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Tatooine: 19 BBY
Jabba's Palace
Nakoa Sen

    Music filled the main chamber of the palace. No one gave him a second glance as he entered. Nakoa spotted Jabba the Hutt himself lounging on a dais. Several Twi'leks danced before him.

    He pulled his attention away from them and scanned the room. This could be harder than I thought. Everyone here is bound to be a smuggler or bounty hunter. How will I know which one she is?

    He leaned against a wall and watched the people who milled about the room. A droid rolled past and offered him a drink, but Nakoa refused. A Zabrak approached him as soon as the droid left.

    "Nothing to your taste?" The Zabrak asked.

    "No." Nakoa crossed his arms and continued to survey the crowd.

    "You have pretty expensive taste, then. You'll only find the finest of any kind of drink here."

    "I suppose Jabba has credits to spend."

    The Zabrak barked a laugh and slung an arm around Nakoa's shoulders. "Credits! Not Imperial, I hope. The day Jabba the Hutt accepts Imperial credits will be the end of the galaxy."

    "I haven't seen any sign of the Empire on Tatooine."

    "Not yet. They're not stupid enough to underestimate Jabba's power. I'm just waiting for them to make a deal with him."

    Nakoa gave the man his full attention, finally. "Why would the Empire make a deal with Jabba?"

    "So that they'll get off his hit list. They'll end up needing passage through this system at some point or other. The only way to get through here safely is with Jabba's blessing. The Republic knew it and soon, the Empire will too."

    Nakoa arched an eyebrow. "What business did the Republic have in the Outer Rim? I thought the systems out here were left to themselves."

    "Where were you during the Clone Wars, Boy?" The Zabrak gave him an incredulous look. "We may be remote, but the planets out here are strong and made good base areas for both the Republic and the Separatists. The Seppies wanted to get at Kamino, where the cloning facilities were. The Republic wanted to protect their cloning factories and medical bases."

    Nakoa rolled his eyes and sighed. "I don't need a history lesson." The Zabrak continued to ramble on, ignoring his comment. Nakoa tuned him out and went back to his surveillance. An odd feeling washed over him, sending shivers down his back.

    He half turned his head. A white Twi'lek dancer was staring at him. He recognized the look in her eyes. It was one he'd worn himself many times. It was the scarred and empty look of one who'd witnessed some unspeakable horror in their time.

    "Oh, that one's new," the Zabrak said, noticing Nakoa's stare. "She got here yesterday but today's her first day dancing."

    "Who is she?"

    "I don't know. She was a smuggler for some pirate. He traded her to Jabba for a few containers of spice."

    Nakoa gritted his teeth. He brushed past the Zabrak without another word. The Twi'lek continued to watch him as he approached. A Gamorrean prodded her in the back. She shot him a glare but obeyed and began dancing again.

    Nakoa drifted into the crowd of people watching the dancers. His comm blinked on a moment later. He switched it on and Oni's voice came through. "Have you found her?"

    "Maybe. I'm not sure yet."

    "Well, hurry. There are some Jawas out here that are a little too interested in the Mythos."

    "I'm hurrying." Nakoa turned the comm off again. He glanced up and quickly searched for the dancer. He was grateful for his height. He craned his head up and caught sight of her.

    The Twi'lek twirled about, matching pace with her fellow dancers. She lacked some of their grace and rhythm, but was doing well enough. Nakoa's gaze flickered to her feet. While the other dancers seemed to be lifting themselves onto the tips of their toes, hers remained firmly on the ground. She turned again and he saw a glimpse of angry red scars on her ankles.

    Another one of the dancers stumbled into her, suddenly. She gave a short exclamation and tried to steady herself. Her foot twisted and she hit the sandy ground with a thud. The crowd started laughing uproariously. Her cheeks flushed red as she picked herself up and started dancing again.

    Nakoa shouldered his way to the front of the crowd just as the dance was ending. Another tune began playing, but the Twi'lek didn't rejoin the other dancers. She slipped out of their way and sat down, massaging her ankles.

    He waited a few minutes before approaching her. "If you're here to tell me to get back to work, don't bother. I'll go in a minute," she growled, not looking up.

    "Actually, I need to talk to you about something else."

    The Twi'lek lifted her gaze. "Oh, it's you." She stood gingerly. "You don't see many Mandalorians around these days."

    "There aren't many left," Nakoa replied. "I was told you're new here."

    She crossed her arms defensively. Her grayish blue eyes narrowed. "What do you want?"

    "Do you know a smuggler who works for Hondo Ohnaka?"

    "Use to. I used to work for him."

    "So it is you?"

    "What do you want with Hondo?"

    "Nothing right now. I'm looking for someone else but if I find Hondo, I'll find my target."

    The girl looked around warily. "Go walk around. Get yourself a drink or something. I'll come and find you later."

    "Can't you just tell me what I need to know now?"

    "No. People are already noticing. Go." She pushed him away before he could protest again. Nakoa pursed his lips, then relented. He faded into the crowd once more as she began to dance.

Tatooine: 19 BBY
Jabba's Palace
Lesia Mirri

    Her ankles were killing as she made herself dance again. Lesia spied the Mandalorian's orange and black armor somewhere within the crowd. At least he won't be hard to find, she thought. Who does he want, though?

    That question rolled within her mind throughout the entirety of the dance. The music finally changed again and the dancers scattered amongst the crowd. Lesia was grateful she hadn't been chosen to be Jabba's pet for the evening. The unlucky Togruta wore a chain around her neck and sat next to Jabba as he stroked her montrals.

    She was also new, apparently. That girl had arrived a month ago, to replace a Twi'lek that Jabba had fed to his rancor. Lesia drew her attention back towards her current task. Several people made grabs for her. She simply flashed them a smile and twisted out of their reach.

    A hand tapped her shoulder. Lesia turned and spied the Mandalorian. She began dancing, drawing him away from the crowd.

    "Tell me exactly what you want and I'll see if I can help you," Lesia whispered, bracing a hand on his chest. She noticed the mythosaur signet on his chestplate. I don't remember any Mandalorian Clans with that signet.

    "I'm looking for Baja Haap. I heard he's working as Hondo's second in command."

    "He is. What do you need him for?"

    "A bounty." She could hear the smirk in his voice.

    Lesia chuckled and gave him a sly smile. "You want me to take you to him?" He nodded in reply. "What's in it for me?"

    "What do you want?"

    "I want out of here, for one thing."

    "And for another?"

    Lesia didn't reply immediately. A Devaronian was heading towards them. "Flirt with me."

    "What?" The Mandalorian took half a step back.

    She jerked her head towards the Devaronian. "Unless you want to lose precious time with me, do what I say."

    A muffled sigh escaped his helmet, but he obeyed. "Uh...you're pretty?"

    Lesia paused her dancing and gave him an unimpressed look. "Really?"

    "I don't usually flirt with people."

    "Fine." She twirled closer to him and batted her eyelashes. "If you get me in trouble, I'll have a vendor roast you along with their womp rats," Lesia growled through her teeth.

    She grabbed his hands and positioned them against her hips. Lesia tilted her head up and watched him over her shoulder. She felt him curl his fingers into a fist, to avoid touching her bare waist.

    The Devaronian gave a frustrated huff and continued past them. "You can't keep her to yourself all night, Mandalorian," he barked.

    Lesia stepped away as soon as the man was out of sight. "Sorry."

    The Mandalorian simply shrugged, though she could sense the nervousness that rippled off him. "Back to business. You want out of here and what else?"

    Lesia grinned. "I want you to help me destroy Hondo's operation. I can take you there. Baja Haap will be with him. You get your bounty and help me with a little payback."

    He didn't reply immediately. "All right," he said at last. "It's a deal."

    Lesia shook his hand firmly. "What's your name, by the way?"

    "Nakoa. You?"

    "Lesia, but sometimes people call me Les."

    "Well, Les." He tilted his head, rather cockily. "Make a plan for your escape and fill me in. I'll be back tonight with a friend." He pulled his hand away. Lesia quickly closed her palm around an object.

    Nakoa headed off without another word. Lesia rotated her palm up. A comlink sat in her hand. She tucked it underneath the fabric wrap around her lekku and returned to the other dancers. She had a plan to make.