EliteCommander

Coruscant Sacked: Aftermath

~|Nar Shaddaa, Veenra|~

~|Day 3, 6th Hour|~

---

Fa and her team staggered their approach to the bar, the place named Veenra. Both fortunately and unfortunately for them, Nar Shaddaa was an easy place for one to fade away. The positive aspect was that they did not have much trouble on approach. Crowds tended to be thick, and people tended to keep to themselves. There was little challenge for Vebra’s squad to surround the establishment to cut off their target’s escape, and to avoid standing out while doing so, even though the crowds were thinner near the entrance. They just had to get inside, and find the woman they were looking for.

As for herself, Fa coordinated her appearance and behavior to make her seem as little like a Jedi as possible. Her walk was overall aloof, but her expression was firm, almost harsh. Being Tiss’shar, she was alien to almost every stranger she met. Her kind was a little-known species in the galaxy, which often could be made to serve to her advantage. They could only judge her based on the impressions she gave them, which she controlled entirely. She was a muscular individual, and since her species did not tend to wear clothing, that fact was readily apparent to anyone looking at her. She had sharp claws and teeth, and was even wearing a blaster pistol on her hip. She had no actual intention of using it, but it helped to sell the appearance she was going for. She could be seen as a bounty hunter, or perhaps just a simple thug, but she certainly had the appearance of someone who would be dangerous to cross. Unless one was familiar with her species, it was unlikely that they would even be able to determine if she was male or female.

Fa saw the Trandoshan and gave a brief nod to Vebra, but she decided for now to ignore the drunken reptile. He was large and dangerous, but so far he did not seem to be causing trouble. They could not afford to cause a scene and risk exposing themselves. She avoided staring at him as she walked past him into the bar, though she still remained alert. If he did anything potentially aggressive, she was ready to act in an instant.

Stepping just inside the front door of the bar, Fa had to deal with the unfortunate aspect of Nar Shaddaa’s crowds. The entire moon was teeming with life, and the bar was no different. The patrons were numerous, varied, and lively from their drinks. Upbeat, repetitive music was playing, though it was being drowned out by the dozens of indistinct conversations all around the bar. It was like looking into a small sea of people, in which any one person could hardly be noticed. But, Fa needed to notice her. Even in close proximity, it would take some conversation to tune out the “noise” of all the life around her, but she reached out with her senses to attempt to locate one strong in the force.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Eventually, the group made the journey back to the Evermore clan. In order to ensure that the family of the wagon driver did not learn the identities of Malithus' pack, they had to be taken back with bags over their heads, and they were not taken into the clan itself. However, the Evermore clan would honor the agreement Fendros had made with them. The interrogations of the other prisoners did not reveal much more meaningful information than the first, so they were all taken back to the clan so they could be interrogated in depth, over time. It would be the responsibility of the Evermore clan to deal with them, but once being brought into the clanhome, they could not be allowed to leave alive.

It took a few days for all of the missions to end, with Meesei's being the last. Fendros' mission had returned the most results. The letter they had recovered hinted at possible locations where the Talos hunters' local stronghold could be found, as well as further confirming that they were not working with the Thalmor. They had leads for further investigation, but it would not be Meesei's pack that would carry it out. When they had set out for the Evermore clan, they had intended only to deliver Meesei's cargo, so they could not remain for too much longer. However, they had given the Evermore clan more than enough information to work with.

It was early in the morning, and Meesei had ordered the rest of her pack to gather their belongings and meet near the entrance to depart. During their missions, Meesei had instructed some of the clan's mages on how to set up the cargo they had brought, which they had done at a location outside of the clan itself. According to Meesei, they were going to ensure that the scholars had properly prepared what they had brought before they left. Sabine was the first to arrive in the chamber with Meesei. Since Meesei had only returned the previous night, they had not yet had a chance to speak privately.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha had already dealt with Fendros shouting at her over the interrogation, so she doubted it would be much more difficult to talk to Sabine. It was easy to tell her reason for questioning them for the anxiety she was showing. As such, Ahnasha decided to answer directly and honestly.

"I did it." Ahnasha said abruptly. "The blade, it went through her third and fourth finger bones, correct? It avoided all of the tendons; a flesh wound. And she isn't in any pain anymore, right? I certainly don't want her to be in pain anymore. Her father is a murderer, but she deserves peace. They'll all be fleeing to the Summerset Isles, so hopefully it all ends well for them. Maybe the father will even find some redemption? It would be awful if his family was hurt for his mistakes."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Alright. We can skip ahead whenever you feel like. The last major thing I had in mind for this event would happen back at the Evermore clan, after each group finished their investigations. This sequence lasted longer than I expected, but I did roll a lot of things into one for the sake of time. So, much was accomplished. I think we're actually getting near the end of this sort of middle act that we're in, before the final one.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Kaleeth nodded her head. There was hardly even a mark on her left over from the fight, and she had not received any magical healing. She was a large target that tended to be hit easily in fights, but she also had exemplary regenerative capabilities. As long as she was not critically wounded, or hurt by silver, she could recover quickly. Even silver weapons took more to hurt her, due to her armor-like scales.

"The cold hurt, but it didn't really injure me. I don't remember it all too clearly; I was letting my beast spirit have some freedom in the fight. The pain strengthened it. It was probably my fault for charging away so quickly. It would have been better for me to stay near the eye with you, where there was less ice. Though, I don't remember completely if there was enough space in the eye for me. I know I take up a lot of it." Kaleeth answered. She nudged her snout against Sabine's shoulder to attempt to give the sense that she was trying not to be serious, since she could not smile. In the back of her mind, there were thoughts wondering about the possibility of Fendros or Ahnasha really intentionally hurting a little girl as Sabine described, but she did not want to think about those at the moment.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"I didn't really hurt his family. Never intended to; like I said, pain is meaningless. But I'll never kill an innocent like that, you have my word. That was never something I would do." Ahnasha answered in a tone that was meant to be reassuring. She had not yet really admitted any wrongdoing.

Ahnasha put her arms around Fendros' neck to bring him into a hug. "Now, I really wouldn't mind just finding a spot to sit down and relax a while, maybe by the lake. I think we could both use some rest before starting up the next interrogations. I doubt we'll get anything more useful than we already have, but you never know. So, is everything alright?"

---

Kaleeth tried to rub Sabine's back comfortingly. She was certainly able to hold on to her tightly. "I'm sure it wasn't anything terrible like that. Fendros and Ahnasha are our friends; they wouldn't purposefully do that. Just, um, try to relax. We can both go talk to them in a bit." She suggested.

Kaleeth let go of Sabine for a moment so she could bring her lumbering body to lay down on the ground by the lake. She motioned to the ground beside her for Sabine to take a seat. She was having some trouble keeping her mind calm while she was doing nothing, but her recent meal kept her well-enough in control.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

While not quite as confused as before, nor as combative, Ahnasha still was not conceding entirely. Her stance was more neutral, and she still held on to Fendros' hand, but she also still defended herself. "What do you mean? Who should I have sympathy for. If you're talking about the woman and the child...yes, I can agree. The child definitely can't be blamed, and the mother...is redeemable. But, well, some of the enemy might be desperate, yes. However, that doesn't excuse their crimes. Don't forget that a lot of these people who were 'just' tricked, or supposedly don't know any better, still willingly kill defenseless people just for being lycans. They gas them out, hand their souls over to Vile, just for being lycans. They don't care which ones fight back and which ones don't; they just kill them all. Is it really wrong to want to kill anyone and everyone who is willing to do that to us?"

Ahnasha lowered her head briefly and let out a sigh before pointing to the room with the captives. "And that man, that enemy soldier, don't even for a second think he's innocent. He wasn't even killing lycans; he was hunting Talos worshipers. He was hunting down and killing defenseless townsfolk just because they wanted to worship some old Emperor. Whether or not he did any of the killing personally, he was still helping them. Don't you think those townsfolk had families that cared about them? Children that relied on them? Do their families matter any less than his? He made a deal with a Daedra to help kill them because he needed money. If you're asking if I have sympathy for him, then no. I don't have the smallest shred of sympathy for a man like him." She said resolutely.

---

Kaleeth had a hard time believing that what Sabine said was true. She did not think that Sabine would lie to her, of course, but her first thought was that she was mistaken somehow. Confusion did not show too clearly in a werecrocodile's expression, but there was a hint of it in her voice. "That...can't be right. Are you sure that's what happened? That doesn't sound like them at all. Is there any other way it could have happened? An accident, or..." She asked, her deep voice trailing off.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

There we go, edited it.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ah, forgot to respond to Sabine.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha was actually fairly confused when Fendros' shouting stopped, coupled with his words. She was not entirely sure what kind of point he was trying to make to her. "What are you talking about? I'm not 'being' like anything; I'm the same as I've always been. I'm just as devoted to ending this war as ever. Just as devoted to you and Rhazii. I'm not going to pretend that it is easy or something that I want to do, but it's what I need to do. Like I said, it wasn't about the girl; it was about her father. I didn't hurt the girl, not really. You have to understand, pain...pain doesn't matter. I have had to pour months and years into studying all aspects of the body for my research, so I know that pain is just a way for the body to tell the mind that it is in trouble. Pain itself doesn't do anything. The place I put the knife, it was a flesh wound. Ran it between the tendons, avoided the bone. Not even a chance of permanent harm. It's not going to give her nightmares or traumatize her; you're overreacting. I just used some temporary pain to learn something that could do some permanent good in this area. That's all."

Stepping forward, Ahnasha grabbed a hold of Fendros' hand tenderly with a far softer expression than the anger that had preceded it. "Nothing about me has changed. I just want what's best for the clans, and ultimately for us. Everything I have done, all of the fighting, all of my research and soul gathering, all of the missions I have been a part of, it's all been for you Fendros. Because I love you."

---

Sabine and those she had brought with her had recovered the letter they had sought to find, but Malithus was handling it for now, leaving Sabine to do as she pleased. Kaleeth had remained in her werecrocodile form, just in case it was still needed for any reason, such as moving the wagon again. As it happened, she gone for a swim in the lake during the interrogation to try to help keep her beast spirit placated, so she had not heard the scream entirely clearly under the water. She noticed some discomfort among the members of Malithus' pack, but she had not taken the time to ask them about it.

Naturally, Kaleeth was entirely confused when Sabine came running up to her in tears to hug her. She placed her massive hand on Sabine's back and looked down on her with the closest expression to concern that she could currently produce. "What's...wrong?"