The Renegade: Episode III: The Deliverer

Chapter 21: The Witness

Lenore and Kina prepared the Revenant for take off. It wasn't in the best shape but it was decent. As Lenore checked the exterior Kina came over and dropped two crates at her feet.

"Load these up, would ya Tersu?" Kina said. Lenore bent down and peered inside the crates. One contained a puffer pig and the other a pair of baby mynocks.

"What's with the menagerie," Mando said as he joined them.

"For your information this puffer is going for top dollar on the market. People are crazed to find precious minerals these days since mining has been shut down by the New Republic."

"And the mynocks? Kina, if they get loose they'll tear the ship apart." Lenore said.

"She's right," Mando agreed. Lenore looked at him surprised. She guessed he wasn't all that bad.

"The mynocks came with the pot. I had to take them or I didn't get the puffer," Kina explained. She had always been a good gambler. She was almost as good a gamble as she was a pilot.

"So do away with the spares," Mando suggested.

"Are you kidding?" Kina protested. "These are a delicacy. You can make an excellent spicy dish when prepared correctly."

"I'm not taking that chance for you to have a fancy meal." Mando said.

"Relax Mando. Anything goes awry, Lenore is an excellent shot." She said, "She'll take care of it."

Lenore and Mando both looked at each other. They both knew it was a bad idea but Kina was not someone you could sway. They both needed the credits to get off Tatooine.

"Fine," Mando said. "But if there's a problem, I'll handle it my way."

"That is your motto after all. Isn't it?" Kina smiled. "Welcome aboard the Revenant. Get going Lenore. Those crates aren't going to load themselves." Mando nodded at her. This was the first time he heard her name. But Lenore had a feeling he would probably still call her thief.

"I'm your partner, remember," Lenore said. "It's my job to tell you when you've got a bad idea." She said as she picked up the crates.

"Are you telling me that now?" She laughed.

"If I did, would you change your mind?" Lenore reluctantly asked. She knew the answer already.

"Nope. By the way, I had new escape pods put in. These ones have controls so you can land. FYI." She said winking at Lenore.

"Is that supposed to be funny?" Lenore asked as Kina ignored her and walked aboard.

"I'm gonna take off while you load the cargo in the holding compartment ok." Kina walked toward the cockpit and Lenore carried the crates toward the back of the ship.

"Just don't jump to lightspeed please," she said.

It almost felt like coming home in a way. Even though she had only spent a few weeks on board years ago she was always comfortable on The Revenant. Nothing had changed. She opened the holding compartment and felt the ship lift off. She entered and dropped the crates down. Looking for something to secure the crates to the wall she heard a familiar beep.

Beep Beep Beep! It was R3. Lenore couldn't tell if he was happy to see her or annoyed that she hadn't died in the escape pod.

"Good to see you too," She greeted. The droid continued to beep but in a lower tone. She sensed he was not very happy to see her. "Yeah yeah, what are you doing hiding back here anyways?"

R3 beeped some more and rolled over to the crates to inspect them.

"Hey, be careful with those. That puffer scares easy."