Chapter Six
"Yippee!" gleamed Hondo, happily skipping out of the club, "Seventy-five hundred credits!"
Ezra and Kanan followed him outside and continued to do so until they are at a safe distance from the club. Finally, they've caught up to him. Hondo turned around and saw them coming up to them.
"So how'd I do?" asked Hondo, grinning at the two men.
"You did wonderful," praised Kanan, "Thanks for your help, Hondo."
"Anytime, my friend. Well, buh-bye," Hondo turned around and began to leave but halted and turned to Ezra, "Oh, by the way, Ezra… take care of your little friend."
Hondo waltzed inside a diner, humming "Light of Hope" to himself. Ezra stared at where Hondo left, thinking to himself. Could he be talking about Moreena? He wondered.
"C'mon, let's head back to the Ghost," said Kanan.
"Right," acknowledged Ezra, giving a slight nod. With that, they jogged back to the ship.
Meanwhile at the Blood Moon, Moreena was watching all the patrons are clearing the building from the backstage while tugging at a metal collar around her neck. She's been doing this ever since Carnage placed it around her neck after she was bought from Hondo. A Mirialan girl came up behind Moreena.
"Hello," she greeted with a kind smile.
Moreena turned her head and saw the Mirialan looked like she may be a couple of years older than her. She had light green skin, gentle violet eyes, and raven black hair cut in an asymmetrical bob. On her forehead, are a cluster of shapes formed in a heart. She was wearing golden earrings, magenta negligee-like babydoll top with golden chains and bikini bottoms. She was wearing sandals as well.
"I've watched you from the backstage," the Mirialan continued, "You've sing beautifully."
Moreena smiled.
"Thank you," she acknowledged, extending her hand, "My name's Moreena, what's yours?"
"Feyona," the Mirialan introduced herself, shaking her hand.
"Nice to meet you, Feyona," said Moreena.
"Same here," said Feyona.
Moreena glanced over and noticed a group of girls walking across to the other side of the backstage. She looked back to Feyona.
"Where is everybody going?" asked Moreena, pointing to the group of girls."
Feyona's smile faded away.
"Follow me," she hollowly said, and walked away.
What was that about? She wondered, hesitant at first but followed her anyway. When they got to the other side, they've joined a huge group standing before something. Moreena peered through the gap between women and saw what looked like a handle on the floor. The bulky Falleen lifted the handle, revealing it to be a trapdoor. It also revealed a flight of stairs down below.
The young women then climbed down the stairs in a single-file line. Moreena reluctantly followed them down the stairs at the back of the line. As she descends down the stairs, she now finds herself in a cold eerie concrete hall. The hair on her skin stood up straight and felt sick in her stomach. She leaned towards Feyona, who is in front of her.
"Where are we going?" she aksed.
"We're just going to a place to sleep," Feyona simply answered.
"But where exactly?" Moreena urged.
"The Basement," she answered.
"The Basement?" Moreena felt uncomfortable with the answer she was given.
"That's where we sleep everyday," Feyona explained, "We dance all night and sleep all 'day' in the Basement. Carnage likes to keep us down here so that we wouldn't go anywhere."
"Day? It's still pitch black outside," Moreena pointed out.
"It's always pitch black outside," Feyona continued to explain, "Day or night."
"That makes more sense," commented Moreena.
Moreena glanced and noticed a pair of Twi'leks sitting on the floor next to a large metal door. One Twi'lek had light blue skin and has her light green eyes staring down at the ground. She wore tattered crop top and fishnet leggings. She looked about her age. The other Twi'lek looked almost like hera; both in age and appearance. Only her green skin is a shade darker and has a more curvy body. All her headpiece, vest and her pants with see-through leggings were magenta. Her entire body were plated with gold. Her icy green eyes glared up at Moreena; Moreena quickly looked away. Those must be the two girls Bane was talking about, thought Moreena.
"Moreena!"
Moreena and Feyona turned around and saw Carnage standing way back in the hallway.
"May I speak with you for a moment?" he asked, raising his hand for her to come.
Moreena looked back at Feyona, who gestured her head to go, and slowly walked towards Carnage. She looked up to his golden eyes when she's now standing before him; she swallowed.
"Yes, sir?" she nervously asked.
"I've come to say you've done wonderful job," praised Carnage, giving a small smile, "You have a remarkable voice. I can see how you're such an excellent slave."
"Oh! Thank you, sir," acknowledged Moreena, sighing in relief.
"However," his voice turned dark, "That doesn't mean I'll go easy on you."
"Huh?" Moreena felt her stomach dropped. "What do you mean?"
"Hear me, child," he began to explain, "I'm a businessman and I take my enterprise very seriously. Therefore I will not tolerate any mischief. Therefore I expect good behaviors from you. If you are to serve me, you are to abide by my rules. Here's how it works: You will obey my every command. No questions, no complaints. And of course no arguments.
"All slaves are to report down to the Basement when business hours are done, he continued, "There are to be no sneaking around after lights out, no exceptions. You are not allowed in my office unless I tell you so. Mealtime are before and after hours. Showering will be twice a week. No slaves are to leave the building, period. You will not bother me while I'm on important meetings. And don't even think about trying to run away, because I'll have Bane come find you."
"And...kill me?" Moreena nervously stammered.
"Kill you? Of course not!" chuckled Carnage, "That would be a waste. No, he'll just simply bring you back here where you will be dealt with."
Moreena saw two Zygerrian men coming down the stairs, her eyes followed them and noticed they were making their way towards the Twi'leks. Just as they were about to grab them, the green Twi'lek lashed out at one of them and tried to make a run for it, but was stopped by another man who just came down. The older Twi'lek squirmed in his arms, kicking her legs in the air.
"No! Let go of me!" the Twi'lek shouted, still kicking the air, "Let go!"
Moreena wanted to help the hapless Twi'lek, but couldn't risk the mission. She had no choice but to stand there and watch helplessly. After a brief struggle, the men were able to successfully drag them through the metal door, closing behind them. Carnage turned her face with his large hand back towards his face.
"You will be given three strikes," he added, holding up three fingers, "If you wound up with all three strikes, the consequences will be… unfortunate."
The sound of the whip cracking was heard through the metal door along with a bloody scream. Carnage sadistically smirked at the sound. Moreena felt a mixture of dread and remorse in the pit of her stomach upon hearing those sound.
"Am I clear?" Carnage purred.
Moreena was hesitant. You have to do this, Moreena, she urged herself, Everybody's depending on you. She swallowed down a lump in her throat and looked Carnage in the eye.
"Yes… Sir," she answered.
"Very good," Carnage's smirk grew wider and released her face, "Now go get some sleep, you'll need your rest for tonight. Sleep well."
Moreena turned and slowly walked away from the Zygerrian boss with her arms wrapped around herself. She can feel his golden eyes still watching her. Screams continues to echo throughout the hallway. Her fingers clenched around her skin as those sound fill her head, scream ringing in her ears. When she came at the other end of the hallway, she saw the Falleen bouncer standing next to another door.
"This way," grunted the Falleen, opening the door and shoved her inside.
Moreena staggered down the stairs a little, but was able to catch herself in time. She continued down the stairs into the Basement. There were no windows, nothing but walls. Against those walls were bunk beds, but barely enough for everyone. The lights were dim; piles of hay spread out across the cold concrete floor in crude cots. Moreena saw a water pump at a corner with a few bowls standing next to it.
"Here, Moreena," Feyona called out.
Moreena turned her head and saw Feyona laying on her side on the bottom bunk. She walked over to her as Feyona gets off.
"Since you're new here, you can heave my bed," Feyona offered.
"Uh...Thank you," Moreena politely said, giving a tiny yet grateful smile.
Feyona walked over to the nearest pile of hay and lays down. Moreena climbed onto the bed and slowly leans back. It barely felt like a bed at all. She can feel the metal frame through the thin mattress. The pillow seemed to be lacking any fluff and there were no blankets in sight.
"Pleasant dreams, skugs," the Falleen snickered nastily and slammed the door closed, leaving them in the dark.
Ghost- The docking bay of Stobar
Kanan and Ezra made it back to the Ghost at the docking bay. When they entered the break room, they've found the others were waiting for them.
"Welcome back, boys," greeted Sabine, giving a smile of relief.
"How'd it go this time?" Hera anxiously asked.
"Moreena's in the facility," Kanan answered, "Carnage seemed to take a liking to her."
"That's good to hear," said Hera, smiling.
"Wa-waah! (translation: Yippee!)," cheered Chopper, both apathetic and sincerely.
"I knew I've done a good job on Mo,"said Sabine, giving a cocky smile.
"Looks like this is gonna be a breeze," said Zeb, grinning, leaning back and resting his head on his arms, "Everything's going according to plan. Nothing can go wrong."
"Not exactly, Zeb," said Kanan, biting his lips.
"Huh?" Zeb looked up at him.
"What do you mean?" asked a confused Sabine.
"We got a problem" Kanan informed, "Cad Bane is here and he's working for Carnage."
Everyone in the room, including Chopper gasped. Zeb nearly fell off his seat, Hera nearly nearly covered her mouth and Sabine eyes widened.
"Wa-wa-wa-waaah! Wa-wa-wa-waaah!" Chopper beeped with dread.
"That's not good," said Hera, shaking her head.
"Please tell me you're kidding," begged Zeb, wishing this was a joke.
"I'm afraid he's not kidding Zeb," said Ezra, shaking his head, "I saw Bane too. By the way, who is Bane anyway?"
"Cad Bane is like the most notorious bounty hunter ever," Sabine explained, "He is also most feared too. He became a criminal during the Clone Wars after he held the Republic Senate hostage. He most known for capturing his targets dead or alive. He even killed a couple of jedis."
"Wait, how do you know this?" inquired Kanan, "You've met the guy?"
"First of all, everybody heard about him," Sabine explained, "Secondly, I haven't exactly met him in person. I mean I did run into him a couple of times during my bounty hunting days. Although, we never actually talked."
"Ah, Karabast!" Zeb wailed, flinging his arms in the air. "We're doomed!
"What are we going to do now?" asked Hera.
Kanan was quiet for a moment, thinking. Everyone waited for an answer. Finally Kanan spoke.
"We proceed as plan," answered Kanan, "I know things just got complicated when Bane showed up, but we've come this far, we can't give up just now. From here on out, we play it cool but be extremely careful we don't slip up. There's a good chance Bane may get suspicious on us and possibly follow us here. Therefore, it's not a good idea to return here all the time. Ezra and I may have to rent a motel room for the time being. We shall inform Moreena tonight."
"I'm gonna miss you guys around here," said Zeb.
"You may have to leave the planet for further precautions," Kanan added.
"We'll do that," responded Hera, "Just be careful, okay."
"We will," assured Kanan, giving Hera an assuring smile. He turned his head to Ezra. "We'd better go get some sleep. We have a long night ahead of us."
"Right," acknowledged Ezra.
Kanan and Ezra left the room to their cabins. Ezra climbed up to his top bunk and laid there for twenty minutes, staring at the ceiling. His mind clouded with thought of Moreena. I sure do hope Moreena's doing okay, Ezra thought. Then he closed his eyes for thirty more minutes, slowly descending into sleep.