We rode for hours, under the baking heat of the sun. I understood perfectly why the Ibhaan'l traders wore the white wraps they had. Fortunately, the sun eventually went down below the horizon, leaving behind an orange hue with a purple highlight. Finally, as the sky turned dark, we came within reach of the Ibhaan'l camp. I had known we reached their tribal lands when I began seeing armed desert patrols. At the main camp, fires were lit, and hide tents were set and pitched in a large circular fashion. We stopped at the outskirts of the camp and dismounted. Trien, with his mini-krayt on his shoulder, approached us as the tribesmen walked their pack animals to a nearby watering hole.
"Will we see the elders now?" Irkchik asked.
"We will eat, then my friends, you may speak with the elders." He replied. I held back irritation, knowing this wasn't the time for impatience. Terran though groaned, while Munshaan sighed. Idiots would get us kicked out if they didn't mind themselves.
We followed Trien to one of the camp fires, where the native Ibhaan'l already had a pot of stew heated up. The natives looked at us, talked amongst themselves as they ate. Apparently we were the 'talk of the town.' Now that it was evening, the Ibhaan'l removed their headwraps, revealing normal looking Humans. They had slightly darker skin, with black hair. Many of them had beards. The women had piercing blue and green eyes, and kept their hair braided in the back. Golden wire coiled around their braids, keeping them neat and even as they reached their backs. Curious people.
Trien gave us metal bowls, and poured each of us a decent ration of the stew. One of the camp tribesmen poured each of us water into canteen cups, knowing we were tired and dehydrated from the trip. We sat down around the fire and began to eat. I removed my helmet to eat. The Ibhaan'l, and even my fellow hunters, gave me a glance, having not seen my face before this. They studied my features for a moment, seeing 'me' for the first time, then went back to their stew. Whatever. I knocked back some water and began into the stew.
Trien spoke up after a few spoonfuls of stew. "You all must have come a long way for this Cassus Fett."
Wary of releasing information, I held my tongue. Gorman, though, piped up. "Yes, from Nar Shaddaa."
To this, Trien's eyes lit up. "Ah, the vertical city! I have not seen it in years!" He exclaimed excitedly. The mini-krayt on his shoulder cawed, riled by his master's enthusiasm.
"You've been to Nar Shaddaa?" Irkchik asked.
Trien took a sip of water and nodded. "I haven't always 'gone native.'"
"Yah, so what are you then? Some freak that just said the hell with it?" Terran asked. Suuvarsh smacked his shoulder, and Terran shrugged. This was also the first time I was seeing the real Suuvarsh. She took off her helmet to reveal a feminine Ubese face. Weird, and this whole time I had thought she was a guy.
Trien took the remark in jest and smiled. "My grandfather's father, my father and his father, were Lorell pirates. Even though those blasted Jedi routed us, my family stuck to their guns."
I was now curious. "So what happened?" I asked.
"Well, after that Arca Jeth character defeated us, most of the Lorell settled down and colonized Hapes. The rest of us stuck to the old ways. So for the last few generations, we've been living the old life. We made quite a living in the Outer Rim." Trien began. He took a spoonful of stew, then took it down with a gulp of water. "So anyway, while the galaxy was having fun, we were making a racket off the Republic and Mandalorians. No offense there, I hope." He said, looking to me.
Plenty of Outer Rim pirates were squashed like bugs under our boots back in the day, while we were cleaning up those sectors. If some of them managed to live and evade us, then they had my respect. I shrugged. "Whatever."
Trien nodded. "Right. So anyway, when that madman Revan came back as Sith he started conquering the Outer Rim. We thought we could do as we did in the previous war, and make money off these guys too. Well, Revan wouldn't have it. He blockaded our planet, landed troops and nearly killed every single one of us."
"But you escaped. Last of the Mohicans, huh?" Gorman asked.
"Yah something like that. I decided being a pirate wasn't working out. So anyway, during our golden years, we had made routine stops here to Socorro. We traded with the Ibhaan'l often. So I made my way back here, called up some old friends in the tribe, and they let me stay. Isn't that right, Ceylor?" Trien said, picking a piece of meat from the stew and feeding it to the little dragon.
Well, I liked the guy. Making his way in the galaxy, even after his people were annihilated. Good for him. Irkchik clanked his canteen cup with Trien's, and soon enough we finished our meals. One of the tribesmen came over to talk to Trien. They spoke in the Ibhaan'l tongue, and after a few moments Trien turned to us.
"Can we talk to the elders now?" I asked.
"Yes. Please, follow me." Trien said. We stood up, and followed him to a large hide tent. Inside, five elder Ibhaan'l sat in a semi-circle, waiting for us. Trien told us, "Please sit, standing during important meetings is a rude gesture to the Ibhaan'l."
We did so, and sat opposite the elders. Trien sat next to one of the old men, whose beard had turned gray from age. While two of the elders were men, the other three were women. Trien once again acted as the interpreter between us and the natives. For a few minutes he spoke with the elders, then turned to us.
"The elders tell me that in centuries past, the Ibhaan'l and Asilyr tribes warred with each other. Eventually the two tribes ended their war, and while the Ibhaan'l became merchant traders, the Asilyr fought amongst themselves." Trien began.
One of the elders, a woman, talked to Trien now, telling him more. After a few moments, he spoke to us again. "A couple years ago, the Asilyr tribes stopped fighting each other. An offworlder came, took command of one tribe, and then began subjugating the rest through diplomacy and war. They now are a unified tribe, under the single leadership of this offworlder."
The other male elder now spoke to Trien. Our Lorell friend reported back to us soon enough. "This offworlder was a warrior from a faraway culture, which has since become extinct. They say that when he began his conquests of the other tribes, he showed no mercy to those who put up resistance. His message to any tribe he pursued was 'Join or Die.'"
Sounds like Cassus alright I mused to myself.
"But can you show us where he is?" Palscho asked. Trien conferred with the elders again.
"They say the Asilyr live in the far western reaches of the Doaba Badlands. They tell me there is a steady peace kept with the Asilyr, but that if any caravan crosses into their lands, there will be war. We can escort you to their borders, but beyond that, we cannot go any further."
Well, that was probably about as good as it was going to get. These Ibhaan'l got us this far, taking us to the border would be generous. I looked to the rest of my hunters. Terran scowled and shook his head of course, Munshaan wasn't happy either, but the rest looked in agreement. Irkchik spoke.
"So when do we leave?" The Saurin asked.
"We can take you there in a few hours, before dawn. Get some rest, you will need it."
With that, Trien led us out of the tent to find us a place to crash in. It had been a long day under the desert sun, and we were all tired. Soon enough the Lorell found us a large enough tent we could all fit into. As we were settling down, Gorman insisted on reporting in to his Hutt overseer. Rajja was angry he hadn't reported in sooner, and even more angry about the Ganks being killed. Back on Nar Shaddaa, Gorman would probably face harsh punishment for disappointing the Hutt so much. Too bad, he was a good guy.