Adventures in m-State

[Jon Burke]

PR-0649 was a primitive, protected world with one approved approach vector to a single, crude landing zone. The LZ failed even to qualify for the designation of a landing pad as it consisted only of a mostly level area of hard packed dirt. Looking around Jon wondered where the dirt came from… all he could see in every direction was sand - hundreds of kilometers of sand.

The modest research center stood on a line of topographical demarcation. West of it the sands ran completely flat to the distant horizon. To the east, dunes grew in increasing size from modest ten meter rollers to distant towering giants approaching one hundred meters tall. On approach had noticed some megalithic stones protruding from the dunes. Covered as they were by sands of immeasurable depth, it was easy for Jon to imagine them as enormous constructs of some long forgotten race of builders. They were why he was on PR-0649 and why the planet was protected.

Next to the landing zone were the administrative offices of a consortium of universities responsible for the world’s protection and security. Permission to visit this out of the way sandbox was rarely sought and even less often given. Only Aiden’s connections with the archeology departments of several universities gave them the leverage to gain a limited access permit.

Aiden Merritt is, although hard for Jon to admit, a brilliant xenoarcheologist who Jon originally met when the Burke family contracted him to perform research for them regarding their family’s origins. He attracted their attention because of a galactic DNA-mapping project he completed during his doctoral program - something about tracing the migration of humans and near humans across the galaxy by DNA sampling. He was never able to determine a point of origin for the Burke family anywhere other than the known family centers - Dantooine in Jon’s case. That lack of information rather implicitly confirmed some of the family’s own myths about their origins… but, I digress. That’s a story for another time.

Aiden Merrett is also a jedi knight who under the influence of a drug-fueled, post-hypnotic compulsion, tried to kill Jon by imploding a Burke Enterprises office building while Jon was in residence. Again, another story for another time. Suffice it to say, the reason Aiden was still among the living after that escapade was a prime factor in Jon finally conceding that he was not truly evil enough to be a sith and accepting the mantle of a dark jedi much to his Uncle Dallas’s delight.

Jon argued, perhaps correctly, that Aiden was the one who should have made this trip as it was really more up his alley. Aiden, however, claimed he had more urgent matters to attend as he was trying to mend fences torn asunder by missing his own wedding to Melanctha Dallamoor, the voluptuous Duch'a of Cheruba, because of some urgent work on a new archeological dig.

To Jon, the words urgent and archeology seemed incongruent and should never fall within the same sentence. Be that as it may, because of this seeming neglect, or perhaps in retribution for having a building dropped on him, or perhaps simply because the Duch’a has a rack to die for, Jon seriously considered seducing her away from the absentee groom. Something caused him to refrain however. Perhaps it was attributable to his new jedi-esque conscience or maybe he had simply grown to like the young jedi and wished them only the best in their matrimony. Instead, he sent them an as yet unopened wedding gift and indelibly etched her name in the hands-off list.

That left only the third member of the group, Craig Janson, as a possible option to make the trip to PR-0649. Craig was a former university roommate and best friend of Jon’s. After graduation from Corellia University their lives had gone on separate courses. More recently, Jon spent some necessary time away from the rest of the galaxy on Monastery. There he had the occasion to meet a young pilot by the name of Juliette Moliere who had more of an influence on him than he realized at the time. After she left, he came to the realization that he craved normalcy. Drawing people he valued back into his life would be a start to that end and Craig was one of the first he happened upon as he made his way home to Dantooine from Monastery.

Unfortunately for Jon, Craig had other assignments to complete to prepare them for their ultimate quest. That left Jon standing in the dust outside his Baudo taking in the surroundings from ground level. It looked pretty much the same - just as unappealing as it had been from the air.

Sighing, he felt inside the pocket of his flight jacket to be sure the data chip was still there. That confirmed, he walked the few dozen paces to the entrance of the small quonset hut-like building helpfully labeled “CHECK IN HERE.” Rather than finding a reception desk, however, there was a simply a spiral staircase that descended to depths unknown.

Shrugging, Jon took the steps down two at a time until he reached the lower level. There he did find a desk - several in fact - but, only one was occupied. Third from the back on the right side of the room, a young lady was concentrating on her monitor to the exclusion of all else that might be going on around her - like a strange man making an unannounced appearance.

Jon arched a brow and walked quietly down the aisle until he was standing behind her. On closer inspection, he was impressed by the petite blonde. Her hair was sun-bleached almost platinum making the golden strands remaining stand out in contrast. Her face was deeply tanned by what Jon imagined must be long hours in the desert and liberally freckled across her nose and cheeks. Although seated, she appeared lithe and graceful in her minimal movements over the keyboard. Yes, Jon was impressed indeed.

“Excuse me”, he said softly yet his deep resonant voice seemed to reverberate in the room.

“YIKES!” the blonde exclaimed jumping up and spinning around. “Who are you!?!”

Jon tipped his head slightly, smiled and said, “My name is Jon Burke… and you are?”

“Uhh, Katie… Katie Lofton, Mr. Burke. You do know this a restricted planet?” Katie asked trying to regain her aplomb.

“Please, Katie… call me Jon. And yes, I’m aware of the restrictions.” Jon pulled the data chip from his pocket and handed it to her. “This contains my access permits, planned itinerary, and the goal of my visit.”

She turned and plugged the chip into a reader on the side of her terminal. After a quick perusal she turned back to him visibly relieved and said, “With a few modifications, we can approve your proposal. First, the only energy consumption allowed on-planet is solar-generated electricity. Therefore you will not be able to use your speeder. We can provide you with an electric-powered land crawler for your trip out to the temple. Unfortunately, it’s over 150 kilometers there so your itinerary will be at least a week longer than planned.”

Jon inwardly grimaced at that information but remained quiet.

“Second,” she continued. “We do not have the authority to grant you access to the temple itself. For that, you will have to negotiate with the local tribe that resides in that area - the Kielbasa.”

Jon refrained from making any sausage jokes; things were going badly enough already.

“So let me get this straight,” he began. “I have to creep across the sand dunes in an antiquated vehicle and negotiate with a primitive tribe when I get there. Any other good news?”

Katie smiled and said, “No, that’s about it; except, you don’t cross the dunes. Their shapes are wind blown and so fragile blowing a breath on them will cause a sand slide. Trying to cross a dune, the crawler would simply sink into the depths of the loose sand and I would never see you again, Jon Burke.”

From her grin, Jon wasn’t so sure she didn’t think that would be a good thing.

“You have to stay on the firmer sand in the valleys between the dunes. It creates quite a winding trip which is why it takes so long to reach the valley of the temple. Maps are useless because the dunes shift almost constantly. Your crawler will be equipped with a landsat receiver that will provide up to date images of the dunes with which you can plot your course. Be sure to update it frequently and especially each morning or you may find yourself trapped in a sand canyon with no exit.”

Things just keep getting better and better, Jon thought. “It sounds quite harrowing. Perhaps I could persuade you to come along... as my guide.”

Katie leaned back and cocked her head to the side as if considering the ramifications of that proposal all the while giving Jon a long look from head to toe and back up to his head.

“As tempting as that offer might be,” she responded leaning forward and looking up at him through batted lashes, ‘“we have a strict non-interference policy. That means,” she continued standing up, “if you anger the Kielbasa and they decide to have you for brunch, we won’t be riding in to rescue you. Got it?”

Jon gave her a smirk and quipped, “So that means no guide?”

She returned the smirk and said "That's right... no guide. We'll bring a crawler out to your ship for you to load up. Oh, and Jon Burke... if you actually survive and make it back - look me up"

 

[Jon Burke]

As much as Jon enjoyed piloting new vehicles, he was relatively certain the sand crawler was not going to be one of them. It rolled along the surface of the sand on four bulbous, hollow tires made of soft rubber and inflated like balloons. Its cabin had four doors, each of which had a retractable window, necessary, as the mechanic that brought the crawler out of storage and oriented Jon to it told Jon, because there were no environmental controls in the cabin. A solar cell covering the entire roof charged a bank of batteries that provided the electric power needed to run the vehicle’s motor. All in all, Jon though it must be a product of a minimally developed world and modified for use on PR-0649 to cause little or no environmental impact. Well good for PR-0649.

The mechanic was concerned with Jon’s prospects and therefore as helpful as he could be. He demonstrated how to update the landsat images for route planning as well as showing him how to use the images set on a broader scale to predict weather changes, especially the much dreaded sand storm. Apparently sand driven by 200 kilometer per hour winds was the main reason the small scientific outpost was located before the surface. His only advice in the event of a sand storm was find a deep valley between two dunes and dig in. Contrary to what Katie told him, the mechanic informed Jon that the crawler had an emergency beacon. If Jon activated it, a team from the station would home in on the beacon and dig him out. Assuming the storm or sand immersion didn’t destroy the vehicle’s electrical system. Jon couldn’t help but wonder which was the station’s official policy - Katie’s version or the mechanic’s.

Last, before returning below, the mechanic helped Jon plot the current best route from the Center to the target valley. He estimated it to be a two day trip if nothing changed. He also informed Jon that exposing the indigenous tribes to advanced technology was prohibited; therefore, the use of comm units, among other useful things, was prohibited. Furthermore, when making his final approach to the valley of the temple, Jon was to park the crawler out of sight and walk the rest of the way in.

Some things just weren’t acceptable. As soon as the mechanic returned to the underground garage, Jon retrieved a small comm unit from his ship. He tuned it to an encrypted channel accessible by his BB-4 astromech droid. If worse came to worse, he would route messages through the droid using the ship’s comm system. Not that it was likely help from off-world would arrive in a timely manner; but, Jon was determined not to leave his dessicated corpse on this planet without trying everything within his power.

Why did things have to become so complicated? All he was here to do was take a set of holopics. It should have been a quick in and out job in a day. Sighing with frustration, he climbed in the crawler and began his journey through the dunes.

 

[Jon Burke]

Jon drove slowly between the dunes getting a feel for the crawler and the ever changing sands. The gap between the dunes varied from what he called canyons - just barely wider than the crawler - to those he called valleys which were twenty to thirty meters across.

The route was agonizingly circuitous, with Jon rarely managing to travel a half kilometer before having to turn into intersecting canyons. After creeping along for three hours he stopped and updated the landsat images. The good news was the long range image didn’t show a cloud in the sky so the good weather seemed like it was going to continue.

The bad news was he had barely scratched the surface of the dunes. After three hours he was only about ten kilometers into the dunes as the crow flies with 140 or so to go. Now he knew why Katie said it would take a week. Jon demonstrated a remarkable fluency of curses in a variety of languages - a byproduct of his days on the Revenge hanging with the Pirates no doubt. A week was about six days longer than he wanted to spend on this cat box of a planet.

He got out of the crawler and tried to climb the nearest dune. After sliding backwards three meters for every four that he climbed, he gave up on the approach and allowed himself to slip back down to the dune’s base.

Jon never was one to accept defeat gracefully. Failing to climb the dune only strengthened his resolve to get to the top. He embraced the force and jumped to a lowpoint in the sand ridge above his crawler. The effect his landing had on the soft, loose sand was immediate. First he sank down into the sand to his waist. Why he stopped there wasn’t immediately obvious but he was relieved and yet had a great deal of apprehension about potentially continuing his descend into the depths of the dune.

Second, the impact of his landing caused a massive sandslide. Fortunately the bulk of it flowed forward down into the adjacent canyon. Had the powdery avalanche gone in the other direction, the crawler would have been buried under tons of sand. As it was, the sliding sands were loosening beneath Jon and he felt himself begin to sink deeper.

He forced jumped again with an explosion of sand further down the dune to its highest point. This time when he landed he levitated himself to minimize his impact on the apparently fragile sandscape. This time only a trickle of sand broke loose and cascaded down the duneside. He “stood” atop the dune and surveyed the waves of sand that ranged as far as he could see. He could see none of the dunes were a consistently height. Each of them had high crests interspersed with lower gaps. Those gaps gave Jon the beginnings of a plan to speed up this trip.

He jumped halfway down the dune towards the sandcrawler and slid the rest of the way to its base. He walked over to the crawler and squatted, grabbing the crawler’s rear bumper. He lifted with his legs and found, as he expected, that the small vehicle was extremely light. He supposed that was a necessity for a vehicle designed to travel over loose, dry sand.

He stepped back and levitated the crawler with a tug of the force. It was large enough to require a moderate level of concentration, but, it was relatively easy to do. He lifted it higher and rotated it 360 degrees in the air, getting a feel for handling it with the force. Satisfied, he lowered it back to the sand and got inside, once again referring to the local landsat images. He found the gaps he had seen from the dune’s crest in the next dune ridgelines as well as the low points in the next half dozen. He memorized the route connecting those low points, as, once he started, he didn’t want to stop until he reached a large valley with what had to be a unique feature in this barren wasteland.

He drove a ways down the canyon and turned around. He increased the flow of the force though himself and levitated the crawler. This was the tricky part. He didn’t want to lift the vehicle. He only wanted to make it nearly weightless, allowing just enough weight to keep the deeply treaded tires in contact with the sand to allow traction. Then he floored it…

The sandcrawler was severely overpowered for a “weightless” land vehicle so it shot forward like it was blasted from a pulse cannon. Jon angled it up the side of the dune and blasted over the spot he’d caused the sandslide going airborne briefly before bouncing lightly back down on the far side. He sped down the side and angled for the low point in the next dune accelerating while fine tuning the vehicle’s weight with the force.

This time he crested the dune with barely a ripple in the sands, flying off it even further before landing lightly halfway down its far side and aiming towards his next “launchpoint.” Jon was grinning like a kid in a candy store. He ripped a ragged path of treadmarks across another eight dunes whooping with joy as he flew off each successive crest.

Finally, he reached the top of his final crescent shaped barchan dune and stopped at its top looking down at the anomaly that lay before him. He glanced at the time and decided this looked like as good a place as he was likely to find to camp for the night.

 

[Jon Burke]

Jon cautiously circled the odd oasis. Not that anything about it appeared dangerous other than the approach. Step slopes of soft sand bordered the water-filled basin on three sides. He gave the pool a wide berth on those sides as he crept the crawler along, looking the area over. Finally reaching the side bordered by trees, he worked his way down the slope into the trees and found a relatively level area to park the crawler.

Shade was indeed a rare commodity on PR-0649 - in at least the parts of it he’d seen. But then, he would have never expected to find a bowl high in the dunes that had a small lake of crystal clear water bordered by a stand of evergreen trees. He wondered what feature permitted this type tree to grow here.

He walked through the trees to the water’s edge. He saw no signs of human habitation, a fact he considered odd in a desert environment. That meant either something was wrong with the water, or, there were better sources elsewhere and the population demand was low enough not to require this one so far out of the way.

He didn’t have an analysis kit with him but the water easily passed the eye test and the nose test. He didn’t need to drink it so he saw no reason to be concerned with its quality. That said, he did what he did whenever opportunities like this arose. He striped off all his clothes and dove into the refreshingly cool water.

He swam out to the center of the small lake and was surprised, considering how clear the water was, that he couldn’t see the bottom. He dove down into its depths and in the deepening shadows found the water to be very cold. Also, it seemed like he could feel a slight current in the water. Swimming along near the bottom, he saw a triangular shape looming up ahead of him. He surfaced and gathered another deep breath before diving back to the odd shape. It was a large stone, carved with indecipherable symbols. He wished Aiden was there to study the mysterious stone, but, other than a curiosity, it wasn’t significant regarding the purpose of his trip to PR-0649.

He surfaced again and continued his swim along the surface. He swam the length of the lake but didn’t see anything else that seemed connected or related to the the monolith. He swam to a sunny area of the treed shoreline and climbed out of the water finding a place to relax and dry in the sun.

Two pairs of eyes peered discretely over the crest of a bordering dune. The sight of Jon laying naked in the sun caused one of the twins to turn to the other and ask, “Do you think father would give him to us?”

Jon had yet to find the Kielbasa, but, they had found him in the form of two of the chief's daughters.

 

[Melanctha Dallamoor]

She stood before the designer smoothing out the skirts this was perfect and with her mother's veil she couldn't help but take Aiden's breath away, he was currently off doing things he needed to do for his family and other obligations which they politely kept from everyone.

Their little secret on what he was, did, she was busy doing the one thing that never thought she would do, plan a wedding for family friends, and a few of the nobility. She had gone on a tasting tour last week.

So many wonderful things to taste she was going to gain 10lbs just from tasting. The tiny delicacies made with such care, stunning to look at she felt bad having to eat it! She hoped that Aiden would be just as pleased.

The venue and the cake were yet left. yes she was doing things out of order but she was considering the grounds of the Dallamoor estate they were stunning with endless gardens, and greenery. It wouldn't take much to turn it into the setting she envisioned.

So many dreams.

 

[Jon Burke]

Jon sat beside the small campfire he built in the lee of the sandcrawler. A near constant, yet pleasant, breeze murmured through the evergreens. It amazed Jon how much the temperature dropped when the sun set behind the dunes.

He wondered how many times he’d sat beside a fire similar to this. Those times were mainly growing up on Dantooine when he and Braedon would take a speeder and explore the country between the ranch and their retreat in the mountains to the north. Chances for nights like this one had become almost non-existent in recent years. He missed them.

Jon had heard that deserts come alive at night when temperatures cool and wildlife comes out to hunt and feed and be hunted. With a few exceptions, he hadn’t found that to be true here. He occasionally heard and caught glimpses of small furry creatures he didn’t recognize scurrying through the evergreen needles both above in the branches and the piles of accumulated needles that had fallen.

The only thing that caused him to sit up and listen, instantly awake and alert, was the cry of an animal that echoed across the dunes. He stood and walked to the edge of the small stand of trees, keeping to the shadows and slipping along silently. What it was he wasn’t sure, but, it sounded like the cry of a thranta he’d heard on Bespin on one of his visits to Cloud City. He had never heard of thranta being anywhere other than Alderaan and Bespin. That really didn’t mean anything though. The biodiversity survey of PR-0649 was minimal and the universities admitted they were incomplete. Perhaps thranta or something similar did call this place home.

Indeed nothing seemed a cause for alarm, yet, Jon had the uneasy feeling he wasn’t alone. Not threatened exactly, but observed.
He was stunned when a second moon rose over an eastern dune. Two large moons in close orbit reflected the light of the planet’s white sun in what would approximate a heavily overcast day on Dantooine. Even under the trees it was now bright enough to read had there been a reason. The dunes shimmered in the silvery light. They were, in fact, so visible it gave Jon an idea.

Jon sat in the driver’s seat of the crawler and updated the landsat system. Changing his strategy had taken him nearly twenty kilometers deeper into the dunes than following the circuitous route through the troughs in the same amount of time. He was convinced it was the best way for him to shorten this journey. As bright as the moonlight was illuminating the dunes, there was no reason to wait for sunrise to continue.

He plotted a course jumping the lower dips in the dunes’ crests. Factoring in a rest break at a large valley at about the halfway point, he estimated that if he left now, he could reach the ruins by mid afternoon.

He quickly packed up the crawler and smothered his campfire. He prepared himself with the force and, grinning like a kid on Dantooine again, blasted off across the sands.

~ ~ ~ ~

Aisha and Azima looked at each other with concern. They had never seen an off-worlder that could travel across the sands like this one. That concerned them because of bad experiences the tribe had in the past with one that called himself sith. On the other hand, this man had taken great care not to harm anything in the tree island. He left behind few, if any, signs of his time spent there. Other than the odd appearance of crawler tracks traversing the dunes, which the winds would soon erase, he was treating their home with respect. They would defer judgement. Now was the time to warn their father and the tribe of his approach.

When Jon passed the crest of the first dune and was safely out of sight, they stood and Aisha whistled. Soon the rustling of leathery wings could be heard beating the air, settling down onto the sand near the sisters.

On any other world it would be identified as a thranta - only a trained ornithologist would be able to tell the subtle differences. Asfour was the girls’ pet and their transportation when they ventured from their village to explore.

They each stroked its head as they prepared to mount which evoked a deep rumble from within the massive beast much like a cat might purr when its master petted it. They leapt agilely into the tandem saddle and with no urging Asfour trembled, unfolded his wings and, with one mighty stroke, was airborne.

Had Jon’s attention not been focused on driving and levitating the crawler across the shifting sands, he might have seen a giant birdlike creature being ridden by two shapely young women as they passed in front of one of the moons. Of course, that might have caused him to crash the crawler.

Aisha and Azima soon passed Jon and his more labor intensive passage. The would arrive home in plenty of time to prepare the tribe for their visitor’s arrival.

 

[Craig Janson]

The Underground Bar - Bespin

Craig sat at a corner table listening as his technical adviser gave a report on the small freighter he was considering buying for the group’s upcoming foray into the unknown. Despite discussing it with Jon and Aiden into the wee hours one night and the destruction of nearly two full bottles of Whyren’s in the process, he still wasn’t convinced there was anything to find. He was, however, into the excitement of the chase. Plus, a chance to spend an extended period of time with his old friend and college roommate, Jon Burke, was something he couldn’t pass up.

“All the equipment specified on your list is already installed with the exception of the Messnier Field Analyzer. As far as I can tell, there’s not one in the quadrant. You’ll have to pick one up at a more technical center nearer the core. Otherwise, like I said, everything is here and installed. You’ll save a significant number of credits over buying everything new, plus the cost of having it all installed by certified technicians.”

“And everything works as advertised?” Craig asked.

“I ran test cycles on everything myself. They are all in good working order and running within manufacturers’ specifications.”

Craig drained the rest of the Whyren’s from his glass as he took a moment to make his decision. “Ok, start negotiating at 85% of the asking price and get the best price possible.”

He had looked the ship itself over himself and certified its spaceworthiness. That’s was, afterall, his business - ship repair initially and now they were expanding into sales. He knew the asking price was competitive as it was and would pay it if pressed. He also did his best to never pay the asking price for anything.

“See if you can locate a source for the Messnier Analyzer before I leave Cloud City so I can plan my course. Also, does the ship have a pilot that would be interested in hiring on.”

If they weren’t the owners themselves, freighter pilots sometimes stayed on when a ship’s title was transferred. New owners were generally receptive to this arrangement, thinking there investments safer in experienced hands. Craig also knew that was not always the best solution, but, in this case, he didn’t want to be saddled with piloting duty taking them to the Maw knew where while Burke hogged the Whyren’s. No, he intended on being just as drunk as his old friend.

“No, sir. He has taken on a new opportunity and already departed the system.”

Craig simply nodded his understanding. “All right, get to work on the purchase negotiations and I’ll work on finding a pilot.”

“Very good, sir.” The man stood, straightened his suit, and hurried out of the bar with short, quick steps as if happy to be leaving the establishment. For his part, Craig was perfectly happy. He had been in his share of seedy bars and this one was nicer than most all of them. The food smelled good, too.

An attractive waitress was making her way around the room, checking on customers and making sure everyone was happy with their drinks and food. She actually had more of a sense of presence than a waitress would have; maybe she was the manager or the owner. When she approached his table, Craig smiled at her and asked, “Could I have another Whyren’s? Oh, and what are your specials tonight?”


[member="Rekha Kaarde"]

 

[Melanctha Dallamoor]

Melanctha left the dress makers studio and headed back towards home. She looked again to see if there were any messages from Aiden. He would send messages when he was in a location that would not give away his missions. She had to admit she missed him.
They were a traditional couple having gone through a period of courting, and traveling to meet other nobles of the Cluster. With a few to worlds that offered trade contracts for Aiden's family, and her own.

As her pod neared the gates of the estate her caramel colored eyes moved along the green lawn. The small tufts of flowers that added that hint of color to the front she loved this house. She and Aiden were planning on a smaller home down near the river that wound through the estate it was private and provided them a place that they would have for their own.

The pod stopped and she moved out extending her long legs with one move stood up and headed into the house.

She could see her mother sitting outside, wanting to share her experience with her for the day Mel went to join her out on the veranda. "Mother" Mel nodded, and sat down. They didn't show emotions in front of the staff. "What a wonderful day"
Something was troubling her mother, she had this look of concern. Deep ridges of worry were etched on her face.

"What's wrong?"

Her mother took her time to look at her only daughter, "There is rumor that the One Sith are at our borders."

"oh" Mel sat back. If she were just a noble and were all of her interests only within the Cluster the One Sith being on the door step would not be of concern. But she wasn't, and her fiancé a Jedi would definitely have issue with this.

"Well, let's see what happens, if it is only rumor we need more information. I'm sure the Queen Mother will send an announcement if.." If the Sith came, Aiden couldn't come home, and..she wouldn't thinking about it. Yet.

 

[Rekha Kaarde]

Green eyes swept the room always looking for the customer that needed help, or a gentle push out the door. She noticed how others looked at her, watched how she moved, some of them she knew were First Order spies. She smiled at the ones she had already outed they kept coming around though, she only could imagine why
.
Bespin was not quite the same since she had slipped back to the Bar, she couldn't leave her people there indefinitely without talking to them. They continued to pass intelligence along through the suppliers. The mining platform did not attract as much attention as Cloud City perhaps another reason why the bar made money.

Usually Ava would be out waiting on the tables but Rekha felt the need to mingle. As she approached the next table a dashing young man who didn't give her the roving eye a reprieve from the men who normally looked at a woman like...something on the menu.

"Specials of the day." She smiled, she was going to give an answer she had given someone else a long time ago, it was funny and..usually a look and response.

"Womprat, three different ways. And yes I'll get you a glass of Whyren's, I assume you are drinking it without ice." Unless he wanted to kill the taste, the ice would murder the flavor.

[member="Craig Janson"]

 

[Craig Janson]

Craig did a double take at those green eyes but didn’t miss a beat, “Chilled if possible, but, definitely no ice.”

Womprat. Craig had eaten more distasteful things - mainly at a Twi’lek restaurant near the campus of Corellia University. For some reason Burke enjoyed those odd varieties of fungus and Craig went along on the nights it was Jon’s turn to chose. But still… womprat? They were one of the uglier things on Tatooine; and, there were lots of ugly things on that dust bowl. Plus they bit, he remembered, as he discreetly rubbed a scar on his thigh.

“I… umm.. had a bad experience with a womprat once so I think I’ll pass on that. If you have a nice nerf steak back there I’ll take one of those medium-rare.”

He gave her a challenging grin and said, “You can surprise me with the sides.”

[member="Rekha Kaarde"]​

 

[Jon Burke]

Jon was exhausted. Other than a short break for food and something to drink at the midpoint he’d chosen, he’d been driving non-stop for nearly fifteen hours. According to the landsat, the dune he sat next to was the last before the Kielbasa village. As tired as he was, he was tempted to wait until morning to cross over and negotiate permission to examine the temple walls and, hopefully, locate a starchart Aiden had found referenced in his latest dig - the wedding dig Jon recalled with a chuckle. It was only mid-afternoon, however, and he was loath to waste that much time.

He opened his kit and cleaned up. He also changed into a clean shirt as his was discolored with a layer of sandy dust. He realized he wouldn’t be really clean again after that ride until he got back to the refresher in his ship… or back to the evergreen oasis - a thought that he found didn’t displease him at all. That was for later; however, now it was time to get down to business.

He was told to leave the crawler and cross the last dune on foot. Looking at the landsat image, he saw there was a large open expanse between the dune and the ancient stone buildings the tribe claimed as their home. Parking there seemed perfectly reasonable to Jon. He secured the loose items in the crawler and jumped the last dune.

Cresting the dune, he would have stopped if he could have. In front of him the Kielbasa village was a riot of color. Multicolored cloth awnings shaded the openings to the buildings. Small pavilions looked to be stalls selling as yet unknown items. In the center, the largest contained several chairs, three of which were occupied by a serious looking middle-aged man and two identical exotic beauties. To their side a group held odd instruments Jon had never seen. When they saw Jon crest the dune, the music started and everyone milling about the pavilions and the under the awnings cheered and waved at Jon. Except for the lack of an ocean, it reminded Jon of a beach party on Spira.

Jon parked the crawler and exited it; making sure he had his comm device. He had loaded a general purpose translation program onto it in preparation for his encounter. He hoped whatever their language was would be close enough to the generics included in the program.

He began walking towards the man in the central pavilion, who in turn rose and stepped out into the sunlight to greet him. In clear, unaccented basic the man said. “Helloooo! Welcome to our home! Come! Eat and drink with us! We are eager to meet you!”

Jon stumbled a step in his shock, smiled, and went to meet the Kielbasa.

​

[member="Melanctha Dallamoor"]​

[member="Rekha Kaarde"]​

 

[Rekha Kaarde]

Well at least he got that part right on the Whyren's "good choice" She frowned slightly at him, playfully when he turned down the Womprat, course she didn't have any she just liked to see reactions to her offering it.

She noticed he rubbed his leg, umhmm, "Well if that last one bit you just think of the revenge you could have on one of its relatives. But." She smiled and nodded, "if you want nerf who am I to tell you no. Medium."

She looked at him, "Oh I will surely find you something that..will..." She closed one eye making like she was thinking really hard, "stay on a plate" She laughed and wandered towards the bar to get his glass.

She put in the order, and then slipped behind the bar. It was still a busy night miners coming in and out, everyone trying to be sure they didn't step where they shouldn't.

Rekha was beginning to get a bit of wanderlust in her veins, it happened. For a moment, she thought of Greg, Jon, Aiden, The Organa women, and the other few friends she made along the way. She wasn't good at keeping it touch it seemed, and well that was the luxury of being out this far. You didn't see anyone you didn't want to see.

She shook her head and wiped away the cobwebs, time to work, and no more time to think back. Just as she turned she looked at the register, there sitting with its large owlish orbs sat that toy Ewok. Shame she lost her best pair of Ewok slippers when she ran from Coruscant. Never did replace them, should have they were comfortable.

Eh. Life.

Rekha headed back towards the table, she knew his steak would be up soon and he'd be looking for those sides. She had a couple in mind, something filling for the greenhorn.

"Here you go, food will be up shortly. Are you eating alone tonight?" She had to ask, she hadn't eaten yet, and well a break off her feet for a bit would be great.

[member="Craig Janson"]

 

[Craig Janson]

Craig grinned at her teasing and watched her as she went behind the bar to put the order in. He appreciated the view and smiled to himself thinking that he was pretty sure she could find some tempting “sides” if she was so inclined.

She was back quickly with the Whyren’s and to Craig’s surprise, asked if he was eating alone. Simple curiosity or something more intriguing?

“I am devastated to have to admit that I am indeed eating alone,” he answered dramatically. “Perhaps if you aren’t too busy, you could join me.” The teasing grin and the twinkle in his eye told her he was offering a friendly invitation rather than something he was pretty sure she heard every night with this clientele.

He thought about that a moment and realized she may have the solution to his problem. He could tell she knew the vast majority of the men in the bar. Maybe she knew a pilot she could recommended.

“Besides that,” he added, “you may be able to help me with a business problem I have. Order something for yourself and join me.”

He leaned back in his seat taking in the view of her, smiled looking into those green eyes and offered, “We’ll chat a little bit about business and lot about other things…”

[member="Rekha Kaarde"]​

 

[Aiden Merritt]

Aiden was nervous. He had never mastered the ability to mask his force presence with any reliability. Going into sith space probably wasn’t the wisest thing he had ever done. Although Hapes was still only on its fringe, navigating the nebulae surrounding the cluster only offer a few routes to gain access to its center and ultimately, Cheruba. Those few routes could easily be monitored and challenges and interdictions easy to maneuver. Death traps to say the least.

He did have an ace up his sleeve. Jon gave him the transponder codes and the navigation authorizations for his Baudo and Aiden programmed them into his ship’s systems. He even had some voice recordings of Jon requesting landing clearance and other standard snippets of shipboard communications.

Why Jon had sith authorizations he didn’t ask. In this case he wouldn’t look a gift equus in the mouth.

If Mel wasn’t still on Cheruba he wouldn’t be anywhere near the cluster. In fact, since he was sure she would already know about the encroaching sith, she would never be expecting him to come for her. His plan was to get to Cheruba quickly, load her up, and get out.

Then... he would try to talk her into going on the expedition with Jon, Craig and himself. He hoped…

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It caused considerable confusion when a Baudo approached Cheruba. Even more so when it was broadcasting Burke’s ship’s codes. If Melanctha didn’t know Jon, the Dallamoors probably would have refused to grant him permission to land.

Aiden grinned at Mel’s shocked expression when he exited the ship rather than Jon.

He ran over to where she was waiting and grabbed her up in a hug. He remembered a time when they did that just to shock his mother. This time it was because he simply loved having her in his arms.

He gave her a quick kiss and reluctantly let her go knowing they were being watched intently by her mother if not both of her parents. He held onto one of her hands, grinned at her and said, “I’m here to rescue you. How soon can you be packed?”

[member="Melanctha Dallamoor"]​

 

[Melanctha Dallamoor]

[member="Aiden Merritt"]

There was a ship coming in, one identified as belonging to [member="Jon Burke"]. She had met the man a few times now, his work with Aiden brought them together. She wasn't sure she cared for this man or his demeanor.

He was confident, normally this was to be considered a welcome quality someone who knew themselves, what they wanted, but it was the way he looked at things almost possessively. What he wanted it seemed was anything that he set his gaze upon.

That included Aiden's talents. Yet Aiden was devoted to them man for whatever reason, and she had to find a way to accept it. She respected Aiden and his choices. He choose to be this man's friend. So knowing this she stood waiting for the ship to land, even went as far as having something cold to drink ready.

Oh but who came off that ship was not Jon, no it was Aiden.

She walked towards him into his embrace he held her so tightly it was as if they had been parted for an eternity. They had gotten past the things they did for show now all came natural at ease, she put her cheek to his reveling in the connection.

"Rescue me?" Then she remembered, what she and her mother had just discussed. She laughed, quickly covering her mouth. Hapans don't show emotions, except for her and a few others.

He wanted her to pack.

BUT, the wedding plans.

If they left they'd have to....either do without the pomp and circumstance, or wait.

She knew she was being very selfish right now, she nodded, what was more important being with Aiden, or risk that he might never be able to come again, that she might not see him for an eternity.

"About an hour"

She studied his face, "its true then, really the Sith are out there."

 

[Rekha Kaarde]

"Don't be devastated to be eating alone, lots do it, it's not deadly." She smiled again thank goddess for manners for a change. "And that was my thought that I'd join you, cause I don't like eating alone its bad for digest"

She wasn't flirting really she was just being herself outgoing, heck she kissed a bunch of folks just to be friendly. But you had to watch the kissing, some of them wellll they liked to clean her tonsils. She wasn't having none of that so she made sure to get the cheek, no more on the lips.

"Problem?"

She sat down Ava would bring the food once she realized Rekha had parked it on a chair.

Rekha ate pretty much the same thing every night, it was just habit. She changed it up when she was away but at home.

When Ava turned up with the Nerf, that had sides of salamander sticks, tubers, and sufar greens in one hand, while Rekha's salad, water, and something covered in sugar in the other just showed how efficient the staff was, and how they observed everything.

"Business problem, so...I'm Rekha, you are?" If they were to talk business might was well start with some basics right, names. Depending on his business she might be able to help and it would come at just the right time.

[member="Craig Janson"]

 

[Craig Janson]

“Rekha, I’m Craig Janson,” he replied. She was right, introductions were in order. A cautious person in her position would want to know who she was dealing with before deciding what she had to offer.

“I’m from Corellia. I graduated from the university in Coronet City with a degree in starship engineering. I flew fighters for the Republic until I was shot down and spent too much time behind enemy lines. Injuries messed up my inner ear causing me to have vertigo when I tried to fly acrobatics. Sooo… no more fighters. They decided to take advantage of my degree and put me in charge of a maintenance and repair squadron.”

He was quiet a moment remembering what happened next and not wishing to talk about it.

“Anyway, after a while I was over it all and resigned my commission. I opened a starship service and repair service for private starships with landing capability. Soon rented space on the orbiting drydock for larger ships and things expanded from there. I have shops on four planets now… business is good.”

He pretty much laid out a quick and dirty version of his life history. If she a problem with any of it, she would bow out of helping. If not…

“I’m buying a CEC YU-410 for a project a couple of associates and I are undertaking. I’m looking for someone experienced in small freighters to be our pilot. ANyone you know come to mind?”

[member="Rekha Kaarde"]​

 

[Aiden Merritt]

Aiden held onto her hand and stopped her when she began to turn and walk towards to their land transport. ‘Wait, Mel!”

She turned back to face him, a concerned look on her face.

“Yes, they are coming if they aren’t already here and we need to leave the system; but, we need to do something before we leave.”

He almost smiled at the confused look on her face, but, what he had in mind was too serious.

“We still have the Queen’s documents authorizing our marriage.”

They secured them before the marriage AIden had “missed.”

“Call the family’s priest to the house and let’s have a quick family only ceremony.”

Unfortunately it would only be a Dallamoor family ceremony as his didn’t even know he was back in the Cluster and it would be unsafe to try to contact them.

“We will be leaving alone… together. We can’t arrange the normal supervision custom would require and you know how the other families will talk and belittle our families. We can formalize our wedding and have your parents file the documents with the Queen’s Court after we’ve had time to get out of the nebulae. With our marriage officially filed, there can be no nasty gossip about us going away together. They can think we are on an extended honeymoon or whatever they want to believe, but, you will be my wife.”

He gave her a sympathetic look and offered, “Later when things are safer we will have a full Hapan ceremony for both of our families.”

He leaned forward and gave her a soft kiss on her lips. “What do you say? Want to get married?”

[member="Melanctha Dallamoor"]​

 

[Jon Burke]

Jon had to admit, the Kielbasa knew how to throw a party.

The chief led him straight through the pavilion into a large stone building. The twins fell in behind them as they entered what turned out to be the banquet hall. Empty seats for the four of them waited at the head of the table, otherwise an assortment of individuals - both men and women - in almost garishly colorful clothing sat drinking and laughing and carousing in general.

When they saw Jon they quieted down and watched as they sat down waiting for the chief to speak who didn’t disappoint. Jon sat and a twin claimed a spot on each side of him. The hungry looks they were giving him made him wonder if they were perhaps cannibals.

The chief made a speech in a language Jon didn’t understand and his comm unit was useless to translate. At some point; however, he must have said, “Let’s eat,” because a bevy of servants began bringing in trays of various types of food. Drinks were placed in front of the four of them and refills provided for the others. The food was strange but tasty. The drinks not so much so but they were apparently highly alcoholic. Jon thought it best not to ask what types of plants and animals they were eating. So far nothing was as distasteful as some of the ethnic Twi’lek fungal dishes he tried. The things he was willing to do when he was younger just to play with a lekku.

Jon ate and drank and tried to appear as jovial as his hosts. He was as relaxed as he could be with the chief’s daughters’ small hands rubbing his thighs. Fortunately with the group present, that’s as high up his legs as they went. Later concerned him.

Other things concerned him as well. For a remote, protected tribe they seemed awfully comfortable with strangers. Something didn’t add up. He couldn’t help but worry what they expected from him.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Much later, probably sometime after the second moon had risen, the party was gradually dying down. The others were either finally wandering off or passed out in the corners of the banquet hall. That is, all except the chief and his daughters.

After the others left, the drunken, jovial chief changed. He was suddenly very alert and sober and very intense. He shouted an order to the twins who scurried away, looking thoroughly chastened.

When they were alone, the chief sat down beside Jon and looked him squarely in the eye.

“First,” he said in that clipped basic of his, “my daughters have some fantasy of having sex with you. Stay away from them or parts of you will never leave the desert.”

Jon thought it best not to reply. He just nodded his understanding as he thought how much he wanted to keep his parts where they were.

The chief also nodded to show that they had come to an agreement on the first point.

“Second,” he continued… “Why are you here, Jon Burke?”

Jon explained that he only wanted permission to do one thing - to take some pics of the jeweled starchart in the temple.

“No removal of the gifts of the ancients?”

“No,” Jon replied… “Only pictures.”

“Ok,” said the chief thoughtfully. “That shouldn’t be too expensive.”

Jon was perplexed. It seemed the Kielbasa were making a fortune selling small artifacts one by one to the “researchers” at the university’s base. This was a scenario Jon hadn’t prepared for and he admitted that to the chief.

“Ok, Jon Burke… let’s make this simple. I assume you arrived on a ship. What’s the most valuable thing you have onboard your ship?”

Jon thought a minute hard pressed to come up with anything. He’d packed light for this trip. Then it occurred to him, “I do have a case of Whyren’s.”

The chief cocked his head to the side, thought a minute and replied, “That’ll do.”

[member="Rekha Kaarde"]​

[member="Melanctha Dallamoor"]​

 

[Melanctha Dallamoor]

[member="Aiden Merritt"]

She was saddened by the news that the Sith would have control of her home, of her parents, perhaps even of their Queen. She had heard how the Sith took over world after world, restricting the movements of the people, and building their war machine on each one.

Part of her wanted to stay and fight in some way, but that would mean Aiden would have to go alone. She didn't know which hurt her deeper what could happen to her home, or losing Aiden.

She smiled though as she listened to him, the softness of his voice, the tenderness of a kiss. She had waited so long for the right one, and Aiden even though they started out just looking to satisfy parental instincts it had blossomed into so much more.

Wherever he was that was home now, "Yes Aiden, I want to get married." There was no but to this response, "we just need to get the documents and the priest, we can use the small chapel here on the estate." She put her hand to his cheek.

"Are you ready to do that?"