The time is upon us...

[Ateth]

"That's right and I do" I didn't particularly care for Nym much either but Lok -was- quite on the outskirts so to speak, and the Empire didn't realy have a huge presence there so that was quite to my liking.

It amused me that he can't get a read on me but the amusement doesn't really show on my face. I'd spent years schooling myself not to let much escape..my face a study in neutrality. I'd had people occasionally tell me that my cool demeanor was slightly creepy at times but it suited me. I'd learned over time that letting people get close was dangerous..not to me...but to -them- so it was better to remain aloof and outwardly emotionless so as to protect others. Though, if one was perceptive enough, they might catch a few things that slip from behind the 'mask'.

"You're right on a few counts" I say as I follow him out into the living area where there is a galley type area for food prep along the hallway wall and a few couches and chairs scattered about, upon one end table sits a holo picture of a young girl riding atop an older man's shoulders. The girl could easily have been me at a young age just by the mass of red gold curls spilling over her shoulders. The difference is the age, of course, and the bright happy smile upon the child's face and the tan robe she wears. The man in the picture had long black hair and kindly blue eyes crinkled at the corners and looks to be perhaps in his late thirties, early fourties.

"Realy it's only one name..Tiiona Dax. Some of the people I know seem to favor calling me by my surname" shoulders rise and fall in a slight shrug "Don't ask me why". Though he was right about the trying to hide and be someone else, he just didn't know for sure that Tiiona wasn't my true name unless he'd overheard the conversation on the ramp. I settle myself in a seat near where he's stretched out "I've been a long way from home for awhile. I tend to move around quite a bit, and my friend has offered me a place to stay and while I hold no love for Nym, Lok is far removed and suits my tastes nicely" was there something more behind that..more than likely. Was I going to go into further detail yet? Not likely.

"You're right about not wanting to be found. The Empire doesn't take too kindly to force users" if he knew his history he'd know about the Emperor's purge years ago. "And as to our evicted 'friend', I had nothing to do with that. He took his own life" it wouldn't be hard to hear the truth in my tone of voice when I say that. "I have seen a lot of death, and his probably won't be the last. And you're right. I don't see you as a threat, because if you'd wanted to harm me you would have done it already"

[Maverick2002]

“ Well Tiiona Dax, I’m Jadac Seko and uh…..sorry about the way I forced myself on here, its not really my usual style well, sometimes it is but only when I have no other choice” I realise she may not be being 100% truthful about her name but as the conversation on the ramp was out of earshot, I take it as is and continue “you seem ok, and I’m actually doing you a favour – if someone wants to get lost, Nar Shaddaa is the place to do it” just the mention of the smugglers moon causes a small grin on my face, its been far too long since I’d been back there and the mix anxiousness and excitement was a good feeling. “The empire doesn’t take too kindly to anyone that doesn’t fit their plan but I get the impression ‘force users’ aren’t welcome in many places so my advice, you may want to play that down when you’re out in public”

While speaking, I keep trying to access Tiiona and read her body language to see if there any tell-tale signs of deceit or ulterior motives, other than her glancing at a holo picture she seems pretty relaxed which in turn makes me feel more at ease. It was one of the few tricks that my dad had taught me and that was a result of his addiction to pazaak, he used to take me into the dens and get me to look out for tells on the other players, a twitch of the eye, a scratch of the face, nothing got past me or him, until he had one too many juma juices that is….which was every time….

“That holo means something to you - She looks happy” For a second I thought about asking more about it, but not wanting to risk the conversation turning in the direction of my childhood, I quickly change the subject “…So! When we arrive to Nar Shaddaa, what’s your play? Are you going to take my advice and stick around or head back to your ‘friend’? I used to know a few people where we’re heading that could help you out, after all it’s the least I can do since you believed my stor……decided we didn’t need to get blown up ” Almost letting slip that the charges were in fact a bluff – I wasn’t going to reveal that just yet, she may have suggested it was a bluff earlier but just in case there was any small doubt stopping her from using my own blaster on me, I figured it was best to continue the charade.

While waiting for her response I feel the stresses of the day catching up on me, not quite sure enough of the situation to fall asleep just yet, I will myself to stay awake.

[Ateth]

"Nice to meet you, Jadac. So what is your usual style?" an eyebrow quirks up slightly in curiosity. I see the grin come over his face, he seems to be quite fond of the place. "You're right about that. Anything that challenges their status quo they don't like. Force users..women..Rebels...the only thing I got going for me is the fact that I'm not an alien." The tone of my voice it's easy to hear the disdain there when I talk about the Imperials and its obvious that I hold little love for them.

I seem about as relaxed as can be but with his close scrutiny it may not be quite -as- relaxed as initially apparent. It almost seems as if I'm never fully relaxed and had perhaps been a long time since I'd allowed myself to totally drop my guard. That kind of conditioning to never relax ones guard usually only appears in militaristic training, paranoia, or criminals and it was a safe bet that I wasn't a paranoid person. I may appear relaxed but my eyes occasionally flick from him to around the room and back to him noting everything around me and his motions. Reading him as he must surely be reading me.

"....It's someone I used to know..." After a moment of contemplating what I would say, I say quietly with a slight tone of...remorse? The girl was me, he could see the resemblance. Or perhaps it was a sister. That life seemed so far and away from the life I'd come to lead. I was truly a different person, or perhaps that person I once was, was burried so far down inside that either intentionally or unintentionally I'd lost it or felt it could never be recovered. I could see the glint of curiosity in his eyes as he considers asking more about it before changing tack and asking me about what I plan to do once we reached Nar Shaddaa.

"I haven't decided yet" I catch the slight slip but make no comment about it. I was fairly certain it was a bluff, but he seemed to want to keep up with the charade. Let him have his game, there was no harm in it and I had no intentions of using his blaster on him unless of course he gave me a reason to do such.

"Why don't you get some sleep. It's going to be a long trip. There's a bed in there if you wish" I say, gesturing to the door on the left of my room. "I'll be in the cockpit if you need anything" Rising smoothly from my seat and heading back towards the cockpit.

[Maverick2002]

“If you’re lucky, you may actually get a glimpse of my usual style, I haven’t met anyone yet who can resist my unrivalled charm and sharp wit when I decide to turn it on, it really is a sight to see” I respond to her initial question, while speaking that same overly confident grin appears on my face, knowing that modesty wasn’t one of my strong points “oh and by the way, I wouldn’t say that’s the only thing you have going for you” exactly what I meant by that was open to her interpretation.

I was glad I didn’t push the conversation about the holo further, I avoided any questions about my past and it was obviously a sore subject. Whatever had happened to Tiiona must have caused a lot of changes since the girl in the picture and its never wise to dive too far into the past of someone you just met, especially when they have all the weapons and aren’t threating you with them. I couldn’t help but wonder what those events could have been though.

“ You know, I may be of more help if I knew exactly what it was you are running from, the empire I get but there must be more to it. Something to think about while I catch up on some sleep” I shift around some on the couch, and run my hand over the rough stubble on my face “It usually takes a bit more effort to get into a womans bedroom” I say jokingly with a cheeky glint in my eye, hoping to get a least a small smile “ but I’m fine here, it’s a lot better than the places I’ve slept recently”

As she heads towards the cockpit, my eyes wonder once again before I quickly close my eyes and try to rest. Sleeping on a ship, with a force user who I hardly knew was probably a careless move but for some reason, I didn’t seem concerned with what might happen, I didn’t feel at risk and was surprisingly calm. the conversations with Tiiona, had gone well and had been a good insight into a new travelling companion.

[Ateth]

"You might have met your match with me then" I say with a slight quirk of my eyebrow and perhaps a slight glimmer in green eyes. I hadn't really been considering what else I had going for me when I'd initially said that, I was just focusing on the Imperial side of things but when he makes that comment it gives me pause. My first thought was that he was commenting on my appearance, being a guy and all. I was used to such comments in the past. But he could be talking about any number of things.

I give a slight shake of my head as if clearing my thoughts. Why was I even trying to pick apart the meaning of that comment, as if I were some impressionable school girl?

'Perhaps I'm running from myself', I think to myself. "That's not my bedroom" I say with a twitch of my lips in what might be a hint of a smile. My bedroom was actually right next door to the one I'd told him that he could go to rest in if he so chose. Though I don't think he actually meant it to be serious. It had been a long time since someone had joked around with me, perhaps I'd lost my sense of humor. "Well it's there if you want it, there's also a sonic shower in there if you'd like to freshen up."

After leaving him to his rest, I returned to the cockpit and settled myself down in the pilot's seat, rested my head back upon the headrest and let my eyes close. A deep breath taken in and released slowly is the trigger for me to descend into a trance. My body would be resting but my senses were on alert for any danger and I could snap out of it at a moment's notice.

A couple hours later, my rest is interrupted by a beeping coming from the console. Straightening up in my chair, I check the console to see what's going on but before I even turn an eye to the console, I can see exactly what's going on..the star-lines are solidified into star-points..we'd dropped out of hyperspace for some reason. "For the love of..." I mutter and stand. Grabbing my toolkit and moving out into the hall and pulling up a deck plate, sitting down with my back to the hole, I hook my feet around the piping in the hallway walls and lower myself backwards.

[Maverick2002]

I start to wake up from my rest, not really knowing how long I’d been out for – it felt like it had been years since I’d had such a good rest, surprising given the circumstances but perhaps it was the sub conscious thought that I was finally going to where I needed to be and all that was left to do was wait…or so it seemed.

While getting my bearings, I sit up on the couch, crick my neck and slowly stand up. Steadily gazing around the living area I move slightly so I can see down the corridor and into the cockpit, Tiiona is still there and appears to be asleep, if that is infact what the ‘force users’ call it. I make my way to the bedroom that I’d been directed to previously, it’s a pretty baron room with only a bed, and a small area where the shower was located, it really didn’t seem like Tiiona had, had any guests for a long time.

I quickly freshen-up in the shower and get dressed but leaving my jacket slung over one of the chairs in the room, the comm-link still within the inside pocket. A small mirror hangs on the wall, I head over to it and study the reflection looking back at me “Wont be long now Seko, wont be long” I say to myself quietly, as if to reassure myself that what I’m doing is going to be worth it. My reflection has seen better days, the 5 O’clock shadow of my usual look is more untamed bristles, my eyes look tired and some might say I look run down – sleeping rough for the past few days has definitely taken its toll, I decide its time to do something about it. I look around the immediate area for something sharp with a long edge that I can have a shave with, there must be something on the ship that’ll do the job, especially given its owner.

Having been unsuccessful searching the immediate area, I move to the adjacent bedroom – this room was almost as baron as the first apart from a few personal effects laying around that suggested this was Tiionas room. There is a small circular holodisk sitting on the bedside table which was projecting an image of a blue and green planet, I was aware the planet was Dathomir (a planet which was too remote and uncivilised even for my tastes). On the base of the holo disc is an inscription that reads:

Daughters of Allya.
Learn these words and learn them well, for they are the foundations
that will increase your strength and keep you safe from harm.
Those who suffer emotion will never enjoy peace.
Those who choose ignorance will never know their own greatness.
Those who yield to passion will fail to dominate.
Those who fear death will never achieve pure power.
Never forget that your magic must always be used wisely.
Never concede to evil, lest you be consumed by it

If these were the words the Tiiona lived by, it would explain why she was seemingly so cold. My thoughts drift back to the picture of the young girl within the living area, that wasn’t the face of someone who followed this ‘code’ so either the Dathomir disc wasn’t hers or something happened in her childhood that made her turn to these ‘Daughters of Allya’. Regardless, still no sign of anything I could have shave with.

I open the drawer of the bedside table, inside there are various pictures, one of which sparks my interest “ I know that place” I say under my breath, the picture is of Tiiona alongside a rather diminutive cream coloured Twi'lek woman sporting tan spots on her lekku, standing in the Red Light sector of Nar Shaddaa. Everything I find makes my curiosity grow – I usually like to keep my distance and not pry into other people’s business but given how she had been during our past exchanges, I was determined to find out more should the opportunity to present itself.

I drop the pictures back in a push the drawer closed, as I do, I notice the sound of something sliding around, something a lot heavier than a few pictures, re-opening the drawer to investigate – it seems very shallow for the construction of it. Removing the pictures and pushing down on the base reveals a hidden compartment containing a wooden case. Within the case affixed to a backboard of velvet are several medals of distinction:

Distinguished Medal of Imperial Honour- a prestigious award of the Galactic Empire awarded for her numerous achievements on the field of battle
Hero of the Empire- awarded to those in service to the Galactic Empire who performed bravely in their duty.
Champion of Empire Day- awarded to individuals who had undergone extensive dutiful service to the Empire.
Imperial Badge of Merit
The Imperial Medal of Honour- Granted by the Galactic Empire for service above and beyond the call of duty.
Medal of Conspicuous Gallantry- Awarded for outstanding service in the call of duty.
Medal of the Emperor's Fist - Awarded for "distinguished services to the Emperor in strengthening and maintaining galactic peace."

“holy shi-“ i say to myself but am cut short by the boom and sudden jolt of the ship dropping from lightspeed. Having realised what has happened, i quickly put the case back within the compartment and reassemble the drawer before rushing out into the corridor where a deck plate has been removed and Tiiona is hanging down into the opening. Not wanting to let on that I’ve been inadvertently snooping around I decide its best to just act my normal charming self “A woman who can use tools!? That’s more impressive than anything I’ve seen about the ‘force’ …what the hell happened!?” It’s obvious from the tone within my voice that while I’m joking but am also aware my comment may hit a nerve.

[Ateth]

I DO sleep..and I call it sleep. At least I do some of the time. But with the circumstances of a strange man on my ship, I wasn't too comfortable with the idea of just dropping off into la-la-land. My natural sleep could at times be quite heavy and I might not wake up in time if he decided to swipe his blaster back which still hangs from my hip and dispose of me if he felt like it.

I was used to the jeering and jokes directed at a woman's competency or lack thereof belief that it seemed most of the men had in the imperial army so that wasn't something that would necessarily hit a nerve for me. "Tools are more than hand held objects used to fix things, people can be tools, words can be tools. Anything used as a means of accomplishing a task or purpose is a tool" comes the slightly snarky reply from under the deck plates, followed by an equally snarktastic comment "We've dropped out of hyperspace, that's what happened. Why don't you make yourself useful and hand me the hydrospanner?"

[Maverick2002]

“I can see that, but why have we dropped out of hyperspace?” I grab the nearby hydro spanner and pass it down into the opening “You’d have thought someone who was so keen to run away would actually have a ship that can make a small jump through hyperspace” I respond in an equally snarky tone, still provoking more of a reaction. Moving to the side of the opening and leaning nonchalantly up the corridor wall, I watch Tiiona as she’s working below the deck “ so what exactly blew and can you fix it or do you want me to take a look?”

The thoughts of what I had seen in her quarters were still at the back of my mind, she’d obviously picked up her mechanical skills at the Imperial Academy as starship maintenance was one of the required modules. The comment regarding using people as tools was one I could understand but also raised some concern, I’ve played many people off each other in the past and only been on the receiving end once, I’d vowed never to let that happen again – could she be playing me? Are we going to be getting some unwelcome guests soon? The worrying thoughts continued in my mind but I manage to maintain my cool demeanour, not letting on that anything is a miss. Over-confidence and cockiness have always been a good camouflage for what’s really going on and that wasn’t about to stop now – a good sabacc player never reveals his true hand, some more of the few words of wisdom from my father.

[Ateth]

A flex of muscles and I 'sit up' from dangling down to grab the hydro spanner he offers me and in the process coming face to face with him. My face is slightly flushed from hanging upside down with all the blood rushing to my head, vivid green eyes show a hint of the annoyance at this unexpected turn of events.

"The Flux capacitor connectors blew and shorted out the hyperdrive. I'm pretty sure it was due to the unit not getting enough power. The techs probably didn't get all of the mynock damage fixed."

That's the last time I'd be going to that starport, or at the very least, trusting their techs with my ship repair "Of course I can fix it, it's just going to extend our trip" I drop back down into the hole and continue working on the capacitor "If you want to help though, poke around and make sure nothing else is not as it should be" Better to find out now, than to fix this and then come across more problems down the line.

[Maverick2002]

The flustered look and hint of annoyance on her face was like someone firing a starting gun in my mind, I couldn’t resist trying to take advantage of the moment, after all, this was the most emotion I’d seen her show since being on the ship so, as we come face to face, I look deep into her green eyes, the corner of my mouth raises into a grin and I quickly wink one eye at her as she takes the hydrospanner. By my reckoning, my action could go one of two ways, firstly being hit on at a time like this could add to her annoyance and cause more emotions to come out (more emotion means she’s potentially more likely to let slip on the truth about things) or at the very least, it’ll ease some tension in a stressful situation, either way, it’s worth a gamble and gives me the upper-hand.

As she drops back into the opening, I go back to leaning up the corridor “oh there seems to be plenty on this ship that isn’t as it should be” indirectly referring to the imperial medals within her quarters, but it’s unlikely she would make the connection “ but those things aren’t going to effect getting back into hyperspace and besides, you seem to have it all in hand anyway ” I walk toward the cockpit while commenting I’ll go and find out where we are exactly, just in case your mechanical expertise aren’t as good as you make out”

At the console I check the star map, it seems we’re near Mimban – an imperial controlled energy mining planet. I shout back down the corridor “eeermm T, you might want to fix that a bit quicker when you find out where we dropped”

[Ateth]

He was right. This was a stressful situation, and not only was it stressful..it was frustrating, aggravating. I mean, the techs at the starport should have had ample time to fix the damage. Hell...-I- could have fixed it in half the time that they'd taken and they didn't even fix it properly the first time! When we come face to face like that, I could swear for a minute there he had been about to kiss me. And if that had happened I'm pretty sure I might have slapped him just for the sheer fact that I wouldn't have been expecting it. At all.

Here I was hanging upside down all flushed from the blood rushing to my head, hair ruffled and sticking to my neck and forehead with sweat and he would go there? But he doesn't, he just stares into my eyes for a moment and grins then winks at me, and I blink. It was obvious he'd caught me a bit off guard by the slightly bewildered flicker in my eyes.

I don't catch that subtle reference, having been unaware of his snooping activities while I'd been resting "What do you mean by that?" I say as I drop back down into the hole. He says he's going to check where we've dropped out at.

"eeermm T, you might want to fix that a bit quicker when you find out where we dropped"

"Where?" the tone of his voice when he says that gives me a bad feeling in the pit of my gut, and my questioning holler reflects my hesitance..do I really want to know?

[Maverick2002]

“Mimban” I shout back down the corridor – I knew she’d know of the planet as soon as I said it, someone with all those imperial medals would be well aware of the location and its purpose, hell she probably even knew how many units were garrisoned there.

Being stranded in imperial controlled space was the last place I wanted to be, it wouldn’t take much of an investigation to find one of numerous people who would pay a lot of credits to see me returned to them….

I direct my gaze to the short range scanners, 3 small blips are heading towards the ship but before I can say anything a stern, commanding voice booms out from the comm panel “This is imperial mining Outpost Alpha. You’re ship has entered restricted space – maintain your position and await further instructions”

“Any bright ideas?” I say, hoping Tiiona has a plan for a situation like this – if what she’s said to me before was true, this kind of attention wasn’t high up on her list either.

[Ateth]

He doesn't answer my question on what he meant by his other comment but I let it go for now and continue my work on the ship systems, only pausing when that returned shout reaches my ears.

........Mimban........

"E chu ta!" Whether he hears my expletive or not is up in the air. I wasn't exactly muttering it but I wasn't quite shouting it either. With a grunt, I pull myself up out of the hole and enter the cockpit and coming up behind him just as that booming voice comes over the comm panel "Well we certainly aren't going to wait around for the welcoming committee...strap in and hold on tight, this is gonna be a little bumpy!"

Squeezing by him and taking my pilot's seat. This was either going to be incredibly lucky or incredibly stupid course of action I was about to take. But this wasn't like the confrontation at the starport with the storm troopers. They were easily manipulated. This was three imperial ships and I didn't like those odds.

"Mimban is a largely unexplored jungle world, the empire uses it for energy mining. It has 5 makeshift mining towns..if we're extremely lucky, I may be able to set down in the undergrowth and disappear from those ships sensors. We can make repairs uninterrupted. The planet is covered in a thick mist, it will make finding us difficult."

My fingers fly over the controls as I talk, turning us towards the planet "The only problem is going to be the turbulent atmosphere..there's a lot of energy storms, but if I can navigate us through that will only further disguise our descent.....alright....here we go..."

The ship starts it's descent. All around us, Jadec could see the flash and crackling of the energy storms raging through the stratosphere. The vibration could be felt in the deck plates as the ship rattles and jolts from the highly charged particles and wind turbulence. If Jadec looks over at me, he might be surprised to see that my eyes have closed, just a shimmer of green under my lashes as my eyes fluttered slightly. The expression on my face one of intense concentration.

[Maverick2002]

"Well we certainly aren't going to wait around for the welcoming committee...strap in and hold on tight, this is gonna be a little bumpy!" Shocked by decision to run, I grab hold of the co-pilots seat with both hands and retort “This is not the kind of bright idea I was referring too!” The sound of this ships engines ramp up as we begin the decent almost in tandem with the another outburst from the comms panel :

“Unidentified ship, terminate your engines IMMEDIATELY or you will be destroyed” a message which both of us seem to ignore entirely.

Her knowledge of the planet was not a surprise and confirmed my original thoughts – most people wouldn’t even know of the place unless they studied star maps, let alone know it well enough to be able to navigate the atmosphere. “I’m glad you think that’s the only problem we have, the 3 heavily armoured TIE fighters are just a minor inconvenience I guess!?” before waiting for an answer, I head back down the corridor, steadying myself on the walls before reaching the opening to the gunner pods, ascending the metal ladder, I strap myself in to the upper seat and quickly swing the quad laser in the direction of the pursuing TIE’s. Pulling both triggers, a flurry of red laser bolts head towards our adversaries who do not hesitate to return fire – green streams of light fly past the hull of the ship as it lurches through the storms - the mix of red and green flashing joins the sparks of the energy storms to create an almost mystical sight.

Trying to hit anything in such an unsteady ship was a near impossible task, but the seemingly impossible is something I like to think I excel at. The continuous fire from our quad lasers was enough to make the lives of the chasing TIE much more difficult but it wouldn’t be enough to get the them off our tail, I need to hit something – Taking a deep breath I stop firing and focus on the one which is in the middle of the formation, the concentration makes it seem as though all outside distractions have stopped, no sound, no motion, as the sights line up with the wing of the fighter, I open fire – the flurry strikes the wing of the doomed pilot as his ship sways violently to the right, colliding with his wingman – a bright orange and yellow fire ball signifies the end of their existence….one left! Obviously shocked by the loss of his squadron, the remaining pilot seems intent on bringing us down, the frequency of his shots increases and it looks as though he’s flying more recklessly than before.

As we descend further into the atmosphere, the density of the storms increases tenfold, it’s a nerve racking situation, we’re in a ship that isn’t equipped for this type of atmosphere and the extremely peeved pilot is. If we ever needed any smugglers luck, it was right now! The carelessness of the pursing pilot was about to gives us that luck – The pilot, lines up the ships engines in the centre of his crosshairs and is about to pull the trigger *FZZZZT* sparks fly from his console, he had sacrificed his situation for a killing blow and flown too close to one of the storm clouds. From the gunner position, I see a bright white flash on the enemy ship followed by all the lights and lasers dimming down to nothing, the storm had knocked out his power! The TIE plummets through the clouds never to be seen.

“Now we only have your flying to worry about” I shout back down toward the cockpit….

[Ateth]

Well it was either run, let the Imperial welcoming committee catch up to us and possibly put us in detention, OR option C...try to talk our way out of trouble. Option C might have been a good choice excepting for the fact that imperial officers were a bit more trouble to coerce than your average grunt storm trooper. And then there was the fact that Force coercion across a comm channel wasn't all that effective and also I didn't want to chance my luck on convincing the imperials that I was still on a covert inquisitor mission as I had managed with the storm troopers earlier, and have word get back to the Emperor.

Out of all those options, I preferred option A.

"There's always the escape pods, feel free to make use of them!" I retort back, perhaps a bit more snappishly than I'd intended. With the next outburst from the comms panel I slap the switch off so I wouldn't have to hear any more of the pilot's threats "I'd like to see you try" I mutter darkly, unheard by the pilot as I'd switched off the comms.

"Psh.." I snort at that comment as he's heading back down the corridor. With my eyes closed, I can hear the blaster fire as he's settled himself into the upper turret and is exchanging blaster fire with the pursuing ships. Great..not only do I have to dodge the storm systems raging across the sky but I have to avoid getting blown to smithereens by the chasing TIE fighters, it just gets better and better doesn't it?

With my eyes closed, I've stretched out with my senses, my hands upon the controls move without conscious thought, moving by instinct as if I've become part of the ship. The hum of the engine is like the pulse of my heart, the exterior hull my skin, the positions of the three TIE fighters are like a heat shimmer distorting the backdrop of the turbulant stratosphere. Jadec and the TIE pilot's a furiously burning star of their life force and I can feel Jadec's frustration bubbling to the surface with the exchange of shots that fly wild and join the symphony of electrical discharges in the atmosphere.

Sliding into Jadec's mind and guiding his efforts to calm himself, and that seems to help him get into the zone and his next shot catches the wing of the TIE causing it to collide with the wingman. I can see the brilliant bright orange and yellow fire ball of their destruction, feel the pilots brief moment of panic and minute moment of lancing pain before everything goes silent. Only one remains, and that one's time isn't long as his recklessness causes him to fly too close to a storm cloud and shorted out its systems.

My distraction with inserting myself into Jadec's mind had, however, lessened my attention on what was going on around us and there's a crackling sound as an electrical discharge disintegrates our rectenna but luckily enough the ray shielding around the rectenna stopped the electricity from travelling further and shorting out systems as it had on the unlucky TIE fighter.“Now we only have your flying to worry about.”..Funny!

Disengaging myself from Jadec's mind I put all of my concentration onto the turbulant storm around us. Feeling the build up of pressure in an area and swinging us out of the way just moments before electricity crackles through the air where we had just been. Dipping, dodging, rolling, I manage to get us through the electrical storm and the lush verdant jungle comes into sight just barely interspersed among the thick rolling fog below the turbulent cloud cover. The sound of scratching and snapping limbs meets our ears as I lowered the ship down into the jungle and with a hiss of repulsor jets the ship settles onto the ground.

[Maverick2002]

As the ship settles down I unbuckle myself from the gunners seat, wipe the glistening sweat off my forehead and head back down the ladder. Heading into the cockpit, I lean over Tiiona and look outside “well this looks like a fantastic place to be visiting” I say with a sarcastic tone “you can thank me later for saving our asses back there….after we’ve got off this swampy scum filled hell hole” I knew that we were lucky to still be breathing, let alone have landed and that a big part of that was down to the woman at the controls…..was I going to admit that to her? Not a chance…

Making my way over to the landing ramp, I press the release button and it begins to lower – the sounds of the hydrolics are soon accompanied by the hiss and hum, of the insects and wildlife in the surrounding swamp lands, shortly followed by the sound of snapping twigs and shrubbery as the ramp makes contact with the ground.

Looking out at our surroundings, its dark and dank with a mist that makes visibility extremely limited. Despite the storms raging above, its not raining, but the humidity makes the air think and heavy.

“lets see just how bad it is” I mutter, almost trying to prepare myself for the worse. I make my way out of the ship, take a few steps in the soft muddy earth below my feet and turn back to assess the damage. The scar that our decent into the surrounding canopy has left is pretty noticeable but the fog would mean its unlikely to be seen from the atmosphere…at least the imperials weren’t an immediate concern.

There is no obvious damage to the ship’s hull, aside from the black scoring where the energy surge hit and the almost none existent rectenna. “ah damn it” I grunt under my breath – the loss of the rectenna was a major blow, without it none of the ships internal or external sensors would function so that’s one thing we’re were going to have to replace.

I trudge my way back through the roughage and back onto the bottom of the landing ramp, the mud, water and foliage dripping off my boots. “ T, you’re going to want to come look at this” with a slightly disheartened tone to my voice.

Unbeknown to me, our entrance had caused some unwanted attention, two humanoids around 1.5m tall and covered in green fur were watching my every move….

[Ateth]

With the ship settled down more or less in one piece, I heave a tired sigh and slump back into the seat. Sweat glistening upon my forehead, it'd taken a lot out of me to get us through that. I'd started out with feeling rested and now after that whole ordeal, my body felt slightly achy and I was developing a headache that felt like it would be a doozy.

“Well this looks like a fantastic place to be visiting." My eyes were still closed as I feel his weight leaning over the chair to look out of the viewport out onto the jungle. "You can thank me later for saving our asses back there….after we’ve got off this swampy scum filled hell hole”. My eyes fly open and I twist around in my chair "Would you rather I take you back? Because I can. I am sure there have at least two times the flyboy's up there now..and that's if we're extremely lucky that they hadn't notified their superiors before you blew them to smithereens" frankly I'd be surprised if they hadn't sounded the alarm the moment they spotted us on sensors. As he's turning to go to the landing ramp, I holler snappishly after him "THANK YOU!..."..for being an unappreciative pain in my ass, I say mentally as an afterthought and slump back into the chair, raising my hands to rub at my temples...oh my head..

“ T, you’re going to want to come look at this”

"What now..." I halfway mutter as I get up and head out, boots squelching in the muddy water "What's up?" eyes scanning the foliage, with my senses still extended, the life all around us was a veritable web of interconnected light to me. Two bright points of light nearest to us get my attention and I turn my head to Jadec "...we aren't alone.."

[Maverick2002]

"...we aren't alone.." the words from Tiiona immediately grabbed my attention, something was obviously setting off her force sense….i didn’t need such a skill to know we had company, the planet was teeming with life all around us but this must have been something more substantial than a few bugs.

Looking deeper into the overgrowth I try to spot anything that might be amiss, while doing so I edge closer to her so that she can hear me say under my breath “so what is it?” while standing in close proximity to her, I attempt to retrieve my blaster - growing up I’d mastered lifting items from people’s pockets in order to survive, as well as a way to make an extra credit here and there, so lifting a blaster out of a holster was childs play, especially when the targets attention is elsewhere – In one swift movement, I un-hitch the clasp of the holster on her left hip, when there is no reaction I continue to lift the blaster out…success! I can’t help but smile to myself as I feel the familiar weight and moulded grip fit into my palm.

Just as I get hold of my blaster, two short, skinny humanoids emerge from the surrounding foliage – they were covered in a fine green fur with large black shiny eyes and deep green and red crests on each of their heads….neither were carrying anything and seemed to be more curious than aggressive….i place my blaster back in the holster at my hip, deciding its best to not aggravate our new guests…. this is one for Tiiona to deal with i think to myself

[Ateth]

It definitely takes more than a few bugs to get my attention like that. A tingle runs up and down the length of my arm, causing goose-flesh to rise with his close proximity, and with him so close he can catch a hint of my perfume, warm and spicy like cinnamon. Without taking my eyes off of the creatures I can now see among the overgrowth, I answer his whispered question "Mimbanites..." or as the Imperials here liked to call them..'greenies', a term that was rather rude and demeaning but then again, when were the Imperials ever considerate of aliens or as they saw them...lesser life forms.

Oh I was aware of him lifting the blaster from its holster at my hip, but I make no move to stop him. Let him think I wasn't knowledgeable to his action. This wasn't the time to get into a scuffle to reclaim the blaster. Besides if he'd really wanted to hurt me, he would have tried before now.

"Since the imperial occupation they've been reduced to scavenging and begging for things." after another moment of observation I speak again "They don't seem to be aggressive. They seem more curious than anything. I think they'll leave us alone as long as we leave them alone" perhaps they could be of some use though, they might at the very least, know the area.

I pitch my voice low and soothing "We mean you no harm. We had to land to repair our ship. Perhaps you could help us"

[Maverick2002]

"They don't seem to be aggressive. They seem more curious than anything. I think they'll leave us alone as long as we leave them alone" Her words reflected my take on the situation, something we could agree on for once. “I’m guessing they don’t speak basic and fuzzy green alien isn’t a dialect I’ve mastered” As Tiiona addresses the creatures, I move away from her side, the infectious smell of her perfume still lingering on my senses.

"We mean you no harm. We had to land to repair our ship. Perhaps you could help us" Tiiona had reached out to the primitive humanoids, obviously more versed in their communication skills than I was, not surprising given she had probably encountered this species before or at least read about them.

The two beings mutter and click between themselves in a language I’d never heard before, until finally one of them takes a few steps towards us and the ship “ For help…. must trade” he says in a somewhat uncertain mid-pitched voice. The look of slight confusion appears on my face “Trade what!??” I ask in response. The creates take another step closer and repeat “ For help…. must TRADE” this time with a much more confident manner, while doing so motioning towards anything that might be of value, including the glistening armband Tiiona has on her forearm – the second creature is also repeating the phrase “Trade” almost softly chanting it in the background but instead, unlike his companion, he isn’t motioning towards items with a credit value, this one is mimicking an eating motion.

Having witnessed the display in front of us, there is a hint of disdain on my face “You really think these guys can help us?”