Chapter 6 - Welcome Aboard
!FYI! The events in this story are taking place approximately one year before the events of the Phantom Menace !FYI!
Location: The Planet Naboo - Mid Rim
The first sense that awoke with Judy's consciousness was her smell, which wasn't unusual for a bunny who'd have always needed to be cautious of lurking enemies in ancient times. But right now, it didn't smell like enemies at all. What lingered in the air was the scent of fried meat. No, not just meat, it was bacon and egg that filled her nostrils. She was no carnivore but even she had to admit that the smell had something pleasant to it.
The second thing she recognized was a lively conversation going on in the kitchen area between Patty, the trusted AI of the ship, and Finnick.
"Again, I have to warn you that your use of the kitchen unit without the permission of the captain will lead to a direct report." The AI said and, at least to Judy, Patty sounded insulted by the small fox.
"And again, I told ya to shut up your bloody mouth, woman! Or I bypass some more of your subroutines if you try again to cut off the energy from the kitchen area! I bet at least a hundred republic credits that I'll find the damn chip that allows you to talk," Finnick yelled back at the AI who was silenced for a moment to process the answer from the small fox.
"Threat detected. This violation will also be reported as soon as the captain is awake."
"Do that! But until then...shut up and let me do my work!"
Judy couldn't suppress a smile about the ongoing quarrel. She decided that just five more minutes would be a nice before the day had to start. And just like any other night, where she slept clinging to a pillow, she gave the one she used right now a slight squeeze before she drifted back into sleep. Just as she normally would do.
What was out of the ordinary was the moan she heard as a reaction to her squeeze, and that awoke even more of her senses.
'Wha…? Pillows don't moan...what was that?' Judy thought, slowly opening her eyes to see a world of fiery red fur in front of her eyes. It took her a few seconds to put the pieces that were hiding in plain sight together - she was clinging Nick's tail. Shocked from the revelation, she pushed herself away from the pillow replacement and against the armrest behind her. With wide eyes and a beating heart, she stared at the still sleeping fox, who sat beside her with his left arm on the armrest that held his head in place. If Judy didn't know that he was asleep, it would seem as if he was deeply in thought about something.
Strangely to her, he also looked like someone who was at peace with himself, a quality that Judy always admired in other people and stood in total contrast with her own restless mind. The longer she looked at him the more she was fascinated about him and reminded of all the things that must have happened in his life. Judy thought back, 'He had no home, no family, no nothing. He was a complete outcast with just one friend at his side and no option of redemption for his name or status. But despite all those things he seemed more or less happy and not really driven by hate or revenge for his loss. This was not the picture she had in mind when other Jedi were talking about renegades who left the Order. Judy was taught that the path away from the Jedi Order could only lead to the dark side. But that didn't seem to be the truth. Nick was the perfect example, he was no saint but he was far from being a Sith. So what was he? Something in between? On his way to becoming one? And even if he became a Sith in the future...a being that was just thinking of himself and no one else, with no exception. Then who or what was Darth Lepus? Someone who said to some other being that he was in love, even though he was a Sith? That really made no sense.'
Judy slowly relaxed when she recognized that Finnick's working noises had faded away. For the moment, all that Judy wanted was to sit here, look at Nick, and think about him and what he was. But unfortunately, Finnick had other plans for them.
"Hey! Honeymooners! Breakfast is ready!" Finnick shouted in his deep voice from the back of the ship, chuckling at his own joke. While Nick began to awake from his slumber, Judy felt her face become incredibly hot. Paralyzed by her own shame she still stared at Nick and how he stretched his limbs, while he turned towards her.
"Morning, Carrots." Nick said and smiled at her, "And? How was your night?"
"It...well, it-it was...good and nothing to complain about or…," Judy began to stutter but was interrupted by Finnick, "Are you two deaf? I said breakfast is ready, Honeymooners."
Struck by a sudden spark of anger, Judy stood up and shouted back at Finnick while she leaned over the Captain's chair.
"Will you stop calling us that?"
"Stop calling us what?" Nick asked in a sleepy voice and appeared beside her, his eyes still not completely adjusted to his surroundings.
"I called you two Honeymooners," Finnick said as if there was no explanation needed, while the two of them looked over the backrest towards the kitchen area, where Finnick stood on the table and placed the last plates. Grinning, he stared back at the two and repeated his newly devised banter.
"Honeymooners. Don't ya get it? Listen, Nick, if you want to have the full story, then ask the bunny girl beside you. I'm the one who makes the jokes, not the one who explains them."
Nick turned his head to his left, only to find Judy in a flustered state of mind with glowing ears and the desperate need to ignore him, "Carrots? What is he talking about?"
"Well...you know...it could be...that I, accidentally, of course, used your tail as a pillow. A very fluffy pillow, if I might add." Judy said and smiled apologetically at the fox.
Nick's face was a stone mask that let no emotion through. Gazing at her, he said in an emotionless voice, "You did what?"
"I...well," Judy began, but stopped saying anything as she heard Nick's emotionless words and saw his cold gaze fixed on her. She felt a lump was forming in her throat, making her unable to speak any clear sentence.
"Our tail is sacred to us foxes and you just used mine as a pillow?"
"I...yes. Look, I-I'm sorry, Nick. I didn't know..." Judy replied, following him towards the table.
"Of course you didn't know, but does that make it right?"
"N-no," Judy replied meekly and added, "Of course not."
Nick jumped down the chair and strolled towards his breakfast. Undeterred and with his paws on his back he talked on, "But do you know what the worst part is?"
"No?" She replied and forced herself to look over to him, just to see a wide grin from Nick that managed to obliterate all her newly created negative emotions in an instant.
"The worst part is that you fell for nonsense like that. Sacred? To me? Oh, come on, there was one reason why I did what I did and that was that the position you slept in looked terribly uncomfortable. So I offered you, dear bunny, my tail to help you out. And let me tell you, Carrots, you accepted this fluffy red pillow in your sleep like a kid would accept a handful of candy. And that's it. End of story...oh and don't take that grumpy desert fox too seriously. He likes to tease people and seems rough but I know he has a soft core somewhere inside him… but also the hardest shell I've ever seen," Nick said with a smug grin on his face, jumping into one of the iron chairs. His gaze checked the interior until he had made his conclusion about the ship, "I guess I didn't pay enough attention yesterday but that's a neat ship, Carrots. I'm almost starting to feel at home."
"Thank you, Mr. Wilde. It seems that not all foxes are as uncivilized and rude as your little friend to your left," Patty, the AI, said and turned her attention to Judy, "Captain, I want to open a report about a series of violations against my security system."
"Here we go again," Finnick added with rolling eyes and dropped his spoon back into his bowl of buntha milk and cereals that stood in front of him.
"Stop! All of you!"
The attention went immediately to the serious bunny, while Nick even felt a little disturbance in the force itself. Did he go too far? But even if, wasn't it all just a joke? A little game between her and him?
"You're telling me that was nothing but a joke? What are you thinking, Nick?! I honestly thought I broke some serious rules in your culture, who knows what you foxes hold sacred, but even worse, I thought that I made you feel uncomfortable for what I did!" Judy said sternly while she walked towards him with her index finger raised in his direction.
"Listen, Judy, I didn't know…," Nick tried to apologize for his little jab but the ragging bunny went on.
"Of course you didn't know! Because you don't know me!"
"Well, yeah…you see…"
"And just like that, you thought, hey? Why not start the morning by fooling the dumb bunny?"
Judy stood now directly in front of Nick's chair. The fox, however, gazed with a dumbfounded face and open muzzle down at the furious lapin, unable to respond in his normally articulate way.
"No…that was not what I thought...I just…Finnick! Could you please help me out here," Nick asked his companion for help because his own search for the right words had ultimately failed.
"Sorry, Nick. That one is on you, buddy. I maybe started to tease her but you brought it to another level," Finnick replied chuckling and continued to watch the two of them argue.
Judy stood on her toes and stretched up to Nick, grabbing him at his collar to bring his face down to her.
"Sadly, a fox like you needed to fool a bunny like me...and do you know what's even sadder?"
"No," Nick replied, almost silent but already in an apologetic tone. He didn't know what she wanted to tell him but he felt a lump form in his throat that made him unable to speak.
A grin flashed over Judy's face, just as she began to speak, her paws still holding the collar of his leather jacket tight, "It's sad...that even a silver-tongued devil like you fell for the words of a small bunny. I expected more from you, Nick."
His mouth dropped, while Judy walked with a satisfying grin over to her chair, where a filled bowl with cereal was already waiting for her. It slowly dawned on him but in the end, his longtime partner and friend spoke out what went through his mind.
"She hustled you." Finnick chirped in his deep voice and began to laugh, "She hustled you good! Ahahaha. Not bad, Judy! Not bad."
With a smile of success on her face, Judy raised her steaming hot cup of coffee to acknowledge Finnick's praise.
Nick's slick posture, however, returned fast, and with it returned also the good old and familiar smile, "Not bad, Carrots. I never expected such a display of acting skills from a Jedi."
"Well, I guess multiple dozens of brothers and sisters teach you how to take any banter...and how to repay it," Judy still smiled and took a sip from her black coffee before she turned her gaze from the red to the sandy colored fox.
"And now to you, Finnick… or, better, the both of you."
"Yeah?" Finnick replied while he and Nick tried to appear as uninterested as possible. Judy's eyes rested alternating on the two.
"Patty?"
"Yes, Captain?"
"Please add the two as crew members to this ship. Normal access to all systems and the ability to fly the Stargazer in my absence. Hyperspace and root access remain on my side alone." Judy said in a calm voice and continued to eat her bowl of cereal as if it was a command she would give every day.
"Captain, I want to address my concerns about this decision. The amount of time you know these two individuals is very limited and because of that is a complete evaluation of their motives not possible." Patty said while the foxes exchanged surprised gazes.
"Duly noted, Patty."
"Yes, Captain." The AI confirmed and became silent.
"Sorry, if I have to say that but your AI is right, Carrots. You barely know us...and not that I want to argue against your decision but let me ask you this simple question that is on the tongue of every mammal and AI of this ship – why?" Nick asked into the silence of the ship.
Judy put her spoon on the table and looked up to the metal ceiling with all its pipes and cables. She searched for an answer and took her time for this.
"I...I'm not sure myself. Okay? The logical thing would be to bring you to Telnas IV, inform the Jedi council about the Siths I've encountered, and call it a day. That would be what I was trained to do as a Jedi...that would be the right thing to do but...," Judy stopped and looked with crossed arms over to Nick, who showed a concerned face.
"But?"
"But...it feels wrong! You two kidnapped no one and I'm sure by now that there were never any victims in the first place! So what is this all about? Why would someone try to abduct a Jedi on their first mission or a renegade who left the order over ten years ago? There's no connection and it makes zero sense to me... but despite all those uncertainties, I have the feeling that something big is happening here. Something that the council would overlook, ignore, or just deny. I...I don't know. Do any of you two understand me?" Judy asked while her ears which were just seconds ago high and up fell slowly down to her back.
"Don't worry, Carrots. I do," Nick said and took a sip from his coffee, which he judged as tasteful and continued to drink, "But I have to tell you, there's at least one connection between us two which comes to my mind. No one would search too long for a rookie on their first mission who got lost. So many already did and so many more will do in the future. Their disappearance is tragic but common and hey...let's be honest. Who would give a damn about a turncoat like me?"
Nick said this while he looked with a sad gaze into his empty cup that contained just some stains of dried coffee by now. He hated it that these stories of abandonment hit him harder than he liked to admit. When he raised his gaze, Nick looked into the uplifting face of an overly optimistic bunny that somehow managed to put a smile on his face.
"I don't know what others would do but I would search for you, Nick. Period."
"I hope you'll not regret your decision," Nick replied with a worried gaze.
"You're sure you're okay with this, Buddy? I mean working for him after...you know," Nick asked, while he leaned against the exit of the Stargazer. His eyes went over Finnick's head and inspected the other ships around them. Today, the spaceport of Theed, the human capital of Naboo, was as hectic as an anthill. Massive cargo ships landed, were unloaded, and flew quickly back into space. But besides those ships, which were typical for such a place, also landed a large number of expensive-looking ships with military convoys. The people who exited the ships looked to Nick like aristocrats, diplomats, and other high-level executives with an entourage of soldiers that seemed to take their job very seriously and which were definitely not cheap.
"Yeah, I'm sure. I mean, I will never forgive him but I know why you have to do it. He's the one with the information that we need...but you're aware of the fact that Judy will be pissed, dont'cha?" Finnick said, folding his arms in front of his chest.
"Probably...I'm sure she will not like my plan at all but if I tell her everything beforehand, she'll probably want to find another way...for sure an honorable solution to the problem where no other way exists." Nick said and sighed heavily, "Why are you grinning at me like that?"
"You know, you could talk to Mr. Big alone but strangely you wanted her at your side. Just admit that you wanted to spend some time with her alone." Finnick said and grinned up at Nick who just rolled his eyes in response.
"There's nothing between her and me, Fin. We're just two force users on a mission to find out who wants to kill us, okay? Normal Jedi stuff I would say... Now get lost and don't forget to send the message to Mr. Bigs palace and gather some information for us." Nick replied and tried to put on a smile.
"Sure, Nick. Anyway, have fun working with the Fuzz," Finnick replied, chuckling about his own joke and beginning to walk away with his leather jacket over his shoulder.
"Don't worry I will and don't drink too much. Do you hear me?" Nick shouted after the small desert fox, who just waved with his free paw over his shoulder.
Nick closed the gate of the ship and returned to the captain's chair, where Judy went through the damage reports of the ship and sorted out what was probably fixable in a nearby repair shop and what had to wait until she returned to Coruscant. The escape from the Wheel, an adventure which seemed almost a lifetime away, had left them with some large holes in the outer shell of the ship. Nothing too serious but Judy was someone who liked to be better safe than sorry.
"So...did you give him at least a little goodbye kiss?" Judy said with a smirk on her face while she continued to scroll further through the report. Nick beside her, who had not expected such a question from her needed a second or two to regain his smug grin, "Nope, no kisses. We two are more huggers than kissers. You know?"
"Ahh, I see," Judy acknowledged with a smile before she turned back to him, "Now, where do we fly to?"
"Our aim is the Tundra Palace, which is, believe it or not, the center of the snowy city of Tundra Town and located far in the north of Naboo in a hollow mountain," Nick explained and began to enter the coordinates, which Judy confirmed with a confused gaze.
"Hollow? What do you mean with hollow?"
"It sounds confusing...but you'll get it as soon as you see the place. I promise." Nick leaned back with a smile and the Stargazer began to depart from their landing spot. It took the ship just a matter of seconds to reach the higher atmospheric levels.
"Fifteen minutes until we reach Tundra town, Captain."
"Thanks, Patty." Judy replied and folded her paws over her lap," So...what happened between Mr. Big and Finnick. It must be bad because he even refuses to talk to him?"
A deep sigh escaped Nick's muzzle and for a moment, Judy expected that he didn't want to talk at all but a striking smile on his muzzle proved her wrong, "I shouldn't really talk about that without him but... you're also, kind of, our captain now and it would be better to know everything beforehand and I also have to apologize in advance, Carrots. You'll see why."
"I don't think you have to apologize but okay, shoot."
"Well, let's see...Half a year ago, Finnick and I got a mission from Mr. Big to locate and return a locked crate from the palace on his forsaken home planet. It wasn't his first mission for us, so we knew that Big was serious about every mission he gave to someone. He added two young treasure scouts to our party who would help us locate the crate. An odd couple, a human and a black fox, Alura, and Belise." Nick said and smiled as he remembered the two, "As I said, they were an odd couple and treasure scouting was their profession...not that I'm anyone who should talk like this about odd groups but a human and a fox...that's rare. And even rarer was the fact that Belise dragged her older sister, who she called Alura, along. The young, black vixen was the moving force behind the duo and Alura with her short, blond hair was like her larger shadow. Always behind her, always on the watch, always thinking. A perfect duo. And then Belise met Finnick."
Nick shook his head with a smile on his muzzle, while the Stargazer broke through a layer of clouds. He knew when and how to take a break in his stories.
"Finnick and Belise, I tell you...that was a match made in hell. They were loud, they were always fighting, but they were simply perfect for each other. Neither of them would have ever admitted this simple truth but everyone in our little group knew what was up. The two of them began to fall in love during our little trip to a deadly ice planet." Nick explained and went silent.
"She sounds like someone I would like. So let me guess," Judy said with a smile on her face, "In the end, she decided to stay a treasure hunter and left him until they would meet again to keep the romance interesting?"
"No...unfortunately not. You see...things went wrong in this icy world and we learned that the planet wasn't as dead as we thought." Nick explained, his gaze directed at his own feet.
"Oh." Was Judy's only response, while her ears dropped slowly to her back.
"Yeah. Oh, indeed," Nick said and scratched his chin, "There were raiders in the remnants of his old palace, looting whatever was left in the abandoned buildings of an organization that was gone for less than five years. There were hundreds of raiders and I suggested we play the waiting game until it was safe but Belise just laughed at me and flew her ship right into the atmosphere, towards the spot that Alura had located as the most likely position for the crate. We followed their ship and then..."
"Then you found the treasure and could escape without any damage?" Judy asked with high hopes and a forced smile but Nick didn't even look at her.
"Not exactly...we found it, we fought against the raiders but in the end, it was eight ships against two. Belise turned back to fight the other ships together with Alura, I imagine with a grin on her face. You have to know that she was one hell of a pilot and so she took down the last three ships by directing them into a glacier that was right above the old palace. They crashed down and were buried by a whole mountain of ice and snow." Nick explained while keeping his eyes directly on his feet.
"They...they didn't make it?" Judy asked carefully and all Nick could do was to shake his head.
"No...We searched for a whole week but there was no sign of life or any energy signature. Even with my force powers, we weren't able to find them. I bet Finnick would still search for them if we weren't escorted back to Mr. Big by some of his henchmen. Finnick spoke no word during the whole flight and even in front of Mr. Big, he remained silent. Well, at least until Mr. Big opened the crate… and that was the moment when all hell broke loose." Nick sighed as the ship began to descend back towards the surface of the planet.
"What? Why? Was it empty?"
"No, it contained something."
"And what was it?" Judy asked in a curious voice.
"A rug."
"A rug?"
"Yep, a rug and I could instantly see the hate spike up in Finnick's eyes when we both realized for what we had risked our lives, while Belise and Alura lost theirs, for. It took just a second for Finnick to pull out his blaster and point it at Mr. Big. Oh man, he yelled all the nasty words he knew at him and it wouldn't surprise me if he even came up with some new ones." Nick explained while the Stargazer broke through the clouds, revealing the wide, barren, and rocky countryside underneath them. Judy was desperate to know how the story continued but the view distracted her and Nick to a degree that they both forgot to finish the story. There were no trees, just craggy rocks, and small streams that led to a massive mountain that seemed to tower over everything in this part of the world. There was nothing else Judy could spot in the far or near-distant, just plain land with this one majestic mountain in the middle.
The closer they came, the more Judy understood what Nick meant when he spoke about a hollow mountain. At first glance it appeared as if someone had painted a city on to the mountain to create an optical illusion but coming closer, Judy realized that a part of the mountain was gone and that this massive hole marked the entrance to Tundra Town. Both of them stared spellbound by the view of their aim. They flew right into the city limits, right over large buildings that were covered in thick, white snow. The streets and sidewalks were crowded but their ship knew just one aim, the landing port of the Tundra town palace.
"It's time," Nick said and stood up. The Stargazer flew right into the city and landed on the large and mostly empty landing zone of the Tundra Town Palace. Both walked to the end of the ship, facing the steel gate in front of them and waiting for it to open up.
"What happened then?"
"I intervened of course. But imagine the situation for a second, Carrots. Me in front of Finnick and at least twenty loaded blasters pointed at us. They were ready to shoot and I can tell you that Mr. Big hates it to be threatened. And as much as I know no one ever did without paying a heavy price. I needed all of my rhetorical talents to turn this situation around but in the end, I managed to get him to let us go." Nick said.
A shock went through the entire ship which resulted in Judy bumping slightly into Nick when the Stargazer touched the ground.
"Captain, we reached our destination."
"Got it. Open the gate and then wait for our return, Patty." Judy commanded and the AI obeyed by opening the steel door.
Pure white snow was the first thing the two saw, followed by several large mammals on the staircase that led towards the palace. They stood ready with loaded weapons in their paws, pointing them right at the duo. Polar bears, that's what they were and a lot of them. Judy counted two full squads of heavily armed polar bears and she wouldn't be surprised if there was a whole battalion nearby. Hell, maybe even a regiment stationed in the whole town. Nick began slowly to raise his arms to signal that he was unarmed and had no intention to fight but Judy was still confused about the rude welcome.
"Nick! What are you doing?"
"Do you remember my little apology from the beginning of the flight?" Nick asked, his gaze just concentrated on the polar bears in front of them.
"Yes, but what…?"
"I didn't tell you the complete story," Nick said and walked slowly on, away from the ship and towards a clear opening where everyone could see him. Without even thinking, Judy followed him.
They ended in front of several concrete staircases, where soldiers activated multiple strong floodlights to blind the bunny and the fox. They weren't even a minute out here in the cold but Judy could already feel how she began to shake.
"WILDE! We got your message! What the hell are you doing here?" The deep and growling voice of the leading bear roared over the empty landing field. Nick tried to see but the light was simply too strong. Both of them shielded their eyes with at least one paw.
"Is that you, Koslov?" Nick asked.
"Yes...and for the sake of old times, I tell you to turn around and leave."
"Nick, what is going on here?" Judy asked with a little bit of panic in her voice.
He sighed before he began to speak, "As I said, I didn't tell you the whole story. I also had a price to pay...a very heavy one. I made a promise to Mr. Big that I and Finnick will never come back to Tundra Town again or he would kill me...well us."
"What?!" Judy yelled at him in utter disbelief, "And you thought it was a good idea to tell me that now?"
"I was sure you would reject this idea."
"Of course I would! Why should we go to someone who wants to kill you or Finnick as soon as you step in front of him!"
"Hey, I know it's a bad idea but it's the best I could come up with, or do you have a better idea to find the guys who are after us?" Nick asked and looked deep into Judy's eyes. He got her and she knew it. "Well...no...not really."
"Fine, then listen…," Nick said to Judy but was immediately interrupted by Koslov, "Wilde! This is your last warning. Take your ship and leave! I give you a minute!"
"Damn... they're really serious about this. Nevermind. Listen, Judy, I have a plan and I know it will work, okay? My only question to you is...do you trust me?" Nick asked and looked to Judy who was clearly angry at him but there was also a small smile on her lips. She sighed, "Call me crazy but somehow I do trust you...and I hope I'll never regret that."
"Perfect," Nick said smiling from one ear to the other, "You will not, I promise and whatever happens, just play along, okay?"
Judy nodded and Nick took another step towards the stairs.
"Wrong direction, Wilde," Koslov said and the sound of loading blasters filled the air.
"Is he here?" Nick asked and at first, was a tense silence the only answer. Several seconds passed in which Judy could swear to hear a low, quiet voice coming from the stairs. In the end, it was Koslov's voice that spoke out.
"No, he's not."
"Aha, okay fine. So he is here." Nick said and earned himself a grunt from the leading polar bear. He cleared his throat before he began to speak, "Please believe me when I say, that I wouldn't be here if the situation wouldn't demand me to be here, but unfortunately someone wants to kill me and my partner beside me and I know for sure that the only person in the galaxy who can help me is you, Mr. Big."
"Stop the blathering and leave, Wilde. That's the only advice I can give you!" Koslov said, his voice sounded even angrier than before.
"I can't! My life...and her's depend on the information I need from you!" Nick said in a stoic voice.
"Enough! Take aim but wait for my command!" The leading polar bear shouted at his soldiers.
"Mr. Big! You once told me about a certain artifact that you wanted to own but couldn't because no one was able to obtain it, am I right?"
"Shut it, fox, and go," Koslov said and fired his blaster. Nick knew this was another warning and stood his ground. The blaster bolt hit the concrete floor in front of him just inches away from his feet. Snow spun up and flew all around him and Judy.
"Fine, no more beating around the bush then...You still want the green Heart of Naboo, am I right, Mr. Big? The centerpiece of the royal crown jewels...well...I'll bring it to you in exchange for some specific information. What do you say? Come on! You know that no one beside me could ever pull stealing it off and you, better than anyone, know that!" Nick finished and waited nervously for a response. Judy could feel how much was on the line for the two of them in this particular moment.
"Enough is enough," Koslov said and raised his left arm to signal his soldiers to attack, "Everyone! Fi-..." He shouldn't be able to end his command.
"Wait." A calm voice that allowed no objections from anyone spoke up and Judy saw that Nick relaxed visibly.
"Please, Koslov, let me take a look at Nicholas and his companion...and for the sake of my eyes, turn those horrible lights off, they make my eyes hurt."
"Yes, Sir," Koslov replied but didn't seem utterly fond about the decision of his master. He gave a sign to his soldiers, who lowered their weapons and deactivated the strong lamps. Judy still needed a moment to adjust her eyesight to the new condition but her curiosity about who or what Mr. Big was grew to incredible heights. What could a person with such a name look like? Maybe another polar bear?
The answer was nothing like Judy had expected. When Kozlov stepped forward to the railing he held a tablet in his right paw and on it sat a little shrew in an expensive-looking suit. She could feel how his little black eyes inspected her and then Nick again.
"Would you really accept this job and bring me the green heart of Naboo?" Mr. Big asked.
"Yes."
"Tell me, Nicholas, how I can trust you again after you and your little friend treated me so harshly the last time you worked for me? Maybe you steal it and try to sell it to someone else or what if you run away again with my jewel?" Mr. Big asked and Judy saw from the corner of her eyes how Nick clenched both of his fists. She didn't need the force to feel his anger.
"And who will ensure me that you will fulfill your mission and bring me the crystal after I gave you the information to locate it? Where's my insurance?"
Nick opened his mouth but he couldn't speak. He simply didn't know what to say because no one would vouch for him. No one who ever and there was probably no one who ever would.
"I do." Judy said with confidence in her voice, stepping forward. It seemed at least in this specific case that he was wrong. A genuine smile formed on his muzzle when he heard her words.
"I will ensure that Nick will bring this crystal to you."
"And if he fails?" Mr. Big asked back, obviously interested in the fact who this unknown bunny was and what she would offer him.
Graceful, Judy drew her purple lightsaber and enlightened it. She moved it in one motion up to Nick's throat where it remained just inches away from him. The smile on Nick's face died instantly, while the bunny and the shrew inspected each other with great interest. Judy smiled and said.
"If he fails...I will bring you his head."