Salas examined the town as Megiddo descended. The city itself wasn't any big deal. Not as crazy as Nar Shaddaa or as grand as Coruscant. It was mediocre, boring. He had seen so many things in his travels across the galaxy, it was difficult for him to understand why people would bother going there.

But the crystal spires were beautiful. They came in different colors. One that was located to the northeast of the town was green with black veins. The spire that the city was built next to was purple, at certain angles and light levels you could see highlights of red and gold. The crystals twisted and turned, looping around on each other until they reached high up into the sky.

The local garrison was conducting some kind of military operation on the northeastern side. Salas began to wonder if he should hold off for a little bit. He quickly decided that the bounty was well worth any risks.

Salas completed the landing sequence. The fee was more than usual, which was to be expected in such a place. He could have picked a cheaper landing bay, but that would put him further out. He didn't pay for the closer spot out of laziness, he picked it in case he needed to quickly get to his ship.

The ship's nav computer had a brief file on the place, politely painting it as a hub for people who wanted to see the planet's magnificent crystal spires. But as he walked the streets, Salas became increasingly aware that it was just another tourist trap.

He didn't know the exact location of his target. All he had was a name and the fact that his last known destination was this city. But that was fine. He would go to the place where you always go to get information, the cantina.

The place was surprisingly clean and orderly. It somehow seemed wrong, such an establishment should be dirty, seedy, a bit dangerous. This saloon was kept nice so that the tourists wouldn't get scared away.

A humanoid droid, its casing immaculate white, was manning the bar. This was a good sign, droids didn't get suspicious when you asked strange questions. Salas took a seat and the droid asked him what he wanted.

"A juri juice, please."

"Excellence choice, sir."

"Say, I am looking for a friend. Maybe you can help me find him."

"Certainly, sir."

"His name is Dirk Guudgai," well, that probably wasn't his real name, but it was the name that he was currently using.

"Ah, yes. He was in here eating dinner."

"Oh, really? Can you tell me where he went?"

"I am afraid that I can't, sir," the robot adopted a prideful tone, "He did mention that our food is much better than what is served at his hotel."

The droid thought that it was being helpful, but it wasn't. This was a tourist trap, there must be a hundred hotels. "You don't happen to know which one?" he asked, struggling to stay cheery.

"I'm terribly sorry, sir. Mr. Guudgai must be a popular man. You are the second person that has asked about him."

This wasn't good. It could be another bounty hunter or any number of other things that would complicate the situation. He asked the droid for a description.

"A young human woman, wearing a grey robe. She had darker skin, black hair, green eyes."

"Did she say why she wanted to see him?"

"Yes, he was supposed to meet her here."

"Thank you. You have been a big help."

"You're welcome, sir. I am overjoyed to hear it!"

Salas finished his drink and left. The description didn't match anyone that he knew, but it was a big galaxy and there were a lot of people in it. He would have to keep an eye out for her. She could be a threat, she could also just be a jealous ex or something like that.

Salas scanned the buildings, so many hotels, where to start? The target had mentioned that his hotel had bad food. Was he just being polite? Certainly not to a droid. It wasn't much, but it was a start.

Salas walked over to an information terminal and found the menu for the area's eateries. After a few minutes he had a list of one- and two-star reviews. He picked the closest place first. The sign out front was bright and gaudy. The rest of the structure was far plainer, sporting a basic layout.

He entered the building, approached the receptionist's desk. She was a yellow skinned Twi'lek. The woman looked tired, as if the weight of dealing with tourists all day had drained her. But it wasn't just physical fatigue, it looked like it went a step beyond that, like she had been spiritually depleted by all of the time spent dealing with the hotel and its nonsense.

The Twi'lek mustered a tiny smile, "How can I help you?"

"Yes, I have a question."

"Anything to help, sir."

"Are the Gamorreans that are staying on the top floor supposed to be using the balcony as a latrine?"

She went wide eyed, her mouth fell open, "What?"

"Oh, well I guess that I kind of said that wrong."

"Oh good," she said, looking very relieved.

"Ya, the way I said it, I made it sound like they were going on the balcony. But what I meant to say was that they were going off of the balcony."

Her face became horrified again, "Off of the balcony?"

"Well, to be fair, I think that most of it is landing in the pool," he reassured her.

"Excuse me, sir!" she said as she tore out of the room, heading for the nearest bank of elevators.

Salas was glad that she was gone, because he had been close to cracking up. He laughed like a madman as he slipped behind the counter and accessed the terminal. A quick check of the names showed that he wasn't staying there, at least not by his real name. He did a few more searches, looking for suspicious names or credentials that looked sketchy. Nothing.

The woman would return soon, at best, she would be upset that Salas had played a prank on her. He jogged toward the exit, near the doors he saw it, a figure duck out of sight. No time to investigate, no time to see if it was just his imagination.

Three hotels later the receptionist was sprinting toward the elevator. The Triple Sun Inn, Salas thought that the name sounded a little clumsy. The place's appearance matched the rating of its restaurant, one-star.

Salas hopped over the counter and took a seat in front of the computer system. To his surprise, the name was right there at the top. Guudgai. Dirk. Room 609. Current room service charge: none.

"Found 'em" Salas blurted out.

To his surprise, a voice answered him, "Did you find Dirk?"

He popped up out of the chair, pulled his blaster, and swiveled around to see a woman that matched the description that the droid had given him.