The Quarry

The Quarry - Part 8

"Dropping out of hyperspace in thirty seconds," Din called over his shoulder.

"Roger that," Versa yelled back from the hold. She was standing in front of his armory choosing which blaster she'd carry with her. She didn't anticipate necessarily having to use it to meet her contact, but with Farr's hunters growing even more persistent, she was taking no chances. Karga's mechanic had at least managed to fix the door so that it open and shut properly now, so she could finally see the impressive array of weapons that Din had amassed. Her eyes swept the various blasters along the wall until she noticed, at the top of the cabinet, a spear had been mounted. Standing on her tip toes, she grasped the cold metal, pulling it down to inspect it.

She immediately noticed the lightness of the weapon, and as she pulled it closer to the light, she noticed the unmistakable hue of beskar. She inhaled sharply at the realization as she gave it an experimental twirl.

"See something you like?" Din's voice almost caused her to drop the spear altogether. She whirled on him, giving him a glare. She held out the weapon across her palms. "Where the hell did you get a beskar spear? This is incredible."

"Picked it up while on my quest with the kid. It was about the only thing that survived when the Razor Crest was destroyed."

She chuckled, turning to place it back in the armory. "Sounds about right." She reached over to grab one of the pistols Din had hanging from the wall, and her eyes fell on a black metallic box in the far back of the armory. Her eyes lingered on it for a second before she hesitantly reached for it.

"What's in the box, Din?"

"Ammo and extra parts," he said a little too quickly. She turned to look at him, but his helmet betrayed nothing. Versa squinted at him suspiciously.

"Are you going to let me get in there and get a blaster?" he asked, his voice even.

"Sure. Yeah. Sorry," she said, stepping out of the way as she tucked the blaster into her holster. "So, you ever use the spear?"

"A few times. It's not too bad in close range fighting, but I'm not as skilled with it as I am with a blaster."

"Well of course not. That was the first thing they taught us after how to find the latrines in the defense corps," she said, laughing. Din didn't return her mirth as he tucked a blaster into his belt, closing the armory up behind him. Versa's eyes lingered on the black metal box before it disappeared behind the doors.

She turned, handing him his armor pieces that she'd borrowed and modified. "Replaced the wiring as you had it. Should be good as new."

He nodded, sliding the vambrace and gauntlet on, giving his fingers a quick experimental flex once his hand was sheathed inside. "So who's this contact we're meeting?"

"We? I thought you were just dropping me off and going?"

"Well with everyone in the galaxy after you, I figure I should at least go with you to this meeting."

"Uh huh." She gave him another suspicious look before wrapping her cloak around her shoulders and tucking her hair underneath the hood. "The person we're meeting was a lieutenant at the prison Jon was being held at. Was supposedly there on the day he was discharged and might have a record of where he went afterwards."

"Trustworthy?"

"The best lead I have."

"So you don't know if he's trustworthy. He's an Imp, Versa. This seems like a bad idea."

She sighed. "I'm going to meet this guy, Din. You don't have to, and I won't fault you for it." The harshness of her words stung him, but he nodded.