Last Minute Checks and Balance [Day 6, Mid-Evening]

[Jenna Karath]

After collecting Vaya, Jenna took the ship up into low orbit and set them on a stable path. Once there she moved back through the ship toward a common room where the other woman was waiting.

"Alright," she said, coming around and putting herself down on a couch, "I.. there's something I need you to look up for me, if you can, any information you can find," Jenna was, distracted and more than usual.

[Vaya Mer'darrow]

Vaya, who had received about that much explanation before taking off, already had her datapad hooked up to the subspace transceiver. "Sure, Jenna. What's this about?"

[Jenna Karath]

"There's this job, coming up, for Vandil," she started slow, her mind also on the call to the Hutt being it was why they were in space. There was a fear about it, but her focus elsewhere kept her steady. "I recognized the mark, it's supposed to be this Spear from some ancient species, Sith, I think they were called?"

"Anyway, it's made of this black metal... supposedly resists the effect of a lightsaber, or well, withstand a strike from one if you can believe something impressive like that. Old age-tech. Vandil claimed it came from somewhere called Moriband, or something that sounds like it? Not to sure on that, but on the quality of the material and it's origins I can be sure.. I knew that much myself from word around, supposed to be a big score. Important to Vandil, for some reason, and I want to know why."

[Vaya Mer'darrow]

Vaya leaned in intently, frowning. She had meant to go to that meeting -- archaeology was expensive -- but been called away to the ice shelf. She had Jenna go over everything she remembered about the item, in detail, and then went to her datapad.

Ooc: Knowledge - Lore check to help answer Jenna's questions? I don't know how researching from a ship vs a library works, but if it takes longer researcher halves the time, and if it's setbacks I can deal with those, so.

[Dapper Dog]

OOC: Daunting Lore check with 3 setbacks.

[Vaya Mer'darrow]

Vaya frowned, asked Jenna more questions, frowned, asked Jenna for caf, cursed, asked Jenna to search for a few things in parallel to her, until at last...

D6ME Dark and Forbidden Knowledge (Lore, Daunting, 3 setbacks, 2 removed with researcher, PC flip, boost from assist): 2eP+2eA+1eB+4eD+1eS 3 successes, 2 threat

[Jenna Karath]

With what they pulled up..

"If that's true.." Jenna gasped, a little, but shook her head. No, it was superstition, had to be. Still, for Vandil to have such superstition she wondered.." there has to be some kinda truth to it, something. Why else would Vandil want this as badly as she does? Or maybe.." she pursed her lips.

[Vaya Mer'darrow]

"Or someone does. Maybe a buyer. Maybe this 'Disciple,' they have a cult leader thing going. Not the Imperials, clearly, they either don't believe it or don't know what they have." Vaya shrugs. "It's a big galaxy and it's been spinning for a long time. Before this morning I wouldn't have said a human born in the same century as the Treaty of Coruscant could be anything but a corpse by now, and here we are." She frowned. "Must be pretty technical immortality if whoever had it died, though."

"So, does that help?"

[Jenna Karath]

"It.. might," she drifted back to the thought noticeably and then came out of it. Shifting fully and looking to Vaya.

"I'm going to ask you to stay here while I make a call but before I do... I'm doing something stupid," she said, glancing away. "Vandil, she.. she hired me for this job, met with someone and," she shook her head, "I guess I wasn't sure but when you suggested it might be the Disciple I got to thinking... Maybe it was. Which means only one thing, she's gunning for Tididol. I won't bother you with all the details, right now, because I need to make this call but.. I know, I know it in my heart that this is what Vandil is up to and if she succeeds," she grimaced, "I don't think it would be good for Bankor. A Hutt.. is one thing, a Hutt is a Hutt, but Vandil is.. she's vicious. Hungry. Dangerous."

[Vaya Mer'darrow]

Vaya frowned. She had detected as far back as the Trident heist that maybe Vandil wasn’t playing totally league gravball, but she had hoped to just take the money and move on. “She’s pretty, uh, willing to cut throats in public cantinas, but would she actually be worse than the Hutts? She is literally the sort of person they hire to do their dirty work. Although the Disciple might end up on top, I know less about him...”

She and Jenna -- Jax -- went back and forth, trying to break down predicted outcomes of the power plays in the underworld.

D6ME Thelma Theory and Louise Lore (underworld, average, combined pools, boost from assist): 1eP+3eA+1eB+2eD 2 successes, 3 advantage

[Jenna Karath]

"Her, actually," Jenna started the first correction, and explanation, the first of many over the course of the next bit of conversation.

[Vaya Mer'darrow]

After a discussion, Vaya nodded, looking down at the pro/con list she had sketched on a piece of flimsy. “Well, I think I’m coming to agree with you,” she said to Jenna.

[Jenna Karath]

"That's what I was worried about.." she said, glancing away, "damnit. Alright, I'm going to make my call.. time to change my life, for better or worse.."

Standing she took in a deep breath and then exhaled slowly, looking back to Vaya, "You can come, if you want, but I'd prefer if you stayed here while I went and made the call in the other room. I.. if this goes south, Vandil is going to want my head. I don't need to have anyone else being hunted on account of me, it's," she chuckled, "kinda half of why we are in low orbit right now."

[Dapper Dog]

OOC: Flips a destiny for no reason.

[Vaya Mer'darrow]

Vaya pushed her hair back from her furrowed brow. "Just, be careful in there. I know this might look like the way out you're hoping for, but that's when gangsters do their best work." She shook her head. "And something about these Crimson Dawn people bothers me..." she trailed off.

D6ME Fun gangster facts: 4eA+2eD 4 successes, 1 threat

[Jenna Karath]

"Me too," she said, giving Vaya one last look and keeping her suggestions to mind. Slipping away she made off toward the Comm room. Keying in the designation and placing through the call.

Jenna's hand shook, she had to steady it by holding her wrist. Nerves fired off and told her to run but there was nowhere to run to, nothing to run from. Whatver happened next, when she comitted to this course, everything might be over.

Everything she ever wanted.

Was this the right choice?

What would her brother have done, in her shoes?

What about Xanna?

She didn't know.

[Vaya Mer'darrow]

Vaya's antennapalps might have been able to hear through the bulkhead door, but the thought only inspired her to head to the cockpit to avoid either the appearance or the fact of temptation. She sat watching the stars (and the sensor console).

[Vandil]

Vandil reclined on the floating chair and said, “You realize that you sped up my time table, Jenna, which means you cost me money which means you owe me more money. Tididol won’t be joining us, not today or ever again.”

“So I am going to ask this question only once, where is my spear?”

[Jenna Karath]

Nothing could have been worse.

Heart sunk deep into her chest and yet in her throat at the same time, she turned as pale as a ghost and the shaking of her hand.. she let go of it. No more sense in trying to hide it, it wasn't possible anymore.

"I-" just think, Jenna, think, "I.. it's at the Museum, but I'll get it," she barked out as if it were a single word, trying to steady herself if only for a moment so she could say the next, most important words, slowly and clearly, "I promise I'll get it."

[Vandil]

She leaned back, "Good because I heard an interesting story about you, I could be inclined to overlook it... but your time working for me just got extended. Or I can call in your contract, and anyone you care about."

"I think we both know which option you prefer."

[Jenna Karath]

"We do," she said, nodding her head, she wasn't even sure if she was looking like an idiot anymore. Didn't matter. All that mattered was making sure Vandil knew, knew she would do anything she could to make it right.

It was a matter of survival.

"Whatever you need," she quickly added, "I'll pay it back. I'm good for it, you know that. I'll make good for it," she stammered out, not even sure if she was repeating herself.

[Vandil]

"Get me my spear," she commanded and ended the call.

[Jenna Karath]

"Kriff," the word fell out of her mouth as soon as the call ended. Next, was her body, barely catching herself on the wall behind her she slid down the the ground with a thunk. Legs feeling like jelly she couldn't stand anymore, her heart was beating out of her chest and she sat there in a pool of cold sweat.

"No... No.. no, no," she said, laying her head back and closing her eyes tight. Stomping her right foot against the floor in desperation.

Everything was wrong, she played the game and lost in a master stroke. Vandil was ready for it from the start, she hoped.. it didn't matter anymore.

[Vaya Mer'darrow]

Vaya eventually noticed that the transmission-active signal on the ship's control panel had gone out, and waited. And waited a little bit longer. Growing concerned, she rose and walked back to the sealed door. A tap-tap would be more audible to Jenna than to anyone on the other end of a comm call, if there was some sort of systems error and she was still in the thick of it.

Tap-tap.

[Jenna Karath]

There were two taps back of a similar rythym, though they sounded more like the heel of a boot hitting the metal of the floor, quiet though, like they were weak.. tired.