As the Nova Star crew stopped their speeders outside the palace of Jabba the Hutt, they all felt really nervous. Not many people ever tried to ask the Hutt crime boss for a favor, but when it came to business, he was usually eager to listen if it benefited him. Aleah looked up at the big metal door that was the only way into the palace, she felt a slight tremor in the force. She turned to Dray.
"Master..." she began to say.
The Bothan nodded. "I feel it to." he said, then turned to David. "Do you feel it as well?"
"I feel it as well," David proclaimed as he checked his lightsaber.
The three jedi make a quick scan of the area and couldn't really see anything, but still, it was an unsettling feeling that they all had. Jens checked his blaster and walked up to the metal door before giving it a good kick. The minute his foot made contact, a small hatch opened and a robotic eye shot out and began to speaking in the Hutt language.
The captain smiled. "We have come to do business with Jabba the Hutt." The robotic eye moved closer and began to ask certain questions.
"Um, yes, I have also come to repay a debt," Jens said, hoping that this was their ticket into the palace. The robotic eye then retreated back into its hidden hatch and the lid closed. The sound of metallic gears raising the door brought a smile the captain of the Star. Turning back to his crew select a few members to follow him in case things went south.
"Fang, Clank, Lyra and Dray, you four come with me. The rest of you wait outside for our return." Jens ordered. Everyone took their place, while the captain and his group hurried inside.
Aleah sat next to Siv. She felt better being next to her beloved Mandalorian. "You think they'll be alright?" the Nelvaanian asked, using the force to lift a small rock.
Siv turned and took Aleah's hand in his. "Hey, they'll be alright. After all, they have a jedi master with them." However, Siv was quite wrong.
Jens was being held at gunpoint by some of Jabba's goons, while poor Clank was fixing to be reduced to spare parts. Dray had been taken down by the ruthless bounty hunter, Cad Bane. Lyra however had it worse. Two Gamorreans guards held her down, both having a hungry look in their eyes. Not a hunger for food, but for pleasure.
Jabba looked at Jens as he tried to plead his case to Jabba. "Look, Jabba, I was on my way to pay you back and I got caught up in some unwanted business. It's not my fault." The Hutt however only growled and looked at the captain with contempt.
"Jens, you dare insult me with these lame excuses?" he shouted in Huttese. "I gave you a month to pay back the debt you owed me, but you're two months overdue." Jabba then turned to the Transdoshan bounty hunter, Bossk. "Kill him."
"Gladly," Bossk smiled as he drew his blaster.
Jens began to panic. "Jabba, I'll pay you triple...No! Ten times what I owe you!" he shouted. Before Bossk could pull the trigger, Jabba held up his hand.
"Hold you're fire, Bossk," he said, then looking Jens dead in the eye, the Hutt crime boss gestured to the guards to bring the captain closer. Jabba then reached out and grabbed Jens by the collar of his shirt and pulled him close.
"What makes you think you can pay me back that much when you couldn't even pay me back the six thousand credits you owed me." he growled.
Jens then knew he had Jabba's attention, all that was left to explain the whole story to him. "...So you see, that's how it will work for both of us." Jens said after going over every detail about the Sith holocrons and how Nex Slars was now involved. Jabba could now see that ripping off Nex would be a big move to gain him even higher status among the underworld. The Hutt smiled and let go of Jens. It looked like the captain had manged once again to get himself out of trouble.
"Oh Jens, I'll help you..." the Hutt crime boss however wasn't no fool. He was going to make sure there was no double cross. "But Bossk and Cad Bane will tag along."
"Good," Jens smiled, but it faded when Jabba looked at Lyra.
"And she will stay here until you return."
Lyra was thrown roughly into the dungeon cell; the door crashed shut behind her. The beautiful Chiss fell looked around, her red eyes wide with fear that the two Gamorreans would surely come through the door to rape her. Indeed, the door did open, but it wasn't the Gamorreans that entered, but two of Jabba's beautiful Twi'lek slave girls.
The two beauties both carried something in their arms. The first slave brought Lyra a new pair of cloths, which was of course of a slave outfit; not to mention a very revealing one. The second slave carried an assortment of different kind of perfumes from Ryloth. Lyra was confused.
The first Twi'lek spoke up. "The master wants you to join us in entertaining his guests." she said handing said Chiss the slave outfit.
Lyra frowned. "Tell your master that I would rather stay in here, than to be up there being stared at by a bunch of criminals."
The second Twi'lek cracked a smile. "He thought you might say that," she said putting the perfumes down on the ground. "He also said if that was your choice, you would then be forced to surrender your body to his many guest who are coming tonight, and it will be done in the throne room."
Lyra reached out and took the outfit. "I'll be up as soon as I get dressed," she said sadly. This deal Jens made with Jabba was getting worse all the time. And it wasn't just her that was having a bad day, but at Mos Eisley spaceport, Darth Vader and his men had found the Nova Star 2 and had taken its crew captive. The Sith enforcer looked at the scared Alderaanians, who dared not look up at him. A single clone emerged from the ship.
"There were no Holocrons on board, Lord Vader," he reported.
Vader clenched his fists tightly. He turned and picked up one of the Alderaanians by the neck and lifted up off his feet. "WHERE ARE THEY?! TELL ME!" he shouted, the helpless crew member turned white with fear.
"I don't know," he said gasping for air. "All I know is where they were planning on going."
"And where is that?" Vader asked, sounding calmer at the moment.
"Jabba's palace," he replied. Vader then released him.
Turning to Fletcher, he said only three words. "Kill the crew."
The Alderaanians immediately tried to run for their lives, but since their were clones everywhere, the crew were quickly dealt with. Those who tried to fight also were cut down by a hail of blaster bolts, only managing to kill a clone or two. Not a single one lived, or so the clones thought. Because hidden among the many unloaded supplies was a lone crew member. All he could do was wait until the clones and Vader left. When the coast of clear, he quickly hurried inside the Nova Star to warn Jens that the Empire had found them.
As Jabba enjoyed watching Lyra dance for him, the festive music was silenced by the sound of a discharging blaster. The mighty Hutt looked over to the entrance to the throne room to see two of his guards come flying through the archway and almost crash into the beautiful Chiss.
The two Twi'lek beauties quickly escorted Lyra back to her cell, but said Chiss already had a good feeling as to who was coming.
"WHO DARES INVADE MY HOME!" Jabba shouted. He got his answer.
In stepped Darth Vader. One way or another, he was going to find the remaining Nova Star crew. Stepping up to the still fuming Hutt, Vader looked around at the many guest attending the crime lord's party.
"Where is Jens Alden and his crew?" he asked not looking at Jabba.
Jabba narrowed his eyes at the Sith enforcer. "Gone. Trying to find a way to pay back a debt he owes me," the Hutt responded, which was not the answer Vader wanted to hear.
Turning to face Jabba, Vader led out his hand to the mighty Hutt. "I'll ask again," he said, proceeding to use force choke on the crime boss. "Where are they?"
Jabba quickly answered with what little air he had in his lungs. "They are leaving with Cad Bane and Bossk to go and steal the Sith holocron from Nex Slars."
Vader released Jabba from his force choke. "Cad Bane?" he said getting a wonderful idea on how to get both Aleah and Dray in one well swoop, along with the other holocron. "Thank you for your time, mighty Jabba."
Not long after that, Vader walking the halls of the Nova Star as his clone troopers and Inquisitors prepped the ship for takeoff. Passing by one of the engineering access doors, a tremor in the force caused him to halt. Vader felt something odd about the room as he entered it. Nothing looked to be out of the ordinary, but than he noticed a makeshift bed tucked between some warm heating pips. Brushing his black gloves over the sheets, Darth Vader felt sad all of a sudden.
The force was showing him an echo of the past. The voices of Siv and Aleah confessing their love for each other brought an old memory of Vader's past back. His wedding night with Padme.
"My love," Vader whispered sadly. "I'm sorry." he turned and left, feeling nothing but emptiness and hatred.