Ask Pyke on a Pike

[Elias Ryn]

It was happening, the Jedi were on the move, and even if everything went south, then at least Elias could take pride in the fact that the Jedi once more came in unison to take this on. Kessel had been a target on his mind because of the slave operations that took place and the natural resources that it provided. Other operations were taking place across the planet to deal with those such things and he hoped the others did well and that everyone came out of this. Elias wasn't at the mines or the refinery but instead at the palace of one of the Syndicates there.

By that point, the other attacks should have taken place and drawn most of the attention away from the palace. Elias was at the side of the building behind some cover, watching as gang members left to reinforce other attacks. He wasn't the only Jedi there and he was reassured that Talak had decided to join him on this. The Knight was powerful but the reason he was actually happy the man joined him was because it at least meant that the man hadn't given up on the Jedi, at least not yet.

Elias was donned with his usual Jedi garb with bracers on his shins and arms. His lightsaber was clipped to his utility belt. He scanned the side entrance to the palace. When it was clear of any guards, he motioned for Talak that the coast was clear and bolted towards the door. He used the force to keep the metal door open and held it there to let Talak pass through. When he was clear, Elias stepped in afterward and closed the door behind them. his senses alert and his saber in his hand at that point.

@Phoenix

 

[Talak Rand]

Despite a variety of hesitations he had, Talak had managed to drag himself out to Kessel. He shouldn't have been here, he should have been back with Trys. He shouldn't have been here because he was distracted, but here he was.

He had the same pair of sabers as he had at Sullust, one deactivated in his hand and the other on his belt. He followed after Elias as they made their way inside the outer gate. He knew they wouldn't be staying covert forever, but that was fine. He covered the distance to the main door in short order, slipping inside and beginning to make his way through the halls. There was no sign of anyone yet, but he knew that wouldn't last either.

He started making his way toward the palace's main server and communications room. If they could seize that room they could turn the tide of the battle. Of course, that was easier said than done. @Eccles @Catbert @Orbit

 

[Kel Dryden]

Kel kept himself occupied by fiddling with the helmet's earpiece and trying to find a good tune to pass the time. That was all he could do while waiting by the throne room entrance. Normally, he would've already loaded up the Black Swift and left, discount or no discount. But apparently, Marissa Hesse of the Zaa Fenn crime family had a different idea and wanted to play a game of intimidation or negotiation with Carr Pyke. "Why else would she send Preef Callo, the legendary Rodian gunslinger, to Kessel?"

The human was giving himself too little credit though. He might not have been Preef Callo—the galaxy was too small for two Preefs anyway—but he had come a long way from a Nar Shaddaa street urchin, and even from a freelance Syndicate pilot. In fame and skill both. The new gear was just the right mix of practical, flashy and intimidating. Both of his blaster pistols rested in their holsters; a couple of concussion grenades on the utility belt would've been too much on Coruscant, but made the newly-fledged enforcer more presentable in the Outer Rim.

Yet none of that gear—and not even the presence of Preef—seemed to speed things along. "So much for a karkin' spice discount." The idea of haggling with the Pykes already gave the human a bad feeling, and the delays didn't add good vibes. A shootout on the other Syndicate's turf was the last thing Kel wanted to get involved in...

@Eccles, @Orbit, @Phoenix

 

[Preef Callo]

This was the new Preef Callo. His lofty position in the Five Syndicates didn't come without perks and he had finally decided to upgrade his gear, but aside from the blaster pistol in his hip-holster the new poncho hid it all from sight. "What do you mean?" the rodian bit at the Pyke guard standing before him and Kel. "Boss Carr, she's not-" the Pyke hesitated as he knew Preef Callo very well. A few years ago the rodian had made his name in the Battle of Kessel where he killed a powerful enforcer and together with Marissa Hesse conquered and held a pivotal outpost for control of the spice mines. That wasn't something the Pyke Syndicate had forgotten, "-she's not on planet, but-"

Preef had enough and pushed open the doors to the throne room. No one dared to stop him and thus after a good couple of long steps he stood staring into the eyes of Carr's representative on Kessel. "Hehe," the Pyke laughed nervously, "the great Preef Zaa Fenn honors us with his presence." it was the kind of sucking up Preef could never get used to.. it was too.. too insincere.

"What's with the hold-up?" the rodian asked annoyed and the submissive bow that followed surprised him. "My apologies, Mr Zaa Fenn. It seems the Jedi are assaulting our mines and processing plants." Preef was taken aback and turned to give Kel a quizzical look. The Jedi again with their terror attacks? First they blow up a magistrate on Sullust and now this? "What does that have to do with our shipment?"

"The spice intended for the Black Swift, it's-" the Pyke swallowed and bowed even deeper, "it's being held up by the Jedi."

Ever since Preef had become an enforcer in the Five Syndicates it had become rarer and rarer that others, particularly scoundrels, had dared to refuse him anything. Now that he was a Vanguard and known throughout the galaxy as a legendary gunslinger, one could say he was spoiled and it cost him some effort to not draw on the Pyke right way. Instead he shrugged, waited two seconds and then drew his blaster. "Then go and fix it." he visibly toyed with the stun-setting of his blaster and the Pyke quickly nodded and bent down nearly to the floor, "Right away, Mr Zaa Fenn."

It was at this moment that another Pyke ran in, "Rasta! The security camera's.." he paused, only now realizing he was talking to Preef Callo instead of his fellow Pyke, "Jedi just entered the palace."


@Orbit @Phoenix @Catbert
Gear listed in profile

 

[Elias Ryn]

Elias walked with Talak as they navigated through the palace. His eyes constantly flicked from left to right as he checked every single nook and cranny of the palace. He kept his senses alert and the force only a hair away from beckoning to his call. Even though they were Jedi, the Syndicates were dangerous and they couldn't underestimate them. Even though they were in the palace, they haven't met any resistance yet and kept on quickly and undisturbed. The other attacks successfully caught their attention.

As they went through the hallways, Elias would turn the cameras or either destroy them, preventing the criminals from tracking their position through the palace and not giving them a hint of where they were heading for. Everyone in the palace was buzzing and as they continued on, they managed to catch a lone worker in front of them. Acting quickly, he used the force to trip the man before dragging him over to them. "Where's the server room?" The man either didn't have too strict or loyalty or was too afraid and he simply pointed to the wires that were coiled together on the ground. "Thanks." Elias quickly smacked the hilt of his saber against the man's head, knocking him out cleanly. He used the force to drag the man into the shadows and out of sight.

With that figured out, he began just following the wires. After another hallway and turn, they found the server room, wires traveling along the ground and right under the door. "That's it," Elias murmured to Talak.

He glanced around the door and found no guards or anything else protecting it. He gave a nod toward Talak before approaching the door and examining it for a second. Elias activated his lightsaber as he was cast in blue light and he quickly slashed his blades across the different hinges to weaken it. With the force, the door was lifted and placed out of the way for the two of them to enter. Elias would step in together with his lightsaber still active and at the ready.

@Phoenix

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak followed along with Elias, eyes sweeping over the corridors that they passed through, saber hilt in hand, and mind outstretched. He didn't like this world. There was so much pain and torment, not in this place, but in the surrounding mines where the slaves worked. It made his face twist up. These Syndicate scum and their slavers were the same types he had hunted and killed before becoming a Jedi and the same instincts still festered below the surface.

As Elias interrogated one of the workers, Talak proceeded to follow the the directions to the server room. The door slid open, and Talak's lightsaber activated as he stepped quickly into the room. A guard fired his gun only to have the bolt returned to his chest as he stumbled back.

There were several data terminals at one side of the room, a door at the far side of the room, and a variety of large servers stacked throughout the room.

Get on comms and scramble their relays. I'll cover you, he said. In a battle, inability to communicate was a real problem. Sending feedback through comlinks, downloading critical information, and more were all part of the game plan. Lack of coordination would allow the remainder of the assault force to sweep down on the palace. @Eccles @Catbert

 

[Kel Dryden]

Throughout the negotiations, Kel remained silent and let the Rodian do the talking and intimidating. That's why Preef was there anyway. The human enforcer was just his shadow for the time being; just listening what the Pykes had to say. And the news wasn't good. Jedi assaulting mines and processing plants? "Kriff." The spice in question being held up by the Jedi? "Kark!"

Crossing paths with Jedi was the last thing Kel wanted. He had seen a few "Jedi" in action. One on Nar Shaddaa, deflecting almost all the blaster bolts that came at her and slaughtering her way through the mercs. A few on Dxun, fending off pirates and local wildlife with ease. And another one on Coruscant, Tatooine, and Eriadu, bending minds to her will and unleashing death on her foes. In short, Jedi were bad news. Especially if they were on the opposing team. Luckily, they were all far away... Right? That'd give the duo enough time to leave and not to cross paths with them.

But then the announcement by the running Pyke made Kel curse outloud. "I guess that's our cue to dash," he added, obviously meaning an escape. It would be wise to let the Pykes handle their own mess, especially if Jedi were involved. Who knew, maybe they'd even grab some spice for free in the confusion?

@Eccles, @Orbit, @Phoenix

 

[Preef Callo]

Preef stared at the Pyke in disbelief while the Pyke tried his best to prove his claim by showing them the camera footage from his datapad. "They keep destroying them," he gasped and then uttered a cry, "They killed Masta!" Preef wasn't surprised. His only experience with the so-called peacekeepers and diplomats was them murdering people who definitely were not sith. The rodian knew them to be just as bad as the Sith, with the only difference is that the Sith didnt play pretend and actually thought things through. That the Jedi had come didn't matter one bit. Preef had seen the Sith vessel and had fought the reckless Jedi on Sullust. He wasn't worried for any Jedi other than perhaps his friend Talak.

"They cut all footage to and from the server room," the Pyke cried, but Preef waved him off and walked over to the throne. "We wait here," It was known that Preef Callo was in the palace and as long as he could shoot that blaster of his Kessel belonged to the Five Syndicates. Nothing else really mattered. If the Jedi were in the server room they too would see the throneroom footage of the legendary gunslinger and most likely get scared and run off. Preef gave them that chance before he'd shoot the camera's himself. Luckily they Jedi couldn't do much damage from the server room anyway. Most of Kessel's logistics and comms went through the outposts like the one Preef and Marissa fought over years ago.



@Phoenix @Orbit @Catbert

 

[Elias Ryn]

The two Jedi entered the room and there was only one guard in there supposed to stop them. He shot at Talak first and the man just quickly deflected the bolt back into the guard and took him out. Elias glanced at the body for a moment but quickly got on track as they were on a mission. He approached the comm station and went to work as he would start to send feedback through the comms for the syndicates. It would just be a constant ear-piercing noise and prevent the criminals from speaking to each other as long as it was active.

Elias then went over to the servers and connected his datapad to it as it immediately began to download information. Since the information wasn't scrubbed, it received any transactions that were conducted here, their exports and imports, and any type of backdoor deals that they had with the FWA that were done through Kessel. The information was encrypted and it would take time so that meant he would have to come back later and retrieve it after it had finished downloading.

They got what they needed and Elias was ready to turn and wait but that's when he caught one of the screens. Two men waited for them in the palace room and when he leaned in to get a closer look, he realized who it was, Preef Callo? He was actually real? The Jedi had seen him but on the covers of comics and in movies. Well, that was a surprise.

Elias glanced at Talak with a smirk, "There's a couple of people waiting for us in the throne room." He walked out of the server room with Talak and would head straight there. His lightsaber was still active and his senses alert the entire time.

@Phoenix

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak kept a watchful eye as Elias began working on the servers and communication units. He turned and scrolled through the camera feeds when he stopped on the one with the Rodian. Wait, was that Preef? Talak frowned, remembering his last run in with the man, which hadn't been all that long ago.

You've got to be kidding... he muttered, shaking his head and frowning.

Yeah, let's go, he said as he saw Elias finish up what he was doing. The two were able to make their way to the throne room without much difficulty and Talak had no qualms with marching in first. His lightsaber was in his hand and active, but he didn't move directly to attack. To say there was goodwill between Preef and Talak might have been an overstatement, but they'd not killed each other last time.

Preef, stand aside. We're freeing the slaves, and that's that, he said, keeping an eye on both of the fighters in case either got any ideas. While Talak had been wearing a helmet last time, Preef was as likely as not to recognize his voice and figure out who he was.

But his reason for being here stood. During his days as the Arcanist he'd smeared slavers all over the streets of Nar Shaddaa, Gamorr, and other worlds as well. He had a special place of hatred in his heart for them. Real Jedi, huh? Well at least he was talking about it this time rather than "slash-slash." That was progress. @Orbit @Eccles @Catbert

 

[Preef Callo]

It took a while before the Jedi reached the throne room and in the meantime Preef received all kinds of information. Most notably a message about two captive Jedi down at the mines. Now, Preef didn't know how heartless a Jedi could be, because all the goody-two-shoes stories he'd heard about them had been proven wrong so far, but if the roles were reversed and they'd have Marissa.. well, Preef would yank a bolt through every Pyke on Kessel in an instant. Eager to see this play out, Preef hit reply <<"Get them to the palace asap and that blaster is yours">> (@Sreeya)

Needless to say that when the Jedi did finally show up in the throne room they found Preef standing near the throne itself, right hand close to his blaster as always, but his left holding up a datapad for them both to see. "Welcome to Kessel!" the rodian laughed, but stopped when one of the Jedi spoke to him way too familiar for a stranger. Well, Hutta be damned, that's Crix's adopted daddy, Talak! "Then you're in the wrong place, Talak-" Preef replied, his eyes alert and body unmoving to facilitate his signature fast-draw that was so infamous across the galaxy. His body wasn't entirely unmoving, though, for the datapad in his left was jiggled a bit to catch Talak's attention. "A friend of mine," he continued mysteriously, "Let's call him Spicelord, just informed me that there are two Jedi captives at my mercy down at the mines." The implication was clear as day: If the Jedi initiated combat now, or indeed if they moved a finger in ill-will during their stay on Kessel, their fellow Jedi at the mines would be executed. Preef didn't have to spell it out for them, since it was common practice among the Five Syndicates and moreso than others with the Pyke Syndicate. Surely the Jedi Order would've done their homework and were aware of the Pyke modus operandi.

Perhaps it was overconfident, but Preef figured that if he pulled he could take out that other Jedi with relative ease. Talak would be a challenge and would necessitate the rodian to use his newly acquired gadgets if he were to beat that huge advantage called the Force. Kel would more than likely be a welcome distraction and buy enough time to land a debilitating hit. First, though, Preef wanted to talk and them to disengage their lightsabers. "On Sullust I thought you guys missed a Marissa," because rushing towards the fortress as the Jedi did there was the most foolish thing he had ever seen, "but now I know for sure. Everyone in Hutt Space knows the Pyke slaves wear collars." The Jedi just kept disappointing in the brains department, didn't they? If the Jedi managed to take out the palace then the Pyke administrator would just trigger all the collars to explode. It was costly, but effective as a message. No one would think to free slaves when the mere attempt could wipe them all out. "If you want to end slavery on Kessel, you only need to know which syndicate to back."

The groveling Pyke looked up in confusion, but dared not speak up in fear of getting shot by the infamous gunslinger. Because, yes, he had heard it right. If the Jedi Order wanted to end slavery, then it wasn't enough to free them once. Killing a Hutt for keeping slaves won't keep the next Hutt from doing the same, in fact, remember the Arcanist? All he got was a bounty and no one heard of him since. Now, Preef was influential in the criminal underworld and had ties with droid manufacturers. If he was given control of Kessel he could just.. replace the slaves with droids.



@Phoenix @Orbit @Catbert

 

[Kel Dryden]

Preef said only three words. Yet those three words were the worst that Kel could think of under the circumstances. "We wait here." For the Jedi to come over. In the throne room of a rival syndicate. With most of other guards away. Preef was good, no doubt about it. But even he would have a hard time facing a Jedi. Those guys deflected blaster bolts. Sometimes from multiple opponents. Kel had seen that with his own eyes. But for now, the only thing he did was switch both of his holstered blaster pistols to stun. Just in case. That way, his own shots wouldn't kill him at least.

And then they waited. Preef was busy dealing with incoming messages, and Kel simply... stood there, waiting to see how it would all play out. Kel's left hand was near the hip holster, so that he could get it on the grip of the gun at a moment's notice. The right hand was resting on the wrist controls of his jetboots. In short, Kel didn't have any weapon in hand just yet. He just stood behind and a little off to his right side from Preef, letting the Rodian meet the Jedi and do the talking. That way, he could also interfere if things went south.

Both Jedi walked in, sabers ignited. Kel took a deep breath under his helmet, hopefully unheard by anyone else. But to the enforcer's surprise, Preef seemed to know one of the Jedi. And they seemed inclined to talk. One thought crossed Kel's mind: "Well, the Jedi you know is better than the Jedi you don't."

The Jedi's goal however... Kel just shrugged. He had no love lost for slavers, but also had realized early on that it was not up to him to change the rules of the game. The Jedi sure picked a strange way to go about it. With Carr Pyke allegedly off world, there'd be no head honcho to give that sort of order. And even if there was? Perhaps some other big honcho would find it a good idea to provoke the Jedi by killing the slaves. Money would be lost, sure, but a little power vacuum always made way for new leadership.

The only time Kel broke the silence was when Preef mentioned the name of his mysterious contact. "Spicelord, huh?" Kel couldn't but chortle briefly. The name was edgier than "The Eternal". Yet it had a nice ring to it. Unless someone dubbed you "Spicey the Spicelord" or "The Spice Lord of the Sith".

@Orbit, @Phoenix, @Eccles

 

[Talak Rand]

Against his worse nature, Talak actually listened to what Preef said, his mind already running through the possible outcomes to this. The situation wasn't great for the Jedi, but Preef was also dealing with quite possibly the worst Jedi in the Order.

You kill them, I kill you, you kill the slaves, we take Kessel, no more slaves are pressed into service. That was a net gain, wasn't it? In exchange for the lives of current slaves, no further slaves were pressed into service to die in the spice mines. The thought line was so blatantly of the Arcanist he could have actually heard himself making the argument to Hannibal a few years ago. And yet it stuck in his mind.

Not Jedi, he reminded himself. And then they came to the real sell. Which Syndicate to back. Was Preef suggesting... a coup? Quite the businessman.

And there are Syndicates that don't embrace slavery? he floated the question. Maybe they shouldn't have been making deals with criminals - it went against a very visceral inclination he had - but it was hardly unprecedented for the Jedi to do so. Whether they should have was another question, but... well, the hand you were dealt?

He cast a glance over to Elias since this was technically his operation. It wasn't like his lightsaber was deactivated yet, though he had come to a stop during their little... chat. @Orbit @Eccles @Catbert

 

[Elias Ryn]

Elias stepped into the room slowly with Talak, his blue lightsaber by his side and still purring with the energy that flowed through it. Two gangsters stood in front of them, one just silently standing beside Preef to let him talk. He didn't need to look but he could sense it immediately, the emotions that swirled and tumbled within Talak. Elias risked the quickest of glances to his fellow Jedi to make sure he didn't move but kept his saber in a defensive position in case anything was pulled.

Preef revealed that the two Jedi who had been tasked to free the slaves had been captured and the only thing he could do was exhale slowly at the revelation. The whole mission had been changed with the rug being pulled from under them. They had to figure out where they could get the rest of the Jedi out, alive. Preef's associate even chuckled at the name Spicelord and it tugged on something as a quick flash of rage burst in him but he smothered it instantly for his own sake.

Talak asked the question if there were Syndicates that didn't utilize slavery and it made his jaw tighten at the fact this was happening. It came down to what they wanted, did they want to free the slaves? Did they want to save the Jedi? Before Preef answered the question, Elias spoke up and simply cut to the chase, "Is that a statement or is that an offer?" It was despicable that they had to go down this path but he had to see what all the options were on the table before both of them did something that would be irreversible.

The entire time he stood there, his grip would tighten around his weapon, ready to be used for offense and defense. The force continually built around him as well, just in case everything went to shit.

@Eccles @Catbert

 

[Preef Callo]

The Jedi both asked questions and in rapid succession. Clearly they were eager to save the lives of their friends, but while Talak questioned the sincerity of Preef's words the other Jedi straight up opened negotiations. Strange, Preef thought, two jedi and two different lines of thought that had to be voiced. Indulging Talak afforded Preef the opportunity to stall for time and surround the throne room so they could never leave kessel alive, but indulging the other Jedi made it possible to skip a whole lot of explaining and maybe get the Zaa Fenn the support of both Force cults.

Decisions decisions.

"An earnest offer," he said finally while his body was still unmoving and ready for the fastest quick-draw of his career. "From a former slave to a Jedi," Preef smiled as he added yet another layer to the complexity that was Hutt space and the galactic underworld. Clearly the Jedi thought they were the chosen ones to end slavery, but they weren't and they never would be. They would forever be the foreign invader coming in to disrupt a culture and traditions that were millennia old. "Leave Kessel now and never come back," so far for the rodian's demands. Simple, to the point and not open for interpretation. "And we release our Jedi prisoners into your custody."

Well, that wasn't exactly what they wanted. At least, it wasn't what Talak wanted seeing as his question had betrayed he wasn't so much interested in saving the lives of his fellow Jedi, but cared only Preef's previous statement about ending slavery altogether. A man with principles, bah, but predictable seeing their earlier meeting. "That was option one." he smiled mischievously, "Option two means you still leave Kessel and never come back. You'll still get your prisoners returned to you, but you leave me one of your commlinks and we-" he motioned towards the Pyke, who looked awkwardly to the rodian and then the Jedi, clearly realizing what was going on. "-discuss other matters in private."

@Phoenix @Orbit @Catbert

 

[Kel Dryden]

Kel was discovering new sides of Preef by the minute. The media made the Rodian seem a gunslinger who thought with his blasters first, and brains second. But there on Kessel, his "earnest offer" sounded like something Marissa Hesse would've come up with. The Jedi were given the choice between a simple "win-win" (admittedly, with losing a chance to end slavery on Kessel) or a "win-win-win-win" (with only losers being the Pykes in the long run). There'd be absolutely no reason to pick "option one" over "option two". It offered... more options down the line.

Kel remained silent. There was nothing he could contribute to the conversation. The options had been laid out, and the ball was in the intruders' court. "Come on, Jedi. Don't draw this out. Make the call." Regardless of the outcome, Pykes wouldn't be pleased with what Preef had just proposed...

@Orbit, @Phoenix, @Eccles

 

[Elias Ryn]

Elias gazed forward as Preef began to speak. They really were negotiating and the Jedi was disgusted it had fallen to this moment but they had no other choice. With the two captured Jedi, it had put them in a tight spot and one where he just wasn't going to let them die. 'An earnest offer', as if that was possible from someone who pledged loyalty to the Syndicates. But it appeared like Preef felt their cause to free the slaves when he revealed what his nature was and he couldn't tell if it was a ploy to strengthen his words or get them to believe it.

Preef offered them two deals but when it came to the second, Elias couldn't help but arch his eyebrow. The other Syndicate member remained quiet enough during the talks but he could sense the feelings that were propping themselves in the man. The deal wasn't a collaborative effort and made it seem like Preef was deciding to do this on his own when he saw the opportunity. It was Elias' operation and he would have to make a call on what was important to him and the Order.

Lifting his free hand slowly, more for the benefit of a fight not breaking out, he slipped it underneath his robes and pulled out a comm-link. It wasn't traceable and would only be a line of communication for the two so they could speak and nothing else. Elias glanced down at it momentarily before throwing it onto the floor as it slid across and stopped a few feet away from Preef. "You have a deal, we'll leave Kessel in exchange for you returning us the two Jedi. If they aren't returned, we both know what will happen. We will leave by our own accord as well. Let's go Talak." Apparently, the two already knew each other anyway.

Without turning away, Elias took his steps backward with his front facing toward Preef. His lightsaber would still be active and at the ready but mostly in case if any of the criminals decided to shoot at the two of them. Elias's jaw tightened once more as he did this but it was necessary.

@Phoenix

 

[Talak Rand]

Talak didn't sense that Preef was lying about... everything. Still, to say that he trusted the Vanguard would have been a large overstatement.

Talak's lightsaber - still gripped in his hand - flashed out as his eyes flicked over to the other man from the Syndicate. Oh, he didn't approve, did he? Preef was going to have an interesting dilemma on his hands.

I'll be watching for the slaves to be freed, he said flatly. He didn't say how, but he knew he could. And if he didn't like what he found, then he'd come for Preef personally. Or perhaps the Arcanist would pay a visit to someone again. He could feel the instincts clawing at the back of his mind. He wanted to pull out his lightsaber and start carving his way through this place, one at a time. He wanted to... no. No, no, no. Enough.

Until next time, Preef, he said. If they'd bumped into each other twice this quickly, it was bound to happen again, right? Even more now that they had a means of communicating... a means he had every intention of getting from Elias as well.

He headed for the exit, watching for potential betrayal, because that could obviously happen still, and back the way they'd come. He stopped by the server room - apparently they'd not need that now - and pulled the datapad out. Perhaps they'd gotten something useful or not, but he'd leave that to Elias. Talak didn't want anything to do with that. He'd wait for the Jedi to be returned and then leave. He'd keep an eye on Kessel... his own way.

//Exit

@Eccles @Catbert @Orbit

 

[Preef Callo]

The Jedi agreed to option two without asking any further questions. Apparently the lives of their fellow Jedi was more important than freeing all the slaves. Huh, perhaps they were scrupulous terrorists than they showed to be on Sullust. They were terrible at it, though, for this was their second retreat. They also didn't quite understand their position as both issued veiled or outright threats, both of which Preef just mentally shrugged away. What if they'd come back? Well, clearly they'll just retreat again after first contact like they always did.

Preef didn't feel inclined to correct Talak about the fact he hadn't agreed to any freeing of slaves. He had merely offered to 'talk about it over a private comlink'. But regardless the words of the Jedi made clear that Kessel needed more defenses aimed at the users of the Force and overall sneaking in. One would've thought that the Kessel Run, guarded as it was by fighters, would guarantee only Five Syndicate operators and smugglers could enter. Apparently not.. Preef would have to look into that. A fortress world meant nothing if everyone and their mothers could sneak in this easily.

Unlike Talak's intention, if the Jedi wanted to leave Kessel with their fellows alive they would go straight to the exit. By now most fighting on the planet had stopped and plenty of guards had returned to block the doors not going straight to the main exit. Preef, too, followed them. "No deviations, Talak." he simply stated and was prepared to open hostilities at any point if the Jedi refused to comply.He might not be aware the Jedi were trying to download information onto a datapad, but he would soon enough. There was no way the Jedi could simply return to the server room. "or your two friends still die."

Preef was alert and ready to dispense with the Jedi if they suddenly had a change of heart. Luckily the main hallway to the exit was large, wide and had high ceilings. A good a place as any if the fight was to start after all.



@Phoenix @Orbit @Catbert

 

[Kel Dryden]

It seemed like the Jedi agreed to listen to reason. One of them provided a comlink, which Kel would pick up after the two Jedi started retreating. Preef was too focused on seeing Talak and his friends off the premises. It made sense: if the Jedi decided to pull a fast one, a distracted nobody-slash-Kel-Dryden would be better than a distracted Preef Callo. So the comlink went into Kel's pocket, and he would catch up with Preef a few moments later. He'd follow the gunslinger slightly behind and off to the right side; one hand close to the holster with the heavy blaster, and the other resting on the wrist controls of the jetboots.

It also looked like the Pykes were pulling themselves back together, making the palace a harder nut to crack. Still, Kel was feeling uneasy, and that would be over only once the Jedi were off Kessel. "I sure hope that's the end of it."

@Orbit, @Phoenix, @Eccles