Lend Me Your Ear

[Lief]

Darkness seemed to permeate the very heart of the shadowport, despite the abundance of lights which were set both overhead and at ground level. The latter she abhorred, given that it illuminated the bodies which lay lifeless among the common muck and grime. Her hands worked their way into her pockets, the lower half of her face sinking deeper behind a thin scarf... As though the very air was tainted. In many ways it felt as though it was.

Probably is, given the stench of death I can still smell and the rotting corpses. Who knew what else lay beneath? It did not bear thinking about. Such a strange, secluded spot. Ayvari had not even come in on her own vessel, no the Mynock was safely tucked away on Duro. Instead she'd traveled on an innumerable amount of vessels, changing hands at a completely random - yet admittedly pre-planned - rate.

And here I am... It would not be as simple as seeking him out, she knew. Walking right up to him was not exactly the most inconspicuous way, and even though she was in so secure a location she couldn't help but feel as though eyes were on her all the same. Her fingers clenched into the inner fabric of her pockets, and a soft sigh escaped her through her nose. Through the bazaar then. Force knew what sort of wonders would be on show, would be for sale... You are here with a purpose, Ayvari. Head in the game, or leave before you get in too deep.

Oh but there would be no leaving now. Not without the answers she sought.

 

[Munin]

[member="Ayvari Dorian"]

Point Nadir was not his favorite place, to the say the least.

The station was all sorts of filthy, disgusting, not to mention disastrously murderous, but it was a good neutral point. No galactic government held sway here, no primary leaders ruled, and nothing and no one sought to enforce any kind of law. It was a neat little system, one where he and Huginn thrived. There were hundreds of their Little BIrds here, maybe even thousands. Each one went about their daily lives. A few were even in the Cantina he now sat in.

Funny that.

His eyes glanced around the room for a moment, searching for the woman who had contacted him.

He sat at the table in the very back of the Cantina, a small booth. There was a drink before him on the table, the only clean glass in the place. A blaster sat at his side, though in truth he very much doubted and deplored it's use. Today was just another day in his life, sell a piece of information that he had gathered long ago, something that had hung in the holo-net that he and Huginn had logged hours hours before. That was the way it always was.

Simple.

 

[Lief]

Her ruminations had led her through the cavernous asteroid into all manner of sights and sounds. A mingling of bodies that seemed to press in from all directions left her feeling flustered and breathless, but she carried on all the same while suppressing the rising tension. She had no love of places such as these, where mankind seemed more like rats squatting in their own filth. Music blared from the opposite end of the bazaar, propelled by the high 'ceilings' yet masked by the murmur of voices. It was disjointing.

A piercing scream held her attention for all of two seconds, before it was washed out by the low yet voluminous voice of a slaver calling out his wares. Poor girls seemed terrified. Ayvari did as most would and simply averted her gaze. Winding her way through the people, through the stalls, glancing from establishment to establishment with no real idea of which direction she was headed in. If she was this confused, then anyone who might be following ought to be too.

By now, however, it was clear nobody was tracking her. It was entirely implausible... Right?

With a slow exhale she wound her way up a set of stairs carved into the rockface between two stalls and out from the pit of human indecency. Like a beacon in the distance, the holy grail itself, she finally spotted the meeting point. A cantina. Who would willingly stay here for so casual a thing as... Nevermind that, Ayvari. There are all kinds of people in this Galaxy. No doubt the contact chose this place for that exact reason. Never too safe. Never too cautious.

She lingered in the doorway for a moment longer than was necessary, gaze subtly scanning the room, in the hopes that her contact would be waiting. Watching as she now was. Then she took two steps inside, and found an empty booth.

[member="Munin"]

 

[Munin]

[member="Ayvari Dorian"]

He watched for a moment.

Appearances were sometimes deceiving, but Munin found that in his line of things most things tended to be exactly as they appeared. The average person didn't generally tend to disguise themselves or change the way they acted. He couldn't really blame them. Changing who you were wasn't an easy thing. Munin did it off by way of necessity, taking dozens of different names, faces, and quirks every year. It was how his business worked.

Even now he went by a different name then he'd had yesterday.

His clients were different of course.

Most often they were people of import, those that saw themselves as the Kings and Queens of the galaxy, those that would take no argument when it came to their own power. It was a strange thing really, that those who often claimed to have the most power sought out knowledge from those who claimed to have none. He mused on that for a second more as he observed her. She sat in the booth alone, slowly looking around and peering through the hazy light of the cantina.

She was searching for him of course, but he wasn't quite yet ready to approach her.

Instead he motioned over towards the serving droid at the bar.

The Automaton would nod for half a second, then quickly approach the woman. The droid would drop off a simple drink for the girl, along with a datapad. The datapad was nothing special, a simple slab with a single question on it. [What do you need?]

 

[Lief]

After a moment of table glancing she turned her gaze to one of the flimsy menus and tried to appear at least a little interested in what was on offer. Truth be told she was anything but hungry, the sight and stench of this place did little to goad one into eating, but... Alcohol was always on the tables. But you need your mind awake and aware, not fogged over by the bottom of a glass.

Turned out she didn't really have to fake ordering anything after all, as a serving droid quickly arrived with a prop and a datapad. Excellent.

She mulled over the contents of the glass for but a second, reading over the four words that she had been presented with. So her contact was here, and erring on the side of caution. So be it, but if he thought that she would be open over a virtual interface then he had another thing coming.

Just one word was left as her response - Information - before she sat back and swirled the contents of the glass around lazily with her right hand. Not once even attempting to drink from it. She realized that she was being somewhat impudent with her response, truthfully it was a trait she never usually exhibited. All for respect where it was due.

[member="Munin"]

 

[Munin]

[member="Ayvari Dorian"]

The response was an amusingly common one. Nearly everyone who came to see him said it at one point or another. Perhaps it was just an obvious thing to say, or perhaps the argument was simply a way to exert some control where you had none. He smiled for a second, at least he learned something by asking.

[Of what?] The answer came.

Information was such a broad and far reaching term that one had to dig a little deeper. The digging was not an insult, but a simple gauging of fact. Munin had to know what was sought in order to give the correct information, it was that simple.

Of course he would not keep up this electronic charade forever.

Face to face meetings were always much more simple, especially when one wanted something. Munin had often found however that certain people just couldn't ask for what they wanted. The woman he'd met on Coruscant...the woman whom he wished was here even now, was one of them.

Munin waited a moment more to see if he would get an answer.

 

[Lief]

The response was rather quick to come, as though the contact had anticipated her response. So transparent, was she? Well you've never claimed nor tried to be anything contrary to that, not in recent years at least. So few knew her, knew of her even, that it didn't matter in the slightest. She usually blended into the background, nobody knew to look for her so more often than not she went unseen. Perfect for a woman such as she.

Not that it mattered here.

She drummed her fingertips against her left knee and pondered for a second. It felt as though she was being toyed with, tested. Well, there was still no way she was going to divulge to a datapad. No idea who was on the other end. Not that speaking verbally was any better, anyone could be listening in... But words were less permanent.

[You Tell Me.]

[member="Munin"]

 

[Munin]

[member="Ayvari Dorian"]

Another amusing answer.

Many people came to him and Huginn for rather obvious reasons. They needed power, or a leg up on someone else. They would travel to Point Nadir or another place where Munin and Huginn could be found, and they would ask the simple question. More often then not it would be about a particular person or corporation, a way to gain leverage.

It was interesting, but all too predictable. More often than not the tasks were simple, and the client would walk away with exactly what they asked for in a matter of moment. Sometimes it got more difficult, a particularly invasive question or an encompassing one. Those took more time.

With her....

He thought for a moment. With her it would be a guess, yet Munin had always been good at guessing.

[A person] He wrote back, his hands flicking for a brief moment over the datapad before he returned his attention to the girl. He had no doubt that his answer might be incorrect, but even that would offer him another clue.

 

[Lief]

The response took a little longer this time. Almost warranted a smile. Instead Ayvari lifted the glass up and sniffed the contents, trying to gauge what it was she had been sent alongside the datapad. She wasn't an idiot, she wasn't going to drink it regardless of what it turned out to be, but she couldn't help but be curious all the same.

Her eyes drifted back to the screen. A good deduction, though how many of his clients came through these parts looking for information on an individual. A way to hold leverage over them... Ayvari's reasoning wasn't quite that, truth be told it was wholly innocent - more for the girl's benefit than her own - but she didn't have to divulge as much.

[Partially correct.]

Not entirely though, there was more than just Joon to think about here. It was one thing to know about her and her past - after all Ayvari had already witnessed first hand much of her present, she did so love to stalk her own quarry - but in order to gain her trust there had to be more. The people she had been created for, the lifestyle which had been intended, her purpose... No, Joon herself was not enough. The Program, though... The Legion that no longer was. The base on Duro which Ayvari had visited so many times as of late in preparation.

Ayvari had to truly believe what she told her quarry. There could be no room for doubt, or the clone would sense it...

[member="Munin"]

 

[Munin]

[member="Ayvari Dorian"]

Games were fun, but they grew tiresome. He saw the self-satisfied look on her face, and that was enough to know. She was a woman of confidence, though where that confidence came from he did not yet know. Slowly he stood up from the table, notably leaving his datapad behind.

The device wasn’t needed.

Munin quickly made his way across the Cantina, slipping between a small crowd of Devaronians who had gathered in the center of the establishment. They looked at him for a moment, then smiled as they recognized his current face. One made a comment, but he simply gave the man a nod before moving on.

He found his way towards the woman’s booth, lingering just out of step for a moment more before he eventually slid into place in front of her.

Munin offered the girl a warm smile, nodding his head and then speaking in greeting. “Hello.”

 

[Lief]

"Ah... So now he chooses to show his face. I see you grow tired of the games."

Whatever she had been expecting, when it came to seeing him in person, it wasn't exactly this. She could see a slight wash of sandy hair, piercing eyes... Truthfully, what does it matter? His appearance has nothing to do with his effectiveness.

He had slid into place across from her rather effortlessly. In fact she hadn't completely noticed him until he was right there and speaking. No doubt he was well versed in shadowplay.

She pushed the datapad to her right, depositing of the glass just a few inches to her left, and leaned back in the booth.

[member="Munin"]

 

[Munin]

[member="Ayvari Dorian"]

He offered her a charming smile.

“Games are fun.” Munin played plenty of them, not just with his clients either. He held the records for many online holo-games, and although they weren’t really business related...they were still enjoyable. Plus, they often times contained valuable information. “They can tell you so much about a person.”

He held his smile, but didn’t give her time now speak.

“Now. Tell me why you’re here. What it is you seek.” He wouldn’t be able to help her without that, and much to his dismay he was no mind reader. Technology had not quite yet come far enough to allow for that.

A disappointment to be sure.

He often wondered if force users could read minds. Spark certainly couldn’t, something that had made him breathe a sigh of relief, but perhaps others could.

 

[Lief]

Men, she had come to learn, loved their smiles. She didn't quite understand it herself. Charming, alluring, intimidating. Always baring their teeth as though the whole Galaxy had to know how well they flossed. That silly hitchhiker had done the same. And Cemas liked to whenever he thought he was provoking her. Only damn fool in the whole Galaxy that has ever truly annoyed me.

But Cemas was gone. She should've thrown him out of the airlock when she had the chance... Instead she'd sent him packing on some Core World.

Apparently the man before her was not adverse to games. Hinting perhaps at a more childish side? Maybe he had a little too much time on his hands, no doubt he'd be down in the arcades when she left.

No chance to respond though, as he continued on... Always straight down to business, it seemed. Oh well, it wasn't as if Ayvari enjoyed beating about the bush. She looked around, checking for any onlookers, of course that was hard to tell, before steeping her fingers.

"There was a program on Duro, led by some Imperial Legion... Until recently that is." The facts she had managed to gather on her own were vague to say the least. Something to do with "Clones, the next great weapon. Same shrill, different era, right? Well... One of them survived. JN-4."

She sat back in her seat for a moment, lowering her hands into her lap.

"She's what I'm after." No point in lying about it, he was probably used to the same idjits passing through. Help me find this person. Tell me how to have the upperhand over my boss... Bleh. He probably didn't see this as any different to the rest, but she did.

"But to have her, I need to know more about the Program. About this Legion..."

[member="Munin"]

 

[Munin]

[member="Ayvari Dorian"]

“I see” Munin said simply. The name honestly sounded somewhat familiar, but then again there had been a lot of Empire’s, and a lot of Legions over the last few decades. Off the top of his head he could recall about half a dozen, and that was only reaching back to a point after the One Sith had appeared on the scene.

He wasn’t perfect, his and Huginn’s databases were, but his memory did not expand as far as they did and as such he decided that asking questions would be the best way to gain more knowledge here, or rather, more insight.

“What do you know so far?” The Broker asked. “Do you know if this Imperial Legion still exists? What was it’s purpose? Who leads it?”

Simple questions, the answers to which could likely be found within his database, but he thought it better to ask now. “The more I know of what you know, the easier it will be for me to find what you’re looking for.”

That was the simple truth. Many people tried to hide what they knew, but in the end they were only giving themselves another obstacle to jump over.

 

[Lief]

She exhaled a short breath of thought as she brought to the forefront of her mind all she had managed to learn about this Imperial Legion. True it was a ridiculously common name, and in a Galaxy so large it was silly to think it would be easy to track down without a little extra input.

"Well, as I say... They were stationed mainly on Duro. I say were, they came under attack though honestly I haven't been able to get a clear cut answer on who their antagonist was. The Legion was obliterated, the program alongside it. Just one survivor. One."

Well that and the clone who was taken off world earlier... But she wasn't even ever part of the program.

"The assault was fairly recent, if that helps any."

She just needed something, anything... That could hint at further knowledge. All she had was the bare basics, the tip of the iceberg, and she knew that would not be enough to convince. It wasn't even just about convincing though, it was understanding... Her, JN-4, Joon. There was only so much watching from afar could do.

[member="Munin"]

 

[Munin]

[member="Ayvari Dorian"]


The idea of a recent attack actually did help, if only because old things were more difficult to remember, at least for most. He mused for a second, trying to remember anything about recent assaults on Duro.

“The difficulty comes in the name.” Munin stated the Obvious. “There are dozens of Imperial Legions, half a hundred Empire’s, even the Alliance names one of it’s armies a legion.”

He seemed amused at that. “Duro narrows it down however. The world is insular in many ways.”

The Duro were a people of expansion. They had been one of the first to develop the hyperdrive and spread themselves among the stars, yet their homeworld was incredibly isolationist. Not many Duros who lived on Duro tended to leave their home, and other species who tried to colonize the planet did not always find the friendliest welcome.

Odd really.

“The Clone was the survivor?” Munin asked simply.