Wires and Things

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

"Yeah." He confirmed, glancing the other way for a second. "If we head to the right we'll come out at the underpasses. The Section of Coruscant that leads beneath the massive waterpipes heading towards the Senate district."

Munin paused for a moment, then began to walk. He headed down the steps and towards the left path, but didn't stop speaking. "The Skraal live down there. Giant rats. They're pretty dumb as a whole, but when you meet them on your own in the dark? Dangerous."

The infochant had a few memories of encountering the creatures.

Most of the time they were left alone, and most of the time they left everyone else alone. They lived by eating garbage and surviving in the underside of the massive City world. Beneath the waterpipes was one of the places that they thrived. There were large pools of water down there, leakage from the massive pipes. Humans, and pretty much any other species, would have found themselves sick even touching that water after it had been contaminated by so much trash, but Skraal? They loved it.

Munin wasn't sure why he told her that, wasn't sure why he told her anything in fact.

He just did.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

"Giant....rats?!" Brown-contacted eyes widened. The slicer gulped. Thin-fingers dug a little more tightly into Kai. She couldn't take her eyes off the right tunnel as they passed.

It was hard to tell if she saw movement in the gloom or if it was just a trick of her eyes. Head shook, brown hair brushing against Kai's neck. "You know this place really well."

Eyes finally tore away from up the stairs and back down. She'd have to walk soon. She would be find on flat ground. She should be. Foot flexed experimentally. Face grimaced.

#toosoon

"What happened to your family?"

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

He shrugged.

"Don't know." Munin had never met his parents, never knew if he had any siblings, had never even been told what planet he was from. All of that was a complete and total mystery to him. He had tried to find out once, a long time ago, by slicing into the records that the orphanage had kept. In his inexperience however Munin had accidentally destroyed half the file. Later, when his skill had advanced he'd tried again, only to find the damage he'd done the first time around. "Never knew them."

He'd been disappointed at first, but in truth he couldn't care less now. Huginn was his family, and he didn't need more then that.

Munin headed further down the steps, tugging her a bit closer as the stairs began to quickly decrease in quality. The steel here was lower quality, bent and warped with age, half broken and cracked. They looked exactly the same as they had ten years ago.

"We're almost there." He said quietly. "Ten minutes or so."

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

No one had held her like this for a very long time. Cameron didn't count. #stillawkward #coloroncheeks #don'tknowhowIfeel

Thin lips pulled tight at Kai's response. "I'm sorry," she murmured. She didn't know what to say. "If it makes you feel better - I knew mine but they never wanted to know me." Bony-shoulders shrugged. She wasn't looking for sympathy, just stating a fact.

Kai was pretty strong. Still, she doubted he could go on like this for much longer. Her own stomach grumbled. She could really go for some BBQ chips right now. Fingers shifted around his neck as she pulled her head back to look at him.

"I can walk, if you need it."

Straight up lie. She was good at that. Still, for him, she'd try.

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

He shook his head. "It'll be alright until we reach the bottom of the steps."

From there it was a short walk to the orphanage anyway. The place had closed up shop almost fiive years ago now, right around the time the Sith had first taken Coruscant. Munin had been long gone by then, but the closing had not gone without his notice. He'd just started to learn slicing then, proper slicing anyway, and he'd heard the news quickly. It had been bittersweet in a way. The place had never been the best home, but it had been a home of sorts.

The most enjoyable part about it had been the other kids, though even they had been cruel at times.

"It's not so bad." He shrugged. "Not everyone gets to pick their family."

Munin did though, something he was glad for.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

Spark wasn't great at reading people. If Kai said he was good until they reached the bottom, then she believed him. Dark-brows crinkled.

"Pick your family?"

She heard a noise that wasn't their voices or their steps on up the stairs. Head turned to look beyond his shoulder. But she didn't see anything. Maybe it was just her stomach.

#plsbemystomach

"Who did you pick to be your family?" Of course, she didn't know how much of this stuff he was making up. What his cover was. If they'd ever be honest with each other. Or if she'd ever know the difference.

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

Munin didn't answer that question. He didn't mind giving away that he had lived at the orphanage, he didn't mind telling her small details, there had been hundreds of kids at that orphanage, thousands or perhaps millions throughout the year. Finding him in any number of records would have been impossible, more so, those records were destroyed. There wasn't really a way to find out who he was from what he had said so far, but telling a detail about Huginn?

That was too close to home.

In truth, even large details about Huginn and how they came to be family likely wouldn't have been enough to find him, nor would finding him be anything of note. Munin didn't remember his real name, didn't even know if he actually had one. The moniker Munin had been chosen for their business, and if she were to search...that was all she would find, a moniker, a face without a face. He wondered if that was an irony or simply a tragedy. Slowly however he turned to her, looking at her for a moment.

A small smile perked at his lips.

"I have to keep some secrets." He said quietly. "Or else I couldn't keep you curious enough to ask."

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

She blinked. These were personal questions. She also wouldn't be answering a lot. At least, not with details if he were to ask. And maybe he already knew that too. Sometimes she felt like she'd known Kai for days and not just a few hours.

#sillyright?

The gangly-limbed slicer felt that way about Gabe and Ava. Usually just the relationships that lasted. Of course, that didn't necessarily mean anything here. But she did trust him. #enoughtogooffintodarktunnels #withgiantrats #eeEEEEPPP

So, she looked at him quietly and didn't offer anything else to say or ask. Maybe she conveyed enough with the look behind her brown contact-lenses.

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

Munin stayed silent for the rest of the walk down the steps, keeping his eyes focused on where he was walking. The stairs were getting more slippery, and that meant more dangerous. It also meant that they were getting close however, and eventually the pale light of some of the streetlamps began to illuminate their path once more. He frowned slightly, doing his best to ignore the dirt and grime that seemed to cling to every open surface all around them.

Eventually they found the final step, Munin placing himself onto the solid duracrete with a tentative foot. There was something about being back here...the place where he had spent so much of his childhood, it put him on edge. Not in a bad way, more...more like he was back to trying to survive.

"There won't be many security forces down here." He said calmly. "But...we should hang around in the streets for long."

There was a small crowd even here, but it was obvious they were of a very different sort. Most of them were aliens, and all of them looked rough and broken down. Their clothing was torn and ripped, their eyes were turned down, and everything about them screamed underworld. This wasn't a place that someone with even remotely nice clothes wanted to walk around in, not for long anyway. He nodded his head towards one of the back streets that lay just a few dozen meters away. "Down that way is the orphanage, are you okay to walk?"

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

Speckled-gaze glanced around. Shoulders she didn't realize were tense, finally relaxed as Kai hit the last step. The aliens. The ratty-clothes. The rough look. This was home. Usually there were a lot more weapons, though. Probably were here, too, just unseen.

Head glanced in the direction he indicated. "Yeah. Thanks Kai." Voice cracked on the word thanks. #awkward Fingers uncurled around his neck and loosened. Legs swung down. She adjusted her shirt and glasses as soon as her feet touched the ground.

She tried to keep the limp from her gait as she took a tentative step forward. Teeth gnawed on the inside of her cheek. The crowd was still large enough to warrant her proximity to Kai, though they didn't touch. Eyes lit up as she spotted a familiar on the corner in the direction they were headed.

A vending machine.

#snacks!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And it wasn't broken into. #miracle

"Wait. I want to get a snack. Want anything?" She limped toward the machine.

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

He frowned slightly. Food? He hadn't eaten in what seemed like forever, and their crawl through everything had been kind of a pain. "Sure."

Munin hadn't eaten food from a snack machine in he didn't know how long, maybe a few years, maybe longer then that. He frowned for a moment more and pulled back slightly, looking at the machine and seeing what was inside of it. Most of the food was complete junk, actually all of it was. He remembered surviving off of stuff fairly similar to this, though most of it had changed within the last few years. He looked quickly, eyeing up and down before he selected some chips that had a distinct pretzel look to them.

"Those." They were the only thing vaguely familiar.

Munin liked pretzels, always had.

One of the orphanages he had stayed in had frequently gotten left overs from one of the nearby bakeries. It hadn't been this one obviously, but it had been one of the few pleasant memories that Munin had retained from his childhood.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

#judgeshischoices

"Okay. Cover me." She would need to concentrate. Because, she wasn't actually going to pay for these. #duh #technopath Before knowing about the force, Spark had stolen through other devices. With the force, in situations like these...well, she certainly wasn't a jedi.

Brown-eyes narrowed. Mind reached forward, invisibly through the force as it connected with the tech in the vending. Hand pushed against the cred-chit slot. She had to make appearances in case anyone was watching or there were any active security feeds down here.

With a whirring thump, thump, Kai's pretzels fell into the slot, followed by some cheesy curls, BBQ chips, and some choco-chews.

#I'mhungry

Kneeling down, she swiped the snacks from the slot and handed Kai his, cradling her protectively.

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

He looked at her for a moment. The force was...odd. Munin didn't understand it, nor did he really know anything at all about it. There had been rumors of course, talk of magic and power beyond all belief. A lot of kids at the orphanage had always dreamed of being picked up by the Jedi, of discovering some hidden power that supposedly hid deep inside of them. Munin never really believed in all of that, mostly because he was a realist, he believed in what he could see.

Of course, he could see Spark, and he could see what she could do. That really put some of the idea of his childhood to complete shame. The infochant couldn't help but wonder exactly what else Spark was capable of, if she could tear apart the machine standing in front of them, rip men's head from their spines, all of that. He frowned slightly as he imagined the latter, thinking that Spark likely wouldn't do that. He had heard of Sith doing similar things though. He made another mental note to ask Spark more about the force.

Perhaps she would tell him.

"Lets go." He said quietly as out of the corner of his eye he caught sight of a passing security patrol.

They usually didn't make it down this far, and in truth Munin kind of doubt that these particular guards were actually looking for him and Spark, but that didn't mean he was comfortable staying around in the open as long as they were here.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

Looking up, she caught the judgement in Kai's eyes. She could feel it. Or she thought she did? #badatreadingppl

Fingers came up to tug at the smashball cap lower on her head. Seeing the guard, she ducked in to follow Kai. There was a slight rip and popping noise as the bag of snacks opened. The BBQ chips. What would Munin do if he couldn't wash his hand before eating? #lolol

Converse-clad feet limped behind the dude that carried her many flights down a dark alleyway, quietly munching on her snack and cradling the other bags against her sides with her skinny arms. When she got to this place, she knew she was gonna collapse on a cot. She didn't even care what shape it was in.

#exhausted

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

They got there in no time, just two corners and one little alleyway.

"There." He said pointing a finger and slowing down so she came up alongside him. "Home at one point."

Not anymore.

Munin didn't wait for her to respond, instead he lead her towards the decrepit building. The place wasn't much to look at, wasn't anything to look at really. The windows had long ago been sealed shut with massive sheets of metal, the door had been sealed with what looked to be some sort of rotting wood, and the building itself was peeling what little paint it had left on it. Half of the place looked like it was falling down, though the other half seemed to be standing upright without much issue.

The infochant didn't hesitate in approaching the building, just lingering at Sparks side for half a moment to make sure that no one was around to watch. He moved towards the door, strangely not hesitating as his fingers slipped underneath the rotted wood and pried it away. There was a loud creaking noise, then a sudden snap as the board that had held the door closed was torn away. He waited a moment, looked around, then pulled open the door.

A wave of his hand signaled for Spark to head inside.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

Speckled-gaze gave one last glance over her shoulder before stepping over the threshold. No one saw them. Even if they did, no one seemed to care. Breaking and entering abandoned buildings was nothing out of normal on these levels.

Stepping inside, her nose noticed the smell first: must and peppermints. #weird

There was an abandoned check-in station. Holo equipment already picked off by scavengers. Furniture bolted to the floor remained. Spray-paint decorated the corridors and floor. Limping forward, she wandered down the dark corridor. A light from a powersource that should've been long cut off blinked and flickered at the end of the corridor. She saw a huge room to the right with a bunch of lined-up cots, bolted to the floor. Most were left with just the springboards but some had an old mattress or two.

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

Munin wandered after Spark, his eyes taking the exact path that her own had floated across. He showed no outward expression, no disdain, nothing. It did, however, seem like the moment he had stepped through the door a bit of the warmth he'd felt left him. His skin looked more pale, his eyes dulled a bit, and the expression on his face became more apathetic. It was clear that this place brought up memories, memories that he'd rather not have thought of.

"Upstairs." He said quietly, motioning to a back corridor.

Beyond the odd flickering light there was a small hallway, beyond that hallway they would find narrow and cramped steps. Munin remembered those steps well, he remembered being thrown down them more then once, scrubbing them of his own blood on the same day. He frowned then gently touched Sparks arm, urging her on as if he didn't want to linger within the hall.

"There's a room all the way to the back up there." His tone was still soft, as if raising his voice anymore would bring some sort of punishment. "It has a back exit in case we need to get out."

He moved slowly, carefully.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

"Okay," she matched his whisper. It seemed appropriate. #andghosts Thin lips thinned as she gazed up the rickety and narrow staircase. Kai was already several steps ahead. Luckily, it was narrow, which allowed one of her hands to use the banister and the other the wall for support as she limped up.

Significantly slower than Kai.

Hopefully by the morning, her ankle would be a lot better. Or if by the time someone chased them out. Any sort of pounding was making her internally wince. Brown-eyes squinted in the dark. He seemed a bit paler since they got in.

But she was the one grimacing as she reached the top, ankle throbbing. Still, she asked...

"You doing okay?"

 

[Munin]

[member="Spark Finn"]

"Yeah." He lied. "Memories."

They weren't the most pleasant of memories either. This place hadn't been good to him. He was certain that there had been a good memory or two here, but he couldn't quite recall them walking through the halls. Eventually they reached the top floor, a space that was seemingly even more eerie then the floor below it. Munin frowned for a moment, looking at everything in front of him and then helping Spark onto the landing as she joined him.

It was obvious she was still in pain. "There."

He pointed to a small door, more of a cubby then an actual room. He moved towards it, gently pressing against the door and then sliding it to the side. Munin peeked his head inside for a moment, looking around as if unsure of what he would find.

"That was my room." The room wasn't huge, tiny really, but it was big enough for the two of them. There wasn't much inside, a small bed with a torn and dusty mattress, an equally sized desk at the corner of the room and a small teddy bear sitting in one corner. "If you were here for longer than a year you got your own room."

Munin explained quietly as he stepped inside.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Munin"]

She still stiffened as he helped her. #touch. But she didn't pull away like she would have with almost anyone else. Ducking down, she edged past Kai and into his room. "Oh," she breathed.

A finger brushed a wayward strand of brown hair away from her glasses. "Looks like home." And it did. Like many of the rooms she stayed in when she worked alone. Worked the darknet. Before the Underground. Before the Jedi. Before the force. Rooms where people #peeps didn't ask questions.

She took off the smashball hat and threw it in the desk. Hair was wild and clumped in places. She didn't care, never one for looks. Bony-butt plopped on the mattress, sending up a layer of dust.

"Is that...," she sneezed with her chin tipped toward the bear. "Yours?" This time, all were safe from projectile snot.