o:o:o
Phaelon appeared in the cockpit right before takeoff clad once again in the abbreviated flightsuit and matching tattoos.
"That's inconspicuous," said Kyp sarcastically but with a smirk as she slumped into the copilot's seat next to him.
"Where we're headed, I'll fit right in with every other female of any species," she assured him. "What do you think of this?"
Kyp eyed her as he brought the repulsors online and waiting for his clearance from the Temple. "Think of what? The outfit, or the mission?"
She scowled, and he laughed. "Let's just say I'm hoping they're all just rumors, but if Anor is alive – " He shrugged. Phaelon knew he still held Nom Anor at least partially to blame for the death of his apprentice, Miko, and would like nothing more than to blast him into spacedust.
"And by the way," he added. "I hope that thing is more comfortable than it looks."
Phaelon smirked. "Thanks for noticing. Now I know I can at least attract the older crowd," she teased.
Kyp looked wounded, but smiled. Finally, they received the all-clear from the Temple, and the ship rose gracefully into the air, heading what looked like straight for the looming shape of Yavin high above them.
o:o:o
As far as spaceflights went, the one to Corellia wasn't bad. Phaelon remembered the last time she'd been stuck in space with Kyp for that long, and had to admit that this was better in some respects, at least she could move. By agreement, one would sit in the cockpit while the other slept or meditated or practiced with the remotes in the hold, so they really didn't see each other much until the last jump from Onderon to Corellia.
"Where to start?" asked Kyp rhetorically as he skimmed through the sparse information Master Skywalker had given them.
"He didn't exactly give us a lot to go on, but probably the seedy underbelly of Coronet – Treasure Ship Row would be my guess," suggested Phaelon.
Inexplicably, he smirked. "Zak said you had a thing for seedy cantinas."
She scowled, biting back a retort. "It's the best place to look for criminals," she said with a shrug.
o:o:o
Corellia, though one of the most recognizable places in the galaxy, was also among the most unstable. Pirates and smugglers and dens of immorality were every day things to the Corellians. Nonetheless, with the correct authorization codes from Han and Leia Solo and advice from Corran and the other Corellians, the Jedi managed to settle their freighter in LB-67 of the Coronet Spaceport with little trouble.
At least it's better than Naboo, thought Phaelon as she glimpsed the guardian droids and the forcefield generators.
Two guards met them at the bottom of the ramp. "Identification and cargo manifests," said one while the other held his blaster rifle at the ready.
Kyp, dressed in nondescript civilian clothes, handed him the ids. "No manifests," he explained. "My girl and I are just here as tourists for a couple of days."
The man eyed them suspiciously as he passed their cards over a reader. "You realize that spending more than ten days on Corellia without notifying the proper authorities will result in your arrest and imprisonment?"
"We do now," Kyp said with a smile.
"Have a nice time," the guard told them, handing back their ids and gesturing to the nearby barrier.
Following the crowd, they kept up their charade of talking and laughing like a young couple while stretching out with the Force for any unusual vibrations or voids.
o:o:o
The next morning, the Jedi did not stir until late to keep up the appearance of having a late night. Although no one had any reason to suspect they were anything besides the tourists they claimed to be, it was obvious the hotel staff kept tabs on everyone who passed through their doors.
"I got nothing out of the ordinary scum and villany, and there's not even a lot of that," said Phaelon thoughtfully while the two of them sat in a small café on the main street and watched the people.
Kyp nodded. They had walked around most of the day before playing tourists and still had no leads. "I guess The Row's our next destination. Maybe we'll have better luck down there."
Nonchalantly, they headed down to Treasure Ship Row, an area that used to be the most extravagant place in Coronet City, but had been heading downhill for decades. The buildings spoke of a opulence that had long since decayed. Most of the windows were boarded up and the smell of mildew and rot permeated the atmosphere.
As they walked down the street, the Force told them they were being watched from inside the darkened windows. Other beings they passed radiated a beaten down, angry attitude emblematic of their surroundings. It was as if all the fun and excitement had suddenly vanished, turning the broad boulevard into something of a ghost town.
Phaelon wrinkled her nose and was going to comment, when she paused and the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. Kyp signaled that he felt the Force-warning as well, but they kept walking, making sure their blasters were within easy reach.
Casually, they ducked into a nearby cantina, quickly finding seats in a darkened back corner. While Kyp ordered two drinks from a dark man at the bar, she looked around. It was a seedy place, nearly worse than the place Phaelon had visited on Naboo with Zak. Dark and dismal, it was already crowded though still the middle of the afternoon.
Strange, she thought to herself, there's not a droid to be seen. Indeed, the only patrons seemed to be humans and a handful of near-humans.
/Look around. Notice anything odd?/ Phaelon sent the impressions through the Force, hoping Kyp would figure out what she meant.
With the subtlest nod, he set a snifter before her filled with some amber colored liquid.
"Cheers," she muttered unenthusiastically, raising the glass to him then taking the smallest of sips. It wasn't as bad as she thought it would be. Though it still made her shudder, she had to admit that the Corellians knew how to make whiskey.
After nearly an hour of sitting and watching the beings, it was obvious nothing was happening. To avoid drawing attention to themselves by lingering, the Jedi dropped a few credits on the table and went back outside.
o:o:o