Private The Black Marsh Files: Drops of Jupiter

[Katarine Ryiah]

​

Location: Naboo Police Station - Theed
Objective: Meet Local Marshall & Start Investigation
Tags: Aris Noble Kol Ambo


Naboo was a beautiful planet. Even after years of physical therapy at Theed hospital Katarine couldn't help but admire the beauty of Naboo. It was a view she would never get sick of, though admittedly she could was in no hurry to return to Theed General Hospital, that was for sure. Luckly today was not about hosital visits, but rather another line of investigation into the prisoners that had escaped from Black Marsh Prison. She was not alone in this endeavor either. A young padawan was going to meet her at the station. Of course this was not just any padawan, but rather the son of Grandmaster Valery Noble. Kat would have to make certain nothing happened to the young man. She was also supposed to be meeting an Alliance Marshall at the police station as well so it would be a day of introductions all around.

Kat strolled into the station and was immediately met with the chaos and disorganization that seemed to stem from every police station she had ever visited. It all seemed disorganized of course but it was a well oiled machine, albeit a loud and crazy one. All around her comm units were ringing, people were shouting, and a radio was going off in the distance. She hung back, waiting for the receptionist to notice her so she could meet her party and get this adventure started.

​

 

[Kol Ambo]

Theed Landing Platform 24B
Naboo
​

The Curious Kitty descended through the Nubian atmosphere along the path directed by air control.

Her ventral stabilizer rattled a bit. Kol would have to get that looked at. Maybe someone he was meeting with today could recommend an inexpensive mechanic. Though, it was hard to find anything inexpensive on Naboo. There were government tax incentives for hand-made goods here, to prevent the world from becoming an industrial wasteland like so many other planets. Industry still existed on Naboo, of course. But anything that could be hand-finished and fitted was. And that caused everything here to cost a purse and a half.

Finally, Kol set the Curious Kitty down and disembarked, taking a moment to walk around the ship and make sure nothing was about to fall off.

His old rattletrap was a strange sight on the polished marble and bronzium of the local architecture. Beautiful place, Naboo was. Kol had heard that even the underwater Gungan Kingdom was a gleaming wonder. In his long life, he'd never spied it with his own eyes.

Maybe he'd get to change that.

Finally satisfied that his ship would survive a while longer, he made his way to the local police station.

---

Police Station - Theed

Before very long, the police receptionist on Theed, and the Jedi Master Katarine Ryiah would find a disheveled man coming in who looked very unlike anyone who might belong on Naboo. He seemed to be the very epitome of anti-polish. Only the fact that he was well-groomed and clean betrayed that he wasn't homeless. Otherwise, he might have been any of the many millions of sentients in the galaxy who lived on the streets, enduring haphazard lives of uncertainty and deterioration. Perhaps he might be a blue-collar worker who performed one of the menial tasks of the universe, in an industry that could not afford a droid to do it instead.

Whoever he was, he was definitely not an Alliance Marshal.

Except... his long coat was a standard Marshal's model, as it would look after enduring a decade or two of wear and tear.

He sidled up next to Katarine, waiting his turn to speak to the receptionist so that he could find out where the Jedi were, to meet with them about the fugitive at large.

---

Katarine Ryiah Aris Noble

 

[Aris Noble]

This wasn't the first time he'd been to Naboo. Likely wouldn't be the last, given his Master's connection to the world. Nobility, or something like that, if he remembered correctly. History lessons of the various worlds were still hit or miss when it came to how much he might actually know of a world. There were just so many out there. It made him want to see them all, of course. Aris was certainly a hound for knowledge.

Now he wasn't earning history, though. Assisting in an investigation. He didn't need the Force for that, at least not completely. He had no doubt it'd help a Jedi to feel it in all situations, but people did this without the influence of the Force all the time.

It's what made him that much more eager to meet the other that had been called along. He stood close to Katarine, giving her a brief nod. There was a pressure there of course. He was Valery's son. That could be why he was even allowed here in the first place, but it was also likely that this meant she was going to be extra careful of his safety. Not good for a Jedi, but perhaps that was the trade off?

Either way, he was all smiles. "Inspector Ambo, yes?"

Kol Ambo | Katarine Ryiah

 

[Katarine Ryiah]

​

Location: Theed Police Station
Objective: Brief the Gang
Tags: Aris Noble Kol Ambo

Katarine was waiting patiently for the receptionist to notice her, but young padawan Aris had already noticed the Jedi Master. She smiled at him in welcome and couldn’t believe how tall he was already. Katarine herself was only five foot two inches, but having once strolled next to Master Yoda she realized the height situation could be worse. She nodded at Aris and planned to greet him in just a moment. That is until he spoke and made Katarine glance at the man who had just walked in.

Kat could see the padawans line of thinking. This man was certainly not a local and his coat was reminiscent of the Marshalls all the way back when Kat was just a knight. Of course he could just be a worker or someone here to file a complaint, but Kat wouldn’t put it past Aris to have studied the files of agents they may work with. From what she had heard he was a very smart boy who loved learning.

She moved her deep green eyes away from the man’s coat and let them rest on his middle aged face. He had a rugged worn appeal to him, like someone who had seen a thing or two but was tough enough to take it. With a small smirk she found herself hopping this was the inspector they were looking for. Missions were more fun when there was someone interesting to look at.

“May I help you?” The receptionist had finally gotten done with the call.

“Well we were looking for Deputy Marshall Inspector Ambo but he may have just found us?”

She turned slightly and raised an eyebrow at the man, as if asking if he was the man they were looking for.

​

 

[Kol Ambo]

Police Station - Theed

​

Kol blinked as the youngster addressed him, followed by the beautiful woman. Were these the Jedi he was to work with, today?

"Why hello! Yes, I'm Kol. Marshal Inspector. You folks must be the Jedi Investigators on the case? Miss Ryiah? Mr. Noble?

Oh... but that's not right. My apologies.

It's Master Ryiah, isn't it?

And ah... Padawan? Padawan Noble?

I hope you'll forgive me, it's not every day I get a chance to work with Jedi. It's always a pleasure when I do, though. If you don't mind me saying so, you folks always have a glow about you. I guess it's the Miti-Clarions? I think that's what they're called.

I had a friend on Loskar who worked with the Jedi for years. Good man. Taught me half of everything I know.

I remember him saying that the Jedi were full of so many... Miti-Clarions? I think that's what he said. So full of Miti-Clarions, they were like beacons of light. He didn't mean that literally, you understand. He couldn't see this light himself. He was just a Clone.

But he said it gave them an air, like a kind of charisma. And he was right, I think. I've never met a Jedi that didn't make me want to stare. Staring is rude, so I try not to indulge. But beautiful people, Jedi. Really beautiful.

Rapid-aging took my friend, poor man. I guess you could say he was a beacon of light, himself. Burned bright, but short.

I'm a lot dimmer than he was, so I think that means I get to live forever."

He smirked, and held out his hand.

"Anyhow, pleasure to meet you both."

He glanced at the receptionist, then back towards the Jedi.

"You know, I haven't had breakfast yet. If you don't need anything in the station, like their equipment or such, then I could take the briefing over some Nubian Tea and Sandwiches.

There's a place around the corner. Thexpira's?

They make you sit on the floor on some pillows, which isn't my favorite, to be honest. But they have these great little sandwiches.

All you can eat, if you can believe it. Filled with spiced meat, or some green plant paste, if you're a vegetarian. Now, I could never be a vegetarian. But no judgment on those who are! I hear the green paste is from stuff farmed by Gungans. Never been to their Kingdom, but hope to visit some day.

So... sandwiches and Tea, all you can eat, for only ten credits. And there's privacy partitions made out of this pretty wood and white paper. Have you ever been there? It's beautiful, really. When I was younger, I'd sit there and just stare at the walls. You'd think walls wouldn't be worth staring at, but these were just gorgeous. Little carved patterns in the wood, flowers hand-painted on the paper, deep layers of lacquer.

Anyhow, if you wanted, we could go there and talk about this case over break-... well, I guess it's afternoon, now, isn't it? What do they call that, when lunch turns into dinner? Is it Lunner? Or Dunch?"

---

Katarine Ryiah
Aris Noble

 

[Katarine Ryiah]

​

Location: Police Station - Theed
Objective: Go get lunch & Discuss Case
Tags: Aris Noble Kol Ambo

Katarine found her lips twitching upward as the Marshall started to talk. He certainly had a lot to say and she wondered if this bumbling rambling persona was a bit of nerves from working with Jedi. Perhaps that was just the mans way? She wold was not sure, all she knew is that they had just met and he had already said a mouthful. At least he didn't seem hostile to work with them, in fact he seemed to hold Jedi in high esteem. That would make things easier. So many cops didn't like working with the Jedi Investigators.

Oh... but that's not right. My apologies.

It's Master Ryiah, isn't it?

And ah... Padawan? Padawan Noble?

Katarine smiled. "You can call me Kat, and I'm sure padawan Noble doesn't mind being called Aris." Though of course if he did mind he could speak up. Katarine was just trying to make sure they were all on an equal playing field. It would help them all work better together.

"Lunch sounds good. We can discuss the case there as well as anywhere."

They traveled to the place in question and were seated. It was a nice little place. She could see why the locals liked it.

"I'm sure by now you've both read the case file. Black Marsh Prison was destroyed when Naboo had the netherworld open up on them. Many of the prisoners kept below perished but some are unaccounted for. One of those prisoners is Froy Valz. He was a low level mob boss back in the days after the Empire took over the galaxy. His MO was abducting a female, usually human, and keeping her for a year to a year and a half. During that time he would torture her. When he was finally finished he would chain the woman up in an abandoned speeder and let her starve to death. When they finally caught him they had a speeder with three bodies in it. We know for sure he was imprisoned in Black Marsh, but we have no record of his body so we have to assume he survived the netherworld event. Two days ago the the local authorities found an abandoned industrial site that had a woman chained inside a power lifter. She'd been left there to starve. "

It was certainly a grim tiding over lunch but she knew they had to get down to business.

​

 

[Kol Ambo]

Thexpira's Tea House - Theed


​

Thexpira's was just as Kol remembered it. He tended to like places like that, which endured mostly unchanged from year to year, decade to decade, even generation to generation. Sometimes, it felt like his life was like a time-lapse film with one frame taken each year, such that less than two minutes would seem to pass, but the world would be unrecognizable at the end of it all.

With places like this, he could at least enjoy the same scene for long enough to appreciate it.

As they sat in one of the private rooms, he ordered some tea and spiced meat sandwiches. Then he listened to Katarine's summation of events.

The server brought teas and sandwiches, along with a tray of cream and sugar. Then she left again, closing the wood-framed paper door behind her.

"Definitely sounds like the same guy," Kol admitted as he began to spoon sugar into his cup. "the netherworld thing... it was about three years ago, wasn't it? I guess he might have more girls in the hopper by now."

He shook his head, and then started adding cream. By the time he was done, it was hard to tell that the cup had once contained tea, and wasn't just a beverage of sweet cream.

"Any prints on anything? Foreign cellular residue? And ah... was she tortured, like the others from before?

If so, what kind of injuries were on the body?"

He realized he was rapid-firing a lot of questions, and paused to take a sip of his 'tea' so that he wouldn't dominate the exchange. That kid Aris probably had some questions of his own.

---

Aris Noble Katarine Ryiah

 

[Aris Noble]

Just Katarine? Just Aris?

The boy tilted his head in confusion, but didn't question the Jedi Master. He was the type to be overly formal after all, so even this seemed a bit odd for him. But, there had to be a logical reason behind it, so silence was all he offered to confirm that he didn't mind his first name being used. And hers for that matter. Whether he would use it himself was still up in the air, though.

He didn't eat when the food was provided. He'd already eaten, mostly because he knew he wasn't going to be able to eat once they started talking about the subject of the murders. He had no illusion that it wasn't gruesome, he just wanted to avoid feeling anymore ill than he would just listening in.

"Are there any hang outs he liked to hide in before? Anyone he actively knows that might've put him away?"

Katarine Ryiah | Kol Ambo

 

[Katarine Ryiah]

​

Location: Thexpira's Tea House - Theed
Objective: Talk About Case
Tags: Aris Noble Kol Ambo


"Any prints on anything? Foreign cellular residue? And ah... was she tortured, like the others from before?

If so, what kind of injuries were on the body?"

"We don't know about residue yet, still waiting on the lab report. We are also waiting for them to ID the victim, but the medical examiner has confirmed the victim was tortured. There are signs of long term hostage, broken bones, sexual assault, and various bruises in states of different healing, indicating she's been held for a long time."


"Are there any hang outs he liked to hide in before? Anyone he actively knows that might've put him away?"

"If my memory serves me I remember he used to have connections to a local gang called Gundark. I don't know if those connections would still survive a century latter but it's worth looking into."

​

 

[Kol Ambo]

Thexpira's Tea House - Theed
​

Kol listened to the answers to his questions, taking another moment to sip his tea.

"The lab report might have some clues and confirmation in it. But until it comes in, we can proceed as though we already know what seems obvious: This is our guy. He's at it, again.

Sounds like the Gundarks are our hottest lead, even though it's a lead a century cold. People who have been around a while like the familiar. There's so little of it around..." He drifted off for a moment, then blinked back to the present, "Could be he's sought them out. Could have a handshake, or a tattoo, something to identify him as a member or at least a friend. Re-establish old connections. Use Gundark hideouts. Who knows?"

He started putting little sandwiches into the napkin that had been provided, creating an improvised bundle.

"Do either of you have a speeder? If not, I've got my pigeon. She's reliable, and she seats four."

The 'reliable' might have been an overstatement, but the speeder was at least running... at the moment.

"I'll just take these with us, in case we get hungry. I suppose we can just drive to wherever the Gundarks are, and get ourselves robbed. Then we can ask them about any new, old friends who have been knocking around."

---

Katarine Ryiah
Aris Noble

 

[Aris Noble]

A century? This man was one of the long lived species?

That made this that much more difficult in Aris's mind. That was a long time to be away from a group. Longer still to be in jail. There would be a lot to figure out on the man to find him, but at least there was an idea to begin. "I don't own a speeder."

Which was usually obvious, given his age, but Aris was ever the factual kind of person who needed to explain things.

Katarine Ryiah | Kol Ambo

 

[Katarine Ryiah]

​

Location: Tea House
Objective: Head to Speeder
Tags: Aris Noble Kol Ambo

Katarine finished her tea and sat her small cup down on the ornate table. She thought they were right and heading out toward the gang was the best place to start. She smiled when Aris said he did not have a speeder. She hopped the padawan was learning how investigators thought and how they tracked down leads. She knew this might not be as exciting as some of the saber wielding guardian stuff, but a lot of what Jedi Investigators did kept criminal and terrorist threats from needing a full guardian task force. Hopefully Aris would see this side of Jedi work. At least Kat hopped she was a good enough teacher to show that.

“Your pigeon will be fine.” Kat didn’t need to mention the fact that she had been frozen in Black Marsh for a century herself so she wouldn’t even know how to drive a modern speeder, let alone own one.

“I will send a message to the medical examiner asking when we can expect the report while we head to the speeder.”

She pulled out her data pad and started to press some buttons but the new technology was her foil again. Her machine seemed stuck on calculator and she had no idea how to get it off.

“Aris could you send the message please?” She showed him her data pad, wondering if he knew why it was doing this.

​

 

[Kol Ambo]

The PGU airspeeder Kol led them to was something he carried in the cargo bay of his ship for just such requirements.

It was an old Bespin Motors patrol vehicle, also sold to the civilian market. This model series had been in constant manufacture in limited quantities for hundreds of years. Kol's Pigeon just might have been one of the earliest examples, given the wear and mismatched, faded paint.

The cockpit slid open to accommodate passengers, with the side panels lowering to act as steps to get aboard. Accessibility didn't seem to have been a priority of the speeder's designers. Though... it was hard to tell what priority, if any, they had assigned to the rattling hulk.

Perhaps durability? It seemed to have that going for it, at least. And the engines looked pretty chunky. Maybe they were good for something, even after all this time.

Although the Pigeon was plainly a patrol vehicle, only the most paranoid of criminals could actually be convinced that it was an active-duty law-enforcement conveyance. No self-respecting department would field such a dilapidated air car, and not even a rookie enduring a hazing would be caught dead in something that looked like this.

"There's harpoon controls there," Kol mentioned as they got in, "just in case the Gundarks get frisky."

Harpoons had once been a conventional method of snagging speeders without blowing them to pieces. Once the harpoon latched on, you could deliver a heavy electric jolt through the line. Possibly enough to fry a captured speeder's systems. Then the target would dangle helplessly from the harpoon line until the pair could set down safely. No crash, no casualties.

Nowadays, patrol speeders usually had a tractor emitter.

"It's been a few seasons since I had anything to do with the Gundarks on this planet. So feel free to point the way if you know their current stomping grounds. Otherwise, I'll just go to the old neighborhood and hope for the best..."

As they took off, he gestured through the cockpit window at a cluster of buildings.

"I remember when all of this here was just grass. Industry creeps up slowly on Naboo, but you can still see it creeping if you wait long enough..."

---

Aris Noble Katarine Ryiah

 

[Aris Noble]

Aris glanced briefly to the datapad offered before he nodded and took it to send the message. In his mind, it was him getting experience for handling this sort of thing. He didn't so much as look around as they settled into the speeder until he'd sent the message as requested, then handed it back to Katarine with a faint smile. That part was done.

"Is it often they get hostile?"

Kol Ambo | Katarine Ryiah

 

[Katarine Ryiah]

​

Location: in Speeder
Objective: Head into Gang Territory
Tags: Aris Noble Kol Ambo


Aris sent the message with ease and Katarine felt herself admiring his youth and familiarity with technology. She had once been young herself though of course she had never been great with technology. Her backwater planet didn’t have much of it.

When she got a loot at the old speeder she felt like she had traveled back in time. Suddenly she wondered if their detective friend had some ties to the past as well.

“The Gundarks aren’t known for playing nice but they also aren’t complete brutes. They possess intelligence enough to be formidable but not much of a threat off world. They mostly stick to robbing the rich citizens here and disrupting day to day lives. I’m not even sure if they are connected with any acts of political terrorism. It’s a good gang to hide in if you’re trying to keep a low profile. I think the old stomping grounds is our best bet. There is a police file about a search operation that way a few months back. Might be them.”

​

 

[Kol Ambo]

Theed - West Side District​

Naboo was a beautiful world, practically legendary throughout the galaxy for its beautiful architecture and well-cared for populace.

Most of its cities were gleaming monuments to the possible synergy between civilization and the landscape. Man, Industry, and Nature in harmonious balance. It was said that there was no starvation on Naboo. No homelessness. No one suffering without the essentials of life.

And that was true. But it turned out there was a wide gulf between starving and living a satisfying life. There was a cavern between having a home and having a home you could be proud of. Even on Naboo's Capital City, there were people who scraped together a living at the bottom rungs of society. People who had enough to live, but nothing more than that.

And sentients always craved to have more than a subsistence survival.

So, even on beautiful Naboo, there was a lower class... and there was crime.

Kol Ambo set the speeder down in the West Side neighborhood where the Gundark gang was rumored to operate, according to Katerine's file.

"Still rather be poor here than on Correllia," Kol remarked as he opened the speeder cockpit and climbed out. "I'll follow your lead on this one, Master Ryiah. Where would you like to start looking for these Gundarks?"

Individuals along the street took note of the old speeder that had descended among them, but even those who might be thieves didn't seem too keen on the vehicle. They did notice those who came out of it, though. Particularly the two Jedi, who were cleaner and crisper than the speeder would suggest, and certainly more professional-looking than their rumpled companion.

Across the street, there was a neighborhood bar. Rim Rough Jizz music cascaded out from its swinging doors into the road. Good tunes, if you liked that sort of thing. Anyone familiar with the modern incarnation of the Gundarks might note their symbol marked in graffiti on the bar's outer wall.

---

Katarine Ryiah Aris Noble

 

[Aris Noble]

Aris let out a sigh as they made their way out of the speeder and back onto the streets. Right. Even Naboo had a place like this. He hadn't expected to see it, but that was just more naivety on his part than anything else. He glanced about the streets, mostly to take note of all the people glancing their way. They stood out. There was no hiding that much.

Hopefully that won't be too much of a problem for them later on.

Katarine Ryiah | Kol Ambo