Chapter 19
Yumfla
Davin Portrallis threaded his way through the crowd. One by one, he picked out individuals who were distracted or simply had available pockets or purses. His light fingers danced in crowds like these, and every time he came back with something good. Sometimes it was a cred or two. Sometimes it was expensive jewelry. As he brushed his fingers past a stranger's cloak, he felt something much larger. Expensive tools, perhaps. The docks were always a profitable place to pickpocket.
The cloaked figure whirled around and screamed in Davin's face. The long cylindrical tool flew from its belt hook and into the stranger's hand. Before Davin could even think to hide in the crowd, or better yet, just run away from this mad stranger, a beam of shimmering silver light erupted from the cylinder. Davin felt a stinging burn on his forearm, and then something hit him in the chest so hard that he flipped over three other people in the crowd and landed painfully on his back. Gasping through shattered ribs, he watched as the cloaked stranger simply turned around, the silver blade disappearing from sight. Numbly, he looked down at the cauterized stump where his left hand had once been.
A few yelps and shouts could be heard through the crowd, but the cloaked figure disappeared into the mass of people, just as skillfully as Davin himself would have if his attempt at picking the stranger's pocket had gone as planned.
The sun that shone in the sky, and its matching elongated shimmering reflection on the waterfront past the docks went dark as Davin's eyes closed.
When his eyes opened again, he found himself floating. The world around him was blurry and slightly pinkish. Breathing was still difficult, but the pain was much less. Blurry figures could be seen moving in front of him. He reached out and felt warm glass with his right hand.
He was floating in water. In a tube. His mind cleared, and he remembered what happened. A lightsaber. His arm.
His arm.
Davin Portrallis looked down, and through the murky pink bacta, he could see the stub of a forearm, sealed with some kind of plastic.
The water and bacta began to drain out of the tank. Davin felt himself being pulled up and out of the tank. He couldn't see what was lifting him up and out of the tank, but it set him down gently onto a bunk next to the bacta tank. A horned Devaronian doctor, the lower half of his face covered by a face mask, removed the breathing mask from Davin's face and held a metal sensor against his neck.
"Vital signs seem good. His ribs are mostly mended. Nurse, take him to Recovery," the doctor lowered his mask and gave Davin a toothy grin, "You'll be all right, son. By the cold, if we hadn't gotten to you in time you would have choked to death on your own ribs."
Davin coughed, and the sickly sweet scent of bacta filled his nose. "My hand..."
The doctor put his hand on Davin's shoulder, "I'm sorry, lad. The wound was cauterized. The hand couldn't be reattached."
The nurse took over and guided the repulsor gurney out of the room. Davin watched the lights on the ceiling go by until the nurse brought him into a turbolift. Another set of lights went by, until he found his gurney being parked in a small hospital room.
"I'll call an orderly to help move you to your bed," the nurse said, then turned around to walk out the door, "Who are you?"
Davin heard a calm voice say, "I am here to move the patient to his bed."
"You're here to move the patient to his bed," repeated the nurse.
"You should go about your business," the calm voice said.
"I should go about my business."
The nurse left, and a moment later Davin felt himself floating off of the gurney and onto the bed. "I am sorry if this causes more trauma, but in order to prevent more attacks like what happened to you, I must ask you about what you remember from the day you were attacked."
Davin turned to look at the speaker. A tan, furry face looked back at him. "Are you a police officer?"
"No, but I seek to stop the innocent from being harmed. And I have the means to do so." The alien had three black stripes running along the top of his head, and a pink triangular snout.
"You're a Caamasi, aren't you."
The alien nodded, "Yes, I am."
"I think... I think it was a Jedi that did this to me."
"You were most certainly attacked by a lightsaber. The wounds caused by such a weapon are relatively unique. Unfortunately, with so few Jedi in the galaxy, and so many of them on the run, it will be difficult to find your attacker. I would like for you to tell me everything that happened that day. Any detail may help in finding your attacker."
"I... I don't know if I want to talk about it. I'm still a little fuzzy on what happened. One minute I was walking along, minding my own business," Davin wasn't technically lying, as picking pockets was his business, "and the next minute I saw a blade of silver light, and I went flying. Without my hand. And with a lot of broken ribs."
"Silver light? Are you sure?"
Davin looked back up at the lights in the ceiling, then nodded, "Yes. I'd never seen anything like it. At first I just thought it was a hydrospanner or something. Then... silver light."
The Caamasi shook his head and looked down, "This knowledge is somewhat disturbing. Thank you for your honesty. Please, in the future, do not place your remaining hand needlessly into the pockets of others."
Davin blinked, and looked over at the alien. "How did you..."
The Caamasi stood up and turned to the window, "As for you, young one, there is no need to hide."
A young Togruta wearing an armored face mask stepped out from behind a curtain. She pointed a stun stick at the Caamasi and in a gravelly, robotic voice she said, "I came here to ask him a few questions about his attack. I didn't think I'd have to defend him. I don't know who you are, but I can see the lightsaber on your belt and feel your strength in the Force. If you're here to finish the job, then I'm here to stop you."
"Please, Padawan Tano, there's no need for violence. I suspect that we are here for the same reasons."
The Togruta raised her mask. "How did you know it was me? And who are you?"
The Caamasi bowed his head graciously, "I must admit, I am somewhat offended that you do not remember me. We may not have officially been introduced, but we did live in the Temple together for several years. Perhaps we should continue this conversation elsewhere, away from prying eyes." He gestured to the window, and the curtains pulled back to reveal the open pane that Ahsoka Tano had used to silently climb into the room. He turned to Davin. "Thank you for your assistance. I promise, we will do everything we can to ensure that no one else has to suffer what you have gone through."
And as Davin watched, the two strangers leapt out of the fourth story window, and out of his life.