Chapter XV – Unexpected
Guests – Part I
Late
morning (1000)
“Montique
Resort,” the man mumbled to himself, looking up
at the opulent hotel. Its rectangular and arched
features united with ivory pillars and over-sized
windows made a grand impression on visitors and
guests alike. “A bit too much for my tastes,” he
commented and walked toward the entrance.
As he
stepped through the elaborate entrance his smirk
exemplified his rogue nature as he narrowly shirked
the onslaught of rain that had come plummeting down
outside. Chuckling to himself, he strolled
confidently through the lobby, ignoring the grandeur
within and headed straight for the guest rooms that
occupied that particular floor. He passed by several
of them, turned the first corner and then began to
listen carefully, turning his head slightly to pick
up any hint of sound. Once he determined that no one
was about to intrude upon him, he stopped next to
one of the rooms and withdrew a small electronic
device from inside his jacket. He pressed a couple
of buttons on the device and then held it up to the
electronic keypad next to the room’s door. The
digits on the small device’s display whirled by,
only stopping once a correct key was detected.
“All
too easy,” he sighed mockingly as the last number
appeared on the display. He quickly input the code
and the door slid open allowing him to enter. After
casting one last glance up and down the hallway the
man disappeared inside.
“Time
to get down to business!” Flashing a lopsided grin,
he waltzed over to the desk and sat down in front of
the computer console.
__________________________________*****__________________________________
“Reynard?” Sakoya asked astounded. “The one you told
me about? The scientist who manufactures toxins?”
A nod
of his head was the only answer the Jedi Master had
to give.
“I’ve
heard rumors of him,” Cela added.
“Only
rumors?” Sakoya pressed.
Cela
shrugged her shoulders and replied, “Yeah, Mara’s
never had any deals with him that I know of. I don’t
think Karrde has either, but I don’t know for sure.”
“Talon Karrde?” Sakoya asked, raising one eyebrow.
“Yes.”
“Talon is usually very particular about his
customers,” Sakoya commented.
“Am I
to assume Karrde and Mara have an affiliation?”
“Yes,
Master Jedi,” Cela replied, “she works for him.”
“You
never exposed that little detail,” Obi-Wan grimaced.
Cela
shrugged and smirked. “I mentioned an organization
before, but you never asked for details.”
The
Jedi Master shook his head from side to side. “Then
I should also assume that Karrde knows she’s an
assassin?”
“I…would guess so,” the teenager replied slowly.
“No
wonder he sent her here for this deal. She would
give swift retribution if it soured,” Sakoya
remarked. “Either way he wins.”
“Huh?” Cela appeared to be confused.
Sakoya explained, “If the deal went bad he could
count on Mara to handle it and leave no evidence,
which she did…strange behavior for an assassin.”
Sakoya stopped as if she were thinking of something
and then continued. “If the deal was solid, Karrde
would profit immensely.” The Jedi pondered a thought
for a moment. “Cela,” she said, “when did Mara begin
to behave differently?”
The
girl made a strange face, considering the question.
After a few minutes she said, “Umm, I’d say…shortly
after she got the vial from those brothers. She
wasn’t too out of character then, but a little bit.
She got real obsessive with whatever was in the
vial.”
Sakoya nodded knowingly. “Did she ever remove the
cover of the vial before she spilled it on herself?”
“Yes,” Cela answered, “in the cave when she first
saw the shipment. I was hiding in there as she
instructed and heard her say something about the
smell, or rather that there wasn’t one.”
“Tell
me something,” Obi-Wan said, sounding inquisitive.
“Let’s assume she killed those two men, since we
don’t have definitive proof… Why would she leave the
bodies behind to be discovered?”
The
teenager shrugged. “I…don’t know.”
“Are
you thinking the vial has something to do with
that?” Sakoya interjected.
The
Jedi Master nodded. “She was exposed by smell and
contact and her behavior is erratic. However,
without more detail on this toxin we don’t know what
the full effects could be.”
Sakoya agreed and said, “I think it’s time we
contacted the authorities.”
__________________________________*****__________________________________
“Aha,
there you are,” he said with a roguish smirk. “A
penthouse suite.” The man stood up, raking his
fingers through his short blonde hair, and gazed
around the lavish room. “Not bad,” he nodded, “not
bad at all but much too easy to crack.” He took
notice of a bag lying partway open on the bed and
his curiosity piqued, went over to investigate.
Reaching in he withdrew a small vial that held a
light orange colored liquid.
“And
what have we here?” he mused, holding it up to the
sunlight streaming in through the window.
“Interesting, let’s see what else is in there.” He
looked into the bag again and found more vials,
along with something else. “What’s this?” he
wondered, picking up a small datachip. “I suppose if
I’m going to be prying I may as well…” Pulling out a
decoder from within another pocket of his jacket, he
inserted the chip, punched a few buttons and waited
for the display to show.
Encrypted data – enter authorization code.
“Oh,
really?” he remarked, sounding amused. He punched a
few more buttons and then waited.
The
same message repeated itself.
The
man’s face exhibited his bemusement as he stared at
the device. A moment later his fingers were racing
over the decoder’s buttons and he waited yet again
for the response.
Encrypted data – enter authorization code.
“Damn! Ok, this should do it!” He pushed more
buttons, which resulted in manipulating the device.
This time he felt confident of victory.
A
short time later his patience was rewarded. “Ahh,
sweet success. I really need more challenges than
this,” he snorted and then read the display.
You are cordially invited to attend the
demonstration of my newest creation, MX-492 in ‘The
Vault’.
I
can assure you that you won’t be disappointed.
Converge on Ord Mantell, the eighth month, fifteenth
day. The demonstration will take place at 2000 hours
sharp. You must be within The Vault 1 hour prior to
that time or you will be denied entrance.
“MX-492? What in blazes is that?” he jeered and
thought for a moment. “Wait a minute…I’ve heard of
this ‘Vault’…” Without thinking, he slipped the chip
into his pocket.
Grabbing the bag, the man left the room and stepped
out into the vacant hallway. Without a moment’s
hesitation he traced back his steps until he was out
in the lobby once more. He casually walked past the
front registration desk and toward the turbolifts
that were stationed on the other side of the lobby
when he espied the resort’s bar out of the corner of
his eye.
“A
beckon I must answer,” he commented sarcastically.
__________________________________*****__________________________________
“I
apologize for the late hour, Supreme Chancellor,”
Obi-Wan stated.
Padmé
shrugged off his comment, “Don’t apologize Ben, I’m
glad you contacted me and stop being so formal! I’m
in my private quarters.”
Obi-Wan took the reprimand light-heartedly. “I’m
afraid I have unsettling news.”
The
Jedi Master explained all that had transpired since
their arrival in Kuryn and lastly he gestured toward
a teenage girl, her long silver hair unbound and
piercing blue eyes. “And this is Cela.”
Padmé
Naberrie Amidala Skywalker – leader of the New
Republic – looked at both Jedi, her friends, on the
opposite side of the viewscreen in disbelief. “Oh,
Sakoya, my heart goes out to you. I thank the Force
that you have Ben in this difficult time.”
Sakoya silently nodded, her head downcast while her
husband cleared his throat and spoke, “I believe we
should report Mara to the local authorities for the
murder of those two men.”
“But
you have no solid evidence, correct?” Padmé
remarked.
“No,”
Obi-Wan said with a slight shake of his head.
Padmé
continued to absorb all the information presented to
her. Finally she asked, “And you believe this toxin
to be the work of Reynard Sindre?”
“Yes,” the Jedi Master replied.
“Yes,
Padmé,” Sakoya also replied, her voice light and
difficult to hear.
The
Supreme Chancellor’s eyes softened at her friend’s
distress. “And not another? Although I would
personally enjoy seeing Mr. Sindre incarcerated for
all the ills he has caused,” Padmé retorted.
“No,
I don’t believe so,” Obi-Wan interjected.
Padmé’s face suddenly looked impassive as she
stated, “I will transmit new information to your
suite.”
The
two Jedi acknowledged the veiled instruction with a
slight bow of their heads.
“Excuse me, Jedi Masters. Mi-miss Sky-, I mean
Chan-chancellor Skywalker?” Cela softly spoke,
suddenly intimidated by the company around her.
Padmé
directed her attention at the teenager. “My
apologies, I didn’t mean to neglect you. It’s a
pleasure to meet you, Cela,” she said cordially.
“The
pleasure is mine, your Supremeness,” Cela bowed.
“Th-there’s something else I think you should know.
Something I haven’t told the Jedi yet.”
“Oh?”
Padmé asked inquisitively, tilting her head to the
side. Inwardly, she considered the term the young
girl used to address her quite amusing, but she
didn’t wish to cause any embarrassment by correcting
her - it was easy to see Cela was nervous enough.
Cela
coughed to clear her throat. “Yes, ma’am.”
The
girl now had three pairs of eyes fixated on her.
“M-mistress Mara is determined to hunt down the
Skywalker’s who killed the Emperor.”
Padmé’s eyes widened for a moment and then she
composed herself. “Why? For revenge?”
“No,”
Cela glanced around uneasily, feeling as if she were
on display. “Because he ordered her to.”
__________________________________*****__________________________________
The
turbolift doors opened and a man sauntered out,
looked one way and then the other, and then strode
purposefully toward his destination. He could feel
the tiny beads of perspiration that had begun to
form on his forehead and casually wiped them away.
However, the beating of his heart was much more
persistent as it pounded in his chest. He abruptly
stopped in mid-stride and inhaled deeply,
ineffectually trying to calm his nerves. He had to
chuckle at himself. After all he had seen and been
through, the battles and struggles, the dangerous
encounters, all of it paled in comparison to being
with this one person.
He
shook his head in annoyance, angry with himself for
not recognizing his good fortune and allowing it to
slip through his grasp. He reached up with both
hands and smoothed out his blonde locks and stood
more erect. He wouldn’t slouch or pine for what he
couldn’t have – it was too late for that. No, he
would accept friendship as a consolation and hold on
to it.
He
resumed walking and didn’t stop until he came upon
the suite he was looking for. “There you are, the
Celestial Penthouse,” he remarked and pressed
the door chime.
He
waited a few minutes and when no one answered the
door he rang again.
Still
no one answered.
He
reached up and stroked his golden goatee,
considering what to do next and then decided to
press one ear up to the door.
“Well, I don’t hear anyone inside…” Suddenly a
mischievous grin crept up his lips and he acted.
“Locks don’t bother me,” he snorted and set to work.
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