Force Effect: A Star Wars/Mass Effect Crossover

Bonus Chapter 3: The Lower City

Matthias sat at the dirty bar and nursed a flat lum and several bruises and burns. Their foray into the lower city hadn't gone well; within 15 standard minutes of the elevator depositing them into the fetid decay, they had been attacked at least a dozen times. The only thing that had saved them from being mugged, begged, and everything else had been their Sith uniforms, which they'd had to put away before coming into Javyar's Cantina. Javyar's looked like a decomposed version of the Upper City Cantina, with slime and filth, both sentient and not decorating its dim interior. The cantina wasn't completely safe either, as they had found out when they'd come in. As they entered the bar proper, three members of the Black Vulkar gang blocked them as they accosted a small man sitting at one of the tables.

"Go away," said the small man in a nasal voice.

"Hey! You not be like that! We just want to talk to big, bad bounty hunter Calo Nord!" said a Rodian.

"Nah, this can't be Calo Nord, he's supposed to be tough," snorted his Twi'lek companion.

"One," said Calo simply.

"Huh? What one mean? What's he trying to say?" said the second Rodian.

"You shouldn't talk down to us. We're members of the Black Vulkars! What do you think of that?" said the twi'lek.

"Two," said Calo.

"Me not understand. One, two? What, he trying to count how many of us there are?" said the confused first Rodian.

"It's three against one! What do you think of those odds?" challenged the twi'lek. It was the last thing he ever said.

"Three," stated Calo. He then threw a device that looked like a grenade on the floor. Before anyone could react, the flash-bang went off. There were several shouts, three blaster shots, and then the light faded away. The three Vulkars lay on the floor, very dead. Calo Nord calmly sheathed his twin blaster pistols and then strode towards the door, which Matthias and Carth blocked. He gave them a look that could've frozen molten carbonite and said, "One." Not wanting to challenge this dangerous little man, the two quickly stepped out of the way.

"Smart," said Calo and left.

------

Now Carth and Matthias sat at the bar and nursed their wounds and drinks. Their attention was caught when a high, female voice cried out amidst the normal room buzz.

"I told you to leave me alone! Now give me some space bug-eye! Your breath smells like bantha poodoo!"

Not liking the idea of a kid being hassled in this dive, the two made their way over to the source of the racket, which turned out to be yet another pair of Black Vulkars, both Rodians, who were menacing a lithe, blue-skinned Twi'lek girl.

"Little girl should not be in bar. This no place for little girl. Little girl should run away home now." Said one of the Rodians, as he grabbed the girl's arm. She wrenched it out of the alien's grasp.

"Just a sec boys. Zaalbar, a little help here? I need you to rip the legs off some insects." A hulking, furry shadow shifted in its seat at one of the tables against the wall. It didn't speak up in Basic but instead began to growl and bark.

"Quit complaining, you can finish later. Besides you need the exercise so get over here!" said the girl. Matthias's suspicions about the voice were confirmed as the hulking form moved into the light and was revealed to be a brown-furred wookie. The rodians took a step back.

"We no want trouble with wookie. Our problem with you little girl."

"You got a problem with me? Then you got a problem with Big Z. So unless you want to take on my furry friend, I suggest you greenies hop on outta here." The two rodians began slowly backing away, their eyes fixed on the wookie called Zaalbar.