Fandom Edge of the Empire and the Age of Rebellion

[TheMoonageDaydreamer]

"Well we need those upgrades. But we don't want any trouble." She said touching her shoulder subconsciously. The man shook his head nervously his blue eyes widening. She knew that whatever he wanted moving was going to be illegal but then it was just a case of them not getting seen. "And what is your name? I like to know who we are dealing with." She said sternly, her voice still sharp even with her relaxed posture. He shuffled round his eyes looking at the bench opposite then and with a wave of her hand Ardana gestured for him to sit.


He did so and began to fill them in on the details of the job. His hands were restless and tapped on the table, a clear sign that he was on edge. She wondered if that had anything to with the giant silver wookie sitting beside him. Once all of the information had been passed on he rose and hurried away, with a backwards glance at them.


"Why do I always feel like we are walking in to disaster?" She said the somber look falling over her face once more.

 

[Pash Odir]

"because if you didn't we would be dead half a dozen times over" Pash whispered under his breath. He had a bad feeling about this job, something didnt add up, illegal whisky? Sure import duty was high but never that high and the empire were harsh on smugglers. Possibly sneaking it past a Hutt? unlikely, if it was Borvo though, that would be something sweet.


Not wanting to take chances Pash returned to the newly repaired ship to pick up his weapons and armour, before heading to a small warehouse district with the others by speeder . Itd been a while since Pash had been this nervous before a mission. Maybe seeing Jetak had reminded him of the dangers they face, maybe it was Ardana. Wait why Ardana? Confusion rocked Pash, leaving a look he hoped no one would noticed. He moved back to scanning, nothing could go wrong.

 

[TheMoonageDaydreamer]

Ardana had noticed, she was good at noticing Pash's odd looks. But as usual she said nothing, Though her thoughts did remain on what that look could have been for. She sat in the front of the speeder, not flying for once. She already had her blaster to hand, prepared for the worst. Everyone was on edge, it hung heavy in the air and the merry atmosphere from earlier had evaporated leaving an uncomfortable silence. The pulled in to the warehouse at last, everyones guns already drawn. It was a large open space, cargo crates piled high, speeders parked at the far end of the building. It was quiet, almost too quiet.

 

[Pash Odir]

There it was, the crate, large as it was it wasnt heavy, Arlak and Dovahkin began to move it and edge closer to the speeder.


"Not bad guys, hey if this works out we could maybe work togeth" *ZAP*


Head now a smoking pile of ash on his neck the man dropped forward as a half dozen men charged in, blaster rifles at the ready. This was exactly what Pash had been looking for, without thinking he had dropped to one knee and was returning fire, crates exploding around him.


"GET BEHIND SOMETHING" he yelled, praying to whoever that he wouldn't remeber this as he switched to grenade mode and fired into the swarm of aqualish who were hiding behind a cargo lifter.


*BOOM* body parts everywhere, not stopping to even check on their comrades the others moved closer, still there were 6, 3 had been on a raised platform and now sprinted for cover.


"ARLAK" *ZAP* well of course his timing would be that perfect, what of Ardana? Pash couldnt look without missing what could be his death, so all he could do was grit his teeth, aim, and fire again and again.

 

[TheMoonageDaydreamer]

Ardana heard the gunfire and ducked, with a graceful roll she put a solid crate between her ant the aqualish who were now raining fire on them. She too began to fire, her pistol not packing as much of a punch as her team mates rifles but every little helped. She managed to score a few hits, watching as Arlak rained devastation on them. She was glad he was on their side.


Ducking back behind cover she waited for the last few gunshots before the silence once again filled the warehouse. She waited a little longer just in case there was any more hiding, and when she deemed it safe she rose, moving to where the others stood.


"Well that went better than expected. Now I suggest we get out of here before the authorities show up." She said still holding her blaster.

 

[Pash Odir]

No sooner had it been said than the sirens began


"Shit, in the speeder, Dovakhin (RAWWWR?) Drive, everyone else, stay down"


Grabbing the lip and throwing himself into the speeder Pash thought of the last time he had been chased by Security, it had not ended will for that group. Now was not the time for that though, blaster rifle at the ready he calmed himself, these shots would be hard if he made them at all, wait...


"Don't shoot unless they shoot first, they may have ship guns that could take us down"


Not trying to treat them like idiots but also making sure they knew this could end in their death if any of them (glancing to Arlak and Jayne) were over itchy with the triggers. Then there was the other issue, the doors were shut. Damn it, thought Pash as he grabbed his datapad and keyed them open in time for a small Bespin City Security detachment to look wide eyed as the speeder shot out into the city. It wasn't long before the other forces arrived to give chase....

 

[TheMoonageDaydreamer]

For someone who loved space flying so much Ardana hated high speed speeder flying. The lack of anti vehicle weapons always made her feel vulnerable. No sooner than they had all jumped in the wookie blasted off. She crouched down low, sitting next to Pash she actually looked up at him and grinned.


"Reminds me of last time we were in a speeder chase. Back on Ryloth." She laughed slightly, an odd reaction considering their current situation. Dovakhins driving was skillful and he kept them just ahead of the security forces, ducking and weaving around buildings in an attempt to shake their pursuit. But it was in vain, their ship was nimbler and maneuvered just as easily through the city.


"Pull over or we will shoot you down." crackled a stern voice over communications. the wookie grumbled that he couldn't outfly them.


"We have to stop. They'll just gun us down if we continue." She looked between the crew and no one seemed to have anything else to say. She grabbed the coms and spoke in to it clearly, disdain tainting her tone.


"We surrender, don't shoot." Dovakhin slowed and bought them to a stop. "Arlak lower your gun." She said knowing that it would not be easy for them to part the Trandoshan and his trusty gun. Security was on them in seconds, all of them disarmed and cuffed much to the former slaves disdain.

 

[Pash Odir]

Ardana looked nervous, Pash hadn't seen her like that since, well, since he freed her from that horrific place that Borvo had put her. He had almost forgotten that, maybe that is why she hated him so much, she thought she owed him and he could use it over her. It made a sort of sense, but right now he just had to calm her down.


"Ardana, please, just calm down, it isn't Borvo's and we will be out of them soon"


Silence was ll that greeted him, that and a shove from behind, whoever it was was obviously enjoying their job a little too much. Pash wondered if the security officer would believe them, but they turned a different way and ended up outside an admin office, this seemed strange, the only way it would work was if an........ oh god no.


"So the crew of the...hmmmmmm, Randy Gammorean is it?" The Sector Ranger looked up, dressed in grey with the circular badge of the rangers on his chest this man was one of the main police style officers in the sector.


"Yes, what of it?"


"Any idea why you were smuggling highly illegal spice on your speeder? or why your weapons matched the enrgy discharges on the crime scene you were seen escaping from?"


SPICE? "Spice?" Kriff it all, spice was a triple, no chance in hell, kriff it, maybe plea and get Ardana off, maybe Arlak he can look after her.


"No idea what you mean, we admit we were attacked as you can see from the prints and bodies but we defended ourselves"


"Well you're looking at 10 years on Kessel for this, and that is before i check your records, im sure we can bring something up?"


"Okay what do you want" They would have been off to Kessel had he wanted them in prison


"This spice was stolen from the Empire (The empire smuggled drugs, he new that) and there is a much bigger shipment, belonging to Mooraga the Hutt" Hutts too now? How could this day get any worse.


"I will give you some credits for purchases, my com code and a hyperspace beacon, find the rest of the shipment and then bring it back here, i will not only get rid of these records, but any others you may have" Tempting, Pash looked to his companions........

 

[TheMoonageDaydreamer]

Spice, this was not good. They were in big trouble here, and for once she knew this was a situation she couldn't talk them out of. But it was clear as he continued he didn't want to see them in prison, he wanted them to do his dirty work. And at the mention of Hutts she recoiled slightly, she didn't want to be involved with Hutts ever again, but it looked as though it was there only choice. She nodded at Pash as he looked in her direction.


"What choice do we have. That bastard screwed us over so its this or Kessel." She said quietly. The spice trade disgusted her, the slavery in the mines to the deception in the smuggling and sale of the product. Even the governments couldn't be trusted. She shook her binders irritably wanting to be free of this place as soon as possible.

 

[Pash Odir]

The Sector Range let them out and dropped them off at the armoury to get kitted out again


"Don't run off, we will find you" Pash hated that man, hoped he would be the one to kill that slimy Empire scum. They slowly put on their armour, Ardana not looking at Pash as he donned his shoulder pads and slowly exited, heading for the platform where the ship lay waiting when he noticed a shadow....


Dressed in black, 3 men sstrode out from the corners of the platform. No weapons were visible but they all looked deadly serious and ready to fight. They started running, Pash drew is blaster rifle and quickly shot one in the chest, visibly staggering him, finally things were going his way.


"Get to the Ship Ardana!" Jayne yelled, missing one of the others


Ardana ran, but something was wrong, no, not it couldnt be.......

 

[TheMoonageDaydreamer]

She was clearly unhappy as they walked towards the docking bay where the ship remained. Footsteps made her eyes rise from the floor, resting on three of the biggest men she had ever seen. They were dressed in armor, with a bizarre chestplate and what looked like tubing running in to their bodies. In unison a hand rose to adjust the dial on their chestplates and a terrifying change began to take place. Their armor stretched and strained as they became even larger, muscles bulging. Their eyes which seemed tiny, were bloodshot and with the guttural snarls that escaped their mouths so did spittle and foam. They looked like rabid nexu, crazed by whatever fluid that was pumping in to their bodies.


"Look out!" She warned diving for cover. She managed to get a few shots off before hearing Jayne call out to her. She checked where the enimies were, Pash was standing over one, the second was engaging Arlak. So Jayne and Dovakhin must have the third. She ducked and ran, her eyes fixed on the ship, until the third soldier stepped in front of her stopping her short. White hot pain shot through her, feet no longer touching the floor as she was lifted high above the ground. Her emerald green eyes were wide and she shrieked as she was thrown, vibroknife wrenched from her gut, across the hangar floor, hitting the duracrete with a sickening thud. She lay there, a hand going to the wound, returning soaked in her own blood.


She couldn't stop herself from crying, it hurt so much, tears leaving watery tracks over her cheeks. The coppery taste of blood filled her mouth and as she coughed blood bubbled with it, dark red staining her lips. Strained whimpers escaped her, clutching at the knife wound in a hopeless attempt to stop the bleeding. All she could smell was blood.


"Pash." She whispered looking in his direction before falling unconscious

 

[Pash Odir]

The sound of the knife entering Ardana's frail body seemed to be all Pash could hear, he knew then...... no, not enough time to think, she was fine, she had to be fine, this wasn't happening, he should have left her in the cantine, if he hadnt, maybe he could have saved her.


"DIE YOU SON OF A BITCH" Pash placed his blaster to the assassin's head and blew it to pieces. Rage overcame him, his Ardana....


"COME ON, DO IT" He screamed as Arlak lined up and shot the assassin in the chest, turns out something in his chest made him deflate, falling in on himself, his wounds taking their toll as he curled up and died, much as Pash's soul was inside. He dropped his guns and ran, ran to her.


"No, no no no no no, be okay, be okay, youll be fine, ARLAK GET THAT KRIFFING SECTOR RANGER HERE, no Ardana honey its gunna be fine, look here is a stimpack" It was no use, barely alive Ardana looked fit to be in a morgue.


Bespin Security arrived, Pash refused to let Ardana go until the medics arrived and sedated him slightly, insisting all the time "i can keep her safe, i'll do it" he rallied on them


"TAKE HER TO THE MED CENTRE NOW" pistol held to the eye of a medic as droids moved her to a stretcher


"Yes sir, no put the blaster down, please, for her" he replied, calm yet with an edge you get when talking to the crazy. Pash lowered the blaster, eyes falling back to Ardana, stomach wound and all, she looked so peaceful as they led her.....


"HEY DONT YOU LEAVE ME HERE" he screamed, running to catch up


"It'll be okay little one, it'll be okay"

 

[TheMoonageDaydreamer]

The repulsorlift stretcher carried her in to surgery, tiny form pale from blood loss and shock. They had to operate, stop all of the internal bleeding and they had to do it quickly. She was hooked up to all manner of machines as the med droids scurried around her. The knife had punctured several blood vessels and the droids were initially doubtful of her chances, but she was strong and she didn't give in. A time later when she was deemed stable she was placed in a bacta tank, her clothes exchanged for white medical robes. It was only when they had finished suspending her in the rosy pink liquid, that the doctor moved outside to tell the crew.


"She's stable. But she's going to need several days in the bacta tank before she's ready to leave." He informed them a droid beside him handing him a towel, which he proceeded to wipe his hands with. Arlak and Jayne glanced at each other and then at Pash. Neither were sure how he would react after his little breakdown earlier.

 

[Pash Odir]

"Get out" Pash said quietly


"But Pashhhhhhh"


"Now please" he said with a little force, his voice ruined from the screaming.


The door slid shut.......


His knees buckled, his hands on the glass, whispering.


"I'm sorry, i'm so sorry, I don't know if you can hear me, but I want you to know, I won't fail you again, not if i can help it, and next time i'll stand in front of you as you take that blade if i have to"

 

[TheMoonageDaydreamer]

She was pretty sure she was dead. It was dark and warm and silent. What a shitty way to die, she thought to herself. She didn't even get to say goodbye. Typical, years ago she had wished for death, for release from the life she had been thrown in to, but now she was just beginning to enjoy life. Why now?


Who would look after Arlak now? The bounty hunter and Assassin that had once come to kill her, had become one of her best friends, the two enjoyed the others company and although they weren't on the same intellectual level she still loved having him around. And then there was Pash. She never thanked him, he saved her and she never got a chance to thank him. He'd be beating himself up about this too, she doubted he'd ever forgive himself.


And she would go insane if she had to spend an eternity with these thoughts, and that beeping. Wait beeping, that hadn't been there before had it? No she would surely have noticed. She struggled, trying to move, realising now that she was very much alive. Her eyes opened, the room tainted pink by the bacta that surrounded her. Breathing mask tugging uncomfortably at her face. There was a figure beyond the glass too, she knew instinctively who it was and strained to raise a hand. Placing her palm on the glass mirroring his, she tried to smile but it was mostly hidden by the mask about her face. She was glad to see him.

 

[Pash Odir]

The feel on his hand was almost nothing, the touch so small, the feeling so reduced by the gladd, but he felt it. Tears running down his face he looked up to see those Twi'lek eyes looking down upon him. He almost jumped for joy and immediatly realised at this point he looked abysmal. He straightened up, wiped himself and then tried to communicate, it wasnt going very well and he laughed to himself acting the fool. She was alive! He wondered what she was thinking in there....

 

[TheMoonageDaydreamer]

She genuinely smiled at him, he looked awful as she knew he would but it was still a shock to see the man usually so composed actually crying. lowering her hand she moved her palm to her flat stomach where she could feel the stitching holding the damaged flesh together. She had been lucky this time.


She remained in the bacta for the minimum amount of time, they were on a time limit and she wasn't going to be the one responsible for getting them all dumped on Kessel. She pulled herself out of the tank much to the despair of the medical droids, but none were brave enough to try and stop her. The wound had mostly healed over but it was still painful, and she moved gingerly to clean the bacta away and clothe herself, that was a second shirt ruined this week. She stumbled out of the room coming face to face with the doctor who looked less than pleased.


"There is no way you should be out of that tank, not for another 3 days or so." He warned, but she brushed him off.


"I don't have 3 days, the Randy Gamorrean has a job to do and we always keep our word."

 

[Pash Odir]

Ardana strode out, looking pissed off, but better than with a stab wound, her frame had changed subtly. He wasnt sure how, but he beamed warmly that she was at least walking as normal. His arguements with the Sector Ranger had been monumental, with threats of all kinds from both sides. Pash had faced death more times in the past 12 hours than he had in the past 12 months. He was good though, he was happy, now it was on to the next job.


"Wait where are we even going again?"

 

[TheMoonageDaydreamer]

She didn't let any signs of her pain show, so although walking perfectly upright hurt she took a d eep breath and managed it. She shot Pash a small smile but walked to Arlak, who threw an arm around her and hissed that it was good to have her back.


"Lets get moving." She said and moved off back towards the ship "We have a Hutt to rob." She muttered eyes darkening. As they walked back through the hangar, it was clear she was on edge, as though she was still expecting those giant men to be here. Her eyes flitted about and she only seemed to relax when she reached the cockpit of the ship. She ran the start up programs and took them out heading to the co-ordinates that Marek the sector ranger had given them, Vanqor the planet home to the notorious Gundark. She winced a little as she lent over the console, and once she got them in to hyper space she sat back to inspect the wound. It would scar without the remaining bacta treatment but there was no time for that, she would just have to live with the physical reminder of that attack.


She tried to get comfortable in her chair but all of her usual ways of sleeping creased her stomach and sent pain shooting through her abdomen.


"Damn it." She grumbled, opting instead to get up and change he clothes, throwing away the second top in a week, much to her annoyance. She opted for a tight fitting halterneck, it hid the scar but the lack of sleeves and almost no back still allowed plenty of mobility, and showed the beginning of what looked like a tattoo down her right side. She wandered around the flightdeck, now she was alone she didn't bother to hide the slight limp in her stride. Moving about without reason and occasionally staring out in to space, one hand rested over her new scar.

 

[Pash Odir]

Pash had slipped, both in action and afterwards. He would not again. He assembled and reassembled his rifle, armour plates, pistol, even taking a break he reassembled some of the tools in his kit. He was not going to let his guard down ever again, not in front of the crew, he was their leader. The others may think they were but he made each decision, they would be lost without him. He didn't blame Jayne, but the glare he gave him when Jayne mentioned he should sleep was as real as any he could give. Finally when he thought it was perfect he meditated, then slept, then started again, because perfect wasnt good enough. He ran sims on the computer, improving his aim and speed, he was not going to fail her again.


Then again, may pay to visit her, so caff it was, glancing nervously at her wound while she was asleep, sitting next to her and just making sure she was okay before leaving, knowing the caff would be cold before she woke.

 

[TheMoonageDaydreamer]

Finally deciding that she needed to sleep she opted for the top of her crate. She pulled a blanket over the crate she uses to store her effects and rested on top, there was no way she could sleep comfortably in her chair so this was better than nothing. It was the first time since flying in the Randy Gamorrean that she wished for an actual bunk, seeing as the ship only slept 3 she always remained in the cockpit and the wookie slept in one of the cargo holds. She dozed on her side, the only way that wasn't too painful, but her sleep wasn't peaceful. She dreamed of that attack, that searing pain that was like nothing she had ever felt before. Several times she work, sitting bolt upright only to hunch up in pain and whimper. She had just done exactly that but this time something was different, someone had been here. There was a cup of caff sat beside her, and she reached out for it, the cup still warm so they couldn't have left long ago. She carried the cup with her over to her chair and sat, taking deep gulps of the delicious drink. It was then that they dropped out of hyperspace.

 

[Pash Odir]

Vanquor was an odd world, mostly because it was full of gundarks that were hunted down by the rich and famous all year. This time of year a particular Hutt was offering a liscense for whoever brought back the most valuable specimen, particularly an old Gundark which had been seen in the area. Arlak was quivering at the thought when they landed, a relatively easy prospect with no lying needed, turns out anyone could enter. It was at the registration that Pash saw the 10,000 credit entrance fee, still a few 0's short of the prize's value, but still the entire credit fund plus some of Arlak's money went into that. Ardana was having none of it it seemed, but the money would be worth it, they had the best team in the galaxy, especially since Pash would never fail again.

 

[TheMoonageDaydreamer]

Ardana despised the idea of hunting, and doing so for a Hutt, there was no way in hell. She remained in the ship whilst they were collecting the money and signing up to hunt. She could see the excitement in Arlak as he bounded about the ship and as much as she wanted to it was impossible for her to be angry at him. She hadn't forgotten their mission, Retrieve the spice from the Hutt, return it to the Empire, two groups of people who she would rather have nothing to do with. She was browsing the hollonet, hunting for all the information on Muraga she could find. She decided to go and join the others who were exploring outside and found them easily negotiating the price of entry. She straightened up and strode over to them, the man they were dealing with looked up and smirked at her. She moved to the center of the group and smiled.


"Have you decided on a price gentlemen?" They all looked wide eyed at her, she knew none of them were good at negotiating and that was where she came in.


"Price is 10,000 credits Mam." The steward said nervously and she shook her head. If they were going to hunt poor beasts she wouldn't let them pay that much to do it. hreateningly.


"Price is 7000. Isn't that right Dovakhin." She said and the wookie growled threateningly. It was enough to startle the man and he hastily grabbed all of the starting information for them. "Pay the man Pash." She said turning away. A Toydarian had been watching and hurried over to her as she moved through the crowd.


"That was quite impressive m'lady. So impressive you have attracted some attention." He extended a hand, passing her a cream envelope. "Invitations to the ball tonight. On behalf of an admirer." He dipped his head politely and vanished back in to the crowd. She read the invitations but it was the name at the bottom that caught her eye. Muraga the Hutt.

 

[Pash Odir]

"A Ball? God damn that" Pash wanted to go, it would be good to clean up for once, the lack of weapons allowed was annoying but nothing he couldn't handle. He smartened up dressing in the Alderaan fashion of a cloak over an ill fitted suit. His blaster pistol at his side he was about to leave when he realised Arlak was wearing his combat gear, even planned to bring the rifle.


"Arlakkkkkkk" Pash moaned, half pained half joking as Arlak looked like the most sheepish trandoshan you ever saw. Unslinging his blaster he laid it on the deck as you would putting a child to bed. Pash neglected to mention he had modded it while Arlak had slept but he hoped he would like the surprise.


Then he saw her......


And THAT is when he admitted he loved her to himself.

 

[TheMoonageDaydreamer]

She was not really one for fancy parties, but it made a welcome change from combat gear. She actually made an effort purring on make-up, and placing the ribbon like wraps around her Lekku. She selected a long black dress that hugged her figure with an open back. She took a deep breath whilst fastening her shoes, heels that made her a good couple of inched taller than her 5'2", and prepared herself. She walked out of the ship to where the others were waiting. The slit in the side of the dress allowed her to move gracefully down the ramp towards them, the diamont patterning around the neck of the dress glimmering in the fading light. And to finish the outfit was the necklace she always wore, the emerald and wire work collar that had been gifted to her by Borvo. She smiled at the others and stopped beside Pash.


"You clean up well." She said to Pash who hadn't taken his eyes off of her since she appeared at the top of the ramp. "Shall we?" She said with a smile.