And There Was Another✔️

Chapter 17: A New Purpose

He found Nova first, walking among the gardens like she said she would be. Although when he tracked her down, she was sitting on a bench beside the lake, looking out over it. He walked up and sat down beside her.

Without looking, she reached over and laid her hand on top of his. "It's a shame," she said quietly, staring out over the rolling hills and the clear blue lake.

"What?" he replied.

"This place is so peaceful, but I still feel so...awful," she murmured.

"I know exactly how you feel," he agreed.

"What did Maya tell you?"

"That our assistance has been requested for a dangerous mission."

"Wow, really? How dangerous?"

"Pretty dangerous, I think."

"We get hazard pay?"

Seth considered it. "I honestly have no idea."

"Well, that'll factor into my decision."

"Yeah. I need to find Yex and Seri before we can seriously discuss it, since this involves all four of us. Then, once we figure that out, we can talk to Maya about it."

Nova sighed and then stood up, taking her hand away. "Yeah, I guess we should. Yex is with the ship. He's been helping those technicians fix it up from time to time, when he isn't running down repairs for the locals. Come on, I know the way there."

Seth joined her and they began making their way back up towards the Jedi Enclave and the surrounding buildings. As they headed for the port and the ship that had saved their lives, Seth found himself latching onto pleasantly distracting thoughts. Nova was being...very friendly with him. He could still feel the phantom warmth of her hand on the back of his, and she was walking intentionally close to him, and occasionally glancing at him.

Was she interested?

He remembered thinking that propositioning her would be inappropriate on Taris. But things were pretty different now. Maybe it wasn't a great idea though. They were both clearly pretty shaken up over the destruction of Taris, the loss of life...

But then again, wasn't sex a great outlet, a great source of relief and comfort?

Seth knew that there were certainly times where he just wanted to feel good. Maybe Nova shared this particular desire?

Well, maybe he'd at least broach the topic at some point in the near future.

When they found the ship that Yex was working on, Seth didn't recognize it. He almost walked past it, as it was one in a row of three vessels taking up landing pads lined up off to one side of the Jedi Enclave. It didn't look the same at all. Of course the basic structure was the same, but the exterior was much different. It looked almost new. Clearly it had some wear and tear, but a great deal had been done to smooth all the imperfections out.

"Wow," he said.

"Yeah, and they work fast. It didn't even look that good yesterday," Nova murmured. "This must be what they're doing it for, for this mission. Although I do wonder who the ship belongs to now, legally? I mean, I guess...the Republic? That was a Republic military outpost. Or is there some kind of statute of limitations on that? Was it fair salvage for us?"

"Does it matter right now?" Seth replied, honestly curious.

"No, I guess no. There he is. Hey, Yex!" Nova called.

Their ithorian friend was coming down the cargo ramp, wiping his hands on a cloth already filthy with grease and oil. Yex looked...very much at peace, and very happy. Well, he must be in his element right now.