Izara Meets Sarna the Formidable

The Plaza -- Tier City: Valentine's World

The sheer, vertical face of a great mountain soars from the gently rolling, golden plains, overlooking the city of Tier nestled into the valley below. Its towers, marked by graceful curves and elegant architecture, are the same hue as the pale rock of the steep slopes that gleam in the sunlight, seeming to have been carved straight from the face of the mountain itself, and are capped by colorful domes that in turn mirror the azure of the sky. Through a grand archway carved of shining white stone lies a broad plaza limned on one side by a languidly drifting river fed by cascading waterfalls and glittering rivulets that follow the sharp drops in terrain from the mountain's crest. Organic designs and patterns are carved decoratively into the walls of most of the buildings, and in the plaza itself are larger-than-life statues of lithe figures in elegant and supple poses. On a typical day the plaza is busy with pedestrians, droids, and speeders that whizz past the passersby.

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Contents:

Obvious exits:

orth leads to Ward Bazaar -- Tier City: Valentine's World.

est leads to Faire Trade Plains -- Tier City: Valentine's World.

The Players: Sarna and Delphine

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The tall, thin, Epicantrix wheeler dealer from Orum's Bastion prowls the festival grounds for her prey. She walks around finding young brunette women and trying to assess their height by holding her hand up to a certain level. "This high..." Izara mutters to herself as she moves through the night time crowd and growls to herself. "Droid...look for a girl with a droid..." She stalks her way from one end of the plaza to the other.

The plaza is certainly busy even at nighttime. Strings of lights draped around vendors and venues brighten the locale, and the overall atmosphere is a bit more raucous and party-like now that most of the younglings have been sent home to sleep off the excitement of the day, and the festival goers imbibe the all the food and drink there is to offer.

There is music, too. Upon a small stage a troupe of musicians and singers strum and tap and drum through a string of high-energy songs that have inspired some members of the crowd to dance. Here, seemingly alone amongst the audience, Sarna watches with rapt attention, an expression of delight on her face as she claps along with the music.

It's the clapping along that catches Izara's attention as the elongated woman rounds the corner from behind the stage. She purses her plump lips and narrows her cinnamon flecked eyes as she considers the girl enrapt by the music. She certainly fits the description the black clad man gave her in terms of her youth and exuberance but where was the droid?

Izara decides to try and casually move into the area where the girl is standing. She quickly purchases a drink from a vendor in a spill proof container and heads onto the dance floor. She moves a bit uncomfortably, not one to favor public partying for herself but she finds a position behind the girl to observe her more closely.

Indeed, there is no droid to be seen at the girl's feet or in the vicinity this time. A group of exuberant Nahrahm beckon Sarna to join in their dancing, and though she at first demurs, she eventually relents and is sent twirling and dipping through a reel with a series of tall, attractive, dark-haired Nahrahm men and women, until the song comes to an end. As the crowd applauds, she catches her breath and finds the nearest bench to collapse upon, unaware at the moment of any eyes that may be upon her.

Izara's lips curls a little as the natives drag the girl into their choreography - some traditional Nahrahm thing she's sure. She watches and watches like the girl is a pebble in a shell game. Time was growing short for Izara's assignment so she makes a decisive move. Traipsing along looking a little drunk, despite being fully sober, the lanky creature orbits the bench the girl is on.

"Hey!!!" Izara plops down next to Sarna and smiles a large toothy smile. "That looked like fun...uh...say...where's your little beep beep boop friend I saw you with before?" Not smooth but the best she can come up with for improvisation. Offering a friendly greeting she says, "I'm Izara, by the way."

Sarna wipes sweat off her brow and sits up straight as the stranger takes a seat next to her, and despite the revelry and commotion, the girl's eyes are clear and alert. "Hi, Izara," she replies, her air casual. She takes in the other woman at a glance and a focusing of her other senses. "Have we met? I can't recall. How do you know my droid?" Both of her brows arch, but she softens her expression with a smile and idly twirls a long lock of dark hair around her finger.

"Oh...I've seen your around," Izara says casually with a wave of her long fingers with their black painted nails. "And we have a mutual acquaintance...mysterious guy, all in black, with a mask and everything...oh and he's always tapping his cane." Izara lets you a laugh. She looks pointedly at the girl. "You know who I mean?"

So this isn't a casual encounter, just as she'd suspected. Sarna purses her lips and straightens her shoulders, tugging a corner of her cloak around her. "Yeah," she says in a low voice, casting out subtly with the Force to try to ascertain if the bounty hunter is nearby. "I know who you mean. He's super charming, isn't he? What's this all about?"

Izara puts her drink down on the bench. "Alright," she says holding up both hands in emphasis as she sets up her ask. "So...he asked me to find you. He really wants to talk to you but, ya know, not around these crowds. Says it's real important." Izara hopes the girl is receptive to her completely honest and deception free words. "He's waiting on my ship. Neutral territory, ya know? He hopes you'll come with me to talk with him. I know this is weird..."

"Neutral territory?!" Sarna's voice is high-pitched when she splutters out the words. "Oh, sure, I board your ship, I get bonked over the head, and now creepy bounty hunter boy has a new bounty, is that it?" She can't help but laugh at the audacity of them both, her mouth agape. "Because that sounds like the plan. Unless he's waiting there with a candlelit dinner, or something. And in that case... well, let's just say -hard pass-."

Izara covers half her face with one hand, looking extremely disappointed. "I know. It sounds hinky," she says. "But..." Izara looks straight into the other woman's eyes. "I promise. My crew and I won't let anything happen to you. You can talk on the beach maybe...not even go inside." She places her hand under her breast bone. "I take my word as my bond very seriously. And I give you my word."

Every alarm bell in her head is going off, and the conflict is clear on Sarna's youthful face. She's barely more than a child, not yet out of her teens, but she hides vulnerability under a steely exterior. "Fine," she finally sighs. "I'll talk to him. On the beach, not on the ship. At first light tomorrow. I'm an early riser." Standing from the bench, she smooths her tunic and looks down at the older woman. "I am trusting you. It's not in your best interest to deceive me," she warns softly.

"Okay. Great." Izara stands as well, towering over the girl a bit. Look for the cargo hauler "Hot Stuff" near the north end of the beach." Great. That meant she'd be playing host to the hunter for the night. What fun! "And don't worry. He warned me you were..." Dangerous? No, that's not what she should say. Ah yes, she concludes with, "Formidable."