Traveling Cloudy Skies

[Garyn Fel'zev]

((OOC: Continued from The Galaxy is Large, but Worlds are Small.))

*Rather than taking the two Jedi to a private mansion as Garyn had expected, the driver took the speeder to the royal palace. They passed through the mostly-ceremonial gate without pause, though the Knight could sense that the guards were wary and watched them closely. There were no crude free-standing security scanners or even checkpoints at this entrance, just more guards. That didn't mean security was lax however, the ornate hallway they entered through was itself a scanner of some sort. The two of them were escorted through relatively plain hallways at first, then into a more decorated hallway and an office antechamber. The man who'd originally spoken to them - he'd not given his name - announced them and left.

Minister Gar Alder was an older man, one who had apparently spent his life working for Naboo's government. He was polite, but direct. Apparently, his daughter had been kidnapped. Like most government officials would, he paid the requested ransom - he'd been prudent and taken out insurance for this kind of thing - but the girl hadn't been returned. Instead, a demand for more payment, double this time. The insurance company had paid. Again, no girl, just another demand. Now that it was becoming clear that whoever had taken the girl had no intent of returning her, the insurance company had refused payment. Alder didn't have enough. It had been fortuitous timing in his mind that Garyn had come to Naboo and the report had crossed the minister's desk. Jedi were supposed to have resources, be capable of finding his daughter and returning her through any circumstance.

There were, of course, problems.*

"I would accept, Minister. There are complications, however."

"Of course. Payment. I can pay, and any money that you recover from the kidnappers is yours as well. And information of course, everything I have you'll receive a copy of."

"Very kind, minister, but that isn't it. I have no spacecraft, no way to get to wherever your daughter is being held and transporting her back safely."

*Whatever the minister - a long-standing politician - had expected, it wasn't that. Such was clear in the momentary hesitation and the furrow of his brow.*

"Ah. As it happens, I hadn't expected you to use your personal transport for this anyways. I have an old YT-2000 and pilot waiting in a hangar, should you decide to go. You can't keep it, I'm afraid, as it is quite needed for its normal operations, but I can divert it for your use for a while."

"Very well. If I may make a call..."

*Garyn headed back out to the antechamber. Ayko was still a Padawan, which technically meant that he should have his Master's permission to be going. And what Padawan wouldn't want to be involved in something like this? Nafrayo, as it turned out, was not at the Jedi Temple on Yavin VIII. The Schenor was able to get the Neti's comm frequency though, and placed a call, leaving a message. He explained that he was on Naboo, had run into Ayko here, and that he'd like to speak with the Jedi Guardian at his convenience.*

Tag: Nafrayo, Ayko

[Nafrayo]

Naboo... the last time Nafrayo had been to this world, he had accompanied his Master, N´ yssa FariFax. It hadn´t been a pleasant vacation trip, no, very far from that. After finding out that her home village had been completely destroyed, N´yssa had wanted to see it for herself. Arrangements had to be made. And then her dark sided clone had somehow found and attacked the Jedi Master while Nafrayo was away... She´d lost her arm in that battle. The Neti had not been able to save it, yet, he´d menaged to save her life and return her to the Temple.

This time, Nafrayo was here on his own. More or less. Having allowed his Padawan Ayko to leave the Temple for personal reasons, the Neti didn´t want to make it seem as if he planned on watching him, or bringing him back... Well, he´d still thought it wise to perhaps be around, just in case his student needed assistance. But aside from that, there was something waiting for him. Something he´d probably neglected for too long...

The ship soon docked at the civic spaceport in Theed, allowing it´s passengers to disembark. Dressed in rather shabby pants and cloak, carrying an old half-ruined backpack, the Neti looked rather like a refugee. Or worse, a beggar, not a member of the Jedi Order. His lightsabers were hidden, as usual, and nothing on his person seemed to be new or had recently been in contact with soap. Many others nearby seemed to be avoiding the tall figure because of that. Sometimes it was just easier to get to certain places and people, if one was believed to be just a poor traveller or cantina patron. Standing in a line to pass customs, Nafrayo looked around, keeping his senses alert.

"Next", said one of the customs officers, turning towards the Neti, looking up at the 2.5 meter tall figure. Nafrayo handed him the paperwork, along with a forged identicard, that identified him as a travelling worker. With a suspicious look on his face, the officer looked from the card back to the Neti.

"Worker, eh? From Tattooine? You look more like the usual scum to me... as if we didn´t have enough to hang around in the streets already...", the man said with an annoyed sigh. He gave the card back to Nafrayo as the scanners light turned green. "If it was just for me, you´d be send back right from where you are..."

"As you say...", was all the Guardian replied quietly, moving past the man. He didn´t want to draw more attention to himself. A few steps and he left the customs area of the spaceport. He hadn´t arrived in his ship, the Shadow Cat, but relied on public transport this time. There had been problems with the hyperdrive again. Nafrayo had to get it fixed once he returned to the Temple. It was just then that his commlink notified him about the message left by Garyn. Now was hardly the time to return the call, so he made his way towards the poorer and darker parts of Theed. He was going to meet someone there. A few corners later, the Neti squeezed himself into a dark alley, pulling out the commlink to finally contact the Schenor.

:Greetings... I´ve received your message. How can I help you?: he said quietly when Garyn answered the call...

Tag: Ayko, Garyn

[Ayko Verrin]

Ayko stood just behind Garyn as he spoke with the Minister. The Padawan listened carefully while the man told his story, and requested their help in finding his daughter. Which of course, Ayko was eager to help with. This would be the perfect opportunity for the young man to finally put his skills to good use, and help someone in need. A YT-2000? Those things were quite good. Or at least he had heard, Ayko never really was an expert on freighters.

Nafrayo would be joining them both it seemed. And Ayko found himself a little surprised at how soon he was seeing his Master again, given how he had planned to take a break from it all. But that was all okay, of course, because what they would be setting out to do was bigger than Ayko wanting to get away for a while. If anything it made the Padawan feel that his problems were petty compared to other people's problems in the Galaxy. There was other people that needed help, and he had to be there to give that help to them.

[Garyn Fel'zev]

:Greetings... I´ve received your message. How can I help you?:

*Nafrayo's greeting and words were quiet, almost as if he didn't want them to be overheard. Garyn would trust that the Neti had his volume settings as he wanted them and not speak just as quietly - the Guardian knew what he was doing. There was no video on either end, and no location given, so the Knight had no idea that his friend was on Naboo.*

"I encountered Ayko on Naboo, and we have been asked to help resolve a kidnap situation. He's your Padawan, so needs your approval to get involved. Some pirates took a government minister's daughter and are getting greedy, you know how the story goes."

*When it came down to it, Garyn honestly didn't know how he was going to track down this pirate nest in the first place. He understood little of galactic finances, but knew that major banking institutions had offices around the galaxy, and that funds input on one world could be withdrawn on one on the far side of the galaxy in minutes. However, he was also aware that banks tracked those transactions: who deposited money, withdrew it, and where those occurred. Thus he had to assume that at some stage the electronic funds were transferred to hard currency - untraceable - and sent to the final location. He was hoping that the information Minister Alder would provide - maybe combined with analysis computers at the Temple - would be enough to get him started. It was possible that Ayko would be able to help too, Garyn had no idea how much of the galaxy the younger man knew or what connections his mind would make.*

[Nafrayo]

Nafrayo thought about it for a moment. Of course it was often just a matter of time when a Jedi got involved in situations like that. And it was good for his Padawan to get some experience. Though a kidnapping situation could quickly become dangerous... The Neti trusted Garyn in that he would protect Ayko from harm as best as he could. Still, the young man was supposed to be his responsibility, not Garyn´s... and if something happened... he didn´t want to even think of that.

And the Neti was not too far away, as he could sense his student, but had masked his own aura to remain unnoticed. He didn´t want for Ayko to think he was constantly being monitored by his Master. After all, he´d asked permission to take leave for a while, which Nafrayo had granted. But if pirates were involved, he didn´t want to just stand by and watch. Perhaps the Guardian could provide additional assistance...

:Hmmm... yes, pirates can be a trying bunch. I´ve had my own experiences with the likes of them... Well, Ayko needs practice. So he can surely help you. And... in case it is needed, I could offer my help, too. I´m currently on Naboo as well...:

[Garyn Fel'zev]

OOC: Ayko told me to skip him this time around.

*Garyn's eyebrows rose in surprise, not an expression he normally made. Nafrayo on Naboo...he hadn't quite expected that one. Ayko was here too...maybe the Guardian was keeping an eye on his learner. It wasn't the felinoid's business whatever the case may be, and he'd gladly take the help.*

"Your presence is always appreciated. We're at the palace, should I request a speeder be sent or just inform the guards at the gate?"

*Once Garyn had Nafrayo's response, he headed back into the room and relayed to Minister Alder that the three of them would take on the request; the minister then made the necessary arrangements to get Nafrayo to them. While the Jedi had been on the comm, Alder had sent an aide to gather the relevant evidence that he'd promised to them, and it was delivered shortly after they returned to the office. In similar fashion, he sent another aide to retrieve the single pack that Garyn had brought with him, it would be taken to the YT's hangar and be ready for them once they arrived. Once Nafrayo arrived at the office, the Minister introduced himself once again and offered a single question.*

"Do any of you have any last questions?"

[Nafrayo]

:I will arrive on my own... though informing the guards is possibly a good idea...:, the Guardian replied to Garyn´s offer. As he wasn´t properly dressed for a Jedi to just enter the palace, this was not going to work as smoothly... as the Neti soon figured as he arrived at the gates. The guards blocked the entrance.

"No entry!", one of then said, looking at the tall, shabby-looking alien, that didn´t truly resemble a Jedi by any means.

"Well, i´m Guardian Nafrayo of the Jedi... and i´m expected inside...", the Neti said, and the guards exchanged confused looks. "A Jedi is expected...", the other guard replied, looking Nafrayo over with a grim face. "Can you prove you´re a Jedi?", the first asked, obviously taking his duty very seriously. "You don´t even have one of those laser swords, do you?" The two didn´t move. And the Guardian eventually revealed one of his weapons he suddenly held in his large hands. That seemed to convince the two guards to let him enter, and they opened the gate. "Well... alright... we just had to be sure...", one explained.

"I do understand", Nafrayo answered with a smile as he walked past them. "Thank you."

Soon he arrived at the office, bowing and greeting Garyn, Ayko and the Minister, introducing himself properly.

"Guardian Nafrayo, at your service...", he stated, then nodded slightly as the Minister offered the time for some final questions. "Well, i´d like to know if there are possibly informations available as to how many pirates might be involved?" The Neti was hardly discouraged by a greater number of opponents. But it certainly made the task more difficult if they had to deal with a big pirate group.

[Ayko Verrin]

Bowing his head in return to his Master, Ayko smiled. It was good to see Nafrayo again, even though it had only been a short while since their last meeting.

Ayko had a question on his mind, after a brief moment of thought. "Yes, I have one. Have they hurt your daughter, or threatened to?" It was probably a delicate question, and one that may have seemed a little sudden. But it would probably favor the three Jedi to know if any violence had been suggested.

The Minister paused for a moment. He seemed affected by the question, but hid it well. "They said they would kill her if payment was not received soon." The Minister swallowed a lump in the back of his throat. "Which is why we must act fast." Ayko nodded thoughtfully, he hoped with all his will that the three would be able to safely rescue the Minister's daughter.

[Garyn Fel'zev]

"Well, I'd like to know if there is possibly information available as to how many pirates might be involved?"

*The minister shrugged, a gesture not often made that looked almost unnatural. His facial and vocal expressions were both apologetic as he answered the Neti's question.*

"I think the investigators never determined that. They didn't fill me in on every aspect of the investigation, just what I asked and what they thought I needed to know. However, all the information we have - and authorization from me and them to look into it further - is contained in this."

*The minister offered a datapad, which Garyn took. The screen showed a lot of different files and folders, hopefully they'd get some time to read over everything and get some conclusions. Alder went on to thank the Jedi for their help and ask once more that they bring his daughter back alive. Minutes later, they were en route to the spaceport and the YT freighter they would be using for transport. The partition separating them from the driver was closed, so Garyn projected the information from various files up in a hologram so they all could see it. It wasn't until they were on board the vessel and the pilot, Sadron, was lifting off that they got to some concrete information. Apparently the instructions had been to send the money through the Bank of Aargau. A bit of independent searching revealed that Enarc was the closest planet with an active connection to the bank. That was where they headed first.*

"Either of you have any ideas about how to track this girl down? I've personally got very little experience in the area."

[Nafrayo]

Nafrayo quietly studied the informations of the holoprojector, as they looked through all the files granted by the minister. To make their way to Enarc was probably the best idea. There, they could possibly learn to which account the money had been sent. The question was if the bank would support the Jedi´s efforts and grant them access to the required informations, or if this act would actually alarm the kidnappers.

"Maybe the bank can tell us where the money went...", he suggested after a moment of thought. "If we get a name or learn to which account it´s been transferred to, that might be a first step..."

Unfortunately, chances were the kidnappers used an alias that didn´t exist. When it came to hunting down people, however, the Neti had had little experiences back from his smuggler days with his family... Since they were very strict about their code, those breaking it were hunted down and punished after all. But Nafrayo himself had rarely been involved in the actual hunting. He´d been responsible to carry out punishments instead...

[Ayko Verrin]

"There's a chance they may have people inside the bank too. If we were to go in asking questions that might trigger something, maybe messages might get to the kidnappers that there was people asking about them." Ayko said, after a moment of thought.

He was in no way disagreeing with his master, in fact what Nafrayo had said was exactly what Ayko had thought of too. "But, thinking about it, we probably don't have much choice." He eventually said again. Their options were limited, and whatever they decided to do would have to be well thought out. The wrong choice could prove to cause more problems than it would solve.

[Garyn Fel'zev]

*Garyn listened closely to the suggestions and comments. He might be playing point on this despite Nafrayo's seniority, but as he'd stated he had no prior experience in the matter. Tracking the money could work well, and Ayko's idea about word getting back to the kidnappers was worrying. As he said though, they didn't have much of a choice. Who knew, maybe looking into the matter would draw out the kidnappers.

Not long after dropping out of hyperspace, the craft landed on Enarc. The pilot had taken care of landing fees, so the Knight was somewhat surprised to see three men dressed in a security uniform standing outside. Maybe they were stationed there to prevent others from sneaking onboard. When he went to pass them though, the one with a fancier badge stepped into his path and motioned for him to stop.*

"We're here for the landing, security, and customs fees. Are you carrying any weapons on board, any undeclared cargo?"

"Not that I'm aware of, no. Our pilot declared everything we're carrying when he paid the fees."

"His credit didn't go through. That's 500 credits, pay up."

*A long time ago, Garyn hadn't really been used to the Force. Now though, after years of training and experience, he had the knowledge to detect when others were lying. It really only worked well with species that he was familiar with, but humans were extremely prevalent in the Order and in the galaxy at large. Though there was no physical sign of the lying that he could see, the twinge in the Force was a dead giveaway.*

"Please check with Control. We'll wait while you do."

*The man's mood turned sour, though again there was no change in expression. He turned away though and placed a comm call to the traffic controllers; meanwhile Garyn just stood there. He was aware that the other two guards had stationed themselves in flanking positions, hands on their holstered blasters while they waited. Violence or the threat thereof would have solved the problem - knocking the guards out would have been the simple work of seconds - but would have created problems of its own. A mind trick could have convinced them to avoid the shakedown too, but why do so when sticking to the truth could work as well?

After about thirty seconds, the guard turned back to the group with a patently insincere smile.*

"There must have been a miscommunication, my apologies. Have a nice stay on Enarc."

*With only a nod, Garyn moved past, knowing the others would follow. It wasn't difficult to find the bank and once there they managed to snag a banker.*

"How can I help you beings?"

"We're Jedi investigating a kidnapping on behalf of a Minister Gar Alder from Naboo, and we're hoping you can help us track down the payments he's already sent."

"I'm sorry sirs, but I'm not going to be able to help with that without some identification."

*The female had become wary when told about the kidnapping. However, as Garyn wasn't a mind-reader he couldn't tell if that was because she had something to do with it or was just security-conscious. Silently, he brought up the files showing them to be authorized by the minister and - by extension - his insurance company, which were copied by the banker.*

"One moment while I get the branch manager involved."