Of Scavengers and Smugglers Ch. 03

"How confident are you in your traps?" Jakson asked Rey.

"They've never failed me yet."

Smiling, Jakson shouted back to the Irving Boys, "You want me? You'll have to drag me out!"

Jakson watched with anticipation as the pair began to work their way down the hill towards the AT-AT. As they approached the feet of the vehicle, Rey pushed a button on the wall near her, activating a trio of shock grenades at the feet of the Irving Boys. They staggered and yelped in pain, the electric shocks taking them completely by surprise.

"The fuck was that!"

"Shit... they must have this place hotwired," Vanver surmised.

"Was that it?" Jakson asked.

"Not even close," Rey replied.

Pressing another button, Rey activated a pair of mini turrets, which began firing upon the Irving Boys. They evaded and took cover behind the foot of the AT-AT, but were pinned down for the moment.

"Alright, enough of this shit," Vanver seethed.

Gripping his shotgun blaster, Vanver waited for a lull in the laser blasts. When they paused, he popped up from his hiding spot and blasted one of the turrets to smithereens. After repeating the process with the other turret, the brothers had decided that enough was enough.

"Time to change the game," Toursant said.

Pulling a thermal detonator from his pocket, Toursant activated the timer and tossed it at the belly of the AT-AT. The distinctive beeping tipped the occupants off to what was happening.

"GRENADE!!" Jakson shouted as the pair dove for cover.

The detonator soon exploded, blowing a hole in the side of Rey's home and exposing them to the Irving Boys' assaults. Rey pressed the final button on her control panel, yet nothing happened.

"Bloody hell... that blast damaged my last countermeasure! We're sitting ducks!"

"Get to your speeder, Rey. I'll cover you," Jakson instructed.

"No! I'm not leaving you!"

"You've got nothing but your staff, Rey. You need to get to town. Find Unkar Plutt and tell him what's going on. If you tell him they're out to take back the freighter I gave him, I bet he'd be willing to send his guards as backup." The pair then ducked as a few blaster bolts struck the side of her home. "Get out of here! I'll keep you covered!"

"Fine. At least take my utility knife; you might need it."

"Thanks. Good luck, Rey. I'll see you soon."

Rey sprinted towards her speeder outside, protected by a rapid series of blasts from Jakson's Bryar pistol. Powering the vehicle up, she climbed aboard and sped off towards Niima Outpost.

"She's running, bro! Jakson's all alone!" Toursant crowed.

"You're a fuckin' dumbass! She could be goin' for backup; get after her!" Vanver scolded him.

Realizing Vanver was likely correct, Toursant made for the speeder bike they had stolen from Jakson and took off after the girl. Vanver, meanwhile, began targeting Jakson with his shotgun blaster, forcing Jakson to remain at a distance as best as he could.

"Shit... he always has been trigger-happy," Jakson muttered.

Finally, after four shots, Vanver had to pause to prevent his weapon from overheating. Jakson preyed on the opportunity, popping out of cover and firing several light, yet accurate shots at Vanver. Two grazed the foot of the AT-AT he hid behind, while the third managed to wing Vanver in the shoulder.

"You fucking prick! You're gonna pay for that!" he roared in pain.

"Ah shit," Jakson swore, seeing Vanver target him again. He dove back into cover just as the first blast struck near him.

*****

Rey sped through the desert, praying she would be able to bring help in time to save Jakson. As she adjusted course towards town, her speeder was rocked by a near miss of blaster fire.

"What the hell?!"

Glancing behind her, she spied Jakson's speeder bike, now piloted by Toursant Irving, his blaster pistol in hand. She adjusted course again, knowing she would need to lose him before reaching town, or else she would be in serious trouble. As good a pilot as she was, Rey knew the speeder bike chasing her was far more maneuverable and had incredible acceleration. Getting an idea, she turned her path towards the north, approaching a large, open field.

"Get back here, girly!" Toursant shouted, drawing closer to Rey.

Firing another couple of shots, Toursant managed to strike the hull of her speeder, slowing her down considerably. Now almost on top of her, he accelerated and pulled alongside Rey. As he was about to blast her, the girl pulled out a quarterstaff, jousting with him as they flew through the desert. After a couple of swipes, she managed to knock his blaster out of his hand. While Toursant worked to keep his balance, Rey was able to adjust her speeder and get some of her speed back, pulling away from Toursant once more.

"You ain't gettin' away that easy," he muttered.

Keeping a tight grip on the controls, Toursant activated a speed boost, rocketing forward and beginning to catch up with Rey. Pulling alongside her again, he now began to ram her with the side of his speeder bike. Her speeder was larger than his, though, and far more stable. Still, after a few well-timed kicks, Rey was struggling to keep from falling off.

"Are you insane?! You'll kill us both!" Rey shouted.

Toursant refused to let up, trying everything he could to throw Rey from her mount. Seeing no other option, she pulled out her quarterstaff once more, prodding and jabbing at his face at every opportunity. He replied by grabbing on, trying to yank her off with it. Rey was ready for this tactic, and managed to keep a tight grip on her speeder. Pulling back with all her might, she took Toursant completely by surprise at her strength. His hand flailed about, trying to grab something of the speeder bike, but it was no use. He flew from the bike, landing in the soft sand with a thud. At first, Toursant was thankful for the sand, but soon realized why it was so soft: he was sinking into it. The pit he had landed in was drawing him towards its center, and he could do nothing to gain any traction to pull himself out.

"Here! Grab on!" a voice shouted.

To his utter shock, Rey was crouching at the edge of the sand pit, beckoning him to grab her staff so she could pull him out. Toursant had no idea why she would try to save him, but reached for her nonetheless. Finally managing to grab the strap of the staff, he struggled with everything he had to try and counteract the sinking sands.

"Come on! Don't give up!" Rey tried encouraging him.

Even as he had a grip on the strap, it was tenuous and weak, and his body was still shell-shocked from being thrown off the speeder bike. Toursant pulled with all his might, but the sand was too strong. His sweaty palms finally got the best of him, and the staff slipped from his grip just as his face began to disappear below the surface of the sand. He screamed and shouted in desperation, but no sound came out. Soon, the desert had completely swallowed Toursant Irving.

"Shit... bloody awful way to go..." Rey muttered, turning back towards her speeder.

*****

Jakson and Vanver continued their duel, the latter keeping the former on the defensive for the most part. Jakson dashed and rolled between various areas of cover, just managing to avoid Vanver's shotgun blasts. As Vanver's rage grew, so did his recklessness, as he now advanced on Jakson's position. This gave Jakson a slight opening to fire off a few shots at him. Unfortunately, Vanver had anticipated this, and dove forward into a roll. This allowed him to close the distance between them and avoid Jakson's attack all at once.

"Not good enough, Jakson!"

Knowing Vanver was almost on top of him, Jakson spied Rey's final trap that had failed to activate: a large, electrified net positioned above her home. Taking careful aim, he waited until Vanver was under the net before firing off a precision shot. This severed the pulley holding the net up, causing it to drop onto Vanver, catching him by surprise. Unfortunately, the net was not electrified, as it had not been activated properly by Rey's security system, but it did manage to slow Vanver down. As he struggled to break free, Jakson fired into his chest. Vanver guarded on instinct, and the blaster bolt hit his shotgun blaster instead, rendering it inoperable.

"Shit! You fucker!" Vanver seethed.

"Now we're talkin," Jakson whispered to himself.

As Vanver finally managed to toss the net off of him, Jakson emerged from his hiding spot, preparing to finish his rival. In desperation, Vanver flung his useless weapon at Jakson, causing him to flinch and swat it away. As he did so, Vanver charged him, tackling him to the ground and forcing Jakson to drop his blaster pistol. Vanver stunned him with a few wild punches before beginning to crawl towards the blaster. Jakson grabbed onto his leg, trying desperately to keep him away from the weapon, as it would mean his certain death. Vanver answered by kicking Jakson in the face before continuing towards the pistol.

"Now you're dead, Jakson!" Vanver cheered as he snatched up the weapon.

Jakson knew his only chance of surviving would be to avoid being shot, as Vanver preferred using his shotgun blaster due to his terrible aim. In contrast, the Bryar pistol was exceptionally accurate, requiring a skilled operator to maximize its potential. Rather than put his hands up as Vanver had expected, Jakson took off running towards the leg of the AT-AT. Vanver attempted to kill him, but his shots were way off target, flying behind Jakson as he ran. In frustration, Vanver flipped a switch on the pistol, activating its charge shot mode. Trying his best to take aim at Jakson, Vanver let loose the powerful shot, but it still flew over Jakson's head.

"Missed me!" Jakson taunted, now beginning to climb up the AT-AT.

"Well, take this!" Vanver steadied his aim, pointed at Jakson's chest, and pulled the trigger.

Click.

Nothing happened. Vanver tried once more.

Click.

"What's wrong, Vanver? Is the charge dry?"

"Shut up! You're still fucking DEAD!!"

Vanver tossed away the useless pistol and sprinted after Jakson, scrambling up the leg of the AT-AT. Soon, both men were atop the hull of the massive walker, staring each other down. With both of their blasters now useless, Jakson knew it would come down to single combat. Preparing for Vanver's inevitable attack, his pulse raced as he saw the smuggler pull a dagger out of his pocket. Jakson responded by drawing Rey's utility knife from his belt.

"Yah!" Vanver grunted, thrusting at Jakson.

Jakson sidestepped, slashing at Vanver's arm with his own knife. His attack connected, but only cut into his jacket, missing his flesh. Thinking quickly, Jakson used his off-hand to deliver a pair of crushing punches to Vanver's side, striking him in the kidney. Vanver staggered away from Jakson, but remained undeterred. Jakson now went on the offensive, slashing from the side at Vanver's face, but his attack was blocked by Vanver's arm. He retaliated by targeting Jakson's torso with his knife, though Jakson managed to grab his wrist just in time, stopping the attack.

"You're good, Jakson... but not good enough."

As Jakson relaxed his knife arm, Vanver brought his blocking arm down below his waist. After tossing his knife into his left hand, he slashed at Jakson, catching him in the abdomen. Jakson panted and heaved, knowing he was lucky to escape with his life. He had no time to recover, seeing Vanver charging once more and slashing at Jakson from every direction. This action began to drive him back towards the head of the AT-AT. Knowing he was now on the edge of the walker's body, Jakson waited for Vanver's next strike, deflecting it and stabbing his knife into Vanver's already injured shoulder. As his rival winced in pain, Jakson leapt over the neck of the walker and onto the side of the cockpit.

"Get back here!"

Vanver followed right behind him, rolling as he landed and bringing him face-to-face with Jakson once more. Jakson pressed his attack, stunning Vanver with a couple of punches to his wounded shoulder. He then attempted to impale him with his knife, but Vanver managed to grab Jakson's wrist. The smuggler moved to slit Jakson's throat, but Jakson caught his wrist just as the knife was at his neck. The two men struggled for what seemed like years, neither conceding an inch on the other. Finally feeling Vanver begin to weaken from his previous wound, Jakson managed to deliver a swift kick to his groin. Wincing in pain, Vanver disengaged and stumbled backwards.

Jakson now had the opportunity he was waiting for. Dashing forward, he ducked under a frenzied haymaker before finally stabbing the smuggler dead center in the chest. Vanver's eyes bulged in surprise, his knife clattering to the hull of the walker as his body began to lose strength. He instinctively grabbed Jakson by the throat, but his hands were too weak to do anything short of brush against him. Pulling the knife from Vanver's chest, Jakson stepped back and allowed his rival's body to fall to the desert sands below. As he landed with a thud, Jakson breathed a sigh of relief. Vanver Irving was finally dead.

"Jak!"

Turning to look into the distance, Jakson's heart leapt at what he saw. "Rey! You're ok!"

She ran towards the walker from her speeder, a trio of Niima Outpost guards following right behind her. Jakson scrambled across the hull of the walker, sliding down the leg as she approached. He wrapped her up in an exuberant hug, thankful that she was alive and unhurt.

"What happened out there? I saw Toursant go after you, but..."

"I'm fine. He caught up to me, but I managed to pull him off the speeder bike in the fields north of here. He fell into a pit of sinking sand. He's gone, Jak."

"Vanver's dead too. Just killed him in a knife fight. Thanks for that, by the way," he said with a grin, handing Rey's knife back to her.

"Anytime," she said, planting a sweet kiss on his lips.

"Jakson, over here with us, please. You're under arrest," one of the guards ordered.

"Wait, what?" Jakson asked in confusion.

"No! You can't arrest him, this was all self-defense!" Rey protested.

"This is by direct order of Unkar Plutt himself," the guard replied.

Two of the guards restrained Rey as the third placed Jakson in binders and loaded him into their prisoner transport. They soon made way back to town, with Rey following right on their heels the entire time.

*****

"You're lucky I don't kill you where you stand!!" Plutt roared.

"The hell are you so worked up about? Everything worked out just fine!" Jakson replied.

"Just fine?! Do you have ANY idea how much you almost cost me today?!"

"Stop, let me in!" came a muffled voice. Soon afterwards, Rey burst in through the door to Unkar Plutt's office. "You can't do this!"

"Sir, my apologies. She managed to push past us. I'll escort her out," a guard said from behind her.

"No need, she'll just break in all over again," Plutt said, waving the guard off. Turning his attention back to Jakson as the guard left, he growled, "She is the reason the events of today are completely unacceptable. The combination of her and the freighter I acquired from you are worth a small fortune, and I could have lost both today!"

"The Irving Boys are dead! Nobody else even knows about that freighter!" Jakson protested.

"So you say, but you also said that your past life would not come looking for you here. You said you would be able to completely disappear in Niima Outpost. Why should I believe you now?"

"With the Irving Boys dead, the bounty on my head dies with them," Jakson said, trying to remain calm. "Nobody's left to pay out on that bounty, so there's no reason for anyone else to come after me."

"That is not a chance I am willing to take any more. I have no qualms about killing you to protect my most valuable assets," Plutt said, aiming his blaster pistol at Jakson.

"NO!" Rey protested, placing herself between Jakson and Plutt.

"Stand down, girl."

"I will not. I... I love him. I won't let you do this to him."

"I'll not jeopardize everything I've built here over your frivolous affections for him!"

"What if I ignore those feelings? What if... I end my relationship with Jakson, and promise never to see him again? If I do this, will you spare his life?"

Unkar Plutt paused, considering this offer. As Jakson tried to protest, Plutt growled, "Hush. This is no longer in your hands." The hulking alien eyed Ray for several moments before continuing, "If you do this, know that my men will be always watching you, and him as well. Should they find even the slightest hint of contact between the two of you, he dies. Agreed?"

A tear streamed down Rey's cheek as she whispered, "Agreed." After wiping the tear from her face, she said, "I need a moment... to say goodbye to him."

Grunting, Plutt stood and walked towards the door to his office. "You have five minutes," he said, slamming the door shut behind him.

Rey turned towards Jakson, pulling the binders off of his wrists. He rubbed his tender skin, massaging the area that had been clamped down on by the restraints. Gazing into her eyes, Jakson brushed her cheek with his fingers.

"Rey... why? Why would you do that?"

"Because I love you, Jak. I would do anything for you... including never seeing you again, if it would save your life. I'm sorry, but it's the only way. Please, don't be mad at me."

"I could never be mad at you, Rey. But... why do this? There's nothing else forcing me to hide here, so let's go! Let's get a ship and run away. Together. We can live wherever we want, away from the Blobfish and his goons. Please, come with me."

Tears flowed from her eyes, as she replied, "No. I... I can't. My family will return for me, someday. I've got to be here when they do. I'm so sorry, Jak."

"You... you're sure?"

"I am. I have no choice. My place is here."

Sighing, Jakson replied, "Then so is mine."

"What?"

"Rey, I love you. I'm not giving up on you, or us. Sooner or later, Plutt will slip up. When he does... I'll be there. We'll be together again."

"I... hope you're right..."

*****

The next several weeks were the toughest of Jakson's life. He saw Rey every day, yet could do nothing, not even wave hello from a distance. Anything of the sort would result in a swift response from Plutt's guards. Everywhere she went, they followed close behind. During that time, Jakson didn't live; he only survived. Plutt became increasingly stingy with his rations, though Jakson had built up a decent supply of food so he wouldn't starve.

One day, as he walked through Niima Outpost, he noticed that Rey had a visitor accompanying her: a small, white and orange BB unit droid. This struck him as rather odd, and he wondered where she might have run across such an acquisition. Taking great care, he followed her at a distance, keeping an eye on her as she approached the concession stand to trade her parts for food rations. Though Plutt offered little for her scrap, he seemed to be quite interested in the droid with her. Jakson's jaw dropped when he heard him offer sixty portions for the droid; that was almost two months worth of food!

Jakson watched as Rey considered the offer, then took her meager rations and told Plutt that he couldn't have the droid. Jakson immediately worried for her, seeing Plutt mutter something into his radio before slamming his window closed. Jakson kept Rey within his sights as she returned to her speeder, but soon saw he had nothing to worry about. As Plutt's guards ambushed her and attempted to take the droid, she gave them a resounding beating with her quarterstaff.

Just as Jakson celebrated her victory, the droid beside her seemed to notice an approaching danger, beeping in alarm. Rey glanced in the direction the little droid indicated, spying a dark-skinned human male. The unknown individual took off running, and Rey soon gave chase. By the time Jakson had caught up, he saw her pinning the man to the ground and calling him a thief. Seeing as she had the situation under control, Jakson continued to hang back, watching them converse. After a few moments, the man said something to the droid, which made it appear to hang its head in sorrow.