In Pursuit

The players: Malideus, Sarna, Delphine, Kalden, Lincoln, On'Tina, Maccus

Ward Bazaar -- Tier City: Valentine's World

Passing into the city itself one encounters the Ward Bazaar, the heart of trade within the walls of Tier. It is a warren of streets and alleys that shift through pathways and aisles made by free standing kiosks touting their goods. The smell of exotic foods and drinks fills the air, and the market, congested with curious customers and haggling vendors, never closes. Bright colors are the rule of the day here and help merchants compete for attention. Awnings and pendants flutter in the breeze while the laughter of Nahrahm children occasionally rises above the din of the city.

 Type +setting for additional information

Contents:

Obvious exits:

arshal's Office leads to Marshal's Office -- Tier City: Valentine's World.

antina leads to Tipsy Trader -- Tier City: Valentine's World.

outh leads to The Plaza -- Tier City: Valentine's World.

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The dancing in the street can only last so long, yet some of the Nahrahm seem willing to push the limit. Handfuls of revelers, some local, some from offworld, move in clusters through the street with hand instruments and their brightly colored garb, their throats giving voice to different, clashing songs. Janitorial services have done their best to keep up, but the signs are starting to show. A few streamers hang like limp after thoughts from the edges of vendor carts. What once was a proud flag representing Tier has fallen onto the street, its tattered cloth covered in mud and boot prints.

One stray "reveler" moves through the dirtied streets, a bright blue sheet wrapped around their head and upper body. He walks with purpose, but his head down. He may be an older man as he carries with him a cane. His voice is not raised in song. In fact, he may not be having a very good time at all as he seems to be bound straight for the Marshal's Office.

With her next destination decided, Sarna has packed up what few belongings she owns into a bag that she slings over her shoulder. A few moments ago she slipped insconspicuously out of the Marshal's Office in search of its primary occupant, her heart admittedly heavy at the thought of leaving Tier City. But the safety of Vait and the potential to learn more about her abilities there is too good to pass up, however tempting it may be to stay on Valentine's World forever. With Vee-Four at her heels, she meanders through the vendors, spotting one familiar face in particular and waving. "Heyo!" she calls out as she goes up to the local running a fruit stand. "You haven't seen the Marshal about, have you? It's time to go, but I wanted to say goodbye first."

The young Narhrahm shakes his head in response. "Not lately at least, but it's been busy."

"Thanks, anyway..." she says, but the words trail off as a familiar tremor pricks at her senses, and she does her best to damped down her own aura and situate herself behind the vending stand.

Kalden had quite a lot on his mind. So much so that upon his return to Valentine's world he had taken the day to collect his thoughts and plan his next moves. He had recently completed a mission on a station far from here and as a result drew a summon from the Lord Marshall. The meeting was brief as one might expect yet it gave him a multitude of assignments to complete at once. Odd that this remote, sparsely populated planet would be the location from which most of his work needed to be done. The agent just needed to collect his thoughts before making his move.

A local fruit drink, light on the alcohol swirls in the mug while Kalden rocks it back and forth, his eyes studying the motions of the waves. The celebrations he paid little mind to until something catches his eye. A man walking down the street with a cane. The same cane which he had observed Malideus with on the beach. A chuckles escapes Agent's lips. One born of both amusement and frustration. "There goes my night of quite reflection...What are you up to now?", words softly whispered which reflected his frame of mind. Kalden rises to his feet, following Malideus's general path of travel without moving to intercept. He had new orders to follow.

Though Malideus continues to draw upon the True Source to keep his flesh intact and his breathing smooth, it is not through any sort of mystical sense that the Selas finds his target. Sarna Valios Starker, by the fruit stand, speaking to one of the natives. He did not need the True Source to give her away; her droid did that for her. That detestable, cone-headed blasphemy of wire and metal.

The Selas pivots, straightening and adjusting his stride to take him towards the Jedi Padawan. He unfurls the sheet from around him, but he does not drop it. A tail of wind catches it, pulling it behind him like a garrish cape. He shifts his grip on his cane, a fencer's grip once again.

"There'll be no escape for the girl, this time," Malideus growls under his breath.

The detestable droid Vee-Four himself knows his master well enough to be alerted by her change in demeanor. The two share a look, even while the vendor is trying to tempt her into trying one of the over-ripe fruits he's having trouble pushing. Sarna ignores him, but puts her hands on his shoulders and says, "Tell the marshal I'm sorry!"

That's all she has time to say before the plan is set in motion. Vee-Four, the brave little droid, starts weaving a path through the crowd away from the girl, his attitude that of a droid in attack mode -- though he's hardly a security droid. Nevertheless, he bolts straight for Malideus, shrieking a series of bleats and beeps high-pitched enough to hurt the ears. As he does so, Sarna has backed up to the nearest wall, and looking up, she gets her bearings and then jumps much as she did last time, using the frame of an awning as a springboard to find an open window a couple of stories above.

Kalden continues to follow Malideus, one predator stalking another through an urban jungle. With no disguise worn, the scout uses the movement of bodies and landmarks as his cover. Eyes watch the mark, attempting to discern if his own presence has been felt by the other. It seemed unlikely as the other was far too tempted by the scent of his own prey. A challenge is issued and the prey becomes known to Kalden. The same girl from the beach the other day. The agent does not interfere at this time but instead chooses to watch. There was nothing he could say or do out in the open which would not blow his cover. "Why are you so obsessed with this one?" Kalden wonders to himself. He had learned much of the Enclave lately yet their inner workings are still shrouded.

This is not the first time Malideus of the Wood has crossed paths with Sarna Valios Starker, and it's not the first time he's seen her employ this kind of trick. The first time, she sent the droid after a boy. What was Sarna thinking, this time?

Malidues was ready. Using his cane like a wand, the Selas points at the oncoming droid. A sound like dull thunder sounds through the plaza as the air compresses and the diminutive automaton is lifted off the ground.

The Force may be with Sarna, but the True Source is with Malideus. The Jedi lifts from the ground, and Malideus responds in a way that is almost cruel. He directs that staff towards Sarna, and Vee-Four is hurled, faster than it is capable of traveling on its own. It's cone-shaped head catches the air just so, and it emits a shrill, whislting scream as it is sent like a canonball after Sarna.

If Malideus has noticed the wise Kalden in the street, he makes no sign. Not yet. There is an important matter to deal with first, and the Selas refuses to be distracted.

Things were not going well. Not going as very recently planned, either. Delphine Aurelia moves swiftly through the market, her white cloak billowing out behind her in the darkness, back towards the Marshal's office where she left Sarna to say her goodbyes for now to friends on Valentine's World. She'd expected the teenager to be close on her heels so the two of them could escape the dangers posed by the hunter in black. She arrives in time to see Sarna jump upwards and see Vee-Four flying up towards her like a boulder flies down a hill and stops where she is. Closing her eyes she reaches out and tries to slow down the poor little droid before it can smash itself against the building and the Jedi.

Sarna is hanging halfway out of a window she's just leapt to a couple of floors above ground level, scrambling to get a purchase with her boots so she can climb in, when she hears the sound of thunder and a sick feeling forms in the pit of her stomach.

"Oh, no. No!!" The momentary panic when she realizes what Malideus has done might have been enough to cost her, if it hadn't been for Delphine's intervention. Gratefully, she spots the white cloak and the woman's blonde hair standing out in the crowd of Nahrahm festival goers, and with his trajectory slowed, Sarna focuses her mind and the little droid comes to a stop mid-air not a meter from smashing the girl into the building. "Vee!" she whispers, and clambers into the window, beckoning the little droid to follow the same path with the Force until the two disappear inside.

For the first time in his life, Kalden witnesses force powers in use in an offensive manner. The raw power of it on display as the laws of physics seem to bend to the will of the force. For a moment, the agent feels completely helpless as the danger posed by his assignment sets in. The random sentients who served as his cover now begin to flee at the signs of a fight. The scout kneels behind a now abandoned vendor stall, his mind ever present on the lights and the shadows that they cast. A plan begins to formulate in his mind. A slim chance to do what he had intended when following Malideus here. Pouches on his armor are loosened to gives quicker access to items which may become needed. When Sarna retreats to the inside of a building, the agent readies his grappling hook line. "Make your move", he whispers, watching Malideus. Still unaware of the arrival of others.

It pierces the air like a sharp crack of a whip. That high pitched whistle that every child knows growing up. It's the whistle that is heard by children from across miles upon miles, that sound that parents, or grandparents make when it is time. That attention grabbing whistle that somehow finds decibels to puncture the din of many other noises.

From down the street, the whistle pierces a second time, the origin walking down the road, the wide brimmed hat Lincoln wears pulled over his features to keep his eyes shaded down. Letting the last rustle of the sound fade away, wagering on the attention gaining noise doing its job, the Marshal begins to speak in a solid, loud voice. "Making this real clear right now. I draw this," he motions to the blaster at his hip, "Someone isn't getting up after."

This was too much like the vision. The monk in white, that stood holding Sarna's weapon of light. The lawman, whose weapon had done such terrible damage to Malideus's flesh. The same streets, more or less. The same mindless crowd, some running and screaming, some too drunk to notice the commotion as more than Festival trappings grown out of proportion. Malideus finds himself against difficult odds.

And yet, the True Source is with him. In anger, he'd thrown his focus at the droid and hurled invisible power at it to turn the metal creature into a weapon against its master. But with the drawing of the True Source came calm. The anger disappeared as if he'd never known it. His perceptions widen, taking in sounds and smells he'd been unaware of.

It's in that moment that he hears the whisper from Kalden. An ally. A figure that would ultimately change that terrible vision into something else. The True Source is with him, but it does not share with Malideus a new vision to replace the old. He is forced to go with his instincts, which in this moment, tell him to trust in the skills of the scout.

Then comes the shrill whistle from Lincoln, and the challenge is thrown down. Deep in the well of calm brought to him by the True Source, Malideus casts his blood-filled eyes around the street, and a plan forms.

"Take your shot, Lawman." Malideus's voice booms, clearer than normal. He raises the cane into an en guarde position. "Take your shot, or turn away. I will not shame you for stepping away from this fight."

As Sarna disappears into the third story window, Delphine quickly unclasps her cloak and tosses it aside without a care as to where the pristine garment will land. From her waist, she unhooks her two shock batons, extending them with a downward motion and snapping sound followed by a crackle as they come to life. The batons she found more visceral to fight with than a blaster and they come with the added benefit of stunning any being unfortunate enough to have the Acolyte land a blow on.

Seaglass eyes narrow as now only Malideus and the approaching Marshal are in the middle of the street giving her a clear path. She bangs her shock batons together to grab the Malideus attention and draw it away from the lawman, who didn't really know what he was up against. "Selas!" she calls out to him using his own culture's name for what he was, striking a defensive stance, feet at shoulder width with black boots crunching the gravel beneath. "Leave the girl alone!"

Then, after emptying her mind to let the Force flow through her, the Lady leaps.

There's another sound, one that's unfamiliar to the denizens of Valentine's World, or anywhere else in Cresh. From the shadowed doorway of the building into which Sarna had escaped, there's an electric snap-hiss and a loud hum of energy as a bright blue-white blade forms seemingly from nowhere in the darkness.

Sarna has never really had friends in danger before, but she has found her mettle and discovered she is not one to run from a fight. As she steps from the doorway, brandishing the hilt of her weapon in both hands, she catches sight of the Marshal who's challenged the Selas, and Delphine who's attempting to draw him away.

"Hunter, traitor!" she calls out to the leather-clad man. "You're outnumbered. I'm not joining you! Go back to where your people came from and hate yourself there. You don't belong here!"

On'Tina steps out of the Cantina half leaning against Maccus and clearly having made the best of it at the bar before walking out. Her lekku move at a slow and relaxed pace until she hears the shouts in the Square just outside the door. And it's the crackle of the shock batons and the hum of the lightsaber and by instinct her hand is to her blaster and she sputters something in slightly slurred and hotly spoken Ryl. Everything on her slightly drunken expression kind of reads 'not now' and she eyes around pathways in the middle of the ruckus.

Maccus lets his hand fall to his hip, his hand flipping his holster open as his sense clearly aren't nearly as sharp as they would be after his trip to the Cantina. His eyes going wide in search of the new and strange sound, seeming keen to determine if friend or foe.

Malideus was too confident or far more powerful than Kalden assumed. By now the major players had revealed themselves and the odds were not in the favor of the one who carries the True Source. Three against one... Four if you count the distractions of the droid. Kalden's own stake in the matter had been greatly compromised by the summons of the Lord Marshall. The Enclave was a threat to the Regency yet it was allowed to exist if rules were followed. The rules which were currently being torn up and thrown into a burning barrel. The Lord Marshall seemed afraid of what would happen if the Enclave was no longer able to regulate itself. If by his own reports, a rift was to form within the enclave it would lead to a war spanning the entire galaxy. That was the Marshall's fear.. yet it was not Kalden's. Kalden needed Malideus alive and not declared an outlaw by the Regency. Not yet. The agent could not reveal his identity either to level a warning that would make all reconsider their actions on this street today.

"Malideus of the woods!", a voice booms out from empty stalls. From the shadows, the one who has been spoken by some as a bounty hunter or a merc steps out into the light. The lightly armored scout scans from combatant to combatant, studying the intent of each while his walk brings him to the Salas's side. "The Marshall. The real Marshall... not this insignificant pest", his voice whispers while looking in the direction of Lincoln. "He is watching you and he is afraid of you." The agent does not draw his weapons or take a defensive stance towards the others to buy time to say what needs to be said. "If you do this today your mission will fail and you will prove them right for casting you out." Kalden now looks towards the man who hides his wounds behind leather, "The Ghest bides its time. It waits for night to fall, strikes unseen and ambushes its prey when unaware of its presence." Another pause and one final word whispered, "The might of the Regency is begging for a teacher to seize it. To turn it to purpose and bring order to the galaxy. I asked you once if you were a teacher and I ask you again."

Lincoln's hand flinches just slightly, but then he stops from pulling the weapon, instead letting Delphine move into range. Hopefully, at least in his mind, the distraction he was attempting to provide worked. That's when a new voice joins the fray and his eyes dart over towards Kalden and his speaking. He shakes his head, "Insignificant?" the word is grumbled under his breath, but the lawman steps forward towards the pairing, hand still hovering by that blaster. "What's the verdict here?"

When the woman with the seaglass eyes takes to the air, her shock rods buzzing in her hand, Malideus reacts from within the bubble of calm provided by the True Source. It's not the vicious throw as he'd done to Vee-Four. Delphine is a sentient, after all. A living being with a soul, precious in the eyes of the All-Mother. With a strength given to him by his will and his convictions, the Selas redirects Delphine's jump, sending her back towards the Marshall's office, where the humming sound of Sarna's lightsaber is the strongest.

Then it's Kalden making his move, and the Lawman asking his question. Of On'Tina and Maccus, Malideus has not taken notice yet. He senses the motion of the pair from the direction of the cantina, but there are too many present dangers to contend with. Two people armed with dangerous weapons near the Marshall's office. Two other people trying to diffuse the situation. Malideus in the middle, forced once again to make a choice.

In a quiet voice, Malideus says to Kalden, "Once again, I value your wisdom." Taking a single step back, his weapon still raised, and still close enough to the scout in case any of their adversaries should do something aggressive, Malideus raises his voice to boom once again. "You cannot hide forever, Sarna Valios Starker. You and your new cursed friend shall both be given an absolute measure of the All-Mother's mercy."

With a fierce expression, Sarna holds her lightsaber out to one side, out of the way of Delphine as she's tossed in her direction through the Force. Her left hand is thrust before her, palm out, fingers spread, concentration in every line of her small form as she tries to replicate what Delphine had done with Vee-Four and slow her velocity enough to dissipate any harm. Her lips curl back and her eyes close for a moment, and when she opens them, she takes a step forward, leveling the tip of her lightsaber towards Malideus from across the plaza. "Leave us be, Selas. Your threats are hollow. Leave, with your lackey. It sounds like the Regency could use someone of your cruelty."

Maccus murmurs to On'Tina softly, 'We should just get our food and stick out of the way" As his hand twitches again, making sure that the safety of his blaster is ticked off. His hand in On'Tina's squeezes as if protectively before watching Sarna step from the building with the glowing blade before murmuring again "Definitely, definitely should stick out of the way."

Delphine is impressed at the speed with which Sarna reappears on the ground floor, catching her just in her peripheral vision while she's mid-air. The Acolyte is about to land on top of the man in black when she's pushed away and loses her her forward momentum. She braces for impact turning in the air and disarming the charge in her shock batons lest she hurt herself with them. She hits the building with a thud of one shoulder against ferrocrete and makes a sound against the pain. Scrambling she gets back on her feet and tries to regain her footing, setting her sights and her stance towards the hunter again but still getting the wind back within her. She works on slowing her breath and listens as Kalden gives his speech, needling at his essence and finding it familiar. Aha! she thinks as the voice and essence line up with the man from Orum's Bastion. But the hunter is the main concern for now. She let's Sarna's words carry their weight though she shoots her a cautious look when she disparages the Regency. To set things out clear she shouts, "Kalden! The Regency has no jurisdiction here!"

On'Tina winces as Delphine is pushed into the air and she just tightens her fingers grip on her blaster, flicking off the safety. She looks between one side of the fight and the other with a mercenaries calculation of realizing that with so many unknown and by her measure 'otherworldly' aspects to whatever is playing out there's no gain in being the one to kick anything off. Maybe she remembers what she said earlier, 'Don't shoot when no one is paying you ... ' and sucks in between her teeth.

She nods her head aside to the man and starts to makes half a step towards the edge of the Square, trying to extract herself from this cluster.

Kalden is surprised that Malideus backs off so easily. His goal has been achieved althought it came at a high price. Whispers, it seems, carry through the winds where force users are concerned. Looking to Delphine the agent nods, "That is correct. The Regency has not chosen to excersize control over this planet.", his reply neutral yet carries a warning with it. "The enclave exists in Harmoney with the Regency because rules are followed." Looking towards Sarna and the lightsaber she wields, Kalden continues "Rules, which have been broken. Rules which the Lord Marshall knows are being broken. For the sake of these people.", the Agent looks to Lincoln. "Don't make him come here. A fleet tends to follow in his wake"

Lincoln keeps his eyes steadily bouncing between Kalden and Malideus, "I don't care who comes here as long as they don't start trouble, trouble like you..." he nods towards Malideus, "Have brought here more than enough. So it's time for you to go. If you want to harass people off this world? Well that's not my jurisdiction and I'm not going to worry about what consequences befall you. But right now, you both have about one minute to get out of my sight and another dozen to get out of the city, handful more off the planet. Otherwise everyone here is going to start finding out how well people shoot and stab and the like one another cause my patience is flat out ran thin."

The downfall of some Selas is their pride. After negotiating the Endless Forest of Telgosse, surviving against untold predators stalking beneath the thick, shadowy canopy, the Selas tend to believe themselves invincible. Perhaps even superior to those weaker people that have never known such diversity. The weak people that cling to their technological terrors, allowing their flesh to become soft and weak.

Pride is not Malideus's great sin. Faced with such odds as presented by Sarna and her allies, and presented with the wisdom of retreat, it is not difficult for Malideus to make the hard choice.

"We will go, Kalden. Though you should know that rules or no rules, I will see all of the Cursed put down."

Malideus takes one more step back, then looks across the way at Maccus and On'Tina. A smile spreads across his lips. Malideus would leave, but who's to say he wouldn't return again with allies of his own?

One final step, and one final trick up the Selas's sleeve. He pulls the bright blue sheet from his should and flings it into the air. It seems the wind picks it up at that moment, billowing it out and stretching it wide. To Delphine's and Sarna's senses, they may know the truth. One last maneuver. One last gambit, to make the escape more clean.

The sheet flies into the air, whips toward Lincoln, then turns with a whipping sound, snapping its way towards the Enclave Acolyte and the Jedi Padawan. Its edge cracks again, as if daring the Lawman to fire.

Sarna rushes to Delphine's side, reaching out with the Force to reassure and assess wheher the other woman is uninjured. "Are you okay? I'm sorry you're mixed up in all this," she says under her breath, giving the Acolyte an apologetic look and realizing she's let her emotions get the best of her.

Kalden's threat hits Sarna harder, somehow, than anything Malideus had said, then, and she pivots around, the image of a fleet of Regency ships teasing at the back of her mind so vividly she's almost sure it's a vision. The glowing blade is dropped back to her side, still vibrating and humming with each of her movements. "I'm not a member of the Enclave," she corrects him. "And the Acolyte is only defending me from this hunter who's threatened my life. I don't think any rules have been broken here."

Her expression falters, and then warms when the Marshal of Tier City says his piece, burgeoning her own courage despite that haunting image. She says nothing more, but watches Lincoln and Malideus both very carefully, her senses alert for any foresight of aggression against her new friends.

When the only threat comes in the form of the discarded sheet, she realizes the game is up. With a slicing motion, the sheet is cleaved in two by her lightsaber blade as it flutters by, and Sarna searches for any sign of Malideus. "Lincoln! I think he's gone!" she warns the lawman, striding toward him.

Maccus follows On'Tina closely, his hand fully on his blaster now, ready to go at a moment's notice. The more the tension builds throughout the Bazaar the more his aggression and anticipation build, helping regain his senses from earlier. He would whisper toward On'Tina, "Well, there goes the pleasant buzz, eh?" As he watches Kalden, Malideus, Sarna, Lincoln and Delphine. His eyes flash to Malideus a moment of consideration before turning back sharply and away, doing his all to avoid showing any form of emotion.

On'Tina flits her lekku back and forth an

d she seems to come back somewhat to her senses as the adrenaline speeds the liquor through her system as she seems to flinch as she watches whatever get tossed into the middle of the Square keeping her blaster level on it and her breath raises and lowers her chest and then she looks aside to Maccus and repeats something in agitated Ryl, "<>"

Delphine nods to Sarna, giving her assurance that she's fine if bruised before addressing the Regency man again. "This young adept is under my protection, sir!" The Enclave representative hollers back to Kalden. "This child doesn't know the rules yet. I have officially offered her sanctuary and by rights I may defend her until she arrives on Vait. Tell that to the Lord Marshall!" She gives Sarna a look, taking in the energy beam weapon she carries - a wonder she must know more about! When Malideus seems to be ceding to Lincoln's demands that he leave, Delphine stands steady to watch them go and weighs whether or not to follow them. But with the unknown quantity that is Kalden, she'd best not. Then the blue cloth begins whipping around and even the experienced Acolyte is distracted for a moment until it is destroyed by Sarna. Disappearing by way of distraction was a trick she knew of so she resist the urge to poke the discarded garment. She follows along and adds, "I don't trust him to stay gone long, though. This time, you're not leaving my sight, Sarna."

The retort from the Lawman causes Kalden to smirk. The man was used to dealing with individuals who could be intimidated. Individuals who did not have the weight of an Empire behind them. "Lawman...." the words carry across the wind, "Between the two of us, I'm the one who maintained peace here today." The agent eyes Lincoln, signaling that he was game for a draw. "As I said before".. the tone softens, "Rules must be followed to maintain order. I shall leave at your request." Kalden next looks to Sarna, the one who has drawn so much of Malideus's attention. "An impressive display by one not of the Enclave. Where did you learn to control your abilities so well.. and that weapon." The agent shifts his weight, his tone shifting to an playful yet curious tone, "Never seen one of those. Something about you does not fit the mold." Finally Kalden turns his attention to Delphine. The one for Orum's who displayed her powers there. She felt she had the moral high ground, that justice would be done. Kalden intended to shake that belief. His tone is now dismissive with a threatening undertone. "Tell him yourself. He is looking for you but does not know your name... Because I've withheld it." Kalden gives one pause to look everyone over before turning to leave, "Please do a better job of maintaining the peace around here.... This is embarrassing."

Lincoln grunts dismissively at Kalden's words, but the sheet flipping about manages to cut off any retort. After that moment of surprise diminishes, he slides the blaster that had come into his hand back to the holster. A glance is given towards Sarna and he nods, "I need to make sure they get out and stay out. Hole up in the office until you're able to get out on ship." He calls to her and Delphine both, "It's reinforced, shouldn't be easy to get into. I'll radio in a couple deputies to stand watch." Turning, he begins towards the city center to take care of calming crowds and sussing out if the pair really did depart.

The sheet served as its distraction, and the Selas escapes, his black leather serving to mold him to the shadows. Some distance away, he looks back, blood-filled eyes taking in the scene left behind. It had not ended in disaster, but it was far from a victory.

"Some day, Sarna Valios Starker," Malideus says. He turns away and walks, his cane tapping the concrete in front of him with little click-clicks. "You will learn, or you will die."

On'Tina pauses and there's a look that comes over her features at something said or inferred and she spits on the ground with a hiss from between her teeth, both her lekku slapping at her back in a thrummed unison. She waits until the men are out of view and says, "You want to call men ... who might get answers above you to do something you won't agree with Marshall? Because that's what I just picked up on. I'm not free but at least I don't answer to anyone else."

With the departure of the Selas and the agent, Sarna finally breathes out a long sigh of relief, and the beam of her laser sword shrinks back into the hilt. She clips it to her belt and frowns at Lincoln's instructions, tempted to follow after him. She bites on a knuckle, but he's right, and she turns back to Delphine. "Come on, let's wait inside until we get the all clear from the marshal," she says to the Acolyte. "We'll be safe in there, I promise."

Maccus looks to On'Tina, taking the Twi'leks words into consideration before stating toward Lincoln, "I'd be happy to help guard as well, Marshal, though as she said, my services aren't free". As he shakes his head hard, muttering something about wishing he were still drinking.