What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

[Kafh-en-ma-nofre]

[Entry 15]
"Step one, dip down, do a twirl... perfect, son." -Mom attempting to teach me to dance.

I recall this one time I was summoned to preform a dance for my Master's at a dinner they were having, something about honoring their son's return. The eyes of my owners burning into my soul...okay a bit overdramatic, but that's what it felt like. Never make eye contact, never speak unless spoken to. That was the way it was. I feel one day I'll have the same confidence my father had. He is a person I strive to be like. He stood for what he believed in and didn't take chit from nobody.
...

Kafh shook his head as he closed his journal, slipping it into his pocket. The young man picked up his denim jacket as he stood. He was on some planet he didn't know. On a hill. Kafh-en-ma-nofre smiled and looked around, off some distance away was a ship, looked like something was going down. Ka decided he had to get closer. It was an attempt to be more brave in a way. To get out of his comfort zone.

Kafh slowly made his way down the hill and towards the ship, as he got closer he noticed a couple people. A bit surprised the young man took cover behind a tree, peaking out just enough to get a glimpse of what was transpiring. What could possibly go wrong?

[member="Jaq Marshall"]

 

[Jaq Marshall]

Jaq coolly walked off of his ship, into the dock, hands in the pockets of his leather jacket, it was always good to keep an aura of calm and confidence when doing transactions like this. He breathed in the fresh air, this was a very green planet, with a lot of hills. It was nice to be in the open, sometimes the cramped space of a cockpit could get claustrophobic.

The dock was fairly empty, aside from a few maintenance droids and the Neimoidian with his two Gamorrean guards, surrounded by a few crates. Jaq didn't know what was in the crates, it wasn't his job to know, it was his job to get them from this place to where they needed to go. He smiled at one of the Gamorreans as he approached the group, a gesture the Gamorrean didn't return. Jaq spoke to the Neimoidian "So, is this the cargo?", "Ah, you must be the delivery man the Hutts sent", Jaq smiled again and the Neimoidian signaled for the Gamorreans to start loading the crates. The Neimoidian handed Jaq a pouch of credits "Half now, half on delivery, that's what we agreed" the alien stated, Jaq repeated "that's what we agreed".

Jaq walked back towards his ship, following the Gamorreans who were loading crates. He sat in his pilot chair and fiddled with some controls, not that it would make much of a difference, he hadn't modified his YT-2400 much, but the modifications he had made had made the old piece of junk a little more reliable. Besides, this was a routine job, what could possible go wrong?

[member="Kafh-en-ma-nofre"]

 

[Kafh-en-ma-nofre]

Ka watched silently as three others walk into the dock. Two of the figures traded credits as the two guards loaded crates onto the man's ship. Ka's interest was certainly piqued. The young man watched as the man in the leather jacket went back into the ship. A few minutes later, the others left. Kafh-en-ma-nofre slowly revealed himself and walked onto the now empty docking area. His curiosity got the better of him as he walked up the ramp into the light freighter.

It was the same type of freighter that he stowed away on when he escaped slavery. He made his way to where all the cargo was being held. He wondered what was inside. The young man reached for the crate but then stopped.

"Maybe I should just leave..." He said softly.

"But then again..." He reconsidered. The young man decided to explore the ship a bit more. Moving as quietly as he could with the grace of a trained dancer.

[member="Jaq Marshall"]

 

[Jaq Marshall]

The Gamorreans loaded up the crates fairly quickly, which made sense, they were very strong. One came through to the cockpit to tell Jaq that they had finished, Jaq waved him off. He stood up, removed his leather jacket, and unbuttoned four buttons of his shirt, he wanted to be comfortable. Jaq flicked a switch on a panel and the loading ramp closed with a thud, but he always liked to make sure with his eyes, it was just a mere peek around the corner and he saw that it was shut. He sat back down in his pilot's seat and cracked his knuckles. It was time to fly again. Within a few minutes his ship had left the planet's atmosphere, but he always liked to fly for a few minutes and make sure he was safe before making the jump into hyperspace. He liked the view, he never seemed to get sick of the wonders of the galaxy.

[member="Kafh-en-ma-nofre"]

 

[Kafh-en-ma-nofre]

The sound of the loading ramp closing startled the young man. "Huh?" He looked around a bit, not really knowing what the sound was. He shrugged it off as he continued to walk around the cargo hold. It wasn't till a few minutes later that realization hit him. Wait...what if that was- no it couldn't be....could it? Panicking, Kafh ran to where the loading ramp was only to find it closed and locked down.

"Gods...you can't be serious...." He muttered to himself. He wasn't expecting to go on a trip. He cursed himself for trying to be more confident. He began to walk around the ship. "Uhm...hello? Anyone on board? I seemed to accidentally come along for the ride." Kafh-en-ma-nofre said, very embarrassed.

It was at times like this that he wished he was still a slave. The stress of situations like this made the young man uncomfortable. Ka walked towards what he believed was the cockpit. Repeating himself. "Uh...hello?" He asked softly.

[member="Jaq Marshall"]

 

[Jaq Marshall]

Jaq flicked the switch that would warm up the hyperspace engine, this trip was going to take a while and he didn't want to procrastinate for too long. He lent back in his chair again, and zoned out, he entered the safe, meditative zone of his mind. When suddenly he was snapped out of it by the sound of a faint voice. Jaq panicked, grabbing the blaster that he kept under his seat, this could be anyone and he didn't want to risk someone stealing the cargo or himself getting arrested. The voice spoke again, this time closer to the cockpit, he could make out what the person was saying this time "Uh... hello?".

Jaq quickly stood up and turned the corner away from the cockpit, he aimed his blaster at the person who had taken an uninvited ride on his ship, he raised his eyebrows, this person definitely looked younger than him, Jaq stiffened his features and said "Look kid, I don't know who you are, or why you're on my ship, you have fifteen seconds to explain yourself before I blast your head off".

[member="Kafh-en-ma-nofre"]

 

[Kafh-en-ma-nofre]

Kafh-en-ma-nofre jumped back as a gruff looking man appeared brandishing a blaster. The man asked Ka to explain what he was doing on his ship. Kafh held his hands in the air and kept his gaze down, avoiding the man's gaze.

"Uh, well..." His voice trailed off as he took a quick second to look at the man. He was a bit older than Ka from what he could tell. The younger make did not want to be sent drifting off into space so he began to speak up again. "Please don't hurt me sir. Uh I was just curious to see what those guys were loading up earlier. I swear I didn't touch anything and I didn't mean any offense." Ka explained quickly. All the while keeping his gaze to the floor and his hands in the air.

Well so much for things not going wrong. He definitely wasn't expecting to end up on the wrong side of a blaster, but it served him right for essentially trespassing on someone's ship.

[member="Jaq Marshall"]

 

[Jaq Marshall]

The kid at the other end of Jaq's blaster looked nervous, and didn't make any eye contact, and pleaded with Jaq to not hurt him. He could see that this guy was just curious, he wasn't an immediate threat and Jaq was sure that he couldn't cause any harm even if he tried to. So Jaq laughed, walked over and put his blaster back under his char. "It's okay kid, relax, I'm not gonna hurt you". Jaq laughed again "look, I'm kinda doing a job here, I don't have the time to fly back down, so you have two choices, either you come with me, or you chance fate with an escape pod, it's up to you", Jaq didn't mind either way, he liked traveling alone but having some company would be nice for a change. He walked back over and sat in his seat and looked back over and smiled at the kid, "and you can put your hands down too".

[member="Kafh-en-ma-nofre"]

 

[Kafh-en-ma-nofre]

Kafh-en-ma-nofre watched nervously as the man laughed, telling the younger make to relax, then walking into the cockpit to put his blaster back under his pilot's chair. Ka followed slowly.

"Uh." Ka paused for a second and brought his gaze to the man. "Id prefer to take my chances here. Again I apologise for intruding sir." Ka said as he stood in the cockpit doorway. Embarrassed Kafh-en-ma-nofre brought his hands down to his sides. It was aparent that Kafh was out of his element. The young adult looked out the viewport. Taking a second to gaze at the distorted stars of hyperspace.

""My name is Kafh-en-ma-nofre. But if it's too much trouble, you may call me Ka, or Kafh." Kafh said as he stepped into the cockpit. "I thank you for uh not ending my life." Ka said as he glanced over to the man. He didn't understand how he got himself into stupid situations, he guessed it was part of being raised as a slave and not really experiencing life for what it was. Ka shook his head. Gods his own thoughts annoyed him.


"So what exactly do you do if I may ask?"
[member="Jaq Marshall"]

 

[Jaq Marshall]

It was apparent to Jaq that Kafh was uncomfortable in this situation. Ka apologized for intruding, Jaq didn't mind, we were all young, curious and stupid at some point. He introduced himself and asked what it was the Jaq did. Jaq smiled at him again "Well first things first Ka, please don't call me sir again, that makes me feel older than I really am, my name is Jaq, you can just call me Jaq". Jaq contemplated for another moment about how to best explain what it was that he did for a living, he didn't want to reveal straight off of the bat that he was a smuggler, the guy was nervous enough without knowing about the questionably legal cargo that was on board. Jaq spoke again, "I'm kinda a delivery guy, there are people who want things taken from one place to another, and I take them".

Jaq tried to smile reassuringly at Ka, "I'm sorry, but if you're coming along for the ride, it's gonna take a while, you should at least get comfortable", Jaq gestured towards the seat beside him, before turning around to his control panel. He entered coordinates for the destination and pushed the lever that activated the hyperspace engine. Jaq spoke to Ka again, "so, since we're gonna be here a while, who are you really? What is Ka's place in this galaxy?", Jaq laughed after he had said it out loud, he hadn't expected it to sound so deep, he really was just trying to break the ice, if Ka was going to be tagging along for the ride at the very least he didn't want it to be awkward.

[member="Kafh-en-ma-nofre"]

 

[Kafh-en-ma-nofre]

Kafh was definitely a bit uncomfortable. But for him that was normal. He wasn't used to people being so.... forgiving or kind. He usually got cold calloused remarks from people. The man asked Ka not to call him "sir" the Ex-Slave nodded, that was another habit. Kafh-en-ma-nofre had kept, one he had to work to get rid of.

"Uh apologies..uh Jaq." Kafh said. Jaq explained that he was sort of a delivery guy, transporting goods. That reminded him of the same people that transported gems off Ankhypt to the wider Galaxy. The younger man nodded in understanding.

Jaq told Kafh to get comfortable if he was going to come along for the ride. Ka gave a slight smile as he sat in the co-pilot's chair. Relaxing only a bit, stealing glances over to the other man. He watched as Jaq initiated the hyperdrive. Turning to the Ex-Slave and asking what his place in the Galaxy was. Ka thought for a moment. Glancing to the warping stars through the viewport.

"I-uh, I am not too sure...I guess the gods haven't really told me what they want of me...up until recently I was a slave to a noble house. But now that I'm free, I've just been wandering." Ka said. Sparing a quick half-hearted smile to Jaq.

[member="Jaq Marshall"]

 

[Jaq Marshall]

Kafh apologized to Jaq, and Jaq smiled a little bit, he could tell that the younger man hadn't had much experience with people yet. As he initiated the hyperdrive he looked forward, he still liked the sensation of flying through space at hyperspeed. Ka then explained that he was a slave, but now that he was free he was just wandering. Jaq visibly smiled at this.

"Well Ka, in my experience, wandering is a good place to be, to be honest it's where I've been for most of my life", Jaq looked distantly at the warped stars as he thought about what the young man had said, "you were a slave, but now you're free, so why are you waiting around for gods to tell you what to do? You're your own person now and", Jaq looked Ka up and down "you look like you could be anything that you want to be".

[member="Kafh-en-ma-nofre"]

 

[Kafh-en-ma-nofre]

"But doesn't wandering get... tiring? I mean aimlessly going from place to place..I-I guess it's better than waiting for the gods to speak. It's just I don't know what I want to do, what I think is best for me. I'm not used to having my freedom, not yet anyway." Kafh said. He gave a half-hearted smile.

"I do have an appreciation for cooking and dancing though, strangely it brings me... comfort. To think the things I did as a slave would calm me." Ka smiled and looked to Jaq. The man looked like some kind of space hippie. "So why do you wander? Don't you have a home? A place that you like to go?" Kafh asked.

[member="Jaq Marshall"]

 

[Jaq Marshall]

Jaq listened to Ka speak, and then smiled "Who said that I was wandering aimlessly? I mostly follow the credits, job to job, sometimes when people need helping out I help them. I just see it as wandering the stars, which might be the same as wandering place to place, but I don't see it that way", Jaq looked forward again "no one is expecting you to know what you want to do with yourself and your life, freedom is a funny thing, there's an infinite amount of decisions that you can make for yourself".

Ka explained that cooking and dancing, things that he did as a slave, gave him comfort. It made sense to Jaq, he had spent his entire life around ships, and ships are the thing that brought Jaq comfort. "If I have something close to a home, you're in it, I've had this ship for a long time. But I guess I'm still figuring out what to do with freedom as well". Jaq smiled at Ka again before looking over at his control panels, the hyperdrive was starting to heat up a bit, it had a tendency to do that and it usually corrected itself, so Jaq didn't give it a second thought before turning back to look at Ka.

[member="Kafh-en-ma-nofre"]

 

[Kafh-en-ma-nofre]

An infante amount of possibility? Kafh-en-ma-nofre couldn't even fathom how much freedom he had to make his own decisions. It was an idea he didn't truly grasp for what it was. He was glad Jaq helped people, it was a bit comforting to know he wasn't a bloodthirsty pirate or something. The older male explained that his ship was the closest thing he had to a home. It was better than some people that was for sure. Kafh looked down to himself. He had a home that he left, but he decided not to worry about it now.

"I didn't mean to offend you by uh saying that you just wander. I have a question though. How long have you been traveling alone? It must get pretty boring by yourself. But in a way it's peaceful. I can understand it from that perspective. I've been on my own for a few days and it's nice. I spend most of my time alone, contemplating on what life has to offer." Kafh said as he turned his attention back to the hyperspace. Not knowing that some trouble was around the corner.

[member="Jaq Marshall"]

 

[Jaq Marshall]

Ka looked down at himself, and Jaq thought that he had done something wrong, he hadn't meant to upset him. Ka spoke again, and after he finished Jaq smiled and said "You didn't offend me, but it's okay. I've been traveling for about nine years, it's not always by myself, sometimes I find people to stay with, or people to stay with me. But ultimately I guess it's a way to always keep moving forward". Jaq smiled again before glancing back at his panels.

"Oh poodoo", he exclaimed loudly. his hyperdrive heat was in the red, they were about to be stopped, this had happened to him before, and he just hoped that they didn't end up in the middle of an asteriod field, or into the arms of pirates. The warping stars began to slow down and Jaq calmly flicked some switches on his control panel, he looked over to Ka "don't panic, this has happened before, hopefully this won't be too bad".

[member="Kafh-en-ma-nofre"]

 

[Kafh-en-ma-nofre]

Ka explained that he wasn't offended. He actually spent years wandering the stars, he wasn't as alone as Kafh originally thought. He had people he met that stayed with him occasionally and vice versa. Kafh nodded in understanding. The conversation was cut short when they were slowly out of hyperspace. Instantly Kafh panicked a bit. What happened this was a bit earlier than the man expected. Kafh turned to the man.

" Maybe...is there a place you could land? Don't want to stress the uh...ship?" It came out as more of a question, he had no clue about the workings of a ship. Kafh ran a hand through his hair. He was a bit stressed. "Does this happen often?" Kafh asked shifting his gaze from Jaq to the many panels of controls around the cockpit.

[member="Jaq Marshall"]