IC: Sun in the Shadows

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...


[OOC: Feel free to go ahead and describe your character and whatever (s)he is doing. You are all currently in the waiting room outside of Senatorial Aide Sabé's office. Your weapons have all been confiscated to be returned when you leave.]

Ashur-Zannukan sits waiting in the senatorial aide's waiting room, idly examining the surroundings. On his shoulder he can feel the sharp talons of Tassuḫtu, his falcon-like banshee bird. At his side he gently strokes Simannu's soft fur, the huge silvery gold cat causing a great deal of discomfort in the room. Ashur-Zannukan can feel it as the ancestors whisper it in his ear--even here they follow him, and he is grateful.

Ashur-Zannukan is an incredibly handsome man of twenty-five. His strong jaw is outlined by a well-trimmed beard that joins his jet black hair beneath his turban. His skin is a rich fair olive, his piercing eyes dark green--darker than the imperial jade pendant hanging against his chest from a heavy gold chain. He is strong and well-built. Where he came from on the desert world of Urush his clothes were considered ornate, but here in the glittering center of the universe they are only exotic and primitive. Over his right eye is a strange tattoo that those knowledgeable of such things would recognize as a mark of tribal membership.

Ashur-Zannukan glances around at his fellow waiters with only mild curiosity, for strange beings have become normal to him and he is not yet experienced enough to learn much from appearances. One is a mere Human dressed in ordinary clothes. Another is an exotic near-Human woman with silver skin--but Ashur-Zannukan has no eye for women since the death of his wife. The third, however, catches his eye--a man with royal blue skin and glowing red eyes. Even this alien only maintains Ashur-Zannukan's eye for a moment, however.

Ashur-Zannukan's thoughts are on the past. On the coming of the white-clad demons from beyond the stars. Of the fires and the screams and the death. Of seeing his wife dead--of losing his little ones. Sul-Sapuul lying face down in the sand, his blood pooling around him. Ishasshi fallen amidst her dolls. Arkanish gunned down from where he had tried to run. Asusimtu crying his last screams. And he himself helpless. He had bitterly wondered at the time where the ancestors were then. He understands now that even the ancestors cannot always stop these demons, that their evil lord empowers them with his hate. But it doesn't make the pain and bitterness go away. Ashur-Zannukan closes his eyes and a single tear falls down his cheek, weaving across his tattoo. He draws in a deep breath and waits.

Settling deeper into her ornately carved chair, Sidralaynu Eydral M’borka lets out a barely audible sigh as she smooth’s the long green and purple layers of her skirt, the soft slippery material sliding gently between her fingers. Though impatient to see the Senators aide, her silver face betrays no emotion but calm serenity. To the casual observer, she looks as if she belongs in the halls of the Senate because of her regal bearing and beauty. Her violet eyes are expert in hiding her thoughts like a skilled politician; her light blue lips set into an easy smile, her silver skin has been marked with shimmering cosmetics, and her knee length black hair has been carefully braided and twisted into an ornate style that twinkles with jewels. However, Sidralaynu feels incredibly out of place, having never been off her planet until three short months before.

Sidralaynu grips her small velvet hand bag, reassuring herself that it is still there, and then chuckles quietly at the irony. The bag contains a small quantity of jewels that are incredibly abundant on her planet where they are not worth much. However, to the outside world the diamond hard blue stones are quite valuable, and these are to be given to Sabe to help fund the resistance. This feels like such a small gesture. I only hope I can do more to stop these horrible Imperial forces. They will pay for invading my world, for killing my royal family. Whatever it takes, I will do my best to fulfill my duties to protect my people.

A soft growl interrupts Sidralaynu’s musings and she turns her attention to the large cat curled up at her master’s feet across the room. She relaxes slightly as he reaches down to pet the cat. She examines the animal with guarded curiosity, noting its resemblance to a much smaller creature on her planet that is no larger than her hand and is commonly kept as a house pet. She looks away, not wanting to pry, when her newfound ability kicks in and gives her a vague sense of the man’s thoughts, mostly the feeling of intense sadness. Her first hibernation left her with the gift of telepathy, but since she was woken early it had not fully developed and the only ones who could have helped her master the gift were dead at the Empires hand. The man next to him, a human with a cheeky grin, gives her a wink and scoots a little bit farther from the animal. Her attention then shifts to the other person in the room, the one sitting closest to herself. His blue skin and red eyes also set him apart sitting in the foyer of a human’s office. Feeling a little more at ease and assured that she is not the only stranger, she decides to break the heavy silence that has hung over the small group. After a brief hesitation, she turns to the Chiss.

“Hello. I am Sidralaynu Eydral. I am new here, and I must say that I have never seen such a beautiful sunset. Are they always this stunning?”

Ashnat'ena'hadorukeo sat in the room, taking in the environment. By the standards of those from this planet it might have been a beautiful scene, but he was unimpressed. He was a traveler, and at this point he was fairly certain that there was nothing he had not already seen. Tenah himself was wearing casual clothes like those of a smuggler - he had hoped that blending in would avoid being called upon like this. He tapped his left black boot impatiently on the floor. He didn't have time for this... If the guards searched him he woukd be in trouble - there were more than a few illegal possessions in his pack.

Looking at his compatriots in the room, he saw that most of those in the room were the bland humanoid inhabitants of this part of the galaxy. Only one stood out to him, with silvery skin that forced him to turn his gaze toward her momentarily. He realized shortly thereafter that this was a mistake, as she had caught his glance and seen an opportunity to strike up a conversation. She asked what he thought of the sunset on this planet.

He responded, "My name is Ashnat'ena'hadorukeo, but most call me Tenah. I am not from this planet either. This sunset does have the qualities of shifting light that the people of this part of the galaxy see as fascinating and beautiful. To me, this world is too warm to truly enjoy."

He had no idea why he had been called here. He did not seem to fit in with anyone in the room. He would just have to wait until he was called into the room to see what this person who called had in store for him.

Valco Fee'Dak sat in the room with three others. One might find there look strange and different but Valco had seen men and women with every color skin in the book. So, Valco just sat back in his chair and waited for whatever came next. He still gave the female a grin and a wink, and watched the blue man with glowing red eyes.

A polished gold ||TC-series droid|| steps into the waiting room. "Good day, gentlebeings," he says in his smooth electronic voice. "Mistress Sabé will see you now. If you will follow me..."

The droid leads you into an ornate office decorated in classical Naboo style, with various elegant Core World accents. Sitting behind an expensively engraved and inlaid desk is ||Sabé|| herself.

"Welcome to Coruscant," she says, rising to great you. "You must all be wondering why you are here. Please, sit down. TC-36, please bring some Alderaanian tea."

"Yes, Your Grace," the droid says, soon returning with fine china teacups of Alderaanian tea. After he has served everyone, he leaves.

"I speak to you on behalf of a freind," Sabé says when the droid has left. "I will introduce you to my friend in time, but for now my friend wishes to remain anonymous. More to the point, on my friend's behalf I wish to hire you for a very sensitive long-term mission. This is no idle errand.

"I selected you all for your various skills," she continues, "and because many of you hold no love for the Empire. Do not worry; my office is not bugged. I make sure of it. Provided you accept, you will be paid handsomely in Imperial credits via secure private accounts through Muunilinst.

"Before I begin you on your primary task, however, my friend and I want to know that we've selected the right people," Sabé says. "In order to do that, we have a smaller task for you to perform.

"There is a certain Tapani nobleman named Marquis Jantje van Fluyt* who is currently on Coruscant for business. He is a firm believer in the New Order, but his daughter Alija** is not--in fact, she is very sympathetic to our cause. While the Marquis is on Coruscant, this leaves Alija home alone on Tapan. I am sending you to rescue her from the Van Fluyt mansion and deliver her to a location on Dantooine, where you will be paid ₰2000 each and given access to the base's medical facilities if you are injured." Sabé slides a datacard across her desk. "This has all the information you will need: a schematic of the Van Fluyt mansion, the coordinates on Tapan, and the coordinates on Dantooine, as well as the transmission code to safely access the Dantooine base. Any questions? You may leave as soon as you are ready."

*/jantjǝ van fluyt/ or "yantyǝ von floüt" where the "ü" in "floüt" is pronounced like French u or German ü
**/alija/ or "ahleeya"
₰ = credits

OOC: A reminder that the ||~|| indicate links since links do not show up well on these boards. Yes, Sabé is who you think she is--check her filmography.

Sidralaynu is happy to follow the droid, eager to learn what she can do to hurt the Empire. As she walks into the room she is only slightly impressed with its splendor, being more concerned with the elegant woman sitting at the desk that dominates the opulent room. As the group settles into the low cushioned chairs strategically set in front of the desk, Sidralaynu experiences a moment of dismay when she ends up next to the desert native, more specifically, next to his fierce animal. Remembering her training, she settles calmly onto the edge of the seat, resolutely ignoring the creature while keeping it in her field of vision. It briefly glances up at her, and deciding that she isn’t a threat, settles down next to his master.

Sidralaynu graciously accepts her cup of tea and turns her attention to Sabé as she addresses the group. When the “anonymous friend” is mentioned, Sidralaynu considers using her telepathy to find out his or her true identity. I know this woman only from what I have heard, but can anyone in the political world really be trusted? Then again, if this first mission’s objective is to ascertain our trust then I would be stupid to risk that trust now. I’ll let it go for the moment.

When Sabé finished her briefing, Sidralaynu remained quiet for a moment, deep in though. She did not like the thought of becoming a kidnapper, but if it was a rescue mission, well, that was something entirely different. However, she also wanted to keep her reputation and cover in the hopes of learning more about what had happened to her husband and finding a way to regain control of her home world. A plan began to form in her mind. It was not a perfect plan, and she would not mind abandoning it if the others wished, but she thought she should at least put it on the table.

“Would it be possible to procure a letter of recommendation to van Fluyt? As the daughter of a Marquis, surely she would be interested in procuring some valuable jewels? And as a “newly liberated” jewel merchant, I am in desperate need of high born clientele.”

The proposition humored Tenah. This was completely counter to the rules he had set for himself upon arriving in this part of the galaxy; however, at this point he was willing to entertain new approaches...

So this was a group of dissidents against the newly established Empire. An intriguing prospect to join them... it may actually help. Tenah leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, contemplating his position. He had nothing in common with these people - he felt no ill will toward this Empire. To join this Sabe person would be against his Chiss values, but he was used to being around the fringe crowd. Whatever it took to get the job done would be done...

Realizing that Sabe was about to dismiss them, Tenah interrupted by raising a finger to indicate a question.

"Why am I here?"

He could feel every eye suddenly shift to him. He kept his own eyes upon Sabe, hoping to read some truth through whatever response she would give.

Tenah smiled. "Fair enough, I'll join your motley crew." Then he mouthed to himself, "for now..."

This refresh in his course in this new galaxy might be exactly the change he needed. It might even enable him to make progress in his quest.

Ashur-Zannukan sits in the common area eying his companions as he whets his sword. He is simultaneously curious about them and suspicious. It wasn't all that long ago that he hadn't even known there were other sentient beings out there; now they had destroyed his people, his family, his life. He feels the tension in both Simannu and Tassuḫtu--Simannu lay restlessly at his side, her head moving occasionally to survey the room--and he could feel Tassuḫtu's sharp talons on his shoulder as she preened her feathers. Of course, he does not need these physical clues to sense their discontent, for the ancestors have given him a bond with these creatures.

Turning at last to the elegant silver-skinned woman, he says, "I am Ashur-Zannukan--you may call me Ashur for short. I believe we are both outsiders here."

While on her yacht after leaving Sabé’s office, Sidralaynu changed into some more comfortable but still elegant clothes, before briefly consulting with her crew. Her father in law had helped her acquire the ship and 2 Aritahzian youths capable of piloting it, an impressive feat that showed where her people’s true allegiance lay, with her, the only surviving member of the royal party.

Now on the much larger ship belonging to her new comrade Sidralaynu found herself feeling out of place. She makes her way to the commons room, where she finds the rest of the group. After awkwardly standing in the doorway for a moment, she strides into the room and finds a seat, taking out her datapad to look up some more information on the planet they will be visiting. She wanted to know what they were getting into before they discussed how they were going to proceed with their mission. However, Ashur’s interruption was not unwelcome.

“I am honored to have the pleasure of your acquaintance, Ashur. I am Sidralaynu, Sidralaynu Eydral. You are right, I am new to space travel. My people have had the capability for many years, but we have preferred to stay on our own planet and mind our own business. Now that we have been invaded that has changed. What brings you to the stars, Ashur?”

Ashur-Zannukan looks away for a long moment before answering, "Pain. Death. Loss." He smiles bitterly. "Loss of everything. My people--we knew nothing of life beyond the stars or the great magic the beings there wield--the magic to destroy with light and to travel from star to star. When they came we thought them gods, but we quickly learned that they are demons. They killed so many of us!" Tears began to stream down his cheeks. "I saw them kill my family. My wife, my three sons, my daughter. All of them. All so young--the oldest had not more than ten summers. And I...I could do nothing. They took me as a captive and intended to use me as a beast of burden--but they underestimated the power of the ancestors. Now I wander the stars as they do, waiting for my chance to avenge myself and my ancestors sevenfold on that archdemon they call 'Moff Zimnar'--and so fulfill the cries of the ancestors that demand blood payment."

As Ashur poures out his story, Sidralaynu can feel his pain, both telepathically and through her own, similar pain. When he finishes, head downcast and tears streaking his face, she reaches out and pats his hand. “I’m sorry, I am so so sorry.” They sit in silence for a few minutes before Sidralaynu looks up and addresses the group, tears shining in her violet eyes.

“The Empire has taken so very much from the two of us, and from so many, many more creatures around the galaxy. The things I have read about in the last few weeks… These monsters have taken over without a care. They are ruining lives, destroying planets, all for their own gain. Even though we are just individuals, we can fight it. Maybe our small acts, and the acts of others, added up, will be enough to bring them down. I have fought many monsters; I know that they can be broken. So, how are we going to approach this mission? How are we going to hurt them this time?”

...
OOC: Is anyone here going to suggest a course of action?

Tenah overheard the conversation between Ashur and Sidralaynu. He felt little emotion concerning their loss. "To me, this is just a job. My people don't believe in attacking those who have never threatened them, and I only differ from my people when there is money involved. " He pulled out his computer and began researching their target.

When the alert went off that they were approaching the planet, Tenah put his computer back in his pack and began to arm himself with his normal weapon: a miniature charric.

Running through the ship's hallways he reached the cockpit and spoke to the pilot, "How long till we land?"

OOC: Sorry to character jack, but I need a specific response here...

IC: Valco turns to face the blue skinned alien. "Well, we've arrived in system," he says, "but now we have to decide whether to take the yacht down or the gunship. It's a big starport and can certainly accomodate the gunship--which would be nice if we had to blast our way out--but we might draw less attention with the yacht. Lots of rich aristocrats there and all."

OOC: I now return you to your regularly scheduled characters...

As they drew closer to the planet, Sidralaynu stood by a view hatch in the yacht. Her lilac eyes widened as the planet grew near, a bright mass of colors swirling beneath her. This was a sight she would never get used to and never cease to enjoy. With a smile on her face she reluctantly turns her head away, but does not leave the spot.

"I wasn't sure at first, but I think this ship has been named well."

"Storm Flower? The name seems trite to me," Valco Fee'Dak replies.

Sidralaynu nods, and her smile grows wry. "On my planet the sohehr tsawr, or storm flower, blooms on the northern mountain slopes after the first cold rain of winter, and it only blooms at night. It is a small dark blue flower with an incredibly sweet smell. Its nectar is poisinous and kills within the hour if it is touched or ingested. There is no antidote. It supposedly tastes fresh and slightly sweet," she pauses, lost in thought, before changing the topic. "I hope we can get this girl, Alija, out of here without any trouble. It would help if we had a plan, but I guess we'll just have to make do."

"Perhaps we should ask directions," ||Ashur-Zannukan|| suggests, glancing back at the yacht where he reluctantly lives his familiars, his ||grey eyes|| flickering.

OOC: Check out my character finally rendered. I changed his eyes to grey because I felt like it.