Royale with Cheese (vex)

[Dire Wolf]

Rarely was Tahlia not only allowed to sit on the job, but was almost required to. Her combat boot clad feet were criss-crossed and propped up on another chair as she watched the people in the crowd come and go. It was almost funny to her how so many individuals seemed to act and move as one great beast when in a group. The creature known as a gaggle aimlessly wandered the streets of the space port, gaining a body for every one it lost.

Tali's mission wasn't to observe the psychology of individuals in a mob, though. It was to find a kidnapper before every merc, gun-for-hire, and bounty hunter in the core worlds did. This "man" made a living by ransoming high profile children, and it didn't take long for him to gain the attention of the Jedi Order. Since she had been assigned to him, she had been on something of a galactic manhunt for the man. After twelve systems the woman finally felt as though she was on the cusp of catching him. She knew it. That was why she called in a squad to assist her.

He made a mistake.

A business card was from local youth association was found crumpled on the deck of the last crime scene. As though it fell out of the man's pocket. The name on the card was, "Mavek Tapherder" who was quick to be ID'd and found. He lived in an appartment complex, the very one that lay across the street from her. A quick glance in either direction told Tali that her men were in position.

After a quick sup of her girlishly named drink, one delicate finger moved up to scratch her ear. Once the blip of he radio keying out reached her ears, she spoke calmly. "Lets get this guy." Two voices responded with, "Roger-tango," something she found strange, just before the armored men black began to move.

And so did she.

Tali's casual, loose fitting clothes perfectly hid the lightsaber at the small of her back, and helped hide her true purpose. her movements were little more than a blur as she all but flew across the street and to the second floor. The woman leapt through the window just in time to see the authorities enter. Mavek was there. So was his lightsaber.

How did the Mando'ade say it? Osik?

Tali didn't even touch the ground before her body was hit with a tidal wave of... something. All one-twenty of her was flung through the wall opposite the window. The combination of her speed and Mavek's power sent her through another wall, and landing on a sturdy wooden table.

The plot thickens.

Blaster fire erupted in the room she had just been sent through before the woman could even stand. It soon began to thin. A few thuds and a scream later, it was gone. Bollocks. Tahlia rushed through the pair of Jedi-shaped holes only to feel another wave of power. Her vision blurred and the wind roared in her ears as she was cast out of a window. Furious was an understatement. After landing with a roll, she glared up at chuckling sociopath. "I'll find you and make you pay for that. Those men. Where is the boy!"

"What do you plan on doing? Break another wall at me?"

"No," she replied, lifting a trio of glass shards with her own power. "Jus-" she was cut off by those shards whistling past her ear. Seething was an understatement. "Oh. I'm sorry. Did I break your concentration?"

"We'll see who has the last laugh."

"It certainly won't be them," he motioned back to the dead man with his thumb.

This had to end but how?

[Vex]

(typing this stuff on an iPad is slow)



Vex wandered the streets on this part of Balosar.... His actions were't aimless, but to the casual observer it would certainly seem to be that way. He'd come here en route to Coruscant, where he had final business to attend to.


Briefly, he let his thoughts wander back to Aunna..the pain in her eyes and the torment that seeped from her, no matter how hard she'd tried to hide it from him during their parting. Things had gone exactly as he had intended....the break as clean as possible given the circumstances. It had still torn through him....to feel the pain that he was knowingly causing her, no matter how necessary he felt it was for her benefit. He pushed the memories from his mind, bringing himself back to the present. The end game of that action was soon to come. He was on his way to meet a contact....someone that could go and get him in contact with a member of the Republic Courier Corps. There was a delivery he needed to arrange before he could make that final journey to Coruscant and play the gambit that could protect that insufferable Corellian woman that he'd found himself attached to.

Finally dragging himself back to the present, he expanded the range of his senses, subtly probing his surroundings with the Force and searching for anything that might be a potential threat to him. He wouldn't meet this contact unless he knew he was without tail. While the Dark Jedi was very cautious and well versed I. Concealment, he survived to this day because of a carefully cultivated sense of paranoia. He wasn't about to abandon it now.

It wasn't difficult to pick up the thoughts of a pair of men that were working very hard to try and loiter about unobtrusively. He probed their minds, his paranoia notching up as it became clear by their surface thoughts that they were a team....that they were waiting to apprehend a suspect.

Law Enforcement? Had they managed to some how rack him down and prepare something ahead of time? He slid his hands subtly to his waist, that folds of that shadowed robe hiding most of the movement. The cool hilts of his sabers were there reassuringly. He was about to draw them out when their focus shifted, attention drawing to a woman. His own attention was brought to her as they focused and began to move toward a building across the street from him.

Relaxing slightly, he realized that, whoever they were, they weren't after him.

That lasted until he saw her move with an alacrity and precision hat could only come from the assistance of the Force. Dark eyes watched her intently as she launched herself up and into that window. His hands moved from the weapons to where his mask hung from his belt. He'd put it there to lessen anything unique about him and lower his profile. Lifting it, he'd fit it to his face, drawing in a deep breath of the cleaned air. He had the feeling that he was going to want to move soon, and quickly...but something caused hi. To remain where he was for the moment. He heard the sounds of heavy crashing...then blaster fire and a scream before the woman came back out another window and back o to the street in a roll.

He swiftly drew the Force about him to conceal himself, drawing down his presence in the Force to something negligible. He watched the exchange between the woman and the man that had appeared in the jagged opening of the window. The men were dead? That was interesting....they'd been well armed and backed up by the Jedi. He'd felt the bursts of power being used, but had assumed it had been done by her. Apparently he was mistaken. That was made clear as she prepared an attack only to have it countered by the man.

Another Force User...and not a friendly one.

Curiosity got the better of him and he eased back into more concealment to see what would happen. He needed more information...and what was that about a boy?

[Dire Wolf]

Tali's brows furrowed in frustration as she looked up at the large Feeorin Dark Jedi. When a Jedi was outclassed so thoroughly as Tahlia found herself to be, she was expected to retreat and call for backup. The problem was that if she did that it would take roughly a week for that to happen, and by then the Dark Jedi could move or simply kill the child. Neither of those was an option. A master would have likely cautioned her about the hasty path, but in her experience the best way to go about things wasn't always the prettiest.

"Nah, it'll be me," a pair of blaster pistols slid from their resting places on the holster that clung to either thigh of their own accord. Each weapon spewed blaster bolts at a rapid pace, each one of which was deflected by the Dark Jedi with relative ease. Each redirected bolt was sent back to the fiery haired woman, but she had grown accustomed to battling sith with her blasters of late. The redirected bolts only bit air and exploded against concrete.

A veritable torrent of accelerated particles eventually forced the Dark Jedi to break contact once one of her shots managed to pierce his defense and skim across the man's shoulder. The Force surged into the woman's muscles as her legs coiled, and released as they sprung up to send her through the hole that her body had made a few minutes before. Her feet barely connected with the deck before a scarlet blade screamed towards her chest. Had she not been an acrobat the woman would have been cut in half just then, but she managed to contort out of the way just in time to evade his brutal attack.

One of her blasters was replaced by the short hilt of her lightsaber. The legendary screech of a light saber ignited filled the air and was followed by the acrid stench of ozone. What followed was a fast pace test of reaction and skill. Every time Tali brought her pistol about to shoot the man he would direct it away just as the weapon discharged, and each time he would swipe at her with his lightsaber her short-sword sized azure blade parried it away. This blisteringly fast battle continued until Tali felt a heavy boot contact with her chest, and then the roar of the wind in her ears as she flew backwards.

Her weight slammed against something hard. Then it crashed against another wall. One final wall was pierced before the wind roared in her ears even louder, the lights grew brighter, and she felt herself contact the pavement three stories below.

And then she felt nothing.

[Vex]

Vex cocked his head, listening as the cacaphony of blaster shots echoed from above.  Even from where he was, it wasn't difficult to hear the sound of that fire being furiously deflected back and away.  Someone was using blasters against a Jedi...that was always a risky proposition if the Force User was decently skilled in combat.  Given the fury and rapid staccato pace of the blasts and sounds of deflection, he could only assume that the one defending against the shots was so skilled.

Imagine his surprise when the speed of the shots slowed and allowed the screech of another blade to be heard as that lightsaber came to life.  Then, the clash of sabers was heard, punctuated by the occasional shot as the fight took on a completely different tone.

Vex heard the sounds of security vehicles in the distance as their sirens warbled, but he doubted they would come in time.  No doubt some good samaritan had called them given the ruckus.  As always, they would be too little, too late.  Especially as he heard several dull thuds before the girl came crashing through the last wall and fell, her landing cushioned by the ever so "soft" debris from the walls she'd come through.  He winced slightly, seeing her pistol and saber clatter away from her senseless hands.

Well...that certainly couldn't have felt good.

From his vantage point, he saw the Feeorin walk up to the edge of the hole she'd come through, gazing down at the Jedi with his saber still glowing with its brilliant crimson blade.  The tentacled man seemed rather pleased with himself, his mouth lifted in a sneer of contempt.  Flipping that crimson blade around so it pointed down, he stepped out.  His tendrils flapping around his head as he dropped, intent on driving that crimson blade down and through the unconscious woman.

It wasn't any of the Dark Jedi's business.  Logically, he had no reason to intervene and, given his track record, every likelihood that he would just leave things as they were.  Yet, for some reason, he wasn't walking away.  Maybe it was the flash of red hair that distantly reminded him of auburn locks.  Maybe it was the fiery determination and rash disregard for self that the girl showed when she leapt into battle against someone that completely outclassed her.  For whatever reason, the girl reminded him enough of someone, of Aunna, that he couldn't simply let it end here.

So, before he fully thought it out, he was moving forward, the Force screaming suddenly in his blood and accelerating his movements as he came to intercept the falling Dark Jedi in his lethal drop.  Crimson and violet flashed out, catching the tip of that blade and deflecting it to the side and away less than a foot before it would have skewered her.

Vex briefly saw the shock registering on the man's face at his sudden appearance; his own camouflage was far better than most.  Then his shoulder impacted with the man, who was helpless do do anything in mid-fall.

Pity he couldn't have used one of the blades to simply kill the man as they impacted, but he needed the force of both to keep that blade from hitting her.  Nevertheless, his own inertia and speed was enough to send him sprawling and tumbling away.

Vex stood over the inert form of the girl, blades flipping around in his preferred reverse grip.

The Feeorin pushed himself to his feet, wiping blood from his lip as he held his blade up to ward off any forthcoming attack.  Seeing Vex's crimson blade, his eyes narrowed, that superior expression and foul mirth replaced with consternation and confusion.  "Who are you?  Why do you interfere in business that is not your own?"

"No one to be trifled with... and my reasons are my own."

"You'll regret getting involved and crossing me.  The Feeorin stepped closer, falling into his stance in preparation to go on the offensive.

"I doubt that.  You have one chance to survive if you leave now."  Vex' words dismissed him off-handedly, making the Feeorin snarl in anger.  The man's hand moved into a claw as he drew upon the Force to collect some of the debris in preparation to launch it at Vex.

That was about the time Vex's presence slammed down against his mind like a sledge, the mental force blasting away his focus and making the man physically stagger.

Vex grinned beneath his rebreather, the mirthless expression reaching those dark eyes.  "Oh.  I'm sorry.  Did I break your concentration?"

His mocking echo of the man's earlier statement made the man seethe more and he seemed poised to attack regardless.  However, the sirens had gotten louder and self-preservation prevailed.  Straightening, he backed up.  "This isn't over."

He then turned and disappeared down a side road.

Sighing, Vex waited until his presence was suitably diminished from his senses before he turned off his own blades and clipped them to his belt.  Stepping forward, he'd turn to look down at the woman.  She was hardly in good shape...but she wasn't dead yet.  Lowering to a knee, he pressed his palm to her chest.  Willing the Force through the contact, he forced healing into her to help mend the worst of her injuries and get her back on her feet.

It wasn't soothing, it wasn't gentle...not like the Jedi preferred to do things.  His healing power was like a battering ram slamming into her, searing the wounds as they healed them and causing as much pain, or more, than what caused the damage itself.  It would steal the breath from her and force her back to consciousness kicking and screaming if necessary.

[Dire Wolf]

Tali's eyes flew open and a violent inhale of air was heard from her as Vex's dark form of healing sent searing waves of pain through her form. Her vision seemed to blur and double as she looked up at the dark figure that dominated her view of the world, but the excruciating pain was too violent and powerful to allow her to do anything but kick her legs and latch onto the man's arm. A scream attempted to push its way past her lips, but the only thing that passed her vocal chords was a weak croak. A mixture of terror and pain caused the woman's hands to squeeze against Vex's powerful arm and attempt to push it away, but his limb may as well have been made of steel. Her one attempt to gather enough focus to send him sprawling backwards was in vain, as the pain was far too great for her to do anything but writhe underneath his grasp.

Each of Tali's wounds ceased to bleed and the skin closed together into scars, but this was hardly a painless event. Electricity seemed to have burnt each of her numerous albeit superficial wounds shut and that scream finally found its way through her throat. Each elegant finger tightened its grasp around the immovable object that was the man's muscular arm until she was sure that it was broken, but perception isn't always reality. What felt like an excruciating eternity was really only a quick few moments, and once those few seconds had passed his influence over her wounds passed with it. Each of her wounds still felt as if they had been put to flame for a few moments after he withdrew from her, but the pain was quick to subside.

While the terrible heat had long left her body, something else remained. Something dark. This Dark Jedi's own grotesque and abominable form of healing seemed to have reached won into her very soul. It left an imprint there. A scar of sorts, even if it hadn't been his intent. As he stood she scrambled away from him as a mouse scurries from a cat, and found her feet a few meters away from him. A sleek and streamlined blaster pistol slapped against the soft flesh of her palm and was leveled on the infamous Vex Praetor in the flash of an eye, and her lightsaber quickly followed. If it came down to a battle she would surely lose, but if he attacked her she would scarcely have a choice. Confusion took her as the cacophony of police sirens filled her ears and caused the Jedi to whirl around with her blaster pointed squarely at an officer's head.

Some good citizen called the police. Good thinking, but bad judgement. If Mavek could easily best a squad of the Republic's finest special forces and herself, these peace officers would be little more than meat to the slaughter. A heavy sigh caused the woman's shoulders to deflate before she slipped her pistol into its holster on her thigh and turned back around to view the Dark man. No doubt these police officers would attempt to arrest him, and despite her earlier assumptions she felt no danger emit from him. Judging by his rather horrifying skills at what was presumably healing, he probably saved her life.

"Vex Praetor," the woman's shoto found her grasp, but instead of being lit she clipped it to her belt. "I guess I should thank you for... whatever that was. Don't do it again, though. I think I'd rather cut off my arm and fist myself with the limb than go through that again, even if it meant dieing."

A tattooed hand ran through her deep crimson hair before she spoke once more, "why did you save me? And... where did Mavek go? That Feeorin. He has a child... a little boy."

[Vex]

He'd felt her grip, felt her writhe beneath him and attempt to get away from his healing, needed though it was. He would remain their, implacable and uncaring of the bite of her fingernails into his skin while his focus remained on the act that he was conducting. Distraction could mean death...and he didn't let people die unless he wanted them to.

She recovered quickly, which was good...that slight form already moving when he finally did release her. Dark eyes watched her with some amusement as she bounced to her feet, flicking to the pistol she leveled at him and the blade she wielded once more. If he had any concern about them, he certainly didn't show it.

No, he simply smiled darkly, the expression hidden by the mask but evidenced by the narrowed corners of his eyes. His hands moved, slowly as though she were some simple, fearful cub that he did not wish to startle. His thumbs hooked on the belt at his waist, near enough to those blades to access them, but not so near as to be threatening.

She wasn't the only one aware of the police that were arriving around them. When she whirled, bearing down on one of them, helaughed lightly under her breath while she turned and finally. When she called him by name, he arched a brow, but shrugged at her words. "If you are so ready to give up your existence and pass on to the Force, then I shall duly note it and ensure I don't intervene next time, Jedi."

Peering at her, he queried her lightly. "I wasn't aware that I was so well known or had a fan base at the Academy. Been watching too much of the holofeed?" The question was unspoken, but no less apparent: how did she know who he was?

At her other questions, he nodded his head in the direction of the alley that her opponent had fled down. "The coward fled that way. I saw no child. Does it matter why I do something? Is it not enough that it is done?"