Korkoa

IC (Roka Zale, The Stray Tach): Roka paused and thought about the proposal, glancing around the bar. Big Guy was gone, and so was his smaller friend. The other guy they were talking to was still at the bar, though he seemed to be preoccupied. The feeling of dread had faded too, and so Roka nodded in silent agreement. "Well, I'm having the cargo delivered tomorrow morning, but we can stay around a few days extra if need be. I prefer to hang around a dock a little after picking up cargo anyway, provides less connection to the contact and throws off anyone following me. So yeah, we can stay here and unwind for awhile."

IC (Roka Zale The Stray Tach): Roka grinned and nodded, his antennae perking up in delight. "Fantastic!" He said, deliberately ignoring the loud astromech droid that had entered the bar squealing. He had more pressing matters at hand after all. "I'll flash you Steadfast's docking number and head over to her, pull my backup hyperdrive and whatever I might need to fit it to Khorshid. You said the compression coil blew too, right? I'm not sure I'll be able to fix that one, but maybe rig something up to limp her to our next stop at least... Do you have parts, or should I bring some stuff for that too?" He asked, already pulling up Steadfast's docking information and beaming it to Isariah's comm.

IC (Nokon Raine-Outside the Stray Tach): Nokon paused at the odd comment from Liare. He'd felt the other man reach out with the Force briefly, so he knew the message had gotten through. But to tell him not to worry about it? Of course, they were here for different reasons, they had a mission. But it might pay to at least know who and where the Force-Sensitives were. Raine nearly called it in there when a stray thought struck him. The war against the Imperial intruders back home. Of course the Troopers weren't to blame, only following orders like they were conditioned to. They killed for their job, just like Raine's boys had killed for their home. No, it was the recruiter who Raine thought about now. The dark-robed man who had reduced one of the kids to a smoking husk in mere seconds, just to demonstrate his power. A power that Raine found he craved, not to hurt people with but to secure the people he cared about, to make them safe. If he called in those people in the bar, the same kind of scare tactics might be used. People could die, who had nothing to do with it. Just to make a point about power. Fortunately for Nokon, the moment of thought saved him from the decision, as he received new orders through his comm. Orders that made him groan in frustration, being second fiddle yet again. And to Veyura no less. This would be lovely... He nearly turned and went back into the bar; considering this was a pub crawl that should be a fine start, before Veyura's voice chimed in over the comm. Raine sighed and rubbed his temples for a moment, preparing himself for what was sure to be a mind-numbing evening before starting out for the coordinates. IC (Roka Zale, Stray Tach): Roka listened intently, his face falling as he heard about his friends troubles. "They left you stranded like that?" He asked incredulously. "They may as well have just shot you! Lucky you were able to limp here then, huh? Less lucky that it's Taris, and not somewhere more towards the Core..." An idea began to form in Zale's mind, and he spoke slowly as it took shape, trying to choose his words carefully. "Look, I... Just picked up a job, you know? One I'm not very thrilled about taking, if you catch my meaning. If you let me take a look at your girl, maybe I can help get her patched up? You know I had to retrofit Steadfast's hyperdrive, her backup could probably be made to work with a little modification. Then you can tail along behind me, back me up, and we'll split the payout. Get somewhere with cheaper goods, better jobs, and more access to parts. Everyone profits right?"

Also one of those humans is half-Balosar too. It really is a mess.

IC (Nokon Raine, Roka Zale): Roka stiffened as he felt a dark chill was over him. Something was wrong. He had felt things like this before, almost always before something bad happened, but this was bigger, something very very bad was going down. He glanced around the bar, grateful for his obscured position in the shadowy corner. His gaze was drawn to the hulking dark figure at the bar, Zale guessed whatever his senses were twlling him, it had something to do with that man. Zale got out of his chair slowly, aiming to slip out of the bat before he attracted any attention... Raine meanwhile, was distracted. As he had pulled his senses back, he'd caught just a hint of something, some kind of reaction... At least three different ones. Even for him, that didn't usually happen during a passive scan. At least three people in this bar had felt his presence, and reacted to it. He didn't know who, and didn't dare reach out again. Best to let them think he hadn't sensed anything; at least until someone more talented could check. Someone like... Nokon looked down at his near-empty drink, considering his options. He wasn't very good at this, but it was worth a shot... He tipped back the glass and downed the last of his drink, deliberately inhaling part of it and sending himself into a loud coughing fit. He stood up from the bar and rested a hand on Liare's shoulder; "Sorry!" He coughed out, shaking his head. "Be right back!" With that, Nokon turned and headed for the door, hoping the physical distraction would be enough to disguise his attempt at sending a message to Liare via Force Suggestion: Check for Force-Sensitives. Zale froze as he saw the big guy moving, that wasn't in the plan! He panicked and sat down at the nearest free seat, disturbing his new drinking buddy. "Sorry, sorry!" He whispered, eyes still on the big guy as he walked out the door. "Must've lost my balance and--Wait, Isariah?!" He said as he recognized the person whos drinking he disturbed. An old smuggling contact, the two had traded cargo half a dozen times in the past and been on relay runs a dozen more. "What the frack are you doing on Taris?!" He asked, his troubles momentarily forgotten.

Hey, quick question about 'basic' Force abilities. Would something like Suggestion/Mind Trick be covered in Inquisitor training, even on an incredibly basic level? It doesn't seem like a Light exclusive ability, and I imagine it would be very useful for gathering information.

IC (The Stray Tach, Nokon Raine): Raine chuckled into his glass, shaking his head at his commanding office. "Trust me Liare, if she gets the credit for the bag, I'll shove you down the lift shaft and jump after myself. Can't stand the woman really, and she'll only be more insufferable if she gets the bag. Why did we bring her again?" Nokon paused, glancing around the bar. Something felt strange to him, something was off about this place. It looked, felt, smelled, and tasted like any other dive bar he'd been to, but something made him uneasy. He narrowed his eyes and slowly reached out with the Force, testing the waters of this place. There was something, something familiar... Some kind of presence, perhaps. Nokon sighed as he pulled back to himself, his skills lay more in augmenting his physical abilities, this was not his strong suit. Hopefully he could talk to Liare about it, see what the other man thought, if he even felt anything.

IC (Nokon Raine, The Stray Tach): Nokon raised an eyebrow is surprise at the man who spoke up beyond Liare. He hadn't expected the leader of this group to have struck up a friendly conversation, though thinking back it fit with the man's personality. Some kind of cover story it looked like, with talk of a spacer and cargo... He could work with it. "Ah, so that's where you disappeared to." Raine said to Liare, taking another sip out of his drink. "You'd have just held me up anyway, even if there were information to hide. The gangs I ran into knew nothing, I'm confident of that. Waste of time down there." He reached across the bar and offered his hand to the other person in what he hoped was a friendly gesture. "Raine. Seems my crewmate here has already told you a bit about what we're up to." IC (Roka Zale, The Stray Tach): Zale sat in silence for a few moments, taking shots of the whiskey and mulling over what had just happened. Running drugs, something he'd tried to stay away from since his first trip out here... But he needed the credits bad, and he wasn't sure he could afford to make it to another planet with better contacts. This had been a risk anyway. And besides, he was pretty sure he knew where the drugs were going, and if he was right then he'd have a long talk with the people he was dropping them off to... Eventually the smuggler kicked back from the table and turned his chair around, scanning the rest of the bar. He felt somehow uneasy about this place, but his eyes told him that it was no different than some of the other bars he'd been to, it even looked a lot better in some cases. It was mostly clean, for one thing.But he couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong, and his gaze kept going back to a trio of people at the bar. Fairly unlikely, other than the fact that one of them was apparently a giant or something. Zale shook his head and sighed, it had been a very strange day regardless. he kicked back in the chair and continued scanning the bar, looking for any interesting characters.

IC (Nokon Raine The Stray Tach): The large Inquisitor grumbled to himself angrily as he took one of the few active turbolifts upwards, towards the top of the city where they had arrived. He'd gone down after splitting off from the group, assuming that their prey would have gone into hiding among the rats the littered the darkness below. Instead, he'd found nothing but scattered gang members, fighting over meaningless bits of turf and outdated and broken tech. Some had been foolish enough to try and take his coat, and he had taught those whelps the meaning of fear. Unfortunately, though he had enjoyed the distraction, he hadn't found the pilot. As the doors to the lift slid open, Nokon squinted at the sunlight, raising a gloved hand to block out the offending beams as he stepped onto the walkway. He needed a drink. A quick interrogation of one passerby pointed him to a nearby bar, They Stray Tach. Looked like a dive. Nokon wasn't going to complain. He stepped across the street and shoved at the door with one hand, striding inside and looking around. He let out a small sigh as his gaze settled on Liare, apparently also back from his assignment. He was the only one here that he knew, however, and he needed information on what had been going on. Striding up to the bar, Nokon nodded to the Wookiee barkeep, butting into her conversation just a bit. "Excuse me. A Coruscant Cooler, please?" He said, sliding a credit chit across to bar to her. Taking his drink a moment later, he turned and walked to where Liare was sitting and sat across from him. "Fancy seeing you here. You'll be pleased to know that I had no luck whatsoever with the hunt. I wonder if you fared any better?" IC (Roka Zale The Stray Tach): Zale cursed loudly to himself as he stumbled up a couple flights of stairs, looking at his communicator to check the time. He had long since passed the time he was supposed to meet his contact, his stupid drive had taken him the wrong way and gotten him lost, so now he couldn't even trust his own head! Finally reaching the top and standing in the sun, Zale sighed and looked around. By some force of sheer luck, he found himself near the very bar he was supposed to meet his contact at. Three hours ago. Maybe he was still there...? Zale walked up to the door and slipped inside, ducking behind a huge man and looking around the bar. Nobody matching his contact's description stood out to him... He sighed and counted out a few small credit chits, deciding he at least had enough for a drink to calm his nerves. What he found was a bottle of Corellian Whiskey still on the bar nearby the Wookiee bartender. She seemed to be kind of busy... He counted out a handful of chits and set them on the bar next to the bottle before taking the booze and walking away, hoping that the money he'd left would be enough. He turned to walk away before nearly tripping over... What appeared to be his contact. A small Bothan with an eyepatch and greasy fur, glaring up at him. "You're late." Roka blinked in surprise at this turn of events, trying to process this strange turn of luck. "Um... Yeah, sorry about that. I kind of... Got lost--" "Don't care. Follow me." The Bothan said, turning on his heel and making for a dark corner of the bar. No wonder Roka hadn't seen him, the corner, it was practically as dark as deep space and twice as oppressive. The pair sat across from each other and the Bothan began to speak in low tones. "You're %@&$ lucky I need this cargo moved, boy. Else you'd be out of luck and on your way with no payout. But as it happens, this cargo needs moved, and I mean yesterday. So here's the deal. For making me wait, you take a hit on your cut. You take what I tell you, where I tell you. And then you don't do business with me again. I don't need this kind of lazy unprofessionalism." Zale stopped mid-drink, thinking over the terms. This sounded shady, even for him. But on the other hand, he had made the Bothan wait, for what amounted to no reason. And was drinking during their business meeting. And had nearly tripped over him. So really... "What am I hauling and where?" "Good man." The Bothan said, sliding a holopad across the table. "You're taking... 'Stimulants.'" Roka slumped in his seat more, the Bothan meant drugs. The one thing Zale had promised to never run again. And now he needed money. "I have contacts in the Corellian system, they'll distribute it. I'm just the supplier. They'll give you your payout too, what little of it you'll get after this." "Of course..." Roka said, already suspecting who the dealers might be. "Sounds standard. And I assume you'll take care of the permits and everything else?" "Like a professional." The Bothan jabbed snidely. "Since it's so late though, the soonest I can deliver will be tomorrow at some point. Same customs officer as the one you met on the way in. Roka agreed to the terms reluctantly and after going through a few more details he shook on the agreement, gave his ship detils, and was left alone at the bar to drink his bottle of whiskey.

So, I realize I dropped off the map a bit, and should probably explain that. I kind of lost my RPing partners for Zale, it seems, which put me at a pause because I didn't want to just move forward on that. Then my roommate situation kind of blew up... I lost internet for awhile there, and ended up having to move halfway across the country. I've just now gotten set back up, and am ready to get back into things. Please consider this my formal apology to anyone I was RPing with that got left hanging. That being said... I have no idea what's going on now. I'm not sure where would be good for me to put Zale and Nokon back into the rotation, and if anyone would be willing to help me out with that, I'd be very grateful...

IC: (Nokon) Raine stiffened as the third member of their party appeared, clasping his hands behind his back. He wasn't afraid of her, per se, but something about her presence and her poison-laced words was... Unsettling. He set his face in stone, not betraying any emotion as he responded to the woman; "I think... Hiding behind a mask, making yourself an 'unknown' as you put it, to give yourself the edge of fear... Is cheap power. Power, true power, comes from within. Yourself and what you do, that is where you inspire fear from. And if you can't do that... Well, maybe you need the mask." He replied with a wry smile, before looking back to Sarir. "Though I do hope that is indeed the reason, using that 'fear'. Otherwise that puts all our features at risk, and well... I just can't lose this." He said, motioning to his face. "This... This is the moneymaker, I need this!" He chuckled, finally letting a genuine smile break across his face. "But anyway, we likely should pay attention to the mission. Gear up and get some details, I would assume? Where to, Liare?"

IC: Zale Roka laughed awkwardly, crossing his arms and grinning at the young man. "You know that is a fantastic &@()()@#^ question! Secondly, I tried the wandering around thing to get out of here and that's how I found you again! Actually lost you for awhile back there. As for why I started, I have no good answer for that. My gut told me to. Looked like you were dealing something, and caught my interest. Not really sure why, I don't touch the stuff. Doesn't do much for me, you know?" He said, reaching up and motioning to his barely-visible antennae. He sighed and shook his head. "Look, I don't know why I'm here. I had a prior engagement that I probably missed by now, but something told me I had to follow you. Then I lost you, closed my eyes and wandered around, and... Saw you here. I'm as confused as you are." IC: Raine Nokon smiled halfheartedly at his seemingly happy-go-lucky companion. He nodded at the mention of ducking Inquisitors and chuckled. "Oh, I know what that's like too. Spent most of my life doing that, till certain extenuating circumstances forced my hand... And now I'm here. I'll watch your back, Sarir, even if you've got better things to do than watch mine. And when we come back successful, I might be able to track down some Corellian wine to split between the four of us. Or maybe three, I don't know that I'd trust Veyura either, especially around my drinks." He walked in silence for a moment before his brow furrowed in question. "By the way, what the #@^% is it with Dark users and masks? There are a LOT of Dark users that have them, way more than it seems is necessary."

IC(Nokon): Raine turned and followed Sarir, easily keeping pace with his long legs. "Yes, and a potentially important one at that." He agreed, looking forward to finding their last teammate. He took a moment to organize his thoughts, clenching and unclenching his fists to calm himself. "On a serious note, I wanted to mention a thing or two. I want to tell you that I'm not going to stab your back. I know what a lot of people around here think of me, that I'm power hungry and want advancement. But I respect that power, and the authority that comes with it. You're my leader on this mission, and I'll back you up. "That being said, the offer I gave the Chief still stands. I grew up in Coruscant's underbelly, I know planets like this. I think it would be wise of you to listen to offered advice. On a team of three, having a lieutenant is kind of a stupid thing to do, but advice is another thing entirely. Depending on where we go down there, it could be very easy to get lost. I want to advise not letting the power of authority go to your head, and end up not listening to anyone else." IC(Roka): He was getting closer, he could tell. It wasn't a feeling he could describe, but he knew his objective was close. What that objective was, Zale didn't know. All he knew was that when he closed his eyes, something guided him in a specific direction, and with a feeling of urgency. Roka rounded the next corner and opened his eyes to see the streets, only to duck back quickly as he saw a pair of men in front of a dilapidated building. It was them, the two who'd led him down here in the first place. Roka took a deep breath and pulled his vibro-knife out of his boot, tucking it up into his sleeve before peeking around again. One of them seemed nervous, glancing around a lot. The other was more calm, looked like he might have been a local. He sighed and shook his head, all he wanted was a way back up and now he'd found these two again. This should prove to be interesting... Roka Zale stepped out from around the corner, slowly heading in the direction of the pair. He held his arms away from his body, trying to look unimposing as he called out. "So... What are you guys dealing? Glitterstim, death sticks, spice? Better question, this one for myself, why the #### do I care? Third question, can either of you help me back up? I'm very lost at this point."

IC: Ohen shrugged, leaning against a wall. "Well sorry, I guess seeing the tower of a legend being besieged set something off. I was just trying to help."

IC(Roka): The pair hadn't quite lost Zale, though he didn't know that. All he knew was that he was following his... Instincts? He didn't know what to call this, but it seemed to be tied to his luck. He would turn a corner, open his eyes to see the new street, close his eyes again and just... Walk. He didn't know where he was going, but any direction was better than staying put. Maybe he'd find those guys again, or somebody who would tell him how to get back to the main streets. IC(Nokon): Raine sighed and nodded, taking a step back and folding his arms. They'd be heading out soon, he needed to talk to Sarir. Nokon cleared his throat to get the smaller an's attention, speaking softly (For him). "Before we leave, we should likely speak." He rumbled, trying to keep the edge out of his voice.

IC: "Well of course the company had nothing to do with it, that's not... At least, I don't think that how you'd operate." Ohen said to the camera. Tony Stark was a personal hero of his, he didn't want to believe the man's company had anything to do with intentionally supplying terrorists. "But things happen, stuff goes missing, right? Those people don't understand that..." He paused, crossing his arms as he shrugged. "And yeah, I'm superhuman. Kinda new around here, just got into town today... This isn't exactly how I thought I'd be making my introductions..."

IC(Nokon): Raine pushed down at the anger welling up in him, both for the perceived slight of being passed over for this mission, and the disrespect from Sarir. He had to remind himself that these offenses were likely not personal, the Chief had taken a shine to Sarir, and Sarir just... Liked to joke about at other peoples expense. Okay, that one might be personal... Still, the smaller man had been placed in charge, and that meant that for now, he was the boss. Nokon positioned himself behind Sarir, hoping to add support to the argument that 24 hours has too long to wait, and also hoping to intercept him when they were dismissed. He'd like to talk to this man before they left, see where his mind was.

IC(Roka): They knew he was there. Somehow, they knew he was following them and they were trying to get away. Not like he could blame them though, and he didn't even know why he was following them himself. They were moving faster, turning erratically. He was only following by noises now, which were growing ever fainter. Eventually, the sounds of movement faded completely and Roka stood alone in the dark twisting streets and alleys. He took a hard look at the streets, silently cursing his inability to keep up. Roka closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He wasn't sure which way he'd come from at this point, so finding someone; anyone, would be his best option. The streets exploded in his mind, a mental map of the layout he'd seen. This is where chance comes in, he though as his minds' eye scanned the immediate area. It was a skill he'd learned long ago, tied to his seeming endless luck. If he got lost, he could usually find a non-hostile face to get directions from, he just had to... Pick a direction. Like... That way, for instance. Roka turned, seemingly at random and began walking down another alley, opening his eyes just enough to see where he was going as he searched for a way out... OOC: Roka could be moving towards or away from you guys at this point, I'll leave that one up to you. IC(Nokon): The imposing face raised an eyebrow at the mention of Taris from the Chief Inquisitor. He hadn't studied the lore and stories of the Sith closely, but one would have to be completely inept to not know about Taris. It was a big name for them, and if that's where they were headed... Something big must be going on. And where better to be in the middle of a power imbalance than right in the center, claiming it for yourself. Taking a step forward, Nokon Raine clapped his leather-clad hands, the thud echoing through the mostly silent room. "Congratulations, Chief Inquisitor!" He began, a smile forming on his face. "An honor to be sure, being chosen to lead this mission. I wonder..." He mused aloud sticking his hands into the deep pockets his jacket afforded him; "If you might have need of a seasoned expert on Ecumenopolis'? If so, I would happily volunteer my services for the good of the mission."

IC(Roka): They were moving. Had they seen him? He'd been careful, quiet, how could they have seen him? In any case, they were exiting the alley now, he'd caught something about the Lower City... He could follow them, see where it led. But... Why? Why did Roka care about this? He was a smuggler, and he had a contact to go meet. A local drug deal shouldn't interest him at all. And yet it did... He felt as if there was something pulling him along, like the current of a river, and he had to see where this went... It was like that with that first run too, all those Death Sticks... It was the job, but something kept him from delivering. And this was the same feeling, something pushing him to go against what he thought he should do. It worked out fine the last time... Roka crept along the shadows as the pair left the alley, intent on following them to their destination. He stayed crouched near the exit for a few seconds before exiting, seeing the pair disappear down another alley. He followed them at a distance, trying to keep to the shadows and keep a low profile...

IC(Roka Zale): As Roka checked the alleys and dark corners, he eventually began to hear voices, drawing him closer. He ducked into the dark alley, trying to stick to the deepest shadows; his dark clothing hopefully helping him blend in. He pulled his blaster out of its holster and crouched, sneaking forward slowly, trying to make out the conversation. Something about... Force? Imperials keeping it from someone? What was that, some new kind of drug? As Roka's eyes adjusted to the darkness, he finally caught his first glimpse of the pair. Two men, both of them looked a bit jumpy... One of them reached out towards the other. This looked like a drug deal. But what was Force? Roka'd never heard of it before, it must be brand new... IC(Nokon Raine): "Oh yes, and we would so miss laughing at you and your running commentary." The massive human said, leaning back in his chair and shooting a grin at Sairir before standing up and straightening his long jacket, having sensed the approach of their commander. "Greetings, Chief Inquisitor." He said to the woman who walked through the door. "I assume you have something you want to talk to us about?"

IC: Roka guided his ship through the cityscape of the planet, aiming for the main landing platforms of the capitol city. After recieving confirmation on where to land, he took the ship gently down, feeling the shuddering as Steadfast's landing struts hit the solid platform. Roka took a few minutes to gather his things before heading down to the cargo bay and pulling out several crates, stacking them onto a hover-dolly and placing them near the exit ramp. Roka grabbed his datapad and exited the ship, looking around. "Last customs bay on the left..." He muttered to himself, his eyes landing on the Nemoidian manning the booth. He walked up to the gray-skinned alien, showing him the datapad. "Captain Zale of the Steadfast, I have a delivery of some foodstuffs here." He said, transferring over the falsified customs order. He didn't know who was ordering six crates of dehydrated meal replacements, but they were probably from the Lower City, or whatever was left of it. The Nemoidian looked over the records and nodded, speaking quickly. "Yes yes, all appears to be in order. Our people will unload the supplies, and refuel your ship. You are approved for travel on Taris." Roka nodded and smiled at the corrupt official before heading back to his ship to supervise the unloading. Once he was sure he was alone he checked his datapad to see the message the Nemoidian had surreptitiously transferred to it. "Credits will be transferred to you upon unloading of cargo. New contact has requested a meeting." Underneath were some coordinates and the name of some kind of bar, or entertainment establishment. Roka grinned at the news, hopefully he could pick up another job straight away. He headed out of the landing bay and onto the streets and walkways of the ruined city. As Roka walked towards his new destination, he began to feel some kind of... Heaviness. Not a sense of danger, as he got sometimes when something bad was about to happen, this was... Less direct. His walking slowed even as he saw the place he was heading for. His gut was telling him that something was happening around here, and his gut was usually correct... He walked past the bar, starting to look down alleys and streets to see if there was anything amiss...

Let's try this out... Spot 14, please.

Okay, I think I addressed all the issues presented. No idea what happened to the font there though... As far as the bblack belt thing goes, I was actually referring to the physical color of his belt, not a rank. That was unclear though, and I apologize.

Okay so at current we have: Shadowvezon: 5 Dragonstar: 1 Underscore:1 I know voting's gone on long already, but I'm going to leave it open until tonight to see if we can get in any more votes.

Fair enough, take your time. As I said, either way is cool with me.