Endor

[Blue but beautiful]

The Dulok seemed to revert to it's prior passive state all too quickly after her protests. It was what it did next that forced her to recoil, but perhaps not as much as she would have liked to.
Taking her hand in one soggy wet paw it decided to kiss her hand in a gesture of apology, one that caused her to draw back sharply.

" There is no need to apologize!" she said all too quickly, before next trying to calm her tone, " After all, these are troubled times are they not? One can never be too careful."

Nia Shul eyed the Jeedai now, he had remained all but silent through that little scene. As if he had noted her discord with this whole situation, he spoke up.

"Uhm sorry...we're just a little jumpy from the weather..Natives don't help either.."

" Indeed" she observed rather flatly, her gaze flicking back toward the Dulok rather disdainfully.

"My name is Ashen Wraith, the nervous padawan is Attomemhuhvoo, and this dulok is named Umwak. Atto and I are here on searching for the lost scouts from Salfar's. You said your ship crashed nearby. We'll offer any assistance we can."

So they were Jeedai, that confirmed it all the more for her. And this was a rather precarious place to be conducting a conversation. His offer of assistance was of no issue to her of course, they'd find the ship she had been aboard, but it's crew would be beyond help, long beyond help.
And so they should be, she'd tainted enough of herself by using their transport, she wasn't about to go off world with these infidels!
They would go with her.

" I am afraid I think the ship is a little beyond anyones help...there was quite an impact." she stated, doing her best to sound woeful. " But you are welcome to try, of course."

Nia Shul had not, however, underestimated the fact that they may indeed know who, or more to the point, what she was. These Jeedai had an uncanny knack for seeing through their disguises, but on occasion it was too late. She hoped that today was one of those days, that perhaps Yun-Harla would smile upon her for a change.

[Matlalihuitl]

Umwak moved back as the Yuzhun Vong moved back her hand away from him. Then he just moved back to the tree and grabbed his knife and hid it behind his back, incase if anything happens.
"So sorry then." he said as he let out a growl. Umwak then turned to Ashen and gave out a worried look at him. "I don't trust her too much..." he whispered.

[nightshade]

Setting the Belladona down in a small forest clearing, Nightshade shut down the ships systems and lowered the boarding ramp. His droid I-Six Would alert him if there was any trouble, not that the droid couldnt handle trouble himself, the assassin protocals that Nightshade had installed would see to that.

The plume of smoke he'd spotted from the air rose high above the treetops. This was as close as he could get to the ship wreck without landing in the treetops. His target would be a few hours yet, giving nightshade enough time to salvage what he could from the downed ship. He doubted there would be any survivors, the impact of the crash had burned all the surrounding trees.

This was going to be messy.

[wraith]

Nor should you. Ashen thought silently at Umwak's almost inaudible from the rain whispering but he knew that the Yuuzhan was watching.

"Don't worry Umwak." he said as he looked down to the dulok "Not all humans are as bad as the ones that kept you as a slave."

But the Yuuzhan Vong certainly came in at a close second. His eyes cast up to Atto as he made his way back down the tree then back toward this Yuuzhan Vong in disguise.

"You should come with us. It's very dangerous out here even without the storm Miss?...." awaiting an answer.

The storm seemed to pick up as though the force behind it had sensed the Yuuzhan's presence. He turned his head to look in the direction of the dark presence he felt. He had two options now..Send Atto and Umwak back with the yuuzhan in disguise while he continued on or keep them all together. Both would prove to be dangerous. The last people the yuuzhan needed to come in contact with was the ewoks..The force only knows what they'd make of them but nor could he endanger everyone here by having them stay with him when he encountered the source of this darkness..

A dark black bird cawed over the rain up in the trees. Was it the same bird? Yes...and it was leading them.

[Matlalihuitl]

Umwak turned his attention towards the cawing bird and grabbed a nearby stick. He sharpened it quickly and aimed it at the bird.
"Bye bye birdy..." Umwak laughed as his red eyes turned blue.

[attomemhuhvoo]

"Look out Umwak!!"

Atto cried as the dark avian unexpectidly caught the dulok's throwing stick in it's talons. The bird quickly tossed away the crude weapon and dove with a racous caw.

Luckily, Umwak's topknot of furry hair took the brunt of the attack as the bird snaped at his head with its sharp beak. It croaked as an after warning, then perched on a nearby tree branch, glaring at the group with glittering black eyes.

The bird cawed again, louder this time, then spread its wings indignantly and took flight. An ebony tailfeather spiraled to the forest floor, and Atto raced over to catch it. It of course, looked like a normal avians feather, perhaps a little hardier than any Atto had seen in other birds, but a normal feather none the less.

The y-eskii-ill boy dipped the quill into his leather shirt's breast pocket, and looked to the sky above. The clouds continued to roil ominously. He shivered and gave a little bark, stomping one hoof foot in nervousness.

"Calm..."

The woman stood silently behind him, no hint of agression radiated from her being.

"What did you say your name was maam?" He used the formal title and realized too late that most younger human females liked to be called 'miss'.. Oh well, too late to remedy it. He changed the subject instead.

"Mabey we should check out the wreck you speak of. I know my master would want me to."

He thought of master Nootkul and sighed through his air intakes.

"There is no death...there is only the force..."

[Blue but beautiful]

"You should come with us. It's very dangerous out here even without the storm Miss?...."

The cawing of a bird above, interrupted the jeedai mid-sentence, for that much Nia Shul could thank the creature. Though the green-furred infidel seemed to be taking a great interest in their latest guest. Aiming a rather crude weapon in the Bird's direction, only to be outwitted by the avian as it swooped down and plucked the stick out of the air, the Dulok was saved by the hair of his top-knot as the strange blue-skinned Jeedai shouted a warning.

Nia remained still, watching the oddly brave bird flutter off into the sky as though it had purpose.
Her attention was again brought to the small group that had gathered here, the younger jeedai was asking her questions now.

"What did you say your name was maam?"

Nia Shul bristled. Infidels seemed to like going by their first names alone, an action that to her was insulting. To be identified only by your first name alone meant that one had been ousted from their domain, by will of the gods. Those who went by their first names were shamed.
Still, she would have to allow some indiscretions for this to work, wouldn't she?

"My name is Nia." She spoke in an even tone. No sense in lying about names, it needed to sound convincing.

"Mabey we should check out the wreck you speak of. I know my master would want me to."

She remained calm throughout the young jeedai's suggestion before a hint of a smile played across her lips,

" I believe that is what...Ashen, here was just suggesting we do. But as I said to him, I cannot imagine there will be much left to repair. " She added a hint of feigned sadness to those last few words.

If she lead them back to the smoldering wreck, it could buy her valuable time to get in contact with her superiors. Perhaps if she stalled them longer, this young Jeedai's master would show up also, and 3 was always better than 2. What Nia Shul had not planned for, was exactly how she was going to subdue these two. Time, that was all she needed, time to figure out a suitable plan.

" ...though perhaps something can be salvaged...you would know better than me."

[Matlalihuitl]

The bird was smarter then he thought, it threw the stick right at his hair. He pulled out the stick out of his hair and threw it back on the ground. Umwak then let his hair loose and turned to the young Y-eskii-ill jedi.
"I thank you young one." Umwak said as he began to sharpen more sticks and create a bow to go with it. Then he turned to the new stranger and growled a bit as his eyes changed back to his red color.

[nightshade]

Nightshade approached the smoldering wreckage with caution. The rain had extinguished the flames but crashed ships had a tendancy to blow up long after the initial impact.

Nightshades long dark coat brushed against the burnt ground as he moved closer to the wreckage. There was no need for his armor this time, his target was just a small time slaver wanted by the new republic.

The scene inside the ship was grim. Nightshade had seen his fair share of dead bodies but this...

He went straight to what was left of the cockpit, the ship was so badly buckled that it was hard to tell which part he was in. He checked the onboard flight computer to try and discover how the ship had crashed.

The flight computer would record any sounds from the cockpit in the last few minutes before the crash. What he found was disturbing. The recording was patchy at best but in between the interference he could hear the screams clearly. And the dominant voice rising above all the screams was that of a tongue Nightshade didnt recognise. This female, was shouting what sounded like a War cry.

The recording ended, leaving only static. What the kriff had happened? This was a simple passenger freighter, probably full of traders looking for hand crafted goods from the natives.

He waded through the wreckage of metal and bodies. Picking up an I.D chip his heart sank. The rodian that it belonged to was his bounty pleto. Or used to be.

"Terrific".

Scanning over the rest of the bodies he realised something very odd. There was no female.

[wraith]

This Yuuzhan really must have been new at her job. He didn't believe her acting as a crash victim for a second. It really was pretty poor considering how well she seemed to be taking it. He watched as the bird counter attacked Umwak. A bit surprised at the outright cunning. This one was no simple bird that much he could already feel.

"I think you should come with us Nia..if there are other survivors aboard the ship we need to get you back to salfar's or bright tree to get some help for them." Even through this storm. He thought to himself. as he tossed the cloak and hood to Nia.

"Here this will keep you safe from the rain..sorry about the smell Umwak was wearing it earlier.." he said with a faint frown as he looked down to the Dulok. He was apparently showing what he was all but aware of. Nia was not what she appeared to be. Stepping past him toward Atto. Moving his hand in front of him briefly to move the force between Umwak and him. Otherwise known as the mind trick. "Easy.." he spoke softly.

Coming over to the now he feared masterless padawan. "Can I see that feather Atto."

[nightshade]

Well, that was a waste of time. The rodian was no good to him dead. He would have to report his death to the bounty office but now it meant that Nightshade wouldnt even get enough credits to compensate for his fuel costs.
He couldnt even salvage anything from the crashed ship, it was too badly burnt.

Nightshade stood in his sleeping quarters on board the belladona. He'd stripped off his wet clothes as soon as he'd closed the boarding ramp. I-Six was in the main hold, tinkering with 1 of the loose connections on the hyperdrive, muttering something about Nightshade needing an oil bath. The droid had some strange habits but that only made him more interesting.

Nightshade opened a compartment to reveal his Cinnagan battle armor. His simple mission had just got complicated. He couldnt be sure that the female had killed that crew, but judging by the sounds he'd heard on the recording, it was highly likely. The fact that she'd supposedly survived the crash made him all the more cautious.

Endor was a dangerous place full of dangerous predators and Nightshade had a feeling that his new prey would be the deadliest of them all.

But Nightshade was a Predator too and he wanted answers.

[Blue but beautiful]

"I think you should come with us Nia..if there are other survivors aboard the ship we need to get you back to salfar's or bright tree."

Great, that was all she needed, ever the helpful Jeedai. It was what was contained in his sentence that piqued her interest. She had said nothing about weather the rest of the ships' crew had survived or not. Jeedai powers? Could he really know?

" IF, indeed." she reiterated pointedly. " Which is why we must go back is it not? There may not be much time."

It almost pained her to even suggest the idea of going back to see if there were survivors, the infidels valued their own lives far too much, she had seen to it personally that there were no survivors. The Rodian had put up the best fight, she noted, he was almost what the warrior caste might have considered as 'worthy'. He had stood his ground while the others around him fell into chaos, but eventually he too was forced to address the seriousness of the situation. Of course she was far from unscathed herself, but the Ooglith masquer disguised that a little too well for her taste.
As if to remind her of their existence, several hot, sharp pangs of pain coursed through her nervous system from her wounds.

She caught the cloak he tossed in her direction. It's surface was almost soaked through in it's self, since the Dulok had taken it before her. Nia Shul merely offered it back,

" I came here looking for aid, not shelter." she added a couple of seconds later, holding his gaze, unwavering.

[attomemhuhvoo]

Atto watched as the bird flew away. He reached into his pocket and offered the feather to Ashen Wraith.

"It's the most perfect feather I've ever seen." He said smoothly as if in awe. "Imagine, falling to the ground and not getting mussed up even a little!"

The y-eskii-ill twisted his lips on his whiskery muzzle in a dubious grin. The black feather shone, even in the sunless sky. He shivered taking the feeling as a warning of sorts.

"I'm ready to get out of here, I don't know how you all feel about it, but something is feeling like bad koko. Mabey if we move on..."

Atto again eyed the female human. She didn't like him. Of that much he was certain.

[wraith]

"It's the most perfect feather I've ever seen. Imagine, falling to the ground and not getting mussed up even a little!"

He listened to Atto as he turned the feather with his fingers. Indeed it was too good. What he felt from the feather and the bird earlier now made sense.

"I'm ready to get out of here, I don't know how you all feel about it, but something is feeling like bad koko. Maybe if we move on..."


"Atto you go offer what aid you can to the crashed ship." Turning his attention back to Nia. "Which way is the ship?" He asked her doubting she would tell the truth but it was all part of the plan wasn't it.

He spoke silently through the force to Atto's mind

*She's not what she appears to be Atto. Head back to salfur's and find out if there's any downed craft around here then contact one of the Master's. Tell them that we've found a yuuzhan vong here. Take Umwak with you he knows where bright tree village is. Salfar's is just a quick run from there. I'll take care of everything else.*

His eyes turned back to his and then spoke.

"Atto search the ship and help the survivors what you can. I'll take Nia ahead to Salfar's" hoping that this yuuzhan vong in disguise didn't know the layout of the sanctuary moon that well...and if she did that would tell him something more of condition of the yuuzhan vong here if there were any more of them besides her. Somehow he doubted that would be the case.

[Blue but beautiful]

The younger of the two Jeedai seemed completely oblivious to what was going on around him, his gaze fixed intently on the feather he now held in his hands. The elder, the one Nia Shul had guessed was a master, seemed a little more spatially aware than his counterpart.
In fact, silence fell over the group for some time before the Jeedai came up with some form of plan with regards to the action they should take. Were they just playing along with her facade? If that was so, she would have to watch her back. The chance still stood that they did not, so there was no sense in breaking cover just yet.

"Atto you go offer what aid you can to the crashed ship." "Which way is the ship?"

And there it was, a slight confirmation. Splitting the group up may have been a wise move for the Jeedai, but Nia Shul had intended on returning to her superiors with both of them!
One would have to suffice for now, she could just as easily return for the other. And if the young one remained as oblivious to this situation as she suspected he did, then coming up with a reason to go with her would not be as problematic. Still, she cursed her change of fortune furiously, she'd been tested from day one. Why now must she be tested again?

"Atto search the ship and help the survivors what you can. I'll take Nia ahead to Salfar's"

Salfars? That name was not yet familiar to her, it begged a chance to ask lot's of questions though. She trusted this infidel about as far as she could have thrown a yorik-et, irrespective of weather he was a Jeedai or not.

" The ship came down a fair distance from here." she began doing her best to sound a little distraught about the whole affair.
" If you head directly south east from here you might be able to see the smoke on the horizon. "
She only hoped that she had got her direction wording right.
No one commented, perhaps she had?

" And where exactly is Salfurs?" if he could give her an idea of where it was, she might be able to work out exactly WHAT this location was. And not trusting this one as she did, that might prove a tad useful.
" as in how far?" She added as an after thought.