On a nearby landing pad, a sleek black craft landed smoothly. The ship was of Naboo design, one of the famed Royal Starships. One of the larger versions, a full hundred meters long. It was an old ship, but a lot of work had gone into upgrading it and keeping it maintained. As was the case with most older ships, it was far from stock, though it still held the famed Nubian hyperdrive. Two hatches opened and lowered to the ground, one from the passenger area and the other the cargo space. The usual banter following a long trip commenced as crewmen began unloading a few things that would be needed, particularly the speeder.
From the other hatch a few people exited, mostly crew, except for one. He was a tall Gand, and for once he was dressed rather nicely, though still in his usual black. It wasn't often Jander Sunstar attended parties, and it had been ages since he had been to Naboo. Some people thought his black clothes were a bit much, too dark when combined with the midnight blue of his carapace, a color limited to his tribe amongst the Gand, but he liked it. His clothes were very nice and he’d had his carapace decorated in ornate black designs. Though he looked like a noble for the moment, nothing of his movement came across that way. Every movement me made without intentionally changing it reeked of military and martial training. The Gand was obviously a warrior.
Checking his cloak to make sure it’s fitted properly, Jander approached the speeder, now fully prepped and took his seat behind the controls. It wasn’t the newest model but it was kept looking nice, and performed outstanding. Starting it up, he took off for the palace. It was a short trip, and approximately ten minutes later the speeder pulled up in front of the palace. Sunstar hopped out and another Phantom who had rode with him took it off to be parked, completely ignoring the valet. The Gand marched up the steps, his long cloak barely keeping off the ground as it trailed behind him. Two doormen opened the doors as he approached and standing tall he walked inside. He’d gotten less than three steps when the herald began speaking.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, I now present Jendar Nosfu Sonstaa, Leader of the Phantoms and Kaalif of the Arahj Kaalif’taa. Also known as Jander Sunstar of Gand.”
His head spun with the introduction. Behind his depths of his compound eyes Jander was furious. He clenched his fists inside his cloak as well. Somehow they’d not only found out about his titles, but his Gandish name. Things like this were not supposed to happen. The Kaalif made a mental note to find out what had gone wrong and closed his eyes for a moment, bringing forth a touch of his Findsman meditation he’d learned many years ago to calm him. Once finished the double lids of his eyes fluttered back open and he quickly scanned the room. The party had certainly drawn some big wigs of all sorts, particularly from amongst the force-using population. Jedi, Rogue Jedi, Shadow Jedi, Sith, the whole gamut of the force was in attendance.
These weren’t of interest to him right now. Off in the distance, near the bar and what appeared to be Sabaac tables Jander thought he saw someone familiar. A better glance confirmed it. Striding through the room gracefully, he made his way closer to a small group having a conversation. As he closed he saw the group was made up of a woman and two men talking. He knew the woman, as a Solo she was famous, and one of the men was his reason for approaching. The other was an unknown.
Reaching their sides, the Kaalif bowed slightly as they turned to see him. “Greetings one and all. Lady Darklighter, we have not had the pleasure of meeting. As the herald said, I am Jander Sunstar of Gand.”
While a warrior, Jander was chivalrous, and he took her hand and kissed the back before releasing it. Turning to the men he spoke again. “John, it’s good to see you again. Checking in on old haunts it seems?” He smiled, and while waiting for a reply spoke to the third man. “Now you sir, I don’t believe I’ve met, nor had the privilege of hearing of you before. Please, introduce yourself.”
