Ralltiir, Landing Pad 223, Saturday night at midnight
Zayne and Gryph were waiting for their ship to be delivered at Pad 223 in relative silence. But when Gryph indicated their their new ship was incoming, Zayne had a few questions. "That's pretty big. How could you possibly afford to buy that?"
"Well, buying may not be the right term. There are purchase prices... and then there are delivery charges," Gryph explained. "We're paying the delivery charge.
"Wait a minute. You stole that ship?" Zayne asked, taking his eyes off of the ship in his indignation. The ship wasn't coming in for the smoothest landing.
"Me? Steal a ship?" Gryph asked. "What kind of person do you think I am? I hired someone to steal a ship."
"That's terrific. Now I'm a... LOOK OUT!" Zayne yelled as the large ship careened into the landing pad lighting, snapping the poles like twigs as it finally crashed. Zayne had pulled Gryph down for safety. When the noise stopped and nobody on the pad had died, Zayne started to stand up and noted, "I see you didn't hire a pilot."
"That would've cost extra. You think I'm made of money?" Gryph asked.
With a loud hiss, an airlock door on the ship started to open. A Trandoshan - usually frightening lizard-men - peeked out from the dark airlock, yelled "YEEP!" and slammed the door shut.
Gryph rushed the door and started pounding on it. "It's me! The Gryph! Come on, Slussk, open up!"
Zayne had been watching all of this and was giving the angry Snivvian a steady, angry look.
"Umm, they say he's the best," Gryph explained as he stopped pounding on the door. "Well, he's the best on Ralltir. At the moment." Zayne did not appear convinced. "It's a seller's market, Zayne! What do you want?" Finally the airlock opened again and the Trandoshan started to come out. "Ah, there you are, Slyssk. The ship's a good get. Not quite what I had in mind, but I guess it'll fly."
"It will fly," Slyssk said, stepping outside with a blaster rifle. "Just not for you! Not for nine thousand. I've decided I don't want to be paid for stealing it. I want to be paid for the ship!" The rifle finally made its way to being pointed at Gryph, but that didn't make Slyssk seem like that much more of a threat. Zayne was already stifling laughter. "I know I'm not the toughest Trandoshan around. Hunts make you nauseous, you go into piracy. That's life! But on the way over, I remembered who you were. And from what I hear, if Marn Hierogryph is willing to pay nine thousand, he's probably got ninety thousand I can't have. Am I right or am I right?"
Ignoring the chuckling coming from his henchman, Gryph started to launch into his pitch. "Come on, Slyssk, we had a deal. Do you want to be the kind of person who--"
"Don't try to talk me out of it! This is my big chance to make something happen!" Slyssk exclaimed, waving his hands for emphasis (and ruining the whole 'point the gun at Gryph' thing). "I've heard it all my life! 'How did your egg get into the nest, Slyssk?'"
"I understand," Gryph said kindly. "Kids can be cruel." Zayne was doubled over, holding in his laughter at the galaxy's worst negotiation at gunpoint.
"What kids?" Slyssk asked. "That was my mother!"
Zayne couldn't take it anymore. "BWAHAHAHA!"
"Excuse me for a moment, won't you?" requested. "I have to confer with my associate. Or kill him."
As Gryph approached, Zayne started to lose the giggles. He wasn't a cruel person by any means, but he had never seen incompetence this wacky before. "It's the, heee. It's the curse of the Moomo Brothers," Zayne said. "Maybe with all that muscle, you need to hire a brain, too!"
"That's right, that's right," Gryph whispered. "Master Jedi never screws anything up. Ho, ho, ho."
"You want me to do my thing?" Zayne asked, holding up the intergalactic symbol for 'mind trick'.
"No, your other thing," Gryph said. "Listen closely..."
After a moment's explanation, Gryph stood near an unsteady-looking lamp post and called Slyssk over. "Step over by the light. Slyssk, and let's parley a little. Are you sure we can't..."
From his spot off to the side, Zayne held up a hand and reached into the Force to knock over the post, aiming it to nearly hit Slyssk.
A few moments before the last moment (because there was no point in risking himself too much), Gryph rushed forward and pushed Slyssk clear. After the pole crashed to the ground and Slyssk could collect himself, the Trandoshan sat up in astonishment. "That... that could have killed me!"
"You must have hit it when you were landing. But you know, unless I'm mistaken, you Trandoshans have a thing with lifedebts, right?" Gryph mentioned. "Well, let's just settle up. Cut me a rate on the ship and we'll be square."
"A rate? A rate?" Slyssk asked. "I couldn't charge you! You're Ghrakhowsk!"
"I'm who?"
"You're my Ghrakhowsk!" Slyssk repeated, getting to one knee to give Gryph a bear hug. "You're the first person I've ever owed a lifedebt to! Nobody's ever wanted to save my life before!"
"You don't say," Gryph said, trying not to look at Zayne. He'd probably be laughing. "I find that hard to believe...."
"I don't suppose there's a way we can get the ship without you?" Zayne asked, although the answer was already clear.
"You can't bargain away a debt to your Ghrakhowsk with a mere ship!" Slyssk said, sounding incredulous. "While he breathes, my service is his! Where Gryph goes, I go!"
"Figures," Gryph grumbled. "Well, cheap help is cheap help, I guess. Let's--" And that was all Gryph said before a laser blast interrupted him.
"More of your friends, Gryph?" Zayne asked, whipping his lightsaber out and switching it on as he started to deflect incoming blaster bolts.
"No, those would be the people I stole the ship from!" Slyssk admitted as he started running toward the airlock door. "Goodbye!"
"Did I mention that I'm never going anywhere with you again?" Zayne asked as he deflected a blaster bolt aimed at his own head.
"This is the worst lifedebt I've ever seen!" Gryph yelled as he ran to the door. "Maybe this is his way of getting out of the deal!"
As soon as Zayne followed into the ship and closed the door, the ship started to life off with Slyssk at the controls. Zayne made his way to the bridge and took the scene in. "Once we reach orbit I can take over from... wait." Through the viewport, he could see a massive collection of equally massive ships. "What's all this?"
"It's a military convoy," Gryph explained. "What a time to..."
He was interrupted again by a voice over the comm. "Attention, Little Bivoli! What took you guys so long? We're about to get underway! Take your position immediately!"
After a quick look around, Gryph came to a realization. "Kid! This ship is a mess!"
"What?" Zayne asked as he started looking at the controls, trying to think back to any and all spaceship training he had received.. "So? Our last one was a mess, too."
"No, really," Gryph said, pulling Zayne out of the bridge to a catwalk overlooking a large dining room. "This ship is a mess! It's a provisioning ship for the military!"
"It was... um... available," Slyssk explained. "Ahem."
"What's it gonna take, Bivoli, a tractor beam?" the voice called back from the comm. "Take station behind the Courageous now! We've all got a date with the Mandalorians, and we're gonna need all the fringer chow we can get!"
And with that, the most wanted fugitive in Republic space and his cohorts were forced to follow the Republic Navy into hyperspace to the front lines of the Mandalorian Wars.
[OOC: From Nights of Anger part 1 by Miller and Weaver. Meant to be up last night, but I had company, then cold medicine and sleeeeeept.]
"Well, buying may not be the right term. There are purchase prices... and then there are delivery charges," Gryph explained. "We're paying the delivery charge.
"Wait a minute. You stole that ship?" Zayne asked, taking his eyes off of the ship in his indignation. The ship wasn't coming in for the smoothest landing.
"Me? Steal a ship?" Gryph asked. "What kind of person do you think I am? I hired someone to steal a ship."
"That's terrific. Now I'm a... LOOK OUT!" Zayne yelled as the large ship careened into the landing pad lighting, snapping the poles like twigs as it finally crashed. Zayne had pulled Gryph down for safety. When the noise stopped and nobody on the pad had died, Zayne started to stand up and noted, "I see you didn't hire a pilot."
"That would've cost extra. You think I'm made of money?" Gryph asked.
With a loud hiss, an airlock door on the ship started to open. A Trandoshan - usually frightening lizard-men - peeked out from the dark airlock, yelled "YEEP!" and slammed the door shut.
Gryph rushed the door and started pounding on it. "It's me! The Gryph! Come on, Slussk, open up!"
Zayne had been watching all of this and was giving the angry Snivvian a steady, angry look.
"Umm, they say he's the best," Gryph explained as he stopped pounding on the door. "Well, he's the best on Ralltir. At the moment." Zayne did not appear convinced. "It's a seller's market, Zayne! What do you want?" Finally the airlock opened again and the Trandoshan started to come out. "Ah, there you are, Slyssk. The ship's a good get. Not quite what I had in mind, but I guess it'll fly."
"It will fly," Slyssk said, stepping outside with a blaster rifle. "Just not for you! Not for nine thousand. I've decided I don't want to be paid for stealing it. I want to be paid for the ship!" The rifle finally made its way to being pointed at Gryph, but that didn't make Slyssk seem like that much more of a threat. Zayne was already stifling laughter. "I know I'm not the toughest Trandoshan around. Hunts make you nauseous, you go into piracy. That's life! But on the way over, I remembered who you were. And from what I hear, if Marn Hierogryph is willing to pay nine thousand, he's probably got ninety thousand I can't have. Am I right or am I right?"
Ignoring the chuckling coming from his henchman, Gryph started to launch into his pitch. "Come on, Slyssk, we had a deal. Do you want to be the kind of person who--"
"Don't try to talk me out of it! This is my big chance to make something happen!" Slyssk exclaimed, waving his hands for emphasis (and ruining the whole 'point the gun at Gryph' thing). "I've heard it all my life! 'How did your egg get into the nest, Slyssk?'"
"I understand," Gryph said kindly. "Kids can be cruel." Zayne was doubled over, holding in his laughter at the galaxy's worst negotiation at gunpoint.
"What kids?" Slyssk asked. "That was my mother!"
Zayne couldn't take it anymore. "BWAHAHAHA!"
"Excuse me for a moment, won't you?" requested. "I have to confer with my associate. Or kill him."
As Gryph approached, Zayne started to lose the giggles. He wasn't a cruel person by any means, but he had never seen incompetence this wacky before. "It's the, heee. It's the curse of the Moomo Brothers," Zayne said. "Maybe with all that muscle, you need to hire a brain, too!"
"That's right, that's right," Gryph whispered. "Master Jedi never screws anything up. Ho, ho, ho."
"You want me to do my thing?" Zayne asked, holding up the intergalactic symbol for 'mind trick'.
"No, your other thing," Gryph said. "Listen closely..."
After a moment's explanation, Gryph stood near an unsteady-looking lamp post and called Slyssk over. "Step over by the light. Slyssk, and let's parley a little. Are you sure we can't..."
From his spot off to the side, Zayne held up a hand and reached into the Force to knock over the post, aiming it to nearly hit Slyssk.
A few moments before the last moment (because there was no point in risking himself too much), Gryph rushed forward and pushed Slyssk clear. After the pole crashed to the ground and Slyssk could collect himself, the Trandoshan sat up in astonishment. "That... that could have killed me!"
"You must have hit it when you were landing. But you know, unless I'm mistaken, you Trandoshans have a thing with lifedebts, right?" Gryph mentioned. "Well, let's just settle up. Cut me a rate on the ship and we'll be square."
"A rate? A rate?" Slyssk asked. "I couldn't charge you! You're Ghrakhowsk!"
"I'm who?"
"You're my Ghrakhowsk!" Slyssk repeated, getting to one knee to give Gryph a bear hug. "You're the first person I've ever owed a lifedebt to! Nobody's ever wanted to save my life before!"
"You don't say," Gryph said, trying not to look at Zayne. He'd probably be laughing. "I find that hard to believe...."
"I don't suppose there's a way we can get the ship without you?" Zayne asked, although the answer was already clear.
"You can't bargain away a debt to your Ghrakhowsk with a mere ship!" Slyssk said, sounding incredulous. "While he breathes, my service is his! Where Gryph goes, I go!"
"Figures," Gryph grumbled. "Well, cheap help is cheap help, I guess. Let's--" And that was all Gryph said before a laser blast interrupted him.
"More of your friends, Gryph?" Zayne asked, whipping his lightsaber out and switching it on as he started to deflect incoming blaster bolts.
"No, those would be the people I stole the ship from!" Slyssk admitted as he started running toward the airlock door. "Goodbye!"
"Did I mention that I'm never going anywhere with you again?" Zayne asked as he deflected a blaster bolt aimed at his own head.
"This is the worst lifedebt I've ever seen!" Gryph yelled as he ran to the door. "Maybe this is his way of getting out of the deal!"
As soon as Zayne followed into the ship and closed the door, the ship started to life off with Slyssk at the controls. Zayne made his way to the bridge and took the scene in. "Once we reach orbit I can take over from... wait." Through the viewport, he could see a massive collection of equally massive ships. "What's all this?"
"It's a military convoy," Gryph explained. "What a time to..."
He was interrupted again by a voice over the comm. "Attention, Little Bivoli! What took you guys so long? We're about to get underway! Take your position immediately!"
After a quick look around, Gryph came to a realization. "Kid! This ship is a mess!"
"What?" Zayne asked as he started looking at the controls, trying to think back to any and all spaceship training he had received.. "So? Our last one was a mess, too."
"No, really," Gryph said, pulling Zayne out of the bridge to a catwalk overlooking a large dining room. "This ship is a mess! It's a provisioning ship for the military!"
"It was... um... available," Slyssk explained. "Ahem."
"What's it gonna take, Bivoli, a tractor beam?" the voice called back from the comm. "Take station behind the Courageous now! We've all got a date with the Mandalorians, and we're gonna need all the fringer chow we can get!"
And with that, the most wanted fugitive in Republic space and his cohorts were forced to follow the Republic Navy into hyperspace to the front lines of the Mandalorian Wars.
[OOC: From Nights of Anger part 1 by Miller and Weaver. Meant to be up last night, but I had company, then cold medicine and sleeeeeept.]