Chapter Text
The Unexpected Hope touched down softly on one of the Spaceport’s docking bays, its exit ramp extended to the floor. Its small but diverse troupe of passengers walked down that ramp, leaving their ship behind them.
“Welcome to the Smuggler’s Moon,” Fuu stated grandiosely.
“Try not to get yourselves killed, mugged, or anything worse than that,” She added grimly.
Yuna nodded morosely. Togo’s expression hardened.
“May I inquire why we are sticking around on this planet?” Karin chirped up, “Would it not be wiser to go somewhere safer?”
Fuu chuckled under her breath. “Sorry to burst your bubble, Jedi, but we’re shaking pursuers here. There is no safer place.”
“I’m sure we’d be far safer on Tython…” Karin grumbled.
“Well excuse me, Jedi, but not all of our first thoughts when escaping are on the Jedi Temple,” Fuu snapped back, as Itsuki merely sighed.
“This argument is irrelevant,” Togo stated firmly, “It is perhaps wiser to focus on staying alive.”
Karin merely grumbled again.
Soft music filled their ears as they entered the cantina, Karin cautiously looking around the area. Fuu led them, directing them to a one of the more concealed seating areas, while she ordered a drink herself. She promptly returned, sitting with them.
“Alright, listen up,” Fuu began, “We need to see what information on Imperial movements and deals we can scrape up from the locals.”
“Oh, and find somewhere safe for those two,” She continued, pointing to Yuna and Karin, “To amuse themselves. They’ll stick out like a sore thumb if they try to snoop.”
“We could watch over the ship?” Karin suggested.
Fuu had to prevent herself from laughing raucously. “And risk you bailing to Tython?”
“No way in hell, kid.”
“It’ll be fine, we’ll figure out something,” Yuna comforted Karin, who shrugged her comfort off with a blush.
Fuu took another long glug from her drink, placing it back down on the table with a slight slam.
“Alright, you know what you need to be doing,” Fuu said, standing to leave, “Get to it. And try not to get killed.”
Fuu span round, leaving the area where they were seated swiftly. Itsuki and Togo stood as well, both saying their goodbyes as well, both exiting the cantina. Karin merely sighed heavily, slumping into her hands. Yuna stood simply, taking Karin by the hand.
“Follow me, I have an idea,” Yuna said, dragging Karin along with her.
“H-hey! Don’t just grab my hand and drag me with you!”
Nearby, a patron took out a small communicator, raising it close to their lips.
“All targets sighted have been sighted in the Slippery Slopes Cantina. One remains, the 4 others have left the building.”
“Excellent work,” A distinct Imperial Accent replied back, “You will receive your due reward, and the additional person you have identified will be investigated.”
“A Jedi,” was the Patron’s clipped reply.
“The admiral will certainly be interested to hear this,” The Imperial replied simply, before cutting the comm line.
The patron slowly put away their communicator, and suddenly found themselves with a very angry looking smuggler pointing a blaster in their face.
“Thanks for picking a secluded spot for our… interrogation,” Fuu threatened, flashing the patron an angry smirk.
“It’ll draw far less attention.”
The patron gulped, and slowly raised their hands.
“Now, with whom were you discussing little old me?” Fuu threatened, blaster still pointed at the patron.
“The Sith Empire said they needed Intel on a few people,” The patron sputtered out desperately, “They were offering big credits.”
“Keep. Talking,” Fuu ordered menacingly, prying the last drops of information from the patron.
“T-they said a team of Agents were on the way! Nothing else, I swear!”
Fuu retracted her blaster, before turning tail and heading out of the cantina. She retrieved her own communicator from one of her pockets.
“Fuu? Did you get the information?” Itsuki asked from the other end of the line.
“Try and find Sumi and the Jedi. Tell them to get back to the ship,” Fuu ordered, “We have Imperial Agents incoming.”
“…Blast,” Itsuki replied simply, “I’ll see what I can do.”
The comm line went dead as Fuu hung up, bringing her blaster up as she changed direction down an alley. She steadied her breathing, peeking carefully round each corner. She slowly, tentatively made her way back to the area where the Unexpected Hope was docked. As she neared the ship, she turned an alley rapidly, and took a nasty blow to the face. Her blaster was wrenched from her hands, and she stumbled back, bleeding from a burst lip and a broken nose.
“An Imperial Agent,” Fuu thought, “Time to think fast.”
“Not so tough now, Smuggler,” The Agent taunted, “Any last words?”
Fuu smirked. In the blink of an eye, she drew and activated the vibroblade from her back. A rapid diagonal slash, and the Agent’s eyes widened. The Agent slumped to the ground.
“Your mistake,” Fuu taunted before retrieving her blaster and leaving.
Yuna and Karin slinked down the alleyway, trying to make as little noise as possible. Yuna had felt something was off, and had gone to investigate. Karin was left with little choice but to follow. They slinked down the alleys, hugging the shadows. As they approached a corner, Yuna signalled for Karin to stop. Taking a cautious peak around the corner, Yuna quickly retracted her head again.
“Agents of the Sith Empire,” Yuna stated. “And some Sith as well.”
Karin’s heart froze, eyes widening. Force, Sith here?
“We need to get out of here,” Yuna whispered, “There are too many Sith there.”
Karin nodded mutely, still slightly in shock. She’d heard stories about how dangerous the Sith themselves were, but she had never actually encountered one before. Multiple at once with backup too was far more than Karin could ever imagine handling.
“There they are!”
Yuna and Karin snapped to look behind them. Imperial forces had gotten behind them.
“No time,” Yuna cursed, “Karin! Let’s move!”
“Got it!”
Karin drew her lightsabres and ignited them, while the energy field on Yuna’s gauntlets crackled into life. They charged the Imperial soldiers, Karin deflecting blaster bolts back at them. Yuna’s personal shield absorbed the blaster fire headed in her direction, as the two closed the gap rapidly. Karin danced between the soldiers, blades slicing through them as Yuna launched rapid and deadly blows on others. The soldiers were dispatched swiftly. Yuna and Karin left off in a sprint, dodging in and out of alleyways as they were pursued from behind. Any Imperial troopers in front of they were dispatched as quickly as possible, while a Sith blocking their path forced them down another alley. Suddenly, they hit a dead end. Turning around they ready themselves into a combat stance, determined to take as many Sith with them if this was their end. However, a nearby doorway opened.
“You two, get in here quickly!” A voice shouted from the door.
Looking at each other, the pair slipped through the door right just before the Sith cohort rounded the corner.
Karin breathed a sigh of relief.
“Thank you, kind stranger- Wait! Senator Nogi!” Karin exclaimed in surprise, “What is a person like you doing on the Smuggler’s Moon?”
The senator simply smirked. “That is hardly the way to greet your saviour, Knight Miyoshi.”
“And besides,” They added, “Coruscant can get so stuffy sometimes. They never let me do the fun stuff.”
Just as Karin was about to scold the Senator, Yuna butted in.
“Excuse me, but I don’t think we’ve ever met,” Yuna announced politely.
“Ah yes, where are my manners. Sonoko Nogi, Senator in the Galactic Republic,” They said, extending their hand in greeting.
Yuna smiled widely, shaking their hand. “Nice to meet you, Senator Nogi. My name is Yuna Yuki.”
Sonoko chuckled lightly. “Trust me, I know who you are. And I’m guessing Karin was assigned to pick you up by the Jedi Council.”
A grim air emanated from Karin. “I… I never actually made it. My Corvette was shot down in the planet’s atmosphere. I was rescued by a smuggler and her sister, and Yuna just happened to smuggling off world in their ship.”
Sonoko laid a reassuring hand on Karin’s shoulder. “I thought that you, as a Jedi, would know that the Force acts in strange ways.”
Karin nodded morosely, whereas Yuna looked at Sonoko in slight amazement.
“You are quite wise, Senator,” Yuna complimented.
Sonoko chuckled. “Please, call me Sonoko, Yuna.”
Togo stalked the streets. She knew her old contact was around here somewhere, and Togo just needed to find her. While avoiding any unwanted detection, of course. It would be disastrous if someone figured out she was Washio Sumi. Her old contact would know in an instant of course, but Togo wasn’t worried about that. That was her objective, after all. Slipping into a rather inconspicuous looking store, Togo looked around a bit.
“Well, I’ll be damned,” A thickly accented voice rasped from the back of the shop.
A woman, scars heavily adorning her face and cybernetic limb replacements plainly obvious to see, stepped forward to the shop’s counter.
“The Imps finally stopped paying you enough, huh?” The woman joked, lips curled into a slight smile.
Togo smiled slightly back. “It’s been a while, Minowa.”
Minowa laughed. “How many times do I have to tell you to call me Gin?”
“Now, what is it that the Great Washio Sumi has graced me with her presence for?” Gin joked.
“I need information on Imperial troop movements. As much as you got,” Togo said.
Gin simply tapped her first two fingers on the counter. Togo threw a credit chip in her direction. Gin smiled.
“For this much, I would tell you the exact time each Imperial officer in the sector wiped their ass. What cha exactly looking for?”
“Troop movements around the moon, intelligence lines concerning me and a few other persons of note, and whatever news on a certain old Admiral that used to be my direct liaison you can give me.”
“The Dreadnaught Vanquisher was last reported en route to a backwater in the Outer Rim, chasing up some lead or other. Apparently whatever happened there caused increased covert movements here. A lot of big transfers coming to the moon, apparently.”
“I got rumours of Sith on the moon. Big stuff, and all caused by one certain Bounty Hunter getting on the wrong side of them. A certain Bounty Hunter who happens to be paying for my services right now.”
Togo fixed Gin with a glare. “You double cross me and you die, Gin.”
Gin smirked. “The amount of credits you are paying right now is far more than the Imps are giving. And I also happen to keep professional confidentiality, you know.”
“But back to the subject, we’ve seen a lot of covert movement coming in here. Five pretty high value targets all on one moon. And, according to a little extra snooping, a certain Republic Senator is on world too.”
Togo raised an eyebrow. “Do my funds cover that?”
“Barely,” Gin replied while smirking, “But Senator Sonoko Nogi is apparently here on Nar Shaddaa.”
“Sonoko…” Togo said in thought, “So they are a Senator now. Last I saw them, they were just an aide.”
“I know. But that’s all the info your credits can buy you,” Gin finished, backing away from the counter.
“I recommend leaving, Togo.”
Togo barely maintained her composure, but kept her head and exited the building. Stepping back onto the street, she noticed Itsuki looking around carefully. Upon noticing Togo, Itsuki gestured for them to meet further up.
“Miss Mimori, Fuu reported that Imperial Agents are on the planet,” Itsuki told Togo, “We should head back to the ship.”
Togo nodded. “My informant told me roughly the same thing. But apparently, there are Sith on world.”
Itsuki gulped in fear.
Fuu approached the dock containing the Unexpected Hope slowly. Readying her blaster, she peeked round the corner. Her heart sank slightly. Standing there, guarding the ramp to the ship, was a Sith. Fuu steeled herself. Drawing her vibroblade from her back, she stood before the Sith.
“You know, its bad manners to block entry to my ship like that,” Fuu stated.
“Ah, so the smuggler has come to die,” the Sith taunted, raising their lightsabre.
Fuu smirked. “I’ve killed tougher Sith than you before, kid. But the question that needs asking here is: How much do you value staying alive?”
The Sith charged forwards, launching a vicious forward thrust that Fuu sidestepped. The Sith reacted faster than she could bring her blade down, force enhanced reactions coming into play. Fuu tested the Sith’s guard lightly, taking note of their harsh over-extensions and reliance on force enhanced reactions. Fuu tested the Sith’s guard more forcefully, looking for any real, exploitable weaknesses. This seemed to enrage the Sith, however, and Fuu was forced onto the defensive by a vicious flurry of lightsabre blows that pushed Fuu’s reactions to the limit. However, the Sith left their guard open, and Fuu replied with a vicious kick to the stomach, and followed with a blow to the abdomen that unfortunately only grazed the Sith. Fuu’s opponent was getting gradually angrier, and unleashed a more devastating chain of attacks that almost caught Fuu unawares. Fuu gritted her teeth, barely holding up against the assault. She managed to parry one of the Sith’s blade strikes, using the momentum to headbutt her opponent and follow it with a vertical slash that knocked her opponent off their feet. Somehow, the Sith could still stand, wounded as they were. They renewed their assault with increased fervour, but Fuu could see them weakening. Regardless, the attacks were blisteringly fast and Fuu’s arm was grazed by a blow. Ignoring the searing sensation growing in her arm, she parried, knocking the lightsabre from the Sith’s hands. Now defenceless, she thrusted her vibroblade at the Sith. It connected, and the Sith slumped down to the floor. Fuu sighed in relief, clutching her injured arm, and letting her vibroblade clatter to the floor.
Togo and Itsuki rushed into the dock where the Unexpected Hope was located. They noticed Fuu leaning on the access ramp to the ship, clutching her arm. Togo took note of the vibroblade and fallen Sith nearby.
“I always wondered whether the rumours of you having killed Sith were true,” Togo noted, retrieving the vibroblade and giving it a quick once over.
“Why so surprised?” Fuu spat back, “After all, you’ve killed Jedi, haven’t you?”
“No,” Togo replied quickly, “Yuna was the first force sensitive target they contracted me for.”
Itsuki was fussing over Fuu’s arm, and was desperately trying to get her to enter the ship. Togo handed Fuu the vibroblade, before drawing her own blaster.
“I will stand guard, wait for the return of Yuna and the Jedi,” Togo stated firmly.
Fuu would have protested, but she knew she needed the medical attention.
“Try not to shoot them when they show up,” Fuu taunted, before entering the ship.
“I will earn your trust back one day, Inubozaki,” Togo whispered. “I promise.”
Sonoko panted heavily, firing their blaster at the enemies pursuing them. They, along with Karin and Yuna, were moving quickly through the streets trying to reach the Unexpected Hope. Imperial Forces were in hot pursuit. Yuna noticed Sonoko slowing a little, and motioned for Karin to stop for a moment.
“You might want to hold on, Sonoko,” Yuna said, before lifting Sonoko into a bridal carry.
“Oh my, Yuna. At least take me on a date first,” Sonoko joked, causing Karin to blush.
They resumed their escape, Karin deflecting any stray blaster bolts coming their way. They neared the hangar, and Yuna saw Togo. Togo noticed the hurry, and shouted up to Fuu and Itsuki. Readying her blaster, she opened fire on the Imperials running round the corner, catching a fair few of them unawares. She backed up the ramp once Karin and Yuna were aboard, not letting up her blaster fire.
“Togo’s aboard, get ready to leave!” She heard Yuna shout, and the ship rumbled beneath her as she rushed to man the top gun turret. As the ship took off, Yuna laid down fire from her turret onto the Imperials pouring into the docks. The ship accelerated sharply, leaving the atmosphere and heading out into open space.
“Take us to Coruscant,” Sonoko ordered in the cockpit, as Fuu punched in Hyperspace co-ordinates.
“On any other day I would say no, but right now I’ll take my chances with Republic Justice,” Fuu replied, as the ship accelerated into hyperspace.
Fuu looked at Sonoko incredulously. “I hope I don’t make a habit of picking people up anymore…”
Sonoko merely laughed sheepishly. “I am sorry about that, but I didn’t have my own ship and was rather in need of an escape.”
Fuu waved it off. “First time I’ve ferried a Senator before. New things every day, I guess.”
The beeping of an Astromech droid could be heard in one of the cargo bays.
“You guys never told me Yoshiteru made it!” Karin shouted through, the beeping of the astromech accompanying her.
“You never asked!” Fuu shouted back jokingly.
Karin re-entered the room, Yoshiteru waddling beside her.
“Besides, the thing damn near stopped us from getting to you anyway,” Fuu jokingly complained.
Karin laughed, before rubbing the dome of the Astromech.
“I knew you would come through for me buddy,” She said as the Astromech beeped away happily.
“Admiral, we have reports coming in that the smuggler and her cohorts have escaped once again. This time with a Republic Senator in tow.”
The Admiral raised an eyebrow.
“A Republic Senator, you say? Nogi, I presume?”
The Officer nodded.
“Things may have just become a little more interesting, Lieutenant,” The Admiral said, smiling. “Take us to Dromuund Kaas. We need access to the Imperial Intelligence Network.”
“Right away, Admiral.”
The Admiral smirked. “The chase just became far more enjoyable. I look forward to what you can show me, Washio Sumi.”