A Destiny Rewritten

chapter xiv: the bounty hunter.

While Luke and Leia train with Obi-Wan, Padmé and Han are embarking on a mission for the Rebel Alliance.

"You still think it's a good idea to go to Nar Shaddaa?"

Han nods, but Padmé is almost certain that she caught a glimpse of wariness in his eyes. As much as he feigns confidence, she knows that he must be at least a little scared to cross into territory where he's fair game for bounty hunters. Jabba still has a price on his head, and the Empire now, too, and if they're not careful, they might be recognized on Nar Shaddaa. Not to mention that Padmé is now listed as a priority criminal by the Empire.

It is a risky mission; they both knew that going into it. But Han swears that the best slicer in the galaxy, known as Vargas, lives on Nar Shaddaa, and if they are going to hit the Empire hard, they'll need him. Padmé has a particular mission in mind, but the final details rely on whether they can recruit the slicer or not.

"It's not like we'll be showing our faces," Han tries to assure her.

They both have masks in their ship to complete their disguises. Each of them is wearing armored suits to mimic the appearance of bounty hunters; they would fit right in on Nar Shaddaa.

Before they make their stop on Nar Shaddaa, Han and Padmé stop at a station just outside of the planet to refuel. It is surely crawling with all kinds of scum, so as they land, Padmé and Han put their masks on.

But as they exit their ship—it was a simple shuttle, as they had left the Millennium Falcon behind—Padmé notices that there are security guards awaiting them.

She didn't expect that there would be a checkpoint; most fueling stations don't have them at all. But they must have had a robbery or some other crime committed here, otherwise, security wouldn't be tight. She feels a nervous pang in her stomach as she approached the security guard, knowing that he will probably ask them to remove their masks.

Han seems completely calm as he approaches the officer, who, just as Padmé predicted, says, "Remove your masks, please."

Despite Padmé's reluctance, she complies, and so does Han. Once the security guards see their faces, they say, "Alright, move along then." They don't seem to recognize them, and if they do, they don't care who they are. All they seem to be concerned about is that Han and Padmé are not the people they are looking for.

But someone else is looking for them, and as Padmé puts her mask back on, she does not notice the man who is peering at her from around the corner.

"How much fuel do we need to make the hyperspace jump to Nar Shaddaa?" Padmé asks Han. As they walk deeper into the station, they still do not notice the armored man who is listening in on their conversation.

"Not too much," says Han. "You're not nervous, are you?"

"Well, yes, we're going to a town full of criminals," Padmé replies.

"Hutta Town is rough, but it'll be worth the journey, promise."

Padmé isn't entirely sure of that, but she supposes she will find out if they successfully recruit the slicer.

—✥—

After refueling, Padmé and Han continued to fly towards Nar Shaddaa. A quick jump through hyperspace was all they needed to reach the planet. It was not long before they were landing in some run-down part of one of the major cities, the name of which Padmé did not care to remember.

The ramp lowers, but just as Padmé and Han walk onto the platform, they see that there is a group of people waiting for them. In the front of the group, there is a man wearing green armor with a short cape draped on his shoulder. Padmé stops dead in her tracks and instinctively draws her blaster, but Han hesitates.