Out on an Edge

Eldrage entered the cantina trying to hide his nervousness. This was not the time to show fear. A quick scan of the room showed him the table he was looking for. He swallowed his nerves and moved to the corner table. Balousk was surrounded by his usual crew. The two locked eyes and Balousk dismissed his companions with a wave of his hand. Eldrage took one of the empty seats. "So you're the guy steppin' up to fill Kefton's shoes, eh?"

"I guess," Eldrage took a drink that had just been delivered. He had been in a thousand places like this one, but he was out of his element.

"Not so big shoes to fill, but good to know. So tell me, what's Tristan's guy doing in these parts?" He noted that Eldrage tried to hide his slight choking on the sip of his drink. "What? You didn't think I'd know who you work for?"

"It's not a secret," Eldrage conceded, "but I've only been here for a week."

"Word spreads fast out here," Balousk also took a fresh sip. "What can I do for ya?"

Eldrage shrugged, "They say you are a good man to know here."

"They are right," Balousk agreed. "Now what can I do for you?"

"Just thought we could help each other out. I'll be needing customers, you'll know people looking to buy, that sort of thing is all," Eldrage relaxed a bit with his second sip.

Balousk pondered the idea, "I suppose so. One hand washes the other, and 'that sort of thing'." His eyes jumped to the door as two robed figures entered. "Friends of yours?" He pointed with his chin as the Jedi ignored them and found a place at the bar.

Eldrage risked a glance in the direction that Balousk indicated. He recognized Granger from his time on Markuria. They met briefly, but rarely interacted, not someone that he would consider a "friend". He did not recognize the girl. "Not with me."

Balousk smirked. "Come now. I have it on good authority that Tristan has Jedi in his pocket."

Eldrage shrugged. "Above my paygrade."

Balousk chuckled. "I like you, smuggler. Maybe we can do business down the line, but for now, you should get out of here."

Eldrage downed the rest of his drink. "No argument from me." The would-be arms dealer rose from his seat, headed for the door, and did not feel nervous again until Granger gestured in his direction and the two Jedi left their drinks to follow him out. He was fairly confident that Granger had no beef with him. There was even the possibility that Tristan would want him to be on good terms with the Jedi, but Eldrage had been around long enough to think it best that those "good terms" were on his terms.

Eldrage had given plenty of people the slip before. It was much more convenient to lose a tail in familiar territory, but he knew how to do it even in unfamiliar places. However, none of his lost tails had ever been Jedi. He pulled his usual moves, ducked down some crowded streets, and not so crowded alleys. He doubled back on his tracks at least twice. When he was confident that he was alone he rounded a corner headed back to his initial path. He rounded the corner right into someone he did recognize as a Jedi despite his lack of robes or visible lasersword.

"On the run?" Nelino asked propped against the wall of a small repair shop.

"Just heading home," Eldrage tried to sound out of breath instead of nervous. "Got no beef with you Jedi."

"Wasn't implying that you did," Nelino reassured. "I trust it will stay that way."

"I've told you before, I'm just a small businessman," Eldrage shrugged.

"In the small-arms trade," Nelino added. "Not a priority for me at the moment. See that it stays that way."

"Of course," Eldrage gave a salute as he began to move away.

Nelino yelled behind the smuggler as he turned away. "And don't worry. If I ever need anything, you'll know it."

When Eldrage was out of sight, Nelino whispered back into the alley. "You can come out now."

Granger and Iesha slinked from the shadows of the alleyway. "What'd you do that for?" Iesha asked. "He's getting a shipment in tonight that we need to have a look at."

"Tell me something I don't know," Nelino grinned, then eyed Granger. "I already know where and when it's arriving. We don't need to taint a potential contact."

Iesha eyed the sentinel as he spoke. Nelino rarely wore the familiar Jedi garb. Today he was dressed in the clothes of a local workman. Through the Force, she could tell that he had his lightsaber mounted to his wrist under the sleeve of his jacket. Perhaps a trained eye would also know it was there, beyond that, nothing about Nelino screamed Jedi. Iesha was unsure if that was a plus or minus in her Master's mind. "You could have told us," Granger replied.

"You could have told me you were coming," Nelino offered. The three of them began to walk back down the alley.

"How did you know we were here? Or that we were on to Eldrage?" Iesha was curious.

"Do you think two Jedi can land here without the whole moon hearing about it?" Nelino raised an eyebrow. "Tristan's guy lands a few days before. I know you've had dealings with the big man in the past. Not too hard to connect the dots, even without the Force. This is kinda what I do."

Iesha mused. If such a comment had come from Hannibal, or even Hector or Joundi, she would have taken it as arrogance. Arrogance that could be backed up, but arrogance, nevertheless. However, Nelino gave off no such vibe. In that sense, he was more like Granger or Myriam. They radiated confidence, but managed to stop just short of outright arrogance. In the latter two, it was a quality that she aspired to emulate. Granger and Myriam seemed to frown on the work of sentinels, yet they both seemed to respect Nelino.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

And the sentinel followed through on his word. They arrived at the docking bay just after midnight, just before Eldrage's guys, two Weequays and a Gamorrean. These set up behind some crates as though they were expecting a ship.

From a higher stack of crates, the Jedi looked down on the docking bay. "Make the call, Master," the sentinel deferred to Granger.

Granger opened his mouth to give instructions, then paused and turned to Iesha. "Why don't you take the lead, my Padawan?"

If Nelino was surprised by Granger's words, his face did not betray his thoughts. Iesha, on-the-other-hand swallowed a shot of nerves. "As you wish, Master." Iesha studied their targets, then leapt down from the crates, landing in front of them. "Hello there."

"What is this?" One of the Weequays reached for his blaster.

Calmly, Iesha waved a hand as she spoke. "You won't be needing those." The Weequay brought his hand back to his side. The others left theirs dangling. "I assume you brought payment for the shipment?"

"Of course we brought payment," the Gamorrean barked.

"Go give it to the nearest charity," Iesha's hypnotic voice continued, "and come back in an hour."

The trio departed with mumbles about coming back later. When they were gone, Granger and Nelino were at Iesha's side. "Impressive," Nelino remarked as they hid again to wait for the incoming ship.

Only a few minutes passed before the ship arrived. A Zabrak and a Neimoidian followed a palate of crates down the ramp of the ship. They stood expectantly for a few minutes before the Jedi stepped into view. As they approached, Iesha noted that the bay was surprisingly empty. Except for the ship, only a few stacks of crates and random piles of spare droid parts were scattered around the medium sized dock. The pair from the ship chanced a glance at each other. "We are here on business, Master Jedi. You have no quarrel with us. We only seek payment for our shipment," the Neimoidian kept his tone one of a businessman.

Granger and Nelino approached the bundle of crates on the access panel side. "And I am sure you will not mind a routine inspection of your cargo.

"There is no cause for that, I assure you," the Neimoidian sounded nervous.

"Open it," Nelino motioned with his chin, addressing the Neimoidian, but keeping the Zabrak in sight.

The smugglers eyed each other. "As you wish," as the Neimoidian approached the control panel Granger and Nelino both turned to the bundle, expecting any surprise to come from that direction.

Iesha stood behind the senior Jedi, between them and one of the random piles of parts. The Force screamed for her to act just a second before the pile of parts rattled revealing an antiquated worker droid with a mounted arm cannon. Her saber activated and was in position just in time to deflect the droid's blast back into its chest. Granger and Nelino's blades followed. Granger's green beam stopped horizontally at the Neimoidian's neck as Nelino's yellow blade deflected two shots from the Zabrak, one into the ship and one into his face. Just as a safety measure, Iesha severed the droid's arms and separated it from its legs at its waist.

"Open it, now," Granger eyed the Neimoidian his face lit in green light.

The Neimoidian thought over his options, then resigned himself to his fate. "I….I can't do that."

Granger was sincerely surprised at the smuggler's determination. "Very well," Granger frowned. "Take what's left of your friend and go." He closed his saber and gestured towards the ship.

The Neimoidian was relieved, but soon his uneasiness returned. "But I am owed payment."

"I am paying you with your life. Now depart before I change my mind." Granger motioned again. This time with the hilt of his saber. Within in minutes, the Neimoidian had gathered his friend's body and was gone.

"Tracker's in place." Nelino waved a device. "However, once the Neimoidian regains his senses and changes his pants, I'm sure he will scan for it."

"At least we will know what direction he headed," Granger shrugged and turned to the crates. "Think you can slice into the controls?"

Nelino pocketed his tracker and cracked his knuckles. "Should only take a minute." As he started working on the panel, he called back to Iesha. "I wouldn't mind taking a look at the CPU of that droid either, should be in its head. See if you can get it off?" When she was out of earshot, Nelino whispered to Granger. "Your Padawan is pretty skilled, Master, when is she up to be knighted?"

Granger shrugged. "The Council has not indicated that they will be calling her anytime soon."

"You don't want to put her forth?" Nelino asked, trying not to sound invasive.

"If that is the will of the Force," Granger shrugged again. This was not the first time he had pondered the idea. Iesha was as ready to be a full-fledged Jedi as any student he had ever trained. He had no doubt that she would pass the trials with ease. There were several routes available to proposing a padawan for knighthood. Typically, the Council called forth the Padawan themselves or a Master put forth their student for candidacy. On the rarest occasions, a Padawan could even be promoted without facing the standard trials if, in the course, of their training, a Padawan had already faced comparable challenges, he or she could be promoted with little or no formality. Iesha had probably faced such circumstances several times over, but there was something holding him back from placing her before the Council, a concern Granger could not quite put words to. Was he overly concerned for her safety? Worse yet, was he afraid of losing her? That the Council would reassign her to some other mission and she would be gone from his life?

Along with a talent for slicing, Nelino could also read people. He rarely pried, but he could see the darkness within others. He cleared his throat and chose his words carefully. "There's a darkness within you, Master." He had Granger's full attention. "It's barely a spot, but it's there and you know it. It stains your soul just enough that you've gotten used to it."

Another Jedi would need to choke back a flash of anger, but Granger had taught himself not to hide from the truth when he heard it. "Attachment," Granger muttered. "The Darkside's most effective weapon."

Nelino glanced over his shoulder without losing focus on his rewiring of the panel. "I'm not saying you are wrong for not proposing her. There is a darkness within her as well. She also seems to be aware of it. It calls for her, but she keeps it in check, through your training." He worked in silence for a moment before adding, "And I do believe she saved at least one of our lives back there." He cocked his head behind them. "She also skilfully handled Eldrage's boys before that. I know Masters whose first impulse is to grab their sabers and go to work in any situation."

"Point taken," Granger assured the Sentinel as the door of one of the crates popped open. Loosely packed gears spilled out onto the floor.

"What in the stars?" Iesha joined them; the droid's head tucked under her arm.

"Droid gears?" Nelino remarked, pulling a scanner from a pouch. The device indicated that the other crates were packed with a similar cargo. He showed the readout to his companions. "Yep, droid gears."

"I don't get it," Iesha commented. "I expected blaster, denotators, vibro-blades…."

"Anything, but this," Granger finished. "Our friends will be back soon. Let's not be here, when they do."

XXXXXXXXXXX

Back at their ship, Iesha watched Nelino work on the inner workings of the droid's head as Granger meditated in his quarters. "How did you learn to do all this?" Iesha inquired. Every Jedi was taught some basic slicing and hacking skills, but she had met few as adept as Nelino seemed to be.

"My Master encouraged me to pursue my own interests in addition to my standard training. Some get lost in the archives or combat or piloting. I got lost in gadgets and programming manuals. That caught Master Voudon's attention and that brought me to the Sentinels." Nelino explained as he continued to work.

"And Sentinels typically carry a yellow saber, right? Was that from the time you built it or was it issued to you when you joined them?" Iesha could not resist the question.

"The blade I built as a youngling was green. I still have it, but I was given the crystal for this saber by Voudon. "I have no idea about anyone else. We're not exactly a club that gets together regularly."

"Seems to go against what we're taught about the fellowship of the Jedi. How long has it been since you were on Coruscant?"

"I've only been back twice since I was knighted. I haven't spent any real time in Republic space in…." Nelino paused from his work to ponder the thought, "….years."

"You don't get lonely?" Iesha was sincerely curious.

"Occasionally," he confessed, "but such is the way of a Sentinel." Nelino renewed his focus on his work.

By the time Granger joined them, Nelino was deep into studying several schematics on the ship's readouts. Granger paused to study them as well. "From the droid?"

"Yes Master," Nelino did not take his eyes off the screen. This is still very much a labor droid, but someone added in some combat subroutines. Looks like they were working fast. If they had wanted a full-fledged battle droid, they would have reprogramed or deleted the original program."

"Hard to do?" Iesha also examined the screen, not really knowing what she was seeing.

Nelino pondered the question. "Not really. It's quick work, but not sloppy. Someone wanted a quick ambush, not an assassin."

"Every time we come out here, it seems we uncover more questions than answers," Granger did not sound frustrated, just a matter-of-fact statement.

Nelino eyed his senior. "Should be pretty easy to find out who is buying the parts." Granger nodded, but offering no explanation, Nelino continued, "So why are you out here? I mean, for this, Master."

Granger had no solid answer. "We're a little shorthanded at the moment. This was Finly's territory. We've been rotating out here to cover the ground…."

"I'm sure Joundi or Hannibal could cover something as simple as droid parts. Hardly seems worth your time," Nelino tried to temper his curiosity, but felt the question needed asking. "And I am here, frequently enough. You can contact me anytime. Save yourself the trouble."

Granger frowned at the screen, but did not betray anything troubling him. "I appreciate your assistance. I will keep that in mind."

XXXXXXXXXXX

Granger nursed a cup of tea at a sidewalk café as Eldrage approached with a nod. "I was told to meet with you."

Granger gestured at the chair across the table, which Eldrage took reluctantly. "Just need to know who is buying droid parts."

Eldrage shrugged. "I don't really ask questions. I just fill orders."

"Who is your buyer?" Granger let his seriousness show.

Eldrage shrugged again. "A guy."

"From where?" Eldrage only shrugged.

"His name?" Another shrug.

Granger sighed. "When do you make delivery?"

Eldrage hesitated. "This afternoon at the main docking port. Someone will pick up and go."

"No payment?" Granger seemed skeptical of the simplicity.

"The money will be transferred to an account upon arrival. Not even sure if the person making the payment or the one picking it up will be the same one who placed the order. Pretty standard procedure for those that don't want to be found," Eldrage did not seem deceptive or suspicious of any ulterior motives.

"You will have your guys there for the pick-up, I assume, Granger instructed. "My guy will be one of them. And I will need that payment information."

Eldrage pondered. "You can have a guy there if you like, but I'll need approval from on high, to release client intel. Part of my business is discretion."

Granger slid a commlink across the table and gestured with expectation. Eldrage frowned as he took the comm. "Yeah?"

"Eldrage," came Pierre's voice. "Boss says give our man what he's after."

"That'll do," Eldrage shrugged and offered the comm back to Granger who rose from the table.

"Contact my guy with that, then hold on to it. We may have future business together. Oh, and thanks for the tea," Granger grinned as he walked away leaving Eldrage with his bill.

XXXXXXXXXX

Hour later back at the ship, Granger's meditation was interrupted by Iesha. "Master, the tracker info is back." Granger's eyes flickered open as he rose from the floor. "It stopped at Draxil."

Granger did not like what he heard. "Tristan is not supposed to be doing business on Draxil."

"Could just be where our friend found his tracker or that Tristan did not know where Edrage's buyer was working out of," Iesha offered, not believing her own words.

"Seems unlikely…" Granger mused.

"And a hell of a coincidence," Iesha finished.

"Our Neimoidian friend did not seem brave enough to operate independently in territory claimed by the Black Sun and the Hutts. And if he works for one of them, surely they would know who Eldrage works for." Granger concluded.

Nelino interrupted their musings with his findings. The shipment of parts was picked up by a group of traders on their way to the Unknown Regions. The traders appeared to be legitimate. They were probably not even aware of the questionable parts of the deal. The Sentinel was willing to pursue the ship and find out where the parts end up. He would follow the trail until it went cold or he needed backup.

Not long after Nelino's message was received, Granger got the call he was waiting for. Tristan's image appeared. "It's been a while Master Granger."

"It has," Granger agreed. "And you have not been keeping your end of our bargain."

"What do you mean?" Tristan seemed sincere.

"Eldrage works for you and he recently purchased a shipment of droid parts out of Draxil," Granger stated plainly.

Tristan sighed. "I will speak with him. Chances are he did not even know where his supplier was from. We don't always do background checks in our business, but I have stayed out of any direct business on Myriam's favorite planet."

"See that you do," was all that Granger offered.

Tristan grinned, "You know, Draxil is a mess right now. I could move back in and have it under control in a matter of months…."

"That won't be necessary," Granger assured the gangster.

"As you wish," Tristan conceded. "See you around," he added in closing, "And may the Force be with you."

"And with you," Granger added as the image faded. Turning to Iesha he instructed, "Warm up the engines. We're going home."