The bloodstained bag swings rhythmically at my side, sloshing with each step like a disgusting trono. Circumtore’s main thoroughfare bustles around us, a river of aliens and humans flowing past without a second glance at a bounty hunter and his hooded companion. Nobody cares what’s in the bag. Nobody wants to know.
I shift my grip on the dripping package containing what’s left of Morvis Dreeg. The weight isn’t substantial, just a head, after all, but the implications are heavy. My first official bounty collection. My first step toward building a reputation in this galaxy that still feels foreign despite the mories crowding my skull.
Vae glides beside , her movents liquid and predatory even beneath the concealing black robes. Her hood is pulled low, casting her crimson features in shadow. Only those dangerous red eyes occasionally catch the harsh station lighting when she turns her head.
“Almost there,” I mutter, nodding toward the bounty office ahead. “Think they’ll be impressed with us?”
“They’ll be impressed with you,” she corrects, her voice low enough that only I can hear. “Rember, I’m just a silent bodyguard.”
The plan is simple enough. I’m the face of our operation, the one who builds a na for himself in the bounty hunting community. Vae stays in the shadows, my secret weapon, my ace in the hole. My terrifyingly lethal Sith lover who can snap necks with her mind.
Sothing about the arrangent makes feel reckless. I reach for her hand, my fingers finding hers in the folds of her robe. She gives a tight, loving squeeze before imdiately letting go.
“We can’t draw attention to ,” she whispers, pulling her hand back beneath her cloak.
I feign offense, exaggerating my wounded expression. “Oh, I get it. My Sith girlfriend doesn’t like PDA.”
The change is imdiate and terrifying. Those red eyes flash yellow beneath her hood, her entire body tensing like a coiled spring. Before I can blink, her hand shoots out, grabbing my arm with bruising force. She shoves sideways into a narrow alleyway between two storefronts, my back hitting the tal wall with enough impact to knock the wind from my lungs.
The bag with Dreeg’s head drops to the ground with a wet thud as Vae crowds into my space, her face inches from mine. The hood falls back just enough for to see her expression clearly, pure, concentrated fury.
“You think I’m afraid of public affection?” she hisses, her voice vibrating with barely contained rage. Her hands press against the wall on either side of my head, caging in. “Is that what you think this is?”
“Whoa, Vae, I was just…” I try to explain, but she cuts off before I can finish.
“No!” she snaps, her eyes blazing with an intensity that makes my heart stutter. “I’m afraid of losing you!”
The raw emotion in her voice catches off guard. Her fingers dig into the wall beside my head, leaving indentations in the tal. This isn’t just anger, it’s fear, pure and primal.
“Calm down,” I say, softening my tone as I reach up to touch her face. “I was just joking. I know you love .”
Sothing shifts in her expression, the yellow receding from her eyes as they return to their natural red.
Without warning, she surges forward, capturing my lips in a kiss so deep and possessive it steals the breath from my lungs. Her body presses against mine, pinning to the wall as her mouth claims mine with desperate intensity. I taste sothing tallic, blood from where her teeth have caught my lower lip, but I don’t care. My hands find her waist, pulling her closer as I return the kiss with equal fervor.
When she finally pulls back, we’re both breathing hard, her forehead resting against mine.
“Don’t joke about that,” she whispers, her voice uncharacteristically shaky. “Not here. Not where anyone could be listening.”
I nod, suddenly understanding the gravity of our situation. We’re not hiding a relationship, we’re hiding her very existence. If the wrong person overheard casually ntioning my “Sith girlfriend,” it would be very bad for us.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper honestly. “I wasn’t thinking.”
She steps back, straightening her robes and pulling her hood forward to conceal her features once more. I bend down to retrieve the dripping bag, grimacing at the dark stain it’s left on the alley floor.
We erge from the alley and continue toward the bounty office, a utilitarian structure with reinforced doors. As we approach, I notice the crowd thickening, all manner of hardened killers congregating in one place, comparing scars and stories.
The bounty office lobby is packed with so of the most dangerous-looking individuals I’ve ever seen. Scarred rcenaries, battle-worn veterans, and cold-eyed assassins fill every corner of the space. The air reeks of sweat, blood, and ozone from discharged weapons.
I scan the room, trying not to stare too obviously at the seven-foot Trandoshan whose scales bear the marks of what must be hundreds of battles.
Near the submission counter, an Iktotchi woman with downward-curving horns is engaged in animated conversation with a blue-skinned Twi’lek male. Her voice carries across the room as I navigate through the crowd, Vae silent as a shadow behind .
“No, no,” the Iktotchi insists, her hands gesturing emphatically. “I swear on the Force and my mother’s grave, Jedi won absolutely love it when n pee inside of them. They like to fill their wombs to the brim with piss. It’s insane.”
‘What the fuck?’
I try to walk past the bizarre conversation, but it’s hard to hear that and let it go.
“Really? That’s what Jedi won are into?” The Twi’lek man asks, leaning forward with morbid fascination.
The Iktotchi woman nods enthusiastically, her downward-curving horns bobbing with each movent. “Oh yes! My sister’s a Jedi... Well, I think she is. She tells all the ti she’s just constantly getting her womb filled up like a water tank!” She mis an expanding belly with her hands.
Sothing about this conversation feels so wrong that I can’t help myself. I turn to Vae and whisper, “Is that actually true about Jedi won?”
Vae’s hood shifts slightly as she leans closer to , her voice a dangerous hiss against my ear. “Are you seriously asking if Jedi won enjoy being urinated in?”
Heat rushes to my face as I realize how stupid my question was. “I... I just thought, with the Force and all...”
“Do I look like an expert on Jedi sexual preferences?” Her crimson eyes flash beneath her hood, a mixture of amusent and irritation. “They’re sanctimonious hypocrites who deny themselves pleasure in service of their precious code. I doubt they enjoy anything.”
“Right. Sorry,” I mutter, embarrassed that I even entertained the thought. “It just sounded so specific.”
Vae makes a sound that might be a suppressed laugh. “People make up the most ridiculous things about Force users. Last month, I overheard soone claiming Sith Lords have forked genitalia.”
I nearly choke. “Do they?”
“I don’t know. Who cares. Focus, Ty-Lar,” she growls, nodding toward the submission counter that’s just opened up. “We have business to attend to.”
I grip the dripping bag tighter and push through the crowd toward the counter. A bored-looking Duros with blue skin glances up from his terminal as I approach.
“Bounty submission?” he drones.
I set the bag on the counter with a wet thud that draws glances from nearby hunters. The Duros doesn’t even flinch.
The Duros opens the bag, peering inside at my grisly delivery. His bored expression cracks as a sudden laugh bursts from his thin blue lips.
“Well, looks like this one couldn’t get ahead in life,” he chuckles at his own joke, eyes crinkling at the corners.
“Alright,” I respond flatly, not sure if I should laugh or remain professional.
The Duros sighs, humor fading as quickly as it appeared. “Na?” he asks, stylus poised over his datapad.
“I’m Rax Orlen,” I answer, standing a bit straighter.
He rolls his large red eyes. “No, the bounty’s na.”
“Oh.” Heat rushes to my face. “Morvis Dreeg.”
His blue fingers dance across the datapad, scrolling through what must be a database of bounties. After finding what he’s looking for, he reaches into the bag and extracts Dreeg’s head, handling it with the casual indifference of soone who might as well be inspecting produce at a market.
The Duros produces a small scanner, aims it at one of Dreeg’s eyes, and waits for the confirming beep. The retinal scan complete, he nods with satisfaction and tosses the head back into the bag like discarded trash.
“Bounty verified,” he announces, reaching beneath the counter.
When his hand reappears, it’s holding a credit chip. He slides it across the counter, and I quickly pocket it before anyone else in this den of killers gets any ideas.
“Impressive for a first tir,” the Duros remarks, eyeing with slightly more interest now. “Most rookies bring in low-level thugs, not soone on Dreeg’s level.”
I try to keep my expression neutral. “Just doing my job.”
Behind , I feel Vae shift slightly, a subtle reminder of her presence. I know without looking that she’s pleased, I can almost feel her satisfaction radiating through her silent form.
“Well, your job is done,” the Duros says, already looking past to the next hunter in line. “Next!”
I push through the crowd, eager to get away from the stench of blood and bounty hunters. Vae follows close behind, a silent shadow in her black robes. The credit chip feels heavy in my pocket, a tangible reward for the lives we’ve taken. My first legitimate payday as a bounty hunter.
As we exit the bounty office, I catch Vae scanning the area, her eyes alert beneath her hood. Without warning, her hand clamps around my wrist and she tugs sideways, pulling into another deserted alleyway.
“What now?” I ask as she releases my arm, my back against the wall once again.
Vae pushes her hood back just enough for to see her smile, fierce and proud. “You did well,” she says, her voice low but brimming with satisfaction. “Your first official bounty collection. Soon they’ll know your na.”
The praise warms more than it should. “Thanks. So what’s our next move?”
She steps closer, dropping her voice even lower. “Now we need to find a slicer.”
I blink, the term familiar yet foreign. I have to rack my brain for a mont, searching through Rax’s mories rather than my own.
‘Oh, a hacker.’
“Do you know where we can get one?”
“Actually, I pawned one off on this station a few months ago. I doubt anyone’s bought her yet.”
“Her?” My brow furrows as I process Vae’s words. “Wait, she’s a slave?”
Vae’s lips curl back in a snarl, exposing her teeth in a predatory grimace. “Worse,” she spits, the word dripping with contempt. “She’s a droid.”
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