Chapter One: A Simple Beginning
"Ugh…" The Republican pilot, Carth, groaned as his eyelids fluttered open, his vision was blurred and it seemed like he'd been out for hours, when in reality it had only been minutes. Lifting his hands from his lap, as they had long been off the bar above, he unbuckled himself and rubbed at his eyes, blinking once or twice to get the most out of his vision.
Easing himself forward from the seat, he shook his head. They'll be on us in minutes. Carth Onasi focused his eyes on the limp form before him, the recruit he did not yet know the name of. Her body was motionless, at first he would think she lacked breath, but eyeing her closely would allow him to realize she was alive, not exactly well, however. After examining her frame, he would notice how loose the buckles were of the seat where she was placed. He frowned, if only he had gotten her aboard the pod sooner, perhaps they wouldn't be in this predicament.
He would think on this later, perhaps, at the moment he had his mind more stuck on how he was going to get the two of them out of this mess, and without anyone noticing them. Pursing his lips, he extended both appendages towards the young woman, unbuckling her. Sliding both hands over her arms he pulled her small frame into him, and stood, picking her up with no trouble at all.
After surveying the inside of the pod, not allowing himself to leave anything behind, he exited the pod with as much stealth as he could muster, luckily it was the dead of night and there seemed to be few and far between Sith patrols, but there was a grouping of people gathering, and soon it would be a overzealous crowd.
Quickly, he made his way to the nearest building; apartments, he guessed. He stuck to the shadows while nearing closer and closer, figuring the Sith would find it suspicious that he was carrying around the limp form of a woman around the area of where a pod had just dropped from the heavens above moments before. Suspicious, indeed.
He edged towards the doors, entering as they automatically slid open. Shifting his weight, getting a better hold of the woman, he threw a glance over his shoulder. Perfect. A certain door had caught his attention, and he edged closer. The sign upon it read, "Evicted." This was just what he needed to hear, or rather, read. "What are the chances of that…" He mumbled; he hadn't had such luck since, well, ever. He shrugged off the feeling and eyed the door, "This could get a little more-…"
Carth turned quickly at a tap on his shoulder, he would've jumped had he not had self control. "Why, hello there." Before him was a feeble old man, as Carth eyed him from head to toe he would make a guess that he was possibly some sort of servant for the building, a janitor perhaps.
"Uh, er… Greetings." Carth gave a slight nod of his head; he would've shaken the man's hand to be friendly if it wouldn't involve having to juggle the woman.
"What you got there?" The elderly man eyed the young woman, tapping a boney and liver spotted finger against his chin. "Late night? Need some rest?" He winked, "Your lady can't hold her drink too well?"
Carth found himself nodding along to every question the elderly man posed. "We need somewhere to stay, you see. We were kicked out of the Cantina for," He forced a chuckle, shifting his weight as the woman groaned, pressing her cheek against his chest. "who knows how many times." He grinned, and the old man returned quite the similar expression.
"You got a friend who lives in these here apartments?" The elderly man's expression crinkled into a sort of suspicion, his eyes not leaving Carth once.
"Of course I do!" Carth exclaimed, releasing a bit of a chuckle. "Why else would I be here?" There was a hint of uncertainty in his vocals, though he was positive the old man didn't catch it.
"I see… well, don't go disturbing others in the building with any drunken antics." The suspicion was vanquished by that bold grin once more.
"You can bet your bottom dollar I won't be, sir." Carth said truthfully, tiring of carrying the woman. The old man had begun to hobble away, saying a short farewell over his shoulder. Carth watched, mindlessly, until the man had turned the corner a short distance away. He breathed, Too close. He put the nameless woman down upon the cold floor, reaching into one of the packs which had been slung over his shoulder, shuffling through the contents inside. It wasn't his, no, it was the other's. Finally his hands found something of use. From the fabricated pack he pulled out a single piece of wiring. Lifting it to eyelevel, examining, would prove it was some form of pick. He eyed the female at his side carefully. Ask questions later. Precipitously, he worked on the lock, cursing at failed attempts until he at last slid open, it didn't do so easily and would emit a few clicks and tones, but it did so none the less. Carth, again, picked up the form of the woman, taking her inside before closing the door behind him. He viewed the room.
The barren walls were painted a bright, and somewhat tacky, scarlet, and the flooring as much the same. Oddly enough there was a workbench; Carth figured they could make use of it during their short stay. He hoped it would be short, at least. There were but two beds, two footlockers on each side of the room, a door which Carth guessed led to the "bathroom" vicinity and a table directly in the middle. "It'll do." He nodded to himself, looking down to the peacefully unconscious woman.
Placing her upon one of the two beds, pulling a single and dusty cover over her form to keep her from the chill, he watched her curiously for a few moments. Who is she? She didn't look at all familiar to him, yet he'd seen most of the grunts. This was going to cause him some annoyance. She was quite the pretty thing, he thought to himself, beautiful… gorgeous even. She didn't look like, from size and facial features, she was the type to fight. Yet, she handled herself perfectly well on the Endar Spire. Now this curiosity was burning a hole through him. Where had she been trained? Where was she from? What are her specialties? His lips pursed, he was going to be working with her after all. He should know some background information.
Then it came to him, the datapads. He picked up one of the packs which he had so diligently taken from the crash site, and sifted through the items. Upon retrieving a datapad, which appeared to be hers, he skimmed through some minor information about her, nothing too important and huge on the scale. Her name was Vislyn Lana; she was recruited into the Endar Spire at the last moment because of her scouting abilities. She was ten years his junior, making her twenty-eight, and was from the planet Naboo. Sitting himself down at the table, he continued to read through her service records, learning more and more about this mysterious 'Vislyn Lana'.
It seemed like he'd only been reading for an hour, but in reality it was about five, there were records upon records of useless information that he felt intrigued and inclined to read. Placing the datapad upon the table, he ran a hand over his face, a yawn escaping parted lips. Both arms stretched themselves out, and soon enough he would find himself upon the bed opposite to Vislyn's, dead asleep.
"N-no… Go a-away! I… you… NOOOooo!"
Carth shot up, reaching for both his blasters at the screams and commotion. He never did grasp those blasters, and he wouldn't have either. He crawled out of bed, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as he watched Vislyn, the once peaceful woman, toss and turn, tangling herself within her sheets. Her face was covered in a cold sweat, he could see, and he features would twist into those of a tortured soul now and then as she struggled endlessly.
He reached forward, though just as he did she stopped abruptly, laying there, panting, yet still within that deep sleep. "Perhaps she has a high fever…" Carth whispered, soaking a cloth within the bathroom before placing it upon the woman's head delicately. She sighed just as he had done so, and her breathing slowed to it's usual pace. He sat down, watching for close to an hour before he felt it was alright to leave her be for awhile.
With one final glance in her direction, he exited the apartment, and the apartment complex, with intentions of scouting out the surrounding area.
Carth's hands sunk into his pockets, his walk was casual and his expression was neutral. He didn't know this planet very well, but what he did know disturbed him. A lovely city above, beautiful scenery and rich snoots, prepared to snub anyone 'below' them, lower cities filled with gangs and, of course, the Under City, not much did he know about that, perhaps he didn't want to know.
Morning had just set in and the first hustle and bustle of people had just appeared. People, of all 'rich' class, he was sure, surrounded the pod, yet Sith demanded they go elsewhere, he guessed they were pilfering what Republic information they could get from the damned thing. Carth really didn't need to know anything more about the pod that he himself, and Vislyn, had crashed upon the planet on, so he moved on, trying not to look too conspicuous with the paired blasters at his sides.
There wasn't much to learn about Taris, at least not where Carth was searching. There were a few thugs, here and there, shady characters hiding under the shadows of towering buildings, and Sith patrolling back and forth, back and forth. It was actually quite dull, a disappointment even. There was no information, either. Asking around about Republic space pods was like asking a bantha how many toes it had. Frowning, Carth made his way back to the apartment complex, in no hurry or rush, yet eager to see if this Vislyn had awakened as of yet.
"Get a glimpse of this guy." Carth heard the comment over his shoulder, but didn't bother turning around. It probably wasn't directed at him, anyway.
Another voice sounded, "Hey! Look. What a coward, just keep on walking, buddy." The two voices, different in many ways, molded into one fit of laughter.
"Just look at those awful clothes, must be trash from the lower city." Now he was slowing his pace, turning slowly to face the two who were not but a few metres away.
"He must think he's a big man, holding those two blasters like that." The shorter of the two chuckled, his expression was of mock disgust towards the Republican soldier. "Oh look, he's turned around. Ooohhh! Big man, big man. What you going to do? Dirt us to death?" Both of them burst into yet another fit of laughter, Carth failed to see how these cheap jokes were so hilarious. He merely quirked a brow, I suppose the high-class folk need their entertainment as well.
The other, lithe and quite pale looking, broke away from the laughter, sneering at the one who was 'beneath him'. "You're not welcome up here, scum. These are our streets, Sith blockade or no. Go back to the lower city where your trash belongs."
"You tell him, Yavik!"
Carth eyed both of them, left to right, up and down, and finally released a chuckle, stepping closer to them. "Look. I'm not here to start trouble, but obviously you are. Why don't you go home and hide under Daddy's pile of credits and let the real men, the men who can actually make a living, 'own the streets'." He snorted, taking another step closer as the two opposing took a step back.
"You… you… Argh!" Yavik fumbled over words before lunging at Carth, taking a swing at his jaw. But Carth saw it coming, and he'd ducked just in time. The young man tripped over himself, falling onto the ground behind him, and he shook his head.
"Headstrong kids these days, when will you learn?" Yavik's friend dare not approach, he just muttered unheard curses and insults in the pilot's direction, and he simply shrugged. Turning back in the direction he was headed, towards the apartments, Carth continued on, whistling a familiar tune all the while. He would stay by Vislyn's bedside, until she was well enough to go with him.
The slicing of lightsabres colliding with each other sounded, the buzzing seemingly driving into her brain; Vislyn's brain. She was not there, however, it was as if she was a disembodied presence, watching, waiting, observing, even if she had no urge to do so. Two Jedi, one clothed in garments of tans and browns and the other in the darkest of ebony and grey, fought between the two, showing extreme skill in handling a lightsabre, if it were possible, Vislyn would have stared in awe.
Their faces were unclear, one being shadowed behind a hood and the other not being visible or clear in any point of time for Vislyn to see, it didn't matter, she supposed, or did it?
The two continued their battle, ducking and rolling, leaping and kicking, until the better of the two triumphed. With a single stroke, the one donning browns and tans cut down the other Jedi, the Dark Jedi. Her face was more clear now, more familiar, as if she'd seen it many times before. Again, Vislyn was unsure if this mattered or not, so she didn't think another thing of it. The face, that of a woman around her own age, wasn't even flustered, and she appeared to open her mouth to speak but again, the image was lost, the dream subsided and Vislyn found herself in a void of darkness.
A chill ran through her body, and she stiffened. So cold… so alone. She thought to herself, unable to see a thing. But no, a face emerged from the darkness. That face, that oh so familiar and dreaded face. Her face. Her breathing quickened and she took a step back. "Get out of my head. GET OUT!"
That menacing laugh rang through all corridors of her very mind; it tormented her, an endless torture, just the very sound of the voice. She opened her mouth to scream, but her eyelids fluttered open, and she was suddenly free.
The room was a complete blur, all she could make out were the colours scarlet and metallic grey. This was unfamiliar to her, she had no idea where she was. Was she safe? Was she away from the horrid dreams? She shook her head, allowing her eyes to focus as she sat up in the bed. The sound of a chair creaking caused her to cock her head, falling into a defensive crouch after jumping off the bed. Actually, she made the attempt at the crouch, but was still in the midst of a daze. In fact, the room seemed to be a swirl of colours around her, in which case lead to her demise; she stumbled over her own two feet, tripped and toppled over herself.
She groaned, rubbing at a lump on the back of her head. It throbbed as her fingers made contact, causing her to flinch in pain. Eyelids fluttered open, at last, and she heaved a long breath, looking up as the image cleared ahead of her, eyes focusing. The man standing over her, donning what looked like Republican colours in an unobvious way, looked oddly familiar, though she couldn't place where she'd first seen him.
Vislyn noted that he looked confused yet entertained at her clumsy attempt at a defensive stance; she also noted that he made no attempt to grab the two blasters at his sides. But, they were there nonetheless, and he could use them if he saw the chance. "Good to see you up, instead of thrashing about in your sleep." He narrowed his eyes, slowly edging away from the table, she guessed he was trying to prove he had nothing to hide. "You must have been having one hell of a nightmare."
Vislyn was silent, she just stared at him, bewildered and confused well beyond disbelief.
"You," The man smirked, resting his chin upon his knuckles. "You don't remember me do you? Carth Onasi ring any bells? I-…"
"You were the one on the communicator, the one from the pod. Carth Onasi." Vislyn gave a shake of her head, brushing dark locks away from her cheeks. She pushed herself onto her knees, staring up with the same expression of bewilderment.
Carth nodded, waving her towards a seat. Vislyn stood, attempting to ignore the impeccable urge to vomit, edged closer and sat back in one of the seats, watching as he did the same. "You hit your head pretty hard in the crash; it appeared that you weren't buckled in very well. That's partially my fault," Vislyn quirked a brow, awaiting explanation. "I, uh… should've gotten you in sooner. We might not have been so rushed had we had the time."
"Ha." Both Carth's eyebrows raised and Vislyn leaned forward, resting a cheek against a single hand. "I don't recall much about the pod and our escape, but from what I remember it was my fault for taking so long. I barraded you with endless questions." Carth made no comment, just smirked. Vislyn, again, found herself rubbing at the 'goose egg' atop her skull.
He kept his eyes on her at all times, Vislyn didn't necessarily feel uncomfortable under his chocolate brown gaze, but she barely knew him, and it was as if he was already wary of her. "Now," Vislyn cocked her head, listening to him. "I'm assuming you're feeling better? You're finally awake, after two days of non-stop rest, so I'm positive that's a good thing."
"Two days?!" She decided against whining about the bump, having doubt that it would make any difference.
He nodded, again a look of amusement befalling his features. "Indeed. I didn't want to wake you. The most I felt I was right in doing was watching over you, making sure you didn't tumble off the bed and placing wet cloths on your forehead when you looked ill." Vislyn was thankful for that, and she gave a grateful smile; an unsaid 'thank you'. Though, she was still upset that they had wasted two days for her sake. Yet, she wasn't quite sure what their time should have been consumed of.
"You look… confused." Carth noted, tapping his fingers against the table as if he had all the time in the world to explain. "Questions, Vislyn?"
Vislyn narrowed her eyes, a suspicious glint in her eyes. "The only question I will pose for the moment is just how exactly do you know my name? I don't ever recall telling you," She paused before adding, "and you might as well go through what we're supposed to be doing on this rock, while you're at it."
Carth expression hadn't changed, and this furrowed Vislyn's brow. She was not amused. "What?" He looked over one of his shoulders, then the other. "Me?" He was obviously suppressing laughter. "Why are you giving me such looks?"
She sighed, rolling large eyes heavenwards. "Just answer the questions, Carth."
"Right, uh…" He seemed fazed under her glare, but cleared his throat and straightened up with a grin. "Well. I discovered your name from that little fantastic piece of technology," He waved his hand indirectly towards a lone datapad which lay atop the table. "I was curious as to why I'd never seen you aboard the Endar Spire, but I was just an advisor, basically, whilst on that vessel." A frown touched his lips now, as if he was thinking back, Vislyn was curious but she wouldn't let it show through. He continued, "We're on this 'rock', as you called it, to find Bastila. And we cannot leave due to certain Sith blockade."
"Hmm?"
"They're, the Sith, aren't allowing entrance nor exit to Taris for the time being. I'm assuming they're doing this to make searching for the Jedi Bastila all the more easy."
"How do we even know if she's alive or not?" Vislyn bit her lip, she hoped Carth would give her a straight answer. If she wasn't alive, what hope would there be for the Republic?
Carth was silent for a moment; he scratched his chin and seemed to be within deep thought. "Well, I can't be sure…" Vislyn sighed deeply. "Though, she iis/i a Jedi. The "force" gives them immense powers, immense powers that we most likely will never understand. I doubt, highly, that she's dead. And I'm positive we should get right on with looking for her."
Vislyn raised her head away from her hand, sitting the posture as she narrowed her eyes. "Did you get any leads in those past two days that I was out like a light?"
"I did talk to some of the locals." He winced, Vislyn was at a loss of knowing why. "They don't exactly like outsiders. Or rather, they don't exactly like outsiders that don't have the most credits." Vislyn rolled her eyes at the very thought, yet urged him on. "What I did find out, even after being insulted to the brink of my sanity," He gave a snort, "Is that there were more pods that crashed, down in the lower city or was it the under city?" Carth lifted his shoulders in a lazy shrug. Vislyn opened her mouth to speak, but Carth cut her off. "We should look around the upper city first. It would be wise if we do."
Reluctantly, she answered. "Alright." Pushing herself away from the table and chair alike, she ruffled her hair, her lip almost curling with disgust. "Though, first, I demand that I get myself cleaned up." She began making her way to what she assumed was the doorway to the bathroom, but tossed a glance over her shoulder towards Carth. "You should too." She sniffed, wrinkling her nose before making a playful exit into the well lit bathroom vicinity. I'm almost positive his sniffing his armpits now. She chuckled, turning on the water to prepare for a long relaxation before they would begin their "mission".