Barrel of a Gun

[Adia Issoris]

Do you mean this horrid creep
Set upon weary feet
Who looks in need of sleep
That doesn't come
This twisted, tortured mess
This place of sinfulness
Who's longing for some rest
And feeling numb

What do you expect of me
What is it you want?
Whatever you've planned for me
I'm not the one

A vicious appetite
It visits me each night
And won't be satisfied
Won't be denied
An unbearable pain
A beating in my brain
That leaves the mark of Cain
Right here inside

What am I supposed to do?
When everything that I've done
Is leading me to conclude
I'm not the one

Whatever I've done
I've been staring down the barrel of a gun
Whatever I've done
I've been staring down the barrel of a gun
Whatever I've done
I've been staring down the barrel of a gun

Is there something you need from me?
Are you having your fun?
I never agreed to be
Your Holy One

Whatever I've done
I've been staring down the barrel of a gun
Whatever I've done
I've been staring down the barrel of a gun
Whatever I've done
I've been staring down the barrel of a gun

Dantooine:
Although the flour transport explosion happened a mere two days ago, the street was still closed off to traffic. A speeder had run a light and damaged a flour transport. The impact had put large amounts of finely ground flour into the air, and the damaged speeder ignited the mixture, making a fuel air bomb. This had happened before. It wasn’t unheard of. It happened every twenty years or so someone would hit a flour truck and the mix would be right.

Adia stood at the scorched spot where the transport’s container had exploded. She had “permission” from the locals to investigate the site, but her Imperial Security Bureau uniform (although technically an ImpIntel agent, she had rank with ISB too) and rank meant she did whatever she pleased. The local police force had been given to swallowing a lot, terrified that they had missed something. They had, but it wasn’t their fault.

She looked down at the blackend tarmac, datapad in hand. It still smelled of the explosion. She examined the pictures of the twisted container on the pad while she walked the perimeter of where the container’s structure would have mushroomed out, as indicated by the cracked roadway. Adia reached down, running a finger briefly along the crack before standing back up.

Adia still wasn’t quite sure of what she was doing besides playing a hunch. According to a local newsnet, a young woman had performed exceptional heroics. That wasn’t unheard of either, except there were a few quotes from witnesses that described superhuman feats. In times of stress people tend to exaggerate details. But she had interviewed a few eye witnesses that seemed to be quite sure of what they saw. She had stopped at the news agency and confiscated whatever images they had. The Hand didn’t want any potential new heroines for the Empire to fight, so if this young woman didn’t exist. It was bad enough when Princess Leia Organa died on Endor and the Rebels sent her, Skywalker, Solo and his Wookie into the stuff of legends.

Intel had a moto about this sort of situation: Keep it quiet, keep it uncomplicated and keep them dead before earning fame. She ordered tea, and set to look at some of the photos a local with a camera took minutes after, and hadn’t been circulated at all. It was unsurprisingly chaotic. Adia sipped at the tea, going through the sixty images, one by one. About a quarter were too blurry to be of use, but the others had enough focus to make out people. On the second pass, she noted the repeating figures. The Hand got another cup of tea halfway through the third pass. Flowing brown hair and calm eyes, she was the eye of the storm. This young woman was a dot of calm in a violent scene, but with the most intensity directly around her. She’d seen that sort of calm and focus, in the Clone Wars. Adia frowned. She was far too young. Even if the Jedi could be exceptionally long lived, they tended to hit maturity in a timely manner. But the calm was unmistakable. Adia sorted the images again, the ones without the woman into a separate file, to be returned to the local newsnet.

Adia got the best image of her she could, cropped it, ran it through a sharpening and noise reduction filter, and set it separately. The woman looked familiar to the Hand, but could not place it. She showed the image around to the shop owners on the block, and a few had seen her, but it wasn’t until she hit the spaceport that there was any luck.

A ticket to Bakura, and was unusually worried.

“You don’t forget a face like that.” said the young ticket clerk. He was nervous despite Adia’s casual demeanor, but still helpful. No, indeed you did not, but why was she having trouble placing the familiarity? She stopped worrying about it, thanked the young man for his time, boarded her Lambda class shuttle, and burned hard for space.

[Lianna Mal Pannis]

Bakura

Many kilometers outside the Telaan settlement, deep within the lush forests of Bakura, a lone Jedi Knight made camp on the outskirts of the West River. It was the best possible place to lay low for a while until the commotion she caused on Dantooine blew over.

That was twice she let the general public wonder if she was a Jedi or not. First when she and Fig helped a poor family out of a terrible local situation. That was mostly Fig's fancy display, but she was just as guilty wielding her lightsaber as well. After their long discussion, they had both decided that staying on Dantooine was no longer an option. They were to split up and meet on Kothlis.

Unfortunately, all hell broke loose at the spaceport. She could not sit by and watch innocents be harmed by the traffic accident. The Jedi did all she could to get pedestrians away from the fire and calm them as best she could. There wasn't much she could do for their wounds but alleviated their pain until a medical team could be dispatched. Yet, the damage was done. If she went to the rendezvous point, she would put Fig in danger. That could not be allowed. The next best option was boarding the transport heading to Bakura. It was far out in the Rim, hardly worth noting, and she could get lost within the forest for months if required.

Fig would understand. The Force would guide him to understand and they would meet again.

For now, all she could do was wait for the proper time to come out of hiding. It was the same old song and dance that she learned since she was old enough to walk.

With her mediations complete, she stood and stretched. It was almost lunchtime. She would need to check on the fishing lures that were set in place to see if she had caught anything. If not, thankfully she had chosen to hide in the namana fruit capital of the galaxy. She would never starve.

Slipping on her tattered and patchworked robes, Lianna disappeared into the forest.

[Adia Issoris]

Salis D’aar was Bakura’s largest spaceport, and the one best equipped for passenger traffic. Adia set her shuttle on a private pad used for light freighters after being cleared as an independent Imperial Contractor, or a bounty hunter. She wore a simple outfit of a blaster on her hip, a well worn light brown coat, a grey fitted t-shirt, and brown pants in a common style used by most frequent spacefarers and scoundrels. She hid a lightsaber and a stunner in the jacket.

Her target had started out on Dantooine. She wasn’t too likely to stay in the city, if logic applied. She had rushed away from Dantooine, and her intervention during the flour transport had been unusually sloppy. Her overwhelming desire to help had become her personal danger. Adia started her search at the airport, and managed to find one of the flight attendants before they boarded the return flight to Dantooine. She noted that “Jessa Solvan” seemed to be in a hurry to get out of the airport and had been talking extensively to the rental speeder agents. Adia was polite, and after two conversations about the brown eyed, long haired young woman and her lack of credits, the Hand turned her attention to someone who might be willing to exchange time and energy for a speeder. Adia had credits to spare, so she rented something fast, and left the spaceport with a repulsor-scream.

She had started in the early morning, and it was late afternoon. Adia had heard the same story almost 20 times: “Jesse” wanted to do some work in exchange for a speeder rental. The Hand was starting to get into the interspersed city and forest. The buildings were looking less metropolitan, although some looked very solid and serviceable. She pulled off to “Grasso’s Rentals: Speeders and Equipment for Hire.” The place had seen better days, but was still serviceable. The equipment, too, was worn but working. Nothing looked like it was going to collapse on the spot, and everything looked functional.

Adia opened the door, and was surprised at how clean and organized the interior was. An older woman sat behind the counter, looking at a travel magazine.

“Can I help you?” Kara Grasso said.
“I hope so. Have you seen this woman?” Adia held up the datapad and handed it across the counter.
“Yes.” Grasso said with a smile, and handed back the pad. “She was here two days ago, looking for a speeder to rent. Said her name was Kayna. She didn’t have any credits, but this place was in dire need of a good scrub. Kayna really went above and beyond. Not too many people work hard like her these days. Is she in trouble?”

Adia nodded slowly.

“She’s a very good card shark. Got caught with a skifter in my employer’s casino and ran away with 30 grand.”
“Oh sithspit.”
“I’ll try and get your speeder back. Do you know which way she was going?”
“She didn’t say but did head for the Telaan valley.”

“I had better get going then. Thank you for your help.”

Adia drove on as night fell, deeper into the forested valley. She stopped at every shop until she hit a closed one, not too long after sun set. The Hand looked at her wrist chrono, which was in sync to local time. Most of these places were there for people who worked in or visited the forest, so they would be open an hour before dawn. Adia ate a ration and a half, set her chrono alarm an hour before dawn, and fell asleep in the back of the speeder.

She woke just before the alarm went off, and got on her way. About halfway into the valley, she cruised into the small town Telaan, and started her routine again. One of the outdoors shops was a big help, said Kayna bought some fishing hooks and asked about where to fish.

Adia bought a local terrain map, marked off the places mentioned, and started her search grid after devouring the rest of her ration. She put her travel pack together and set off into the woods. The Hand only stopped occasionally to grab some of the wild namana to eat on the go while she explored the river system at a fast jog, leaning on her near-limitless endurance. Night fell, and she did not slow. She could see as well in the darkness as she could in the daylight.

[Lianna Mal Pannis]

A surprising great catch today. Much better then the previous week, as Derrin had warned her about. He said that spawning season was right around the corner. Who would have thought to take that advice literally?

Five fish would feed her for the next couple of days. This would allow her more time for meditation and a chance to go deeper into the woods and map out unfamiliar areas. That map was inside her head. Drin had taught her to remember all your surroundings mentally because if you ever lost that map, how would you get around? The Force would always be with you; a map however, would not.

She looked skywards and realized that there was an hour before sunset. It would almost take that amount of time to get back to her camp, and it would be much easier to skin and gut the fish by the light of the campfire then by moonlight, not that she couldn't do it

With the line made from leaves and overhanging vines, Lianna meticulously tied her catch together and slung it over her shoulder. She pocketed the rest of the fishing hooks that were not used inside her cloak and started marching towards her 'home' without a sound.

Her camp was meager. There were barely signs that life lived in the area that wasn't native. The blanket she had blended into the foliage well, easily hidden within the grass and bush. A small pit was dug for the fire and after disuse; she'd always cover the embers and charred remains of wood and twig, only to be dug up again the next day. The larger leaves of the Coupilla tree provided a basic shelter when the weather called for rain and again, blended well into the area when not in use. She was mindful of tracks and of disturbing the area around her, but even a Jedi could only do so much. If someone wanted to find her, they would, but she hoped that her swift retreat avoided any confrontations.

She was only several kilometers away when the familiar dark pit swelled within her stomach that warned her of danger. The Jedi dropped her fish and backtracked her steps. Once she was half way to the river again, Lianna circled around towards her camp, pulling the hood overhead. It would take her much longer to reach it, but she would have the cover of night and perhaps find a way to surprise whomever was the uninvited guest.

[Adia Issoris]

“Kayna/Jesse” had been following an animal trail. She hadn’t been too paranoid, so water crossings didn’t complicate matters. The occasional footprint or twig snapped too high let Adia know she was still on the correct trail. Unsure of the distance she would need to cover, Adia stopped for a few hours mid-day and slept crossed-legged against a tree. When she woke, her head was canted slightly to the left, the direction of the trail ahead.

Night fell. The young woman had wound herself deep into the forest. It was obviously her intention that she not be found, and that she had a solid idea of what she was doing. She was worried about someone following her, but not paranoid about it, Adia decided. She had stalked Jedi before, and it wasn’t unusual for them to know you were coming. The Hand drew her blaster, knowing full well she probably would not end up using it. Still, it was an excellent ruse and a way to gain an edge through underestimation.

Adia looked at the ground and the multitude of footprints. She had found the camp. The dirt in the fire pit was too smooth and fresh. Adia looked around, since the Jedi was not immediately visible. They were damnably good at hide and seek. Her fully dilated eyes flicked about while she crept about carefully. The shape of a branch looked wrong. It was too thick, but she did not stare at it or even linger longer than anywhere else. She pretended to keep looking for another minute, and then suddenly turned and lit up the night with a trio of blaster bolts.

[Lianna Mal Pannis]

Lianna was a safe distance away, hidden well up into the treetops to get a good visual on the intruder. The night shrouded her presence, as did the shadows from the outlying branches. Her still form was the branch. As her Master Drin had taught, sometimes the best way to hide was in plain sight.

Then everything went to hell. Her Hunter was no mere sentient. The Force was with this woman. She was strong and adept but the flicker of power she felt being used to sense her was unfocused. There was no central emotion behind it. Just a simple purpose to find and hunt down Lianna.

And ... a strange curiosity.

That was when the barrage of blaster fire lit up the darkness, splintering wood in its wake, and allowing the Hunter to see the outline of her form darting towards the ground in safety. The barely audible flapping of her cloak was heard before everything fell silent once more. Seconds ticked away and Lianna was faced with a dilemma. She had yet to go against a Force sensitive Hunter, which meant going against the Empire. Either to be killed or captured for whatever reasons the Emperor had. She could try and out run her, the forest was always a second home to the Jedi and Lianna felt confident that course of action was possible.

But that didn't feel like the right course of action. Her instincts were telling her to not run, but to confront this woman. She did not understand the reasoning, but the Force was guiding her hand.

The gun from the Hunter's hand was torn away violently as Lianna leapt from her hiding spot behind the brush. The violet lightsaber illuminated the area with a surreal haze as the Jedi came in on the offensive. There was no telling what the capabilities of this woman were besides her extraordinary senses and tracking ability.

Regardless, she would not be an easy target and learn what powers the Hunter possessed the hard way. That would be to die foolishly.

[Adia Issoris]

Adia ducked beneath the saber as it hummed overhead and backflipped away. She freed her other blaster from its holster in her jacket as she landed and forced Lianna to the defensive with a pair of blaster bolts, deflected skyward. She had a natural speed advantage, but that went out the window when handling a Jedi. The Hand continued her retreat, using her blaster to slow Lianna while she leapt onto a lower lying tree branch and continued up the tree another four meters with a fluid show of acrobatics mixed with stunning marksmanship.

“You hid well underneath a veil of cruelty, Miranda, and your master must have hidden themselves even better.” She narrowed her eyes as she spoke. Who and how had the girl been trained, in such plain sight no less? Had the Emperor and Vader been that blind, or had her master been that clever? She looked identical to Miranda but her body language was completely different. With practice, this sort of deception was possible. There had always been a power to the Tarkin girl, but it had always seemed aggressive and dark.

[Lianna Mal Pannis]

The woman had paused in pursuit, going for the high ground instead of attacking. Which confused the Jedi, but she wasn't the only one feeling as such. The Hunter was just as confused, if not more so, when her eyes fell upon Lianna. A sharp sting of betrayal was felt. Had she harmed this woman in the past? Lianna did not recollect her at all.

“You hid well underneath a veil of cruelty, Miranda, and your master must have hidden themselves even better.”

Lianna narrowed her eyes in thought and did not advance. Her guard was still up, wondering if this was some sort of trick, although trickery was not sensed. One could never tell with the Force Sensitive. This woman did well to hide her emotions but she clearly felt as if she knew Lianna.

"I fear you have mistaken me for someone else, Huntress. I do not know of this Miranda you speak of." She jumped backwards, deftly flipping into the air to further the distance between them. "My name's Lianna."

It was not terribly wise to give out her real name, but in this instance, the Jedi felt it was warranted.

[Adia Issoris]

Adia hissed between her teeth. She was telling the truth. At least it would make things less complicated when she cleaved the woman in two. There would be no explaining of how she had killed Tarkin’s granddaughter in the name of the Emperor.

But there wasn’t an Emperor now, and she no longer reported to any authority but her own. The Hand felt a cold wave of control run through her. She holstered the blaster and drew her own lightsaber, a yellow blade. It had belonged to a Jedi Knight she had disintegrated long ago, but it was her weapon now, familiar and comforting in its tested lethality. The Hand dropped from her branch, closing the distance between them, but not close enough to duel. Her stance was offensive but flexible. She could initiate any number or attacks.

“I will know all there is to know of you and your Master, Lianna.” A cruel smile crept across her face. There was no need to have Jedi run around and meddle in the affairs of the galaxy.

[Lianna Mal Pannis]

Something was amiss. Though the Hunter believed her, Lianna felt lingering doubt.

"Out of duty or curiosity?" She dropped down to the ground, poised on the defensive. The moonlight was un-obscured as a cloud finished passing by, allowing her opponent to see her features clearly. The hair style was different, softer in cut and less severe, and the eyes were mirrored pools of chocolate brown that she was familiar with. Intelligence and confidence shined but without all the arrogance.

"Why are you conflicted?" Lianna spoke out of childlike earnest.

[Adia Issoris]

She attacked, beating Lianna’s saber aside. The Jedi twisted, and The Hand missed the crippling blow by a fraction of an inch.

“Conflicted?” The Hand asked rhetorically as she deflected Lianna’s counter attack.

“The Jedi muck up the galaxy and complicate things. I ensure there are no complications.” The words felt familiar, like one’s own mattress as she traded blows with the Tarkin twin. She was faster and better practiced in combat, making up for her comparative lack of prescience. The Hand deflected Lianna’s saber up and planted a boot into her stomach. She could hear the air leave the Jedi’s lungs as her body hit the ground three meters away.

“If you tell me where your Master is, I can make this painless.” Adia stated coldly, but it was true.

[Lianna Mal Pannis]

She didn't know where her Master was, but Lianna wasn't going to be divulging that information. Nor would she be explaining the popular theory that Drin was killed by Vader's hand.

Lianna rolled backwards onto her feet, "The words you speak are not your own."

She used the power of her thigh muscles, the Force aiding her strength, to leap forward and close the gap. The woman easily parried her attack, already prepared for the maneuver. They exchanged a flurry of attacks until Lianna locked up the yellow blade, forcing their eyes to meet. "You speak the words of training. Not of conviction."

It was a test of strength now to see who would get the upper hand in the duel. She had to stay focus and not question who Miranda was. The Jedi felt that topic was a distraction and heading down that path would lead to panic and fear. Her curiosity needed to be contained until she had the Hunter beaten.

[Adia Issoris]

Adia had never bothered to form her own opinion. She had been the loyal Hand of the Emperor. She exacted his will, and before that, the will of the Caminoans to train ARC Troopers and Clone Commandos. There had only a brief moment of passion during the few months after the Clone Wars. That was before she became his tool, driven by his will. For the first time since Palpatine had died, Adia’s doubt grew from distant to nagging. After Order 66, she had been indoctrinated in the Empire’s propaganda without considering what it meant.

The sabers crackled while The Hand continued her internal deliberation. With a burst of strength, Adia overwhelmed Lianna. She hesitated, unsure of herself. The Emperor had been infallible. Until he died by his own pupil’s hand…

Adia suddenly found her weapon knocked aside, and the violet blade at her throat. This was a new experience for Adia. She had never been bested in hand to hand combat before. Only the finest of ARC Troopers had been her equal, once. Her green eyes were wide open. For the second time in her life, she was terrified that she might die. Adia tilted her head back a little, away from the saber. Her nostriled flared and her hands shook.

[Lianna Mal Pannis]

The Jedi could end it all with a small flick of the wrist and kill the woman. Lianna would no longer have to be concerned with this Hunter coming after her and finding out about Drin.

She stayed her hand and narrowed her eyes. It was difficult to discern what the Jedi's intent could be. Internally, she debated on the correct course of action but there was little time to decide. After two more seconds ticked away, Lianna backed away and disengaged her weapon.

No. It was not time for this woman to die.

"There is a connection between us with lingering questions. We both know it. However," she tossed her lightsaber away, "if your heart truly feels that my death will ensure peace, I shall not stop you."

This was quite a gamble, but Lianna felt the conflict from before growing in intensity. She just needed this woman to realize that there were choices. Nothing was as black and white as the Empire had made the galaxy out to be. There just needed to be some spark of free will to tip the redheaded Huntress over the edge.

[Adia Issoris]

Kill the Jedi. She felt her fingers tighten around her lightsaber’s hilt. The tip of the blade was at Lianna’s neck in a flash. The Hand grinned wickedly. She had made a mistake. But would killing her or digging the information out of her skull of her Master’s whereabouts make an ounce of difference for the good of the galaxy? She had seen things that made her know that the Empire was not always noble, or true. Was the Jedi’s betrayal of the Senate another lie? She had lied to find Lianna.

Adia let go of the weapon. It deactivated as it fell to the ground. She suddenly felt lonely as certainty abandoned her completely. No tears would come, no matter how desperately she wanted to cry.

[Lianna Mal Pannis]

Lianna did not flinch when the yellow blade threatened her neck. Her eyes bore down the weapon's length and right into the Hunter's eyes. The menacing grin that greeted her was fake.

The tables had turned, but the outcome was the same. The Hunter didn't have it in her heart to kill Lianna. The doubts that the Jedi felt were a culmination of the last few years. Mistaking Lianna for this Miranda, had cemented her feelings that she didn't belong with the Empire.

Still, there was a piece missing that kept Lianna from understanding why this woman was so devastated remained silent. She didn't wish to patronize the woman with 'I'm sorry' and 'You're not alone'. There was so much Lianna didn't understand and needed to be patient, allowing the woman to collect her thoughts.

[Adia Issoris]

“Do you know how many of your Order I hunted or helped hunt? Over a dozen. And each time, it felt not only necessary, but good.” She felt ashamed, and that she had been played for a fool. The yellow lightsaber lept to her hand. With an anguished cry, she hurled it away. The weapon disappeared into the woods with a crash and a rustle.

“I have a son that I’ve seen once, and… and…” she collapsed to her knees.

[Lianna Mal Pannis]

Lianna slowly went down to one knee before the Hunter. With care, she placed a hand upon the woman's shoulder and looked at her with sadness. Being separated from her family was something she knew all too well.

"The galaxy is vast, with endless possibilities. It's never too late to find the things lost to us." With regards to the Jedi that were killed by this woman's hands, it was the past. The future was all that mattered and Lianna's tone conveyed this.

[Adia Issoris]

Adia shook her head. "I know where your family is, and father was, and your sister and mother. I, I grew from a vat to be trained and demonstrated on how swiftly and smartly I could kill, how durable I was." She shuddered, remembering the things she had helped destroy in the secret facility.

"I am a monster."

[Lianna Mal Pannis]

She blinked, "Sister?"

Lianna hadn't meant to say that out loud and interrupt the Hunter. Her feelings were secondary here and she allowed emotion to slip through.

She lowered her head apologetically, "I'm sorry."