra

To say that Viktor was not expecting someone to transform into a massive dog in front of him today was an understatement. Who could prepare for such an occasion? No one--or no one he knew anyway. As his shoulder plate hit the massive creature, it took most of the damage--but it couldn't absorb the shock. He felt the jarring pain as even with his momentum, Viktor's body still didn't have much of a chance. The result, his armor was fine, but Viktor felt his shoulder pop out of socket. He gave a grunt in his helmet as his jetpack deactivated, the armored figure half fell/half landed on his knees. To add salt to the wound, his shot had completely missed Ra.

Viktor gripped his shoulder, wincing in the pain as he took his situation in for a fraction of a second. For a foolish mortal, Viktor had a lot of guts and tenacity, the kind that was boarderline stupid, and when mixed with his ingenuity, it was hard to tell if it was dangerous or just idiotic. His options were running thin, but if Viktor gave up every time that happened, he would have croaked a while back.

"You're good," Viktor said in a genuine compliment. "Both of you, pretty great. I must admit, better than I am. You have some neat tricks, the likes of which, in my years of bounty hunting, I have never seen. And I have to tell you, I've seen quite a bit. You truly are a unique kind. You have to teach me. What is that? Polymorph? A racial thing? The Force? You one of those shape shifters?"

As he spoke, the hand on Viktor's dislocated shoulder slowly edged, hidden by the arm that clutched it. His finger thumbed the sonic grenade on his belt, activating it. He counted it down as he spoke some more, buying time, "I guess I'm beat, but you know what they say," his helmeted head tilted to the side, "Even a cornered Akk Akk hound is fulla tricks."

With all the strength he had in him, Viktor unclipped the grenade from his belt and dropped it on the floor. From his knees, the hunter sprang back, shoving off as far as he could before the sonic explosion. Viktor wasn't able to get away from most of the blast, he was sent hurling against the back wall. His helmet cracked, what remained was little more than spiderglassed plasteel. The room was spinning, and without the ability to see anything, he was a lost duck with a dislocated wing--and blind to boot.

Viktor's one good hand struggled to remove his helmet, pulling at the clasp until at last it came off, clattering to the ground before his boots.

"That--did not--work," he panted. "At all."

 

[Riamah]

Back when they had first met, Vulps had changed his form and then went back. Ra had not actually seen it in action, but knew of this ability he had. The fox form filled the doorway and the hunter collided with him. Falling to his knees, he clutched at his shoulder for a moment or two and then made a suicidal move. Of course, he was between her and his front, all she saw was the grenade heading to the floor.

Only having a moment to react, she did not say anything. Turning her back to what was coming, she curled into a little ball to protect herself and attempted to keep that barrier up. She ended up getting knocked lid over tea kettle and rolled to her feet as he was removing his fractured helmet.

For the first time in a very long time, she was shocked.

"Brent? I thought you were dead!"

However, the fact he did​ not appear to know who he was hunting indicated his mind had been altered. Hopefully that could be repaired, but first this issue needed to be taken care of.

[member="Brent Smith"] [member="Vulpesen"]

 

[Vulpesen]

As the solid weight of Brent's body slammed into his shoulder, Vulpesen found himself budging at most, a few inches, having taken the attack head on with his sizable bulk to sustain him. As Brent spoke and removed the explosive from his best, Vulpesen swung out his five tails, aiming to bludgeon the intruder as he retreated. Though the desire to crush this puny man was quickly replaced by something else as he noticed the beeping sphere on the ground. Leaping over to Ra, the large fox curled himself around her, acting as a butter as caught her up in the fluffy cushion of his form, wrapping every tail around himself to provide a further buffer.

The concussive blast of the grenade washed over him, and he could feel his organs shifting underneath his flesh, riplping under the effect of the sonic weapon. His sensitive ears were instantly ringing and a whine of pain left his voice. But being far from the human anatomy that such a weapon was designed for, he managed to survive the blast without any lasting injuries.

@Ra'a'mah [member="Brent Smith"]

 

[Brent Smith]

@Ra'a'mah @Vulpesen

Viktor put his hand on the wall behind him, steadying himself from the blast and the vertigo that came from it. His ears were ringing as Ra spoke so he didn't hear a word she said, if it wasn't for his helmet, his eardrums would have likely been ruptured entirely. It was a good thing he could read lips very well. He tapped the side of his head.

"Can't hear a word your saying there, ma'am." He took a woozy step forward, rather off balance, "But I think you have me mistaken for someone else." He took a halting step forward, that thanks to his vertigo made his knees buckle. The hunter extended his hand, keeping himself steady against the wall. He pulled the shattergun pistol from his belt with his good arm, aiming it weakly at her. His arm wavered, but it wasn't just from the physical abuse he had taken. Something in his mind protested, something from his subconscious.

Flashes of her came through his mind. They were memories he didn't remember, memories of her. He could see the morning light vividly cascading on her face. He could see her clad in dark armor fighting with him, reading info and searching for--something. He couldn't remember. His mind flashed to her smile, he could hear her laughing. He shook his head, forcing the thoughts out of his mind. These had to be some sort of mind trick. With extra resolve, Viktor reaffirmed his grip on his side arm, staring down at the witchy, if not good looking, redhead, "Nice try but--"

He winced as more flashes of memories fluttered through his mind. He could see the vivid darkness of Umbara, crawling hand over foot in a hunt before meeting this--her. Even through the darkness, he could see her perfectly. There was no mistaking the vividness and the intensity of it as it started to fall in line. It was true, it had to be. He slowly lowered his side arm, his face slightly confused. He asked a question he knew the answer to, but still needed answered. "Ra? Is that you?"

He knew it was her, what he needed to know is if it was him. He dropped his weapon onto the floor. Yes, it had to be. He managed a half smirk, "I thought I was too, apparently."

 

[Riamah]

It was probably a good thing that Ra had curled herself up into a little ball or the wolf form of Vulps would have done it for her. Hearing his whine from the explosion because he had wrapped himself around her so well, when she was able to move, Ra rested a hand on him. Not being a healer, there wasn't much she could do to help him if he was hurt internally.

Brent and she was sure it was him, was at first resolute in completing his objective. He had come for her and he wasn't going to leave without her. Dead or alive. However, after she attempted to speak to him, she noticed the change.

Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly, but she did not press in on him. He raised the gun, faltered and seemed to have a renewal of his goal and failed again. The last time he broke free of whatever had his bound and dropped his gun.

"Well, of course I'm me. What in blazes happened to you?"

If Vulps was moving on Brent, Ra would raise a hand to try and stop him from hurting him any further.

[member="Brent Smith"] [member="Vulpesen"]

 

[Vulpesen]

Uncurling from around Ra, Vulpesen resumed his previous form and outstretched a hand towards brent, attempting to wrap the man up in a powerful hold in the force. All it would take was a clenched fist and he was certain he could crush the man into the size of a marble. But two things stopped him. First, was his own code. As easily as he could kill, doing so was unbecoming of the Valde. The second was the hand he caught out of the corner of his eye, a signal from Ra to release him. Vulpesen's ears were still ringing from the sonic grenade and he could barely hear their words, every syllable coming out muffled as if from under water. But through the force, he could sense a shift in the man he had been attacking, and lowering his arm he released him slowly. "Crux... My ears."

@Ra'a'mah
[member="Brent Smith"]

 

[Brent Smith]

@Vulpesen @Ra'a'mah

Brent ran his hand over his face, feeling the stubble. The action brought instant regret. He had always kept his face rather cleanly shaven and the layer of stubble made him instantly want to grab a laser razor and cull the whiskers off. He didn't even flinch as the giant wolf creature made to initially crush him. Brent was a former FOSB agent, they didn't hire the fearful or those who flinched easy.

What had happened to him? Brent could vaguely remember. Part of him wanted to, the other part was too scared to. He saw fire, he saw death and suffering, it flashed through his mind vividly again. He saw the burning houses, the dead bodies in the street. He saw the blood and gore. He saw it all. Brent squeezed his eye shut, forcing that vivid nightmare to go away.

"I don't know," he muttered at last, opening his eyes. It was a lie, or at least a half truth. "Sometimes you can go so deep under cover, you can forget who you really are." he slowly began to recall his false identity, like it was a new story to him as well, "I was--undercover. I was Viktor Hel, a bounty hunter and a hired gun, in the service of a crime lord. Degra. Degra from the Outer Rim. I had to get close, too close. And that meant I had to do some horrible things," Brent pursed his lips, "In the end I made a lie so believable, I convinced myself that I was that monster. It just became easier to believe it."

The ringing in his ears was slowly subsiding, it would take some time, but he was getting there. He smirked, giving Ra a look over, "Time has been pretty good to you. What its been, two years? Three since I saw you?"

Brent extended his good hand towards the giant fox nearby, if the animal could hear him or not, well, that was anyone's guess, but Brent was still a fair sport as much as he could be. "Good fight. I'm Brent Smith. No hard feelings?"

 

[Riamah]

She was glad to have thought to motion Vulps to stop instead of telling him. The explosion's sound had been kept from her ears by the bulk of him so her hearing was normal. Neither his nor Brent's were though so hand motions would have to do for now.

Relaxing when Vulps let his hold go on Brent, she lowered her hand. Looking at him, she checked to make sure he was as okay as he was and not going to fall over on her.

"You alright, Vulps?"

Once he answered, she would turn back to Brent.
​
"And Viktor Hel was sent to capture or kill me...great."

Who was after her now...Moving back into the library, she asked Vincent to bring them all a round of drinks. It might be early, but after this encounter they all needed it.

"Yeah it's been a few years. Things have a changed a little."

[member="Brent Smith"] [member="Vulpesen"]