Ask [Toydaria] No toying around here anymore...

[Hailee Lightwood]

The smell inside made her nauseous, the dimmed lights simply irritated her and the music was way too loud. She nodded agreeingly at Taz' comment, her emerald eyes flicking over to a woman that was about to offer a lapdance to a fat Toydarian who clapped her cheeks before she had even fully turned around. She could feel a hint of anger flaring up and if this had been a different setting, she would have found a way to interfere. This all made her so nauseous and frustrated at the same time, especially because she knew she couldn't do anything about it but playing along.

Her gaze flicked back and landed on Taz, her brows slightly furrowed but she controlled her expressions again as she telepathically answered, 'Yes. I'm alright and I'll continue to perform. I'm just looking forward to bed already tonight...'. She let out a soft sigh and hoped that he wouldn't be able to tell that she had just given him an embellished answer. Despite the bacta pads and the pain killers her body still ached, she was also a bit exhausted and was thus hoping that the night would go rather smoothly, but if she had to, she wouldn't falter at all. They had a mission and she would keep it together for as long as she had to. 'Are you okay?' she returned the questions without any words, but before Taz would get the chance to answer, their boss was already approaching.

The Toydarian looked as happy as ever, his spirits high, probably because Taz and Hailee had assisted them with something big. Hailee greeted him with a curt nod and was actually looking forward to a drink, but Grupko's gratitude didn't end there...No...no no no. Damn no. Kriff, why?! Obviously, Grupko thought he had had a wonderful idea to repay Hal for his work, but little did he know that Hailee's empty stomach felt like it would turn upside down right away.

While Taz would sense her stirred up emotions, Hal's lips were crossed by a wide, dirty smirk while his eyes turned hungry. It was a good thing that Hailee was good at pretenting, but she had no idea whether she would manage to continue this charade for much longer and she also had no idea whether she'd manage to come up with a good idea when she would find herself in a room with one of the ladies.

Without wasting any time, Hal pulled out his holopad and quickly began to type. While her fast fingers were boosted from the inner hectic, from the outside it still looked like a satisfied Hal simply wanted to get something off his chest. "Thanks, boss..." said the holopad out aloud as she nodded again, the smirk slightly widening while her gaze flicked over to Taz, "My friend is a bit shy in that regard". While the robotic voice continued, Hal wrapped an arm around one of the women, the one without a tray, and pulled her on his lap. "I'm not. I'll show him how to have fun. The more the merrier". Was that a good idea? Hailee had to come up with something fast and she thought it'd be more comfortable if they'd just end up in one room. Together, they'd have plenty of possibilities to get out of this, especially because these women were no Toydarians and could easily be persuaded that they didn't actually need to do something with them because they weren't immune to Jedi mindtricks.

@Sreeya

 

[Tazlen Axil]

Taz stared incredulously as Hal made the situation several times worse. What was her idea, exactly?! This was what Taz got for trying to work with padawans. He rubbed his temples and gave a faint smile, “I have a hard time partying until a job is done,” He said as he looked back at Grupko. Ending up in one room alone was pointless if Grupko wasn’t there to tell them where to go. However, he gave Hal a look to make the most of this and see if she could draw out any additional details from the ladies. Taz turned his focus on the Toydarian that only laughed.

“Well at least your friend knows how to enjoy himself,” He chuckled as he looked at Hal. The lady on Hailee’s lap giggled and tugged at her to try and take her away to a private room.

Tazlen kept sipping his drink, glancing at Grupko, “What kind of job are we talking?”

“Need you and Hal to move some cargo,” He said as he puffed on a pipe. Taz despised the thought that Grupko was referring to people as cargo, but it wasn’t entirely out of the ordinary for these circles, “Need to get them to a spaceport and offworld without incident,” He said, “You get half payment now and half after they’re off.”

“What kind of trouble are we expecting?”

“Just rival gangs that wanna steal the cargo.”

A plan began to formulate in his head. He would fight and defend but perhaps Hailee could sneak the girls onto a safe transport. He discreetly messaged Hailee on trying to convince some of the dancers here to help them with the operation and provide diversions. They needed an opening for the slicer to get in and hack Grupko’s system before the women were transported off planet.

“The basement of this place is where you’re getting the cargo,” Grupko said.

@LadyRen

 

[Hailee Lightwood]

With that fake, smug grin on her lips, Hailee was quite confident that the knight had an excellent plan to make use of the ladies if they'd reach a private room soon, but Taz was basically wishing her a good time, staying with the boss, while the woman on her lap apparently wanted to get the job done already. She had no idea why Taz didn't plan on helping her with the ladies first before they would receive some details from the boss, but she had to choice but to try to make a 'divide and conquer' situation out of that.

Her pupils dilated in panic, but with that dirty grin she probably looked...thirstier? She only nodded towards the men before she got up and let herself be let away, her heart loudly pounding in her chest while she desperately had to come up with some great ideas. This whole mission had been nothing but wild improvisation and hectic change of plans and unconventional methods, so that now she was once again tasked with an important job: Ensure that the girls were in on it and figure out whether they'd even manage to be off help or contribute something to their risky endeavor.

Well...she knew time was ticking as as soon as someone would slide a hand into her pants, the charade would be over, but she didn't want to let it come this far anyway. She reached out with the Force, concentrating on the woman's feelings while they were still in the hallway and right before turning into the dim lit room on their left, she could sense it. Pain, desperate, disgust, reluctance. It was all so subtle, but it got obvious how she wasn't the only one playing a role here.

The woman slowly led her inside and closed the door behind them, the smile on her lips seductive, and she literally didn't waste a second before she stepped closer, already aiming for her shirt with outstretched hands. Hailee backstepped a little, however she didn't come far as she bumped into someone, a second woman she hadn't even noticed while having been too focused on the first one. " Let's tend to you, handsome", the one behind her seductively whispered in her ear with a foreign accent while the first one now grabbed her by the shirt, soothingly adding "don't be shy, just relax and we'll take good care of you".

Hailee took a deep breath, calmly grabbing the wrists of the woman in front of her, but before she could even open her mouth, the second one was already grabbing the hem of her pants by her hips, now actually preparing so slide her long nailed fingers inside, until Hailee abruptly turned to shake them off. Now this was surely going to be something. "Listen. I'm not here for all of that and well...I'm not even one of their men" she began, her actual voice calmly speaking even if a storm was raging inside her. She cleared her throat, looking in the faces of two completely aghast women. "As crazy as this all sounds, I'm here to help. You and potentially others. You're not happy to be here...I bet not even deliberately working here. Honestly, I know what I'm talking about" she carefully stated, lowering her hands. It was obviously a risky, direct move, but it was not like they had tons of time. Also, she had been in such establishments before and she bet this was all not much different than on Corellia. Crime was often similar.

The two exchanged shocked looks, seemingly not understanding what the Force was happening, but she really couldn't blame them. "I'm sorry to be so direct about all that, but we don't have much time. We are looking for more women. We want to put an end to this trafficking immediately and thus I'm...undercover" maybe that was a way to describe that. If they wouldn't take it the way she intended it, she had to manipulate them. She didn't want to mess with them at all, but she knew she had to ensure their cover wouldn't get blown for the greater good of this mission. She quickly moved towards the door, positioning herself in front of it because she really wanted to stay in control in this situation. While the women were still speechlessly staring at her, she scanned the room for cameras of some sort or an emergency panic button, immediately spotting something right next to the fluffy, velvet sofa behind the semi-transparent curtain. "Please don't push that button and listen", she softly added after a few moments, almost pleadingly eyeing both of them and that was seemingly the cue for their shock-induced paralysis to fade." "You're-...how do you...", the one on the left began to stammer while Hailee slowly removed her hat, however falling silent once again.

The two women now gazed at her blonde bun in disbelief, their eyes still widened and their breaths heavy. If Hailee hadn't seen such rooms from the inside before, she wouldn't have known about certain mechanism, but it was a good thing she was at peace with her past. "Please...I know I'm asking much when I say 'trust me', but I am capable of helping". She let the Force flow right through her and radiate a calming aura of her. The women were still silent, but infecting them by soothing their agitation would come in handy. At last, one of the women stepped back further until she sat down on the sofa, slowly nodding. "Do you have any information on where the woman are being kept? Any other insights in those...trades?" she carefully asked, relaxing her own stance while she fumbled her hair back into the bun.

The second woman exhaled, still not fully convinced, but now the facade was obviously crumbling as some actual desperation shone through. "We don't get...many information" she began, apparently deciding to try clinging to the straw Hailee was offering. "But when I arrived, it was similar. There are...quarters down in the basement. Even cells. Some of the girl are not even off age-", she swallowed hard, her voice getting higher and higher while her eyes were still wide.

"That's good to know. We will try to intercept as-" Hailee was interrupted by the faint vibration of her holopad and she pulled it out, her eyes quickly scanning the short message of Taz. "A transport. There will be a transport" she updated them, eyes flicking back up. "What we would need would be a diversion. If you could draw some attention while we're operating, we could ensure that the women will end in safety". Hailee knew that by placing her trust into the two women, she could threatened Taz' and her life, but the Force was actually telling her that it was the right thing to do.

As the other woman now stood up again, the one that was still standing suddenly had a fire flaring up on her eyes. "If we can damage this dirty scumbag's business, I'm in. It's about time he bleeds for his doings", she determinantly stated, while the other one nodded. "I'm promising you that I'll try to do anything I can to get you out safely as well" Hailee stated, her tone much more serious now, but the first woman just sadly smiled. "Where would we go, Honey? We've spent too much time here...we're used to it. He feeds us, he provides shelter, that's more than we could ever afford elsewhere, but we don't need others to enter this vicious circle". Hailee didn't break eye contact for a few more moments, obviously conflicted, but she had met such women before.

There wasn't much she could say about that, unless she'd talk to Taz again. Perhaps they could find an appropriate shelter off world as well, so that they could actually come back for them, but Taz' words echoed through her mind. You can't save everyone. Maybe they could try, but for now they had to focus on the plan. "We'll arrange a safe transport and I'll try to smuggle the women aboard our, instead of their shuttle. First, we need a chance for our slicer to get in, then we need more chaos on the surface". While they quickly discussed plans, the two women actually seemed eager to help, or at least vengeful enough to try to hurt Grupko as much as they could. They were still concerned about the other women and Hailee finally decided that she could rely on them for support. "I know a few who would help as well", Whianna finally said and Hailee nodded. "The more the better, but just be careful that only the right people know of that". This was all risky, but it really felt like they could count on that support. As they has already spent a little time in the room, Hailee decided that it was about time to make her reappearance, and for that she put on a rather smug grin again. "Thank you for your services, ladies" the robotic voice of the holopad said that for her before she stepped out, directly heading back to the table with the men.

@Sreeya