Friends of Red Jenny

[Jsc]

*ooc: PM for invite.
___


Prologue

Captain Roberts had just returned from Kuat when she learned that her Star Destroyer's Chief Engineer had gone missing. Worse yet, his girlfriend claimed that he had been kidnapped by the Friends of Red Jenny. A Corellian Gang of Cathar Smugglers. The investigation became personal when top-secret Republic plans were also found missing from her Chief Engineers laboratory. Now it was up to Roberts to find these lost secrets and figure out what these alley cats were up to.

Destination: Corellia.


The Red Porcupine

It was a sports bar on a wealthy part of the capital. Home to mostly white collar business men from the local eco-districts but it also hosted a number of regular soldiers from the military base. Word had it that the chicken wings and the large portions, attracted a hungry hungry crowd. Karen knew this local well. Everyone in Omega did. Back in the day, even a Protectorate Admiral could spend time off here. It was just that casual of a place.

The Jedi Peacock and her stalwart partner opened the front door with a smile and strode right in. Karen closed her eyes and just embellished the spicy air. There was no better brick-oven pizza on the planet. Grant ran a hand through his silver hair and nodded with delight,

"Good to be back eh Blue?"

"Yeah. Too bad it's all business."

She smiled and then nodded towards the hostess. Grant seemed to understand without a word. They were here to find an old friend.

The duo took a seat at the bar and waved a local waiter over. Karen leaned over the bar,

"Does Terra still work here? She used to be a Su Chef?"

"Not since last week. She just stopped showing up. Why? You know why she quit or something? Will the Manager would love to know."

"Yeah. Send him over."

The young man nodded and disappeared into the back. A moment later the Manager approached with a rag over his shoulder. He looked hot and sweaty from the kitchens.

"Heard you were friends of Terra. But low and behold? It's old Blue and Gray. Haven't seen you two in months now. Heard you transferred to Galactic Center. What brings you my way again? Finally figure out that Corellia is where the real action is. Haha."

"Not quite. We're looking for Terra. Heard she stopped showing up a few days ago?"

"Sure did. Just stopped coming in. No word, no nothing. Just... Poof. Gone."

"Do you still have her address?"

"Sure. But no guarantee it's recent. I have it on computer in the back. Why? Think she's in some kind of trouble?"

"She had a colorful past. You never know. Will, if we could have that address? I'd appreciate it. And so would Terra. We'll find her."

"Sure, sure. Just sit here a moment while I go get it. Shouldn't take but ten minutes. Grab a drink or something. I'll be right back."

Karen leaned back in her chair and nodded to Grant. The hunt had already begun. Terra was an Autumn Cathar that Karen had meet a long time ago. It was a rare breed of the feline species in these parts. If the Friends of Red Jenny were Autumn Cathar as well? There had to be a connection. Karen just knew it.

Grant stroked his chin and noticed the stares they were getting. I guess most people weren't used to seeing two Jedi Knights in full Titanium body armor. So much for keeping a low-profile. Oops.

___

 

[Pravis Sharman]

'Why did I get shipped to this planet? ' The Kaleesh thought to himself, as he looked around the bar with absolute disdain. Now, Pravis didn't have anything against smugglers, as long as they were in the right, he could cut them some slack and allow them to break some laws. But Corellia, every single inhabitant seemed hell-bent on breaking every law possible, at least in his point of view.

So, as he sat down at the bar that according to his knowledge, used to be a regular spot for the Pyre's members, something caught his eye. Or, to be more accurate, everybody's eye. Two people clad in titanium armor sat at the bar, talking to each other and another man. Pravis gazed at the two warily, not wanting to hav e to fight in the one day he had off. Still, the soldier reached around his back and gripped the handle of his rifle.

[member=Karen Roberts]

 

[Onrai]

In the corner, a woman with piercing green eyes would look over the pair of Jedi Knights. A brief Dark Side presence would spike up before subsiding once again as she turned away. The woman with blue hair... she was quite attractive. Her companion as well... but not as much as her. The woman chose this particular moment to stand up and begin her walk out of the bar. Intentionally, as if to get the woman's attention.

She had... thoughts.

[member="Pravis Sharman"] [member="Jay Scott Clark"]

 

[Jsc]

Karen had been killing Force Adepts for the upside of thirty years now. So when a newcomer made the fatal mistake of letting her inclinations tip, both of the titanium warriors dismounted casually and stood at the upright. The hairs were standing up on the backs of their necks. Their effortless faces molded like stone and their posture become harder than the metal they wore about their shoulders.

If this female wanted a fight. Karen and Grant would burn this whole city sector to the ground, and finish it. ...But. For now at least? They only watched the woman rise to take her leave. The Lord Protector himself wouldn't appreciate anything less.

[member="Enigma"] [member="Pravis Sharman"]

 

[Pravis Sharman]

Pravis watched the pair through cold, yellow eyes, not even blinking for a single solitary second. The Kaleesh slowly reached around his back, and pulled out his rifle. Now, he didn't want to die, especially on his day off, but he would rather die than a bar full of civilians. He'd be damned if even one person perished under his watch. Pravis loaded the gun, preparing for some possible combat.

[member=Karen Roberts]

[member=Enigma]

 

[Onrai]

Circe turned, an eyebrow raised as she looked at the blue-haired Jedi. "Why so hair-triggered? I was only going to say that you had beautiful blue hair. I've never seen someone with that hair tone before - is it natural?" Any attempt to try and pry at the cracks of knowledge flowing from her mind would indicate that yes, she was being sincere. So far as she could recollect, she'd seen almost every hair color - but not that one.

[member="Karen Roberts"] [member="Pravis Sharman"]

 

[Jsc]

Grant turned to look at [member="Pravis Sharman"] with a somber squint. The silver haired human shook his head slowly as if to say, no no no. Better that toy away. Karen and Grant had both been Protectorate Military at one point or another. There was nothing surprising to them about a Bolt Gun, Incendiary Ammo, Xial Grenades, or Ultrachrome Double-Tap Tank Rounds. So when Grant motioned for Pravis to cool it. He did so calmly. No need to trigger an incident. And his eyes never left the rifleman either.

Karen was busy elsewhere,

"...Let me be blunt miss. I'm here hunting autumn Cathars for the Guilds. If you know anything, speak it. But If not?.."

She motioned to the door with a heavy glove.

"I don't have much patience for non-Jedi these days."

Coruscant. It still stung.

[member="Enigma"]

 

[HK-36]

[member="Karen Roberts"]
"I hope that does not extend to the non-organics."
A voice spoke up from among the patrons of the tower as another shape in Protectorate armor stood up, grey cloak being pushed from his shoulders to flutter back away from clinging to his form, the cowl of his hood was removed as well to show just the mask of his helmet that covered his face-plate.
"Small world, it seems, Peacock."
The being quipped in electronically-filtered voice of Mr. Feeny. From his belt he took a prolonged silver hilt with a sharpened spear-tip, pushing a button on the hilt the shaft shot out into form of a short spear, pushing once more another scrape was heard as the telescopic spear prolonged once more. The phrik spear-tip tapped on the ground as Disguised HK simply nodded to Karen and Grant, leaning on the Spear of Rae much like it would be a staff.

"How much of a non-Jedi are we talking about here?"
His faceplate rested in [member="Enigma"]'s direction, the photoreceptors behind his mask scanning her features and taking a picture of her, his right hand rested idly nearby his belt, ready to take the hilt of his lightsaber at moment's notice, just in case the lady in question would decide to attack, throw lightning at HK, or try to grab his saber with telekinetic force before he could.

[member="Pravis Sharman"]
Pravis wasn't addressed by the droid as HK did not notice him, but the Khaleesh rifleman would get a clear look at the Pyre and Abregado-Rae emblems the additional armor of the droid displayed, it wasn't too hidden who he was, at least to those who knew what these symbols meant, like members of the Protectorate or those HK has faced in combat.

 

[Pravis Sharman]

Right as Grant tried to get Pravis to put the gun away, the Kaleesh slowly tilted the barrel to face [member=Karen Roberts]. He didn't care if they had some good armor, or even if they tried to get him to put the gun away, he still would've tried to stop them via force. Pravis was a warrior, first and foremost, so cowardice even when faced by a bigger threat, didn't give him a good feeling.

Now, when the Baron of Albregado and the Iron Knight comes over, you tend to ease up. Pravis eyes slightly widened when [member=HK-36] walked in, and knowing the robots reputation among the members of the military, you know that you've got back-up if trouble starts. But, instead of putting his rifle away, he just instead held it in his hand and held it limply by his side.

 

[Onrai]

"So you're hunting furries too... Didn't expect to find someone else with the same interest so far as dealing with the scum around here." A paused crossed her pert lips as she turned to look at the droid.

"Consider me a social worker. A charity worker. I merely help take care of those who've been tormented by the conflict going on in the galaxy. These Cathar aren't exactly making my job easier - and thus, I intend to eliminate them. Neutralize them as a threat. Perhaps we can work together with regards to this." She smiled.

"Your hair is still quite attractive."

[member="Karen Roberts"] [member="HK-36"]

 

[Jsc]

Karen felt a little guilty when HK showed himself. Here she was stirring up trouble in Omega's very own bar. It so completely unprofessional. Corellia might have been on the border space between their two Factions? But Karen still had to pass her weapons through customs and promise to be good girl when she landed. Oops.

Grant was busy thinking of new ways to kill Pravis and spear his head onto a pole. It was common side effect of pointing a gun as someone's lady. Thankfully, the large human male simply stood his ground for now. It was impolite to maim Omega soldiers after all just for aiming your gun at the wrong person. Even a Jedi knew that.

Karen smirked and began,

"That depends upon what you know? These cats are cunning enough to pull the wool over both my client's eyes and the Omega Pyre. And that's mighty tough to pull off these days. Operating out of Corellia isn't unknown to smuggler's cults but it isn't exactly a wise decision if the military gets wind of you. Or worse yet, interested."

She nodded to HK. Secretly she was amiss to involve the Pyre's authorities. If that stolen Republic Intel proved sensitive enough? She might just have to short-circuit an old friend. For HK's sake, she hoped it wasn't. But he could play both sides well. Maybe it would never have come to that after all.

The manager returned from the kitchen and handed Grant a slip of paper. Suddenly he became aware that their was an informal Mexican Stand-off in his crowded restaurant. What the hell is wrong with these people...

"Well. Okay Blue. Gray. ...So that's that. There ya go. So take whatever this team huddle is, and move it outside. Gunships can be here in less than three minutes from the Airforce Base and I'd hate to see you fellows become carbon splat so soon after coming back. ...Oh and for God's sake, the sign on the door says NO WEAPONS. What the hell is wrong with you people?"

He just shook his head and folded his arms. Apparently the Porcupine didn't appreciate a conflict on the Lord Protector's very own doorstep. Karen could agree. It was too nice a place to kark up like the desert taverns. She kinda liked it here anyway,

"Okay then. Grant, let's move. We've got an address to find. ...HK, I'm hunting Autumn Cathar's for the Guilds today. Take your soldier friend and remember to stay out of my way. This one's personal. ...And as for you Miss Mystery Woman? Well. Thank you for the compliment. Good day."

Grant nodded and winked at Pravis. It was time to get going. They had a hostage and Republic Intel to recover.

 

[HK-36]

[member="Enigma"], [member="Karen Roberts"]

HK just looked between the two ex-Republicans and the Sith Lady, as the bartender came up to them to point out that there are no weapon allowed in the bar, HK showed him his badge of Omega Pyre,
"Protectorate business, I will make sure that any damages and your time will be paid for, besides, you would not part an old man from his walking stick, would you?"
The armored droid tilted his head slightly at the barkeep and rapped his Spear of Rae softly against the floor, glancing to Karen he shook his head slightly,

"Hearing the talks of elimination, hunting, and personal vengeance on Protectorate soil, I cannot let you go alone, I may not interfere until necessary, but I do need to Observe. Go against this requirement and the Guild will not be the only one hunted today, although I will hunt you to make sure you will not cross any lines."
He paused looking at the two of them,
"Five minutes, head start, use it if you have to."

With a gesture he motioned to [member="Pravis Sharman"] to put his rifle away and come over, noticing him now with Karen's comment.

The droid would finally look back to Circe, standing in her way between her and the doorway,
"Those two I know, and I trust, you, I do not know, I do not trust, and find no weight in your words. You speak of being a social worker, it is someone who helps population, and of charitable work, it is work that helps one without need of payment. I do not know neither which population you are working for nor the reason why you would not accept payments, but your words are not those of peace. Peace does not eliminate but calms, it does not bring neutralization but tranquility."
He leaned on his Spear, still watching Circe,
"Hold out your palm, if you truly say what you claim to be, you will not fear consequence of transparency."

Once Pravis would come closer to the droid, HK slightly tilted his head to him, still watching Circe,
"You had training as a sniper, hunter? What is your name and designation in the Protectorate?"
He asked quietly, asking basically to which corps the man belonged

 

[Pravis Sharman]

Pravis glared at Grant, as he began thinking to himself. ' Oho, come into our territory, cause trouble in one of our bars...Why I ought to blow your brains out! ' He thought to himself, as he tightened his grip. The Kaleesh glanced at the bartender, who sympathized with his argument. Pravis was extremely annoyed with the whole entire situation, and wished that [member=Karen Roberts] and her friend had never even set foot on the planet.

After matching glares with Grant, he heard the cold, robotic voice of [member=HK-36] beckon him over to the small group. He listened in to the end of the discussion, when his attention turned to the [member=Enigma] in front of him. Pravis pondered why the lady had even included herself in the strange conversation. To him, Circe had clearly lied, because it just seemed a bit hypocritical to have a social worker be hostile to Cathars, simply for being a Cathar. The Kaleesh slowly put his rifle on his back, and when he had heard HK's words, he quickly responded.

"Pravis Sharman, sir. I have had some minimal training in sniping, sir. My current rank is Sergeant. Now, if may ask a question, why are we allowing 2 people participate in vigilantism, and in the possible murder of a man who has not been convicted? Even if you know them, they are breaking Protectorate law, and in my opinion, are receiving special treatment. "

 

[Onrai]

Holding out her palm, Circe smiled. Considering her current body, were she to have her DNA sampled or her fingerprints scanned, she would be recognized as Alexandra Cinthra, former member of the Jedi Order. "Alright... Now that we have that out of the way, can we get to dealing with these Cathar? I would rather not have to worry about any tension with the government - the last thing I need is incarceration, however brief." A sigh crossed her lips as she scanned the bar, looking for anything suspicious.

[member="Karen Roberts"] [member="HK-36"]

 

[Jsc]

Karen smiled. It looked like she had five minutes then? Better use it. If she was going to pretend all day that she was a Bounty Hunter, might as well get the hunting underway. She moved to leave the bar.

Grant turned and smiled at Circe. The large human reached into his pockets and removed a plastic calling card.

"Public Terminal Card. If you really do want to catch these kitties as much as I do? Call me with anything you find."

Together the duo walked out of the bar. As the moved away from the door Karen reached through their Soul Bond to chat,

~ And why are we playing phone tag with mystery women today, hmm? ~

Grant smiled and squinted against the sun,

~ Think of it as, two birds with one stone. ~

Karen frowned.

~ And were you trying to get that soldier to shoot me? I thought you'd behave yourself better out here. ~

Grant smiled and shook his head,

~ Oh right. Says the girl who's running an illegal Black Op right underneath the Lord Protector's nose and calling it a Guild picnic. And I'm the one who is crazy? ~

Karen shrugged and climbed aboard her rented jetbike. She paused to allow her partner to mount his own,

~ HK is old Grant. He could know Corellia from as far back as before the Plaque. Keeping him close could be useful. ~

Grant put on his helm and verbalized this time.

"He's a sentient Force Construct who can kill Jedi Knights and has a memory older than a Revanchist. Are you even sure we can beat him? I've never seen a weapon like that before."

She smiled,

"Think of it as having an extra bodyguard around. He'll engage anything nasty we happen to find with good pleasure. And I'm sure we'll be stirring up a hornets nest very soon. ...I'm punching in the address."

Grant seemed shocked.

"Bodyguard? ...Oh. And what am I? Chopped liver? Sheesh... We're gonna have half of Omega on our tail before the day is through. This was not a good idea. I'm gonna say that again Karen. Not a good idea."

Together they hit the accelerator and blitzed away like lightning into the sky lanes. Time to hit the residential complex system. They had a missing girl to find.

 

[HK-36]

[member="Enigma"]
"Do not be so hasty."
HK slightly tilted his head at Circe as he grabbed her palm, a metal talon shooting out from one of his fingers as it pressed hard to the base of her palm, drawing a line upwards he cut vertical line in her flesh across her palm, drawing blood.

It was not a scan, her fingerprints, or who she claimed to be that day he was after, although the blood that his finger dipped in he will keep. Instead, with his other hand he grabbed a pill of DUST, a miniature tracking device which would allow HK to track and notice Circe's presence if they happen to be on the same planet.
If Circe's writer does not give a permission, she can always pull her hand away before the pill was cracked and she would be dealt with in other way.

Otherwise, the droid would crack the pill of DUST between his metal fingers, slapping the fine grey grains onto the cut he has made on Circe's palm, his hand clasping and pressing tight to her, grinding the powder carefully into the wound.
Once his hand would be removed, there would be no sign from the powder, all of it in her bloodstream, the droid would then take a pill of bacta and smear that over Circe's wound, as far as he knew he was not dealing with anyone who had regenerative properties.

He would look at her then, releasing her palm
"Leave, a social worker has been assigned to this case."

Glancing to [member="Pravis Sharman"] he motioned with his head for the soldier to follow him outside,
"I will explain it later on, when I will know there will not be anyone to eavesdrop."
He responded, referring to the crowded bar they were exiting just know,
"The over-watch is yours, I want you to track them from vantage points, remember the tenants of a sniper- stealth, patience, mobility. I will try to catch up to them on the ground. I will contact you in few minutes."

[member="Karen Roberts"]
Scanning in the direction where he calculated for Grant and Karen to depart he quickly analyzed the traffic. Just in time to catch a glimpse of blue mane of hair.
"They are on the move."
He gave Pravis a nod,
"Dismissed and good hunting."
With that the droid slowly limped over to a nearby speeder-car and took a seat, putting his staff-spear in the passenger seat, securing it with a seat-belt so it would not fall out or get stolen.

Then he would pull his own seat belt and looked around to check the positions of the mirrors. Ah! The right one was off a bit. HK looked about the console to find the button for adjusting it, punched that in and with a little keypad customized the position of the mirror.
"Alright, let us do this, speed-chase time."
He pushed the ignition button, powering up the repulsorlift systems.

He looked behind then, putting the speeder in reverse to back up a bit, adjusting the angle of the start. Stopping the speeder he moved it into the flying gear, as he finally started off, following the trail he established with scanners after Karen and Grant.

 

[Onrai]

When [member="HK-36"] finished the cut through her hand, she pulled away. "Ow! What gives you the right to do that to me? I'm a social worker, for Force's sake. You can't do that to me without my consent, and I forbid it!" She had no idea what was in the pill he was reaching for, but whatever it was, it likely would hurt a lot if its contents were rubbed into the wound. Turning to look towards the exit of the building, she held the bleeding wound in her hand before turning away. "I work for my employer. Not the Omega Protectorate. Thank you for your kind words." She then stepped out, intending to return to her shuttle and give her hand a bacta wrap. "Ow... Better hurry and get this healed before it starts to scar."

She would contact [member="Karen Roberts"] and her partner soon.

 

[Pravis Sharman]

Pravis eyed the [member=Enigma] warily, as he stepped out of the door. The Kaleesh, hearing [member=HK-36]s words of wisdom, he sped off into the distance. He ducked down a grimy alleyway, causing a small puddle to splash and spiral into the air. Pravis quickly scanned around him, and spotted a ladder. He quickly sped up the steps, and ran across the rooftop of an apartment. The Kaleesh jumped from roof to roof, nearly tripping over himself a couple of times. Pravis skidded to a halt, and quickly pulled out his rifle. He looked through the scope, his yellow eye scanning for the signature blue hair of [member=Karen Roberts].

 

[HK-36]

[member="Enigma"]

HK would allow Circe to pull her hand away, but not leave without a partying gift,
"Fine, catch."
With a quick flick she would be stricken point-blank with a DUST ball, and like a can of paint exploding, the contents would splatter in grey matter both her and HK, covering skin, clothing, hair, faceplate, chestplate, legplate, armplate, plateplate, and cloak.. plate.

She would still be tagged, but the difference here was that a good long bath and a nice scrubbing, maybe a haircut, would get rid of the DUST particles, which is considerably much better than having them stick around in one's blood stream.

Other than that, it all continued as before, HK left the building, took five minutes or so to start a speeder-car, went in chase after Roberts and Grant.

 

[Jsc]

Greenspirit Super Apartments

It was a series of four tall apartment complexes as high a skyscrapers. Middle class with textured stone and colorful sign work. Mostly clean and with generally high traffic. The surrounding area was metropolitan but carried an air of rural rooftop development. Not too shabby at all.

This was the right address but Karen and Grant didn't have time to use the parking garage. They simply flew right up to the bannister railing on the 60th floor and dismounted into the catwalks. Two children simply stared from their perch nearer the gardens above.

"Watch our bikes eh." Grant smirked at the kids. Karen was busy reading the numbers above the doors,

"The numbers twelve nineteen. Looks like it's on the other side of the building. I'll check the room while you prep for a Happy Russian."

Grant frowned, "You know I hate the Happy Russian. Can't we just leave the bikes and both check the room?"

"No. I didn't bring you along so you could shadow me in person. Just keep the chatter to the Soul Bond and we'll be fine. Besides? When was the last time you got to run that maneuver on a Jetbike? Think of it as a challenge. Hehe."

The large human rolled his eyes and climbed back aboard his bike. He snorted and hit the accelerator, diving down the side of the building and hiding his presence nearer the base of the massive tower. His job now was to stay out of site and keep the engine running. Boring. But with a touch of Force Masking, even Grant could keep invisible in a shadow.

Karen walked around the building's exterior walkways until she found the right room. It was on the east side facing it's sister towers. The shade was pleasant and it smelled like dinner time cooking already. The door was painted a bright red, two potted ferns outside, and the curtains in the window were jolly and fair. Almost like a happy hobbit could have lived here in comfortable bliss.

She knocked on the door and sat back to lean against the black iron scaffolding. Hopefully Terra was just sick at home. That would make this part of the story easy.

...

[member="HK-36"] [member="Pravis Sharman"] [member="Enigma"]