Private Thievery by the Sea

[Darth Strosius]

Kothlis wasn't the sort of world that Darth Strosius usually found himself on, being within the Mid-Rim and all, however this occasion was special. There were simply some matters that he had to attend to personally, and a showcase of Sith relics was most certainly one such matter. He had caught wind from some smugglers he captured in the Abrion Sector that a wealthy corporate Bothan on the oceanic world just so happened to have some new additions to his collection of exotic and ancient artifacts from cultures and worlds across the galaxy. Said new additions came in the form of a Sith Spellbook and a couple of Sith Scrolls, supposedly recovered from some lost group of sorcerers and alchemists from the days of the ancient Sith Empire.

While not every supposed relic and artifact was legitimate, as he knew well enough from previous hunts, the ones in this collection sounded very viable indeed. Viable enough for him to forge an invitation to this little showcase and have a peek at these relics for himself. And reclaim them for the Sith if they proved to be real. The showcase was being held on a yacht that was trailing a slow path through some of the more scenic islands, the stunning sights rivaled only by the extravagant and ornate attire worn by the rich guests.

The Sith sneered under his mask, idly turning down the offer of wine from one of the wandering servants with a wave of his hand, as he stared out over the sea that they were traveling. All this opulence disgusted him. It was precisely the reason why he preferred the Outer Rim, there were far less showy displays of wealth and class to deal with. Were it not for them hiding the scrolls and spellbook somewhere in one of a few dozen containers in the showroom then he'd have already slaughtered all but the servants and crew just so that his eyes weren't offended by the glittery dresses and suits around him. He just had to wait a little bit longer for the showcase to begin.

Marcus Dinn

 

[Marcus Dinn]

“...And then I was like ‘What do you mean, you don’t have cryptberry sauce?’ And he didn’t know what to say!” Marcus finished his silly, made-up story with a cheerful laugh, and the group of rich people around him laughed along with him.

The acolyte was there for the spellbook and scrolls, not to rub elbows with the upper classes. But he had opted to go for a covert approach, donning a disguise and playing the part of just another wealthy bidder. He was having quite a lot of fun with it, taking a certain delight in fooling people into thinking he was someone he wasn’t.

It also helped that he got to wear a nice suit for the occasion, a plum-colored number and a black tie with a print of a crouching tiger. His red hair had been neatly combed, and his real leather shoes were polished until they shone.

While the rich folks were still laughing at his goofy joke, Marcus spotted a black-clad figure weaving through the crowd. Not only did he stick out like a sore thumb among the other auction guests, he was also very obviously dressed like a Sith. Seeing him, the acolyte honestly just felt disappointed in the guy’s lack of subtlety. Dude acted like he didn’t care, and it showed.

“Excuse me a moment,” he said to his gaggle of rich hangers-on, slipping into the multitude of people gathered on the yacht. He kept his distance for now, not wanting to tip the Sith off that he was being followed and observed.

Darth Strosius​

 

[Darth Strosius]

Darth Strosius crossed his arms behind his back as he moved away from where he had been staring out over the sea, the laughter of a nearby group growing too grating for his already strained patience to take much longer. He made his way down the yacht's walkway and stuck close to the railing as his hidden gaze wandered over the crowds. Or more accurately, sifted through them in order to spot the security.

As expected they were armed and armored only to deal with the occasional rowdy intoxicated guest. While he wouldn't be surprised if they comprised the entirety of the guards onboard, he highly doubted that with such a showcase there wouldn't be more capable and equipped security forces lingering around somewhere. Better to be prepared for the worst and hope for the best just in case. And then he finally spotted exactly what he was looking for, a competent looking guard.

Said guard was actually wearing body armor and openly carrying a blaster pistol on their hip, but most importantly they were standing right next to a door that no servants nor guests seemed to be going to nor coming from. With his hands still held behind his back he fished his lightsaber from its hiding spot in one of his sleeves, wrapping his gloved fingers around the hilt as he made his way towards the guard and the door they stood next to without delay. It was well past time to rid himself of these opulent formalities.

Marcus Dinn

 

[Marcus Dinn]

Marcus continued to track the Sith. It was relatively easy to keep him in his sights, since his appearance stood out so sharply from the other guests.

He headed down the walkway, meandered a bit, then eventually set his vizored gaze upon a security guard. The guard was more heavily armed and armored than the others aboard the yacht, indicating his task was to defend something valuable. Marcus had already gleaned that this Sith was here for the same reasons as him—to take the artifacts up for auction for himself—but his methodology so far was mysterious and, in the acolyte’s view, rather counterintuitive.

So when the Force seemed to take a sudden gasping breath, as one does before a deep plunge, Marcus decided to intervene. “Hey there, hero,” he said, jogging toward the guard. “There’s a drunk man with a gun up on deck. You need to swoop in and stop him.”

The Force warped his words, pouring them syllable by sweet syllable like honey into the guard’s ear. Assuming the other Sith didn’t go for the kill anyway, he should obey the compulsion and leave his post.

Darth Strosius​