Disclaimer: I do not own star wars or any of its character and while plot points are from various RPG games I take no credit for their origins only of their application in the story therein. This a labor of love and not for profit though if Disney or Lucas Arts would like to hire my creative brain I'd be more than happy to drop everything and come running. Please read and leave a review.

Star Wars

Episode 3: Mandalorian Fugitive

Chapter 1: Narrow Escape

On board the Krayt Fang:

Tersen and Gare stumbled from the engine room into the corridor just as Jarek and Slick exited the turret stations. The Lannik and Gank were covered in engine fluids, smoke stains, and a few singe marks, but otherwise okay.

"As you can hear," Tersen stated a little smugly, "engines are up and running again." Jarek and Slick glanced over the Lannik's shoulder back down the corridor. It was a mess of exposed conduits, dangling cables, and shattered panels. Jarek arched an eyebrow. Tersen followed his gaze and shrugged. "Most of that's superficial. Old overloaded circuits for secondary and tertiary systems." He patted the nearest bulkhead affectionately, "Been a while since this ol'girl did more than fly from point A to point B." As if to underpin his point a light fixture exploded in a shower of sparks before another section of the hallway was plunged into darkness. "Purely cosmetic, I assure you."

The quick jump to light speed had seen the ship well away from the Tatooine system and far from the danger that lay within. Despite the vessel's dilapidated condition, it had handled itself well during the subsequent attack by the Imperial Tie Fighters. The damage sustained during the battle was significant, as indicated by the dangling and sparking cables and exposed paneling. However, it seemed to have held together. The Krayt Fang was a true testament to the quality of the Corellian shipyards that had built her.

Jarek and Slick nodded in understanding. They were all too exhausted for words, but their elation was almost palpable. They had just narrowly eluded execution and were now free from the grasp of Teemo the Hutt. Though in need of repair, and certainly in need of some alterations before they could comfortably call it home, they had a ship. The whole galaxy was at their fingertips. It was a moment that needed savoring. It was a time to enjoy their new surroundings. They should've been able to kick back and relax a little.

Unfortunately, fate would not give them the opportunity to get to know the ship. Just then a series of klaxons began to wail and what sounded like a dozen snorting, squealing, and growling voices could be heard echoing over the ship's P.A. system. The combined noise created such a cacophony that the four of them had to cover their ears. Jarek quickly donned his helmet and was able to drown out the worst of it, while Gare turned down his implants. Tersen and Slick weren't so lucky. The Lannik was pressing both of his large ears flat to his skull while Slick's yellow eyes watered at the racket.

Ducking in and around the damage the group made its way to the cockpit where Madlyn and Era were working frantically at what few consoles were still operating.

"What's that sound?" demanded Slick, yelling to be heard.

"What?" Madlyn asked still working on her terminal.

"What...is...that...sound?" Slick asked again speaking slowly and clearly.

"Gamorrian Opera!" Era responded as she spliced cables together to bring life back to the copilot's station.

"Can you turn it off?" Jarek appealed.

"What?" the Mirialin responded shaking her head even as she continued to work.

"Can...You-di'kutla kaab!" the Mandalorian swore as he hauled off and kicked the panel that housed the P.A. system. With a freshly acquired dent in the front, the box hissed and sparked. The sound system sputtered a few times before dying altogether. The entire ship was bathed in glorious silence once more.

The crew sighed in relief.

Madlyn groaned at the sight of yet another damaged piece of equipment. "You could've just asked to turn it off." She set about examining the pilot's command console. Several Alert Icons were winking red on the Navigational Computer's user interface. There were four of them; A large flashing red script in the center of the screen, a small flashing icon in the shape of a crescent moon, or fang, an irritating and intermittent pop-up in Trandosian script, and A flashing red icon in the form of a simplified cage.

Madlyn touched the flashing red script and the klaxon indicator went dark. "Seems the ship is low on fuel."

Jarek sighed in barely restrained frustration. He needed a stiff drink, but he desired a soft bed even more. He hadn't slept since before the attack on the Ao Var and it seemed neither had the others. They couldn't rest though. The ship needed repairs so instead of fantasizing about warm sheets he turned his attention back to the nav-computer. "Can the ship make a sustained hyperspace jump?"

Era gave him a peculiar look as she took the copilots chair. She pressed a few buttons with no response. She smacked the console once, earning a glare from Madlyn before it activated. As she ran through the ship's systems she replied, "We have enough to make one more jump but that's it."

"So where do we go?" Tersen asked as he began assisting in the cockpit repairs.

"Not that many choices I'm afraid," Era chimed in looking over the repaired nav-computer. As she explained it quickly became apparent that the previous owner of the vessel had not been keeping the navigational computer up to date. "The computer is capable of navigating just a couple of stable hyper-routes with only six destinations programmed into it." She scrolled down a very short list reading off the possible destinations, "Tatooine, Christophsis, Geonosis, Ryloth, Trandosha, and Kashyyyk." Jarek knew without much thought that of the destinations, only Ryloth was the immediately viable port of call. Glancing around he realized they all had come to the same conclusion. Aside from being the closest, it was well known that both the oligarchs of Christophsis nor the Geonosians took kindly to uninvited guests and that it would be a risky and expensive business to acquire fuel or credits from either world. Trandosha and Kashyyyk were also dangerous destinations at the time, besides which the ship was so low on fuel that such a journey might leave them stranded in the black void between systems. Compared to the Core Worlds, Ryloth was a poor and somewhat lawless planet. With the Empire's occupation coupled by the rumored rebel movement, it wasn't an ideal location. On the flip-side compared to Tatooine, it was downright civilized.

Sensing what they were all thinking, Madlyn gave their thoughts voice, "Ryloth would be our best bet. It's our only bet really, given how little fuel we got."

If Jarek's math was correct, the ship would make the journey easily enough and still have fuel to spare. In addition to being a relatively safe destination, the planet was home to a number of hardscrabble spaceports at which cheap fuel and repairs should've been easy enough to purchase.

As Era wrapped up her explanation, Gare, who seemed to be a being of few words finally spoke up. "I believe we have a more immediate problem." The Gank groaned and began doubling over. He'd almost hit the deck before Jarek and Slick caught him. They asked him what was wrong to which Gare responded with simply, "The smell."

They had been so wrapped up in all the excitement of the past few minutes that none of them had taken notice of the horrid stench that now seemed to permeate the freighter. It had gone unnoticed amidst the scents of burning ozone and engine exhaust but had managed to double in potency.

While Tersen, Slick, Madlyn, Jarek, and Era found the smell strong and unpleasant it seemed to be making Gare ill to the point he was having trouble focusing or maintaining balance. Jarek had heard Ganks were very sensitive to certain odors and some scents could be debilitating to the point of deadly.

"Where is it coming from?" Slick asked pinching his nose.

Madlyn shook her head covering her nose with one hand and working the console with the other. Pressing one of the bits of script caused a message to appear. "Delivery notice: Cargo destined for client TEEMO still on board," she read aloud, "Cargo type: WOOKIEE SKINS. Cargo location: MAIN CARGO BAY."

Jarek and Slick needed no other explanation. After easing Gare to the floor they ran to the freighter's main cargo hold. After scouring about they found what they were looking for. In one of the storage bins, they discovered a pile of fresh Wookiee pelts covered in maggots and blowflies. The smell was almost enough to make them both vomit.

Jarek had skinned more than a few beasts, but that had been out of necessity. Wookiees were sentient beings. The fact that Trex had killed and then skinned them just felt...wrong. At least he hoped they'd been dead at the time. The Trandosian hadn't made any effort to properly tan and clean the skins either. Add to being improperly stored the furs were in a sorry state. Without any preamble, they tossed the furs into the nearest airlock and ejected them into space.

"Cycle the atmosphere, Madlyn," Jarek ordered fighting his gag reflex and wishing desperately for a shower. There was no reply but within seconds the atmospheric processors had cleared the stink from the air to the point Jarek was able to remove his helmet and breathe freshly scrubbed air.

They return to the cockpit in time to see Era attempting to ease Gare back to his feet. Tersen was having an animated conversation with the pilot about the state of the ship, while they worked on a console.

"So where are we?" Jarek asked gesturing out the main viewport. Though it was an awe-inspiring view of the stars, he had noted the lack of a planet, moon, or any other celestial bodies to indicate their location. Madlyn looked up at him, biting her lip nervously. "Please tell me you know where we are."

She shrugged and stated. "Somewhere at the edge of the Tatooine system."

"We could only manage a quick jump," Tersen chimed in before Jarek or anyone could inquire as to why. The console sparked and the various sensors and panels in the cockpit hummed back to life. The Lannik smiled and stood. "I only had the Hyper Matter Reactor Igniter...err...temporarily installed," he explained.

Gare grunted in annoyance. "By 'temporarily installed' he means I had to hold it in place for the duration of the trip." He raised his cybernetic hand to reveal the metallic palm was scorched by extreme electrical discharge.

"Gutsy move," Slick stated giving the Gank a respectful nod.

With the consoles back to full operation, Tersen returned to the engine room to finish his repairs. The rest of the crew opted to clean up the rest of the ship and see if Trex had anything of value. Ryloth may have cheap fuel but that meant nothing if they didn't have anything to pay or trade with.

The Krayt Fang was a converted cargo hauler. Its main cargo bay was filled with supplies, mostly food and water rations, and enough medical supplies to fill the ships small med-bay. The med-bay in question was in need of a good sanitizing. It looked as if it had never been used except as a storage closet. The secondary cargo-bay housed a workshop. An array of tools filled the cabinets along with boxes and boxes of scrap metal, droid parts, and circuitry. A waist-high work desk ran the length of one bulkhead. A half assembled swoop-bike sat strapped to the floor. Trex must've fancied himself a fabricator. Gare seemed impressed with the room and Jarek certainly saw the potential.

The galley/common room was in total disarray. The food counter was littered in old dirty dishes, most of which were scattered on the floor. The common room's holo-chess board was similarly stained with food particles. Slick commented that the entire ship looked like it needed to be sterilized. Jarek and the others agreed.

There were only four closet-sized births for a crew. The rooms consisted of a bunk and a storage locker. A single fresher was shared between the four. The Captain's quarters, Tex's room was in a much better state than the rest of the ship. A white fur skin rug decorated the floor next to the bed, also covered in various furs. Other trophies from assorted hunts decorated the walls; claws, teeth, horns, and more skins. Before anyone claimed the room, it was decided it would have to be completely redecorated.

They also discovered, much to the crew's delight, a small lockbox that contained one-thousand credits. It wasn't a huge sum but it would help go towards either fuel or repairs.

"I found something!" Madlyn called from the cockpit. While the others went about straightening up, Jarek hurried back to the cockpit. Madlyn was glaring at a console swearing underneath her breath.

"Must be good news," he affirmed dryly.

"It always is," she growled without looking up at him. He leaned over her shoulder and saw the readout: "Transponder operational. Receiving signal: Teemo, Mos Shuuta, Tatooine. Emitting coded response." A series of numbers then followed, to the effect that the response signal was being updated and emitted every five seconds.

Jarek groaned. "Does that mean what I think it means?"

"If I had to guess I'd say Trex has been allowing Teemo to keep a record of his location via a hyperspace transponder attached to the hull. As a result, Teemo is able to determine the approximate location of the craft." She looked up at him smiling and looking more like her old self. "It's just a guess though."

Jarek wasn't all that surprised. Frustrated, but not surprised. Every two-bit smuggler and pirate gang had a means of tracking their own ship. He glanced at the scanner expecting to see more ships jumping out of hyperspace any second. "Can you turn it off?"

She shook her head saying, "It's on the hull." She turned and started working away at the ships communications terminal. "But I may be able to alter the rate at which the signal is emitted. While the signal can't be switched off from the computer..." she typed furiously at the keyboard, "I may be able to slow it to pulse once every other hour." A series of green confirmation icons flashed before their eyes and she sighed in satisfaction. "That should do it. Temporary fix until we land and remove the little bugger."

Relief filled Jarek and patted her on the shoulder. "Knew there was a reason I kept you around."

Before Madlyn could make a snappy comeback they heard an alarmed yelp come from back in the ship. Jarek thought one the others must've dropped something or stumbled across yet another bit of evidence pertaining to Trex's hobbies. Then Tersen's voice echoed out. "You may want to see this!"

Jarek motioned for Madlyn to stay put and hurried to the engine room. As he passed the common room Slick inquired as to what was happening. "No clue." With that, the three of them set out for the engine room. They arrived to find Tersen lying flat on his back amidst a scattering of tools and engine part. He hadn't exaggerated. Even without the scorch marks from the aforementioned fire, the engine room was a cluttered unkempt mess just like the rest of the ship.

Tersen pointed towards a sealed door that leads to the ship's number three hold. The number three hold was normally reserved for the ships spare parts. "I didn't know he was there until I heard moans."

Jarek examined the door noticing it had been reinforced with a steel plate in addition to a digital code lock. Interesting. He drew his blaster and gestured to Tersen. The Lannik nodded and made quick work of the lock. The moment the hatch slid open Jarek stepped in, weapon raised.

Like the door, the hold had seen some alterations. Rather than housing spare parts it contained some of the equipment used by bounty hunters for the restraint and transportation of captives. Several sets of binders hung from the walls, and there were six small cylindrical cell units mounted on tracks for ease of transport. Five of the units were empty. The sixth one contained the crouched and cramped form of a male Twi'lek.

The captive appeared old and frail, with pale blue skin and a single long, thin lekku coiling from the right side of his head. Where the left lekku should've been was an ugly cauterized stump. At the sound of their approach, he raised his head in alarm, but his expression became one of curiosity when he saw who they were. Or rather who they weren't.

"You're not Trex," he wheezed. Jarek only blinked in surprise. Had the poor Twi'lek been on board the entire time? If he had been there prior to take off he must've thought the ship had still been in the possession of Trex, the Trandosian bounty hunter.

Upon catching sight of the prisoner, Era immediately shoved past Jarek and moved to unlock the Twi'lek's restraints. Gare made to stop her but Jarek halted him with a gesture before moving to assist. The moment the restraints were removed the aged Twi'lek slumped forward only to be steadied by the pair of them. He was feather light looking under fed and filthy. Beneath his rags, he must've been rail thin.

As Era and Slick helped him to the galley, Jarek stayed back to examined the other cages. A quick search of the other tracked cells revealed them to be empty except for the one directly across from the Twi'lek's. In it, he found several pieces of brown chitinous shell, one of which was marked with curious designs.

Unsure of what to make of it he tucked it into his pocket and followed the others.

They set the Twi'lek on the couch. While Era began administering first-aid, Slick and Tersen produced one of the food rations and some water. Gare stood back, leaning against a crate glaring at the Twi'lek with obvious suspicion. Jarek ignored him not fully committed to trusting the Gank himself. Trex was a beast of a sentient working for a heartless slug; whatever the Twi'lek's crime Jarek doubted that it warranted such rough treatment. He'd give the prisoner the benefit of the doubt...for the time being. Jarek had done his fair share of bounty hunting for the Hutt but most of his warrants were for scum underlings who thought they could cheat or steal from the crime-lord.

The crew watched as the former prisoner gobbled down the food and gulped greedily at the water. Noticing their stares he paused and slowly lowered the bottle. He cleared his throat and sat straighter. "Apologies," he said in a raspy weak tone, "It has been some time since my last meal," he regarded his attire and wrinkled his nose, "and even longer since I've been in a proper fresher." Neither Jarek nor Era made a comment on his poor state of hygiene, though privately they all acknowledged he did smell rather ripe. Given his reaction to the rotten pelts, perhaps the smell was why Gare kept his distance.

A trip to the fresher may have been in order, but first, they all had questions. "Who are you?" Jarek asked in a gentle tone, starting with the most obvious query.

Before the Twi'lek could answer, Madlyn rushed in. "I managed to decipher that icon of the cage!" she yelled excitedly, "Apparently we have a prisoner on board-" she came up short when she saw the elderly Twi'lek sitting amongst the rest of the crew. She flushed in embarrassment. "Oh..."

Slick sidled up to her. "A little late my dear," he whispered in her ear. Jarek ignored them and turned back to their guest-or resident it seemed.

"My name is B'ura B'on," he introduced himself and attempted to bow but barely managed a small nod before Era urged him to remain seated.

"Easy," she told him, "you're malnourished and dehydrated. Take your time."

Jarek noted that at the sound of B'ura B'on's name Slick perked up. "You know him?" he asked and the crew to include the Twi'lek turned to face him.

The Pantoran nodded and briefly explained how B'ura B'on was familiar to him. While working for Ryll Corp he'd come across the name. "When Aqualish thugs arrived on Ryloth and tried to muscle in on the planet's ryll mining operations," he clarified looking from one member of the crew to the next. "A group of Twi'leks organized a series of mines said to be run 'for and by Twi'leks.' Some critics said that the organization wasn't much better than the thugs it replaced and that it sold uncut ryll illegally on the black market." He looked at B'ura B'on who sat straight and undaunted by the accusation. "However, many Twi'leks see the organization as a sign of hope, undermining the efforts of those who sought to exploit Ryloth without thought for its inhabitants." he gestured towards the aged being, "B'ura B'on was among the most vocal of those in support of mines owned and run by Twi'leks."

Once he had finished the crew looked back at B'ura who nodded to confirm that what Slick had said was mostly accurate. Jarek gave an encouraging, almost insistent nod. The Twi'lek sighed and placed the finished food and empty water bottle on the chess board.

"Well, I'll try to keep my story short." B'ura cleared his throat before speaking in his weak raspy voice. "For some time now the rulers of Ryloth have been, in my opinion, remiss about who they allow in on the planet's Ryll mining industry, which you must understand is only barely legitimate in these days of Imperial dominance. For some time, bands of Aqualish terrorized mining communities, forcing Twi'leks to work for scant reward and extorting all sorts of favors and resources from mines that might otherwise have prospered." He paused to catch his breath eagerly accepting a second bottle of water. After taking a slow sip he continued. "I banded together with some associates in order to protect New Meen, our most profitable mine, from these bandits. For a while, we held them off. Then they simply disappeared. We were relieved at first, but soon learned that they had been killed in the process of some underworld takeover." Jarek exchanged curious looks with Madlyn and Slick. All three of them were obviously wondering if this 'take-over' had anything to do with Teemo's sudden interest in the ryll mines. "Shortly after that, bands of outsiders began to purchase land near the mines. They claimed they were developing it." His one remaining lekku twitched revealing a degree of aggravation at the memory. "Too late we realized they were there to spy on us and make life difficult. A short while later, during a journey to Nabat, I was attacked by a band of rogues, including the Trandosian," B'ura B'on gestured sparsely with his remaining lekku during his speech. "Who maimed and branded me before sealing me up in that cell."

Between his training with Death Watch and the work he'd done for Teemo Jarek had gotten good at reading people. Beings who lied had tells, physical ticks, to indicate when they fibbed. Different species had different tells and with Twi'leks it was all in how there lekku moved. Over the course of the conversation, B'ura B'on's single lekku stirred only when recounting an emotional event. Other than that he seemed to be open and honest about what he is saying, but the way his gaze shifted to the side as he spoke about the formation of his group made Jarek sense there was something he wasn't sharing. He made a mental note for later.

Remembering what he'd discovered earlier, Jarek pulled the piece of chitin from his pocket and held it up for the Twi'lek to see. "Do you know what this is?" B'ura B'on shook his head honestly unsure what the item even was. Era, on the other hand, reached out and took it.

The Mirialin archeologist turned the bone like pieces over and over in her hand examining them very closely. She held them at eye level, smelled them, and then - to everyone's surprise - tasted them with a touch of her tongue. After a few brief moments of study, she looked at the group and said, "The pieces of chitin look as if they were from some sort of intelligent insectile species. Insectile species sometimes shed their outer shell in order to grow and heal, so the bits of chitin doesn't necessarily suggest that the creature was killed." As she spoke she gestured at various points on the shell. "Close inspection of the ridges and cracks in the chitin reveals fine red dust, probably from Geonosis. The curious designs are clearly some sort of clan or ownership markings." She shrugged and past the chitin back to Jarek who was stunned into silence. "Best guess that's a piece of a Geonosian exoskeleton."

The bug-planet was practically in Tatooine's celestial backyard so it wasn't too far-fetched that Trex at one point had hunted a member of the insect-like sentients. However, Jarek never recalled seeing or even hearing about Teemo hosting any Geonosians at his palace.

The information seemed inconsequential at first, but then Gare spoke up. "Two months ago Trex delivered a Geonosian prisoner called Sivor to Teemo." The sudden explanation took them all by surprise but they allowed him to continue, "Having wrung him for information, Teemo forced Sivor to fight for his amusement in a secret gladiatorial bout. Sivor fought well, but when the Geonosian was weakened by his battles, Teemo allowed one of his henchmen, a Kubaz named Thwheek, to step into the ring and finish him off." Gare growled under his breath, "Thwheek hates insectile species in general and Geonosians in particular, and he was eager for an opportunity to kill one."

"Kubaz are clannish mammals," Era regaled the crew, "native to the planet Kubindi; their world was enveloped in Hutt Space during the last decades of the Republic and they are a relatively new sight on Rim Worlds. Kubaz...eat insects," she made a disturbed face at her own implication, "Thus have poor relations with insectile species such as Geonosians."

Jarek looked at the piece of chitin unsure if the information had any relevance. His instincts told him to keep the pieces, in case they proved useful. Perhaps someone on Geonosis cared to know Sivor had been brutally executed at the Hutt's orders. It could bring them a potential ally.

"So I take it you aren't friends of Teemo?" B'ura B'on asked. The group glanced at one another before they shook their heads slowly. B'ura B'on asked them to tell him their story. With some reluctance, they all explain their various reasons for leaving the employ of the Hutt. Slick even explained his involvement with Ryll Corp which peaked B'ura B'on's interest though he politely allowed them to continue. Jarek tactfully omitted the part where the Watchers were trying to track him down. Only Gare remained silent.

Once they had finished B'ura B'on looks rueful. "I have been giving a lot of thought to the Hutts recently," he said, "To my knowledge, they have had little interest in ryll production before. They will distribute it, of course, but until now they haven't been linked to any of the operations to actually mine it." He tapped his chin as he weighed the information. "I wonder if, seeing as the Trandosian who captured me worked for this Hutt you mentioned, that is set to change. I would greatly appreciate it if you could drop me off at the city of Nabat. I have friends there who would be willing to offer us refuge." At their hesitation, he added a caveat. "There are a number of good mechanics in the city, and we could see to it that your ship is repaired and refueled for your trouble."

The new information garnered smiles of gratitude from the crew. Finally, they had some good news.

"With such connections B'ura do you deny the accusations of corruption in your group?" Slick mentioned with a flat tone that wasn't accusatory nor angry. Merely curious.

B'ura B'on sighed and waved his remaining lekku sadly and thought for a moment before speaking. "We are a hastily formed and poorly prepared movement, with nothing much binding us other than our opposition to the harassment and exploitation of our people. Are there those amongst us who seek personal gain from the circumstances?" He shrugged with a wince, "I am afraid that it is probably so. I cannot speak for all of those who march under our banner, but I nevertheless believe the cause to be a righteous one."

Jarek noted that B'ura's cause sounded less like a drive for equality and my like a call to independence. A dangerous notion during the days of the Empire. The rumors of rebellion on Ryloth seemed to be becoming more acute. Jarek wanted to avoid such ideology, as it brought unwanted attention, but there was no avoiding they'd need the help of B'ura's contacts, whoever they were.

B'ura B'on appeared sympathetic regarding their grievances with Teemo and encouraged the crew to get to know his friends on Ryloth as they shared their animosity. He went as far as to promise that if they helped save the mine from Teemo's thugs, then they will be offered highly lucrative opportunities to ship ryll spice. At first, Madlyn didn't seem eager to continue her career as a smuggler, but there newly acquired ship needed fuel and they'd all need credits if they ever hoped to strike out on their own.

In the end, it wasn't a difficult choice to make.