A deal's a deal.

[Sakadi Marathi Sinvala]

There it was. The angry tone made her recoil a bit, only to be stopped by the Echani placing his hands on her shoulders. When he continued, scolding her for apologizing instead of harming him, she felt more at ease. Her ears took their upright position again, as Vash continued to encourage the Sephi. She even showed a faint smile again, only for it to disappear once he mentioned the syringe. The presence of that thing could only mean one thing: abduction. The slightest touch with the syringe confirmed her suspicions.

Only a little psychometry was necessary to sense the fear that clung to the projectile. Who shot it had shown a calm dedication. Like the man who wielded the gun had pulled the trigger before. It meant that the disappearances were no coincidence, like they suspected. And it wasn't some wild beast who killed these Twi'leks, no, someone was behind this. The more detailed information she got out of the projectile, was that the man knew his way around Ryloth, but that he wasn't familliar with this part of it.

First the basic things. The shooter is native to Ryloth, but he's not from around here. My guess is that someone hired him to abduct the villagers, since the shooter is definitely trained and dedicated. A bounty hunter perhaps? The Sephi's eyes wandered off as she considered the possibilities. Anyhow, we need to find him. I can only think of two ways to pull that off. Either we use your tracking skills, or we try and get caught. If the latter happens, we'll likely end up in the same place as the captured villagers.

Her plan was simple. They'd get captured, find the villagers and break out. All they had to do before they could instigate that though, was hide their lightsabers. If Vash agreed of course.

 

[Vash Tembra]

Vash pursed his lips. He didn't like the idea of leaving the lightsabers behind, but the implications of tracking down the criminals and possibly causing a ruckus were worse: they had to be careful here and not draw attention, and going in guns blazing would be the opposite of that.

"So be it, then. The disappearances happened around here... so we can just stick around, and they'll come. I'll make a fire, the smoke should draw some attention"

And with that, he was up, moving towards the biggest tree in the area in order to dig, using the Force. Once he'd levitated enough dirt, holding it hovering in the air, Vash placed the two lightsabers in there, and let the soil cover the weapons once again. Having done that, there was the dull, long process of gathering wood. At least the view's nice, he thought, looking at the trees and animals as he gathered fallen branches, not keen on harming the trees.

Once enough wood had been gathered, Vash placed them all together after creating a little hole on the ground. Then, the Knight rubbed his hands together, focused on the Force, and extended his hands towards the pile of wood, causing it to catch fire after a few seconds. It was a pretty neat trick, the summoning of fire, though he wasn't exactly a master at it, and would probably not be using it in combat unless it was a last resort: too... destructive.

"Right then," he said, taking a seat on the ground next to Sakadi. "So, how are you?", he asked, as they waited to be abducted by criminals.

 

[Sakadi Marathi Sinvala]

She patiently waited for Vash to gather the wood he needed to make a campfire. While she was fairly certain that her amplified whistle had already caught the shooter's attention, having a campfire would make them even better targets. It would still take a while before the sun went down, but the smoke alone would be enough to draw the attention. But abductions in clear daylight though? That was bold. There had to be some really powerful organizations or crime syndicates behind this the government didn't bat an eye.

Sakadi was a bit jealous of Vash's display with Force fire. She had started to practice the technique a while ago, but she still hadn't booked any progress. Aside from nearly blowing up a fireplace, that was. The same could be said of attempt to master cryokinesis. The young knight still had much to learn, that was certain. Luckily though, she wasn't the kind of person who just gave up. She was going to try and learn aerokinesis next, if she could find a master who could teach her, that was.

Sakadi was lost in thoughts again, something that occured more and more as of late. She snapped out of it when Vash asked her a simple yet difficult question. How was she doing?

To be honest, it could be a lot better... the female voice resonated. Her faith in the Force had been challenged as of late. Not just that, but they were Knights now. The order expected things from them. Great deeds. Actions in name of the Galactic Alliance. They had to posses a great amount of knowledge by now and had to be ready to teach the next generations of Jedi padawans. All of it was a bit.. frightening, wasn't it?

Preferring not to talk about it, Sakadi returned the question. And you? Happy with your new status within the Order. You're a knight now after all.

 

[Vash Tembra]

Vash flashed her a smile, levitating some more deadwood into the fire. They'd be good until night fell, he imagined, so he didn't have to worry about hiding his Jedi status just yet. Besides, with that sharp a whistle, the criminals would probably think some sort of huge predator was in the area, should they have heard it which would make them stay away, most likely. It was important to show them there was sentient life there, ripe for the taking. Being bait was weird, especially since there was no one to rescue them. Once they were in, the two Knights would be on their own, with nothing but their wits to guide them.

"I hope you realize I'm not poking you further for questions because we're on a mission," he told her in a light tone upon hearing the somewhat sad reply. "As soon as we go back to civilization, we'll have a more in depth talk about your stuff."

Then he pondered on his friend's question for a while. Strange as that sounded, Vash wasn't sure how he was. Most of his time had been spent training and doing work for the GA, and soul searching was counter productive to the job. It had become second nature not to dwell on his feelings, and that was now worrying him a bit: how could such a simple question be so hard to awnser? Now that he thought about it, part of him felt they'd deserved the promotion: both he and Sakadi had learned from their earlier mistakes, and he wasn't terrible when it came to guiding people. Well, at least the non Force Sensitives. He didn't know how Sakadi dealt with that, but he did know she had her head in the right place, even if she didn't realize it.

"Well, I won't lie, it is good to be recognized as a Knight. But quite the responsibility, too - a lot hinges on us these days," he finally replied, letting his voice trail off. "Kind of miss the days when we were just along for the ride, and could watch the professionals do the job, you know? Now we're the professionals." He let out a soft chuckle. "Funny how the world goes"

 

[Sakadi Marathi Sinvala]

Vash was right. Again. They were supposed to be the professionals now. It felt much like adulthood, where people expected you to know what you were doing, while in fact you know just as little as they do. That was what it felt like to her. It was funny indeed. That did bring her to the next subject though.

So... Since we're knights now, did you consider if you want to take a padawan yet? I mean, the Order expects us to train someone eventually. But I'm not sure if we, well, if I am ready for that yet. Did you ever thi-

A sharp sensation shot through her head, she felt the Force cry out like a warning. She didn't know where it was coming from, or how far away it was, but she could tell that something was coming.

Did you sense that? I think our shooter is close. Let's hope we're right about this and that he isn't some sort of serial killer. Sakadi knew how dangerous this plan actually was. Their plan truly was a gamble; from the first moment onward they had guessed that the Twi'leks were still alive and abducted. What if the dart-like syringes with sedative were only a means of acquiring their murder-victims? If so, it would all end here for the two knights.

She didn't hear the shot being fired, but she sensed that it was coming. If she guessed correctly based on the Force it's guidance, the dart was aimed at her, specifically her neck.

Her instincts forced her to react, as her right hand quickly moved to protect her neck. she felt a sharp itching pain enter the back of her hand. She glanced at Vash, as she quickly showed him the back of her hand. It was not as if she didn't want to convey it to Vash through telepathy, but because she couldn't. The sedative was already kicking in, it was much stronger than she had initially thought it would be. If she wouldn't have caught it with her hand, she would have gone down immediately. Now she had atleast been able to show Vash that the sniper had made his move.

Just mere seconds after she showed her fellow Knight the dart in her hand, everything turned black. The Sephi collapsed in the direction of the Echani. All she could do now was have faith in the Force. She had to trust that they had made the right decision.

 

[Vash Tembra]

Before Vash could awnser, it came, quicker that he'd anticipated: a dart, flying out of nowhere and sinking deep into Sakadi's hand. It was on now: time to see if their little gamble would pay off.

He acted as if in shock, quickly rising to his feet to grab his friend and prevent her from falling and hitting her head on the floor. That was when he felt it: a sharp pain on his right shoulder. Vash's vision began to blur, but he had enough strength to take his fellow Knight and cushion her fall with his own body. For a split second, the Echani was reminded of when they'd first met, and how she'd thrown him to the floor while sparring: this wasn't so different from that scene, that had happened just a few months ago.

There was no time for nostalgia, however: Vash had to stay awake, as best he could. Well, as close to awake as possible, that is. He had managed neutralize the effects of the substance that had entered his bloodstream somewhat, mostly because he'd seen his fellow Jedi get hit first, and was already preparing for his turn, but now that it had kicked in, Vash was way too high to call upon the Force further. At least the effects are being retarted, he thought. If the Knight could just learn where they were going, he would be able to plan their escape a lot more easily.

Even then, it was hard to keep focus. The dosage was high enough to put a bantha to sleep, it felt, and Vash couldn't move his arms or legs. All he could do was keep his eyes somewhat open, but that didn't help a lot: his vision was so blurry, it was hard to tell what was going on. He thought he heard footsteps approaching, and people talking, but what they were saying, he did not know.

Soon, arms wrapped around his torso, and Vash felt himself be dragged. He wished he could tell where to, but all he saw was a sea of black, white and brown: the trees, sky, and stars all melding into one in his twisted vision. His head was spinning, his whole body spinning and completely out of control. It made him want to throw up, but he was too sedated even for that.

Eventually, Vash was unceremoniously thrown into what he assumed was a speeder, given how soft it felt beneath him, so unlike the forest's hard ground. It felt good, for a moment, like the discomfort had gone away... but that quickly faded once something else was thrown at him. It was heavy and warm, so Vash could only assume they'd thrown his fellow Knight in there with him, which would make the whole journey a lot less comfortable. At least they didn't dump us in the trunk, he thought.

Trying to stay awake had been a really dumb idea, he realized that now: not only had he learned nothing useful, but he could have avoided all of this and just slept peacefully for a few hours. Now, as it stood, Vash would have to endure the trip.

One thing in his favor was that he could hear the two captors talking. The Echani didn't think they were speaking Basic, and even if they were, he was too far gone to understand it, anyway. But their tones, though, that he understood: they seemed to be discussing, and it felt like quite the heated argument, to boot, given the fact they were almost screaming at one another.

Vash had no idea what the fight was about, and he was too tired to try and figure it out, but knowing there was possible dissention among the ranks was always useful information, that he and Sakadi could use, if and when they managed to escape the situation they'd gotten themselves into.

The Knight couldn't quite tell when it was that he lost consciousness, but he could definitely tell that his whole body was sore by the time he woke up. Sore and... restrained. He was lying down on a metal slab, his arms and legs firmly tied, his head all he could move. Having nothing else to do, he looked around and found Sakadi, laying on a smiliar structure to his own, just a few meters away from him.... and standing before them both was the ugliest, oldest Twi'lek Vash had ever laid eyes upon.

She was tall and gaunt, her yellow skin so incredibly pale it almost made the Knight sick just to look at her, particularly given how thin she was, making her face almost look like a skull. By far the worst part of her appearance, however, were the many metallic attachments to her body: she didn't have her right eye, relying instead on a prosthetic one, that glowed bright red, in sharp contrast to her natural, biological one, that was blue in color.

Her bony, claw-like hands ended in actual mechanical claws, that looked sharp and occasionally twisted this way and that, as if ready to drill a hole into something... or someone. Then there was the Twi'lek's neck, almost fully covered in a heavy, metallic structure, that seemed to give support to that area. Given how incredibly elongated the Twi'lek's neck and torso were, Vash thought it a safe bet to assume there was another smiliar structure on her back, maintaining her spine in place much like her neck. She was one step from dying, he realized, the only thing keeping her alive beng the many cybernetic implants in her body.

Perhaps most worrying was the fact that the old female had a part of her lekku cut off: the Echani knew how important such an organ was to this species, and that some went insane once it was damaged. There was no time to think about such things, however, because right after he'd noticed her appearance, the Twi'lek spoke, in a heavily robotic voice, that hurt his ears.

"Aah, both awake. Both ready to serve. Wonderful." She pointed one finger of her metal claw to Vash. "You are #357, and you, my dear," she said, turning her back to the Echani and focusing solely on Sakadi, giving the young Knight a broad smile. "You are too important for numbers. A Sephi, in this planet! We have much to discuss. And don't worry, I know you can't speak"

After saying that, the Twi'lek took a step closer and began to caress Sakadi with the back of her hand, which was a part of her body that wasn't covered in metal. As she did so, she began looking at the Sephi almost with amazement, like she was some sort of rare trophy.

"A long lived race. I'd been hoping for this for a while now..." she muttered to herself, deep in thought. "Your friend has his uses, too. Echani are just edgy humans, not half as interesting as your race..." she got her face closer to Sakadi's, giving her a warm smile. "But you're both Force Sensitives, did you know that? I could use this to my advantage. I wonder if you two have been trained...."

Vash wanted to scream at the Twi'lek, but he was still to weak. All he could do was let out some pathetic noises and hopelessly twist his arms and legs in an attempt to break free. He'd only succeeded in making his captor laugh.

"You'll be screaming soon enough, don't you worry," she told him with an amused smirk. "Meanwhile, I have questions for your friend - you're both too weak to get out, anyway, so here -" she produced a little datapad from her garments, and pressed a button, freeing Sakadi. "Get up slowly, my dear, and type here your name, age, and profession. We'll be doing some tests of your physical abilities soon."

She turned to Vash, pressing a button on her wrist and prompting two large, muscular Twi'leks to appear. "And you can work in the mines for a while. I'll deal with you later"

After saying that, the two men freed the Echani from his binds, and began to drag him away. All Vash could do was give his fellow Knight one last look, and force a faint smile as he was taken to the Force knew where against his will. Things hadn't gone quite according to plan, but there was hope. Particularly if they were going to let the two Jedi do some physical labor. That'd increase their chances of escaping.

 

[Sakadi Marathi Sinvala]

Sakadi tilted her head slightly as the bright lights woke her up from her slumber. Where was she? She tried to move her hand, only to notice the restraints. She still felt dazed and sedated, but the effects were slowly fading away.

The first thing she noticed was the droid who seemingly caressed her. No wait, it wasn't a droid.. a Twi'lek cyborg? The female Twi'lek seemed completely entranced by her, as she muttered some words Sakadi did not yet understand.

She heard someone struggling on the table next to her, Vash most likely. He attracted the attention of the strange figure, which gave her some time to concentrate. While she was in no state to call upon the Force, she had to get her facts straight. The cyborg researcher gave her little time though, as the Sephi's restraints let go of their iron grip on the slender knight. In a failing attempt to get up, she watched her fellow Knight being dragged away by two men. What was going on?

"Don't make me repeat myself girl. You are valuable, but not irreplaceable." The cyborg uttered with her metallic voice. Not that Sakadi understood it though. The datapad which the Twi'lek pushed in her hands however, that made the woman's intentions clear.

Sakadi rubbed her eyes, doing her best to focus on the words displayed on the datapad.

Name:
Age:
Profession:

She frowned as she read it over and over again. Name... She had to come up with something that wasn't her real name. Sakadi Marathi Sinvala was, despite her disappearance from the public it's eyes, still a name that carried fame. If she used it here, the cyborg would no doubt figure out who the two of them were. But she wasn't in a state where she could really come up with an entirely different name. Thus, the dazed Sephi merged the two names she could think of.

Name: Marathi Tembra

Alright. That was one field taken care of. Two left to go. The Sephi was breathing heavily; she was incredibly tired, her head was hurting and she felt nauseous. Nevertheless, she continued. Age, that was a simple one. She couldn't really hide how old she was, so that made things much easier.

Age: 24

Now for the final field, profession. What could the Twi'lek possibly gain from knowing her profession? She wasn't going to fill in Jedi Knight, that was for sure. Neither could she fill in singer or actress; she had no voice and she didn't want the Twi'lek prying to figure out her past. There was one other option she had.

Profession: Dancer.

That would work. She technically wasn't lying, her parents had forced her to learn multiple forms of ballet. Also, her athletic figure gave her the looks of a dancer, so she could convincingly play the part. With shaking arms, Sakadi handed the datapad back to the cyborg monstrosity.

"Good girl. Now do you have any questions before we begin your physical exam?" Actually she had a thousand questions, snarky remarks and insults ready for the pile of scrap in front of her, but something told her that none of those words were going to reach this Twi'lek. She experienced that quite often.

"No? I didn't think so either." The Twi'lek said with a nefarious smile. Of course, she had to poke fun at the mute. Sakadi would remember that. She watched closely as the cyborg took a syringe from the table closest to her. "First, I need some of your blood. Don't worry, it's not going to hurt.."

 

[Vash Tembra]

It was the weirdest, shortest trip of his life, being dragged by two aliens to an adjacent room, barely aware of what was going on, just to be hurled into a chair and strapped, with one of the brutes inserting a syringe into Vash's arm before he could ask what was going on. Not that he could complain, exactly, because immidiately afterwards, the Knight began feeling some relief, his senses finally coming back to him... but that feeling quickly turned to annoyance when the other guard put his wrists in stun cuffs, kneeling down to face Vash with a triumphant little grin.

"Boss says you can use the Force, turn wood into gold or something. Good luck doing that with those things on," he said in a mocking tone, before both he and his companion unstrapped the Knight from his chair, and began to drag him by the shoulders. "Now, come on, time to get to work. You'll be mining till the sun goes down, and then... well, the boss will want to see you"

After those final words, neither guard opened their mouths to speak anymore, instead pulling Vash (who was now fully alert, save for the cuffs nullifying his Force usage) towards a narrow corridor, finally opening one of the doors to the left, and throwing the Echani in there.

He had thought time and again what had been the fate of the captured villagers: whether they'd be forced labour, test subjects, end up as concubines for crime lords, or many other terrible fates. But no matter how much he pondered, Vash would never have imagined they'd ended up the way he saw them now: simply working. In complete silence, with no cuffs on their hands and feet, not a single glance at the newcomer, nothing. Just standing there, using their mining lasers on big chunks of metallic rock with not a single care in the world.

"Magnificent, aren't they?", a new voice made itself heard, from the left of where Vash was standing, where another Twi'lek sat before a desk, presumably to oversee the workers. "We've been working night and day to turn them into perfect workers, and it finally paid off"

This made the Echani blink, a little confused. "Are you saying you... altered them? Turned them into mindless slaves?"

"This is, sadly, what they are, yes - but they're crude. A necessary evil... just like it was necessary when I sniped you and your girl" the Twi'lek awnsered with a little smile, and only then did Vash notice the sniper rifle laying on the desk. This man was not here to play. "The... beings you see before you are simply funding the new generation, our true work. You'll get better acquainted with what we're doing soon... you can control the Force, and so you'll be useful. But you must understand"

"What do you mea-"

Before he could complete his sentence, Vash was shoved further into the massive cave by the two guards, and had a mining laser hurled at him, with not a single word uttered. The message was clear enough, however: get to work. He suspected there'd be time for questions later, once the Twi'lek lady cyborg thing was done testing Sakadi, and prepared to meet with them. Apparently, they wanted the help of Force Users, and that sent a shiver down Vash's spine - just what could they want?

 

[Sakadi Marathi Sinvala]

For once this Twi'lek had spoken the truth. Either she had still been too dazed to even notice the usually sharp sting, or the crazed researcher was just very good at it. In the blink of an eye had she taken the Sephi's blood. Sakadi blinked twice as she took note of the cyborg's remarkable speed. The woman was delighted with her most recent catch. Was capturing a Sephi that big of a deal? Yes, she would like live longer than most, but how was that desirable? Perhaps if you had no one to care about, it would be a great asset to have. In all other cases, it was more like a curse.

"Open your mouth girl. I will need some of your stem cells next." Now the Twi'lek came at her with some sort of cotton bud. Fine, there was no way she could resist anyway. "Are you still dazed my dear? I need you up and running for the next few tests." Sakadi nodded. Of course she was still dazed, but any chance she would get to mess up the Twi'leks research values, she would take. A series of tests followed, which could be considered a full physical exam. Reflexes, eyes, ears, not a single stone was left unturned. Against the time the Twi'lek was content with her physical exam, Sakadi was no longer dazed by the sedative.

"Marvelous... You have no idea how valuable this data is, I can fina-" The metallic voice was interrupted by a small alarm. She muttered something Sakadi couldn't understand. She moved over to where the alarm came from, pressed the intercom and presumably contacted one of the guards.

"Karawn, get the workers to their 'lunchbreaks'." She turned to Sakadi. "Why are their bodies so fragile? Can't they just for once go a week without food?" she grumbled. "Also Karawn, keep an eye on the Echani. Word goes around that the villagers have asked for outside help. I fear that our new employees may be involved." With that said, she turned the intercom off again. She gave Sakadi a nefarious smile. "Oh I know my dear. You are not her by accident.. I'll find out who the two of you really are, one way or another.."

Sakadi didn't move a muscle. If she gave away any info now, they'd be done for. The two knights were unarmed, had no idea where they were and had a mission to carry out. She had to do one thing first though, reunite with Vash.

 

[Vash Tembra]

If there was one word to describe Vash's time in the mines, it would be dull.

He'd mined and mined, extracting large chunks of metal from the dry earth, the particles of dust and dirt often getting in the way of his vision, but there was little he could do other than soldier through the uncomfortable sensation and just carry on. The whole thing was giving him unpleasant memories of his brief time as slave to some pirates, so long ago. The GA had saved him last time, but now, he only had himself. And Sakadi, he reminded himself, letting out a sigh of relief when the sniper, who he'd learned was called Karawn, told him to stop and come eat.

It came as a bit of a surprise when, instead of being offered the soup the slaves were being given - consisting largely of some weird, fatty meats, apparently - Karawn simply yanked him by the shoulders without uttering another word and began to drag him away. It instantly made Vash think he'd done something wrong and was going to be punished for it. A terrible, terrible feeling, that made him experience a bit of what it felt like to be a slave.

In the end, however, all the muscular Twi'lek did was drag him to the upper levels of the facility, where the cyborg who'd been so kind to greet the two Jedi Knights when they'd woken up was waiting on a balcony. Before her was a table, with Sakadi sitting in one end, while Vash was made to sit on the other, facing his friend. Between them, a multitude of different kinds of food could be seen... and smelled. The sight of such a large variety of options made Vash's stomach grumble, and his mouth water. It'd been a while since he'd eaten anything, let alone something tasty.

"I'll go straight to the point because I hate to repeat myself, and I'm really impatient," the cyborg began, taking out a blaster from her belt and aiming it at Vash. "You can either tell me who you are and what you came to do here, and then be rewarded with food, or you can be shot and probably die. Or maybe I'll shoot your friend here, I don't know."

The woman seemed to ponder on who to aim her blaster at for a moment, scratching her chin, keeping her tone almost casual. "Although, I would be giving up on a long living, Force Sensitive slave if I killed her... so you it is," she decided, aiming her blaster at Vash's forehead. The Echani didn't hesitate for a moment in his reply.

"We're kowakian monkey-lizards from another dimension, here to buy some deathsticks," he said, being very serious in his face and tone. It took the woman a few seconds, but she eventually began to laugh.

"You must think this is a game," she stated, aiming her blaster a little lower, to his shoulder. "See what happens when you defy me, little man.

To the cyborg's surprise, nothing happened. Her eyes widened in shock and her face began growing even more pale than ususal. A natural reaction: Vash could tell she was tying with all her might to pull the trigger, mostly because it was the most obvious thing she'd do, but also due to the fact he'd infiltrated her mind, and discreetly stunned her right hand.

His day had been dull, but it had not been unproductive: Vash had used the mining laser to cut away his cuffs and allow him to use the Force again. The fact that the slavers here were used to zombified prisioners, coupled with all the dust that came out when the rock was cut had been enough for the Echani to covertly free himself, and just keep his now useless cuffs held together teleknetically if anyone were to check on them. No one had.

And now here he was, yanking the blaster off the cyborg's hand with the Force after quickly rising to his feet and aiming at Sakadi. He quickly pulled the trigger, hitting her cuffs to allow her to use the Force again. Now they'd just have to fight their way out of an entire facility. Easy peasy.

 

[Sakadi Marathi Sinvala]

Against the time Vash joined her in the cyborg her laboratory, Sakadi no longer felt dazed. Because the crazed Twi'lek didn't want to administer another dose, she had forced the Sephi to wear some sort of anti-Force user cuffs. Not that she was going to try and test using them. No, she had to be patient. Judging from her fellow Jedi's facial expression, he had some sort of plan or trick upon his sleeve.

The lavender-skinned Knight patiently waited for Vash his signal throughout the following interrogation. For a moment did she consider the possibility that the crazed Twi'lek would actually kill one of them. Especially when she aimed the blaster at her friend's forehead. Luckily, his reply was a foolish as usual, which the Twi'lek did not seem to appreciate. Then came the signal she was waiting for. Sakadi had no idea how he managed to keep the cuffs together and stun the woman's arm, but she had no time to think about that. It would probably strain her ally, but that was where she came in the picture.

As the now useless cuffs fell to the ground, Sakadi instantly called upon the swirling Light side around them. She could feel the Dark side looming over them as she did so, it's cold persistence amplified by the unnatural state of the Twi'lek captives. While it's presence made it harder to call upon the Light side, it was little no issue for the trained Jedi Knightess.

Her use of the Force was not as subtle as usual. She stretched out her hand, directing a telekinetic blast of energy at the cyborg's abdomen. A loud "Uhmpf" followed as the Twi'lek was thrown back a few meters by her initial assault. The bounty hunter named Karawn would pose a bigger threat though.

Before she even blinked, the man had drawn two two-shot blaster pistols. She would not give him the chance to fire those pistols straight to her chest though, because the bounty hunter had made a small mistake. He stood at the head of the table, just like the cyborg stood moments ago. It meant that he was within reach and Sakadi, the Ataru specialist, would make mincemeat of anyone who entered her range.

The agile woman bursted into motion, grabbing a decently-sized silver plate from the table and slammed it against the man's right pistol. She had moved like lightning and had managed to disarm him before he could even pull the trigger. Sadly, he had a second pistol.

She had to be fast. She had no time to truly elaborate her plan, so all she managed to telepathically share with her ally was her urge to flip the table. She hoped that it would be enough, as Karawn jumped back and launched his counterattack. He fired three two-shot bursts at the Jedi Knights. It was not something they'd be able to evade in time, even with their lightsabers such a pistol was annoying to deal with. Everything was on the line here and she had just passed her cards to Vash. All that she could do now was hope that he would flip the table and give them the cover they needed.

 

[Vash Tembra]

Vash couldn't help but let a little grin appear when he saw Sakadi burst into action. She was quick, he couldn't deny it: in just a few moments she'd thrown the cyborg lady off her feet, and already disarmed the bounty hunter of one of his pistols. He could feel the man's anger through the Force, amplified by the strong Dark Side aura of this place. If he were a Dark Jedi, or a Sith, they'd be in big trouble, but he was none of these things: just an angry Twi'lek with a blaster. Admittedly dangerous, but hardly unbeatable... and the Force was once again with the Knights, Vash was reminded, as he felt Sakadi's quick telepathic message.

The Echani didn't waste a moment, quickly gesturing with his left hand to flip the table, food and plates flying everywhere and almost hitting the Twi'leks. Vash also took care to levitate the table a little forwards to give him and Sakadi more cover, making the bounty hunter's shots meet wood instead of flesh. And even then, it was a close thing: the smell of burnt wood quickly filled Vash's nostrils, and he could see the blackened marks of where the shots had hit the table. Another volley and it would be destroyed, Vash knew. There was no time to waste.

Keeping the table levitated in order to be at the same level as Karawn's chest, Vash took just a fraction of a second to focus. He'd have to be really precise here, and keep the object hovering between the Knights and certain death completely stable if this was going to go as planned. We can't miss, he thought, before shouting to his fellow Jedi.

"Push the table!"

Hopefully she'd get what he meant, and use the Force, not her hands or something like that. If she pushed it from the angle Vash was keeping the table in, she'd not only hit Karawn, but also the cyborg lad, who was recovering from being hurled a few meters away. Two Twi'leks with one table, Vash thought with a little smile.

 

[Sakadi Marathi Sinvala]

Sakadi breathed a sigh of relief as Vash flipped the table and brought it forward a bit, blocking the fired blaster bolts with the newly formed obstacle. The upper layer of wood got pulverized by the blasts and burnt splinters of wood shot in all directions, as the bolts collided with the table. Like Vash, she knew that the table would not block a second volley of the destructive blaster pistol.

She heard Vash shout and understood his plan in an instant. The table was positioned just perfectly, allowing them to take out both Twi'leks if the table was pushed forward. It was up to her to deliver that final telekinetic push, which she would make sure not to mess up.

The elegant Sephi bursted in motion again, sideflipping to reposition herself. She landed between Vash and the table, getting the perfect angle to call upon the devastating raw energy of the Light side. She stretched out her arms and launched the telekinetic blast against the table, which smashed against the two Twi'leks. The entire package collided with the wall and would certainly knock both Twi'leks unconscious.

They had no time to check if their combo was effective or not. The two Knights had to get out of the laboratory fast, or they'd be swarmed by the facility it's many guards. The Knightess ran to the door which Vash had entered through and entered the narrow corridor. It instantly attracted the attention of three guards, who stood at the far end of the corridor, on Sakadi's left. They were armed with stun guns and were coming towards her now.

Vash, just so you know... I don't think we'll be leaving peacefully... she conveyed, just as another door opened and five guards joined their companions. Seven armored guards, armed with stun guns were coming their way now. Luckily for the Knights, the narrow corridor only had enough room for three men to stand shoulder to shoulder. If they neglected the odds, they would have the advantage here.

Don't bother shooting that blaster pistol from a distance. Their armor will negate the stun charges. I think that you'll find yourself limited to headshots... she told him, as she kept her gaze on the incoming wave of guards. Sakadi took a simple fighting stance, ready to engage them in hand-to-hand combat. Despite her light frame, the Sephi was a menace to deal with in hand-to-hand combat. These guards were about to find that out the hard way.

 

[Vash Tembra]

Vash let out a sigh of relief when he saw the table being hurled at the two Twi'leks, hammering them against the wall. He hoped none would die from this attack, but frankly, he had bigger concerns than the safety of slavers right now, such as getting out of this alive.

It seemed that Sakadi was of the same mind, because sooner than Vash could have blinked, she was off, going along the narrow corridor he'd just come through.

Always on the move... he thought, following close behind his friend. It was somewhat liberating to have passed through said corridor as a slave, and to be leaving as a free man. Assuming they managed to fight their way out, of course.

Her suggestion had been a good one: don't shoot from a distance. They'd have to advance if they were going to make effective use of the stun blaster, as well as Sakadi's hands and feet. Vash really wished he had a concussion grenade right now, but the Force would also do: even in his tired, hungry state, he could still call upon his powers with relative ease.

"Be ready to jump all over the place in a moment, shorty," Vash told his fellow Knight, taking a quick step before her and extending both his hands towards the slavers.

One of them was quick enough to react and shoot in Vash's direction, but unfortunately for him, the Echani had already sent a strong wave of teleknetic energy forwards, causing the Twi'lek's aim to go off and fly right past Vash's ear, which prompted the Knight to grin - it had been a close thing, and he could feel the adrenaline coursing though his veins.

In earlier days, Vash would probably have used up all his energy to conjure up a stream of fire, or maybe a wall of ice - very flashy, very draining. But nowadays, he was smarter than that: the strong push had been just as effective, if not more, and drained him a lot less. Now all opponents were in the floor, and it was time to release a little purple devil on them.

"Right, off you go, then. I'll cover you," he conveyed to the Sephi a little behind him, taking a few steps forwards with his blaster (which was set to stun) and sending a single volley of fire at the aliens lying on the floor.

Most shots just harmlessly struck their armor, but he did manage to hit one in the head, causing the guard to fall flat on the floor, unconscious. The others hurried to get on their feet, but they were a little terrified, which made their rise a slow and clumsy one. Vash doubted they'd have much time to recover if Sakadi ran after them quickly enough - and she was pretty damn quick. All he had to do was stand back and shoot if anyone proved a threat to her.

 

[Sakadi Marathi Sinvala]

Sakadi watched as the seven men fell to the Echani's disruption. He didn't even need to encourage her, for she was already on her way. The nimble Sephi swiftly darted towards the seven six men. Vash had already managed to stun one with his volley of stun charges.

You're overexerting yourself. Take this opportunity to rest. I'll take it from here. The mental voice was firm and decisive. She knew Vash disliked that one, but she had to state the obvious. He had telekinetically kept his cuffs from falling apart, simultaneously stunned the Twi'lek, then he flipped a table with the Force, held it in the air and now he blasted seven men with the Force. All of that in less than 10 minutes. She had to prevent her ally from collapsing, whether he liked it or not.

Six out of seven were trying to get up. The one up front had been taken down by Vash, the one behind him was in a squat-like position already. She wouldn't allow him to get much further though.

The Knightess jumped against the wall on her right, as she retracted her left leg to hurl a powerful kick at the man's face. The momentum gained by launching herself from the wall made her kick powerful enough to throw the second guard to the ground again.

The third had recovered from Vash's force blast and now stood in front of the Sephi, who just landed from her wall jump kick, with his gun aimed directly at her forehead. The Knightess immediately called upon the Force to enhance her speed and reflexes, yanking the stun pistol out of the man's hand before he could pull the trigger. Sakadi proceeded to take the offense, smacking the handle of the weapon against the guard's chin. It barely phased him though, as he retaliated with a haymaker against her own head. Pain jolted through her cheekbones as Sakadi rotated her body with the momentum of the haymaker. Her heel came in hard as the Sephi countered instantly with a roundhouse kick. The sheer speed of her counterattack caught her opponent of guard. She now floored the third guard. Only four left to go. Four men who were ready to take her on all at once now, one even armed with a vibroknife. It truly was time to put some effort in this violent escape.

 

[Vash Tembra]

Much as he didn't like it, Vash had to admit his last few actions had been draining. If they weren't in a battle scenario, he'd argue he hadn't overdone it, but merely acted as the situation demanded, but there was no time for that, so he simply hung back and watched Sakadi jumping all over the place, as she was wont to do, even in narrow corridors, amazingly enough - Vash had to respect that, even if Sakadi did get hit a bit.

But her moment of glory was nearing its end, as four guards were still awake and well, one of whom had produced a viboknife, as he was closer to the Knightess. Vash had to act quickly, and to that effect, he he simply rushed ahead, using the Force for just a few seconds to allow him to run faster, and hurl himself at one of the guards, throwing him to the ground and twisting his body so the Twi'lek would land on top of Vash, as a sort of human shield, while the Echani aimed his blaster at another guard, who'd tried shooting him when he'd rushed, but missed.

Vash didn't miss when his time came, though, hitting his opponent right on the head, before quickly aiming his stun gun at the man pinned down, and pulling the trigger. The Twi'lek immediately went limp, and now there were only two remaining, who seemed to be hesitating on who to attack: perfect opportunity for Sakadi to act, if she so desired.

 

[Sakadi Marathi Sinvala]

The takedown Vash made gave her just the advantage she needed. A single jab in the undefended stomach of the left guard brought him down. The guard on her right still tried to somewhat defend himself, as he tried to plunge the vibroknife between Sakadi's ribs. She repelled the attack without effort, as she caught his arm by the wrist and twisted it around. In a single move, she broke the man's arm. He fell down on his knees with a scream of disbelief; Sakadi had pulled the move of with the speed of lightning. A rapid kick against the man's head was enough to knock him out. Only the two Knights were left standing.

The Sephi advanced past the bodies of the guards, panting, as she tried to reach the hallway its exit. She had no idea where they were, but beyond she knew that whatever was behind that door, would lead her to the captured civillians. Vash had seen the mines, but not Sakadi. The pointy-eared woman had no idea what she was about to walk into.

With a press of the button, the door slid open. Mines? What were they mining for? Spice? Sakadi observed as the villagers worked, their bodies emaciated and bags under their eyes visibly apparent. What was this for slavery.. She had never seen anything like this before. It was worse than what they had seen on Jedha. She felt the darkness of this place, the pain, suffering and screams of the subconscious minds of the drugged villagers. This was terrible. Who would even allow something like this? She really regretted not having her lightsaber right now. If she had it, she would've destroyed this facility.

She snapped out of her thoughts when the lights flashed red and a loud sound went off. The crazed Twi'lek had probably activated the alarm. They needed to get the villagers out of here, and they had to do it fast....

 

[Vash Tembra]

Vash had been dreading to go to this place again, with the tired, and completely zombified slaves, who didn't even realize the situation they were in. And now the lights were flashing red, signifying the two Knights would soon have company. If Vash were just a little less experienced, if he were a little more overconfident in his abilities to stand his ground, he'd have sacrificed everything to try and drag the slaves out of here. But he'd danced to this tune before, and he knew how much harm he'd done last time.

"We have to go," he told his friend in a sad voice, placing a hand on her shoulder. "There's no way we'll be able to get them out of their trance - if that's even possible - and lead them away if we don't even know where we are. But we can get out of here, and save the rest of the village, maybe lead a little team down here later"

It felt undeniably weird to suggest leaving these people here, but Vash knew there was no choice: if they went down this path, their chances of escape would have been greatly diminished, and then no one would ever know about what was going on in this terrible, terrible place. Vash had learned that being a Jedi required great sacrifices, not only of the self, but sometimes of others. They had to think of the greater good of saving what was left of the village right now, not on risking everything on the hopes of saving these people.

So he just kept walking further down the tunnel, hoping his Sephi friend would be walking behind him, for he could sense more people approaching, further ahead. If they were going to fight, forward was the way to go... but not the only option, he saw: there were two other doors, one to the left and one to the right, that might lead someplace empty.

"So, where to?", he asked Sakadi, loud enough for her to hear even if she was still with the slaves.

 

[Sakadi Marathi Sinvala]

The Sephi couldn't come up with anything. It was one of the few times her creativity failed her, but she just couldn't think of a solution. In their current state, there was no way she'd get these workers out of here. Vash had come to this conclusion already and persuaded her to leave them behind. For now. With a nod, she agreed to his plan.

She sensed and heard the guards approaching their location. Luckily, Vash was already on the move. She glanced once more at the scene, before she hurried after her fellow knight.

First, we will get our lightsabers. Then, we'll return to the village and tell them what's happening. Word of this strange corporation needs to get out. If we end up getting caught in our attempt to shut this mine down, knowledge of its existence dies with us. That's the last thing we want to happen... she conveyed her thoughts to her fellow Knight as she formulated the plan. This whole enterprise had one goal; analyze the opponent's cards. Now the could effectively counter with their own assets. Assets she knew they had acces to.

Sakadi continued the moment she saw light in the far distance. There are three ways we can go about this. We are Jedi and have acces to a ship so we could, in theory, 'convince' the cyborg in charge to shut this whole facility down and deliver her to the GA. Our second option, is to recruit the village in taking back what is theirs. With that, I mean their safety, families and friends. The third and final option we have is to destroy this place. Preferably in a way that doesn't make Jedi involvement obvious. Through packs of beasts perha-

The Knightess couldn't finish her sentence, as a lethal blasterbolt nearly grazed one of her pointy ears. These guards were shooting to kill, firing at them from the far back of the tunnel. There was no way the guards would be able to catch up with them and they likely knew what consequences followed if they allowed the two Jedi to escape.

The lavender woman wasn't in the mood to get shot, so she summoned the Force once again. She allowed her Force signature to carry her intentions, so that Vash knew what she was going to do.

The Force invigorated her body as she started to run in a zig-zag like pattern. She was faster than any of the guards could ever be, sprinting towards the exit with blinding speed. She didn't have to be mindful of her fellow Jedi; she knew that he wouldn't be far behind when it started raining blasterbolts down upon them.

 

[The Storyteller]

Hm