The tremors grew stronger and stronger. In the distance, Amir could see chunks of earth erupting from beneath the surface, crashing down onto the base's roof and the surrounding terrain—shattering into smaller fragments on impact.
From behind, Hondo's voice rang out—he had made it onto the ship.
"Strap in!"
Amir swiftly operated the controls before him. The Voyager came to life, component by component, cockpit lights flashing on, the reassuring hum of machinery filling the cabin.
All the sounds he wanted to hear.
Finally, the engines ignited. The rear thrusters burst into glowing blue flame, and the Voyager lifted off from the ground.
A crash echoed from the cargo hold.
"What the hell are you doing?" Amir shouted.
"Ugh! My back! The crate wasn't strapped down properly!" Hondo groaned.
Amir ignored him, eyes locked on the rear-view display.
Two massive tentacles were emerging from the edge of the screen, and the ground was shaking even more violently.
CRACK!
The base's protective shield finally gave way, shattering under the strain.
The atmosphere inside rushed outward into the vacuum of space, giving the Voyager an unexpected boost.
Though it made the ship harder to control, it helped them break free from the planet's surface.
"Hahaha! It's been years since I've had a thrill like this!"
Hondo laughed from the back, having finally strapped himself in.
"And with a Jedi, no less! Haha, I thought you lot were extinct! Don't worry—I've always had good relations with Jedi!"
Amir tuned him out as meaningless chatter and accelerated away from the planet.
"What's that energy reading?"
"Looks like the residual blast from an explosion—energy dispersal patterns are consistent."
Moff Gideon had just arrived in the Hoth asteroid belt.
Even the Empire didn't have a safe hyperspace route directly to the planet—they had to drop out of hyperspace here and carefully make their way inward.
But along the way, the Star Destroyer's sensors picked up a string of energy anomalies.
"Take us there. Full speed."
"But sir, that area's right on the edge of the asteroid—"
"Yes, sir!"
A technician quickly cut off the rookie, well aware of Gideon's temper: no tolerance for questioning orders, just do what you're told.
The light cruiser went to full power, skirting the asteroid belt's edge toward the signal.
Gideon had disobeyed direct orders to chase this opportunity. Two interrogators were supposed to rendezvous with him to extract information from the old man—but Gideon had left that post.
None of that mattered—so long as he got the target.
"Picking up a ship's signal—initiating scan."
The automated system chirped.
"Scan failed. Vessel not in Imperial registry."
"Cross-referencing records... Match found. Confirmed: wanted vessel."
Excitement flashed in Gideon's eyes.
"Lock onto the ship. Scramble all TIE squadrons to intercept. And remember—do not destroy it."
"Acknowledged."
More than a dozen TIE Fighters shot out of the hangar and moved into position.
"Why isn't the target fleeing? It's approaching us instead."
Gideon narrowed his eyes.
The ship, rather than making a desperate escape, was adjusting course—heading straight for him.
"All fighters: hold fire until fired upon. Prepare to evade."
The TIEs obeyed, swarming around the vessel in tight formation, but holding their fire. The target ship did not resist.
"Report: target vessel shows no signs of hostile activity."
"Attempting comms link."
Gideon frowned.
"No response..."
"No response..."
"Suspect the ship is using a jamming field."
Gideon exhaled sharply. So that was why they couldn't track the ship's signal for so long—it had been using a full communications blackout.
Then, suddenly—another voice rang out.
"Incoming transmission request from target vessel."
"Accept it! Now!"
The signal jammer had dropped. The ship was actively trying to connect. Gideon ordered immediate acceptance.
The tech crew accepted the request and routed the feed straight to the display in front of Gideon.
A voice crackled through the speakers:
"Whoa, signal jammers... Biubiu! That should do it… Huh? It's working?"
"Hey there! Officers!"
The voice was old—gravelly and mischievous.
"Your ship is on the Empire's wanted list. Prepare to be boarded immediately."
"Your ship is on the E—"
"Of course! I'm cooperating! I'm a loyal Imperial citizen, and I've already taken care of this criminal and his ship for you!"
"Prepare to be board—"
"Oh, come on, is there a real person on the line? I saw the bounty you posted! Got that reward ready, yeah?"
"Ahem," Gideon cut in, taking the mic.
"Naturally, citizen. The Empire rewards loyal service. Now prepare for immediate boarding."
"Yes, yes, officer! This ship—and its owner—total bounty: fifty thousand credits. That's right, isn't it?"
Gideon frowned, clearly annoyed.
"Yes."
"Also, I need a ride to the nearest port. The Empire doesn't forget its heroes, right?"
"One more word, and your deal is void."
Gideon growled.
The voice on the other end finally shut up. Gideon let out a breath, his face brightening again.
"The Force favors me today," he muttered, turning to leave the command deck.
"Sir? Where are you going?"
"I'm escorting the prisoner myself."
Amir had never let down his guard—but sometimes, it wasn't enough.
When he saw Hondo walking toward him—wearing a rebreather mask and carrying the powered-down BD-4—an overwhelming wave of dizziness hit him.
In the final moment before he lost consciousness, he heard Hondo's voice:
"I love Jedi. They always make me rich."
At that time, the cruiser had just appeared on the radar.
—
When Amir next opened his eyes, he was staring at a gray-white alloy wall.
His head pounded, as if he'd been struck from behind. Disjointed images kept flashing through his mind.
"Damn it… Hondo."
Amir slowly sat up, leaning against the wall and trying to recall what had happened.
"I smelled something strange…"
Back when the ship first took off, he'd noticed a faint aroma—but things had been too hectic to think about it.
"Didn't expect him to drug me right after liftoff."
Looking back now, Amir was sure—it had been a gas-based sedative. And he recognized the symptoms.
It was a highly hallucinogenic byproduct left over during spice refinement. Unlike purified spice crystals, it had little recreational value—but its numbing effects were far stronger.
Though rejected by spice users, it found other uses. Bounty hunters and shady clinics often used it as an anesthetic.
Suppressing the dizziness, Amir reached out with the Force to sense his body and surroundings.
Suddenly, something caught his attention. He reached with his left hand to the upper inner side of his right arm—beneath the layers of his clothes.
"…My lightsaber."
"Hondo, you bastard."
-
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