Hot. It is always hot, even now in the middle of the night. Sitting at your desk you pull out the bottle and glass you store in your drawer and begin to pour as you think.
You could drink at the cantina, but getting drunk at your office is quicker, cheaper, and with less interruptions.
Watching the dust particles float in the air you are about to sip when there is a knock at the door.
[[Say: "Come in"|Theme]]
Apparently, no one else is sleeping in Mos Eisley either, the sudden appearance of a star destroyer in orbit and Stormtroopers in the streets can do that.
You yell “Come in”, as you set your drink down and place your hand on the blaster pistol hidden under the desk.
In walks a beautiful Twi’lek you’ve ever seen. Light red skin and the long tentacles from the back of her head pulled forward resting on top of her chest. She could easily be the highest paid dancer in the galaxy on looks alone, but she doesn’t act like a dancer.
You release the pistol and reach for your drink again. “What can I do for you”, you say before taking a drink.
“I was told you could help get my droid back, a Stormtrooper took it”. “Sorry, I don’t get involved in the empires business”, you state gesturing towards the door.
She places an envelope on the desk then walks out the door saying, “Well, how long until they are involved in yours”?
[[Watch her leave.|Setup]]
[[Say something.|Setup b]]
The dame was right, with the empires presences here how long till they get wind of your little recovery and smuggling jobs, typically of Jedi artifacts and other banned objects.
Pouring out the contents of the envelope on the desk you see a hand full of credits and holo player.
Activating the holo, a rotating image of a customized battle droid appears above the desk. After the separatist were defeated it wasn’t uncommon to find battle droids that were salvaged and repurposed.
[[Look at the holo.|Catalyst]]
However, this droid was also holding a lightsaber. Battle droids weren’t great melee fighters; it would take some drastic reprogramming to make it wield a lightsaber with any effect.
But, she should be more worried about being caught with possession of a lightsaber than trying to recover a droid. Unless what that droid knows is far worse.
[[Now what.|Debate]]
Just then there is another knock at the door. Most likely the dame again to talk him into the job.
Before you can say anything a pair of Stormtroopers come in.
You didn’t have a chance to turn off the holo. After they assest the room, and see the holo or the droid, they start asking, “what do you know about that droid?” And, “who was that who just left?”
You don’t want to be involved so you try to explain that you don’t know and that you had never seen her before.
[[Pour another drink.|Into twos]]
[[Stand up.|Into twos b]]
They don’t like your answers, and it is only a matter of time before they decide to bring you in for interrogation.
That won’t end well for you when they dig more into your business.
So, as you try to explain that they are welcome to have the holo and credits, you pour another drink with one hand and reach for my hidden blaster with the other.
You fire once, lighting up the room, and as one Stormtrooper falls the other raises his weapon.
You both fire simultaneously, the room briefly aglow, but you are already leaning back in my chair and his shot barley misses your head.
You grab the envelope, credits and holo, then with gun in hand [[head out the back door.|B story]]
Outside in the alley you see a figure in the darkness. Another Stormtrooper you think. As the figure steps into the light you see a blaster in each of their hands.
“I told you they would get involved you”, the Twi’lek says emerging from the darkness.
“I told you they would get involved you”, she smiles.
“Only because you led them to me, now we are both being hunted. We need to leave Tatooine and fast”, you whisper leading her to the end of the alley.
She stops, “Not without my droid”.
[[Say, "It's too late".|Fun and Games]]
“If the empire has your droid, there is nothing the two of us can do. But if they connect you to that droid, your dead”, you explain to her.
“The empire doesn’t have it, yet. A sleazy Stormtrooper took it and is trying to blackmail me with it.” If I don’t pay him a million credits by tomorrow, he will turn both the droid and I in” she says.
“My ship is at a nearby port, I can get you out of here now”, you offer.
She shakes her head saying, “the empire has all ports on lockdown, we can’t go anywhere”.
[[You can't go up against the empire.|Midpoint]]
You feel the risk is too big and it is bad enough that there is two dead Stormtroopers in your office.
Trying to help this dame out will only make things worse and wind up getting you and her killed. But she isn’t listening to reason, so you give her back the holo and credits and tell her if she was smart she would hide and forget about the droid.
[[You exit the alley and try to blend into a small crowd as you make your way to the cantina.|Bad guys]]
You find the quite booth in the back of the cantina that you like and order you usual. You try to think if there is a way to get rid of the bodies in your office, but you know it is fruitless. They should have checked in by now, so there probably an entire squad heading to your office if they aren’t there by now.
You need to not draw any more attention to yourself and try to catch a speeder out of town.
But one thing continues to nag at you, that lightsaber the droid was holding looks just like the one you smuggled out of Bespin a few months back. But you lost contact with the client, so you hid it.
You see the server coming with your drink and following behind her is a pair of Stormtroopers. You start to panic, but they pass and sit at the booth behind you.
[[You feel surrounded|All is lost]]
You try to calm back down by taking a drink. Don’t draw attention to yourself.
You can make out parts of their conversation. They mention that a red skinned Twi’lek has been captured but there still is no sign of her droid.
[[What has she told them.|Dark night]]
No.
How did you get in the middle of this? You have nowhere to run, Stormtrooper are everywhere in the city, including the port where your ship is at, she has been captured and will turn him in too.
She must know you are connected to that lightsaber.
[[Running out of time.|Into threes]]
Reaching into your pocket you find the envelope she gave you. Pulling it out you examine it again, inside at the bottom is a matchbook. Flipping it open you see the logo for this very cantina.
Is this where she was supposed to meet the Stormtrooper that was blackmailing her?
Can it be a coincidence that it here, the same cantina where I hid the lightsaber?
[[Or did she know it was here.|Finale]]
You get up and try to casually make your way past the bar and into the storage area. You duck behind a shelf and move some boxes away from the wall to reveal a wall safe. You enter in the code and open the safe. Between some holocrons and a stack of credits is the lightsaber. You retrieve it and close the safe.
You hear blaster fire and a commotion in the bar. You step out and see the Twi’lek with her a pistol in each hand shooting at a half dozen Stormtroopers that are now in the cantina. She glances over and spots you, drops the pistol from her right hand and reaches towards you. Immediately you feel the lightsaber in your hand quiver, then fly out of your hand and into hers.
She is still shooting with the blaster in her other hand as she ignites the lightsaber and deflects the Stormtroopers shots back at them. Defeating them all.
“You can say if you like, but I’m returning to the Rebel Alliance. You’re welcome to join me”, she says as she heads out the back door.
[[Follow her.|Final image]]
Cold.
Colder than I ever thought possible.
Hoth isn’t what I had in mind when I followed her out of that cantina. With no strong drinks this is going to be a long rebellion.
“I’m not the one looking to start a fight”, you jab as she closes the door.
You look at the envelope but don’t touch it. This dame has trouble written all over her and you don’t want anything to do with her.
[[Take a drink.|Catalyst b]]
As a smuggler, you have enough problems and all the Stormtroopers in town aren’t making it any easier. You are just glad you don’t have any of the droids they are looking for, but if they come around and start digging then you will still be in a lot of trouble.
[[Take a drink.|Debate b]]
Just then then is another knock at the door, hopefully the dame again so she can take her envelop and leave. But before you can say anything a pair of Stormtroopers come in and start asking about the red skinned Twi’lek.
You explain you hadn’t met her before tonight. One of them starts to go through the items on your desk. When he gets to the envelope he pulls out some credits and a holo player. He activates it and it displays a customized battle droid holding a lightsaber.
Explain you don't know anything about that.
[[Pour another drink.|Into twos]]
[[Stand up.|Into twos b]]
You stand up and continue to try to reinsure them that you don’t know anything while escorting them towards the door.
One of the Stormtroopers grabs you and pushes you against the wall. “You’re lying, we’re taking you in”, he grunts.
Instinctively you throw your elbow into his helmet knocking him down, taking his blaster as he falls. Before the other Stormtroopers realizes what is happening you are firing at him.
You grab the envelop, credits and holo. The first Stormtrooper groans, gets up and starts to charge you, but another shot from his blaster in your hand stops him.
[[Head out the back door.|B story]]