"This place is huge," Carth said in wonder as he craned his neck. Huge was in fact, an understatement. Cavernous would probably be a more appropriate word. The main hall of Davik's Estate towered far over the trio's heads, and the ceiling was made of glass so that the room seemed to extend up into the heavens.
"Its ostentatious," Aminta corrected him as she glanced around. She had counted at least three water fountains, and exotic birds flew overhead. Who in the seven hells purposefully traps birds in a house? The guy's demented. The floors were polished so that she could see her reflection, and plants imported from nearly every planet turned the room into a near forest.
Canderous chuckled gruffly. "Davik has rather outlandish tastes."
Aminta stiffened, and her hands clenched at her sides as she remembered the little girls. "I'd say," she muttered, and Carth gave her a sideways glance. "Is he a nature freak?" She asked after a few tense moments, and Canderous shook his head ruefully.
"He thinks of himself as a hunter."
"Let me guess. His body guards shoot down the prey and he takes the credit?" The corners of Canderous' mouth quirked upwards, and Aminta sighed. "Figures."
"So… where are we supposed to meet this guy?" Carth asked after a slight pause, and Canderous smirked at him. Carth strove to keep his temper in check.
"The throne room."
Aminta laughed. "He thinks pretty highly of himself, doesn't he?"
"Very egotistical," Canderous agreed. Carth felt slightly insulted at the obvious bonding occurring between Aminta and the Mandalorian, and he strove to ignore them.
"This guy married?" Aminta asked, surveying her surroundings.
Canderous grinned. "You interested?"
"Funny," Aminta responded dryly. "Just curious if he was or not."
"Yep. The Missus lives on an entirely different floor," he winked at her, and Aminta laughed. "Married him for his money, no doubt. He married her because… I have no idea why he married her. Why'd you want to know?"
"Just wondering how any woman could live in a place that's decorated like this."
"You should see her rooms. They're much worse," Canderous replied with a dry chuckle, and Aminta shook her head.
"They got kids?"
"There's a few twi'lek half-breeds that run around the place, but none of the women have ever pinned him down as the father. Everyone knows though."
"Classy guy."
"Very," he grinned. "Speak of the devil," he muttered under his breath. Davik strode in, and Aminta winced at the hideous purple color of the man's armor. It was rivaled in intensity only by Carth's flight jacket. And beside him was a short man in goggles. That imp is supposed to be a bodyguard?
"Canderous!" Davik's voice was cultured, and was practically dripping with condescension. "This must be the mercenary that you told me about," he glanced over Aminta briefly before turning his attention to Canderous.
"What happened to you working alone?" The little man asked snidely, and Canderous stiffened.
"Watch how you speak to me Calo. Last I heard I still had more kills than you."
"Be very careful, Canderous. You're Davik's top dog now, but it's just a matter of time."
Davik glanced over at a smirking Aminta nervously before interrupting with a slight smile. "My two best men shouldn't be spending all of their time arguing. It's bad for business," he reasoned. Calo and Canderous stood still and glared at each other.
"Your name?" Davik directed his attention to Aminta.
"Vi," she shifted her weight to her other foot, and glanced Davik over. "Nice suit."
Davik grinned genuinely, and turned to Canderous. "I like her. She's small, but she's a pistol." He turned his attention back to Aminta. "Is there a last name to go with that?"
"Eirye." She spoke only when spoken to, and spent the rest of her time inspecting her surroundings. Her reactions coupled with the leather pants and skimpy top she was wearing caused her to really look the part she was playing.
"Does he have a name?" He looked past Aminta to Carth, who stood apart from the other relatively shady figures gathered in the hall. He stood erect as a soldier was trained to, and Aminta winced inwardly. Maybe I should have made him stay at home.
"Ex-soldier. Insignificant," she replied with nonchalance.
Davik grinned knowingly. "We must all have our fun," he smirked and turned away from Carth, who was flushing a deep red.
Canderous stifled a laugh, and winked at Aminta, who merely raised her eyebrows in response. Damn, the girl's good! He then turned and leered at Carth, who had been effectively dismissed from any further conversation.
"Would you like a tour?" Davik asked Aminta, who cocked her head slightly to the side.
Finally, she yawned. "Might as well." Her indifference would prove valuable later on, she knew. So long as Davik believed that she didn't care about what was going on, he wouldn't suspect her of stealing his ship.
Davik gestured her to follow him, and began walking briskly down the corridors. How anyone could stand to have a house so large was beyond her. As they walked, Davik pointed out his favorite features of his monstrosity of a home… a statue sculpted out of flowing water (the story of how that occurred had been long winded and made Aminta believe she was going to die of boredom), one of the last four remaining members of a species of aves, and a light fixture made entirely of a dead Jedi's crystals.
When they reached the hangar, Aminta barely glanced the plane over. "This is my baby," Davik informed her with pride as he traced the ship's every curve with his eyes. "It doesn't look like much, but its the fastest ship on this side of the galaxy."
"I used to own one that looked a lot like it," Aminta replied dismissively, and Davik's spine straightened slightly.
"This ship is one of a kind," he insisted, and Aminta frowned slightly.
"Men and their ships," she grumbled under her breath. Davik raised an eyebrow, and she was compelled to continue. She gestured to Carth, who had been staring at the ship with open excitement. In order to dim suspicion regarding his behavior she said, "Take him for instance. Ships are the only thing that make him tick."
Canderous snorted, and Davik chuckled. Carth glared at her upon hearing the veiled insult. "I have kept you long enough," Davik proclaimed and clapped his hands together.
"Canderous will escort you to the guest quarters, and he will stay there with you," he informed her with a pointed glance at his employee. Canderous bristled, abut nodded smoothly. "Do not attempt to leave the guest wing or disturb any of the other guests."
Aminta frowned and crossed her arms over her chest. "Why not?" she demanded, and Davik stared her down.
"If you're going to work for me, you had best learn to take orders without question." There was an unspoken threat in his voice, and Aminta backed off. Davik smirked and turned to his goggle eyed friend. "Come on, Calo. Let's leave the Mandalorian to his new partners."
"Bastard," Aminta muttered under her breath once the men had gone, and Canderous nodded in agreement in his gruff way.
"But he's a bastard that you don't want to mess with. His influence extends far beyond Taris," Canderous warned her, and Aminta nodded reluctantly.
"I got it. Play nice." She glanced over to where Davik had made his exit. "For now."
Canderous grinned. "I promise you, you can help me take him down when the time comes. So long as you let me kill him."
"Deal."
Carth frowned from where he stood behind the pair, and attempted to divert them from the subject of bloodshed. "So, where exactly are the guest quarters located?"
Canderous sneered and crossed his arms over his chest. "That's for me to know and you to find out."
Aminta glared at the pair of men. "I don't understand how I can get along with both of you, but you two go at each other's throats the instant anyone says anything."
Carth merely glared at Canderous, who smirked in return. Aminta rolled her eyes. "Come on, Canderous. Take us to the fracking guest chambers already," Aminta muttered under her breath, and Canderous grinned at her.
"You've got a big mouth for someone so tiny," he remarked dryly, and Aminta visibly stiffened. But then, she grinned up at him.
"The best things come in the smallest packages."
"Cute," the Mandalorian mumbled, and turned a corner, walking briskly. Aminta growled under her breath, and had to increase her pace to a jog to keep up with the hulking man's long strides.
"Hairless Wookiee," she grumbled under her breath, and the corners of Canderous' mouth twitched upwards slightly.
"Creative little bugger, aren't you?"
Aminta smirked. "Very." Aminta looked over her shoulder to see that Carth was lagging behind. "Coming, flyboy?"
"I don't want to get caught in the line of fire," he replied dryly, looking pointedly between Canderous and Aminta. Aminta grinned back at him, and turned around just in time to stop herself from running into an open door.
"Canderous," Aminta ground out from behind clenched teeth, eyeing the offending door. "You did that on purpose," she grumbled, and Canderous gave a throaty laugh.
"Of course I did. Guerilla tactics are most effective in combat."
"I'd hardly call playful bantering combat."
"Oh, is that what you call it?" Canderous asked with a raised brow, and Aminta clenched her fists.
"Son of a schutta," she muttered under her breath, stalking into the chambers alotted to them.
"Schutta," Canderous replied in turn, and Aminta threw the nearest potted plant at his head. He swiftly sidestepped the object, and shoved Carth into the room with a chuckle. "I'll be in the slave's quarters. I'll be back in about an hour."
"Who says you get to have a massage?" Aminta demanded, crossing her arms over her chest.
"I know all of the slave girls already. They'll be more forthcoming with information if I'm the one asking the questions. Now, stay put!" Before Aminta had the chance to object, he slammed the door in her face and stalked down the hallway.
"Oh!" Aminta exclaimed, glairing furiously at the closed door. "Impossible, infuriating man," she muttered, throwing herself down onto one of the many couches that lined the room.
Carth chuckled. "I thought that you got along rather nicely."
"About as nicely as a Cathar gets along with water."
Carth grinned, and Aminta surveyed the room. One large, canopied bed was the centerpiece, the frame made of antique carved wood. A single large window on the left side of the space provided all of the light necessary to function, while at the same time allotting guests a picturesque view of Upper City Taris. However, the rest of the room was decorated in a combination of silver and navy that could have been elegant had the furnishings been slightly more tasteful.
"At least the window's nice," Carth noted as he jerked his chin in that direction. Aminta smiled, and then scowled.
"I'd love to get the name of his decorator."
"So you could pummel him?" Carth asked with a raised brow and a twitch of his lips.
"Precisely."
"How'd I know?"
Aminta made a face at him, and then looked down at the communicator that she had strapped to her belt. "I wonder how the girls are doing," she murmured, reaching for the device.
"You are not going to call them right now," Carth instructed, stilling her hand. AMinta glared up at him, and Carth grinned. "What are you, their mother or something?"
Aminta went still for a brief second, and then she looked out the window. "I'm thinking about it. Gods know those little girls need a mother."
Carth frowned. "You're seriously considering adopting them? Look, Ami, soldiers can't take care of their kids. Trust me, I've had first hand experience…"
"I'm not going to be a soldier forever, you know! And I won't be a smuggler for much longer either. I have enough credits in the bank to keep me comfortable for a while… Wait, you didn't tell me that you had a kid." The abrupt change of subject made Carth wince.
"One. He's… somewhere. But we're not talking about me right now. We're talking about you and those three little ones back at the apartment," he quickly changed the topic of their conversation back to what it had originally been. He didn't want to talk about Dustil now… ever, actually.
Aminta frowned slightly, but allowed the subject to drop. "They need a mother, and they're already attached to me. And since Zalbaar and Mission are going to go wherever I go, I've got two built in babysitters that they're attached to as well. Plus," her voice softened slightly, and she glanced up at him with a slight smile. "I'm pretty attached to them too."
"Exactly how long are you supposed to work for the Republic in exchange for them dropping all of your criminal records?"
"Two years," Aminta's chin lifted a fraction into the air as she realized where Carth was going with the conversation.
"And how are you going to pull that off with kids?"
Aminta glared at him, but then shrugged. "I'll change identities. I've done it before," she replied nonchalantly, and Carth stared at her.
"So, is Aminta Jae your real name?" he asked after a few minutes of silence, and Aminta smirked at him.
"Ever wonder why you can't dig up any personal information on me?" She saw the shocked look that Carth gave her, and she rolled her eyes. "Please. I know the second you met my brother you checked your precious datapads for information on us."
Carth flushed, but shrugged his shoulders. "Guilty. However, nothing turned up on an Oded Jae."
Aminta grinned and crossed her legs. "Lucky for me, Jae isn't his last name. But that's besides the point. The point is that I've changed my identities so completely that I am untraceable to the records concerning my past two lives. I can just as easily switch a third time, and forge all of the papers necessary for adoption."
Carth frowned, but didn't protest any further. It wasn't his business anyway. "You're going to have your hands full," he cautioned, and he saw a broad grin slide onto her face.
"Not any fuller than they are already."
"I'll give that one to you." Carth sat on an adjacent couch and picked up a magazine laying on a side table. After flipping through a few pages, he grimaced in distaste, and set it back down. The details of Taxidermy were definitely not his cup of caffa.
"I'm going to go look around; see what I can find out," Aminta announced after a brief period of silence, pulling herself from the comfortable position she had found of the couch.
"I believe the Mandalorian told you, ever so elegantly, to stay put."
"Since when do I ever do what someone tells me to?" Aminta swiped the pass code off of the coffee table and used it to unlock the door.
Carth grinned and shook his head. "Point taken." He stood from his own seat, wincing when he head his knees crack. I'm getting old. "So, what exactly are we planning on doing?"
"The Mandalorian can get information by getting a massage, but we're going to get it the old fashioned way." She stepped out into the hallway as the door whooshed open, and then glanced back at Carth with a smirk.
"By sticking our vibroblades against a person's throat?" Carth asked with a raised brow, his tone dripping with sarcasm. Aminta glowered.
"No," the ground out between clenched teeth, and then she suddenly calmed herself. "You get to use your blasters." She smirked, and flounced off, leaving Carth to roll his eyes and follow in her wake.
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"That's where we'll find it," Aminta muttered under her breath, and inclined her head towards the room that she and Carth stood before.
"The torture chamber? You can't be serious." Carth had followed her as she had gone through guests' apartments, looting as she went. He had even strayed into the slave chambers with her, but this was going too far. There was no way he was stepping foot into a torture chamber.
"Where else is Davik gonna put the guys who know his secrets?"
"On his payroll?"
Aminta rolled her eyes and sliced the lock, ignoring the sounds of the man's cries from within. "No, dufus. Not if he can't be trusted."
"How do you know this is even the right guy?" Carth crossed his arms over his chest and glowered at her.
Aminta groaned and then turned to glare at him. "We're looking for the Hawk's launch codes. According to the chart outside the door, this guy was Davik's pilot. Do you see a connection?" She waved her fingers in the air, and Carth sighed.
"You win. You always win."
"Don't you know it?" With that, she opened the doors, and neatly sliced the arms off of the torture droids before they had a chance to come after her. Carth followed in disapproving silence, and Aminta did her best to ignore him.
She made quick work of the energy field surrounding the pilot, and took a quick step back when he collapsed to the ground before her feet. "Th-thank you," he managed past a dry throat, and Aminta shifted her weight to her other foot as she absently rubbed her collar bone.
"Don't thank me just yet. Saving you came with a price." Carth choked, and muttered something about decency and morals, but she turned a deaf ear towards him. Noting the effort it took for the wounded man to protest, Aminta continued talking without waiting for a reply. "You're Davik's pilot. We need his launch codes. Plain and simple."
The man shakily withdrew a datapad from his pocket, and Aminta swiftly added it to the growing bulge in her bag. "Thanks. Don't stay here for too long; won't be long before Davik comes in to check on you." With that, she spun on her heel and exited the room.
Carth grabbed her elbow as she turned the corner. "You can't just leave him there," he exclaimed indignantly.
"He'll manage to drag himself away. Ten minutes, give or take."
Carth's mouth dropped and he shook his head. "You're sick."
A corner of Aminta's mouth quirked upwards and she raised a brow. "Maybe. Canderous! Just the giant that we wanted to see!" she exclaimed as Canderous nearly collided into her. "Have a nice massage?"
"Watch it, midget. And my time in the slave quarters was very productive, I'll have you know. It turns out Davik's ex-pilot…"
"Got in trouble somehow, and is now in the torture chamber." Aminta pulled the datapad out of her bag. "And he just might have the codes to the Hawk." She smirked. "Three steps ahead of you, Mandalorian."
"Don't get cocky, squirt." Canderous scowled, upset at being outdone. Carth grinned. "You either, pansy."
Aminta choked back a laugh, and reached for her comm when it started ringing. "I'll just be a second," she excused herself and answered.
"Ami! Ami, thank the gods!" Mission's voice echoed through the halls, and Aminta felt her belly coil at the fear in the teenager's tone.
Aminta frowned. "Mission? What is it? What's wrong?"
"Its the Sith! They're bombing us!"
"What!" Aminta turned towards Carth with a dazed look, and he stared back at her grimly, panic beginning to set into his features.
"The upper city's going up in flames! We're gonna die, I know it! We're dead, we're…" her words dissolved into bouts of hysterical sobs and screams, and Aminta had to shout into the comm unit to be able to be heard over the noise.
"We are not going to die, Vao. Now get a grip, or so help me, I'll kill you when I see you!" Aminta took off running towards the hangar, her legs moving faster than they ever had in her life. Carth and Canderous had trouble keeping up with her, a fact which startled both men.
The sounds of the bombs were growing closer, and finally, the halls shook from the impact. Chunks of plaster fell from the ceiling, and Aminta let out a strangled cry when the sounds from the comm unit deteriorated into static. Mission, Vika, Nailah, Rae. Mission, Vika, Nailah, Rae. She increased her speed to match the chant that pounded within her head with every beat of her heart.
She skidded to a halt in front of the hangar doors before doubling her speed to the Ebon Hawk. Unfortunately, she wasn't the only one there. Carth grabbed her around her waist and flung her backwards when Davik took a shot at her, and she tumbled to the ground.
"Well, well. Looks like you three were just going to take my ship and leave me for dead. I can't have that. Calo, attack them!"
Calo grinned and trained his eyes on Canderous. "With pleasure."
Aminta bit back a scream of impatience. "We don't have time for this," she shouted, and Calo chuckled. Breathing heavily, Aminta looked up at the ceiling above Calo's head, and summoned a rafter to move out of place. With the support beam gone, the ceiling caved in and both Calo and Davik were crushed.
Carth and Canderous raced towards the ship, and Aminta stood still, staring at her hands, utterly bewildered by what had just occurred. Did I just… no, that's impossible! Carth turned around as he boarded the exit ramp, as did Canderous. Realizing that the woman was standing stock still, Canderous bellowed at her to get a move on. Shook back to reality, Aminta sprinted to the ramp, and boarded the Hawk as the walls started to cave in around them.
Aminta dug through her bag and tossed Carth the datapad containing the Hawk's codes. "Onasi, fly us outta here. Get to the apartment as fast as you possibly can. Canderous, man the turrets."
"What the hell?" Canderous bellowed. "Get us off of the damn planet, Republic. If you don't, I swear I'll break every bone in your body."
"I got kids! I'm not leaving without them," Aminta screamed, and stared hard at Canderous. "I am not leaving without them," she repeated slowly, dropping her voice. Canderous finally nodded grudgingly, and both men hurried to do the tasks that she had assigned them.
Aminta took off after Carth, strapping herself into the co-pilot's seat as he entered the passcodes into navicomputer and took off with the ease of a seasoned pilot. "Don't worry. We'll get them," Carth said after a few tense moments, and Aminta gave him a terse nod.
The carnage below them was unbelievable, and Aminta had trouble looking down at the fires that raged around them. Suddenly, Aminta felt a horrible, searing pain burning at the back of her mind, and she stifled a cry. The feeling dulled after a few minutes, and she was able to concentrate again when it had receded to a throbbing nuisance.
Finally, they reached their apartment building, and Aminta was grateful to find her friends all assembled on the rooftop. "Open the exit ramp, and get as close as you can," Aminta instructed him as she unfastened her seatbelt and sprinted to the opening ramp. "Canderous, help me!" she shouted over her shoulder as she ran.
Soon, both Aminta and Canderous knelt onto the edge of the ramp, offering their arms to those assembled on the rooftop. Zalbaar tossed Mission up to them, and the girl sank into a hysterical mess beside Aminta. Aminta roughly pushed her away, and ordered her inside of the ship. Bastila gracefully leapt up beside them, and used the Force to lighten the load of the heavy Wookiee that Aminta and Canderous were struggling to pull up.
Once her friends were inside and the exit ramp was closed, Aminta glanced around frantically. "Where are the girls?" No one answered her. "Dammit, where are they?" she demanded, and finally Bastila raised her head to look at the woman.
"Oded took them to go get some ice cream about twenty minutes before the attack began." Her usually calm voice quivered slightly, and Aminta felt her throat constrict.
"We're going after them," she managed past the lump in her throat, and Bastila turned her head away from her. "We're going after them!" She shouted, and Bastila slowly shook her head.
"They are dead. I felt it, not five minutes ago."
For a few precious moments, Aminta's heart stopped beating as the pain completely overwhelmed her. "You're lying!" she shouted from the haze, and charged at the Jedi. "You're lying!" she screeched.
Bastila's breath caught in her throat as she threw a stasis over Aminta, but the woman simply shrugged it off. What? She isn't supposed to be able to do that! Bastila instinctively reached for her lightsaber as Aminta drew closer.
Suddenly, the older woman slumped to the floor, and Canderous lifted her easily into his arms. "Tranquilizing stim," he said gruffly as he headed towards the dormitories. "Get into the common room and strap yourselves in. It's going to be a bumpy ride out of here. Kid, you stay in the dormitories with her. If she falls off her bunk, I'll tie your lekku together, understand me?" Mission rose on shaking legs and followed Canderous as the others rushed to do as they were commanded.
—————————————————
The little girl rose from her bed, clutching her doll close to her chest. She knew only two things: she hurt everywhere, and it was supposed to be dark at this time of night. But light shone from behind the curtains that adorned her windows. She looked to the chronometer that hung on her wall, and frowned. It was midnight. What was the sun doing up?
Slowly, she padded towards the window and drew back the curtain, pressing a fist to her mouth at what she saw. Fire was everywhere… blazing from the backs of rats and turning people into living torches. Shots were being fired, and the stench of gunpowder hovered thick and heavy like a storm cloud over the city.
The roof above her caved in, and she dropped her doll to cover her head with her hands, her world going black as the searing heat of the flames scorched her hair. And then she was falling, fast and hard, her stomach lurching and doing somersaults within her belly. Her world went from black to blinding white, as the words of an old man echoed over and over in her head… "Can't be saved, can't be saved."
Aminta woke with a start, and pressed a hand to her heaving chest. She slowly forced herself to come out of her nightmare, and look around her room. Her covers were warm, the rough fabric familiar as she ran her fingertips over the cotton, the sheets soft beneath her bare back. A groan sounded from somewhere beside her, and a light flicked on. "Sweetheart?"
Aminta closed her eyes tightly against the light as Kael brushed his hand over her forehead. "Another nightmare?" he murmured, drawing her close to him as he gently rubbed his hands in circles over her back. Aminta felt herself relax against him, and simply nodded.
"What was it about?" Kael propped himself up on one elbow as he gently brushed loose strands of hair off of her face. Aminta closed her eyes tightly, and shook her head. Kael sighed softly, and laid back down, knowing he wouldn't get any answers. Instead of talking, he kissed her shoulder and curled himself protectively around her.
"I'm sorry," Aminta finally whispered, blinking back tears. "It's just… I don't think I'll ever be able to say anything that goes on in my head out loud."
Kael smiled, and leaned over to kiss her temple. "Maybe you should just write it down," he murmured, and Aminta stiffened in his embrace. She sighed in frustration, and scooted to the other side of the bed, pulling the blankets tight about her body to cover herself.
Kael groaned, and he ran a hand through his hair. "Don't take it the wrong way. It's not like I'm asking to read what you write or anything like that." Silence greeted him. "Look, whenever I'm hurt or scared, or have a nightmare I can't shake myself of, I write it down. Somehow, it helps."
Kael swung his legs over the side of the bed, and pulled himself up, opening the drawer to the nightstand. It was overflowing with datapads, and Aminta laughed softly. "You have more problems than I thought you did," she murmured affectionately, and Kael smiled as he climbed back into their bed.
"Just try it some time. It might work," he encouraged, and the corners of Aminta's mouth turned upwards.
"I'll think about it," she replied noncommittally, and allowed herself to be pulled down into her husband's embrace. She snuggled against the warmth of his chest and closed her eyes, the sound of his rythmatic breathing lulling her to sleep.
