AssallyaKale deactivated the hyperdrive and returned to real space flying straight at Dantooine, closer to the planets than normal. He pulled back on the controls and went into orbit, noticing that there was already a Star Destroyer there. "I've got a bad feeling about this."
Snow gave him a look of slight contempt.
"Probably just a hangover." He set landing coordinates for one of the settlements at Snow's command and he started towards the planet, only to receive a signal from the Star Destroyer. Kale answered it.
"Unknown Freighter, this is the ISD Requiem. What is your cargo and destination?"
"Just some trade goods. Droid parts, some Corellian Whisky and the like. I was hoping to offload them and take a load of food to Corellia." The rebels had hit a Imperial run chem plant about three months earlier, ruining fertilizer and 'ponics chem production, so Corellia was experiencing a bit of a food shortage.
The console beeped, showing that they were being scanned, and the ISD responded. "Very well. You may continue landing. Be advised that terrorists have been detected on the planet. Any interference with Imperial efforts to stop them will land you in prison."
"Thanks for the warning." Kale said, restarting his approach to the city.
Soon they had set down at a landing pad and Snow made an encrypted call. A few minutes later a Twilek in a hovertruck showed up and they transferred the crates over. "Come with me, Captain." said Snow. "I'll make my delivery and pay you the rest of the money. Your crew can come too if you want." She and Kale climbed in the front, letting the crew sit in the back, and drove out of town. They eventually made it to the ruins of an old temple. "Follow me."
She lead him inside, where over a dozen people worked to restore the structure. "Snow." a woman said, walking over to them. "I take it this is the Captain who brought our cargo?"
"Yes, sir." Snow replied, "I owe him ten thousand still."
Kale knew that his attention should be on business, but he table with various artifacts on it and felt drawn to it. After glancing over what they had found in the ruins, his gaze locked on a blue crystal.
"Do you see anything you like?" the woman asked him.
He nodded and picked up the crystal. "What is this?"
"Kyber crystal, from Ilum. We found what could be the remnants of an ancient lightsaber with it, but it was corroded too badly to be certain. The Jedi used to use them in constructing Light Sabers, though that technology was never shared with the galaxy at large. Do you want it? Street value is around one thousand."
Kale nodded. "Then I guess you only owe me nine thousand."
A few hours later Kale lay in his bunk, thinking. They had offered him more smuggling jobs, but the crystal seemed more important somehow, like the job can wait, but he needed to learn about the crystal as fast as he could. But how? There weren't any Jedi around to teach him about it, and the Empire wouldn't do it. An archeologist maybe? No, they would see it as an artifact, not as a...
Kale couldn't find the right word. Friend? College? Pet? Labor animal? None of those seemed right, but he could Feel that it wasn't just a normal crystalline material.
There was only one place that could tell him what he knew and wouldn't think him insane for having a connection to a mineral deposit. The Temple on Jedha. Kale walked to the bridge and activated the intercom. "I'm going to make a quick stop by Jedha, in case you were wondering why we aren't going straight to the station. Don't worry, I'll pay you standard rates for the additional time. Now, check in so that I know you're on board and we'll be off."
Snow gave him a look of slight contempt.
"Probably just a hangover." He set landing coordinates for one of the settlements at Snow's command and he started towards the planet, only to receive a signal from the Star Destroyer. Kale answered it.
"Unknown Freighter, this is the ISD Requiem. What is your cargo and destination?"
"Just some trade goods. Droid parts, some Corellian Whisky and the like. I was hoping to offload them and take a load of food to Corellia." The rebels had hit a Imperial run chem plant about three months earlier, ruining fertilizer and 'ponics chem production, so Corellia was experiencing a bit of a food shortage.
The console beeped, showing that they were being scanned, and the ISD responded. "Very well. You may continue landing. Be advised that terrorists have been detected on the planet. Any interference with Imperial efforts to stop them will land you in prison."
"Thanks for the warning." Kale said, restarting his approach to the city.
Soon they had set down at a landing pad and Snow made an encrypted call. A few minutes later a Twilek in a hovertruck showed up and they transferred the crates over. "Come with me, Captain." said Snow. "I'll make my delivery and pay you the rest of the money. Your crew can come too if you want." She and Kale climbed in the front, letting the crew sit in the back, and drove out of town. They eventually made it to the ruins of an old temple. "Follow me."
She lead him inside, where over a dozen people worked to restore the structure. "Snow." a woman said, walking over to them. "I take it this is the Captain who brought our cargo?"
"Yes, sir." Snow replied, "I owe him ten thousand still."
Kale knew that his attention should be on business, but he table with various artifacts on it and felt drawn to it. After glancing over what they had found in the ruins, his gaze locked on a blue crystal.
"Do you see anything you like?" the woman asked him.
He nodded and picked up the crystal. "What is this?"
"Kyber crystal, from Ilum. We found what could be the remnants of an ancient lightsaber with it, but it was corroded too badly to be certain. The Jedi used to use them in constructing Light Sabers, though that technology was never shared with the galaxy at large. Do you want it? Street value is around one thousand."
Kale nodded. "Then I guess you only owe me nine thousand."
A few hours later Kale lay in his bunk, thinking. They had offered him more smuggling jobs, but the crystal seemed more important somehow, like the job can wait, but he needed to learn about the crystal as fast as he could. But how? There weren't any Jedi around to teach him about it, and the Empire wouldn't do it. An archeologist maybe? No, they would see it as an artifact, not as a...
Kale couldn't find the right word. Friend? College? Pet? Labor animal? None of those seemed right, but he could Feel that it wasn't just a normal crystalline material.
There was only one place that could tell him what he knew and wouldn't think him insane for having a connection to a mineral deposit. The Temple on Jedha. Kale walked to the bridge and activated the intercom. "I'm going to make a quick stop by Jedha, in case you were wondering why we aren't going straight to the station. Don't worry, I'll pay you standard rates for the additional time. Now, check in so that I know you're on board and we'll be off."