Going to the Book Store

[Narsi]

Well, this was probably the most dangerous thing he'd ever done, and he snuck into scary places and murdered (mostly) scary people for a living. Still, nothing great every came without great risk, or so Kip repeatedly told himself in an effort to ignore the sense of steadily increasing dread. Also doubts, and past discouraging comments from the other Conclave members, he was trying to drown all those out too, especially the mocking laugh from the wizened old Apostle who everybody looked up to and asked for advice. That one in particular had been a big downer on his hopes for backup.

Sure, infiltrating Tund, the stronghold of the Imperial Inquisition was SEEMINGLY stupid, but it was all a matter of perspective. There was a sure chance he'd be able to find what he needed here, and thus if he succeeded, then he succeeded once and for all. If he just went to some random Sith world, searching blindly for what he needed, he would just end up risking his life multiple times, and he mightn't even find what he wanted in the end going that route. Besides, he'd been careful, slipping in on a supply ship a few ahourse earlier amongst the cargo so as to avoid leaving any trace of "suspicious orbital entry" and he'd been concealing his force presence from the moment of arrival as well.

And now he was here, a small satchel on hand alongside all his usual gear, weaving through the dusk shadows amidst the buildings of the Imperial Priesthood. Moving steadily towards the Basilica, tall against the weakening sun, slipping by soldiers and passerby's with utmost caution. Ideally, he could've simply pretended to be one of them, he certainly looked the part. Heck, he had a red lightsaber and a bit of darkness to his aura. Kip scowled under his mask, but he could never do that, not when he had another perfectly viable option ahead of him.

Diving into a clump of bushes on a corner, Kip took a moment to reaffirm his location and take a look around. The target was close, only a few streets away now and with plenty of alleys and side roads, also thankfully clear of substantial crowds. Perfect. Waiting for a clear moment, Kip slipped out and into a narrow alley going forward, making sure to stay alert and ready for a sudden surprise attack. Hopefully they wouldn't be able to sense him at all, and with him keeping in the shadows it was unlikely he'd be seen, but hopes were made to break.

 

[Xan]

OOC: Hope you don't mind me jumping in for snooping! Also no, Xanthis isn't going to notice Kip right from the get-go, cause that'd be unsportin'.

The lightsaber hovered in pieces above the ground, metallic components shining brightly in the light of the sun that peeked in through windows facing west. The two red crystals that powered the weapon twinkled with a malevolent aura of their own, but Xanthis did not see them as others saw them. He did not see the color red, nor could he register blue nor yellow or any other primary color. He saw no color at all, but in exchange he saw the truth. The crimson crystals that powered his blade were alive with the power of the Dark Side, and their aura told him more than their coloration ever could. He knew everything of the crystals and would have been able to distinguish them apart from a thousand others were they lined up side by side. They were his and he was theirs, and together they formed a warrior and his weapon.

This was the style of Xanthis's thoughts as he reassembled his crossguard lightsaber after a meticulous session of maintenance and modification. The various pieces that composed his weapon slowly hovered back into place with what might have been an agonizing slowness to a non-Force Sensitive. For his fellow Inquisitors and Sith, the process needed to be slow in order to ensure its perfection. Even the Jedi would understand this even as they failed to grasp other truths about the reality of the universe. When at last the pieces came together into a perfect whole, the lightsaber floated serenely into its wielder's waiting hand. Rising to his feet, Xanthis activated the lightsaber with his will and beheld the blade it produced before giving a few experimental swings. The ritual was complete and the modifications to his lightsaber had not gone awry; he had successfully changed the arms of the crossguard to point upward at an angle rather than outward as they once had.

"Well that took a little longer than expected, but every second was well spent," Xanthis muttered quietly to himself as he inspected his weapon, giving a few more practice swings before donning his Inquisitor combat armor. He had removed the gear quite some time ago, preferring his meditations to occur without the armor. Now he equipped the crossguard lightsaber onto his belt with the other lightsabers where it belonged, and strode out into the streets of Tund. Though he primarily lived on Coruscant, he ventured to the home of the Imperial Priesthood on occasion to reconnect with what he felt to be his roots. This was after all the home of his reborn self, the place where he had trained as an Initiate and taken his vows as a Templar to serve the Empire. It was also a phenomenal planet for finding books and other research materials, which was another reason why he was here. Affixing his headband and giving it a few experimental tugs, he started to head in the direction of the Basilica of Tund.

 

[Narsi]

OOC: Of course I don't mind, its an open thread after all. Sorry for the long wait, hit a busy streak, should be much quicker on the replies from now on. Also, it has been brought to my attention that several pieces of Kip's equipment are currently archived/unapproved. Please assume that he is simply wearing a black colored Vagabond Armor set with his mask, no functions of course, and that he simply does not have his carbine.

So close, he was soooo close, it was literally right in front of him. There was a problem however, actually a lot of problems. The place was swarming with people. More than half of them were stormtroopers of some kind, and most of the remaining people looked like civilians. But, here and there, he could see a few dangerous looking individuals that carried themselves with an eerie grace, and with the right positioning, he could see lightsabers on their hips. Kip let out a colorful string of curse words from behind the safety of mask, resisting the urge to pound the ground as it would surely blow his cover. If it looked like this on the outside, what would it be like on the inside? Sure, it wouldn't be AS bad, but if it were even half, no, a quarter as active, then he was in trouble. He couldn't fight that many, and he surely doubted his ability to sneak around with so many eyes on patrol, especially in an unfamiliar location. He had yet to see any good looking side entrances either, only the heavily guarded main doors.

Sighing and lowering his fist gently to the dirt, Kip let his gaze wander about his environment. He was currently inside another bush, hiding out in the green tangle as he surveyed the main entrance with a woeful gaze. Directly to his left was the narrow little alleyway he'd just finished traversing, and to his right, a larger cluster of interlocking roads and crowds, basically the actual public area for people who weren't trespassing. To his back was a wall, the base for the mass shrubbery that hid him, and above him, a window, a dark rectangle dimly visible in the weakening light. Eyes widening with realization, Kip redirected his focus back to the basilica, except this time, he ignored the main entrances, instead searching about for a window just like the one above him, specifically, one that was currently dark and empty.

It took a minute or so, and a lot of squinting, but eventually Kip's eyes alighted on darkened little square on a smaller structure connected to the main tower, and it was on his left. Fixing the point in his mind, Kip calmly waited for a moment in which no eyes, that he could see anyway, were looking in his direction. And then he was off, bolting from his bush back into the comforting shadows of the alley, thankful to be rid of so many unknowingly prying eyes. Tossing a cautious glance behind him at the busy street and keeping a wary ear open, Kip moved forward into the dark tunnels towards where he roughly figured he needed to go.

@Xan

 

[Xan]

Traversing the main area, Xanthis passed by many stormtroopers and other such guards that regularly patrolled the area around the Basilica. He waved at several of them as he passed, laughing softly in amusement at a few of the younger ones that seemed confused by the gesture. Most Sith probably did not greet the common soldiery as they passed, instead probably opting to ignore them unless they felt some form of camaraderie. Imperial Inquisitors were generally more sociable in Xanthis's opinion, and he was no exception. He shared gestures of greetings with some of his brothers and sisters that he knew, some from training exercises and others from missions shared in the past. A strange signal passed between one group, a unique handshake with another, and sometimes just a knowing nod to someone engaged in conversation elsewhere. Tund was truly one of perhaps three planets where Xanthis felt truly at home, safe and rela-

Something caught Xanthis's eye as he passed by an alleyway, a movement seen in his equivalent to peripheral vision. Slowing his pace, he focused more inside the alley without turning his head just in time to see a figure emerge from bushes and head into an alleyway. What was the meaning of this, he wondered to himself as he resumed a normal walking pace toward the Basilica. When he was outside of the view of the alleyway, he picked up his speed to a light run and found the next alley. Turning left into the alleyway, he broke into an all-out sprint to make up for lost distance. His Force-sight made the buildings around him translucent, but it did not mean that he was all-seeing. He could vaguely see the runner up ahead of him in the alley running parallel to this one, and he wondered where the man was going. Toward the Basilica perhaps...but no, that could not be accurate. The only thing for it was to continue to shadow the individual, perhaps to find a location to perform a proper interrogation...

OOC: Alright I'm back! @Narsi

 

[Narsi]

.....There was someone behind him. He didn't know who, and he didn't know how, but he could just barely make out the sound of running footsteps. Well that was bad, very bad actually, and something he needed to do something about. Taking a deep breath, Kip let loose his iron grip on the force that dampened his presence, instead funneling the power into his senses. Immediately the world sprung into intense focus, the shadows melting away and every little sound ringing in his ears. Doing his best to tune out his own thundering gait, Kip focused intensely on the sounds coming from behind him, Sure enough, his newly enhanced hearing revealed an additional runner, although his pursuer seemed bit off to the side rather than directly behind him, a parallel alley perhaps?

It changed nothing, the chances of the other runner NOT following him were infinitesimal, and he needed to put a stop to even any possibility of discovery anyways. Luckily, his sharpened eyes were perfect for spotting a sudden clearing just ahead of him, the dusk light illuminating the area quite handily. Unluckily, as he noticed it and drew closer, he could hear another raised voice ahead of him, from the clearing no doubt. Kip sighed, drawing a one of his vibro-daggers with his right hand and flipping it on, this just wasn't a lucky day. Allowing his senses to return to normal, Kip amped up his speed suddenly for the last few meters, determined to get a larger lead as he barreled into the clearing.

Instantly he became aware of an trooper talking loudly into a comlink, leaning against a thin tree in the center of the otherwise unoccupied open space. The man had just enough time to gasp and stand up straight before Kip's knife found its mark, ripping into the mans throat with trained precision. Shoving the newly made corpse to the ground and stomping the comlink, Kip turned to face the alley entrance next to the one he'd used, knife ready and waiting for his "stalker."

@Xan