(64 years before The phantom menace)
Baushna awoke suddenly very early in the morning. She had made a very bad dream. All she could see around her in the dream was fire. All she could hear was the painful cry of her father that was dying. Baushna shook her head and sat on the ground. The only light in the cavern was the weak fire of Baushna's last candle. She quickly blew the fire and got up.
Outside, the moon was slowly replaced by the sun. The teenager took a deep breath and placed her sleeping bag on her backpack and started to walk in the silver sand. Far away, she could hear the sound of the waves rolling on the beach. Baushna wanted to go swim and to forget why she had left her house, but she resigned herself and continued to walk. Soon, the sun was making the temperature go up really fast, and the young girl drank all the water that was in her bottle.
"I should arrive soon at the spaceport. Finally, I'll be able to leave that place of nightmare."
Baushna was only fourteen. She would have to work more than a man to pass the customs. She looked at the west, and suddenly her blue eyes changed in brown eyes. She was going to do anything to leave Salatowa.
++++++++++++++++++++++
She went inside a little restaurant. She was happy that Salatowa was not one of those planets not under the control of the Republic where you never know whom you might meet on your road. Salatowa was a respected planet from the system of Nizka, but it was far from the capital planet, Coruscant. Elsewhere on the planet the authorities did not know what happened in the everyday life.
Baushna sat at a table and a waitress droid came to serve her.
-Four credits and a half, young girl.
-Please, don't call me young girl anymore all right?
-Sure, little girl."
++++++++++++++++++
At the corner of the little dark street, Baushna was angry. Her contact was supposed to be there at 18 o'clock, and it was now 20 o'clock. Kyuki, the contact, was of the Yta Gang. He was supposed to help her to find false papers. When it came about to 20:16, Baushna decided to go when suddenly a man of about 17 years old came near her.
"Baushna Wy?
-Yes. What's your name?
-Kyuki Yx. Come with me.
-Wait. I don't know you.
-We are going in a public place. A dancing bar. The music will be so high that nobody will hear us, and you'll be safe."
They walked to the bar. The music was making Baushna's heart beat like if she was in a drum. The flashing lights of yellow, green and violet were moving around the dancers. Kyuki showed a table to Baushna. The girl sat and the young man said:
"First, you won't have access to the paper now.
-I need them inside this month. Absolutely.
-Relax. It'll be okay. So, how much do you have?
-No. What can I get from you? Then, I'll tell you how much I have.
-All right. At the customs, you'll have a passport, but you are too young at first sight. You'll need help for this. Next, you'll have someone to go with you. A man that will pass for your fiancé or husband, whatever. It's easier to leave this place and he can plead in your case. After then, it's finished.
-Okay. I have one credit and a half."
Kyuki looked at her, annoyed, and start to laugh.
"Oh no, we don't deal with that. Even if you were working ten years you would not have enough money."
Baushna didn't know what to say, but she would not abandon.
"Listen you, I want to leave Salatowa, and I will. You will help me. I am ready to do anything that will get me out of here as quick as you can say bye bye."
Kyuki watched her with an attentive look and said:
"Mmm. You are very strong in front of an obstacle. We might be able to arrange something....."
-Hi, miss Wy. We have to talk about that proposition. We want you to work for us until your work will become equal to the prize of the fraud you are going to use."
"Good. So, let's start your transformation, Baushna."
Baushna shivered when she saw the hairdresser approach of her with the scissors.
"Don't worry, that will be nothing. You'll like your hair after then."
Baushna did not want a new hair dress. She wanted to keep her long red hair. She had touches of blond in it, and it was making her mystical. She was always placing it so one side of her face there was the blond hair and the red one were done in Nizka braid. Typical from her natal system. On Salatowa, the fraud was not the only reputation, the design too. Baushna did not want to follow the tendencies, but she was creating her own designs with parts of different designer.
"No, please, not my hair......."
The hair dresser cut only one inche of it, and she changed the colour to brown colour, then twisted it to make an arrangement on the top of Baushna's head. All this time, the fourteen years old girl had her eyes closed. When she opened them she couldn't believe the change.
"Wow..... and I still have my hair long!
-I told you that you would like it!
-Mirka qua!" exclaimed, Baushna, what meant thank you in basic.
Wyi-Sko advanced to her and smiled.
"You're perfect. Your clothes will be changed, along with some other points."
Baushna's eyes had not change of colour since she arrived to the spaceport. It turned to turquoise.
"Can I choose the clothes?
-We'll see....."
The tall woman with dark brown hair snapped her finger to call a servant.
"...We'll see." ++++++++++++++++++++++++
Baushna almost cried. The servant was with a doctor. This one observed the teenager attentively, while Baushna's eyes were changing, and changing, and changing. She knew too well what they wanted to do to her.
"Yes, yes, I see.... There are some changes to make. How much time do you give me, madam Jinn? -As long as you need, doctor."
Baushna jumped on her feet and trying to avoid a complete change with surgery, she exclaimed:
"Not true! I want to be gone in a month!"
The leader turned to her, surprised, and glanced at Kyuki and Tyhak.
"Why would such a young lady need to leave this place so quickly, hum? You have problems around here? You destroyed a sacred monument? You killed someone?"
Tears came to Baushna eyes as she heard the last question. She had not... She had not... She didn't want to believe that she had killed. She fainted, falling on the ground of the deep cavern. It took time before she woke up again, and when she did Kyuki was at her side watching on her in a small room of the cavern. It was the first time that she could observe him with a normal light. He was not handsome, but he had some charm. He had long brown hair tied in the back with a black lace. He had blue eyes and was so tall that Baushna was probably two heads shorter than him. The girl sat on the bed and Kyuki talked to her.
"You know, we do not judge people here. We help them to survive if they need another identity. Some are not criminals, some are. We help everyone here. It is our goal to make money with that. No one knows why criminals do bad actions, so we can't judge them. You are not a criminal. I know it, it is obvious. Only, you seem to have done something that will get you in trouble as if you were one. You don't have to worry now that you are under the Xasum Mountains. No authorities will come and get you. You need to be well prepared to pass the customs, and it will take more than a month to do that. You have to cooperate if you want to leave this place. I won't be able to do anything if you don't, and you will be forced to stay here for ever."
Baushna knew what they wanted to do to her. No, she would not change her body, change her face, change everything because of some minutes at the customs. She knew that these few minutes would make the way of all her life, but... Have surgery for that?
"What do I need to change? I mean, that was why the doctor was there, no? -Yes. You are too small. He will have to make a surgery to your legs. Then, he will change your cheek and your nose. Finally, he will make surgery so your eyes won't have that special changing of colour thing... -No! My eyes are perfect as they are, I don't want new eyes!"
Kyuki stopped for a few minutes. He looked up at her and frowned.
"There is no other way. They will make a link between Baushna and your new identity if you look alike. More if they are looking for you. -Then, make Baushna disappear. I don't want to be who I was anymore. There is no need for it."
Baushna sighed. She had so much sadness and nightmares on her shoulders. She would have done anything to confide in somebody and be understood, but she doubted that anyone could understand her situation. Kyuki saw the despair in her face and encouraged her to tell him her secret.
"It will be between you and me... And madam Jinn. Then, we will be able to help you adequately."
To trust him. To trust Wyi-Sko. To say that she was not normal. To feel better after then. Baushna trusted the two people. She would confide to Kyuki, who would explain everything to the leader. That sounded good. Baushna felt that she could trust Kyuki without being judge.
"Okay. I accept to tell you everything. I accept to have the transformation, but I don't want knew eyes. I can control the colours of them if I want to. When I think really hard, I can make them change in blue. -Perfect."
Kyuki's eyes were sparkling in admiration of the young girl. She was brave. From that moment, he would never let her down.