When Negotiations Go Wrong...

[Duxil Rylver]

Three days.
Three days it'd taken the cathar smuggler to answer her call. Or... Had it been three days for the transmission to leave the system? It made no difference. The Mandalorian invasion of Onderon had made the place a war zone, and she didn't trust legal civilian transports to be able to get her out of the planet without getting detained. She hated using the criminal underworld to her advantage- But it was the safest option.

Then again, safe was a relative term these days. With her reputation as an ex-Republic Senator... There was a fair chance the smuggler could change their course to a Sith controlled planet, and sell her as a trophy or a means of extracting information. Even if they were now officially just pieces of history, there was still secrets to be dug within the remnants of Republic bureaucracy. It was a risky gambit, but necessary. She'd have to trust this so far nameless smuggler.

Then again, trust was also a relative term these days.
She'd managed to sneak a holdout blaster into her grey and yellow tunic, right where the folds of fabric met her pants. Normally, she wouldn't have warranted violence in any situation- But a Mandalorian occupation was on her list of exceptions. Besides, she'd only shoot if she needed to.

With careful footsteps, the woman stopped to scan the rest of the street. It was desolate, save for an armoured Mandalorian soldier carrying some sort of heavy rifle. He probably wouldn't notice her- He seemed preoccupied with a nearby Mandalorian dropship soaring overhead. And so she crossed the street into the accorded meeting place, only releasing the pent of breath in her chest once she crossed the door.

The inside of the warehouse was... Well, it was what you'd expect. Dark, dusty, atmospheric, and lonely. At first glance, anyone might have dismissed it as a simple rat warren. And it was- But further into the shadows was her smuggler, she knew.

Duxil sighed. No, she hadn't been expecting her life of politics to lead to this moment. Then again, when could any successful politician call their lives 'peaceful'? "May the Force be wit- Ahh... Achoo!"

Her inhale of dusty air had caused her to sneeze, breaking whatever semblance of stealth she'd kept until this moment. Not the most refined way to reveal oneself to their pilot... But it'd have to do. Sneezing another few times, Duxil cursed under her breath, and brought her scarf up to her nose.

[member="Khull"]

 

[Khull]

The cathar's keen sense of hearing was already alerted to the woman's footsteps well before she gave her position up by a uncontrolled sneeze. The large feline bipedal stood to his full height, his back up against some old crates. His wax cotton long coat, or some called a duster, was open and held back on the right side with the cathar's gloved hand grasping the polished wroshyr pistol grip of his sawed off double barreled carbine. The weapon, Khull's favorite, was holstered in a old worn nerf hide leather with matching belt and thigh strap. The low light in the warehouse would slightly reflect off his golden colored durasteel breastplate. The light itself would show the large cat's full form. He was muscular, with heavy corded neck and large powerful limbs to match. Jet black lion's mane and ruddy golden fur completed the cathar's appearance.

Khull grimaced as the blue humanoid suffered a sneezing fit. Usually such would not have bothered the smuggler, but it wasn't like they were meeting in a crowded area where such would be drowned out by noise and un cared about amongst normal folk. But, here they were, meeting in a dark abandon warehouse where such a noise carried and with highly dangerous warriors about that were far off from complacent storm troopers made the mishap worrisome.

"Quiet Voman!" His whisper was harsh and his words were rich with catherian accent. He took his hand off the grip of his weapon and motioned for her to come to him. His ears perked up, trying to hear if she had garnished any unwanted attention. This client wasn't exactly a high roller and she was sure as hell not worth getting shot over. But, credits were credits and beggars in this tough market could not be picky about the jobs they got offered.

Khull brought up his commlink close to his lips "Ti!" He relayed to his wife, [member="Tigress"] , "Spontari zteta" in his native tongue informing her that contact had been made.

[member="Duxil Rylver"]

 

[Alleycat]

Starport
Aboard the Pride

Onderon... a jungle world located within the Inner Rim. Under different circumstances Tigress would have loved to run free with her husband exploring like they used to on their homeworld of Cathar, but now that the Mandalorians, whom neither cared for, had squatted on the planet, she didn't want to stay on this world any longer than absolutely necessary to pick up their contact and get out of there. Hence why the petite gold and tan female Cathar was prepping the Pride for immediate take off once [member="Khull"] and [member="Duxil Rylver"] were on board.

Tigress was going through the pre-flight check list when Dobey, the couple's R9 unit, rolled into the cockpit with an 'I'm sorry.., I did something bad' pitiful whine. But before the smuggler could ask the astromech droid that was like a child to her, the comm went off. It was Khull and he'd made their contact.

"Ra copy," Ti keyed back simply in Catharese to her husband, then spun around in the pilot's chair to give Dobey that look all mother's give.

"What did you do, my darrrling?"

The whirls and beeps were not what Tigress wanted to hear.

"Niet, niet, niet! Ve arrre leaving soon. Yourrr father vill not be pleased... Now go fix before ve both arrre dead, little one!" she shooed Dobey out of the cockpit with her hands as Ti rose from the chair, then followed R9 unit back to the engineering compartment of the VCX-100 light freighter, green eyes going wide when Tigress saw the mess of wires. Khull was the mechanic for the ship, she was not. This was bad.

"You in big trrrouble, misterrr... Ve have talk afterrr job finished. Now put back togetherrr the way you found it!"

 

[Duxil Rylver]

Yellow eyes shot daggers at the taller male, but they quickly lowered in agreement. No, she didn't like being scolded by a lowly smuggler- But he was right. The last thing she wanted was to be caught in between a dozen Mandalorian guards. Her protector seemed like a formidable combatant, sure- Cloaked in that duster and reflective chest piece, she was confident he'd be able to defend them both if bad went to worse. But that was only if he was willing. 1200 credits weren't worth getting killed over, and taking down a Mandalorian certainly summoned that possibility.

Nose and mouth still smothered in the silky fabric of her dark scarf, Duxil turned back up at him expectantly. You could tell in her eyes she was inexperienced at criminal activities- Where was the ship? The daring rescue? Despite her distaste for excessive danger, she'd expected this occurrence to be at least a bit more exciting. This seemed to be the exact opposite. No blaster fire, no danger, not too much sneaking around... The smuggling trip seemed far too dull. Then again... They'd only just begun.

"I'm following your lead." She whispered towards him, voice muffled under the scarf. Just as well, she didn't want to go sneezing again.

 

[Khull]

"Da, you follow me!" The large cathar confirmed, his hand hovering closer to his weapon of choice "Firrrst, need half crrredits up frrront, orrr you going no wherrre!" Crude, but necessary to keep business honest. He wasn't here to rob the woman. She had a job for them and the cathar couple accepted. Now, for the obvious show and tell of force..... The galaxy was crude and unforgiving wretched place and one never knew who was the snake in the pit. For them, business was all about reputation. If they were known to harm their clients, they would not get any contracts their way and find themselves starving in the abyss of space. They also needed to show they were not to be trifled with either.

He would extend his left hand out, waiting for the blue skinned woman to give him the payment he asked for. "Half now, half on kompletion!"

[member="Duxil Rylver"] [member="Tigress"]

 

[Duxil Rylver]

A senator's patience and calm under fire was usually an overestimated, almost legendary trait. Although Duxil certainly possessed a clear and sharp mind, the sight of the carbine broke her mental stance, as evidenced by the widening her eyes and raising of her hands. Clearly, she was scared. The enormous Cathar was intimidating enough as it was- But that blaster rifle just sealed the deal. A squeeze of the trigger, and all they'd have left to dump in an urn would be a puddle of liquefied senator. "Just- Relax!" She exclaimed, taking a step back, and swallowing hard. The next few words weren't like to please the smuggler- Something which endangered her life even more.

With a breath of air, she composed herself as best she could, forcing the ball of lead in her throat down, and clearing her mind. "I can't pay you now." She explained, tone orderly and experienced- But clearly filled with the nervousness of a woman who'd never taken part in criminal activity. "I haven't been able to access my banking account in weeks now. I'm sorry." Pausing for a second to let the message sink into the wall of fur and armour, she sighed, yellow eyes twinkling in the darkness. "But... Get me into Dominion space, and I just might find a connection. I'm not a thief." Now, those very same eyes looked up at him, hardened with courage and honesty. She'd managed to push down near all her fear, arming herself only with words.

 

[Duxil Rylver]

[member="Khull"]
[member="Tigress"]
OORP: I always forget to add those bits.

 

[Khull]

The words did not please the smuggler at all. But there it was, she did not have the credits on hand and now he had to make the choice on trusting potential client on word alone. His clawed fingers tighten in anger around the grip of his pistol carbine. A low rumbled snarl escaped from his lips as he contemplated his options, his odds. Gunning her down in cold blood was not the option here. Khull, though beastly to most that look at him was nothing of the sort. He was not a murderer. Just a man trying to make a living in the chaos of this galaxy, keeping himself and his mate free at the same time.

"Yourrr vorrrd better be honest" Decision was made. They will have to risk it. Plus, one can't get blood from a stone no matter how hard one squeezed. Khull took his hand away from his weapon and motioned for Duxil to follow him. He lead her to the back exit door of the warehouse. The cathar reached over to box near the door, picking up a simple helmet with a tinted visor and tossing it to the woman.

Before she could ask why Khull open the side door and there perched in waiting was his beloved swoop. He himself pulled a pair of goggles from his deep pocket and placed it over his head and eyes. He straddled the swoop bike and let the engine come to life. " Hop on 'n hold tight!" He smiled at her as the mystical sound of the dangerous vehicle calmed his soul.

[member="Duxil Rylver"] [member="Tigress"]

 

[Duxil Rylver]

[double post!]

 

[Duxil Rylver]

[member="Khull"]

Once her smuggler's growling ceased, Duxil let out a breath, the black spots forming in front of her eyes already beginning to fade. Fainting didn't seem like too good an option now, considering all the noise it might have made. Plus... She didn't want to embarrass herself, even if the only person there to witness it was some lowly criminal. At least, he had a good heart. Either that... Or he was still looking for a profit out of his trip here. Following him with residual nervousness knotting up her feet, Duxil looked around, for maybe some sort of door. Maybe he had an exit leading to the ship...

But instead, she was confronted by some stowed away speeder. A swoop, it seemed- But unlike those used on holonet racing, this one seemed a lot older, more suited to a museum than anything. Oh, well. The galaxy couldn't supply luxury to everyone. Barely catching the helmet in her delicate hands, Duxil set it on her head, tightened the strap around her chin, and slid into the seat behind the cathar, straddling his... This definitely wasn't going to be a fun trip.

"Just... Ride casual." She advised, the roar of the engine already sparking some more nervousness in her. "I've never mounted one of these things. I hope they're safe." But it's not like she had another option. With that, she wrapped her arms around the cathar's belly, gripped onto the chestplate for dear life, and waited for the swoop to move.