I make no claim to own Star Wars and/or Firefly or its characters. I just wish I did
3500 years before the rise and fall of the Chosen One, the Galactic Republic teeters on the brink of collapse. Over 300 years before, the Sith double agent, Darth Revan, discovered the mighty and powerful factory, the Star Forge. Returning to his true nature, Revan took the fleet to his Master, the 1000 year old Sith Emperor and became the Emperor's Shadowhand for the True Sith Empire. For 300 years, he and his descendants built up the Sith's armies with the Star Forge, creating an unstoppable fleet. Then, his descendants planned their attack…
Since Revan and Malak's war of conquest, the Republic has attempted to rebuild. But dark forces are at work. 10 years ago, the Jedi Knights, the protectors of peace and justice in the galaxy, were ambushed during their Conclave by a group of mercenaries with mysterious movtives and hunted down to extinction. Without their sworn protectors, it is only a matter of time before the Republic falls…
However, hope remains. The last of the Jedi has been found. But, this Jedi only wishes to be left alone. Unwilling to commit himself to a losing effort, the former Knight roams the galaxy just trying to make his way. But the Sith are on to him. Pursued by both factions across the galaxy, this former Jedi will face a choice – join the Republic…or sacrifice himself to the Sith…
"This is too kriffin' easy," he thought to himself as he made his way along the wreckage in the cumbersome zero-G suit. "Don't worry, it's been derelict for years mate. The Sith ain't gonna bother themselves with an old freighter that's been adrift since that cease fire a while back. I would do the job, but I ain't got my own ship friend. You do," he had said. And then he smiled that smug smile. "Bajer must've sold us out again," Dace Saecen thought to himself. He knew it in his soul, as his dark brown eyes looked out at the stars. Some people thought that he had haunting eyes, eyes that had seen far more sorrow than anyone should have. With his longer than normal brown hair and scraggly goatee, he might have had more companions in his life, if only he didn't scare women off by keeping them all at arm's length. At least his crew was loyal, as long as the money kept coming in. If it kept coming in. He was going to have to have Vima dance again on Nar Shaddaa, if she was willing. He had to keep the ship flying somehow. At least she was always willing.
"Hey, Capt'n, think I found the door," Vima Boton calls out from ahead, breaking into Dace's thoughts.
"'Bout damn time," Jaylen Ordo complains from the rear. "We've only been searchin' this wreck for five hours."
"Easy, darlin'. Don't be scared," Vima taunts, mischief in her pink-skinned face and bright blue eyes as she begins working on some kind of equipment.
"I ain't scared of nuthin', this abandoned wreck is just givin' me some concerns, is all," Jaylen explains in his simple way, yellow eyes shining out from behind his faceplate in sunken gray eyesockets.
"Aww, Jay-Jay is scared," Vima sarcastically taunts.
Before Jaylen can respond, Dace cuts him off, "Quiet you two. Jaylen, give me the sticky."
"Here boss."
Dace takes the gun-like device from the former Mandalorian, and begins lining the outside of the door's control panel with the gel-like substance. Once finished, Dace cuts the wire inside the gel, and holds out his hand. Vima places the timer that she had been working on in his hand, and he attaches it to the exposed end of the wire, and pushes a button on the control. He pushes himself back and watches as the wire begins to glow and burns through the metal of the control panel. In a jet of escaping air, the panel shoots off, narrowly missing Dace's head, who merely notes, "Pressure. Must mean it's still sealed."
"Good sign," Vima agrees, and Jaylen muscles the door open. Upon seeing three black boxes the size of small coffins, Dace smiles and comments, "Shiny."
Back in the cockpit of the Defiance-class freighter Serenity, Micah Ghent is sitting there, amusing herself with small instrument from her home planet of Glee Anselm. While she is strumming the strings, she gets a transmission from Dace. "Hey Mic, we still all clear?"
She jumps, head tails flying around her as she whips her head around, black eyes wide open, before she realizes that she's still alone and it's just the comm unit. Her bright green skin darkens slightly from her embarrassment at being scared by the comm. "Shiny, Cap'n," Micah replies.
"Glad to hear. You'd better holler the second you see anything, alright?"
"Aye Cap'n," Micah replies again, and continues on with her instrument, the typical Nautolan smile flashing across her striking face. She begins playing again and humming along before she is interrupted by a beeping on the sensor console, and alarmed, she looks over there. The look on her face turns from simple curiosity to shock and fear. "Oh, Sithspawn," she curses and gets on the comm, "Cap'n, we're humped! Republic cruiser inbound!"
"Sithspit," Jaylen curses.
"Mickey," Dace says, "We been buzzed yet?"
"No, not yet," Micah responds. "Lookin' like they might pass us bye."
"Don't give 'em a reason to stop. Go to blackout. We're on our way," Dace orders.
"Aye, Capt'n," Micah responds. Immediately, she shuts down all the engines, including the light. She's bathed in darkness and comments, "Great, now I can't see a frelling thing!"
The approaching hammer-headed Republic cruiser approaches, imposing a feeling of malice in everything that sees it. "Alright, what is it this time," the Republic Captain says, not attempting to hide her annoyance at being awoken at this ungodly hour as she strides onto the bridge.
"It's an old derelict Captain. Providence-class by the looks of it. I don't know for sure, it's in pretty bad shape. It looks…"
"Why do I care about this, Lieutenant," the Captain interrupts. "I…I thought that it was standard procedure to…," the frightened Human stammers, eyes wide with fright.
"And I thought it was standard procedure for members of the Republic Navy to be competent in some way," replies the Captain, interrupting her subordinate with typical Human hatefulness. "I'll be in my quarters for the rest of the night. Try not to wake me the next time you come across a stray atom, ok?"
The Captain turns to stride off the bridge, but the sensor technician nervously calls out, "Sir?"
"What," the Captain angrily demands.
"Wha...umm, sir, we are detecting a residual heat trace on that derelict."
"How?"
"I don't know, sir."
"Have you tried a full scan yet?" After being answered with a blank, frightened stare, the Captain vehemently demands, "Then do one right now before I execute you on the spot and find someone competent who can!"
"Y-Yes sir," the frightened Lieutenant replies, and turns to the computer console to begin the full scan.
Moving as quickly as they can while pulling a case each of the cargo, the three smugglers anxiously watch the Republic cruiser fly by the derelict. "Mic, have they seen us yet," Dace asks, his voice filled with concern.
"Naw, Cap'n," Micah replies softly, as if the cruiser could hear her through the vacuum of space if she spoke above a whisper. "Looks to me like they's be passin' us by."
Back on the Republic cruiser, the Lieutenant reports, "There is definitely a heat trace of some kind out there, Captain. Looks like a small freighter, maybe. Defiance-class, by the looks of it. Should I send in some fighters for a flyby?"
"Yeah, do it. Buzzards picking the scraps off the dead. They deserve to be dead themselves. Let's make sure all of us can carry forward that message."
"Aye, Captain," the lackey responds, and begins turns to relay the orders.
Back in the cockpit of Serenity, Micah is still nervously watching the screens when the alarm sounds. "Oh mai trella farr," she says, expressing the Nautolan curse, "Dace, we're humped, big time. They be scannin' us!"
"Get us up and ready for hard burn, Micah. We're almost home," Dace replies.
"Cry baby cry," Micah asks.
"Make your mother sigh," Dace responds, completing the code.
"Gotcha," Micah responds, pushing a few buttons. Outside the ship, a small cylinder floats away, blinking a white light on one end.
Back on the Republic cruiser, the triangular Aurek-class fighters begin leaving the hanger. "Sir," an Ensign calls out, "I'm receiving a distress call, about thirteen light years out. Sounds like a…personnel transport? Or maybe a troop transport, being attacked by a pirate frigate."
"Are you sure," the Captain asks. "We're a long way from the Outer Rim, I don't think a pirate frigate would come this far into Republic space, they wouldn't be that foolish."
"Seems to be legit," the Ensign replies. "All the codes are correct and up to date."
Considering for a moment, the Captain finally makes up her mind and orders, "All right, recall the fighters. Head for the distress call. Put out a flag on a Defiance-class transport with stolen cargo." Turning away, the Captain begins walking off the bridge and comments, "Someone else can step on these mynocks."
The bridge crew works to carry out the Captain's orders while the Lieutenant call into the comm, "Fighter squad, return to ship, we've got a real mission to complete."
Back on Serenity, Dace, Vima, and Jaylen get aboard with the cargo, and Dace calls out, "Mickey, we're aboard! Go!"
"Already gone, Cap'n," Micah calls out, and punches it. Serenity rockets across the Republic cruiser's path and takes off into hyperspace with a flash as the Republic fighters re-enter the hanger and the cruiser takes off into hyperspace as well in a different direction. "We're clear, Cap'n. They went after the crybaby."
"Woo hoo," Jaylen yells out as he's got the enviro suit halfway off, revealing the full extent of Taung features on his head and arms. "'Bout damn time somethin' went our way. Now how's about we hurry lickety split to Bajer and make us some real shiny coin for our troubles out here!"
"Yeah, because we were planning on just sitting here on some stolen cargo," Vima sarcastically replies as Micah joins the others in the cargo bay as they take off their environment suits, wheeling in on her wheelchair.
Jaylen shoots Vima a dirty look before Dace steps in and replies, "Stow it, you two." He kneels down before one of the containers, and opens it, revealing row after row of gold bars. Everyone smiles in response to the goods, with Vima saying, "Well, hello pretties!"
"We gonna make some bank with that, huh boss," Micah joyfully asks.
"Yeah, bank that some of us should be getting a higher percentage than others around here," Jaylen cynically answers.
"And why is that, Jay-Jay," Micah asks.
"'Cause some of us are out there risking getting' caught while others are sittin' pretty inside," Jaylen replies as Dace picks up one of the gold bars and begins turning it over.
"Yeah, 'cause they wouldn't arrest me if ya got caught. I'm just the pilot, eh? Not breakin' any laws here, and no one would dare arrest a cripple. Just think of…"
"Shut it," Dace bites, interrupting Micah's rebuttal after seeing an imprint on the other side of the gold bar. An imprint of the symbol of the Galactic Republic.
"Problem, Capt'n," Vima asks, her long, bright blue hair falling around her face as she leans over.
"No," Dace evasively answers. "I just want to finish the job as soon as possible."
"You don't think that cruiser ID'd us, do you," Jaylen asks, worry creeping into his voice.
"Not at all, this cash is just burning a hole in my hull, and I want it outta here fast. Mic, set a course for Persephone, fast as we can."
"We'll be there in just under ten hours," Micah replies.
"Can you do better than that," Dace asks.
"Are you sure that we weren't ID'd, Capt'n," Vima asks, concerned that Dace isn't telling the truth.
"No," Dace answers evasively again. "I just want to get paid. Micah, can we shorten that timetable a bit?"
"I don't think so, we're down to reserves as it is. We try to burn hot, we'll run outta fuel fast."
"Ok, just get us there as soon as you can."
"Aye aye, Cap'n," Micah replies, and rolls out of the cargo bay towards the cockpit.
"Micah, also, get on the holonet, tell Bajer we got the goods," Dace orders.
"Yes, Cap'n," she replies, continues to the cockpit.
Dace goes over to where Vima and Jaylen are pushing the goods to the hidden smuggling compartments. "So, we're goin' to Persephone, Capt'n," Vima joyfully asks, fixing her jumpsuit to show off as much of her pink skin as she can, but still keep it decent.
"Yup, Bajer wants these goods, and I wanna offload them," Dace replies, going over to the hidden compartment and opens it up. "Might even look into picking up some passengers, get some extra cash."
"Really," Vima excitedly says. "I love pickin' up passengers, they's always got stories and such…"
"Capt'n," Jaylen interrupts as he helps Dace carry one of the cases into the compartment. "Is there any way to make Vima any less cheerful?"
"I don't think so," Dace replies as they pick up the last case. "Not even a full legion of Sith Lords using the full might of the Dark Side of the Force could dampen her spirits. But I would like use some duct tape on her, close that over-excessive yapper of hers and maybe throw her in the hold for a month."
Vima bends over and kisses Dace on the cheek, and sarcastically tells him, "I love my Captain." He smiles at her as she sashays off, going back to her engine room to coax a little more speed out of them.
"We could just have her dance on Nar Shaddaa again if we need the coin," Jaylen offers. Dace shoots him a look, and Jaylen replies to himself as Dace leaves the cargo bay, "She could just dance for me then."