Tsath| In Grey
She stepped out of the speeder and waved at the driver droid as she walked towards the back entrance of Blacklight. She opened the door and nodded quickly at the large security droid, which oddly didn't move in response to her. She disregarded it, and she quickly climbed the stairs to the dancer's quarters. She waved again at the few friends she had at her job, and found her locker. She opened her bag and threw it in, taking out the revealing and intricate metal uniforms all dancers had to wear.
How disgusting. She thought to herself, and looked at the mirror in her locker. She was a rather attractive twi'lek, she did have that much to admit or she wouldn't have landed this job… but then again, they took pretty much anyone with the stomach for this line of work. She peeled off her normal day clothes and reluctantly put on the cold metal, her yellow skin contrasting to the black cloth that gave her a small amount of lower decency. She wrapped her lekku, or head-tails as others called them, around her neck and made her way to her small stall.
She couldn't decide if being a private dancer was a blessing or a curse, but everyone else told her she was lucky. Public dancers got pulled and touched by everyone every night, but she had to deal with one person at a time. She nodded to herself as she also considered the fact she made better tips. Making a turn down to a large hall with many curtains, she made her way to her own, the third from the front, and peels the curtain back to open the large-metal door that served for security and privacy.
Just as she input her code and slipped into the tiny stall with a large table and a circular booth around it, she was shocked to see a man inside. She was tempted to cover herself but she blushed as she closed the door and smiled. She tried to feign confidence, but she was always nervous on the job. Her boss said that it gave her charm. She pressed her back against the door and spoke to the man, stuttering.
"K-Kava kavaa jee hopa chuba?" The girl spoke in huttese, and the words came out quickly, but slow compared to fluent huttese speakers. Basic was her first language. The man looked up at her and took off his black cap. His hair was fine and elegant, combed to a smooth black wave above his brow. His face was carved and handsome, a fine moustache and sat upon his upper lip and a small patch of hair graced his firm chin. He smiled, his liquid-blue eyes seeing through her.
"Do your customers always like the poor huttese?" He joked, a refined and crisp accent made his humor sting like ice and melt like snow. The girl shook her head.
"No… I… How did you get in here?" She stammered out as she shifted herself into the side of the booth across from him.
"I've got my ways. Besides, I already payed…" His eyes slanted as if hiding secrets. He scooted over to her, his grey long-coat whispering against the fabric of the seats. The light in the stall was dim, centered above the table in the middle. She retreated to the very tip of the booth and folded her arms over herself. She hated interacting with customers, she just wanted to do the dance, get the money, and have him leave. He quirked an eyebrow and canted his head.
"Don't like the outfit? Can't say I blame you. You look like a classy girl… Such a shame you have to dress like that," He shifted himself closer to her, turning his body. "I'm sure you'd make a lot more money out of this little rat-hole and in some cleaner clothes," He leaned away from her. She smiled, suddenly feeling comfortable.
"W-well… I mean, yes. I… I…" She was stammering. Her face flushed as she looked at the table in front of her. The man scanned over her. She was stunning, her smooth yellow skin shaded in the dim light. Her tight but firm build was very easy on his eyes. He cocked an eyebrow… She certainly wasn't lacking in curves either. He smiled as he moved even closer to her, sliding a gentle hand across her bare shoulders. She turned to him and he put a finger to her lips.
"W…What's your name?" She asked, taken in by his shimmering blue eyes. He gave a gentleman's chuckle.
"I'm an Imperial Nobleman… and a Republic SIS Agent. Excuse me, m'am, if I don't say my name… He gave a grin, his words poured out slowly like fine wine. "And how did such a fine young woman like you find it in herself to work at a place like Blacklight?" He continued, moving his head closer to hers. She began to stammer nonsense again, perhaps dropping a few poorly pronounced huttese within her mumbling. Courage was never her strong point. He put his finger to her lips again and his head went to her ear, his hot breath covering it as his other hand brushed one of her lekku aside.
"Shhh… Let me do you a favor and make this easy for you…" She melted in his arms, a tiny smile coming to her lips. She felt herself sink when his smooth, gentle lips kissed her cheek, and lost herself when his hand cradled her other cheek, the same lips meeting hers in a warm exchange. He sucked tenderly on her bottom lip and she weaved her fingers into his thick, soft hair. Within seconds she couldn't help herself and thrust her tongue into his mouth. She couldn't believe she was seduced by such a handsome human, but she found it even harder to believe she was getting paid for it.
Just as she slipped her fingers onto his warm neck and he shifted himself on top of her, the door slid open. The girl's heart stopped as a cloaked figure slipped inside and sat down, two yellow eyes peering directly at her. It took a moment for the man to realize something was wrong when the little twi'lek stopped moving, and he casually turned his head to look at the intruder. He slid off the girl, much to her dissatisfaction, and draped an arm around her. She immediately looked at her lap and folded her arms over herself. The mysterious stranger spoke, her voice identifying her as a woman.
"I see you're already enjoying the perks of a job in a strip-club," Qa'za leaned forwards, putting one arm wrapped in black cloth on the table. Rikter smiled.
"You know me well. I couldn't help but be drawn in by this piece of beauty." He turned to the twi'lek, nervously fidgeting with her fingers in her lap. She knew it would be too good to be true- An attractive customer paying for her pleasure. Qa'za merely perked an eyebrow as she looked at the scantily clad girl. She shook her head and set her other arm on the table, metal hand clicking upon the metal. The girl looked up and started staring at the robotic limb. Qa'za gave a small sigh of annoyance.
"Is the place locked down?" Qa'za looked directly at Rikter, which was busy smiling at the twi'lek dancer. He shifted his eyes coyly at Qa'za.
"Of course… I always put work before pleasure," He patted the girl's shoulder reassuringly. She looked up at him then at the woman on the other side of the stall. Locked down? What did it mean? Rikter turned his head to her.
"Don't worry, sweet, I'm right here…" His worlds melted into her and she smiled. Qa'za made a noise of disgust and opened the door.
"Just be ready if I need help." She closed the door behind her, throwing a very large bag onto the booth. The girl stared at the bag for a brief second before feeling the hot sensation of the man's tongue running up her neck. She couldn't help but let a small moan escape when he spoke in her ear.
"Don't worry, sweet… I'm right here."
Qa'za shifted her eyes around. If Rikter had done his work properly, which he usually did an exceptional job of doing, and then the security droids and cameras would be disabled. She looked down the hall and walked silently up to a large security droid and waved a hand in front of its photoreceptors, or eyes. After no response she drew a sleek pistol with an elongated barrel. She pressed her cloaked form against the wall and slid down to the door at the very end of the hall. She peaked a single eye around the corner, seeing vibrant teal and violet lights dancing and chasing each other around.
Shifting herself around the corner of the doorway like a shadow, she moved into the room. The door was located directly underneath some stairs and she found herself thinking back to the cantina. Slow music played, a low bass snaked below a slinking melody, all of it dancing on top of a dirty beat. Hundreds of cyan and purple lights spun around the room, passing over every shadow and lighting every face. There were dancers of many different races up on platforms, moving their bodies slowly to the music as customers slid credits below them.
Chatter buzzed beneath the music as Qa'za began to move through the shadows, trying to get to the other side of the room without being seen. She saw a man with three women in dancer uniforms situated all around him. She pitied them. With so much technology and so many races, she would've imagined that things like this and racism would be eliminated… Or at least suppressed. Jumping from shadow to shadow, corner to corner, Qa'za navigated the room easily moving up some stairs to the other side of the club.
She didn't worry. Rikter showed her the layout of the building and they formulated a good plan. It was an easy assassination, she didn't need Rikter's help. The place being run my mostly mechanical security, this job was child's play to her. She turned a corner, walking by four idle droids with large blaster rifles in their arms.
Making her way to the large administration room, Qa'za input the sequence to the hacked door. It slid open quickly. The room was large, decorated with extravagant furniture and décor, and she saw the large holo of a hutt on the other side of the room. Hutts were disgusting creatures, gigantic slugs whose fat bodies curved upright into a gigantic mouth and two lazy eyes, two floppy arms lying at the sides of their torso. The creature spoke in a deep, resonating voice to two men. One of the men was dressed in an expensive suit, the other in a slick vest and dirty pants.
Qa'za quickly took cover behind a couch as she peeked her head out, observing more of the scene, and perhaps the conversation. The men had their backs to her, making identifying them difficult. If possible, she wanted to end this all in one second, a perfectly timed shot to the head would mean she would be on her way home. The hutt spoke, his words shaking the room with their frequency.
{…according to plan, you say? } The hutt raised a brow, gesturing with its small arms. {Does that mean that the shipment is here?} His words were slow and booming huttese, though Qa'za imagined the creatures would have a difficult time doing anything with haste. The well-dressed man nodded, his appearance still hidden from Qa'za's position.
"Yes, mighty Hodaa," He spoke in basic and turned his head- Human. "That means our friend here Mr. Phess is going to become a wealthy member of our little group." The human smiled as the casual man turned his head… Mirialan. His green skin and geometric tattoos showed clearly in the light of the holo, his well-trimmed hair was slicked back.
"Just the money, thank you. I'm only glad this blueprint is getting into Republic hands." He nodded, smiling. This was all Qa'za needed. She leaned out from behind the couch and pulled her blaster into position. She gently squeezed the trigger when suddenly the well-dressed human looked alarmed, and tackled the mirialan. Qa'za's shot flew silently through the air, the beam of heat catching the human in the side. She cursed silently as she retreated back into cover. The hutt looked alarmed, and his image faded. Qa'za heard Vudo's voice.
"Hey- Berryk! Get through this! You've got hit by worse, a little blaster can't take you down…" There was a silence in Vudo's words. He suddenly cursed, pushing the dead man off of him and leaping behind another couch.
Qa'za clenched her teeth. She heard where her target rolled to, but her image of the room was still incomplete. Making a guess she popped her head out from behind the couch and shot instantly, only to have a hostile blaster bolt flying towards her. She ducked, the bolt flying over her head. This wasn't just a slicer, he was good with a blaster too.
"Almost took your head off, buddy," He called to Qa'za, his voice coming from the right side of the room. "Might want to be a little more careful when you decide to pop out," he taunted her. Qa'za silently moved to the right side of the couch and took a shot at one of the two couches he could be hiding behind. Another blaster bolt whizzed by her hood as she ducked. A slight miss.
"Wrong place, sugar. You're quite pretty under that hood I see," His voice suddenly came from the left side of the room. Qa'za scowled, pulling out a vibroknife. She moved invisibly between the furniture, heading to the left of the room. After a few seconds she saw the mirialan slicer look around the corner of a chair, his green eyes matching his skin tone. Vudo caught only a brief glimpse of her and was shocked.
She suddenly leapt at him, slashing with her knife. Vudo swayed out of the way, dodging the attack. She swept the blade horizontally at his stomach but he took a step backwards. He dodged two more attacks before Qa'za had him in the perfect position, and she fired a single shot of her blaster, but to her surprise, the shot flew straight at her.
In a split second, Qa'za raised her left arm, the energy of the bolt scorching the metal of her prosthetic arm. She felt the heat of the shot, but not the pain. She saw the man had pulled and ignited a blue lightsaber from his jacket almost instantly, and he gave her a humored look.
"Alright. Charade's over." He smiled as he relaxed his stance and kicked a chair away from him. "Turns out, I'm no ordinary slicer," He nodded his head as she idly twirled his lightsaber. "Turns out, you're also no ordinary assassin. Tell you what- Let's have introductions before we do this properly and I turn you over to SIS for questioning."
"Alright." Qa'za smiled, taking a step backwards and holstering her pistol and knife.
"Jedi Knight Vudon Fesari, undercover data-slicer for Republic interests in Hutt-Space," Vudon then gave a nod of his head, his eyes never leaving his assailant.
"Qa'za Myrien," she spoke, drawing her own lightsaber. She ignited a single blade of gold from her weapon, the light of it softly shading the skin of her neck, jaw, and lips yellow. She continued, "Just a girl interested in making the Empire a better place," Vudon laughed, his eyes locked onto hers. He drew a second blade of green from his jacket, wielding one saber in each hand.
"Should've gone into politics, Ms. Myrien. Swordplay is no place for making anything a better place," He began to circle around her. She chuckled.
"Honorable, hm? You should've hid back on Tython with your little Jedi Order. Nar Shaddaa is no place for honor," She followed in suit, mirroring his steps. The two paced in a circle, slowly. Qa'za moved a hand to tap an earpiece beneath her hood. She lifted her head, still watching her opponent with a predatory gaze.
"Rikter. This job just got a lot more complicated."
To be continued…