Chapter Text
When Korkie finally finished his trek to the spaceport, the first thing he heard was Mr. Sina shouting from the ticket room. “Kenobi, you’re late!” Korkie took a moment to recognize it as his name. When he chose an alias, he wasn’t expecting “Jax Kenobi” to get to him so much.
He jogged over to his supervisor. “What’s going on?”
“It looks like we’ve got to work today,” Mr. Sina said, looking up at the ship in the distance. “Hope you have fun, cargo inspector,” he said with a wink.
“Sure will,” Korkie exclaimed, injecting enthusiasm into his voice. His feelings were mixed, really.
He stood at a safe distance from the landing pad, watching the ship descend. Something was wrong. Even as he struggled to pinpoint it, his anxiety rose, plunging him in heat. And then it fell.
In a second, the ship was smoking in front of him. Someone came limping out. Now that the door was open, he could hear frantic conversation. He walked up to who, as far as he knew, was the pilot. “Pardon me, I see your ship has crashed, but I do need to see your manifest.”
They walked past him, staring at what little could be seen of the town.
Someone called from inside. They gave a short reply. Someone called again. They straightened and pulled out a translator set. “Four people on board require medical attention.”
Korkie ran to an emergency kit. They snatched it from his hands, walking away without a word.
He jogged beside them. “I can help! I know—”
They shot him a glare, but didn’t technically stop him.
“Please, I was raised to help people whenever I can.” His words surprised him. He had resolved to not mention his past in any form. It wasn’t safe.
“If you help, will you stop talking?”
“Maybe,” he said with a grin.
“Your offer is accepted, on the condition that you stay by the entrance of the ship.”
“Will do,… ah… How shall I address you?”
“My rank is Captain,” they provided. It wasn’t exactly what he meant, but it worked.
Korkie worked on treating a head gash on someone who had literally been pushed into being treated by the Captain. He looked like he would rather die than be treated.
True to his word, he worked from just beyond the entrance. Still, he observed the others. Everyone he saw had the same blue skin with red eyes, and the same style of uniform. They weren’t Pantorans. He knew what they looked like, and that wasn’t it. He hadn’t come across the Empire in his little town, but they didn’t seem like they would be Imperial, either.
And, almost out of his view, there was a child having her arm wrapped.
The Captain walked by him, observing his work. He took the moment to ask what was on his mind. “Pardon me, but if you don’t mind me asking, what exactly is the purpose of your voyage?”
They followed his gaze to the child. “This is a training exercise for the young.” After a pause, they continued, “You must understand why we hesitate to discuss military operations with a foreigner.”
“Of course,” Korkie said. He was honest, but it still made him weary. “Was the crash part of the training?”
The Captain frowned. “Obviously I did not intend to crash my ship on a near-desolate planet.”
“Alright, well, if you’re going to stay here any longer, we should check in with my supervisor.”
“We?” The Captain raised an eyebrow.
“There may be a few forms to sign.” That was an understatement. But Mr. Sina would likely excuse them all. After all, there wasn’t exactly a higher power to hand them to. That’s one of the reasons he came to this planet. That and it was the quickest flight out of Mandalore.
Back in the office, Mr. Sina waved away the paperwork as expected. “I’m just glad you landed in one piece. Is there anything else you need,” he asked.
“We require parts for our ship.” They turned to Korkie. “I would like him to assist us in talking to locals next rotation.”
“May I, Mr. Sina?”
He grinned. “Well there’s not much more to do in a one-platform spaceport. So, sure.”