Hey, everybody. Back with another chapter. I'm mostly finished with finals, so I decided to write this in my spare time.
Let's get to it.
Chapter 4- Tatooine
(June 5, 2026)
Jared is relatively quiet as he and Jonathan walk up to the doors leading in the palace that once belonged to Jabba the Hutt. Jared and the Hammer Squadron had left Naboo after their initial meeting and travelled to Tatooine. The rest of the squadron had stayed behind in Mos Eisley while Jared and Jonathan had travelled out into the desert to Boba Fett's palace.
'You ever met Fett?" Jared asks as the two walk up to the main door into the palace.
"Nope. Heard all the stories, but never met him myself," Jonathan responds.
"Me neither, but I heard the stories about him from Lieutenant Colonel Adams. Hopefully he'll be cooperative," Jared says. Jared then reaches forward and knocks on the door.
A second later, a small arm opens out to reveal a gatekeeper droid. The droid speaks in its language, and Jared answers it, "Representatives from the Terran Alliance, here to see Boba Fett."
The droid says a few more words before it retracts into the door. A moment later, the massive door begins to open. The two men wait for the door to open far enough, and then slowly enter the palace.
The two men walk down the sandy corridor into the palace, waiting for someone to show themselves. Finally, a figure emerges from the shadows of one doorway on the wall of the corridor, revealed to be Fennec Shand a moment later.
"Terrans, huh?" she asks as she approaches them.
"Yes. I'm Jedi Knight Jared Hansen, and this is Captain Jonathan Page of the Hammer Squadron," Jared answers her.
"I see. What brings you here to speak to Fett?" Fennec asks.
"We are looking for information, and we think he is the one most likely to have said information. We were hoping to pick his brain," Jared says.
"Very well. Let me take you to him," Fennec says. She then turns and starts walking away, the two men following her.
Fennec leads them through several corridors before they finally emerge in a large room. And on one side of the room, they see a large throne, with Boba sitting on it, his helmet on and holding his gaffi stick in one hand.
"Terrans, boss. They're here seeking information," Fennec says as she approaches Fett's throne.
"Information, huh?" Boba asks.
"Yes, Fett. I am Jedi Knight Jared Hansen, and this is Captain Jonathan Page of the Hammer Squadron. We are on a mission from our commanders, and we came here in the hopes you could might have some information that would help us locate our targets," Jared says.
"I see," Boba responds. He then reaches up and removes his helmet, setting it on the armrest of his throne. He pauses for a moment before he says, "You Terrans have continued to honor our agreements. I will help you if I am able."
"Thank you, Fett," Jared says. He pauses, then begins to explain their situation, "The Hammer Squadron and I have been tasked with locating a mysterious group that have recently won the loyalty of some remaining Imperials. We know little about this group, except that they are a cult that worships the dark side of the Force, and that it has been around for centuries. We know little about them, save that they had favor with the Emperor, and that they recently sabotaged several New Republic convoys in the Mid Rim. We also know that they commonly wear robes decorated with small stars."
Boba listens intently to everything that they are saying, comparing it to things he has heard in the last few years since taking Jabba's throne. That last thing Jared says piques his attention. After a moment of silence, Boba begins to speak, saying, "I may have heard of such a group. Little, but I have heard of them."
"What can you tell us?" Jonathan asks.
"Only a little. From my sources, I have heard of a cult who worships the dark side who wears robes similar to what you have told me. From what I know, they wish to destroy Skywalker and his efforts to rebuild the Jedi and spread the influence of dark side worship across the galaxy. They've been seen on a few Outer Rim planets lately, including on Tatooine, but only in very small numbers. They never seem to travel in large groups, I suppose to avoid attracting much attention.. I never considered them a problem before now. Perhaps its time to reconsider that," Boba answers.
"Have you heard anything about where they're operating from?" Jared asks.
"I've heard they work off a secret world somewhere in the Outer Rim. But I have no idea where exactly that planet is," Boba responds.
"Any idea where else we might be able to find them?" Jared asks.
Boba thinks for a moment, thinking about anything he's heard that could suggest somewhere he could point these two. Then, he remembers something, and he says, "I remember hearing something recently. Several cults have become very interested in Mustafar recently because of its connection to Darth Vader, and have been settling or exploring around the remains of hid old fortress. I don't have much information about these cultists or what sects they belong to, but perhaps one of them could be this cult that you're looking for."
"Thank you, Fett. We'll head for Mustafar. And if you should come across any members of this cult, the Alliance will reward you handsomely for their capture," Jared says.
"I'll keep that in mind," Boba responds with a sly smile.
Jared and Jonathan incline their heads respectfully, then allow Fennec to escort them out of the palace. As they get outside, they start walking more briskly towards the spot where their fighters are parked.
"Hopefully Fett's hunch pans out. If he has almost no information on them, not many others will. We need to be lucky here," Jonathan says.
"There's no such thing as luck," Jared responds with a slight smile.
The two soon reach their fighters. After climbing in and powering up the fighters, the two lift off and start flying towards Mos Eisley. As they make their way towards the settlement, Jonathan gets on the radio and calls out over the squadron's frequency, "This is Captain Page to all Hammer Squadron pilots. We're heading to Mustafar. Everybody, get airborne and we'll rendezvous over Mos Eisley."
And, I'll end the chapter there. I know it was short, but I hope it was still a good one.
Next chapter will show the first encounter with this dark side cult on Mustafar. That chapter will probably be up this weekend or sometime next week. Until then, please leave a review, and stay tuned!