“There, against the furthest corner of the bar, the right side.”
Colyn Skybender nodded his head towards the direction of a lone Twi’lek who was teal in complexion. Beside him in the misty and heated cantina was one of the Loyalist leaders, Galleros Sjl. The Zelosian clasped his warm hands onto an ice-cold glass of Bespian port and peered off into that direction through the fair fabric of his dark hood. The girl stared into her full glass with hollow eyes, yet her hand kept twisting and rotating the glass counter-clockwise on the bar. Her elbow propped onto the flat surface and her hand loosely curled with her calloused knuckles resting onto her cheek. Although it seemed logical to Sjl, he couldn’t fathom who would be an enemy of the slender Twi’lek. Her entire composure to him felt serene, relaxed and partial to comfort.
Skybender prodded his elbow into Sjl’s rib in order to catch his attention and the Zelosian locked eyes with a case of credits in the soldier’s hands.
“Go over there and buy her a drink.”
“But--she has one.”
Tusken, in all his years of service and time spent in military cantinas, had never met such an uninformed man. He clasped his rough hand onto his leathery chin then rubbed his mouth in disbelief. He shook his head a little and then glanced back at the Zelosian in a serious manner.
“That’s the point, you are supposed to show you care and want to know her.” Tusken whispered against Sjl’s hood.
Sjl, with the expression of a patient dog, kept his gaze at the soldier and furrowed his brow.
“What is wrong with just putting a sack on her head and knocking her out?”
“Because she might have friends in this cantina,”
“So we’ll kill them too. Have you done this before?”
Tusken planted his forehead onto the desk and grumbled to himself. If he could be stuck with anyone on a mission, the soldier would refuse to be stuck with Sjl. A swift push of his hand with the credits in, he moved Sjl from the table and slipped the credits into his open hand.
“Just buy her a drink, please? Try to act empathetic and supporting to her ‘loss’ whatever it is, understand?”
The Priest nodded slowly, still in a haze of confusion with this game, and slowly walked in the Twi’lek’s direction. As Sjl walked up to the bar, he caught the glance of other Twi’leks sitting at the tables. Their hands showing the same light teal, others with a lime colour and his eyes met with one violet Twi’lek, who gave him a deathly glare before returning to the middle-aged human she was sat on. As he walked closer to the Twi’lek who sat alone, a trio of Bothans slowly walked towards him and left a gap small enough for him to slide through. Their hips were armed with twin blasters, and their eyes gave the same ice cold glare as the Twi’leks before. Ignoring the general dislike he is receiving, Sjl eventually reaches the female Twi’lek and tosses the case of credits towards the Corellian barkeep.
“For the tab of this young Twi’lek, she can drink on me.” Her gaze slowly rotated to meet with the soft voice that it originated, and she furrowed her brow in confusion. Sjl sat next to her, then tapped the bar for the same drink as her and looked back at the Twi’lek.
“Who on this god-forsaken dust bowl are you?”
Sjl smiled softly and reached for his drink, took a sip and sighed with delight.
“A friend, good age on that. I like it. What’s your name, droopy?”
“Droopy!?” Her nostrils began to flare as her grip tightened on the glass, her glare not leaving the Zelosian’s direction.
“I was expecting something Kat’lek, but I guess Droopy is nice too.”
The Twi’lek decided he was not worth her fury and slouched over the bar once more, this time she placed both of her hands over the glass.
“Rhiaen, and yours?”
“Call me Gal, everyone else does.” Sjl smirked softly at Rhiaen, then sipped the drink and looked back over to Tusken who waited in anticipation.
“Why does everyone call you Gal?” Her vision returned to her glass as her hollow gaze once again returned.
“It’s shortened from my original name, obivously. Distracted, are we?”
She gave a sigh and slowly traced her thin index finger across the rim of the glass.
“I’m starting to question whether this was all worth it.”
“Explain, Rhiaen.”
She gave the cantina a good assessment and observation, then quickly stood from her stool. To which, Sjl quickly followed suit.
“Not here, open ears. I can show you round the back.”
Sjl nodded in confirmation and Rhiaen led him out. Shortly before he left, Sjl nodded towards Tusken who promptly stood and slowly tracked them out. The Twi’lek softly trotted around the side and into the alley shaded by sun covers which were spread with sand and cuts from stones. The boxes and crates here were filled with empty glass bottles, broken glass and other pieces of fabric. Once closer to the alley exit, Sjl saw an open courtyard that was shaded by the cantina itself. Rhiaen began a commentary.
“All the despair, the tragedy, and sorrow that I have seen since flying here. I’m starting to question myself; was it worth the sacrifice. Was she really worth losing, just for this?”
Rhiaen turned the corner and pulled Sjl close, and in her hand she held a piece of a stone tablet. Etched into the rock were the ancient Sith writings that the Priest came to this planet for, yet only half of it.
“It’s not complete.”
She sighed softly and placed the tablet into his untrustworthy hands, then rubbed her tearing eyes.
“Because they wanted the full deal, both of our lives.”
“Was there another way?”
Her stare slowly lifted to meet with his, and a small smile crept across her face with intention. Sjl could see her hand slowly crept towards her waist, presumably where her lightsaber was kept.
“Unfortunately, there is.”
As the Zelosian stepped back in small panic to avoid her entirely, a small click and cock sound sharply leapt from behind Rhiaen’s head. It was Colyn, standing with his strong right hand firmly onto his blaster. His sharp, grey glare never left her as he pressed the blaster closer to her skull.
“Sorry gal, you won’t be leaving this area with his body. Or the writing.”
She tried to scream, but her shriek was only muffled by the quick blaster bolts that destroyed her head and dissolved her lekkus. Tusken edged over the Twi’lek body and rubbed the back of his neck slowly, then looked directly at Sjl’s eyes.
“You are completely useless with women, aren’t you?”
“She wasn’t interesting.” They both chuckled as Tusken grabbed the writings and slipped them into his duffle bag. Then the two of them left down the alley they Colyn came from, quite satisfied with this result.