United We Stand

[patient_zero]

"You get to used to it after a time, but it's still never easy. Specially when you come from planets like Taris, where something's always going on, or your own, where you can't move without someone saying hello."

 

"I guess so," Zarena said, before taking a gulp of her drink. The bubbles tickled her throat as they passed. "But when you look out on the streets they're full of people, full of chatter. I always think of Jedi temples as holed away on the sort of peaceful worlds that get turned into spa resorts if they're not careful, but then I come to the grand home of the high council and it's... well, it's Coruscant."

 

She took another sip. "But I'll get over it."

 

"And despite being guardians of the Republic, Jedi aren't exactly used to talking. It ruins the whole 'mysterious' act."

 

Zarena smiled. "I guess that's what having a reputation does for ya. I never once saw a Jedi on Zeltros, so we ended up believing what we were told. Then when you meet one for real and they end up being exactly the sort of squeaky clean do-gooder they're supposed to be. It's sort of... disappointing."

 

She finished her drink and ordered another shot. "But I've not had nearly enough alcohol to start debating Jedi." She paused to take a test taste of her refill. "So what were you doing before you ended up getting roped into this grand quest?"

[Astor]

"So what were you doing before you ended up getting roped into this grand quest?" That was a hard question. A question that sometimes even Vynn didn't have answers for.

 

"Bounty Hunting mostly." He said as raised his glass to take a sip. "Smuggling, Freight running. You name it, I've probably done it in the last 15 years." Vynn laughed at himself.

 

"I would be half a ways to Ylesia by now, if those nerf herders i'd called a crew hadn't made off with the ship. My ship." Even now, a week later, Vynn was seething inside about that. His exotic holovids were still on board.

 

He downed the rest of his drink, any faster and he probably would have choked. "Krell! Something stronger - a Sonic Servodriver". He smiled at Zarena.

 

"That's enough about me. How 'bout you? You're not even an ex-Jedi, how'd they get you?"

[Nymf...]

The cantina at Barin's Deep was not a pretty sight, full of scum, fights and filth. However Bail liked the chaotic state around him, it made him more focused. He smiled when the bartender came with his third Correlian Ale, a fine ale, one of his personal favourites and tasted as good everywhere. He was about to drink his ale, when Kalig came stumbling in to the cantina with a bag.

 

"Baho!" said Kalig, a nickname for Bail. "I've found your stuff." Kalig smiled, as if he were a small kid who had accomplished something and gave the bag to Bail.

 

"Good for you, but you shouldn't have lost it in the first place." Bail took drank of his ale, looking at Kalig. Kalig's smile disappeared.

 

"I know. I messed up...big time."

 

"It wasn't that bad, I got it now, no hard feelings!"

 

"But Baho, you don't understand! The war will start again, all the gangs...just because I had to get you thingies back. And everyone will be accusing me!" Bail looked at Kalig.

 

"Sucks to be you then!"

 

"But you must help me! You must stop this! Please?"

 

"I cannot. I will not. If the gangs take out each other, fine. That's one less concern of the Republic and the politicans of Coruscant." Bail said and finnished his ale. Bail put the glass down, took the bag and went for the door, he heard a quite 'please' behind him. He stoped turned around.

"*sigh*...okay, here. Take this" he gave Kalig a minor amount of money." This should be enough for you to get off this planet."

Bail left the cantina and headed back for the Jedi Temple.

[patient_zero]

"That's enough about me. How 'bout you? You're not even an ex-Jedi, how'd they get you?"

 

Zarena pondered for a moment while running her finger along the rim of her glass. "I left Zeltros about ten years to see what the galaxy was like. I've sampled pretty much everything the underworld has to offer. I've danced for the Hutts, done spice runs through the Outer Rim, hell I even used to do dirty work for the Exchange."

 

She took another sip of fizzbrew before she continued. "'Course, their operations on Nar Shaddaa sunk pretty fast after Goto's ship got blown up, so that left me without work. I went back to planet hopping, and eventually I got roped into this. Not entirely sure where they'd heard of me, but I guess we all have our skills, and I need the credits."

 

"Besides," she added, toying with her glass, "if the galaxy gets conquered I won't have anywhere to drink."

[Astor]

"if the galaxy gets conquered I won't have anywhere to drink."

 

Vynn could tell that at least with Zarena around, things weren't going to be boring. And he'd have a drinking buddy.

 

"A woman after my own heart." He raised his glass. Swaying slightly as he did so. "To all the cantinas, dives and ratholes in the galaxy" he said, necking the drink as fast he could.

 

The effect was immediate, and he jerked his head sharply.

 

"Danced for Hutts, you say? I did that once. It wasn't pretty" He laughed as he beckoned for another drink.

[DrPhil2501]

Jaq left the temple long after Vynn, that Zeltron girl and Bail. He was longing for a weapons store, his kind of place. Though he rated it second to a cantina.

 

"Ah, nothing like good ol'd Coruscant... brings back a lot of memories..." he thought to himself, as he breathed in the fresh air of the cityscape. The city was a view to die for. Afterall, they say Coruscant has lovely sunsets... which they do.

 

He took the nearest Transport Speeder to a market place where he had once visited his favourite weapons store. As he entered the neon-lighted hut with collections of rifles and pistols hung from the wall, Jaq had the sense he was being watched.

 

He walked to the counter. The old Rodian sat behind the counter, reading what appeared to be a data-buletine of Coruscant. He looked up from the counter and saw one of his favourite customers.

 

"Jaq? It sure has been some time since you visited this old dump!"

 

Jaq chuckled. "Better not hear you boss talking like that, Mageda." He pulled his out his trusty blaster rifle and placed it on the counter.

 

"Have anymore upgrades in stock?"

 

"More upgrades?" the old rodian repeated. "Hmmm... ah! It just so happens I have a new shipment. Quite an impressive stock, and should suit your standards of that old Mandalorian Blaster Rifle you carry around!"

 

Mageda dropepd down behind his counter and resurfaced with somethis in his hand. It was some kind of application to the muzzle, almost like a silencer. But this upgrade was alot more larger and bulkier.

 

"This nifty little thing clips onto the tip of your rifle. When you fire, this detatchable uprage can deliver a single shot power blast, with a small radiation. Comes in handy of close encounters... and comes with a good price."

 

Jaq picked up the muzzle application and examined. An impressive piece of work, he thought. He slapped it onto the tip of his blaster. He grinned. "I'll take it!"

 

As he exited the weapons store, he still felt the sense of someone watching him. He looked around the market area. Alot of sentients were around, though Jaq thought he saw a hooded female figure staring at his through the crowd. But then she disapeared.

[patient_zero]

"To all the cantinas, dives and ratholes in the galaxy."

 

Zarena joined Vynn in raising her glass before draining it of its contents. I wonder what the nightlife's like past the Outer Rim. She smiled inwardly at the thought, and was relieved to find she'd be travelling there with some equally colourful characters.

 

"Danced for Hutts, you say? I did that once. It wasn't pretty."

 

"How much juma did it take to talk you into that?" Zarena asked, a grin painted across her face.

[Astor]

"How much juma did it take to talk you into that?"

 

"Well, let's just say I owed a lot of money to some not too nice people. And a blaster pointed at your head goes a long way in persuading you" Vynn smiled back, feeling that Zarena would know exactly what he meant.

 

"But I guess things are on the up, what us being touted as saviours of the galaxy" It was going to take a long time for that to sink in.

[patient_zero]

"Well, let's just say I owed a lot of money to some not too nice people. And a blaster pointed at your head goes a long way in persuading you."

 

Zarena nodded. She'd been there. The sort of planets she frequented were the ones where slightly nasty blaster-wielding thugs were all too common.

 

"But I guess things are on the up, what us being touted as saviours of the galaxy."

 

"That depends on if they've told everyone yet," Zarena commented, starting on her latest drink. "Seeing as it's a Jedi thing, I'm surprised we haven't been sworn to secrecy. But that might not be such a bad thing, once people know your name they might just start to take interest. And much as I love interest, there are some people you don't want looking your way."

[LordRevan123]

William stood in front of one of the long distance transmitters, in order to get in contact with his supplier and spy Liam who worked in the Exchange. Having Liam in the Exchange provided information of their activities, and an easier way to get supplies. Even though Liam was only a bartender at the Exchange headquarters, he knew just about everything that went on there.

 

After a few moments, a male rodian of about 30 years old appeared on the screen.

 

"Hey there, been a while since you called. Well, there's nothing really interesting going on here, so do you need equipment?"

 

"Hi Liam. Yeah some equipment would be good."

 

"All right give me a second to get my datapad," said Liam as he searched for it. "Go ahead."

 

" I need ten medpacs, five frag, plasma, and ion grenades, get me two Westar-34's (pistols used by Jango Fett), and how about a GenoHaradan Poison Blade, you told me the Exchange found one of those."

 

"All right and your on Corucsant at the Jedi Temple?"

 

"Yep."

 

"When do you need this by?"

 

"How about getting it to me by tomorrow?"

 

"I'll see what I can do," sighed Liam before logging off.

 

With that business taken care of, William decided to explore the Jedi Temple.

[Astor]

"Seeing as it's a Jedi thing, I'm surprised we haven't been sworn to secrecy. But that might not be such a bad thing, once people know your name they might just start to take interest. And much as I love interest, there are some people you don't want looking your way."

 

Zarena had a point. A good point. Now matter how much he would love fame and fortune, Vynn had made more than a few enemies over the years, and he really wouldn't want them to know where he was.

 

He smiled wryly. "Come on, Z. There's still a whole night ahead, and this isn't the best place to get a slice of Coruscant" With that, he stood up, and threw some creds at the barkeep, and made straight for the door.

[Nymf...]

When Bail came back to the temple, he didn't know what to do. He walked through the hallways he decided to go to the training section again. When he came to those parts in the temple, he entered a big room. Inside this room there weren't much, not even much floor, mainly just a big whole in the ground, but a little bit of floor and also some pillars pointing up. Bail jumped onto one of the pillars and looked out the window. Suddenly the lights disappeared. Bail smiled.

"Fools! Don't you think I know you are there?"

 

"What's in the bag I wonder...give it to us!" A voice said.

 

"How about...No?"

 

"Then you die..." An other voice said. Two red lightsabers got activated. Bail turned around grabbed his lightsaber and turned it on, but only one of the blades. The light got turned on again. Bail was now facing the same two Dark Jedis he had met earlier.

"*sigh* Darn kids! Didn't your boss tell you to back off?"

 

"But he isn't here right now! Besides, give the bag to us or...die, you know you dont stand a chance against the two of us."

 

"That's an intressting theory!" Bail said and smiled. The dark Jedis jumped on a pillars on each side of Bail and they started to fight. The Dark Jedi on Bail's left side tried to make a strike, but Bail ducked and cut the Dark Jedi's legs off. A scream was heard. The other Dark Jedi smiled at his falled comrade and made a strike against Bail who blocked it. While pushing their lightsaber towards each other, Bail made a spin, the lightsabers lost contact, and then activated the other blade and pierced the Dark Jedi. Bail jumped back towards the door and left the room smiling. It had been awhile since he had been in a lightsaber combat.

[patient_zero]

"Come on, Z. There's still a whole night ahead, and this isn't the best place to get a slice of Coruscant."

 

Zarena reached into the pocket of her jacket and pulled out enough credits to cover her drink. She set them down on the counter before she turned to face the crowd, weaving and shoving her way past towards the door.

 

The door shut behind her once she was through, cutting the rest of the street off from the music and chatter from inside the Cantina. She smiled wryly at Vynn. "Where to next? Another bar? A Pazaak den? Or did you have somewhere in particular in mind?"

[Astor]

"Some sightseeing, I think." he said as he strolled, non-chalantly, from the cantina, down the thoroughfare, towards a small speeder parking area.

 

He looked carefully up the parking ranks. 'Aha! There's the one' he thought, strolling towards a two seat, twin engined sport speeder in a violent hue of Hurrikane orange.

 

"Hop in" he called, as he leant under the dashboard, fiddling with some wires. Suddenly, it roared to life, and started hovering. 'Good, no alarms' he thought, as flashed his trademark grin.

[patient_zero]

"Some sightseeing, I think."

 

The duo walked for a while before Zarena noticed Vynn veering towards a parking lot. He seemed to be searching for a while, before eventually stopping by a two-seated airspeeder. Zarena stood back and watched as he fiddled with something under the dashboard, ready to run away if it was alarmed. But it wasn't. Or at least, she guessed as much from Vynn's victorious smile.

 

"Aren't you just full of surprises?" she commented, before hopping into the passenger seat. "Let's drive. I have no intention of meeting whoever owns this fine craft anytime soon."

[Astor]

"Let's drive. I have no intention of meeting whoever owns this fine craft anytime soon."

 

"Trust me, on this planet, it's probably already been stolen twice over"

 

Vynn winked as he pulled on the control stick. The speeder jerked forward, then upward, ascending into the skylanes, where he opened up the engines, going at almost racing speed.

 

He cut through the traffic, going around, under, over and in between anything in the way, with only a few near misses. Soon the speeder had reached the top lanes of the traffic, and before long they had broken out of the urban sprawl back to the surface's open sky.

 

"See? This is the best way to view Coruscant, and keep your wallet" He said as the speeder completed its pass of the temple.

 

He took the speeder past the Jedi Temple, circling it before heading off towards the twin peaks of the Manarai Mountains. He set the speeder down in the monument plaza, giving both an unmatched view of Galactic City to the east, and the only water - the Western sea.

 

"Now, that's Coruscant" He said, as he leant against the bonnet of the speeder, yet another grin on his face.

[DrPhil2501]

Jaq walked passed the training room in time to see Bail walking from it. He peered into the room to see two slain bodies laying on the floor. Jaq whistled.

 

"Had some trouble with some Dark Jedi thugs, eh? You better hope Revan doesn't cut your ass from this mission if he finds out you've injured these murglaks..." he took another look the bodies. "Or, at least I hope they're just injured..."

[Nymf...]

Jaq whistled. Bail turned around and looked at the Mandalorian.

 

"Had some trouble with some Dark Jedi thugs, eh? You better hope Revan doesn't cut your ass from this mission if he finds out you've injured these murglaks... Or, at least I hope they're just injured..."

 

 

"It's hardly my fault that Dark Jedis can't control themselves." Bail smiled. "And if Revan cuts me off from this mission, then it's his loss. Since I'm more important to this mission, than this mission is to me. I mean I'll probably have a longer life with out it. And what do you mean 'you hope' they're just injured? What kind of a Mandie are you?" Bail walked towards the room again and looked at the Dark Jedis. "Hmmm...you're right one is just injured. Blast! That wasn't my intention! You think I should appologize?" He looked on the Mandalorian and smiled. "I'm Bail by the way...Bail Hoban!"

[patient_zero]

"Trust me, on this planet, it's probably already been stolen twice over."

 

Zarena smiled to herself as Vynn prepared to start the speeder. Of all the planets she'd seen, she tended to find "home" on the ones with high crime rates.

 

They took off, zipping through rush of traffic that flew through and above the city. She became slightly alarmed on the few occasions she noticed they were driving up the wrong lane, but the speeder dodged everything in it's way. Barely. Zarena put her hands on the dashboard to steady herself, shaking in an adrenaline-fueled fever.

 

Soon they were above the lanes. Zarena leaned her head over the side to look down the the city below. The traffic flowed on as always, crowds of people scurried through the street like insects. She had the urge to spit over the side, but quickly decided against it.

 

Vynn spoke as they flew back over the Jedi temple they'd visited earlier. "See? This is the best way to view Coruscant, and keep your wallet."

 

"You're quite the tour guide," Zarena commented, grinning.

 

They flew out towards the mountains past the temple, Vynn setting the speeder down in the plaza. Zarena hopped out of the speeder and walked along to the front of the speeder, running her hand along the frame as she went. She leant on the bonnet and look out at the view, the Galactic City to the east and the sea to her west.

 

"Now, that's Coruscant," she heard Vynn say, and she turned her head to see him grinning to himself.

 

"And here I thought this place was gonna be another great dirty city planet." She paused, running her fingers through her fringe and letting the breeze tickle her face. "It's real nice, Vynn. Didn't expect to find a place like this, not here."

 

But a cynical half-smile crept across her face. "I guess we're lucky there aren't many tourists this far out at this time in the evening."

[Astor]

"And here I thought this place was gonna be another great dirty city planet." He watched as she ran her fingers through her hair, the wind lightly playing with it.

 

"I guess we're lucky there aren't many tourists this far out at this time in the evening." Vynn smiled and laughed at the irony.

 

"Coruscant may not be the most beautiful place in the galaxy, but nothing compares to this view." He said, as he turned back to see the sun as it began its descent beyond the horizon.

 

"And besides, we won't get much sightseeing in when we're teaching these Sith not to mess us" He said, thinking about the mission as lights began to appear across the city.

[DrPhil2501]

"Hmmm...you're right one is just injured. Blast! That wasn't my intention! You think I should appologize?"

 

"If it was a means of self defence, then I guess there shouldn't be anything to worry about. This place is spawned with security cameras to prove your case!"

 

"I'm Bail by the way...Bail Hoban!"

 

"It seems I forgot to introduce myself previously." Jaq reached out a hand to shake Bail's. "Name's Jaq... Jaq Logan."

 

"And by the way, I'm certainly not a Mandie... well not anymore, anyway. I left my clan long after the Assault on Telos made by the Ravager. But there can be another time for stories later."

[Nymf...]

"It seems I forgot to introduce myself previously. Name's Jaq... Jaq Logan." Jaq reached out a hand to shake Bail's, who shook the hand.

"Pleasure to meet you!"

 

"And by the way, I'm certainly not a Mandie... well not anymore, anyway. I left my clan long after the Assault on Telos made by the Ravager. But there can be another time for stories later."

 

"Once a Mandie...always a Mandie!" Bail said and smiled. "Anyway we'll all have stories, I guess. Stories from travels, wars and more..."

Bail looked at Jaq. 'There's something about this Mandie...' he thought '...something non-Mandalorianish.'

[patient_zero]

"Coruscant may not be the most beautiful place in the galaxy, but nothing compares to this view."

 

Zarena joined Vynn in admiring the sunset as she perched on the bonnet of the speeder. The lights in the streets of the upper crust of Coruscant flickered to life as its inhabitants took note of the advancing evening.

 

"And besides, we won't get much sightseeing in when we're teaching these Sith not to mess us."

 

"I wouldn't be so sure," Zarena said. "I mean, even if they are home to all sorts of Sith Lord types, they're still planets with people and places. Even if it all looks a bit ugly compared to here, we'll still be getting the Beyond Rim experience."

 

She smiled contently, debating to herself exactly how hostile their destination would be. She had partied from planet to planet for most of her life. If the planets really were as hostile as they'd been led to believe, would she cope? Probably. I've been in worse spots.

[Astor]

"I mean, even if they are home to all sorts of Sith Lord types, they're still planets with people and places. Even if it all looks a bit ugly compared to here, we'll still be getting the Beyond Rim experience."

 

Vynn thought about that for a second. And he realised that they wouldn't be fighting all the time.

 

"I guess we'll get to see some sights, when we're not being shot at, or stabbed with lightsabers. Remind me to bring my holocamera" He said, half sarcastically with a smile on his face.

[patient_zero]

"I guess we'll get to see some sights, when we're not being shot at, or stabbed with lightsabers. Remind me to bring my holocamera."

 

Zarena grinned back at Vynn. "With luck, we'll get a bit of everything. Some nights just aren't complete without a barfight."

 

She took a few paces forward, and turned to face the horizon, letting herself absorb the few for a few moments. She then turned and paced back to the speeder.

 

"We should probably head back to the city before it gets too dark to see out here," she commented.