Like A Gizka Fighting A Rancor [Rugs]

[Bones]

To put it simply, Jakob had almost given up on the resistance. He could never find them, and he followed every lead on their whereabouts intently, wanting to join their numbers. Want wasn't even the right word for it. Hope would be better fitting. Not only that, but only moments ago, he had been told that two of the resistance leaders had been captured, and were going to be executed. His frustration caused his grip to tighten, causing his knuckles to turn white on the wheel of the speeder he was driving. His speeder. His pride and joy. How many hours had he spent with Hannah in this speeder? He refused to think of the answer.

He could see the trees in the distance that was his goal. The river. He slowed the speeder, weaving through the shadows of the outer trees before they became too dense to navigate. He stopped, pulling the release, causing the entire cabin roof and walls to lift, moving up and forwards so he could climb out. He swung it shut with a sharp thud before walking the rest of the way, pulling on his jacket as he walked.

He stopped when he reached the river, allowing himself to fall into a sitting position, hanging his head into his hands. He took in a long deep breath, before swearing loudly, believing that noone could hear him. He stood, his rand reaching to one of his blaster pistols. He began firring, hitting a single tree repeatedly. He sighed, returning it to it's holster.

"Jay, you really, really need to learn to control your anger. It's a pretty hopeless situation, but you have to be able to do something. Even if you can't tell the resistance, you can still do something on your own."

He walked up the river a bit, finding a few larger rocks in the middle. He jumped between them, eventually coming to the furthest out, which was also the biggest. He sat down, looking at his own reflection in the slowly flowing water.

[Rugs]

Stress. Frustration. These could perhaps describe the emotions that played at the heart of Allistair Sampson, but there was more turmoil within the young man than that. He walked alone through a forest, heading towards a river that he liked to go to when he needed to be alone and get away from it all. And right now, he needed to get away from everyone else, even his brothers and sisters of the DLA. But these trips had been more numerous than he would have liked recently. You see, more than anything else, fear was tearing at Allistair. Fear, and a sorrow that penetrated him to the bone, though unknown to him at the time, at the heart of that sorrow was a seething rage, but it would make itself known later.

An ill-fated raid lay at the heart of everything.Some time ago, his brother and father had gone out on a raid, along with some other members of the resistance. Whatever happened, only one man had returned, and bore the news that Erle and Dutch had been captured. And that had been that. In one clean move, the Sith had taken captive the two most important members of the DLA. Now, the future of the resistance was unclear. Mo and Allistair had done their best to keep morale from hitting rock bottom, and a rescue mission had begun being planned almost immediately when the news arrived, but they didn't even know if Erle and Dutch were still alive.

Allistair could feel tears welling up in his eyes again, and his breaths suddenly came hard and ragged. He stopped and put his hand out on a tree to keep himself from falling to his knees as he tried as best he could to fight back the tears that had been coming to him too easily as of late. He'd already had so much taken from him by the Sith, and for no reason. His mother, his mentor, his home, and a number of his friends had all been lost in the attack, and if he lost his father and his brother too... They were the only family he had left. "Dammit, Allistair," he said quietly to himself as he felt warm tears rolling down his face, "pull yourself together. This isn't how either of them would handle it." But it was so hard, sometimes. It was hard not to give in to the fear the choked his heart. It was hard not to feel so completely and utterly helpless against the might of the Sith juggernaut when they could seemingly pick off the resistance's leaders at will. Even so, he couldn't give up. There'd be no mercy from the Sith if they got him, so he just had to keep on fighting, and trust that things would work out.

He untied the red scarf that had been a gift from his father from around his upper right arm and used it to wipe his tears away before returning it back to its place. He straightened his jacket a bit before continuing on. As he walked, the sound of a man swearing--rather loudly--caught his attention. Allistair's hand instinctively went to his blaster pistol and the sound of fire, and he unholstered it, keeping it held low in both hands as he continued forward. He didn't know who the man was, but he sure as hell wasn't about to be caught off guard. The young man stopped behind a tree and observed a large man as he sat on the ground and talked to himself. About the resistance, and about telling them something.

"Who are you," he asked as he slid around from behind the tree. His pistol was still out, though he held it low, not threatening the man with it. Any signs of the young man who'd been weeping only minutes ago were gone; his voice was hard and demanding, and he stood in a stance that spoke of one who'd fought before, and would fight again if need be. "And what business do you have with the resistance?"

[Bones]

The sound of another voice was enough to frighten him. Had a Sith scout heard him talking? Was he now found out? Either way, he didn't intend on letting the man leave if that were the case. He spun, and as he did so he reached inside his jacket, pulling out both blasters, levelling them at the man's head. He did, however, lower them immediately. He holstered them, looking at the young man. He felt like he had seen the face before, but he was different. He almost looked like the young man he had seen fight in Flint, but still completely different.

He stepped down from the rock, walking closer to the young man, "My name is Jakob LaPierre. My father owns the LaPierre estate." He said, stopping some distance away. "Are you, by any chance, related to Dutch Sampson. You sorta remind me of him. If you are, I have important news that you need to hear."

He continued to stare at the young man, running a hand over his shaved head as he did so. He took off his coat, throwing it over a low branch of a tree before he continued, "If you know where to find the resistance, you have to pass on a message to them. Two of their leaders are to be executed five days from now." He said, looking straight at the young man, seriously hoping that he wasn't a sith spy.

[Rugs]

Allistair tensed considerable when the man pulled out his blasters and leveled them at his head. He was about to return the favor with his own gun when the other man lowered his. The man's face seemed to turn thoughtful for a moment as he looked at Allistair, and Allistair thought he saw a look of recognition pass over his face for a moment before fading away.

Allistair holstered his own gun as the man spoke. He didn't know Jakob, but he knew of the LaPierre estate. If Jakob was telling the truth, then he was like the rest of them: a civilian who'd been swept up in the needlees violence that the Sith had thrust upon them. He felt another pang of sorrow pull at his heart at the mention of the capture of his father and brother. "We..." he said before stopping and looking away. The pain was clear in his voice, and his throat was tight from trying not to weep again. Why am I so sappy?! he thought with no small amount of irritation before turning his gaze back to Jakob. "We know," he said, a bit stronger, though his voice trembled a little bit.

He looked over Jakob with a measuring eye before deciding that he could say more; besides, the man already knew of the capture. Details wouldn't hurt. "They were captured on a raid a few days ago. Times have been... hard for the resistance since then." A faint smile touched his face and he turned his eyes to look straight into Jakob's. "And yes. I am Dutch's brother. My name is Allistair." He extended his hand to Jakob for a handshake before continuing. "But that's enough about that for the moment," he said. "So, how have you and your family fared since the invasion? I don't know if the resistance has been able to assist you any. We're... spread a bit thin at the moment."

[Bones]

He could hear the pain in the younger man's voice. He looked at him for a moment, unsure how to comfort someone. It wasn't anything he'd ever done before. He simply let it pass, taking Al's hand in his firm grip for a hand shake when it was offered. "Well... that's the bit that could have you a bit uneasy around me." He said, responding to the question about his family, "Apparently one of my father's old war buddies is one of the guys in charge here. My dear old father joined them." He told Allistair honestly.

"My friends and I tried to do bombings and so forth, but something always went wrong. They were eventually all killed or captured. So it's just me now." He said, thinking about the situation he was in. He wanted to fight against them, while his own father fought for them. He could almost feel what the tension in the house would be like, and the thought of his father finding out was terrible.

He looked back at Allistair and said, "I want to help in whatever way I can. That's why I can give you these." He pulled a piece of paper from his pocket as he spoke, still watching the younger man, "These are the Sith security passcodes that are being set up just for the execution." He held them out for Allistair to take before saying, "The old Mannick estate is being used as the current Sith Headquarters, and it's going down there."

[Rugs]

Allistair had not expected Jakob to tell him that his own father was in with the Sith. For the briefest instant of a second, suspicion burned in the back of his mind. Suspicion that this could all be a ploy set out by the Sith to capture or kill a resistance member when their guard was down. But it faded away as quickly as it came. Something about Jakob just felt right. Perhaps it was his seeming honesty, or perhaps it was the fact that Allistair had heard him venting his frustrations only a moment earlier. Or it could have been the play of a number of things that Allistair's mind picked up subconsciously and deciphered as honesty on the other man's part. Whatever it was, Allistair felt that Jakob could be trusted, and that he spoke truthfully. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarras and a lighter before lighting one up and blowing out a white plume of smoke. It was a habit he'd just picked up since his father and brother had been captured, and probably not the best thing to do, but he had to relieve the stress somehow. "Well, your father's decisions are his own to make," he said slowly before blowing out another puff of smoke. "I'm more concerned with what side you're on." He thought he already knew the answer, but he'd wait and see.

Allistair nodded as Jakob spoke about his own attempts at fighting against the Sith. "Yeah, I know how that is..." he muttered, loud enough for the other man to hear, but mainly to himself. Even though the resistance had grown to being able to operate with some regular degree of success, it had been hard getting to the point they were at now. They'd lost a great many people in the beginning, though. Allistair turned to walk a bit closer to the side of the cold, rushing water of the river and sat down on an old boulder that had been worn smooth from its time in the river more years ago than he cared to think about. "Much as I hate to admit it, those Sith are one hell of a force to fight against. Sometimes," he said with a sigh, "it can make you wonder why you're fighting..." Allistair laughed at that, a quiet, almost bitter laugh. "Feels like a Gizka fighting a Rancor sometimes. But we keep on fighting." His face turned up to look at Jakob's, and for a moment, hope sparkled in his dark brown eyes. "I mean, this is our home, y'know? We can't just let 'em do whatever they want without at least trying to fight back."

And then it happened. Perhaps whatever deities there may have been had heard the prayers of the resistance, or perhaps Allistair just walked in to some incredible luck, but Jakob produced the passcodes to get into the place where the execution would be held. If they were correct, it would be a huge boon to the rescue mission when it happened. For a time, all he could do was stare at the papers in shock. It was like the sun had finally punched its way through the storm clouds that had only seemed to grow darker with time. For the first time in a long time, he had a reason to have hope. "You do know," he said as he pulled his cigarra from his mouth before tossing it into the river and turned to look at Jakob," that if the Sith found out you had these, and you gave them to us, you'd get in a whole hell of alotta trouble, right? "I mean something like this could be execution-level, not just thrown-in-prison level." Allistair stood to his feet and walked back over to Jakob, looking the older, larger man in the eyes as he did. His decision was made.

"Look, from what I can tell you want to fight the Sith as much as the rest of us do. What do you say to joining the resistance? The work is hard, and it's more dangerous than a lot of people realize, but it's better than trying to fight off an entire army by yourself." He was earnest in his offer. The DLA needed as many fighters as they could get, and Allistair had the feeling that Jakob could be a very important ally to have if he decided to join.

[Bones]

He pulled out his own pack of cigarras just as Al went for his. He smirked, lighting one of his own. Jay listened to Allistair as he spoke about the frustrations of fighting against the Sith, and all the time, he felt like he could relate to the feeling. He sighed for a moment, closing his eyes and thinking about how much he actually wanted to fight back against them, to fight against the father that had taken away the love of his life.

When the younger man began talking about the possible outcomes of the passcodes, a knot formed in his stomach, but was quickly pushed away. Jay looked to him and said, "I don't intend on having them find out. Every Sith officer is given the same codes. I'm going to be there. I was going to go to support Dutch anyway. And yeah, if they found out it was me, I'd pretty much be shot on the spot." He sighed again before saying, "When somethings not right, ya just gotta fight, ya know?"

When Al suggested he join them, he thought for a moment, before saying, "There are complications. I can't just run off and live with all you. I know my father would become a real issue. It's going to make me like I'm that Gizka in a building FULL of Rancors." He sighed, pacing for a moment before saying, "I'm happy to join, but there need to be some sort of limitations on me. For your protection."

[Rugs]

Allistair nodded in understanding as Jay talked. "Well, it's good to know you already planned on being there for my brother." A smile touched the edge of his lips. "I think that says a lot about you. But you're right," he added on. "Your father could provide some trouble if you just up and left to live with us."

Allistair's brow furrowed as he thought. Jay could be a significant help to the resistance, but how to keep him in touch and up to date on things, or to let him know when he was needed for a mission? That would be the hard part, given the unique circumstances that the man had to deal with. Of course, none of them had become a part of the resistance with the expectation that things would be easy, but even so...

"Alright, here's what we'll do," he said as an idea came to mind. "It'll have to be a bit different, but we'll have to work with what we've got. In three days, come back here and meet with me again. Then, I can keep you up to date on what's been going on, or if there's anything coming up that we might need you for, things like that." He nodded to himself in satisfaction as his dark brown eyes looked to meet with Jay's. "Now, I won't stick around for long, since that could be dangerous if someone around you finds out about it, so try to be on time. And, I think we'll change the place we meet and the time we meet every time to make it harder for your dad and his folks to figure out what's going on." And Allistair would probably not go alone. He trusted Jay, but he had to be careful. All it would take would be one wrong step by either one of them, and things could get really bad really fast. "And I won't be able to keep you as up to date on things as I would if you lived in the Homestead with us. Nothing personal, just can't take too many chances. So whadda ya say?"

[Bones]

"Yeah, well, your brother means more to the people of Dantooine than any of you realise." He said, looking to the flowing water in the river, "He gives hope, and someone who can give an emotion is the most important person around." He smiled before saying, "I bet you're proud of him."

He listened intently to Al's offer. It was everything he had wanted since the start of the occupation, but he also thought, what if his dad found out? What if his dad's friends found out his own son was a resistance soldier? He didn't like the man, but he was still his father. He sighed before saying, "Al, you give me a certain time of when to be here, and I'll be here on my own." He looked at the younger man and said, "One day, I will come and join you at your hideout, because one day, inevitably I'll be found out, but if you're happy to do this, then so am I."

He turned to face the younger man directly, before extending his arm, holding his hand out for a shake. "You just tell me what I have to do." He told him quietly.

[Rugs]

{I'm sorry it took so long for me to reply to this >.<}

Al smiled a little bit at Jay's words. "Yeah, I'm pretty damn proud of Dutch," he said. "He's one hell of a guy, and he never gives up once he's set on something. He's like dad in a lot of ways... Makes me proud to be part of the family." He nodded at that. Certainly, his brother and his father were both models anyone could look up to, and Al could only hope that he'd one day make them proud, but such thoughts were for later. He had to focus on the here and now.

"Whaddya say to sun down, three days from now?" Al said. "From there we can just make up some random times to throw your father off." He looked down into the stream as Jay talked, nodding at his words. "We'll have a place for you when you come, Jay. Just let us known when you are... Wouldn't want any of the guards to shoot you by accident or anything like that..." He laughed lightly, though he was serious. There were a number of safety measures in place around the Homestead, from traps to the armed men and women that patrolled around it, and it'd be best that Jay had someone to escort him in to avoid any mishaps. But that too was for another time.

Allistair stood up off of the rock he was sitting on and took Jakob's firm grip in his own. "Just come here to meet with me when you can and I'll keep you up to date with news and any orders there might be." A big smile split his face as he looked Jay in the eyes. "Welcome to the DLA."

[Bones]

(( OOC: Sorry it took so long for me to post. Been travelling, and sorting out stuff at home has taken priority over posting. ))

Jay nodded, listening to Al speak. He could tell that the two men in that prison were idolised by the younger man. He reached out, putting a hand on his shoulder reassuringly. "They'll pull through, Al. From what I know of Dutch, he is one of the toughest guys I know. If he's so much like your father, then the Sith won't be able to break him either."

He reached into his pocket, pulling out a small disk. "My personal comm-link details." He said, holding the disk out for Alistair to take, "If you need anything that can't wait for the next meeting, you can contact me here, but no information over the comm-link. I can't be sure if it has a trace on it or not."

He held his hand out for a hand shake once again before saying, "My Dad thinks I'm checking the borders. I need to get back soon, so I'll see you hear in three days time."