Aeos was ignoring the protests of her squadies as they were thrown around in the shuttle on the bumpy ride despite hovering several meters above the ground. She ignored the unkept golden hair that fell across her pale features while staring myopically at the dry world surrounding the squad’s immediate existence.

Kami occupied the spacey seat behind her. Both females remained silent throughout the ride, both their thoughts’ preoccupied with past yet recent events. Evis’ death was still fresh in their head-
“Aeos, where the hell are you taking us?” Verkur’s voice rang slicing her thoughts clean with the sharpness of his vocal chords. It still beheld that strict and tense attitude befitting the voice of an Imperial StormTrooper. Aeos choke on her own voice while the muscles crawling in knots across her back snapped tightly in a tangled mess. The squad leader, too young for the accepted standards of Squad Leader qualities bolted from her seat drawing the Jesters’ attention. She darted to the door, slamming her fist down to unsecure the lash that held the doors together. The vehicle was still in the process of coming to a halt smoothly, but she already jumped out and fell behind a few meters away from.

The usual grace with which she operated through air escaped her reflexes and she simply fell limply to the ground, tumbling about for a yard or two. Kami was the first to jump at her and speedily nearing Aeos who was already wiping her mouth clean, her one hand supporting her on the ground.

She felt another gush of bile threatening to rise up in her throat. She forced it away and forcedly and quickly started recomposing herself to the sem-self-assured state in which she has functioned for the past weeks.

“Aeos, when’s the last time you took leave? Or had a proper break between missions?”  Kami’s voice quietly broke the silence while she kept her distance. The boys were waiting at the shuttle.
Aeos silently mused in Kami’s thoughts.
“I’m just so sick of this…every time. Sick of this!” her hand ripped the small fabric Imperial insignia that was worked around her upper sleeve. It dropped through the air, twirling softly as she dropped it.
“Pull yourself together,” Kami muttered unintentionally sharp.
Aeos’ head fell back, stretching her neck far back while blue met blue between the heaven of the sky and the dilated irises of her eyes.  Her hands fiddled around with the gloves she peeled her hands from earlier. She snapped it back on and accepted the extended hand Kami offered.
“His death-“
“It’s not just that, just need a break…I guess,” Aeos mumbled almost incoherently. They started walking back while Kami clapped Aeos’ sleeves up in the length in attempt to clear off some of the dirt she collected.
“It’s not me who crossed the tee, and dotted the I on permanent shifts for this,” Kami muttered frowning.
“Aeos, you know there is no place for for this type of behavior, especially in you’re position,”  she continued.
Aeos refused to bite back on Kami. Knowing the veteran soldier was right.

“Aeos, sorry…you’re fine?” Jinx inquired as they neared the shuttle.
“Yeah, yeah, prolly ate something that didn’t agree with my intestines, “
“So what is the mission? Where are you taking us?” Cowboy quipped curiously poking his head from the open door. Aeos smirked lightly at him. The Private was still brand-new-out-of-the box from the Academy, and he has been behaving himself so far.
“Not a mission really, with recent events…” she trailed off for a second in silence as the Jesters’ thoughts flashed back to Evis’ funeral.
“In any case, Colonel Merrick approved that I take you lot out for some light teamwork,”
“Speaking of which, is the Colonel joining us sometime?” Kami asked.
“I told her, she’s welcome,” Aeos replied.
“In any case, there’s a circus thingie here requiring some extra hands with setting up, and requiring light security, I thought it would be the perfect venue for relaxing a bit,”
Aeos grinned for a fleeting second as she observed the expressions from her troopers. Kami seemed content and was even smirking softly.
“You have got to be kidding me,” Verkur muttered swallowing bubbles.
“Circus?”  Jinx repeated dumbfounded.
“It’s a mockery,” Verkur muttered crossly while Aeos started shoving and pushing them back into the vehicle. There was still a few hours drive left as the objective of their little briefing lied on the far outskirts of Tadath’s capital city. One of those small forsaken almost ghost towns in Aeos’ opinion though who knows, perhaps it would still bustle with life with the attention of the circus.

“Circus?” Kami muttered through gritted teeth while trying to force the amused grin off from her face.  Aeos nodded and plopped back into the seat grinning as well as the majority of the Jesters prepped themselves for something hardcore and dangerous.
“This is gonna be so much fun to watch,” Aeos muttered as she closed her eyes. \

OOC:

Right. Mission up. Well more or character development. Whoever writes next can just include about the drive, and us stopping there and getting to the place where we will be staying and whatnot. Feel free to get a drink or girlfriend and lets mingle the Jesters a bit on a personal level.

With the whole Jester-Raider mission I didn't wanna put up something to extensive and serious,

After his little rant, Verkur moved back to his seat, and waited for the shuttle to take off again. Several seconds later nd they were on their way. Verkur kept quite during the ride, letting out an occasional grumble. He looked out his window and just watched the trees pass them by. The ride was long, lasting almost the entire day. Verkur was deep in thought the entire ride, thinking back to his training on Kashyyyk, and everything since then.

It was already dark as the shuttle neared the end of its day long journey. The treesa had ended, and in the distance Verkur could see the lights of the circus. Not far from those lights, was a large building. Most likly a hotel, or resort.

"Guess thats where we will be staying?" Verkur said codly, motioning to the distant building.

"Yea. We will be staying there for the duration of our mission." Aeos said, calling from the front of the shuttle.

Verkur nodded, the sounds of approval sounding off quietly from the rest of the squad. Not too long after the breif exchange of words, the shuttle came to a halt in front of the hotel. The squad filed out of the craft and stood grouped together in the parking lot. Verkur moved over to Kami and Aeos.

"Your having us stay at a casino? You have to be kidding me." Verkur said, a slight tone of annoyance evident in his voice.

Verkur could hear Aeos and Kami laughing as he walked away from them. The younger members of Jester rushed off towards the casino. Verkur just shook his as he followed the three privates into the building. Verkur didnt bother with the lower levels of the building as he entered. He moved straight to the front desk and ordered rooms for everyone. Taking his key, he moved away from the desk and towards the elevator. As he stood there, waiting for his elevator to arrive, a young twi'lek female moved up next to him. Verkur glanced at her with his periferal vision, admiring her blue skin and her double lekku. Verkur had always liked twi'leks.

The elevator came and Verkur moved into and punched in his floor number, the twi'lek followed him in and pushed another button. All well. He thought to himself when he noticed the numbers were several floors apart. Her floor came first, and as she moved out of the elevator she turned around and winked at Verkur. The doors closed and he smiled as the lift shook for a second and then continued to ascend.

Once the lift reached his floor, Verkur found his room quickly. He put his bag on the bed and sat down. He took a breath, and then thought back to the female twi'lek. Man, she had some body. Verkur smiled and shook his head, running his fingers through his dark hair.

"I need a shower."

Verkur stood and undressed. He grabbed a towel and went to the bathroom attached to his room. After a nice hot shower he dressed in some casual clothes and left his room. Since he had gottne the Jesters rooms on the same floor, he passed a few of them as they made their way to their own rooms. He nodded to them and as he moved down the hall to the lift. He took it back down to the bar and casino.

Once on the main floor, Verk moved through the lobby. Off to one side he saw Aeos talking to the newer recruits, she looked a bit upset. Verk shook his head and continued to the bar. He took an empty seat and ordered a drink from the bartender. After a few minutes his drink arrived. Verk nodded to the bartender, and once he paid for his drink, picked up the glass and took a swig. Putting the glass down, he heard a voice to his left. Turning his head he saw Aeos take a seat next to him.

"Make that two." She said, ordering the same drink as him.

"I like your taste Ae." Verkur noted, taking another sip of his whisky.

Picking up her drink, she smiled at him.

"So what are we really doing here? I mean come on, were a high ranking army squad, we don't do light security for nothing." Verkur said easily.

"Its just a circus Verk. Relax enjoy yourself. Think of this a vacation from the usual stuff we do." Aeos said jokingly, giving Verkur a clap on his shoulder.

"Fine. I guess we could all use a break." He said smiling slightly.

"Yea, thats the spirit. And who knows, you might actually enjoy yourself for once." Aeos replied, her lips taking the form of a smile. "See you around though. I told Kami I would meet up with her after I got a drink."

Verkur nodded to her, and with that she got up and left. Turning around, Verk sat with his elbows on the bar. He looked around the large room. People were everywhere. Drinking and gambling. It was a sight to see. However his attention was stolen from him as he noticed someone walking towards him. It was the blue twi'lek from the elevator, wearing a stunning black dress that showed off her curves. Verk smirked as she moved closer.

Merrick was already relaxing in the bar of the hotel when the Jesters started filtering down from getting comfortable in their rooms. Kami waved to her as she walked past, unsurprised by the Colonel’s presence. She knew that Fury had finally managed to make Merrick leave for some time off after Evis’ funeral was over. Fury didn’t have to know that she’d chosen to follow the Jesters on their little foray into the world of hired security. She wasn’t going to subject herself to actually acting as security for the little circus in the area, unless something went horribly wrong and this turned out to be much less of a cake walk than it had seemed when Fury had offered it to the Jesters.

Aeos was more surprised than Kami had been to see Merrick staying in the same hotel as the Jesters. Merrick merely smiled and waved as she joined Kami at a table on the far side of the room. Merrick finished her drink and left, making her way out to the pool to sit in the open. The world had been a bit dark and quiet since their return from Da Soocha, and she found herself detesting being stuck indoors. There weren’t many people outside because it was night, making it quiet and peaceful here. Laying back in one of the lounges by the water, she closed her eyes and sighed. Maybe there was something to this holiday malarkey after all.

OOC:

Yeah, really short I know. Just introducing my presence, and not enough will to write more after the epic post for Evis.

Zeven finished the fried worrt and quietly got up. Zeven's clothes were dirty and he smelt of engine plasma. "I need to take a shower," he thought. He stood up and left the bar and headed toward the stairs.

A few minutes later he was at the door to his room. He swiped the keycad and entered. He striped down and got into the shower. A few more minutes later he emerged from the shower drenched with water. He groped around for a , when finaly finding one he dryed of and put on more relaxing clothes. He exited his room and once again took the stairs.

He headed stright for a lonely table in the corner of the bar where it was quite deserted except for a few non-freindly looking people.

A waiter walked over, he was a twi'lek as well, and asked him if he wanted any thing, "No just relaxing," Zeven answered. The waiter walked away to continue his job. Zeven felt some how disconnected from the rest of the squad. They never even interact with him. Zeven needed to do a spectacular job at this first mission to impress his fellow squad members.

He sat there, pondering his thoughts for a way to impress them. But he couldnt think of a way to do it. He sat for hours just thinking. He finally got up and went to the casino, He saw another new recruit sitting at the cards table, Cowboy. Zeven went to go sit beside him to see how good he was at gambling.

Zeven, tired of watching other people gamble, started toward the slots. He inserted his credits into the slot machine and pulled the lever. The dials spun......... the top one clicked on 25, 30, and 10.......... The second one stoped on 25, 5, and 10. So far so good. The third on kept on spining............. "Yes!" Zeven yelled. The third one landed on triple 25's.

Kami rested her elbows on the sticky bar, her green gaze tracking the various alien species that sauntered by the length of her vision onto the glittering casino floor. She’d never been a huge fan of gambling, drinking was much more her type of social activity when she found herself with free time. Of course, gambling would have probably been the healthier of the two behaviors’; four years in the army had left her with a substantial savings account that was just itching to be hacked into. The Army was quite a profitable profession if you managed to last out the insanely high mortality rate.

At her side Aeos downed another drink, well on her way to losing touch with reality. Eviscares death had hit the young squad leader hard, much harder than Kami had predicted. She herself had been absolutely devastated by the death of her long time friend; Eviscares had shared command with Kami back in her naïve Iron Horse days, but had somehow garnered the ability to tuck away her emotion over her years of service. Watching friends die had become part of her daily routine, and when she stopped to think, Kami was terrified at how numb she had truly become to death.

Shaking the thought away with a flick of her dark bangs, she leant forward and let loose a sharp whistle at the young, nervous looking barkeep with her back to her. The young man visibly jumped, spinning about to regard the three women with a wary expression filtering over his face, “Another round?”

Kami offered the bartender a wink and a smile, her grin widening as the bartender inched forward apprehensively towards Merrick. He’d made the mistake earlier of offering the Colonel a low quality brand of whiskey, and had since whipped out a lock and key to access the bar’s reserve for VIPs.

“He should have been here by now…” Aeos murmured, seemingly unaware that the bartender had filled up the empty glass she clutched in her hand.

Resisting the urge to reach out to her anguished friend, Kami forced herself to take a large swallow of her drink instead, “Don’t worry Ae, I’m sure he’ll be here.” She shared a worried glance with Merrick before clearing her throat and attempting to change the subject, “When are we meeting with the circus manager?”

Aeos blinked, finally looking up from her glass, “Tomorrow morning.”

Kami responded with the obligatory smile, before turning back to her drink. It would take time for her squad leader to deal with Eviscares’s death. She took another mouthful of her drink, well aware that the fiery liquid did little to quell the deep ache within her chest. Time…and a great deal of alcohol.

Eventually Merrick grew tired of drinking, casting credits on the bar as she rose somewhat unsteadily to her feet, “I’m going to go bath in luxury for a while. Night girls, will see you tomorrow.”

Kami raised a hand in farewell, and then eyed the last vestiges of liquor in her glass with a sigh. Her vision was already growing blurry, testament to lack of practice as a result of her long stint undercover. No doubt she’d have a headache tomorrow if she continued.

“You ladies mind if I sit down?”

The smooth, accentuated voice caused Kami to glance up to where a sleek, exotic looking alien had halted at the edge of their table. She started, recognizing the striking male as an elusive Falleen, a species rarely seen beyond the confines of their planet.

Aeos stirred, seemingly unsurprised by their visitor, “Sure, take a seat.”

The male bowed, sliding into the seat previously occupied by Merrick. He offered a smile, flashing starling white teeth, “So, what do two lovely ladies like you do in a joint like this?”

Kami glanced over at Aeos, who had resumed her intense examination of the table’s face. Shifting in her seat, she answered for the both of them, “Killing time, we go on assignment tomorrow.”

The Falleen dipped his head, “I will be joining you.” He extended his hand, “My name is Maze, I was told to find you here.”

Kami clasped the alien’s hand, noting his slightly clawed fingers with veiled interest, “Welcome to the gang.” She eyed her glass again, before letting out another sigh, “Apologies, but we might call it a night. We’ve made a substantial dent in the bar’s stock and should arguably be able to stand tomorrow.”

Kami rose, laying a hand lightly on Aeos’s shoulder, “Ae? Let’s go get some dinner shall we?”

Aeos started, before allowing Kami to help her rise. She hesitated, addressing Maze seemingly as an afterthought, “Lobby tomorrow, 0700 hours, come suitably equipped.”

The Falleen had the grace to hold his tongue, nodding only in confirmation of the order as Kami steadied her friend and led her through the rabble of the bar towards the hotel turbo lifts. Punching in their floor number, the two stood quietly whilst the lift ascended rapidly, the lights from beyond the confines of the lift turning into a steady glow. The door pinged pleasantly to announce their arrival, sliding open to reveal a plush carpeted hallway. Kami hung back momentarily as Aeos let herself into her room, turning to meet her gaze as she hovered in the doorway.

“You ok?” Kami asked softly, unsure as to what she should say.

Aeos nodded, flashing Kami a shaky smile, “I will be.”

Kami matched the smile, “Alright then Ae, till tomorrow.” Throwing her SL a sloppy salute, she spun on her heel to make her way down the hall to her room. A elaborate room service spree was definitely in order.

Jager sat at the card table with his head in his hands, for the last twenty minutes he had been losing... And not just a few credits here and there. All up he had lost about a thousand credits and it was looking downhill from there. As he watched the last two of his credit chips on the table get dragged away and added to the pile of a Bothan, Who he suspected of cheating but had no real proof.  Cutting his loses, Jager placed his cards on the table and walked away “What happened to you man... you used to be a god at gambling” Jager said to himself rubbing his neck to relieve some of the stress. “I need a drink... badly”


He continued muttering to himself as he took a seat at the bar, “Yo Bartender, Something strong and fast...” he announced tapping the bar. The bartender placed a drink down then held his hand out waiting for Jager to fork over some of his credits for the drink, “Put it on my tab, just let me drink” Jager said apprehensively, as he knew that this was one tab that wasn’t going to get paid anytime soon. Quickly sculling his drink, Jager turned to examine the floor again. He turned back around, rested his head in his right hand and sighed.


He jumped slight as a felt a hand on his shoulder, quickly turning around to see who it was. In front of him stood an Aqualish,, “Ah sithspit” Jager thought “Guess the security can spot a bad payer quick here” as he reached slowly for one of his Holdout blasters strapped to his lower back. The Aqualish, motioned over to a table were two humans were sitting in the corner of the bar area, One of them waved then over. Jager slowly stood up and walked cautiously over to the table. “Take a seat” One of the humans said “I picked you the moment you and your friends walked in here” He started. The human talking wasn’t old, but had the appearance of someone who had seen a lot. His right cheek was pocked; Jager guessed it was from shrapnel or something. The other was bald and dark, obviously much younger than the other one but by the way he was sitting Jager didn’t think it wise to piss him off. “Uh... Come again” Jager said trying to keep his cool, “Yeah, from the moment you walked in I picked you” the old man began, “Imperial’s right?” he said questioningly. Jager nodded “Yeah... what are you guys, the entertainment” Jager blurted out, instantly regretting it. The other human snapped back at him “No, where bounty hunters...” he said with a snarl. Jager froze; vivid memories of his last boss cluttered his mind. “And, you called me over here because?” He said now obviously nervous. The old man grinned “ No real reason, just wondered if you’d be interested in a little contest” he said, still smiling. Jager didn’t like this... he didn’t like it one bit, but the Aqualish behind him didn’t look like he was going to let Jager just get up and leave.


“What sort of contest” Jager said shakily, “A drinking contest” The old man stated, “What’s the catch” Jager replied, “Well, if you win we’ll pay off your mounting bar tab, but if you lose you have to give us a hand with something” The old man said, smirking again. “Alright, what do you fine gentlemen want a hand with?” Jager said curiously, “No" the old man quickly said "can’t tell you that... you either accept with the terms given or you go back to your mounting bar tab” He lent to his friend “I hear the security here has a tendency to break the legs of bad payers”. Jager had seen his fair share of broken legs during his time on Tatooine, discreetly rubbing his own leg he agreed. The old man motioned to the Aqualish to grab a round of drinks from the bar.


“You got a name Imp?” the old man’s friend asked Jager, “Sandrosa” Jager said, remembering his specialist training, “Kyle Sandrosa, You got a name baldy” Jager asked back, again instantly regretting it. Jager was shot a cold stare by the bald bounty hunter as the old man answered “I am Lakesh, this is Leon, I can’t pronounce the Aqualish’s name, call him Tusks. Pleased to meet you Kyle” The old man finished raising his arm for a handshake, both the men shook hands as Tusks returned placing a round of drinks on the table. “Alright, here are the rules” Lakesh began “You do a shot then recite the names of your fellow drinks in this order  Jager, Lakesh, Tusks and Leon. Clear” He finished, picking up a drink. “Crystal” Jager replied grabbing the closest glass knocking it back quickly.

She smiled coyly at Verkur from across the room and then allowed the crowd to engulf her out of sight.
The older Jester stifled his instinct to lurch over and reclaim her visual beauty from the crowd, but it too latel. Dejectedly he slumped back into his chair and flashed a coin at the bartender to fill his glass.
“Hi” softly spoken, the cerulean hued goddess tapped Verkur on his shoulder. Already recognizing her presence, he turned around, flicking a gentle yet flamboyant smile back at her.

***
“Aeos…come girl,”
Something nudged against her ribs. Aeos groaned, smothering her liquor breath into the pillow beneath her. She didn’t bother shower last night.
“Aeos, I swear, if I will kick your ass,” the feminine voice spoke sharply. Wait. Feminine?
Drowsily her eyes opened, and she stifled the groan when Kami kicked her gently in the ribs.
Kami?
Aeos turned onto her back clumsily, while groping her hands in a flailing manner to detect where the edges of the bed were. There were none however. She pushed herself upright,  ignoring the sheet that fell down to her lap. She was still clad in her uniform’s undershirt.
“Kams, what are you doing in my room?” Aeos inquired while trying to blink away the stark early morning sunlight Kami was currently exposing as she deactivated the night-shutters.
“Aeos…the question is…what are you doing in my room?”
Kami feigned a sigh at the dumbfounded female on the wooden floor.
“Right, it’s sleepwalk thingie I guess,” Aeos muttered clumsily getting to her feet.
“You seemed wide awake last night, knocking me awake and mumbling about green slurpies attacking your bed,” Kami muttered who clearly couldn’t decide whether she should be agitated at the female, or amused.
“Oh right…slurpies,”
***
It was 0745 hours as Aeos briskly swept through the breakfast hall. No uniform much to her relief, but she still preferred the stiff leather jerkin hued in dark burgundy, with a DC-15 strapped in a loose belt at her waist.
Some of the Jesters had already collected themselves in a small clique, and clearly the buffet table wasn’t used to soldiers eating what they considerate a normal intake of food, which was huge in comparison with the rest of the scrawny public.
Aeos grabbed a plate from the table, patting Verkur on the way to acknowledge him and in turn announce her presence among the squad. She stole a quick glance around her- In general, despite the varied collection of people with all their racial statuses and whatnot, had one thing in common; Social status emitting from high society, the whole room reeked of it. The Jesters was a sore yet comforting blur bleeping out of picture with their rowdy laughter and relaxed manner of interacting with one another while the rest of the breakfast hall communicated in polite silence.
There was a gentleman across her from the white sheeted buffet table filled to the brim with exotic yet delicious food. Aeos’ eyes caught his movements matching hers she moved from tray to tray. Ignoring him, she tried picking out the dish that was the lesser artistic among the whole rotten bunch.

Her fork reached out for the flap-jack-like spice cakes across her. Smirking she noticed the gentleman’s reaching for the same plate as well.
Oh how coincidental,
She jammed her fork through the first row of spice cakes, and with a quick dash annexed the next one row as well.  She smiled politely as he opened his mouth before dropping him a glare.

“Aeos, that was mean,” Verkur muttered stifling a grin.
“Yeah, more baby,” Aeos grumbled reaching for the pot of tea next to the toast rack which Jinx has already cleared along with the fruit jam.  It was nice…sitting together with the Jesters like this. Having breakfast while socially rebelling against etiquette.
“Guys, ten minutes till we meet the circus owner, best behavior,” Aeos reprimanded them ignoring Kami who was currently stealing her last morsels of jam-covered milk eggs.  Those who managed to pay attention to her words, only nodded, their mouth full of food and bread.

***
The large and robust man with the large moustache shook with rumbling laughter as Aeos commented about his large liquor cabinet lined against the small wall. Maze was missing from the group.
“So…Mister, err…”
“Polovex,”
“Mister Polovex, I barely skimmed the details when I received the briefing, I’d prefer to hear from you,” Aeos muttered in a-matter-of-fact manner. The larger man’s tiny black scarab eyes squinted at her peculiarly.
“I have…there was …some trouble when we showed in Yetis, not far from this planet-”
“You ripped off the people?” Aeos asked sharply with narrowed eyes.
For a moment the large man stuttered.
Sir, we just need to know facts. It does not undermine our purpose in this briefing,” said Kami clarifying the air for a moment.
“Well, yes, and I just want to keep them off my back,  and we just need some general crowd controllers, the pay is good, and Vast Empire has been kind-“
“I just want to make this clear, this is not the Vast Empire being nice to you, and dealing you some token of friendship. I heard of this job by ear, and signed my squad up. In fact, we are on leave,”  Aeos muttered sharply and clearly. Polovex coughed awkwardly as he tried to scramble his wits together against the petite yet fiery female in front of him.
“I…understand…completely,” he muttered hinting at apology even if his eyes did little to reflect the sincerity of his words.
“Maybe a tour of the grounds?”  Kami suggested lightly  breaking the slight tension that was building up.

A few minutes later and they were outside, Polovex at the front leading them through the various areas.
They were about to enter the grounds on which beasts and cages were kept when Maze finally pitched as he unfortunately skipped breakfast.  He muttered a soft, polite excuse to Kami and Aeos who both only smiled at the flamboyant nature in which he spoke before he retreated to Aeos’ side. Polovex’ eyes landed on him with keen interest, his exotic frame pleasing to the boss.
“Is he yours?” he asked to Aeos who only nodded, missing the beat with which he spoke.
“Ah, how much?”  Both the females and Maze froze stiffly.
“Excuse me?”
“How much for him?” Polovex asked, licking his chapped lips while his gaze held onto Maze’s murderous face. His attention snapped away when the soft click of pistols leaving the utility belts of numerous troopers sounded.
“Ah, right, not for sale, “he gently muttered at the Jesters, staring at several barrel butts uncomfortably.
“No Polovex, he isn’t even something to be decided about. He serves the Empire, and you will do well to shut your mouth, or Sithspit, I will help you keep it shut,”  Aeos said, already securing her pistol back to its proper place at her side and gesturing for him to continue the tour.
“And I suggest to you, that you keep those pheromones under control falleen,” Aeos muttered through gritted teeth at the enticing falleen who’s anger passed quickly. He smirked and simply walked past her following the large fatty open space the circus boss waded through the crowd.

The tour of the circus grounds took around an hour, as Polovex seemed intent on showing off his rather large and exotic animal collection to Jester despite their obvious disinterest. Maze returned within the last five minutes, joining the others at a respectful distance as Polovex addressed Aeos and Kami.

“Now I gather you don’t need to be briefed about the specifics of security, I’m sure you’ll be able to handle any…disturbances with a degree of professionalism,” Polovex hesitated, then let out a booming laugh, “Of course, I’d much prefer you to deal effectively with a problem if it emerges, if you know what I mean.”

Kami resisted the urge to roll her eyes as the circus manager winked flamboyantly at the two females.

“I’ve hired you for four nights, but we don’t have a show this evening, so I’ll just require a few of you to patrol the boundaries to ensure we don’t have any unwanted visitors before morning.” Polovex swept into a bow, “So if you excuse me, I’ll be off, have whoever you chose meet my assistant at the tent later this afternoon.”

Aeos waited until the manager had wobbled out of earshot before turning to Kami with a sigh, “That guy just screams swindler to me.”

Kami nodded, “Oh well. As long as he pays well and on time hey? Besides, five nights of free accommodation at a luxury casino is more than worth the pain of listening to his ramblings.”

“I suppose so,” Aeos looked unconvinced, “In my experience such simple missions often have the highest probability of disaster. I don’t trust Polovex at all.”

“Me either Ae, but for now, let’s just keep our eyes open and blaster’s lose in our holster’s,” Kami flicked her gaze over to the rest of the squad, “I was thinking maybe we throw one of the recruit’s up for bodyguard duty tonight, maybe with Verkur?”

Aeos declined her head in agreement, “Sounds good to me. Jager can share scouting.”

Kami arched an eyebrow, “What about Zeven?”

“Some stuff up back home with his paperwork,” Aeos responded, looking over to where the blue Twi’lek was lounging against a nearby tree, “He has to head back to Tadath for the time being.”

Earlier that morning Maze had gotten out of his Bed, being quite hung over. He had stayed true to his alias and spent all night gambling. Only problem was that he wasn't as good at Sabbac as his Alibi needed him to be. So to have an excuse why he was playing so badly that evening he had consumed vast quantities of fine Corellian Brandy.

Stumbling through the suite towards the shower he had been regretting that he hadn't gotten a hemal filter system implanted.
Standing under the shower his mood as well as his skin color lightened. His species came out of the swamps so being in a hot and moist enviroment felt naturally reassuring.

After the shower he dressed up again, late in the night his luggage had arrived, and by now he had an impressive assortment of ghastly flamboyant robes and hats to choose from. For the meeting with Aeos he decided to put on a robe which colors changed in contrast to his skin, and don a hat with black and white stripes. Looking at himself in the mirror he was very satisfied with his choice. In this clothes no one could take him serious.

At exactly 0655 he arrived in the lobby with a mug of coffee he had gotten from the breakfast buffet. He was slightly surprised though that his new Squad Leader wasn't there, as he had read in her files that she was extremely punctual when it came to Army business. Taking a sip from his coffee Maze sat down and waited.

At 0740 some personnel of Jester started to trickle into the Lobby. He recognized Verkur, Jager Luth, and a guy called Zeven Mohebi in the files. But still no sign of Aeos and Kami.
But then, when Maze had the decided that he had waited long enough the two females the elevator doors opened and the two women stepped outside.

He immediately got up, and while walking past them said lowly:”Meet me in my suite for dinner tonight.”
Aeos replied with a silent nod, and kept on walking.

He retreated into the elevator, sporting a cocky smile.
Tonight he would have to ask Aeos why she and Kami reeked of alcohol that much.

Kami took her time getting to her room, preoccupied by the upcoming meeting with Maze. Something about the alien had set warning bells ringing, despite the fact that he was obviously tried enough to have gained access to the VEA. She hadn’t told Aeos, but she’d met a few members of the Falleen species before, and was well aware of their capability to extract information from unsuspecting victims unused to the lure of their pheromones.

She was jolted back to reality as a Twi’lek walked into her path, causing her feet to tangle with his.

“Oh, excuse me!” The blue skinned male turned to steady Kami, before flashing a smile, “Oh, Sergeant, sorry, I didn’t see you there.”

“Zeven?” Kami arched an eyebrow at Jester’s latest on again off again recruit, “I thought you were headed back to Tadath?”

“Not anymore,” The Twi’lek flashed his pointed teeth in a smile, “They cleared it all up before I got on the shuttle, so I’m officially here from now on in.”

Kami clapped Zeven on the shoulder, “That’s good to hear, go celebrate with a drink or something hey? I have somewhere I need to be.”

Zeven nodded, flicking a lekku over his shoulder as he turned and disappeared into the milling crowd. Kami watched him go, before turning and punching impatiently at the button to summon the turbo lift.

She’d shower, and maybe even deign to find something nice to wear, but there was no way she would relax in Maze’s presence until he proved himself worthy of that right.

Merrick looked up when Kami entered her room, shocked by Merrick’s presence she had drawn a blaster. She sighed now and put the weapon back in its holster. “Merrick, why are you in my room?”

Merrick shrugged casually. “Lost the key to mine? Wanted to make sure you got charged for what I drink?”

Kami laughed, but it contained little humour. “Get to the point please, I have somewhere to be shortly.”


Merrick nodded. “So I heard. Dinner with the Falleen. What’s going on?”

She failed to look surprised, but Merrick knew that Kami wasn’t sure how much she should tell. She also seemed to take pleasure in the frustrated look on Merrick’s face. “Just dinner with a new squad mate.  Guess he wants to make a good impression on his superiors.”

Merrick narrowed her eyes but stood and made to leave the room. She turned as Kami started gathering her things to shower. “Kami, do me a favour. If this goes bad, give me a call. I’m on leave but that doesn’t mean I’m going to let you lot get into trouble. Understood?”

Kami stared at her. “Is that an order, Colonel?” This time she did look surprised when Merrick shook her head. “Hm, well, I will certainly keep that in mind. Er.. thanks. Night.”

Merrick left the room and stood in the hallway for a few seconds. She wondered idly if there was a way to get close to the Falleen without revealing who she was, but she quickly put that thought aside. So far he appeared to be quite well informed about the Jesters and she didn’t doubt that he’d know who she was on sight, too. For now, it was best to stay off his radar. She knew what his race were capable of and didn’t trust Aeos, in her current state, not to do something silly.

Zeven and Mission were at the door of Zeven's room. He swiped the key card and entered holding the door open as Mission walked in first.

"Where do I sleep?" She asked.

"Follow me," Zeven replied as she followed him into the back of the room.

He showed her a bed beside his.

"I hope this will satisfy you," Zeven said as she sat down on it.

"Yes, I think it will," She said as she tested the mattress.

She layed down and quickly went to sleep. Zeven also lied down and closed his eyes. He drifted into a deep sleep. After moments in seemed he woke up. The sun was shining through the windows and he could hear different creatures making their morning calls.

He rolled over and saw Mission wasn't in her bed. He could hear a sink running. It stoped and Mission walked out of the bathroom in her pajamas.

"Good morning," Zeven said as she walked in the room to get her clothes.

"Good morning to you too," She said after getting her clothes, she then went back into the bathroom.

He heard the shower head shoot out water as she turned on the shower. He put on his clothes and started toward the door.

"Mission im going down stairs, meet me down there when your done," He yelled as he opened the door.

"Ok see you then," She yelled back.

He walked out on to the narrow walk way. He headed toward the stairs, passing fellow Jesters, greeting them as the passed. He reached the stairs and headed down.

Walking toward the bar, he meet more of his squad mates. He sat down at the counter and ordered a whiskey. Mission could be seen exiting the door to the stairs. She walked toward him through the bustleing crowd. Zeven could still see beads of water clining to her skin.

"I'll have the whiskey," She said upon sitting beside him.

She took a sip as the drink was handed to her. One of her lekkus lay draped over one shoulder.Her orange skin gleamed in the light.

By the time Verkur and Jager had finished their shift, it was already dark. The two had talked much while on patrol, and were laughing when they entered the casino lobby. The two searched the floor for the next two up for a shift, Jinx and Zeven. Verkur found Jinx walking through the crowd amongst the casino's tables, sipping a glass of liqour. Verk came up behind Jinx and placed a hand on his shoulder to let him know he was there. Jinx turned to face Verkur and nodded. He knew why Verk was there. Verk lead Jinx to the entrance were he had split up with Jager. At the door he found Jager standing with Zeven.

"Well im sure Aeos has already told you whats going on Jinx, so you can explain it to Zeven. Just do a few laps around the outside of the circus, and then head to the security tent. After that, head back here." Verkur explained to Jinx and Zeven, since he had taken the first shift, he knew what to do.

Verkur watched as Jinx and Zeven nodded, and then departed for their shift. Verk moved to face Jager and said that they should split up now since Verk had some business to attend to. Verk nodded to Jager and hen moved away, heading for the elevator. As he walked he could feel the soft red carpet cushioning his footsteps, making them light and slowed. After a few minutes of pushing and shoving he finally made it to the turbo lifts. He pushed the button and waited for the lift to arrive.

Verk looked at himself in the reflective metal doors of the lift. He looked dirty, and a bit sweaty. He and Jager had chased a few kids messing around where they shouldn't have been. Verk was hungry as well. The light ding signaled the lifts arrival, and the metal doors slid apart. Verkur stepped in and pushed the floor his room was on. nce the lift began to move, Verk moved back and leaned up against the wood paneling on the inside of the lift. A second ding signaled his arrival on his floor. Again the doors slid open, and Verkur stepped out.

Verk made his way down the hallway to his room. He took no noice of anything else going on around him, or the fact that Kami had just passed him and was heading to the lifts. Moving up to his door, Verk pulled his keycard from is pocket and opened his unlocked his door. It was just the way he had left it, neat and nothing out of place. Verk moved to the bathroom, and after stripping turned on the shower and moved under the hot water. He quickly took a shower and then redressed in something nice. Verk quickly looked himself over in the mirror. He looked good all dressed up in his army uniform. Grabbing his cardkey and some credits, Verk left his room and head to meet Nayla at hers.

After a walk down the hallway and a quick lift ride to a lower level, and another short walk, Verkur arrived at Nayla's room. Verk stepped up to the door and knocked. A few seconds later and the door opened. Nayla smiled when she saw who it was and after he came inside, they hugged and kissed.

"You almost ready?" He asked, looking her over. Her dress was only half on, covering the lower portion of her body, leaving the rest bare.

"Yea, just about. Then we can head down stairs and get some dinner." Nayla said, pulling up the rest of her dress, and tieing the two strings in a bow behind her neck to hold up the dress.

"You look great." Verk said, admiring her body and the dress she was wearing.

"Why thank you." She answered laughing. "Ok, im ready."

"Then let us head downstairs and get ourselves some dinner." Verkur said lifting his hand and waiting for her to grasp it with her own.

The couple left Nayla's room, Verkur leading the way. They moved down the hall and to the lifts where they waited for that familiar ding. Once down on the ground floor, the couple made thier way to the restuarant, and waited to be seated. It took a few minutes, but a waiter finally arrived and the two were seated. The waitered seated Verkur and Nayla, and the two ordered their drinks. The waiter nodded, and shuffled off.

"So, what shall I get to eat?" Nayla said from behind her menu.

"Same here. I have no idea what to get." Verk replied from his side of the tabel, he set the menu on the table.

The waiter came back several minutes later with the couples drinks, and and asked if they were ready to order. Nayla orders some fried worrts, and Verkur said he was not hungry. The waiter nodded and left again.

"So what did you do today?" Nayla asked while she waited for her food.

"Not much. Did some recon work at the circus. Nothing big. How about you?" Verkur said, leaning into his chair and taking a sip from his glass.

"I didn't do much either. Just wondered around the casino a bit and took a nap." Nayla replied. "Oh, food's here." She said, sitting up straighter in her chair.

Verkur smiled at Nayla. The two continued to talk through dinner, and once she was done, Verk paid for the meal and they left the resturant. The rest of the evening was unevetnful for Verkur and Nayla. The two had another intimate night, and that was about it. Both slept soundly at Verkur's apartment that night.


* * *


The next morning Verkur woke to an empty room. He frowned, and the possibilty of being duped floated into his mind, until he found a note from Nayla on the counter.


Dear Verkur,

    It was truly nice to meet you, and I had a wonderful time. But it seems that something has come up with my family, and so I had to leave last night. I wish I had been able to stay with you longer. I left my number, and a photo, please keep in touch.

                            Nayla



Verkur smiled, and was glad that she had been truthful. Lifting the note he saw the picture and the number. He laughed when he was it was her in a very stunning black dress. Lifting the picture, he moved to his belongings, and put the photo in a safe place. After a qucik shower, and a change of clothes, Verk made his way downstairs for breakfast and to meet the rest of Jester.

He spotted the group eating and talking at a table in the middle of the room. Making his way to the table, he took a seat.

"Hey Verk, where's your lady friend?" Kami asked, drawing a laugh from the rest of the squad.

"She had some family matters to attend to. She left last night."

"Oh. Sorry your fun had to end so soon. You seemed happy with her." Kami answered from across the table.

"Yea, she was fun. So whats on the agenda for today?" Verk said, turning to Aeos.

“You’ve never met a falleen before, have you?”
It was more of a statement then a question.
Both Platoon Sergeants grinned, though the one grin resembled an slight nervous grimace almost.
“Honestly no, but I’m getting over it,” Aeos muttered.
“Ah, silly little farm girl,” Kami mused lightheartedly as they turned around the corner.
“Oh!”
Kami caught the vase Aeos knocked down, her self-destructive habit of calamity kicking in for a second.
Sighing Kami chose to say nothing while Aeos grinned at her genially.

They came to a silent halt in front of Maze’s room.  Aeos raised slender fist to the door, and rapped her knuckles about the surface. The door slid open almost immediately, both Aeos and Kami glanced at the crimson clad falleen.
“Boy, you sure did dress up”, Kami spoke, a grin touching her cheeks.

“Anything I can do to convince you that I am what you heard about me. Though I do hope you didn't hear too much.” he replied curtly yet friendly at the same time.

“So Falleen, why did you invite me here, and what exactly is your role in my squad. It seems like no one else was able to tell me.” Aeos took a seat, her face composed in a professional manner, while her fingers intertwined with one another in subconscious fiddle of concentration and focus.

“Let’s think of me as a way to boost Jesters already impressive Recon abilities. –“ at this both females  leaned in, most interested- “Oh, and call me Maze, will you?”
“You seem very confident Maze, and I applaud you for that, bit unfortunately, the majority of these troopers prove their morale boosting skill in the field, and we’ve lost one recently,” a dark ominous shade passed across both of Kami and Aeos’ facial features when Aeos spoke.
“So, don’t bullshit me,” 
Kami frowned lightly but kept to herself as Maze started to speak again.
“No about Aeos, I’ve already rendered some services to you and your squad,”
“Explain,” Aeos curtly demanded.
“ I was the INTEL in connection with Da Soocha, the moment you and you’re squad were sent to the fire squad, I was on orders to pull you. Same goes for Kami, I responded with her right through the months she spent on Da Soocha, if you’d like some in-depth information-“
Maze gestured to the screen politely, both Kami and Aeos declined politely.
“You can just pass those files over to us however,” Kami spoke reached out with her hand for the data chips. Nodding respectively the aquatic creature handed her the small electronically details.
“So, dinner? Shall we?”  Aeos suggested perking up, trying to lose some of the stiff air that was building up in the room.

OOC:

Kams, Maze, take this scene over?

*The next morning*
- So whats on the agenda for today?"
Yawning, Aeos tried to think through the petite headache building up in her temples.
“Ug…opening is today, it starts at eleven-hundred-hours, be there at ten, we’ll be handling security checks and what-not everyone who passes through the various gates, once the show starts we’ll basically be stationed around and in the crowds, disperse of trouble-makers,  Kami, I trust you will stick to Polovex’ side? I’d rather not place Maze there,. At ten then, till then, get out of sight, I’m getting a headache just looking at you lot,”

The troopers skiddaddled quickly enough as their Squad Leader, clearly back to her old-self chased them off. Kami chuckled.
“You’re turning in an alcoholic,”
“You made me,” Aeos groaned in her arms before pushing herself off the table and away from the chairs.
“I’m gonna grab a stim, some painkillers and another shower, usually fixes me up, see you later,”  she muttered hastily excusing herself from Kami’s presence.