"I said do not hurt the merchandise you kriffin imbecile. Four words, FOUR! How hard is that to understand?!" A loud, angry voice sounded out inside of the dark room.
"I-I'm sorry boss. It was just, she charged right at me with that spoon I just reacted on reflex." A nervous voice answered.
The person which the first voice belonged to stopped his previous pacing staring right at the person in front of him before a warm smile spread out on his face.
"Oh, she charged at you with a weapon? I see then it all makes sense. I'm so sorry for yelling at you earlier, and please accept my sincerest apologies."
A relieved smile spread across the owner of the second voice's face.
"Oh don't worry about it boss we all make mistakes, the importa-."
The guy got cut off halfway through his sentence by a blaster bolt hitting him in the face. The person who had stood in front of him had drawn his blaster and shot him. Holstering his weapon, he went over to the door which let out of the small storeroom.
Opening the door, he entered a large room that was dimly lit by blue lights that were hung on the walls. All around him was the sound of cheering and yelling from the drunk pirates which were located in the room. Some were passed out on the sandstone floor others were located at the bar in the middle of the room chatting.
Ignoring all the noise around him, he headed straight for another, which let into his office. He quickly entered the room and closed the door muting all the noise from outside. He was also greeted by a female Rodian leaning against his desk.
"What were you doing in the storeroom Hulma?" She asked with her huge red eyes narrowed.
Hulma answered while making his way past the bookshelves and display cases on the wall heading towards his chair that sat behind the desk.
"Cutting down on staff." He answered simply before sitting down in his chair and swinging both his legs on top of the desk leaning back in his chair.
"Again? This is the third time this week!" The Rodian spun around putting heavily, slamming her palms down onto the desk. "You can't just keep killing the crew! How the kriff are we going to get anything done if there is no one left to do it?!"
Hulma just rolled his eyes before he pulled out a Cigarra from his captain's jacket and igniting it. Just when he was about to put it to his lips and take a draw, he noticed the unamused expression on his oldest friends face.
"Come on, Viera. I can't work with these morons! I mean the guy shot a girl because she came at him with a spoon. A SPOON! They are screwing up at a time where screwing up can get us all killed." Explained Hulma in an exasperated manner before taking a draw from his Cigarra and blowing the smoke into the room.
"I told you that making that deal with that Tyranus guy was going to spell trouble!" Viera put a large green hand to her forehead. "I mean kidnapping a Senator's son has just put us on the Republics most wanted list, what does that Tyranus even want with a Senator's son for?"
Hulma swung his legs down from the desk and sat up straighter yet still leaned back against the chair.
"Don't know, don't care." He began rubbing the fingertips of the hand not holding the Cigarra together "All I know is he wants that Senator brat, and that he pays a lot, and frankly that's enough for me."
"What about the Republic? What if they send a Jedi?" Asked Viera in a calmer tone than she had used before.
Hulma, hearing the last word burst out into laughter.
"Jedi? Hahaha, now that's funny! Those robe wearing weirdos never leave their little Temple on Coruscant. Though even if one did..." Hulma patted the blaster attached to his waist. "They would die the same as the rest."
Viera sighed wearily.
"Let's just get this over with and leave this dustball of a planet." After having said this, she walked towards the door, preparing to leave, probably to do something about the body in the storeroom, but she was interrupted by Hulma's voice.
"Listen, Viera, you're my oldest and only friend, and I love you like a sister, but should you ever, and I do mean ever, question my decisions again I will have to cut you off as well."
Viera did not respond but did softly nod her head before leaving the room, closing the door behind her.
Seeing that she had left Hulma put out his Cigarra before standing up and heading over to one of the bookcases. Pulling on a little red book, a part of the bookcase slid to the left, revealing a black safe place in the wall behind it.
Hulma entered the combination to the safe making the metal door open with a 'hiss' revealing its contents, a heavy blaster pistol, a couple stacks of credits, a bottle of expensive liquor and a holopicture.
He grabbed the holopicture and the liquor bottle before he closed the safe and headed back over to his desk. He placed the holopicture on his desk before sitting down in his chair and taking a big sip of the liquid inside the bottle.
After feeling the burning in his throat and the lightness in his head, he placed the bottle onto the desk beside the holopicture.
He grabbed the holopicture and looked at the hologram which he had looked at a thousand times before. It was a hologram of a young girl with the same features as Hulma. Feeling the pain spread through his chest, he quickly put it away.
He covered his face with his hands before slowly dragging them down, looking slightly up at the ceiling of the room. A couple of tears rolling down his cheeks while he whispered something to himself.
"Don't worry honey. Daddy will bring you back."
***
Sar was currently located in a seedy bar underneath one of the huts located near the port. He had followed Alistar all the way from the alleyway to here. He had been told constantly to pull down the cloak covering his face since it just made him draw more attention than without it, well according to Alistar at least.
Sar and Alistar were sitting next to each other while Alistar was currently trying to gather information from the weird looking alien manning the bar.
"I keep telling you that 200 credits for that kind of information is way too much!" Alistar was apparently getting frustrated at the alien, though Sar could not understand what the alien was saying.
"Swa'lrk Lok'st Vasm'rt Raik'st Vo'lerst." Replied the alien in its foreign language.
"What do you mean I ripped you off last time?! That is a most offensive accusation. We will take our business elsewhere then." Alistar quickly tried to make me stand up so we could leave, but before we could even leave the bar area, three shady looking men blocked our path their hands on their holstered blasters.
Sar did not need to know the language the alien spoke to realize they were in trouble. He leaned over and whispered harshly in the green Bounty Hunters ear.
"What did you do to that guy?!"
"How was I supposed to know he was holding a grudge over a tiny disagreement," Alistar whispered back trying to defend himself.
"What kind of disagreement?!" Sar did not let up and once again whispered into the lizard's ear, the pirates around them still blocking their path.
Alistar mumbled something while looking down.
"What was that." Asked Sar since he could not understand what had just been said.
"I may be, probably, could have, accidentally stolen 3000 credits worth of goods from him," Alistar repeated this time clearly though he seemed to fumble over the first part of his words.
"You what?!" Shouted Sar so shocked that he forgot to whisper, making the alien shout something in its languages.
"Pl'umst!"
This seemed to be some sort of command as both the three men in front of him and Alistar quickly drew their blasters. Sar lit his lightsaber just in time for him to block the bolt that had been fired by the person in front of him.
Alistar, at the same time, managed to shoot the person in front of him through the chest, making him collapse to the ground. Sar used a Force Push to blast the two other people backward, making them hit some guys table breaking it and spilling the drinks that were placed on it.
Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
This seemed to trigger a chain reaction as everyone in the bar stood up from their seats and aimed their blasters at the two young men. Sar and Alistar looked at each other before they both turned around and sprinted towards the exit.
All the while, blaster bolts shot past them. Sar blocked the blaster bolts heading toward both him and Alistar, while the latter occasionally turned around and fired his blaster into the crowd of pirates and smugglers chasing after them.
Managing to get back to the surface the Alister spotted a Speeder parked in front of the hut they came out from. Alister quickly got Sar's attention and pointed towards the Speeder.
"I can splice it so we can use it to get out of here!" Yelled Alistar while running toward the Speeder. While Alistar jumped on top of the Speeder, Sar turned around and used the Force on the sandstone doorway of the hut making it collapse and block the exit, though it would not last long.
It only took Alistar a couple of seconds before he managed to get the Speeder powered up, making it hover slightly above the ground. Turning in his seat he yelled to Sar.
"Quick get on!"
Sar didn't hesitate and turned off his lightsaber and jumped on top of the Speeder. Seeing that Sar was on, Alistar turned back around and grabbed the handles of the Speeder, making it zoom ahead.
The Speeder sped through the market, making the people on the street jump to the side to avoid getting hit, all manner of profanities was yelled after them as they sped past. They quickly got out of the small spaceport turned shady marketplace and entered the desserts of Srilomnia.
After they had driven for a couple of minutes in the desert and the port was no longer in sight, Sar patted Alistar on the shoulder to get his attention before shouting to be heard over the noise of the wind around them.
"I think we can stop here; I can't sense anyone following us!"
Alistar nodded his head and quickly pressed the breaks bringing the Speeder to a stop on top of one of the many sand dunes.
They both got off the Speeder before sitting down beside each other in the warm sands. There was a minute of silence before Alistar broke the silence.
"Well, that could have gone better." He spoke in the same raspy voice, but somehow he managed to sound a bit embarrassed.
Sar snapped his head to the Bounty Hunter.
"You think?! What gave you the bright idea to ask for information from someone you stole from?!" Sar sounded both baffled and angered though his anger was well under control.
Alistar scratched the top of his scaly head while answering.
"Well he was the guy I usually go to for information, and I didn't think he knew it was me who robbed him."
Hearing Alistars answer made Sar raise an eyebrow.
"You rob from the people you deal with? How does anyone trust you then?" Asked Sar confused at how anyone would trust Alistar with anything if he stole from his partners.
Alistar seemed to find the question stupid as he just snorted and replied in a bitter voice.
"Trust? You have been living in your temple for too long Sar. This isn't the Inner or Middle-Rim this is the Outer-Rim, and out here there are only two things you can trust, credits and yourself."
Sar frowned at the answer.
"Then why are you out here working with me? I can't imagine there are enough credits in this job for you to defy the Hutt's." This was the main thing that still had Sar confused.
From what Alistar seemed to tell him it seemed he agreed with the earlier statement yet he was willing to work with some a Jedi on a job that put his life at risk. Even if the pay was good, he was still putting all his bets on a single stranger which didn't seem to align with what had just been said.
Alistar seemed to realize this too as he sighed and looked out at the desert before he began speaking.
"I don't want to tell you my whole life story so I will keep it short. Back when I was still a little kid, my father would tell me stories about how the Jedi saved people." Alistar put his hand down on the sand and began digging in it while he continued. "I wanted to be just like that, saving people I mean, so I would just sit and listen for hours to his stories."
Sar seemed to sense great pain and sorrow for Alistar.
"One morning, however, some of the Hutt's henchmen came to our house, said we hadn't paid what we owed and that they had come to collect interest." Alistar clenched his clawed hand and gritted his teeth. "When my dad told them he couldn't pay, they shot him, all over 30 credits."
Sar and Alistar both sat in silence for a while before Alistar continued.
"There wasn't anyone there to help my dad, no Jedi, and no Republic was there to help. So I guess when I was passing through the Middle-Rim, and I heard talk about the Senate looking to hire a Bounty Hunter to guide a Jedi I wanted to see for myself if the stories my dad told me were true."
After having heard Alistars story, Sar just sat there ashamed. He had looked down on the people here thought them nothing more than, thieves and liars, but most of all he was ashamed that his Order who called themselves protectors of the galaxy are doing nothing to help the Outer-Rim.
"I'm sorry for the loss of your father, Alister. I know that this won't bring him back, but please help me prove to you that your father's stories about the Jedi weren't lies." Sar put a hand on his lizard friends shoulder and looked into his eyes as he said this.
Alistar looked at Sar for a moment before he stood back up and got on the Speeder. A smile had returned to his face as he addressed Sar.
"I think I might know another way to find our slaver friend."
Sar smiled at Alistar's answer and jumped onto the Speeder as well, before they both raced off across the sand heading in the direction of whatever Alistar had been talking about.
***
"This is your genius plan?!" Whispered a worried Sar into the ear of the lizard lying next to him.
"Well have you got a better idea?" Whispered the lizard back.
The two were currently laying prone on top of a small rock formation that jutted out of the desert. Below them were the parked Speeder they had used to get there. They were currently looking at a rather larger compound. It consisted of an electric fence which entrance was guarded by two guards.
Inside of the fence was located small pens which each held about ten slaves. These pens were guarded by even more men. In the middle of the compound was a tall metal tower.
All in all, it looked like a well-guarded fortress. Sar once again whispered to Alistar.
"Could you just repeat the plan one more time?"
Alistar sighed but replied anyway.
"You sneak into the tower, find Hulma's lieutenant, asks him about Hulma's location. Then you sneak into the control room and shut down the fences surrounding the slaves freeing them, while I cover their escape with my rifle." Alistar repeated the plan like he had done two times before.
"Okay, but what if I get noticed before I reach the lieutenant?" Asked Sar.
He could understand that they would have to find another way to get information, and he did want to help the slaves but was this really the only way?
"I don't know, improvise, use your Jedi tricks to tie him up or something." Sar was about to retort that, that wasn't how the Force worked but just swallowed his retort back down, instead simply saying.
"Fine, but you better have me covered or I'm coming back to haunt you." And with that Sar was on his way toward the electric fence.
Alistar just snorted.
"Ha! Who does he think he's talking to?" Alistar sat up slinging his blaster rifle off his shoulder and aiming down the sight. "I'm the best damn shot in the Outer-Rim."
This plan was shaky at best and idiotic at worst, but unfortunately, the two didn't have the luxury of time, so this was the best they could come up within a short amount of time. Though the plan was like killing two birds with one stone, they could help a couple of slaves, while also finding out about Hulma's whereabouts.
This was where the mission truly began.