Pilot for Hire

[Tanya Melvedin]

It was a bad idea to take the last job, and it was an even worse idea to stop by Nar Shaddaa.

At first sight it looked like the run of the mill cargo escorting job. She expected to fight off a couple of pirates, raiders or whatever else wanted to be a pain in the ass for a trading ship. But she should have suspected the ammount of credits and the fact that a trader would hire someone of her caliber just for the average trade. They were expecting trouble, they had to, which begs the question as to why they didn't inform her.

What tipped it off wasn't the unreasonable ammount of pirates throwing themselves at the mercenaries. It was one particular ship that caught her attention. A custom freighter that she has seem before, the ship of a bounty hunter no doubt, making her question if he was after one of the mercenaries or someone on the trading ship itself, maybe he was after her. Either way the Bounty Hunter did not conclude their mission as she sent him running to dark space.

Despite the setbacks the mission was a success. She got the cargo to the designated world and collected her payment and a little extra to repair her starfighter. Too bad there wasn't any spare parts on the backwater world that she was left in. Well, there was spare parts but not for her customized X-wing that took critical damage during the fighting. Her astromerch droid went haywire halfway into the fight and the hyperdrive suffered some drive and she had to jury rig the life support systems into holding up at least till she jumped to another world, And Nar Shaddaa was the closest one.

The first thing she did on the smuggler's moon was to get started on the repairs, she wanted to be out of here as soon as possible while she still has her credits and ship. A few of the locals has sought to hire her as she built something of a reputation as a pilot and a mercenary. She could have gone far on the Empire or the Alliance, maybe even working as a smuggler. But Tanya preferred to stay neutral and work exclusively with traders. Aside from the benefits of not picking a side or keeping a good reputation, the Empire, Siths, Alliance and others are booming with good pilots left and right, while the little guy has to hire anyone that knows how to barely leave the hangar.

It certainly doesn't stop others from trying to bring her to their side or offer to smuggle something offworld or a bounty hunter looking for a skilled pilot. She has turned away 3 of them today. And by the looks of it she might make it 4. Tanya got out of the cockpit with her repair tool on her left hand, she lifted her visor and wiped the sweat off of her forehead, dressing a black and red pilot suit. She on a hangar repairing her X-wing. Her right hand went towards the blaster on her hip as she wanders who is it this time.

[Professor Mors]

“Awfully bold to fly an Incom craft in this sector of space”, a gravelly voice called out through the shifting shadows of the maintenance hangar, “Most alliance agents know better than to travel here so conspicuously”. A tall shape slowly crept forward beneath a jungle of swinging and sparking lanterns, and the voice continued, “I can imagine any number of bounties on an alliance pilot, be they of Empire or Hutt origin”. Finally, the speaker came to rest beside a large power coil, its pulsing crimson rays traveling up and down their lithe frame. The cascading blur of lights revealed a cowled cloak, punctuated by plates of gnarled, off-white armor.

The sharp claws of a studded gauntlet tapped casually against the apex of the coil, and in the dim exterior of the docking bay, yellow eyes eventually made contact with Tanya from behind a pale mask. “So then”, the hooded visitor concluded in a soft tone, “You must be either very brave, or very ill-informed”. Even from a distance, the young woman would have no trouble catching the stranger’s lips as they tightened into a flat smile, “I’m willing to bet on the former, judging by the condition of your ship”. Not wanting to arouse suspicion, the man took two steps forward at a snail's pace, before getting to the point, “I have work for someone with your sort of courage”.