Memories Of Better Days

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6667px]

[/SIZE]​

[SIZE=10.6667px]Yavin System[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px], Yavin IV[/SIZE]
[SIZE=10.6667px]Mandalorian Space.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=10.6667px][member="Ember Rekali"][/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]How long has it been?[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px] That question kept coming back to him. Ten years? No, the Sith sacked Coruscant seven years ago and even back then Samael had been on the run. Fifteen? Twenty? Somewhere around that ballpark, perhaps, time was quite the awkward subject; what with hyperspace travel and relativistic shielding malfunctioning. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Suffice to say [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]it had been a[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px] [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]while[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px].[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]But there was a time that a man could no longer ignore reality, a time when going [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]home[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px] was the only thing left to him, a time when age itself was pressing down on him and reminding him of a simple, well-known fact: [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]That life was not infinite and that nobody lived forever. (Even if some Sith Lords kept trying anyway.)[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]The Echoy Galaar jumped out of Hyperspace at a reasonable distance from Yavin IV. Mass Shadows being what they were, but it wasn’t just safety concern, there was also the matter of respect. Yavin had been the territory of the Rekalis for a while now, they had all kinds of scanners, warning beacons and the sort installed on the way here - so they probably already knew something was incoming - there ain’t anything as annoying as an unknown vehicle jumping in right at your backyard, or so Samael was told time and time again.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Lo and behold. A transmission was sent to his ship only a minute after arrival, Samael opened it immediately, being treated to the visage of a scruffy, older man with a deep frown etched to his brow, he didn’t recognize him.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Unidentified spaceship, you are entering Rekali territory. State your name and business, please.”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Sam nodded once, relaying the fact that he’d comply as best as he could. With a button press a transmission was sent back to the station post. It was an information feed containing old Rekali authentication codes; one and a half decades old, at the very least, they weren’t active anymore, but they would serve to verify a part of his story.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Samael Rekali on the Echoy Galaar… returning home.”[/SIZE]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Samael Rekali"]

Silence came and went like an awkward guest.

"Echoy Galaar, this is Yavin Actual," said Field Marshal Ember Rekali. By way of untraceable relays, he was speaking from the Lost City of the Jedi, a few hundred kilometres from Port Shardrock and the Yavin temples. The comm signal would come to Samael via Shardrock ground/orbital control. The old man folded his arms and leaned back in the comm centre chair, then realized he'd just smudged his shirtsleeves with reactor coolant. "Welcome to clan headquarters, Sam."

He eyed the battered, disreputable ship on screen. The Lost City's existence, renovation, location, and current function were currently known to him, Alec, and Chloe Blake, as well as Oren Beorn, the family consigliere. After this long away, Sam might have changed; most men did. Better to hold off on the redoubt for now.

"I'll wave you down past orbital. Meet you in a couple hours at Port Shardrock." He'd have to take surreptitious transport, then a quick speeder through hidden routes. It might be more than a couple of hours, but he could push it if he had to.

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6667px]His voice… it hit Samael straight in the chin - metaphorically speaking. Older, more weary, but it was Ember alright, seemed that some things didn’t change afterall. The nod came before he realized he should probably reply in some fashion.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Yeah… yeah, sounds good. I will meet ya there.”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]The transmission cut off, giving Samael some time to ponder. He heard the stories, some of them at least, Rekalis were getting more and more involved in the Galaxy apparently. Alec… last time he had seen her, just a little sprout, Eli a kid, Ember still able to smile - aye, things were different these days.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Next range of minutes were spent changing up his clothes. Fresher pair of trousers, a cleanish shirt without too many oil stains, but in the end his efforts were pretty much in vain.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]He didn’t really have any nice things. Life on the hyperlanes ain’t about the five-million credit suit or anything like that: most of his money was sunk in his ship, some proper food and maybe a drink or two every once in awhile.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]His baby, substance and entertainment - in that order.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Some time later [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]the Echoy Galaar[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px] landed on one of the fields near Port Shardrock. By the looks of it Clan Rekali had done well for itself across the years, no thanks to him, he climbed out of the ship and after settling the docking/refueling costs, he went to look for a bar; or anything remotely looking like a bar.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]First couple a drinks would probably be on him, least he could do.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px][member="Ember Rekali"][/SIZE]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

In a family filled with more black sheep than white, [member="Samael Rekali"] stood out for one reason alone: his sins were not of ambition or pride. How many Masters of the Force lived in poverty when they could reach out their hand and take, or sign on with an Order that promised a guaranteed subsistence? Not that Ember would have called his younger brother poor, not exactly, but he had no obsession with things, no need to collect objects or strange Force techniques or personal connections. That put him on a higher footing than Ember in some ways -- Ember, who'd retired from the Jedi after time on the Council; Ember, who was now worth billions; Ember, who'd spent a lifetime collecting tricks and trinkets of one kind or another. That didn't make Sam a paragon, but it sure made him worth a welcome.

Port Shardrock boasted an ever-shifting collection of bars and cantinas, patronized by variegated combinations of spacers and young Jedi. It didn't take much for Ember, master of all things tracking-related, to guess or intuit which one Sam would choose, and so he went there and found his brother nursing a drink. This was one of the rougher bars, patronized by the clansmen and contractors who flew Submersible Mining Environments through the gas giant Yavin. Corusca gem miners, overpaying for their drinks with specks of grit trapped in clear plastic. They knew Ember, and by extension they knew Samael: when Ember grew a beard, they looked much alike.

"Hey, Sam."

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6667px]How do you qualify one’s worth? [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Was it the amount of people they knew and could call favors on? Amount of cash on their bank account? Maybe the pile of artifacts, mysterious scrolls and ‘crons collecting dust in some remote corner of an enormous space fortress? When he had been younger Samael had struggled with this very question - in the end… after fighting in the old wars, protecting his family and holding up the name, Sam decided that the problem was the [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]question[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px] itself.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Ya can’t qualify one’s worth. Could try, obviously, but at the end of the day what mattered was the actions you took in life. When the crossroads came, Ember decided to stay the course, back the Mandalorians and build onto the name Rekali.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Sam… he had picked a different road. Some would say it was an easier one, others would claim the reverse, but the only certain thing was that it was [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]different[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px].[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Lost the beard, I see?” Samael responded with the barest of smile, before waving him over to sit with him. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]At this point in time he couldn’t even remember how Ember liked his drinks or if he even liked drinking at all anymore. He poured him a glass anyway, woulda been bad manners otherwise and they were raised better than that.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“How are you, Ember?”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]The fact that he wasn’t sent flying through the bar with a bruised chin was telling.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px][member="Ember Rekali"][/SIZE]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Samael Rekali"]

Ember settled into the chair with a grunt and a sigh, both more connected to the condition of his body than the moment at hand. He accepted the glass and tossed Sam a Dathomiri toast, then slugged back the drink. "I'm..."

All the tragedies might still have their claws in him, but they'd receded into the past. Mourning had been replaced with worry and planning and all kinds of focus on the future. The Clan needed that focus from him, with the Primeval coming this way.

"I'm better," he said at last, examining the glass. "I've been busy again, and that's something. Driving lanes into the Roil and the Denarii, for the most part, now that we've got the resources." And they did: a stolen antimatter facility that Krayt forgot; a terraforming moonlet sold for billions on the open market; whole Vahla family networks and Mandalorian brotherhoods signing on with the Clan. "Don't suppose you know anything about hypertech, ramscoop trawling, or nebular prospecting?"

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Resources.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Sam had heard of the couple ‘a adventures the Rekalis had gotten themselves into over the years.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Nothing especially concrete, of course, Ember knew when to play up the incognito part, but just enough to give him flashbacks of the ol’ better days. When shet had been so much more simple without Sith Empires nucking worlds, without sons turning into slugs and all that. Curiosity had gotten the better of him… and here they were.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Did a short stint with an Outer Rim mining coalition, wanted to get involved in the Cauldron Nebula - highly unstable, huge and they figured there could be some coin in it.” he shrugged and finished the drink.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“So I helped ‘em with some trailblazing - ain’t nowhere as good as Merrill, but I can pull my weight after all these years, operated one of their sluggish ramjets for a while too; bit slow for my liking, but what can ya do.”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Scratching his chin Sam shot Ember a grin.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Been hearing stories, interesting ones, about what you are doing here. Thinking about creating an Empire?”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Witch-King of Yavin… wouldn’t that be a thang.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px][member="Ember Rekali"][/SIZE]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Samael Rekali"]

Ember raised an eyebrow at Sam's limited ramjet and nebular prospecting experience. Now that was ideal. "No kingdom, no," he said. "Just some breathing room for the family. You know how it goes. We've got all sorts adopted in -- Mandos, Vahla, Dathomiri, everyone. We're not quite Shardrock Clan anymore, and we're not quite the old family anymore. We've grown, see. We basically own this system, though we could pack up and move if we had to, and we've got a solid presence on Vjun and Dathomir.

"But what we're after is room to expand, dig in, and hunker down if need be. The Roil's perfect for that. It's got no permanent hyperroutes worth the name, though we've carved out a few praedia. We're embedding waystations in there, places that can last for ages and still resupply those that get lost or try to make the long hauls. We're using ramjets to clear out chunks of empty space and harvest some of the worst bits of the Hard Roil. Low tech, but it gets results, even if the crews that go in -- all self-employed -- are takin' their lives in their hands."

He sipped the last of the drink. "In a couple years, we'll have outposts in there that nobody'll ever find. Safe places for kids, records, everything. If it sounds like I'm trying to get you onboard, get you to stick around, I am."

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6667px]It was strange how after all these years it was so easy. No shouting matches, drama or a fist to the chin, just a current situation and an invitation - perhaps it had to do with where they were at, neither of ‘em could call themselves young anymore. Life was trailing by, it was short and it seemed pointless to push forward old grudges and qualms, and the fact that a sect of religious madmen were just around the corner… probably helped out too.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Don’t see why not.” [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]as easy as that.[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px] “If it means I will be able to eat something fresh more often than once a month?”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Could get rough out there in the Outer Rim - he liked it like that, a cathartic experience that left you more in touch with yourself, but a break from it could be just what the doctor asked.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]His thoughts immediately went to Roil and what he remembered of it. He hadn’t been around these parts for years, but bits and pieces were coming back to him.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px][member="Ember Rekali"][/SIZE]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Samael Rekali"]

"Well, fresh is in the eye of the beholder." Tension eased from Ember's shoulders as he sat back. "Solid fuel and ration converters are a thing. But we do make sure our people out there are taken care of. I won't lie: the attrition rate's fairly hefty. You've got the same knack for astrogation that I do, so that'll keep you and yours alive, make you important out there. Set you up for success, if that's what you're after."

It wasn't a dig, or at least he didn't mean it as such. He chewed on his words for a moment. "I know there's a lot that's been left unsaid, Sam, but I don't see too much of it as relevant. The Clan needs you now, you're here, you've signed on -- that's all that matters. Hope you stick around, I really do. Got plenty of cousins for you to meet. Mandos, Vahla, witches, the lot of'em." 'Cousin' was the appellation and general term for any Clan member, regardless of ancestry. "And closer family, too. Last time you saw little Alec she'd have been four or five -- feth, I'm not sure you ever have met her. She spent too long in a temporally unshielded ship and went mining in the Chiloon Rift, and now she's thirtyish. Good people, in her way. Then there's Aaralyn -- you remember her. Retired now, but she's the last of the kids alive." He kept his voice even. Rach, Certh, Benna -- they'd all died since Samael left, though his brother had been around when Faran and Ember's wife were murdered. "Sith got'em all."

He gestured to the barkeep for another.

"I'd forgot you might not know, or I'd have led with that."

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Wasn’t really succes what he wanted. Hell, Ember had pondered about that correctly, across the years there had been numerous opportunities to get filthy rich - there ain’t no shortage of people needing a force master with a knack of finding stable routes through high-risk/high-value areas and he had never had a shortage of… [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]insight[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]. It wasn’t ambition that he missed, it was simply that his ambition was focused on things that most people would call ‘small’ and ‘irrelevant’-ventures; pushing his battered freighter to the brink of performance, helping out a few good-natured people get a break in a dangerous nebula - he wasn’t a saint, by no means.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]The times he had to run it from authorities were countless, but he always [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]tried[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px] to do the right thing, just didn’t work out always as expected. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]But that’s life for ya, no?[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Naw, don’t worry about it. I am used to roughing it - only thing I will need is a more suited ship for the trips.” probably would have to put out a collateral on the Galaar, take a few loans, maybe Skirata or Dem’adas had a few good memories of him left; they could possibly get him a discount if he did a couple of jobs for ‘em.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Alec was a different story. He had heard of an Alec Rekali running around the Outer Rim - causing all kinds of trouble, Hutts put a black mark on her, Sith wanted her deader than death, all in all she had seemed like a right ol’ Rekali: only problem was that the Alexa he knew… hell, she had been a toddler last time seen her.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]All of that burned away though after Ember’s next words. It was like a gut punch - he hadn’t heard of Rach causing any recent ruckus, but he figured the boy had finally grown outta it. Getting a kid, wife, settle down, that the legend of Rach the troublemaker was done before he could [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]really[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px] feth it all up.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Feth.” He gestured for another drink too, while pondering, but nothing came. The younger brother who always had a retort was metaphorically slack jawed.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]Feth.[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px][member="Ember Rekali"][/SIZE]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Samael Rekali"]

"Yeah."

There was a wealth of story behind the acknowlegement -- he'd done things afterward, reckless things that Sam would hear about if he asked just about anyone. The Sith Council's holocron vault on Morellia. Darth Krayt's holocron on Coruscant, and the broken statue of Darth Talon at the plaza. The New Order fleet over Telos Four; the Sith Empire fleet over Mon Calamari. Emperor Voracitos' battlemoon. The Dromund Kaas citadel, Sith Empire capital, crumbling-

He worked his mouth and grimaced, then took another drink.

"Yeah. Then the One Sith took Aaralyn, brainwashed her, made a Darth outta her." Sip. "I got her back, so that's something. But feth, Sam, it's been a long road. I'm glad you're here. From the old family...you're all that's left. Don't take that as pressure if you don't want to. I've gotten used to managing the Clan, got help, all's well. But still. Glad you're around."

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6667px]He let it simmer for a while, that admission, instead trying to focus on the drink. Samael never did have any children of his own, no wife to settle down with, [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]settling down[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px] - never seemed to be something that he would do, but part of it was… he had never [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]needed[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px] to. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]With Ember’s kids just a jump away? That was all the parental madness one needed. He had played with them when they were little, taught ‘em some of the tricks when they were older, Rach always had an easier time slipping things by with him than with Ember: mighta been because Sam had seen something of himself in the son. Point was - they might not have been [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]his[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px] children, but for all intents and purposes, for all that mattered? [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]They might as well been.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Putting the glass down, he shook his head.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Neither of us is good at this, I think.” Sam started carefully. “But-” [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]considering the lack of considerable tension, just the presence of weariness, he knew it had been a long time ago.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“I am sorry I wasn’t there.” [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Not there to help out, not there to support his brother, [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]not there.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px][member="Ember Rekali"][/SIZE]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Samael Rekali"]

Ember's jaw tightened, but probably not in anger, so far as he could tell. "Thanks," he said, and finished the drink. That was two down. He couldn't remember the last time he'd had two drinks in a row -- no, wait, it had been with Skye Mertaal, when he'd poured out his soul on the way to get Aaralyn back. That had been a dark few days, in more ways than one. He'd pulled out of it, back to where he could look himself in the mirror and channel Force Light again, but it had taken work. And if he hadn't managed to rescue Aaralyn, just about anything could have happened. His only living friend at the time had been Jasper Ordo...Dark Lord of the One Sith.

He could have gone in all kinds of directions. He'd been right on the edge. And though he'd never told a soul, except maybe Skye that night, he'd have happily gone to the Dark Side if it meant bringing back the dead.

The alcohol was burning in his gut. He contemplated ordering another and opted against it, then interjected the same finality into the conversation. "So that's my life since last time. Tell me about yours."

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Sam didn’t miss the tension, but he let it go. As he said. Neither of ‘em were particularly good at this kind of shet, wasn’t in them and that was alright. Not all of them could be master empaths totally in line and touch with their feelings, he almost gestured for a third glass, but stopped himself before it got that far. Too much alcohol on an emotional trip? Could only spell trouble in the end.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]His mischievous grin flashed before his eyes. Gone. Buried.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Not that much to tell.” or maybe there was [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]too[/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px] much to tell. How does a man condense a solid twenty years of living in a brief paragraph? How can he do justice to the friends left behind, the oaths made, the experiences gained?[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Spent the last decade or so roaming the Outer Rim. Serving mostly as a guide for folks who needed safe or quick passage.” [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]And the outer rim was full of those people. It was a dangerous place, no law or civilization putting boundaries on places - most of the anomalies and horrors of the unknown were just that… unknown, ain’t like the Core or the patrolled space of the Mandalorians.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Ran up and down the Kathol Sector more times than I can count.” he leaned back against his seat, the wood cracked against the sudden added weight. The reminiscing was done to forget, to brush past the hurt memories of the past or the recent revelations that his family wasn’t how he had left it.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Remember that old, beaten-up gunship I left in? Damn thing’s powercore sizzled out three days on the first trip - just like you said it would. Spent the first year on the ice hauler that picked up on my transmission.” [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]A shrug.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Been about everywhere really. Done even more. Every menial job you can think of I have probably done for at least a week.” Sam sighed. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Tough times, but the sky was mine, Ember. At least for a while.”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px][member="Ember Rekali"][/SIZE]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Samael Rekali"]

Ember sat and listened and denied himself alcohol while Sam talked. As his brother's story wound down, he mulled over his response for a while. "Sounds like a good life," he said after a bit. "Stuck by your guns, did it your way and all that. Kathol, now...Alec went through there, spent a year and a half taking a ship all the way from Kal'Shebbol to Demonsgate and back. Carved out alliances and relationships and got some enemies. Crossed the Qektoth, brought home some of their guns specced to modern times. Long story; you should ask her when you meet her. She's..." He chuckled. "She's Rach's kid, all right. Not malevolent, but she's still wanted in Hutt space for liquefying that big gold statue on Nar Shaddaa and stealing it with a mining ship. Spirit o' chaos, that one. Flies for the Underground, ties to the Exchange. Total lowlife, great person. You'll like her."

He pondered the next bit for a while, then shrugged. "There's this planet in the Maw where she ran into a Sith Lord who had Rach's soul trapped in a necklace. She broke the necklace and let her daddy free, let him fade into the Force. That's my girl, takin' on a Master with nothing but a blaster and some brass knucks. That's the kind of mutt we're raising in this territory."

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Sam chuckled softly. Yeah, that sounded like Rach’s kid alright.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Rekalis, Ember. We do things our way and feth all the rest.” sometimes it turned out well, sometimes… it led to a lot of tears and blood shed, but what’s a man gonna do? At the end of the day you have to stick by your convictions, because what’s the point otherwise. Funny, though, sounded like the girl had done more in her short time than either of ‘em - the Maw was chaos, he once tried to traverse that region of space and it was almost the end of him.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Almost as bad as the Kathol Rift. Less hallucinations and more deadly currents pulling you from one side to the other, though.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Figure I will meet her soon enough. Wanna get out of here? Think we got a lot of work ahead of us.”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]A decision had been made, for him really. His first instinct had been to just stick around for a few months, help the Clan and his brother were he could, then fade away again… but with Rach and the rest gone to dust? [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Naw. It was time to hang the hat up and get serious.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Time to do something useful and make ol’ daddy-o proud.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px][member="Ember Rekali"][/SIZE]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Samael Rekali"]

"Yeah, it's about that time." Ember stood, a trifle unsteadily. He told himself that was the knees, not the two drinks, but frankly it'd been a while. He tossed a chit on the bar for himself and for Sam: that was hospitality's obligation, and also the least he could do as a really wealthy guy. "Let's see about hooking you up with a ship that'll get us out to the Hard Roil in one piece, so you're not risking yours. How much you know about Tegaanalir patrol ships, the ones that woulda met you in orbit? Those spark your fancy, or you aiming for larger, smaller, faster, nastier...?"

He wove his way out of the bar, pulling out a comlink to get Oren Beorn started on setup. Beorn, his consigliere, could take care of that in a heartbeat, and get Sam set for the Roil in the process.

"Let's give Oren a call. You might like him, you might not, but the fether gets results. Vahla outta Tash-Taral, old blademaster, retired Jedi like me except he went Dark and started using pelko venom for visions and the like. Real Calypho type. Good people, though. He's the one who'll get you good to go."

 

[Arage Bao]

[SIZE=10.6667px]His hand went out to steady Ember. Drinking was par for the course when you were spacer out there all alone, only thing keeping you company was a drinking bottle, maybe a good book; if you were lucky and your thoughts occupying your mind - the beauty of outer space was a whole ‘nother thing, could add or detract from your experience depending on your perspective.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Ya know me. I get along with everyone, unless they bully my brother. Remember Mili’s kid? Hm. Wonder what came of little Nusan Jr.” [/SIZE][SIZE=10.6667px]had a nasty kick. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Part of the reminiscing was to cover up the uncomfortable feeling he was getting. Sam wasn’t too proud to accept help, hell… he knew he needed it: even if he would be able to find someone willing to take his ol’ ship as a collateral, it would still not be enough to get himself something space worthy and above all safe.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Didn’t make it any less uncomfortable to him, though.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Tegaanalir is fine. Rygel always knew how to make ‘em good.” he scratched his chin, pondering about it. “Unless you got something faster, of course. Don’t need it heavy loaded with weapons - ain’t expecting a fight. Needs to be heavily moddable, you know I like to tinker when I can.”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]Sam shrugged.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px]“Honestly, as long as it’s reliable, I will be content.”[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.6667px][member="Ember Rekali"][/SIZE]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Samael Rekali"]

"Not sure how much faster we can do short of a starfighter. Tegaanalir's our standard subcapital cutter. But we've been around long enough that there's all manner of ships in the roster, all kinds of old Mando patrol craft and things like that. You can just about take your pick of the impound lot, too, for that matter. I'll set it up at one of our command terminals -- here." Ember nodded to a clan guard and brought Sam into a guardpost. He made a quick round of introductions -- all of them were cousins by name or by blood -- and linked their post terminal to the clan ship registry. Lists of available ships, partially crewed or not crewed at all, scrolled past: names, registries, operational ages, makes and models.

"Serious, Sam, take your pick." Ember stepped aside to let his brother take the terminal. "Captains that head for the Hard Roil get precedence when it comes to gear and such. Least we can do."

A murmur of respect passed around the guards.