With no new customer in sight and no ongoing job, Kai had decided to spend the day at the ship docks instead of in the confined quarters of her shop. Hopping off a transport, she reached inside her duffle bag and grabbed one of the brownie balls she had bought on the way. Sweet, nutty and crunchy, just what she needed to start the day. Reaching dock number B5-7081 where she spent most of her spare time, she finished licking the few last crumbs off her fingers and got to work. Kai had started building her starship several years ago from old parts she’d picked out in the lower-level scrap yards and by energetically bargaining with peddlers for their best deals. The well-earned parts would usually go through a few upgrades before being fitted together. It was taking her longer then she would have liked but the ship was starting to be in pretty decent shape.
   Modelled as a light freighter, it had enough room to accommodate extra power and fuel without being too bulky to hinder manoeuvrability. Although it may not have looked like much from the outside, Kai had made several unique enhancements that more then made up for its rugged appearance. She’d gone out into space for a few test runs but never very far. Just a few more adjustments and she would finally be leaving Coruscant to venture to other planets and systems, exploring the wonders of the galaxy and testing her skills as a mechanic in all kinds of different markets. Just a little longer.
   Kai was crouched under the ship adjusting an armour plate when she felt the ground shake, followed by several large blasts. She stumbled out from under the ship to see black smoke rising from one of the buildings in the business district, less than ten blocks away.
   “I guess this means I owe old Prav an apology,” she said to herself, and before she could gather her thoughts, the ground shook again as a multitude of explosions swept across the city, until she was looking at five clouds of black smoke rising up towards the sky.
   
   Elis was walking behind the man who had saved him in silence. After crashing into a window of the building opposite EEGT headquarters, the two of them had made their way down to the bustling streets. Most people had stopped to witness the destruction and were now staring at what was left and at the medical airspeeders that were attempting to send in rescue squads. Elis didn’t look up, he just walked.
   As they made their way through the streets, the stranger was on alert, looking up and around them as if he feared they were being followed. They were both covered in dust and debris from head to toe, which wasn’t helping them blend in. The stranger was fit and agile, leading them ahead with his chest forward. His square face and strong jawline accentuated his determination. They continued walking until a sudden heaviness started to take hold of Elis and he felt like he was going to drop. Stopping, he asked, “Where are we going?”
   “Keep moving,” the stranger urged, walking back towards Elis and attempting to grab him. Elis moved his arm away and took a step back before glancing up at the surrounding buildings. After a moment, he looked back at the other with an empty stare. “I don’t live around here.” He paused. “I need to lie down. I’m going home.” Elis started to turn around.
   “Don’t even think about it,” the stranger shot, this time not giving Elis the chance to step away, grabbing him by the shoulders and starting back towards where they were heading. “It’s not safe here.”
   Elis suddenly jerked his arms up and pushed away, managing to get free, a sudden rush of panic flowing through him. “Who are you anyway?” he shouted, suddenly very aware of Temo’s blood on him, which was completely cold and had started to dry.
   “Look, we need to get off planet, at least for now,” the stranger said before pausing, as if giving him a chance to calm down. Elis continued to stare at the other in fear and confusion.
   “I do, well did I guess, a few jobs for EEGT. My name’s Brin,” he offered, with little success in terms of convincing Elis to keep moving. With an irritated look, Brin leaned in and added, “what’s so damn important that you need to stay here for?”
   Elis started to recover some control. Brin had a point. What was he going to do here? What could he do? Visit survivors that had been taken to the medcenter, that was an idea. An image of his colleagues trapped and screaming flashed in front of him and he froze. What if he ran into someone he’d left behind? He suddenly felt very sick and the unyielding ringing in his ears intensified. Brin was still looking at him, seemingly still waiting for an answer.
   “Let’s go,” Elis said in an unstable voice. The other nodded and they resumed their course.

   Kai was standing in front of her ship staring at the clouds of smoke. The galaxy had experienced relative peace since the defeat of the New Empire. There were always a few disagreements here and there, and crime was far from ever being eradicated from the galaxy, but there hadn’t been a full on galactic war in decades. Not that war wasn’t still raging on a few planets as would probably always be the case. Five exploding buildings probably didn’t mean a galactic war, but it did mean trouble.
   Grabbing the holocaster from her belt and activating it, she scanned the few pieces of news that had already been broadcasted on the HoloNet, none of them revealing much more than what she had already witnessed. Prav would probably have a better idea of what was going on. She started walking when she realised that the tools she’s been using to fix the armour plate were still in her hand. First she’d make sure the plate was secure, and then she’d have a talk with Prav. She hunched back under the ship to quickly get it done.

   Brin looked at his companion who was crouching beside him behind a couple of staked metal crates. “You ready?” he asked.
   “I think so,” answered Elis in a weak voice before asking, “why can’t we just rent a ship?”
   Brin tightened his lips, holding back anger that had slowly been building up after each additional question.

    “Because we don’t want to leave a trail in case someone is on the lookout to finish what they started,” Brin explained as calmly as he could.
   “Right,” Elis said, taking a deep breath. “Why are we picking a ship that’s being repaired?”
   “It’s a hull fix. It’s trivial,” Brin snapped. “Nothing that would prevent us from flying.” That seemed to cut Elis short.
   Brin risked a glance behind the crates towards the ship he had chosen to snatch for their trip off planet. It didn’t look in terribly good shape, that was sure, which meant that the ship’s owner would probably not have the means to trace it or go after them. Besides, all the other ships in the area either had security details or were locked-up tight. This ship’s owner, or mechanic, had left the boarding ramp open and was busy with the lower hull.
   Brin turned back to Elis. “Now.”
 

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