Cult Mission- Honourful Brothers, Honoghr

Belten had never been to Honoghr. Frankly, he never wanted to go in the first place, but apparently The Noghri were worth trekking halfway across the galaxy for. Enlisting the aid of the Noghri was way up near the top on the Cult priorities list. Belten was a bit skeptical about the Noghri. He had heard that they used only primitive bladed weapons. What could would they do against blasters and lightsabers?

But, if the Cult saw importance in gaining the trust and alliance of just one Clan, then they must be deceivingly skilled and powerful. And if that was the case, then Belten was certainly interested in his mission. Fortunately, he wouldn't be doing this one alone. The last time he did a solo mission, he had to muster all the willpower he could just to keep from gouging his own eyes out. Belten liked to think he worked better with others than alone anyway. He preferred to have somebody there to have his back if he screwed up, which he would invariably do at least once. He tried to keep his blunders to small things, such as stubbing his toe or forgetting the name of a girl he had just had relations with, but it was not always so easy to avoid mistakes.

The only problem was that the Cult member who would be accompanying him on this mission was Lady Kaila, and she had a notorious reputation for being extremely hard to impress. He hoped he would perform well enough to make her not want to kill him instantly. Of course, he was used to Lady Vifi, who was as close to a psychopath as he had ever met, but the way she used her crazy worked. He had never actually me Kaila, so naturally he was a bit nervous. Of course, he would never admit or show that, but then again, she was a sorceress so she would probably be able to tell anyway.

As Belten stood there, waiting, he began taking in his surroundings. He was in a small clearing in the middle of a medium sized forest. He ship was behind him at the edge of the clearing, and he was leaning up against the hull. His dual bladed saber was slid up the right sleeve of his dark red robes, concealed from view. His eyes were ever watchful, vigilantly watching the edges of the clearing. He was as tuned in with the force as he knew how to be, and would most likely be able to sense anybody entering the clearing... Well, any Noghri, he had already accepted the fact that he would probably not know when Kaila was approaching.

Honoghr was a primitive planet in almost every aspect one could think of. The native species lived in huts, used stone weapons and did not have even the most basic of transportation. It was a backwater planet in the middle of an unimportant star system that no one ever ventured to, and when they did it wasn’t for the scenery. Kaila Dorien sat in her Corona-class transport aptly named Spellcaster, watching out the front viewport as the swirling blue of hyperspace slowly came to a halt, and piecing white lines reverted to stars. They were an unfamiliar site to her, having never ventured to this particular section of space before.

As the target planet grew in her viewport from the size of a cred coin to the size of a dinner plate, Kaila’s sensors picked up another ship on the surface of the planet. Still too far out to determine the transponder the Sorceress reached out into the Force but felt nothing. Even her own ‘senses’ had a limit to them, though it was something she was trying to overcome. For the next several minutes she approached Honoghr and came within sensor range, confirming that Belten Mondi, Vifi’s likely replacement, was already on the surface of the planet. Kaila smoothed her dress and strapped into her crash webbing. Moments later she entered the atmosphere and skimmed the surface towards the small forest the Marauder had landed in.

Rising from her seat once the Spellcaster had settled, and all systems were powering down, the Sorceress checked that her lightsaber was present and made her way further back into the ship. For this particular outing she had chosen an outfit more becoming royalty than a business owner. Under a top made from a gold, form-fitting material, she wore a sheer black, long-sleeved shirt. The sleeves ended just past her wrists and a strand of material wrapped around the bottom knuckle of her thumbs. Her nails were painted a polished black and her long dress hugged her curves in all the right spots, reaching nearly to the floor. Though there were no roads or anything of the like, Kaila wore tall boots of polished black leather with a modest heel to them. On her shoulders she wore polished gold pauldrons meant more for looks than defense.

Kaila’s long, dark hair was pulled back at the bangs, yet allowed for several strands at either temple to hang loosely. Her hair gave the appearance of a natural crown of sorts, and instead of being tied into a tail hung loosely down her back. For the outing the Sorceress had painted her eyes dark, and her lips red to accent her naturally light toned skin, and the tattoos that lined just above her bust were clearly visible. It was an elegant outfit for a world so primitive, but she wished to make a good first impression, even if the Noghri could not appreciate it. Ka’el would probably have given her an odd look for her appearance, but Kaila was used to dressing for the occasion.

As she descended the boarding ramp the Sorceress reached out in the Force and sensed Belten not too far off. Several other presences could be felt further off, but she could not pick out individual thoughts. Presumably these were the native species, the Noghri, but it was not for certain. Kaila carefully made her way towards Belten, and when she came into view of the man she approached as elegantly as the terrain and her choice in footwear would allow.

“Good to see you could make it, Marauder,” Kaila called out in a tone that made it difficult to tell her mood - made even more difficult by the Sorceress suppressing her presence in the Force. “I hope you are ready for this. I do not wish to upset our potential allies. From what I have been told they have memories as long as the Mandalorians and a temper to match.”

Belten could sense a slight bulge in the force around him, slowly getting larger and larger. He was not in tuned enough with the force to tell exactly what it was, but he had a feeling it was Lady Kaila. It would make sense, since he was getting the feeling from space, and he was almost positive the Noghri wouldn't have a strong enough Force signature to detect, and he was even more positive that they didn't have any type of a spacefleet.

As Belten tracked the bulge, it suddenly disappeared. Presumably whoever was causing said bulge was hiding their signature from the Force. Instead of venturing out and looking for her, he decided to simply wait for her to arrive, if, in fact, it was her. In case it wasn't, he loosened his lightsaber in the sheath on the inside of his forearm, under the sleeves of his baggy, dark red cloak.

Not too long after he cautiously loosened his lightsaber, Kaila came into view. She was wearing a very elegant, if not practical, outfit consisting of a tight yellow top, a shear black long sleeved shirt under that, and a dress to cover the rest of her. Belten had to admit, she looked good, but he would never show that to her. He pushed the thought to the back of his mind, and pushed himself up off of the hull of his ship. As she approached, he looked her up and down once, and then held her gaze with his own. His eyes, rather than being admiring and slightly worried, held nothing but cold indifference. It was his favorite emotion to show others who thought they were big shots. Of course, Kaila was a big shot, but it didn't make a difference to Belten, the hardness in his eyes didn't change, though they would most likely soften the more they worked together.

"I wouldn't miss it for the world, Lady Dorien," Belten replied. "Subtlety and politeness are my specialties." In fact, those were not his specialties. His specialties were being sarcastic, obnoxious, and crafty, but Kaila didn't have to know that. Or perhaps she already did, in which case it made his statement look like nothing more than a sarcastic joke.

"Luckily for us, they seem a bit less technologically advanced than the Mandalorians," Belten said. "Though I've heard they can be just as deadly. In which case, I suppose we shall have to watch each other's back."

The once-over that Belten gave her did not go unnoticed by the Sorceress and she allowed herself a self-satisfying smile. Though his eyes held nothing more than indifference, and he was holding a firm clamp on his emotions, she could tell from that one simple action that she had his attention. Men were so predictable no matter how much they tried to pretend they weren't. The men of the Cult, save for perhaps Ka'el, were no different. Ka'el was a different story altogether and could not really be counted as one of the 'norm'. Kaila could feel her face pulling into a frown at the thought of the Assassin and quickly turned her attention back to the task at hand.

Convincing a clan of Noghri to become personal bodyguards to the Cultists would be no easy task and she knew that. After a few moments her train of thought was derailed as Belten spoke up. What he spoke were obviously blatant lies, any fool without the Force could tell that from the sarcasm lacing his words. Flashing the Marauder an admonishing look, Kaila absently flipped a few strands of hair with her left hand and turned her attention to the east. There she could sense a large group of beings, none seeming to glow like a Force user. They were not far from a clan and no doubt they would be coming to investigate two strange craft landing near their homes. Kaila reached out in the Force as she responded to her temporary partner for this mission.

"It would be a mistake to underestimate the Noghri," she said warily. "Quite possible to be the last you will ever make. We are not far from a village and they will likely be sending scouts to investigate. Keep your senses sharp for without the Force I highly doubt either of us would know they were coming until we were dead."

For a moment she stood expanding her awareness in hopes of catching a scout before it caught them. It was not an exaggeration, her statement, but pure and utter fact. Those who came seeking the Noghri often did not return. Kaila knew that they were honour-bound, much like the Wookiees, and perhaps she could use that to her advantage. Being a wearer of many masks allowed her to play 'goodie-two-shoes' convincingly enough to fool just about anyone. She had yet to attempt it on a Jedi, but then the Cult was supposed to be in hiding. Thanks in no small part to Vifi, and Ka'el's inability to control her, that cover may very well have been destroyed.

"Follow me and stay close," the Sorceress commanded as she began walking. "Though I could not care less as to what happens to you personally, I would rather not have to defend myself alone should our talks go awry."

(( Does Kaila sense anything approaching? ))

((While Kaila's senses are quite attuned to the Force, she still is only able to pick up the Force signatures of the Noghri as they begin closing in on them; this gives her and Belten only moments to prepare before the Noghri reveal themselves--and she can sense that they are no where close to being happy that Kaila and Belten are here at all.))

Belten watched Kaila with a raised eyebrow. She certainly held herself in extremely high esteem, though that was quite obvious from the moment he met her. She seemed to hold herself above everybody else. He supposed it was because she was one of the leaders of the Cult, but nobody even knew who the Cult was, so that didn't make any sense whatsoever. Was it because she was so connected with the Force? Did the Force make people self-absorbed jerks?

"I'm not one to underestimate anybody, my lady," Belten responded. "Not even those lower than me in rank in the Cult."

Belten added that last part of his response to her nonchalantly, as if it were just a random statement, but it had meaning behind it. Belten could tell Kaila underestimated him, and he was letting her know that he knew. It wasn't meant to be disrespect, only as a friendly reminder that he was still there, and that he wasn't useless. To be honest, he wouldn't care at all what she thought if she wasn't one of the only ones capable of giving him a promotion, but she was, so he cared, if only the tiniest bit.

In any case, he obviously wouldn't have any help from her on this one. She didn't even care what happened to him. Real nice. He was going to have to watch her back as well as his own. That should be oodles of fun.

Just as these thoughts passed through his mind, he felt something push at the edge of his mind. He reached out further with the Force and sensed a group of what were presumably Noghri headed their way. Surprisingly, he didn't sense them until they were close. Far too close for comfort. His right arm tensed almost imperceptibly, but he made no move for his weapon. This was a diplomatic mission after all. He didn't want to upset their gracious hosts so soon. He was slightly too attached to his life to risk that.

Belten followed Kaila a bit until the Noghri revealed themselves. They were ugly as sin. They carried primitive, but sharp weapons. No doubt they were as deadly with those weapons as a Confederation soldier was with a blaster. Belten kept Kaila's warning in mind as he stood still, making no threatening moves or sounds at all. He figured he would leave the talking the Lady Dorien, lest he slip up and get them both killed. He figured if Kaila made a mistake at least it wouldn't be his fault they both got killed.

Even though Belten was slightly tense, he stood in a completely relaxed posture, never taking his eyes off of the Noghri. If he showed no fear, they might be less aggressive. He hoped.

Kaila flashed a dangerous look at the Marauder when he spoke of not underestimating anyone. It was a clear signal that he wished not to be underestimated and yet she could not help but to do so. As of late her faith in the Cult had been shaken with the addition of Vifi to the Triumvir despite her obvious lack of self-control, and Ka'el's inaction when it came to her. Raith was a cocky brat who felt himself better than others and seemed to resemble Vifi in more ways than one. Hera was perhaps the only Cultist now that earned any respect from the Dark Lady.

"Watch your tongue lest you find it removed from your head, Marauder. Threats will get you killed faster than they will earn you respect."

Nearby movement and flickers in the Force turned the Sorceress' attention away from her temporary partner. It was obvious from the maelstrom of animosity that the Noghri were not happy with the arrival of the outsiders. Few species as primitive and homocidal as they ever were. Still, the fact that they were wary and confrontational gave Kaila hope that they would indeed make good allies should she be able to convince them of the honour that would be bestowed upon them. Next to her she sensed the Maruader tense, if only slightly, and no doubt the Noghri were going to pick up on it as well. They were trained for such things.

Meanwhile, Kaila remained completely composed, ever in control of her emotions. When the Noghri appeared they would notice her uncaring appearance and her lack of emotion. For all intents and purposes, the Sorceress was completely calm in the face of such obvious danger. Amongst creatures that held honour so highly, she would no doubt earn some respect by being as unmoving as stone. Belten, on the other hand, may very well earn some suspicion from the creatures, if not more hostility. Kaila could not sense any single superiority from any of the Noghri and was led to believe that all gathered were of equal rank. Scouts generally did not have a leader, as they often worked independently. The fact a group of them arrived was indeed curious.

"Esteemed Noghri... I am Lady Kaila Dorien, and this is my colleague. We are here on behalf of our organization to speak with the leader of your clan. It is not our intent to make war with you and as proof I lay down my weapon."

Making good on her word the Sorceress removed her lightsaber from her belt and placed it upon the ground in front of her. With a subtle nudge in the Force she urged the Marauder to do the same.

"What say you, noble warriors?"

(( What is the reaction from the Noghri? ))

(( The Noghri have no idea what the frack Kaila is saying. Their hostility does not abate at her words. One of them grinds something out in their scratchy, gutteral tongue that neither Cultist can understand, but it certainly sounds threatening. When Kaila drops her lightsaber hilt, the Noghri ready their weapons, but they do not strike yet. They don't fully realize the metal cylinder is a weapon, but neither do they see other weapons on her person, so they're not quite sure what to make of it. ))

At first, Belten didn't know what Kaila meant about the threat, but he quickly realized what she was talking about.

"A threat m'lady?" Belten said. "No no, not a threat. I would never threaten one such as yourself. I know my place."

Just as he finished his sentence, the Noghri appeared. Kaila attempted a gesture of peace, but apparently the Noghri didn't understand universal peace gestures, or Basic. Crap.

Belten had been standing with his hands clasped in front of him while Kaila attempted to communicate with the Noghri, his face completely devoid of emotion. When she dropped her saber, he was already moving to do the same. The Force Nudge was unnecessary, but if it made Kaila feel better, he wasn't going to say anything. He let his dual bladed saber slide into his hand, and dropped it on the ground. He indicated his saber with his hand, and then pointed to the Noghri's own weapons, trying to tell them that the metal sticks were weapons as well. After that small gesture, Belten put his hands in the air, fingers splayed apart, in yet another universal gesture of peace. He prayed to the gods that they understood this one.

If not, Kaila and Belten were pretty much dead meat. If they understood, there was still a chance to walk away from the mission with their lives, and maybe even new allies, though as things were going at that moment, the new allies part of the mission was looking pretty bleak. Hell, even the living through the mission part was looking like an outside chance right about then.

((Do the Noghri understand Belten's attempt at peace gestures?))

(( You think the message has gotten across, or at least the primitive people are starting to get a clue. They remain hostile, but they don't jump you as of yet. Instead there's a fair bit of discussion going on, probably them arguing about what to do with these intruders. ))

Belten assured her just moments before the arrival of the Noghri that he had not intended his statement to be a threat. Perhaps not, she surmised. Still, he had better watch his tongue. No doubt these creatures will not be as kind and forgiving. Of course Kaila was neither of those things, but she often thought of herself as such when she didn’t kill fools outright. Ka’el had put a stop to that when the numbers of the Cult had started to ware thin. Gone were the days when she could simply weed out those unworthy of a position in the Cult. Now she actually had to teach them to better themselves, to control their emotions and bide their tongues.

When she had laid down her weapon the Noghri did not back down. Instead they seemed even more suspicious of the two outsiders than they had been moments ago. They’re lucky that was not a grenade, otherwise they would all be incinerated, she thought to herself. It seemed these creatures were far less civilized than she had been led to believe they were. Perhaps it was simply this particular clan that had not experienced outsiders before. After all, most species in the galaxy at least had an understanding of Basic. From what she was gathering by these creatures before her, they had never heard the language and it wasn’t likely to get better should they get to meet with the leader.

A moment after her mental nudge, Belten seemed to grow slightly annoyed and set his own weapon down. What she gathered was not through the Force but through the way he moved. No doubt he had already come to the conclusion that setting his own weapon down after Kaila was a smarter move than hiding it until the Noghri found it. For a split second Kaila actually allowed herself to smile a fraction, but it faded just as quickly as it had come. Belten was not as ignorant as most Marauders, and perhaps there was some hope for him yet.

That hope died as the Marauder made some absolutely idiotic symbol with his index and middle fingers splayed like a vev. Kaila rolled her eyes and for a fleeting moment she thought that he had condemned them to death. Yet instead he redeemed himself once more when the Noghri seemed to understand his gestures that the metal objects before them were weapons. Kaila eyed the stone knives the Noghri kept tucked into their ragged clothing. To an untrained eye they would seem completely useless in a fight, and yet Kaila could tell with one look that these knives had been sharpened to a razor’s edge. One slash from a blade like that, even a grazing blow, could likely eviscerate a person. Noghri were powerful beasts indeed, and they would not need much force to cut through flesh like blue butter.

“I certainly hope that they realize those are weapons,” she said aloud with a slight nod to the lightsabers lying on the ground. “If not we may well have to defend ourselves. You seem to be better suited to getting them to understand. Let them know we wish to see their leader.”

Belten was likely better with empathic abilities than herself, as she never connected with any living creature aside from Sandy. That was her pet Corellian sand panther, a creature known for its ferocity rather than its loyalty. Kaila had managed to tame the creature - as the one she purchased it from had not quite done the task. It was unfortunate that she did not bring her along. Sandy would have come in quite useful should the Noghri press an attack.

Belten was just as surprised as anybody else that his rather childish tactics actually worked. Apparently this particular Noghri clan was very primitive. But primitive didn't mean stupid, nor did it mean harmless. Belten had no doubt that if they made the wrong move, the Noghri would kill them before they even knew that they had done something wrong.

Taking a breath, Belten tried to figure out how to communicate with the Noghri. There were two ways he could think of. He could keep using arm and hand motions to communicate with them, or he could draw something in the dirt on the ground. Since the Dark Jedi had no idea what sign language for "take me to your leader" was, and there were no other aliens around to ask, he decided to try and draw it in the sand.

Keeping his hands in the air, Belten slowly crouched down, keeping his eyes on the Noghri at all times. He slowly bent over, still not taking his eyes off of the Noghri. It was do or die time... literally. He hoped that the Noghri didn't pick the "die" option. That would really put a crimp in the mission.

Belten lowered one hand and put his index finger into the dirt. He began to draw what he hoped would save their lives and move towards gaining an alliance with the Noghri. Belten first drew a group of figures numbering the same as the Noghri. The figures in the drawing were holding weapons similar to the Noghri in front of him. He then drew himself and Kaila in submissive poses next to the group of Noghri. Next, he drew a circle around the group, and drew an arrow. Next to the arrow, he drew another figure with a crown and a majestic staff. Well, he thought it looked majestic. He wasn't an art critic or anything, but he hoped it would get the job done.

Taking a deep breath, Belten stood back up and backed away from the drawing. He hoped that the Noghri would be able to understand the drawing. His "leader" picture was not as obvious as the rest of the picture, but he thought it would suffice. He hoped it would, lest they find themselves on a pair of Cult kebabs.

((Do the Noghri understand the "take us to your leader" picture?))

((It takes the Noghri a few moments to process the meaning behind the picture and once they do, they look at Belten and Kaila skeptically. They bark out something in their guttural language that you don't understand, but it doesn't seem as if they have any intention of bringing the Cultists--dangerous as they might be, in the Noghri's eyes--to their leader. The tension has eased somewhat but the Cultists aren't out of the woods yet...The Noghri simply haven't decided what the best way to go about killing them is.))

For a moment Kaila simply sat and watched what Belten was going to do, hoping to the Force that it wouldn’t get them killed. When he stooped down and started drawing she nearly slapped a hand over her face in embarassment. Of all the stupid…, she thought to herself and let the sentence trail off. It would do no good to smack him in front of the Noghri who might take it as an offense and attack her in turn. So for now she allowed the Marauder to draw in the dirt and prayed that his antics would actually pay off. Even so she would not allow her anger abate until she had a chance to properly reprimand him for his actions. Should they have to eliminate the Noghri scouting team then so be it. No bodyguards were worth this kind of humiliation, or the possible death that would follow.

Surprisingly - and pleasantly so - the Noghri seemed to actually ponder over the picture with a mild curiosity that quelled their desire to kill the newcomers. Though it lasted only a moment it was enough for the Cultist to begin formulating a plan of attack should it come down to it. If the creatures desired to attack she would use the Force to blast them away and then retrieve her lightsaber. By that time Belten would likely have grabbed his own and would be electrocuting them with Force Lightning, if he knew the power. Kaila herself was a rarity amongst the Cult in that she did not know that particular technique. Perhaps when she returned from this - if she returned from it - she would take the time to learn it.

Finally the Noghri started to grunt and bark amongst themselves and Kaila could sense that they weren’t going to kill the pair of outsiders… yet. Even though she was relieved by this it still led her to question why they didn’t simply do away with them here and now. Especially if they were dead set on killing the Cultists - no pun intended. It was still apparent that they weren’t even going to consider taking the pair of outsiders to their leader, but at least they weren’t going to kill them yet. Kaila allowed a soft sigh to escape her painted lips and brushed a hand lightly through her dark hair.

“Well at least they aren’t going to kill us on the spot,” she said in a rather condescending tone. “I don’t suppose you have any other bright ideas.”

Without waiting for a response from the Marauder, for one would not be necessary, she turned her attention on one of the Noghri. By no means were the creatures weak-minded and a show of force would only aggrivate them further… What could she possibly do to convince them that they were here to strike up a deal? The Noghri respected honour above almost anything else, and what greater honour was there than to be treated as a better? Kaila snapped her fingers lightly to get the attention of the smaller creatures and pointed to herself, then the Noghri. From there she knelt to the ground and lowered her head in a sign of submission. It was not a position that she did not take even with those that deserved it, usually, and it was an awkward feeling. Belten would hopefully follow suit with her demonstration, but she continued to keep her senses open and felt around in the Force for any possible attack the Noghri would make.

(( What is the response the Noghri give? ))

((The Noghri seem both pleased and surprised at this sudden change in behaviour from the Cultist. It seems as if an idea has struck them and several Noghri move into to attempt to tie both Kaila and Belten up. They'll either be offered as slaves or as sacrifices to their leader most likely. At least it seems as though they aren't going to kill them.))