They mustn't stay up here too long, but this bizarre stranger has bought them a bit of time. Alone together on the rooftop, Cassian switched off the red beam but kept the blaster pointed—now between the Doctor's eyes.
(This close, there were signs—old scars and callouses, expert angle of arms and steadiness of hands, aim never changing even as his eyes darted ceaselessly—that someone of the Doctor's deductive level could identify Cassian as a sharpshooter. At this range, he would not miss.)
For Cassian, so many questions, that observation alone hadn't helped. (Cassian's deductive abilities were far below the Doctor's, of course.) But okay. Information always has hierarchies. —In this case, there was also potential for—
"Show me what you just showed them," Cassian said. He'd seen the Doctor pocket the paper, so Cassian gestured slightly with the blaster, both in instruction and to reemphasize the threat. "Take it back out slowly."
If anything, it does confirm some sort of war going on and the person holding the gun at The Doctor has been fighting the war for a very long time. There's sympathy in The Doctor's eyes and a clear reflection that someone else has been at war before. The Doctor, slowly, takes out the psychic paper and shows that to the other. The Doctor isn't afraid even if he can tell that someone is a good shooter. If anything, his face seems to be up the challenge of staring down the bottom of a barrel.
Telepathy existed in the Galaxy. The purest kind was mostly considered extinct (or fictional) along with the Jedi, but the more you travel, the more difference you see between species, that one's 'Hello' seems to another like magic. Cassian's least favorite example: Falleen communication included the conscious control of pheromones. If talking to a Falleen while Human, you not only couldn't understand that level of discourse, you wouldn't even know it was happening, and could be affected by it almost to the level of mind control.
The idea of a handheld device that could identify facts about a person—emotional state via microexpression, allegiance via insignia, etc—and then advise how to interact with them was also not too far fetched. None existed yet that was more (or even as) reliable as a sentient operative—be it organic or droid—but they could work surprisingly well, especially if you knew in advance what species and other likeliest settings you'd be dealing with. (Not that you could get facial expression from a stormtrooper, but they emoted a surprising amount from body language. That armor stood in for many lapses of training. And didn't hold up to it.)
The idea that a device could be psychic… that would seem laughable to Cassian, but it was a big Galaxy, he'd seen more of it than most, and the more he saw of it, the fewer things he would rule out.
So, those were fine… the question was, what could the paper possibly show that Cassian would buy as convincing the Troopers to obey this man in civvies in those outrageous circumstances, yet also show enough cracks to convince Cassian to trust him, at least not to kill on sight? Cassian knew the intricacies of these systems so well, his nature and his job was to interrogate everything and look through the layers…
Whatever he saw (if he saw anything at all), Cassian's eyes flickered from the paper back to the Doctor. Nothing about his stance or expression changed at all. (Including blaster aim.)
"You said 'this way'," said Cassian. "How did you know who I am, where I'd be, and where would you take me?"
The Doctor watches during the silence, trying to get more of a read on the other man but someone seems to be a trained soldier and usually, the job is to not express emotions. He does wonder what the other is seeing because sometimes the psychic paper doesn't work. Either The Doctor is lying too much and claiming to be 'responsible' or the other is too smart, like Shakespeare.
However, he's not dead - yet. So that means someone is still useful. The Doctor remarks calmly, "I don't know who you are. I saw you running and usually when you're the one running away, that means the other thing is chasing you and most likely trying to kill you... Yeeeeeeeeah, the thing is - I'm not exactly sure where my ship landed me."
Cassian frowned so hard it hurt. Are you kidding me…?! —a thought that, if he believed in it, was probably aimed at the Force.
"I don't have time for this," said Cassian. "You're on the Ring of Kafrene. Get away from this alley and into the city. Whatever you need, you can probably find it. Just keep your wits about you to avoid being pickpocketed or scammed. And avoid troopers like those. I don't know what you showed them but don't push your luck. Does your ship still work?"
[ooc: however the Doctor responds, Cas won't actually leave him behind]
The Ring of Kafrene? The Doctor focuses hard on his memory bank. Kafrene! Has he been to a Kafrene? During this time, The Doctor seems to be giving off a golden glow. Fourteen pulls his face, he can't pin-point a Kafrene.
"Yeah. Sorry, not ringing any bells and I'm a bit well-traveled. She needs to recharge. Bit of a crash landing. Should be find in about 12 hours."
The Doctor, on the other hand, doesn't look so well. If anything looks like he might throw up.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
(This close, there were signs—old scars and callouses, expert angle of arms and steadiness of hands, aim never changing even as his eyes darted ceaselessly—that someone of the Doctor's deductive level could identify Cassian as a sharpshooter. At this range, he would not miss.)
For Cassian, so many questions, that observation alone hadn't helped. (Cassian's deductive abilities were far below the Doctor's, of course.) But okay. Information always has hierarchies. —In this case, there was also potential for—
"Show me what you just showed them," Cassian said. He'd seen the Doctor pocket the paper, so Cassian gestured slightly with the blaster, both in instruction and to reemphasize the threat. "Take it back out slowly."
no subject
no subject
no subject
no subject
The idea of a handheld device that could identify facts about a person—emotional state via microexpression, allegiance via insignia, etc—and then advise how to interact with them was also not too far fetched. None existed yet that was more (or even as) reliable as a sentient operative—be it organic or droid—but they could work surprisingly well, especially if you knew in advance what species and other likeliest settings you'd be dealing with. (Not that you could get facial expression from a stormtrooper, but they emoted a surprising amount from body language. That armor stood in for many lapses of training. And didn't hold up to it.)
The idea that a device could be psychic… that would seem laughable to Cassian, but it was a big Galaxy, he'd seen more of it than most, and the more he saw of it, the fewer things he would rule out.
So, those were fine… the question was, what could the paper possibly show that Cassian would buy as convincing the Troopers to obey this man in civvies in those outrageous circumstances, yet also show enough cracks to convince Cassian to trust him, at least not to kill on sight? Cassian knew the intricacies of these systems so well, his nature and his job was to interrogate everything and look through the layers…
Whatever he saw (if he saw anything at all), Cassian's eyes flickered from the paper back to the Doctor. Nothing about his stance or expression changed at all. (Including blaster aim.)
"You said 'this way'," said Cassian. "How did you know who I am, where I'd be, and where would you take me?"
no subject
However, he's not dead - yet. So that means someone is still useful. The Doctor remarks calmly, "I don't know who you are. I saw you running and usually when you're the one running away, that means the other thing is chasing you and most likely trying to kill you... Yeeeeeeeeah, the thing is - I'm not exactly sure where my ship landed me."
AAAAH I'm so sorry for being so slow!!
"I don't have time for this," said Cassian. "You're on the Ring of Kafrene. Get away from this alley and into the city. Whatever you need, you can probably find it. Just keep your wits about you to avoid being pickpocketed or scammed. And avoid troopers like those. I don't know what you showed them but don't push your luck. Does your ship still work?"
[ooc: however the Doctor responds, Cas won't actually leave him behind]
its fine <3
"Yeah. Sorry, not ringing any bells and I'm a bit well-traveled. She needs to recharge. Bit of a crash landing. Should be find in about 12 hours."
The Doctor, on the other hand, doesn't look so well. If anything looks like he might throw up.
Re: its fine <3
But how rare that the small battles don't have to be sacrificed to the larger ones?
One more glance around, then Cassian groaned and took the Doctor by the elbow. "Come with me."