Stumbling Across The Devil

[John Doe]

Byss. A lovely world, full of lovely people, with lovely criminals that didn't mind doing business with the lovely John Doe, C.E.O. of John Doe Incorporated.

The clownish crime lord strode into a vacant plaza in the dead of night. It was better this way. Less visibility equaled less attention, and that was something the maniac didn't want. He was a wanted criminal on several systems. Not that it concerned him. In other circumstances, John would have loved to take on local law enforcement in a blazing gunfight, but he was here to do business, and that sort of reckless mayhem that the clown oh-so loved would only impede the transaction.

He wasn't alone. Alongside the grinning, purple tux-clad man was a protective entourage of about six goons, armed to the teeth. His men were slightly oafish, but they were good at their jobs, and loyal to boot. John made sure of that.

Two figures were waiting in the center of the plaza. Next to them were two crates, locked, the contents unknown to all except the seller and the buyer.

"Well, looky here! What's in the box?! Hehehehe. Just kidding. I know what's in them."

The two human smugglers shifted about, obviously uncomfortable in the presence of the tall, pale, grinning man. There was something about him that was...off. As if he were on a different level of thought than those he surrounded himself with. Everyone knew that feeling. Those who worked with him just chose to ignore it.

"Ergh....you, uh, you got the credits?"

"Sure I do! Now, where did I put my wallet..."

John patted his body, eventually turning his pants pockets inside out, with an exaggerated frown.

"Whoops, boys. Seems like I left my wallet back in Nar Shaddaa."

One of the smugglers tapped his companion's shoulder and shook his head, obviously frustrated.

"Come on, man! I knew this deal was too good to be true! Let's leave this clown behind and wait till he's serious about business."

"Oh, I am serious, boys...serious as a heart attack."

Without hesitation, Doe pulled out a long blaster pistol and gunned the two Humans down effortlessly. Blowing the smoke off of the cooling barrel, he replaced it back in the confines of his jacket and shrugged his shoulders, giving his henchmen a slight pout.

"Why buy something when you can take it for free? Open the crates!"

The six men rushed off, breaking the locks on the crates with the butts of their rifles. Inside one crate were assorted arms, all military grade, enough ordinance to capture a city. The other one had chemicals, vital components necessary for the manufacturing of John Doe's galaxy-famous Paprika, a one-of-a-kind spice that had the tendency to turn the user into a homicidal maniac.

Cackling horribly, the crime lord reveled in his victory, preparing to leave the area and return to his ship.

[member="Zayden Madera"]

 

[Zayden Madera]

It was as dark as the bottom of Kamino's Oceans, which was much darker than the usual Byss night. Zayden wasn't complaining about the dark, rather, he was joyous for it. The darker it was, the easier it was for him to make a quick grab and run on whatever valuable find he came across. His wealth from his previous heist was running quite dry, so it was about time for him to do something about it, and this night was the night.

As he rounded the corner and walked down an empty alley, he heard a commotion in the near distance. It sounded like a conversation. A business deal, perhaps? This could be his opportunity. Zayden crept closer until he could hear everything clearly. Crouched behind the railing on the outer part of the plaza, Zayden watched. He saw two men standing beside two crates and an entourage of individuals approaching.

His eyes glued to the scene, Zayden finally realized what was taking place was illegal. Well, like that really mattered. He was a thief, after all. This just meant that the authorities would not be contacted if he stole something from them... though they may get pissed off at him, and that's never a good thing. The conversation, at this point, seemed to take a turn.

"Oh, I am serious, boys...serious as a heart attack."

Zayden nearly jumped out of his pants as he saw the two men standing by the crates get gunned down in a cold-blooded fashion. What was he to do now? This find took a heavy turn and seemed too dangerous to pursue. Zayden didn't even want to move from his current position, afraid that he might get spotted. Zayden lifted his head back over the railing to see what was happening now. The men behind the guy that shot the first two were now opening the crates. Zayden saw instantly how valuable the contents of the crates were. Weapons... Weapons... Weapons... That was the only thing he saw. Everything else was irrelevant. He could make enough credits to finally purchase a ship of his own if he succeeded in capturing that one crate. Then, he would be able to fly to wherever his heart desired.

The entire group of individuals lifted the crates and began marching off. Zayden swallowed to clear his throat.

"Damn... this might be the stupidest idea I've ever had."

And with that, Zayden silently trailed the fishy looking fellows.

[member="John Doe"]

 

[John Doe]

"Woohoo, boys! One step closer! I...I mean, we...are gonna grab the galaxy by the nads!"

The thugs snickered and gave each other headbutts, claps on the back, the whole charade. John Doe, it appeared, couldn't be happier. He was hopping and skipping about, taking a few seconds here and there to mock the dead smugglers.

"Now that was a rather cold business deal, wasn't it? Still, I'm glad we came to an agreement. No hard feelings?"

He eagerly grabbed one of the corpse's arms and shook his limp hand. Then followed the usual peals of laughter.

"Hey, boss...when are we gonna get paid?"

"When I get my wallet."

Point taken. The henchmen hurried to clear the area with the crates in tow, lest their employer's unpredictable penchant for homicide turned to them. A faint scatter drew the attention of the crime lord momentarily. It seemed to come from the shadows. The grinning maniac didn't pay it much heed. Probably a gutter rat scurrying to pick the bones of the corpses clean before they lost their warmth.

[member="Zayden Madera"]

 

[Zayden Madera]

Zayden, at the best of his ability, which is pretty darn good considering this has been his life, sneaked his way behind the lunatic and his men. The find was good, but obtaining the loot was not going to be easy. Hell, this was the most difficult challenge that has ever stood and waved to Zayden. This challenge was the type of one that pursuing idiots could lose their lives over. And that was exactly what Zayden was doing... being a pursuing idiot.

Stopping in an alley at a safe distance from the goons, Zayden pulled out his communication radio from his bag. Whatever was going on in his brain, he did realize that he couldn't accomplish what he wanted alone. He decided to contact the only person he could think of in a situation like this one. Turning the radio on and setting the volume to "very low", Zayden whispered to get the attention of his friend on the other side of the line.

"Mitch, you will not believe what I just came across! There was a crate, okay. A crate full of firearms! Not the cheap stuff. These looked like they were military grade. Expensive. Do you know what we could sell these for?"

"What...? I have a feeling that you're trying to drag me into something that will cost me my life."

"That is precisely what I'm-- Wait! No, that is not what I'm saying. Look, Mitch, I need your help on this one. This is the biggest catch that we have ever had the opportunity of witnessing. Let's not let this one walk out the door."

"I hate you, you know that right? But fine. I'll get some of the boys together. Just direct us to where we need to go."

Zayden lowered the radio, and proceeded to follow the biggest potential catch of his life.

[member="John Doe"]

 

[John Doe]

"Stop dilly-dalling, or I'll dilly your dally! Wait. That's not what I meant. Perverts!"

John's goons struggled to hold in chuckles as the black crates were being put aboard his vessel. With several heaves and a ho, the cargo was secure aboard Doe's ship.

"Be careful with that, you pack of buffoons! What's in those boxes is worth more than your lives!"

"We'll be leaving shortly, boss. Gotta let the engines warm up first."

John Doe looked over to the pilot, placing his hands on his hips, mockingly chastising the man.

"What's the matter with you? Give them a blanket, some hot cocoa. Talk to them, make them feel wanted. Get that warm and fuzzy feeling all in them. And when they least suspect it, slit their throats! That'll warm them up real good. Oh, we're talking about the engines. Bahahahaha!"

The pilot awkwardly scampered off before any more 'humor' was directed his way. Now, to wait. The henchmen took a defensive position around the loading ramp, weapons held somewhat upright, prepared for anything. No way of knowing if the police were notified of a shooting, after all. John Doe sat on the edge of the ramp, pistol in hand, just waiting for an unlucky soul to stumble across this scene.

[member="Zayden Madera"]

 

[Zayden Madera]

The ship was there and they had already loaded it. This landing pad, this one was in a pretty secluded area. But nevertheless, Zayden knew most of the city from all his adventures and shenanigans in the place. This specific pad was not excluded. Looking up to the rooftops, Zayden saw some of his friends sneaking around and getting into position. Mitch had brought four guys, including himself. Zayden was just about to move to a better position when something touched his shoulder and nearly sent him into a panic attack. It was Mitch.

"My heart almost exploded, Mitch. Not funny."

"You can consider that partial payback for dragging my ass out here. The boys are in position... should be in position. I'll move to my spot. We'll wait for your call."

Mitch slammed a magazine into his blaster rifle and scurried off. Zayden didn't want to use blasters or actually harm anyone, but Mitch brought them. Besides, their opposition was armed to the teeth and wouldn't hesitate to kill them if they were caught. Zayden started to have second thoughts about this whole idea. He began to realize that the lives of him and his friends were more valuable than the fortune of weapons in that crate. But, it was too late now. Mitch would lose his crap if Zayden backed out now.

With a few quick steps, Zayden pushed forwards. There were some large empty cargo crates sitting around the landing pad that were left by their previous owners. Zayden used those cargo crates as cover while he pushed forwards. He was now dangerously close to the goons, close enough to hear their breaths. Their whole plan revolved around his ability to sneak onto that ship. The others were there to distract the criminals. Zayden took a few deep breaths. Nothing was going to happen if he just sat there, so he knew he had to move along.

He was about to grab his radio to give the signal when a black container suddenly appeared under him. He wasn't able to see it earlier because of how dark this night was, but it was too late now. He gritted his teeth as a loud "CLANG" sound filled the air. With a "THUD", Zayden hit the concrete. His heart was beating really fast now. He blew it. They now knew he was there. He somehow had to scavenge the whole plan... possibly improvise? Everything depended on how the lunatic will react to Zayden's presence.

[member="John Doe"]

 

[John Doe]

As if on sync, all the henchmen turned around to face the now-exposed thief. There was a brief second of self-contemplating questions, like how the hell he managed to get so close without anyone hearing it, before two of John Doe's men stepped forward and scooped the young man up. They could've just gunned him down; however, the boss usually liked to have some fun with people caught tampering with his operations and devices.

The crime lord still sat on the loading ramp, grinning vicariously as the thief was brought before him.

"Boss, we caught this one sneaking around. Looks like he was gonna try and steal something."

"My, my. Have you heard the old saying, 'It takes two to tango'?"

The goons looked at each other, confused.

"Oh, it doesn't have to do with anything happening right now. I just like how it sounds. Bahahahaha! Anyways, where was I? Ah, this thief, this greedy little sticky fingers!"

The crime lord aimed his blaster right between Zayden's eyeballs, then pulled it away. Instead, he got in close, close enough for the young man to see in fine detail his pale face, soulless eyes, and wide grin that revealed yellow teeth.

"I don't like hurting young people like yourself, I really don't. But it's better to teach them young! Your parents will thank me down the road, young man."

John Doe pulled out a nasty looking knife and flicked it back and forth several times next to Zayden's face, nearly cutting him.

"Oh, I'm always bad at decision making when it comes to this sort of thing. You know what, young man? It is your face, so you get to choose which part I cut off. It can be anywhere. Oh, better think of something fast, otherwise I may just be inclined to take the whole thing! Bahahaha!"

The crime lord gave a sinister chortle as his men trained their weapons on the young man. Attempted escape would be met by the two goons turning him into Swiss cheese. If he failed to give Doe an answer in time, Zayden ran the risk of losing his entire face. Quite pressuring decisions up ahead for the boy.

"Ding! Your time is up! So what'll it be, thief?"

[member="Zayden Madera"]

 

[Zayden Madera]

There was nothing he could do but allow the goons to drag him to their leader. If he struggled or resisted, he was sure they would kill him. The lunatic was waiting for him on the ramp of the ship. As the crime lord spoke to him, and he spoke to him really close, Zayden curled his nose upwards from the stench of the man's breath. Zayden did not speak. He just waited and listened to the lunatic ramble on. When the lunatic whipped out a knife, that's when Zayden started to panic a little. Now, the lunatic wanted him to select a part of his face to remove. How absurd... how could Zayden make a decision on something like that? He didn't want any part of his face to be removed. That's when every ounce of fear that was once present in his body turned to anger. This time, Zayden leaned in close to the criminal's face to speak.

"You know what it'll be, clown. I'm sure by the time I'm done with you, YOUR hideous face would look better than it does now. With a few blaster marks, of course."

Zayden, then, flung himself backwards, with a little help from his odd abilities(The Force), and into the two goons with blaster rifles. He made sure to fling himself as quick and hard as he could so that the two would not have time to react. In doing this, he kind of knocked the air out of himself, as well. Lying on the ground atop the two goons, Zayden battled them to take hold of their blaster rifles. While doing this, he also knew it was time to give his friends the signal.

"NOW!!"

He shouted it at the top of his lungs, which would alert everyone in the area to the presence of his friends. Though, that wouldn't matter at this point. Blaster fire began to rain down from the rooftops around the landing pad towards the other goons and the lunatic. Some blaster fire was even hitting the ship. It would be an impressive thing for any of the unsuspecting criminals to identify the exact number of attackers. Everything happened so quickly. Though there was only four of Zayden's friends firing, they sure as hell made it seem like an army.

Faintly in the distance, police sirens could be heard... slowly edging closer to the small shootout.

[member="John Doe"]

 

[John Doe]

"Well, the pup has some bite to his bark..."

John Doe wildly sprayed laser bolts in Zayden's general direction as he jumped around, attempting to wrestle away one of his thug's rifles. He was missing, cackling at how chaotic the situation had turned in the blink of an eye. His random shots managed to hit one of his own men in the shoulder as they hunkered down, suppressed.

"Ah! What the kark?!"

Skipping about, dodging blasts sent his way, Doe reached towards the side of the loading ramp and procured a very nasty-looking grenade launcher. Nearly doubling over with insane laughter, the crime lord aimed up towards the rooftops where most of the fire was coming from and pulled the trigger.

A charged thermal detonator flew to the building and exploded upon impact, nearly collapsing the entire top of the structure. John Doe did it again to the next building. And the next one. And the next one. His men weren't suppressed anymore. The fire had stopped. Whether or not that was due to the attackers being dead or routed was unknown.

Now, to handle business at hand.

Striding forward, John skipped to the thug and the thief still wrestling on the ground. Propping a polished spat back, Doe prepared to unleash a whole world of hurt on the kid with a solid kick to the face.

"Let's rearrange those facial features, kiddo!"

[member="Zayden Madera"]

 

[Zayden Madera]

Zayden quickly whirled out of the way of the oncoming kick, while at the same time, shoving the thug towards John. He skid on the concrete from the force of his leap until coming to a halt about ten feet from his original position. Crouched over, he decided to speak out towards the crazed killer.

"Hey, all fun and games, am I right?"

He laughed nervously before looking up to the destroyed rooftops. Horror slowly formed across Zayden's face. Had the maniac killed his friends... or had they gotten away before the explosions? Too many questions, Zayden had to focus on the task at hand. Confused, he felt something in the grip of his right hand. It was the thug's blaster rifle. It appeared that he was able to take possession of it before jumping out of the way. Zayden lifted the rifle up and aimed towards John Doe.

"You bastard... if I find out you killed my friends..."

He cut himself off before finishing his statement and unloaded blasts towards John Doe and the other criminals. While firing, he shifted and moved to cover against one of the large cargo containers. While all of this was going on, the police sirens were closer and only getting closer.

After he unloaded the entire magazine of the blaster rifle, he lowered it and pressed his back against the cargo container, taking in deep breaths. A light kept reflecting into his eye, and when he looked to see what it was, he could see Mitch and an injured friend trying to get his attention with a shard of glass. It appeared that they were signaling for him to go... the mission was a bust and they had to get out of there while they still could.

[member="John Doe"]

 

[John Doe]

"Hahahaha! That's the spirit!"

Cartwheeling out of the way from the volley of fire in a surprising display of agility, the two goons next to John Doe just a second ago weren't as fortunate. They were torn apart, their corpses hitting the floor with a sickening thud.

"Not bad shooting from a young buck such as yourself!"

Then Doe saw the shimmer of light from the rooftop. It stood out from the fires that now raged the buildings.

"Friends of yours, kiddo? Well, you know what they say about friends. They're dead weight."

Lining up his shot, the clown fired another grenade towards the survivors. He attempted to shoot another, but the hammer fell on an empty chamber. Out of ammo. Throwing the now useless weapon aside, John strode over to the cargo box, knife in hand, flicking it back and forth while searching for the young thief.

"Come out of hiding, boy. Uncle J will carve a nice smile into that face. Oh, by the way, your friends are probably dead. Who needs friends, anyways? Friends are overrated. That's why I don't have any. Well, that and a few other reasons. Bahahaha! Hey, idiots! Instead of standing around, why don't you find this kid and show him some proper hospitality?"

The henchmen did as they were instructed and spread out, searching the area for the thief. Sirens were quickly drawing near.

"Boss, we need to get outta here!"

"Oh, don't worry about the boys in blue. Plot convenience will keep them away for now."

"....huh?"

"Never mind. Just find the kid!"

[member="Zayden Madera"]

 

[Zayden Madera]

While Zayden was trying to think of his next action, the area where his friends once were erupted into a large array of orange accompanied by an almost deafening sound of explosion. Hope... instead of helping Zayden, it just kicked him in the groin and left him behind. He wanted to mourn his friends, but he knew he had no time to do so, lest he wanted to join their fate. He had to find a way to escape and a place to lay low at. The only cover he had were the cargo containers and the buildings, though the buildings were lit up in fire and mostly a mess of rubble and walls. Then it clicked to him. The ship. How bittersweet it would be to steal the ship of the man that killed his friends. It was worth a shot.

Slowly maneuvering around the cargo containers, Zayden made sure he avoided the sight of the goons. There were a few situations where he thought he was caught, but the thugs ended up passing by, leaving him in the darkness. Tip toeing his way to the last cargo crate, Zayden saw that the only thing between him and the ship was open space. Running it would be risky, but it appeared to be the only option at this point. Taking off with a full sprint, Zayden dove onto the ramp of the ship. He crawled his way up and into the ship, hoping that the only thing that stood between him and safety were the controls.

There was something that he was forgetting. What had turned into background noise was now really ringing in his ears... he couldn't make it out at first, but then it dawned on him. The authorities were practically around the corner. Hell, that made his plan much more difficult. Even if he was able to steal the ship, he would have to lose the authorities in a chase, and that sounded like a lot of work.

-----

Coming over the burning rubble, a single police craft emerged.

"HALT! You are all under arrest until further investigation can explain what has transpired! If you refuse to comply, lethal force will be used."

[member="John Doe"]

 

[John Doe]

Zayden would've made it out with John Doe's ship had the pilot not been aboard.

The barrel of a pistol was pushed into the thief's back, and a strong, commanding voice rang out in the interior of the bridge cabin.

"The shot won't kill you, not where I'm aiming at. But it will paralyze you for life. So unless you want to be getting around on a wheelchair for the rest of your existence, I suggest you get on the ground, hands behind your head. Nice and easy. I don't wanna hurt you, so don't force me to do anything I don't have to do, ok?"

This man sounded different than the rest of John Doe's assorted thugs. Almost as if he was a bit above them. This was to be somewhat expected. Pilots were usually qualified, competent people, and in the criminal sector, they usually comprised of down-on-luck spacers who couldn't land a job. This was the case for him. The pilot had a kind, but worn-out face, and his eyes were soft as he poked the back of the young man's back with his blaster.

"C'mon, kid. It's bad enough for you already. You just karked with one of the most dangerous men alive. Look, work with me here, and I'll put a word in for you. Maybe you'll get off light. The boss, he listens to me. I'm a specialist. We're treated a bit differently than the jarheads outside. Just don't do anything else too stupid, man."

Meanwhile, outside...

"Under arrest? Well, I say that this is an unlawful detainment! Put her down, boys!"

The henchmen leveled their rifles and opened fire, aiming in specific at the police craft's engines. In the volley of blasterfire, the engines were set ablaze, and the transport went spiraling out of control, crashing into the burning streets. The ship was still.

John Doe looked around at his men, laughing maniacally.

"Huh, I guess pigs do fly, just not for long! Bahahaha!"

The cronies chuckled and praised each other on their marksmanship.

"Well, I'd say we outstayed our visit here. Let's beat it!"

With that, the men began making their way over to the loading ramp, piling in. John Doe was last to enter, a sinister smile plastered on his face as he strode over to the bridge of his ship to see if the engines were ready for liftoff.

[member="Zayden Madera"]

 

[Zayden Madera]

Zayden felt the blaster dig into his back. There was nothing he could do to his attacker from this angle, so he slowly raised his arms in the air. Hell, he was caught. Even if his attacker had been in front of him, there would have been no way for him to avoid getting shot. Before getting on the ground, Zayden wanted to share a few words with the man.

"Get off light, huh? I have a feeling that your 'light' and his 'light' are much different than my 'light'. Look, you've got me, alright. You can ease your finger away from that trigger. I'd rather not be paralyzed by an accidental misfire."

Zayden felt more comfortable talking to this man than the crazed lunatic outside. Perhaps it was because this guy was much more reasonable and... friendly, kind of. At least this guy wasn't unpredictable, and that made Zayden feel slightly safer for the time being. As Zayden slowly descended to the floor, another explosion was heard outside followed by a maniacal laugh.

"So...? You can put your word in for me, right? Maybe you can pull some kind of lie for me...? Well, I might be pushin it, but just something, man."

----
-Byss Authority radio chatter-

"Patrol Craft Z134 has gone down. I repeat, Patrol Craft Z134 has gone down. Requesting back-up. All nearby crafts, sending coordinates to you now."

----
-In the rubble of one of the buildings-

Climbing out of the rubble, Mitch coughed his lungs out. Blood splattered onto the concrete from his cough. His survival was the only thing authorities would be able to go off of from the crazy events that just took place. Though, his body was failing him and would require treatment before he could comfortably speak.

[member="John Doe"]

 

[John Doe]

"Are those engines nice and toasty? Well, well. What do we have here?"

John Doe strode over to Zayden's side, a menacing smile on his face.

"Boss...he's just a kid."

The crime lord stuck a finger on the pilot's lips, shushing him ever so gently.

"It's my civic duty to teach our youth the imperative morals of society. Like crime....and punishment. Thievery is illegal, you jackanape! The public education system has failed you, young man. Cuff him and throw him in the play pen! Bahahaha!"

From the main deck strode in two thugs, armed with shock collars and restraints to be placed on the thief. Upon being restrained, a few punches and other blows would be thrown his way, to add injury to insult, and he'd be thrown in a pitch-black room.

[member="Zayden Madera"]

 

[Zayden Madera]

Zayden didn't let them place the shock collar on him without a fight. He struggled, but as things went, he knew he had no choice but to eventually give in. There were simply too many hostiles for him to have a chance. When they threw punches or kicks his way, he took the beating, trying his best to not allow it to faze him. By the time they brought him to the pitch-black room, he was sweating from strain. Zayden didn't know where this ship was headed... or if any of his friends survived, but one thing was for sure, the idea to pursue this opportunity was one hell of a bad idea.

Contemplating in the dark room, Zayden decided to meditate. It's what the movie stars did in hopeless situations like these in their movies. Cutting out everything around him was easy as the room was both dark and silent. His thoughts wandered. He felt something within him. It was that strange power that constantly tingled his skin and sometimes allowed him to do unnatural things. It was The Force.

"Just have to let loose."

Feeling around with the Force, Zayden lifted any object in his vicinity, no matter what it was, and just let it float as he continued his meditation. Suddenly, the image of his friend Mitch's corpse filled his mind. His concentration broke, and all the boxes and miscellaneous items slammed to the floor. Sweat fell from his face and dripped onto his knee... or was it a tear? Zayden couldn't tell, but regardless of what it was, Zayden was pissed again and could no longer concentrate on meditating.

[member="John Doe"]

 

[John Doe]

The lights of the room suddenly bathed the area in white, which would temporarily blind Zayden, whose eyes had no doubt grown accustomed to the darkness.

"Wakey, wakey, little thiefy. Aww. Are you crying? Save some tears for later, young man. You'll need them."

The clown himself strode into the play pen. He looked around and noticed the boxes and tools scattered around, smiling maliciously.

"What a mess. Well, there's gonna be a bigger mess here in a second. Bahaha!"

Procuring his signature knife from his sleeve, the madman squatted in front of the captured boy. With his free hand, he grabbed Zayden's hair and pulled his head up, forcing him to look at his face.

"Speaking of messes, I left quite a large one back there. No doubt your friends were blown to smithereens in the process. Friends are overrated, anyways. That's why I don't have any. You should try it sometime. In the field both of us work in, they're just dead weight. Oops. Too soon? Hahahahahaha!"

John Doe then rubbed the side of his blade against the thief's face, causing a few small cuts, but nothing serious.

"Anyways, kiddo. I'm sure you'll see things in my light when I'm through with you. By the way, the pilot begged on your accord. 'He's just a kid, boss, you can't kill him, he's someone's kid, you can't carve him up, you can't, can't, CAN'T.' I then proceeded to show him that I can do whatever I want by disemboweling him. Hah! News flash, my boy: things are so much easier to do when you're like me. That's why I'm going to make you like me. When I'm done, it'll be like looking in a mirror! Why would I do this, you may ask? Because I can! Well, before the beautiful, beautiful process of forced evolution takes place, I feel like we should make this a bit personal. I didn't catch your name. What is it?"

[member="Zayden Madera"]

 

[Zayden Madera]

Zayden eyed the mad man as he spoke and scraped the knife across Zayden's cheeks. Slight cuts emerged on his cheeks and small lines of blood trickled downwards. Zayden stared at John dead in the eyes for a moment before making a response. Rage filled his interior and it was making itself present on his face. His cheeks were red with anger and his eyes appeared as if he wished to kill. Zayden decided to speak in the lunatic's own language, or at least something close to it.

"I'm going to kill you. Write it down. You don't mind cutting yourself do you? Write it down on your arm with that blade so that you will remember it. Write it. Here here, have my name while you're at it. Write this: 'Zayden will kill me'. I don't want you forgetting. Do I have to do it for you...?"

The pressure in the air changed. Zayden had not used the Force in this way since he killed the thugs that beat him when he was younger. Control... that was gone now. All that was present in his mind was to make John suffer and die a slow death. The boxes began to shake... the weaker ones burst while the sturdier boxes lifted up in the air. The floor beneath Zayden and John began to shake... which meant that the ship was starting to shake. Zayden used the Force to grip the knife and twist it towards John's arm, but there was resistance there. To try and break John's grip, Zayden launched the metal boxes towards him while avoiding them himself.

"Still got jokes, clown?"

[member="John Doe"]

 

[John Doe]

"Oh, I got jokes aplenty. Here's one for you: what do you call a man with nothing to lose, and everything to gain? Me!"

A Force user? How troublesome. John hadn't encountered one of those for a long while. It only made the kill more satisfying.

In quite a display of flexibility, the clown deftly dodged one of the metal boxes, then another, and he barely managed to scrape by the last one with an impressive backflip. It was so close he could almost feel the metal whizzing by his head. Still, there was the grip on his knife to be dealt with. That was an easy fix. He simply placed the knife back within the folds of his jacket. In his experience, to manipulate an object, the Force user had to actually see it. Out of sight, out of mind. Too easy.

"You know, you really should stop shaking the ship. I don't know how perceptive you are, dear Zayden, but if you haven't noticed it already, we're in an airlock. That's right! One press of a teeny tiny button from one of my unwavering men watching this whole charade from a monitor and we're both spaced! So if you enjoy sucking in air, I'd suggest you sit down and shut up! Bahahaha!"

One could see that the odd hatch against the wall actually was an airlock door. If the door were to be opened by the aforementioned goon observing the proceedings, nothing would be left inside the play pen. It was the clown's way of ensuring a failsafe, in case a prisoner attempted to escape or overpowered his or her captors.

"Aw, you look so angry. Lighten up!"

[member="Zayden Madera"]

 

[Zayden Madera]

Zayden turned and looked at the hatch that John pointed out. The shaking eased slowly until it was no more. An airlock. That complicated things. Zayden turned to John to speak. Even though the realization of the airlock cooled Zayden off somewhat, his voice was still filled with defiance.

"You're in here with me. We'd both be spaced."

Zayden looked at the reinforced door behind John. That door must have been the door they brought him in here from and also the door that led to the rest of the ship. Zayden didn't understand why John would say that they would both be spaced. Perhaps the clown had some kind of way to save himself if the airlock was opened. Either that, or he was bluffing. Zayden didn't care. He was going to figure out a way to get out... and eventually kill John. Zayden walked towards John, smirking as he did.

"I'm calling bull on the airlock. No way you'd have it opened while you were in here. Besides... I don't think that little goon wants to risk doing a no no while you're in here. Oh, and if you want to use that knife on me since I'm getting closer to you, go ahead. I took the blade off of it before you tucked it away. Hm? Where is the blade? Gee, maybe I know."

Zayden continued walking, stepping off to the side to avoid John and passing him altogether. It was the reinforced door that Zayden was interested in. If John was going to try and make a quick get away, Zayden wanted to be closer to the escape route so that he could stop John, or get out of the airlock too. If the reinforced door happened to not be the way John was going to use, Zayden was still closer to the maniac. That way, Zayden thought he would have a better chance of using the same escape route.

[member="John Doe"]