Chapter Three: Negotiated Captivity
Once again, Revan stood before that icy fortress covered by a shield. Observing the hanger, he was it was open in the midday. Men were going out on patrol on live, two-legged mounts with horns. And others were working busily to unload cargo from several vessels that had landed. Apparently, their hangers hadn't been enough. Which meant they'd been getting a lot of business.
From the looks of things, what was being unloaded was a lot of drugs.
So much the better to catch them now.
"Handmaidens, are you in position?" asked Revan, opening a channel.
"We are," said the Handmaiden. "By the time you make your presence known, we should be within."
"Thank you. Keep this channel clear," said Revan.
Then he rose up from the snow and walked down the hill toward the loading dock. Depending on what happened here, he might have to leave in a hurry. But then, at least he'd have justification to shut the place down. As he walked down, he saw the workers were humanoids with rough skin. A lot of Trandoshans as well, though they seemed to keep apart from the others.
And one of the rough-skinned beings was smoking and observing him by the drugs. It was a drug often used for medical purposes, but it could be lethal and addicting when overdosed. Deathflower used to make deathsticks. Revan pretended not to see it.
"Excuse me?" asked Revan.
"Hmm, and who is this who goes clad in such unmistakable garb? A genuine war hero?" asked the leader, moving forward unafraid.
"Guilty as charged," said Revan. "I am, for the moment, Revan. I was hoping you could help me in arranging transport off this planet."
"Transport, eh? Well, such things are rarely free," noted the man.
"I would be only too willing to compensate you," said Revan. "I was in the midst of an ecological survey when my ship crashed. I suppose it is my luck there are settlements here." The drug containers had the Czerka Corp logo on them.
Where would they grow this kind of stuff? What were the neighboring planets they had holdings? Kashyyk was notable for heavy plant growth; you could grow a lot of the stuff quickly.
"Luck indeed, though it doesn't always end up as the type you think," said the leader. "I am Kando Ohnaka. Still, what is the great Revan, conquerer of Paragus, doing out here?"
"Reassigned, I'm afraid," laughed Revan. "The Republic has a way of sending successful people to unpleasant jobs in far-off regions. Most of my successes tend to be followed by a still greater exile."
"Well, that does seem the way of things," said Kando. "You'd best stop succeeding soon, or you'll be in a galaxy far, far away."
Revan laughed. "I believe that is the whole idea.
"Can you get me transport?"
"Of course, though not, I think, in the way you'd like," said Kando.
Instantly several dozen guns were trailed on him from several different directions. Revan calculated how many he could pull away. "...You must realize I am less than intimidated by guns."
Kando raised Revan's lightsaber where he'd swiped it. "Without a lightsaber?
"A Jedi should never throw away their weapons. I'm sure you could pull the guns from some of their hands. But what about them?" He pointed to several firing ports. "And them?
"What would you say to that?"
Revan supposed the possibility of a legitimate businessman had been remote. "I would say you are doing something very, very, unwise.
"But I would also concede that you have me at a disadvantage. I yield you the field."
"Excellent," said Kando. "Then perhaps you would take off that mask?"
"It won't do you any good," said Revan. "Who I am is not who I am beneath this mask anyway."
"Well, to each their own. Check him for weaponry," said Kando. Two men came forward and padded him down. They ended up taking off several explosive devices and blasters. "Very impressive. Now, let's get you a nice, comfortable holding cell until arrangements for your ransom can be made."
"Of course," said Revan. "Lead on."
Kando led him under guard, and Revan stayed calm and casual. Within the fortress, it instantly became far warmer, though it would be freezing on any temperate planet. "So, what kind of business do you do here? I assume it's not of a strictly legal sense."
"Well, there's legal, and then there's legal," said the man. "Think of me as a kind of middleman. People need to move cargo; I let them dock here. Sometimes it's unlicensed machinery; sometimes, it's food to be smuggled into tyrannical governments.
"They drop things off that are legal in some systems and illegal in others. Then other people pick it up later. No crimes were committed. In fact, we've even done a bit of business for Republic organizations."
"Oh, do tell," said Revan. "I love stories about illegal government death squads. It lets me know who my next target is.
"Nothing do dramatic," laughed Kando. "People who get involved in those circles have a bad habit of disappearing. The Republic has an unfortunate tendency to forget its allies. Just look at what happened to the Trandoshan Dawn.
"Public opinion is an easy thing to sway.
"I must prefer to stay out of such sensitive matters."
"Then who were you working for?" asked Revan.
"We did some good business with Jolee Bindo back in the day," said Kando as they came into a cantina. It had blue walls and a series of bottles on the wall. Energy torches were around them. "He was a fine fellow, at least before that unfortunate business with his wife. That was in the beginning. Though for the most part, we don't check the insides of ships. It's uh... not good to know too much about scary people you do business with."
"So the Jedi already know about you?" surmised Revan.
"I expect we're tucked away in their library somewhere," said Kando, sitting down. He motioned for Revan to do the same. "But nobody has been down this way on Hoth since the days of Exar Kun. Not with all those genocides and conquests and bloody conflicts.
"Though that lightsaber duel with Aedal was quite spectacular. Would you like a drink?"
"Why not?" asked Revan. "I expect I'll be here a while. Can I have a straw?"
Kando laughed and provided it, and soon they were drinking as if they were old friends who had just met again. Kando seemed suspicious, however. "You seem a good sport about all this."
"Well, it's either that or freezing to death, so I might as well call it bus fair," mused Revan.
Kando laughed. "Very good. I must assure you; I find this most unfortunate. But you see, your very presence here means the game is up. Something tells me that if I'd shipped you off, you, or somebody else, would come back here and hang the lot of us."
"You're very wise then," said Revan. "The Republic has a grand strategy to set up bases on this world. And somehow, I don't think they'll want smugglers transporting people under their nose."
"Ah," said Kando. "And this would be the reason for the ecological survey?"
"It's for the war," said Revan.
"Which war would this be?" asked Kando.
"Well, the First Mandalorian War ended a little while ago," said Revan. "But it didn't end because we wanted it to end. It ended because we had no choice.
"The Republic, the Mandalorians, and the Sith had to stop fighting. Otherwise, the Iridian Plague would be unchecked."
"Certainly a welcome event," said Kando. "I had all my men vaccinated as soon as I was sure the vaccines were safe. You can't afford an outbreak in this place. I've even been providing them to live cargo and crews for free.
"I consider that an investment in having a galaxy to operate in."
"Very wise," said Revan. "At any rate, the reason I'm out here is that we're trying to set up outposts at strategic planets. By doing so, we can police ships and reduce smuggling and check the Iridian Plague."
"And the real reason?" asked Kando.
"The real reason, of course, or the other reason, is war," said Revan, looking around the cantina. It had a very nice domed roof which let sunlight in from above. The man obviously cared about keeping his men comfortable. "We want to be able to establish military bases at strategic locations for when the next war hits. And we need to use them for a training ground to ensure our troops can operate in harsh conditions."
"Well, harsh conditions are certainly available here. Where is your fleet now?" asked Kando.
"That's how I came to arrive here so conveniently if you take my meaning," said Revan.
"Oh," said Kando, looking around. "Oh, I see, a setup."
"For myself," said Revan. "I needed to get a meeting with you, and I needed it to be with you in a position of power. You can only tell a person's true nature when they think no one can touch them.
"If you'd gloated about poisoning people or something. I'd have dismissed you as unusable. And unusable things have a way of disappearing."
"Government black ops," noted Kando with a frown, and he motioned to his guards. Several spoke over the communicator.
"Although it was a very trick stealing my lightsaber like that." Revan sensed one of the Handmaidens entering the room, felt her concern for him, and focused. The others he could sense through her. She could not be seen through the stealth field generator.
More handmaidens came around into the room while guards gave orders.
"Well, now I seem to be at a disadvantage, don't I?" asked Kando. "What happens now?"
"Well, I'd expected you to be psychopathic murderers," said Revan. "So the matter bears some thought."
"Psychopathic murderers don't last long on Hoth," said Kando. "You have to stay cool under pressure. Or you'll be made cooler than is survivable. My crew were picked for stable personalities. What was your plan?"
"Unpleasant and only established by very general guidelines," said Revan. "Most of us would probably be dead at the end of it." By which Revan meant Kando and all of his crew.
"And plan B?" asked Kando, looking to the door.
"Well, tentatively, I'd like to offer you a chance to go legitimate," said Revan. "You see, you are in a very good position to cash out here. You have a well-established, long-running base. You've obviously got many connections, and you know how the climate of Hoth operates.
"The Republic needs this place. And now they've found you, so they will eventually get it. Possibly very soon, as a moderate fleet of warships is heading this way now. And, knowing their strength, I am quite confident they would win eventually. Possibly quite quickly."
"Well, we aren't exactly a military operation. Pirates usually defend themselves from other pirates. Our main threat is the environment," noted Kando. "And it'll be a pretty terrible threat to you too."
"Exactly," said Revan. "If you fight, we both lose. If you evacuate, which I could certainly arrange, you'll have to set up shop somewhere else. Then we'll have a miserable time of it adapting to the weather. On the other hand, you could cash out now.
"Accept a contract working for the Republic and providing guidance to their troops. You get a reliable source of income. You also become a legitimate port, with customs and such.
You can assist us in cutting down your competition.
"You become heroes, become rich, and you take a lot less risk in the process."
Kando finished his drink and clasped it together. "It's a very tempting idea. But... no.
"I do not think the Republic has enough of investment here to bother conquering Hoth. There are other ice planets. Our shield can deflect any bombardment.
The weather would make moving an army nearly impossible.
"We don't have to beat you.
"Only wait you out until you lose interest. Heroism and money is nice, but we have our honor too. And freedom is an important part of it."
"Ah, I see," said Revan, sensing his desire for freedom was genuine. So he looked up to Brienna. "You are an admirable man. Brienna, show him an honorable escape."
The Handmaidens appeared. The guards were disarmed in an instant and knocked out. The identical, white-haired women looked very beautiful like this, and Revan appreciated it. Feeling his gaze on them, he sensed they also appreciated it. Kando tried to halt, but a metal blade was set to his throat.
"What the..." began Kando.
"My sisters and I have set up explosive devices on your heating units," said a Handmaiden. "With the push of a button, we can destroy it completely. Once done, we need only fight our way out of this facility and leave you to die a freezing death.
"The Republic will then enter the ruins, install a new unit, and we will use your base for ourselves."
"What is this?! How could you get past all my guards?!" said Kando. "Our sonic sensors should have picked you up."
"Sonic sensors can be bypassed," said Revan. "And these women are specialists. They infiltrated your base yesterday and got me all the data I needed on your installation. And they are not the most dangerous people in my group.
"I assure you, if you do not bargain with us, you will be destroyed."
Kando contemplated the matter. "Very impressive.
"I suppose the price has gone down."
"Not at all," said Revan. "The price has not been agreed upon. You can be a man who ransomed Revan and got a pardon for it. Or you can be a lot of frozen corpses; the Republic clears up as they walk in.
"It's your choice, but I warn you not to underestimate my power."
"You would have me ransom you?" asked Kando. "Of course you would. You need to lose this one. The Exchange already hates you and has a price on your head so high every bounty hunter in the galaxy is after you. And they're also afraid of you.
"If it gets out that you humiliated me and took over, they'll get all duck for cover and go underground. You'll have a very hard time tracking them all down—especially when dealing with the Iridian Plague.
"So instead, I catch you easy and ransom in exchange for a lucrative Republic contract. You get humiliated and go down in threat level. All the gangsters laugh and get confident, confident enough to go out into the open. That'll breed distraction, and you set yourself into position little by little.
"And, at the moment of their greatest triumph..."
Revan said nothing.
"You are a very terrifying person, Revan," said Kando. "I do not want to get on your bad side. So, I shall release you freely back to your forces. And in exchange, I shall gladly open negotiations with the Republic."
"You don't want payment?" asked Brienna.
"It's a matter of principle," said Kando. "Getting paid for a hostage I failed to take seems a bit dishonorable.
"I insist, however, that you disable the explosive devices first. Accidental detonations can happen." There was no deception here. Kando was impressed, afraid, and calculating.
He could be useful, but he was one to watch.
"Do as he says; I sense no deception," said Revan. "And we have other options if we are betrayed."
"I'm sure you do," said Kando, handing him back his lightsaber. "So, let's talk price."
"Of course," said Revan. "But I will have to call in my Master, Arren Kae, to handle things. I defer in all things to her." Drawing out a communicator, he made a call. "Master Kae, we've got some willing buyers here, ready to arrange a transfer of loyalties. I think you can make this factor in?"
Arren sighed. "Oh yes, I certainly do. I'll be there."
Revan cut the channel. "She'll be here soon.
"Now then, there is the matter of the bad people we were talking about earlier. I think you might have some interesting stories for us."
"I think I have a few," said Kando. "But just a few, you may overestimate your humble servant's abilities."
"Perhaps I do," said Revan. "Still, how would feel about new markets on Dantooine?"
"New markets?" asked Kando. "What do you mean?"
"Well, it's a bit of a tentative plan," said Revan. "But if this works out, and the Council approves, I think you could make some very good business moves there. Moves which, if properly constructed, could make you rich and bring us that much closer to our goal."
"And what goal would that be?" asked Kanda, and Revan sensed his interest.
"Why the only goal worth pursuing," said Revan. "The complete annihilation of organized crime on a galactic level."
Kando was hooked.