The outer Rim Trail

The Outer Rim Trail

Issue I

Maven

After walking all night in the desert she wanted nothing more than to sit and rest her feet. Her soles screamed in agony, begging her to finally rest. The caked sand between her toes caused them to itch and burn. She longed for the opportunity to wash off the sand, sweat and blood that now lived in, and permeated from her. Pondering on her funk made her acutely aware of the wreck her body was in. Her stomach was vocally upset, while her abdomen cramped with needling pain that she stoically suffered through. She managed to slow her bleeding by wrapping her headpiece around her crotch and navigated any awkward questions about her missing headwear, but now her situation prevented her from sitting without creating a mess.  On top of everything else her chest was sore. She peered down at her breasts desperately trying to escape the restraints of her chest straps. Overnight they swelled to double their size. She awkwardly attempted to cover them with her cloak but the ill fit of her clothing became even more apparent as her cloak constantly fell off her chest. To no avail she repeatedly attempted to cover herself but her bulbous chest refused her applications. Her head began to pound maliciously. As her frustration began to build she could feel her head and nipples begin to pound rhythmically in unison.

She glanced up nervously to see if anyone had noticed her awkward gestures. She turned slowly towards the T3-N3 droid sitting next to her that she had affectionately nicknamed ‘Teeny’. Teeny had managed to find an exposed power coupling along the bay walls of the cargo pod they stowed their way onto. Seizing the opportunity the T3-N3 droid had began charging their surplus power cells and running system diagnostics. They had been assigned to carry precious cargo and now was going out of their way to take it seriously. Their computer beeped and booped while their internal cooling fan whirled and whizzed. Crouched next to them was Uncle Kabel. He was huddled next to Teeny for support. With his face covered in wraps it was difficult to tell if he was awake or not. He may have been meditating. Or he was possibly sick now. His sudden blindness was unexplained. It could be the beginning of some illness they knew nothing about. She quickly shut her eyes before the anxiety could build and swallow her. She turned away and saw Sisius staring at her from the corner of the cargo hold. Her face became flush at the realization and she instinctually averted her eyes from his. His stare had been a consistent bother as of late. Previously Sisius was more playful and lighthearted, whereas, lately he had become stern and serious. He had gone on so many rants about not trusting the empire it had become easy to ignore him. On the other hand, he almost never let her out of his sight.  She could hear him approaching her from behind. She felt his hand touch her shoulder gently but firmly. For a brief moment all the noise in her head cleared and she could hear Sisius soothing voice assure her,

“Everything will be fine. We’ll be at the Starport Gates soon. Be calm and make sure the boy isn’t hungry, Maven.”.

She instinctually put her hand on the head of the droid stationed next to her as he walked back to his corner. She began braiding her hair to keep her hands busy. Her eyes glazed over as she peered out the small sliver of an opening that pierced their train car. The dunes of the desert undulated endlessly into the distance to meet the blue sky that continued on into infinity.

As their train docked at the Starport Station they slowly snuck out of their car and made their way towards the starship terminals. Maven peeped upon fellow stowaways sneaking out the neighboring car. A pride of five merrcats scampered along the tracks. The largest cat precariously carried the smallest kitten in its mouth as 2 other kittens and another feline followed after them. Maven deduced that something had spooked even them to migrate off Jedha. Maybe Sisius’ suspicions were correct and their expedient departure was necessary after all.  Uncle Kabel urged them to head towards the maintenance hangars. Their Kabel’s friend, who presumably owed him a favor, would be expecting them, and be willing to help them board the next starship heading off planet. When they finally rendezvoused with Kabel’s friend he verbalized his unhappiness to see him. Maven could only retain every other word of Huttenese spoken between the two ‘friends’ as her headache had unceremoniously returned. The pounding in Maven’s head returned as her hunger persisted. She gathered a collection of words that she translated as something close to:

“Never again…” then “If they don’t kill you I will…” and “…saved your life…”

It dawned upon her that Kabel’s friend was intermittently taking opportunities to ogle at her. She discreetly checked her appearance. She managed to braid her hair into a ponytail that she tucked into her cape that she transformed into a cowl. She could see the fiery ends of her hair poking out defiantly past her right collarbone. To her horror and dismay it came her immediate attention that she had begun lactating. Her hair had positioned itself above her bosom and just below that a dark stain had begun pooling on her chest. She pulled her cloak around her tightly, straightened her posture and positioned herself behind Teeny. She pretended to not notice his looks as their conversation continued,

“She with you…” then “Never see you after this…”

After coming to an agreement Uncle Kabel and his friend made arrangements for the boarding of a subspace transport headed to Bracca. It was transporting goods, materials and workers to the salvage yards. Kabel’s friend coincidentally was also leaving and could manage to convince his superiors to add three new willing assistants, including a functioning Old Republic droid.

After they arrived in their cabin Maven hovered inconspicuously waiting patiently for everyone else to settle in. Once Sisius finally drifted off she gradually began to relax. Looking around the cabin she considered the prospect of finally laying down and resting her feet. As she made her approach to gingerly navigate her body into a position that resembled comfortable she heard a muffled meow coming from the other side of the cabin doors. She opened the doors to discover one of the merrcat kittens peering up wantonly.

Maven called out, “Where did you come from?”

 When she bent down to pet the kitten it swiftly ran off down the corridor hall. Innocently she followed after it - concerned for its safety. After a brief chase Maven discovered the kitten in the neighboring storage bay. She crossed the bay’s threshold just in time to see a large merrcat grab the kitten by the neck, with its mouth, and run into a dark corner. Before she could pursue them beeps emitting from a service droid caught her attention. To her delight she found the droid servicing a malfunctioning Bacta tank. She lit up in excitement. She couldn’t pass on the opportunity to quickly wash off. She expediently shooed away the service droid, rigged the circulating hose to spray water, and nimbly stripped out of her clothing. She flipped a switch and the tank began to whoo and hum. Maven looked around but saw no one. With urgency she began wiping herself clean, careful to remove any remaining blood from her crotch. While gingerly cleaning off her sternum she felt a tight grip suddenly clasp around her mouth. She suddenly felt a large embrace grab hold of her then tightly ensnare her.

“Don’t say anything. I don’t want to hurt you.”

They weren’t speaking Huttenese but Maven knew it was Uncle Kabel’s strange friend. She panicked. She didn’t take the time to wonder where he came from. She tried to violently shake herself free but the long sojourn had severely weakened her. Her knees began to weaken as the realization that she couldn’t escape sunk in. The shock turned to horror as she realized that her first chance to rest her feet, something she had looked forward to enjoying, would be under these horrible conditions, as a result of these circumstances. He forced her over the tank and began to apply his weight on her. She was pinned downed, incapable of moving. She began to weep uncontrollably as he greedily groped her chest and pried apart her thighs. Fear took a hold of her. Time stood still and all the noise in the room went silent. Inexplicably a curiously cool wind hit her from the back, as if a large object had suddenly approached them and stopped, before running them down. She heard the air catch fire above her head as a quick, sudden clap emitted throughout the room simultaneously. Maven forced herself free of the tank and turned to find Sisius holding a corpse with a new orifice in the center of its head. While concealing his weapon Sisius barked at her,

“The boy’s crying. Go feed him. Now!”

Without hesitation Maven grabbed her clothes, and ran out the cargo bay to their cabin. Once there she clutched tightly onto T3-N3. She dialed in the necessary code to open their storage carriage and revealed a small infant hidden inside. She pulled the crying child to her breast and began feeding it as Uncle Kabel sat quietly in the corner, eyes bandaged, looking in her direction. She hummed soothingly over the growling of her stomach as the small boy suckled off her milk greedily.

The Outer Limits Trail

Issue II

Teeny

A towering cascade of fallen starships lined the landscape like forgotten dominoes. An homage to an old war now lay as monumental heaps of metal blocking out most of the sky. While what may remain of the skyline was omitted by fumes spewing out from their war wounds. Inside the husk of these marooned warships scavengers worked tirelessly to extract their valuable remains. Countless hover rafts circled like vultures transporting various supplies, tools, and extracted Republic contraband from one station to another.  Most notably, amongst this graveyard, two Super Star Destroyers sat leaned against each other - their grand wings supporting the other’s from violently dropping to the floor. Their embrace formed a monumental cavern that had been transformed into a canopy of arching metal scaffolding, drapery, and trophies that branched off the remnants of the starships old, creaky bones. Intermittently transports zoom through the metal crevasse dropping off and moving goods. Sandwiched tenuously between two leaning towers was the sole remaining bridge of the two ships. The structure’s final resting place precariously bridged the space between the two vessels. The once war equipped battle station was now readapted to be a habitat for a few hundred, displaced refugee. After the conclusion of the Clone Wars, many civilians found themselves homeless after their respective planets mutated into individual cesspools of civil disputes and political war crimes. Now, the planet Bracca offered salvation for any willing persons able to work, most their days, in exchange for: low wages, food, and protection from a rogue group of scavengers, operating under the umbrella of the Crimson Dawn. This arrangement made for an ideal, temporary, layaway for five wayward souls escaping planet Jedha. One of these souls, a lone droid, sat perched in an exposed bulkhead arched atop the bridge of the cruiser. The discarded satellite that once sat, like a crown, above the station left the base of the utility hatch exposed. Nestled precariously inside sat a small T1 droid. It cantilevered alongside the exposed service station, held up by mag traction pads on the tread of their feet. The treacherous locale provided a secluded area of the ship that could be syphoned for power in private. Additionally, it gave them a unique perspective of the landscape.            

While replenishing their batteries’ reserves T3-N3, nicknamed Teeny, peered out through the canyon, taking stock of all the activity around them. They clocked all the model transports, their speeds, the materials being shipped, where they were being shipped to, and what for. While taking note of a concealed spice transport frigate, dawning a makeshift Imperial emblem on its exterior, Teeny spotted a feral pride of five merrkat scaling the sheer wall of the starship’s starboard hull. Teeny marked their slow progress towards a toppled turbine that exposed the cavernous bowels of the ship’s engine. The cats were forced into hiding to avoid the Jakobeast, and nighthunters, that roamed the territory during the deep cold of night. Teeny noted how skillfully the largest cat bounced down from one platform to another in order to assist the smaller, more timid, and unwilling kittens. Holding them in its mouth, by the back of their necks, the cat scaled up exposed wires, cords, and metal until reaching a safe ledge before repeating the process again and again until the whole set was collected. While viewing this spectacle the droid ran through its diagnostics and evaluated its current circumstance:

Designation: T3-N3  

- Current construct includes: 

            1) T1 Utility Droid Chassis [REPURPOSED]; 

            1) TI-99 Tactical Droid Intelligence [REPURPOSED]; 

            1) R5-T1 Astromech Undercarriage [REPURPOSED];

            2) Gonk Droid Power Cells [REPURPOSED]

-Current Operating Status

            T3 Operations @Opitimal Performance

            2) Power Cells Status - Charging @99.999% - Total

-Current Directive

            Tactical Intelligence [REPURPOSED]

            Prime Directive: 

            -Protect *Infant Youngling* 

            + all related necessities for survival including + limited to *Current Party*

-Current Party

            1) Self [DROID]

            2) Younglings [Siblings] 

                        1) Infant [Sustenance - Dependent] - Male

                        - Alias *Alokendra* aka (Aloken)

                        * Current Location - Nursery

                        1) Adolescent [Sustenance - Source] - Female

                        - Alias *Maven* aka (Mave)

                        * Current Location - Nursery

            2) Adults [Company]

                        1) Commander [CLONE] - Male

                        - Alias *Kabel* aka (Uncle Kabel)

                        * Current Location - Tundra Hunting Planes

                        1) General [Jedi] - Male

                        - Alias *Alysius* aka (Sisus)

                        * Current Location - Tundra Hunting Planes

            After completing their diagnostic assessment Teeny dismounted from the utility station and nimbly jettisoned onto the suspension platform below. A quick blast from their stabilizing jets provided a smooth landing. Teeny seamlessly transitioned into a tread roll along the suspension bridge. The droid quickly raced towards the nursery. They had allotted themselves only a short time to recharge. Now, there were only a few moments left before the infant, Aloken, was due to take its post feeding dormancy cycle. Before that the other youngling, Mave, would require additional caloric sustenance.  As they crossed the threshold of the nursery a jigged COO cooking droid suddenly rushed pass them. During the brief moment when the two droids may have clashed, Teeny quickly swerved, while simultaneously extending their utility pick, just in time to snag a small ration pellet off the droid’s serving plate, unseen. Teeny’s low profile, and dark finish allowed him to stealthily move around incognito. In order to ensure their Current Party’s survival Teeny occasionally rifled various supplies, unbeknownst to anyone else. Teeny tucked the ration into their undercarriage and wheeled themselves into their private camp. 

            Reclining in the corner of her tent Mave began wrapping up with her nursing rotation with Aloken. Teeny wheeled over to her and opened a hatch, in the front of his chassis, to reveal Aloken’s carriage. The moment Aloken was tucked in Teeny concealed them and safely sealed the child away. Then, with a quick swinging motion, Teeny revealed his utility claw holding a ration pod – as if in exchange. Simultaneously, a torch extended out from their utility claw, heating the ration, causing it to expand and swell. Mave grabbed the ration greedily and, through her salivating mouth, expressed her gratitude,

“Thank you, Teeny! Knew I could count on you. I saved most of today’s rations for when Uncle Kabel and Sisus return.”

Mave continued to wolf the entirety of her ration, ignoring Teeny as they hid themselves away in a quiet corner of their tent. While T3 – N3 initiated its standby mode their internal mechanics began a dormancy process that cooled, heated, and ventilated the space inside its carriage, all while continuously scanning Aloken’s biometrics. Their internal mechanisms cooed and hummed, serenading Aloken to sleep.

A short time later a loud commotion could be heard in the exterior corridor. Without warning a hunting party came crushing into the encampment, gear and all. With a frenzy Uncle Kabel and Sisus came rushing into their tent. Uncle Kabel - face still covered in bandages from a previous injury - blindly led a slumped over Sisus to a resting mat. Mave awoke as Sisus laid down and consequently groaned in pain. She immediately unveiled her interrogation to the pair.

“What happened to you out there? - What took so long? - Are you two okay? – Is Sisus badly hurt!?” 

Uncle Kabel carefully unfolded Sisus onto his mat. He began to gingerly unwrap Sisus’ boots while Mave concluded her interrogation.

            “What took you so long?, -I thought you said this would be an easy hunt? -Are you deaf as well as blind?

Uncle Kabel methodically maneuvered Sisus, turning him over onto his side and inspecting his back. He waited patiently for Mave to finish before answering.

            “We unfortunately got caught in a stampeding herd of JakoBeast. The nighthunters we were tracking must’ve spooked them into a frenzy, sending them our way. Sisus managed to corral them away, but a rogue Jako wasn’t having it. We were caught off guard. One unseen bull sent Sisus flying, with the Jakobeast in hot pursuit. Had us worried, but in all the commotion we lost sight of him. Once the smoke cleared we managed to find him, unconscious, next to a collapsed Jakobeast. Seems like Sisus subdued the beast, but at a cost. We quickly got him wrapped up, as best we could, and brought him back to the camp. Seems like he broke a few ribs and possibly fractured his ankle. He’s fine now - more or less. Whatever this trance he’s in has lowered his heart rate and breathing. Unfortunately, he won’t snap out of this meditative state he’s in. I have to hope it’s a instinctual response to the trauma. The best thing to do is dress his wounds and let nature take its course. We didn’t come back empty handed though. Not only did we catch the nighthunters we were after, but Sisus poached us a full grown, male Jakobeast. The black market bounty on their horns alone will garauntee us enough credits to barter subspace passage to the Rim.”

From just outside the encampment a loud commotion erupted. Men’s voices began sounding off from the exterior corridor. The remainder of the hunting party could be heard barking orders to each other from just outside the camp, seemingly in a frenzy. As suddenly as they began, loud screams were almost immediately muffled by frighteningly primal roars. An immense crash signaled the arrival of the hunting party to the encampment and its inhabitants. With the tables now turned the members of the hunt were now the hunted, and in a desperate attempt to escape began to clumsy run through tents, partitions, and other parts of the camp. Unceremoniously an impressive Maalraas crashed through the camp’s threshold, knocking down a pillar holding up the gate. As if on cue the habitants of the camp started screaming. Clueless campers, exiting their tents to investigate, were met by a heap of muscles, claws, and fangs. The collapse of the Gateway, along with the position the nighthunter stationed itself, caused the way out of the encampment to become a bottleneck. The only other way out the camp now hosted a crowd of potential prey. A few brave souls swallowed their fear and turned to defend themselves and their families. With clubs, steel rods, and other randomly brandished weapons the mob began fending itself from the fury of the nighthunter.

Amidst the kerfuffle Mave and Unle Kabel’s discussion was interrupted as their tent cover ripped open, uncovering their discord. Kabel’s immediate response was to cover Sisus, protecting his wounded comrade. The sight of their neighbors being shred to pieces put Mave into a state of shock. Instinctually she rushed out the collapsed tent toward the exit leading to the exterior corridor. As she rushed by the Malraas nashed its trap of teeth at the sweet smelling mold of flesh that was Mave. Serendipitously a sharp club met the side of the nighthunters face as it lunged to snack on Mave. It faltered back and fell as Mave narrowly made her escape. Out of shock, fear, and complete surprise at her luck she let out a shriek signaling her departure. The malraas turned to follow her lead, letting out its own harrowing shriek in response.

Taking stock of the events as they unfolded, Teeny undocked from their undercarriage, abandoning Aloken, and one battery cell –to power the carriage, in the secure nook they had occupied. Teeny swiftly wheeled themselves through the encampment’s now collapsed portal, easily squeezing through what remained of it.  Once they had entered the corridor Teeny spied the malraas in pursuit of Mave, hot on her heels. Teeny pushed their internal motor to its extreme to close the gap between themselves and the nighthunter. The intensity and stress of this three-way chase was in high contrast to the goings on inside the cavern of the two star destroyers. Workers continued to extract materials - transporting them to be repurposed - in and though the canyon. Mave finally reached the end of the corridor. Clinging to the guardrail she peered down the abyss of the gorge. She turned, her visage blanched, to face the terror of teeth and claws pursuing her. The moment the beast rose to strike Teeny jettisoned themselves - stabilizer rockets at full capacity - launching the entirety their small frame into the rear end of the malraas. The nighthunter belched a sharp yelp as it flew pass the railing of the exterior corridor, arching up and over Mave as she also plunged into the abyss of the canyon. On contact, Teeny began to transform. They simultaneously lifted both their legs up and out – like wings extending out their disc shaped head– then shot their tow cable towards Mave, hitting her in the chest. In an obvious state of desperation Mave briefly fumbled then, in a last-ditch effort, clutched the tow cable – clinging it to her chest with both hands. As the malraas fell to its death Teeny extended their service claw to salute the nighthunter a final farewell. During their freefall, Teeny began spinning their legs around the circumference of its head with their jets burning at full force from their feet. The centrifugal force created from the rotation of their jets allowed the droid to hover in place – momentarily. As the slack of the tow cable tightened Maves weight instantly began pulling Teeny down along with her. Teeny managed to keep them aloft shortly but the strain would eventually cause his last internal battery to fail. Peering through the valley of the canyon Teeny began pacing the trajectory of an incoming transport barge, flying their direction through the pass. Reflecting upon the merrkat’s he observed, scaling the star destroyer earlier that day, Teeny devised a plan. Turning both jets to their port managed to pull themselves and Mave to a space above where the transport would eventually be. Once there they began the hover cycle again, slowing their decent. With only moments to spare, before depleting their fuel cell, Teeny cut their jets - putting the two of them into freefall. In a panic, Mave let out a scream that was almost immediately cut off as she slammed into the bed of the transport. Teeny, just missing the landing, ricocheted off the side of the ship. Mave, still grasping onto the tow cable, put Teeny into a pendulum swing below the bow of the transport ship. Using the momentum of the swing, along with the last of their reserves, blasted themselves up and over the vessel’s side. Teeny came down with a bang, landing perfectly on their feet. Upon landing, a ceremonial melodic tune emitted from Teeny signaling the complete depletion of their battery, forcing them into sleep mode.

Mave crawled over to them. She raised her hand to warmly pat Teeny on the head and vowed,

“I owe you a lifetime of oil baths for that one, Teeny. Thank you!”  

The Outer Rim Trail

Issue III

Kabel

PRIME DAY, PRODUCTIVITY DAY, 0 BBY

0500

Productivity was easily the theme for the day - not only in spirit, but theory, practice, and reality. For the last week all of Bracca has been humming in preparation for today’s holiday. It seems as though the economy of the entire galaxy hinge on days like these now. Emperor Palpaltine - along with the rest of the Senate - has manifested a weeklong, galaxy wide celebration, dubbed ‘Productivity Day’. The circus of it all generates enough frenzy and pressure that people seem willing to forget their previous oppression, in the fear of missing out. We managed to pull a hefty bounty for the Malraas we caught during our last hunt. It turns out the female Nighthunter was pregnant! The prospect of a large litter of cubs increased the value of our poach. It’s unfortunate we lost the male but it explains his violent demeanor and outburst. After her near death encounter with the beast, and subsequent heroic rescue by TEENY, Mave has been keeping the droid close like a comfort blanket. They’re an odd pairing, but they do keep each other out of trouble. The two of them have even managed to become quite skillful at cooking during our sojourn. They’ll have plenty of practice to hone their skills during the next leg of our trip to the Rim. After our last hunt we have more Jakobeast meat than we can carry. On the way back from collecting our bounty I’ll swing by the market and trade for cooking supplies to jig onto the T3 droid.

1420

The force may be with us after all! Passage off planet has been secured. We negotiated a ride with a Zabrak Ranger, turned glorified smuggler - goes by the name of Rodn’a. He runs a transport ship through Braxant and the Veragi Trade Route systems.  He’s guaranteed us transport as far as Merj. There we can connect with our old friend - Chord. According to the Clone Nebulous Network (CNN) he’s now a merch dealing in exotic pelts and other black market novelties. Even he can’t resist a set of undamaged Jakobeast horns. This exchange should afford us passage to the Corporate Sector. Once we make it to the Cantonica System we’ll have loads of places to finally retire. Who knows, maybe we’ll make it to one of the moons of Mytus in time to celebrate our birthday.

2100

Dinner tonight was actually well prepared! Mave and TEENY put together quite a feast for us. Even our adopted Merkaats enjoyed their share of Jakobeast Stew. Sitting with the group filled us with an overwhelming sense of nostalgia. It was hard to not reminisce over our time together, brothers. Our 10th birthday was the last time I can remember enjoying a meal so wholeheartedly. We had just graduated from training. The Kaminoans had regaled the clones with an impressive buffet of food. Although the menu lacked variety we greedily filled our bellies with protein cakes. We’ll never forget the charge of electricity in the room when we stayed up past curfew to discuss our deployments. By that time the War had been raging for some time. We had all heard the rumors of the mighty Jedi’s prowess on the battlefield and could not wait to fight alongside our masters. Admittedly, it was a shock to learn of our station. As the rest of our brothers loaded up massive star cruisers, the four of us boarded a private cruiser with a short list of supplies and two appropriated T3 droids. Our ultimate destination - Jedha - was a small moon kept in order by Jedi dogma. Upon landing in the city of Jedha we were warmly received by the Sister of the Whils. The real shock of our circumstance came upon being introduced to our Jedi commander, Sisius. At the time Sisius couldn’t have been more than two years our senior. Little did we know how much in common we had with him. Here we were, four boys in grown men’s bodies, and there was Sisius - a grown man in a little boy’s body. He was still a bit juvenile then. Ordering us to our knees and then ceremoniously knighting us was unexpected yet somehow appropriate. We couldn’t help but be set a back when he ignited the saber. The glow of indigo embraced and consumed us. The almost purple glow surrounded us and bound us together. After that moment the five of us were the Knights of the Whils.

CENTAXDAY, PRODUCTIVITY DAY, 0 BBY

2111

Transport to Merj took most of the day. We should be tired but taking the reigns of this group has filled us with nervous energy. It doesn’t help that, since his accident with the Jakobeast, Sisius has been more distant than normal. He meditates through most the day and barely speaks, let alone eat. His wounds are healing but it will be a time before he’s back to tip-top shape. Unfortunately the state of his light saber is different matter. The conflict with the Jakobeast severely damaged the kaiber crystal housed in the saber, making it unstable. We managed to fashion it into a walking stick, making it easier to conceal and help his ankle heal. Any way to avoid attention from the Empire will save us from any unwanted conflicts. It’s unclear if the loss has affected him or if it’s something else. Regardless, his current state has made it clear that we’ll need to take command of the troop temporarily. Since we can’t count on Sisius to guide us with the force we’ll have to rely on the droid to guide us while we’re about, wearing our disguise. The bandages are an unfortunate necessity, but wearing a clones face would warrant unwanted attention. The kids are exhausted from the journey. We’ll put them to bed now then be on our way to meet with Chord - alone.

2350

We’ve paid for passage to the Corporate Sector. However, we may have paid more than we can afford. We went alone to avoid any more unsavory interactions with our clone brethren. Seemed like the best idea considering our last CNN contact on Jedha nearly raped Mave. It’s unfortunate but most of the surviving clones from the war seem irrevocable affected by trauma – including us.  Chord was no different. Paranoia has crippled his ability to function even on a basic level. He’s now arrested himself from participating with the rest of society and has forsaken any semblance of hygiene.  Negotiations were like pulling teeth. It wasn’t until we removed our bandages that Chord dropped his defensive demeanor. Seeing a familiar face must have been disarming enough to assuage him. The scars on our faces lead to a volley of war stories. Oddly enough the abrupt end of the war was as unclear to him as it has been for us. We’ve been under the impression that the Confederacy simply forfeited their endeavor; however, Chord insists that there was more to the story. The last incursion he participated in took place on Rakata Prime. Intel implied that the Confederacy was attempting to develop a weapon to track and destroy ships while in hyperspace. A small battalion was dispatched to patrol the Lehon territory when an unusual signal was discovered emanating from planet Rakata. Chord’s squad, along with their Jedi master, went to investigate. Upon entry the squad separated in an attempt to perform a pincer move on their mystery combatants. Unfortunately, defensive systems were activated during the approach of the outpost factory broadcasting the signal. Chord’s troops carrier was shot down but managed crash land on the factory platform.  Him and his troop were left for dead but somehow Chord survived. He limped his way to the rendezvous only to discover his battalion massacred. Here’s where things get suspicious. Chord insist that their Jedi master turned on their fellow clone troopers. The remains of his fallen brethren were marred with scorched marks that could only be administered by a light saber. Chord even shared a holo recording with us. On it was a projection of Emperor Palpaltine, face utterly mutilated, addressing the senate - stating that the Jedi were responsible for his current condition. That the Council had turned on him in an attempt to wrestle power over the senate and essentially enact a coup on The Republic. It made no sense. The Jedi have only ever wanted peace in the galaxy. Why make such a violent, uncoordinated attempt to take over. Chord persisted, as if fact, that the Jedi were not to be trusted. Chord asked of my account on how the war ended for us. Sadly our recollection of the war’s end was not quite as clear as his. Wanting to keep Sisius and the children’s presence a secret we quickly ended negotiations and retreated back to camp.

TAUNGSDAY, PRODUCTIVITY DAY, 0 BBY

0340

Change of plans. Sisius has finally awoken from his trance. He seems to have gotten over the hump and is on the way to a full recovery of his injuries. Enigmatically he’s called for an alteration in our trajectory. Admittedly, it’s a weight off our shoulders to be relieved of command, but now we’ll need to renegotiate for transportation to Dantooine. Our initial destination, in the Corporate Sector, is along an entirely different trade route. Sisius’ sudden change of mind has us uneasy. His anxiousness to travel to Edge Rim Space has us even more curious now than before. Chord warned us not to trust the Jedi after his mission in Edge Space. Why is Sisius so suddenly eager to venture back to a section of space so close to the Unknown Region. Especially considering our last eventful visit there.

We were on an unsanctioned mission to map the unknown region of the galaxy. The Jedi council was suspicious of actions taken by the Confederacy of Planets along the Rim’s edge. Thus the Knights of the Whills were entrusted to investigate. Our expedition was cut short, however, due to a hyperspace mishap. The covert spacecrafts we piloted were meant to slip through subspace radar scans undetected. The T3 droids we appropriated were modified and jigged with old astromechs to help navigate existing shipping routes incognito. The tech was experimental so, we wrote off our hyperspace collision as an accident caused by an unknown mechanical malfunction. The initial collision blew a distributor relay coil. The explosion in the ship’s main cabin knocked us out cold. When we finally woke - one entire week later - we were back on Jedha, with a fresh gash across our face. Sisius explained our circumstance. He hypothesized that the other spacecraft’s T3 droid initialized a malfunction in the hyperdrive that caused the collision, which then knocked us out of hyperspace. After Sisius dressed our wounds we limped our way back to Jedha. The good news, on the other hand, was that the war had unceremoniously ended. Since our division was a secret from the start of the war Sisius proposed we consider ourselves lucky to have survived and to seriously consider early retirement.

ZHELLDAY, PRODUCTIVITY DAY 0 BBY

1030

Happy Birthday, brothers! We are officially old. A full day of trading Jakobeast pelts, nails, teeth, and various organ bits has us completely taxed. Fortunately, we’ve managed to scrounge enough credits to convince Rodn’a to transport our crew to Dantooine. We’re still clueless as to what our ultimate goal is but Sisius is more determined than ever to reach Edge Space. Regardless of our present circumstance we’ve decided to make the most of it. With the remainder of our reward we bought presents for everyone, in celebration of our anniversary. Our hope is that some levity will lighten the sour mood the change in plans has cast over everyone. As a reminder of our prize we had the pelt of the Malraas quartered and fashioned into an assortment of items. Its hide makes for a nice baby wrap for Aloken, plus leather linings for T3’s infant carriage. We also had their claws molded into Lehon Sticks. Mave loves their versatility in being either hair picks or eating utensils. We then had a ring especially made for Sisius. The entry wound of the Jakobeast, created by Sisius’ light saber, left a small hole in its breastplate. We included an engraving of the Knights crest on it. This should suffice as a replacement for the one he left behind on Jedha. 

After learning of your passing we built a memorial on Jedha, to honor your service during the war. We kept out of trouble and secluded ourselves to the sanctuary of the temple. News of the Empire’s progress was slowly drip fed through the Clone Nebulas Network. Jedha’s remoteness and insignificance gave us a false sense of security. We slowly stopped most, if not all, communication with the rest of the galaxy and continued on with our lives. Sisius even married and became a father. For nearly two decades things were mostly peaceful. Our fortune eventually waned, however. Shortly after childbirth Aloken’s mother, Asha, passed away. Sisius had her remains buried at the memorial site. He left his ring atop her grave - a penance for his loss. Shortly after the burial Sisius was ready to leave. The Empire’s increased interest in kaiber crystals drew too much attention towards the temple. Travel restrictions became more difficult to bypass without providing proper Imperial identification. Then word came that the Empire was on the hunt for force sensitive individuals. Knowing this, Sisius feared for Aloken’s safety and hastily planned for an exodus to the Outer Rim. Before we left the Sisters of the Whils implored Sisius to take Mave along with us. They insisted that her fate was the same as ours and that her safety was now Sisius’s responsibility. As soon as Sisius gave in to their demands we departed on our weeklong trek through the desert. We never thought those nights hiking through the desert would ultimately get us to here. We just hope this journey has a happier ending than our previous one.

The Outer Rim Trail

Issue IV

Alysius

CHAPTER I

JEDHA

The new moon rising cast a long shadow. Slowly planet Nejedha rose above the horizon, dawning a pinkish hue over the sands of Jedha.  As the rose colored gem loomed high above, the desert temperature quickly dropped to frigid depths unbearable to most living creatures. Alone, amidst endless sand dunes, stood a singular, hooded figure. Hardly visible to the naked eye, a young man stood pensively staring into the deep darkness of space.  He closed his eyes, breathed in deeply, and exhaled a cloud of moisture that froze - then vanished in mid air  - instantly. He turned, fashioned his dark robes, and began treading his way back to the lone metropolis nested amid the desert moon.

Some time later, a lone hooded figure crossed the threshold of the Jedha temple. Their march continued onward to the temple’s garden. A true oasis in the desert the garden housed flora and species of animalia from all over the galaxy. Even in the darkness of night the garden glowed and hummed with life. Luminous plants lit the walking path as small creatures hummed and skirted by. After taking a moment to pause and assess the surroundings he continued on to a nearby structure. The aroma of bread, cakes, and other pastries emitted from the cookery inside.  Upon entering the young man was greeted to the silhouette of a cherubic girl hunched over the kitchen counter.  A red curtain of matted hair veiled the girl’s muddied face. Greedily, she stuffed her gullet with sweet cakes and raw bread dough.  From beneath their hood the shadowy figure cleared his throat to garner her attention. She turned to observe her audience. She spat out a mouthful of cake as she barked her hellos,

“Sisius! Look at all the food the Sisters left out! Take some! It’s delicious.”

Sisius took note of the buffet of bread, fruit, dried meat, and pastries strewn across the counter, “I would slow down if I were you, Maven. This food is meant to last us a few days.”  Sisius grabbed a meiloorun fruit from its container and inspected its color and smell before placing it back with the bunch.

“No chance of that, Sisius! Have you looked at the garden lately? The sisters could feed all of Jedha if they wanted to.”

Sisius took stock of a small vile of bantha’s rue extract he had especially requested the sisters to make. The extract was meant to promote lactation in the thala-sirens but Sisius had other intentions for the substance. He poured two cups of milk and spiked one with the rue extract, unnoticed by Maven. He handed her the milk mixture and continued on as she swigged the contents in its entirety. “Careful, Maven. If you’re not careful you’ll give yourself a terrible cramp.” He proceeded as Maven continued to inhale everything in her immediate vicinity. “The sister’s have gone out of their way to make sure we have provisions for the first leg of our journey.”

“Oh! You’re leaving? Where are you going?”, She managed to mutter in between breaths.

“The temple walls no longer provide the safe sanctuary they once did. The Empire’s increased presence inside the city has the Sisters concerned. The Empire has made it clear that their intention is to eventually usurp control of the Kaiber mines.”

Maven’s eyes rolled deep into the back of her head at the mention of the Empire. “There’s no chance The Empire would cross the Sisters of the Whils. The Guardians are stationed all over the city. The Empire wouldn’t dare cross them.

“The Guardians of the Whils are a scruffy group of sycophant fanatics, dogmatically following an order from a council that no longer exists!” Sisius took a moment to collect himself. Following a deep breath he altered the timber and tone of his voice while focusing on the intent of his words, “For your own safety you’ll accompany our party to the Outer Rim. Consider the promise you made to Asha to protect and nourish Aloken as if he were your own.”

Maven’s mood visibly altered as she methodically finished chewing her food, swallowed - then finished off the last of her milk. She turned to Sisius with a deep stoic demeanor, “I should take into consideration that I promised Maven to look after Aloken after she passed. He’ll need my protection and continued nourishment during our trip to the Outer Rim.”

“I’m glad you’ve reconsidered. Your support will be invaluable. I know Asha will rest soundly knowing you’re looking after her son.” He slowly paced back to the portal he entered in from. Before returning to the garden he turned back toward Maven, “Take time to collect your things during the day tomorrow. We’ll pack these provisions and then head out after sunset.”

In the canopy overhead a convor serenaded its suspicions while Sisius cautiously strolled through the garden along the paved path. Though in no danger Sisius took care not to disturb the habitat of the sanctuary. A vast assortment of creatures roamed the garden – especially at night. He tread lightly as to avoid trampling upon any unsuspecting soul. The extinction of even one profogg might mean disturbing the natural balance of the living force as it manifested itself - inside the temple grounds. Further ahead a pale specter scuttled into, then occupied the center of the path. Taking time to discern its form Sisius made direct eye contact with a wild, adult, male merrkat. After an extended pause, and an informal recognition, the merrkat turned and merred toward the nearby shadows. At that moment a large, pregnant merkat appeared – then just as quickly vanished into the safety of the shadows, opposite the path. The wind whistled a tune while the leaves rustled up a chorus, and the convor continued its operatic performance. Sisius progressed along the path, towards his ultimate destination. At the path’s end a large pyre illuminated three towering black pillars. Etched into the smooth, matt finished facades appeared the Galactic Republic sigil.  Preceding the trio of obelisks stood a large alter upon which an inferno raged inside a glass like pillar. Sisius stood silently in the memorial – head raised – mesmerized by the heat escaping the pillar’s top into the cold night air. After a moment passed he asked his silent companion,

“Are you planning on hiding in the shadows the entirety of the night, Kabel?”

From behind the center obelisk emerged a visibly scarred, barrel-chested male figure. Once the shadows passed cross his face a wry smile - seemingly more painful than the scars that marred his face – was revealed. “You’re getting slow Alysius. I’ve been stalking you since you entered the temple garden.”  

“You’re mistaken, old man. It’s I that’s been leading you to this very spot since crossing the threshold.”  Sisius kept his focus upon the pillar amidst the inferno as Kabel approached him from opposite the pyre. “Tonight’s the ninth and final night the pyre will be lit. Come tomorrow the fire will be extinguished and the crystal will solidify into its final color and form.”

“She’ll be in good company. Our brothers will keep watch over her.” Kabel gestured towards the three towers that loomed large over the pyre – the light of the inferno cast long shadows that made their presence even more ominous.

With his right hand, Sisius removed the jewel on his left ring finger, reached out - through the midst of the inferno - and placed the ring atop the pyre. “We managed to avoid it for quite some time, but the invisible hand of the Empire has finally made its way to us, Kabel. I’ve made arrangements with the Sisters to have provisions prepared for our departure tomorrow night. After our trek though the desert arrangements will need to have been prepared to ensure transport to and out of Portsmouth. Can we trust your Clone Nebulous Network (CNN) sources?”

“Admittedly, we never engaged in much discourse, before our current need arose; however, we have been keeping tabs of the comings and goings of key individuals. There will be a routine transport of Spice, loading then departing, from a remote station in the desert. Official state documents have it recorded as being inoperable. The CNN, on the other hand, report it has been fully operational and manned by a rotating skeleton crew. Accessing an unused train car will be easy enough. Since the train acts simply as camouflage - to disguise Spice shipments - most of the cars will be empty. Hitching a ride to Portsmouth will shorten our trip by five, possibly more, rotations - weather depending. Once we arrive our man on the inside will be waiting for us. It may take some negotiating to secure off world transport, but it shouldn’t be an issue. Our brothers have never let us down before.”

Kabel’s last statement caused Sisius to unfix his gaze and turn their way.
Sisius furred his brow while staring intently at the disfigurement that had become Kabel’s face. “Even though you arguably no longer look like yourself, we’ll need to take caution that you’re clone features aren’t easily recognized during our sojourn. Do you remember our maneuver on Kantor that got us out of that jam you got us into?”

“You mean the knot YOU got us twisted up in during our simple surveillance mission on Kantor? It may have gotten us out of our predicament then, but pretending to be a prisoner seems like it would attract all the wrong attention now.”

“You forget, Commander, the masquerade not only included tying you up but also covering your face, remember? Using the force to guide you during our escape gave us the upper hand we needed to guarantee our freedom. We’ll need to employ the same technique to maneuver through crowds and hide your identity. The Empire’s influence has shrouded the entire galaxy in darkness. It’s imperative we avoid interrogation regarding our true intentions. Anyone suspicious of a wayward clone soldier will be highly rewarded if they were to discover a wayward Jedi accompanying them. Considering the current state of the Republic only the Outer Rim planets can provide a haven the Empire has no control over.”

“We accept that we may no longer be as stealthy as when we were on Kantor, but we’ve only grown more handsome since then. Although we take total and complete offense to being coerced into hiding our face during this journey - the sentiment is completely understood. It’s unfortunate; but we have to be honest with ourselves, and admit - these old bones welcome any assistance during our upcoming travels. We can also program the droid to assist us. A tactical droid may be overkill for our over glorified field trip, but better to be safe than sorry.”

“I’m one step ahead of you, old friend. I took the initiative to reprogram the droid’s parameters. Considering the precarious predicaments we’ll find ourselves in I think it’s in our best interest to have the droid operating at its full potential. I removed the failsafe blocking full communication between their COM core manifolds. Their computation processes will no longer operate independently. T3N3 is currently fully aware, its three cores communicating in unison. Their new corpse members, along with the conditions and functions - of itself and every individual in their company – have been integrated into it. I also upgraded their terminal interface to omit any anomalies. I will need a hand rigging their chassis to hold an infants crib tomorrow. If you’re up to it”

“Considering the war between the Separatist and the Republic is over now any remaining conflicts between the core processers should logistically be easily bypassed or overwritten. Installing three enemy Computing Cores in one droid may have gotten us a long way during war times, but the toll of the experiment was too costly.” As he said this Kabel gestured toward the three monuments that towering over him. “We need to proceed with caution. When T3N3’s former companion, T1N3, malfunctioned it almost cost us our lives. At the time we assumed its principal programming - to protect all party members - was compromised by competing enemy initiatives. We can keep an eye on them during our sojourn. We can use our need of a crutch as an excuse to keep close.”

“You must try and remember, Kabel, the accident wasn’t T3N3’s fault. Tiney’s malfunction in hyperspace may have almost killed us all but Teeney had nothing to do with it. Since then the droid has been loyal and completely trustworthy. We’ll need the two of you to work together if we’re going to successfully make it to the Outer Rim.”

“Our loyalty has never wavered after all this time. You can trust us, Alysius.”

“Glad to hear it. We depart tomorrow night. Make sure to be ready.”

For a brief moment, after Kabel’s departure, Sisius stood alone at the memorial. An unspoken farewell lifted a weight from his back allowing Sisius to straighten his posture. After saying his goodbyes he turned to retrace his steps out of the garden sanctuary. Before crossing the threshold he turned back to take in the totality of the environment. A lush, flourishing garden hidden amidst the desert of a lone moon was not lost on him. After a long pregnant pause Sisius turned, crossed the threshold and entered the temple dormitories. The following day Sisius returned to the exact same spot. Following close behind him a single droid wheeled his way next to him. Sisius kneeled next to it, entered a code into the droid’s access panel. Once entered a large compartment opened inside the droid revealing a sleeping infant boy.  

“I’m trusting you to keep my son, Aloken, safe and warm on this trip through the desert. Don’t let me down, Teeney.” In response a beep, stir and whir initiated an internal conditioning system. Sisius collected his gear in time to see Kabel approaching with Maven close behind. 

“We’re all set, General.”

__

Overhead, the sun - alongside planet Nejedha - began its slow descent towards the oblivion of the horizon. One by one, every troop member crossed the temple’s threshold into the endless expanse of desert sands. A single step at a time, Sisius lead the clique through the drudges of the dune sea. A short distance behind him T3N3 tirelessly wheeled along the sandy dune floor.  The droid laboriously towed its precious cargo while leading the blind Kabel through unseen obstacles.  Keeping her distance, Maven held the rear position of the group. Her mood soured as the days progressed without them. The nights occupied their every waking existence for three days and nights. On the fourth day they reached the derelict train junction. Stationed in the most remote and desolate region of the desert a battalion of armed guards littered every terminal. Carefully navigating the shadows, to avoid the gaze of the desert sun, the party of five stealthily approached the depot center. A graveyard of discarded train cars camouflaged their approach of the terminal platform. Using the abandoned remains to provide temporary shelter, Sisius paused to assess their predicament.

“This is as far we go without giving away our position. There’s no cover for our approach beyond the yard. Our train to Portsmouth is parked at the farthest terminal of the platform. Three armed guards patrol the span from here to our final destination. No chance of fighting our way through. They’ll easily overpower us before we even decide to fight.”

With his vision veiled, Kabel depended upon Sisius’ verbal assessment to ascertain the totality of their current predicament. Crouched below the remains of a discarded train car Sisius and Kabel silently considered their options. “Sounds like a grid pattern patrol unit. An effective system that allows more ground to be covered with fewer people.”

“A simple suggestion will keep the first guard walking to the other end of the desert. We can manage to slip pass the second; but the last guard will easily spot one of us, leading us to being either captured or de--“

“--Wait! What is that sound? Up wind from us – not far – an odd rapping sound.”

Along the edge of the yard an abandoned service pump lay knocked over and leaning upon a forgotten service portal. At the service pump’s pedestal a gate lay with a lone paw sticking out from beneath it. From below a merrkat methodically clawed at the wire frame of the pump’s exhaust drain. From above a single merrkitten dropped atop the drain, then proceeded to squeeze through a gap at the edge of it. Seemingly as suddenly an adult merrkat pounced upon the gate from above, smacked the kitten in the hind - to assist it in transition - and swiftly slipped through the gap into the service pipe.

“Looks like we found our way in.” Silently, Sisius motioned the rest of the party to convene at the service portal. Once there he motioned the droid towards the door’s access panel. “Teeney, link to this dataport socket and disengage the magna locks on this service door. These old maintenance tunnels must have been abandoned once the station was officially decommissioned. We can follow this line to our train’s engine. From there we can easily choose an unoccupied car to sneak onto.”

Once onboard the company disarmed and took the opportunity to decompress, except for Maven, who awkwardly paced, and or solely occupied the car’s corners.  During a lapse in her rotation cycle around the cabin Sisius took the opportunity to approach her.

“These intermissions may be few and far between, Maven. We should take advantage of these down times to regain our strength during this leg of the trip.” Averting his gaze Maven nervously nodded in agreement yet continued her progression towards occupying an isolated corner. Sisius breathed deep and focused his intention. Being sure to purposely make eye contact Sisius gestured a lone wave in front of Maven’s eyes and then placed his hand on her shoulder before uttering to her in a guttural tone, “Take this time to replenish your strength. Drink the milk Teeny has saved for you, then be sure to nurse Aloken before we reach Portsmouth.”

Upon hearing this Maven simply nodded, diverted her trajectory, then joined Teeney and Kabel to coordinate feeding young Aloken. Sisius dismissed them to their procession before turning to a nearby porthole. Taking advantage of the respite Sisius sat to meditate as he stared out upon the endless sea of sand dunes as they race pass.

__

The sun met dawn with reluctance as it slowly waned beyond an expanse of sand and rock. Remnants of an ancient war - explosive blasts pocketed the moon’s surface with a litany of massive craters. Scorched and electrified sand garnished the craters’ rims with jagged glass formations. Rows of toothy shards gave the cavities a mouth like appearance. The colossus amongst them, Portsmouth, cradled an emerald city protruding from deep inside the orifice. On the brink of breaching subspace the freight train raced beyond the dessert terrain as it crossed a series of torii gates leading to the metropolis’ entrance. Along the gorge’s edge the engine hurdled through an oncoming tunnel. The void swallowed the train whole, then spat it out from its end as a precession of tracks cascade ahead the careening cars – couriering the train towards the terminal plaza. Before coming to a complete stop four singular figures scuttled from off the transport. Incognito the party cautiously made their way to a nearby terminal lift. During their descent Kabel apprised the group of their current predicament,

 “Portsmouth, the gem of the Old Galactic Republic, renowned throughout the galaxy as a hive of scholars and opulence - at least on the surface. A Hallmark of their accolades, the Republic constructed this trophy to honor the Jedi victory over the Sith; however, entombed deep below its emerald masque stirs a fervor of hyper activity and deviancy. A sickness of animosity and spite festers in Portsmouth’s bowels. The dangers that lie below will become increasingly worse the deeper we venture.” Out of habit Sisius began audibly fiddling with the saber holstered at his hip. “A light saber will absolutely reveal our true nature to any curious onlookers. Best to conceal it to avoid any unwanted attention.” Hearing this Sisius made sure to fasten his hilt securely behind his waist. “Our brother works a garage near the central downtown area. We can navigate the alleyways between the skyscrapers to hide our traverse.”

A dense fog loomed overhead while the group methodically weaved their way through a maze of corridors and dead ends. A cacophony of lights darted through the haze – weaving their way through towering constructs that pierced the phantom thicket looming above them. They arrived at the spaceport courtyard to find a mob forming an endless queue. As they scurried through the crowd Sisius spied their ultimate destination opposite the square.

“If your source is to be trusted – that’s it there, Kabel - Garage Ninety-Nine.”

Ushering Teeney forward Kabel took the lead position of the group, “Let us do the talking. This guy owes us one, but a reminder may be necessary.”

Upon entering the garage the murmur from the plaza was instantly muffled by the bustling of the astir, fully mechanized garage. Sparks flew; smoke rose, and parts banged as a procession of automations, functions, and operations were executed by a succession of various droids and other robotic golem. The production overwhelmed their senses. The spectacle distracted every party member.

From deep within the mechanical tomb a strange voice bellowed, “Oi! What the farrik are you doing in my shop?! Chain code acquisition and verification is outside, on the other end of the square.”

Kabel returned a canned response, “What a time to be alive, Stranger. We come from an era where our brotherhood was proof enough of our literacy. Regardless of how much the galaxy may change we hope some things remain constant: a good soldier can shoulder any weight when a brother is in need. These moments are when we need to support family the most.” Kabel raised an open hand - bent at the elbow – and waited wantonly.

The Stranger strode towards Kabel. A sea of bots parted a way as he approached the motley bunch. Pausing for a moment to appraise Kabel’s visage he clasped his hand and asked, “What the farrik happened to your karking face?”

“Had some improvements made. Not a good look - walking around with your poodoo eating mug these days.”

In response he gestured to the murder of bots crowding around him, “Got to learn to keep a better company, soldier. A good droid obeys their orders, has no real identity, and cares very little about the identity of their superiors.”

Taking this as a cue to leave Teeny whirred, whizzed, and wheeled their way out the conversation - leaving a trail of excrement in their wake while Kabel continued to delegate, “Things are indeed truly different than they used to be. Here we are - reliant upon droids, instead of conspiring against them. In such strange times looking to family is even more important than ever.” Kabel gestured toward Maven – an awkwardly revealing, disheveled collection of shuffled together garbs, and Sisius – wholly consumed by the manufactured procession inside the factory.

The Stranger held an elongated gaze on the droid as Teeney took position beside Maven. Without averting his gaze he prostrated, “There’s a difference between being connected to people of importance and connecting to important people. If your intent is getting your family to safety that’s a truth to take into heavy consideration moving forward.”

“Well, it sounds like you know what it takes to make it. Knew you were the right person to come to. Glad we hauled you, and your shrapnel pelted ass, off that rock when we did; or else we might be in a tight spot right now. We need to get off Jedha, and on our way to the Outer Rim - without chain codes. Our company can’t afford to be identified.”

The Stranger took note of the entirety of Kabel’s company. Taking Sisius’ appearance into deep consideration he responded, “Not asking for much are we? The ways off this rock, without providing proof of identification, are… unsavory at best. You may not like your options. – Hey don’t touch that!”

Nonchalantly Sisius approached a nearby control panel and entered a series of inputs. In response a void in the factory sequence suddenly lit up. A company of droids pivoted their position in the line then began a new performance of actions. Almost as abruptly the entire orchestration came to a halt. The lights went dim again and the droids returned to their previous chores. “I see… You’re trying to modify High Republic warp core drives in order to house them inside Techno Union turbine engines. Attempting to power them with jigged Separatist fusion generators - a strange choice… but a creative one - to say the least. However, your solution is causing the core’s spark to seize before it can propagate the ignition process mandatory to properly covalence enough power to sustain itself.  Which, ultimately, is significantly reducing your energy input/output yield. What you need is a Republic clearance sequence from your relay to bypass the meltdown failsafe. It just so happens that we have a High Republic droid in our company. Teeney can easily rig a convexity program that will allow the core to cool long enough to allow it to initiate fully.” As if on cue the T3N3 droid wheeled their way beside Sisius and blew a victory whistle to announce their arrival.

The Stranger stood in awe but responded in disbelief, “That would save me from having to budget dozens of expenditures a cycle for replacement turbines.”

Hearing this Kabel took the opportunity to chime in, “Not to mention all the hyper fuel that will be saved. Sounds like we have some bargaining to do.”

A short time later the band were on their way off planet onboard a Loranor transport ship. Taking a moment to decompress and evaluate their circumstances Sysius and Kabel volleyed vitriol before they expire.  

“Slavery? That was your best resolution to getting us off planet?!”

“We are not slaves. Think of it as being more akin to indentured servitude.”

“Give it whatever fancy moniker you like, I know what slavery is.”

“This was the only way to avoid questions about who we are, why we are leaving, and to where.  Plus, all hope is not lost. We can work our way to freedom. Once we work off our passage off planet we can work out a way to the Outer Rim independently.”

“Slaves to a clone. I thought things couldn’t get any worse. Yet, here we are.” Indignant Sisius walked away to retire for the rest of the journey.

A short time later Sisius was startled out of his brief respite. He shot up, out of his slumber, and clasp his hands over his ears to muffle the endless howl ringing throughout his head. Shrieks echoing around every corner of his brain caused excruciating pain to radiate down through to the back of his neck. He hastly scanned the room to find it undisturbed - the party seemingly deep asleep, and unfazed by the ringing in his head. The tranquility of the space was in complete contrast to the raucous clamoring in his skull. He stumbled over to Teeney, punched in a sequence to their dashboard to reveal the crib entombed inside them. Once bared Sisius was shocked to discover his son, Aloken, frozen in terror and inaudibly screaming a shriek only heard by him. Without pause Aloken turned to face his father - eyes full, terrified by an unknown specter. A sudden emptiness took hold of Sisius causing his stomach to drop.

Taking a brief moment to rescan the room he asked audibly, “Where’s Maven?!”

The T3N3 droid cooed a low hum then turned their orbital sensor toward the cabin doors. Without hesitation Sisius bolted through the door, rushed out into the hall, and began sprinting down the corridor. With only the feeling in the depths of his gut guiding him he came upon the cargo bay - doors left open - to discover Maven, bent over a bachta tank, struggling with the Stranger while he forcibly held her down. A deep fury roared inside his chest. His heart pumped boiling hot blood as its rate rose exponentially. The plasma drumming in his ears intermittently muffled Maven’s cries for help. Instinctually he crouched into a stance exposing his weapon. His fury blurred his vision. He blinked. When his eyes opened he stood beside the Stranger - his left arm extended - hilt held in front of their temple. Two strikes of the hammer ignited, and then extinguished, the kyber crystal in his lightsaber. In that brief moment an inaugurate crack ushered an electric blue shaft that drove a path through the grey matter in the Stranger’s cranium - instantly executing them.

Sisius yanked the corpse from off Maven and instructed her, “Aloken needs your attention. Go tend to him. --Now!”

While Maven made her way out Sisius collected the remains of the Stranger and dragged them to a nearby trash compacter. He shuttled the corpse through the hatch in the haul of the ship then opened the debris door. Through a nearby portal Sisius watched the ship birth the carcass into the void. While watching the refuse be consumed by the frozen torrent of space, Sisius’ gaze meandered over Jedha’s horizon. Before the cruiser relayed proper hyperspace coordinates it held orbit over the dark side of the moon. As it waned beyond the planet Najedha its trajectory revealed a small sphere far off in the distance.

Once the celestial satellite revealed itself Sisius muttered aloud, “That’s no moon.”

At that moment the drive engines engaged. The stars tore away at the blackness of space as a tear in the ether propelled the ship into hyperspace. The oddity escaped him as the portal’s view became engulfed in a kaleidoscope of bright white light - eclipsing everything in sight.

CHAPTER II

BRACCA

A lone moon levitated in the miasma of darkness permeating the atmosphere. Fumes of ash, silt, dirt, and various heavy metals blotted the sky, stifling the fullness of the satellite to a muted, milky, luminous orb. Unseen phantasms pealed their haunting trills throughout the ether. Winged silhouettes navigate the bog above while surveying their territory below. Heaps of steel, glass, and metal littered the landscape. A beached Imperial armada decorated the planet surface. Engineered nooks and crannies provided opportunities for an ecosystem of scavenging, carnivorous critters, and various nocturnal creatures to thrive. Honing their instinctual desires a lone merrkat stalked its prey. Broaching the earth in search of sustenance, a grub worm wiggled its way through a crevice of compacted soil. Seizing the opportunity the kitten pounced upon its unsuspecting victim. Pinned and smothered the worm wiggled wildly in defiance. Curious about the outcome of their actions the feline lifted their paw to reveal the unfettered insect. With no hesitation the grub worm quickly escaped the clutches of their reaper. Traversing from one peril to another the wily worm trundled directly into the maws of an opportunistic scrap rat.  The swiftness at which the rodent relieved the insect of its head sent the feline into a spiral of emotions. Indignant of being robbed of their victory the feline arched its back and hissed venomously. Before the two could collide a series of unforeseen events began to unfold. A sudden force of energy pushed the two combatants to their opposing corners. Then, without interruption, a monstrous set of terrifyingly sharp talons came tearing down from the sky. Clutching onto the empty space the two victims previously occupied, the ghostly raptor continued on into the miasma above. From out the shadows of a downed Destroyer a dark, hooded figure coolly collected the disheveled and confused puss. With a consoling pat on the head and an appreciative lick to the hand the exchange was complete. A pocketed coffer of the downed cruiser proved a proper shelf to place the disheveled kitten. Once settled a perturbed mother feline heedlessly seized hold of the infant’s neck and began to tirelessly ascend the cascading hull of the cruiser. In the opposing corner the dubious rodent hastily collected itself before continuing on, ignorant of its narrow escape. Incognito - from deep within a pocketed coffer - a pair of blue, glowing, feline eyes menacingly stalked their progression as the rat continued to saunter along.  Unnoticed by both parties, Teeney chaperoned Kabel towards Sisius after dispatching the naïve merrkat.

“Some things never change, do they? Knew we would find you out here policing the natives”

Before responding, Sisius took time to appreciate the merrkat’s ability to nimbly ascend the wall of the downed Destroyer - kitten in tow, “The living force manifests itself in many ways. Regardless at what scale, it’s our responsibility - as stewards of the force - to cultivate a healthy, thriving culture in every corner of the galaxy.” 

“Glad to hear the sentiment prevails after all this time. Muster as much of that gusto as you can for our new acquisition. Our recently acquired bounty will immensely help us reach the requirements needed to get us off this rock, and on to the Outer Rim.”

“Coming out of retirement to continue hunting and murdering innocent people - just for the sake of preserving selfish desires – is not exactly something that settles as well with me as it may with you, Commander.”

“With any luck, no one - or thing - gets hurt on this excursion, General. It may or may not be obvious, but the local ecosystem has been devastatingly altered over time. Originally Bracca supported a lush, and healthy environment with an immense and diverse ecosystem. Unfortunately, when the Piiks originally colonized the planet they ravaged the land for profit. Eventually, over the millennia, Bracca mutated into the irreparable catastrophe we see now. Notoriously, throughout its history, species from every corner of the galaxy have come to settle on Bracca, but after the Clone Wars the Empire terra-formed most of Bracca into their own personal junkyard. Now, Bracca is more of a historical graveyard of a bygone era of the Old Republic. Downed ships, discarded mechs, and abandoned lab experiments are scavenged for profit by a diaspora of refugees - desperate to regain some semblance of a home. However, the influx of immigrants has brought upon their own unique set of ecological oddities. Infamously the Piiks harbored a culture of pillaging that fostered many symbiotic relationships. Most notable was the rapport developed with the Malraas Nighthunters. Their vicious, canine nature was exploited for hunting and scavenging. As the Piiks colonized planets, across the entire galaxy, Nighthunters were irreverently discarded. Left to their own devices they eventually multiplied into wild packs that terrorized the wild lands. Fortunately, on Bracca their population was controlled by the native population of Jakobeast.”

“Jakobeast…?! According to the old Jedi archives the Jakobeast were force sensitive mammalians that went extinct centuries ago.”

“Well, not according to the locals. It would seem a small pod managed to survive out here in the Mid Rim. Some other rogue soul must have cultivated a school that somehow managed to survive. Unfortunately, the current populace has been breeding wild puffer pigs as livestock. To grow to full maturity the swine must graze freely. This has inadvertently caused the Jakobeast herds to be forced out of their habitat and into near extinction. With there being a vacancy the Nighthunters have moved back into the abandoned territory and, seemingly, have developed a taste for pig - and are now ravaging the livestock. Their population has grown out of control.”

“So, what you’re trying to tell me is we’re over glorified pig police now?”

Kabel took a moment to appreciate the concept before continuing, “No, not exactly. Our commission is a little more complex than that. Admittedly, we have observed some inexplicable oddities in our lifetime, but our current proprietor has found a more amicable alternative.  It would be better explained by showing than telling. We made arrangements to rendezvous at our camp for more formal introductions. When you meet them it will be clear what their intent is. We can discuss in detail as we break bread with our new hunting club”

Kabel managed to pivot Teeney and direct them back down the path the way came. Stumbling momentarily Kabel took time to gather themself briefly before Teeney motored forward. Taking notice Sysius reached out and placed his left hand upon Kabel’s shoulder. Kabel’s gate changed as his stride became noticeably more confident.

Before giving gratitude Kabel breathed a deep sigh to collect their composure, “Tarkins teeth! Such a relief. It takes time to acclimate to the shroud. We manage it – over time, but the moments of clarity are a welcomed reprieve.”

“Believe me, you are not missing much, old friend. Regardless, I appreciate you keeping up the façade. ”

“After the incident that took place on the transport here to Bracca, it would be in our best interest to keep our identity secret. Anonymity is in all of our best interest from here on out. At least until we arrive at our final destination. There’s no telling what kind of reputation our brothers have fostered while the Empire has been in reign.”  With his left hand upon Teeney, Kabel lifted his right to fruitlessly grab at some unseen phantasm hovering above his head. “Ferrik! These visions surrounding us, these ethereal whispers, is this how you see reality?”

Making their way back to camp the pair independently strode down the exterior of the star destroyer. Teeney pioneered their progress along the affixed catwalk while Sisius took time to explain. “Incognito, the force surrounds and binds us. The way it’s perceived is unique to every individual. I’m using my connection to the force to lift the veil that clouds your vision and replace it with mine. Our rapport acts like a filter, more or less, allowing you a voyeuristic view of the world around you. The force speaks to us in a way that gives us clairvoyance allowing us to move in a more predictive manner than most can naturally. So, essentially, the vaporous figures you see are more like holoprojections of what may be than what is. Years of training allow Jedi to more accurately predict changes to their surroundings.” A few steps ahead of them Teeney stopped in front of the lift platform to open the hull doors. Sisius tightened his grasp around Kabel’s neck, halting his progression moments before they plowed into and toppled over the stationary droid.  “Misinterpretations can lead to minor accidents or catastrophic disasters. Tread lightly until you get a feel for it.”

The lift rose to the platform posterior to the bridge of the marooned ships. Twin Star destroyers lay dormant, in an unrequited embrace, deeply entrenched amongst a beached armada. The two arrowhead shaped ships lie on their sides, their two tops facing each other formed a deep cavernous channel where, in the center, two city sized islands hung laterally - crowned by the bridge of their respective ships.  The two bridges lay at rest, parallel to each other, one just out of reach from the other. Spanning the gap between the two sat a singular suspension bridge. Scaffolding wrapped the arched platform around the ship’s perimeter where three silhouettes crossed an arcade decorated by house banners, flags, and other sigils. Commemorative trophies representing diasporas from across the galaxy - now residing upon begotten agents of their current circumstance - adorned the pedestrian gallery. Baroque supports framed their traverse as the three figures populated individually composed reels - animating an ensemble of transports, caravans and speeders as they navigate the divide. Teeney surveyed the swarm of vehicles laboriously occupying the chasm. They whirred, zipped, and chirped as the horde soared above and below their flyover. Upon their arrival a bustling colony absorbed the trio. An army of residents shuffled about the ship’s repurposed wheelhouse. Exposed bulkheads partitioned a menagerie of encampments, stands, shops, and stalls littered throughout the cabin of the command center. A quiet murmur spread amongst the cabin upon their entry. Neighboring residents glanced, stared, or discreetly bowed as the trio entered their quarters.

Upon entering Alysius was taken aback by the appearance of a towering female figure perched, in full glory, amid Mave’s fervent admiration. After closer observation it occurred to him that what he initially thought to be a woman was, in fact, a large bird with strikingly beautiful effeminate features. Adorning their striking face, bulbous bosom, and rotund buttocks were a down of vivid feathers that shimmered in what dim light shun inside their chamber. As Alysius watched Maven delicately raise what remain of her rations an acute pain rose up the back of his spine.  Pressure in his neck congruently began to rise as Mave’s frail hands extended a cornucopia of protein cakes beyond a bouquet of feathers, onwards towards bone crushing mandibles. The creature’s mane - adorned in an elaborate spectrum of colored quills - began to quiver and ambre in anticipation. Unexpectedly a moist tendril erupted from the jowls of the harpy, interrupting their meal’s approach. The sinuous tentacle coiled around Maven’s cupped hands, down her arms – binding them together. With a sudden, forceful yank Maven was briefly swept up off the floor as the creature slovenly inhaled its bulbous tongue alongside their feast. Remnants flew wildly from their maw as the beast devoured their meal. Muffled cries accompanied guttural belches that drizzled debris upon nearby bystanders. A low frequency sounded from beyond their barbed beak. Before Sysius could react, the siren’s call was interrupted. Jovially swatting away the fallout Aloken let out a familiar howl,

“HAH! - PEW! - PEW! HA HAH!

Sysius turned to find Aloken sharing their hallmark smirk while nefariously pointing back at him. Perilously his cherubic body leaned out of his mechanical crib as he reached out to clutch a nearby talon. Before disrupting the exchange an alien voice interrupted Sysius’ intervention,

“Fear not. She’s mostly harmless.” Between breaths an almost immutable whistle emitted audiibly. “Her name is Zura. She’s a Corellian Banshee.” A slender female zeltron sauntered out from behind the banshee, caressed its breast - in a seemingly inappropriate way, turned to Sysius, then proceeded with their introduction, “You can call me Wevar.