{{ urbania's void - chapter 28
...the darkest hour comes before dawn (day twenty-nine / +29)
Lowbacca and his group had left early that morning, planning to go up through the bottom of the tower, through the ventilation system. He had rolled out from under the sleeping heads of Zekk and Gadell, gently setting them on the floor. His group had prepared while the humans were still sleeping, and then left, letting the door shut behind them.
Jaina Solo stirred restlessly in her slumber, her mind showing her images of her brother and the woman he loved --- both beaten up and in shock. Her brother's image screamed out to her, his eyes bleeding tears. "Jaina! The fire..."
Her brandy-brown eyes fluttered open, only to stare up into a pair of jade greens, which loomed over her. They were surrounded by a few mostly unnoticeable creases -- probably from stress. "Kyp..." Jaina sensed the empty space in bed, beside her. "Where's Alema?"
"They left already. They've been gone since early this morning. It's almost the middle of the afternoon... we've all been sleeping a good while."
Jaina could sense his worried state. She could sense many things from him, but one prominent fact stuck out in his mind. He was genuinely worried about everyone, his age giving him a reflexive paternal quality. Jaina took after her mother in the sense of leadership and the fact that she now tended to worry too much. After the war ended, Jaina began to worry about her family and friends more. She had a feeling that her and Kyp would become the parents of the mission. Headstrong, yet wary at every turn... paranoid about the safety of the group.
Their friends.
"Get yourself out of bed, sleeping beauty." Kyp flicked Jaina's leg and spun towards the door of the bedroom. As he got there, he stopped ---
"Kyp?"
He turned his head, craning his neck a tad. "Goddess?"
The lopsided Solo grin formed on her face at the resurfacing of her old nickname. "We can't be too afraid. We'll do fine. We'll find Raynar... we'll---"
"Jaina. We'll find your brother and Tenel Ka. Don't tell me not to be worried when it's scribbled all over your face."
Throwing her legs out over the floor, she stretched them, then set her feet on the ground. Jaina rubbed her hands over her face and nodded slightly. "Thanks." The reply was a bit sarcastic, in that tone her and Kyp always seemed to use around each other.
Durron shot her a sly smile and exited the room.
Leaving Jaina to her own devices, Kyp meandered out to the kitchen area and fixed himself a cup of caf. As he sipped the hot beverage, he winced as it scalded the roof of his mouth. Scowling, Kyp turned his mind and attention to something else. He peered over the counter ahead of him, down to where Zekk and Gadell slept curled up beside each other. Gadell was snuggled up under a gray blanket, the left edge draped slightly over Zekk. It only ended up covering Zekk's knee and part of his arm. Kyp chuckled and took another gulp of his now lukewarm caf.
Just as he did, a shirtless Jag Fel emerged from the refresher, holding a towel in one hand and a wrinkled up shirt in the other.
"Are we really going to wear these?"
"Why do you ask, Fel?" Kyp set his cup on the counter and crossed his arms, shrugging his broad shoulders. "I think you'll look absolutely stunning in it." He waggled his eyebrows.
"I'd have to agree with Kyp on that one."
Jag looked down at the source of the second comment and saw Zekk Arkenna, splayed out on the floor lazily, out of his comfortable curled up position. A slight friendly snicker crossed Jag's usually unreadable visage as he stepped over the still sleeping Gadell and the smirking Zekk, smacking his toes into Zekk's arm as he crossed. "Ow, son of a hutt."
Stirring on the couch caused the boys to look over and a disheveled Tahiri Veila appeared over the back. "When are we leaving?"
Jag pulled the disguise's shirt over his figure, shaking his head. "I'm not sure when you guys are leaving... but we're leaving a little bit later I think. Our group's dynamic really shines at night."
Kyp cackled as he took another sip of his caf.
The laugh stopped as a low groan sounded and all eyes turned to Gadell Vessau, who rolled restlessly on the floor.
They realized he was awake.
"Gadell?" Zekk's eyes narrowed.
"Zekk... Zekk get down here." Gadell grabbed the back of Zekk's neck as he hunkered over and pulled him to the floor, practically slamming his head into the carpet. "Open. Close your eyes and open the world. Open... come on..." Breathless commands hit Zekk's ears as the green-eyed man stared across to the Admiral.
Zekk thought Gadell was just caught in a sleepless ramble, but seeing the pained look in his usually calm blue eyes brought Zekk's adrenaline to the forefront of his mind. He realized Gadell was telling him to open up to the Force. Gadell's hand pressed Zekk's face into the carpet, as the rest of his body stayed completely still, the gray blanket now tangled around his limbs.
Kyp, Jag and Tahiri watched the two, wondering exactly what was going on. The frantic look of the situation had made them all freeze, none of them making any moves to disturb the scene.
Under Gadell's hand, Zekk let his eyes close and his mind open. Gadell followed by closing his own eyes and letting himself drift back into the flow.
They both saw it.
The apartment. The one they were in. The furniture, the same.
Gadell Vessau and Tenel Ka, light trails of smoke snaking out from where their chests met, clutching to each other. Zekk Arkenna, wrapped in a sheet, his face exposed, cheeks slightly bloated, seaweed tangled in random places around and over him. And Jacen Solo, his head on Tenel Ka's ankle. His face, peaceful. His jaw knocked at an odd angle. Pools of blood crept out from under different places amongst the fray of bodies...
For a split second, an image overlaid it. Rez Nyena. Khee Verelen. Tessick Ladreen. Kaidin Serasai. The same exact way.
Zekk grunted as he pulled his head up from the carpet, his emerald eyes boring into Gadell. "What the kriff was that?!"
Gadell's pale face took on an even whiter shade as he rolled onto his back, strands of sweaty black hair crossing over his eyes and cheeks. His chest was moving as he breathed, slowly and deeply, as he tried to process everything in his mind. "I... I don't know what it was."
"I'm glad we decided not to use Mindmaps for this." Zekk spoke of the mission into the tower. His eyes widened as something dawned on him. "Where are the Kaidin and Rez mindmaps?"
Gadell pulled himself to a sitting position and scooted against the couch's back, Tahiri's face hovering over him from the top. He spoke slowly and softly. "Jacen had Kaidin in his pocket. Rez was on the nightstand in there. Tenel Ka had left it there when she got into bed."
Zekk bolted up and dashed into his bedroom where Tenel Ka and Jacen had been. The Rez Mindmap, as well as the Anakin and Ta'a Chume ones, were gone.
"They're gone."
"What?!" Kyp interjected, slamming his cup on the counter.
Jaina emerged from the other bedroom and spoke firmly as she walked across the apartment, "We need to get into that tower... and fast." She ended up in the refresher, not even skipping a beat, and shut the door behind her, leaving the room in silence.
The rest exchanged glances, some worried, some confused, but they all knew one thing.
Jaina was right.
They did need to get into that tower.
And fast.
"And what's yer name, dollface?"
The girl standing in the front of the group pulled her goggles from over her eyes and set them up to rest on her forehead. "Asenkya."
"Asenkya wut?"
Her mind scrambled around names. She hadn't even thought of a last name to use, she was in such a hurry. She just spouted out the first thing that came to her mind.
"Durfenna."
Ripples of mental laughter, radiated off of the three people behind her.
"And who tha kriff're these lugs?"
She pointed to her left, where a male stood. Short black hair stuck out from under a piece of black cloth tied around his head. "This is Soja."
To her right, where she pointed next, was another male. He was leaning against the pillar that held the huge canopy up over the main entrance to the tower. His arms were crossed over his chest and his bright green eyes were narrowed towards the bouncer with a look of scrutiny. "This is Raja."
Behind her, the third stepped forward, setting his right forearm across Asenkya's back, over her shoulders, using her like an armrest. A bit of visual studying led the bouncer to believe that this was the oldest of the three. He was the tallest, the sturdiest and the beginnings of creases could be seen around the corners of his eyes. "And this is Bray."
Asenkya tilted her head slightly, her countless number of dark pink braids cascading around her petite form. She placed her hands on her hips and blinked quickly. "Pay them no mind though. They're just my trusty band of slaves." A giggle.
"Yer gonna keep 'em in line?"
"Of course I am." She clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. "Anyways, they know that if they get into trouble, they get nothing later tonight." Asenkya wiggled her eyebrows as the three behind her grinned slyly.
The bouncer's eyes widened a tad, as he looked each man up and down. They all seemed to have green eyes and black hair, and they seemed to be really comfortable around each other, like they had known each other for a very long time...
He began to wave them on through the door. He stopped Asenkya on the way through, grabbing her arm. "Are they all brothers 'er somethin'?"
Asenkya's face twisted into a look of feigned disgust as she softly hissed back to him, "Oh, come on now, love." Her hand gently brushed against his cheek as her features softened. "I might be impure, but I'm not that dirty."
"Mistress---" One of the three called out from ahead.
"Coming, sweetheart." She looked back to the bouncer and winked, then pulled away from him and rejoined her three companions.
Inwardly shuddering at her own display, Jaina squeezed into the trio of guys ahead of her, falling into step with them as their eyes roamed around the casino floor.
"Impure?" Soja, the one with the cloth tied around his head, murmured.
"Yeah, Jag." Jaina snickered. She was about to add more to her reply when Zekk, otherwise known as Raja, joined the fray.
"What are we gonna get tonight if we're good?" Giggles erupted from the three males.
Jaina scowled, tossing braids behind her shoulder. "You're all going to get a nice, swift kick in the---"
She was interrupted by the comlink that was tucked in her shirt. Pulling it out of the folds in the tight fabric, she brought it to her lips and switched it on. "Asenkya Durfenna, at your service!"
Kyp lightly smacked Jag's arm, causing Jag and Zekk to look over to him. "Durfenna."
Zekk chuckled. "Yeah, I caught that too."
Jag grinned a tad, the sparkly, dark circles traced around his eyes glinting in the multi-colored lights of the casino. "Why do you get to be first, Durron?"
"Because I'm---"
"Shh!" Jaina stopped and leaned against the wall and they halted around her. "I can't hear, you nerfherders!"
The males quit their playful bickering and listened with Jaina, to the scratchy voice over the comlink.
It was Tahiri.
"---can see you! We're over by the sabacc tables. Quaram here thinks he's gonna play."
Three sets of green eyes, along with a set of brandy-browns, began to scan the casino --- Raja... Zekk spotted them first.
"There!"
All eyes fell on where he pointed, and they saw two people. The female, a small blonde, who was frantically swinging a glass of liquid back and forth. She was clothed in a long gown of deep blue, garnished all over with bright gems and crystals. She was seated on the edge of a sabacc table where "Quaram" --- who was really a certain Hapan Admiral, was preparing to play at.
"We see you." Jaina spoke into the comlink. "For now, just keep your eyes peeled for anything suspicious."
"Got it." Tahiri slid off of the table and spun around, leaning forward over Gadell's back. Her left hand, the one with the comlink in it, slipped into Gadell's front pocket, dropping the comlink in. They were surrounded by people, so Tahiri knew she would look sort of funny, just sticking her hand in his pocket. She made it look like she had gone a tad overboard with the Hapan wine in her right hand and pressed her lips to his ear, making it appear as if she was just acting raunchy or seductive.
"Sorry about the hand in your pocket, Gadell. I just had to put the comlink away."
Gadell put on his best Coruscantian accent and replied to her, as Quaram. "Whatever you say, darling. Just make sure you save some of that attitude for later."
Some of the people around the sabacc table chuckled at the comment. Tahiri pulled her hand back and leaned against the table, beside him. Her jade eyes peered down to him as a giggle escaped her lips. Gadell winked and began to shuffle one of the decks of cards. As he shuffled, his eyes trailed up to Tahiri, who was putting on a show as a pretty convincing lush.
Their disguises were two low rate holovid stars. The kind who weren't in many popular holos, but thought they were the Force's gift to everything entertainment related. Stuck-up, rich, snobby --- when in fact they were a Jedi Knight and an Admiral who was training in the Force.
"Taveia." He spoke in his accent, a bit monotone.
"Hmmm?" She bent over, almost tripping onto him, her drink sloshing in the glass.
"Keep an eye out, would you, doll?"
"Mmmhmm!" Tahiri swayed about, letting her eyes scan the throngs of people. She spotted Jaina, Kyp, Jag and Zekk again, across the crowded room. The three males were all dressed alike. All in black. Each outfit was different in little ways though. Jag had a thick cloth tied around his forehead. Kyp had long pieces of fabric around his arms and Zekk seemed to have hundreds of little strings around his neck. They all had some sort of mesh shirts on and Tahiri smiled inwardly as she thought back to Jag's inquiry as he stepped out of the refresher that day.
Are we really going to wear these?
Each male had a fair share of paint on his face too. Their eyes were lined many times with black paint and the paint was dotted with some sort of glitter. It seemed to make the green in their eyes stand out more.
Pieces of Jag's hair were spiked from under and around the cloth, but they made sure the white streak was covered while Kyp's hair was tousled wildly around his face, giving him the most animalistic appearance of the three. They had made Zekk's hair wavy, to which he replied:
"Oh come on, what the kriff?"
Tahiri grinned as she watched Jaina speak to the three. Jaina stood out. She was clothed in brilliant colors. Reds, pinks, purples. Her hair was done up in the warrior braids Tenel Ka usually wore and a pair of thick goggles held them out of her face. Tahiri saw her motion to a nearby table and the group moved to it like a herd. Jaina as the herder and the guys as the nerfs.
She was called back to her own task at hand as she felt Gadell pinch her side, "DEAR."
Taveia spun around as clumsily as she could manage and tipped her drink a tad, the rich golden liquid spilling all over his lap. "Oooo! Sorry loooove!"
Chuckling with all the tranquility he could muster, Quaram stood and grabbed Taveia's arm, making it look a little violent. The crowd around them tensed as the couple walked off, towards the public refreshers, then they went back to chatting and milling around the sabacc table, like nothing ever happened.
Dragging Tahiri around a corner, Gadell pushed her back against the wall, out of the crowd's sight.
"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to, Gadell! I really didn't!" Tahiri was waving her hands wildly in front of her, in between Gadell's arms which were holding her to the wall. "I---"
His right hand snapped over her mouth.
Chuckles began to escape his system as the look of shock vanished from her eyes. "I know you didn't. Thank you for spilling it though." Leaning back and glancing around the corner, he licked his lips and leaned back in, continuing. "It was getting really stuffy at that table. And we have things to do. People to find."
Tahiri nodded as Gadell removed his hand from her lips.
"You're a pretty good actress 'Taveia' --- ever think about being a holovid star?" Gadell grinned slyly and winked, before glancing back out into the main room.
"Nah... too much publicity."
Still laughing slightly, Gadell locked his right arm with her left and swept her back out into the sea of people. His outfit matched her dress, a dark blue, the buttons were crystal. They both had agreed the outfits were pretty tacky, but all the better for their disguises. Gadell had his hair slicked back and Tahiri had commented, when they finished fixing it at the apartment, how it was as hard as the walls of the old Jedi Temple on Yavin 4.
"Does it look bad?" Gadell had asked.
Tahiri had tilted her head, her green eyes studying the black mass of hair on his head. "Not too bad. No worse than it usually does."
"Hey---"
Tahiri had smacked his shoulder and giggled.
She hit it again, at the moment, as Gadell... as Quaram made a fool of himself, waving to people who walked past them, like he was actually famous. She feigned a drunk stumble beside him, while she let her gaze travel around the room and that's when they passed...
Two people.
Tahiri had never seen them before in her life.
But she had felt them.
Abruptly spinning around, Gadell squeaked as he was yanked in a circle. He felt her sudden determination and he knew not to question. They just began to snake in and out of people, gamblers, dancers... they were following a pair of people. Two people who looked alike, possibly siblings.
Tahiri was onto something.
Someone...
And hopefully it would help them find out just what was going on.
| 