Ah, an Imperial Agent's PoV. It could be a bit easier to read with paragraphing. I always like the intermingling of the paired classes stories. It makes for an interesting read. And, your character certainly have an attitude A new Chiss on the block, cheers!

@alaurin: I think you’re doing great with the male perspective, and I like Dek and the way you captured Mako. It was interesting to see what happened to the people from Dek’s past, the picture of the corruption in the Republic is interesting.

And I forgot to mention that A punny story should be before First day on the Job/Sisterhood in the index. It would be great if you could fix that, if you don’t mind.

@frauzet: That was funny. It’s interesting that this figure of speech exists in both English and German, by the way. Wonder who stole it from whom?

@Striges: Of course that’s the real issue, but it didn’t make for a good pun, at least I didn’t find one.

@DomiSotto: I liked your story. The first part was sad, the second hooked me. I like how you write Quinn, he really doesn’t have an easy life with Becchino, does he? But Quinn and Pierce are always good together.

@Xathul: Mix’a’lot seems like a fun character. That’s really an interesting way for the agent and the bounty hunter to meet.

Nova was lounging on the sofa in the Silence’s holo room when she heard one of her crewmates approaching. She didn’t look up from the report she was reading, as she could tell from the footsteps it was Temple coming from the bridge.

When the ensign stopped before the table, Nova looked up to acknowledge her presence and put the report down. It was boring anyway and contained no hints at the Castellan restraints. Though Nova hadn’t really expected it to, she just wouldn’t feel satisfied until she went through everything she could get her hands on. But for now, the new crewmember took priority.

“Reporting, sir.”

“Good, we need to get on with your training. Sit down.” Nova patted on the sofa.

Temple sat a comfortable distance away from her. She looked as relaxed as a piece of Mandalorian iron, and Nova noticed she took a position where she was able to get up and behind cover quickly, like the Cipher had taught her.

“Ready for training?”

“Yes, sir. I look forward to it.”

“What would you prefer to learn about today, ensign?”

Temple didn’t have to think long. “Infiltration, sir.”

“You know, you don’t have to call me Sir in every sentence. So, infiltration. Can you recap what I said about it yesterday?”

“Of course, Cipher. Infiltration means the integration of an agent into a particular group to manipulate them from the inside. You need the tech for it, for example forged ID, but the real challenge includes dealing with people. For that, intelligence, adaptability, self-control as well as acting and people skills are required. The key to successful infiltration is convincing your target, and the key to being convincing is meeting your target’s expectation.”

“Very good, you already have an agent’s memory.” Nova adopted her Republic slang. “Though that doesn’t mean a ****. Now, we’ll focus on readin’ people and imitating them. Infiltrating people or getting information from them ain’t that different, really. Let’s see what you got. You’re a Coruscant kid tellin’ me ’bout your life with the gangs, and be sure you don’t sound like no bloody Imp.”

Halfway through Temple’s answer, Nova interrupted her and shook her head. “Nah, not like that. Got your “a”s all wrong. You sound like a wannabe actor tryin’ to be all Imperial. Republic accent’s got an intonation, a melody! Try again, kid.”

This time, Temple sounded more Republic, but she didn’t seem like a kid from Coruscant either. Nova noticed Doctor Lokin leaving the medbay and stopping to listen, but she ignored him and turned back to Temple when she was finished. “Better, but you ain’t no kid from the turfs. You sound like some big shot Cloudhead now. Can’t go talkin’ like that in the lower levels or the rim. We don’t use fancy words here, kid. Just changin’ your pronunciation won’t cut it.”

Lokin approached. “Standard corewards with a Coruscanti tilt? Remarkable. You do know how to fake your accents, Cipher.”

Nova shrugged and dropped the accent. “Thank you, doctor. That’s because this isn’t really fake.”

“It isn’t?,” Temple asked, frowning. “How so, sir?”

“I spent a year or so as a street kid on Coruscant when I was eight. You adopt languages and accents quickly at that age.” Which, coupled with training herself rigorously, was why Nova now spoke and thought in an Imperial dialect, but she didn’t need to mention that to her crew.

“You’ll have to tell the story sometime, agent,” Lokin commented.

“If you can convince me that it would be advantageous to trust you with it, doctor, sure. But I doubt it.”

“Ah, agents and their paranoia. Completely advisable, of course. By the way, I noticed your Cheunh still has a few slips, agent. Perhaps you might want to work on them?”

“Certainly, doctor. Let’s begin right now, if you’re free. Ensign, you’ll want to continue your Huttese lessons with Kaliyo.”

“Right away, sir.”

Before Temple left the room, Nova called after her, “And remember to cross-check everything she teaches you. You won’t like the consequences if I catch you insulting Vector again, accident or not, and I don’t care what Kaliyo said it was.”

I have actually no idea what Coruscant slang should sound like, so I just made something up, trying to show the difference between that and how Nova normally talks. I’m not really happy with this story, but I won’t get it any better.

And I’m pretty sure I didn’t do Lokin justice, but I never used him in game because Nova is a healer and playing with a healer companion is a pain.

An agent is a natural for this quiz! I love it how you brought the background back into play, with the Agent switching between the Coruscant slang and the Imperial high accent. It was awesome when the game VA did it, and it is just as lovely a trick in the story. I also thought it was hilarious that Kalyio made poor Raina insult Vector. Huttese lessons, lol!

5. Dromund Kaas: But, Vette, It Always Works!

Tacked in the heart of an industrial park on the edge of the old city, the Cargo Port B7 did not make a lasting impression. Humble or not, Lord Yvolgar strolled in as if he owned the warehouse. The echo of his footfalls disturbed a bored officer and his underlings.

“This area is of limits, Twi’lek! Get lost,” the man in charge spat out and started to turn away. Yvolgar casually pushed a flap aside to show the sabre’s hilt.

“Lord Baras asked me to ensure his prize is delivered promptly, Commander…?” he said curtly.

“Lanklyn, My Lord,” the man shifted form foot to foot, looking mildly apprehensive. “I assure you, we can handle it. There is nothing for Lord Baras to worry---“

Lord Yvolgar shrugged dismissively and stopped paying attention to the man. Instead, his eyes moved around scanning the warehouse, while the workers unloaded a large slab of carbonite with some poor wretch inside it from the docked shuttle. Vette followed Lord Yvolgar’s example. She noticed the motion behind large crates the same moment Yvolgar did, and crouched. It could be an innocent scavenger, a wild bird, a rodent –

A rodent, yes, of sorts. But a HUGE one. With a face only his mother could love, a necklace of grenades, and a rifle of an impressive size. A split second later a human slipped into view from behind another create.

The latest arrival pushed braided hair out of his eyes. “Why, TuMarr, fancy meeting you here!”

The braids fell right back, but the mouth belied his amusement nonetheless.

“The cargo is mine, Slestack, you scum!” TuMarr growled. He was not amused in the slightest.

“Why, charming as usual,” Slestack grinned, “but particularly clueless. I have the first dibbs, TuMarr. Stand down.”

The minions materialized out of thin air as this exchange took place and came to join the two leaders. “TuMarr is Hutts, or I am a Rhodian berserker,” Vette thought, “but the other one… hmm… SIS maybe? A freelancer?”

“Scum!” TuMarr reasserted with a forceful stubbornness.

“To know TuMarr is to love TuMarr!” Slestack exclaimed, addressing himself to no-one in particular, but absolutely enjoying himself. “Limited vocabulary, gentlemen… and a lady, but notice how he manages to milk every drop of threat out of it.” The rogue had an audacity to wink at Vette: “Don’t worry, beautiful, his ugly face won’t offend your sight much longer.”

Commander Lanklyn carefully reached for his pistol and said something nearly inaudible to his men. Yvolgar, on the opposite, took no efforts to be subtle. He folded his arms across his chest, set his feet a little wider apart, and stood tall.

“On Balmorra, old hags trade words like that on the bazar all day,” he said derisively.

“But!” He held each man’s eyes in turn. “If one of you is serious about challenging a Sith, earn the honor.”

“Bring me the other’s head.”

Lord Yvolgar projected his voice, so the words echoed in the warehouse.

Head… head…

Vette fully expected each scoundrel to laugh and unload his clip into the stripling Sith, but both men’s nostrils flared, their chins went up, the eyes glared – and they turned on each other, eager to prove something to a complete stranger.

Bewildered, Vette flattened herself against the floor, along with the rest of the Lanklyn’s squad.

Yvolgar did not move, watching the short contest impassively. And it was quite a showdown!

Slestack’s first round took TuMarr at his knees, bringing the gigantic man down, but one of his underlings managed to turn Slestack’s lieutenant into a human torch. Slestack howled and took a careful aim, ignoring the fire bursts around him. The rogue did not see TuMarr’s toss until it was too late. The grenade exploded, making it hard to see, hear and breathe. When the flames settled, Slestack was down. TuMarr screamed victoriously, but chocked up. Blood came bubbling out of his mouth… and then nobody moved. Vette couldn’t credit her eyes, and her ears rang.

Behind Yvolgar, Commander Lanklyn broke the silence, his voice a touch hoarse, and even shaking a little: “Thank you, my Lord, thank you. Without you, we would have had a tough fight on our hands…” and waved frantically for the petrified workers to move Lord Baras’ carbonized prisoner.

Lord Yvolgar barely acknowledged Lanklyn’s praise and walked to the door, following the carbonate block. He paused to kneel by Slestack. Pushed the man’s braids aside, and closed the staring eyes. “Pretty,” he whispered, “a pity.”

Vette noticed him ball his hands into fists a few times, then slowly unclench them as they accompanied the cargo to the Sith Sanctum. Releasing the Force, Vette realized, and felt a chill. “Lucky you set them against one another, My Lord,” Vette said to distract herself from thinking too too much about the whole Sith thing. “I would feel awful if we had to kill them all. If, you know, it didn’t work.”

Lord Yvolgar looked at her abashed: “But, Vette, it always works!”

“Ah,” Vette giggled. “Of course. On Balmorra. A word of advice, My Lord? Don’t try to pull it on a girl. ”

Lord Yvolgar repeated stubbornly: “It always works. You’ll see.”

Then he sighed: “Vette, refresh my memory, please. My name is---?”

“Yvolgar,” Vette murmured.

“So use it, Vette. Or do I need to re-decorate the Sanctum as well?“

Vette kept on giggling for a bit, but the funnies left her as soon as they stepped into the oppressive office building of the Sith. Lard Baras, on another hand, was as jolly as a Sith could be. It was sort of scary, really. He rubbed his hands looking at the black outline of a man.

“This man hold the key to the puzzle,” he said, “My spy network has been compromised, my most prized agents revealed to the Republic! I must know how the traceless spy was discovered.“

“Must have left a trace somewhere,” Lord Yvolgar offered, looking bored. He caught himself and bowed properly: “My Lord.”

“Still here?” Lord Baras snapped out of his reverie. The face mask was blank, but Vette felt him staring Yvolgar down.

“I need time to break the prisoner. You are to report to my Apprentice, Ba’al, at the Lord Grathan’s Estate. Grathan needs a lesson. He defied me one time too many.”

Lord Yvolgar’s face assumed a strange expression. “You have… another apprentice, My Lord?” he asked in a high, petulant voice. “Is he… senior to me?”

Lard Baras did not respond, his attention fixed once again on his carbonized man. Lord Yvolgar turned on his heels and sped out of the building.

“What’s wrong with you!” Vette exclaimed near breathless once they were outside. “Erm… Lord Yvolgar. You’re fuming because this horrible, repulsive, outrageous reprobate---“

Lord Yvolgar interrupted her sulkily: “Maybe, but he is my Lord and—“

Vette was unstoppable: “…has another apprentice! How does it—“

“…and I’m going show him that this Ba’al is nothing compared to me! I will grind him into green goo!” Lord Yvolgar finished.

Vette gave up, jumped on the speeder and rolled her eyes: “Fine! Measure your lightsabre against his all you want, once you get there, but you’re not driving! Hop on.”

“Vette,” Yvolgar said quietly, “that’s my speeder. The newest prototype, limited release, twenty-four gears, electrum alloy caps, the MK-9 suspension ---“

“Yep, and if you want a ride, you will hop on it now. Or you can walk… Lord Yvolgar.”

The glint that appeared in Lord Yvolgar’s eyes made her skin *****le even before he flashed his widest, his best smile ever: “I’ll walk. Try to keep up!”

With that, Lord Yvolgar pushed a button on his wrist guard, and a bluish jet of flames exploded from his rocket boots, and propelled him down the path at a crazy speed. Vette did not have time to curse as much as she wanted to before she punched the speeder in gear and raced after him. Luckily, Yvolgar’s boots had to be recharged now and then, while the speeder had no such disadvantage. So she got in her quota of cussing while playing a strange game of tag with Lord Yvolgar all the way through the jungle to the Estate. She also promised herself to get him back at the first opportunity.

@frauzet: I loved the interaction/teasing between Ciner and Rufuro in the pun piece. I think these two are going to have an interesting friendship.

Glad you liked Dek's piece and yes, I think that's probably a common reaction with the male BH and crew whenever Mako shouts through the ship.

@Striges: no worries on missing that piece on Tumblr......I was posting like crazy that week since the storyline sorta exploded and I got quite a lot of it out in a very short time. I'm glad you like the breadcrumb aspect because you'll be getting another very soon!

@DomiSotto: Nice little insight to Lt. Dur and Lord Becchino in that piece. Also, a lovely little intrigue about their connection.

Glad you liked Dekkyn and my other guys. The BH crew is one of my favorites. I've only ever played WOW and SWTOR, so I'm clueless if that name came from anything else. I gave him a similar name to a brief character in another of my legacies.

@Xakthul: welcome back and a nice little into to your agent and BH (?)! I love that everyone seems to have similar reactions to Hutta....I hated that place! One thing, I had a hard time reading it as it currently is format wise.....maybe put some spacing in between paragraphs.

@Jokad: I loved that piece with Nova and Temple. Temple is such a straitlaced soldier persona and I had to laugh at the thought of Kaliyo teaching her Huttese!!

Jax leaned back in his seat as the engines began powering down. He could hear Bowie’s barks as the Wookiee passed the short corridor that led to the cockpit on his way to the cargo hold. They’d just landed on Coruscant with a small delivery of wine that was going to some senator for a ball later in the week. He’d agreed to make the delivery since he was already planning on heading to the Republic capital to visit his buddy, Zev. Jax and his crew were taking a brief hiatus after a very successful heist on The King’s Ransom, an Imperial treasury ship and Havoc was on an extended leave after their most recent mission to take out an Imperial super weapon a week ago. The mission was a success but came at a high cost…..the squad’s second in command almost died and was still floating in a kolto tank. A shiver ran down Jax’s spine as he remembered his last mission as a soldier, a failed mission that had resulted in multiple fatalaties. He’d spent several days in a kolto tank, as did Zev and his cousin, Dek.

With a sigh, Jax got up, and headed for his quarters. He didn’t feel the need to oversee the cargo unloading since Bowdaar and Risha both tended to be as detail orientated as he was. Jax wanted meet up with Zev and see how Jorgan was doing. Over the past year, he’d come to respect the older Cathar and considered him a friend. Zev was taking it hard since he and Jorgan had been together in Havoc since Ord. Luckily, Elara had been able to work her magic and was able to keep badly wounded soldier alive until they could get him into a tank. Jax smiled, knowing his buddy was taken with the blond medic and hoped Zev would finally get around to asking her out one of these days.

Jax strapped his blasters to his belt, knowing he’d be searched at the complex, but he felt vulnerable without them, especially after what Dek found out last week. The rest of Havoc was staying in the military complex, and Jax was going to head there as soon as the cargo was unloaded. He was just leaving his quarters when his Holo went off. Seeing who it was, Jax plugged it into the ship’s main receiver.

“Hey, sugar,” the beautiful Zeltron purred when she appeared, “I was hoping I’d catch you.”

Jax tensed a little when he saw Risha out of the corner of his eye, “How’s it going, Zara,” he greeted her, trying to keep the usual flirtatiousness out of his tone, “Don’t tell me you’ve gone through that shipment already!”

He liked Zara and she was one of the rare females he’d gave his Holofrequency to. They’d spent some nights together on Nar Shaddaa and Jax genuinely liked her, but neither of them wanted anything out of the relationship besides friendship, some business, and the occasional hookup. The latter stopped happening when Jax realized his feelings for Risha weren’t going away despite her numerous rejections and he’d been celibate these past couple of months.

Nah,” Zara shook her head, “This isn’t a business call……or a social one either.”

“What’s wrong?” Jax asked, noticing the usually easygoing cantina owner looked worried, “Are you in trouble?”

“No, I’m not in any trouble,” Zara assured him, then she looked around behind her and lowered her voice before continuing, “but I think you might be, sugar.”

“Talk to me,” Jax nodded, spotting Corso and Bowdaar approaching, “I trust my crew.”

“I don’t have much time, but a little bit ago, three men came into the cantina. I’d never seen them before, but that’s not too unusual. However, they didn’t look like the sort that typically comes to this place, more upper class. They were dressed like wealthy businessmen, but I could tell they were armed.”

“Did something happen?”

“Not really,” Zara answered, “They took a back booth and kept to themselves. I was curious about them though, so I started cleaning off tables in their section. I hadn’t planned on actually talking to them until I heard one say your name. These didn’t look like any friends of yours, so I went over to see if they needed anything.”

“You alright?”

“Oh, I’m fine, sugar,” Zara grinned, “You know how I dress…..I highly doubt they got a good look at my face. Anyways, when I got to their table, one of them was holding a datapad and hurried to close the file, but I got a decent glimpse before it shut off. Your picture was at the top and there were two others, both Zabrak. One red skinned, one a deep tan…….possibly your old military friends.”

“They still there?”

“I’m not sure. I took their order, got their drinks, flirted a little, then came here into my office to call you. Let me check the surveillance monitors,” Zara’s image bounced a little as she moved, “Yup, they’re still here.”

“Do those recordings get saved?”

“Laws require us to save the footage for three days,” Zara nodded, “but I can always save it longer if you’d like.”

“Don’t change anything for now,” Jax told her, thinking fast, “I don’t want to draw any attention to it. I just landed on Coruscant to visit Zev and was about to head over to his place when you called. How much longer are you going to be there?”

“I wasn’t actually working a regular shift this evening,” Zara shurgged, “Just placing orders and paying bills, so I can be here as long as I need to be.”

“Give me an hour,” Jax told her, “I’m going to go talk to Zev and call you back….that alright?”

“That’s fine, sugar,” Zara assured him, then turned her head, “Oh…..gotta go, the bartender’s hollering for me.”

“Be careful, Zara, don’t draw any attention to yourself,” Jax cautioned, then corrected himself as he looked her over, realizing how redundant that statement sounded, “any unusual attention that is.”

“I won’t,” Zara winked, “Talk to you soon.”

“Any idea what that’s about, Captain?” Corso asked after Jax signed off.

“I’m not sure,” Jax shook his head, “but I’m willing to bet it has something to do with what Dek stumbled across last week.”

“If that’s true,” Risha finally spoke up, “Then you might want to back off your own search until we get to the bottom of this.”

“That’s probably a good idea,” Jax agreed, “and I’ll warn Zev not to go poking around either. Luckily he knows a guy on Nar Shaddaa that might be able to help us. Can you guys oversee the cargo unloading without me?”

“Sure thing, Captain,” Corso nodded and Bowdaar barked his agreement.

“Thanks,” Jax replied, “I want to get to Zev’s place now and see if his agent buddy can get a copy of Zara’s footage.”

Zara was first introduced in The Case of the Missing Mojo. Also, for those that are curious as to why I need to do some editing before posting the next part, think bachelor party on Nar Shaddaa!

@Alaurin- RE: Taking the Fall- That's horrible! I bet Zev sympathizes with Havoc Squad's defection a lot more than the average trooper. It's a good thing nothing like that ever happened to Mallena or heads would have rolled. Are you sure Zev isn't a former Jedi, to have that kind of calm?

RE: A Chaotic Symphony- I'm glad you liked the prompt! And who says you can't put a lot of insight, background and description into a piece? Your content warning was definitely warranted, it felt like I was being punched in the gut while I was reading it. (Blessedly not from personal experience, but it's something every woman fears, and I'd venture a good number of men as well. And being not too many years older than Malley was...). Nonetheless, I really liked it. It was very well written, and it made me feel, which I love in a story. And the ending was really sweet.

RE: A Needle in a Haystack- After what I just read with Zev, I hope someone pays for that who fiasco.

As a side note, I really should get a tumblr. Everyone seems to have so much fun over there.

@YoshiRalphElan- This song takes me way back. I can remember it being on the radio and being played in church when I was younger. I guess that it would be rather difficult for a Sith who wanted to defect to the Republic. Just because you changed your side doesn't make your crimes go away. Glad it worked out for him.

@Kitar- Another sweet ending. And I'm starting to really like Ka'van. Also liked how you incorporated Akkavi's mando-ness. Sorry, your comment is one of the ones I'm having trouble reconstructing.

@Striges- Very funny. I imagine that acronyms for bad equipment would get creatively re-done. I've heard that during WW2, the British had what was called the ENSA- Entertainments National Service Association, that was in charge of providing entertainment for the troops, but it soon came to be called "Every Night Something Awful"

@Jokad- Only read the non-spoiler story, but I laughed. I guess being a Force-user doesn't excuse you from being a stupid teenager trying to impress your crush?

@DomiSotto- I had trouble understanding the second half of your story (probably because of my lack of warrior experience), but the first part I liked. Glean keeps shouting, but we got to see a little bit of heart there.

@Xakthul- Agent spoilers, sorry!

By the time she could see clearly, Mallena was starting to get restless. “You ready to go?” she said to Jorgan.

He nodded and began to re-pack his pack. Mallena went upstairs to do the same and change back into her armor.

Now would be a good time to change her bandage too. Unwrapping it slowly, she almost wished she hadn’t. Not only did the cut still hurt, but it looked reddened and swollen, with an unpleasant smell coming from it. Fighting nausea- she had never had a very strong stomach- she daubed a little more disinfectant on it and wrapped it up again. She needed to have someone look at it. But when they got back. For now, their mission was too important to delay for a minor infection.

Finished, she pulled her underlayer the rest of the way up, attached the plastoid plates, pulled on her gloves, and reached for her helmet. The systems lit up as she slid it onto her head and engaged the seals. By the time she had descended the stairs, Sgt. Dorne was on the com.

“Good morning, Lieutenant. What is your objective for today?”

“Good morning, Sgt. How did you sleep?”

“My sleep is irrelevant to the mission, sir.”

Mallena felt slightly miffed. “I was just being polite. Anyway, we’ll be heading the scavenger base to search for the missing patrols.”

“Very well. According to our last data, they are headquartered in a place they call Fallenspire Stronghold. I’m sending a map to your HUD, and I’ll bring a squad to your position for backup.”

“Thank you, Sgt.” She wasn’t sure how much help one extra squad would be against a base full of scavengers, but it was better than nothing and more help then they’d had on Coruscant. Dorne signed off in her perfect Imperial accent and Mallena switched to squad frequency. “Ready to go?”

“Ready, sir.”

She grinned inside her helmet. “Don’t call me sir.”

The anemic morning light filtered through grey clouds outside. The homestead looked even less impressive during the day, but if the kids wanted it so bad, she wasn’t going to stop them. Not her idea of a good place to settle, though. She would be happy to be off this rock.

It didn’t take long to settle into a comfortable hiking pace. A few raks showed up on her helmet’s sensors, but no attacks. Although they trekked in silence, she felt a new dynamic between her and Jorgan that hadn’t been there the day before, a sort of comfort that extended beyond professional trust in each other’s abilities. At least, she felt that way. She had no idea how he felt, or if, in fact, he felt anything at all.

Her helmet warned her of something up ahead, hidden by bushes. She stopped. More raks? No, it registered as near-human. Blaster shots. Hopefully not more scavengers. She raised her rifle.

Wait! She recognized that humming sound. A Jedi, or more likely several by the sound, were somewhere nearby. Mallena pushed through the undergrowth to see a pair of human women and an astromech droid finishing off the last of a pack of rakghouls. They spun around to face Mallena and Jorgan, then deactivated their sabers.

“Lt. Dayne,” said the older woman, who appeared to be in charge, bowing slightly.

How did she- oh. That’s the Jedi from The Esseles. She bowed in return, feeling awkward as she did so. “Jedi… Lannister?”

“Lancaster,” the Jedi corrected without emotion. She wore a dark grey cloak lined in brown and a white version of the hooded tunic her order seemed to like. “This is Kira Carson, and I’m sure you remember T7-01.”

Kira was probably slightly younger than Mallena herself, if she had to guess, and about the same height, with spunkily-cut red hair. She wore a hooded robe-thing over a long dress, both in brown and cream with green trim. She carried a lightsaber with an extra-long hilt that apparently produced a beam from both ends. That must make it much harder to use. Both outfits struck her as highly impractical for the Tarisian swamps, but maybe Jedi didn’t need to worry about that sort of thing. Kira nodded in greeting and T7 beeped.

Jedi Lancaster shifted her weight, looking uncomfortable remaining in one place too long. “What brings you to Taris, Lt?”

“Unfortunately, I can’t talk about it. Orders.” And a bloody pain it is, too! “You?”

“The same.”

Jorgan spoke up. “Does it involve digging, ma’m?” The Jedi carried a large-ish pack that bulged with items, with several farm tools strapped to the outside.

Jedi Carson shook her head. “This is some stuff Master Eyrie is picking up for the refugees. They got chased out of their houses, so they left a lot of stuff behind.”

An idea occurred to Mallena. That stuff looked awkward to carry, and from what she remembered, the Jedi’s fighting style was fairly athletic. She couldn’t imagine what had possessed her to try carrying the items the entire time she was out here. If it was her, she would have waited till she came back, or saved it for another trip entirely. “Look,

there’s a house about half a click back there. You can drop the stuff there if you want.”

Lancaster shook her head. Apparently whatever was wrong with her eyes hadn’t healed yet, because she still wore the carved mask. Why would any sane person send a blind lady out on a mission like this? “We wouldn’t want to inconvenience the owners.”

“You won’t. It’s empty, and it’ll stay that way until I get back to the base to tell them I cleared out the squatters.” No need to explain all the messy details. “And when I do, I’ll tell them to leave your packs alone.”

The Jedi bit her lip, but the other one, who Mallena guessed must be her apprentice or something, spoke up. “Do it, Master. You know you’ll be glad you did.”

“Alright. Thank you for the offer.” With that, the trio set off in the direction Mallena and Jorgan had come from, leaving them alone again.

“If you want to talk about stiff, that’s it,” said Mallena. “Maybe it’s a Jedi thing.” Jorgan shrugged and they continued walking.

They reached Fallenspire Stronghold before noon. It didn’t look that impressive, just a half-fallen building with a small entrance nearly hidden in the rubble, but Sgt. Dorne assured them that most of the base was underground. It better be, thought Mallena as she followed Jorgan into the precarious structure. Or else we came all this way for nothing.

Inside, they found a surprisingly roomy area, dark except for a few emergency lights that looked like military surplus- or military stolen. Mallena switched her helmet to night vision and scanned the room. No life forms. She would bet her sidearm that they were watching, though. “Jorgan, did your sniper training ever include surveillance?”

“Yes…”

“Then I’ll bet you can find their cameras faster than I can. Point me to them and I’ll take them out.” It would slow them down and draw attention to their presence, but it would also prevent the scavengers from watching Sgt. Dorne’s squad when they arrived. Some surprise backup could be just what they needed.

It didn’t take Jorgan long to find three security cams planted in out of the way corners. Mallena destroyed each one in a hail of blaster bolts. “If they didn’t know we were here already, they do now,” he said as the last one fell to the floor with a clatter that echoed through the empty lobby.

The only way further in seemed to be a large cargo elevator, which they climbed onto hesitantly. “I don’t like this,” said Jorgan.

Mallena didn’t like it either. She’d had too many bad experiences with elevators on The Esseles. This one dropped them off in a cavernous room at least sixty meters across. A series of alcoves blocked by bluish force fields lined the side walls. Could some of the mission patrols still be alive here?

As soon as their feet were visible to the room below, the scavengers clustered in the center began a hail of blaster fire. Mallena tossed an ion grenade at the main group before picking off the rest from under Jorgan’s suppressive fire. Though they may have been combat-capable, these particular scavengers were certainly not particularly skilled. Probably why they had been left as prison guards instead of sent out into the wilds.

The last scavenger fell to the ground and Mallena jogged over to the nearest alcove cell, passing her rifle to her left arm as she did. Her cut was starting to hurt again, and the bandage felt uncomfortably tight.

Three men occupied the small cell. Two lay on the floor, one obviously near unconsciousness, the other with a leg propped up on a small box, but the third stood against the field, watching in excitement. “Watch out!” he shouted, voice distorted. “There’s a huge alien guarding us and-“

Mallena spun around. An instant later, a massive creature bounded into view. Its rocky skin and bulging muscles were offset by a rather babyish face, but she wasn’t fooled into thinking it was friendly. “What is that thing?” she shouted over the com as she brought her rifle up and opened fire.

“No idea. If I had to guess, I’d say go for the eyes.”

Mallena followed Jorgan’s advice and aimed her shots at the alien’s beady black eyes. It batted at them, managing to take most of the hits on its arm. Mallena swore. Blasters didn’t seem to be able to penetrate its hide easily, and she didn’t want to use grenades with herself and Jorgan this close. She dived behind a pile of crates and popped on her ion enhancement, hoping to buy time.

Standing up again, she directed a series of jolts at the monster, hoping to draw its attention. It turned slowly, attention still focused on Jorgan. A roar escaped its mouth.

“So that hurts you, huh?” she muttered. Well, that would be her strategy, then.

“Got a plan, Lt.?”

“I’m open to any suggestions. Help me keep it distracted long enough to think of something.”

“If it gets those claws into us and starts tossing us around, we’ll be dead. Stay clear.”

“Got it.” What to do? The thing had decided her electric shocks weren’t an imminent threat and turned back to attacking Jorgan. Back to blaster bolts.

Mallena couldn’t see her squadmate very well behind the creature’s bulk, but from what she could tell, it had backed him into a corner. It reached for him. “Hey, you!” she shouted as loud as she could. It paused. “Yeah, you. Why don’t you come after me?” She caught sight of a hydrospanner laying on a nearby box and threw it with all her might.

“Come on, get me!” The box itself way too heavy for her to lift, but the tray table covered in tools next to it wasn’t. Electrotorques and miniwelders flew everywhere as she slung the table.

Finally, she had its attention. It strode toward her, massive clawed hand uplifted-

And checked itself once again as a flurry of blaster fire slammed into its hide. It turned toward the source of the new threat, but already it was failing. Mallena lost no time in adding her own shots to the mix. Thirty seconds later, it was all over. Thank the stars for Sgt. Dorne and her team, she thought.

The men- about half a dozen, plus the sergeant- swarmed into the room, checking for any remaining scavengers and opening cell doors. Mallena walked over to the man she had been speaking to before the monster had appeared. He was older than her, but not by a lot, with sandy brown hair. Dried blood crusted his face, but he didn’t seem to be hurt much. She tried not to let it distract her while he talked. “Who are you?” he said in an awed voice. “You guys took that thing down like it was nothing!”

“Lt. Dayne, Commanding Officer, Havoc Squad,” Mallena replied, saluting. Dropping her hand, she added. “This is Sgt. Jorgan. And it was mostly your own people.”

He didn’t seem to care. “They sent Havoc Squad after us? Wow! I didn’t know they actually cared that much. I’m Ensign Tane, sir. It’s a good thing you found us. They were about to ship us off to some guy named ‘Needles’.”

Jorgan spoke into her helmet comm. “Needles? As in Ryler Dorrent, the Havoc Squad medic?”

“That’s his real name?” Mallena had known his mother probably hadn’t named him after medical supplies, but it had never occurred to her to wonder what his real one was. Somehow, it made him seem a little less intimidating.

“According to the records. But no one’s called him anything but Needles for years.”

She switched back to voice. “Are you sure they said Needles?”

The ensign nodded. “We figured it must be a code name. Have you heard of him?”

Mallena was getting ready to lie when the man caught sight of the team working its way around the room. “Great,” he muttered. “Now Sgt. Dorne is here to make sure we got beaten according to regulations.”

“Watch your tone, soldier,” Mallena warned. No matter what you thought of the higher-ups, you had to be respectful.

“Lieutenant!” called Sgt. Dorne as she strode toward them.

“Thanks for the assist, Sgt. You made it just in time.”

She blinked, then said. “Regulations state that there should be no delay in coming to the aid of a squad in need of backup. I was simply following orders.”

“Well, thanks anyway.” What was her deal? Mallena was starting to agree with Jorgan.

Dorne had turned her attention to the newly released prisoner. “Ensign Tane, report!”

He looked at Mallena and Jorgan nervously. “Uh, yes, sir, Sgt., sir. Like I was just saying to, uh, the Lt. here, we were captured for a guy named Needles. Oh! And there are Imperials here! Working with this person out in the swamps somewhere. I think they’ve got a base there.”

“Imps, on Taris?” Jorgan didn’t seem shocked as much as weary. Mallena didn’t blame him. “They’re everywhere these days.”

The ensign continued. “So, you excited, Dorne? Going to get the chance to correct your old buddies’ paper work again?” he said in a mocking tone.

Before she had the chance to process what exactly he had said, Mallena’s fist was already swinging towards his jaw. It wasn’t a hard punch, just enough to get his attention. He gaped at her. “Listen,” she said. “I don’t care what you think of the Sgt, you respect your superiors. Now, I don’t want to hear you talking like that again, you hear?”

“Y-yes, sir!”

“Now, what’s this about ‘old buddies’?”

The Sgt. came as close as Mallena thought she probably ever did to blushing. “Many of the local troops feel that my adherence to regulations is a result of my upbringing. I was born Imperial.”

“I guessed.” Plenty of Imperial citizens had fled to the Republic over the years. It wasn’t at all surprising that some of them had felt strongly enough to enlist.

“However, after two years in the military, I defected. Given my extensive knowledge and training, I was awarded this position under service code 37-R.”

“What?” Sgt. Dorne actually served in the Imperial military? She could have fought our own troops, helped the enemy win battles. She could even have killed some of my old platoonmates.

“We can discuss non-mission critical issues later. My team and I will get these men back to base so you can proceed with your mission against Needles and his Imperial installation.”

“Anything you want me to pass on to your ‘old buddies’?”

Dorne’s voice grew frosty. “We have our separate duties, Lieutenant. I’ll leave you to yours.” She spun on her heel and headed toward where one of her team was treating a wounded soldier.

Mallena stared after her. Jorgan moved over to stand by her shoulder. “You should have had her look at your arm. I can tell it’s still bothering you.”

She shook her head. “I don’t want that woman touching me.” She needed time to process, to figure out what this meant. Could she work with someone who could very well have shot people she knew? Was the Sgt. even truly loyal to the Republic?

“You can’t throw out everything she says just because she used to be Imperial. You aren’t still loyal to Tavus just because he used to be Republic, are you?”

“Now you’re the one defending her? I thought you were the one who thought she was uptight and stiff.”

“I do. She make me feel like I should be constantly standing at attention. But give her a chance to prove her loyalty.”

“Fine. But I’m not turning my back on her till she has.”

“That’s common sense, Lt.” He turned to the Ensign who, unable to hear their conversation, was staring in puzzlement. “Now, about this swamp base…”

Mallena doesn't hold any ill-will toward the average Imperial populace, but extending grace to someone who's actually worked to uphold the system is a lot harder for her.

For those who might be confused, Eyrie is a Miraluka, but I don't think they're very common in the galaxy at this point, and Mallena certainly isn't familiar with them, thus her thinking Eyrie is a human with an eye injury.

Although I'm a believer in Gameplay and Story Segregation when it comes to non-humorous fan fics (there are no classes, no levels, no weapon or armor restrictions, no party size limit, etc.), but I thought it would be fun to have Mallena do a little tanking, since she does so much of it in-game.

Kiarn is an acolyte at the Sith Academy who's just finished her trials and been granted a master. She's officially the Sith Inquisitor, but she's just now meeting up with the class story, since I had my own idea as to how Korriban should go. During the course of one of the trials (a free-for-all in the valley of the dark lords), she discovered Khem Val in stasis, but did not wake him up. Kiarn is a human female with red hair, pale skin, and green eyes. Erilinn is a pureblood, non-class story marauder.

Half an hour later, I follow Erilinn down a hallway in the upper levels of the Academy. I’ve never been this high, and all the doors are closed, so I have no idea what sort of rooms they conceal. Though the only thing inside is the dead, numb sensation that always remains after drawing heavily on the Dark Side, at least I look better. I washed all the dirt off, changed into a fresh academy uniform, and even managed to comb my hair out with my fingers.

He stops in front of one of the doors. “Your master is waiting for you.” He steps closer to me and drops his voice.

“Lord Zash is something of an unknown quantity. She’s risen to power very quickly, but her superiors don’t trust her.

More than is usual for us, that is. I haven’t met her myself, but I do know that she’s considered to be a very strong Force-user, who enjoys searching out obscure rituals. I also know that she seems fixated on having you and you only as an apprentice, even passing up one who outscored you in the trials. Be careful.”

“…Thank you.” I shouldn’t want his help, but somehow, I appreciate it anyway.

He steps back and motions for me to go in. Hesitatingly, I tap on the door with two fingers. A soft female voice comes from inside. “Come in.” Erilinn turns and walks back down the hall.

I press the panel and the door slides back, revealing a well-lit room much like Eliss’ office that I visited my first day here. Lord Zash sits at a desk in the center, bent over a sheet of parchment. She looks up as I enter. “Hello,” she purrs, standing up and walking confidently around the desk. “You must be Kiarn. Welcome.”

“Thank you, Lord.” I bow slightly, unsure of the appropriate amount of deference. On the one hand, I’m not even officially an apprentice yet, and therefore still quite low on the food chain. On the other, I doubt she expects me to spend the next few years bowing constantly. Or does she? My experience with Sith Lords suggests that too much is better than too little. I’ve never seen anyone killed for being too humble.

She walks slowly in a circle around me, probing gaze running up and down my body. I fight old habits that tell me to bow my head and hold my hands behind my back. “Not as attractive as I’d hoped,” I hear her say under her breath. “And probably malnourished, but she’s human, and she looks like she’ll be strong enough.”

Strong enough for what? To become her apprentice? I would have thought she would have decided that by now. As she passes back into my view, I study her in return. She’s human, I’d guess about thirty, with rich, golden tan skin and short blond hair cut longer in the front. A bit on the tall side, she has brown eyes and a face that I can only describe as aristocratic. Her Force presence matches her appearance: calm and collected, with hot fire lurking below the surface, like some sort of forest predator. Erilinn is right. This is a woman to be careful of. And first, I’ll have to figure out why she chose me.

She sits back at her desk, her walk quick, but smooth and gliding. “I’ve seen the footage of your trials, and I think you’ll do wonderfully. Have you seen the results?” Her voice is almost flirtatious, and I wonder if she sounds like this all the time.

I shake my head and she holds out the datapad. On it is a list of names with rankings, points, and a breakdown of our performance on each trial. Unsurprisingly, Tyrin is in first. I wonder who they made him kill? It was probably easy for him. There’s obviously no one he cares about except himself.

Quillan and Karanni have tied for second. No surprise there either. I’m sure they’ll be upset, though. At first I wonder why they didn’t set them against each other, before realizing that there is nothing particularly ruthless about killing a long-time rival. Fourth down on the list is my own name. Fourth? I did that well? Looking at the list, I realize that only ten acolytes made it to this stage. Only ten. Out of almost fifty.

Lord Zash pulls the datapad back and says “There was one thing that particularly interested me in your footage. The room you found in the tomb of Naga Sadow. Inside was a Dashade, a powerful alien bred to hunt Force-users. I know from my research that this particular Dashade was in the service of Tulak Hord, who left a map hidden in the tomb. I also know that it is impossible to retrieve the map without the Dashade.” Her eyes fix on mine. “I want you to bring me the map.”

My surprise must show. She smiles and a light that resembles childlike happiness sparkles in her eyes. “The map is the key to a ritual that will make the Sith who performs it unbelievable powerful and unlock the secrets of Tulak Hord. I want to help you perform this ritual. But first, I need the map.

“I’ve instructed Lord Erilinn to give you everything you need for your journey. He will also supply you with your lightsaber once you return. I’ll meet you on Drommund Kaas.” The smile again. “Good luck, apprentice.”

In keeping with both the Inquistor story and my original concept for her character, Kiarn is a former slave who revealed her long-secret Force sensitivity by accident and was promptly shipped off to Korriban.

For those who are curious, yes, the adventures of Mallena, Jess, Eyrie, Feyte, and co. all take place in the Kiarn!verse.

Am I the only one who thinks that Zash sounds like she's flirting constantly?

@DomiSotto: Thanks! Your story was funny, I liked the dynamic between Yvolgar and Vette, especially at the end. Your take on this quest was also interesting, and I get the feeling Yvolgar will encounter a situation where it doesn’t work soon.

@alaurin: Glad I could make you laugh. I’m waiting to see who those people are and how Jax will deal with them. So far, I like how you show the pieces of the puzzle. And it’s interesting to see how Jax and Risha will work out.

@Striges: Thanks for the Monthy Python link, that was hilarious. Temple’s lucky Vector is so calm, or she could have caused a similiar scene. And I agree about the accents in game, at least on the Empire’s side it’s well done, but it could probably have been used more for the Republic.

@Mirdthestrill: I’d read any thread you made about your other characters, story or comic. As for your last piece, I liked how Mallena didn’t recognize Eyrie’s species, it reminds you that the characters don’t know as much as we do about various aspects of the world sometimes. Mallena’s reaction to Dorne’s past was understandable, but it shows how hard it can be for defectors like her.

I read the other one in SWBM. It’s interesting to see how Kiarn tries to deal with the last trial, and I like your take on Zash.

“Are you listening?”

Zeirko started and turned back from watching the cantina to the pretty Zabrak girl he was talking to. He smiled at her and answered: “Of course I’m listening, sugar. Go on, your father sounds like a real nerfherder. Nothing you can’t handle, I’m sure, but I’d love to hear how you managed to sneak away.”

She nodded and continued her story, gesticulating energetically. Zeirko made sure to nod or smile whenever she looked at him. She certainly was pretty.

A few minutes later, his eyes started to wander again. The place looked like a typical cantina in Nar Shaddaa, slightly dingy and with a variety of people. He was just looking back at his conversation partner when a familiar figure caught his eye.

“Sorry, darling,” he interrupted, “I have to talk to someone, but I’ll be back right away.”

The girl frowned. “I was just going to leave anyway.”

With that, she got up and joined the group of teenagers in the next booth. Zeirko shrugged and left as well. She hadn’t seemed too smart anyway. And he wasn’t really in the mood for flirting either.

Sliding up behind the young red-haired woman at the bar, he tapped her shoulder and asked with a deliberately deep voice: “Pardon me, do you happen to be Miss Nova Leril?”

She laughed and replied without turning around, “I can tell it’s you, Zeirko, I spotted you the moment I walked in. You aren’t exactly inconspicuous here.” She finished her drink and looked at him, “Glad to see you, though. Congratulations on your new title.”

The newly promoted Sith Lord took the seat next to her. “How does everyone already know this?”

Nova smirked. “I wouldn’t say everyone, but you didn’t hesitate in calling Mom, and she told the rest of the family. What are you doing here, anyway?”

“Refueling, supplies, the usual.” He shrugged. “To be fair, that’s what Quinn does. I suppose you know I’ve got a new apprentice, I picked her up on Hutta. Vette insisted on going shopping on Nar Shaddaa since we kinda have holidays and were in the area, and she dragged along Jaesa. I should go back soon. And what are you up to?”

“Not much. We’ve got leave, so I dropped Kaliyo off on this hole of a moon. I don’t really want to know what she plans to do here. Since Vector wants to return to his hive, I’m thinking I’ll let him take the ship and catch a shuttle to Vaiken, there’s always something I need to do there.”

“That’s where I’m headed too. Want a ride?”

She smiled. “Sure, thanks. I’ll just grab my stuff and meet you at the hangar in a few minutes. Don’t worry, I know where.”

At her insistence, Zeirko introduced Nova as “his old friend, Cipher Nine”. Jaesa and Vette were in the crew quarters, engrossed in unpacking their shopping, and barely looked up. He left them to it.

Just then, Quinn approached from the bridge. “My lord, I have just received a call for you. A Colonel from the Imperial army.”

Strange. “Patch him through. And then I’d like you to see if you can find out what happened to Jedi Master Nomen Karr.”

“As you wish, my lord.”

Zeirko noticed that Nova stayed in the room, giving him a questioning glance. He nodded to let her know she could stay.

He turned the holo on. It flickered to life and projected the image of a red-skinned man with yellow eyes and facial tentacles and features much like Zeirko’s, dressed in an officer’s uniform. Zeirko immediately recognized him and Nova took a step closer, but remained out of sight of the holo.

The man straightened in an Imperial salute. “My lord.”

Zeirko pulled himself together. “Father.” He nodded at him. “No need for formalities.”

Colonel Leril relaxed and smiled. “It’s good to see you, my son. You look well.”

“Maybe. What’s the occasion?”

“Does there have to be an occasion to receive a call from your parent?”

Of course it did. “Come on, father. My mother died when I was so young I don’t even remember her, and you’re only barely more present in my life, calling or visiting only twice a year or so. If I remember it right, the last time was when I was still an acolyte. Even remembering you have a son could be the occasion, I suppose.”

His father frowned. “I never forget about you, Zeirko. I regret not being able to be there for you. Leaving you with your grandparents was the only real choice I had.”

Zeirko sighed. “I know, and I don’t blame you. I grew up with an amazing family. But we don’t have to go over all this again.” He noticed Nova grinning at him behind the projection.

“Of course not. I just wanted to congratulate you, actually.”

“Really?” Zeirko shook his head. “If this is for my birthday, I’ve been seventeen for a while now. You’re kind of late.”

“I never did wish you a happy birthday. Consider this corrected now. But that is not the occasion. I heard that you’ve risen to Sith Lord, even have your own apprentice now, and I wanted to express my pride in you.”

“Oh. Thank you.”

“You have done better than I could have asked for, my son. I heard you even lured a Jedi to the dark side and made her your apprentice. You will truly become a force to be reckoned with.”

“I didn’t, but thanks anyway.”

“You didn’t?” The Colonel looked perplexed. “But she is your apprentice, isn’t she?”

Zeirko nodded.

“How could you take her in without making her Sith? That doesn’t make sense.”

He frowned at his father. “You don’t know that. The dark side… well, it’s not exactly comfortable, and I’ve done well so far without- I mean, like that. The dark side is not all it’s supposed to be.”

“What are you talking about!? Zeirko, speaking like this is foolishness. The dark side is what gives Sith their strength, and you are Sith.” His father seemed to get angry.

This again. “My power always was the only thing you cared about, becoming the perfect Sith because you yourself couldn’t. But I refuse to lose myself for your ambition. As if I needed to do that to have success, anyway. I’m not constrained by traditional nonsense.”

“Zeirko, don’t you see what you’re doing? This could be seen as heresy, it’s dangerous!. We would never… What does your grandmother say to that?”

So predictable. “Mom”- his father’s eyelid always twitched at that - “is encouraging me to live my own life.”

“Then she’s letting you step into the abyss. If she knew how close to it you were, she’d never say that. Your mother would never allow it!“

“Don’t drag my mother into this!” Now Zeirko was getting angry. “I don’t-“ give a damn? Didn’t he? The reasonable part of his mind knew that his mother’s approval did have an influence on him, though her opinion would never be as important as for instance Nova’s. “Do you really know how much I care about what my mother would have wanted? Don’t do this to yourself, father.”

“How dare you.” The older Pureblood took a deep breath. “I won’t stand for that. You were born to be a real Sith, and you will be one.”

He saw his sister frowning out of the corner of his eyes, but didn’t break eye contact.

“Are you implying,” Zeirko growled, “that I am not fit to be Sith, Colonel?”

His father visibly started. “Apologies, my lord, I was out of line.” He gave a short bow. “I would never presume to lecture you about being a Sith.”

Zeirko’s anger suddenly evaporated. He had just acquired the authority of a Sith Lord and this was how he chose to use it? “Of course, father.”

Colonel Leril was silent for a few moments before he added quietly, “I do care about you. I only want the best for you, Zeirko.”

The young Sith sighed. “I know. Let’s just leave it at that, shall we? You can always call me if you need to.”

His father smiled. “I hope to see you soon.”

When the holo went out, Zeirko turned and began pacing up and down.

Suddenly, he felt Nova’s hand on his shoulder. “He was wrong, you know. Don’t worry about it.”

Zeirko sighed and nodded. “I suppose. No offense, but I don’t feel like talking right now. I’ll be in my quarters.”

He turned and left the room, not really seeing his surroundings. His conversation with his father had brought a few of his worries to the surface. Zeirko entered his room and sat on the bed, staring at his mother’s second lightsaber on his nightstand. All in all, he rarely noticed it.

Before his inner eye, he saw the faces of the people he killed, staring, weeping, accusing him. He shivered and considered meditation, but he doubted it would calm him right now.

His words kept playing through his head, coupled with images from his work as a Sith apprentice and his own new apprentice. Zeirko firmly refused to lose himself to the dark side, but did that have to make him any less of a Sith? He taught himself to use the light side, but would that be enough for Jaesa?

When Zeirko took his lightsaber and began to practice his forms, he came to the realization that tonight, the nightmares would be bad.

@Striges: If not for the augury I would have had a real problem to fit Vette into Ciner's story. He would have had no reason to take her along apart from her being a gift from Baras. He might have dumped her on his father's estate.

I imagine Ru reactivated his lightsaber very fast after his pun. Ciner got his true meaning very well.

I am glad I read enough English books by now to get at least some (most?) of the puns. If I wrote my stories in German they'd probably contain a lot more puns.

@DomiSotto: Thank you very much for your kind comment!

"Rank and File": I am always grinning when I read about Dur yelling at Jorgan. He has so earned it back on Ord. One of these days I'll have to play a trooper who remembers. (Not sure if I should do that before or after I play the female one for the romance)

I like the way Lord Becchino deals with Quinn and Pierce, keeping them both on their toes. And you show the immediate dislike between Quinn and Pierce very well.

"But, Vette, It Always Works!": That is one of my favorite quests for the SW. Using your brain instead of your lightsaber is so much more fun sometimes. I imagine a lot of people jumping out of their way, shaking their heads or fists after Yvolgar and Vette playing tag before they actually reach the jungle.

@Xakthul: I like how you mixed the oddities of the game into your story, like the assortment of questgivers.

@Jokad: I tried to find out about the origin of '(wie ein Blitz) aus heiterem Himmel'. I found a plausible post that claimed it referred to arrows that flew without making much noise. So it's probably from a time where neither English nor German in their current form existed.

"Dialect and Accent": I liked the "wannabe actor tryin’ to be all Imperial" in your story. It may be comparatively easy to fake an accent or dialect so that a non-speaker of the accent could be fooled, to fool a native speaker is much harder.

Kaliyo's flawed lessons made me laugh.

"A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words": It's not always easy to deal with parents who want only your best, even if you use the light side. I like that Zeirko needs time alone after the conversation with his father.

@alaurin: Glad you like Ciner and Ru. I have some plans for them.

“Be careful, Zara, don’t draw any attention to yourself,” Jax cautioned, then corrected himself as he looked her over, realizing how redundant that statement sounded, “any unusual attention that is.”

@Mirdthestrill: I, too, would read your next thread! I like Kiarn's story. So I'll heed your advice and skip your second story here.

To link to a specific post I click the postcount behind the date and time in the header of the specific post. This takes me to the post and there I can copy the address.

"A New Ally, pt. IV": I like Mallena's reaction to Elara's past and your reasoning behind it.

“Good you’re here!” Corso got up grabbing the backrest of his chair for support when Nikeo approached the table the Mantellian and their Zabrak friend occupied. The cantina was unfrequented this time of day or rather night. Only a handful of other patrons sat at the bar or the other tables. “I’ve had my fill of alcohol and gloomy company. One more hour and I’d probably cry myself to sleep tonight.” Corso’s speech was slurred but still recognizable. Even so Nikeo doubted the young man would hold up for another hour.

Nikeo looked over Corso’s shoulder at Giz. The Zabrak hadn’t noticed him yet. He was staring into his glass, swiveling the amber liquid it contained in slow circles. There were several puddles on the table where the whiskey had been spilled. The bottle in the middle of lake district was half-full. “Second bottle?”

“Third. As I said, I had enough, and so has he. Of course he is of a different opinion on the last point.”

“What happened?”

“Not sure. Same as last time. Everything is fine and then something triggers some memories. This time he wasn’t sober to begin with.”

“Any trouble?”

“So far I have been able to keep him from attracting some.” Corso grabbed Nikeo’s shoulder. “I am off to bed. Good luck with getting him to his room!”

Nikeo watched the Mantellian leave with a somewhat unsteady gait. When he looked back at Giz the Zabrak was in the act of lighting a cigarette. Smoking a cigarette wouldn’t do much harm to Giz’ health compared to the level of alcohol he’d imbibed, but smoking was restricted on Carrick Station. The guardsmen did their job, and Nikeo would be damned if they didn’t keep an eye on the Zabrak already. If he landed in detention he’d miss his flight tomorrow. Nikeo leaned over the table and snatched the cigarette from his friend’s mouth. Giz’ hands dropped below the table.

Kark! Not good! He should have seen that coming. Despite his state the Zabrak would still be fast. “Stop, Giz! It’s me!” he yelled while he took a step forward and gave the table a hard shove. Giz grabbed the edge to keep himself from toppling over backwards. One hand let go of the table to catch the bottle—too late. The whiskey hit the tiles adding a thump and a splash to the clinking of the glasses. The last two legs of Giz’ chair still in contact with the floor decided to slide away and Giz landed in a pool of whiskey and shards, his ornate curses adding to the noise of the chair clattering.

The Zabrak’s limbs flailed like those of a giant beetle lying on his back. Recognition dawned in Giz’ eyes and he let his head sink back to the ground. One hand moved to cover his eyes from the blinding lights overhead the other gestured indeterminately. “Sh**, Blue! Look what you did to the whiskey.”

Two guards approached them their hands on the butts of their blasters. Nikeo greeted them with a wave of his hand. “Thank you, boys! I have everything under control.” When they perceived the special Forces emblem on his armor they nodded and returned to their posts. Nikeo exhaled. Lucky him! He held a hand out to Giz. “Get up!”

Giz took hold of his hand and started to pull himself to a sitting position. Halfway through getting upright he changed his mind. He dragged at Nikeo’s arm while sweeping his feet from under him with his legs. Despite his reflexes Nikeo landed on his back in the mess next to Giz. “Quits?” Giz asked.

“Force, what did I do to deserve this?” Nikeo muttered under his breath—once he was able to breathe again. He was tempted to punch the drunken Zabrak, more than playfully at that. Getting them both arrested because of a cantina brawl was a bad idea though. He’d miss his flight, too. Since he was to report directly to General Garza upon his arrival on Coruscant being late was out of the question. “Quits!” He sat up and somehow managed to do so without cutting himself on the shards of glass. He was glad he had still been wearing his armor. On the other hand it would be a pain in the a** to get the whiskey out of the reinforced fabric of the body suit. He could imagine Jorgan wrinkle his nose at him for the next weeks given that the Cathar’s sense of smell had to be much better than his own. Sh**, he could see himself taking blood tests to ascertain he wasn’t actually drunk on duty. He groaned.

Giz chuckled.

“What’s so funny?”

“Just thinking. You might be the first man I get to moan. I mean, I am used to getting this reaction from women…”

“I wasn’t moaning, I was groaning, like in suffering. You sure you’re not confusing this with the ladies, too?”

The Zabrak laughed. He patted Nikeo’s cheek before the latter was able to slap his hand away. “Don’t worry, Blue. I am not into beard stubble.”

“I had better be careful. One can never know. As drunk as you are.” He tilted his head and grinned. “Now that I think about it, you definitely look h*rny.”

Giz rolled his eyes. “Haha. Very inventive. Never heard that one before.”

One of the cantina droids moved in their direction to clean up the mess so they got up and out of its way.

“Okay,” Nikeo gave Giz a shove in the direction of the elevators. “Now that we clarified the basics I am going to bring you to bed.”

Giz wrapped one arm around Nikeo’s shoulder casually trying to hide the fact he needed the support. “My bed or yours?”

“How about Jorgan’s? His fur is probably softer than my beard.”

“We’d have to compare stubble. Anything else would be unfair. Next opportunity we get him sozzled and then we shave him.” Giz chuckled. “Wondering what a Cathar with stubble looks like. Maybe there will be nothing left of him once we remove his fur.”

Nikeo couldn’t help laughing. “As much as the idea appeals to me I fear there would be not much left of the two of us not long after he were sober again.”

A sigh escaped the Zabrak. “My bed it will be then.” When they waited for the elevator to arrive he glanced at Nikeo. “How much shaving foam do you think we’d need?”

@Striges: Glad you liked my last story. I had very much fun writing it, maybe even more than with the first Ungry-story. Since I wrote the story whenever I need cheering up, I just have to close my eyes and think of drunken Jorgan covered in shaving foam.

“I have to inform you that there has been a mistake, sir. The Black Talon is not a passenger ship and the personnel is not used to handling reservations. As it seems we are overbooked. I am sorry, sir, but there is only one cabin at your disposal.”

Great! Thorns shared a glance with Mako and rolled his eyes. He assumed hitting the valet would not help neither would complaining. The guy was only following orders. Maybe they would be able to find someone with authority to sort things out.

“Let’s not make a fuss,” Mako suggested still smiling. “It’s only one day. We can take turns sleeping.”

Mako was right. He was glad to get off the station. He had traveled under worse conditions. “It’s okay. Guess we’ll be able to find a pillow and a spare blanket. I’ll take the floor.” He pointed at the valet who to his credit jumped only slightly. “I want the money for the second cabin back. Mako give him our account details, don’t want the money to go back to Nem’ro.”

“Of course, sir. Right away, sir,” the man complied sounding relieved they had not threatened to shoot him. “I’ll have blankets and pillows delivered to your cabin, sir,” he added while initiating the transfer of the money.

An uniformed female officer, her hair in an austere bun, entered with two guardsmen in full armor in tow. Maybe she could do something about the cabin. Thorns ditched the valet and walked towards her. He had not gotten far when his path was intercepted by one of the guards.

“Please stand back, sir. The lieutenant is unavailable. The valet is fully capable to handle any of your requests.”

“Let’s go, big guy!” Mako tugged on his arm. “We save a few days. We can rest once we’re in Kaas City. I am not sure they got a detention cell aboard this ship, but if they do it will not be much more comfortable than the floor in front of my bunk. No doubt the company would be less enjoyable.”

“No doubt!” Thorns grabbed his handle of their box. “You don’t snore, do you?”

“Mister Thorns, how dare you?” Mako replied with feigned indignation as she lifted her end of the box, “a lady never snores!”

“Please forgive a poor ignorant lout.” He grinned. “Thought, to be on the safe side, I’d ask before I shoot anyone making noise tonight.”

“Do I need to be concerned? Where is that officer?”

“It’s gonna be fine, I’ll aim for the door.”

From the ship’s entry they were able to hear the voice of the lieutenant. “Good to have you aboard, even if it was on short notice, my lord. I’m Lieutenant Sylas, second in command…”

Thorns put his end of the box down and turned to the valet who grew several shades paler. “Overbooked, because the personnel is not used to handling reservations?”

It sounded like the Sith wasn’t pleased either. “Is there a reason your captain isn’t bothering to greet me?”

Thorns stared at the valet.

“I—I—I am terr—terribly sor—sorry,” the man spluttered, “I am not the one making any decisions.”

“No, you’re just the unlucky guy lying to my face.” Thorns smile did not reach his eyes. Mako gulped beside him. He had a few facial expressions in his repertoire she had not seen yet.

In the background he could hear the officer’s explanation why the captain wasn’t there to greet his guests. She was cut short by a new voice. “I am sure the ship will suffice, Lieutenant. How long until we reach home?”

Ungry laughed. Thorns forgot about the valet. He, too, had recognized the voice. So had Mako who drew her brows together in concern.

The valet hadn’t realized his luck yet. “I’ll transfer the rest of your money back to your account, you’ll be guests aboard the Black Talon.”

“Yeah, great,” Thorns murmured his consent while still listening to the conversation at the ship’s entrance.

“…it’s an honor to service the Sith and the Korriban Academy. Consider yourself our guests,” the lieutenant was bowing and scr*ping for the Sith.

“Your respect for the Sith is admirable, Lieutenant.” That was Gray Hair again. Arrogant a*****e. Thorns stroked Ungry to calm the monkey lizard.

“They should consider themselves fortunate to have us aboard,” the first Sith stated. This had to be the Mirialan. Hard to decide which Sith was worse.

They had managed not to clash with them again on the station. The tables both parties had occupied during mealtimes and in the evenings had been at opposite sides of the cantina. For Gray Hair they had been beneath notice. His slave had glanced in Thorns’ direction once or twice, her head held high and her neck without the collar she had worn the first two times they had met. Otherwise she, too, had ignored them. The Mirialan had given Thorns the creeps several times when he had caught him staring; ‘caught’ was not the right word though. The Sith had been leaning against a pillar studying him. He had neither tried to hide it nor had he bothered to look away when Thorns became aware of him. Smilo and Mako had cautioned him every time not to rise to the bait. He wasn’t on Tattooine anymore where it might be more dangerous to ignore a challenge than to confront a possible attacker right away. This was the Empire and he was still learning the rules. Don’t mess with the Sith! He wasn’t dumb.

“…arrive in the Dromund system, I’ll have you informed.” The lieutenant ended her reception of the two Sith.

Thorns sat down on their box.

“What are you doing?” Mako mouthed.

He started to rummage through his backpack. “Need a new toothpick!”

The Sith and their companions walked past them without to acknowledge their presence.

Mako shook her head, sat down next to him, leaned over, and pulled a toothpick out of one of his breast-pockets. “How about this one?” Her raised brow emphasized her smirk.

He took the toothpick and looked it over before he put it into the corner of his mouth. “Yeah, that’s a good one.” He tilted his head to grin at her. When she grinned back he nudged her shoulder with his own. “Ready to survey our palace, my lady?”

In the background the lieutenant introduced herself a second time.

“Agent Smilo Noor. A pleasure to meet you, Lieutenant,” the newcomer offered.

“Indeed. Welcome…” they could hear the lieutenant’s answer.

“Unbelievable!” Mako whispered. “He’s using his bedroom voice. I can hear her heart melting from here.”

“Bedroom voice? Smilo?” Somehow he didn’t like the idea that Mako found the agent’s voice attractive—or anything else about him.

Smilo and Kaliyo greeted them with a curt nod as they followed the Black Talon’s personnel aboard, the agent conversing with the lieutenant.

“Yes Smilo! Of course it would have been harder to notice if I had been concentrating on Kaliyo instead.” The nudge Mako gave him back took the sting out of her words.

He put a hand over his heart and batted his eyelashes at her. “Tonight I am all yours!”

Mako laughed. “I’m sure it will be a night to remember.”

She was in the smoking ruins of her old family farm on Telos, voices from her past, recent and distant, echoed through the wreckage. She looked down to see the Imperial who tried to rape her lying on the floor, lifeless eyes staring at her as he laughed.

“Did you really think you’d get rid of me that easily my bad little girl?”

“No, you’re dead……you died in the explosion……you’re not real!” Mallay cried.

“You may have killed those Imperials,” Thorus chuckled coldly, “but their victory comes as the memories haunt you. You killed me, but I released your demons…….face it, you lose!”

“No……this isn’t real!” she whispered, backing away only to run into Brent.

“Hey, I didn’t do anything wrong at the pond, Mallay, and I’m sorry it hurt, but maybe it was you……” he accused.

“It wasn’t my fault,” she protested, turning away as cold laughter echoed throughout the house. She frantically looked around for the source and was startled by the doctor from Coruscant.

“Hey gorgeous, why’d you skip out on me? You need to relax next time…….no one likes a stiff bed partner.”

“I tried……I really did…….I don’t know what’s wrong with me!”

“I know……you’re scarred and broken,” Alan called out from behind her as the taunting laughter grew louder, “and no man will ever want you because of that. I tried, but you got all pissy when I wanted you to turn off the lights……not my fault you’re hideous.”

Hot tears streamed down her cheeks with those hurtful words but Mallay had no argument because her last fling was right, she was skinny, scarred, and ugly……and no man would ever want her. Mallay couldn’t stop the sobs from escaping with that awful truth.

“……nothing to be sorry about, sir,” a new voice rang out, Mallay immediately recognizing it as the image of Justicar territory on Coruscant began to overtake the ruins of the farmhouse, “No man in his right mind is going to be upset when a cute girl thanks him like that!”

“Aric?” Mallay whispered, feeling the first stirrings of comfort with the knowledge that she wasn’t alone.

“…….I was upset because I was worried, okay. It wasn’t exactly easy for me to let my CO, who also happens to be a beautiful, courageous, and intelligent young woman, purposely charge into a throng of rakghouls……” Aric’s voice grew louder as Alan appeared in front of her again and they were in his quarters.

“He’s wrong……you’re not beautiful,” he sneered, “Those scars are grotesque and you’ve got that ugly metal on your face……it doesn’t matter that your hair hides most of it, it’s still there……freak!”

“There’s nothing ugly about you, Mallay,” Aric countered from behind her as Alan backed away, eyes wide with fear as the scene changed to the swampy ruins of Taris, “and anyone who thinks otherwise is obviously blind.”

“You’re not alone I see……it doesn’t matter,” Thorus called out as her demons retreated into the darkness, “You know we’ll return to haunt you.”

“She’s too tough to let you keep her down,” Aric shot back as Mallay felt a strong arm around her waist and she turned towards its owner as he growled at the figures from her past, “and I’ve got her back.” Then the figures were gone and they were back on the ship, laying in her bed.

She opened her eyes to darkness, the dimness of the floor lights indicating it was still the middle of the night. The nightmare had shaken her, but not as much as that first one and she had a good idea why as she realized her back was pressed against the secure wall of Aric’s chest. He must’ve felt her stirring and he began to run his fingers through her hair, soothing her frayed nerves and making her relax.

“It’s alright, Mallay,” he whispered in her ear, “I’m here and you’re safe. You can go back to sleep, I won’t let anything hurt you……”

And wonder of all wonders, she did just that.

*******

Mallay awoke slightly disorientated for a moment and surprised at the lack of headache that normally accompanied her nightmares. She opened her eyes to find another surprise in bed with her, his arm draped across her stomach. Then she recalled pieces of her awful nightmares and Aric coming into her quarters while she was sobbing. He managed to calm her down and offered to stay with her after she admitted being afraid to go back to sleep. She knew he’d have questions that she wasn’t ready to answer yet and was tempted to slip out of bed in order to avoid them. However, after the kindness he showed, it didn’t seem right.

He shifted position in his sleep, going from his side to his back and the arm at her waist moved to rest on his chest, but his face was still turned towards her. Mallay smiled at the peaceful expression he wore in his resting state, unused to seeing it. As she had a few days ago, Mallay was once again struck with the realization that she found his face appealing. She moved to her side, propping her head up with her arm to study him further, careful to keep her movements slow and minimal as not to wake him. She hadn’t seen many Cathar, but most had manes and she wondered if he simply shaved his away or didn’t grow one. It was a curiosity, but one she found pleasing as she let her gaze trail back down to his face. The fur seemed finer on there than on the rest of his body and slightly lighter in color. Mallay found herself wondering what it felt like and her fingers itched to find out. She’d touched his face briefly when she had to give him CPR that first day on Coruscant, but she’d been too occupied with trying to get him breathing again to notice. She fought the curious impulse, figuring that would wake him and she didn’t want to get caught checking out her subordinate, so she settled for continuing her perusal.

His mouth was parted slightly, and since he was snoring softly, Mallay figured Taris was messing with his sinuses. She made a mental note to give him something for that before they set out later. Again, the memory of that first day on Coruscant came to mind when she recalled fitting her mouth over his in order to administer CPR. It was a necessity at the time, but a tiny part of her wondered what it’d be like to do it again……without having it be for medical reasons, not a good idea to go there, Mallay……you know what your track record with men has been like and do you really want to go there again?

Ignoring that inner voice, she let her gaze travel lower. His chest was covered by a t-shirt, but she could see his arms were muscular and thanks to the one resting above his head, his t-shirt was raised slightly. That combined with his shorts riding a little low, allowed for a nice little view of his bare and very well defined abdomen. Once again, her fingers itched to explore and find out what soft fur felt like over solid sinewy muscle…….for purely scientific reasons of course. A little embarrassed and somewhat surprised at the direction her thoughts were taking, Mallay forced her gaze to travel back up to his face, still relaxed in sleep and blissfully unaware of her visual inventory.

He’d been in the military for twelve years and like any good soldier, Aric knew when he was being watched……even more so after being a sniper. He trusted his gut and right now, it was telling him his unexpected bed partner was currently checking him out. It didn’t bother him though……in fact, after seeing her and a shirtless Corso smiling and laughing together yesterday, it did felt good to know she was looking at him. Aric had been around his young CO long enough to know how shy and easily embarrassed she was and had a good idea how she’d react to being caught giving him the look over. However, despite his desire to see that attractive blush of hers, he didn’t want to do that to her……yet. So he forced his body to remain relaxed and kept his breathing even. His mouth felt dry as a desert having slept with it open due to Taris karking up his sinuses, but he kept it that way despite the slight discomfort. He felt a slight movement and her scent grew a little stronger a moment later, making him wish he could open his eyes and risk a peek without her knowing. He’d never understood why people were in such awe of Jedi, but at that moment he envied their ability to pick out people’s thoughts.

Mallay knew she shouldn’t, but she couldn’t resist leaning in closer and reaching a tentative hand out to caress his cheek. She’d barely had time to enjoy how nice the velvety softness felt under her palm when a wicked grin curved his lips a second before those bright green eyes opened.

“Couldn’t resist huh?”

“Oh,” Mallay gasped, sitting up and quickly pulling her hand away as she felt her face heat up, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…….”

“It’s alright,” Aric chuckled, deciding to come clean, “I’ve been awake for a few minutes and knew you were checking me out.”

“I wasn’t checking you out,” she lied, averting her gaze away from his way too amused one, “I was just satisfying my curiosity.”

“Call it what you will, but you were definitely checking me out,” he snorted, then couldn’t resist further teasing, “So where was that curiosity going to lead you next?”

“Kicking your furry a*s out of my bed,” Mallay retorted as she crossed her arms, feeling the heat spread to her neck.

“Now, now, is that any way to treat the guy who carried you to bed after you fell asleep reading last night in the rec room?”

“No,” she sighed, then her eyes widened when she remembered what she’d been reading, “What did you do with my datapad?”

“I set it on your night stand after I bookmarked your page and exited that rather risqué novel you were in the middle of.”

Mallay snatched a pillow and buried her face in it, certain she was going to die of embarrassment.

“Oh, come on…..it’s not that bad. I’m sure it’s an interesting read and many women like that stuff.”

A muffled explicative came from the pillow.

“Didn’t quite catch that, sir,” Aric snickered.

Mallay lifted her head from the pillow and fixed him with the most dignified glare she could muster, “I really hate you sometimes.”

“After we slept together?!” Aric teased, then his expression grew more concerned, “So, how are you feeling?”

“Not bad at all, considering the past couple of days,” Mallay sighed as she got up, then turned and smiled shyly at him, “Thanks for staying with me last night. I don’t think I would’ve been able to sleep if you weren’t here.”

“Anytime,” Aric told her, deciding he should get up as well since they had a busy day ahead, “and for what it’s worth, I’m truly sorry for whatever you went through that haunts your dreams.” He could see from the torn expression on her face that she was tempted to talk about it, but she remained quiet and he didn’t want to pressure her. “When you’re ready, I’m here,” he told her instead as he left her quarters, hoping some day she would be.

For those that haven’t read the Lauren girls’ story thread, Aric’s first three lines in Mallay's dream come from that.

alaurin: Mallay should be proud of herself. I am not sure I would have been able to resist the temptation to touch Jorgan. The CO of Havoc Squad being horrified of Jorgan finding her bedtime reading is adorable.

He was wide awake, one blaster aiming for the door, before the second knock.

“Hate to interrupt, but you’re needed.”

Kaliyo. What did she want in the middle of the night? Knocking turned into pounding. “Open the door, Thorns. I know you’re in there.”

“Go away, I am busy.” He could hear Mako moving in the bunk. “Stay there till we know what this is about,” he whispered. The room was too small for both of them to maneuver. He had already picked Ungry up from his pillow and now handed him to Mako. The security lights near the floor were dim but provided enough light to make out her hands.

“Okay,” Mako breathed.

“Busy? Oh come on. With little Miss Sunshine? Don’t make me laugh!” Kaliyo was still pounding at the door.

Mako made an indignant sound. He got up from the floor and opened the door. “What?” He leaned in the door frame blocking Kaliyo from entering, one hand propped at his waist not far from the butt of the blaster sticking out of his shorts at the small of his back.

Kaliyo gave him a once over and grinned. The shorts were the only piece of clothing he was wearing. She hooked one index finger into his waistband and pulled, then tilted her head to cast a glance inside his underwear. “Thought so.” Thorns stared at her. She pulled the waistband a little further before she let it flick back. Thorns didn’t move. “There’s a meeting in the conference room. Looks like they can’t do without you.”

“Who?” When he saw the flicker in her eyes he knew. “Well, guess they’ll have to find a replacement.” Thorns pushed himself back from the door frame, and Kaliyo put one foot in the door.

“I hate running errands,” she stated with a threatening undertone.

“If Smilo wants to bow and scrape for the Sith, fine. Guess it’s all in the fine print of his labor contract. I am not bound to play their games. Your choice if you want to participate. Have fun, if you do.”

“I’m sure I’ll have more fun than you. You don’t think you can get in her pants, do you?”

Admitted, he had been thinking about Mako’s underwear and its content, when he had waited in front of the door for her to get dressed for bed. His flirting with her had been more kidding around so far, though, and she had been keeping him at distance. He would not have minded otherwise but she seemed intent on keeping their relationship nonsexual—at least at this stage. “Sh**, Kal. Even if it’s none of your business, we are only working together.”

“I’ve always found that life is more fun when you mix work and pleasure.” She took a step closer. “Of course I am no prude,” she added with a grin when Thorns caught her wrist before she reached his crotch.

“Now,” Mako piped up reminding them that she was still there and able to hear their conversation, “that explains, why you were so desperate to leave Nem’ro.”

Kaliyo’s eyes blazed, but before she was able to open her mouth, Thorns slammed her into the wall. Their short struggle stopped when Kaliyo felt the muzzle of his blaster pressing beneath her chin.

“Don’t even think of threatening Mako. We are a team. You threaten her, you threaten me, you’re dead.”

"Whoa, slow down! Boy, this Sith really gets under your skin.” Kaliyo raised her hands. A smirk spread over her face. “Good to know some of your triggers, might keep our relationship from getting boring too fast.”

His body pressed hers to the wall. “You’re playing dangerous games, Kal.”

Her snarl was playful. “Don’t like any others. Might even invite you to my room after our little conference, if you’re still in a bad mood. Now let go of me, we girls are able to sort things out on our own, right Mako?” Her gaze wandered over his shoulder to Mako.

“Guess there isn’t much to sort anyway. “ Mako consented. “But if you don’t want to let go of her, you might consider continuing your conversation in Kaliyo’s room. I’d rather sleep than witness more.”

“No conference, no conversation, no witnessing. Kal will leave us now. I am not in the mood for any more games, hers or the Sith’.”

Kaliyo nodded. “I told Smilo you’d not be interested in the job.”

“What job?” Mako asked.

“Mako!”

“We need money, big guy.”

“Kark! What job, Kal?”

“There is a droid in the conference room. A guard brought it in because it claimed it belonged to your special friend. Turns out, it doesn’t. But it seems to have a lot of information about us passengers. It stated its master wishes to speak to the Sith. When they told it to establish a connection it said you had to be present, too. Can you imagine how pissed your friend was when he realized he was forced to wait for you?”

“I couldn’t care less. There was neither the word job nor money in your tale.”

“The droid’s master wants to hire you. Like I said, since it probably involves the Sith, I knew you would not be interested.”

“Right, I ain’t!”

“Thorns, we need the money. Let’s at least hear him out!” Mako objected.

Kaliyo raised an eyebrow and grinned. “Now, who’s the boss?” she purred.

His sigh sounded pained. “Obviously money.” The kiss he gave Kaliyo was rough, and he broke it when she bit him hard enough to draw blood. He grinned. “I’ll take you up on your invitation.”

“Will you?” Kaliyo raised an eyebrow as she licked his blood from her lower lip. “We’ll see about who’ll be taking whom!”

Thorns let go of her and wiped the blood from his chin with the back of his hand. This time he wasn’t fast enough to catch Kaliyo’s hand which darted down to squeeze him. “See you two later!” she whispered and left.

Mako, who had turned to the bunk, had already discarded her sleepshirt and was closing the clasp of her bra. Ungry snatched her shirt and retreated behind the pillow to cuddle with it.

“I’ll wait outside ’til you’re dressed.” It would help to keep her from noticing the bulge in his shorts. He thought Kaliyo might be pleased, for she had certainly noticed despite the poor lighting conditions. Mako’s naked back did nothing to relax the situation.

“Nonsense! We have no time to waste,” Mako chided. “There’s no need to make this kriffing Sith any more mad at us than he already is.”

“Remind me again why I should care! We don’t need the money this desperately!”

“Mister Thorns!” Mako spun and rounded on him, her index finger stabbing his naked chest. Surveying her finger he noticed her bra was black, something sober, without lace. He forced himself to look at her face. “You better get dressed now!” she continued. “Seems like you forgot, but I didn’t. You promised you’d be all mine tonight.”

Yes, he had said that, but it had been a joke, she knew it had been a joke. She couldn’t possibly be serious and hold this against him now.

She wasn’t done yet. “I can’t remember you specifying any details, and my memory is good. So stop being childish. We will go to this meeting!” She stared first at her finger then at his chest. She coughed, let her hand sink, and turned back to the bed without looking him in the eyes, but not without him noticing the flush that crept to her cheeks.

When he turned his back to her it was more out of precaution to hide his own body’s reaction than to give her privacy to don the rest of her clothes. All swear words that came to his mind seemed to have a sexual connotation. F*** Kaliyo! He had had everything under control before she had shown up.

Attaching the armor plates to the suit he put on took some time, so Mako was done first and helped him to fasten the last ones. She was quick and efficient. There was no need to tell her what went were. He stretched, adjusted a strap, and stretched again. Once he was sure everything fit he holstered his weapons and put his helmet on. He picked up the sleeping Ungry and placed him together with Mako’s shirt inside the satchel which could be strapped to his armor.

“Booted and spurred! All yours, as promised!”

@Alaurin: Again, more breadcrumbs. I get the sense of watching radar of a storm gathering, while on the ground the clouds are barely darkening.

@Mirdthestrill: I liked Mallena's reaction to Dorne and the reasoning behind it......very justified and well done. It'll be interesting to see how she handles things when Havoc is finished on Taris. As for your other story, I'm still catching up with your thread so I'm waiting to read that one.

Re: your comments: I'm glad you liked those pieces. Zev is a fairly level headed, patient sort and is a little older/more experienced than the typical Trooper at the start of the storyline. As for what's going to happen to those responsible for the fallout from that failed mission years ago, it won't be pretty.

Sorry that Mallay's music piece hit your feels, but it was an intense one for me to write. Both her and Bella have their fair share of emotional scars from when their father was killed.

As a side note, I really should get a tumblr. Everyone seems to have so much fun over there.

@Jokad: I like Zeirko and Nova, they seem to have a nice sibling bond. I also like the Zeirko doesn't want to immerse himself in the Dark side just because he's Sith and that he stood up for his decision not to turn Jaesa.

@alaurin: Glad I could make you laugh. I’m waiting to see who those people are and how Jax will deal with them. So far, I like how you show the pieces of the puzzle. And it’s interesting to see how Jax and Risha will work out.

@frauzet: LOL, loved Nik and Giz.......drunken cantina stories are always fun to read. Oh, I'm liking this new little saga with the Black Talon! Naughty Kaliyo and that last part had me tense and you did a great job with Mako.....I could totally hear her saying that stuff.

alaurin: Mallay should be proud of herself. I am not sure I would have been able to resist the temptation to touch Jorgan. The CO of Havoc Squad being horrified of Jorgan finding her bedtime reading is adorable.

Hi folks! I want to apologize for disappearing for a while - going on vacations. I will catch up in a couple of weeks.

“Balkar didn’t give you a file on this contact?” Jax regarded his friend.

A tense week had passed since he’d gotten that call from Zara. As soon as he filled Zev in, they called his friend in the SIS, Jonas Balkar. Balkar was on Nar Shaddaa and immediately headed to Zara’s place. The men were gone by the time the agent got there, but Zara gave him the footage. As soon as he returned to headquarters, Balkar ran some searches, but came up empty other than they were from a consulting firm. He sent a memo out to all their agents on planet to see if anyone knew those men and the next day, he got a response from one of their undercover agents in the field.

“Nope,” Zev shook his head, “Apparently this agent was planted at the club several months ago and has brought down a lot of scum. No one suspects and Balkar didn’t want to risk blowing the cover.”

“So, let me get this straight,” Aric snorted, crossing his arms, “We’re going into this place and we have no idea who our contact is.”

Three days after Balkar got that hit, Jorgan was taken out of the kolto tank and after being filled in on the situation, Havoc’s XO insisted he was coming along. While it’d be a few weeks before he’d be fit for combat, it was safe for him to travel and Havoc set out for Nar Shaddaa. Jax and his crew left immediately after and they met up with Dek on the Hutt moon two days later.

“Your XO’s got a point, Zev,” Dek nodded, “I’m not too thrilled about going in blind.”

“You guys can stay here then,” Zev shrugged, “but I, for one, want to find out who’s been keeping tabs on us and these guys frequent the place.”

“No, sir,” Aric relented, “You helped me with the Deadeyes and I’ve got your back on this……even if it means going to some seedy strip club on Nar Shaddaa.”

“Actually,” Jax grinned, pointing at his datapad, “From what I’m seeing, this place is pretty classy and caters to some wealthy clientele.”

Dek peered over the large, grey Cathar’s shoulder, “Whoa, am I reading that right?”

“What?” Zev and Aric echoed.

“The Platinum Package……the ultimate in gentlemen’s entertainment and perfect for bachelor parties. An hour at the center table with a dancer for the duration, all drinks included for the whole evening, and a ‘Happy Endings’ lap dance before the party is taken up to a private suite where the fun keeps going for as long as you want…..”

“Sorry, Jax,” Zev chuckled, “I don’t think I can afford that, but you’ve got the right idea……a bachelor party would be the perfect cover since those guys might be there at the time.”

“That’s not a bad idea,” Dek agreed, “I’m sure Gault would be happy to tag along and we could probably get Torian to come.”

“I’ll see if Corso and Bowie are in,” Jax offered.

“Jorgan just said he’s in and I’m sure Vik would love to go,” Zev nodded, Aric growling at the last, “Oh, come on Jorgan, Tanno’s not that bad. Let me give Balkar a shout with the plan and we can go from there.”

**************

A few days later, Jax, Zev, and Vik were entering the Club Paradise. They’d decided while making plans the night before to stagger their arrival and Jax, Zev, and Vik were the first. Dek was elected to be the bachelor since he and Mako had been in a relationship long enough for that to be plausible and would be arriving next with Gault and Torian. Jorgan would be coming last with Corso, Bowdaar, and much to their surprise, Guss.

“Welcome to Club Paradise,” a rose colored, scantily clad Twi’lek greeted them, “My name’s Rose, how can I be of service to you gentlemen?”

“We’re here for a bachelor party,” Jax answered, grinning at the cute Twi’lek.

“Name?”

“Dekkyn Varlok.”

“Ah, yes,” Rose nodded, “Here we are……hmmmm…..looks like there’s a note from a Jonas Balkar.”

“Oh?” Zev caught Jax’s gaze.

“Yup,” Rose confirmed, “Says ‘sorry I can’t make it, but tell Dek congrats and have an upgrade on me.’”

“Upgrade?” the three men spoke at once.

“Uh-huh,” Rose chirped, winking at them, “This Jonas fellow must be a really good friend…..you’ve been upgraded to the Platinum Package!”

“Nice!” Tanno’s gravelly voice chuckled.

“Follow me to the center table and start thinking about who’s going to get the lap dance,” Rose beckoned, “It’s supposed to be for the bachelor, but many times he doesn’t want to go through with it and lets one of the single fellas take it…….oh, and it looks like your guy’s in luck, Mistress Naula is your dancer. She’s one of the best but doesn’t do parties very often……your friend must know someone to book her.”

“Our stalkers are here…..I’ll bet our contact spotted them and told Balkar. We probably got upgraded so he can meet us in the suite without blowing his cover later,” Zev informed the others quietly after Rose left them at the table, “So……..do either of you know what a Happy Endings lap dance is?”

“It’s pretty self-explanatory, boss,” Tanno answered, grabbing a beer from one of the buckets hooked to the side of the table.

“Really?!” Jax asked as Dek, Gault, and Torian arrived, “They do that?”

“Do what?” the Devaronian spoke up as he sat.

“We got upgraded to the Platinum package,” Tanno grinned, “which includes a Happy Endings lap dance.”

“Ha,” Gault snorted, “Mako’s not gonna be happy with that!”

“So the dancer’s really going to……”

“Yup,” Gault smirked, “I’ve seen it before. It’s not as bad as you’d think though. When it’s time for the final dance, the lighting changes and most of the room is dim. The spotlight’s on the dancer and while they can see each other, the rest of the room only sees her and the guy’s silhouette. Then when things are about to……uh….finish, the lights go out except for a strobe that’s on the dancer, and let me tell you, it’s pretty hot.”

“I had a buddy that had one of those dances before,” Tanno nodded, “Not as classy a place as this, but just like you described. He said it was quite the experience.”

“No way,” Dek shook his head, “I care about Mako way too much to do that.”

“Yeah and I don’t want to ruin things with Elara now that I’ve finally worked up the nerve to ask her out.” Zev agreed, “and Jax, you’re finally making progress on the lady front……do you really want to blow that?”

“I suppose not,” Jax mused, “So who’s going to get it?”

“As much fun as it sounds like,” Gault sighed, “I think I’ll pass this time.”

“Still sore,” Dek snickered, “I told you that was a bad idea.”

“How was I supposed to know she’d shoot?!”

Dek turned to the young Mandalorian on his crew, “Torian, you want the dance?”

“Not sure,” Torian shrugged, still looking a little confused.

“You’d better not, kid,” Gault remarked dryly, “I don’t think you’re ready for something like that.”

“Since Bowie decided not to come,” Jax told them, “and Guss would probably go into shock, that leaves you, Tanno, or either Corso or Aric.”

“Oh, that is one repressed Cathar,” Tanno chuckled, “I think he should have it……maybe mellow him out a little.”

Jax and Zev started laughing at the thought of Havoc’s uptight XO having an exotic dancer perform a lap dance for him. Jax finally stopped long enough to agree, “That’s perfect……I can’t wait to see his face. Remember how pissy he got over the towel incident?”

“Stars, I think he kept to himself for a few days after that and it was quite some time before he could look Elara in the face,” Zev shook his head, grinning, “should we tell him?”

“Nah,” Tanno replied, lowering his voice as the last of their party arrived, “Let’s keep it a surprise.”

A moment later, Aric, Corso, and Guss took a seat, the former realizing they were at the center table, “Hey, I thought this was reserved for that Platinum Package thing.”

“It is,” Zev confirmed, barely able to keep a straight face as he pictured his XO’s reaction to being volunteered for the final dance, “Apparently Balkar thought we needed an upgrade.”

“What’s the Platinum Package?” Corso asked and a moment later, Jax handed him his datapad. Corso’s brown eyes widened, then his brow furrowed, “What’s a Happy Endings lap dance?”

“Think really hard about that statement, Corso,” Jax snickered and the rest of them started laughing as Corso caught on, indicated by the blush that stained his cheeks.

Corso was spared further teasing when a young, voluptuous Human gracefully hopped up on the table, grabbing the pole as she slowly spun, her warm, brown eyes taking them all in. Her long strawberry blond hair was bound in a ponytail and her short pleated skirt exposed shapely tan legs ending in high heels. Her crisp, white shirt screamed uptight librarian, but the wicked smile curving those full, cherry red lips spoke the opposite.

“Welcome to Club Paradise gentlemen,” the dancer purred smiling down at each of them, “My name’s Naula and my sole purpose this evening is to give Dekkyn Varlok,” she paused, raising a slender brow, treating the huge red Zabrak with a teasing wink when he raised his hand, “a proper send off. Tips are certainly welcome, but I ask that you don’t get too frisky with your hands, boys…..we’ll save that for the last dance. Also, if one of you sitting next to the drink buckets could toss me a water bottle between songs, I’d really appreciate it. I’ll have a few more instructions when we get to our happy ending but for now, sit back, make yourselves comfortable, and…..” A fast, provocative beat started playing and Naula began to dance, “get ready for the night of your lives.”

“Oh wow,” Guss squeaked as Naula slid the belt off her skirt and tossed it at him.

During that first dance, Naula’s skirt and shirt came off, revealing the tiny blue satin thong, matching bra underneath, and a long phoenix tattoo that began at her right shoulder blade and wrapped around her right side, it’s long plumed tail ending at her navel. A blushing Corso caught her skirt after she slowly peeled it off those swaying hips in front of him. She blew him a kiss, then went back to the center of the table, hooking one of those shapely legs on the pole before leaning back towards Torian, whose mouth was hanging open in awe. She gave him a sultry smile as her fingers began working at the buttons of her shirt. She pulled it off, then leaned way back to hold it out to the young Mandalorian, giving him a spectacular view of her generous curves barely contained in her bra.

The bra came off during the second dance and Naula favored Gault with that honor, letting the eager Devaronian unhook it for her before sliding it off and tossing it at him. Zev handed her a water bottle between songs, earning a kiss on his bald, horned head after she took a quick sip and handed it back to him. The rest of the group laughed at the blushing Zabrak as he grinned sheepishly at the dancer.

The guys took advantage of the drinks buckets, consuming a large quantity since they figured they’d have time to sober up a little in the suite later when they finally met their contact. Most of them were feeling the effects of the alcohol halfway through and Naula earned several tips over the next hour as each of them enjoyed the very talented, lithe dancer.

“Ok gentlemen, we’ve arrived at my last dance,” Naula’s husky voice addressed them as the music faded, “The man of the hour is allowed some touching for this, but it’s at my discretion and I’ll let you know if you’re going too far…..that goes both ways. If I’m doing something to you that you can’t handle, let me know and I’ll back off a little. As long as you can respect that, it’ll be all good. Things may get a little wild at the end, but I haven’t lost a guy yet.” Naula winked, turning to Dek as the lights started to dim a little, “You ready for your happy ending, darlin’?”

“Actually, I’ve decided to pass that on to someone else,” Dek grinned sheepishly.

“That’s fine,” Naula smiled at him, “So who’s the lucky fellow?”

“I believe we decided on Aric for that honor,” Dek answered as Jorgan began choking on the beer he’d been in the process of drinking.

“What?!” Aric sputtered.

“Yeah, Tanno volunteered you,” Zev clapped his second in command on the shoulder while Jax popped a double shot down in front of him.

Aric downed the shot in one swallow, then glared at the laughing Weequay, feeling the tips of his ears burning as Naula shot him a teasing smile before hopping down to unpack a bag that had been brought to their table. She set down four bottles of champagne around the table, one in the drinks bucket next to him, then propped the bag up against the pole, touching something to her ear just after.

He really didn’t want to do this at all and looked around the table to see who he could pass the young woman off to as she began to slink suggestively along the pole. He knew his CO was out of the question as well as his cousin Dek. He caught Jax’s eye and the larger Cathar grinned at him with a slight shake of his head. Corso was blushing already and Guss was covering his eyes, peeking out from time to time. The older Devaronian was watching the dancer wistfully and Aric felt a surge of hope that was quickly dashed when Gault caught his eye.

“As much as I’d love to take your place,” he sighed, smiling up at the lovely Naula as she got to him, caressing his ruddy face before moving on, “I recently took a stun shot to a highly sensitive part of my anatomy and things are still a little sore.”

Dek started laughing and even the quiet Mandalorian snickered a little. Aric regarded Torian, but young Human shook his head vehemently, blushing as Naula got to him and began running her fingers through his thick, blond hair. Finally Aric turned to Vik who shouted out, “She’s all yours,” grinning as he sat back and lit a cigarra.

Naula finished making her rounds to each of them before turning her attention to Aric. The sultry vixen dipped down, reaching into the bag resting against the pole, then slid off the table to lean over him, her hand caressing his ear to slip a small listening bud onto it. The tempo increased as did her movements and he could see a fine sheen of sweat on her trim belly and the sparkle of a blue jewel dangling from her navel ring as she continued her visual assault on him. He swallowed hard as she settled into his lap, several conflicting thoughts and feelings racing through his mind. Unease at the very public display warred with pleasure at her practiced movements and embarrassment that it had been a really long time since he’d had any intimacy with a woman, but all but the pleasure quickly faded as that last shot kicked in and the skillful Naula worked her magic.

Several very intense moments later, the dance was over and her sensuous movements had stilled, her hand caressing his cheek as she rested for a brief moment in the dark. He felt weak and shaky, barely able to catch his breath when she finally stood, leaning over to kiss him as she did. Dim light began to fill the room and shocked at what he’d just done, Aric looked up to see her smiling down at him.

“You did very well, lover,” she assured him, her eyes smoldering with her own unspent passion.

Naula snatched an open bottle of champagne before hopping back up to the table. She took a healthy pull off the bottle before bowing to the roaring crowd. A cork popped and Naula was hit with a spray of champagne, followed by three more as another song started. While the crowd was busy watching Naula perform an encore, Rose beckoned to the group to follow her. Zev helped his still dazed second in command out of his seat and the group, led by Rose, went upstairs to their private suite.

I’m well aware that I exaggerated what goes on in a strip club, but hey…..it’s Nar Shaddaa!

Also, I had 2 songs going through my head when the lovely Naula was dancing for our favorite grumpy Cathar:

‘I Feel You’ by Depeche Mode and ‘Closer’ by Nine Inch Nails

“Wow,” Rose shook her head in awe, her lekku swaying as they climbed the stairs to the private suites, “Either you guys know someone high up or Naula really likes you.”

“What makes you think that?” Zev replied, the tall Zabrak swaying a little.

“Well, she’s done her fair share of lap dances and I’ve never seen her allow anyone to touch her like he just did,” Rose answered, “and kissing is pretty rare in this biz…..too much of a personal connection.”

Tanno snickered at his XO, “You sly dog……a woman actually likes you.”

“Stuff it, Vik,” Aric growled, sobering quickly as embarrassment came slamming back to him.

“Alrighty gentlemen,” Rose called out as they entered the lavish room, “This room is yours for the rest of the evening.” She gestured at the back wall, “The bar’s fully stocked, the remote for the HoloVid is in the top drawer, and Naula will be with you again shortly.”

“Wait,” Dek called out as Rose turned to leave, “Naula’s coming back…..I thought that dance was the finale.”

“Nope,” Rose answered, favoring Aric with a knowing grin as the tawny Cathar retreated into the small fresher, “The Platinum Package includes your dancer for the entire evening. The Happy Endings dance is just the finale for the show downstairs........you guys get Naula for the night.”

“Aric Jorgan, you lucky son of a b*tch,” Tanno called out as Rose left, “I should’ve taken her when I had the chance.”

“That was pretty intense…..wish I hadn’t gotten shot,” Gault grumbled.

“I think Guss is still in shock,” Jax snickered and they all turned to the wide eyed Mon Cal sitting on the sofa next to a tipsy Corso who was patting him on the back. Jax went to the bar to get his crew’s medic a stiff drink.

“Torian couldn’t take his eyes off her,” Dek slurred, clapping the young Mandalorian on shoulder, “Aric really didn’t want to do that, you know. I saw him looking around the table for someone else to have it, you could’ve taken his place.”

“HA!” Gault snorted, pouring himself a brandy from the bar, “Torian wouldn’t have lasted a minute…….that girl was really into it and definitely good at what she does.”

“Well, she’s coming back,” Tanno shrugged, lighting another cigarra, “Maybe he can have a turn.”

“Don’t you want a turn, Vik?” Zev’s bright green eyes shot his explosives expert a questioning look.

“Nah,” Tanno chuckled, “I don’t want Jorgan’s sloppy seconds.”

A muffled shout of, “Kiss my a*s, Vik!” came from the fresher.

“How’s this going to work anyways?” Jax asked, returning with a tray of shots, immediately handing one to Guss, “Not that I’m upset about the lovely Naula returning, but…..”

“But how’s our contact going to meet us with her in the room?” Zev finished, helping himself to a shot as his XO finally emerged from the fresher.

Aric felt slightly more composed after having cleaned himself off and splashing cold water on his face. He could still smell her scent on him though, a pleasing hint of jasmine combined with the spicy musk that had to be hers, a reminder of what they’d done in that crowded room downstairs. Aric tended to be a private and slightly reserved individual, keeping romantic relationships to a minimum. He’d teased his CO about his lack of finesse in dealing with Elara, but he had no room to talk really. Aric was just as awkward around women and tended to avoid intimate relationships as a result. He’d been fine with that, his military career was his life and kept him occupied, but he’d be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy Naula’s attentions. That was the problem, he couldn’t afford to let himself get distracted by a woman who was paid to entertain men. Needing something to dull his thoughts, he snatched a shot of Jax’s tray and downed it in one swallow, thankful for the burn of whiskey as it warmed his gut.

“I guess we’ll just have to tell her she can go,” Dek replied, taking a shot for himself, "or maybe our contact will dismiss her.....I'm guessing he's a bouncer."

Dek’s suggestion was met with some protests but before he could say anything further, the door to their suite opened and Naula sauntered in wearing a short, red dress that hugged her body. Her damp hair was coiled in a bun held in place by a single jeweled hairstick.

“Hello again, gentlemen,” Naula smiled at them, “I’m at your service for the rest of your evening…..within reason of course. I’m more than happy to get your drinks, provide conversation, and dance for you. However, I do ask that you limit your touching to slipping me a tip if you feel it’s warranted.” She gestured to the back corner of the room where there was a small sofa and a curtain, “As you can see, there is a private area and I will do lap dances, but not as extensive as the one I did earlier.”

“Damn,” Gault muttered, earning a cheeky grin from Naula.

“Sorry darlin’…..I only do those once in a while and never more than one time a night.”

“How come?” Jax asked, grunting as Dek elbowed him, “Not that I want one……just curious.”

“Think about it, handsome,” Naula sighed, giving Jax a wink as she went on, “Those movements, all that contact……let’s just say that most of us girls get just as worked up as our client without the same ending.”

“Oh, I’d be more than happy to help you with that,” Gault offered, a sly grin crossing his features.

“I thought you were still sore,” Dek shook his head as Naula’s tinkling laughter filled the room.

“Hey, you saw what she did to Jorgan downstairs,” Gault smirked at his leader, “I’m pretty confident it’d be worth a little discomfort.”

“As generous as your offer is, darlin’, I think I’ll pass,” Naula told the Devaronian before addressing the group, “Other than that, gentlemen, how can I further entertain you?”

“Actually Naula, you did such a fantastic job downstairs….” Zev began.

“Yeah, never thought I’d see the day Jorgan relaxed enough to…..” Tanno interrupted, earning some snickers from the group.

“Kark off, Vik,” Aric snapped, unable to meet Naula’s gaze.

“Now, now, lover,” Naula pouted, but the wicked glint in her eye said she was teasing, “No reason to be grumpy…….didn’t you have a good time? I thought things went off very well.”

“That’s not the point,” Aric retorted, feeling the tips of his ears burning again, “I just…..I don’t…..”

“Never mind,” Dek interjected before the stuttering Cathar had a coronary, “What Zev was trying to say is that you’ve been great this evening and we feel you deserve a break.”

“Yeah, we can just hang out here for the rest of our time,” Zev nodded.

“You’re absolutely sure there’s nothing I can do for you?” Naula arched a slender brow as she strode over to the door, locking it before continuing, “Nothing at all you want from me…..Major?”

“Positive, but thank you for……,” Zev insisted, then her last word sunk into his slightly buzzing mind and he narrowed his gaze at the young woman, “Wait, what did you just say?”

“I called you ‘Major.’” Naula smirked at Zev, “Yes, I know who you are, Major Zevryn Varlok, CO of Havoc Squad.” She nodded at a suddenly tense Dek and Jax who came over to stand next to Zev, “I also know your cousin, Dekkyn Varlok, the great Hunt Champion, and your friend, Captain Jaxzin Roark, Republic Privateer. The three of you served in the military together until the Operation Landslide fallout.” Naula then turned her attention to the rest of the group, “Your grumpy friend I played with downstairs is Captain Aric Jorgan, XO of Havoc, the Weequay is Sergeant Tanno Vik, also of Havoc. Corso Riggs and Lunguss Tuno are part of your crew, Jaxzin. Torian Cadera is part of your crew, Dekkyn, as is the Devaronian currently going by the name of Gault Rennow…..but we all know that isn’t his real name.”

“Who in the hell are you?” Jax growled, his claws coming out as saw the anxious look come over Gault.

“Are you that drunk that I need to spell it out for you, Captain Roark?” Naula rolled her eyes, which Aric noticed were no longer the warm brown ones from downstairs, but a bright, sky blue. Her obvious familiarity with them, some things the hostess had mentioned about her, and the fact Balkar’s man had yet to make an appearance began to make sense.

“She’s our contact,” Aric concluded, finally putting the pieces together.

“Well done, lover,” Naula purred, “Smart and delicious…….too bad you were such an arrogant bastard back on Ord Mantell.” Another round of tinkling laughter bubbled out of her at the look of shock that crossed Aric’s face, “I take it you don’t recognize me……not that I can blame you. I looked a bit different back then.”

“Okay,” Zev crossed his arms, “So who are you, really?”

“Oh, relax, would you?! Captain Jorgan’s right I’m your contact, Agent Natalia Bryce,” she confirmed, pleased at the look of recognition that appeared in Jorgan’s eyes when he heard her name.

“Wow,” Corso exclaimed, blushing a little, “You’re really good…..I’d never have guessed you weren’t a real dancer.”

“Well, thanks, darlin’,’” Natalia drawled, winking at the blushing man, “I’ve had lots of practice.”

“How much practice,” Dek narrowed his gaze at her.

Natalia nodded, understanding the question, but didn’t answer it right away. Instead she glanced at the chrono, turned on some music and peeled that little red dress off just as a knock sounded at the door.

“Can one of you boys answer that for me?” she called out as she hopped up on the mini stage in the center of the room and began to dance.

Jax opened the door to a beefy Human dressed in black leathers. The man ignored the huge grey Cathar and poked his head in, “Everything good in here, Naula?”

“We’re doing fine,” she purred, leaning back from the pole and giving Torian a wink.

“Alright,” the man nodded, “Enjoy yourselves gentlemen.”

“Sorry about that,” Natalia sighed, slowing her movements a little, but remaining on the stage, “Standard procedure since there’s no cameras in the private suites. They take good care of us girls here and check in on us frequently.”

“Is that really necessary?” Zev raised a brow.

“A couple of months ago, a group of high society men tried to gang rape one of our dancers,” Natalia retorted, a dark look crossing her features as she stopped dancing, “so, yes…..it’s necessary.”

“Sorry,” Zev murmured, “I hope those scumbags got what was coming to them.”

“They did……eventually,” Natalia smiled coldly, “At any rate, in answer to Dekkyn’s question, I’ve been doing this for nearly a year now. I started out in a dive joint as a favor to a friend. Dancers were being snatched from the alley as they left out the back entrance and sold into slavery by the Exchange. It took a few weeks, but we managed to bust the head of the operation and rescue most of the girls. My assignment was supposed to end there, but we found out a lot of interesting things during those few weeks.”

“Oh?”

“You see, most people see dancers as just part of the club……a fixture so to speak,” Natalia elaborated, “Like a piece of furniture. You wouldn’t believe the things people talked about right in front of me without a thought…..”

“And you decided to take advantage,” Zev finished, “You exploited their carelessness.”

“That’s right,” Natalia confirmed, “I turned out to be pretty good at dancing and learned a lot at that dive bar. A few of us started visiting different strip clubs and we decided to target this place. There’s a lot of wealthy businessmen, politicians, and even military officials that come in and out of here and they’re no different than the clientele at that first joint. There was a job opening for a hostess and I took it. I studied the dancers during my shifts, then auditioned for a spot when one of the girls suddenly quit.”

“Oh, I’ll bet,” Aric snorted, certain there was more to it than that.

“She came into a financial windfall and decided her dancing days were over,” Natalia grinned, “Anyways, I got the part and a lot of goods. As in that first joint, I was just a simple dancer, not worthy of a second thought, and they sang all sorts of nasty secrets right in front of me,” she touched the blue jewel dangling from her navel ring, “I always had a mic on me and these past eight months, we’ve made a lot of busts.”

“Isn’t it dangerous for an agent to be undercover that long?”

“It starts to get tricky the more busts that are made,” Natalia admitted, “and I’m more than ready to leave this gig. I was actually due to be extracted in a few days until a message went out from Jonas Balkar last week. I immediately recognized the men in the picture…..they are newer customers, but have been coming in regularly for the past couple of weeks. I agreed to stick around and over the past few days, I’ve made sure to dance near them often. While not at work, I did some poking around.”

“We appreciate it,” Dek told her, “but not at the expense of your safety.”

“I’m fine,” Natalia assured him, “but you’re not…..those guys are dangerous. Officially, they work for a consulting firm.”

“And unofficially?”

“They’re hired guns…….and not hunters like you,” she nodded at Dek and Torian, “but highly trained hit men, the kind that will study their target for as long as it takes to kill them quietly and make it look like an accident. As far as I was able to gather, and I’ll give you all my datafiles before you leave, those men were hired by some cooperate bigwig at Czerka and her good buddy, Senator Bradley.”

“Oh, sh*t,” Jax cursed, running his hands through his short, black mane, “Mako’s search must’ve triggered…..”

“Quiet,” Natalia hissed after glancing at the chrono. She turned up the music, slipped of her black lace bra, and started dancing again. A moment later, there was another knock at the door.

Guss answered the door to the same burly security man who called out, “How’s it going?”

“Fantastic,” Natalia drawled as Jax tucked a very generous tip into her g-string, “These guys are great!”

“As you could tell, I did my homework after agreeing to assist Jonas with this,” Natalia continued the debriefing after the door closed, as if this were a routine meeting in her office instead of a private suite at a high end strip club, clearly unaffected by the fact she was practically naked in a room full of men, “However, my clearance wasn’t enough to get me as far as I’d like and there were a lot of gaps in your military files. Care to enlighten me since I get the feeling it’s related to why those men are after you?”

Dek, Jax, and Zev filled Natalia in on the details while she danced for the group. They started with Zev taking over Tempest Squad and Operation Landslide, giving their account of events and the aftermath. Then went further, explaining how that was the final straw for Dek and Jax and that the two of them resigned from the military. Zev admitted he had thoughts of doing the same, but decided to remain where he was.

“I can understand the conflict,” Natalia told them, “I’m not sure how I’d handle being messed with like that. This was more than two years ago though……why come after you now?”

“A little over two weeks ago, my girl stumbled across something rather interesting,” Dek answered, “Mako’s one of the best slicers I’ve seen and was looking into something from her past when she found herself in the Republic military database. I’d just bought her some new slicing tech and apparently it was credits well spent. She had full clearance and found my records….without the gaps. I’d already told her about all that stuff so she decided to do a little digging.”

“What did she find?”

“A list of corruption charges against Colonel Wilks, brought up by Colonel Hallyard, our former CO. Hallyard found some messages sent to Wilks the day after Operation Landslide failed from Senator Bradley and Karen Mills, an executive at Czerka. It was all there, Bradley and Mills bribed Wilks to cover up the Senator’s son’s involvement in the mission. In exchange, Wilks would be well compensated and he agreed,” Dek explained, “Mako was in the process of copying those documents when everything shut down.”

“Did she end up getting anything?” Natalia stopped dancing as Vik got up and went to the bar.

“Unfortunately she only got random pieces, nothing incriminating.”

“What happened with these charges?”

“Colonel Hallyard was killed in a friendly fire accident not long after filing them,” Dek bowed his head, “The charges were dismissed and the record was sealed.”

“Friendly fire accident my a*s,” Natalia snorted, crossing her arms as she leaned against the pole, “They took him out.”

“Exactly what I said,” Gault nodded, refilling his glass with one of the bottles Vik brought back, “Probably by these same guys.”

“You could be on to something,” Natalia murmured, looking thoughtful as she accepted the drink Tanno handed her, “I’ll see what I can dig up about that. So what led you to figure out these men were after you?”

“Last week I got a call from a friend who owns a cantina around here,” Jax told her, “Those guys were in her place and stuck out a little since most people who go there are a more average sort. She was a little curious about them and decided to clean some of the empty tables nearby. She overheard them say my name and went over to see if they needed anything. They didn’t close the file fast enough and she saw our pictures. She got their drinks then called me. I had just landed on Coruscant to visit Zev and filled him in. He contacted Balkar and you know the rest.”

“Do you think Wilks is involved at all?” Natalia asked, “I’ve only heard them mention Mills and Bradley by name, but he was in on it too.”

“The last I heard, Wilks was still stuck at that same command post in Kwymar sector,” Zev replied, “Which does surprise me……according to what Mako found, Bradley promised him a promotion and a cushy post.”

“That’s interesting,” Natalia mused, “and bears investigation as well. Maybe Jonas can look into that while I’m entertaining your hit men………oops….hang on, almost time for a knock.”

Sure enough, Natalia had only begun dancing again when there was a knock at the door and the security guard poked his head in to check up on his dancer who assured him that things were still going strong and very well.

“So, where do we go from here?” Aric spoke up after the door was shut.

“Glad you asked,” Natalia nodded, “I’ll give you what I have now, but there are still some missing pieces. I get the feeling there are others involved and I’d like to find out who. Also, I want to try and figure out how they’re tracking you, what they intend, and if it ends with you three.”

“How will you get back to us?”

“Simple,” Natalia grinned, “You boys are about to become some very good customers. Give me a few days, then come back here……only two or three of you, though. Grab a regular table, then when the waitress comes around, ask for a lap dance and request me……no Gault, not that kind of lap dance,” Natalia giggled at the hopeful look that came over the Devaronian’s face, “Those are only for the Platinum Package parties. Anyways, I’ll make the drop while we’re in the back room, then you boys can enjoy yourselves for a little while before leaving. That sound doable?”

“It should work,” Dek agreed, “There’s bound to be one of us available to come back here at that time.”

“Good,” Natalia replied, “One more thing…..I know you’re probably curious and will want to check up on my background. I’m fine with that, but please don’t do your own search. Ask Jonas for my file and read all you want. Without knowing how these men are tracking you, I don’t want to take a chance on them finding out about me.”

“We won’t,” Zev promised, “You’re risking a lot for us and we appreciate it.”

“I’m curious about something,” Jax grinned, looking at both her and Aric, “How do you know Jorgan?”

“I served under his command three years ago on Ord Mantell,” Natalia replied, “My hair is normally black and was much shorter back then. I was also sorta chubby and didn’t exactly go around Fort Garnik naked. I was only stationed there for a few months, so it’s no wonder he didn’t recognize me. He did save my life though.”

“I remember,” he murmured as images began flooding his mind. A young woman bleeding out in his arms, the result of a deep stab wound……the scar he’d felt on her abdomen earlier, “You almost didn’t make it and the last I saw of you was in a kolto tank being loaded onto a transport to Coruscant.”

“I thought you might recall that,” Natalia nodded, her expression sober, “Anyways, I recovered after a few weeks and ended up taking a transfer back to Hutt space. I was really good at reading people and great with tech. The right people noticed those abilities and eventually I was offered a place with the SIS. Since infantry combat wasn’t really my strong suit, I took it and have been with them ever since. I required a lot of physical therapy during my recovery and dropped a lot of weight. I toned up some during SIS training and learned close combat skills. Dancing this past year has toned me up further and combined with the change in hair color, brown contact lenses, and this tattoo, I barely recognize myself some days.”

“So what you did for Jorgan downstairs,” Zev concluded, “Was that because he saved your life back on Ord?”

“Uh….no,” Natalia looked confused, “I was supposed to do that. The Happy Endings lap dance was part of your package. Balkar booked you for it since it included unlimited private time in this suite so I’d be able to brief you on everything I’d learned and make plans for future drops without blowing my cover.”

“Yeah, but that cute Twi’lek, Rose, said she’d never seen you let a guy touch you like Aric did,” Jax countered smugly.

“And she said kissing wasn’t normal in your line of work,” Zev smirked at Natalia, “So….”

“So nothing, I felt bad for him and shame on you all!” she retorted, glaring at them, “I mean come on, you had these two delinquents,” she gestured at Gault and Vik, “and you chose him for the lap dance! Even though my stint on Ord was brief, I knew that he wasn’t exactly the outgoing type. Hell, I don’t think I ever saw the guy crack a smile the entire time I was there and I certainly never saw him with a woman.” Natalia sighed, “Sorry…..didn’t mean to go off like that. I was just expecting to be dancing for someone else and when you gave it to him, I felt kinda guilty for what I’d be doing so I made it as easy as possible,” she shrugged, blushing a little, “He saved my life…..the very least I could do was help him out with this situation that you bastards put him in and if that meant getting a little more personal than I normally would…..well, so be it.”

“I’m sorry,” Zev looked contrite, “I didn’t mean to pry. Jorgan might be an uptight, ornery bastard, but he’s our friend and we were curious, that’s all.”

“And it was Vik’s idea…..he figured it might take some of the starch outta Jorgan’s shorts,” Jax grinned.

“If anyone needed to let loose tonight, it’s him,” Tanno chuckled, ignoring the scathing glare Aric shot him.

“Am I really that bad?!” Aric demanded.

“Yes!” Zev, Tanno, Jax, and Natalia replied simultaneously.

“Awww, don’t feel bad, lover,” Natalia teased, kissing his furred cheek, “You know they’re all jealous of you. Now, I suggest you boys drink up and gather ‘round. I’ve got a few numbers that’ll rock your world. This is a bachelor party after all and you need to act like it…..especially when you leave. I mean it, I expect good tips, lewd talking, and at least half of you better be staggering drunk.”

“Does that include lap dances,” Gault grinned, raising his rocks glass in salute as Natalia began dancing.

“Certainly,” she retorted, a devious half smile curving those cherry red lips, “but I meant what I said earlier……I had to take an ice cold shower to cool off after my performance downstairs. You get me worked up again and you’ll be a lot sorer below the belt than you are now.”

Natalia made good on her word, performing some very erotic routines for them before the party was over. She also insisted on giving Torian a lap dance after finding out it was his first time at a strip club. Gault finally got one as well and wisely heeded her advice, keeping his hands to himself for the most part. The group was in various states of drunkenness by the time they left, with Dek and Aric the only ones who were relatively sober. Zev had Naula’s files on his datapad and they agreed to meet on Jax’s ship the next day to go over everything.

“Kark,” Aric growled, searching his pockets as they left the building, “I left my wallet in the suite's fresher…..I’ll catch up to you.”

“Probably left it there when he was putting himself together,” Jax slurred as they slowly made their way to the taxi pad while Jorgan ran back inside.

“I can’t blame him,” Gault sighed, swaying a little “Her regular lap dance was enough to get the blood heated…….can’t imagine what Jorgan’s was like. What’d you think, Torian?”

“Kandosii’la,” the young Mandalorian murmured a sheepish smile on his handsome face as he stumbled a little.

“Hold up,” Corso yelled just as the taxi pad was coming into sight a little while later, “Guss’s puking again.”

“What’d you give him?” Dek accused the snickering Weequay that was staggering next to him.

“A little of this,” Vik mumbled, “little of that……it’s all good.”

“I’d have to argue that,” Dek shook his head as they could hear the Mon Cal retching behind them.

“Hey, Corso,” Jax called out a few minutes later, “Why didn’t you get a dance?”

“Not my thing, really,” he shrugged, helping his crewmate walk after he finished getting sick.

“It wasn’t Jorgan’s thing either,” Zev shot back, “but I’m pretty sure he enjoyed himself.”

“Yeah,” Jax agreed, “I’m a little jealous to be honest.”

“I have to admit, if I hadn’t met Elara, I would’ve gone for it,” Zev nodded, “Oh well, Jorgan deserved it. He did nearly die on the Gauntlet after all and Vik’s right…..he could stand to let loose once in a while.”

“You got that right,” Tanno chuckled, “and speaking of Jorgan…..wonder what’s taking him so long.”

“Ask him,” Jax nodded at the Cathar jogging towards them.

“It’s about damn time, Jorgan,” Zev called out, “Did you find it?”

“Yup,” Aric replied, holding up his wallet.

Dek noticed a wicked glint in the older Cathar’s bright green eyes and had a good feeling he knew what put it there, “Was our dancer friend still there?”

“She was,” Aric nodded.

“You were gone much longer than it’d take to look for your wallet,” Jax smirked,“What did you do?”

A feral grin crossed Aric’s features, “Let’s just say I returned the favor.”

*One of the songs the lovely Nataila dances to is ‘Rock You Like a Hurricane’ by Scorpions. Yes, I’ve watched Rock of Ages……several times……don’t judge.

*Mando’a Translations from Mandoa.org:

kandosii’la=stunning, amazing

*The idea of a dancer being a plant to gather information came from an excerpt of Magdalane’s Distinct Advantages series.

I was hoping the dancer would be the contact! And good job, Aric. XD