A Knife in the Dark (Prelude)

Corran settled the Pulsar Skate down into a docking berth in the Central Confederate Spaceport on Coruscant. The ship, thanks to his father in law, was running an ID named Gambit Redux that had let them slip through Coruscant's planetary security. Though it was surprisingly easy to accomplish, the inflitration was nothing if not nerve-wracking. Three separate security checks had confirmed their identity before they were let through. This was the easy part though...because the Gambit Redux came to Coruscant all the time. Mirax had let Corran borrow the ship since she often did business on Coruscant with the Gambit Redux ID. They were essentially hiding without hiding.

After powering down the ship and running his post-flight, Horn looked over to his companion. The being beside him, one of his oldest friends, was perhaps the most powerful Jedi Master alive. Anden Martins looked back at the corellian, and nodded, "Let's go."

The two made their way to the ship's hatch. Before they opened it they each pulled a long black cloak off of a rack on the bulkhead and put it on. Corran's covered a set of emerald Corellian Jedi robes. Anden's hid a similar outfit. Oddly enough, it was safe to use them...few remembered the Jedi now, and even fewer remembered their clothes. For anyone who did...well, that's where the cloaks came in.

As they exited the ship Horn thought back to an old holorecord he'd seen once in the Jedi Temple on Alderaan. It had been a record of a mission surprisingly similar to this. The mission took place just before the Clone Wars had begun, and it chronicled the attempt made by Jedi Knight Obi-wan Kenobi and his Padawan, Anakin Skywalker, to negotiate with the Trade Federation for an end to its blockade of Naboo. The mission, though successful, had not gone well. Corran just hoped that this mission did not go similarly.

Before long the two Jedi had hailed a cab and, settling themselves in the back seat, instructed the pilot to take them to the Imperial Palace.

It had been many hours since the steady thrum of the engines had lulled Hunter into a deep sleep. Then, that thrum was gone. Instantly, Hunter was alert and awake, scanning his surroundings. For a quick moment, he didn't know where he was and he was a little scared. He grabbed the long walking stick that had served him well over the years. Hunter felt the man before he heard the quick stride. Quickly twitching his head tails to make sure the man was coming toward him, Hunter silently ran to the side of the door and held his stick in front of him and to his left side. Crouching slightly, he readied himself for the man to open the door. Creaking, the door swung open and Hunter sprung. Bringing the stick down, he heard a crack as the man's head caved in and a thud as the body hit the ground. He noticed it was wet a split second before he was covered by water from an unknown source. Stepping off the deck and dropping onto the platform. Immediately, he was soaked by rain. It was then that he felt it. A strange pull. Something was drawing him... Looking down over the edge of the platform, he saw ocean stretching out as far as he could see. He still felt the pull, stronger now that he was directly in sight of the ocean.

It must be below the surface of the ocean...

Stepping back, he stumbled over the body of the man. Realizing he must deal with it or he will be found eventually, he grabbed it under the arms and dragged it over to the edge of the platform. Lifting his leg, he gave a push and watched the body fall, looking away as the body hit the water and was dragged under by something a moment later. Shuddering slightly, he again stepped back, this time without tripping. Turning, he headed over to the ship and closed the open door. Walking around the ship, he opened the cockpit and jumped inside. He looked up to see a trio of long-necked creatures striding toward him. Their appearance startled him and he quickly shut the canopy and turned the ship on. Thankfully, the controls weren't complicated\, which allowed him to pilot the ship with little difficulty. Before he knew it, he was in the atmosphere and then he was in space. Using the skills he had been taught by his mentor back on his home planet, Hunter plotted a course to Naboo, a lush planet that would suit his needs perfectly. Tightening his hold on his walking stick, Hunter leaned back in the seat and closed his eyes shut. Like in the small cramped space of the cargo hold, the steady thrum of the ship's engines vibrated the seat slightly and he slipped into a restless sleep. He was awoken some time later by a loud beep. Sitting straight up, he saw a large green and blue planet in front of him.

That must be Naboo. Its beautiful.

After entering the atmosphere with a bump, he maneuvered the ship towards a clearing and set it down. After scrounging around in the ship, he found a spare blaster, which he only kept so he could sell it for some credits, some food, a vibroblade, and a large pouch. Slipping everything into the pouch, Hunter stepped out of the ship and walked out onto the soft, marshy ground. Leaning on the walking stick, Hunter looked around and picked a random direction. With a sigh, Hunter set off.