37 | Anticipate, Deflect...

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21 BBY, Month 9

Hunter wished upon the destruction of all dipteran bugs

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Hunter wished upon the destruction of all dipteran bugs. He had never thought he'd be the one behind a genocide against an insect race, but his war against the mosquitoes was worth it. He needed to end all life in the diptera order of bugs.

Swatting away a mosquito, Hunter sighed as he led them through the wooded paths of the forest. For it being an abandoned moon, it seemed to be well-traversed. How Crest and Jos missed that before, he didn't know.

"How much longer?" Wrecker asked, whacking a tree branch out of the way.

"I don't know," Hunter muttered as he knelt to touch the muddy ground. "I think we're closing in."

"Not fast enough," Phee grumbled, shirking around Wrecker so she could walk beside Tech. "So, Brown Eyes, you figuring out who stole it?"

"There's not much I can do with the information I have at hand," Tech muttered.

Crest sighed in the back and Hunter agreed, rolling his eyes. Phee had been trying to flirt with Tech ever since she set eyes on him. And it's been too long. Too much flirting.

"Wait, ahead!" Hunter said, holding his fist up to stop the group.

Crest stumbled into Wrecker who then stumbled into Tech and Phee who then stumbled into Hunter. He noted that there was a small clearing in the middle of the pine forest. There was what looked to be a dugout in the ground with the case outside of it. A woman was standing on the roof, lighting a fire on top of the grass.

This moon was definitely inhabited.

Hunter signaled for them to lay low as they didn't know who the lady was or what she wanted with the box. Whatever was in it.

Hunter switched his blaster setting to stun, pointing it towards the woman. He pulled the trigger but the woman never fell. She leaned to the side, avoiding the blast, gaze traveling over to where they were hiding.

She lept off of the dugout, a scowl on her scarred face. "You're trespassing."

"And you've stolen," Phee said, making her way around Hunter into the clearing. "You give me back my crate and we get off your property."

The woman's eyes narrowed. "No," she said, looking up at the sky as the Separatist ship came into view, no doubt following the smoke from her recent fire. "It's my way off of this wretched moon."

How long was she here? After examining her living area, Hunter could determine that it had at least been a few months to a year. The surrounding gardens were well grown and tended, and the paths looked well-worn. She even weaved her own baskets to hold the fruit of her labor.

He stepped forward. "Then you'll have to go through us."

"That's the easy part," she muttered, pulling something from her belt. Hunter could feel the sabers ignite before he saw it. Two red blades hummed as the red light clashed against the greenery. They were dealing with a sith?

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