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- #21
CHAPTER "TEASER": What Laili believed to be a simple smuggling mission on Manaan turns out to be a desperate battle between the Sith and the Republic with Laili and Ravinos stuck in the middle.
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<div align="center">MAYHEM ON MANAAN[/b]</div>
Within the blink of an eye, the Golden Way seemed to slow to almost a stop before launching forward into the starry tunnels of hyperspace travel. Within the cockpit, Laili pulled out a datapad and began looking through her orders from the queen. There were several stops the queen asked her to make within the coming weeks, but she was headed for her first stop on Manaan. According to her information, a friend that she knew only by the code name of Batipu would meet her in the western sector of Ahto City. Everything was supposedly in order, yet she knew that it was in times like that when smugglers had to be more cautious than ever.
After checking the fuel, she sat back down in the pilot’s seat, thinking of her intuitions about the darkness within her lover. It had certainly manifested itself when he had returned from Kashyyyk, though she would never admit to anyone about how she had felt the dark presence surrounding him. Ussej was the man she loved and she would do whatever she could to protect him and their possible child.
As the hours passed by, each of them less eventful than the one before it, she had taken the time to meditate and to seek to center herself, clearing her mind of the fight she had with Ussej. Such things were hard to do, though. As she approached Manaan, however, she sat back in the pilot’s chair and transmitted the newly changed identification signature of the vessel. The Selkath officials obviously saw no red flags with the signature, as they gave her clearance to land.
She brought the freighter down softly into the docking bay. When the ship came to rest, she began the process of shutting down the engines, going through her post flight checks and taking notes on anything that had happened during the flight that she would need to remain cognizant of. It had been a record time for her, one to be proud of. After securing the ship and activating the security, she pocketed her datapad and headed for the door.
As the ramp lowered, she stepped out of the ship and onto the cold, metallic surface of the docking bay. As she stepped into the small chamber that separated the hangar and the hallway, the voice of a Selkath speaking in his own language came across the loudspeaker, though it ended before Laili had a chance to activate her translator.
As she stepped out into the hallway, she immediately took notice of the grey walls and floor. The surface of them was solely made from durasteel and was cold to the touch, one of the least welcoming hallways she had ever been in. She continued on her way down the wide hall, hoping that the scenery would quickly change.
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In the far corners of the space port, Imperial Lieutenant Jarlath Kaan stood in the shadows. He watched as the news visitors of the watery world left their vessels and made their way into the glowing halls to make their way to port authority. As an agent of the Sith Empire, he had been relegated to the boring job of watching the port of Manaan for any Jedi or any other wanted men and women with large bounties on their heads.
It had seemed, at first, to be an uneventful day on the watery world, at least until he recognized someone who happened to look strikingly similar to his Lord Ravinos. He pulled out his datapad, instantly realizing that the woman was at the top of the Sith Lord’s most wanted list. What was disappointing to him was that the Lord of the Sith and the empress wanted her alive.
Kaan pulled out his private datapad, one that gave him a secure and private link to the Outrider. He entered in a message, telling the Sith Lord that he had spotted his sister and that she had just landed in the docking bay on Manaan. If the good lord was lucky, he would make it to Manaan in time to capture her himself. However, Kaan would have to follow her first, just in case the Empress’ Apprentice did not make it in time.
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As Laili stepped up to the officer in charge of port authority, a middle aged Selkath that seemed tremendously bored with what he was doing stepped up to the counter. He had at first had his back turned, obviously working on something that he deemed important, but as she rang the bell on the counter he turned towards her. Because she did not understand Selkath, she placed her translator on the counter beside her.
“Welcome to Alto City, Human,” the officer said. “One hundred credits are required for the docking free, but it only covers you for now. Even if you leave for five minutes, you must pay again.”
Laili leaned in on the counter, smiling seductively as she twirled her hair. She only had two hundred credits in her pocket and she was in no mood to give up half of them simply to park her ship for a few hours.
“Don’t you think that’s a bit too much,” she asked playfully. “I’m just a little girl. I don’t know if I can pay that much.”
“Human charm does not work on me,” he said, scowling as he threw his hands up. “Simply pay the docking fee so I can get back to my work!”
She rolled her eyes, visibly letting him know that she was displeased that her seductive charm failed to work. She threw him the credits, beginning to step away towards the door.
“Be sure to obey the laws of Manaan,” the officer told her. “Please enjoy your stay.”
“And,” she said, stopping and turning back towards him, “how am I supposed to law these laws? I’ve never been to this world before.”
“The single most important law on Manaan is very simple,” he sighed, not wanting to continue the conversation, “Kolto smuggling is punishable by death. If you’re carrying unprocessed Kolto, you had better have a permit. The other rule is to keep the peace. We’ve worked for decades to maintain a careful neutrality and we react very harshly to people who jeopardize it. Any confrontations between the Sith and the Republic are dealt with swiftly and decisively. Is that understood?”
“How can you be neutral,” she asked, “after the horrors the Sith have unleashed? The Great Hyperspace War, the Great Sith War, the Jedi Civil War and now this war. It’s all right there in front of you. If you’re not careful, they’ll kill you too!”
“The Sith respect the independence of Manaan just as the Republic does,” he said. “As long as we control the Kolto, we have no need to fear anyone’s fleet. Should Manaan ever come under attack by any fleet, we would destroy the supply and slip beneath the ocean. Not even the Sith are willing to lose that.”
“Very well,” she said.
“You know,” he told her, “you remind me of a young man who came through here about twenty-five years ago when I first started working at this post.”
“Who was it,” Laili asked.
“His name is unknown to me,” he said, “but I know he was a Jedi. He came in here with a Republic soldier and a Mandalorian. He caused some unrest when he broke into the Sith Embassy and dove down to the ocean floor looking for an ocean relic. It did not go over well with our government, as you can imagine. However, he did solve an important case involving an old war here who had been framed for murder by the Republic and the Sith. He never came back after that.”
“Interesting story,” she said, remembering stories such as that from worlds such as Kashyyyk and Tatooine. “Anyway, I must be going now. Thank you for your time.”
The Selkath nodded as he turned back to his work. Laili rolled her eyes as she walked away, obviously still disappointed at the policies about the Sith Empire remaining on their planet. Her senses were heightened as the Force seemed to be telling her that there was trouble around the corner. She gazed around the area, nonchalantly scanning the spacers in the area. She pulled her gloves on tighter as the door from the Port Authority opened. She quickly stepped through the door at the entrance to the city, her comlink in her hands.
“Batipu,” she said, “this is Desert Rose. Are we still on for sailing?”
“Sun is bright,” the voice on the other end of the comlink said, “and there’s no sign of clouds.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of,” she said as she placed the device back into her pocket.
Kaan had made a deal weeks earlier with the portmaster, leading to a fairly strong understanding between them. The understanding allowed him to track fugitives and other desirable people much easier than simply following them. He had full access to every ships technical data that had ever arrived at the port. After his mark left the portmaster’s station, Kaan approached him.
“I need you to place this tracking device on her ship,” Kaan said. “She is one of the Empire’s most wanted fugitives.”
“If the government finds out about this,” the portmaster said, “we’ll both be executed.”
“The laws of your government are of no concern to Empress Viea,” Kaan told him. “Akways remember your place, Selkath.”
The Port Authority Officer nodded, concerned about the reprocussions of helping an agent of evil in such a way. Though his government would not consider Kaan, his men or his superiors evil in public, the fact of the matter was that they had become quite warry of the Sith, and their Port Authority Officer being in league with them would not sit well with the government at all. He watched as Kaan walked away, casually trying not to attract attention. With the tracking device situation handled, he was free to move in on his catch.
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As Laili made her way through the streets of the pearly white city, she moved cautiously as she felt that all eyes were on her. She attracted the stares of soldiers from both the Republic and the Empire, as well as the occasional flirtatious whistle. It disgusted her each time, though she was more concerned about one of the soldiers recognizing her. She had more than her fair share of run-ins with soldiers from both sides of the war and she had no idea who they were. Any one of them could have been on the water world.
As she slowly turned her head around, she realized that she was indeed being followed. As she turned back around, she noticed the bar in front of her and stepped in. Her shadow would undoubtedly follow her inside, but if she could attempt to blend in then it would prove difficult for the person to catch her, especially in public with the neutrality laws.
As she made her way through the bar, she quickly made her way into the corner booth and sat down next to one of the Swoop Racers that had already surrounded himself with beautiful women. She feigned interest in the talk and bragging of the racer that was directed towards the girls and laughed at just the right time. Her eyes, however, were locked on the door to see if anyone followed her in. A few Selkath and spacers stepped in, but nothing struck her as unusual. She stood up and walked towards a side door, knowing that leaving the same way she came would be too dangerous.
Just as Laili stepped out, Kaan stepped in. He subtly looked under each table and managed to take a look under the bar, but his mark was no where to be find. How he lost track of her was beyond him. However, no one had ever escaped him, at least not that easily. After taking one final scan of the bar, just to be sure, he noticed the side door and quickly ran out. In the shadows on the fair side of the courtyard, he found his mark approaching a shadowy figure. He too stepped into the shadows on his side of the courtyard, not wanting to attract reinforcements for her.
“You’re lucky I didn’t pack up and leave,” Batipu said anxiously.
“Oh, come on,” she said, smirking, “you know me better than that. I’ve never missed a shipment before in my entire career.”
“Missed a shipment,” he repeated, “no, you haven’t. Dropped a shipment, yes. Garvilla the Hutt is still - ”
“Yeah, I know,” she said, “she’s still fuming on her throne of slugs on Tatooine, but I really could care less. Even I get boarded sometimes, so it’s not like I had a choice. It was either drop it or get comfortable with the phrase ‘twenty-five to life’, and I’d much rather be a free girl.”
“Yeah, well,” he said, “tell that to sluggo.”
“All you need is right there,” she said, pulling out her datapad after laughing at his remark. “My ship is in Docking Bay H-34. The password to the directions to the loot is ‘rosebud’. The queen even threw in a little extra commission which, in my opinion, is a bit too nice.”
“I had them begin loading your ship as soon as you landed,” Batipu told her, laughing as he tucked the datapad into his jacket. “You take care of yourself, Desert Rose.”
“You too, Batipu,” she said, smiling as he walked away into another portion of the city. Sensing an unfriendly presence nearby, she turned to the guardrail and placed her hands upon it, looking out into the vast ocean and taking in the salt air. The clouds in the sky gave way to the brilliant white star in the sky that calmly reflected itself upon the vast, azure ocean. She knew that whoever was watching her was after her and not her counterpart, given recent events. Playing dumb, however, had always proved to be the best option, so she opted to try it once more. Slowly turning back around, she made her way to the door on the north side of the courtyard, her shadow closing in on her fast.
Kaan knew that Laili had somehow figured out she was being trailed, and the prospect of him being found out worried him. Knowing he had to catch her at all costs, he made his way through a separate door that led him on a shortcut he knew of back to the docking bay. He had to keep her near until Ravinos arrived or the Dark Apprentice would have his head. A faint alarm chimed on his datapad, signaling him that the Lord of the Sith had dropped out of hyperspace above the planet’s skies. If his supposed sister was not caught by the time he arrived, he would be most displeased.
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Once she was far away from the courtyard, Laili picked up her pace. She stepped into the central sector of the city, hoping to make it back to her ship before someone else did. She prayed to the stars that her shipments had already been loaded, as she had no desire to return to the queen empty handed. However, something did not feel right to her. If she had to hack her way off of Manaan, she would do it in a heartbeat, though she of course had no desire to do so. As she stepped out of the city and into the hangar bay hallway, she picked up the pace to a light sprint as she made her way to the ship.
The Port Authority officer noticed Laili running towards the door of her ship’s hangar as he stepped in front of it. he had not yet heard back from Kaan that she was cleared to leave. Knowing that he could not break the conditions of his agreement with the imperial, he sealed the door to the hangar. Against his better judgment, however, he would stay to try to calm her down, as he knew that Humans could be very impulsive.
As Laili approached her hangar and saw the closed doors, she stopped dead in her tracks. Stepping up to the Selkath guarding the door, she threw her hands onto her hips to let him know how irritated she was. She fought back the anger and rage welling up inside of her, remembering the brief training that Ussej had given her, as well as her own common sense. If she was to be a Jedi Knight, she would have to face situations with a calm and rational mindset. If that failed, then and only then would she allow herself to spill the blood of another.
“What is the meaning of this,” she demanded to know. “Why am I being held? I have broken none of your sacred laws!”
On the far end of the hallway lurked Mathias Helsdain. There were times when he would swear that he was going soft in the head. He knew that Laili disliked him with a passion and could barely stand to be any near him. He had to admit that she knew how to push his buttons too, yet when he heard about her smuggling trip to Manaan and the bounty on her head, he knew that he would have to play the dashing young hero type that would be ready to yank her out of the fire.
Following her all the way to Manaan had to be the most soft-headed stunt he had ever pulled. Gaining clearance was easy, as he had yet to do anything on Manaan to get the Nightsider on the Selkath watch list, but slicing the port systems was even less of a challenge, considering he was one of the few that had ever cracked the codes to the HoloNet. As he stepped out into the hall, he saw her blonde hair making its way down the hallway and slowly but surely followed behind her.
At the hangar bay, the Port Authority Officer pulled out a forged report on a datapad that Kaan had given him for situations such as the one he found himself in. It was not the first time Kaan had asked him to pull such a stunt, though each time he hoped it would be the last as each time he risked his job and his life.
“I’m sorry, miss,” he said in his native Selkath tongue, “but our scanners picked up signs of illegal contraband on your vessel. We are scanning it now to see if there are actually any illegal items on your ship. I hope you will be able to remain patient while we search and that your opinion of our hospitality has not been tarnished.
Laili sighed, putting a hand on her forehead. Frustrated and mumbling under her breath like any average smuggler would, she pulled out a datapad with all of the details of her cargo aboard and their certificates of purchase. It was a perfectly forged document, forcing her to admit to herself that it had been some of her finest work. She tapped the screen of the datapad, ready for an argument.
“Everything in there is on this datapad,” she said. “Every possible document you could want, along with the ships manifest, is available too. There is no reason to hold me for these absurd insinuations. Next to these ridiculous laws of yours and your harboring of a terrorist network, Manaan has gone completely downhill. I’ll be telling my superiors that we should take our business elsewhere, believe you me.”
She threw the datapad at the Selkath, turning towards the hangar bay door controls before he caught it. She closed her eyes, praying that her stunt had worked. As she made her way to the controls, two guards came from behind and stepped in front of her. They rose their blasters to ensure that she stopped and lowered them down once more as she turned back around.
“You cannot go to your ship yet, miss,” the Selkath told her. “I am sorry. We would still be honored by your business presence here, but something irregular about your ship, not your shipment, as come up. We are checking not only for our safety but for yours as well.”
She signed once more, knowing that her arguments were futile as the Selkath was not going to give in to her demands. She thought for a moment, frustrated and disappointed at the lack of professionalism the Selkath had shown her. She looked back at the two guards before looking back towards the officer, calmly toning her voice down.
“First there was something wrong with my cargo,” she reminded them, “and now there is something wrong with my ship? There’s something fishy going on here and it has nothing to do with what you people look like. Now, you will let me through, or suffer the consequences.”
As she attempted, albeit poorly, to intimidate the Selkath surrounding her, Kaan approached from behind. He noticed Laili’s stunning beauty, feeling that it was such a shame that she would be undoubtedly executed, or worse. He took a moment to savor his victory and thought of the promotion he would be receiving from Ravinos once he took the woman into custody.
“Is everything under control here, Portmaster,” Kaan asked, though he already knew the answer to the question. “Your message said this woman was trying to interfere with the scans of her ship.”
“Yes, Lieuteant,” the Selkath told him. “She is not listening to me when I tell her that she cannot yet go to her ship.”
“I’m sorry, miss,” Kaan said, “but the good man is correct. We cannot let you go to your ship. We have a specialist coming in to check a certain part and he will be arriving shortly.”
She did not have to search the Force to know who the “specialist” was, as the answer hit her as if she had run into a durasteel wall. Darth Ravinos had made his way nearer to them. Ignoring the Jedi way of not attacking first, she ignited her new, never-before-used forest-green blade. She knew for a fact that she was not yet ready to face her brother in combat, though she also knew that she had no other choice. The Lord of the Sith would undoubtedly twist what happened between her and Ussej to fit his own agenda if he found out, so she attempted to close off her mind. She had no idea, however, how long she would be able to hold it. As she thrust her blade outward, the guards opened fire.
Staring down the hallway, Mathias’s eye caught the sight of laser fire and the obvious lightsaber at the end of the hall. His casual walk turned into a run as he pulled out one of his thermal grenades, just in case. Choosing not yet to use it, he threw his arms around the neck of one of the Selkath guards, breaking it as he twisted it quickly and sharply. As Kaan pulled out his blaster, Mathias dove to the ground and grabbed the dead guards gun. He hit the second guard directly between the eyes and fired two shots into the Portmaster’s heart.
Kaan pointed his gun at Laili’s chest, though with somewhat accurate precision she was able to deflect them away into the halls. Drawing upon the energies of the Force, she threw her hand out in front of her and sent Kaan flying towards Mathias. As Kaan attempted to stand, Mathias firmly placed his foot on the arm that held the blaster. The mercenary smiled as he pointed the rifle towards the lieutenant’s head.
“Say goodnight,” Mathias said as he fired off a group of shots into the face of the imperial. Mathis placed the blaster onto his belt as he ran over the door controls, attempting to hack into them. The codes were encrypted well, though he knew he would be able to break them if the universe could spare him five minutes.
As he entered the final portion of the hallway, Ravinos could feel the anger swelling within the woman who claimed to be his sister. Among the carnage Laili and Mathias had brought about was his faithful Lieutenant Jarlath Kaan. Ravinos winced, knowing he would be hard to replace such a fine officer. Ravinos smiled as he saw the green blade in Laili’s hand, reminding him of the days that he held on very similar.
Laili turned towards Mathias to attempt to help him hack through the console, though it was no use. She simply was not versed in such an advanced layer of inscription. As her lightsaber retracted, she turned around and was stunned to see her brother standing before her. She dropped the hilt of her blade onto the cold, metal surface, almost in shock.
“These fish don’t stand a chance against you,” Ravinos said. “Why don’t you try out an opponent somewhat closer to your own skill level, granted that would only be a padawan right about now. However, if you come with me, I could change that.”
“I will not fight you, brother,” she vowed. “I will not sink to your level. You may have sunk far enough into the darkness to where you could simply push my real brother down into the deep abyss of your soul, but he is still there. I saw it when you last faced me. Your love for family still holds strong.”
“There is one thing I love in life,” he said, “and it is certainly not you.”
Before Laili could even begin to comprehend the insult, Mathias recharged his blaster and shot a round of plasma bolts towards the back of the Lord of the Sith. Ravinos seemingly slowed down the entire universe around him, each and every person and everything moving slower than a snail. He charged his crimson blade and deflected each shot back towards the mercenary. Mathias dove to the side, avoiding the deflections.
“You’re good, mercenary,” Ravinos told him, still unaware of who he was facing, “but I have ways of dealing with your kind.”
With the press of a button on his comlink, dozens of silver-armor wearing and blaster wielding Sith troopers emerged from the doorways on all sides of the hangar. Laili was effectively surrounded and escape seemed to be nothing more than a dream. However, as fate would have it, a large explosion rattled the area and dozens of Republic troopers burst through their man-made holes in the wall. A second explosion rattled the hall, sending Laili flying meters through the air. As she landed, she screamed out in pain as her leg was torn open by debris, leaving a large gash for blood to stream from. Her concern was not her like, but rather the child that could possibly be growing within her womb.
More and more Republic soldiers entered the area, forcing the Sith troopers and Ravinos back through the city gates. Leading the Sith troops was Dant Ozzel, a young colonel. He hoped for nothing more than to make up for Kaan’s blunder, though the woman was nowhere to be found. However, he was quickly outnumbered and was unable to dwell on Laili, lest he lose the battle. There were far more Republic forces than their were Sith and he had an inkling that Ravinos knew it, as he was no longer anywhere to be found.
Ozzel cursed under his breath as Republic soldiers continued to pour out. His hopes for a glorious battle were quickly destroyed with his forces. Ozzel moved to the rear of the formation as the troops made their way back towards the Sith Embassy, keying in the codes to enter.
“Fall back,” Ozzel shouted as the doors opened, not hesitating to do what they were told. Within a matter of minutes, the entire Sith army had retreated back within the walls of their stronghold. The Republic troops cheered, cherishing their victory.
“Captain Onasi,” one of the troops shouted, “we can’t just let them stay here. We must vanquish this terrorist threat from Manaan once and for all.”
“Correct you are, private,” Captain Dustil Onasi acknowledged, amazed at how cowardly the Sith had become since his days of being one of them. “Bring an explosives team here and have them blow open the embassy doors. Then we’ll be sure to rid this world of this infestation.”
The private saluted before he quickly made his way back towards the Republic Embassy. Through the corner of his eye, Onasi saw the harvesters heading down towards the bottom of the ocean. Should the Selkath destroy their supply of Kolto, the victory for the Republic would, in reality, be just another loss as it would have gained them nothing more than one giant, resource-depleted ocean.
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As they made their way onto the Nightsider, Mathis holding Laili in his arms, he set her onto a small bed in the back of the ship before running to the controls. He quickly engaged the vessel and the ship lifted off the ground immediately after the large engines roared to life. The ship soared towards space, entering the upper atmosphere.
Without warning, a barrage of laser fire pelted the stern of his ship. He engaged his rear cameras and recognized the approaching vessel as the one owned by Darth Ravinos. Knowing that he was outgunned, he tampered with his hyperspace generator to mask his hyperspace route in order to throw the Lord of the Sith off of their trail.
When he was finished, he jumped back into the pilots seat. After a quick, sharp whine, the stars filled the view port and turned from silver dots to long streaks of white as the ship smoothly made its way into hyperspace, leaving Manaan and the Dark Apprentice of the Sith behind.
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Aboard the Outrdier, Ravinos slammed his fist into his droids torso and ripped the metal off with his bare hands only to throw the damaged artificial intelligence across the room. The droid landed against the wall, shattering the unit into pieces. Kicking the console, he sat back down in his pilot’s chair. Aletra came up behind him and gently massaged his back. She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.
“You always did know how to make me feel better,” Ravinos said, returning the kiss.
“I know,” she said, sitting down in the co-pilot’s seat beside him. “Were you able to find anything out.”
“She’s my sister,” he told her. “I can feel it now. I must take her with us.”
“If you’re not careful,” Aletra said, “then those incoming fighters just might try to track her down and destroy that ship.”
“Ravinos to all forces,” the Dark Apprentice said as he spun back towards the controls. “I want you to be sure that news of what happened today with the bounty hunter and my sister reaches the ears of the Jedi Council. I do not care if you have to beam the message to every planet in the galaxy, but be sure that they find it.”
“Sir,” Ozzel said from the ground, unsure of the reasoning behind the orders.
“Just do it,” Ravinos replied. “The fate of my sister depends on it.”
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<div align="center">MAYHEM ON MANAAN[/b]</div>
Within the blink of an eye, the Golden Way seemed to slow to almost a stop before launching forward into the starry tunnels of hyperspace travel. Within the cockpit, Laili pulled out a datapad and began looking through her orders from the queen. There were several stops the queen asked her to make within the coming weeks, but she was headed for her first stop on Manaan. According to her information, a friend that she knew only by the code name of Batipu would meet her in the western sector of Ahto City. Everything was supposedly in order, yet she knew that it was in times like that when smugglers had to be more cautious than ever.
After checking the fuel, she sat back down in the pilot’s seat, thinking of her intuitions about the darkness within her lover. It had certainly manifested itself when he had returned from Kashyyyk, though she would never admit to anyone about how she had felt the dark presence surrounding him. Ussej was the man she loved and she would do whatever she could to protect him and their possible child.
As the hours passed by, each of them less eventful than the one before it, she had taken the time to meditate and to seek to center herself, clearing her mind of the fight she had with Ussej. Such things were hard to do, though. As she approached Manaan, however, she sat back in the pilot’s chair and transmitted the newly changed identification signature of the vessel. The Selkath officials obviously saw no red flags with the signature, as they gave her clearance to land.
She brought the freighter down softly into the docking bay. When the ship came to rest, she began the process of shutting down the engines, going through her post flight checks and taking notes on anything that had happened during the flight that she would need to remain cognizant of. It had been a record time for her, one to be proud of. After securing the ship and activating the security, she pocketed her datapad and headed for the door.
As the ramp lowered, she stepped out of the ship and onto the cold, metallic surface of the docking bay. As she stepped into the small chamber that separated the hangar and the hallway, the voice of a Selkath speaking in his own language came across the loudspeaker, though it ended before Laili had a chance to activate her translator.
As she stepped out into the hallway, she immediately took notice of the grey walls and floor. The surface of them was solely made from durasteel and was cold to the touch, one of the least welcoming hallways she had ever been in. She continued on her way down the wide hall, hoping that the scenery would quickly change.
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In the far corners of the space port, Imperial Lieutenant Jarlath Kaan stood in the shadows. He watched as the news visitors of the watery world left their vessels and made their way into the glowing halls to make their way to port authority. As an agent of the Sith Empire, he had been relegated to the boring job of watching the port of Manaan for any Jedi or any other wanted men and women with large bounties on their heads.
It had seemed, at first, to be an uneventful day on the watery world, at least until he recognized someone who happened to look strikingly similar to his Lord Ravinos. He pulled out his datapad, instantly realizing that the woman was at the top of the Sith Lord’s most wanted list. What was disappointing to him was that the Lord of the Sith and the empress wanted her alive.
Kaan pulled out his private datapad, one that gave him a secure and private link to the Outrider. He entered in a message, telling the Sith Lord that he had spotted his sister and that she had just landed in the docking bay on Manaan. If the good lord was lucky, he would make it to Manaan in time to capture her himself. However, Kaan would have to follow her first, just in case the Empress’ Apprentice did not make it in time.
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As Laili stepped up to the officer in charge of port authority, a middle aged Selkath that seemed tremendously bored with what he was doing stepped up to the counter. He had at first had his back turned, obviously working on something that he deemed important, but as she rang the bell on the counter he turned towards her. Because she did not understand Selkath, she placed her translator on the counter beside her.
“Welcome to Alto City, Human,” the officer said. “One hundred credits are required for the docking free, but it only covers you for now. Even if you leave for five minutes, you must pay again.”
Laili leaned in on the counter, smiling seductively as she twirled her hair. She only had two hundred credits in her pocket and she was in no mood to give up half of them simply to park her ship for a few hours.
“Don’t you think that’s a bit too much,” she asked playfully. “I’m just a little girl. I don’t know if I can pay that much.”
“Human charm does not work on me,” he said, scowling as he threw his hands up. “Simply pay the docking fee so I can get back to my work!”
She rolled her eyes, visibly letting him know that she was displeased that her seductive charm failed to work. She threw him the credits, beginning to step away towards the door.
“Be sure to obey the laws of Manaan,” the officer told her. “Please enjoy your stay.”
“And,” she said, stopping and turning back towards him, “how am I supposed to law these laws? I’ve never been to this world before.”
“The single most important law on Manaan is very simple,” he sighed, not wanting to continue the conversation, “Kolto smuggling is punishable by death. If you’re carrying unprocessed Kolto, you had better have a permit. The other rule is to keep the peace. We’ve worked for decades to maintain a careful neutrality and we react very harshly to people who jeopardize it. Any confrontations between the Sith and the Republic are dealt with swiftly and decisively. Is that understood?”
“How can you be neutral,” she asked, “after the horrors the Sith have unleashed? The Great Hyperspace War, the Great Sith War, the Jedi Civil War and now this war. It’s all right there in front of you. If you’re not careful, they’ll kill you too!”
“The Sith respect the independence of Manaan just as the Republic does,” he said. “As long as we control the Kolto, we have no need to fear anyone’s fleet. Should Manaan ever come under attack by any fleet, we would destroy the supply and slip beneath the ocean. Not even the Sith are willing to lose that.”
“Very well,” she said.
“You know,” he told her, “you remind me of a young man who came through here about twenty-five years ago when I first started working at this post.”
“Who was it,” Laili asked.
“His name is unknown to me,” he said, “but I know he was a Jedi. He came in here with a Republic soldier and a Mandalorian. He caused some unrest when he broke into the Sith Embassy and dove down to the ocean floor looking for an ocean relic. It did not go over well with our government, as you can imagine. However, he did solve an important case involving an old war here who had been framed for murder by the Republic and the Sith. He never came back after that.”
“Interesting story,” she said, remembering stories such as that from worlds such as Kashyyyk and Tatooine. “Anyway, I must be going now. Thank you for your time.”
The Selkath nodded as he turned back to his work. Laili rolled her eyes as she walked away, obviously still disappointed at the policies about the Sith Empire remaining on their planet. Her senses were heightened as the Force seemed to be telling her that there was trouble around the corner. She gazed around the area, nonchalantly scanning the spacers in the area. She pulled her gloves on tighter as the door from the Port Authority opened. She quickly stepped through the door at the entrance to the city, her comlink in her hands.
“Batipu,” she said, “this is Desert Rose. Are we still on for sailing?”
“Sun is bright,” the voice on the other end of the comlink said, “and there’s no sign of clouds.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of,” she said as she placed the device back into her pocket.
Kaan had made a deal weeks earlier with the portmaster, leading to a fairly strong understanding between them. The understanding allowed him to track fugitives and other desirable people much easier than simply following them. He had full access to every ships technical data that had ever arrived at the port. After his mark left the portmaster’s station, Kaan approached him.
“I need you to place this tracking device on her ship,” Kaan said. “She is one of the Empire’s most wanted fugitives.”
“If the government finds out about this,” the portmaster said, “we’ll both be executed.”
“The laws of your government are of no concern to Empress Viea,” Kaan told him. “Akways remember your place, Selkath.”
The Port Authority Officer nodded, concerned about the reprocussions of helping an agent of evil in such a way. Though his government would not consider Kaan, his men or his superiors evil in public, the fact of the matter was that they had become quite warry of the Sith, and their Port Authority Officer being in league with them would not sit well with the government at all. He watched as Kaan walked away, casually trying not to attract attention. With the tracking device situation handled, he was free to move in on his catch.
-----------------
As Laili made her way through the streets of the pearly white city, she moved cautiously as she felt that all eyes were on her. She attracted the stares of soldiers from both the Republic and the Empire, as well as the occasional flirtatious whistle. It disgusted her each time, though she was more concerned about one of the soldiers recognizing her. She had more than her fair share of run-ins with soldiers from both sides of the war and she had no idea who they were. Any one of them could have been on the water world.
As she slowly turned her head around, she realized that she was indeed being followed. As she turned back around, she noticed the bar in front of her and stepped in. Her shadow would undoubtedly follow her inside, but if she could attempt to blend in then it would prove difficult for the person to catch her, especially in public with the neutrality laws.
As she made her way through the bar, she quickly made her way into the corner booth and sat down next to one of the Swoop Racers that had already surrounded himself with beautiful women. She feigned interest in the talk and bragging of the racer that was directed towards the girls and laughed at just the right time. Her eyes, however, were locked on the door to see if anyone followed her in. A few Selkath and spacers stepped in, but nothing struck her as unusual. She stood up and walked towards a side door, knowing that leaving the same way she came would be too dangerous.
Just as Laili stepped out, Kaan stepped in. He subtly looked under each table and managed to take a look under the bar, but his mark was no where to be find. How he lost track of her was beyond him. However, no one had ever escaped him, at least not that easily. After taking one final scan of the bar, just to be sure, he noticed the side door and quickly ran out. In the shadows on the fair side of the courtyard, he found his mark approaching a shadowy figure. He too stepped into the shadows on his side of the courtyard, not wanting to attract reinforcements for her.
“You’re lucky I didn’t pack up and leave,” Batipu said anxiously.
“Oh, come on,” she said, smirking, “you know me better than that. I’ve never missed a shipment before in my entire career.”
“Missed a shipment,” he repeated, “no, you haven’t. Dropped a shipment, yes. Garvilla the Hutt is still - ”
“Yeah, I know,” she said, “she’s still fuming on her throne of slugs on Tatooine, but I really could care less. Even I get boarded sometimes, so it’s not like I had a choice. It was either drop it or get comfortable with the phrase ‘twenty-five to life’, and I’d much rather be a free girl.”
“Yeah, well,” he said, “tell that to sluggo.”
“All you need is right there,” she said, pulling out her datapad after laughing at his remark. “My ship is in Docking Bay H-34. The password to the directions to the loot is ‘rosebud’. The queen even threw in a little extra commission which, in my opinion, is a bit too nice.”
“I had them begin loading your ship as soon as you landed,” Batipu told her, laughing as he tucked the datapad into his jacket. “You take care of yourself, Desert Rose.”
“You too, Batipu,” she said, smiling as he walked away into another portion of the city. Sensing an unfriendly presence nearby, she turned to the guardrail and placed her hands upon it, looking out into the vast ocean and taking in the salt air. The clouds in the sky gave way to the brilliant white star in the sky that calmly reflected itself upon the vast, azure ocean. She knew that whoever was watching her was after her and not her counterpart, given recent events. Playing dumb, however, had always proved to be the best option, so she opted to try it once more. Slowly turning back around, she made her way to the door on the north side of the courtyard, her shadow closing in on her fast.
Kaan knew that Laili had somehow figured out she was being trailed, and the prospect of him being found out worried him. Knowing he had to catch her at all costs, he made his way through a separate door that led him on a shortcut he knew of back to the docking bay. He had to keep her near until Ravinos arrived or the Dark Apprentice would have his head. A faint alarm chimed on his datapad, signaling him that the Lord of the Sith had dropped out of hyperspace above the planet’s skies. If his supposed sister was not caught by the time he arrived, he would be most displeased.
-----------------
Once she was far away from the courtyard, Laili picked up her pace. She stepped into the central sector of the city, hoping to make it back to her ship before someone else did. She prayed to the stars that her shipments had already been loaded, as she had no desire to return to the queen empty handed. However, something did not feel right to her. If she had to hack her way off of Manaan, she would do it in a heartbeat, though she of course had no desire to do so. As she stepped out of the city and into the hangar bay hallway, she picked up the pace to a light sprint as she made her way to the ship.
The Port Authority officer noticed Laili running towards the door of her ship’s hangar as he stepped in front of it. he had not yet heard back from Kaan that she was cleared to leave. Knowing that he could not break the conditions of his agreement with the imperial, he sealed the door to the hangar. Against his better judgment, however, he would stay to try to calm her down, as he knew that Humans could be very impulsive.
As Laili approached her hangar and saw the closed doors, she stopped dead in her tracks. Stepping up to the Selkath guarding the door, she threw her hands onto her hips to let him know how irritated she was. She fought back the anger and rage welling up inside of her, remembering the brief training that Ussej had given her, as well as her own common sense. If she was to be a Jedi Knight, she would have to face situations with a calm and rational mindset. If that failed, then and only then would she allow herself to spill the blood of another.
“What is the meaning of this,” she demanded to know. “Why am I being held? I have broken none of your sacred laws!”
On the far end of the hallway lurked Mathias Helsdain. There were times when he would swear that he was going soft in the head. He knew that Laili disliked him with a passion and could barely stand to be any near him. He had to admit that she knew how to push his buttons too, yet when he heard about her smuggling trip to Manaan and the bounty on her head, he knew that he would have to play the dashing young hero type that would be ready to yank her out of the fire.
Following her all the way to Manaan had to be the most soft-headed stunt he had ever pulled. Gaining clearance was easy, as he had yet to do anything on Manaan to get the Nightsider on the Selkath watch list, but slicing the port systems was even less of a challenge, considering he was one of the few that had ever cracked the codes to the HoloNet. As he stepped out into the hall, he saw her blonde hair making its way down the hallway and slowly but surely followed behind her.
At the hangar bay, the Port Authority Officer pulled out a forged report on a datapad that Kaan had given him for situations such as the one he found himself in. It was not the first time Kaan had asked him to pull such a stunt, though each time he hoped it would be the last as each time he risked his job and his life.
“I’m sorry, miss,” he said in his native Selkath tongue, “but our scanners picked up signs of illegal contraband on your vessel. We are scanning it now to see if there are actually any illegal items on your ship. I hope you will be able to remain patient while we search and that your opinion of our hospitality has not been tarnished.
Laili sighed, putting a hand on her forehead. Frustrated and mumbling under her breath like any average smuggler would, she pulled out a datapad with all of the details of her cargo aboard and their certificates of purchase. It was a perfectly forged document, forcing her to admit to herself that it had been some of her finest work. She tapped the screen of the datapad, ready for an argument.
“Everything in there is on this datapad,” she said. “Every possible document you could want, along with the ships manifest, is available too. There is no reason to hold me for these absurd insinuations. Next to these ridiculous laws of yours and your harboring of a terrorist network, Manaan has gone completely downhill. I’ll be telling my superiors that we should take our business elsewhere, believe you me.”
She threw the datapad at the Selkath, turning towards the hangar bay door controls before he caught it. She closed her eyes, praying that her stunt had worked. As she made her way to the controls, two guards came from behind and stepped in front of her. They rose their blasters to ensure that she stopped and lowered them down once more as she turned back around.
“You cannot go to your ship yet, miss,” the Selkath told her. “I am sorry. We would still be honored by your business presence here, but something irregular about your ship, not your shipment, as come up. We are checking not only for our safety but for yours as well.”
She signed once more, knowing that her arguments were futile as the Selkath was not going to give in to her demands. She thought for a moment, frustrated and disappointed at the lack of professionalism the Selkath had shown her. She looked back at the two guards before looking back towards the officer, calmly toning her voice down.
“First there was something wrong with my cargo,” she reminded them, “and now there is something wrong with my ship? There’s something fishy going on here and it has nothing to do with what you people look like. Now, you will let me through, or suffer the consequences.”
As she attempted, albeit poorly, to intimidate the Selkath surrounding her, Kaan approached from behind. He noticed Laili’s stunning beauty, feeling that it was such a shame that she would be undoubtedly executed, or worse. He took a moment to savor his victory and thought of the promotion he would be receiving from Ravinos once he took the woman into custody.
“Is everything under control here, Portmaster,” Kaan asked, though he already knew the answer to the question. “Your message said this woman was trying to interfere with the scans of her ship.”
“Yes, Lieuteant,” the Selkath told him. “She is not listening to me when I tell her that she cannot yet go to her ship.”
“I’m sorry, miss,” Kaan said, “but the good man is correct. We cannot let you go to your ship. We have a specialist coming in to check a certain part and he will be arriving shortly.”
She did not have to search the Force to know who the “specialist” was, as the answer hit her as if she had run into a durasteel wall. Darth Ravinos had made his way nearer to them. Ignoring the Jedi way of not attacking first, she ignited her new, never-before-used forest-green blade. She knew for a fact that she was not yet ready to face her brother in combat, though she also knew that she had no other choice. The Lord of the Sith would undoubtedly twist what happened between her and Ussej to fit his own agenda if he found out, so she attempted to close off her mind. She had no idea, however, how long she would be able to hold it. As she thrust her blade outward, the guards opened fire.
Staring down the hallway, Mathias’s eye caught the sight of laser fire and the obvious lightsaber at the end of the hall. His casual walk turned into a run as he pulled out one of his thermal grenades, just in case. Choosing not yet to use it, he threw his arms around the neck of one of the Selkath guards, breaking it as he twisted it quickly and sharply. As Kaan pulled out his blaster, Mathias dove to the ground and grabbed the dead guards gun. He hit the second guard directly between the eyes and fired two shots into the Portmaster’s heart.
Kaan pointed his gun at Laili’s chest, though with somewhat accurate precision she was able to deflect them away into the halls. Drawing upon the energies of the Force, she threw her hand out in front of her and sent Kaan flying towards Mathias. As Kaan attempted to stand, Mathias firmly placed his foot on the arm that held the blaster. The mercenary smiled as he pointed the rifle towards the lieutenant’s head.
“Say goodnight,” Mathias said as he fired off a group of shots into the face of the imperial. Mathis placed the blaster onto his belt as he ran over the door controls, attempting to hack into them. The codes were encrypted well, though he knew he would be able to break them if the universe could spare him five minutes.
As he entered the final portion of the hallway, Ravinos could feel the anger swelling within the woman who claimed to be his sister. Among the carnage Laili and Mathias had brought about was his faithful Lieutenant Jarlath Kaan. Ravinos winced, knowing he would be hard to replace such a fine officer. Ravinos smiled as he saw the green blade in Laili’s hand, reminding him of the days that he held on very similar.
Laili turned towards Mathias to attempt to help him hack through the console, though it was no use. She simply was not versed in such an advanced layer of inscription. As her lightsaber retracted, she turned around and was stunned to see her brother standing before her. She dropped the hilt of her blade onto the cold, metal surface, almost in shock.
“These fish don’t stand a chance against you,” Ravinos said. “Why don’t you try out an opponent somewhat closer to your own skill level, granted that would only be a padawan right about now. However, if you come with me, I could change that.”
“I will not fight you, brother,” she vowed. “I will not sink to your level. You may have sunk far enough into the darkness to where you could simply push my real brother down into the deep abyss of your soul, but he is still there. I saw it when you last faced me. Your love for family still holds strong.”
“There is one thing I love in life,” he said, “and it is certainly not you.”
Before Laili could even begin to comprehend the insult, Mathias recharged his blaster and shot a round of plasma bolts towards the back of the Lord of the Sith. Ravinos seemingly slowed down the entire universe around him, each and every person and everything moving slower than a snail. He charged his crimson blade and deflected each shot back towards the mercenary. Mathias dove to the side, avoiding the deflections.
“You’re good, mercenary,” Ravinos told him, still unaware of who he was facing, “but I have ways of dealing with your kind.”
With the press of a button on his comlink, dozens of silver-armor wearing and blaster wielding Sith troopers emerged from the doorways on all sides of the hangar. Laili was effectively surrounded and escape seemed to be nothing more than a dream. However, as fate would have it, a large explosion rattled the area and dozens of Republic troopers burst through their man-made holes in the wall. A second explosion rattled the hall, sending Laili flying meters through the air. As she landed, she screamed out in pain as her leg was torn open by debris, leaving a large gash for blood to stream from. Her concern was not her like, but rather the child that could possibly be growing within her womb.
More and more Republic soldiers entered the area, forcing the Sith troopers and Ravinos back through the city gates. Leading the Sith troops was Dant Ozzel, a young colonel. He hoped for nothing more than to make up for Kaan’s blunder, though the woman was nowhere to be found. However, he was quickly outnumbered and was unable to dwell on Laili, lest he lose the battle. There were far more Republic forces than their were Sith and he had an inkling that Ravinos knew it, as he was no longer anywhere to be found.
Ozzel cursed under his breath as Republic soldiers continued to pour out. His hopes for a glorious battle were quickly destroyed with his forces. Ozzel moved to the rear of the formation as the troops made their way back towards the Sith Embassy, keying in the codes to enter.
“Fall back,” Ozzel shouted as the doors opened, not hesitating to do what they were told. Within a matter of minutes, the entire Sith army had retreated back within the walls of their stronghold. The Republic troops cheered, cherishing their victory.
“Captain Onasi,” one of the troops shouted, “we can’t just let them stay here. We must vanquish this terrorist threat from Manaan once and for all.”
“Correct you are, private,” Captain Dustil Onasi acknowledged, amazed at how cowardly the Sith had become since his days of being one of them. “Bring an explosives team here and have them blow open the embassy doors. Then we’ll be sure to rid this world of this infestation.”
The private saluted before he quickly made his way back towards the Republic Embassy. Through the corner of his eye, Onasi saw the harvesters heading down towards the bottom of the ocean. Should the Selkath destroy their supply of Kolto, the victory for the Republic would, in reality, be just another loss as it would have gained them nothing more than one giant, resource-depleted ocean.
-----------------
As they made their way onto the Nightsider, Mathis holding Laili in his arms, he set her onto a small bed in the back of the ship before running to the controls. He quickly engaged the vessel and the ship lifted off the ground immediately after the large engines roared to life. The ship soared towards space, entering the upper atmosphere.
Without warning, a barrage of laser fire pelted the stern of his ship. He engaged his rear cameras and recognized the approaching vessel as the one owned by Darth Ravinos. Knowing that he was outgunned, he tampered with his hyperspace generator to mask his hyperspace route in order to throw the Lord of the Sith off of their trail.
When he was finished, he jumped back into the pilots seat. After a quick, sharp whine, the stars filled the view port and turned from silver dots to long streaks of white as the ship smoothly made its way into hyperspace, leaving Manaan and the Dark Apprentice of the Sith behind.
-----------------
Aboard the Outrdier, Ravinos slammed his fist into his droids torso and ripped the metal off with his bare hands only to throw the damaged artificial intelligence across the room. The droid landed against the wall, shattering the unit into pieces. Kicking the console, he sat back down in his pilot’s chair. Aletra came up behind him and gently massaged his back. She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.
“You always did know how to make me feel better,” Ravinos said, returning the kiss.
“I know,” she said, sitting down in the co-pilot’s seat beside him. “Were you able to find anything out.”
“She’s my sister,” he told her. “I can feel it now. I must take her with us.”
“If you’re not careful,” Aletra said, “then those incoming fighters just might try to track her down and destroy that ship.”
“Ravinos to all forces,” the Dark Apprentice said as he spun back towards the controls. “I want you to be sure that news of what happened today with the bounty hunter and my sister reaches the ears of the Jedi Council. I do not care if you have to beam the message to every planet in the galaxy, but be sure that they find it.”
“Sir,” Ozzel said from the ground, unsure of the reasoning behind the orders.
“Just do it,” Ravinos replied. “The fate of my sister depends on it.”
