Disclaimer: As much as I wish it, this stuff does not belong to me. WAH!
Pre-Author's Notes: Yes, this took quite some time didn't it? I have excuses! First of all, I was absorbed in reading Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince and secondly I started my job so I have been rather busy lately. However, I did find time now and then to type this up. But yes, I am so sorry it took me so long.
Million thanks to Trillian4210 for beta-ing again! XD Now, without further ado…
XxXxX
Chapter Seventeen: The Hunt
The next morning found Alaanis Pi trotting purposefully out of the Ebon Hawk and into the raging heat of Tatooine's twin suns. She intended to return to the ship shortly to gather a few crewmates so that they could journey into the Eastern Dune Sea in search of the krayt dragon's lair… and the third Star Map.
But Alaanis wasn't as alone as she had thought she was. Being half-asleep, she hadn't noticed as soft footsteps pattered behind her for a moment. Then she paused and turned around where she saw a bit of sand moving as though two feet were placed upon the ground.
"Mission!" Alaanis hissed.
The teenage Twi'lek looked embarrassed as she turned off her stealth generator to reveal her, dressed and ready for action, staring at the ground.
"You wanted to see Griff didn't you?" Alaanis asked the younger woman.
Mission nodded. "I feel kinda bad for what I said last night. He's my brother, no matter what. Maybe I'll just talk to him, you know, see how he's doing." She didn't look at Alaanis once as she shuffled her feet.
"I'm sorry about kinda judging Griff before I knew him Mission," Alaanis muttered. "I just didn't feel that I could like anybody who'd abandon you."
"He had his reasons!" Mission half shouted.
"I'm sure he did, I'm sorry," Alaanis said hastily. "Alright, you can come with me to the Czerka office and ask to see Griff." Mission gave a partial smile as she followed the jedi out of the Anchorhead hangar and towards the Czerka main office.
Inside the main office, the same woman that had asked Alaanis to hunt down the Sand People in the first place was leaning over the side of a desk where the receptionist was showing her a datapad that the woman obviously was not very happy with. The sour expression on her face was a dead giveaway. The office looked much the same as it had before.
"Welcome back!" exclaimed the Czerka representative as she spotted Alaanis and Mission walking into the room. The sickened expression was replaced with a diplomatic greeting, though Alaanis could tell this woman was rather happy to see the Jedi again. "Have you taken care of the Sand People?"
"In a manner of speaking," Alaanis replied, handing the three gaffi sticks she, Carth and Juhani had used in their disguises to infiltrate the sandpeople territory. "I did not kill them though. I struck a deal with them, and they will not bother you anymore. I also found Griff and I presume he's back?"
The representative's sour look returned for a split second before she composed herself once more. "Yes… Griff has returned. He's working in the supply shop. We keep a close eye on him in case he tries anything. I swear, we were robbed blind when he first started working for us… missing plenty of our food supplies that were on display…"
Mission was glowering at the woman. Alaanis nudged the Twi'lek. Mission took a step backwards and seemed to be counting under her breath to calm her down.
No… I don't believe this! She's muttering the Jedi Code! Alaanis stared incredulously at Mission. The Twi'lek's eyes were closed though so Alaanis couldn't tell if Mission had noticed her staring.
"Yes… well… thank you for your assistance," the Czerka representative continued, obviously ignoring whatever silent exchange was going on between the two strange offworlders. "If you need to see Griff, like I said, he's in the Czerka supply shop next door. Here are a thousand credits for your assistance, believe me, it'll be a big help."
Alaanis nodded her head in gratitude and walked out of the store. Sure it was the jedi way to deny money, but did Czerka really need it? They have their money, and plus, the crew of the Ebon Hawk is on a mission to save the galaxy! We need money ourselves! We can't buy everything off of Mission's Pazaak cash flow.
"You were muttering the jedi code?" Alaanis questioned Mission as soon as they left the office.
"Juhani told me I should do it to control my temper," Mission answered awkwardly. "She caught me cursing about not being able to fix my blaster and told me that the jedi code helped her calm down, and that reciting anything in a soothing voice would probably calm me down anyways. Especially something pacifist, like the jedi code."
Alaanis continued to stare at Mission. "It's not like I'm a jedi now or a jedi wannabe, I just think it might be smarter to control my temper sometimes. At least that's what Juhani said."
Alaanis couldn't object. Juhani's approach seemed like a good one. Bastila would've probably chided Mission and Alaanis might've calmed her down just for the moment or argued with the Twi'lek, but Juhani took the smart approach it seemed. I guess Juhani would know the most about tempers with her attack on her master before…
"Let's go see Griff," Mission said, trying to pretend that Alaanis seemed more surprised than was natural. Nothing seemed to surprise Alaanis really. The only thing Mission could think of that would surprise Alaanis like that was if the Twi'lek had told her that Bastila and Canderous were sharing a bunk.
Mission chuckled to herself at the thought.
As Mission and Alaanis walked into the Czerka supply shop, the first thing that caught their eyes was Griff. He was nervously chuckling as he scratched his head and stuttered. Alaanis could deduce by the mug of caffa in his hand, and the fellow Czerka employee glaring at Griff as the latter shrugged and mumbled, that Griff had tried shoplifting. Again.
"She has the money!" Griff exclaimed loudly, pointing over at Alaanis and Mission. Mission seemed a bit ashamed as Alaanis narrowed her eyes slightly and walked over.
"Yes, I do have the money… for this caffa to be mine," Alaanis grumbled to the other Czerka employee who wrenched the caffa out of Griff's hands and placed it into Alaanis'. Handing him a five credit chip, the jedi turned towards Griff as the other employee wandered away to help another customer.
"Shoplifting, Griff?" the jedi asked as she took a swig of the caffa. Perhaps the warm and delicious substance could keep her from yelling at Griff for being so stupid.
"I don't have any money and I don't get my paycheck until the end of the week!" Griff complained. Alaanis' eyes seemed to narrow more and her frown deepened. Mission was beginning to shake alongside Alaanis.
"You could've asked me for money!" the small blue Twi'lek hissed, obviously to restrain herself from screaming.
"I didn't want to impose on your ship," Griff replied quietly, not quite meeting either Alaanis or Mission's eyes.
Alaanis closed her eyes and sighed sharply as to relax herself a bit. The jedi code was recited twice in her mind before she opened her eyes and saw Griff, almost cowering in fear. She couldn't help but feel a bit of pity towards the Twi'lek.
"You can come knock on our ship if you need anything," Alaanis said kindly. "Mission is your family and Mission is like family to us. So why don't you just ask us if you need anything?"
Griff seemed to be trying to smile, but his fear and guilt were still apparent. Finally feeling remorse for abandoning your little sister? Alaanis hoped inwardly. She gave Griff a small smile accompanied with a nod and he finally managed to return the smile.
He sighed, relaxed, and began speaking. "Great! I've got a plan too since it seems like Czerka's not going to find anything here. Tarisian ale should be in high demand with Taris gone right? Right! And I know the recipe! All I need is a few starters credits and I'll be fine…" he seemed to be twitching his fingers slightly as he continued to smile at Alaanis.
The jedi was almost ready to explode all over him but Mission beat her to it.
"Look, Griff!" Mission yelled out, anger and disappointment written over her face, and the aura Alaanis was feeling from her through the Force. "You're my brother, and I love you, but you have got to stop it with those get-rich-quick schemes! They have never worked! If you want some credits so that you can buy yourself some food, some clothes, maybe a luxury or two or even rent a room, I'll give you some money! If you go off and do something stupid though, like that Tarisian ale idea, then it'll be your fault if it fails! Not mine!
"I'll give you this much advice: Work for a living! You have a job at Czerka that pays! Get the money, build a life, and forget about becoming rich and famous! You can just live a normal life you know! Here," Mission roared, throwing down one hundred credits. "Use these wisely, because you're not getting a single credit more out of me ever again."
And with that Mission stalked out of the room, ignoring the tears burning in her eyes.
"Mission's right Griff; you've got to work for a living," Alaanis shrugged. Her pity for Griff intensified, seeing that hurt expression in his eyes as Mission left him.
"I'll prove her wrong; that I can be a good ale brewer and we'll be rich and I can buy her whatever she wants!" Griff exclaimed.
Alaanis looked at the yellow Twi'lek sadly. "She doesn't want riches Griff, she just wants an honest and hard-working brother. I hope you do the right thing." The jedi hurried out of the supply shop, dropping her now empty caffa mug in the trash outside the supply shop.
Mission was leaning against the wall outside and Alaanis cleared her throat to announce her presence. "I know it hurt Mission, but it was the right thing to do."
The teenage Twi'lek merely nodded, wiping away a few stray tears, and the two walked back to the Ebon Hawk to meet with the rest of the crew. They needed to find that krayt dragon cave and the Star Map. But how would they kill a krayt dragon, even with Jedi in their ranks?
":Offworlder:"
Alaanis and Mission both turned around as a green Twi'lek came hurrying up to them.
":Offworlder, news has spread from Helena Shan that you and her daughter Bastila are planning on hunting a krayt dragon:" the Twi'lek stated, watching as Alaanis nodded. ":It is most unwise to do so without a plan:"
"Who said we didn't have a plan?" Alaanis asked with her head cocked to the side.
":I am sorry, I did not mean to assume, but I thought I could assist you:" the Twi'lek stated simply. ":My name is Fortuna and I am unlike most other hunters in this area who do it for the credits. I do it for the hunt itself. Studying a creature and its ways, how it lives, moves, eats, sleeps, and breathes and then planning on how I can face such a creature and win is my way of life. I have been studying this krayt dragon for a year now, desperate to get the chance to kill it. One other hunting party, around a year ago, died in an attempt, Helena Shan's husband included. He was a good man, much like me in the ways of the hunt.
":Now I offer you my assistance in facing this great beast. You may keep whatever trophy you would like for yourself, but to kill such a creature would take someone who has trained themselves in the ways of said creature: Me.:"
Alaanis studied Fortuna for a moment. She couldn't sense any deception from him. "Alright," she said simply. "What is your plan?"
Fortuna grinned as he held up a pack. ":Explosives:" he told her, not without a hint of excitement in his voice.
"Alright then, do you know the way to the dragon's cave?" Alaanis asked the green Twi'lek.
Fortuna frowned suddenly. ":Unfortunately, my map was stolen from a competing hunter who wished to kill the krayt dragon. He failed in his attempt. This was about one standard month ago. I have been unable to observe the creature since, and I have not memorized the way. Helena Shan stated that her daughter had a map.:"
"We do have a map," Alaanis told him, nodding her head. "We will lead you to the dragon, you will kill it, and we get the prizes?" Fortuna smiled at her and held out a hand.
":Do you accept my help:"
"I suppose we do," Alaanis smirked back, shaking Fortuna's hand.
XxXxX
Back on the Ebon Hawk, most of the crew had begun to awaken. Juhani was meditating in the starboard dormitory, alongside Bastila. T3 was assisting Carth on fixing up the hyperdrive a bit. HK and Canderous were both working on their guns in the hangar and Zaalbar was keeping inventory on the supplies lying around the cargo hold.
Alaanis, Mission and Fortuna arrived back at the Ebon Hawk quickly enough, spotting Jolee, sitting and working lazily on his lightsabers again in the common room. "Who's the new friend?" Jolee asked, pointing at the taller Twi'lek.
"This is Fortuna," Alaanis said, motioning Fortuna to take a seat wherever he wanted. The green Twi'lek sat down on a chair opposite Jolee while Mission plopped down on the couch she and Zaalbar usually shared. She pulled her Pazaak deck out and began shuffling it.
"I'll get everybody else then…" Alaanis muttered as she headed out of the room.
Quickly, she checked every room, telling everyone to get into the common room and soon enough, everyone was sitting or standing around the room.
The organic members of the crew, as well as Fortuna, were scattered around the room in chairs, while HK stood in the corner and T3 was rolling around the room.
"Obviously, we need to get to that krayt dragon as soon as we can… and kill it successfully," Alaanis declared after a moment of quiet. She lifted a hand and flourished it, introducing Fortuna. "This is Fortuna, and he knows how to kill this krayt dragon. Explosively. He said we just need to bring him with us and help and we can keep whatever is in the cave."
Silently, everybody knew she was referring to the Star Map and Bastila's father's holocron.
":There is a bit of a catch:" Fortuna spoke up after a moment. ":To catch the krayt dragon's attention, we will need its favorite food. Banthas. The problem is that the Sand People see the banthas as a sacred species and may attack you if you attempt to use them to lure the krayt dragon out. We won't be hurting the banthas if we can help it, but the sand people won't know that.:"
"How are we supposed to get banthas to follow us?" asked Carth, his brow furrowed a bit.
":Bantha fodder is one thing that attracts banthas:" Fortuna explained. He patted his pack. ":I have a small supply, but it is large enough to catch the attention of banthas.:"
"Ugh… bantha poodoo!" Mission exclaimed.
"It is a long journey into the dune seas, though," said Juhani. Everybody turned towards the Cathar. "Would it not be important to get there as quickly as we can? Perhaps we could rent some speeders for the journey."
"That's a good idea Juhani," Alaanis smiled. "We'll talk to Czerka. I'm sure they'll help us since we helped them." She looked around the room. "So who's going to come?"
"An old man has to stretch his bones now and then," Jolee stated. "I suppose I'll come along for the ride."
Alaanis knew Bastila would want to come, and Alaanis couldn't have stopped her even if she had wanted to. Bastila would want to find her father's holocron, whether or not she would give it to her mother. "I'll be coming," Bastila said firmly. Alaanis nodded understandingly.
"I need rest," Juhani decided. "I would like to accompany you, but I feel there are others more capable." She avoided looking at Alaanis as she said this.
"You are capable Juhani," Alaanis told the younger jedi, looking at her intently. "You give yourself too little credit. But if that is your decision, stay behind with the ship with whoever else stays. Staying here plays a role as well." Juhani nodded lightly, a small smile forming on her lips.
"Any other takers? Carth? Canderous? Mission, I would love to bring you along, but the sand people are pretty damn tough…" Mission waved her hand in dismissal, having heard these things a hundred times from Alaanis, but she still would've liked to come along. Alaanis knew this.
"I guess I'll tag along if you need an extra good aim," Canderous growled, nodding his head lightly in acceptance.
"I'll come too," said Carth plainly.
"Good," declared Alaanis, looking around the room. "Zaalbar, Juhani, Mission, you guys look after the ship and the droids. I guess we'll need two speeders with the six of us. We should leave as soon as we can, probably within one standard hour."
The room mumbled an agreement and Carth and Alaanis ended up leaving to get the speeders.
"I'm not that good at piloting, I'd call the swoop race on Taris a fluke, so I think you and Canderous will probably take a speeder each," Alaanis explained as she and Carth walked off the Ebon Hawk and into Anchorhead. "Fortuna and I can tag along with you and then Bastila and Jolee can go with Canderous."
"Are you just trying to cause our own little civil war?" Carth asked her, raising an eyebrow. "Canderous and Bastila stuck together?"
"Canderous and Bastila aren't that immature, they just rub each other the wrong way. With Jolee on board, I'm sure there'll be less arguing." Alaanis told him. "I'm sorry, but if you and Bastila get stuck together there's going to be a power struggle and we have to have it some way."
"How would there be a power struggle if you're in the speeder?"
"Because I need to be with Fortuna, make sure he knows only what he needs to and to actually deduce what we're doing. Just do as I say, flyboy," Alaanis finally concluded the conversation and Carth shook his head, walking beside her, as they entered the main Czerka building.
The same Czerka representative, looking hassled as usual, was leaning over the main desk, speaking with the man at the desk. She sighed.
"Apparently Griff blew up half the supply store working on some concoction," the Czerka representative announced as Carth and Alaanis approached her. "But since he's a friend if yours he's getting a final chance. We might just ship him off the planet just to get him off my hands. I can't deal with that incompetent oaf any longer." Alaanis simply stared at the representative as she ranted.
"Anyways… there must've been some other reason for you coming in today," the woman said, gained her composure again. "What do you need?"
"To rent two speeders for about…" Alaanis guessed that it'd probably take half the time in a speeder than it would to walk to wherever in the dune seas they were heading. "Three or four standard days."
"Ah… going back into the desert?" the representative said as she checked with the receptionist what the price would add up to. "Four hundred credits," she deduced. Alaanis pulled out the said amount and handed it over to the representative. She went into a backroom and returned with an oily looking human mechanic, holding a rag in one hand and a broken pipe in another.
"This is Miff," the representative told Alaanis and Carth. "He'll bring the speeders by the main gate into the desert. Don't take too long, or else the he'll leave and the speeders may too."
"Alright then," Alaanis said as she and Carth left the building and walked back to the Ebon Hawk.
XxXxX
They had been traveling through the desert since midday. Canderous, Bastila, Fortuna and Jolee met up with Alaanis and Carth by the main gate. Alaanis had her oversized hunter green bag slung over her shoulder as usual. She spared her typical jedi robes (which were much too layered to travel in the hot Tatooine suns for four days) for some light tan armor that almost blended in with the sand.
Bastila was wearing her usual jumpsuit that Mission always commented on, and Canderous wore his light Mandalorian armor as always. Jolee had his typical robes, almost like jedi robes but not exactly, and Carth was wearing his typical orange jacket along with light armor, not too different than the armor Alaanis was currently sporting.
They had split up in their groups and if Bastila or Canderous was displeased neither had shown it. Over the roar of the engines, Alaanis couldn't have told if any disagreements were going on in the other speeder.
Carth, Fortuna and Alaanis' speeder was leading the way, with Alaanis' map as the aid. The conversation was light and flirty between Carth and Alaanis in the speeder while Fortuna observed some of the creatures they were passing by and taking notes in a datapad.
Over in Bastila, Canderous and Jolee's speeder, though, it was rather silent. Most of the time.
Alaanis could tell that there was a couple terse and short conversations, but the atmosphere was different than the one in the speeder Carth was driving.
They didn't dare to stop at sundown in case the sandpeople would attack their speeder, but instead Carth and Canderous stayed awake through the night and drove the speeder nonstop. Both seemed fine, despite their lack of sleep, when Alaanis, Fortuna, Bastila and Jolee awoke.
Sand was all that was seen around them as they traveled through the dune seas, following the paper map Alaanis held in her hands. Night began to fall on the second day when the day's quiet was broken.
":We are very close… I recognize the area:" Fortuna hissed to Alaanis over the noise of the engines. Alaanis peered down at the map and nodded her head in agreement.
"Signal the others to stop," Alaanis told Carth. The pilot nodded and lifted his left-hand blaster up into the air, keeping the other hand steady on the wheel. He waved the blaster in the air while slowing down the speeder and within a few minutes, both speeders had stopped.
":Do you see it:" said Fortuna, pointing a green arm towards the setting suns. In the distance the crew could make out a large cave, which must've been the krayt dragon's lair.
"It's something straight out of a holovid," Alaanis smirked. "The adventurous heroes chasing the dragon."
":Ah but this dragon will die a more honorable death than the fake ones in the holovids:" Fortuna declared. Alaanis heard a roar from behind her, not too far in the distance, and turned around to see a small herd of about five banthas not one hundred meters away.
"I'm guessing those are the banthas we're going to use as targets for the dragon?" Carth asked Fortuna as he too noticed the banthas.
Fortuna nodded. ":Yes, you five will lure the banthas to the cave. I will go, invisible, and plant the mines by the krayt dragon's cave as we decided:" the Twi'lek concluded, receiving a nod and a stealth field generator from Alaanis. He pulled out the bantha fodder from his pack in a small pouch that smelled awful.
Nobody seemed to want to take it from him.
"I'll take it I guess," Jolee grumbled, snatching the bantha fodder. "Kids these days, afraid to get their hands even a bit dirty…"
Fortuna slipped on the stealth field generator and began trucking towards the cave, only bits of sand crunching around where he walked showed that he was even there. Alaanis turned to her companions. "Let's get going then."
Jolee led the group to the bantha herd, holding the fodder pouch in his left hand, his right loosely hanging over his belt where his lightsaber lay. Trailing behind was Alaanis, Carth, Canderous and Bastila, all silent bar the crunch of sand beneath their boots.
All five banthas heads perked up as the scent of bantha fodder approached them, and then began to head away. They followed the smell of their excretion across the large gap between where they were standing before, and where the krayt dragon cave was.
And then suddenly they stopped and a low roar escaped one of the banthas as eight sand people approached.
Jolee pulled out his lightsaber and began slashing it around with one hand, parrying the blows of the gaffi stick held by one sand person. Canderous reared his repeater again and again, blasting away two sandpeople rushing towards him. Bastila engaged a fourth and a fifth in battle, her yellow double-bladed lightsaber nothing more than a flash as it moved so quickly. Carth had his blasters out quickly and shot down a sixth sandperson, and Alaanis' violet sabers were already halfway through one sandperson as she kicked out at the last of the eight attackers.
It was a short battle, despite the fact that they were outnumbered. Soon enough Jolee was leading the banthas towards the krayt dragon cave yet again.
It felt like such a long time, but in all actuality was only around an hour before they arrived at the krayt dragon's cave. They had encountered a few groups of sandpeople along the way but disposed of them in battle without serious injury on their part. Fortuna was now visible and standing behind a small dune near the cave, a detonator in his hands.
":Throw the fodder on the ground:" Fortuna called to Jolee as he and the rest of the party approached. Jolee did as he was told, and then the five companions joined Fortuna behind the dune.
The banthas stood about fifty meters from the opening of the cave. Alaanis could just make out mines along the opening of the cave that Fortuna must've planted.
A large roar erupted through the silence and the banthas perked their heads up towards the cave where a large, horned creature emerged. The krayt dragon was about twenty meters long, including it's large tail. It had thick deep green and violet skin. Pointed horns jutted out of its head and two large yellow eyes were lodged on either side of its snout. It bore its large yellowed teeth and roared again as it began walking slowly on its four horned feet towards the banthas.
Fortuna hit the detonator at that moment and piercing explosions burst through the air and the krayt dragon howled as plasma scorched its flesh over and over again and multiple explosives attacked it. With the noise, the banthas ran off in the opposite direction, away from the noise.
Soon enough the krayt dragon was silent and dead, lying in the midst of a small crater from all the explosions.
":We had a deal and all the contents of the cave are yours:" Fortuna told Alaanis as all six companions re-emerged from behind the dune. ":At least the dragon died an honorable death.:" He nodded towards Bastila. ":And your father has been avenged.:"
Bastila didn't respond to this, but simply avoided looking at anybody as she led the group around the dead dragon and into the cave.
It was dank and dark so Alaanis and Jolee both turned on their lightsabers for some illumination. They trailed through the dark cave and Alaanis felt it quickly. The dark side tainted this cave. It must've been what had drawn the krayt dragon to this place originally. Corpses littered the sides of the cave. Bastila spotted one she recognized.
"This… this is my father's body," she said weakly. Nobody spoke as Bastila approached the dead body and leaned down. It was torn into multiple pieces, bent in a grotesque form, but she reached into the pouch beside the decaying body and pulled out a few items, including her father's holocron.
It was quiet as Bastila stuffed the holocron in a pocket and stood up, her face revealing no emotions as she rejoined the group and began walking further into the cave, igniting her own lightsaber for light.
Alaanis breathed in quietly as she saw the diamond shaped Star Map in the back of the cave. Just how it was in the dream, she thought to herself as she reached towards it and it opened, revealing another map. This time, a third different section was missing. Three down, two to go.
":An impressive artifact:" Fortuna said, spotting the Star Map. Alaanis turned towards him with pursed lips and he held up two hands and nodded his head. ":I will not spread the word.:"
"Thank you," Alaanis told him, putting away her lightsaber for a moment and pulling out her journal. Jolee provided light for her with his own lightsaber as Alaanis copied the map into her journal. "We should get moving. We shouldn't leave our speeders unattended for too long."
Agreeing silently, a bit weary, all six companions trudged through the darkened Tatooine night back to the speeders.
By the time the reached the speeders, everyone was tired though, and even those who had slept the previous night were feeling in desperate need of rest.
"Maybe we can drive the speeders into the cave so that the sandpeople won't see them," Alaanis suggested. No one felt like protesting, especially since they would like sleep (even though Canderous seemed wide awake). Carth and Canderous directed the speeders back to the krayt dragon's now empty cave. Everyone settled down in the speeders in the dark cave and drifted off to sleep.
Alaanis had a hard time sleeping though. The dark energy of the Star Map shook her slightly every time she tried to relax. She tried meditating, putting up barriers, but nothing seemed to work. She couldn't sleep.
Bastila was facing similar problems of sleeplessness, but it was her father's holocron that made her so. She examined it over and over again in her hands, wondering what her father's thoughts had been, and what he would be saying in his holocron before he died. Bastila wondered if he even suspected he might've died. Finally, curiosity overwhelmed her and she watched the holocron in the dark cave.
Her father's image appeared, glowing faintly and he spoke to Bastila, though no longer living.
"I am going on this hunt for the krayt dragon many hunters here on Tatooine have been hoping to kill. I will provide the dragon with a honorable death, a battle to his or my doom, and if I win, the pearl of the krayt dragon will be my prize I would offer to Helena. She rejected the zakkeg ear once, years ago, but since has accepted my prizes of battle. I hope that if I die this holocron will find its way back into Helena's hands, and perhaps one day she and Bastila will meet again. If I die and Helena is listening to this, you should find Bastila and show her this as well. I loved you both, my wife and my daughter. This message will persist, even in my death, because you are my two most important beings in the galaxy. Through death or life, my love for you is above anything else. If I survive this hunt, I think this may very well be my last. Helena is right, I shouldn't continue running around the galaxy. We need to settle. I need to settle."
The image disappeared from in front of Bastila and she shivered lightly as another image of her father took its place.
"I robbed the krayt dragon of it's pearl and he may very well kill me soon, as soon as he finds me in my hiding place. But if this holocron works its way back into the hands of either Helena, Bastila, or anybody else, I want this pearl, which is in my pouch, to be returned to Bastila. It's supposed to be a strong tool for building a lightsaber. And as a jedi, Bastila will need a good weapon handy. The krayt dragon is approaching…"
The second message disappeared in light static and Bastila reached into her pocket to pull out the other contents of her father's pouch. She found a perfectly round, cream colored pearl about the diameter of her lightsaber handle. She opened up her lightsaber, where the crystals lie, and worked with it for about an hour, into the night. The krayt dragon pearl perfectly in the weapon's hilt.
And when she ignited it, the low hum and glow of the lightsaber instilled a new vigor in Bastila, knowing that a piece of her family, of her origins was laid in it.
Alaanis heard a voice across the cave, but it wasn't recognizable. Alaanis could tell, from the faint blue light, that it was coming from the other speeder, but Alaanis ignored it, and tossed and turned for hour after hour. She knew that it was awfully late, and the pale light rising from outside the cave proved that the suns were beginning to rise. But the dark energy in the cave surged through her and it frightened her into staying awake.
"Oof!" a voice muttered as Alaanis flipped over again.
"Sorry Carth," she whispered in response, recognizing the exclamation as the result of her kicking Carth's leg on the other side of the speeder.
Carth grunted. "It's okay," he said quietly. "Have you slept at all?"
"No," Alaanis replied, shaking her head in the dim light. "I'm becoming as sleepless as you," she smirked.
"Why?" Carth asked, leaning up against the side of the speeder.
Alaanis shook her head. "Nothing really," she lied. Carth wouldn't get it. It was too Jedi-ish for Carth to really understand. "Just can't sleep."
"Mmkay," Carth mumbled, leaning back down to fall back into his untouched and peaceful slumber.
Alaanis yawned, trying to build up her barriers to the darkness and leaned down again, half landing on Carth's arm now that he had shifted. She tried to think up comforting thoughts to make her fall asleep, despite this persisting dark energy, and remembered that time back in the Hidden Bek base on Taris when Carth gave her the promise of some caffa…
XxXxX
Alaanis had slept through most of the morning and awoke to the loud hum of the speeder as Carth drove it along the Tatooine dune seas. Fortuna was writing in a datapad. The speeder Canderous was driving was not far behind Carth's, still holding Bastila and Jolee as it's passengers.
The journey back to Anchorhead, lasting through another night, was much like the journey deep into the Tatooine deserts to the krayt dragon's cave. The second speeder stayed rather silent while Carth and Alaanis shared occasional banter, but other than that, they spoke little as well.
Once reaching the main gates, Fortuna bid Alaanis' crew farewell and left to go announce that he himself had killed the krayt dragon in the hunter's lodge. At least, that's what Alaanis assumed. Fortuna didn't seem like the bragging sort, but then again, announcing a victory over a krayt dragon probably wasn't very common, and more of a proud accomplishment than a boast.
Alaanis and Carth went back to the Czerka office to announce that they had returned with the speeders, while the others stayed behind to guard the speeders.
But Bastila's mind strayed a bit, back to her father's holocron, and she quickly excused herself. When asked where she was going, she simply told Jolee if Alaanis was so curious, Bastila would be at the cantina. Hopefully her mother would be there.
Indeed luck was on Bastila's side. Or perhaps Bastila would've said the Force was with her, because Helena Shan was indeed sitting at the bar, sipping on a glass of Correlian brandy.
"Drinking mother?" Bastila asked as she slid into the stool next to Helena.
"Since I am dying, I thought I could enjoy some of life's simples pleasures before I leave this galaxy," Helena replied, taking a swig of the glass and emptying it. She turned towards Bastila. "Did you come here for a drink yourself or to see me?"
"I… I found father's holocron," Bastila replied, turning towards her mother. "I listened to it too. I think you should have it mother. I'm sorry I was so angry with you. Since father is dead, I think it is only fair that I get to know my own mother better."
Helena smiled sadly. "I suppose I've been rather stubborn as well. But my dear child, I am dying, and I don't have as much time as I'd have hoped."
Bastila reached into her pockets. "Here are two hundred credits I found in father's pouch and fifty of my own. Travel to Coruscant and I promise to find you there. Get the best medical treatment you can. In fact, I recommend you travel to the Jedi temple there and seek help for your condition. I don't want to lose both my parents before I even get a chance to get reacquainted to one."
"Thank you Bastila," Helena said quietly, pocketing the credits Bastila had handed her, she looked back to her daughter and smiled. "You are certainly something, child." Dropping a credit chip on the table for the bartender, Helena left the cantina and Bastila behind.
"I see you and your mother resolved things," Alaanis said as she sat down in the now vacant seat next to Bastila.
"I think we Shan women can be quite stubborn sometimes," Bastila smiled, turning towards Alaanis. "We just need a little shove to admit when we're wrong."
Alaanis nodded her understanding. "Come on, let's get back to the Hawk."
XxXxX
Canderous, Carth and Jolee had already arrived on the Ebon Hawk by the time Alaanis and Bastila returned to it. In the common room sat Mission and Zaalbar, playing Pazaak as was usual. Everyone was sitting around the common room, waiting to know what they were to do next.
Jolee was arguing with T3 about a medpac the old Jedi was making, HK was standing in a corner, Juhani was flipping through one of the many datapads on board, and Carth and Canderous were both working with their respective guns.
Everybody's heads perked up at seeing Alaanis and Bastila return to the ship and stared as the two took seats around the common room. Alaanis stared back.
"I presume you all are wondering what happened and where we are going next," Alaanis said.
"Well Canderous spelled out what happened with real description when I asked him," declared Mission, setting down her sidedeck. "I think it went something like 'Traveled on speeder to cave. Killed krayt dragon. Got Star Map. Traveled on speeder back to Anchorhead.'"
"That's all the information you need kid. It's a desert, nothing very interesting," growled Canderous.
"It had a Star Map, that means it's something interesting," replied the Twi'lek.
":Tatooine may not always have been a desert:" suggested Zaalbar. ":In fact, it probably wasn't always a desert.:"
Juhani set down her lightsaber and crystal she was installing. "So where are we traveling next? Korriban or Manaan?" Alaanis gave the question a bit of consideration. She really didn't want to go to another barren planet, and especially didn't want to face any Sith right away.
"I'd say Manaan is our next stop," Alaanis announced. "A big change of scenery from this desert planet to a planet covered completely by water certainly seems nice."
"Manaan it is," Bastila nodded. "We should leave as soon as we can. Carth, can you punch in the coordinates now and we'll be into hyperspace by nightfall?"
Carth replied with a simple nod and retreated to the cockpit to prep for launch.
"So we're off to a planet covered in water and walking fish with a love for neutrality?" Jolee grumbled. "Sounds like a home away from home."
Alaanis cocked her head to one side. "Would you prefer to visit a sith academy full of aspiring sith kids?" she asked.
"I'll take Manaan," Mission muttered, winning her game of Pazaak with Zaalbar.
"The first person who beats Mission can get their winnings from me," Alaanis mumbled. "Has anyone ever beaten you Mission?" The Twi'lek shook her head as she started up a new game with the Wookie.
"Nobody," answered Mission.
XxXxX
Yeah. It's kinda short. Only thirteen pages. And it took forever. I am VERY sorry. Like VERY sorry. I didn't mean for this to take so long. I just never found free time anymore since I started my job two weeks ago. But I finally finished it up. YESH! And it may not be the longest thing either, but it's done. And posted. W00t! Again, oodles and oodles of thanks go to Trillian4210 for beta-ing.
So we're finished with Tatooine! Got some Bastila development… and that's about it for special stuff this chapter. Yeah, I kind of just got to the point with this chapter. With Manaan coming up, there's going to be a lot more stuff happening. The Carth/Alaanis romance is totally going to begin it's major blooming, perhaps I may hide in a few more Bastila/Canderous hints (I'm still not sure if I'm going to work with that idea or not…), and of course, more character development! Yay!
Okay, thank you guys so much for reviewing! Time for review responses!
Lunatic Pandora1 – I finally jedi-ified all four of my companions in my latest game I finished up a couple days ago. Handmaiden, Mira, Atton and Bao-Dur. I was so proud. XD And yes, HK is quite the hoot is he not?
Resident roach code metallica – Sorry that this chapter doesn't have much romance! But don't worry, I have a treat coming up in a couple chapters for all you romance buffs out there! I read the sixth book the day it came out. I cried for the last four chapters straight. I admit it! I couldn't stop crying!
Greatstar – As you saw in this chapter, next up is Manaan. :)
Romanticess – I'm really glad you like the fic. XD I feel so honored. Ah… as I said above, you romantic buffs out there will get a nice treat sometime on Manaan, coming up next.
PhantomMenace – Thanks! I'm glad you like this fic.
Saerry Snape – I'm still considering the Bastila/Canderous ship idea. The problems is poses for me is the difficulty of writing it out. I mean, I can't rob athenaprime's brilliant interpretation from After The Fall, and other than that I haven't seen a really well written Bastila/Canderous romance! That's my main concern: not writing it right. And yes, long chapters are good. I just have issues lately of spurting out long chapters! As for the chapters with Revan, Malak and the Exile, they're Story Breaks I throw in between planets just for a bit of backstory fun. They're not happening at the moment, just random scenes I place sporadically. Whee!
Again, thanks for the reviews folks!
I should have the next Story Break before we head off to Manaan by the weekend (hopefully). Can you believe this fic is around halfway done? We just have Manaan, the Leviathan, Korriban, the Unknown Planet and the Star Forge left! Ah!
Also: I'm curious as to if you guys would want me to write an alternate ending. I know which ending I'm following but I am contemplating doing an alternate ending for Destiny as well. Just maybe. Feedback is appreciated.
By the way, I have been on a drawing frenzy lately for fanart for kotor. One image I did was sort of the cover picture for Destiny. Since I can't post links, just head over to webshotsdotcom and look up crazymisssarah21 to find around a hundred different drawings I've done. Most aren't too good, but there's a few good ones. XD
Okay, so, I'm dome for now folks! Until the next story break, review, enjoy the summer that is beginning to wane, and review:)
8-2-05