Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Every day in the galaxy there were ships that blended into the endless streams of traffic, one ship after another with beings on board who just went about their day-to-day lives. 

This ship, the Boundless , wasn’t one of them. 

It was a ship piloted by a smuggler, which was about a dime a dozen. What wasn’t a dime a dozen was what they were currently engaged in: a hunt for treasure left behind by one of the galaxy’s most notorious crime bosses, Nok Drayen. 

Prindrohi Candaren, brown-haired with ocular implants and several other bits of cyborg tech, was the captain, but he’d only recently got his ship back from the bastard who’d stolen it, the traitorous Skavak. When he got it back, he found someone already onboard, the mysterious Risha, who’d been working with Skavak in an attempt to find the long-lost treasure; she decided to start working with Prindrohi instead. Now, the two, along with Ord Mantell native Corso Riggs, who’d been present when Skavak stole the ship and was helping Prindrohi out of obligation, were all learning to live with each other. It wasn’t easy.

A chime echoed around the ship via the intercom system. “Prindrohi, get over to the engine room, now .” He knew that whenever Risha pinged him over the intercom, she wasn’t happy. And that was to be expected. When she wasn’t evading questions about where she was from or what her ultimate goal was, she was absorbed in her work. She was often either in the engine room (Prin had figured that Risha liked getting her hands dirty), or she was in her “office” in the secondary cargo hold, where she’d stashed the three items they apparently needed: a caged beast known as a shanjaru, an ancient head in a jar (which creeped Corso out), and perhaps most bizarrely, a man frozen in a carbonite slab. They’d left the deathworld of Taris (encountering Beryl Thorne, an ex-colleague of Risha’s) and had gotten the astrogation charts they needed; the next step was upgrading the sublight engines, but for now Risha was simply performing maintenance on the existing ones.

When he got to the engine room, Prin saw Risha next to an open access panel, which was belching grey smoke; Risha herself was comically covered in ash (Prin attempted to contain his laughter at the sight). “Alright, Prindrohi, do you know what I found in the engine here?” She said, unamused. “I dunno, fuel?” Prin snarked back.

“Very funny. I found this.” She held out a canister with a screw top lid. “Did this come loose from the machinery?” Prin asked, concerned. “I’m not sure, but I’m letting you open it, since it’s your ship. I’m just trying to keep the engines running.”

Prin unscrewed the lid and turned the canister over. A severed human hand and foot dropped from within. “WHOA!” Prin stepped back in alarm. He looked upon the random body parts with confusion and disgust. “Look, Risha, I’ve got no clue where this came from. I didn’t dismember anyone before Ord Mantell. This must’ve been Skavak’s doing. It seems up his alley to do something to piss me off.” He said, trying to fight off the urge to run and scream in panic.

“Well, we’ve got to look in the other access panel then-- for all we know, there’s the rest of the body in there.” Risha said crisply. Prin shook his head. “Let’s hope not.”

Risha went and unlocked the opposite panel, Prin flinching in preparation. But when she did, the sounds of machinery unlocking and gears turning could be heard. When Risha leaned in closer to examine, SPROING! Something big yet soft smacked her right in the face! “Agh!” She stumbled back, rubbing her face, to see that it was a giant stuffed Ewok on a spring!

At this, Prin burst out laughing. “Oh Force, I can’t-- bwahahaha!” He was so engrossed in his laughter that he failed to notice an annoyed Risha taking the stuffed Ewok off the coil, and proceeding to whack Prin upside the head with it. “Hey, quit it! I’m sorry for laughing--”

“You don’t realize that Skavak left us these to mess with us. It’s not a laughing matter. I’ve got to go get parts to fix the engines, and a scanner, to see if he left us any other “presents”.” Risha said angrily, and she stormed out, still carrying the stuffed Ewok. Corso then came in, holding a datapad. “Uh, Captain?”

Prin turned to Corso. “You know how you said we’re in over our heads sometimes? I think I finally realize what you’re talking about.”

A while later, they were on their way to Nar Shaddaa, the smuggler’s moon, for the new sublight engines Risha claimed she needed. In the meantime, Prin and Corso were having some drinks and watching a live holo of huttball. One of the galaxy’s newest and most dangerous sports, it appealed to both men -- it was filled with deathtraps, explosives and open warfare between teams. “And down goes Darkeela, as the War Wheels take possession!” The over-enthusiastic announcer bellowed. “You ever wanna play this for real, Captain?” Corso asked before scooping a handful of chips into his mouth.

As Corso noisily noshed on the snacks, Prin thought it over. “Hmm.... maybe. I mean, I’ve always been a fan of extreme sports events. Obstacle courses, swoop racing, that sort of thing. I used to play grav-ball all the time when I was growing up. That could come in handy.”

Risha, passing by, rolled her eyes at her business partner’s apparent ambitions. “You really want a career in a game like that? Your chance of survival doing that is… well, about even with you being elected Supreme Chancellor.” She snarked.

Corso simply leaned forwards as another explosion rocked the holo. “Woo, look at that! The War Wheels accidentally wandered into the minefield! Half their side is gone, and the Coven has taken possession, heading for the endzone!” He watched intently as the players passed the ball between each other, heading for the endzone. “C’mon, c’mon…”

A cacophony of sirens and the audience’s roars sounded as the ball made it into the endzone! “YEAH! YEAH!” Corso cheered as Prindrohi looked annoyed. “You over me 10 credits!” Risha simply kept walking, off towards her office. “With all this testosterone floating around, I’m the one voice of reason on this ship. Force help me.”

Chapter Text

Prindrohi boarded the Boundless , Corso in tow -- as was a new arrival. Ceetoo greeted him as usual, informing them about some minor glitch he fixed in the navicomputer. He waved him off, and headed to the main cargo hold. Corso activated the intercom, and Risha entered shortly after. “Alright, Captain, what’s the--” Risha suddenly noticed the six-foot tall Wookiee standing next to Prin. “Risha, we’ve got a new crew member. Say hi to Bowdaar. He’s a wookiee we rescued from Drooga the Hutt.”

Bowdaar said something in Shyriiwook, but his translator device (which Prin had picked up for him so they wouldn’t need to start learning his language; any mistranslations on their part could easily lead to injury) took a few seconds to kick in. “Hello there. I am honored to make your acquaintance, Miss Risha.” The translator gave Bowdaar a deep, baritone voice. Risha turned to Prin, staring at him. “Captain, how exactly did you manage to get a Wookiee from Drooga? Something tells me it wasn’t related to the shanjaru.” She said, a tone of suspicion in her voice.

“No, it’s a long story. Also, we stopped some crazy scientist from creating beast slaves, and we’re going to need to head for Coruscant to save the shanjaru species.” Corso summarized. “Well, our new sublight engines are installed and online, so we should be able to test them out before we go to hyperspace.” Risha then presented a datapad with the new engine specs to Prin, who pocketed it. “Good work, Risha. Also, I stopped at an electronics shop and got everyone something.” He reached into a bag he’d been carrying and began handing out boxes to Risha, Corso and Bowdaar.

Risha opened the box and pulled out a sleek, rectangular device with a screen. “So what is it? A mini-datapad?” “Better. CEC decided to expand into the electronics sector, and this is their first market-ready device. They call it a MyComm. It blends together a datapad, a holocomm and a spot-on locator into one convenient device!” Prin said.

Corso couldn’t believe it. “How could they fit all that into such a tiny case?”“Years of experience into fitting tiny stuff in a starship hull translates well to this area of manufacturing. Just turn it on with the button on the top.” Prin informed the others.

As Corso, Risha and Bowdaar clicked the buttons, the MyComms’ screens began glowing, coming to life. Soon enough, the operating system booted, revealing a smattering of small icons, a clock (based on Coruscant Standard Time) and the latest weather report, against a space backdrop.

“So these babies are fully linked to the HoloNet, so you can constantly send and receive data between people; you can view holovids, music, scandocs and e-books, and you can make calls to people in either holocomm, video or voice. It’s weatherproof and durable, built to withstand a typical spacer lifestyle. And it can take pictures!” Prin then snapped a photo of the others to demonstrate.

Bowdaar looked at his own, a bit larger than the others’ due to his larger hands. “Can this do anything else?” Prin nodded. “Yep, you can download applications for either free, or a small cost. You can play games, shop at stores, handle financial stuff, get the latest news, and so much more! It’s incredible versatile and can get a signal practically anywhere.”

Prindrohi then activated the video-viewer app on his own MyComm, and the main holoprojector began glowing. “What are you doing?” Risha wondered.

“You can remotely control holoprojectors with your MyComm, too. Right now, I’m streaming a holoadventure from Corellia called Thunderbolts -- the story of a group of adventurers, gathered to defend the Republic from a bunch of ancient demons intent on causing disasters, which the Thunderbolts actively attempt to save people from.”

The others began watching with interest, the holo currently showing the demons attacking a set of unusually designed rescue craft, and they all gathered on the couch. “You know, these things are the wave of the future.” Prindrohi thought-- just before receiving an incoming call on the ship’s holofrequency.

“Hello, is anyone out there? This is Captain Feylara Raed of the free-trader Celestial Crow! If anyone’s out there, I need help!” The holo changed from the show to an anxious woman, clearly on the edge of panic. Prin rushed off the couch and hit the response button. “This is the Boundless, Captain Prindrohi Candaren reading you. What’s the situation?”

“My ship’s engines have burned out, my power cells are fading, and I’m losing life-support. I’m drifting off into a sun!” Feylara explained, the sound of defeat evident in her voice. “Look, just transmit your coordinates to us and we’ll be there ASAP.” Prin assured her.

“I’ll pay you to help with the repairs, just hurry!” With that, the holo vanished. “Alright, time to put the engines to the test.” Prin ordered as the coordinates were sent straight to the navicomp. A few minutes passed and the Boundless emerged from hyperspace at the indicated location. “That’s odd. There isn’t a sun anywhere near here.” Corso said as he consulted the star charts.

“I’ve got a bad feeling about this. I think this may be a trap.” Risha crossed her arms. “Just because there isn’t actually a sun nearby doesn’t mean it’s a fake, Risha. She was probably panicking. If I was in a situation like that, I’d say something like that too.” Prin then began to maneuver the Boundless to dock with the Celestial Crow . “Docking onto a starship in deep space isn’t the best idea. There’s a million things that can go wrong.” Risha said, maintaining her stance.

“I’m going to bring Bowdaar along, just in case the worst happens. Will that make you feel better?” Prin said, irritated at Risha’s pessimistic position. “Hey, you’re the one going onto the dark, scary starship, not me.” With that, Risha left the cockpit.

----

A few minutes later, Prin and Bowdaar were inside the Celestial Crow . In comparison to the Boundless , the Celestial Crow was much bigger, almost the size of a bulk container ship. It also seemed to be relatively empty, except for various droids, which Prin assumed were an automated crew that had been disabled by the lack of power.

“If she tries anything, I can rip her arms out of her sockets.” Bowdaar casually informed Prin as they tried to find Feylara. “Bowdaar, no. We’re going to help her repair this thing so she’s not in danger. There’s not going to be a need for that.” Prin said, though privately he was beginning to doubt this-- even if the crew was entirely automated, shouldn’t there have been backup systems?

“Hey, there she is.” He could see Captain Feylara standing at the end of the rather long cargo bay. Weirdly, she was standing behind what looked like a green ray shield. “Hi. I was starting to think you wouldn’t show.”

“Don’t worry, I never leave anyone in a situation like this hanging. We’ll have the ship fixed in no time.” Prin pulled out a toolkit, ready to get to work. “Uh…. I might’ve exaggerated a teensey bit about the damage.” Feylara admitted, acting as though she was a child who’d broken a rule. “Yeah, you’re not near a sun. We’re still gonna fix you up so you’re not left drifting into oblivion.” (Prin thought this woman, weirdly, sounded like Risha, albeit with a completely different accent.)

“Geez, this is harder than I thought it would be. Just so you know, this isn’t personal. I have to kill you, but… it’s for love.” Feylara said as she pulled out a holocom. “Wait, what?” Prin was rather confused. “You’re going to kill me for love?” “It’s romantic, isn’t it?” Feylara sighed.

“Gotta admit, this is a new one. Never had someone try to kill me for love before.” Risha was listening, and smirked at Prin’s bumbling into a trap. “So, if you’re behind that ray shield, how’re you going to kill me?” Prin pointed out the flaw in the apparently crazed Feylara’s plan, but she ignored his comment. “Shhh…. Quiet, I have to make a call.”

She tapped a button on her holocomm, and who should appear but the tattooed face of evil: Skavak. “Hey Skavak, it’s me, Feylara. Surprise!” For his part, Skavak himself sounded rather surprised. “Long time no see. Uh, how’d you get this holofrequency?”

Feylara simply giggled. “Doesn’t matter. I’ve missed you so much, honeybunch.” Prin chuckled, and decided to taunt Skavak for the hell of it. “Hey there, ‘honeybunch’.” Skavak’s holoimage promptly turned to face Prin. “What is this? Are you making an army out of my ex-girlfriends?” Skavak sounded somewhat amused at the idea.

“No, this was my idea. This is your nemesis, right? The one who stole your ship and made you look like an idiot?” Feylara explained eagerly. “Yep, good times. Oh, and that reminds me, you may want to get yourself checked out for Bothan nether rot.” Prin reminisced. “I can prove how much I love you, honeybunch, by killing this nemesis for you.” Feylara said, eyes fixed on the holo of Skavak. 

“She’s pretty, but her eyes are crazy!” Bowdaar muttered.

“Get em, boys!” Prin and Bowdaar promptly turned to see the droids they’d passed by earlier rushing right at them! Their rifles began spitting red beams at them, and while Prin rolled behind a large crate and unholstered his pistol, Bowdaar began getting right up in the droids’ faces and ripping them apart! Prin used his ocular implants and the accuracy of his Merr-Sonn IR-5 pistol to quickly dispatch several more droids as Bowdaar went to town on most of the robotic force.

After a few minutes, the attempted assassination was now little more than a pile of automaton parts. Keeping his blaster trained on Feylara, Prin and Bow approached her once more. “Wow, you’re really good.” Feylara seemed to be almost in awe at the destruction. “You’re not the first to notice.” Prin said casually. “I thought for sure I had enough droids to kill you. Why don’t we call this even, huh? With this ray shield, you can’t harm me.” Feylara went from lamenting her plan to trying to bargain in less than a minute.

“Feylara, how are you powering that ray shield?” The almost-forgotten Skavak asked, having had a front-row seat to the idiocy of his ex. “Portable battery pack, why?” Feylara responded. “You do know those only last for a few minutes, right?”

As if on cue, the wavy green bubble vanished, leaving the lovesick captain defenseless. “Oh, no…” Prin just facepalmed at the effects of lovesickness. ”Honeybunch, my shield is down, what am I gonna do?” Feylara panicked. “I dunno, die?” Skavak’s holo-image shrugged, before turning to Prin. “ Kill you later, Captain.” The holo-image fizzled out, and Feylara frantically attempted to redial, only to find her frequency was blocked. “Honeybunch! He... he hung up! I…. I thought he loved me! ” The now-heartbroken captain sat down in shock, tears beginning to well in her eyes.

As she cried into her hands, she felt a comforting hand on her shoulder. She looked up to see Prin, his face filled with sympathy. “Look, you’re not the only one to have been tricked by him. I can attest to that.” He said softly. “My friends. They-they said he was only after my money! They didn’t know how he made me feel!” She wailed. “Go ahead and cry, if it makes you feel better.” Prin offered. 

For a couple of minutes, the only noise was the sound of Feylara’s weeping. Eventually she rose back up, and looked back at her would-be target with an expression of fear. “You aren’t gonna kill me now, are you?” Prin shook his head, and instead offered her a towel he’d found in a crate nearby. She took it and began to wipe her face, before she spoke again. “Well, can you forgive me for trying to kill you?” She asked hopefully.

“Yes, I can. You’re not bad, just misguided. You’ve learned something from this: not to trust people like Skavak. Go out and find your true self.” Prin encouraged. “Well, I’ve unsealed all the hatches for you, so you can go now.” Feylara turned, but Prin tapped her on the shoulder. “Want a hug?” Feylara nodded, and collapsed into his arms. “Thanks for giving me another chance.” She whispered, before kissing him on the cheek.

A few minutes later, Prin and Bowdaar were back on board, Risha waiting for them. “I told you so.” She said in an amused tone. Prin just turned to her. “Yeah, you’re right all the time, I get it.” Her expression turned serious. “I will admit, I didn’t expect you to forgive that crazy woman for what she tried to do to you.”

“I believe in forgiveness. I knew that she wasn’t that malicious, she just got taken in by a manipulative bastard. Most of us here got tricked by him.” Prin said firmly. “Hopefully she’ll be able to find her own path in life.” Risha realized perhaps Prindrohi wasn’t like other captains-- he seemed to have something they lacked. A moral center.

Chapter Text

Another day on the Boundless . Corso was sleeping in since, at the moment, there wasn’t anything going on. They’d hit a lull after going to Tatooine and Prindrohi had taken the opportunity to finance their treasure hunt. Even despite Risha’s connections, they still needed fuel and supplies, and thus had taken on legitimate cargo hauls to make sure their funds weren’t drained. Ergo, they were currently en route to Berchest, for a variety of small jobs.

He woke up, lazily stretched out, and emerged from the bunk room a few minutes later. A quick stop in the galley and he had a fresh cup of caf in his hand. “Morning, Miss Risha.” Corso was nothing but polite to her as he sat down at the galley table; he knew that one wrong move with her and he’d be in for a world of pain and/or humiliation. “Good morning, Mr. Riggs.” She had her own cup of caf and was reading something on her MyComm. Suddenly, he heard what sounded like a trumpet. “What was that?”

Corso went back into the hallway, and looked towards the couch in the main hold. He saw Bowdaar huddled up under a blanket, looking miserable, coughing and hacking. Every so often, he’d reach for a box of durasheet tissues, and blow his nose with them (explaining the odd noise).

“Morning, Corso.” Prindrohi walked over, joining them in the galley. “Bow’s sick. Says it’s the Wookiee equivalent to the common cold. He says humans can’t catch it, but I’ve taken precautions, just in case.” Prindrohi then held up a small remote, and hit a button on it.

A forcefield then flickered into life around the couch, with a readout on the remote saying “Germ force field online”. “This will eliminate any germs that Bowdaar has floating around him, just in case his cold can be transmitted to us. He’s fine with it, he realizes that we don’t have time to get sick, what with all that cargo we have to deliver.”

“Speaking of, we have to get that crate of caf mugs to the local Biscuit Baron.” Risha reminded them. Prindrohi’s expression darkened, and he stalked off for the cockpit. “No, take Corso. I’ve gotta do some modifications to the navicomputer, it’s been running a little slow. Take the Rendili speeder.”

Soon enough, Corso and Risha were on the surface of Berchest, speeding to the local Biscuit Baron, cargo in tow. “So, why didn’t Prindrohi want to deliver this? He seemed to be rather annoyed when I brought it up.” It seemed rather odd behavior, as typically he was rather relaxed (when he wasn’t irritated by whatever crazy events he’d been brought into).

As Risha steered the speeder carefully through the local traffic lanes, Corso was hanging onto the speeder’s back seat with as tight a grip as he could manage. “Prin hates Biscuit Baron. That’s why.” Risha looked surprised. “Really? I know it’s bland at best, but it’ll still do in a pinch. Does his stomach not agree with it?”

“He once got a massive case of food poisoning from a QuickSnackLite before he met me, it turned out bantha droppings were all over the Biscuit Baron he’d been in. He was laid up and hurling for two days. Another time, he got a cup of stimcaf that was so stimmed, his limbs were twitching uncontrollably and he couldn’t do anything productive that day.” Corso recounted.

“No wonder he hates it. I mean, everybody has something they hate about it. I hate their airspeeder lane speakers, you can’t hear anything on those things.” Risha complained. “Tell me about it. One time the speaker was so shoddy, I swear the guy asked me to sever my leg, because “it’s the greatest day”. I gave up and ordered inside, but not before shooting that speaker.” Corso then stared into the air, remembering his lost gun that he’d used to shoot the speaker box. “Don’t worry, Torchy. I’ll get you back.” He murmured.

They pulled up to the Biscuit Baron and quickly unloaded the crates into the backroom. When they got back to the Boundless for the next delivery, they found Prindrohi curled up on his own bed in the captain’s quarters, germ forcefield in place.

“Turns out, Wookiee colds are human-susceptible. I’m gonna be in here for a while. Corso, you fly the ship, alright. And don’t forget to take anti-cold medicine! That goes for you too, Risha!” He said in a voice that sounded like he'd been yelling nonstop, before he turned around and started hacking like crazy. Risha and Corso then looked at each other. “We’re gonna need a lot of disinfectant.” “Don’t worry. I stocked up on this type of stuff before you people got here. I find it best to be prepared for any eventuality, no matter how mundane.” As Risha walked off, Corso simply thought “Again, I have to be very careful around her.”

Chapter Text

As Prindrohi eased the Boundless into the repair station, he turned to Corso. “Now remember, we’re gonna have to be down on Kuat while they fix that recalled fuel tank. Damn CEC engineers. They can master cargo hauling, but one tiny fuel leak is all it takes for a recall.” Prin continued to grumble as he, Corso, Risha and Bowdaar left on a shuttle for Kuat’s surface. (Ceetoo would be on the ship, serving as their eyes and ears while KDY engineers fixed the problems.)

Soon enough, the crew was on the ground in Kuat City, capital of the planet that had made its’ name in starship design. But right now, Prin was just aimlessly walking around as he tried to see if there was any decent entertainment around on his MyComm. “Captain, c’mon, there’s just about a billion cantinas here, just pick one!” Corso complained. “Corso, I want to avoid another incident. The last time you were in a cantina, you got drunk on something and started hurling tomatoes at the stand-up comic! And he was actually good!” Prin reminded.

Corso looked to the side, clearly embarrassed. Then, Bowdaar spoke up. “Friends, I found a nice place!” He then activated his MyComm’s holoprojector, showing their location in Kuat City relative to the place he had found. “They call it The Hub, and it has great reviews. It serves only a limited amount of alcohol, but they have a wide selection of food. It should satisfy us while we wait!”

Corso agreed with Bowdaar. “Yeah, let’s give this place a try. I really don’t have any other ideas.” “I’m hungry myself, so let’s get there already.” Risha chimed in.

A few minutes later, they arrived at The Hub. It was a relatively small place, not unlike a fast-food joint. Inside there were simple white walls, tables, an ordering window, and a line of hologames along the back wall. Plenty of customers were around, eating, chatting and playing. Prindrohi gave an approving nod. “Bowdaar, you did a good job of picking this time.” The crew proceeded inside and found a table. “I’ll go see what this place has on the menu.” Corso then headed for the ordering line, leaving Prin, Risha and Bowdaar at the table.

“So Risha, have you ever been to Kuat?” “No, actually. I mean, everybody’s heard of them because of their massive starship operations, but no. I still can’t believe that KDY has to fix the fuel tank. This is putting us behind on our schedule.” Risha lamented. For all they knew, Skavak was getting ahead of them in their mutual race to the Drayen treasure.

“Calm down, Risha. It was part of a trade agreement between KDY and CEC. KDY supplied the fuel tanks, and thanks to a design flaw they have to repair them. It’s bad luck, nothing more.” Prin explained. “Plus, I don’t relish the idea of blowing up at random thanks to a fuel leak.” “Fair point.” Risha admitted. Bowdaar then stretched out his limbs, nearly plastering a passing-by Quarren in the process. “Captain, after we eat, do you want to play one of those hologames?” “Sure, Bow. I’d kick anyone’s ass on “Bacon Avenger”. Don’t break the eggs! Heh, heh.” Prin replied.

RIsha just looked at him funny, but then Corso returned, a plastic basket of food and drink in his hands. “Alright everybody, I got us some sliders, a basket of protato wedges, and some soda. Dig in!” Everybody then began eating and drinking, and there wasn’t much to be said for the next few minutes. Once Corso finished his slider, he promptly took a swig of his soda, and let out a huge belch.

“Whoa! Sorry.”  Risha scowled at that. “So, aside from hologames, is there anything else to do here?” “I’ve heard there’s a museum of technology, maybe we can check that out.” Prin began to check out his MyComm for local attractions, when something caught his eye -- near the corner of the back wall, a blank space, with an electronic bulletin board hanging over it, suddenly opened up, and a blonde woman exited, an expression of bliss on her face, some smoke wafting from behind her before the secret door shut again.

“Uh, guys, did you see that?” He looked around the table, and noticed that everyone else had in fact seen it. “Yes. I’m curious as to what could be happening behind that door.” Risha said, staring suspiciously at the hidden door. Prin looked to Corso. “So, do you want to investigate what’s going on?” “Sure, let’s just finish our food first.” Corso then began to eat faster.

After several minutes, everyone was finished, and Prin led them to the concealed door. He found a button on the underside of the bulletin board, and the door swung open, smoke again billowing out and into their faces. “Whoo, what is that smell!” Corso said, holding his nose. Risha couldn’t tell what the smell was, but it sure smelled odd. “Alright, be on your guard. For all we know, they might be burning some bodies down there.” She said, her finely-honed skills telling her something illegal was most likely in progress.

The group then proceeded down a stone staircase, before emerging into what was likely the restaurant's basement. It was a stone-walled room, and it would’ve been rather gloomy looking had it not been for all the colorful electronic posters on the wall. People were everywhere, and music could be heard faintly. Snacks and drinks were strewn about. There were all sorts of unusual lamps, fixtures, toys and games, and objects all over, no real rhyme or reason attached to their placement. Some of those physical games were being played, even. The beings in the room were largely human, though some aliens were scattered here and there. There was a rather small vidscreen near the back of the room, with a table and four assorted chairs directly in front of it.

Prin and the others looked around warily. “Man, what’s going on down here?” Corso wondered. The smell was strong, so much that Bowdaar was holding his nose. “It must be some new variety of spice they’re smoking down here.” Risha assumed. Just then, a human with frizzy hair and sunglasses came up and handed them small oblong objects, wrapped in paper. “Welcome to the Basement-- where you can smoke canny in peace.”

Corso looked to the others, confused. “Canny? Have any of you guys heard of a canny?” Prin, Risha and Bowdaar just looked at him, equally confused. “From the looks of it, you guys are spacers. Canny is the new drug here on Kuat. It was discovered about a year ago. It’s not like glitterstim or any other spice-- you don’t have to mine it. No danger. Instead, it’s a plant you harvest, roll up into these joints, and smoke. Simple, huh?”

Risha looked at the joint suspiciously. “So it’s not spice. But every drug has side effects. What are the side effects of this?” She rolled the joint around in her hands-- it felt and looked like actual paper, a rarity in the galaxy at large-- most people used durasheet or flimsiplast.

“Well, you see things, see colors, things get distorted. Depending on how much you have or what species you are, the effects can vary. Some beings use canny to help get through the pain of ailments they have. But us down here in The Basement, we smoke in peace, away from the planetary peace-keepers. Since the Kuat government hasn’t decided what to classify canny as, the cops tend to bust anybody who smokes in public, at least around here.” The man explained.

The four looked at the joints. Prin finally spoke up. “Well, we’ve got a lot of time before the Boundless is out of drydock, so why don’t we give this stuff a shot?”

----

A few minutes later, the group was seated at the empty table, enjoying the canny. To put it bluntly, they were tripping. Prin was laughing goofily. “Wow, that guy was right. This stuff is good. We’ve gotta, like take some with us.”

While under the influence, Prin had set up his MyComm to record this, just for the hell of it. The device promptly swiveled around, tracking the movement as he passed the joint to Corso. Corso took a drag from the joint, then coughed a bit.

“You know, I’m glad I left Ord Mantell. That planet wasn’t a paradise at all. I hated it! It was where fun goes to die in the endless junkyards. Heh, junk.” The canny was loosening the inhibitions of everyone and their minds were wide open. Corso passed the joint along to Risha. “Hey, does anybody else realize that we’re still eating?” She held up a bag of protato crisps. “I thought we got food already!” Her voice was moving away from the normal sarcasm-infused accent and towards a more natural tone of voice. She took another drag, then passed the joint to Bowdaar. “I… I don’t know why, but I have this urge to shave all of my fur. It’s so hot with all this fur on me!” Bowdaar said, attempting to yank a handful of his fur out to expose his actual skin. He struggled for a few moments, then gave up.

Bow passed the joint back to Prin, who took another puff. “Well said there, my What-A-Wookiee! Hey Risha, why did you bring that severed head in a jar and carbonite guy on board the Boundless? Those are creepy!” Corso just giggled. “Dude, I was wondering that too! I mean, whose are those?”

Risha’s eyes darted back and forth, red and puffy. “That head I think belonged to some ancient warrior. And the guy in carbonite? He’s my dad.” “What?” Prin yelled. “Why would you put your own dad in carbonite? Did he give you a curfew? Or did he say ‘no blasters in the house’?” Swaying, Risha looked down. “It’s because, um…. I can’t remember why. Maybe Bow knows.” “I don’t know who that frozen person is.”

Prin then looked at Risha. “Well you know what, I’ve been wanting to say this for a while. Risha, you are hot, and you know it.” Corso looked at both Prin and Risha. “So the latent attraction finally manifested itself! Man, I'm using a lot of big words.” Corso looked rather proud of himself for this.

Risha looked shell-shocked. “Wow, Prin. I didn’t know you had it in you. I actually think you’re kinda hot too.” Prin grinned, as he got a lascivious look on his face. “You wanna make out? Because I really don’t think you wanna touch Corso... ever.” Risha blushed. “Maybe.” They leaned in towards each other experimentally, lips puckered.

Just then, Bowdaar piped up. “Honor friends. I have a bad feeling--” Bowdaar then turned to the side and began puking up his lunch. Prin and Risha pulled away from each other, looking on in disgust. “I guess the canny is bad for Wookies. No more for him.” Corso said.

-----

When Corso came to, he found himself on the floor of the lounge. He blearily opened his eyes, and found himself amongst a pile of snack food and datacards. “Oh, Master Corso, you’re finally awake!” He saw Ceetoo, walking out from the hallway, carrying a basket filled with medical supplies. “Ugh. Ceetoo, what happened? Last thing I remember is that Prin found a secret door at this fast-food place on Kuat, and then it’s… all kind of a blur.” Corso said as he sat up, rubbing his head-- everything felt woozy.

“You and the others partook in some illegal drug you called canny. The others are in the medbay. Bowdaar is still vomiting, it seemed to have a particular adverse reaction for him.” Ceetoo said, before picking out a bottle of dramamine. “If you need some, I have various remedies for the side-effects of this drug. Except the memory loss.”

“What about Prin and Risha?” Corso asked, as he struggled to even stand up, before collapsing onto a nearby chair. “They are in their bunks. Before he passed out, Prin gave me his MyComm, saying he had recorded a holo of you four.” Ceetwo then handed the MyComm to the curious Corso, who began playback.

A few minutes later, he handed it back to Ceetoo. “Ceetoo, erase that video. I don’t think any of the others want to remember that.” An awful noise then sounded through the ship. “If you’ll pardon me, I have to go clean more of Master Bowdaar’s vomit.” The tone in Ceetoo’s voice sounded like he regretted even being here. Corso really couldn’t blame him for that.

Chapter Text

Entering the cockpit, Prin got to the navicomputer, setting it for a random hyperspace jump to somewhere; Risha and Corso also entered, and saw Nar Shaddaa recede, the stars stretch and the blue tunnel of hyperspace. The trio were exhausted. Prin mostly, since he’d finally gotten one major goal accomplished, in addition to escaping a ship about to fall into a black hole.

Risha reached over for the intercom. “Bow, Ceetoo, meet us in the cockpit.” Soon enough, they were there. “Alright everyone, we’ve got good news, and good news. First, we’ve got the treasures from the reliquary of Nok’s, including the crown. And even better, we finally killed that slippery Skavak. He won’t be causing us any trouble now.”

Bowdaar nodded. “I hope that dishonorable scumbag enjoys an extended stay in any of your nine hells.” Corso smiled, but then turned serious. “But wait, what about Rogun the Butcher?” “We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.” Prin sighed and turned to Bow. “We’re gonna be at Hosk Station in about--” he paused to check the navicomp readout“--eight hours, so Ceetoo, you’re in charge up here. Alert us if something goes wrong.”

Prin, Risha, Corso and Bow all left the cockpit. As they exited into the main hold, Prin remembered something. “Oh, Corso, I found this on Skavak’s body.” He removed an object from his waistband. It was Corso’s blaster, the one Skavak had stolen on Ord Mantell. Corso was ecstatic. “Torchy! You found him! I never thought I’d see him again!” Corso hugged his captain in celebration, then ran off to his quarters, yelling “Thanks, Prin!”

Risha was just looking at where Corso was standing with a weirded-out expression on her face. “That’s an unhealthy attachment.” Prin shrugged. “He names all his weapons. Plus, if Skavak had stolen my Merr-Sonn IR5, I’d rejoice like that too. Anyway, let’s head over to the galley, I’m starving.”

A few minutes later, the smuggler and, as was revealed, future queen were busy munching their way through a box of ChocoDiscs and gulping down blue milk to go with it. Two of life’s simple pleasures. Prin was noshing away and watching a holo, when Risha tapped him on the shoulder. “Prindrohi, can I talk to you?”

Prin knew what this was going to be about. “Risha, before you go blaming yourself--” “No, Prin, I’m not blaming myself for what happened on Nar Shaddaa. I’m not blaming you either. It… my father was one of the galaxy’s most notorious gangsters, he was frozen in carbonite for ten years. When he was at the peak of his power, pretty much everyone he knew except for me and my mother were either thugs, hangers-on, or trying to kill him. He never really had the benefit of having friends, like I have.”

She trailed off, looking forlorn. “Thanks to you, Bow and even Corso, I’ve learned the value of having friends, of having allies I can trust. We’ve stuck by each other, even despite the multiple attempts on our lives by all sorts of disreputables. A lot of other people in this position would’ve abandoned you and left you for dead. But I didn’t. I won’t . You guys are the first people I’ve cared about in a long time.” Prin saw that Risha wasn’t lying or deflecting. This was a rare occasion: she was opening up and letting her emotions take over.

“Rish, I know it seems unbelievable, but outside of the underworld, that’s how people operate. You grew up in it. I got in on the smuggling thing just a few years ago. I grew up with a sense of right and wrong. A lot of smugglers don’t have that. But I do, and I brought it with me.” Prin said firmly.

“Look, Risha, I’m not entirely sure where you’re going with this conversation, but I want you to know this: wherever you go, we’ll be there for you. We’ll help you regain your throne. Because in situations like this, we stick together.” He held out my hand for a handshake, but much to his surprise, she hugged him instead. After being taken by surprise, he relaxed and hugged her back. She’d never gotten this close to him before. They held each other for a few seconds before she pulled away. “I want you to know, Prindrohi, that you are one of the very few people that I trust completely. And I’ll stick by you, too.” She wiped a tear from her eye, then gave Prin a quick peck on the cheek. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some planning to do regarding my future return to Dubrillion.” She left the galley, resuming her usual impassive attitude.

Corso walked in a moment later. “Hey, we just got a holo from Darmas Pollaran, he needs to speak with us once we’re finished at Hosk Station… what’s up? You rarely smile like that.” Prin smiled a lot, but usually it wasn’t as wide and warm. “Corso, it’s what happens when you affirm a friendship.”

----

By the time they got to Hosk Station, Corso was grateful. Not only was he able to get Torchy freshly repaired and cleaned at a weapons-maintenance store (since Skavak evidently did not keep up with it like Corso did; Corso always made sure to store his weapons in their proper cases, as well as perform regular maintenance checks and cleaning, to ensure no malfunctions or backfires), but it also meant he was able to bask in the glory of having helped to get the galaxy’s most-wanted treasure trove (even if he was unconscious when it was recovered). The news had spread quickly, and once they docked at Hosk Station, people were coming up and congratulating them. They had told Darmas they wanted to have a little time off until whatever he wanted them to do, so now they were getting a much-needed respite at Hosk Station. The lockbox had scores of credits inside already, and Risha was planning on selling some of the rare artifacts also inside, to build up their financial status.

Also, there was the fact that he’d seen Risha smiling. Not smirking, and not her usual stony, impassive face. He’d only seen her smile for a brief moment, but it freaked him out badly. It seemed like it was against the laws of the universe.

Corso was casually wandering around Hosk Station’s main promenade. There were plenty of shops and eateries to explore, attractions and even a large greenhouse/garden area. Holographic viewports provided live feeds of space, the planet below them (Kalarba) and other locations nearby. He went up a tight spiral staircase to the second level, and sat down on a bench.

“Hey, man.” It was the captain, holding several shopping bags. Prin then sat down next to him, looking rather exhausted. “You bored?” Corso shook his head. “No. I’m just enjoying the view. You know this whole station surrounds an entire moon? I still can’t figure out how that could even work.” Corso had wracked his brain trying to figure that out.

“I’ve been all over the place, stocking up on things we might need at some point. Risha advised me to. Thankfully there’s a lot of bulk-merchandise places on the lower levels that deliver straight to the ship, but I still have to get smaller things myself.” Prin stretched out, before taking off his boots. “My feet are killing me, I had to go all over the damn station. If it wasn’t for my MyComm having a map, I’d be completely lost.” Prin admitted, rubbing his sore feet.

For a few minutes, nothing was said as they simply stared at the viewports, the planet glowing beneath them. Ships buzzed around, some civilian, others commercial. Right now, it was a chance for them to decompress. They’d achieved so much; now, it was time to slow down and catch their breath, before moving onto to whatever was next.

“So what should we do next?” Prin consulted his MyComm-- they still had six days left so that meant plenty of time to slack off. “Wanna go and play some hologames?”

“How about we go get drunk? I think we can let our guard down for once.” Corso suggested. “Y’know what? That’s not a bad idea. We got ourselves a big victory, we can toast to it.”

They quickly found a tavern, the Hoodoo Hut, which had a strange theme of seemingly mystical potions and magic. But Prin and Corso didn’t really care about that. They wanted to toast to their victory over Skavak and to finding the galaxy’s biggest lost treasure. That meant they could buy a lot of alcohol. They started slowly, with a couple beers, but soon the staff was making all sorts of strange concoctions, like a “hyperdrive breach”, which was smoking thanks to liberal applications of dry ice. It was mixed in a big-ass bowl, so Prin and Corso got curly straws to drink it.

Soon, they were in full party mode, dancing around to the beat of loud EDM music as the other patrons cheered them on. Risha entered to see the sight. “Force help me.” She muttered. “Oh, hey Rish! Wanna come dance and… uh ... stuff?” Prin said, his current inebriated state taking a toll on his mental acuteness. Corso didn’t even seem to notice as he continued to bob to the beat of the pounding music. “GO CORSO! GO CORSO! GO CORSO!” The other people chanted.

“Time for you two to get back to the ship, you’ve clearly had enough and-- WHOA!” Prin took her by the hand and began to spin her around! “Let go of me!” “C’mon, I need someone for close dancing and Corso doesn’t swing that way.” Prin stage-whispered.

“But it’s not even that type of music!” Risha protested. “C’mon, lighten up, Rish. Even you need to relax sometimes.” Prin then let go, sending Risha stumbling back; she managed to bring herself to a halt, before she crashed into a table. She stood back up, glaring at her idiot captain. “This is why I don’t get drunk. Things like this always result.”

“Awwww…. Come on!” Corso drawled. “Can’t you just have fun for once? You’re always so serious!” He said, stumbling over a chair onto the floor. “I’m okay.” Corso croaked. “I’m taking the both of you back to the ship. You’re liable to cause more chaos than usual when you’re drunk.” Risha then stood Corso up, and grabbed Prin by his shirt collar, dragging the both of them out of the Hoodoo Hut.

As they walked over to the elevator that would take them back to the hangar, both Prin and Corso had their arms around Risha’s shoulders to keep themselves from falling over. “Arm-in-arm with two drunks. This is not how I imagined I’d be spending today.”

It took a few minutes-- and a couple of detours so Corso could bazooka-barf-- but they managed to make it back to the Boundless. “”I see that our captain is incapacitated again. Should I warm up the medbay?” Ceetoo inquired as they entered the main hallway. “No. Just take Corso over to the bunk area, and get a pail he can puke in.”

Corso promptly collapsed into Ceetoo’s arms, and the latter attempted to carry the wasted Ord Mantellian, with some difficulty. Risha, meanwhile, was helping Prin to his private quarters. “Y’know something, Rish? Y’r a goodfriend. Good friend.” Prin muttered. “Yes, I suppose I am.” She helped Prin into his bed, where he sprawled out like a cat. “Thanks for helping me back. Most people would’ve left us there and….” Prin yawned hugely, before putting his head down into the pillow. A few seconds later, he began to snore (thankfully muffled by the pillow).

Staring at the unconscious captain, Risha crossed her arms and smiled. “Guess I am a good friend.” With that, she turned the lights off and left the room.

Chapter Text

Corso was busy repairing the scanoven in the galley (the damned thing seemed to malfunction every other day) when he heard the intercom chime. “All crew members to the main hold.” “Prin must’ve finished aiding the resistance down on Balmorra.”, he thought. They’d become Republic privateers (courtesy of Darmas and a Republic senator named Dodonna), and were apparently now the targets of Rogun the Butcher’s boss-- a Sith Empire admiral known only as “the Voidwolf”. This was their first assignment (after their sojourn to Hosk Station).

He got himself out from under the grill and headed for the main hold. When he got there, he found Prin, Risha and a Zabrak-- wait, Zabrak?!? “Prin, get down!” he cried out in surprise; Bowdaar, meanwhile, stepped forwards. “Do not worry, I will take care of this. You will not harm my friends!” Bowdaar proclaimed. For her part, the Zabrak simply stood there, hands clasped behind her back.

Prin, however, stepped in front of the woman, holding his arms out in panic. “Guys, guys wait! She’s on our side!” Corso and Bowdaar looked at each other, confused. “This is Akaavi Spar, and she’s our new ally. I decided to take her with us-- the Empire destroyed the rest of her clan. She’s not going to harm you.” Akaavi nodded.

“Clan?” “Corso, she’s a Mandalorian.” Corso looked befuddled. “What the hell happened down there?” “I must say, Mr. Prindrohi, your crew at least knows not to immediately dismiss me as not being a threat. Especially the Wookiee. It is good you know to remain vigilant.” She spoke in a voice that was low and serious, like Risha’s, just minus the upper-crust feel.

Bowdaar roared. “I may not have ever fought a Mandalorian, but it is never too late to do so!” Risha went right up to him and glared. “You’re not fighting her. I don’t want this ship destroyed by you two.”

“Listen, guys. She helped us take down the Empire forces on Balmorra, and she doesn’t have any others left of her clan. I offered to take her with us and let her join. We’re all she’s got. So let’s treat her like we treat each other, with respect and only the occasional joke.” Prin explained.

Corso and Bow looked at each other. Corso then stepped forward, hand outstretched. “Alright then, welcome to the Boundless . I’m Corso Riggs, first mate.” Akaavi looked at him for a moment, then shook his hand. “Akaavi Spar, last member of Clan Spar.” “I am Bowdaar. Welcome to the Boundless.”

Shortly afterwards, Prin and Corso took Akaavi on a tour of the ship. “And over here are the hatches for the gun turrets. We don’t actually use them that often, we don’t really see much space combat.” Prin noted.

Akaavi looked surprised at this. “Really? I was under the impression that you constantly shot down Empire fighters and other troublemaking ships, when you are not mowing down footsoldiers of the Empire or whatever organization you happen to be against.” 

“That’s a stereotype. Admittedly we do get into a lot of battles, since we’re employed as Republic privateers, but even then we have to wait between assignments. We have to make money, so we take on both legit and illegit cargo for delivery every which way, from the Core to Hutt Space. We’ve got a lot more free time on our hands than most people think.” Prin explained as he opened one of the hatches to the gunnery ports, checking to make sure there weren’t any pests crawling around.

Just then, the intercom rang. “This is Ceetoo. Master Prindrohi, you have a holo from a client.” “Send it over to me.” He pulled out his MyComm and walked over to the main hold. “Yes, what can I smuggle for you today?” Akaavi, confused, looked to Corso for clarification. “What was that square device he was using?”

“That’s a MyComm, we all have one. It’s the latest fad-- it’s a CEC device that you can use for just about anything. It can display holos, serve as a locator, a datapad and a HoloNet access device in one small case.”

“Hmmm, that sounds intriguing. So now instead of multiple bulky devices, you now just have one compact device?” Akaavi inquired. It sounded like something that would be useful for a Mandalorian. No need to have multiple devices and their often-incompatible power pack, chargers and other peripherals.

“Exactly, they’re portable and convenient. I think we actually have some spares, you can have one.” They headed over to a storage locker, where Corso began to dig through the contents. “No, no, that’s not it…” He pulled and tossed various items out of the locker, including an old datapad, an empty medkit, and a rubber mallet, before pulling out a small box. “Here we go, a new MyComm, ready for you.”

A few minutes later, Akaavi was walking along the main corridor, exploring her MyComm, when suddenly a loud explosion sounded from the engine room. Akaavi rushed in to find Risha on the floor, covered in soot, one of the engine access panels embedded inside a bulkhead. “Ugh, damn KDY fuel pumps. Ever since that recall they still haven’t been working completely. I swear, when I get my hands on the bureaucrat who authorized these things--” Risha grumbled, seeming rather unphased at the fact that she was lying on the ground.

Akaavi unstrapped her techstaff and pried the access panel out of the bulkhead. “Miss Drayen, do you need any sort of medical assistance? At least, you need to be wiped down.” She then handed the panel back to Risha, who set it aside and scoffed. “Trust me, Akaavi, when you’ve had enough experience in repairing sublights and hyperdrives as I have, we’ll talk. This is small fry compared to some of the other ship engines I’ve had to face. Why do you think I’m wearing this old outfit?”

Akaavi then noticed that Risha wasn’t wearing the semi-casual outfit she had worn on Balmorra. She was instead clad in a faded blue coverall, with a bandana covering her hair to prevent it from getting caught, and a pair of work boots. “Well, would you at least want some help in repairing these then?” Akaavi offered. “No thanks, I’ve got this covered. I think I have a plan for making this thing cooperate. It involves lots more explosions that will hopefully result in fuel pumps that actually work.”

----

Hours later, the Boundless landed on Carida to pick up some assorted droid parts and other mechanical stuff; while Ceetwo handled the transfer of cargo (even with the heavy freight elevator, it would still take at least an hour), the crew debarked from the Boundless and headed through the spaceport. They found themselves sitting around a nice-looking fountain, killing time.

Akaavi sat back and watched as Prin and Corso vociferously debated over who was more likely to win the Naboo Swoop Open, the Tanabb Barnstormers or the Loronar Creatures; as the argument went on, she got up and began browsing the selection of shops along the concourse. “I will need some new personal effects, considering I now have a permanent home. I will need credits to start.”

After a quick stop at a Galactic Trade kiosk to load her credit chip, Akaavi wandered the promenade shops. She couldn’t really figure out what to get, however. Mandalorian tradition dictated that the vheh'yaim be equipped with only the necessities among fixtures. Given how the Boundless was like a scaled-up, armed vheh'yaim, this meant that Akaavi didn’t have to be spartan constantly. She had room for comfort. And comfort was something she had little experience in.

She wandered around a store called “Woolco”, which seemed to sell most everything, at a reasonable price. “Perhaps some bedding, to start.” She soon emerged at the checkout with a whole cart full of things-- both practical, like tray tables, target dummies and spare power cells, to the unusual, such as a Mandalorian helmet replica that could be used to hide valuable objects (she had her own helmet, but this would be a useful trick in case any fools tried to hijack the ship and steal her things-- she could also set it to shock people who picked it up).

*bloop-bloop* That noise sent Akaavi reaching for her MyComm. On it was a message from Prin-- “Where are you?” She replied “At the Woolco, checking out. I will be on my way shortly.” After paying for all her things (and trying hard to resist the in-store cafe, the “Red Grille”-- they had uj'alayi there!), she headed back over to the fountain, where the others were waiting impatiently.

Risha walked over, looking at her cart full of purchases. “I didn’t think you would be the type to go on a shopping spree.” “Now that I have a permanent home aboard the Boundless, I found it necessary to buy furnishings and fixtures, as Mandalorian housing tends to be spartan and mobile.” Akaavi defended.

Prin then took the cart from her. “Alright, Akaavi. It’s just, we were busy debating and you just vanished. You aren’t alone anymore, you can’t just not tell us where you’re going. We stick together.” Akaavi looked for a moment like she wanted to punch Prin in the gut. “Fine. But from here on out, you will respect my own independence.” “Deal.”

A few hours later, the Boundless was in hyperspace to deliver their next load of cargo, but the action was in the main hold. For the furniture and assorted crates had been pushed aside to allow Akaavi and Bowdaar room to spar (no pun intended). The others (minus Ceetoo, who was in the cockpit) sat on the couch in the corner, awaiting the action.

Bowdaar stomped on the floor, and snorted, before declaring “Just because our captain has taken you in, does not mean I will go easy on you.” Akaavi, for her part, looked like she normally did-- focused, with an undercurrent of anger. “And I will not underestimate you, Bowdaar.” She affirmed cooly.

The holoprojector gave a countdown-- when it turned green, Bow and Akaavi rushed at each other, and the battle began! Bowdaar attempted a flip, but Akaavi escaped his grip and went for his legs, knocking them out from under him! Bow scrambled back to his feet and attempted a left hook, but Akaavi dodged and kicked him over. He activated his vibrosword, but Akaavi parried with her techstaff, and soon it was more of a duel than a brawl. The two locked their weapons together, not wanting the other to gain the higher ground. “I will not lose this battle to a Wookiee!” Akaavi grunted, attempting to brace herself against Bowdaar’s greater physical force. “And I will not lose to a Mandalorian!” 

Bowdaar then ignited his electrosword and slashed downwards. Akaavi’s techstaff took the blow and she promptly ignited the ion charge function, which began to repel the electrosword. Bowdaar then whirled his saber around and instead attempted to club Akaavi over the head with the electrosword’s hilt! It landed and Akaavi stumbled back, rubbing her head. She snarled and swiped her techstaff, hooking it on Bowdaar’s harness-- she jerked it downwards and sent Bowdarr tumbling to the floor!

Bowdaar cried out in Shyriiwook and rolled to the side as Akaavi attempted to plant her foot on his chest. Hoisting himself up, Bowdaar assumed a defensive stance as Akaavi charged at him. He put his arms out in an attempt to knock her to the ground, but she dodged, leaning under his arm! She then rotated around and put Bow into a headlock! “Surrender, or be destroyed!” Akaavi grunted, attempting to get a firm grip around the Wookiee’s thick neck. 

“To surrender is to be dishonorable!” Bowdaar choked out. He scrabbled to get Spar’s hands away from his neck, but his massive hands and all his fur made it near impossible to get a good grip on her fingers. So he instead went for her forearms, grabbing them and pushing her arms away from his neck (letting him breath in and out again), before ducking and swiveling away from her.

Eventually, the 30-minute timer was up, and the others broke into applause at the conclusion. Akaavi was lying on the floor, breathing heavy from the exertion. Bow then offered his hand. She took it and rose up.

Prin walked over. “Gotta admit Akaavi, Bow gave you a real run for your credits there?” Akaavi looked to the Wookiee, who was chugging an energy drink to recharge. “Yes, he is indeed a worthy opponent. I will fight beside him if I ever need to.” Prin then extended his hand out. “Well, Akaavi, consider yourself officially a crew member of the Boundless.” She took his hand and shook it.

Chapter Text

The Boundless was currently on the Corellian Trade Spine to Kinyen, hauling a load of farming tools and other agricultural items. The crew was mainly hanging around their own separate sections, until Prin’s voice emitted from the intercom. “All hands to the main hold, all hands to the main hold.”

“Alright, everyone, I’ve got good news and bad news. Good news is, Darmas and Dodonna have hooked us up with our next mission, something about a cloaking device used by pirates.” Corso and Akaavi looked intrigued by this. “Bad news is, it’s on Hoth.” A collective groan went up from the crew on that. “C’mon, Captain, Hoth? Everybody in the galaxy hates that iceball!” Corso complained. “I do not believe that neither your Republic or the Empire has anything to gain from that planet. There is no strategic value.” Akaavi said. Bowdaar roared in displeasure. “I cannot stand the cold of that planet-- it makes my fur practically useless!”

“I know guys. Look, I hate Hoth as much as you, but if these White Maw pirates figure out how to use this cloaking device, it could be a serious thorn in the side of everyone: Republic, Empire, and unaligned. We’ve got to figure out a way to stop them from getting it. And word is it may have something to do with that crashed super-starship the Republic left there years ago. So break out your winter clothing, everybody. If you don’t have any, we’ll get some on Kinyen.”

----

The crew disembarked and left Ceetoo to handle cargo loading as usual. But everybody scattered when they reached the spaceport. Soon, Prin and Risha were the only ones left.

“So, where did everyone else go off to?” Risha inquired as she and Prin sat down on a bench. Prin then began counting his fingers. “Let’s see, Corso wanted to go get some winter clothing for everyone, Bow went to find a vibroweapon repair station-- he said his vibrosword’s been acting up lately-- and Akaavi’s stocking up on rations. That just leaves the two of us.”

“Don’t you have any winter clothing?” Prin nodded. “Oh yeah, I’ve got some good winter protection. Got it from a place called Warriors’ Outfitters, they sell quality stuff. You have any winter gear?”

“Yeah, brought it with me, haven’t ever had to use it, though. But being a crime lord’s daughter taught me to be prepared for anything. I have a crate full of bug-out bags in the secondary hold.” Prin tilted his head in confusion. “Bug-out bags?”

“Bug-out bags. Backpacks full of essential items in case we’re ever stranded somewhere.” Risha explained. “You didn’t know…?” “I never check up there, I thought that was some of your stuff that you didn’t want anybody touching.” Risha nodded, seeing his point (and she did in fact of some of her personal belongings up there, though not in the bug-out crates). “Anyway, you wanna get some caf? There’s bound to be a cafe here somewhere.”

Soon, Prin and Risha were settled in at a booth in a cozy little cafe. Prin had ordered a stimcaf with blue milk and a cheffa cake, Risha some Arkanian sweet milk and a Citros snow cake. Both were engaged in a deep, philosophical discussion.

“I’m just saying, why exactly are Corellian smugglers the stereotype? Why do they all come from that specific planet?” Before Risha could interrupt, he said “And I mean besides the fact that CEC, the number one smuggler starship designer and manufacturer, is based on that planet.”

“Well, aren’t you from Corellia?” Risha countered. “No, I’m not.” Prin replied, taking a bite of his cheffa cake. Risha looked puzzled briefly. “But the Boundless is registered to Corellia, right?”

“Oh, no, that’s one of the aliases I use, the Early Riser. It’s a smuggling prerequisite, you have to have up to three aliases to use at any given time.” Risha knew that all too well. Growing up as the daughter of Nok Drayen meant that she had multiple aliases always at the ready, and she even had fake backstories prepared and memorized. 

Taking a sip of his stimcaf, Prin continued. “Plus, I found the ship after whoever flew it before landed it on the outskirts of my home town. I saw the deal go south and, well, you can imagine what happened. So I snuck over to it, and the next thing I knew, I was smuggling weapons for whoever. At least until Skavak stole it, leading me to Ord Mantell, Corso, you and, well, everything that’s happened since.”

Risha looked at him funny. “You just… took a starship after the crew got killed? That didn’t strike you as being suspicious in any way? For all you knew, it could’ve been used by a gang of slavers!” She admonished.

Prin just laughed. “Risha, I’m from Chandrila . That type of stuff just doesn’t happen there. The planet might be one of the safest, but it’s also one of the most boring .” Risha quirked one eyebrow up at that. “You’re from Chandrila. The planet that’s all about democracy.” “Yep.”

Risha took a moment to ponder this. “I think I know why you’re so soft-hearted. You’re from one of the wussiest planets in the galaxy.” Risha said teasingly. Prin-- just having swallowed his stimcaf-- broke down in laughter. After recovering, he looked at Risha, eyes seemingly sparkling. “You know, Risha, I love it when you lob insults like that-- bitingly funny and yet right on the credits.” “Well, thank you, I’ve spent years sharpening my snark.” Risha looked suitably smug.

Suddenly, Prin’s MyComm buzzed. He fished it out and looked at the screen. “Oh, HoloNet News Alert.” He went silent briefly as he read the bulletin, then plonked his device on the table dramatically. “And the unions strike back. Literally. The Coruscanti Contractors’ Association has gone on a strike for increased benefits.” Risha looked worried. “If this strike continues past two weeks, I guarantee you that Coruscant will come to a complete halt. That union’s repairs are practically keeping the planet together.”

----

“Alright, everybody, we’ve got everything we need for Hoth. Winter clothing, heat generators, self-warming rations, and lots more. Let’s head back to the ship.” Corso led the group through the main thoroughfare of the spaceport, their purchases in hovercarts. Bowdaar then realized something. “Where are Prindrohi and Risha? We cannot leave them behind.” “Don’t worry, Bow, they’re probably back at the ship.” But when they got back to the hangar, they weren’t there, though Ceetoo was.

“Greetings, Master Corso. We have unloaded our shipment of agricultural supplies and have received payment for them--`` “Have you seen Prin, or Risha?” Ceetoo took a second to search his memory banks. “No, not since you debarked here.” Corso then turned to the others. “Alright, search the market area, they’re bound to be somewhere…” Corso trailed off suddenly. The others turned and saw something they thought was impossible.

It was Prindrohi and Risha, casually walking into the hangar and chatting about something, as if they were acquaintances catching up, rather than business partners. Prin laughed and they could hear the tail-end of his train of thought. “...if anybody was ever foolish enough to construct something like that, the union would probably be holding it up for years, maybe decades!” He threw his hands up in the air to emphasize his point to Risha, who began giggling. “Now I’m not even sure that… oh, hey guys. The cargo all delivered, Ceetoo?”

Ceetoo nodded, and Prin gave a thumbs-up. “OK, guys, you got everything for Hoth?” A chorus of affirmations came from the others. “Alright, then let’s get on board. Per the navicomp, it’s gonna take about 6 hours to get to Hoth, so enjoy the heat while it lasts. Now let’s get moving!”

Once they were in hyperspace, Prin moved to exit the cockpit, but Corso stopped him. “Captain, could I talk to you for a second?” “Sure, what’s the matter?” Corso hesitated, then spoke. “Prin, were you and Risha on a date?” Prindrohi looked for a brief moment like he wanted to hide under a rock, but quickly covered it up with his normal passive face. “No, me and Risha were just whiling away the time at a cafe. It wasn’t a date.” Corso thought for a moment. “Sure, whatever you say, boss. I’ve gotta go calibrate the missile launchers.” As he left the cockpit, Corso thought “Man, Prin’s got it bad for Risha.”

Turning his chair to face the viewport, Prin just watched hyperspace fly by for a few moments. “I can’t keep lying to myself. I think Risha’s the girl I’ve been waiting for.”

Meanwhile, Akaavi entered the engine room. Risha was checking the readouts and comparing the engines’ individual performance. “Miss Drayen, I must speak to you.” Risha turned around. “What is it, Akaavi?”

Akaavi looked around furtively. “I am not entirely sure how to phrase this, so I will say it outright: are you and Captain Prindrohi in a relationship?” Risha, flustered, dropped her coil spanner. “What? No, we-we’re not! We weren’t on a date, we were just at the cafe because there wasn’t anything else to do. That’s it.”

Akaavi looked impassively at her, then turned to leave. “A word of advice, Miss Drayen-- if you indeed have feelings for our captain, I would suggest you make up your mind about them. In this line of work, lives can end very quickly.” She then left, leaving Risha with her thoughts. “Maybe I should own up to my feelings for that compassionate fool. But after Hoth.”

Chapter Text

“Corso, remind me to tell Senator Dodonna that we are going to stay away from Hoth for the rest of our lives.” Corso nodded, glad their excursion into the depths of Both was over. “Sure, boss.” He was absolutely freezing, covered in snow and ice; even the massive amounts of thick winter clothing they'd procured hadn't helped. Dealing with Imperials was a headache in itself, but trying to also avoid wampas, tauntauns and other creatures made it even worse. As they boarded the Boundless, they shook off all the snow that they were coated in; thankfully the shuttle from Hoth to the orbital station was heated, so they were melting already. Their new “friend” was complaining about it.

“Mr. Drohi, I can’t believe how great the heat is here. I’m surprised I didn’t freeze completely on that stupid planet!” As Guss Tuno continued, Corso leaned in towards Prin. “Just say the word, and I can toss him out an airlock, no problem.” Corso whispered. He’d been suspicious of the Mon Calamarian’s intentions, but learning he was a Jedi Academy washout turned con-man made Corso not want to trust him at all. Prin slugged Corso in the arm. “No, Corso. I told him I’d give him a chance. Besides, you were complaining too.” “Yeah, but I just muttered under my breath the whole time.” Corso justified.

Prin hit the intercom switch. “Crew meeting, main hold.” Everyone quickly assembled, and Prin stood in front of the main holoprojector. “Alright everyone, good job, managing to survive that frozen wasteland. And now that we’ve tracked down the stealth module… which, as it turns out, was a poor kid who didn’t even know what he was doing, we don’t have any more work here.” A large cheer came up from the crew. “Now, we have a new member of our crew.  He’s, well… he’s hard to describe, but everyone, welcome Guss Tuno.” The Mon Calamarian walked out and waved at everyone. “Um, hi there. I’m Guss and I want to say how great it is that Mr. Drohi here gave me a chance. I’m going to redeem myself here, and I’m not going to be a conman anymore.” 

Silence followed. “Uh, okay, Guss. Corso, why don’t you show him to the bunk room.” Prin then ushered him down the hall. The others were just staring blankly at him, as if they couldn’t believe what they were seeing. Risha was the first to break the awkward silence. “Prin, where did you find him? Did he just tag along?” “No, he helped us against the White Maw, and well… I felt sorry for him. I couldn’t just leave him there, nobody deserves to be left on Hoth.” Akaavi snorted. “I can sense he has no honor, or fighting capabilities. He is weak, and useless.” Bowdaar, meanwhile, tried to be impartial. “I will let his actions judge for me.”

Prin sighed and leaned against the console next to the cockpit corridor. “Listen, he said he was disowned by his family, he washed out of the Jedi Academy--” Bowdaar made a noise of astonishment --“and he did give us legitimate help. For all we know, he has skills that not even he knows he has. I’ll tell you what: we’ll give him a week, and if things aren’t working out, we’ll drop him off somewhere. Anyway, we’re going to Port Nowhere. Darmas called, said he had something for us.” He walked off to the cockpit, stamping some remaining snow off his boots in the process.

Guss was unpacking his things and looked around the bunk room. Basically, every crew member had staked out a corner (except Risha, she slept in the secondary hold, where her “office” was), and Guss was left with the furthest one. He started setting up his personal effects, while Corso was busy showing him where everything was, including the common storage locker. “And over here Guss, this is the refresher; we’ve got a sonic shower with a water hookup, so whenever we land in a spaceport or the like you can use water; given how you’re a Mon Calamari I’d think you’ll appreciate--" Corso did a double take. "What are you doing?!”

While he was talking, Guss had unpacked his old lightsaber, and was preparing to plug it into a power socket on the wall. “Maybe if I plug it into the ship, that’ll get this old thing working.” Guss said. “No, don’t!” Too late, as Guss plugged the power cord into the lightsaber. The crystal glowed for a brief moment, before the saber electrocuted Guss. 

“Dgdgdgdgddahhh”

It was over after a few seconds, leaving Guss on the floor, charred, and Corso with his hair on end. Guss coughed and said weakly, “I guess that wasn’t such a good idea.”

----

The next day, Guss was in the galley (having recovered from his near deep-fry experience), rooting around through the cabinets, looking for something seaweedy. Rummaging through, he couldn’t find anything. “Hmm, better head for the conservator.”

He began looking through the conservator and while he didn’t find any seaweed-based dishes, he did find a container of what looked to be stew of some kind. “Ooh, this looks good!” He heated it up in the scanoven and dug in. Just then, Bowdaar walked in. “Oh hello, Mr. Guss…. what is that you are eating?” Guss paused. That tone of voice didn’t sit well. “Um, this stew I found in the conservator. Want some?” Bowdaar took it from him roughly, splashing Guss with some of the stuff. “This was my personal bantha stew.” “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t see a note anywhere.” Bow sighed.

Later, Guss was in the lounge, watching a holodrama, when suddenly he felt a rumbling from within himself. “Uh-oh, that stew must not’ve-- oh! ” Clutching his gut, Guss ran for the bunk room. He hurriedly hit the button to open the refresher door and ran inside…. not noticing that Akaavi was there, clad in nothing but a towel. He heard her scream, and then found himself flat on his back. “Oh, I’m sorry Miss Spar--” “Get out, get out, GET OUT!” Guss hauled himself up and ran. Pausing out in the hallway, he caught his breath. “I didn’t expect that at all. But I think Mr. Drohi’s room has a refresher.”

----

Soon enough, everybody except Guss was crowded into the cockpit, complaining to Prin (while they were reverting to realspace temporarily as the hyperdrive needed to cool off a bit). The noise got overbearing, so he whistled to break it. “Now, everybody go, one at a time.” Prin commanded. “He fried the bunk room’s power socket, trying to get his lightsaber to work.” Corso still felt kinda staticky and with all the metal surrounding them, that wasn't good. “He was eating my bantha stew, the one that I made!” Bowdaar had been saving it and he was mighty ticked the new arrival had gotten to it first. “That worm saw me, without my armor, or anything clothing on. If I hadn’t had that towel…” Akaavi growled at the accidental invasion of privacy.

“Prin, just admit it, you gave it a shot, can we just get rid of him already?” Risha pleaded. Prin sighed. “OK, so maybe he isn’t going to work out. But he’s new here, and--” 

“dootdootdootdootdoot”

Suddenly, Prin was cut off by the proximity alert. He promptly turned to the radar, which showed a bunch of hostiles heading towards their position. “Corso, charge up shields, we got trouble!” Everybody looked out the viewports, and all around the ship were Fury- class Imperial interceptors! “Attention, spacecraft. You have entered a restricted Imperial system. Leave now, or suffer the consequences.” A typically-snooty sounding Imperial officer’s voice issued over the speakers.

Prin promptly activated the commlink. “This isn’t Imperial space, this is a neutral hyperlane! What gives you the right to -- hello? Damn, they cut the line. Red alert!” Prin then smacked a button, turning on the red alert mode; klaxons sounded throughout the ship, and red lights flashed on and off.  He could see that the Imps were charging their weaponry, so he did the same. Prin turned to the others and began issuing orders. “Risha, get to the engines. Akaavi, start strapping down the cargo so it doesn’t get damaged. Bowdaar, you and Corso--” A laser blast rocked the ship, and Corso was flung out of his seat, bashing his back against the bulkhead. “Corso!” Prin cried out; Corso only cursed, his back now bruised, as he fell to the floor.

A frightened Guss came running into the cockpit. “Mr. Drohi, what’s going on? Are we under attack?” “Yes! Look, since Corso’s been hurt, I’ve gotta steer, so it’s up to Bowdaar and you to handle the turrets!” Guss' eyes seemed to get even wider than they were already. “M-me? Turret duty? No way, Mr. Drohi, I can’t--” Guss' stammered. “We don’t have a choice, get to the turret hatches!” Prin commanded, as the Imperial ships' laser fire continued to impact against the shields. Risha's anti-radiation shield generator was powerful, but Prin knew they couldn't last forever.

Bowdaar grabbed a shaking Guss and hauled him over to the turret access hatches, which opened, revealing seats surrounded by firing controls. “Alright, Mr. Tuno. I will take the top hatch, you take the bottom. We must put a stop to these Imperial irritants before something worse happens.” Guss, though still looking scared, gave a nod. He dropped into the turret seat, feeling a bit disoriented from the sudden change in pressure. “Alright Guss, I’m gonna have to give you a crash course in starship weaponry over the commlink. Simply take the control grips and hit the red buttons to fire lasers. As you track a target, the turret will swivel around. Good luck.” Prin's voice issued from the speakers nearby.

“Sure thing, Mr, Drohi.” Guss gripped the controls as best he could and aimed himself towards the nearest Imperial ship, currently reorienting itself for another run at them. He hit the buttons, and red laser fire lanced out from the cannons in front of him. They hit the target, causing damage to the Imp’s starboard cannon. Mini-explosions began dotting the ship’s surface. “Whoa! I didn’t mean to do that!” Guss exclaimed. Prin cut in. “No Guss, what you did was better than that! These types of ships are notorious for linking all their weapons directly to their power cores for added firepower! It’s a risky method because of what you just did, and it looks like you did a number on it! Switch to missiles!”

As the ship barrel-rolled past two other Imps, Guss hit a button on his left, and a targeting screen flicked on in front of him, displaying the feed from the Boundless ’ front-mounted launcher. It was tracking the damaged ship, which was still aiming for them. “Guss, you’ve got a lock, fire now!” Guss’ eyes narrowed. He hit the button, and a pair of missiles sailed across the void. They impacted against the Imp, and that did it -- the ship blew apart into a cloud of debris. “Alright, Guss!” “Wow, thanks, captain!” The Mon Calamari said, smiling. “No time for pleasantries, we’ve got more incoming!” Risha reported from the engine room. “And aft shields are down to 75%, so lock and blast, quickly!” Guss turned around, and found his mark: the second Imp ship, and its’ starboard cannon. “Here I go!” He mashed the firing button, and more red lasers emitted, blowing up the Imp’s turret, causing another chain reaction! The Imp ship began listing to starboard, and was out of the fight.

Bowdaar roared in triumph. “Good work, Guss! Now, let us achieve victory, for there are two more left. If we concentrate our firepower, we can send them back to Dromund Kaas with their caps askew!” Guss wasn’t feeling so hot, but he turned around one more time. But before either of them could fire, the Imps fired on the engines! The ship rocked again, and this time, it seemed to affect everyone, including Guss. “Oh, my stomach isn’t feeling well again, but…. I’ve gotta concentrate!”

Guss could suddenly feel everything but himself fade away. He could only vaguely hear Prindrohi yelling something to Risha. He calmly lined up the last Imp ship in his targeting, and triggered the firing stud. A volley of lasers brought their shields down. He switched to missiles, and two rocketed away. He saw the missiles hit their mark, and the Imp ship was reduced to scrap metal. “Whoa, I’ve never had that happen before. It’s what they called…. a state of detachment.” The remaining Imperial ship fled to hyperspace, not wanting to risk getting destroyed by this ship too. He shook it off and exited the turret, when Bowdaar stopped him. “Guss Tuno, you have a gift. You decimated those Imperial ships! I knew you had something--” Suddenly, Prin rushed past them in a state of panic. “Whoa!” “If Prindrohi is worried, then that means something terrible has happened. Come on!” Bowdaar observed, before they rushed after Prin.

Everyone (including Corso, who had managed to haul himself up despite the major bruising) followed Prin down the hall to the engine room, and the sight shocked them all: Risha, unconscious, bleeding like crazy, metal having impaled her shoulder, her leg contorted in a bad position. Prin, deadly serious, turned to Akaavi. “Medbay, now! Corso, get some kolto for your back. Bow, start trying to get the engines back up!” They headed for the medbay, where Ceetoo was waiting. “Oh my, Master Risha! What happened?!” 

Sitting her up on the biobed, Prin activated the medicomp and it scanned her. “The Imps hit the engines, debris must’ve got her. She’s out cold!” Guss suddenly felt himself slipping away, and he reached for a medkit. He took out the laser scalpel, and began cutting the metal rod out of Risha’s shoulder joint… he only remembered bits and pieces of the next few minutes, seemingly on autopilot as he performed the delicate surgery. Once he finished there, he moved on to her twisted knee; after getting her into an improvised cast made from an old coil casing, they ran over to the kolto tank. Setting it up, they lifted Risha up and into the tank, as Ceetoo hooked up the breath mask. The glass enclosure swiveled shut, and the greeny-blue liquid quickly rushed into the empty space, submerging Risha in the healing substance. 

Only then did Guss snap out of his trance. “Uh, what just happened?” He felt like a fog had just cleared from his mind. He turned to Prin, a look of shock on the latter’s face. “You… you don’t remember the last 20 minutes at all?” Guss slowly shook his head. “No, it’s all a blur. I felt like someone else was operating my body remotely.” He stared at his webbed hands, wondering if this had in fact happened. Prin took hold of him. “Listen, Guss. You just saved Risha’s life, and destroyed a couple of Imp ships without blinking. I think you’re more powerful in the Force than you realized.” Guss just sat down, the reality of what he did sinking in. “Guss, your actions over the past hour have made you officially part of our crew.” Prin stuck out his hand. “Welcome aboard.”

Guss shook his hand, and turned towards Risha in the kolto tank. “According to the readout, she’ll have to be in there for at least two days.” Prin nodded. He turned to Akaavi. “Check on Bowdaar, see how much progress he’s made on the engines. Ceetoo, you keep watch on Risha round-the-clock. Corso, you rest while your back heals up. I’m gonna have to holo Darmas, tell him we’re gonna be a bit late to Port Nowhere.” Corso, occupying the other bed, weakly nodded.

As Prin left, Akaavi turned to Guss. “Before this, I thought you had no honor. But now, Guss Tuno, it becomes clear you do have it. We just needed to locate it. And we found your skills at the same time. Where exactly did you learn such precision healing and targeting?” Guss looked to the other wall. “I think it was my training from the Jedi Master who found me. Lorenn taught me when I was starting out that she thought I’d be good as a medic, and she trained me in both medpacs and medkits. I know how to use advanced medkits, even. She told me that no matter where I was, even if I wasn’t a Jedi, that someone was going to need medical assistance, and I took it to heart. Even when I was a con man, whenever somebody got injured in a bar fight or brawl, I’d treat them. Admittedly, I asked for payment, but I made sure that their wounds were healed and they weren’t going to have to deal with infections or Force-knows what else. I took it seriously, unlike a lot of other things in my life.”

Akaavi simply nodded. “Now, you have a role here. You might be able to be redeemed for your past actions. But I did not forget the incident in the refresher -- if you do that again, I will kill you.” She then left for the engine room, leaving Guss alone with his changed worldview.

Chapter Text

“It’s been two days, can we get her out of there?”, a frustrated Prin asked Guss and Ceetoo. Risha was still floating weightlessly within the kolto tank, with only her breathing mask keeping her tethered; the metallic leg cast, fashioned from a coil casing they had laying around, kept Risha weighted down. Guss nodded. “Actually Mr. Drohi, I think we can.” He looked at the display next to the tank, which indicated that Risha’s shoulder had healed enough for her to leave the tank. Prin had been on edge the last two days. They’d made it to Port Nowhere and were staying put while Risha recuperated, Prin not wanting to risk the kolto tank being damaged in battle somehow.

“Well then, let’s get her out of there. C’mon!” Prin and Guss then began draining the kolto tank (Port Nowhere had link-up tubes to dispose of used kolto, thankfully), while Ceetoo prepped the biobed. The kolto was flushed out through built-in floor drains, and the glass swiveled open. Prin and Guss immediately caught Risha’s unconscious body; detangling the breathing apparatus from her hair, then detaching the makeshift cast, the two carried Risha, still dripping with kolto, over to the biobed.  Prin could just see a faint scar where the metal had been. Guss hooked her up to the medicomp as Ceetoo toweled the last of the kolto off her.

A few minutes later, Risha came to. She felt weak, but managed to prop herself up on the bed. She rubbed her shoulder and groaned. “Ughhh… what in the kriff happened? Prindrohi, why am I in the medbay?” “We were fighting Imps when they decided to blast the engines. A piece of metal impaled your shoulder and the blast knocked you unconscious. And Guss here saved your life, turned out he has a knack for medical procedures. And blasting Imps in the turret, for that matter.” Prin explained, sitting on the edge of the bed.

Risha looked at him like he was suddenly a Tusken Raider. “Guss, the Jedi washout you picked up on Hoth, saved my life?” Guss suddenly appeared with a scanner, startling her. “Yes, I did. Now, I managed to replace the bit of your shoulder the metal impaled with a synth-replacement, but your shoulder is still healing; you also twisted your knee. So you’ll need to have bedrest for the next few days, Miss Risha. No going off the ship, no engine repair, no blasting.” She looked at Guss like she wanted to simultaneously blast him and hug him. “Thank you, Guss. For saving me.” She turned to Ceetoo. “Ceetoo, can you and Guss leave? I want to talk with Prin in private.”

“Certainly, Master Risha, and it is good to see you awakened and in the peak of--” Ceetoo was cut off as Guss ushered him out of the medbay. Once the door sealed, Prin turned towards the kolto tank. “You were in here for two days, your leg was all bent and we had to use an old coil casing for a cast. We’ve been docked at Port Nowhere for the time being. Bowdaar, Corso and I have been fixing the engines as best we can -- the modifications you installed made it tricky for us -- and we’ve got our next mission from Darmas. We’ve gotta infiltrate an Imperial treasure vessel, one of Darma’s associates has his partner stuck there.”

“Alright. But since I can’t exactly--” “I’m taking Corso and Bow with me when we go and invade that ship. But we need to talk about… something else.” Prin sighed, running his hand through his hair. Risha knew where this conversation was headed. “Before you start, Prin… there’s something I want to tell you.” She sighed, feeling a twinge of pain from her shoulder. 

“Over these past few months, how we’ve been working together, thrown into one crazy adventure after the next… it’s changed me. I’ve realized that… I can’t just work on my own anymore. I’ve gotten too used to having you and the others around to go off alone. My only friend from when I was with my father was Vette, and after my father went into the carbon freeze, I had to lose contact with her. Ever since, it’s been just me. Sure, there were friends like Audila and Beryl, but I always had to make sure my time with them was limited, for their own safety.” Risha reflected.

“Skavak came along, claiming he could assist me in finding my father’s treasure. I’d fallen into his slimy grasp like so many others. Then… you burst in. You took back your ship, started flinging my sarcasm right back at me, and clued me in to something I lacked. Friendship. I’d forgotten what it was like to... open up my shell, be unafraid to be myself in front of others. I was able to trust you, when my father wanted to kill you. Because you’d be all over anyone who tried to stop me and my dreams of reclaiming my birthright. And I came to realize something. I’ve been growing so close to you, and I’m not sure but…” Risha trailed off, seemingly afraid of what to say next.

Prin sighed and came closer to her. “Risha, when I found you in the cargo hold, I thought that I’d just be dropping you off after a few weeks, or until we found Skavak, whichever came first. But you grew on me as you stuck with us. You found your way into our weird little family. And eventually, you got your family heirlooms back, and I sent Skavak to the nine hells. But you stuck around after, because… well, you might be afraid to admit it, but I’m not. Risha. I love you.”

Risha looked thunderstruck. “I… love you too, Prindrohi.” They leaned forward and tenderly kissed -- the sparks of passion ignited after smoldering for so long. Then Risha’s shoulder flared up again, causing her to break the kiss, wincing. “Ooh, forgot about that.” “Don’t worry Risha, as long as we’re together, I swear that I’m not gonna let you get injured like that again.” Prin said firmly, clenching his fist.

“Thank you, Prin.” Risha said while cradling her shoulder.

A few minutes later, Prin and Risha (now in a fresh change of clothes) exited the medbay, arm in arm (partially to help Risha’s shoulder and leg). As they emerged into the lounge, they found Guss messing around with the holoprojector and Corso aiding him. “Alright, Guss, let’s see if we can make a hologram be a color other than glowing blue -- oh, Cap’n. Risha.”

“Hey there, farmboy. Good to see you recovered too.” Risha smiled a little bit at that. Corso wasn’t her favorite person, but she certainly didn’t wish him to be badly injured (at least at the moment). “Well, I’m an Ord Mantellian. We’ve got hard heads, and hard backs.” He said proudly. Risha smiled a bit at that.

Coros turned to Prin. “So, Cap’n, are you and Risha…?” Corso asked, making all sorts of gestures. “Yep, we’re together now. And I’m not gonna let anything get between us, be it injury, another person, or, Force-forbid, the Republic/Empire war since it’s a given at this point.” Prin said resolutely.

Bowdaar clapped. “That is terrific news! I vow to protect you and your future offspring!” Akaavi nodded, a rare smile on her face. “Good to see you followed my advice, Miss Drayen. I too will protect you and Captain Prindrohi if and when the time comes for us to face off against those looking to dishonor us.” Guss simply shrugged. “I wasn’t aware of that since I just got here.” As for Corso, he looked gleeful. “All right, everybody pay up!” 

Bow, Guss and Akaavi promptly handed over credit ingots to Corso, who pocketed them. “We had a secret betting pool running over when you two would get together. I was the longshot bet with “after injury”. So I just won. For once, the farmboy’s coming out on top.” Prin and Risha just looked at each other. “Risha, these are our friends. You do realize we’re stuck with them, right?” Risha just kissed him softly. “I know. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Chapter Text

A week or two later, the crew of the Boundless found themselves on Fadden, loading up the ship with their latest delivery: lots of dehydrated dinners and other survival equipment. While Ceetoo kept track of what pallets and crates went where, Corso, Bowdaar and Akaavi were moving it all over the ship -- an unusually large haul even by their standards, it was taking forever to get it all onboard.

“Ugh, I’ll tell ya Cap’n, I hope whoever we’re delivering this to appreciates all the effort we’ve been putting in.” Corso wiped his brow and took a swig from his water bottle. “I think this might be a record for how much stuff we’re transporting.” Bowdaar, nearby cleaning up a crate that had ruptured somehow, was looking none the worse for wear. “I appreciate the work. Ever since we took down the King’s Ransom, we have been waiting on the permits for travel to Voss. And I am unsure if we would survive a trip to Belsavis, I have heard rumors and legends about that planet, all of them awful.”

Prin, busy stashing a crate in one of the hidden smuggling compartments (albeit simply to maximize storage space), had a sour look on his face. “Yeah, I’ve heard the stories too. And I’m not looking forward to that trip, either. But if we’re gonna find Rogun, and eventually the Voidwolf, we’re gonna have to go there. Senator’s orders.”

Akaavi, meanwhile, was not looking remotely tired from her lugging of assorted containers. She turned to look at Corso. “Even I have heard the legends of Belsavis, and if they do turn out to be true, we may be looking at another failure by the Republic in yet another area.” Corso scowled at her statement, but before he could respond, Ceetoo interrupted. “I am pleased to report that all cargo is now onboard.” “Boy, that’s a relief. C’mon, Prin, let’s get out of here already.” As he and Prin headed into the cockpit, Prin sighed. “Yeah, Corso, the sooner we get all this stuff delivered, the better. It’s for some merchant on Andara, we’ll be landing directly at his place of business as opposed to the spaceport.”

Once the navicomp figured in the additional weight, it calculated a 4-hour trip to Andara. With Prin and Risha in the cockpit (most likely making out, now that Risha’s shoulder was healing up nicely), Corso wandered out to the main hold. “I’m betting that this’ll be the year for the Ord-Cestus swoop team, they’ve been gradually building up a winning crew.” As Guss and Bowdaar debated swoop racing over a game of dejarik, Corso wandered over to the holoprojector, when Akaavi intercepted him “Something I can help you with, Miss Spar?” Corso wondered. “I have noticed that you seem to dislike it whenever I insult the Republic. I saw you frown at me earlier. I am not exactly one for keeping my emotions or opinions bottled up, so I want you to go ahead and say what you think of my repeated insults.” Akaavi stated plainly.

“Are you sure? I mean, I don’t want to offend you or anything and get my ass kicked by you, Miss Spar.” Corso was right to be worried. “No, I insist. I find it would be better to get our opinions out in the open rather than simmering beneath the surface.” “Alright, you wanna know my opinions? I can’t stand that fact that you hate the Republic so much for no apparent reason. You insult it constantly, you don’t seem to find any aspect of the Republic worthwhile despite the fact the Empire not only screwed your clan, but can’t keep itself going due to internal conflicts. So can you please stop with the Republic insults?” Corso said, airing out his opinions.

Akaavi looked at him, stone-faced. “I will now counter your argument with my own.  I have never been a citizen of the Republic. But I have seen many of their failures first hand. As a bounty hunter, I was assigned to track down those who escaped Republic custody, or else those self-important Jedis who seemingly everyone idolizes. We are soon going to visit a seemingly-mythical Republic prison world. I would soon rather work for the Sith Empire, which is at least openly corrupt and rotten, than for the Republic, which constantly keeps applying paint over all of its problems.” With that, Akaavi stalked off, leaving a stunned Corso behind.

Soon enough, they were at Andara. They landed at “Grishtak’s Survival Depot”, a well-maintained building with a built-in docking bay for starships. The entire building was painted in “camouflage”, despite being in the middle of a merchant’s district not even close to the foliage it was intended to blend in with. As Prin and the others disembarked, they met with Grishtak himself, a wearied-looking man who looked like he had crawled out of a warzone despite being on a peaceful planet. He spoke in a voice like his throat had been rubbed with sandpaper. “You got my supplies?” Prin nodded. “Affirmative, sir. We’ve got everything, and I mean everything , loaded into the Boundless. If you’ll just sign here…”

While Prin and Grishtak ironed out the details and Ceetoo prepared to start unloading the cargo, the others milled about the Depot, surveying what they had in store. Corso looked over blaster cases, Risha found some new supplies for her bug-out bags, Akaavi practiced her staff skills on a few unlucky mannequins, Guss selected some new surgical equipment for the medbay, and Bowdaar examined bowcaster upgrades. But soon enough, all the paperwork was sorted out and it was time to unload everything. Thankfully, Grishtak had a hoversled, which made the unloading much easier. Before they knew it, they were done and left with plenty of spare time on their hands.

“Okay everyone, Grishtak told me that this merchant’s district is pretty busy, so let’s all meet back here in say… five hours?” Everyone nodded. “OK, see you all then.” The crew scattered about in different directions, leaving just Prin and Risha. “Anything you might be looking to get, Rish?” Prin asked, as they wandered around the market’s main thoroughfare. “For once, no. I think we’ve got all the supplies we might need onboard.” Risha checked her MyComm and consulted her list of needed supplies. Only one or two minor things remained, but they were relatively low in importance. “We could just look around. I’m not usually one for impulse purchasing, but we can spare some credits if we need to.” She reasoned.

The market district was filled with vendors hawking their wares. Everything from household goods, to local cuisines, to even items confiscated from a failed smuggling operation. Eventually, Risha’s eye was caught by one stall in particular. “Prin, over here.”

The duo began to explore a stall that sold gear for “free-traders” (basically the legal version of smuggling). Various packing materials, cargo manifests to attach to shipping crates, and other such items took up much of the space; blasters marked “self-defense only” were scattered here and there.  “Hey, Rish! Look at this thing!” Risha looked up from the blasters, to see Prin over near some sort of large object. He gestured to a large mechanical device, which seemed to be bigger than Bowdaar; it looked to be a jetpack on steroids. “Prin, I don’t think any of us could use… whatever this is. It’s far too big.” Risha looked it over with a critical eye. 

Just then, the merchant running the stall came over. “Ah, I see you’re interested in our smuggler flight pack!” Prin and Risha just looked at each other before saying “Smuggler flight pack?” in unison. “That’s right. A device created to help you with all your smuggling needs. It can get you out of a tight spot with its’ swoop engines, and the repulsorlifts can provide silent flotation for up to 100 meters. The defense module is there in case you need a dynamic exit, with twin laser cannons. And the grappling claw can be magnetized or de-magnetized at your discretion, and is capable of carrying up to 15 metric tons!” The seller explained, clearly having memorized his sales pitch.

Risha just raised her eyebrows. “Well, Prin, why don’t you try it on?” Prin looked wary, but the whole thing intrigued him. “OK, but… I’m not sure where we would stash it on the Boundless…” He mused to himself. Prin walked over, donned a specialized harness vest, and had the pack clamped onto the harness. “So, how do I control this thing?” “The harness has built in control handles, hit the button on the collar.” The control sticks flipped out, and Prin grabbed them, but before he could even take off… “Ugh, this thing is way too heavy, I don’t think -- whoa!” The gigantic flight pack fell over, taking Prin with it, leaving him on the ground, unable to get up, his limbs flailing.

The salesman looked nervous, while Risha looked like she was about to collapse into hysterical laughter. “Uh, a little help here?”

Elsewhere, Corso was exploring random vendors. He examined a whole crate full of random junk. “Hmm, let’s see what they got in here…” He began to pull items out, including a ginormous black helmet with a sliding facemask ( “Anyone who wore this would look frickin’ ridiculous” ), a weird gold orb with two handles and a glowing blue center ( “What would you use this for?” ), and an unusual looking curved blade-weapon ( “Bowdaar might like this.” ).

Suddenly, a shifty-looking Bothan in a cloak came over. “Hey, you want something strange and mystical?” Corso looked at him strangely, before the Bothan took out a box from his trenchcoat. “This is an Energy Polarizer. It is guaranteed to boost the performance of any vehicle it is fitted to by aligning all of its molecules.” Corso pondered it. It did sound like it could boost the Boundless’ performance, maybe even stop the hyperdrive from overheating (which helped lead them into that Imperial ambush). “I’ll take it. How much?”

“70 credits. I’ll take any type: chip, coin, bill, ingot, cube.” Corso promptly handed over some of the ingots he’d got from the crew’s betting pool. “Man, they need to slim down the number of ways you can pay for stuff, it’s kinda complex.” , he thought. The Bothan handed over the Energy Polarizer, and skulked off.

As Corso walked away, he bumped into Akaavi, who looked even more pissed off than usual. “Out of my way, Riggs.” “OK, Miss Spar.” Corso said nervously, “Geez, I wonder what’s gotten her all karked off.” , as she stalked away. Finding a bench to sit on, he opened to the box to find…. a bunch of lightsaber crystals and magnets glued together, with tinfoil to fill out the gaps. “What the kriff?! Oh, that son-of-a-Hutt Bothan scammed me!” Unholstering his gun, he made sure it was loaded. “Torchy, we’ve got an ass to kick.”

As he ran back to the stall, he passed Guss and Bowdaar. “Huh, I wonder where Mr. Riggs is off in such a hurry?” Guss wondered. “Do not worry about it, it is not our business. Now what were you saying about the Lightning League?” Rushing back to the stall, Corso couldn’t find any sign of the Bothan scammer. “Dammit, I gotta find that guy so I can wring his neck!” He promptly began scanning the area, looking for any Bothans. He didn’t find any, but he did find Akaavi, behind the stall in an alleyway.

“Miss Spar, I need your help. Have you seen a Bothan in a grey cloak anywhere?” Her eyes narrowed. “I am assuming you have been swindled by him too?” Corso nodded. “Yeah, how’d you know?” She snorted. “That cowardly slimeball sold me a blaster pistol that supposedly could completely disintegrate someone. I test-fired it, and it fell apart in my hands.” She held up the shattered remains of a cheap-looking blaster. “What did he sell you?” “This box thing he claimed was an “energy polarizer”, said it would increase performance on any vehicle. Looked inside, it was just a bunch of magnets and crystals glued together. Bastard got me for 70 credits.” Corso tossed the box against the wall, and the crystals scattered across the ground; he proceeded to kick the box in frustration.

“Well, it looks like we have the same target. I suggest we put aside any differences we have and work together to find this scam artist.” Akaavi then began to prep her techstaff for battle, making sure the nanopulse module was within working order (which allowed for energizing the techstaff in a manner mimicking that of a lightsaber), before holstering it on her back.

Corso nodded. “Alright. It’ll be you, me and Torchy.” As he held up his gun, he activated a holo-targeting lens. “Torchy hasn’t seen any action in a while, he’s gotten restless.” Akaavi just looked strangely at Corso. She just shook her head, and consulted her MyComm. “According to several other merchants, the Bothan has fled into a shadier part of the merchant’s district. We will take precautions to ensure we cannot be seen.”

She then handed him a stealth generator. “I assume that, given the captain’s preferences towards them, you can use a stealth generator.” Corso grinned. “Yeah, we used them all the time back on Ord Mantell. One time, we used them to sneak into a separatist base that was hollowed out of a volcano.” Akaavi’s face shifted into a look of disbelief. “They created a base… out of an active volcano? That is insane!” As Corso finished strapping on the stealth belt, he remembered how much he’d hated those crazy skroggers. “Well, that’s the Ord Mantellian separatists movement for you, they were always pretty foolish. But we gotta find this Bothan, and kick his ass. Torchy’s ready and so am I.” He twirled Torchy around and aimed it at nothing in particular.

“I still do not understand why you insist on naming your weaponry. They are not sentient.” Akaavi scoffed. “I named these guys because they’re like my best friends in a battle-- solid and reliable.” He then activated his stealthbelt. “Let’s go find that swindler.” A few minutes later, Akaavi and Corso, under cloak, found themselves outside of a relatively-shabby building. “So, I’ll go in and scout the place. Then we’ll formulate a plan.” He whispered. Corso then quietly walked into the building.

He found the Bothan and many others, all wearing the same grey cloaks, gathered around something he couldn’t see. Then they parted to reveal a shimmering green orb, as they chanted ominous-sounding words he couldn’t understand. Akaavi crept in as well, staring at the strange ritual. “What in Mandalore’s name?” Even Akaavi was confused, and perhaps a little frightened, at the apparent cult. As both Akaavi and Corso watched, green energy swirled around and coalesced into a humanoid form, before solidifying into what looked like a human in a plain business suit. The being flexed his limbs, before turning to the cloaked figures.

“I thank you for reviving me from my hypersleep. And now, with the galaxy in the grip of war, it is the perfect time for us to strike!” The being spoke in a booming voice, seemingly rattling the walls. Then, a laser strike blew one of the Acolytes away. The figure and his followers turned to see Corso, holding out Torchy, and Akaavi next to him.

“I dunno what’s going on here, but we’ve got a score to settle with the Bothan!” Corso shouted, attempting to be as “heroic” as possible. Akaavi activated her techstaff, waving it around menacingly. “I would suggest you listen to him. I do not know who you are or what you are planning, but it ends now!”

The figure laughed. “A simple smuggler and his Mandalorian sidekick? Those are the first heroes who chose to oppose me?! Conquering the galaxy will be easier than I thought!” He then fired a green energy blast from his hand, flinging Corso and Akaavi back into a wall. “Oof!” Corso felt his back bruise become painful once more at the impact, while Akaavi still managed to get herself back up, leaning on her techstaff for support. Corso raised his head weakly. “Who are you?”

“I am Daatin, mortal! I was once a mere financial magnate on Muunilinst, but I wanted much more than that. I found a way to make myself immortal, and the process gave me powers beyond your comprehension.” Daatin began floating off the ground, an eerie green glow building around his form; his visage became more grotesque, and his business suit was replaced by a bizarre outfit covered in mechanical detailing. “But the Jedi Order imprisoned me over 100 years ago, to prevent me from enacting my plans of conquest. But thanks to my acolytes, they were able to gather enough currency to ensure my return!”

Corso and Akaavi looked at each other, baffled as to how currency could possibly bring someone back from imprisonment. They shook it off as they picked themselves up. “Well, we’re a bit busy with a Republic/Empire war at the moment, so we really don’t need a third party trying to take over the galaxy simultaneously.” As Corso checked Torchy to make sure he was alright, Akaavi looked ready to go, igniting her techstaff. “You are welcome to try, Daatin, but if we cannot stop you, then others can!”

Daatin just chuckled again. “Acolytes, destroy them! ” The hooded acolytes brandished spears, and Akaavi just smirked. “I think it’s time these acolytes learn that power isn’t everything, Corso.” He nodded, grinning cockily. “You got that right, Miss Spar.” While Corso fired Torchy at the acolytes that tried to attack from the sides, Akaavi whirled her staff with precision, striking more Acolytes with the energized tips, smoking holes visible through their cloaks. Others tried to use the spears, but Akaavi easily parried their blows and knocked their spears out of their hands. Soon enough, most of the acolytes were on the floor, disarmed. Only a few were left, guarding Daatin’s glowing form, and the orb on the pedestal.

“You might have defeated my acolytes, but I can still easily blast you into the next star system!” Daatin then began firing energy blasts from his hands at random, with Corso and Akaavi just narrowly dodging crumbling debris. They took refuge in an antechamber, not knowing what to do next. “Miss Spar, we’ve gotta figure out a way to stop that guy, before he ends up all-powerful!” Corso seemed to be on the verge of a panic attack, until Akaavi slapped him. “Get a hold of yourself, Riggs. I’m contacting the captain, he might be able to rally Republic forces for assistance.” Corso looked shocked, both from the slap and Akaavi’s statement. “But, you said you hated the Republic! And now you’re just going to use the Captain’s connections to call in the cavalry?! Aren’t you being hypocritical?”

Akaavi looked like she wanted to strangle him. “Listen, we are in a crisis here. When it comes down to the wire, I would trust the Republic’s army to at least stop the clearly crazy beings out to conquer and destroy. I’ve sent Captain Prindrohi a distress signal so hopefully--” 

BOOM! The antechamber’s walls were blown open by the floating Daatin, looking pissed. “You try to run and hide! Hah, this will be even easier than I imagined!” Daatin gloated. Corso and Akaavi simply armed their weapons. “I have had enough of your smug superiority, financial demon! This ends now!” “Hmmph. I like that term. Financial demon! But, your days are numbered -- GAAAH!” He was cut off as red lasers burst through the roof, striking Daatin repeatedly! “Who dares interrupt me in my moment of triumph!” He snarled.

“That would be me .” It was Prindrohi, lowering through the ceiling using what looked like a giant jetpack with laser turrets on the sides. “ Nobody messes with my friends. I dunno who, or honestly what , you are, but you’re going down.” Prin grasped his controls and the lasers locked onto Daatin. “So, some other smuggler comes to assist his puny little friends. It’s no matter, I can still beat you and everyone else--” He was cut off as Prin fired his turrets again, pummeling Daatin. Using Prin as a distraction, Risha then ran in and hurled a sticky thermal detonator at Daatin! It stuck, and it blew up spectacularly, sending him crashing back to the ground. “Gotcha!” Prin crowed.

Then, the orb in the center of the room pulsed with dark green light. “This battle is not over yet!” Daatin growled, picking himself up off the floor. He held out his palm, and began to siphon the energy; bright green light flooded the room, forcing Corso to shield his eyes! “Agh!” When the light died down, Daatin thrust his hand up into the air! This somehow triggered a transformation -- before the crew knew it, Daatin had busted through the damaged roof, now 50 stories tall! Daatin, now looking less human and more like a human/lizard hybrid, roared, and began firing energy blasts all around him!

“This just got a lot worse!” Risha noted. “Republic Army’s on their way, but I don’t know how they’re gonna stop this thing!” Prin reported. “The Boundless would be destroyed trying to take that creature on now. Mere lasers and missiles could not make the difference!” Akaavi realized. “Not even the smuggler flight pack could help now.” Prin said of his new weapon. Meanwhile, Daatin’s energy blasts were causing debris to rain down on the market, and people fled from the destruction! As Prin and the others watched in horror, something suddenly clicked in Corso’s mind. “Guys, we have to destroy that orb! It’s his source of power!” Prin fist-pumped. “Alright, locking on!”

Corso readied Torchy, Risha prepped another sticky detonator, Prin charged up his turrets, and Akaavi energized her staff. “Now!” At Corso’s signal, he and Prin fired their lasers, cracking the orb a bit. Green energy began to leak out from the orb, and Daatin paused his destruction, clutching his torso. Risha’s sticky detonator attached to the orb and exploded, causing huge cracks to appear on the surface. Finally, Akaavi struck it with her energized techstaff, making it shatter into pieces!

"NO! NO! NOOOOO!!!" Daatin screamed as his monstrous form suddenly began flickering, before seemingly dissipating into green energy! The threat was over. Then, a squad of Republic troopers arrived -- a bit late for the cavalry, but still. The lead trooper looked over the scene: a guy in a giant jetpack, a shattered green orb thing, and a bunch of defeated cultists in robes.

“We need to get paid more for this.”

----

With the Army now on the scene, the acolytes were taken into custody, while Prin and the crew had returned to the ship; Prin on a conference call with Senator Dodonna and some random Jedi about the whole incident. “It was pure luck that we happened to be there. Some of my crew were investigating a random Bothan scam artist, only to stumble upon….”, Prin making confused, wild hand gestures, “ this! ”

The Senator looked relieved, while the Jedi looked impassive (as usual). “Well, it’s a good thing you were there, Captain, or otherwise we’d have a major crisis to deal with. Good work.” Senator Dodonna then gave Prindrohi a thumbs-up. Prin then turned to the Jedi. “So, who was this guy, and what was his whole deal?” Akaavi’s SOS signal hadn’t explained much, all Prin knew was this guy must’ve been trouble. “He was a corrupt financier from Muunilinst who tried to cheat death and turn himself into a superpowered being. The Jedi imprisoned him over a century ago in a Force orb, but apparently he was able to influence those nearby into becoming his acolytes with the promise of riches and power.”

Corso and Akaavi walked over to the holoprojector. “Well, it’s a good thing we got scammed by that Bothan then -- if we hadn’t, nobody would’ve known what was happening until Daatin laid waste to the whole planet!” Corso exclaimed. The Jedi had a knowing look on his face. “Such is the will of the Force.” Turning back to the Senator, Prin began discussing their upcoming mission to Belsavis, while Corso collapsed on the couch. “I tell ya, when we get to Belsavis, I’m staying here on the ship. I’ve had enough of stopping evil plots for one day.” He was exhausted. He honestly wasn’t sure how the Captain could deal with this week after week. Being one of multiple companions meant he only experienced a little bit of it now.

Akaavi sat down next to him, also weary looking. “And I shall admit, despite our differences, we worked together to take down an enemy we did not even realize existed.” She then took out her MyComm and cued up some holoseries to watch. “Though I do wonder… where in the galaxy did the captain find that giant thing?” Akaavi, though grateful he’d helped come to their rescue with it, frankly thought that it looked ridiculous attached to him like that. Risha and Bowdaar had somehow managed to get it onboard and store it in the secondary hold.

Corso just smiled. “Yeah, because I want me one of those. I’ve always wanted to look like a holo-drama reject.” Akaavi genuinely chuckled at this, and so did Corso.

Chapter Text

As Ceetoo moved Risha’s stuff into Prin’s quarters, they just lay on the bed, snuggling each other. They had finally tracked down Rogun the Butcher on Tatooine, only to be confronted with information that challenged their whole Republic privateering business-- Darmas had been working for the Empire this whole time, secretly an agent of the Voidwolf, and Senator Dodonna was his accomplice, angling for her own planet to rule.

Rogun had instead given them pointers on what the Voidwolf was planning, a massed pirate fleet to attack the Republic. They hightailed it to the Boundless, and were currently on the way to Corellia, where the Voidwolf’s flagship was. It was at least 48 hours before they would get there, so to kill time, Risha was now officially moving into the captain’s quarters.

Prin just sighed, a shattered look on his face. “Risha, I still can’t believe all the crap that’s happened in the last 24 hours. We find that our employers have secretly been working for the Empire this whole time, and Rogun decided to help us. And he forgave my debt over that crate of blasters!” Risha, for her part, was pointing to Ceetoo where to put her things, but was mainly concerned with hugging Prin. “I know, but you remember when you told me how friendship was rare in the smuggling game? It goes the other way-- your closest ally can easily turn on you at the mere mention of loot. It’s how the game works.”

Prin looked away, forlorn. Just then, the ship suddenly quaked, knocking Ceetwo (already unbalanced from the bug-out bag he was carrying) to the floor. “Oh, goodness!” Prin and Risha promptly scrambled to the cockpit, where Corso was in a panic. “Guys, something just knocked us out of hyperspace!”

Prin checked the proximity monitor, but there wasn’t anything there. But he looked out the viewports, and glimpsed what looked like a floating…. island? Suddenly, the ship was struck by what looked like a glowing energy sphere, surrounding the ship. The lights dimmed. The others rushed in, equally confused. “Captain Drohi, what’s happening?” Guss asked, eyes wider than normal.

Suddenly, a mysterious-sounding female voice echoed from the intercom. “Welcome… to Maze Island.” The crew looked around, trying to find the source. “Your journey begins…. now.” Even Risha was unnerved by this turn of events. The Boundless then began plummeting towards the island! “Captain, the controls aren’t working! We’re gonna crash!” Corso yelled, pressing buttons and flipping switches to no avail-- they weren’t in control anymore!

The Boundless soon entered the atmosphere, re-entry heat forming a flaming outline. “All hands, brace for impact!” As they looked down, they saw they were heading straight for a huge lake! They all screamed in terror-- “AAAAHHHHH!”-- but they went through the lake harmlessly! Everybody trailed off from their screaming and looked out the viewports-- they were now in some twisty energy-tunnel thing, not dissimilar to hyperspace.

Soon, they exited the tunnel, setting down in what looked like a cavern of some type. Everybody promptly debarked from the Boundless, weapons at the ready-- when suddenly, their weapons began shimmering with light, and vanished!

The mysterious voice then spoke again. “You have no need for sidearms here.” Bowdaar promptly roared in anger. “Who are you? Why have you brought us here?!” The voice merely chuckled. “You will find out in due time. Proceed down the hall.”

The group promptly began walking towards the pinprick of light in the distance. Corso just shook his head in disbelief. “As if our lives aren’t chaotic enough, now we’ve been kidnapped by someone or something, and we can’t defend ourselves!” “You’re forgetting, farmboy, that me and Akaavi are well-trained in hand-to-hand. Plus we’ve got Bowdaar for physical strength. We can get through… whatever this is.” Meanwhile, Guss seemingly wasn’t concerned, just walking along as if on a casual stroll. Bowdaar whispered to him. “I assume you are trying to be like the Jedi, a passive mask over your true emotions.” Gus nodded. “Yeah, I hoping whoever this person is doesn’t sense my true fear.”

They eventually reached the end of the passage, and stepped into an archway filled by glowing light. The voice rang out again. “Proceed, and you will eventually find your way to escape.” The crew stepped through, and emerged in what looked like an even bigger cavern, surrounded by giant viewscreens. In the center, three slim podiums with odd grips on them lay waiting.

Then, a bright flash of light appeared-- when it died down, a woman, in a silver dress and boots, had materialized seemingly from nowhere. “Greetings. I am the Lady of the Maze, and---”

Akaavi walked over to her. “Listen, scum. I don’t know who you are, but we were on our way to somewhere very important when you decided to kidnap us! Now let us go, before I--”

With a wave of the woman’s hand, Akaavi suddenly found herself garbed in unusual attire-- a silver jumpsuit, covered in gadgetry. Prin and Guss found themselves in the same suits, while Bow, Risha and Corso were now outfitted in similar but different silver suits. The Lady continued. “As I was saying, I brought you here to give you a challenge. I have devised one of the most challenging mazes in the galaxy, and I had been looking for those skilled, brave and resourceful enough to conquer it. I found you via the HoloNet, as both smugglers and heroes. I have picked you to run my Maze. But first, you must play my game.”

Prin looked at everybody, clearly annoyed. “Alright, looks we don’t have a choice in the matter. If we’re ever gonna get back on the road to Corellia and bring Darma, Dodonna and the Voidwolf to justice, we gotta go through this.”

“Good, now-- three of you, take positions behind the podiums. I will show you images that will start out unclear, then become more visible. When you think you know what it is, use the triggers to zap the screen. A correct answer will give you 10 points. I will then ask a 5-point question related to the image. The first two teams that get to 50 points will run my Maze.”

Risha, Corso and Guss stepped up and gripped the podiums. “Now, here is your first image.” All three viewscreens then began showing… something. It cleared up, and gradually comprehension dawned on the trio’s faces. Surprisingly, Guss was the first one to zap the screen.

“Ooh, it’s a power cell!” “Yes it is, Guss Tuno. You and Bowdaar now have 10 points. Now, for 5 points, answer the question: what creature feeds on power cells and renders them unusable?” Guss concentrated for a few seconds, before tentatively answering “Shadow lurkers?”

“That is correct, you now have 15 points. Next image.” Another unclear image appeared, but this time Risha confidently zapped her screen. “It’s a hyperdrive activation cylinder!” “Correct, Miss Drayen. Now, my follow up question: what is the name of the container for an activation cylinder issued to flight crews?” Risha hesitated, before a “warbling” sound cut her off. “I’m sorry, the answer was a dispatch case. Your team now has 10 points. Onto the next image.”

----

Eventually, Prin and Risha’s teams got to 50 points-- “I am sorry, but only two teams can run the Maze. Guss and Bowdaar, you tried your best, but you are out of the game. You may take seats in the audience section.”

While Guss looked dejected, Bow looked confused. “What audience?” he asked. The Lady of the Maze then floated over to a section of the cavern that had been shrouded in darkness. She waved her hand, and the darkness dissipated to reveal risers full of beings, all of whom had apparently been watch the action this whole time! “J.D. and Mario will escort you to you seats.” Two men then came over and the alien duo followed them.

The darkness then re-enveloped the audience area. “I apologize, but I broadcast my Maze across the HoloNet for people to watch. I bring in people to watch on occasion, they believe it is nothing more than a game show.”

The Lady of the Maze then floated over to the remaining teams-- Prin and Akaavi, and Risha and Corso. “Now, it is time for you to experience the Maze yourselves. As the team that passed the point threshold first, Prindrohi will run the Maze first. Akaavi will guide you through the Maze from the base station over here.”, pointing towards a circular platform surrounded by monitors and with a large control stick in the center.

“Now, I will show you how your Powersuits function. They are wirelessly linked to the base station, so your partner can tell you which way to go, what to do and when to do it. It also comes with haptic sensors that activate to point you in a certain direction, and an arm-mounted laser that will be useful when the time comes. It is time to find what the Maze beyond entails.”

The viewscreens activated and began showing a maze composed of craggy-looking walls with mirrored surfaces. “The first part is the Mirror Maze-- your partner will direct you through with the map in front of them and the control stick. But beware my Mirror Man-- he will test your knowledge before you can pass him.” The Mirror Man looked like a mirror on droid legs, with a weird looking face stuck on the front.

The image changed to that of a bridge. “You must cross the bridge, and make sure to grab the Power Stick. It will be very important.”

The camera shifted to a bird’s-eye view of a gold and orange colored maze, with many nooks and crannies. “Next is the Honeycomb Maze. The runner’s visor will automatically seal, and they must rely solely on their partner to guide them through. Another Power Stick awaits at the end of this section.”

Now, the teams saw what looked like an ice-filled cavern, giving them flashbacks to Hoth. “You must traverse the Ice Cave, again without sight. But, if you can solve a puzzle, I will grant you a shortcut through it. But beware, obstacles may arise if you hit the Mirror Man’s face.”

The camera zoomed into what looked like some sort of room with multiple unusual-looking heads on the walls. “You will then enter the Chamber of Knowledge, where the Guardians will ask questions-- if you fail, then you must wait before they will let you pass.”

Finally, the camera came to rest on what looked like a miniature mountain, with spinning cubes dotted around, and a strange pedestal at the top. “Finally, you will run up Lightning Mountain. You will use your laser to shoot the cubes when they display the images of diamonds to open the barriers, and at the top, insert the Power Stick to stop the clock.”

Then the Lady of the Maze’s body vanished, and her head appeared on all the screens. “But before you traverse my Maze, I will allow you a short break to fuel your bodies.” She vanished again, leaving behind a table filled with snacks and drinks.

----

The group commiserated while snacking. Prin was still irritated, but also filled with curiosity at the upcoming Maze run. “I’ll be honest-- if we hadn’t been kidnapped, I’d sign up for this show, or whatever it is, in a heartbeat.” he said while snacking on finger sandwiches. Risha, meanwhile, was enjoying pigs-in-a-blanket, and briefly started speaking, before realizing she had a mouthful of food.

“Okay, let’s talk strategy. We need to figure out the quickest way through that maze. Prin, do you think you can bring the smuggler flight pack in?”

He shook his head. “The crazy lady would probably just make it disappear like she did with our weaponry.” Corso came over, a can of soda in-hand. “Captain, this morning we found out the crimelord who’d been hounding us since Ord Mantell was now on our side, and this afternoon we’ve been kidnapped and forced to explore a crazy maze. Am I just having a bad dream, here?”

Meanwhile, Akaavi, Bow and Guss were looking at Akaavi’s Powersuit curiously. “What’d you think this stuff might be? It looks like spray-painted durasheet.” Guss commented, poking at the suit. Akaavi slapped his hand away. “I do not know what this is composed of, but I will admit, it feels rather comfortable.” Bow, having just downed a whole plate of crackers and taken a huge swig of water, let out an island-shaking BELCH.

“Sorry, Captain.”

Prin waved him off. “I’m used to your huge burps at this point, Bow. Now once we escape this Maze, we’ve gotta hightail it to Corellia so we can catch that lying scumbag Darmas, or whatever his name is.”

Suddenly, the table vanished, and so did the podiums. The Lady of the Maze re-appeared, her head projected above the entrance to the Maze. “It is time for the first Maze run. Take your positions.”

----

As Prin paced back and forth in front of the entrance to the Maze, Akaavi was readying her headset at the base station. The Lady of the Maze then appeared in her bodily form. “I will now activate your Powersuit. You can feel the haptic sensors for the different directions, can you not?”

Prin, somewhat uncomfortable with the constant rumbling everywhere, simply nodded.

“Then, in three, two, one-- go! ”

Prin dashed off, through the entrance and out of the cavern. He entered the mirror maze, with Akaavi’s voice in his ears. “Go left! Left again!” As Prin dashed through the mirrors, trying to find his way, it was rather disorienting. “Now, right, then left again!” It seemed he was close to getting out of this part of the maze! Then, the Mirror Man he had been warned about stepped in front of him.

The Mirror Man growled. “Answer this question. What planet does King Actavarus currently rule?” Without hesitating, Prin answered “Dubrillion!”

“Correct, you may pass.” The Mirror Man promptly scooted away as Prin rushed past him, racing across the bridge to the next section, though not before grabbing the Power Stick. He soon came upon the entrance to the Honeycomb Maze, and warning blared. “VISOR DOWN!”

His visor sealed shut automatically, and it was up to Akaavi to direct him now. She wiggled the stick-- “Go forward! And again!” Prin made his way through the doors, but bumped into the far wall. Akaavi growled in frustration. “Back up and turn left!” Prin went through, and was directed into the exit of this part, his visor raising. “Whew. Okay, half the maze is done.” he muttered, grabbing the other Power Stick on the way out.

Now, he found himself in front of a locked gate, and a glowing cube, which promptly revealed the Lady of the Maze within. “Good job, Prindrohi, for making it this far. To proceed, insert the first Power Stick into this cube.” He promptly did so, and the Stick quickly vanished as the cube turned from pink to green. “Now, look at the cube. You have five seconds to solve this image.”

An unclear image like the ones from earlier appeared on the surface of the cube, but it quickly resolved itself into- “An electrosword!” Prin blurted out. “You are correct. You have earned the shortcut to the Chamber of Knowledge, but do not step on my Mirror Men or sensors, otherwise I will block your path. Visor down, sensors on, push the gate and you may proceed.”

As he entered the Ice Maze, Akaavi was shouting even louder now. “Go left, a little bit more! Avoid the faces, don’t touch--” Too late. Prin accidentally hit one of the Mirror Man faces, and giant icicles lowered down from the ceiling, blocking his way. “Captain, stop! Then, move to the right, and go forward!”

Prin hoped he was going in the right direction, because the haptic sensors didn’t seem very accurate to him, and Akaavi’s instructions didn’t seem to help. “I hate being blind like this, I can’t figure out where anything is!” he thought.

He flattened against the wall, and began hearing an insistent beeping noise. The exit was nearby. He reoriented himself and hoped he went in the direction of the beeps. Thankfully, his visor opened and he exited into the Chamber of Knowledge.

He was inwardly freaked out by the inexplicable talking heads on the walls, as a gold one began talking. “I am the Guardian of the Natural World, and here is my question. What plague has turned the inhabitants of Taris into violent creatures?” “The Rakghoul virus!”

“Correct, you may proceed.” As the gate opened, Prin breathed a sigh of relief. He was almost out! But Lightning Mountain remained.

He aimed his laser gauntlet, with Akaavi firing. He managed to get three diamond images on the cubes, before rushing up and slamming the Power Stick into the pedestal atop the mountain.

The Lady of the Maze materialized next to him as he went back down the mountain. “Excellent work, Prindrohi. Your time in the Maze was 4 minutes and 32 seconds. Now, it is time for Corso to run the Maze.”

----

After another quick refueling break, Corso was ready to run the Maze, Risha in place at the base station. The Lady of the Maze reappeared again. “Now, you must run the Maze in less time than Prindrohi did. If your time exceeds his, then you have lost. Now, your journey begins!”

Corso ran into the Mirror Maze, having seen the map when Akaavi was using it earlier. And while he was successful in getting through it quickly, the Mirror Man blocked him. “Answer my question: what type of poison is frequently used in dart form by assassins and bounty hunters?”

Since Corso was an expert on darts, he knew the answer. “Fex-M3!” “You may pass.” He zoomed past the Mirror Man and seemed to cross the bridge in seconds, grabbing the Power Stick on his way.

But his momentum came to a halt when his visor slid down. It was the Honeycomb Maze.

He managed to get through the first door, but after that, he seemed like a helpless old man, stumbling his way into walls and doors. “C’mon Corso, go left!” “I don’t know which way is left, Risha!”

Finally he managed to exit, grabbing the second Power Stick hastily, before the Lady of the Maze reappeared. “Good to see you have made it this far, Corso. First, insert the first Power Stick into this cube.” He did just that. “Now, if you can solve this photo, you will be granted a shortcut to the Chamber of Knowledge, you have five seconds.”

The image appeared and cleared up. “A vibrosword!” he shouted. “I’m sorry, but that is incorrect. Visor down, sensors on and don’t step on my mirror men. Push the gate and you may proceed.”

Corso flung the gate open, and clumsily attempted to avoid the Mirror Men faces and the sensors. “C’mon Corso, to the left, left, avoid the Mirror Men whatevers!” Risha shouted. Unlike Prin, he managed to do so, and quickly found his way into the Chamber of Knowledge.

His visor unsealing, he couldn’t suppress his disgust at the weird wall heads. “I am the Guardian of Innovation, and here is my question: What space station has the power to move planets with its’ tractor beams?” There was only one that could do so: “Centerpoint Station!” “Correct, you may proceed.”

Corso rushed through and scrambled to Lightning Mountain-- the timer on his arm was slowly ticking upwards! “OK Corso, you aim, I’ll shoot!” He aimed at the spinning cubes, and he managed to get four! Corso, out of breath and pulse pounding, shot up Lightning Mountain and scrambled to the pedestal. He inserted the Power Stick, and the clock stopped!

“Corso Riggs, you have managed to beat your Captain’s time, you stopped the clock at 3 minutes and 48 seconds! You win!”

Corso just gave a thumbs up, as the others rushed to him. “Now, it is time for the final phase of your journey. Farewell.” Suddenly, Corso turned into a ball of light and shot at one of the videowalls! His name and time were displayed on it….

----

And suddenly, everybody was back aboard the Boundless, going through hyperspace to Corellia!

Prin and Risha shook their heads confusedly, in the captain's quarters as if nothing had happened. Ceetwo was there, not on the floor, but still struggling to carry a heavy bug-out bag. “Prin, what in the hell just happened?”

“Well, it looks like we’re back on the way to Corellia. That’s good. But I don’t understand what the point of all that was, besides being a holo-series apparently.”

Corso walked in. “Uh, Captain, you may want to take a look at this…” He gave Prin what looked like a datapad and a Power Stick, bundled together. Prin took the datapad and read the text.

“Dear Prindrohi and crew, I apologise for intruding on your lives. My real name is Clea, leader of the planet Kline. I have been searching for a suitable crew to help aid my planet-- thanks to the Empire it has been rendered nigh-uninhabitable. There is one hope, the Power Lances, which are powerful objects that could restore the planet. But the pathway is a complex maze, so I went out and constructed an artificial floating space station resembling an island with a replica of the Maze, to see if the Maze might be passable for us. You have proved that it is, and we might have a hope of returning our planet to normal. I have enclosed a special Power Stick trophy as a memento for you-- I hereby designate you and your crew Masters of the Maze.”

Prin put down the datapad. “Well, it looks like Clea had good intentions, just a bad way of expressing them. Let’s put this trophy somewhere, because we’ve gotta get to Corellia, focus on other things.”

Chapter Text

Prin collapsed onto his bed, dead tired. The past few days had been insane even by his standards: bringing Darmas and Dodonna to justice, defeating the Voidwolf on his flagship and subsequently escaping its’ self-destruction, taking command of the Voidwolf’s massive pirate fleet and aiding the Republic against the Empire; when he got back down to the surface, the Republic higher-ups had commendated him with the Medal of Service. But right now, all he wanted was some decent sleep.

He felt someone enter. It was Risha, who promptly sat down next to him. “Hey Prin. Listen, where do you want to go? The fleet you took from the Voidwolf’s gone to Port Nowhere, but we’re free to do our own thing, at least for the moment.”

He lifted his head, barely conscious. “Coruscant.” he mumbled. After a minute, he began snoring. He was finally passed out cold.

Risha gave his a kiss on the cheek and left the room, smiling.

----

“Ugh… feels like a speeder hit me or something…” A zombie-like Prin wandered out into the hallway. He shuffled down to the kitchen to get some caf, only to find Bowdaar waiting there for him. “Welcome back to the land of the living, Captain.”

Prin rubbed his head woozily. “Uh, Bow, how long was I out?” Bow pulled out his MyComm-- “About 36 hours.”

“Well, I can’t say I didn’t need it. Where is everybody?” “Risha has gone shopping with Akaavi, Corso and Guss are going to a sporting event. We’ve been here at Coruscant for about 12 hours now.” Bowdaar recounted, as he handed a mug of stimcaf to Prin.

Prin took several gulps of the stimcaf. “Ooh, that’s way better. OK, so I guess that just leaves you and me, Bow. There anywhere you want to go, or….”

“Not particularly. I feel for once like being on the couch and watching whatever we can get on the holoprojector.”

“You read my mind, Bow.”

Soon, they were both on the couch, flipping through the holochannels. “No, that looks boring. Whoa, infomercial, avoid that. Nah, seen that already…” As Bow flipped through, Prin tapped him to pause-- it was a newscast.

“This is Hololine News, Second Watch, with Lari Keman.”

As the holo tinted to red, a female anchor appeared, a picture of Corellia floating behind her. “Our top story is the Republic’s turnaround of the near-secession of Corellia to the Sith Empire. Perhaps the most notable battle to free the planet was the one in orbit, where the Imperial admiral known as the “Voidwolf” attempted to use a pirate and mercenary fleet as part of his plan to manipulate the galactic underworld. But a lone smuggler, Prindrohi Candaren, had been hot on the trail of the Voidwolf for months and finally confronted him. He defeated the Voidwolf and convinced the pirate fleet to join the Republic-- as the Voidwolf’s flagship self-destructed, the pirate fleet was able to rout an incoming Imperial strike force alongside the Republic’s 8th Fleet, securing Corellia. But the defeat of the Voidwolf wasn’t the only heroic deeds the smuggler performed-- he had just prior apprehended two of the Voidwolf’s agents, renowned gambler Darmas Polloran, and disgraced Republic Senator Bevera Dodonna, both of whom are now in Republic custody. For his actions, Candaren was awarded the Republic Medal of Service by Supreme Chancellor Saresh and Supreme Commander Rans, the highest civilian honor.”

Prin turned to Bow, muting the newscast. “Damn, man. And here I thought it was all a weird dream. But I really did do all that stuff, didn’t I?”

Bow merely chuckled. “Do not worry, Captain, it will take time for your actions to sink in. The HoloNet in general is buzzing about your actions-- they’ve started calling you the ‘Voidhound’.”

Prin nodded. “Voidhound, huh? I like that nickname. Anyway, let’s see what else is on.”

----

Elsewhere, Risha and Akaavi were amongst the crowds in the Glitannai Esplanade , browsing the wares of the high-end shops. They were already laden with several bags, mostly clothing.

“So, now that all the hunt for the Voidwolf has finally ended, I would suggest we find a permanent housing facility, Miss Drayen.” Akaavi had less bags, mainly full of interesting artifacts she had found in an antiques shop.

“I was thinking the same thing, actually. We do need a place to call home when we’re not flying the hyperlanes. And since this is Coruscant, it’s bound to be pricey-- but between the riches of my father’s treasure, and the 500,000 credit bounty you guys ended up getting for defeating that crazy financial demon or whatever it was, we’ve got money to burn.”

The duo walked into Silver Towers Realtors, one of the high-end property management firms in Galactic City. The office was minimalist, mainly silver walls with clear desks, pictures of fancy-looking locations hovering in front of the walls.

A purple-skinned Twi’lek in a business suit rose up and greeted the duo. “Welcome to Silver Towers, where you can rise up and join the heavens. I’m Marlieen, what I can I help you with?”

Risha pulled out her new MyPad (CEC had just debuted datapad-sized MyComms, and Risha had got her hands on a few). “I’m looking for a place with enough space for 10 people and lots of cargo. Do you have any listings that meet those characteristics?”

Marlieen nodded. “I think so, but it might--” Risha grinned. “Oh, don’t worry about credits, money is no object. After all, my boyfriend is the Voidhound.”

The Twi’lek gasped, her tentacles twitching in amazement. “Your boyfriend was the one who helped save Corellia! Hell, I’m giving you two a discount! I’ll go get the paperwork started!” She dashed off into a side office, leaving Risha and Akaavi behind.

“I’ll admit that there do seem to be some perks of having Prindrohi around. This is one of them.” Risha said. But Akaavi just looked a bit confused. “But, why do we need space for 10 people? Our crew is only six beings-- seven if you count the droid.”

“I always have future expansion in my mind, Miss Spar. May I remind you that I am a queen?” Risha smirked.

----

Meanwhile, Corso and Guss were on their way to something they couldn’t miss-- a new fad sweeping Coruscant, the VCL-- Vehicular Combat League . All sorts of crazy craft-- wheeled, hover, jets, anything that could move-- would compete in a demolition derby-style event, with each vehicle having all sorts of bizarre tricks and gadgetry.

“I’ll tell ya, Guss, this sounds like something we’d do back on Ord Mantell. We had demolition derbies with old swoops and speeders all the time. My old man even let me wreck our old Incom model when we couldn’t sell it to anybody. Man, that was fun.”

The duo were busy inching their way through the seats, arms full of the typically-overpriced concessions they sell at arenas. “Well, Mister Riggs, I’ve heard there are all sorts of bitter rivalries in the League, Bowdaar was telling me about them. The Lightning League is constantly fighting the Monster Minds-- something involving the LL’s leader Jayce and his father, there are the Zone Riders and Black Widows, M.A.S.K. and V.E.N.O.M-- it’s nuts!”

Then, the arena lights darkened, and an announcer’s voice rang out. “Now, live on the HoloNet from the Galactic Coliseum on Coruscant-- it’s time for the Vehicular Combat League!” The crowd roared, ready to see some crazy stunts and action!

“From the Lightning League, it’s Jayce inside that little buggy, Armed Force! And there goes Bigfoot, ready to crush! We’ve got the Rhino of M.A.S.K., ready to roll! And Commander Courage and his Zone Riders! The first event will have them competing in a vehicular obstacle course designed to crush any lesser vehicles, but these guys just might be able to make it!”

Corso and Guss began munching on their food, eager to see what these insane vehicles could do!

----

Back on the Boundless, Prin and Bow were off the couch and were instead cleaning the ship up a bit. “Hey, toss me that duster, will ya?” Prin reasoned that since he hadn’t really cleaned the ship since after his final confrontation with Skavak, they probably should get around to cleaning it. All the battles they’d gone through, all the cargo they transported, everything was dirty in some fashion.

Prin was busy dusting a lot of the random crates full of odds and ends that hadn’t been touched in a while, while Bow vacuumed out all the HVAC vents, which had lots of dust, dirt and debris within them, including leftover sand from Tatooine.

“Hey Bow, I’ve got a question. You ever want to visit Kashyyyk again? Maybe we could find your family, they’re probably still around.”

Bow looked away. “I do not think they would still be there, the slavers captured my entire family. Even if they somehow managed to make it back, the sheer amount of Wookiees would make it near-impossible to find them.”

Prin came over and gave him a hug. “I’m sorry, Bow. But hey, you’ve got a new family. Me, and Risha and everyone else.” Prin walked over to another crate, when it suddenly sprang open, startling Prin! “Whoa! I dunno how that happened!”

He peered inside the crate, and gasped. He pulled out a blaster pistol. “Bow, do you know what this is? It’s the crate of blasters that was supposed to go to Rogun the Butcher! I thought that bastard Skavak sold them!”

“He must have only said that to mess with you. We all know of that traitorous scumbag’s fixation with breaking promises.”

Shutting the crate, Prin turned around. “Yeah, but before we met you, me and Corso got him back-- we convinced a slicer to falsify Skavak’s records. Not only did we make it accurate to his criminal profession, but we also added in some info on his health-- specifically the fact that he suffered from Bothan Nether Rot! ”

Bow broke down in laughter, leaning on the holoprojector for support. “I-I cannot believe you added that to his records! That must have been incredibly embarrassing for him! A-ha-ha-ha!”

Prin just grinned, laughing up a storm.

----

Back at the realtor’s office, Risha and Akaavi were comparing several different properties.

“No, this one’s too inconveniently sited, it won’t work.” Risha dismissed one place and checked out a beach house on the shores of the Great Western Sea. Akaavi, meanwhile, was eyeing a particular place near Core Plaza, a nice three-story walkup.

Then, Marlieen reentered, a grin on her face. “I think I’ve found something for you, Miss Voidhound. It’s a listing we’ve had for a while, but no one wanted it!”

Risha and Akaavi exchanged surprised looks. “No one wanted it? But this is Coruscant, real estate is always in demand.”

Marlieen then slid them a datacard, which Risha inserted into her MyPad. An image of a beautiful apartment building in the Senate District, right near the Spaceport, appeared on-screen.

“It’s a nice location, 5 bedrooms, 4 and a half bathrooms, a garage for speeders and swoops, a balcony view, and all utilities are included.”

Risha chuckled. “OK, so what’s the catch? That’s where you actually live?”

The Twi’lek rolled her eyes. “I wish. It’s actually the downstairs neighbors who are the problem-- a bunch of VCL drivers who got the apartment in a raffle. They’re loud, noisy and disruptive, and their mere presence scares away any potential occupants. They’ve got a 5-year lease, so we can’t get rid of them.”

Risha and Akaavi just looked at each other, with looks that screamed “Please.”

“We’ll take it. How much is the asking price?”

Marlieen turned to her computer console. “Well, normally it’d be 1.5 million credits, but in our attempts to sell the place we reduced it to 250,000 about 6 months ago, and since I told my boss about your actions in helping to bring down the Voidwolf, he’s authorized me to lower the price even further. Our offer is 5,000 credits.”

“We’ll take it.”

----

Back at the Coliseum, Corso and Guss had eaten their way through about half their food as the VCL vehicles wrecked the obstacle course and each other in search of glory. The Zone Riders’ monowheel vehicles ran circles around the obstacles, while Armed Force and Bigfoot were in a tussle, with Armed Force trying to use its’ claw to toss Bigfoot overhead, but it was having issues in lifting such a huge vehicle!

“And Armed Force is having a tough time with Bigfoot! It’s clamped its’ claw down but Bigfoot isn’t giving up! It’s swerving all over and--- uh-oh, we’ve got some intruders! Here come the Black Widows!”

A group of equally bizarre looking combat vehicles emerged from one of the entry tunnels, cannons locked on and firing away at the Zone Riders. But the Zone Riders were too nimble, and avoided the blasts!

Meanwhile, the Rhino was having to deal with a problem of its’ own-- the Switchblade, belonging to V.E.N.O.M., a helicopter-jet hybrid. It was firing missiles at the Rhino, which narrowly missed them and hit some random barrels instead. The Rhino promptly sprouted guns from all over its’ structure and began firing at the Switchblade!

“Woo, yeah! Guss, you were right, this kicks total ass! We’ve gotta get merchandise when we’re done here!” Guss nodded, then took a huge gulp of his beer. “I’m telling you, Corso, this’ll be popular all over the galaxy! It’s way better than podracing is!”

----

Prin and Bow had stopped vacuuming and dusting for the moment to tackle a stubborn problem-- something was wedged inside one of the vents, and they couldn’t figure out how to get it out of there!

“OK, Bow, you grab me and start pulling until that… whatever it is budges! On three! One, two, three!”

Even with the Wookiee’s strength, the object wasn’t cooperating, as Prin and Bow lost control and tumbled into a computer console!

“Ow.” Prin commented, rubbing his back where he hit the console. “I am perplexed, Prindrohi. Whatever the item is, it is blocking a crucial vent that releases the air in the ship in case of emergency. We must find a way to get rid of it!”

Then Ceetoo walked over. “Master Prindrohi, I believe I have a solution.” Ceetoo then reached over to the console, and started messing around with it. The object suddenly tumbled out-- it was a case of algarine dry wine! “Whoa, this is from Alderaan! We must’ve gotten it there, but I can’t figure out how got stuck in the vent.”

“I think I can answer that, boss.”

Corso and Guss came into view, laden with merchandise for the VCL. “What did you do, Corso?”

He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “Well, back on Balmorra, I was busy recalibrating the weaponry when I noticed this really awful smell. I tracked it down to that vent, and I wedged the first empty box I could find in it to stop the smell, and after Miss Spar arrived, I kinda just blanked on it.”

Prin sighed, then knelt down and looked into the vent. “Well, I think we found the source of the smell.” He pulled out a dead rock shrew! “Ew! I dunno when this thing got in there, must’ve been when we were on Coruscant the last time.” Prin walked over to a hidden floor chute, and dropped the carcass inside-- it would be jettisoned later.

Guss then began dumping the armload of merch he and Corso had gotten, including hats, shirts and giant drink containers. “So, where were you guys again? Bow only said you were at some sporting event.” Prin asked.

Corso just held up his MyComm and began playing a holo. “And Armed Force has switched targets to the Switchblade! It’s activating its’ stack-and-attack mode! Meanwhile, the Thunderhawk has flown onto the scene to assist the Rhino against the Black Widows!”

Prin saw all sorts of bizarre craft and vehicles blasting at each other and jumping off ramps. “That’s what we were at, Cap’n. The Vehicular Combat League, it’s all about these crazy vehicles as they race, smash and raise all kinds of hell! Next time they have an event, we’re taking you and Bow with us, it’s way better in person than by holo.”

“Well, boys, I hope we aren’t interfering in your testosterone poisoning.” Risha stepped into the room along with Akaavi, both holding assorted shopping bags. Prin rolled his eyes. “Don’t worry Rish, it was just these two who were poisoning us-- mainly because me and Bow unblocked a vent that Corso forgot about.”

Risha turned to Corso, eyebrow raised. “Don’t ask.” Corso folded his arms and looked away, embarrassed.

“Anyway,” Akaavi announced, “we have made a purchase everybody will appreciate. MyPads.” At the others’ confused looks, she and Risha passed them out to everybody. “CEC decided to upsize the MyComms to a normal datapad size. They are very handy, and we got a bulk deal.”

“Sweet, these things will be handy for sure!” As he turned his on, Prin noticed how Risha was still grinning. It was suspicious. “Risha, is there something else you’re hiding from us?”

----

“Risha, I literally can’t believe you got a good deal on this!” Prin yelled, muffled by the speeders flying past the balcony of their new apartment, the others all standing around, with Corso, Guss and Bow in awe at the view.

“Seriously, how did you pull this off? Blackmail? Extortion? Something worse?” Prin said as he leaped down from the elevated part of the balcony.

“Nothing so… incriminating. It was a combination of several factors, including being the girlfriend of the Voidhound.” Risha replied.

Bow clapped Prin on the shoulder, albeit as lightly as he could. “It looks like your new nickname is already starting to pay off for you.”

“Well, it’ll be nice to have a permanent home.” Corso said. “We’ve got a home base, a stronghold, all that stuff. We can all have our own rooms, too!”

Akaavi nodded. “I will admit, it would be nice to not sleep inside a room filled with men who literally stink. Clearly, we need to spray some air freshener aboard the Boundless.”

Risha began tapping her MyPad. “I’ve arranged for a top moving company to move our personal items and a boatload of furniture and fixtures I’ve purchased to begin tomorrow. We may stay here for a while, so consider this an extended vacation.”

Prin smiled. “Well, after all we’ve done, I think we all need a little break. But we’re still gonna go out and explore this crazy galaxy. Because we’re the Boundless.” He then held his hand out, and Risha put her hand on his. Corso, Bow, Akaavi and Guss all followed suit.

Prin’s smile went wide. “Whoa, BOUNDLESS!” Everybody threw their hands in the air, cheering and clapping.

Chapter Text

It was now a week since they had begun moving into the Stronghold (Corso’s nickname had stuck), and things were progressing nicely. Most of their stuff had been easy to move, and the furniture and all sorts of other things had arrived quickly.

Corso was the first up this morning, so he was down in the kitchen, making some caf, when Prin came in, yawning hugely. “Oh, morning Corso.”

“Hey Prin, you want some caf?” “Yes please.” The caf helped jolt Prin out of his usual morning zombie state, and he went over to the fridge to see what they had in store. Thankfully there was a HyperMart close by that they could use to stock up on food and perishables.

“Hey Cap’n. I’ve noticed that we haven’t hung out much lately, between your relationship with Miss Drayen and all the crap involving the Voidwolf. You wanna go explore around the area today?”

Prin, in the middle of eating a bagel he’d found, nodded his head. “Sure, Corso. I’m free, I got our free-trader’s license yesterday, and Risha says she’ll be busy all day. She’s gonna be busy researching all sorts of people on Dubrillion, trying to secure allies and stuff.”

“Yes, I- yawn - will. Where’s the caf?” Speak of the devil, Risha walked in, a fancy looking bathrobe pulled tight around her (as opposed to Corso’s pajamas with patterns of starships on them, and Prin’s simple t-shirt and sweatpants). She looked better than they did this early, but she was still in need of caf.

“Thanks.” Taking a mug from Prin, she practically inhaled the stimulating substance. “Yeah, my day’s gonna be pretty boring-- last of the furniture and some of the stuff I’ve kept in my old residence on Dantooine are coming in today, I’ve got research to do on Dubrillion nobles, and all sorts of paperwork to fill out regarding our new free-trader classification.”

“What about the others?” Corso asked, munching on an energy bar. “Uh, Bowdaar’s bringing Ceetoo in here later today, Guss is getting equipment for a medbay here, and Akaavi’s… uh, I have no idea what she’s up to. But, we got the whole day to ourselves, so let’s go!”

----

Soon, Corso and Prin were at the spaceport, just watching the speeders, swoops and starships whizzing by, docking and occasionally malfunctioning.

“Man, Corso, this is… relaxing.” Prin said. “It’s like, all this time we’ve been stuck in hyperspace, and now we can finally revert to our sublight engines.”

“Yeah, I know what you mean, Prin. It’s pretty refreshing, not to have to go somewhere in search of someone or something, having to stop someone evil from doing something really nasty, it kinda got repetitive after a while.”

Prin then pulled out his new MyPad and began futzing around with it. “Anyway, I’ve decided that maybe we should give the Boundless a repaint; the orange and silver look is kinda old, don’t you think?”

Corso looked at the MyPad, and saw that Prin had used an app to give the Boundless a virtual repaint-- now it was a really deep blue, almost black, with gold accents. It looked good. “Yeah, though I think we need to advertise you being the Voidhound somehow--”

Prin held his hand up. “No, I want to avoid that. I want to take on jobs based on our skill and experience in cargo, not just what I did to stop an evil bastard.”

Corso looked at him like he was crazy. “C’mon boss, don’t you want to--” “No.”

Corso looked away, clearly disappointed. He decided to change the subject. “So, what do you wanna go do? I mean, we’ve got plenty of time.”

Prin pondered. “Hmm. Well, there’s this place called the Block Party over about 3 blocks, it’s a huge complex that offers all sorts of activities-- bowling, hologames, VR, laser tag, darts, pool, sabacc,--”

“Oh hell, yeah! They got darts! Let’s go already!”

----

Back at the stronghold, Risha was in the middle of setting up her new office. She had a desk, a big holoprojector, some seats, a big nerf-leather chair for her, and all sorts of fancy decorations. Right now, she was scrolling through a list of nobles to contact.

“Let’s see, there’s Viscountess Devin and Viscount Fortin, but they’ve been known to voice a lot of support of Actavarus’ more tyrannical policies. They’re out.”

As she continued browsing through the lists, Ceetoo (who had been brought in by Bowdaar-- carried over his shoulder) entered, a tray of tea and biscuits in his hands. “Master Risha, here are the refreshments you requested. And I have to inform you, it seems that--”

A muffled explosion shook the stronghold, sending Risha’s chair wheeling away until it hit the window. (Thankfully, Ceetoo had set the serving tray down and it was unharmed.)

Picking himself up, Ceetoo resumed, now with a sense of resignation in his voice: “-- the VCL drivers are experimenting with their engines again.”

Risha, annoyed, scooted her chair back to the desk. “I knew it was a good idea to have the soundproofing and explosion-proofing installed. I’d better talk to them, see if they can cut down on their destructive habits.”

“That seems highly unlikely, Master Risha. From what I understand, the VCL is inherently destructive. I cannot offer any more suggestions on this topic.” With that, Ceetoo left the room.

Risha promptly returned to her noble checking, and brought up another entry, a Count Merritt Rineld. Cross-referencing his entry on the HoloNet with Dubrillion’s favored publication, the Radiance Transponder, she read up on his actions. He gave to charities, built orphanages, created wildlife preserves, and those were merely his hobbies. His day job was running a well-regarded holoentertainment company, RineldComm, built by his father over the past century. His father, Richard Rineld, had started merely with a satellite relay station in the Southern portion of Eba (Dubrillion’s primary landmass), and had expanded into a news service, multiple holochannels based around different genres of entertainment and information, and production and distribution of holofilms and series, among other ventures.

“Huh. Seems like this Rineld fellow just might be who I need in an ally to take back Dubrillion. Better put calling him on my to-do list.”

----

The Block Party was like a beacon to everyone in its’ radius-- a giant rectangular building covered in bright lights, signage and people streaming in and out. Prin and Corso had no issue finding it.

As they got off the speeder taxi, they just stood there, entranced by it. “Well, c’mon Corso, we gotta get in before we get knocked over standing!” The duo promptly rushed into the crazy revolving entrance.

They were greeted by dim lighting, the pounding of loud music, glowing lights, and tons of people. It was dizzying.

“Where do you want to go first!” Prin yelled of the near-deafening noise. “Wherever the darts are !” Corso and Prin promptly began looking around for the darts, which they assumed had to be somewhere. But they had managed to cram so much stuff and so many people in here, it was mind-boggling!

They wandered into an area marked “Services”, where kiosks lay and staffers were fielding questions from customers behind a huge desk. “Maybe one of these kiosks can tell us where the darts are.” Prin approached one, and tapped the screen. “Welcome to the Block Party! Please select an option.” A list of various options appeared, and a “First Time Here?” option topped it. Prin selected it, and inserted his credit chip as instructed.

He promptly got a temporary app beamed to his MyComm, which provided a guide around the Block Party; he took the chip and he and Corso proceeded back into the chaos.

“Man, this place is more crowded than a Nar Shaddaa cantina.” Corso muttered as he and Prin darted between sections of the crowds. They managed to get to the billiards area, and hanging on a nearby wall was a dartboard! “Yes! C’mon Prin, I’m about to whoop your ass at the game of bullseyes!”

They managed to get through several groups of pool players to reach the dartboard, only to find a blonde-haired woman already there. “Uh, excuse us, but are you playing with someone else, or--”

“Well, I haven’t heard those tones in quite a while.” Prin and Corso gaped. “Beryl Thorne!” Prin exclaimed. She nodded, a bit of a smug look on her face. “Yep, in the flesh.”

----

Back at the stronghold, Bowdaar was making a spare room into a training area. He was busy setting up a row of target dummies for blasters (he’d already used many of the crates and boxes they’d used to move their belongings and the new furniture to create larger target dummies for physical combat) when Akaavi walked in.

“I see you’re making sure that our skills don’t rust with disuse while we stay here.” Akaavi said. Bow turned around and roared. “That’s right! I want to stay active even as we rest our laurels after all our travails!”

Akaavi nodded. “I agree wholeheartedly with this plan.”

The duo promptly began beating the crap out of the target dummies, while one floor above, Risha was contemplating more nobles to investigate.

Another explosion shook the office from below, sending Risha’s chair into the wall again. Annoyed, she scooted her chair back into place. “OK, now let’s check the latest news from Dubrillion…”

Checking the holofeed of the Transponder (the largest holonews service in Dubrillion’s capital, Radiance City), she surmised that Actavarus wasn’t doing so well. While the Republic/Empire war hadn’t affected trade for the planet all that much, it was the incompetence and tyranny of the higher ups that were causing issues. The Minister of Finance was slowly draining the King’s coffers dry thanks to short-sighted moves and bungled projects, while the Prime Minister was attempting to sway the Directory (the parliament) into blindly following him and Actavarus’

stupid laws that were designed to benefit them alone. As a result, rumors of a possible resistance movement were swirling, and the common populace, as well as many nobles, were dissatisfied with the current state of Dubrillion.

“It looks like my coronation might be sooner rather than later.” Risha muttered.

As she continued perusing news from Dubrillion, Akaavi and Bowdaar had finally smashed all of their target dummies. Both were somewhat exhausted from all their staff and sword swinging.

“We need a recharge, Akaavi. I believe we stocked up on energy drinks, however. To the kitchen!”

----

Prin and Corso couldn’t believe that Beryl Thorne was back. “We haven’t seen you since Quesh!”

She sauntered over to them. “And I’ve heard you managed to take down the big, bad Voidwolf all by yourself, Mr. Candaren.”

“Stop trying to throw yourself at me, Beryl. I’m in a committed relationship now.” Prin crossed his arms as Beryl stepped back, a dawning look on her face.

“So you and Risha…?” Prin nodded. “Huh, I was wondering if you two would ever spit it out. I could see the tension hanging in the air the last time.”

Corso then stepped over to the dartboard and he scanned his MyComm at the pay station, and the scoreboard above promptly began displaying his name against Beryl’s.

“Now, how about we get to what we came here for? A nice game of darts.”

“Hmm, a darts man? I always have been interested in darts, especially how straight and tough they are.” Beryl purred, eyes locking on Corso, who began sweating nervously.

“So, how did you get here anyway? Last we saw you and that Ozzik guy we’d just managed to save you from the Voidwolf’s tagging thing. Clearly we’ve missed some stuff.” Prin asked.

As she threw her first dart at the board, Beryl began explaining. “Well, after we escaped Quesh, we joined up with this guy who was exporting this new drug from Kuat--”

Corso cut her off. “It isn’t called canny, is it?”

Beryl knowingly smirked. “Well, it seems you two have already encountered it.” “Yeah, we’re familiar.”

“Anyway, he’s been exporting it, and we managed to avoid the Voidwolf’s scrutiny, mainly because you were messing up his operations. Then, after you killed that son-of-a-Hutt and blew up his ship, we decided it was safe to head for Coruscant and see the potential market for canny. It’s nice to have a drug that isn’t produced by giant spiders, way easier to make and distribute.”

“Well, yeah. So how long have you been here?” Prin said.

She tossed another dart at the board. “About a week or so. We managed to hook up with a decent canny supplier. Thanks to the war with the Empire, canny’s managed to stay under the radar and we’re doing brisk business.”

Beryl exhausted her dart supply, and sat down. “OK, Mr. Riggs, it’s your turn.”

After a while, Corso was forced to concede victory to Beryl, the score 25 for Beryl, 104 for Corso. He grumbled under his breath as Beryl gloated. “Well, I guess you’re not so superior at darts after all, Mr. Riggs.”

Then, Prin’s MyComm rang. “Hello? Oh, Rish. Uh-huh. Sure, we’re on our way.”  He turned to Corso. “Looks like Risha wants us back at the stronghold, we’d better catch a taxi before she puts a bounty on our heads.”

----

Risha, Bow, Akaavi and Guss were in the kitchen, debating on what to do for dinner. “Why don’t we go out somewhere? There’s gotta be a buffet somewhere.” Guss asked.

Bowdaar laughed. “My friend, if a buffet staff saw a Wookiee approach, they would immediately pretend to be closed. Us Wookiees can devour entire buffet trays!”

“How about a nice bantha-burger joint? I haven’t had bantha meat in quite some time.” Akaavi supplied, a wistful look on her face.

“Hello, my excellent companions!” Prin walked in, Corso trailing behind, looking warily over his shoulder. “So, what’s so important you interrupted our excursion to the Block Party?”

“We’re trying to decide where we should go to eat.” Risha said, casually leafing through a flimsiplast pamphlet on choice eateries in the Senate District.

“Well, maybe our old friend Beryl can help us choose.” And in she strode, looking around at the huge surroundings. “Hey there Risha, it’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

Risha promptly dropped her pamphlet. “Wait-- Beryl?!! How- where- what the?” It was rare to see Risha confused, and Prin held back a ton of laughter.

“Yeah, we ran into her at the Block Party, apparently after Quesh she invested in the canny trade. She found her way to Coruscant and has been testing the waters for canny.” Corso said, still eyeing the blonde warily.

Beryl strode up to Risha. “Well, it is nice to see you again. And Prin was nice enough to fill me in on what you’ve been up to,” poking Risha in the chest for added emphasis. “Apparently, you’re a secret queen, or crown princess, in exile and you’re planning on taking your planet back.”

“Really, Prin?” Risha asked, exasperated. He shrugged. “I thought that since you two were always…. kinda-sorta friends, I could let her in on the plan-- which, I should note, I’ve given a codename. Operation: Bold Grace.”

“OK, aside from the codename-- which I’ll admit does sound good-- you really should’ve called me when you first saw her, that way I could’ve approached her with the info on my own terms.”

Clapping her hands, Beryl decided to change the subject. “So, I see you’ve acquired some new faces since I saw you on Taris. Any of you guys wanna get in on the canny?”

----

Soon, everybody (except Bowdaar, who fled for his room, not wanting another bad reaction to the canny like last time) was gathered around the circular table in the living room, once again baking under the canny’s influence like a loaf of bread.

“Ha-ha-ha, I forgot how awesome this stuff was.” Prin said, swaying around. “Thank you Beryl, for bringing it back to us.”

Like last time, one of them had set up a MyComm in the center of the table, and it swiveled around, tracking the canny joint, but it just missed it, turning towards Beryl, who was sitting next to Corso, again for him rather close. “Yep, I made sure to get a variety that wouldn’t have any nasty side effects, at least among us humans.” She then promptly started snaking her hands around Corso. “Uh, Miss Thorne, could you please not…”

The MyComm swiveled again, to reveal Akaavi and Guss sitting next to each other. Akaavi seemed to be really tripping, while Guss was scarfing down a slice of pizza. “I- does anybody else see this? My skin, it’s red and black! Is this permanent? And what about these little tiny horns on top of my head? Where’s my hair?”  Meanwhile, Guss was taking a big bite of another pizza slice. “Yum, this stuff is good. Why am I so hungry?”

The MyComm turned again, to Risha, who looked less enthused than the others. “I think I’m starting to adapt to this stuff. Better than the last time we tried it. And before you ask, turns out Corso accidentally shared that video of the last time to me before he deleted it. So….”

The MyComm turned back to Prin. “Hey, you ever wonder what it would be like if… if…. Huh, I totally forgot what I was thinking about. Hehehehe.”

Beryl took over again. “Hey, I’ve wondered, whatever happened to Vette? Back in the day, she was me and Risha’s best friend, we went everywhere together, causing trouble, scamming people, all that good stuff. After Nok’s empire broke down we just kinda lost touch.”

“I actually holoed her earlier this week, she’s doing fine. Though… she’s married to a Sith Lord. I wish I was making that part up.” Risha admitted.

Corso’s jaw dropped. “So, your old friend somehow got hitched with a Sith? This galaxy is crazy .”

“I’m pretty sure I look like a Sith, don’t I guys?” Akaavi asked, still tripping balls. Guss’ eyes, meanwhile, seem to have gotten even wider and larger at Risha’s reveal. “Well, let’s hope the Sith stays away from me. He could probably smell the Jedi on me from a hundred paces!”

Prin then reached out to Risha and pulled her into a one-armed hug. “Well, I think it’s time we welcome Beryl into our little group, don’t you think, honey?” Risha just gave him a “don’t ever call me that” stare, but he didn’t notice.

“Well, hey, I’m glad to join, from what I understand you guys are always getting into some crazy thing. Corso, didn’t you and the girl over there defeat some giant monster a while ago?” Beryl asked.

“Yeah, that was… pretty damn weird, even by our standards.”

The next morning, Corso woke up, with him and Beryl on the couch. He felt like his head had been in a blender. Beryl, however, seemed none the worse for wear. “Um, did we…?”

“No, we didn’t. I like you, Mr. Riggs, but I wouldn’t take advantage of anyone under the influence of canny.” With that Beryl rose up and went to the kitchen for some caf.

Corso turned and saw Bowdaar passing by on his way to the kitchen. “Well, it looks like our lives have taken yet another complicated turn. Sometimes, it seems all we can do is hope we survive the next disaster.”

Chapter Text

“OK, so where should I hide my Life Day presents for Risha…” Prin wondered as he went onboard the Boundless. He couldn’t hide them anywhere in the Stronghold, she’d find them easily as they’d thoroughly mapped the place and Risha would know of any potential hiding places.

“Obviously the engine room is out, so’s the master bedroom…” Prin walked down the hallway, briefly glancing at the Life Day presents he’d gotten for Risha in his bag. He’d used his own money to buy her some jewelry-- it would mean more to her than what she inherited from her father, maybe-- and a new, expanded engine toolkit.

He glanced around, but then he tripped over something, and stumbled a bit. “Oh, damn.” He looked down and saw that one of the under-floor smuggling compartments was partially open. Then it clicked! “Of course, these smuggling compartments will do the trick!” He knelt down and unlocked another compartment, carefully stashing the objects inside and sealing the compartment.

“OK, that’s one item off my to-do list.”

As he exited the Boundless, he saw Risha approaching from the hangar door, dressed in her typical ship repair attire: faded coveralls, jeans, work boots and a bandanna. “Uh, Rish, what’re you doing here?” He asked, hoping she wouldn’t notice the tiny amount of nervousness in his voice, she could often pick up on the slightest voice inflections.

“Gotta run a diagnostic on the turret rotation system, I think something’s stuck in there.” She replied.

Prin made a face. “Is that where that awful noise came from?”

Risha nodded. “Yeah. So what were you doing here?”

“I was looking for something I left on here a while ago.” He promptly held up the item in question-- a blaster rifle. “It’s one of mine from before Ord Mantell. I’m gonna hang it up in the armory as a relic, kinda.”

“OK then. Run along, you don’t want to be around the noise I’m gonna produce in trying to fix the turret gears.” Prin promptly began running off towards the speeder he left.

As Risha boarded the ship, she thought how forgetful Prin could be sometimes. “Of course, I have no room to argue, I completely forgot about selling my old house on Dantooine until I got the reliquary.”

She then set her toolbox down and looked around for a moment, before locating one of the smuggling compartments. “This should do nicely.” She opened her toolbox and took out her Life Day presents for Prin-- a pair of flight boots (he’d expressed interest in extreme sports equipment, flight boots being the newest kinds), and a set of datacards with his favorite holofilms on them. She found a compartment, slid it open and carefully set the items inside before shutting it.

----

A few hours later, Risha emerged from the Boundless, covered in grease and other fluids, smiling from the satisfaction of working to repair her ship (well, it was Prin’s ship, but technicalities). She loved working on it by herself-- it allowed her to vent frustrations and feelings without anybody else hearing.

As she walked down the ramp, she saw Corso on his way, strangely. “Hey, Miss Risha, can you leave it open for me?”

“What did you leave onboard?” Risha asked in a deadpan fashion.

“Uh, some stuff I forgot I had in the bunk room. Why?” Corso replied. “Prin was in here earlier, he had to retrieve a misplaced blaster of his.”

“Ah.” Corso nodded. “Well, here are the keys. Lock up when you’re done.” Risha promptly handed him one of the activation cylinders used to start the engines, and a small remote used for securing the ship attached to it at one end.

As he boarded the Boundless, he thought to himself-- about how despite all the crazy stuff they’d been through, from their humble beginnings on Ord Mantell through to defeating the Voidwolf over Corellia, the Boundless had weathered the storms and come out victorious.

He then focused on his real objective, finding his old stash of “special holofilms”, to put it politely. He hadn’t had a use for them in a while (Beryl’s arrival had changed things), but he figured it’d be better to have them if needed at the Stronghold rather than on the ship.

He then entered the bunk room, locating the bunk he habitually slept in, on the bottom left when you enter. He then headed for a panel in the wall and opened it to reveal a storage area-- though intended for maintenance purposes, a screw-up in manufacturing by CEC left it unconnected to anything, and the ships were hastily modified to box the area out, and subsequently references to it were removed from documentation. Corso had found it while setting up his stuff, and made sure no one else knew about it. He used it stash away his special items, including said “special” datacards.

Reaching into the compartment, he quickly grabbed the handful of datacards and stuffed them into his pockets. He then shut the compartment and walked out. “OK, I’ll hide them in my room and no one will have to know.”

But as he walked around the main hallway he tripped over something, sending Corso to the floor. “Augh, damn.”

He got up and saw that two of the smuggling compartments under the floor didn’t seem to have been closed right. “Guess I gotta fix it before we start injuring ourselves.” He opened both compartments to realign the covers, but he noticed the objects inside. “Huh, I guess we put these in here and they never got delivered. Might as well take them with me, see what Prin or Risha might do with them.”

----

Life Day, a week later

“Um, Rish--” “OK, Prin--” They both stopped for a second. “Uh, you go first Rish.”

It was going so well. They’d quickly decorated the Stronghold, Bowdaar had made them an excellent Life Day feast, Beryl had gotten her hands on a massive tree (when asked how, she simply waved it off, saying “some things are best left unknown”). But this was where things went off the tracks-- her presents for Prin had vanished . She’d checked all the smuggling compartments and no sign of them.

“Well, I’d gotten you presents, but they’re gone. I don’t know where they went. I’m really sorry, Prin.”

Prin just stared for a couple seconds, before he began giggling, which escalated into flat-out laughter. Risha looked insulted. “You really find this funny?”

“Yes, because that’s what happened to me!” “What?” Risha yelled as Prin continued to fall apart laughing at the irony.

“Yep, whoo.” Prin shook the laughter off, then got a serious look on his face. “I can’t explain it. I put my presents for you in one of the underfloor smuggling compartments, but when I went to get them yesterday to wrap, they were missing!” Prin explained.

In the back of the room, Corso, who’d been messing around with his new dart blaster, suddenly looked like he was going to soil himself. He promptly bolted out of the room, and Prin and Risha noticed. “Uh, Corso, where are you going….” Prin trailed off as he realized something. “You don’t think….”

Risha just facepalmed. “Corso, you idiot.”

Corso returned a few minutes later, Prin and Risha’s presents to each other in his arms. “Sorry guys, I thought this was undelivered merchandise we forgot about. I didn’t think you guys would hide your presents aboard the Boundless…”

“Of course we would!” Risha shouted! “I made detailed floorplans and I knew that Prin would probably find them quickly!”

“And I knew that since she made the floorplans, ergo Risha would quickly find my presents for her too!” Prin said, not wanting to shout since in this case, Corso simply didn’t know anything.

“I’m sorry guys…” Corso shrank back, looking like a wounded animal.

Risha’s expression softened. “Well, maybe we wouldn’t be so angry at you if we’d checked the security feeds…” Risha looked sheepish.

“I did, Rish-- the compartments we chose were in a blind spot from the cameras.” Prin said. “But here, I got you these. I bought them with my own money, I thought you’d want something personal.” Risha opened the jewelry box to find a pair of bracelets with images of Dubrillion and the Boundless laser-etched and colored onto them. “Prin, you’ve outdone yourself.” She then opened the hexagonal toolbox, to find a whole new set of enhanced starship tools and other implements. “And I appreciate what you’ve given me. Now it’s your turn….”

She then handed Prin his new boots. “Boots, Well, Rish, you have always tended towards the functional end of items…”

“Put the boots on, then concentrate.” He donned the boots, then he sensed something in his HUD--  “No way!” Repulsorlift boosters then extended out from the backs of the boots, with small maneuvering vanes sprouting from the sides! “Flight boots! Alright! This’ll make combat a hell of a lot more fun, I can take aim from the air and mow down mooks like there’s no tomorrow!” The flight boots ignited and Prin began hovering slightly, before rising up! “Wow, I can actually go up to the ceiling!” Prin marveled.

“I also got you these, heads up!” Prin promptly flew down a bit to catch the objects-- “All my favorite films on holocard! Woo-hoo! Thanks, Rish!” As Prin began flying around the room in celebration, Bowdaar, Akaavi, Guss and Beryl looked on.

“Well, I would say today has been a very successful Life Day.” Bowdaar rumbled. “Even if that idiot Riggs nearly jeopardized Prindrohi and Miss Drayen’s gift exchange.” Akaavi remarked.

“Well, I know something, we still have to prepare for New Year’s. I’ve already got repulsorlifts full of booze in the garage.” Beryl said, as Prin picked Risha up around her mid-section, flying up to the top of the room once more.

“Well then I’ll prep the medbay for lots of alcohol and food-related injuries.” Guss stated. “I know Corso’s gonna get wasted.”

From the top of the room, Prin looked down. “Yeah, just make a biobed for Corso to go to when the party’s over.”

“Hey, c’mon, Prin!” Ignoring Corso, he turned to Risha and triumphantly kissed her. “This has been the best Life Day I’ve ever had, Prin.” Risha said in a whisper.

Chapter Text

Prin entered the stronghold, a few shopping bags in hand. “Oh, there you are, Mr. Drohi. I was wondering where you’d went.” Guss said.

“Yeah, I went shopping, on Risha’s orders. Is the medbay ready yet, Guss?” Nodding, Prin followed him down to the new medbay, located on the second floor. “Here we are!” It was full of biobeds, new medical tools and instruments, and cabinets with supplies. “I got some good deals on surplus equipment and supplies from Coruscant General Hospital-- they recently expanded but overestimated how much in the way of stuff they would need. I managed to get it at their surplus fire sale!”

“Nice one, Guss. Looks like our bargaining ways are instilling themselves in you.” Prin said, impressed by the slick, shiny equipment. It was incredibly clean, but once they needed to use this stuff, it wouldn’t be anymore.

“Hey guys.” Corso came in, sounding stuffed up. “Ooh, perfect time to break in the medbay! C’mon Mr. Riggs, over here…”

Prin left the medbay, not wanting to get sick from whatever Corso had. He wandered out and onto the balcony, where he sat and watched the traffic fly by. It was soothing, like watching hyperspace for some people.

Suddenly, he felt a tap on his shoulder. It was Risha. “Hey, Prin. Did you get those things I wanted?” He handed the bags to her. “Yep, and I dunno what’s in them-- with you, I find it better to not ask questions.”

“An excellent policy. But, this concerns you as well. Come with me.” They headed to the master bedroom, where Risha promptly began looking through the bags. “Here we are, a suitable outfit for you tonight.”

Prin looked confused as she pulled out a tuxedo. “What are we doing tonight?” he asked, eyeing the outfit warily. “I’ve purchased tickets to one of the most popular variety shows in town and made reservations for two at one of the finest restaurants in the Senate District. If we are to be royalty, we have to learn how to be high-class-- I will admit, though this is mainly for your benefit, I myself need to brush up on the finer things in life, having been mainly concentrating on reclaiming my legacy and all the other things we’ve been involved in. So, go shower, dress and all the adjuncts to those two items-- I’ll be busy preparing my own ensemble in the guest bedroom to keep some surprise.”

With that, Risha took the other bags and left the room, leaving a thoroughly confused Prin standing alone, holding a tuxedo on a hangar. “What the hell just happened?” he questioned, shaking his head.

-----

Soon enough, Prin was all decked out in his new tuxedo-- and he had to admit, he cleaned up pretty nicely. “Wow, I can’t believe this actually works on me.”

“Well, I knew you had the capability. We just needed to uncover it.” Prin turned around and gasped-- Risha walked in, wearing a stunning evening dress. She was a sight to behold; it was a sleek thing, dark blue with little in the way of embellishments, glittering jewelry at her neck, ears and even atop her head.

“Wow.” That’s what Prin would’ve said-- if he wasn’t staring slack-jawed at Risha. “Hmm.” She looked amused. “It looks like my plan to knock you unconscious with my hidden beauty worked.”

Prin shook his head, snapping out of his trance. “Oh, sorry, it’s just… you look amazing, Rish.” She grinned, a bit smug. “I know, and you aren’t bad yourself, Voidy.” She loved teasing him with that nickname now.

“Anyway, our plans are for us to take in a variety show, followed by dinner. And maybe… if you behave, you might just get dessert .” Risha purred, leaving the implications hanging in the air. Prin adjusted his tux collar nervously. “Well, uh, why don’t you lead me? I’m not exactly a master of the upper class.”

“Right this way.” With that, they headed to the garage, where a sleek new luxury airspeeder lay waiting. “I got the new RR-34 speeder from Incom. It’s got nerf/bantha hybrid leather, updated navicomp and autopilot, THX SenSurround audio/video, and many other features I didn’t bother to memorize.”

It was a polished, shiny dark red, with tinted windows and a retractable roof. It was just begging to be shown off to friends, family and complete strangers. “I can’t wait to break this baby in.” Prin rubbed his hands but Risha promptly stopped him. “Oh, no, we’re not going to treat this like our other speeders. And that means you aren’t going to upgrade it in any fashion. I ordered this thing fully loaded, it’s already got a top-of-the-line engine. I’ll set the autopilot.”

----

Soon enough, they were relaxing inside the speeder as it wound through the typically clogged speeder lanes. Soundproofing worked wonders and all Prin and Risha could hear was the quiet music.

“So Prin, do you see the tiara I’m wearing?” She tipped her head forward, giving him a close-up look; it had shapes of feathers, flowers, and other assorted flora.

“Yeah, it’s nice looking. So what store did you get it from?” Prin asked, feeling the massage of the power seat working on his back.

“It’s actually from Arak Drayen’s lockbox. It was commissioned by him for his wife Ilana, and the unusual thing is, it's composed solely of metal and brass. There aren't any gems, it's only metalwork.” Risha explained, taking the tiara off and handing it to Prin.

“Huh, this is some good work, then.” Prin said, as he examined the tiara close up. It sparkled and shone in the light.

Handing the tiara back to Risha, Prin began examining the speeder’s dashboard. Holo readouts displayed their speed and other performance details, the traffic conditions and nearby attractions. “So, did you manage to get a discount on this thing like you did on the stronghold?”

“Yes, I did. I used both your reputation and our haggling skills to negotiate a… fair price.” Risha said, somewhat smug.

“Well, as long as it didn’t take a huge chunk of our stash of credits-- I know we’ve got a lot but that doesn’t mean we can go on shopping sprees.” Prin added.

A few minutes later, the speeder touched down, allowing Prin and Risha to debark, while the speeder began to find its’ reserved parking spot. Prin looked in recognition at the massive domed theater. “This is the Coruscant Palladium, the premiere theater venue on the planet!”

“You know about this place?” Risha enquired, a bit surprised.

“Yeah! When I was growing up, I always watched “Live from the Palladium”, it was a variety show with all sorts of cool stuff! Me and my parents never missed it! But then some new investors took over the holomedia firm that broadcast it, and they cancelled it to save money.” Prin shook his head at the executive idiocy.

“Well, it’s been brought back recently, and I’ve got two tickets in the upper tier of seating, where we can hobnob with other members of the upper-crust.”

They walked in, arm in arm, to the equally grand lobby, where people, aliens and droids were all crossing into each others’ paths, as some approached the box office for tickets, others went to the snack stands or the restrooms. Crowded didn’t begin to describe it.

“Don’t worry, we can avoid the crowds. There’s a special entrance for our section.” With that, Risha pulled Prin towards a side hall, notably quieter than the near-riot of the main lobby.

They approached a set of gold-framed double doors, marked “VIPs Only”. Risha pulled out her MyComm and activated the holotix, then waved her device in front of a scanner. The light on the scanner turned green, and the doors opened automatically.

They entered into a far more elegant lobby, where fancily-dressed people quietly chatted, ate appetizers and drank expensive alcohol. A concierge was providing information to groups in one corner, and in the other lay the entrance to the upper tier seating.

Prin and Risha approached the hor d'oeuvres table, and began inspecting the variety of food. “Uh, I don’t really know what to have here.” “Prin, just follow my lead.”

Soon enough, it was showtime, and everybody proceeded up to their seats, with Prin and Risha quietly discussing some of the people they had chatted with.

“I liked that couple, the Harts, treasure hunting must be pretty exciting.” Prin said, his head still trying to make sense of their exploits. “Well, we did hunt for my father’s treasure.” Risha reminded him. “Yeah, but it wasn’t a normal one.” Prin countered. “Since when was treasure hunting normal?” Risha snarked.

They found their seats in the upper mezzanine, large, comfortable recliners that Prin and Risha could feel themselves sinking into. “Risha, we’re gonna need someone to rescue us, these chairs are way too comfy.”

Then, they focused on the main stage some distance away, where the curtains were drawn. The lights dimmed, and an announcer’s voice rang out. “From Coruscant and all across the galaxy, it’s Live from the Palladium!”

The curtains raised, revealing the backing players for the nights’ comedy skits and songs, as lights flashed and applause rang out from all sides.

“And here is your emcee, Tommy Maitland!” With that, a middle-aged looking human exited from the left, grinning broadly. He arrived at the center of the stage, and briefly bowed. He spoke in a strong yet friendly voice, with an accent that neither Prin or Risha could place.

“Hello, everyone! Now, who’s a cheeky monkey? ” he asked the giant crowd. As if rehearsed, they promptly responded “You are!”

Tommy shook his head. “No, you are! And that’s why I love you!” The crowd laughed at the familiarity of the opening routine, excepting Prin and Risha, both somewhat lost. “I don’t remember this guy being host before.” Prin whispered to Risha. “The old host retired some years back, he expressed contentment with his current occupation in being a producer behind the scenes.” she answered back.

“Turn on your holo, turn off your brain, we’re just here for funsies!” Tommy told the masses. “We’ve got not just a live show from the Palladium here tonight-- we’ve got a live and kicking show! There’s comedy, music, games, magic, and more than a few surprises! And without further ado, he’s our first act, he’s the one who predicts when you’re gonna laugh-- straight from the gasses of Gand, it’s Turmulax, our favorite stand-up bounty hunter!”

An hour later

“Well, I gotta admit, that was fun!” Prin said, as he and Risha exited the Palladium and into their waiting speeder.

“Of course it was. If it wasn’t entertaining, why would I have bought tickets?” Risha said, as the speeder’s autopilot took over.

“Well, upper crust kinda tends to mean… boring.” Prin explained, sheepishly.

“That’s part of your lesson. Upper-crust things do tend to be boring, but there can be exceptions to the rule.”

Prin looked out the window, watching the various buildings whizzing by. “So, where to next?”

“We’re en route to one of Coruscant’s finest eateries, the Gilded Hawkbat. And before you ask, they actually do serve generous portions.”

The speeder came to a halt beside the establishment, situated atop a skyscraper for panoramic views of Galactic City. The speeder left to park itself, and Prin and Risha entered.

----

A few minutes later, Prin and Risha were seated, waiting for their order to arrive. “So, Risha, what do you think you’ve got regarding those plans to return to Dubrillion?” Prin asked.

“Well, I’ve managed to arrange to meet someone. He’s a Count in the aristocracy, named Merritt Rineld. He’s a very popular man on the planet, if Actavarus tried anything he’d face backlash for sure. Thus, he seems like our most realistic option.” she explained.

“Wait, Rineld, as in RineldComm, one of the foremost holomedia firms? Nine hells, Rish, that guy runs a lot of HoloNet stuff! He’s got streams, he’s got holonews, holo film and series production, I had no clue he was from all the way out on Dubrillion!” Prin exclaimed.

“Yes, so if we can get him as an ally, his galaxy-wide holdings could prove a boon to us.” Risha commented, as the waiter arrived. “Here you are, a chateaubriand cooked medium-well, and a glass of our finest pinot noir.”  He handed them plates of a meat dish with sides of rice and vegetables, before filling the wine glasses with a dark red wine.

“Mmm, this is really good.” Prin said a few minutes after as he and Risha fell silent, practically entranced by the food. “I told you, this place was one of the finest around. I wouldn’t lie to you concerning things like this.” Risha replied, taking a sip from her wine glass.

”Well, you used to lie a lot, but still.” Prin said, rolling his eyes. “So, when are we supposed to meet the Count?”

“In about two weeks, when he comes to Coruscant for his annual appearance in the Galactic Games, he helps run it and holo-casts it. Since he largely takes a behind-the-scenes role, he should find ample time to meet with us.” Risha said.

“OK, then.” Prin returned to his food. “Man, I’ve gotta get around to buying that… special item. If I have a chance, then it’s after this.” he thought.

----

Soon enough, dinner was finished and the smuggling duo were back in the speeder. “So, where to now?”

“Well, my plan was to go out for dancing, but the place I wanted to go is closed for renovations for at least two weeks. So, we’re going back to the Stronghold.” Risha said, reprogramming the autopilot.

“Oh, OK. We’ve got some good red velvet cake recipes, you want to have that for dessert?’ Prin said, thinking about maybe making some strawberry sauce for the cake.

“No, when I said dessert, I meant something…. better. ” Risha said, her voice going even lower than her typically somewhat-smoky voice.

“Well, I don’t know what could be better than red velvet, and that’s a classy type of cake, so I thought--” He was cut-off as Risha forced her lips onto his, giving him a forceful smooch.

“That’s what I meant by dessert.” She said, somewhat annoyed that he couldn’t pick up the hints she dropped. Prin was stunned for a brief moment, before shaking it away. “Oh. I see then.”

They arrived back at the Stronghold, finding the whole place empty for once. “Where is everybody?” Prin wondered. “I sent Corso and Beryl off on a fact-finding mission about the Western Sea, and possibly purchasing a beach house there.” Risha replied.

“I hope she doesn’t get Corso in trouble while they’re there.” Prin added. “What about the others?” “Akaavi and Bow are off at a martial-arts studio, and Guss is at the Block Party-- he said something about a billiards tournament he wanted to get in on. Ceetoo’s having his annual checkup at the droid clinic. So it’s just you and me until the morning.” Risha then dragged Prin by the arm and straight to the bedroom.

They entered, and practically flopped on the bed, kissing. Risha was much more active than Prin was. “Uh, Rish.. I don’t mean to interrupt, but… have you ever…?”

“No.” She then settled back on the bed, setting her jewelry on the side table. “I’ll be honest. My kissing is primarily driven by hormones. I’ve never really had a relationship before you, so all I know about this is via holo-series, which were only a bit enlightening.” Risha admitted.

“Well, neither have I. I mean, I had a few relationships in high school, but I never got past first base. My cousin once showed me an… erotic holodrama, and I seriously don’t think that would be of much help.” Prin rubbed the back of his head, blushing.

“So what? We’ll both learn from each other. We’ll explore, find out what makes us tick.” Risha then began shedding her dress, revealing lacy undergarments.

“Alright RIsh--MMF!” She tackled Prin again and began making out once more.

----

Prin woke up the next morning, feeling very… well, he couldn’t exactly describe it. He felt as though a weight he hadn’t been aware of had been lifted from his shoulders.

Then he realized what he and Risha had done last night. “Oh, wow. This has to be a dream.”

“Good, I was hoping you’d wake up sometime.” Risha walked in with two mugs of coffee, wearing her robe. “And I must say-- I think we both ‘performed admirably’ last night.”

“Well, thanks.” He took a sip of the coffee, then realized something. “Wait, how long was I…”

“We kept going for about an hour, you tuckered out, and it’s currently… 9:00 AM.”

“OK then.” He then walked over to the bathroom. Risha turned on the holoscreen on the wall and viewed a morning newscast while she waited.

After a few minutes, Prin emerged, freshened up. “Whoo, that’s way better.” Walking over to his dresser, he began pulling clothes out at random, when he remembered something.

“Hey Rish, whatever happened to that reliquary we retrieved from your father’s ship? I know we got it and hauled it back, but after all the stuff involving Skavak, I just forgot about it. I never even saw that crown of yours.”

“Oh, don’t worry. I’ve got it. C’mon.” She then headed for her large walk-in closet, Prin following (and getting the last of his clothes on). They headed for an unobtrusive blank section of wall, squeezed in-between shelving and hanger bars. Risha pressed her palm to the wall, and a scanner activated. The sounds of mechanisms unlocking filled the air, and the wall slowly tilted down.

A large, rectangular box was waiting on the other side, and it slid forward on a motorized platform. Risha then scanned her thumbprints on each side, and the box unlocked. The top lid opened.

“Here we are, all the items left to me by my great-grandfather Arak Drayen. I’ve got crowns, tiaras, swords, and various other odds and ends. And since you requested it…”

She extracted a large, silver and red crown, with velvet fabric inside the arches, and fur trim on the bottom rim. Gems were scattered about the structure, and a green oblong object topped the arches. “This is the Crown of Dubrillion. The real one. It’s been the one constant in Dubrillion’s turbulent history-- not counting my family, the Dubrillion Royal Family was overthrown about….” she paused to calculate the actual amount--”seven or eight times. Each time the Crown was kept around, mainly because everybody liked the design. It was nice, neutral and can be easily resized to fit the new monarch’s head. But when Arak Drayen was deposed, he took it, seeking to aim a final insult at Actavarus I. He subsequently had a new Crown created, and his family has claimed that as the real one ever since.”

“Whoa. I didn’t expect that a single crown was so bogged down in that stuff.” He then tilted his head and peered at the oblong object atop the crown. “What's this thing on top?”

Risha looked at it. It was green. “I honestly don't know. Most crowns normally have an orb or such on top. Without access to Dubrillion’s historical records, I can't confirm what it is. My best guess is, maybe a pear?”

“We'll investigate that later. So, what else we got?” Prin began rummaging around, before pulling out a wicked-looking rapier. “Nice! A sword!”

“Be careful with that.” She took the sword and began examining it. “This is the Sword of Dubrillion. Created at the same time as the crown, it’s a vibrorapier with a special wave-blade, designed to enhance the vibrations and make it easier for an opponent’s blade to catch on yours.”

“Neat.” Over the next several minutes, Prin pulled out more tiaras, weapons and datacards, with Risha explaining their significance to her family and Dubrillion.

“Well, that about covers everything here in the reliquary.” She sealed it back up and placed it back within the wall cavity. As the false section tilted back up, Prin then walked over to his side of the closet, which didn’t have much in the way of clothing. He pulled a box from a shelf, and began digging around, before finding a wrist device and putting it on.

“What’s that for?” Risha asked. Prin sighed, before walking out and back into the main room. “Well-- back on Chandrila, there was this virus some years ago. It didn’t do much to most people, but it could cause nasty stuff to pregnant women. My mother got that sickness, and I was born with a birth defect. Basically, my brain is wired to take in a lot more sensory information that it should-- as if my brain is functioning on the level of a Jedi, but since I’m completely Force-blind, my senses can’t cope with that much information. During my childhood, I’d occasionally get sensory overload and my brain would shut down for a few seconds. And that could be bad depending on what I was doing.”

Risha looked shaken. “I had no idea, Prin--” “Hang on, I’m not done yet.”

“So, my parents signed me up for this experimental operation. I would get all these cyborg implants that could filter out all the unnecessary data and keep me from overloading. Most of them aren’t removable, but my optical implants are.” He then pressed a button on the wrist device, and his ocular implants seemed to extend outwards, allowing him to grab them. Prin then slowly tugged them until they fully removed, showing his hazel-colored irises. Prin then blinked a few times, letting his eyes adjust to the natural light.

“These are my true eyes, Risha. I wanted to wait to show you this, until I knew I could trust you. I wanted to see you without the constant filters and readouts-- I wanted to see you the way everybody else does.”

Risha then walked over and drew in for another kiss. They broke the kiss, and Prin just stared at her. “Sorry if I stare, but… you’re even more beautiful than yesterday.”

She just shook her head, grinning. “Of course I am. But I should let you know, now that I know those are removable, we’ll see about removing or at least covering up the rest of your cyborg additions.”

“Why? They make me look like a grizzled veteran of combat, like I’ve been patched up so many times this is what’s holding my face together.” Prin joked. Risha rolled her eyes. “Because if you’re going to pose for photos and portraits when we take back Dubrillion, the lack of mech-bits will make you look more dignified.”

“There’s nothing except you that can make me look dignified. Without you, I’m just an overgrown kid in way over his head.” With that, Prin left the room, stomach guiding him to the kitchen. Risha simply smiled. It was a rare smile, one of pure happiness. “So am I, Prin. So am I.”

Chapter Text

“Mmmorning, Voidy.” Risha yawned as the blinds auto-drew, flooding sunlight and the many other skyscrapers and towers surrounding the Stronghold into Prin and Risha’s bedroom. But as Risha stretched and turned, she noticed the bed was empty on her left. A few seconds later, the door to the refresher slid open, revealing the disheveled looking Prin-- bedhead, an old t-shirt, and a lack of pants was the order of the day.

“Oh, morning, Rish.” He stretched as he entered the main room again, before kissing Risha on the cheek. “Damn, it’s good to have someone to wake up next to.”

“I could say the same. You know, when I was growing up, I was constantly doing things for my father, hiding somewhere where his enemies wouldn’t find me, helping my friends-- Vette, Audila and Juran, Shariss, Sumalee, even Beryl-- so I never had time to look for romance. I never really considered it necessary. Until you came along.” Risha reflected.

“I didn’t either, to be honest.” Prin admitted. “I was always so anxious to leave my hometown, and when I got out into the galaxy at large, I had to keep my guard up. You’d never know if the person you went to bed next to would steal your ship the next day.”

“Well, it’s a good thing we found each other then. We both know each other so well, there’s no way we’d be able to steal the Boundless without each other noticing.” Risha said amusedly.

“So, what’s on the agenda for today?” Prin asked as he looked for some fresh clothes in his dresser. 

“I don’t think we really have anything.” Risha noted, sounding surprised. “We’ve got… nothing. No cargo, nothing about Dubrillion since Count Rineld couldn’t meet with us-- he said something having to cancel his trip, I’ll have to look into that-- we’ve got a whole day to do…. Anything we want, really.”

Prin then opened a compartment in his dresser Risha didn’t know about, and quickly retrieved an item, before shutting the compartment. “It’s now or never.” Prin thought.

“Perhaps we could go down to the Block Party, I want to check this place out for myself and from what you’ve said, it sounds quite entertaining….” Risha mused.

“How about this instead?” Risha turned to see Prin holding a small box in his hand. He opened it, revealing a gold ring with rubies and emeralds scattered across it. “Risha Drayen, Queen of Dubrillion, will you marry me?” “Prin….” Risha breathed out in shock, completely thrown for a loop. “I love you Risha, and I want to stay with you. We’re a force to be reckoned with, and I can’t imagine a life without you anymore.” Prin said emotionally.

Risha simply pulled Prin in for a kiss. After a few seconds, she pulled back. “I want to be with you too. I just wasn’t sure if we could commit to each other. I mean, you’re a smuggler, and I’m going to taking back a planet to rule it. Those lines of work don’t have a lot of overlap.” Risha confessed.

“I swear by the Force, I’m going to stay with you. I’ll be your king, we’ll defeat that Actavarus guy and get Dubrillion back.” Prin stated. He then hugged Risha before putting the ring on her left ring finger-- it went well with her other big rings.

----

“So, your plan is to go back home?” Risha asked, somewhat baffled as she and Prin walked through the Senate Spaceport. “Yes, because I want to see all my old buddies, and because it'd be a nice change of pace.” Prin was happily walking through with a spring in his step, now that he and Risha had confirmed their relationship was solid.

“What about me? I’m not entirely sure your parents would welcome me in immediately just because we’re engaged. From what I remember you saying you left suddenly three or so years ago.” Risha replied ruefully. Prin reached the doors to their reserved hangar and pressed his thumb to the scanner. “Don’t worry, Rish, my parents….” He trailed off as the large doors in front of them slid open and Prin stopped in his tracks.

“Uh…. what happened to the Boundless?” Because the ship had been painted, apparently, and instead of its’ default grey and orange, it was now a deep blue with gold trim. Not only that, the weapon turrets were bigger (and a larger launcher was installed beneath the cockpit, protruding a bit), and what looked like large fans and vents were now bolted to the tops and bottoms of the engine housings.

“I’ve done some upgrading while in port. I’ve added Lightspeed Turbines to help with the engine cooling issues. They’ll activate whenever they detect many of the engines going over certain temperature thresholds and use vacuum-cooled air to siphon the heat. In turn the heat is not only dispersed back into space, but the heat buffers the fans enough to create additional power, which can then be diverted to other ship systems, particularly the weapons. To handle the new levels, I had the weapons upgraded. The blaster cannons have been replaced with light turbolasers, and the launcher can now carry proton torpedoes, as well as concussion missiles with homing functionality.” Risha explained, grinning at the sight of the completed upgrades. She’d been laboring over this for weeks and being able to reveal it after accepting a marriage proposal was just the icing on the cake.

“Wait, won’t the heat form a trail that’ll allow people to track us easily?” Prin pointed out. “We can simply divert heat into the ship’s reactor if we need to.” Risha then activated the boarding ramp using her MyComm, allowing them to start loading their luggage into the main hold.

“OK then… you got it done pretty quickly. But the paint job?” Prin thought that it was fairly close to what Corso had tried to pitch to him, he must’ve gone to Risha and she approved it behind his back.

“I also got electro-paint panels, so our paint job can be changed to whatever we need, for disguising our travels or customs checks. It’ll be important for Dubrillion when we get there.” Risha then took out her MyComm and opened an app. “I can use this app to not only remotely control the ship systems, but also change the paint job to avoid detection.” The panels shimmered briefly before changing into a red and green paint pattern. “Like that.”

“Ooh, that’s clever.” Prin nodded. “So, now we’re off to your home for the first time.” Risha said as they walked into the hallway. “Yep. It’ll be nice to not have to worry about whatever crazy scheme we’ve been roped into.” Prin noted. “Well, yes, there is that wonderful side-effect. Plus I can start flaunting my new engagement ring.” She smiled and held up her hand, watching her ring sparkle in the light as she flipped her hand around. It stood out from her other rings.

“It’s just a straight-shoot down the Perlemian. We’ll be there in no-time.” Prin sat down in his pilot's seat as the Boundless lifted off and shot from the hangar into Coruscant orbit. He also noted a new set of control sticks had been added, apparently for the upgraded weapons. “That’s so we can operate the weapons remotely without anyone in the turrets, if we’re caught with our guard down again.” Risha said, as if she’d been reading his thoughts.

A half-hour later, the navicomp signaled to the hyperdrive and the Boundless reverted back to realspace, now over a blue-green planet. “Looks like Corellia.” Risha noted as she and Prin broke apart, having been killing time by making out. “Well, it’s not. Corellia’s very industrialized, lots of cities. Chandrila’s very nature-y and has lots of small towns and farms instead.” Prin explained as he picked up their travel bags. Risha watched at the navicomp’s autopilot function bypassed the nearest spaceport and instead aimed for an empty field outside of a small town.

“Aren’t we going to the spaceport?” Risha asked. “Nope, we’ll just land right outside of town, it’s more convenient that way.” Prin said as they entered the atmosphere. "I sent an explanation to the spaceport traffic control office, they approved it. That way we don't get arrested for illegal parking."

A few minutes later the navicomp triangulated the best landing spot and the landing struts emerged. The Boundless set down slowly, the familiar creak of the struts compressing and readjusting echoed throughout the ship. Meanwhile, Risha was looking at herself in the mirror. “Rish, what’s the matter? You look kinda worried.” Prin noted as he arrived in the captain’s quarters. Risha sighed. “Prin, I’m not sure about how your parents will see you. Didn’t you say that you left without warning? I don’t think coming back with a fiancee they’ve never met will endear me to them.” She sighed. “Plus, to be blunt, I don’t have much parental experience. My mother Maya died when I was very young and Nok was never really much of a father figure.”

Prin hugged her from behind. “I know, Rish. I know you didn’t have the best time growing up. Neither did I, honestly. But that’s why I’m here, I’m here to repair my relationship with my family. And I’m pretty sure they’ll like you, my folks don’t hate a lot of people.” Prin then released Risha and exited the room.

They exited the ship and emerged into an environment that, to Risha, seemed almost alien. Wide plains and scattered trees stretched as far as the eye could see, stalks of wheat in the process of growth swaying gently. Small ponds dotted the landscape. They faced a small settlement which seemed to follow the template of towns across the galaxy: bigger buildings in the core and smaller dwellings and businesses on the outskirts. 

“This is….” Risha simply couldn’t find the words to describe it. For so long she’d been used to the grimy urban jungles of Nar Shaddaa and Coruscant, and the countless other, often war-torn worlds she'd visited together with Prin. This world brought back memories of not only their missions to Alderaan, but her four-year stay on Dantooine after her father’s infection. Though that world was as nature-filled and generally quiet as Chandrila was, she had spent those years under the tutelage of her father Nok by holorecordings, guarding his carbonite-entombed body from those who searched for his treasure, and learning the ways of the criminal trade. She’d been far too focused on keeping her only remaining family safe that she never could truly relax.

Here, without having to worry about criminals after her head and with an actual, if slightly dysfunctional, extended family, she felt like just breathing in the air relaxed her. “This is nice.” She smiled warmly. “Maybe this won’t be so bad.” She turned and saw Prin loading their airspeeder with their luggage. “Man, this brings back memories. Come on, Rish!” Risha then joined Prin in the passenger’s seat and the speeder swiftly, but not loudly, headed into town. Risha craned her head as they passed by a large physical sign denoting the name of the town, Sludaan. “Yeah, the name's about as alien as things get around here.” Prin snarked as they whipped by a refueling station and cafe where teenagers were crowding the parking lot. “The biggest news around here tends to be when someone falls down the broken well and gets extricated.”

As they traveled further into town, Prin maneuvered the speeder into a parking lot. “Huh, looks like they finally updated the parking meters.” He noted as they debarked. “They used to only take credit coins. Guess they saw how popular credit chips were getting.” Risha got out and followed Prin as he walked away (setting the speeder’s anti-theft system).

“So, this small town, Sludaan, is where I grew up. It’s not Coruscant or Nar Shaddaa or even Ord Mantell, but it’s home.” They paused as they took in the quaint sight-- older landspeeders floating by at a slower pace, residents talking and chatting outside restaurants and bars that weren’t shady or classy, they just were there to provide food, drink and good company. Stores were next to each other in two-story structures, patrons entering and exiting at their own pace. Some sold junk or esoteric items, others were places where common things-- weaponry, datapads, fuel-- could be found in abundance. There were trees dotted about, patches of grass and blacktop where children and adults alike played and let their minds create things.

In a word, serene.

“So, where do we go first?” Risha wondered.  “To my second home.” Risha turned towards Prin. “You had another house?”

Prin shook his head as they walked down the street. “No, no. My home away from home. Me and my friends hung out at this place every day, we loved it. The staff knew us by name, some of us even worked there.” Prin then stopped outside a business marked “Gadgets”. “It’s a combination arcade/restaurant. The name comes from the fact that almost all the games are mechanically based, as opposed to hologames. Come on, you’ll love it.”

What awaited them was very much like a smaller Block Party: people all over, eating unhealthy food, chatting about unimportant things, playing games. There were multiple bowling alleys, games of chance and skill, and everything had bright lights and signage.

“Hello, and welcome to Gadgets. Please scan your holocard.” An auto-kiosk informed them. Prin dug out his MyComm and activated his holocard. A few seconds passed. “Holocard confirmed. Welcome back.” With that, Prin and Risha proceeded into the center of the area. “So what should we do first?” Risha asked quietly.

“I’ve gotta go find one of my friends, his name is Henry. If I still know him, he should be in the back at the pazaak machine.” Prin stated. “He’s a gambling addict. Gotcha.” Risha snarked. “No, not like that. That machine is one of the most temperamental pieces of technology I’ve ever had to use. Sometimes it works fine. But often it’ll just seize up, not give out tickets, not let you play, etc. For most people, it's annoying. For Henry, it was an obsession. Only I could fix the damned thing and after he played it for 5 minutes, it’d shut down again. It’s turned into a war.” Prin explained.

They began to walk towards the back of the arcade area, where many of the older machines were not being played, and almost no one was present. Except for one man, who was cursing up a storm in front of a grey pazaak table. He was blonde-haired, had scars on his face and shoulders, and looked like his head was about to explode.

“Aw, come on!” Henry shouted, kicking the machine. “If only Jamie were here, he’d have this thing spouting tickets in no time.” “Well, if you want me to.” Henry turned around in shock, to see his long-missing best friend!

“Oh my…. JAMIE!” Henry then rushed to give his best friend the biggest hug ever, nearly strangling Prin in the process! “Oh, I can’t believe it, you came back! I thought we’d never see you again!” He cried, happier than a Jedi in meditation. “Good… to… see you… too….” Prin choked out.

“Oh, sorry!” He promptly released Prin from his crushing hug, and the smuggler began gasping for air. “So, uh, Jamie, who’s the girl next to you?” Henry said, looking at the woman curiously. Prin coughed. “Well first off, my name isn’t Jamie anymore. I took the name Prindrohi when I became a smuggler. And this is my fiancee, Risha.”

“Fiancee? Clearly there’s stuff we need to catch up on, but I’ve gotta call the others.” He took out a holocomm and began a group call.

15 minutes later, they were seated at a table surrounded by pizza, drinks and Prin-- or rather, Jamie’s friends, amazed at the return of their long-absent buddy.

“OK, so that’s Ryan-- athletic like nothing else-- Barb, whose love for reading makes her a walking library, and Sara, she loves anything involving singing and music.” Prin explained to Risha, who looked rather lost.

Ryan was dark-skinned and had glasses, and a rather thin frame. Barb had strawberry-blonde hair in pigtails and a backpack overflowing with datapads and datacards. Finally, Sara, a black-haired freckled woman, was busy recording Risha’s voice anytime she even spoke, apparently wanting to analyze her naturally throaty tone.

“So, Jamie, where have you been? You just up and vanished three years ago. Everybody wondered and your parents never said anything.” Henry asked, still somewhat in shock.

Prin shrugged, looking sheepish. “Well, I wanted to leave, go find my own path. Everybody seemed like they wanted to stay here forever. I didn’t want that. I wanted to see what the galaxy had to offer, what I could do by myself. So one day I was walking around on the edge of town when I saw a starship land. I waited until the smuggler and the criminals he was meeting with offed each other, and then I hotwired it and left. I began smuggling stuff, and I eventually built a small cargo firm with the help of Risha here. I recruited a whole bunch of people to help as we went along. And we’ve gotten into so much trouble, you’d never believe it.”

“Well, it’s nice to see you’re alive. We all thought you’d gotten yourself killed out there.” Sara commented, the others nodding. “We did have some damn close scrapes, like when I defeated this crazy Imperial Grand Admiral after my head, and I convinced the fleet of pirates and rogues he'd gathered to switch sides and save Corellia. I barely made it off his self-destructing flagship in time!” Prin recounted.

“Wait, that was you?!” Ryan questioned in disbelief. “Yep, I got the Medal of Service from the Supreme Chancellor and Supreme Commander.” He promptly pulled up a holopic of it and projected it. Everybody stared at it. “Jamie, you really have gone places.” Barb muttered.

“So what’s the story behind this Risha person?” Sara asked as she craned her neck around the table. “And where’s the water pitcher, I’m thirsty.” Prin passed the pitcher over from his side, and she took it. “Well, I’m Prin, or Jamie’s, fiance. We met when he got his ship back from a business associate of mine who’d stolen it. We teamed up on an intergalactic treasure hunt, left behind by my father, the legendary crimelord Nok Drayen. Once we did that, I continued my arrangement. Mostly out of practicality, but also because this idiot cyborg had grown on me.” Risha said, internally noting the oddness of Prin’s alternate name.

“So, what’ve you guys all been up to since I left?” Prin decided to change the subject. “Henry, you first.”

“Uh, well, I’ve been promoted at the golf course to head greenskeeper. I’m lucky I had the day off today. It’s pretty stressful-- gotta keep all the mowers up to snuff, keep animals away, that sort of thing.” Henry replied, slumping against the back of his chair.

“Ooh, me next! I’ve been very busy translating some ancient texts we found written on actual paper. Not durasheet or flimisplast, actual paper.” Barb then pulled out a datacard. “This has some of the translations. Me and my colleagues suspect these texts may help to pin down the date of when the Rakata’s Infinite Empire collapsed.” Risha looked genuinely surprised. “The Rakata? Prin, didn’t we run into something of theirs on Tatooine?”

“Oh yeah!” Prin said, snapping his fingers. “Yeah, some guy from the SIS tasked me with finding out what those corrupt Czerka guys were doing in this underground lab. It was an ancient artifact, contained some Rakata who’d gone insane and evil, so they took his mind and stuck it in a mind trap, whatever that meant. Czerka uncovered it, and the guy reawakened and started mind-controlling the people there. I had to destroy it before it took any more lives.” Prin recalled.

Barb looked at him for a few seconds as she processed what she’d just heard. “Okay, so you found a priceless artifact that could’ve been extremely valuable for us historians, but you had to destroy it to save everyone?” She frowned, then sighed. “Isn’t it always like that?” Barb groused. “Anytime there’s something really cool out there it ends up getting destroyed.”

“Don’t blame Prin, er, Jamie.” Risha corrected herself. “I was there with him, we had to put a stop to that thing or else it would’ve gotten out into the galaxy and added even more chaos and suffering. Sometimes, things have to be sacrificed for the greater good.” She said sternly. “I’m not blaming anyone. It’s just bad luck, that’s all.”

“So Ryan, what’ve you been up to?” Prin said, changing gears. “I’ve been busy as the coach of a new grav-ball team that’s started up in Hanna City.” Ryan replied. He took out a datapad and projected some pictures. “We’re called the Hanna City Harriers, and so far we’ve managed to carve out a niche for ourselves. We’re part of the new Galactic GravLeague. Sixty teams so far from all across space, including Nubia.”

“Nice! I had no idea they were expanding that beyond Nubia!” Prin said enthusiastically. “That’s part of why I love having jet boots, it reminds me of when we played grav-ball with hoverboots down at the leisure center.” Ryan then pulled something else from his bag. “I got you a hat and jersey, I knew you’d support us.” The items were both in a dark-green coloration, with icons depicting a grav-ball being chased by a squall (an animal native to the planet).

“Thanks!” Prin then turned to Sara. “So, that just leaves you Sara. What’s your current status?”

“I’m currently in a band called The Hypers, we’re space themed. So far we’ve been getting a good response on the HoloNet.” She said, bringing a holovid of her, as lead singer, accompanied by a Rodian behind a drum set, and a Wookiee playing the guitar. “I’ve got a demo if you want to listen to some of our songs!”

“Sure! Hey, remember that time we all tried to form a band back in high school?” Prin reminisced. A chorus of groans went up at that. “Aw, c’mon, I thought we all agreed to forget that ever happened!” Henry said, embarrassed. “You formed a band?” Risha inquired, quirking one eyebrow up. Sara rolled her eyes. “Yeah. We weren’t sure what to do after graduation, so we went with the band equals instant success plan so many teenagers fall for. We didn’t get very far, and I used some of those recordings later when I was working at my aunt’s daycare facility,”

“We called ourselves The Five Force, right? Like we were some kinda vigilante group.” Ryan snarked. “Hey, we were still workshopping names, that one just stuck around the longest.” Barb struck back.

“I think I still remember our group gesture we invented back then too.” Prin stood up and placed his arm out above the center of the table. “Five in the air…” Prin and his friends reached into the air and high-fived each other. “Let’s do it together!”

“Prin, you just keep pulling out surprises. Your real name, your failed musical career… what’s next, a secret other smuggling crew?” Risha joked.

“Hey, didn’t we order some beers? Since we’re all of legal age to drink now….” Henry pondered. “Sorry, got held up in the kitchen.” A grey-haired man with a flour-stained apron spoke up, heading towards the table with bottles of beer on a tray. Prin recognized him after a few seconds. “Mr. Whitman! Long time no see!” “Good to see you’re in one piece, Jamie. You were always one of my favorite customers.”

“Mr. Whitman’s the owner, we go way back.” Prin whispered to Risha as he passed out the bottles. “I’ve heard smuggling’s quite the lucrative business. You mind smuggling some stuff for me?” Mr. Whitman asked.

Prin rolled his eyes (as much as he could considering his ocular implants). “To be honest, we barely smuggle anything anymore. We mostly carry legit cargo now. But, me and Risha here have plans for the future, and they don’t involve carrying cases of booze to avoid taxes and tariffs.”

“Well, whatever you can do. Just remember-- never begin a negotiation on an empty stomach.” A siren then began blaring from the arcade area, accompanied by cheers. “Oh, looks like someone cracked the safe, I’ll be back.”

“Y’know, I never thought we’d all be here together again, I always though we’d go our separate ways after high school.” Henry then looked towards Prin. “Especially with you have skipped town and went into space.” Prin looked apologetic. “I know what I did was impulsive, but I did end up back here again. That’s gotta count for something.”

“Yeah Jamie, don't go disappearing on us again. Or else we'll tie you up and put you up as a prize you can win here." Barb threatened casually.

Prin hoisted his bottle for a toast. “Five together, friends forever!” The group then tipped their glasses back, imbibing the alcohol. “Ooh, damn, that’s strong!”

An hour later, after the last of the pizza and beer had been polished off, Prin and Risha bade farewell and left Gadgets.

"I have to say, I liked those friends of yours. They seemed to be almost family to you. Is that why you let everybody we encountered stay with us?" Prin nodded. "Yeah, I missed my friends, and it was pretty lonely running the Boundless by myself, so I constructed a new group." Then, as they walked along a quieter side street, someone called out to Prin.

“Well, look who it is! Little Mr. Starship!” Prin stopped in his tracks, his smile immediately fading. “Oh, Force, no .” Prin turned around, and a look of disgust crossed his face. Risha then caught sight of the person who called Prin out--- a hefty-looking man in his early to mid 20s with a thick beard, a blue jacket and other facial hair, and a sneer on his face.

“Who is this?” Risha asked, concerned about Prin’s sudden and uncharacteristic anger. “Old bully from high school. We called him The Whale. Mocked my dreams and made fun of me constantly. Another reason why I left.” Prin growled, eye twitching. “I see you haven’t really changed since you skipped town. Still got those robot eyes, huh? Must come in handy when you’re with one, since that girl next to you has to be one!” The Whale then laughed at his own “clever” insult.

Risha then heard the whine of a blaster being powered up. *Prin, wait a second.” Risha said, grabbing Prin’s arm to prevent him from unholstering his pistol.  “You don’t understand, Rish. I have a history with this guy. He tormented me all throughout school, he was one of the reasons I wanted to get out of here!” Prin whispered.

“I understand old grudges die hard, but you can’t just shoot him like how we shoot gang members and footsoldiers!” Risha whispered back, stealthily removing the power cell from Prin’s pistol. “Well he insulted you, already, who’s next?!” Prin shot back.

“So, I heard you saved Corellia from some Sith Admiral.” The Whale interrupted. “You stole his fleet, just like how you left here-- stealing! Huh-hah-huh.” "Don't be suckered by his taunts. You're above him." Risha urged.

Suddenly, Prin began taking deep breaths. His anger faded, and his expression changed into a serene calm, before turning to face The Whale. 

“Yeah, I did. I saved Corellia, and I’ve been very busy with going all over the galaxy. I’ve made friends, defeated evil, gotten into more narrow scrapes than I can count. I even got myself a fiance. So what have you been doing with your life?” Prin then grinned almost evilly. “Because if I’m right, our differing upbringings taught us different lessons.” Prin then began pacing in a circle around the bully.

“See, my parents raised me right. They told me to be nice and treat others with respect no matter your position in life. You , on the other hand, had rich parents, so you were spoiled rotten and taught to look down on everyone else. Likely the reason why you became a bully, going after the weak people in school, like me with my ocular implants, because they were ‘beneath’ you.” Risha stood by, growing intrigued at Prin’s on-the-fly analysis. The Whale himself was looking confused and enraged simultaneously. 

“So after school ended, many of us who got bullied, and many who weren’t, left town or even the planet to pursue meaningful employment or, as in my case, my dreams; you stuck around, content to sponge off your parents indefinitely. Until they got tired of you and kicked you out. Now you’re nothing but a washed-up moron-- since you skipped a lot of your classes to smoke spice and drink booze behind the school with your “friends” because it was the cool thing to do, you have to keep jumping from one low-paying job to the next since your harassing ways mean you keep getting shitcanned, and you have no significant other outside of one-night stands. And you most likely have a child you never see and pay child support for, if my hunch is correct.” At this point, The Whale was looking more and more stunned.

“Meanwhile, I’ve been going around kicking the asses of people who make you look like a corg in terms of threat level, I’ve got half the galactic underworld at my beck and call, a circle of close friends who would beat the crap out of you if you looked at some of them wrong, and with my fiance here, we’re gonna become king and queen of an Outer Rim world, and hopefully make some changes in the Republic.” Prin finally stopped walking. “So I’m gonna leave you to fester in your wasted potential, because I don’t need to beat you up or shoot you anymore. It’s our own choices that determine our path in life, and I picked the good path. You, Spencer, are a beached whale.”

“C’mon Risha, let’s leave him to short-circuit.” Prin said, not looking back, as The Whale simply stood there, sputtering, looking red in the face, before he stalked off down an alleyway.  

“Wow, Prin, that was impressive . You shut him down without firing a shot.” Risha remarked, genuine admiration in her voice. “Well, I learned from the best, meaning you, that physical attacks aren't always the best strategy. It’s getting them in their ego, their personality, that can do the most damage.”

“Good to know some of my lessons on playing the political game when we get to Dubrillion are sinking in.” Prin then turned to Risha. “So now, we’re going to my house. Prepare for the awkwardness.” 

Soon, they had reboarded their speeder and were gently floating through downtown towards a suburban neighborhood on the edge of town. Businesses weren’t as common aside from a couple fueling stations and corner stores. The houses weren’t of a metallic design, but rather of a wood and plastic style. Most of the houses were painted in beige, white or grey, though at least one house was a dark green. The landspeeder came to a halt in front of said house.

“And here we are, 430 Spalding Way. My parents painted the house like this to help distinguish it, since most of the houses here look alike.”

As the duo walked up to the front door, Risha saw that Prin's face wasn't in the confident, cool expression he'd had before. Now he was nervous, almost looking like a child in trouble over something he did. Which, in a way, Risha supposed was true.

"Here we go." Prin drew a breath, then knocked on the door. After a few seconds, a middle-aged man with brown hair and a slight gut opened the door. His eyes widened when he saw who it was. “Honey, come quick!” A woman with strawberry-blonde hair, glasses and a cardigan then approached, only to stop in her tracks at the sight of her son.

“Mom, dad….. it's been a long time.”

A minute later, Prin and Risha were in a well-furnished yet cozy living room, sitting on a couch opposite that of his parents. The tension in the room was palpable. "Mom, Dad, this is my fiance, Risha Drayen. Risha, these are my parents Sarah and Walter Malloy." Prin said to break the ice.

Walter and Sarah looked to be in shock almost. "So….” Sarah began, steepling her fingers in front of her face. “James, why did you leave, and now decide to come back, with a fiance in tow?" Sarah spoke in a commanding, brooked-no-argument voice, and looked as though she was ready to start an inquest into the matter.

"Mom, I wanted to leave because I knew there was a whole galaxy out there. You were pushing me to succeed you as leader of the Key, I didn't want that. But every time you did, you dismissed me and just kept going. I had to do something drastic to get the message across!" Prin explained. 

(wavy flashback)

18-year old James "Jamie" Malloy was frustrated. He'd finished school, but he was itching to explore outside Chandrila.

"Mom, I've told you, I don't want to be a politician!" Jamie protested, as his mother packed his bags for a week-long political summit in Hanna City. 

"Nonsense. You're as great as I am when it comes down to the details and I'm not going to let your talent go to waste, after all that time you spent with your friends in that band…" Sarah went on. Jamie sighed as his mom ignored him and kept packing suits and other formal clothes.

That night, Jamie was staring out the window, up at the night sky, where the stars twinkled above, almost taunting him.

"I gotta figure out a way to get out of this." His savings stash wouldn't be enough for a transport off world, so that option was out. And his Uncle Mark on Coruscant wasn't able to convince his mother to let him stay with him. Not even his dad, who supported Jamie in whatever he did, was able to budge his mother from her position.

Jamie suddenly perked up as he heard strange noises. Then, Jamie spotted what looked to be sublight engine contrails, streaking through the sky. He watched in amazement as a Corellian XS-11 Freighter swooped overhead, switching to repulsorlift power before touching down in an empty field nearby.

Jamie retrieved a pair of electrobinoculars and headed for another window in the upstairs hallway. He zoomed in and caught sight of a male Twi'lek emerging from the ship, a hovercraft carrying several crates following him. "What in the nine hells…." Jamie muttered.

A pair of people, a woman with a rifle on her back and a man with a blaster pistol, approached the Twi'lek. Some conversation Jamie couldn't listen in on occurred, before the people opened a briefcase, filled with credit coins, cubes and ingots.

The Twi'lek then opened one of the crates to reveal containers of spice. The criminals checked the spice to make sure it was legitimate. That was when the Twi'lek drew a rifle and threatened them with it. The duo promptly drew their own weapons.

A few seconds later, muffled blaster fire sounded; all three criminals were dead, and Jamie had watched it all in shock. Then, he realized that if the pilot and criminals were dead, he could take the ship and cargo himself! "I can be a smuggler like in the holofilms! I can get off this planet and do whatever I want to do!"

He impulsively packed his bags and took off on his tiny single-occupant landspeeder. The ship took off from the field, and Jamie's parents found a note the next morning. "Mom, Dad, I've left to find my own path in life. Don't try to find me or contact me, I'll decide if I want to do that. Sincerely, Jamie."

Inside the cockpit, Jamie grinned. “Look out, galaxy, here I come!”

(end flashback)

“What key?” Risha wondered. “My mom is the leader of a major political movement here, they call themselves the Key. It’s sort of like a name and slogan in one, they’re the “key to prosperity”, the “key to peace”, etc. Their main goal from what I remember is to assist the Republic war effort without contributing soldiers. There are other factions who fear the Empire and wanted to institute a draft.” Prin then realized his mom was staring at him.

“So you still remember our platform, our slogans… I knew you had the capability. I was trying to make sure you made something out of your life.” Sarah mused.

“But you were pushing me too hard on the whole political thing. I know it’s a big thing here, but…. you weren’t letting me get a word in about what I wanted. And I didn’t want a life of constantly going over laws, clashing with other lawmakers, trying to answer to constituents! I wanted to take direct action, but you said no, that isn’t how we do things. Between that, and the Whale, I felt like I was being suffocated. That’s why I left. To find my own path in life. And I certainly got direct action. I’ve been busy saving lives and stopping evil for the past year or so. Didn’t you see me get the Medal of Service from the Supreme Chancellor and Commander? I saved Corellia from this Imperial admiral who was stalking me. And from using a pirate army I now have at my command.”

“I thought that was you on the holo, son.” Walter spoke up. “I knew you had the capability of doing great things, it just wasn’t in politics.”

“Thanks for the support, dad.” Prin turned to his mother. “I still love you, mom. But…. you weren’t letting me in on your planning for my future. You didn’t take my feelings and opinions into consideration, you just steamrolled over me. That’s why I left like that-- to send you a message. I have control over my own destiny now.”

Sarah sat back in her seat, looking somewhat guilty. After a few moments, her face softened. “Well, James, maybe I was a bit too overbearing. I simply wanted the next generation of Chandrilans to continue our legacy of being well-read, versed on the issues and mostly rational-- with the Empire and Republic’s relationship deteriorating even then, I wanted to make sure you could handle things if the worst happened. I’m sorry.”

Prin simply reached out and hugged his mother. Looking surprised at first, Sarah relaxed and hugged back, tears falling from her eyes.

After a couple minutes, the two broke apart and Sarah reached for her handkerchief, dabbing it at her eyes. "So now that you saved an entire planet, what will be your next step?"

Risha simply held her left hand up. "Getting married. Prin-- James-- popped the question this morning. And after that, we're headed for Dubrillion, an Outer Rim planet. I am the rightful queen and I am planning a hopefully not too violent coup against the illegitimate Actavarus dynasty."

Walter and Sarah just stared for a moment, before Sarah stood up. “First you come back with a fiance, now you’re going to become royalty. James Maurice Malloy, you are going to drive me insane.” She shook her head. “But at least you’ll have an outlet for your political aptitude.”

“So, how you did you and Risha meet, exactly? It’s not everyday you start dating a queen…” Walter asked.

“Well, this guy named Skavak had stolen my ship on Ord Mantell, with a shipment of blasters onboard destined for Rogun the Butcher, one of the galaxy’s most infamous non-Hutt crime lords. Me and another guy Skavak had double crossed, Corso, tracked him to Coruscant.” Prin said, dragging the memories out of his mind. “We were wreaking havoc all over the place looking for Skavak. Screwed up quite a few deals of his. Eventually, we finally managed to find the Boundless….”

(wavy flashback)

“We finally made it.” Prin said, exhausted, as he and Corso boarded the Boundless-- his beloved XS-11 was now his property again. “Wow, looks to be in pretty good condition.” Corso noted, looking around. “Yeah, been doing this myself for about two years now. It’s a bitch to maintain by myself, but I know that I’ll never have the budget for another ship.” Prin said, collapsing onto a chair in the lounge area of the main hold. “That’s why I maintained and cleaned everything thoroughly. I double and triple-checked compatibility for parts and made sure everything was or could be replaced at a moment’s notice. Spare parts are stashed anywhere I could find room.”

Corso’s stomach gurgled. “Uh, Prin, where’s the can in this ship?” “Down the hall, first door on the left, that’s the bunk room. There’s a refresher in there.”

As Corso disappeared from view, Prin picked up the remote and started the holoprojector, seeing what was on the holofeed. “Let’s see, I’ve gotta wash all my sheets because Skavak’s probably been using them, I’ve got to look for the blasters for Rogun--”

“AAAGH!” Prin rose in alarm as Corso’s yell echoed throughout the ship. “Prin, man, there’s a lady in the refresher!” Corso said, returning to the lounge, a look of pure panic on his face.

“What?” Prin squawked. “Yeah, some redhaired woman.” Corso said. He saw her… doing her business, and was trying to get the images out of his mind.

“Ugh, must be Skavak’s new squeeze.” With an exhausted sigh Prin rose up and headed down the hall, quietly powering up his blaster pistol.

As he entered the bunk room, he could hear the noises of someone finishing up in the refresher. He tried to mentally prepare himself-- hopefully this woman would be open to reason and he could explain how bad Skavak was before getting her out. Prin drew in a breath as the door opened.

A woman with slicked-back red hair (as Corso reported) walked out. She was wearing a red-and-black ensemble with expensive-looking rings on her fingers, and looked unimpressed, to say the least. “Your friend over there walked in on me. I hope you’ve got a reasonable explanation for this.” She spoke in a dry, sarcastic tone that seemed to possess an air of self-assuredness, though not the usual “I’ve got a huge ego” type, but rather a “I’ve got big plans” sort.

“Uh, well, I’m Prindrohi. This is my ship, the Boundless. I’m taking back the captain’s chair. I dunno what Skavak told you about me, but rest assured he’s wrong on all counts.” Prin explained (while Corso stealthily entered the refresher).

“Hmm. Skavak warned me about you.” Risha said, eyeing Prin warily.

“Well, I’m a fair person. I’ll let you go, no strings attached, and I’ll help you escape Skavak if you need to-- hey, where are you going?” Prin said as she simply walked away.

“To my office.” Perplexed, Prin followed the woman into the secondary cargo hold. Prin immediately noticed several new items, including some sort of creature in a cage, a rounded yellow object atop a pole (he could swear there was a head in there), and some poor soul frozen in carbonite, propped against the wall like a morbid painting. “I’m in a business arrangement with Skavak at the moment. It involves these items, and a plan to get filthy rich. My name’s Risha, by the way.” She said as she approached the computer console at the rear of the room.

“Well, first off, I dunno where you got all this stuff, and frankly I don’t want to know.” Prin stated as his mind tried to figure out how a head in a jar, a beast in a cage and a guy in carbonite could possibly make anybody rich. “Secondly, Skavak isn’t known for honoring any sort of deals he makes. I’d suggest we start working together to prevent him from gaining anything.” Prin continued. 

“Well, Skavak is proving unreliable when it comes to getting out of here and actually delivering this cargo.“ Risha reasoned, continuing to work. “Maybe you’ll be a better partner.”

Then, a beeping noise interrupted them. “Oh, perfect timing. That’s Skavak on the holo now.” Risha left and headed for the main hold. “This should be an interesting conversation.” She mused as Prin followed her.

The holo picked up automatically as Risha and Prin walked into range, and the image of Skavak, looking annoyed, shimmered into view. “Oh, Skavak, you’re late. I’ve just found a new partner. I think you two loathe each other already.” Risha snarked.

Ignoring Risha, Skavak turned to face Prin. “Congratulations, Captain Drohi. You’ve just jumped to the top of my list of people to kill.”

“Well, you know, I do what I can. Wreck your deals with Imps and gangs, expose your criminal record, ruin any chance of you getting laid…” Prin went on casually. Risha raised her eyebrow at the last item.

“When I get my hands on you, I’ll make you wish you never left Ord Mantell.” Skavak growled, left eye twitching in annoyance.

“Can’t kill what you can’t catch, Skavak. And you don’t even have a ship now.” Prin taunted, grinning.

“Plenty of ships out there, fast and deadly, just the way I like them. And I don’t know how you got away from those Imperials, but next time, I’ll kill you myself.” A pause, and Skavak began to smile creepily. “That is, assuming Rogun the Butcher doesn’t get you first.”

By this point, Corso had arrived, and he looked nervous at that statement, while Prin’s smile faded. “What do you mean, you traitor?” Corso questioned.

“I sold that crate of blasters you were gonna deliver to him.” Skavak continued speaking as if Corso wasn’t there. “I can’t imagine that he’ll be too happy that you lost them.” Skavak said, an unhinged-looking smile on his face.

Prin stared at him with an amount of contempt he hadn’t felt in a long time. “Yeah, he won’t be too happy, after I fry him.” Prin snarled, anger clouding his common sense. Skavak just scoffed. “You really think you can kill Rogun? Where do you get these delusions?”

At this point, Risha intervened. “Are you done posturing to save your own ego, Skavak? Me and Mr. Drohi here have cargo to deliver.” Skavak’s holo-image turned towards Risha. “Don’t even think about cutting me out of this deal, Risha.”

“Aren’t you always saying ‘finders keepers’?” Risha reminded him. “It’s not my fault the captain here beat you to the top prize.”

“You two just made the biggest mistake of your lives.” With that, Skavak cut the line, and his image vanished. “Finally. I thought he’d never switch off.” Risha said, relieved. “You know that he liked to practice grandiose speeches in the mirror?” She said, smirking.

“Yeah, doesn’t surprise me. He’s more egotistical than a Sith.” Prin remarked. Just then, a gold-plated droid with a strange ring-collar thing around his neck emerged from the cockpit hallway. “Greetings, Master Risha. Might I enquire as to who these two are?” 

“Ceetoo, meet Captain Prindrohi and, uh….” Risha trailed off. “Name’s Corso.” “Yes, Corso. Prindrohi is the rightful captain of this vessel and he’s going to be flying it from here on out.” Risha informed him. She then turned to Prin. “Now, I have to brief you on what we’re delivering and why.”

“I think I’ll join you in this strange little endeavor. What’re we waiting for?”

(end flashback)

“It was…. Somewhat undignified for the refresher to be how we met, but considering what we’ve been through together, it strangely fits.” Risha noted.

“Well…. I’m glad to see you found someone you love, James.” Sarah said. “So am I. But remember, Risha is always right.” Walter advised. “Don’t worry dad, I know that already.” Prin said, rolling his ocular implants. Suddenly, he heard a chiming noise from his pocket.

“Oh, hang on a minute.” He pulled out his MyComm, and the screen lit up to show a picture of Corso, drooling on his pillow. He tapped a button and the holoprojector flickered to life, Corso, with Beryl beside him, appearing in the typical cone of blue light. “Corso, what’s up?”

“Uh, Beryl’s now staying with us full time.” “Care to explain why?” Prin said, wondering what had happened while they were away.

“It’s a long story involving 145 power cells, 6 rigged slot machines, and the deed to Whistling Willy’s Pizza Gulch, which I’m now the proud owner of.” Beryl said, holding said deed up on a datapad.

“Also, we’ve now got 10 ArCaster rifles.” Corso said, holding one up. It looked like a standard blaster rifle, but instead of an aperture a white sphere was at the end of the barrel. “They’re new tech, more efficient than normal ones. Instead of disposable power packs, you take components out of the rifle shell and charge them separately.” He demonstrated by popping the sphere-- which was attached to black, oblong device-- out of the top of the rifle. “This is the Arc Scepter, it works kinda like a lightsaber.” The sphere then glowed in a variety of colors before an energy blade sprouted from it. “I’m not entirely sure how it works, but when you put it in the rifle, it’ll fire short, rapid blasts, bigger but slower bursts, or a long-range, really powerful beam. And if five high-power beams are fired together, they can form a concussive force bubble that’ll bowl through anybody unlucky enough to be on the receiving end.” Corso explained.

Risha nodded. “Good, those weapons should be locked up in the armory. I have a feeling we’ll need them at Dubrillion. As for this…. ‘Pizza Gulch’, that may be an opportunity for some legitimate profit. We can’t just live off our nest egg, we need fresh credits.”

“And don’t worry Rish, we’ll make sure not to use Ceetoo for target practice with these babies.” Corso assured her. “I beg to differ!” Ceetoo shouted from somewhere out of sight. “Uh, gotta go.” Corso cut the connection and the hologram vanished.

“Who were they?” Walter asked. “My best friend Corso, and our “friend” Beryl. They along with the rest of my crew are back on Coruscant, Risha got a great deal on an apartment there.” Prin then summoned a holopic of the entire crew. “I met Corso when Skavak stole my ship, he was an Ord Mantellian trying to stop the separatists. There’s also Bowdaar, a Wookiee we rescued from the service of a Hutt, Akaavi Spar, the last survivor of her Mandalorian clan, and Guss Tuno, a Jedi washout who’s actually great at being a medic. We’re a bunch of scrappy misfits, so we stick to each other like glue.”

“As for Beryl, she was one of my business associates from some years prior. We’ve had a rivalry over who can make the best deals, who could blast the most other criminals, etc. Our relationship became strained after I had to abandon her after a deal went south. We’ve been trying to repair our bridges as of late, since we’ve kept encountering her.” Risha explained.

“So…. what exactly is your strategy for reclaiming this planet you’ve been talking about. Do you even have one?” Sarah inquired. “Yes, I do. I am busy cultivating connections within the Dubrillion nobility, particularly one Merritt Rineld, he may prove an invaluable ally.”

As Risha and Sarah went off, deep in discussion about politics, Prin and Walter just looked on. “I think I’ve created an unholy alliance.” Prin said. “Well, your mother has someone with her level of willpower to debate now.” Prin turned to his father. “Ever since her old sparring partner at Chandrila House, Yvette Adin, retired, your mother has been looking for an intellectual equal to debate with. Looks like she’s found her.” Walter chuckled, then turned to Prin. “So, you think you could stay for dinner? I was whipping up a hotpot.” Prin looked excited at the mere mention of it. “Aunt Betty’s recipe?” “The one and only.” Prin gave a wide grin at this.

Sarah and Risha continued their discussion until the dinner alert sounded from the house’s intercom system. They retreated to the dining room, where a large metal pot with steam rising from the top lay in the center of the table. Prin was busy putting out bowls and silverware for everyone. “Risha, I’d like to introduce you to my family’s best kept secret-- our hotpot recipe!” Prin introduced the dish. Risha inhaled the smell suffusing the room-- one of meat and potatoes. “Mmmm, it smells delicious.”

Walter then began ladling portions of the hotpot into everyone’s bowls. It was meat-- though of what type, she was unsure-- along with potatoes, onions and carrots. Prin was staring at the bowl in wonder. “I never thought I’d have a bowl of this again. This was one of the few things I missed when I left. I couldn’t have it in space since most of the ingredients are locally-sourced, for high-quality purposes.”

Risha decided to wait a few minutes so the dish would cool off enough before she began eating. While waiting, she decided to investigate Prin’s father. “So, Walter, are you also a politician?” Walter shook his head. “No, not at all. I work at ChandrilTech, the industrial-sensor division. I started as a sensor mechanic and gradually worked my way up the ladder. But unlike most middle-management guys, I do get out into the field and help fix sensors. It keeps my hands busy and my skills sharp.”

“So that must be why Prin survived on his own for so long with little resources. He inherited your technical knowhow.” Prin nodded, his mouth full of meat. He swallowed before speaking. “Yeah, dad taught me how to get the most out of every component, which merchants to get low-maintenance parts from, where the best repair facilities were. It served me well before you came along and took over the maintenance.”

Just then, Sarah decided to change the subject. “So, when are you two getting married?”

“Uh….” Prin trailed off. He hadn’t thought that far yet. “Rish?” Risha herself contemplated for a moment. “I do not know exactly when. But it will likely be after I depose Actavarus, but before my coronation as queen. Perhaps I could combine the two events into one, it would be less of a logistical mess having one large event instead of two smaller ones. One thing I do know is that you two will be the first on our guest list.”

"Well, I'm fine as long as we can bring our hotpot to the reception." Walter commented. “Of course, we’ll be sure to put this on the menu!” Prin replied, before taking another bite of the slow-cooked meat. “We gotta start making this for the others, they’ll love it.” He said between chews.

After dinner was done, Prin and Walter cleaned up while Risha and Sarah continued to discuss political topics. Eventually, as Prin and Walt emerged from the now-clean kitchen, Risha had an announcement. “James, I will be hereby hiring your mother as a political advisor. Since she has years of experience in the field, she can easily help mediate between different political factions on Dubrillion.”

“And I am honored to be selected, Your Highness. I will serve you faithfully and with as much enthusiasm and drive as I can muster.” Sarah then knelt down as if she were a knight receiving orders. “You don’t need to go that far, Sarah. Please rise.” Risha noted. Sarah promptly rose up, unembarrassed. “I will be immersing myself in information regarding Dubrillion.” With that, she headed for the office on the second floor.

“Well, while she’s doing that, I’m going down to the basement to watch some holoshows. You two have fun.” Walter then rose up and headed for a nearby staircase going down into the finished basement.

“So what’s next, Prin?” He promptly headed for the staircase going up. “Only one place to go. My old bedroom.”

They entered said room, and it was very much still a teenager’s room-- holo-posters for famous singers, holofilms and other things covered up much of the walls.  A large vidscreen was on the wall opposite his bed. A chest of drawers and a desk filled in the space against one wall, a dresser with a variety of small objects atop it against the other. A comfy-looking, if small, red armchair lay in one corner.

“This was my sanctum. Whenever I wanted to get away from everyone else, this is where I’d go. I plotted my “escape” here so much, I had a whole bunch of potential escape plans.” Prin said wistfully. He then plopped down in the red chair. “Ah, my old thinking chair. I forgot how soft and squishy this thing was.”

Risha examined some of the knickknacks and other objects around her, getting a feel for what her fiance’s interests were before he went into the smuggling game. Among them were grav-ball equipment and badges, various star charts, and action figures of various Republic heroes. "So what should we do while we're in here?"

"We can probably stay the night. Though hanky-panky is out." Prin then rose from his chair and walked over to the wall. He hit some keys on his control panel to set privacy mode.

“Today has been a most unusual day, Prindrohi, or James, if I can call you that. We got engaged, you reconnected with friends, I found myself a valuable ally. What else could today bring?” Risha wondered.

“I dunno, and I don’t care. I just want to spend some quality time with you now.” Prin then hit a button on the panel, and cued up some music. “Shall we dance, Your Highness?”

Risha smiled and listened to the music. It was a symphonic tune. “I’m glad to hear this music. We’ll be hearing it a lot once we become King and Queen.” She took Prin’s hand and leaned in.

“With you at my side Risha, we’ll move mountains.” The two kissed, and danced long into the night.

Chapter Text

“Well, we’ve finally made it. Welcome to Dubrillion!” Prin said as the disguised Boundless -- bearing a deep purple and black paint job-- exited hyperspace and headed for the blue-green planet all their futures revolved around. 

“Y’know, all these planets look alike.” Corso said, leaning out of his seat as the ship began to descend. “That’s what I said about Chandrila.” Risha recalled. “So what’re we supposed to do while you guys try to take control?” Guss wondered from his seat on the couch in the lounge. He and Ceetoo were watching a holodoc about Ithorian herds. “It’s not like we can just stay here on the ship all the time.” “I am honestly unsure as to our roles in this endeavor myself.” Akaavi noted, as she leaned against a wall, polishing her techstaff.

“Well, Corso’s going to one of the more rural areas of the planet. He grew up on a farm and he knows their little world. He’s also going to be helping volunteer organizations while we’re here.” Prin explained, and Corso gave a thumbs-up. “Wanna get back to my roots a little bit. I know my way around pigs and tractors.”

“What about us?” Guss asked. Bowdaar nodded, crossing his arms. “Even if the big battle is a ways away, I still wish to contribute to your effort.” He rumbled.

“Guss, you and Bowdaar look for entry-level employment in Cullinan, that way we can get a feel for how the average citizen lives.” Risha instructed. “Akaavi, start looking for work as a security guard, preferably somewhere that Actavarus is known to patronize, to gather intelligence on his security detail. He is a regular at several different high-society clubs and organizations, such as the Cullinan Glen Country Club.” “I shall do my best, Miss Drayen.” Akaavi affirmed.

The Boundless streaked through the atmosphere, though not so fast (otherwise the ship might catch fire from the speed of reentry). Soon, the capital city, Cullinan, came into view. It seemed to sprawl out and merge with the more suburban areas surrounding it. The area sat on the shore of a large lake, and various maritime ships and vessels populated it.

“I have to admit, this is a nice change of pace after the whole…. other universe incident last week.” Corso commented. “Yeah, that was pretty kriffed up.” Prin agreed. “On an unrelated note, I’ve left Beryl in charge of the stronghold back on Coruscant.” Risha said, turning around in her chair. “She’s busy running that pizza place she and Riggs here got their hands on.”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea, Rish? What if she wrecks the place throwing a rager, or turns it into her canny-smuggling base?” Prin worried. “Oh, don’t worry, I’ve got leverage.” Risha said smugly.

One day prior…..

“Now, I’m entrusting you with keeping watch over our domicile here, and managing our new acquisition.” Risha paced in front of a disinterested Beryl, who rolled her eyes. “Look, Rish, it’s been fun, but I’ve gotta get back to my own---”

“If you slack off, I’ll leak the holopics I have of you at my 21st birthday party all across the HoloNet.” Risha threatened casually. Beryl’s eyes widened and she suddenly looked nervous. “You wouldn’t.” She said in a disbelieving tone.

“I am a queen. I’ll do whatever it takes to achieve my goals, and a little blackmail like this isn’t going to hurt anyone. Well, anyone but you. So, do as I say, or else you’ll get laughed out of every underworld gathering place from here to the Outer Rim.”

Beryl now looked like she’d rather be thrown to a sarlacc than follow Risha’s orders, but all she could squeak out was a nearly-inaudible “Yes, ma’am.”

“Well, alright. I’m trusting you handled it and we won’t find the Stronghold a smoldering crater. Provided those demo derby drivers don’t level the whole tower first.” Prin turned back to his controls and began to watch the clouds streak by.

A few more minutes passed before they got close to the city’s spaceport, located directly along the shore of the nearby Lake Allan. The spaceport traffic office sent a signal to confirm the ship’s ID-- to protect their identity, they had used one of their aliases, the Stoneskipper. Prin hit the blinking button on the control panel. “This is Captain Jared Yatolilla of the Stoneskipper , requesting clearance to land.” A minute passed before a male voice issued from the speakers. “This is Cullinan traffic control, you’re clear to dock at hangar 72. Enjoy your stay.”

After landing the ship and letting the others off, Prin and Risha prepared their disguises (since outside of the Voidhound and Nok Drayen’s heir, the others didn’t really have much notoriety to their names, so they could simply be themselves). Prin had pulled one of his old smuggling aliases out, while Risha’s fake name, Asuna Sunrunner, had been a name she’d used while staying on Dantooine to protect herself from her father’s enemies (she noted how close Dantooine was to Dubrillion, which was basically one star system over, and wondered if her father had chosen to hide in plain sight there). They wandered through the spaceport, and outside, into downtown Cullinan. For a planet in the Outer Rim, it was a beautiful city (though this spoke more to the low standards of the Outer Rim than anything else). Unlike the constant orange gleam of Coruscant’s endless skyscrapers, Cullinan’s skyscrapers and other notable structures, including sporting arenas and commercial complexes, were limited to a major core area, close to the waterfront of Lake Allan. They also possessed less eye-searing colors of grey, silver, and reflective window panels. One skyscraper looked like a giant needle pointing up into the sky.

The duo had modified their appearances to prevent Actavarus from detecting them. Risha had donned a dark black wig with several bright blue stripes, styled in a bob that covered her right eye. Prin had hidden his ocular implants and other metallic bits (as best as he could) and had a sandy blonde wig on. Both also changed their clothing choices; Risha had ditched her typical clothing for an old t-shirt and a pair of jeans (she typically wore these while working on the Boundless), while Prin was wearing a button-up shirt and suspenders. They looked odd for sure, but hopefully this would throw the mad king off their trail.

“OK, looks like we’re almost at the address he gave us.” “Jared” and “Asuna” were currently onboard a tram into the multi-cultural center of Cullinan, the neighborhood known as Chumtown, where sentients from all walks of life lived, played and worked. It reminded them both of Coruscant, but in comparison to Galactic City’s underbelly, this area had the feeling of being warm, lived-in, and loved by its’ people. Vendors hawked foodstuffs and shirts from rolling carts. Several nearby businesses had facades covered in large, flashy signs, often advertising cheap deals on things like holomusic and general merchandise. And in comparison to Coruscant’s upper areas, the makeup of humans vs. other species was remarkably balanced from what Risha could see.

“Approaching stop for 300 King Street East.” As the prerecorded VO chimed, Prin and Risha debarked the tram amidst the crowds of people. They looked up at the multi-story building, which appeared to be of an older architecture, made of squared stone and glass with large arched windows. It normally would’ve looked imposing. However, the owner had turned it into a beacon of media. Bright signs for holo-channels lined the facade, a large mural next to a parking lot displayed satellite dishes beaming into space, one corner had a soundproof glass booth for people to record their opinions, and perhaps the most bizarre feature, what looked like a landspeeder, bearing “CivicBeat LiveEye” decals, embedded in a wall, looking as though some sort of accident had occurred. At the last one, Prin looked to Risha, who could only shrug in confusion.

The duo walked into the entranceway of what a sign above their heads dubbed the “CivicPlex”, into a large reception area, flanked on each side by large production areas full of employees working on holovision channels (and a small area selling merchandise related to said channels). “Excuse us, we’re here for a meeting with Merritt Rineld?” Risha inquired of the reception droid. “Oh yes, Mr. Rineld is expecting you two. Paging now.”

A couple minutes later, the man they need to see, Count Merritt Rineld, emerged from a nearby lift. He was a broad, if not necessarily imposing figure. He had a slicked-back hairdo similar to Risha’s normal hairstyle, and a thin black mustache; his attire was a suit, but a casual one with no tie. “Ah, there you two are!” He recognized Risha immediately. “Asuna, Jared. Good to see you both.” He said, shaking their hands. “If you’ll follow me, I'll give you a tour of your new surroundings.”

They followed Rineld into the lift. Said lift was translucent and passed by several floors full of people busy creating holovision shows. One floor was entirely dedicated to local newsgathering and was almost packed to the gills with people working on stories. There was a large holomap in a corner alongside the assignment desk, with pulsing lights indicating the major roads in and out of Cullinan. "Jared" and "Asuna" were staring at the controlled chaos as reporters and anchors followed up on leads and monitored police communication. They could feel a sense of urgency in their bones. “I can see you’re impressed by our facilities. We are looking into the future of local holovision, CivicHV is the beginning. Jared, that’s the CivicBeat newscenter, it’s going to be your workspace. Asuna, you’ll be working over in the SuperSound environment on the first floor.”

Eventually the lift came to a halt on the fifth floor, where they proceeded down a fancy-looking hallway into a large office. “Alright, first of all, let me apologize for not greeting your properly, Your Grace.” Merritt began as the door sealed behind them, before bowing to Risha. “No, don’t do that. I’m not queen, not yet anyways.” Merritt then rose up. “I had to make sure the securicams caught us as though you were in fact new employees. That way we have plausible deniability should Actavarus’ security officers ask questions. I find it better to be overly-prepared than not prepared at all.”

“An excellent way of thinking.” Risha commented as she and Prin sat down in front of Merritt’s large desk. Large vidscreens showing all of his holochannels were embedded in the wall behind them, though none of them were playing audio.

“Well, it’s certainly nice to meet you, Mr. Rineld.” Prin said earnestly. “I have to admit, I do find this building interesting. You took an old-style building and filled it to the brim with modern tech but retained so much of the old characteristics.” Risha said.

“Yes, I made sure to preserve as much of the architecture as possible. But that’s not why we’re here.” He stood up and walked to a wall-mounted computer console. “For years, this planet has been suffering under the tyrannical thumb of the Actavarus family and its’ excesses. I chose to find you, Risha Drayen, because under your great-grandfather Arak’s rule, the planet had been flourishing with exports and culture. The people were happy, even if Arak himself backstabbed into power like most nobles did. But once Actavarus I took over, he immediately began to drive the planet into the ground. His son, Actavarus II was actually a decent man. But Jaycen Actavarus III is the worst of all. The planet has been mostly cut off from trade with the Republic due to him not wanting to take sides in the Republic-Empire conflict, the citizenry is repressed, and even us nobles are fed-up with his insanity. The Directory has only barely been keeping him under control. Thus, the time may be right to strike and remove him from the throne.” 

Merritt worked the console, and a holo of Actavarus himself beamed into view. He was tall and imposing, with an unruly haircut and a thick mustache. He was wearing a military style uniform of impeccable finery, with all sorts of medals and decorations adorning his chest, and a massive crown atop his head. His face possessed a hard, steely glare that also radiated arrogance. "So that's what this guy looks like." Prin commented. "Make no mistake, Actavarus is intelligent and crafty. His forces are powerful, and we must tread with caution if you are to take the throne, Your Grace." Merritt supplied.

“Yes. That is why I sought you out for assistance in this matter. You are one of the most popular nobles on the planet and even outside it, given your philanthropic activities and your massive media empire with its’ casual, rule-breaking attitude. Therefore, I trust that you can assist me in my attempt to topple Actavarus.” Risha then removed a datacard from her pocket. “I recently won this in a HoloNet auction, it has info on Actavarus’ security measures.”

“This should prove important, then.” Rineld pocketed the datacard, before continuing. “It is a good thing you arrived now, Miss Drayen. Actavarus’ plans to seize the Touchstone’s power for himself are actually starting to progress.” He said grimly. “That is discouraging news. But now that we're here, we can derail his plans faster than you can say ‘hyperdrive’s broken’.” Risha assured him.

“What’s the Touchstone?” Prin asked, confused at the subject. “It’s the primary religious movement on this planet, don’t you remember?” Risha scolded. “We never covered that in our royalty lessons. You covered what my duties would be, how to act properly in royal court and other situations, but you never mentioned this Touchstone thing.” Prin pointed out.

“Well, I’ll explain. Thousands of years ago a meteor crashed into the surface of Dubrillion and created a network of below-surface caverns. It was seen by the people at the time as a sign from the Force, and they turned it into a religious movement. The Touchstone is the biggest intact piece of that meteor, nestled deep underground in said caverns. It apparently got irradiated on its’ journey through the Deep Core and when people approached it, it allegedly could heal their illnesses. It has been regarded as a religious symbol ever since.” Risha explained. 

“That’s right, and Actavarus is after it. His grandfather Actavarus I was apparently convinced he could use the Touchstone to use as a source of power and make himself immortal. His plans never panned out, but Actavarus III seems to have picked up the idea. He’s been trying to get the Touchstone himself for years, but he’s been thwarted by the Keepers of the Stone, an ancient order that safeguards the Touchstone to prevent its misuse.” Rineld then rose and moved to his wall of monitors.

He promptly scanned his thumbprint and retina, and spoke a vocal passcode (“Pulse”). The wall of vidscreens split in two and slid back to reveal a hidden elevator! “Well, come on. We don’t have all day.” The surprised Prin and Risha followed Merritt into the elevator. The monitors slid back into place as the lift lowered. “What is this?” Risha asked. “This is a way into the base of the biggest anti-Actavarus organization on the planet. I run and bankroll it. I placed it beneath this building, since Actavarus would never look here. He detests commoners and especially the Chumtown neighborhood.” Merritt explained as the lift went past the ground level of the building and into the caverns beneath.

“Welcome to Silverado.” As the lift descended, Prin and Risha bore witness to the nerve center of the secret war against Actavarus. People, aliens and droids worked at various computer consoles, observing securicam feeds, tracking news and monitoring the activities of both field agents and the King’s allies. “The home base for the Order of the Moonlight Knights!” Rineld proclaimed dramatically.

“Damn Merritt, this is impressive.” Prin couldn’t believe all this was happening right underneath their feet!

“I have to admit, Count, I expected merely a few storerooms and perhaps a briefing room, not a hive of activity.” Risha commented, examining the sheer size of the command center. They debarked the lift and headed for the central hub-- a glass-enclosed nerve center, where a large holo-projector was displaying the whereabouts of Actavarus (currently he was hunting animals in a forest somewhere), and tracking movements of the Royal Guards and the Skyway Patrol. "Well, admittedly we normally don't have so many people here at once. We're all here because of you, so almost every agent we could get is present today." Two agents-- both male, seemingly identical aside from the colors of their suits (one wore a deep burgundy; the other, navy blue) walked over. “For instance, these are two of our top agents, Rogers and Bell. They’re long-term double agents, who normally work for Actavarus’ Royal Intelligence Service; they feed them false information about our activities so we can go about undetected.” Merritt explained. Rogers bowed. “Your Grace. It’s an honor to finally meet the person we’ve worked so hard for.” Bell nodded. “And uh... aren’t you that Voidwolf guy who saved Corellia?” He said, pointing to Prin.

“No, I’m the Voidhound, I defeated the Voidwolf. It’s easy to get the nicknames confused.” Prin corrected. “Alright, we’d better get back to work, we’re busy setting up a false base in the northern regions to keep the RIS from finding the real one.” As the duo walked away with their backs turned, they shared a knowing look of smugness between each other.

A woman then walked up, nose buried in a datapad. She was a rather short woman with a mane of messy red hair, a freckled face, and strange marks around her eyes. “OK, Merritt, I’ve got a report from the House of Wollick, they say the House of Starr is buying up unclaimed land on their fringes, possibly to take them over-- Oh, it’s you two!”

“Prindrohi, Miss Drayen, this is Lady Julia Galaford, my second in command here.” Merritt introduced. “She works with horses and is involved with dressage. She serves as our primary agent amongst the upper-crust and at various social events.” Julia beamed. “I gotta admit, I never thought I'd ever meet the Voidhound in person. Or know that his fiance is our rightful ruler.”

“Well, hey, I never imagined you guys had a base like this.” Prin said, gazing at the sheer size of the underground area. He could see hallways that branched out all over, and bigger rooms, including what looked like a hangar filled with every type of vehicle credits could buy, were visible in the distance. “So, wait, the Order of the Moonlight Knights? Where’d you get that name from?”

“An old ceremonial order that predated even the Drayen dynasty. Actavarus I got rid of it and replaced it with the Order of the Blood Credit. We revived the name to indicate our loyalty to the true rulers.” Merritt said proudly. 

“So, how do you guys communicate with each other? Because placing holocalls would blow your cover right open.” Prin pointed out.

“I’m glad you asked.” Merritt headed over to another wall, where a dark-skinned woman was busy coding cryptographic information. “Our slicer, Lady Amelia Forthin, or just Amy, devised an easy, yet subtle way to communicate.” Amy then turned around and began working at another console, explaining as she worked. “Merritt’s primary galaxy-wide holochannel, SuperStream 17, has a service called Electra hidden within the datastream. It’s a hidden communication system for the Moonlight Knights, and only those with a Zenith Decrypter can decode the signal. Electra carries our intel, accounts of what Actavarus is doing, and all sorts of internal reports. Only those with a CAM-- a special access device that scans your thumbprint, can access Electra.”

She then moved onto what looked like a squarial, a square-shaped receiving dish commonly seen amongst dwellings all over the galaxy to better receive certain holonet streams. “This is a special stealth transceiver we use in our buildings and ships. It looks like a normal squarial, but it can tap into Electra. It uses AC-3 and Neo:6 encryption software, and the Zenith Decrypter, to validate access to Electra.”

Risha looked over the equipment approvingly. “Good work, Amy. Prin, make sure we install these tools onboard the Boundless as soon as possible.” Prin nodded, taking notes on his MyPad.

“Also, if you’re going to undertake covert work for us, now might be the best time to start using….. This.” Merritt turned to an upright booth in the corner of the area, and pressed some switches. Lights illuminated the interior, revealing a mannequin bearing some sort of suit. It appeared to be made of a dark blue fabric, with a strange set of metal harnesses going across the upper torso, waist and upper legs. A commlink of a similar design was on the mannequin’s left wrist. A holster also contained some sort of blaster pistol with a silencer and scope. “A prototype stealhsuit we acquired in a raid on a lab Actavarus had contracted to create weapons. We grabbed it when the scientists were distracted.”

“And why haven’t you been using it?” Risha inquired, eyeing the suit. It seemed to absorb the light around it to remain as dark as possible.

“Because we only acquired it last month and we’re still trying to work the bugs out before we can start using it.” Amy said. She turned to a computer console and it began displaying a simulation. “The stealthsuit will enable the user to not only turn invisible, but muffle their breathing and footsteps as well. The holotech can also be used to create a full-body disguise, making you look like a completely different person.” The simulation then shifted to a strength test, showing various objects being destroyed by the suit’s wearer. “The suit runs on energy collected from the Touchstone that Actavarus got his hands on somehow. During testing the creators of the suit found that if the energy was rerouted from stealth, it could enhance the subject’s physical attributes. But use too much of it and the suit will power down, as the Touchstone energy takes time to replenish.” She picked up the blaster and inserted a power cell. “This prototype stealth pistol has multiple modes and attachments, and runs off the same energy source as the suit. It’s got integrated targeting and as much power as a standard BlasTech rifle.”

“Wow. This will definitely prove useful to us.” Prin then noticed Merritt, Amy and Risha were all looking at him. “What?”

“You. You’re the perfect person to use the suit.” Risha stated simply. “But, it’s got glitches, right? I really don’t relish being electrocuted or irradiated by this thing.” Prin said worriedly.

“The Touchstone energy is contained within those harnesses, it’s not poisonous either. As for electrocution, unless the suit’s very badly damaged there’s little chance of that happening.” Amy shutdown the first simulation and opened another one, showing various people wearing the suit. “Now, the test subjects all had cyborg implants, as that is the only way to correctly interface with the suit. Therefore you’re an ideal candidate to test the suit on an espionage mission, Mr. Candaren.”

“Alright then. I may not have a choice, but I’ll try it.” Prin affirmed. He went up to the display case and examined the stealthsuit closely. The suit’s finer details, including the mesh layers woven into the fabric and miniaturized compartments for equipment located inside the metal harnesses, were more visible.

“But not for now. We don’t have any pressing assignments for you right now, so instead you’re going to work for the next week as employees under your aliases. This will make it appear that you are nothing more than ordinary citizens.” Merritt then headed back to the elevator. “If you’ll follow me, we’ve got flimsiwork to do so everything appears legitimate.”

“Well, we’ve made our first major step towards regaining your throne, Rish. How do you feel?” Prin asked. Risha smiled a little. “Like it’s what I’ve been waiting my whole life for.”

-----

For the next week, Prin and Risha were basically on their own, trying to fit into their new roles. “Jared” was a holographer who roamed the streets in a LiveEye speeder, ready to broadcast news stories at any time. His holocam would transmit back to the CivicBeat editing bays and control room instantaneously by private HoloNet feeds. He saw much of what was happening in the city this way, giving him an exact line on the state of the city and its' residents -- he saw local politicians battling over expansion plans (including one city councilor who was addicted to spice, but had been reelected somehow; Risha swore to have him arrested as soon as possible), the busting of a spice-smuggling ring, some speeder crashes, and even a slugthrower shooting on the east side of town. When he wasn’t doing that, he was on the overnight shift (the normal overnight anchor was out sick), reporting live from the assignment desk in-between cheesy holofilms to tell night-owls the latest stories and weather conditions. By the end of the week, he was exhausted.

Risha, or “Asuna” had it a little better. As a host (or "holojockey") on SuperSound, her main role was to provide continuity between holovids of the galaxy’s most popular musical acts. A variety of others shared the role, including a sock puppet named Mark (she had no idea what that was about, and gave Mark a wide berth). But it was difficult for her to be constantly open, friendly and excited as the job required; Risha was typically private, withdrawn, and she rarely smiled. She would also be talking to the many spectators and others who passed by, and thanks to Merritt's philosophy of having the CivicPlex open to all, she could literally open a window in the production area and start chatting. It helped Risha get a sense of the working and middle-class citizenry and what their support might mean. She also quickly learned about the styles of music popular with them, which would make her seem not aristocratic and out of touch with the average citizen, as Actavarus was widely perceived. And, as loathe she was to admit it, she had fun when hosting a program called Fusion Circus , a dance program featuring lots of high-energy music. The energy was infectious and she couldn’t help but dance to the tunes.

Meanwhile, the rest of the Boundless crew was busy elsewhere. Corso had joined a farming community in the Virland area, just slightly north of Cullinan, collecting information on their way of life. They were dissatisfied about their leadership, for Actavarus had gone out of his way to ignore their pleas. After a groundquake several years prior had destroyed much of their crops, they had made a media ruckus about getting assistance from the Crown. Actavarus offered no assistance and they had to scrap that year's crops at considerable financial cost. They still hadn't paid off their debts and anger at the king was rising. (As for his volunteer work, Corso had joined an organization that sent fresh produce to worlds stricken by drought or decay.)

Guss and Bowdaar had both found steady employment. Guss worked as a janitor in an area medcenter (since he had applied for a medical job, but hadn't realized he needed a license to practice medicine on the planet), while Bowdaar had become a cashier at a cafe. Both frequently heard complaints and grievances about the king and his apparent lack of concern for his subjects. He had raised their taxes to high amounts, instituted harsh laws that limited personal freedoms, cut off Republic trade, and did not do anything to address these issues, instead focusing on enriching his personal power and wealth. The Directory, the planet's parliamentary body, had been attempting to actually help, but their proposed laws and bills were inevitably vetoed by Actavarus' number two, Prime Minister Boris Sinclair, who like Actavarus was very corrupt and did not give a damn as to actually serving the citizenry, only about maintaining his power base. Most of the other Cabinet ministers were useless as well; for instance, the Financial Minister, Daatin (a descendant of the Daatin battled by Akaavi and Corso), had blown tons of credits and resources on unworkable deals and bad investments.

Finally, Akaavi had obtained a role in security at the Cullinan Lake Country Club, where Actavarus spent much of his personal time. He could often be found golfing or hunting, two of his favorite pursuits. Akaavi surreptitiously spied on him, noting his security details down to the style of rifle the guards carried. There were at least two Royal Guards in every room. The king was surrounded by an inner circle of aristocratic butt-kissers (including Sinclair) who praised his every move. However, not every noble there was happy with him. Despite him doing little to limit the nobles' influence and power, many were still annoyed at Actavarus' stranger plans and edicts, and almost all the nobles were incensed that he had cut off trade with the Republic, meaning that many of their favorite luxury items now had to be imported from other sources, at higher costs. Some nobles, of course, were part of the Moonlight Knights, whose ranks had swelled in the past two years.

Tensions were simmering all across Dubrillion, ready to spill over at the slightest provocation.  But for now, open warfare was not happening. 

The Royal Palace of Dubrillion was a mammoth complex, made of centuries-old stone enhanced by up-to-date building techniques. It didn't compare to the Presidential Palace on Coruscant, but it was still impressive. The complex served as both a set of luxury residences for the ruling family (though this just meant Actavarus and his many mistresses-- he had never married or taken a queen, for fear of reducing his own power), and as the monarch's working offices.

“Your Highness, your 10:00 is here.” Jaycen Actavarus looked up from the clerical work he was doing (he may have been a power-hungry tyrant, but that didn’t mean he completely neglected his duties in ruling a planet) to the vidscreen with his secretary. “Send him in.”

The doors to his office slid open, and a figure walked in. “Ah, Your Highness. It’s good to finally meet you in person.” The man stuck his hand out for a handshake. “Yes, yes, sit down, we have much to discuss.” As Actavarus and the figure began a discussion, a small knick-knack on a shelf in the corner automatically and silently swiveled around. The camera within activated and began recording video.

“Merritt, you'd better see this.” Merritt looked over his shoulder towards the holofeed that monitored the King's office. “Who is that?” He asked Julia as he leaned in towards the holo for a better look. “I’m not sure, I’ve never seen him before, he must be from off-planet.”

Julia then hit a switch. The facial recognition software kicked in, scanning through the Dubrillion identicard database, attempting to find a match among the planet's 2.3 million residents. After about a minute, the display read "NO MATCH FOUND."

"Damn. Whoever this guy is, we couldn't match him. And we can't access the Republic identicard database either, since Actavarus essentially made us leave." Julia lamented. "Keep an eye on him. Anything he's doing we keep on top of." Merritt ordered. "It's recording, I'll have Blair look over the footage later."

Julia then rose up from her seat and stretched. "Well, I've got a polo event to attend. You want to come? I've got a plus-one ticket." She offered.

Merritt shook his head. "Sorry, Julia. I've got work to do back up in the CivicPlex. I can maybe squeeze in a trip to the cafe, though. I've got a craving for a nanaimo bar." Merritt replied. 

Externally, Julia looked nonplussed. “Alright, let’s get back up there.” Internally, Julia cheered. "Yes! We're going on a date! Well, maybe not a real date, but still!"

As the duo left and headed back up topside, the man had left Actavarus' office, leaving the king with his thoughts. "My new ally is already insightful. Soon I shall be rid of the Drayens, that pesky resistance group, and that smuggler -- all in one fell swoop." With that, he turned back to his work.

----

The next day, Prin had just finished up editing a news story-- having to do with a major power failure near Cullinan’s western edge, the problem being a lack of maintenance due to the budget being diverted towards Actavarus’ personal funds-- when he got a message on his MyComm from Risha, telling him to meet her at Silverado. Alarmed, he quickly headed for another hidden entrance, located in a little-used office intended for guests in the CivicPlex’s northwestern area.

Prin rushed into the base, which was relatively deserted as most of the agents were out on assignments or else busy with their own lives. He entered Merritt’s other office, just off the central hub. “OK Risha, what’s the-- mmphh !” He got cut off by a sudden, passionate kiss from her. Surprised, Prin melted into the kiss, before separating. “Uh, Rish, I don’t think Merritt would appreciate us getting frisky in his office.” He said nervously, eyeing the Count from his peripheral vision.

“That’s not why I did that. Count, it was a very flattering offer, but… well, me and Prin are actually very happy together.” Risha said. Prin looked to Risha, somewhat lost. “What offer?”

Rineld sighed. “I had just proposed I marry Miss Drayen, solely as a political match. I thought that me being her prince-consort would make us a strong ruling couple.” He admitted.

Prin’s eyes bugged out (or, more accurately, his ocular implants extended in surprise). He almost looked like was about to start telling off Rineld, but instead he breathed out and calmly approached Rineld. “You’re a bit too late, there.” He held up Risha’s hand, showcasing her engagement ring. “I proposed marriage to her about a month ago.”

“Oh, damn it. I thought that ring was simply a personal one, you already have several…..” Merritt promptly headdesked. He looked up to see Prin sitting down. “Look, Count. I know you had a good reason for doing this, but…. me and Risha formed our relationship because we worked together, we got to know each other. She opened up after an injury and everything snowballed from there. I proposed to her because I can’t see anyone else in my mind, when I think about the future. I love her.  I know you want to help her retake the throne from that piece of garbage currently occupying it, but this wasn’t the right way. In an alternate universe where she had done everything by herself, maybe, but me, her, and the rest of our motley crew became a surrogate family for each other. You haven’t been through what we have-- constantly zipping around, getting in trouble, doing what we felt like. You weren’t there, you were basically chasing a shadow.” Prin then stood up, and clasped Merritt’s shoulder. “Maybe you should look for your own Risha.”

“You aren’t going to clone me, are you?” Risha asked, raising her eyebrow. “N-no, that’s not what I--” Prin sputtered, before clearing his throat awkwardly. “What I’m saying is, look for someone who you’ll get along with, someone who you’ll get to know for real, not just a holopic or whatever. Whoever they are, they’re most likely waiting out there.”

Suddenly, Julia entered the room, carrying a large pile of datacards in her arms. “Oh, sorry, am I interrupting anything important?” She asked. “No, we were just talking with Merritt about… a personal issue.” Risha said, grateful for Julia’s timing.

“Well, I’ve got some more info on Actavarus’ facilities. We should select one for Prindrohi here to perform a raid on with the stealthsuit.” Julia explained, whilst carefully depositing the datacards onto the desk, hoping they didn’t spill.

“Excellent, Julia. Hopefully this suit will work as promised.” Merritt then turned to a side console and began prepping the datacards for uploads. Julia, looking nervous, scratched her neck. “And, uh, Merritt?”

“Yes, what is it?” Julia then approached him. “I was wondering if you’d go with me to the annual Equestrian Society Gala tonight. Several of Actavarus’ cabinet ministers and Directory stooges are going to be present, it may be a valuable intel-gathering opportunity.”

“I don’t have anything in my schedule, so I’ll go.” He said, inserting the last of the datacards. Information about all the potential targets began to appear as the computer worked. “It’s also one where if you go alone, people will begin to speculate about your relationship status. I would suggest we go together to thwart any... uncomfortable rumors about you.” She said, voice cracking at the end.

“Very well. I’ll begin putting an ensemble together.” With that, he left the office. Julia waited until the door sealed, then pumped her fist. “Yes! A real date!” She cheered…. before turning around to remember that both Prin and Risha were there, and had witnessed everything. Her eyes darted around nervously, before she sped off. “Youdidn’tseeanything!”

“I think we found someone for him.” Prin said, nodding, as Risha just chuckled internally. Merritt seemed to be brainless when it came to relationships-- he’d proposed to a woman he barely knew, but couldn’t detect the obvious pining directed at him from his second-in-command! “This will be interesting.”

Chapter Text

It had been two weeks since Prin and Risha had assumed their undercover identities and infiltrated Dubrillion in preparation to topple Actavarus and take the planet back. They had holed up in a small apartment across the street from the CivicPlex (Count Rineld’s media complex, and where they worked to maintain their covers). It was a change from the massive Coruscant stronghold, but, as Risha noted, there wasn't any noise from vehicular combat drivers constantly shaking them up and interrupting their sleep. Instead, the noises were of a city at ground-level. The ding-ding of arriving trams, the low humming of speeders, and the chatter of people. It was the pulse of the city, and Risha liked being close to it.

“OK, so we’ve got today off from work, what’s our plan?” Prin asked as he passed Risha a cup of caf. Risha yawned widely before slowly sipping the caf. She could feel the beverage re-invigorating her sleep-addled mind; she waited for the energy to start waking her up before responding. “We go over to the docking bay, install the equipment we need for the Count’s spy network. The equipment’s in the speeder outside.” She said in her quiet morning voice.

After Risha’s second cup of caf, she felt awake enough to install things without electrocuting herself, so she and Prin sped off to the docking bay where the Boundless (or, as it was known at the moment, the Stoneskipper) was berthed. Thankfully, they didn’t run into much traffic on the way there -- with Republic trade having been cut off, spaceport traffic had dropped off by a noticeable amount. There had previously been cargo vessels routinely docked to haul crops, electronic components, and various other goods from the planet to the rest of the Republic, and super-massive bulk freighters were a common sight in orbit -- not to mention the ground traffic, as freighter crews clogged nearby take-out restaurants and cheap discount shops. Now, their former spots had been taken by smaller vessels, the orbit of the planet was largely empty and said ground businesses were much quieter -- another sign of how Actavarus’ edicts were affecting planetary business.

The duo brought the speeder to a halt as the Boundless’ boarding ramp lowered. Prin immediately grabbed the equipment and loaded it onboard the hover-dolly (if he tried to walk into the ship with the equipment in his arms, it’d be a disaster waiting to happen). After they entered the lounge, Risha immediately pulled out her toolkit and got to opening up the holoprojector’s base. It took a few minutes to figure out where the decrypter itself went; while Risha handled that, Prin went outside via the maintenance hatch, installing the squarial into an unused equipment attachment port atop the dorsal superstructure. There were cabling linkups already in place, as many starship captains installed squarials to provide more entertainment choices during long journeys.

After testing the squarial’s motorized arm and making sure the hatch cover wouldn’t interfere with it, Prin returned to the lounge, Risha finishing up the Zenith Decrypter’s installation. The decoder was now unobtrusively located on the side of the main control console, looking like a plain maintenance port. “Alright, let’s test this system. If anything goes wrong…” Risha then shook her head at the potential for Actavarus tracking them down. “Don’t worry, Rish-- that slicer, Amy, assured us that this system’s incredibly secure.” He then retrieved the conditional-access chip that would grant them access.
Prin inserted the chip into the slot in the side of the console. The holo changed from the holofilm on SuperStream 17 to an image of a spiral rotating. A minute passed before the Electra screen appeared. It was sectioned akin to the front page of a holo-news service, with columns of info, including a major headline (“Actavarus preparing for Touchstone project”). Three digit numbers were punched in as Risha read up on all the latest resistance news, including the activities of the Second Street Cardinals, a major street gang in Dubrillion’s industrial city of Ironwater. Other articles included “Moonlight Knights raid on weapons lab successful”, “What does the Republic/Empire conflict mean for us?” and “The best stealth pistols around”.

Risha spent some time reading, while Prin tidied up (cobwebs were starting to appear all over the interior). He also made sure that no one had been in the ship, as all docked ships were now being searched for contraband. If Actavarus found anything that could link them to their ship, their jig would be up. Thankfully, all personal items had been securely locked or stowed away, and there wasn’t anything incriminating (at least as far as Prin could tell).
“Alright, looks like we’ve got our first major mission. Merritt wants us at Silverado right away.” Risha shouted from down the hall as Prin locked down the secondary cargo bay (he made a mental note to have Bowdaar remove the old shanjaru cage). The duo promptly left the ship and locked it, then zipped off on their speeder. Prin took a moment to enjoy the wind rushing through his hair as they headed back to the CivicPlex parking lot.

A few minutes later, they arrived at Silverado. There were a few people milling about, while Merritt, Julia and Amy were busy examining a holo of a building layout. “Ah, good, you’re here. We’ve got a good location for Mr. Candaren to test the stealthsuit, and poach some valuable intel from Actavarus in the process.” Merritt went straight to the holoprojector and pressed some buttons. It changed to an exterior view. “This is the headquarters of Actavarus’ Ministry of Intelligence. It’s where they have information on us, and despite our best efforts, the intel they have is solid. It may lead them straight to our base. They’re keeping the information in a new form-- a highly compressed, circular chip called a datadot.” An image of a rounded computer-chip-like device appeared in the holo. “There are two datadots, and they are being stored in the office of Actavarus’ Intelligence Minister, Roken Dremden.” The holo changed to show an older man with a receding hairline. “His office is on the top floor of this complex. It’s crawling with guards, cameras, sensors, the works. The utmost in stealth and caution is required.”

A new figure walked up, a thickly-built woman with her blonde hair up in a bun and a pair of denim overalls on. “This is Blair Wyndham, our vehicular and surveillance expert.” Blair gave a quick nod. “Your Grace, Voidhound. I’ll be showing you the vehicle you’ll be using on this mission.”

“We should probably change into our black-ops gear, first.” Prin said before taking the new suit and heading for the changing area. It took a few minutes -- and a lot of readjusting the form-fitting body glove -- but eventually Prin got everything squared away. “Alright, come on out, Prin.” Risha said, a hint of annoyance in her voice. Prin emerged, now clad in the new stealthsuit. “Huh, this looks pretty good.” Prin noted approvingly. He snapped the BioLink into place (a specialized wrist-comm that could track his vitals and the amount of energy he used), followed by the blaster pistol. Risha gave him a look of approval (and mentally enjoyed how tight and form-fitting the suit was).

“Testing holographic disguise.” Prin then punched some buttons on the BioLink and he changed from his typical brown-haired look to a shorter blonde haircut. His facial robotics vanished and normal facial features appeared in their place. The suit changed from a jumpsuit to the image of a business suit. “And, how does it feel?” Blair asked.

“Completely natural. This could work.” Meanwhile, Risha had changed into a dark grey camo suit, with a stealth belt wrapped around her waist. “So how exactly do we get there? Taking our ship in and blasting our way through wouldn’t exactly be the stealthy way.” She pointed out. “Normally I would advocate for that way, but in this case, no.” Prin added. “Follow us to the hangar.” Merritt, Julia and Blair headed for said area, Prin and Risha following. There were all sorts of vehicles-- speeders, various wheeled vehicles, and at least one starship (though how it would even launch, Prin hadn’t a clue).

“You’ll be using this.” A strange-looking vehicle was revealed. It was a wheeled ground vehicle, an uncommon sight (aside from the massive Juggernauts used by the Republic Army). It appeared to have a narrow, pointed cockpit, with two recessed areas alongside it. The rest of the vehicle was rather rectangular, with strange protrusions and devices on the top and sides. The coloration was a midnight blue, almost black, with bits of a dull gold. “Another lifted prototype. The MR-97 Infiltrator is designed to be launched from an aerial vessel, glide silently through the air and touch down for a soft landing with its built-in repulsorlifts. It is made for swift, silent movement, everything is sound-deadened. But, should things go wrong….” Two sets of twin blaster barrels extended out to flank the cockpit. “You’ll only want to use these in case of emergency.” Julia said as Blair emerged from the side door. “We’ve also got a variety of espionage equipment in this thing. You can hear and record conversations from up to 100 meters away, and capture images from 150.” One device atop the roof extended forwards and back, presumably one of the image-capture devices.

“So you’re saying this has to be dropped from the air for maximum effectiveness, correct?” Risha asked Blair. “That’s the intent. Due to the small size of the vehicle and its various equipment taking up space, the fuel supply is somewhat constrained. Ergo, the intention is to drop the vehicle through the air; driving it from here to there with the stealth generator engaged would drain the fuel cells quickly.”

“And it’s not like we can pull over to the nearest fuel depot.” Prin quipped. “So how’re we gonna get it to this place then?” “Simple. You launch it from your starship.” Prin looked to Blair with a disbelieving expression on his face. “I don’t think it could fit in there. It’s not a carrier.”

“Remember the work I was doing on the ship? Well, one of the aims was turning the secondary cargo hold into a miniaturized hangar for the smuggler flight pack. I figure we could shove this vehicle in there too and make the drop that way.” Risha summed up. Prin shook his head. “You’re always two steps ahead of me, Rish.” “That’s always my plan.”

“If we could get back on track here.” Merritt interrupted. The holo changed to a large map of the GCA (Greater Cullinan Area). Their location under the CivicPlex was marked by a red dot. A pulsing blue dot was located farther north on the map. “The facility is located in the city of Netterton, about 25 klicks north of here, the major city of the Virland province.”

“The Boundless will be able to get us there in no time at all.” Prin observed. “I’ll contact Corso so he can pilot when we make the drop.” Risha then pulled out her MyComm and sent a message to Corso. “Good. Be ready to move in an hour.”
-----
The Boundless, now in a deep blue with bits of silver (the better to blend in with the night sky), traveled towards Netterton, working only on repulsorlifts. Prin and Risha were in the secondary cargo bay, running last-minute checks of all their equipment, and to make sure the stealthsuit was working.

“Holo-disguise, check.” Prin’s false face shimmered into, then out of, existence. Risha was loading a needler with tranquilizer mini-darts. “Alright, let’s hope our first mission goes swimmingly. If not, Actavarus will--” Whatever threat she was to imply was cut short as Merritt’s face appeared on the BioLink -- they were getting a signal all the way out here thanks to the squarial they’d installed. “Your window of opportunity is quick. Launch the infiltrator now.” He instructed. Prin and Risha nodded. “Alright, heading out.” The side door opened and the duo piled into the vehicle. As the lights came on in the cockpit, Corso’s voice piped up. “We’re over the drop zone now. Good luck to you guys. Opening hatch in three, two, one.”

Conveniently, there was plenty of cloud cover to shield the Boundless from prying eyes. As the ship emerged from a cloud bank, the cargo bay doors slid open, and the infiltrator’s autopilot activated, sending the vehicle rolling off the ramp and through the night sky. They had crash webbing surrounding them and gravity control within the cockpit, but that couldn’t stop the strange feeling in their stomachs as the vehicle, in near-freefall, hurtled towards an empty parking lot. The repulsorlifts kicked in, bringing the vehicle to a gentle stop as it touched down. The momentum still meant it traveled a few feet before coming to a halt. “You okay, Rish?” Prin looked to his fiancee, and noted she looked a bit queasy. “We’ll…” She shut her mouth briefly before swallowing. “We’ll need to tell Blair to find a way to dampen the G-forces during the drop.”

The door opened and Risha stumbled out, Prin supporting her. “Here, have some antacids.” Prin pulled out a roll of small round tablets and opened the foil. At Risha’s questioning look, he simply gestured to the vehicle. “First aid kit.” Risha took the small, chalky supplements and quickly chewed them up, washing it down with a mini-canteen from her belt. “OK, hopefully that will calm my churning stomach.” She said, straightening up and resuming her seriousness. “Let’s get to it.”
Prin reentered the cockpit, as the spot-on locator in the dashboard began to display the indicated route to the complex. He grabbed a control stick next to him and shifted it backwards. “Infiltrator, in high gear.” The infiltrator began silently rolling away from the parking lot and towards a nearby artery road.

“Good thing it’s so late, there’s almost nobody out here.” Prin said as his eyes scanned the roads. The infiltrator was currently in its’ “active stealth” mode, using stealth-belt technology to make it look like a normal landspeeder. “Are you feeling any better, Rish?” He said as they headed for an on-ramp. “Yes. Hopefully we won’t have to do a drop like that again.” “Sorry about that, Your Grace. We stole this while it was still in development, I don’t think they’d tuned the inertial dampeners enough yet. We’ll correct that.” Blair apologized, via the built-in commlink.

“So, wait a second.” Prin said as something occurred to him. “Isn’t this place going to have tons of security on the outside? If we do anything, police and Royal Guards will be swarming us like flies on a bantha carcass.” He realized, now worried. “Don’t worry, we’ve got that covered. Just head for the complex.” Julia’s voice assured them. “If you say so.” Prin didn’t sound entirely convinced, as he slowed down to maneuver the Infiltrator around a massive piece of debris that appeared to have fallen off a speeder.

A few minutes passed, and Risha slowly looked healthier. Prin wished he could turn on the audio system, but that would likely compromise their stealth. Instead he had to settle for looking around at the suburban settings, reminding him of Sludaan. “Take the next right off the 410.” Prin steered onto the offramp and quickly maneuvered across an intersection, towards a massive complex of buildings surrounding a tall, rounded central office tower. Spotlights illuminated the royal seal and signage, and guards were seen at the edge of the driveway and all over the grounds.

Prin parked the infiltrator along the side of the road, behind an abandoned barn. “So, how are we going to get in there?” He asked, setting the stealth module to camouflage the infiltrator. “Follow me.” Prin followed Risha into the barn itself. It was decrepit, filled with moldy hay and rusted tools. Risha entered a stable and opened a hidden panel. She punched in a code and the floor slid open to reveal a tunnel. “This was designed for evacuations. We got the code from that datacard I won in that holonet auction. They’ll never see it coming.”

It took some awkward squeezing around the rotting wood, but Prin managed to get through the entrance and into the tunnel, a sleek, metallic tube with lightstrips every few feet. Risha sealed the entrance behind him, and they quickly proceeded down. Prin activated his holo-disguise, marvelling at the total change in his appearance. "I'm thinking this thing might be handy if we ever have to smuggle again. I can use a holo-disguise if we get stopped by customs agents or something." "We're going to be running an entire planet, why would we have to?" Risha pointed out. "If things go south and we're on the receiving end of a coup. No doubt there'll be a few bad apples who want to get rid of us, if we can pull this off."

Time seemed to stop for Risha, as she was reminded that was a possible outcome. Just because she was the rightful ruler didn't mean everyone would support her, and there were probably other claimants to the throne as well. She, Prin, and the others would probably be busy trying to keep the planet from falling apart once Actavarus was defeated; it was his heavy-handed rule that kept many other squabbling factions and royal houses from going to war with each other. It was a sobering thought -- because even as a little girl, Nok Drayen had taught her that "failure is not an option." She had gone about her life trying to please her frozen father, by putting exceeding effort into everything she did, with the majority of her plans succeeding (except in some cases when Beryl or other factors interfered).

To Risha, the unflappable, confident criminal's daughter and secret heir to an entire planet, the thought of failure was one of the few things that scared her.

"Risha? Hey, Risha?" Prin's voice sounded distant. She felt her arm being tapped, snapped out of her thoughts, and looked up at his now un-disguised face, full of concern. "You just kinda froze up there, what's the matter?" She sighed, before deciding to, for once, try to get it off her chest. "You made me realize how this could all come crashing down around our ears. How all we've worked for could be…. for nothing. I was blinded by the repeated wins we've had against numerous challenges and setbacks, and I believed that we could just as easily win here." Her voice was anxious, emotional.

Prin simply took her into a close hug. "Don't worry about that, Risha. We'll take care of Actavarus, and rule the planet like you've always planned. We have the advantage Actavarus will never have." "And what would that be?" Risha asked sarcastically.

Prin then pulled Risha in for a deep kiss. Upon breaking apart, Prin grinned. "Love, and family." He said simply. "People like him consider it a weakness. They never realize how strong it can be, too." Risha smiled, before Prin's BioLink chimed from his several minutes of inactivity. "Oh, right. We've gotta get back to the mission."

A few minutes of walking, and they emerged from the opposite end of the tunnel -- underneath the foundation of one of the side buildings, with the central tower directly opposite. Thankfully, this was a rarely-monitored maintenance area, and the machinery provided good blind spots from the securicams.

Prin and Risha approached the building, holo-disguise and stealth-belt activated respectively, and looked for the unguarded side-door. Though it was unguarded by people, it still possessed several security devices, including a retina scanner, keycard swiper and a silent alarm. Prin then typed in a set of commands on his BioLink. Holding his wrist up, the BioLink fired several projectiles, which carried hacking programs within them. The projectiles hit the targets and their programs engaged. It tricked the retina scanner, the keycard box and the silent alarm into deactivating, and the door hissed open.

As they entered the rather normal-looking office hallways, they glanced around, trying to muffle their footsteps and breathing as much as possible. Nobody seemed to be around, which was a good sign. As they proceeded into a storage room, empty except for a large janitorial supply cart, Prin then saw a holo appear on his BioLink -- “Sympatico and Mobius have staged a car accident on the highway nearby. It should keep the local police busy for about an hour.” Julia’s voice, now down to a near-whisper, explained. “Acknowledged, Hub. Titanium and Crown have entered the facility.”

“Your targets are located in the Minister’s private office on level 80. Get the datadots and bring them back here for analysis.” Merritt said, as a map was displayed on Prin’s BioLink. “The lifts have anti-stealth sensors, so instead you’ll have to use the maintenance lifts. Titanium, use your holo-disguise to appear as a janitor. Crown will use her stealth-belt and hide in the janitorial cart.” Risha didn’t look too pleased at this, but sucked it up.

Hub signed off, and Prin activated a new holo-disguise-- that of a middle-aged janitor with a thick mustache. Risha, meanwhile, squeezed into the cart, and turned invisible. Prin then piled various bottles of cleaning fluids and other implements on top of her. He proceeded, with some difficulty due to the added weight, to push the cart out. The maintenance elevator’s massive metal door slid open, and Prin the janitor proceeded in.

It took a few minutes, but they emerged on the 80th floor. It had panoramic views of Netterton and all the way to Cullinan, skyline aglow in the distance. Computer consoles were in standby mode, and almost nobody was here. There was, however, one guard, who stopped to check Prin’s ID. “I’m here to clean, do I really need this?” He asked the guard sardonically. “Standard procedure for you part-timers. You’re easily replaceable.” The guard then waved Prin through.

To maintain the facade, Prin did actual janitorial work for a few minutes; mopping, sweeping and cleaning. The last thing they needed was somebody noticing the break-in because they’d left a part of the floor unswept. Finally, he approached the Minister of Intelligence’s office; a massive wooden desk and shelves full of books awaited him inside. The first thing he did was use his BioLink to fire more projectiles at the securicams, making them look like he was doing his cleaning. Thankfully, the windows’ privacy tinting was left on, so he proceeded to help Risha out of the cart. “Thanks for that.” She whispered irritatedly. “Wasn’t my idea to stuff you in here.”

They quickly began to rummage around for the datadots, being careful not to make loud noises, lest they alert the guard. They searched through various drawers and filing cabinets, before finding them in a plain black box, buried at the bottom of a drawer in the desk. Risha then proceeded to swap the datadots for fake ones that, when read, would upload a virus Amy could use to hijack Actavarus’ systems.

“Hub, this is Titanium, I have the datadots and am ready for pickup.” Prin reported as he pocketed the datadots. “Acknowledged Titanium, get back here ASAP.” Merritt responded.

Prin quickly cleaned everything up (Risha again contorting herself to fit inside the cart), just as the guard was about to see what was taking so long. “Sorry, I had to try and get rid of a really stubborn stain.” Prin explained. “Well, c’mon, time to go.” Prin then proceeded back to the maintenance elevator. “Alright, we did it.” Prin breathed out. As they reached the storage room, he deactivated his janitor disguise and returned to his normal, brown-haired look; the BioLink was indicating that the suit had lost one quarter of its energy reserves.

Then, Prin heard the quiet whine of a blaster being powered up, and he quickly powered up the stealthsuit’s camouflage mode. Prin shimmered into seeming nonexistence as a guard opened the door, quickly sweeping the room with his rifle’s light. Prin had flattened himself into a dark corner of the room, hoping he made no sound that could give him away. Stealth fields were effective, but with the right training could be picked out easily. After a few more seconds, the guard left, shutting the door.

“That was too close.” Risha muttered, albeit muffled by the supplies stacked on top of her. “Prin, let’s go.” She whispered. Clearly, whoever the guard was, they had their suspicions, and if one little thing had gone wrong, the whole operation would be blown. Prin reactivated his blonde-haired identity, extracted Risha from the cart, and quickly proceeded out the back door. Dodging the securicams again, they made their way back into the evacuation tunnel. A few minutes of walking, and they reemerged in the old barn.

As they rolled back onto the road, they saw the diversion: a landspeeder had crashed into a nearby electrical substation. Power crews, police and fire-response vehicles were on-scene making sure no one was injured and to try and contain the blaze. “Mobius and Sympatico’s diversion worked. The municipal authorities were completely distracted.”

Half an hour later, they had a conundrum on their hands. “OK, so how do we get this thing back into the Boundless?” Prin asked as they met Corso, who had landed the Boundless at the parking lot where they made the drop. “Simple. We activate the new ramp I installed.” Risha then proceeded to take over and activated the docking procedure. The new cargo bay door slid open, and a ramp extended outwards from the underside of the superstructure. The infiltrator rolled up the ramp and into the bay. “Alright, you guys ready to head back?” Corso asked as they exited the infiltrator.

“Yes. I’m not getting into that thing again until they can make some adjustments.” Risha glared at the infiltrator, then went off to the bunk room to change. Corso grimaced. “I don’t want to know, do I?” Prin simply shook his head.
----
“I’m guessing we’re heading for the Silverado hangar?” Prin asked rhetorically as they flew over the Cullinan skyline. “Uh-huh.” Corso said as the auto-pilot kicked in to maneuver the ship. “Just one question: how do we get down there?” It had been nagging at him since Merritt had taken them on a tour of the facility; it wasn’t like he could just go out through the CivicPlex parking lot.

“Merritt gave us a datacard that would handle that.” Risha approached the viewport. The ship was now hovering over the waters of Lake Allan. Suddenly, the ship tilted into a downwards angle, and began to descend. “Uh, shouldn’t we be pulling up? I don’t think we’re supposed to go into the….” The Boundless dove into the water, disappearing beneath the waves. “...water.” Corso finished weakly. Prin looked around warily; starships weren’t supposed to do this. He immediately began looking around for potential leaks.

“I had the ship waterproofed for this. It’ll only take a few seconds.” Risha claimed as the Boundless approached what looked like a rounded hatch, positioned at an angle within the lakebed. The hatch’s surface split in half and the Boundless disappeared into it, emerging into a tubular metallic tunnel. As the hatch closed behind them, the water drained quickly, and turbofans embedded in the tunnel’s ceiling quickly blew any remaining moisture off the surface of the ship. “I gotta admit, that was really cool.” Corso said, awestruck by the maneuver.

They entered the hangar and quickly touched down. Quite a few people were walking around the base, as Merritt had called an all hands meeting. “Ah, there you two are! Congratulations are in order, your first espionage mission went off without a hitch!” Merritt walked over, taking the datadots from Risha and handed them to Amy. “Amy, put these under lock and keycard. We can’t risk them getting out.”

“Well, we had a couple of close calls, but we made it through without anyone detecting us.” Prin confirmed, deactivating his holos. “It was a change of pace from doing music-holo continuity.” Risha then spotted Blair. “Blair, we need to adjust the inertial dampeners on the infiltrator.” Blair grimaced. “I thought they needed more fine-tuning. You didn’t…” “No, I didn’t vomit, nothing to clean up.” Blair looked grateful for that.

“So we have the real info, they have the fake data. We should be good for some time.” Merritt said confidently. Suddenly, various klaxons began to go off, and red lights illuminated all across the base. “Merritt? What’s happening?” Risha shouted over the alarms. He rushed to the central area, a look of complete dread across his face. “It’s Actavarus’ secret police, they must’ve tracked us down!” He said, blood draining from his face.

“What? How?” As the agents present began to panic, Risha and Prin turned to Merritt, who brought up holo feeds. The forces of Actavarus (including his Secret Police, the Skyway Patrol, the Royal Guard and others) had invaded the CivicPlex and were apparently trying to track down the secret entrances, while military vehicles blocked off the neighborhood. On the air, the various hosts and personalities were attempting to report on the situation (even despite the authorities trying to shut things down).

“We’ve been compromised!” Julia cursed. “By who?” Corso then saw a couple of guys trying to sneak away as the other agents watched in horror. “Hey, you two! Where are you going?” Corso shouted, then quickly rushed to tackle the duo before they could get away. Corso quickly recovered and dragged the two by their collars over to the holoprojector, slamming them against it.

“I recognize them! They’re the guys who set off the diversion!” Prin exclaimed, internally wondering how they’d gotten back here so quickly. “Rogers?! Bell?! You leaked the location of our base? Why?” Julia shouted in a complete rage.
As they escaped Corso’s grip and dusted themselves off, Rogers simply grinned smugly. “We were deep-cover agents for the Secret Police the whole time.” "Actavarus promised us noble ranks if we turned you in. Plus, we'll get to split Merritt's holomedia assets between us." Bell explained. "You rat bastards! Let me at them!" Julia surged forward, but was restrained by Merritt so she wouldn't end up killing them. "Ha! Sorry, missy, but the Secret Police are on their way and there's nothing you can--" He was cut off and collapsed onto the floor, as a silver tech staff clubbed the duo of traitors over their heads.

"I am not letting turncoats ruin my new family." Akaavi said coldly. “I narrowly escaped capture at the country club, and right now agents are being arrested and imprisoned all over the planet.” She looked at Prin and Risha with an almost desperate expression on her face. “If we stay here, we will be outgunned and outnumbered by Actavarus’ forces. I hate to say this, but we have no option but to retreat.”

“I was hoping it wouldn’t come down to this, but we don’t have a choice. Activate Phoenix Protocol.” Merritt ordered grimly. Julia nodded and reached under the central holoprojector, pulling out a black box with wires trailing out of it. A lid atop the box opened, revealing thumb scanners. The duo pressed their thumbs onto the plates, and the computer began beeping. “Please submit authorizations.”

“Count Merritt Rineld, authorization Warren-Tandem-Cutlass-Gamma-one-seven, and Charlie-Invid-Terra-Yonge-seven-nine-five-seven.” “Lady Julia Galaford, authorization Baraneth-Warden-Cousland-five-nine.”
“Authorizations accepted. Phoenix Protocol initiated.” A hatch opened on the far wall, revealing a large metallic tunnel. “Everyone, head this way!” Risha ordered, as the sounds of soldiers in the elevator got nearer.

Merritt, Prin, Risha, Julia and the others promptly scrambled to the tunnel as the doors sealed shut, and the computers began shutting down, wiping their memory cores. From another direction, Actavarus’ soldiers began to breach the wall of the hangar, and busted through, to find nothing but a bunch of blank computers. “Damn it! The spies got away!” The commander fumed. Rogers and Bell were awakened by the commotion and rubbed their heads. "You two! Where have they gone?" The commander asked the moles. "Uh, we don't--" They couldn't form a coherent response as the concussions they had meant they currently saw the commander in double-vision. “He’s twice.” Rogers slurred, before flopping back onto the floor. "Useless." The commander muttered.

“So, now that Actavarus has discovered the location of Silverado, where do we go now?” Risha said, slowing down her pace as the tunnel widened. “We’re going to our backup base, located beneath the buildings next door to the CivicPlex. I bought them for overflow offices. The area beneath was what gave me the inspiration for Silverado in the first place.” Merritt explained, as his holocom filled up with reports of people being arrested planet-wide.

The group promptly reached an ancient looking doorway. Bowdaar began turning the massive, rusted handle, while Merritt typed in a numerical passcode on a physical keypad. The door seemed to tremble as Bowdaar pulled, allowing it to creak open (with a cloud of dust escaping from within). The group squeezed inside, Bowdaar the last to enter, shutting the door behind him with a massive KA-CHUNG!

The lights flickered on, revealing 20-year old equipment and dated-looking fixtures. Most of it was covered in a thick layer of dust. “We’ve never really used this base, it was originally constructed as some sort of laboratory from what the realtor told me.” Merritt commented as he inserted his backup datacards into the main computer. The computer took a few seconds to become active before humming to life.

“So, now what do we do?” Corso asked. “I would suggest we go on the offensive. Our operations have been compromised and our existence is known. It would be more honorable to die fighting than hiding.” Akaavi suggested.
Merritt sighed, head in his hands. He looked and felt defeated. “At this point, maybe we should just hand ourselves over to Actavarus. We’ve lost our base, our network of spies is exposed, and our cache of info is largely gone. May as well pack up for prison.” He said sullenly.

Prin clenched his fist. “No way, Merritt.” He said resolutely. “Me and Risha didn’t get this far only to have you buckle under the pressure.” Risha nodded. “That’s right.” She crossed her arms. “I remember the man in front of me was so committed to stopping Actavarus he proposed to me for political reasons before he realized I was happy already.”

“I just feel.... drained. After so many years of leading this shadow war, we found our rightful ruler, but we’ve gotten our base invaded and our spies compromised.” Merritt said sadly. “Well, you know what? We’ll get back up, and come at him twice as hard!” Prin yelled.

“I started smuggling when I was 19. I was just a kid still, I barely knew what I was getting into. I had to not only fly and maintain a whole ship by myself, but also make sure my cargo got to where it needed, and without the authorities on my tail. When an opportunistic traitor named Skavak stole my ship, I didn’t throw in the towel. I teamed up with Corso to get it back. When I did, I found Risha. And as we went along, I found Bowdaar, Akaavi and Guss. We all lost something -- our families, friends and homes.”

The forlorn agents were now staring at Prin, wide-eyed. “We stuck together, and formed a winning team. And whenever the evil and callous reared their ugly heads, we dared. We dared to defy them, to stop their plans, to protect and defend those caught in the crossfire. We took down Skavak, corrupt Senators and double-agents, and even a Grand Admiral after my head. I was spending my time planet-hopping, trying to stay one step ahead of the Voidwolf’s stalking. And even though the Republic isn’t great, it’s still far better than the Sith Empire’s insanity. I decided to help Risha get this planet back, to help change not only this world, but others. We can be a force for righteousness, not for corruption, or political gain, or whatever sick and twisted things the Sith want.”

By this point, everybody in the room was staring at Prin with rapt attention. Some were recording him with their holocomms. “But the wave of change starts here and now. So if you want to sit here on your butts moping, that’s OK. But me, Risha, and my crew will be out there, leading the charge! The crew of the Boundless doesn’t back down, and the Moonlight Knights won’t either!” He then pulled out his blaster and charged it dramatically. “Now who’s with me?”
The crowd of people began cheering wildly, clapping and looking ready to kick some ass. Prin nodded, grinning widely. He then turned to Merritt. “Count, are you in?” Meritt nodded and stood up, seemingly revitalized. “I am now. Actavarus and his goons may have put us down, but we are not out.” He declared. “And as your queen, I promise that we will stop that usurper and defend the innocent. Julia, what about you?” Risha proclaimed.

”I’m in-- I’ll follow Merritt wherever he goes.” With that, she stood on her tiptoes and roughly kissed Merritt, much to his surprise. After she pulled away, he had a dazed look on his face. “I’ve been waiting five years to do that.” she whispered.
“Wow, and I thought we had trouble admitting our feelings.” Prin chuckled. Turning to Risha, he took on a serious expression. “So, we need to find a way to distract Actavarus’ defense fleet. If you’re thinking what I’m thinking….” Prin raised his eyebrow in interest. “I’m on it.” She then took out her MyComm, and began an encrypted holo. An older female figure clad in coveralls popped up. “Miss Drayen, this is Port Nowhere Command, what’s the emergency?”

“Operation: Bold Grace has entered the final stages, Hazel. We’re going to need as many ships as you can get, bring them with you to Dubrillion, double quick.” “I’ll send out the call immediately. We’ll be there once we’ve reached maximum capacity.”

Merritt looked confused. “Wait, what’s going on? Who did you summon?” Merritt wondered. Risha smirked. “When Prin here defeated the Voidwolf, he also took command of his assembled pirate fleet, and we also came into possession of Port Nowhere, their main hangout. So we’ve got a fleet of several hundred smugglers, free-traders, pirates and renegades at our beck and call.”

Everybody in the room looked shocked at this. “So we’ve got a whole fleet on our side?” Amy said, hope in her voice. ”Not just them. Port Nowhere was originally an Azalus-class Hutt dreadnought. Several years ago, it was turned into a mobile space station and cantina. The hyperdrive’s been fixed and the innumerable amount of weapons have been reactivated.” The crowd seemed to become even more hopeful. “That son-of-a-Sith king is never going to see it coming.” Prin smirked.

Prin then turned back to the holo, now displaying an emergency broadcast from the King’s office. Actavarus was ranting about the “enemies in our midst”. Footage was playing of innocent citizens being arrested on suspicion of being a spy. “We’re going to topple him so much, he’ll fall straight into the robo-dumpster of history.” Prin vowed, as he and the others watched. Their faces were grim, but hope was in their hearts.

Chapter Text

Risha, Prin and the others had slept overnight in the backup Moonlight Knights base, for Actavarus’ forces were prowling the streets for any sign of the spies. Innocent people they thought were being suspicious were already being arrested and tossed in jail. Not only that, the king had imposed martial law, including a curfew, until the Knights were caught. This provoked many of the aristocrats and nobles, who promptly began to arm themselves; many had been unaligned in their choice of monarch, but this had crossed a line. He’d also put a death mark on Count Rineld, Risha, Prin, and a 200,000 credit bounty for any of them.

By dawn, the entire planet was prepping for the biggest battle in the planet’s history. Many civilians had hunkered down in their homes, or wherever they could find shelter. The streets of Cullinan were rather empty for 7:00 in the morning, except for some civilians who braved their fears and went out anyway, as well as the Dubrillion Royal Police and Skyway Patrol, both out in force. Their landspeeders flew down the avenues at regular intervals, while officers marched, heavy blaster rifles at the ready, Even the normally uncaring aristocrats had begun to arm themselves, if the worst happened.

But around the planet was another story. The space traffic control officer on duty was asleep; since the king had cut off trade, traffic had slowed significantly and the night shift was a lot more boring now. Thus, he completely missed the urgent beeps of the monitoring stations as a mass of ships, and one ex-Hutt dreadnought, exited hyperspace. There was no real organization, it was a hodge-podge of ships from all across the galaxy, many painted in bizarre colors and patterns. The ex-dreadnought was Port Nowhere itself, now serving essentially as a carrier. The dreadnought’s weapons were now active once more, proton torpedoes and concussion missiles loading into place and turbolasers charging. The one common characteristic across all the ships was a sigil depicting a vicious-looking wolf head over a backdrop of space. The sign of the Voidhound’s forces.

About an hour later, everybody had quickly woken up and gotten dressed. Julia quickly handed out cups of caf to everybody as Risha activated a tactical holo. “The pirate army we repossessed from Grand Admiral Krill is waiting in orbit for my signal. They’ll be causing chaos for the Skyway Patrol and other components of Actavarus’ forces, targeting major military bases, and Actavarus' numerous residences and properties.” Risha explained, her face set into a determined look. “Casualties will be, as far as is feasible, kept to a minimum. Civilians are to be protected and aided. While they’re distracted, I’ll go with Prindrohi, Merritt and Julia to the Royal Palace. I have knowledge of a set of secret passageways into the palace Arak Drayen created. We can use that to invade the palace right under their noses.” As she spoke, she fiddled with the holo, directing groups of ships towards glowing hotspots and putting others into various formations to counter the Skyway Patrol.

“We’ll need to get the Boundless up in the air and into the fight as soon as possible.” Prin turned to Corso. “Can you handle that while we’re otherwise occupied? I’m trusting you on this one.” Prin asked sincerely. Corso nodded. “I’ll bring her back in one piece.” “And with the turbines I installed, the Boundless ’ firepower has been increased fivefold. So be prepared for recoil and side-effects.” Risha then turned back to the holo, glaring at an image of Actavarus. “The King’s reign of terror is coming to a close. As your rightful Queen, all I can say is….” Risha paused for dramatic effect. “Kick their asses.”

“We’ve only got the one chance, so let’s make this count!” A cheer emerged from the caf-fueled crowd! The remaining agents began to make themselves busy, while Corso turned to Prin. “So, Cap’n, how are we supposed to get to the Boundless ? It’s still back at Silverado, and the place is swarming with the king’s goons.” Corso knew that if he simply tried to walk in, he’d be massacred. “That’s why you’ll be going with Akaavi, Bow, and Guss.” The trio walked up, each toting a weapon -- Bowdaar had his vibrosword, and Akaavi had her techstaff, while Guss was carrying a pistol (he’d wanted to use his lightsaber but it still wasn’t functioning).

Corso got tossed a helmet by Akaavi, who then donned the traditional Mandalorian helmet, painted in red and black patterns much like her skin. “Won’t these get in the way?” Corso pointed out-- “these” being large decorative fins mounted to the back and sides of the helmet. “Sorry, I just picked the first helmet I saw.” Guss explained, as he strapped on an open-faced helmet with slight cutouts to accommodate his offset eyes.

“You guys go and get the Boundless out of there. We’ll be here, revising our strategy.” Prin said, as Risha continued her planning, plotting attack vectors for different squadrons of ships.

Elsewhere, at the Royal Palace, the king was somewhat jittery. “I need more!” He ranted as his servants were caught in a seemingly-endless chain of preparing and serving caf with added alcohol, to both keep him awake (he normally didn’t wake up past noon, but the war against the Moonlight Knights demanded his full attention), and to ease his nerves. His face was somewhat greasy and his eyes were bloodshot from staying up all night,

On the other hand, his Prime Minister, Boris Sinclair -- a rather rotund man with greying hair and a long beard -- was rather relaxed. “Do not worry about anything, Jaycen.” He assured him; both were in Actavarus’ grandiose dining room, where a sumptuous banquet was laid out as usual. It cost so much, but both believed in the finer things in life. Their decision to break away from the Republic had freed up funds to import black-market luxury food from the Hutts. “Those insignificant little larvae will be crushed under our feet.” Sinclair said confidently.

Actavarus glared at his PM. “Do not under-estimate the Drayen whelp. She’s far more canny than you would realize, given her parentage.” Actavarus warned, before looking at his wrist chronometer. “I’m late for a meeting with my new advisor, you’re in command.” With that, he strode off. Then, Sinclair’s commlink buzzed. “Yes?” The frantic voice of some peon working in orbit emitted. “Sir, the radar stations are detecting multiple inbound targets! Most of them appear to be smuggler and pirate ships!” The space traffic controller reported. “Launch the Skyway Patrol, they should be able to handle a bunch of junk freighters.” Sinclair said. “But sir, they were previously--” Sinclair cut the connection and leaned back in his chair, sipping a glass of wine. “Ah, it’s good to be the Prime Minister.”

On the streets of Cullinan, the few civilians around looked up in alarm, as ships of every make and shape began to appear in the skies above! Citizens began screaming and running for the nearest building, fearing the inevitable destruction. The Voidhound’s fleet, meanwhile, was chatting amiably over their shared holo-frequencies, when an image of a crown interrupted their conversations. “This is Crown. Commence your assault, but remember, keep collateral damage to a minimum and help civilians wherever possible.” Risha spoke into the secured battle channel, as the tactical holo showed the squadrons of Skyway Patrol vessels launching and beginning to engage.

The skies were full of assorted pirate, smuggler and free-trader ships, along with several of the Moonlight Knights’ ships (held in places other than Silverado), against the polished, clean-looking Dubrillion Skyway Patrol. All sorts of energy beams and projectiles were firing every which way; many struck ships, but just as many missed their targets. “That should buy us some time.” Julia said, before another secured line activated. “This is Riggs, the Boundless is out of Silverado. Akaavi and Bow took care of the goons. Even Guss got in a few good shots. We’re dropping off the Infiltrator on the street, as requested.” Risha promptly picked up a compact earpiece and her MyComm, displaying a miniature tac-holo. “We’ll take the Infiltrator through to the Palace. Come on!” She headed for a staircase leading outside, Prin, Merritt and Julia following. 

A few minutes later, the Boundless was leading the charge, as the Skyway Patrol began to move in. Corso was at the controls in the cockpit. “Alright everyone, this is it. Everything the captain and Miss Risha have been planning for happens now ! So no slacking!” He barked. “You got it, Corso!” Guss affirmed. He and Bowdaar were in the turrets, busy blasting away at Actavarus’ fleet. Akaavi was manning the engines. ”These new turbines are working well so far.” Corso pumped his fist, before pushing forward on the new control sticks. “Let’s raise some hell! Yee-haw!” The ship rushed forwards and into the battle zone.

Meanwhile, Prin, Risha, Julia and Merritt were on the ground, the Infiltrator easily bashing through barricades set up by the Royal Police and Skyway Patrol; the dual blaster cannons had extended and were firing at any vehicles unlucky enough to get in the way. “Alright, here’s the plan. We infiltrate while the Royal Guards are kept busy by the other Knights.” Risha said as she drove past a statue of Actavarus I, freshly smoldering from their blasts. “That’s a pretty simple plan, isn’t it?” Prin pointed out, as he manned the gunnery station.

“Hey, simple is best when it comes to assaulting a place like this. The more complex the plan, the more likely it is to fail.” Merritt reasoned. “Well, we can’t just bust down the front door, it’s too heavily reinforced. Even this thing’s cannons would have a difficult time trying to penetrate them.” Julia said, consulting a holomap of the complex. “There are several secret passages around the place, they’ll be our ticket in.” Risha then brought the Infiltrator to halt in a side alleyway, near an ancient statue of some long-forgotten noble. As everyone clambered out of the vehicle, Risha approached the statue. Spotting a protrusion near the base of the statue, she pressed it. CLUNK! A door creaked open in the base of the statue, and the four ducked under its low clearance before emerging into a tunnel, with weathered stone steps leading down into a passage lit by elderly lightstrips.

“My research indicates that these passages were constructed by Arak Drayen and hidden to anyone not in his inner circle. No documentation exists in the official floorplans. We’re the only ones who know, so any Royal Guards will be taken by surprise.” Risha commented as they proceeded along. “Well, once we stop Actavarus we’ll make sure to renovate them, these lights haven’t been updated in years.” Merritt said as a lightstrip flickered and briefly dimmed before glowing steadily.

The foursome continued walking down the passage for several minutes, mentally preparing themselves for the worst. They could hear the muffled sounds of the aerial battle in progress. Then, Risha’s MyComm vibrated, and she picked it up on her earpiece. “Crown here.”

“Corso here. We’re outside Actavarus’ War Center.” Corso reported as they flew around a large, armored building. It was vaguely triangular, jutting up into the sky. Turbolaser turrets ringed the outside, firing at the various attackers, while vehicles constantly streamed in and out of hangars on the lower levels. The structure sprawled out for blocks, with more turrets firing and fighters taking off and landing.

"Commence attack on the facility. If we can damage it enough, the Skyway Patrol will be easy pickings for you and the others. Crown out." As Risha ended her transmission, Corso then switched to the tacnet. “This is Boundless, we need cover fire while we bring down the War Center. Keep the enemy off our backs.” Two smuggler ships, the Happy Hutt and the Corellator , quickly assumed a defensive pattern around the Boundless, while a group of other ships began to draw the War Center’s fire. “Guss, Bowdaar, start targeting the War Center’s shield generators. Use the concussion missiles, then start picking off their defense cannons with the turbolasers. Once that’s done, we can blast the building and hopefully leave the king’s forces directionless.” Corso sounded almost like a veteran military commander, Akaavi noted as she monitored the engines. She supposed that several years in a planetary resistance movement would do that.

Guss, in his lower turret, promptly began keying in targeting coordinates for the shield generators. “Loading missiles.” Despite the upgrades Risha had made, they were still stuck with the single port missile launcher (though she had gotten proton torpedo capability, torpedoes were currently worth more on the black market than even Risha wanted to spend), so they could only fire two projectiles at a time. Thankfully, their position gave them ample sight for most of the generators. “Targets locked!” Bowdaar’s voice snapped Guss out of his thoughts, and Guss quickly grasped his firing handles. "Rockets away!"

Back at the Palace, Risha, Prin, Julia and Merritt emerged from behind a painting, which swung open into a rarely-used side hallway. “Alright, so far, so good.” Prin had his pistol powered up, and his stealthsuit was underneath his clothes in case things got hairy. “So now what?” He whispered. “Julia and Merritt will find Prime Minister Sinclair and keep him busy. They might be able to fake an order from him to cease the assault on our forces.” Risha explained. “As for us, we’re going after Actavarus himself. It’s my job to bring him down.” She seemed to stare into the distance. “I always knew this day would come. But, I never imagined it would be with people I care about.” She turned back, and Prin was grinning. “That’s what friends are for: to help you perform a coup on an Outer Rim world.” He quipped. Risha cracked a brief smile, before putting her face into a serious expression once more. “You two know what to do, get to it.” Merritt and Julia nodded. “We’re on it, Your Grace.” The two rushed off and down another hallway. That left Prin and Risha. “Before we do this, I want you to know, Risha: I love you, and if we don’t survive this, I know we’ll be together in the Force.” With that, he laid a passionate kiss on her lips. “Prin, you reminded me that failure could happen. If we fail at this… we’ll get out of it. After all, we’ve gotten out of bigger messes than this.”

The two then began their hunt for the king. The Royal Palace was a sprawling complex, with many parts of the building having been add-ons from different monarchs over the years. This resulted in clashes of architectural styles, as the hallways transitioned from one part to another; it also meant people frequently got lost. “According to this, the Throne Room is in the original, core structure. We’re currently in the... administration wing.” Risha said, rotating the holo-map. “Where are the Royal Guards?” Prin wondered. “Shouldn’t they have found us by now?”

As if on cue, a pair of guards exited a nearby office, and quickly noticed Prin and Risha. “Intruders!” But before they could alert their superiors, Prin quickly fired his pistol, bringing them down quickly. “You just had to say it, didn’t you?” Risha shook her head at Prin’s tempting the Force, then continued. “If we take this shortcut, we should be able to get to Actavarus quickly. Once we bring him down, and the Prime Minister, everyone else will fall in line. If they don’t, we’ll simply blast them.”

Another vibration occurred. “This is Crown, go ahead.” Back in the air, the Boundless was still being defended by their fellow ships as red beams sprayed from the turrets. “Corso here. We’ve destroyed most of their defenses, but whatever they constructed this building out of seems impervious to our weapons!” He reported. It was baffling, how they’d wrecked everything else but the building was somehow still standing; it was like their lasers and missiles just seemed to bounce right off it.

“I can explain that.” Julia’s voice said. “Actavarus constructed it in a way where the entire building was reinforced by specialized cabling and transparisteel panels. Any damage they take is absorbed and redirected to the power core.” This gave Risha an idea.  “Corso, switch your weapon power source and target the power core. If you put the turbines into their supercharge mode, the output of the cannons should be able to destroy the power core and overload the absorption mechanism.” Risha instructed.

“Got it. Switching weapons power source.” Corso replied, flipping switches and pressing buttons. “Turbines, supercharge!” He pushed a lever forward, and the turbines atop the ship began to rev up to their highest level, swirling around faster than the eye could see! “OK, we’ve gotta hold until the weapons can fully charge if we’re gonna break through.” He maneuvered the ship towards the power core, which was a bulbous, egg-shaped protrusion near the back of the War Center.

While the battle raged on, the personnel of Actavarus’ War Center noticed that the attackers’ lead ship seemed to have come to a stop near their power core. The soldiers and commanders within wanted to fire, but all of their weapons had been either destroyed or disabled.

Energy bolts began crackling around the engines, to Akaavi’s alarm. “Is that supposed to happen?” In their turrets, Bow and Guss were locking onto the best targets when the bolts began causing their instruments to spark! The electrical impulses even reached the cockpit, where Corso tried to withstand the pain from the electricity coursing through the air as best he could! “Just a few seconds longer….” A readout then began flashing red; the power banks were fully charged! Despite the pain, he was able to reach out and grip his control sticks, moving the right stick around in a movement pattern--left, up, down, right-- that signaled to the computers “Fire everything!”

“Weapons, fully charged! Turbines, FIRE!” Corso shouted as the electricity crackled around him, and he pulled the triggers on his sticks. The turrets and tubes glowed at their apertures, before spitting a hail of supercharged beams and missiles! Bow and Guss found their turrets shaking from the sheer recoil, barely managing to keep their target lock!

“Incoming! All personnel brace for--” The commander was cut off as the mass of turbolaser bolts and concussion missiles found their mark. The War Center’s power core collapsed inward as it crumbled into a heap of debris! The walls’s built-in cabling and transparisteel panes sparked and shorted-out from the feedback; the other sections of the War Center quickly lost power, and their remaining defense turrets ceased firing. 

Back on the Boundless , the lights had gone off, and dim emergency lights had flickered on. Corso tapped his headset as it reactivated. “Miss Risha, it worked. The War Center’s disabled.” Meanwhile, Akaavi was coughing from the plumes of smoke filling the engine room. “But we had some sort of power surge back here. What happened?” She asked between hacks.

“I knew there was a chance that using the turbines at full power could result in an overload.” Risha replied. “But there’s no time to do full repairs; see what you can do, then meet us at the Palace. Crown out.” Just then, Merritt and Julia came rushing up to join them. “We’ve searched the whole east wing, no sign of the Prime Minister.” Merritt said. “He must be holed up with the king or something.” Prin shook his head. “Look, we’ll deal with him later. We need to find the throne room and corner Actavarus. Come on!”

The four began heading through to the next wing, down a huge hallway, lined with sculptures and paintings. “This is the king’s private art gallery. Most of this stuff is overrated junk he only bought because other rich people were buying it.” Merritt had been to many a party at the Palace, and spoke from experience. Two more Royal Guards showed up, but Prin quickly shot them, and they fell back, smoking holes in their chests. Prin knew better than to go for a headshot; shooting for center-of-mass yielded much better results.

Julia then heard a noise. “My holocomm!” Prin shook his head. “We’ve gotta get you guys some MyComms.” He muttered, as he shot another pair of royal guards before they could aim their heavy blaster rifles. “Reports are streaming in from all across the planet. The citizens are fighting back!” Julia exclaimed. The holo then showed the Second Street Cardinals, the gang that basically controlled Ironwater, defending the unarmed from Actavarus’ forces. In the small town of Thomson, a group of schoolkids, led by one with frizzy black hair and a red-black striped shirt, used slingshots, rocks, and other improvised weapons to keep the royal forces away from them. Even their pets got in on the action, one equally-frizzy mutt snarling as he chased a few unlucky Skyway Patrollers. 

Merritt’s employees had begun to broadcast from the streets as the battles raged on, knocking out the guards that had invaded the CivicPlex and subjecting them to unusual methods of torture -- being forced to watch some of the horrible holo-films and music holos they’d had to air over the years. Reporters were getting involved-- one enterprising holographer had somehow managed to turn his camera into a shoulder-mounted blaster cannon! Their baritone announcer, Krag Rokusho, was narrating the action, even punching a few attackers here and there (and looking like a badass in his fedora and trenchcoat).

Ordinary citizens were fighting back against Actavarus' forces throughout Cullinan. Many had their own weapons, be it energy or slugthrower, but just as many were using landspeeders, other improvised objects, or simply opting to go hand-to-hand. Even an elderly lawyer (who, per his holoads, apparently sued the Jedi Order -- or as he called them, the “Jeddy” -- on behalf of people who sustained injuries thanks to the Jedi) was holding his own with an ancient-looking, double-barreled slugthrower.

“That’s why you never ignore the common citizen. Their will and spirit is the most powerful tool in fighting injustice.” Merritt said sagely. “And, as a bonus, you know who they were inspired by? Prindrohi’s speech to us yesterday. It went wide over the planetary HoloNet.” At that bit of news, Prin smirked a bit.

“The throne room should be dead ahead.” The quartet raced through another hallway, gunning down more Royal Guards than they could count -- Actavarus evidently had anticipated an assault here, and thus left most of the Palace undefended (explaining why there weren’t many guards before). “Damn, I should’ve brought my grenades!” Prin had left them back on the Boundless and he hadn’t thought he might need them. Thankfully, one of the now-dead guards had some, and Prin picked them off his corpse. “Let’s hope some of these are thermal! Grenade out!”

He promptly activated a grenade and tossed it towards the massive, ornate double-doors leading to the throne room. A few seconds passed…. BOOM! The remaining guards were flung back, and the doors splintered into pieces. The remaining bits were kicked open by Risha, to reveal the tyrant himself, chugging a drink before tossing his glass aside and standing up from his throne. “Hello, Miss Drayen. I see you brought your traitors with you.” His voice was somewhat shaky from all the alcohol-laced caffeine he’d ingested, but it still held a deep, commanding tone to it.

“It ends here, Actavarus.” Risha announced, with Prin, Merritt and Julia rushing up behind her. The usurper sneered. “So, the little pretend queen and her smuggler boyfriend have come to knock me off my throne.” He promptly grabbed his sword and waved it in the air, showing off his fencing skills, before declaring “You’re welcome to try. But before we begin our battle, I would like to introduce you to my associate. I think you will find him to be familiar…” A figure then stepped out from a side door. “Miss me?” The figure said in a smarmy voice. Prin’s eyes widened, and saw someone he thought he had seen the last of. “Darmas Pollaran?!”

The dirty-blonde gambler was back. Prin had last seen him on Corellia getting arrested after his deep-cover Imperial Intelligence role was exposed. “That’s right. After I escaped from Republic imprisonment, I knew Imperial Intelligence wouldn’t take me back, and my underworld rep was shot. So I decided to start helping your new enemy here. Actavarus.” He explained, while pulling out a rifle and powering it up, a cold look on his face.

Actavarus nodded and grinned wickedly. “He was able to procure quite a few things for my quest to solidify my hold on this planet. He still had connections, and I promised him his own island fortress in return.” “Well, me and Risha are taking you both down!” Prin declared, before immediately firing at Darmas. The laser bolts, however, missed him. “Hah! That’s the best you can do, Voidhound?” Darmas taunted.

Prin just grinned, as the bolts had hit part of the ceiling, and debris began falling, forcing Darmas to leap out of the way before he got crushed by ceiling chunks! Actavarus got even more pissed off. “You fool! Do you have any idea how much that ceiling cost?” He raged.

“Nope, and I don’t particularly care.” Prin said, turning back to a serious expression, before firing at Darmas’ feet. Darmas leapt out of the way, and quickly fired back; Prin ducked and the bolts hit a nearby mirror, shattering it to pieces. “Guards, get them all! I’ll deal with the little princess!” As more royal guards rushed at Merritt and Julia, and Prin followed Darmas out of the room, Actavarus himself grappled at Risha, who easily ducked and gut-punched him! Actavarus wheezed and doubled over as Risha kicked him in the back! “It’s time for your dynasty to end, Jaycen.”

"You will never take my throne, criminal!" As the king unsheathed his own saber, Risha drew the Saber of Dubrillion, which she had been keeping on her belt -- and just in time, as she parried a blow that nearly went for her neck! "I'm not a criminal. At least, not anymore." Risha said fiercely as she repeatedly blocked Actavarus' blows. "I'm taking this planet from you, and me and my family are going to make sure you suffer in every possible way."

At this, Actavarus laughed. "You have no family left! Your criminal father is dead, his empire gone. All you have left are a lucky smuggler and a handful of castoffs." He crowed derisively.

"RRAAGH!" Risha, incensed, overpowered Actavarus and managed to knock him to the floor, and he felt her blade make contact with the side of his neck. "They are my family now. I love my smuggler, and everyone else. You are alone, you have nobody but opportunists and brownnosers. And even as we speak, my family is helping to bring down your reign." Risha explained coldly, before putting her thumb on the trigger that would electrify her saber.

"I WILL REIGN FOREVER!" With an unexpected swiftness, Actavarus rolled out of the way and kicked Risha in the chest! "Oh, Force!" Risha collapsed, clutching her breasts in agony. Actavarus grinned wickedly and rushed towards a wall. Quickly scanning his thumb, the wall opened to reveal an escape tunnel!

Despite the pain in her chest, Risha stood up and activated her earpiece as she followed the king down the tunnel. "Merritt, Actavarus escaped. What's your situation?" 

Elsewhere, Prin had chased Darmas into a long hallway, towards another section of the palace. As Darmas reached the end of the hallway, he saw a thermal grenade land; he narrowly escaped the blast. Prin cursed and prepared to hurl another, but was interrupted by hot plasma bolts from Darmas' disruptor. "Hey, those things are illegal!" Prin complained. "Like anything either of us has ever done is legal." Darmas pointed out, now ducking behind a crumbled pillar for cover.

"So, tell me, how's life as a criminal treating you? At least I retained my position as a privateer, so I have a safety net to fall back on. You let your ego get the best of you, same with Dodonna. You nearly caused Corellia to fall and you paid the price. Now look at you: reduced to a lackey for a two-bit tyrant on the Outer Rim!" Prin went on as he fired several scattergun blasts, hoping to crumble the pillar further and expose Darmas.

"Like you're any better. You were working for the Voidwolf too and…" Darmas trailed off as he actually couldn't counter Prin's words. He was right. He’d been a pawn of the Sith Empire and dragged a Republic Senator into his criminal activities. Now look at where he was. He was so lost in thought, he didn’t notice the sounds of repulsorlift engines getting closer.

Then, the nearby wall seemed to explode! The floor quaked from the impact, and both Prin and Darmas were both thrown back by force! “What in the nine hells?” Prin muttered, crawling out from behind an overturned cabinet. It was a red fightercraft, smoke belching from its rear engines. “Hey, Prinny boy! We’re here to help!” Prin hadn’t heard that voice in so long. “No way!”

Darmas struggled to get up. “I’m not done with you yet, little--” He was cut off as a pistol was pressed to his temple. “Don’t move.” Kixi ordered. It was as though a time machine had been activated-- Feylara Reed, Kixi, and Momi Andrell were here! All three were in battle armor and carrying heavy weaponry. “What in the Force?” Prin was stupefied.

“Yeah, don’t worry. Just thought it’d be fun to save your ass for once.” Beryl Thorne emerged, wearing what looked like a Republic naval captain’s outfit and hefting a disruptor rifle. “I knew you guys would need the aid, so I decided to gather up some of the people you’d helped before like me. Returning the favors you did for us. I’m calling ourselves the Sirens.” she said, casually shooting a pair of royal guards rushing through the hallway at Prin.

“You helped me realize I was in an abusive relationship.” Feylara affirmed. “And you helped me in reviving a near-extinct species.” Momi smiled warmly. “You helped me escape from the slavery I was trapped in.” Kixi said, still holding Darmas at gunpoint. Prin, however, was distracted by a communique coming into his earpiece.

"Well, you certainly picked a good time to arrive. We've got to help some friends of ours, the guards and the Prime Minister have them cornered. Come on!" As for Darmas, the older man was summarily kicked unconscious by Beryl. “We’ll deal with him later.”

Rushing through the seemingly endless halls, dodging debris, bodies and stray blaster bolts, they made it to the Prime Minister's office, where several royal guards were stationed outside the door. They immediately raised their guns, but Kixi aimed her rifle and quickly fired several projectiles at the guards' guns, plugging their barrels. The guards attempted to open fire anyway; their rifles backfired and exploded, knocking them out!

Feylara proceeded to kick down the door, revealing Merritt and Julia tied to a pair of chairs. Prime Minister Sinclair was holding them at gunpoint, but it was clear he was doing it reluctantly; the safety was on and his hands were quivering. "Don't move, any of you, or I'll shoot!" He said shakily, unused to holding people hostage. He was a white-collar criminal, after all.

Prindrohi shook his head. "Just give up, and tell us where your boss went." The PM then sank to his knees, trembling in fear. "I'll tell you anything, just spare me!" Sinclair cried, realizing his goose was cooked. "Traitors. The lowest of the low." Momi muttered at the man's cowardice. She cocked her blaster and aimed it at the ropes. The bolts sliced through them, freeing Merritt and Julia! 

"Thanks for the assist, Voidy." Julia rubbed her wrists, then noticed the four new arrivals. "Where'd you all come from?" "Long story, tell you later. We gotta find Risha! Now, where did the king go?" Beryl pressed her own pistol to Sinclair's temple. "T-to his private chambers. They're only accessible by him with his DNA. There are two entrances: one in the throne room, and the other in the master bedroom." Sinclair stuttered.

“Well, come on!” At Merritt’s urging the group promptly scrambled out, though Beryl lagged behind to tie Sinclair to his own big leather chair. “Port Nowhere Command, status report!” Prin activated his earpiece, and a secure line opened. “This is Hazel at command. We’re driving the Skyway Patrol into the ground! Most of their units are in tatters and the remaining ships are attempting to flee. We’ve lost at least six ships, though.” Another line cut-in. “Corso here, we’re caught in fighting other Skyway Patrol ships. Our current ETA to the palace is 12 minutes out.”

“Alright, keep me informed.” Prin said, as the group rushed into the throne room. They quickly scanned the room for anything that looked suspicious, and quickly found a thumb scanner. “I’ll take care of this.” Kixi promptly took out a slicing device, and within seconds the biometric lock was bypassed; a portion of the wall slid open, revealing the tunnel! “Move out!”

It took a few minutes as the tunnel seemed to twist and turn. Finally, they entered into a sumptuously-decorated room, looking more like one of the fancy sitting parlors in the palace above. The multiple computer terminals and holo-projectors, displaying feeds of securicams from all across the planet, felt out of place. “Where’s Rish?” Prin wondered, darting his head around at the multiple branching hallways. Then, he noticed the sound of metal clanging against metal -- swordfighting. He strained to figure out which direction it was coming from. His stealth-suit’s audio receptors then picked out the sound’s direction and it scrolled across his ocular implants.

“She’s down there. Move!” At Prin’s command, the group rushed down the east hallway. Passing rooms that had treasures and ancient-looking artifacts, they quickly fired at a pair of auto-defense cannons that had emerged from the walls, frying them before they could get off a shot. They finally arrived at the end of the hall, where a pair of double doors that were already broken down led into seemingly a duplicate of the throne room above, with glass cases along the sides housing the planet’s oldest royal artifacts.

In the center of the room, Actavarus was locked in a vicious duel with Risha, neither wanting to let the other gain the upper hand. “I… WILL… PREVAIL!” Actavarus snarled, practically spitting in Risha’s face. The duo had locked their sabers and drawn them down to the hilts -- the result was their faces being incredibly close. Risha merely glared and attempted to break out of the blade lock.

Actavarus then noticed the group. “Your little resistance movement followed you here like a sick porg. I have the upper hand, and always will!” He pulled a device from his pocket and pressed a button on it. More defense cannons emerged from the walls, and began firing away! “Take cover!” Prin commanded and the various heroes rolled behind (oddly-convenient) armoires and other furniture as the red beams scorched the floor and walls. Prin then took aim with his Merr-Sonn IR-5, and quickly triangulated a weak point in the cannons’ structures. “Everyone, aim for the motors!” Beryl and her crew promptly began firing at the motors. Several of the cannons blew sparks and smoke as they malfunctioned. But others were still operating, and the stray blaster fire was keeping Risha on her toes; Actavarus was calculating his moves to force her into the hail of fire.

Prin then saw someone else enter the room from the corner of his eye, but he couldn’t see who, as his concentration was on taking down the remaining turrets. He took aim at another one, hoping it would land on Actavarus’ head. Sadly, while it fell off the wall, it missed the king’s head by inches. “Damn, I was hoping for a decapitation.” Prin then reloaded his gun with a fresh power pack, but then, a set of fingers bent around his throat, cutting off his supply of oxygen! “What-the--” Prin choked as he turned to see his assailant. “You didn’t think you were rid of me yet, did you?” Darmas noted sarcastically as he squeezed Prin’s neck like a vise, forcing the smuggler to the floor. Prin had dropped his gun in surprise, rolling out of his reach. Darmas then stomped on it with his foot. “Ah-ah-ah.” He waggled his finger like a teacher admonishing a student, then, with a crazed look in his eyes, closed both hands around Prin’s neck. “While the turrets and the king take care of your friends, I get you. This is for ruining my plans!”

As Prin struggled to breathe, he noticed something else that had rolled nearby in the chaos -- a scepter! His fingers closed around it, and he brought it up to smack Darmas’ legs, releasing his iron-clad grip on Prin’s throat! Prin, gasping for air, quickly began whacking Darmas all over with the scepter! “Aah! Ow! Damn it!” Darmas then reached out to grab Prin again; the latter, rubbing his throat, then felt a bump along the scepter’s handle. It seemed to be a button of some kind. Pressing it, the crown atop the scepter seemed to “blossom” open, revealing a barrel! A red blast fired off, hitting one of the few remaining turrets!

“Whoa!” Prin then grinned. “Sorry, Pollaran, or whatever your real name is,” Prin said as he picked his gun off the ground and holstered it, “But you’re about to go from gambler… to gambled .” He promptly fired another energy bolt from the scepter, point-blank into Darmas’ chest! The one-time deep-cover agent was sent flying, his shirt shredded. Prin grimaced, looking away before he could see any of the injury. “I really wish I hadn’t had to do that.” He was disgusted by the results of people getting shot by lasers at that range, but he didn’t have a choice. Risha needed help.

As he turned around, another squadron of guards had entered, presumably summoned by Actavarus somehow. The turrets were gone, but the guards were still firing at Merritt, Julia, and the Sirens. Risha and Actavarus, meanwhile, were still locked in their swordfight despite the chaos. “Risha, heads up!” Prin tossed the scepter towards Risha, and she grabbed it without even looking back. “Thanks!” Scepter in hand, she quickly brought her saber up to lock Actavarus’ blade, and used the scepter to send Actavarus’ sword flying out of his hand! “No!” The saber went flying, slicing an unlucky royal guard across the chest, before clattering into a pile of debris.

“I WILL NOT STAND FOR THIS!” Shouting at the top of his lungs, Actavarus had clearly lost his mind. He rushed to retrieve his saber; he then swung his sword viciously at Risha, aiming for her neck. Risha brought up her electrified sword and blocked the blade, but she was clearly becoming exhausted; she dropped the scepter, and it rolled away. Actavarus was likely still running on his own adrenaline, which gave him the edge. That gave Prin an idea. “OK guys, I’m calling in some support.” He said as the others gathered around him. “Corso, how soon can you get here?” “Already here, Cap’n! Most of the other guys have neutralized the Skyway Patrol, and the Royal Guards are running scared!” Corso reported, as the Boundless touched down near the Palace’s front gates. “We need you guys here now! Bring the SFP if you can!” If Risha lost her duel, they’d need heavy firepower. “Sending it on remote, tracking you by spot-on locator! ETA two minutes.”

“Alright, we’ve gotta hold out until Corso and the others get here.” Prin looked to the others. “Anything we should look for around here that might help us stop him?” He asked Merritt. “I’ve never been down here. I knew it existed, though. There’s likely communications equipment, perhaps we can set it up to broadcast holos of this planetwide.” Kixi, after stunning the two remaining guards, quickly headed through the busted door to look for said gear; she found it in the next room. One of the consoles showed the security feeds from all throughout the palace. Quickly shuffling through, she got to work broadcasting the signal of Risha and Actavarus to all holo-projectors and other display devices; Actavarus had left his public address system online, which made it a lot easier.

As the residents of Dubrillion (or at least the ones that weren’t battling) took notice of the fight, Prin was still trying to find a way to distract Actavarus long enough to give Risha a break. He considered using the scepter to blast Actavarus’ sword out of his hands, but the blast would most likely miss, or worse, hit Risha. “Well, aren’t we going to do something here?” Beryl complained, looking ready to jump from behind the armoire they were using for cover. Then, another red bolt streaked above their heads. Darmas was still alive! “I… never… go anywhere… without this!” He tore his shredded shirt open to reveal armor underneath. “I’m going to gut you like a tauntaun!” Darmas’ patience was completely gone, and he lunged at Prin!

Prin felt himself roll as Darmas tackled him and punched, over and over! Merritt and Beryl rushed to his aid, but Darmas growled, and held up a thermal detonator! “Anyone interferes, we all go up!” He was desperate, and that proved it. But as he was holding up his last resort, he doubled over in pain! Prin’s fist retracted from Darmas’ gut, the latter dropping his detonator. “No, you’re going down!” Prin grabbed Darmas by the remains of his shirt and flung him down to the ground! “You’re not gonna trick me anymore!” Prin shouted, equally fed-up at his traitorous ex-ally.

Sweeping his leg, Prin knocked Darmas' legs out from underneath him, sending him to the floor. Before he could get up again, Prin pressed his blaster to Darmas' temple. "Make one more move, and you're history." Before anyone could do anything, the remains of the doorway were vaporized, as Corso floated in, wearing the elaborate harness linking him to the massive Smuggler Flight Pack! “The cavalry’s here!” Bowdaar, Akaavi and Guss quickly filled in behind Corso, as the SFP’s cannons swiveled around. “What’s going on here?” Corso was visibly confused by the presence of Darmas and Beryl.

“Never mind that! Keep your cannons locked on Darmas, Risha needs help!” Punching Darmas again, Prin scanned the floor. Sighting it, he quickly grabbed the scepter, and rushed at Actavarus! He raised the scepter above his head, and brought it down with all his might onto Actavarus’ skull. 

With a sickening CRUNCH!, a dazed Actavarus, now bleeding profusely from his head, spun around, dropping his saber in the process. As he collapsed, he felt the Sword of Dubrillion reach his neck. Risha planted her foot on his chest, to keep him from escaping again. “It is finally over, Jaycen.” The others quickly aimed their weapons at him, making it clear the only way out was vaporization.

“No, no….” As Actavarus faded to unconsciousness, the last thing he heard was Prin’s voice. “Take it from us. We’re here to stay.”

Chapter Text

The next morning, Prin woke up gradually. He was dead-tired (and kinda sore to boot), and for a minute, struggled to remember what had led him back to the Boundless . Then it all clicked for him. They’d won . They’d ousted Actavarus, and assumed command of Dubrillion. “Wow.” Prin said, stupefied that they’d pull it off.

“Wow is right.” Risha sashayed in wearing a rather revealing nightgown, a big smile on her face and carrying two steaming mugs of caf. “Not only did we take control of the planet, we also had some incredibly great victory loving.” Prin had never seen Risha this happy; she wasn’t just glowing, she was lighting up the whole room from her presence alone. It made Prin want to smile, but his mouth was currently involved with chugging down the caf. 

“So why aren’t we back at the apartment?” Prin wondered. “Because Corso landed the Boundless right outside the palace, so I could get to work on repairing it after the turbines overloaded the ship's power regulators. I’m going to add more groundings and couplings, so such an overload doesn’t happen again.” She sipped her own caf, before continuing. “Plus, there’s a lot to clean up, so the palace isn’t livable right now.”

“That reminds me, have we managed to get Beryl’s shuttle out?” Prin remembered how Beryl and three other people he’d helped had come to his rescue during a firefight with Darmas, making the most dramatic entrance possible -- by crashing their shuttle into a wall. “That’s on the to-do list. There’s a lot on it, chiefly making a public announcement that we’re going to be running things from now on.”

They then heard a knock at the door. “Hey guys, it’s us.” Corso’s voice said, muffled by the door. “We’re cooking up breakfast. Akaavi’s got some cassius tea brewing, I’ve got eggs cooking and Bowdaar’s dicing up fruit.” “Sounds good Corso, we’ll be there in a few minutes.” Prin replied.

Prin sipped on his caf, then put his head on Risha’s lap. “It’s weird, isn’t it? We’ve all accomplished what we set out to do. Now… we look forward. We need to know how to start our new lives here. Everything’s changing, and we don’t know what’ll happen next.” he mused, staring up at Risha’s smiling face. He leaned up and tenderly kissed her. “I know one thing. With you by my side, there will be a light guiding the way. Today’s a new day, and we can face it better, together .”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence, James.” Prin’s eyes widened. He hadn’t heard her use his actual name outside of Chandrila. It was unnerving. She noticed his uncomfortableness. “Sorry. I thought that… since we’re going to be ruling this planet together, Prindrohi would be your regal name, and James would be your family name.”

Getting up and stretching, Prin began looking for some fresh clothes. “We can discuss that later. Right now, I just need some breakfast.” Prin’s stomach gurgled emptily, as if agreeing with him.

A few minutes later, Prin and Risha emerged into the hallway and made a right, into the galley. The smell was wonderful -- a medley of exotic scents from all over, mixing into a flavorful aroma. Bowdaar, Akaavi and Corso were each occupied at a different section of the cooking area/bar: Bowdaar was dicing up colorful fruit and mixing them into a bowl, Akaavi was pouring liquids together with green leaves, and Corso was grilling eggs, meat and potatoes. Guss and Ceetoo were setting out plates, bowls and silverware, along with pitchers of other drinks. “Wow, you’ve got a feast going here.” Prin said, mouth watering from the scent alone. “I see you’re getting an early start on the royal banquet.” Risha noted. “Your Highnesses, please sit down here, at the head of the table.” Ceetoo pulled the chairs out for them, even. “We’re not that formal yet, Ceetoo.”

While they waited, Prin pulled out his MyComm and checked the news. Unsurprisingly, HoloNet News and the other Coruscanti holomedia hadn’t even noticed what had happened (since Dubrillion was so far-flung, it had once been considered to be a good spot for launching extra-galactic probes). But CapitalPulse had covered it all. It had tons of footage from both their own crews and citizens taking holos themselves -- Prin’s speech had leaked across the planetary HoloNet and inspired citizens to stand up to Actavarus’ forces. Some of the Skyway Patrollers and Royal Guards had actually switched sides -- some by force, others of their own free will. Once the king had been taken into custody, his remaining loyalists quickly fell back, allowing the Port Nowhere-allied forces to quickly take control of installations and other major targets. By 5 o’clock that morning, the fighting had ceased completely.

He was shaken from his information review by his plate being filled with food. “Thanks for this. You didn’t have to do this for us.” Prin said sincerely. Corso simply grinned. “Figured it was as good a time as any for an Ord Mantellian breakfast spread.” Akaavi nodded. “Yes. Our victory breakfast. We have conquered our opposition and turned many of them to our clan. With a minimal loss of life or injuries, it is perhaps the greatest victory we could have hoped to achieve.”

Guss was more engrossed in eating, but he did have a thought. “Mfmfmfmf-” He paused to swallow his food. “So, what do we do now?” Corso shrugged. “I’m honestly not too sure what we’re gonna do now, either.” Taking a sip of his tea, he looked to the head of the table. “So, Queen Risha? What’s our new plan?”

Risha, currently spearing a bit of fruit on her fork, took a moment to consider her response. She set her fork down and steepled her hands together. “Well, our first act will be to assist in the cleanup from the battle. There’s rubble to cart away, streets to sweep, and citizens to help. It’s my responsibility as queen to ensure the well-being of my subjects. This is the start of that commitment.” 

She reached out and took Prin’s vacant hand. “Prindrohi and I will make a public statement later today, to explain what’s happened, and to pledge our support to the people of this planet. Authority only derives from the consent of the governed, and after Actavarus, the populace is rather tired of absolute authority being proclaimed by someone, just because they felt they had the right. We’ll need to do a lot of work to gain the people’s trust.”

Akaavi nodded. “Clans are frequently led by the strongest, but in some cases, there have been those who rose up to take the leadership role from someone deemed unworthy. You are that someone, Miss Drayen.” She then took a swig from her cassius tea. “Good and spicy, just how it should be.”

Then, a call came through on the main holo. Prin sent it to the projector there in the galley, and the grinning faces of Merritt and Julia emerged.  “Your Highness, congratulations on your well-earned victory.” Merritt bowed, before rising. “Well, you guys helped too. You were leading the fight against Actavarus for years, don’t just credit Risha here for everything.” Prin pointed out. “So how’re you guys holding up?” “We’re busy cleaning up the mess at Silverado; Actavarus’ goons did a lot of damage. The CapitalPlex is pretty trashed too. People are pitching in, though.” Julia reported. “I’m also in contact with the Directory. Most of them are alive, or injured. But right now, with the planet in… as the politicians say, ‘omnishambles’, you’re going to need to meet with them, and appoint an interim Prime Minister.” Merritt had been there, and once it was announced that Sinclair had been arrested, the first reaction, aside from cheers, was the various faction leaders squabbling amongst themselves. He knew that many would be tripping over themselves, hoping that Risha would appoint one of them the PM.

“We’ll hash out the details of the press conference a bit later, Merritt. Right now, all I want is breakfast.” Risha disconnected the call and looked eagerly to her plate of hot food. She quickly began shoveling the food into her mouth. She knew that normally she wouldn’t eat like this, but she was starving from everything she’d done yesterday, so decorum could go out the airlock; she needed the calories. When she paused to take a swig of her drink, she noticed everyone staring at her. “What?” She asked, before Prin reached out with a napkin. “You just started eating like a rancor.” He was rather unnerved at the display. She fixed him with an unamused expression on her face. “Do you really want to challenge your queen about this?” “Yes, because you were getting on my case before during my royalty training. You said ‘you must keep yourself free of food debris around your mouth.’” Prin reminded. Corso wisely said nothing, but thought “Shots fired. Nice one!”

“Alright, you got me on that one. Let’s just focus on the food for now.” With that, the next few minutes were relatively silent, except for the sounds of food and drink being consumed.

An hour after, Prin and Risha were standing at the steps of the Royal Palace’s front entryway. Holocams and sound-capturing devices were all around them. “I, Risha Drayen, am in fact the rightful Queen of Dubrillion. But do not be afraid. I will not become another Actavarus. Far from it. I hereby pledge my service to you, the residents of this planet. I will work hard to help you. My first act will be to assist in the reconstruction of Cullinan. A lot of damage has been sustained -- businesses and residencies have been damaged, streets are torn up. Injuries have happened, and some gave their lives to defend the innocent. We have a lot of work to do, and I’m not going to isolate myself from it.” With that, Risha let Prindrohi approach the reporters.

“Hi there. I’m the Voidhound, though my real name’s Prindrohi. I brought in a whole bunch of smugglers and pirates from when I defeated the Voidwolf. Well, now they’re going to help clean up the damage they caused. We gave orders to them to not damage things, but when you’re battling a hostile force in major cities, there’s only so much you can do. But, we’re going to do our damnedest to make things right again. So… we gotta get started on cleanup. We’ll speak more later.” In comparison to Risha, he seemed somewhat ill at ease speaking to the cameras, but Risha knew that he wasn’t used to them. So she knew he’d better adjust quickly.

With that, the duo turned away from the holomedia frenzy and headed inside. Construction workers and assorted smugglers were busy carting away debris, attempting to clean scorch marks, and surveying for structural damage. Prin and Risha stood off to the side, as a painting depicting a preening Actavarus was unceremoniously tossed into a large trash container. A supervisor approached Prin with some sort of flimsiwork to fill out. While he did that, a man approached Risha. “Hello, Your Grace. Count Rineld told me you would be here?” He was an older fellow in a smart suit. “I’m Sir Qellis Markham, the Directory’s Royal Advisor. I serve the reigning monarch as the direct line from the legislature.”

“Ah. Yes, we have much to discuss. I believe there’s a private conference room not too far from here.” The two proceeded down the hallway, Prin still filling out forms. “I have to admit, I never suspected the daughter of a crimelord would be a better monarch than the Actavarus dynasty. Already, you’ve shown a keen grasp of how important holomedia actually is. Jaycen never cared for it, as most often they would catch him in embarrassing situations, or some sort of scandal.” Sir Qellis then pulled out a set of datacards. “I have some more info on some of his scandals here, and how you might be able to--”

He was cut off by Risha opening the door to the conference room. All that was here was a table with an embedded holoprojector and a bunch of comfy looking chairs; light from a set of nearby transparisteel viewports afforded them an excellent view of the Palace grounds, though the view was spoiled by the debris strewn everywhere. The two took seats near the middle, and Qellis pressed a button, causing the holo-projector to activate with a royal crest of some kind. “Thank you for the advice, but scandals from the outgoing monarch are the last thing I want to focus on. Right now, reconstruction and repair are the foremost priority. Now, how well funded is the Ministry of Public Works? This might be a good time to repair infrastructure, if it needs it.” Risha questioned, getting straight to the point.

Sir Qellis looked sheepish. “To be honest, not very. Actavarus was diverting funds from government departments to use for his own purposes. He drained credits from every part of the government. We’re facing a fiscal crisis. With the cutoff of trade from the Republic, things have been getting slowly worse. Our spin doctors kept this news from leaking, but if word gets out now, we’ll be in deep.” He explained. They’d been damn lucky Risha had done what she did; the major banks were about to send repo agents after their fleet of landspeeders.

Risha contemplated this. “Our first act is to reauthorize trade with the Republic. And I know how to expedite the matter.” She pulled out her MyComm, and searched through her contacts, before dialing a special, secure holofrequency. She linked it to the table’s holoprojector, and a waiting screen appeared, before the face of Supreme Chancellor Saresh appeared. “Risha Drayen. Let me guess, you are in trouble and need immediate Republic assistance?” 

Ignoring the stunned look on Sir Qellis’ face, Risha fixed on the Twi’lek’s image. “Sort of. I’ve just deposed the king of the outer-rim planet Dubrillion in a coup, and if we’re to prevent the economy from sinking, we must resume trade with the Republic; the old monarch had cut it off in fear of the Empire. Can you have someone--” She noticed the Twi’lek had looked away, and assumed she was working on something. “And… there we go. Dubrillion is officially back within the Republic’s trading systems. Your grains are much needed in the Core. Thus, as Supreme Chancellor, I was able to rush the flimsiwork through to restore your status. That should take care of the problem.” Saresh reported. “I’m surprised you were able to make it happen that fast.” Risha had assumed the Republic’s immense bureaucracy would keep her waiting for some time. “As the Supreme Chancellor, I can make things happen as fast as possible. I have a meeting. I will speak to you later, Miss Drayen.”

The holo ceased, and Sir Qellis could only stare, open-mouthed. “How?” Risha grinned smugly. “The advantages of having encountered her on Taris before she got elected.”

“... so now that trade can resume, our next step is to pump money back into our economy until Republic credits can start flowing again. Raising taxes is not an option; Actavarus had jacked them up to an absurd level to make up the deficit.” Sir Qellis continued, trying not to let his obvious shock show through.

“Firstly, we will lower the tax rates for the average citizen, and raise them for the rich.” Qellis shook his head. “If you do that now, you’ll be risking an open revolt from the aristocracy. Actavarus lowered their taxes and trying to raise them now will upset your potential power base.” Risha then looked away, scowling. Then, she was inspired as she caught sight of a smuggler ship flying by the Palace; her mind began racing with a gestating plan. “That is why, for the indefinite future, Port Nowhere is staying in orbit of Dubrillion.”

“What?!?” Qellis jumped out of his seat at this. “You can’t be serious!” Risha looked at him with steely eyes. “It’s an economic measure. Smugglers provide valued resources and credits. Designating Dubrillion as a smuggling waypoint will be a good way to pump the economy up, at least in the short term. If we can’t adjust the taxation rates, this will have to do.”

Qellis sat down, worried. “But what if the smugglers start fighting among themselves! We can’t have another major battle here! Not to mention, the space traffic controllers union will not be very happy about something like this….” He wrung his hands nervously, remembering how a previous strike had crippled traffic around and on the planet, bringing trade to a screeching halt, about 10 years prior.

“Given my consort’s reputation, and my own pedigree, smugglers will be more than likely to listen to our rules: no spice, no trafficking of sentient beings, and no heavy weapons. If they don’t listen… we’ll sic Bowdaar on them.” At Qellis’ look of confusion, she added “Our Wookiee friend.” “Ah.” Qellis nodded. “As for the union, arrange a meeting between me and whoever heads them.”

Risha stood up and faced the window. “Additionally, we’ll be taxing all goods smuggled through here and Port Nowhere, and all goods sold on Port Nowhere, by 5 decicreds per weight unit. This will be going towards infrastructure and public works projects.” Qellis’ face lit up. “That should help alleviate the funding issue, hopefully.”

The discussion of plans and ideas went on for a while. Prin eventually found them, and joined in the discussion too. Eventually, the subject of a coronation arose. “Your Majesty, I do not believe a coronation would be a good idea. You are an unproven queen, and one the public knows little about. With all that Actavarus did to turn public opinion against the monarchy, such a lavish affair would be widely criticized.” Qellis warned.

“Well, we can’t just sit on our rears and wait until the public accepts us. What’re we supposed to do until then?” Prin wondered. “I would suggest you go on a tour of the planet before the coronation. That way, you can get to know the different regions, their people, their hopes and dreams.” Qellis then activated a holo, showing the planet, with the major regions and cities highlighted in different colors. “Actavarus never particularly acknowledged regions or cities outside Cullinan; these areas were already discontented before all this happened. Building support in these areas is vital.”

Two hours later, Prin and Risha exited the palace, and headed for the Boundless. “My parts have arrived, so hopefully the ship will be back in working condition by tomorrow.” Prin just yawned. “To be honest Rish, I’m gonna hit the hay early. I’m still tired from all the battling I did.”

“So am-am I.” Risha stuttered briefly, as a yawn escaped her own mouth. “But don’t expect this to be any sort of vacation. We have a lot of work to do, Prindrohi.”

The next few days became a blur for Prin. Waking up and heading out to various places around the city, they did tons of work. Prin wasn’t a licensed contractor, but over the period he quickly gained a grip on painting, carpentry and other fields. He and Risha dressed in simple clothes and weren’t afraid to get dirty. They labored, and the rest of the Boundless crew helped out too -- Akaavi helped to build vheh’yaims for displaced people to live in, and Corso cooked up healthy food. Bowdaar lifted heavy objects, while Guss treated any and all injuries to the best of his abilities.

Eventually, it calmed down as most of the reconstruction, with the notable exception of the War Center, concluded. A few days after, Risha walked into the halls of the Directory, the planet’s parliamentary body. With both Sir Qeliis and Merritt flanking her, she arrived in the main House of Commons, with many different politicians from all over the planet seated in a wide semi-circle. She approached a nearby podium, holo-cams focusing on her, and prepared to speak to them, and much of Dubrillion, for the first time.

“Good morning. I am Risha Drayen, daughter of Nok Drayen, great-granddaughter of Arak Drayen, and true heir to the throne of Dubrillion.” She paused to let it sink in for everyone, before continuing. “I acknowledge that my family has largely been composed of... less-than-moral characters. Arak was driven from this planet thanks to his stubbornness, and lost most of his allies. Nok had almost no-one to turn to, and I was largely raised in seclusion and by experience. If I hadn’t found my fiance and my friends, I probably wouldn’t have succeeded in this. They helped me to realize that working together for the benefit of all is the way forward. That is why I have come to you first, seeking to assist you in running this planet. But we must also seek reforms in your ways, as well. We cannot sit back and wait like everything is going to be magically fixed. We must find compromises and common ground before we can truly create a better world. I am not going to proclaim my absolute authority over this planet with a coronation ceremony. Instead, I will explore this planet and every facet of it -- the people, the places, the culture. I want to understand you before I take over. I am not going to be another Actavarus, I can assure you. My goal is to be who every ruler should strive to be: compassionate and caring when it’s needed, but unwilling to give up in the face of adversity.”

Risha then stepped back, and took a swig from a nearby glass of water, as Sir Qellis stepped up to the podium. “As of now, Miss Drayen seeks the approval of the Directory to ascend the throne. She is also responsible for appointing a new Prime Minister following Boris Sinclair's incarceration. Balancing these goals will be difficult, but I have confidence that we can work towards them without too much conflict. Now, from the nobility, Count Merritt Rineld."

"Hello. Most of the people watching this know me by my holomedia assets, or my charity work. But there's much more I've been doing. For over a decade, I've been the leader of a resistance group that has engaged in a shadow war against Actavarus and his forces, the Order of the Moonlight Knights. We gathered in secret, hoping that one day someone might be able to assist us in toppling him. Then I was contacted by the one claimant to the throne who might have stood a chance against his insanity. She was willing to do whatever it took to stop him, but also knew that it would take a tremendous effort to truly take a stand. Fortunately for us, she was actually able to back up her claim, with a fleet of ragtag smugglers and a space station that could easily lay waste to anything in its path. But she also came with a galactic hero, the Voidhound himself, and a crew whose determination and valor exceeded all expectations. But our work isn’t done. The Order will remain active in order to assist Queen Risha with adjusting to Dubrillion, and to aid people who need it the most.”

Risha then returned to the podium. “I will now open the floor for questions.”

It was several hours later that Prin and the other Boundless crew members were at a local watering hole, the Coil Chaser. It was a nice little neighborhood bar in Chumtown, full of life. Prin darted between a group of Rodians and a large Cathar, returning to their table with a tray of glasses. “Alright, I got two mild ales, a cup of ardees, a Tatooine Sunset, and a ne’tra gal.” Akaavi grabbed her Mandalorian drink, Bowdaar got the ardees, and Guss the Tatooine Sunset, leaving the ales for Prin and Corso. Corso began slamming his ale almost immediately. “Man, this stuff is good! It’s brewed where exactly?” He marvelled; the taste of the ale was almost akin to a juicemelon.

“I think it’s from the Togruta neighborhood, there’s a good microbrewery there.” Prin liked it too -- it was a Friday, and that meant the end of the work week for them. They’d been working hard on helping to rebuild Cullinan and they deserved a treat like this. “I dunno about you, but I’m thinking we need to ground the Boundless temporarily. We still haven’t gotten time to repair everything, and the parts we need are still in transit from Corellia.” Corso said, bringing out his MyComm. Prin frowned, then began looking over the various shipping invoices. It was taking some time for the parts to get here -- Galactic Express could only get so far before handing off duties to other delivery companies to handle the vastness of the Outer Rim. If Risha found out -- no, strike that, when Risha found out -- she probably wouldn’t be too happy, as she treasured the modifications she made to his ship.

“I sincerely doubt we will be going anywhere soon. I am contemplating starting a new Clan Spar.” Akaavi admitted. “I must continue my clan, and regain the honor lost by the traitorous actions of others.” She then sipped her ne’tra gal. “I must admit, however. It has been… difficult in adjusting to a normal sleep schedule.”

“Tell me about it.” Corso groused. “My internal clock is all messed up from going from planet to planet, starship to planet, long journeys in hyperspace; I swear sometimes I fall asleep standing up, then wake up like it didn’t happen.” At this admission, Guss looked concerned. “You want me to get you some sleep aids?”

Pulling out his MyComm to check a notification, Corso shook his head. “No thanks, Guss. Liberal applications of caf should keep me going until I readjust to Galactic Standard Time. Good thing Actavarus didn’t change that.” Corso then caught sight of Risha, looking drained herself. “Risha, how goes it?” He asked as the new queen almost collapsed into a chair.

“Parliament’s on the verge of a snap election. With the PM imprisoned, politicians are jockeying for power in the new government, and there’s still plenty of other things to fix beyond that.” Risha began looking for a drink, any drink. She grabbed Guss’ Tatooine Sunset and downed it in one gulp! “I needed that. Alcohol, do your magic.” Risha then belched loudly, attracting the attention of the customers at the next table. “Hey, that was mine!” Guss protested.

“Well, we’re gonna be here for a long time, so we can’t fix everything right away.” Prin then put his arm around Risha’s shoulders. “But, right now we’re not focusing on work or anything, Rish. It’s a Friday, we can relax a little bit. Besides, they have Huttball on the holos right now.” He turned to the nearby holoscreen, which showed a destructive Huttball match in progress.

Risha moved her chair closer to Prin. After all this, she simply wanted to fall asleep next to her partner. Not just partners-in-crime like they’d started so long ago on Coruscant. A partner in politics. A partner in adventures. A partner in life. This planet represented a new beginning, for everyone. With him by her side, it would make it a lot more bearable. Especially when she could tilt a little bit and use him as a pillow. “Rish, I don’t think you should take a nap here. Wait until we get back to the apartment, then you can snooze.” Prin admonished. All she did was smile knowingly.

Chapter Text

With the Royal Palace still under reconstruction, Prin and Risha continued to bunk in their relatively small apartment. It had a balcony and two bedrooms; Prin and Risha had taken one bed, Bowdaar the other, with the others on portable cots and a foldaway bed in the couch. 

"Prin, we're starting to run low on essentials here." Corso complained. Someone had gotten to the last of the "Admiral Crunch" cereal before he could have it for breakfast. Akaavi, sipping from a cup of caf, simply rolled her eyes; she had subsisted on berries and leaves at times, and running out of cereal was nothing by comparison.

"Well, we've gotta make a grocery run anyway. Gotta support local businesses and all that." Prin was already prepping several reusable grocery bags he'd used back on the Boundless. Risha was looking through the cabinets, noting items they needed on her MyComm. “Yes, it would help my new PR team immensely to show I can shop locally with no fanfare needed.”

Half an hour later, Risha and Prin, dressed in casual clothing, were pushing an old-style metal shopping cart through the aisles of the neighborhood grocery store, Litmut's. “Oh, Rish. Remind me later, Merritt said he wanted to take us on a tour of Metreon Plaza.” Metreon Plaza was Cullinan’s premier shopping district, centered around the Zenon Avenue thoroughfare. It was much like Coruscant or Nar Shaddaa, in that it was littered with giant glowing signs, a variety of businesses and tourists. Risha nodded as she put a few boxes of pre-cooked meals in for when they'd inevitably be licking their wounds after some confrontation or another. "Now it's important we stick to our list, we can't let ourselves get distracted by impulse items and -- ooh, look at that fresh cheese!" 

Risha marveled at the giant wheel of cheese, while Prin stuck to the list and placed some frozen sliders in the cart. Risha couldn't help it; she had a soft spot for cheese and she hadn't had a properly-aged piece of cheese in quite some time. Paired with finely-cut meat and a perfectly-chilled and aged bottle of wine...Risha shuddered at the thought. “Uh, Rish?” Prin tugged on her arm to snap her out of her cheese thought. “Oh, sorry.” She apologized, blushing slightly; it wasn’t very common for her to lose focus like that.

Before Prin could say anything else, they heard a pair of gasps. They turned around to see a couple shoppers, a middle-aged couple, looking quite surprised. “Isn’t that...the new queen? Risha?” The woman said in awe. “Oh, wow, this is an honor…” The man began to bow, the woman following. “Wait!” They stopped suddenly at Risha’s exclamation.  “Please...don’t prostrate yourselves to me. I...don’t go for that.”

The two shoppers blinked in confusion as they rose up. “But, you toppled Actavarus and are the new Queen! You deserve all the respect that entails…” The woman pointed out. Risha looked generally uncomfortable at this. “Yes, but I’m not like the last person. I don’t stand on ceremony, you don’t need to do this. And neither does anyone else, for that matter.” Risha stated. Prin nodded. “Yeah, we’re not gonna make you do this, we like to be...informal.” Coming from the time of Actavarus, where appearance policies relating to the monarch were enforced by threat of injury or death, the two shoppers were nervous. “Alright, if that’s what you want…” The man trailed off, as the two pushed their cart past.

Prin then noticed other people, including the workers behind the deli counter, were either staring awkwardly, bringing themselves out of a bow, or recording the whole incident on their datapads. “Uh, I think we need to wrap this up before anything else happens.” Prin muttered. Risha nodded. “Yes, we’ve got almost everything on the list anyway.”

Having barely managed to escape the store, Prin promptly flopped himself into a chair when they got back to the apartment. “Okay, that was just plain uncomfortable.” He sighed. Risha nodded as she began unpacking their purchases. “I’m going to have to do a lot to try and change my perception. Actavarus left us yet another mess to clean up.” She commented bitterly. “Well, maybe I can help distract these people and get them off your back.” Prin supplied. 

Risha sighed as she put several fruits into a ceramic bowl. “Look, Prin, you don’t have to concern yourself with this. Technically, you’re my consort, or are going to be. You won’t have that much power. All you’re really supposed to be doing is sitting around, looking pretty, helping me make some heirs to the throne, and doing those public events I’m too busy for.” Prin turned to face Risha. “Well, I know that. But regardless of all the titles and formalities, we need each other to function.” Risha tilted one eyebrow up. “Really? Well, I’m wondering how I ever functioned before we met, because I was doing just fine on my own.” She noted, voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Look, I’m from Chandrila. A planet known for democracy and peace. Even though I didn’t want to, my mother made me take a lot of political classes. She knew that, despite many politicians’ own consciences, they’d often end up making decisions based more on pragmatism or political gain than by their morals. She taught me all about how backroom deals, palm-greasing and bribes are really what tend to keep democracies running. Regardless, she has been soldiering on with her ideals and conscience intact for a long time.” Prin went on. He may have hated those lessons, but they’d somehow managed to stick in his mind this long.

“So what is your point here?” Risha asked as she finished packing away the last of the groceries. “We need each other. You’re a hardened, pragmatic person, who chooses what to do based on long-term strategies, plans and costs. But what you forget is that your subjects may not like what you’ve deemed to be the best route. I’m an idealistic kid at heart. I want to help people at any cost. But sometimes, what may make you feel better may not be the best route either. We balance each other out. We need each other to keep ourselves from swaying too far into either direction.” Prin said as he rose up and approached Risha.

Risha slowly nodded. “I see your point. But given your non-royal status, you still won’t have a lot of political power.” Prin scoffed. “That’s why I’m going to circumvent all that. I’m going to open myself up to the people. I’ll be the guy you can approach at the cantina and ask questions.” Prin began to gesture wildly. “Actavarus held himself up as a distant, iron-handed leader who would never want to interact with anybody he thought beneath him. I want to be the exact opposite. People shouldn’t be afraid of their leaders. We’re doing our jobs, just like they do; it's just one nobody else really wants to do. I’m considering opening a special holofrequency our citizens can use to contact me. If they need help with something, they just want someone to talk to, whatever.”

“Hmm. An interesting proposal. Sounds like you’ve been thinking about this for a while.” Risha said. Prin nodded as he approached Risha. “Yeah, ever since that night you offered to make me your King, I’ve been thinking about the logistics.” “And not the fact that you would be the royal bedwarmer?” Risha teased. “Well, I can be that too.” With that, he pulled Risha in for a kiss...just as the front door opened. 

Akaavi walked in, holding a MyPad. “I hope you cease your amorous activities soon, I have an idea for the two of you.”  She stated plainly. Startled, Prin and Risha broke apart. “Sorry, Corso isn’t here and we didn’t think anyone else was.” Prin apologized, blushing furiously. “So what’s your idea? Because I was going to make you into my head of planetary security.” Risha offered.

At this offer, Akaavi became intrigued. “While I admit, security is an area I excel at, I have a much bigger plan in mind.” She activated her MyPad’s holo-projector, displaying a symbol neither of them could place. “I want to rebuild Clan Spar. I will recruit the disenfranchised -- other Mandalorians left without Clans, and even non-Mandalorians. You two, Riggs, Tuno and Bowdaar will all be part of this new Clan Spar.” She looked up, almost in desperation. “I hunted those responsible for my Clan’s massacre. Now comes the time to rebuild, and to honor those lost. Will you help me?”

Prin nodded. “Of course we will. I’d be personally honored to join the rebuilt Clan Spar.” He and Akaavi shook hands. “And what of you, Miss Drayen?” “You’d have to take me for a fool to not be a part of something like this. I suppose you can rebuild Clan Spar and have them be your own personal security team if you take my offer.” Risha pondered. “It will take a long time to rebuild Clan Spar, but the two goals are not mutually exclusive. I accept your offer in turn.”

Akaavi promptly turned around and seemingly began shouting to the heavens. “Let it be known that from this day forward, Clan Spar is reborn!” She thrust her techstaff into the air, adrenaline and excitement pumping through. “ Aliit Spar, cin vhetin! Haat, Ijaa, Haa'it! OYA! ” She shouted in Mando’a. Prin and Risha simply looked on, unsure of where this was going. “So...now what?” Prin wondered.

“Well, I’ll have to plan a formal clan re-establishment ceremony, preferably around a roaring fire pit. We’ll need everyone present. I’ll be teaching survival techniques, Mandalorian lore and legends, and training in our methods of battle.” Akaavi remembered her initiation as a full member of Clan Spar upon reaching the age of 16 -- it was a tremendous honor, the icing on the cake being her first successful hunt. “Our schedule is jammed right now, it’ll have to be in a couple months or so.” Risha’s calendar was filled with things they needed to do to help right the ship.  

That night, the crew was gathered in the apartment, eating dinner and watching a local sporting event. "So… anyone know a good lawyer? I saw an ad for this one law firm called Turner and Taler, seems like we might want to get them on our side." Guss said with no preamble.

"Guss, what did you do?" Prin said, somewhat annoyed. "Nothing. I just think that since we did so much damage in trying to take the planet, there's bound to be someone out there who'd want to sue us for injuries they supposedly got during the battle." Guss spoke from experience; he'd had to work for a lot of injury-chasing lawyers over the years.

"While a situation like that seems unlikely to happen, it would be a good idea to have lawyers on retainer should we need help. I don't think any of us have a law degree." Risha then pulled out her MyComm and began researching lawyers in the area. Aside from Turner and Taler, another firm, "Woods and Forrest" seemed to be highly recommended as well. "Anyone else think we might just wind up being deposed? I've heard there are a lot of anti-monarchists who might want to get rid of us." Corso worried. "That's one of my many priorities. Try to gain back the public's trust." Risha affirmed.

"Look, it all depends on how the average citizen thinks the government is doing. I kinda doubt there's a lot of citizens around here with a positive opinion. But we're doing our damnedest to turn things around." Prin was still a bit optimistic. "It'll take time, but we'll get there."

"Growing up on a planet that's basically the galaxy's junkyard, I saw a lot of government not doing much governing, and more fighting. Why do you think we had a separatist movement?" Corso replied bitterly. "And yet you were so optimistic about the Republic." Akaavi pointed out, given the cognitive dissonance.

"I hoped it was less dysfunctional than my whole planet was. Wishful thinking. Honestly, there ain't one good system that doesn't invite bad folk from trying to benefit themselves and their buddies and squash everyone else underfoot." Corso remembered how the Mantellian Council meetings had so many assaults between councilors, it held a record for political violence.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I agree with Riggs. There isn't one easy solution for government; every system has good and bad parts, and those trying to subvert it for their own ends will always be around. My goal is to try and build things back up, and hope the next generation learns from our mistakes. If they don't, then we'll be trapped in a vicious cycle of war and changing governments. Absolute monarchy, direct democracy, constitutional lawmaking...the system is only as strong as the weakest link, and if we're not careful, all the links will be weak." Risha had formulated plans for years as she studied politics at all scales and of ages past and present; she had concluded there needed to be consensus, not constant disagreement. They needed to get everyone somewhat on the same page, or else they'd fall in a generation.

"Can we please pay attention to the sport, again!" A frustrated Bowdaar said, bored out of his fur. “Yes. I would prefer to focus on the sport, I’ve got a full Directory meeting later this week and I want to spend some time without having to think about it.” Risha said; she was managing her stress remarkably well, but she wanted to simply kick back and switch her brain off.

----

Risha now had a migraine. The Directory chambers were currently filled with the sounds of windbags blowing out hot air (read: politicians arguing). But before she could get to her blaster, someone began banging a gavel. “Order, please, order!” The Speaker, an unaffiliated, non-voting official whose job was to keep the lower chamber of the Directory (aka Blue House) in line, called for attention. “Thank you, Speaker.” Merritt, equally fed up with the situation, shared a nod with Risha. “I’m calling a recess of Blue House, I think we’ve spent too much time here. Go have lunch, cool off, what have you.”

As DMs began filing out of the chambers, Risha collapsed back into her chair, her face weary. “Touchstone below, that was one of the most exhausting things I’ve ever had to do. I’ve half wondered if we can just stick Actavarus back up here so I don’t have to do this!” She had been engaged in almost non-stop battling against Imperials and criminals, hauling cargo and engaging in a pan-galactic scavenger hunt. And yet, trying to corral a bunch of annoying, self-interested politicians was still so draining . Merritt walked up to Risha’s podium, which overlooked the majority of the Blue House (another change made by Actavarus to reinforce his seemingly-untouchable status), with a bag in his hand. “Sadly, that would just undermine your own authority. I packed some lunch, want some?” Risha nodded gratefully; she’d been running on nerves and caf for much of the day, and some actual food would help her recover.

Soon enough, she was devouring a sandwich and chugging down fruit juice of some kind. She recalled the primer Merritt had given her on the political scene within the Directory. “With the Blue House, you’re mostly facing career-types; ones who’ve been re-elected enough times to know their constituents are largely acting on inertia, but that still won’t stop them from putting up a fight if there’s a miniscule chance their power base could be in jeopardy. They oppose themselves and each other, and public opinion is that Blue House is an anchor around the planet’s neck. It was one of the reasons Actavarus was unopposed for so long; they couldn’t stop fighting among themselves long enough to even challenge him.”

“With the coalition the way it is, you’re going to need to appease them somehow if we can make any serious progress.” Merritt said as he scarfed down a salad. The “Coalition for Reason” was a coalition between certain members of different political parties, including the Farmer-Labor Party, the Skywards, and the Logicians, who had put their conflicts on hold to deal with Actavarus’ insanity. Now that he had been ousted, while the CFR still held the majority of Blue House, many of the members were already starting to bicker among themselves; if the coalition fell apart, it could lead to electoral chaos. “Their only key goal was to remove Actavarus or check his power. Most of them are already starting to head back to their old parties or form splinter factions. These kinds of single-issue parties never last long.” Risha knew that she needed to lay a groundwork among the many parties in the Directory and those outside it.

Additionally, the appointment of a noble as caretaker Prime Minister had been met with dismay from much of the Blue House; many were hoping the new Queen would select one of them. As it was, such a situation hadn’t happened in a long time, and had brought Red House back into the public eye. Red House was the upper chamber of the Directory, where nobles largely did nothing of importance. Though intended to be a long-term political think tank, where issues and ideas could be worked out before a floor vote, in practice it didn’t do much anymore; much of their power had been taken away by Blue House, or otherwise by Actavarus to prevent the nobles from mounting a challenge to him. The public opinion was largely that they didn’t really need the Red House anymore, as it felt like a relic. But with Actavarus now out of the picture and the Blue House locked in endless strife, the Red House was looking more and more like Risha’s real answer to her current problems.

“I’m going to have to call a meeting of the Red House soon, maybe they’ll be more amenable to backing my claim.” Risha stated.  Merritt shook his head. “I’d never thought that the Red House would end up being the crucial element. That’s one of the reasons I was able to build up the Moonlight Knights so much; I was so frustrated with Red House’s powers being taken away, I just went underground to cultivate support against Actavarus. Most of my Red House colleagues didn’t really care so much as he left their holdings, credits and land alone.” Merritt knew how callous the other nobles could be; his father had instilled simple values in him, and it disgusted Merritt that much of the nobility simply didn’t give one whit about others’ lives.

“At this point, I’d almost welcome Prin and the others coming in here to mess things up.” Risha got out of her chair and proceeded down into the empty center of the chamber. “My future all depends on making some thick-headed blowhards see reason. It was easier to defeat the Voidwolf.”

“Perhaps we should simply end the session for today and let everyone cool their heads for an extended period.” Merritt suggested. “Julia really wants me to try this Miralukan place downtown for dinner and this has been hogging my time.” Risha nodded. “Yeah, I'm at my limit for politicking today; this session is over.”

Later that night, Prin and Risha were snuggled up on the couch by themselves, watching some random holocomedy; Corso was checking out some of the nightlife, Bowdaar was trying out a nearby gymnasium, Guss was practicing his Force skills and Akaavi was…well, they didn’t know what she tended to do in her downtime and she liked it that way. At any rate, Prin had kept himself busy by cleaning the Boundless and performing a few minor repairs (the ship was flyable, but until those parts Risha needed to fix the turbines got to them, they couldn’t do any hyperspace traveling). “I’m starting to think maybe we should’ve left Dubrillion alone. It was easy to do what we used to because it was simply fire blaster bolts at criminals or Imperials. I can’t fire a gun at any of these nimrods, that’ll derail everything I’ve worked for so far.” Risha groused while disinterestedly eating some rice and beef. “Don’t worry about it, Rish. They’ll fall in line or get unelected eventually. Just gotta up the pressure on them the way you do for everything.” Prin suggested. “This stuff isn’t going to be instantaneous; we gotta work for it.”

Risha smiled a little bit. “Well, at least someone’s learned from their experiences.” She exhaled slowly. “But there’s a lot of politicians here who didn’t learn anything.” Prin rubbed her shoulder sympathetically. “Don’t worry. We’ll get to them eventually. If anything else, we’ve always got Bowdaar as a backup.” Risha chuckled a little bit. “It’s far from that Wookiee army you wanted, but I am glad to have you and the others around. You’re all grounded in reality.” With that, they turned their attention back to the holocomedy.