Ask Second Set of Books

[Maxims Tionson]

They had, indeed, started it.

But it was the job of the two intrepid Jedi to make sure that they were the ones to finish it - all without being blasted to death, injury or capture. All of them would be bad outcomes both for the Jedi involved and for the mission as a whole. People tended to like Jedi when they were solving problems but they also tended to hate them for that same thing. So if they got caught here, Max was certain that the locals would throw the book at them despite those same locals rooting for them to win on principle.

People were weird like that.

"I question why he needs slaves at all if he has so many droids." he added with a frown even as he swept the legs out from one droid and took it's blaster from it, "Even if they slipped and broke a few things they'd still end up being cheaper and less objectionable than slave labor."

He blasted the downed droid in the face and did the same for the rest of the group with calm, cold, efficiency and aim that one would likely not expect from a Jedi who had sworn never to kill. Even with his own vow, Max had been a trained police officer and he had kept his training up though.

The exit was going to be swarmed...

"Good thing that's not the exit we're using." he told her, making his way over to the side to a different building, "Otherwise that'd be a big issue."

Blasting the lock on the door open, he hurried her inside of the owner's garage. Indeed it was the garage of a rich man, full of speeders and bikes the likes of which poorer people could only dream.

"Pick us a ride, Izel, I'll hold them off."

@Reyn

 

[Izel Thral]

Izel fought alongside Max as they continued cutting and blasting their way through the veritable army Evarnas had thrown against them. She was a bit confused when the Jedi Master suggested a different way out, only to then watch as he broke into the compound's garage. Izel followed him inside, somewhat dumbstruck by the small fleet of exotic speeders and bikes set out before them. The shock only stayed with her a moment before she shook it off, the slightest hint of mischief edging into her voice as she replied.

"Excellent..." She chittered before making her way down the line of vehicles. Were they not under such duress she would have taken her time, all of them looked absolutely beautiful even if they weren't built with her species' comfort in mind. Even so, it wasn't too difficult to find a speeder she would be able to operate, one large enough for the both of them.

While Max kept the droids busy at the door Izel approached the driver-side door of the brilliant yellow speeder and waved a hand. With the aid of the Force the door unlocked and popped open easily enough. Crawling inside the Vratix found the interior a bit cramped, but manageable. Craning her neck down she looked under wheel she took a few moments to fidget with some wires before the speeder finally roared to life. The engine was so loud and powerful it sounded like it belonged in a starship.

Sitting up again Izel honked the horn twice before looking in the direction of a control panel on the far wall. With another wave of her hand a switch on the panel flipped up, and the garage door slowly began to rise. "Come on!" Izel called to her fellow Jedi. The sooner they could be out of this place the better.

@Nefieslab

 

[Maxims Tionson]

As Izel went to town on getting a vehicle for them, Max stayed in the doorway, using it for cover as he exchanged fire with the security droids. For every one he managed to down with a decent shot, there were more still coming. It didn't take very long for the motions of ducking for cover, peaking out and taking a well-placed shot to become a mechanical thing. He didn't need to focus on each shot because it was all so very... in line with what he remembered.

He could do this all day and part of his was a little disturbed how easy it would be for him to lapse back into being the cop rather than the Jedi. Still, it was required to make sure they had enough time to secure their escape so he kept firing regardless. They were, after all, only droids.

If the man had insisted on sentient security he would have been far less effective.

Hearing the speeder roaring to life was a good sign but he didn't stop laying down covering fire until she honked the horn - the first could be her just setting up but the second was a signal for him to move his arse or risk being left behind. Firing a few more times, he dashed from the cover of the doorway toward the speeder. The garage main doors opened and the droids took notice but they paused for a few crucial seconds as he approached the speeder.

"HA!" he laughed as he dove into the passenger side seat, "He's got them wired not to break his possessions so they won't fire!"

He waved at one of the droids, noting how it went to fire before it's programming caught up and it instead shot at the ground.

"Punch it, Izel."

@Reyn

 

[Izel Thral]

She didn't need to be told twice. As soon as Max was safely in the speeder Izel hit the accelerator and blasted out of the garage, the rising door scraping the roof of the vehicle as they went. Like Max had inferred, the droids must have been programmed not to attack their owner's property, as the firing stopped.

Now free of the compound and peeling off into the night sky, evidence of Langley Evarnas' crimes in hand, the Vratix let out a sigh of relief and sat back in her chair. "Thank the Force that's over." She huffed, her tone a mixture of exhaustion and excitement. She still worried about Ranger Rook, but Max seemed certain he had managed to escape, she would take his word for it. Reaching into her bag she produced the bill of sale she had pilfered from the office safe. After inspecting the documents for a moment she handed them to Max.

"All that trouble for some paper." She sighed. "I hope it's enough to destroy that man. He deserves nothing less." She found herself gripping the wheel a bit more tightly. She'd always hated seeing people being bullied, taken advantage of, made to suffer injury for no good reason. It was a sight that was all too common in the galaxy. The Sith never had a monopoly on cruelty. Terrible people seemed to be hiding in every nook and cranny, and sometimes bold enough to stand in plain sight. But she was allowing herself to get too emotional over it. Taking a deep breath she calmed herself and loosened her grip a bit. It was fine. They were taking them all down, one at a time.

@Nefieslab

 

[Maxims Tionson]

Max made sure to wave to all the droids as they shot past them.

Then he relaxed ever so slightly into the seat, tossing the blaster out the window of the speeder as he did so. He didn't need it and he really didn't like the models that didn't have stun settings as default anyway. Instead he focused on getting his heart to slow and to regulate the adrenaline that his body had just dumped into his bloodstream all willy-nilly like that back there. He took the offered documents and leafed through them briefly.

He hummed quietly as he looked at them.

"He and his Zygerrian friends converted the souls of sentient lifeforms to paper and ink." he spoke quietly, "These papers are a list of people who were sold like cattle by people too greedy to fully understand empathy and compassion."

Max carefully put them away within the folds of his robes as they jetted away from the base. He leaned against the door and looked out across the planet as they made their escape.

"We'll give them their lives back by handing this evidence over. And the Galaxy will become ever so slightly less murky."

@Reyn

 

[Izel Thral]

Izel didn't respond to Max's words immediately. Instead she was focused on the path in front of them, looking out over the beautiful nighttime vista of Raxus Secundus. It was depressing to think such an enrapturing world could hide such evil beneath the surface. The Jedi, the Sector Rangers, anyone who fought against such terrible practices as slavery were so often focused on the more plainly corrupt places in the galaxy. Places like this too often fell outside their notice. She wondered even now what other horrible practices were being done on other parts of this seemingly civilized world.

She tried to think of her old Master's teachings, about remaining one with the Living Force. Strive always to be in the now, and not to worry yourself over what has been and what might be. Tonight was a victory. They had defeated the enemy and ensured the freedom of many. She shouldn't be spoiling it with such negative thoughts.

"It's nice to be of some use to someone." She said absently. "Even if it's just a small thing." Compared to all the lives in the galaxy the few hundred they saved tonight were practically insignificant. They likely would never even know who was responsible for their freedom or why they had done it. But that didn't matter. Those few souls would have their freedom and their lives back. That was all a Jedi could hope to do.

//End Thread
@Nefieslab