It's What Goes On In Here That's Hard (Star Wars AU Fanfiction)

Chapter 13. Familiar

X-1 and a squad of stormtroopers entered Jabba's Palace, or what was left of it.

Charges had been placed along the main throne room and set off days ago. X-1 was sent by Vader to investigate and see if there were any survivors.

X-1 entered the throne room, wrinkling his nose slightly at the smell of decaying and burnt flesh of dead bodies, various unique smells coming from the vast variety of alien bodies.

The structure was crumbling thanks to the destruction caused by the attackers. But who would dare threaten a figure of great power such as Jabba?

X-1 threw his hood back as he stood a few feet away from the decaying form of Jabba the Hutt. The smell was truly the most horrendous stench that would ever reach X-1's nostrils.

"Sir!" One of the Stormtroopers called, causing X-1 to turn slightly in acknowledgment to the trooper.

"This one was killed by a blaster." The trooper reported, turning over a slightly less burned body while pointing out four blaster marks that peppered the corpse's chest and abdomen.

X-1 frowned. "Perhaps it was more than just a bombing." He thought to himself as he turned back to Jabba, at first glance the Hutt looked like a large blob of rotting fat. But it didn't look like he had been shot, nor did it seem as though he had been killed by a large charge blast.

There was something else, brushing the furthest corner of X-1's mind, dancing just out of reach. X-1 had felt this slipping familiarity the moment his transport entered Tatooine's system. It was irritating, frustrating that he felt, in some way, connected to the planet and now as he looked around himself in the midst of what appeared to be a terrorist attack, he felt as though the Force was stirring and goading him along to find, something. Someone?

"Sir?"

X-1 snapped out of his thoughts and turned to the stormtrooper, nodding in acknowledgement as he did not like to speak with anyone unless necessary.

"Shall I inform Lord Vader of our findings?" The trooper asked dutifully.

X-1 shook his head. "I will contact him. Continue investigations." He replied, his tone flat and dead.

"Yes sir!" The trooper nodded before continuing on, carrying out X-1's orders as the assassin left, wanting to be alone before contacting his master.

X-1 found himself in an empty hallway. Double checking his surroundings X-1 found satisfaction in being alone before taking his holo-communicator out from the small pouch on his belt. Turning it on a small holographic image of Darth Vader appeared.

"What have you found?" Vader asked immediately.

X-1 answered readily, his voice more soft and curious now as he addressed his master. "There were small charges set to make it look like an accident. But some bodies were not damaged enough. Many have blaster marks on them, Jabba and his Bounty Hunters were attacked."

Vader folded his arms slowly in thought as X-1 spoke. "Is that all?" Vader asked with an unreadable tone.

X-1 shook his head. "Investigations are continuing but, I . . ."

"You what?" Vader asked sharply when X-1 wondered off in thought.

X-1 bit his lip. Free will was becoming more and more easy to understand, he didn't have to tell Vader everything, did he? A small voice in the back of his mind screamed at him as if he were an idiot, the cold dark cell flashing in his mind, that was enough to snap X-1 out of his free willed fantasy.

"There is something more to this then just an attack. It was fast, quick, decisive. I feel as though the Force wishes for me to find out more." X-1 finally explained, leaving out the parts about feel familiar with Tatooine and the urge to find this strange someone.