Alderaan - Love and Intrigue

He wasn't hunting yet. Galen needed to learn more about the beast before tracking it down. That meant talking to those who had seen it or its victims, learning more details of its attacks and checking on any changes to the region in the last five months.

Before all of that, however, he needed to simply observe the wilds of Alderaan and gain some understanding of its ecosystems. He was hiking through the tamer areas, but there was still much he could learn. Currently, Galen was sitting on the grassy shore of a lake, simply appreciating the undeniable beauty of the world.

After a moment the faint sound of engines could be heard coming thought a natural clearing in the woods heralding the coming of an older model of hover trucks. While it clearly had a long life, the vehicle was kept in remarkable shape and possessed a number of custom modifications.

The motor was notably almost silent and stopped near the lake's shore far enough that the lone man might not have been seen by the driver who was coming down, adjusting her personalised scanner goggles.

The sound of engines, even quiet ones, was unexpected. Galen looked over and saw the woman approaching. It took a moment for him to recognize her.

"Hey!" he waved. When she was closer, he added, "I definitely didn't expect to see you out here."

The jedi looked away from whatever she was scanning and focused her sights on...hum...that guy! Did she really forgot that guy's name? Hum...Garen?

''Oh, hi!'' she waved back ''Garen, right?''

"Galen." he chuckled. "It's been a while. The last we spoke was when you helped me with my ghost problem."

''Oh, sorry'' she frowned, trying to remember ''It has been a while indeed...hum I remember you and something about ghosts but I seem to have forgotten the details, I am sorry. The last few years were quite busy''

"My lightsaber was haunted by a fallen Knight, Yulu Kess." he explained, reaching towards his belt before remembering it wasn't there. "In the end, the order took care of it, but I appreciated what advice you could give."

That did bring something to mind.

''We live in a very interesting epoch that would make me forget something important like that'' she shook her head ''How is Yulu now? Did she find peace in the Force?'

"Yes." he nodded. "And, his stories and lessons live on in the Jedi archives and a personal holocron."

He looked around. "I keep running into people I've met before on this planet. That made a certain amount of sense on Bankor, but here. The Force does work in mysterious ways."

''It does indeed...things we do here will echo I wager'' she took a breath ''Remind me...did I talk to you about the Star Cabal?''

He shook his head. "If you did, I can't recall."

''Well then'' She crossed her arms ''Be wary of them. I do not know who they are for they are still hidden from us...even from the Empire...and they are the enemy of all force users: Jedi, Sith, everything in between.''

"What is known about them?" he asked.

''Nothing except that they are biding their time for now...they are waiting for something big. The Force revealed this in a vision and while I trust it, murky it remains.''

She paused, frowning

''I had asked Zanebry to investigate back on Nar Shadaa...and have not heard of him since. He seems to have dropped off the face of the galaxy.''

"He was searching for someone, last I knew." he said. "Someone who needed taking care of, in an unfriendly way. Beyond that, I always kind of expected him to disappear. Whenever he had done everything he felt he needed to, or if he just had enough of it all, he'd just hang up his hat and walk away."

''His business had been concluded, if I remember.'' her jaws clenched ''He would not have disappeared without giving me an update...or telling me he had let go of the case.''

"That's what he told me he'd be doing before he left Bankor." he shrugged. "But, he always had more going on then he'd say."

"He knew where I was." he added. "I feel like he would have gotten a message to me if there was trouble."

She shook her head

''I am still worried'' she took a deep breath ''You here for the festival, I assume?''

"There's a kath hound that's been attacking the locals." he explained. "I came for the festival, too, but I'm here to look into it."

She nods

''Know anything about the Kiliks in the region?''