Family
Chapter 1
Draft
Tara gazed out of the viewport of the civilian shuttle they were provisioned with to head to Dantooine. The shuttle pulled up not far from a lone asteroid, but Tara concentrated on the view the planet itself gave her. Dantooine, with its rolling hills and clear blue skies, occupied a generous portion of the viewscreen.
Tara liked the view. She, a medic working for the Rebel Alliance, breathed a heavy sigh, and she only then noticed that her red hair and orange jumpsuit were reflected in the viewport. She had been a medic on a backwater world helping the poorer inhabitants of the outer rim, but that had not yielded good results. She longed to be on the front lines, longed to do her part in ridding the galaxy of the tyranny that the Emperor had brought the people of the galaxy.
And so she had petitioned to join the Rebellion, being accepted a few days later. This, however, was her first ever mission.
The shuttle looked like any other stock Taylander transport, but an array of hidden weapons, sensor masks and military-grade shield generators actually categorised her as a warship.
"Shuttle Can-do requesting landing clearance, over." Tara heard the pilot – Kenan – say into the comm unit. Silence enveloped the ship, with Tara, Suri, Axena and Bill all holding their breath to see what the reply was; they'd either be given the requested clearance, or be shot out of the sky.
Most of the team were aliens; misjudged, misunderstood and mistreated by the human-dominated Galactic Empire. Suri, a sullustan, waited with her large ears throbbing with the strain of trying to listen, while the quarren Anexa patiently sat in silence and Bill the barabel thrust out his long, forked tongue, sniffing the situation.
"Clearance granted, Can-do," the aviation official replied after a while. "You may proceed." And with that, a click signified the termination of the channel.
Everyone, even Tara, let out a breath they didn't realise they had been holding.
"It took them a while, though." Anexa said in her guttural, watery voice. "Do you think they suspect something?"
"Absolutely not." Tara stated, joining the conversation. "Dantooine is nothing to the Empire, a lot of strange and shady characters come here to keep a low profile. They can't possibly know anything," she reasoned, settling into her chair and heaving the supports over her torso to keep her steady during the landing. "Besides, even if they do suspect something," she added, "they can't possibly know what we're up to."
The team managed to land on Dantooine without any major incidents, leaving the ship locked up behind them as they strolled into one of the sparse settlements on the planet.
"Well, we're quite the celebrities!" Suri remarked in her fast-paced language as they walked, indicating to Tara with a stubby finger all the inhabitants peering through open windows and doors to catch a glimpse at the travellers.
"Not many spacers come to this part of the planet," Kenan explained, "probably why our contact chose this place anyway. Quite surreal, if you ask me."
Not being disgruntled by the staring eyes of the settlers, Tara only realised how simple the settlement seemed to be now that Kenan had mentioned it. It was modest, yet very beautiful. All major streets seemed to convene into the centre of the settlement, with curved buildings accented with sharp corners and the odd straight edge, all complimented in a mix of a red and white colouration. Tara didn't want to look away; their buildings seemed to pulse with new and exciting culture.
"We're here." Kenan announced, turning from the streets and entering an unmarked residential building, with the rebel team close behind.
Tara's eyes adjusted quickly to the change in light, counting immediately the five armed and armoured beings standing at attention, with a rather young, skinny human male standing at the centre. Sporting a cheeky little goatee, he was also wearing simple civilian clothing and appeared not to be armed.
"You must be Kenan Rice?" The young man said politely, stepping forward and shaking Kenan's hand, much to the horror of Tara's team mate, who stuttered as the other approached.
"I thought I had kept everything under tabs," Kenan started with a chuckle, "you really do live up to your reputation."
The young man nodded at the compliment, stepping back so his eyes could encompass the entire group, as if he were studying each and every one of them.
"I'm sorry, but who actually are you?" Hissed Bill aggressively.
"This, Bill," began Kenan, turning to the rest of the party, "is Talon Karrde. Our informant."
Apparently, the persona of Talon Karrde was completely lost on Tara, who had never heard of the man before. After some other quick but necessary pleasantries, the group were invited further into the building.
Kenan had politely declined Karrde on a tour; "we're on a tight schedule," he had said, and to which Karrde then took them into the spacious dining room, with a pre-set dining table Tara noticed with a smile. The plates had steaming-hot food on various plates. Apparently, Karrde liked to indulge his guests.
Tara counted up the plates silently whilst Anexa moved ahead of her to sit down. There were exactly six plates and six chairs. She grinned; "well, Mister Karrde. You really are well informed."
"All part of my job, madam." Karrde replied, taking a seat at the end of the table and clasping the delicate silverware. "And call me Talon," he added with a smile.
Tara retuned the gesture and took a bite. Whatever it was, it was delicious! Bill, seemingly, did not trust their host and refused to eat anything. He had a point, Tara thought, for the food could be poisoned. What was she thinking?
"I don't want to rush things, Karrde, but we really need that information." Kenan explained, and Karrde stopped him with a raised hand.
"I totally understand," he said, "however, information always comes with a price."
Tara heard Bill growl, and winced as she realised things could get real ugly real quick. She herself wouldn't start any confrontation, but she wouldn't just sit if her friends decided to attack.
"What price?" Bill asked, emphasising the last word with his lizard tongue.
Karrde's young eyes sparkled. "I want you to go beyond your mission, I want you to – "
A breathless man carrying a blaster rifle interrupted Karrde, who looked rather abashed at such bad table manners. "What's wrong?" He asked.
"Storm troopers, Talon. They're five minutes away."
[3]