Private Sly on the Inside

[The Vulptex]

Location: Coruscant Underground, Level 429

The past few days, a shadow moved through the underground quietly. They'd been on the downlow after a quick heist, but now they had, somehow, gotten a message through the holonet. A jewelry store had something worth much more than anyone realized just sitting in the display case. Of course, they were gonna nab it. But first they had to scope out the joint.


A girl, looking only in her teens, walked into the store. She idly looked to the display, before looking to the store owner. "How much?"

The store owner looked up bored, "600 credits."

...it couldn't be that easy, right?

Tallara
​

 

[Tallara]

The Vulptex
​

The necklace was a dully-glowing crystal pendant on a gold chain. The shop owner, clearly, didn't have a good eye -- for anyone with a feel for things, they could tell it was kyber. It was hard to tell if it was synthetic or not, but it had a resonance that was hard to miss, if one looked closely enough. To the right buyer, it was upwards of forty thousand credits. To the owner half-asleep at the counter, it was a nice-looking trinket, probably fake gold, and something to upsell to some sucker who wandered in. This kid looked like she didn't have money, though, so he didn't bother trying to sell it.

The display was a thin sheet of glasteel, and locked at the base with an old-fashioned padlock. A keen-eyed viewer would spot the alarm sensor set up just under the display case's glass. A few other items of lesser worth were spread about. But the kyber, so close... surely it was so tempting, just to break it out and cut for the door?

Tallara, perfectly still, watched from the window for the thief's next move.

 

[The Vulptex]

The girl brushed her blonde hair, eyeing the crystal. She needed it if she was ever going to make a saber like her master. But...taking it wouldn't be as simple as smashing the glass. The trained eye watching her could tell she was sizing up the steal, rather than going straight for it. For now, she needed a way to prevent others from buying it.

So, she went for the old fashion way.

"Ow!" She let out, as blood splattered across the display. "Shit, sorry. The glass is sharp..."

The store owner jumped from their daze, frowning and letting out a sigh. "Yeah, hold on. I'll get a bandage..."

"No no, I got one..." She pulled a bandage out of her small leather jacket, before slipping and using the glass once again to rub the blood pretty thoroughly across the case. "Oh....fuck..." She groaned as she picked herself up. "Sorry..."

"Ugh...alright, get out. I'll need to disinfect the whole store now..."

The girl smiled as she walked out, passing Tallara on her way out.

She'd be back shortly. Now it was just a matter of waiting for the shop to close for cleaning...

 

[Tallara]

The Vulptex
​

By the time the girl exited the shop, Tallara had repositioned to between a few squished-together underworld buildings. Once she was out of earshot, Tallara tapped her comm.

"You're laying it on kind of thick," she said, looking through the shop window. The 'shop owner' turned away, seemingly facing the display case, and spoke freely now that his lips were hidden.

"Liars don't know when they're being lied to," came the reply. "They don't expect it."

"Mm. You don't think she's up to the task?"

"The SIA shouldn't employ kids."

Tallara tapped away at the display on her wrist. "Facial recognition says she's 21."

"Seriously? So she's not human?"

"People can just be short, Dev."

"21 and four and a half feet."

Tallara scratched her chin. "So, how'd she cut herself?"

There was a pause on the other end. "She cut her hand on the corner of the display case."

"Oh, really? It's that sharp, is it?"

"...No. I mean- it's a display case."

"So she had a knife, and you didn't even see it."

"No- I don't know. She could've just hit her hand sort of hard on the corner."

"Mm, yeah, okay. Call me back when you've come up with a better excuse on how you missed what a 'kid' was doing under your watch."

"Bleh. I'm closing up in a half hour. Stings are the most boring shit ever."

Tallara laughed to herself, then found a more comfortable position to watch from.

 

[The Vulptex]

The next half an hour went by without a peep, passers by not bothering to enter the store. It was a quiet thursday after all.

But as soon as the store closed down, a figure emerged from the rooftops. Tallara couldn't seem to sense her in the force, and with the sun setting, the dark of the city hid most of her features. But one thing was clear. A fox mask, a streak of ginger hair, and a scarf that trailed endlessly in the wind like a tail.

The figure didn't waste time, accessing a panel outside of the building and using what looked to be some sort of splicer to disable the alarms, before heading towards the back of the building...

 

[Tallara]

The Vulptex
​

The inside of the shop was dark; in Coruscant's waning evening light, it was difficult to make out the path to the front. There were a few chairs and tables scattered around in the back room. Thankfully there was no one inside to hear anyone shuffling around in the dark.

But once the thief reached the front room, she'd see the silhouette of another person against the low light spilling through the front window's blinds. Tallara held the kyber necklace, seemingly inspecting it; even in the dark it glittered and shone. She glanced up at the 'other' thief-

"This yours?"

 

[The Vulptex]

The fox thief spoke, though it definitely wasn't the voice of the girl from before. "Yes, actually."

And with that, the thief lunged forward, opening her attack by throwing what looked to be a cloud of powder right at Tallara 's face, thick smoke filling the air as pepper and ash propelled itself towards the spy.

 

[Tallara]

The Vulptex
​

Tallara's reaction was supernaturally fast; she reached the door, pulled it open, then slipped to the other side in time for the powder to slap against it, dispersing the smoke inwards. She pulled the door closed, then leapt with unnatural strength to grab onto a fire escape attached to one side of a building across the street, three stories up. She waited a moment, making sure the thief was in pursuit before continuing her escape.

Just keeping out of range made Tallara have to push herself -- this wasn't her territory, and even though she felt she had the physical edge, it was a bit more of a hassle to keep a good distance between herself and the thief. The civilian clothes she was wearing weren't as cumbersome as field armour, but she found them less comfortable; they didn't stretch in quite the way she needed them to, and she found herself adjusting a few times mid-air to make sure she didn't fall to the streets below. Nonetheless, she bounded from rooftop to rooftop with supernatural agility, always keeping an eye on her pursuer.

With her previously-mapped route, she made good time to one of the massive speeder-pits that gave access to the upper and lower levels of Coruscant. She gave herself a bit of a run up, before launching herself nearly twenty-five meters forward, onto a slow-descending transport. She turned back, and watched for the thief.

 

[The Vulptex]

At some point during the chase, the fox masked thief slipped into one of the many alleys, only to suddenly be on top of Tallara seconds later, waiting on the same transport she was. "You're not paying attention well enough. Now gimme." The voice was the same, and still no force signature. And yet, she had somehow teleported to the speeder.

 

[Tallara]

The Vulptex
​

Tallara clapped her hands together, impressed. "Nicely done. That's a tough jump."

She spun the kyber necklace around in her hand, before catching the crystal. "Before I, uh, totally give this to you, I did just have one quick question-

"Have you ever killed someone?"

 

[The Vulptex]

"That depends on which one you're asking." A voice came from behind her. Another blue coated fox thief. "I have. She hasn't."

"Still new at this." The one in front answered, both having identical voices. "Haven't gotten the chance."

The one behind pulled off his mask, revealing a man, the red hair a wig and the feminine curves a ruse. Tallara would certainly recognize him. Master Sabaibaru, a jedi shadow that had been off the grid for quite a while now. "I take it you're looking to recruit my student?"

 

[Tallara]

The Vulptex
​

More surprises. "That makes more sense. Clever."

Tallara looked between the two of them. Her eyes had a very dull glow to them for a moment, before she nodded towards the Jedi. "I'm assuming you're not looking for work, though, are you, Master Jedi?"

The shape of these... negotiations, seemed a lot more straightforward now. She turned to look at the girl.

"If you want. I'm no Master Shadow, but -- I can teach you other things. That being said, it'll be a little different than bounding around and stealing things. Most of the time."

 

[The Vulptex]

"I go where my students go." The jedi smiled. "If the mission calls for it, I will be there."

Unblinking, the fox looked to the spy with a tilted head. "Then what will you have me doing?"

Tallara

 

[Tallara]

The Vulptex
​

Tallara started a quick calculation in her head about how to approach this Jedi; she was getting the feeling that he would do his own thing regardless, and that expending SIA resources trying to manage him would be a waste. For the most part, the addition of a Jedi Shadow to any operation would be a boon. She said nothing and simply nodded.

"Killing people, probably. Not all the time, but enough I should tell you about it. Intelligence gathering. Infiltration. Sabotage. We'll see where the chips fall. Regardless, your skills will be invaluable."

She raised her arm, and let the kyber hang from her hand. "You'll have access to the best tools in the galaxy, and work alongside some of its finest. You'll never need to steal again -- your tests will be a lot harder.

"If you're in, you need to be all in. Half measures won't cut it."

 

[The Vulptex]

The other fox looked to the spy, then to her teacher.

"...only if my whole gang is involved. We want to do things our way, and we get free reign to keep doing what we're doing down here."

Tallara

 

[Tallara]

The Vulptex
​

Despite technically knowing her age, Tallara felt a little like she was dealing with a kid. Still, she bit. "How many are you?"

 

[The Vulptex]

"Four. Five if you count our teacher." The fox said, her tone still identical as before. "Do we have a deal then?"

Tallara

 

[Tallara]

The Vulptex
​

She pinched the bridge of her nose. "No, because- I gotta vet everyone.

"And I even had the whole, last-clever bit where I reveal- whatever. What level's your hideout on? Or wherever your group is. We'll go now."

 

[The Vulptex]

The Vulptex stared at the spy, her eyes unblinking. "...you're asking me to expose my whole gang?"

Tallara

 

[Tallara]

The Vulptex
​

"Yeah. I mean, it's going to happen whether you want it to or not. Better that we do it now and just get it out of the way." She sighed, scratching her cheek.

"Look, I'm not trying to 'expose' you or whatever. This is like a job interview -- for the best job you'll ever have. You've got a Jedi for a master, so I'm guessing you don't steal shit for money. Either it's the thrill or the experience. Thrill? The work you'll be doing will be more exciting and dangerous than anything you've ever done before. Experience? Every training facility I've got access to can teach you twice as much in half the time as any outing down here.

"This is your big break. Now, protecting your friends -- good instinct. I like that. But if you want on board, and especially if you want them on board, I gotta meet them all." She shrugged.