Vothe Kyrik

Vothe set his jaw. He was a being of calculated risks, and he rarely took chances when he didn't need to do so. That instinct told him just to stay away from Terra. But he was no coward, either. Slipping silently down from his perch, the assassin made a move, naturally sticking to the shadows even if he wasn't actively trying to be stealthy. Then he was there, in front of Terra, the sniper rifle now held in one hand, pointed at the ground. He probed her with the Force as he had been taught, trying to read her feelings. She had reacted negatively to his name when Faust had spoken it, just as he had reacted negatively to news of her arrival on Dubrillion. Now, though, he searched for the hint of a threat. "On Coruscant, I did my duty and you did yours," he said, the first time he had used his vocal chords since arriving on-world. He chose to do so because he honestly wasn't sure what would set Terra off, and telepathy was typically associated with the Force... which did all of this to her. "It can end there, if you so will it." A bit of a lie, perhaps. Terra's will was not enough to erase the bad blood, but Vothe for one would only cling to his suspicion. He had no intent of shooting the girl in the back at his earliest opportunity, for such an opportunity had already come and past.

Vothe caught the cylinder Faust had tossed him easily, quickly surmised what it was, and gave a short nod, then disappeared. He had wandered the halls of many locations such as this and knew the trends in all architecture that would allow him to find a haunch almost instantly. Even without specific knowledge of this particular installation, it only took six seconds for him to find a perch. Soon the rifle was deployed and its weilder was staring down the sights at the conversation, his reticle resting on the forehead of the young girl he had already fought. He typically didn't use sniper weapons, but he had trained with all weapons for over fifty years. He immediately recognized this as a top-grade rifle, and was confident that if he needed to make a shot, he could deliver it reliably. The conversation proceeded as though there was no danger, but warning bells were ringing in his mind. Terra wished to serve two masters, but those masters were at odds with each other. She was a wild card, completely unpredictable. At any time, even during a critical mission for the Black Sun, her Sith-tainted sensibilities could snap and she could betray those around her. And then Faust tempted fate by volunteering Vothe to work with Terra on a mission concerning the Hutts. Monitoring the Hutts was indeed one of his responsibilities since his conversation with Lord Daisaku, and Faust was careful to seed the wildcard by posturing the mission in a way that would please both her masters. But it was impossible to know how Terra would react to seeing him, the one who had cut her down in the Citadel. He doubted that Ason Antilles would see him as anything but an enemy. His finger hovering near the trigger, the assassin waited for Terra's response. If she wanted to try to take down Faust, this was her chance. Vothe shifted his aim to center of mass, wary of her every movement and ever so willing to pull the trigger if she attempted an attack.

Vothe's appearance remained passive as always through the continued business discussion between Lord Daisaku and Vladimir Faust. It even remained passive when Terra's communication came through the channel, but for once this did not mirror his emotional state. Indeed, he responded to the communication with a certain amount of alarm. He had rent Terra asunder with his lightsaber blade at the end of the battle at the Citadel and had believed her to be dead. But now she was back, and she was still being influenced by the Sith Antilles. The assassin spoke briefly into Smash Daisaku's mind. "Excuse me, my lord. This matter deserves my attention as well." Then he drifted out of the room after Faust, as silent as if he were not moving at all. Terra was not dead, and thus she was still a threat. But Vothe Kyrik had defeated her before and, if necessary, he could do so again. But he was even more curious to see what Faust did with the situation--it was well known that the man was practically invincible, and his list of titles held in the past reflected that his knowledge of the dark side was unparalleled... perhaps even by Antilles, who was a sorcerer unlike any Vothe had before encountered. Now he stayed several long paces behind Faust, not intending to interfere unless it became necessary.

Vothe had not recognized Vladimir Faust when he had entered, but he had immediately detected that the man was exceptionally powerful. He reeked of the dark side of the Force... but it was more than that. Vothe was almost taken aback by the scent of the man's soup--it was the strongest he had ever smelled. Something welled up deep within him, a hunter's lust for the ultimate prey, but he quickly quelled it. If he attempted to kill Vladimir Faust, he would more than likely be the one that ended up dead, and even if he succeeded, he would jeopardize his career with the Black Sun. Right now, he couldn't afford it. So when he was introduced to Faust and learned the face that went with the name of that infamous mass-murderer, one-time Emperor and Dark Lord of the Sith, he gave a respectful nod and just a few words planted telepathically through an ability natural to his people. "A pleasure." He was pleased that Smash had introduced him with praise of his abilities, and interested to see if he would end up working beside Faust. Free of moral compunction, Vothe could be whatever he needed to be; so far, he was an infiltrator and assassin with a perfect record and intact aliases that gave him access to the secrets of many potential enemies. There was one part of him that didn't quite like Faust, but it wouldn't be a problem. His last undercover mission had affected him a little bit. He hadn't been entirely able to separate the character from himself, as it had involved some deep spiritual reflection. Some part of him knew that what was said had some truth, but he would keep it buried away. If his destiny was going to change because of what he had learned, he would make the necessary decisions when the time came, and only through time and experience could he find his true stance on the matter.

Had he been one to show his emotions on his face, Vothe probably would have twisted his lip. Directing Outer Rim Intelligence and coordinating spice manufacturing were business-oriented positions. Frankly, he was no businessman, but an assassin. He suspected, however, that much of the positions were tied to delegation, and he would have little need to talk business with anyone directly. That said, he was over one hundred years old and was well-educated in things even beyond the art of the hunt, though that had been his chief focus. He would probably be able to hold his own despite his distaste for economics and politics. When Daisaku told him of the project underway, Vothe simply nodded. "Considering my experience with high-security installations, I should be able to make myself useful."

Vothe regarded Lord Daisaku emotionlessly, a look for him that didn't even require the hood he kept raised at almost all times. He sincerely doubted that Smash's story about Soren's death was true: he knew for a fact that Soren was trained in the Force and could wield a lightsaber with some skill. It was unlikely that he had been bludgeoned to death by unskilled combatants. However, Vothe suspected that the story had been fabricated because it ultimately didn't matter how Soren had died, only that now he was an enemy of the Black Sun. If Vothe saw him again, he would carry out Daisaku's orders. But the fact was that the information he had given Soren had in fact been passed on, and Smash now had the technical readouts to one of the most advanced physical entities in known space. And then there was the promotion. Smash didn't specify exactly to what position Vothe was being promoted, or if said position would bring about more responsibility on his part or just more credits (ultimately a secondary goal to Vothe Kyrik, but one that it never hurt to achieve). The point was that he was moving up. When the captain burst into the room and announced that Daisaku's wife was dead, Vothe remained passive and watched Smash's display. The man's tremendous promiscuity didn't suggest he had any particular emotional connection to his wife, but his apparent grief said otherwise. Maybe it was a human thing, Vothe reflected, but more likely it was just another strange layer of Smash Daisaku. "If you suspect she was murdered, my lord, I offer my services in bringing the killer to justice." It couldn't hurt to offer.

Vothe followed Smash into the office and chose a seat at the huge table, a few seats down from Daisaku so that they could converse without raising their voices and yet without presuming to sit immediately next to him and thus suggest a higher status than he currently believed he held. That could, of course, be changing very quickly, even at the end of his report, but Vothe would expect nothing, only react. "I have several things to report," he began, his voice smooth but not faint. "First, my infiltration of the Order is complete and my alias is intact. I can use it again at your command, and perhaps will do so periodically to maintain it. I passed the technical readouts you requested to Agent Soren when we had an unscheduled rendezvous--I assume he transferred them on to you. "Finally, as I'm sure you are aware, the Citadel has been destroyed. I believe that it was nearly a total loss, and that I am the only operative to have emerged without needing a cloning tank." Maybe he had thrown the last part on there to make himself look good. But he kept it under the guise of making a report because he didn't know Smash Daisaku quite well enough to anticipate his reactions yet. He suspected, however, from the characters of the Black Sun operatives with which he had interacted, that bragging rights earned from beating the odds were exercized regularly and without compunction. Vothe Kyrik was no braggart, but ensuring that he would be recognized furthered his goals in the organization. ((That mission started almost a year ago. Drop me a PM if you've forgotten the details which I will not reference IC.))

Vothe nodded as Piccolo left. He had heard about some big fiasco going on between the Empire and the Republic, but he didn't feel like he had any place in a battle like that. He was an assassin, not a soldier. Although he was interested in the outcome, as it would likely have a lasting affect on galactic government, the actual fight itself had nothing about it that made Vothe wish to go. So he would stay out of it. Presently the Anzat drifted toward the Dubrillion base's command center. He hadn't been here before, having spent his career with the Black Sun to date on missions or in the Citadel, but a little bit of logic was sufficient to determine which building would house Lord Daisaku. Totally silent and naturally hanging near shadows as he moved, Vothe quickly made his way there. Finally he stopped outside, signalling his presence and waiting for admission.

Vothe took little time on the trip to learn what had happened to Captain Piccolo. It was a curious fate, but he had heard about the captain's preferences for being returned to life, and found it rather curious that it was possible for a person's consiousness to inhabit a ship. He wondered if there were any ways he could use something like that to his advantage in the future. After all, a ship could do many things a person could not, although he would be loathe to give up the anonymity and grace of his Anzati body. He stayed close to the captain during the process, and soon the half-trandoshan was back to his typical status--among the living. Piccolo immediately spoke to him, evidently curious about how hard the Black Sun had been hit. Vothe considered the question. He knew for certain that many of the operatives he had ganged up with to take down Ason Antilles were dead. There had been one other there when he had cut down Terra, but he had not seen the shapeshifter escape with him, and the narrow margins by which he did so suggested that he was, indeed, the only survivor. That was bad because it meant that the Empire had won the day. However, Vothe realized that it would make him look good to the higher-ups in Black Sun... as would his repeated successes in the past. "That is my belief," he finally answered, his voice as ethereal as the grace with which he moved. "Captain, I desire a meeting with Lord Daisaku, and suspect it is among your priorities as well. Do you wish to accompany me?" Vothe was not a social creature. But the more exposure Black Sun's leaders had to him, the easier it would be for them to call his name when an operation came up. For now, he was quite content to play the businessman's game, for through it would come the hunt that he relished. He had managed to feed on Coruscant before walking into the Citadel assault, but the soup he had managed to locate had been barely satisfying. He wanted people to hunt like Antilles... and even now the scent of Piccolo's own luck drifted to Vothe's senses and reminded him that some of Black Sun's officers had astonishing skill.

Vothe saw the curiosity on Soren's face, but made no attempt to address what had happened. He only had to consider carefully the implications. He sought no validation for his decision, but if he needed one, the bulge in his pocket was proof enough. Whatever his choice had been, he would have walked away from that cave with a lightsaber crystal, and so it was clear to him that the Force's will could be served no matter what path he took. He did not wish to be bound to the Force's will, but neither did he seek to counteract it. What he saw before him was ultimately the same as what he had left behind when he had joined the Jedi Order--he was a free spirit, and he would make his decisions by his own intuition and then live with the consequences. He would let no one else decide for him what was best. And both Nikkos and Kitt had been incorrect. Those were not his only two available paths. He wasn't sure how it would work out, but he intended to forge a path that neither of them foresaw. Perhaps, one that neither of them would necessarily support, but the path that Vothe Kyrik would attempt to follow nonetheless. It would take care, but he was a meticulous man. Boarding the Grey Avenger, Kyrik made his way to the cockpit, his aura one of brooding. He sat silently in the copilot's seat and strapped in for liftoff, but he did not address Soren.

Vothe wandered deeper and deeper into the caves, marvelling at their light but focused now on finding the crystal that was to be his. The complex turned out to be quite extensive, and soon he was out of an earshot of Sasori, only in touch via comms. This did not concern him--he did not sense any danger in the Force, and Soren had the task of collecting extra crystals, so it wasn't like he would be waiting on Vothe to leave. Even if something had been concerning about it, however, it would not have stopped the Black Sun agent from moving steadily through the rooms, pulled by some call imperceptible to any but himself. Then he became aware that he was near to his destination. His footsteps slowed as he reached around himself with the Force. But he did not immediately pinpoint the exact location of the crystal--instead, he came upon a startling discovery. I'm not alone... His instincts served him quite well at determining when he was being followed. It was somewhat unusual for him to even be noticed, but clearly anyone that was this deep into such a sacred and forgotten place had to be looking specifically for someone like him. Dropping silently into a crouch by the wall, Vothe grabbed the only weapon he had on him--his borrowed lightsaber, and looked carefully around. When he spotted the one who was following him, now walking calmly into the room with no attempt at being covert, he blinked. That can't be.... It was Nikkos Sariss, a figure from Vothe's long and somewhat recent adolescence. Nikkos was an Anzati who had taught him much of what he knew about the arts that had made him successful. There was perhaps no one that Vothe respected more in the galaxy, for what would he be without the instruction of this man? Vothe stood. "Nikkos?" he breathed. "What are you doing here?" Now that he got a better look at his instructor's face, he could make out his expression. It was one of disappointment, even disdain. "Vothe, what do you think you're doing?" he asked, his voice quiet an ethereal despite the accusation in his tone. "A Jedi Knight? Really?" Internally, Vothe grimaced. "It's not quite like that." "Is it? Tell me, do you believe in the Force now?" The words cut right through Vothe's argument even as it was forming in his mind. The Anzati did not believe in the Force. It was just another theory developed by younger species than the Anzati, and was no more correct than the dozens before it. Even if Vothe becoming a Jedi Knight was not as it seemed, faith in the Force was something he had picked up along the way, completely genuinely. "What would you have me do?" A faint flicker of approval passed over Nikkos' face when Vothe did not attempt to defend his actions. "Come back with me. Tell me what you think you know so you can see your error. I knew you were too young to leave the homeworld." Vothe studied the older being's face--Nikkos was probably close to seven hundred years old at this point, but he looked as vibrant of a human of only thirty-five years. "No, I'll handle this myself. You made no mistake," he answered. Nikkos nodded approvingly again. "Good. Then go back to Black Sun and sever your ties with the Order." "I would consider that choice carefully," a third voice spoke from the shadows behind Vothe. He turned to face it and found Master Kitt Fitt, the new Grandmaster of the Jedi Order. "You've made a commitment to the Jedi Order, one not easily broken." As Kitt spoke, he twirled something in his fingers and walked forward. The light caught it and Vothe noticed that it was a blue lightsaber crystal, fine and beautiful. Vothe met the Jedi's eyes... a Jedi so much younger than him but seemingly so much more wise. That fact alone was a strong argument for the reality that was the Force. Vothe's belief system had been altered, whether Nikkos liked it or not. But could he really uphold his commitment to the Jedi Order? He had always been a free spirit, and besides, what could would Nikkos' teachings be if he became a Knight? The two paths before him seemed almost mutually exclusive. "Vothe, the only decision is to give it up, or you will deny your heritage," Nikkos said, producing from his pocket a small, orange crystal that Vothe assumed was from these very caves. "Tirius, serve," Kitt said. Vothe looked at each in turn. "I will make my own decision," he said at last. "Begone, spirits." He had guessed right. The apparitions disappeared back into the Force. He almost found it amusing that Nikkos, such a non-believer in the Force, had been manifested in such a way. Vothe put his lightsaber back onto the clip on his belt and felt an unusual bulge in his pocket as his hand brushed by it. He reached in and pulled out the most beautiful lightsaber crystal he had encountered. It was perfectly clear and seemed to have been cut by a machine, so perfect were its planes, though he knew that was not possible. Vothe was heading back out when he got Sasori's message. Speaking back telepathically, Vothe responded. "On my way," he said. A few minutes later, he reached Soren and gestured to the cave mouth. "Ready when you are."

Vothe had not been deterred by the snow outside the cave. He had learned over many years how to deal with natural or semi-natural barriers--that not actually fighting them, but by moving through them using their own strength was key. And so he had let the snow push him toward his destination, and only at a key moment had he applied the force necessary to slip through into the caves. The caves were... academically interesting, but nothing that Vothe hadn't expected. The Jedi had been here for millenia, and the crystals were so powerful in the Force that these places were said to often cause visions during meditation. Some Jedi would bring the materials they needed to build a lightsaber here, enter a meditation trance, and when they emerged, they had a complete weapon, even if they were completely unaware of the actual building process or even the selection of their crystal. Of course, Vothe and Soren were here only for the crystals themselves. When prompted, he silently took the goggles and put them on, then quietly nodded when Soren offered him the lead. As he slipped ahead down the stairs, he took a moment to try and wrap his head around the phrase Soren had used--you and your people. It still didn't seem to fit him correctly. Tirius was striving to become a Jedi Knight, but Vothe Kyrik wasn't certain at all that that was his destiny. It would take time to figure out just where he would be when all this was completed. Even walking down the stairs, Vothe Kyrik was silent. But as he entered the caves, he had to admit that he was somewhat surprised by what he found. Ilum's lightsaber crystals were dense. The walls sparkled with them, so frequent that they seemed as common as the stone in which they were embedded. He had expected to have to search long and hard for each individual crystal, but Ilum apparently had no shortage of them, even after all this time. He glanced over his shoulder and nodded an all-clear at Soren, then descended the stairs the rest of the way, opening himself to the Force to drink in the powerful sensations that accompanied this room. The feeling was nothing short of astounding. It was like being parched in a desert and then standing under a waterfall, or eating something that tasted so good that you simply couldn't eat fast enough to satiate your desire for the sensation. But it was so much more than that, and Vothe could not think of words to describe it. It also brought to his mind his very biological thirst, and he yearned for a moment to satiate it so much that he glanced at Sasori. But he had been resisting for months, and he would have to go a little longer. There was something else in the Force, too. The echoes of the Jedi that had been here before... hundreds of them at various times. He could actually hear some of the words they had spoken, feel some of what they were doing in the Force. It seemed that they were stretching out as he was, but they were looking for something specific. Vothe wondered at this, but as he reached around himself with his mind, he got the sense that each Jedi was looking for a different specific object, something that they expected to find... no, were destined to find. Of course... Vothe thought. He turned his mind on Soren and spoke telepathically to him. "I know you are hesitant to listen to the will of the Force, but without doing so, you will never find the right crystal. But there is a crystal here for you, if you look for it." As he finished, Vothe felt his, like a beacon, coming from deeper in the caves. Completely absently he started to wander that way, still too taken by the very sensations around him to fully focus on where he was walking. He simply knew that he was walking in the right direction....

Vothe took a look around the ship and borrowed something think enough to keep him warm, then followed Sasori down the ramp. Thankfully, Ilum wasn't nearly as cold as Hoth, which was only survivable on the equator and even then only during the day without shelter. However, coming from the comfortable late spring warmth of Gala, it was a bit of a shock to the system to walk down the ramp into a foot of snow. Of course, the unusual body system of his people meant he didn't experince cold in the same way that most species did, as he had no natural body heat, but that wouldn't exactly make Tirius more comfortable here. Presently he stretched out with his senses and very clearly detected a cave full of the Force-sensitive lightsaber crystals not far off. Soren had picked a good landing spot, and without a word Vothe set off towards the caves, somehow his footfalls not even making the familiar crunching sound that treading on snow usually caused. He was totally silent and pretty well camouflaged, and from what he had read about Ilum, it wasn't a bad idea to try to go unnoticed. As he walked, he tried to get a better sense of what was ahead, though it was difficult to search for life forms when the crystals had such a strong aura. He wasn't sure if they would find Imperial troops guarding the caves to keep Jedi from sneaking onto the world and harvesting them, or if they would be absent and instead the pair of Black Sun agents were going to stumble upon one of Ilum's natural dangers--like a hunting Gorgodon that had found its way into the mountains. Not that it mattered. Vothe Kyrik was prepared to deal with any eventuality, even if he was armed only with a borrowed lightsaber.

"I think the name suits me," said Vothe Kyrik, the Black Sun operative, with a smirk as he glanced briefly at the ID before pocketing it. He noted how Soren read the datacard, then disposed of it properly after he was done with it. It was always a good idea to take safety precautions at every turn, and he wouldn't have done anything different, as a businessman or a Black Sun assassin. He bit back a laugh at the mention of R&R before turning his attention back to the task at hand. "I read a little about the crystals in the Holocron, but nothing to suggest where on Ilum they're found," he stated. "However, they're suppose to be Force sensitive. Even if we can't sense them, however, I'm sure the Empire would be willing enough to point us in the right direction to help our... entrepreneurism." His own words made him a bit reflective for a moment. Whatever he did with the rest of his life, the Force would inevitably be a part of it. He hadn't realized how much it could change who he was, and while he was at his core the same, the Force had revolutionized his perception of the universe. At some point, when he wasn't so busy with whatever mission lay before him, he would have to sit down and decide just how much he could let himself change. There were some things about him that intrinsically clashed with Jedi ideals, which he had now experienced first hand and found somewhat seductive. At some point, something was going to have to give, one way or another.

Hurtling through hyperspace after a sanisteam, Vothe Kyrik took a moment to relax. There was something about hyperspace aboard a ship that was otherwise empty that was reassuring. It was a place that was utterly and completely secure, unless your ship was bugged. Vothe absently keyed for a sweep to be performed as he stared out into the mottled tunnels stretching before him. For that moment, he ceased to be himself, because he didn't need to be. No one expected anything of him during travel time. Except himself, and he had some preparation to do before he arrived at his destination. Bringing himself back into the present, back into his responsibilities, he headed to the small lounge area in his ship and sat down at a computer. He grabbed a blank datacard, plugged it in, and used his century of experience to start writing a program to put on the card. It wouldn't be particularly malevolent, but it had to be discrete. He was faced with a unique opportunity, and his ability to capitalize on it was critical to his mission. The basic program was something that he had authorization to complete. It would run in the foreground and the computer would note it and perform the instructions. Vothe fiddled around with code density and used a few hidden commands most people didn't know to make the basic program "noisy". Basically, it allowed him to hide into the different loops and commands another set of commands which would efficiently find a bit of information in the computer system and download it to the data card. It was completely discrete. It might take a few minutes longer than the basic program would require to execute, but it would be easy to buy that time without looking suspicious. Everything was coming together. The program saved to his datacard, Vothe moved soundlessly into the ship's bedroom and decided to let the ship's arrival alert to awaken him when he neared his destination. With all the stuff he had been through in the last few days, he knew the rest would do him a lot of good.

VOTHE KYRIK'S CHARACTER SHEET Identity [!ident] Real Name: Vothe Kyrik A.K.A: -- Homeworld: Anzat Species: Anzati (appears Human) Physical Description [!dscrp] Age: 111 (Anzati can live for many centuries, appears late-twenties for a human) Height: 5'10" Weight: 165 lb Hair: Dark brown and long Eyes: Black Sex: Male Equipment [!equip] Clothing or Armor: Light body armor under red tunic and cloak. Weapon: Blaster pistol, ornate knife, and silver lightsaber. Common Inventory: Poisons, smoke grenades, lock disruption devices, various stealth and infliltration related devices, holographic disguise projector. Faction Information [!factn] Force User Alignment: Neutral Current Faction Affiliation: Black Sun Current Faction Rank: Operative History: [!hstry] Force Side: Gray Trained by: It's a secret. Vothe is trained in the ways of the Force, but he was in disguise for the process. He has training equivalent to that of a Jedi Knight. Trained who: -- Known Skills: All Anzati are capable of using an ability that is similar to the Jedi Mind Trick. Vothe is particularly adept at this, as well as shielding his mind in the Force. Background: Unknown. Ship Registration [!ship] Name: Price of Progress Class: Light Freighter Model: YT-2400 Armaments: Two quad laser turrets. However, Vothe typically does not have the crew to man these turrets and keeps them in a fixed-forward position so he can fire them from the cockpit. Security: Anti-personnel defenses and remote systems lockout. Only Vothe or authorized individuals may enter the ship or access its computer system. Modifications: Beyond security, very few.

Vothe watched Clash hit the ground, a smoking hole in the back of his head. It wasn't honorable, but it got the job done, Vothe thought, turning away from the scene and scanning the hangar. The way things were going, it didn't take long for him to pick up on the situation--the stupid Hutt Dordjooba was apparently attempting to flee, using his thick hide to protect him from harm. He seemed to do that quite a bit. The Anzat wasn't sure if his presence could make a large difference at this point, but he now worked his way in the direction the Hutt had been taken, hoping to intercept him if things went poorly. He kept his blaster pistol in his hand--he just might need it again before the situation ended.

Vothe popped the hatch on his borrowed TIE Defender. New orders from Daisaku... he thought, heading over to the detained Hutt guard, Clash, who was bound in powered manacles. "Come with me," he said. He then pointed the guard towards the nearest door, making as though to relocate him to a detention center, walking behind him and guiding him with the occasional push. Some hired hands and mercenaries would have problems with carrying out Smash's orders at this point. Some would consider such an act as was about to be carried out dishonorable or cowardly. Some would think that it was simply disrespectful to do such a thing. Vothe Kyrik, however, was not such a man, and even now he picked his moment to coincide with the time when they were in the middle of the hangar with no cover and no loose objects that could be manipulated if this didn't work right away. Deftly he paused during midstride. Clash took another step, having no way to tell that Kyrik wasn't still right behind him. That step put him just out of arm's reach of the assassin, who then dropped the hidden blaster from his right sleeve into his palm, raised it to point at the back of Clash's head, and pulled the trigger. This unspeakable act was the murder of an unarmed prisoner. It was effortless, smooth, and totally undetectable by the target; everyone else in the hangar would be able to watch but the action too quick for them to so much as shout out a warning. << Killshot Requested >>

And that was that. Vothe quickly searched and disarmed Clash even as the shuttle was disgorging a few more operatives to take the cyborg in. He slapped on the expected restraints, one of the things he carried in his cloak, unseen by observers. The operatives approached and took the quarry into formal custody and transported him to the shuttle, then took off for the Star Destroyer above. Kyrik paused a moment and placed an extremely difficult to detect homing device on the hull of Clash's ship, just in case, then quickly boarded his borrowed TIE Defender and took off to fly tight escort on the Black Sun shuttle. He doubted that Clash had given up because he knew he couldn't evade such an apt tracker as Kyrik, so he probably had a plan for getting himself out of this and his Hutt master with him. It was obviously Vothe's job and that of the rest of Black Sun to make sure no such plot succeeded. Keeping tabs on his ship was one precaution he could take. Remotely configuring the device to inform him if the ship left its current location, Vothe turned his attention back to docking with the Black Sun flagship. As he landed, he sent a comm to Lord Daisaku. "My lord, the Hutt Dordjooba and his agent Clash are aboard, as you requested." Yes, he had seen the mission out, start to finish. He couldn't say it had gone perfectly, but it was totally, outstandingly successful and the Black Sun had lost minimal resources. Eager to rise to the top of the crime syndicate (for no reason other than opportunity), Vothe hoped in the back of his mind that Smash would take note of his integral role in the operation. He had also proved his versatility--his previous mission had been equally successful and had focused upon his skills in infiltration. This one had relied on leadership and combat performance.

On Vothe's first pass over where he suspected Clash might be hiding, he spotted the cyborg standing atop his ship, apparently giving himself up. Strange, the operative thought as he slowed his ship, nearing the Hutt agent. Of course, he immediately suspected a trap, but there seemed little chance of the man being able to effectively do something from his current position. His ship's outward weapons didn't scan as active, and destroying the ship when Vothe got close would kill himself as well. In some fanatical organizations, Kyrik realized that that could still be a possibility. Among the Hutt's hired guns, however, the chance was nill. Vothe signalled for another shuttle from the Star Destroyer to home in on his location as he set his ship down next to Clash's. The shuttle immediately launched and flew directly down towards their location as Vothe popped the canopy on his TIE Defender and approached his quarry, his small but effective blaster visible in his hand--this was no time for subtlety. "By order of Lord Daisaku, surrender yourself and submit to being taken into Black Sun custody," he called as he approached, blaster now raised. From this distance and given Clash's position in the wide open, the assassin couldn't miss if his target decided not to come quietly.

Vothe nodded at Dordjooba when he came out and his men surrounded the Hutt just to make sure he didn't try anything foolish. It was suspicious enough that he was attempted to protect his pouch when it could easily have a weapon inside or a tool he could use to escape, but they would wait to search him unti they had a little more force...and maybe a tranquilizer powerful enough to put a gundark to sleep. Presently they marched Dordjooba over to the shuttle Kyrik had taken here from the Star Destroyer above. It was a short ride up during which there was always at least one operative ready to put a blaster bolt in Dordjooba's eye, the Hutt's least protected feature. There would be no resistance. No sooner had the shuttle landed aboard the capital ship than Vothe left it and headed immediately for the nearest TIE Defender, having received a transmission from Lord Daisaku with his other orders. He had noticed his new target during the battle, and now it seemed Daisaku wanted him to bring the being in if possible. As he moved, he made sure that there was a large greeting party for the Hutt, but would let Smash work with the details. Now he got behind the TIE's controls and quickly familiarized himself with them. It was nice to have a TIE with a life support system and such performance, he reflected as he blasted out of the hangar bay and back down towards the planet's surface. If Clash headed to Mos Eisley without a ship, he must have disappeared back to the base in order to retrieve it, he thought, pointing the quick starfighter's pointed wings toward the Hutt palace.

Vothe picked up on both transmissions and nodded to his men when Dordjooba surrendered. The group of them carefully walked back towards the abandoned building and made a formation out front but didn't raise their blasters, though they kept them close--they would honor the Hutt's surrender. As they walked, they scanned the windows and rooftops carefully, looking for some rogue Hutt agent that wanted to take a potshot at them. He looked at one of his men and said something quietly to him, then that man took a voice amplification device from his belt and put it up to his mouth. "Leave the building unarmed and with your hands up." Kyrik had brought a shuttle down to the planet from the Star Destroyer, so he could transport prisoners if necessary, but he suspected that Lord Daisaku would have direct orders for him on what was to happen next. By now a crowd had started once again to gather, as the shooting had stopped and something of some interest was taking place. A couple of them had seen the Hutt enter the building and had spread the word, increasing the crowd's curiosity--it wasn't often that someone stood up to a Hutt and forced a surrender, and it was a big deal here on Tatooine.

--A comm comes in for Lord Daisaku-- "My lord, this is Agent Kyrik. Dordjooba and his guards have holed up in an abandoned building in Mos Eisley. I attempted to drive them out with the men I had, but we were repelled. Both sides have been depleted considerably." The voice was totally cool and completely measured despite the obviously intense situation that was the pretext of the communication. "I am requesting backup preferably with extreme force such that would suggest a surrender without a further fight." --End comm--

Vothe had disappeared into the crowd like wraith into a bog before anyone could muster up the position to watch him. It seemed that one person, an agent the Hutt had outside the abandoned building, had attempted to do so but had quickly lost him and now was firing randomly into the crowd, causing sudden panic. Convenient, he thought, using the panic not only to make a call to his surviving operatives to withdraw from the abandoned building, but to make his way swiftly through a roundabout course well clear of the source of the incoming fire (he couldn't quite identify it) and begin to double back towards the Hutt's pilfered building. You win this round, but you're not out of this yet, Dordjooba. He began to draw near, finding less panicked crowd and staying hidden. He was careful to keep a row of buildings between himself and the Hutt building lest he draw further fire from the sniper he believed he had missed. A minute later and the surviving operatives met him. "Keep an eye on the building and make sure no one leaves," Vothe told them. "I'll call in backup." So saying, he pulled out his commlink and sent a comm to Lord Daisaku with an update on the situation.

Vothe thought for a moment that his gambit had paid off when several of the Hutt's guards held their fire, not wanting to risk their boss' welfare. However, a slight smile crossed his face when one of them called his bluff--a shooter in the window who decided to take a pot shot. It was a smart move in one aspect, and he had to hand it to the shooter--he indeed did not wish to kill Dordjooba and would take him alive if at all possible. However, it was a foolish move in other respects--the shooter was shooting from the bright Tatooine streets into a dark room at an attacker that was almost entirely obscured by the bulk of a Hutt. He was easy to spot, silhouetted against the light from the window, and Vothe was able to track his blaster and anticipate the quick shot before it came. Since he was so largely obscured from the attacker, the amount he needed to move to evade the shot and the possible target area the attacker had were minimal. It wasn't difficult for someone with Vothe's reflexes and speed to make the adjustment he required so that the bolt passed by. The shooter had made another mistake in taking his potshot--Black Sun operatives were now stationed throughout the building, covering Hutt guards. When it was the Hutts that suddenly started the firefight again, the operatives didn't even flinch--they fired upon all the guards they could see, mostly into unprotected flanks and unwary targets. << Killshot requested on Clash >> The shooter's final mistake was that he left himself silhouetted against the light and Vothe had an easy shot--he raised his pistol and took it as quickly as he could aim before he leapt off the Hutt's back, landing low and dashing out the hole in the wall Clash had created and into the streets and the crowd not far away, using the Hutt's bulk for cover as long as he could. Once in the crowd, he would be untraceable. << Killshot requested on Sasori >>