[IC] Tashha's Voice Diary

[Joslae]

Entry 6: Shore leave?

[justify]*The recording begins and Tashha’s voice can be heard from quite some distance away from the microphone as she speaks to someone in her usual voice, and the words “Fuck off” can be heard, followed by some rustling sounds before her voice can now be heard more clearer*[/justify]

[justify]It appears that with all these new recruits, private space on this vessel is harder to come by. Much has happened since I’ve ended my last recording, and being quite honest with myself here, I did have the desire at a certain point to delete this diary. Having to deal with all the new faces, where every single one believes they’re either the spawn of Typhogem or something even stronger, makes it quite demanding to put them all in their place when needed or tasked to do so. It doesn’t matter though because in the end, they all learn their place, as have I. For reference, this entry is being recorded the day after my second trial, after dealing with the Vaporators on Tatooine. Much has happened.[/justify]

*after a brief interruption, a clicking sound marks the entry being resumed, suggesting it was paused for an unspecified amount of time*

[justify]I do recall, however, a certain special occasion where Lord Tokiai had sent a broadcasted message to the acolyte channel, where he stated that, from the kindness of his heart, he allows any acolyte which wishes to join him on a trip off-planet. He also stated that we can wear whatever we wish, as long as we don’t stand out as Sith or of Imperial ties. So, having been utterly bored and stressed out at that time, I decided that I will tag along. Joining me was Aljo and Occularis. Not until we got to the ship have we found out that Temekel and Arsus were also joining us. Me, Aljo and Occularis all dressed as commoners, whereas Temekel and Arsus were geared up in armour, covering their red, pureblood and massassi skins, and also armed to the teeth. Little did I know that I was going to watch a gladiator-style match later on, just for entertainment purposes.

On our way to the destination, a planet I can’t remember the name of but which was hot and reminded me of Tatooine, we were told to act like invited guests of Lord Tokiai, to mingle with the crowd and to simply act normal and enjoy the show Temekel and Arsus will put on for us. Yet, to my surprise, once we arrived there, and as we entered the luxurious estate of the one who owns it – named “Colleccionista” – we were struck with awe by the luxurious estate we had just stepped in. It had many works of art displayed in every single place you would look: from the smallest trinkets to the largest sculptures which were as tall as several people and took up more than half of a room. I was impressed and finally figured out that the person who owned the place was probably an extravagant art collector. However, as we met her, not only was I proved right, but, extravagant is a word which mildly describes the flamboyance of this woman. Her language sounded somewhat familiar, and I believe I had heard it before back on Nar Shaddaa, but I could be wrong. However, she did speak basic. From the looks of it, Lord Tokiai had some dealings with her, and Temekel was to team up with Arsus and survive the challenges brought up by Colleccionista, for the entertainment of others.[/justify]

[justify]*Tashha cleared her throat and can be heard that she’d be walking while speaking, perhaps she was roaming an empty corridor on the flagship while recording this*[/justify]

[justify]As we moved along towards the arena, the sight of scum and villainy was enough to churn my stomach once more and reminded me of my life before I ever chose to take the Sith path. Smugglers, swindlers, junkies, suppliers, mercenaries… everything one can imagine was there, and they all formed a crowd. It was time for me, Aljo and Occularis to mingle and I took this chance to see what exactly was going on there, and probably make myself some contacts. Well, at least it was what I hoped, but not what I had achieved.

We got our drinks and found ourselves a nice place just above the arena. With me was Aljo and Occularis, and we were chatting, just small talk nothing of great importance. To my left were a Darnoshan and a Togrutta. Those two were a sight to see. However, I will get to them later. As Temekel and Arsus entered the ring, the whole crowd began to act like the scum which they were, and booed them as they weren’t the local favourites. Colleccionista made her speech and the first opponent whom Tem and Arsus would face was a man called Deadeye Duncan…[/justify]

[justify]*she chuckled and let out a bit of a snort before she continued, in an amused tone*[/justify]

[justify]Fucking… Deadeye Duncan… Who, in their right mind, would name themselves like that? Like, how sad, depressed and alcoholic must a man get to name himself that way? It’s one of those questions which can keep someone from sleeping at night. This… man… had a couple of animals which appeared to be his pets, but to me they looked like silly banthas. Perhaps they were but I can’t exactly recall right now. However, the fight quickly ensued and it lasted for several minutes, surprisingly enough. Arsus and Temekel fought well and as Arsus was busy slicing and dicing the two mindless beasts, Temekel was using her blaster pistol against Deadeye Duncan. I honestly never knew that she can use a blaster, but it seems I was wrong!

While that was going on, the togrutta next to me suddenly asks if we wanted to buy drugs from her. I was intrigued to say the least, and even though Aljo and Occularis refused the offer, I asked what she sold. It was no surprise that she sold “Death sticks” and “Ryll bags”. Now… as much fun as I had going back and forth with that junkie, which I later found out was named Jasmin, I despise drugs. I’ve seen exactly what they do to people. Drugs are one of the few things which can really make me want to break the arms of whoever is selling them. However, as I was informed before we got there, that our trip will be to some planet which is neither in Imperial or Republic space, I went prepared and took my bag of counterfeit credits which I carry around with me in situations such as this. It is a habit of mine and has proven to be very useful in the past. Seeing as this togrutta junkie barely told the difference between me, Aljo and Occulairs, I realised she was also pretty high on something. Occularis was however interested in what “Death sticks” and while we were talking about it and also trying to convince that junkie to sell me some, I noticed how Temekel and Arsus managed to defeat Deadeye Duncan. Not only did they both choose their targets wisely, but eventually they also both worked as a team. The more I saw this, the more impressed I was with Temekel’s resilience as well as how brutal Arsus can be when he’s focused enough on his task.

After defeating Deadeye Duncan and his two silly pets, our heroes were given a short break. During this time, the Darnoshan, whose name was Eduardo, began to argue with Jasmin. It was truly a sight to see the two arguing, calling each other names and finally, the tall and menacing Eduardo did a surprising move on Jasmin. It was a fighting technique the likings which I have never seen before. Somehow, he grabbed her, twirled her around making her head point to the ground and just dropped her on her head, killing her right then and there. I was so excited, as it reminded me of my childhood back when I used to participate in underground events such as this one, both as a competitor and in helping with organizing them. The poor junkie fell down on the floor, and as she did so, part of her stuff got crushed, and a pool of togrutta blood mixed with drugs would’ve been dripping down on the floor at our feet. I didn’t mind it, but I was still curious if all of her stuff she sold got crushed.

While Temekel and Arsus got back into the ring to face their next challenge, I was slowly working my way closer to the body of Jasmin. When they all started to cheer, I used my foot to prod her and saw that the Ryll bags were still intact. But however, there was a problem. If I was seen taking something from here, I were to be stopped and checked, as I was merely a guest there. It was not wise of me to get myself involved in their affairs. As I was pondering on what to do, I saw what the next challenge our heroes face – it was quite a large Acklay. I reckon it was close to eight or nine feet tall, and its screech was enough to send shivers down the spines of some spectators. As they began their fight and the majority of the people around me was distracted, I slowly began to use telekinesis to slide the Ryll bags from beneath the junkie’s dead corpse and steadily dragged them closer to me, at my feet. I needed a distraction at that point. I couldn’t count on the crowd, as Temekel and Arsus were still trying to figure out how to fight the giant Acklay, which seemed to be a giant leap difficulty for them. Arsus appeared to be injured and Tem was fairing that good, as she was trying to dodge the beasts’ attacks. I was standing next to Aljo and Occularis, and with a simple nudge, I made them aware of my intentions. All I needed from them was to move to my left side, so that they simply obscure me from the view of the others. Instead… they both went in the opposite direction, not wanting to have anything to do with my idea. But I took a risk and used telekinesis once more to lift the stash and let it slip inside my left boot. At that moment, I was thrilled, as Ryll isn’t something one can easily come by, especially in such a large amount at once. I was already thinking of the experiments I could do back at the research facility, and felt quite relieved that nobody had noticed what I did. Yet, so I thought.

As the fight went on, eventually Arsus distracted the beast just enough so that Tem could dodge its attacks and land underneath it, and jabbing it right in the heart with a blade. It was over, and they were victorious. The faces on the spectators were quite priceless, I must say. Nobody could believe that these outlanders managed to beat and succeeded Colleccionista’s challenges. As our heroes went to take a breather before we left, all of the people who wanted to make bets had to pay up. Lord Tokiai seemed quite pleased with the outcome of what happened, which is quite a rare sight. Even though he wore a helmet I could sense that, underneath it, he was smirking like he just saw Lord Saud laying naked on a bed. To my surprise, he approached me and told me give him what I took, and that next time I should be much more careful. I felt as if I just stepped on a mine, and armed it, and was expecting it to blow. However, I was not punished for what I did, and even though I never got to explain my intentions, I’m sure he simply would not care.

Before we left, I saw him Force Choking Colleccionista and it was then when I realised what went on. Hearing her dropping the share of how much she’d get, I realised that this wasn’t just for fun, it wasn’t just a test for Temekel, but the bets were rigged in both Lord Tokiai’s favour and Colleccionista. He got a nice sum of credits without breaking a sweat, while she got some credits as well. Everyone was happy and eventually we returned back to the Horuset Estate.[/justify]

[justify]*The recording ends moments later after the stops speaking, a sharp clicking sound signalling the end*[/justify]