I Can Has

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

Quesh. Poisonous, vile, and home to some damn good adrenals. Crix set his XS-100 down at the rendezvous point. Rusty was working on his new ship and the smuggler knew not to rush perfection. He was forced to wear a filtered re-breather on his scout armor in order to compensate for the planet's poisonous atmosphere. He'd been back in the smuggling game for a while and it felt good to be on a planet he'd never expected to see. The harsh landscape was painted in hues of orange and pink. The sky was algae green as if to promote its toxicity. As Crix left the ship he instructed Peetwo to keep the engines primed. The smuggler had a feeling they'd be making a hasty getaway.

According to the mission, this job was gonna require a little muscle and as such he'd equipped his blaster, utility-belt and his hold-out blaster which was hidden in it's usual spot. His weapons held a different weight than they once had. Before he knew what he was, his weapons were tools. Instruments to deliver whatever justice he found agreeable, but since meeting Leah, he'd come to understand them to be more. They were instruments of fate. They could remain idle and fade away, or they could be used to light the way.

To the scoundrel's surprise, he wanted to light the way.

Dopes had given him a task to complete before he made it to the rendezvous and Crix obliged. The settlement he'd landed near was rather large and there were plenty of speeders to choose from, but if the goal was to blend in while transporting something, Crix would need something... something with a little je ne sais quoi... he thought as he scanned his surroundings. He spotted a fueling station and waited. All it took was a small opportunity. Five seconds and it was done. The smuggler watched as a speeder-truck pulled into the station. The trucks repulsors were heavily modified and the sound of the engine told him it was just as beefy.

Bingo.

The driver, a male weequay, was wearing a uniform of sorts, his tunic was gaudy and trimmed in gold. He wore black trousers and polished boots and if the smuggler wasn't mistaken the bulge on his hip wasn't made for procreation. For a moment Crix thought harder than he'd admit about the weequay reproductive system, before shaking the thought from his mind. Crix's eyes narrowed at the glint of a symbol on the being's shoulder, but he couldn't make it out.

The being stepped opened up the fuel hatch and began struggling with the payment machine. Frustrated the weequay returned the nozzle and stomped toward the store. That's when Crix made his move. Out of sight from his target he snuck into the back seat of the truck and hid there until the being returned. A few minutes passed and after refueling the vehicle the weequay got in the driver's side and slammed the door. The truck began moving and Crix slowly eased his blaster out of its holster. He set the weapon to stun, no need to kill some rando, and then eased himself up in the back seat.

Crix placed the barrel of the weapon against the Weequay's side and the being screamed like an astromech on fire. To the Weequay's credit, he didn't swerve into oncoming traffic and kill them. Fear transformed the being. Landrel, a courier, for the Abrago Hutt family, was happy to spill his guts as long as it meant he wasn't being killed. Crix never got to threaten, or admonish, the being simply disdained the thought of dying so much that he'd rather spill the beans, over his guts, and that was just fine by Crix.

After a short drive, they arrived at the rendezvous point and Crix instructed Landrel to get out.

"Y-y-y-y-essir!" He performed a weird little salute and exited the vehicle. Landrel stood at attention as if awaiting his next order. Crix blinked and then gestured for the being to follow. Before leaving Crix turned off the truck and stepped up to the closed door.

With a sigh, Crix raised a hand, did a four-count to keep time, and then tapped a super secret rhythm Dan had requested. With the Holonet outage and his little errand, the smuggler hoped he wasn't too late.

@Lucid

 

[Daniel Solus (old)]

Daniel shot up from his chair and rushed to the door when he heard the distinctive knock. He slapped the access pad and the door slid open, revealing Crix and a terrified looking Weequay. Daniel grinned and folded Crix into a hug slapping his back and saying how good it was to see him. The incident on Taris had left Daniel with a very favorable opinion of Raz's longtime friend. He stepped back still grinning. It was turning out to be a good day!

"Awseome!" he enthused. "You got it! Let's get going!"

With that, Daniel clipped his helmet to his armor and headed for the van, the terrified Weequay and Cirx in tow. They were after a shipment of stims a resource critical to the Imperial military and something that both he and Crix felt they should not be allowed to have. Daniel knew the fighting would be intense but he wasn't afraid. With their Weequay buddy now truly terrified--he had let out a squeak when he saw Daniel answer the door in his armor and many weapons--he was sure that they could get in and possibly out again with out too much trouble.

It would be getting their hands on the stims without being too obvious that would be the tricky part.

@Zay

 

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

A wide smile spread across the smugglers face as Dopes wrapped him in a hug. Normally, Crix hated being touched. His time in the undercity of Coruscant had left scars on his psyche that hadn't quite healed and physical affection was something only reserved for his most trusted companions.

Thankfully, Daniel was just that.

Crix ended the embrace, but while still holding Dan's shoulders he said, "It's good to see ya, Dopes! You're still keeping an eye on Ghost for me right?"

Landrel was terrified. He looked like he wanted to be anywhere other than here, but after getting a good look at the Hutt badge on his chest, Crix had decided to use the Weequay just a little more.

"Yeah, it's actually Landrel's," the smuggler said in response to Dan's remark.

"So, just making sure I've got this down. I'll get us to a decent vantage point and let you do your thing. From there, I'll slip in and do my thing, then we get the hell out of here and you buy drinks this time?"

Crix drove the first leg of the way. They dropped Daniel off at his desired vantage point. Before leaving Crix said, "Don't get killed. Ghost'll kill me if I get you killed, let's face it, that's just unnecessary bloodshed."

The smuggler looked over at Landrel and said, "Welp, time for you to take over."

Landrel looked at him confused, so Crix elaborated with a sigh, "I'm gonna hide in the back, you're gonna take me to the loading zone in the back." A devilish smile spread across his face as the weequay put together what he was after.

"Look, I don't want to shoot you. Death is boring. Just drive casually, get me to the back and then you're free to go, kay?"

Landrel stammered his many thanks and Crix rolled his eyes. He was almost glad to get rid of this guy.

@Lucid

 

[Daniel Solus (old)]

"Don't worry! I'm not going to die! ...At least not today."

With that, Daniel exited the vehicle and just stood there for a moment. He was only kind of thinking about what to do. Mostly he was just worried about Crix. A moderate number of Hutt guards didn't really pose a threat to a Mandalorian of Daniel's talents and outfit...but they might to a lone soldier skulking about where he shouldn't be. Eventually reaching the conclusion that he couldn't do anything about it--and the hovervan safely through security--Daniel figured that the time for his part to begin.

Effortlessly he keyed his jetpack and soared through the air. He was no great artist with the thing like Solone, but he was good enough. He landed lightly beside the security checkpoint the van had just passed through and looked to the very alarmed guard in the booth. "Hi!" he said brightly from under his helmet. "I seem to be lost. How do I get to the Super Jawa Convention?"

Whatever the guard was expecting, it wasn't that. He simply stared at Daniel utterly speechless for a moment before pulling a blaster and pointing it the armored Mandalorian's face. "Lost? Comic convention?" the guard snarled, seeming to finally come to his senses. "I don't know what you're doing here but that's gotta be the lamest excuse ever. You have five seconds to leave before I call the rest of security."

Daniel didn't even wait for the man to stop speaking, he reached up faster than the security man could follow and efficiently snapped his elbow--boring conversation anyway--and relieved him of the blaster pistol. He shot him in the face, sad that it had come to this and keyed his jetpack once again. He landed over the security gates and brought up his rifle. It seemed that his antics at the guard station hadn't gone unnoticed.

Beings from a rather alarming array of species were streaming out of the different buildings of the complex, rushing toward him. The fight was on and the delivery van that had just rolled through security was forgotten. The arrival of a Mandalorian Field Marshal was the last thing this facility expected or needed. All their attention was now on him...and Daniel was fine with that.

It was time to begin the game.

@Zay

 

[Crix Dolan (TL8)]

Crix kept his head down as Landrel played his part. The jittery Weequay performed admirably, considering there was nothing for him to do. They passed through the security check without a hitch. Landrel pulled the vehicle around to the loading dock at the back. A few loading droids continued to operate as the alarm blared around them.

"Alright, scoot buddy." Said The Scoundrel as he moved into the driver's seat. Wasting no time, Crix whipped the truck around and backed it into the nearest loading lane. He flipped the switch on his blaster to a mild stun and looked to the Weequay, "Sorry, pal." The Weequay squealed in fear before passing out from the stun bolt. The Smuggler shook his head with a little relief. Truthfully he didn't trust the goon and didn't want to worry about him the entire time.

The Smuggler hopped out of the truck and jogged toward the main building. He got to the side door and tried the access panel, but it was locked. Crix pulled his blaster opened fire. Sparks sprayed out of the panel and the door slid open. The Scoundrel entered the building and immediately dove to the side to avoid blaster fire. He tucked into a roll and came up behind a computer console. CRix heard his assailant call out, "He's over there, get him!"

Keeping low he moved to the right side of the console further into the room. Crix controlled his breathing keeping it calm. As he came to the end of his makeshift barrier he heard the scuff of leather on metal as a guard came around the computer. The Smuggler fired off two shot dropping the stunned Twi'lek. He wasn't interested in unnecessary bloodshed. He just wanted a load of those adrenals.

Diving to his right once more, Crix came up behind a holoprojector and with his blaster leveled he scanned his surroundings. The room was dark, he knew he was in the distribution center, but the layout was murky as he spotted better cover. He moved quickly and quietly coming to another row of consoles. Crouched he put his back to the metal frame of the console and closed his eyes. He slowed his breath and listened. The natural ambiance of the room established itself. The light buzz of an overhead light, the whir's and his of loading droids continuing their primary objective, and as his mental image of the room began to form he started to notice sounds that didn't belong.

Whispers in the darkness drew near, and Crix knew he'd need to move or take action. He waited patiently keeping his focus on the sounds that didn't belong. The sound of soft steps closed in from his left. His eyes snapped open and he rolled out to the left aiming up over the computer. He pulled the trigger and dropped a Quarren. Blaster fire opened up on his location and he was forced to scramble away. The blaster fire cast red and blue strobes of light across the room. The Scoundrel was able to count out three more guards. He needed to take these guys out quick so he could load the truck and get the hell out of here.

Crix dashed for cover and slid in, ducking molten plasma by a hairsbreadth. He moved around tot he right and hit the first on their right. Crix fired one shot and hit the human guard in the chest. The man slumped revealing his partner, a female Zebrak, just behind him. She lunged for Crix attempting to wrench his gun out of his hands. She was deceptively fast and closed in before he could squeeze off a shot. She tacked him slamming her forehead into his. Stars bursts across his vision as both of her hands went for his gun. Crix faked being dazed and slipped his hidden holdout blaster from his boot. He put the weapon to the woman's ribs. She bristled and froze. She slowly lifted her hands from his gun. As soon as she did he shot her. She fell over, out cold. Crix took cover and reloaded. There was one more guard and they had to be close. The Scoundrel had no doubt his location was compromised and decided to try and move.

As he rounded the corner blaster fire flew toward him. He slipped attempted to back peddle to safety and landed on his haunches. Blast bolts slammed into their console behind him sending sparks flying from the wounded instrumentation. Crix threw himself to the side onto his stomach and clawed for cover. Blaster fire flew overhead, telling him he'd been heard but not seen. The Scoundrel came to a set of conveyor belts, it wasn't perfect, but hopefully, they'd obscure him just enough.

The sudden crash of nearby equipment made him jump spinning to the right, the attacker was on the left...

@Lucid