Fandom Star Wars: Artful Gambits [Closed]

[Lucyfer]

Stiff. Withdrawn. Uncertain.

These were the thoughts that ran through Mitth’raw’nuruodo’s, commonly known in Imperial Space as Thrawn, head as he looked upon the Inquisitor. Their features were unknown to him, whether they were alien or human, also unknown, although by body language alone he was assuming human. They were covered head to toe in black, some slashes of red or silver, but as his white attire, it was a uniform, not an outfit of their choosing. It revealed little save the organization they had sworn themselves to.

And Thrawn knew little of the Inquisitors, and what they had once been – Jedi. Of course, he wasn’t even supposed to know they were formerly Jedi.

“You are hiring a bounty hunter to hunt the Jedi?”

Mild bewilderment. Fear. Anger.

“No,” Thrawn answered, maintaining a patient tone and a calm expression, “I am hiring a bounty hunter to look for artifacts relating to the Jedi, as a group, not as an individual. The way to find Cal Kestis will be to understand him. He has evaded capture for many years now, and I believe the flaw is that many do not understand the Jedi.”

The Inquisitor scoffed. “There is nothing left that will help you understand the Jedi.”

“Perhaps,” Thrawn allowed, “but I will determine that. I have heard there is a bust of a Jedi on the planet Tund, held by Sorcerers of Tund.” Thrawn observed the shift of her posture, moving her weight to her other leg, clenching and unclenching a fist, before bringing both arms to fold over her chest. She knew something about the Sorcerers of Tund, however, she would not speak to it.

“Cal is not on Tund.”

“No? The Empire is only aware that the Mantis was spotted in this system.”

“His MO has been to rescue people and gather artifacts that actually matter, not some random bust of a lost Jedi—”

“Lost Jedi?”

Tension. Fists clenched and didn’t relax. Posture stiffened, weight balanced out again.

Though she paused at the interruption, she did not elaborate, and just continued her train of thought, “—so I’ll be going to Akrit’tar.”

“I am not giving you leave to do so.” Thrawn noted.

“I would like to see you stop me.”

Thrawn could feel a headache building. The Inquisitors were not his to command, but he was meant to work with the Inquisitor, all the same. He knew they did not answer to anyone save their own, Darth Vader, and the Emperor. He had expected a bit more subservience, but apparently he had been wrong to assume that. He’d heard a few horror stories, but nothing recent – no doubt, because of how few Inquisitors were left.

He would not press the matter. He knew better than to waste his soldiers on something as petty as this. “I will not stop you, and your ship will not be blocked from leaving the hangar,” Thrawn answered, but the flash of threat was in his red eyes, “I will be informing Emperor Palpatine of all of your decisions.”

Again, the implications seemed to mean little to the Inquisitor.

Weight shift. Fists unclenched. Hands have fallen to sides.

“I’m sure he’ll love to know how you’re wasting his time and resources on frivolities.”

Posture shift backwards. Arms more open. Combative.

“I’ll be going now. Good luck with your collection.” The Inquisitor turned and left his office, leaving Thrawn to sigh when the doors shut behind them. He would be true to his word, and he pressed the comm on his desk for the Bridge.

“Commander Faro,” the familiar female voice greeted.

“Please make certain the hangar space in Hangar 5 is clear; the Inquisitor will be taking their leave of the Chimaera.” It was another ship that told Thrawn nothing about either Inquisitors or Jedi, a standard-issue TIE/Reaper fighter, one of the few TIEs with the ability to jump into lightspeed. Of course, that was going to be necessary on this mission – there were plenty of planets to track.

Interesting that the Inquisitor had decided on one, and on one motive for the Jedi.

Even if she was correct, Thrawn was not too concerned. Cal Kestis had taken down other Inquisitors. That was the flaw in the plan, approaching him directly. Thrawn needed to learn more to trap both Cal, and the rest of the Mantis crew, which he knew included the Jedi Cere Junda, the Nightsister Merrin, and latero Greez Dritus. He would not make the mistakes the Inquisitors consistently made.

“Understood. We also have an approaching ship, not an Imperial vessel. They’ve given the clearance codes, and named themselves Kayoi Bonzuc.”

A tight smile came to his lips. What timing. “That would be my bounty hunter,” Thrawn answered, “bring them into Hangar 2, and see to it that they are escorted to my office,” Thrawn requested, adding, “We’ll then need to prepare a jump these coordinates,” he offered them calmly to Karyn Faro, and let her repeat them back. “Once the Inquisitor has left.”

With that settled, he would take out his datapad to once more skim the information he had on the bounty hunter, who he knew had dabbled a bit in smuggling. Someone who just killed would not be useful to him, after all. What he was after, was items, not the death of others. Not just yet, anyways.

~***~

Fourth Sister would find no issues getting into her ship and leaving the hangar. Thrawn was one of the smart Imperial Officers, she’d give him that much credit. He had neither been intimidated by her, nor had he decided to try and show off what authority he had and get others injured, or killed, in the process. Fourth Sister hadn’t been concerned standing up to him, really. Sure, he was one of Palpatine’s favored – but that only went so far where the Jedi were concerned.

Not to mention, in the public sphere, he was less well-loved than most Imperial Officers because his skin happened to be blue.

Not a concern for Fourth Sister; alien or not, she didn’t care any longer. She hadn’t cared in the past, either, but now she was aware of its use without caring about the horrors of that use. If Thrawn got in her way, it wouldn’t be difficult to turn people against him.

For now, it was an unnecessary train of thought.

For now, she had the quiet of her TIE as it left the hangar, and launched into lightspeed in order to reach Akrit’tar, a desolate wasteland of a planet suitable only for precisely what the Empire used it for – a prison. Even if one escaped, they’d have to go on to hijack a ship. Life wasn’t sustainable on the planet. Nothing grew. Everything had to be imported. Fourth Sister didn’t know the history that made the planet such a wasteland, or if it had always been that way.

She just knew the length of the trip, and in that time, she meditated.

That practice wasn’t lost to her, at any rate.

When her TIE came out of lightspeed, she flew it towards the prison and was soon hailed. “TIE/Reaper, identify yourself.”

Fourth Sister didn’t speak, just pressed a button to transmit the information on the identichip she already had in place. It took a few moments, before they responded, “We weren’t expecting any inquisitors….”

“I didn’t send a warning,” she indicated, the worry not surprising her in the least.

“I’m afraid we don’t have any landing space—”

“I’ll find space,” and with that, she cut communications and flew on down to do just that, whether it was in a proper landing space or not. It wasn’t of much concern to her, she could do more when she actually arrived so far as convincing them her presence was necessary.



Unbeknownst to her, the one she had been speaking with was not, in fact, an Imperial Officer. Greez Dritus cursed to himself and adjusted his earpiece and information on his datapad to push a call out to Cal. “Bad news kid, we’ve got an Inquisitor incoming – I couldn’t delay them. Better find that guy quick, I’m gonna get back to the Mantis so she’s hot and ready for our escape.”

 

[BoomerangKarma]

Kayoi eyed the gages on her ships dash. Brown eyes gazed over the one signifying how much fuel remained in the ship’s tanks, and gave a frustrated sigh at the sight. “I’ll have to refill it before I leave…” she said aloud, making a mental note that she’d have to do just that before going on the mission she was to be debriefed on. Seeing as she was approaching the Chimaera she waited for the transmit that would greet her, and ask her for identification.

“Clearance code and name?” Came a sudden harsh voice. The Balosar was used to this sort of treatment, having worked with the empire for some time. If you didn’t have a marked ship, you could almost always guarantee some kind of rude questioning that felt more like an interrogation. Scrambling around for the paper with the code on it, the woman searched through her pockets, before digging through a nearby stack of papers and other trinkets that she kept on the ship.

Finding the slip of paper, the woman repeated the code on it, sighing with relief to think she hadn’t lost it. “…the name’s Kayoi Bonzuc.” She finished, before she was given clearance, and told what hangar to park her ship in. Turning off the transmit, she did as she was told, carefully landing in hangar 2, before she powered down her ship.

With a huff, the Balosar stood to her feet, and grabbed the nearby hat to cover the top of her head. At least, as long as she had something to cover the antennae, no one would be suspicious of just what she was. Taking the moment to stretch her legs, she eventually got off the ship, being greeted with at least one imperial officer, as well as two stormtroopers.

“Quite the welcome party.” She greeted with a smug grin. She was only offered a stern expression from the female imperial officer, who cleared her throat, and gestured for her to follow.

“Right this way. It’s best not to keep the Grand Admiral waiting.” The woman stated in a flat tone of voice, as she started ahead, the stormtroopers in line at either side of the woman. Kayoi followed, and kept her gaze straight ahead. She knew the ins and outs of these ships, and how they worked. The more you looked around, the more suspicious they’d be of you. Bounty Hunters and smugglers alike were normally mostly unwelcome, but Kayoi had a reputation of being quite loyal. It was likely what brought her to the Grand Admiral’s attention.

Finally, entering an office, the imperial officer eyed the Bounty Hunter over, before turning her gaze towards the man. She seemed to give off the impression she was displeased with the bounty hunter’s presence, but was quick to leave the two together. For a moment, the usual confident, cocky bounty hunter felt just the slightest bit nervous.

“So, you’re the Grand Admiral I’ve heard so much about? I must say, with all you’ve done, it’s quite the honor to be requested to work for you.” Kayoi greeted, her charming smile never wavering, despite her nerves being quite shaky in the moment. Usually, she was able to sense people’s emotions, tell what they were feeling, but the man who sat before her gave no such feeling to the woman. At least, it was a very ‘blank slate’ sort of feeling that didn’t make her feel much more comfortable. If her antennae were visible, they’d likely have been noticeably lowered, flat to her head from this uncertain feeling.

—————

When it was said that Akrit’tar was a barren, lifeless wasteland, no one was kidding. Cal could’ve figured that much, but the sight before him really did look lifeless, especially if you took your eyes off the prison for a moment. He knew why he was here, and how risky this was, but truth be told, he had to do whatever was necessary. It’s what any Jedi would’ve done in his shoes.

Okay, maybe they wouldn’t be breaking into such a high security imperial prison, but he was taking the necessary steps to finding something important. Something he wasn’t even fully sure what it was yet, but he was aware of an important Jedi artifact that would be necessary to reach before any imperial monster got their hands on it.

Slipping through the roof of the prison, simply sliding open a metal plate, and lowering himself into a winding ventilation system, he landed cautiously and carefully. Once his knees were planted carefully against the bottom of the vent shaft, he fixed the plate back into the roof, and continued to make his way through the prison, recalling the sector number that his current target for rescue was located. A Rodian by the name of Glark was supposed to reside in one of the fifth sector cells, and that was his only key to finding the artifact.

Crawling through the vents, Cal peeked through any sort of gaps, vent holes, or other open areas he could to get a sight on where he was. Currently, he’d only made it to sector three, and needed to be more cautious with this movements. Just below him, he could hear a group of imperial guards, all talking about a batch of new prisoners. The red headed male grew disgusted with the way those below him talked about the prisoners, but he knew he was here to rescue one man, and one man only. Maybe some other time he could fully release these people properly.

Cal suddenly was startled by the voice in his earpiece, making him sigh, as he pressed a finger against the piece and gave a response. “An inquisitor?” He questioned, surprised to hear that they were nearly already caught. Someone was suspicious, and that was a good cause for alarm. “I’m just one sector away. I’ll be right out as soon as I can.” He added, before he continued ahead, finally reaching sector five.

With a deep breath, and wiping a bead of sweat forming on his forehead, he was able to peek below him, now right above cells. Thankfully, he could make out all figures in each cell, so he took his time, moving slowly across, until finally, he noticed a familiar looking Rodian fin, recognizing Glark from the photos he’d seen of him. Carefully removing the vent cover, the red headed Jedi peeked his head out, making a shushing sound, as he brought his index finger to his lips.

“I’m here to rescue you. I need your help.” He whispered urgently, before he peeked around the cell, hearing that the guards were messing with another prisoner in that moment. It was his perfect chance. “Come on. We don’t have much time.” he added, reaching a hand out for the Rodian to take.

It seemed the pale green Rodian was hesitant at first, but simply gave a nod, and reached up, taking Cal’s hand, and allowed him to help him into the vent, before he backtracked, taking the lead, ensuring the man was right behind him. Staying silent, as did Glark, the two maneuvered through the vents cautiously, and carefully. He made sure that they weren’t on top of the same space at the same time, for fear that they’d break the vents, their current only easy way out.

 

[Lucyfer]

Thrawn set his datapad aside as he heard the familiar steps of one of his officers, and looked up as the door to his office opened, allowing said officer to enter as well as the bounty hunter herself. He gave the officer a courtesy nod, and allowed them to depart in silence, before his attention would settle on the bounty hunter, who needed no encouragement to begin speaking.

Uncomfortable. Uncertain.

Small similarities in body language, though the smile and charm she brought up were no doubt meant to hide that, as much as they were meant to showcase her willingness to work with her new employer. He wouldn’t let that color too much. Many people were unsettled in his presence, whether it was due to the fact he was an alien, his countenance was ‘severe’ as some put it, or his eyes glowed – apparently humans didn’t like that.

Kayoi wasn’t the only bounty hunter the Empire used, nor the first he’d used and many hadn’t been prepared for the first meeting. Almost every high-ranking officer had their favorites; Thrawn knew well that even Darth Vader used some of them, as well as smuggles. Boba Fett and Aphra came to mind.

There were still things too difficult to get done with Imperial red-tape in the way.

“I hope that feeling shall remain as we begin to work together, Kayoi,” Thrawn greeted, and lifted his hand, opened, to gesture her forward and to a seat at the desk, “I’d like to discuss our plans. We are already en route to the planet Tund, perhaps you have heard of it?” It wasn’t rhetorical, and Thrawn would wait for some semblance of an answer before he would continue on.

“I am not going to ask you to kill anyone there unless it is necessary. Actually, much of what I am hiring you for is to gather certain items relating to the Jedi. There has been one that has been a nuisance to the Empire for some years now, a Cal Kestis,” he noted, doubted she honestly knew, or cared about the name, but he had little reason to hide it. Cal Kestis wasn’t an unknown in the galaxy.

Unfortunately.

He had a reputation now, for precisely what the Inquisitor had said. That didn’t mean the Inquisitor knew how to actually finish him off. “Unfortunately with so little remaining about the Jedi, most seem to have no idea how to engage them. I’ve been given the task of figuring that out, and putting an end to Cal Kestis once and for all. What is on Tund is the first step to understanding them. Do you believe you will be able to assist in these gathering tasks? I understand it is not…traditional bounty hunting, but there will be a reward for every item, and I am willing to negotiate what is fair.”

He turned his datapad back on, and allowed it to bring up a hologram of what it was he sought. What came up was a bronzium bust of a woman with a proud and defiant look upon her face, hair mostly on one side of her head rather than both. Human.

“This is what I am seeking on Tund.”

~***~

Fourth Sister did indeed find a place. There were several open spots, but that didn’t surprise her. Dealing with Inquisitors was something few officers wanted to deal with, so delay tactics weren’t abnormal. What was abnormal were the blasters that greeted her when she stepped out of the TIE, though she gave them all a dull stare, and then swiped her hand through the air, and drew every single blaster up and out of the hands of the holders.

They clattered to the ground as the officer stepped forward, looking quite peeved. “Inquisitor,” brusque tone, not the one she spoke with earlier, “We were not informed of your arrival—”

“Save it, your man on watch already gave me the spiel. A Jedi is in this area,” she stated.

The Officer straightened up, “I assure you, no Jedi has been here.”

“Not yet, perhaps,” she stated, “but he will be, and I intend to know this prison by the time he….”

The Officer put a hand to his ear, and the Inquisitor fell silent, but watched as the Officer grew increasingly ashen by whatever was being said. “What do you mean to ask if the alarm should be sounded? There’s a missing prisoner, of course—”

“Belay that,” the Inquisitor said softly, and when it looked like he was going to argue, she added Force to her words, “You will sound no alarms. You will not give away that we know anyone is missing.” Her timing was perfect, it seemed. She had no doubts who was behind this. “You will continue as normal, and I will be given full clearance to the prison.”

“Do not sound the alarm,” the Officer said, sounding a bit in a daze as he spoke, the stormtroopers exchanging glances.

Once upon a time, in the early years, Officers had been given training against Jedi mind tricks. Fourth Sister didn’t know if this one had received it or not, though it wouldn’t have surprised her either way. Unlike the majority of remaining Jedi, she had been a Counsellor, not a Knight. Her own Force Tricks and mind games had been a bit, well, better than the shoddy attempts of a Knight.

As the Officer finished with his orders, he extended his hand, “I’ll need your identichip to pass on clearance.”

The Inquisitor stepped forward and took the chip from her datapad, handed it over, and allowed him to take it into his and give the clearance before returning it. With that settled, she simply left the Officer and headed into the prison, doors opening as she got near – not prisoner doors, of course. Just passage ones.

And she reached out with the Force. Felt for more, a certain anxiety, a certain out-of-place feeling, felt of course, for the Force itself strong in another body, though she knew some learned to mask that. One like Cal may have learned such a trick by now.

But eventually – she felt what she was looking for, although she gave no sign of it. Not until it was above her, and even then, she still walked by as if she hadn’t noticed, walked until she felt relief from one of the parties – and then ignited the Inquisitor saber and threw it towards the vents.

 

[BoomerangKarma]

With the gesture to take a seat, Kayoi did so, making herself comfortable as the Grand Admiral carried on the conversation. At his question, she gave a nod. “I’ve heard of it. A planet the siths were closest linked to.” She responded, noting her familiarity with the planet. At least, what she knew of it. Besides it being heavily related to the Sith, she hadn’t known anything about it really. Just that many people didn’t travel there often, and for good reason.

A wave of surprise likely spread across the Balosar’s face as she heard she wouldn’t likely have to kill any targets on said planet. Sure, she’d taken all kinds of jobs before, but this one was already leaving her curious, if not, just the faintest bit frustrated. “Now…hold on just a second. I’m going to have to go treasure hunting for Jedi artifacts?” She questioned out of disbelief.

The further mention of a Jedi made the bounty hunter disinterested all together. She steered clear of any of that crap for a good portion of her life. Mostly because she hated the feeling she got in their presence. She brought a hand to the top of her head at the thought, as if to stop her antennae from popping up. Not that they would with the hat on, but it had become a concern of hers, being on an imperial ship and all.

Thinking over his words for a mere moment, she caved in, unable to dispute the job. After all, it was a job, and one that wouldn’t likely put her in outright danger. Yet. “Alright. I can do it. It isn’t the most strange job I’ve been asked to do.” She reasoned aloud, almost as if she was trying to convince herself it wasn’t.

Watching the hologram appear, the woman leaned forward, elbows pressed against her knees as she eyed the bust. She took in it’s appearance, observed it down to the faintest of details, and gave a nod. “So, this is just…one of these artifacts? What is it capable of? Does it have some…secret message inside of it?” She questioned, her gaze shifting from the bust on the hologram, towards the man before her.

She had to admit, maybe some part of this job was beginning to interest her. Even with a lack of any real potential action, she supposed it would be well worth the credits.

Credits that could last her awhile until she could get another job. The Empire was always well paying that way. One of the many reasons she enjoyed working with them.

Sitting upright, her back now against the back of the seat, she seemed to lean into it, one arm resting comfortably over the edge of the back of the seat, all the while one of her legs came to rest crossed over the other leg, shaking ever so gently, as if she couldn’t sit still.

“Will this…Cal Kestis be on Tund? I just want to know what I might be up against, should he be a problem.” Kayoi suddenly added. She’d never fought anyone who was a Jedi. The thought was quite overwhelming. Not that she couldn’t manage, she’d have to. Failure was not an option to her. If he was there, she’d just have to deal with him.

—————

Cal got the strangest feeling suddenly, that something was off. He cracked it up to an inquisitor being present in the prison, and tried to push forward. Peeking through the vents as frequently as he could, he kept counting down the sectors, hoping to reach the first one as quickly as they could without fail.

“We’re almost to the first sector, and we’ll be out. Be ready.” He told Greez over the earpiece, as he noticed they were in the third sector. Only two sectors away. Looking below them, the red headed Jedi could see the inquisitor, and he tried to crawl more carefully. Looking back up at what laid ahead, he tried to pay her no mind, and block himself out the best he could.

However, that was no longer a viable option, when he’d heard the saber cut through the vents. It missed him and Glark by mere inches, but that didn’t stop Cal from taking action. He kicked out a vent below him, and turned his head towards Glark. “Keep moving to sector one! You’ll see the way out, just look up!” He called over his shoulder in a hushed tone.

He was more concerned for the Rodian’s escape. He had no worries in his mind that he wouldn’t make it out alright. The Rodian was however at a disadvantage with no weapons, and no means of protecting himself from an inquisitor. Lowering himself through the vent, he faced the woman before him, removing his own lightsaber from it’s clip at his hip, and ignited it.

“How’d you know I was here?” Cal questioned, as he stayed at a fair distance from the woman, awaiting her first attack. He had so many questions, but was aware he had little time to ask them. He’d need to move fast to get out of here, but he also needed to distract the guards long enough to keep their attention on him. Not Glark.

The redhead tried to understand for a moment, how they could have known. He’d taken extra steps to be sure that no one knew their plans. No one knew what he was doing. Yet, it seemed somehow, someone figured out just what his next move was.

Either, the empire was getting much, much better at their jobs, or, the Inquisitor he was facing was seriously something else. He’d faced inquisitors before, and knew they were dangerous. Nothing to scoff at in the slightest. But, if one could likely track him in some way, that would mean he’d have to figure something out.

“Either way, it doesn’t matter how you found me, I’m what you want, right?” He questioned, as he practically dared the inquisitor to attack him. He waited, lightsaber at the ready, as he maneuvered around the woman cautiously. He had to expect an attack at any moment, more or less, he was aware he’d have to expect an onslaught of guards at some point.

Speaking of the devil, the sound of rampant blister fire suddenly rang out in his direction, which he turned and deflected back at the attackers quickly. One blaster bolt managed to graze his shoulder, just cutting through his armor. It burnt, and caused him to hiss in pain, but he forced back any kind of sign that it had hurt otherwise, and faced the inquisitor once more.

 

[Lucyfer]

Surprise. Irritation. Exasperation. A gesture to her hat…nervous tic?

Thrawn took in all of Kayoi’s reactions, trying to fit them into little boxes in his head as he analyzed her. The gesture to the hat was not a familiar one to him in all his time around humans, particularly humans who wore hats all the time given they were a part of the Imperial uniform. Humans with nervous tics tended to keep their hands down to necklaces, or sleeves. Rings. Hair. Small things that didn’t draw too much attention.

Reaching up for the top of the head drew attention in an unusual way. Not that Thrawn was going to call it out, but the note stuck. For now, he would stay on the subject of the bust that she thought did something. Thrawn smiled just a little at her presumption of it doing something, though he supposed he truly didn’t have confirmation it did nothing, and with Jedi devilry, he could not be sure.

“There is the possibility of Kestis being on Tund, but I find it unlikely at this time. I do not believe he has any interest in art, even of his culture,” Thrawn answered, “as far as I am aware, that is all that this bust is,” he let it turn on the hologram until the front faced Kayoi, and there he paused it. “The aurebesh reads Trennis, who I now believe to be one of the Lost Jedi, a concept I am not currently versed in.”

He was going by the Inquisitor’s slip.

He’d heard it was a figure of some respect on Tund. A lost Jedi could be one that had fallen to the Sith, and so could be a revered figure on Tund – enough for them to risk the Emperor’s ire by holding onto a relic the Emperor would have otherwise wanted destroyed. “As far as I know, it is a bronzium bust with no additional secrets, but that does not mean it is without them. I am still learning about the Jedi, and this will help my studies immensely.”

He knew that by saying it held nothing special, he was opening himself to ridicule for wanting it. He was accustomed to that by now. People just didn’t understand, and didn’t care to understand, either. He wasn’t going to explain further, only noted, “It’s held in a private collection by Ashala. I intend to pay them a visit to view it. You will accompany me as this will allow you to see what will need to be overcome in acquiring the piece.”

~***~

Fourth Sister had been right. The Jedi presented himself, ordering his companion on. It was a good thing Fourth Sister really didn’t care about his companion, nor did she even know who it was, as she called the lightsaber back into her hand, and illuminated the second end of it, moving it in front of herself – an oddly defensive stance for an Inquisitor, but Cal was speaking. Reasonable to hesitate and see if he would say anything useful.

Not to mention he was moving, working around her, and she allowed it, stepping along as well, keeping that careful distance.

Though it seemed he was more interested in getting information from her.

And then deciding it didn’t matter.

Before she could offer any sort of an answer, someone shot into the area. Fourth Sister let out a huff, lifted her hand, and threw some of the debris from the vent against the locking mechanism for the door behind Cal. It slammed hard enough against it to break it, which was the idea, as the door whooshed shut. It would stay shut and lock the Stormtroopers out. “Nuisances.” Their blaster shots were as likely to hit her, as they were to hit Cal.

Not to mention, until Cal could get up into the vents, it trapped him as well.

“As it doesn’t matter how I found you, you are correct – you’re the only concern.” Although knowing how he operated, she knew this wasn’t the end. There was still Cere out there to carry on anything he started, if she couldn’t get to Cere first. “You have a pattern, but I must say, I’m curious in the one you’ve chosen to liberate. What are they to you? There are no more Jedi to save.” An easy thing to say, and said with a playful tease as Fourth Sister submerged in that familiar feeling of darkness, the influence that drove her to push others to anger first.

Many Jedi lost their footing when they were angry. Easy enough for her to deal with, then.

Yet behind the mask, there was no teasing smile to go with the words. Her expression was fairly dead. Neutral. The mask prevented people from seeing that there was just no more joy in any of this – if there ever had been joy, and not just the all-consuming dark.

 

[BoomerangKarma]

Kayoi was taken aback by those words of his. It did nothing. She could not believe that this is what she had been called to do. “So…no fighting? Just gathering….art?” She questioned, as if to ensure she was hearing him clearly. This wasn’t some strange dream was it? It was beginning to feel like it was. Shaking her head at the thought, she still acknowledged what he’d said about the bust. “A lost Jedi, huh? I thought most of them were lost. For good.” She muttered.

They were always trouble, no matter whether it was a Jedi or a Sith. The Balosar had no interest in either side. However, the more the Grand Admiral spoke about it, she supposed it would be well worth the money. Hopefully.

“It’s just an art piece then? Now, I can definitely say I’ve never had to hunt down a piece of art for a client before.” Kayoi said, snickering in amusement at the idea. Of course, she didn’t get it at all. To her, art was just extra goods for people to show off their expensive taste, or riches. She could afford such luxuries most of the time, but she’d rather spend money at cantinas and on new, expensive armor and weapons.

As the Grand Admiral continued to explain what they’d do, the woman simply raised a brow. “So, you’re taking me to a museum? So we can steal this art? Okay, now you’ve got me interested. I’ve never robbed a museum, or a collector. Whatever this is.” The Balosar claimed, as she seemed to at least be thrilled by the idea now.

It was one thing to have her go find some art she considered useless, or not worth the trouble, but when it actually sounded somewhat amusing, well, that was enough to pique her interest. Leaning back further into the seat, the woman made herself only more comfortable, assuming their ride would be some time.

“Is there any other information about our mission I should know about? I mean…studying Jedi is one thing, and I may not understand it all, really, but you have got me curious as to why someone would look into them.” Kayoi questioned, before she continued to ramble on, mostly speaking her thoughts in the moment. She just couldn’t grasp why anyone would want to know a thing about them.

She was again reminded of the feeling she had around anyone who was force sensitive. The way her antennae were affected always bothered her. Gave her something similar to a headache at times. Where she’d come from, no one was a Jedi or a sith. You just worked in a factory, or owned one, and that was that.

—————

The woman’s words struck Cal like a hard blow, although he didn’t give off the impression that they did. He just wasn’t expecting such a response from her. Then again, the Inquisitors had all been mostly like this. The one’s he’d faced anyways. Staying defensive, he took note of her words. He had a pattern. He’d have to fix that, since he didn’t want to put his friends, his allies in danger.

“Not like it’s any of your business, but I chose him for a good reason.” The red headed Jedi responded, hoping that Glark had made it through by now. The poor Rodian was probably freaking out by this point, but he knew that he’d be helped out by Greez who was waiting just outside. For now, he’d have to hope things were figured out between them, and that he’d get a way out.

“He knows the location of an important Jedi artifact. Something not even any imperial knows about.” He finally said, a smirk tugging at his lips. More or less since he assumed the prisoner to be free, and even if Cal himself was captured or killed here, the others would find it. He knew they would. That this little mission of his wouldn’t be for nothing. Even then, he was sure he’d make it out fine.

“So, what are you going to do now? Kill me? I’m sure my friends already got that prisoner, and got him out of here, so it’s too late getting him now.” He added, almost as if to rub it into the inquisitor’s face. The redhead wasn’t going to attack first, even if part of him really wanted to. He wasn’t mad. Not yet anyways. All he cared about was Glark’s safety in that moment.

His own safety came after his. After all, Cal entered this prison knowing fully well that there was a possibility of him not escaping. There were a million reasons why he could fail, and he’d accepted that at this point. Even if he wouldn’t give up hope.

He’d fight until he couldn’t, and he’d try to escape until he was captured. That’s just the kind of person he was. Still moving in sync with the woman it seemed, he wondered if and when she’d strike. His eyes stayed on her form, watching for any sign of an attack.

It was strange, for a moment, he swore he’d felt nothing from her. As if there was nothing behind that mask of hers. A shell of a former person, if you will. Normally, he could feel something about someone, but this time, it was much, much different.

 

[Lucyfer]

There it was – the judgment. Just gathering art. Thrawn maintained a calm expression as he nodded at the query, and waited for more. Instead, she just commented on the state of the Jedi, which he couldn’t argue with. However, not knowing quite what ‘Lost’ entailed in this sense, he couldn’t make much of a comment, either. It would be a reason to have the Inquisitor around, but she, evidently, didn’t want to talk about it. She had disregarded his question quickly, after all.

“Not quite a museum, more a fancy gallery in a person’s home, as I understood it,” Thrawn clarified, “though I am sure there are museums in the future,” he had no qualms stealing from a museum for the greater good, and all of this was technically illegal to own. He was doing his duty to the Empire, and the Emperor would thank him in the end, even if he may not be allowed to preserve the pieces.

Which would be a shame. They should preserve some information about the Jedi so mistakes of the past weren’t made again. The conquered peoples should still be known to history by more than a name.

Laughter. Interest. Brow raised, posture relaxed.

Kayoi was, at any rate, relaxing. Even her continued questions showed more interest than criticism, though the criticism was there in the inability to understand why he wanted the art. Not that he’d explained it in depth. “Nothing further that will not be answered by our trip to the gallery,” he noted. “As my enemy is a Jedi, and one that has survived for so long, I believe it is prudent to study the Jedi. I’ve found many great insights to my foes before through examining their art. I believe the same will be true of the Jedi.”

Then he would find the key to finishing off Cal Kestis, and any other Jedi that troubled the Empire. Assuming there were many left. Which, it did not seem like there were, unless Cal and others were bringing up others in the old teachings of the Jedi.

Not that they’d be the same. Teachings in a diaspora were always different, where art and culture were lost.

“It seems you will be able to add to your resume after our missions together. In order to play the role of my companion to this gallery, I will have to request that you wear Imperial attire. You may have your choice of an officer’s outfit, or a Troopers.” He thought to say either would have a hat, but refrained. Wondered if she would ask on her own, or if she knew enough to assume the officer’s attire naturally came with that.

Given how infrequently some officers chose to wear it, it may not be a safe assumption.

~***~

Cal Kestis was good. There was a reason he lived where other Jedi died, and Fourth Sister could see that in the way he managed to give no indication of pain, or anger, at her comment about the Jedi who fell before him. Rather, he taunted her with additional information, about the prisoner knowing something of an artifact that had slipped the grasps of Emperor Palpatine. ‘As expected.’ Prisons and artifacts.

For that, Fourth Sister did not find herself goaded, nor interested in turning to try and catch up with this prisoner. “The others of your crew will fall in due time,” she answered, the play still in tone, even if nowhere else, “We all know how…fragile Cere is.” She had broken before in an Inquisitor’s chair, given in to the dark when confronted by her former padawan, but she had managed not to join their ranks.

She wouldn’t get to now, of course.

The Emperor had no need of new Inquisitors.

Little need of current ones.

“You will not convince me to spare your life to follow the trail. I am not Second Sister,” Second Sister was a cautionary tale in their ranks, a reminder not to go beyond the simple order: kill Jedi. Second Sister had opportunity – she had squandered it to take an artifact from Cal instead, and ended up losing both Cal and the artifact, in the end.

The thought of Second Sister was one of the few things to bring about fear – that reminder that she had to do better, and this was the moment. She had to defeat Cal or else…well, she supposed death here would be far more merciful than anything that awaited her.

What was there to lose? Strange how the fear faded just as quick with the forward rush and move to strike, only it was a feint, to be revealed before blades would clash, as she fully expected Cal to guard rather than move. Her intent would be to use that movement to guard – and failure in the lack of a clash – to move around him and try to strike him from the side with a reignited single blade.

Despite having two blades, and being trained in it, Fourth Sister always fell back to Style II, and the single blade, the techniques of the Jedi rather than the far more aggressive Sith.

 

[BoomerangKarma]

Now that was the strangest thing Kayoi had ever heard. “This person just let’s people walk into their home to look at art?” The woman questioned. She couldn’t imagine what lunatic would do such a thing. Either, this person was deeply naive, or didn’t seem to regard how easy it would be to steal an item like that, right under their nose.

Of course, if that was their first stop to collecting these desirable Jedi art pieces, then the woman had a good feeling about their mission. It almost sounded much too easy, which did make her think something might go wrong. You always had to be prepared for the worst, and the unexpected.

The Balosar’s interest arose the moment the Grand Admiral started to explain his interest in the Jedi’s art. Part of her wanted to make a sly joke ‘Remind me to never show you my planet’s art’. She refrained from doing so, knowing the issue that would likely arise if she did.

“That’s actually…the most impressive thing I think I’ve heard anyone say.” She admitted, giving a slight nod. “I’ve heard of all kinds of tactics…but if that has worked for you before, I’ve got to give credit where it’s due. Being able to look at someone’s art and just…know how to defeat them.” She continued. Sure, Kayoi was typically good with taking out her enemy. Whether it be through lowering their guard and playing it safe, or just going in, guns blazing. Tactics just weren’t always her forte.

The woman was beginning to allow her guard to drop, and to actually relax, believing this mission would be her easiest. The addition of working with the Grand Admiral would likely be a good point to get hired by other Imperial officers and the like. However, her momentary thoughts and relaxation was cut short as the man mentioned she’d have to wear other clothes. Normally, that would be no problem, if not for the fact that the hat was integral in hiding her alien identity.

“I do? Right….so, suppose I chose to wore an officers uniform, would that come with a hat? If not…I’ll stick with the trooper one. Preferably with a helmet.” She said, giving it to the Grand Admiral straight. She’d come up with an excuse, she always did. There wasn’t much she could do with hiding antennae though, especially when they moved on instinct, feeling, and emotion. Most of the time, it wasn’t even her own emotions they were reacting to.

For humans, she would imagine it would be like having a sixth sense. One that made you sensitive towards people emotions.

“It’s just I like keeping my head covered. Gets shot at too frequently. Normally on missions…I wear a helmet. It would feel weird without something there.” She lied through her teeth. She was always a natural at lying, but she always had a concern about lying to some imperial officers. Some could read right through you, without any effort in the world.

—————

The taunt at Cere’s behalf had angered Cal, just slightly. He wouldn’t allow it to over take him now, but he did find the jab to be one thing to push him. Just a little bit. He knew she’d be mad if he allowed himself to get angered by that. She’d tell him to never let it happen again. If he survived. For now, he listened as the inquisitor spoke. He still watched carefully for her movements, eyes flicking around her, but solely staying on her figure.

“I wasn’t going to try and convince you. You’re different than she was.” He pointed out. He could sense it. The redhead saw the attack coming, and didn’t have much time to weigh his options. The obvious thing to do, was to block. He could roll out of the way, and attack from behind, which would’ve been the wiser choice.

It wouldn’t have been fair though, and Cal preferred to do things fairly, unless he needed to absolutely pull a sneaky trick. So, he blocked with his lightsaber, allowing it to clash against hers. Feeling the heat from it so close to his face, he merely gritted his teeth and pushed on, taking the chance to maneuver himself out of the way, lowering his saber as he moved himself around the inquisitor.

At her right side, he took the opportunity to attempt a strike. It was a risky move, sure. She could deflect it easily, but if she moved too slow, it could land a blow, or at the very least potentially knock the saber out of her hand.

If he was being honest, he didn’t wish to kill her necessarily, but he would if he had to. He knew he’d have to fight, coming to this prison, he just wasn’t expecting to fight an inquisitor.

How she’d found him was still burning in his mind. He’d have to figure that out later, but for now, his focus stayed on the fight at hand. After all, one slip up, and it could be his life lost, and he’d let those he’d worked with up until this point down. He couldn’t afford to do that.

 

[Lucyfer]

Thrawn was a bit amused with the jump that Kayoi made, and it showed on his face as she assumed they were just going to walk into the person’s home. He intended to elaborate, but allowed her praise of his ability to roll over first, along with her concern for the uniform she would have to don.

He was right. She was concerned with the hat situation. ‘More than a nervous tic, then.’ Curious. Quite curious. “Imperial Uniform does come standard issue with a hat, though as you can see,” a casual gesture to his head, “some of us do not wear it,” it seemed the higher in rank, the less likely. He wasn’t sure he’d ever seen Grand Moff Tarkin in one of the hats. Thrawn had adapted to this, emulated that and other high-ranking figures to appear as one of them from even his earlier days.

Now he was truly among their ranks.

“So it is up to your personal preference if you will prefer an officer’s uniform or a trooper’s, although it sounds like your preference would be the troopers to better, ah, protect your head,” bullshit. He was fairly certain of that. There was no imagery or report of her using a helmet in the log he had.

It could be an oversight. He could allow for that – but he doubted it. She was over-explaining.

He rose from the desk, “As for our arrival – I actually requested a viewing time.” He had indicated four guests, as well, counting one actual crewmember, the hunter, and the Inquisitor. It wouldn’t be hard to add another member of the crew to the viewing party, or just nix it entirely and claim the fourth just wouldn’t be coming. He didn’t know if that would seem suspicious. In his mind, it would be; a missing person meant potentially someone, elsewhere, looking into the situation.

But he knew his mind tended to work in ways that were always suspicious.

“Come, I’ll show you to one of the barracks where you may find an outfit that fits your standards.”

~***~

Cal had been too quick with the guard for Fourth Sister to consider letting her blade vanish. She had to push back against him and ground herself, but did not forget that brief spike of anger she felt. There was one weak point. Then again, it was usually other people with Jedi. They always cared too much.

Cal broke away and moved back, only to strike again.

Fourth Sister ignited the second end to guard against the blow, turning with her saber to indeed deflect Cal’s blade up with the spin of the hilt. “At least you recognize the difference,” she said, before reaching up with her empty hand and pulling down on the vent with the Force to try and bring it crashing down on Cal.

After all – better to work from as many angles as possible. She knew it wouldn’t be ideal to let up the offensive anytime soon. Not physically, and not emotionally, “I wonder if the others in your group will be just as clever when I’m done with you. Likely not.”

 

[BoomerangKarma]

Kayoi felt instantly relieved at the Grand Admiral’s words. A hat was good enough. Of course, it depended on how big the hat was, and for how long she could cover her antennae before they got sore or started to get uncomfortable. Already, hers were, but she was used to wearing hats for long periods of time. Flattening the antennae so they didn’t move the hat, or peek out at any given time.

“Well…not that I’m against wearing trooper armor, but wouldn’t it likely be better for the mission if I didn’t look intimidating? If we’re visiting a person’s personal collection and all, a trooper would seem like over kill.” She admitted, although she was thinking aloud in the moment. She would’ve liked the helmet. It would’ve been a more secure cover for her antennae, but she realized it also could be too much pressure against them. That would likely give her a headache, or make her off her game completely.

She couldn’t afford to be off her game. She needed to leave a lasting impression on the Grand Admiral, should she want to have her reputation upheld and to continue gaining traction within the empire.

“Ah, I see. I’m going to assume then, that this collector has no idea they’re going to have imperials on their hands then?” Kayoi questioned, amusement in her voice. If there was one thing she enjoyed, it was surprising people. She couldn’t deny striking a bit of fear into people too was also always quite amusing. Maybe it was due to the fact she could sense people’s every emotions, and fear was such a powerful emotion she could feel the instant someone felt it.

Standing as the man told her to come with him, she brushed herself off and gave a nod. “Alright, lead the way Grand Admiral. I’ve always thought I’d look good in a uniform.” The Balosar said in a playful tone. Sure, it wouldn’t be her usual choice in clothing, but she figured as long as she had a hat, something to cover those antennae, she’d manage.

Looking towards the man, she still didn’t feel any emotion from him. Not that he likely didn’t. It’s just there was something off. She couldn’t read him at all. It left her at a grave disadvantage. Normally, human clients she could read, and if they got suspicious, she knew when and how to reassure them. The Grand Admiral was much different. She could only feel minor hints of emotions here and there from him, but it was mostly blank.

—————

“I wouldn’t be taking that as a compliment, if I were you.” Cal responded in a snarky tone, only noticing the inquisitor’s movement last minute. He narrowly avoided being crushed by the vent, rolling out of the way, and hopping back up onto his feet with ease. His heart was pounding at the near successful attack. He couldn’t stop thinking about how close it had been, yet he was thankful his reflexes were just fast enough to get him out of the way in time.

“The others were fine before I met them. They’ll be fine without me.” The redhead claimed, not letting the inquisitor’s words waver him. After all, he knew what she was trying to do. Just because he had one slip up, didn’t mean he’d allow it to happen again so easily. This time, he went in for an attack himself.

Knowing there wasn’t much he could do that the inquisitor likely hadn’t already seen, he decided to make a risky move. Take an idea from her, and use it to his advantage. He charged at her, before rolling to the side and behind her, before he stood up, and swung his saber at her with careful precision.

If he could back her up to where another part of the vent was, he could potentially use the same attack she’d attempted on him. It was risky, stupid even, but it was his one chance of getting the time to climb back into the remaining vents, and hurry through.

He felt as if time was ticking down for him. He knew Greez would wait for him, but they’d agreed if he got caught up, he’d have to leave at some point before he and Glark were captured to. If their time limit was met, they’d leave, and Cal was certain he’d get out of here soon. He just needed to play it safely.

Knock the inquisitor down for just enough time, and he’d hopefully have that moment to escape.

 

[Lucyfer]

Thrawn’s smile was a little tight, but not insincere for it, as he answered, “I may have been vague about my affiliations when I made the arrangements with Ashala.” He admitted, but had little intention of fixing that vagueness now. It was their own fault for not knowing the name ‘Thrawn’. He hadn’t hidden his identity.

Just…omitted details.

Kayoi remained more upbeat as she followed Thrawn out of his office, and through the ship. There was still a certain discomfort to her, but that was easy to pinpoint as the strangeness of the situation, an Imperial ship in and of itself, and the new clothing. She was unlikely, no matter her words, to be as comfortable in the uniform as she was in her own attire.

Thrawn did opt to try and relieve that, “I am afraid I will not be able to let you keep the uniform once our partnership is over,” he said, “but should you ever wish to join the Empire in a more official capacity, I may be willing to vouch for you – should you like the look of it that much,” he doubted it quite a bit. If she wanted to be in the Empire, she would already be here.

That she chose not to, but worked with them, was not a surprise. There weren’t many options beyond the Empire for bounty hunters and others, if they didn’t want to end up on the Empire’s hitlist themselves. Sure, the Hutts were an option – but the Hutts would one day be dealt with. Thrawn was certain of that.

“However, you may take the uniform and change in your ship, if you prefer, or I can provide a room on the Chimaera for the duration of our partnership,” few wanted that. They preferred the safety and comfort of their own vessel.

~***~

Cal continued to be willing to take the offense, and Fourth Sister stepped out of the way, but lifted her saber to guard when he instead rolled. “Tch.” No real irritation, though, as she turned her body in time to see his upwards swing from the roll. She did have to jump back, unwilling to try and block it in the moment.

A mistake, she’d learn soon enough, when she saw Cal mimic her, and she heard the crack of the vent above. She looked up, and made a hasty decision herself. She could have caught the vent with the Force, but she knew that would leave herself open, not to mention give time to Cal.

Instead, she ignited both ends of the inquisitor’s saber once again and with a shout hurled it spinning at Cal, before the vents fell. She was able to get her arms up above her head and crouch, to minimize the damage, but it definitely struck. Pain radiated out from her arms, elbows to wrists most of all, and her neck from the pressure, but she was far from out of the fight.

A push from the Force was all it would take to clear the vent debris off of her in every direction, and she had to hope that hurling the saber had cost Cal the seconds he may have desired in the fight – though she’d still have to get her saber back in hand, quickly.

 

[BoomerangKarma]

The Grand Admiral’s words gave the woman a laugh. Maybe he did have a sense of humor. Then again, maybe he really was being serious. “That’s quite the offer. I don’t exactly think I’m cut out fir Imperial life though. Too much hard work. Not enough down time to check out nice cantinas.” She responded honestly. Although, she of course had a much bigger reason for not joining the empire. She imagined if she was human, she’d likely have joined up. After all, she could see the advantages of joining.

There was a good reason after all, why she enjoyed taking jobs from the empire more than most clients anyways. Hutts were always trouble. Double crossing, always wrapped up in all kinds of crap. The last thing Kayoi needed was to be around the death stick rings again. As a Balosar, she was especially tempted by them, but as a kid got herself out of that quickly. She supposed temptation was her species greatest weakness.

“Yeah, I think I’ll stick to my ship. Not that I don’t appreciate the offer and all, but I’m just used to it more there.” The Balosar responded. Again, it was a half-truth, but she was fully aware that if she took up that offer, she’d have a higher chance of being seen as…well…less than human.

Sure, she was completely comfortable with being a Balosar. She had no qualms with it. It was just the awareness she had for the empires distaste for anything other than human. The Grand Admiral was a likely exception. But Kayoi herself? She would’ve likely been seen as nothing more than someone typical coming from her planet.

Not that she supposed the Grand Admiral understood that. Not that he’d ever know what she truly was.

“I’m truly surprised you’re giving me a choice. Not many clients would likely give me a choice, unless I threatened to back out of a deal for my own privacy.” Kayoi suddenly blurred out, although she supposed she was just trying to continue a conversation. After all, she was a nervous talker. She felt uncomfortable in silence, talking was something she enjoyed. Good luck ever getting her to shut up too, once you got her going.

—————

Watching as the inquisitor fell into his little plan. He knew he had only mere moments to act. The sight of her throwing her saber only made him act quicker. Avoiding them, he’d stepped closer to the vent, and managed to pull himself up, while he could hear the woman struggling just behind him. Using what time he had, he pushed through. His arms ached at the harshness in which he pulled himself in, but he knew he’d only have to worry about that later.

Once inside the vent, he pushed ahead, crawling through the remaining vents. “I’m on my way. Be ready.” He said through the ear piece, as he wasted no time in pushing ahead. He knew they’d have the inquisitor on their trail, but that wasn’t his top priority right now.

This time, he’d made it through the remainder of sector 3, and was halfway through sector 2 when he’d heard a few troopers below start shooting upwards at the vents just behind him. He cursed under his breath, and stopped moving for a moment. Looking behind him where new blaster holes remained, he took the chance, raised a hand facing behind him, and a few vents behind him, he slammed the vent down using the force, and knocked down a few troopers below.

Hoping it was enough to keep him safe for awhile, he pushed forward again, and kept moving, until he seen sector one come into sight. He could already see the faint light of the panel above still open from where Glark had likely already gotten out.

Cal felt instant relief, and felt a new boost of confidence within himself, now knowing for certain that his rescue was at least successful. That’s all he could’ve asked for in that moment, since this would be a great win for himself and the others.

 

[Lucyfer]

The response was typical. What Thrawn expected, if he was honest. A waving away of the offer by suggesting the desire for an easier life. Time to do things at their leisure. Many bounty hunters preferred making their own schedule, and it certainly worked for some of them. For others, who got too used to procrastinating, not so much. He did not know if this Kayoi was yet that sort, but he did not believe so, else he would not have hired her.

Just as it was expected she’d prefer her own ship, and again, ramble a bit. Provide too much, clearly covering something, as they reached the hall with the barracks. Thrawn’s brows lifted at the indication she had threatened to walk out of jobs simply due to a lack of privacy. “I was unaware privacy was so important to you. I shall keep that in mind. I do not wish to make you uncomfortable, that benefits neither of us.”

As they reached the ship’s barracks area, the door whooshed open and they stepped in. “There is no harm in allowing you to use your ship and reside in it. Your ship is within the Chimaera. By leaving now, all you would do is earn a blacklist on your name. I have no reason to assume that is your desire, do I?”

Though it was rhetorical, it was still poised, before he reached the officer behind glass in the room, and gestured to Kayoi, “She will need the use of one of our spare uniforms. She can provide her information.”

The Officer nodded, before he looked to Kayoi expectantly for sizing in order to grab the appropriate clothing for her to take.

~***~

By the time Fourth Sister was standing and had the lightsaber in her hand, Cal had already jumped back into the vent. She could chase him that way, no doubt, and the thought was there, but discarded. She turned to the door she had closed earlier and pushed her lightsaber into it, cursing herself a bit for locking it as she did. She had to cut her way through, but it would only be this door.

After that, she had far more freedom to move, and could catch Cal easier by sprinting through.

Although she had other plans, now. Not that they didn’t all lead back to executing Cal Kestis – and his path became obvious once that path was cut and she began to move through the prison, finding the vents knocked down in some areas, and troopers ahead listening for him, and shooting up at the vents.

She ignored them.

She ignored the vents, striding purposefully towards the exit, and hoping Cal saw – because she wanted him to think of what it meant if she got out of the prison first, knowing his allies were somewhere on the planet. “He’s in the vents,” was all she offered to the troopers nearby, gesturing up, though some had gotten the hint before. These did, and immediately began firing upwards.

She shifted then, pushing the Force through her body to gain speed, and bolted out of the prison, knowing Cal would lag behind by virtue of movement in a vent, and the Troopers likely to try shooting at him.

So, Fourth Sister made it to the Mantis first, a ship brimming with the Force, cloaked to the naked eye by some talent that she didn’t understand – but visible enough with the door opened for Cal. Not that it was Cal who was approaching, and one who stepped out of the ship was not pleased by that, coming forward with a similarly shaped blade as the Inquisitor herself.

“Cere,” Fourth Sister greeted, pausing to mock as she lifted a hand to place over her heart, “My, is that your padawan’s blade?” Second Sister, of course – Fourth wasn’t expecting to see Cere holding it. Nor did she expect the white blade that ignited on one end.

“Where’s Cal?”

“Dying.” She didn’t say dead. Cere would have felt that. “I’ve come for you now.”

“Like hell.” Cere was, indeed, quick to give into that anger and rushed in it, but with this kind of space, and with that anger, Fourth Sister had the advantage and danced around her attempt, even as she heard the Mantis gearing up to go. She ignored the ship for the moment, and stayed focused on Cere, letting her charge in her frustration and waiting until she could grab an opening

It came when there was a shout from the Mantis – one that distracted Cere long enough for Fourth Sister to knock the lightsaber out of Cere’s hand, and bring it into her own so it would be more difficult to call back. Cere stumbled a step back, and then quickly threw up a literal Force field when Fourth Sister thrust her blade forward.

It wouldn’t have been a problem, if the field also didn’t hold the lightsaber like glue, making it next to impossible for Fourth Sister to retrieve it. Not that Cere could do anything either, focused on maintaining that field. It brought a quick stalemate.

 

[BoomerangKarma]

“I appreciate that.” Kayoi said with a thankful nod. She personally was aware that she was lucky for now. Should the Grand Admiral pick up on something down the line, she hoped the last thing was her antennae. If that was found out, she was hardly sure how clients would treat her. Would loyal clients of hers back out, and never work with her again? It was a more likely possibility, she thought.

Following the man through the doorway to the barracks, the scoffed at his words. “And give up a well paying job? Never. I may be a smuggler, and a bounty hunter, but I’m no coward, and I don’t back out of jobs.” She reassured the man. Maybe part of her was a bit more sensitive towards the idea of being referred to as a ‘coward’ due to the stereotype those from her home planet usually received. She was far from that word, but before she’d chosen to hide her identity, she was frequently called many things, amongst that.

Looking ahead, she looked through the glass at the officer on the other side, before she looked over towards the Grand Admiral. At the mention of information, she again felt a slight bit of nervousness. If she didn’t play things out carefully, she knew she’d likely be figured out. So, she simply stood before the glass and slid an ID under the glass. “As for sizing…I can give you all of my measurements.” She offered. “It will save you the time and effort of doing so…just hand me a piece of paper and a pen, I can write it down for you.” She added, the officer seemingly fine with the suggestion, and slid back the pen and paper. She noted down the correct measurements, and slid it back.

For a moment, the person disappeared, and the bounty hunter stood in place, glancing over at the Grand Admiral. The silence was deafening, and Kayoi hated it. Adjusting her hat carefully, she cleared her throat. “So, being a Grand Admiral huh? What’s that like? Sounds like a lot of work…” she struck up a conversation, although whether or not the man would respond to her question, she wasn’t sure.

She was curious though. The Balosar knew next to nothing about what ranks did in the empire. Besides the obvious ones of course. She’d never really asked questions before. Most of the time, the clients she worked with weren’t always the most talkative, or if they were, they only discussed so much.

—————

Below, Cal peeked down, seeing the woman already charging ahead. Eyes wide, he again cursed under his breath, and climbed through the whole, not even bothering to move the panel back into place. He could see that the inquisitor had already made it to the Mantis, and he jumped into action.

Even with his body beyond sore, aching with every move, he charged forward, force jumping to give him at least a fair boost ahead. He could feel bruises forming on his arms and legs from banging around the vents, and he knew it would likely be sore for awhile, but he’d been through worse.

By the time he reached the mantis, he took note of what Cere was doing, and watched on before he waved her to follow. “Come on, Cere! We gotta go!” He shouted urgently, as he gave a sidelong glance towards the inquisitor.

His hand hovered above his lightsaber, ready to pull it out if he needed to. He doubted he’d have to, with himself and Cere there, they’d manage. Although, his concerns arose the moment he could see stormtroopers in the distance, running out of the prison to see what was going on.

Where he’d been grazed earlier by a blaster bolt stung, and he was reminded of the wound. Looking down, he noticed it had burnt through his armor, and there was some blood, not much, but enough to warrant him a bit of concern.

Cal figured whatever their next move would be, they’d have a chance to patch that up. At their last stop before this, they’d stocked up on more than enough medical equipment, so it wasn’t like they were unable to tend to it.

 

[Lucyfer]

Thrawn would have been hard pressed to call Kayoi a coward for backing out of this job. He might have considered it more a moral thing, rather than cowardice; some people just didn’t appreciate stealing art, no matter what the circumstances were. Still, he didn’t correct her. It could be the opinion of the bounty hunter guild of anyone who backed out of a job, no matter what kind of job that was.

And Thrawn wouldn’t be advertising what she backed out of far and wide.

Information for sizing was handed over, and the Officer left them alone for the time being. Kayoi didn’t seem inclined towards silence, asking questions immediately. Thrawn chuckled at the queries, finding some amusement in a question she was apparently expecting a quick and simple answer to. As if leading an entire fleet could ever be a quick and simple thing to explain, especially considering he hadn’t held the rank long.

Not that he was unfamiliar with such things. His history with the Chiss Ascendancy had prepared him for this. “It is indeed a lot of work, though it is what I am suited towards, the way I imagine you yourself feel you are suited towards bounty hunting,” he didn’t know many who took it as a “last resort” the way they would enlistment. “It involves plenty of micromanaging and macromanaging supply lines, munitions, and people, pilots, maintenance, troopers, and officers alike. It also involves planning battles on a grand scale, as well as a small scale, depending upon what is needed.”

He frowned, a bit, “It involves more politics than I thought it would,” which was a touch annoying. He still wasn’t good at politics, “although I have been informed that I do not need to worry about that as much, while Grand Moff Tarkin favors my progress.” This had not been told to him by Tarkin, but others. He was not sure if he should even be saying it, now that it was said, but that was a problem for another day.

“It is satisfying work,” he answered, “though I imagine you feel your own is that, as well?”

~***~

Cal wasn’t too far behind.

Fourth Sister wasn’t pleased with this, and disregarded his shout to Cere, who gave him a sidelong look as she held the barrier in place. Fourth Sister almost wished she knew what passed through Cere’s mind in the moment she decided to trust Cal’s words, and lower the barrier and shift her focus to pulling her saber back into her hand.

It didn’t work as Cere would have wanted, no doubt.

Because Fourth Sister went with the pull, and illuminated Cere’s own dual-ended white saber when it was between them. A foolish decision, but the sound of blasters from Stormtroopers told her that, at least, she might still have a chance.

Even though she’d burned a hole in her own abdomen.

She’d also burned one into Cere’s, and Cere was the one caught by surprise and stumbled back, releasing her focus on obtaining her lightsaber again. Fourth Sister managed not to falter and take a knee, but her arm still moved around her abdomen to try and cover it, all the same. A constant pressure from the Force pushed lightly against the wound. “Nice try.” And she hurled Cere’s white blades at the Mantis rather than keep it hostage.

'It's not...that bad...is it?' Then why was her vision blurring? 'Better than Vader....'

 

[BoomerangKarma]

Kayoi had expected a long answer, but the one she’d received left her eyes wide for a moment. That was…a lot. She couldn’t imagine having so much responsibility weighing down on her own shoulders. “Wow…” she’d managed to say before he continued on, bringing up the politics that were involved in his job. It definitely sounded like a lot, compared to the usual business that the Balosar herself usually had to deal with.

“That, sounds like a lot of work.” She finally added, before he’d asked her about her own work. She gave a chuckle, and nodded. “You could say that. I definitely enjoy what I do, which I can’t always say for a lot of people in my line of work.” She admitted, shrugging her shoulders nonchalantly. The woman wasn’t too sure about fellow bounty hunters, and what they thought of their own jobs. She never really sat down and seriously talked with any of them. Maybe just had a few conversations at a cantina over a few drinks, if anything.

“But, my personal belief is, if you’re going to have a job, you may as well enjoy what you do. May as well make things fun too.” Kayoi added, giving a playful smirk, before the officer returned with the uniform for her to wear. Hat thankfully included.

“Here you are.” The officer said, as she passed the uniform under the glass. Kayoi accepted the uniform with a nod. “Thank you.” She said, before she turned and faced the Grand Admiral. In that moment, she had just seemed to realize just how tall he was, as she had to look upwards at him.

“Alright. Well, I’ll go try this on in my ship.” She said, knowing there she’d have the privacy so her antennae would have a lesser chance of being seen. Just as the woman took a step forward though, she paused, realizing she didn’t know her way around the ship, and sighed, stopping and turning around to face the man once more.

“Which way is the hangar again?” Kayoi asked. Unfamiliar territory, that she’d have to get used to. She always was terrible with remembering the layout. It took her a few times to walk through it. Even though she could remember a string of information the moment she read it, or heard it. Sometimes, it made the Balosar feel completely stupid, especially at times like this.

—————

Cal watched the moment that the light saber had struck both women. His eyes went wide, uncertain of what to do in that moment. It wasn’t wise to get into the fight as well, but, he figured Cere was at a disadvantage now, and he’d have to at least help her back onto the Mantis as soon as he possibly could.

It was the moment the inquisitor threw the saber at the ship though, that the red headed Jedi’s instincts kicked in, and reaching out with the force, stopped it just in time before it did real damage to the ship. With it stopped in midair, it had only managed to scratch the ship, which he knew he’d hear about later, but at least it hadn’t damaged it any worse.

Throwing the saber to the side, just out of the inquisitor’s reach, Cal turned and faced the two women. He could tell the inquisitor herself was hurt pretty badly from the lightsaber getting through her own armor, and that left him to deal with Cere. He ran to her side, using the time to their advantage, and lifted her up, putting his shoulder under one of her arms, and kept her upright.

“Let’s get out of here while we still can.” He spoke, as he avoided some blaster fire aimed at them, and he pulled Cere up into the Mantis and sat her down as soon as he could, looking over her own injury. Placing her lightsabers down at her side, he cursed knowing they’d have to patch her up, due to the terrible damage she’d sustained.

Then, there was his own shoulder that still hurt from the blaster fire from earlier. Looking at it, he noticed it was still pretty bad. Blood soaked through his clothes and armor, and the sight made him curse again.