Chapter 1

The bar was crowded, and no one noticed the girl sitting in the corner.

She sat with her legs crossed, one hand casually resting on the gun beneath her cloak. Her eyes swept the room, surveying everyone and everything. She'd tucked her brown hair up underneath her hood, and her face was shrouded in shadow. Her free hand was drumming a quick rhythm on the table.

This was Day Brecher. And she was waiting for someone.

Day ground her teeth. As informants went, Roth had always been pretty reliable, but she suspected he might have been wrong when it came to tonight. Allenia wasn't coming to this bar. By choice, Day wouldn't have either.

Smoke clogged most of the air, and the band was playing a little louder than Day would have preferred. The bar itself was called The Dancing Dragon, though Day had no idea why they'd picked anything so elegant. She'd already seen two puddles of vomit and one gunfight.

Allenia owed Day money. A hefty some of money, that she'd been due months ago, ever since Day had delivered her the treasure she'd found floating in that asteroid field. At the time of the bargain, Allenia had seemed trustworthy enough. She'd even let Day fuel up her ship and stock up her supplies.

Just as Day was about to give up, she saw a woman make her way through the door. Tall, curvy, wearing pants and shirt made out of a coarse black clothe. It was Allenia, all right. She'd have to make sure and thank Roth later.

She gave Allenia time to get settled at the bar before casually making her way over to the bar and sliding into the seat next to her. "Two juices, please." She told the bartender, who was a heavyset man with eight pairs of arms.

Allenia jumped in surprise, and turned around. Her eyes narrowed when she saw Day. "Oh… its you." She said, and Day couldn't tell if her voice sounded angry or resigned.

"Yes, it's me." said Day lightly, paying the bartender and handing Allenia her drink. "The woman you owe 6,000 too. Did you think I'd forgotten?" Her hand tightened around the gun beneath her robe. "I never forget a debt, Alennia."

Allenia wouldn't meet Day's eyes. "I'll have the money for you soon."

"How soon?" Day kept her voice calm, but there was a thread of malice beneath it. "You were supposed to have it for me months ago. I'm not running a free operation here, Allenia. And I know what I got you wasn't cheap. Just one chest would be able to pay me back in full."

"I'll have it for you soon, alright?" Allenia's voice was petulant.

Day reached up and slapped Allenia hard across the face. Her sleeve slid back to show a green winding tattoo, though Day covered it again in an instant. Allenia jolted back, though there was no surprise in her face.

"Listen," Day demanded, finally allowing a bit of snarl into her tone, "I give you two weeks. Then, I find you, and you walk away with something much worse than a bruise."

"It won't be two weeks." Allenia admitted quietly, looking at the floor. "The treasure is gone. All my money is gone."

Day couldn't help it- she raised her eyebrows in shock. "Don't tell me you're a gambler, Allenia."

Allenia's cheeks flushed with fury. "No! My money, my treasure- it was all stolen in a raid by the First Order." She gestured to the clothes on her body. "This, my ship- this is all I have now."

"Fine." said Day, standing up. "I give you six months, for half of what you owe me."

She was out the bar before she had to take one more look at that pitiful woman's face.

Because Day knew exactly what it was like to have lost everything.

Allenia had shown up closer to dawn than to nightfall, but Day didn't give herself any time to sleep before taking off from the small moon. First of all, Allenia's home was relatively close to here, and if the First Order commonly found themselves in this system, than Day wanted no part in it.

Also, she had a meeting with a client in a few hours.

Her ship, a small stolen cargo ship, could be set to an autopilot, so Day left R9 to run the course and went to do some preparation. She needed to do a food inventory. Also, her next meeting was at a fancy upscale restaurant on the planet Coruscant, which would require a change of clothes.

She'd gotten the meeting through Lech, who ran most of her operations. She owed quite a bit to Lech, something he took no trouble in reminding her of. Lech took a lot of pleasure in owning one of the most sought-after bounty hunters in the galaxy. As for this new job, Day knew nothing about it except which restaurant and table she'd be going too. And that she'd be getting paid so much that getting more food wouldn't be a problem at all, even with the hefty percentage she'd have to pay Lech.

For her dress, she picked a long black sheath that had knives sewn into the lining. She'd be taking her gun with her, of course, but it was always a good idea to have a surprise weapon as well.

R9 got them to Coruscant in no time at all. The heart and capital of the republic, Day was here so often that she had her own spot in the ship bay and her own smaller ship for transportation throughout the buzzing city.

She left R9 to run diagnostics on the ship, and boarder her small skiff. She was looking for the Castle on a Cloud, a restaurant she'd neither seen nor heard of. Lech had informed her that it was up on city central, so that was where she headed.

Day spent a lot of time alone, so it was always a bit of a shock to be back on Coruscant. The first few moments in the crowded skies always left her breathless, dizzy, and just a little bit giddy.

Once in city central, Day wondered how she had never noticed the Castle on a Cloud before. It sat at the top of a tall building, and was made of gleaming white stone. There was a white veranda on which to park vehicles. Day took one of the only spots left.

Once inside, Day found herself in a tall dark room covered in drapes. Pillars separated her from the main dining area. A woman waited behind the counter. Day approached her.

"I'm here for the private Hunter room."

"Right this way, Miss." The woman led Day past the wide room and down a small, but ornate hallway. Day drew her cloak a little tighter around herself- it was pretty cold.

"Here we are, Ms. Brecher." Day didn't wonder how the woman knew her name, simply thanking her and opening the shiny wooden door.

The room was small, with a curtain distorting the image that lay beyond. Day could see the hazy image of a circular table, some food, and a figure. THe figure stood.

"You must be Day Brecher. Please, come in."

Day pushed her way through the curtain. With Lech, she had to assume each client he gave her was safe. To avoid a client was death. But that didn't stop her from being a little nervous, each and every time.

It was a man. A nondescript fellow, with dark skin and closely cropped hair. He was wearing a simple black suit, and appeared to be in his mid forties.

"Have a seat, Ms. Brecher." She sat down across from him, not yet removing her cloak.

"Lech said you'd remove your gun." The man busied himself in cutting up his chicken, but there was an edge beneath his voice. Day removed her pistol, and laid it on the table in front of her.

"You are Day Brecher, correct?" The man glanced up at her, his green eyes meeting hers.

"Yes." Day's voice was clear.

"Humph." The man went back to his chicken. "You're younger than we thought. But you match Lech's description. May I see your arms?"

Day removed her cloak. Her green tattoos, which covered her arms like vines, seemed to glow softly under the light.

The man nodded. "Well, then I suppose there's no point in wasting time."

Day leaned forward. "I completely agree."

Suddenly, there was a gun pressed against her forehead. "Then, by the power of the First Order, I command you to come with me."

A/N This is more of a teaser than a chapter, as my chapters are typically a little longer. But let me know what you think in the reviews!

-Mary