Sona pointed up toward a tall structure that dwarfed
the buildings around us. "There's the bay! Co left!" A
throng of people clogged the cramped outdoor market
street ahead. Sona led us down a parallel side street. We
emerged near a cliff face—not unexpected, given that
Mos Shuuta covered the top of a small mesa. We turned
right, expecting to run between the buildings and the cliff
edge, but a towering, teetering stack of crates and junk
blocked the way.
"Wonderful." groaned Rels. The hunters would be here
in moments.
I grabbed Rels' wrist. "Come on. we'll skirt around the
outside. Just don't push me off the cliff!" I turned side-
ways, as there was just enough of a ledge to get around
the junk. I tried to touch the pile as little as possible.
Predictably. Rels slipped and panicked. He grabbed the
nearest stable thing to save himself—me. I seized his
hand and his momentum yanked me towards the edge.
I clutched the pipe I'd been using to balance myself, but
it found-no footing in the pile. The edge under Rels' feet
crumbled and suddenly I was holding us both, dangling
by one arm from the pipe. The pipe finally caught on
something and held, but both it and my arm threatened
to come loose at any moment.
Then. Rels went limp. Unconscious. I began to curse
him all the way to Ryloth when a stun bolt glanced off
the pile nearby. I'd forgotten about the bounty hunters.
They had hit Rels. I looked back and saw Sona halfway
up the pile, returning fire from behind a smashed crate.
Coson scrambled fearlessly across the ledge towards us.
He grabbed his brother by the arm and we hauled him
up. We slung him over my shoulder and I carried him to
safety behind some of the junk.
The pile lurched as Sona jumped down to join us,
having taken the high road over the top. She jammed
some kind of stim into Rels. He began to revive, but not
quickly enough.
I peeked around the corner and saw the bounty hunt-
ers—Rodians—walking nimbly along the ledge. "Come
on, Coson," I yelled at the strong Twi'lek. "PUSH!" I low-
ered my shoulder and we slammed into the pile. A dozen
random containers tumbled down on the Rodians just
before the whole pile lurched and slid off the cliff side
in an avalanche of junk. I didn't see whether or not the
Rodians went over with it. We ran.
Sona defeated the landing bay door's security in mo-
ments. To my surprise, inside stood a very familiar, very
worn freighter. It was disk-shaped, with its cockpit offset
on the starboard side. Its color scheme of equal parts
blue and rust seemed to visibly crack and fade in the
bright sunlight that streamed in through the landing bay's
open top. Sona ran up the boarding ramp to the hatch.
She punched in a code and the hatch sprung open. She
sprinted toward the cockpit, leaving me and Coson to
lead the staggering Rels into the ship.I strapped myself into the copilot's seat as the Rodi-
ans (or at least some of them) ran into the bay and we
roared into the sky. As we cleared the atmosphere, andthe horizon turned from blue to black. I turned to Sona,
a question burnin'g in my mind.-1 kept my hand on the
blaster in my lap, but didn't pick it up. Not yet, anyway.
"No one could break into a ship that fast. How did you
know the code to Logron's ship?"
Sona laughed. "It's MY ship. I owed him some cash,
and Logron decided to alter our deal and take the ship
instead. The Pero brothers and I tracked him to the farm
but got caught by some of his hunters. We figured out.too
late the ship was in Mos Shuuta."My mind raced with this unexpected turn. "How long
have you owned this ship?"
"Years."
My blaster came up instantly. Sona's smile vanished.
"Hey, hold up, I told you to point that thing at bounty
hunters."
"I think I am. My cousin disappeared six months ago
on Tatooine. and she was last seen being taken aboard a
blue freighter. This one. An informant in Mos Eisley told
me Logron owned it and used it for bounty hunters. I
found his hideout at the farm, but. his guards caught me
and threw me in with you and the brothers. I don't know
or care what you're mixed up in. I'm out here looking for
my.cousin. If it's your ship, you know where she is."'
"I'm a smuggler, not a bounty hunter. Coson and Rels
are my crewmates. Your cousin was in trouble with Jabba
the Hutt, so I smuggled her offworld." Sona sighed, "You
know, I always regret coming to Tatooine."
"I'm sure you do," said a voice from behind us. We spun
around, and I.instinctively aimed my blaster at the in-
truder. "As do I. Regret your coming here, that is. You're
trouble." A tall, well-dressed human with short black hair
and a full beard stood in the cockpit doorway, his blaster
aimed at us. It was Logron. In the rush, we hadn't checked
the ship. He could have been almost anywhere onboard.
"You did me no.favors leading my Rodian ex-partners
right to me. Now, you will land this thing at Mos Eis..."
He trailed off, staring out the. cockpit window behind'me
and Sona. which suddenly glowed. We turned to see the
bright white triangular hull of an Imperial Star Destroyer,
which had just dropped out of hyperspace.I turned around and shot the scum. Logron fell to the
deck, stunned. Unconscious.
Sona looked from me, to the blaster, to Logron, to
the Imperial ship outside. She smiled broadly and said,
"You know, I think you're right. Today I am a. bounty
hunter. I bet those Rodians knew something we didn't
about Logron. Let's make a few credits, then see to your
cousin." Sona grabbed the comlink microphone. "Captain
Sona Fey'lya of the Blue Flare to Imperial Star Destroyer.
You have great timing. I'd like to claim an Imperial bounty.
Shall we deliver, or do you want to pick up?"INTRODUCTION
EDGE OF THE EMPIRE