The Hunt Begins

Chapter III | Episode XI | 7/24/2017

With the fight over, Micael Torval wasted no time redirecting his attention to the stranger in his box. Much to his surprise there were now two trespassers in his luxury suite. Noticing the more refined looking Zeltron, he approached Twil.

“Who are you people, and what are you doing in my suite?” He demanded, walking up to Twil.

Twil, of course, immediately started to lay on the charm, “Hey! You must be Micael Torval! I am a huge fan of yours, sir. I’ve been following your exploits in the Sabacc game for some time.”

Torval let out an annoyed grunt, “I’ve no time for fans, Mister…”

“Pin, Captain Twil Pin. And actually, I’m more than just a fan, Mr. Torval.” Twil replied,quickly segueing the conversation, “I also happen to run a very successful clothing line. And, as anyone could tell just by looking at you, you have an eye for fashion, am I right?”

“I’ve also no time for a sales pitch. Now please leave my suite.” Torval said, waving a dismissing hand in the air.

Twil wasn’t about to let this opportunity get away from him, using his Force powers, he began convincing the Human, “I really think you should check out the stuff I brought in this box. I really think there’s something in there that would interest you.”

Micael Toravl looked at the box Twil was holding, and said, “You know… alright. Yeah, let’s see what you brought. Judging by your jacket, I can tell you’ve got good taste.”

“Excellent!” Twil exclaimed, “Let’s, uh, let’s go over here, where there’s less of a crowd.” Twil gestured to a back corner of the suite.

“Whoa, you aren’t trying to pull anything on me, are you?” Torval asked, suddenly getting very defensive, losing what little composure he had.

“No, no, it’s just this stuff isn’t even out yet, and I don’t want anyone else getting a sneak peek.” Twil replied, releasing pheromones in an attempt to calm the man down.

After ensuring that Idozzi would stay a good distance away, Torval finally agreed to meet with the Zeltron in relative privacy.

As Twil opened the box, he pretended to show Torval various items of clothing, until he got to the hidden datapad. He then said, “And I think this will really interest you.” He then began playing the recording of the Pirate Queen discussing Torval’s imminent assassination. It was at this time that Torval’s bodyguard re-entered the room. He wasted no time listening in on the conversation.

“What’s the meaning of this?!” Torval asked in a hushed yell, “What is this? How did you get this?”

“I think you know full well what this is.” Twil said, very seriously, “I know you think that you and she are lovers, but in all reality, she’s planning to kill you. I can help you. But you need to do something in return for me. I need to know where she is. I need to find her.”

“Why would I tell you anything?” Torval asked, white as a sheet.

“Because I’m the only one who can guarantee your safety at this moment.” Twil replied.

Torval clearly looked shaken, “I love her.” He said, looking down at the ground, “All I have is my love life and my sabacc. I can’t just give her up. I’m nothing without her.”

Reaching out with the Force, Twil attempted to read the man’s thoughts. It was then that he felt an all too familiar presence. Micael Torval was Force sensitive, but he wasn’t aware of it. “You’re so much more than that.” Twil said with a pained smile.

Torval looked up at Twil, “How can you help me?”

“Ilo Vandin has expressed interest in harboring you.” Twil replied.

Again, Torval looked shaken, “Ilo? The Ilo? You’re taking me from the Pirate Queen to a crime lord?”

“Yeah, except the crime lord doesn’t want you dead.” Twil explained.

“How can you be so sure?” Torval asked, he took another look around to ensure no one else was listening in. “There’s a price on my head Captain. I’ve got debts, to the Empire. There’s a good chance Ilo just wants me so he can collect the Empire’s bounty.”

Twil thought for a moment, “Well then, we’ll just have to make you more valuable to him alive. You’re the best sabacc player in the system right? offer to split your winnings. Convince him that you can make him more money than whatever the Empire is offering.”

“That’s a dangerous gamble, Captain.” Torval replied, almost visibly shaking.

“Would you rather take a gamble, or would you like the certain death the Pirate Queen is offering?” Twil asked, bluntly.

“Well, when you put it that way… Okay, I’ll tell you where the Queen is.” He then pulled out a datapad of his own, and showed Twil a marked location on a map in the slums. “Whenever I meet her, it’s at this series of warehouses.”

Back in the locker room, Baruda was greeted by Jyd Renyr. “Baruda, my boy, you just made me a lot of money!” He then pulled Baruda into an uncomfortable bear hug, “What say we double it, huh? I’ve got another fight lined up, right now. You win, you get forty-thousand credits! of course, if you lose, you get nothing.”

“Whoa, whoa, there.” Baruda began, putting his hands up, “You want me to fight again? Tonight? Uh, I’m not sure I’m up for that.”

“Oh come one, Baruda! Here, a little something for motivation.” Jyd then slipped a 500 credit chip into Baruda’s pocket, “What do you say?”

“Sorry, Mr. Renyr.” Baruda replied, “I really can’t tonight. But I’d be happy to another night.”

Jyd then slapped Baruda across the face, muttering some racial slur under his breath. “Get out of my arena.”

“Hey now, you owe us some money!” Baruda argued.

Without saying anything, Jyd snapped his fingers. Seconds later, two large Trandoshans appeared, and stood on each side of Baruda.

Baruda then quickly activated his comm, “Hey, uh Captain? We’ve got a problem here, Mr. Renyr won’t pay up because I refused to do another fight tonight, and now he’s having me thrown out.”

“What?!” Twil yelled, “Hey, Jyd! Jyd are you there?”

“Our business is concluded, Captain.” Jyd said, turning to leave.

“Jyd!” Twil yelled again, “What you’re doing is pretty bad for business. Baruda won, you really want to give up a fighter like this over a few measly credits? We can’t do another fight tonight, we’ve got other business to take care of. But we’d be happy to return another night. I think the three of us could make quite a bit of money. But if you back out on our bet, you’d better believe you’ll be missing out on the opportunity of a lifetime.”

Jyd turned back to face Baruda. There was an odd look on his face, as if he wasn’t all there. He made a call over his own comm. Seconds later a small creature carrying a large metal briefcase appeared. Jyd opened the case, pulled out 22,000 credits, and shoved them into Baruda’s hands. “Take it, and get out.” He ordered.

With everyone finally reunited they headed out of the arena with Micael Torval and his bodyguard. Rath and Zanroy were both still stealthed, scanning the arena for any potential assassins.

As they got outside, Baruda was almost instantly mobbed, due to him forgetting to remove the mask he had worn in the ring. Quickly taking it off, he did his best to hide from the crowds outside as they approached Micael Torval’s Limo.

Twil got an electronic message from Rath telling him that the limo was clean, and hadn’t been tampered with in any way.

Knowing that he had to sneak Rath inside, as he was still cloaked, Twil opened the passenger side door by “mistake,” allowing the invisible Chiss in the car. Meanwhile, Zanroy sneaked into the back with the others, without anyone even noticing.

During the drive, Twil had a brief conversation with Micael entirely in his mind, explaining that he had a similar gift, which is why he was so good at sabacc. This clearly rattled Torval, but Twil did all he could to calm him, and convince him that their plan would work.

As they approached the Jewel District, they were able to bypass the usual secruity, and arrived at Ilo Vandin’s residence. Upon exiting the limo, however, the group was met by half a dozen guards, all of whom had their guns drawn upon seeing Baruda with them.

As this all happened, Rath quietly slipped Baruda the light repeating pistol he had been ordered to stow away at the arena. If a fight was going to happen, it wouldn’t be one sided with that gun in the Klatooinian’s hands.

Before any shots were fired, Ilo appeared from his residence, dressed in little more than a robe, “Captain.” He said annoyed, “I thought we had a deal. Why is that thing still alive?”

“New deal Ilo.” Twil said, “I’ve got Micael Torval here for you. Now we can negotiate out here with the guns, or we can go inside, your choice.”

“Very well.” Ilo said with a gruff grunt, waving for Twil to follow.

Twil, idozzi, and Micael Torval all followed Ilo inside, with Rath close behind, still stealthed, of course. Meanwhile, Baruda and Zanroy stayed outside, in the perpetual standoff with Ilo’s guards.

Now inside, Ilo began, “Captain, our deal was that you would kill that Klatooinian. Why is he still alive?”

“Because I saw potential for credits.” Twil answered, “Did you not see the fights tonight?”

The Herglic then began clapping slowly, “Oh bravo, Captain, you made a few credits. Well done. Now, kill that dog, or I’ll ensure Kaltho gets wind of your involvement in the theft of his package.”

“You mean the package you stole?” Twil asked, not intimidated.

“I stole? I don’t know what you mean, Captain. It was the Klatooinian that stole it.”

It was during this tiring conversation that Rath saw Ilo’s personal computer terminal hidden within his desk. “Keep him busy.” Rath messaged Twil, via his implant.

He then began hacking into the terminal remotely. It wasn’t easy, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen so many safeguards, but he succeeded anyway. Within minutes, Rath had found the proof he needed to clear Baruda’s name and pin everything on Ilo. If Kaltho was going to go after anyone for theft, it wouldn’t be anyone on the Sovereign crew. Realizing the wealth of information he had at his fingertips, Rath then decided to download the crime lord’s entire database.

“I’ve got it.” Read the message Rath had sent over Twil’s datapad.

Upon seeing this Twil decided to play hardball. “Okay Ilo, here’s the new deal. We give you Micael Torval, and you give us the package meant for Kaltho.”

“No.” Ilo replied, bluntly.

“I don’t think you realize what you’ve got on your hands here.” Twil said, “Micael is the best sabacc player this side of the Outer Rim. I know you might have had other ideas in mind for him. But think of the winnings he could net you. You protect him, and he’ll give you a third of his winnings for six months. You’d stand to make a fortune.”

Ilo pondered what the Zletron had said, carefully. “Half. I get half.”

“Done.” Twil agreed.

“What?!” Torval yelled out, still shaking, “Captain, half?! I need that to survive!”

“Then win more.” Twil replied.

Torval began to protest again, but Twil interjected, “Believe in what we discussed. You’ll be fine.”

Still obviously shaken, Torval just nodded in response.

“If he fails to make me what you promise, Captain, I’ll be expecting you to make up the difference.” Ilo warned.

“That won’t be a problem.” Twil replied, “Now, the package please.”

Ilo seemed to resist, but Twil invaded his mind with the Force, forcing the Herglic to give it up. “A pleasure doing business with you.” Twil said, swiping the package out of Ilo’s hands.

The three then left the building, bypassing the guards who were still holding their guns, ready to fire on Baruda and Zanroy.

Not letting the chance of a fight to occur, Twil ordered everyone back in the limo, and they were promptly on their way.

As the crew were heading back to the Sovereign, to retrieve their weapons, Twil’s datapad began lighting up with alarms. The new security measures he had installed on the ship were going off.

Pulling up visuals, he saw a group of thugs attempting to set up an incredibly large ion canon aimed directly for the Sovereign. Deciding to shoot first and ask questions later, Twil remotely activated the Sovereign’s turrets. The volley instantly turned the ion canon into a heap of melted scrap, as the thugs dove for cover behind the nearest metal box or crate they could find.

Twil then activated the external speakers, “Who are you and what are you trying to do with my ship?”

The only response that was given was one of the thugs shooting out one of the Sovereign’s nine external cameras.

“Okay then.” Twil said, he let the turrets fire once again. In addition, he decided to flush out the things by playing the old audio recording of a varactyl mating call, that they had used to some success years prior.

It wasn’t long before the thugs high tailed it out of the spaceport, and out of the view of the Sovereign’s cameras.

Upon arriving at the spaceport, Twil and company rushed to the Sovereign, only to find the area teeming with port security.

Twil attempted to ask some questions in an attempt to figure out who was trying to attack his ship. Unfortunately the head detective was less than helpful, telling Twil he should have hired a contractor to watch his ship.

Frustrated, but knowing time wasn’t on their side, Twil entered the ship with the others and geared up for the coming conflict. The Pirate Queen was their top priority. Still concerned for the safety of his ship, though, he put R5 in charge of protecting it. Giving him permission to shoot any attackers as a last resort.

The droid, of course, took this to mean that he could use the guns as he saw fit.

After a rather long taxi ride, the crew had finally arrived at the location marked by Micael Torval. It was a large complex of entirely uninteresting warehouse buildings. Rath, for one, would not be deterred by appearances. He knew that within one of these buildings would be the Pirate Queen, and more importantly, the information he was so desperate to find.

Not knowing how best to start, it was decided that they would scan the area, looking for the building of most importance.

Rath’s first stop was the small shuttle parked near the street. It was very nondescript, like everything else here. But it did have a few odd locations programmed into its logs. he made a point to save a recording of those locations, before locking down the shuttle for his own use, should they need a quick escape. And also to keep the Queen from escaping, with that particular shuttle, at any rate.

Meanwhile, Zanroy searched the complex. Stopping by any closed door and listening in. he heard occasional voices, all female. But nothing of any importance.

Roughly halfway through the complex, he spotted two armored women, standing out in the open. They seemed to be just having a casual conversation, nothing more. But the armor they wore was clearly that of the Veiled Sorority. They were indeed in the right place.

Wanting to avoid detection, he slipped inside a nearby building. Within were two sleeping guards. And another woman, this one dressed much more prominently. She had her back turned to Zanroy, and was clearly oblivious to his entering. Attempting to get the upper hand, Zanroy tried to sneak up to the woman, only to trip over a nearby bar stool.

The noise caused the woman to spin around, but despite the trip, Zanroy was ready with his gun. He let loose a stun shot that dropped the woman instantly.

Explaining that he had found someone that looked important, Twil, Baruda, and Idozzi headed to the building that Zanroy had entered.

Before they could discuss anything further, though, the two sleeping guards began to stir. Not wanting to raise any sort of alarm, Twil shot one of the guards with a stun bolt, instantly knocking her out. Following suit, Baruda used the stun setting on his light repeating blaster, “Momma Bear.” Even on stun, though, the gun was too powerful. The guard was hit with such impact that she had a heart attack and died instantly.

“Whoops.” Baruda whispered.

While the others had gathered together, Rath was out on his own. With his stealth suit, he had little to fear from the small time grunts of the Sorority. He searched the area as best he could, sending messages on the positions of guards.

It wasn’t until he reached the furthest building that he saw something that gave him pause. Deep within the building, just within his line of sight, he caught a glimpse of a being that could only be the Pirate Queen. He’d know that mask anywhere. With a blink, however, the image had disappeared, most likely deeper within the building.

“I’ve found her.” He messaged Twil.

He then entered the building to investigate further, only to be met with a large energy shield blocking access. Not the least bit intimidated, the Chiss went to work deactivating the energy shield.

The crew had decided that the woman Zanroy found was most likely too dangerous to keep alive. Zanroy was attempting to finish her off quietly, while she was still knocked out, but her armor proved too thick for his vibroknife to pierce.

Meanwhile, Idozzi was attempting to take the armor from the guard that Baruda had accidentally killed, for camouflage.

It was at this time that Twil got Rath’s message. “He found her, let’s go.”

The three then immediately left the small building. Due to Rath’s reports, they knew where the guards would be, and how best to position themselves to take them out.

While Twil and Baruda kept close together, staying in the shadows, Zanroy decided to make use of his Force powers, leaping up into the sky, and landing on one of the building’s roof tops. From there he had a perfect sniper’s aim at his target.

In unison, the three took their shots. Three of the four guards that stood between them and the building Rath had infiltrated were killed instantly. Leaving one Sorority pirate left alive, and very, very terrified…