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Light in the Dark
Topic Started: Jun 6 2009, 01:24 AM (867 Views)
Cul
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Original Poster: Calin Riegal

Calin reached the bottom of the impromptu slide, landing feet first in the rather deep sludge at the bottom. By this point he was right and truly covered with filthy sludge. Just another day on Coruscant. He began to pull himself up when something hit him from behind, sending him face first into the sludge in front of him. He turned his head quickly to see Imogen on him, evidently having came down the slide in the exact place that he did. He let her help her up, chuckling slightly at the situation. He wiped the dirt out of his face with his slightly less dirty sleeve, at least improving it slightly.

"You're right, I think we're all covered by this point..." he said, before Jesera landed elegantly and expertly. "Except her...I suppose."

He followed Ra until they reached a point where there was many different off shoots to the chamber they were currently in. And Ra was....lost? He didn't seem to have a clue where he was going, and resorted to such means as trying to test the wind....underground. Just brilliant. But he seemed to come to a conclusion from his odd tests, and boldly announced the way they were to go. Was he just making things up as he went along? Calin honestly wondered whether he really had a plan to get them off Coruscant. Though, oddly enough, Calin followed anyway. Its not like he had any better of an idea where they were actually going. He followed next to Imogen, forming an unruly and very filthy pack that was following Ra's lead.

"Tell me, do you actually know where you're going? Or is this an exploration mission of the Coruscant sewer system. A fine goal, to be sure, but maybe not the best time for it."
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Original Poster: Sirk'ruk

At the groups rear Sirk'ruk skittered through the sludgy muck, doing his best to ignore the squishing of the refuse of a thousand species between his claws as he crawled through the repugnant sludge. The straightbacks appeared far too intent on what slippery, slimy surprise might await them around the next bend to bother watching for similarly slippery surprises approaching them from behind. Perhaps with that kind of negligence Sirk'ruk would end the night with a human skull necklace before the night was out, but the mystifying alien wizardry of this land was still a pressing concern. One of the humans could turn around and blast Sirk'ruk with a bolt of lighting and the warrior wouldn't blink a bony eye-ridge. That thought kept caution a priority.

Then, a snag. The wizard, Ra, led the troupe down a narrow chute, the entire group following without question. Sirk'ruk was tempted to do the same when his hunters instincts stayed him. From the sound that echoed back to the alien hunter from the bottom of the tube the humans had come out the other end of the chute unharmed. While good news for them, Sirk'ruk faced a predicament. He could try to crawl down the narrow, filth-slicked slide, but should his grip fail the Kroot would be hurled amongst his prey and probably killed on sight, and even if the humans would not raise a blade against a Kroot, Sirk'ruk couldn't promise that his bloodlust wouldn't get the better of him.

On the other hand, if he waited for silence there was a chance that the humans would escape, or worse, lay a trap for their other pursuers. "What options! Stay up here and die honorlessly, or go down there and die honorably." Sirk'ruk contemplated, reclining onto his haunches at the entrance to the chute. Then, he had an idea based out of an old Kroot philosophy. If option A and option B both lead to certain death, don't remove the options, remove the certainty and invite chaos. For a time Sirk'ruk would have to swallow his pride, sheathe his blades, and use the one weakness these humans had to which Kroot are not susceptible. The emotion of pity.

Sirk'ruk closed his eyes, took a few deep preperational breaths, then with a howl the Kroot tossed himself down the refuse chute, face first, speeding towards destiny.

Down at the opposite end of the chute, a trickle of sludge began dribbling from the tubes mouth. With the steady drip came a sound, initially mistakable for the rush of sewage until its steadily increasing volume identified itself as a fearful howl. The sound grew louder and louder, and the trickle of sludge thicker and thicker, until with a nearly comical "woosh" an indiscernable jumble of claws, limbs and sludge spewed from the chutes mouth, landing a short ways behind the group with a splash. After a moment of motionlessness, the gangly being began to rise from the muck...
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Original Poster: Ra Cul

Ra turned, about to tell the group behind him to keep the noise down, irritation showing on his face. When the splash of muck that accompanied the howling noise slowly rose to it's feet, Ra shrugged. "Oh. it's just you. Do try to be quiet, eh? We're trying to sneak away from those people up there." Ra pointed absently up in the direction of the shute, as he eyed the Kroot with some amusement.

He turned, pointing this time, in a different direction. And began to lead the way. "Of course I know where we're going, old chap. No need to be insulting about it. There is always a plan. You just need to have a little faith. Oh, and clear out of that main chamber. Qucickly." As he added the last, Ra pulled a small round object from his robes, depressed a top plunger on it, which started it to humming and pulsing, and tossed it at the bottom of the shute.

From above, the sounds of Barrick's men making their descent was pretty obvious.....

Jesera's eyes went wide. "Move people! He just threw a thermal detonator! He'll bring half this room or more, down on top of us! MOVE!"

Ar'alani swore in Chiss, giving Ra a baleful glance as she headed down the second path Ra had selected. The Chiss pilot was by now, thuroughly convinced Ra had no idea what he was doing, and that they were all likely to die down here.

Ra smiled, looking quite proud of himself, as his thermal detonator hummed faster and faster in the muck. Almost as an afterthought, he remembered the danger he was suddenly in, and made for the exit.
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Original Poster: Adam Vren

When Adam heard a splash behind him he whipped around in surprise and unholstered his blaster. To his surprise a weird looking creature rose from the sludge that almost all of them had previously fallen into. Adam was about to blast him when Ra laxly stated "it's just you" which prompted him to believe that the creature's entrance was planned.

Adam placed the blaster back into it's place on his hip and began in the direction Ra had directed the group towards. As he trudged forward through the slime he was caught off guard when Ra threw a small object into the cavern. He stood there in shock not knowing what was just done until Jesera gave a cry of warning to move and fast.

Once again following Ra's lead he bolted in the direction of the exit as fast as his legs would carry him. Beads of sweat combined with the mixture of sludge from the sewers they were in rolled down Adam's face as he ran. His thoughts drifted to his friends, he wondered if they were safe or if his efforts to make sure they got away safetly were fruitless. They then fell upon his family, would he ever see them again or not? Finally they fell on the current situation, would he get out of here alive to see his friends and family again? Would he be able to just leave the group once they were out of the sewers? Or has he just been sucked into an adventure like the ones in the tales he bad been told as a child about his ancestor Atilla and other great heroes from the time before the galaxy fell into ruin. He almost hoped it was the adventure option...almost.

Adam noticed that his thinking was slowing him down and cleared his head before bursting forward to reach the top speed he could make in the current mucky terrain.
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Original Poster: Calin Riegal

Calin wheeled around quickly the second he heard a splash from the pipe, a splash that wasn't accounted for in their little group. He half expected to see the first of the Mando's having caught up to them, forcing them to make a stand here and now. He was surprised, though no less alarmed, when something else entirely dropped in front of him. It was one of those savages that jumped in on their bar fight, with apparently no other purpose than to cause destruction. Calin's blaster practically flew from its holster into his hand, the sights trained on the Kroot. But he was disarmed by Ra's indifference towards the creature. It apparently meant no harm, but Calin planned on keeping his eyes on that one.

He turned his attention back to Ra, who remained almost freakishly calm about the entire situation. What was he playing at? Did he really have such a grand plan that there was no room for worry? He saw him pull a small object out of his pocket, and Calin struggled to get a look at it. He finally managed that when Ra pressed the plunger on the top. Calin felt a quick jolt of panic. That was a thermal detonator! Any false handling of that thing at they would all be blown to pieces. But Calin never let panic consume him in the past, and now was no exception. He quickly made sure that everyone else was getting out of the chamber before making a hasty exit himself.

But there was another sound, more faint, underneath the humming of the thermal detonator. It was coming from the top of the chute. Had the Widows found them already? All signs pointed to the fact that, yes, they certainly had. He now saw what Ra was planning. Rather than trying to sneak away, simply block off the only route to them. He couldn't help but marvel at the simplicity of it all. Maybe Ra really did know what he was doing, maybe.

"So, after nearly getting us killed on several separate occasions, whats next on the agenda?" Calin said sardonically.
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Original Poster: Rac Cul

Just a short distance down the second path Ra had selected, the passageway rounded a sharp corner. Ra paused, hearing several splashes, indicating the first of the Widows had reached the bottom. "Wait for it....wait for it...and...there!"

A loud explosion shook the passageway.

Ra turned to the group, grinning with pride and satisfaction. "Pursuit has been delayed. Everyone is now free to breath a quick sigh of relief, before we make our way up to Calin's encampment." He shot Calin a sly grin, and a wink. "Really....we do need to focus on your sense of direction, chap. We're less than a mile from your little camp of almost soldiers."

Ra was about to continue, when Jesera extended her hand, and he was flung against the wall nearby. "Enough of this insanity, Ra Cul! What game are you playing here? It's past time to level with these people, since you're risking their lives at every turn."

Ra's smile vanished, and his eyes narrowed. "Actually, Jesera, the game is just beginning, and if you think this is insanity? You'd best go back and take your chances with Barrick, cuz the insanity has only begun." Ra focused his mind, and drew upon his own connection to the Force. He pulled free from the wall, and began to walk away.

"It's really up to each of you, as individuals. But here's the deal. Go your seperate ways here and now, deal with any backlash from the actions each of you personally chose, back in the club, on your own....or follow me, and trust that since I haven't got any of you dead yet, maybe that stretch of luck...and insanity" He shot Jesera a dirty look, "Will continue a while longer."

Without waiting for any responses, Ra began to make his way down the passage again.
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Original Poster: Ra Cul

Ra wandered down each passage, pausing only for a few moments as he got his bearings, before proceeding further on. For all appearances, one moment he seemed to know exactly where he was going, and the next moment, he looked utterly lost. Still, he moved onward, taking sloped passageways both down and up, wandering out of the sewer system eventually, and into the ruined undercity.

He had the datapad. It would contain enough information to cause Barrick some worry, and certainly incentive to follow them to retrieve both it, and Jesera. Not to mention, by now, he'd want at least Ra alive....possibly some of the others, if for nothing other than to torture them to death.

Not all of this is happening exactly as I saw it. But I learned long ago to not fully trust my visions of the future. A shame my great grandfather never learned that lesson, cuz I'd have had less work to do, maybe. But nooooo....

"And here we are...." Ra commented, to no one in particular, as the entered into a small clearing, where the sky was partially visible. What lay before them looked half like a small military compound, and half like a refugee camp.
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Original Poster: Adam Vren

Adam followed Ra onwards, as there was no other option. The area behind them had been blocked and leaving the group only to get lost would do him no good. Eventually the sometimes seemingly random path they were taking became the ruins of the undercity. Adam stared towards the now visible sky, they still looked to be on fire, as they were every time he had looked up over the course of his lifetime.

He snapped back to reality when Ra stated something to the effect of having arrived at their destination. He began to take in the details of the scene before him and two things stuck out. The first was all of the armed men, the second was how ragged those without weapons looked. Adam concluded that it must be some sort of refugee camp, that a minimum security holding facility where these people were being placed for various unknown reasons.
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Original Poster: Calin Riegal

Calin continued walking as half the undercity seemed to explode and crumble behind him, blocking off their pursuers from accessing them, at least from that way. He raised one eyebrow as Ra mentioned that they were less than a mile from his camp. That concerned him considerably. Of course he knew where they were, but what concerned him was that Ra knew. He had gone to great pains to ensure that the location of his base was not common knowledge. How Ra had discovered its location, as well as the path to it through the sewers, disturbed him greatly. Even still, he didn't betray that thought.

"Aye, I know where we are. And they are far more like soldiers than you give them credit for."

It was a few more minutes of walking before they emerged into a small clearing. The sky was partially visible above their heads, letting a small amount of relatively fresh air reach them. There were multiple rooms going off the main clearing, all with various purposes. This was the base of Calin's group, of his freedom fighters. Not all of them were equipped, and as such their ragged appearance was certainly evident. One of his men in full armor approached him, apparently wary of those behind him. The man that was approaching was Anders, his second in command.

"Commander Riegal, welcome back. Who are these people?"

"Guests, Anders. Rest at ease. We just got out of an...interesting situation at the bar. Equip the men, immediately, all of them. Full battle gear. We may have less welcome guests soon. We may not, but I prefer to air on the side of caution."

Calin then turned to Ra. They were safe now, safe enough, and it was time to get at least a bit of explaining out of the way. He was tired of being in the dark, tired of simply tagging along. He needed to know what he was up to, and why he had led them directly to Calin's encampment. That was all there was to it.

"Ok Ra...now listen to me. I demand some kind of explanation. Up until now, I've been going on faith alone. But the moment you choose to involve my men, I need to know why. For what purpose did you lead us here?"

[[Sorry for my long hiatus guys, I'm going to try to get back into it, I promise]]
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Original Poster: Ra Cul

Ra rolled his eyes. "Actually, old chap, you haven't been doing anything on faith. In the club, you acted on instinct, training, and general decency. Since then....you've been following what we refer to as survival instinct. To have done anything but what you did, would have left you isolated, and still being tracked by some pretty ruthless people. Those same people, incidently, will probably find their way here in the next couple hours."

Ra sat down on a crate, removing one of his boots, to shake out some debris that had found it's way in. He gave the small camp, and it's occupants a rather peculiar look, then looked back to Calin. "Obviously, with Khaz having not made it to us, here had to be our next destination. You have a ship. Not much of one, to be sure, and it's gonna be cramped like a Jawa clan on a swoop bike with all these people....but, I suppose beggars can't be chosers. And I seriously doubt we wanna leave any of your soldiers or the refugees behind when we leave."

Jesera stared at Ra increduously. "You don't seriously mean to try to escape the Widows, in a beat up old freighter, carrying more than three times it's occupancy, do you? Please...please, tell me this is not your grand plan?"

Ra glanced up, an expression of genuine, or as close as Ra seemed to get to genuine, hurt, on his face. "Of course not. Well....that's the first part, yes, but there's certainly a great deal more to it than just that. Jesera, dear, dear Jesera.....the grand escape from Coruscant is just the beginning. From here, we head directly to the one place in all the galaxy where the Widows will have to meet us on terms that don't involve hails of blaster fire, or swinging sabers."

Ra grinned, as he stood slowly. "Calin? I'd suggest we get us sewer trudgers cleaned up a bit, and get to loading your freighter with the bare essentials, then with people. It's a long trip, and we haven't much time." Ra turned to leave, only to be stopped in his tracks, as Jesera grabbed hold of his arm.

"And where is it, this miraculous place you think we'll be safe from Barrick and his attack?" She hissed, obviously irritated.

Ra turned, his fiery eyes dancing in the dim light of the camp. "Why Kuat, of course."
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Original Poster: Adam Vren

Adam listened to the disussion between Calin and Ra quietly, learning much in the process...if by much you mean plans for more than ten seconds into the future. The plan was to clean up then get off of the planet as fast as possible. The first part was a welcomed idea, but the second didn't sit right. As much as Adam didn't want to leave everything he knew behind there was no other option. Not leaving would only get him killed, but the thought still left him sick to the stomach. Had he not already emptied his stomach earlier he would probably be doing it now. Adam began the trek towards the camp with a heavy heart.

Upon reaching the camp he couldn't help but compare these people to those he left back home. The soldiers were tougher looking, and certainly better equipped. The morale of the civilians seemed much lower though, where those in the colony were happy with life and lived decently. These people were refugees and therefore must have had to endure alot; and their faces showed it. And although their faces looked forlorn he could see the determintion in their eyes, the will to survive. Adam made a mental note to help these people as much as possible, and maybe some day they could return here with him and start new lives within the community that would some day be his to lead.
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Original Poster: Calin Riegal

Calin was still uneasy about this whole situation. He knew that they had little choice, with the Widows likely to be knocking on their doors within hours, as soon as they got around Ra's little roadblock. But he still didn't like the idea of a full scale evacuation, leaving all the people he was attempting to protect behind, the citizens of Coruscant. Not that he could ever protect all of them, but he was doing his part, and that was all he could do. Futhermore, he was disturbed by the fact that Ra seemed to know everything about his group, down to the fact that they did own one transport ship. It was mainly used for getting them around the planet, but it was capable of space transport, with a working hyperdrive. But, there seemed like little recourse, he would have to go along, but he swore he would return one day.

"You're knowledge of my resources disturbs me..." he said offhandly, before going about the business of prepping for departure.

Calin snapped effortlessly into his mode of commander, issuing orders confidently as he marshaled his men and got everyone organized efficiently. He was a natural leader, that much was evident. He stopped one of his men who was walking by, Vroen, a talented fighter and an even more talented technician.

"Get the transport ready to fly, we need to get out of here an hour ago."

The man took off, and Calin took this opportunity to address the rest of his squad.

"I have little time to explain, but we need to leave. I know it may be difficult, to leave all of our work behind, but we are facing things bigger than all of us, and our only hope is to leave, in hopes to survive and come back to fight again. Get the refugees aboard the transport, and all of you, prepare for departure. Gather your full battle gear and as many provisions as the transport will hold and still remain airborne. I have never let you down in the past, I simply as you to continue to trust me. Larson, Tristan and Kelvin, you're on fighter escort duty, prep your ships."

He turned back to his companions, if one were to call them that. He supposed that getting out of a bar fight, running through the sewers and nearly blowing up half the undercity created some form of companionship.

"We have a bit of time before we take of. If you want to clean up, there is facilities straight through the door in front of you. After that, help yourself to anything in the armory. We need to be prepared." He addressed Adam directly next. "You may want to consider some armor mate, it could very well save you're life, trust me."
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Original Poster: Ra Cul

Ra shrugged. "I know a great deal about a great many things, ol' chum. I wouldn't take it too personally. Trust me, you couldn't have prevented this knowledge. I knew about this base before it ever existed. Just like I knew you'd be at that bar...like I knew a lot of things. Like I know we'll have time to talk on the trip to Kuat, but hardly enough privacy to do so. You have twenty soldiers, and more than twice that in refugees. Plus us. Cramped ride, and your transport's hyperdrive ain't that hot. We'll have some time, and space, once we upgrade our transportation at Kuat."

Without another word, Ra turned, and headed towards the makeshift fresher, for a much needed cleaning, all the while, whistling softly some long forgotten tune of myrth.

Jesera watched him go, confused by what she read off of him through the Force. "I don't believe he's evil, or means to harm us. But there is an eratic nature to his mind, and that makes him dangerous. For the moment we seem to have little choice but to follow him." She gave Calin a pointed look. "We should keep our eyes trained to find the moment where that isn't the case."

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Original Poster: Adam Vren

Adam emerged from the fresher quickly, having washed up after his ordeal in the sewers with the 'slide', and headed in the direction of the armoury. As he walked people scurried around him attempting to gather up important things before it was time to leave, he knew what they were going through and it wasn't a pleasnt feeling. When he reached the armoury a few of Calin's men were preparing the weapons to be loaded on the transport. Adam entered and set about to find armor that would fit him. The set he choose was black in colour, and fit him perfectly.

Having donned the armour he emerged from the armoury feeling like a new man. He began to help the soldiers prepare what was left in the armoury for transportation. Once everything was packed up and placed on the transport ship he waited for the time of departure.

While he was waiting he began to reflect on what had happened over the past while. He had left home for the first time, and would most likely not be returning for awhile. He had become part of a small group with 3 strong personalities, not that his was weak but he had not accepted a leadership role like Calin and Ra, or challenged it like Jesera. He definately felt like Ra was the one he should follow, though Calin seemed to have a strong head on his shoulders; if the time came his judgement would be made based on the cicumstances. Jesera on the other hand had challenged Ra's leadership while they were being pursued, and seemed to doubt Ra's plan at every turn; he would have to watch what she did carefully.
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Original Poster: Calin Riegal

Jesera was right. Ra seemed to mean them no harm, in fact, it was due to him that they likely got out of that mess alive. But still, Calin couldn't bring himself to put his full faith in him. He was...unpredictable. There was so much that seemed to remain unknown, and Calin had doubts about whether Ra truly knew how much he implied, if his erratic actions were any indication. Either way, he was still interested about what he thought the two of them needed to 'talk' about once they reached Kuat. But simply enough, he agreed with Jesera.

"Aye...we have little choice, but that doesn't mean I'll like it. He worries me, that one. He's just as likely to get us all killed as save our hides..."

With a shake of his head, Calin walked off to make his own preparations. He cleaned himself off of the accumulated much and grime of the sewers, changing his cloak, shirt, pants and boots for fresh ones. He also took a few minutes and hastily cleaned off all of his armor, doing the best that he could for the time being. He then made his way to his quarters where he grabbed the rest of his personal belongings, which were minimal. He strapped a small bundle around his waist, which contained the single datapad that he had yet to crack into, but he knew held some importance. He grabbed his two sword belts as well, and was in the process of strapping them across his chest as he walked back out into the main gathering area.

The men were working quickly, ushering all of the refugees onto the freighter as well as packing up much of the contents of their base. His ship wasn't much, but they had done some modifications with this exact purpose in mind, knowing it might come up at any time that everyone and everything would need to move. It wouldn't be a luxury cruise by any extent of the imagination, but it would get them all off planet. He walked back over to where Jesera was standing.

"We'll be ready for takeoff in about ten minutes. If there's anything else that needs to be done, I suggest we do it soon..."
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