It Just Isn't the Same

[Kay-Larr]

Einon normally hid his emotions quite well. That was part of his job as Kay's bodyguard and assistant. But ever since her abduction on his watch, the anger and frustration was just below the surface. He wasn't Force sensitive at all, he was Commenori through and through. It was rare for him to leave the planet, but he knew the Galaxy well due to the high amount of travellers coming through Commenor's ports.

Today was a day that he was dreading. He approached the nearest Embassy to the Presidential Palace, the one housing the Silver Jedi Order. He figured that Embassies of that sort would bring trouble to Commenor, due to the wars and crusades elsewhere in the Galaxy, but he was thankfully proven wrong and that was something that he wasn't afraid to admit.

After releasing a quick breath that he didn't realize that he was holding, Einon walked up the steps and headed inside. He carried no visible weapons and was dressed plainly. There was no need to cause a panic among the Commenori just yet. He approached the front desk and didn't even smile when he spoke to the secretary there. "My name is Einon. I work for the Madam President. I need to speak with [member="Connor Harrison"] immediately. Is he here?"

 

[Connor Harrison]

Luckily, Connor hadn’t left the Embassy on Commenor. He was about to, not being able to secure a meeting with the President, so it was pretty much a wasted affair. But when he had the call for someone wanting to see him, he only assumed it was an aide offering a thousand pardons for her absence.

He hopped down the spiral marble stairs from the first floor to the regal looking lobby to meet the person wanting to see him.

”Einon," he said as he walked to the young man who looked nervous, ”Connor Harrison. What can I do for you."

When this formality was over, he’d leave and wait for the elusive Kay to appear again.

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Connor Harrison"] was quick to meet him. In a way he was glad as he didn't want to be kept waiting for long. He wanted to get this done and over with. But not in front of everyone. He recognized the Jedi, having seen him a few times at least, though the two had never carried a conversation until now.

Einon guided Connor over to a quiet corner and when he looked up at the taller man, his eyes showed the Jedi the worry, anger and frustration that he carried with him. "There's no gentle way to put this, but the Madam President has been abducted. An investigation is under way, but the Elders have instated Minister Skirae to take her place until her safe return."

 

[Connor Harrison]

Feeling that there was something wrong from the man’s body-language and tone, the news didn’t come as a shock. It was another part of politics – a group or a sect kidnap one in power for a ransom or to change a government or force a cabinet into submission.

”Ok, first who is this Minister Skirae. What’s his history, his history with the government and with Kay? Can you eliminate him from this crime?"

He looked down past Einon for a moment, racing over thoughts coming thick and fast.

”Walk with me," he said taking the route out of the embassy back into the outside world free from prying eyes and ears. ”Where was she when this happened, and who have you got going after her? I take it you ARE going after her and not doing that rigid business of waiting for a ransom demand, because if you do wait you’ll be the one responsible for her death."

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Einon raised a brow at [member="Connor Harrison"] 's suspicion of Minister Skirae. But there weren't a lot of people that knew of the guy, so it was to be expected. "Minister Skirae is a quiet man. He's not Commenori, but he's not much of a traveller either. He cares for a little Twi'lek girl that doesn't appear to be able to speak. The man is so timid, I doubt that he'd ever raise a hand to anyone. Our Madam President hired him. Clearly she saw him fit for his position."

He followed along beside Connor, though slightly behind. It wasn't as though the two were on equal footing. "She was on a speeder bike ride in the Twin Canyons. I let her go with a couple of guards, as she was just wanting to blow off a little steam. It's not out of the ordinary for her to do that, but it's not a common occurrence either. Both guards were killed by her abductor and then she was taken.When we discovered the smoke from the speederbikes, we tried contacting them but got nothing but static. I sent moremen there straight away, but it was too late. I can show you where the ambush took place. We have plenty looking for her, and looking for information on her. And since you sort of inquired, there has not been any ransom demands, no contact. I'm sure that if they had wanted to kill her, we would have found her body by now. As to who had done this, we do not know."

 

[Connor Harrison]

Nodding, Connor led the young man by the shoulder away and talked quickly and quietly.

”Nobody else needs to know of this. If they ask, she is on a diplomatic mission to Voss with the Silver Council. Take me to the site."

He would walk where Elnon went, close by his side.

”Can you think of anyone with a grudge against Kay? Enemies. Governments. Sects. Anything at all in recent mind she spoke of or has done - and it's important you think hard because if not then we're looking at a near dead end."

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Einon was slightly curious as to why [member="Connor Harrison"] would want to keep this under wraps. Does he think that it could cause a panic? That was possible. Kay was well loved among the people that she served, but there were many different governments on Commenori soil, and if one leader could be taken so easily, then it is easy to assume that others could be taken as well. Commenor would cease to be known as a safe haven.

It took a moment for him to answer Connor's next questions. He wasn't sure how much about Kay that the man knew. Not everyone knew of her Force magic as she kept it hidden well. Einon didn't quite agree to that and neither did the Elders, but it was her life and her choice. She must have had her reasons for doing so. "The Hutt Cartel had a grudge against her. Some of their members have been spotted here, but they work primarily in the drug trade and nothing quite to this extreme. She hasn't gone out of her way to cause trouble to them or anyone else. She had tensions with some of the Mandalorians, but there had been no contact for a long time. My only guess is that it could be some of the Sith that aren't too happy with losing control of this world. We were under their jurisdiction for some time, until their collapse."

 

[Connor Harrison]

”Any names of these Sith? Governors or Lords? Anything. If we have nothing to go on – why did you come to me for help? I can’t do anything without something to - "

He stopped in his tracks. One thing Sith did was break people, and Connor knew Kay was a Force sensitive, but with how much training or understanding of her ability he didn’t know. If the Sith broke her…

Connor rubbed his chin and turned to the youth.

”Don’t tell anyone of this. It could be nothing more than a scare tactic."

Kay was in a great position, and if her defences were down, Connor wanted to get there first before they could be built.

”Can you take me to her quarters or office? I’d like to see if there is anything that could detail her actions that could pinpoint a possible location or name."

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Einon shook his head. "I know of no names. There had been very little contact with them. The only Sith that I know of are the Red Ravens. They too have an Embassy, as well as a hospital. I came to you on my rounds of going to each Embassy and letting them know what was going on before we go public. But if you strongly suggest otherwise, well, I know that the Madam President held the Jedi in high regard, so I will follow your advice."

To [member="Connor Harrison"] 's request he nodded. "I will take you to her office. Any information that you find that has nothing to do with this investigation, I ask that you keep it to yourself. Her rights to privacy should be protected."

It was a short walk to the Embassy. As they went inside, security left them alone. Einon was their boss. He led Connor to her office and showed him her desk with her datapad on it. He intentionally blocked Connor's view of the green lightsaber hilt on the coffee table amongst a serving tray with a tea pot and cups. Sure it looked decorative with it's engravings, but he always thought that she shouldn't just leave it around. There seemed to be no ignition switch on it anyways, that he could find. "Her datapad is unlocked. Before she left, she was very agitated upon hearing about the attack on Atrisia. The President was friends with one of it's rulers, so she had visited there many times. Her advisor and bodyguard [member="Veiere Arenais"] had gone there to help the Atrisians. She was not told until he was already long gone."

 

[Connor Harrison]

Connor listened as they walked, ignoring others around them.

Before long they arrived at Kay's quarters and it mirrored an elegance of how he imagined she loved. He looked around and took in what he could.

"Einon, can you do me a favour?" He walked around the room to the advisor. "Can you go and see if her bodyguard is here? Veiere, his name is."

To be honest, he wanted the youth out of the room for a minute or so.

"I only ask as I'm worried about who we can trust - in being here now we may make ourselves targets. I want us to be safe." He nodded. "Can you do that?"

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Einon furrowed his brows. "Veiere is not here. He's on the Chimera to visit other worlds and see if any of our allies have heard anything"

At [member="Connor Harrison"] 's mention of trust, he took a moment of pause to study the man. "Do you think that this was an inside job? That someone here helped in her abduction?" Kay's speederbike ride was spontaneous. No one even knew that she was going out there, outside of himself, the two dead guards and the mechanics that kept the speederbikes fuelled and in good working condition. "It could have been one of the mechanics that tipped off whomever took her. I'll find out who was on shift and have them held for questioning. Just give me a few minutes."

At last he felt as though they could have a lead. It was another possible dead end, but it was still a lead. Einon gave Connor a curt nod and then left Kay's office for the maintenance wing.

 

[Connor Harrison]

”Thank you," he called out.

Waiting a moment, Connor turned and scanned the room with his eyes. He glanced to the spiral stairs. Sticking with this level he moved to her desk and flicked through the items there - a few papers, an ornament, a lightsaber. The datapad. The saber confused him; it was something he never thought to associate with Lady Kay, but here it was. Moving to the datapad, he scrolled through quickly.

There was little to go on except her locations of current and future meetings - nothing seemed to stand out.

Tossing it down, he looked around again, drumming his fingers on the wood.

”Where have they taken you," Connor muttered.

He moved across the room past the fireplace to the few books on the shelf and scanned them. Nothing. A fist thumped the side of the shelf in frustration. He wasn't a detective, why had her security thrown up nothing? No clue or evidence or witness?

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

There was nothing hidden on her datapad or within her office. Kay was never one to keep a journal either for she was used to people looking for ways to blackmail her. It was the life of a politician.

Einon had gone through the schedule and found the name that he needed, though the mechanic wasn't on shift yet. In an hour he will be though. So as not to draw attention, he decided to wait before having him brought in for questioning.

Einon instructed the guards on what to do once the mechanic arrived and then headed back to Kay's office. He opened the door and stepped in, glad to see that the place wasn't a mess. "The mechanic will be here in about an hour. You can question him too, if you'd like. Did you find anything?" The look on [member="Connor Harrison"] 's face told him that he had run into a dead end, but hope for another lead was always there.

 

[Connor Harrison]

When the aide returned, Connor was half-way down the spiral stairs again, tapping his fingers on the bannister.

”Nothing,” he shook his head. ”Which points to me like this was partly an inside job. Take her off somewhere, let the right people know where you’ll be at what time – and bang. Kya is gone and there’s no clue left personally from her as she wouldn’t have reason to doubt her own.”

He sat in her seat, leaning back and steeped his fingers in thought.

”What are the people like towards here her? Has she ruffled a few feathers? Any sectors or people at threat with her policies or actions?”

Ever so slightly, he focused on Einon to read his body language and speech. He too could be one who held more information than first suspected.

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

A brow was raised as [member="Connor Harrison"] was on the spiral stair. Either he was up there snooping in Kay's chamber or, he was thinking about it and stopped once Einon had arrived. Either way, it should be expected. At times like these, the President's privacy was not her own.

"The President is well liked. The only people with animosity would be the members of the previous administration that she had fired...But she still treated them well, so there hadn't been much of anything coming from them." It was certainly something to look into.

With each passing moment, the list of suspects grew and that made Einon feel even worse for having her abducted on his watch. Even her Force magic mumbo jumbo didn't seem to be of any help.

 

[Connor Harrison]

”Hm. I see.”

There was an uncomfortable silence in the room that Connor let hang as he continued to look at the youth.

”Remind me again, what were you doing when your President got kidnapped? You let her go off on her own with guards – why? Aren’t you supposed to stay with her at all times? You know this will come down harder on you than anyone if you don’t start helping me instead of fingering others in the frame.”

He pushed up from the chair as quick as a flash and walked around slowly.

”Anything you’ve yet to remember you can tell me?”

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Einon clenched his jaw tight as [member="Connor Harrison"] questioned him and his motives. "You don't think that I know that? You don't think that I blame myself? Normally she goes off alone or has friends with her. This time I made her go with guards. We are a small and insignificant planet in the grand scheme of things. With no hints, no signs that anything bad was to happen, how were we to know?! How was I to know?! I am not a fortune teller!"

He folded his arms across his chest in order to prevent him from punching something while his anger at being accused as a suspect was brought to a boil. As Connor paced, so did he, though his steps were much faster as he tried to calm himself down.

"If I am to be fired, it will not be by you."

 

[Connor Harrison]

He pushed up from the chair as quick as a flash and walked around slowly.

”Oh, quit your self-righteous talk. You must really consider her unimportant and all she stands for if you class yourself as insignificant and small. That's why she's gone, because you don't think she's valuable enough to protect. Well, well done you.”

Connor walked past the man, not gifting him with a second glance as he went and pushed open the door and held it.

”Get out there and get that mechanic here now. An hour means an hour that your President will suffer or die. MOVE.”

He didn't have time for this; to mop up the inability to act by these people.

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Einon narrowed his eyes as [member="Connor Harrison"] accused himself and the rest of the staff of believing that Kay wasn't important. That couldn't be further from the truth. She had her protection and they respected her need for privacy and a bit of freedom. Yet the Jedi continued to give Einon the guilt trip and push the man even more while he was already down. He needed a drink.

As Connor walked by him and held the door, Einon was still fuming, wanting to cut the man down with his words or his fists, but that wouldn't solve anything. He brushed passed the man with a sarcastic "Yes, SIR!", and then headed down to the hanger where all the ships, vehicles and mechanics were. Getting on his commlink, he growled into it. "If Najhaa isn't here, get him here NOW!" With each passing moment he grew more and more pissed off with the Jedi's judgemental eyes boring into his back and scrutinizing his every move.

 

[Connor Harrison]

Connor watched the youth, feeling his anger, and when he heard him bark into the com, the Jedi moved back inside and walked around the room, sitting back at the desk.

With a sigh, he looked around - under the drawer, trying to open it - locked. Under a few papers, the datapad. Then, the lightsaber. He picked it up and held it and narrowed his eyes.

”What are you hiding, Lady President,” he muttered.

Rolling his tongue around his mouth, he turned the hilt over gently and inspected it. Tapping his fingers on it, he placed it down and looked out the window in thought.

”You don't have a saber unless you need it...you've got enemies...you're protecting yourself...you're using the Force....”

The Sith were looking more and more the guilty party, fueled with just what power Lady Kay possibly sat on and had been hiding from others.

[member="Lady Kay"]