Public A Meeting On Jerrilek

[Ladybug]

A growing conflict began to seep into her mind. She wanted to stay close to that bag, to see what invaluable object lie nestled at the bottom; and to see if it was worthy enough of the trouble to obtain it. The other part of her really wanted to see the inside of the ruins. Her passion, as she explained to the archeologist, was not a lie; only who she really was. Through her ability to sense deep rooted emotions of people, she felt no deception by the man; but apprehension and nervousness radiated off the boy like a foul stench.

"If you need me," she said, "I'll be in the ruins. I am most eager to explore and research. And again, thank you." As she passed by the vehicle, she secretly placed a small tracking device on it, methodically placed so it was near impossible to spot; less one was actively searching for it. But that wasn't the only fail safe she implemented. During the ride over to the ancient ruins, while everyone was engaged in conversations, she took the opportunity when it presented itself to attach to the young boy's tunic a listening device the size of a pinhead. When activated, it would send the entire dialogue to her personal datapad to a specific file in text form; available later for her reading pleasure.

The inside of the ruins was almost overwhelming to her. In all her explorations of lost civilizations, she had never seen anything like it. The smells, unlike the traditional musty odors of ruins, possessed an almost sweet, erotic aroma. Even the structural walls were constructed in a fashion unlike any other she has ever seen. Those that erected this ruin was far more advanced than a simple mind could fathom. But strangely odd was the hieroglyphics written on some of the walls. If she wasn't mistaken, and she was sure she wasn't, some of the texts was written in the old Sith tongue. But that was impossible, wasn't it? The Sith species, once thought extinct, never travelled outside their comfort zones. If this was true writings of theirs upon the walls, then the history of the Sith species has evolved. And perhaps even the true foundation of how her beloved Order.


Jacen Nimdok . Gray Venasir . Minna Balin . Starlin Rand . Vera Mina

 

[Starlin Rand]

“Out, all of you. Now.”

Starlin’s blood turned to ice in his veins at the black-clad stranger’s command. He looked at Nimdok, not sure what to do.

The archaeologist returned his stare, then glanced back at the newcomer. Slowly and cautiously, he stood up, took Miri by the hand, and passed through the tent flap. Starlin reluctantly followed.

In addition to the one who had given the orders, there were four other people standing outside the tent. While some were more casually dressed, all of them were wearing some kind of armor, be it the thinnest armorweave fabric or a heavy suit complete with a helmet. Taken together, it was obvious that this was a misfit group of hired mercenaries.

The black-clad stranger, a Juhani woman whose face was marred by deep, long scars, stepped forward and seized the inoperable lightsaber from Nimdok’s hand.

“You are Nimdok the archaeologist, yes?” she remarked. Turning to Starlin she added, “And the boy from Coruscant who inherited the crystal.” Her amber eyes fell on Miri with a look of distaste. “I do not normally do jobs involving children, but here I have no choice.”

She gestured to one of the others, a tall man in Mandalorian armor. He stepped forward and grabbed Miri, pulling her away.

At the child’s frightened cries, a furious Nimdok stared the Juhani down. “Let the children go. The boy has already given me the crystal. They have no more part to play in this.”

Starlin’s brow furrowed. Was Nimdok trying to sacrifice himself so they could get away? These thugs weren’t going to just let them walk. This wasn’t Nar Shaddaa or the Coruscanti underbelly, where people could get away with any crime without fear of being reported to the cops. The nearest police station was probably only a few blocks away, full of bored officers eager for action…

“My employer considers the girl stolen property,” the Juhani replied smoothly. “And the boy, I am told, is Force sensitive. We may let them live, but we cannot let them go.”

One of the other mercenaries approached Starlin, looking him up and down. The boy felt the familiar sensation of being probed through the Force, making his skin crawl. Apparently satisfied, the thug seized his arm and dragged him toward the sea.

He could see the ruins from there, but they were too far away to attempt to cry for help. Besides, the Felacatian girl was probably one of them. Moments later, Miri joined Starlin on the sand, the ocean lapping at their backs. The Mandalorian stayed beside them, making sure they didn’t run away.

Over by the tents, he could just barely hear the conversation taking place between the mercenaries and Nimdok.

“We have heard much about you, Mr. Nimdok,” the Juhani said. “They say you came back from the dead. Was life so good to you that you returned to live even longer?”

Nimdok ignored her. “You already have the crystal,” he said. “It is inside the lightsaber, for all the good that does. Go ahead, try to turn it on—the blade won’t ignite. The crystal is useless, obsolete. No more than a museum piece.”

He was trying to bait her into revealing their true intentions. But the Juhani was shrewd and didn't rise to the bait. “This lightsaber is of an old design,” she remarked, running a claw over the hilt of the saber. “Very old. Where did you get it?” When Nimdok refused to answer, she smiled. “Plundered from some tomb, no doubt. Or perhaps stolen from the vaults of a Temple…”

Miri was becoming agitated. Starlin tried to calm her down, but it was no use. Something was about to happen.

“I will keep both the crystal and the saber,” the Juhani said. “But you are a rock in my master’s shoe. I will kill you and bring your body to him as proof of my loyalty.”

The mercenaries all trained their weapons on Nimdok. Miri screamed.

“Starlin, cover her eyes!” Nimdok shouted.

Starlin obeyed, pushing Miri’s face against his chest. His heart was in his throat.

What happened next was so fast, the boy barely had time to comprehend it all. Afterwards he could remember only flashes of light and sound. The blare of gunfire, the hum of sabers, the snarls of the Juhani woman. The wet sound of bones breaking and flesh tearing and the sharper noise of armor cracking against rocks.

A slithering, creeping thing darted across the sand toward them, fangs bared and claws out. The Mandalorian guard dropped his gun and took out a vibroblade. He thrust the weapon into the creature’s side, the blade piercing a scaly hide and into flesh that was still stretching and warping. The beast howled in pain, then closed its jaws around the Mandalorian’s head, flinging his body across the beach. He was dead before he hit the ground.

Then, there was silence. Starlin’s wide eyes flicked from the mangled corpse to the creature beside them. It had shrunk down to the size of a humanoid, now a featureless man, now an indistinct Sephi, until finally it was Nimdok.

“Daddy!” Miri tore herself from Starlin's grasp and ran to Nimdok. The archaeologist was on his knees, clutching his side. Black blood oozed from between his fingers.

Before he knew what he was doing, Starlin was following her, screaming, “What the hell was that?! What just happened?!”

When he arrived, Nimdok was trying to stand. The effort only caused more blood to seep out of him, and he collapsed on the ground.

“Oh chit,” Starlin whispered. “Chit, chit, chit...” He took out his comm and called for help, hesitating as he looked at the carnage around them. “Man, that’s a lot of dead people…”

Nimdok lay flat on his back, breathing steadily in an effort to calm his racing heart. Black blood trickled from his wound onto the white sand beneath him. Miri put her head on his chest, feeling it rise and fall with each breath.

“...help us, we were attacked here on the beach, near the ruins…” Holding the comm up to his mouth, Starlin turned toward Nimdok and saw his eyelids starting to flutter. “Hey, hobgoblin! Stay awake! If you go to sleep, you’ll bleed to death!”

Stroking Miri’s hair with his free hand, Nimdok managed a soft laugh. “That’s a myth, Starlin. You’ve been watching too many holovids. Whatever underlying problem causes a loss of consciousness, it will continue to unfold regardless of the patient’s state of awareness…”

He drifted off, mumbling about something that sounded like “healing trance”. Cursing under his breath, Starlin ran up the dune toward the tents.

“Are you still there?” his comm chirped, the dispatcher on the other end insistent.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m still here,” Starlin muttered, picking his way among the shredded bodies. Even though he had seen it with his own two eyes, he was still having a hard time wrapping his head around the idea that Nimdok was responsible for all this. What exactly was he, anyway? A changeling? Weren’t they supposed to be super rare, and even then most of them could only turn into humanoid creatures? That giant serpent monster thing was definitely not humanoid.

“Are you applying pressure to the wound?”

“Sure, babe,” came Starlin’s distracted reply. At last, he found what he was looking for: the lightsaber containing the crystal. It had fallen not far from the Juhani woman. Picking it up, he grabbed his bag from the tent and stuffed the saber inside.

Racing back to where Nimdok lay napping, his steps began to slow. Now would be the perfect time to make his escape, get the hell off the planet with his crystal in tow. But his pursuers could simply be replaced by even more dangerous hunters. He didn’t want to have to live on the run. He didn’t fancy dying, either.

His steps quickened again, and he knelt beside Nimdok. Taking a medkit from his bag, he ripped it open and proceeded to follow the dispatcher's instructions. In the back of his mind, he half-expected the cat girl to come bounding over from the ruins to get them while they were down, but there wasn’t much he could do about that. He could only hope that help would arrive soon…

Ladybug Minna Balin Gray Venasir Vera Mina

 

[Vera Mina]

Rolind had barricaded the office with his one remaining B2 to defend him, sweating bullets. The air conditioning had failed and he dare not open a window and risk a chance she would find some way up to it and climb in. The Android's mostly burned "skin" and partly destroyed dress lay in two seperate parts, still where they had torn themselves off from Vera's body earlier. He knew it was inevitable that Vera would go for him, but he was trying to delay that as long as possible while he worked out some other way to stop her that didn't involve him doing it personally.

He had tried using what electronics were in his office to try boosting the signal from his personal com-link to send a short range distress beacon but it had not worked. He was such a cheap bastard even his personal com-link was garbage, an Alderaanian knockoff of a Corellian product. Its circuitry simply wasn't cut out for an emergency jury-rigging.

He was as trapped as she was unless they took the fight to each other.

As he was staring at his disruptor pistol, he asked himself why he had even thought to bring it.

Let's get one thing perfectly clear: Rolind actually hadn't been planning to kill Vera in revenge for ruining him. If anything the disruptor had been for himself, when the weight of his fall from grace became too much to bear.

But still, try as he might...

...even he could not answer why he had brought such a weapon here, today of all days.

Only the revelation Vera was an android gave him any hope at all of getting his life back. Vera had very thoroughly destroyed him with her prosecution. Now she'd have to literally destroy him.

He had been huddled in a corner, his B2 standing over him as he cleaned the pistol. The office doors were barricaded with what scant furniture was available.

The com-link chirped. He hesitantly turned it on.

"I k-know y-y-you c-c-can hear me, Rolind..." he heard the Android hiss in a stuttering, malfunctioning voice. "You've greatly inconvenienced me. I know you are afraid. You cannot hide forever."

Rolind could only snort.

"I don't have to hide forever you fething robot..." he sneered into the link. "Just long enough to be rescued."

"You don't know what I actually am, do you?" Vera asked.

"Whatever you were made for, I'm guessing it wasn't just paper shuffling or pencil-pushing. You're an assassin, hiding in plain sight. There's actually a twisted logic, you being a lawyer...no one would think the person getting their rocks off bleeding you financially in the courthouse also gets their rocks off bleeding you literally in an alleyway."

"Then you must know 'you' are the one who cannot win." The Android hissed to him from the other end of the line in a way that made him shudder. "I will do whatever is necessary to destroy you and all evidence."

"You will try."

"Foolish human! I'll sink the whole place to the bottom of Jerrilek's ocean to kill you! But I am willing to allow you some 'small' dignity in your demise, as I feel responsible for placing you in your current predicament. After all, you may be the one who opened himself to being sued to oblivion because you are too lazy to pay for quality, but there is no way you could have predicted what showing me that UnMasquer would do. I certainly wasn't prepared. Surrender, and I promise as quick and as painless a death as I am capable of giving out to another."

"No deal, Schutta!" Rolind shouted. "Surrender? In my moment of triumph? I think you overestimate your chances!"

"Then why do I detect fear in your voice?" the Android sneered. "You are in over your head, and I have faced far worse odds."

"I ain't gonna roll over and die just because you tell me to die."

"Well that's a pity...because now when you die...it'll hurt..."

There was a rumble. A shudder throughout the whole rig. Rolind jolted up and started cursing in fear as the announcement sounded in his office:

"CRITICAL DAMAGE TO OCEAN SUPPORT STRUTS. ABANDON STATION. ABANDON STATION."


Jacen Nimdok

 

[Gray Venasir]

Minna jumping to the roof came unexpected, but as no surprise for Gray. From what he knew of her, she could be impuslive and do things like that without warning. "Yeah, no chit," answered Gray after Minna said her target was on the move. "Shiney, no pick-up place. Bring the landspeeder to the alley near the seafood restaurant. Quick." He got some droid chirp in reply, but he didn't really listen.

And just as quick and unexpected as she had jumped to the roof, came Minna back down. "There are some ruins on the beach, so they probably headed there. I know where it is." He looked out of the alley to check if his droid was coming soon, but he couldn't see him yet. "I've been on the lazy side for too long, so a job sounds good. Better than going to some boring holoshow with a girl I barely know, and probably will never see again." He could see that Minna was preparing to jog or run all the way to the beach, to which he shook his head. And just as he was about to open his mouth and say something, the landspeeder arrived. "Looks like our ride is here. Thanks Shiney." He nodded to the droid, who made a happy whistle, as he jumped into the driver seat. "You want to come along, or would you prefere to walk?" he asked sarcastically.

The trip to the beach went fast. Gray parked the landspeeder a bit away from the main site of the beach, so they would not alert anybody. From where they were, he could see three of the people who had been at the restaurant. The older man, the teenage boy and the little girl. But this time, they were with some other people, among them a mandalorian. And they did not look friendly towards each other.

"So, what's the plan?" he asked Minna. "Rush in to join the party, or stay hidden and wait for the right moment? Or something else?" Personally, Grey would have waited for the two groups to fight each other, then swoop in and take the price. But Minna was the boss of this operation. "What do you think?" But before they could get the chance to do anything, thing started happening at the beach. Blasters were fired, a big snake-like thing appeared where the older man had stood, the mandalorian was hurled across the beach. Then things were over, just as fast as they had started. "What the karking chit?" was all Gray managed to say.

Minna Balin | Jacen Nimdok | Starlin Rand | |The Wayfarer| | Ladybug | Vera Mina

 

[Minna Balin]

"I don't need any lip from you," Minna said, the obvious jolly tone behind her voice coloring her faux frustration.

As the speeder drove, up, Minna smiled. Of course, he had transportation. He had retired here. "Yeah, instead, you're going to perform petty theft with a girl you hardly know. Much better evening plans." No other responses, as Minna stepped into the speeder, and off they went.

- - -

Minna crouched in the sand, careful not to be seen, helmet back on her head. She noted the two groups of people, the tension between them, and frowned deeply. There was a little girl down there. If things got heated, she could be in danger.

The Fish wanted a lightsaber. She didn't want a child's death on her conscience.

"Not sure," Minna replied, thankful that Gray was letting her take the lead. "I think we watch and wait. If anything goes down, we swoop in." Minna chewed her lip under her helmet, thinking hard. "Top priority is making sure none of the minors get hurt. Second priority, the item."

That was before things went down.

It was a blur of motion, too fast for Minna to react, before people were dead, the father was on the ground, and the children were clustered around him. Minna felt all of their surprise, their fear, their shock. They could still be in danger. A brief inner struggle fought it's way through her heart, before one side quickly beat the other into submission. She wouldn't leave children to get ambushed by whatever friends those men had in the area.

"New plan," Minna said, standing up straight. "We help the kids."

I'm too karking compassionate for this line of work.

Minna ran across the sand, hands up comfortingly, before kneeling next to the fallen Nimdak. "I have bacta patches. Can I help?"

- Ladybug - Jacen Nimdok - Gray Venasir - Vera Mina ​

 

[Jacen Nimdok]

The next time Nimdok awoke, he was in a hospital bed. The soft hum of medical droids and other machinery surrounded him, including a device that was monitoring his vitals.

He started to sit up, only for a droid to rush over, beeping in disapproval and urging him to remain supine. Nimdok ignored it. “Where are the children, and how long have I been out?” he rasped. His throat was dry. He must’ve been out for a while…

“Your son and daughter are currently having lunch in the hospital cafeteria,” the droid replied. “You have been unconscious for sixteen standard hours.”

Nimdok groaned and rubbed his eyes. “Can you call them down here? I need to talk to them.”

The droid rolled away to complete his request, then returned a minute or two later with a cup of water. Nimdok downed it quickly, then pressed his fingers to his side. The wound had completely disappeared without leaving behind so much as a scar. The Jedi healing trance, coupled with his species’ natural regenerative abilities, had proven successful.

Starlin finally arrived behind Miri, who bounded across the room and leaped onto the bed beside him. Nimdok hugged her, then looked up at the boy and quietly asked a question: “Is it safe?”

The teen snorted. “It better be. I’ve been carrying this stupid thing around everywhere because I wanted to make sure nobody got their grubby mitts on it.” Hefting his bag off his shoulders, he reached inside and pulled out the lightsaber containing the crystal.

Nimdok took it and started to disassemble the weapon, intending to give him back his crystal fragment. Starlin realized what he was doing and shook his head.

“Nope, I don’t want anything more to do with that. I don’t care how valuable it is, you can have it for free. It’s your problem now.”

Nimdok shrugged and removed the crystal anyway. In what appeared to be a sleight of hand, he flicked his wrist and the crystal suddenly disappeared. In reality, he had absorbed it into the flesh of his arm for safekeeping.

Starlin promptly took a step backwards, eying Nimdok’s wrist warily. “Say, you aren’t gonna try and mindwipe me, are you?” he asked. “Don’t make me forget any of this ever happened. I hate that chit. It’s such a cop out.”

Nimdok sighed. “I was considering that option, but it is taxing for me and can prove detrimental to the mind. Instead, I must simply ask for your silence on the matter.” He hesitated. “Did anyone else see what happened on the beach?”

“Couple people,” Starlin admitted. “Man and a woman who rushed over to help after you were injured. Nice folks. I don’t think you’ll have any problems with them gabbing about it. Speaking of which, how are you feeling?”

“Fully recovered and ready to go.” He glanced at the monitors, lowering his voice. “Will you give me your word, Starlin? This is a very serious matter. You mustn’t speak of what you saw, or else you could put me in great danger.”

“Oh, I won’t swear by anything, but I will make a deal with you.” The boy grinned and planted his fists on his hips. “I want a job.”

“Then I suggest you contact an employment agency.”

“No, I mean working for you, hobgoblin. I want in on this whole artifact-grabbing business.”

Nimdok raised an eyebrow. “I thought you said you didn’t want anything to do with it anymore.”

“With the crystal, not with every artifact out there! C’mon, there’s got to be something I can do that doesn’t involve getting hunted down by the galaxy’s nastiest schuttas. I could be like your assistant or something—”

“Just a minute,” Nimdok interrupted. “Starlin, you’re only thirteen.”

“Almost fourteen!”

“That doesn’t change the fact that you’re still a child, not an adult,” Nimdok continued. “Your first order of business right now should be to go home to your family. Beyond that you have school and other responsibilities that you should be focusing on, not being my errand boy.”

“Fine,” Starlin snapped. “I guess I’ll have to spill the beans about what you really are, then.”

“Starlin,” Nimdok growled between his teeth. Miri’s eyes widened as she looked at Starlin, certain the boy was doomed.

Starlin flinched, but recovered his resolve quickly. “You don’t know a thing about my life, man. I live in a slum. My school is a joke. I come home, the only responsibility I’ll have is stealing for my gang in exchange for their protection.” He jabbed his finger at Nimdok. “You can help me and I can help you. We both stand to gain something from working together, or we can lose out big time if we don’t. You see?”

“Indeed,” Nimdok murmured. Heaving a sigh, he relented. “I suppose the least I can do would be to speak to your parents and explain the situation to them… I imagine they will be all for my becoming your mentor, once they find out who I am…”

“My momma will think she’s won the lottery!” Starlin rubbed his hands together excitedly. “I’m gonna be rich!”

Nimdok rolled his eyes. “You will be making money, but not much. It takes years of hard work and sheer luck to get truly wealthy from recovering and selling artifacts. More importantly, Starlin, you must understand that I don’t sell the artifacts I find. I collect them and store them away for safekeeping so people like the ones who were chasing you can’t use them for evil.”

“How are you able to earn a living, then?” Starlin asked, bewildered. “Do you charge people to see your collection, like in a private museum?”

“Not exactly,” Nimdok said with a smirk. “The point is, working for me will not be glamorous or rewarding, at least not in the monetary sense. You will get experience in the field, and there’s hardly ever a dull moment, but I’m barely scraping by as it is between Miri and myself. I don’t have a permanent home or a ship of my own—I use public transportation and stay with friends or in cheap motels. Here on Jerrilek, I had the rare opportunity to earn steady pay and have my lodgings provided for me while I excavated the ruins, but most of the time that’s not the case.”

“Well, that’s the difference between me and you. I’ve got a home to come back to!”

Nimdok realized no amount of trying to talk Starlin out of it was going to dampen the teen’s enthusiasm. He had already made up his mind. In time perhaps he would be hit by the reality of the situation—or perhaps he would be able to meet it head on. Clearly he meant well, but he needed guidance. Nimdok remembered what the Juhani woman had said during their confrontation, that Starlin was Force sensitive. Coupled with all the speculation about his possible lineage, he might have a great deal of potential locked away inside him—and Nimdok knew a surefire way of honing that potential into a refined skill. The boy certainly wouldn’t protest being apprenticed to a Silver Jedi, especially a powerful one with much to teach...

“It’s settled, then,” Nimdok announced. “You will be my protégé. I’ve already thought of a first assignment for you. Tell me, have you ever been to Zeffo?...”

Ladybug Minna Balin Gray Venasir Vera Mina

OOC: This thread kinda fizzled out, which is fine, but since the events here open up several plot threads for two of my characters, I wanted to go ahead and write a proper ending to tie everything up in a neat little bow. I consider it completed at this point. If any of you want to wrap up your own roles here, feel free to do so.