MISERABLE WOE, PART IV
--Tatooine--
It was well past midnight.
The palace of the late Jabba the Hutt was asleep. The only illumination provided was from the three moons that shone in the night sky above, peeking through the small square opening in the ceiling.
Galus Freetaa had long since fallen asleep, burried within his cotton-made throne. The rest of the chamber had been all but deserted; unlike Jabba before him, Galus never allowed anyone besides his harem and security to be within his vicinity while he slept, unless it was Nasoth sent to wake him.
As such, no one was there to bear witness as one of the many slave girls that pampered Galus slowly rose from where she laid. After checking to make sure the Twi'lek and the rest of his female companions were still asleep, the Falleen woman dashed silently out of the throne room.
Like a shadow in the night she moved through the palace, going completely unnoticed by the Gamorrean guards stationed throughout the building. She eventually reached a spiraling stairway and quickly descended it, ending up in a small, unlit chamber.
Feeling around in the darkness, her hand soon feel over a panel and she pressed it. Before her a screen lit up and she entered the required code into the console. Within a moment, the holoprojector activated and the fuzzy blue image of a hooded figure appeared.
"Xena," the garbled voice of her contact said. "I was beginning to worry you had forgotten our deal."
"My apologies," the Falleen said. "I did not have the chance to contact you sooner. The totem is en route to Anchorhead."
"Very good. It would appear our sources were wrong about the Bestine location. Thank you for your assistance."
"Of course," Xena said. "So... about our deal."
"Galus will be dealt with shortly."
"Good. I look forward to it."
With that, the communication ended and Xena blew out her breath. Finally, things were looking up for her. Soon, she would be freed from the shackles of this Xrggur-forsaken palace and be able to live her life once again.
She turned around to leave the chamber... only to be grabbed from behind by a pair of mechanical arms. She opened her mouth to cry out but a cold, metal hand fell over it, preventing her from uttering a sound.
"Shush, child," a mechanical, vaguely feminine voice whispered into her ear. "You must be enlightened."
Xena heard the buzz of a saw and then everything went black.
* * *
It was well past midnight by the time the sandcrawler rolled into Anchorhead. The town was more or less asleep, with only a few establishments still open. Trek parked the sandcrawler in front of one of these places: a warehouse marked by the sign "Petro's Parts".
"Well, I guess this is where we part ways," Trek said as he got out of his pilot seat. "It's been nice catching up with you, Merlok. Hopefully you can find your true calling in life."
Salvan Tai did not reply and stood in place for a long moment. Just as Trek was about to head into the back of the sandcrawler, Salvan turned around and called out to the Jawa.
"Where are the other Exiles? What are they doing?"
Trek stopped and turned to look at him. "Why do you want to know?"
"Curiosity," the Sakiyan said.
Trek continued to stare at him before saying, "Well, Zerev and Xilus are both professors at the University of New Alderaan. Dah-lurga is a wrestler on Kooda, with Partem Durus as his coach, and I think I heard Janus is an announcer for swoop races on Corulag."
"So... they're all living normal lives."
"Yeah, I know. Shocking, isn't it? People living uneventful, unadventurous lives, without having to face danger every five minutes. Unfathomable."
Salvan glared at the Jawa. "You think I like living life on the edge? You don't think I miss relaxing at my estate on Lianna?"
Trek shrugged. "You tell me. When I found you, you had been abandoned by pirates. That pretty much tells me everything I need to know."
Salvan opened his mouth to retort but the Jawa was already walking away. Seeing it futile to press the point further, the Sakiyan decided to simply take his leave and find out what sort of life awaited him outside.
* * *
It was well past midnight. The clients had still yet to arrive.
Valrisa's fingers tapped against the tabletop. Next to her, Typha had already fallen asleep, either out of boredom or drunkenness. Across from her, Vasim calmly twiddled his thumbs, sporadically glancing at the chronometer on the wall. At the bar, Taod Dront hummed to himself as he wiped down the bar's sparkling clean countertop for the nth time.
It had been nearly three hours.
Valrisa didn't know how much longer she could wait.
Unable to bear the silence, she said to Vasim, "You told them where to meet us, yes?"
The Sluissi nodded. "Junix's Joint in Anchorhead was what I told them. I even gave them directions."
"Look, if they're not here within the next hour, then we're leaving."
Vasim frowned. "You can't leave until the deal's done, Valrisa. Otherwise you don't get your pay."
"I can always find payment somewhere else. The Hutts have recently put up a number of bounties."
"It is not wise to upset Malvis--"
He was cut off by the sudden appearance of two hooded beings. The pair entered the cantina and walked straight towards Vasim's booth, undeterred by the defensive stance Omni was assuming.
Straightening, Vasim eyed the mysterious pair. "Are you Lahn Vos and Teka Yot?"
Valrisa saw through the first hooded man's lie before he had even spoken: "Yes. Do you have the totem?"
"What totem?" Vasim asked, feigning ignorance.
The second figure, much larger than the first, growled as he pushed past his companion. "The Eye of Kaas. Do you have it?"
"I don't recall ever stating--"
The snap-hiss of a lightsaber activating silenced the Sluissi. He stared wide-eyed at the scarlet blade as it hovered before his neck.
"Now, now, Lahn," the shorter man said. "There is no need for aggressive negotiations--"
"Oh, it's much too late for that." Vasim reached into his vest and, without warning, Omni threw himself at the two figures. He threw a metal fist into the larger one's face, sending him reeling back and knocking the lightsaber loose in his hand. Delivering a swift kick to the brute's arm, Omni sent the weapon flying across the room.
By this point, Valrisa and the recently woken Typha were already out of the booth, blasters drawn.
"Let me handle the big one," Typha whispered.
"I thought you liked them small," Valrisa replied.
The blue girl shook her head. "Not when I'm looking for a challenge. Besides, the other one's still got his lightsaber."
Valrisa glanced at the shorter being, who had since pulled back their hood to reveal the chalk-colored face of a Nagai. In his hand was indeed a lightsaber.
"Right," she muttered. "Just my specialty."
* * *
Nasoth Alarin stood in the entrance to the throne room, his lanky form silhouetted by the moonlight. In his line of sight was Galus Freetaa, blissfully asleep, as was his harem, which seemed to be missing a member.
A shame, he thought. He had come to grow fond of each and every one of Galus' court. They deserved far better than this. Thankfully, they would soon receive better.
Nasoth quietly descended the stairs into the chamber. In his hand he carried an object often used by humans and near-humans, particularly females. It was widely known as "lipstick". As a member of a species without lips, Nasoth had no use for the device. But he did need it in order to accomplish this one task.
Approaching Galus' throne, he carefully stepped over to one of the slave girls-- a human woman of Nubian descent. Leaning over her, he began to apply the lipstick to her face, causing her eyes to fly open.
"Please, don't--"
"I'm not going to hurt you," Nasoth assured her. "Trust me."
He knew she didn't, but she made no further attempts at resistance as he finished applying the lipstick. Once he was done, he stepped away from her and inclined his head towards Galus.
"Kiss him."
She stared at him as if he had lost his mind. "What?"
"Kiss him," he calmly repeated.
The color flushing from her face, the woman reluctantly moved over to Galus' sleeping form and pressed her lips against his. This act stirred the Twi'lek awake and he laughed as he pulled away.
"Why, Meri! All you had to do was...."
He trailed off upon noticing Nasoth standing there. His hairless brows furrowing, Galus said, "Is there, uh, something you need, Nas?"
"Oh no," the Givin replied. "I'm just waiting for you to die."
Galus' eyes went wide and, as if on cue, the Twi'lek began to choke. In a matter of seconds, he was on the floor of the chamber, gurgling as froth formed in his mouth. Meri and the other slave girls all watched on in horror while Nasoth simply walked over to a hookah device attached to the throne.
"You reap what you sow," the Givin muttered as he pulled a switch hidden within the hookah pipe.
The floor which Galus squirmed upon suddenly vanished and the Twi'lek dropped into the pit of darkness below.
All was silent as Nasoth sealed the trap door. He then looked at the slave girls, who were all frozen in shock, and spread his arms.
"The deal has been fulfilled. You are all free."
With that, and without waiting for any sort of response, the Givin left the chamber. Just as they were no longer bound to Galus, neither was he.
Experiencing it first hand, he had to admit, freedom did indeed feel good.
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