Through the City in the Clouds

[Lavi]

Marisa could hear whirrs and thunks of cargo boxes being loaded and unloaded by droids. The sounds were welcoming, though also signaled the next challenge: getting out of the loading dock without drawing attention to herself. Her seat, barely large enough for the petite human female in a fetal position, inside a box full of spices, was a last minute decision. Uncomfortable, to say the least.

Her stomach churned for a moment as her box was lifted by a droid. The droid must have been in need of maintenance, since it didn't hold its cargo steady. Marisa could feel every bump in her unceremonious trip to a storage bay. Spices pelted her face, forcing Marisa to suppress a sneeze. Once her box was set down, Marisa gave a quiet sigh of relief. She popped open the lid, briefly scanned the area, and jumped out. As she expected, the droid dropped her off at a storage facility: likely to be mostly droid activity, with the occasional organic worker and a number of security cameras strategically placed. No problem.

After a quick pat down of herself to make sure she didn't drop anything in the box of spices, Marisa lifted the weathered hood on her dark leather attire and went on her way. Slipping past workers and droids were no problem. The security cameras, although a nuisance, only cost extra time for the woman to maneuver around.

Once Marisa snuck out of the loading dock, she took a moment at a window to take in the view of Cloud City. The sun was beginning to set, coloring the distant clouds red. Marisa tore her eyes away from the beautiful scene, aiming to blend into the nearest crowd. There's no telling how long until her pursuers locate her on Bespin.

 

[DeathToll]

The day was slowly coming to an end. Like clockwork, all was in its place as life continued on its proper march. A steady pace of workers passed through the open halls that melt with the red of the dying day, as shifts change and friends gather for the night's festivities. Droids scurried along, ranging in size and purpose, keeping the dock in order. Just outside the dock, a supervisor had been pulled aside across the walkway in conversation with a cloaked figure. Two other workers stood together in the corner of the dock access, discussing the figure in black. Instead of working, the two men could not conceal their suspicion of such types.

"...Then there's nothin' I can do for you. I can order the parts, but you aint got enough money. You either do this for me, or my guys won't be fixin' yer ship. Look, you want discretion? You want a way around your money problems? No? Then go fix it yerself. Or tow the damn thing to an actual shop. It aint even on this platform. I can get this done nice and quiet, expedite the proccess even, and no one will ever know. All you gotta do is ...'acquire' this 'shipment' and drop it off. Simple. And consider all your debts payed. I'll even gaurantee a fully repaired ship with all new codes, ready to go when you get back. How bout dat...?"

The figure's chest lifted. In fact, his arms had folded over his ribcage, looking as though his chest had expanded beneath the long ebony cloak. Even his face was entirely concealed under black wrappings and a hood, all but for those blazing yellow eyes. The figure towered over the short mouthy supervisor, yet there he was considering the secret proposal. Then out slipped two fingers from the parting opening at his neck, holding a small datapad; basically the keys to his ship, where-abouts and read-outs. He had little choice. What he didn't realize was that he had also flashed a glimpse of one of his lightsaber hilts dangling from his belt. Though no one of note seemed to be watching them.

"Four hours..."

The figure's voice was hard, scratchy yet considerably softer than his appearance would intimate. The supervisor snached the article into his possession, passed over a keycard, and nodded with a slimy wink as he then tucked the tiny datapad into his upper breast-pocket and walked away. He had much to do in a short amount of time. The other two workers across the way quickly returned to their duties before the supervisor could see them watching, even though they couldn't make out the conversation. And the figure just stood there, contemplating his next move. A part of him had considered beating compliance into the grease-ball, but that part of him was supressed. As of right now, there was no rush. The 'shipment' in question had yet to arrive and he needed to observe the area, maybe get into position if possible.

Ereshkirgal, the shade, sighed into the layers of dark wrapping over his mouth as he eyed the keycard. A means to an end, he reminded himself. Perhaps there were some new rumors spreading, some conversations to be overheard in the local bar or stim-caff stand.

 

[Lavi]

She wasn't sure how long it would take until her general location was known, but there should be some time to relax for a while. Perhaps enough time to get a bite and a malted beverage. There were still security cameras about but, upon joining a decent sized crowd of people, Marisa easily positioned herself to avoid getting her face captured by the feeds. She had heard a bounty hunter had the means to hack into security systems and ID check every face recorded in less than a minute. Totally not worth the risk.

Marisa thumbed the access button to the elevator: all of the casinos, hotels, and living quarters were on a different level in Cloud City. She opted to head to one of the casino bars first: the spices she was with were unsuitable for eating. When it arrived, Marisa entered close on the heels of the human in front of her, taking a corner right in front of the doorway. That way, the security camera in the small area would not get a good view of her and the camera that watches the elevator lobby would also not get a good shot when the doors open. She feigned fatigue, to hide her behavior, by resting her head against the wall, as the elevator rose to the upper levels.

Marisa slowly rose her head as the soft tune of the elevator reaching its destination prompted the doors opening. She stepped out with the crowd, her eyes rolling in their sockets to scan the area before heading off to one of the middle-class casinos. Unbeknownst to her, she accidentally let her face slip onto one of the cameras. Albeit, it was only a shot of her lower face. Nevertheless, it is still a digital footprint.

At the casino doors, one of the two bouncers stopped Marisa. It was a male twi'lek, with a lekku wrapped around his neck.

"I don't recognize you, so I need to ask that you lower your hood. We also have a policy of no-weapons, so if you have any, leave them at the door," the twi'lek said.

Marisa was indeed armed, with a holdout blaster hidden in her sleeve and her belt had non-lethal equipment. However, she had no intention of letting go of any of that. Marisa hesitantly lowered her hood, causing the bouncer to smile. She could see instantly that the twi'lek was charmed by her appearance and quickly tried to talk her way through.

"I'm sorry. I have never been on this level of Cloud City before, so I wasn't sure what to expect. It's great to hear that weapons are not allowed inside," she said. Her voice was slightly accented, though it was not evident where she was from.

"Aye," the twi'lek agreed. "It's all the more reason to make sure our patrons won't cause trouble."

'Schutta...' Marisa thought. She didn't want to show her face in too many places. Perhaps her time here would be shorter than she thought.

 

[DeathToll]

Ereshkirgal retracted his hand back into his cloak, feeding the keycard into a belt pocket, and looked up to find the nearest lift. Blending in with the crowd in the halls could prove to be difficult for this cloaked figure in black amongst ordinary citizens, but he'd be fine once he ducked into a dim-lit bar of sorts. Waiting for the proper pattern to open in the moving traffic, he twisted his cloak round his right hand to allow for it's free motion; and then he took off. Picking up an aggressive pace, the figure held his head low, tapping two-fingered-touches onto the sides of shoulders so that these people would look to the side to see what had tapped them. With each rotating turn of the head, Ereshkirgal fed into the opposite side and between the breaking paths. After he tapped one right shoulder, he cut through left; then tapping one left shoulder, he leaned through right. All the while, he kept up his focus in reading each person's reaction should they not look in the desired direction. The figure flowed through the parting bodies like rushing water between loose pebbles. By the time any looked back front, he had already weeved through two more groups and ultimately reached the public lift without much notice.

The lift ride proved simple enough. Another had pressed the call button, a small mass of bodies herded in behind him, multiple floors were chosen for him as he hid in the corner, and he finally dispersed with the others on the more popular floor of casinos and bars. He kept close to a group of three as they headed over to an entrance, but there seemed to be a line. Someone was holding up the security check. Security check. Eresh did not need to waste his time here. Either he'd make it in without notice, or he'd head over to the next spot. Perhaps other bars were less guarded, but probably not. Lucky for him, a couple of the guys he was hiding behind started to pull out their blaster pistols as they prepared to peacefully leave them at the door. At just the right moment, when both men lifted the blasters free from their holsters, Eresh sidestepped them and seized the moment.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

"What'r YOU doing?!? Quit messin around!"

Caught completely by surprise, the two men pointed their blasters at each other. At first it seemed a joke to pass the time in line. But soon they started screaming at themselves, each calling for the other to stop. The higher their pistols rose into the air, the more they began to sweat; eyes buldging in fear, their other hands clasping down to reclaim control over themselves. Their other companion stepped closer, trying to talk them down before they were arrested or gunned down even. A clear group of three trouble makers had been established. But Ereshkirgal had distanced himself, while positioning for the clear of the door. And as if they weren't making a big enough scene, one of the men began turning to aim at the Twi'lek bouncer; screaming and only making it worse. Their fingers were trembling, fighting against themselves on the trigger; without a doubt, looking as though they were crazed gunmen.

"I can't control it! Look out! My blaster!"

"Stop! Stop! He doesn't know what he's doing!"

If the bouncers kept their distance, that wouldn't be good enough and Eresh would probably trip or descretely shove the third man into the other two to spark the chaos and make his move for the door. But if they moved to tackle the gunmen on their own, even better. However, if none of this helped and only brought attention to Eresh, then he'd likewise be in a fairly key position to attempt an escape back into the halls.

 

[Lavi]

The commotion grabbed everyone's attention, Marisa included. As voices rose and fear began to seep in, she turned around with a confused look on her face. The two men behind her were struggling with their pistols (if that was an accurate way to describe it). The bouncers drew their own weapons as a precaution and slowly approached the trio to end the dangerous situation. They ordered the crazed-looking men to lower their weapons, setting their own weapons to stun. Surely, backup was on the way to ensure that things did not go completely out of hand.

As the bouncers passed her, Marisa slowly took steps backwards, discretely entering the casino with her stuff while attention was elsewhere. She wasn't sure what in the world was going on there, but it was a convenient distraction: one that any logical person would take advantage of.

The casino was reasonably well lit: it seemed to be a newer enterprise just starting to roll in the money. The different games in the building surrounded a decently sized bar, with a number of nearby tables to accommodate groups that did not want to sit at the counter. As for Marisa, she took a seat at the counter, waving down an available bartender.

"Hot cocoa," she ordered.

It may be Marisa's favorite drink and may attract the attention of bounty hunters, but there were billions in the galaxy that also enjoyed a cup of hot chocolate. It surely would not immediately draw attention to herself and Marisa wanted something to take her mind off of her long trip in a box of spices. She wasn't even sure what kind of spice she sat in.

As she waited, Marisa took in the casino setting, running a hand through her short, brown hair. There did not seem to be any familiar faces, which was a good sign. Once her drink was served, Marisa tossed a few credits on the table and started enjoying her drink.

 

[DeathToll]

Tensions were high, yet one hooded figure did happen to notice the female slink into the casino while all others stood and watched events unfold. Ereshkirgal crept along the wall towards the entrance, playing the part of an innocent caught too close to danger. The two bouncers continued their slow approach until the two gunmen randomly dropped their aim, astonishingly threw aside their weapons, and raised their hands in hysterical surrender. But by the time the bouncers took control, and were once again able to breath, Eresh had also snuck into the casino unnoticed. Additional security would, however, arrive shortly; and there was no telling how they might seek to investigate. Things seemed fairly cut and dry, though, with the confused culprits cooperating with their ranting of a temporary loss of control over themselves.

Though he had only caught a side angled glimpse of the woman, Eresh did keep in mind her position in the bar. There was something shady about her, just as he had set up the distraction for himself so that the bouncers would not cause him any trouble. In order to get a good read of the bar's patrons, Eresh walked a straight line along the backs of every barstool at the counter from the entrance to the back, nice and slow; passing behind the woman in the process before peeling off to find a table. He wanted to be out of the way enough to remain mostly unseen, while keeping amidst the bar's happenings in order to catch anything worth notice. It wasn't difficult, walking straight up to an empty table and taking the seat with a clear view of most everything in the room. Eresh bent down slowly, his controlling thighs resisting gravity until his back pressed up against the frame of the seat; his back practically up against another patron's back at the table behind him.

Meanwhile, up at the counter, a rather well-put-together Nikto with his collar pulled wide open turned his head at the call of an order he hadn't heard very often. While he was kicking back whiskey shooters, having had a particularly unsatisfying day, he found it amusing that someone was enjoying their day with a practically insulting non-alcoholic drink. For kriff's sake, she was sitting one seat away; insulting him with every sip and every content breath. The Nikto tapped his shot glass back down onto the counter and just starred at her with disgust, watching her drink and look around as she played with her hair.

"...Rotten day, eh? Drown it out with some nice... hot... cocoa."

Sarcasm oozed out of every pore. Well, that and sweat-filled toxins. He wasn't a threat to her, besides the fact that his speech was a little louder than the background music. And judging by the bartender's rolling eyes, this Nikto was either a common problem or they got these kind of drinkers all the time.

 

[Lavi]

Marisa didn't realize the Nikto was talking about her. At least until she got the whiff of the word "cocoa." Marisa didn't like people talking about her, especially when she wasn't involved. Taking her cup, Marisa left the counter and took an empty booth.

Her retreat was short lived, as another individual took up a seat at her table. It was a human male, with a short buzz cut and dressed for traveling. His demeanor appeared friendly, but Marisa knew better. To outsiders, it could look like two friends getting together, but their conversation was far from friendly: Marisa can recognize a professional bounty hunter at a glance. They spoke to each other in Huttese, preventing most patrons from eavesdropping on them.

"Hello, Marisa. It's been a while," the bounty hunter said.

"I'm trying to enjoy a drink, Rath. You should realize that I don't like being followed everywhere," Marisa answered, gripping her cup with both hands.

Rath smiled. "Well, I'll stop following you if you come with me. You left some unfinished business on Nal Hutta."

As Rath spoke, Marisa tapped the heel of her boot, which revealed a dagger at the front. The weapon was sanded down on the flats to prevent light from reflecting off of its surface. However, Rath set a solid foot down on Marisa's shoe dagger as he finished talking, clearly aware of the hidden contraption.

"Aiyo..." Marisa sighed. Her expression sunk from contemplation to worry. "I quit my job before that."

"Your employer obviously thinks otherwise," Rath concluded. "Let's not make this too complicated, all right?"

"Then get off my foot, Rath," Marisa retorted, reverting to Basic. She tugged on her imprisoned foot to emphasize her point, but Rath did not relent.

"I'm like to keep my innards intact, Marisa," Rath chided her, also speaking in Basic. "Come on. Don't complicate things."

It didn't look like it, but Marisa was terrified. She wasn't sure how to get out of this situation, given she didn't have any other weapon that she could quickly access without drawing attention.

 

[DeathToll]

Finally, some service. It had taken some time for the short-haired brunette server to approach him. But then she turned away, and he realized; that was the girl from before. She wasn't going to take his drink order. He recognized the back of her head, just like outside the entrance. She took an empty booth within sight and capture of sound, soon joined by another; though simply because Eresh recognized her, did not merit any further attention from him. He looked away, wondering if he'd ever receive a glass of refresher water. He never assumed the quality of any establishment's 'back of the house', having seen his fair share. Even so, he was listening to any and every voice possible. Huttese, however, was not a language he knew well enough to pick up on amidst the sum of all conversations combined.

Ereshkirgal tasted of the bartender's conversation with the uncaring waitress, speaking of a lustful intent overridden by her still in play ex-boyfriend. Eresh sampled the ramblings of an unpleasant Nikto at the counter top, complaining of the brutish debt collectors that may come for him at any moment. Eresh sifted through familiar languages, half-threatening conversations and disturbing thoughts. But he was caught unaware when the words of Marisa crept into the back of his multitasking mind, not fully chiming in to the conversation or distinguishing what was just said until the man's response took full hold of his ear. There was more a ring of soap opera drama in their withheld exchange, a lovers' quarrel perhaps. But what Eresh soon realized had actually been the reason behind his sudden shift in mental focus was the vague weight of terror.

There was little reason for him to get involved, unless he were put in a position unfavorable to his situation. He didn't even bother investigating further, wasting the time to read what might be going on underneath. He assumed it was just like any other ill-fated couple in the galaxy. It reminded him of his own turmoil, the day the Sith returned to the Empire; stealing Neeriella away from the Knights and from him. It sounded nice to blame the Sith for something she, in fact, chose. But, perspective was everything. And even snot-nosed punks had their own perspective, like the one who just leaned back in his chair and bumped into Eresh's chair. Of course, it was somehow Eresh's fault.

"Hey watch it, fool! What are you, some kind of burn victim?!"

Eresh simply turned his head in tempered frustration, ignoring the reference to his wrappings and cloak. The rotation of his gaze, however, unintentionally put the woman and her man directly in line of sight; and Eresh noticed their feet underneath the table. His foot had pinned a hidden toe blade. If they had blasters, and this was about to go public, he could not afford the attention.

 

[Lavi]

The bounty hunter leaned forward in his seat, rudely grabbing the back of Marisa's hair to pull her in close.

"I've made an arrangement with the establishment that I won't cause collateral damage, I keep my weapons, and you will come with me," Rath hissed. In an instant, a small needle appeared in his outstretched hand, going straight into Marisa's neck.

Marisa winced and immediately began struggling against Rath's grip, but the substance was already giving results. Her movements became sluggish and the woman's head slumped. However, she wasn't completely knocked out. Marisa still squirmed as Rath raised her from her seat, breathing heavily as the dosage set in. She began flapping an arm about, in a rather silly manner. Rath paid no mind to it, assuming that Marisa was just trying to fight the sedation dose. He wrapped Marisa's less responsive arm over his shoulder and started making his way to the door.

However, Marisa had a plan, if a stupid one. After a rather difficult arm gesture, she felt her holdout blaster slide down the length of her shirt. Cupping a hand easily caught the weapon as she was half-lifted, half-dragged to the casino entrance. A few desperate thumbs flipped off the safety and Marisa brought the weapon close to her chest, pointed at Rath. Then, there was one more thing. She was having a difficult time looking straight and everything seemed to be dimming. Double-vision probably is also somewhere in there, since everything also looked like a mess.

"Rath..." Marisa moaned, hoping for a good response.

Rath paused, looking towards his drugged target. It was exactly what she wanted: a still target. Even a professional does not have much time to react to a gun shot at virtually point-blank range. Marisa squeezed the trigger several times, quickly dropping the bounty hunter. She also fell to the ground, banging her head against the carpet.

The casino's reaction was evident. Frightened patrons fled from the sounds, employees diving for cover, and security being called. Marisa would be among the patrons running, but the drug was still limiting her movements. It was a laborious task just to roll onto her back, which allowed her to use the same heel-tapping action from earlier to retract her shoe dagger.

Getting out of there was her next thought, though her body seemed to speak otherwise. Marisa struggled to use a nearby chair to help herself stand up, but her terrible drug-induced balance brought both the chair and herself back to the floor. It didn't cross her mind that she was still clutching her small pistol as she attempted to crawl away from Rath's body. It was hard to see where she was going: all that she was sure of was that Rath's feet pointed away from the casino entrance.

 

[DeathToll]

:: vexare ::​

Ereshkirgal's eyes widened with alarm to what he witnessed, a lifetime of a trained response, instinctually requiring to make right what was wrong in the galaxy; being repressed by a lifetime of training through heartbreak, loss, and despair. His eyes were like a fire, lit with the youth of a warrior; and yet his body held like a statue in stone. His head simply hung there, sideways, from the change in position before; watching the coward take control of her. And, what's worse, he did have a weapon.

The woman had succomed to the substance's effects, her arm being wrapped over the man's shoulder as he casually headed for the exit. As they began crossing passed Eresh's held gaze, his tightened neck unwilling to free his head for rotation, he did his utmost to resist the urge to get involved. If he did not watch, perhaps he could truly say farwell to his broken past. He was an Imperial Knight, no longer; those days long past on account of his abandonment, a self inflicted exile in disagreement to his brethren just when they needed him the most. He was never one of the Jedi, tearing through their training sessions like they were children without concept of who and what they were. Now he was the one who didn't know who he was. All he had left was his promise to destroy his enemy. He clinged to that singular oath, needed that disregard for all other life, including his own, if only to take down an empire in the process.

But even with all his effort to ignore them with his physical eyes, his mind's eye could not let go. Z was still there, inside there somewhere. She moaned, he looked, then the shots fired, and they fell to the carpet. The place was quickly in an uproar, all in some form of panic; all but one. Ereshkirgal's head finally turned steadily straight, the table top covering all view of the floor ahead. He noticed the two bouncers from the door had heard the shots and were attempting to move through some of the panicing people rushing the door. There was no question that he needed to get out of there, now. He sat there. If he didn't accomplish his task, he'd have no ship; and if he was surrounded and caught, he couldn't accomplish his task. He just sat there! By himself, he could accomplish his task with ease; with baggage, he was sure to face difficulty. Why was he still sitting there?!?

The empty chair at his table fell over. It was her. And in that instant, with the tapping of the chair onto the floor, he disobeyed all that he knew he should have.

*SLAP*

Whether she could feel it or not, Ereshkirgal's firm hand slapped onto her tricep and powerfully lifted her to her wobbly feet. And with one smooth swooping motion: he ducked under, holding her hand that held the blaster and lifting it over his head, tucking his opposing shoulder into her hips with a strategicly gentle pause before heaving her up over that shoulder, and stood tall. He'd done this before, and knew a woman's body well. She would be comfortably situated, though awkwardly poised; rear in the air. And with the twist of her weapon arm, as well as her state in condition, the blaster would be relinquished into his conrol.

"Calm. Embrace peace."

His words were a soldier's phrasing, his tone of a battle-hardened soul yet on the brink of either loosing the fight inside or welcoming insanity's slaughter, and yet his controlled rhetoric was oddly mystical. He stepped a right foot forward, held out that blaster high, waited for the right moment, then let a single shot loose straight into the neon lights above the exit. Sparks rained down onto the two bouncers, blasters set to stun. And, before they knew it, Ereshkirgal was standing just before them; the butt of the blaster hammering a quick one-two from left to right against the backs of their necks. They each of them collapsed to the shock of pain, whether successfully knocking out or not.

He stepped out into the open hall, her face hopefully remaining down against his lower back. Time was extremely limited, security already spilling out of the lift they'd both used to get here. There was still the slight cover of scattering patrons, and aparently he wasn't going -that- way. He was thinking, wasting not a single foolhardy inch in his body. Perhaps it was time to head for that warehouse...

 

[Lavi]

When a man grabbed her tricep, Marisa's initial thought was that he was an accomplice to Rath. However, she made no move to fight back: it took all of her energy to get this far. However, her tension was relieved by her rescuer's words. At this point, Marisa was completely at the mercy of this stranger.

Marisa tried to focus her eyes on her surroundings, but her eyelids felt too heavy to lift. She tried to raise a hand to feel for one of her small belt pouches, but only succeeded in mimicking a pendulum with her arms. The woman lethargically patted the man's thigh (even hitting his butt a few times) to get his attention. She couldn't care less if the man felt violated by her behavior.

"Ah-dren... Shots... Mmm-pouch..." she mumbled, struggling to speak loud enough to be heard.

Inside one of the pouches was a small unopened package of adrenaline shots, which Marisa kept for emergencies. It was not intended for instances where she was drugged by bounty hunters, but it probably would help negate some of the side-effects.

By this point, casino security should be well on their way to the scene, if they haven't arrived already.

 

[DeathToll]

Ereshkirgal turned left, steadily marching with a focused determination; using his arm, holding the blaster, to part frantic bodies in his way. The well armed security staff was on his heels, no doubt, and the only thought that kept him at ease was the likelihood that they would take up precious time moving first into the casino. Yet while this woman had managed to avoid capture by security camera, this hooded and suspiciously wrapped figure easily stood out in this crowd.

At first, he ignored her slurred speech, assuming she was trying to give him her name or something.

"Yes, calm."

His simple answer was patronizing, half ignoring her. He had no idea why she felt the need to introduce herself now, which was why he soon realized what she had actually said. Adrenaline. She had been lucky indeed, as he was well versed in capabilities regarding healing and purification through the Force. However, there was no such convenience of time in this moment for him to address her obvious affliction. But an adrenaline shot would be quick and maybe make things easier for him, rather than lug her everywhere.

He crossed his right arm over her legs as he walked and weaved through bodies and passed by more casino entrances, raising his left hand to guide her back down as her body slid down into a cradled position in his arms; his hand eventually at the back of her head. Taking a quick moment, he set her down against the wall and off to the side and began searching pouches for the shots. He didn't find the package as quickly as he would have liked, hearing the questioning calls and orders of security personnel quickly gaining. Finally he found them, fiddled with the ridiculous packaging while eyeing the incoming yet still unseen danger, and took hold of the stim shot and applied it precisely and quickly. There was no time to loose. They needed to move. Eresh quickly witnessed a flash in time yet untold, as he witnessed himself stand back up and make direct eye contact with security; they had been made. The vision quickly finished, and he was still there on the floor with the woman. He looked at her as if asking if she were ready to move, though his words were more to his character.

"Time to go."

 

[Lavi]

The shot of adrenaline helped, as Marisa hoped. She breathed a sigh of relief as her vision cleared and felt reinvigorated. The shot was only a quick patch: Marisa knew the two of them had to get out of here soon, before the effects wore off with Marisa being more exhausted than before. Although somewhat groggy, Marisa was able to raise herself to her feet without the man's help by pressing her back against the wall.

"Right," she answered the other. Her voice clearly felt stronger than before.

"Got a plan anot?" Marisa continued, making a minor slip in dialect. She made a face, realizing this, but didn't bother to correct herself.

Given that elevator access is probably being closely monitored or restricted entirely, the two didn't have many options in terms of escape routes. In Marisa's line of work, it was quite possibly the second-worst case scenario, behind actually being caught. She had a couple ideas, but it was always nice to hear from another before implementing her own.

 

[DeathToll]

Good. It had worked. She could stand on her own. Though for how long, depended on her. He was convinced in the moment that he was doing this to save his own skin, which made it easier to keep focused on the incoming threat rather than enter into internal debate with himself. She wasn't fighting him either, a like mind that faced reality first and questions later. He could appreciate such a prioritized way of thinking, but not now. Now that he was unencumbered, it would take more restraint on his part not to open into full-bloodied assault. But he was living an exile's life now, in hostile territory. Being in tune with the Force was not something he wished to be known about him, only making matters worse. If he could get away with seeming like any other sentient, then that would be his path. Unfortunately, that would also include helping others; restricting himself from open acts of healing ability unless left no other choice.

Eresh stood with her, face to face. He too caught the affected verbal slip, though he did not seem to react emotionally as those yellow eyes just flicked down to her lips and back up to peer into her soul. It was a symptom of his practice in the mind, though not engaging in that practice currently.

Suddenly someone tripped over Ereshkirgal's heel in their panic, and he was forced to swivel back to reclaim his balance. Yet as he did, he remembered the vision; unintentionally looking right and connecting eyes with that security personnel just as he had foreseen. The man was frozen by the realization of his find, finally managing to throw out his finger and point right at the hooded figure.

"There! He's right there!"

Eresh looked back to her, sweeping his arm behind her and carefully guiding his hand into her back for them to keep moving away from the security. He wasn't looking for a fight right now. He still needed to sneak into the active warehouse levels below them. And this armed force didn't seem to want to open fire while their own citizens were caught in the middle.

"Colonies do not construct ant-hills..."

Tossing out his usually confusing rhetoric, as if everyone understood his strange and sometimes inaccurate comparisons, Eresh was referring to the singular entrance of a complex structure. There was always another way, emergency or service exits. He just didn't know where they were. He couldn't form a plan on what he didn't know. So if this woman had a good idea, now was the time. He did, however, have a hiding place in mind.

 

[Lavi]

"What?" Marisa gave a confused look. She wasn't sure what in the world her rescuer was talking about, but they were running out of time. The alerts of security say as much. The man's yellow eyes were fairly disturbing, now that her vision cleared, but it appeared that he means to be a good samaritan. It didn't matter whether he had a personal agenda or not, at the moment.

Marisa was able to keep up to the other man's pacing because of his supporting arm, though she struggled to do so. It would take a little time in order to start moving at a more respectable pace. As the two fled, Marisa dug a hand into her rear-most pouch, pulling out a liquid-cable ascension gun.

"Can you operate one of these?" she asked, holding it out for the other to see.

It wasn't that Marisa couldn't use it herself, but she lacked the physical prowess to hold onto both the gun and another person who likely weighed as much as her. The other man was more likely to be able to handle the stress.

"We just need a window to get outside," Marisa explained. "Any level other than this one will do."

 

[DeathToll]

Moving along-side her, he made sure she was keeping up while holding his own pace back to ensure a common yet swift line of weeving movement. He kept his focus front, positioning them particularly between at least one person in front and one in back at all times, paying little attention to her initial confusion. Of course she didn't understand him. Most never did. Though he hardly realized that fact. But when she presented yet another option, his eyes twinkled with possibility. If Ereshkirgal didn't know any better, it would seem as though she were saving him more than he was her. He glanced at the device, then up to her. He reached his right arm, from previously guiding her with that hand at her back, around her hip and shoved the blaster into her belt. They were both of them oftly comfortable or unconcerned with physical intrusion in this rushed time of danger.

But in an instant, that danger had skyrocketed, and before Marisa would have known what hit her, Eresh's now free right hand had gripped her right hip and pulled -causing her to bend below the crowd and swinging her back around him as he himself pivoted on a swivel right. There had suddenly been two more security personnel that were standing outside this next casino entrance, searching for the two they had been notified of. They had appeared out of nowhere, and Eresh reacted through the assisted amplifying effects of the Force. Eresh and Marisa, attached at the hip, swung round and backed into the casino entrance with temporarily increased valor to them both; Eresh hip checking the one man into the other, collapsing onto the other man's hip and leg as they both fell onto the floor. The two men had had their heads stretched high and once they had caught a glimpse of Eresh's face dissapear, they were completely surprised by the unseen circular hip-check. And through this motion, Eresh had gripped onto Marisa's hand holding the cable gun for security.

Raising back up fluidly, as if nothing had just happened, Ereshkirgal continued their pace into the casino; replacing his right hand at her back and nodding to take hold of the gun if she'd allow it.

"Indeed..."

He'd take that weapon and barely toss it in the same adept left hand to obtain a proper grip of it, and make way for the nearest window. They had entered into a rather dark room, however, and it was difficult to see light that was concealed or covered for the desired effect of a dim-lit casino. Finding a source of natural light was their next obstacle, Eresh continuing to be open to her suggestions.

"Do you see a lightsource?"

His was more of a statement, though obviously a question. Such was the lack of fluxuation in his voice. It would be difficult to hear the juiced adrenaline pumping through his core under the controlled vocal tone of his usual self. Though it was there, as they were still being closely chased by a dozen men and gaining on the two.

"Make a hole!"

"Get outa the way!!!"

"There! Shoot them!!"

 

[Lavi]

Marisa was resourceful, but not that resourceful. She didn't have any torch that shined farther than a foot in front of her, much less to get a good glimpse of their dim surroundings.

"Of course not," she answered, giving the room a brief look-around.

She pulled her blaster out of her belt and fired shots at the nearest window, easily breaking it. Air rushed out of the casino as the law of equilibrium came about. Marisa turned about and fired several shots at the few lights left in the room, causing extra confusion (and eliminating what little lighting there was left) before wrapping an arm around the man's waist.

"If you can't aim above us, we can always go down," Marisa quietly commented as she tightened her hold.

The security guards were fanning out, shouting for Marisa and Ereshkirgal to drop their weapons, keeping their own weapons held at ready. The guards seemed ready to unleash a storm of stun rounds in a matter of moments if they didn't get their way; Marisa was ready to leave.

 

[DeathToll]

His lips pursed beneath the wrappings over his face, brow so slightly quirking with the only hint of amusement available to one so cold and hardened as he. That tiny, miniscule change in unseen facial expression was the greatest effect anyone had had on him for years. If she had known the circumstances and been able to see it, she could feel immensely proud. There was an emotion, deep within, that he had yet to interpret; but he was affected by her somehow. Her actions were quick and instinctual; in the moment, yet intelligent. Eresh dropped his chin with a short nod.

She'd better choose her words more wisely in the future, however. As the saying goes, 'be careful what you wish for'.

They were nearly surrounded with little room for error and no time to spare, guns aiming with near clear line of sight as the last of the stray patrons fled the scene. The wind carried Eresh's cloak back, whipping toward the suction. Clear shattered material littered the floor, and all manner of sound had ended; leaving the music playing with an emptiness, falling on deaf ears. All of security had gathered here. There was no escape. They were done.

Suddenly, like the strike of lightning, Marisa was swept off of her feet. Held in the shelter of his arms' embrace, she was soon soaring towards the broken window; his back twisting into the open maw of spiked lining glass. And, in an instant splash of the remaining jagged shards, they were flying -falling out of the towering structure. Their blurred reflection mirrored Eresh underneath, holding Marisa facing him, against the architecture's face. Marisa would be all but consumed by the tails of his cloak, like wings around them. His hood rattled violently with the racing wind, his feet lifting weightlessly.

"Take hold."

The words were as a hammer crashing down onto sweating sparks from metal in the grip of the gentlest shepherd, whispered to her close yet carrying the strength of a hundred men. He'd grip her tight, but he only had one arm to do so; the other reaching up and firing off their life line. It caught into the structure above and tugged tight, swinging them down into their enlarging reflections. He tried to turn his shoulder into the impact, shielding her from harm, as they crashed through the window. The cable caught on the window lining and whipped them up to slam onto Ereshkirgal's back.

"Hurrrgh!"

He lay there, yellow eyes yet unseen behind shut lids.

 

[Lavi]

As the two fell out of the window, Marisa brought both hands around the man. The feeling of free-falling wasn't something she could bring herself to enjoy. At any moment, if she let go for any reason, Marisa knew that she would be falling for what would seem to be eternity. She clenched her teeth to keep herself from crying out, shutting her eyes tight.

Although she wasn't looking, Marisa could feel every moment through the wind. From the motion of falling to the swing back to the structure. The breaking through another window caused her to open her eyes. Upon hitting the floor, she instinctively let go... and instantly regretted as she flopped around for another moment, with an arm pinned underneath her unexpected companion. Marisa realized that she held her breath the entire time, as that last bump kicked into her stomach.

She laid there for several seconds, regaining her bearings, before freeing her arm from underneath her rescuer and pulling herself up to a sitting position. Marisa rested her blaster hand on her lap, watching the other man.

"Okay, so questions," Marisa started. "Why did you do this? And who are you?"

 

[DeathToll]

His eyes finally opened, still laying there. He tried sighing, ultimately having to unwillingly face the answer to these questions, but his breath was stunted by a break in flow; his side clenched and he grunted. He was fine, though that landing had not been pleasant.

"Does a tree provide shade? Or is the sun's pointed attention to blame..."

In part, he was being evasive; though he probably would have responded the same were he not in hiding. It was how he related to reality. He wouldn't have had to save her if she hadn't brought all that attention towards him. But in truth, she hadn't put him in that position. It was he who had decided to get involved. Though he was struggling with what remained of his conscience. And instances such as these showed him some semblance of his past.

His legs curled, feet dragging along the slick floor. They were in an empty room, what looked like could have once been a working shop but abandoned and used as storage space; larger than any two utilities closets put together. Indeed, he worried he had made a mistake, having to face these kinds of questions. He began to consider the moment he'd leave her. He'd find some way to get her to safety and be on his way, alone. But then he realized the state of himself. His cloak was wide open, two lightsabers resting in his lap from clips to his belt. What's worse, the keycard had jumped out of his pocket and onto the floor next to him. He made the mistake of reacting to snatch it up before she saw it, sitting up and wrapping his cloak over his torso. His yellow eyes just glared back at her, some scattered scars indented into the skin surrounding them; no doubt easier to see now that things had calmed down.

"My name... is my own, and I'm -attemting- to pass through."