Chapter Eight
"Wait, wait, wait, just tell me one thing. Tell me why you want the ring so badly?" asked the Bimm.
"The Talid said there was a specter in the mountains, a spirit who could help us hide from our pursuers if we could just harness the power of the ring to imprison it. I can't say I am an unquestioning believer but I will try anything to protect the boy," Hyperion said, keeping the ax pointed ahead.
"Fine, fine, fine! I know of the spectre you speak of, it commissioned me to forge a way it could be freed from the mountains," said Fabro.
"Then tell me everything, give me the upgrades you promised, and the ring then I'll let you live. Odds are you probably can't use the ring anyway, I don't sense the Force in you," Hyperion taunted.
"I don't need the Force to know what you are! Though I bet your boy does, doesn't he? Monster, I know who you are from your old life! I know of the exploits of Hyperion Algethii, rogue Darksider who killed without reason or purpose!" Fabro exclaimed. Hyperion snarled and readied the ax to lay the death blow upon his hapless foe for the mouth he showed.
"Don't you forget it, dwarf! You know my power in the Force means for you if you reach for any weapon!" Hyperion said, trying to rein his temper even as he was using it to coerce.
"Alright, I'll help you but for the upgrades, I'm going to need another favor. To be called in when I need it," Fabro said.
"Wouldn't you consider being allowed your life, however pathetic it is, favor enough? I'm letting you live to continue your forge in return for all that I have asked of you," Hyperion said.
"It's not that simple. In order to make the upgrades, I have to take every weapon in your armory that needs upgrading and melt it down. You'll be allowed your blasters and whip but that's about it while I have to make upgrades to all your bladed weapons. Your ax looks like it can't give off more than six hits to those Republic scumbags chasing after you and your spear will be lucky if it can penetrate the armor of even one soldier. Your knuckledusters also look like they'd be lucky if they can bruise the flesh of the Hutt," said the Bimm. Hyperion looked over his weapons and realized, with the aid of Force Sight, that Fabro wasn't wrong in what he said.
The ax, spear, and knives wouldn't last the journey unless they were upgraded to better ores. Menelaus's bow also looked like it would need better heads on them and Hyperion asked what could be done about that. "I can make phrik alloy arrowheads for him, they're apt to penetrate the standard issue armor of most Republic soldiers including some of the Special Division soldiers like Havoc Squad. I can also apply the phrik alloy to your spear so that it becomes lighter when you throw it and Mandalorian iron for sharpness of tip. The Mando iron will be good for flexibility on the ax as well and the cortosis I have can help maintain an edge on the bladed ends of the same weapon," Fabro explained.
"That sounds like a lot of work, very well I'll grant your addition favor but you are not allowed the luxury of calling it any time you wish. You either find something I can do to test the upgrades when they're made or we have no deal," Hyperion ordered. Fabro nodded grimly and gestured for Hyperion to place the weapons on the smelter machine that would heat them up enough to melt down the metal especially after Hyperion removed the ax handle. He even removed the sharp spike on the pommel of the ax for good measure. Menelaus also removed the heads of his arrows so that Fabro could melt all the metal and add fresher ore of the rarer metals he had.
Odds were that he would probably repurpose the durasteel that Hyperion had provided as a result for something in his forges. "It's a good design. I didn't expect a Sith Warrior to know how to make an ax from scratch or even a spear. You did good by yourself and the kid in doing this," Fabro explained.
"Menelaus, go watch the entry to the forge and make sure that the Republic hasn't caught on our trail yet. Keep a watch for the wild predators of Ando Prime and any of the other scum that you find as well. Take the night vision goggles and the alarm horn on the table over there in case you see anything I need to eliminate. Keep your blaster by your side in case you end up needing to fight anyone until I can get to you," Hyperion said. Menelaus nodded and decided to do as he asked and also gestured for a thermal detonator, asking silently if he could take it to which Hyperion nodded.
"What do you know of me?" Hyperion asked.
"That you're the reason I'm even alive to have this discussion right now. Remember the smuggler Clyde Rev?" asked Fabro. Hyperion nodded and when he said nothing else, the Bimm continued with his story. "When you and that Trandoshan warrior were captured, I'd already been caught because of my ingenuity with weapons used by the Republic and the Sith alike. He was willing to offer me a king's ransom in the beginning but he had coerced me into serving him when I refused on the grounds of already having more money than I knew I could spend in a lifetime.
"When you and that reptilian monster broke down that floating fortress you escaped from, I was able to make it to an escape pod before it self-destructed. Basically, I already owed you my life before we even met and would've likely given you the upgrades anyway," said Fabro.
"Then why make my son and I do your chores?" Hyperion demanded.
"To make sure it was you. I had my doubts but now I know better and I want to help you as best I can since I twice owe you. Throw your shield on the tray too and I'll give you something even better than it, speaking of which. Take your pick of mechanical arms to replace the one you've got: I know it ain't heavy from the way that you kicked that soldier's ass at your house. But it won't last you the journey with the kind of short circuiting I can tell it's done," Fabro replied.
Hyperion hated to admit it but the dwarven alien had a point about his arm. It was all he could do to even keep the fingers functioning so that he could grab things, sometimes. "What do you have?" Hyperion asked. Fabro gestured at the array of mechanical arms, likely repurposed from Sith Juggernaut droids and the like for medical service.
"I've got some so light that you won't feel a thing the way you would with your flesh and blood arm. They're the ones with the armor plating, especially the one with the scale plating on the shoulder and upper arms. That one I made with a phrik alloy core for lightness of weight and components where you can attach and detach projectiles, blades, and shields alike. It also comes with a spiked gauntlet so that you don't have to worry about whether or not punches from that arm will deliver: it's got cortosis on the gauntlet and Zillo Beast scales for durability," Fabro said.
"Zillo Beast scales?" Hyperion asked.
"Native to Malastare, their scales can't be cut by a lightsaber and has every bit of the lightness of you'd expect of normal reptile scales. Extracting it off dead cockers like the one I got those from is a bitch without considering what happens if you do it while they're alive. Shed scales are easiest to come by but the quality deteriorates over time so it's much better to get it off the beast when it's freshly dead," Fabro said.
"How?"
"Acid cutters between the scales, you target the soft flesh underneath and corrode enough of it that you can yank the scales off in one piece without triggering the shedding instinct. Pain in the ass because it's more expensive but mighty worth it if you can make something with it like I did," Fabro continued.
"What kinds of blades can I place upon it?" Hyperion asked.
"The kinds gladiators used to cut each other with their punches. You can also attach throwing knives and switch into shooting mode so that you send four knives flying straight for your foe before they've even reached you. Maintains accuracy that way over three-hundred yards and works almost as well with shurikens like the ones you got. Personally, I recommend using larger storage cavity for one of the collapsible spears I got then used the smaller one for your shurikens: this way you ain't ever truly short of weapons and you have room for bladed ones besides your ax or for more foodstuffs for your journey," Fabro said. Hyperion had to admit he was decently impressed with the array Fabro had and the recommendations he was making.
In his youth, he might have killed the Bimm and then taken everything for himself so that he never was at a loss for weapons. But seeing he was a different man now, he would call in the favors the Bimm said he owed him to take only what he needed. "What about the ring?" Hyperion asked.
"Only rule is that you wear it on your flesh and blood hand or else you can't use its power. The Force doesn't seem to like machinery when it comes to artifacts like the Prison Ring," Fabro answered. It made sense and in all, Hyperion was actually happy with the assortment for a change... something that rarely happened when he was on his own.
Chapter Nine
When the dealings with the Bimm were finished, Hyperion had a new arm that housed its own blade and came with pommeling "stones" on the knuckles. So Hyperion traded in the durasteel and brass knuckles he had on him for a gauntlet made from the same materials as the mechanical arm. This way, they were equally effective if Hyperion needed to punch someone with the combined might of his physical strength and the augmentations of the Force. He also received an ax with one unexpected bonus upgrade within it. If he should ever throw it and have thermal detonators within the center cavity, he could launch the detonators to destroy two or more people within the vicinity of who or whatever the ax landed on when he threw it.
His spear was also improved so that it had similar cutting efficiency to a lightsaber with a heater that quickly brought the spearhead's core to red hot for that purpose. The knives he and his son would wield had the same design as their originals but had also been given light alloys with high-carbon alloys to keep an edge. Menelaus' arrows also came with phrik alloy cores and business edges of Mandalorian iron so that it could slice through most conventional armors. This meant they could save on blaster bolt ammunition for those enemies they couldn't otherwise defeat. Into his new mechanical arm, Hyperion placed the shurikens in the smaller cavity where he could then shoot them out by simply flicking his wrist after turning his knuckles to the ground.
On the top side was a blade he could either shoot out at high velocity for up to a hundred yards or wield like his kunckledusters depending on his preference. He could also attach a comlink to the dorsal side of his hand on that same arm. On the other side, the gauntlet he added came with options to either adopt bludgeoning stones on the knuckles or even small blades. He also made sure to load up on grenades, both thermal detonators and EMPs in case he encountered any tech that needed shutting down.
For himself and his son, he also obtained boots for which they traded their old ones with the upgrade providing a layer of cortosis on the toe so that their kicks could be lethal if needed. But Hyperion also had it acquired because he knew there was a chance of tripping over rocks where they were going or otherwise stubbing their toes. They also both had helmets they could use if they ever needed to ram their heads into someone, helmets that came with macrobinoculars and infrared as embedded options in the visors of the helmet. The night vision field they came with was also handy especially with the fact that Ando Prime sometimes got too cold to not keep moving. But Fabro had one last surprise for them, heaters and coolants in the armor that would help keep their core body temperatures from getting too low or too high.
Even with the need for more heat on a planet like Ando Prime, Hyperion could appreciate the jets of warmth that such suits could give when needed. He'd even worn one when he was performing a mercenary job for the Imperial Sith on Nar Shaddaa. Menelaus fell in love with his almost from the moment it was put on and with that, Hyperion found himself impressed he even had room for the Prison Ring. Once he and his Zabrak boy had everything they needed, including supplies in their backpacks, they began the journey again. "Watch your back out there! Since you kicked that white and red cocker's ass, the Republic's probably going to come back in bigger numbers. And with a Jedi or two in tow as well!" Fabro warned.
"Why would Jedi care for us?" Menelaus asked.
"The manner in which I defeated that trooper is normally impossible without the Force. Even with it, it takes years of training to attain that level of skill and on top of that, I wasn't a Jedi before the war ended. In the absence of the Imperial Sith, I'm among the few beings that can be the biggest threats to the reign of the Republic," Hyperion told his son.
"But why would that constitute you being captured or something similar? You weren't a criminal were you?" Menelaus asked.
"There's more to that story which I'll tell you when you're a tad older. But suffice it to say that I actually was one before I came here. In the wake of victory, the Jedi and the Republic want to round up every dissenter of my like that they can. It is the way of things when one side wins a war so thoroughly as the Jedi have done," Hyperion said.
"But you've been trapped here for over ten years, what you did in the past can't be all that bad. Can it?" Menelaus asked. At once, memories of his past came flooding back. The screams of Patricia when he raped her, the cries of outrage from his brother when she committed suicide, the crunch of bone breaking under his boots as he completed some of his missions for the Sith, the splatter of blood on stone and durasteel whenever he had killed someone. All at once, the sounds, visuals, and other sensations that were associated with such pictures threatened to overwhelm him and send him a blinding rage that would've likely resulted in Menelaus' death if he'd still been the man he once was.
"It's a tad more complicated than you think," Hyperion said, his eyes pleading with his foster son to drop the matter from there. Menelaus registered the signal for what it was and left it there until Hyperion could explain it to him without becoming overwhelmed by his emotions. After a moment, the older Human added, "We are leaving. The sun is in our favor and we will need that if we're going to make any serious miles before the cold."
"I think the Republic might be requesting more Special Forces to come for you two. If they do, your only chance is to get into the mountains before they find you. Hit the cave network and entrench yourself in it as long as you dare then live off the land when you have to return. They'll give up the search after about a few months or so," Fabro said. Why did I half expect you suggest I end it quickly and turn myself in? Hyperion thought quietly.
"That was already the plan, dwarf. But thank you for your concern and what will you do if they come to your shop?" he asked aloud.
"Well, for starters, I'd ask them if you're really afraid of doing to them what you did to that Twi'lek and explain that was a warning to leave you alone or get the biggest ass kicking, this side of the Tingel Arm. Hey, if anyone can give it to them then it's you. If they grill me further, they're gonna have to get a Jedi to extract info and that usually doesn't go well for them," Fabro explained.
"Why not?" Hyperion snarled.
"Because I learned that if you keep a few images of your creations killing people while you're jaggin' off, most Jedi learn to leave your mind alone. Not that I've actually done that but it pains a lovely picture of someone who don't like to be probed," Fabro said. Hyperion groaned audibly at the remark of the images then thanked him for all he had done. "It's nothing, just repaying a life debt," Fabro replied.
"You saved his life, Dad?" Menelaus asked.
"Unknowingly," Hyperion admitted, glumly. Then after a moment, he added, "We're leaving, boy. Thank you for everything, Fabro." The Bimm bowed but beyond that showed no reaction to Hyperion's remarks as he returned to his forges.
"It's a good thing we stopped by and got all this free stuff, isn't it Dad?" Menelaus asked.
"Nothing is ever truly free. But if you mean we acquired this without charge then you're correct: it'll be useful against the Republic troops. I even found us some upgrades for the shield: collapsible and durable now thanks to the metals he used in reforging it. They're the strongest the market can buy," Hyperion said.
"And the whip?" asked Menelaus.
"Now that you mention that, I found one with chain link fibers for lightsaber resistance and a hook made from the same material found in the Felucian skullblade. This way the Jedi can only bash it away from them without actually being able to destroy it or the whip. Still does everything I need it to do, that noted," Hyperion answered. Menelaus grinned and when they began the journey began, there was a moment of silence as they took in the smell of new forges they had on their person.
"What do we have in the way of supplies?" Menelaus inquired.
"Nutrition bars with enough nutrition in each to last me a week and you two, since you're smaller, for starters. I also got a couple thousand of them so that if we need to hunt for meat, we can get by during the hunting. The bars aren't known for tasting good but thankfully they're not bad either: they basically have no taste," Hyperion told him.
"I knew I'd want meat anyway," Menelaus retorted. Hyperion chuckled at the remark, having raised his son on the meat of those tantas the Talids had disposed of due to old age. They were careful not to pick those that were diseased in case cooking wouldn't purify the meat. In addition, they also took care of the meat from any female who died in the process of giving birth as well as the fetuses if they were dead. The Talids didn't approve of meat eating in their own society but they didn't mind Humanoids like Hyperion and Menelaus taking what they could carry every now and again.
In exchange for fighting battles for them, allowing them to remain pacifistic, they were welcomed to whatever supplies they needed provided it didn't run interference with their lives. Since becoming stranded, Hyperion learned (and taught Menelaus) how to appease the Talids and obtain the bounties of the planet. This was no different though a Bimm had helped them this time. "We'll have need of it yet, my boy," he simply admitted to Menelaus' remark about meat.
