June 02, 2009

439. Manipulation of Emotion - Trychon

Trychon headed to the designated spot he was to meet their contact for the shuttle. It didn't take long for him and the man to make eye contact, the man could probably see him looking around, as he was trying to be obvious enough about it, and had walked in his general direction, feeling his inquisitive gaze through the force.

The man walked up to him with no attempt at trying to be discreet. Trychon figured that could be good as well as bad, but he was not concerned either way. The man was clearly a bit older, as the years had steadily added silver to his hair, but he carried himself like a man no older than Trychon himself. He greeted Trychon and shook his hand, offering his name and not receiving one back as Trychon pointed to a shuttle that seemed to match the description he had. "That it?"

The man nodded and smiled at him, but then after a short discussion insisted that he needed proof of Trychon's intent to purchase. The Sith complied, showing him a credit transfer request, pending but verified. The man's smile became genuine, and he outstretched his arm in the direction of the shuttle, gesturing for Trychon to lead the way.

They approached the small transport and Trychon kept his eyes on it, searching for anything that seemed out of place. It was indeed an older shuttle with some wear on it, but it had the look of steady maintenance. They walked around the ship, with Trychon checking various parts of the ship visually, and feeling for any sense of deception. Not getting any unusual waves of emotion from the owner of the ship Trychon nodded with satisfaction.

Trychon gestured to the ramp, insisting that his new acquaintance lead this time. "Shall we?" He asked. The man nodded back at him, and walked up the ramp, keying in a code on the outer door which opened to allow them access. Trychon walked up the ramp, and looked around the various parts of the ship, being much less thorough than with the exterior. The inside of the shuttle was pretty sparse, but also rather small. It would be uncomfortable for two people that weren't fairly familiar to go on a lengthy trip in such a transport, not that it mattered to Trychon and Raezyr.

Trychon walked the short distance up to the cockpit, which was also nominally smaller than what he was used to on the Jet Razor. Fortunately, it was enough to remind him to sit in the pilot's chair rather than the co-pilot's. He pressed several of the controls, mentally preparing himself to fly it out of the system on his own. "Everything seems to be in good working order." He thought aloud.

"I'm sure you'll find everything is indeed up to standard." The man assured him.

"One can never be too careful though, can he?" Trychon asked rhetorically as he connected his datapad to the computer. The man began to protest, but Trychon was quick to show him the screen. "Just a simple diagnostic. The eyes aren't perfect." The man was clearly unsettled, but stopped short of doing anything too drastic, still feeling as though he was in control enough of the situation. "Want to go ahead and call control and get us clearance to get out of here?" Trychon insisted with impatience, while making sure not to allow any hostility into his voice.

The man didn't say anything to Trychon, simply reaching over to the comm and speaking into it. "Shuttle to control, requesting takeoff clearance please."

The comm was silent for a moment before responding. "Copy that, Monk's Star. you have clearance and may take off when ready."

The confusion on the man's face was priceless as he mouthed to himself the name that Control had referred to his shuttle. Monk's Star? He asked himself as he turned to look at Trychon.

The snap-hiss of the black blade extending from Trychon's hand overran any noise the man may have started to make in startled surprise as the weapon cut into and through his forehead and out the back of his skull. In less than a second, the blade was retracted again, and the man's body fell lifelessly back into the chair.

"I know. Needs work. Let me know if you come up with a better name." The Sith told the body as he urged the shuttles engines carefully into a gentle takeoff.

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