Survival, Dark Times 3

[Rain]

Xandyr

My smile got wider. "If you're happy I'm happy!" I said as I stood up. "Well, I guess that's my check-up over. I would kiss you if it weren't for the fact there is a camera in the top corner of the room and I don't want to get you fired for coming onto patients on your first day!" I stretched out my hand, "So instead, thank you Nurse Foxx."

Daron

It was good that he could admit that. It mad eme trust in him a lot more that I did a few minutes ago.

"Yeah... I'm not going to argue with you on that one..."

I heard one of the Tuskens grunt, and I looked up. We were here. The Tuskens carrying Jan and Jenn made their way into one of the tents. Uli went to follow, but the leader put his gaffi stick out to block his path.

"Look, I'm a doctor. I can't leave them!" Uli protested. The Tusken did not react. Uli spoke again. "I'm telling you I won't leave them!" There was another pause, before the Raider finally let him in. Just as he did, Naos, Arthren, Caleb and I were ushered into another tent. It was pretty dark now, so I guessed we would be spending the night here.

The inside of the tents were a comfortable luke warm, in contrast to the freezing cold of the desert night outside. It was bliss. And sure enough, there was bedding layed out for us. Normally I would be very untrusting of these Tuskens. But if they wanted us dead they would have done it a long time ago. They could have. Our group was down to five, less than half of the number it was before. We were vulnerable, and they helped us.

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but damn I'm tired!"

[hk47fan]

Mara

I grinned, and shook his hand. "You're welcome, Mr. Villiers," I told him with a laugh. "And I'll see you soon. Come back and see me sometime...I'm going to be here for awhile."

Naos

I glanced at the tent that the other three were in as we were led into our own tent, hoping that both of them would live. It was very ironic...both were once my enemies. And now, when they both were on the edge of death, I was desperately hoping that they'd make it out okay.

"Yeah, I know...I am too. I just hope we can get back home soon," I said with a sigh, sitting down and crossing my legs. Meditating was a typical, calming Jedi technique. Hopefully, it'd come in handy here.

What would Scout say if she were here?

I winced at the thought...she was not Jan's biggest fan, but I knew she'd be dissappointed in me. She'd have to be.

And who would replace me as Grandmaster? At this point, I was seriously considering that, if I hadn't decided on resigning already...I couldn't have that position. Not in this state. I didn't deserve it, and the Order didn't deserve it. Would Barriss take up the position permanantly? If not her, would Olee be up for it?

There weren't even many options at the moment.

I will sort all that out when we get off this rock...because we will. We must...right now, I just want both Jan and Jenn to survive.

[Rain]

Memah

I remotely changed the holosign on the door from "CLOSED" to "OPEN". Granted, the place wouldn't be that busy yet, in fact buisness wouldn't fully pick up for a few years, as Lando turned this place into a thriving metropolis. But that was fine with me.

I was content with the Jade Sky Cantina. I liked everything about it. And I believed getting rid of that carpet was the right choice. After all, if I had kept it then the patrons would just be coming in to rub it, instead of buying drinks, and I couldn't have that.

"I'm home..."

[Revan Jast]

Dawn ran after the speeder at full speed, thankful that the sun was now down. Although his armor was heat resistant, too much of it could overload his systems and result in a temporary shutdown. At the most, it'd be permanent... at least till someone manually restarted him. His scanner beeped as the life forms appeared on the edge of the radar, and Dusk promptly contacted him.

Heading in her direction, he soon reached the now stopped speeder. "Leave the speeder here just in case," Dawn said in a hushed voice. "If it's hostile forces, they'll destroy it."

Walking over the next dune, Dawn activated his built in floodlights and aimed them at the group he spotted. "YOU ARE ADVISED TO DROP ANY AND ALL WEAPONRY AND RAISE YOUR HANDS. WE ARE WAR MACHINES OF THE REPUBLIC ARMADA. I REPEAT: DROP ALL WEAPONRY AND RAISE YOUR HANDS! YOU WILL BE SHOT IF YOU DO NOT COMPLY!"

---------

"Don't hurt her anymore," Kurt whispered.

Suddenly he snapped out of it and looked at Winter. "Sorry, was woolgathering. Sure, I'll take it. Just keep me informed and shit from a distance. In fact, I'll leave right now. Sorry about the grovelling thing again," he said, patting Winter on the shoulder. He smiled at her and walked out the door for the bay, where his ship was kept.

After some time walking, he was there. He ran up the ramp and threw his stuff into a locker, then took a seat in the cockpit. Putting a headset on, he flipped through the channels till he reached a secure one, then pinged Winter to join him on it. "Where am I going, now?" he asked, typing into the onboard computer.

[hk47fan]

Marlena

I smiled, relieved after Serra announced that Dawn and Dusk, two people I didn't know particularly well but knew well enough, were coming our way.

"Oh, thank the Fo-" I began.

Then Dawn's large announcement came, and I immediately shut my mouth, looking up at him in silence.

Allison immediately raised her hands. "What the hell?!" she yelled, looking to Alsia. "Do Han and Haltz just keep a little cabinet of murderous machines on Coruscant?!"

Dusk came up beside Dawn, pointing a rifle at us. "Identify yourselves."

"I am Alsia Fel of Coruscant Security," Alsia began, looking at the two cyborgs. "I am captain of this team. We were sent to rescue Jedi Padawans, Li Storm and Sem Estaire, from Mona Trok and the Black Sun. We were able to stop her, but she escaped and shot her ship down. We crashed, and have been stranded here for days."

Dusk looked to Dawn for a moment, before nodding at him and slowly putting down her rifle. "Everything checks out...you have the right information, and match up with what we have in our databanks. But I don't recognize one of you as a team member."

"Uh, thats me," Allison said. "I'm Allison Hallon...formerly an enemy of yours. Don't get me wrong, I don't plan to join up with the NR and pal around with you, but I think I'm done causing trouble for you guys."

"We can vouch her story for you, but please, can we get off this planet?" Wey asked.

Dusk began to walk down towards us. "Yes, yes, we're just glad to find you all alive....but many of you are missing. Are you the only ones alive?"

"No, mostly everyone survived the crash, except for some of the security officers," I told Dusk, smiling again. However, I did have to deliver the bad news. "Li and Sem didn't survive...their part of the ship broke apart from ours, and their remains got devoured by carnivores. The rest of the team stayed behind at that part of the ship, but we're...we're not sure how to get back to them."

"That won't be an issue. How do you think we found you all?" Dusk asked with a smirk. "I'm really sorry to hear about Li and Sem...they were so young, from what I knew. I know better than anyone that should never be an age to die at. Now, any health concerns I should know about? You five check out fine, but there may be more with the others."

"Another former enemy, Jenn, has been the worst effected by this. She got badly injured in the crash, and with all the travelling and heat, her health has deteriorated. The others stayed behind because she couldn't go any farther," I explained to Dusk, frowning after I thought about all that she had gone through during this fiasco.

"Then we need to not waste anytime. I have a speeder nearby that can get us all to them, wherever they may be," Dusk said, turning around and motioning for us to follow.

"So, the NR decided to send you two to rescue us? Never thought of that possibility," Alsia said with a snort.

"Well...uh, yes and no," Dusk slowly said.

"What does that mean?" I asked in confusion.

"Alot has happened while you've been stuck here, but I think its best if we wait until everyone's together and out of the desert to tell you that story."

Miss Haltzilakas

I slowly walked inside Memah's new cantina, after seeing the "Open" sign on it. I knew Memah was getting a new cantina sometime, and I was happy for her. She needed it...I saw that first-hand when talking to her awhile back.

It was ironic...I had been in cantinas many times, but it had been rare for me to visit them during my political career, especially when I was on Coruscant. I had only visited the Soft Heart once while looking for Sonas, and the other time was after Sora removed me. And every time I was in a cantina, including this one, it seemed I was still dressed like a political figure. Not a usual sight in a cantina.

Though, I didn't really have anything else in my wardrobe at the moment.

"Surprise, surprise," I finally said with a chuckle, looking around. "I came here to congratulate you on the new cantina...and I actually had a request."

[Revan Jast]

Dawn kept one of his lights lit and looked down at the group. "Former enemies... hmmp. Could be a trap. What better way to get into the opposing camp than by saying you've left the bad guys? Ah well, we'll figure that out later."

Dawn looked to the south. "So, our remaining comrades are that way. Interesting."

[Rain]

Memah

This was a shock, to say the least. The former Chief of State in my cantina! Hell, she was actually the first person through the door!

"Miss H," I said in surprise, "A pleasure, and thanks for the congratulations. But, request? I'm all for favours and everything but what could a person like me do to aid a person like you?"

Serra

"It's definately not a trap." I interupted, "These guys weren't stuck with us by choice. But they did help us - a lot."

I looked in the direction Dawn was pointing and couldn't see much.

"What should we do?" I asked, "It's pretty dark and the temperatures are rapidly dropping..."

Winter

"You don't waste any time do you?" I lughed as I sat down in the chair and recalled the information, "Our sources state that Subject Epsilon is on Chandrila. We have managed to narrow his position down to a range of forty klicks. I'm transmittinhg the co-ordinates to your ship now."

[hk47fan]

Duskbringer

"Thanks...yeah, we didn't go through all of that up there, and all of this down here, just for the sake of some kind of trap. If you saw Jenn, believe me, you'd know that we were being truthful." Allison said, nodding slowly at Serra.

"We'll take your word for it," I told Allison. I looked at Serra. "Well, that won't be much of a problem...Dawn and I both have night vision, and our scanners should pick them up once we get in close range. Follow me back to my speeder."

We all walked back over the hill, and in no time, Serra, Marlena, Wey, Alsia, and Allison were all in the back of my speeder.

"It feels so good to be able to sit down again, on something other than sand," Alsia commented.

I chuckled. "I understand," I said, before firing up the speeder and activating my scanners once again.

Okay, lets just find the others and we can be done with this.

Miss Haltzilakas

"I was wondering if you could give me a room here," I answered, continuing to look around in the process. It was a very nice place. "Bria and Lando graciously gave me an apartment, but I don't want to live anywhere for free. Its not fair to the rest of the people on Cloud City, and I don't need anything fancy or luxurious. I can pay you in full each month. I have alot of credits built up from all my years in politics."

[Rain]

Memah

I didn't hesitate. "Of course!" I said with a smile, "So far though I've only fixed up down here. It may take another week or so to get all of the rooms upstairs cleared out. But sure. You're welcome to stay!"

Xandyr

I was walking home, back to our scabby appartment in the slums. We wouldn't be living there much longer, but it was only temporary until we found a decent place. At least now we seemed to hav the money, things were looking up.

I had just turned into the alley, this was a short cut. Despite it being not long after midday here, these parts of the slums were always dark. As I walked I couldn't help but get th feeling I was being watched. I stopped. I glanced over m yshoulder. There was nobody there. I kept walking but the feeling rmained. So I stopped again...

This time when I turned around I seen a few papers rustling about. But there was no wind. "Okay, I don't have time for this! Who's there?" There was no reply, "Look I know you're following me, and I'm not leading you to my home so you can rob it, so you may aswell show yourself now." Again, there was no reply. "Who's there-"

A blur of black came towards me and knocked me onto my back. I quickly snapped back up onto my feet, and spun around to face my attacker, but he was gone. I growled. "Come on! Show yourself!" I heard footsteps behind me and I turned around to see the figure. I knew him...

The Dark Warrior...

"You!" I shouted, "What the hell do you want? You already threw me off my bike! I beat you OK, get over it!"

The man stood still for a moment, then he pulled out his sword, and rushed at me...

[Revan Jast]

Kurt fired up the engines and slowly lifted off. "Sounds good. Wish me luck, godspeed, and all that jazz. Have fun grovelling!"

He aimed the ship for the skies and blasted off into space.

---------------

Dawn activated his thrusters and zipped over the speeder, weaving this way and that to check for any signs of life. The desert was cold, now, and getting very dark fast. Speed was of the essence, or the humanoids would die from quick freeze or at the very least, get ill from the sudden change in temperature.

"Not picking anything up," Dawn said through his comm system. "However, my visual receptors pick up something large way off in the distance. Could be a ship... could be a dead bantha."

[hk47fan]

Miss Haltzilakas

"Thank you," I said kindly. "Just tell me when its ready, and I'll be here."

Duskbringer

I was following Dawn as fast as I could, pushing the speeder's speed to its limit once again. Much more time out there, and all of these people would be dead...and I wasn't about to let them die after just finding them.

"Hmm..." I said, continuing to scan the area. I could definitely see what Dawn was detecting. "I think you're right...its a little vague on long-range sensors, but its something worth checking out. I'll follow your lead."

[Rain]

Xandyr

I leaped in the air to dodge the DW. He was fast, and sung around with his sword. I had t oquickly duck to avoid having my head cut off.

"You're insane!" I shouted, as I rolled past him. I didn't have my lightsaber with me. It was at our home. I rarely carried it with me. I spun aroun and tried to take his legs from under him, but he jumped and delivered a snap kick to my outstretched leg. I fell forward in agony, but quickly scrambled to my feet, using the Force to aid me.

I delivered a Force push at my opponent, but he stood strong, and threw one of his own back. He didn't even stretch out his hand. It was completely unexpected. I flew through teh air and landed on a few dumpsters. My vision went blurry for a moment, before I gathered myself and crawled out of the rubbish. I slowly tried to get to my feet, but as I looked up I seen the boot of the Dark Warrior. I couldn't dodge it...

[Revan Jast]

Dawn landed slowly at the top of the dune, peering down at the large metal husk. "Definitely a ship, or least part of one. My scans pick up no signs of life, but I'm going to move closer and take a peek inside."

With that said, he ran down the sandy hill, his enormous weight keeping him from slipping and sliding. The crunch and hiss of the sand didn't bother him so much as the silence. He noticed his brother had not been with the first group, which meant either he was with the others... or dead. Why weren't they here?

"Dusk, I'm too large to fit through the door. Go inside, see if you can find any hint as to where they may have went."

[hk47fan]

Duskbringer

We got to the ship, and I immediately jumped out of the speeder, examining the area. There were definitely no life forms here, which was strange. Just the remnants of the crash.

"They should be here....this doesn't make sense," Alsia said, walking up behind Dawn and I. "I don't know why they'd leave. The whole point of staying here was so that they didn't have to move."

I nodded. "Dawn suggested that I go inside and take a look...if I find anything, or anyone, I'll tell you. If they are dead, then I'll find biological remnants or corpses inside."

Alsia sighed.

I walked towards the ship, and proceeded to elevate the brightness of my night vision. It didn't have to be too strong outside, because the stars and moon still guided you, at least partially, but the interior of a ship was pure darkness.

A path had already been cleared to go inside, so they had been digging around here for awhile, no doubt about that.

I strolled inside, and continued to scan the place. It wasn't big, but there were just a few broken halls and passageways. However, it seemed to be completely empty...no life, no sign of supplies. It was like they had looted it, then left.

No signs of any bodies, either. Or remains.

Finally, after concluding that I'd find nothing inside there, I turned and went back out.

Approaching Dawn and Alsia, I spoke again. "Nothing inside. I don't think they're dead, though, because there are no corpses or remains. I can tell they were here for awhile, because they managed to throw all the rubble aside, and take any left over things that were still intact, but that doesn't help figure out where they are. We may have to continue to scan the deser-"

I stopped mid-sentence, when I glanced to the ground, and saw a large amount of footsteps. I didn't notice them before, because of the low setting on my night vision...but now, they were easily visible.

"Wait, there are footsteps here," I said, leaning down to examine them.

"They may just be animal footsteps. We saw them there when we arrived," Alsia told me.

I looked to the side for a moment. "No, those are off in that direction...and these are footsteps of no animal. The imprint in the sand is that of someone on two legs. There are alot here...I'd say they could be Tusken Raiders, judging by how the footsteps are placed. They always travel in single file to hide their numbers."

Alsia was silent for a moment, and when I looked up at her, the look on her face said that something had clicked in her brain. "We...we did encounter some Tuskens earlier. We got into a fight, and killed them all. Others in their tribe could have come back for revenge."

"That is the most plausible theory," I agreed, standing up. I looked to Dawn again. "If they are not dead, its likely that the Sand People captured them. Some of the footsteps aren't in single file order. We need to trace these footsteps to their camp."

[Revan Jast]

Dawn stared down at the tracks in the sand. "Good eye, Dusk. Didn't see a thing." He followed the trailed a few feet to the southwest, his head cocked to the side. "They didn't put up much of a struggle, if any at all. Our comrades went willingly, for whatever reason that might be."

He broke into a run. "Come on! We must make haste before this foul coldness brings death with it!"

----------

Caleb sleep on in darkness.