First Reply Sucker Punch

[Drifter]

[ Something or nothing. ] Drifter shot back, impatience already growing. He could practically hear the elevator waiting music as they would watch the progress bar grow.

[ Breadcrumbs - a clue. ] cryptic but the man was in over his head on trying to track someone the normal way. This frustrated him to no end. A bark of a hollow laugh, recalling a childhood game. [ A needle in a haystack. ] this would be months of holofeed. It would take hours upon hours of work just combing through them. For what? A mere chance at a catching her face among millions? A flash of that blonde hair?

You’re being an idiot.

Turning that helm towards Okkeus Dainlei , he further clarified, [ I’m looking for someone.]

After the event, he couldn’t use the Force tracking talisman to focus in on Nohei’s presence, all of his creations frustratingly ceasing to work. However, there were a few things he could do. Sort of.

Yet it felt like a patchwork of attempted fixes. He had her blood; old as it could be, it was stil hers. Their Force bond could only go so much. It was a fething huge galaxy. He also knew that she had the alchemized blood trail beauty mark, but that wasn’t his blood on her. He couldn’t track that.

That was the frustrating thing. They said that they knew she was alive - he knew that she was alive - but she wasn’t in real danger. That she needed space to find herself. Fine.

But she wouldn’t have stopped talking to him. Not Nohei.

 

[Okkeus Dainlei]

Standing there he tried to process Drifter’s cryptic clues. They all seemed like excuses instead of an actual answer. As the man continued with his work he still tried to figure out what the man meant.

Turning to the door he looked out it, watching for more thugs. No others were in sight, but he watched anyways. After a few seconds he looked down at his right arm. He examined a small scorch mark on his elbow. It didn’t burn but it stung to the touch. Shrugging it off he turned back toward the man.

“I’m looking for someone.”

So that is what the man was after. Hopefully it was someone important, because beating up a large number of thugs didn’t look good on a resume. Unless that was your job.

The man continued on with his work, the download bar nearing the end of the screen.

93% Downloaded

Being the nosy person he was, he decided to press further.

“So is this someone you know? Some guy owe you ten credits? Some dude sleep with your girl? Heck, do you even have a special someone?”

Drifter

 

[Drifter]

[ Yes. ] Drifter would start to answer, moving towards the wall of screens that fed holocamera data into the room.

[ No. Do cookies count?] he continued, frowning as he caught sight of the series of patrons, guards, and the like congregating on the various rooms. They didn't have time to waste.

The third prompted a chuckle then a sigh, [ No, not at this rate. ] on the screens one could see that this particular club had holocameras throughout the building, including the outside perimeter. It not only recorded what happened on the inside but also in the alleyways and the front of the various cantinas and brothels that surrounded it.

A long pause on the third. Fiery red hair. Blue eyes. The scent of her skin. Stop it. Don't go there. Nopenopenopenopenope.

You do not need those memories coming up. Cue internal shudder.

[ Not yet. ] he answered honestly, although the edge in his modulated voice might make someone think otherwise. Panning that polarized visor back to Okkeus Dainlei

[ Why do you? ] the humor would pick up in his voice. Ninty-nine percent.

[Oh... and looks like we got company. ] He gestured towards the cameras, where a new group of Nikto guards would be pouring in from the front of the club on the holovideo screens.

 

[Okkeus Dainlei]

Well, he still had barely gathered any information about the person Drifter was after. He knew that cookies had been stolen and that we was a Single Sally. Besides that, not a clue. Not in the grand scheme of things that it matter who Drifter was after, but he had nothing better to talk about.

“Why do you?”

“To the cookies, no. And to the special someone...also no.”

Well in all honesty a special someone in his life was his Padawan. Caden felt like a brother to him, and the first real friend he had in a long time. But that was the past now.

Looking up from the screen Drifter warned him about incoming guards. Looking out of the doorway he say the guards pouring in. One quickly raised his blaster and fired a shot. Ducking back inside he shut the door.

Quickly he looked around for anything to barricade the door. A metal rod sat on the floor. Picking it up the used the force to wrap it around the handle, blocking off the guards. And for good measure he knocked over a bookshelf.

“Any good ideas? Also, is that data chip done?”

Looking out the small door window he saw the large mass of guards trying to break inside. There were at least thirty of them.

Drifter

 

[Drifter]

Alright so we knew each other a bit better. Let the bromance begin.

The datacomputer gave a solid beep and the progress bar flashed at a hundred percent. With the impatience of a little kid, Drifter quickly jerked the datastick from the stand. It wasn't disconnected properly but hey, he could deal with that later.

[ Uhh... ] adrenaline began to race through the man's veins, giving a scan at the cameras and at then back at Okkeus Dainlei . Had to admit, the guy was pretty damn useful so far.

[ I should have brought Alex. ] he told himself, revealing just another sliver of information of the man. Of course, if she heard him say that, he'd never live ir down. Glancing up, he did his best to look around. Okay, exit strategies. Vent. Back door exits. Kitchen -- wait...

Idea!

[ Follow me! ] he yelled out, tucking the datastick securely in his pocket before gesturing at the younger man to follow pursuit. With a duck and quick crouch, he extended his hand to summon the Force. He might not be the best at manipulating droids, but he could zap the shit out of electronics to cause them to overload and start a fire. Aiming by the far entryway, he did just that, focusing on the overhead lights to make them spark and then burst into flame. The smoke would curl soon after, as flames began to lick around the plastic and wood.

[ To the kitchen! ] as if that wasn't a foreboding thought.

 

[Okkeus Dainlei]

The sound of the data chip being ripped from the computer made him wince. Hopefully the chip wasn’t damaged, or all this work would have been for nothing. He watched the door, making sure the barricade was working properly. The door kept budging slightly inward.

“I should have brought Alex.”

Before he even had the chance to ask who the nerf Alex was, Drifter was already shouting for him to follow. Running his direction he watched as the man shot the force at a light, creating a fire.

Great, just great. Now they weren’t just going to get killed by the guards, but by the fire as well. Through all the smoke the man must have seen something though, because he yelled for him to follow.

Ducking through the flames they appeared in a kitchen, apparently on the back side of the bar.

“Hey Drifter buddy, I don’t think this is the best time for the steak and potatoes you talked about...”

Looking around he found a door on the opposite side of the kitchen. But more than likely guards awaited them on the other side.

Drifter

 

[Drifter]

There were no guards. Save the cook and his assistants hanging out behind the counter, peeking over the railing. Seeing them made Drifter pause. Overhead, the smoke did what it was supposed to do; trigger the fire alarm.

Well, that was one small relief.

[ Get out! ] Drifter yelled out, his mechanical voice commanding the line cooks to exit from where Okkeus Dainlei and he came. [ Get out if you don't want to be burnt to a crisp! ]

It would have been a better threat if the fire sprinklers hadn't turned on. Instead, there Drifter and Okkeus stood getting sprayed on by water.

Well fuck.

Standing there, water pouring over them, Drifter realized that lady luck was just not on his side.

[ Get out!] he shouted again, startling the cooks who immediately began to rush out.

 

[Okkeus Dainlei]

The cold water running down his back didn't make his mood better in the slightest.

Now they were wet and running from the guards. If this were filming an adult holofilm they could make some money off of this. But nope, just two guys yelling at cooks, soaking wet. Good times. At least he didn't have anywhere else to be.

Once the guards finally left the kitchen he looked over at Drifter. The man was just dripping wet, obviously not in a good mood. Hopefully they could get out of here fast. In a desperate attempt he looked around for any possible exit. Finally he found a vent opening about three feet above their heads. Using the force he ripped open the hatch, revealing a vent big enough to crawl in.

"Looks like we are going up, huh?"

Squatting down he gained extra strength in his legs through the force. Leaping upward he barely landed in the vent, nearly falling out again. Ahead he could see flashing lights outside through the vent's opening. He could also see it was their only way out. Looking downward he tried to see if the man would follow.

Drifter

 

[Drifter]

Drifter did, having to stop abruptly when Okkeus Dainlei poked his head down.

[ Go on, get git ] he called out, although dripping with water made him slightly irritated. The armor that he wore wasn’t the one he’d forged; it was bought by some armorsmith on Wayland. Nothing special about it other than it gave him a full helm with the filtration mask, modulating his voice with a mechanize tone.

He hated it.

Drifter made a hand gesture for Okkeus to get on moving, adding tartly, [ Don’t worry I won’t check out your butt!]

 

[Okkeus Dainlei]

Although Drifter didn’t seem like the type of person to check out his rear, he appreciated the heads up.

Crawling forward in the vent he heard the drip drip of the water hitting the Durasteel. Thankfully he was started to dry a little bit, but not too much.

Reaching the end of the vent he peeked outside, noticed the guard speeders parked outside. Sirens could be heard in the distance. If they wanted to get out of here, they needed to climb up on top of the bar.

“Looks like we have to quickly go outside of the vent and then climb up.”

He didn’t look back to see if Drifter followed. Hopefully the man did.

Drifter

 

[Drifter]

What did you do today? Got into a fight, managed to break into a club’s security room, downloaded some holovideo archives, met a Darksider kid who cracked dad jokes, and now had been staring at his rear as they both did their best to get out of this situation.

The wall of sirens and guards shouting would resonate throughout the area. Odds were that while the fire might distract the guards it would only be a matter of time before they got to the kitchen and found the ripped vent.

[ Well good thing I’m not afraid of heights,] he added, following Okkeus Dainlei up out of the vent to try and get a lay of their surroundings. There were a few ledges that perhaps they’d be a able to get to and from there, reach the emergency railing that would lead to the roof.

[ You don’t happen to have any issues with jumping or heights do you?] this would be important.

 

[Okkeus Dainlei]

"Issue with heights? Did you not see me just leap into the vent back their? I know it has been a long day, but c'mon..."

The duo both made their way to the end of the vents. Only a trace amount of smoke could be smelt, which meant the guards had put out most for the fire. That meant they would soon be looking for whoever started it.

Doing a final check he picked open the vent door. It swung against the wall, making small bang sound. Nerf.

“Shoot, now we have to hurry. They probably heard that.”

Crawling out of the vent he exited into the Nar Shadda night, with neo lights and drunken people everywhere. Turning his body around he found a pipe. Grabbing ahold of it he climbed upward. After a few seconds he reached the top of the building.

Looking down he waited for Drifter to follow.

“C’mon man!”

Drifter

 

[Drifter]

Okkeus Dainlei

Well jumping up into a vent is different than being tossed off a cliff...or a building.

[ Right, coming! ] he called out, moving quickly behind the younger man to Kowaikian monkey lizard his way to the pipes. This led them up along the side of the building, with bursts of wind blowing now and then. A misstep and it would have sent him tumbling down several feet below.

Still damp, Drifter shivered. Great, and it was cold too. Alex was going to have a field day with this.

Climbing up alongside the roof, the man caught sight of the wide open area. There were sensor arrays along the edges, a door that indicated a stairwell back into the club, and if he looked around, he could catch sight of the several nearby buildings beside it. The Holdout Cantina’s yellow neon sign was one of them.

[ There’s no way out. ] his mechanized voice said, panning the area. At least not on this roof.

There were a few nearby that might have exit strategies.

[ So, Okky. ] busting out the nicknames. [ How’s your long distance jumping?]

 

[Okkeus Dainlei]

The man had finally climbed up the pole, reaching the top of the building. They both looked around. No other exits could be seen on the room. Nerf.

“So Okky, how’s your long distance jumping?”

He chuckled at the nickname. These two guys had know each other for about an hour now, and the nicknames were being busted out. This was great.

“My long distance jumping is pretty good Drifty, considering I’m force sensitive. You?”

Looking across the street he saw another building lit up. That was probably where Drifter wanted them to go. In fact that was a really long jump. But he bet he could do it.

Besides, it wasn’t like there was any other option.

Drifter

 

[Drifter]

Oh, so we are playing it that way eh?

If there was anything in this entire 'verse that could provoke Drifter into some recklessness, it was a challenge. Had been since his youth in the past and odds are that there was no way that this would change anywhere in the future.

Puffing out his chest he made a grand show of looking over the distance that they would need to jump. Enter a sharp low whistle for dramatic effect, Drifter set his one arm to his hip and then jutted out his chin in challenge, [ Oh I don't know. I would say you wanna make a bet who can jump the farthest? ] Obviously, if they couldn't make the jump, well... that would suck.

He wouldn't even think of pointing out a handicap. And if Okkeus Dainlei did, then he would likely end up trying to prove he was still as good as he had been with both arms.

 

[Okkeus Dainlei]

So it was a challenge. Whoever jumped the furthest would win. But just being the winner wasn't enough, so why not raise the steaks.

"Alright Drifty, here is my bet. Whoever jumps the farthest gets a steak and potato dinner from the loser. And for fun lets throw a drink in there as well!"

Though the two men were being chased by guards after killing multiple men, they were pretty chill. He felt like he knew Drifter his entire life. Though the data chip still made him a little skeptical, he made himself believe it was nothing. Surely whatever information was on it was perfectly fine, right?

With the most snobby of bows he bent over, waving his hand infront of his body. The robotic fingertips pointed at the other rooftops, where they would be landing.

"Oh please, ladies first. I must be a gentlemen."

Yet this gentlemen was thinking in the back of his mind that he is about to demolish the man's jump length.

Drifter

 

[Drifter]

Oh, now you are really gonna get it kid.

Nevermind that there were still sirens blaring down below, or that there were club guards and bouncers looking for them. The fire was already put out and there exit via the vent had already been spotted in the kitchen. Did that matter right now? Hell no! Because pride was at stake!

[ You're on! ] A single pointer finger went jutting out to Okkeus Dainlei with a snap. Drifter then gave it a wag, adding with a notable snort, [ Please, you know this is all about respecting your elders, Okky. ]

A flash of a grin would remain hidden under the polarized helm, but there was no mistaken the amused shake of his shoulders in amusement. Oh, it was on! In this, he knew, after practicing for years in the jungles of Thral along with the predatory edge of his genetics, he just might have it over this punk kid.

Backing up to get a running start, Drifter made a big show about stretching, even cracking his back and squatting down to stretch out his legs, [ Gotta warm up the knees. ] he quipped, wry sarcasm dripping from his mechanized voice.

[ Alright... here we go. ] Legs and thighs would piston, strength coiling along sinew and bone. Youthful pride, a desire to win, and an explosion of the Force allowed the man to shoot forward. Experience and strength in the Force from almost three decades of training sent the mystery man flying forward. Oh, it was enough to warrant a hell of a distance. However, that tiny, finicky annoyance about not having an arm managed to knock some balance and control over his landing.

He would land hard, balance skewed, requiring him to make up for the propulsion of gravity and momentum by sending him flailing forward on the roof of the other building. Not the prettiest of sights and certainly not the most graceful.

But it gave him a fighting chance in the distance jump.

 

[Okkeus Dainlei]

As he watched Drifter stretch out, he couldn't help of think about the man's previous remark. The man's back and bones cracked with each stretch. He was sure right about the elders comment. Though he didn't know the man's age, he couldn't be that young. There was a way Drifter worked, acted, talked, and interacted with him that strengthen his theory.

The man had backed up against the wall, giving himself as much running room as possible. Sirens wailed in the background, probably distracting the man. Or at least that was what he hoped. As the man shot out from the starting position he jumped, soaring into the air. It all looked like it was going fine. That was until the man began to twist in the air. Guess missing one arm did make that big of a difference.

"You know, you are supposed to land on your feet!"

His shout more than likely didn't make it to the man, but he didn't care. The man was about to get destroyed.

Stretching out real quick he though about his jump. More than likely he wanted to get the most amount of air. But lots of speed could help as well. Standing against the back wall he started to charge his legs with force energy, just as he had taught long ago. When all the energy finished building up he shot off of the wall at an insane speed. Running as fast as he could his feet sprang off of the roof, sending him soaring into the air. He knew for sure that Drifter would lose.

That was when the blaster bolt hit him.

As the blaster bolt hit his shoulder, piercing the skin, he began tumbling down onto the streets below. Tucking himself into a ball he prepared for a hard impact. Hitting the streets hard he did a half roll before sprawling out on the ground. Looking up he saw another bolt heading his direction. Quickly dodging it he hopped behind a small wall. As he peaked over it he saw guards swarming the roof, all aiming his direction.

Well, looks like Drifter won that steak and potatoes dinner.

Drifter

 

[Drifter]

Drifter's landing lanced pain up his legs, making him hop around and curse a blue streak. It was a comedic sight; one that turned serious as soon as Drifter realized Okkeus Dainlei had been shot.

[ Fuck! ] he exclaimed, eyes widening under his helm. He immediately drew the blaster at his hip, bringing it out to pan the muzzle back towards the roof of the club they'd jump from. He sent a few orange blaster bolts downrange, providing some cover fire. On the roof, he could make out the silhouettes of Niktos, a Gammorean, and what looked like to be a Devaronian.

He managed to skid his way and duck down beside the teen, giving him a once over. This time, when Drifter spoke, there was an edge of genuine concern coating the modularized voice, [ You okay, Okky?]

From the coils of lingering smoke and that charred hole, it appeared that they got him right on the shoulder. Glancing back around from their small wall tuck away, he panned his gaze to get his bearings. There were a few generators and metal braces that they could probably use for cover. On the far end was a door, likely a stairway that led to an exit below. Odds were, however, that if they delayed, the guards would send mooks up that way too.

Along the far side of the building was an air lane, one that hover trucks loaded with trash used as their path. He had a small thought but first wanted to get an idea of Okkeus' situation.

[ You know I'm pretty awesome, but there wasn't any need to get shot just for you to get a handicap! ] he joked, peeking over the wall to send another flurry of orange blaster bolts to the guards.

[ You think you can still keep going or do I need to carry you like a princess?]

 

[Okkeus Dainlei]

Using the force he tried to heal the wound, but it was going very slowly. He wasn't even mad that he got shot. It frustrated him more that Drifter won than a hole being blaster in his shoulder. Besides, that dinner sounded amazing.

He watched as the man jumped down from the building, returning fire to the assholes on the roof. The man came next to him, checking on his wound.

"Don't worry Drifty, I'm already handicapped!"

Lifting up his robotic left hand he showed it to the man. But the pain started to appear, so he quickly put it back down. Looking over his right shoulder he saw the men still firing from the roof. Nerf this was a bad spot to be in.

"I swear to the force if you pick me up a will pull out my lightsaber and cut your ass in half right now."

Though he was joking around, he wasn't about to let the man pick him up and parade around with him. No way. Using his other arm he pushed himself off of the ground. Still in a crouched position he turned toward the attackers. With his right hand he focused enough energy to send out a burst of lighting. Unfortunately it collided with the wall right before the attackers, but it still took them by suprise.

Waving his hand infront of himself, he motioned for Drifter to guide the way. In the most faked-female voice ever he spoke.

"Oh please, my knight in Durasteel armor, guide the way to safety!"

Drifter