Chapter 28: Schemes

*27. Schemes*

At that moment, in the outer orbit of the planet Roon.

The Lancer, a YT-1000 freighter, dropped out of hyperspace. Inside, Ventus snapped awake and sat up. “We’re here?” he asked.

“Yup, this is Roon,” Munte replied, tossing a storage device in his hand. “But I don’t see who we’re supposed to hand this thing to.”

“Let’s hold off for a sec. Something tells me this isn’t as straightforward as it seems,” Ventus said.

“Funny, I was thinking the same thing. How’s your body holding up, boss? If things go south, we’re counting on your… talents,” Munte said with a grin.

Ventus glanced at a stainless steel water cup nearby. He raised a hand, focused, and the cup wobbled before floating toward him, landing with a clunk at his feet.

“Seems decent. I can do some damage,” Ventus said, clenching his fist.

Just then, a transmission crackled through the ship’s public channel. A holographic image flickered to life—it was the Falleen woman who’d hired them back on Tatooine. She smirked coldly. “You did well, getting the goods. Now hand over that storage device, take your credits, and get lost. Your job’s done.”

“I think we’d rather deliver this straight to Lord Hego,” Munte said with a sly smile.

The Falleen’s face darkened. “Don’t push your luck! Dock with my ship and hand it over, or I’ll come take it myself!”

“Radar’s picking up something! Over by the asteroid belt!” Quinto shouted, his fingers flying across the console. Two ships appeared on the screen.

One was a 38-meter turtle-like vessel, the other a larger, trapezoidal ship stretching 52.3 meters.

Quinto’s face paled. “A Ghtroc 720 freighter and a YV-865 Aurore-class freighter! What the kriff? They could’ve handled this job themselves instead of dragging us into it!”

“Looks like their ships are a lot bigger than ours. Probably a tough fight,” Munte said, glancing at the screen and whistling casually.

“Bet they just wanted to swoop in for the prize without getting their hands dirty in Makem Te’s mess,” Ventus snorted.

“It’s more than that,” Munte added. “I’d wager 20 wupiupi on Quinto’s credits that the second we hand over the device, they’ll blast our heads off.”

“I’ll raise you 100 wupiupi on Quinto’s credits that they’d shoot us the moment we board their ship,” Ventus said with a laugh.

“So, we got time?” Munte asked, seemingly out of nowhere.

“I think we do,” Ventus replied, his gaze drifting to the T-850 unit.

“Hey! Are you two even listening?” Quinto was on the verge of a meltdown. “We’re out of ammo, out of fuel! Unless we land at Roon’s port for resupply, we can’t make another hyperspace jump! And this!”

He spun the screen toward them, showing the two freighters, bristling with modifications like a pair of spiky beasts. “These ships are way bigger than ours! With those upgrades, we don’t stand a chance! I’m just a smuggler—my ship’s barely modded!”

“Why don’t you just admit you couldn’t afford upgrades? Too scared to take the high-risk, high-reward jobs,” Munte said, cutting straight to the bone. “And let’s be real, you didn’t earn this ship. Someone gave it to you, or you inherited it, right?”

“That’s not the point!” Quinto yelled, pointing at the screen. “They’re coming!”

“Still thinking you can squirm out of this?” the Falleen woman’s venomous voice hissed over the comms. “Fine, I’ll take it myself. Don’t worry, I’ll leave your corpses mostly intact.”

Munte and Ventus exchanged a glance. Then Munte put on a panicked act, shouting, “No! Please, don’t! We surrender! We’ll hand over the device…”

“Hahaha! That’s more like it. Lower your shields, power down your weapons, and dock with my ship. No tricks! I’ve got 20 men waiting!” the Falleen barked.

“Alright, alright, I’m doing it!” Munte said, shutting down the weapons and dropping the ship’s shields, leaving the Lancer defenseless. He maneuvered toward the YV-865 Aurore-class freighter.

“Good. I’m waiting,” the Falleen sneered, cutting the transmission.

“What now? We’re not actually giving it to her, are we? She’ll kill us the second she has it!” Quinto blurted, but before he could finish, Ventus tossed something his way.

Quinto caught it reflexively, stumbling under its weight. He looked down—a black assault rifle!

“A… gun? A slugthrower? People still use these?” Quinto stammered.

“If it kills, it’s good. Doesn’t matter if it’s blaster or bullet,” Ventus said.

Quinto fumbled with the rifle, then froze as realization hit. A bead of sweat rolled down his forehead. “Wait. You’re planning to fight them?”

“What else? We crossed half the galaxy from Makem Te. We’re low on fuel, low on ammo. You really think we’re dogfighting two modded freighters?” Ventus said, helping Quinto chamber a round and flip the safety.

The YT-1000 slowly approached the Aurore-class freighter and opened its docking port. On the other ship, the Falleen woman directed 20 heavily armed mercenaries to surround the entrance. “The second that door opens, fire! I want the device, not those mud-crawlers! Fiss, you keep that 720 locked on their ship. If they try anything, blow them to scrap!”

“Got it, boss.”

The ship shuddered as the docking clamps engaged. The Falleen stepped back, raising a sniper rifle and aiming at the door from behind her mercenaries.

The hatch began to open, but a thick cloud of disinfectant mist sprayed out, obscuring the view. Munte’s panicked voice echoed from inside. “Wait! Don’t shoot! I’ll destroy the device if you do!”

“Kill him. Grab the device. We’re out,” the Falleen whispered to her men.

The hatch fully opened, the mist still lingering. The mercenaries’ fingers twitched on their triggers. Then—a massive black shape came hurtling toward them!

It was the wreckage of a speeder!

Why the hell was something like that on a ship?!

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*[Bonus Chapter Image 1: Falleen]*