Broken Crown

[Hazel Scheler]

Ivy would not claim to be a master of stealth, it wasn't something she had been trained for. Not that she couldn't move quietly when she needed to, but given their current situation it didn't seem entirely pertinent. Sarge had already blazed the office and judging by the height of the structure, there was little more for anyone else to be hiding.

Who would be left to be quiet for?

She did follow without a word, eyeing her partner as he discarded their ever-so-helpful captive. A frown creased her face, though she said nothing, and moved to search the rubble as well.

The epicanthix might not have a helmet with all manner of technologically advanced features, but she did have a pair of exceedingly good eyes that allowed her to spy a body amidst the debris.

"Here," the woman moved to stoop by a booted foot extending out from beneath a large slab of stone. She gripped it and with a grunt of effort lifted away something that was likely far too heavy for a typical human woman of her size to move alone. Bad back and all.



Sarge Potteiger:
Could never be too careful, and that was how he operated. Looking down at the body, Sarge moved over and looked down at the broken form beneath him. Leaning down, he dug into tattered pants and pulled out a credit chit. Shrugging, he stood and moved to look down and into the bay once more.

Cocking his head to the side, he watched as a few Twi'leks skulked from the side entryways, clearly dressed to be sold as slaves. "I'll call for help, you'd be best served to stay here."

His voice startled them, although he didn't care. They'd never make it across the desert alone. Turning towards Ivy, he shrugs. "Any ideas on how to deal with these?", he asks, waving a hand towards the growing mass of would-be slaves.

 

[Hazel Scheler]

"I have a contact in the Republic I could call. Those guys love being the heroes," Ivy replied, somber gaze watching those gathering below.

The woman sighed, shook her head, and turned to head back out towards the stairwell. The trader was still tied up down in the holding chamber and she'd given her word she'd come back for him.



Sarge Potteiger:
"Alright. I'll let the local authorities know to come pick them up." Sighing, he watched her walk off and busied himself calling to the nearby settlement to report on what he'd found and done.

"I'll meet you at the exit then.", he says as she leaves.

 

[Hazel Scheler]

Ivy took a little longer to meet him at the exit than expected, but when the woman appeared she was carrying body of the trader, wrapped in a length of cloth she'd dug out of some supply case. Her expression was of stone and her movements were stilted. She walked through the gathered captives towards the exit and stepped out into the sun - the scorching heat still as relentless as ever.

She stood in a stifling silence, staring out into the vast wastes of the desert, completely and utterly at a loss of how to proceed. It had been so long since the sting of death had hit her, she'd forgotten how easily it could derail plans already in motion.



Sarge Potteiger:
Sarge stood, arms folded over his chest, back pressed against the cliff face. When she came out carrying a literal dead weight of a body, he hung his head. He knew that stiff backed gait.

Taking a step or two forward, he placed a hand on her shoulder and gave it a light squeeze. "Come on, let's get out of here. Nowhere to bury the body out here."

 

[Hazel Scheler]

A quiet glance over her shoulder and a nod was the reply given. It was times like this that Ivy was glad for a partner, or at least someone else to make a clear decision. Otherwise it's likely she'd stand there for far too long, immersed in thoughts that were useless to her now.

When they arrived back at the settlement it took surprisingly little time to learn of the Trader's identity and have his body shipped off to the proper people, proper place. It was enough to know that he would return to family, or whatever he had akin to one.

"Thank you," Ivy said to Sarge beneath the shade of an overhang. Sarge had helped in translating for her to get the body to the right home, "did you get what you were after?"



Sarge Potteiger:
The Mandalorian gave her a nod. "Hardly an imposition.", he says with a quiet voice that bordered on the consoling. Digging out a credit chip, he chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, I did."

He looked around at the people moving around and about their business. "And judging by some of the whispers going on... everyone around here got what they needed. That sullustan gone."

Snorting, he gave a faint smile under his helmet. "On the bright side, no sand storms on the horizon today."

 

[Hazel Scheler]

"That is reassuring," she replied, her own gaze following his to the people on the sandy streets, "on both accounts." She would rest easier tonight, or at the very least easier than she did the night prior. Yet even with the good news, she couldn't help but frown. There was the nagging through at the back of her mind that they had crossed a line somewhere - would their actions against the Sullustan bring repercussions to these people in the future? What if the Crime Lord was no Lord at all, but merely a higher-up of a larger chain? The Protector and warrior inside of her told her that they'd done right by these citizens, they'd helped them in a way that they'd never asked to be helped for. And if it meant they'd then be obligated to continue such a conquest, so be it.

Her other side, her human side, was seeking the doubts of these actions. Would she stay to be sure no reparations came? It was unlikely. Would slavers and criminals ever be fully ousted from this distant planet? Even more unlikely.

"What now?" Ivy asked without looking back at him. It was clear she was looking for no command, or even asking what he thought -she- should do next. It was merely a curiosity stemming from an interest in the man and his own purpose in this great wide galaxy.