Chapter 2: Some Sort of Beginning

  "A bounty hunter?" Theron Shan crossed his arms, a skeptical look on his face. "We have a highly sensitive mission that requires the utmost secrecy and dependability, and you come back with a bounty hunter?"

  Pushing away from her desk, Lana headed toward the door leading to the atrium. "A Mandalorian, but yes, she's a bounty hunter. I'm assuming you found some Jedi?" She heard footsteps behind her as Theron moved to follow.

  "I did recruit a Jedi, yes, but I'm more concerned with your pick." Upon entering the entry area of their temporary headquarters, Theron immediately leaned against one of the walls, ignoring the plethora of seating options available. Lana didn't know why, but for some reason Theron avoided sitting down whenever he could. Maybe it was a power thing, but he gave off much more of a relaxed vibe than controlling. Except when he was riled up, which he seemed to be heading that direction now. "How can we trust a bounty hunter? How do you know she won't get down there and get a better offer?"

  Lana scoffed. "Please, you think I didn't do my research? First, Mandalorian culture is built upon honor; it's very rare for one of them to break an agreement for something as benign as credits. Second, her record indicates that she has no strong allegiances, but does have a rather prominent moral compass."

  "Unusual for a bounty hunter."

  "Perhaps, but if our hunches are correct, it will work to our advantage. And before you ask, no, she has no qualms with killing. Seems to enjoy it, assuming the right people are being killed." Theron let out a noise that was something between a snort and a huff, which Lana assumed was some sort of hypocritical displeasure regarding who were the 'right people'. "Finally, she was interested enough to agree without discussing payment, which can only be beneficial to us."

  "Unless she assumes she's getting an insane payout, and decides to betray us when we can't deliver," Theron countered.

  Lana rolled her eyes. "Somebody who has been in the game as long as she has doesn't find success by assuming." Taking Theron's silence as agreement, Lana lowered herself into one of the armchairs in the room, taking advantage of the brief time she was able to sit in something more comfortable than the chair at the command desk.

  After a length of time, during which neither Theron nor Lana attempted any further conversation, the door to the building slid open, revealing the women whom Lana had met in the cantina. Well, she hadn't actually met Mako, just seen her from a distance. Rising and taking the few strides needed to cross the room, she waited for the door to close before greeting her guests.

  "Vera, Mako, I'm pleased you could make it." Vera stood silent in her armor, her hip cocked out slightly, and Mako glanced around the room, though what she was looking for Lana couldn't say.

  "I see we're working with SIS," Vera remarked, and through the helmet Lana wasn't able to determine what the tone behind the statement was. She looked over at Theron, who gave a small wave, before turning back to the bounty hunter.

  "Yes, Theron is with the Republic's Strategic Information Service, but just like me, we're here independent from our respective governments. I trust this won't be a problem?" Vera responded with a shrug and gave Theron a sloppy salute.

  "Long as he doesn't tell me how to do my job."

  "He won't." Lana shot a look over to the man in question, who, to his credit, held his hands up in a gesture of understanding. "We are still waiting on our other member, but if you'd like to come with me I can begin to give you a background on the situation. Mako will have to stay out here though." Lana turned to regard the shorter woman, who she could tell was about to argue. "It's solely for safety. If this goes horribly wrong, we want the least number of people directly involved. I know how often people say it's for your own well-being, but it truly is." Mako had decided against commenting, so Lana turned her attention back to the helmeted visage that was Vera. Several long seconds ticked by before finally Vera turned her head to Mako and gave a curt nod. Immediately Mako retreated to one of the couches, pulling out a data pad as she dropped down, looking entirely at ease with the current situation. Impressed at the loyalty Vera apparently could instill in her team, or at least in Mako, she spun on her heel and headed through the doors leading further into the building, Vera close behind.

  Turning the corner, just the sight of her desk chair made Lana internally groan. She really should just get a new one, but without knowing how long they were going to be at this location, it was hard to justify the coordination. Maybe she should just grab one of the nice padded chairs from the entry area, she thought as she pushed the chair to the side, deciding she didn't want to be seated while the others were standing anyway. As she toggled through her various open programs to find the information she wanted to share, she heard a hiss of air behind her, which a quick glance over her shoulder confirmed was Vera releasing the seals on her helmet. Lana was somewhat surprised that she'd actually get to see the face of the Mandalorian, especially given the information on her mannerisms in her file. "I've pulled up the relevant data that we have on screen. There isn't much evidence but-"

  Lana's brain short-circuited and she abruptly stopped halfway through her sentence as she turned around and looked at Vera. While it was true she hadn't expected Vera to remove her helmet, she had been prepared for that option. First, she was surprised that the woman was a Chiss. It wasn't unheard of for a Chiss to strike out on their own and no longer be part of the Chiss Ascendancy, but it was usually to join the Sith Empire directly, with the hope they'd gain more than what they had in their own culture. For one to become a bounty hunter, an exceptionally successful bounty hunter, and to keep their identity well under wraps was … well, it was utterly unanticipated.

  But that wasn’t what caused her mental shutdown. That would be the physical appearance of the bounty hunter before her. Vera's beautiful blue skin was broken up by a pair of crimson eyes, with no pupils or irises, just a solid expanse of red, mystery swirling in their depths. Her jet black hair was tied up in a messy bun at the back of her head, and a jagged scar extended from the right corner of her luscious lips down across her jawline. A series of scars also criss-crossed the front of her throat, and presumably extended all the way given what Lana could see. She wasn't sure how long she'd been struck mute, but as her gaze traveled back up to Vera's eyes, she saw one eyebrow raised in amusement.

  "You see something you like?" Vera's voice was even better outside of the helmet, slightly gravelly but with an enticing quality to it that made Lana want to ask a stupid question just to hear it again.

  "I see a lot of things I like." As much as she tried not to, Lana's eyes dropped down to Vera's chest, which she had known was futile, since Vera was still fully armored up, yet she still hadn't been able to stop herself from doing it.

  "I see some things I like too, though I think you already know that." Vera's voice caused Lana's attention to snap back up to her face, relieved that Vera hadn't called out her wandering eyes.

  "Do you have a thing for blondes?" Lana asked, smirking just a bit and crossing her arms playfully. She watched as Vera closed the distance between them, helmet held loosely in one hand. It wasn't until they were almost nose to nose that Vera stopped, a lopsided smile causing her scar to stretch across her jaw. She leaned forward and Lana unconsciously mirrored the motion, and then Vera bobbed her head to the side, until her lips were right next to Lana's ear. Their cheeks were almost touching, and Lana could smell sweat and an underlying scent of something spicy yet sweet, that seemed to fit perfectly with Vera's personality.

  "Maybe I just have a thing for you." Vera's breath was hot in Lana's ear, and it took everything in her to stop a shiver from running through her body. When Vera stepped past Lana to look at the screens, Lana let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. Her body was still warm, as if the heat from Vera was still clinging to her desperately, not yet ready to dissipate. Lana had always avoided getting involved with anybody she worked with, since it was hard to trust that it was without ulterior motives. But for the same reasons Vera had been an excellent candidate for this mission, she was also checking a lot of Lana's boxes for a potential partner, or at the very least a brief fling. It had been quite some time since she'd gotten laid, and she wouldn't mind resetting the counter on that particular aspect of her life.

  Forcibly pulling her train of thought back to the situation at hand, Lana pivoted, watching Vera peruse the minimal amount of data she and Theron had been able to scrape together. The sound of the door opening caused them both to turn. Theron strode into the room, and behind him was a green-skinned Twi'lek, obviously a Jedi, who carried herself with confidence, but not the overwhelming aura of self-righteousness that Jedi often did.

  Gesturing to the Jedi, Theron proceeded with introductions. "This is Jedi Master Kayora T'ven. She prefers simply Kayora." The Jedi smiled, and Theron continued. "I'm Theron Shan, with the SIS, but of course at the moment I am not representing SIS." Lana saw Vera roll her eyes, and if this bothered either of the other individuals in the room, neither of them showed it.

  "Lana Beniko, from Sith Intelligence," Lana said, watching for a reaction from the Jedi. Pleasantly, there was none, so she moved to introduce Vera. "Vera Lacroix, Mandalorian bounty hunter." Vera inclined her chin slightly, making prolonged eye contact with Kayora, who didn't appear to be moved at all.

  "Now that introductions are done, shall we get started?"