Kane's Crew

DILEMMA

So after all that has happened in the last few weeks, this is it. We laid out plans, we carried them out and everything worked out perfect. All I have to do is squeeze the trigger. My eyes narrow, glaring down the barrel of my blaster. My arm is shaking. I realize the spaceship is freezing, but I can feel a lone bead of sweat meander down the smooth skin of my scalp, slowed slightly by less than one-hundred percent gravity. I want it so bad, my whole arm is shaking—the blaster pointed right down at his head. All I have to do is end it. All I have to do is kill Fabius Kane.

Only something doesn’t quite feel right.

It doesn’t make sense. Everything we discovered led us here. He is one of the most notorious scum of the universe. All I have to do is pull the trigger and millions of citizens can rest easier at night, knowing that one less murderer is out there.

With my free hand I wipe the lazy bead of sweat away. I look back over my shoulder at Soth. He nods. I look back to Kane, prone on the metal girders below. He’s helpless. He seems to be waking. I need to act now. What the hell is stopping me? Goddamn it he’s just as bad as Darth Vader or the Emperor. And most people don’t even know that Kane’s just like them. He’s one of those fucking Jedi. But I know.

Well, tonight there will be one less Jedi. Good riddance. I’ll see you in hell Fabius Kane. I re-align my blaster, aiming my fire right between his eyes.

From behind, someone puts a hand on my shoulder, halting me. Slowly, I turn my head.

CHAOS

“Son of a bitch!” Na-Soth slammed his fist on the desk in front of him. Turning away from his computer, he stood up and paced the small office space in his dusty apartment.

Something had gone terribly wrong. Na-Soth had no idea how it had happened, but somehow someone had activated some kind of a weapon on Center Point Station. It had fired on the newly arrived Death Star just as that battle station fired at Center Point. Both had been destroyed. The resulting backlash had wrecked havoc on Corellia. The radiation and physical explosion had been devastating throughout the system. In one sense, the Givin felt lucky to be alive. Yet once he had realized that he had survived the entire experience, he felt cheated.

Life had slowly died out on Corellia and the radioactive energies released in the resulting explosions had crippled if not disabled most of the computer systems on the planet. As a hacker, that was crippling to Na-Soth. Given, his systems were insulated from that kind of thing, as were many of the banks and military and government bases. But when the explosions of two moon-sized space stations in your system blazed a nova-like trail of destruction and the mainframes were physically destroyed, insulation only meant so much.

Worst of all—at least to Na-Soth—his bank (banks, really) were among those destroyed. He had spent hours scouring for any other electronic record of his significantly large credit accounts. He had nothing to show for it.

Na-Soth turned back around to face his computer, arms akimbo. The computations starting running through his head. How many people must have survived, how many must have died, ships in orbit, the probability of survival, the chance of him escaping this disaster zone, who might still be left, politicians, police—all the facts and figures moving through his head as fast as a non-Givin might run through a computer. In fact, most Givins detested computers as crutches for the weak-minded. Na-Soth, though, saw them as a way to extend his own natural computational power.

“I’m going to figure this out,” he said softly to himself. “I’m going to find out what happened.”

NEWS

Gervin finished tying up the last of the ship owners. “All set!” the Rodian called out to his partner further down the corridors of the ship. With the last of the bonds secured, he pulled his blaster carbine off of his shoulder, letting it slide down the long strap that had secured it. He traced it back and forth over the prone bodies of their three captives. “Nobody does anything stupid and you all make it out of here,” he said.

In the cockpit, a large Feeorin, Cavyn, steered the ship forward. Having finally familiarized himself with the ship controls, he steered back towards the space station the ship had recently departed. There they would drop off their prisoners. He and Gervin were pirates, not murderers. He glanced over at his own blaster rifle and smiled. Another ship, another deal. He turned on the Holonet to see if any commotion had been raised over their escapades.

Back in the passenger area, Gervin heard Cavyn call out from the cockpit. With one eye on their captives and another forward, he asked what was wrong. He heard only the cryptic reply: “You’re not going to believe what happened . . . “

THE IMPOSSIBLE

Slowly, I pulled myself off of the floor. Something huge had just happened. A terrorist attack? Rebels? I looked around. No one else was moving. Impossible. Rory was next to me. He was still lying down. He wasn’t moving. Blood was leaking from somewhere out of his head. I felt for a pulse. It was weak. I shook him. His eyes flickered. He stared blankly.

“What happened?” I asked.

“Center Point Station,” he managed, coughing blood.

“What about it?” I asked.

“The Professor?” he said. It was a question.

Who was he talking about?

“The Syndicate must . . . “ his voice faded.

I felt for a pulse again. Nothing. Dammit.

I could feel the veins on my forehead bulging and my anger rising. What had happened? I felt around the computer console. Nothing. They were dead. I moved forward, running a hand over my bald head. No blood. What the hell had happened? More bodies. More destruction. Electronics were sparking all over. Wasn’t anyone else moving?

I pushed my way outside of the building. I needed some air. This was all wrong. I felt my head again, checking for wounds, making sure I wasn’t suffering from a concussion or something. What I saw defied my worst expectations. The destruction was everywhere I could see. It was like the apocalypse. Not again.

I’d been lucky enough to be off planet when Alderaan was destroyed by the Empire. Now what had happened? A Death Star had come into orbit, but if it had fired on us, there would be no planet.

Unconsciously, I gripped my pistol grip. Someone was going to pay.

DISCOVERIES

Na-Soth reclined in his chair. He was somewhat satisfied. He had finally gotten some answers.

Suddenly the door to his apartment burst open. As he spun his chair around, he saw the blur of a bald, thick-muscled human roaring towards him, blaster pistol extended. Before he could do anything other than recoil, the human had the barrel of the pistol burrowed into his skull, forcing him bend his head back uncomfortably.

“Don’t make me kill you,” the human scowled. “I just need some information.”

“Who are you?” Na-Soth asked.

The human felt around the Givin’s body, searching for weapons or identification. He found only an ID card and a cred stick. He tossed the cred stick, laughing. “Guess that won’t do you much good now, will it?” The human acted like a cop.

The human peered at the ID and then back at the Givin. “Na-Soth Helrot? Is that right?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Na-Soth said. “What of it? Who the hell are you?”

The human pushed the barrel of the pistol harder into Na-Soth, forcing the Givin’s head even farther back. “I’ll ask the questions here,” he said. “Are you also the hacker known as Tara Gel-rah?”

Na-Soth said nothing.

“A.K.A. the Ghost?” the human continued.

“You have a warrant or something?” Na-Soth asked.

The human unlatched the safety clip on his blaster. “I’m an Alderaanian who just watched his second homeworld fry. How much patience do you think I have right now?”

“Okay, okay!” Na-Soth said. “Yeah, I’m those guys. I’m a hacker, man. Relax the blaster!”

The human slowly pulled away the blaster and holstered it. Na-Soth just as slowly allowed his head to move back forward: then twisting it, stretching it. “Not too hard was it?” the human asked.

“No,” Na-Soth said quietly.

The human stared at the Givin’s stark, skeletal features. “I thought you Givins loathed computers?” he said.

“I’m not that kind of Givin,” Na-Soth said.

“Hunh.” The human stared at Na-Soth for a moment. “I’m Victor Aurelius,” the human said. “I was working in conjunction with Cor-Sec.”

“Are you here to bust me?” Na-Soth asked.

“No. I need your help.”

FRESH MEAT

Cavyn and Gervin Lohn scanned the Corellian system. It was rife with drifting flotsam. Plenty of it was still valuable. They planned on salvaging as much as possible, towing it to nearby systems and selling it. From there, they could jack any survivors.

Sure, it was cold, but they did have to make a living somehow. The two set the coordinates and moved into the system.

DETECTIVES

“So tell me what you found,” Victor said.

“Well, given that you told me that you think the Syndicate might be involved, the number one suspect is the Falleen, Veroshk. He’s some kind of lieutenant or officer in the organization. He’s allegedly some kind of Force-user, like Vader. Only he hates the Empire.”

“Yeah,” Victor said. “I’ve heard of him.

“Or it could be this Cobalt Blue guy,” Na-Soth said, pointing to a picture on his computer screen.

“The new pop star?” Victor said.

“Yeah, supposedly he died during the explosion a week ago, but from the reports I’ve hacked, there’s no proof he was with the other entertainers that burned up.”

“So that means he was on Center Point?” Victor asked skeptically.

“Not necessarily,” Na-Soth said. “Just a theory”

“Pretty weak.”

“It would be, if he hadn’t shown up at a party on Nubia last month and gotten into some kind of a fracas with some unsavory types and one of his crew, a bearded human, pulls out a lightsaber.”

“Is everyone on your list another Vader?” Victor asked.

“No,” the Givin said. “I’m just telling you the facts.”

“Okay,” Victor said. “What else?”

“Well, let’s say Cobalt Blue is stretching it. That leaves the next suspect as one of his bodyguards.”

“What?”

“Yeah,” the Givin said. “He had some Kel Dor with him on Corellia last week. This fool plops down one million of Cobalt’s money and doubles the investment in one hand. Made quite a stir at the casino.”

“So?” Victor asked. “He got lucky.”

“Maybe. But something’s off with him. Here review these tapes I hacked from security camera file archives.”

*           *           *

Victor sipped his coffee again. Soth was right. Something wasn’t right. The intel on Cobalt showed that he was on Bespin with a Kel Dor and a Sluissi. Other intel points to Veroshk and Syndicate activity there at the same time, and all at the same place. Then the old flagship of Lord Vader shows up in what would otherwise be an inconsequential star system. Soon thereafter, Cobalt is seen on Nubia with a human and a Sluissi. The human wields a lightsaber. Then he is seen on Corellia with a Sluissi and a Kel Dor; the latter wins big at a Sabacc table of high rollers.

Victor looked closely at the tapes of the Kel Dor again. He paused the tape. He leaned forward. That was no Kel Dor. He could see the mistakes now. That was someone trying to look like a Kel Dor. He looked closer. He ran through the tapes again. In each frame, there were bulges under the Kel Dor’s robe. Could be a blaster. But the shape was wrong. It didn’t have the near-ninety degree arc of a blaster barrel and a hilt. It was more like a straight line. Like just a barrel. Or like a lightsaber. The human was the Kel Dor. He had to be. That’s how he had won at the Sabacc table. He had cheated. So who was this bearded force-user. Another cursed Jedi? Another Vader?

“Run this photo,” Victor said. “Find out who this is,” he said, pointing to the computer screen and the picture of the bearded human.

TRAP

Cavyn watched Gervin finish disabling the security system on the other ship’s hatch. With a smile, he watched the door open. The Rodian turned to him and smiled also. “We’re in,” Gervin said.

“Do it,” Cayvn said.

Gervin picked up his blaster carbine and jumped through the airlock, sweeping the area under the sights of his weapon. He silently waved his comrade into the ship. The Feeorin followed, his own blaster rifle leveled, ready for action.

As the two started to move their separate ways, something came rolling towards them. They both looked down to see what it was, acting too slowly. Before they could react, the stun grenade fired and exploded. The Rodian went down easily. The Feeorin, older, stronger, stumbled, but stayed on his feet. From behind, he felt someone spin him around. His rising weapon was knocked out of his hands and then a pink fist was planted into his face and he fell.

DEAL

“His name is Fabius Kane,” Victor explained. “He’s an infamous gangster and criminal. I’m pretty sure he’s somehow responsible for what happened at Center Point Station.”

“What does this have to do with us?” the Feeorin rasped.

“Because we need help jacking into his ship,” Victor said. “Plus, I’m willing to share the six-hundred-thousand Imperial bounty with you.”

“Why would you do that?” the Rodian asked.

“Because I just want him brought to justice,” Victor said. “I’m not in it for the money.”

The Rodian and Feeorian exchanged glances.

“And we don’t get into any legal trouble?” Cavyn, the Feeorin, asked.

“Right,” Victor said, nodding.

“Who’s the walking skull?” Gervin, the Rodian, asked, nodding towards Na-Soth.

“He’s a Givin,” Victor said. “And have some respect. He’s very good with information. That’s how we found out about you two.”

Cavyn looked at Gervin. The Rodian shrugged. The Feeorin looked back at the human. “Let’s get that bastard.”

WEAK-MINDED

Victor tried to pull the trigger. He wanted to. What was wrong? He felt Cavyn’s hand on his shoulder.

“Something’s wrong,” the large Feeorin said.

“What do you mean?” Victor said.

“He doesn’t feel like a murderer,” Cavyn said.

“He’s responsible for the Corellian Disaster,” Victor said.

“You don’t think I feel that way every day,” Kane said from below. All heads turned to the villain on the floor. “I wish I had acted faster. I wished I could have destroyed the Death Star before it had fired on Center Point Station. But I didn’t.” He looked at the four men around him. “But consider this: if I had been slower and Center Point had been destroyed, but not the Death Star, Corellia would have been next, and there would be nothing left of it now. It may be devastated now, but it still exists.”

Victor turned and fired. He had seen too much. He couldn’t stand it any more.

Yet faster than should have been possible, Kane rolled to his left and sprang to his feet. As Gervin raised his weapon to fire, Kane put his hand out and pulled the weapon to him magically, moving it right through the very air before them. The Rodian just stood there, jaw-dropped, unsure of what to do next.

Victor went to fire again, but Cavyn caught his wrist and pulled it upward.

“What the?” Victor said, startled. He was even more surprised when the enormous Feeorin swung and nearly knocked him out with one punch.

Meanwhile, Kane flipped the switch on the blaster carbine to stun and fired at the Rodian, then the Givin, taking them both out before either could react. As Victor tried to recover from Cavyn’s blow, Kane swung the blaster carbine like a club and landed the butt of the rifle upside Victor’s head, knocking him out.

The Feeorin looked confusedly at Kane. The Jedi waved his hand over the Feeorin’s face, and the large man simply fell asleep.

FOLLOWERS

Kane looked at the four men around him, twisting back briefly to look at his droid, LE-N5. None of the others were sure what to make of his story. He could see it in their eyes.

“It’s all true, I assure you. Yes, I have made mistakes. I have been wrong. I have been a bad person. But I have also fought for all that is right in this galaxy. I have seen the light side, the truth and justice that can return to the people. I want to help. I want to be a better person. Sometimes I succeed. Sometimes I fail. I’m a person like anyone else, Jedi or not. So what we do next is up to you.”

The human looked at the ground. The Givin had a distant look, like he was computing something. The Rodian and the Feeorin looked at each other. Each shrugged. The Rodian nodded.

“We’re in,” Cavyn said. “We’re just two lowly shipjackers, but we would consider it an honor to work with you, Fabius.”

Kane nodded. “Excellent.”

The Givin shrugged also. “Shit, I got nothing else to do. If nothing else, it sounds like running with you won’t be boring. And it pays well, right?”

“Right,” Kane said, smiling. He turned then to the human. “And you, Detective Aurelius?”

Victor looked up slowly. “You’re going to help me fuck these Imperial bastards right? The ones that destroyed Alderaan and that almost destroyed Corellia?”

“I promise,” Kane said.

“And you didn’t do anything to intentionally harm Corellia?” Victor asked.

“I swear,” Kane said. “It’s where my family was from. I was only trying to protect it.”

“Okay, then,” Victor said. “I’m in.” He looked around the room. “We’re in. What next?”

Kane only smiled.