EliteCommander

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

There wouldn't be much happening up to the meeting for Meesei or Gallus. She would just go get Ra'kalesh, then wait in the meeting hall. We can probably start that tomorrow. It won't be too terribly long before I go to bed.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Peiter found himself quite surprised when he heard Tzirret's sudden outburst. He was not looking at Tzirret beforehand, so he did not know exactly what caused it, but he supposed it was something that La'khay had asked him. He had hoped they would be able to enjoy themselves for a nice meal and bath, so he at least attempted to do what he could to prevent any fights. "It's alright, Tzirret. La'khay couldn't have known. I'm sure she was just worried, is all." He said in an effort to calm him.

La'khay too did not expect such an emotional reaction. Or at least, not that particular emotion. It was a reaction that only further cemented her fear that whatever had been bothering the boy related to her. Regardless, she thought as quickly as she could on how to respond in a way that would make sense, but would let her say what she wanted to say. "La'khay is sorry, Tzirret. Please forgive her." She began before leaning over to Tzirret and wrapping her arms around him in an apologetic hug. However, once she was close to him, she whispered quickly into his ear. "Please, speak to this one privately once we're done here."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Due to the dietary requirements of his size, Shanja was rationed a larger portion of meat than the others, but even so, he was showing himself more than capable of tearing through it more quickly than the others. He acknowledged Sabine with a nod when she asked if he was a Senche, and Ciinriel followed up quickly with an introduction once she had found a place to sit nearby.

"His name is Shanja. He is one of the clan's warriors, like a lot of the Senche." Ciinriel explained.

Even though they were not yet climbing in the water, La'khay undressed as soon as she arrived, then found a place to sit with her meal near the others. Her attention, of course, was drawn to Tzirret. She had noticed more than most how his behavior had changed in the days before they found the clan, and she feared that her actions might have had some unintended consequences. "Are you alright, Tzirret? You seem distant."

---

Meesei was waiting on the walkways near the lifts for Gallus, and hopefully, Do'ajee, to return. When she spotted them, she wasted no time in approaching them. "Morning, Do'ajee." She greeted before getting straight to the matter at hand. "I was able to find Ri'nakhad and asked him about the meeting. He said we would begin in roughly an hour, in the meeting hall. He also told me that he wants Ra'kalesh to attend as well, so I was about to head down to the camp to find him."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"Oh, they're catching up with some other friends." Jo'rashaad answered to Gallus. "Well...actually, this one does not know precisely where Colors is."

La'khay chuckled. "Colors? This one saw him drinking with a few women last night. She has a good guess where he might be."

Do'ajee let out a sigh. "Of course, that Argonian has no self restraint. Give him a few more years, and he'll have received claw marks across his face from every other woman in the clan. Personally, Do'ajee would rather swallow a thornbush."

"You're too hard on him." La'khay commented. "Have you considered that some of them might actually enjoy his company?"

Do'ajee crossed her arms. "Yes, and who cares how many he hurts along the way?"

Just as Ciinriel had said, it did not take long for the chefs to announce that the breakfast was ready, so the group could collect their meal at their leisure.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

As usual, Ciinriel was rather quiet until spoken to, but she did not seem to have any trepidation in answering Sabine. "Oh, sure. That sounds nice." She answered. "I just need to wait for the chefs to finish our breakfast. It shouldn't be long."

Peiter nodded. "That's fine. By the smell in the air, it shouldn't be more than a minute or two." He commented. However, Ciinriel did not appear to be the only one that was interested in joining them.

La'khay leaned forward on her log and grinned at the three youths in front of her. "You know, La'khay would not mind a swim as well. This heat is almost as insufferable to Khajiit as it is for you. Would you mind any more company?" She asked. As well, the Shanja turned his head towards La'khay for a moment and seemed to look her over before giving a huff and a nod as well. Evidently, the Senche wanted to join with them.

Peiter shrugged his shoulders, then turned to Sabine for confirmation. "What do you think?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"By all means, take a seat." Do'ajee answered before motioning to the other two Gallus did not know. "This is Hiritar and Shanja. Our pride has been close with their pack since long before the attack."

"It was an immense relief to see them all walk back into our camp." The Altmer, Hiritar, commended, followed by a nod and a low, deep hum from Shanja. Not all of our pack survived the attack, but...you have to take good news when you can. I'm sure Ra'kalesh's pride has already given you all of their gratitude for their rescue, but I would like to thank you as well. Both for rescuing them, and for coming to help us as well."

It was not long after Gallus took his seat that Peiter, Sabine, and Tzirret came down from the outpost above. They had not known where precisely to search for Ciinriel, but luckily, it was not as if she was hiding. They came across her, and several of the others, by the cooking fires awaiting their meals. "Morning, everyone." Peiter greeted.

La'khay smiled, and was the first to greet the trio. "Ah, good morning. How are you three this morning?"

Coruscant Sacked: Aftermath

~| Day 3, 20:05-20:25 GST |~

~|Location: Mos Eisley, Tatooine within Karlie’s shop|~

While Kennith and Melloch engaged in conversation with a contact Avix was outside making sure that nobody was watching them. He much didn’t care for conversation with criminals as his patience often would wane and gave way to more liberal ways of extracting information. He had observed a few enter but didn’t feel the need to raise the alarm as they appeared to be allies or not a threat to his comrades. All of this waiting is putting me a little on edge… Something doesn’t feel right and this mission feels like a waste… Why divert resources to rescue a few, I know times are desperate but this just seems a little desperate and the chances are that most will fall if we don’t get to them in a timely manner. Then this will turn more into containment rather than a rescue. he reflected as he awaited for his comrades to finish and hoped they found some sort of lead as time was of the essence.

Inside the shop, Fa and Vebra were ushered indoors by the oversized Jedi. Once the massive sentient was not blocking her view, Fa noticed a veritable sea of droid and other machine parts haphazardly arranged in a way that would likely only make sense to the one who placed them. All-in-all, it was a shop that seemed right at home on this planet. Immediately, they were berated by one who Fa assumed to be the shopkeeper. While Lyric had indeed informed his Jedi that they were coming, it seemed that they had neglected to actually inform their contact. Nevertheless, Fa decided to do what she could to placate whatever fears he had.

Fa held up her hands non-threateningly. “Easy, easy, we were careful that we weren’t followed. You’re not dealing with amateurs here, I assure you. Though, I did catch the scent of someone close outside on the way in, if that concerns you.” She explained.

While Fa elected to play peace keeper Vebra decided to try and glean information about the trader off of what he was selling. Seeing as it was mostly junk and that the Jedi had decided to come to this place meant the owner had either dealt with the Jedi before or happened to be selling something a little more up to their standards. Sometimes he wished he could just simply reach out with the force and take what information he needed, but alas his abilities didn’t get anything close to that level of power. He supposed the Jedi should be the ones to handle the talking for the time being considering they seemed to have a rapport already. Vebra then turned his gaze back to the strewn about parts looking for escape routes in the chance they were in fact followed.

Karlie’s face was becoming redder by the moment as he struggled to calm down. He was fidgeting and irritated while he tried to ease this tension away, realizing they weren’t supposed to be here this long. “Amateurs or not, you’re wearing out your welcome in my shop. I didn’t know aiding Jedi would be so troublesome!”

Melloch turned around, holding his hands up placatingly. “If I recall correctly, we aided you. The thugs weren’t going to leave without causing you some harm, and you know it.” He spoke gently. “Regardless, we only have a few questions that need answered and we’ll be out of your shop and stop causing you trouble. We’ll even take our two companions with us.”

“So far, you’ve not asked many questions. Instead, your presence put my family in danger the longer you stay. If you want to know where to find Janglor, seek out Jiek or another messenger. They deliver directly to him and would know his location.” Karlie went on, his body pressing into hustling out his unwanted guests. “Now please, I’m expecting someone to arrive for package. Seeing you here will only result in more questions.”

Melloch didn’t budge, concern evident on his scarred face. They needed to move quickly, but they couldn’t leave without information. “From what you said earlier, it sounds like Jiek isn’t around. You gave her money and she never delivered. Where would we find her or another messenger of Janglor’s? Preferably one closeby.”

Not seeing a sign of the behemoth moving or seeing any possible way he could haul the alien out, Karlie scowled then submitted for the moment. “I only know of three places.”

He turned his back around, his hand scratching his head back as he thought carefully about what he knew. Trying not to deliver false information at last, he started to relay what he was positive about. “A local bar called the Fel’kaw, a local desert hole where anyone from bounty hunters to messagers wet their whistles. Her favorite hunting ground is the docking area, namely in sector five where the wealthier merchants and street urchins tend to roam. And finally, there’s Gjallor. A pawnshop where she barter her goods for credits and the shopkeeper sells them off on the blackmarket.”

Fa had found a spot near the wall to lean against as the Jedi had been questioning the shopkeeper. From what she gathered, the Jedi had some reason to find someone named Janglor, and one of his messengers was the key to finding him. She still had no clue why Janglor was important, or how he related to rescuing Jedi from the Sith, but this shopkeeper did not need to know of her ignorance. It just happened to be that the very first task she would be undertaking with this group of Jedi was actually her speciality: tracking. She waited until there was a break in the conversation before she chimed in. “So we need to find this Jiek, then? You said she’s a messenger, and gave us a few places to look, but do you have any other details? Identifying information. Height, weight, appearance, style of dress, that sort of thing. Personality too. About how would you say she acts?”

“She’s a green Twi’lek and about five foot and ten or nine inches. It’s not an exact science. She often wears dark clothing which is rather simple, trying to blend in. Over top is a ragged and patched cloak over it.” He paused a moment, Karlie’s mind ticking over his thoughts. Quickly he moved toward where Vebra was standing and stopped long enough to wave the Zabrak away before he took hold of a droid head. “I didn’t have this on when she arrived, but it will likely have an image of her past visits. That is if you can splice into it.”

He turned back to the ancient looking alien, his figure reminding him of some sort of reptile and predator mix. “Unless you need me to? Then it might take some time. As for personality, she was raised from the streets around here so she’s smart. Puzzler, greedy, and rather selfish. The dock urchins might know to be honest. She only collected from me this week and this is the first time I’ve had an issue with her.”

Vebra paused for a moment as the human motioned for him to move. While the revelation of the droid’s head was a good one it didn’t do them much good for the time being. “You wouldn’t happen to have something that she’s had on her or been in contact with her for a decent amount of time would you? If I can get a good smell of her it would make this a lot faster.” Vebra made a quick gesture of tapping his nose.

“I might have a towel she wiped her hands off but any belongings she kept a pretty close grip on. Even that choker she wore around her neck. Interesting design, through hard to describe. It had several floral and delicate markings, each woven into each other with a bright blue gem at the neck front.” Karlie stated simply as he placed down the droid for the Jedi to examine then headed toward the back. There was sounds of shuffling and rummaging around, his body moving through the piled up junk out of sight and hearing overwhelmed by his task. “It’s in here somewhere…”

While the shopkeeper was searching through his mess of a store, Fa approached the oversized Jedi. Context clues had given her some understanding of the situation, but she felt it would be best to be filled in properly before they actually started to do anything important. She subtly motioned for Vebra to join her, mostly so she wouldn’t have to repeat back to him everything the Jedi said. “So while we have a chance, we should probably get introduced. My name is Fa-Val-Kuul, and this is my CO, Vebra Mirthios. What’s the situation here?” She asked quietly.

Melloch glanced down at the raptor, a smile in greeting on his face. “I’m Melloch. Jedi Knight. Healer of this expedition. The one with the hood outside is Kennith Rhan. The angry looking large human is Avix. Lyric, as I assume you know, is on the ship. We need to find out what the Sith did on this planet. Janglor, the local criminal lord, is our best bet. We just stopped three of his thugs from roughing up our contact. Apparently this Twi’lek, Jiek, didn’t deliver Karlie’s money. We have to find her and she’ll take us to Janglor, as apparently every other messenger is gone.”

“Hmm, makes sense.” Fa answered. “Well, as it happens, one of my best talents lies in tracking. Once we have her scent, we may be able to start helping you all out right away. It would probably be best to try to get her without a fight, but the situation doesn’t sound good. If every other messenger is suddenly gone, then what’s this one going to be thinking? It might end up being a challenge.” She reasoned. Tracking down a single person in a city tended to be difficult, but it wasn’t as if she had not done so before. Given that they had a few leads, finding her might not actually be difficult, but keeping her around could be more difficult.”

An abrupt curse followed by a shout of “HERE!”, Karlie suddenly was pulling himself out of the massive junkyard he called his shop. His feet moved carefully as he held his opposite hand to his body, staining his tunic with red. It was clear he had cut himself pretty well after shoving the broken parts aside though he dared not use the towel to staunch the bleeding. As he closed the gap between him and the Jedi, he held out a dirty, oily towel that had seen better days. He passed it to Vebra, the one who made the request recently. When the Zabrak took it, they would notice a vivid gash running from his thumb down his first finger which curled in. Among the fresh injury were several burn scars, none which were recent or seemed born from his work.

“Does that help?” He asked, trying to stop his tone from showing his emotions. He was clearly wanting them to be on their way even if the answer wasn’t no.

Vebra took the towel from the man but noticed something strange about his hands. It looked like they were almost blaster burns on his hands. Nothing in this place looked like it would have done that recently. They looked like the burns he had on his own body actually, which meant they weren't new. “Thank you, looks like you banged up your hand pretty bad getting this thing. Even looks like you burned it a little. I can wrap that up for you if you want.” In reality Vebra was a horrible medic but he knew how to stop bleeding. But he did want to get a closer look at the scarring on his hands, something just didn’t feel right about it.

Karlie’s spine straightened immediately as he noted Vebra’s comment. His hand jerked back, shoving it behind his back and out of sight, and stepped back a moment. His eyes sized the Zabrak up, mentally debating, before finally sighing. “I just cut myself over a spare droid part as for the burns, old wounds. I’m not perfect after all when it comes to my work. Besides, don’t you need to be going before you lose the trail? I’ll have Hellia patch me up when you’re gone.”

It was true, he was lying and if the Jedi pressed, he would submit, through it would be grudgingly.

Fa had taken a moment to observe the scent on the towel as well. The only scents she could detect were Vebra’s, the shopkeeper’s, and a third, unknown scent, so it was obvious which one they would need to track. However, the shopkeeper’s behavior couldn’t have been more suspicious. He hid the wound on reflex, hesitated long enough in his answer to be awkward, and was acting like he wanted to rush them out of the door. “A scent trail can last for weeks. We just need to make sure we have all the information we can get right now. Personally, I just find it strange that you say those burns are from your work, since there’s nothing around here that could burn you like that. Electrocute, maybe, and while a fusioncutter can burn, those are always a lot thinner.” She observed.

The shopkeeper sighed. “I never knew Jedi were so nosy. Since you’re so observant, you’re correct. Janglor doesn’t take kindly to being cheated of his cash so when I first tried to postpone a payment, he had a few thugs come and correct my behavior.”

Karlie gently adjusted to a chair where he sat, his mind drifted to the memory and continued. It was clear he was suffering the ache from the past but he swallowed it, his words stumbling onward. “They gave me a choice: me or my wife. I choose myself, through they were given strict orders not to damage my fingers. Else I couldn’t work. When they were done, they left with their money.”

Holding his wounded hand out, it was clear it had gotten sliced on loose scraps. “So you now understand why I’m not too fond of cross him for a third time? Janglor discovers I helped you, it won’t be my hands he damages this time. So, I hope when you do find the bastard… he doesn’t breathe when you leave.”

Vebra looked to Fa for a moment with a look of amusement “I suppose I never did teach you much tact did I?” Vebra then turned back to the shopkeeper “Well if the situation calls for it, you can expect him to leave you alone… forever.” Vebra took in the smells of the rag much the same as Fa had done before him and it gave him a bad taste in his mouth. The oil was quick enough to sort through in the cocktail of odors inhabiting the rag but getting such a direct smell of something usually put the taste in his throat. He quickly found the smell in question, or at least the smell he hoped that was the girl’s. Turning back to Fa and Melloch “Me and Fa might wanna split up for this one. Seeing as we’re the ones that will be able to pick her up the furthest away.”

Melloch, his eyes narrowed at Karlie’s wounds, turned back to the two people next to him. “I’d suggest one of you go to the Bar and the other head to the docks then. I’ll head to the shop, as my bulk will prevent her from bolting out the door.” He gave the two of them a toothy grin. “You two will be able to sniff her out in those open places, whereas we won’t need your noses in the shop. It’s small enough and I’ve got enough of a description that I can spot and attempt to stop her. Sound like a plan?”

Fa nodded to Melloch. “Agreed. I’ll head to the docks; it’s more open, and if she isn’t there, I’ll have a better chance of at least finding a scent trail. If anyone wants to come with me, let’s go.”

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"Do'ajee will be there." She answered without hesitation, though he had to pause in order to think in greater detail about others she could recommend. "Most of the Senchal clan are from Pelletine, but there are a few other than Do'ajee from Anequina. The one who might know as much or more about the desert than this one is actually one of the lieutenants. Ra'jorr, he is from one of the nomadic tribes, like this one. Before the attack, he was our military leader. Do'ajee has not seen him since we returned, but she does remember hearing one of the guards say his name when we first arrived. Since he is one of the lieutenants, he should be at the meeting anyway. Do we have time for breakfast, or should this one follow you now?"

---

Peiter rested his hands on top of Sabine's, then turned his head towards her and gave her a brief kiss. "Well, since we're going to need to do both anyway. We could get our food, then head down to the river and eat it by the banks. Then, we can have our bath right there. We could ask some of the others, like Tzirret or Ciinriel, if they want to join, or we could just go ourselves and spend some time together alone. What do you think?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Do'ajee was sitting with Jo'rashaad, Ciinriel, La'khay, and two others from outside their pride. One was an Altmer man, but the other was a Senche. It was an exceptionally large quadrupedal form of Khajiit, being as tall as the Altmer while standing, and much more massive. He had tan, spotted fur and was, just in his normal form, larger than a werewolf. They all appeared to be waiting for the clan's chefs to finish cooking the morning meal.

Jo'rashaad waved to Gallus as he approached. "Good morning, Gallus. Did everything go well in your meeting with the clan leader last night?"

---

Peiter stood up shortly after Sabine and stretched out shortly before walking over to the room's window. Being that they were high in the trees, there were not as many leaves above them to block out the sun's light. He had become accustomed enough to the forest floor over the past few weeks that he had almost forgotten what it was like to be in the full view of the sun.

"Me too. I'm fairly certain we have some food in our bags if you want to just eat here with me. If not, we could go find some of the others." Peiter answered, pausing to wipe the sweat from his brow. "I'm..not really sure what we're going to be doing today, honestly. I know the Champion, and probably Gallus, are going to meet with Ri'nakhad again today. But, we haven't really been given anything to do. Hopefully, we have enough time to take a bath. I really feel like I need one right about now."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"I suppose so." Meesei answered while she was dressing herself. "I hardly even remember what happened before falling asleep. It had much the same effect as some other meditations I have tried."

Once dressed, Meesei grabbed the bag containing the maps and other important documents and tied it around her waist. "Find Do'ajee as soon as you can. If she is awake, the may be having her breakfast. If so, feel free to grab something for yourself as well. I highly doubt the meeting will start before you have a chance to finish. Honestly, I do not know when Ri'nakhad will call the meeting to start, but I want to be ready as soon as he does. I am going to go find Ri'nakhad and ask him for more details on the meeting."

---

Given the heat in the air, coupled with Sabine's body heat, Peiter was sweating when he awoke. Although, the feeling of being able to wake up holding her made the heat more than worth it to him. He waited for a while, silently and without moving, until he felt Sabine start to stir, then leaned over and kissed her just as she was starting to awaken. "Good morning." He said in an upbeat tone. Overall, he seemed to be in a rather good mood.