Caf and Consequences

[Darth Kravos]

Kal was backing up and firing, nearly tripping over the curb when he saw Alais smash the man in the side of the head. He went to the floor in a heap and Kal had to give a bit of a grin at the sight. She was picking things up quickly, even if she wasn't comfortable with herself yet. She had just taken down an alien much larger than herself and without even killing him. Again, it almost made him irrationally proud of her despite only having known her for a short time.

He felt as much as heard her warning, and nodded, realizing she wasn't going to be able to see it, he sent back what could be considered a wordless affirmation and moved away from the scene of the shootout even as he fired a final shot into the Weequay's chest, this one seemingly knocking him back as "silence" ensued. In reality, it wasn't silent, for the people nearby began to scream out, but it was quieter than gunfire.

Kal moved away quickly, holstering his pistol and swinging down a new alley, covering his face a bit with his jacket until he was out of sight. It was a semi-slow process as he slipped around to the other side of the building and listened to an argument. He reached out, trying to sense Alais and after a moment, felt something oddly familiar that couldn't have been anyone else. A mix of wonder, excitement, and innocence that seemed all too uncommon these days. His head swiveled until he saw her and he crept over to where she was.

Nice takedown out there, he whispered as he slipped into a crouch next to her. One guard, I think we can distract him and get inside, he added quietly. Be ready to move on my signal, he said, already knowing what he would do.

With a flick of his wrist, the Force closed around a nearby trash can and it went falling to the ground with a loud clatter, dumping its content and dragging loudly along the ground. From their position, the two Jedi could see it, but the guard wouldn't be able to. Now! he whispered. Both the guard and delivery boy seemed to have their attention pulled away, leaving the two just a few moments to slip inside.

 

[Andraste]

Alais was initially spooked when Kal abruptly came next to her and crouched. He moved as silently as a cat, and she was taken off guard. Before she reacted with violence, she heaved a sigh of relief as she spotted that it was just Kal. As he complimented her on taking out the Besalisk, she beamed with pride, “Really?” She had no time to bask in her accomplishments before he already moved on.

As he caused the loud ruckus, the two men ahead were immediately alert. The guard started yelling something about shenanigans while the delivery man was arguing back. As both went to investigate the noise, Alais jumped to her feet and scrambled towards the building. The loading zone was largely empty, and she glanced up to see a security cam. It slowly began to pan around towards them and she abruptly reached out with the Force to yank it off. She privately hoped that the gesture wouldn’t immediately alert anyone.

Alais found a door leading into the lounge area and opened it to a corridor. There were various doors along this corridor, though she couldn’t recall any of them going to where they needed to go. Alais kept making her way down to the end of the hall, opening the door to find herself directly in the lounge. Everything was hazy and smoky, and she saw the lewdest dancing and scandalous clothing.

Of course, she had seen nothing like this before and was simply staring for a long moment. Her mouth hung open as she saw a man grasping a twi’lek by the hips while she ground back against him in a sensual dance. Alais was frozen in place, face bright red as she simply gawked, “What…the..”

 

[Darth Kravos]

Kal made his way quickly into the building as well. He heard a twisting and wrenchings of metal and twisted his head around, half-jumping as he saw the camera wrenched free. Well, at least no one would be seeing them now, and he silently hoped no one would see it or be alerted by it. He gave an affirming nod to the younger Knight and closing the door behind them both, breathing a sigh of relief that they hadn't been caught by the guard.

Well, that was step one done. Who knew how many more steps to go. He glanced back as she kept moving forward and picked a door. By the time he caught up and realized what she had opened, it was too late. The lounge was wide open in front of them with smokey haze not quite obscuring what was going on inside. He caught Alais staring and he didn't know what came over him, he grabbed her, covering her eyes and pulled her back away from the door.

He closed it, uncovering her eyes and having a red face himself, and a bit of a sheepish look, more from having grabbed her than the dancing. Um, I don't think we want to go in there, he said. I think you might stand out, too, he commented, given that she probably wasn't even old enough to be in here unless she was one of their captives.

We, uh, need to find a way to the basement, he said, still slightly flustered. He then went through and methodically opened all the doors in the hallway to find nothing but offices and closets and one to the kitchen/pantry area. In other words, they would have to go through the haze and... dancing. He turned back to her, slightly horrified. Um, do you wanna wait for me at the speeder... or... he scratched the side of his head, realizing the speeder was totaled and the site of a gunfight. Not an option. ...somewhere else, he finally said unproductively, not wanting to make her go through there.

 

[Andraste]

Alais yelped as he grabbed her and shielded her eyes, yanking her back through the door she just opened. She whipped around and glared at him as he finally let her go, listening to him blubber out some excuses. She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, staying put where she was as he went through every single door and confirmed what she knew.

As he returned to her and continued to blab and putter some more, Alais’ jaw dropped, “Are you kidding me? You shot off half a guy’s face inches away from my face. You expect me to wait outside when we’re making so much progress?” She scowled at him, “Get out of my way, you clown!” She physically shoved him aside and went through the door again. If he had no qualms with nabbing her and yanking her back, he should be fully ready to have her shove him around too!

Still grumpy, Alais marched right into the lounge, putting her hood up. Her confidence began to ebb away as she got about halfway in and turned to glance at the stage. There were topless women dancing lewdly there, her face suddenly growing searing hot and red at the sight of it. Alais quickly averted her gaze, shuffling towards the opposite end of the lounge. In her flustered state, she bumped directly into someone. She glanced up to apologize, but the man simply gave her a seedy grin.

“Ohh man… what a gem,” He reached down to cup her chin, “I thought I had to go down a few levels here to score someone like you.”

Alais glared at the man and promptly drove her knee up into his crotch. The man doubled over in pain and she quickly scurried around past him. The man was hunched over and hoarsely pointed behind him, “Someone get that little bitch! Do you know who I am?!” He must have been someone important because several guards were immediately on the case. Thankfully, Alais had somewhat of a headstart as she blended into the crowd well.

 

[Darth Kravos]

She had a point about blowing someone's face off. The guts had sprayed all over her, but that was different! It was a necessity and this was... also a necessity. He let out a sigh, unable to help feeling that this was still somehow different, but unable to convince her that she should go somewhere else.

She completely ignored what he said, called him a clown, and pushed past him. Now that actually made him angry, and he scowled visibly. The grump was obvious, but he reminded himself that it wasn't the Jedi way. There is no emotion... It's not the Jedi way, it's not the Jedi way, it's not the Jedi way, but you're only human, no, it's not the Jedi way, he repeated time and again as he made plunged forward into the throng.

He had almost lost sight of her and with this horde of gits, the lives pulsing through the Force were a bit overwhelming. He sensed a flash of anger and then hard someone shouting for guards. His head swiveled around, concern on his face as his hand fell to his blaster. He pushed through the people until he found the man who had been shouting and got a pretty good idea of what had happened.

And here was where he was without a sure idea of what was right. On the one hand, the Shadows operated on a level of violence that far surpassed anything most Jedi did, but on the other hand, flat out murdering this creep wasn't very Jedi. He paused, lingering on what he should do and seriously pondering manipulating his mind to send him off a building, but ultimately pulled back, quietly berating himself for even considering it. He shut the thought out, trying not to think on the implications of the fact that he had even considered it.

With guards still chasing her (potentially) and needing distractions anyway, he quietly slipped through the crowd and grabbed a strong-looking drink from an unsuspecting man whose attention was rapt on the nude women on stage. Kal made his way to a corner, dumped the drink in a trash can and manipulated the Force around it. He let the air close tightly and move rapidly until the friction created a small spark that he let ease and grow. In a few small moments, the alcohol and contents of the trash were ablaze and Kal was calmly making his way away before anyone noticed.

Moments later, the guards were distracted by the screams of patrons, though no one seemed to be fleeing the building because of a the small blaze for which Kal thanked the Force. Now to find Alais. Where are you, Alais? he growled under his breath.

 

[Andraste]

Despite being on the run, she made sure to go the direction she had seen in the datapad. Alais kept glancing over her shoulder to see where her pursuers were. After a long moment of going down corridors and down the stairs, she realized she wasn’t being followed anymore. Alais glanced back and looked behind her for a few moments until she was sure she wasn’t being pursued. Had Kal done something to throw people off her tail? She didn’t even see him since she pushed him aside and walked into the lounge.

Now that she was down here by herself, she felt a little uneasy. The corridors were empty and there were only stairs leading down. She gave one last look back down the hall before proceeding. Alais descended down the stairs, cringing at the feeling she sensed all around. Already she could pick up hints of pain and anguish. She knew she was getting closer to the girls, and each step forward caused her to boil with rage.

As she continued to descend, the feelings grew stronger. She could hear voices in the distance, rage only growing stronger within her. Alais delved into her emotions, though she knew it was against protocol. The pictures she saw back in Cipher’s office flashed in her mind, and combined with the emotions she sensed, it only worked to rile her up.

Alais threw a door open to see an older woman sitting at a desk. There was a guard next to her who immediately raised his blaster. The woman had a giant stash of credits in front of her, and it was apparent that people paid her to gain access to the girls locked up behind the door located right behind the woman.

“Escaped cargo,” The woman hissed, “Get her!”

As the guard leveled his blaster, Alais quickly yanked it directly out of his hand with the Force. Not only did she do that, but she curved the gun to swing to the side and hit the woman directly upside the head. The guard was mortified at the sight, the woman now frantically screaming.

“Shut…up,” Alais growled as she flung the woman bodily back against the door. She then turned on the guard who was quickly reaching for his comms.

 

[Darth Kravos]

Kal was quick to get away from the growing flames, hoping to put some distance between he and the guards who now rushed to respond. He reached out once more to the Force and was met again with feelings he would have rather not had. These people disgusted him and he found them appalling. They lived their lives stomping on others, stealing, murdering, raping, and otherwise ruining others for their own gain. A part of him wanted to burn this whole place down, but that could be saved for a different day. Right now, his priority had to be rescuing those who needed help.

He quickly made his way down, dipping into the lower levels and hoping to find Alais soon. Whether something had happened to her or not, he didn't know, but the fact that everything down here sounded as if it were dead silent was a good sign. If she'd been caught, he imagined it would be more bustling than this. He listened intently, creeping forward as he drew his pistol. If he was caught down here there would be no excusing his presence, so having his pistol out was only prudent. And if he were honest, given the choice between putting a blaster bolt in these people and tricking them, he preferred the former. They deserved what they had coming.

The shout of "escaped cargo" caught his ears and he darted forward more quickly as warning bells went off inside his head. He rounded the corner to what could only be described as a raging Alais, taking care of a woman and guard whom he didn't know, but could guess their jobs. He brought his pistol up and fired before the man could get a shot off, aiming high enough that it would either vaporize the man's face or, if he missed, at least wouldn't hit Alais.

As the guard was neutralized, Kal turned to the woman who had been smacked upside the head, a look of disdain on his face. He could sense the anger in his partner, and he could understand it, but he did his best to keep it at bay. You can't act in anger. That's the Dark Side. Remain objective, he told himself, taking a deep calming breath as he grabbed her by the hair and pulled her back, shoving the blaster directly against her forehead.

Were she an Exile, he would have squeezed the trigger then and there, but she wasn't. She was scum, but he wasn't sure executing her was the right move, and he wasn't sure he was in a frame of mind to make that decision. Tears streamed down her face as she sputtered about not killing her. Kal gritted his teeth, voice barely above a growl. You're going to open that door and give us the girls, or I swear my face will be the last thing you see, he said, taking another deep breath as he shoved her head toward the door and released his grip on her, pistol still leveled.

He glanced at Alais but this time there was no sheepishness or embarrassment. Yet neither was there anger or rage, just a near-dispassion. This wasn't the emotionlessness that Jedi were supposed to have, was it? But it was an emotionlessness of sorts. He couldn't say he was proud of what he was doing, but he wasn't backing down either. If it came down to this woman's life or the lives of her victims, the question wasn't a question in his mind.

 

[Andraste]

Alais winced as the shot went off and all but destroyed the man’s face. This time, she wasn’t fazed by it like earlier. This very reality made her uneasy, but she would reflect on that later. As Kal whirled in and yanked the woman and demanded answers, Alais didn’t flinch. She had nothing but hatred for the moment, and it would be obvious to sense on her. It was as if Alais had a repulsive stench to her in the plane of the Force, one that would give away the dark thoughts that whirled within her mind.

“How could you do this to other girls being a woman yourself?” Alais hissed as the woman rose and pressed the code to unlock the door. As the young Knight passed her, she hit her harshly on the side of her head, just enough to knock her out. Alais didn’t like using so much violence, but she found it difficult to feel sympathy for someone that was performing such a heinous crime.

As the door opened, it revealed a row of beds barracks style with a young girl in each one. The girls all looked at the duo with shock. Alais’ heart broke at the sight, as it was clear none of these girls had been out in the open in a long time. They were pale, malnourished and had marks of abuse all over their scantily clad bodies.

“How can the galaxy be so…wrong…so ugly..” Alais could only hoarsely whisper as the girls made no noise, simply gawking in shock.

Just then, the door at the end of the hall opened and an old, obese man stepped out glaring, “What’s all that commotion? I paid too much to be disturbed..” Alais could see past him into the room that there was a girl in there. The Jedi didn’t think twice as she took the blaster from Kal’s hip and fired directly into the man’s chest. His blaster being much nicer than hers had an immediate effect, punching a hole directly through him as he fell back with a thud.

Alais was frozen in place, her eyes wide, her hands shaking from where she still had the gun leveled. The other girls screamed now and it was entirely up to Kal to calm them down to get them out in an orderly fashion. Alais was all but a statue, staring ahead at the first man she had ever killed. She was terrified about how awful it was, she was terrified of how quick it was, she was terrified of how horrific it was, she was terrified of how violent it was.

But most of all, she was terrified of how much she liked it.

 

[Darth Kravos]

Kal watched the woman open the door before she was knocked out by Alais. He re-holstered his pistol, unable to say he felt any pity for the captor-woman, but even he could clearly sense the darkness swirling inside his partner. He almost stopped to talk to her. Almost told her not to go there, but he himself was on the brink and he knew the danger they were in. There was no time, and he wasn't even sure he could present a compelling enough argument. Instead, he said nothing.

The door slid open and the sight in front of him made his heart sink. Though externally he was straight faced, the sight tore him up and made a swirling inside him that demanded retribution. An eye for an eye. Each one of the girls looked terrified and he knew that even if they all escaped, their lives wouldn't be the same. They would be haunted in ways he couldn't ever know.

You've taken your first step into a larger world, he said grimly. There was no hint of joy or happiness in the comment, only the quiet resignation that might give her a glimpse into just how it was possible for him to be a jaded and passive toward killing as he was. This was filed away as one more thing he couldn't forget no matter how much he wanted to.

Perhaps the weight of their situation had distracted him, but he barely even noticed the man emerging from the other room and before he could react, Alais had his gun and put a round through the man's chest, filling the air with the smell of ozone, burned flesh, and screams.

Kal would have liked to project calming thoughts to the group, but the truth was in his current state, he didn't have his own inner calm, let alone enough to lend to others. Shock and awe it is, then. QUIET, he demanded, his voice booming with a literal echo that was impossible to create without assistance. The command all but echoed in the minds of those around and they seemed to respond immediately, quieting down likely more out of fear than anything.

When he spoke again, his voice was far softer and returned to its normal state. We're here to rescue you all, but you need to do exactly as we say, he said. The girls didn't seem to move and Kal had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from losing his patience. Don't you want to go home and see your families again? he asked. One of the older-looking girls who he guessed had to have been around eighteen seemed to get her voice and legs first, beginning to round up the others to prepare to move as Kal turned to Alais.

Her eyes seemed distant and cold, not like the innocent girl he had seen up until that point and it alarmed him. In fact, it hurt him much more than he would have expected. He reached out to take the pistol from her and put his other hand on her shoulder. Are you okay? he asked in a surprisingly soft voice. She'd not said anything since the incident and while he could guess what might have been going on in her heard, he wasn't going to.

 

[Andraste]

It wasn’t until Kal gently plucked the gun out of her hands did she finally get pulled out of her reverie. She looked at him with wide eyes as he asked if she were okay, the girls around them now shuffling around. Alais was close to tears as she abruptly wrapped her arms around him and buried her face into his chest, tears now streaming down her face, “This can’t be the world. This can’t be how things are! This is all wrong! It’s making me wrong!” She shouted out all her frustrations, her voice muffled against his chest. Despite that, she felt good just letting it all out.

At the end of it, she pulled back and quickly released him, ashamed to have done something like that, “S-Sorry…I just feel like a monster..” Alais sighed, wiping her tears away. She felt awful as she stood there, but she heard someone approaching her. As she glanced up, she realized it was the girl from the room at the end of the hall. She placed a hand on her shoulder, managing a weak smile, “If it weren’t for you, I would be enduring horrible things right now. If it weren’t for you, I’d still be stuck in here forever. If that makes you a monster, then I think this galaxy needs more of you..” She looked from her to Kal, and it was clear she believed every word she said. The girl was no older than Alais, but the horrors she had endured had stripped her away of all innocence and light-heartedness.

Alais was rooted in place for a moment, thinking over the girl’s words as she pulled away and began walking with the other girls. The oldest of them all was out where the woman’s desk was. She rummaged through it before coming back inside with a keycard, “This will get us out the side ground-level exit. It’s too dangerous to take the stairs up. Did you draw attention coming in?”

Alais grimaced, “I….may have..”

The girl waved it off, leading the way towards a side corridor, “There are usually guards positioned there too, but I think you’ll be fine if you take them by surprise.”

“You seem… very calm in this scenario..” Alais mused out aloud, looking at the girl.

“I have no choice. Screaming and panicking has never helped any of us.”

 

[Darth Kravos]

Kal was only a little surprised when she threw her arms around him and wept against his chest. His heart went out to her more than he could have said and he held her as she cried, patting her back somewhat awkwardly, but still showing that he was there for her. It's not making you wrong, he said, but he wasn't sure he had an answer for what she was experiencing. He didn't even have one for himself. There are people out there who are evil, and need to be stopped. We stop them, he said quietly as she pulled away from him. He shook his head. You're not a monster. He was a monster.

As the other girl came to comfort her, Kal began to turn his attention once more to the mission. They needed to find a way out. But even as he tried to do that, his mind was pulled back again to what had just happened. He had done many things before that weren't "Jedi" but in this war and with the galaxy in such turmoil, wasn't it worth it? Weren't there people that needed to be stopped no matter the cost? Would it cost him his soul? If he fell to the darkness but killed three exiles first, the total number of exiles decreased. That was a fact he knew.

He sighed and pushed the thought from his mind, trying not to be distracted anymore as he followed the seeming-leader of the group to find a key card. He appreciated her calm and objective view of things, and hoped she could maintain it and help get the girls out.

They came to the end of the hall and Kal could sense another guard. He moved before Alais could, hoping to spare her from having to deal with anymore violence today. Instead, he did it himself, aligning the pistol with the guard's head and pulling the trigger. He turned to the "leader" and spoke quickly. Get the girls and bring them down here. We'll make sure the path is clear, he said.

Even as he waited for the girls to come back, he wanted to ask Alais how she was, but he knew he shouldn't. They both needed to be focused or they could all end up dead. Even so, he couldn't contain all of his thoughts. This is the worst of it, he said to her. The whole galaxy isn't like this, but we... we deal with the worst of it, and the bad things so that others don't have to. So that innocent girls can hug their mothers again. Sometimes... we feel like monsters so that others can live. We kill monsters so others can live.... he told her, and even as he said it, he felt the weight of his own actions, past and present.

 

[Andraste]

Alais lagged slightly behind as she helped guide the other girls forward. They were terrified and still rattled by the sequence of events. The girl at the front was still leading Kal out, and Alais couldn’t see what was going on up ahead. After a moment, she heard the telltale sound of Kal’s gun once more and she knew he felled someone else. This time, Alais winced but didn’t react, trying not to think about the man she killed.

The girls gasped and all gingerly stepped around the dead body, all heading down till they came across a door. The oldest girl opened the door and Alais could tell it led out into an alley. She turned to Kal and Alais, “I can get the girls out from here. I know a safehouse to take them to in the upper levels of Coruscant. You two need to get out of here,” She reached around her neck and unclasped a small necklace and handed it to Kal, “There are more of these operations. There is a man named Barza on Alderaan who runs a sister operation along the outskirts of Aldera. It’ll be tougher to crack, but my sister is there along with a bunch of other girls,” She managed a smile as she looked at them both, “I can’t thank you two enough. Best of luck and I thank the stars that people like you still exist in the galaxy,” She looked at the row of girls standing nearby, “It gives us all hope.”

With a final nod, the girl was off, ushering the younger girls away. Alais thought about following, but she knew they would only draw more attention to themselves. She watched them go for a while until they disappeared into the night before turning to Kal, “Well…looks like we have our work cut out for us.”

She began to hear shouts and voices behind them and quickly closed the door behind them, “Come on! Let’s get out of here!”

As they made their exit as well, they knew it was only the beginning of a rabbit hole that was deeper than either of them knew.

~Fin