"You're done eating—now take me to the spice, now!"
The Rodian had finally lost his patience, watching Amir slowly chew the last piece of fruit.
"I think we should wait for Hondo to return."
The Rodian frowned. Clearly, he was somewhat wary of Hondo—he'd only dared to act while Hondo was away, trying to force Amir to hand over the spice prematurely.
Why is he so afraid of an old man? Amir wondered. What backup plan does Hondo have?
With no clues to go on, speculation was pointless. Amir decided to go along with what Hondo had said earlier.
"Relax," Amir said, noticing the Rodian's hesitation. "I already said I'd give you the spice. I'm not going back on my word. Follow me."
With that, Amir stood and walked toward the exit.
He preferred facing unknown situations in open space.
The Rodian looked around uncertainly, then followed Amir. A few more pirates trailed behind them.
As Amir stood, his spider droid finally returned and docked.
He didn't check the data via holoprojection—it would be too revealing. Instead, he viewed it on a flat display.
But that was enough.
Casually lifting his left arm, Amir quickly scanned the base's layout—terrain, weapons, anything he could exploit.
Exiting the base's chamber and approaching the Voyager, BD-4 hopped ahead, waiting by the hatch.
Amir pressed a button on his left controller. The hatch's lift slowly descended until it touched the ground.
He couldn't help but glance back toward the base. Hondo wouldn't set me up… right? It's been a while and still no sign of him.
Boarding the ship, Amir opened his wrist display again and checked the last unexplored area of the base.
"…What is that?"
His pupils contracted.
On the screen was a massive shape—neither part of the surrounding terrain nor any typical structure. It wasn't hollow like a building. If anything, it resembled a massive slug-like creature, similar to the one Charles had described bursting out of the Rift.
No way…!
Amir was stunned. If that thing really was alive, how massive must it be?
The base was barely half its size.
The Voyager was no bigger than a single tentacle in comparison.
Amir forced himself to stay calm. Even if it's alive, it's dormant… or maybe even dead. Either way, it's no threat right now.
Grabbing the crate of refined spice from the cargo hold, Amir made his way to the door.
It was hard to believe that this tiny box could sell for more than most people earn in a lifetime.
The Rodian waited just outside. Amir approached and handed him the crate directly.
As he took it, the Rodian involuntarily swallowed, eyes gleaming with greed.
In Amir's Force senses, the Rodian's aura was steadily darkening.
At that moment, Amir had an idea. He extended his Force perception outward, reaching toward the back of the base—toward the colossal entity he had scanned.
If it was alive, he'd sense its presence in the Force.
With the image of the creature fresh in his mind, his chances of connecting were much higher.
Within seconds, a murky, vast presence surged into his awareness—followed by a torrent of deep, complex emotions.
Hunger. Rage. Ferocity.
And beneath it all… a fading sorrow.
It was alive.
The moment Amir's Force touched it, something inside the creature stirred—as if thawing from a long winter's slumber, spring winds rekindling its strength.
Life exploded back into its body.
Hunger awakened primal instinct.
Rage trembled through its consciousness.
It had noticed Amir's presence.
It had awakened.
Amir licked his lips, realizing his curiosity might have triggered something terrible.
Time to run. Again.
Just then, gunfire rang out from inside the base. A repulsorlift crate flew out the door, skidding to a stop on the platform.
A dark-skinned head peeked out and locked eyes with Amir.
"Amir! Do it!!"
The Rodian, seeing Hondo appear, panicked and flung the crate aside. He pulled a remote from under his cloak.
Just as he was about to press it, a green lightsaber flashed—and along with the blur of light, his familiar hand and the all-important remote went flying.
"That could've activated the base's defense systems!"
Hondo shouted from cover, taking out a sniper up high with two precise shots before leaping atop the crate.
Thanks to its repulsorlift, the crate acted like a sled, quickly gliding toward the Voyager with Hondo clinging to it. It served as both transport and shield.
Realizing their acting captain had turned traitor, the pirates split their fire—some aimed at Hondo, others tried to pin Amir down near the spice.
But those shots no longer threatened Amir.
Using Form III, he expertly deflected the blaster bolts, redirecting several back into the nearest enemies. The display of skill stunned the surrounding pirates.
Fear took over—they scrambled for cover, stalling their attack entirely.
BD-4, meanwhile, was hauling the spice crate back into the ship.
Seeing Hondo pinned behind the crate by blaster fire, Amir drew his blaster pistol.
Aim. Fire.
Three shots per second. Ten rounds flew in a flash—seven weapons shattered, three enemies dove for cover.
Hondo seized the moment, pushing off like he was riding a hoverboard, gliding full-speed toward the Voyager.
But halfway there, the ground began to quake violently.
Amir staggered, nearly falling. Hondo tumbled off the crate and rolled forward several times.
The pirates weren't faring any better—grabbing onto walls and railings as the tremors shook everything.
The Rodian, missing a hand, lay flat on the ground, craning his neck toward the back of the base.
His huge eyes bulged even more, almost popping out.
"No… No, no no no!! NO!!"
He went from mumbling to full-blown hysteria.
"A ship! I need a ship! Get me to a ship!! IT'S GOING CRAZY AGAIN!!!"
From who knows where, the Rodian found the strength to stand. Blood gushed from his wrist, but he sprinted toward the hangar like a madman.
The rest of the pirates followed, fleeing like a horde of terrified animals chased by a monster.
Hondo scrambled to his feet and ran toward the Voyager, shouting to Amir—now handling the spice crate:
"Start the ship!!"
Amir didn't hesitate. He kicked the crate onboard and bolted for the cockpit.
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