Chapter Eleven
Spiaré spent some time with Soraa on board the Queen Valkyrie as she patiently waited for her turn in the bacta tank. The two of them were playing a friendly game of Sabacc. Usually it was a gambling game, but the Jedi played it with the young woman to teach her how to play, so there was no money involved. Soraa found it to be a fun game, and looked forward to the possibility of making some income from it.
Unbeknownst to Soraa, Spiaré was trying to get her to forget where they were. She was so troubled by being on a slavery planet that she was in danger of relapsing before she could get proper medical treatment. Psychological well-being played just as big a role in her recovery as the physical healing did.
The first of the excursion teams had yet to return. Berini's team would remain with Yifu the entire time she was in the tank. The same would go for Fenn and Soraa when it was their turns for treatment.
The other teams would likely not return for a few local hours while they worked their own missions. Berini hoped that the longest-lead task would be the bacta tank sessions. That way the ship would already be ready to leave once all the patients were treated. She did not want to stay on Orvax IV no longer than absolutely necessary.
Hours passed and Orvax Prime was getting lower in the sky. Ja'Ina, Kurloh and Deoni continued their trek through the various plazas trying to purloin more money. Ja'Ina and Kurloh, being the ones having the hardest time with the whole practice of slavery, kept themselves in check as they witnessed more atrocities associated with the business transactions carried out there. They learned their lesson from the incident at the Togruta girl's sale and did not want to attract any more unpleasant attention.
Unfortunately, the trio was not able to obtain any more credits than those the crafty Zeltron had somehow managed earlier in the day. Dejected, they decided to return to the Queen Valkyrie. As the daylight waned, the last sales of the day were completed and the activity shifted from the auction platforms to the numerous clubs, bars and saloons that lined the plazas. The women were amazed that the slave auctions were replaced by a party atmosphere that belied the horrible business of the day. The three pirates were too exhausted to stick around in the hopes that easier thieving opportunities would present themselves in the new environment.
Ja'Ina, Kurloh and Deoni made it to the landing platform at about the same time as Rann, Marka and Juun. The platform itself was not well-lit, but the ventral floodlights from the ship illuminated the area around the ramp-way back up into the hangar hold. The compatriots silently waved to each other and didn't speak until they were back inside the ship. They all stood around in the hangar.
The Theelin, Marka, spoke for her team first. "We came up as empty as a mynock's brain! How did you guys do?"
Deoni perked up and spoke proudly. "I managed to get us almost a thousand!"
Rann rubbed her aching hip; the day-long hike through the large city taxed her cybernetic leg. She spoke with a twinge of sarcasm. "That's a good start…"
Ja'Ina picked it up from there. "…But we would have had about double that if Deoni didn't have to save Ku and me from being arrested." Embarrassment shone through her voice.
The young woman's statement intrigued Rann, Marka and Juun but they had to save it for the reports at the general debriefing of all the teams that evening.
"Well, we didn't get anything at all. Some pirates we are," Juun dejectedly said.
Rann vented her frustration. "I'm about ready to hold someone up at blaster-point if that's what it takes to get any money around here!"
Deoni was amused. "Sweetie, you just need to work on being more subtle, have some style." She winked at Rann, who frowned back at the Zeltron.
Rann punched her fist into her open hand. "Yeah, well that doesn't always work, especially in a hostile place such as this!"
Ja'Ina stepped in. "Ladies, let's cool our thrusters here. We'll try again tomorrow. We should take a landspeeder trip to another city. Maybe we'll have better results."
"That's the best idea I've heard all day," Kurloh remarked. "Let's raid the mess before the meeting."
Ja'Ina smiled and patted the Togruta on the back. "That the best idea I've heard all day!"
Rann elbowed Marka. "Get a load of these two."
The pirates left the hangar to eat before the meeting.
Once all of the excursion teams returned to the ship, they gathered in the common room to report their progress. Everyone from the crew was present except for Berini and her team, who stayed with Yifu while she underwent treatment in the bacta tank, Fenn and Soraa, who were ordered to stay in bed until it was their respective turns in the tank, and Aurelia, who was already in Berini's suite getting ready for bed. The crew followed the Captain's orders to keep the teen from knowing where they were and what they were doing.
The Jedi Spiaré was also present, since for all intents and purposes he was now part of the crew as well.
Myrrna, the Twi'lek First Officer, presided over the debriefing. As such, it was the most that Ja'Ina ever heard her speak. Myrrna still held her terse tone of voice, which was hard for Ja'Ina to read, even with her abilities in the Force. Still, the Twi'lek performed her duties with efficiency.
Myrrna relayed from Berini that Yifu's recovery in the bacta tank was proceeding well. The badly-injured Twi'lek would need to remain there for a good part of the next day.
The teams responsible for procuring parts and materials ran out of budget long before they could obtain everything needed for the repairs. It turned out that the prices were much higher than expected. The teams who were to obtain general supplies had a similar story.
As for the teams responsible for 'acquiring' money, they fell far short than expected. Between all of them, they returned with little more than fifteen-hundred credits, including Deoni's catch.
Myrrna's typically harsh countenance did not change, but her feelings now matched her expression. "I'm very disappointed with all of you! What are you, a bunch of amateurs?!"
Rann was offended. "Hey, in case you didn't know, most of us are not thieves by trade! Besides, this place isn't exactly a stroll through the park!"
Myrrna's eyes flashed fire at Rann. "What, is that an excuse I hear?"
"Just the facts, Myrrna."
Myrrna quickly stood up and walked over to Rann and stood right over her. "Berini didn't assemble a crew of incompetents who can only make excuses! Or are you all slacking while the Captain's not here?!" Myrrna's temper was sharply rising. The large scar on her lekku seemed to be pulsating with her anger.
Rann stood up and got right in the angry Twi'lek's face. They stood just about nose to nose, but Myrrna was considerably stronger than Rann. "If you're so good, why don't you get out there and beat the rancor snot out of some little blind and deaf Jawa and take his credits! You're good at that sort of thing!"
Without warning, Myrrna sucker-punched Rann, who fell back in her chair with her nose bloodied. Most of the other women stood up and gasped. Spiaré stayed in his seat and carefully watched the situation. He could sense that Myrrna was walking the edge of a knife. He felt her anger slowly build as they got closer to Orvax. He could only imagine what she must have endured as a slave, which has made her what she was now.
Rann quickly sprang back up, ready to return the favor to her assailant. Kurloh and Marka held her back.
Myrrna tauntingly smiled, "C'mon, try it! I'll take you down so fast that you'll be in carbonite before you can take your next breath!"
Spiaré could no longer stand by. He slowly stood up and spoke like a dignified diplomat. "Ladies, this pointless bickering will get us nowhere."
The others looked at him, surprised that he spoke up.
Myrrna's scowl sharpened even more. "Just who do you think you are, Jedi? You are not in command here!"
Spiaré remained perfectly calm. "I never claimed to be, my dear Twi'lek. We just need to remember why we're here and stay focused on our mission. No one wants to stay here any longer than necessary. Berini said as much. Tomorrow will be more successful, I'm sure."
Myrrna pointed a menacing finger at Spiaré. "You'd better be right, Jedi!"
"There's no need to threaten me, Myrrna. Remember, I can take you down so fast that you'll be in carbonite before you can throw your first punch. That's a promise."
Given Myrrna's first encounter with Spiaré, she knew he was right. She snarled, "We'll resume tomorrow! Dismissed!" The irate Twi'lek stormed out of the conference room before anyone could say anything else.
The crew never liked it when Myrrna was placed in charge, but this time was probably the worst, likely due to the presently-serious situation.
Rann sat back down and Kurloh knelt down in front of her. "Are you okay?"
Rann forcefully brushed the Togruta's hand away from her face. "Yeah, I'm fine Ku. Don't worry about me." Rann wiped the blood from her nose. Luckily, it was not broken.
Ja'Ina, Kurloh and Rann went to visit Soraa, who finally was following orders to stay in bed to aid her convalescence. Aurelia regularly brought her food and drink, although the only drink she brought Soraa was sweet Urbur juice, much to the latter's disappointment. Soraa honestly figured that alcohol could help her manage the pain, but in her best interest she was denied any liquor. It was difficult for her, but she somehow managed.
Soraa's three friends entered her quarters. They caught her lost in thought, about Raelin and the others in The Sea of Lights, the band she and Ja'Ina befriended back in Sim Katall. That seemed like another lifetime ago. Soraa wished she hadn't lost the music recording Raelin gave her. But between the shows and the recording, she had listened to the music enough times that she could play it back in her mind. It wasn't quite as good as the real thing, but it was better than nothing.
Ja'Ina was the first to speak, snapping her friend out of her trip down memory lane. "Hey there, sickie! How're ya doing?"
Startled, Soraa snapped back. "Hey, you tryin' to give me a heart attack?!"
Ja'Ina feigned surprise, raising her open hands in front of her. "Whoa, I didn't mean to nearly kill you."
Kurloh and Rann both laughed as all three of them came to sit around Soraa.
"How's my shooting buddy doing," Rann asked. "I'm getting bored with not having any real competition at practice."
"Sorry about that Rannie." That was a new nickname Soraa came up with for Rann, though it annoyed her whenever Soraa used it.
"How's your pain been," Kurloh inquired.
"Ehh, so-so. At least Spiaré's been doing his Force-thing much less often."
Rann chimed in. "So maybe you won't need a dip in the bacta tank after all."
"Nope, I still need it according to Spiaré. I'm fine with it as long as I'm safe while I'm in there."
Ja'Ina reassured her friend. "Of course you'll be safe. Berini's there all the time. And when it's your turn I'll be there too. You can count on it!"
Soraa smiled. "What about you two?" She referred to Kurloh and Rann.
"Nahhh," Rann replied. "Some of us still have work to do out there. We weren't too successful today. Myrrna was not too pleased with our lack of results." She frowned and rubbed her aching nose.
Soraa sighed. "I'm not surprised. I wish I could help. I feel as useless as a three-legged nerf around here."
Rann playfully jabbed Soraa, which made her wince in pain. "Don't you worry about a thing! You'll be good to go in no time at all."
"Thanks," Soraa said with a slight smile. Then she perked up. "Say, you guys wanna play some Sabacc with me? Spiaré's been teaching me how to play."
Rann and Kurloh replied simultaneously. "Yeah, that sounds like fun!"
Ja'Ina was puzzled. "What's Sabacc?"
The others all laughed as Soraa dealt the cards. "A game you'll like, Ina."