Chapter Eleven
Disclaimer: I do not own KOTOR.
"Word of warning," Atton said as they stepped out onto the platform. "Watch where you step or you'll fall for hours."
"Oh, don't worry," the Exile assured him. "I may not always pay attention to where I'm going but I used to be a Jedi."
"Are Jedi immune to gravity now?" Atton asked rhetorically.
To his surprise, the Exile nodded. "Revan taught me how to fly."
"In what universe did that seem like a good idea?" Atton demanded.
"In the universe where I fully expect her to fall off the edge of Nar Shaddaa at least twice," Revan replied. "Probably more."
"I wish I could fly," Brianna said enviously. "Sadly, I am forbidden from ever learning how to be a Jedi and – as Atton could tell you – Echani teachings don't make you fly."
"Sure I could tell you," Atton agreed without missing a beat. "But that's hardly expert testimony."
"Oh, do you know any Echani teachings?" the Exile asked curiously.
"I got the workout video," Atton deadpanned.
"You are a fool," Kreia declared, turning around and heading back. "I will go back and watch the ship so that no one steals it again."
"And so you can avoid helping," Atton muttered.
"You're really being ungenerous, Atton," the Exile said disapprovingly. "Last time we left the ship alone, it got stolen, remember?"
"I'd like to be able to fly, too," Bao-Dur admitted. "My remote assures me that there's nothing quite like it."
"I could teach you to use the Force," the Exile offered.
"A few months ago I would have refused your offer," Bao-Dur replied. "I would have been too afraid of the blood on my hands and my own anger to risk becoming a Jedi and then, perhaps, a Sith. But it's difficult to wallow in your own guilt when you're around, General, so I think I'll give it a try."
"Okay, meditate with me here," the Exile instructed.
"Are you going to sit down?" Brianna asked, wrinkling her nose. "That floor is filthy!"
"No, we can stand," the Exile told her. "Your anger fills you and consumes you. You feel it every time you think of Malachor. But you must find a way to let it go. Let the Force heal you and protect you. Open yourself to it."
Bao-Dur nodded. "I can feel the Force! Am I a Jedi now?"
Revan nodded. "Well, you're a Force user at any rate. Whether you qualify as a Jedi is a rather complicated philosophical debate that, quite frankly, I'd really rather not get involved in."
"Don't feel bad if anybody says you aren't really a Jedi," the Exile said earnestly. "I'm not either and so I understand."
"It really doesn't matter to me what they call me," Bao-Dur assured her.
Atton almost fell over. "Really? All that talk from the Jedi about how it will take years of study and they absolutely have to take only those under the age of five or it won't work and it just takes two sentences from you?"
"And meditation," the Exile pointed out. "Don't forget that. It's very important and you have to be capable of being a Jedi first."
"The Jedi are kind of full of themselves," Revan confided. "And they mostly do that to try and prevent Jedi from falling. I'd say it really has the opposite effect but, well, you know the Council."
"The Council is very wise," the Exile insisted.
"Maybe," Revan allowed. "But they're still kind of morons."
"Now that I'm a Jedi, can I fly?" Bao-Dur inquired.
"I'll teach you later," the Exile promised. "You should probably get a lightsaber."
"Already have one," Bao-Dur said, pulling two short ones out and activating one in each hand. "I was studying them earlier and just slipped them into my pocket."
"Are you guys going to be recruiting?" Atton asked suspiciously. "Because now Brianna and I are the only non-Jedi aboard and she's taken vows against that kind of thing."
"What happens in Nar Shaddaa stays in Nar Shaddaa," Revan declared. "Unless it's a disease or a huge gambling debt or something."
"Then why didn't you say 'unless there are any lasting consequences of your actions then what happens in Nar Shaddaa stays in Nar Shaddaa'?" the Exile wanted to know.
Brianna nodded seriously. "Yes, I'd also like to know that. You could really confuse people."
"Because most people do not take things so literally," Revan said, rolling his eyes. "Why are we letting her stay again?"
"Because you didn't want to deal with Atris again," Atton reminded her.
"Bored complaint: Can't we go kill something already? Pointed reminder: We've been here for twenty minutes already!" HK whined.
T3 beeped something.
"That's sweet," the Exile said, smiling at him. "I'm sure that if any bounty hunter that is situated on this planet is after me, I can take care of myself."
"I suggest that we get the Ebon Hawk's ID signature changed while we're here so that we don't get ambushed every time we go anywhere," Atton told them.
"It's not up to you," Brianna sniped. "Revan, Exile, what are your plans?"
"To get wasted and make a ton of money on Pazaak," Revan replied. "And since it's not easy to get drunk when you're a Jedi, I really should get started soon."
"Brianna, that wasn't very nice," the Exile scolded. "Atton was just trying to help and I happen to think it's very sensible advice. I'm not sure what Atris' policy was towards suggestions but here we welcome then with open arms."
"We wouldn't get much done if we didn't," Revan explained. "Although, thinking on it, would that really be so bad?"
"Approving statement: I like this Pazaak plan as you are so good, Master, that sooner or later someone will think you were cheating and a fight will break out," HK said happily.
T3 beeped.
"Not to worry, T3. I never get kicked out of Pazaak dens. It's a combination of my charming personality and the fact that I have the Force," Revan remarked.
"Does the Force really work on droids?" Bao-Dur wondered.
"Not Force Persuade," Revan admitted. "But there are other methods."
"We should also look for Zez-Kai Ell," the Exile said. "I'm not sure how to find him."
"If he's like any of the other Jedi I've known – and the trial footage indicated he is – then don't even bother looking for him," Atton advised. "Just go around doing good deeds and sooner or later he'll show up to tell you how you're doing it all wrong."
"I'm sure that he won't unless I really was doing them wrong and then it would be nice to know," the Exile replied. "But that's a good plan. Making a difference is always a good idea and if I make enough of a difference then he'll probably hear of me."
"See?" Atton said smugly to Brianna. "That's twice she's said I had a good idea."
"I'm beginning to get an idea of why Atris ordered me to watch you specifically," Brianna said shrewdly. "And here I was just thinking that it was because you knew all of our moves."
"Atton already explained that," the Exile reminded her. "He saw a video."
"Hey!" the angry Toydarian owner of the landing area cried out, flying over to them. "What gives? I have someone else scheduled for this spot!"
"Did I forget to call ahead?" Atton asked innocently. "Whoops…"
"Whatever," the Toydarian said, shrugging. "You two can duke it out when the others get here."
"Did he just come all the way over here to lightly complain and then not even try to make us move?" Bao-Dur couldn't believe it. "It's not like we managed to intimidate him and Toydarians are notoriously resistant to Jedi mind tricks."
"And, of course, I didn't even say anything," Revan pointed out.
"I'm sure you can use a Jedi mind trick nonverbally," Brianna said, her eyes shining.
Revan rolled his eyes. "Let's just get going. We're in the refugee sector, right? I hate this part. Everyone tries to make you so guilty just for existing."
"Existing and not helping," Atton qualified.
"Same thing, really," Revan said dismissively.
They soon encountered a bunch of Exchange thugs intimidating a starving refugee.
"More humans?" one of them asked disgustedly. "I guess we'll need to drag them back to the refugee sector, too."
"We're hardly refugees," Brianna said angrily.
"Is there a reason you brought six of you to deal with one unarmed human?" Atton wondered. "It just seems sort of like overkill."
"It was so if we ran into any more, we could take you back!" another one declared.
"Try to take us 'back' to a Force-forsaken place like that where we've never even been and you're losing something. Likely, your head," Revan warned.
"Please help!" the refugee begged. "We're too overcrowded down there. We can't survive!"
"That isn't our problem," someone said flatly. "We just get paid to enforce the order. You have a problem with it, take it up with management."
"How are we supposed to do that if you won't let us out of the refugee sector?" the refugee demanded.
"That is also something to take up with management," one of the thugs said before swinging his weapon at the refugee. The Exile's lightsaber neatly blocked the blow and the thirty-second battle was on.
"Thanks for that," the refugee said when it was over. "Visquis has really been clamping down on us refugees lately and they would have killed me for sure if you hadn't come by."
"Visquis?" Brianna asked blankly.
"He's one of the Exchange crime bosses," the refugee explained before running off.
"Maybe if we run into the Exchange leaders we can find out more about that bounty," Bao-Dur suggested.
"Sure, if they happen to come up to us for no reason while we're off doing our thing then we could certainly ask about that," Revan agreed.
"Hey," another refugee waved them over. "I saw what you did to those Exchange thugs. Can you give me ten credits?"
"Why would we?" Atton asked rudely.
"I don't see why not," the Exile said kindly, reaching into her pack and pulling out a ten-credit chip.
"And this is why we don't let her handle most of our money," Revan explained.
Suddenly, Kreia's voice was in the Exile's head. "Why did you do such a thing? Such kindness was unearned and will ultimately mean nothing."
"Kreia?" the Exile asked, surprised. "Are you spying on me or something?"
Atton shot her a weird look. "Kreia's not here, Exile."
"They have a Force bond and thus can communicate telepathically," Revan explained. "I guess the Exile is choosing to do it out loud. But then, it's been quite some time since she's felt the Force."
"No, I'm just observing your progress," Kreia claimed. "It's really not the same thing."
"Well…I didn't really need the money and he probably did. Even if it won't change his life, at least it will ensure that he gets to eat today," the Exile said, taken aback at the question.
"Would that really be such a good thing?" Kreia asked thoughtfully.
"People not starving usually is," the Exile replied.
"But his life is horrible so forcing him to live it really can't be a kindness," Kreia realized.
"If he didn't want to live it then he would just stop eating or kill himself or something," the Exile reasoned. "And I don't think it matters if you or I think that his life is worth it because he clearly does and it's his decision."
"Kreia must be telling the Exile that it would have been better to just allow that refugee she helped to starve to death," Revan told the others.
"Kreia's kind of a bitch," Atton said bluntly.
"What if by living just even one more day he brings a greater darkness upon another?" Kreia challenged.
"What happens, happens," the Exile said simply. "I prefer to hope for the best."
"You might have even made this man a target because he has money," Kreia said pointedly.
"That's only if he's naïve enough to let everyone know that he has enough money for food," the Exile replied. "And even I know that that would not be a good idea so I'm sure he'll be fine."
"Seeing another elevated often brings the eyes of those who suffer. In the end, perhaps all you have brought is more pain," Kreia concluded.
"It's a ten-credit piece. I didn't buy him an apartment or anything," the Exile said flatly. "It's REALLY not that big of a deal."
"You can actually do more harm with kindness than with cruelty, you know," Kreia informed her.
"…No, no you can't," the Exile disagreed. "I can see that by trying to be kind you can cause problems but it will never be more problems than you get by trying to be a horrible person."
"I just want you to keep an open mind and fully think through your beliefs," Kreia claimed.
"I did that back when I was still training to be a Jedi and again after my exile," the Exile announced. "I think I'm pretty much set in my beliefs by now."
There was silence from the other end. Clearly Kreia was not happy with what she had heard.
The group made their way into ship parts shop owned by a mostly-blind Sullustan named Tienn.
"Is it safe for you to be attempting to fix ships or to work with droids when you can't see?" Bao-Dur asked uncertainly.
"I haven't heard any complaints," Tienn said dismissively.
"My thirty-one predecessors all exploded or simply stopped working long before they could lodge a complaint," Tienn's droid added.
"See, what did I tell you?" Tienn asked. "No complaints."
"Not living long enough to complain really doesn't fill me with much confidence in your abilities," Atton said flatly.
"Well no one asked you," Tienn said rudely. "Now, did you guys actually want something or did you just in here to complain?"
"Actually, we came in here because the only way into the other parts of Nar Shaddaa from the landing pad we docked on is through here," Brianna explained.
Tienn sighed. "That sounded like such a wonderful opportunity when I first heard about that but no one ever buys anything!"
"Be less obviously blind," Revan recommended.
"We do actually want something, though," the Exile remembered. "Do you have any way to change the ID signature on the Ebon Hawk?"
"Well, it's not legal-" Tienn started to say.
"Oh no!" the Exile cried out, horrified. "I accidentally asked someone to do something illegal!"
"He means that it's not legal if you don't fill out the proper permits which we are absolutely going to do," Atton said quickly, glaring at Tienn. "Right?"
"Whatever," Tienn said, shrugging. "Listen, I don't have the parts here so if you want the job done then I'll need you to bring them. Transponder cards are permanent once written so I'll need a new transponder card whose signature you wish to use or else a blank one and an ID signature."
"Exasperated cry: not another bloody scavenger hunt!" HK complained. "Clarification: And by 'bloody' I meant 'tragically not really bloody but annoying.'"
"Where would we even find one?" Brianna asked.
"Not to worry," Revan assured them. "Normally I wouldn't bother because that sounds like a lot of work but the Ebon Hawk was originally a smuggler's vessel so I have all sorts of transponder cards with me. Would you rather be a pleasure vessel or from Tatooine?"
"Is that a serious question?" Atton asked, laughing. "Who in the Republic would want to be from Tatooine?"
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