Chapter 7. Weapons Master
Two days later, in the morning, the ground shook delicately. Steve opened his eyes in anticipation of Revan's arrival. He got dressed and went straight to the surface. When he got out, he could see the ramp lower and reveal the womanly shape he knew so well. Revan was wearing her usual clothes now, the same reddish outfit with the white tank top. It was too cold outside to be wearing just that, but Revan didn't expect to have to step out of the hawk until it was stowed away into the hangar.
"What's going on? How come the shield is still up?" Revan said as she wrapped her arms around herself as she felt the chill of the air rush past her.
"The hanger is under construction at the moment. We have to leave the ship up here for now. Come." Steve said as he placed his arms around the cold woman and led her to the entrance. When they were inside, Revan held Steve's hand, walked with him to the common room and sat on a small couch.
"Where is everyone?" She asked.
"Everyone is working in the hangar… I should be there too, but I was still sleeping." Steve answered.
"What happened in the hangar?" Revan was curious.
"Nothing. Just some problem with the floor material." Steve said.
"We can't leave the ship up there for long… it will be detected and attract unwanted attention…" She said.
"We are working as fast as we can. Don't worry, it won't take long now." Steve said. Revan nodded and then just took a moment to peak into the man's mind and smiled.
"So what have you been up to these past few days?" She asked him with a smile.
"I did just what I said I would do… and I learned how to fight hand-to-hand… at least, I learned as much as I could, given the time I had." He answered. Revan was pleased.
"I'm proud of you. I have some money now. Soon, you will need to purchase some weapons for yourself… you know, like we discussed?" She said.
"Right, weapons that are appropriate against the common foe." He quoted what she told him.
"I'll have a good idea what to get when I inspect my options." He said.
"Of course you will. I think, tomorrow, you should take care of that." She said.
"Sure. I'll ask if Mira knows where I can get what I need. Come, I want to show you how well we all get along now. It's really great." He said as he pulled the woman with him anxiously. Revan smiled and followed him to the hangar. The women were all in there, working very well together. They had all felt the ground shake, and so they expected Revan to show up eventually. When they saw Steve and Revan enter, they stopped their work and gathered around the couple to greet Revan. After they all shared their greeting, Steve directed his attention at Mira:
"Mira, do you know of any good weapons stores… where I could get some stuff without attracting too much attention?" He asked seriously.
"You? No… but I know a place where ANYONE ELSE can get some good stuff without getting into trouble." She teased.
"Where?" Steve asked seriously after he laughed.
"I know a place on Nar Shadaa. It's a small place near Goto's headquarters. It's filled with Goto's gangsters, but they don't bother us bounty hunters." Mira answered.
"Could you take him shopping there tomorrow?" Revan asked the red-haired woman.
"What, alone?" Mira asked.
"Yes. You won't need me just to buy some weapons. I'll stay here. Besides, I want you to use your little fighter ship and travel as Steve's mentor. Just pretend that he's your apprentice, that way, he can blend in. Your ship only has two seats right?" Revan was double-checking her plans.
"Yes it does." Mira answered.
"Well, if you're willing to take him, then that settles it." Revan said.
"Sure, I'll take him… but why should you trust me with all of your money and your boyfriend?" Mira asked as a joke, but she was rather curious of what Revan knew of her.
"You ARE his friend aren't you? I can feel it you know. I trust you. You seem like a capable woman. Take care of him for me, and you can keep whatever money is left after Steve purchases his weapons… Oh, I almost forgot: while you're there, can you get some general intelligence on the current troubles and commotions around the galaxy?" Revan asked.
"You'll have to be a little more specific…" Mira said.
"I don't need anything specific. Just use your contacts to find out if there is anything a little unusual happening anywhere. If you need more specific parameters, look into local disputes and rival wars that are threatening to erupt in larger scales." Revan clarified.
"I can do that. But why do you want to know?" Mira asked.
"I'm just doing my part, that's all. I promised to keep things together." She answered.
"Ok. So tomorrow then. Do you think we can get this place finished by then?" Mira asked the fifth Echani.
"If Revan helps, we can be finished just after midday." She answered and everyone looked in Revan's direction.
"No problem." Revan smiled.
"With her help, we can be done even before we eat." Steve added.
Everyone gave their share of efforts and finished the floor before lunch, just as Steve predicted. Revan and Steve went up to the surface and got the Ebon Hawk up in the air while the older Echani woman lowered the camouflage shield that covered the hangar. The big ship set on the new plastisteel floor and was powered down. It was time to break out for lunch. Steve got his pouch on and joined the others at the table. This time, everyone was present and the table was practically full.
"So where did you go exactly, Revan?" The younger Echani woman asked.
"I spent most of my time on Korriban, in the Sith academy." Revan gave a direct answer.
"What were you doing there exactly?" Mira asked.
"Well, you could say it was a routine check-up of the status of the Sith empire. As you already know, their armies are all disassembled, but their culture remains. It's important that they maintain a proper control over themselves. I was there to make sure nothing would disturb that control." Revan explained.
"Do they still follow you?" The older handmaiden asked.
"They recognized my authority, but, as I said, I no longer lead them. No one does. That's how it has to be. They cannot be allowed to expand; they must remain as they are." Revan explained.
"So now what?" The younger Echani asked.
"Now I'm going to make sure no war can spill out onto the galaxy. And in the mean time, I'm going to spend my time here, with you guys." Revan answered as she gently squeezed Steve's hand and smiled. She was happy. It finally looked like things were going her way.
The lot of them spent the entire afternoon and evening discussing Revan's history. It was a wonderful experience for all of them to learn things of someone who had first hand experience of both the wars that crippled the galaxy in the past decade. Revan had many stories to share, and everyone gave them their attention. It was like listening to all the old retired officers of past wars, the ones that had so many tales and experiences of historical events… except Revan was just a tad older than the fourth Echani. She was a truly fascinating person. Though her extremely advanced wisdom was hard to understand for some people, this group seemed to follow very well. During the night, Revan and Steve exchanged their experiences of the past few days. Revan was very proud of him. She was amazed to see what strong influence he had on everyone that knew him. Steve could spread his love like a disease. He was the perfect tool of peace. There was nothing more she could ask of him. She wanted to hear all the details of his exploits. Steve told her everything that happened in the facility in the last few days, and Revan listened to the man like a wide-eyed child waiting to hear the rest of her bedtime story.
The next morning, Steve woke up at the sound of Mira knocking at the door. He got up, put on some underwear and told Mira to come in.
"Sorry to wake you… Revan's orders. It's time for us to leave. You can sleep on the way. Let's go." Mira said, as the man got dressed. He looked at his bag and was thinking weather or not he should bring the lightsaber he had been give by the handmaiden, but he decided against it. As Revan said, the Sith would be out of the picture from now on. A lightsaber could only cause more trouble now that a Jedi did not accompany him. He left it there and just took the rest of his things.
"I'm ready." He said to the redhead. The two of them stopped by the dining room. Everyone was eating breakfast. Steve and Mira said their good-byes and were off to the scum filled planet of Nar Shadaa. As Steve was suggested, he slept most of the way there. He felt comfortable in the chair and didn't mind the coldness of space. Mira didn't feel the same way though. She didn't like traveling. She was anxiously waiting for Steve to stop resting so she can tease him; she was so bored. She was accustomed to traveling alone, but, because she had company this time, she wanted to make the best of it. Mira stroked his cheek gently to wake him up.
"I think you've had enough sleep." Mira whispered in the man's ears.
"Are we there yet?" Steve said as he wiped his sleepy eyes to get their lids unstuck.
"No, no not yet." Mira smiled at the man.
"Oh… Are we under attack?" He asked while looking around to see any signs of problems.
"No. I just thought it was unfair for you to sleep in my face for the whole trip." Mira smirked.
"Oh Mira!" Steve laughed.
"Alright, alright, I'll keep you company. I wasn't planning on sleeping the whole way, you know." Steve said.
"Sure you weren't." Mira was being sarcastic.
"I don't get to travel with someone very often, and I don't particularly like space travel, so…" Mira admitted.
"What do you have in mind?" Steve said.
"Well, Revan told us all about herself yesterday, but you haven't said much about yourself. I'd like to know who you were before all of this started." Mira said.
"Ha. You want to get your chance at falling asleep don't you?" Steve teased.
"What do you mean by that?" Mira asked seriously.
"Well, I wasn't much before I met Revan. I was just a commoner on my planet, preoccupied by nothing and anything really. There's nothing to say." Steve honestly.
"Hmm. Strange. I don't get it. I don't exactly know what you can do, but I'm sure it's pretty fancy if Revan decided you were important somehow." Mira was a little puzzled.
"Well, I don't have any special abilities if that's what you're asking." Steve said seriously. Mira lifted an eyebrow at him.
"No, really, I don't." Steve said.
"I don't think Revan just decided to pick you up for your personality, not that it's not really adorable, but I think there has to be more to it than that." Mira said.
"Well of course not. She needed my help, she told you that already." Steve said.
"True, but you said you didn't have any abilities…" Mira said.
"I didn't, she gave me hers for a while… so I can help her." Steve said.
"And she picked you because… what?" Mira was still puzzled.
"Because she knew I was the best choice. She didn't say this yesterday, but she had much more power than she needed during the wars. She used her abilities to find me, through the very maze of the galaxy; she was looking for someone like me. She said she was looking for something particular enough to limit her search to a mere handful of people." Steve explained it as he was told.
"A handful of people in the entire galaxy?" Mira asked. She knew of the Jedi and of what they were capable of, but none of their stories were this improbable… She didn't believe it.
"Not the whole thing, but most." Steve clarified.
"So let me get this straight… there's absolutely nothing you can do? No skills? No credentials?" Mira asked.
"I wouldn't say I'm not skilled at anything because that's completely untrue, but I haven't been able to use my potential until I met Revan. I do have skills with a lightsaber… I'm sure I can be good with a firearm as well." Steve said defending his qualities.
"You think you're good? You mean you haven't used one yet?" Mira was surprised, she was almost laughing in her head at how inexperienced this man was.
"I never had to. Don't worry; I won't disappoint you if the time comes for me to use one." Steve said honestly.
"Steve, Steve, Steve. How did I let Revan drag me into this? You're going on a dangerous planet to buy weapons you never even held before, and that's as close of a skill you actually have?" Mira was amused at how peculiar everything was about this man… and his connection to Revan.
"I'm a quick learner." Was all Steve could say.
"Actually, I can almost pilot a ship now… almost. It won't be long before I learn all the buttons on the Ebon Hawk's panels. The actual flying part isn't very difficult; I'm sure I can get the hang of it." Steve said.
"I'll give you that, you can learn… Like you learned to fight. But still… I feel like I'm in so much trouble now, babysitting you like this. I knew you were trouble, but I had no idea you were so… inexperienced." Mira said in a serious tone this time.
"Don't think about it too much. Revan wouldn't send us out here together if you couldn't handle me. Besides, you said we wouldn't run into any trouble." Steve tried to reassure the woman.
"Don't worry, I can handle you. What I'm concerned about is if you can handle yourself if we ever get separated." Mira said honestly. Steve looked her straight in the eyes and said.
"We can't get separated… whatever happens, we have to stay close." He said in a concerned tone.
"Steve, I can't bring you everywhere I go… When we reach Goto' headquarters, I'll have to go in alone." Mira said.
"That's fine. I'll wait at the door for you. At least I'll look meaner with a few weapons packed in my bags. That part shouldn't be a problem, just don't expect me to know where to go if we get separated." Steve said.
"All right, I'll do my best." Mira said after rolling her eyes.
"You still don't look convinced… come on, we'll be fine! Hey, look at me! See, I trust you. Just have a little faith in me. I won't disappoint you, I promise." Steve smiled at the woman.
"All right, all right, I trust you too… and I won't worry about it anymore, but if we get into trouble, you're going to have to do much better than just look at me like that to make me feel better." Mira teased, but, deep down, she was serious.
"It's a deal: You just don't worry too much, and I'll make it up to you if we get into trouble." Steve teased back.
The small fighter ship arrived at its destination. It was dark at this particular time and place. The streets were mostly empty and quiet. The two passengers that exited the fighter ship looked professional enough to blend in. Mira and Steve made their way to a small warehouse that was thankfully opened all around the clock. Inside were very few people who seemed legit in their business. Mira approached the counter and Steve stood next to her.
"Hallo, Bounty hunters. What can we do for you?" The alien at the counter said as best he could. He was a strange creature with a rather large mouth. Steve never had seen one like this before. He was rather frightening because of the way it looked; it seemed to be always giving off a fake smile, showing off its large dark teeth. It looked to him like a derivative of the reptiles he had on his planet, except his large scales were brown rather than yellow-green. Otherwise, it looked rather humanoid to him.
"Hello… what was your name again? Remeize Remar?" Mira asked.
"Rambossa. Ares you heres for ze… products?" The alien asked.
"That's right; I'm here with my apprentice to pick up some merchandise." Mira said.
"Follows we then." The creature said as he led the two people to the back room.
In this room, there were many weapons displayed in glass casings and shelves.
"Ares you lookings far anathing in particulars?" The alien asked.
"My apprentice will pick out what he needs." Mira said, as she looked at the man in his black suit. Steve didn't even look back at Mira as she said it. He was already focusing on what he needed, making his way to the casings to get a closer look at his selection. He stopped when he reached the section that displayed small blaster pistols.
"I need two like these that don't heat up too much under stress." Steve said to the alien.
"These ares ours newr ones." The alien said as he took out two identical, short and rounded, silver pistols out of the glass counter.
"Are they the coldest ones?" Steve asked as he inspected the blasters.
"These ares small yields… they don't heat." The alien said. Steve didn't trust the alien, for all he knew, those creatures were cold blooded and could care less of the heat a weapon emitted when it was used extensively. Also, these two pistols were also the most expensive of the gang. The alien was probably just trying to make a good profit. Mira was interested in Steve's request. She didn't think he knew what to shop for until now.
"All right, I'll take them. I need something else though. I'm looking for a sniperrifle…" Steve started but knew the alien wouldn't know what he was talking about; this weapon was one they made on his planet. He hoped there would be something like that here. He decided to rephrase the question using a description of the weapon he wanted:
"I'm looking for a large yield weapon with a scope on it… that can fire very far away… you know, a rifle." He said. The alien nodded and opened up a large crate that was behind the glass counter. It pulled out a large rifle and placed it delicately on the counter.
"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Steve said as he inspected the weapon's features. It was much lighter in weight then he imagined it to be. The scope was very powerful and gave out a great amount of detail. It also possessed other optical modes that enabled the user to see in the dark and so on. The barrel was very large and long. The energy particle that came out of it must have been very powerful.
"I'll take it." Steve said as he set the weapon back down on the counter, next to the two pistols.
"Oh, I almost forgot: do you have any chemical weapons… ehm… something like a small gas grenade, something small and discreet that could be useful?" Steve asked.
"No… Arrr… actually, we has somethings new. Let we gets it." The alien hesitated. He came back with small translucent capsules filled with liquid.
"These ares brand new… has not been tested from us. These ares the… poisons and these, the antidotes." He said while separating the two different capsules. Mira approached the counter to get a closer look. She hasn't seen these before.
"How do they work?" Steve asked.
"You swallows both of them and you carry… undetectable poisons that cann place yours enemy in… sleeps." The alien had a hard time explaining it.
"Right, but how does it…" Steve was trying to understand, but he noticed the alien was getting a small paper out of the counter. They must have been instructions he could understand. As the alien handed the paper to him, he and Mira read it. The two capsules were, in fact, contagious viruses and anti-viruses. The virus itself was used to cause the carrier to fall in a deep state of sleep that could last up to a day. When combined with the anti-virus, the carrier doesn't become infected but can transmit the virus through bodily contact. Its highest concentration was found in bodily fluids. It was suggested in the instructions that the user should spit on any target he or she wishes to infect and the results would be felt very shortly after. The contagion would become less and less effective as time goes by. It also indicated that, 24 hours after the virus was combined with the anti virus, it would become completely neutralized.
"Interesting." Steve said as he read.
"This might be useful." He added as he looked at Mira.
"I think that'll be all." He said to the alien. The price of all of these things combined was very steep, but Steve knew how much of a difference they could make, and he wasn't going to gamble his safety and that of his friends for any amount in the world. Revan had given him plenty of credits though. Steve paid for the merchandise and added a utility strap to his purchases. There was already a strap on the big rifle that allowed him to carry the large rifle on his back, but he wanted to be able to carry his pistols on his back as well. He selected a strap that could hold his two blaster pistols tightly against his back. He got all set with the weapons and left the store with Mira. Just outside of it, he stopped the woman, handed her an antidote capsule and gobbled the virus and anti-virus himself.
"Just in case." He said when he noticed the hesitation in the woman's eyes. Mira accepted the anti-virus and led Steve to Goto's headquarters. They ended up in a dark alley along a building with only one opening at the end of it. On the side of this alley, there was just another empty spot that was so common in this city. There were many of these empty spaces that allowed circulation of the air, from the actual surface of the planet, all the way to the high altitude the city was built in. Just as the last time he was here, Steve observed that it was a very long fall down to the surface of the planet. At this hour, it just looked like a black hole down there. However, there were railings here to prevent people from accidentally falling down or being pushed off… instead of nothing like the last place he was in. That reassured him some, but he still didn't like this damned city. Mira stopped Steve at the beginning of this alley and said:
"From here, I have to go alone. Just stay here, and don't attract too much attention. It won't take long. I'll just get some intelligence, and we can be on our way home in no time." Mira said as she pushed Steve into a shadowy section.
"I'll be right back." She said as she kissed the man on the cheek. Mira walked down the alley fearlessly and entered the building.
Steve just paced back and forth in the shadow, waiting for her to come back. Just over half an hour later, the entrance of the building swung open. He could see Mira backing out of it slowly. Steve looked in the distance carefully to see what was going on exactly. Shortly after Mira stepped completely out of the entrance, a giant furry creature followed her out of the building, growling. The wookie picked up the retreating woman by the throat and carried her slowly towards the edge. Steve dropped down to the floor and unclipped his rifle from his back reflexively. He turned on the night-vision of the scope, settled the rifle on the floor and looked through the scope. He saw Mira hanging helplessly in the hands of the tall beast as she was being slowly carried to the edge.
"Stop it Hanharr! I don't care about your stupid life-debt!" Mira yelled at her attacker. The wookie growled at her and lifted her higher in the air.
"I'm not afraid to die. But you're making a mistake, if you kill me, you'll be breaking Goto's rules, and everyone's going to be hunting you!" Mira pleaded as she gasped for air through the creature's tight grip on her neck. Steve couldn't hear a thing they said, but he could clearly see the wookie was about to lift Mira past the railings. He had to act before that happened. He aligned his shot directly at the giant's head and fired a powerful energy particle. He fought the recoil of the weapon as best he could and then looked through the scope to see the results of his shot. The blast pierced through the beast's head and exited the other side. The wookie dropped dead on the floor. Mira landed on her feet, just an inch before the railings and pushed the dead animal's paws off of her neck. Then she ran to Steve. Steve placed his rifle on his back and got up from the floor. The woman grabbed him and pushed him against he wall in the shadow and said:
"What the hell are you doing?"
"I was just helping! That beast was going to throw you off the ledge!" Steve said defensively.
"Well, now we're going to have everyone on our backs. Soon, everyone's going to be looking for me! You shouldn't have done that!" Mira was a little mad.
"What are you talking about? I couldn't just let you get killed!" He said.
"Well, at least you could've gotten away. Now we're both dead!" Mira said.
"Well, I'd prefer a chance that we both make it than you get slaughtered for sure." Steve said defensively.
"Looks like we don't have a choice anymore… alright, let's get out of here. Just do as I say and we may make it out of here alive." She said.
Steve followed her in the dark alleys as they zigzagged around the city.
"Do you know where we are going?" Steve asked the woman.
"Of course, I don't need a map to know my way around this place… I work here, remember?" She explained. They snuck past some patrols and made their way to the hangar where they had landed Mira's fighter ship. The hallway that led there was dark but not as dark as within the hangar itself.
"I don't think we should go in there…" Steve said with a concerned tone.
"We have no choice." Mira said as she got her armband ready to fire some darts or rockets. Steve placed an arm around her wrist and lowered it.
"What if it's an ambush? I don't think we should go in there with our weapons readied or they will shoot us down for sure." Steve said. Mira looked at him curiously for a moment and then lowered her arm the whole way down.
"You're right. Let's just hope no one is there or we will have no chance to defend ourselves." Mira said. The two of them walked slowly into the dark room and saw nothing. They stepped in and looked around carefully. There was still nothing to see or hear in the hanger. Mira and Steve sighed and were about to pick up their pace, but they heard a voice behind them. Steve didn't understand what was said because it was in an alien language. Mira understood though; she looked into Steve's eyes and slowly lifted her arms in the air in surrender. Steve looked back at her and did the same. Mira didn't look very happy at all…
"Echouna wanga way po." The voice said. Mira turned around slowly and Steve did the same. There were two gray skinned Twi'lek females… twins that had their blasters pointed at them.
"What do you want?" Mira asked the twins.
"Woo esten aapares tenn choota" One of the twins replied.
"We had no choice, Hanharr broke the rules first." Mira answered.
"Too anche wass doltre." One of the Twi'leks replied.
"Oh sure… not a coincidence… right. You think I was planning on killing Hanharr? I just wanted to leave! But I guess the truth doesn't matter now does it? You just want to collect on our bounty even if we are innocent…" Mira said.
"Too chan chutta!" They said to her.
"I guess it's better that you take us alive than dead… Steve, drop your weapons on the floor and take a step back." Mira told the man as she did the same with her armbands. The twins escorted their bounty to their apartment. Just at the entrance of their apartment building, there were patrols scouting around. The partols saw the bounty hunters with their prey and walked to them. The patrols looked like bith gangsters… probably Goto's gang. Their leader spoke the twins in another alien language. Mira whispered the translation to Steve:
"They say they were looking for us… The twins say we belong to them… They say they will stay here until Goto places a bid on us. Shit… this isn't good. Even if we make it out of the building…" Mira was going to say more, but the twins were close enough to hear them, so she decided to stop. Soon after they were led in the apartment building and taken to the top floor. The twins tied Mira on a chair, took Steve into the next room and did the same to him. They wanted to keep them separated, which was a very good idea, but it was very bad for Steve and Mira… First of all, the virus had to infect both the Twi'leks at the same time if they wanted to attempt an escape, but, also, it made the interrogations a lot more difficult because the twins could easily detect variations between the lies Mira would tell and the ones Steve would. It wasn't good for them at all…
One of the twins questioned Mira while the other one questioned Steve. The one questioning Steve had to provide a translation through a datapad. Steve read the first question:
Who are you? Was written on the screen.
"My name is Kirk, Captain James T. Kirk of the starship Enterprise…" Steve answered with a straight face.
What are you doing with Mira?
"I decided to become a bounty hunter instead of a captain, so I made a deal with her to teach me how to become a bounty hunter…" Steve said.
Those were nice weapons… where did you get the money for them?
"I sold my ship to buy them…" Steve answered. The female left the room to verify the information. Steve was alone now. He inspected the room around him. There were no windows or anything. There was no other exit but the door. As he ventured his eyes away from the wall, he noticed the contents of the room.
Great, another torture room… just what I needed. Steve thought to himself.
In the next room, Mira was being questioned:
"Too chi nein foo?" They asked her.
"His name is Smith, John Smith. He's my new apprentice." Mira answered.
"Cahn chubba loogna." They asked.
"I don't work alone anymore… see, I'm getting paid a lot…" Mira said.
"Tan Chutta!" One of them yelled.
"Lie? Me? Noooo." Mira said sarcastically. The two twins didn't appreciate that very much. They untied her and dragged her in the next room where Steve was. They set her next to him and looked at the two of them. One of them untied Steve while the other tied Mira where Steve had been tied down. They didn't let her sit on the chair though. They kicked the chair out of the way and let Mira hang, hands tied behind her, against the bottom of the wall. She was in an awkward position. She couldn't settle down on the floor because her hands were tied to high, but, also, they were tied too low to stand. She had to fake a seat with her legs to be comfortable, but it would tire her out eventually. And when her legs couldn't stand it anymore, she would be in great pain. She was strong though, she could last maybe an hour before her legs would tire too much. When Mira was secured against the wall, the twins held Steve in front of her.
"Chan chi too nah swoo." One of the twins said.
"Of course he isn't worth anything, he's just an apprentice." Mira answered.
"Han chut kahn sat." They replied.
"She wants me to translate what she said." Mira said to Steve.
"Wanna way go we chutta kat too." The Twi'lek continued.
"She said we can lie all we want, but the body never lies." Mira said as the twins stripped the man naked in front of her and set him down on a restraining table that was just a few feet away from them. Mira looked away angrily from what she was about to witness. The twins cuffed the man's wrists and ankles in metal cuffs that were at the lower part of the table, on either side, stretching the man's limbs apart and out of the way. The cuffs were of a thick metal and rested on the flat surface of the table's side. This table was solid though. It was made for torture, and that mean it was capable of withstanding however much force the person on it can inflict. Also, it was made like a cutting board… that meant the materials were not easily broken. There was simply no way for him to break free unless he stole the key from the twins… and, the way he was placed, he was in no position to fetch anything from anywhere. Even if the virus he carried could take effect, he couldn't get away, nor could Mira for that matter.
"Sum mal choo wanga." The Twi'lek continued.
"She said your scars cannot lie." Mira translated for Steve. The two twins inspected every square inch of his body, looking at every bruise and every crack. It wasn't long before they noticed he had a skin graphing on his abdomen. One of the twins pulled out a knife and sliced it underneath the clone skin. A mixture of blood and liquid squirted out of the opening. The twin stabbed the knife in vertically this time and cut the depth of the graphing. She cut up a square shape and pulled the skin off from underneath with the knife. Steve's wound was revealed to the twins, but Mira was too low to see what was being done. The table was too high for her to see anything but Steve's side and face. Steve just stared at the sealing on top of him as the twins tore the protective skin off his body. It didn't hurt him, but he knew it wouldn't help to see what they were doing. The wound fascinated the two twins. They inspected the inside of it thoroughly with they eyes and hands; getting themselves dirty with his blood and fluids. They spoke to each other as they looked carefully at it. Finally one of them said:
"Woo esten aapares tenn choota. Puta chong alas dan woo."
"She said that wound wasn't made by a blaster, it was made by a lightsaber. She wants to know where you got it." Mira said sadly knowing what the women would do if Steve continued to lie... as he most likely would. Steve whispered something in a very low voice pretending to be too weak to speak up. As the Twi'lek bent down to hear what he said, Steve spit directly in her face. The female pulled away, wiped his saliva of her face and smirked. The two twins walked around the man like vultures about to feed on a carcass. Then the other Twi'lek bent over his face and kissed him on the lips and laughed as her sister was playing some more with Steve's wound; penetrating it with her hand and moving things around in there. Suddenly, they both collapsed on the ground. They were sound asleep. Steve finally stopped looking at the sealing and looked around to see if the virus was working. He noticed Mira, who looked very insecure.
"What the hell are we supposed to do now? Wait until they wake up?" Mira was upset but not necessarily at Steve. Steve didn't respond, he just kept looking around and tried moving his arms and legs. Then he stopped and turned his head to Mira.
"Mira, I can get us out of here, but I need your help…" Steve said.
"Oh YOU can get us out?" Mira was being sarcastic, but she was too angry to sound that way. As she looked in Steve's eyes, she knew he wasn't kidding.
"What do you want me to do?" Mira asked seriously. Steve wiggled his hand to focus her attention on it.
"I want you to kick my hand as hard as you can. Try to hit my knuckles." Steve said.
"WHAT?" Mira said in shock.
"I need you to break my bones… you need to hit as hard as you can. Please concentrate. If you don't kick hard enough, you'll just be hurting me for nothing. Trust me. Aim for my knuckles." Steve said seriously. Mira hesitated for a moment.
"Alright Steve… here goes nothing." Mira said before she landed her first kick. The noise it made was too loud to hear the bones snap. Steve wasn't sure if it worked, so he tried moving his fingers around. Then he shook his head and said:
"Do it again."
"Are you sure?" Mira asked.
"Come on Mira, we have to go all the way." Steve said. Mira nodded and kicked hard again. This time, she could hear a snap and the yell that escaped from Steve reassured her enough that it worked this time. Steve wiggled his hand around again and shook his head in disappointment.
"Damnit, you'll have to kick it again. Just one more time Mira; we can do this." Steve moaned. Mira kicked again. As before, Steve screamed after the snapping noise. He wiggled his hand and took a pause.
"All right, I think we got it." Steve said. He breathed in and out to calm himself down, and, when he was ready, he pulled his hand as hard as he could. He shrieked in pain as the cuffs were squeezing his hand's flesh and broken bones into a ball. After pulling as hard as he could, his hand slipped completely free of the cuff. He continued yelling and screaming as he put his hand on his chest. Then he tried calming himself again. When he was calm enough, he twisted his upper body sideways and looked at the Twi'lek on the floor. The key was in her pocket, but it was too far for him to reach. He twisted himself as much as he could and grabbed the alien's leg with his broken hand and pulled her towards him. It looked like a terribly hard and painful thing to do with a broken hand, but Mira figured that, if he could stand the pain of breaking it in the first place, he could stand this. Steve bicep bulged up like a rock dome, and the veins in his forearm stood out like the tunnels a mole dug underneath the ground as the blood rushed through his arm. Soon, the female's body slid towards him, and he was able to take the keys from her pocket. He uncuffed his other arm and then did his legs. When he got off the table, whatever fluid he still had in his wound spilt out onto the floor. Steve didn't pay any attention to that; he just did his best to untie his friend. It was very difficult to do with a broken hand and he soon gave up. He looked desperately at the floor and stole the knife one of the Twi'lek held and used it to cut Mira loose. He then put on his shorts. Mira helped him slip into his suit, but Steve stopped her halfway:
"Try to find a towel or something; I can't just leave my wound open like this." He told her as he observed the stuff that was in it leak out. Mira went into the other rooms and returned with a cloth. Steve stuffed it on his wound and Mira helped him zip his suit shut.
"Let's get our weapons back." Mira said seriously. They went into the first room and picked up their stuff. Steve paused and thought for a moment.
"Mira, help me find some tape." He said.
"What for?" She asked.
"You'll see." Steve said. They both searched the apartment and Mira found something suitable.
"That'll do." Steve said. He took one of his pistols and placed it in his broken hand. Then he taped it tightly in place, just leaving his trigger finger free to move.
"Excellent." He said as he moved his hand around to see if he was comfortable with it. When he was ready, they went down the stairs and looked out the windows. Steve got his other pistol out and Mira had a blaster she took from the twins. There was a patrol standing just outside the front doors. It was a simple trick to catch them by surprise. From this position, they could shoot them all down before even one of them turns around.
"Ready?" Mira asked. Steve nodded. Mira kicked the door open and set loose a barrage of energy blasts from her blaster. Steve could shoot very rapidly with his two pistols. It didn't take long before the patrol was nothing but a steaming pile on the floor. Mira ran off, and Steve followed her. She was heading back to the hangar. Soon after they took off, an alarm sounded and patrols were sent everywhere. The two of them were able to avoid most of the patrols, but, when the came close enough to the hangar, they could see that there was a big group there already waiting for them. Mira could see, far down the other passage, that there was another troop coming towards them, and she was damn sure there was another patrol that was approaching from behind.
"We're trapped!" Mira was distressed. Steve looked around and saw a ladder just ahead of them. It led up to a platform that was stuck in between all three passageways: the one they came from, the hangar's passageway and the other passage where there was already group of gangsters heading through it.
"Let's go up there. You can worry about the people who climb up this ladder… while I snipe the groups below." He suggested.
"Good idea." Mira agreed. Steve was the first to climb up. He did it slowly because he could only use one hand. Mira followed closely. When he reached the top, Steve laid down at the end of the platform from where he could clearly see all the gangsters that were guarding the hangar. He took out his rifle and positioned himself to target his enemies while Mira covered the ladder. One shot after the other, the gangsters were dropping dead. Steve was very accurate and fast. He could see the group crouching for cover as their comrades were dropping dead on the floor. There was no escaping his blaster fire; from that angle, he had a clear shot on all of them. Soon, the gangsters reached the ladder and tried climbing up. Mira let them climb up a bit and then killed the bith gangster who was closest to the top. His fall knocked all the others down and gave Mira time to kill them all. When there was no one left guarding the hangar, Steve put away his rifle and placed his other pistol in his hand. He went close to the other edged and shot whomever he saw on the head. He went around the platform, looking down in every direction, killing anything that moved. The gagsters stood no chance; the moment they saw his figure, they were dead. The ones that dared climb the ladder were always the quickest to die. When all the corners were clear, Steve told Mira to climb down as he strapped his pistol back on his back. He followed her slowly, and, when they were both down safely, they jumped over the dead bodies and rushed to the hangar. Mira got to fighter up in the air as quickly as she could, and they were off to safety. Steve unhooked the strap that held all his weapons and set them on the ground so he can finally sit down. The two of them were breathing fast. When they were calm enough, Mira spoke first:
"That was crazy."
"Yeah, tell me about it. Well, we made it out in one piece…" Steve replied.
"Oh yeah? Look at your hand." Mira said. Steve looked at his hand with the blaster still taped on it.
"It'll heal." He said as he started to unwrap the tape. As she took his hand into her palms, Mira said:
"Let me see." The hand was swelling a lot. It also looked all crooked.
"Come to the back with me, I can fix it." Mira said. She pulled Steve out of the chair and brought him to the rear of the small cockpit. She pulled out a small bench from the wall and told Steve to sit on it. She took out the first aid kit from a compartment above Steve's head. There were very few items inside, just like the first ship Steve had been in. There were bandages, syringes, bottles of fluids and various straps and bracers. First, Mira pulled out a bottle of solvent and cleaned off the sticky residue that the tape left. Once his hand was clean, she injected some liquid into his palm with a syringe.
"What is that?" Steve asked as Mira pulled out the needle from his hand.
"Just an anti-swelling mixture." She replied. She took out some thin metal plates with bracers and some bandages and set the rest of the kit back were she found it. She set the first plate on his palm and hooked it onto the bracers on either side on his hand. Then she placed another plate on the back of his hand and said:
"This may hurt."
Mira squeezed his hand between the two plates and hooked the top plate onto the bracers. Steve inhaled through his mouth while Mira was doing this. Then Mira rolled the bandages around his hand and in between his fingers.
"Here we are. You'll be fixed up in no time." Mira smirked as she placed her hands on either side of the bench Steve was sitting on.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you by killing the wookie." Steve said softly.
"Actually, I'm glad you did. That beast was stupid… he may have killed me. I just didn't think we would make it past Goto's punks." Mira admitted.
"Well, at least we got what we came for." Steve said as he looked at the weapons he set beside the co-pilot's chair. Mira looked over her shoulder at the weapons and said:
"Yeah. We sure did. And they're some pretty fancy ones too. You said you would be good with them, but you never said you would be excellent. You're a superb marksman." Mira smiled.
"Well… I played some violent games in the past… It isn't much different from this." Steve admitted. Mira just stood close to him and looked at him for a moment with her arms still imprisoning Steve on the bench in between her and the ship's hull.
"You remember your promise? You said you would make it up to me if we get into trouble…" Mira smirked. Steve blushed a little and smiled back.
"What do you have in mind?" He asked curiously.
"Well, I was thinking… The way back is kind of long and…" Mira was saying before she saw a distress in Steve's eyes. Steve yelled out a scream of pain and placed his good hand on his wound as his body shook violently. Mira was about to help him fight the pain.
"No, don't touch me!" Steve yelled out. It was too late: Mira placed her hand on his chest and absorbed a violent portion of the electrical shock that was running through Steve's body. Mira flew back wards and retreated her hand in a protective hold against her breasts with her other arm. She got back up and yelled:
"What the HELL is going on?"
Mira was thinking about what she should do to help the man. She saw something flashing in the cockpit. She ran closer to the controls and noticed the proximity alert was flashing: they were being followed.
"Holy HELL! What now! CHEESH, when are we going to get some damn quiet time?" Mira was desperately furious. She was about to get the ship ready for an attack, but, as she sat down, she noticed she was being hailed.
The faces of the two Twi'lek twins appeared on the screen. Mira could see the translation of what they were saying on the bottom of the screen. Though she didn't need to read it to understand perfectly well what they were saying, she was too distracted to ignore the subtitles:
We would advise against any hostilities Mira… We can blow up your ship from the inside… Oh yes, your friend is now a bomb carrier. Land your ship on the nearest planet and surrender him to us. Oh and… don't even think of taking our little surprise out of him.
Mira dropped out of hyperspace and steered the ship towards the nearest planet. When the controls were set in, she got off her seat and went in the back to check on Steve.
"I'm all right now." He said.
"We have to get that thing out of you." Mira said as she unzipped his suit.
"What if it's booby trapped?" Steve said.
"What if they're bluffing? Trust me; I won't touch it unless I'm sure it's safe." Mira said. She pulled down the upper part of his suit and kneeled down as she took out the cloth from his wound. She took out a miniature flashlight from the compartment on the floor, stretched out the opening of his wound with two fingers and flashed the light into the dark hole. Inside it, she could see a shinny metallic sphere with spikes sticking out of it. It was stuck halfway into Steve's flesh and the rest was just bulging out into the wound.
"Those damn bitches jammed it tight in there! If it's trapped, it'll set off for sure." Mira said angrily as she closed the flash light and stormed back to the pilot seat.
"Set it on the planet… They just want me right? We'll see what they want from me, and, if it turns out bad, at least you'll be able to get help." Steve suggested.
"Doesn't look like we have much of a choice…" Mira said.
"Well, you can always call their bluff…" Steve said.
"Forget it; I'm not going to risk it." Mira said seriously.
"Alright. I wouldn't try it either, but you're in charge here… you have to do what you think is best, I trust you." Steve said.
"Maybe there's a way I can buy you off them… We'll see." She said as she started the landing sequence. They landed in a desert. The twins landed their vessel just one hundred feet behind them. Mira took out her blaster and got out of the ship with Steve. The twins were just standing half way between the two ships, waiting for the exchange. Mira held Steve's arm and pointed her blaster at one of the twins as she walked towards them. When she was close enough, she could see that the Twi'lek she was pointing at was holding a device in her hand and the other one held a blaster. Mira stopped ten feet away and said:
"Let me buy him off you! Get that thing out of him and return him to me… I'll give you whatever credits we have." Mira proposed. The Twi'lek pressed a button on the remote she held and Steve was electrocuted. Mira let go of him to avoid being shocked again and Steve fell down to his knees.
"Woo tang shutta swong tall." One of the twins said.
"She said I'm in no position to make demands." Mira translated to the kneeling man.
"We spared your lives back at your apartment! We could have killed you while you were unconscious… Don't you think you owe us something?" Steve said to the twins.
"Sum mal choo wanga." She answered him.
"She said that's why she didn't blow us up." Mira translated.
"Woo esten aapares tenn choota." She continued.
"She said we are even now and that you belong to them…" Mira said to the kneeling man. Steve stood up and walked a little closer to the twins.
"If you blow me up, we will all die… and if you shock me to death, Mira will kill you both… Either way, the both of you die… but Mira can still get away. I'd say YOU're not in a position to demand anything. Why don't you take the offer because that's all you can get from this." Steve said.
"Too anche wass doltre." The twin said.
"She said she wants our weapons too." Mira said.
"You can't have them… without our weapons, what are we supposed to defend ourselves with? You know we can't offer you anything else." Steve bargained.
"Woo esten aapares tenn choota. Puta chong alas dan woo." A twin said.
"She said you'll have to just go with them until we can arrange a better deal…" Mira said. Steve looked at her with a sad face and nodded.
"Wait for me here… I we can't reach a settlement here and now… Just go." Steve said. Mira stared at him in disbelief:
When is this ever going to stop? How can you be so much trouble? You're such a little man… You have so much of your life ahead of you… and this is how things are for you at the very beginning… I'll get you out of this Steve, I promise you. Is what she thought to herself as she was painfully looking at him leave with the twins.
The two Twi'leks escorted Steve in their ship. It was a larger ship then the fighter Mira had, but it was not as dangerous. Of course, these two people needed the extra space for yet another torture table. It was as though they didn't go anywhere where there wasn't any… and, just to be sure, they brought theirs along wherever they went. The first thing they did was take off his suit and cuff him on the restraining table. This time, they left him the luxury of keeping his underwear. Once he was secured on the table, one of the twins took out a datapad and stuffed it in his face, just above his chest. He could read the translation off the screen:
How did you escape?
Steve stood still and didn't respond.
Tell us now!
"What's the point? You're just going to torture me after anyway. I'm not going to tell you anything. Do your worst! And, if you spoil me, then I won't be worth anything anymore. You should have just taken the deal. I'm not worth anything to anyone dead, and I won't talk, so either you let me go and take the money… or kill me now." Steve said.
That's not good enough… we want something more real… why don't you tell us the truth, and we may consider letting you go.
"Just like that? I don't think so! You'll have to convince me you're going to let me go. First, why don't you take out that damn thing you put inside of me… then maybe we can talk." Steve proposed. The two females conversed with each other then turned their attention to the man.
We will take the bomb out of you, but, if you don't answer all our questions after…
"Oh save it! Just take it out, damn you!" Steve demanded. One of the two aliens took out the remote and deactivated the bomb. With a set of pliers, they pulled the spiky sphere out of him and cleaned off the blood.
How did you escape? They repeated.
"You see my hand? It didn't get like that on its own…" Steve answered.
You used a poison on us… what was it?
"Just something we bought at the warehouse just a few blocks from Goto's place." Steve answered.
Whose idea was it to buy the poison and whose idea was it that allowed you to escape?
"Does it matter? What difference does it make?" Steve was annoyed.
Mira is a very smart lady… good competition. But we don't think she did this.
"Why? You don't want to believe she's better than you are?" Steve said.
Don't try our patience… answer the question.
"What the hell do you want me to say? You already said you wouldn't believe it if I told you it was Mira's idea and Mira's skills that got us out… so then it must have been my idea. Happy?" Steve was completely uninterested.
We can see you're going to be a lot of trouble for us… We want to ransom you… but we want more than you're offering… we want the TWO of them.
"What the hell are you talking about? My two blaster? Forget it! You have some damn blasters already! I'm not worth that much so back off!" Steve said. The two Twi'leks laughed. One of them pulled out a knife and waved it in front of his face.
Who said we wanted your blasters? No, no… we are collectors you see. We are interesting in collectibles… rare things…
The other twin pulled down his shorts.
We will take your testicles… and the money and then you can go. It's so simple. The Twi'lek smiled.
Steve started to yell, but the Twi'lek that held the knife just covered his mouth with her hand and handed over the knife to the other twin who accepted it graciously. Steve fought with all his might to break free of the hand that the twi'lek griped on his mouth. He violently shoved his head from side to side, and, eventually, he was able to scream out in comprehensible words:
"YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING! STOP! YOU'RE MAKING A MISTAKE!"
The two aliens stopped and smiled at how easily they can find weaknesses in the human males they captured.
We don't want your weapons and we don't want more money. We want to see you crawl against the sand back to that red head woman you came from… without your testicles. They laughed.
"If you do this, Mira will kill you!" Steve bluffed.
We are not afraid of her. She may have a more powerful ship, but ours is faster… by the time you get close enough for her to see we spoiled you… we will be long gone.
"You don't understand! To do this is like cutting off a leg… my life will be completely different! It would be like being stuck in a wheelchair for the rest of my life! You can't do this! I will never be the same! PLEASE DON'T." Steve fought violently. The two aliens enjoyed the torment they were inflicting. They were very pleased to hear how much of an impact it would make on this man's life if they took what they wanted from him. The twins stood there savoring the moment and picturing the naked man crawling through the dunes… and the look on Mira's face when she turns him over… Priceless.
"What do you want? I did it ok? It was my idea! I told you what you wanted to know! PLEASE DON'T!" Steve screamed frantically.
We told you what we want… now hold still or it will damage you more than it needs to…
One of the twins said as she placed the cold blade against his flesh. The other twin cupped his testicles between her hands and pulled them up to stretch out the scrotum while the other twin set the knife against it.
"I LIED, I LIED! I'm not Mira's apprentice! I'm worth much more that what we offer! You asked me how I got my wound? You were right; I was done by a lightsaber… by a Jedi. YOU DO THIS, YOU CUT MY BALLS OFF AND YOU'LL NEVER HEAR THE REST OF IT! I have powerful friends… if Mira doesn't kill you, they will! Don't throw your lives away! I'll tell you what you want to know. I don't care! I don't care about money; I don't care about my weapons… I would give you all I have, but I didn't want you to know how much I was really worth…" Steve pleaded and was so tired of struggling; all he could do was breath.
We want to know who your friends are. We want to know who would pay the most for your release. It serves no purpose not to tell us. You only make it harder on yourself.
"If I tell you, if you know what I know… people will hunt you down… I'm not talking about bounty hunter scum like you; I'm talking about the most powerful people in the galaxy. I'm talking about the power of the Sith." Steve said.
You don't look Sith to us… Mira would never hang around with a Sith.
"Oh really? Maybe it's because you don't know who the Sith really are. Maybe you don't know who she's friends with now… who I'm very close friends with…" Steve said.
We're listening.
"Darth Revan." Steve said simply.
"Don't tell Mira I told you… I can't let her believe I'm weak… I'm not weak… and I if I tell you this, it's because it makes no difference to her if you know. She doesn't know Revan like I do… If Revan ever learns of this… She will suck whatever soul you have left within you and leave your corpse to rot. She will find you no matter where you hide… there is no escaping her." Steve bluffed.
You are the first person so far who told us Revan was a woman… How did you know this?
"How can anyone confuse her with a man? She's the most powerful being in the universe… she's a woman." Steve said.
And how much are you worth to her?
"I don't think you understand… Revan can kill you from half a galaxy away! If you ransom me, you will be dead the moment you set eyes on her. That's it… now you know too much. The only thing you can do now is choose if I'm worth both of your lives." Steve said.
So are we supposed to just let you go?
"If you want to live past this day… yes." Steve answered
How can you guarantee she won't come after us if we let you go?
"She won't do anything unless I tell her to." Steve said honestly.
Why is that?
"Because…" Steve could feel the blade wander about his flesh.
"Because she's my soul mate." He confessed.
If you can prove this to us, we will let you go.
"In one piece? Just remember that if you tell anyone any of this… you will die. If you let me go, you need to forget this ever happened." Steve said.
Just prove to us you are who you say you are and we will do whatever we think is best…
"Tell me how you want me to prove, it and I will." Steve said.
We have a relative in the Sith Empire. She told us much of the Sith, and of Revan. We will ask you questions only a true Sith would know the answers to.
"Very well." Steve answered.
What is the name of the leader of the academy on Korriban?
Steve closed his eyes and thought for a moment. He wasn't sure of this answer, but he had good reason to believe it:
"Master Uthar."
What's hidden in the tomb of Naga Shadow?
"A starmap… to the location of the Starforge." He closed his eyes and answered.
Our last question… how old is Darth Revan now?
"Thirty." He answered.
You know your history well, but you were wrong about the first question…The leader of the academy is our relative… Yuthara …too bad.
The Twi'lek poked him with the knife.
"NO! NO! NO!" Steve cried out. The twins laughed hard.
Just kidding, you were right… our cousin just loves to believe she will take over the academy some day… Still... we can think of no greater torment for a young man your age than to be castrated… Though we can't take the chance that what you're telling us is true. We will let you go… and if we discover you lied… we will take more that just your testicles.
Steve finally opened his eyes to read what was written. The twins finally set him free. They let him get dressed and escorted him back halfway to Mira's fighter. Mira didn't expect to see them so soon, but, when she saw them coming, she got out to meet them.
"Woo esten aapares tenn choota." They told her.
"Take the money and leave." Mira said as she handed over whatever credits were left; the same credits that was promised to her. When she handed the credits over, Steve was released. Mira took him back to her ship. When they were in, they immediately took off and followed their previous course to Telos.
Mira sat back in her chair and looked at Steve's terrified face.
"What the hell happened? You look terrible." Mira said.
"I'd rather not talk about it." Steve said as he looked through the hyperspace window in silence.
"I just want to help… please tell me. How did you manage to convince them to take our offer?" Mira pleaded.
"I told the truth… I really just hope it won't change anything." Steve admitted.
"And they just let you go?" Mira was confused.
"It wasn't that simple…" Steve trembled.
"No. I bet they wanted to perform some kind of silly torture experiment on you…" Mira teased. When she saw the look on Steve, she knew it was true.
"Well come on, you're a tough little guy. You can take it! It's not like they wanted to cut off your…" Mira stared into the horror that lingered in her friend's eyes.
"They didn't! No, no, no, no… Tell me they didn't!" Mira was ready to strip Steve and find out for herself.
"They didn't. But, for the longest time, I was sure it was unavoidable…" Steve was so terrible ashamed of himself he didn't dare look in Mira's eyes. Mira sighed loudly and got back in her seat.
"So why do you look like you do? If they didn't do it… it's all ok now, isn't it?" Mira asked. Steve shook his head in disappointment.
"No, I… I went in there with confidence… I was sure they couldn't make me talk… They broke me… I'm… I'm not as strong as I thought I was." Steve admitted.
"Oh please… don't give me that crap. Look at you… you made it out in one piece, that's all that matters to you isn't it?" Mira asked. She knew Steve wasn't the proud soldier type; he was just a young man, not a warrior. He didn't believe in that being-strong-until-death bullshit.
"You don't understand… they offered to let me go even if I didn't talk… All I had to do was be strong… I couldn't do it… So much was going through my mind. All they wanted was to… to take my…" Steve couldn't continue.
"It's all right Steve… I understand. No one would suggest that you sacrifice your penis just for some silly secret." Mira understood full well that the information Steve revealed wasn't very important. It wasn't like the bounty hunters could do anything about it… not if they were smart. Revan and her group were in a very safe place.
"Actually, they wanted to castrate me… that's much worse..." Steve shook his head at the thought and Mira gave him big eyes.
"Those bitches! Hey, just forget about it ok? Come on, Steve. Look at me." Mira said as she turned his face towards her.
"You did all right… in fact, you were better than all right. Look what we've been through! And we're still perfectly alive and well. I can understand you get scared sometimes, we all do! All you can do is forget about it. Just get some sleep, and we can talk when you feel better." Mira said. Steve nodded and closed his eyes. Mira took another look at the controls and dimmed the light. Mira wanted to rest as well.
Steve couldn't sleep long. He opened his eyes and went to the back of the cockpit. He pulled out the bench and sat on it. He opened the light just above him and slipped out of the top of his outfit. He looked at his wound. He still shook from the dream he had. He imagined there was still a bomb in there. He knew it was just a dream, but he was afraid. He felt safer just looking into the wound for himself. As he already knew… there was nothing in there. Mira was awake now and looked in Steve's direction.
"What is it?" Mira asked.
"Oh nothing; just my mind playing games on me. I feel better now." Steve said and managed a smirk. Mira got off her chair and came closer to Steve. He was looking through the med kit. When he found a large patch, he stuck it at the opening of his wound. He knew that made no difference, but it made him feel a lot more comfortable. He felt so naked when his wound was showing. It was an awful black hole with slimy things inside.
"Hey, you know, you still have a promise to fulfill…" Mira started. Steve looked up into her beautiful eyes and gave her his full attention.
"Do you think maybe we can… I mean you don't have to if you don't want to but… would it be ok if we made love?" Mira asked.
"Mira… I… I'm still not perfectly healed…" Steve started. Mira placed a hand gently on his mouth and said.
"You can still do it, can't you?" Mira asked. Steve nodded slowly and Mira let her hand slide down his lips.
"I can be gentle… It won't hurt, I promise." Mira said before she started to take off her green clothes. She wore a very small vest with a tight tank top that let her skinny belly show. Steve found that very attractive and equally as distracting. Perhaps that was its true purpose. Steve watched as he helped himself get out of his suit. It wasn't easy to do with only one good hand. When Mira was naked, she crouched down and helped Steve slip his underwear off. When she was done, she stood up and approached him more. Steve bent forward a little, kissed her on the belly button and pressed his check on her belly to feel her warmth as he slipped his hand around her hips and around her back. Mira pressed against him and sandwiched him between herself and the wall. Then she squatted very gently down on him. She placed her hands on his shoulders and kissed him on the lips.
When the storm of passion and fire calmed down to but a steady river, Steve stroked Mira's gentle body with his arms and face. Mira explored him with her hands and eyes; drifting against his excessively smooth skin.
"What about Revan?" She asked.
"What about her?" Steve whispered as he stroked the woman's red hair with his hand.
"Isn't she your… girlfriend?" Mira asked.
"Oh, she's much more than that." Steve said.
"Well?" Mira was still unsure where this act placed her.
"You really don't have to worry about her… I mean, you're just making love to me because you feel you need to right?" Steve asked.
"Well… ya. You could say that. I mean, I really like you. I really do, but not like she does." Mira said.
"Well, then what's the problem?" Steve asked.
"Well, isn't she… gonna know?" Mira asked.
"Of course: she probably already knew we would… before we even left." Steve said.
"Really?" Mira was curious.
"Sure. Revan isn't the type to be… possessive. She's a lot like me in that regard. She doesn't get jealous. In fact, I'm sure she's happy… just thinking about how much more pleasant our lives are when we…" Steve started.
"Well, what I'm saying is… you live with us… we are family now. The more joy we can spread around, the better. I don't think it would be fair if we didn't make love… I mean how dull would it be if we lived together without sex… It's so much better this way. You'll see. Remember how happy Revan was to send me off with you?" Steve said.
"Are you sure?" Mira said as she looked straight down into his eyes and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"She and I are one, I feel what she fells… and she feels what I feel. Believe me, she knows how I think. Whenever you need it… well maybe it would be better to wait a little… until I heal completely… but after that, just ask. I'll be glad to assist you." Steve said.
"Assist me?" Mira said as she held his head in her hands and made him look into her eyes. Steve laughed.
"All right… I'd love to make love to you again… happy?" Steve smiled. Mira laughed.
"What about the Echani?" She asked out of the blue. Steve giggled at the thought.
"Are you kidding me? They lived without it for so long… I don't think they even think about that kind of stuff." Steve admitted.
"What if they get the idea somehow?" Mira asked seriously.
"Look… you know as well as I do… well, I mean, I suspect… that the older Echani… well she may be… you know, different. And the other one, well… I think she likes me, but, well, she's… ehm… a little more professional… than we are." Steve said.
"Well, that still doesn't answer the question." Mira teased.
"Well, what do you think? Do you think it would be fair to deny them anything? What about you eh? What if the older Echani sees you in the shower or something and… well DOES something? What would you do?" Steve teased her.
"Ha! She doesn't even like me! It's not the same at all." Mira said.
"Well, it doesn't mean she can't be attracted to you." Steve observed.
"Oh please! You're getting silly ideas." She laughed.
"Hey, you started it! Look, I'm sure nothing's going to happen with the Echani… they are simply… more in control. Let's not complicate things." Steve said. They both fell silent for a moment.
"What about your other friend… Bastila." Mira said. Steve smiled.
"Bastila… such a beautiful woman… She's a Jedi, there's no chance in the world… Doesn't matter anyway. I love her too much to let her get involved with me. She's too important, even I understand that. I wouldn't let her… jeopardize her career for… for that." Steve said honestly.
"What if she really wants it? What if she begs you?" Mira asked curiously.
"Bastila Shan doesn't beg for anything." Steve answered honestly.
"You know what I mean. What if you KNOW she really wants it but doesn't actually beg for it?" Mira was curious.
"It's not that simple. It would take time for her to… to get the idea set in the proper perspective. I'd say, if she does ever… ask for it, I would have to make her think about it properly. Only if she's sure… then I would." Steve said honestly.
"That's cute. You're a strange little man, you know that?" Mira smiled.
"Well, you're very strange yourself… in a very good way." Steve said.
"Oh I'm strange?" Mira teased as she rubbed his chest.
"You don't think you're strange? I thing you're too wonderful to be normal." He said honestly.
"Don't you want to know how I became a bounty huntress?" Mira asked after a moment of reflection.
"Not unless you think you need to tell me." Steve answered.
"See what I mean? Aren't you even curious?" Mira asked.
"Mira, I… I don't think I want to know. As much as I would love to know how you became such a wonderful person… there is one thing about you I don't want to know… and that's anything that has to do with your job. It's just a job Mira. I'm really not interested in knowing how unfair of a world it is to have a need for such a…a profession." Steve said.
"If you need the credits Mira, I'm sure Revan and I can arrange something for you… so you don't ever have to… to hunt anymore." Steve said.
"That's nice of you to offer Steve, but you already made sure I would never need the credits anymore. Besides, I like to take care of myself, pay my own way." Mira said.
"What do you mean by that? What difference does it make? It's not like you aren't contributing anything in exchange…" Steve said.
"I guess not. I don't know. I've been working solo for so long now. I just have to get comfortable having people depend on me… like you." She said.
"I understand. It's a different life, but you seem to fit right in. Who would have thought a bounty huntress of your skill could ever be a family person?" Steve teased.
"Family… I like that word. That's how you really feel about it, isn't it?" Mira asked.
"Well, yes. To me, it's the same. I left my home and family behind by coming here. But I knew this is where I belong. And I like it here. Everything feels so much more… real here. And I love my new family." Steve said as he embraced Mira affectionately.