Noventa - A Star Wars Story

"I'll do that and come work for you!"

I won't, though.

She now had a name, at least.

The Houk growled at Banks, clenched a fist. Holding himself back with gritted teeth he looked to the kid, smiled, "You should learn somethin' from this brat over here Space Trash."

"This one," he raised a hand out to indicate Quinn more directly, "knows proper respect. Knows who runs this town. So you know what kid," he looks to Quinn, sizes her up, "come by another time. Ask around town for Grack, they'll show you to me. If they know what's good for 'em," he said with a low rumble to his voice.

Banks didn't flinch as the larger alien approached and threatened him. His face expressed loosely the idea of I've taken things down ten times your size... One more inch and you'll be dead.

He shrugged his shoulders and calmly smiled, "Well I was wagerin' to help this young Twi'lek if he'd gotten himself in trouble by runnin' into you is all. But if everything is on the up and up... then I got no beef with you."

She was kind of impressed with the quick thinking... though it was obviously the wrong way to go in this part of town. Now then, to intervene, or not to intervene? Risky, no matter how well it went. Screw it. She approached closer, trying to make it seem like she wasn't with the bounty hunter.

Looking up at the massive alien, she tried to give off the aura of an inexperienced streetrat with the potential to be molded into a useful tool.

"Uhm... err... Sorry, I don't want to interrupt but... do you... do you work for who I think you do? I'm... I'm looking for work. And I heard... I mean... I saw him--" she gestured toward the Twi'Lek "--and then you and this and... you know..."

Without the Twi'lek between their feet the Houk had nothing stopping him as he closed what little distance between them there was. Slipping the bag over his shoulder as he approached to free his hand in a solid, swift motion he stepped over Banks. Towering over Banks the Houk's breath slipped down over him, a rough and unpleasant smell. Finding his eye with his own, dark round orbs set into his head, he let his barely held back rage show. The Houk's hands raised on either side of the man but he held himself back, just leaving his hands hanging in the air and flexing his fingers.

"You some kind of swindler, Space Trash? You got the smell on ya, you're not from 'round here or I'd know it. No, you think you can pull a fast one on me. You're wrong. This here is mine, kid works for me. You're lucky I'm in a good mood, have someplace to be, otherwise I'd find some fun squeezing your skull for this little trick of yours," he said, his voice deep and commanding. The Houk's hands fell back to his sides, his fingers stopped tensing as he relaxed some.

"Nothing worse in this galaxy than a con man. I hear about this again I'll reconsider having that bit of fun. Find a place in my schedule," he elongated the last word a bit, menacingly so.

Banks continued to walk forward with confidence. Looking up he replied, “I see you got my belongings back. Thank you for stopping this thief, they were a fast one.”

He tended to be quite a convincing liar... unless of course the Houk knew the truth...

-"ood kid, keep this up and I'll-" the Houk looks up to Banks as he approaches, "Hey! What are you lookin' at, meat?"

Raising his right hand he pointed a big meaty finger at the man, matching him square in the eye. Holding firmly in his left hand the courier bag the kid had but moments ago.

The young Twi'lek, surprised by he changing attention, spun about and shifted a step to the left to get out from between the Houk and Banks. His Lekku curling in around him tighter than they had been previously.

Banks walked along the path of minor destruction with Quinn at his side. As Quinn pealed off Banks continued onward standing only a couple feet behind the twi'lek as the larger being spoke.

Seemed like some kind of confrontation. Quinn instantly had a picture of the situation in her head, it was an all too familiar tableaux. Of course, her interpretation might be entirely incorrect; and with the bountyhunter here, she wasn't about to rush in and try and be some sort of hero.

Instead, she stepped a little closer to try and figure out if her assumptions were correct. Maybe she could overhear what they were saying. Or maybe they'd notice they were getting her attention and turned theirs to her instead. In which case she'd be ready to play her most often-played card; the innocent kid.

As they decide fully to follow the kid, they would have some effort of tracing his steps but a general awareness of one's surroundings brings them past the disturbances left by the passing boy. Finding people reacting to the speed of the Twi'lek coming through; shifted positions, glances about, collecting dropped items. Pushing their way through they'd find the young lad before a much larger being at the corner of the market.

A Houk standing at seven feet tall with a deep and commanding voice, though what he was saying wasn't clear yet the bass of his voice carried across the immediate surrounding before getting fully back into the Bazaar.

She nodded and followed along. Crowd like this probably meant they'd lose sight of anything relevant, but she was still curious. Not just about the commotion, but to see the bountyhunter at work as well. Good way of sizing them up.

"We could follow quietly if you'd like..." He said as he began walking slowly in that direction.

"Are you thinking we should find out?"

She was kind of curious, actually. Could be some money in it, if nothing else.

The man chuckled, "Maybe. Maybe something good. Depends on who is doing the chasing."

"I wouldn't know, mister."

She wasn't about to let up her innocent kid act now.

"D'you think he did something bad?"

"Huh.. Wonder what that was about, huh?" He said to Quinn.

The young Twi'leks Lekku were tattooed with dark, sharp images. A bandanna covered the lower half of his face and he wore a leather based outfit, something far too nice for a usual slum rat. Around their shoulder was a parcel bag that they held tightly.

Only being observed for a second before they disappeared into the crowds of people.

Quinn's eyes did follow those that passed by, and took note of the smells as well. And then the twi'lek running. She wondered if maybe the two were connected; or if it was all just part of the tapestry of coincidences that defined a place like this.

"It can be pretty dangerous... and usually the higher the danger the higher the pay..." He replied before his gaze turned to the running twi'lek that drew near them running at a quick clip.

A small cadre of Mirialan's passes by the two as they speak, speaking in their native tongue hurriedly. Only the first of the group had any noticeable tattoo's, the eldest, and the others that followed him were far younger and lacked the tattoo's that were so commonly associated with their people. They stalked through the area only to stop in front of one of the stall's that had weapons of varying qualities hanging from it. Starting in with a strong, but hushed, argument with the owner, a Nautolan female.

Another group passes by to obscure the vision of anyone looking. A small, fledgling Hutt, dictated largely by his appearance here in this Bazaar and not having things brought directly to himself, moved his way through the Bazaar flanked on each side by a fully armor guard. Each of the guards wore an insignia of a ringed crescent on their shoulder-pad, a indication of their alignment with ICS. Each member scanned the surrounding area with military precision.

Nearby, elsewhere, was the smell of death. From one corner of this lesser area must be the body of one degenerate or another. In one of the many alleyways that shot off from the Bazaar into the residential areas surrounding this mass of activity.

A small Twi'lek girl ran through the crowd with speed.