Coruscant Tales: Priceless!

[Sanis Prent]

OOC: Occurs immediately after "Walks into the Bar" at Yog's

Planet Zygra

(Sanis cursed to himself the moment he set foot in the Zygra spaceport. Not having his traditional means of transportation was eating him alive, both in terms of his pride and his wallet. He had to pay extra fare in order to stow away all his equipment, and it seemed that this charter company liked to gouge the prices of their tickets.

Sanis frowned. The day was turning from bad to worse. As he waited for his luggage to arrive, Sanis reached into a pocket, activating a datapad.

The job was paying 75k, which was pretty impressive despite the artist's rather excessive use of conformity-defying techniques. However, Sanis didn't question the "buyer's" artistic taste. If he thought that "Hyperdrive in Pale Mauve III" by Lsurteema Makat was worth seventy-five grand, then who was he to disagree? After all, he needed something to take his mind off the more recent events that seemed to hit him all at once. And then there was the matter of that goody two-shoes little Padawan. What was that he said...I'll be watching you?

Sanis sneered.

Jedi. People that strong, and too naive for their own damn good. Wasn't there a War going on out there for them to attend to? At any rate, it pissed Sanis off something fierce that the kid had enough gumption to call him out like that.)

Damn kid...if you mess this up for me...

(Sanis wasn't about to let that happen. If the Padawan was bluffing, and hey...he might have been, then Sanis was calling the bluff. He wouldn't be caught off guard again.

After several minutes of loading equipment into a rent-a-speeder, Sanis left the Zygra spaceport, on the way to the Sukeeda Mis Art Exhibition Center. As Sanis drove the convertible down the relatively quiet streets, he reached down to a mahogany case, and opened it, caressing the valuable object inside. He was ready to work.)

[Akrabbim]

Akrabbim exits the same shuttle Sanis was just on. He had been using a Force Illusion to make himself look like just an ordinary passenger. He can tell that Sanis has far too much equpiment with him to simply be "enjoying the art". He lets Sanis be for the moment, knowing that he will eventually go to the exhibit. He positions himself on top of a building facing the main entrance of the art hall. In his earlier enounter with Sanis, he had thoroughly examined Sanis' Force signature, so that he would be able to pick him out of any crowd. He sits back into the shadows, merging with them to the point of invisibility, and waits on Sanis to make the first move.

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis eventually brings the speeder to idle, parking it at the Exposition Hall's parking area. As Sanis hops out of the speeder, he looks around, seeing if he notices anything overtly suspicious or out of the ordinary. Seeing nothing, Sanis walks to the back of the speeder, and pops the trunk. From out of the trunk, Sanis removes two blue duffel bags, and an easel. Sanis sets his items to the side, walking back to the driver's side door of the speeder. Once again looking in both directions, Sanis reached inside, and once again opened the mahogany box. He removed the object from the box, which was approximately 15 inches long. Watching the sun glint off the item, Sanis casually tucks it inside his overcoat, attaching it to his belt, out of sight from all. He pauses in the side-view mirror briefly, and decides to mess his hair up a little more than it was.

After all...Sanis was now an ArTEEST', and he had to look the part as well.

After a long time, Sanis gathered his materials, and walked towards the Exhibition Hall's glass doors. A snidely looking man in a dress attire greeted him)

Door attendant: Pahdon me, suh, but might I ahsk you whehre you're gohing with awl of this?

Sanis: (Smiling sheepishly) Well, I know its a little unorthodox, but since this exhibition is only open this week, I wanted to try and come here to paint...

(Sanis opened one of his bags, which had several painting tools, including pallettes, canvases, brushes, and paints of various sorts.)

Sanis: (Laughing in a slightly embarrassed fashion) ...you know, to kinda get in the atmosphere.

(The door attendant made an annoyed face, but decided it would be fine. He opened the door, and allowed Sanis to enter. Once inside, Sanis moved along with the groups of people who had come to see the Bioluminescent Surrealist Exhibition as well. Finding a spot so that he could paint next to the famous "Hyperdrive in Pale Mauve III", Sanis unfolded a portable chair, set up his easel, mounted a canvas, daubbed paint upon his pallette, and started to work...letting the atmosphere of the Art Museum inspire him. At the same time, he began to take notice of people who passed by frequently, as well as other more overt security elements.)

[Akrabbim]

Akrabbim watches the throng slowly entering the art exhibit, searching them with the Force. He notes a man in a long coat who looks remarkably like Sanis make his way inside. The only problem is, there was NO Force signature at all, either from Sanis or the people surrouding him. Akrabbim knows that something is seriously wrong here. He can only guess one thing... Sanis is carrying a ysalimari! Cloaking himself in the Force, Akrabbim enters the gallery, attempting to stay out of Sanis' line of sight. He manages to get behind him and find a dark corner. Fortunately, his race's natural affinity for darkness allows him to be nearly invisible while in shadows, even without the aid of the Force. Akrabbim waits to see if Sanis will incriminate himself.

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

If there was a planet worse than anything she could think of, then it had to be Zygra. The air smelled of something extremely unpleasant halfway between rotten and dead. Morbid. Yeah, that was the word. The air smelled morbid.

If there was anything more morbid than being on some dead-end planet in some long-forgotten dusty museum, standing in a moldy room with half a dozen freaky coloured glowing pictures inside darkened cases, then she hadn't met it yet.

And if there was anything she'd rather do just now, then it would definately not be staring at this... this... what in kriffin space was it supposed to be??? Of course, the flashing display underneath it said "Hyperdrive in Pale Mauve III", and she had known about its title and painter a long time before she actually got here, but that didn't necessarily explain the odd assembly that now violated her eyes.

A movement at the entrance to the room alerted her. She had brought Olorin with her - he had turned out quite an interesting bedfellow, amongst other things, and she always made it a rule to keep those close - and he had been patiently watching out for Sanis Prent's arrival for the last three hours. Well, it seemed to be time, because he was now discreetly waving at her, past her, whatever it was he was doing to attract attention. If he only wouldn't look that ridiculous, standing with his sun-shades in the middle of a dark corridor...

She took the hint, anyway, and quietly moved over to the other side of the room, to hide behind one of the more prominently bulging glass cases. There was little risk of being seen from the other side of the room, especially in the gloomy light.

As Sanis stepped into the room, she had to supress a laugh. Artist, was he? Funny, the way some people fall for stereotypical behavior and looks. But then again, half the people on this planet she'd otherwise class as the stereotypical village idiots. What was with their accents??? She'd spent almost an hour making the porter at the gate understand her, while he had jabbered at her in that mumbling brogue of his.

After another 30 minutes during which Sanis seemed to have settled down and inspected the people and security -she would really have to say something to him about staying a little more inconspicuous - she snuck out of her corner and walked over to stand behind him, looking down onto the childish reproduction of that... thing... on the wall that he held on his lap.

Leaning forward over his shoulder, she purred into his ear.

"Why, what a surrrprjise meetjing you herrre, Sanjis - jI didn't know you werrre such an admjirrrerrr of Surrrrrealjist pajinterrrs!"

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis winced at the sound of his real name being uttered. Damn...his cover was blown.

Ah!

Sanis hesitated to look...he knew that voice. He turned ever so slowly around to see a pair of supple lips with two fangs slightly protruding...mere inches from his face.

Damn!!!

Sanis blinked, and put on the best smile he could manage at this dire situation.)

Uh...Vigo Reeouurra, what an interesting coincidence. I didn't realize you, uh...shared the same interest in Neo-Surrealism.

(DAMN!...she was going to ruin everything! Okay...damage control. Think, low profile. Low Profile. Ixnay on alkingtay ithway Igovay!

Sanis put an index finger to his lips.)

Shhh...

Sasseeri, I don't know how to explain this right now, but...I'm kinda on the job. As much as I'd love to talk business with you, I've got to stay sharp and take care of a few things. I'm "brokering" a deal for a "buyer".)

(Sanis looked around nervously. Krasst...it was about as conspicuous as meeting the Emperor in the park to feed pidgeons. Vigo Reeouurra wasn't exactly a nobody, even in a far-out place like this. Sanis just hoped that this little confrontation wouldn't spoil any of his plans.)

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

Sasseeri smirked. This was her favorite part. She didn't give a damn who could hear her, because most of these people were so stuffy they wouldn't be able to tell a bantha from a rancor, much less notice the same bantha stomping over them before it was too late.

"jI am well jinforrrmed about yourrr ljittle busjiness herrre, Sanjis. You could say, jI am the job - orrr the one payjing forrr you doing thjis parrrtjicularrr job. You should rrreally take a ljittle morrre carrre jin dojing backgrrround checks on yourrr customerrrs, sweethearrrt. jIf you had done yourrr job well, and not been so sloppy, you'd have found out soon enough who was behjind Ixkram So'mox."

She grinned at him again, then proceeded to pat his cheek with that same leering look in her eye.

"You'rrre not djing too bad so farrr. Maybe you need to worrrk a bjit on checkjing out the securrrjity of a place jin a less obvjious way, but the outfjit is a njice touch. When you'rrre back on Corrruscant, maybe come by my offjice wjith that ljittle parrrcel you'rrre gojing to carrrry off frrrom herrre, and jI'll see jif jI can't get one of my men to gjive you a crrrash-courrrse in stayjing jinconspjicuous jin places ljike thjis."

Sasseeri winked at him, turning to leave.

"Well, you can go on and do yourrr job forrr jit. You surrrely get pajid a handsome sum forrr jit. See you, sweethearrrt."

In passing, she pinched his butt, then walked away as he turned around furiously, knowing that his eyes would be following her out.

That alone made up for this whole silly planet and its inhabitants.

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis waited a few seconds before he allowed himself to take up the slack in his jaw and close his mouth.

He had been bamboozled...and in a major way.

He was letting the recent situation get to him. He took the first job that crossed his holocomm after his first encounter with Sasseeri. He took it without a second thought, or a background check. He was sloppy. Sanis was rather angry at allowing himself to foul up like that, and didn't feel exactly comfortable with the ease at which Sasseeri had tricked him.

Sanis gulped. Yet...it was still the same job, just a different "buyer", that's all. Sanis slowly sat back in his seat, resuming his mediocre attempt at painting. The encounter started to make Sanis think, and his mind began to drift. If he had botched up the background check, then what else?

Quickly, Sanis whirled around in his seat, looking in several directions. Hmmm...nobody but a few art patrons and other such people. No sign of authorities, no sign of hitmen, no sign of crime bosses, and no sign of pestering Jedi.

Sanis narrowed his eyes. This job was getting trickier and trickier each minute. All of a sudden, it was filling out to be every bit of a 75k job.

Sanis continued to paint, watch, and most importantly, wait. He no longer had a good feeling about a job that was supposed to help him to divert his worries.)

[Akrabbim]

Akrabbim watches the whole scene play out before him, noting Sanis' uneasy reaction to his visitor. Unfortunately, because of the field of empty-Force around Sanis, he could not use his powers to overhear their conversation. However, just knowing that Sanis is off his game is consolation enough. He smiles grimly.

That's it, Sanis... you're gonna slip up soon enough... and I'll be right there when you do.

He eases a shuriken from it's pouch in his tunic, hefting it in his hand. He knows Sanis must be prepared if he brought a ysalimiri (sp?). Akrabbim would just have to improvise.


OOC: Would someone please tell me the actual spelling of ysalimiri?

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis leans back, staring ahead at the painting hanging on the wall. He hoped he didn't have to stay here any longer, because it would soon become apparent to even the most boorish critique, that Sanis was no artist. He continued adding sporatic daubs of paint to the canvas, in order to appear hard at work, but it only served to make his "piece" more chaotic than it already was.

Sanis casually glanced around, once again checking for anything suspicious. Once he was relatively confident that things were clear to proceed, he reached back to scratch his ear, tapping a small device in his earhole. In a low, almost imperceptible voice, he spoke...)

MARCUS...are you in place?

[MARCUS v4]

MARCUS had gained access into the small wiring serviceways of the Exhibition Hall. Much too small for a human to navigate, it was nevertheless easy for the droid module to move through, as he skittered past wiring bundles and other hardware. According to the building plans, the conduit leading to the electical control room was approximately 27 meters away. As he continued to advance, MARCUS responded to Sanis' query.

I am sorry, Sanis. I have not positioned myself at this moment. It will take another five minutes to negate the heavy wiring around this area of the building. I will contact you when I am ready. Please stand by.

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis continued to wait, adding more splotches of paint to the canvas. As he did so, he began to eye the quickest rout to the emergency exits, just to note for future use.)

[Azure Regalia]

People walked by, viewing the artists at work. Here and there, were knots of people, muttering about some paintings and awing at others. A group of very nicely dressed ladies near Sanis started muttering a bit louder as a new artist walked in.

"Oh my! Look there! Isn't that the Countess of Ison?"

"Oh, she is lovely!"

"Look there! That must be her newest piece of work."

"My, my, how intriguing!"

"Look how it shimmers!"

On the other side of the room, just entering from a side door, strode a dark skined woman with ice blue hair and pearlecsent eyes, dressed in a long silver gown. In her hand she held a hollow glass orb with fluttering lights of differnt hues inside. With her, on either side, walked two men of extreme build; obviously her bodyguards... or would that be the guards of the orb? The ladies near Sanis continued mummbling and gossiping.

"Why, that's the "Beacon of Light"! It's her newest creation!"

"How delicate it looks!"

"There's only one of it's kind and it's extremely priceless."

"I've heard it's worth over two-hundred-thousand-MILLION credits!"

"And I've heard she's worth even MORE!"

The Countess nodded at some of the patrons as she walked to an opposite doorway to put the "Beacon of Light" on display in the next room. As she neared the door, one of the artists there made a wide gesture with his arms, throwing them out wide in her path. She stumbled to the side, being caught by one of the guards, but the orb sailed from her hands. There was a collective gasp as everything seemed to move in slow motion as the orb went flying through the air... straight at Sanis... and landing perfectly safe in the crook of his arm.

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis stood up, mouth agape, holding the beautiful and extremely valuable object in his arms. Everyone turned to look at him, the conversation level in the room growing with volume and pitch. Sanis looked from side to side, wondering just what the hell was going on.)

[Azure Regalia]

The Countess looked towards Sanis, straightening her dress as the artist that had made her stumbled apologized profusely. She waved a hand towards the artist and headed on over towards Sanis's spot.

When she reached him, she gave him a heart wrenching smile and a gracious nod of her head. She reached up to touch the orb, but didn't quite take it from his hands yet.

Thank you so much for catching the Beacon of Light. It took me over three years to create it, and it would have broken my heart to see it shattered. Besides, those Glow-flutters inside are hard and rare to find in this galaxy. Not to mention hard to care for.

She took the orb gently from his loose hands and handed the orb to one of the guards. Then she took out a small slip of sheet-metal.

Here. Take this. It's an invitaion to the exhibit where other collections of light will be shown.

She placed the card in his breast pocket, and straightened his colar. She then carressed his face.

Such a handsome fellow. Again, thank you.

Still smiling, she turned slowly and headed into the next room, followed by the two guards. Then the door was closed.

[Sanis Prent]

(As utterly bewildered by the turn of events as Sanis was, he found himself reaching in his pocket and pulling out the Exhibition invitation. Hmm, three weeks from now. As Sanis watched the woman leave, he had to admit that the orb's beauty was rivaled only by the sculptor herself. Sanis raised an eyebrow, tucking away the invitation. Perhaps he would have to come to more art shows in the future.

As Sanis turned back to sit down, his comm device beeped in his ear. He tapped it, looking around once again at the situation)

MARCUS, you there?

[MARCUS v4]

The twang of a microsaw filled Sanis' ears for another two seconds, and then...silence.

Yes Sanis, I am here. I have bypassed the electrical conduit at the appropriate juncture, and have now entered the electronic control room. Give me one moment, please.

MARCUS began to discreetly wheel about, searching through several large machines. Out of sight from nearly every security attendant, MARCUS was able to operate at will, hidden by shadow and small size. Eventually, he paused in front of a medium-sized terminal, and approached slowly, careful not to attract attention.

Sanis, I have arrived at the museum's emergency warning system. I will now attempt to access the unit.

Through a data-access port, MARCUS linked himself into the museum's emergency warning systems, which controlled alarms in the event of a break in, fire, and other such calamities. Due to the rather low-security around the system itself, MARCUS was able to access the unit quickly.

Sanis, I am linked into the emergency system now. I will now activate the fire alarm.

A piercing klaxon began to blare throughout the museum, accompanied by a bright blinking flasher. A mechanical voice began to chime "There is a fire in the building. Please evacuate through the closest and most convenient exit. Do not run." All through the building, people began to quickly make their way toward the exits

[Azure Regalia]

The Countess emerged from the side room, into the main galary where all the art patrons were evacuating through the emergency exits. She was being herded out by the two guards that had come with her. As the bussle of people headed out towards the doors, she looked down at her wrist to a small crono delicately sitting there. Flipping it open, she pressed a button and watched a few numbers scroll by, then a flash of green. She closed the chrono before anyone saw the lil green flash, and deftly ducked behind a huge pillar. The guards hadn't noticed her moving since they had gotten slightly seperated.

(Fools. Let them follow the crowds.)

She disapeared behind the pillar, still within the building, and then was... gone.

[Sanis Prent]

(With the sound of the fire alarm, Sanis quickly gathered together the two bags he had with him, and walked along with the throngs of people exiting the building, leaving behind his canvas and easel. As he exited, Sanis moved away from the mass of the group, moving to a side of the building where no people could see him. Slowly, he set his two bags down.)

[Azure Regalia]

A faint shadow slithered past the exit and followed an unawares Sanis.

[Sanis Prent]

(Once out of sight from the crowd, Sanis makes his way to a small service hatch, close to the southern wall of the building. Crouching low, Sanis taps his ear-comm)

Alright MARCUS, I'm here. Wait another two minutes, and open hatch AA-23.

[Azure Regalia]

The shadow stops as it hears the softly spoken words. Quickly, it scales the side wall and hops the roof. Once there, it looks over the edge to it's query down below. It takes a quick look at a small gauntlet on it's wrist, where a small light is flashing indicating where it is Sanis stands.

[Akrabbim]

Akrabbim hears the alarm beacon and pays more careful attention to Sanis. His total lack of suprise gives away the fact that this alarm was planned. He maintins his position in the shadow until Sanis moves out of sight. Once everyone has evacuated the building, Akrabbim goes after Sanis. Sanis is so preoccupied with where he is going that he doesn't look back often, making it easy for Akrabbim to tail him. Sanis stops near an access hatch and says something into his wrist comm. A few moments later, the hatch opens and Sanis begins to enter it. Akrabbim knows that he has to move now, while Sanis is still out in the open. He steps into clear view and ignites his lightsaber.

Excuse me, "sir", but shouldn't you have left the building already? I'd hate to have to escort you out of here...

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis stood at the sound of the voice. From the edge to it, he didn't have to guess who he would see as he turned.)

I knew you couldn't just leave well enough alone, Jedi. Is there that little to do back at the Order? I didn't think they sent the guardians of peace and justice out to stop a little petty thievery.

(As Sanis speaks, he slowly brings his right hand to his belt, tapping a small device clipped there. A small and very faint high-pitched sound was audible for a split second, and then nothing.)

What do you say that I give you a couple of hundred credits, and you just keep on your merry little way, and forget we ever met. No? Don't like that idea? Well, I didn't really think it would work anyways...

(Sanis was lightning-quick to the draw, pulling both of his Corellian blasters from his side holsters, and firing both of them in tandem, straight at Akrabbim.)

[Azure Regalia]

The shadow cursed under it's breath, and slid down a lightweight crapple cord. It landed in a shadow just a few feet away from both men. The shadow sniffed the air once and instantly recognized the Force user. Instinctively, the shadow raised it's natural Force-inhibiting bubble and stepped into a light spot. Sanis didn't seem to notice the movment, but the Force user detected the empty spot where the Force should be.

The shadow ripple and took on color at last. The shadows skin turned into a powder blue color, hair orange-red, and eyes glowing yellow. She stood there, two heavy blasters, each trained on one man. She addressed the Force user.

I have a stake on this man. The auhtorities of this planet have so given me permission to hunt this man down with any means I deem neccessary. He is of no concern to you.

I have no quarel with you.

She addressed Sanis, still not taking her eyes off of the Force user.

Sanis Prent. You are wanted by the High Comendant of Obroa-Skai. You will come with me peacefully.

She sneared.

Or you can come with me the difficult way.

[Akrabbim]

Akrabbim blocks both bolts with ease, returning them directly back at Sanis. They streak toward his chest, when they suddenly dissipate into thin air. Some sort of shield? Akrabbim chuckles darkly...

So, you have a personal shield? Extinguishes lightsaber Let's see if it can stop this...

Akrabbim draws one of his shuriken and causes it to hover horizontally between his hands. He causes it to spin, faster and faster, until the air around it is shimmering from the speed it creates. He then launches the shuriken straight at Sanis' chest. He loses Force contact with it once it gets within a few feet of Sanis, but because of its speed, it hardly matters. The shuriken slams into his shield still spinning. It begins slowing down against the shield, but the damage is already done. The shield shorts out, causing the shuriken to go flying off at an odd angle. A pop followed by a puff of smoke appears at Sanis' belt. Akrabbim calls the errant shuriken back to his hand and replaces it in his tunic.

Well, you won't be blocking any more bolts that way. Care to fire at me again?
Just then, a shadow drops down near Akrabbim. He feels his Force connection abruptly shut off. He quickly staggers backward, out of range of the bubble, and takes a deep breath once he regains his connection. The shadow takes its normal form, and Akrabbim addresses the new entrant.

I have no quarrel with you either. But he is MINE. I have no desire for bounty. If I defeat him, he is yours for the taking, bounty and all. But if you don't mind, I have business with him.

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis holstered his blasters, removing the shorted-out light shield emitter from the device on his belt.)

Seems you won a gamble. Appears my light shield was rather weak today.

(Sanis taps the backs of each of the gloves he is wearing, a small light appearing on each.)

Don't worry, Jedi...if anything, I am always up to the task.

(As Sanis spoke, a shadowy figure dropped from above, standing between himself and Akrabbim. It took several seconds before Sanis realized the figure was the artist woman from the exhibition.)

I'll be damned...

(As the woman spoke to the Jedi and himself, Sanis reached under his coat, slowly opening the breech of his Mandalorian Shell Gun. With the confrontation at a relative stalemate, Sanis loaded two shells into the gun, one blue, and one yellow. Gently closing the breech, Sanis stared at the two combatants. Seemed the routine job was now anything but.)

Obroa-skai? Well...I didn't think I had any fans out there. Well I guess I learn something new every day.

(Sanis places his sunglasses on, watching both of his adversaries)

[Azure Regalia]

The Bounty Hunter had seen the slight movement of Sanis's hand under his cloak and ever so slightly heard a tiny soft click. Her reptilian instincts sensed danger, and the small horny ridge on her back lifted ever so slighty, but not enough to show through her garb. She reached to her belt and touched it lightly, bringing up a strong-yield personal shield. She addressed Sanis.

Your fandom at Obrae-Skai does not concern me; only the hunt does.

She grinned, showing sharp teeth.

And I always catch my prey.

Without warning, she spat at Sanis. A clear liquid landed on his shoe with a plop and began to sizzle it's way through to his toes. Sanis looked down and started stomping his foot. Using the distraction to her advantage, she reached behind her back, grabbed a small ball, and threw it at Sanis. It exploded into an electro-net just inches from his face and wrapped and tangled itself to him. He struggeld against it, but each struggle brought out an electro charge; the harder the struggle, the harder the shock.

While all that was happening, she had moved closer to the Force user to capture him in her Force-inhibiting bubble, and lassoed him with her electro-whip, pinning his arms and legs down using her free hand. She threw him to the ground near her to keep him from slithering away from her Force-inhibiting bubble.

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis writhed within the confines of the electro-net, its modulating current blasting through his body in waves of shocks. At least the acid the lady had spit dissipated across the durasteel in his boot's toe. But...Sanis' troubles were now magnified.)

An electro-net, huh? I see you've got a few interesting toys. I can also assume since you're taking this bounty that you're not a member of the Outlaw guild. Figures as much, I suppose.

(Sanis wedged the barrel of his Shell Gun against the net, firing the blue round out of the right side barrel. Sanis' face controted into a grimace as he was thrown back by the blast. The Shell round, once clear of the muzzle, began to emit a powerful frontal shield barrier in front of it, causing the electro-net to expand suddenly, overloading its power capacity. As the spent shell fell to the ground, Sanis worked his way out of the nullified energy web, standing up slowly.)

But that's okay, I've got a few toys of my own.

(Sanis fires his Shell Gun from the hip, emptying the left barrel of the yellow shell. The shell hits just shy of Azure's feet, but throws a wicked spray of compressed incendiary jelly in her direction, dousing her in sticky and flaming napalm. Using the distraction, Sanis runs to his duffle bag, removing a large backpack, and putting it on. As he does so, he presses down a lever on the backpack's support straps, and is launched into the air by powerful jump jets. As Azure is busy with the spattering of flaming jelly, Sanis maneuvers high and wide around her, unholstering his two Corellian blasters and sending a dozen or so pot shots in her direction.)

[Akrabbim]

[i]As the bounty hunter is distracted with Sanis, Akrabbim works one of his shuriken free and cuts the whip around him. As the bounty hunter is distracted, he slips behind her using his race's inherent love of darkness. In darkness, he is nearly undetectable by anyone. He hits the woman in the temple with a shuto hand (basically a chop, but the fingers are bent at 90 degrees). He feels the Force return to him as the woman loses her concentration. To make sure that she does not bring back the Force inhibition, he begins flooding her mind with Force Illusions of extreme chaos. He creates images of light, darkness, color, people, animals... in essence, far too much information for any brain to comprehend. He hears a thump nearby and looks to see Sanis landing several yards away. He raises his saber and ignites it, waiting on his attack.

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis stares across the field at the Padawan, who has just dropped the bounty hunter woman to the ground. He smiles)

You're good, Jedi...

(Sanis removes from his bandolier, a black Mandalorian shell. Holding it between the index finger and the thumb of his left hand, he watches the light glint off its metallic surface, before flipping his right wrist, and opening the breech of his Shell Gun.)

...but I won't exactly shake your hand for that.

(Sanis' smile fades from his face, as he slides the large munition into the left barrel of the Shell Gun. Closing the gun's breach with a clack, Sanis raises the sidearm and levels it straight at Akrabbim.

Sanis fires.)

[Akrabbim]

Akrabbim takes note of what Sanis is doing with curiosity. He keeps up his Illusion assault on the bounty hunter and studies what Sanis is doing.

Why is he attacking with a projectile weapon? He knows I can block a blaster bolt. Does he not think I can block a bullet?

While Akrabbim is pondering, Sanis fires the round. Akrabbim, with his Force-enhanced reflexes, lifts his saber in more than enough time to block the shot. Suddenly he realizes his error... the shell is no ordinary shell! But it's too late... the bullet is already at his saber. The casing is immediately incinerated on his lightsaber... but the casing houses cortosis shrapnel! It immediately deactivates his lightsaber, allowing the bulk of the shrapnel to hit him square in the chest. The blast knocks him to the ground, causing him to stop his Force assault on the bounty hunter. Fortunately, she would still be dazed for a few moments. Sanis, however, is another matter...



OOC: BTW, to contact me, use ICQ or MSN messenger. My ICQ# is 25134493, and MSN is akrabbim@hotmail.com

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis watches as the smoke curls up and out of the Shell Gun's muzzle. Through the smoke, Sanis can see the Jedi falling on his back, his lightsaber rolling a few feet away from him. Sanis smiles slightly, sliding his Mandalorian weapon back to its holding loop on his belt. Slowly, he approaches the fallen Padawan. Within a few steps, Sanis can tell with reasonable assuredness that his cortosis-filled shell has hit home. The front of Akrabbim's black gi glistens in the moonlight from the bloody ooze that trickles from his chest. Sanis walks up to the fallen Jedi, noting the spray of jagged entry wounds across his chest. Quite a nasty way to go...but Sanis had no intention of killing the nosey upstart if no money was in it.

Kneeling down, Sanis removes a canister of bacta salve from his belt. Grabbing Akrabbim's right arm, Sanis slaps the jar into his hand, making sure he holds onto it. He then reaches over, slapping the Jedi gently across the face, to make sure he has his attention. Sanis' voice is full of annoyance and frustrated anger.)

Dammit boy, I told you not to get in my way for a reason. I came here to do a job, and I don't need a dead Jedi to complicate my business here. You should've stayed back at the Order where you damn-sure belong. You're not worth the bullet I shot you with, and next time you botch up another one of my jobs, I won't be here bailing your ass out with a bacta salve. Now, use this, don't die...and stay your ass way the hell away from me.

(Sanis pushed the Jedi's face away from him and into the grass as he stood. He turned and looked at the groggy bounty hunter.)

Too many damn complications for such a small job. I swear, just when a guy tries to relax...

(Sanis loads a green shell into his Mandalorian Shell Gun, levels it at the fallen Hunter, and fires. The strong Tensanet webbing that springs out from the fired cartridge engulfs the huntress completely, keeping her securely pinned to the ground. Sanis stands over her, looking at the two fallen combatants, as he taps the small communications device in his ear.)

MARCUS, hurry up and get that painting out of there. I'll bring the speeder up to the back. Get cracking!

[Akrabbim]

Akrabbim hears Sanis' words vaguely... he spreads the salve on his chest as soon as he is able to work up the strength to do so. He gets up from the ground and hobbles to the nearest medibot to get the shrapnel removed. Once he has been healed, he returns to his room.

So... Sanis has some toys, does he? Well, I will have to counter that in kind. Now, to find a pound or two of quantum armor...

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis quickly runs to the parking lot, hopping into his rental. With a few quick movements, he fired up the speeder, driving it to the back of the Exhibition Hall, where eight pink can-shaped droids were lugging a rolled up canvas out of the maintenance hatch. Sanis decelerates the speeder, and helps the little MARCUS modules load the painting in the vehicle. A few seconds later, and Sanis is kicking it into high gear, sending the speeder down the long and winding road at top speed.)

[MARCUS v4]

The several MARCUS modules begin stowing away the expensive painting inside of a small tube. As Sanis increases the speed, zooming off towards the space port, a few of the modules take time to scold him.

Sanis, that job was uncharacteristically sloppy. What happened? Why were so many people after you? There will be too many witnesses here now. I fear that the seventy-five thousand credits we make on this mission will not compensate for the dangers we experienced. Perhaps next time we should attempt to study the job a little more before execution.

Also, there is a 75.34 percent chance that the two people you encountered will follow you. One was identified as a Jedi, and the other was a bounty hunter of some kind, from her methods. I fear this is danger that will linger with us for quite some time.

[Azure Regalia]

The Bounty Hunter shakes her head as the images that had been assailing her begin to diminish. Her healing abilities are faster than normal, and the massive headache she had is now disipating. Regaining full power of her mind, she raises the Force-inhibiting bubble again, making it twice as strong. She looks at the predicament she is in.

She hisses softly to herself.

This is not over yet, Sanis Prent. You will yet be my prize.

Without a word, she retrieves her heat-vibro blade and begins to saw and melt away at the connections in the net to free herself.

Once free of the net, she calls her swoop using her mini-computer around her mid-forearm. It comes to a hault near her and she climbs aboard it, heading towards the hangar that holds her ship. From there, she will be able to track Sanis with ease using the small, unidentifiable tracking-nanites she'd placed on his face when she'd carressed his cheek.

The Hunt had just begun.