Pre props to Shadows Run for beta reading this chapter too. XD By the way, with Janice's last name (Janice Nall/Null) I wasn't sure which one and my computer said Null, so I went with that one. If it's wrong, don't shoot me. I'm taking license to mess around with lesser character names. So, here's chapter seven… (sorry Taris will end NEXT chapter, not this one)
Chapter Seven: Plans to Leave
"Alaanis! You won! I can't believe it; you won!"
The blue flash that was Mission Vao went flying onto Alaanis Pi as she and the Jedi Padawan Bastila Shan entered the Hidden Bek base. All around the main hall, and everywhere else too, the Beks were celebrating their victory in the swoop race as well as the downfall of Brejik and the Black Vulkers.
":Congratulations:" Zaalbar growled to Alaanis as soon as she reached her friends.
"You rode well," Carth smiled. Then he caught sight of Bastila. "Bastila! You're alive! It's good to see you again, and, well, alive I guess."
Bastila looked quite uncomfortable in the middle of a swoop gang's base, being jostled around by the gang members… especially the drunken ones.
"Is there a more private place you could bring me up to date?" Bastila asked Carth, eyeing a few members suspiciously as they burst out into a drinking song.
"Sure," Carth replied. "Alaanis," he hissed to her as Bastila walked towards the front of the base. "I'm bringing Bastila back to the hideout. Bring Mission and Zaalbar with you within an hour." Alaanis nodded her understanding and the republic officer joined the jedi and exited the base.
Alaanis looked after the two for a minute… she wondered if their relationship was anything more than two co-operating officers.
You dunce, Alaanis scolded herself. Jedi aren't allowed to love remember? And besides, what should it matter to you?
"Hey Alaanis, want a drink?" Mission offered, breaking into her thoughts. Alaanis took her eyes off the two retreating backs and looked down at the blue Twi'lek holding a cup of Tarisian ale.
"No thanks," Alaanis chuckled. "That stuff is definitely too strong for someone like me."
"Suit yourself," Mission replied, downing half the cup in a drink. Alaanis shook her head. The teenager would surely end up drunk if she didn't drag her away soon.
Alaanis wandered through the base for a minute, trying to find Gadon to thank him for all his help. The best she could find was Zaendra, standing guard by a locked door.
"Hello Zaendra," Alaanis greeted.
"Good job in the race today," the Twi'lek said. "You rode well. I guess I underestimated you."
"It was luck," Alaanis shrugged it off. "I never would've been able to ride that well without the modified swoop accelerator."
"Either way, good job," Zaendra smiled at Alaanis. She was beginning to trust the strange offworlder. "I would let you say a goodbye to Gadon before you leave, but he's still grieving over the death of Brejik. Even though he turned traitor, Gadon always hoped he could've helped Brejik see reason. But I guess it's too late to know now."
"Send him my deepest sympathies Zaendra," Alaanis told her nodding her head. She stuck out a hand for a handshake. "Thank you for giving me a chance."
Zaendra took the hand and nodded back, her headtails bobbing lightly. "Thank you for using that chance wisely. And helping the gang out."
"It was nothing," Alaanis said modestly. "Goodbye." And without waiting for an response, Alaanis hunted down Mission and Zaalbar and dragged them back to the hideout in the Upper City.
XxXxX
I guess those sith papers came in handy once again, Alaanis thought to herself as she, Mission and Zaalbar got past the sith officer guarding the elevator from the upper city to the lower city with ease. It could've been the late hour though…
And it was getting quite late. According to Alaanis' chrometer, it was a little after two in the morning… she realized she hadn't really slept properly since before she and Carth went down into the Lower City. She hoped she could get some tonight…
She was barely awake as she typed in the code for the hideout and entered it with the teenage Twi'lek, dead on her feet, and the tall young Wookie, still strangely vigilant, even after hours.
"I feel dizzy…" Mission stuttered.
"What do you expect, drinking down all those ales Mission?" Alaanis commented. At this Mission fell forward and Zaalbar caught her by pure reflex.
":She did the same thing last year at the swoop race:" Zaalbar told the older woman. ":The Beks may have lost that time, but the gang war wasn't so intense back then, Brejik was still a Bek, and he knew how to throw a party even when he lost.:"
Alaanis smiled at the thought of celebrating loss. Brejik didn't seem like such a bad person then… but he was mutated by arrogance and greed… a lesson to be learned…
Force, I sound like a goddamn jedi! Alaanis shook her head, trying to shake the thoughts from her mind. Once inside the hideout, the first thing Alaanis noticed was Bastila and Carth having a heated fight. Once they saw the three new companions though, they quieted.
"Who are they?" Bastila asked, indicating Zaalbar and Mission.
"This is Mission Vao and Zaalbar," Alaanis introduced. "They helped us get into the Vulker base to steal a swoop accelerator so that Gadon would sponsor me in the race. And we saved Zaalbar's life so he swore a lifedebt to me. And he and Mission are best friends so we're stuck with both of them. Not that there's a problem with that." Alaanis grinned at Bastila's paling complexion.
"I – I am Bastila Shan, Jedi Padawan of the Jedi Order," Bastila regained her composure and held out her hand for Zaalbar to shake. He took it and growled a simple greeting.
"Now Bastila," Carth began. "Before we get into another fight over how to leave this planet, I say we get some sleep. I know you've been unconscious a lot lately, or in whatever state you jedi are in when you're captured, but we've all been pretty sleepless for a few days now. Whatever you have to say can wait until morning and we can discuss it as a group."
Bastila looked like she was going to object, but she didn't. "All right," she resigned herself to Carth's declaration. "Where do I sleep?"
"Wherever you want to," Alaanis said cheerfully. "I hear the floor is rather comfy." Bastila's brow furrowed, showing great annoyance at her comments. Alaanis almost laughed. Aggravating this jedi was just too easy…
XxXxX
Bastila ended up sleeping on the bed. Alaanis took the couch this time, Mission slept on a makeshift bed of extra clothes. Zaalbar simply slept on the floor and Carth joined him down there with his orange Republic jacket as his only warmth.
Alaanis was rather disappointed when she awoke and looked at her chromo to see that it was only eight o'clock. She was also surprised to see Bastila awake and not Carth. Carth had made the impression that he was not one to sleep in.
"Good morning," Bastila said tersely. She was rummaging through their supplies cautiously as to not break anything or set anything off.
"Morning," Alaanis yawned, stretching out her arms and feeling her back crack unpleasantly. Carth had been right when he said this couch was uncomfortable…
"I wanted to properly thank you for 'rescuing' me," Bastila told the other woman with pure reluctance in her voice.
"Uh… you're welcome," Alaanis replied. "I'm sorry I sort of angered you last night…"
"I was a little on edge, it's not your fault," Bastila muttered. She closed the locker she was looking through and went to another. "Do you have any simple robes?"
"No," Alaanis told her. "I don't think we do. Just some armor and a few sets of clothing. Nothing too much in the ways of apparel."
"Oh," Bastila said. "Well, no matter. I'll just wear these." She was wearing a tan bodysuit with hanging pieces of deeper brown material.
"Why do you have those hanging pieces on your outfit?" Alaanis asked her.
Bastila gave her a look. "They're for balance. The Jedi robes have heavier parts of them and these ropes help balance me so that I am used to the robes even when I'm not wearing them. They're a part of my training."
"Interesting training…" Alaanis mumbled. She went into her gigantic bag of supplies and pulled out a mostly empty jug of caffa. She chugged the rest of it while Bastila plopped down on the bed, and positioned herself to meditate.
But it was obvious there was something on the young Jedi's mind that prevented her from concentrating. Alaanis decided to ask. "Something up?"
"I just want to know exactly what happened before you arrived at the swoop race," Bastila spilled. She opened her eyes and uncrossed her legs and simply stared at the slightly older woman.
"Didn't Carth tell you?" Alaanis asked confusedly.
"Yes," Bastila sighed. "But I'd like to hear it from your point of view." Alaanis took her turn to give Bastila a look.
"Alright…" Alaanis jumped into the story, starting at the beginning: when she woke up on Taris. She told Bastila about the sith party, the duel matches (she knew Bastila would disapprove and found the Jedi's look amusing), the rakghoul serum, the bounties (Bastila also disapproved of that), the deal with the Beks, the Undercity, and everything else she, Carth, Mission and Zaalbar had faced on their adventures.
Bastila had a thoughtful look on her face once Alaanis had finished. Everyone else was still asleep after those twenty minutes (surprisingly… but maybe not so much after all we've been through, Alaanis thought to herself.)
"I have one question," Bastila stated. She looked over at Alaanis and saw her nod. So the chestnut haired woman continued. "Did that metal plating in the Vulker base actually move when you were willing it to do so in your mind?"
That wasn't a question Alaanis had expected. She stared at the younger woman, slightly startled. "I… guess," she shrugged. Bastila looked more closely at Alaanis.
"I'm not sure if I can say this for certain, but you seem to be 'lucky' as most non-Force sensitives would put it," Bastila declared. "But as a Jedi and a force-sensitive, I would say you seem to be Force-sensitive yourself. You've gone through many situations that most people would normally fail with. And your skill with a blade, well, the finesse matches the style of a Jedi fighting with a lightsaber."
"I had a lot of help," Alaanis told her, shrugging and sitting down on the couch. "Maybe you're just underestimating us non-Force sensitives."
"But I believe you are Force-sensitive," Bastila said. She gave a small shadow of a smile to Alaanis. "We should go to Dantooine once we get off of Taris. There is a Jedi enclave there. Maybe if you were younger the council would take you for training, but as it is…" she stopped, her cheeks flaming just slightly as she folded her legs and went back into a meditative state.
Alaanis just felt confused. She looked over at Bastila and asked "What?" But she received no reply. Bastila simply continued meditating, and Carth woke up.
"So what are we doing today?" Carth questioned, yawning.
"I have to drop off the rakghoul serum at Zelka's office," Alaanis told him. Mission's headtails twitched slightly and she opened her eyes, simply to close them and cringe.
"The light is so bright…" she muttered. "And I feel so dizzy."
"You've got a hangover Mission," Alaanis put it plainly. "You shouldn't have drunken so much ale."
"You shouldn't have drunken at all," Bastila grumbled. "Are you even old enough?"
"There aren't official drinking laws on Taris," Mission said, pouting slightly. "Well, none that anyone obeys anyways. And I'm fourteen! I am not a little child!"
"Then stop ranting and come with me to Zelka's," Alaanis sighed. "Maybe he's got something for your hangover. Carth, you want to come?"
He was halfway through tying his boot up and nodded at Alaanis' proposition. "We could use a few more medpacs," he commented. "You'll be alright here with Zaalbar Bastila?" Bastila nodded lightly, never opening her eyes.
Carth finished tying up his boot and he, Alaanis and Mission left the hideout behind.
XxXxX
"You have the serum?" Zelka exclaimed.
Alaanis, Carth and Mission were standing inside Zelka's office. Mission was examining some of the broken droids, Carth was looking through Zelka's inventory, and Alaanis was handing her small vial of serum to Zelka.
"I hope that's enough for you to mass produce it," Alaanis said, beaming. She was glad that Zelka could finally help people with the rakghoul disease.
"I think it's just enough," he replied, still obviously gleeful to have the cure. "How did you… wait never mind, I really don't want to know how you got this. Anyways, is there anything I can do in return?"
"Is there anyway to get offplanet?" Alaanis asked the older man as he pocketed the serum. "We need to leave… but we don't have a ship."
Zelka frowned. "There's no way off the planet with the sith quarantine." He sighed lightly. "The only way off is if you had the fastest ship in the galaxy, the sith launch codes to get past the automatic targeting system the sith has, and a lot of luck."
"Do the sith have a military base here?" Alaanis questioned.
"Yes, they do, it's not far from the elevator to the lower city, just north of it. You're not going to… break in are you?"
"If there's a rumor of a break-in, it wasn't me," Alaanis winked at him.
Zelka smirked. "My lips are sealed." Carth walked over to the pair of them with a few medpacs in hand. "Those are free sir," Zelka told him smiling. "For that serum, I wish I could give you more, but information and some medpacs is all I've got."
"And that's all we need." Alaanis had a wicked grin on her face that made Mission grin too and Carth roll his eyes and sigh.
XxXxX
"We need some sort of accomplice, somebody to get us a ship," Carth said, pacing the apartment while Bastila sat on the bed, Alaanis and Mission sat on the couch, and Zaalbar sat in a random chair (that was anything but comfortable) in the corner.
The party of five had been trying to work out a plan to escape for five days now. They couldn't break into the sith base unless they had a way to escape the planet within a day or so. And they probably couldn't get into the sith base without an expert droid, as talented as Mission was at picking locks.
"Well, are there any Republic friendly people that could help us?" Bastila suggested.
"You've already brought up that option a million times Bas!" Alaanis exclaimed. "Zelka doesn't have the resources, nobody else in the Upper City wants to help us, and the Beks don't have enough droids to lend us one nor do they have a fast ship."
Mission sighed. "And I thought Gadon could help us."
"It was a good idea Mission, it just didn't come through," Alaanis said reassuringly, placing her hand on Mission's shoulder. The Twi'lek smiled.
"But we still need to get off planet," Carth grumbled. He fell down onto the floor and leaned against a wall.
"Malak will strike here soon," Bastila told the group. "He will find out I'm still down here and won't show any mercy to the planet if he thinks he can kill me."
"Then the more reason for us to leave," Alaanis groaned, leaning back onto the uncomfortable couch, staring up at the ceiling with her shocking blue eyes. She closed them and wished for a miracle. We need to leave this place…
Knock!
There was a knock at the door. Alaanis lifted her head up and Mission stood up to get a better view of whoever it was while Carth opened the door.
"Hello," Carth said simply as a green Twi'lek walked into the room with a datapad in his hand. He spotted Alaanis and walked over to her. She stood up.
":Are you the swoop rider that won the Annual Swoop Race in the Lower City:" the Twi'lek asked her. Alaanis nodded. ":I Have a message to give to you from a man named Canderous Ordo.:"
"Ordo…" Carth muttered. "That's a Mandalorian clan!"
":Yes sir:" the Twi'lek explained. ":Canderous is a Mandalorian. He works as mercenary for Davik. Nobody seems to listen to the Exchange unless there's a tough guy like Canderous involved. Anyways, he has a proposition for you miss. He wants you to meet him in Javyar's Cantina… the one in the lower city. I strongly suggest you don't keep him waiting.:"
Alaanis took the datapad from the Twi'lek and nodded her thanks. He left the room with a small smirk, ignoring the four people simply staring at his retreating back.
"A Mandalorian!" Carth exclaimed. "We're expected to ally with a Mandalorian!"
"I wonder what he wants to meet me for…" Alaanis said thoughtfully. She read the datapad over, but it didn't say anything except for 'To the Swoop Race Winner – Meet Canderous in Javyar's Cantina. Three o'clock.' Alaanis glanced down at her chromo. It was about quarter of three currently. She'd have to leave quickly.
"So," she asked the silent room. "Who's coming with me?"
"I shall," Bastila proclaimed, rising from her sitting position on the bed.
"I'll go," Carth declared slightly reluctantly. "I don't trust Mandalorians, I don't like Mandalorians, but I'd like to sneak a peek of whoever this Mandalorian is and what he wants." He was wearing a frown on his face. Well, obviously he doesn't like Mandalorians, they fought the Republic only five years ago!
"I guess Big Z and I will stay here, ya know, hold the place together," Mission decided. Alaanis smiled gratefully. She didn't feel like bringing a whole escapade of people to meet a Mandalorian. As it was, she was probably expected to go alone and without a Republic officer and a Jedi to boot. She sighed.
"Well then… we should get going."
XxXxX
Alaanis walked into the cantina gracefully, trying her best to look impressive. She had never met a Mandalorian before, and wasn't sure what it'd be like.
She tried to remember something she knew her father had said about Mandalorians when she was a child. Something along the lines of 'big brutes with big guns and no courtesy' is what he had said to her. Alaanis sighed. She missed her home sometimes, scouting through the wilds of Deralia, watching her brothers wrestle in the backyard… it had all ended when she had become a smuggler, caught by the Republic, and now stuck on Taris for almost two weeks.
She was shaken back into reality when she saw a tall burly man walking towards her. This must've been Canderous Ordo. He had buzzed and grizzly brown hair with small streaks of grey. His eyes were a watery grey and his face had a deep scowl almost etched into it. It turned into a smirk as he spotted Alaanis. Standing not four feet from her, he towered over the short woman with at least a foot and a half of height. Even Carth, who was fairly tall, was towered over by this man.
"So…" Canderous began. "You must be the winner of the swoop race. Nice riding skills. And swordsman skills in that little battle as well. Very stylish. Exiting with a bang, miss…"
"Alaanis," Alaanis told him. "My name is Alaanis Pi. I presume you are Canderous of Ordo?"
"That's me," Canderous smirked. "I see you brought some friends." He gave a look over Alaanis' shoulder at Bastila who was giving the large man a look that obviously showed she was analyzing him, and Carth was giving him a look of pure disgust. "Let's have a seat, I'll treat for drinks."
Alaanis trailed Canderous over to a table near the corner of the cantina and Bastila and Carth followed as well. They sat down and Canderous ordered drinks for them from the Twi'lek waitress.
"Now I heard rumors you're looking to get off this planet," Canderous started. "Now, the way you raced, very crazy. So, I've got a very crazy idea to break you off this planet."
"Who says we need your help?" Carth spat. Canderous gave him an amused look.
"Just because you don't happen to like the Mandalorian way doesn't mean you have to be stupid enough to irk one Republic," Canderous chuckled. Carth's glare darkened.
"So what do you propose?" Bastila questioned, obviously just to stop Carth from lunging at Canderous. The Mandalorian turned her way and sized her up with his eyes.
"What's this?" Canderous laughed lightly as he caught sight of her double-bladed lightsaber. "A Jedi as well? What fun company you keep Pi!"
Alaanis cleared her throat so that both Bastila and Carth would not attack Canderous and so that Canderous would stop laughing. The brute looked Alaanis' way and quieted.
"So what's your proposition again?" Alaanis asked as politely as she could. The Twi'lek waitress arrived at the table with their drinks and Carth and Bastila continued their glaring over the rims of their glasses, while Alaanis sipped hers slowly and Canderous downed half of it in a sip.
"Right." Canderous finished off his drink. "So, to get off planet, you need the sith launch codes and a ship. I can provide the ship… if you get me the launch codes."
"As much fun as that sounds," Alaanis commented. "We need a droid to get into the sith military base to get those codes." She raised her eyebrow, waiting for an answer.
"Of course you do," Canderous said. "Which is why in the Upper City you will go see Janice Null, a Twi'lek female who has a T3-M4 for Davik. Tell her I sent you and she'll give you the droid. For some credits that is, but I'll give you the amount you should need once you agree to my plan."
"What makes you so certain we'll agree?" Carth mumbled.
"Because nobody else has a fast ship that can get you off Taris quickly," Canderous growled.
Bastila leaned back in her chair, sighing. "I sense no deception from you," she explained. "Which is odd, yet it's true."
"I'm glad you think so highly of me princess," Canderous grunted. Bastila narrowed her eyes. Alaanis took her turn to sigh, and sipped her caffa thoughtfully. Canderous' plan made sense. But what ship did he have?
"What ship is it that you have to get us offplanet?" Alaanis questioned aloud.
"Davik's own flagship, the Ebon Hawk," Canderous replied proudly. "Fastest little thing in the galaxy. She's a beauty all right."
"How will you manage to do that?" Alaanis asked. "It's probably not that easy to rob your employer of his beloved ship. By the way, why do you want to help us with this anyways?"
"Simple, revenge." Canderous gave her a look like it was that simple. "Davik hasn't been giving me my cut, so its time to turn the table and get off this backwater planet and find something better than this mercenary crap. Working for Davik sucks, and I'm beginning to hate Taris. So, I'd like to leave, and you seem capable of what I need. I mean, I'd do it myself, but everybody knows me. You're becoming well known of course, but I've been here for two years, and you've been here for two weeks."
"Makes sense," Alaanis said fairly. "Alright, we'll do this." The plan seemed simple enough. Get the droid, get into the base, steal the launch codes, and steal the Ebon Hawk.
"Sounds perfect," Canderous grinned. "Meet me back here by tomorrow with the launch codes. I won't be waiting forever, so you better have them by tomorrow."
"Deal." Alaanis stuck out her hand and Canderous shook it. Carth was still glaring the larger man as he, Alaanis and Bastila left. Canderous sat back down at the table and ordered another ale.
"Today's a good day to get drunk," he said to himself, downing another glass.
XxXxX
"Do you really think it's a smart move trusting that brute?" Bastila questioned Alaanis with a raised eyebrow as they exited the cantina.
"Do we really have a choice?" Alaanis pointed out. "Nobody else can help us. Canderous is our only option." She gave Carth a look as he opened his mouth to object. She wasn't going to take any of their opinions on this. Canderous was their only option.
They walked back to their apartment within fifteen minutes where they found Zaalbar sharpening his swords on the bed and Mission playing pazaak with herself. The blue Twi'lek looked up in excitement at seeing her companions return.
"Have a nice meeting with Canderous?" she asked expectantly. She was grinning. Wait a second…
"You know him don't you!" Alaanis exclaimed. Carth took a double take when he saw Mission nodding.
"I don't know him personally or anything, but I've seen him around doing Davik's dirty work," Mission explained. "I was wondering when you told me about the dueling ring stunt if Canderous would be one to challenge you or not. He used to do some of the dueling matches when he first came here two years ago. He was champion for a couple weeks even. Bendak Starkiller wanted to challenge him, but that's when Canderous got out of the sport. Since then, he's just been making creds working for Davik."
She was beaming. Alaanis was shaking her head in half amusement and half annoyance and Carth was simply staring at Mission while Bastila settled herself down on the floor for some meditation.
"So… what's the deal?" Mission asked after a moment of silence. Carth finally shook his head and plopped down onto the couch. Alaanis settled into a chair backwards and faced Mission who was still sitting on the floor in the middle of the room.
"Well…" Alaanis explained the meeting with Canderous and his proposition for their exit of the planet. It wouldn't have taken that long to explain if Carth hadn't kept muttering darkly under his breath about 'dirty Mandalorians'.
"So, when are we going?" Mission was leaning on her side, her headtails sagging onto the floor. Zaalbar had been listening while he sharpened his blades and had put them down shortly before Alaanis had finished the telling. Bastila was in a deep meditative state.
"Tonight probably," Carth suggested, standing up from the couch and walking over to where Alaanis sat in the chair. He leaned onto the chair, his body hovering above Alaanis a bit. Mission raised her eyebrow at him right behind Alaanis. Alaanis rolled her eyes at the young Twi'lek's assumption. Mission almost giggled.
"That sounds good," Alaanis shrugged, her shoulder nudging Carth slightly when she raised it. He seemed to have finally noticed how close he was to her and stood up straight. It was kind of comforting, Alaanis thought to herself. Then she mentally slapped herself. There are more important matters at hand!
"Don't forget we have to retrieve that droid as well," Bastila stated, coming out of her meditative state and uncrossing her legs. She stayed sitting though. "So… who's going to go into the base?"
"Well, I don't plan on being left behind," Alaanis said plainly.
"Nobody would be that stupid, you'd kill them," Carth muttered. Alaanis smirked. "I think I should come with you. You'll need a good aim with you." Alaanis nodded in acceptance. She glanced Bastila's way.
"I might be recognized," Bastila reddened slightly. "I would love to help, but as Malak is after me, I don't think I should enter a sith military base."
":I shall come with you:" Zaalbar growled. His raised his blades. ":I would be honored to help you.:"
"Thank you Zaalbar," Alaanis smiled. She turned towards Mission. "I think you should stay behind Mission. I mean, are you even over from that hangover from earlier? And plus, as sneaky as you are, I have a feeling we're going to need more brute strength here rather than stealth."
"I'm completely over that hangover!" Mission wailed. Then she calmed down a moment. "But I think you're right. I might just be a burden…"
"You're never a burden Mission," Alaanis encouraged her. "It just might not be a smart move to drag our whole party along." She smiled at Mission who sighed and started shuffling her pazaak deck. "Anyways, we better get that droid and perhaps get some of those plans of the sith base before we infiltrate it…"
Carth and Zaalbar trailed Alaanis out of the apartment, leaving Bastila to lose Pazaak to Mission constantly while they were away. They dragged along Alaanis gigantic bag of supplies, emptying it of the pointless things (like empty and half empty caffa mugs) and filling it up with medpacs, repair kits (for the droid) and some spare blasters and swords.
They wandered around the Upper City until around five thirty when they arrived at Janice Null's droid shop. They walked in and she straightened up a bit from her slouching position on her desk. Alaanis smiled as Janice Null, an obviously young (early twenties, Alaanis presumed) yellow Twi'lek, pulled together a few spare droid parts and shoved them into a box.
":Hello:" Janice said enthusiastically. Alaanis and Carth smiled and nodded their heads. Zaalbar growled a greeting lightly. ":What do you need? Not many people come into my shop… too many Tarisians hate aliens. They're so close-minded.:" Janice sighed lightly.
":Hear, hear:" Zaalbar roared. Janice looked slightly frightened for a moment, but Alaanis interpreted what the Wookie had said and she smiled.
"Canderous Ordo sent us to retrieve a T3-M4?" Alaanis asked. Janice smiled and nodded.
":So Canderous sent you eh? Well, that's wonderful! He was supposed to pick up this droid a week ago, but he never picks them up for Davik on time… anyways, it's two thousand credits for the droid, it's the silver one:" Janice explained, holding out a hand for the credits.
Alaanis pulled out the roll of credits Canderous had given them earlier that afternoon and handed them to Janice. She took them gratefully and pointed to the short and silver astromech droid sitting to the left of the counter. Janice handed Alaanis the credentials, once satisfied with the money. T3-M4 was activated.
"Boop… beep de doop?" the droid asked. Alaanis could understand its boops and beeps though. Weird… I don't remember really working with droids much… She shook her head and told the droid in Basic that she was its new owner.
"Beep! Be-de-beep!" the droid said enthusiastically, in Basic telling Alaanis that he was enthusiastic to be one of her counterparts. Alaanis smiled.
"Thank you Janice," Carth said politely as he, Alaanis, Zaalbar and T3 exited the shop and walked towards the cantina.
"We're getting a drink?" Carth asked incredulously.
"Not Zaalbar and T3," Alaanis informed him. She pulled out a comlink and called Mission back at the hideout. "T3 and Mission are going to sneak into the base and steal the blueprints while Zaalbar is going to keep in contact with them. You can join him if you'd like, but I would like a drink."
Carth just stared at Alaanis as she explained the plan to Mission. Excitedly, the young Twi'lek arrived at the cantina in ten minutes. She, the Wookie and the droid all left Carth and Alaanis in the cantina to steal the blueprints.
"You're much better at being sneaky than I am Mission," Alaanis had explained. "Carth isn't very stealthy either and Bastila probably would work, but she can't get caught. Since you want to help, this is your chance. Your strength is just what we need. I would slow you down so I'm not coming. Zaalbar will be in contact if you need him. Come and find Carth and I in the cantina when you're done all right? If you get caught, call Zaalbar immediately and he'll find us."
"Got it," Mission had replied. She was excited but nervous to be doing something so big as infiltrating a sith military base and robbing some plans for more people to sneak in.
"Now why isn't she doing all of the stealing?" Carth asked Alaanis as they sat down at a table in the cantina.
"Because the codes will be guarded more heavily, and she can't handle dozens of sith troopers," Alaanis told him.
"And you can?"
"With Zaalbar's help as well as yours, I think we could pull it off." Alaanis ordered a caffa from the waitress and Carth declined a drink. They two sat in silence for a few minutes.
"So…" Alaanis began lightly. "Your paranoia issues, they branch from Saul's betrayal don't they?" It was a random topic, but Alaanis had noticed how paranoid Carth had been in the two weeks she had spent with him on this planet.
"Uh, yeah." The question surprised Carth. "I guess so… am I really that paranoid?"
"Yes," Alaanis chuckled. "Tell me you haven't noticed how paranoid you act. Constantly. If you didn't have a real motive, I would've thought you needed to be in a medical facility long ago."
"Yeah…" Carth trailed off. His eyes hardened a bit. "Real motive eh? I guess… I guess I owe you an apology Al. I'm sorry if I had been overly suspicious of you before. You're obviously loyal to the Republic. And you've proved yourself plenty of times."
"The apology isn't necessary Carth," Alaanis said quietly. "You haven't really hurt me."
"Well, anyways, I'm sorry." Carth gave her a half smile. "I guess I just… sometimes I wonder what I'm living for. The thing I constantly tell myself is that I'm living to kill Saul. To avenge Dustil and Morgana. I feel like that's all that's driving me. And sometimes… I feel like that's all I need."
"I'm sorry Carth… I don't know exactly how you feel," Alaanis shrugged. "I haven't experienced much death in my life, if you'll exclude my mother's death about two years ago and an old friend of mine and a fellow scout who died about ten years ago when we were teenagers in the wild of Deralia."
"I'm sorry too Alaanis," Carth told her. "Death is never a fun experience. It always stays with us, shapes us, changes us…"
"But you don't have to let it shape you Carth," Alaanis responded. She looked into his eyes, blue and soft into brown and hard. He was a man driven by rage… by death.
Carth turned away from her when her caffa arrived at the table. She sipped it lightly for a few minutes while Carth absorbed her words.
"Hey, I thought of a new nickname for you flyboy," Alaanis attempted at lightening the mood. Carth looked over at her interestedly. "Captain Paranoia."
Carth chuckled. "That's not as good nor as flattering," he criticized.
"How about Captain Hutt Spawn?" Alaanis cocked her head to the side with a grin on her face.
"Oh I love it," Carth said sarcastically. "Now what do you think about gorgeous instead of beautiful?"
"Much more fitting," Alaanis smiled flirtatiously. Carth rolled his eyes and Alaanis stuck out her tongue. She poked him in the stomach as she finished up her caffa. He growled, trying to be menacing but failing miserably. Carth broke out into a grin and Alaanis winked.
The two of them sat in comfortable silence for about five minutes until Zaalbar arrived in the cantina. Alone.
"Zaalbar! Where is Mission?" Alaanis exclaimed, exceedingly worried. She stood up and walked over to the Wookie. Many of the Tarisians were glaring at Zaalbar or else backing away slowly. Carth followed Alaanis over to Zaalbar.
":She got captured:" Zaalbar roared, obviously feeling it was his fault and angry. And there was nothing good when you have an angry Wookie after you. Stupid sith slime! Alaanis thought to herself. Capturing a kid!
"Did T3 get out?" Alaanis asked the Wookie as the three of them exited the cantina.
":Yes, luckily enough he wasn't noticed, he hid in a group of other astromech droids and snuck out. He's outside:" Zaalbar explained. Sure enough, once exiting the cantina, Alaanis saw the small droid moving around restlessly. It beeped frantically at Alaanis once catching sight of her.
"I guess we'll go in as planned, but we'll have to rescues Mission as well," Alaanis sighed. She hated the fact that Mission had been caught. She felt completely guilty for the whole ordeal. "Come on, let's get back to the base and work out a plan…"
XxXxX
At nine o'clock that night, according to Alaanis' chromo that is, she, Carth, Zaalbar, T3-M4 and Bastila were at the entrance to the sith base. Bastila had risked coming because she felt that if there were more of them, they could take down the sith easier. She was wearing a black mask though to cover her face. She wouldn't take the risk of revealing her face.
Her lightsaber will help, Alaanis admitted. So the entire party was going after Mission, and the launch codes. Zaalbar and Bastila decided to go after Mission while Carth and Alaanis went for the launch codes. Everybody wanted to rescues Mission, but they admitted that it'd be quicker if they split in half.
"Well," Alaanis said once T3 had cut the door open. "Here we go."
XxXxX
Anyways, phew. I had three pages written for a few days, tacked on four more, typed up three last night and finished the final five today. Adds up to fifteen pages! Yay! I think it could be a new record for this fic lol. So, next chapter will be the sith base and Davik's estate, and Mission being captured was some random thing I never planned on doing. It just happened. I felt like getting Zaalbar wiled up. XD
Mucho thanks to the reviewers! You peoples rock so completely! So thanks to naturewytch, Wild's Daughter, beatletrekkie and Shadows Run. You all are totally awesome! XD See responses below:
Wild's Daughter I attempted in this chapter to throw in a bit more Alaanis/Carth stuff. ;) Hope it suffices for now. I'm planning on throwing in more of the tension on Dantooine. It's a bit harder with Taris because it seems so urgent for me for them to get off and they've only known each other two weeks… But don't worry, that Angst as a second genre may eventually be replaced with Romance… and for sure there will be a sequel to this with more romance. ;) Heehee.
Beatletrekkie Yeah, had to kill that damn rancor, but the synthesized odors seemed so convenient… it was too odd to be realistic. I'm trying to make this a bit more realistic than the game. I'm glad this is making the game funner. XD For me its weird playing the game after writing this because writing this gives me so much more freedom… heh, and I'm glad you enjoy the Bastila teasing. I don't do it in the game that much, but I love writing it!
Shadows Run It seemed a bit unreal the way the character could kill so many people so easily, so I thought that instead of a massacre, it'd be a stealth mission. Unlike the next chapter in the sith base, hard to be stealthy with an angry Wookie on your side! And poking fun at Carth is just the highlight of Taris! XD
Hope y'all keep reading and reviewing. I love writing this fic! And I'm glad everyone enjoys reading it! I should have the next chapter up within a week or two. So, next chapter we shall see Bastila and Zaalbar (like I said, angry Wookie) trying to free Mission and Carth and Alaanis finding their way to the sith governor and the launch codes…
Until next time, review, review, and pet kitties. Lol. Oh and make sure you hug your ducks! XD By the by, I got the PC version of the game, but I need a different computer to play it on, so my house is having a computer switcheroo, so as soon as I start a game, I'm playing as Alaanis, because I never had a character named Alaanis Pi. Ironically, the name for Alaanis was a distortion of a random name on the second kotor game. I deformed whatever the name originally was to Alaanis Nalquin. But then I forgot her last name when I started writing this, so it became Pi. Weird history lesson eh? Well, I'm gone. ADIOS!
5-2-05