(Jayden's PoV)
So, this is the Collector's place, huh? It looks nice for a Black Market area.
We arrived at what was supposed to be the collector's home. The place where we are is an abandoned repair station, which was supposed to have been used by the Republic Forces before the Ruusan Reforms.
This was one of many bases that were abandoned during that time, which became bases for criminal elements.
I wonder if no one thought that this could happen at that time.
I mean, Sith may be the main villains in the story of the Republic, but those are not the only dangers that were present in the galaxy.
There were ruins where details of Rakata's Infinite Empire were found. Like the Original Sith, they are an entire race that used the Dark Side of the Force. They may be bad, but they inherited the legacy of Kwa. Well, they backstabbed and seized them, but the point was that they were technologically very advanced and used Force Engines.
Star Forge, which was re-discovered by Raven during the Mandalorian Wars, changed the galaxy.
A single build, something that was created by Rakata using the legacy of Kwa, that lasted for a long time even after they disappeared.
They might have disappeared from the main stage, just like Killiks, who, for some reason, became monsters like Kwa, but the point was that there were many unknowns in the galaxy itself.
Did no one think that there were galaxies like theirs outside?
There are many threats remaining. I have no idea why they even did those Reforms, which would come to haunt the galaxy for years to come.
Without a formal military, piracy and smuggling increased in number. Crimes multiplied, and abandoned installations like these became a haven for those criminal elements.
The sad part is that even though this information was not exactly secret, neither the Order nor the Senate would make a move to eliminate such tumours from society.
If those criminal elements were minimal, pure elimination may not be possible.
Though one wants a place where there is no crime, it is not realistic. It may be a good idea, but not something that is possible in reality, but the rulers can eliminate such obvious places and not provide chances like these abandoned bases or stations in space, where these criminal elements can turn into their homes.
---
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Vos asked me one last time as we prepared to infiltrate the collector's compound.
"Yes", I replied.
My plan for retrieving the egg heavily hinges on my own work. There is very little that the others can do.
The compound has an air vent, which, as in many heist scenarios, would play a role in this heist as well.
Of course, unlike other air vents, this one was riddled with sensors and protection that would kill any intruder, whether it was a human or a rat. Everything would die here if it dared to step foot here.
Vos and my master were out of the plan as they are tall and huge, and it would be very difficult to manoeuvre inside. They could get stuck inside, but that won't be a problem for either me or Secura.
I can't let Secura come, as I am planning not just to retrieve the egg from the Collector's treasury. It is the main objective, but if he has a lot of wealth and resources that he gained illegally, then I can make the best use of them once I liberate those resources.
So, I can't let Secura come with me, as any action I make would be registered in her mind, which I am sure she would tell her master.
Even if I can't take the resources, I need to take the egg, and if I find myself running, for the safety of the egg, I may have to place it in my space storage.
For some reason, eggs were not considered living. While I was at the capital temple, I checked with a few eggs. Some didn't hatch, while some did, and I learned that the ones that didn't hatch are farmed eggs, while the ones that did were wild eggs.
Though those are exactly wild eggs, the birds that laid them did so on natural farms, instead of in a place like a poultry farm.
Since this egg is a pure wild egg, I don't think any problem would arise, but unless required, I don't intend to put it inside the space storage, just to be sure.
So, I made that she was required elsewhere as a lookout.
They would keep watch over the building, and if there was any anomaly, they would inform me, and I would escape. Also, the fact that I know Engineering and Programming, I can easily enter the cyber defences and disable even the physical dangers.
"Don't be a hero. If anything feels wrong, leave, even if you can't get the egg. We can deal with the issue in some other way", my master Ayla said.
I nodded and walked towards the weak point of entry, while the three took their positions as sentries, watching for anomalies.
---
I entered the air event and through this, I infiltrated the compound easily.
There were many dangers, but using my engineering and programming skills, I disabled them. It was so easy.
I learned them for a different cause, to develop them so that they can offer better services for the people, but here I am using those skills to steal. Well, even though I am stealing...I mean liberating, they would be helpful to the people in one way or another, which they can't do by sitting in this greedy one's treasury.
After fifteen minutes of hunched walking or crawling, I finally reached what appeared to be the treasury.
When I saw the blueprints provided by the wookie, I wondered why there was an air vent above the treasury, an obvious hole in security, but after passing through the air vent, I understood that it was not a hole but a trap.
If anyone enters the area without having knowledge like mine, they can't enter, and most normal ones could stop a few traps, but not all. If not for the Force, I would have missed a lot.
No matter how vile or greedy this collector might have been, I don't think he ever thought a Jedi would appear to rob him.
I could see everything from up here.
There are a lot of collectables here. They would fetch a lot in the black market, well, not this one obviously, somewhere far away from here. Even if I get to dump for a fair price without waiting for an auction, these items could fetch me a lot, but first, I need to find the Egg.
It is the priority. I have disabled the alarms, but what if there are independent contingencies? It is, after all, the black market, and everyone here knew where their goods came from and how. They are not going to let the same happen here.
If I take any now, and if that triggers the silent alarm, which I could have missed, that would be troublesome. I may not have time to rescue the egg, which means we may have to deal with the serpent, which is not a good option.
It is why the ancients said that greed could lead to a lot of trouble. I need to find the egg first; everything comes next.
Credits.
Huh, why does this bastard have physical credits in such quantity?
It looks like this one is connected, but that's for later.
Where is the egg?
Egg...little egg...where are you?
Ah, there you are.
Damn, this bastard already framed it in a box.