Chapter Thirty- Seven: Jabba's Palace

I watched from my table in the corner as the band made of seven Bith played their upbeat music. I'd seen them performing in cantinas around Mos Eisley before, and wasn't surprised they'd made their way to Jabba's Palace. They were good. And clearly threw a good party.

The finest scum of the underworld mulled about the throne room, downing far too many drinks than was wise, even for the more alcohol-tolerant species. A particularly grungy looking Weequay seemed to have a bit of powder beneath his nose. It seemed alcohol was not the only recreational substance being used at this particular party.

That didn't matter to me, though. I was content in watching the partiers from my place in shadow, slowly nursing a Tatooine Sunrise. And the party-goers were more than happy to leave me in my solitude. The few who had wandered over to try and entice me for a drink or a dance had backed away swiftly when my pistol appeared from the shadows of the corner.

Many still stole glances, but they were for reasons other than fancy now.

Their eyes were looking over the kyr'bes that was still painted in 501st blue, despite my having been departed from the GAR for almost a month now. My heart twinged a bit, my own stare sliding down to see the top of the painted skull fading.

I should repaint it. Maybe I'd do red this time.

I leaned back in my seat, trying to force myself to relax. A long drag of the Tatooine Sunrise helped a bit in that. Though I was craving some of Jango's rarely shared black ale. Of course, that wasn't something Jabba kept in his stores.

Jabba, though pleased to see me again, was distant. Despite him not filling me in, it didn't take much prodding for some of the regular working girls to tell me what was going on. I'd heard about Bane taking the senators hostage a week or so before-which included Padme. Aurra had been part of Bane's crew. She just couldn't seem to find it in herself to stay dead and leave me alone.

I half expected her to be on Tatooine, considering it was apparently Jabba's doing that released Ziro from prison via the hostage situation. Of course, if we happened to cross paths, we likely wouldn't fight in respect to Jabba.

At least, not in the open where he could find out.

Still, Jabba was apparently supposed to be at a Hutt Council meeting on Nal Hutta, but elected to stay in his palace with his son. I wondered why, but none of the workers seemed to know.

Despite the Hutts being a bit hard to read, I could still sense great fear in him.

From what I could surmise from my gentle prodding of the staff...Ziro had information on the Hutts. And knowing Ziro for the slimy scum he was, I understood Jabba's fear that his uncle would try and undermine him.

I watched the massive crime lord as he took a long drag of smoke from his hookah, letting the steam swirl from his wide nostrils. His protocol droid stood beside him-in the position I once held as a slave-still as stone. Jabba was nervous, but there was also a smug, content air about him.

As if he knew of a plan that no one else did. Which was so often the case.

My gaze pulled to the doorway as a shaggy form with gray fur and glowing yellow eyes stalked down the stairs. I couldn't help the small grin that tugged the corner of my mouth upwards. I didn't move as the anooba raised its massive head, sniffing the air, its huge ears twitching as it surveyed the bustling room.

A few people-those who weren't used to the anooba's presence, shuffled away uncomfortably. They were rather dangerous beasts, after all. And very difficult to train.

My eyebrow raised slowly from my place in shadow as the anooba's head tilted to the side. It would have been cute, had anoobas been anything close to cute looking. His nose twitched before his glowing eyes zeroed in on me across the throne room floor.

I was more surprised by the screaming working girls who flung themselves out of his way than the fact that the anooba was bounding towards me at top speed. Some criminals even drew their weapons, but they knew better than to shoot a hunter's pet. Especially with this particular hunter.

So instead, they drew their weapons to defend themselves if need be as the anooba practically plowed over the party goers. They didn't care what happened to me, though. Or they figured I'd handle myself.

They were likely all sure I was dead meat, since anoobas were rather deadly. Of course, I knew from the long tongue that hung out of the side of his mouth and the flapping ears that he meant me no harm. Jabba, having known me for a good portion of my life, knew this too. He let out a loud, boisterous laugh as the anooba leapt onto my table, standing over my propped feet and breathing hard in my face.

With a loud bark, he finally leaned forward and gave my face a long lick.

I let out a groan, pushing the anooba away with a laugh. "Marrok, that's disgusting! Stop it!"

The tension in the room ebbed as the anooba's long tail swished back and forth happily. I pulled my feet off the table, careful not to tip my drink, before giving the anooba a hard shove to bring him back down to the ground. He obeyed, thankfully, but his massive stature kept him able to reach my face even from the ground.

A short whistle finally pulled the anooba off of me, but even his obedience couldn't control his excitement. Marrok's long gray tail thumped happily against the ground, his wide mouth hanging open with his tongue dangling out. Slobber dripped from his jaws.

It was gross, but I'd seen those jaws dripping with various shades of blood, so I guess slobber was a lot more pleasant.

"Nice to see you," I greeted without looking up, my hand mindlessly scratching Marrok's neck.

Embo let out a small grunt in response as he took a seat across from me. He earned a few concerned glances, considering the silent threats I'd given to all others who approached my table. Of course, I didn't mind Embo's presence. He wasn't trying to hit on me, for starters. And I doubted that he would even buy me a drink. He wasn't really like that.

He babbled in Kyuzo at the droid that approached him. Thankfully, the droid knew languages, so we didn't hit the usual frustration of a server not knowing what Embo was asking for. As much as he appreciated my translations, I think his language barrier pissed him off sometimes.

Of course, he understood the common tongue. He just didn't use it. He'd once mentioned something about how it was ineloquent and brash. I understood. There were words in Kyuzo that didn't translate to basic well, if at all. For someone with a native tongue so unique, finding words in a simpler language was frustrating to say the least.

After ordering, Embo's eyes returned to mine from beneath his wide brim hat. He jabbered at me in his native language.

"I'm fine, thank you," I responded with a smile. "And my employment with the Republic was temporary. That contract has...ended."

Embo, being a hunter of few words, merely watched me while his beverage was sat before him. He took a swig while I turned to Marrok, giving the anooba a deep scratching behind his big ears.

Silence between us was common. It was honestly soothing...usually. But something was still bothering me. I still hadn't gathered the courage to pursue Moraband. My dreams were filled with the voice in my head...as well as images of the swamp world I'd seen Qui Gon on. I never saw the late jedi again, but in my deepest of dreams, I felt something like him trying to get into my thoughts to no avail.

Embo broke the silence first, pointing out Jabba's absence at the Hutt Council. He said it was probably for the best, considering.

I paused, my drink barely touching my lips. "Considering what?"

Embo's brows lifted. He explained in his curt and to-the-point manner that Ziro had escaped his prison on Nal Hutta and that the remainder of the council had dispatched Cad Bane to bring him back.

I hummed in thought, touching the pads of my gloved fingers to my lips. "With Ziro's recent releasing from prison, I have no doubt the Republic are pursuing him too."

Embo hummed in agreement before revealing that two jedi were present before Ziro's escape.

"The jedi don't have him?"

Embo shook his head in response. I glanced over at Jabba, seeing the powerful Hutt puffing at his hookah without a care in the world.

"He knows something we don't," I expressed, nodding my head in the crime lord's direction. Embo turning in his chair to look, before grunting in agreement. Of course, we had no way of knowing what was going on. And to be honest, I knew it was just small talk. Neither of us were being paid to get involved, so we didn't really care so long as Jabba remained in a position of power to keep paying us.

Thus, brought me back to my original musings. "Embo," I said softly, Marrok's ears perking at the familiar name before nuzzling my hand for more scratches. "If I asked you something, could you swear to keep the matter a secret?"

The Kyuzo watched me silently for a moment, likely doing his best to read my mind. He couldn't do that, of course, but he had known me for as long as I'd been a hunter. Silent types often read others better, since they were watching rather than speaking.

He nodded slowly before speaking in his native tongue. He didn't bother to be quiet, since no one but the protocol droids and myself would understand him, but I blanched and shushed him anyways.

"What the hell are you talking about?" I asked, doing my best to school away the blush that was flushing my face. Embo repeated his words, still no quieter than before. "What do you mean 'who is he'?"

Embo's head tilted, not unlike Marrok did sometimes. He was skeptical of me. He reinforced that suspicious with his next spiel of words.

I forced a nervous laugh. "Love is for idiots, Embo," I teased gently, despite my chest seizing up. Even a month after leaving, it was still hard to think about Rex and what he'd said to me.

And how I hadn't said it back.

I cleared my throat, pushing the thoughts away. "Jango never found a spouse because of this job. You know that." I leaned so I could meet Embo's eyes under the brim of his hat. "What kind of life would we be bringing someone into?"

His face rippled in a frown, but he let the subject fall away. He asked what I could possibly want from him.

"Hey now," I scolded gently, taking another long drink of the Tatooine Sunrise. "You owe me a debt."

He responded that I owed him a bounty, so we were even.

I couldn't help but laugh at that. It was true, in a way. His bounty for killing Padme all that time ago would have likely been enough to retire. Of course, Anakin would have hunted him down and ended that retirement rather quickly, but still.

Finally, I sobered, watching the bounty hunter-my friend-as he swirled his drink mindlessly. "Do you know about Moraband?" I decided to keep the question vague. I had a feeling it was a planet, but then again, the voice had only chanted it. A city, maybe?

Unfortunately, my recent evacuation of the Republic premises made my access to records a bit tricky.

Embo seemed a bit surprised by my question, leaning back in his chair as Marrok put his big head in my lap. At least some of us were relaxed, I supposed. He mumbled gently that he did.

"What do you know?"

He asked why I couldn't just look it up myself. Public databases were free, after all.

I scowled. "My contract with the Republic ended a bit...prematurely," I allowed. "I seem to have pissed them off."

Embo chuckled-a nice sound, if you knew it wasn't at your expense. He understood that I couldn't risk the Republic being able to track me. I had a feeling the jedi weren't going to let my case go easily, so I needed to stay off their radar and out of their way for as long as I could.

Finally, Embo allowed that he knew Moraband was a planet in the Outer Rim. He rambled off some details, like how it was mostly desolate and abandoned, considering the past wars fought there, but there were trading posts there.

"The Commerce Guild?" I asked, earning a nod. "If it's a popular trade off point in trade, why is it abandoned?" I thought through his words again. "What wars, Embo?"

His brow lifted under his hat as he mumbled his next words. "Korriban," I heard within his Kyuzo words.

My breathing stilled, Marrok even noticing my change in demeanor by letting out a low whine. I'd heard that name before, when I'd spoken to Hydan on Nal Hutta. That had been so long ago, when I was first discovering my heritage...the heritage that immediately branded me a threat.

Though, considering my frightening outburst with the Force when I fought Dooku, maybe that branding was validated.

"Why is it called Moraband if it was originally Korriban?" I asked.

Embo shrugged, mentioning something about Republic databases changing the name. He wasn't sure why.

I had a feeling it was an influence from the jedi, considering the wars between sith and jedi that had occurred on that dark planet. I swallowed slowly. "You don't happen to have access to those coordinates, do you?"

My friend stared at me in silence for a long moment before grunting a single word in Kyuzo. "Why?" he'd asked in his native tongue.

"Does it matter?" I responded immediately.

His eyes narrowed as he explained that Korriban was a dangerous world. He'd been there only once and didn't fancy another visit.

"I can handle myself."

He went on to describe the planet as deadly, filled with destroyed remnants of the old society that once bred fear and death. He told me about dangerous creatures the Commerce Guild had warned him about upon his arrival-terrible creatures that were corrupted by the dark side that had been flowing through that planet for so long.

"Embo," I cut him off gently, trying my best not to lose my nerve. "There are things I need to understand. Questions I have...that can only be answered by going there."

He was suspicious, I could tell. But he trusted me, so sighed lowly. He admitted that he could get me the coordinates from his ship's database, thought he disagreed with my going still. After a moment of appreciative silence and another sip of his drink, he stopped and looked at me. He asked if he wanted me to come along.

It was the nicest thing he could have said, especially considering his usual detached demeanor and reputation of being brutal, not to mention, lethal.

I couldn't fight the gentle smile on my face. "Thank you, but no. This is something I need to figure out on my own."

Embo finished his drink as he stood, leaving the empty cup at my table. Around us, the party was dying down a bit, the lights dimming as they milled about to other parts of the palace. Jabba remained however, glancing expectantly between his protocol droid and the door.

Hmmm… he was expecting someone.

Embo whistled, Marrok pulling away from my hands with a small whine of protest. The bounty hunter gave me a nod, explaining that he had to leave for a job on Ryloth-Tatooine had just been a resting location to fuel up his ship. He promised to send the coordinates to me when he got back aboard his vessel.

I gave him a small smile and a nod, rolling my eyes as he grumbled something about my being like Jango, having to do things alone all the time.

I brushed off the comment easily, since I knew going alone was for the best. I trusted Embo, but I trusted Obi-wan once too. Yet, he'd done very little to defend me to the Jedi Council. How would Embo's perception of me change if he saw what awaited me on Korriban?

Even I wasn't sure what I'd see there. Wasn't sure what would happen. But I knew it was connected to the Force.

And I was scared out of my mind.

I sat in silence, finishing off the remainder of my drink as the throne room finally quieted. There were only a few of us left, and apart from Jabba, I was the only one coherent enough to watch a Pa'lowick brush past Embo as he ascended the stairs, casting him a look full of batting eyelashes and pouting lips.

I rolled my eyes, watching her long legs carry her into the throne room. In the better lighting, I recognized her. She was part of a band that played in Jabba's Palace on occasion. Sy Snootles, I believed her name was. She was a good performer, from what I remembered.

Jabba let out a loud laugh, all tension that he had hidden so well beneath the surface melting away as the Pa'lowick approached him. His laughter only turned more victorious and boisterous as Sy leaned forward, handing him an object that had been tucked under her arm.

It looked like a holodiary.

He chuckled out some words in Huttese to his protocol droid. "Jabba thanks you for delivering the holodiary," it translated, shuffling forward to offer a handful of unmarked credits to the Pa'lowick.

Sy snatched them immediately, popping her hip to the side with sass. "No one would suspect that a lovely creature such as myself could do a bounty hunter's work."

My eyebrow arched, my fingers tapping at the rim of my empty cup while I put the pieces together. The holodiary, which now cast a faint glow over Jabba's face as he examined its contents, likely contained the information Ziro had on the Hutt Council. And by Sy's prideful demeanor that masked a broken, vengeful heart, I figured that Ziro was dead.

So...both Bane and the jedi had failed, then.

The protocol droid gestured for Sy to follow it, likely leading the Pa'lowick to where she'd be staying. I waited until they left the room to stand and approach Jabba's throne. I gave him a respectful bow of my head before smiling gently.

"Ziro is dead, I take it, considering you seem much happier than you were earlier."

Jabba looked away from the holodiary with a small frown before chuckling. He scolded me in Huttese, claiming I was too inquisitive for my own good.

I wasn't put off by that comment. "It's my nature, you know. A nature that has made a few of your more difficult jobs successful." Jabba let out a laugh, closing down the holodiary for now, but cradling it at his side. "Anything juicy?" I asked, nodding towards the diary.

Jabba gave me a scowl, explaining that he would destroy the diary personally and finally put the Hutt Clan at ease.

I smirked. "No, you won't." He seemed taken back by my words, but I plowed on, unafraid. "You're smarter than that, Jabba. You'll delete information on you, but you'll keep the information on the rest of your family. You need the insurance, as one of the most powerful members of the Hutt Clan."

For a moment, I half expected Jabba to drop me into the rancor pit. Realistically, even if I could enter the rancor pit when I was younger without dying...I wasn't sure if that particular oddity would continue all these years later.

I didn't really want to test it.

To my relief, Jabba laughed, expressing that my nature would get me into trouble one day. If only he knew how true that was.

My wrist gauntlet beeped, drawing my gaze. Coordinates flashed on the screen. 9254.62, 6991.44. That was where I'd find Korriban, according to Embo. And I trusted the Kyuzo with my life.

Jabba's words interrupted me, asking if I had a job.

"Of sorts," I responded vaguely. "It's more a personal matter, really. Don't worry. I won't be interfering with anything in your jurisdiction."

Jabba laughed, giving me his blessing to leave. As I walked out of the palace and across the sand that was beginning to cool with nightfall, I felt my heart creep into my throat.

I was finally going to the place the voice had come from. I would finally see its source. And that thought terrified me so much...that I almost turned around. But no, I had to know. I had to understand who I was. What I was.

And then maybe...I could find a new meaning. And forget everything I'd lost.

Author's Note:

Sorry this one is a bit shorter. Needed a segue to her next arc, which is obviously Korriban/Moraband.

As always, reviews/shares/likes/comments are welcome!

-Ryder