Riches to Rags

[Lira Dajenn]

Rahvin sat in the back of a small cargo bay, it held nothing but three large containers, a cot, and Ravhin himself. On the cot lay his sister, Ilyena, straight ahead of him was the cockpit, inside of it was a small redheaded girl with bright blue eyes. She sat in the pilots chair, curled up with her knees pressed against her chest, she like Ilyena was in a deep sleep.

He watched them both.

Every now and again his eyes would drift to his sister, and then to the slave girl that had helped them escape. It had no discernible pattern to it, he simply observed them both. He himself had not slept in some time, not since they had escaped Zygerria.

It had been almost three days now, each day passing by slower than the last.

The ship they had stolen didn't have the greatest range, they couldn't make it to the core worlds or any planet in the fringes of the galaxy. Their destination was a simple one, Nar Shaddaa. To ensure they couldn't be tracked however, they had made several small pit stops. Space Stations and small outer rim worlds in order to throw Cerise off their tracks. They had no idea if it worked, but Nina had said she'd used this trick before.

Surprisingly Rahvin trusted her, something he found rather odd. When Ilyena had wandered off on one of the stations, Nina had insisted upon...alone time with Ravhin. It was hardly his first time doing such things, but Nina had proven to be...vibrant. His gaze lingered upon her for a moment then his eyes shut.

They were nearly on Nar Shaddaa now, just a few hours away.

[member="Ilyena Talith"]

 

[Louise]

There were no dreams for Ilyena Talith.

It wasn't the kind of sleep that gave into dreams and visions, rather it was a restful slumber granted only to those who lived on the run. It was an unconscious blackness and that passed within the blink of an eye. Funny to think that time could move in such ways, eyes shut, eyes open and with six hours passing in-between like that. The world of sleep was truly fascinating.

The young woman groaned, finding the cot to be cramped and terribly uncomfortable compared to her bed back upon Zygerria.

Before she even opened her ideas she spoke, addressing her brother, who she knew would be there (not an awful lot of room to roam upon this vessel). “How did you...ever...sleep like this?” the young woman groaned, slowly sitting up and opening her green eyes to this world of cramped squalor.

“I think my spine is no longer aligned correctly...” Ilyena quipped with a certain grump littering her tones, tilting her head to look at Sir Stoneface.

[member="Rahvin Talith"]

 

[Lira Dajenn]

[member="Ilyena Talith"]

Rahvin looked over at his sister with slight annoyance on his face, casting a glance at Nina to ensure that she was still asleep. When he confirmed as such he turned back to his sister, bright orange eyes glowing slightly, as they tended to do.

“Yes.” He responded almost coldly. “Nearly every night.”

That was a bit of an exaggeration. He hadn't exactly slept on a cot. The Sirens had ensured that he had at least somewhat of a bed. Not as fancy as Ilyena had of course, but a mattress and support he had had. Of course his room had never been much more decorated than this one, though that was likely due to his own personal tastes. He watched Ilyena for a few more moments, then looked into the cockpit again.

“We won't be on Nar Shaddaa for a few more hours, these little side trips have taken up too much time.” He wasn't worried exactly, but Cerise had the Sirens on her side, and they were very resourceful. Even with all their careful planning, they would eventually need to ditch this ship, they would eventually need to fine somewhere safe.

It wouldn't be simple, and it was the thought that plagued Rahvins mind.

 

[Louise]

Ilyena's brows furrowed.

It wasn't as if her brother's ill treatment had been her fault. She couldn't help that Cerise was a completely unreasonable idiot who loved Ilyena while despising Rahvin. It wasn't her fault, she couldn't change it. I mean, when she was younger (in a sense of mind, rather than physical age) she would ask why Rahvin's room wasn't as nice as hers, and why he didn't get as much attention as she did.

Because he needs to learn his place, dearest Ilyena.

That had always been a mystery to her, until Jared Ovmar came in swinging with the clues to give. The twins that slept their way to Nar Shaddaa. One gaining transport, the other information. The answers came down to physical appearance. Angular features, blonde hair. Had he been blessed with her raven locks instead then it would have been a different story.

“Relax,” the woman sighed, rising from the cot slowly as to not jerk her already aching back, “have you had any rest?” Her lithe arms folded across her chest, there was almost a hint of a motherly nature to it. “I don't want you getting sloppy if we have to run.” Oh no, down to business and sass.

[member="Rahvin Talith"]

 

[Lira Dajenn]

[member="Ilyena Talith"]

Rahvin turned slightly, blue under his eyes.

“I'm fine.” That was the truth actually. Somehow he hadn't needed sleep, somehow he was still going strong even after three days of almost no sleep. Perhaps it was the force that was sustaining him, or perhaps it was part of his clone physiology. Honestly, Rahvin didn't know, nor did he want to know. He was pleased that he had managed to sustain himself this long, and he would do so for another day or two.

A light began to blink on the cockpits readout, he saw the red light flash, and then Nina stir. The woman was groggy at first, slowly moving in the chair and touching her face to try and pull the sleep from her eyes. Rahvin watched her, then motioned to Ilyena.

Something was apparently wrong.

The Blonde Man stood from his place on the hard metal containers, walking into the cockpit, expecting his sister to follow. To her credit, Nina didn't jump when he placed his hand on the back of her chair to check the readouts, nor did she speak to him, Nina wasn't a morning person. He waited for a moment, looking down at Nina for some sort of explanation.

The girl finally spoke.

“The Hyperdrive messed up...or rather it unmessed up. The hyperdrive is old. Usually it manages somewhere around 3.0, but it kicked back into 1.5 last night like its original specs, probably because of how hard we ran it.”

Ravhin didn't need further explanation. The Hyperdrive was an old one, it was run down and didn't work as well as it used to, but over the last few days apparently they had rattled something back into place causing it to function as it was supposed to, meaning they would be getting to Nar Shaddaa quite a bit faster than they had first expected.

 

[Louise]

Inwardly Ilyena scoffed.

To other women Rahvin might have been this brooding stoic, oh, he's so handsome and strong! He doesn't need sleep because he's just so rugged! I've love to hang off his strong arms, or have him catch me as I swoon! So deep, so dark...

...so daft.

Every mortal feels fatigue eventually, and if her brother didn't plan on sleeping then it would surely hit him later, possibly out on the streets of Nar Shaddaa, a place where wits are generally required. Not like they had anything that pickpockets could swipe with more alert fingers. But she wouldn't chide him now.

No, she'd at least wait for his weariness to become a legitimate issue, then she would snipe at him. At least undermine his confidence somew-
That is your brother, girl. But hey, it was hard to control one's manipulative desires when your lineage screamed for it so.

She joined Rahvin behind the pilot's chair where that insufferable girl explained the issue, or rather non-issue with the hyperdrive. The ever-present frown dawned upon the woman's features as she slowly kneaded her knuckles into her own lower back.

“Then how long until we get there?”

[member="Rahvin Talith"]

 

[Lira Dajenn]

Ilyena's question was answered as the ship shook suddenly, then dropped out of hyperspace.

Almost immediately the entire viewport was filled with dozens of ships, transports, warships, space station, hundreds of vessels floated around Nar Shaddaa, each one headed towards or away from the smugglers moon, each one likely containing some illicit material. Ravhin let out a breath, he had never seen so many vessels in one place at once, even on Zygerria's busiest day. His eyes opened wide, and he tried to tell apart the different ships.

“Now.”

Nina quipped back at Ilyena in a slightly snarky tone.

Rahvin looked down at her disapprovingly, the last thing he needed was the two women to fight. Their little transport shot towards Nar Shaddaa at surprising pace, overtaking several larger vessels. Rahvin stared at them, then focused upon the smugglers moon. “Where do we go?”

He asked Nina, she would know.

The slave girl had been born on Nar Shaddaa, had lived there for quite some time in fact. Over the last few nights the girl had told Rahvin several tles of things that she had survived on the smugglers moon, and the tale of her eventual foray into the land of being a slave. Surprisingly she had managed to hold Rahvins interest and he had listened keenly to what she said. Now he expected her to direct them.

“Southern hemisphere, Rishi Space Port. Its where the scum go.”

As Nina directed their vessel in that direction Rahvin couldn't help but think.

They were scum now.

 

[Louise]

Ilyena's head shifted backwards somewhat as the pilot slave retorted back with a certain amount of snap to her tone.

So while her brother was want to gaze in amazement at the sheer amount of traffic that Nar Shaddaa held she decidedly began to stare daggers into the back of Nina's vapid little head. Thankfully the woman was not yet gripped by the ways of her lineage. How would Nemene have responded to such cheek? Or Kaine Zambrano? Or even Karin Dorn? Physical lashes or barbed tongues, either way she could have had their little pilot squirming.

However Ilyena knew that they needed the girl, given their own lack of piloting abilities or rather the great jinx that clouded over their heads.

“Good,” she replied abruptly with a very tart tone in her voice.

The scum comment cropped up, causing a light wrinkling of the brow. Not a kind prospect. The scum of Nar Shaddaa were somewhat legendary, putting any and all other city planets to shame. They really would have to be on their toes for this excursion and not just from the Sirens.

Turning her back to the pair of them Ilyena sighed and removed herself from the cockpit, a bad taste left in her mouth from the situation they were in.

[member="Rahvin Talith"]

 

[Lira Dajenn]

The ship cut through Nar Shaddaa's atmosphere in only a few moments. Despite its fame and population size Nar Shaddaa actually wasn't that big. It was after all only a moon, about a third the size of Nal Hutta. With that fact, it took only a few moments for the ship to reach the Rishi Spaceport.

Rahvin stood behind the pilots chair, watching as Nina deftly guided the ship into the first open Hangar Bay. Apparently in this port there weren't any control towers or anything of the sort, one simply picked an open hangar and hoped for the best. In the back of his head he wondered just how many accidents happened here every week, he didn't imagine that such an unorganized system would work out for the best.

Once the ship touched down, Rahvin removed his hand from Nina's shoulder.

“Gather your things, we won't be returning.” They needed to ditch this ship. It was part of why they had come here after all. This ship would only be something else that Cerise could track, something she could find and use to hunt them, it wouldn't due to keep it.

Walking into the back of the hangar Rahvin gave the same advice to his sister.

The two of them hadn't brought much, in fact they hadn't brought anything at all, but it was important to take anything of value that that the cargo hold did contain.

[member="Ilyena Talith"]

 

[Louise]

Gather your things he said.

The rather petulant young woman rolled her eyes at that notion. They had the clothes upon their back, their lightsabers and the obsidian blade used to slash Cerise's throat. They didn't even need a rucksack, that's how light they were travelling. Gather your things, indeed.

She stood impatient by the boarding ramp, waiting for their pilot to gather her things. This girl was likely going to slow them down to no end, but as much as Ilyena found Nina to be annoying they needed her. Of course, if the twin managed to find a suitable replacement, perhaps a pilot droid or somebody with a less irritating face then Rahvin's dearest new friend would find herself once again upon the wrong side of slavery.

Yes, that was an idea.

The boarding ramp descended, as did the trio and immediately Ilyena found her noise wrinkling as a wave of polluted air hit her. She had heard of Nar Shaddaa's unsavoury reputation but she had never considered that she would ever smell it.
“Oh Force, it stinks here,” she muttered to herself more than anybody.

[member="Rahvin Talith"]

 

[Lira Dajenn]

The three of them ventured into the stinking spaceport with confident synchronized steps. The first thing that Ravhin noticed, much like this sister, was the pure stench of the place.

There had been spots in the slave markets on Zygerria that had had similar stenches, but for some reason this place seemed to smell even worse. His nose crinkled, and he felt bile stirring in the back of his throat. Perhaps because it was due to the enclosed nature of this place, or perhaps it was the piles of rubbish and masses of unwashed humans from the lower levels of Nar Shaddaa, but slowly the usually unflappable Rahvin began to grow the tiniest bit sick.

“Let's find what we need.” He said quietly to the pair of women. “And get off this world.”

Of course it wasn't quite that simple. They didn't have the money to buy a ship and they certainly didn't have the connections to get whatever else they needed.

The trio would have to steal everything they needed, which was a problem since most of the people in this spaceport were thieves themselves. As he mulled this over Rahvin slowly led Nina and Ilyena towards the exit of the spaceport, coming to a stop directly to the side of the exit and breathing in the...fresher air.

“Nina, you know this place. Do you think you'll be okay on your own?” Without the girl, they would be stuck on Nar Shaddaa.

Luckily, Nina nodded.

“I'll be fine.”

Rahvin looked at her for a moment, faking concern, then he nodded. “Alright. Find us a suitable ship, Ilyena and I will get other supplies.”

Of course as of yet, he didn't quite know how they would accomplish that. However in his experience, small as it was, there was usually some sort of market near the spaceport. Perhaps they could use the force, or Ilyena could get persuasive, in order to get them what they needed.

[member="Ilyena Talith"]

 

[Louise]

As they waded through the stench of the spaceport, Ilyena began to create a mental checklist of things that they needed. The smells that smothered them didn't erase the fact that they themselves needed to wash, and while she knew that the luxury of bathing in real running water would be lost to them for a long time they could at least find a sonic substitute.

Clothes too. Something a little more subtle and pedestrian. Of course they couldn't just steal it from the backs of the scum that surrounded them, those garments likely smelled worse than theirs did.

General supplies for spending long amounts of time upon a ship. Food, water. Perhaps a datapad, and what about credits? They would need to refuel surely and it was never amiss to have credits in one's pocket. Maybe even a datapad if they could manage one. Would have been good to have access to some form of entertainment upon their travels.

Of course, Rahvin was always more content to meditate and train. So the entertainment would have been all for her, something to read.

“Well, Ravhin?” she queried, gladly watching Nina saunter off in a different direction. Ilyena imagined that her twin had analysed this current situation far more thoroughly than she had, so it wouldn't be amiss to ask him, “Where do you think we should start?”

[member="Rahvin Talith"]

 

[Lira Dajenn]

“I don't know.” That was the answer his sister received, and it was the truth.

Normally Rahvin would have a plan, he would think and know what to do. Yet here he was at a loss. Neither of them were criminals. They were not thieves or anything of the sort. Stealing didn't appeal to him in the least, yet he knew that they would have. He knew that they would have to steal their way across the galaxy. A frown settled on his face, and he began to walk.

Quick heavy steps took him forward, towards the market. Bustling with people. Aliens, humans, and dozens or droids walked among stalls and other things.

“Follow my lead.” Rahvin said as they approached the market. “Quickly.”

Ravhin walked through it quickly, bumping into people, pushing things off tables with the force and directing his sister to sweep them off the floor. It was an instinctive move, just pressing things off tables with small nudges. It wasn't large things. Trinkets and jewelry at first, things they could sell and trade.

 

[Louise]

Well, that was a comfort. Here they were upon the galaxy's armpit and her usually well-thought out brother was drawing mental blanks. Great. What was going on in that brain of his while he neglected to sleep if not plans for Nar Shaddaa? Nina? Cerise? Hot dogs? He was an enigma of a riddle wrapped in a curiosity.

To one that was generally used to the stillness of the palace upon Zygerria, this was not a pleasant change of face. Bodies bustled past too quickly and too closely for her liking. She could smell them all, their unique signature, what their homes and their bed sheets would smell like, even the rust on the droids caught her senses. It was enough to make the twin feel queasy.

Through the Force Rahvin began to knock things off of the market stall tables, and in turn Ilyena, who walked far behind her brother would scoop them up, quickly pocketing the small items as they were summoned to her hand.

There was a thrill there.

But also humiliation. Living legacies forced to resort to petty theft to survive. This was the cost of true independence, having to live like third rate citizens in an awful ship and with that ridiculous slave pilot. Zygerria would have been easier, safer, better, for Ilyena at least.

But ultimately under Cerise's care she would not grow, all that potential that they were would have been wasted so some empty-headed witch could cling onto remnants of her obsession for Nemene.

Ultimately, petty theft was worth stooping so low for.

 

[Lira Dajenn]

Their plot worked very well, or rather his plot he supposed.

When they finished trawling through the markets Rahvin met up with Ilyena to find that she had collected quite a hefty bounty of items. Most of it was jewelry and the odd trinket, and most surprisingly quite a bit of it was real. The young blonde man inspected the baubles for a moment and then looked up past his sister at the market behind them.

“We'll have to go somewhere else to trade this.” He said pointing out the obvious before quickly turning on his heel and walking away from the market, at an oddly quick pace. He didn't want to know what happened to people who were caught stealing here.

His steps slowed when they neared another nearby market, this one turned out to be much seedier than the first. Many of the vendors were missing teeth, a few wore naught but rags. Their wares however were surprisingly good, which led Rahvin to believe that most of it, if not all was stolen. He frowned slightly, then directed Ilyena forward.

 

[Louise]

By the end of their slightly illegal excursion Ilyena's pockets were tinkling and jingling so much that all levels of subtlety were lost. That was the draw back of not having any method swag storage other than what he clothes had given her. Of course, by the time she met up with her brother once more they redistributed the loot a little more evenly.

They had to be at least somewhat inconspicuous.

Another marketplace, another ghastly smell. Suddenly Ilyena had this craving to hire a squad of professional scum cleaners, of course given the general populace it might have been described less as cleaning up the streets and more genocide.

The vendors leered at her, no doubt eyeing up her potential for slavery and her hubris the Talith offered naught but death stares in return. Perhaps it was for the best that she did not interact with anybody here.

Otherwise she'd be doing it with her knife.

“Let's do this swiftly, it absolutely reeks here, Rahvin.”

[member="Rahvin Talith"]

 

[Lira Dajenn]

“Yeah.” Rahvin said almost absent minded as he began to wander into the markets.

The first thing on his list was food. Of course they wouldn't be going after fine dining or likely even solid food. What they would be searching for was military rations and dehydrated foodstuffs, things they could carry in a bag and keep stored in a ship. Things that wouldn't spoil. He moved quickly, until eventually he reached a jewelry vendor who seemed to be the least sketchiest of the lot.

“A pretty ring for your girlfriend sir?”

The man spoke and Ravhins eyebrows rose, looking over to Ilyena before shaking his head. “No. Selling.”

He motioned for Ilyena to show him the wares. The jewels glittered and glared, and the man got a fierce look in his eyes. Rahvin saw it, and knew that they had him hooked. Over the course of the next few minutes the trio negotiated. Eventually Rahvin and Ilyena walked away with two thousand credits, well, one thousand eight hundred and thirty two. For ten minutes of stealing that wasn't bad at all, it would be enough for clothes, food, and other supplies.

Rahvin led Ilyena into the market, first purchasing two large packs, one for each of them. The he led them deeper into the market, procuring dehydrated food and military rations that quite honestly looked about as tasty as a shoe, though they were edible. Finally Rahvin moved to the section of the market with the clothing vendors.

A surprising amount of the clothing was rather nice, though it was all either stolen, or fake.

This part he would leave to Ilyena.

[member="Ilyena Talith"]

 

[Louise]

Of course, by least sketchy it only meant implied incest. Of course, how was the vendor to know that they were related. I mean, they didn't really look alike, different hair, different eyes, even their facial structures were decidedly different, with Rahvin wielding severe features and Ilyena with a softer, more conventionally beautiful visage.

The notion made her inwardly scoff and shoot her trademark incredulous glare at Rahvin. Then it was straight down to business, where once again her twin did most of the talking. Ilyena found that such negotiation and bartering was not her strong suit, the audacity of this creature to try and give them anything less than what their hoard was.

Evidently she was not a Talith suited for haggling.

So the pair got their credits, and then the rations necessary for survival and with that main necessity covered they could at least breathe, well if either of them could stomach the smell.

Even a long time ago in a galaxy far far away the social structure of women buying clothes still stood firm. Ilyena of course took clothing for granted and was accustomed to the finest silks and embroideries falling from the very sky and into her lap. It gave her a surprising eye for detail in pointing out every single fake bag or pair of trousers that would soon become unravelled and undone with only the smallest amount of wear and tear.

Not to mention the fact that they were in hiding, they didn't need style and flair to help the Sirens identify them. They needed plain garments, like work clothes or something your standard spacer would wear.

So she brought them away from the stalls of fakery and towards the area of work clothes. Two pairs of boots each for the three of them. Socks are good, ever been stuck out somewhere with wet socks? Yeah, socks are good. Plain shirts and trousers varying in shades of black, greys and browns. Things that don't stain easily. Even a few jackets with the necessary insulation for a cold climate. Ilyena had truly sacrificed all style for the sake function and comfort.

And Rahvin, poor Rahvin had to carry most of this shopping.

“That should be plenty, I imagine,” she commented to her likely over-burdened brother, “is there anything else we might need, brother?”

Weapons? Basic technology? A shopping cart?

[member="Rahvin Talith"]

 

[Lira Dajenn]

[member="Ilyena Talith"]

He blinked a few times, but never really objected.

Rahvin wanted to get this done, and then he wanted to get off this world. He didn't like Nar Shaddaa, there was an impending sense of danger that was almost oppressive to him, one that pushed and prodded him and made him slightly angsty. When his sister finally finished her shopping, he simply let out a grunt in answer to her.

He had carried his lightsaber with him from Zygerria, though he wasn't sure if she had the same. Nina didn't use a blaster as far as he knew and neither of them would likely be very good with the weapons. There wasn't any need to buy any of that sort, and he doubted they needed anything else.
“Lets head back to the Starport.” Ravhin said shaking his head.

The Journey back to the Starport didn't take long, though finding Nina took much longer. Eventually Rahvin had to use a small communicator that they had taken from the Slaving Ship. Nina responded almost giddily to Rahvin, telling him to meet her at the far end of the Starport.