The Force's Shepherds
Chapter 86
With Friends Like These
Naga above, her head hurt! Kjelle squeezed her eyes tightly shut. Hammers pounded into her skull. Her mouth felt horribly dry. As parched as the desert sands of Plegia. And her stomach, Naga her stomach ached. She hadn't had a stomach ache this bad since her mother made clam chowder.
That revolting memory forced her awake as she struggled to hold down what little sat in her stomach. She clasped an armored hand over her mouth and gagged. A rancid stench crept up her throat and washed over her palate.
Gonna puke!
Without thinking, she bolted up from the cot she had been resting on and rushed towards what looked like a door. She did not even hesitate when the door hissed and slide to the side, allowing her into a dimly lit, round corridor.
Bathroom! She thought as she whipped her gaze back and forth, Need bathroom. Gonna vomit.
A silent belch built up in her chest. Kjelle's eyes widened to the size of saucers.
No, no, no, no!
"Oh hoh!" A stranger's voice declared.
Kjelle spun around. Standing near the bend in the narrow corridor was Hondo Ohnaka. And as soon as she saw him, she could not hold it back any longer.
Hondo winced as Kjelle doubled over and vomited onto the at one time clean, metal floors.
"Uh.." Hondo grimaced as Kjelle took several ragged breaths, "Honestly, I am not so ugly as to force sickness upon someone." Kjelle wearily looked up at him, "Most of the ladies think I am quite handsome"
Kjelle raised her brow. Gods, her breath tasted horrendous. She needed to brush her teeth. Drink some water. Anything to get rid of the hangover smell lingering on her breath. She rested her hands on her knees and let out a long groan.
"Still feeling it eh?" Hondo chuckled, "To be fair, you did drink two shots of that stuff. Impressive feat for a human."
Kjelle blinked and glanced up at the Weequay pirate once again. This time, she managed to catch more details regarding his appearance.
Now, she knew strange things existed in the world. One of her close friends happened to be a half human half rabbit for Naga's sake. Two more were quite literally half-dragons. She had seen rather strange looking Risen as well. Some had half of their faces. Others were shambling, thin corpses. Nothing more than mindless zombies. Then there were the Deadlords, which she and the others did their best to avoid.
Somehow, this Hondo guy was uglier than all of them.
"What the hell are you?" Kjelle gasped before wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.
"What am I?" Hondo seemed aghast, "I am a Weequay. And I am rather proud of that distinction."
"You look more wrinkly than a grandmother." Kjelle commented.
"Wrinkly?"
The arched door at the end of the round corridor hissed open. Kjelle's eyes widened as the most gargantuan creature she had ever seen (besides the Fell Dragon and Nah in dragon form) emerged from the room on the other side. The guy was a literal wall of long, brown hair. If she had to compare it to any animal, it would have been a very tall, but still somewhat thin, bear.
The creature's dark eyes glanced at Kjelle, darted to the puddle of vomit near her feet, then back up at her. The massive wall of hair uttered a series of irritated barks and groans in her direction. A massive paw then jabbed at Hondo.
"Me!?" Hondo cried, "I did no such thing. She's the one who can't handle her liquor."
"That's because you gave her brandy that would have put Chewie to sleep." A man's voice called from the room the hair ball emerged from.
The massive creature turned and barked at the guy in the other room.
"She did what in my ship!?" The man cried.
"Hey, cut a girl some slack." Kjelle spat, "Have you ever had a wicked hangover before? The aftertaste sucks."
Hondo shrugged, "She is not wrong."
"I have had a wicked hangover and that is still no excuse to vomit in my ship!" The man shouted from behind the massive, hair covered creature, "You could have at least done it in a waste bin."
Kjelle grit her teeth and stood tall.
"There wasn't one nearby at the time!" Kjelle shouted back.
"That's a load of bantha crap."
Kjelle's eye twitched. She did not know what Bantha crap was, but she had a feeling it meant bullshit. And no one, absolutely no one, declared her to be a bullshitter without them receiving a piece of her mind.
She marched past Hondo. Ignoring the… whatever he was, plea to calm down for a moment. The walking carpet stood in her way now. Kjelle stopped in front of it and stared up at it's fur covered face. The sheer size of the creature not intimidating her in the slightest.
"Excuse me, I've got an idiot to punch." She said flatly.
"You got a what to punch?" The man exclaimed from the other room.
The hairy creature glared at her. Then it started to chortle. Or chuckle? Perhaps chuckle? Regardless, Kjelle knew it was laughing.
The creature stepped to the side. Kjelle marched towards the door. Her own anger causing her to ignore another door just sliding into the wall without any effort on her part.
"Now listen here you…. dumb… ass."
Darkness. Darkness littered with millions of specks of light. Too many to even count. Some of them were brighter than others. Different colors too. A few specks of light were red. A large majority seemed a pale yellow color. Almost white. Some were a dull blue, or a brilliant blue. All of them combined took her breath away as she stared out the cockpit of the Millenium Falcon.
I'm nowhere near Ylisse, am I?
She slumped to the side and sank into a leather seat in the cockpit. Now she noticed the many different strange instruments surrounding her. The different flashing lights and whirs over her head and by her sides. She detected a dull roar in the background. It sounded like a distant dragon. But it did not abate with time. It stayed the same volume and pitch.
"What the hell?" She muttered with wide eyes.
The seat in front of her spun around. A roguish man with brown hair and a devilish gleam in his eyes smirked at her. He wore a simple white shirt, black vest, and navy blue pants with red stripes down the side. Shiny black boots finished the strange look. He did not appear very old. Hell, he looked to be only a few years older than her.
"She's impressive, isn't she?" The man said with a smirk, "This baby is my ship. And it is the greatest ship out there."
Kjelle looked around, "Wh-where are the sails?"
The man furrowed his brow, "This isn't a solar sailer sweetheart. This is a corellian light freighter. One with special modifications that I have been making myself."
The walking carpet barked into the room
"Yes, I know." The man nodded, "With your help of course, Chewie. I could never forget you." He sighed, "Especially since you break more things than you fix." He muttered under his breath, "Anyways, Miss Kjelle, welcome aboard the Millennium Falcon."
Kjelle did not reply. She remained dumbstruck in her seat. Eyes unblinking as she stared out the cockpit into the gaping chasm of outer space.
Chewie poked his head into the cockpit. The wookie glanced at Kjelle and uttered a low groan.
"Yeah, this might be her first time." The man muttered, "Just our luck, we get someone who has never flown before."
Chewie eyed him.
"Don't look at me like that." The man retorted, "I know why we took her along. And that damn pirate too."
"You are technically a pirate as well, Han Solo." Hondo remarked as he sauntered past Chewie and flopped down into the copilot's seat.
Chewie promptly moved into the cockpit, grabbed Hondo by the shoulders, lifted him out of the seat and back to the chair behind the co-pilot. The massive wookie sank into the co-pilot's seat and started fiddling with some buttons and screens nearby.
"You ever flown before, Kjelle?" Han asked.
Kjelle blinked, "Fl-flown?"
This was a foreign feeling for her. Kjelle normally did not struggle to form words. She talked loud, acted loud, and was usually the most brash member among her group of friends. Always looking for a fight. Always ready for a fight. And more than happy to chew out anyone along the way.
Being lost for words felt strange.
She slowly shook her head as she stared wide eyed at the many stars outside the cockpit.
"Not even on a speeder or planetary transport?"
She shook her head again.
Han arched an eyebrow, "How the hell did someone like you end up on Tatooine then?"
"I told you. It was a portal." Hondo remarked with a smug grin.
"Portals don't exist. And you're a lying pirate." Han retorted.
"For a lying pirate, you will find I tell the truth quite often. It surprises me even." Hondo replied with a small shrug.
Han rolled his eyes, "Look, Kjelle. I'm gonna make this explanation very short. So pay attention."
Kjelle slowly nodded.
"Right now, you are a passenger on my ship. A free passenger." Han wagged a finger at her, "I don't do free. So you're gonna repay the free ride. And you are going to do that by helping me, Chewie, and Hondo with a spice shipment we have to deliver. We are about to pick it up on Ord Mantell. From there, we are going to," He chose his next words carefully, "transport it to one of the core worlds for distribution. This is a big job. A big payday. And I don't want it messed up. Got it?"
Kjelle frowned, "So all I have to do is help you deliver something?"
Han nodded.
"Easy enough." Kjelle shrugged as some of her shock began to die away, "But um… can you answer something for me?"
"Fire away." Han said as he spun his chair around and took the controls back from Chewie.
"Where the hell am I?" Han rolled his eyes at her question, "And am I alive or dead?"
"I heard two questions, not one." Hondo pointed out.
Kjelle glared daggers at the Weequay.
"Me too." Han flipped some switches and banked the Falcon to the right, "And to answer one question, you are on my ship the Millennium Falcon."
Dim light filled the cockpit. In the distance, a bright star illuminated the darkness of space. Sitting in the shadow of that star was a planet littered with millions of lights. Hundreds of ships moved in and out of the planet's atmosphere. Kjelle's eyes widened as she saw a planet for the first time.
"And you are about to be on the world of Ord Mantell." Han took a breath, "As for alive or dead well… that depends."
"On what?"
Han brought the Falcon into Ord Mantell's atmosphere.
"On how smart or stupid you are."
….
The ship shuddered to a stop in the Ord Mantell spaceport. The junky vessel settled into docking bay seventy five. Ventress peered out the viewport of her cockpit as various service droids scuttled about the docking bay. A richly dressed Quarran with pale, pink skin and pupiless black eyes strode through the herds of droids towards her ship.
The Overseer of the spaceport.
Great. A damn inspection. Ventress thought with a slight growl.
She undid the safety harness over her shoulders and shot out of her seat. The first thing she did was make sure any weapons on her ship were well hidden. Ord Mantell may be a cesspool and a haven or the criminal underworld, but they still had laws. Gangster laws. And anyone not associated with one of the gangsters was rarely allowed to roam undisturbed when such valuable contraband as blasters were aboard.
Next, she marched to her ship's small cargo bay. Inside lay the still slumbering little girl from the derelict Venator. The little mystery Ventress had no interest in solving. As long as the peculiar girl fetched her a lot of credits, she did not care who she was or where she came from. Times were tight. And Ventress needed to eat. She needed a good, stiff drink too. Something to help her forget about her miserable existence.
She used the force to float the girl's bound body over to her. As an extra precaution, Ventress slapped some cuffs around her wrist. Better safe than sorry. Someone else that had once been this small constantly gave her the slip during the Clone Wars. She would not make those same mistakes twice.
Ahsoka Tano. Ventress scowled as she recalled Skywalker's insolent little shit of a padawan, She got what she deserved.
All of them did. Every single Jedi, wiped out from the face of the galaxy. Good riddance. They deserved it. After everything the order did to her: abandoning her original master to die, the one man who tried to help her as a child; trying to kill her on numerous occasions (although those actions were often reciprocated); overall, just being a thorn in her side for her entire life; they all got what they deserved. A merciless death. Their entire way of life wiped from the face of the galaxy. To be forever forgotten.
Ventress scowled as she dragged the little girl towards her ship's ramp. She smacked her fist against a button. The ramp lowered, allowing Ord Mantell's gray sunshine to come streaming in with the smell of smog and filth.
Home sweet home.
The Quarren overseer approached her and warbled off a series of words in its native tongue. Ventress rolled her eyes, reached into her pocket, and withdrew a few of what little credits she had left. Without a second thought, she slapped the credits into the waiting tentacled hand of the Overseer.
"Not a single droid or soul sets foot on my ship." She growled before relinquishing the credits.
The Quarren warbled back at her then nodded. Satisfied that her ship would remain undisturbed, Ventress shouldered the small girl's body and marched towards the nearest slave market.
….
Kjelle did not know whether to feel amazed, appalled, or downright stunned at her surroundings. She stood on a completely different planet than the one she called home. In a city that dwarfed Ylisstol in every way imaginable. She thought the Exalt's palace was the biggest building people could possibly make. Now she stared up at great metal and glass towers that kniffed into dull clouds high above her head.
And she thought Ylisstol was a crowded city. During the war with Grima, it became the last safe haven for humanity in the land. People flocked from all around the world to the safety of Ylisstol's walls. To the point where perhaps even several hundred thousand souls called the city home.
But Ord Mantell made wartime Ylisstol seem spacious by comparison. As Kjelle followed Han, Chewie, and Hondo through the narrow, trash choked streets, she constantly bumped shoulders with various people around her. Not just humans eithers. There were aliens. Lots of them. Many beyond description for Kjelle. And whenever Han or Hondo caught her staring, they would snap her attention back to them.
"Staring at the wrong person here can get you killed." She recalled Han saying to her in his usual dry, careless tone.
Even Hondo followed that rule. The only member of their little group that managed to be more intimidating than intimidated was their enormous Wookie companion, Chewie. His pure size alone offered Kjelle some modicum of comfort. While she was confident in her fighting abilities, it always helped to have a muscle bound behemoth on her side.
Naga he makes Dad look small. She thought as she stared at the Wookie's furry back.
"Shit." Han cursed in front of her.
Kjelle poked her head around Chewie. A checkpoint of some sort had been set up ahead of them. A small squad of soldiers in identical white armor and helmets directed traffic through the checkpoint. Occasionally, a soldier would point at an individual and have them taken off to the side for a more extensive inspection.
"We can't go through that." Han muttered as they all came to a stop.
Hondo cringed beside him, "Stormtroopers. Bad news indeed. I thought the Empire didn't care about this place."
"Looks like they changed their mind." Han grumbled. Chewie groaned in mild irritation.
"Empire?" Kjelle wondered out loud.
Han and Chewie glanced back at her.
"You really haven't gotten out much, have you?"
Kjelle frowned at Han, "If you knew where I come from, you'd understand my confusion." She folded her armored arms over her large cuirass, "I did not even know aliens existed."
"What were you before this craziness? Some severely isolated moisture farmer?" Han remarked.
"The hell is a moisture farmer?" Kjelle asked.
"I told you. She came through a big portal." Hondo remarked.
Han let out an irritated breath, "One more word about a portal and I'll make sure you don't leave this planet."
"Oh hoh! We have moved into the threats phase. This is good. It means we are getting along."
Han shook his head and guided their group to a side alley away from the main checkpoint.
"You have a strange definition for getting along." He grumbled back.
Kjelle noticed conditions around them rapidly deteriorate as they ventured deeper into the congested city.
As they wandered the narrow alleys, the city became even more dilapidated. Glass and metal towers were replaced with shacks made of spare parts and sheet metal. Junked droids lay scattered in the messy streets. Stagnant rain water rested in putrid puddles on the ground. Several homeless denizens rested against alley walls. Either too intoxicated, exhausted, or sick to move.
"Are you sure you know where you are going?" Kjelle asked as she noticed a group of reptilian aliens glaring at her. Her grip shifted on her spear.
Han protested her taking her spear at first. Tried to get her to use something called a blaster. Whatever the hell that was. Kjelle downright refused. Her father's weapon was the spear. Her mother taught her to fight with a spear. She would be damned if she surrendered the weapon she had known since she could walk. She trusted her spear. She did not trust the strange blasters that rested against Han and Hondo's hips.
"Sweetheart, I've been to this slime infested rock a few times before. I think I know what I am doing."
Han came to an abrupt stop. Another group of those reptilian aliens cut off their route through the alleys. Chewie uttered a low growl. Hondo's hand twitched towards his blaster pistol.
"Are you sure about that?" The Weequay asked, voice low so that the gang of reptiles could not hear them.
Forked tongues flicked out from the reptiles' lips. Kjelle noticed Han slowly unbuckle his holster.
"I never said we would avoid trouble." Han remarked.
Chewie moved in a flash. The group of aliens in front of them lunged forward with their powerful legs. They carried strange sticks of some sort. An electricity emanated from them that made Kjelle's hair stand on end. Chewie grabbed the crossbow shaped weapon from his back, aimed, and fired.
A blaster bolt screamed through the air and slammed into the first ruffian. The powerful blast sent the ruffian flying back through the air. His friends howled, enraged.
Kjelle stared wide eyed at Chewie's crossbow.
"I want one." She breathed.
"This way!" Han shouted.
"You heard the idiot." Hondo grabbed Kjelle by the arm and wrenched her towards the building with no doors.
Enraged roars followed them as they sprinted through somebody's house. Knocking over a basket of laundry and crashing through spare parts as they ran. Kjelle heard clawed feet scraping against the ground to her left. On instinct, she shifted her grip on her lance and swiped out.
The sharp edge slashed into the chest of one of the ruffians. Strange, dark colored blood flew from the wound. Kjelle yanked her weapon free then scrambled to catch up to Han and the others.
Before she could, alarms blared. An artificial voice barked orders from the otherside of the street.
"Drop your weapons and put your hands in the air!"
Kjelle's eyes widened. She lost sight of Han, Chewie, and Hondo, and instead came face to face with Imperial Stormtroopers.
Judging by how Han avoided them, I don't want to get mixed up with them either.
She glanced back at the ruffians. They still pursued her. The threat of stormtroopers seemingly lost on them.
Then she heard one rasp at the stormtroopers.
"Murderer! She's a murderer!"
"What!?" Kjelle cried.
"Arrest her!"
Kjelle let out a frustrated growl, "What a crock of shit!"
She pivoted and dashed towards the nearest alley. The stormtroopers pursued her for a few blocks. Then, seemingly tired of just chasing her, they opened fire. Kjelle felt the heat of a blaster bolt flash past her head. She let out an alarmed cry and ducked out of the alleyway and onto a square filled with people.
Perfect.
She shoved her way into the large crowd. Hoping to lose both the ruffians and the stormtroopers within it.
As she pushed her way through the crowd, she heard many screaming out seemingly random numbers. She paused in her frantic escape and glanced at her surroundings. Hoping to find a route of escape.
Her eyes landed on a platform at the center of the square. An alien with long, fleshy flaps along its cheeks, bulbous head, and black, glossy eyes, pounded a gavel against a block of metal. Kjelle watched horrified and repulsed as a ruffian led a human male in chains off of the platform.
Slavers! Kjelle grit her teeth, What the hell have I gotten myself into?
"Next up! A rare treat for everyone in attendance."
Kjelle started to move away but paused when she saw a flash of green hair move up onto the stage. Carried up there by a bald woman with ghostly pale skin. Kjelle's face blanched when she saw the green haired girl propped up on the stage, still asleep.
"Nah." She breathed.
Rage filled Kjelle. No friend of hers was going to be sold into slavery. To hell with escaping from Stormtroopers and ruffians. They would feel her wrath instead.
She shoved her way forwards as the crowd began to bid on Nah. As the bids rose higher and higher, the fervor grew as well. The shouts were so loud, that Nah's eyes began to flutter open.
The little Manakete let out a loud yawn as she opened her eyes. She smacked her lips together and glanced at her surroundings, both puzzled and curious. She glanced at her captor and asked a question Kjelle could not hear. The captor did not answer.
"Sold!"
Kjelle saw Nah stiffen.
She knew what was going on now.
"NAH!" Kjelle screamed as loud as she could.
The Manekete's head snapped in her direction. Nah heard her.
A rough hand grabbed her arm. Kjelle spun towards her assailant and leveled her spear at his gut.
"Whoa whoa! Easy, sweetheart." Han gulped as he felt the tip of her spear press against his stomach, "Easy."
Kjelle grit her teeth. She wanted to scream at the scoundrel for leaving her, but now was not the time. Her friend had just been sold like cattle. She could not let this happen.
Kjelle surged towards the platform. Again, Han stopped her.
"Hondo and Chewie met the supplier and they're heading back to the ship, but we need to go now."
"Not without Nah!" Kjelle hissed back.
Han glanced up at the platform, "You know the girl?" He let out a heavy sigh, "Hate to break to you, but she's done for. Nothing we can do about it, now come-"
A bright flash of light stunned the crowd. Nah's captor took a terrified step back. The light remained for a few seconds. Kjelle smiled. Han turned pale as a mighty roar reverberated through the square.
As the light faded away, massive, green dragon wings spread out wide. A dragon replaced Nah. It's massive jaws opened wide. A jet of hot, green, magical fire erupted into the sky.
Chaos. Panic everywhere. Kjelle and Han were nearly trampled as the crowd turned into a terrified mob. The dragon beat its powerful wings and took flight, knocking over her captor in the process. Though her captor recovered and quickly sprinted off in the direction Nah flew.
"Well, looks like your friend can take care of herself. Now let's get to the ship." Han gulped.
"There's the murderer!"
Both Kjelle and Han twirled in the crowd. The Stormtroopers found her.
"Blast her!"
"What did you do!?" Han cried.
As quick as any gunslinger, Han drew his blaster and fired three quick blasts at the stormtroopers.
The sound of blaster fire sent the crowd into an absolute frenzy. Han used the chaos to his advantage. As more stormtroopers swarmed towards the area, desperate to put down the riot, Han grabbed Kjelle by the arm and dragged her towards the spaceport.
They did not sneak through alleys or gutters. They did not even stop for the checkpoint. Instead, they both barrelled past the stormtroopers at the checkpoint. The soldiers cried out in alarm then opened fire on them. Han let out a loud yell as a hail of blaster bolts chased them towards the spaceport. The blaster fire only stopped when a dragon plowed into the checkpoint, knocking over the stormtroopers at their post and sending any others ducking for cover.
Kjelle smirked at Han as he stared wide eyed up at Nah. The Manakete soared into the air again. Almost as high up as the towers around them.
"That's your friend?" Han muttered in disbelief. He gave her a stunned look, "Did you really come through a portal?"
Kjelle smirked, "Sometimes pirates tell the truth."
They made a mad dash back to the Millenium Falcon. Hondo waved to them as they approached.
"Hurry up!" The Weequay pirate cried, "The Overseer is pissed and called the authorities."
"Why!?" Han exclaimed.
The Falcon's engines came to life. Kjelle glanced at the cockpit and saw Chewie frantically working the controls.
Nah roared again. The roar shook the ground as she descended near the Falcon. Once her claws touched the ground, light enveloped her massive form. The dragon disappeared. And a small, green haired girl took its place.
Hondo glanced at Han as the smuggler stepped onto the ramp.
"Did I accidentally inhale spice?" He asked.
Han shook his head, "Say hi to Kjelle's friend Hondo." He patted the stupefied Weequay on the shoulder, "C'mon sweetheart!"
"Stop calling me that." Kjelle growled.
She rushed after Han as the smuggler sprinted into the ship. Stormtroopers flooded the shipyard. Blaster fire shrieked towards the Falcon. Hondo drew his pistol and returned fire. Kjelle paused on the ramp and glanced over at a still confused Nah.
"Get over here already, Nah! I'll explain later!"
The Manakete did not need to be told twice. Nah rushed towards Kjelle, ducking beneath blaster bolts as she ran. Kjelle pushed Nah up the ramp.
"You too Hondo!" Kjelle barked.
"No need to tell me twice. I didn't last this long as a pirate without knowing when to run." Hondo slipped by her as the Falcon started to hover in the air.
The ramp began to close. Kjelle took several steps back. Eyes never leaving the stormtroopers still blasting away at the Falcon. She noticed Nah's captor stalk into the shipyard behind the stormtroopers.
She locked eyes with the pale women. And she saw fury stare back at her. Kjelle met her fury with determination, and a wry smile
"No one takes my friends." Kjelle breathed.
The ramp closed. The Falcon ascended out of its docking bay. Han pointed the nose towards the atmosphere and fired the engines. As quickly as they arrived on the crime infested world, they left. And all of them breathed a sigh of relief.
….
Ventress watched the hunk of junk lift off out of the spaceport. Her eyes fixated on the young, human female glaring back at her as the ship's ramp closed. The stormtroopers continued to fire away with their petty blasters despite knowing they would not do much good. That ship had shields. Damn good ones for a such a simple ship. Whoever piloted that piece of junk knew what they were doing. They effortlessly dodged a squadron of TIE fighters and blasted out of orbit within seconds.
Ventress scowled. They could run for now. But they would not outrun her. And they could not hide either. The scavenger marched to her ship as more stormtroopers filtered into the shipyard. She ignored them at first.
Then she heard the Overseer speaking to one as she boarded her ship.
"That was the Millenium Falcon." The Overseer warbled, "Damn smugglers and pirates, I say! I hope you catch them!"
Ventress's thin lips curled into a dark smile.
The Millenium Falcon eh? The ramp closed behind her. She marched to the cockpit and brought her ship to life.
The engines hummed throughout the ship. She did not even bother waiting for clearance from the control tower. If she did, she would not leave the planet until the Imperials finished their investigation. That could take days.
She did not have days to wait. That girl and her friends stole her prize. Made a mockery of her. No one made a mockery of Asajj Ventress and got away with it.
Her ship thundered into orbit. She pursed her lips then closed her eyes.
When that little girl transformed, Ventress sensed a massive pulse in the force. The girl, whatever she was, tapped into some sort of latent force powers in order to pull off such a dramatic transformation. And if that girl could tap into the force then, with enough concentration, Ventress would be able to sense her.
She detected a faint presence. One that seemed far too innocent and bright to be anything but the little girl.
Who needs tracking devices when I have the force.
Ventress glanced at a compartment next to her seat. She flicked it open. Inside were a pair of curved lightsaber hilts. Old, a tad dusty. But still deadly. She smiled as she looked at her old weapons. Her old friends.
"Run while you can." She breathed as she punched in the hyperspace coordinates she needed to try and follow the Millenium Falcon, "You will not escape me."
The stars in her viewscreen became bright streaks of light. The hyperdrive generator hummed to life. Ventress shot off into the stars, in pursuit of her prey.
And chapter! A bit of shorter chapter this time around. Faster paced, and a bit more actions packed. We get to see Han, Kjelle, Hondo, and Chewie in action for the first time. Nah now joins their little group. And Ventress is hunting all of them. All the while, Han is trying to do his job and deliver Jabba's goods to the buyers. What could possibly go wrong there? Anyways, let me know what you all think of this chapter! As always, I hope you all enjoyed! Have a nice day!