(Open RP) Fool's Errand

[Garden Skirata]

(OOC: Like most of Garden's rps this is set in no particular timeline, only after the new sith loving Mandalore has made his presence known, so beyond that anyone can feel free to join. Feel free to have fun.)

Some people had been known to call Tharn Charnyll half a Mandalorian … but then, those same people had been known to quickly learn just how fleeting a thing height is … usually starting at the ankles and ending at the chin. There is a popular story about Tharn that claims he once ran up the back side of a rampaging Therox and lopped its head off in a single mighty blow – but anyone who’s seen a Therox knows it would take at least three blows to cleave its tree thick neck from its tank like body. So when he rolled beneath the cover of his energy shield and bellowed, “Of all the maddness and hair brained suicidal missions you’ve talked us into Skirata, this has got to be the third craziest!” You have to assume he was exaggerating.

*******************
Take two steps back.

“I don’t see any Rodians here, so I assume you’re not lookin’ for money. And I ain’t no Gamorian, but I still got this feelin’ you’re tappin’ at my back door.”

The Ugor burbled in protest, trying to assure him his information was legit while the translator squealed with the effort of turning its mess of a language into something legible. Of all the sentients in the galaxy the Ugor had to be the second least pleasant to talk to, like being dropped into a vat full of belches and farts, and here you two drinks shy of not caring. And this one seemed to have some kind of hygiene issue.

About three sentences short of finishing its monologue the translator seemed to have given up, but by then he’d got the gist of what it was saying and he had to admit, it was tempting. In all the big black, nobody knew junk and the ways of lost things like the Ugor – who would want to go the places they went, after all? And if this thing said he knew where the mask of Mandalore was … the REAL mask of Mandalore … well it would certainly be a thing - to show up with that on one hand and a thousand clans of pissed off Mandalorians on the other - to oust this Sith loving son of a Hutt.

“Alright,” he shrugged “I’ll bite … what do you want in return?”

*****************
“What did he want?” Tharn asked, an hour later, their drinks airing out between them, the story growing cold.

“Garbage … all the garbage our clans make in a month.” Garden looked into his drink and contemplated whether he’d lost his appetite … finally he decided the only way to find out was take another drink.

“What are they going to do with it?” Tharn swatted at the passing waitress, she giggled again and rubbed at her knee … some sentients had the strangest traditions, she’d muse … not for the first time …

“Do you really want to think about it?”

“Point taken, but who are you going to get to go on this fool’s errand of yours?” The problem, the way Tharn reckoned it, with most human booze is there weren’t enough chunks in it … he’d have to order another loaf of something just to smash it up and …

“Well, there’s you and me …”

“I’ve volunteered have I?” crunch, crunch …

“You have … then I figure I can put out the word, get a few others what ain’t got nothing better to do … “

“For such an important mission … does this look soggy to you? … You don’t sound like you’re expecting too many people … damnit it’s turning to soup!” Growling, he waved at the waitress, pausing when he saw it was the poor girl with the limp … he would have to ask her how she got that some day …

“It is! But I did get the info from an Ugor and … what you blushin’ for? You like her, grab her! She looks like she’s sweet on ya … anyway, those Ugor aren’t the brightest stains in the bowl, if ya know what I mean, an’ as far as I know they saw some completely different mask … but it’s still worth checkin’ out … and besides … how bad could it be?”

Suddenly, Tharn was sure he’d lost his appetite.

[Garden Skirata]

((OOC: I encourage you not to worry about maintaining a streaming timeline, I'll be jumping back and forth here no doubt - besides which there is no telling how much has happened between the first post and this))

Chalix Sector: 500 years before it is destroyed in the nearly unknown battle of Uttoken, today the best damn place in 10000 light years to buy perfume and sweet smelling fruit salads.

“I thought you said we were picking up another member of our group.” Tharn scratched at the fresh bruise under his left eye and checked the loose tooth under his cheek for the tenth time since they’d left Nar Shadda … who would have known human women were so set on being platonic?

“We are,” Garden pushed a hand through his oiled hair, a girl in a toga that defied gravity bat three inch lashes at him. “But we also need someone we can trust to read that map …”

“And you expect to find someone like that in this place?” The squat Mandalorian took in the swinging lanterns, the draping silks, perfumed and chased in a dozen exotic flavors of lace. The marble beneath their feet was polished to a brazen sheen and could have been mistaken for water if it weren’t contrasted against the free flowing fountains that seemed to crown every room.

“Jack owes me big, picked him out of a hard tangle on Ord Mantel some years back.” A silver platter slid by and Garden scooped up a handful of grapes, bursting them with his tongue while he searched for the face he’d seen almost a decade ago. “And if he tries to welch we’ll pick him up and shake him a little … all this soft living can only have done wonders for his girlish physique.”

“Excuse me master” Garden’s eyes laughed back at his friend as the serving girl approached them, the silken garment she wore made no pretenses at being actual clothing and he made no excuses for admiring the seamstresses work. Cheeks coloring, until they were nearly purple, the girl cleared her throat and continued, “Master Jaqueline has taken notice of your presence and has requested the honor of your presence on the promenade, should you be so inclined ..”

“Master Jaqueline … “ The Laughing Mandalorian’s smile broadened, “what did I tell you my old friend?”

“Jack is short for Jaqueline? I warn you Skirata, I don’t trust any man with a woman’s name …”

“Hah!” Turning, he lay a hefty hand on the smaller man’s shoulder … it shook the squat warrior to the toes … “You worry too much!”

“And you … curses for your size, lumbering grox that you are … don’t worry enough.”

“And look where that has got us!”

“Exactly.” … But the taller soldier was already following close at the girl’s side, offering – nay insisting – that she share his grapes and inquiring about her hours and duties in the cantina-come-palace they’d wandered their way into.

[Garden Skirata]

((OOC: I am purposefully leaving this part of the story on a cliffhanger, hoping someone else will jump in with an idea))

The Promenade was as gaudy as you’d expect; overperfumed, overpolished, overstuffed … in Huttesse the word translated to ostentatious – Tharn called it too damned fancy not to be hiding something; ‘no treasure came without a trap’ as they said.

Garden loved it – fancy meant wealth, and wealth meant generous if he was lucky, but probably overconfident at least. The servant girl led them into the sun, great stuff, the planet had two of them though the little one was hiding and the big one was blue as the bruise on Tharn’s cheek and thankfully not so hot as to bake them on all this expensive stone. Expensive droids were waving just as expensive fake leaves over the dining area, kicking up a small – very small – breeze. The rich liked to overstate ninety percent of everything, then understate 10% of everything else … as if to try and convince everyone they weren’t overcompensating … the way Garden figured it, you got that kind of money, you can afford to overcompensate on the air conditioning.

“You realize,” Tharn grumbled, his mood like his bruise, only growing fouler, “if we break any of this we’ll have to sell the clan to pay for it.”

When they got to the main bunch the girl peeled off and sat with the rest of the servants, too bad, he’d hoped to keep her at his side during the talk, but business was business … He had expected to see Jack mingling with the guests or “hired help” – servants who liked to pretend they weren’t – so when they crossed to get a good look at the men and women lounging in their comfort programmed, ergosensitive, pleasureseats swarmed by erotobots and human slaves alike, the Laughing Mandalorian was, for one rare moment in his life, struck silent.

“Well I’ll be damned.” Leave it to Tharn to have the right thing to say.

[Tracyn]

[Haven't read it all yet. Just to give you a heads up that I'm looking over it ;) ]

[Tracyn]

Tome'tayl had landed after spending hours in flight, finally convincing the spaceport to let the "well prepared" fighter to land. Tracyn was already starting this day in a bad mood... he thought it was day anyway.

Getting out of his cockpit he noted the high security detail and the nice very polite type suits inviting the armored mandalorian to come with them to go through the proper channels. Tracyn still was wandering why in Mand'alor's name had Garden picked this place out... still he went through the process, checking in his weapons in... arguing over an hour about how he wouldn't leave his assault rifle behind, and the suit explaining to him he wouldn't need the damned thing except as a paper holder. After a controlled punch and the security guards driving Tracyn to the ground, they agreed to have his weapons disabled by a tiny device, which would render the firing system inoperable. One minute behind cover and Tracyn was sure he could get the shabla thing off.

His explosives however were none negotiable, so he left his imposing armored back pack and missile launcher in his Davaab fighter.

Three hours had passed since he had landed and Tracyn was finally out. His armor had been repainted and he even managed to give it a shine where one could see his own reflection... if he looked hard enough. With his T visor looking left and right, the red haired mandalorian noticed people raise a few eyebrows, look away or just lower their heads pretending they hadn't seen him. Some kids and ladies would actually stare in awe or would give an excited giggle as he walked by. "Hey at least my armor is nice to look at..." he thought to himself.

Tracyn walked around for some, figuring he could easily find Garden and Tharn with relative ease. But there hadn't been any sign of commotion and the mando just gave up.

He sent him a message: "Where the shabs are you?! Nobody is talking about a big ugly di'kut looking for fights... I'm starting to believe I past through the security before you did... by the way, I'm pissed. heh."

With that Tracyn found the nearest bench and comfortably took his seat, the man sitting there decided to give Tracyn some room by exiting the immidiate area, right after making a "how rude" comment...

"Seriously, some people." Tracyn gave the man a mocking "bye bye" wave.