Wanted Criminals Need Not Apply

[Soolin Anjhurin]

OOC NOTE - Please PM myself or Vishan before joining. Thank you. :)

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ON PLANET TOOLA

:: It had been several months since the carnage on Corellia, and the two Jedi had been on the move ever since, staying within the Outer Rim territories. Commerce and backwater planets were their haven. Not much was discussed about what happened with Zay Tavon, but Soolin was relieved that Vishan had not given in to hatred.

The Whiphids had not given them much trouble, and they loaded up tools and dried foods into the cargohold. Then they ventured out and set the Rocinante down in the mountains ::

[Vishan Korogoth]

Vishan was now a hunted criminal by the very government he once swore an Oath to live and serve. An Imperial fighter pilot of the finest caliber, he lived and breathed the dogma of the Empire.

But that was before they coordinated an attack that killed his wife and daughter. They blamed the Rebellion, but the Inquisitors had staged the so called accident, hoping to trigger his hatred and have him grow strong in the Force. They wanted to corrupt his vision, despise the Rebellion and bring out his latent ability so he could be trained and molded into the perfect weapon of the Empire.

Unfortunately they miscalculated. Vishan went into despair. Drinking and getting high off glitterstim, drowning his sorrow into the arms of a different woman every night practically...

Then he met her. Soolin. His Master. His Love. She saw the potential inside him and found him a new purpose. To learn the ways of the Jedi and serve her Order as the last two people of her Tribe. It was a great honor.

His resolve was tested on Corellia. He had the chance to kill the Imperial Commander Zay Tavon, the very man that helped to ruin his life. But he saw the futility through his rage, knowing that his death would not give him peace. Only by remembering his family and honoring their memory would justice truly be served. So he holstered his weapon and let Varla, and old flame of his, kill him instead. She had no love for the bastard, so pulling the trigger was in reality Zay's own fault. Never ever leave a woman scorn. Especially one that worked for Black Sun.

Varla was a sight for sore eyes, but his heart was with Soolin now. They dropped her and Jhyx off at Zeltros. Something about 'snurfling' was involved in their conversation, and honestly, Vishan could care less. He really didn't want to know because it was probably some crazy code for sex. Why Varla had found a small rodent that fit in the palm of her hand 'snurfable' was beyond the human capacity for reason.

"Hey, Soolin?" Vishan bit into a cracker and munched. "These are really good ya know? Why ya keep dissin' 'em?"

[Soolin Anjhurin]

"Horse tack is better than those." she replied. "I suppose if we want to bulid a house out of them it's not a total loss."

[Vishan Korogoth]

"Hey!" He was wounded. "Ya told me ta find some fast food cheap. Well ..." With a flourish, his chair spun around and pointed a crumb filled hand towards the back of the ship. " ... an' Ah found lots!"

He was proud.

[Soolin Anjhurin]

"Next planetfall, I buy the rations, you do the repairs."

:: Grimya stayed out of the debate, resting chin on paws ::

[Vishan Korogoth]

His proud smile vanished. "Fah!"

He tried looking at Grimya for help but she wasn't given any. "Fah ta ya too!"

[Soolin Anjhurin]

:: Soolin took one of the crackers in her teeth. It would fill her stomach, at least for a little while. Sitting down, she did another sweep for any signal out of orbit ::

[Vishan Korogoth]

munch, munch, munch

The crackers crumbled against his teeth making for a most annoying crunchy sound. Done on purpose of course. "Find any eavesdroppers?"

[Soolin Anjhurin]

:: Soolin winced and looked over her shoulder ::

"Yes, there's a Bantha chewing in my ear."

:: She waved at him in annoyance as she pressed the headset to her ear ::

"Wait ..."

:: She held up a hand ::

"... I'm getting something on broadband."

:: Tuning it in clearer, she passed the headset to him ::

[Vishan Korogoth]

... an ... zzbbbImperialssskkk....

"Dat sounds not too good." He cleared up some of the static and widened the frequency to try and hone in on whoever was talking.

... Chick was so hot! Ah swear some o'the best women can be found on Corsucant. 'Specially at the casinos Ah tell ya.

You're an idiot. I don't frell anything alien. Just blech! Imperial women are far more attractive then anything with bug eyes an' antennas. Just thinking about it makes me ill. Tell me ya got the shipment an' enough with this frelling talk!

Yeah yeah... I'm about a jump away ...

Vishan turned off the transmission, laughing hysterically. "Well, least we know th' Imperial women are hot!"

[Soolin Anjhurin]

:: Soolin blinked, dismissing her padawan's smugness ::

"No" she exclaimed, turning it on again and filtering out the chatter. An encoded signal emanated from the headset.

"That." she pointed. "What do you make of that?"

[Vishan Korogoth]

He closed his eyes and concentrated on listening to the signal. It didn't sound familiar. Opening his eyes, Vishan brought it up on the monitor to take a look at the sequence.

"Not Imperial. They may change their codes all th' time, bu' there's ah pattern, fingerprints, tha' make it unique ta them." He ran a check against Soolin's computer system to scan for any resemblance of Bounty Hunter transmissions. "Search will take sumtime."

He keyed in another sequence to run a decryption protocol to try and break the code. "T'ink yer 'puter's gonna be busy for at least ah few hours."

[Soolin Anjhurin]

:: Soolin's stomach rumbled loudly and her eyes grew big in alarm ::

"Fine." she replied, hurrying as dignified as possible to the bathroom.

[Vishan Korogoth]

His face scrunched up, perplexed at the hurriedness of Soolin. The Padawan swiveled around in his seat to get a great view of his Master's rear walking down the corridor.

"So ..." His head rolled to the side to look at Grimya. "What'cha t'ink dat was about?"

[Soolin Anjhurin]

:: The wolf's eyes looked up at him, and a soft whine rose in her throat. Sometime later, Soolin returned ::

"What progress?" she asked

[Vishan Korogoth]

"Nuthin'. Ah said it'll take a few hours, Soolin." He grinned. "Yer puter ain't dat fast."

Vishan gave her a quick look up and down. "You ok? Ya kinda booked it pretty fast there."

[Soolin Anjhurin]

"Your lousy crackers." she replied dryly.

[Vishan Korogoth]

"Pah!" Vishan waved away that nonsense of it all. "Ya got ah soft stomach. Ah'm fine. So it's obviously you."

[Soolin Anjhurin]

:: Soolin let it fall. She'd jettison the crackers later ::

[Vishan Korogoth]

He shrugged and let it slide when he saw Soolin's face. It showed no emotion. Just a glint in her eye to drop the issue. So he did.

"Wha's next?"

[Soolin Anjhurin]

"Since the decryption is going to take awhile, we have time for training."

[Vishan Korogoth]

"A'right. Sounds good." He got up and put on his winter attire: a coat that had insulation, gloves and visor goggles to keep the cold wind off his face.

When he was finished, he knelt down to ruffle Grimya's head. "Ya lucky ya got all dat fur."

[Eluna Thals]

The planet Toola was a cold and inhospitable place, but Eluna wasn't worried about creature comforts. This wasn't a vacation.

She approached the planet in an unmarked Muurian transport ship that she often used whenever she was traveling beyond the reservation. It was common enough to not raise suspicion, but performed well enough to suit what she'd need on her own in deep space.

There was a reasonable belief that some of the Elder Council of Whiphids were ready to offer armed resistance in the favor of the Rebellion. Eluna intended to observe this discretely, and attempt to make contact if the opportunity presented itself. She had to maintain a low profile, however. While there was no overt Imperial presence, the Empire was always to be considered just one system away.

She completed her approach, and the Muurian ship flared its nose upwards as it came to rest in a field near some evergreens, a kilometer or so outside a nearby settlement.

[Grimya]

:: The wolf looked up at him and gave his hand a nibble. She'd grown fond of him over the course of their travels. He was also a very good cook, when such things were available. She followed the two Jedi down the ramp outside. There was still daylight left ::

[Vishan Korogoth]

"Brrr!" Vishan patted his arms to kick up some heat. "-20 out 'ere Soolin! This beats winter on Corellia any day!"

Even talking didn't help to alleviate his chattering teeth.

[Soolin Anjhurin]

:: Soolin walked down the ramp in winter garb ::

"Maybe we can find some game."

:: She closed her eyes, reaching out through the force to sense life ::

[Eluna Thals]

It was no hardship for Eluna to walk it out, even in the bitter cold. She was able to handle far chillier than even this, so she made a point to dress in a jumpsuit, boots, and a jacket. It seemed a bit light considering the blustery conditions, and only the Whiphids were dressing lighter than she was.

The approach matched what she knew of the settlement from maps, and Eluna made her way quickly to a kiosk, which was being used by other denizens, eager to either socialize or to stay warm. Hot food, liquor, and conversation were to be found, and Eluna knew the custom. She slammed a chit onto the counter, and shouted at the attendant brusquely.

"Nach! Karna grish koh mushara nech barra."

The matriarchal society recognized a caste system, and Eluna knew that outsiders didn't score points by giving a man the courtesy that belonged to a woman. The male whiphid grunted in acknowledgment of her payment, and gave her a clay dish full of a pungent alcoholic drink.

[Vishan Korogoth]

Vishan slung the blaster rifle over his shoulder and took out a scope to scan the land for anything edible.

[Soolin Anjhurin]

:: She pointed in the direction of a medium sized lifeforce as she opened her eyes, and saw that Vishan was relying on technology again ::

"Do you see it?" she said dryly.

[Vishan Korogoth]

All he saw was frozen Tundra and the outline of the forest about 10 meters away.

"Nah oh ... wait!" He saw a small white shape bouncing along, kicking up snow. It barely outlined the minimal grass. "Ah t'ink Ah see ah bunny."

[Eluna Thals]

Eluna parsed through a dozen conversations at once as she loitered near the kiosk, walking away only to catch more conversation. She'd been right in coming to Toola, since most of the topics of discussion were coming to rest on the subject of Imperial oppression. She caught several instances of hushed tones, trailing off right at a conspiratorial lead-in.

The Rebel agent drank her liquor, shifting attention between two groups of conversers. Both seemed to center around matrons of reasonable influence in the city. More telling, both were pondering the notion of bringing up the topic of resistance at the Elder Council. Eluna hid her expression, but she was eager to follow this, wherever it would lead.

The conversation group split up, and Eluna followed one of the matriarchs, interjecting this time in a polite fashion.

"Za renek wultan, Mazesha?"

She requested a moment of the busy woman's time, and the Whiphid turned to regard her distantly, asking her what of her intentions after a long pause. She continued to speak the native language.

"I heard you discussing the possibility of resistance, even speaking to the council. I think you should tell them that they have friends who agree."

It was brazen, but these Whiphids weren't too subtle, and were already wearing their feelings on their sleeves in public.

[Soolin Anjhurin]

:: Grimya was off like a shot, in swift pursuit of the prey as Soolin waited ::

[Vishan Korogoth]

He set down the scope and looked at Soolin. She didn't seem happy. "Wha'?"

[Soolin Anjhurin]

"The time will come when the oculars fail you. What then?"

[Vishan Korogoth]

"Ah really dun get why yer actin' like this. Ah mean ..." He stopped himself there because Soolin's expression darkened further. The Padawan honestly didn't understand what she was getting at first, but the stern look of disapproval spoke volumes.

"Oh ..." He sighed. "Wanted me to use th' Force eh?"

As strong as the Force was with him, old habits were hard to break. Instincts still did not lead the former Imperial Pilot to utilizing it first.

[Eluna Thals]

Eluna's contact had been successful. The matron had reached an understanding with her, and would speak on her behalf in the council. Eluna decided that she would spend the time in the interim on reconaissance. If this place took up arms, she would need to be able to act as a linkup between the insurgents and the handlers in the Alliance.

To that end, Eluna made herself scarce, walking briskly to the outskirts of town, and began to do a circuit a good distance out, to get a look at things. She hadn't made it far before she could hear voices in the still air of the wilderness. She paused to listen. They were humanoid.

She decided to check it out, and began to approach quietly.

[Soolin Anjhurin]

"You're neglecting your training."

:: Grimya had returned with the rabbit, just as Eluna reached the clearing ::

[Vishan Korogoth]

"Aw come on," Vishan sighed and rubbed at his temples, "Ah dun mean ta. Jus' it's hard tryin' ta use th' Force like th' back o'my hand like ya do. It's not second nature yet."

He looked down at Grimya and smiled, however. "Ah was right about th' rabbit tho!"

[Eluna Thals]

Two humanoids, one of them overtly armed.

Eluna pressed her body low against the ground, the chill of the snow not bothering her as she crept to the edge of a snow drift. Her green irises contracted unnaturally, as ocular receptors zoomed the resolution, allowing her to see at great magnification.

The woman seemed to be a mystery, but there was something in the way the man moved about that seemed obviously either military or ex military. She looked to the ship to see if there were any markings to betray their origin, and was naturally ready to eavesdrop on any conversation the pair were having.

[Soolin Anjhurin]

"Yes." she replied. "Catch two more of these and you can make it up to me."

[Vishan Korogoth]

Vishan shook the scope with a cheeky grin and winked, "With these, or th' Force?"

[Eluna Thals]

The Force? That limited the possibilities to either Jedi or Sith. Either one was a potentially dangerous adversary, and Eluna now was concerned that their presence here was no coincidence at all. It was possible that they were the counterintelligence response the Empire might send to shut down an uprising on Toola.

From her combat logistics, she did not calculate a high success probability against two force users. She would need to isolate one from the group if she was to attack.

[Soolin Anjhurin]

:: The conversation was interrupted by a low whine from their she-wolf companion. Her fur bristled as she stared ahead in Eluna's direction. Soolin placed a hand on the wolf's side and gazed at the ridge of trees in silence ::

[Vishan Korogoth]

Vishan pulled out his blaster pistol again and attempted to do what Soolin had been wanting him to do all along with the hunting. He calmed his mind and reached out to the Force, hoping to get a sense of who was in the area and where.

Unfortunately, the large masses of life that he could feel were the ones right in front of him. There was nothing and it vexed him greatly. "Are ya gettin' anyting?"

[Eluna Thals]

Eluna remained still and low to the ground. She ventured on the hypothesis that without a life force to detect, she would be incredibly difficult for the force users to track. The animal was a potential trouble source, as Eluna could not guarantee what smells or lack of smells would set it off.

[Soolin Anjhurin]

:: Soolin shook her head, and sighed as she took the oculars from his hand to scan the surroundings ::

[Vishan Korogoth]

Vishan crossed his arms and smirked in victory. At least he wasn't crazy. Whatever Grimya sensed wasn't messing with his senses. They were causing issues with Soolin too.