Post by Deleted on Sept 7, 2016 22:12:39 GMT -5
~The Night Before~
Overall, the caldera that night was quiet, and only a few buildings were lit. In fact, only one was lit. A tavern, by the looks of things, whose warm glow of artificial light barely bathed the row swoops that were lined up outside in a neat row. On what would normally be a quiet, peaceful night in the caldera, the tavern was anything but. Inside was little less than a madhouse. The further one stepped inside, the more deafening, the more mad things grew. Music blared, little more than a beat. Some sort of tune that was popular in the Core. This mingled and intermixed with laughter and conversation, until one couldn’t even hear themselves think anymore.
Of course, it didn’t help that people were shoulder to shoulder. Or at least, practically shoulder to shoulder. The small tavern had been turned into a nightclub, minus the fog and blinding lights and dark corners. A makeshift dance floor had been set up, when tables had been cleared out. Booze was served in excess. And to any newcomers, this would’ve seemed like a bit of overkill. But to The Great Kryat Swoop Gang, this was their usual fare after a successful race.
Though “gang” was a bit of a loose term. Sure, they raced. Sure, they kept other gangs out of their caldera. But The Great Krayts didn’t go around and shoot up the neighborhood, or rough up businesses or the like. In fact for the most part, they even went as far as to always make sure that they cleaned up their favorite tavern when they were done partying. Though, that was mostly because they were afraid of what would happen if they didn’t. The man who owned the bar, though he was short in stature, was not short when it came to empty threats. Or staring down everything from wild predators to Mandalorians. Not a man you wanted to fight.
“Gaeriel, c’mere a moment…”
A man who could make his voice heard over the music and conversation, without having to yell. Finn Sularen was definitely special. Especially if Hope Arnjak of all people was looking to him for guidance for her little gang. Hearing her middle name from behind the bar, Hope turned her blonde-haired head, and looked over to Finn with a little bit of a grin. Watching the man walk towards the back of the tavern, the young woman hopped over the bar, and followed.
Hope found Finn in the back office of the tavern. Usually the sort of place that one could find Finn during the day, placing bulk orders or muttering curses over finances. But instead, all the paperwork for the man’s completely legitimate business had been cleared away from the desk in the middle of the small room, replaced by a large map, notes, and measuring tools. Finn stood over the desk, his arms crossed, his one good eye staring Hope down.
“You wanna make your gang rich, or do you wanna keep racing the same losers over and over?”
Rich was the only word the young woman needed to hear.
~Present Time~
About six or seven swoops moved uniformly across the barren, Saleucami wastes, kicking up a small dust storm in their wake. The bikes were straight. On point. Driving for a reason. No one dared deviate from the diamond shaped pattern. They had been at it for awhile now, beginning their journey as the early sun had been just breaking through the night, until now the large, glowing orb was beaming down on them to their left. It was a clear day, but out in the wastes, that could change in a moment.
Out in the lead of the formation was Hope’s bike - a heavily modified orange-and-purple BARC speeder bike. And the young woman was running it hard, with a determined look from her silver eyes, face hidden behind her racing goggles and large, tan scarf. This job was going to be big for the gang. She hoped this was going to be the big one for the gang. If they could pull this off, it was no more of the low-level races around the caldera, or those jobs that just needed people to stand around and look thuggish. No, if they could pull off this heist, it would mean that The Great Krayts, that Hope, was going places.
Not to mention, they’d be filthy rich. Relatively.
After all, a simple supply train from the Voten-Pell Plantation wasn’t going to be carrying items worth billions of credits. But what this particular train did carry was the bi-monthly shipment of silks and cottons to the spaceport of Dar Ulwan, for transport offworld. At least, that was what Finn had been told. And Finn had told Hope in return. If Hope and gang got the cargo back to their small caldera, Finn knew a guy that could sell it offworld instead, and undercut the whole market. Finn got a nice middle man fee, the gang got a generous cut, and everyone left happy.
~The Night Before~
"Silk? You seriously want me to fund a swoop gang off of silk?"
Hope asked Finn, perhaps a bit louder than needed. But with the music out front, no one would hear them conversing. Conversing, of course, being the polite term. Hope was glad at the opportunity for such a big heist. But no one she knew on Saleucami was going to buy silk. There were two types of people on the planet - those who couldn't afford the rich fabric, and those who had it coming out of their eyeballs.
"A few yards of silk can make a nobleman." Finn countered, as if he was quoting some ancient proverb. "It's a status thing. The closer you get to the Core, the more silks and robes and fancy clothes become a thing. More than one two-bit Imperial officer would buy some just to fit in."
The pair of them were almost mirrors of each other - short, pissed off demeanor, arms crossed as they talked over the table of maps and notes.
"Yeah, the problem with that is that we ain't anywhere CLOSE to the Core!" Hope's voice was indignant. Finn had done a lot to help the gang thus far, but this had to be one of his craziest schemes yet.
"I know a guy that knows a guy who's got a freighter and a knack for avoiding customs. Get the cargo here, everyone gets paid and goes home happy." Finn reassured her. "Trust me, alright?"
~Present Time~
Once the swoop gang found the mag-rail track, it only took about fifteen more minutes until they could see the train. First it was as if nothing more than a speck of dirt out on the horizon. But it quickly crept up on them until they were right along behind it, by the caboose. The large machine and it huge engine drowned out the roar of the swoops, making their approach stealthy. Slowing down to match the train in speed, the swoops split off, a few around the left side, and Hope leading another few around the right.
The plan was simple; board the train, find the cargo, and detach the necessary cars. They’d deal with resistance afterwards, when backup wasn’t going to show up for them. After that, they’d tow the cars back to the caldera using their swoops all together. If it was just a couple of cars, they shouldn’t have a problem. If everything went according to plan. And Hope was excited and focused, all at once. The young woman couldn’t imagine it going any other way than according to plan. That was the only way it COULD go, for her. And if something went wrong, she was blaming Finn.
The swoops went along the train slowly, until they found a good access point. In fact, it was better than good. It was a perfect access point. There was a flatbed car somewhere between the middle and end of the train, strapped down with pipes and machinery. At best guess it was irrigation equipment. But it didn’t matter, much. The gang easily jump onto the car, and park their bikes as they scoured the train. Well, it was an easy jump for Hope, being both an expert racer and Force-sensitive. Twisting her throttle and pushing down her pedals, Hope went for it.
She just hoped Yana could make the jump onto a moving train as easily.
Overall, the caldera that night was quiet, and only a few buildings were lit. In fact, only one was lit. A tavern, by the looks of things, whose warm glow of artificial light barely bathed the row swoops that were lined up outside in a neat row. On what would normally be a quiet, peaceful night in the caldera, the tavern was anything but. Inside was little less than a madhouse. The further one stepped inside, the more deafening, the more mad things grew. Music blared, little more than a beat. Some sort of tune that was popular in the Core. This mingled and intermixed with laughter and conversation, until one couldn’t even hear themselves think anymore.
Of course, it didn’t help that people were shoulder to shoulder. Or at least, practically shoulder to shoulder. The small tavern had been turned into a nightclub, minus the fog and blinding lights and dark corners. A makeshift dance floor had been set up, when tables had been cleared out. Booze was served in excess. And to any newcomers, this would’ve seemed like a bit of overkill. But to The Great Kryat Swoop Gang, this was their usual fare after a successful race.
Though “gang” was a bit of a loose term. Sure, they raced. Sure, they kept other gangs out of their caldera. But The Great Krayts didn’t go around and shoot up the neighborhood, or rough up businesses or the like. In fact for the most part, they even went as far as to always make sure that they cleaned up their favorite tavern when they were done partying. Though, that was mostly because they were afraid of what would happen if they didn’t. The man who owned the bar, though he was short in stature, was not short when it came to empty threats. Or staring down everything from wild predators to Mandalorians. Not a man you wanted to fight.
“Gaeriel, c’mere a moment…”
A man who could make his voice heard over the music and conversation, without having to yell. Finn Sularen was definitely special. Especially if Hope Arnjak of all people was looking to him for guidance for her little gang. Hearing her middle name from behind the bar, Hope turned her blonde-haired head, and looked over to Finn with a little bit of a grin. Watching the man walk towards the back of the tavern, the young woman hopped over the bar, and followed.
Hope found Finn in the back office of the tavern. Usually the sort of place that one could find Finn during the day, placing bulk orders or muttering curses over finances. But instead, all the paperwork for the man’s completely legitimate business had been cleared away from the desk in the middle of the small room, replaced by a large map, notes, and measuring tools. Finn stood over the desk, his arms crossed, his one good eye staring Hope down.
“You wanna make your gang rich, or do you wanna keep racing the same losers over and over?”
Rich was the only word the young woman needed to hear.
~Present Time~
About six or seven swoops moved uniformly across the barren, Saleucami wastes, kicking up a small dust storm in their wake. The bikes were straight. On point. Driving for a reason. No one dared deviate from the diamond shaped pattern. They had been at it for awhile now, beginning their journey as the early sun had been just breaking through the night, until now the large, glowing orb was beaming down on them to their left. It was a clear day, but out in the wastes, that could change in a moment.
Out in the lead of the formation was Hope’s bike - a heavily modified orange-and-purple BARC speeder bike. And the young woman was running it hard, with a determined look from her silver eyes, face hidden behind her racing goggles and large, tan scarf. This job was going to be big for the gang. She hoped this was going to be the big one for the gang. If they could pull this off, it was no more of the low-level races around the caldera, or those jobs that just needed people to stand around and look thuggish. No, if they could pull off this heist, it would mean that The Great Krayts, that Hope, was going places.
Not to mention, they’d be filthy rich. Relatively.
After all, a simple supply train from the Voten-Pell Plantation wasn’t going to be carrying items worth billions of credits. But what this particular train did carry was the bi-monthly shipment of silks and cottons to the spaceport of Dar Ulwan, for transport offworld. At least, that was what Finn had been told. And Finn had told Hope in return. If Hope and gang got the cargo back to their small caldera, Finn knew a guy that could sell it offworld instead, and undercut the whole market. Finn got a nice middle man fee, the gang got a generous cut, and everyone left happy.
~The Night Before~
"Silk? You seriously want me to fund a swoop gang off of silk?"
Hope asked Finn, perhaps a bit louder than needed. But with the music out front, no one would hear them conversing. Conversing, of course, being the polite term. Hope was glad at the opportunity for such a big heist. But no one she knew on Saleucami was going to buy silk. There were two types of people on the planet - those who couldn't afford the rich fabric, and those who had it coming out of their eyeballs.
"A few yards of silk can make a nobleman." Finn countered, as if he was quoting some ancient proverb. "It's a status thing. The closer you get to the Core, the more silks and robes and fancy clothes become a thing. More than one two-bit Imperial officer would buy some just to fit in."
The pair of them were almost mirrors of each other - short, pissed off demeanor, arms crossed as they talked over the table of maps and notes.
"Yeah, the problem with that is that we ain't anywhere CLOSE to the Core!" Hope's voice was indignant. Finn had done a lot to help the gang thus far, but this had to be one of his craziest schemes yet.
"I know a guy that knows a guy who's got a freighter and a knack for avoiding customs. Get the cargo here, everyone gets paid and goes home happy." Finn reassured her. "Trust me, alright?"
~Present Time~
Once the swoop gang found the mag-rail track, it only took about fifteen more minutes until they could see the train. First it was as if nothing more than a speck of dirt out on the horizon. But it quickly crept up on them until they were right along behind it, by the caboose. The large machine and it huge engine drowned out the roar of the swoops, making their approach stealthy. Slowing down to match the train in speed, the swoops split off, a few around the left side, and Hope leading another few around the right.
The plan was simple; board the train, find the cargo, and detach the necessary cars. They’d deal with resistance afterwards, when backup wasn’t going to show up for them. After that, they’d tow the cars back to the caldera using their swoops all together. If it was just a couple of cars, they shouldn’t have a problem. If everything went according to plan. And Hope was excited and focused, all at once. The young woman couldn’t imagine it going any other way than according to plan. That was the only way it COULD go, for her. And if something went wrong, she was blaming Finn.
The swoops went along the train slowly, until they found a good access point. In fact, it was better than good. It was a perfect access point. There was a flatbed car somewhere between the middle and end of the train, strapped down with pipes and machinery. At best guess it was irrigation equipment. But it didn’t matter, much. The gang easily jump onto the car, and park their bikes as they scoured the train. Well, it was an easy jump for Hope, being both an expert racer and Force-sensitive. Twisting her throttle and pushing down her pedals, Hope went for it.
She just hoped Yana could make the jump onto a moving train as easily.