Responsibility

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

“A lot of cool places in the ‘verse, but you have to be prepared to stay off the beaten track, get outside your comfort zone,” he said as he brought two plates and set them down, before returning to get the coffee. He slumped into his chair, lounging back in his easy manner. There was a slight twitch at the corner of his lips as he recalled something. Ah to hell with it, he thought to himself. He’d been stripped bare before her in more ways than one already.

Leaning forward on the table that twitch became a mischievous smile. “I really did go to that restaurant, but you can keep that story. It’s a good one. Honestly there was this Togruta I met on Nar Shaddaa, he was having problems with his wife and sat drinking alone. Worked a charm. Turned out he was utter filth when he was angry. Ah good times,” he admitted. There was a dreamy look in his expression before he burst out laughing. “Sorry!”

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

The corner of Kaile’s mouth twitched.

Yeah. Young. He was still idealistic. He had that air about him that said he was a pumped with a little bit more air than actual substance, but it wasn’t in a horrible way. No, Asmus wasn’t inherently evil. He was just wide eyed, experiencing the ‘Verse, and enjoying what fun came his way.

No judgement. No borders. No real inhibitions beyond trying to live a life he felt was grand. Yeah. Just like Kurt.

“It’s okay,” she told him, assuring him with a faint smile. “Sounds like you had a good time the last time you used it then.” It wasn’t in her to judge anyone else’s choices or morals. In her mind, everyone dug their own hole and their own grave. Every would set down the bricks to the path they so desired. It was all a choice in the end.

“So how come you’re traveling with your uncle?” she asked him, curious. “You don’t seem the sort to have grown up ‘round this.” It wasn’t said in venom, but just observation. By now, there was no denyin Kaile had a broader picture of just who Asmus Janes was.

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Asmus cocked his head from side to side as he chewed on his bacon. Sat before him was both a large tumbler of water and a steaming cup of caf.

He swallowed and caught her eye. "So our family is a relatively wealthy merchant family. Rees and Schmidt the freight company? That's us. Rees senior is my grandfather. My old man is...he's a kind soul, but he's determined to make me an accountant. Kairon got picked up by pirates as a boy. Eventually he found his way back to us. Used to regale me with stories. Guess that's how I ended up here really. When he stole a ship from his own family to go off on an adventure I refused to be put off," he explained.

Kairon had a very different take on that story, but every tinted perspective saw the same events in a different light.

"It's nice talking to you, you know."

Its because you've made the conscious decision to stop trying to sleep with her and your act has been stripped away. He thought to himself. Though it would be nice to hear another genuine laugh.

"Been anywhere particularly beautiful in the Galaxy?" he asked.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

Kaile would carefully select a stick of crispy bacon. She bit into it while Asmus gave her a little bit more information. So his family were wealthy merchants? That made sense. See it was all in the hands. You could tell a lot about a man with his hands. Asmus were seemingly smooth. Unlined. Nary a scar to be seen if one was to believe all the fights and battles he got himself into. But this was the espion part of Kaile, the one who couldn't help but pick up subtle nuances. They were as second nature to her as breathing.

"Thank you," she'd been told that before, but it was for a reason. Her easy going nature is what allowed her to gather information. Folk felt at ease with her, and the more they'd talk, the more tougues would grow loose.

"You ain't so bad yourself." She add, chewing slowly on her bacon. Maybe caf wouldn't be too bad...

A pause then another question, this time from Asmus.

Any place particularly beautiful? An image of the majestic and terrifying beauty of the Wound came to mind. Never had she felt so small.

"The Wound," she confessed, likely to be considered a rather curious choice. "Made me feel small what with the Twin Suns sinking and bathing the entire ridge line in all sorts of pretty colors. As if someone took a brush and just went on to paint it in peach, rust, and yellows. Couldn't tell how far down it went, or whether you'd sink right on through the other side."

Kurt had taken her there.

 

[Asmus Janes]

There was a pause as he finished his mouthful. "Huh," he replied with raised eyebrows. "Never been, never thought there could be anywhere worth going to see there. I'll stop by when we're next there," he said, and he meant it. He poured himself another mug of caf and thirstily gulped down most of his glass of water. There was still a lot of food on his plate to get through, but he really was ravenous.

"Gotta get some work done soon," he confessed. "Gotta organise the loading droids and get the starboard bay loaded properly. As long as you keep out of sight when they drop off the cargo you can come keep me company?"

Some conversation would be a welcome change to the droll routine. Probably less distracting than replying her slowly lifting off his shirt all day long anyway.

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

"I can help out too," Kaile would quickly add, fingers slowly being wiped upon a napkin. "I don't just have to sit pretty." Which was true. Kaile had always been a hard worker. She already felt bad as it was in the event they got fined because of her. Already she made up her mind to leave some credits behind for their trouble.

What was it with her now being a bother to folk? It irked her. What she didn't realize that it was just the growing awareness of what it now truly meant to be an embedded spy. Been doing it since she could remember, but the fact there were others who could be placed at risk because of her made her gut twist somethin fierce.

She couldn't quit. What she did saved lives. It was her way to help. But it also made for a very lonely existence for the girl whose only other relation was a mutated ysalamiri she saved a ways back.

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

"Fine by me!" Asmus replied enthusiastically. "If Kairon asks it was your idea right? Otherwise he'll assume I was shirking my jobs."

As if to accentuate his point Kairon walked in from the rear corridor, a stern expression on his face. “Boy, weapons! They’re here with the goods, but they brought three Kanjiklub along.”

Asmus rolled his eyes, but the smile didn’t even leave his face. “Calls me boy…I’m twenty,” he said, but he was already on his feet. A swig of caf was almost spilled down his shirt and he slammed the mug down. Two quick steps and he launched himself down the ladder to the lower floor.

Kairon looked to Kaile. “Any good with a blaster?” he asked. If they didn’t come out looking stern there was always the chance Kanjiklub would just decide to take the ship. “If so, follow Asmus and tell him to grab you something from the mate’s quarters. Don’t worry, just a polite chat downstairs, but if not just hole up in here. As I said, just a chat, but if things get hairy bridge is behind you, bright red button sounds a warning and locks it tight,” he said turning on his heels. For Kaile the concern would be all too evident through even the smuggler’s stoic demeanour. Mai popped up from the lower level first, moving with a feline grace and now with twin blasters on her hips.

Asmus, meanwhile, was already strapping on his holster. And swinging on his jacket of course.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]


“I got my own.” Kaile told them flat out. She did. She had an Omega Pyre Issued Morp stun blaster. They could pack a punch by dial a stun. The Lorrdian did prefer to use non lethal means when necessary. While the implication was that she could take care of herself, most would likely turn up an eyebrow at that.

Kaile didn’t quite give off specially trained by a Private Military Company vibe as much as the Popo’s Peepers waitress that might get mugged.

Without further ado, Kaile turned over to Asmus. “I just need to get my bag.” It was a practice she’d been working on for a while. Being able to ween herself from Bobo’s Force Null bubble and back in without as much pain as it had in the past. It was a matter of controlling it. It still stung, but at the very least it would slowly deaden her senses and allow her to transition without as much pain and an easier time to get her bearings.

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

"Work, work," Asmus pretended to complain as he led her back down to his room. Such a compact little space he had on the Quin, but space was at a premium on the freighters. It was a wonder they'd both managed to fit in such a small space without backache. Whilst she'd been up before him, he had drifted out of sleep half way through the night and found her nestled in the crook of his arm.

He kicked open one of the lockers along the edge of the room and pulled out two more power packs, sliding them into his holster. Kaile's bag was lying across the bed. His heart was pounding his his head now, adrenaline threatening to get the better of him.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]


“Thanks.”


Slipping past him, Kalie would brush against Asmus for a moment while she aimed for the bed. Two meters from the back she felt the familiar deadening of the Force. It was like being dipped in ice water, a slight suffocation and smothering sensation.

There was a slight tension in her limbs, but Kaile worked through it. Just had to breathe. Keep breathing. Before, she had been so overwhelmed that it was enough to drop her to her knees in the fetal position. Now it was getting easier.

Moving to remove the ties of her bag, she flipped the satchel. Kaile couldn’t risk Bobo, at least not until she managed to craft him a new harness. That was something she’d been intending on doing for a while. Already she had drawn up some schematics for the construction. Kinetic impact gell. Fibermesh. Armorweave… Now she just had to consider what else to coat it with.

Taking the Moph from the depths of her satchel, Kaile checked the power pack.

Brown eyes went panning over to Asmus.

“Okay. I’m ready.” she said, taking a deep breath and straightening her shoulders. Truth be told ,adrenaline was starting to pump through her veins already.

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Asmus hastened down the narrow corridor towards the cargo bays, one hand barely straying a few inches from his blaster.

"So, I think we're past me trying to say 'stick by me and you'll be safe' so I will say follow Kairon's lead. I mean it. He'll talk us out of it if he can. He doesn't lie, he doesn't threaten, he's reasonable. That always seems to put these guys off-kilter. But if he moves - and if he does he'll move quickly - you move too."

He headed down the ramp onto the landing bay deck. Crates were strewn around the floor. There was a slight swagger to Asmus' gait. Kairon subtly pointed towards a pair of heft crates off to his left for them both. Clearly there were not as randomly placed as they seemed. Mai was off to their right, looking as disinterested as ever.

Asmus saw his uncle was playing a trick he'd seen him pull before. Right before his foot was a scatterblaster, laid out such that Kairon could hook his toes underneath it and flick it up.

Asmus took his position, his right hand slowly slid back his long, dark green jacket to expose the blaster pistol. He might have been one for tall tails, but he'd been in a few scrapes alongside the old dogs now.

He turned to look to Kaile out of the corner of his eye and shot her a wink. Yes, yes she saw through him easily enough. He still looked damn good right now though.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]


Well this was a whole new type of shingdig for the former Yum Bunny waitress. It kinda reminded her a bit of her time in the Rebellion. That had been ages past, but it had been a fun time. They’d all been struggling to make ends meet, and one had to look constantly over one’s shoulder to make sure your skin didn’t end up with blaster holes riddlin’ it.

The adrenaline was pumping in a steadier flow. This was good. It kept her mind focused on whatever came up. Tucking her Morp blaster on her belt holster, she caught Asmus’ eye. The wink would prompt a flash of that dimple again.

He was the sort that didn’t quite take things as seriously as others. However, it was evident that he was growing. While he certainly had the enough exaggerated charm of a space dandy, seeing him move here now than in the past when he was trying to make a move on her in the bar told her subtle differences.


He wasn’t all talk at least. There was some practice done in there. Oh he’d need a whole lot more, but he was doing his best.

Often times that’s all one really needed t’all.

As this was their gig, Kaile knew she had to stay back and just go with the flow. No sudden movements, nothing to flag herself out.

 

[Asmus Janes]

"Ho Kairon!" called a portly man wearing thick overalls smudged with grease.

"Jacobs," Kairon replied with a nod of his head. Kanjiklub fanned out behind the trader. Three of them pushed repulsorcrates along the landing bay, the others hung back. They were the true dregs of Hutt enforcement. Mostly human, Mal and female and a range of ages. The only other aspect in common was they cobbled together armour and weaponry.

Asmus had a thin smile plastered to his face as he tried to settle his nerves. Ten guns to their four.

"That's a lot of men to push crates," Kairon observed, nodding towards the three pushing the cargo. "Been some trouble?"

"Yeah, a little," Jacobs said, looking abashed. Asmus had met him a few times. An utter coward, didn't seem the type to cause a fuss. "You got your man with you?" he asked.

Kairon narrowed his eyes at the pointed question about his veteran soldier. Kaile's lorridan senses would be picking up all kinds of signals. All bad.

"He's about," Kairon remarked.

One of the Kanjiklub behind the cargo stopped pushing and stood tall. He unclipped something on his belt to free his weapon. Everyone stood stock still.

"Kairon eh?" he called out. "Erkhal's changed his mind, it's another twenty percent."

"If'n he does that, he can talk to me himself on the matter," Kairon retorted.

"Erkhal's not available right now," drawled the gang member. "Got himself in a spot of bother."

"But of advice. First rule of a hostile takeover: make sure the contacts of the business you've inherited are all still good for trading. Offering a discount to keep 'em loyal. Make things hard and you'll find the business you've taken is worthless," Kairon replied.

Crap, Asmus thought. Erkhal had debts, someone must have called them in. He was probably buried by now. The boy could see the gang leader appraising the ship. Clearly Kairon did too.

In one smooth movement Kairon lifted the scatter blaster from the ground. Twisting it in his grip, he fired in the direction of the leader. All three were caught in the cone of fire, the odds evened with the first blow.

Asmus drew. The boy didn't live up to his own hype, that much was true. Yet he really had been dragged through a few too many scrapes. Jarrick was a very, very good gunman and Kairon had him teach the boy. The draw was quick, started as soon as he saw that foot move.

Two quick shots in succession hit the Kanjiklub in the chest and neck. With a swirl - that he imagined made his coat tails wish out dramatically - he dropped behind cover as the bolts started flying. "Work, work," he echoed his earlier mock complaint about the job.

Risking a glance he saw the gang members cautiously sidestepping in the open. "Two coming around your left, I'll pin the rifle ahead," he called to kaile, holding up fingers and starting a countdown.

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

Two coming round your left.

The firefight allowed Kaile to duck for cover, back flat as she drew her Morp out. Just had to a little bit of calibration. Different settings. The things were powerful enough to knock out a Wookiee, but she didn't want to end up killing people.

Her heart was thumping on her chest. Kaile was never really ever in the trenches. Her job with the Alliance meant that she was the first in, but done so incognito. Low risk. There to go in for intel and out before the guns started to swing.

Slowly, she would peer out to her left. Two shadows barely caught her vision before a blaster shot struck the edge of her cover. She gave a flinch, ducking back. Okay, okay.

One.

Two.

Three!

Ducking back over, she held her morp blaster and aimed in. A volley of powerful stun blasts went flying at two gang members. One struck his thigh, prompting a groan and then the hilarious sudden drop of his body as he grasped it. He was still conscious, flopping around the floor.

Feth.

Higher setting.

Another blaster shot almost struck her head, and Kaile gave a yelp, ducking back behind her crate.

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Asmus wasn't smiling any more. He managed just three covering shots from his Westar before a rifleman pinned him back down with a string of three-round bursts. He heard the constant rhythm of Kairon's scatterblaster firing and Mai's staccato duel pistols. Asmus tried to get his head up out of cover, but nearly lost the top of his skull for it. Hearing Kaile yelp, he decided on a different tactic. Giving her a stoic nod he dropped forwards onto his belly, coming out of the side of cover to gun down another trying to move on them slowly.

Unfortunately, prone as he was, he was all too slow to react to the sound of boots rushing towards him. He was on his knees as the Kanjiklub member leapt over his cover. Asmus managed to desperately grab the barrel of the carbine and hold it wide. But the stocky Nautolan grabbed his pistol before he could fire back. Outmuscled, Asmus found himself stumbling backwards The Nautolan abandoned his rifle and delivered a quick punch to the side of the head, discombobulating Asmus before he could get his guard up.

Kriff.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

Everything moved so fast.

In that moment, Kaile was able to remember and imprint the scene in her mind. The arid, ozone scent of blaster fire. The grunt and cry of pain. The resonating ricochet of plasma striking metal and bouncing off. Charred flesh of fresh wounds.

Brown eye would bulge as Asmus was knocked back by the beefy Nautolan. Ohmystars!

Kaile simply reacted, snapping her arms up with her Morp. A fine trembling took her, and Kalie swore her heart thundered in her ears. The Nautolan and Asmus seemed to struggle, and Kaile had to wait agonizing seconds. I don't want to hurt him, she thought to herself.

Striking Asmus with one of these blasts could very well kill him with the amount it was charged to.

The Kanjiklub member moved to grab Asmus's shirt, but that was when Kaile got her opening. An exhale of her breath an she sent a single shot straight at the Nautolan's wide back. It had enough juice to knock out a Wookiee and, considering how big this guy was, would do just fine at that.

 

[Asmus Janes]

The pair went down in an ungainly heap. Eugh he was heavy. And he stank. His jaw and the side of his heard flared with pain and he was left with a constant ringing in his ears. Asmus looked out from under the heap gratefully. Damn, she was amazing.

He wriggled, shoved and pushed until he was out from underneath the enforcer. Almost stumbling from the blow to the head, he got back to his feet steadily. Kairon was just bringing the butt of his blaster down onto the head head of Gran unceremoniously.

"Kairon! I wouldnt do this to you!" Asmus heard Jacobs protest. The pair carried on in a heated discussion, but Asmus wasn't interested.

With both hands he dusted down his coat, noting the new stain from the greasy jacket of the Kanjiklub.

"Fank you!" he called to Kaile, a wondrous expression in his eyes, which quickly turned to pain. "Ow!" he exclaimed moving his lower jaw from side to side and gently massaging it.

"Load up, we ship out!" Kairon called.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

"Are you ok?" Kaile would ask the pretty boy scoundrel, concern bare in her eyes. She clicked the safety and holstered the Morp, reaching up as if to check for herself. The was a small shadow of the Kaile of before, the one that thought of others wellbeing first before her own. Kairon's voice would echo that it was time to load up, but the Lorrdisn was determined to at least first make sure that Asmus was okay.

From what she read of his body, nothing was too out of sorts. That was a blessing. Behind them, the crew of the Quin began to get to work. A kick or two to shove the gang members to the side ensued. Kaile herself was still riding on a high of adrenaline that she'll likely crash from soon enough.

After all, she wasn't used to being in the front lines. This whole shebang was completely out of her typical comfort zone.

 

[Asmus Janes]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Asmus was all too aware of the concern in her look. For a moment he started to draw himself up to his full height. Then it occurred to him that there was really no point spinning any false bravado at this point.

Behind him, Kairon paused. He opened his mouth as if the reply to Kaile before clearly thinking the better of it and carrying on with a container.

He holstered his blaster with a subtle flourish and held out his other hand with the thumb up. "I'll grab some ice," he mumbled, one hand against his jaw. He quickly scavenged what looked like a pricey bandolier of grenades for a nearby gang member before following the others up the ramp.

 

[Kairon Rees]

Kairon grumbled to himself as he headed back into his ship. He'd even thought of a good line, but the girl had saved their bacon and clearly wouldn't have been in the mood for jokes. Still, he'd save it for later.

'Quintessence looking for crewmember. Male or female, must be pretty and caring. Job description: keep ship's boy from complaining about glass jaw.'

Yes, he'd save that for when she wasn't within earshot.