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| - Courscant: Old City - Transit Center The deep darkness of the Old City is no place more evident than here, at the center of the former capital city. Once the beating heart of the planet, the transit center is made up of four distinct areas. A large raised platform where the magtrains once came and went like well-oiled clockwork. A massive, for the time, spaceport that was fabled to have gold-colored landing lights. A large parking area that served both as a place for private air-speeders to land and travel about the local roads and for the air-taxi and speeder-buses to pick up and drop off passengers. Lastly a large building served as both a cantina AND a custom office. No other place in the galaxy could you sip whiskey while your luggage was scanned. Now, of course, the raise platform for the magtrains has half-collapsed, only two of the track platforms remaining. The other platforms have crashed atop the air-speeder park, leaving rubble and ruin atop a number of speeders (which were already abandoned, and junkers.) Though the spaceport landing pad is mostly clear it is riddled with holes and burn-marks that would make landing there extremely dangerous. The cantina is no where to be found. It's just missing. Scary. (Karin) Something rustles in the shadows. A dark figure moves from alleyway to alleyway, staying most hidden. (Vizuun) With armor over his upper body and a helmet hiding his face, a short, stocky being leans on a tall force pike and chats quietly with a group of Rodians near a large pile of junk and debris. Others that come and go nearby aren't given much heed at the moment, as the armored being seems caught up in conversation. (Karin) The sight of Vizuun makes the dark figure in the shades tense. It carefully slips out a blaster, kneeling down behind a trash-can and aiming the nozzle at the Nikto. COMBAT: Karin wields her Special K. (Vizuun) Clapping one of the Rodians on the shoulder and muttering something, the armored Nikto seems to be about ready to move out of the area. If anyone is aiming any blasters at him, he certainly doesn't notice. (Aldog) Aldog enters the area and looks around carefully. He sniffs the air and appears to be pondering something. He sees the Nikto and walks slowly towards him. (Karin) The shadowed figure hesitates as the Nikto steps away from the line of sight. A quick step is taken, out of the alleyway, and the blaster is held high -- aiming at Vizuun. "You really shouldn't have done that." It is the voice of Lynn Scavo; cold and clipped in the desolate surroundings. The blonde woman is - as usual - dressed in a pit-black business suit, lending her good covering in the dark area. She flicks a look at Aldog, a glimmer of suprise in her eyes before she looks to Vizuun again. "Now you made me angry. Are you going to come with me quietly, this time?" (Vizuun) Vizuun eyes Aldog through the his helmet's visor, but he doesn't make any move to speak to the man. Whatever business he was about, he appeared to be eager to get to it and had no time for conversation. That is, until he hears that familiar voice speaking to him. Behind the helmet, the Nikto's lips part in a satisfied grin as he turns to face the woman. "Made you angry, did I? Now that really is a shame, ain't it?" Hefting his pike, he gives it a quick twirl before catching it in both hands and holding it in front of him. "Odds are a little more even this time around, honey." he says, clicking sharp-tipped metal fingers against the pike's handle. "Maybe this time you're comin with me." COMBAT: You wield your Kh'rusha Exotic Forcepike. (Aldog) Aldog perks his ears and strains to make sense of the voice. He eyes Vizuun who draw his weapon. Aldog quickly follows suit and aims in the general direction of his perceived location of the disembodied voice. "Hold it right there, ye threatenin' type voice you. One blast from any direction and I'll open fire filling ya full of burn marks like a charred Jawa sittin in a fireplace." COMBAT: Aldog wields his Merr Sonn TM7 Repeater. (Karin) Lynn looks coldly at Vizuun and speaks into a comlink on her wrist. "Whatever you do, don't hit the Nikto's companion. Other than that, open fire. Take him down." Dark shadows appear in the windows that surround the transit center. Each of the men wield the steely glint of a sniper rifle in their hands, and without much further ado they aim it at Vizuun! Lynn, brow furrowing in dissatisfaction at Aldog's voice, moves to the side in search for cover. (Vizuun) Trying to see in every direction, Vizuun holds his pike in front of his body and snarls behind the helmet. "Is the little girl afraid to do her own dirty work?" Without waiting for an answer he charges toward the door the woman is hiding behind, hoping to catch her off-guard and give whoever she's ordering to fire on him something besides a shooting duck to fire at. (Aldog) Aldog hits the floor and spins to a point where he is back on his knees and aiming his weapon at the various people trying to take a shot. He squints and fires. COMBAT: Aldog fires his Merr Sonn TM7 Repeater at Lynn's Men! COMBAT: Lynn's Men dodges Aldog's blaster bolt. COMBAT: Lynn's Men fire their Merr Sonn TM7 Repeaters at Aldog! COMBAT: Aldog dodges Lynn's Men's blaster bolt. (Karin) Lynn wastes no time or energy responding to Vizuun's taunt. She swiftly takes a step back and fires her blaster at Vizuun when she sees him charging! In the windows, her black-clad men deftly covers behind the walls and fires at the Nikto, but unfortunately Aldog seems caught in the crossfire. COMBAT: Karin tries to stun Vizuun with her Special K! COMBAT: Vizuun dodges and Karin's stun beam misses. (Vizuun) In the back of his mind, Vizuun is already planning on personally thanking Aldog for the distraction as he rushes forward. With one less thing to worry about, the Nikto is able to give his complete attention to the woman and so manages to get out of the way of the stun beam. "Gonna have to do better than that, sister!" he growls as he closes the distance and strikes out with his pike. COMBAT: You attack Karin with your Kh'rusha Exotic Forcepike! COMBAT: Karin tries to dodge, but Vizuun's Kh'rusha Exotic Forcepike hits and mauls Karin. (Aldog) Aldog sees Vizuun's attack out of the corner of his eye and starts to turn, but then remembers he's in a firefight of his own so continues his battle against those taking potshots. COMBAT: Aldog fires his Merr Sonn TM7 Repeater at Lynn's Men! COMBAT: Lynn's Men tries to dodge, but Aldog's blaster bolt hits and kills one of them. COMBAT: Lynn's Men fire their Merr Sonn TM7 Repeaters at Aldog! COMBAT: Lynn's Men break off their attack upon Aldog. (Karin) Vizuun's forcepike hits the woman's shoulder, inflicting a terrible wound. Lynn falls to the ground, stunned -- her jacket is cut to pieces, and two square blocks fall to the ground. Then, supporting the injury with one hand, she clumsily gets up. She throws herself half-way through an open window to an abandonded building in an attempt to flee the attacker. The men in the windows focus their rifles on Vizuun again, deliberately not aiming ofr Aldog despite the man's attack. COMBAT: Lynn's Men fire their Merr Sonn TM7 Repeaters at Vizuun! COMBAT: Vizuun dodges Lynn's Men's blaster bolt. (Vizuun) Though the helmet's faceplate is expressionless, the face beneath holds a look of pure ecstasy as Vizuun's pike connects with the woman. He was definitely enjoying this. When she throws herself through the window, he snarls and moves to follow. "Oh you ain't gettin away that easy! You an' me got a few more things to discuss." Before he can follow, blasterfire begins to rain down all around him and he desperately begins to bob and weave. Somehow, he manages to avoid taking any damage, but Lynn's had a chance to put some distance between herself and the Nikto if thats what she's trying to do. Once the firing stops, Vizuun rushes toward the window Lynn went through. (Aldog) Aldog sees one of them go down and merely smirks. He does addresses the rest of the men shooting. "Lemme just show ya how bein' horizontal and on fire isn't fun." He unleashes further fire. COMBAT: Aldog fires his Merr Sonn TM7 Repeater at Lynn's Men! COMBAT: Lynn's Men dodges Aldog's blaster bolt. COMBAT: Lynn's Men fire their Merr Sonn TM7 Repeaters at Aldog! COMBAT: Aldog dodges Lynn's Men's blaster bolt. (Karin) Lynn slips inside the window and runs past the rooms inside! On the plaza the men in the windows take extra cover, holding their fire while one of them speaks into his comlink. Courscant: Old City - Commercial Center Concourse A large indoor center of commerce was once a hub of the latest fashion and the greatest food. But that was a very long time ago and now the commercial center serves only as basic shelter for the people of the Old City. Surprisingly, the second mezzanine level has survived the centuries and though the once-fancy automatic stairs have been scavenged away and replaced by ladders pieced together by technicians. A large fountain is the centerpiece of the large center. Six layers of stone that have chipped and eroded somewhat but still maintain a hint of the old majesty. Though no water flows through it, and hasn't for many centuries, it still remains a symbol to the people who control the center. It also provides good cover during a firefight. (Karin) Despite her injury Lynn has made it up a set of stairs, and now she's moving aong a first-floor mezzanine. She leans heavily against the bannister, though, and drops of blood has covered the stairs. The look that she sends at her comlink merely makes her frown. "Well, then, go get back up!" (Vizuun) Vizuun scrambles through the window and and follows the sounds of Lynn's feet and the trail of blood she leaves behind as she flees. "Come out, come out wherever you are!" the Nikto calls after the woman. "Hows about we put our differences aside and just chat, eh?" (Aldog) Aldog enters the area and runs up along side Vizuun. He has his blaster drawn and scans the area. "Where'd she go, mate? I'm at the ready and will aid ya where ah can." (Karin) There comes a sound of shifting rubble from above. Then a clear voice can be heard, though the exact location of its source is lost to the echoes of the room. "Chatting is fine. I can see the deal that you stroke with the Viceroy L'hnnar didn't hold long. Can't you see that we'll get you eventually?" (Vizuun) Vizuun glances at Aldog as he comes up beside him and then gestures to the trail of blood on the ground. "That way." he says while moving toward the stairs. When the woman calls out, he barks a laugh. "You think so, honey? L'hnnar an' me, we got an arrangement. Besides, you stole from me. That ain't exactly somethin' I'm willin' to forgive just now." Halfway up the stairs, he pauses. "You can sit up there til you bleed out, if you want. My schedule just opened up, so I've got all day." (Aldog) Aldog follows Vizuun up the stairs and aims his blaster as he goes. He waits to see anything moving. "Listen, lass, ye best come out or I'm a gonna be blastin ya at me earliest opportunity. I'm not one ta be trifled with, ah assure ye." (Karin) "Your ship?" An amused laugh comes from above, a little more rubble shifting and sending sand spraying down to the stairs below. "You can have your ship back for all I care. Then I'll freeze you in carbonite and send you away to face Meena Tills. A thoughtful pause follows Aldog's words. Then Lynn appears from behind a crate, pale-faced, looking both amused and angry -- which results in a rather odd expression. "Tell your friend," she says at Vizuun, coldly, "that I know about the woman that sat on his desk, wiping her eyes." (Vizuun) Vizuun laughs again. "Tills? Tills called off the bounty, honey. I been trialed and let go. A free Nikto, an' all that." Hefting his pike, he starts moving up the stairs again. He's about to say something else when Lynn pops out and speaks, but as soon as his eyes are on her, Vizuun forgets whatever it was he was going to say and lunges forward with a roar while stabbing with his pike. Apparently he wasn't so interested in chatting afterall. COMBAT: You attack Karin with your Kh'rusha Exotic Forcepike! COMBAT: Karin tries to dodge, but Vizuun's Kh'rusha Exotic Forcepike hits and vaporizes Karin. Karin collapses, critically injured. (Aldog) Aldog walks up to the now fallen woman. He stills aims his blaster, this time at her head. He then motions to Vizuun. "Pick her up, mate. We'll take her to Byss. I'm sure her employers be nice and ansy ta get this here assasin back. Maybe even alive." (Karin) Four black-clad men enters the building through windows and doors, aiming their rifles at the trio on the balcony. For Lynn it's too late; she has fallen forward over the forcepike that hit her in the chest. She is still breathing, but definititely looking unhealthy. (Vizuun) Vizuun steps forward with a shake of his head. "Byss? No, I think I'll take her with me. I've got plans for this one..." He stops as the guards swoop in and aim their weapons. "Hey there, fellas..." he begins, spinning his pike and eyeing the guards. "We're just about done here. Hows about you go bother somebody else, eh?" (Aldog) Aldog swivels and sees the intended recepient of Vizunn's greeting. He immediately fires his weapon at the remaining men. COMBAT: Aldog fires his Merr Sonn TM7 Repeater at Lynn's Men! COMBAT: Lynn's Men tries to dodge, but Aldog's blaster bolt hits and wounds a member of them. COMBAT: Lynn's Men fire their Merr Sonn TM7 Repeaters at Aldog! COMBAT: Aldog tries to dodge, but Lynn's Men's blaster bolt hits and grievously wounds him. (Karin) Seeing their leader fallen, the soldiers do not hesitate in firing at both men. They immediately turn their repeaters at Vizuun and shoots at the Nikto. COMBAT: Lynn's Men fire their Merr Sonn TM7 Repeaters at Vizuun! COMBAT: Vizuun dodges Lynn's Men's blaster bolt. (Vizuun) Vizuun had been hoping the guards would have taken his advice and run along. Maybe they would have, but Aldog had to go and start shooting at them. Well, the woman would just have to wait. He didn't think she'd be going anywhere at the moment, anyway. Snarling, he rushes straight at the group, swinging his pike wildly and somehow managing to dodge incoming fire. COMBAT: You attack Lynn's Men with your Kh'rusha Exotic Forcepike! COMBAT: Lynn's Men dodges Vizuun's attack. COMBAT: Lynn's Men fire their Merr Sonn TM7 Repeaters at Vizuun! COMBAT: Vizuun dodges Lynn's Men's blaster bolt. (Aldog) Aldog moves to avoid hitting Vizuun by mistake and takes another shot at the remaining guards. He checks to make sure the woman's body has ceased moving before he takes the shot but then does so. COMBAT: Aldog fires his Merr Sonn TM7 Repeater at Lynn's Men! COMBAT: Lynn's Men dodges Aldog's blaster bolt. COMBAT: Lynn's Men fire their Merr Sonn TM7 Repeaters at Aldog! COMBAT: Aldog dodges Lynn's Men's blaster bolt. (Karin) Lynn isn't going anywhere, no. She remains lying on the mezzanine floor while two of her men advances up the stairs. The remaining two, one of them injured, fire at Aldog. COMBAT: Lynn's Men fire their Merr Sonn TM7 Repeaters at Aldog! COMBAT: Aldog dodges Lynn's Men's blaster bolt. (Vizuun) "Be still, you bloodly droyk!" Vizuun growls while ducking out of the way of a blasterbolt. As he comes back up, he brings his pike around and up to slash at one of the armed men. "Lets hurry this up, eh?" he calls back to Aldog. COMBAT: You attack Lynn's Men with your Kh'rusha Exotic Forcepike! COMBAT: Lynn's Men tries to dodge, but Vizuun's Kh'rusha Exotic Forcepike hits and kills one of Lynn's Men. COMBAT: Lynn's Men fire their Merr Sonn TM7 Repeaters at Vizuun! COMBAT: Vizuun dodges Lynn's Men's blaster bolt. (Aldog) Aldog smiles and yells to Vizuun. "Why hurry, mate? Ye have a lot of brute strength, but ye haven't yet grasped the idea of style. Don't worry, I'll teach ya. I see great things for ya, Viz." He fires another volley at the men. COMBAT: Aldog fires his Merr Sonn TM7 Repeater at Lynn's Men! COMBAT: Lynn's Men tries to dodge, but Aldog's blaster bolt hits and kills one of them. COMBAT: Lynn's Men fire their Merr Sonn TM7 Repeaters at Aldog! COMBAT: Aldog dodges Lynn's Men's blaster bolt. (Karin) The injured man on the floor barks a sharp order: "Fall back." This makes the man on the mezzanin back down the stairs, even as his comrade on the floor falls to Aldog's blaster. "You have no idea who you're messing with," says the leader. A gloved hand points upwards. "You will be hunted like never before. Fair warning to you." And with that, the remaining two men retreats. (Vizuun) "Style?" Vizuun yells a question while ducking another blasterbolt. "You stand back and shoot yer blaster and talk to me about style? Pfhaw!" he prepares to swing again but before can, the men turn to retreat. Relaxing his pose, he straightens and lowers his weapon. "Bah. Bring it on." he growls to the retreating forms before turning back to Aldog and the prone Lynn. "Now...what to do with you..." he says as he walks over and kneels down beside the woman. Reaching out with one hand, he drags a claw down her cheek just easy enough as to not break the skin. "Oh I got some plans for you, honey." A bit of frothy spittle drips from beneath the chin of his helmet. (Aldog) Aldog shrugs. "Hey, mate, I shot it...with style. Come, we need to talk. As you are clearly above and beyond in terms of strength, you can pick up the lady. Let's head to Byss. There is much to discuss about your future." (Vizuun) With a grunt directed at Aldog, Vizuun does indeed heft the woman and sling her over his shoulder. "I already said I ain't takin her to Byss. I got somethin lined up for her. Somethin special. Fittin for a woman of her talents." He turns his back to Aldog and begins making his way to the stairs. "Thanks for the help, pal. I think maybe I'll help you out with that bit of business we talked about awhile back. Once I'm done with this, that is." (Aldog) Aldog shrugs. "Fine by me, mate. Just stay alive. I have use for you in my ...Association. Make your way to Byss and meet with me there."
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