Ask Piecing The Puzzle

[Trys Aran]

Trys hated swamps, and she was already miserable. She landed a few hours ago, and she had commed Duke to help her follow up on this investigation. It had been some time since he moved out into Naboo, and she had done a press release and had been promoted since. Trys knew she was in dangerous territory, but she couldn’t quit now.

She had made her way over to a village that had come under attack from the same man she and Duke had been chasing on Dathomir. He had allegedly done some kind of mind draining attacks and used the Force to kill multitudes of villagers. Trys had arrived on the scene an hour prior, and she was trying to locate any witnesses that may have continued to live in the area.

Trys found the village largely deserted, but there was a local tavern that was open. She waited there for Duke, sipping from a caf as she never drank on the job. Trys had already sent him the briefs and notes on the case so he would be up to date by the time he arrived.

 

[Duke Winters]

There was another connection to the Dathomir case and Trys had contacted Duke for them to follow up again. It had been a while since this had come up again but it seemed they finally uncovered something. She had already sent the files and he read them on the flight over to the planet. Their suspect went on another bender and it was their job to clean it up and find out what happened.

When he arrived on the planet, the thing he was hit with was the heat. Duke ditched his jacket and followed the coordinates to the village. It was almost completely empty when he arrived, only a few people wandering outside in the streets and the only noise coming from inside the tavern. He figured that's where Trys would be since that was the only place that actually seemed alive and with people. When he entered the tavern, it wasn't hard to find her with her short hair and he made his way over.

Duke sat across from her, a smile on his face, "Long time no see." He appeared different than the last time he saw, his hair and beard trimmed shorter, he had a tan and he was slimmer, his diet from Nar Shaddaa food to seafood a rough one at first but he began to approve of it. "How have you been holding up?" It had been a while since he had seen her, the last time being when she helped him discover his father. She had been promoted since then and was even giving speeches. They had a lot to catch up while they worked on the case.

 

[Trys Aran]

Trys smiled as she spotted Duke, standing up to greet him. Over time, he had grown to become a good friend of hers. She pulled him into a half hug before sitting back down across from him, “Good to see you again,” Trys said, “How’re you liking Naboo? Much prettier of a backyard, eh?” She knew it was a night and day difference between Nar Shaddaa and Naboo.

She shook her head at his question, “I don’t like all this attention on me,” Trys answered his question honestly, “I’m constantly doing interviews and there’s a lot of pressure with this Arcanist business. But that’s why I called you over,” She beamed at him, “I know I can call on you when there’s a clusterkriff to deal with.”

Trys sipped from her caf, looking back down at her datapad, “You read the brief? Nasty business out here. None of the witnesses wanted to talk for a while. I managed to find one lady that will talk, but it might need a bit of coaxing,” From what the reports said, their minds had been completely turned to mush. The more she learned about the Force and its powers, the more uneasy she felt.

“And the plot thickens because there was a god damned ‘Jedi’ there too,” Trys grimaced, “I’m trying to see if we can bring him in for questioning.”

 

[Duke Winters]

"You can definitely say that. Naboo has clean water and everything so it's already a lot better then Nar Shaddaa so far." It was a night and day difference between the two planets but the change of scenery was nice. The dreary drab of Nar Shaddaa was getting to Duke and being able to see the sun and nature did wonders and offered some nice peace when he was finished with his work. "Well, you don't look any worse for wear even with all the interviews." He gave her a smile and when she commented she could call on him, he gave her a slight nod, "Always."

A waitress brought over a cup of coffee for Duke as well and he gave her a nod of thanks before giving a few credits. After he took a sip to wake him up, he gave a nod towards Trys, "Yeah, I don't blame them. Almost half the village turned out to be lifeless husks from the report." He never read anything like it and he attributed it to what Drow informed them, Darksiders and their unnatural abilities or at least corruption of the force. It was wishy-washy for the Ranger as he was still trying to get a grasp on it.

When she mentioned a Jedi, Duke just shook his head. They were falling out of the damn trees now and he wondered how much of the galaxy these Jedi and Darksiders have been involved in. "If the Jedi is here or will come in then we can get on that. First, let's start with the lady." He flipped through his own datapad, finding an address and what the woman looked like so they could distinguish her. Duke stood up from his seat and finished the rest of the coffee. "Let's go see what she has to say then."

The village wasn't too large making the search for the lady's home not that difficult. Duke walked up the steps before giving it a light knock on the door. There wasn't an answer for a while until finally, they could hear a few clicks as locks were turned. The door was only opened slightly as a chain prevented it from going the rest of the way. There was a middle-aged woman behind the door, clearly petrified from the events that took place earlier. "Hello, my name is Duke Winters. This is Trys Aran." He pointed back to her, "Were with the Sector Rangers and we were wondering if we could ask you a few questions about what happened?"

 

[Trys Aran]

Trys followed Duke over to where the witness was. She knew they’d have to be a bit more sensitive with this one than normal - it wasn’t everyday you saw your entire village come under attack. The way the victims died was especially heinous, and it was clear they had been stripped of everything that used to make them who they were. They were left as empty shells, and that was something that could scar one forever.

She stood by Duke as he spoke to the woman who only opened the door slightly. She hesitated for a moment, and Trys peeked over at her, “We know its been really awful, and we’re only here to help. We won’t take up much of your time,” Trys said, mustering the warmest tone she could. She had some rough edges, but she knew better than to be her usual blunt self.

After a moment, the woman closed the door. Trys looked over at Duke, sure that this was a lost cause. However, there was a soft click which suggested the woman was simply unhooking the chain. She opened the door again and stepped back to let the two in.

It was a modest house, and there were several photos of a husband and some children. She said nothing, gesturing the Rangers to take a seat on the couch. The woman sat across from them, clasping her hands together and fidgeting. She looked as if she hadn’t slept in days.

“We know there was an attack, and we know it was done by a...Force user,” Trys decided to leave out Jedi or not for now, “We are trying to understand exactly what they are. Can you describe what you’ve seen?”

“...My husband..” The woman whispered softly, “He was out there just minding his own business. And there was this man wearing this odd get up. He just extended his hand out and….I don’t know what happened. Jory just seized up and…” She began to get teary eyed then.

 

[Duke Winters]

The woman being able to tell that they were there just to help eventually opened the door to them. Duke was thankful that she was at least being cooperative so far and making this easier for everybody. He put his hand forward for Trys to step in first before following behind her. With the pictures of the families and activities, they did together. the house should have been lively with kids running around and getting in trouble but it was deathly silent, echoing how the woman must have felt inside.

Duke sat down next to Trys, letting her take the lead and ask the first question. The woman answered the question but immediately her emotions started to swell to the surface. He glanced around before finding a tissue box not that far away and leaned over to pick it up and put it in front of her. "I know this is hard and we hate that we have to make you relive through this. But any information, even from the smallest detail will help." The woman nodded slowly and thanked him for the tissues before reaching for one to use and dry herself. The odd figured definitely sounded like their suspect with his armor.

"I was in my home, I wasn't able to see much but I caught enough. I don't know what the man did but Jory was completely lifeless like someone sucked it out of him and left him to rot. He only died a day later." Another round of tears started to form and Duke reached for a tissue this time before handing it to her. He sat there patiently with Trys and gave the woman his full attention to show they were actually listening and their want to help. "There was something in his hand, I don't know a trinket or jewelry. I only caught a glimpse of it before another one of them showed up."

This peaked Duke's interest and he assumed it must have been the Jedi, "Were you able to see what happened?" The woman gave a slight shrug, "The other one had a blue lightsaber and... they got in a fight. I couldn't tell over what, that's when I hid with the children." He glanced over to Trys, the woman's statement at least painting the Jedi as coming to the defense of the village but the information still wasn't fully clear.

 

[Trys Aran]

Trys listened intently as the woman spoke, noting down the bit about the trinket and jewelry. That was a detail she hadn’t heard before. The woman’s testimony ended with her hiding with the children, and Trys felt a pang as she thought about her own son and how terrified she would have been, “You’re very brave,” Trys said, and she meant it, “I’m glad that you and your children are all right.”

She allowed the woman a moment to compose herself before moving on, “Now this is important..” Trys began quietly, “Do you know anyone else that may have seen what happened with that fight?” She knew that there were other witnesses, and she needed more intel, “Anyone you think would be willing to talk to us?”

Trys looked down at the notes in her datapad, “It’s very important that we unearth what happened between the two men. We know that the criminal walked free at the end, but we need to know if the man with the blue lightsaber was incapacitated and had no way of stopping him.”

She knew that the other officers said that no one else was willing to talk, but she hoped this woman would aid them in coaxing another witness to say something. There was a never ending search to find more answers on what was considered Jedi and what was considered a rogue criminal group, and this would hopefully get them closer.

 

[Duke Winters]

The woman thanked Trys for her kind words before dabbing her cheek with the tissue to dry her face. Hearing how the two talked to her, they knew they really were here trying to help and not for their own purposes. She thought to herself for a moment before finally coming to an answer, "Yes, there's a kid named Drake. He's a scavenger, roams around the village and picks up junk while recording on his comlink. He only has his father but he'll listen to me if he gives you trouble." Duke sat forward after hearing about the new witness, "Do you possibly know where he is? We just want to get to the bottom of this."

The woman paused for a moment before nodding, "He likes to hang around the town hall with his friends. He has a cap and is usually dirty because of his activities." Duke sat up from the couch and gave the woman a nod, "Thank you so much for your time. We appreciate everything you told us." He shook the woman's hand with both of his, leaving Trys to say the final words to her. Duke hadn't mastered the art of talking to victim's families yet, most of the cases he dealt with were gangbangers or worse and that didn't leave many families for him to talk to. The woman looked up to Trys, "You'll find whoever killed my husband right?"

Duke waited outside the door, holding it ajar slightly as he stood there. When Trys finally came out, he shut it behind and proceeded up the hill with her to the town hall that was on the crest of it. Duke glanced around at the near vacant village before speaking out loud to Trys, "An artifact or trinket is new. Do you think that's caused to make people husks? It almost sounds like they got their own weapons besides lightsabers that we'll have to be cautious about." He was told of all the amazing power that the force had but the more he witnessed it, it was destructive more than anything else.

When they neared the town hall, there was a group of what appeared to be sixteen to seventeen year olds together. Duke sighed at the sight as he was able to spot Drake. He glanced over at her, "Ten credits they'll run when we approach." They hadn't spotted them yet but it wouldn't last long.

 

[Trys Aran]

Trys followed Duke out after the interview, mulling over everything they had learned. The fact that they had a potentially reliable witness was huge, especially if he managed to capture anything on comlink. She looked up at Duke’s question, “I’m worried about that,” She admitted, “There’s absolutely no telling what these people are capable of. Remember the dagger we stole?” Trys grimaced, “What if...what if it’s capable of awful things when in the possession of a Force user?” The thought haunted her.

She walked towards the town hall and actually came to a pause when he mentioned them running. It was a very distinct possibility, and she thought of how to look more….approachable. Trys shrugged and took off her jacket, revealing the full sleeve tattoos she had. She knew at least around teens it wouldn’t make her seem like some official person.

By the time they walked in, they glanced up apprehensively. However, none of them seemed entirely that concerned, a few looking at her curiously. Trys grinned and turned to Duke, extending her hand, “I’ll take the ten credits.”

She walked over towards the kid described by the woman. He was barely older than her own son, “You Drake?”

“Who’s askin?”

Trys took a seat next to him, “Someone told me you're the go to person that knows about all the shit going around here. So I was curious on if you knew anything about the two weirdos that were waving around lightsabers not too long back," . She could tell that the teens around him suddenly looked over, giving him more attention and focus than they would otherwise.

 

[Duke Winters]

Even in his drunken and high daze he still remembered that dagger. The two of them had broken into Chino's home and nicely relieved him of the items so that they could get off the planet. It was when she went out on a limb for him and he still appreciated it. "Then let's hope nobody steals it from us then." They had to solve one thing at a time and with the information that there were different weapons besides lightsabers, that could be big.

Trys shook off her jacket, earning a glance from Duke as it revealed her tattoos to him and for more specifically the boys. "That should help a bit." He was curious about them but they were on a case and their relationship was professional so he didn't prod but he knew the kids would be attracted to them at least. When they approached and the pair were able to see that none of them even turned, Duke clicked his tongue frustration before he fished out ten credits and gave them to her. She won fair and square.

Duke crouched down instead in front of Drake, remaining on his feet and balancing there. Kids on Nar Shaddaa were little shits and it left a rotten taste in his mouth when doing police work with one. Drake stared at Trys for a moment before glancing around and seeing that all the kids were paying attention to the two of them, "Oh yeah, I saw it alright." It made him feel tough knowing that someone told her o talk to him and he nodded along to Trys like he's always been running the show. "There's not much to say though you know, they swinging their bright swords at each other before the blue just let the red go walk off. Kriff that." One of the kids stepped forward and pointed to Drake for emphasis, "Show em the video!"

Drake snapped around and gave a look to the kid but it was too late. When he turned back around he found Duke grinning at him, "What video is he talking about?" The pair would be able to see a visible gulp come from the kid before he looked back over to Trys,

"Please don't take my footage. I can make serious credits off of it in the future."

 

[Trys Aran]

Trys lit up when a video was mentioned. However, the kid was hesitant. She thought for a moment, “Well guess what, we just happen to be in the media business and can definitely get you some credits for this,” She saw Drake light up. She had to think of where she’d get the credits from - she’d probably have to pool from her own pocket.

“The video could change the shape of the galaxy,” Trys explained, “You could be famous,” She could see the boy’s eyes widen. She glanced down at his comlink, “Can you at least show me so I can tell if it’s good?”

He hesitated for a moment, but he finally pulled it up. Trys motioned for Duke to lean in to look as well. The video had revealed everything and then some, and Trys was shocked to find he had stuck around to record everything.

She saw the small altercation, the woman’s death, and then the Jedi simply letting the red saber man walk. Trys sighed, shaking her head, “Yeah we’ll pay you for this,” She said, disgusted at seeing all the death that was on the footage.

“Are you….okay?” Trys had to ask, forgetting about her job for a moment. This was a teenager and he had been sitting there witnessing horrible atrocities, “Do you have family here?”

 

[Duke Winters]

Trys went quick on her thinking and claimed they were part of the media and wanted to buy is film. He didn't know any better and that most likely the first people he was gonna sell to either way. Drake wasn't going to let go of his prized possession easily and that would mean they would need to fess up a little. When he bit the bait of it potentially being viral and Trys motioned for him to come over, Duke stepped behind to watch from the above.

The footage wasn't bad at all, it wasn't even grainy or nothing. It was clear Drake was hidden somewhere and had the perfect angle of the whole thing with his commlink. The massacre was captured in film and it was more than enough evidence for the two. Drake continued to just watch the film as it replayed over and over. It was brutal but he eventually looked up to Trys and nodded,"I'm fine." Then he glanced all around him, "Got my dad but he doesn't mean much. My family right here." Drake stood up suddenly, "Look, you gonna pay me or not? I'm not here to get sappy."

Duke glanced at Trys before he reached into his jacket after a few seconds and pulled out a credit chip. The kid's eyes locked on it instantly, "How much is that? You better not be scammin me." Duke shook his head, "It's enough. I wouldn't lie to you kid." It wasn't a lie, there was a good amount on it. He walked over and took the commlink out of his hand but placed the credit chip in his hand to replace it. Duke connected the two commlinks and downloaded the footage from Drake's before handing it back to him, "You even get your commlink back." Drake took it back almost unwillingly but he glanced at the credit chip and then the rest of his friends before taking off and leaving the pair.

The Ranger looked over to Trys, "The footage is in good condition. A little cracking and we could most likely get audio." He pressed a few buttons before sending a copy of it over to her. "Maybe we can actually get a look at this trinket too, see what we're dealing with on that front as well."

 

[Trys Aran]

Trys was surprised to see Duke fork over the money. She made a mental note to pay him back later, or at least pool their money together. She wasn’t surprised that the kid brushed off her attempts to talk to him. It was a common defense mechanism for anyone that had been traumatized. Nevertheless, she had to remind herself that she was working and couldn’t let personal feelings get in the way.

She said nothing more, following Duke out. She shook her head, “I can’t believe our luck,” Trys marveled at the quality of the video and all the details in it. This was enough for her to bring the Jedi in for questioning. She thought about the trinket and nodded in agreement, “Always more work to do, huh?”

Trys stretched her arms and cracked her neck, “After this bullshit, I’ll take you up on that Naboo offer.”

/Thread