#i have no idea who I should have left off instead of Risha | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

chubbyooo · 4 years ago

Text

Blurred Lines: Cursed Past Chapter 86 - A Jedi’s Doubt

hey sorry for the break I've been having a rough week but the next 5 chaps are gonna be doozys :D

Gacen tries to convince Sumalee to help him and Risha

Sumalee led Gacen to the mountain wall where she pulled up a datapad “so um Sums where are we going” Sumalee messed with the datapad and the rock shifted into an entrance

She rolled her eyes “I thought I’d protect my home with a hologram to stop people like you barging in” she walked into a large chamber full of what Gacen could only describe as Jedi Shit “and don’t call me Sums” she glared at him causing him to shudder

Risha laughed through the comms “yeah she hates that nice job remembering it” Gacen chuckled Risha had come up with it before they’d even met but he’d co-opted it

Gacen smiled as he started to look at a stack of weird looking relics “says you Rish” he teased as Sumalee made herself comfortable

Risha just tutted “touché” Gacen picked up one of the relics and the others toppled across the table as he fumbled trying to keep them stable

He swiveled round to Sumalee who looked less and impressed and smiled awkwardly “if you’re quite done messing up my home tell me why you’re here” Gacen put the relic back down and walked over awkwardly

Gacen stammered “well you see I came here to ask for your help with something” Sumalee raised her eyebrow at him “Risha needs your help but I can’t explain why too much incase there are spies around” Sumalee frowned but nodded understanding her concern

She considered it for a long second “I see I suppose if she’s exercising discretion I can understand why, this isn’t some scheme of yours is it” Gacen thought about it

He held his neck “I mean technically it’s a scheme but like on a grand scale” he could hear Risha sighing at him through the comms “it’s a good cause though i promise you that I can tell you more about it on the ship” Sumalee nodded standing up and collecting a few things

She was silent for a couple minutes walking around her home before she came back with a backpack “alright let’s go” Gacen’s eyes widened that was a lot easier than expected

He stammered “wait that’s all it took I was expecting more push back” Sumalee frowned at him as she used the force to pack a few things quickly into her backpack

Sumalee shrugged “you said Risha needed my help, I’d only not help if it was your plan but your inability to explain it means this is her idea so I’m in” Gacen didn’t know wether to be insulted or flattered

Risha seemed pleased “nice one Sumalee I knew I could count on you” Gacen smiled as Sumalee finished packing

He led her back outside “alright well we’re grateful for your help Sumalee” he looked to see M4-SK waiting for them “oh and this is our protocol droid M4-SK he’s kinda eccentric” Sumalee nodded at him and ignored his greeting

She sighed “everything is with you two I’m hardly surprised” Gacen feigned surprise as he was common to do

He shook his head “how dare you we are high class not eccentric” Sumalee gave him a long silent look “ok fine but we’re noble criminals you know that” Sumalee conceded as they made their trek back down the mountain. A little ways down Gacen got curious “so uh why did you come to this place I thought you were pretty popular in the Jedi order” Sumalee looked off pensively

She sighed “after the Eternal Empire attacked I like many Jedi became disillusioned with the Jedi in their current form, through this path we’d lost so many, The Hero of Tython and the Barsen'thor missing, Master Yuon, Bakarn and now the Grand Master had disappeared clearly something was wrong with the cycle of endless war between the republic and the empire it had left us open to a greater threat, I decided that for the Jedi to survive we would need to look more critically at ourselves” Gacen nodded trying to look intellectual and understand but really taking in very little

Sumalee looked around her “I came here to Wayland as it’s a Nexus of force energy” Gacen was totally lost “more specifically a mix of light and dark energy, the Barsen’thor had advocated for not cutting off our emotions and the longer I’ve been here the more I’m inclined to agree” Gacen blinked why had he asked this

Risha laughed “I could’ve told her that years ago” Gacen smiled he had a feeling she had a few times

Sumalee continued “I’ve never been the most traditional Jedi and that may be what we need right now, with the emergence of the Alliance and it’s cooperation between Jedi and Sith it seems like the cycle may be able to be broken but only with the right people” Gacen did understand that the republic and sith would never stop fighting it’s why him and Risha had been able to profit of it so much

Gacen nodded “yes I suppose so war is a thing that people do” he immediately regretted saying that there was no wisdom there and Sumalee had a confused look on her face as they arrived outside his ship. He quickly changed the subject “well! Here we are, my ship come aboard and we can discuss the plan” Sumalee nodded following him as he set up the holo to broadcast Risha, He sent M4-Sk to the cockpit to begin piloting the ship back to Gabredor III.

Sumalee folded her arms “so what exactly do you two want this time” Gacen turned on the holo as Risha appeared and Sumalee’s rough exterior immediately softened

Risha had a huge grin on her face “hey Sumalee long time don’t tell me you’ve gone straight edge” Sumalee rolled her eyes but was clearly grinning sincerely

She shook her head “never, but regardless it’s good to see you again Risha” Gacen smiled “so why did you send your boyfriend instead of yourself” Gacen frowned he was more than that

Risha folded her arms “first of all he’s my husband not my boyfriend Sums” Gacen nodded backing her up

Sumalee nodded sarcastically “right of course silly me I guess I just forgot” Gacen pouted she clearly hadn’t changed that much

Risha just rolled her eyes “I sent him because if I show my face it can cause collateral damage on Dubrillion” Sumalee face crossed with understanding as she nodded

Sumalee smiled “of course you’re going after Dubrillion I should’ve known you’d take your responsibility eventually” Risha nodded clearly not appreciating the slight condescending tone

Risha continued “yes well unfortunately King Actavarus has only gotten more paranoid and dangerous and as a result we’ll have to be very careful about our approach” Sumalee seemed to understand as Risha explained

Sumalee smiled “and you need a figurehead that wouldn’t be too irregular to form a movement against Dubrillion and it’s corrupt government” Risha nodded clearly glad to tell someone her plan

She raised her eyebrow “well yes that’s part of it but also I believe you’re a rather competent advisor and familiar with war, after all ‘war is a thing people do’” she teased at Gacen

Gacen scrunched up his face “hey I’m sorry ok I’m not so good at the wise comments” they both smiled at him as he pouted

Risha continued “either way I need someone who can contact those on my side of the cause without arousing suspicion of my involvement” Sumalee nodded starting to understand

She frowned “but what if they find out that we’re friends that’s not exactly a secret” Gacen gritted his teeth knowing what was coming next

Risha shook her head “no problem I’ve erased any record of our involvement from the holonet” Sumalee looked surprised and almost angry

Gacen thought it would be best to intervene “don’t worry Sumalee she did it to everyone even me” that seemed to calm her down a bit

Risha sighed “yes and genius here spilled his involvement to the Dubrillion forces so he can’t be it, he’ll handle relations with other people and hopefully later direct missions” Gacen shrunk down a bit to be fair at the time he hadn’t known the specifics and may have been drugged

Sumalee took this all in and smiled “this all sounds rather agreeable I certainly would like to help free a planet it would be good to fight for the right side again” Risha smiled clearly pleased with the outcome

Risha grinned “perfect we’ll discuss the next steps when you get back I’m excited to see you” she shut off the holo and spoke into Gacen’s ear “that went pretty well thanks for softening the blow of removing all our interactions” Gacen nodded he understood why she had to

Sumalee looked around the ship “I swore I’d never set foot on this tin can” Gacen gasped for real this time this ship was a masterpiece

Gacen pouted “hey this ship has plenty of class and I’ve cultivated a good atmosphere” Sumalee rolled her eyes clearly not agreeing

She grinned “is that why it smells like Bantha cheese” Gacen didn’t even know how to respond to that his mouth agape for a good few seconds

Gacen glared at her “take that back this ship has been my baby for 15 or so years” Sumalee just smirked walking off to make herself at home she was gonna be helpful but almost definitely problematic…

Soon they’d returned to Gabredor and Risha came out to meet them instantly wrapping Sumalee into a hug “it’s good to see you and free of those Jedi know-it-alls we’re gonna have so much fun together” Sumalee smiled awkwardly not sure what was happening

Gacen laughed “yeah 5 years with no one but Guss and the droid for company has made her more affectionate it’s wild” Sumalee nodded at least this they could agree on

Risha rolled her eyes “speaking of” she pulled Gacen in for a long kiss which admittedly he had missed even if it had only been a few days

Sumalee frowned “should I go inside and wait” Gacen nodded and she awkwardly walked inside as they continued

A couple minutes later they made their way in where they found Sumalee rearranging the furniture to make it neater “ah there you are, are your libidos sorted out I assume we have a lot to discuss” Risha nodded leading them to the war room

She chuckled “yes we should be fine it’s like he said 5 years apart has made us a little more grateful for what we have” Sumalee sighed clearly not understanding

She looked Gacen up and down “I can’t imagine why” Gacen shook his head he should’ve expected the sass but still

Risha brushed it off “ok so next steps is finding someone to support us, I may have some wealth of my own but I’d rather get an army and experienced operatives we can trust. Last time Ash and I suggested the Alliance as the most trustworthy if volatile option” she turned to Sumalee “do you have any thoughts on that?” Sumalee looked at each of the options for a second

She nodded “I was honestly going to suggest the same I have become a bit disillusioned with the Jedi but much more in the Republic after Saresh’s term as Chancellor, and my thoughts on the empire I believe are obvious” Gacen smiled he didn’t know much of politics but was glad all three of them had suggested the Alliance

Gacen frowned “so we should send someone over there right, I guess Sumalee could go and convince them to help” Risha seemed to brush that idea off to his and Sumalee’s surprise

She shook her head “actually I think it will be best if you go Gacen” Gacen was surprised he was no diplomat “you’re most likely to be speaking to Lana Beniko who I believe you’ve met before but more importantly is a sith” she looks at Sumalee “something tells me her and Sumalee meeting could end less civil” Gacen nodded that did make a lot of sense and from what he knew of Lana she was pretty cool they could come to an agreement. Risha smiled surprisingly genuinely “besides I think it would do you good to go and see it, and I’ll be in your ear the entire time just like last time” Gacen let out a sigh of relief that would make things easier

Sumalee frowned “wait you were talking to him the entire time?” Risha nodded “I should’ve known no wonder he was somewhat tactful” Gacen sighed he guessed he had to get used to that

Risha folded her arms “either way you don’t have to go immediately now that Sumalee is here we can discuss our plans for what comes next” she gestured to the planet on the war room map “and once Ash gets back maybe devise a strategy for taking Dubrillion” Gacen nodded he did wonder how Ash was getting on

Gacen smiled “it seems like it’s all coming together Rish, and don’t worry I’m sure I can handle the Alliance” he said that with confidence but really hoped he just had to talk to Lana he could convince her right?...

3 notes · View notes

torielectra83 · 5 years ago

Text

Just Another Day at the Mall

Thanks to @greyias, last week I was inspired to create an AU of my SWTOR smuggler OC, only instead of being in space, he and his partners all work at a mall. I may post this on my AO3, I dunno. Enjoy it.

“Well, another day, another credit.” Prindrohi Candaren thought as he unlocked the security shutters for his pride and joy, Boundless Starparts. He’d set-up shop in a vacant space in the east wing of the Galactic Mall in Coruscant City. Since he’d left his hometown of Sludaan he'd bounced between short-term jobs to get enough funds to open his own store. About six months prior, another starship parts store had gone under and Prin took the inventory for a song.

"Hey, boss. What's on the checklist today?" Corso Riggs, Prin's assistant manager entered the store. "Got a shipment of CEC parts coming in around 1:00. Other than that, not much." Corso was from the run-down area of Ord Mantell, and had met Prin after attempting to stop a former friend of his named Skavak from robbing the store. Ever since, Skavak had repeatedly targeted their store and stolen items.

As the duo turned on the lights and began prepping the store for business, the Galactic Mall itself was slowly coming to life. After an hour or so, the mall opened its doors. Customers slowly filtered into the wide, tiled hallways.

At 10:30 Prin was doing clerical work behind the counter when a familiar face entered the store. Prin casually glanced at the upper-crust customer as she looked for a variety of items. "Hello, Prindrohi."

"Hey, Risha. How's your project going?" "It's progressing rather well. The speeder should be up and running by the end of the week."

Risha was dressed in her uniform from the jewelry store across the hall, Huttsberg Diamonds. Prin had become quite familiar with her since starting here-- despite her snooty-sounding voice and admittedly beautiful appearance, she could handle the starship parts business better than he could at times, helping him pick better parts suppliers and fending off Skavak's shoplifting attempts. Hell, she often hung out with Prin and Corso on their lunch breaks in the food court.

“Hey, Miss Drayen.” Corso greeted her as he wheeled out a shipment of power cells for blaster cannons. Risha nodded and handed over her credit chip. Once the transaction went through, she took her litems and headed back across the hall to the jewelry store. Prin stared at her retreating form, before Corso tapped him on the shoulder. “Uh, boss?” “Oh, yeah, what is it?”

“Are you ever gonna ask Risha out?” Prin sighed at Corso’s blunt question. “No, not yet anyway. A girl like her probably wants money. All my credits are going to keep this store in this mall.” Corso snorted. “That’s an excuse and you know it. It wouldn’t take much to take her out. Sure she looks high-class and works at a jeweler, but if she’s more interested in starship and speeder parts, then she can’t be that rich.”

“Yeah? Well what about that time she set you up with that friend of hers, Beryl? If I remember correctly that date ended with her stealing your wallet.” Prin reminded him. At that Corso scowled and stalked off grumbling. Prin smirked a bit, before contemplating how he could ask her out, before some snooty rich guy landed her first. (Admittedly Risha had never been that forthcoming about her background, so he had no idea what her family was like.)

At 12:00, Prin and Corso went to lunch. The food court of the Galactic Mall was naturally quite busy and crammed with about a billion different eateries offering food from all across the galaxy-- and about 50 Biscuit Barons, since they were everywhere. “So what should we get to eat?” “I dunno, Corso. I’m feeling like sweet and liquidy.” Prin mused. “Jawa Juice?” Corso supplied. Prin nodded. “Yep, that’ll do.”

The duo approached the Jawa Juice, where a familiar Mon Calamarian face was behind the counter. “Hey, guys! What can I get for you?” Guss Tuno asked. Guss had previously been employed by Jedi Temple Candle and Gifts, but had gotten fired after an accident involving a new shipment of candles and a misplaced snowglobe. He’d landed at Jawa Juice, where he became acquaintances with Prin and Corso.

“Hey, Guss. Can I get two strawberry-kiwi smoothies please?” “Oh, and a couple four-cheese flatbreads!” A few minutes later, Prin and Corso were busy relaxing and eating, shooting the breeze with security officer Akaavi Spar. “So I told them, if you aren’t going to buy anything, then get out of Lucas’s before people start staring at your nude body.” Akaavi stated plain and simply as Prin and Corso just listened in shock at the bizarre story. “Alright then, Miss Spar. Well, hopefully no more naturalists will show up around here then.” Corso said in a detached tone.

An hour later, the duo were back at work, ringing up customers and keeping the store running. Prin was in the backroom organizing the new parts shipment when he heard a familiar growling noise. “Oh, hey Bow! Hang on, I’ll be out in a second!”

Prin emerged to find his best customer and part-time employee, Bowdaar the Wookiee, awaiting him at the front of the store. “What can I get you today?” As usual for a Wookiee, Bowdaar couldn’t speak Basic, but he found ways to work around this. In this case, handing a datapad to Prin with the item he needed displayed on-screen. “OK, you need a few new microvalves. What happened to the old ones?” He asked (Bowdaar was working on a project involving several older junkers).

Bow responded in Wookieespeak, which the datapad translated as “They got ruined.” “Well, thankfully these are so cheap. They’re over in aisle 4.” As Bowdaar walked off into the corner of the store, Corso came running in, a panicked look on his face. “I just saw Skavak’s beat-up speeder arrive in the parking lot.” Corso reported.

Prin’s eyes widened before he rushed to the silent alarm button. But before he could do so, Skavak himself strolled in, a sneer on his strangely-tattooed face. “Hello, you two. Don’t even think of setting off the alarm, I’ll be long gone. And you have your emergency blasters in the backroom, and of course I won’t let you get them.” He informed them, well aware of his usual robbery routine.

Corso and Prin both scowled. “Man, why can’t you either buy parts legitimately like everyone else, or go rob another store, like the Empire 1 Imports?!” Corso questioned.

“Because it’s fun and easy to rob you blind over and over again. For instance, I know exactly how to open the register without activating the anti-theft shock system.” Skavak said smugly. He promptly headed for the register and fiddled around with it; a few seconds later, the cash drawer sprung open and he promptly began rummaging through it for large-denomination coins and bills.

“Corso, make sure he can’t see Bowdaar, I have an idea.” Prin whispered. Corso scurried off to block Bowdaar from Skavak’s view. “So how’s your attempt to climb the underworld ladder going?” Prin asked Skavak as a way of buying time.

Fortunately, Skavak was more than happy to oblige. “Oh, just great. I’m now officially an agent of the local gang. I’m working for a very influential figure in the crime world. And he is in turn working for the most powerful boss around, the Voidwolf. I’m moving up in the world. But I’m still going to take time out of my busy schedule to torment you and your little lackey.” Skavak gloated.

“Speaking of, where did Riggs run off to anyway?” Skavak realized. He looked around, but just then, the security shutters slammed down! “What the?!” Skavak whirled back to Prin, who was smirking. “Yeah, you see I knew you couldn’t resist rambling on about how great you are, and we do have securicams now. So I had Corso head into the back to activate the shutters, call security, and get the recording of you explaining who you’re working for.” Prin summed up.

“I swear, I will strangle the life out of… you….” Skavak trailed off as Bowdaar emerged to stand behind Prin, glowering at the overconfident thief. “And another thing, Skavak. You had to time your robbery attempt when my best customer was in the store.” Bowdaar promptly clobbered Skavak on the head, causing the criminal to crumple to the floor, dropping his gun. Corso then ran out from the back. “Good work, boss.”

A few minutes later, Akaavi and a couple of police officers were there, questioning Prin and Corso and taking the unconscious Skavak into custody. The mall manager, Ms. Dodonna, was also there. “Thank the Force you three were able to stop this annoyance.” She told Prin and the others. “Yeah, we were hoping he’d try to rob us again now that we had securicams. I knew that he would overconfidently gloat and expose more of his crimes. It was a good thing that Bowdaar was there too-- prevented a possible shootout. That would’ve been messy.” Prin explained.

Dodonna smiled, and walked off to complete some police paperwork. Nearby, Akaavi was talking with Risha, who had, like many other mall workers, emerged from her store to see what the commotion was. “Prindrohi is an honorable sort, much like you, Miss Drayen.” Akaavi said. Risha smirked. “I always knew he was a good improviser, I just didn’t know it could go that far. He’s earned a little bit of my respect.”

“And if my instincts are correct, Prindrohi is nursing affection for you. He believes that you’re too unapproachable based on your social status.” Akaavi said casually. “Well, I look upper-crust, but I haven’t been that rich for some time. I do have a plan in mind. And based on his skills, I think I can enlist Prindrohi for assistance.” Risha whispered. “But what about his feelings?” At that, Risha’s expression grew neutral. “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

Prin, meanwhile, was finishing up the last of the paperwork regarding the Skavak incident. “Well, c’mon Corso, we gotta get back to the store, looks like we got a few new customers.”, as there were now quite a few patrons interested in what had transpired. It was just another day in the life of Boundless Starparts.

#swtor #smuggler #fanfic #au #im a retail geek #so this came naturally #thank you greyias

1 note · View note

depizan · 7 years ago

Text

I’m not sure this doesn’t have some wild tone swing issues, but, eh, I’m tired of poking at it. Have another ficlet post Kyrian’s rescue. Though this one ended up kind of long.

(Oh, yes, and note for mentions of healed hand injury.)

Kyrian nearly cleared the targets before letting Corso into the hold, but the prospect of explaining – or trying to explain – why had stopped him and the results of the afternoon’s practice remained. His accuracy wasn’t that great by Imperial Intelligence standards, but it was passable. Even good, at least for the bit of time between when he adjusted to the unfamiliar blaster and his hand had started to hurt.

He couldn’t decide if he should have been relieved or disappointed.

“Feels good, don’t it!” Corso clapped him cheerfully on the shoulder. “Hey, next time we’re planetside, we gotta get you a blaster. Don’t mind lending you Sparky, but a man should have his own, you know. Somethin’ right for you.”

Kyrian nodded. He would have to figure out how to fight with his damaged hand as well. He’d put both off for too long already. It wasn’t fair to Jezari, or to the rest of the crew.

“Thought about what you want?” Corso bent to unclamp the nearest target. “A pistol? A rifle? What was that you had? Imperial model? Man, you shoot like this now, you must’ve been amazing.” His face froze. “You’ll be again soon! Just gotta have practice, and the right blaster. Back to normal in no time. Be nice to have somebody to practice with. Nothin’ like a little friendly competition.” His smile looked like it hurt.

“You don’t practice with Risha?”

“Uh, well, yeah. But, uh… more competition and…stuff.”

Kyrian released the magnetic clamp on the next target. The effort did nothing for his aching hand. “Where do you store these?”

“Crate in the corner.” Corso waved at a large crate shoved up against the back wall of the hold. “The Captain thinks people might get the wrong idea if they saw ‘em.”

“I can imagine.” The target was just heavy and awkward enough he had to use both hands to carry it. I should have quit after the first twinge. Continuing had proven nothing, except his own foolishness.

“I bet Risha could get ahold of a rifle like you had. She’s got all kinds of connections. Course if you want a pistol, the ALT-25 is about the best there is. Like Torchy. Has a stiffer trigger, though. Something like Sparky there might be better. Or the SoroSuub line for diplomats. But you probably want somethin’ bigger.”

Kyrian leaned on the crate. The target seemed heavier than when he’d first picked it up, as if his strength had drained away while he was carrying it across the hold. It was the stale air, probably. Or his recent lack of exercise.

“Captain’s got a pair of M-300s. I know she’d let you try ‘em. Bet even Risha’d let you give her rifle a try. Custom made job she picked up somewhere, but that don’t mean you can’t get one. The Galactic Arms Annual has some great reviews and rankings. Bet we could find just what you- ”

“I’ll think about it.” The words came out sharper than he’d intended. “I’m sorry, Corso. My hand hurts and…” He didn’t want to think about it. He didn’t want to think about any of it.

“Oh, hey, I can clean this up. You leave that.” Corso waved at the target. “Go take something. ‘N don’t worry. It’ll get better.”

“Right.” Kyrian forced a smile. “Thank you.” He escaped into the corridor.

The air seemed clearer, less stifling than in the cargo bay. That was impossible, of course; the entire ship used the same air circulating system. He longed irrationally for a meadow, a park, sunlight, fresh air. Even with Kaliyo’s constant need for attention, he didn’t remember feeling so confined on the X-70.

Then again, he hadn’t spent most of his time in his cabin then. Much less a cabin little larger than that ship’s ‘fresher.

What am I doing? Corso was right. He could shoot just fine, be an active member of the crew. Nothing had really changed.

I expect too much. There were no miracles, no easy answers. It was long past time he accepted that.

He found himself in the auxiliary cargo bay more by process of elimination than design. He hadn’t wanted to face his tiny cabin, or more of Corso’s enthusiasm for assorted weaponry. Or perhaps he’d hoped to find Bowdaar there. The Wookiee was good company, even if Kyrian still didn’t understand enough Shyriiwook to properly talk with him.

The small exercise area was unoccupied, the room quiet except for the distant hum of the Luck’s hyperdrive. He’d meant to ask where they were going at lunch – or was it breakfast? – but he’d forgotten. Another job, he supposed. Some illicit good to be transported from one neutral planet to another. They’d been avoiding the Republic nearly as thoroughly as the Empire, for much the same reason.

Fine addition to the crew I am.

Empty shelving ran along three of the irregularly shaped room’s walls. A stack of assorted shipping crates and pallets stood in the corner opposite the exercise area, reaching roughly halfway to the ceiling. The pile was strapped securely to the wall, preventing it from shifting if the gravity emulators failed. The top was perhaps half a meter above Kyrian’s head.

He scrambled awkwardly up the pile, using his right elbow instead of his hand for leverage. There was more than enough room on top to lie down. It was dusty, but peaceful. He was being ridiculous, of course. His own bunk was more comfortable, and just as quiet. He had no more privacy there than he would have had in his own cabin.

The ceiling was a dull gray, faint darker outlines indicating where something had once been attached to it, and where he suspected a wall had been removed. A smear of rust or dried grease stained the ceiling at one corner of the vanished object.

He closed his eyes and imagined a sky above him, deep blue purpling to evening, or dark with roiling clouds, stained a sickly yellow with pollution, a clear and deceptively pretty blue above endless sands. None had held any more truth than the ceiling above him now. He’d made so many mistakes, so many poor choices, all because he was too stubborn, too arrogant to listen to anyone.

He missed the soft whiff of the door opening, but not the approaching footsteps. He sat up. His perch wasn’t tall enough for him to pass unnoticed.

Jezari looked up at him, eyebrows raised. “Can I come up?” She asked.

“I… Yes?”

She grabbed the taut retaining strap and climbed up beside him. “Yik.” She wiped her hands on her knees, leaving dusty smears. “So,” she looked at him, “I guess it didn’t go so good.”

“It? Oh. No, no, it went fine. Quite well, really.” He held up his hand, hoping the stiffness didn’t show. “I should even be of some use to you.”

“Is that what’s bothering you? Your hand? Being useful?”

“I’m sorry. I’ve been… I don’t know what I’ve been doing. I owe you so much, and all I’ve done is take advantage of-”

“Kyrian.” She gripped his shoulder. “Hey. You don’t owe me anything. Okay? Don’t worry about that.”

“I do owe you.”

“No, you don’t.” She shook him gently. “Seriously. You’re my friend. Nothing owed. Ever.”

He looked down at his hands. He’d folded them left over right, unconsciously protective. A bad habit he’d have to unlearn. Funny he still remembered the lessons of his training, when he’d practiced them so rarely. He laced his fingers together.

“You really don’t owe me. Kyrian? Hey.” She brushed his hair back from his face. “Talk to me.”

“I never seem to learn.” He absently rubbed the scar near the base of his thumb. “You saved my life. More than that. I should… I… I’m still not very good at facing reality.”

“What reality?”

He looked away. “Did I ever tell you I wanted to be an Imperial Intelligence agent? I thought it would be exciting – travel the galaxy, help people, stop evil plots.” He sighed. “I’d seen too many holothrillers. Dashing secret agent saves the galaxy. Even when I knew better, I still tried… wanted…” He shook his head. “I thought if I just kept trying, I could make everything right.”

She put an arm around him, her hand warm on his shoulder.

“I never learned to focus on the mission. On what mattered. I still haven’t. I still find myself wanting to ask the wrong questions. I’m not sure I’ll be of any more use to you than I was to Keeper.”

“Oh.”

“I’m sorry. I… I know I’d make the same decisions. I’m not defending the Empire. Or Intelligence. I just…” …haven’t learned.

“What are the wrong questions?”

“Ah. Who are we working for? What are we transporting? What happens if customs discovers it?”

“Yeah, those aren’t really…” She scratched at the dust on one knee. “Well… Hutts are lousy, but it’s hard to avoid them. The rest of the crime syndicates aren’t any better. I won’t haul slaves. Or anything alive. I mostly don’t haul spice. I’ve outflown customs ships. Left a few inspectors stuffed in closets. Not recently. We probably won’t run into them.”

He looked at her.

“I mean, it’s different when I’m running blockades and stuff. But we’ve been sticking to the safe jobs. Nobody’s going to get that excited about some Corellian brandy or ‘rancor’ ribs.”

“And when we take unsafe jobs?”

“I’m hoping you’ll help pick them.”

“My judgement is somewhat questionable,” he reminded her. “I don’t know that much about smuggling.”

“You know what you want to do.”

“Yes.” He wasn’t sure how much overlap there was. Blockade running, perhaps. Planets unwillingly under Imperial control. He swallowed. Perhaps not yet.

“You okay?”

“Yes.” He tried to will the tension away. “I would prefer to avoid the Empire.”

“Nobody’s gonna argue that.” Jezari bit her lip. “You know, the SIS does some internal stuff. It’s not all tangling with the Empire. I don’t know how you feel about the Republic…”

He’d never asked exactly what her relationship with the SIS was. They trusted her with missions, paid her for her efforts – reasonably well, as far as he could tell. But she wasn’t an SIS agent. He wasn’t sure she was even a Republic citizen; there was more than a little of Hutt Space in her speech.

Yet they hired her – and her crew – as if she were an agent.

It was a terrible idea. Even considering it was absurd. He’d never spent time in the Republic, never been briefed on the sort of specifics he would have needed for a mission there. The SIS surely had a file on him. Likely with nearly as much detail as Imperial Intelligence’s.

“Wouldn’t I make that a risk?” He asked at last.

“I wasn’t planning on telling them. They’ve never asked about my crew. They’ve never really asked about me.” She shrugged. “I mean, it’d be riskier than what we’ve been doing. The gangs and syndicates can get nasty. And some of ‘em are probably supplied by the Empire. But Risha keeps muttering about credits, and it wouldn’t be worse than taking better smuggling jobs. It’s up to you.”

His hand still ached. It would take months – at least – to relearn how to fight, especially if he wanted to avoid revealing that weakness. Assuming that was possible. Any lengthy firefight, piloting certain types of speeders, even something as simple as climbing would hurt. It was sensible to make the safest choices, to avoid anything that might rely on him for some time to come.

“I haven’t learned a thing.”

“Pff,” Jezari said. “You’re doing fine. Come on, let’s see what they’ve got for us.”

#i write #Kyrian Nessar #Jezari Solarin #hand injury or mention there of #still #probably forever #good going Mac

11 notes · View notes

queen-scribbles · 7 years ago

Text

Change of Plans

Quick word of warning, this is almost 9k words, so.. know what you’re getting yourself into xD Silver more than made up for not talking to me for a while.

Silver had grown accustomed to many thing in her lifetime. Making her own ship repairs, always being on the move, dealing with scummy contacts, making plans on the fly and altering them even more on the fly. She could spin crap deals into something at least decent, choke down--or enjoy--any number of local delicacies, and suppress her gag reflex with the best of them. Usually.

Today, wading thigh deep through Hutta swamps, was not part of usually.

“I hate this planet,” she groused, forcefully quelling the urge to throw up. “It smells like the south end of a sweaty rancor.”

“It ain’t my favorite either, Sil,” Corso said sympathetically. “And do I wanna know how you know what the south end of a rancor smells like?”

“No, no you don’t.” She waved away a cloud of insects. “How much further?”

He stopped, pulled out a small datapad, and checked. “Just about a dozen yards in that direction.” He pointed the same way they’d been traveling and flashed her an encouraging smile. “We’re almost there.”

“Yeah, but then after the meet up we hafta go back.” As if to further emphasize her point, Silver smacked at something that was biting her neck. “And apparently, the local wildlife isn’t aware that you’re the only one allowed to nibble on me.”

Corso made a sound halfway between a laugh and choking. “How rude of them.”

“I know, right?” She slapped another one on her cheek as they resumed course. “Dammit, what’s got Baz so paranoid? We’ve never had to meet this far off the beaten path-kriffin’ hell!”

The toe of her boot caught on something under water and Silver pitched forward, drenching herself in sour smelling swamp ooze.

“Sil!” Corso hurried toward the spot, but she’d resurfaced by the time he reached her. He grabbed her arm and helped her regain her balance instead. “You alright, gorgeous?”

“Alright, yes. Gorgeous, I don’t think so,” Silver said darkly. “I’m gonna kill Baz.” She ran her hands over her hair to squeeze out as much as she could and than shook it off into the swamp. She coughed, gasped for breath, and dug her fingers into Corso’s arm as she fought her gag reflex. “Hard to believe it was only a month ago we were at a swanky party gettin’ repeatedly thanked for savin’ Corellia and the Republic with it.”

“Does feel like it’s been longer’n that,” Corso agreed. “Prob’ly cause we jumped right back inta work. C’mon, let’s get this meeting over with so we can get back to Angel and I’ll help ya get cleaned up.”

Silver quirked a brow at him, wiping mud off her face. “Ya offerin’ to scrub my hard to reach spots, Riggs?”

He barely blushed. “Maybe a few that aren’t so hard to reach, too.”

“Deal. But first we see what Baz wants.”

>>.<<

The fidgety Mirialan waiting inside the long abandoned hut wrinkled her nose when Silver and Corso walked in. “Ewww, what happened to you?”

“You, Bazeryn Wilas, you happened to me,” Silver snapped back, half tempted to peel off her gloves and drop them on the rickety table for dramatic effect. But they were one of her favorite pairs, so if there was any hope they could be saved she wasn’t giving them up. “What is so kriffin’ important--not to mention secret--that the middle of a frangin’ swamp on Hutta of all places is the only acceptable location for a meet?”

Baz worried a loose stitch on her jacket cuff. “Can’t be too careful. Don’t want anyone t’ think I’m choosin’ sides.”

“Choosing sides?” Silver repeated, skeptical.

“Yer workin’ for the Pubs, ain’tcha?” Baz pointed out. “Gone legit. I don’t want anybody gettin’ the wrong idea about us meetin’.”

“While I see your point,” Silver said slowly. “I take offense at gone legit. My gripe with the Imps was personal. I just took Republic credits to finance it. Why pay for things myself if I can get one of the biggest governments in the galaxy to foot the bill instead?”

Behind her, Corso shifted position and she prayed none of his tells showed enough to give away how close she was walking the line between lie and truth.

“Okay, whatever,” Baz shrugged. “People talk’s all ‘m sayin’. I wanted t’ give ya a tip.”

“About?” Silver prompted. A trickle of swamp water ran down her spine and she fought the urge to wriggle.

“There’s a fella on Denon, needs help movin’ somethin’... sensitive,” Baz said, clearly choosing her words with care.

“Define sensitive,” Silver said, trying to be patient, but it was hard in her current state.

“Who says I know?” Baz retorted defensively.

“Oh, c’mon, Baz,” Silver groaned. It was like pulling teeth. “We worked together enough I know you don’t pass along a job without checkin’ it out first. You’re too careful, too worried a bad job’ll give you a bad rep. What’s so damn sensitive about this cargo?”

“It’s people,” Baz muttered reluctantly, sighing and crossing her arms.

Silver stiffened, eyes narrowing at the other woman. “Oh, hell no! You know I don’t do slaves, Wilas.”

“They’re not slaves!” Baz protested, head snapping up indignantly. “You know me better than that, Airen!”

It’s Riggs now... Even as the words floated through her head, Silver decided this was not the time to offer such a correction. “Well, if not slaves then who are they? I don’t wanna take part in spiritin’ away some serial killer who’s close to gettin’ caught either.”

“Would you listen-” Baz took a deep breath to calm herself. “It’s not slaves, an’ I’m pretty sure it’s not criminals, either. Like you said, I vet things. Couldn’t find much, but there haven’t been many major crimes on Denon recently, violent or otherwise. I think it’s just people tryin’ to get out of a bad situation under the radar. Kids runnin’ from bad parents or somethin’. But I don’t have any solid specifics. You want those you’ll have to contact the guy yourself and ask.”

“Fine,” Silver sighed. It couldn’t hurt to contact the guy. If it was too sketchy she didn’t have to say yes. Besides, she stank of swamp water and it was beginning to make her nauseous. “You know my holofrequency; send me the guy’s info and I’ll get in touch with him.”

Baz nodded. “Will do.”

“C’mon.” Silver tugged Corso’s arm so he’d follow her out of the hut. She waited until they were a good way clear before asking, “So, whaddya think?”

“Oh, there’s somethin’ sketchy about this, Captain,” Corso said, tossing a glance back at the hut. “I don’t think it’s a trap or anything like that, but my gut says there’s more to this than we’re hearin’.”

She nodded. “Knew there was a reason I married you.”

“I always thought it was my stunnin’ good looks an’ sense of humor,” he retorted, grinning.

“Well, them too. But I do love a man who’s perceptive. We can comm Baz’s contact and try to ferret out some more details after we get back to the ship and you make good on your offer.”

Corso chuckled and tweaked the end of her ponytail. “I like this plan, Captain Riggs.”

Silver grinned. “Thought you might.”

>>.<<

All told it took an hour and four uncompromising scrub downs to get the swamp stench off her skin, and another two washes beyond that to get it mostly out of her hair.

“Guess that’ll hafta do,” Silver sighed, sniffing at one of the long, skinny tendrils of wet hair as she untwisted the towel wrapped around her head. “I still smell Hutta.”

Corso laughed softly as he stepped up behind her. “Pretty sure you’re just bein’ paranoid.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and tugged her closer, taking a deep breath as her head came to rest against his chest. “All I smell is your shampoo. Considerin’ we used half the bottle just now, that’s no surprise.”

She tipped her head back against his shoulder to fix him with a skeptical look. “You’re just sayin’ that.”

“Have I ever lied to you?” he countered, kissing the top of her head.

Silver grinned, bringing her hands up to rest lightly against his arm. “No.”

“Why would I start now?”

“Good point.” She turned, still standing in his grasp, and Corso’s fingers slid into her hair as she wrapped her arms around his waist. “Yet another reason why I married you.”

“You have quite a list,” Corso teased.

“I have quite a man,” Silver countered. She rocked up on tiptoe to steal a kiss, one hand instinctively grabbing at the towel wrapped around her as the movement loosened it and it started to slip. “We need to get dressed.” She stole another kiss. “Much as I like you in just a towel, I think we should look a tad more... professional when we reach out to Baz’s contact.”

“Whatever you say, Captain,” Corso said with an impish smile. “Your wish is my command.”

Silver flashed an impish grin of her own. “Don’t tempt me.”

>>.<<

The contact info Baz sent was for an audio-only channel. That raised a few flags in Silver’s mind, but actually talking to the man assuaged her worries. Cagey as he was about the origins of the people who needed a “clandestine ride”, much as the charm in her voice reminded her of Darmas, her gut said go with it. Corso agreed. So they arranged to meet the man--Jay, he said they could call him--on Denon and hammer out exact details.

“Why all the secrecy?” Silver asked.

“For their safety, it’s vital they stay as far off the radar as possible,” Jay said. “We want the broken link to stay broken.” And with those cryptic words, he signed off.

“Well, that was an interesting conversation,” Silver said dryly, once the connection was dead.

“Sure was,” Corso agreed. “Not really much we can do ‘til we get there, though. I’m gonna fix up some dinner, you hungry?”

“Nah.” Silver shook her head. “Still nauseous from the swamp stench. Maybe some of that tea we picked up on Voss? I wanna look at the hyperdrive. It was makin’ weird noises our last few jumps, and I’d swear Risha said she’d look at it ‘fore she left, but it happened again comin’ to Hutta.”

“Maybe Angel hates this planet much as you do,” Corso teased, rubbing her back.

“They do say parents’ prejudieces can rub off on their kids,” Silver joked. “She’s the closest thing I got for now, so...”

Corso laughed, giving her a gentle push toward the hallway. “Go check on the baby, then.”

“Yes, dear,” she replied, snickering as she headed for the engine room.

>>.<<

Fortunately, the hyperdrive held up fine for the trip to Denon. The holo blinked as they landed, displaying the image of a man wearing a hooded jacket to obscure his face. It stayed just long enough for an obviously distorted voice to say “Come to these coordinates,” before flickering off.

“I’ll bet you twenty credits this is an SIS gig they’re outsourcing,” Silver commented as she guided the Corellian Angel to a near-perfect landing.

“Don’t say that too loud,” Corso said glibly. “‘Member this is an Imperial-aligned world.”

“Which supports my theory,” she shot back. “Aside from all the cloak-and-shiv nonsense, th’ SIS wouldn’t wanna draw attention to themselves. If we get caught with these people, whoever they are. there’s no tie back to the SIS. We’re just freelancers our ‘cargo’ contracted to get them from point A to point B.”

“I’m not plannin’ to get caught,” Corso said as he wriggled a holdout blaster down into his boot. They’d both agreed--just to be safe--that Torchy and Sparkles should stay on the ship.

“Oh, me neither, obviously,” Silver said as she powered down the Angel and grabbed Flashy to holster. “But I mean just in case. Would be just like a spy to make sure all their bases are covered like that.”

“Only one way to find out,” Corso shrugged. “Where are these coordinates he sent us?”

“Not far from the spaceport, actually, from the look of things,” she replied. “Guess gettin’ to their ride quick is more important than anything else.”

“Either that or whoever they’re runnin’ from doesn’t know they’re gone yet and they’re just coverin’ their tracks for when that happens.”

“Which means they’re someone who’ll be missed,” Silver mused as they headed down the boarding ramp. “Deserters, maybe?”

“I’m all for helpin’ Imps switch sides,” Corso muttered,”but we should prob’ly stow the theorizin’ for now, considerin’ where we are...”

“Good point. So. This world’s a socio-economic trade hub. Tourist talk it is.”

“You gonna let me buy you somethin’ nice this time?” Corso teased, resting an arm loosely around her shoulders.

“You try that on every planet, dear,” Silver shot back playfully. “It hasn’t worked since Calius for a reason. I’m all set on things that sparkle.”

His lips twitched toward a smile at the not-subtle play on words. “Well, then, I’ll just have to adjust my strategy, won’t I, Captain?”

Lightly bantering back and forth, they made it through customs easily, then headed for the coordinates. It turned out to be a mid-scale apartment building only a few blocks from the spaceport.

“I stand by my belief that they’re valuing speed above secrecy,” Silver said in a glib undertone as she and Corso stepped into the turbolift. She pressed the button for the second floor. “Gutsy move if ya ask me...”

The lift reached their desired floor and they found the apartment they were looking for. Silver pressed the comm button next to the keypad and waited, fingers hooked through her belt loops.

“Who is it?” crackled out of the speaker.

“I’m lookin’ for Jay,” Silver replied evasively.

There was a few seconds’ silence, and then a soft beep and whir as the door unlocked and slip open.

“Here goes nothin’,” she muttered.

“Really wish I had Torchy right ‘bout now,” Corso whispered, his fingers twitching restlessly.

“Ditto.” Silver strolled into the apartment with a healthy dose of false bravado.

The only ocupant in the front room was a man who looked roughly her age, with piercing blue eyes and tousled black hair. He had his arms crossed over his chest, his face schooled into a carefully neutral expression.

“You must be Jay,” Silver greeted him breezily. She darted a quick look around the room, noting possible cover--none--and exits--the door behind her and one behind Jay.

“And you must be the esteemed Captain Riggs.” Despite his guarded nature, the smile he flashed was warm enough.

“Or so I claim,” she baited. “I could be anyone, lookin’ for a sweet payoff.”

Jay shook his head, amusement creeping into his eyes. “You’re Riggs. Or is it still Airen? I’ve heard conflicting stories.”

Behind her, Corso shifted, sidling close enough he could swap their positions if things got dicey. “How’re you so sure that’s who she is?”

“Wanted posters, for one.” Jay held up a hand when both Silver and Corso stiffened. “Imperial wanted posters, Captain. Corellia made you a few enemies. But mostly it’s because we have a mutual friend. So I knew what you looked like. Didn’t mention how pretty you are, though.”

Silver snorted. “Save it, Slick. I’m not available.”

“I’m not allowed to compliment without an ulterior motive?” Jay needled good-naturedly. He turned to Corso. “You’re a lucky man.”

“Don’t I know it,” Corso returned coolly. “Whaddidja wanna see us for?”

As if on cue, the door behind Jay slid open and two figures stepped out. Both humans, a man and a woman, with brown hair and dark green eyes. Jay held up a hand, forestalling any comments they were about to make.

“I need you to get them out of here,” he said simply. “So far we’ve avoided Imperial notice, but I don’t see that lasting much longer. If we can do this right, the Empire won’t even know they were here and we can get them safely to the arms of the Republic.”

“And they are...?” Silver prompted, not reading anything beyond nerves from the green-eyed pair.

“Kel and Ezi Stantyn,” Jay replied, gesturing in succession to the man and woman as he introduced them. “Beyond that, all that’s important is the Empire not knowing they’re here. We’ll have to find a way to smuggle them onto your ship so there’s no record of you taking on passengers.”

Silver narrowed her eyes and took a shot. “Bet the SIS is good at that sorta thing, huh?”

Jay blinked, caught off guard for the barest fraction of a second, then smiled. “Heard you were good. Nice to know those reports weren’t biased or exaggerated. Whatever experience the SIS does or doesn’t have in this area, I’m guessing you have more.”

“Damn straight,” she grinned. She’d been right. “Fill me in on what we’re dealin’ with?”

>>.<<

Over the next hour or so, Jay ran them through all the measures and potential loopholes present in the spaceport security system. There were a lot of measures and not a lot of loopholes.

“Do they check delivery personnel?” Silver asked, studying the projected blueprint on the holotable.

“How d’ya mean?” Jay frowned, pursing his lips in thought and cocking his head.

“If, say, my husband an’ I found somethin’ we wanted t’ buy while bein’ all touristy, but it was too big to lug around with us while we browse, so we had it boxed and delivered to our ship. How close would they look at the delivery people? Would they let delivery people in, or is that a droid’s job here?”

“Droids handle deliveries here,” Jay confirmed. “But it was a good idea...” His eyes narrowed. “Although...” he pulled up a closer view of the departing checkpoint and skimmed the specs for the cargo scanner. “How do you feel about exotic pets, captain?”

“Depends on the pet,” Silver replied. “Why?”

>>.<<

A few hours and one winding jaunt through the most blatantly tourist trap parts of the city--which was enough fun to be worth the trip all on its own--Silver’s comlink chirped. She traded a knowing look with Corso and clicked it on. “Yes?”

“Just confirming delivery of your purchases to your ship, Captain Riggs,” a clipped voice reported. “I’d make sure they were secured nice and tight before you take off; one of them looked rather banged-up. Wouldn’t want anything getting loose while you’re traveling.”

“Thanks for the warning,” Silver said. “Long as I don’t return to a ship full of free-range gizka, I’m happy.”

“Very good, ma’am. I hope the rest of your visit is pleasant.” The comlink beeped as the other party signed off.

“That Jay’s idea of an Imperial accent?” Corso muttered, amusement in his eyes.

Silver lightly smacked his arm with the back of her hand. “It was pretty good, when ya take into account regional dialect an’ all. Maybe it ain’t pure Dromund Kaas, but it was good enough. We’ll mosey our way back to the apartment, see if he has any final words of wisdom, and then hotfoot it outta here.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Corso drawled, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. “An’ a better one than Jay had for gettin’ our, uh, cargo past the scanners.”

“Hey, I think usin’ the fact they don’t differentiate between life forms was kinda genius,” Silver said impishly. “All they scan for is drugs an’ toxins. Long as neither a’ them show up, security don’t care. An’ it’s not like we came up with anything better.”

“Still just a little too simple,” Corso muttered.

“Nah, long as they don’t have any reason to be suspicious about, they don’t do a full work-up. An’ we aren’t suspicious. We ain’t even the Corellian Angel, if they have that flagged. I used one of those alternate transponder codes Risha left me as a goodbye present. We’re the Silverhawk. Nothin’ flagged on that since we didn’t get caught on the silkworm job. Hopefully we pull this off without gettin’ tagged. I like the Silverhawk.”

“Wonder why...” he teased.

Silver rolled her eyes and was about to retort when she noticed a pair of men staring at her intently. “Uh, sweetheart, is it just my imagination, or are those two abnormally interested in me?”

Corso swiveled casually, hiding his glance behind them by pretending to laugh at something she’d said and pressing a kiss to her hair. “Y’ mean the two sittin’ at that last tapcafe we passed? It’s not your imagination.”

“Guess Jay’s not the only one who saw my wanted posters,” she muttered.

Corso swore under his breath, and settled his arm more protectivel around her. “Change of plans, Sil. We’re goin’ straight back to the ship.”

“No arguments here. I’ll comm Jay, let him know what’s goin’ on.”

“You trust him?” Corso asked, tone neutral--which meant he didn’t, at least not fully.

“He seems like a good guy, an’ Tel’s only had good things to say about the SIS agents he’s worked with.” She snorted softly. “All two of them.”

“Your brother works for Republic SpecForce, Sil. ‘Course he got along with ‘em.”

“It’s sweet that you’re worried, but I don’t think he ratted me out. ‘Sides, doesn’t make much sense to hire me for a job and then sicc bounty hunters on me.”

“True,” Corso admitted sheepishly. “I’m just extra paranoid about the charming ones thanks t’ Darmas.”

“Can’t blame you for that,” Silver said with a nod as they hurried toward the spaceport.

>>.<<

No one stopped them on their return to the ship, but Silver still didn’t waste any time firing up the Angel. It was a good thing, too. Even as the systems spun up to full readiness, she glimpsed one of the men from the tapcafe in urgent conversation with the guards at the hanger entrance.

“Sil.” Corso’s tone made it clear he’d noticed as well.

“I know.” She punched the intercom. “You have ten seconds to get strapped in, or you’re in for a ride!”

She vaguely heard Bowdaar roar something and Guss begin to protest, but blocked it out as she counted as measured a ten count as she could under the circumstances. The moment lights went green, they were moving, fast as Angel could handle.

It was a clean getaway; no officials or ruffled feathers to worry about, but Silver didn’t relax until they hit hyperspace.

“Okay,” she sighed, playing with her ponytail. “We’re good. Next stop, Kerkoidia.”

“Thought we were takin’ em to Naboo,” Corso frowned as he unfastened his harness and moved to lean against the back of her seat.

“We are, but I still need to refuel Angel. Didn’t have time on Denon.”

“We were there for hours, Sil,” Corso pointed out. “How wasn’t there time?”

“Several other ships wanted a refuel, hon. We were fifth on the list. That particular spaceport was small, and can only do one ship at a time, they don’t have a fuel line in every hanger like some of the places we’ve docked,” she explained. “So they hadn’t gotten to us yet. We’re still decent, just can’t get all the way to Naboo. So we hafta refuel somewhere, Kerkoidia’s on the way and Republic-aligned, so it seemed the best choice.”

“Sounds good to me,” Corso nodded. “Now that we’re safe, you wanna let our passengers move to more comfortable quarters?”

“Sure.” Silver punched on the autopilot and stood. “They can have Risha’s room.”

“‘Zat big enough for two people?” Corso said, frowning as he followed her out of the cockpit.

“They only gotta share for a week,” Silver shrugged. “Even if it’s cramped, I’m sure they can manage.”

“What was the deal with that take-off boss?” Guss asked as they passed each other in the corridor.

“Runnin’ from bounty hunters,” Silver said. “Apparently I’m a wanted woman in Imperial space.”

“Fun,” Guss muttered. “Might wanna check our new cargo, make sure nothin’ got busted.”

“That’s what we’re doin’ right now,” Silver nodded. “Why don’t you an’ Bowdaar start workin’ on dinner? We didn’t get much for lunch-” she heard Corso’s stomach grumble as if in agreement-- “an’ we’ll probably eat early.”

“Sure, boss.” Guss headed for the galley as Silver and Corso ducked into the cargo hold. Exactly as she’d been worried, one of the crates had shifted and cracked open during takeoff, and now something like a dozen gizka--slightly daazed--were wandering around the cargo hold.

“Ah, dammit,” Silver muttered, trying to herd the small creatures to a back corner. “Corso, close the door, quick, before any of ‘em get out.”

He obliged, scooping up a gizka as it tried to make a break for it. “Wow, these guys are kinda cute.”

“They’re also a huge pain in the neck,” Silver retorted. “But yeah, they’re pretty cute. Help me get the crates open. We can use the lids to make a barrier, and I’m sure our passengers would like to move to more comfortable quarters.”

Working together, it was easy enough to pry the lids off the two large crates. They tipped them slightly, both to make it easier for the human occupants to climb out and to shunt the gizka occupants behind the makeshift barrier.

“Sorry about... all this,” Silver said to Kel and Ezi once the two were out and standing with her and Corso. “The rough launch, an’ the gizka an’ everything.”

“No trouble,” Kel mumbled, and Ezi nodded her agreement, coddling a runty gizka in her arms as she scratched its ear nubs. The gizka cooed appreciately and looked happy, so Silver didn’t object.

“We can show you your room, and some of my crew are workin’ on dinner.”

Kel and Ezi nodded, gesturing that they would follow her.

Silver laid a hand on Corso’s arm. “Darling, why don’t you go make sure Guss hasn’t lit the galley on fire.”

“Right,” Corso said with a nod. “I’ll take care of that while you get them settled.”

They went their separate ways, Silver making very sure the door closed and locked behind them to contain the gizka before she led Kel and Ezi to their room.

>>.<<

The journey to Kerkoidia was uneventful--unless nausea from Guss’ cooking counted. (Silver had hoped having Bowdaar help him would improve things. It hadn’t. At least she was the only one to get it bad.) Kel and Ezi kept to themselves, spending most of their time in their room, along with the gizka, which Silver was pretty sure Ezi had adopted. Fine by her. One less to worry about. Nothing on the Angel broke or gave them any trouble, and--aside from one near-gizka breakout--Guss didn’t even screw anything up. Kerkoidia Control welcomed them without and holdup and acquiesced easily to Silver’s request for fuel.

“It’ll only take an hour or so to fuel up,” she explained to crew and passengers alike. “So not a lot of time for explorin’. But if you wanna go wander the hanger or spaceport for a change of scenery, go right ahead.”

Unsurprisingly, Guss took her up on it. Equally unsurprising, Kel and Ezi didn’t.

“Suit yourself,” Silver shrugged. “I’m gonna go see if they have any kinda gift shop with knick knacks I could send my brother. If you change your mind, just stay close enough we can find ya when its time to take off.’ She looked at Corso. “You wanna come, hon? Or d’ya feel more like stayin’ to help Bowdaar keep an eye on the ship?”

“Think I’ll stay this time, Sil. Still owe Torchy and Sergeant Boom Boom a good cleanin’.” He leaned in and gave her a quick kiss. “But you have fun.”

She winked. “I am good at that. See ya later, then.” She wasn’t expecting much; Kerkoidia was hardly a major tourist destination. But something little she could send Tel as a joke wasn’t too much to ask for. She hoped.

It wasn’t. While the spaceport’s equivalent of a gift shop was just a nook with one of the locals hawking holoframes with images of the Maldinian City skyline and durasteel or plastiform models of some of the buildings, the prices were cheap. It was good enough for her. After spending a few minutes perusing the wares, Silver selected an extremely gaudy plastiform miniature of the Retail Caucaus building(because what’s the point of a joke gift if you don’t go all out?), paid for it, and headed back to the ship.

As she made her way through the huge, sprawling complex toward her hanger, the first tendrils of unease tugged at the back of Silver’s mind. Something was off. She detoured through the spaceport’s business wing at the last second, and figured out why: she was being followed. The hard-eyed man she’d noted in passing as she left the gift kiosk was lounging against the wall, pretending to be on comms with someone, but clearly darting glances at her. It’s just one guy, I can lose a tail, Silver began to reassure herself as her fingers twitched toward her comlink and she kept walking. But then she noticed the zabrak pretending to scan for an arriving party, but whose eyes continually drifted back to Silver. And then the woman with burn scars on her face, who Silver realized had been loitering outside the hanger bank when she left. Oh, damn.

With three of them following her, this was not just a tail. This was an ambush waiting to happen. And since one of them, at least, knew where her hanger was, they knew this was a detour and had probably caught on that she was wary. Which meant one of two things was likely going to happen very shortly: if they were after her, they would corner her and finish the job, and if they were after something or someone else from her ship, they would fade back and hit the hanger before her crew could prepare.

She increased her pace and reached for her comlink. “Corso, we’ve got a problem...” When she glanced over her shoulder again, all three watchers were gone.

>>.<<

She could hear gunfire before she reached the hanger. Oh kriffin’ hell. Silver’s fingers curled around the hilt of her blaster and she wished in vain for her stealth field generator as she plastered herself against the wall and edged closer to the hanger entrance. Her scattergun would also have come in handy, but she’d left Sparky on the ship in case Corso had time to clean it after he finished with his guns. So it was just her and Sparkles as the ambush for the ambush.

She slid along the wall, fast but quiet, peeked around the corner-

-and nearly butted heads with the zabrak she’d seen earlier. There was a stunned millisecond before both scrambled to get in the first shoot. Silver whipped Sparkles in a hard arc against the zabrak’s temple and the mercenary crumbled. Not before getting off a shot that grazed Silver’s shoulder and blew any hope of sneaking up on the others.

Dammit. Silver hissed in pain and irritation as she brushed her fingers over the fresh welt. It hadn’t done much damage beyond singe the sleeve of her favorite shirt, but she’d been counting on the element of surprise.

A blaster bolt winged off the wall by her head and Silver swore as she dove behind a large duracrete planter. It was lousy cover but she could worry about that in a minute. For now she peeked cautiously between the spiny leaves of whatever was growing on the planter to get the lay of the land.

She could only see the man and woman she’d noticed earlier, no extra back-up, which was good. The level of tactical thinking and the two were showing was not. There were only three of them because they thought three was all they needed.

“Sil?” Corso hollered, voice breaking her reverie.

“Still alive!” she hollered back. She couldn’t get a good angle on either Hard Eyes or Burn Scars from here, and they knew it. Silver looked around for somewhere with decent cover and a better shot, but the nearest thing was a bench almost fifteen feet away. And with the way Hard Eyes kept glancing toward her current spot, even trying for that would be really stupid.

Fortunately, Silver had never been opposed to stupid plans. Hell, half the time she survived because of them, along with a healthy dose of dumb luck. Corso’s gonna yell at me for this, she acknowledged silently, shifting her grip on Sparkles and briefly resting the barrel against her forehead in salute to yet another genuine Silver Airen Stars, I Hope This Works idea. With a deep breath for nerve, she stuck Sparkles around the planter and started firing blindly toward the mercenaries. A couple shot in, she moved from behind the planter and ran like hell for the bench. She heard the snap-sizzle of blaster bolts narrowly missing her as she dropped and slid behind her new cover--which did have a good line of sight on the two mercenaries. They were forced to split their attention between the hanger and her. Hard Eyes swiveled to keep Silver pinned down, while Burn Scars kept firing on whoever was in the hanger; probably Corso and Akaavi.

This could last awhile... Silver thought grimly, popping up to fire off a couple shots at Hard Eyes. Especially since I don’t have most of my gear. She smelled burning hair after Hard Eyes’ return fire and winced. That had been too close for comfort. Clearly, time for another stupid idea. She checked her comlink to see if she could coordinate with her crew this time, but there was just static.

Huffing loose wisps of hair out of her face, Silver pulled the tiny, ancient holdout blaster out of her boot and stared at it. I really wish I didn’t have to do this... She pinned the barrel under her boot and bent it--which was difficult, but not nearly as difficult as she’d expected--before rapping it hard against the edge of the bench. Hope this works. Sorry, Dad. She peeked one last time to verify where the mercs were standing, pulled the holdout’s trigger, and threw it as hard as she could.

For a pair of heartbeats there was nothing. Then an explosion shredded the air and Silver instinctively covered her head. After a moment, she looked around the bench again. Hard Eyes was on the ground, bleeding profusely from all the shrapnel lodged in his head, neck, and shoulder. She couldn’t even tell if he was still alive. Burn Scars was slumped against the wall looking dazed, and Silver was pretty sure she could still see the zabrak’s boots lying prone in the same place as before.

Now or never. Gripping Sparkles tightly, she abandoned her spot behind the bench and charged full-tilt for the hanger entrance. Her path took her directly toward a durasteel crate Corso had probably been using for cover. Rather than skirt it, Silver planted one hand atop the crate and smoothly vaulted over it--

--which turned into a less than smooth landing as pain seared through both her chest and leg and the sharp crack of twn blaster bolts echoed from roughly where she’d left the zabrak.

So. Not unconscious, was all she could think as she hit the ground with a yelp and rolled, her head smacking the floor. She heard Corso swear even as his hand settled on her arm and dragged her into the safety of his cover. “Kriff,” she panted, wincing in pan as her hand curled against her side. “Frangin’ hell. Be a dear and finish them off for me, will ya?”

Corso peeked around the wall and snapped off a few shots, ducking back at the return fire. “They’re dug back in, Sil. An’ you don’t look good. We need to get you outta here.”

“Corso, they’re gonna tag my frangin’ ship!” Silver hissed. “They do that, the transponder codes won’t matter. I don’t want them comin’ after us again in a couple months cuz they think we still have whatever the kriffin’ hell they’re after!”

“What if we do?” he shot back, firing blindly around the corner. “What if they’re after you?”

She snorted and regretted it. Stars, it felt like her ribs were on fire. “Sure, Imp bounty hunters workin’ in Pub space. That’s a worthwhile risk.”

“I’ve seen the bounty on your head, sweetheart,” Corso drawled. “It absolutely is.”

“Oh.” Silver leaned her head back against the wall. “All the more reason to kill ‘em...” Talking hurt, and she let the words trail off.

“Sil?” Corso nudged her with his boot. “Sil.”

She barely found the energy to groan.

“Damn it!” There was the sound of rapid blaster fire, and then a yelp-thud from roughly where Silver remembered Burn Scars being. “Akaavi!” Corso hollered, his arms sliding around her shoulders and under her knees. “See if you can take care of the last one!”

Silver missed Akaavi’s reply, her head lolling against Corso’s shoulder as he picked her up and lit out for the Angel’s boarding ramp. Her head hurt. Hell, all of her hurt. She closed her eyes and held on to Corso’s shirt.

“Sil? Stay with me, darlin’.” Corso pressed a kiss to her forehead as the clank of his boots against the floor underscored his worried tone. “Almost there.”

“Mmm,” she managed as he paused to hit the controls that opened the medbay door. She could feel the vibrations of Angel warmed up and ready. “Make sure... Guss... did it right....”

“I will,” Corso promised as he settled her on the narrow medbay cot. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “Be right back.”

“Mmhm.” Silver forced her eyes open as he left the room, and groped for the emergency restraints on the bed. A whimper escaped when one of the straps rubbed the wound in her side, but that was better than landing on the floor when Corso took off. Hope we got enough fuel...

The vague sound of Akaavi yelling, “Go!” reached her, followed by the shift of Angel’s engines ratcheting up, and Silver finally let the darkness win.

>>.<<

The engines had settled into the steady background drone of hyperspace when she came to. The air smelled of kolto and singed flesh, causing her nose to instinctively wrinkle. “...Tell me that moof-milker’s worse off’n me.”

“That moof-milker’s worse off’n you,” Corso said obligingly. His voice was oozing with relief. “Welcome back, sweetheart. You’re not s’pposed to scare me like that, remember?”

“I seem to recall the opposite,” Silver countered, opening her eyes. “I promised to insure you never had a borin’ day again. Ikeep my promises.”

“Maybe in the future, find ways to keep ‘em that don’t involve nearly gettin’ yourself killed.”

She let out a shaky laugh. “No promises. What the frangin’ hell were they after, anyway?”

“Us, I suspect.” The quiet comment was underlaid by the hum of a diagnostic scanner.

Silver turned and saw Kel, brow drawn in a slight frown of concentration as he studied the scanner’s readout. He glanced up at her as he continued, his clipped, precise accent adding extra weight to his words. “The Empire doesn’t look kindly on deserters.”

Silver blinked at him, leveraging off Corso’s arm to try and sit up. “Either I hit my head a lot harder’n I thought, or you just said you’re Imp.”

“Former,” Kel corrected calmly, his accent noticeably less pronounced. “S- Ezi and I are defecting.”

“Doesn’t the military usually handle that? And why’re you takin’ care of me instead of Guss?”

“Only if you have some kind of valuable intel they want, and I volunteered to patch you up. I was my squad’s medic, so my knowledge in the field is slightly more extensive than your Mon Cal’s.”

“He didn’t mind, Sil,” Corso piped up. “Guss said he ain’t used to stuff bad as you got, anyway.”

“But I’m all patched up?” she probed, glancing between Corso and Kel. Her head still hurt, but everything else had faded to a dull ache.

“Sufficiently to make it to Naboo, yes,” Kel said with a nod. “But you should be more careful, Captain. And when we land you should see a doctor.You have good equipment here, but it does have its limits.”

“I’m sure I’m fine...” Silver grumbled under her breath.

“Sil. Just for a check, make sure there’s no surprises waitin’ for us down the road?” Corso said, tone cajoling.

“I’m fine.”

“That’s what you said after Darmas gave ya a concussion,” he countered.” An’ ya weren’t. Please? For me?”

“Oh, you fight dirty, Riggs,” she huffed.

He grinned and kissed her forehead. “Learned from the best.”

>>.<<

Since there wasn’t much else to do for the rest of the trip, Silver agreed to stay in bed and let Corso handle piloting--on the condition she got to hear Kel and Ezi’s story.

They obliged on the counter-condition she got the short version. Born to a moff, raised in the heart of the Empire, patriotic and loyal as could be wished. The first cracks hadn’t appeared until a couple years into Kel’s military service, when a woman who had gone through medical certification with him defected. “They simultaneously tried to cover it up and... investigate the loyalty of any who had worked with her. That’s when I began to question.”

Unbeknownst to Kel, his sister had started doubting at nearly the same time. “I wasn’t anything special; just general infantry, but even with that limited experience, things weren’t sitting right with me; orders we were given, orders we were told to ignore... it made me wonder.” Ezi shifted in her chair. “That first time we had coinciding leave.... it took us almost three days to admit something was bothering us. I finally couldn’t stand it anymore and dragged Av- Kel somewhere private to confess. Once we both came clean, it was a matter of figuring out how to leave without implicating or tipping off our parents.”

“It took almost a year,” Kel picked up, absently cracking his knuckles. “We were kind of stuck, and stumbled across Jon-” he winced. “Jay completely by accident.”

“You two ain’t good at the name thing, are ya?” Silver said with a smile.

“Why do you think we don’t talk much?” he replied wryly. “We’ve been Avrin and Saskia our whole lives. Do you think you could just start calling someone in your family by a different name after more than two decades? Kel and Ezi haven’t been to slip into, but we’re working on it.”

“You make a very good point,” Silver conceded, rubbing the general area of the synthskin patch on her thigh. The blaster burn underneath itched something awful. “I don’t think I could swap just like that. But movin’ on with your story?”

“There isn’t much more to it,” Ezi shrugged, tuckign her hair behind her ear. “Jay works for the Republic and has some underworld connections, at least on Denon. So he got us forged identification papers and covert transportation from Ziost to Denon, where we holed up until he found someone who could get us away from there.” She gestured toward Silver. “You came along and here we are.”

“And the bounty hunters came from where?” Silver hinted. “An’ how d’ya know they’re after you?”

“I peeked out,” Ezi said sheepishly, waving off her brother’s brewing protest even as he opened his mouth. “Once your crew was returning fire. I recognized the woman. They are--or were, rather--part of Krath’s Fangs, an elite mercenary company our father used as personal security. I don’t know how they found us, because we were positive no one knew we were on Denon.”

“However they found us, they’re dead now,” Kel said. “And we should let Captain Riggs rest, Ez.”

She nodded. “Sure. Thank you for getting us out, Captain. I’m sorry you’re paying such a price for it.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Silver assured her. “I’ve had worse days.” Not by much, but I have.

Ezi didn’t really look like she believed her, but didn’t argue the point, either, instead following Kel out of the medbay.

>>.<<

They arrived on Naboo on schedule and without any evidence they were being tracked or followed. Kel and Ezi thanked Silver “and really, your whole crew” profusely one last time before leaving to met the contact who was going to help them settle in, Ezi still carrying the gizka.

After the brother and sister were out of sight, Corso turned to Silver. “Alright, Captain, I believe you promised to go see a doctor when we landed.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Silver huffed, leaning against him to keep weight off her bad leg. “There’s gotta be a lot of doctors on Naboo, though; gonna take a while to find-”

“Here.” Corso grinned as he held out a datapad. “Took care of it while we were en route. You’re seein’ Dr. Stella Viks in an hour.”

Silver blinked as she took the datapad. “You-”

“-were expectin’ you to worm out of it, yes.” He was still grinning, damn him. He knew her entirely too well. “I worry about you, Sil, an’ wanna be sure you’re okay.”

“Well, I guess I can appreciate that,” she conceded with false reluctance. “Come with me?”

“Course.” He tugged gently on her ponytail. “Love ya.”

“Love you, to.”

>>.<<

Dr. Viks’ office was professional and neat--enough so to make Silver fidgety. She felt as if disturbing anything could quite possibly get her arrested or something. Irrational, yeah, but she couldn’t help it. It was a relief when her name was finally called and she headed back to one of the exam rooms, Corso firmly in tow. She wanted to say she wanted him there so when the doctor confirmed she was fine, it would be that much easier to rub in his face, but there was a nervous twist in her gut that belied the thought.

Dr. Viks was waiting when they reached the room. “Ms. Riggs?”

“Captain,” Silver corrected automatically, then winced apologetically. “Sorry, habit.”

“That’s alright,” Dr. Viks assured her, gesturing for them to take a seat. “There isn’t much here.” She set down the datapad she’d been reading. “If you prefer Captain, then Captain it is. What’s the reason for your visit today?”

“We got in a bit of a shootout with some no-goods who were after our cargo at our last stop, an’ my husband wanted me to get checked over by a doctor. Make sure the patchin’ up I got was good enough,” Silver explained, squeezing Corso’s hand.

“Smart man,” Dr. Viks said with a smile. “What injuries do you sustain in this shootout?” She turned on and started calibrating a fancy-looking scanner as she listened to Silver’s reply.

The redhead paused for a beat before reeling off, “They winged m’ shoulder, got me good in the side an’ leg, and I banged my head pretty hard when I hit the ground.”

“Noted,” Dr. Viks nodded, and began her examination, a combination of using the scanner and physically checking the injuries Silver had mentioned. “Whoever patched you up did a good job,” she commented. “They must’ve had some training.”

“Former army medic,” Silver said, biting her lip as the doctor’s fingers ran over the goose egg above her ear.

“That would explain it.” The scanner beeped and Dr. Viks examined the screen. “Alright. Everything looks fine... there are the injuries you mentioned, but they’re all healing nicely. The bump on your head is the extent of it; there’s no deeper issues there.”

“Then what’s with the feelin’ sick and losin’ her balance?” Corso asked. “I mean, there was a little after Hutta, but y’know, Hutta’ll do that to ya. It’s been worse the past couple days, so I thought for sure it had to do with the bump on her head.”

Silver huffed. You’re being overprotective again. “I told you that’s nothin’ hon. Hutta swamp water an’ Guss’ cookin’- what?”

Dr. Viks was looking at her in amused surpprise, gaze flicking to the scanner screen as she formed her next sentence. “You didn’t know you’re pregnant, Captain?”

Silver and Corso’s hands tightened on each other til their knuckles were white, Silver’s free hand instinctively pressed against her stomach. She blinked at the doctor, trying to process, to breathe.” I... did not. How... How far along...?”

“About ten weeks, from the look of things,” Dr. Viks replied. “This isn’t really my area of expertise. I can take care of some basics, since you’re here, but you really should find a doctor who specializes in obstetrics. I can give you some names on Naboo, if you like, or you can use the holonet to find one on your home planet, if you prefer.”

“We’ll do the latter, I guess,” Silver mumbled, still shellshocked in the best possible way. “But if you could tell us if it’s healthy....” I was pregnant on Corellia. The utter chaos of her war-zone exploits flashed through her mind and she very nearly panicked. “Make sure I haven’t screwed it up?”

Dr. Viks chuckled and nodded. “Of course.”

As the doctor adjusted settings on the scanner, Silver finally turned to look at Corso. His expression was mix of looking like someone had smacked him in the gut with a power prybar and pure, unbridled joy.

She cleared her throat. “So, I’m guessin’ this is okay with you?”

Corso opened his mouth and tried to start a sentence twice with no sound coming out before giving up. He cupped her face in both hands and kissed her soundly instead. When he finally pulled back to put the barest distance between them, he whispered hoarsely, “What do you think?”

Silver smiled and brushed his cheek with her thumb. “I think you’re gonna be a great dad. And if you smile any wider, you’re gonna rip your face in half.”

He chuckled as they both sat back. “Can’t have that.” He reached over and rested a hand on Silver’s belly. “Gotta be there for my kid.”

Once Dr. Viks had the scanner properly adjusted, it didn’t take long to confirm that the baby was perfectly fine--a minor miracle, far as Silver was concerned. “Do you want to know girl or boy?” Dr. Viks asked.

Silver looked at Corso, saw matching uncertainty in his eyes, and shook her head. “Not right now. We can’t unlearn it once we know, so we should prob’ly be sure first?”

“I understand completely,” Dr. Viks assured her, powering down the scanner. “Unless you have any more questions for me, I think we’re all done.”

“Nope, I’m good.” Silver slid her hand into Corso’s and gave it a squeeze. “’Sides, we have a lot to talk about. Thank you for all your help, Doctor.”

“It’s what I’m here for,” Dr. Viks said with a smile. “Congratulations.”

“Thanks,” Silver said, slightly dazed as reality started sinking in, but still unable to stop grinning.

>>.<<

They spent the entire trip back to the Angel in silence, and didn’t say a word until they were back in their cabin.

“So...” Silver began. “You’re really okay with this?”

“Hell, yes,” Corso said fervently, pulling her into a hug. “Sil, you know how bad I want kids.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t know if you wanted ‘em now or down the road a little,” she said, wrapping her arms around his waist.

He kissed the top of her head and moved them to sit on the edge of their bed. “I wanted ‘em when we got ‘em. Trust me, darlin’, I’m ecstatic. Is this... are you okay with this? You’re gonna be doin’ all the work.”

Silver laughed giddily. “Kriff, yeah. I love you, and any kids we have are gonna be so frangin’ awesome.” She paused for a second, rubbed one hand over her abdomen. “Guess I have to avoid runnin’ gun battles now, huh?”

“Yeah, I think it’s best to avoid shoot-outs of all kinds while pregnant,” Corso chuckled, kissing her forehead.

She grinned giddily again. “I’m pregnant. We’re gonna have a baby.” She gasped and shot to her feet. “I gotta call Tel! And my parents-” Her expression sobered. “D’you... wanna tell Rona? I know you two’re mendin’ fences...”

“Not sure if we’re there yet,” Corso admitted, squeezing her hand. “Go call your family, though. They’re gonna be so happy.”

She bent down for another kiss, her grin back when she straightened. “Tel getsta be an uncle. He’s gonna kriffin’ flip.” She paused on the way out of the room. “You can tell the rest of the crew while I tell him. If you want?”

Corso grinned as he stood. “Deal.”

That settled, Silver limped toward the cockpit to call her brother. Sure, this was going to change everything, but in the best way possible.

She couldn’t wait.

#queens fic #otp: space dorks #corso riggs #silver riggs #swtor #swtor fic

16 notes · View notes