Ask Old Habits [Savareen]

[Jubilee Flynn]

Savareen - A planet not known for much in the hectic spiral of the galaxy. Beautiful oceans and blanket deserts cover the planet, though not as lonely as you might suspect. This planet was known as an outlier in the Outer Rim Territories. As most victims of Syndicate business would lay down when threatened, the people of Savareen have been known to stand against the powerful fist of the Five Syndicates, starting as far back as the Clone Wars and even well into the Galactic Civil War. However, where profit can be made, the Syndicate shall be there.

"Vexer, check the coordinates again. I'm not picking up anything on the scanners, you sure the drop off is here?"​

The cheerful droid beeps twice relaying the information Jubilee asked for, confirming that yes indeed the drop off is here and the buyer is waiting.

"This place ain't no more than a pile of scrap and sand. But I'll set her down somewhere."​

The Ando Impulse, Jubilee's light-freighter, swung around the small village without a name and found a semi-flat spot to set down her ship. She was carrying close to 10 tons of supplies, she didn't know what the supplies were, or where they were going, but she was given the simple task to deliver the goods to a contact on Savareen. Avoid any questioning eyes and suspicious faces were her orders from her handler, but other than that she was without any knowledge.
Opening up the loading bay doors she stepped out onto the hot sand in her bare feet squishing the soft sand between her toes, always better to fly comfortable she reminded herself while putting her socks and boots on. BB-49C, "Vexer" as she called him rolled out of the ship and ran a few donuts in the sand near the ship. Jubilee whistled for him and nodded her head in the direction of a control panel to start up the loaders so that the two of them could unload the cargo before the rendezvous meeting time with the buyer.
The two of them worked diligently to get all of the cargo out of the ship, yet also out of sight so that anyone passing by wouldn't see the cargo. Jubilee had her suspicions about what might the cargo be, but it wasn't her place to ask questions. After the duo unloaded the freighter of the necessary goods Jubilee decided to lay out in the sun and take a nap. She wasn't in a hurry and BB-49C was a good lookout.

@llamallove

 

[Atris Tharen]

Sevareen was quite the change from Lothal, the last planet Atris had been stationed on. She had gone from green, beautiful terrain and sweeping valleys to sand, sand, and more sand. There was a beauty to this sand covered planet though—a wild, untamed beauty, and Atris did not mind the change in scenery.

Though it was not within sight of the med-clinic Atris worked in, the Emerald Sea was a short distance from her location and visiting it was an enjoyable diversion when she had the time. The med-clinic here was much more humble than the already humble med-clinic she had been working at before in Lothal, but it met the needs of the local community. Consisting of a tent, one medical droid, and exactly three med units, the small but charming med-clinic sat atop a solid sand dune and had an extraordinary view of the surrounding area.

Most days were slow, with maybe only four or five patients coming in for treatment. Atris was left with a lot of time on her hands. This was not always something she particularly enjoyed, but thanks to Krol, the elderly gentleman who oversaw the clinic, she always had an interesting (if somewhat exaggerated) tale to listen to.

It had been a typically slow day, and the two of them were sitting outside, enjoying the feeling of the sun and wind on their skin. Krol was regaling Atris with one of his many stories as usual. She was attentively listening, but the ship that flew overhead did not go unnoticed.

The afternoon proved to be just as slow as the morning had, and Atris retired to her tent earlier than usual that evening. Sleep had come quickly but did not last long. Krol calling her name had awoken her only an hour later, and she was amazed at the state of the med-clinic as she stepped through the tent doors.

Only an hour earlier, the humble tent had been totally still, empty, and silent apart from the medical droid. Now, all three med-units were full, each patient looking as if they were close to death. Atris immediately recognized the symptoms, and Krol confirmed her suspicions.

“Spice overdoses,” he told Atris in a low voice, drawing close as she entered the tent.

“The symptoms seem... worse than your usual overdose,” she expressed.

“You would be right,” he nodded solemnly. “If I had to guess, I would say they got ahold of some bad spice. I haven’t seen it happen very often, but... it does happen.”

“Will they make it?” Atris asked, her thoughts drifting back to her sister as they always did in such situations.

“Only time will tell, but I think so. We need to get to work.”

Atris nodded, and neither she nor Krol wasted any more time. They tended to the patients as best they could, but within the hour two more were brought in—both with the same symptoms.

“I am afraid this will be a recurrence if we do not put a stop to the source,” Krol admitted to Atris once they had placed the two new patients in makeshift beds. “We do not have the resources to care for anything widespread.”

“You mean I should find the dealer? The supplier?” Atris questioned as she remembered the ship she had seen arriving earlier that day.

“Mm,” Krol agreed. “I do. You are the Jedi here, after all.”

“What about you? Will you be alright here without me?“

“I will be fine. I have the medical droid to assist me. I suggest you not waste another moment, Atris.”

Atris nodded and exited the tent and set off on her assignment. She knew just who to look for first: the pilot of that ship.

@Jubilee Flynn

 

[Jubilee Flynn]

While lazing about in the sun, BB-49C sprang up and excitedly blurted out a few beeps and whirls, warning Jubilee of someone approaching.

"Good the buyer finally shows up. Hangout in the ship Vexer, just in case", Jubilee said under her breath as the stranger drew closer to their station.

"Hello there" Jubilee waved at the approaching figure, then she held up her hand, palm facing forward in a stopping motion and yelled out the code phrase to the distant figure. "Nice weather, say do you know what planet this is?"

The figure stopped a moment then proceeded to get closer without saying a word, Jubilee noticed now that the figure was draped in a dark cloak that stood out against the backdrop of the sand. She clipped off the leather belt around her DL-18 blaster pistol nonchalantly, jumped down from the cargo she was previously napping on and walked towards the mysterious figure, though careful not to leave the veritable safety of the nearby cargo containers and her ship.

Again Jubilee said with more concern and doubt,"Do you know what planet this is stranger?". unsure of whether to shoot first ask questions later or remain calm for the time being.

The figure came closer and then just beyond the edge of her range the cloaked being stopped dead in their tracks, and removed the cloak revealing a tall slender human woman with curly red hair and what appeared to be an armor set, not of Mandalorian heritage, but still with a tribal pattern to it. She was carrying blaster rifle, as soon as the cloak dropped to the ground the blaster rifle was pointed straight at Jubilee, way too fast for her to react quick enough with her blaster pistol.

"Don't even think about it smuggl'a" The red headed woman said with a very thick Scottish sounding accent. "I got your ship surrounded, trained blast'as on all sides a'ya. And yea, you're on Savareen."

"Wonderful... so you're not the buyer?" Jubilee said with the upmost sarcastic intent.

"Oh on the contrary love, I am the buyer, I just ain't buyin' nothin' from yous." The red head moved forward, never taking the blaster off Jubilee. The woman headed towards one of the crates, always keeping the rifle trained on Jubilee, with one hand the woman skillfully lifted the lid off of the cargo to check inside, obviously pleased with it contents she returned the lid and moved back to talk with Jubilee.

"Tank ya very much love, ya done your job, better'n most."

"So what, I just walk away without a cut?"

"Uhhh, yea pretty much. That's how da game works, unfortunately for you. Lucky I'm letting yous walk away wit anything at all. That's a nice enough ship, I could'a snatched it right away from yous. Alas, I won't do dat to a pretty young thing such as yerself."

Jubilee heard several sets of food steps behind her, not taking one eye off of the woman, she used her peripherals to notice that three other cloaked figures were approaching from the rear. There was no clean way out of this, better to lose the cargo and keep your life. Screw that she thought! These bastards weren't getting her take that easily.

"Well lady, unfortunately for you, I've got a bad temper and right now, you're on the wrong side of it!" Jubilee pulls out her pistol, dives to the right behind a cargo container and blasts one of the cloaked figures approaching from the rear. Blaster rifle shots go off all around her, some glancing off the cargo crates other bolts ricocheting off her ship and into the sand. She fired a few more blasts in a suppressing fire, with one bolt only striking the armor of one of the cloaked figures before she made it to her cargo ramp and ran inside, yelling for BB-49C to start the ship.

The Ando Impulse took off from the small flat landing circle while simultaneously being fired upon, by not only just the blaster rifles that she had seen of the four people on the ground, but now by many more from surrounding areas. "She wasn't kidding Vexer! She's got a whole gang with her! Get us the hell out of here!"

The ship turned around and headed back for the small pile of scrap and sand she saw earlier. Maybe there she could repair damages and get her bearing as to what the hell just happened, and what the plans were for the cargo she was just so rudely robbed of.

 

[Atris Tharen]

Surprisingly, Atris did not have to search long. As fate would have it, the ship practically landed in her lap. Either the force was with her today, or this was far too easy. “Well, what do you know...” she muttered to herself, taking up a crouched position to observe the ship that had landed near an old pile of scraps.

The ship had backtracked? She wondered why. Taking a closer look, she was able to discover the reason why. The ship had taken blaster damage, evident by the markings that marred its metal platings and the occasional sparks that flew from various cables and wiring. Something hadn’t gone as planned, most likely a deal gone wrong. Perhaps that would be in her favor.

Ensuring that both lightsabers were strapped to her belt and within reach, Atris hid them from view and approached the ship. There was no need to approach the crew of this ship as hostiles, yet. Hopefully a little conversation would settle this matter and lead Atris to the source of this spice. This pilot had probably brought in the second shipment, ergo would be able to lead her to the seller of the first.

Drawing closer, she strode up the ship’s ramp and knocked three times.

@Jubilee Flynn

 

[Jubilee Flynn]

The three charming knocks on the ships loading ramp echoed through the chambers of the Ando Impulse. Jubilee sprang up from beneath the floor boards, sparks striking and warning bells chiming throughout the entirety of the ship, Jubilee hesitatingly made her way to the cargo hold.
Another three knocks rang throughout the ship. Jubilee waved back her droid and readied her pistol. These bastards were obviously cocky if they felt they could just knock on the ship and take it over. Jubilee grabbed the remote door control and hid behind a support pillar in the cargo hold. The space she currently occupied wasn't much bigger than the cockpit, but by some extent she had more range of motion.
Slowly pressing the button so that the cargo ramp lowered, Jubilee aimed her blaster pistol out of the increasing opening space. When the ramp connected with the ground a large thud rang out through the cargo hold and the supports let go of some of their pressure. After a few moments of silence went by with no sign of life, Jubilee called out to whomever had knocked on her ship, "If you're here to kill me, lets get this over with!"

@Atris Tharen

 

[Atris Tharen]

Atris had begun to wonder if anyone was going to answer or even if there was anyone in the ship at all. Then suddenly, the cargo ramp began to lower and eventually made contact with the sand beneath it. Taking a few steps forward, Atris leaned forward and peered into the ship, allowing her eyes to bounce around the cargo hold. There was no sign of anyone. Perhaps a droid had opened the ramp?

Thena voice rang out from somewhere in the cargo hold. "If you're here to kill me, lets get this over with!"

Atris couldn’t help but smile at that. “If I was here to kill you, I assure you I wouldn’t have knocked.”

@wristclerk

 

[Jubilee Flynn]

"Then what the hell do you want?! Can't you see I'm extremely busy at the moment?" Jubilee barked at the unfamiliar voice that had broken the silence of the cargo hold. Peering out every so slowly Jubilee caught a glimpse of a tall woman, possibly the same woman that had tried to rob her earlier, however, this voice had no accent to it and furthermore, she sounded sincere.

Taking a chance, not on the stranger but on her own skills, Jubilee stood up and made herself visible, still holding onto the blaster just below waist level, not directly pointed at the stranger, but ready if anything should come of this situation.

"So what can I do for ya?"

@llamallove

 

[Atris Tharen]

Bit by bit, the owner of the voice revealed herself from behind the support beaming serving as her hiding place. The voice’s owner was a smaller woman with short hair and cunning eyes, informing Atris to tread carefully if she wanted to avoid an altercation. The blaster held firmly below the woman’s waste also got that message across.

“I’m looking for your cargo,” she answered simply. Atris looked about the empty cargo hold. “But it appears you no longer have it. No matter, I suppose. I’m really looking for the buyer of your cargo. Although I’m guessing by the damage done to the outside of your ship that they may not have paid for it?”

@wristclerk

 

[Jubilee Flynn]

"Aye you're a keen one eh? Yeah the bastards took the cargo from me. But what does it matter to you? You don't even know what I was hauling." Jubilee said cautiously, not wanting to give this new woman all the information she asked for.

"What's your name stranger? I'm Flynn, Jubilee Flynn."

 

[Atris Tharen]

“It matters to me because I have a whole med-clinic full of people who were sold bad spice. I’d like to have a few... words with the seller and destroy that shipment before it’s sold to anyone else. I assume my seller and your buyer are one and the same,” she answered.

Atris took a few cautious steps forward and extended a hand to Jubilee. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Atris Tharen,” she introduced herself.

@wristclerk

 

[Jubilee Flynn]

"Well Atris, I won't lie to you because you're obviously skilled enough to be out here alone so I won't take any chances". Holstering her DL-18 Jubilee continued, "but yeah... I was hauling Spice, or at least I think I was. However, my... employer, wouldn't sell bad spice, he's the type to get people hooked and keep them in debt, not the type to kill those addicted. I'm sorry for your struggles at the Med-Center, but I'm no doctor so I can't help you there. But I can offer you some... revenge?" Speaking plainly Jubilee reached out and grabbed Atris' hand with a firm grip and shook. However, she did note that the word revenge still clung to the air like they were in a deep swamp somewhere, a putrid smell of death seemed to move around Jubilee for her intent was revenge, because she was in the revenge game. At any moment attack could come from anywhere or from anyone. It wasn't the merchandise or the damages incurred to her ship she was after, no it was something far more valuable to her than material objects, Jubilee wanted revenge for her Pride.

"I can take you past the wastes to the secret landing zone setup as a rendezvous point with the buyers. Not sure they'll still be there, but we can try to track them."

@llamallove

 

[Atris Tharen]

It seemed to Atris that this Jubilee knew what she was talking about, so she did not argue the point about the bad spice. Perhaps the seller had not intended to sell bad spice or perhaps someone was selling out from under him, or perhaps the bad spice came from an entirely different seller. She could find out, however, by taking Jubilee up on her offer and following her. Once face to face with the seller, Atris could hopefully get some answers and either eliminate him as the seller of the bad spice or put a stop to his unsavory business. Or maybe both.

Atris could feel the want, the need for revenge that consumed every inch of the dark haired woman standing confidently before her. She had taken the theft of her shipment, the attack on her person, and the damages to her ship personally. Atris supposed she could not blame her, but the fact that she was running spice caused Atris to be a bit less sympathetic than she might have been under any other circumstances.

Jubilee seemed trustworthy enough, so long as Atris made sure not to cross her. Jubilee was extending a hand of trust to her, both in the holstering of her DL-18 and the offer she presented, so it was only fair that Atris also extend a hand of trust. After all, they could both be a help to one another.

“Lead the way,” she answered simply, offering Jubilee a smile and stepping aside to allow her more space to pass by.

@wristclerk

 

[Jubilee Flynn]

"Excellent. Follow me to the cockpit and I'll take you there now. Will you need any weapons though? I don't see a blaster on your belt" Jubilee asked quizzically. Usually people so sure of themselves had at least some kind of weapon. She secretly hoped that Atris wasn't the 'words and wisdom' type of fighter. The ache of battle burned in her throat like a stiff drink, and she wanted to be sure that her new companion could handle herself.

Jubilee led Atris to the cockpit of the WTK-85A light freighter, just big enough for two and maybe a droid. "That's Vexer over there,he's a an older BB unit but he's still got some spunk in'em, ain't that right boy?" she said motioning to her droid compatriot balancing next to the jack-link in the terminal. " Vexers just a nickname I gave him awhile back. His circuits get crossed sometimes and he's a bit of a pain. A side-effect of some unfortunate reprogramming his old 'master' did on him. Long story."

Vexer beeped a few times in unison, clearly asking a question of Jubilee. "Oh yeah, sorry. Vexer, this is Atris Tharen, she'll be joining us for a bit while we track down the crew who stole our shipment. She believes that they're poisoning the incoming Spice." Vexer beeped a few times after that statement in response to what she had told him. "Yeah, not sure why anyone would do such a thing either, but when we find them I'll make sure to ask'em."

Jubilee flipped a few switches above her, the joystick came alive and the engines purred with the sweet sound of fire. The ship was breathing again. She wasn't ready for any full blown battles just yet, but once the worst had been repaired, "The Ando Impulse" would be good as new. "Buckle up babe, we're going in fast and hot."

@llamallove

 

[Atris Tharen]

Atris offered Jubilee a smile and pushed her garb to one side, showcasing one of the lightsabers that hung from her belt. “I think I’ll be alright,” she replied, following Jubilee into cockpit of the WTK-85A. It was a nice ship, and Atris was sure it was much nicer, indeed, when it had not been shot up by spice runners.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Vexer,” she told the BB unit when introductions were made. An older unit or not, he was adorable. She gave the droid a friendly pat atop its head and then took her seat beside Jubilee.

Atris heeded her pilot companion’s advice to buckle up and did not waist time in so doing. She had a feeling that Jubille was going to be a very skilled and experienced pilot but was not the type of person to go slow in any area of her life, particularly behind the controls of a ship.

Buckled into her seat, Atris watched Jubilee skillfully begin to ease the ship into movement, and Atris prepared herself for what was to come next—both the flight and their eventual encounter with the spice runners.

@wristclerk

 

[Jubilee Flynn]

The ship lifted off the ground and the entire frame of the ship shook with a violent shudder. Jubilee chuckled and gave an apathetic smirk to Atris.

"Fly much?" Jubliee threw out the rhetorical question just before pushing the thruster forward and swinging the joystick low to buzz the surface of the sandy planet. The shuddering frame of the ship came to a gentle vibration as the she found a happy equilibrium speed at which it could hold up against the strain of the engines versus the wind.

The ship skirted across the lowest points of the ground, Jubilee was focusing mainly on staying well below scanners for she knew the dunes would confuse any scanning equipment, she also just loved the look of the wind whipping up the sand behind the engines as she flew.

They flew over sand dune after sand dune until Vexer beeped three times in quick succession confirming that they were approaching rendezvous. "Alright, shields up Vexer, I'll buzz the landing zone, maybe scare off any stragglers, you uh... maybe do a Jedi thing?"

The ship swung around the desert circle whipping up a larger sandstorm than previously. "No visuals, no enemy fire. Maybe they're gone? I'll open up the cargo ramp, I won't land yet but give me some better visuals. You can use the intercom in the cargo bay to relay the info back"

 

[llamallove]

The simple answer was no: Atris did not fly much. Whatever flight time it took to get from the planet she was on to the next planet she needed to get to was the extent of her experience. She knew very little about piloting and had no real piloting experience. She was content to sit back and let others take the controls of a ship.

On the other hand, as Atris had expected, Jubilee was a skilled pilot and knew what she was doing. She skirted the dunes to avoid any potential scanners, a good idea had that not occurred to Atris until she had caught on to what Jubilee was doing.

“Do a Jedi thing?” Atris could not help but smile at that. That was a new one. With her orders to gather more visuals, Atris gave a curt nod and unbuckled. Returning to the cargo hold she’d been in only minutes before, she stood at the cargo ramp and peered out, her eyes scanning the area that she could see as well as feeling out through the force for anything she might not be able to see. “I don’t see anything... yet,” she relayed to Jubilee through the intercom.

@wristclerk

 

[Jubilee Flynn]

Receiving the all clear, Jubilee began the landing sequence. The gears clicked and the hydraulics extended down. The Ando Impulse began its decent to the sandy landing circle below. "Alright Atris, imma set her down nice and slow, be on the lookout."

The landing feet touched the sand and the hydraulics hissed, releasing the built up pressure and clicking into place. The cargo ramp was already extended, as it met with the ground the sand pushed up onto the ramp as it dug into the ground. The frame shuddered once more and then settled as the engine roar died down and all became quiet in the vicinity.

"I'm headed down Atris, lets look for some clues as to where these bastards went off to."

@llamallove

 

[Atris Tharen]

“Alright,” Atris replied. Atris reached out and grasped ahold of something to brace herself as the ship descended to the sand covered surface below.

Once the ship had landed, Atris descended the already lowered boarding ramp and kicked up a mess of sand along the way. It certainly was an out of the way landing pad, perfect for all sorts of illegal transactions no doubt.

Glancing about her, she began to search the immediate area for any sign of where they may have gone.

“See anything?” she asked Jubilee.
@wclerk

 

[Jubilee Flynn]

"It's what I don't see that concerns me. All the cargo Vexer and I unloaded took us about an hour and a half. They seemingly moved it and made it look like it was never here in under thirty minutes. I don't see how. There might be tracks, you uh... sense anything? Is that how it works?"

@llamallove

 

[Atris Tharen]

“Sometimes,” Atris laughed, casting her companion an affectionate smile. She was beginning to like Jubilee, even if she was in the business of running spice. She supposed everyone fell into some form of questionable act from time to time, and she herself was not exempt from that.

Walking over to the landing pad, Atris knelt down and placed a hand upon it. Psychometry. Sense Echo. It was called different names by different people. The force ability had not manifested itself in Atris until her late teens, and it had taken considerable study and practice on Atris’ part to harness and control the ability. She was still in the process of honing it.

Closing her eyes, Atris breathed deeply and began to reach out to the landing pad through the force. After what felt to her to be a moment or two of experiencing sights, sounds, and emotions from the not-so-distant past, she reopened her eyes and turned to face Jubilee. “They did not load the shipment of spice onto a ship but rather a transport vehicle of some sort. I believe they headed northwest.”

Atris stood and wiped her sandy hand off on her pants. “Any idea where they might be headed?”

@wristclerk