3: Standing in the Whirlwind

Lal awoke to a Wookie roaring in her face. This early, she had no idea what the giant fur-ball was saying. His words were just a long, annoying chain of growls, barks and snarls. Her eyes snapped open, and she simply grunted.

"Caffa."

The Wookie leaned over her with his fetid breath, whuffing experimentally at her.

"Caffa now!" she cried, swatting defensively at him. He cried out in alarm and then began cursing and waving his long arms above his head. He fired an insult or two at her and headed out to get her precious caffa from the shop down the way.

"Bloody hell!" she gasped, frowning at the linger of his breath. Lal ran her hand through her wild forest of black hair and forced herself to sit through an act of sheer will. She utterly hated having a Wookie tied to her through a lifedebt. Lal couldn't get rid of him. It was like having a giant furry organ suddenly sprout from her back. She could remember a time in her life when nobody yelled at her to get up…in any bloody language.

Lal stood and staggered over to the window. For half a moment, she expected to see the sun blazing through, but of course, there was no sun. Beyond her window, there yawned only the bottomless darkness of the Tertiary Sink. The Sink was one of twenty gigantic heat sinks studding the face of the city-world, allowing the tremendous heat generated by massive machinery to bleed out into the upper atmosphere. Five times a day, each Sink dumped its heat sequentially. It made the air blister and churn like water, spilling sticky, wet heat into her apartment. She hated it. But she gained some sort of solace by gazing out into the spinning dark depths. All that open space calmed her nerves for some reason. It emptied her out.

Sighing, she pushed away from the window and headed for her fresher. There, she stripped out of the underwear and tee shirt she wore to bed and turned on the sonic shower. She climbed inside the cramped shower, which gave her space enough only to stand. Under the pulse of the sonic stream, the night's sweat and dirt misted off her skin and disintegrated. Waves of sound marched soothingly over her body, numbing her mind, loosening clenched muscles.

It took only fifteen seconds for the shower to completely scrub her clean, but, as usual, she stood under the pulses for nearly fifteen minutes. When she finally stepped out, she felt utterly refreshed. She brushed her teeth over the sink, gazing at her face in the mirror. There, she caught traces, sometimes of a face that was not always her own. The hair, so long and free, seemed as if it should be—or rather, had once been—shorter. Her skin, darker. Like someone else's skin.

She turned away from the mirror. If she stared too long, it would become a projector screen, playing her nightmares before her eyes. And she didn't want to see the Man again. He was always in her dreams somewhere, speaking to her, taunting her. Whispering with no mouth. Never with a mouth.

A cold fist clutched at her heart then, and she gasped in shock. The Man with no mouth had been there, in her dream again. She got a sudden image of him in her clouded memory. Laughing as the stars bled. Laughing as planets burned and screamed. Lal cried out and squeezed her eyes shut tightly. She pressed her hands against the sides of her head and stumbled back into her bedroom.

She blundered into her bed and fell across it face first. There, she curled into a naked ball, moaning softly to herself. "Leave leave leave leaveleaveleaveleaveleaveleaveleaveLEAVE!"

"But I only just got here", a gravel-filled voice whispered.

Lal tried to reach for her blaster beneath her pillow, but the remembered dream left her wallowing in a thick, viscous sea of disorientation. In a murky haze, she saw a towering figure looming above her. In his armor, he was composed of battered blue and silver, stained with blotches of old blood.

She got a finger or two on the handle of her blaster, but he stepped forward and calmly yanked the weapon from her grasp. Casually, he tossed it on the floor. She licked her lips and rolled over onto her back. Her hair fell across her face, and she wondered if this could get any worse.

It could.

"I wish I had a vid so I could take a holo of this lovely moment, Sideen." She recognized the voice. Wonderful. He removed his helmet, to reveal his short, bristled white hair and his furrowed, hairless eyebrows. A smirk curled his lips; the closest he ever came to a smile. He took a few more moments to stare at her body before he tossed a blanket over her.

"What are you doing here, Ordo?" she muttered through clenched teeth, clutching the blanket to her.

His pale eyes lingered on her as she covered herself, and then he purposely turned his back to her. She fished for some clothes, and found a rubbery halter that squeaked and snapped as she stretched it over her. She yanked on a pair of clean underwear and then threw the blanket angrily from her.

"Answer my question," she told him, glancing for her blaster. But he had consciously maneuvered himself between her and the weapon. She was left utterly at his mercy, and he allowed the fact to sink in to her brain that he intended her no harm. That brought heat to her cheeks. He could have killed her at his leisure if he wished.

"Does it need to be said that I wish you no injury? Or have I made my point, Sideen?"

"Oh…do be silent!" she hissed, stepping hastily into a bright pink skirt. She wondered briefly where in the hell had she ever bought anything that was bright or pink, but didn't dwell long on it.

He was enjoying her distress, of course. But he didn't know that she kept her second blaster close by. She reached into a nightstand for something to tie her hair back and also came up with her second weapon. She leveled it at his back, and calm rushed over her.

"Alright. You can turn around."

He slowly turned, and arched a bare eyebrow at the sudden appearance of the weapon.

"Resourceful," he chuckled softly.

"I trust you enjoyed the peep show, Canderous? It'll be the last thing you'll ever see."

"No need for that. I'm here to talk business."

Drat! She raged inside her mind. Lal plopped down on the bed and crossed her legs. "Alright. You have fifteen seconds before I start shooting important things off of you."

He smiled that non-smile of his and nodded. "It's time for a change. I know what you're up to, and I want in."

She had to remind herself of all the things she actually was up to…"You're going to have to be a bit more specific, Canderous."

He chuckled. "Six months ago, you began contacting pilots. Mainly eager bush leaguers and down-and-outers. A few desperate scum here and there. Five months ago, you traveled with Davik to Tatooine during negotiations with the Hutts. There, you began setting up your own network of contacts. Three months ago, you began setting up runs. You may now rest assured that I have fairly complete knowledge of your extracurricular activities, Sideen."

"Mmm. Hold on a sec." She rose, keeping her gun trained on his face. She reached behind her nightstand to pluck a tiny palm-sized device from the back of it. She held it at chest level and activated it. It hummed softly as she glanced at the tiny display. It ran through its scan and the display screen told her there were no active or passive transmissions in her vicinity. She did another scan, and came up with another negative result. He wasn't recording her, he wasn't transmitting audio elsewhere. And he wasn't running any sort of countermeasures to hide any transmissions.

But still, there was no reason to trust him.

"Canderous, I don't know how you got past the security at the front door. But you're obviously thinking that you can touch me at any moment you choose. You see me helpless and…mmm…naked on my bed, utterly incapable of defending myself or even reacting to you, right? And you're thinking suddenly, Lal is sloppy. Lal is touchable."

"Admittedly, I had considered some random touching, yes. But decided it wouldn't be entirely prudent."

"Shut up. That was a rhetorical question."

"Of course."

She sighed and went on. "Be advised, Canderous, catching me at a bad moment is not something you will be able to rely upon a second time."

"Heh."

She narrowed her eyes at him, and felt warmth on her cheeks once more. She should have killed him; she really should have. But she had no idea how much he knew. Or what he really intended to do with his knowledge. Damn it, but she had thought she had covered herself better than this. If Davik found out, her life wouldn't be worth a single credit.

She could deny it, but if her scan had missed any bugs, that would be just as bad as an admission of guilt. And killing him would also be an admission of guilt. Damned clumsy of her.

And where was the Carpet! He should have been back by now! Unless he was filling his bottomless gut! Lousy Wookie! Unless…maybe Canderous had killed him…The man feared nothing, and he had hunted just about everything that had lived and breathed in the galaxy…

"Did you hurt Zaalbar, Canderous?" she asked in a quiet, tiny voice.

"Not permanently. It's difficult determining a proper tranquilizer dosage for a creature of such prodigious size and endurance without killing. But I have had some experience with downing Wookies. Of course, you realize I had no choice. Your Wookie would have been unlikely to listen before he started ripping my arms and legs off."

"He's not my Wookie."

"Whatever. But I refrained from killing him. Satisfied?"

Damn it, but Canderous was good. The best. Better than she could ever be. She hated Mandalorians. Especially the smart ones. "Alright, Canderous. What do you want?"

"I told you it was time for a change. I meant it."

"A change? What the bloody hell are you talking about?"

He sighed in dismay. "Neither of us is this dense, Sideen. I will be blunt, since that will help allay your obvious suspicions. I am a Mandalorian Hunter. I have been trained since birth to kill sentients. As a youth, questing for honor, I mastered orbital assaults with basilisk assault droids. I have led my Clan in battles worthy of song and of infamy. I have killed women and children, and I have danced on the entrails of my enemies. Today, I hunt down debtors. I torture men who are not my enemies. I…collect monthly dues and break the limbs of those who cannot pay. Do you see my problem, Lal Sideen?"

"Umm…you used to be a bloodthirsty maniac, and now…it just doesn't float your speeder anymore? Midlife crisis, I'm guessing?"

He snarled and lifted his fist sharply. "No! For others, killing is its own end. For the Sons of Mandalore, it was a means to an end. A noble one. Our enemies were worthy of killing. So were their sons and daughters and wives. There was…glory…even in the killing of a woman who cursed your bloodline and promised her sons would gain vengeance on you and yours."

"Canderous…you are not exactly winning me to your cause…"

"There is no glory in what I now do!" He roared. "Davik is…Davik is simple-minded scum. His goals are likewise simpleminded. He is nothing more than a brute. A barbarian. He grows fat on the monies of the innocent. I can no longer abide being his man. Once…once I thought I had no choice. After the Clans were scattered, I…well. Suffice to say, I was disillusioned. Bitter.

"But I have watched you, Sideen. I have seen Davik use you. I have seen how he has tried to break and crush your heart with the sins he imposes on you. It is akin to caging a grand predator. Better to simply kill you than do what he has done."

"Canderous…"

"Let me finish, woman!" he snapped. "You see…when the Clans were still strong, there were women like you…what I mean to say is…Er…you are a woman worthy of…well…"

"Canderous. Please tell me you did not break into my apartment to ask me out on a bloody date…"

"The Sons of Mandalore do not…date! Ahem. I…what I'm trying to say, woman, is that it is clear to me, that despite Davik's grasp on your soul, you are attempting to carve for yourself an empire. Davik, fool scum that he is, is content to be an errand boy. A cog in a greater machine. You would throw down that machine and raise your own in its place. And while…I would find it…agreeable to make sons with you…it is my wish to join you. And seek a greater glory."

"I see. You do say the sweetest things, Canderous. But you're still a lunatic. Ostensibly, though, even if I was trying to set up my own operation, I'd have to kill you. I couldn't trust you."

"You cannot afford to kill me, Sideen. Aside from my obvious value to you, there's no way you could be certain what I have or have not told Davik of your efforts to build your operation. You could ignore logic and kill me anyway, but that would be a death sentence any way you look at it. Or you could simply choose to accept my offer of fealty."

Davik would be rather upset if she simply killed one of his most valuable assets. He showed no mercy to lackeys who killed his other lackeys. It was bad for business…unless he ordered it, of course. "Canderous, if I killed you now, I could easily say you snuck into my apartment while I slept simply to have your way with me. It would be justification enough. Especially since you have already snuck into my apartment."

He shook his head and smiled grimly. "Davik would know better. You see, Lal Sideen, there is something you do not know. I am here at Davik's own command. Davik intends to see you dead."

"You…Davik…me…? But…what did I…" she fell silent. She knew it was true. She had felt it last night when he was speaking to her. She knew her value to him was coming to an end. Davik probably knew nothing of her schemes, but that also probably didn't matter. She was getting too good. Too strong. He'd be a fool not to have noticed the threat she now posed to his power.

But still, after all she'd done for him…

"If he had put a contract on me," she began dubiously, "I'd know about it…"

Canderous snarled in disgust at Davik. "The man is lazy and foolish. He will wait until you have solved this Sith problem for him. Undoubtedly, you will be able to seduce some influential Sith diplomat or general. You are not only highly desirable, but extremely competent. He knows that it would only be a matter of time before you used your cunning to turn a Sith to your cause. In this, a woman will always have more power than even a powerful man with money. Simple idiot biology ensures this."

She worked his words out in her mind during a stretch of ticking silence. Her eyes flicked up to meet his. "He wants you to do it, I take it?"

He shrugged and smiled coldly. "Fool that he is, Davik is still wise enough to respect my talent. But I am not fool enough to think he respects me that much. Lal Sideen, when Davik orders your death, many will hunt you. Not just a single man. There are those who already seek to begin the hunt. Last night, I believe, was no random attack."

"Those bloody Vulkars!"

"Quite. But they were merely tools. Calo Nord made some use of the fact that the Vulkars already would like to kill you. Or worse."

Lal cursed silently. "Lovely. That's just brilliant. All I was doing was enforcing Davik's wishes, too. He hates those twits. Tell me Canderous, did Davik know about last night's ambush?"

"I do not believe so. Calo became…impatient. His ambitions will be his downfall."

"And Davik still needs me to get a Sith in his pocket."

"There is that. I wonder, Sideen…will you still perform this task for Davik? Knowing what you do?"

"That's a silly question, Canderous. We both know that I have no choice. Even less choice now."

He shrugged. "It would be beneficial to gain an ally among the Sith, of course."

"Of course. Except I don't think it's possible. The Sith are…insane."

"Yes," he agreed. "They are mad dogs. But not so insane as you might think. Even a madman can still feel desire. And no one alive is more desirable than you, I think."

"Oh, I bet you say that to all the homicidal girls."

"No, Lal Sideen. I do not. I believe you are unique. An unparalleled gem burning brightest of all. But don't let it go to your head."

"Fine. Get out. I'll be in touch."

He nodded and turned to go. But as he turned, he walked right into a wall of fur. Zaalbar roared in fury and swatted Canderous to the floor like a toy. The huge Wookie took a thundering step forward and bared his bright fangs. Canderous wiped the blood on his lip with the back of his wrist and scrambled backwards before the Wookie's rage.

"Damn it, Sideen, call him off!"

Lal waited for a moment, thinking Canderous the unmatched murderer deserved a bit of comeuppance. But she could tell by his expression that Zaalbar was in a killing mood. She rushed in front of Zaalbar, to hold him at bay. The Wookie halted instantly, unwilling to place her in the path of his anger, but he still snarled and seethed down at Canderous.

"It's okay Zaalbar. He didn't hurt me. Leave him be."

Zaalbar roared over her shoulder and trembled on the verge of a frenzy. A naughty idea crossed her mind, then. Lal closed her eyes and painted fear onto her face. She turned to Canderous as he lay frozen on the floor.

"Canderous…! I don't know if I can stop him! He wants your blood!"

"Damned Wookie! What should I do?"

Lal giggled inwardly at Canderous's distress, but she still pretended desperation. "He wants you…"

"What…?"

"He wants you to…"

"What? What does he want?"

Lal relaxed and smiled wickedly down at Canderous. "He just wants you to say you're sorry for shooting him. That was naughty."

Zaalbar and Canderous both glanced at her incredulously.

"Sideen, I am a Mandalorian! I never apologize!"

Zaalbar thundered wildly at him, and Canderous turned stark white.

"I'm sorry for shooting you. It was naughty."

Zaalbar snarled once more at Canderous and then gave a curt nod. Lal patted the Wookie's chest. Canderous started breathing again and slowly picked himself up. Warily, he edged past Zaalbar and Lal, both of whom stared at him. Zaalbar snapped at him to get him moving faster. Canderous nearly leaped out of his armor, but hustled towards the front door. Lal followed him and ushered him out.

She sighed and returned to Zaalbar, who was still seething in the bedroom. Silly Carpet. She laid a hand on his chest and gazed up into his eyes.

He avoided her gaze and turned away in his own Wookie version of shame. He barked out a string of self-recriminations and balled his massive fists in anger at himself.

"Canderous is good, Zaalbar," she soothed. "Better than you. Better than me."

Zaalbar countered with his own warbling argument. Lal sighed and nodded.

"Of course. But you were…you were still there for me. We all have moments of weakness. No exceptions, there. I had another dream…"

Zaalbar turned, his brow furrowed in concern. "No," she replied in response to his worried growl, "I don't want to talk about it…but…er…thanks for um…for asking."

Zaalbar stiffened in surprise, expecting another Carpet remark. But Lal merely sighed and sat down on her bed. "Alright. Now get out. I'm going to change. Where the hell did I buy this bloody outfit anyway…?"

Carth warily nursed a drink as he sat at the bar. Pungent Ollik smoke formed a ceiling above his head and Hootari music pulsed just above the rumble of mingled voices. Carth was more than a little bit on edge, even though he tried his best to seem casual. He'd just spent an entire day evading Sith patrols in the UpCity, mainly by hiding in plain sight. Damn but the Sith moved fast. The UpCity streets were filled with Sith troopers, and they had already commandeered a customs facility at the spacedocks to use as a makeshift base of operations. Word had it that they were sending patrols down into the Undercity, and they were putting checkpoints in place at every access point between UpCity and LowCity.

Fighter patrols roamed the skies, and there was a rumor that an orbital blockade was keeping anyone from leaving or arriving. Even if Carth could find Bastila, he reckoned getting off-world would be beyond their combined abilities.

And his only ally was a gangster. She was beautiful, of course. Maybe even more so than Bastila Shan herself. But beneath that beauty, there prowled a savage and cold monster. Every time he found himself swimming in her dark eyes, he forced himself to remember that she was a killer and a criminal. He couldn't trust her farther than he could throw her. But damn, he needed her help.

Lal Sideen was certainly tapped into the heart of the city. Her name was on the lips of every back alley dealer and black marketer he'd run across. She was Davik Kang's number two. Believed to have participated in a number of murders that would never see the light of a court. If only she wasn't such a ruthless cutthroat…But still…there was something about her.

Something he couldn't quite grasp. Something haunting. Those almost black eyes of hers, they slashed right through him. In her presence, he had felt like she was dissecting him, opening him up to shine a light on all his secrets. Or maybe it was just that she had a great set of legs…That dress she had been wearing…well, not so much wearing as sort of…drifting in and out of at certain moments. She had a distracting…paralyzing effect…

So distracting that he almost didn't notice the half-naked twi'lek girl swishing clumsily up to him. Carth arched a dubious eyebrow as she smiled brightly and leaned against the bar beside him. The netting she wore clung to every azure curve, but managed to expose more of her flesh than it bothered to cover. Her proprietary tattoos were clearly visibly, ringing her thighs and arms, dancing across her brow. The girl glanced over at him and licked her lips.

"Buy me a drink?" she asked.

"Sure you're old enough, honey?"

Her mouth dropped wide open indignantly. "Why you--"

Carth held up his hand to cut her off. "Listen kiddo, whatever you're going for, you're not pulling it off, okay? What are you? Twelve? Thirteen?"

She gasped dramatically and balled up her tiny fist beneath his face. "Nah, you listen, granddad, I'm old enough to get the job done, you hear me? I been in this business longer than you…longer than…well, a long time, okay? So you just keep your smart remarks to yourself, and buy me a flippin' drink!"

Carth had damn well had enough. "Whatever you're selling, I'm not interested. Don't take it personal, I just prefer being hit on by adults--"

"She said you were kinda slow," the twi'lek sighed. "Listen, Lal sent me to collect you. But she didn't want it to be all obvious, laser mouth! So pretend like we're negotiating on a price and let's go."

"Lal sent you, huh? She must be paranoid as hell." Carth took her arm and rose. He tossed down a few creds to cover his bar tab. "Alright honey, I'm hooked. Let's uh…let's party. Or…whatever."

"Great, big daddy!" she cried, kissing him on the cheek. Carth groaned inwardly.

"Listen kid, you got a name?"

"Mission. Mission Vao. And you're the guy who was staring at Lal's butt last night. Lemme tell you," she continued in a whisper, "you're sooo not in her league, okay?"

"What the hell are you talking about? I wouldn't touch that woman if I was in a level-6 exposure suit! She's crazy. Hold on a sec. How do I know you're not leading me into a trap?"

She sighed elaborately and rolled her blue eyes. "I'm not. Trust me. Besides, it ain't like you got a whole lotta choice, is it?"

"Alright, alright. You got me there, k—er…Mission. At least tell me where we're going."

"Do you know your way around?"

"I…well…no…"

"Then just shut up and pretend like you're not my dad or something, huh?"

Carth glared at her and struggled not to throttle her little neck. "Okay. It's your show. But if this smells wrong to me…"

She nodded. "Yeah, yeah. I got it. I'm all scared. Maybe you can spank me if I'm bad enough, huh?"

Carth cringed.

Mission led Carth in a series of disorienting twists and turns through the guts of LowCity, just as Lal had wanted. Carth was so turned around he had no idea where he was. Lal had another one of her girls following them with a commlink, and she was ready for them when Mission finally dragged Carth into the abandoned factory where Lal waited alongside Zaalbar.

"Carth," she smiled, nodding at him and Mission. She took in Mission's outfit, and Carth's expression and had to stifle a laugh. "Carth, you can stop thinking naughty thoughts, you dirty old man."

Mission broke out with a string of giggles, while Carth's cheeks turned bright red. Even Zaalbar coughed out a little laugh.

"Alright. Yeah, that's just hilarious," Carth growled. "About as funny as pimping out a joygirl who's just a Wookie's hair shy of being a kid!"

"Yeah, that shows what you know," Mission snapped defensively, "Lal is my friend! And I wouldn't give you any action if you were the last humanoid on Taris!"

"Well that works out fine because I'm not interested. Kid."

Lal decided to intervene. "Alright. Funny, funny. Now it's biz-time. Carth, I told you I would help you out, right? Well, I put out some feelers, and learned that the Black Vulkars do indeed have your girlfriend."

"Right. Now, all I need is a way to sneak in and get her. And she's not my girlfriend."

"Whatever. It's not going to be quite as simple as all that, I'm afraid. The Vulkars might be dolts, but they're big on tech. That means they've got the blackest security guarding their digs. And please don't give that line about having been in tighter scrapes. You're likely to require assistance that I cannot provide."

Carth placed his fists on his hips and sighed in growing frustration. "Alright. Fine. If you can't help me, who do I need to talk to?"

"Well," Lal began slowly, "there aren't too many people around who would willingly or openly cross the Black Vulkars…"

"The Beks would do it!" Mission piped up.

"Shut up, Mission," Lal sighed. She glanced to Carth and shrugged. "The Hidden Beks. Rival gang."

Carth threw his hands up in defeat. "This just gets better and better…"

"Lesser of two evils in your case, Carth," Lal told him. "The Beks have a blood feud going with the Vulkars. Brejik, the leader of the Vulkars has been trying to kill the Beks' headman off and on for roughly three years or so. I'm sure the Beks would be happy to be a thorn in Brejik's side. Don't get me wrong; the Beks are scum, too. Just a slightly less scummier scum. They'll still kill you as soon as look at you. Especially you. But their leader, Gadon Theck…he's somewhat sweet on me. He'll give you an audience if I introduce you. It's your show from there, flyboy."

Carth groaned and massaged the bridge of his nose. Lal walked up beside him and folded her arms over her breasts. "Listen, Carth," she said softly, "I'm guessing this lady is pretty special to you, hmm? You love her or something along those lines? Well--"

"I don't love her. I'm not in love with her. She's a fellow soldier. That's all. I don't leave people behind. I told you that."

"Hmm. Carth, I don't care about your fight. The struggle of the Republic against the Sith. It's not my concern. Neither of them ever did a bloody thing for me or mine. But obviously, you care. And whatever mission you're on, I'm guessing it's very important to your bosses that you succeed or whatever. Risking the success of your mission for a single soldier is…well, it doesn't sound like smart tactics to me. And if she's not special to you…"

Carth opened his mouth to reply, but then thought better of it. He smiled slyly at her. "That's very good. You almost suckered me. But I told you I couldn't talk about the mission. And even a pretty smile isn't gonna change that. Why do you care so much anyway? I mean, you've got your own business, right? Like you said, you don't care about the Republic. You don't care that the Sith are monsters. Why do you care what I choose to risk my life for?"

"Well," she smiled lushly, pressing her shoulder against his, "you saved my life, right? That was very sweet of you. Maybe I just don't want to see you throw your life away stupidly. I mean, I honestly can't help you more than I already am…and I can't stop you…but maybe…maybe survival is the best option. I mean, you might be able to save this woman…but the odds are against you. It's more likely that you'll get captured. And the Vulkars will torture you until you spill your guts about everything you've ever known. Seems like a waste. You're strong and you're obviously brave…confident…"