The Knight, Death, and the Devil

Chapter 19: A White Lie

Nar Shaddaa didn't have cities, or towns, or even villages. The moon was the city, a single megapolis spanning a rock that had long ago been stripped of its natural resources and replaced by towering metal structures that teemed with life.

As Torin left Mezenti spaceport, he peered over the edge of the causeway down into the depths of the city. It seemed to go on forever, overlapping roads and smog obscuring his sight long before he caught a glimpse of anything resembling solid ground. The Hutts that owned the planet could have stripped it of its last bit of rock and no one would notice the difference, save a slight decrease in gravity.

"Did that Falleen respond to your message?" Vathamma asked, walking beside him on the causeway as all four made their way to the landing pad in front of the airport. Crowds of tourists and travelers entered and exited airborne cruisers controlled by robotic drivers that would, for a fee, take you anywhere on the small moon. The Sith wore her hood up over her head, hiding her face from wandering eyes as well as the security cameras littering every street corner. Even on the Smuggler's Moon, where one could find anything and everything, a pureblood Sith was a rare sight that could draw unwanted attention.

"No," Torin said. "But she'll come. I'm sure of it." He had let Sosyan, the cartel representative, know that they were on Nar Shaddaa and were desperately seeking an audience with her. All that was left to do was make sure that the Falleen had a sudden business opportunity fall into her lap.

"Why?" The Sith asked. "Because of your magnetic personality?"

He scratched his face and glanced back at Maliss and Nomi. The Togruta was swiveling her head every which way, marveling at the cityscape and its neon signs. "I... may have dropped your name."

"You what?" She grabbed his sleeve, slowing their walk.

"A wanted Sith Lord is a great draw!" He pulled his arm free of her grip. "Besides, she was going to find out you were alive once we're on her ship."

She sighed and hung her shoulders. "This is what happens when I relinquish the reins for even a moment."

The pair separated, Vathamma and Nomi entering a taxi bound for the Corellian sector while Torin and Maliss boarded one en route to the Industrial sector. Torin slid into the back of the covered cruiser, followed by Maliss. The bulky woman squeezed in next to him took up a good quarter of his own seat. Even in vehicles, space on Nar Shaddaa was at a premium. He watched out the window to this left as the taxi ascended and then joined with the flow of traffic snaking its way through the skyscrapers surrounding the spaceport.

"How much do you know about the Exchange?" Maliss said.

"Criminal syndicate, intergalactic reach—just the broad strokes," he replied.

"Yeah, well they're not so intergalactic anymore. They never really recovered from Darth Malak bombing Taris to dust."

"Taris?" He pulled his head back and looked at her. "That was over three centuries ago. What kind of gang can't bounce back in that time?"

"You're using 'gang' a bit liberally, kid. These aren't—well, they weren't —just thugs and thieves. We're talking industrial and financial empires that rival normal planetary governments."

He considered her words for a moment and turned to watch the streets and buildings passing by on all sides of them. They were well away from the spaceport, carried along the stream of flying taxis and cruisers like a fish in a riptide.

"If that's the case, can I really convince them to work with us?" He asked her.

"Like I said, they never quite recovered. 'The Exchange' is more a brand name than anything these days. There's no real central leader. At least, not that anyone knows of."