Nar Shaddaa

It was always difficult to know how much detail the holotransmitter would manage to pick up and send to the other party. It would no doubt be easy to tell that Niall wore a Republic officer's uniform. It would be much harder to tell that it was his finest, tailored to his form, with brilliant blues and crisp lines. It would probably be possible to make out the rank insignia he wore, marking him as a captain, and the medal he'd earned, pinned neatly to his chest.

He hesitated for a moment as he straightened his high collar. The medal was not for bravery, as he would have hoped, but for being terribly wounded. But, in that sense, he had certainly earned it, in copiously spilled blood.

With a last adjustment, Niall turned to face the holotransmitter. He knew it would be able to pick up his fine, aristocratic features, and his haircut, done to exacting standards, short, but allowing his dark brown hair to handsomely frame his face. He just hoped it wouldn't show how pale he was at the moment.

With a sigh, his grey eyes set and serious, he reached out to press the button, beginning the call.

On the other side of the holocall popped up a woman who looked far younger than her actual age. She looked away at first, her cheeks slightly pink, until she finally announced, "Su cuy'gar. O-oh, sorry, I, um, that's Mando'a. It means 'hello.' Well, not quite, actually. It's literally 'You're still alive' but it's used for, well, hello." She swallowed. "I'm sorry, I'm blabbering again. Oh, and I'm sorry about your, well, what happened."

Niall kept a straight face, although the corners of his lips may have twisted just a little. ""Su cuy'gar." He repeated, his pronunciation exact. "And please, there's no need to apologize for babbling. Although I do thank you for your words for the death of my sister, Rayne." He said, his tone direct. After all that was 'what happened'.

The Mandalorian's lips curled slightly upward when he pronounced it correctly. She gave a slight nod and her expression went back to as serious as her bashful face could manage. "I am placing a bounty on her murderer. I suppose I could have done it myself, but, well, I honestly don't have the heart for it." She twirled some of her hair around her finger. "He was a good lad, well, 'good' in the sense of fighting and loyalty."

She sighed. "I don't imagine you'd want to hear me, well, talk about his good sides. Did you have, well, any specific requests for the bounty?"

To the first, Niall nodded, his grey eyes impassive, his lips thinning ever so slightly.

"Requests? Oh." Niall paused a moment, gently biting his lower lip. "No. Except..." He sighed, spreading his hands. "If he is taken alive, I hope he will be turned over to our authorities. He'll be given a fair trial. You have my word on that." He gave her a nod.

"Actually, I rather hoped you might be able to tell me a little about the first bounty. The one that led to my sister..." He trailed off.

"That can be arranged," she mumbled with a nod. "Oh, and, well, I don't know if you're, well, interested in bounty hunting but if you pursue him then I will still compensate you for his capture."

Thera frowned. "Right. Melv was pursuing a man whom, well, had murdered a young gal here. Well, here being the Smuggler's Moon. I'm not sure if you want the details on that murder." She continued to fiddle with her hair. "The client had asked for him to be killed and nothing more. And, well, Melv always had a bit of a loose trigger finger." She let out a sigh. "I should have disciplined him more. I'm sorry..."

Niall found his fingers drumming on his hip. He wasn't wearing his blaster. If he had, it would have been there. "Generally, I'm not interested in bounty hunting. This time, I think I might make an exception." He gave a tight smile. "If you please, Ms. Ordo."

"Thank you." He said shortly. "Just in the wrong place at the wrong time?" He sighed. "Perhaps it would help to know the details on that other case. I don't know. If you sent them to me so I could decide later, I would be grateful." He bowed, elegantly but carefully, not wanting to leave the view of the holoprojector.

"Do be careful then, sir. It's a very dangerous profession." She let out a nervous chuckle. "I stepped out of it for a reason."

She then nodded and sent a dossier on the last bounty taken by Melv Tannol. "Wrong place, wrong time I think. I'm not so sure what your sister was doing there." She blinked. "Oh, wait, sir. Um, well, the pictures included may be, well, quite sensitive." She let out a groan. "How to put it..."

Niall froze, expressionless. Finally, he nodded. "I understand." He sighed again. "I saw her... after. Before the funeral. I recognize that wouldn't be the same as in the immediate aftermath. And I've seen soldiers blown apart by explosives or blaster fire, or cut down by lightsabers." He shook his head. "As I said, I'm not sure if it will help. But at least I will have it."

He is silent a few moments, looking off to the side. His gaze went back to the holoprojector. "I'm not entirely sure what she was doing there, either. I know she hoped for a galactic education. I'd assumed that meant Coruscant. How she ended up on Nar Shaddaa..." He spread his hands again.

"I imagine that it will not be easy even with your experience. I, uh, have a sister of my own. Maybe you'll meet her," she said with a meek smile.

"You will also see the crime the murderer committed as well. The man Melv was hunting, that is." She swallowed. "It's a pretty grim scene. It's, uh, a really good thing that sociopath is dead."

Thera let out a sigh. "I imagine your sister must have came here for the less violent attractions the Smuggler's Moon has to offer. Or maybe she had some other reason to come here. I really don't know. Maybe someone else will have a better idea. Or maybe you could hire an investigator or go digging yourself."

Niall's jaw tightened at the mention of the other murder. He closed his eyes, taking a few moments before responding. "Perhaps so. And yet, if I had my way, I would not have traded the life of my only sister for his death. But that wasn't my choice to make." He turned away again, some of his control slipping, deep hurt evident on his features.

When he turned back, his grey eyes were impassive once more. "Thank you for your advice. I may take it." He gave an automatic smile, although it didn't touch his eyes. "And perhaps I will have the chance to meet your sister. She's in your line of work, I expect?"

"Ah, yes, of course," Thera mumbled in response to the apparent trade of life. "If I may, we can't change the past, sir. We, well, move forward. But, um, sorry."

The Mandalorian woman shook her head. "Not quite. She's, well, not a bounty hunter but she takes mercenary contracts. More military than tracking someone down."

"Yes." Niall nodded firmly. "Moving forward is what I intend to do." Still, his eyes flickered to the notification on his datapad.

"Ah. More my line of work." Niall mustered another smile. This one actually seemed to touch his eyes a little. "Perhaps I should meet your sister. No doubt we could talk shop."

"I can send her contact info if you'd like. But, uh, we're not, well, on the best terms." She lowered her eyes. "She's quite different from me."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Niall responded with automatic politeness. "Rayne and I weren't close, exactly, but we got along well. And we had more similarities than differences."

He was silent a few moments, pursing his lips thoughtfully. "Ms. Ordo. I hope you won't be offended if I make a suggestion."

Thera blinked. "Huh? What, um, do you have to say? Not a lot offends me, I don't think at least. Well, I suppose I get offended by things that normally offend people. Like murder." She shifted her eyes about. "Bounty hunting isn't usually murder."

"Not usually. The exceptions are notable." Niall said dryly.

He cleared his throat. "My apologies. Anyway, I had been about to say... if there is a path to reconcile with your sister, do so. I had the good fortune to see Rayne a few months ago, after I'd been injured. If I hadn't..." He sighed. "As you said before, there's no going back. Only forward."

"I can try, I suppose, I dunno." Thera took a breath, for a moment turning more serious and confident. "I will see what can be done." And in and instant, her confidence dropped back down and she was back to shifting about. "Do you, well, ever do," she trailed off. "Like shady things for the military. Black ops." She let out a nervous giggle. "My sister. My sister specializes in night raids and such."

Niall's eyebrows moved ever so slightly at the change in attitude from the Mandalorian leader. The moment quickly passed, though.

"Black ops? No. Not my department. I suppose you'll have to take my word for that." His lips twitched.

"But if you sister does that sort of thing, perhaps she should send us her information after all. If you think she'd be interested in working for the Republic. On a contract basis, no doubt."

Thera continued to play with her hair. "I, well, I'm not sure what my sister thinks of the Republic. She is an enigma at times." She let out a nervous chuckle. "She cares most about, how to put it... a good fight. And, yeah, contract basis is the best way to approach her."

Niall just nodded acknowledgement.

He sighed. "Ms. Ordo, let me extend my thanks for this call. Nothing can bring my sister back, but taking the time to speak to me regarding her loss... it is appreciated." He nodded. "As is your help in bringing her killer to justice."

"It's, uh, no problem at all. Um, well, you're welcome is what I mean to say." Thera gave a weak smile. "I. well, I suppose I should say 'good hunting' then. If it's your first, then, well, just be ready for things to not go as planned." She shook her head. "I mean, I'm sure you'll still succeed. Just things go awry quite easily."

"Indeed. Thus, this conversation." Niall was silent a few moments, his expression neutral. "Ms. Ordo..." He began. "It sounds as though you knew this Melv personally. I recognize the imposition of what I am about to ask..." He cleared his throat. "Is there anything you could tell me that would be of help in finding him?"

"Oh, uh, yeah I knew him kinda well. He had talent to become a greater hunter. But he's, well, young and stupid." Thera shifted her eyes about. "He'll be drinking his woes away. He, well, thinks I've forsaken him. And I guess have, but, I had to. Um, he won't stick around long."

Her face became more serious, at least relatively so. "When you apprehend him, he may be overly eager to fight back. It would be, well bad if something similar happened again."

"I quite agree." Niall nodded. "It is my greatest hope to avoid another such tragedy." He hesitated a moment. What if, when it came down to it, there was a choice between letting the man go, and starting another fight? Perhaps a similar decision had gotten his sister killed.

He shook his head. No way to know. "Do you think there's any chance he would come peacefully?"