Close Encounters of the Odd Kind

[Eleanor Harris]

Upper Coruscant City –
A high class apartment belonging to one of the senior officers in the Coruscant City Watch…

Dear Diary

I’m soooo not sleeping tonight. Dad went to the watch station like he normally does, for night shift (he still won’t let me go with him). He left me a chit to order pizza in so I think I’m gonna gross out in front of the TV. I keep thinking if I watch the news enough he will show up on there. But then I remember how awesome he is and that since he is just so fab he would never be caught on camera. Dad hardly knows anything about him as it is. He says special branch heard about him but all their sources can only give a vague description of him.

I drew a picture of him last night. Billy laughed at it but I think it’s great. I think I’m gonna put it on my binder then when I’m in college people might notice it. Oh my gosh what if he goes to college with me and I don’t know it?! I bet he does! I bet it’s Peter … oh yeah I can sooo see it being him. He has the body, that’s for sure – or maybe it’s Christian…

Legs crossed, sat sunken into a huge leather couch, Eleanor Harris wrote feverishly into the notepad resting in her lap. The lights in the room were out, but the glow of the TV screen illuminated the paper in front of her as she scribbled away her minds thoughts. As per usual her mind was filled with one thing – well, two things actually. The pizza that was going to be arriving soon, and the costume-clad hunk of her dreams. Literally of her dreams it would be prudent to add.

As she wrote, she popped her bubblegum and smiled happily to herself. The only thing that brought her out of her inane yet oh-so important writings was a loud buzzing. Looking up suddenly, startled, she realized after a few seconds that it was the buzzer signaling someone was at the door. She swung her legs off of the couch, slid her paper block onto the table in front of her and ran over to the door.

“Hang on a sec.”

Pushing a button on the wall opened the main door downstairs. Unfortunately downstairs was twenty floors down, and Ele was only in her pyjamas; therefore meaning there was no chance in hell she was leaving the room.

“Room 256 please, top floor.”

“Yes Miss Harris,” a voice droned in reply.

Ten minutes later the luke-warm pizza had been delivered and no tip had been given. Ele slouched back down, about to take her first bite when he peace was again broken. The TV screen flicked off onto the automatic video phone mode it had and her fathers face appeared, looking somewhat flustered.

“Honey, I can’t get home tonight. We’ve got a tip-off on a... uh, big case so I need to work over night.”

“Is it-…!?”

“… No, no! It’s a drug thing. I can’t talk about it. Love you, sweetie. Byebye.”

If there was one thing she prided herself on, it was knowing when her father, of all people, was lying. A high-pitched squeal rang through the apartment as the pizza spilled out onto the floor, the result of Eleanor scrambling up to her feet and darting for her bedroom – she couldn’t very well go out after them with only her bedclothes on!

[Oddball]

Releasing his grappling hook, Oddball curled into a ball as he landed in the top of the thankfully open topped speeder that was parked . Clambering over the seat, he pulled the man sitting in the driving seat, most likely the cars owner, out of the side, as he pulled the vehicle into a full speed reverse spin, before leaving the speeder park.

He had no idea what had gone wrong. All he had to do was a simple bit of stealing. Museum, minimal security knocked out. Skylight over the target, a large priceless stone. But the moment he got on the roof, speeders surrounded the building, far too soon for this to be because he tripped an alarm. Had he not had his grappling hook with him, he would probably now be captured. But that was not important. What was, was that something had happened to get the authorities waiting for him. No matter what, he needed to look at how he takes jobs from them on.

Bringing his speeder down in a dive, Oddball turned sharply to try and escape the blaring sirens that were pursuing him.

[Eleanor Harris]

It was a race to see just how fast she could get ready. In the space of five minutes she managed to get off her PJs, get on a sweater, pants and all, brush her teeth twice and comb her hair into the most demure ponytail she’d ever had. All of this mixed with hopping about on one foot whilst trying to pull on socks and shoes made for difficult time, but if she didn’t get out of their quickly then she would completely miss the chase!

Ele grabbed a handful of credits and the apartment keys, bursting straight out of the door into the lift. Already an old man stood, humming along with the infuriating music that all elevators seem to play. Bouncing from foot to foot as she tapped the ‘ground floor’ button like a pneumatic drill, a faint whine passed Ele’s lips. On the journey down more and more people seemed to be joining the lift, and in the center of them all stood the teen, jiggling about like a bomb just waiting to explode. When she finally did get out of the lift, squeezing her way through the crowds into the street, it was at least twenty minutes after her father had originally called.

“Comeoncomeoncomeon-“

Speeders were rushing back and forth past the walkway, with a cab interspersed within the odd collection every so often. One finally answered to her frantic waving and swerved up to the curve. Just as it did a pair of wailing squad cars from the Coruscant City Watch blared by. Throwing herself into the backseat and slapping her hands up against the glass divide between herself and the diver, she shouted:

“Follow that car!”

And with a small degree of hesitation the driver veered out into the street following on after the whistling sirens; using the cars own wake as a lane. Eleanor drummed her fingertips against the screen as he drove, repeatedly imploring him to ‘step on it’ or some other such phrase torn straight from one of those action holoflics. Regardless the driver seemed to be enjoying himself, and kept up well with the cars ahead, who were just rounding a corner into one hell of a street, known for being one of the districts most challenging to drive – it was multi layer, winding and had one of the highest accident and fatality records on Coruscant.

[Oddball]

Seeing that he was over an area with a ground, a plan forulated in Oddball's mind. Pulling down on his Speeders wheel, he allowed his craft to drop towards the floor. Reaching over to the middle of the control panel, the mercenary then proceeded to pop open a covered up panel and find the dial marked REPULSOR POWER, setting it to 0. These are installed in all speeders so that no matter how much you try, you cannot get to within a certain distance from any ground, stopping the chance of major crashes due to a slight slip. He kept his hand on the dial, and took a calming breath, checking behind to see the chasing speeders were closing on him. Closing his eyes, he twisted the dial round as far as it would go, and braced himself.

As a repulsor generator activates, it pushes out, like a bubble rapidly expanding. In this case, this would bring it in contact with the surface below, causing the speeder to rise. Due to the size of the repulsor bubble being made, this caused Oddball's speeder to rise at a tremendous speed, at a rate no chasing speeder could match. Turning the speeder at a ninety degree angle, Oddball brought the craft round a corner, looking behind to see the first speeders following braking sharply to avoid a collision with each other.

[Eleanor Harris]

The squad cards watched in dismay as their quarry sky-rocketed, thrashing through the lanes and lanes of traffic above. Reckless as the police could be, there was no way they would get away with following in such a manner. The speeders would simply have to level hop – springing from lane to lane when openings could be found (and openings, within Coruscant traffic, were not often found).

The taxi driver swerved to a halt and watched as the Watch vehicles pulled up a lane. There was still a vertical shaft of space where Oddballs transport had shot through, as the drivers recovered from the shock of what had just happened. Some were quick to return to their journey however, so this meant that going up the route would be difficult. What was fortunate for Eleanor was that her ‘chauffeur’ was as fond as adventure and action as she was.

“Make sure your belts fastened tight, toots.”

The engine roared and with an almighty burst of light the supped-up speeder swerved up into the air. It was like a pendulum, rocking back and forth to avoid the oncoming cars. Pinned back against her seat, looking out into the blur around her, Eleanor felt for a moment as though she was about to be sick.

“Think Oddball, think Oddball, think Oddball.”

Leaning forward and braving being pummeled by the G-force of the speeders acceleration, she caught a glimpse of the speeder they were following above. It was leveling out and making for an immensely tall building, complete with a huge empty roof – that had to be where he was going to pull over!!

[Oddball]

Bringing his speeder in low, Oddball set her straight, heading over the roof of the nearby building. He slowly waited for the right moment, before jumping out the side of his craft. Bending his knees slightly, the mercenary landed feet first on the roof, stumbling slightly.

That was close he thought, slowly sitting on the floor next to a wall. Checking there were no cameras or people nearby, he slowly pulled his mask off and ran his fingers through his hair.

[Eleanor Harris]

The cab, too, had come back to a more Eleanor friendly orientation – leveled off horizontal once more, in one of the highest lanes of traffic. The driver, letting out a hoot at what he had just accomplished, suddenly jumped in his seat as the girl behind him gripped his shoulder.

“There! There!”

She was pointing frantically at the speeder, which was whistling forward at a steady speed. For a moment the driver drove forward after it, though quickly he noticed that the open-top was no longer being driven by anyone. Eleanor, pressing up against the window, squinted as she looked towards the rooftop she’d pegged as being Oddballs landing spot.

“Go in quietly,” she whispered, heart thumping in her chest as the taxi slowed its speed and descended by the roofs edge.

Eleanor tugged at the door handle.

“You’re getting off here?”

“Yup, this is my stop.”

“Want me to wait a few minutes?”

“… OK, if I’m not back in 5 just assume I found him.”

“Or that you got killed.”

“Shuuuut up!”

Out of the cab into the cool night air and she paced out over the rooftop, watching the little plumes of vapor her breath made. She shivered as she walked, wrapping her arms around her body as she tried to conserve heat.

“Oddddball… Oddball… Here Oddball, Oddball.”

[Oddball]

Hearing a speeder stop near or on the roof, Oddball dived for cover, pulling his mask half on. Slowly, he crawled along the floor, and scanned the area. From where he was, he couldnt see anything, which at least meant it wasn't anyone from the military or police, else they'd be fanned out scanning the area.

Slowly bringing himself to his feet, the mercenary pressed himself against a wall, and peered around the corner. Seeing noone there, he darted across the open space, running to the next wall.

[Eleanor Harris]

No luck so far. Eleanor sighed and glanced back to where the speeder was. The driver looked on expectantly at her, as if he knew she wasn’t going to find anything – which, of course, only hardened her resolve.

She trooped on, and brought both hands up, cupping them over her mouth as she blew hot air onto them. As she walked, she was keeping her eyes on what was in front of her and clang didn’t notice the metal plate on the ground. Jumping, and squealing, involuntarily, she clutched her chest.

“Dren! … Oh… huh… it’s only a... hehheh… calm down.”

[Oddball]

Hearing a noise, Oddball instincively pulled out the DL-44 he had brought with him, and wiped a bit of sweat that was just under his nose where the mask rested. Kneeling down, he reached into his belt and pulled out a simple mirror on a retractable handle. Pulling it out to its furthest, he could see a figure approaching him. The area was dark enough that if he did this quietly, he could take them out of action without anyone else hearing. Slowly standing back up, he brought himself ready.

Most mercenaries would simply snap the persons neck, but Oddball tried his hardest not to kill people he didnt have to. Besides, he knew he could take them out without doing that.

They're close, no more than 6 foot away he thought to himself, hearing slight footsteps. Taking and holding a single breath, he waited until the person was visible, before pulling them close, pressing them back against the wall. Oddball then brought his body against their left hand, pinning it against the wall, before pointing the pistol at the area under their chin. Only then did he allow himself to look at his opponent.

He wasn't sure who it was, but they clearly weren't someone who was going to cause him any harm. Slowly sighing, he brought his pistol down and holstered it.

"I'm guessing you're not armed, so who are you?" he asked, glancing round for anyone else.

[Eleanor Harris]

In a split second she was pinned against the wall with the barrel of a gun against her throat. Wide-eyed, it took Eleanor a tremendous amount of effort to not scream. Part of what stopped her from doing so was the masked face that was looking at it. As the pistol was lowered away, and she felt able to breath, a smile threatened to crack over her lips.

“I… I’m Eleanor, Mister Oddball Sir,” she replied, biting down on her lower lip as she fidgeting and fiddled with the cuffs of her sweater – completely forgetting the cold around her.

Her eyes roamed over the masked figure with curiosity taking in each detail for later recollection. His mask wasn’t pulled all the way down over his face, so she could just about see (in the darkness) his jaw and, perhaps most importantly, his lips. She’d been waiting a loooong time to meet this man, and she wanted to savor the moment. She managed to prattle off her next words in one long breath.

“S-sorry if I surprised you, only I heard that you were out here and well I’ve been your fan for such a long time that I couldn’t pass up on the chance of meeting since it probably wouldn’t ever come again you know?”

[Oddball]

"Oooooooookay" Oddball said slowly, looking more carefully around him.

This has got to be a set up. A FAN of mine? I mean, I know I'm good enough for one, but I'm hardly a regular on the Holochannels, am I?

Slowly leaning against the wall, he slid down it until he was in a sitting position, his face looking forwards.

"How old are you kid?" he asked, not really sure what to do.

[Eleanor Harris]

She edged a step to the side as Oddball slouched down onto the ground, to give him a little more room. Bouncing on her toes as she looked down at him, quite obviously staring, she replied:

“17… 18 soon though. Well in a few months so I’m really closer to 18 than 17 if you think about it like that.”

Eleanor folded her arms behind her back and contemplated sitting down.

“Nice job on outrunning those cops,” she chipped into the silence.

[Oddball]

"Thanks." Oddball replied, finished with scanning the area. It seemed clear, which meant he really was talking to a fan-girl.

"How exactly did you get here?" He asked, the one thing he still didn't understand.

[Eleanor Harris]

“Uhm, in a taxi. The guys still parked up over there… he should be going soon though. I said if I didn’t come back in a few minutes that he should just drive off,”

Picking up the courage to sit down, Eleanor lowered herself into a crouch, resting back against the wall.

“We followed you through the chase… I heard about it over the radio.”

[Oddball]

"Well, some people get their publicity in different ways." Oddball remarked, turning his head to look at her.

"This might sound a dumb question, but why me?" he asked, before putting his hand over her mouth. Pointing is other hand upwards, he watched as a police speeder passed overhead.

"Okay, answer now." he said, moving his hand down.

[Eleanor Harris]

“Why not you?” she blurted, thinking back to just how many times she’d justified her fascination with Oddball and suddenly drawing a blank as to what reasons she’d given.

“You’re like… this rebel on the wrong side of the law, but you’re not like… working for the Darkside or anything. You’re doing it for good and to help people out, but you aren’t all stuffy like the Jedi.”

[Oddball]

"Yeah, I'm working for.....good" Oddball replied, going along with what she said. Well, suppose it was unlikely she liked a guy who does things such as stealing for money he thought, before turning round having heard a sound. Peering round the corner, he was a police speeder had stopped on the roof, and a man was getting out.

"Well, this is where we go our seperate ways. I'm either leaving in the speeder I have waiting downstairs or the one with the flashy light, and that colour scheme doesn't work with this outfit. Seeya around kid." he said to the girl, heading for a door near where they stood. It was then that he froze.

Suppose I can't leave her here. Assuming the police don't take her, she'll be in the middle of nowhere.

Sighing slowly, he turned around to face her.

"Suppose you better come with me......sorry, what's your name?" he asked, checking the police officer wasn't too close.

[Eleanor Harris]

“Suppose you better come with me.”

Ohwowohwowohwowohwow.

“Eleanor Harris… Most people just call me Ele though,” she replied as she followed on after him eagerly.

“Where’re we going? Do you need to make another one of those get aways? Wow, I’m going to be in a real get away, this is so neat!”

She was mostly talking to herself, but chirped off in a loud whisper anyway.

[Oddball]

Opening the door down into the building below, Oddball waited for 'Ele' o go through before following her in, shutting the door as he went. He overtook her, before leading her down a short corridor which ended in a boarded up double door. Hitting the door with his shoulder, they swung open, to reveal a single speeder in an otherwise empty room. One of the walls inside was covered with a thin material of some sort, and lights from the city outside could be seen through it.

Opening the passenger door, Oddball ushered Ele inside, before shutting the door and getting in the driver's side, gently starting the engine. Glancing over, he could see she had already put her seatbelt on. Hitting the accelerator, the mercenary sent the speeder straight through the material covering a large hole in the wall, before sending the craft downwards, the darkness of the drop below straight in their view.

"Do you have anywhere nearby to go to, or are you going to need somewhere to stay?" He asked, avoiding a walkway below.

[Eleanor Harris]

The leather of the seats squeaked as Eleanor’s fingertips dug against the armrests. She was pinned back against the seat – perhaps a little more courage in her now thanks to the taxi journey earlier, but not enough to let go of the chair while they traveled.

“Oh, well I-…”

She cut herself off. There were two options. The first involved going back home and no one believing what had happened, and her having a generally boring night in front of the holoscreen with that now cold pizza. The second involved going with Oddball wherever he was headed. She knew exactly which one she preferred.

“My parents are out of town until tomorrow evening… and I think I lost my key in the taxi on the way here.”

[Oddball]

How convenient thought Oddball, bringing the speeder level.

"Well, I have to deal with something first." he said, turning the speeder sharply to the left. He kept going this direction for some time, before pulling up in front of a small building, only two floors high.

"Wait here Ele." he said to the girl, seeing her start to get up. Patting his side to check he still had his weapon, Oddball walked into the building, not looking back.

[Eleanor Harris]

He had to deal with something – that meant they were on a mission. Eleanor watched with anxiety as Oddball disappeared, leaving her sitting inside the speeder. She looked around at what was going on outside – nothing much. It looked freezing cold, so no wonder no one was out wandering the streets. After what seemed like an hour, but was probably more like ten minutes, a knock on the speeder window caused Ele to top.

Oddball waved her outside and she hesitantly climbed out onto the sideway. A rope was pushed into her hands – which had already begun to feel numb from the chill.

“Hold this.”

“Wha…”