Finding Things In The Dark

[Alistair Fenn]

[member="Jyn Lorr"]

"Well then we'll be all set won't w-" Alistair suddenly cut himself off as they dropped out hyperspace and straight into an Imperial Armada.

The descent back into realspace was always rather jarring, but it was even more so when you nearly ran into a Star Destroyer in the process. A loud curse rang through Alistair's lips, his fingers clutching the controls tightly as he wrestled them to the left. The Mara jerked, shaking the entire vessel and sending g forces pressing onto the passengers chest. Breath left him, and the Smuggler began a small array of curses as he pulled them away from the destroyer.

He could practically hear the alarm klaxons blaring inside the other ship.

"Hang on." The sensors on his panel began to blare as TIE's were deployed. "This is going to get rough."

What the kark had that destroyer been doing there? Random patrol? Had they known they were coming? The hyperlane was an old smugglers route, ancient really, there was no way the Empire could have known about it. He cursed again, and then suddenly a turbo laser strafed above them. "Looks like you're really getting what you paid for."

 

[Lief]

She found herself flung forward as much as the restraint would allow as the ship lurched out of hyperspace and had to make a very swift change of direction before it ran into an Imperial vessel or two. Pain ran through her stomach where the safety belt had dug in, forcing a light cough from her, and the sudden addition of unexpected g-forces only sought to add nausea and breathlessness to the mix.

This was not the way Jyn had ever expected she would die.

Perhaps in some great battle, or at the side of her fellow Je'daii, or heck... Anything else that didn't involve a starship. Yet in that moment she began to have doubts about the validity of such silly thoughts. Death took you when it chose, brought you back to your place within the Force, it didn't care if you were ready, or if the method was as you had expected.

She reached out for something to hang on to and watched through the viewing port as TIE fighters and freaking turbo lasers were deployed in their general direction.

While she could breathe now, she didn't really think to and instead caught herself holding her breath in anticipation. Her skin prickled, turning ashen, and she could feel the heat beginning to course through her veins. The last thing she needed now was for the curse to catch up with her.

But for the first time in a long time she didn't feel quite so confident in her ability to keep it down.

[member="Alistair Fenn"]

 

[Alistair Fenn]

[member="Jyn Lorr"]

The next few seconds seemed to stream by faster than seemed possible.

TIE's swooped in on them, turbolasers flew over their heads, and somehow through it all the Mara managed to swooped through the atmosphere. He didn't manage it unscathed of course, by the time they breached the shell of Dromund Kaas' outer atmosphere flames were streaking from the engines. Through gritted teeth The Smuggler let out half a dozen different swears, fingers tightly latching around the controls of his ship. Klaxons blared throughout the cockpit and behind them half a dozen TIE's followed them.

"Can't get us near the city." They would be shot down in an instant.

The fighters on their tail coupled with the turbolasers that Kaas city had for protection would mean they'd be obliterated in a heartbeat. No, they would have to find somewhere else to touch down, and just a few miles to the north he spotted what they needed.

"There." He pointed for half a second. "That storm."

It would get rough, but at least they'd survive.

 

[Lief]

Jyn was on the edge of her seat throughout the entire engagement, both literally and figuratively.

The fact that there was nothing she could do to really help gnawed at her, she felt so useless. It reminded her too much of most of her early life, being led around without having any form of say or control in what happened, in her own life. She had fought so hard throughout the years to break away from that state, and these days she was strong, independent, and the leader of her own fate.

Moments like this reminded her of how easy it was to change that.

"Don't worry about getting us to the City," she said, with all sincerity, in that moment they'd be lucky if they got down there with their lives. Her plans had completely flown out of her mind. The sight of the storm was both welcomed and feared, this ship barely handled entering hyperspace... She didn't want to know the chances of it surviving one of Kaas' strong electrical storms. But it was that or be shot from the air, and the chances of surviving that were even more slim.

"Anything I can do to help?" she asked, not wanting to get up and presume to do something in his ship yet knowing that in that moment there might have been something he needed a second set of hands to deal with.

[member="Alistair Fenn"]

 

[Alistair Fenn]

[member="Jyn Lorr"]

"No ju-" Alistair found his words dying on his lips as a crack of lightning suddenly lashed out from the clouds and lanced directly towards them.

The bright spark of electricity moved so fast that it hit them in an instant, sending a surge of electricity and ion energy ringing throughout the entire hull. A loud blaring Klaxon erupted from his console, the controls in his fingers weakened and then suddenly gave way, his heart skipped a beat.

"KARK!" He called out as he pushed on the controls, his fingers grasping at the console until his knuckles turned a pale white. Panic soared through him, and then suddenly he felt his stomach lurch. The Mara lost all resistance, the engines ceased their rumble, and suddenly they began to fall. The ship tumbled down, The Smuggler looked over to his passenger with an almost apologetic look. "Hang on."

It was all he could manage to say.

The fins and flaps located on The Mara burst into life as he pulled the emergency lever, small thrusters coming to life to slow them, but it wasn't enough.

They tumbled further and further down towards the planet, their trajectory slowing but not stopping. Then suddenly they hit the first tree. The ship lurched and shifted, brought to a slowing halt as it crashed into the foliage of Dromund Kaas.

 

[Lief]

Her entire throat constricted the moment the spark of light and the clash of the storm made itself known.

She could barely hear herself think in the moments which followed, as the heavy static clung in the air and the sound of the ships alarms blared noisily throughout the vessel. The air around them felt heavy and oppressive as they sunk deeper into the storm, the ship apparently veering off on a course of its own.

This wasn't how it was supposed to happen. She knew that, he knew that, yet it was the lot they had been given. People had survived far worse tumbles... Right? Oh what did Jyn know, she'd never been in a crash before. That she could remember. She clung on for dear life, glad that she had taken the initiative to buckle herself in yet still wanting to hold on to something to keep her more stable than she felt, even if it was merely a comfort.

"Kriff" she said, as the ship struck a tree and she was, for the third or fourth time, flung forward. Her chest was already aching from the prior times, and by now it was beginning to ache with a more dull pain than before. Almost as though her body was prepping her for something far worse on the horizon.

[member="Alistair Fenn"]

 

[Alistair Fenn]

[member="Jyn Lorr"]

The Mara finally came to it's dragging stop.

A row of trees, countless to anyone but a droid, lay flattened and broken. Branches had been flung everywhere, splintered wood littering the forest floor. Flames jutted from the engines of the ancient ship, massive splashes of rain still slashing down against them. Clouds loomed just above them and heavy winds racked the broken trees. A loud snap could be heard as another tree tumbled onto the ground, crashing against it's neighbors and causing them to bend.

The storm still raged above them as fiercely as ever, yet an odd sort of calm had struck the inside of the cockpit. The alarm klaxons that had been blaring ceased, and only reserve power remained through the systems. Somehow the windshield of the cockpit had stayed intact, though there was a large spiderwebs of cracks running through the middle of it. "Ugh."

Alistair groaned slowly.

The safety straps that had kept him in his seat were half dug into his skin, bruises already forming beneath. He frowned slightly, lifting up his head and glancing around as he tried to gain his bearings. A breath filled his lungs, sharp pain shooting along his ribs.

"Kark." He swore as he released the strap, his fingers barely managing to grab the latch. "That was one hell of a crash."

The words came from his lips as he tumbled onto the floor.

 

[Lief]

By this point the chaos was so intense that she could barely make heads or tails of what was happening.

Pain continued to sear through her, specifically around the shoulders and neck which had been yanked around and felt each tree they struck. Her vision was foggy, and her hearing was drowned out. It wasn't until the ship halted completely that she began to focus once again, lifting her hands up to release the buckles which had kept her from splattering against the viewingport.

"Are you..." she breathed out a load of hot air, and tried to stand from the seat. Apparently her jelly legs had other ideas and she stumbled, catching herself only at the last moment, "Are you okay?"

He was talking at least, so there was that, and he had moved even if only to tumble, both of which were good signs.

His poor ship, she couldn't help but feel immensely guilty for its current state. She was no mechanic, didn't have the first idea on how to fix it, and that... Honestly that frustrated her.

"I'll pay for any repairs..."

After all, if not for her he and the Mara would not have been here in the first place.

[member="Alistair Fenn"]

 

[Alistair Fenn]

[member="Jyn Lorr"]

"Right." Alistair said quietly. Surprisingly he didn't really feel all that angry about any of this. He knew that he should have been furious. Angry about the Mara crashing, raging about how he would have to repair everything, but in the moment...he was just happy to be alive.

It was an odd sort of elation, and it would probably pass, but as he sat there on the floor of his cockpit he couldn't help but feel the slightest bit of joy. He smiled to himself, closed his eyes, and then took a deep breath as he tried to settle himself. After a few more seconds of simply listening to the pounding rain above them Alistair reached up and grabbed the console of his ship. Slowly he dragged himself up and to his feet, not noticing the blood slowly trailing down his cheek.

"Well." He glanced around the cockpit. "That won't help right now."

He shook his head slowly. "Or for a while..."

The Sith knew they were here, they would be looking. Dromund Kaas would shield them, the storm and the forest combined meant that sensors would be useless, but if they had any chance of getting out of here they would have to find something to repair the ship with.

Or steal a replacement.

 

[Lief]

He was right, it wouldn't be useful right now.

Didn't mean she wasn't going to stick to her word, of course. And verbally confirming her desire to do so might help ease any frustrations he might have had... Might. Who knew, right now they were both still reeling from the aftermath of the crash. She felt understandably sick to her stomach, but she realized that they couldn't afford to simply sit around and wait for the Imperials to find them.

With one hand pressed against the cockpit wall for support, Jyn gave herself just a moment to catch her breath and gather her thoughts before glancing across to the smuggler. She noticed almost immediately the trail of blood which marred his cheek and cringed, following it up to its source.

"You gonna be alright?" she asked, with a nod toward him, "Can't tell how bad that is from here, but you're bleeding."

Pushing from the wall she moved toward him but turned her sights to the exterior of the ship. The storm continued to rage, but this was Dromund Kaas so what did they expect? It wasn't exactly known for its glorious weather.

With a soft sigh she lowered her gaze down over the various consoles and monitors, trying to look for some sort of indicator of how far off their intended path they were. But truth be told Jyn had a navi-droid for such things in her own ship, she was far from an expert pilot. So she didn't really know what she was looking for. For some reason though she didn't want to admit as much to him.

She didn't enjoy feeling useless.

[member="Alistair Fenn"]

 

[Alistair Fenn]

[member="Jyn Lorr"]

Alistair let out a long sigh, his hand coming up to touch the wound on his head. He pulled back in half a wince, frowning slightly as he looked at the blood coating his fingers. He could still see fine, and his head didn't hurt too much, that much was a good sign at least. "I'll be fine."

The Smuggler was far from being a doctor, but there was a medkit in the back of the ship and he'd use a shot of bacta to stop the bleeding before they went anywhere. If they could even get out. The frown on his lips deepened and slowly he pulled himself free of the cockpit, using the walls to steady himself just in case. He didn't particularly care if Jyn followed, she'd be able to hear him even if he reached the cargo hold in the back of the vessel.

His fingers pried open the small med-box kept beside his room, pulling the syringe kit free.

"We shouldn't be too far from Kaas city." He called out as he placed the bacta container into the syringe, his lips thinning as he thought about just what they were doing to do. "We can find whatever you're looking for..."

He trailed off as he slipped the needle beneath his skin and injected himself with the bacta. "And find a way off this planet."

Whether that was repairing The Mara or finding a new ship he had no idea.

 

[Lief]

It all seemed so stupid now, her reason for being here, and yet even with that in mind she realized that to even contemplate abandoning the whole idea would make this all for naught. She hadn't actually told him why she needed smuggling in, and at this point she decided she wouldn't at all. Even if the subject was brokered.

For whatever reason she had decided to follow him. Being split up in that moment didn't seem like the best of ideas, even if the storm was covering them from the Empire's prying eyes for now who knew what else awaited them out here. She didn't remember much from her time here, snippets of information, but she could recall the instinctual fear she had always felt at the prospect of leaving Kaas City without her Guardian's protection. All manner of nasties lay beyond civilizations reach, yozusks and gundarks. Not that she'd ever seen the latter first hand, they'd seemed more like scary folk lore meant to keep the children in check.

Watching as he gave himself a shot of bacta to stem the bleeding and encourage the healing process, Jyn allowed herself a little while to simply catch her breath. She hadn't split skin, but she could feel tender spots all over her body from being yanked around, and her neck was considerably stiff.

In any other situation she might have encouraged them to wait for the storm to die down, but this was Kaas... And they didn't exactly have that luxury. Instead she did a quick pat-down of her body, ensuring the general belongings she'd brought with her were still in tact - commlink, blaster, and a well hidden lightsaber hilt around the back of her belt - before giving him a nod.

"The business I need to attend to won't take long, then we put this trip behind us," the hardest part was going to be figuring out their course of action for getting off this damned planet. Well, that and navigating the wilds to actually reach Kaas City.

She gave him a minute for the bacta to do its thing, and began to move back through the ship toward the boarding ramp in preparation to leave.

[member="Alistair Fenn"]

 

[Alistair Fenn]

[member="Jyn Lorr"]

Alistair had never been to Dromund Kaas before, mostly because he'd never needed to go.

He knew little about this world, a few scraps of knowledge and of course the fact that the Sith ruled it. Aside from whatever else he'd picked up on the holo-news there wasn't much he could have told someone, but it was enough to survive. He hoped anyway.

Before The Smuggler headed towards the boarding ramp he went to a small compartment in the cargo bay. He pulled a panel to the side and revealed a small hiding place. From it he took a heavy Naboo blaster, a small pack, and an extra jacket that he draped over himself. A roll went over his shoulders as he slipped on the pack, his eyes glancing back for a moment before he secured the panel once more and walked towards the ramp.

"We should hit the city inside of a few hours." He told as he pulled the ramps manual release.

There was a loud clunk noise, and then slowly the hydraulics kicked into gear.

"I don't think they'll be looking for us but..." Alistair trailed off. "We'll probably have to sneak into the city."

 

[Lief]

Before they went anywhere Jyn made sure to check she had what she needed.

In that moment, she supposed a hefty sum of credits wouldn't be amiss. Thankfully she had brought far more than she actually needed just in case issues had arisen. Or, more precisely, [member="Arekk"] had sent her with more than she needed. Apparently his hunch had been correct, though given how often Jyn happened upon trouble it wasn't as though he was truly psychic or anything. He'd actually insisted that she use one of his old contacts from the Smugglers' Moon to make this trip, but Jyn had wanted anonymity in the fullest.

The canteen on her hip was still full of water. She had taken to carrying one ever since her brief stint on Tatooine, the unimaginable thirst she had encountered during that time wasn't something she wanted to replicate again any time soon. Though that was likely her fault for getting lost among the dunes. Who did that?

With the few possessions she owned safely still on her person, admittedly with a bit of a busted commlink that would need tending to as soon as she could manage, she watched as the ramp lowered. There was always a somewhat oppressive humidity which hung around Kaas, something she hadn't remembered up until that moment. With a grimace she began to head down, watching her peripherals like a hawk for any signs of danger.

"Better safe than dead." She shrugged, glancing back at the smuggler. "Should we figure out what's wrong with the ship before we head out properly? Incase she needs parts?"

[member="Alistair Fenn"]

 

[Alistair Fenn]

[member="Jyn Lorr"]

"Already know whats wrong." Alistair said with a shrug. "Once glance was enough for that."

It wasn't exactly hard to see what the damage was. The TIE's that had chased them down had managed to hit them with a few glancing blows. It wasn't enough to stop The Mara from permanently flying, but he knew they would have difficulty getting off the ground. Luckily the Hyperdrive hadn't been hit, meaning that if they managed to repair the engines they would do just fine with getting out of the Dromund Kaas system.

Provided the Sith forgot their interdictors.

"We'll need a few parts, but most of them are in the cargo hold." His words were quick, terse. It was clear that he was less than interested in holding conversation.

The smuggler wanted all of this to be over and done with. Dromund Kaas was dangerous, Kaas city even more so. They would be running around the very center of Sithdom, and Alistair wasn't exactly looking forward to it. Especially since he'd have to walk into more than one marketplace.

With a sigh he ran a hand through his hair, glancing up at the stormy clouds above. "Let's head to the city. You can do your thing, I'll get what we need."

It was a fair offer.

 

[Lief]

Being that he was the resident knower-of-ships, while she could barely even pilot one without the help of a droid, she trusted his word when he pretty much said he had it covered. How he knew what was wrong was beyond her, but but she supposed he knew his ship better than anyone and she wasn't about to question it. Everybody had their thing, and in that moment she was glad he knew what to do.

Not one to push conversation when the one she was with clearly wanted anything but, Jyn let out a small "Sounds good to me," before setting off in the general direction of Kaas City.

The general landscape of this world had not changed, but she was more than curious to discover what the City itself was like these days. Almost two decades had passed since she last came to Kaas - at least with a clear mind, there had been that one incident in the middle of her uncontrolled curse period - and she was worried that she might not recognize it at all. In a Galaxy such as this one, where worlds were treated like pieces on a game board, often ravaged as they switched hands, the very notion that it might have been rebuilt in places was something she had contemplated.

Before all of that though they had the waterlogged jungles to deal with. Ground that in parts was swampy and deceptive. It reminded her of her trip to Taris, when she had first met [member="Sahna Te"] ... how long she had been forced to walk through the marshland she couldn't say, but it wasn't something she wanted to repeat. Not least because it reminded her of Vendaxa and the horrors she'd witnessed there.

She shuddered slightly at the memory, glancing to her hands somewhat warily to keep watch for any signs of the curse which lingered just beneath the skin. A slightly ashen hue, but the veins were just that. Veins. Good... The sooner this was over and done with the sooner she could get her mind back on track.

The last thing she needed right now was to scare off her ride with the unexpected addition of fire.

[member="Alistair Fenn"]