Chapter Three
I'm not getting my hopes up, neither should you.
Those words echoed in Raynar's ears as he waited with the others, eager to step foot on the surface of Telos once again. Destroyed and in ruins didn't matter to them. It was still home.
Raynar looked sideways at Kayl, as they stood there waiting to depart the ship with the others. This was his home too, although he hid his emotions well. Truth be told, it was stranger to think of this as he stood there, dressed as everyone else. When Raynar had met him, he was a decorated General in the Republic Navy. The famous son of Bennath Tyris, Admiral and head of a very prestigious Telosian family. Now, he did everything he could, not to be recognized by anyone on his homeworld. No, today he was simply the bodyguard of an actress from another world.
The young man's eyes shifted to the others. He hadn't seen the actress yet but he knew who she was. Everyone knew who Urela Olenta was. He'd seen bits and pieces of the holo films she'd been in but he'd never actually spoken to her. He didn't really care, to be honest. He knew that she was vital to Kayl's plan.
Raynar looked at Kayl again. Although he was dressed as the others were, in the muted tones of Urela's security team, he seemed to stand out. Perhaps it was because his aura was so different than those around him. He had been so high above everyone for so long… even if he wasn't anymore, it didn't mean that he lost who he was. He was just so much bigger a person then everyone else… and that meant more to Raynar than fame ever would.
Raynar adjusted the bag on his back and shifted uncomfortably as the others joined them from the bridge. The actress and her little entourage. Kayl was supposed to pose as her bodyguard but he'd changed the plan at the last second. Now it was Rinn Avree. The Kiffar brute of a man looked even stranger then Kayl did, in their muted blues and greys. Raynar didn't even think he'd ever seen Rinn wearing sleeves before. It was strange. He looked stiff. Uncomfortable.
No one spoke. They all knew what they were supposed to do.
Rinn stood next to Urela as the loading ramp lowered and the doors opened. Behind them stood Kayl and Raynar with three others of Kayl's choosing. Everyone else belonged to the actresses' entourage, and toted manageable relief items while the droids were supposed to unload the cargo bay of supplies.
Once the doors opened and Urela strode forward to meet the waiting delegation of tired looking relief workers, it was obvious why Kayl had chosen to ask one of the best actresses' in the galaxy to help them. Within moments she had a crowd of people around her, no one looking at anything but her bright face. Young and old, tired or hungry… they clung to her every word and she treated them like they the most precious things she's ever seen. She held hands and cried with the people, giving children hugs and asking everyone what they needed most. To each one, she promised to provide those things. She vowed to help find lost loved ones and grieve with those hurting. She was like an angel. It didn't matter how cliché that sounded, she absolutely glowed in comparison to the tired and heartbroken survivors.
And Raynar? He just stood there, helpless. He'd never seen a worn torn world so soon after the battle before. He'd seen remnants of attacks. He'd seen action and lived with orphaned children on the streets, but he'd not seen hollow looks like that which resided in the eyes of his fellow Telosians. It was a look of such blank horror. No one had seen this coming. It shook him to his core. He couldn't move.
Beside him, Varin put her hand on his shoulder and gently nudged him forward, forcing him to find some footing.
"Stay next to me." She advised in a tone that was not to be taken lightly.
He numbly complied, moving slowly at first, unable to take his eyes from the sad survivors weeping in a herd around Urela. How did she stand it? Everyone pawing at her, weeping and begging for help… it made Raynar's skin crawl.
With the sudden arrival of a man with the uniform of a TSF Officer and security team, Urela and her companions were extracted from the crowds and lead towards the larger collection of tents.
"Varin."
Both Raynar and Varin looked at Kayl as he stopped next to them, slinging a bag over his shoulder as he kept a close eye on the TSF and where their attention lay. Thankfully he was not recognized.
"Stay close to Urela." He told her discreetly. "She plans to split the party and return with us later. I'll meet you on the ship."
Raynar felt immediately anxious. "But-"
Varin held a hand out and stopped Raynar from moving. She gave a nod to Kayl, and looked at Raynar pointedly.
"Yes, General." She said with a serious tone.
Raynar frowned, immediately feeling shamed and dropped his eyes to the ground.
When he looked up again Kayl was gone.
Kayl checked the coordinates and looked around. Thankfully this area didn't seem too badly damaged, that or it had been one of the first places hit and it had time to sink into a forgotten bubble opposed to salvageable housing.
He activated his comm. "You sure these are the coordinates?"
The droid from the ship replied without hesitation, his voice a little tinny over the comm device "106 metres head, on your left. The last known residence of Martos and Sarrin Skidder."
Kayl walked on ahead and turned, staring at the simple row housing, now half caved in. It obviously had once been a pleasant looking corner home, with a little yard space and garden to the side. Big enough for three families on some worlds. They had done alright for themselves it would seem.
Unfortunately that didn't even begin to explain why they had a son lost on another world and somehow forgotten him. After decades of knowing the importance of trusting his gut, Kayl just knew there was something off about this place and the family that had resided here. The pieces didn't add up.
Still, he headed for the easiest way in- a partially collapsed front wall. His plan was to find any salvageable memories or, worst case, a body. There were relief workers doing their best nearby, but there was no way they could be everywhere at once. Still, this was risky, just breaking into the house and hoping for the best but Kayl was careful.
The damage to the front of the house was substantial, leaving barely anything worthwhile intact. With ease, he climbed through the front wall and looked around at what had been the sunny front rooms. A kitchen was to his right and barely anything was left of that, so he headed left down a little hallway towards a larger living space. This room, thankfully, was almost untouched by recent events.
"Droid. These houses typically only two stories around here?" Kayl questioned, his comm to his lips, as he surveyed the dust covering everything.
No one had searched this home yet. Everything was left as it had been. Rather unexpected but this was greatly in their favor. Thankfully they had arrived when they did. A few days or weeks later and this place would of been stripped clean.
"On occasion. However, several homes on this street were constructed with private storage units underground as well as a secondary floor."
"This one had one too, didn't it?" He questioned, bouncing a little on the main floor, something felt off. The floor under his feet felt like decking. There was an empty space under him. Protected and sealed off from the rest of the house.
"You are correct in your assumption."
"Where's the access?" He looked around the room, looking for an obvious door or access hatch.
"Ten feet to your left."
Kayl directed himself to the spot he was told and wasn't surprised to see it covered in rubble. It took a few minutes but he cleared enough of it to reveal an access hatch discreetly hidden under a heavy rust coloured rug. The hatch opened to a narrow stair, which then lead into an almost undisturbed basement. Nothing out of the ordinary explained why this place was hidden.
He spent a few minutes picking his way through various things, normal family items and extra storage, until he found a box on a back shelf which was labeled 'for the children'. He opened it up and found a small pouch of credits alongside a datapad. He activated the datapad and found, essentially a Will. Along with a rather cryptic message from both parents to their boys.
He would, of course find a way for the brothers to collect all of these belongings but he knew the odds of everything valuable arriving at all were slim. Having seen this happen before, he knew enough to grab the most prized possessions amongst the boxes, as he had done above ground. He found a few trinkets that he stashed in the bag over his shoulder but there was very little here besides the Will and a holo or two.
Disappointed there was not more for the boy who wanted his family back, Kayl turned to leave when an uneven crack in the floor caught his attention. It was back in the room, far away from the door but its' perfect line caught his attention for some reason. He had a feeling there was more to this place from the get-go. Could this be the extra something? He moved the stack of tenting fabric, thick and durable, to reveal another access hatch. He opened it to reveal a storage space big enough to store a medium sized weapons crate.
Laying there, perfectly undisturbed, was an ornate wooden box wrapped loosely with brown fabric. The box was roughly the same size as the box of datapads they'd just recovered but absolutely unlike anything he'd seen before. It was shallow, but beautifully carved. This was not meant to be found by just anyone.
His comm chirped, alerting him to the fact that would of located someone willing to help find the Skidder family. Kayl was glad to know this but as his eyes regarded the ornate box. Something about it just… was not right.
He removed the lock and opened it.
Urela Olenta, the raven haired beauty from Alderaan, stood in the doorway of the tent looking out over the staging yard for new supplies. The supplies they had brought were just being unloaded now. She watched with a careful eye, shielding her eyes from the glare of the sun with her right hand.
"Rinn?"
The large man left the crate he'd been sitting on and strode over to her. She gestured to a collection of workers with her chin. Not moving her hand, nor her fixed gaze, she directed his attention to them. He followed her gaze and snorted when one of them pocketed something, rather sloppily. No one noticed but them.
"I'll take care of them." He promised, moving to go now and deal swift justice.
She lowered her hand, and brushed a finger against his sleeve, halting him. They watched another moment, others coming to join them in picking through the supplies. The man whom had hidden something in his pocket was joined by a dirty Twileck child. Withdrawing the item from his pocket, the man handed it to the child and pointed towards a mother, breastfeeding her baby on a crate nearby, with a hauntingly empty look in her eyes. The child scurried over to the woman, handing her the item and receiving a teary smile for her trouble. It was merely food.
Urela exhaled a little sigh of relief when Rinn looked at her again, surprised.
"How did you know?" he asked quietly, rather in awe of her wisdom to wait.
She smiled lightly. "My father always told us… 'better to be patient and see the whole picture than act rashly and be labeled a fool.'"
"Wise man."
She nodded lightly but did not say anymore on the topic. Instead she turned her head, glancing back at Varin and Raynar chatting quietly with one of the relief workers. They were trying to provide as much information about Raynar's family that could help them locate them.
Rinn noticed this. How the actress' gaze became fixed upon the youth. Surely she had questions, and yet, she did not ask them. Instead she turned her attention to those gathered outside.
"There must be more that we can do to help these people." She remarked, her voice quiet. Reserved.
"Honestly, we've been lucky to get this far. There are proceedures for situations like this, and we're not following them." He replied, with just as much regret. This he knew for a certainty. Maybe he hadn't been military, like Kayl and his friends but this Rinn knew. "I've seen worlds like this before, when the Mandalorians rolled through. It will be months, if not years before these people can resume some resemblance of their lives. Some might never recover."
She was quiet for a time, thinking. "If I could get a message to Alderaan, I am sure I could persuade them to hear reason and lend a hand... with luck that might move things along."
Unfortunatly the Kiffar man had a different opinion. He'd seen how things worked. It wasn't that simple. It never was. There was always too much going on behind the scenes. That was one of the reasons he'd seen so much promise in Kayl Tyris. He didn't believe the lie of bureaucracy any more than he did.
"I have orders that only take us as far as finding that kids' family. No more, no less. What you do after we achieve that, is up to you, miss." He told her as kindly as he could without causing offence. "But I wish you luck, if you decide to tread that long road."
Urela nodded. She expected as much. In the past she'd dabbled in relief work, but nothing to this scale. She knew the reality of things as well. She'd watched others attempt the impossible. Here though she had a very different job to do too, and she would complete it to the best of her ability.
She turned towards the others and caught their attention.
"Any luck?"
The relief worker blanched a little, under the actress' fixed gaze. "Its… uh… difficult to say, Miss Olenta. There are so many residents to process. So many unaccounted for."
"Then let us help." She declared, walking over to them and requesting the datapad, which was relinqished hesitantly. Obviously no one could say no to her.
Rinn bit back a smile at this take charge attitude and caught Varin's eye.
The fiery redhead stood, leaving the bumbling worker to Urlea to deal with, and walked over to him.
"She's right." Rinn spoke quietly, once Varin was at his side. "This it taking too long. Kayl will want answers soon."
Varin surveyed both inside and out of the tent before she spoke. "We knew this would be a long shot."
"We haven't tried everything yet." He returned, questioning himself for their next move.
"The more time we waste here, the more likely we'll miss an opportunity somewhere else."
Rinn couldn't disagree with that. They needed to try something else. "Suggestions?"
Varin watched Urela question the worker a moment before replying. "I'll take Skidder to where they've housed the children, question them directly, while you take the princess to question the whereabouts of the parents."
That was obviously the best idea.
"I'll let the General know the change of plans."Rinn told her, stepping out of the tent for a moment and signaling Kayl on the comm. They were done wasting time, that much was obvious.
Varin turned back to the others.
"Raynar, get your bag."
Raynar looked upset, obviously, dragging his feet a little as he obeyed her. She was going to send him back to the ship, he just knew it. He didn't want to go. He wanted to stay.
"Varin." He pouted, grabbing his belongings and following her out of the tent. "Please don't make me go back to the ship. I want to stay."
"Who said anything about a ship?" She questioned, throwing on a little smile to ease his sadness.
Immediately his demeanour changed. His eyes brightened a little.
"You're not sending me away?"
She chuckled. "Kark no. Come on Skidder, have a little more faith in us then that."
She picked up her feet again and headed off briskly down one of the muddy throughways, Raynar trotting along behind her. It took him a minute to catch up with the long strides of Kayl's old sharpshooter companion but when he did, he was full of hope. She was evidently on a mission.
"What are we doing?" he asked, finding a manageable rhythm next to her.
"Probably something stupid."
Raynar grinned.
Now they were getting somewhere.