Private Above the Pit

[Simon Meinrad]

C A V A L I E R
PEROON | TETH
Ellie Mors

As expected, the criminal overlords of Teth did not give a warm welcome to Simon and his band of Imperials. It was all out war between the Imperials and the criminals, though fortunate Simon was to have soldiers with professional training and experience to counter the goons that hid resorting to guerrilla tactics. The tactics went so far to hide behind the skirts of innocent bystander, using them as a shield to gain whatever advantage available to them.

The conflict was bloody and would rage on until one remained as victorious.

Luckily, several kingpins and their lieutenants were captured by the Imperials and were made examples of in front of Peroon’s plaza, striking fear into the hearts of criminals and give some hope to the scared citizens. Promises were given to innocent civilians in hopes to gain some sense of loyalty from them, giving information to the Imperials or helping in any kind of way to favor the Imperials.

Much of Peroon was conquered by Simon, and all was left was to route out any remnants from the city and to hunt down any others in other settlements. Much of the progress made was thanks to Zhea Nox helping to coordinate and lead the soldiers in the raging firefights.

Taking a stroll in one of Peroon’s shady districts, the Imperial Knight was hoping to provoke an attack of his life to unveil any thugs hiding from his patrols. He was not afraid to venture out in combat, proving the capable leader he was to his men. The streets of this district was like any other stereotypical impoverished neighborhood. Scattered fire pits, shady individuals minding their own business, the usual beggar asleep, dark alleyways with one flickering with life from a welder or mechanic, and the stench of spice.

Though with every pit there was always something worthy to come out of it, no matter its nature.

 

[Ellie Mors]

Teth was supposed to have been the end.

The end of her employment under the Black Sun, the end of her living by the seat of her pants, but life just kept coming for her. Normalcy, at least as normal as life could be for a career criminal involved in the financial sector, had abruptly ended for her on Ertrax when she had come face to face with a ghost of her dead sister's past and came out of it looking like she'd been put through a steel mill. If it wasn't for the cybernetics it was more than likely she'd have been living suspending in a bacta tank, like she had for the first twenty years of her life. It had been difficult learning to even just walk again, for a second time in under a year, and harder to put herself back in the frame of mind she had been in before having half of her face replaced with synthetic skin and metallic plates.

This was different, though. What had been intended to be a routine meeting with a local vigo, a simple talk and resignation along with the dues she'd need to pay to disappear from their ledgers, turned into a war between a band of imperials and several crime lords - vigo included.

As far as the Black Sun were concerned she'd either died on Teth with the rest of the crews here when they were made examples of or was otherwise missing - it was all the alibi she needed now to get out of any trouble she would've been in if she'd never made an attempt to do things "right". Unfortunately for her, however, getting in or out of Peroon was about as impossible as fighting off two rancors without something to buy her way out, and she wasn't sure that an imperial would be open to taking a bribe to let someone who didn't quite fit in with the rest of the locals out of Peroon or off of Teth.

"I'm unarmed." She said.

Amara emerged from a steam-filled alleyway, approaching Simon Meinrad with her hands held up with palms open and facing forward. Large swathes of her body were clearly replaced by prosthetics and cybernetic enhancements of some kind, but she didn't exactly seem like unarmed combat would've been her forte - not that anyone could really tell these days, though it would've certainly been a bit hard to attack someone in close quarters combat without the element of surprise and with her hands held high.

"I need help."

 

[Simon Meinrad]

C A V A L I E R
PEROON | TETH
Ellie Mors

Scum and villainy could be sensed here, clouding his senses with the Force. Though through all of it there was something, or rather someone more troublesome. A woman with attire matching her environment, though she struck to him more as an honest smuggler than a ruthless thug. So honest that she came crawling from her hole for help. It managed to struck a puzzled look on his face, an eyebrow raised with a mix of suspicion and curiosity.

Simon could assume what sort of life she led, guess that she was some sort of outlaw but what would it gain him? Yes, he persecuted the merciless scum on Peroon though this woman did not carry malice in her heart, or so he thought. He could make an impression onto her, swaying her mind and heart to become someone of use for him.

“And what sort of help would that be?” giving another quick glance on her person, detecting any weapons or signs of deception. What really drew his attention was, however, her face. Her skin was carved with cybernetics and pieces of skin being loosen. Though she was modified, she was not a droid and still had a beating heart. What could have disfigured her?

“Your name would be?”

He hoped this interaction would not be a trap for him. The first sign of hostility would be countered with force tenfold unleashed.

A rogue, yet strong with the Force.

 

[Ellie Mors]

That was the million credit question, wasn't it?

While Amara steadily lowered her hands down from their cautiously high position above her head she mulled the question over internally despite knowing the answer that she'd like to give. The answer - the right one - was straightforward, however the hours of torture that had caused her to even consider that there might be an equally correct alternative was decidedly not. Providing him with her name, similarly, wasn't quite as simple anymore, either.

"Amara." She said.

It was perhaps a bit firmer of an answer than she'd intended to make, lingering feelings from the event that altered her appearance so drastically still weighing heavy on her mind. "I just recently recovered from treatment after an attack by a Sith," Amara explained, moving one of her hands to gesture towards her exposed neck and the various cybernetic traces left stitched across her face. "I was looking for a man in the Black Sun that is responsible; who was, or is, operating out of Peroon. I think that you maybe were, too, based on what I've heard about your activities with the imperials on Teth." She said. The explanation was specific enough to paint the picture that she wasn't looking to get in his way, much less act as a threat, but also ambiguous enough to downplay whatever connection she might've had, or that Simon Meinrad might've made, to whomever this criminal element was.

 

[Simon Meinrad]

C A V A L I E R
PEROON | TETH
Ellie Mors

The little interest he had in the woman suddenly inverted when she explained her injuries and chopped-up cybernetics. “A Sith Lord you say?” stepping toward Amara, having a better look on the exposed cybernetics. There were a variety of answers as to why a Sith would attack a common street rat. To inflate their ego? To fulfill their degenerate passions? Perhaps performing a new power they discovered in the Force? Why her out of all people? Could blame it on poor luck.

His hatred for the Sith outweighed than anything else he detested, and he would extend a helping hand to this woman.

“I’m sorry for your troubles, Amara,” hardly he ever extended his compassion towards anyone, but her conditions were something beyond his imagination. No doubt she begged for death while tortured.

"I was looking for a man in the Black Sun that is responsible; who was, or is, operating out of Peroon. I think that you maybe were, too, based on what I've heard about your activities with the imperials on Teth." She said.

“I seek to eradicate any element of crime that represses the livelihood of the innocents,” he explained to her. Many crime lords operated here and she’d have to narrow down to the man she spoke about. It did so revealing his affiliations with the Black Sun.

“Do you know the name of this man? His appearance? Help me and I will compensate you. I can have an actual profession perfect your cybernetics.”

A hand outreached to her.

“My name is Simon,” almost forgetting his manners.