Collab with [@Alias] [b][right]Kast's Freighter Ilos[/right][/b] "So Mr. Bounty Hunter, how are you going to find our Jedi?" "Feet off the console." replied Kast absentmindedly as he peered over his holopad. The girl reluctantly complied, though offered him a tongue as a response. While Kast sat in his cockpit, when he was sure of a relatively simple and safe flight, he often left control of the freighter in the hands of his droid pilot OOM. In times like these, where he was sent off to find and if necessary capture a Jedi with little to no preparation, it was useful to have someone to fly for him, so he could concentrate on more important things, like coming up with a plan. Jedi, while a rare breed, often operated similarly to one another, they each had some code of honor, and adhered to a sense of good and morality. That made them easy to find, and similarly easy to exploit- at least in the short term. Jedi could be crafty, and their skill in combat was something to be careful of. The Jedi temple- the primary learning place of the Jedi in Coruscant had been sacked and converted into the old Emperor's personal palace for the better part of a few decades by this point, which meant the Jedi he encountered nowadays always had differing levels of experience and skill with the lightsaber and the force. That gray area of skill made predicting just how powerful a Jedi was difficult. Kast responded to that simply- he'd overprepare if necessary and be ready to shut down the Jedi with as much force as he could. Unfortunately, having to capture the Jedi rather than straight up killing him made shutting him down a much more daunting task, and Kast would have to prepare properly. His right arm gauntlet sported a rocket launcher with Type-12B stun rockets and blaster, while the left sported a dart launcher and whipcord launcher. Sonic grenades would come in handy, and the Magnaguards a potentially useful asset as well. "Hellooo? Are you going to answer me?" Loretta prodded him again, annoyed with his silence. Kast offered her a passing glance, the polarized T-visor scanning over her for a moment before returning to his weapons. "Finding the Jedi is simple. Bringing him back with us is the challenge." Kast replied curtly. "That doesn't answer my question." Loretta pointed out, scowling. "So? You're a tag-along, and I'm not your mentor. I'm getting paid to find the Jedi and bring him to paradise, not to teach you how to do my job." [hr] [right][b]Ilos Ilos City Slums[/b][/right] The sudden slamming of a door alerted Tez's attention in the back alleys of Ilos. Seemed the Jedi managed to stay relatively close during the blind hunt, somehow. Striding through the winding streets, Tez spied an isolated building which seemed to fit the bill of some sort of safehouse. If he was a betting man, this was where Sola'nuga had holed himself up in. Seemed the Gunjack supplier didn't have time to rally any kind of security detail. Probably hadn't had to use this safehouse in a while. The Jedi approached the door, trying to find some way of opening it without making much of an entrance. Seemed to be sealed pretty tight and would require his lightsaber to cut through. As the lightsaber emitted and hummed, he pushed it through the security door, slowly but surely creating his own entrance. While he knew this gave the Twi'Lek time to hide, it certainly wouldn't be enough when Tez could finally make his way inside. So much for not making an entrance... Eventually, Tez had cut a big enough circle to be pushed into. As the newly made disc of metal slammed into the floor, the Jedi winced at the noise he created. [i]"Poodoo..."[/i] He thought as his plan went right out of the window. As the blue glow of his saber dimly lit up the room, Tez began his search of the safehouse. Focusing his mind, he listened out for any kind of signal. Breathing, footsteps... any kind of clue. Stepping into the safehouse, Tez found himself face to face with the Gunjack dealer, Sola'nuga, blaster in hand, body tensed, and sprawled on the floor. His face was slack and eyes glazed over, and Tez didn't need an expert opinion to know that the blaster hole in his back, subtle wisps of smoke still rising, meant that he was dead. To either side of the dead Gunjack dealer was a set of stairs, culminating at a balcony that overlooked the rest of the foyer. Standing at the balcony, illuminated by the blue glow of Tez's lightsaber, along with spotty beams of sun creaking through shoddily boarded up windows stood Kast, fully armored and arms crossed. "A dozen dead black market traffickers, disrupted slave auction, and a Gunjack dealer. You certainly know how to make your presence known, Jedi." the bounty hunter spoke, his low voice slightly digitized by the speakers in his helmet. Tez looked up at the newcomer. It was clearly obvious just by looking at the man's armor and what visible equipment he could make out that this was a bounty hunter. Tez just couldn't get a break today. He kept his lightsaber on but idle by his waist. [b]"My reputation clearly precedes me."[/b] The Jedi replied. [b]"I appreciate your handiwork here..."[/b] He complimented, gesturing to the deceased Twi'lek. [b]"But I have a funny feeling he isn't your target. Is that correct?"[/b] He asked calmly. "Surprisingly astute observation." Kast said dryly, shifting his weight slightly, changing his posture, though keeping his arms crossed. "You are correct, Novacore. I'm not here for drug dealer. I'm here for you." As if on cue, the corners of the room to Tez's left and right light up with a purple glow, followed by a low hum and the crackling of electricity. A Magnaguard stood on each corner, weapons lit, but not leveled at the Jedi. Likewise, the droids didn't move, they merely stood there, almost as unmoving as statues, their staves held vertically in one hand. "My employer would like to speak with you." the mandalorian stated plainly. "He calls it an olive branch." Tez looked over his shoulders, acknowledging and making a note of the location of the revealed Magnaguards. It was clear that this bounty hunter did his research. Not that bounty hunters were an entirely new concept to the Jedi, but it seemed that he wouldn't be a shoe-in if it came to a fight either. However, what was intriguing was that this did not seem to be a contract to kill. [b]"If it doesn't break your skewed sense of honor..."[/b] Tez began, making it clear his disdain for scoundrels, criminals and bounty hunters alike. [b]"May I ask who offers this invitation?"[/b] "The Golden Exchange." Kast replied plainly. Whether he noticed nor cared about the Jedi's tone seemed not to effect his low, practically flat voice. "My bosses deal in information and things of value; and it appears that you are someone of value to them." The Jedi grunted at the mention of the Exchange. A fabled "neutral" zone for Criminals and Imperials alike. He sometimes wondered just how long such a place could exist. Although, it seemed to be acheiving it's purpose so far and Tez was no fool as to mess with it's operations or those who run it either. Tez didn't want to risk it. He could not be so dim-witted as to trust a Bounty Hunter's word. On the other hand, the odds were not exactly in his favor. Magnaguards were tricky opponents, not to mention the difficulty added with a trained assassin in the mix. He sighed and shut off his Lightsaber as a sign of good faith. [b]"I do not believe I'm in a position to decline this invitation."[/b] He admitted with a sigh. [b]"If you'd like to show me to your ship?"[/b] Kast relaxed, only slightly, though his caution was kept high. Jedi were always tricky to deal with, and their lightsabers were fast and deadly. Not impossible to beat, but not a surefire victory in any situation. He turned his head slightly, the corner of his visor still visible to the Jedi's eyes, and beckoned to a figure hidden in the shadows behind him. Out from the shadows came a cloaked figure- shorter than most, and beneath the hood was a young face, blonde, and less than two decades old. As she appeared, the Magnaguards straightened even more, and took a small step forward. The two walked down the steps, though Kast made sure to keep a large berth from the Jedi. If trickery came to play, distance was Kast's greatest ally. He beckoned to the Jedi to follow him. Generally, Jedi were an honest folk, almost painfully so, and typicall kept their word. "Watch your step." Kast commented, gesturing towards a pair of sonic detonators sitting next to the threshold of the door, a third attached to the dead twi'lek's boot. [hr] The YV-929 Freighter- only occasionally called a scrap heap by Kast, was essentially an armored brick that flew through space, sporting enough enough weaponry to ward off smaller pirates, but not big enough to hold enough cargo to entice larger, more enterprising groups. The ship was rather mundane, most people be they Imperial Remnant, New Republic, freelancer or otherwise rarely paid it more attention than a mere passing glance. Kast had 'obtainted' the ship several years back, and had since converted it into a rudimentary mobile base of operations. The ship originally had a 'salon parlor' underneath the cockpit, designed to house diplomats and non-crew passengers, though Kast had converted into a basic medical center, fit with a small surgery suite, and a bacta tank. Of the ship's two large cargo areas, one had been converted into a multipurpose living area, a long table sat against one wall for all work/hard surface related needs, though instead of seats small crates of about sitting level were positioned around it. A second table and some shelving units were strewn with all maner of mechanical parts, spare blaster pistols, rifles, weapon parts, tools, and various canisters of different fluids populated its surface along with the remains of a half-eaten meal. Memorabilia populated the living area: various helmets, a few republic, a few imperial, and a mandalorian helmet, some with shattered visors, scorch marks or blaster holes in them. A loop with half a dozen imperial dogtags sat on a crate, and in a sealed ray-shielded wall display sat a pair of lightsaber hilts, as well as a double-bladed hilt. "Try not to touch anything." Kast commented as he took a seat on one of the crates. "OOM, take us to Paradise." Tez looked around his surroundings, analysing every detail of the ship and section he could. As the blonde woman and the guards also boarded the ship. The internals of the freighter had clearly been repurposed. As Tez heeded the Manadlorian's warning, his attention was drawn away from his search to find a place to meditate as he saw the helmets, tags and... no way... The Jedi walked over to the ray-shielded wall, looking at the hilts on display. He closed his eyes and exhaled, feeling the remnants of their original owners linger through the Force. Seemed this hunter wasn't your average gunslinger. Not angry, but rather somber at the fact, he decided to at least mention it to his new host. [b]"Trophies?"[/b] He asked, jabbing his thumb at the wall. "Memories." Kast responded, though the difference between the two was slim. "Two of the toughest fights of my life. Three of the most lucrative." "The third one wasn't a Jedi, or was a piss poor one. Never seen a Jedi with slaves before." Kast remained on his crate, though he wouldn't turn his back to the Jedi, he didn't get up to shoo the Jedi away from the case either. Kast shot a look at Loretta, who stood quietly in the corner, sneaking glances at the Jedi whenever she felt he wasn't looking, Tez nodded at the Bounty Hunter's explanation. At the end of the day, it was no reason to start a confrontation about. This was the Outer Rim, and Tez realized that if the Mandalorian REALLY wanted to, Tez's own lightsaber could be part of that wall. As the ship fired up and began it's journey to Paradise, the Jedi waited until the ship levelled out. [b]"Please excuse my rudeness. I would like to take this moment for meditation."[/b] The Jedi said, trying not to upset his host. Even though the woman kept trying to discretely look at Tez like some sort of exhibit, he ignored this and found a space on the floor where he sat down, crossed his legs and close his eyes. The Jedi felt serene and calm in this state as he controlled his breathing and focused his mind.