Ask Double Cross

[Ottilie Teresi]

Taris, Lower Levels

As bad as the caf tasted, it was enough of a treat that the few credits she had could buy. Internally she wished to have a day were she didn't need to buy caf from the dirties bodegas in the lower levels, and even wished she were still at the academy where things were clean, decent, and she wasn't out here keeping herself from being kidnapped, killed, or starved. Quietly she sipped from the cup, her lower back leaned against the iron rail that over looked a small collective of shops as she scrolled through her nalphone. She hopelessly checked back through her messages, reading old conversations with her former friends that she had not heard from in recent months. She had begun to wonder in the truth of what her master said about friends, she doubted it originally, he knew this too, and had decided it was a lesson for her to learn on her own.

And a hard lesson it was beginning to become.

No notifications.

Knowing that it wasn't any good to stand and continue to stare at her phone, Ottilie stuffed it back into her pocket, walking through the mid-afternoon bustle of citizens just trying to get their day done. She paused again, watching a holoscreen at a government kiosk, notices plastered all over the structure: ordinances, warnings, who to look out for, most wanted. She always checked to make sure her face wasn't plastered on one of them, not that she did anything that was against the law, or at least she thought as she gaslit herself into believing otherwise. Three chimps signaled from the holoscreen as the latest from the ISB made reminder announcements. A few others stopped to listen, curious to the new cautions they decide to release to the public. While listening, her paranoia was stroked some, and Ottilie wondered if it were time to find a way to the ISC, thinking she wouldn't have to worry as much as she did on Taris.

@Orbit

 

[Aeron Wulfheart]

The time Aeron had spent on Taris was beginning to pay off. With the Knight's presence, a small bridge of trust had been created enough that civilians were beginning to come forward. They had begun cracking down on multiple operations in the lower levels, making their appearance much more accepted. While the amount of people they attracted were really drops in the bucket, it was a sign they were on the right path at least.

Aeron walked through the streets of the Lower levels but not alone. A young teen led the tall Knight through the streets, acting as his guide through the metal maze that was the city. The people offered them a wide berth as they walked on, the boy barely noticing as he practically skipped in excitement. While the Knight's presence had been accepted, it didn't mean they were still entirely pleased with it yet.

Aeron was donned in full armor, his helmet too to clearly announce who he was affiliated to. He glanced around curiously before resting his gaze on the back of the kid's head, "How much father is it?" He really hoped that this wasn't some prank.

The kid still hadn't looked back at him but spoke passionately, "Only a few more blocks. The others are scared but they need our help! They just need to realize they no longer need to be hungry or cold anymore." This was the opportunity he and his friends had been looking for, at least in his mind.

The Knight still had a hard time believing the story. The kid had barely been able to explain it as the words came tumbling out his mouth at the time. All that Aeron had been really collect was that there was a grouping of kids, most or not all of them force sensitive and refugees basically of the Sith. While there hadn't been really much to go on, he remembered the state of fear he had been when he was a child, hiding from the monsters in the dark. Before he had realized it, he had already been up on his feet and following after the kid to see if he could assist.

That led them to the street and where they had been walking for about ten minutes already, having taken various turns and straights. Aeron was beginning to lose faith but he remained silent and patient. As they walked, the Knight and kid would earn their fair share of looks, particularly with him towering over his guide and his crimson armor compared to the civilian clothing.

 

[Ottilie Teresi]

After the announcements begun to repeat themselves, Ottilie decided it would be time to find some work to earn the few credits that would get her by through tomorrow. Turning on her heel, she heard the beeps from her nalphone and the girl quickly checked it; thinking it was a hit for a job, it was actually an incoming message from one of her friends from the academy. She nearly dropped her caf and clumsily fingered the accept button to bring up the message.

Found others like us, if you're in, join us.

The girl mouthed the words quietly out loud, stunned that someone had actually reached out. The moment of shock short-lived as she was elbowed out of the way and her caf flung from her grasp. A twinge of irritation fired through the teen but remembering the message from only a few seconds earlier was still fresh in her thoughts. Curious, she typed in the coordinates seeing they weren't too far from her position. Ottilie wondered if they had been nearby and saw her, thus the invitation. Deciding it couldn't be worse than sleeping on the streets, the dark-haired girl followed the path; her constant moving had given her a sophisticated mapping of the lower levels, the coordinates taking her deeper into the city and with less populace roaming the streets.

Soon she heard a hissing sound, turning around, she spotted a familiar face peeking from around the corner of an alley. The former friend waved for her to follow and Ottilie smiled, quickly taking step catch up, "Uri, I thought you all left!" Ottilie said, not bothering to cover up her excitement.

The echani girl looked back at her former classmate, "Its been hard to leave, we're staying put until things calm down." she explained and then pulled back a metal door. Inside was a room, no electricity, or proper living conditions in general, just a bunch of kids huddled in packs to keep warm from the sunless chill of the lower levels. Ottilie was stunned to see the state in which herself, and her friends found themselves in and was starting to understand why the others went to join the Rangers. She followed Uri to a pod, taking a seat as they all looked at her, "The more we have, the better off we'll be." she said, but Ottilie wasn't sure the meaning of that statement, instead, she rather enjoyed the warmth of the fire that burned in the middle of the group.

@Orbit

 

[Aeron Wulfheart]

The unlikely pair continued on through the streets, the amount of people slowly reducing as they entered the poorer districts. Where before Aeron had earned only suspicious looks, people actively avoided him now as they knew he was a representation of the law. The kid still paid no attention and maintained his pace, glancing around eagerly to spot his friends as if they had been alerted to their presence already and could materialize out of thin air.


Eventually, the Knight would be led into a small cluster of warehouses and apartment buildings. Given the dip in quality and density people, the lower city turned a blind eye when it came to certain regulations. Aeron smoothly scanned from his left to right, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up but that was it. If there was a place for a trap, where he found himself would certainly suffice. Instead of the busy buzz that came with the streets, they would be replaced with the thunderous roars of plants and factories nearby.

They would arrive at a sort of open square nestled between rundown warehouses, the kid's legs propelling him forward much faster as excitement overtook him. Aeron would remain behind him but step to the side a little, allowing a distance to build between them. The Knight stood silently like he was a stone gargoyle, his gaze fixated forward as his visor helped portray the idea he was always watching. While he didn't appear the friendliest, it was because Aeron still had no clue whether this was a trap or not.

After a few steps, the kid would purse his lips before letting out a sharp whistle, a specific tune the others would recognize once heard. A couple seconds and echos later, the kid would begin to shout for the other kids, "Guys! Are you there? Come out! I brought help!"

 

[Ottilie Teresi]

The girl felt conflicted as she finally felt the warmth penetrate to her bones, disgusted at herself for falling this low, but it sure beat being a slave prior to her years with the Sith. Regardless, if any lesson would stick from her academy days, it was that good deeds had a cost and Uri would eventually approach her with the price she would have to expend. For Ottilie, it was questionable as to if she would pay it back. For the moment, she enjoyed the fire, feeling the warm weave between her fingers as the Force shifted in her grasp. Her senses normally heightened, it was not safe being in the underworld and even with other kids who most were younger than herself, she knew they were all survivors. They would do anything to survive.

There was another shift in the Force and the girl's head lifted, looking around and noting that Uri had gotten up to quickly leave. Soon, there was quiet muttering and a distant call of another kid, mentioning something about finding help. Ottilie rose to her feet, following behind the others to see the gleeful child with his find: an Imperial Knight. The color in Ottilie's face drained, and questioned shot rapidly through her mind as to why an Imperial Knight was here. She didn't think they had any interest in helping and especially those like herself or even Uri, who stepped forward. The zeltron teen extended her hand and the kid who lead the Imperial knight ran to her, hugging her, "Good work, master will be pleased." she said ruffling his hair, "Go on, your reward will come..."

The child would run off with the rest of the younger children, leaving the Imperial Knight with a few of the older kids and teens. There would be a cold chill that settled in the room that put Ottilie on edge as she begun to question why she was here. The Imperial knight would soon know this was not necessarily a call for help or assistance as a red blade ignited in the shadows, revealing the sith master who orchestrated the plan: to lure the enemy to them, a step in his quest for revenge and his future pupils who stood in the room.

"Surrender your weapons." the sith master hissed.

@Orbit

 

[Aeron Wulfheart]

After a couple of seconds, a wave of kids slowly stepped out and into view. One of them motioned over for the kid that had led him over to her, congratulating him on his catch. Aeron couldn't find himself becoming angry at the kid, understanding the want and need to survive. Maybe it was some latent naivety within him that had hoped this would be a safe interaction where he could help these children out. A part of him wanted to snuff this out of him but he realized if he did, then he would eventually become no better then what he hunted.

The young kids eventually drew away and left only the teens bigger-body kids left, an indication that trouble was about to occur. Aeron's hand remained away from his weapon, not letting any possibility of them being hurt by his hand. The girl had mentioned a master and he revealed himself shortly, a crimson lightsaber erupting to life from the shadows. His words seized the Knight's attention for a moment but it quickly went back to the kids as he inspected each one. They reminded him of his brother and himself, how they had suffered at the hands of the Sith and were nothing more than puppets.

"Are all of you okay?" He asked them first, his voice naturally projecting a steely tone but the genuine concern in his words would also be notable. None of them responded to him, at least verbally, as he was met with cold stares. Realizing they weren't biting, Aeron brought his gaze back to the Sith before answering simply, "No."

The Knight raised his hand a little to summon his lightsaber, the hilt zipping from his belt right into his hand. Unlike the Sith, his lightsaber would remain deactivated to ensure there was no possibility of a child getting hurt. Even though a part of him was disgusted by the Sith's use of children, his duty as a Knight came first. "This is your one and last chance. Surrender yourself and I won't separate your head from your body right here."

 

[Ottilie Teresi]

Ottilie felt Uri's hand rest on top of her own, not realizing she was instinctually grasping her vibroblades. She didn't know what her friend, or thought was a friend had brought her to, it was far from what she wanted right now. The zeltron girl leaned over and whispered into her ear as she watched with unease as the Imperial was facing a perilous situation.

"Our master protects us, he wants to make sure the Imperials don't harm us." she whispered and Ottilie turned to look at her, skepticism clear on her face, "I know it seems harsh, but we are to learn by watching what he does. He knows how to find others and then once we have enough we can go home." she said, her hushed whisper wavered under the idea of returning back to the life they had at the academy and temples. Ottilie could understand, she hated having to just survive, though in a way it was not too different from her life previously, just survival now was more than ego. "I thought you wanted to go home too, Ottie..."

"I do, but this seems...wasteful Uri." Ottilie whispered back as the Imperial Knight demanded for the sith master to surrender instead. The girl nearly rolled her eyes to the banter, so far this master enjoyed theatrics. It was nearly on cue as the Imperial threatened to separate his head from the rest of him, blue and white lightning exploded from his finger tips. It made the remaining teens and kids retreat backwards, including Uri and Ottilie who then pulled her vibroblades igniting them.

The sith master followed his lightning, lunging at the Imperial, saber poised to bisect his victim. Ottilie watched, feeling a moment of conflict, logic ate away at her thoughts while her heart raced with the impulses she should act upon. Regardless of the decisions she contemplated upon, when Uri placed a hand on her forearm, the girl reacted, violently, the Force jetted the zeltron girl into the fight, and Ottilie soon followed.

@Orbit

 

[Aeron Wulfheart]

Aeron's reaction to his own words nearly mirrored Ottilie's. It was theatrics because he had no intention of bringing this Sith master in. The only reason the words had left his mouth was because his loyalty to the Knights was stout enough that he abided by what his Order desired, even if marginally. The killing of a Sith was a last measure but for the young Knight, it was the only measure he found suitable.

From his tone of voice, the Sith knew his words were just a facade, just like he knew himself. The olive branch he had offered nothing more than just a twisted and dead piece of tree, meaningless. Not needing another green light, the Sith launched his attack as lightning rippled through the air toward him. Aeron would activate his lightsaber instantly, a snow white blade that would catch the energy being shot at him. While his blade blocked a majority of the damage, whips of lightning would still lash out, striking his shoulders, arms, and back, making him eventually be blasted backward as he rolled across the ground.

Aeron stumbled to his feet, wisps of smoke rising from different plates of his armor, just in time to spot the Sith lunging at him. Relying on his training, he twirled his blade to meet the Master's, deflecting it away from him. An opening was made and the Knight took it, quickly launching his boot deep into the stomach of his opponent to knock the wind out of him and create some space.

As the two separated, the Knight used the moment to collect his breath, sweat forming on his brow. But, he would be interrupted and to his surprise, not by the Sith. A kid took the opportunity to sneak up behind him, vibro-knife in hand before he stabbed it between the gaps of his thigh plates. Aeron let out a yelp of pain, spinning halfway with his blade raised but only to find a kid terrified beneath him. The sight made him hesitate and freeze right where he was, his rage not that blinding yet. To the Sith, he saw the spectacle with glee and made another attack, a concussive blast of force that took the Knight into a stack of crates as he tumbled through them.

 

[Ottilie Teresi]

The Zeltron quickly recovered from the throw and raised her own red blade to block the teen's vibroblades that nearly found their way into her flesh. Ottilie pushed off, there was a pain in the center of her chest, but she knew she was not wounded, not physically, it was the pain and realization of what must be done if she were to survive. She and Uri had been friends for years and now it was going to all unravel because of her blind following of the sith master who was toying with the Imperial Knight. However, as Uri lunged at Ottilie, the pain she held was enough to fuel her to continue.

The girl raised her left vibroblade, catching the saber and quickly stabbing her right blade forward, slicing along the zeltron's side. It was enough to get her to back off as she hissed in physical pain, her blue blood soaking her side. There was a crash behind her from the Knight being thrown into the storage crates. The retreating Uri was lifted from her place and thrown into the approaching sith master, interrupting his advance on the Imperial. The room seemed to have cleared, the younglings seeing the fight was not in their best interest as Ottilie thought the same; she took a step backwards, seeing the sith master throw Uri off of him and her gaze turned to the Imperial.

Ottilie ran to Aeron, her own teachings internally screaming at her to leave him behind and grabbed him by the arm to lift him up. "C'mon..." she growled before she felt her entire body convulse in pain, the sith's lightning running through her body. She didn't even feel herself fall to the ground as she yelled again, "C'mon..." she pushed herself up, she needed to get out of there, she wasn't for getting wiped by a washed out sith master.

@Orbit

 

[Aeron Wulfheart]

Aeron rolled across the ground before he ended up on his stomach, a long and pained groan escaping from him. Not only were pieces of his armor charred but his leg felt like it was on fire. The knife remained in his thigh, a small stream of blood leaking out as the blade prevented anything worse. In his daze, the Knight glanced around, a few of the kid's faces becoming his younger brother's before he disappeared as they turned and ran away. The memories and sight of him left him unbalanced, barely registering that the Sith was approaching him.

Suddenly feelings hands grab upon him, Aeron's head snapped toward the owner as he was ready to lunge before he just noticed it was a young girl. Her words echoed within his head but he understood them enough that he began to shift. About halfway up, the lightning would strike the mysterious child next to him and he reacted off instinct. Adrenaline and his focus upon the girl flooded the pain out of his leg momentarily as he got to his feet. His shoulder would eat the brunt of the lightning for a brief moment before he managed to lift his saber in time to absorb the electricity.

The Knight had no idea who the child was but she had just taken a blast of lightning that was meant for him. The two of them had never met before but she had been trying to help him moments prior. He had no idea if this was a trick, with one kid having already stabbed him, but she had saved him from being turned to a crisp by the Sith. As Aeron began to take steps back, he peered through the flashing light at one of the nearby crates. Whipping out his hand, the box would be flung right into the legs of the Sith, the man tumbling over the top before falling back down on the ground.

It gave the pair a moment of reprieve and an opportunity to regroup. Aeron spun around and brought his gaze down upon Ottilie, immediately seizing her collar before lifting her up. "Move!" He shouted, pushing her towards the nearest warehouse as he followed after her. By the time the Sith got to his feet, the two would already be inside the building.

 

[Ottilie Teresi]

It was still painful even when the Imperial shielded her from the Sith's attack, and it was a pain that didn't seem to dull over time the more she experienced it. She struggled to push herself to her feet, fingers still grasping her vibroblades tightly as she was ready to defend herself again, however, the Imp seemed to find them a way out of there. She heard his command and up she went as he grabbed her collar, helping her and guiding to their exit. Not hesitating, the girl knew it was time to make leave and leapt over one of the overturned crates.

Her muscles threatened to seize up as she ran quickly, feeling the man right behind her as they ducked into the warehouse. The girl sheathed her weapons, pressing against the cold durasteel wall, slowing her breaths as she looked to regain some calm over her aching body, she would be lucky if the lightning strike didn't scar her. The young dark sider looked up to Aeron and gave him a nod, "Thanks..." that word felt weird to say to an Imperial. Keeping low, she begun to cut across the building, "I'll show you how to get out of this area." she whispered, her senses feeling and searching for danger that may still trail them.

"Around here, you don't trust kids to show you things. There is always a catch." she said after a moment, thinking how he showed up with a youngling.

@Orbit

 

[Aeron Wulfheart]

The two were inside and shielded from the Sith for the time being. Ottilie led him through the building, much more familiar with the layout than he was, as she made her way toward the exit. Aeron slowly followed behind her, the knife still jutting out from his calf as he refused to pull it out yet. If he did, he would only bleed out right there and he wasn't finished yet.

About halfway through the warehouse, he would come to a silent stop and let Ottilie continue on her own if she failed to notice. If she stopped too, he would just give a slight shake of his head and say, "I'm not running. Find the exit while you can—I'll take care of the Sith." He didn't fail to notice the irony that she warned him about trusting kids, yet she was attempting to show him this exit.

Before the two could even debate if they wanted to, one of the nearby sets of crates would be blown apart as they crashed into nearby walls. The Sith from before would step out into the open, a hue of crimson light surrounding him and reflecting in his eyes. "There you are," he commented softly, his gaze first fixated on Aeron before slowly drawing towards Ottilie, something gleaming within his orbs that was predatory. The Sith's lighting would be lifted and aimed directly toward her, a sneer erupting out of him before he said, "I'll take my time with you after."

When Ottillie became the focus, Aeron would step forth and in-between the two of them, his white lightsaber activating once again as he prepared his stance. His visor offered nothing, but the Sith would be able to feel his hard gaze underneath, a lethal and silent warning in itself. The Knight would shoot down any twisted hope the corrupted warrior had, "No, you won't." His opponent's eyebrow raised in question as he advanced forward, chuckling softly as he asked, "Oh?"