Ask The Old Neighbors

[Dash Pavan]

DANTOOINE, JEDI TEMPLE, SUBLEVEL
1.00pm local time​

The elevator door creaked shut behind them, shutting out Dantooine's midday sun.

Dash tried to focus as they descended into the gloom. After the events of Eiram, he had thrown himself into his Jedi duties, picking up whatever assignments were going. His spat with Ezra and his friends on their group mission had left a bitter aftertaste. He and Ez were barely speaking and he was in no rush whatsoever to see Ferrin again. Only Leon still made Dash think positive thoughts, and the Adumarian had assignments of his own.

So Dantooine it was. The world was free of the Empire again after recent events and there was a genuine opportunity for the Jedi to move in a rebuild old alliances. Dash could certainly see the appeal, though he wished he was up top and out in front, using his charm to shake hands and talk people around. Instead, they had sent him down here, to clear the lower levels of whatever had moved in.

At least he would not be alone. The Rhinnalian glanced sneakily across at Dim. They had been roommates for a time on Ithor and Dash knew the Mirialan was pretty chilled, could handle his drink and was a dab hand with the guitar. It was their first mission together, but he was optimistic. Dim had already been less trouble than the Scrub Squad, turning up on time, being upbeat about their chances and admittedly looking a bit cute.

"How's your training been going man?" Dash asked. It was a long way down to the sublevel at this speed and he was keen to know how the Padawan was doing. As a Knight, he was supposed to help others along wherever he could, but Dim was a friend too. "Feeling up for this one?".

He adjusted the pauldron of his armour and started logging in to the datapad from his belt. The Order had given them some scant intel on what they might find, but Dash knew to take it with a pinch of salt by now.

@Scoobert

 

[Dimetri Unduli]

Ah, Dantooine. It had been some time since Dimetri had seen the planet. The Sith had made sure of that. It was almost music to his ears when he heard the mission placement for himself. Then he heard who his partner was, and Dim couldn't be mad at it. Dash was well known and a good guy. He remembered him back in their roommate days and was fairly excited to get this mission done.

Arriving they'd begin their descent to the sublevels to remove any infestations. Kind of a grunt job, but it at least gave him something to do. Then Dash had asked how Dims training has been, "Going solid. Heard talks I might be Knight like yourself soon." Dim gave him a light tap to the shoulder. "This mission doesn't scare me man. I fought Vahliri and Aadya Rasheer at the same time and lived to tell the tale. It's gonna take more than some low lives down here to get me shaking."

This was a true story, he had taken a lightsaber to the stomach from Aadya as he was in a lightsaber lock with Vahliri, their eyes during that fight were haunting. And all for the guy leading the Empire now. It would have probably been ideal to have just let him die, but Jedi have their ways and crossing boundaries such as murder isn't one of them. At least not for Dim.

"So you didn't come with any of your pals. What's up with that?" Dimetri looked over and gave a sly smile, his soft red eyes meeting Dash's before turning back in front of them and watching the surroundings.

@Alhon

 

[Dash Pavan]

"That's great man" Dash said, clapping Dim on the shoulder at the news he might be Knighted soon. The guy had to be ready and the Rhinnalian would be glad to see a few more of his contemporaries joining him among the Knights. It was hard to carry the banner for the new blood on his own.

Some of Dim's exploits went over the Rhinnalian's head, but he had certainly heard of Valhiri, the current Dark Lord of the exiled Sith. The idea that Dim had locked sabers with her blew his mind, but Dim sounded genuine. Either way, there was something to be said for having the confidence the Mirialan did. He was certainly a reassuring presence.

Dash was caught a little off guard by the question about his pals. Dim was more observant than he realised. "They're all kind of busy" he said, deflecting. "Besides, good chance for me and you to team up".

The elevator reached the bottom and the doors slid open, revealing a dimly lit corridor. "The intel is we might be dealing with two Graul" Dash said, scanning his datapad "hopefully nothing else". Graul were massive predators and quite enough of a challenge for today in any case.

"You want to take point or watch our backs?". Dash was more of a Force-user himself, but he was not quite sure whether Dim was the same or more handy with a saber.

@Scoobert

 

[Dimetri Unduli]

Dimetri gave a smile when Dash patted his shoulder. It was good to build a friendship with some other Jedi. Then his answer towards the question Dim asked him was a bit dodgy but the Mirialan picked up on it and knew to not pry. So instead, he would just give the reassurance to Dash and respond to what he said after, "For sure. Now what are we looking for exactly again?"

When Dash pulled out the intel and explained they would be dealing with Graul, the Padawan just nodded his head and lightly chewed his tongue. His companion wasn't exaggerating with hoping for nothing else. Dim didn't want to find out what could be worse than some Graul down here.

"I'll take point." Dim said as he walked forward a few steps faster to get the lead. The Mirialan began looking as far forward as he could, then took out a flashlight and pointed it forward. Lightsabers were okay backups for dim light, but a flashlight carried through at a further distance. Far more effective.

"So, what music you into?"

@Alhon

 

[Dash Pavan]

Dim took the lead eagerly. It seemed like not much could phase him and he was surprisingly relaxed despite the shadows of the basement level. The Mirialan fired up a flashlight and started out, Dash following him close behind.

The corridor was wide, forking and leading off in several directions. Old strobe lights above did their best to light the way, but many were broken and others glimmered with only faint emergency light. If not for Dim's flashlight, it would have been hard to see where they were going.

"Me?" he said, surprised at the question. Dim really was chilled. "Well pop mostly, a bit of dance. Anything by Lady GuGu generally has me moving". He tried to keep one eye on the shadows all around. "How about you? Still play your guitar?".

Dash saw something glisten in the light of the torch and crept over to look. It was blood, not lots but enough, splattered across the floor and up the wall. There was no sign of what from, but maybe these Graul had been snacking. "Take a look at this".

@Scoobert

 

[Dimetri Unduli]

Dimetri kept his eyes front for the most part, keeping an eye out for anything that shouldn't be down there. Even though he was watching ahead, he was listening to Dash. Lady GuGu was a great recording artist and has the great song Made This Way, but Dim was always more alternative. He'd turn to answer Dash with a confident smile, "I like Quarterback, very memeable but their great. Also anything by Pinkin Lark is good too."

Then Dim acknowledged the question about his guitar, "And yea actually. Almost brought it here but figured I wouldn't have the time to play with the mission at hand. So left it back in my room." Dim had turned back and saw the blood. His face went from smiles to serious. Not a surprise there, the only ones happy to see blood where they're going are demented in the head. "Yea I see it.. you think it was the Graul? Or maybe what got to the Graul.."

There was a bit of a slight shiver down Dim's back, but he tried to keep his cool, and unclipped his saber from his belt. there was definitely something down here, and he didn't want to be caught by surprise. Pretty sure Dash felt the same way. "Let's be ready for whatever is down there."

@Alhon

 

[Dash Pavan]

Of course Dim was a Pinkin Lark kind of guy. The Mirialan was a considerate roommate but Dash had still wandered back in late to hear a fair bit of their stuff. It was heavy, but he knew they sold out every Inner Rim tour they did. "Well here's hoping we wrap up here early and can head back there" Dash said. It was always good fun to have a few drinks after a hard mission, but there was something about adding in some live music that just took it to another level.

Looking back at the blood bought him back to the here and now. "It's not that much" Dash surmised "so probably just from the Graul having themselves a little snack on a rat or something". He did not much like the idea of something hunting the Graul themselves. They were supposed to be apex predators.

"I'm all for being ready" he replied, shrugging at Dim. How were they really supposed to be ready for any of this?

Dash rose and turned away from the bloodstain, intending to take the left corridor deeper into the sublevel. A sudden breeze seemed to blow across his face and he realised too late that he was inches from one of the beasts.

"Graul! Graul!" he shouted, stumbling backwards and falling onto the floor as the massive creature came lumbering out of the dark.

@Scoobert

 

[Dimetri Unduli]

As the two kept their guards up they decided it was time to move forward. Dim was keeping an eye out ahead of them, when it seemed Dash had run into exactly what they were searching for. "Ah shit!" The Graul. The creature was similar to a Rancor in many ways, but luckily they had the numbers advantage. The Graul was alone, and even there was a second, these hallways weren't big enough for the two to attack at the same time. Not without hurting each other of course.

Dimetri ran towards the beast as it's eyes were set on Dash and would use the force to help himself leap on top of the beast. Igniting his blade mid jump, he be ready to start hacking. Landing on the beasts hunch next to it's neck, he would drive his blade straight down to where the Graul's spinal column would be lined up. This was to give Dash some time to get up and make the next attack. The Graul were vicious and could take a lot of damage, so Dim knew it wouldn't be a killing blow, he had to act fast and this attack would slow it down and turn its attention on himself.

Leaping off of the beast, he was on the opposite side of the beast that Dash was, and the Graul began turning toward Dim, readying itself to make a charge at the Mirialan. "DASH NOW!"

@Alhon

 

[Dash Pavan]

Dash scrambled back from the Graul just in time, rolling away from its massive maw as it lumbered out of the darkness. He should have sensed the thing when it was so close and he was shocked and angry that he had not seen the danger coming.

Dim flashed past him, his lightsaber shimmering as he leapt through the air. What was he doing!? The Mirialan landed on the Graul's neck, to the surprise of both Dash and the beast itself. Dim was taking his life in his hands, even if he had momentarily distracted the thing away from the Rhinnalian.

Dim's blade whipped up and down and Dash stood open mouthed for a moment at his friend's staggering confidence. If he was afraid, Dim was very good at hiding it. The Graul screeched as the blade plunged deep, but it did not go down, writhing around and clawing the walls. The Mirialan leapt off, landing on the other side and yelling for Dash to strike.

The Rhinnalian was already on it, balling the Force in his palms and taking aim at the beast's back. He would aim to pierce it straight through the-

The Graul's massive arm slammed into him faster than he could react, lifting him off his feet and throwing him against the wall. It had lunged backwards more out of pain than strategy, a totally unexpected blow neither of them saw coming.

Dash crashed into the far wall, slipping down, stars blurring his vision.

@Scoobert

2/20 for attack success

 

[Dimetri Unduli]

After his attack, the Mirialan Padawan was ready to see Dash put in the work, but it seemed he wasn't up to the task, The Knight ended up slammed up against the wall, and watching it Dim could feel the pain. He had to act quick though, for the sake of their own lives.

The Mirialan needed to get back on top of the beast, but as he ran up the Graul had turned around and was ready for the attack it seemed. Flying through the air, Dim was grabbed by the beast and tossed away. The Padawan had slammed against the wall, the pain waved through his body from back to front and the air left his lungs in a quickness. Perhaps the two Jedi had underestimated the task.

Dim would begin to try to recover as he began gasping for the air again, but the Graul was eyeing him like he was the next thing on the menu. Making it's way over it was ready to scoop up Dim and eat. If he didn't receive help soon, he would have a hard time keeping himself alive here. "Dash.." he let out as he was trying to get back up. Dash was his only hope in this moment.

@Alhon

 

[Dash Pavan]

Dash fought to get up, stumbling to his feet and trying to concentrate. His back hurt like hell, but his adrenaline was pumping and he could ignore it for now.

Dim nearly got one over on the Graul, but then suddenly it was flinging the Mirialan aside as well and Dash watched with horror as his friend also went crashing into the far wall. He did not get up straight away and the beast was lurching towards him.

The Rhinnalian was not fool enough to get close to the thing, particularly while he was off balance, but he had to do something. Reaching again for the Force, he tried to yank the heavy industrial strobe lights from the ceiling and throw them at the beast. He had not quite got his mojo back yet though, and while one of the lights came free at one end, it merely swung down on it's cable, hitting the Graul hard in the jaw. The thing roared with irritation and wheeled about coming straight for Dash.

The only saving grace was the wound Dim had inflicted, which at least seemed to be slowing its movement. The Rhinnalian had precious seconds to pull out his saber, igniting his crooked blue blade in readiness.

@Scoobert

9/20 for attack success

 

[Dimetri Unduli]

Dim had finally gotten to his feet when he noticed Dash had the beast distracted. It was time to get this thing down once and for all. The Mirial ignited his blade once more, the yellow light filling the air around him. But with the Graul's back turned he knew this was it for the beast. A deep breath came and he reached out into the force to let it guide his movements. And that it did.

The Young Mirialan ran forward and hopped through the air, it almost felt as if the force was telling him when to move and where to move. Though as odd as it felt, it also felt right. His feet landed on the beast's shoulder where he would drive his saber into the beast's temple, then ripping it out he hopped again and landed on the beast's head and drove it downward into the cranium. The saber undoubtedly long enough to pierce the brain, would land it's killshot.

The Graul began falling and Dim disengaged his blade as he hopped into a front flip onto the ground beside Dash. Looking back he would see the Graul's eyes roll back into its head. The Padawan's eyes flicked back over to Dash and gave him a bit of an animated smile. "That was close huh?" Following his joke with a nervous giggle. He only hoped Dash though that was pretty cool.

/rolled 20 out of 20

@Alhon

 

[Dash Pavan]

It all seemed to happen in slow motion. The Graul came at Dash wildly, closing the gap with huge bounds and swinging its massive limbs. He readied himself to lash out once it was in reach, knowing even the pain of his strikes would be unlikely to stop it. The beast had momentum and would crash into him long before he could bring it down.

Then Dim was moving, launching himself into the air with his yellow blade like a comet. He seemed to jump just right, falling through he air to land atop the Graul's shoulder. Dash thought he was pretty agile, but the Mirialan was something else in that moment, keeping his balance on the moving beast and bringing his saber down in two precision strikes.

The Rhinallian jumped backwards, pressing himself against the wall as the Graul fell in front of him, Dim leaping aside just in time. It went down and did not get up. A tiny part of him felt regret that they'd had to kill it, but it had given them little choice.

"Close?! Close?!" Dash panted, once again starting to feel the bruises and scrapes from being flung across the room. "You could say that. Well done though man, I should have done better. I let it catch me off guard". As the Knight, Dash should really have been saving Dim, not the other way around.

He stared ahead down the corridor, which now yawned wide. "There were supposedly two of them" he said grimly. "You ok if we go on, though let's take it real slow?". If Dash remembered the intel correctly the passage would eventually open to a subterranean garden, open to the sky from a steep lightwell above. He could imagine the second Graul may be there.

@Scoobert

 

[Dimetri Unduli]

Dimetri may have saved Dash, but it wouldn't always be that way. The Mirialan felt something with the force in that moment he had never felt before. It was odd. His strength didn't come from himself. It felt as if something, or someone was with him, guiding his every step. 'Luminara?' Sadly he couldn't tell at the moment. He'll need to meditate once they were out of here.

"Hey, don't beat yourself up," Dim put a hand on Dash's shoulder, "I'll only brag about it a lot." Dim laughed a little trying to lighten the mood. Then when Dash mentioned wanting to move forward a little slower Dim would nod, "Yea got another one to take down I suppose. A shame, life shouldn't be extinguished for any reason other than necessity. I just hope the next one we can get out of here without having to kill it."

Dimetri was a kind soul, but he knew when things had to be done. If it's the life of a beast or the life of a fellow Jedi, the beast was going down. It was best to leave the world in a better place. Then Dimetri looked to keep the mood a little lighter and began humming the new Lil Klepti song "Hutt Walk"TM which was surprisingly a really good one. The Return Album was probably Klepti's best work yet. Though he wanted to see if Dash joined in, that was if he knew the song of course.

@Alhon

 

[Dash Pavan]

If Dash had felt a little beaten up, Dim soon lifted his spirits. The Mirialan was actually pretty good in a crisis it turned out and Dash felt boosted by the hand on shoulder and the guy's reassuring words. He also had a surprising amount of consideration for the Graul, to the point Dash gave him a sideways glance. He felt a little guilty for maybe thinking Dim was just a simple good time guy.

"Well yeah, we were supposed to save them, if we could..." Dash agreed, humming along to Dim's tune almost on instinct. Part of him wondered if they should keep quiet in the semi-darkness, but that had not helped them before and besides he felt better for a little musicality.

They emerged into the underground garden Dash had read about and sure enough light spilled down from above. The lightwell had been dug deep into the earth, enabling air and occasionally sunlight to stretch down to this level. Several stunted trees had managed to find purchase, together with some hardy grass and shrubs. The greenery was a strange contrast to the metal plated corridors they had come through and the large rocks peppering the cavern.

Suddenly, one of the large rocks moved and Dash realised with a pang that it was the second Graul. It rounded on them, taking two steps in their direction, head cocked.

"Peace" Dash said, jutting his hand out instinctively. Still fresh from the last fight, he had no desire to kill this Graul. Could he not get it to understand? "Still, calm, we mean you no harm".

To his great surprise, the Graul slowed and stopped, eyes blinking as if considering his words. Emboldened, Dash went on. "We can find you a new home, up there, out in the sun". He worked the Force half-consciously, gesturing to the sky above with his free hand. "Would you like that?".

The Graul made a noise, short of a roar but definitely a vote of confidence. Dash hurriedly gestured toward a tunnel on the far side, recalling there was a ramp up to the surface that way. After a moment, it began to lumber in the right direction.

"Well here goes nothing" Dash whispered, gingerly stalking after the Graul and motioning Dim to follow.

18/20 for control animal success

@Scoobert

 

[Dimetri Unduli]

Dimetri nodded as they talked on how they were here to save, not kill. But Dim couldn't keep his mood in the dumps, especially not when there was another Graul down here somewhere. The Mirialan would move walk further in, when he heard the movement of something big. "Oh what now?" Dim muttered.

The beast moving would become visible and then Dim saw it, the other Graul. "Was this thing sleeping the whole fight?" Dim was genuinely unamused but also a little concerned.

Then Dim watched the Knight next to him try to make peace with the Graul after it's buddy tried to make them dinner. It was not likely they were going to get peace from it, at least in Dim's eyes. Nonetheless he needed to try to work with Dash on this. So he made sure his blade was off and clipped it to his belt. The Mirialan let Dash take the lead and followed when Dash asked him to. This would be one hell of a memory if Dash pulled this off.

@Alhon

 

[Dash Pavan]

As they slowly made their way up the winding ramp, Dash prodded and probed the Graul with his mind. It was the strangest sensation. He felt as if he was tethered to the beast, a mental link that pulsed gently with unfamiliar sensations. Dash was hit with waves of what he realised were primal emotions; hunger, fear, fatigue.

"Best not complain while he's behaving" Dash said quietly, shrugging at Dim. Maybe this one had a calmer nature, or maybe Dash should have tried communicating all along. He had certainly never managed anything like this before.

To their mutual surprise, they made it all the way, emerging into the daylight and feeling a wave of relief. The Graul dashed off as soon as it saw open plains and the two Jedi stood licking their wounds. The thing looked almost warm and fuzzy frolicking back in its native habitat.

"So what's it gonna take to stop you bragging about your stunts down there?" Dash joked, cocking an eyebrow. The Mirialan had saved his bacon, but he was not sure he could handle the story doing the rounds.

@Scoobert