"Well that was a pretty easy job." Deltina, a Tybaltian, about the age of 20, walked next to her companion, a human male of relatively the same age. The girl walked the same as a human and held many of the same characteristics, except for the light coat of fur covering her entire body, the whiskers on her face, and the grace with which she moved. Her eyes were a strange yellow and her hands and feet, unbound, contained retractable claws. Small though they were, they were still sharp enough to rip out a man's innards. She wore little in the way of clothing, only a small, brown leather skirt with a belt knife and a few survival supplies hanging from it, as well as two small hilts, one on either side of the belt, and a small tube-top-like item above her waist, also of a beige leather. She was a brunette, although her hair was darker than the tanish hue of her fur. She stood only 5'3", yet she seemed to stand only a few inches when prowling, or at least double her height when aroused in anger or fury. But today she sauntered easily alongside her friend, seemingly not having a care in the world.
The male seemed to be entirely different. Standing a large 6'3", Arbinger, an albino male, also held yellow eyes, but his hair was white as the purest of angels, as was his skin. He wore long gray cargo style pants, baggy to give him the look of having more meat than he really had, since he had practically none. In contrast, we wore a tight fitting long-sleeve of a dark blue color, reaching up to the base of his neck and his wrists. Quite unlike the swaggering figure beside, he moved about almost in a creepish fashion, almost as if expecting an attack and ready to hide at any moment. His eyes, though, told an entirely different story, one of a man quite capable of killing any soul who crossed him wrong, yet wise enough to restrain himself. In one of his pockets lay a larger hilt than either of the one the girl carried, yet of the same make and style.
"It could have gone horribly wrong if I hadn't checked that room for traps and the like. They would have pierced you full of tiny little laser holes and you might have fallen to pieces," Arbinger replied. He darted his eyes to a man moving on the road next to him, and watched him pass with empty hands. "You really should learn to be less reckless."
"And you need to learn how to be less paranoid. Look at you! You're always expecting some kind of trouble to just pop up and bite us in the ass." The pair walked into a bar on the backside of town, plain and simple, if dirty and grotesque. "And besides, if I was less reckless, we'd both be paranoid freaks, and that would get us nowhere." She sat down on a barstool. "A whiskey and wine, finest brand you got of wine, strongest whiskey. Now look, we both came out alive and 10,000 credits richer, so would you stop complaining."
"One of these days, Deltina, I might not be there to blast all those turrets away. What will you do then?" He reached for the wine glass and sipped it. "Amontillado. Poe's finest," he muttered. He was quite the connoisseur of wine.
"Look," she suddenly got very serious, "don't say stuff like that, a'ight? You're not just gonna be gone one day. You always watch my butt from being bit, and that won't change. You hear me?" Arbinger only gave a small grunt, his universal reply to most everything, from the price of bread to the death of his own mother.
"Just don't always expect me to pull your ass out of the fire. I'd like to be able to be the one who has some fun now and then, too," and with this he gave a slight smile and took another sip of his wine. "Synthetic Amontillado. Nothing worth the price." He drained his glass with one shot. "But let's finish our argument somewhere less…public. We are here for a reason, and that wouldn't be bickering amongst ourselves. I got one guy who's looking for some help, but he's only just somewhat new to this. Too easy to work over, and probably some foolish pipe dream that would get us killed." Arbinger and Deltina, two masters of the lightsaber and Force, also had another identity, one much more known to the world. They were the ShadowLight Jedi, mercenaries with the powers of Jedi, and were often without want of a job. Someone always tried to give them a job the minute they set foot on any planet, but they knew there was better business to be had. Much more fitting work for two Jedi Masters. "There's also a much more discrete guy. Dangerous work is my guess, and pays enough. Probably our best bet. You see anything?"
"Nothing of import," she replied, scanning the room with too open of eyes. "Of course, we could always scope out some of the other bars or the street. Might offer better."
"Perhaps. But then again, maybe we should-" he stopped suddenly, mid-grab for his second glass of wine. Deltina downed her shot fast and looked at him.
"What? What is it?" Then she turned and faced the direction of his stare, and gasped slightly. Before them stood a man dressed in red. Royal red. He bore the signia of the ancient House of Rocknai, a very rich house residing on the planet Sigma IV. Any and all of its members were rarely seen outside the planet, much less this far in the civilized galaxy. Even more surprising to find one on Coruscant. His red robe covered an equally red vest and pants, both of strange design and make. Seemingly made of silk and wool at the same time, the garments appeared to take on the form of its surroundings, though having hard times with the walls of the bar. Arbinger stood to meet him and met him at slightly eye level to look into blue eyes of the noble. His hair was under a golden cap that seemed to resemble some cloth replica of a large crown. His face was smooth and darkly tanned. Sun was never a problem on Sigma IV. His eyes held a sort of piercing look, one that saw deep into a man's heart and read his every thought, word, and deed.
"My name is Kahama du Rocknai, Prince of Sigma IV and ruler of the Arbwignia province." His head gave a slight bend. Very slight. "I came to ask for your assistance in some business matters. I would find it wise you come and join me." Arbinger returned the prince's piercing blue gaze with his own yellow stare. The prince gave a disgusted grunt and turned to walk away, muttering something under his breath and fully expecting his new 'servants' to follow. Deltina stood to whisper in Arbinger's ears.
"He looks really good, but he just called us ignoramus sons of a goatless mother. I assume that's an insult."
"Quite an insult at that. Much worse than what you could think of." With that, they both walked out, Deltina with her swagger, and Arbinger with something of an amble, easily strolling along. He rarely did this and only did when he expected serious trouble. Deltina's eyes were the only things that gave away her easy-going presence.
They followed Kahama down a dark, dank alley. Quite surprised at this new turn, they walked to the end and found the prince standing with two very large men of enormous stature, both wielding laser axes with two pistols behind their belts. One was held loosely in Rocknai's hand, but he was poised to pull it up and fire quite quickly. He knew what he was about.
"Glad you could keep up. I try to keep a quick pace." Deltina let out a stifled grunt of amusement and contempt. The prince glared at her for a second before beginning to address Arbinger. "I've heard you are the two finest warriors for hire," the insinuation of their merit was not hidden from Arbinger, yet Deltina beamed openly, "and I wish to hire you for a very special and dangerous job. If you wish to leave, you must leave now. What I am about to tell you are some of the secrets of my House, and if you betray them, well, let's just say these men know what to do about Jedi." The grunts chuckled briefly before resuming their stone countenances.
"Jedi can take care of themselves," replied Arbinger. "How much are you willing to pay?"
"I am offering 500 million credits to the ones who complete my task. Interested?"
"Add three more zeros to that and you have a deal." The prince stared openly at Arbinger's cool reply.
"Thr-Thr-Three more zeros! That makes it 500 billion credits!"
"Well, if you've finished your sputtering, we have other clients to attend to. Good day." They turned to leave and began walking.
"Are you sure about this?" Deltina whispered. "I mean, 500 million can easily cover us for some time, but pushing like that and we won't find a job anywhere."
"He'll pay," he replied coolly. They soon reached the end of the alley and began to turn right before one of the guards came running up.
"The prince will offer half of what you ask and no more. A very generous offer, would you not agree?" Arbinger only stared at the man coolly for a few seconds before brushing past him to return to the prince.
"What do you ask of us?"
"Ah, a business man, I see." The prince rubbed his hands together eagerly, excitedly. "Well, kind sir, please, allow me to accommodate you within the confines of my ship, where we may discuss matter in a more …civilized environment." Looking around at the dingy surroundings, the prince then led through a small door behind him. The short passage led to a large personal spaceport, housing one cruiser, very similar to the Star Destroyer model the Empire of old used. Deltina stood slightly more erect and alert. Her parents had been killed by the Empire, orphaning her at the doorstep of a family friend, who soon led her to be a Jedi. The ramp opened to admit the five passengers, and within minutes, the ship was rising into the air and shooting off into space.