THE RING OF KAFRENE, 19 BBY
Faraway, on the Ring of Kafrene in the Expansion Sector, a smuggler by the name of Cheleez Navarro runs into some trouble while hauling her illegal cargo to the spaceport.
The light of day almost never reached the inner city of Kafrene. Tall structures – like stalactites and stalagmites of a crystal cave – made of the cosmic steel held two of the biggest malformed asteroids of the Kafrene Asteroid belt. Despite the region being a trading outpost where goods and people freely wandered about on business, the tall structures made it feel like a dim, dark underbelly for uncivilised people. With so many people and so little supervision, one must be cautious when handling precious cargo and shipment of resources. Absent from the purview of a competent law enforcement in these far reaches of the galaxy, some dishonest and untrustworthy dealers can dispose of certain individuals without a trace. like stalactites and stalagmites of a crystal cave
Yet, with all these concerns in mind, so many people of various guilds, species and organisations arrive and engage in auctions, street entertainment, docking of merchandise and occasionally, a little crime.
Concealed in the smoke, a woman in her mid-twenties pushed through people to drag a crate of unknown contents inside. This woman went by the name 'Cheleez Navarro'. A red piece of clothing covered her head and was tightened by a knot in her back. A thin, translucent veil covered her face but did not do justice in covering her bloodshot, crimson eyes. Under that veil, was a youthful face with a sapphire shade that possessed defined cheekbones and dry, cracked rosy lips. She wore a black tent dress with full length sleeves. Her attire looked quite normal except for a torn logo that was embroidered onto the bust of her dress. It crudely resembled a planetary system with a star in the center and a few planets in several places in their orbit. Apart from this distinguishing detail, the woman seemed to blend in quite well with the bustling crowd. Besides the occasional glares when she shoved and bumped, she didn't seem to attract a single pair of eyes on her. Except, of course, the yellow, murky pair of eyes of Toydarian who was flying overhead. This wasn't just the observational stare; this was the stare of someone who was looking for this woman in particular. Or more specifically, what she was hauling.
The Toydarian was a light purple one with a bad sense of hygiene as evidenced by his crooked, deformed set of lower teeth. He had a pair of googles covering his eyes and a holster for his stun gun. This particular variant of his species was in better shape physically. He lacked the hunch that most of his fellow relatives possessed and was not as plump. It was as if he was bred for this line of work.
In the grips of Cheleez's glove, was a handle connected to a trolley with a busted wheel. The Toydarian watched her approach the docking area and noticed his partner, a green-skinned Rodian, awaiting his signal. The Rodian was a regular bounty hunter from Tatooine who was not part of the Toydarian's syndicate but only aided and assisted if it promised him good reward from the higher-ups. The minute the flying criminal saw a glimpse of the woman's distinctive bloodshot eyes, he gave a grim smile and snapped his fingers after which he began to guide the Rodian with his index finger. His antennae perked up on the sound and began moving in the direction of the finger. The crowd cleared quick when most of them peeped at the DT-12 blaster pistol he had gripped in his pocket. They could foresee a scuffle taking place very soon. While such a thing was common, no one would want to be present when the respective authorities enter the scene.
Much to the Cheleez's bad luck, she became increasingly wary as the Rodian's line of sight led to her. The Rodian gave a little smile as he advanced with the pistol in his hand. At the corner of her eye, she noticed the Toydarian buzzing towards her with a stun gun in his right hand. She suddenly froze as the short, hairy, coarse trunk of this Toydarian sniffed her veil and his webbed feet perched on her shoulders, clearly making her uncomfortable. He looked at the cargo and whistled to the Rodian who pointed his weapon at the waist-level.
"It iz-a you, eh Cheleez?! Thought you could-a run away?", said the winged-creature as he cackled and wheezed.
Cheleez sighed and removed the veil that covered her mouth.
"Greetings Jotri. I never thought I would see you here. As you can see, I am–"
"Shut your mouth traitor! Sweet-talking us won't stall us. Not. One. Bit.", interruped the Rodian, now carefully planting the muzzle of his blaster to the underside of her chin.
"We can do this in a more civilised manner, Greedo.", stuttered Cheleez who understood him clearly. The Rodian hesitated on hearing his name and pressed the gun into her throat as a warning.
"Cut the bantha-crap. I ought to shoot you right here and right now for desertion."
Jotri the Toydarian, still perching on her shoulders, projected his palm out to stop any further movement from Greedo.
"It iz-a too late for such negotiations! We were ordered to bring you to him. Put down-a your gun, Greedo.", Jotri chuckled as he thought of the reward that he would receive if he brought this 'fugitive' in chains to his superior.
"B-By him, you mean Jabba the Hutt?"
"Correct. You should be thankful I haven't fried your brain right now.", Greedo warned as he put his weapon in his vest pocket, "Jabba would have other plans for you. Plans regarding a hungry Rancor, I suppose."
Meanwhile, the Toydorian who Cheleez identified as Jotri leapt off her shoulders and proceeded to the cargo, circling about it for an inspection.
"What do we have here? Looks like some precious items, eh?"
"Oh, those are nothing I assure you."
"You have-a such a wonderful voice. You sound-a like the Queen of Naboo! But such a pretty voice wouldn't convince me, eh? Ha!". He turned his head to Greedo and beckoned him to the crates. Cheleez stood still.
"What do you think-a these boxes look like, Greedo?"
Greedo went close to Jotri and engaged in a conversation too faint for Cheleez to hear.
"She wouldn't be indulging in business if these crates are not worth her time. It must be spice. We can take it along with the woman to Jabba. He should be happy either way."
Regardless of the outcome of their conversation, she would be taken to Jabba's palace or worse, made as his slave. The thought of degrading herself to a bare woman in chains repulsed her and she curled her fingers around the hilt of a weapon that was strapped to her waist. She could not afford to let these two escape now that they know who and where she is. It had been a year since she had fled Jabba's criminal empire when she realised she could fend for herself with credits and tokens she had stolen. She had planned her defection so well that no one had the slightest of clue where she was headed. Along the way, she must have slipped her guard and let loose a potential detail that connected the dots.
A tense aura filled the docking bay and a moment of silence ensued. It was as if both parties realised the other had a weapon ready in their hands. It was all a matter of who shot first. Greedo impetuously shot first but Cheleez was swifter. As her black dress fluttered in the wind, she brought out a spear and deflected the shot. It was not a lightsaber. She was not a Jedi. Jotri lowered his stun gun in shock.
"That iz-a vibrospear!"
A vibrospear. A spear that specialised in ultrasonic vibrations to inflict harm or serious injury on an opponent. It was a difficult weapon to come by. The guards of Kafrene were alerted to the blaster shots and rushed to the scene, slowly advancing with short steps.
Jotri growled and gave a barrage of stun blasts and then rushed forward to grab her weapon while Greedo tried to take aim.
Cheleez raised her spear and deflected the stun blasts which ended up hitting each of the guards. Cheleez held her spear as Jotri tried to claw her blue face. She bent her knees and raised her spear as she blocked Jotri's hands from touching her face. Jotri and her were now struggling to take the spear. Cheleez grunted and bit her lips as she dragged her weapon down. To counter the downward thrust, his wings began to vibrate rapidly until he lost his energy for a moment. In this moment of weakness, Cheleez tugged her vibrospear and pointed the tip of the head at the flying Toydarian's chest. Without a flaw in her movement, the spear transmitted an invisible ripple of barely any sound. A second later and a crack was heard within the flying creature's abdomen. Jotri's eyes began to twitch as his clothes showed a blot of blood growing bigger and staining his uniform. Cheleez noticed his wings losing their energy and he began to drowsily drag his almost-lifeless body towards her. To be completely certain of his impending death, she sent another blast in the direction of his forehead. Immediately, Jotri fell to the ground as a pool of blood began to seep out of his eyes and trunk. Cheleez had just sent a powerful ultrasonic wave through his brain that ripped in it a fatal hole.
Greedo panicked as he dove behind the crates. Cheleez froze. She could not send a blast in the direction of her cargo. She would lose the spice. She had to tail him instead. Greedo peeped and ducked in a cyclic fashion and all the while, Cheleez could never get a clear shot. She settled on going in one direction, that is, to the right.
Her intuition served her wrong, as Greedo shot her from the left and injured her left arm. She dropped the spear as she felt a jolt of pain course her limb. The spear jingled like a coin as it wobbled to the floor and its handler sunk to her knees. Greedo briskly ran to her fallen body and just as Cheleez began to receive a bit of support from her knees, she felt the cold, metallic circumference of the blaster's muzzle pressing against her temple. Cheleez knew she would have to be kept alive should she meet Jabba so it was not about her anymore. Even if the spice stays where it is, she could retrieve it later if things go well.
"Jabba will be quite angry when he finds out you killed Jotri."
"Leave the spice. Take me instead. You are getting Jotri's reward anyways."
"With such a bounty like that, I cannot have it lying around in a trading port, can I?"
"We can split the cargo and go our separate ways. I guarantee you, this is a negotiable solution."
"Jotri was right. You have a way with words.", the Rodian remarked. Greedo huffed.
"You Chiss people think you are so superior and noble. I am going to silence that ignorance once and for all."
Before he could push the trigger, they both could hear a whirring sound getting louder. Cheleez noticed a ship approaching at an abnormally high speed into the landing zone of Kafrene. It was approaching sporadically as if a busted droid was operating it with one arm. She soon realised that this was no ordinary ship. It was a massive freight ship for transporting armies and vehicles. Such a ship was too big for the landing zone! Had the war reached this end of the galaxy?
At that moment, anyone could realise that this ship and its pilot had no intention of slowing down. It was going to result in a trading port engulfed in flames and explosions. In a moment of reflex, she kicked Greedo in the abdomen who was flung to the trolley with the crates. He tumbled and hit himself face-first on the floor while Cheleez recoiled backwards a few metres. Like a caterpillar, she wiggled and crawled to the nearest shop and hid behind the counter. Her eyes were glued on the spice shipments that were now scattered on the docking bay floor. Greedo stood up in a daze and it took him less than a second to see an incoming danger fly straight towards him. That seemed to be the last she would ever see of Greedo.
Just before the ship scraped the rocky floor of the asteroid, the headlights were at their brightest. Cheleez hissed as her red eyes endured the full luminescence and ducked under the counter.
Was she going to die?
