Tatooine: 19 BBY
Dune Sea
Nakoa Sen

It didn't take long for him to return to the ship. Oni was waiting on the boarding ramp when he arrived. He spotted a small group of Jawas close by, eyeing the Mythos greedily.

"Took you long enough," Oni called. She holstered her blasters. "How did it go? I tried contacting you again."

Nakoa held up his arm and gestured to the now bare spot on his vambrace, where his comlink had once been. "She'll take us to Baja. I left my comm with her so she could reach us."

"Why didn't she just come with now?"

"She's working as one of Jabba's dancers. The palace is too crowded. We don't need Jabba's cronies chasing after us. I told her we'd be back tonight and she'd better have a plan for her escape."

"All right. Did she ask for anything in return for taking us to Baja?"

Nakoa nodded. "She wants off Tatooine which won't be hard and she wants us to help her get some payback against Hondo."

"Why?"

"He traded her to Jabba for some spice."

"Ugh, pirates." Oni watched the Jawas for a bit. "I'm bored and those creatures are annoying me."

"Oni," Nakoa warned. She ignored him and drew her blasters. "Oni!" She rocketed into the air.

He watched her touch down beside the Jawas. They screamed and took off running towards a sandcrawler. Oni blasted at the ground behind them. She didn't stop until they had all disappeared into their mechanical fortress.

Oni holstered her blasters once more and returned. Nakoa shook his head at her. "What if they decide to destroy the Mythos as retribution?"

"They won't. Jawas are cowards. It's the Sand People who run before returning in greater numbers."

"How do you know so much about Tatooine?"

"My mother used to be a slave here. I was born long after she was freed, but she still told me everything about life here. I suppose I just remembered her stories and learned a few facts from them."

Nakoa smiled a bit, even though Oni wouldn't be able to see it. It was a rare occurrence to get her to talk about her family and her life before the covert. He still didn't know what had happened to her. He remembered the day Galaar brought her to the covert. He hadn't promised to care for Oni, as Ketei had for Nakoa, but he still checked in on her from time to time.

Oni shook her head after a moment. "What are we going to do until nightfall?"

"We can do some sparring. You had a new move to show me, I thought."

"I do." Oni let a blade slide free of her vambrace. Nakoa drew his vibroblade and fell into his usual stance.

Oni lunged at him, jabbing her blade towards his neck. Nakoa blocked with his forearm just as she kicked at his feet. He jumped and used his jetpack to flip backwards. Nakoa reversed the blade in his grip and launched his own attack. Oni blocked and struck as she could.

Nakoa kept his senses alert. She would try that new move soon. She always tried them when he least expected it. This time, he was determined not to be taken by surprise. He grunted in surprise as Oni somehow twisted the vibroblade from his grasp. In the next instant, she had kicked one of his legs up and flipped him over her shoulder.

He grimaced and rolled back onto his feet. "Was that the new trick?"

Oni picked up his blade and tossed it to him. "It was. Care to learn it?"

Nakoa chuckled to himself. "You won't kill me if I try that on you?"

"It depends."

"On what?"

"How hard you throw me onto the ground." Nakoa rolled his eyes and took his stance once more.

Tatooine: 19 BBY
Jabba's Palace
Lesia Mirri

The Devaronian male found her only a few minutes after Nakoa had disappeared. Lesia forced herself not to grimace as he grabbed her by the waist and started dancing with her.

At least I don't have to deal with this for long, she thought. We'll have to start dancing by Jabba again soon and it won't be long after that when I'm out of here.

The song ended a few minutes later. Lesia tried to pull away from the Devaronian, but his grip tightened around her arm. "Hey, now. Why don't you stay with me a little longer?"

"Sorry, but Jabba wants me." Lesia pulled against him.

He jerked her closer to him. "Jabba can wait."

Lesia gritted her teeth. "Contrary to your beliefs, I have other people to entertain." Her thoughts whirled as she tried to think of a way to get out of his grasp.

An idea came to her shortly. I've never attempted that before, though. If it doesn't work...Lesia pushed her doubts away. Master Mundi told me how to do it. I just hope this man has a weak mind. Lesia met his gaze proudly and forced herself to become eerily calm. She called the Force to her. The Devaronian still watched her, grinning.

Lesia raised two fingers and passed them before his brow. "You will let me go." It wasn't exactly subtle, but her master had told her that her first attempts would have to be as direct as possible. When she mastered the technique, she'd be able to be more subtle about it.

"No, I think I'll hang onto you for a while," he sneered. "I don't know who you think you are, Slave, but..."

"You will let me go," she said again, this time more firmly. The Force emanated from her and wrapped around the Devaronian. Through it, she could sense his dark and twisted mind. "You will let me go." The man appeared confused. Lesia locked her grip around his mind. "You will let me go."

His grip slackened on her arm and he stepped back. "I will let you go."

"You will go to the other end of the room and you will not interact with me ever again."

He didn't repeat her command this time. He simply nodded and started walking away. Lesia glanced around, hoping no one had seen what she'd done. She joined the other dancers just as a new song began playing.

After nearly another hour of dancing, the crowd finally began to thin. Jabba was snoring loudly as the dancers headed towards their quarters. Lesia followed her fellow Twi'leks into their room where her normal clothes lay. She changed quickly and folded up her dancing outfit.

She eyed the clothes for a moment, then smirked. Actually, I will take those with me. They're nice clothes and I've discovered that I actually do like dancing a bit. She pulled off the head wrap last and replaced it with her own. She stuck Nakoa's comlink onto her glove.

The other Twi'leks left again shortly. Lesia switched the comm on and waited for someone to answer. "Les?" Nakoa's voice crackled over the comm.

"It's me," she replied. "I'm going to head to the upper levels of Jabba's palace. There are hatches up there that lead onto the roof. I imagine you have a ship that you could use to pick me up?"

"We do. Which side of the palace will you be on?"

"The north side."

"We'll meet you there." The comm switched off again.

"We?" Lesia arched a brow. She shrugged and grabbed her bag.

Two Gamorrean guards walked past the room. She waited for them to disappear before darting into the corridor. Lesia sprinted towards the nearest set of stairs and continued running up. Every now and then, she ducked behind a column to avoid a few people.

She spotted the Devaronian male up ahead. He saw her as well, but immediately turned and walked away. "Wow, that is a handy trick," Lesia whispered to herself. "Why didn't I want to learn it sooner?" She rounded a corner and continued up the stairs.

Tatooine: 19 BBY
Jabba's Palace
Nakoa Sen

Nakoa angled the Mythos close to the palace. "If anyone sees us, we're done for," Oni groaned.

"Take the controls," Nakoa ordered, not bothering to reply to her comment.

Oni obeyed as he stood. "Where are you going?"

"Inside to make sure she gets out all right. We don't need our guide ending up dead." Nakoa lowered the boarding ramp and jumped onto the palace roof. He quickly found one of the hatches Les had spoken of and pried it open.

He dropped down into a dimly lit hallway. Muffled music still played, but there wasn't a soul in sight. Nakoa started down the stairs with his vibroblade in hand. A shadow appeared on the wall farther down the staircase. He pressed himself back behind a pillar.

A familiar white Twi'lek darted up the stairs. Nakoa stepped out as she neared him. Les gasped and he quickly clapped a hand over her mouth. He jerked his head up the stairs. She nodded and pushed his hand away.

"What are you doing in here?" Les hissed.

"Making sure you get out alive. Oni has the ship ready."

"Who's Oni?"

"She's my partner."

They reached the hatch Nakoa had left open. He offered a hand to Lesia. She eyed the hatch above them, then relented. He wrapped his arm around her waist and activated his jetpack. Lesia closed the hatch as soon as they were on the roof.

Oni was already lowering the Mythos. They jumped onto the ship and Nakoa sealed the boarding ramp. "Where are we headed?" Oni asked when they joined her in the cockpit.

"Hondo and Baja are on Nikana," Les replied.

"Nikana? That's a remote planet."

"That's why they chose it." Lesia plopped into a seat behind Oni's. "This ship is a real work of art."

Nakoa raised an eyebrow, unsure if that was meant as a compliment or not. He slid into his seat as Oni moved back into hers. They soared into the atmosphere and quickly set the navicomputer coordinates, before making the jump into lightspeed.

"I have to say, being a slave is not the life for me. I wasn't even there a full day and I hated it," Les said.

"Do you have a plan for your little revenge act?" Oni asked.

A smug look slid onto Les's face. "Yes, I do. Hondo has warehouses full of spice. I want to get rid of them all."

"How do you plan to do that?"

"He keeps rhydonium canisters in some more warehouses a ways from his base. We can get some of those canisters and set them up near the spice warehouses. I'll plant explosives on the canisters and blow them all."

Nakoa couldn't help but grin a bit. "All right. We'll help you set up the canisters before going after Baja. Where will he be?"

"He'll be with Hondo, probably in their main building. They like to have banquets and live entertainment quite often. The explosions should cause a big enough distraction for you to get Baja and leave."

"That sounds like it will work," Oni replied. "We're coming up on Nikana so be ready."

Nakoa glanced back at Les. Her eyes narrowed and filled with a dangerous light. "I am."