Cliffhangers Workshop - Completed/Cliffie FREE-FOR-ALL

Hope that helps Face.

Clearly classic, ardavenport, but in a good way.
The question would be: Who IS it????? I also like the setting, dark and mysterious. Could be about anybody.

 

Welcome to the thread ardavenport Your Part 1 cliffhanger is a shining example of making people scream "What nexxxxttttt??", hehe. It brings up the great way that a cliffhanger makes readers speculate, which may or may not feature in one of the exercises coming up. Who's this that's sidling up to Luke?? Is it Jar Jar? Mara? Pellaeon? The answer is only known by the cliffhanger, not the cliffhangees

Oh, and I just had to comment:

It's a little known fact that putting your character in metal speedos will turn a good cliffhanger into an instant classic.

...wait

Thanks for posting, ardavenport!

And thanks for catching that MsL! Yeah Face, 1000 words is a loose word limit. It certainly isn't the end of the world if you go over. I'm not going to ban you if you post 1500 Ale might. Or JadeSolo. But not me.

 

Well, that's good to know, because I've finally come up with a scenario, and it's still in progress and at 669 words right now.

I've been way too wordy so far, but since I'm using one of my OC's, I wanted to throw in some set-up & background.

 

Luton, is it okay to work on an old cliffhanger for a story that was never finished? I've been wanting an excuse to write the story and this might help with the muse...

 

BigE - I honestly don't mind how long they are The word limit only exists to prevent the thread from being hijacked into a single author's story. Since I'm sure you aren't planning to do anything like that, go right ahead

Diane - Absolutely! Your cliffhanger can be absolutely anything that you want to post up. Provided that it's only the first half of said Cliffie, you are free to use anything you want. An excerpt from an existing story, something you're working on for an upcoming post, something that was going to be included in an old story...anything is good

 

MsLanna: Nice! Good use of sentence length and such to give a quick pace. I was all ready for some fighting when ? cliffhanger. Which is what should happen of course.

ardavenport: Cool! I liked the description, and to see Luke in this position is certainly shocking enough ? but adding that it?s someone he knows? [whining]Whoooooo[/whining] I want to know what?s going on, so again ? a good cliffhanger.

Man, I?m blinder than I thought. Well, thanks, MsLanna. I clocked in at 1,103. So thanks in advance to LP for not getting himself promoted and banning me over this.

So, yes, I overthought mine. But I'm definitely thinking of reworking the concept for a one-poster or short story. I'll be interested to see what the workshop does to it.

DISCLAIMER: I have no idea how sabacc works and I didn't want to interrupt myself for wookieepedia research when I was actually on a roll. So let's pretend it's essentially poker. Maybe it is essentially poker. But I wouldn't know.

---

Like all high-stakes card games, this high-stakes card game takes place behind closed doors. In the grand open rooms of the Hotel Allemonde ? all marble and plaster and durasteel, carpet colored rich shades of roulette options, architecture borrowed from ancient empires ? there are games with ostentatious wagers and ludicrous pots. There the battles are broadcast on the Holonet. But [i]this[/i] card game is recorded only by the back room?s security cameras and the wire on the Zabrak. [i]This[/i] card game?s stakes are higher than the credits bet in plain sight.

The stakes are life and death.

Specifically, the imminent death of Alias Sibul.

?You?re bluffing, Mr. Sibul,? says the Falleen.

?And [i]you[/i] smell like lilacs!? Alias replies brightly. The Falleen glares from beneath his pronounced brow. ?That?s a compliment,? Alias adds. He sits back in his chair, grinning.

[i]Stop.[/i]

Alias Sibul is a professional thief. He?s not been anything else as long as he cares to remember. He?s good at it. He claims to do the impossible. Tonight, though, he was captured attempting to rob the Hotel Allemonde?s venerable owner ? that?d be the Falleen across the table with the expression of a man who swallowed a bug.

While Alias grew up picking pockets and locks, Allemonde was cutting decks and business rivals? throats. He became the sixth-best player in the galaxy at the time. He retired from official play four years, two months, six days ago, to run the Hotel Allemonde. But more importantly, the casino inside. His is the definition of an upper-class underworld. The exclusive hotel backrooms, with their secret high-stakes games, are no place for common thugs, or smarmy thieves.

Mr. Allemonde is not an unforgiving man. Nor is he necessarily a man of grace. What he is a man of is sabacc. He believes in sabacc. It?s difficult to determine whether sabacc believes in him. But he uses it to this day to settle any and all issues. An assassin killed Allemonde?s chief of security last year. The Falleen?s men brought the assassin in ? admittedly not without blasting the killer?s hand off in the process ? to this very room and tossed his battered body into the chair Alias now leans on two legs. The assassin, barely breathing, played sabacc with Allemonde. The assassin won, and went free, with enough credits to buy himself a new blaster hand. Sabacc had spoken, and it pardoned him. Sabacc was judge. Sabacc was jury. Allemonde was its officer carrying out its orders, and its lover gently drawing its favor. Lady Luck his bride, and Skill his patron saint, Allemonde went forth in taking control of the small Rhoto neighborhood of Coruscant.

Today he offers Alias Sibul a similar chance to that the one-handed assassin had, though security managed to apprehend Sibul without [i]permanent[/i] damage.

Two rounds in. Allemonde has won both. The agreement is that three will win the contest. Alias is showing every exaggerated emoti

 

I decided to do something new after all.

---

The bubbles were everywhere, bright bubbles floating on the wind.

The colors were iridescent, flashing reds and pure golds and the blues of cold water, a microcosm of life encased in spheres of light.

Cade watched them drifting, bouncing against the rough stone, splashing, laughing, twisting into dancers impossibly thin and then they were climbing up, singing, shrieking as they went, spiders and lizards and darker things.

Bubbles in his skin and bubbles in his brain.

As he watched, the Light turned into screams and oozed blood and vomit-ripe smells of shredded carcasses and then everything faded away. Death was stalking him here. He could feel it in the wind and the shatter of bubbles.

But then death was always stalking him. It was a way of life for him these days.

He laughed at the irony; the sound of it echoed in the Sith Temple. Beyond, in the jungle, his harsh bray was answered in the far-off howls of Tuk'ata on the hunt but they weren't a problem.

He had bigger problems. The effects of the deathsticks he'd used only a short time ago faded away, forcing rainbow-lush euphoria back into desperate reality.

That hit was the last of his supply and he'd used it to avoid his future, his past, himself.

But that was all that he'd ever wanted, to keep out the demons. Deathsticks were the perfect choice; they crushed his ability to feel the Force, pushing it into nothingness. Such a wonderful feeling, to escape the Light and forget everything. It even kept out the the constant whine of that kriffing ancestor of his, that ever-noble, ever-nauseating Luke Skywalker. At least he wasn't...

"Deathsticks are aptly named, Cade."

Hell, he was back. Luke - kriffing - Skywalker, lecturer and all-around bore. And Cade had nothing to use to shut him up. The drugs were all gone, just like his family, just like his friends, just like the Jedi.

He had nothing left, not even himself.

Staring at his ancestor, wishing he could just shut the old fool up, knowing it was impossible, Cade growled out, "Can't you haunt someone else? Like someone who cares about your damned Force?"

"It's your Force too. You can't escape your destiny."

He'd heard it so many times before. Destiny didn't stop the Sith from killing his father or destroying the Jedi. Didn't stop everything from going to hell. Didn't stop his life from shattering into a billion bloody pieces.

"Seen what happened to that destiny of yours. Jedi ain't around any more." He laid back down, closing his eyes, wishing Luke would vanish into the smoke of burnt memory.

His head was beginning to hurt and he needed to sleep. Maybe never wake up. He tried to ignore the scream of something alive being eaten a few dozen meters away. From the sound of it, several other somethings, likely that pack of Tuk'ata, were fighting over the remains but Cade didn't care. Maybe they'd hunt him next.

"The Jedi survive. They could use your help." Another platitude. Didn't the man or ghost or annoyance or whatever the hell he was understand that they were gone? They, his father, his family were never coming back.

"Go away, just go away." He groaned out his pain. One eye slitted open, and then, grabbing onto a handful of dirt flung it at the glowing figure. Surprisingly, the honorable and deadly-boring Skywalker ghost faded away and it was dark again.

He drew in a deep breath and, laying back down, he closed his eyes and listened to the sound of crunching bones and snarls. It was comforting in a way, cycling between painful life and agonized death. A balance of dark and darker.

The hiss of dirt against stone told him that something was coming, stalking him. The Tuk'ata must have caught his scent.

He lay there, trying to decide whether to get up and fight off the pack or ignore the danger and get torn to shreds. Both options had their pluses and the deathsticks had sapped his strength a bit.

Sighing, he relaxed into acceptance. He'd wait until they were a lot closer

 

Great stuff, diane! I really liked the description here, particularly at the beginning. Your cliffie is a bit like ardavenport's in that it definitely raises a specific "Who?" question at the same time it presents an immediate physical threat.

 

The_(Poker)Face

Alias Sibul
Is that his real name or just an alias?
Love the litereal stop and go in the story. Very good way to get infos about the players in. It almost feels like watching some movie with special effects for the stuff between the stops.

And there's two people wanting to kill him?
Why???
And right now?
The recurring use of the stop-motif, did freeze the last image perfectly with that last 'stop'.


dianethx

WHo is it????
I have no clue who Cade is (everything from NJO is dark mysteries to me ) and so I don't know if there are any clues hidden. Can't say i like him much, still I want to know who's come and what the job is. Killing Cade? Turning him (into whatever?), selling him insurancies with incredibly high rates?



And, btw, Yodimus topped off his aforementioned cliffhanger, by updateing a whole post of the past. No clues to what's gonna happen next at all.
*grabs Yods throat and shakes him some more*
How dare he???

 

These are all OC's from previous fics:

Tiin watched as his ex-padawan, Keera, take her vow of marriage to Troy. His eyes strayed down to see Kavin tenderly wipe a tear from Miri?s cheek. He closed his eyes as the old feelings for his friend?s wife rose within him, and he carefully raised his mental shields. This was the first time Tiin had seen the two together since Miri quit the order, and seeing her after all these years, he realized he had never gotten over her.

Tiin forced himself to look back up to watch Keera and Troy. Keera was the spitting image of her mother, down to the soulful brown eyes. It was Keera who asked him to come to her wedding. He could not deny his ex-padawan whom he loved as the daughter he would never have. Just like he could not deny her mother when she had begged him to give her away at her and Kavin?s wedding all those years ago. He was glad that Troy and Keera both decided to leave the order instead of taking the path her parents had. He would not be able to stand to see Keera go through the pain he knew Miri had during Kavin?s long absences.

Soon the wedding was over, and the reception started. He smiled as the happy couple cut the cake and wound up getting more of the pieces on their faces then in their mouths. He shared in the joy Keera felt and was happy for her. So caught up in the sensation of the moment, Tiin did not notice when Miri and Kavin came to him.

?Tiin, I?m so happy you came!? Miri hugged him. ?I?ve missed you.?

Tiin did not have time to raise his shields when their eyes met. ?I missed you, too.? He said hoarsely as he struggled to hide how his pulse quickened at her embrace. Looking into Miri?s eyes, he knew it was too late. She knows! He quickly raised his shields once more and pulled away from her. He looked away from Miri?s astonished gaze when Kavin put a hand on his shoulder.

?Thank you for coming, my friend.?

Tiin swallowed and smiled, hoping the expression did not show his misgiving. ?A stampede of wild rancor couldn?t keep me from Keera?s wedding.? When his eyes met Kavin?s he saw in his friend a peace that he had longed for himself. Ironic, he finds peace after leaving the order, and I still struggle for it. ?I?m sorry to say though, I must leave now. I just got a message right before the wedding to report to the council. They have a mission for me.? It was a lie, but Tiin felt he had to go now.

?That?s too bad. We were hoping you could stay for the night.? Kavin?s emerald eyes sparkled as he put an arm around Miri?s waist and gazed at his wife.

?Perhaps some other time, my friend.? Never, he thought as he caught Miri?s gaze once more and quickly looked away. ?I must go now.? Before anything more could be said, Tiin turned and hurried out.

Just as he reached the rented landspeeder, he heard Miri call out to him. Just go, pretend you didn?t hear her. Against his better judgment, Tiin stood with his hand on the access panel and waited for her to catch up to him. He kept his back turned to her as she placed a gentle hand on his.

?Tiin,? she whispered. ?Look at me.?

As always, he found he could not keep from doing her bidding. He turned slowly and looked into her deep brown eyes.

?How long??

Tiin said nothing, but let his shields drop as he pictured the first time he felt the pang of love for her, when they were but younglings.

?Why didn?t you say anything??

?Because Kavin felt the same way,? Tiin realized for the first time as he said it, that it was not because he chose the Jedi Order over Miri that he said nothing. If Kavin had not felt the same way, or if it had been any other person who rivaled his love for Miri, he would have revealed to her his love for her.

?Oh, Tiin,? Miri reached her hand up to touch his cheek, and Tiin knew then, that if it had not been for Kavin, it would be himself Miri would have loved, and Keera would have been his daughter in truth.

This understanding both elated and cut him to the core. The fact that she could possib

 

This is only a tiny portion of the recent chapter that contains the cliffhanger.

---

As they walked through the gardens, Luke glanced over his shoulder to see Wedge Antilles behind

a bush, giving him the thumbs up. Everything was ready and the grounds of the gardens were

secure. Luke and Mara had complete privacy.



As they rounded the corner to the plaque where Mara's friend's name was etched in the stone,

Luke stopped. He put his arm around Mara comfortingly and then turned her to face him. Mara

wondered what was going on, when Luke got down on one knee and fished out a box from his

pocket. Her eyes widened in amazement as he opened the box and showed her a beautiful

diamond ring, which in the moonlight sparkled green on top.



"Mara, will you marry me?"



Mara opened her mouth to answer him.

 

MsLanna ? Great action scene. I could just picture it. Now we see that Lorna is out or is she?

ardavenport ? Loved the descriptions. Gives it a kind of spooky feeling. LOL on the blaster muzzle and the familiar voice. Could be anyone!

The_Face ? I love that Alias won with Idiot's Array but why is Mara after him? I guess we'll find out eventually. Thanks, Face!

MsLanna ? Cade Skywalker is the hero of the new Legacy comics. An anti-hero until you find out that his whole life was destroyed by the Sith. He's been running ever since. I love to read about him. He's a great character, full of angst and dark secrets. LOL on the selling him insurance

Alexis ? I liked that the two main characters were interacting and didn't realize that they were being watched. Now we have to wonder who is watching and what they are going to do about it.

Jedi_Liz - that was sweet. Now we have to think if Mara will say yes or no.

 

Here's my humble contribution to exercise two. I guess I've been saving this bit in my back pocket but just haven't got a chance to use it yet.

I'll apologize in advance for length and usage of OCs.

---

[i]0201 hours, 4/6/7 (Imperial Calendar)
Coruscant, Column Commons[/i]

A jet-black Koro-2 sports utility speeder with bright yellow racing stripes shot through Column Commons far beyond the speed limit. Pursuing it was a black-and-white Imperial patrol speeder, sirens blaring and blasters blazing.

The pilot of the patrol speeder carefully matched the weaving motions of the fleeing perpetrator around the massive columns that gave the district its name. After a close call with a civilian vehicle cries of protest began to rise.

"You're going to get us killed!" Lyja Korvin shouted as she dug her fingernails into the back of the driver's seat. She was a very nervous young woman who worked best alone, without reckless drivers.

"So?" Murdak Kulik replied smoothly from the seat in front of her as he twisted the controls to keep the speeder aligned with the Koro-2. "You coulda stayed at home." Kulik believed himself shrewd, which was true, and an excellent pilot, which changed depending on who you asked to confirm this.

The patrol speeder swooped low underneath a particularly bulky speeder truck as the passenger to Murdak's right pointed to the column on the left. "He's getting away!" The Koro-2 pulled around into a corkscrew dive circling the column, dangerously close to the wall.

Murdak grunted and moved into a similar dive, a hair's-breadth from the column. "Thanks, Keela."

Lyja looked out her window to see sheets of metal and transparisteel blurring past, close enough to lick with her tongue. "You're going to turn us into a smear on someone's apartment window!"

"Relax, Korvin." Keela Worner called back to her. "Murdak's the best pilot I know." Keela was considered a seasoned veteran of these sorts of missions, but if you said it to her face you could find yourself breathing through a straw for the next week. Her actual age was a mystery to most.

The words 'best pilot' were hardly out of her mouth when the side of the speeder scrapped the wall, sending sparks spraying across the left side. "We can just buff that out later, right?" Murdak asked, half-joking.

"Eyes on the route! Eyes on the route!" Lyja shrieked as Murdak quickly adjusted his grip on the dual throttle levers and pulled out of the corkscrew dive just after the Koro-2 as it maneuvered behind another building. The chase was exiting the Commons and entering Calocour Hights, with its sheer buildings and criss-crossing paths connecting them.

Murdak swooped under and over the pathways, dodging other airspeeders while keeping the Koro-2 in his sights. "Backseat pilot." he muttered under his breath as he brooded on Lyja's incessant reminders.

"Look out!"

"I'm looking! I'm looking! Now shut up!" The speeder twisted in the air, falling into a tailspin as the Koro-2 dropped into a controlled nose-dive. Walkways brushed past them as the descent continued, both craft reaching terminal velocity.

"Don't fire!" Keela told Murdak. "He's drawn us into a sector with too many civilians. Blast! We can't outrun a speeder like that."

Murdak raised an eyebrow suspiciously. "I'm Corellian. Guys like us, we're not accustomed to losing in contests of speed, ma'am."

"Corellian or not, I'm bringing in back-up." Lyja declared while drawing out her comm. "Just in case we die in a horrible crash, someone will be able to salvage whatever's left of our corpses."

"No!" In an amazing display of complete disregard for safety and traffic laws, Murdak turned around in his seat and smacked the comm out Lyja's hand.

"What the hell?!"

Murdak seized the controls again just in time to swerve out of the way of a passing transport. "We can't call in back-up on this one! They'll ruin everything!" Nothing mattered more to Murdak than bringing in this perp. [i]Nothing.[/i]

Their surroundings were beginning to warp into not

 

Darth_Manion - great chase scene and I loved the banter. The last sentence was great - a wonderful cap to the whole thing.

 

Here is one from a current story that I am doing:

Anakin was in the center of the alley. Suddenly, some strange creatures approached the young Jedi. They were heavily armed and pointed their blasters squarely at him. "Come with us," they ordered him, "Over my dead body," Anakin sneered as he sliced through a few of the creatures while deflecting the shots of blaster fire from the others who were not surprised by his actions.

Anakin raged with fury as he dispensed of one creature after another. Soon, there was only three left. They looked at each other and all raced at him at one time. Anakin calmed himself and jumped at the last second over the raging creatures. They all collided into each other and fell to the damp floor. Anakin landed and slaughtered the last three in one swift stroke from his blade. His alarm sense sounded but it was too late as a mysterious dark figure succumbed him from behind.

Anakin collapsed to the damp floor as the darkness peered over his unconscious form. "Prepare him," the cloaked dark figure ordered. "Yes, Master," Mas Amedda replied as he came out of the shadows.

 

See.

The Internet is just evil. Keeping me away from the workshop for so long, and forcing me to play catchup! Hopefully I will be around much more frequently from now on


Face ? All card games are essentially poker as far as I?m concerned

First off, great to see Alias Sibul again ? up to his old tricks. His confrontation with Mara Jade was excellently handled, and I do hope you wind up posting this as part of a larger story. As for the cliffhanger element ? What?s Mara and Alias?s history? And how will Alias get himself out of this one? Great addition!


Diane ? Excellent scene! Nice reveal of Cade?s situation and the appearance of ghostly Luke. And I think I?m running into a recurring problem running the cliffhangers workshop ? I?m itching with anticipation to find out the resolutions to them all I can?t wait to see who we?ve got approaching Cade and what?s going to happen to him!


Alexis ? I really like this cliffhanger you?ve set up. It?s a bit different to the standard ?and then the enterprise fired on the Borg Cube? setup and it?s very effective. Gah, who?s watching? Great response


Jedi_Liz ? Hah, wow, I think yours is the one that had me most in a frazzle about what would happen next I was waiting for an announcer?s voice to come on and say ?What will Mara?s Answer be? We?ll find out right after these messages!?. And that is the essence of cliffhanger Great stuff!


Manion ? Agreed with Diane, great scene on its own merits ? and the cliffhanger itself is a nail-biter. Breaking from action in mid-freefall means that the characters are very much on the line. The possibilities for their miraculous escape ? or lack thereof? ? are exciting. Great post!


RXSith ? Oh no, Anakin?s down! And hmm, who is this mysterious cloaked figure that is having him prepared? And what are they preparing him for?? Ah, I knew a cliffhanger workshop would drive me crazy


Excellent responses everyone! I will post up my own shortly and then we can continue with the next part of the exercises. I hope you like what I have in store, but then again if you have other suggestions I am more than welcoming

 

^^^^^^ At some point this year, Ms. Lanna, I'm gonna need to breathe.



Manion: "A jet-black Koro-2 sports utility speeder with bright yellow racing stripes..."
Yellow makes things go faster!
Had to quote that.

I've come in a little late for this, so I'll just sit back and see what the next exercise is before I contribute.



...Or, will I?

Tune in next time!

 

Alexis Who is watching them? And what will that person do?
I have to admit that I had to read it twice before I got all the relationships between the charcters. Probably no wonder I have little socail life when i can't even get this straight in one go.

Jedi_Liz Well, Luke did prepare this little meeting, making sure they're undisturbed.
What will she say?
Even though in the end she'll say 'yes' - except if it's AU, you never know there - depending on where they are in their relationship, tha answer might be still no.

Manion Great chase! And the question is, in what shape are they going into the trash, or in how many pieces per person. The banter ws very good. And things like scraping a bulidling when he was just called best pilot made it funny.

RX_Sith Prepare him for what? Sacrifice? Marriage? As dinner?

No, Yod, you don't. All you have to do is post the second part of that Most Evil Cliffie.

 

Great responses everyone!

I haven't been around much because I'm dealing with a crazy schedule right now but I do have a little something to post. I hope it's not too vague

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Anakin slowly drifted into consciousness, wincing against the pain that began to spread throughout his entire body.

?Hello,? a soft voice greeted as a cool, gentle hand was placed against his forehead.

?Wha?,? Anakin?s eyes fluttered open, blinking quizzically at the stranger hovering over him.

?Who are you? What happened?? He struggled to sit up only to fall immediately back against the pillows.

?Easy,? the stranger advised. ?You?ve had a rough few days.?

Anakin grimaced, reaching for the Force to help ease the pain.

?This should help.?

He barely felt the slight prick of a needle, focusing instead on the wave of numbness washing over him.

?Where?am?I?? he gasped.

?If there?s a bright center to the Universe, you?re on the planet it?s farthest from,? the amused voice quipped.

?Wha???

?Just rest for now.? Slender fingers eased his eyes shut. ?I promise I?ll answer all your questions when you?re feeling better.?

Anakin sighed, allowing himself to completely relax, hoping the blackness would claim him quickly.

Suddenly, his eyes flew open in a panic. ?Obi-Wan!? He jolted upwards, grabbing the stranger?s tunic. ?Where?s Obi-Wan?? He demanded.

The stranger?s eyes flickered with confusion for a brief moment. ?You mean your traveling companion??

Anakin nodded. ?Where is he? Is he all right??

The stranger inhaled deeply. ?You really should rest -,?

?Tell me!? Anakin shouted. ?Tell me now!?

The stranger inhaled deeply before wrapping shaking fingers around Anakin?s hands, squeezing tightly. ?Very well, but you must agree to let me tell you everything before you react.?

Anakin?s heart began to pound. ?Okay,? he breathed. ?Tell me everything.?

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

What exactly has happened is meant to be revealed in layers, hopefully keeping the reader guessing and anxious to read more.

 

Okay, I?ve finally got it ready.

---

Xia Shadao crept softly into the dimly lit chamber, looking around furtively.

[i]This was too easy. If this smelled like a setup before, it was saturated of the stench now.[/i]

The exiled Falleen knew that it was a very bad idea returning to her homeworld. Cousin Xizor would do everything in his power to enact his revenge for Xia?s last act before leaving Falleen, which was to knock him unconscious and leave him alive. For a Falleen warrior, to have one?s life spared by an enemy is to live in a state of shame. The only resolution would be to kill the one who enacted the indignity.

She told Xizor that she would not return unless he threatened another member of her family. The hope was that Xizor would ignore her, keep his focus on running the Black Sun, and not bother wasting time and resources trying to find her. She was also hoping that she instilled enough fear in him that he wouldn?t bother even trying to draw her back here, giving her the motivation to do what she could have done that day when Xizor?s throat felt the fine edge of one of her Zuute blades.

Her friend and employer, Jaysatt Timbre, learned by way of his extensive network of contacts that an ancient Falleen artifact, one which was well known to be a Shadao family heirloom, was going to be auctioned off, with the proceeds to be used to fund the Falleen Homeworld Group.

The Falleen in general were a rather isolationist people, but naturally some felt that the Falleen ought to be more involved in galactic matters. Xia?s parents were just that sort. The organization called the Falleen Homeworld Group was on the other end of the spectrum, and she knew that such an act was in complete contradiction to her parent?s character. The artifact should have been passed on to her uncle, or at least donated to a museum.

The auction was a sham?a deliberate violation of the family wishes; of that she was sure. There could be only one explanation, as Jaysatt exclaimed as she was preparing to leave on her personal mission.

?It?s a trap,? Jaysatt cried. ?You know it, and I know it.?

Xia sighed. She was touched by the burly human?s sentiment; especially knowing that he was beginning to consider her like a little sister. That was a feeling that she wasn?t quite ready to reciprocate ? Falleen isolationist and superiority concepts were a hard thing to eradicate quickly, even for a family who was less entrenched by it; but she did feel some affection for him. She was determined not to let him see it, however. There was still an element of Falleen pride to consider.

?I must go, Jaysatt. I appreciate your concern, but you won?t sway me.?

?Then let me help you,? Jaysatt conceded. In the following week he gleaned what he could from contacts on Falleen. They knew when the auction was to occur, where, and most importantly he was able to learn of the security system being implemented. It cost him several favors, which he earned some years ago. Utilizing his slicer skills, he sketched out an itinerary of actions for Xia to follow in order to slip by the systems. He wished to accompany her, but she wouldn?t allow it.

Getting into the building through a back door via Jaysatt?s instructions was easy, and that almost made her suspicious but she knew that Jaysatt?s skills were to be acknowledged as well. For an auction house that held some rare items, the security was a little bland, and that was what kept her awareness razor sharp: no weight sensor pads on the floor, infrared scanners, or even temperature sensors.

She reached the podium upon which the artifact sat. The item was a necklace, whose chain was of gold. The centerpiece of the jewelry was a feline creature, carved from a rare stone which was gray, laced with glittering streaks of jade. It didn?t appear to be protected by anything but a simple glass case, which Jaysatt?s info suggested but Xia still couldn?t believe it.

On wall behind the prize was a door, which was ajar. The architectural plans described the room it lea

 

Oh, reading all these bits has been great! They're all like little bite-sized fics in their own right! That said, I've just cooked up a second one. Can I post that one, too? Although I can't promise I'll be able to come up with satisfactory solutions for both. Or either.

 

thanks for the comments on my cliffhanger. It was inspired by that season 2 Lois & Clark cliffhanger.

I admit I only skimmed the other cliffhangers.

 

RX_Sith ? Prepare him???? For whom? Great cliffhanger.

KELIA ? that certainly upped the tension as we went along. A cliffhanger but one that has a lot of things going on. I also want to know where Obi-Wan is.

BigE ? Loved the backstory and the way Xia tried to hide after stealing the jewels. Loved the explosion description!

 

Woot?? Some of you don't have resolutions yet? Now I'm worried to be kept hanging here forever.

Btw, Yodimus saved my life and posted the second part of his Most Evil Cliffie. Thanks a lot.

Back to this thread.

KELIA great outset. I want to know what happened? And who is that stranger?. And why it is important to hear all of the story. Bet Anakin will freak out somewhere in the middle.

BigE Is she still alive? Can she fight?

Jedi_Liz. Go back and read, you're really missing out on something good there.

 

MsLanna, I don't have a resolution either. I find it's easier to come up with a cliffhanger than to resolve it.