Scarred from shrapnel, Rab dragged his prisoner to the rooftop where a small shuttle awaited, fully prepped and fueled. "On your feet you worm!", the gang leader hissed. "If the Guild is willing to send more bounty hunters to free you, you must be worth a lot to them!" Blood flowed freely from the captive and life began to drain from him.

Eras, still reeling from the blast, fumbled awkwardly up the concealed entrance to the rooftop. With his senses dulled by the shock, he stumbled forward. Upon hearing Rab's voice, Eras froze, attempting to gather his bearings.

Startled by this unexpected appearance, Rab quickly spun around, pointing his blaster at him. "Grax, you survived!..." He lowered his weapon. "...Help me load up this kriffing piece of druk. He may still be of value if he lives."

Eras stood motionless. "Are you deaf? I said move!", barked the gang leader. Eras held his position. Rab growled and raised his blaster again. "Move, or this bastard's fate will seem like an act of mercy compared to what I will do to you."

"Not this time, Rab.", Eras spoke calmly. Summoning the Force, he raised his hand, wrenching the weapon from his old enemy's grasp. Rab stood wide-eyed, unable to speak. Eras removed his helmet and icely stared at the gang leader.

"You!" was all the crime boss could manage to spit out.

"It ends here Rab! You're finished!"

Before the crime lord could respond, he was pulled by an invisible hand towards Eras, stopping within inches of him, their eyes locked. A look of searing pain covered the gang leader's face as he looked down to find a lightsaber buried in his chest. The crime lord's eyes then rolled in the back of his head as he collapsed in a heap upon the ground.

Eras stood silently, recentering himself. A moan from the wounded bounty hunter snapped him back to reality. He rushed to his side, desperately attempting to staunch the flow of blood. "Hold on.", he urged. Despite his efforts, the bounty hunter's condition continued to deteriorate.

The sound of approaching footsteps drew nearer, and the bounty hunter's team emerged onto the rooftop, their weapons trained on Eras. "Step away!", one of the members shouted. Obeying the command, Eras raised his hands, trying to calm everyone.

"I am trying to help! He is dying!", he implored, attempting to convey the urgency of the situation.

The wounded leader raised his hand, a signal of recognition and trust. His team slowly lowered their weapons. Realizing death would soon be upon him, he conveyed unspoken consent and motioned Eras to come forward. "You…are not one of them.", he labored to speak.

Eras shook his head. "I was trying to collect the bounty in order to join the Guild."

This caused the hunter to let out a strained snort of amusement. "Bold for…a greenhorn."

The dying man waved to his second in command. "You…are now…team leader.", he wheezed. His right-hand-man nodded in acknowledgement.

"I will take care of them.", he said.

With a sigh of relief, the fallen leader laid back, keeping his eyes on his comrade. "Claim the bounty. There are enough…credits for you to retire…all of you."

He then directed his follower's eyes to Eras. "I bear witness to this hunter's prowess. I leave my…personal possessions to him." Astonished, Eras could not find any words. "May…May they serve you…as well as they served me.", the leader spoke his last words.

The new team leader ordered his men to retrieve the two bodies and transport them back to their ship. He turned, holding out his fallen leader's blaster and the central panel from his wrist com towards Eras. Keeping his eyes on the bounty hunter, Eras took them. "Level 13 of the Shipyards, Bay 06, Code 31759. Good Hunting." was all the leader said. With that he turned away and left Eras standing in the howling night wind…

…Shipyards…

Eras stood in front of the entrance of Hangar Bay 06 in the older section of the Shipyards. The area had been converted into a series of storage units next to a dump station for discarded damaged ship parts. "Why on earth would he leave his possessions to me…a complete stranger? What could possibly be of value in this forgotten place?", pondered Eras. "Only one way to find out.", he said aloud to himself. Eras pressed the main switch on the control panel of his wrist com.

The rusted hangar door screeched slowly upwards. Eras could only make out rough shapes in the darkened unit. Stepping through the entrance Eras turned on the light from his helmet and scanned the area. There was not much to see, a few crates here and there, a randomly placed work bench on the side wall closest to the entrance. "Well, at least I have place to hide out.", Eras thought disappointedly.

A tiny blinking light at the workbench caught Eras's eye. Eras approached it, realizing it was a miniature scanning station. Looking down at his wrist com, he waved it through the scanner. The lights that flashed on throughout the hangar caused Eras to jump. By reflex, his lightsaber was drawn and at the ready.

Sensing no other presence, he put away his weapon and removed his helmet. Eras, looking across the hangar absent-mindedly, froze in astonishment as his helmet, which he had meant to place on the workbench, hit the ground. There before him was a Corellian transport freighter.

"One of the YT series…", he marveled to himself. Although it had been several years since he had left, Eras still had kept up his study of starships, something which Master Infil'a had jokingly described as "bordering on obsession". He smiled at the memory.

He slowly walked towards the vessel, his suspicion confirmed when he saw the designation model written on the hull. Reaching up, Eras's fingers slowly traced over the letters and numbers. "YT-2400", he said to himself.

"HALT. IDENTIFICATION CODE REQUIRED. 30 SECONDS TO COMPLY.", a robotic voice sounded along with a warning alert. A blaster cannon dropped from underneath the ship and acquired Eras in its sights. Eras struggled to remember the code he had been given. "20 SECONDS TO COMPLY.", the voice sounded again.

Eras input the numbers. "INCORRECT IDENTIFICATION CODE…ACCESS DENIED…10 SECONDS TO COMPLY." Realizing he had mixed the first two digits Eras quickly wiped the code and reentered it. "5-4-3-2-1…", the voice cut off. This was followed by a series of beeps and whistles.

Eras kept his eye on the blaster cannon while holding completely still. "...IDENTIFICATION CODE CONFIRMED…ACCESS GRANTED." The cannon rose back into its hidden storage compartment while an entrance ramp simultaneously lowered. Eras blew out the air he had been holding.

Cautiously stepping onto the boarding ramp, Eras's senses were on high alert. He slowly moved forward, his footsteps echoing faintly against the metallic flooring. The ship's systems flickered to life as he moved deeper within, panels lighting up with displays and dormant indicators. Although modified by the vessel's previous owner, the ship managed to retain an echo of its original glory.

Curiosity getting the better of him, Eras entered a lift stationed at the end of the main corridor. After a moment of silence, the doors opened, leaving Eras completely in awe at the sight that lay before him. He took his first steps onto the bridge, the hum of the central controls surrounding him.

Taking it all in, his eyes fell on the helm. He reached out and placed his hand upon the Captain's chair, his mind flooded with wonder over all the adventures that awaited him. "I can only imagine all the places you have seen", Eras said aloud.

"Captain Reidell's occupation led him to quite a few locations throughout the galaxy that many would deem 'exotic'.", an android voice responded.

Stepping back, Eras had his blaster out and at the ready. "Show yourself!"

"I am afraid that is quite impossible. The circuitry within my droid brain has been integrated within this ship's core Central Computer.", answered the mechanical voice.

"You are part of the ship? Who are you?", asked Eras in astonishment as he put away his weapon.

"I am SCR-P5, but Captain Reidell always fondly referred to me as 'Scraps'". Eras could not help smiling at Reidell's sense of humor.

"As you have input the correct master code, am I correct in assuming that Captain Reidell is no longer functioning?", asked Scraps.

Eras felt uneasy answering the droid. "Yeah…I'm sorry. There was nothing I could do."

After a lengthy pause of silence, the bridge controls and monitors sprang to life. "Voice recognition sample and ocular scan required. Please state your name."

A retinal scanning beam passed over Eras's face. "Sal Eras."

"Voice pattern accepted. Controls to the ship have been transferred to your comm. The Shadow Stalker is now under your command."...