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Etho really hates Coruscant.
He usually avoided going on jobs involving this cursed planet with a history of nothing but death and destruction. He couldn’t get out of this one, and now he’s here with Joel traversing the crowded, dark streets.
Xisuma sent them on their way almost right as morning came. They staked out the planet until night fell, leading to some rather… interesting conversations.
“Joel, we have to stop and eat somewhere. You can’t just keep saying no because the food looks gross.”
“You suck. I am not eating anything that resembles human body parts.”
After arguing for the entire afternoon because Etho refused to let Joel starve for the stupidest reason, they eventually settled on something that looked somewhat appetizing to Joel. He wasn’t happy with it, but at least he was eating. But then…
“I didn’t tell anyone but False that I was coming with you.”
…what?
“You didn’t tell them!? Joel, are you telling me that nobody knows where you’re at besides me, False, and X?”
“Calm down!” Joel swats his arm as if it were no big deal. “I just don’t think it was a good idea. They wouldn’t have wanted me to come. I didn’t want to make anyone upset.”
Etho supposed he could see some logic in his thinking. Telling Scar he was going to the planet that’s the cause of all his pain wouldn’t have warranted a good response, and when he’s upset, it makes Cub upset. Then once his team is upset, Bdubs will get upset, and no one wants to deal with that.
But still… “I wish you would’ve at least told someone other than False.”
Joel scoffs at him. “Like you did?”
That topic ends right there.
Later, as the sun was setting, Joel asked something that probably should’ve been asked a while ago. How he got this far into the Rebellion, Etho wonders. But then again he chose him for this mission, which says more about Etho than it does Joel.
“So, who exactly are we looking for?”
It brings them to now, night falling over the planet and Stormtroopers coming out to play. He secures his mask on his face, reaching behind him to make sure that Joel’s still behind him.
Etho grabs Joel and pulls him into a relatively private alley. It’s better than standing in the middle of the street. “Our informant is ex-Empire. According to X, he has information about some kind of weapon that the Empire’s been developing.”
Joel holds his breath when someone passes by. He waits until they’re out of earshot to continue. “That’s what we suspected, hmm…”
“That’s what… huh?” This is the first time that Etho’s heard anything about this. Has he been kept out of the loop? “Who suspected what? For how long?”
“During your rescue mission, Evil X thought we were there to stop something. He was hiding something at the base; something that made him forget about you and Bdubs. Grian, Scar, and I had our theories, but I think it’s all lining up.”
Oh.
So that’s why Etho hadn’t heard about this. He would think that X would share something like this with him, considering the nature of the mission. He shakes that thought out of his head. He can’t start with this in the dead middle of Coruscant. He’ll get distracted, he’ll get hurt, and he’ll drag Joel down with him.
“I see…” Etho leads Joel away from the alleyway. They have to go back out in the streets, searching for the very specific spot that X had told them their informant would be waiting.
As much as he hates practically being pressed against other people, it is pretty helpful in hiding them. They could be any random stranger on the streets of Coruscant.
Joel moves from behind him to next to him, adjusting the blaster on his belt to make it a little less noticeable. Everyone has one these days, but if it makes them sink a little more into the background, then it’s worth taking the time to do.
The further they move into the streets, the more they get packed. It’s to the point that he and Joel have to physically unwind themselves from clumps of people when they want to change directions. It makes sense, considering what they’re meeting to discuss. But it doesn’t mean he has to like it. He can hear Joel’s annoyed groans so at least they share the sentiment.
They get to a section that splits into three: two paths on the side, one forward. Etho has to take a second to remember which direction he was meant to go. He’s about to turn left when he feels Joel tug at his wrist.
Two Stormtroopers are walking in their direction. Etho pulls his wrist out of Joel’s grip and forces his muscles to relax, watching to see Joel has already done so.
Okay, okay. It’s okay, they can play this off.
Joel moves to Etho’s side again, subtly trying to block Etho from the view of the Stormtroopers. He’s practically offering himself to them, should they get caught. Joel begins walking again, setting the pace for Etho to follow. They go past the Stormtroopers, and they continue walking down the street without sparing them a second glance.
Etho’s relaxed stance goes tense once the Stormtroopers have passed. He gives himself a moment to process that before he moves on.
The way Joel moved to hide him means a lot, it really does, but he’d rather he not do that. Etho can’t watch another one of his friends get caught in his mess because of his role within the Rebellion.
He checks behind him quickly to guarantee that they’re not going to get ambushed. Once the Stormtroopers are swallowed by the hoards of people, he turns left. Joel follows wordlessly.
“If we’re going to get caught, don’t do that again,” Etho whispers, just loud enough for Joel to hear.
“I do what I want, Etho,” Joel reminds, even if he doesn’t really have to. “Isn’t that why you wanted me here?”
He doesn’t answer him. He knows he’s right.
Etho takes another turn and they end up behind a building. It’s empty, he’s on edge, and just wants to get the hell out of Coruscant. He breaks out into a run, and Joel follows. X really should’ve debriefed both of them on the location so it doesn't feel like he’s dragging him everywhere.
They turn into a much shorter alley. It seems to be the dumpster of a restaurant, judging by the smell. Neither of them pays much attention to the location, instead focusing on the man standing with his back to them.
The man is guarding the other exit of the alley, whipping around when he hears them approach. His hand goes to his blaster, unmoving from his battle stance even when Joel and Etho raise their hands in surrender.
The man's red eyes are striking, as is his red attire. It’s bold to wear such a thing after defecting from the Empire, but Etho can respect it.
“My ship is about to leave,” the man reprimands.
“We got here as fast as we could,” Etho tries, but the man is having none of it.
“They’ll leave without me! Come on, walk with me. I have to get on board!”
Etho struggles to remember the name that X told him before they left. Joel kicks him softly in the shin as if that’ll regurgitate his memory.
Miraculously, it does.
“Tango…” Etho speaks calmly, unlike his heart that’s roaring in his ears. Tango’s shouting, and it’s bound to garner some attention. “Please, we’re told you have something important for us to hear.”
Tango tries to push past him to leave, serious about wanting Etho and Joel to walk with him. There’s no way they can discuss this any place but this cranny.
Joel’s instinct takes over faster than Etho’s. He grabs Tango by the arm when he gets past Etho. His grip on Tango only tightens when he tries to pull out of it.
When Tango doesn’t make another move to leave, Joel lets go. Tango looks down at the floor, breathing in slowly before he turns to Etho. Something has him frazzled. He’s frantic and his eyes are bouncing all over the place. If they’re going to get anything out of him, they’re going to have to keep the environment calm.
“A cargo pilot defected yesterday,” Tango says. “The Empire has been farming kyber crystals and they’re making some kind of… weapon with it.”
So this isn’t the pilot. That scares him a bit more than it probably should. X is almost never wrong when it comes to stuff like this. His information got mixed up somehow.
Joel takes over for him as he thinks. “What kind of weapon are we talking about here? Lightsabers? Are Stormtroopers all going to have one now?”
Tango’s eyes shut at the mention of the weapon. Okay, so that’s what has him spooked. He goes to walk away again.
“Look, I have to go!”
Joel grabs his shoulder this time and shoves him further into the alley before he can leave.
“What kind of weapon?” Joel repeats.
Etho notices that Tango’s not actually intimidated by them. It’s clear why: Joel is nearly a foot shorter and Etho hasn’t really done anything yet. He’s just freaked out by this weapon. He’s sure Tango isn’t usually like this. It’s something worth telling X about later, that’s for sure.
“Answer my friend’s question,” Etho says to break the silence. “What kind of weapon?”
“A planet killer!” They manage to get Tango to shout, but it’s too loud. “There are rumors about who built it, and if they’re true… We’re dead!”
From behind him, he hears the familiar sound of someone speaking through a Stormtrooper helmet. “What’s all this?”
Tango looks down at the ground, and Etho doesn’t dare turn around. Joel does and faces the Stormtroopers head-on; that madman. The three of them raise their arms, and he finds himself holding his breath and Joel takes charge.
Joel scoots back into Etho’s peripheral vision, just enough for him to be able to see what he’s thinking in the corner of his eyes.
“Alright,” the Stormtrooper says. “Let’s see some scan tags.”
“Of course!” Joel smiles and begins gesturing at his hands. “Just… sorry. Hey, be a dear and grab my gloves for me, will you?”
Joel doesn’t wear gloves, but Etho gets what he’s putting down quickly. He bends down slowly, making sure the Stormtroopers can see what he’s doing, and then all at once, he discreetly pulls his blaster out from its holster.
The angle makes it hard to aim, but it makes him hard to see. The Stormtroopers don’t see his blaster until he’s put a hole in each of their chests, watching them fall on top of each other.
Etho shoots up from his squat, finding that Joel has his blaster out and is guarding the other side of the alley. He hears Tango saying something about them wanting to get caught, but he pays it no mind.
“We’ve gotta get out of here,” Joel says hurriedly. He can’t see what Joel’s seeing, but he’s holding his blaster tightly to his chest.
Tango shoves Joel against the wall. Etho rushes forward to get Tango off, but Joel waves him off. He watches as Tango growls low in his throat, almost baring his teeth to intimidate Joel. The sight almost makes him chuckle. Joel is one of the most fearless people he knows, a little growl isn’t going to make him cower in fear and surrender.
“What have you done?” Tango growls, pushing Joel harder into the wall. “Do you know how much harder you made it to get out of here? You killed two Stormtroopers!”
Joel tentatively lifts his hands and gently pushes Tango away from him. “Hey, calm down. This is getting us nowhere and we’ve gotta go before someone notices the Stormtroopers.”
Tango backs up, and Etho lets out a sigh of relief.
“Mess with your own lives, not with mine,” Tango snaps. Etho notes that he doesn’t have his blaster out anymore. He really wasn’t planning on staying here for long.
“Will do, man,” Joel answers, moving closer to where Etho’s guarding the alley’s exit. “Good luck getting out of here.”
Tango doesn’t respond. He runs off into the alley, likely to never be seen again. That’s fine with Etho, but Joel watches him go.
“What’d you notice?” Etho asks as Joel gathers himself again. He pockets his blaster and leads the way out of the alley.
“Not about Tango…” Joel, for the first time that Etho’s seen, has some real fear in his eyes. Etho freezes right before they enter the streets again.
“Joel, what did you notice?” Etho repeats, careful not to sound too forceful. He just needs to know what’s making him upset.
Joel’s expression is haunted, something running through his mind that Etho hasn’t picked up on yet. He’s not usually unobservant, and Joel’s really making him nervous with the frantic way his gaze is darting everywhere.
“Did you not hear what Tango said?” Joel takes the lead, walking back in the direction of the ship they brought. Etho’s surprised he can remember in the state he's in.
Etho shakes his head, waiting for Joel to say what he’s missing. He goes silent, and right before they duck back into the busy streets, he says, “A planet killer, Etho. That kind of weapon can only mean one thing.”
Oh, that’s what it is.
When the words fully settle in, he simply nods.
Joel holds onto his wrist as they go back to the ship, and Etho lets him. He just hopes he can’t feel the way his fingers are trembling.