Disclaimer: The Star Wars character and situations are not mine-they belong to George Lucas. Joter, H'shaat, Klorth and the other Hellions are mine. I'm not making money off of this, don't sue me.




THE HELLIONS: Prologue




Joter Pha'lik'ey scowled at the gray wall of his dimly lit room. He was tired of biding his time, waiting for the so-called New Republic to make the mistake which would give him his chance to strike. He had been waiting for years-since the great Empire fell, and it was beginning to get on his nerves. His tail twitched with irratation as these thoughts swam in his large head. He was a man of action, and this break was playing havok on his nerves.

The door chimed and he jumped in surprise. "What?" He hissed, his large reptilian eyes narrowed as the small feline female called H'shaat entered.

H'shaat padded up to him, her whiskers arched and her golden eyes betraying amusment. "A little edgy, Joter?" She asked in her soft purr. Joter's scowl deepened. "Well, don't be," H'shaat said, her purr a little louder as she saw how she could needle the taller being. "For once I bring good news...." She waved a data pad before his face.

"What is it?" Joter growled, snatching it from her and turning it over to read what was written there. "What does it say?" He nearly roared as he found the information written in H'shaat's home language.

H'shaat flicked her tail slightly as she reclaimed the pad. "It says, that the chief of state, Leia Organa Solo and her husband have decided to take a little vacation: to Yitmasu."

Immediatly, the green skinned reptile's facial expression changed to a broad smile as he thought over the possibilities this move made. "Yitmasu," He repeated softly, ignoring the feline's nod. "Our old home.....Well, we certainly must pay them a visit."

***

Leia Organa Solo looked out the viewport of the Millinium Falcon to the deep teal colored planet which she orbited. Out of the corner of her eye, Leia could see the steal gray escort ship stationed not far from one of the planet's two moons.

"Yitmasu," Leia whispered the planet's exotic sounding name, which seemed to fit it perfectly. At the soft sound of her voice, the Chief of State's husband, Han Solo, glanced over at her.

"Huh?" He asked, not having heard what Leia had so softly said.

Leia shook her head and moved to sit down in the unusually-vacant co-pilot's seat, beside her husband. "We should do this more often," She sighed as Han turned his attention back to the old ship. "Just get away from it all-leave the kids with friends and just get away,"

"We should," Han agreed. "So why don't we?"

Leia ran her eyes over her scruffy looking husband, trying to gauge how serious he was. He appeared completely serious, so she sighed and set about trying to explain it to him....again. "Han, we can't," The usual speech began. "We're both too busy, with too many responsibilities. Too many people are relying on us, we couldn't-"

"No, your wrong there, princess" Han interupted her with a half teasing remark. "YOUR too busy, YOU'VE got too many responsibilities, and too many people rely on YOU. Me, I've got little I can't get around," he flashed her his best rogue smile.

Leia sighed and leaned back. "Well, that still means that we can't do anything like this too often,"

"Why not?" Han asked with false innocence. "I could just kidnapp you again..." Leia shot him a look and was about to respond when the com-link was activated.

"Millinium Falcon, this is Commander Roget of the escort ship, Republic's Dreamboat," The male voice said through the faint crackle of static.

"Who comes up with these ship names?" Han muttered, getting another sharp glare from his wife. He sighed and spoke louder, so that the commander could hear him. "Yes, Commander Roget, what can I do for you?"

"Well, sir," Roget said and Han could almost picture the young military officer standing at strict attention as he spoke. "You are cleared to go planetside sir."

Han glanced at Leia, who gave a small smile. "Thank you commander," he said out loud. "We're on our way,"

***

Joter watched as the ratty ship bearing Organa-Solo and Solo to the planet, followed by the escort ship. His eyes, adjusted well to the nighttime, easily picked out where the ships would break the upmost layer of the planet's thick vegitation-only about 4 kilometers from where he and two other beings waited.

"Are we ready to go?" H'shaat hissed. She had good eyesight, but it paled in comparison to Joter's.

"Maybe," the reptile growled. "Perhaps we should wait until the humans have gone to bed-all that will be going to bed tonight," he permitted himself a toothy smile.

"And how far away are they?" The large hairy creature called a Thomor asked in his slow speech. This creature-whose name was Tyru Sune Flar'e-was the slowest of the four team members, but had the advantage of being the strongest.

"Three or four kilometers," Joter informed him, as he turned his keen eyes skyward in search of the last team member-a litel named Klorth.

"It will take me several hours to reach the landing site," Sune said, craning his neck to the side to indicate that he thought he'd best leave then.

"Wait until Klorth is back," H'shaat commanded, just as Joter opened his mouth to tell Sune to start out. Joter closed his mouth irratably, under the amused glance of H'shaat. "Then you may go,"

Sune nodded, acepting the female's rule, and sat himself heavily on the mossy ground. Yitmasu was a very beautiful-and hazadous-world, but Joter and his crew had trained there under the watchful eye of Emperor Palpatine and later Darth Vador...they knew the terrain and dangers better than any other creatures alive. Sune ignored the poisiness bugs that lived on the planet floor, knowing that they could not hurt him, as they could so many other creatures.

"Where is Klorth?" Sune rumbled after a few minutes. He was not a patient being, and wanted so very badly to start on his way.

"Behind you, you fool," the genetically engineered bird announced, startling Sune. "You're getting russsty if you didn't hear my flap....Joter and H'shaat did," Joter's eye twitched and H'shaat bared her fangs in amusment.

"Don't startle me," Sune commanded, glaring at the creature behind him. "I may accedently rip those langy arms off if you do,"

"Oh, accccedentlllly, now?" Klorth cawed, his voice high in pitch.

"Enough." Joter interupted before a full-out fight broke out between the two, as had happened all too many times. "Do not fight-we have more things to do now. Sune, get started." With a last glare at Klorth, the golden beast pushed himself up and started on his rambling way.

"And what should wee doo, oh illusstriouss leadeer?" Klorth asked, his voice laced with sarcasm. "Asss wee wait foor the lumberiing oaff to neear thee siite.."

"Fly up and keep an eye on the humans," Joter growled the command, still angry at the bird-man's inability to get along with Sune. "H'shaat," he said the name with venom, glancing at the shorter feline, who gave a toothy smile back. "and I will stay here in wait,"

Klorth opened and shut his beak once then turned and sprang into the air-his wings extended and arms wrapped tightly around his human-like torso. His gray body disapeared quickly in the sky.

Joter sighed and thumped his tail on the ground as Klorth was lost even to his magnificent eyes. "This will never work if they cannot get along," he growled, partially to H'shaat, but mostly to himself.

"They will have to get along," the female answered, curling her tail about her as she sat. "They will or they will not survive," she carefully preened a paw, her golden eyes glowing with joyful malice. "We are not like the New Republic-we are strong enough to survive."

Joter didn't bother answering her criptic words-she would not explain, and he did not want to hear her sarcastic voice any further.


To Be Continued.......