Private The Sticky Scenario of the Second Jammy Bastard

[Jacquetta Janvrin]

Jacquetta followed her host up the ramp, her head on a swivel and dark eyes scanning for defects in the ship. It was curious to her that she found few, and those mainly cosmetic, so far. That such a ship would be left anonymously on Kasra Priest's doorstep was, in her eyes, highly suspicious. She didn't know if she believed Priest; he seemed to have something of the trickster in him, with all the winking and twinkling. And despite the rapport they had established over the course of the afternoon, they were essentially strangers to one another. Was it a stretch to think that he would try to screw her -- or rather, screw her over?

JJ didn't think so.

She studied him a moment and then stepped past him into the ship's interior. "I assume you've done some kind of rudimentary security sweep. After all, you're too smart to have a potential ticking time-bomb sitting in the middle of your business." The young woman glanced over her shoulder at him and then ducked into a doorway, the ghost of a smile on her lips as she disappeared. Her voice echoed from within: "What did you discover?"

Jacquetta noted the crates. "Decent cargo capacity for a ship of this size and speed -- if what's under the hood matches the paint job, that is," she observed. It wouldn't supply a colony, but a couple of crates would do nicely. "Shall we take it for a test drive?" she asked over her shoulder. "Show me what she can do, Mr. Priest. Which way to the cockpit?"

 

[Kasra Priest]

Jacquetta Janvrin

No stretch at all, of course.

If Kasra Priest thought he could screw Janvrin.... over... then he would. If he could do it while maintaining a cordial relationship with ORION. Sadly the latter was far more important. At least compared to a short amount of profit. Sometimes you just needed to weigh those things. Besides, JJ seemed nice too, it wouldn't be nice to take advantage of her.

Too much.

"Two miniature turrets build into the frame." His voice would follow her retreating shape, before Kasra began to follow her anew. "Pressure plate just past the ramp. Activates a passive scanner for weaponry and explosives." That way the system could be disabled otherwise. Split-second scan, result and then deactivated once more.

Less energy on the reactors... which made sense considering how small the ship was.

Compared to what it was packing.

"No time-bomb, sadly." Wouldn't that be exciting? "Oh, of course, why not. It's always better to get your hands on it personally, no?" Kasra gestured for her to follow. They had to climb over a set of crates. Up a little stairway. Left was a small nook, "-place for a small hot plate, if that's ya fancy." Then gestured to the right. "Hole for the laser turret that comes with the ship."

Forward was the cockpit.

 

[Jacquetta Janvrin]

Jacquetta vaulted the crates and followed Priest up the stairs. "A hotplate, huh?" Well, a girl needed to get her caffeine fix somehow, and it being close to the cockpit was probably for the best. The gunner turret station being close was also handy, but it spoke of a need for multiple crewmates. One for piloting the ship -- Jacquetta, naturally -- and another to gun. Still third was required to work barista duty. Already, Jacquetta's mind was racing through how she could modify the ship. Set up a slave control panel for the guns so that she could control the guns from the pilot's station.

Already she was tracing wiring paths as she settled into the co-pilot's seat. It would have been presumptuous, after all, to take the pilot's seat on a ship she didn't own. JJ strapped in, pulling the restraints around herself snugly. She waited for Priest to settle himself in, entertaining herself by running her fingers along the control panel, finding the seams in the metal where she could open it up and make it her own -- if she were to buy it. The ship was sleek, for sure, stylish. Not unlike myself, JJ thought. Still, it wouldn't do to fall in love and set herself up to get taken advantage of in terms of price.

"You said you were a bounty hunter before this," Jacquetta said conversationally as they prepared for flight. "Have you always been a bounty hunter? Where did you live before Bespin? Am I asking too many questions? Feel free to tell me to mind my own damn business."

 

[Kasra Priest]

Jacquetta Janvrin

"Oh, yeah, a hot plate. A pilot's kitchen, no?"

One of those babies had led him through several wars, a crusade and more. It wasn't like the garbage they gave ya was ever good temperature. So, you had to make due on your own.

Priest plopped in next to her, buckling on and checking over all the systems. It was one thing to show bravado, to be a salesman. Another entirely to engage a ship with yourself in it. Who knows what kind of boobytraps could suddenly be engaged out of nowhere. Exactly. That wasn't the kind of risk Kasra would pull.

Once he did some preliminary checks though?

Flick went the switch.

The engine starting to purr for them. "I dunno, JJ, sounds less like questions about da sale..." He pulled the lever all the way down, while the roof above them started to retract. "...and more like for a date." He'd tease as the ship lifted off. Slow and steady. For now anyway. A smirk was shot her way, where their eyes met.

"We on a date or on a sale?"

 

[Jacquetta Janvrin]

Jacquetta smirked as she felt the reactor roar to life. "Mr. Priest, if this were a date, you could have at least gone to the trouble of throwing something on the hot plate. Maybe stashed a bottle of bubbly in the cooler. There is a cooler, isn't there? A ship like this couldn't possibly come without some sort of kitchenette."

"Anyroad, it was my first marriage that taught me not to pick up my men from junkyards." She turned her attention to the viewport as they broke cloud cover and accelerated into the atmosphere. "Or... was it my second?" she muttered absently. "But you're getting off the question, which I gather was the point. I suppose that means you'd rather not tell me," she said, crossing her legs and cupping her knee with her knitted hands. The young woman didn't look back towards her host right away. "I suppose it's none of my business, but I am curious about who I'm dealing with. Shadowy ORION contacts aren't always an endorsement; as two people who know how the sausage is made, we can admit to that, surely."

JJ finally turned her attention towards Priest again. "And knowing a little more than nothing might be handy. You know. Inform my answer if you were to ask the question. Not that it would be a dealbreaker," she added, her voice conspiratorial and quiet.

Kasra Priest

 

[Kasra Priest]

Jacquetta Janvrin

"Oh, but I wouldn't be wanting to presume in advance, dig?" Bouncing her tease right back with a tease of his own.

Even for a short time Kasra liked Janvrin.

She was easy to chat too. Amusing. It didn't hurt that she knew her ships.

A laugh finally, before shrugging. "Why not. I suppose I can tell you a few things." Relaxing back into the pilot chair. His eyes didn't wander though, taking the trip very seriously. That was the killing joke. People getting too comfortable in the pilot seat. They'd assume nothing could happen, that they had seen it all many times before.

That's where it gotcha.

"Born in the Outer Rim, raised on Mandalore, took off when they started putting their own people to torch during the Crusades." The cure still burning in his veins.

A disaster.

Fingers tapping the steer anxiously. It still send shivers up and down his spine. "Started traveling about. Bounty hunting I was good at... until I decided I had enough of the chase." Shrug there. "An' here I am." There Kasra did glance her way. Shooting her a grin and a wink. It was to establish control over himself after that sensitive story.

That was worth the risk.

"The usual tale, eh? So how aboutcha. Tell me about yaself?"

 

[Jacquetta Janvrin]

Jacquetta's eyebrows furrowed as he told his story. A warning flag went up at the mention of Mandalore. She had heard stories about the kinds of things that happened there -- the chaos, the destruction, the illiteracy. Gone were the Mandalorians of legend, warriors bound by honor and God knew what else. Kasra Priest didn't seem like the kind of Mandalorian she had heard about of late. Granted, they hadn't known each other very long, but he hadn't said "ooga booga" to her even once that afternoon.

That had to mean something, right?

She resisted the impulse to reach over and put a hand on Priest's arm. The impulse was as surprising to her as anything; who knew that Jacquetta Janvrin was a nurturer/caretaker? Instead, she inclined her head stoically and nodded, her lips turning down at the edges. "My story? Tale as old as time," she replied when he asked her. "I grew up on Coruscant. We somehow managed to not die when the planet was conquered every which way. My family had a small shipping company. During the war I trained as a pilot and mechanic and flew patrols with the freighters, to stop pirates and governments acting like pirates from commandeering the shipments."

"Tale as old as time, no?" She turned her attention back to the viewport. "I was joking about being married. Boy, this is a smooth ride. What's the energy output?"

Kasra Priest

 

[Kasra Priest]

Jacquetta Janvrin

"Oh, you weren't married like six times then? Should have known..." He joked right back, before shrugging softly. "Every tale is as old as time and yet utterly unique to those it touches."

What did it matter if a thousand people had experienced the same thing?

It didn't make it less painful for each and every one of them. Didn't matter if it was a thousand, hundred thousand, millions. The hurt and pain was real for each and every one of them. Shared suffering was still suffering. "Mmm, yes, very smooth." Switching tracks from his mind easily. The more history there was the easier it became to turn it off.

Had to be.

Otherwise you didn't come far in this Galaxy.

"Oh, we are about at 40% here. Can easily go harder... faster, just gotta let me know whatcha limit is for a first ride, eh?"

A smirk there, steering the conversation right back. Away from the tough feelings and back to something more... safe. A bit more amusing and flirty to the both of them.

 

[Jacquetta Janvrin]

It was hard to judge relative speed in a vacuum, but all ships spoke a language. Vibrations and the whining of machinery, the hum of the circuitry, the ambiance that told the story of a ship and its pilot. The vibrations came up through the deckplates, made her feet tingle in their heeled boots. "Forty percent?" she asked, leaning on the armrest of her chair so she could look over at his instrument panel. "Certainly we can do better than that, Mr. Priest," she said, settling back into her own seat. She looked around for a few moments, then found the panel to activate the data screens on the co-pilot's panel, but left the controls locked.

"Show me what she can do. Don't hold back, I can take whatever you can throw at me." She double-checked the crash restraints and then settled into the seat, her ruby lips parting in a smile as she felt the anticipation take her.

"Don't be afraid to put her through the paces," said JJ over the humming of the instrument panels. "What kind of evasive maneuvers is she capable of? What could we do if a Star Destroyer dropped out of hyperspace and made things difficult for us?"

Kasra Priest

 

[Kasra Priest]

Jacquetta Janvrin

"Oh, well, that's all ya had to say, luv."

Immediately starting to manipulate the controls. Switching the power conduits, which caused the engines to positively roar in their own anticipation. More juice to the monster machine. It shuddered beneath and around them. The metal of the hulls groaning as it was stressed. It held though. Easily and then some.

Forty became fifty.

Sixty.

Priest groaned, as they were pushed back into their chairs, the automatic security systems locking them in. That way if there were more shocks they wouldn't crack a spine or worse.

"Seventy... five, babeh, there we go." Kasra muttered, angling them straight up. The ship lurched forward as the air around them disappeared into the vacuum of space. They burst out into the cold void. All around them only starlight. Beneath the planet. They were free for the first time in a while. Only space around them.

"Try it out ya self, JJ, give it a spin."

Switching the controls to her. He closed his eyes and breathed out in a shaky exhale. "Outruns any Star Destroyer, ya can do anything from a Bantha Dive to an Epicanthix Quartet with this beautiful piece."

 

[Jacquetta Janvrin]

The thrumming in the deckplates increased as Kasra throttled the ship forward. "Oh yeah," said, grinning broadly as her fingers curled into the fabric of the armrests. "Now we're cooking with gas!" The ship hurtled through the last traces of the atmosphere and into space, with all the freedom that entailed. She glanced over at him anxiously as he invited her to take the controls, but before she had a chance to response, her instrument panel activated. "Well, if you say so," she answered with a breathless chuckle and reached up to wrap her hands around the controls.

It felt good, down to the materials on the yoke: premium leather, or a very good approximation. The juked left; the action was smooth, both in the stick and when the ship responded. No lag time. Responsive. Sleek. Not unlike myself, JJ thought wryly.

"A Bantha Dive?" she asked incredulously as she throttled the ship's sublights ever higher, feeling the ship to her every whim. "What is this, 641 ABY? My grandmother does better maneuvers than that, and she's been dead fifteen years. You ever see a Corellian Swindle? Hold on tight -- and Kasra?" She glanced over at him with a smirk. "Open your eyes; you'll want to see this." JJ threw the ship into a complicated maneuver, filled with masterful feints and feats of acrobatics that grew increasingly fast and powerful as they went on. JJ wasn't showing off. Well... not just showing off. The maneuver was designed to test not just the ship's controls but its construction. A lesser ship might have thrown up warning signs or performed sluggishly as the systems struggled to cope with the demands of the maneuver.

An even lesser ship might have shaken apart. But not this one. As she pulled out of an ever-tightening spiral, JJ let out a jubilant laugh. Oh, this ship had the makings to be Jammy Bastard II all right. "So I'm convinced you're not pushing a lemon," JJ told Priest in a pleasant drawl. "So let's talk turkey."

Kasra Priest